A/N: This was done faster than I expected. It's amazing what the proper motivation will do, right Hydriatus? For the rest of you, my fellow Train Stationer has been recently posting a chapter a day to 'Our Time Together' and is making me feel like a slacker.

Ken Akamatsu owns Negima and its characters. I was going to say that I posted a chapter without an OC in it, but managed to slip one in at the end.

The following conventions are used: "words", 'thoughts', "spells", -telepathy-

Just what we all need, more lies about a world that never was and never will be – Moody, Lee, Hodges

What Never was and Never Will be

Mahora, Japan

Water, cool and crystal clear, flowed around Ayaka's calves as the class rep stood in a stream. The morning sun beat down upon her and from the way the girl's neck and shoulders were feeling, skin was turning from pink to red. But she hadn't completed her task and would stand there all day if needed.

Catch a fish Kaede had told her. They hadn't packed any poles the student was quick to point out. Didn't need them her instructor replied. So Ayaka waded into the stream and was getting both chilled and burnt at the same time. What made it worse was that the stream was filled with hundreds of the little blighters. Numerous times dark shapes had swum close, only to speed away the moment she moved a muscle.

How could she be defeated so easy? How dare those fish come close enough to tempt her only to escape? They were probably laughing with all their fish friends about the stupid human standing in the water. Tears began to form as Ayaka despaired. Classmates, girls she had known for years were battling demons and evil wizards; and she couldn't even catch one measly fish.

'Is that what this is about?' the class rep asked herself. 'Do I want to be on the front line too?'

An image of her decked out in a costume like an anime heroine came to mind. A small laugh rose in the back of her throat over 'Magic Girl Ayaka, nemesis of evil-doers everywhere.' Still, during the cyberspace battle she and Makie-san had inadvertently been drawn into, the blonde-haired girl had never felt more alive. Believing it was an intense, virtual reality game, the question of where their powers came from was never asked. If magic was real, could they both have the ability to use it? The class rep shuddered in response to a wand-armed Baka Pink casting spells.

Thrusting that discomforting image away, Ayaka focused on the task at hand, yet other thoughts kept intruding. War had been declared upon Mahora and she wanted to do what was possible to help. If Konoka was correct, her family's resources were already being employed by the headmaster, so what could she contribute? When Negi-sensei asked her to warn her classmates this morning, it proved that mere physical prowess wasn't always what was needed. Sometimes it only took a willingness to follow orders and enough thought to organize efforts efficiently.

So if she didn't have to train in order to be of help, why was she subjecting herself to this frustration? Memories of how Asuna humiliated her during last summer's badge game caused cheeks to blush in response. In hindsight, being thumped hadn't hurt near as much as realizing the other girl had progressed so far ahead. Even then, it didn't seem that falling behind was what bothered her.

In truth, Ayaka had reached a point and gotten comfortable with it; unconsciously deciding further advancement was unnecessary. Competing on an even foot with Asuna may not be realistic anymore, but had her potential been reached? Being humbled by a classmate was embarrassing; however, to settle for less than what you could achieve was a greater cause for shame. Ultimately, training wasn't about Negi or Asuna or the headmaster or even Mahora. It was something the class rep needed to do for herself.

A shadow moved in the water and hands flashed into action. A brown and tan fish wriggled in her grasp. Surprised, she sat back in the stream and stared as light glistened off its scales.

--

On the bank, Kaede lay in a tree's shade and grinned at her pupil's amazed expression. Cousin Chiho would no doubt have scolded little Kaede for taking so long, but the kunoichi knew that wasn't called for now. Some things couldn't be rushed.

--

Kyoto, Japan

Skin began to feel numb from the cold of towel-wrapped ice cubes. Across the room, his son sat, holding a similar bundle to a hand print that showed vivid red against the boy's cheek. 'My son,' Nagi thought. 'He's right in front of me. Negi's grown so big that I barely recognize the child who knelt in the snow. And where did he get those scars from?'

'Say something baka,' the man mentally scolded. 'Don't just sit there like a lump.'

"Your friend has a bit of a temper."

