Checkmate

by Autumn Win-Dow

Chapter One: Station Fog

It was the first time Mikan had ever seen her best friend and business partner truly risk everything.

Mikan held the collar of her white trench coat close to her neck, in an attempt to block the cold. In contrast, the black haired woman stood still, clad in a plain black business suit. Upon having waited for ten minutes at the deserted train station without sensing another presence, Mikan nervously chuckled as a ray of hope appeared.

"Hotaru, maybe they dropped out. You can win without doing this."

"Save it, Mikan," Hotaru sharply retorted without facing her, "I won't place my hopes on anything unless they call and tell me that they've forfeited."

The brunette knew that the plan was doomed to end badly, and she was concerned for Hotaru. The ebony haired woman had confidently bet all of her monetary assets on the plan, and no matter how much faith Mikan held for her, she was not at all confident.

"But Hotaru-"

"They're here."

Mikan squinted into the foggy distance to see four dark silhouettes which were making their way towards the pair. She immediately noticed the shortest in the front, a dark haired male with a chilling smirk on his lips, and Mikan immediately concluded that yes, nothing was bound to end well.

When the four arrived so that they were two metres away from where the women stood, the short male opened his mouth.

"You are Hotaru Imai, if I may be correct. And behind you, Mikan Sakura?" His voice is smooth. False.

"Cut the act, we don't need formalities." Hotaru sharply spoke, seemingly unafraid.

The smile on his face vanished, replaced by a frosty smirk.

"Let us board then?" He offered, signalling to the train waiting.

As Hotaru nodded, Mikan's eyes shifted towards another man.

Red.

A/N: Hey guys, I'm back. HAHAHA. It's hard for me to write more nowadays, which is sad, but I will be restricting one chapter per scene, so it progresses quickly. There may be exceptions, but it won't be as slow as Efflorescence is. I just started my HSC year so delays are imminent, but I hope you (sorta) like this.

I write because the Gakuen Alice fandom is dying. It needs to be revived, and I just want to help to return it to its former state.