Disclaimer - I don't own Negima.
A Destined Encounter by Juliet
"… But it looks like I won't be drinking that coffee again."
A white haired boy stood in the middle of a lone field. The town nearby was ablaze, lighting up the night sky. He glanced around in silence, the only sound was the fire roaring in the distance.
"…"
He slowly began walking–walking towards a wooden cabin that sat at the edge of the field. There were no lights coming from the cabin, it was wrapped in complete darkness. He stopped at the front of the wooden stairs that led up to the porch and stood there for a moment. He then turned and walked to the side of the stairs, looking underneath.
"Ah…"
The sound came from a young girl. She had short, curly blonde hair and green eyes. She was trembling, hiding in fear underneath the staircase. Her white dress was completely ruined by the dirt, and she had several scrapes and scratches all along her legs and hands. Tears were streaming down her face as she stared up at the boy, too scared to move or look away.
"I won't harm you."
The boy finally spoke. His voice was rather dull and monotone, but there was some sincerity behind it. The girl perked up when he said those words, unsure if she should trust him or not. She did know who he was–in the loosest sense–he was the same boy who fell unconscious from the sky. The girl's sister had helped him and allowed him to rest in their cabin for a few days. That's right… her sister. Her sister was gone. She didn't understand what happened, but she saw it with her own eyes. Her sister had vanished into thin air.
"It'll do you no good to stay here." The boy spoke up again. He looked down, as if contemplating what he had just said. After a long silence, he finally spoke again.
"Do you want to come with me?"
The girl was surprised by his question. Looking down, she thought. He wasn't as scary as the other one… there was another that looked like him, but taller, and his hair was different. But that one had vanished as well, after the boy in front of her had cut off his head. But she felt that even if the boy hadn't intended to, he saved her–saved her from the same fate that had befallen her sister. She looked back up, noticing the boy was gone. Had she taken too long to answer? She didn't want to move, but at the same time she wanted to check if he was still nearby. As she sat there debating with herself, she heard footsteps. Her heart stopped, fearing it would be someone else who would try to hurt her. She saw a silhouette appear before her, her eyes slowly adjusting to the dark to see who it was.
It was the boy. He had returned. She couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. But she wondered why he had left at all. It was then she noticed, in his hand he held a long, red ribbon.
Her sister's ribbon.
Her eyes watered up. It was true, her sister was truly gone. She tried to fight back the tears, but it was no use. Through her blurry vision, she could see the boy holding the ribbon out to her.
"…"
The girl's hand trembled. She slowly brought it up, hesitantly reaching out for the ribbon. She didn't dare touch his hand out of fear, and as soon as her hand brushed against the dangling ribbon, she snatched it and quickly pulled her hand back. The boy was unfazed by her behavior, simply standing up straight and saying nothing. The girl felt a sharp pain in her chest as she stared down at the ribbon in her hand. But that pain also came from treating the boy like something to be feared. He had made no motion to hurt her so far, and he even brought her sister's ribbon to her to show that he wouldn't.
The girl wiped the tears from her face, slowing edging out from under the staircase. The boy stepped back to allow her some space, one hand casually resting in his pocket. The girl paused before completely coming out, but eventually stepped out into the light of the night. The boy simply stood there, staring blankly. She didn't quite understand what was going on, but a part of her felt like he may be the only one she could trust at the moment. She's sure… her sister would probably feel the same.
Without warning, the girl burst into even more tears, wailing as she rushed forward and threw her arms around the boy's waist, gripping onto his clothes. The boy was taken aback, unsure of what to do. As she continued to cry into his shirt, he simply lowered his head, his eyes downcast. He didn't return the hug, nor did he comfort her. But he made no motion to push her away, though even that couldn't be regarded as kindness to him. From the perspective of anyone else, it would probably look like she was hugging a mannequin. He made no movements, he simply stood there silently as her cries filled the air.
After what may have seemed like forever, the girl's cries finally died down. Eventually, she slowly pulled away, though she still clung onto his shirt. She looked up at him, her face covered in tears and dirt. And he looked down at her, his face covered with nothing, not even an expression. When she saw that face, she took a step back, but stopped. She glanced around nervously before finally looking back up at him.
"Um… who are you?"
A simple question. And yet now, the boy didn't know how to answer that. He doesn't feel the same as he was before, he doesn't feel like he can give the typical answer. He looked up into the night sky, contemplating. Just how many more people are there in this world who can't escape this fate? This girl, too, will eventually have to give into it, unable to escape. There was nothing these people could do, no matter what kind of life they lived, no matter how much good or bad they did, no matter how many relationships they built, there was not a single thing they could do to escape their fate.
Their fate.
"… Fate."
"Eh?"
"My name." The boy looked back down at the girl. His expression was still blank, though it no longer had the harsh emotionless stare as before.
"Fate Averruncus… is my name."