"Anya's a little sensitive about some things," Negi replied in a guarded tone. "Perhaps it would be best if you didn't mention the size of her, um …"

"Anatomy," he suggested.

"Anatomy," the boy agreed.

"I didn't mean to insinuate she was, er lacking in that regard."

"Why are you in my father's house?" Negi suddenly asked. "And how did you get in?"

"I'm going to get something out of my pocket," Nagi warned. "So don't get jumpy."

"I came here because I don't want to explain myself to everyone who thinks they have a right to stick their nose into my business," he replied. A small, glowing crystal hung suspended from a leather thong. "I befriended your father a long time ago. This key was made by him."

"When did you meet my father?"

Nagi shifted on the couch and gazed back at his son and smiled with the borrowed face. "It was shortly before you were born."

"Would you like to hear about it?" Outwardly Negi remained calm, but he could see the boy's eyes light up with interest. "Let's see, it was the summer of '93 when Nagi Springfield heard rumors that Total World was active and rebuilding."

--

Total World had been crushed during the Great War, or so everyone wanted to believe. But that appeared to have been a vain hope. Phoenix-like it rose out of the ashes of defeat, poised to bring another long and costly conflict to the Mundus Magicus. Once more people looked to the Crimson Wing, heroes of the last war, for help.

Ten years can be a lifetime for some and a mere blink for others, but the ten years since the war's end had wrought changes. The Crimson Wing of popular image no longer existed. Of the six men who ended the war together, one was missing while another had retired and no amount of pleading could pry him from his villa. Eishun had assumed leadership of the Kansai Magic Association and was father to a four-year-old daughter. Gateau, a respected troubleshooter, travelled the Magic World with his apprentices, resolving difficulties brought about by the squabbles between nations. Albireo alone appeared unchanged, but how does one judge if an enigma is different.

Nagi Springfield, the Thousand Master, had changed too. Having experienced heartbreak in the aftermath of the war, he had sworn never to fall in love again. As an ardent 15 year old, he had uttered that oath with the utmost sincerity while those around him smiled indulgently. Earnest as he was, Nagi hadn't reckoned on Anna.

Anna was the daughter of a wealthy merchant from Ariadne, a graduate of the Meldiana School of Magic, a Mage Knight who fought in the Third Battle of Ostia and, on occasion, a member of the Crimson Wing. She had helped Nagi not to forget the past but to move on from it and captured his heart in the process. It was a newly married husband and expectant father who went to Istanbul.

And a concerned one that rushed back when he heard word enemies had sent a notorious assassin to Kyoto. After seeing to his wife and their unborn child's safety, he returned and was greeted by tragedy.

--

"Gateau dead?" Nagi asked in shock. "What? How?"

"That assassin either never meant to go to Japan or was warned off," Eishun replied. "He double-backed in New Delhi and caught us completely by surprise. I blame myself for this."

"Don't dwell on that too long," Al said. "Takamichi-kun is already beating himself up over it. The idiot seems to think that if he had mastered kanka, Gateau would still be alive."

"How's the princess?" His worry grew as the other men looked knowingly at one another. "What is it?"

"She was with Takamichi-kun at the time," Eishun answered. "They were the ones to find him. Asuna-chan watched him die."

"I need to see her."

"Before you do, there's something you should know first," Al told him. "It was Gateau's dying wish that her memories be wiped to spare her further pain."

"So how far back did you go?"

"It wasn't just erasing memories," the pony-tailed mage answered. "I put a completely different personality in place."

"You what?" Nagi shouted, as he grabbed the front of the other man's robes.

Al calmly gazed back at him, making no effort to free himself. "We spoke about this before, remember? This is the only way to bypass what was done to her and let the princess have a more normal life."

Slowly, Nagi unclenched his hand. "Take me to her."

Eishun led him to the playground where a girl with twin pony-tails was digging in the sand. Nagi knelt down and smiled at her. "Hi."

A little face, open and innocent, regarded him in return. "Hello," she replied. "Who are you?"

"I'm Nagi," he answered as a piece of him shriveled at her question. "What's your name?"

"Asuna."

"Asuna huh?" he remarked. Desperately Nagi searched for some sign of the girl he had known, but found only a stranger. "That's a beautiful name."

