Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners, particularly the characters taken from the manga, Mahou Sensei Negima. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
The next morning, Thursday, Ayase-sensei began class with an announcement.
"I will not be in class tomorrow," she began, "Takahata-sensei has graciously agreed to take over my classes for me, so tomorrow will be a study hall. I will, however, have a quiz on the material we've covered this week, so I would suggest that you actually use tomorrow for study, and not for gossip."
After class, Mina came up to Kiri and asked, "so, everything go okay yesterday?"
"Yeah," Kiri replied, "I think I found the doors to the lower level. We shouldn't have a problem getting down there."
"Good," Mina replied, "this afternoon, let's all three go back and make sure. We've got to be ready for Saturday."
"So, you're going to Aradne this weekend?" Nokoka asked Yue at lunch that day.
"Yeah," was the reply, "it's kinda like the Reserves; you do a weekend's duty every so often, then an extended tour during the summer."
"Is there anything you'd like to do tonight before you ship out," Nodoka asked next, "maybe spend the night alone with Negi?"
"No, I'll be okay," Yue replied, "besides, I've got some things I need to do before I leave in the morning."
"Yue..."
"I know, I know. I'm telling the truth. I was asked to pick up some things here before I went back, and I've still got to do that."
"Well, okay, I guess. Say, how about it if you come with me to the Library Exploration Club this afternoon? You haven't been down there in a while, and we haven't had any girl time together in weeks."
"I'd like that," Yue replied with the small smile that said she was really happy.
"Mishima-san, could I see you for a moment," Springfield-sensei called out as Kiri, Mina and Kathy were leaving the classroom at the end of the day.
"Yes, sensei," Kiri replied, presenting herself at his desk for yet another impromptu counseling session. Mina and Kathy hung back, not leaving the room, but staying far enough away to give the illusion of privacy.
Glancing at the two, the teacher remarked with a smile, "I see something has changed in the last couple of days."
"You could say that," was her reply.
"Several of your teachers have commented on it, and I must say we're relieved that you've actually opened up to someone. Good work."
"Thank you, sensei," Kiri replied with a slight blush.
"The reason why I wanted to talk to you was to give you the name of the Faculty Advisor for the Library Exploration Club. Maybe you and your friends could check it out together."
Springfield-sensei reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a folded slip of paper and handed it to her. Kiri, not wanting to be rude, accepted the paper then looked at her friends, silently asking if she could leave. The teacher nodded with a "go on" and Kiri turned and joined her friends. The trio left the class for parts unknown.
Out in the hallway, the girls were walking for the shoe lockers. "So, what's that note, really?" Mina asked, "a love letterrr?"
"Please," Kiri replied," Springfield-sensei has been wanting me to look into the Library Exploration Club, so he gave me the name of the advisor."
"Let's see," Mina said, snatching the slip from Kiri's hand and opening it. The paper had the name, "Nodoka Miyazaki" written on it, in English, and a phone number. Kathy read the name out loud.
"Hmm, an impromptu English quiz," Mina murmured, "so, is Nodoka her given name or her family name?"
"Given," Kiri replied, "I've met her. She's the librarian I ran into the other day when I met you two."
"Oh. Maybe we should talk to her then," Kathy said, "being in the club might get us closer to the lower levels."
"Do you two really want to spend most of your afternoons shuffling books around?" Kiri asked, "I really doubt they'd let kids our age down there. I happened to run into a group heading down into the lower levels yesterday, and they were all high school girls. And, honestly, I've only ever seen junior high girls working the desks and such in the main library, so that's what we'd be doing if we joined up. Now, while I like being in the library, I don't think it would be fun picking up after other people."
A short while later, the three were in the main library, heading for the door to the restricted area.
"Now, like I said," Kiri told the other two, "the best way we're going to pull this off is to look like we've got business there. Have you got that map?"
"Yeah; here," said Mina, pulling out the document and handing to Kiri.
Taking it, Kiri noticed that it looked different. The watermarks she had seen when she first saw the document were gone. Chalking it up to the lighting, she charged forward through the door into the back area.
Once in back, she directed the other two to find a book or something to carry, to make it look like they were supposed to be shelving something back here. They did, and, props in hand, set out for the lowest level.
When they got to the basement, Kiri had Kathy and Mina hang back for a moment while she went and checked the door. She explained that she didn't want to run into a group heading down for fear of being challenged. She disappeared for a moment, then came back, waiving her friends onward.
