Disclaimer: I do not own Negima or any of its vibrant characters…but I do own the Dark Mistresses...if that amounts to anything...

Fang Vice Addiction

Chapter Twenty-two: Feelings Buried in Secrecy

By Traingham

A white blanket of snow covered the grounds of Mahora campus as the sparkling crystals fell from the cloudy sky. It was a sight to behold for a certain magi as his boots crunched along the frosted ground. He had been waiting to see the grounds of Mahora again for many passing months and in his defense, his time away wasn't exactly a pleasure filled getaway. Negi had the hood of his cloak pulled over his head so it was pretty hard to make out his face and Chachazero could hardly be seen as well since her master had her cradled in his arms…not that she really minded much.

"Here we are, Zero-chan." Negi whispered to his familiar as a smile crossed his lips. "We're back home."

"A sight for sore eyes, huh?" Chachazero asked, raising her head to regard Negi's face.

"That's right." Negi nodded with a chuckle. "Do you think I should meet with everyone just as I am or should I revert to normal?" The thought of walking into the classroom as an older teenager felt somewhat appealing to the young magi for some reason; perhaps because of what he had been through for the past months. It felt as though he had been away for years.

"I think you should tone down the age by two years.(Age fifteen…by appearance of course) That Ako girl will think you're her dream boy if you walk in there too old." Chachazero's mind wandered for a moment before she added, "Hey, how about we use my pactio card?!" Her voice took on a childish quality as the excitement practically radiated from her.

"Your clothes are in the traveling pack." Negi tried to veer her away from the idea. "We can't just change in the middle of the school grounds."

"Then let me use your cloak!" Chachazero suggested. "It's not like the cold really bothers you anyway. Come on Master Negi! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase?"

"Um…" Negi hesitated as a sweat drop threatened to slip down his face. For some reason whenever the puppet got this way he found it hard to refuse her. That was unless the manner of her request was of a scandalous nature which was usually the case since she began to explore the capabilities of her new body. The more she continued to stare up at him from his arms, the less resistance he had against her.

"…Oh well…"

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Turning to Takamichi's Homeroom….

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Here it was. The beginning of another day in class and just about everything still remained the same. With Takamichi around to keep an eye on the girls it was much harder for chaos to ensue. While the others pretty much had neutral expressions with the exception of the twins who still managed to keep true to themselves; Asuna couldn't possibly complain about her situation. Sure, she kind of missed Negi but the man of her dreams was her teacher again. What more could she have possibly asked for?

The red-head had considerably matured over the past two years and it showed not only in her personality but also within the natural growth of her body. The same could be said for the rest of the girls which surprisingly included the twins. Chizuru was no longer the only member of the class with the most curves in a manner of speaking. Asuna still had not removed the bells from her hair but she no longer kept it in pig tails.

Everyone seems completely dead today… She thought as her eyes wandered over to the frost covered windows on the right side of the classroom. Mahora always looked stunning during the winter. It reminded her of the Christmas movies she'd seen when she was younger. Well…I guess I can understand why. It's almost that time of the year and that stupid Negi still hasn't come back. She turned her head slightly to see Evangeline and Chachamaru sitting in their usual seat at the very back of the room.

After their mysterious disappearance from campus they had been coming to class everyday. Asuna was beginning to wonder if the vampires had cut a deal with the headmaster and ironically enough she could not have possibly been more spot on. When Chachamaru's eyes fell upon her for a moment, she turned away and blushed lightly in embarrassment.

"Alright everyone." Takamichi called the attention of his students. He sweat-dropped when most of the girls took their time. Well, as they get older they do start to get rebellious. The elder mage inwardly reasoned. "Anyway, Mahora is going to be holding a winter festival to get everyone on campus in the mood for the season. It'll be similar to the Mahora Festival but it won't be nearly as hectic." He looked to them expectantly for some sort of reaction but that was beginning to become quite the task.

"Um, sensei?" Asuna raised her hand much to Takamichi's relief.

"Yes, Asuna?" Takamichi acknowledged her.

"So, when is this taking place?"

"In three weeks so you girls will be given the opportunity to start planning for your attractions today."

No reaction from the class…

"So you can get in groups now." Takamichi informed them. He was relieved when the girls started switching seats to get into their discussions. As expected, they didn't do it quickly but they made gradual progress. While all of this went on he motioned to Evangeline to come to his desk. The vampiress tilted her head to the side questioningly before she rose out of her seat and proceeded to approach him with Chachamaru following not far behind.

"Yeah?" Evangeline asked, crossing her arms.

"When did you say Negi was going to arrive?" Takamichi inquired.

"I told him to be here the first of December." Evangeline answered. "I'm assuming that he might've encountered a little trouble since that was three days ago."

"A little trouble?" The elder mage raised an eyebrow before he went on, asking, "What kind of trouble are we talking about here?"

"Nothing major." That, of course was a complete lie. Being hunted down by Lucinda and the other Dark Mistresses was something major and there was no denying that, however, Evangeline knew that if Takamichi found out he would inform the headmaster and Negi would be kept safe on Mahora. The last thing she wanted was for her underling to be kept confined within the campus like she was and then there was the possibility of Lucinda managing to track him down. Mahora may have had a barrier that concealed any magic auras residing within it but nothing was completely out of reach for a powerful mistress like Lucinda.

And I can't forget about Dorothy… Evangeline inwardly growled. The cunning mistress always found a way to come back. She wasn't about to let herself believe that Dorothy was slain so easily. Most likely she was biding her time before she'd make away with Negi.

"I don't know Evangeline…." Takamichi stroked his chin. "Are you sure you aren't hiding something from me?"

"Perish the thought." The sarcasm dripped from Evangeline's voice like venom. The tone her voice took on only served to confuse Takamichi even more. Sometimes he just couldn't read this girl and asking Chachamaru for the truth would have been a complete waste of time. The android was much too loyal to Evangeline for her to say otherwise.

"Ugh." Takamichi slapped a hand against his forehead with an exasperated sigh. "Evangeline…the girls are getting quite difficult to manage. I'm hoping that if they get an answer of when he'll be here, it'll lift their spirits."

"Negi wanted it to be his little surprise." Evangeline told him, placing both of her hands on her hips. She whipped her head to the side to get her hair out of her line of sight. "Let him have his satisfaction, huh?" Just as she was done speaking, her senses started to run wild. Well! Her lips curled into a pleased smirk. It looks like someone has been pushing their self since I last saw them.

Chachamaru caught the look on her mistress's face and felt a slight kick in her gears. A few years of experience told her that "That" smirk was only reserved for a certain fledgling. "Mistress?" Chachamaru whispered.

"Yes." Evangeline answered the unspoken question.

"What?" Takamichi questioned after observing the curious scene. "Yes to what?"

"Patience." Evangeline shushed him.

"This is really-"

Knock, Knock…

Takamichi's jaw fell for a moment as he regarded Evangeline and to his growing excitement she nodded. The elder mage couldn't believe that Negi was actually back after all these passing months. He honestly went out into the world alone and came back! His mellow smirk graced his lips as he walked to the door and he opened it to find the wrong person.

"Hmm?" Takamichi came face to face with a young woman that resembled Chachamaru donning a mage cloak. The obvious difference in her hairstyle as well as the mischievous look on her face is what set them apart rather dramatically.

"Howdy, death-specs." The puppet greeted him much to his confusion.

"Excuse me…but who are you?" Takamichi resisted the urge to push past her and look out into the hallway. "Where's Negi?"

"I'm right here." Negi answered, stepping beside Chachazero. His deeper voice caught Takamichi off guard and his appearance sent shivers down his spine. If he hadn't known better he would have believed it was a teenage version of Nagi standing before him. All the girls stopped what they were doing when they heard the familiar voice but they didn't dare turn their eyes toward the door in fear that their minds were simply playing cruel tricks on them.

Whoa… Negi's eyes observed them closely. Being away for close to a year really made him forget how fast his students could grow. He was actually a little intimidated by their older appearances. This is going to be pretty awkward. The young magi took in a deep breath and said, "Wow, you girls sure grow fast." He inwardly snickered at how old he must have sounded with his choice of words. "You're all making me jealous."

