Hello all! I come to you with a new project, alongside the many I already have on the go, and I hope you will find much enjoyment in it. This is a twin storied project, and will simultaneously take place in two fandoms. This one is born in the Negima! universe, and is called "Snowstorms in August".

For those of you unaware, the author of Negima!, Ken Akamatsu, has begun (quite a while ago, now) a sequel of sorts, called UQ Holder!. Definitely check it out, you won't be disappointed. The twin fic that this one supplements will be called "Chasing Snowstorms", and will be uploaded in the UQ Holder! subsection. It may or may not contain spoilers for the manga, so it's definitely worth checking out. Thanks for taking the time to read! Also, both of these fics are non-canon, and are not set in any particular timeline. Without further ado, I present the first chapter of 'Snowstorms in August'.

Snowstorms in August

Chapter 1: Alone Tonight

Negima!

It was mid May. The temperatures were mild for this time of year; it was not uncommon to get as low as seven degrees Celcius in the early morning. Average highs were around 20 or 21 in the past, but a red-haired girl noted with a dissatisfied huff that it had rarely gotten past 15 in the last few weeks.

Living a normal life after the discovery of magic wasn't such an easy task, she was reminded almost daily. Against her will, her mind cast back to the events of when she was merely a young teen, but she quickly blocked them out. It was best not to think about it.

'That reminds me,' She thought, burying her hands in the pockets of her sweater as she walked briskly down the sidewalk, 'I haven't heard from Negi in awhile. I wonder what that brat is up to these days. I'll have to give him a call when I get back to the house.'

It had been so long since she had seen him. They had parted ways not too long after...that event... making hollow-sounding promises to get together regularly and keep in touch.

Gazing at her shin-high tan leather boots as they dutifully trod down the sidewalk, she almost didn't hear her name being called.

"...na!"

Hesitating, the sound of bells tinkling reached her ears. Raising her head, she once again heard that too-familiar sound.

"Asuna!"

Blinking, she paused her footsteps and looked around, the bells ribboned to her ponytails tinkling in unison, seemingly mocking her confusion.

Looking around, Asuna's gaze fell on a chocolate haired girl, her long-time friend and current room-mate.

"Oi, Konoka!" Asuna replied, putting a hand on her hip and attempting to look annoyed.

"What took you so long?" The girl replied, a perpetual smile adorning her flawless, beautiful face.

Asuna shrugged, feigning indifference. "Eh, got caught up, is all."

Konoka wagged a finger at her, then reached out and pulled open the door to the cafe they were meeting at. With a smile on her face, she gestured for Asuna to go ahead of her.

Waving her thanks, Asuna entered, Konoka right behind her. Stepping up to the counter, her heterochromatic eyes glanced briefly at the menu board high above the cashier's head. It was a fleeting glance though; she knew what she wanted.

"One large black coffee, please."

"Sure! One-ninety, please."

Rummaging through her pockets for change, her search was stopped by Konoka stepping up beside her and placing a hand on her arm.

"And one extra large strawberry frappucino." Konoka added, reaching out and handing the cashier a slightly crumpled bill.

"Hey," Asuna protested lightly, running her fingers through her hair. "You paid last time!"

Konoka shrugged, stepping off to the side out of the way of the lineup forming behind them. Hand still on Asuna's arm, Konoka gently tugged Asuna over out of the way, while running her free hand through her hair, mirroring Asuna's gesture.

"Don't worry about it." Konoka gently waved off her concerns.

Asuna sighed, and was about to respond, when they were interrupted by a uniformed worker placing two drinks in front of them on the counter.

"Enjoy!" He said, before turning away to pander to the next customer in line.

Grabbing their drinks, they looked around the seating area before finding one off near the window at the far end of the store.

"That one." Asuna pointed. Konoka nodded in agreement, and they both stepped around waiting customers as they made their way to the two seater table.

Sitting down, Konoka cracked the lid on her, in Asuna's opinion, very girly drink.

"So, have you heard from Negi recently?" Konoka asked, raising the hot liquid to her lips and taking a careful sip.

Asuna shook her head as she wrapped her hands around her cup. Then she shrugged, as if indifferent to the whole situation.

"Not really, no. I mean, I get that he's busy, but..."

"Does it bother you that much, though? You keep saying you're not interested in him."

Another shrug, this time with only one shoulder.

