A/N: CHAPTER SEVEN!!! OH MAH GAH!!! Yeah…I know…suuuuper long delay but hey, I was suddenly loaded with so much work…then I totally forgot what I wanted to write. Every time I looked at this story I stared for ten long minutes and tried to type but nothing was coming in. So to pass the time I read other fanfics…got my motivation back and decided 'Damnit! I'm going to finish this story even if it kills me!'.
Again, sorry for the long update but as I said a few months back college applications were killing me and my stress level was rather high. Now I've just gotten downright lazy…but anyways, end of my rant. Hope you enjoy this chapter, sorry that it couldn't have been longer.
Summary: Konoemon questions, Setsuna questions, and Konoka starts to grow slightly worried.
Chapter Seven - Confidence
To say that the air was filled with tension was a major understatement. It was so thick that Setsuna had a hard time breathing normally. With her hands getting sweaty and her body heat rising she wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to last. Actually anyone who was put on the spot so suddenly about admitting that they were in love with someone, especially if that someone was of the same gender not to mention the daughter of one of the most powerful magic associations, would feel the same way the swordswoman was at that moment.
Setsuna didn't know how to respond. Countless times she had tried to force her mouth to open, eyes to blink, air to flow in, anything. Her mind suddenly went blank and nothing relative came to mind. If she replied 'no' then it would've obviously be a complete lie. But if she said yes…well…from the looks of it, the outcome wouldn't be any better.
Would it?
If she told the truth would the outcome really not be any better? If she admitted that she indeed was in love what harm could they do to her? Setsuna's eyebrows furrowed as countless scenarios ran through her mind as to what they could do. The risk could, and most likely would, change the rest of her life as well as Konoka's forever.
But it was a risk she was willing to take. She was sure that Konoka would do the exact same for her…
"I-If…If I said yes…what…would you do?" Setsuna forced her tone so much that it almost came out as a growl. She really didn't mean for her voice to sound so agitated but how else was she supposed to sound?
Konoemon sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Setsuna-kun now is not the time to be seeing how far you can push my patience."
"With all due respect, sir I've never done so in the past…why would I start now?" Setsuna held her ground when Konoemon looked up to see her facial expression consist one full of respect with not a hint of deceit and it occurred to him that this girl would be the last person to test her limits. He felt bad for assuming that she would have done so after all he should have known how serious Setsuna took her job.
"Take a seat, Setsuna-kun. I have a lot things that I want you to consider first."
"I'm impressed Konoka. You've improved a lot since the last time we've had a practice session." The short vampire stood in front of her two pupils with her arm crossed over her chest. She had an amused smile on her face with not so much a spot of dirt on her clothes.
Konoka and Negi on the other hand were magically and physically drained. Konoka was panting heavily on her hands and knees while Negi was sprawled on his back a few feet away from her. Both of their clothes were ripped and torn slightly with minor cuts that covered their arms and legs.
"I…I've been…practicing a lot…so…" Konoka breathed as she tried to force her voice to come out though is sounded more like a croak than anything else. She turned over so that she was sitting and put her hands behind her to keep her up. Her head was inclined back but her eyes were closed.
"Your progress is amazing. It'll only be a matter of time before I can start teaching you advanced magic spells. Better watch out, boy or else Konoka is going to surpass you." Evangeline headed towards her villa with Chachamaru behind her. Konoka sat forward after her breathing started to return back to its normal pace.
Negi rolled over on his stomach and pushed himself on his feet and stood up. He offered a hand to the healer in which she took it gratefully and was pulled onto her feet.
"Evangeline-san is right. You have come a long way, Konoka-san! I remember it took me months to master a spell. Setsuna-san is going to be amazed when she sees how much you can do!" Konoka smiled and scratched her arm sheepishly. She put a hand on Negi's cheek and the cut that was on it healed.
"Thanks, Negi-kun but I have a long way to go before I can be on the same level as you." The two of them turned their heads when they heard the vampire scoff at the remark and continued walking.
"We'll have training again next Saturday same time and don't be late or else you both know what will happen. Take another day to rest here and then get out. Brats these days…always asking for so much." Konoka and Negi thanked Evangeline and went to take a shower and refreshed themselves. Since it was night time in the villa the two got ready for bed.