Not surprisingly, the first girl to turn her head was the Class President, Ayaka. Her flowing blonde hair bounced as their eyes made contact before she let out a strangled gasp as though the air from her lungs was stolen from her. All the girls turned to her when she clumsily stood up from her seat and cried out, "N-Negi-sensei!" She nearly tripped over her own legs as she ran to him.

"Ayaka-chan!" Negi welcomed her with open arms and she greedily accepted the warm gesture, taking in the sweet scent of his hair when she buried her face in to his red mane. The sounds of her joyful tears were muffled but everyone could hear it. Then as if they were all released from a trance, all the girls rose up from their desks with startling fierceness and before Negi's mind could register their blurs he was flat on his back against the floor! They all peppered his face with affectionate kisses while some of them tried to pry him free from Ayaka so they could embrace him but the class president seemed rather determined to stay put.

Now this is the sort of scene I remember. Takamichi grinned as he enjoyed the sight of the girls with smiles on their faces again. Even Setsuna, Zazie and Yue smiled openly. Mana and Chisame weren't present so they weren't around to share the love, though one would wonder if they would show it so openly. The elder mage stole a glance at the terror trio whom all seemed just a tad bit irritated that Negi was being smothered to death by his students and chuckled. Evangeline had her arms crossed with a dull look gracing her lovely features while Chachamaru's expression darkened noticeably. Chachazero tapped her foot impatiently to have her master back.

"Ha, ha, I really missed all of you!" Negi exclaimed. "I could never go a day without thinking about all of you." His sweet moment with all of them stopped short when he felt shivers run through his entire body. His eyes slowly fell upon Evangeline's polished school shoes before trailing up her legs until they came to a stop at the annoyed expression on her face. "Oh…I, uh…felt the same about you Eva-chan. Those emerald eyes-"

Evangeline narrowed her eyes at him imperceptibly, shutting his mouth instantly…

Well, aren't you going to give me a proper greeting? Evangeline's voice echoed within his mind. I mean, I know you're being weighed down but you didn't even bother with me when you entered the classroom.

Oh, E-Eva-chan! Negi forced a grin as a bead of sweat trailed down the sighed of his forehead. I-I always save the best for last! That way our time together won't be rushed!

Hmm…The smirk that danced across her lips made his blood run wild with fear. Evangeline and mischief was a mix not meant for this world. So you've gotten a little smooth over your travels, eh? Well, that should make tonight pretty interesting then. Evangeline motioned for Chachamaru to follow her out the classroom and the android complied reluctantly. When the vampiress was at the door, she turned her head back to regard him and smiled, exposing her pearly white fangs. It's been a while since you've taken this girl out for a drink…

H-has it? Negi swallowed hard after hearing her final telepathic message. I'll be sure to remedy that! He waited for her to make her exit and sighed in relief. There was no way he'd be able to deal with his students and his master at the same time…and yet now that he really thought about it, being alone with her would mean no witnesses.

Oh joy…

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Settling down…

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"Negiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" Konoka said his name lovingly as she nuzzled his cheek with her own. She held him tightly against her on the couch while Chachazero watched on motionlessly from his other side with a possessive look on her face. The rest of the girls only restrained themselves from intervening because the young Konoe showed the most concern for the magi over his time gone. To Konoka, having him in her arms again was like being on cloud nine.

"Where did you go?!" Fumika was the first to ask a question.

"What'd you see?!" Fuka naturally followed up.

"Who did you meet?" Yue asked.

"A-any girls?" The way Nodoka asked her question made it sound as though her hopes were on his answer being, "No".

"Any romantic encounters?!" Haruna was practically drooling over his older look. "C'mon, spill the details!"

"Um-"

"Did any news about our rock band travel yet?!" Madoka cut Negi off before he could go on with a reply.

"Yeah, are we popular yet?!" Misa bounced up and down in her seat.

"How's your cousin?" Ako shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "Has he spoken to you about me?"

Chachazero rolled her eyes…

"Have you been doing your daily training?" Kaede inquired, crossing her arms expectantly for an answer.

"Practicing arts?" Ku-Fei stood in front of the ninja to divert Negi's attention away from her.

"I'll be testing you on your sword katas later." Setsuna told him from Asuna's side. "You mustn't stop practicing even when I'm not around."

"Hey-"

"Did you miss me?!" Ayaka flailed her arms from the back of the group to get his attention. The girls figured that Negi would be safer to approach if the class president was out of the way. "C-can you see meeeeeeeeeeeee?" She cried out for his attention but all the other girl's voices drowned out her pleas.

"Why didn't you send us any cards, huh?!" Makie demanded. "No letters? No phone calls?!"

"You'd think he just forgot about us." Asuna said with a miffed tone of voice. Clearly the red-head was holding in some pent up feelings. That was going to be pretty unhealthy for Negi if she managed to get him alone where nobody could hear him scream…ahem…

"WHOA!" Negi finally managed to cry out, startling Konoka. "I-I'm sorry, Kono-chan." He apologized to her quickly before facing the other girls again. "I know you all have a lot of questions but I can' answer them all at the same time! You're all overloading my mind!" The young magi took a slow breath to recompose his self before asking, "Where is Mana and Chisame-chan?"

"Oh…" Kazumi started out awkwardly. "Well, they kind of just stopped coming after a while."

"What?" Negi raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" He knew that both girls were pretty much detached from the rest of the class most of the time but the last thing he wanted was for them to just disappear completely.

"Who knows?" Misora shrugged her shoulders.

"Have you seen them anywhere on campus though?" Negi asked.

"I've seen Mana!" Sakurako replied, waving her hand from the center of the group.

"Well, did you ask?" Negi leaned forward on the edge of his seat, awaiting an answer but the sheepish look that graced her face after he asked was enough of an answer for him. The young woman was most likely intimidated by the lovely marksmen. He couldn't blame her. He leaned back and placed his left hand over his face with a deep sigh. So Chisame is nowhere to be seen and Mana is unreachable because everyone else is just scared of her.

"Hey, Negi-chan!" Kazumi called him.

"Yes?" Negi parted the two fingers that were covering his right eye to regard the photographer. She had not changed much. Naturally, her body was beginning to fill out but her face and hairstyle remained the same.

"So who is she?" She pointed at Chachazero who had been sitting on Negi's other side the entire time. "I've never seen her on campus before...and she's wearing your cloak, isn't she?" Her question stirred quite a bit of commotion from the rest of the girls. Negi didn't realize it but most of them were quite possessive of him. Perhaps not as possessive as Chachazero or Evangeline was but they didn't really want to share him with any strangers regardless.

"This is Zero-chan!" Negi introduced the puppet before feeling her arms wrap around his waist as she leaned against him. She shot Konoka a dirty look and the young woman wisely backed off of Negi.

"Zero?" Asuna said in a questioning tone.

"Sounds familiar." Konoka thought aloud.

Here goes my chance! Chachazero thought mischievously before she feigned a romantic expression. She pressed her cheek against his and used her left hand to caress his other cheek. "Yes, that's right!" Her words caught everyone off guard, including Negi who had gone completely stiff from the way his familiar was holding him. "We're inseparable! I met him one romantic evening and I knew that he was mine!"

Negi narrowed his eyes and cried out, "Wait just a seco-"

"I-Is it true sensei?!" Nodoka asked, bordering on hysterical.

"Noooooooooo!" Ayaka's pained scream was completely ignored.

"Oh?" Asuna's eyes sharpened on Negi's form. "Is that so?"

"Mmm-hmm." Chachazero nodded with a grin. "We even spent the night together at an expensive suite after he took me out dancing." Chachazero continued her relentless takeover by overlapping one of Negi's legs with one of her own.

"Uh, um, that's, um, n-not t-t-true!" Negi stammered on and on as his mind hit a brick wall. If it was possible, steam would have been shooting out of his ears by now.

"Oh reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaally?!" Makie clenched her fist in a frightening fashion. "NEGI!"

"Scandalous." Haruna purred. "I'm jealous."

"H-hey! Will you hear me out?!" Negi pleaded.

Takamichi observed the scene from his desk in the corner and bowed his head with a sweat-drop. Well…the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree, now does it?