"I'm not, really, but he's the one who showed interest in me. You think he would try a little harder, wouldn't you?"

Ever ladylike, Konoka refrained from returning a shrug of indifference. Instead, she merely raised one slender eyebrow.

"Well, it's hard to say with Negi."

"What makes you say that?"

"You, Negi, myself..." Another sip of her syrupy drink, then a pause of contentment. Pink tongue darting out to lick her lips, she continued. "We're not like the others, you know that. Especially him. What with being immortal and all, I imagine it's hard for him to really bond with people. You might have to put in a little effort on your part."

Asuna turned her head to the side, looking out the window.

"Ehhh." Waving a hand dismissively at Konoka, she shook her head.

"Not interested." She said, with an air of finality.

Konoka allowed herself to sigh exasperately. "You're twenty-seven years old. If you don't find someone to settle down with, you will never have kids, you know that?"

Asuna glanced at her from the corner of her eye.

"You know I don't want kids. And who cares? The single life isn't so bad, you know."

"Muuu, Asunaaa." Konoka pouted, widening her big brown eyes. "But you have to have kids! Konoka wants kids!"

Asuna smirked, looking down at her cup.

"Shouldn't you have thought about that before setting your sights on that clueless Shinmei-ryu swordswoman?"

Suddenly Konoka's eyes took on a faraway look, glazing over, and Asuna knew she was losing Konoka.

"Oi, Konoka, come back to Earth." Asuna said, before raising her cup and taking a sip.

There were a few moments of silence as they were each left alone with their thoughts, only the occasional tapping of cups on wooden table tops and background chatter reaching their ears.

"Where is she, anyway?" Asuna asked after a moment, curiosity getting the better of her.

Konoka seemed to perk up, a smile gracing her features as she looked up from the table top.

"I got a text from her a few days ago, letting me know that she was okay and that she landed in Seoul safely."

"Ahh, Seoul!" Asuna exclaimed. "I've always wanted to go to South Korea. That's so exciting. It's supposed to be beautiful there!"

Konoka nodded enthusiastically.

"When she returns I'm going to see if she wants to go on a vacation there."

Asuna wrinkled her nose. "Really? Back to the place she just came from? Wouldn't that be a bit redundant?"

Konoka hummed softly. "Well, I imagine vacationing there is vastly different than going there for work."

Asuna shrugged.

"I dunno, it's probably more enjoyable for her to be down there by herself, I imagine it's hard to pick up Korean girls when you've got a little brown-haired tag-along."

Konoka swiftly reached out in an attempt to punch Asuna's shoulder, but Asuna was quicker, leaning away from the strike while giggling softly.

Konoka stuck her tongue out at the red-head.

"I don't think that's what she's doing at all."

"You hope that's not what she's doing." Asuna corrected.

"Mouu, Asunaaa."

Asuna laughed, leaning back in her chair until it was propped up on it's rear legs. Keeping her balance with her toes, she surveyed Konoka's dejected expression.

"I'm just kidding, you know." Asuna said. "I doubt she's out picking up Korean chicks. From what I've seen, I doubt she has a sex drive."

A faint tinge graced Konoka's cheeks at Asuna's comment, but she didn't dignify her with a response on the subject. Instead, she changed it.

"How's Ayaka doing, have you talked to her recently?"

Asuna nodded. "It's odd talking to her now that we have this big secret, you know? Trying to find normal people stuff to talk about is hard, especially since I used to tell her everything."

Konoka clucked her tongue sympathetically.

"And you don't think it would be a good idea to tell her about this?"

Asuna's eyebrows furrowed in concentration as she released her grip on her coffee and held her hands out in front of her, palms up. Closing her eyes, she summoned the magical power residing deep inside her and directed it toward her palms. Thrumming with potential magical energy, just awaiting the incantation of a spell to be released, Asuna reveled in the feeling of power.

Suddenly, Asuna felt hands on her own. Opening her eyes, Konoka was standing up, leaning over the table and pressing her hands down against Asuna's, eyes wide as she gazed in disbelief at Asuna.

"Asuna! You can't do that here!" She whispered.

Asuna looked down at her hands and realized that she could see a faint purple hue surrounding her hands. Surprised, she quickly put the magic on lockdown, watching the faint aura fade from sight.

"Weird." Asuna said, as Konoka released her and sat back down with an exasperated sigh.

