Wings

Part 1- Chapter 2 - Mikan POV

Here's another chapter for y'all! I really hope you like this story, vote for it, and feel free to give me some feedback, I LOVE feedback!

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Gakuen Alice, they belong to the wonderful Higuchi Tachibana-sama! Sorry for Ooc-ness, that's all on me. Inspiration from this story goes to E.D.B.

~Four years later~

Mikan swiped her tongue over her teeth as she lowered the rearview mirror. She hated visiting the dentist's office, but she had to admit that her teeth felt and looked a lot cleaner. Turning away from the mirror, she glanced out the window of her mother's minivan while she thought about her upcoming audition. Normally she would have used an afternoon dentist appointment as an excuse to skip school for the rest of the day, but the auditions for the school dance group were slated to start right after the last class period and she definitely did not want to miss them. The group was hard to get into and ...

Her mother slammed on the brakes, narrowly missing a large animal that had darted across the street and into the hedge on the other side. "Did you see that?" Hana Sakura asked, her knuckles white as she gripped the steering wheel. "That dog came out of nowhere. I don't understand people who let their pets run loose. I could have killed it!"

Mikan's heart was racing as she studied the still rustling shrubs. She had seen enough of the creature before it disappeared to know that it hadn't been a dog. True, it had been running on all fours, but its face was human, or nearly so, and it had been wearing brown pants and a baggy shirt. As her mother stepped on the gas pedal, the face reappeared framed in the leaves of the hedge and watched the car as it moved off. The slightly bulbous nose and close-set eyes looked human, although the long, flopping ears would have looked more appropriate on a cocker spaniel. Another face appeared beside it, smaller than the first, with curly white fur covering its human cheeks and chin. It too was watching the passing cars and was turning toward her when Mikan forced herself to look away. They were the same kinds of creatures she'd seen before, only this time she knew better than to let them know it.

"A penny for your thoughts," her mother said as they waited at a stoplight. "You're being awfully quiet. If you're worried about your audition, you shouldn't be. I'm sure you'll do just great. You're a wonderful dancer."
"Hmm? Oh, sorry," said Mikan. "I'm not worried."

At least not about the audition, she thought. Four years before, the creatures had chased her down this very same street. She hadn't seen them since then. If they were back, why now and why had they been gone for so long? All the fear of that long-ago night had come back, leaving her unable to think about anything else.

At the dance audition, as she stood in line waiting for her turn, she hardly noticed the girls around her chattering about the butterflies in their stomachs and how much they wanted to get in the group. Mikan took deep, even breaths, hoping to slow the racing of her heart. Her nervousness had nothing to do with dancing and everything to do with what she might see once she walked out the school door. Why were they back now?

At least Aoi was with her, more to support Mikan than because she really wanted to dance. The audition wasn't very long; each girl would get only a few minutes to show what she could do. Even so, the line seemed to be taking forever to move.

Then it was Mikan's turn to go into the room and stand in front of Miss Shizune and the senior members of the dance group. Once the music she had selected began to play, Mikan forgot all about the creatures and what she would do if she saw them again, letting her desire to dance take over.

Although Mikan had never taken any formal lessons, she had always enjoyed dancing. Years earlier her family had gone camping in a state park not far from their home. She had been asleep in the tent with her parents and brothers when she woke up to the sound of music. Whatever was creating it didn't sound like anything she had heard before, but it was enough to make her wriggle out of her sleeping bag and crawl out of the tent.