[F] {V} [A]

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Mahora Festival: Day Two (Date Segment )…

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Negi kept his eyes closed as he allowed himself to wander aimlessly in the sky. After he and Evangeline parted from each other, the girls and the paparazzi came after him. To be frank he didn't really want to talk to anyone at the moment and the last thing he wanted to do was pass on his depressing mood to anyone else. He knew that if the girls saw him in his current state all they would do is try their best to comfort him.

"I don't want to burden anyone with my troubles." Negi whispered to no one in particular. He finally opened his eyes to see one of the flight club's blimps towering over him and zipped away before any of the people on board could get a glimpse of him. "Ah, I keep on forgetting to keep clear of the public!" Negi perked up as his eyes darted for a spot to land. He spotted the bridge nearby and decided to land on one of the two arc tops. There he could see all of Mahora campus with it's lively crowds and stunning attractions.

Mr. Imma told me it wasn't going to last forever. A melancholic smile graced his lips. Instead of moping around I should just be grateful that I was given a chance to see him again. He raised his head up high and closed his eyes again to savor the light breeze that passed through him. For some reason the feelings he felt from the time his father disappeared began to grow cold. He just couldn't form anymore tears for his own loss. I can't let this get me down or the festival will pass before I even realize it.

You have your own life to live…

"Father…" Negi heaved a deep sigh as he allowed his shoulders to relax.

"You don't seem to be in high spirits." A melodic voice suddenly ran from behind Negi, startling the young magi. Who could have possibly followed him up here?

"Huh?" Negi whipped around to face Albireo. The older mage had his hood drawn over his face usual, making it hard to read his expression.

"A-Al- I mean, Ku:Nel? What are you doing up here?" Negi asked.

"I just wanted to know if you were alright." Albireo drew his hood back to reveal his mellow smile. "Are you still depressed after seeing your father?" He cocked his head to the side inquiringly.

"Oh, no!" Negi lied, forcing a small smile. "I'm fine! Really!" He raised a hand as though he was keeping the older mage from coming any closer to him. "Honestly, I'm happy. I mean…thanks for everything."

"So…" Albireo's eyes wandered over to Negi's arm. "Do you want me to heal that wound on your arm? Unlike the one on your cheek, it could leave a scar if you don't tend to it quickly."

This? Negi looked down at his right arm and clutched it almost protectively. "Um, no…" Negi shook his head. "It's alright."

"Very well." The older mage complied with a soft chuckle. He knew that Nagi must have inflicted that wound on him. There would be no other reason that Negi would be so protective of it. While it may be a little twisted to keep a wound for such a reason…I like the way you look at things, Negi. "I wonder…" Albireo whispered to the air. "How would you react to this Nagi? Would you cry or laugh?"

"Um, Ku:Nel?" Negi called Albireo's attention when he saw the older mage talking to his self.

"Yes?"

"I have a lot of questions I'd like to ask you."

"Oh, can that wait until after the festival?" Albireo requested with a wink. "It's been a while since I've enjoyed myself."

"Oh…ok." Negi nodded in disappointment.

"So what's next for you?"

"I've got a nodate to attend." Negi replied.

"Oh." Albireo grinned. "A traditional outdoor tea ceremony? How nice. I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

"…Ok." Negi nodded awkwardly.

"Take care." With that the mysterious man disappeared. Negi took a moment to regard the spot Albireo had occupied moments ago before a smile crossed is lips. He had to admit that his father had some funny taste in friends.

"Weird…" Negi said before his shirt burst open to reveal Chachazero in a startling scene that reminded him of a sci-fi movie Anya forced him to watch. "AH! Oh geez!" Negi clutched his heart as though he almost suffered a stroke. "Chachazero?! What the-I mean c'mon! Were you trying to kill me?!"

"That perked you up!" Chachazero cackled triumphantly. "Is Master Negi still depressed?" Negi couldn't resist the smile that overcame him. She was trying to perk him up so he wouldn't get depressed again. Sure, her methods were rather terrifying but it was the thought that really counted in the end. He took her into both hands and held her out in front of his face before giving her a peck on the forehead.

"You're awesome." Negi complimented her.

"Not as awesome as you were in the tournament!" Chachazero cried out excitedly as she flailed her little arms and legs. "You seriously kicked some major butt in that ring! I'm a little disappointed that you weren't able to go up against the mutt but, hey, beggars can't be choosers right?!"

"Um, thanks." Negi leaned away from her slightly when she started trying to imitate his actions during the matches, swinging her arms and kicking her legs.

"Oh, did I mention how HOT you looked when you were covered in blood?!" Chachazero asked, clasping her hands together in an admiring gesture. "Man, I'm the luckiest girl in the world to have you as my master!" As twisted as her words were, Negi couldn't help but blush...though her words held more than he truly understood. One could only wonder what things the puppet had in mind for her master if she was capable of carrying them out, however, we'll set those fantasies aside for later.

"Well then..." Negi trailed off as his eyes wandered over the sight of the lively campus. Now that the tournament was over, the hard part was just beginning. He still had students expecting visits from him, not to mention some dates. He almost felt shivers remembering the expression on Evangeline's face when she announced that they were still on for a date. His mind had trouble formulating scenarios of what the chibi-vampire might have had in store for him. The young magi's eyes fixated on a small shrine near the very end of the campus. It was stationed near the foot of the stairsteps that lead up to the Tatsumiya shrine.

"That's right!" Negi exclaimed without warning, catching his familiar off guard. "I have to attend the nodate!"

"Oh..." Chachazero mused as she rolled her eyes. "I almost forgot about that." In truth she did her best to try and forget that her master had to attend the outdoor tea ceremony and it went without saying that the reason for that stemmed from the undeniable tension between Chachamaru and herself. The puppet looked up at her master's face for a moment and asked, "Are you going to go to the ceremony like this?" She spoke in regard to his battle worn state. He looked as though he just returned from a visit to the underworld. It was a wonder that his clothes were able to withstand any of the matches he had taken part in.

"I don't think so..." Negi shook his head with a sweat-drop dangling from the side of his forehead. On the other hand...for some reason I just can't bring myself to go back home- Negi's train of thought came to a sudden halt when he realized what he had just done. He referred to Evangeline's house as his home so many times in the past while he was living there with the vampiress but now that the tournament had come to an end he realized that might just come to an end. Oh, that's right...it's time to move out. I wouldn't want to keep Asuna and Konoka waiting. "I hope Chachamaru has an extra outfit for me back at the tea house." Negi thought aloud. "Meeting with Eva at her house will be kind of awkward after all those events back at the ring."

"Right." Chachazero agreed with her master's reason. "Especially after that hug she shared with you." The puppet brought to his attention. "I mean...I've never seen her do that to anyone!"

"R-really?" Negi started to blush up to his ears. "W-wow...I guess that's really something, huh?" Negi's voice wavered a bit. He could almost remember the smell on her clothing, now that he really thought about it. There was something a bit off about his master's scent. It just wasn't the scent he usually associated with her.

"What's wrong master?" Chachazero asked when Negi's expression became quite serious.

"Blood." Negi said faintly.

"You thirsty?" Chachazero asked with a hint of fascination.

"That's not what I meant." Negi replied. "When Eva hugged me I could swear she had the scent of someone else's blood on her clothes. It was another scent that I've smelled before." For some reason the very thought sent some unnerving shivers through Negi's body. There was something definitely wrong with the scent on Evangeline's clothing. Negi's jaw locked shut when he felt some odd pulsations from his fangs. Chachazero flinched in her master's arms when a sudden growl came from the young magi's mouth and the veins in his neck bulged.

"Master!" Chachazero called to him but her words fell dead to his ears. He couldn't hear her as his mental defenses were violated by some mysterious influence. Whatever it was, it was forcing something wicked to overcome Negi's sanity. "Hey!" Chachazero punched his arm but she still didn't seem to get through to him.

TH-THIS FEELING! Negi inwardly cried out as he legs gave out. He fell to his knees and gripped his shoulders tightly much to Chachazero's discomfort. It's the same feeling...from the tournament!

Negi...

"Huh?!" Chachazero heard Negi gasp as he fought to regain control over his body.

Don't resist it. Give in to your destiny...

"It's...you!" Negi growled. This voice belonged to the mysterious woman, Chao introduced him to...didn't it? "Stop it!" Negi cried out. "Stop the pain! Please!"

