A Man's Protection.
A/N: This is kinda random for me, there's no real storyline, and actually one word kinda triggered this whole idea. The word "note". Now you know this is gonna kick ass!
Negi sighed as he awoke, and reached over the side of his bed, groping around for his shirt. His fingers closed upon his staff, and he flicked it aside, groaning slightly as a gentle breeze blew open the curtain, letting the pale morning light into the room. He squeezed his eyes closed, and continued reaching for his shirt. When he couldn't find it, knowing that last night he had thrown it on the floor on this side of the bed, he sat up, cursing softly to himself. The blanket that had been covering him fell to his waist, and he caught a glimpse of his toned, sixteen year old stomach. He leaned over the side of his bed, and cracked open his eyes, squinting as the low level of light hurt his eyes.
His shirt was no where to be found, and he wondered if it was under the bed. He leaned down further, and looked under, not finding it. He sat up, and sighed, careful not to disturb the girl next to him. He looked over, and saw that she was still sleeping. When his eyes landed on her, he smiled, his confusion disappearing. She was hugging his shirt tight to her chest, although when she had gotten it, he had no idea.
Negi got up, and as he walked out of his room, he passed a picture hanging on the door. It showed him, waaay back when he was ten, posing for a picture with all the girls of his class 2-A.
He dismissed it as ancient history, and continued down the hall. Once he reached the kitchen, he went to the refrigerator, and reached into the bottom of the door, grabbing a can of Pepsi.
He opened it slowly, before taking a long drink. He squeezed his eyes closed as he drank as much as he could, before taking a deep breath, shaking his head as the liquid burned his throat.
He looked around, and grabbed a cookie out of a jar on the counter. He stuck it in his mouth, and looked around for a piece of paper and a pencil. He opened some drawers, found a pencil in the knife drawer, and grabbed it. He looked around, and saw a few pieces of scrap paper, but shook his head. They wouldn't do. He opened some cupboards, and found some paper near some plates. He grabbed a piece, and dropped it onto the table. He took a bite of his cookie, and set it down, brushing his bangs out of the way. He quickly scrawled a note, and folded it up, thinking about what to do. He kept stalling, telling himself that he needed her, and that he should stay and protect her.
He got up, note in hand, and headed for the room.
The easiest way to protect her, he knew, was to make sure she wasn't involved with him. He opened the door quietly, and moved to the side of the bed. He placed the note on the dresser, next to her folded shirt, where she was sure to find it. He leaned over the side of the bed, and kissed her on the cheek. He straightened up, then after a few seconds' debate, leaned back down and kissed her on the lips. She moaned slightly, but otherwise, didn't wake. He straightened once again, and left, walking out.
As he passed the mirror hanging on the hallway wall, he stopped to look. His long red hair was messy, hanging in front of his eyes. He pushed it out of his face, and saw his eyes. They were narrower than his childish eyes, more dangerous, serious looking.
His gaze fell lower, and he saw the hickey on his neck. A bit further down, another. His gaze fell lower, and he saw his pants, hanging off his hips. His japanese was almost indistinguishable now from the natives, and his british accent had faded, along with his english.
He shrugged.
He left, heading for the door, and grabbed a different shirt from the basket in the living room. He pulled it over his head, and opened the door. He left, shutting it quietly. Negi took a second to look back and wonder if he was making a mistake, but the memory of her wound made him think that this was right. He left the driveway, and walked down the sidewalk, his mind at peace knowing she was going to be safe.
The girl woke up quickly, the sharp flash of light instantly throwing her out of unconsciousness. She sat up, wincing and holding her side. On her left side was a fist sized bandage, covering a wound from a sword thrust. It wasn't wide, but it was deep, and even with Negi's protection it had still hurt and was still life-threatening.
She looked over slowly, and her eyes widened when she saw that Negi wasn't beside her. She swallowed the uneasyness in her throat, and figured he must be in the kitchen or something.
She looked over, and saw her clothes on the dresser. It brought back memories of last night, and of Negi shutting her down.
"Damn you Negi." She said softly. "When you get back here I'm going to give you hell for that!"
The memory brought a blush to her cheeks. Negi had carefully laid her down, and tended to her wound with gentle fingers. After, he had kissed her, impulsively, and it was both their first serious kiss with each other since the pactio.
She had almost slapped him, but was stopped when he pulled away. He was blushing, but he looked so good! He had finally taken on that mature look that she loved to see in Takahata. His eyes, they had changed. Sharper, clearer, more focussed, and mature.
She had hugged him then. Kind of a wimpy move, but she had reached up and put her arms around his neck, hugging him. She had saved herself though. She had started kissing and sucking on his neck, and she knew he could understand. She wanted him.
He had smiled at her, and she could feel her face heating up. He had fallen onto his bed, turning onto his side and stared at her. Then he started talking. Trying to get her out of the mood she was in, she knew. He talked for a while, and she eventually joined his conversation with interest. She allowed herself to cool down.
They had talked for hours. Late into the night. At the end, and she knew he did it just to piss her off, he had kissed her again, barely touching her arm with his hand, knowing his touch was enough to get her thinking for hours on end.
And it did. He fell asleep with a smirk, and she was awake, thinking.
She threw her legs over the edge of the bed, taking a second to breathe. Her wound wasn't hurting as much anymore, but she could feel the healing skin pulling with every movement of her waist, and if she wasn't careful, she would tear it and reopen it.
She grabbed her shirt, and a piece of paper fell onto the floor. She spotted it, and reached down, grabbing it. It opened, and she brought it closer, reading it.
A second later, the shirt fell from her hand. A few seconds later, the paper joined the shirt on the floor. Asuna, emotions frozen, stood up, grabbing her shirt. She pulled it over her head, and flicked out her hair. She walked to the window, and looked out, wondering how long ago he had awoken, and left, taking her heart with him.
It was a nice day, She noted. It didn't at all match her feelings. The tears coursed down her cheeks, but she didn't dare make a sound. She had always been strong, and this was one thing she wouldn't let Negi down in.
Instead, she would wait. As long as he was gone, she would wait for him to come back. After all, he didn't say he was gone forever. He said he had left for a while. He didn't say he was coming back, but he didn't say he wasn't. She could hope.
Asuna, make sure you don't reopen your wound. Try not to worry about it, it'll heal in due time. I've gone out. I've got some stuff to do, so I might not be back for a while. A long while. A year maybe, longer. I don't know. You've never been that injured before in a fight, and it scared me. I want to do this by myself, I can't bear to see you hurt again. It might take a while, but believe me Asuna, I'll finish this, one way or another.
--Negi.