A/N: It's been hard to find the time to sit and write these past couple weeks. The story is still on the morning of the sniper attack. Your patience is greatly appreciated. As always, I don't own Negima or its characters. I do enjoy reading about them, so keep the stories coming.

Mahora

It had been a very busy evening at Mahora. The school had been locked down since shortly after midnight. The streets and sidewalks were deserted save for campus security, both magical and mundane. Only the fact that most people were in their beds kept the situation from becoming chaotic.

The infirmary had been the focal point of much of the activity. From a window in a building opposite, a person clad all in black watched the goings on with interest. The building was a close as the observer dared go, as the infirmary itself was too heavily guarded.

An infrared scope was held up to one eye. It merely confirmed the number of guards about. The observer saw the headmaster and a tall, cloaked figure exit the infirmary together. The figure backed away from the window and out to the hallway as silently as a cat. The doors to the rooftops were all magnetically locked, but the air ducts provided easy access.

The streets and airspace over the school were patrolled, but the rooftops were as good as a highway for those with the skill and patience to use it. The observer used both to move from roof to roof without being detected. Arriving on top of the girl's dormitory, the air ducts again provided entry into the building. After climbing down a few levels, the figure dropped to the floor of the laundry room.

After a quick look at the outside hallway, the black stocking mask was pulled off. Long hair fell into the intruder's face. She checked the hiding place behind the washing machine. No one had disturbed her things. She quickly retrieved her items and changed clothing. Her black clothes and equipment were stored behind the washer. She pulled out some towels and bedding from the dryer and folded them. Hefting them, she walked into the hallway.

As Zazie walked back to her room, she noticed Mana standing in next to the door to her and Hakase-san's room. The gunslinger had a case with her rifle and a duffle bag with her. "Good evening Tatsumiya-san," Zazie said. "Is there a problem?"

"Good morning Rainyday-san," the tall girl replied. "My room has a water leak. Setsuna and I are being moved to other rooms until it's fixed."

Mana smiled. It wasn't a pleasant sort of smile. It reminded the other girl of a wolf regarding its prey. "I'll be with you and Hakase-san for the next few days," she told Zazie. "Isn't it a little late to be doing laundry?"

"Accidents happen at anytime," Zazie replied as she unlocked the door. She walked in and turned on the light. "Hakase-san doesn't use her bed, but I think you are too tall for it."

"The couch will be fine tonight," Mana said. "I'll see about getting a futon later."

Negi sat on the grass near the world tree plaza. The sun shone brightly as he watched the students and teachers walk past. A shadow fell over him. Negi looked up to see Mei Sakura.

"Good day Sakura-san," Negi said. "Can I help you?"

"I need to talk with you sensei," Mei said as she knelt before him. "I've always like you."

"Um, what?" Negi asked as he started to feel uneasy. "Like me?"

"Yes, sensei," she said. "Ever since I saw you in the bath, I haven't been able to think of anything else."

"The bath?" Negi replied with a voice that was starting to crack. He felt the heat rise in his cheeks and a stirring in his loins. "Maybe we should have this conversation another time?"

"Don't you like me?" Mei asked as she took off her jacket.

"This isn't a question of liking," Negi replied. His chest began to feel tight. "Students and teachers shouldn't engage in certain behaviors."

Mei moved closer to him. Her lips hovered mere inches from his. Her scent reminded Negi of cinnamon and cloves. Suddenly, Negi felt her lips against his. He started to panic, but Mei just pressed harder against him until he wound up flat on his back. Although Mei couldn't have weighed that much, he felt as if he was being crushed.

Mei sat back up and Negi panted for breath. "Sakura-san, we really shouldn't," he started to say, but stopped as she unbuttoned and removed her blouse.

"Is it wrong if two people like each other?" she asked as she bent over to kiss him again.

Negi's strength had left him. He struggled to breathe as he felt Mei's lips and hands caress him. Lights flashed before his eyes as he felt a pressure begin to build within him. What was happening? Negi shut his eyes. He could barely breathe as the pressure became painful. At the last instant, when he could take no more, there was a sudden sense of release. Negi opened his eyes.