Negi! You're hurting yourself by resisting it! Give in and the pain will stop!

Chachazero looked around in panic as her master slammed his head against the iron girder under him. This was getting way out of control for her. She wanted to do something to help but she had no idea what was going on so how could she be of any help? "MASTER!" She whimpered. This was the first time she ever felt so scared.

"Dor...o...thy..." Negi growled through his teeth.

A tear slipped down Negi's right eye as his mind was suddenly assaulted by a vision. The noise from all the students taking part in the festival was drowned in silence and the young magi found his self in the middle of the woods. The pain gradually began to subside and his heightened sense picked up the crunching of a branch underfoot nearby.

Grrr...hrmm? Negi looked up to see a little girl with blonde hair pressing her back against a tree in front of him. Her hair was a mess and there was blood staining her face and her lovely dress. Either she couldn't see him or she simply didn't care to acknowledge his presence; he wasn't sure but she seemed awfully familiar. She was breathing hard from fear...or was it fatigue? Negi's mind was far too scrambled for him to be sure. His eyes darted to another figure when it entered the scene. It was a young man with red hair. In fact...

"Wait a second...that' s me!" Negi's eyes went wide with shock when he saw the older version of his self stand before the little girl. He was wearing a black suit complimented by his majestic mage cloak. Chachazero took her respective place upon his shoulder with her usual outfit. It was a sight that almost made Negi watch on in awe. The little girl on the other hand was on full alert at his presence, almost as if he was the cause of her injuries.

"Hey there. I finally caught up with you." Negi smiled warmly at her. He crouched down to be at her eye level and she pressed herself against the tree even harder if it was physically possible. Her nails dug into the bark of the tree and her shoulders rose and fell raggedly. The girl didn't seem to be in a welcoming mood for any advances at the moment but Negi held his hand out to her anyway. "Come on-" Before he could come any closer, the little girl's eyes sharpened upon the older Negi's form intensely and she smacked his hand away viciously. In an almost comical fashion, the older Negi shook his hand a bit to soothe the pain.

What? I don't understand... The voice that intruded Negi's mind didn't seem to understand the bizarre scene that unfolded before the young magi anymore than he did.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Negi told her softly but the little girl still didn't settle down. A deep madness swirled maliciously within her gold eyes and she snarled, "Come any closer and I'll kill you!" Her muscles tightened when she saw Negi leaned forward again with an outstretched hand. This only served to set her off again. She bared her fangs at him with a growl and lunged at him but Negi took that opportunity to to open his arms to her and take her into a forceful embrace. The girl struggled erratically in his arms as she tried to bite his neck but Chachazero held her head back to protect her master.

"FILTH! I'LL KILL YOU!" The girl snarled. "DIE!"

"I see that you aren't familiar with this sort of contact." Negi said to her softly. She stopped struggling at his words as though trying to understand the meaning behind his words. "I don't understand who would do this to you." He whispered in to her ear. The girl tensed at the feeling of his breath upon her ear and her entire body suddenly went rigid. He added softly, "I would never hurt you." Her eyes glistened with tears at his words and she started struggling again.

"Liar!" She let out an ear splitting shriek that had seemingly no effect on Negi. "That's all you are! A liar!" Negi used his right hand to stroke her head and she became rigid again at his soothing touch.

"No." Negi said softly. "I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to protect and comfort you." He rested his head against her shoulder and she began to tremble. "Hurting you is the farthest thing from my mind." A strangled sob left her trembling lips as she finally gave into his warm arms went limp and she started to cry freely while Negi kept stroking her head, cooing, "There now. I won't allow anything else to happen to you. I promise."

Th-this doesn't make sense! The voice sounded genuinely distressed. Negi felt it's hold weakening and his body finally stopped acting against him. Negi shielded his eyes as the scene before him exploded in a flash of brilliant light and immersed him. "Too...much!" Negi could only see red as the light seared through his eyelids before it all went away with a dull darkness that left the young magi's head ringing. He opened his eyes once again, not daring to move in fear that he might mistakenly fall and blinked until he could see all of Mahora campus again from the bridge arc. He heard incomprehensible murmurs until his ears began to process all the noise from the festival properly again.

"Master!" Chachazero cried out in relief. "Are you alright?!"

"...I...don't know anymore." Negi admitted weakly, breathing shallowly. "I don't even remember...what I just experienced. It's all so hazy in my mind now." He got back to his feet unsteadily and resisted the heavy feeling in his chest that worked it's way down into his stomach. It was trying to go in reverse and Negi knew that wouldn't be a pretty sight if he allowed the queasy feeling to take it's course back out of his throat.

"Well?!" Chachazero got his attention. "Aren't you going to do something about this? You're freaking out!"

"Evangeline might...be able to do something about...it..." Negi wheezed. "What happened to me?"

"You mean you don't remember anything?"

"I just remember seeing her..." Negi replied vaguely.

"Her?" Chachazero would have raised an eyebrow in curiosity if her face was capable of making expressions. "Who are you talking about?"

"A woman Chao introduced me to during the Mahora Budokai." Negi answered her. "She never told me her name but for some reason I just can't get her off my mind."

"You actually said something earlier that sounded like a name." Chachazero waved her arms to keep his attention on her since his mind seemed to be wandering off again. "It sounded like you said, "Dorothy"."

"Dorothy, huh?" Negi questioned absent mindedly. He began to edge towards the ledge of the bridge arc and the sadistic puppet started flailing her arms, crying out, "What are you doing?!"

"The tea ceremony." Negi said faintly.

"You can't take off yet! You'll hit the-"

Negi kicked off from the ledge...

"Water..." Chachazero finished.

...and headed straight down...

Turning our attention to the Nodate...

Where is he? Chachamaru thought to herself as her eyes scanned the entrance from the tea house. So far all the girls had come to attend, dressed at their best. They wore beautiful kimonos with illustrious designs of flowers and other patterns. Most of them had their hair done up with the exception of Ayaka. It was obvious to the android that they had this all done for the exact person she had taken the time to get herself prepared for. Has he been held up? I would expect for him to be on time... Chachamaru balled up her hands upon her lap and bowed her head slightly.

"Perhaps..." Chachamaru paused for a moment as her artificial mind tried to find a logical reason for her sensei's lateness. Surely he wouldn't do this to hurt her feelings. He would never do that. "...The Mistress had taken him back home with her..." It went without saying that it was hard on Chachamaru to live with a rival she couldn't go against. Sure, she may have developed feelings for the young magi long before Evangeline had but for some reason she could see the distance between Negi and the mistress closing much faster than her distance from him. She felt a twinge of jealousy when Evangeline embraced Negi at the ring after his match with his father. She felt helpless. She wanted to be the one to comfort him. She wanted so badly to be the one that he could depend on when his spirits were down but how could she compete with her master? It disturbed her that the one thing that actually made her happy was out of her reach because of the very person she served. "...Should I proceed without him?" She questioned herself.

No...Negi will show up. He isn't the type of person that would disregard an invitation. Chachamaru wanted to believe but the more she thought about Evangeline and Negi hugging each other the less hope she had of him ever making his appearance. Her hopes were fulfilled, however, when her scanners picked up a familiar figure approaching the tea ceremony in the distance. She felt a lift when a close up on the figure clarified that it was indeed, Negi Springfield. He looked a little wet but she didn't really care for that at all. As long as he was attending, all was right with her day. "Negi-kun." She rose up from her seat on the porch of the tea house and walked to the entrance to greet the young magi. The girls caught this movement and all smiled when they realized that their teacher had finally come.

"Negi-sensei!" Ayaka waved to him.

"Oh, Negi-kuuuuun!" Sakurako cooed to him loudly.

"Hey!" Fuka cried out childishly. "Over here! Come over here!"

"No! Sit by me!" Fumika practically shoved her hand in her sister's face and used her other hand to pat the spot beside her.

"Sit with a real woman cutie!" Misa purred.

"But we're all the same age..." Yuna argued. Negi watched his students vying for his attention but as usual he was quite oblivious to their affectionate gestures.

"Welcome Negi-kun." Chachamaru greeted him with a bow when she received him at the entrance. Her eyes darted over to Chachazero for a moment but other than that she didn't express her distaste for her sadistic counterpart. If she was to become much closer to the object of her desires she could nnot allow herself to be consumed by such trivial matters. It wasn't like Chachazero could ever be capable of winning his affections "that" way anyway, right? She was nothing more than his familiar; quite incapable of ever satisfying his needs for companionship.