As they approached the door, Kiri noticed that the map seemed to start vibrating. She took a quick look at it, but dismissed it as her imagination. When they got to the door, she reached out to open it, grabbing the door knob and turning. Several things happened next.
First off, the door didn't open. Next, a screeching wail sounded out, like a portal to Hell had opened and the cries of the damned echoed forth. Lastly, the map she was holding burst into flames.
All three girls broke into a run, heading back to the stairway. Before they could get there, they heard the door burst open behind them, so they ducked behind some filing cabinets. Taking a peek around the corner, Kathy whispered, "oh crap, it's Ayase-sensei!"
Just outside of the violated door, their homeroom teacher stood, a small wand in hand, looking around. Seconds later, another librarian appeared behind her. They spoke for a moment, then Ayase-sensei began moving towards them, with what looked like murder in her eyes.
The blond gaijin whipped her head back behind the cabinet and added, "we've got to get out of here!"
The three girls got up into a low crouch and began moving as fast as they could away from the teacher. As they moved, they heard the other teacher talking on the phone. Kiri recognized the teacher's voice as Nodoka Miyazaki.
"Yes, someone has tried to enter the restricted sub levels of the library," Nodoka was saying, "we'll try to catch them here, but have someone check upstairs, just in case."
"We've got to get out of this basement," Kiri said, "maybe if we can make it back to the main library level, we can blend in and get away."
Cautiously, they made their way to the stairwell. Taking a quick look around, they saw no one there, they quickly and quietly ran up to the main level. Taking a moment to try and calm themselves, the girls then walked out of the restricted area.
They had just breathed a sigh of relief when a young girl's voice said, "so, sneaking around where you don't belong, hmm?"
"I checked the whole floor, but didn't find anything," Yue told her friend, "I thought I saw something when I first came through the door, but nothing came of it."
"I called security," Nodoka replied, "they have someone in the area who is looking into it."
"You know," Yue said next, "I don't quite remember the Club being this exciting on a Thursday afternoon."
"And I'm afraid it's my fault," Nodoka admitted, "I'll explain as we go back downstairs."
Kiri, Mina and Kathy turned to the speaker. Before them, with hands on hips, was a young gaijin girl, about ten years old, dressed in a frilly dress. She had blond hair down to her ankles, kept back with a bonnet of all things. On her right wrist hung a bunny shaped handbag. She looked almost like an old European doll from a picture book, except for the look in her eyes. Her eyes looked like a cat, taking the measure of the mouse she was about to pounce on.
"Well, did you have fun?" the girl asked next. Pointing to the door, she said, "that area is for library staff only. You three obviously don't look like library staff, so what's your excuse?"
"Why should we tell you, shorty?" Kathy said.
"Oooo, defiance," the girl purred, "they really don't have a clue, do they Chachamaru?"
"No mistress, they don't," came another voice, this one from behind them. The girls whipped around and saw another girl, taller with long greenish hair and what looked like wings or fins where her ears should be. She had an impassive look on her face as she regarded them, but Kiri could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rising.
"Look," Kiri blurted out, "we just wanted to see what was on the other side, so we snuck back there. We heard a noise and ran out here. We didn't mean any harm."
The young girl eyed them up and down for a moment, then smirked. Kiri would swear later on that she saw a fang peek out from the girl's lip.
"Alright then," she finally said, "I won't keep you. Just keep in mind that these doors are labeled the way they are for a reason. And not everything you may see around here is what it seems. Now scoot."
With that, the three girls fairly well ran for the entrance.
As she watched the girls run off, Evangeline A. K. McDowell chuckled to herself.
"Is something funny, mistress?"asked her associate, Chachamaru Karakuri.
"It's nothing," Eva said, "just that those three were the ones who tripped that alarm, that's all."
"Should we not report them to the Dean, then?"
"No," the girl scoffed, "they're about as dangerous as dryer lint in a rain storm. They've had their fun and a good scare, so they probably won't try this again. There's no need to get them into trouble for something this minor."
"But what about the security staff?" Chachamaru asked next.
"What about them?" Eva replied, "things have been too quiet around here lately. Let them run around looking for terrorists or whatever for a while; it's good exercise for them. C'mon, let's head back to the cabin. That brat will probably be there wanting to give some of his partners a workout."