As before, Negi was lying on his bed. The clock on his bedside read 2:00 AM. He took several deep, calming breaths. For the second night, he tried to puzzle out why he was having these erotic dreams. He was also concerned over this lack of control. As a wizard, he had to exercise absolute self-control in order to cast spells. If he didn't, he would never become a Magister Mage. Perhaps he could find a book or something to help.

He felt chill from his sweat-soaked pajamas. With a bit of shock, Negi realized that not all of the dampness was from sweat. He got up from the bed and headed to the bathroom. He grumbled a few choice words a proper English gentleman shouldn't repeat.

Asuna also had troubling dreams this evening, but hers were not of Negi or any other boy. Instead, Asuna had the impression that she was being constantly watched by vague, shadowy creatures. Creatures always just out of sight, around the corner, or behind a hedge. The creatures didn't try to hurt her, but she knew that was only because they were restrained. By whom and for what purpose, Asuna couldn't guess. Sometimes, she even felt them watching during her waking hours.

The buzzing of the alarm clock woke her up. She climbed down out from the top bunk. The clock read 4:00 AM. Asuna fumbled with the alarm but finally shut it off. She yawned, stretched, and headed to the bath. As she passed the bed, Asuna noticed something looked wrong. It took her a few moments, but she figured out that there were two dark spots on Konoka's pillow.

Asuna's anger boiled over. "Damn it Negi!" she yelled as she pulled off the blankets. "What are you doing with Konoka?"

Her anger vanished as she looked down at the sight of Konoka snuggled in Setsuna's arms. "Uh," was all she could say as the two girls opened their eyes.

"I was sleeping Asuna-san, until you started shouting," Setsuna said, her arms still about Konoka. "What's this about Negi-sensei?"

"She probably thinks Negi climbed into my bed," Konoka remarked. "Don't worry Asuna, I already have somebody to keep me company."

Asuna's jaw dropped while Setsuna blushed. "Mana and I had to move out of our room for a few days," Setsuna explained while attempting to disengage her arms from around Konoka. "I'll be staying here until we can move back in."

"If you miss sharing a room with Negi," Konoka said," I bet they'll let him move back in."

Asuna glared back at her friend. "I don't miss that twerp," she said as she stomped off to the bathroom.

All their plans were made and set in motion. Everyone, except for Evangeline, had left to get what sleep they could before the day started. She sat back in the headmaster's chair and sipped her tea. She savored the taste all the more because it was one of the expensive blends from Konoemon's private stock. "Serves him right for putting me in this position," she thought. She resolved to drink him dry, at least as far as tea was concerned. Not that she had anything else to do over the next three days.

Kuzunoha-san made that point clear. Evangeline wasn't to so much as sign for a FedEx delivery while she was in the headmaster's body. Not that Evangeline cared a bit about the school's business. But the next three days looked longer and longer as she sat there. There was literally nothing for her to do. This was even more intolerable than Nagi's curse.

Now that she was marked for death, her situation after she was back in her own body looked just as bleak. The curse kept her from leaving Mahora, and she couldn't hide among the students. What was she going to do? A better question was what did she want to do? "It's your move," the headmaster had taunted her after they had switched bodies. Evangeline wondered if he had meant something other than the game.

Did she want to be hated and feared by all? To walk around with a price on her head that was greater than the gross domestic product of some countries? Evangeline admitted that she liked the feeling of power her reputation brought her. But she also enjoyed the company of those who weren't in awe of her too, men like Nagi and Phillip.

Thinking of Phillip, Evangeline wanted to kick herself. She had been caught up in the moment and told him way too much. Still, after hearing all that, he wanted to see her. He shouldn't have wanted to be in the same room with her, but there he stood by her bedside, brushing the hair out of her face. The baka didn't understand the danger. Evangeline tried once more to warn him, but the wrong words came out. Why did she have to bring up Kitty?

She hadn't been called that since . . . since Kit died. Kit Marley had been another of those men that hadn't cared about what she was. She enjoyed his wit and sense of adventure. The two years they had worked for Elisabeth's spymaster were among the happiest of her life. She was devastated when she heard he had been murdered by one of Walsingham's minions. If Will hadn't intervened, she would have gone after her former employer.

The next thing Evangeline realized, she was being shaken by Shizuna Minimoto. "We have a problem, headmaster-sensei," Evangeline heard. "Yomotsu Hisame has gone into premature labor and there's no one left to cover her classes."