They spoke a little while longer and then he left her to continue her play. "What happens to her and Takamichi now?" he asked Eishun.

"My father-in-law has offered Asuna-chan a spot free of charge at his school," the swordsman responded. "Takamichi-kun will take her to Japan and remain as her guardian."

"How are they going to live?" he wondered aloud.

"Gateau-san left everything to those two," Eishun answered. "He wasn't rich but it should be enough to see them through."

Nagi glanced again at the girl building castles out of sand. Thoughts of his own son, not yet born, rose within him. 'I need to be there for Negi and I will be,' he silently swore. 'But I won't let this go unavenged.'

"Do we know where this assassin is yet?" he asked.

"No, but we're working on it."

"When we find him, he's mine."

"No Nagi," Eishun replied, his face a grim mask. "We all want a piece of that son of a bitch."

--

Any society will spawn both the best and worst in its members. Among the less savory groups in the Mundus Magicus is the "Sicae Umbra Celare", hired killers who specialize in shadow magic. Garbed in black robes with faces hidden behind white masks, normal people gave wide berth whenever they appeared. Kagetarou of Bosporros was one with the worst of reputations.

"Wait a minute," Negi interrupted. "I fought him."

Nagi stopped his narration and stared at the boy. "I heard about your battle," he commented. "But I would be surprised if it was the same person. Originally those murders slapped 'kage' in front of their names as a mark of distinction. In time, it became customary for apprentices to adopt their master's name. "

"I believe the Kagetarou your father faced is dead," he continued. "But it's likely you fought his successor."

"Now do you want me to continue?" Nagi asked and waited for an affirmative nod. "I have no idea how your Father and his friends located one man in a city of millions, but they did. Ala Rubra caught up to the assassin in the Istanbul Gateport one August evening."

--

Ribbons of shadow, sharper than finely honed steel, flowed out from the shadowmancer's hands. Nagi dodged falling stone as his opponent sliced through a nearby marble column as easily as if made of butter. Closer the three Crimson Wing members drew to the cornered mage. Perched upon a balcony, the assassin stood with dark bands waving about him like long stalks of grass rippling in the breeze.

- Now Eishun! - Nagi sent and then began an incantation.

Nodachi held before him, the swordsman jumped forward, acting as a lightning rod. Black streamers wildly thrashed only to shatter against the ki-ampliphied blade. A sudden flare of light filled the chamber as burst of lightning missiles from a Sagitta Magica struck Kagetarou, swiftly followed by "Kenotetos astrapsato de temeto! Dios Tukos!"

"Kratiste Aegis!" a new voice cried and the lightning axe deflected off a summoned magic circle.

"Unus Fulgor Concidens Noctem, in Mea Manu Ens Inimicum Edat! Fulguratio Albicans!" intoned the same voice. In response, a bolt of energy lanced into Nagi's stomach, driving him into the floor. Barriers instantly strengthened as he was forced backwards, gouging a ridged groove in polished stone tiles.

A familiar, dimpled face, crowned by a mop of white hair, appeared above the balcony railing. Nagi's eyes opened wide in disbelief as he recognized his former ally. "Kozimos?" he yelled. "What are you doing?"

"That should be obvious, even for you," the newcomer answered in a cheerful voice.

"But let me make it clear, and I'll use small words," Kozimos continued as thirty lightning spears shimmered into existence and then launched forward. "I switched sides."

Nagi scrambled out of the way just before the spears detonated. Their roar masked the sound of Al's spell and a globe of swirling energy struck the balcony, pulverizing it into fragments. The white-haired wizard floated above the ruined balcony and clapped hands together with pleasure. "And Imma's here too."

Thunder exploded about the chamber as dozens of spears impacted causing Nagi and his friends to scatter. Return spells glanced off magic shields encircling their foe, and added to the gateport's devastation. During the melee, Eishun's shundo put him directly beneath the newcomer.

"Messatsu Zanku Zanmasen." Ki barreled upward from Yunagi, avoiding the wizard's defenses, and struck their opponent. Upwards their enemy was propelled but a quick incantation blew a hole in the ceiling and Kozimos passed out of view.