"I wonder what Secchan's up to…" murmured Konoka as she closed her eyes and rested her head on the pillow.
"Um…Konoka-san…I was wondering…since you and Setsuna-san are together, will that cause problems for your grandfather? I mean I know that he's been trying to set you up on all those omiais so…" Negi was sitting up on his bed and looking towards Konoka's bed.
Konoka opened her eyes and stared out in the darkness for a long moment. The healer didn't move for such a long time that Negi didn't know whether the brown haired girl had fallen asleep already or if she didn't want to answer him. It was neither.
"Gramps…well…even though he's always setting me up with arranged marriages he's never once forced me to actually consider any of them. I mean I'm sure he wants me to be interested and give it at least some thought but he's never really forced his decision upon me. Secchan…she's never done anything to upset Grandfather. If anything I'm sure that her devotion amazes him. I don't think that Gramps would…reject the fact that Secchan and I love each other. Even if he did, it wouldn't matter to me. I only care about Secchan." Konoka turned over on her other side so that she was now facing the younger wizard. The confident smile on her face was more than enough proof for Negi to know that the healer meant every single word she just said.
Negi smiled back at his student and lied down on his pillow staring up at the ceiling.
"It's amazing you know, to see two people who love each other as much as you guys do. I'm kind of envious. I've spent nearly all my life training to become stronger so that one day I'll be able to find my father. I never gave love much thought. Even though Nodoka-san had confessed to me, and Incho-san along with Makie-san, I…no doubt I care for them deeply but I can't see any of them as a lifelong partner." Negi heard a giggle to his right and saw that Konoka was sitting up in her bed laughing in her hand.
"Well of course not! You're only 13 for crying out loud. Things like having a lifelong partner and marriage shouldn't be your main concern right now. Besides it's illegal to have a teacher-student relationship, though I'm sure you already knew that." Konoka winked as she reached forward and ruffled up Negi's hair just like a loving sister would.
"But, I'm only a year younger when you and Setsuna-san first began talking and rebuilt your friendship. What if I ended up hurting them or-" Negi stopped short when the healer flicked his forehead gently. The wizard was taken aback and held a hand up to his head and rubbed it.
"Negi-kun, I'm not the best candidate when it comes to relationships since I just recently got in one. I've…always had a one-track mind when it came to Secchan because she was the first friend I ever hand, not to mention that she's also my first and only love. But I can tell you this…when you truly love someone…it can hurt you so much that it makes living so unbearable even making you wish you've never met that person…but at the same time…it gives you this joy and happiness that nothing else can ever even attempt to offer. It's up to you whether or not you choose to forgive and move on. Loving relationships build and become stronger over time. You may fall in love instantly but true love is a two way street. The other person has to love you back in order for a relationship to work. Don't rush into something you're unsure of, Negi-kun or else you'll live miserably missing all the small details in life right next to you. You might even miss that one special person who's always been right besides you supporting you without fail." Konoka's smile was so bright and genuine that Negi couldn't help but stare at how beautiful she looked. Her smile glowed with all the affection she felt for the swordswoman, so much so that their 13-year-old teacher couldn't think of anything that could stop them from loving each other.
"Konoka-san…" Negi wanted to say something in return but he found that he had nothing to say at all. He was rendered speechless.
"Let's go to sleep, Negi-kun. I'm pretty exhausted." Konoka ruffled Negi's hair up for a second before she got back in her bed. "Goodnight, Negi-kun."
Negi lied back down in his own bed and couldn't help but smile. "Goodnight, Konoka-san."
It had been two long days (well in reality only two hours had passed but two hours in the real world was equivalent to two days in the Evangeline's villa) and Konoka had felt as if she had been separated from her dearest Secchan for far too long. So naturally she went looking for the swordswoman but Setsuna was nowhere to be found. The dorms, no luck, the school, nope not there, her grandfather's office, left an hour ago, wandering in the forest, not at the usual training spot plus it was too big to search. Where could she be?
