A/N: Yay for references and cameos galore!
Chapter Fourteen: WHAT?!
"Ok, all ready now," announced Negi, stepping back from the runic circle he had sketched on the floor of his dormitory. Luke sat in the middle of it, slightly bored. And a little bit alarmed by the amount of weaponry pointing his way.
"Now don't try anything funny, you hear?" threatened Asuna, jabbing the point of her sword into the youth's face. Gulping slightly, Luke just nodded. Satisfied, the schoolgirl turned to the mage. "So how do we go about this then?"
"Well usually a mage simply sends himself and anybody with him into a specific memory of a persons mind, and watches it play out from a good vantage point. However, that's only good for dreams or if a particular memory is being triggered."
"Then how do we trigger his memories regarding recognition of us, de gozaru?" asked Kaede, also part of this little adventure.
Negi opened his mouth, but it was Luke who answered. "Perhaps being here? Or you diving into my mind?" he suggested, shifting slightly. Typical of them to tie him up in the most uncomfortable way possible.
"That would work," agreed Negi, lifting his staff. "So we ready for this?"
"And why can't I go?" demanded Asakura in annoyance, glaring at the trio.
Asuna rolled her eyes as Negi proceeded to explain. "We agreed to this. We deal with Luke now. If he's a problem, we take him to the dean, if not, we hand him over to you."
"But if he's a problem he's more of an exciting story!"
"Hmm, true. Then we'll let you interrogate him before we take him to the dean then de gozaru," offered Kaede.
"Hmm, deal," replied the reporter.
"ANYWAY, can we get going now?!" interrupted Asuna loudly. "I'm getting bored of waiting here. Negi!"
"Right!" answered the boy, swiftly incanting the spell. Slowly, the runes began to light up, engulfing the room in a crimson glow. And with a crack, they entered Luke's mind.
Negi opened his eyes. "Well, that was…different…" he groaned, sitting up, rubbing his head. Beside him Asuna was face down on the ground, radiating anger, and Kaede was standing in front of him, inspecting the small billboard. "W-where are we?" he asked, standing up and looking around. They appeared to be in a gigantic library, stretching away from them in all directions. Behind them, a set of stained glass windows illuminated the interior of the building.
Negi blinked in astonishment as Asuna finally stood up as well, her anger melting away to be replaced with wonder. Kaede returned to them, her usual smile still present, though it was tinged with awe. "A most interesting memory," she commented.
"Not a memory," corrected Luke, coming out of a aisle of bookshelves. Dressed in jeans and a white shirt over which he wore a black jacket, he looked a lot more like an ordinary teenager. "Call this a collection if you will."
"A collection of what?!" asked Asuna, still staring at the seemingly endless rows of books.
"And why are you here de gozaru?" queried Kaede more importantly, raising an eyebrow at the youth's appearance.
Blushing slightly under her scrutiny, the blonde tugged at his jacket. "Well, I AM conscious whilst your doing this, so I might as well guide you to the memories you want. No offence, but I don't trust you to start rummaging around in my head. It's personal property after all."
"Hmph, fine. Go on then, lead on," huffed Asuna, corssing her arms in front of her chest. Negi simply looked from Kaede to Asuna to Luke, then back to Kaede. He'd lost all control of this situation, not that he'd ever really had any.
Luke sighed and shrugged. "Yes, yes. We'll come on then." He beckoned for them to follow and set off. Not having much of a choice, the intrepid adventurers followed.
The walked away from the windows and into the dusty corridors of books, winding seemingly at random. Negi was put in mind of Library Island, and shuddered slightly as he remembered the various traps that had been located there.
Though this place seemed to be far more...decorated than Library Island. They passed numerous astounding pieces of art, hanging on blank spaces in between shelves. Negi couldn't help but gawk at them as they passed. Kaede paid them no mind, and Asuna was glaring daggers at their guide's back. The blonde glanced now and then over his shoulder, to make sure he hadn't left behind anyone as he made his way deep into the heart of his mind.
"What's this, de gozaru?" Kaede asked suddenly, coming to a stop next to one of the paintings, leaning in to study it in more detail. Negi and Asuna crowded around her to see what had caught her attention.
"What does it look like?" smirked Luke behind them. "It's a memory. An image in this case true, created during an intense or memorable event, one which leaves a vivid imprint behind."
The three Mahora denizens looked at the painting, depicting a great ship ploughing through the ocean. An aircraft carrier Negi realized, seeing the planes on its deck. The white lettering on the side of the ship proclaimed it to be the Kestrel.
Kaede looked back at their guide. "So every painting has a story, de gozaru?"she asked.
"Quite. But you're not here for that, so let's move on, shall we?"
"What on earth is that?!" interrupted Asuna, pointing at another painting opposite their current location. Luke turned and squinted at it before replying.
"That would be the Death Star."
There was a momentarily pause.
"That film had a big effect on you as a child didn't it?" remarked Asuna snidely.
