Special Alice (Gakuen Alice / Alice Academy FF)

SA 82 - Oh no

{Author}

It was a rainy day, and most of the students had already gathered on campus, but Mikan had just been released from the hospital. Her friends, including Hotaru and Permy, picked her up since she had been unconscious for three days, and they were concerned.

Misaki was nowhere to be seen, as she had a medical checkup scheduled around the same time. While she was rushing from the dormitory to the hospital, she bumped into Kokoroyomi.

Once Mikan and the others left, Misaki watched them from a distance. When she saw that they had gone ahead, she opened her umbrella and made her way to the campus.

Unexpectedly, she stepped on something mushy, hoping it wasn't something that would dirty her shoe.

" Yikes-..." she winced and looked down, finding a brown teddy bear soaked in the rain.

" Bear? Mr. Bear?!" she exclaimed, picking up Bear and scanning for Tsubasa.

After questioning several students, she managed to locate him. Tsubasa placed Bear on a chair and began drying him.

" Poor Bear-san... I wonder why he's near the hospital," Misaki sighed as she looked at Bear.

Tsubasa casually used a blow dryer to dry Mr. Bear. " You could've dried him yourself, you know," he started, but Misaki gave her Senpai a pointed look.

" Come on, Senpai. At least have some sense of responsibility since he was made by your friend," Misaki chided, causing Tsubasa to sigh in defeat.

After a few minutes of blow-drying, Bear was finally dry. " All done! You must pay me, Misaki," Tsubasa reminded, extending his hand as if expecting payment.

Misaki pouted and handed Tsubasa a small pouch filled with coins. " Happy?" she retorted.

Tsubasa grinned and gave Misaki a light pat on the head. " Of course! Now, why don't you go and take Bear with you- ah, wait, where is he?! Bear, where are you going? You'll get wet!" Tsubasa quickly pulled Bear away from the door to prevent him from escaping.

" Mr. Bear was near the hospital when I found him, Senpai," Misaki explained. Tsubasa was surprised as he carried Bear.

" Hospital..." Tsubasa muttered, connecting the dots.

Tsubasa, Bear, and Misaki decided to head to the hospital.

Kaname, Bear's creator, had been in poor health, with his condition deteriorating, especially last year during winter. He even became sensitive to cold and rainy days, and Bear seemed to be aware of this.

" He can't even be with Kaname Senpai during this hardship," Misaki muttered as she looked at Bear, who was wearing a raincoat and boots, staring at the hospital building with a lack of energy.

Tsubasa sighed while holding an umbrella. " Let's go back. If Kaname discovers that you were here, he'll be worried sick," he tried to persuade Bear.

Misaki was deeply moved by Bear's determination, especially after witnessing Koko copying his Alice briefly, which had been enabled by their recent encounter.

" Tsubasa Senpai, I think that Mr. Bear is purposefully getting soaked in the rain so that, when he weakens, his soul can return to Kaname Senpai, even if it helps him only a little bit," Misaki sadly noted. Tsubasa was concerned as he held Bear.

" Bear doesn't want to leave," Misaki added, pointing to Bear, who wasn't showing any signs of moving.

Tsubasa pursed his lips and walked over to Bear, holding him with his free hand.

" Geez, just how dramatic can you be?" Tsubasa shook his head, sighing in disbelief. " Why are you so harsh on yourself and the soul you were given? You shouldn't be so cruel to Kaname, who's doing his best in the situation he's in," Tsubasa lectured, attempting to console the despondent Bear.

Reluctantly, they had to carry Bear away from the hospital.

Meanwhile, at Gakuen Alice, a group was conspiring to find a way to capture Mikan and her Alice.

" So, in the end, Narumi Sensei's arm fully recovered not because of the Stealing Alice but due to his own recuperative abilities and Alice medical treatment."

" I considered inviting Sakura to our side discreetly, but our plans need to change."

After some time, Misaki finally arrived at their classroom, settling quietly into her seat. She noticed that Bear was there too. She went over to Mikan and Hotaru, but Bear followed her.

" It looks like Mr. Bear is following you! That evil, compressed into a bear..." Mikan commented, and Bear's attention shifted to her.

" Help! Misa-chan!" Mikan shrieked and ran out of the room with a new toilet brush to keep Mr. Bear away from her.

Misaki giggled a little seeing that Mikan is in a better shape. " She's pretty energized after being hospitalized for three days." Hotaru commented but not even sparing a glance." Exactly, is she taking vitamins?" Misaki asked out. 

Permy popped up beside Misaki. " Oh, ask Ruka. They seem pretty close these days. That witch is stealing my Ruka, I should ruin her day! Ugh!" she stomped her foot on the floor and slumped in her seat, cursing Mikan.

Ruka suddenly sneezed cutely, seated at the back with Natsume, who was isolating himself by the window, reading a magazine.

The door slammed open, and Mikan rushed in, panicking. " Mr. Bear has been following me!" she exclaimed, darting toward Misaki while wielding a new toilet brush to keep Mr. Bear at bay.

" Inchou, Hotaru, and the others called for Koko, the mind reader, to help Mikan and Bear resolve their problem.

Koko crossed his arms and said with his usual cheerful expression, " He wants to know if it's true that Mikan-chan has the Stealing Alice." Mikan and the other students were taken aback.

" Eh?" they whispered among themselves.

Koko proceeded to convey Bear's message, " To Mikan, who has the Stealing Alice, he wants her to steal the Alice inside Bear and return it to Kaname Senpai. He believes it would help improve Kaname Senpai's health." He delivered the message without hesitation.

The others gasped. " The Stealing Alice, you say? What's that?" they whispered in astonishment.

" He overheard a conversation between Mikan and Narumi Sensei about the Stealing Alice," Koko added. Natsume's eyes widened, as did Misaki's.

" Mikan-chan..." Inchou called out, worry in his voice.

The revelation of the Stealing Alice created a palpable tension in the room. Out of the blue, Mikan grabbed Bear and hurried outside to have a conversation with him.

" This is bad..." Misaki said, rubbing her temples in frustration.