"Hi there Chachamaru!" Negi greeted her in a chipper fashion but Chachamaru was able to see through his cheerful facade. He simply didn't want to get others depressed by allowing his own true feelings to show. She found herself blushing a little when Negi took a moment to take in her appearance. She found the thought of his eyes roaming over her quite pleasant. "You look beautiful Chachamaru!" He exclaimed much to the other girl's envy. Did he notice them the least bit?!

"Th-thank you Negi-kun." Chachamaru averted her eyes for a moment to recover from his words.

"I'm sorry though..." Negi apologized sheepishly as he massaged the back of his neck, "I err...didn't come dressed too well for the occasion." That was, of course, an understatement seeing as how he was wearing the exact same clothes that he wore for the tournament. His clothes were back at Evangeline's house, which was really the last place he wanted to go to. He plucked his sleeve, still a little damp from his plunge into the water earlier and added, "I somehow managed to get myself wet too." His words amused Chachamaru but she didn't show it outwardly.

"Not to worry Negi-kun." Chachamaru assured him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I am sure I can find something for you to wear." She guided him towards the tea house and went on, "Allow me to get you fitted into some appropriate attire."

"Um, sure." Negi nodded.

------------------------------------------------------

Setting our sights upon a certain duo...

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"Things are turning up now. Gandolfini-san and the others say that Chao is up to more mischief." Mei grumbled miserably, walking beside her superior. They had gotten freshened up from the tournament to return to their confession scouting duty, however, Takane's mind seemed to be much more focused on things other than the duyt assigned to her, which wasn't surprising for her underling. "H-hey, are you listening onesan?!" Mei called the blonde magistress's attention.

"Huh?!" Takane blurted out when she was broken out of her daze. Her sudden unexpected reaction made Mei flinch. "Were you saying something?" Takane asked innocently.

"...Yeah." Mei answered darkly. "I was."

"What's the matter?"

" How about the fact that we were facing an army of robots underground a few hours ago?!" Mei was bordering on hysterical, "How about that?!"

"Right, well Gandolfini is on the case." Takane replied.

"Huh?" Mei blinked. This wasn't the Takane she knew from before. The Takane she knew would be fired up at the idea of such a case. She would be trying to take Chao down even as they spoke but right now that didn't seem to be the case at all. "Well, aren't you the least bit...I don't know...um, concerned that this sort of situation is going on?"

"Of course I am Mei." Takane replied, rolling her eyes.

"You sure don't look like it."

"What can we really do about it at this point?" Takane asked, placing a hand on her hip. "If we go blowing things up during the fesitval, there's a chance we could really risk our cover." The blonde magistress wagged a finger in Mei's face. "I'm sure Gandolfini will have everything under control soon. We've caught Chao in the past. This shouldn't be any harder from the times before."

"...I don't know..." Mei furrowed her brows. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Takane waved her concern away casually before placing her hand on her throat for a moment. "I am a little thirsty though." She mumbled. She didn't exactly understand why, but Negi came to mind for some reason. Why would she be associating him with her thirst? Now that I really think about it...he's been on my mind a lot lately.

"Why are you blushing?" Mei inquired curiously when a deep rosy shade washed over Takane's cheeks.

"N-no reason." Takane answered quickly. "Let's grab something to drink, huh?"

"Sure." Mei wasn't about to turn that down. She was a little thirsty herself. "So, um, how do you think Negi-kun is doing?" Her question made Takane blink. Oh, why did she have to bring him up? She was having enough trouble as it was trying to convince herself that she wasn't obsessing over him. What else could she call it when she would take up any opportunity to be near him, whether it be fighting him in the ring or finding some excuse to hang out with him? To make matters worse, it gradually didn't seem to disturb her anymore that Negi was becoming such a big factor in her thoughts.

"What do you mean?" Takane played coy.

"You know..." Mei lowered her voice as though she thought Negi could hear her, "after his whole meeting with his father and all. I hear that he cried."

"...He did?" That caught Takane's attention. "Wait a second..." She raised an eyebrow in perturbation. "How did he meet with his father again?! The Thousand Master actually showed up at the Mahora Budokai?" That was some shocking information and for her to miss that chance at getting a real live glimpse at the legend was enough to unnerve her to the core.

"Well, I hear it was an illusion." Mei sounded unsure of her own choice of words. "Actually...it's really complicated but I know that Negi-kun is feeling really down because of it." The red-head saw an indescribable expression wash over Takane's face for a moment as though the magistress was trying her best to make a hard decision. Something told her that it might have had something to do regarding the young magister. "Are you worried about him?" Mei grinned.

"M-me?" Takane asked defiantly. "Of course not. He doesn't need anyone worrying about him. I'm sure he can take care of himself." And yet even as she said that she couldn't help but want to be by his side right now to console him. "Hmm..."

"Hey, Ako, wait up!" Takane and Mei turned their attention to Madoka who was trying unsuccessfully to catch up with Ako in her kimono. The cheerleader didn't want to get it dirty but so far she managed to drag it behind her most of the way.

"We'll be late for the tea ceremony if we walk any slower!" Ako called back to her friend. "Come on!"

Tea ceremony? Takane licked her lips at the thought of something to quench her thirst. She rubbed the side of her cheek when her canines started tingling oddly. "That feels so weird." She mumbled to herself as she kept her eyes on the pair.

"Negi's gonna be there too, isn't he?" Madoka's mention of the young magi's name caught Takane's interest.

"That's what I heard from everyone else!" Ako replied.

"Great! I really want to see him after what happened back at the tournament." Madoka voice got soft.

"Yeah...me too." Ako nodded. Takane and Mei's eyes followed the two students as they walked along to the tea house and the blonde magistress gripped her right arm.

"...Let's follow them." Takane said.

"I figured you'd say that." Mei smiled.

------------------------------------------------

Back to Negi and Chachamaru...

------------------------------------------------

Negi took a seat on a chair against the wall while Chachamaru opened a nearby closet in the changing room to seek a change of clothes for him. It had been a while since Negi had any time alone with the android and for some reason he couldn't shake off this sudden feeling of nervousness that crept up on him. His eyes lingered on her back for a moment before he bowed his head and sighed. The heavy feeling in the pit of his stomach had yet to disappear. No matter how much he tried to shake off the melancholy feeling it just wouldn't leave him. He remembered this feeling well when he was back at Wales, trying his best to live up to his father's name but when he came to Mahora that all went away. He had so much fun with all the girls that it didn't plague him as much but the feeling of loss had returned and this time he wasn't sure when it was going to lighten it's grip on his heart.

His melancholy demeanor wasn't lost on Chachamaru. When he was looking away she kept on stealing quick glances at him over her shoulder. "Here we are." She announced, pulling out a black kimono. She held it out for Negi to admire and closed the closet door when he nodded in approval.

"That's going to look cool on you, master Negi." Chachazero commented from his shoulder.

"Thanks Chacha-chan." Negi did his best to smile at his familiar. His affectionate title for the puppet made Chachamaru feel a slight jerk in her gears and she almost pulled the young magi up to his feet rather forcefully.

"Whoa." Negi massaged the shoulder of the arm she pulled to soothe the soreness. "I'm still a little sore from the tournament." He groaned.

"M-my apologies." Chachamaru bowed.

"That's alright." Negi smiled warmly.

"You did quite well in the tournament, Negi-kun."

"Thanks."

"You were wonderful on the ring and your techniques have improved." Chachamaru complimented. "I'm sure that you can now best me in a one on one match."

"S-seriously?" Negi laughed. "I doubt it!"

"Very well. Let us get you changed." She caught Negi off guard when she began by plucking Chachazero off his shoulder to set her down on the window sill. Chachazero shot her a dirty look as the android turned away from her and the look even grew darker when Chachamaru proceeded by peeling Negi's cloak off and lying it on the arm rest of the chair that the young magi was sitting on.

For some reason...doing this fills me with a rather pleasurable sensation. Chachamaru thought with a light blush as she started to unbutton Negi's shirt much to his growing discomfort. He never expected Chachamaru to undress him personally. This wasn't something he was very familiar with at all. When she was done unbuttoning his shirt she pulled it off of him gently and made him raise his arms to pull of his muscle shirt.

