Disclaimer: This is a nonprofit fictional story, a FanFiction based on Ken Akamatsu's Negima. I do not own Negima, or most of the other characters included in this work, excepting where it is stated in the author's notes. It is not intended or presented for any commercial profit or personal gain; it is simply a story written for personal fulfillment and presented for public enjoyment, and as an honest homage to the fine story conceived and written by Ken Akamatsu, as well as all the other (innumerable) works that find place herein (and their authors).

Chapter One: A Golden Silence

('Hmm…what's this…?')

She slowly opened her eyes. It was still fairly dark. The scene was….

('Sand…? A desert…?')

"Oh, are you awake, Ojô-chan?"

Her eyes, seeming of their own volition, turned to the speaker, an older gentleman sitting on a rock some distance away. His hair was silver-blond, and he had a short, scraggly beard of the same color. Square glasses adorned his eyes and a cigarette hung from his mouth. He completed his image with the suit of stark light grey he wore. He smiled rather fondly at her. ('Who…is this o-san? He looks familiar….')

He pointed. "If you want to wash your face, there's a well right there."

Again, her view changed without her desiring it. ('Ah…wait, don't go, I want a better look at you….')

Her body was moving of its own volition, and approached the calm pool of water. She looked at the face within as her hands reached down in for a double handful. It was a very young girl's face, likely with an age measured by a single digit, with short, somewhat messy orange hair and purple eyes. ('Is this…me…? When I was a child…?')

After washing her face, the girl moved away and stared up. The sentiment was odd; she seemed an observer in someone else's life, with what she thought of as her body acting generally on autopilot. Still, the sight of the sky above touched her. ('What a beautiful, starry sky…but what am I doing here…?')

"I'm back!" She turned towards the exclamation and saw another figure approaching.

"That was quick," the o-san said as the newcomer came into view.

"Yeah…I caught three rat-like things!"

"Rat-like things," the girl murmured. "Is he going to eat…rat-like things…?"

The man spotted the girl and began approaching her. "Oh, you're an early riser!"

('I…I know this man….')

His face came into clearer focus. He was a young man, probably in his late teens, with a white cloak wrapped around his shoulders. His hair was short, red, and somewhat unkempt.

('I…I know him, but…how? This man…is…is his….')

Kalan leaned down and jerked a thumb over his shoulder at the lightening horizon. "Look at that sun, Mai," he commanded. "Isn't daybreak beautiful?"

Mai's eyes jerked open. She sat up and stayed still for many moments, blinking, trying to…she wasn't sure. Was she trying to hold onto that dream, or let it go? …It was gone now. It didn't matter….

It was already afternoon, Mai saw as she looked at her clock. ('That's right…we got back…and it's Sunday now. I'm still so exhausted from the trip…I had a part-time job this morning, and then fell asleep again after getting back. Well, I should get up….')

And, she decided, she should investigate the commotion next door….

"Kain-sensei! It's Sunday…let's take some tea together!"

"Kain-sensei! Can you come play with us? We have a break from club activities today!"

"Kain-sensei! It's a Sunday afternoon…let's go out and have some fun!"

Kagome turned and greeted Mai as she emerged from their room. "What's the commotion about?" the redhead grumbled.

Kagome pointed at the open doorway and into the room beyond. "It seems our class wants to play with Kain-sensei again. I think they're still jealous about how we monopolized his attention during the class trip."

"Hmm…yeah…."

Kanade, Haruna, Kaoru, Sakura, Izumi, Miki, Riza, Akari, Kiami, Nanami, Riku and Risa were now monopolizing Kain's room, gathering around him, setting out drinks and snacks, or just snooping around. He stared at them with impotent resignation.

Mai, however, wasn't going to put up with this nonsense. "You guys get out of Sensei's room!" And she evicted them in classic comedic anime fashion.

"They won't settle down, even on a Sunday after a school trip," Mai sighed. "So, what are you doing here on a Sunday afternoon, Kain-sensei?"

"Researching," he replied, gathering up a few books and the long cloth-wrapped package he had received from Kyoto. "I've done about as much as I can here, however, and it's about time anyway, so I should be heading out…would you two like to come?"

"Where are we going?" Kagome asked curiously.

Ami and Yue greeted the trio as they arrived in the library. "You wanted to show us something, Kain-sensei?" Yue asked.

They gathered at a table, where Kain removed a map from his cloth-wrapped package and laid it out at the table. "This is it."

"I see…" Yue muttered. "This is interesting…so this is what Kain-sensei's father was researching. And…if this is accurate, then there are secrets under the academy apart from the library."

"This is amazing, Kain-sensei!" Ami marveled. "Even the university doesn't have a map like this!"

They poured over the map, noting what they already knew and pointing out what they didn't.

"I understand," Yue said finally. "We of the Library Exploration Club will assist you."

"Thank you!" Kain bowed to them.

Nodoka came in as they gathered up the materials, hurrying somewhat and carrying three cans of drinks in her arms. "Yue, Yue! They didn't have any tomato milk…."

She stopped suddenly as she came up to the table and Kain turned to face her. The two froze. "Um…" Nodoka began.

"N-Nodoka…."

"G-good day!" they declared in unison, bowing…and cracking their heads together. Nodoka dropped the drinks from her hands.

Laughing slightly, Kain apologized and began to gather up the cans while Nodoka stammered out her own apology.

The other four girls watched the pair. Kagome giggled. "It looks like there's a new understanding between them, meeting for the first time since they got back from the school trip. They're so innocent…but Kain-sensei seems panicked, too…maybe he really feels something for Nodoka-san after all…what do you think, Mai?" She smiled coyly at her roommate.

Mai stared back. "What?" she replied coolly.

The students finally returned to class on Monday. They had one more week of school, and then it was Golden Week, that amazing week-long holiday combined from many holidays that the Japanese have strung together for no appreciable reason. Kain fought to get his students back into studying shape, although having a week of schooling in between a school trip and the vacation was perhaps not the greatest idea.

Kain learned that most of the class was preparing for a trip to Greece during the week, and they even begged him to come with them. If he had, there perhaps would have been another great adventure on the island of Mykonos in the Aegean Sea; however, he declined, saying he still had much to do in Japan.

"I heard you turned down a chance to go to Greece for Golden Week," Mai asked that Saturday. "Is it…all right if I ask why?"