Chunks of marble shifted in a pile of rubble as the shadowmancer dug his way out. "I'll handle this one," the swordsman grimly said as he faced their original quarry. "You two deal with Anankaios-san."

With that Nagi and Albireo leapt through the hole in pursuit. Air rushed past the mages as they chased after their onetime friend and companion. Downward the still youthful seeming wizard fled, through one of the tunnels leading to the transfer platform.

That Kagetarou had been bait for this trap was perfectly obvious to Nagi; he wondered what threat would confront them next as well as what had changed Kozimos. During the war, the white-haired boy had been an adamant foe of Total World, even to the point of sacrificing himself to ensure their defeat. It was almost as if Nagi faced an entirely different person.

Ears caught the unmistakable hum of gathering magic. Ahead, a glow surrounded the great portal stone. Energy surged and the air above its tip ripped asunder; an alien landscape lay beyond. Through the gapping rift, their enemy escaped.

"Nagi wait!" Albireo called.

"There's no time."

"There is for this," the mage replied. "Adeat!"

Tome upon tome of books circled about the robed figure, whirling about like a double helix. He snatched one of the volumes and pulled its bookmark out. Suddenly Nagi was looking at himself. "Just to be safe," Al remarked and then flew towards the waiting portal.

Unlike a normal transfer, creating a direct connection between the worlds required an enormous amount of energy but sidestepped the disorientation of crossing the void. Instantly, Nagi recognized the gateport at Granicus. But where was Kozimos?

"Flamma Abyssus , meus hostilis voro. Rogus forem exuro. Eternus Torqueo!"

Flames engulfed the false Nagi who screamed in agony. Rage as hot as the spell's fire burned in Nagi's chest as he saw the smile on his enemy's face, a smile erased as his fist smashed into it. He felt pain as bones fractured but paid it no heed as he struck that damnable face again and again. Fueled by anger, Nagi moved faster, hit harder than he could ever remember. Near the chamber's ceiling, he grabbed Kozimos' throat and plunged downward, diving straight into the portal stone. Upon impact, the top third of the stone disintegrated, releasing its magic explosively.

Nagi choked on a cloud of dust. Al had been hit by a powerful curse of some kind, but he needed to ensure the other mage was down for good. Up head, the figure clad in a blood-soaked robe lay across a pile of rubble. Realizing the enemy was still breathing, he gathered power for a finishing strike.

"Still alive there Nagi?" his foe coughed. "I think that last one did it."

"Why Kozimos? Why did you do it?"

"I doubt a simple mind as yours will understand, but I was trying to correct our mistake," the white-haired mage answered. "We may not approve of their means but Total World's aims were right."

"Our world needs a strong hand to guide it," he wheezed, "to save us from ourselves."

"I don't buy that for a minute."

"No, you wouldn't," the dying mage replied. "In my pocket is something you should have. I'm sorry it turned out this way … I really am."

Nagi watched his former friend's eyes roll up in his skull and chest stop moving. In the pocket he found a Crimson Wing badge, the one he left for his unborn son. All at once, his life came crashing down and the man called the Thousand Master felt a complete and utter failure.

--

"No!" Negi was on his feet. Knuckles were turning white so tightly were the boy's fists clenched. "My father wasn't a failure!"

'Oh yes I was,' Nagi wanted to argue, but wisely refrained from comment.

"Look at it from your father's eyes Springfield-san," he said aloud. "Nearly everyone he cared about was dead or gravely injured, or so he thought. How could he feel otherwise with what he knew?"

"I suppose you're right," the boy finally admitted. "So is this where you and my father met?"

"Yes. You might recall that the majority of healers in Granicus are attached to the arena," Nagi responded. "Dawn was just breaking when I received a frantic call."

--

No matter how long he stared at the Chirurgicum door, nothing changed. Healers versed in every sort of injury and ailment that beset prize fighters were no doubt stymied by the curse laid upon Albireo. His friend's flesh had burst into flames that brought pain but consumed nothing, leaving the body whole and in constant agony. Far more diabolic than petrifaction, it truly deserved the name eternal torment.