Evangeline opened her eyes and looked at the guidance counselor and assistant to the dean. "Don't we have substitute teachers?"

"All of the substitutes are filling in for the magic teachers in the field," Shizuna answered.

"Where's Kuzunoha-san?" Evangeline asked.

"She's handling the security staff right now," Shizuna replied. "Do you want this to wait until she can take care of it?"

"It's your move," Evangeline heard the headmaster say.

Evangeline smiled. "That won't be necessary Shizuna-kun," she said. "Let's see what we have to work with."

Istanbul

Takamichi had been up and ready an hour before the phone call came to tell him the car had arrived. He walked out to find the hotel doorman standing next to a black Mercedes Benz. He opened the door for Takamichi, who got in. Takamichi noticed he had a different driver today. He was an older, heavyset man, who smelled of garlic. He wore dark glasses with his chauffeur's uniform.

"Where is Bekir-san?" Takamichi asked. The chauffeur didn't reply as he pulled the car into traffic. Takamichi took out a cigarette and was searching for his lighter when the chauffeur pointed to sign posted on the right-hand visor. It showed a cigarette with a red circle and slash over it. Takamichi sighed and put his cigarette away.

"How long will it take to get to the Magic Association?" he asked the driver. Again, no answer.

Takamichi enjoyed the scenery of the city and watched for signs of being followed. In a short time, they were on the bridge passing from the European to the Asian side of the city. Past the bridge, the driver turned north. They drove into a less densely populated section of the city. It had more of an open country feel to it with a number of park areas. The driver turned on to a dirt road that descended into a valley.

The road was built along the left-hand side of the valley. There were a number of trees and bushes, but the ground was bare of grass. Takamichi could see two men digging a trench off to one side. The driver stopped the car. He turned off the ignition and got out. He opened Takamichi's door and waited for him to step outside. The chauffeur started walking away from the car; Takamichi placed his hands in his pockets and followed after him.

The driver approached the trench. The workers stopped their digging and stepped out of the hole. The three men faced Takamichi. The workers advanced on the teacher, with their shovels gripped in their hands. Takamichi smiled as his waza struck the one on the right and then the left. The driver's expression didn't change and the two men just picked themselves off the ground. They advanced again as if nothing had occurred.

Again Takamichi struck them down. As they picked themselves up, he hit the chauffeur. While the Iaiken knocked the driver's hat and glasses flying, the man still stood. Takamichi's shundo placed him next to the driver. He struck the man's chin and Takamichi's fist felt like it had hit a slab of granite.

A shovel struck Takamichi across the back and knocked him to the ground. Before the assailant could follow up, the middle school teacher had rolled and sprang to his feet. Takamichi followed with a kick to the man's stomach. He doubled over but no apparent damage was done.

Takamichi's shundo put him behind the other man with a shovel. Takamichi's foot struck solidly against the man's spine. The sound of the bones breaking was audible, but the man just turned and swung the shovel in response. Takamichi evaded the shovel but not the chauffeur's fist. Before the men could close in on him, Takamichi leaped up and away from them.

He landed several yards away. He felt a trickle of blood run down his cheek. His hands were out of his pocket and held in front. Takamichi emptied his mind as the attackers advanced. In his right hand, he held the world. In the left hand was himself. Between them lay an open window. The world and he were one.

Takamichi's hands glowed with the power of the kanka. The power flowed together and spread out towards the three men. The light enveloped them, contracted slightly and then exploded. The roar of the blast filled the air. When the dust settled, Takamichi saw a crater about 4 meters in diameter. Three bodies lay still at the bottom.

Takamichi looked down at the attackers, wondering who had sent them. He heard the sound of a car approach and looked up to see a white limousine drive up behind the Mercedes. Bekir-san got out of the car. "Takahata-san," he called out, "are you alright?"

"I'm okay," Takamichi replied. "I can't say the same for these three."

Bekir looked down at the remains. "Takahata-san," he said, "you should never accept lifts from strangers."

A/N: I know, my fight scenes leave a lot to be desired. But as the old football coach use to tell us, you have to keep practicing until you get it right. Personally, I think Takamichi is more bad ass than this.