"Well," Kain replied, "first of all, at the rate my life here at Mahora Academy is going, if I accompanied them on the trip it would almost certainly turn into a magical adventure. We'd probably end up being transported back in time, or attacked by the ghost of King Midas, or some such thing."

"Um…are you serious…?"

"Mostly joking, although trouble seems to follow me, and that brings me to the real reason: I want to stay here and prepare."

Mai blinked. "Prepare? Prepare for what?"

"The next, well, 'adventure' I guess you could say. I know you won't want to hear this, but it's definitely coming. It's kind of funny; I expected to charge into danger when I began my post-graduate studies. I expected that I'd have to do Great Things in order to follow in the footsteps of my father. Then, of course, I was sent here, to teach, and when I heard that, I thought I'd have to put the adventures on hold. However, fate seems to be laughing at me. I've had more adventure than I ever could have dreamed of here, and, if I really have found the remnants of my father's old enemies, I'll need to continue battling them; and that means my adventures won't stop for some time. I don't know what will happen to us next, but one thing is clear: I need to get stronger so I can protect all of our class, so I can protect Nodoka, Momo, Kagome, and you, too, Mai." He looked up at her, smiled, and gave her a small thumbs-up. "Just watch me, Mai. I'm going to get even stronger, until I'm as great as my father was!"

An image suddenly flashed in Mai's mind…she briefly recalled the dream she'd had earlier that week, and the face of Kalan Lockeheart, which looked so similar to Kain's face…and somehow, Kain's thumbs-up mimicked the gesture Kalan had made towards the sun. ('W-what is this..?')

"Eh? Mai? Are you all right?" Kain looked at her closely, concerned by her sudden blank expression.

"Eh? What? I-I'm fine…."

"Your face is flushed. Do you have a fever or something? Are you feeling well?"

"I said I'm fine!" Mai snapped, shoving him backwards and stalking out of the room.

('What was that?') she thought to herself as she headed away. ('What…am I thinking about, anyway? She shook her head. I should just…forget about it.')

And once again, she did.

Kain checked off the list: Riza, Matake, Rakasu, Kaoru, Sakura, Caria, Izumi, Yuki, Miki, Riku, Risa, Yukari, Kanade, Kazumi, and Nanami—fifteen students in all, or half the class—headed off to Greece to tour a bit of the Aegean sea.

Akari and Kiami had returned to their home in Yokohama, where, apparently, they lived at rival dojos. He'd only heard a little about their histories, but apparently daily life was training for the two of them…he didn't know quite why they had been sent to Mahora in the first place.

The rest of the class had stayed behind, save Kagome, who had returned to Kyoto alone.

"I'm surprised you didn't go with her," Kain mentioned to Momo.

Momo looked at him. "Why should I?"

"Er, well, it's just…you're supposed to be her bodyguard, right? And now she's heading home by herself…."

"I am one of Kagome's bodyguards…and protecting her is one of my duties," she corrected him. "Right now, there's not much danger waiting for her in Kyoto. Tokine-chan and Yoshimori-kun can more than take care of her now. And, of course, in the event of real trouble, there's you, right Kain-sensei?"

"Er? Me?"

"Yes. You have a contract with her now, too. She can call you in an emergency, and we can use the cards to travel to her instantly."

"Ah…right…."

But the far most interesting thing about the week was the sudden return of Takamichi.

Kain was sitting at the fountain again, sorting through notes and books, when the shadow suddenly loomed over him. "It's Golden Week, and you're still busy with work?" a voice boomed. "I'm not sure if you're setting a good example for your students or not, Kain-kun."

Kain looked up and smiled brightly. "Takamichi! You're finally back again!"

"Sorry I've been away so long," he said. "May I sit?"

Kain quickly made him room, and the larger man took his place at Kain's side. "It seems you've had a busy time with things," he said conversationally. "And not just with the class' usual hijinx. I heard from the principal about the incident in Kyoto. I'm quite sorry I wasn't here and able to help out…."

Kain shook his head. "There's nothing to apologize for. It turned out all right…and I learned quite a lot from the experience."

"So I heard. And…it seems you've learned quite a lot about your students from these ordeals. So…just what have you learned?"

Kain returned Takamichi's probing stare. "What do I have left to learn? I have a demon, a vampire, a Soul Reaper, a robot, a ninja, a mage-scientist, a mage descendant, and a martial arts master. Am I missing anyone?"

Takamichi laughed again, somewhat sheepishly. "Well, sorry I didn't include more information on it. I think the principal hoped that the class would continue with a little bit of normalcy."

"You're right," Kain agreed, rescinding his accusatory examination. "I know no one expected things to turn out quite the way they have…but I sometimes grow a little tired of being the last to know about anything that goes on in my class."

"Yes…and the last to know about a lot of things that are going on…for a good reason. Now, perhaps, it's the time to reveal a few things. Shall we…go somewhere more private to continue?"

"Y-yes…."

They retired to a room up in the student council tower. There, over tea, Takamichi continued.

"As you may have noticed, I…haven't been present very often, ever since you took over my 2-A (now 3-A) English class. There's a reason for that, and for why you've been assigned to this class…it's all tied together. Where to begin….

"Trouble started arising shortly before your graduation from Caelar University. A few random troubles, mostly in Arcanus Myrror, but also some here on Earth. Accidents, natural disasters, monster attacks…in some ways, it seemed to be shaping up into a perfect situation for you to pursue your path to Archmage. Those of us on the Archmage council—myself, Eishun, Kensuke, Konosuke, and a few others—decided that setting you up with this class would serve a double purpose, giving you somewhere relatively peaceful to grow a bit before sending you out into the world, and relieving me, giving me time to investigate and assist with these incidents.

"From what we uncovered, we thought someone was responsible for at least the majority of the incidents. I haven't found anything more concrete yet…it almost seems you've uncovered more from the Kyoto trip. If the Obsidian Star has returned, and they're behind some or all of these events…well, it would explain quite a few things for us. I assume Kamo-kun has told you about them?"

"Well, somewhat. I still don't know everything about them, like whom they really are, or were…simply that they were the enemy my father vanquished, the ones behind the war of twenty years ago. I suppose that's enough for now?"

"Haha…probably…for now. In any case, you've gotten involved in this a lot sooner than we anticipated. We've decided to leave you here for the time being, although that certainly doesn't seem to guarantee that you won't receive more trouble."