Luke shrugged in response. "Believe what you want." Then he began walking again, and they followed him on, though Negi still looked at the paintings on display around him. One displayed a dragon, giving its heart to a prince. Another showed a girl with horns crying in a room stained with blood. Negi chose not to look at that one too closely, letting his eyes move onto the next in line. It displayed a funny blue box, the words "Police Box" clearly visibly on a black stripe running around its top. Yet another painting showed what looked like a transformer, and the one across from it portrayed a giant featureless ogre made of darkness, about to crush what Negi could have sworn was Mickey Mouse holding a giant key.
"Hey, what's with that one?" said Asuna, drawing everyone's attention to a frame that had been covered with a small curtain.
"That's privacy," replied Luke dryly. "Some things I DO prefer to keep to myself," he explained.
"Your dirt thoughts?" summarised Kaede.
"Yes-No! Dammit!" cursed Luke, flushing red as he buried his face in his hands. "Look, let's just get – WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
Asuna, who had crept up to the painting and had lifted the corner of the curtain to peek beneath it, let it drop back down sheepishly. "Erm...sorry?"
Luke was next to her in a flash, and conjured a staple gun out of nowhere, before proceeding to staple down the curtain. "Honestly, I say don't look please and you have to go look. You people never change…" he grumbled, whilst Negi and Kaede stared at Asuna, who simply shrugged in response.
"Well…anyway, where is this thing we're looking for?" asked Negi.
Luke turned to face him, thinking. Then he snapped his fingers as he answered. "Three rows above you, fifth form the left. The blue one."
Negi turned to look at the book the youth had mentioned, only to find it already in Kaede's hands. There was no title, no fancy lettering, nothing.
"Is this really it?" asked Negi, eyeing Luke suspiciously.
"Yeah. Go on, knock yourselves out. I've got some spring cleaning to do anyway."
"In your mind?!" burst out Asuna incredulously, as Kaede flipped the book open and began to scan its pages, leaning down slightly to allow her professor to also see what was written.
"Yes. The vault needs some restocking, and the tracks for my train of thought have to be fixed again," replied the blonde, walking off. "If you get bored, feel free to look around. I've taken care of censoring the private parts."
"Wait!" called out Asuna, but Luke had already vanished. "Gee that dork is really annoying! Where did you find him anyway?"
"Antiques store/ Mountain side," replied Negi and Kaede in unison, leaving Asuna to stare at them before sighing in resignation and walking over to where they were reading the book, and joining in too.
An intermediate of time passed before they finally finished reading. Luke had not yet returned, so the trio huddled together to discuss their findings.
"Well?" began Negi.
"He's an idiot," summarised Asuna.
Kaede nodded. "Despite that though, he seems to have good intentions."
Negi nodded. "My assessment exactly. Though possibly a deception, after the Mahorafest I am inclined to believe him. He seems like the honourable type."
"Not like that's helped him any," pointed out Asuna, causing Kaede to grin in agreement.
"Yes true. But in the end, he has no innate power of his own, just artefacts and enchanted items. Without them, he's a normal mundane. Plus he seems to just want to settle down."
"Perhaps, de gozaru," replied Kaede. "Makes one wonder about those paintings too. Where they actual events for him?"
"Well, he let us delve into his mind freely, with minimal censorship…" continued Negi. "I think its safe to let him go. It seems the headmaster is already aware of his presence here."
Remembering the last sections of the book they had read, the ones still being written as they were read, the two girls nodded.
"So what do we do? Let him go, de gozaru?"
"Yes, though I think keeping an eye on him would be for the best," said Negi.
"I'll do it," volunteered Kaede.
"Yeah, with your ninja skills it'd probably be easiest," admitted Asuna, Negi concurring.
"Then we're decided."
"About time too. I was getting bored," sighed Luke from behind them. Negi jumped in surprise, whilst Asuna spun to face him, and Kaede simply threw a kunai in his direction. "OW!"
"You should know better than to sneak up on us, de gozaru," said Kaede conversationally as Luke prodded the dagger sticking out of his throat.
"Right, right. My fault ok. So satisfied? Can we leave now?"
"Yes," said Negi, beginning the incantation. Asuna put her hands on her hips as she waited for her roommate to finish his casting, and Kaede let her eyes wander around the library one last time until they fell upon a gigantic steel bulkhead, yawning open, revealing a steel containment room beyond. "What was that for?" she asked as they faded away, back to the real world.
"My past," she heard Luke reply before she felt the floor of her professor's dormitory beneath her again.
Standing up wobbly, Luke executed a shoddy bow to them all "Thank you for that. May I take my leave now?"
Negi nodded. "Yes. But we will be keeping an eye on you, understood? Any funny business, we will take you straight to the headmaster," he warned.
"Ok, ok," groaned Luke as he made his way out, only to be stopped by a vice-like grip on his shoulder. His head snapped from side to side to see what it was. On his left was Asakura, with a cold smile.
"My turn now!" she said happily. "What do you know about the Paladin?"