Negi's hair feathered over his face when it fell back down after the shirt passed over his head and he regarded Chachamaru as she held the top part of the kimono in her hand. She seemed to be in some deep thought. "What's the matter Chachamaru?"

"Are you alright?"

"What do you mean?" Negi quirked an eyebrow.

"I speak in regard to your meeting with your father." Chachamaru clarified for him. She saw a slight twitch in his bottom lip and she inwardly cringed. "Are you still...depressed?"

"Um, me?" Negi asked rather tactlessly. "No, I'm fine."

"You seem to be the total opposite." Chachamaru observed. "I'm worried for you. Is there anyway I can help to alleviate your pain?" Her words came out sounding a bit hesitant as though she wasn't sure of her own choice of words. Her hands tightened around the fabric between her fingers and she pleaded. "Please tell me Negi-kun. I would like to comfort you in any way I possibly can."

"No really...I'm fine." Negi assured her unconvincingly. "Thank you though." He never expected her to be this worried about his well being. Something in him made him feel guilty for doubting it. They were friends after all, right?

Chachamaru leaned over to him to inspect that bandages that were wrapped around her injuries and asked, "These wounds...do they hurt?"

"No." Negi blushed at her closeness.

"Are you sure?" She persisted as she leaned in a little closer.

"I-I'm fine! Really!" Negi's skin burned crimson. Chachamaru nodded slowly after regarding him silently as though trying to search for the truth within his eyes. Negi wasn't the best liar but the android decided not to push the matter any further. She helped him slip on the haori and stepped back to admire his appearance with a slight smirk. She made sure to take a picture of him with her built in camera to transfer it to her "Favorites" folder. This one was a keeper.

"So..." She paused to take his damp clothes and hang them on the chair to dry before continuing, "I understand that your time with us is coming to an end."

"Oh." Negi's eyes drooped when he understood the meaning of her words. "Yeah...that's right." He ran his hand through his hair out of habit and went on, "Asuna and Konoka are really going to be expecting me back soon. You know...after everything that happened the day I left." He gradually found that he couldn't face Chachamaru. "I, uh, promised them."

"Yes, I know." Chachamaru nodded sagely. "When will you move out?"

"Probably later tonight." Negi answered her.

Silence followed...

"Tell me." Chachamaru started off, draping the hakama over her forearm. "Did you enjoy your stay with us?" Her eyes bore into his own with it's apparent hunger for an answer. He'd never seen this sort of intensity in her eyes before and needless to say, it unsettled him. He was tempted to look back at Chachazero to see if she was still present in the room. She had been unusually quiet as of late and this conversation was beginning to go down a path he didn't want to stray towards. His mouth was starting to get dry and his eyes were averting away from the lovely android no matter how hard he tried to stay focused on her.

"Of course I enjoyed my stay with you guys!" Negi blurted out. "You don't think I'm glad that I'm leaving, do you?"

"...No." Chachamaru answered him. She placed her hand on the sash of his pants to loosen it and the young magi went completely stiff. "I merely wished to know if you preferred living with us as opposed to living with Kagurazaka and Konoe."

"Chachamaru..." Negi was at a loss for words. By now he could tell where she was going with this conversation. Was it that she didn't want him to leave? "I can't answer that sort of question."

"Why not?" She asked bluntly, looking up at him.

"B-because it just wouldn't be fair." Negi placed his hands over hers when she was about to pull down his pants. "I-I can do this myself...you don't need to do i-" He had no time to finish as she relieved him of them anyway. He underestimated how strong she was.

"I want to." She answered simply. "Negi...I wish for you to stay with us."

"Wait-"

"I would not feel the same if you were to leave."

"Chachamaru, please don't force me into this sort of situation." Negi placed his hands on her shoulders and pleaded, "Just don't!" Their eyes locked on to each other for an awkward moment and the android looked away.

"My apologies. It was not my intention to discomfort you in anyway." She bowed her head and went on, "It's just that gradually I have found myself developing a rather strong fondness for you. I am so used to the idea of seeing your face every morning and talking with you that I don't want to let go of that feeling."

"But we can do that at class."

"No...I fear that you don't fully understand the meaning of my words." Chachamaru leaned her head against his chest and remained motionless. "I realize that...I..."

"You..." Negi urged her on.

"...I have feelings for-"

"Hey guys..." Both Negi and Chachamaru whipped their heads in the direction of the door when Chisame's voice suddenly rang in out of nowhere. The net idol stared at them quietly, scrutinizing their awkward position before turning away without a word and closing the door behind her. Negi looked away from the android in embarrassment, and she did the same with a blush.

"Ch-chachamaru...what were you saying?"

"I find it hard to recall at the moment."

Silence...

"Maybe we should call Chisame back before she runs off with the wrong idea."

"My thoughts exactly." With that both of them rushed to the sliding door to try and call to the net idol before she was out of sight. Negi didn't even bother to kick his pants off his legs so as he ran, he fell on top of Chachamaru as she opened the door to call out Chisame's name.

"Umph!" They both fell to the floor on each other.

"Chisame!" Negi called out to her fleeting form and the student surprisingly came to a stop. That was sort of unexpected. He inwardly expected her to just keep on walking off. "Come back!"

"I think not!" She yelled back at them as though they were impure.

"Chisame-san! There may have been a grave misunderstanding!" Chachamaru held out her hand desperately. She wasn't sure if Chisame was the type to gossip, however, if she was, then there was a chance that this sort of information could reach Evangeline and...the android probably would never see better days after that.

"Just leave me alo-"

"W-wait!" Negi suddenly appeared in front of her in his boxers.

"GAH!"

Ahem...on with the Nodate...

"There we are." Takane grinned as she slipped on the kimono she sto-um, found. It kept on slipping off her shoulders due to the fact that it was a size larger but it did well to accommodate her. She clutched it to her chest with her right hand to keep from revealing herself to any onlookers and mind you, there were many. "Mei!" She called to her underling in a harsh whisper. "Come on already! We'll stand out if we attend the ceremony late!"

"But...onesan..." Mei walked out behind the curtain, pulling up the Kimono so she wouldn't trip over it. "Isn't this wrong?"

"Wrong? We're doing this for the sake of duty!" Takane pumped her fist in the air nobly. "Never forget that!" Her words made Mei sweat-drop. She could've sworn that they were done with the spying missions long ago when the blonde started getting closer to the young magi. Where the heck did this mission get pulled out of?

"I thought we were doing this for the sake of friendship." Mei said dully. "You know...to console Negi-chan." She inwardly smacked herself for letting that "Chan" slip out. Well, hopefully Takane wouldn't notice it, although with the way her superior's hand twitched, she wasn't sure if it slipped by so easily. She decided to go on regardless, plucking the summer rose kimono she had on as though it burned her very finger tips. "Isn't this a bit much."

"Did anyone die, Mei?" Takane asked with a mischievous grin that looked so out of place on her lovely lips. It brought to question just how Negi's bite was affecting her personality.

"N-no..." Mei answered nervously.

"Then we didn't go too far." Takane concluded, taking her underling's hand before hurrying over to the tea ceremony. Unbeknownst to the duo, there was a sharp pair of eyes watching their every move and it was finding these turn of events rather interesting. There was a chilling click from the person's rifle as she loaded in a rubber bullet followed by a smirk that would have made anyone's blood run cold.

"Takane Goodman if I'm not mistakened, hmm?" Mana questioned no one in particular as she crossed her legs on the ledge she was sitting upon. She had been keeping her eyes on the blonde magistress for a while and something was beginning to become quite apparent to the lovely marksman. "It looks like our precious Negi may have more on his hands than he can possibly handle." Mana's eyes softened for a moment. "I can't have anything happening to him, now, can I?"

"OH NEGI-KUUUN!" Makie waved at the handsome boy as he walked out of the tea house accompanied by Chachamaru and Chisame. It was a surprise to all of the girls that Chisame decided to attend. As bubbly as many of them may have seemed, they were quite aware of Chisame's obvious dislike for them.

"It's Hasegawa!" Madoka said out loud with a smile. "Nice look!" She complimented the net idol much to her growing discomfort. She didn't like to be the center of attention when it came to these weirdoes.