"Yes, I suppose not. Are you going to be here long?"

"Unfortunately not. I'll be around for almost a week, but there's still plenty to do out there. Did you want something?"

"Well…from what I've experienced recently, I can tell that I need a lot more training in combat if this trouble is going to continue. I was hoping that you could give me some more instruction."

"Ah, I see…well, I can help you out while I'm here, but I can't serve as a permanent instructor. I'm afraid you'll have to look elsewhere after I leave."

Kain nodded. "Yes…I suppose so…."

They looked up as the door opened and Hinagiku walked in. She glanced at the two in surprise. "Kain-sensei…imagine seeing you here…and Takahata-sensei, welcome back. I didn't know you'd returned…."

"Just arrived," Takamichi said, rising. "It's been a while, so first I decided to stop in and see Kain-kun. I better make my rounds now. It's good to see you again, Hinagiku-kun." He started for the door, but before leaving he turned back and called, "I'll meet you tomorrow, Kain-kun."

"Right…."

The two watched him go. "What…was that about? And what are you two doing here?" Hinagiku demanded.

Kain shrugged. "I was getting some advice from him. About the class and other things. What about you? What are you doing here? It's Golden Week; didn't the class go to the Aegean Sea?"

Hinagiku scowled. "I didn't feel like it…."

"Oh, that's right…you don't like heights. I guess a plane trip would be…."

"D-don't say it like that! I-I'm just not very interested in traveling…."

"Right, right. So what are you doing with your Golden Week, then? And why are you here, in the Student Council Tower?"

"I was just coming in to get caught up on a little work, that's all," Hinagiku replied, grimly trying to retain hold on her dignity.

"Work? Student council work?" Kain stared at her. "On Golden Week? Why? I thought you were always caught up on work…."

"I-if you're thinking that I've got nothing to do here, t-that I'm so out of things to do that I'm just coming here to do some needless work and occupy myself, you're wrong…!"

('Got it in one...not that it was a hard thing to figure out.') Kain considered his student president for a moment. She was the very model of popularity and dignity, most of the time—the studious, intelligent, athletic, beautiful kaichô, a girl who could do anything brilliantly, who excelled in her studies, who captained a difficult club (to be blunt, a men's club), and yet who still had the time to recognize and even take care of each of the girls under her care. She was kind and considerate to her friends and even to strangers, and while she had a temper and a distaste for foolishness and the types of idiocies that some—such as the 'trio'—could get up to, she did pretty much everything with the thoughts of others in mind. She even gave that hardest and most difficult form of positive enforcement—tough love.

And what she did was, mostly, entirely instinct—it was simply how she was made, but part of it had become a kind of…not exactly a mask, but perhaps a costume. A tomboyish instinct for defending her classmates (especially other girls) from bullies and such, not to mention an obstinate nosiness in taking other people's troubles as her own, had given her an image that she eventually adapted. And now, she couldn't bear to part from it…she desperately held on to her 'cool' image because she couldn't bear to disappoint her fans.

So here she was, trapped by it. Most of the class had left, either on the school-funded trip to Greece, or to their distant homes. Only a few had remained—Yue, Ami, and Nodoka, who were somewhat anti-social overall and who preferred to pursue their library explorations and, in this case, to study Kalan's map. Chisame, who was extremely antisocial. Erika, who, because of her 'condition' was wary of making such a long trip, especially after the ordeal of the last adventure. Mai, who felt indebted to the school that called her ward and refused to take more from them than was necessary. Rei, for reasons Kain couldn't fathom—he understood virtually nothing about her. Alyssa and Miyu, who, naturally, couldn't leave. Momo, who presumably had duties at the school, even during this vacation, even if she wouldn't disclose them. And, finally, Hinagiku, who was severely acrophobic and would have nothing to do with airplanes if she could help it. Had the class trip been some sort of cruise, she might have gone…but she would not go overseas unless some greater need forced her hand. This trip certainly didn't fulfill the great requirement.

And now she found herself a bit of a lost lamb. School was out of session. Because of that, the clubs were also on hiatus (except for ones like the Library Exploration Club, of course). There weren't even enough members around to gather up for a simple practice. Because of this, she whose schedule was the most jam-packed of all the students of Mahora Academy (excepting perhaps ultra-busy Sakura) had absolutely nothing to do. No students to watch over, no meetings to preside over, no club members to instruct, no activities to plan, no budgets to observe, no classes to attend, no crises demanding her attention.

And now Kain had made a decision. "Can you spare a few hours from your important work this afternoon, Hinagiku-san?"

Hinagiku started. "W-what? Well, I suppose so…why?"

"I really don't have anything to do right now," Kain half-lied glibly. It was true that he didn't have to do anything; he had simply filled his own schedule with obsessive studies and training. "Why don't we go into town and hang out for a while? I haven't been in Japan very long, and haven't really had much of a chance to see the city yet, after all—in fact, I think I've seen more of Kyoto after our recent trip…."

"Eh? You mean, you and me? Just you and me? Why, Sensei…perhaps I underestimated you. All these girls floating around you, and now you're trying to take advantage of their absence to try and take me on a date? You are a daring young man…."

"W-wait, w-what? I-I was only…." Kain was suddenly quite flustered; Hinagiku had taken advantage of Kain's valiance to compose herself, and now had turned the tables on him.

"In case you hadn't noticed, Kain-sensei, we're teenagers, about the same age, and of opposite genders. When two teens go out like that to do things together, it's usually called a date, isn't it? And dates between teacher and student are…."

"Oh…I-I hadn't thought about it," Kain admitted truthfully, trying to recover. "You're right, that could be misconstrued. Don't worry…I think I have a solution."

And so Kain entered town accompanied by a bevy of females: along with Hinagiku, he had invited along Mai, Momo, and Erika.

"I'm not sure if this is more or less alarming," Hinagiku remarked somewhat bitingly. "Kain-sensei with so many girls…."

"I don't think it can be helped," Momo replied cheerfully. "Kain-sensei doesn't really have any boys that he knows that he could bring along. Besides, I think this is fine. Right, Mai?"

"Eh? I-I suppose…."

"In any case, where are we going, Kain-sensei?" Erika asked.

"Well…I was thinking that we'd start…with this place."

