Chapter 1

"She's here?" asked Narumi-sensei. Serina nodded her head.

"She's an interesting girl. But what's her Alice?" she asked.

"Well, it's hard to explain..." Narumi trailed off.

"Hey, new girl." a girl with pigtails called to me, sitting at the desk quietly.

"What?" I replied.

"You're newly scouted, right? What's your Alice?" The pigtail head demanded. I looked down to my desk.

"Hey! Are you listening to me?!" I looked up at her once again.

"I don't listen to screaming. I have sensitive ears you know." I smirked up at her.

"H-How dare you...!"

"All right, sit down, sit down!" called Serina-sensei, "We have a new student today. Let's introduce her." I briskly walked to the front of the room and bowed.

"I'm Ayame. Ayame Takaeda. Nice to meet you. I'm from the United States, and this is just my name for being in Japan. Any questions?" The pigtailed girl raised her hand.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Ms. Ayame. I'm Arina. What's your Alice?" Arina sneered.

"...It's something." I replied. Arina was infuriated.

"What is your Alice?!" Arina demanded.

"Arina, sit down!" Serina-sensei scolded. She blushed in embarrassment.

That night at dinner, I sat alone. Then, suddenly, one of my underclassmen came over to me.

"Don't you feel lonely sitting alone?" Mikan Sakura from the 7th grade asked. I shook my head.

"Not really. I'm used to it." I continued to eat my chicken fried rice.

"Um, so I hear you don't know your Alice..."

"Kind of. It's not decided."

"Not decided?! What do you mean by thqt?!" Mikan exclaimed. I smiled and motioned my finger towards myself.

"I'll tell you a secret, so don't tell ANYONE."

"What is it?" Mikan whispered.

"They think I have multiple Alices." I whispered to her.

"WHAT?!?!?" Mikan cried in surprise.

"Shh!"

"Sorry... So, what do you THINK your Alices are?" Mikan looked at her in excitement. I softly giggled.

"Hey, you laughed!" Mikan smiled.

"Listen to this and tell me what you think." I took a breath and started to sing a sad, heartwrenching song.

Must you cage this bird,

In this country?

The young girl who will embrace every living thing is

Chasing the hidden star light

In the flowing dark of the night.

Her kind god will watch over her

And you were there

Those tears are from her cries.

Now, please sing, sing this we ask.

The star that is on the horizon,

Is for the sake of you existing.

You name is a melody.

I knew your heart would be filled with light.

Mikan started to cry. Tears poured from her eyes, and they fell from my own like diamonds.

"What... What is that song...?" Mikan asked.

"It's a song I learned. What did you imagine when I sang it?" I asked her, choking a little on sadness.

"I saw someone lonely, and she finally fell in love and was happy, but before she could confess, he..." Mikan started to sob, "He was taken away by the wind, and the girl was left alone.

"I think... I think one of my Alices is giving vision through song."

"That's so cool...! You could...!"

"I hate this ability."

"Eh...?" Mikan was surprised. The tears continued to flow from my eyes.

"Those memories... They're not meant to surface... I want to leave those behind... I love to sing, but...! These memories keep surfacing, and I start to cry, and I can't sing anymore...!"

"I'm sure..."

"Huh...?"

"I'm sure your Alice... Will get better over time." Mikan assured me. I smiled with tears still glistening on my face.

"Thanks Mikan."

"No problem." she smiled.

The next day, I woke up to birds singing a beautiful tune. I'd heard them singing famous music pieces every day since I got here a few days ago. Luca was conducting them to sing. I wanted to talk with him, but my shyness prevented me.

"Well, back to the classroom of hell." I sighed.

Arina was waiting for me at the front of the classroom.

"I see how it is Ms. Takaeda." she sneered.

"See what?"

"You don't have an Alice, do you?" Arina deducted boldly.

"Wow. Shocker. You're amazing Sherlock." I said dully.

"Then why are you in this school?!"

"Can't you tell when I'm being sarcastic...? I have an Alice."

"So what is it???" Arina insisted.

"So, what's yours?" I stared in patience.

"Mind-Reading. How about I show you and see what your Alice is?"

"Go ahead." I looked at her, and Arina stared back. She thought and thought, and went deeper and deeper into my mind.

"Say it REALLY loudly, so we all can hear you." "Fine then!" Arina told her. She cleared her throat, and without thinking, she declared, "I HAVE MULTIPLE BOYFRIENDS!!!"

The room went silent. Arina started to go red. DEEP red. Suddenly, most everyone burst out in laughter.

"Arina, how could you?!" demanded Boyfriend A.

"Who's this?!" yelled Boyfriend B in dismay.

3 other boys demanded the truth.

"H-How dare you make me say that!!!" Arina burst with flames.

"I didn't make you say it. You chose to say it on your own, remember? You should only use your Alice for good reasons, not to hurt other people. Don't use your Alice on me again, or I'll put something worse in my head." I said cooly.

"Y-You...!!! I'll never listen to what you say!!! Let's try looking again!!!"

"Be my guest." I sighed. Arina stared into my eyes. Then suddenly, her face went pale, then a shade of purple. She fell to the ground.

"Arina?!" Cried one of her goons. I walked by her fallen body.

"Arina, if you can hear me, let me tell you now. I can make images in my mind. My mind is as vivid as a storybook. You should NEVER go into my mind unless you want to end up on the floor again." I told her bluntly. I walked to my seat and waited for class to begin.

"She's an interesting girl." said one of my classmates, Raiden with a grin. His blond and raven streaked hair was as shiny as lightning itself.