"See? I told you that you'd look pretty." Negi whispered to her with a smile, eliciting a blush from the girl.

"Shut it." Chisame growled to him from the corner of her mouth. I don't even know why I decided to participate... She stole a glance at Negi and turned away quickly to conceal the rosy hue on her cheeks. Damn kid... She didn't understand this kid at all most of the time. It vexed her even more as to how he was able to attract so many girls that were older than him. The Class president had an excuse...sort of but with the plethora of young women that seemed to be literally throwing themselves at him, Chisame was finding it hard to grasp. As if the class wasn't enough! Now that he has fangirls from the tournament I don't think he'll ever be safe.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey Negi, would you hurry up already?!" Chisame yelled at the young magi. They were walking side by side on the streets of Mahora city and due to Chisame's long legs, Negi was finding it rather hard to keep up.

"Alright Chisame-chan!" Negi nodded quickly, trying to hasten his pace. "H-hey! Can you wait up?" His plea made Chisame roll her eyes and she kept walking but when he suddenly became very quiet to the point that she couldn't hear his frantic steps, she found herself getting a little worried. "Um, "Chisame turned around to find nobody behind her, "N-negi?"

A fangirl dressed in a black ninja garb pulled a tranquilizer dart out of the young magi's neck and dragged him deeper into the darkness of the alley where she could do what she pleased with his unconscious form. Chisame felt chills run down her spine when she heard a chillingly sweet voice triumphantly cry out, "MINE!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Um, Chisame?" Negi wvaed his hand in front of the young woman's face when he found her spacing out.

"H-hwha?!"Chisame flinched when she was pulled out of her disturbing thoughts. She whipped her head to face Negi quickly and asked, "W-what to you want?!"

"N-nothing." Negi squeaked. "It just looked like you were daydreaming."

"I was just thinking, alright?"

"Okey-doke." Negi nodded quickly. He turned away from the net idol to face his elegantly dressed students, who all had expectant looks on their faces. Negi may have been pretty dense when it came to desires of females, however, it wasn't hard for him to tell that they were waiting to receive some sort of compliment from him. They went so far as to pose for him. "U-um, "Negi swallowed when he noticed two certain female mage among the girls, "You all look beautiful!" He didn't notice the expression that passed briefly upon Chisame's face at his compliment for all the girls.

"Hey! Look over here!" Sakurako and Misa called his attention to strike a pose.

"Ha, ha! Nice! You all look very nice!" Negi clapped with a light hearted laugh. All the girls were relieved to see a smile on his face again. Chisame on the other hand just hated how the girls looked in their kimonos. They hardly had to put any effort in their appearance to look stunning.

Geez. She slapped a hand on her forehead in frustration. This is why I hate hanging around these guys... Her eyes lingered on Negi's smiling face for a moment. Well, at least he doesn't look all mopey like before. She went on alert when Chachamaru grabbed a hold of Negi's hand and led him to the large mat that covered the ground. There a large tea set was elaborately arranged for all who was to attend the Nodate. Chisame, like the other girls followed in procession and took a seat on the mat. Takane and Mei did their best to try and sit as close as possible to Negi and Chachamaru, however, with other participants who had such in mind like Ayaka and Misa, that proved to be a hard task to accomplish indeed. Takane caught Ayaka throw a triumphant look in her direction and fumed. Apparently the other blonde still held her in regard as a rival for the young teacher's affections...touche...

"Here you are Negi-kun." Chachamaru offered him a cup of tea and Negi accepted it gratefully. The feeling of the steam that rose from the semi-transparent liquid calmed the young magi as it caressed his face in deep slivers. His mind was at such peace as he lifted the cup to his lips that he didn't notice how his facial mask dropped to reveal it's true melancholy nature. He also didn't notice every one of his students, with the inclusion of Takane and Mei, watching intently as he took his first sip and let out a deep sigh that sent pleasant shivers down all their spines. Even Chisame couldn't help but feel chills at how mature the boy could look when he wasn't trying to cheer others up. Sometimes she wondered if he even realized that his behavior had no trace toward his age.

Negi-sensei, you are such an enigma, you know? Chisame thought, furrowing her brow. We all know about the situation regarding your father, but...I still can't help but want to know more about your life. When did your childhood leave you?

Takane took a sip from her cup of tea, her eyes never leaving the young magi, and bowed her head. She wasn't sure if it was just because of the way Negi looked at the moment but she suddenly felt a wave of depression pass through her as though she was receiving some of the weight in the young magi's heart. Where is your mind right now, Negi-kun? I came here in hopes of relieving you of your sadness and yet I watch a young man before me that is out of my reach. Why do you feel so distant? Why can't I ever figure you out?

"Onesan?" Mei nudged her superior in the arm and the blonde looked over towards her with the same expression on her face that Negi had on his. It looked pretty surreal for a moment to Mei. "Are you...alright?"

"Yeah." Takane answered in a manner that simply stated the complete opposite of the message that she was trying to send through her words. "Why?"

"You look as though something terrible happened to you."

"Do I?" Takane cocked her head to the side. "To tell you the truth I just started to feel a little sad from seeing Negi." Or so she assumed seeing as how there was no other logical explanation...that was unless one were to say that the reason she felt this way was due to her faint bond with Negi. Just as Negi would feel slight waves of emotion from Evangeline, Takane would experience the same exact feeling, however, due to the fact that Negi isn't as good as Evangeline in masking his emotions, the blonde magistress felt his feelings all the more.

"It's delicious." Negi told Chachamaru softly.

"Thank you very much." Chachamaru bowed to him. She held out her hand to him to receive his cup and he placed it in her hand, their hands sliding against each other briefly when he pulled back. The sensation of their hands making such contact was enough for Chachamaru to feel a slight electric sensation run up her arm in pleasure. After she was done serving him another cup, she handed it back to him in hopes of getting that feeling again only to be left in disappointment when it was a clean pass.

Should I have swallowed my fear and told him how I felt? Chachamaru shook her head somberly and looked up towards the sky. As much as I truly wish to confess my feelings for him...I know that it would do nothing more than burden his mind with more than he could handle. She let her gaze fall to the mat as she heaved a sigh. That wouldn't be fair towards him with all that he must deal with now. Especially with Ms. Lingshen's plans...

While all of this deep thought went on within the minds of these complex characters, Misa and the other girls had much lighter things on their mind regarding Negi. For example-

"Who guys, did you see the expression on Negi's face?" Misa whispered to Madoka and Fumika. The girls didn't not but Misa naturally went on anyway. "That's not the sort of look you'd expect to see on the face of a ten-year-old!" Her rant caught the attention of Takane who went, "What?"

"Hmm?" Misa turned to Takane and blinked a few times in curiosity. "I've never seen you around here before." She mused, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Me neither." Madoka shook her head.

"Nope," Fumika crossed her arms before her eyes wandered over to Mei, "Haven't seen her before either."

"That's right..." Madoka said before a light gasp of surprise escaped her. "W-wait a second! I remember you!" She pointed an accusing finger at Takane, causing the blonde magistress to blush in embarrassment because she knew exactly where this was going. "Y-you're the girl that kept on stripping naked during the matches!"

...That did it...

"You say it as though I did it on purpose!" Takane hissed, back to her old self.

"Whoa. Easy there." Madoka edged away.

"Hey, you're right there Madoka." Misa said with a grin before extending a hand to Takane. "Always great to meet a celebrity." She let her hand fall, however, when Takane did nothing more than stare at her in annoyance. Misa chuckled sheepishly and went on, "Well, what I was saying was, Negi behaves like an adult for his age, doesn't he?"

Takane couldn't go against that. She experienced just how old the young magi could behave...even when it wasn't his fault. "Yes, I agree." Takane nodded. "Sometimes I forget that he's a boy."

Sometimes? Mei rolled her eyes at the irony of her words but said nothing about it. She watched as Misa gathered Madoka, Fumika, and Takane near her and sighed. She didn't know where this conversation was going but she could already tell that she didn't want to find out.

"I just realized something!" Misa suddenly said, an imaginary light bulb coming to life over her pretty head. Madoka and Takane leaned in further with intrigue while Fumika tried her best to squeeze into the conversation since she was the furthest away. "Negi is just...five years younger than we are, right?!"