They stopped and looked up. The giant sign above them pronounced: SEALAND. Although it's in Chiba prefecture, it's not based on the most famous park in Japan! Honest! It's simply a remarkably similar magical kingdom amusement park!

"Eh? Umm…Kain-sensei, isn't this place a little…."

"Ah, say no more, Hinagiku-san. No need to worry." Kain withdrew five tickets from his cloak with a flourish. "I've got this already covered."

"B-but the money…" Mai attempted.

"Don't mind it, Mai. I have my resources."

"I-I guess we shouldn't argue," Erika noted. "To be honest…I've never been here before, and…I'd definitely like to check it out…."

"I've never seen it before, either," Hinagiku agreed.

"I think it's the first time for all of us," Momo said. "Kain-sensei included. What made you think of this place, Kain-sensei? Can we ask?"

Kain laughed. "Well, I've never been to an amusement park myself, either…I've lived all my life before this in Wyoming, and…there isn't much out there. I wanted to check it out myself, and…this was a wonderful excuse. Well, shall we go?"

The five made their way into the park. During Golden Week, the park was full of patrons, but as five teenagers inexperienced with amusement parks, the group was able to brave the crowds and appreciate the wonder. They dove into the roller coasters (moving at such speed that even acrophobic Hinagiku was overcome with exhilaration before real terror could discourage her). They visited pirate ships and cloud castles, were shown around by Friendly Forest Critters and other costumed mascots, and generally found themselves enchanted by their situations.

Erika and Hinagiku sat down on a bench together to rest while Momo dragged Mai and Kain off for a photo with some of the park's denizens. Erika laughed. "Goodness, sometimes she can seem like a child. She didn't get enough of those kinds of pictures in Kyoto?"

Hinagiku sipped her drink as her face turned to a glower at that comment. "Yes…Kyoto. That reminds me…you all seemed to monopolize Kain-sensei during that trip. What was the meaning of all that, anyway?"

Erika froze. "Ah…what are you talking about?" she asked carefully, looking away and scratching at her cheek with a finger.

"Don't give me that! There were plenty of strange things going on during that trip, and the entire time it seemed he was either with Group 1, or you, or both! The only time he wasn't in your company was the night of that ridiculous k-k-kissing contest!"

"Yes, well…wouldn't that be the point?" Erika tried. "Look at what happened the one time one of us wasn't here to keep him out of trouble! We had to keep an eye on him…."

"Hmm, 'us', you say…who is this 'us'? You're including yourself with Mai, Momo-san…perhaps all of Group 1 so easily? You obviously aren't including yourself with your kaichô, because I was with him that night and I couldn't do anything to stop the trouble…."

"Ah, n-no…! W-what I mean is…."

"You know…there were a lot of strange things going on during that trip, with frogs and alcoholic fountains, the many senseis in that contest and other things I only heard about. It seemed like there was something else going on that, somehow, I wasn't privy to. Do you have anything to say about that, Erika?"

"N-not really…you're right, there's a lot that's inexplicable, but…what do you think it could be? Do you think some local witch was targeting our class, trying to kidnap one of our classmates for use in some diabolic ritual or something like that?"

Erika leveled a straight face at Hinagiku, who stared back. Hinagiku broke off with a laugh. "You're right, I guess. Maybe I'm just paranoid, or…."

"Jealous?" Erika offered teasingly.

"W-what…? N-no, it couldn't…."

"Just joking. It's all right, Hina…I can't blame you for thinking that way. Let's just forget about all that and finish enjoying ourselves today…look, they're coming back."

The two rose to meet their comrades, with Erika breathing an inward sigh of relief. As usual, she knew perfectly well how to handle her tempestuous kaichô. Hinagiku was shrewd and certainly saw all the strangeness of the Kyoto trip, but she was also very level-headed and refused to believe in nonsense like 'magic'. Level-headed people were willing to come up with remarkable excuses to maintain their disbelief, especially stubborn ones like Hinagiku….

Hours later they finally left the closing park. "That was great," Hinagiku breathed, stretching. "I was really able to cut loose for the first time in a long time."

Kain chuckled. "I'm glad. That was really interesting."

"Eh? What do you mean?" Hinagiku turned back to him.

"Well, I feel like I was able to see the real Hinagiku-san for the first time today," he said simply.

Hinagiku took in his comment and realized how childish she must have seemed, acting so excited about everything she saw inside…in front of all these people. She flushed. "I-idiot! Don't talk nonsense! I-I was just…."

"I think he has you pegged, Hina," Erika teased.

"It's all right, Hinagiku-kaichô," Momo soothed her. "It's good to see you acting like a normal girl instead of just as the leader you are at school. You shouldn't try to hide your true nature too much."

She stretched and pointed. "In any case, I'd say the night is still young. Why don't we continue over there?"
The group looked. Mai's somewhat tired face lit up with renewed energy at the sight. "Karaoke?" she breathed.

"W-what?" the now especially self-conscious Hinagiku sputtered. "N-no, we really couldn't…."

"Ah, Hinagiku-kaichô lacks faith in her singing ability?" Momo pressed. "Feels she can't match Mai's enthusiasm?"

"I-I never said that!"

And so with that the festivities continued for several more hours before the tired teenagers returned to their school for bed late at night, exhausted but fulfilled. Sadly, they lacked eccentric party members who could have enhanced the festivities with odd costumes and such, but nevertheless, they had an enjoyable time.

The rest of Golden Week went by quickly. Kain was able to train somewhat with Takamichi, who mostly tested his magical offensive capabilities by taking him out deep into Mahora's woods. Rather than fighting with Kain (as he explained his fighting style wasn't suited for training someone like him), he had Kain try out his own most powerful techniques and spells on him and neutralized them all, and then gave him critiques on those abilities.

"Your firepower is impressive, Kain-kun," Takamichi remarked on Friday, the last day before he had to leave again, as they sat down to take a break. "You have an impressive grasp of magic, and that lets you channel more powerful spells than most mages. In most battles, true mages do their best standing back and acting as artillery while their more combat-oriented companions stand in front of them to hold the line. I would say that, based on your personality, if you have a few reliable front-line fighters then you should stick to that route…and from what I understand, you have a few of those. You've made contracts with Mai-kun, Momo-kun, Miyazaki-kun and Kagome-kun now, haven't you?"

Kain sputtered, spitting out the drink he had been imbibing. "H-how did you know…?"