Hearing a click, he looked up to see a tall, bearded man cautiously approach. Caked with dust and clothing in tatters, Nagi guessed he must have presented a sight anything but heroic. "My name is Joseph Dolnegus," the stranger said. "I own the arena."

He nodded in acknowledgement.

Dolnegus paused as if carefully considering his next words. "May I speak with you privately?"

Minutes later the two stood before a tank filled with a jelly-like material. In the center rested a body so badly burned as to be unrecognizable. Skin was mass of scar tissue, white and hairless. "What did you do to him?"

"My healers can't lift the curse Springfield-san," the bearded man answered. "The best they were able to do was to put him into a deep sleep. Your friend is packed in a substance that smoothers flames, but they'll start again the second he's removed."

Speechlessly he gazed at the tank as Dolnegus continued to explain. "This is only a temporary solution. The chief healer recommends putting him in stasis until a counter spell can be found."

"Can they also place his soul into a separate container?"

"I suppose so," Dolnegus answered. "But that is an expensive procedure."

"I can't pay you at this moment," Nagi said, "but if you can front the funds, I'll see you are reimbursed in full."

"I'd willingly help the hero of Ostia," the man replied. "But my money is tied up in the current prize fighting season and will be until after the uh, Nagi Springfield Cup is over."

"How much does it cost to enter a new team?"

"Well it … wait a moment. Just what do you have in mind?"

A smile creased Nagi's face. "What if I can guarantee your team wins it all?"

"No good," Dolnegus replied, shaking his head as he realized where Nagi was headed. "The prize money won't cover the expense."

"A friend of mine once explained that prize money is nothing compared to what's won in betting on outcomes."

"This is ridiculous. Who would bet against you?"

"Teams have gone incognito before," he pointed out to the reluctant owner. "First we need to put it out that Nagi Springfield died this morning in Granicus."

"That will be difficult to do without producing a …," Dolnegus started and then paused. Eyes travelled to the tank. "A body?"

"I think Al will forgive me this once."

--

A few days later, lost amidst the public mourning for the man known as the Thousand Master, a recent addition to the Granicus Fortes team made its debut in the Minerva Cup. Named the "Lightning Axe" team in honor of the departed Springfield-san, the masked duo won a string of hard-fought battles, staging not a few come from behind victories

"Who fought with my father?" Negi asked. "Was it Rakan-san?"

"I doubt there are enough drachmas anywhere to lure Jacobius Rakan back into the arena," Nagi answered. "No, the other person was just good enough to hold his own and had a vested interest in keeping his mouth shut."

"You mean?"

"I'm a veteran of the Great War too young man," he responded. "I even learned the Lightning Axe spell so your father's use of it wouldn't be all that remarkable."

"That would explain a few things," Asuna remarked from the stairwell door.

"How's Anya?" Negi asked as he gingerly touched the fading hand print.

"She's calmer," Asuna answered. "I came down to check if her clothes are ready for the dryer."

"We've been catching up on the past few days," the teen continued. "It sounds as if you two have had an eventful time."

Nagi stared at the bell-wearing girl. Though his face maintained a neutral expression, he realized how thin the ice beneath him was if Asuna started asking questions. Desperately he wondered how to steer the conversation away from such dangerous ground when Negi let him off the hook.

"Dolnegus-san was telling me about how he met my father," the boy told her. "Would you like to listen?"

A smile appeared as she gazed down at his son. For a moment, the man saw another princess from another time who once smiled at him in the same way. In his ignorance, Nagi had misread its intent and paid a heavy price for being an idiot. He hoped Negi would learn the difference before the boy made a similar mistake.

"Maybe latter," Asuna replied. "I need to see about Anya-san's clothes."

Eagerly Negi turned his attention back to him. "So what happened next?"

"Next? Oh yes, next."

--

Lightning Axe had won 15 matches to reach the Minerva Cup finals. They had easily qualified for the Nagi Cup and this last battle would be a formality except for who they faced. The human mage/cat-girl warrior team had been left homeless after the calamity that befell Ostia. Rather than live a refugees, the pair had agreed to be enslaved and fight for their freedom in the arena. A contract that remained in force even after the Hellas Empire formally outlawed using slaves as gladiators.