"You think so?" asked a girl named Mei Mei cheerfully. Her choppy short black hair was cut oddly, and she wore a bell ribbon necklace that would ring whenever she walked.

"Ms. Arina, wake up!" yelled another goon. She slowly arose from her shock.

"What did you see?!" the goon asked.

"I-It was... A body torn in half...! It was being eaten by a were-wolf...!!! It ate my body that was in her mind...!!!" Arina went frail again, "We'll get her for this...!"

At lunch time, I went out to the courtyard where no one else was. But then, I received some unexpected visitors.

"Arina-chan!" called Mei Mei with Raiden. I glanced at them.

"...Hi." I quietly greeted.

"That was so cool when you blocked her Alice! I wish I could do that!" Raiden told her.

"...It's not hard. Focus on a thing you want them to see, and nothing else."

"I don't have that kind of focus...! That's amazing!" Mei Mei said in awe.

"What's your Alice?" asked Raiden.

"If you won't tell anyone, I'll show you."

"Really?!" exclaimed Mei Mei in joy.

"Awesome!" Raiden said in delight.

"Ready?" I asked. They nodded, and I took a deep breath.

Must you cage this bird,

In this country?

The young girl who will embrace every living thing is

Chasing the hidden star light

In the flowing dark of the night.

Her kind god will watch over her

And you were there

Those tears are from her cries.

Now, please sing, sing this we ask.

The star that is on the horizon,

Is for the sake of you existing.

You name is a melody.

I knew your heart would be filled with light.

Just as I expected, they both had tears falling down their cheeks.

"Wh-What is that...?" Mei Mei started to sob.

"...It's one of my Alices. I can make people feel memories through my song." I told them, "...I hate it. I don't want to sing these songs and get sad memories."

"Then why don't you sing for your happiness?!" shouted Raiden in frustration. I flinched at his anger. I hate to be scolded.

"Raiden...!!!" Mei Mei gasped.

"You're making it hard for all of us! You're making it hard for you! Don't give us these images!!!"

"You don't get it at all!!!" I cried to him and ran back to my room.

"Raiden, that was mean!!!" Mei Mei scolded. He glared.

"Well she shouldn't sing like that!" Raiden pouted.

"It's not her fault Raiden, and you know that!!! How do you think she feels?"

"...How should I know?"

"You should. Better than anyone." Mei Mei looked at him with sad eyes. He looked away in deep thought.

"I try..." I thought to myself, running back to the dorm, "I try to sing happy songs, but every time I do, I remember my happy memories, and I know I'll never see them again. I cry."

"There she is Arina!" a goon whispered to her.

"Good. Let's begin the plan." Arina smirked.

"Grab her!" sharply whispered the goon. 6 of them chased after me, trying to grab and hold me down. My teary eyes opened and I ran away from them before they could touch my arm.

"I HATE BEING CHASED! IT REMINDS ME OF MY BROTHER COMING TO HIT ME!" Arina mind read.

"Stop it!!!" I yelled in pain, not wanting those memories to resurface.

"I CAN'T SING, I'LL JUST CRY AGAIN FROM REMEMBERING HIM!"

"Shut up!!!" I screamed, when I suddenly tripped and fell to the ground. The goons grabbed my arms and held them firm behind my back.

"I want him to be here. I want him to hug me and tell me it's all right!" Arina laughed at my mind.

"Stop it...!!!" I cried. Tears fell down one by one.

"'I can't cry. That's just what she wants.' Well you're right. Good job." Arina sneered. She snapped her fingers, and one of her goons took a bucket of water and dumped it on my head. Then someone with a freezing Alice froze the water slowly up my arms.

"I hate the cold," Arina read my mind again, "If only I still had my home before it was destroyed."

"SHUT UP!!!" I screamed in horror, remembering the sights from 4 years ago. I felt cold. My body was numb. My vision was getting fuzzy, and I felt sleepy. Then, I heard hooves. A pure black horse with a choppy mane ran to me with a girl on her back.

"Ayame-Chan!!!" the girl now recognized as Mikan called. She jumped off the horse, ran and hugged me, and so the ice melted off my arms. In the blink of an eye, the horse changed to a ferocious panther. It roared at the group of bullies and they flinched and froze. It lifted it's paws and chased after them, with the goons screaming. But Arina remained, wanting to finish the job. She held a pot of Sleeping Beauty mousse, which is a product found in the Central Town. Once applied (or dumped on), the person will fall asleep for a week. She pushed Mikan away from me and was about to pour it on my head, when suddenly a clap of thunder was heard. I used my still-hazy eyes to see who was there, and it was none other than Raiden, holding a lightning ball in his hand.

"R-Raiden-sama...!!!" the fangirl Arina gasped.

"Get away from her!!!" he yelled in fury, with a glare of thunder. Arina shivered and ran away before he threw the lightning. He ran towards me and looked at me in the eyes.

"Are you OK?!" he asked to me in panic. I looked at him and tears softly fell from my eyes.

"Dunno..." I weakly told him.

"Why didn't you use your Alice?! You could have stopped them!"

"'Cause... You told me not to sing..." My eyes turned dull, and I fell into a deep sleep.

casual clothes do you imagine the characters having? I already have an image, but I'll write it next time I update. WHICH WILL

BE IN CHAPTER 8. PLEASE COMMENT!

P.S. All songs, even in Japanese, will be translated or left in English, for your understanding. This one this chapter, I translated without looking at Japanese lyrics, so it might be a bit off.

Song used this chapter: Reading the Stars Hoshiyomi

Artist: Akiko Shikata