"I told him, of course!" Kamo declared with a laugh, appearing on Takamichi's shoulder. "Really, were you trying to keep it a secret from Hawk, of all people?"

Kain flushed terribly. "Ah, well, no, it's just…well…."

"Not easy to talk about…I understand." Takamichi chuckled. "I know Kamo-kun can be very persuasive, especially when you have the terrible situations you had to face. He also says you've been reluctant to accept their help…which I also understand. However, if they are that determined…I think you should accept them. Considering what you'll be facing, you may need their help later."

Before Kain could reply, a voice cut through the trees. "Kain-sensei? Takahata-sensei?"

The three looked up as Mai, Nodoka, Yue and Ami came into view. "Ah, you are here," Yue said softly. "Can you come to library, Kain-sensei? We have something to discuss…."

Takamichi arose. "Well, I guess that's all for now, Kain-kun. I'll have to leave early tomorrow. I'll see you next time I'm in town." He walked off, leaving Kain to follow his ladies to the library.

"Eeeh? You found a clue in the map?!"

"Quiet, Sensei; even at this time, it's still a library."

"Oh…right…but it was encoded in a really difficult code…you really are quite brilliant, Ayase-san!"

"Not really." They spread the maps—for truly there were several pages—out on the table and gathered around them. Yue was at the forefront with Kain. "The eighth sheet of the copy you gave us shows an enlargement of the phantom 'underground library'."

She leaned up and looked at Kain. "I'll ask you now, Kain-sensei…are you looking for your missing father?"

"Yes," Kain replied instantly.

"And there is a clue somewhere in this map…."

"Yes."

"Please take a good look at this part…."

Kain leaned in again, excited. "W-where? Where is the clue about my father?"

"Right here…."

Kain looked and spotted a caricature of Kalan's face scribbled on the map with 'My Clue' written in Japanese right next to it. It was also right below a passage, and an arrow pointed the way down the staircase it led to.

"Eh!?" Kain shrieked, forgetting Yue's earlier warning. "That's it!? How did I miss it? Was it because it was in Japanese…?"

"Well, I can't blame you too much," Yue remarked, although Mai was also considering how Kain could make such an idiotic mistake. "It took us a while to notice it too. It's in the middle of these strange runes I can't identify, so it doesn't exactly stand out."

"Anyway, this is great!" Mai enthused. "You finally have something."

"Yes! We have to go investigate!" Kain agreed.

"Hold on, Kain-sensei," Ami stopped him. "There's something we'd like to discuss first."

"Eh? Yes? I-I mean, thank you, of course, for helping with this…."

"That's not it," Yue interrupted. "We would like to clear something up. I have some reservations about using such fantastic words in any serious context, but…I still can't understand what happened during the school trip. So, here goes…Kain-sensei…you're a mage, aren't you?"

"Eeuuhh?" Kain sputtered, shocked and unable to reply.

"Please don't worry," Ami consoled him. "We haven't discussed these thoughts with anyone, besides the three of us amongst ourselves."

"I must admit I'm quite curious about why you're keeping it a secret," Yue continued, "but there are plenty of things right now that I'm even more curious about.

"First, I would surmise by what I saw at Kyoto that Alyssa-san is actually a powerful mage. Furthermore, Kagome-san is a mage, and her grandfather is as well, of course. I find this to be nonsensical—I mean, surprising information already. However, judging by what Kagome-san's father and grandfather have said, I would further conjecture that an entire organized society of mages exists within our world." She turned to Kain. "How was that?"

Kain had been making little strangled noises of distress throughout her rant, while Mai stared in disbelief, marveling at her coolheaded analysis of the situations she had witnessed. Kain sputtered, "N-no, that's not…I mean…all of this is…." He trailed off, completely unable to deny anything.

"In addition to that, here's what we think," Ami continued. "The mysteries of this academy…the giant underground library and those moving statues you encountered last month…even our giant world tree…."

Yue finished, "All of these mysteries…once we consider the possibility that you mages built this academy…they all suddenly make sense!"

('This girl is sharp!') Kain thought, still panicking and still trying to figure out something to say.

Kamo laughed and hopped down onto the table. "Oh, this is rich! You've had some slick and clever students, Kiddo, but I think this girl takes the cake! I like her! She's got us all figured out."

As Yue and Ami stared at the rodent in surprise, Kain hissed, "Kamo!"

"Again, you're being too hard-nosed about it, Kain," Kamo laughed again. "Really, what can you deny at this point? After asking her for help, does she deserve any kind of run around? Yuecchi here's got you pegged. Why deny it at this point?"

"Eh…you're probably right…" Kain finally agreed, calming reluctantly down.

"And so, here's our point, Kain-sensei," Ami put in, tearing her eyes away from the ermine. "If you're going to investigate the library's secret, will you take us along? We—all three of us—we want to know all about Library Island and this academy's secret…about you, mages."

"B-but, Ayase-san, Mizuno -san…you should know already from the school trip," Kain warned them. "You should realize what kind of dangers lurk in this hidden world…."

"I don't care, Sensei!" Yue bellowed, forgetting her own injunction, rushing over and taking Kain's hands.

Kain sputtered and stuttered for several more moments, newly shocked into silence. "I…I…I….

"I'm sorry, Ayase-san!" he screeched, artfully scooping all the map pages and vanishing out the door at remarkable speed.

"Ack! He got away!"

Mai knocked on Kain's door. He didn't answer, but Mai opened it anyway and slipped inside. "That wasn't very nice of you," she scolded the figure sitting at his desk. "They did help you figure out that clue, after all. How could you just refuse them like that?"

"B-but…." Kain sighed. "I can't get delicate ladies like Nodoka, Ayase-san and Mizuno -san involved in this world, can I?"

Mai scowled, stalked over and clamped an arm around Kain's throat, giving him a savage headlock from behind. "So…you're saying I'm not a delicate lady then...?"

Kain tried to sputter a more political reply while he thought, ('What about this is in any way delicate?')

Kagome knocked and then opened the door timidly, peering in. "I'm back! Did I see you come in here, Mai?"

"Oh, Kagome!" Mai relinquished her victim and went over to her friend. "Listen, Yue-san…."

Kain looked back at the pair as Mai confided to her recently returned friend. He hardened his face and his resolve. He knew what he had to do now…regardless of what any of his students thought.