"Have you seen the odds this morning?" Nagi asked.

"Yes," Dolnegus replied sourly. "We've been too successful it seems."

"Quite a few of our future competitors will be watching today's match won't they?"

"I suppose."

Costumes firmly secured, Nagi and his teammate marched up the tunnel to the main arena. "I wonder how it would affect things if we lost," Nagi commented.

The other masked figure stopped and glared through eye slits in response. "You're not suggesting we throw the match are you?"

"I guess I am at that," he replied.

"Not a chance," Dolnegus said. "Those two are fighting for their freedom, and I respect that too much to cheapen their accomplishment."

"Who would have thought," Nagi laughed, "that beneath the gruff exterior beats a sentimental heart?"

"Repeat that and I'll haul you before a magistrate for slander."

A large crowd packed the stadium to watch the cup championship. The match progressed normally with Nagi and Dolnegus positioning themselves to deliver the team's signature double lightning strike when a slight miscalculation was made. Although the cat-girl hadn't displayed the capability before, she executed a shundo to move within striking range of Dolnegus. Nagi released his spell and watched as the flash enveloped both prize fighters. Momentarily stunned, he was an easy target for a Sagitta Magica barrage.

Back in their dressing room, his partner raged at him. "You did that on purpose," the man accused.

"It was accidental," Nagi maintained. "Now hold still or I won't be able to restore your eyebrows."

"I find it hard to believe you could make a mistake like that."

"That's a drawback to having a reputation like mine," he replied. "People tend to forget that you're only human. It's hell when they expect you to be perfect every minute of the day."

Moments later the spell was complete. "Why the rush Chairman?" Nagi asked. "You could have congratulated the victors after seeing a healer."

"Now that they're free, I wanted to offer them jobs before somebody else snatched them up," the businessman responded. "Vargas-san may not look like it …"

--

"Vargas-san!" Negi nearly shouted. "You mean he really did beat my father?"

"Yes although the story has changed quite a bit over the years," Nagi chuckled.

"You said your hired both," the boy remarked. "Who was Vargas-san's partner?"

"My chief of staff of course."

"What? Mama-san?"

"Everyone thinks of Mama-san as an overgrown teddy bear," he said, "but she survived her home's destruction and won her freedom after ten years of fighting in the arena."

"So what happened after that Dolnegus-san?"

"After our loss, the odds makers gave us a ridiculously low chance to win," Nagi answered. "We did win of course and your own experiences last year should tell you what that was like."

"Your father had been through hell for more than a month," he continued. "And though he had done everything in his power, I know he felt like a failure."

"He had taken his friend Imma-san to the Mundus Vertus long before word reached me that your mother had survived long enough to give birth to you." At that, he fell silent for moment. "You can only imagine how that news must have struck him."

"I don't know why he stayed away, maybe Nagi-san though it would be too dangerous if people knew he was still alive," he continued. "But whatever his reasons, I'm sure he had your best interest at heart."

The boy sat on his chair and digested the tale. Fear of Negi's reaction gnawed away at his insides as he silently waited, mentally berating himself for a coward.

"Thank you Dolnegus-san," Negi finally said as the youngster started to grin. "Thank you for telling me about my father."

--

Megalo-Mesembria, Mundus Magicus

Another day had come and gone and Koyomi was no closer to the promised end. Having failed at Ostia, the cat-girl had escaped with her minister and the other ministra, but found themselves hunted by their former employers as well as the authorities. Master Fate had found protection for them with the Cabal, but their demands to assure his fealty made her wonder if it was worth it. Her co-ministra and friend was a hostage for their obedience, but the dragon-girl was luckier than Shiori; unlike the elf, Tamaki still had her body.

Assigned to infiltrate the Council of Mages, she had been placed as the secretary for the chairman of the External Affairs Committee. Koyomi found it funny, in an ironic way, that she labored daily under the nose of the man who expended the greatest effort in tracking them all down. Despite the amusement, the tension of being unmasked at any moment was wearing away at her.