"I should have asked her to make a pactio with me for my birthday." Konoka blew a strand of hair on her face out to the side and stood in the middle of the school grounds with her arms over her chest. Then a thought hit her and she pulled out her cell phone. "I keep forgetting Secchan has one…"
Konoka dialed the number and waited as it rang…and rang…and rang and went straight to the voice message. The healer frowned as she closed her phone and put it away. It wasn't like Setsuna to not answer her phone no matter who called her.
The swordswoman should've been done with training already. In fact Konoka saw Touko-sensei as she left Evangeline's villa so Setsuna couldn't have been with her. It was starting to get extremely frustrating.
"Konoka!" The healer turned around at the call of her name and found her roommate running towards her.
"Hey, Asuna. What's up?" Try as she might, Konoka couldn't help but feel disappointed when it wasn't Setsuna who found her first. Asuna all but noticed that.
"Nothing I just saw you walking around…alone. Where's Setsuna?" Asuna looked around in case she saw the swordswoman coming in their direction but Setsuna was nowhere to be found. She looked back at Konoka to see that her guess was as good as anyone else's.
"That's a really good question. I have no idea where she's at. She even promised me that she would wait in her dorm if she finished early but I saw Touko-sensei five minutes ago and Secchan still wasn't in her room." The way Konoka's voice sounded almost desperate, Asuna knew that the healer was anything but calm about being separated from her girlfriend. It wasn't as if they couldn't function on their own, it was just the simple fact that Setsuna had promised Konoka that she would meet her. Setsuna was one person who never broke her promises unless something urgent came up. Why she would start today was out of the question for whatever reason.
"Well, I wouldn't worry too much about her since she can take care of herself. If anything I'm sure Setsuna will find you so just give her some time. She probably got some job from your grandfather that's keeping her away or something. Besides, it's only been like what…two and a half hours? I'm sure you can last at least three hours, if not more, with her not by your side." Asuna grinned playfully and wrapped her arm around Konoka's shoulders. "Hey, let's go out today! It's been a long time since just the two of us hung out just to hangout."
Konoka actually looked interested but one thought, or rather person, was holding her back from saying yes.
"What about Secchan?"
"Ah, she'll understand if I steal her girlfriend for one day. Come on let's go!" Asuna grabbed Konoka's hands and started running towards the train station with a huge smile plastered onto her face. After the healer gave in and started to run as well Asuna turned her head away from Konoka's view.
'Sorry, Setsuna but Konoka looked really heartbroken...I'm sure you won't mind if it's for one day.'
"Why didn't you pick up?"
Mana looked over at the swordswoman who stared blankly at her closed cell phone for a long moment. Setsuna had been like that for a long time since she came to the Tatsumiya shrine looking for a place of solitude and perhaps a listening ear. Mana obviously didn't know what got the raven haired girl to become so adamant about not picking up when Konoka called. Usually Setsuna always jumped at the first ring no matter what her circumstances were.
There was once a time when the two of them were out fighting a few small demons that crossed the barrier and Setsuna's cell phone rang. In a split second she took down every single demon, leaving nothing for the surprised Mana, frantically pulled out her cell and ended up dropping it during the process, which in turn delayed her answer. Ever since then, the gunner never allowed Setsuna the pleasure of answering her cell phone without that memory resurfacing. Although today the gunner figured that it would seem inappropriate to provoke the sulking girl.
Mana knew it must've been something that the healer's grandfather had said because after that short meeting, Setsuna had seemed like she just lost something important. No…not like she lost something, more like she was the one lost in her own conflicting mind.
"Tatsumiya…is it so wrong to love someone of the same gender? I mean I know that in this day and age homosexuality has become a lot more acceptable but…" Setsuna's voice was quiet and unsure, as if she were asking herself the question.
"What in the world brought this up? Are you questioning your relationship with Konoka already? It's only been a day." Mana stood next to the window of the shrine as Setsuna sat up against one of the many pillars and continued to stare at her cell phone. They stayed that way for a long while, Mana waiting for Setsuna to answer and Setsuna not sure how she could answer.
"Maybe…it was a bad idea…I shouldn't have forced my feelings onto Kono-chan." Setsuna didn't move and was too busy looking like a lost puppy that she didn't see Mana sigh heavily and run an irritated hand through her hair.