Kain awoke early and dressed himself quickly. ('It's nice that Golden Week went by so peacefully and quietly,') he thought. ('I'm glad I had this chance to rest and recuperate from my crazy adventures, but I can't be placid now, not with this in front of me. It's time to take my future into my own hands…regardless of what the others want. This is my world…not theirs.')

Kamo slipped onto his shoulder as he headed out the door, his cloak clasped about his shoulders and the maps tucked away inside of it. "Are you sure about this?" he murmured. "They'll all be pretty mad at you when they find out."

Kain shook his head. "This is my business, not theirs. My world has already put them in far more danger than they deserve…I won't let them face anything more on my account, not if I have that choice to make. I can do this alone."

"Heh. Well, it's your call, Kiddo. We'll see."

He was surprised to see Takamichi leaning against the wall near the door, smoking a cigarette, as they left the building. "Takamichi? What are you doing here?"

Takamichi smiled at him, took out his cigarette and ground it out against his shoe. "I thought you might be out early today. I'm off to the airport, but I wanted to say goodbye one last time before I left. Take care of yourself, and don't get in too much trouble while I'm away, all right?"

Kain smiled at him. "I can't make promises…the trouble's been following me. But I'll try." He bowed to his friend.

"Very well. I'll see you later, Kain-kun."

He watched Kain head off and smiled to himself.

Kain had thought he would be unmolested the rest of the way to his destination, but a few small minutes had gone by before a voice called out to him, "Eh? Kain-sensei?"

He turned and saw Hinagiku jogging up the path across from, cutting across to come closer. "You're out awful early," she remarked. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, just going for an early morning walk…I woke up early because I just couldn't sleep," he lied casually. "What about you? Early morning training?"

"Training?" Hinagiku's face turned into a quirky smile. "Not exactly. Not for clubs, anyway…I always try to keep in top shape with early morning jogs."

"Oh? Every morning?"

"Nearly. I've…well, yes, nearly. That'll do."

('Perhaps she let herself relax enough to skip out on it once or twice during this vacation,') Kain thought. ('At least, she likely did after our little outing earlier this week. Now she's trying to get back into it, but of course, being Hinagiku, she could never admit such weakness.') "I see. Well, I should let you get back to it. Keep at it; the athletic festival is coming up, isn't it?"

"Yes, that's right. I have to do my best there, too. Later." She jogged off.

"I really think she'd make a good partner," Kamo noted when she was out of earshot. "I tell you…."

"Enough, Kamo," Kain silenced him. "Really, I wish you'd find something else to talk about."

"I guess I can try. How about which of the many has caught your fancy?"

"Kamo…."

A few minutes later, Kamo's needlings finally ceased, Kain stood at the bridge leading out to Library Island. "Here I am," he murmured. "Soon…I will learn one of my father's secrets…."

"Kain-sensei!"

He jumped, then spun around. There, wobbling slightly and blinking sleepily, stood Yue, Nodoka, and Ami. Yue stared at him triumphantly with her sleep-deprived eyes.

"Nodoka?! Mizuno-san?! Ayase-san?! W-what are you doing here?"

"I knew this would happen," Ami chuckled. "I…asked Takahata-sensei to wake us if he saw you early this morning. I somehow believed he would help us out, and I was right."

"That's right!" Yue insisted. "When it comes to things like this, you can't leave out the Library Exploration Club!"

"Besides, it's only a fair price for the information we gave you about the clue," Ami agreed.

As Kain continued to hesitate on the matter, Yue put in, "I don't believe it to be an unreasonable condition. We're used to the traps and such the library offers…and against anything greater, you can protect us, can't you? Nodoka's explained how strong you are."

Kain sighed and laughed slightly. "Strong? Not really…I just learned how weak I am compared to the wonders of this world. I need a lot more strength before I'm ready to protect all of you…and you still want this…?"

He looked up into their faces. All three, even timid Nodoka, had stubborn and determined looks carved upon their features.

Kamo laughed. "It's no good, Kiddo. You can't win against their enthusiasm. Just take 'em down with you."

Kain sighed. "I guess I have no choice." He turned back to the library. "All right, come along…but you go back as soon as there's even a little danger, all right?"

Relief washed over their countenances. "Yes!" they agreed.

And so the second library adventure began….

"Eh…what are we going to do about this?"

They stared down into the hole Kain had uncovered. "This should lead straight into the passage, as the map shows," Kain explained. "It's not accessible to normal people, of course, but by flying we should easily be able to enter this time."

"F-flying?" Yue breathed, half trepidation and half wonder mixed in her voice. "And how do we do that?"

Kain looked the three over. By himself, it would be easy, but trying to fly all three of them at once would be much trickier. While it would serve as a great excuse to finally turn them away, he didn't have the heart to do it this time. "Well, I suppose I'll have to do this."

He whipped his cloak off his shoulders and put it on the ground. "All of you, climb on this with me and hang on," he commanded, stepping onto it himself.

The girls stared, then attempted to comply. "I-it's, er…it's rather t-tight, Kain-sensei," Nodoka noted as they squeezed together. Indeed, the cloak was large, but not quite big enough for four stand or sit on it comfortably.

"Sorry, but this is the only way I have to get down easily right now," he apologized. "If you'd rather stay behind…."

"N-no, of course not! B-but…how will this work…?"

"Watch. Just hang on tight." He put his hands down and the cloak suddenly began to rise into the air. The girls squealed in shock and delight.

"You've read about flying carpets and magic brooms," Kain explained. "Those stories are based on fact. Mages with the proper training can animate anything you can sit or stand on to fly around, even a cloak like this. It's the best way to transport multiple people."

He mentally guided the cloak as it rose high into the air and began to circle around the library. The girls stared in wonder.

"W-we're really flying!" Nodoka enthused.

"This is what you wanted, isn't it?" Kain said softly, smiling. "To see real magic at work?"

"It's amazing!" Yue breathed.

"B-but won't people notice us up here?" Ami demanded tremulously.

"No…I've shielded us from sight with magic as well. It's easier to do than you might think. Now, hold on tight…we're going in!"

The squeals redoubled as the cloak turned and shot down into the hole. Perhaps it was simply leftover adrenaline from the roller coasters he had ridden at the park earlier in the week, but he couldn't resist putting some steam into their descent.