"That's the first time it's been physically visible." Asuna commented, turning her hands over to examine the back of her palms.

"Maybe you need to go blow off some steam somewhere." Konoka suggested. "That's the first time I've seen you dredge up that much magical potential."

"Yeah...I really shouldn't without a strong mage watching over me." Asuna replied, letting her hands fall back to the table.

Konoka hummed. "Call Negi."

Asuna raised her gaze to the brown-haired girl. Staring at her for a second, she responded by childishly sticking her tongue out.

A giggle. "Fine, call Ayaka."

"I can't do that, she's a Muggle."

A wry grin at the ages-old reference.

"I'm sure Setsuna could help you out."

Asuna tilted her head to the side, faint clinking accompanying the movement.

"Yeah, when she gets back from Seoul, I guess."

Konoka hummed happily at the prospect, while Asuna raised an eyebrow in curiosity as a thought occured to her.

"Hey, do you ever play with yours?" She asked.

Konoka leaned back in her seat, both hands cupping her drink as she raised it to her lips. Taking a sip, she set the cup back down before picking up a white napkin to dab daintily at her lips.

"Every once in a while." She responded. "It's so strong. Overwhelming, inside of me. It's scary sometimes, and I wish Setsuna were here to help me through it. I try to keep it locked up most of the time, its terrifying."

"At least you're pretty good at silent incantation casting." Asuna said. "I cannot get a grasp on it for the life of me."

Konoka allowed herself a slow shrug. "I'm sure you'll get it eventually. You just need a mentor, the way Setsuna teaches me. You're doing well for experimenting by yourself, but you would excel faster if you had someone show you how it's all done."

Asuna rolled her eyes, then raised her cup to her lips and threw her head back, draining it. Setting it back down on the table, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"I swear to God, if you say Negi, I'll break your fingers with a tiny hammer."

Konoka giggled, pulling her hands off the table to fold across her chest.

"I wasn't going to say that at all..."

Asuna 'tch'ed, turning her head to look out the window. For a few peaceful moments, there was silence on the subject.

Then...

"What is your adversion to Negi, anyway?" Konoka asked.

Asuna turned to look at her, and deflected Konoka's question with one of her own.

"What's your fascination with him? I thought you were weirdly obsessed with the sword-swinger."

Another grin and happy hum from the brown-haired girl at the mention of the Shinmei-ryu warrior.

Asuna smiled to herself at how easy it was to derail the young healer mage. As smart as she was, she often had a one track mind when it came to the sword-swinger.

"You didn't answer my question, you know." Konoka said.

'Damnit...'

Not bothering to respond, Asuna turned to look out the window. Every once in a while a person would walk by, but the streets were surprisingly empty and peaceful looking.

'What a reminder of better days...'

Snowstorms in August

Countless stars hung in the night sky overhead, shining down with all their might in a fierce competition with the full moon. Although brilliantly lit against the inky black backdrop of the night sky, neither the moon nor the stars were a match for the incredible amount of light pollution the city of Seoul was pumping out. If one were to turn their gaze to the heavens, only a few select stars would be visible, and the moon would be naught but an ordinary sight. There was little reason to look to the heavens though, what with the vibrant night life the city held.

Sitting on the roof of a seven story tall apartment building, a raven haired girl leaned back against a concrete abuttement, and raised her gaze to the stars above. Impatiently running her fingers through her long black hair, she once again fussed with the red ribbon holding it in her long-worn side ponytail. In her lap, a cell phone waited, screen black.

The city was beautiful, she noted. She would like to eventually return here when she wasn't preoccupied with work, and spend some time looking around. Many an interesting thing had caught her gaze, but she was unable to devote all of her attention to the sights.

Hands dropping to her lap, she sighed quietly. This feeling of nervousness and longing would not leave her chest.

It was like this every time she went away, she knew. She was almost used to it. The familiar pang of desire would not be quelled until she was walking side by side once more with the girl who haunted her dreams.

Pushing those thoughts aside before she fell too deep into her own self-afflicted pit of misery, she lowered her gaze to the phone in her lap.

Still nothing.

For the third time in as many minutes her left hand sought out the sword laying by her side. Reassured that it was still there, she passed her fingertips down it's length before reaching up and absent-mindedly caressing the red ribbon in her hair.

She allowed herself a deep inhale, followed by an impatient sigh. Oh how she just longed to go home...