The gunner wanted so much to scream out 'You stupid idiot! How the hell can you be thinking thatnow of all times after you've confessed and found out that Konoka has felt the same about you for the past however many years you've been alive?! How dense and brainless can this woman be?!' But of course, having a reputation of a calm, aloof, and dangerous woman, she couldn't risk losing it over some trivial matter that wasn't even her problem to begin with.
Well, maybe just this once.
"Forced? You think this is all about you isn't it? Haven't you ever considered that Konoka is in love with you too? Do you honestly think that she decided to go out with you just to make you happy? You can't possibly think that this is a one-sided relationship do you? You have to figure out that there are things that only you can do that makes Konoka smile the way she does. Do you honestly think that she doesn't love you the way you love her?!" Mana certainly surprised Setsuna with a rather long (for Mana it's considered long) speech in her calm yet irritated voice. The gunner crossed her arms over her chest and was looking out the window to avoid glaring at the swordswoman.
Setsuna was left speechless. The thoughts ran across her mind again and again that it made her smile. If it took the stern gunner to teach her a lesson about relationships then Setsuna knew that she was a complete idiot for questioning her feelings for the umpteenth time.
"Wow, the great and expensive hit woman for hire has to give me a lecture on my love life…I must be blind." Setsuna smiled at Mana's back and picked up her sword case and held it over her shoulder. "Thanks Tatsumiya." With that Setsuna walked out of the shrine with a glowing smile.
Mana sighed as she watched Setsuna walk down the pathway back to school.
"Everything had better turn out right."
"Come in." Konoemon looked up as his door opened and was delighted to find that the swordswoman had returned.
"Ah, Setsuna-kun have you made up your mind?"
Setsuna closed the door behind her and walked a few feet in front of the desk before she looked up at him and gave a single nod.
"From the moment we fell into the water, no from the very moment I first laid my eyes upon Kono-chan, I knew that I wanted to protect her with everything I had. I value her life more than my own and would willingly give it if I had to. She is the sole reason for all of my hard and rigorous training." Setsuna was filled with so much confidence that she wondered where it all came from. The friendship she was able to rebuild? The support everyone gave her? The small lecture she received ten minutes ago? Or was it simply because Konoka was alive and loved her in return?
"Hm." That short sound of understanding confused Setsuna slightly for she didn't know how to take it. Konoemon stroked his beard leisurely and gazed outside his window for a long while before he turned back towards the swordswoman.
"Setsuna-kun, I need you to do a favor for me. You'll be missing a week of school but it's something that I would strongly prefer you to carry out for me. Will you take it?" The elderly man crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the confusion dance across the younger girl's face. Setsuna considered her options and then realized she didn't even know what her options were. One moment they were talking about how she felt towards Konoka now…she wasn't even sure.
"Is it a dangerous job?" Setsuna asked to make sure she wasn't getting into something that would leave her on the brink of death. Although something like that wasn't foreign to her anymore.
"Hmm…not exactly but it does require secrecy, especially from Konoka. If you accept this then you cannot tell anyone even where it is you are going or for what reason. In fact I would prefer that you leave as soon as you accept, considering that you do, this assignment and leave me with the details of your sudden disappearance." Konoemon searched the dark eyes before him and wasn't surprised to find some hesitation. After all whenever he gave assignments he always gave out the details first and what it would be. Of course he also never handed out jobs to people that wouldn't be able to fulfill it.
But a favor that required Sakurazaki Setsuna? It wasn't the normal exterminate-the-unwelcomed-guests type of job and the only other thing she had been doing was to protect Konoka. So what kind of favor would require her to miss one week of school? One week of not being able to see her beloved ojou-sama…
"…one week?" Setsuna asked.
"One whole week." Konoemon replied.
Setsuna sighed and knew that she was going to get hell from Konoka when she returned.
"I accept."
A/N: What is this 'favor' Konoemon requests? Hopefully you'll be able to find out soon! That is…if I get some nice reviews. Lately I've been hooked onto Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha, I might write a fanfic for that series in the future. But I'll finish this one before I start on anything else. See you next time!