The excitement turned sour after a few hundred feet of stone had passed them and they were slowed by the multitude of spider webs. The girls reacted badly to these, even blocking Kain's vision for a moment before he managed to free himself from them. Finally, breaking through them, they emerged into a passageway…the same one, they surmised, from the maps.

"It's all right, so please calm down," Kain scolded them as they dismounted from his cloak and he swept it back over his shoulders. "You're the Library Exploration Club, aren't you?"

"S-sorry," Yue muttered.

"W-we got a little distracted," Ami excused them.

"I-I-I-I'm sorry…." Nodoka whined.

"We'll be walking from here, and there may be magic traps. We should stick close together." He started walking down the passage.

"W-wait, Kain-sensei," Ami insisted suddenly. "We should be close…perhaps we should hold hands for safety?"

"Eh?" Kain flushed. "Ah, well…perhaps…."

Ami quickly and smoothly put Nodoka's and Yue's hands in Kain's, and then took Yue's hand on her left so that they were walking, from left to right, Nodoka, Kain, Yue and Ami. "This should do."

They started down the passage, but before long a stone sunk under Yue's foot and a grinding sound started behind them.

They stopped and stared down at Yue's foot, and then looked in the direction of the sound. "Eh?" Sure enough, rolling down the passage, filling it, was….

"So it comes down to this after all?!" Kain wailed as he charged down the passage, pursued by a giant rolling boulder.

"How cliché can you get?" Yue moaned as she and her friends practically dangled like kites from Kain's grasp as he hauled it at superhuman speed.

Somehow, they escaped the boulder, and amazingly fell victim to no other traps until….

"Ah…we've finally arrived."

The passageway had opened up into a larger cavern, magnificent, with ambient lighting from an unknown source, marble pillars, and tree roots practically making up the walls. In front of them was a massive gateway, apparently of gold, surrounded by a wall of precious metals and gems.

"Behind this door…" Kain began.

"…Is the clue?" Yue finished, staring in wonder.

Nodoka and Ami glanced around, amazed. Nodoka muttered something about a 'Phantom Land'.

"This is a little further than we fell last time," Yue remarked.

"Yes," Kain agreed. "There's a barrier here, so I don't think ordinary people would be able to approach."

"A barrier, huh?" Ami mused.

"Will it open?" Yue asked as Kain, the maps now in his hands, approached the gate.

"I'm going to try opening it now," he replied. "Please be patient and give me a moment."

He handed the map to Nodoka and approached the door, drawing his staff and putting it to use as he poked, prodded, and studied the great portal. Nodoka started looking at the map. "Yue…Ami…about this map."

Her two friends came over and looked. Nodoka pointed a bit above the clue Kalan had left. There was a caricature of some animal head, with a 'Grr!' and 'Danger!' written in English next to it.

"What's this?" she asked as her friends looked it over.

"A dog?" Yue offered.

"Maybe a cat?" Ami suggested.

Suddenly something warm and wet dripped onto their heads. They started.

"Waah! I'm all wet!"

"What is this?"

Kain, confused at these sudden outbursts, turned around.

And there, crashing into view in front of the three girls, was a dragon.

Author's Note: Character Introduction: Takamichi T. Takahata

Wow, this was quite a chapter. Larger than I first intended…and I'm not sure where, quite, I intended to end it, and in fact didn't get to half the important things I wanted to cover…and yet so full of fluff. I have a lot to say about it. Where to begin?

Act 3 settles into a downtime segment as the group recovers from their Kyoto adventures. The downtime is where I especially have to deviate from the original story, especially since I'm trying to flesh out characters a bit more and show ones I've been neglecting recently. Lots has to happen here, but trying to give proper airtime to the important members of the class is paramount, and it's difficult, considering the numbers…especially with those who don't have as flamboyant a role in their areas here in MSK (as compared to their counterparts in MSN, I mean).

Takamichi, for example, had made several cameos in the original story up to this point, mostly to serve as embarrassment to Asuna (or witness her embarrassment) since she has a huge crush on her older teacher and her role is to absorb psychological abuse while Negi suffers physical abuse. I didn't have any need for such things here, and so Kain's friend and predecessor has fallen by the wayside, not appearing since his introduction way back in chapter one. I decided I had to fix this during Golden Week….

And, of course, I should start by talking about Golden Week. Although originally the Kyoto trip seems to take place right before Golden Week (Nodoka's diary notes the day that Negi battles Kôtarô in the time-space maze as the 24th of April, right before Golden Week), Golden Week starts with April 29th…so it is supposed to start the week after the Kyoto trip, and yet several weeks go by before any mention is made of Golden Week—a HUGE mistake in time. I can't stand to have such horrible timing…even pushing the trip back a week didn't give enough time to have all the instances that were supposed to happen before Golden Week happen…so I'm rearranging things chronologically to fit my own whims and needs. First, I decided to have some downtime appear on Golden Week, some peace and quiet, before starting up more dangerous things.

So first was Takamichi, Kain's valued ally who has had little airtime. More on him below. But as I was putting him in and decided to use him to train Kain a little before he selects his new masters, he started to dominate the chapter and I realized I'd used him extensively to the detriment of others I wanted to cover, such as Hinagiku.

Apart from perhaps Kazumi, Hinagiku is one of the hardest of those I consider the 'core' class members to place, because she's so sensible and everyone else is so wild and necessary for comedy. Besides the adventures that use her specifically that I've been stealing from Hayate, it's hard to include her, and she falls by the wayside. I'm not even really satisfied with her minor appearances during the Kyoto arc. Some of the events there had to happen, but I feel they did so in detriment to her character. Such is the difficulty with making a story that is a base of one manga with loads of others cobbled and pasted into it.

So, during Golden Week I wanted to have her around to spend some time with Kain. It was easy to arrange—since most people are leaving on Golden Week, she can stick and around and meet with Kain. And when I threw her in, I evolved a reason behind their meeting that had escaped me during my original plans—as I long-windedly explained in the chapter, Hinagiku's dedication to her duties left her a bit of a boring stick-in-the-mud during this vacation since she couldn't stand leaving on a jet plane. The decision to have the outing was easy after that, but the presentation of it stymied me for a little bit. It's always harder to present unique things, especially in this story when I've gotten by so much on borrowing and adjusting existing scenarios. In the end, I used another scenario for help anyway (a date between Hinagiku and Hayate that arises out of necessity) and adjusted it to my needs. I'm rather satisfied with the finished product.

