Disclaimer: Gakuen Alice does not belong to me, but I wish it did :) Please be kind, this is my first story!

The acrid, unpleasant smell of burnt toast filled Mikan's nostrils. She sighed in annoyance. When would she ever learn to cook? She removed the toast, throwing it into the bin haphazardly. Nothing was going right today. Her hair was a mess, and her breakfast was ruined.

She took new, fresh pieces of toast, put them into the temperamental toaster, and hoped for the best.

If it burnt again, she would scream. Literally.

However, a white envelope with a shining red bow caught her attention. As Mikan neared the table, she could her the steady beats of her heart.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Her fate would be decided in this moment.

Mikan opened the envelope, and read its contents, her eyes growing wider and wider with the shock.

Dear Mikan Sakura,

We are pleased to say that your application to Alice Academy has been successful, and you have been accepted for a place. School fees will not be necessary, because you have been allowed a full scholarship. Please respond in a week's time, or else your place may be given to another worthy candidate. Please be reminded that places are very scarce, and less than ten candidates are accepted each year.

Yours truly,

Kazumi Yukihira

High School Principal

"Grandpa, grandpa! I can't believe it, I've been accepted into THE Alice Academy! You can't imagine how long I've been waiting for this..."

"I'll get to see Hotaru again," Mikan thought to herself.

Mikan's grandfather was a kindly old man with twinkling eyes, a wrinkled face, and a warm heart. He was pleased to see Mikan happy, but as she hollered and jumped around the apartment, he felt the tugs of sadness upon his heart. He knew that he wouldn't see Mikan again, not for a long time, perhaps not in this lifetime.

However, he merely smiled and told her to pack her things if she wanted to catch tomorrow's bus to Alice Academy, which was located in Tokyo, far away from their countryside home.

He knew he'd miss her. Mikan had been the light of his twilight years, and he still remembered keenly the day when he had adopted her. He knew, deep down, that he may never see her again.

Seventeen years ago

It was a bitter snowstorm. The snow was many centimeters deep, and it clothed everything around it in a blanket of white. The frigid winds bit and tore at travelers, and most people were in their homes, desperately trying to warm their feet at the fireplace.

A woman was standing in the cold, holding her newborn child. I took pity on her, and invited her in. No one should have to stand outside, in the subzero temperatures. She looked desperately sad, and tears were pouring down her face. She had long chestnut hair, and mysterious amber eyes.

She offered her child to me, and at first I declined.

"Please, I beg you, help my daughter. She's sick, and they're coming after us. I don't want her to suffer!"

Seeing the desperation in her eyes, I accepted.

She thanked me one last time, and then disappeared from my eyes. I never saw her again, and never learnt of her name. I knew her child would be special, because no ordinary human could have disappeared like that.

I looked down at the child, who stared at me with amber eyes like her mother. She didn't cry, nor did she wail. Afterwards, I called a doctor for the child, telling him she was my granddaughter. Now her name was Mikan Sakura.

Mikan hugged her grandfather tight, unaware of the memories running through his mind.

"Do you mind me going, Grandpa?"

"No, Mikan. Not at all."

But he lied.

That's it, hope you enjoyed it! Review, review!