Three paces from the front door crossed the main room and brought her into the kitchen. Apartments advertised as "cozy" meant cramped the girl found to her disgust. Another rude shock awaited her as she checked the cupboards and found them as bare as in the children's rhyme. As if to add to her level of frustration, a knock came on the door. "What now?"

Quickly she chanted the beginnings of a disarm spell and opened the door a crack. "Who is it?"

"My name is legion," a voice replied. "We are many."

Without hesitation, Koyomi opened the door and admitted her visitor. A human male ducked under the lintel and entered the room. He was tall, taller than even that bastard Rakan though not anywhere near as muscular; the top of her head barely come to the bottom of his chest. His dark hair was styled into several spikes that splayed forward. "Ikoma-sama," she said while bowing in greeting. "How may I help you?"

"That is Councilor Ikoma," he said. "You would do well to remember that."

"Of course sir."

Though in his early thirties, the man easily looked ten years younger. As such, other councilors tended to ignore the "youngster." "We are ready to move," he said. "I need to be put on Mifune-san's calendar for tomorrow, about 10 o'clock."

Under his arm was an oblong box like one would pack a bouquet of roses in. It gave off a muffled rattle as he shifted it. "I'll make the necessary arrangements," she replied. "Will there be anything else Councilor?"

"There's no need to be so distant," Ikoma replied as his free reached out and gently stroked the side of her face. "Have I mentioned how very pretty you are?"

Quickly, the girl slapped his hand away. "That isn't part of our agreement."

Lips twisted into a smirk as he regarded her. Hackles rose on the back of the cat-girl's neck, brought on by her mounting ire. "Why waste your venom on me?" Ikoma asked. "I didn't put you in this situation."

An expectant look, as if the man was waiting for her next retort, made Koyomi bite her tongue and keep silent. Disappointed, he held out the mysterious package. "This is for you."

Seeing her expression of disdain, he continued, "You'll want to see this."

Cautiously, Koyomi took the cardboard box and untied its bright red bow.

"Your master failed today," Ikoma told her as she lifted the lid and gasped. "And you know the price for failure."

Inside the box, among the padding, lay a horn about the length of the girl's arm from elbow to wrist. Blood from the stub stained the wadded paper. "I wonder how Tamaki-chan keeps her balance," he chuckled.

Koyomi started to shake from anger. "You … you bastards."

Continuing on as if he hadn't heard her, the councilor wondered aloud how the girl's people would treat a one-horned dragon. "Probably consider her an abomination, a walking freak show."

"Stop it!" she shrieked as anger blazed in her eyes. "Stop it or I'll …"

"Or you'll what?"

Words died unspoken as Koyomi realized her tormentor was intentionally goading her. "Nothing!" the girl hurriedly replied, casting her eyes on the floor. "I won't do anything except set up the appointment for you."

"That's better Koyomi-chan," he replied in a mocking tone. "I'll see you tomorrow morning then."

Pulling open the door, he suggested she wear a shorter skirt on the morrow. "Something that shows more thigh." With that, he ducked out of the apartment, whistling a jaunty tune.

As the door clicked shut, a sob erupted from Koyomi's throat. Tears ran down both cheeks and splashed onto the horn.

--

A/N: Okay, just to make sure we are clear on this point, in this story Kozimos Anankaios is the name I devised for the little boy who was the final member of the Crimson Wing. While I am willing to change some things to match the manga (like Anya being in the MW when she started out not having seen Negi in 18 months) this is too important to my plot to mess with.

Chapter heading and title are from the song "Everybody's Fool" by Evanescence.

More words and phrases:

Messatsu Zanku Zanmasen – annihilation air and evil-cutting flash

Sicae Umbra Celare –dagger concealed in shadow

Kratiste Aegis - don't have a translation for Kratiste but the Aegis is a shield used by Zeus in his battles with the Olympians' foes. The spell appears in chapter 232 of the manga.

Flamma Abyssus , meus hostilis voro. Rogus forem exuro. Eternus Torqueo– Flames of Hell, swallow my enemy. Funeral pyre burn forever. Eternal torment! (my thanks to Makuhari_Fan01 for the latin translation)