Still, I've put more thought into Hinagiku's situation than anyone's, even with all the thoughts I've had about Momo and Soul Society. Still wembling over when and how to present the realization of Hinagiku's feelings for Kain and her being torn because of Kazumi's sentiments. All of this played out much earlier in Hayate, as it had two advantages over my story: first, Hayate entered Hinagiku's life at a much earlier time of year (sometime in mid-January, and Hinagiku had adventures with him at: a late-winter athletic festival that I alluded to and may use soon, Valentine's day, her birthday, the Tiger's Den for Butlers, his exile and lodging at Hinagiku's, and many other events) and the Hayate story progresses at such a slow rate there was plenty of time to fit those and other Hayate-Hinagiku encounters in. Plus, despite the harem Hayate has, and despite her separation from him most of the time, Hinagiku was perhaps the third most important girl in that group, behind Nagi and Maria. This Hinagiku, on the other hand, is very important, but right now stands behind Mai, Momo, Erika, Kagome, Nodoka, and perhaps even Yue and Ami and a few others because she has yet to learn about magic. When magic is such a big part of this story, it's hard for her to reach the same airtime.

Summarizing again, in the original story Hinagiku first encounters Hayate's old friend Ayumu on Valentine's Day and helps her deliver her chocolates to him. Shortly afterwards they meet again and Hinagiku decides to support her in her pursuit of the boy, despite her own (mostly suppressed) feelings. Then a big misunderstanding (and deepening relationship) occurs between Hayate and Hinagiku when he is temporarily kicked out of the Sanzennin mansion (too long a story to relate here) and is taken in by Hinagiku's mother for a time. Finally, on Hinagiku's birthday a terrible curse that falls on him causes him to miss it, greatly angering her, and in his attempt to reconcile he…well, after all's said and done he practically sweeps her off her feet in his clueless gentlemanly Don Juan way and she realizes that she has indeed fallen for him. Problem one with this Hinagiku: I haven't yet had time to develop all this, and it's almost time for her life to become more complicated with her introduction to the magical world. Semi-spoiler alert: this is happening late in Act 3 here.

I realized after this little encounter that I missed a golden opportunity (haha, no pun intended). I made personal joke allusions to Hayate with Golden Week, as in that manga on Golden Week most of the important characters go on the mentioned trip to the Aegean Sea, see Athens, and end up getting involved with an evil spirit (that's supposed to be King Midas) who has possessed Hayate's original girlfriend (from when he was a tiny tot). This happens on Mykonos Island (also on Mykonos Island, Hayate goes back in time and meets an even younger version of Nagi and spends a bit of time saving her from assassins, another event I jokingly alluded to). While an adventure on Mykonos Island would have been fun, I didn't want to have another trip adventure so soon, so I just used it as a device to limit the available players for the week. It works beautifully like that. Originally, I thought so. Then I realized it would have been a great chance to come up with an original story, have some fun and excitement, see a bit more of Eminus, perhaps (remember, I made his supposed origin Greece, while Fate Averencus originally hailed from Turkey in his story), and feature enough Hinagiku to finish the required parts. It would have been perfect….

…Except that we could never get her to Mykonos at this point. In the original, she does go, but she's kind of trapped into going in the usual comedic fashion of the Hayate manga: she secretly helps Ayumu score two free tickets to the place over Golden Week, allowing her to go and meet Hayate by chance, but Ayumu, deciding to 'reward' the friend who has supported her all this time, insists on taking Hinagiku with her rather than any of her family (and Hinagiku can't refuse, since she feels guilt-ridden over falling for Hayate after promising this friend of hers that she'd support her in trying to win his affections). This is the device that gets her there. At this point, I don't have any device really strong enough to drag Hinagiku along with, not even Kain. So that idea is out. I may use it later, like in early summer before the trip to Arcanus Myrror.

So I sent them to an amusement park, including most of the humorous disclaimers Kenjirô Hata did in Hayate, and then had them finish with karaoke. Unfortunately, I missed another opportunity, as Nanami, Miki, Risa, and Kanade (and perhaps a few others) could have provided amusing costumes like in My-HiME, but since I got rid of them, that idea was a no-go. I'll likely have to revisit a karaoke trip in more detail later, including the zanies of the class, and let the full thing go.

Oh, and Hinagiku's jog? Nothing significant from it…although I might, as I say, use the athletic festival comment to foreshadow another adventure to use in Act 3. Mostly I included it because Hayate has encountered Hinagiku during early morning jogs, showing she goes on them, and it made a nice excuse to give the Library trio time to catch up to Kain.

Ah, and speaking of this…despite the cliffhanger, I will note right now that this library adventure is much shorter. It's almost over, in fact.

Now, Takamichi is just as he is in Negima, except that I think he's younger. Rather, he should be reasonably young, being just a boy when Nagi rescued Negi's mother some fifteen to twenty years ago (more on that when the time comes), but he's often referred to as an old man and is drawn looking rather old, with his stubble and grayish hair. Hair color is often a problem I have with manga, as they often can't do much more than have white, black, and (rarely) some kind of shaded grey, but I still identify certain colors with those sometimes and the fully colored versions of the characters have conflicting colors to what I envisioned. Takamichi, for instance, with his 'white' hair and supposed youth (he should be late 20s/early 30s), I thought to be blond. However, in most colored illustrations his hair is shown to be grey, which, combined with iinchô's references to Asuna as an 'ojiicon', seem to point to him being much older, like 40s or 50s. It bothers me. So, in this he's truly in his late 20s, and truly blond. He is an original Negima character, one of mixed importance (relatively important to Negi but not a main character), and one I decided to keep, and he is pretty much just as I've shown here. Kain's more shrewd and less naïve nature have led him to interrogate his predecessor (giving me an out for having him gone so much—it's prevented Kain from searching for and possibly gaining spoilers he shouldn't have), and he is more revealing than Takamichi was to Negi because of it, but he's a generally kind, laid-back, and efficient teacher, and we'll learn much more about him during the School Festival, coming up in Act 4.

For now, just know that he is a powerful ally and friend, and someone who will give Kain much strength in the future. Oh, and Kamo refers to him as 'Hawk' because Taka is Japanese for hawk.

Now, with that long-winded rant out of the way…next chapter….