'Your mind is such a depressing place.' Came a gently teasing voice.

Closing her eyes, she pictured the face of the owner, a seemingly young looking man in his mid-twenties with shoulder length obviously dyed jet black hair pulled into a messy ponytail. Deep hazel eyes that could be mistaken for red in the right lighting seemed to bore right into her, a splash of freckles across the bridge of his nose indicating what color his hair naturally used to be before it's dyeing.

'Stop being nosy, then, Negi.' Was her only reply.

A soft chuckle seemed to echo through her head, before she could 'hear' his voice once more.

'I'm barely looking; you're broadcasting your emotions so loudly im surprised the geosynchronous satellites in orbit aren't picking it up.'

The girl ground her flawless white teeth together, elongated canines gently digging into her bottom lip. Under the cover of her black hoodie, an irritated twitch.

'I fucking miss her, okay?'

'Unam animam.' His voice was low and husky in her mind, indicating that he had stopped teasing her.

'Enough with the Latin.'

'Heh. It means "one soul', you know.'

Ignoring the explanation, she raised her eyes to the faint stars above.

'Our target is late. Is there any point to remaining here? Maybe they caught wind of us.'

'Patience. We have all night.'

Running her tongue over her sharp fangs, her mind was instantly filled with all of the things she would rather be doing.

'Yeah, I get that this is pretty boring, Setsuna, but getting drunk in a strange bar and pouring your heart out to the South Korean folk who don't understand a lick of your language won't get you home any faster.'

Setsuna rolled her eyes, deep puddles of ebony that seemed to flicker like the night sky itself, almost as if a galaxy were contained in the iris that encircled the never ending blackness of her pupils. Her porcelain white skin was soft to her touch as she reached up to rub her eyes in frustration.

'That definitely wasn't a thought meant for your prying mind. Besides, if you came and got drunk with me, I'm sure you'd have a much better opinion of it.'

This time she could hear uproarious laughter in her mind.

'Setsuna, you have the attention span of a newborn kitten sometimes. I could embarrass you to death by reciting thoughts I've heard that I'm sure weren't meant for me. You're quite the vivid day dreamer, aren't you?'

Setsuna could feel the heat rising in the back of her neck, but seeing as she couldn't remember any specific examples of her frequent day dreaming, she decided to ignore it.

'Besides, you know as well as I do that I don't mix well with alcohol.'

Setsuna snickered.

'You do tend to get pretty handsy with the blonde-haired girls.'

Suddenly, a new voice cut through her mind like the sharpest of swords.

'Bring up that story and I'll erase the both of you from the history books.'

The voice sent a chill down her back that no amount of snuggling into her hoodie could shake.

'Yes, Dangerous Queen.'

Setsuna smiled to herself at the lilting quality of Negi's voice when addressing Evangeline.

'Negi, I swear I-'

'Guys shut up.' Setsuna interrupted, as the phone in her lap suddenly lit up, vibrating softly in her lap.

'I've got contact.'

Slowly Setsuna stood, sword in her left hand. Reaching high into the sky, she stretched, feeling her powerful muscles slowly come alive.

'I've got contact too.' Negi's voice in her mind.

'Be careful.' Evangeline warned. 'Although I doubt Asuna would care at the news of your death, Negi, I would probably feel just a little bit bad telling Konoka that Setsuna's body was torn to ribbons in a waterfall of blood at the hands of a mid-level mage.'

A scoff from Negi sounded in the back of her mind. Ignoring him, she tuned them out.

Setuna inhaled deeply, and held it. Closing her eyes, she turned her face to the sky and slowly exhaled. Drawing her sword from it's sheath, she opened her eyes. Slowly, she walked toward the edge of the building. With no hesitation, she stepped up onto the ledge, turned her gaze down to the busy streets below, and threw herself off the edge.

A/N: This is an exciting project for me, and all forms of feedback and criticism are welcome. For those that are familiar with my previous stories, especially those who have read "Shatter", I hope you'll enjoy this. Please, review and let me know what you think.

Also, seeing as this walks hand in hand with it's twin fic, it would be beneficial to subscribe to an Author Alert if this story is something that has captured your interest, so that you'll be made aware of when I post the first chapter of the twin fic. Once it's posted, I'll be updating each story in the correct order as intended. Thank you for reading!