"Um, yeah!" Madoka nodded quickly.

"And that' pretty normal for celeb couples!" The drool was beginning to form on the side of Misa's mouth as her mind took a deep plunge into the sinister side.

"Err...where is this heading?" Takane and Madoka questioned, feeling slightly disturbed.

"W-well, imagine it!" Misa drew an imaginary bubble over her hand. "If we score points with Negi now, in four or five years we'll have a chance at having a total hottie for a boyfriend! Think about it! Good looking-" Fuka and Yuna turned their attention to the conversation, "Intelligent-" That got Sakurako's attention, "Strong!" Makie looked up from her tea in curiosity. "What girl wouldn't want a boyfriend like that?!" Misa presented them with the question.

Oh geez... Chisame shook her head after overhearing the conversation. Those girls can't be serio-

"You're a genius Kakizaki!"

"Awesome!"

"Sweet!"

Before Chisame could act as the voice of reason to counteract Misa's scheme, the girls who were listening had rushed up before Negi to offer him their tea. The first was Sakurako, who had gotten ahead of all the rest of the girls with her tea prepared for Negi's palate. "Here Negi! Try my tea!" She held the steaming cup filled with her concoction for Negi to drink and he hesitantly received it from her. Chachamaru cocked her head to the side curiously at this act. Just what were these girls planning for her Negi?

"How is it?!" Sakurako eagerly awaited his answer but Madoka shoved her to the side before Negi could answer and held her cup up to him. "H-hey-"

"Try mine, Negi-kun." She slipped in a flirtatious wink with her words that made Negi sweat-drop. He didn't feel safe with the libidinous look in her eyes when she did that.

"O-okay." Negi nodded, taking the cup from her, however, as he drank, Fuka snatched the cup out of his hands and Fumika pushed Madoka aside.

"Try ours!" they chirped.

"Hey now!" Ayaka finally cried out when all the chaos succeeded in annoying the hell out of her. "Leave him alone!" She hissed at them with a menacing scowl. When the other girls were successfully settled down, the class president turned back to Negi and dabbed a wet spot on his haori with her hankerchief. "Oh look, the nerve of those commoners. They've gotten you dirty."

"It's alright Ayaka-chan." Negi assured her with an awkward chuckle.

"No it's not!" The blonde growled. "All they do is harass you!" She turned to the tea set before them to serve him another cup properly but to her surprise it was so hot that she dropped it before she could hand it to him. The result ended with her falling to the side when the scalding drink fell on her lap and she mistakenly mooned the hapless youth in the process.

Mei coughed out her drink.

"Aw, no fair!" Fuka whined.

"Yeah! Cheating your way ahead by flashing Negi-kun!" Fumika cried out with a devilish grin.

Hmm...The lecherous gears in Misa's head started cranking and- "Oop!" She 'accidentally' dropped her cup of tea...resulting in her mooning, Negi. The other girls caught on with what was going on and before, Negi could recover, all the girls were accidentally dropping their cups of hot tea.

"Will you girls stop it already?!" Chisame roared in horror.

"Now is my chance..." Takane grinned when she saw how easily Negi was to reach in all the chaos. Chachamaru was much too busy trying to save the tea set from being shattered to pieces and Chisame was in rage mode. Finally mas- "Huh?" Takane blinked. What was she about to think right now? She had no time to reflect because all of the chaos managed to attract a group of paparazzi members nearby. They rushed in with their cameras and at the sight of Negi, Mei and Takane, they began flashing like crazy!

"Mr. Springfield!" A female reporter called out his name, holding out a mic. "An interview please!"

"AH!" Negi's eyes went wide with fright. "I forgot about them!" It didn't take the young magi too much time to get to his feet and make some serious tracks.

"Wait!" Takane cried out to him but Negi was far too busy trying to put some distance between himself and the tea house that he didn't pay her any mind. "Cripes! Darn reporters!"

"Onesan!" Takane whipped around to see her underling being hounded by a few reporters and she rushed into the pandemonium to save her.

"I'm coming, Mei!"

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Paying a visit to the dark side...

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Chao sighed as she opened her eyes to find the hall that she was standing in empty. Gandolfini, Takamichi and the rest of the mages were nowhere to be seen, meaning that she traveled forward into time successfully. That was a relief because for a moment there they almost had her in their clutches. "That Gandolfini sure is getting quicker. He always manages to catch up to me somehow but not anymore." Chao slipped her Cassiopeia watch out of the pocket of her deep sleeve and smirked. "It may not be as perfect as your prototype mother but it's still good for something." Her expression hardened when she recalled something important. "Oh, that's right...my window out of here should be opening in a few hours."

The Chinese scientist hurried down the halls of the empty arena, looking over her back to make sure that one of Gandolfini's spies weren't still around. She wasn't about to underestimate that man after that last close shave. It was getting dark outside. She wondered what Negi was up to. Was he out somewhere with Evangeline? It kind of irked her as to how close he was with the Undying wizard. Rather, that wasn't the proper word. It "worried" her. "I thought it was simply a friendship shared between them before but now I'm seeing something romantic developing." Chao narrowed her eyes as she stroked her chin in deep thought. "Hopefully Negi doesn't pick up on Eva's feelings too quickly. Then there's the matter regarding Mistress Dorothy..."

Her interest in Negi-chan disturbs me more than Evangeline's developing feelings. Dorothy did express that she wanted to bring Negi over to her side in many instances and that could pose a problem to Chao's future as well. She wasn't sure if the Dark Mistress's interests in Negi were based on affections or simply obsession but she didn't want Dorothy to place her hands on him regardless. "Now that I really think about it...where is the Mistress?" Chao felt a horrible feeling building in the pit of her stomach as her thoughts wandered to some possible scenarios. None of them did well to comfort her. "Dammit. Don't tell me that she already made a move." She bit her thumb in panic. "But...she went to face Evangeline didn't she? Evangeline couldn't have possibly lost against her...could she?"

Chao didn't leave anymore time to her thoughts as she began to run. "I need to keep Negi away from her! I need to keep him safe with me!" Her vampiric senses went wild after she uttered her final words and she came to a sudden halt. Whatever it was that was causing this ominous feeling, it was closing in on her from all sides. "What the..." Chao's muscles tensed when she realized who was the owner of the ominous presence. "Looks like I spoke to soon."

Oh, did you think that I was gone? Dorothy's voice rang through the halls as the dying light from outside had suddenly become consumed by an eerie curtain of darkness. Chao's eyes darted around on full alert as she felt the temperature drop at an astounding level. She felt an unusual weight push down against her body and movement had suddenly become a hard task for the scientist.

"Mistress Dorothy?!" Chao grit her teeth when a thick cloud of darkness rolled into the hall and gathered at a single point before morphing into a tall form. A head formed and worked it's way down until Chao could make out the figure of a woman. Finally the darkness dissipated and Dorothy could be made out quite clearly. Her gold eyes twinkled back at Chao with a deep frightening madness as her lips curled into a smirk.

"I see that you made it out of the tournament without getting apprehended." Dorothy observed, crossing her arms. A breeze filled the halls though the open windows causing the Dark Mistress's majestic cloak to flap to the side.

"And I see that Evangeline didn't manage to kill you." Chao retorted with a smirk that rivaled Dorothy's. Both vampires spent a moment in silence staring at each other until Dorothy offered Chao a slow round of applause that made the scientist's hair stand on end.

"So it would seem that we both expected the other to fail." Dorothy giggled maniacally. "As I said before, you truly are your mother's daughter."

"Why, thank you." Chao mocked her.

"Now that we have that out of the way..." The smirk on the Dark Mistress's face had gone away and her playful gaze had sharpened upon Chao intensely. Chao naturally felt something coming after observing Dorothy's subtle change and slowly got in position to move quickly if necessary. "I understand that you wish to keep, Negi away from me." Dorothy started walking forward, forcing Chao to step away. "You are wise in trying to do so, I'll not deprive you of that property. Naturally if I managed to have the darkling join me, your future would be at stake."

"He would never meet mother." Chao narrowed her eyes at the Mistress despite her growing fear. "More importantly, you would corrupt him!"

"Oh, shut it." Dorothy rolled her eyes. "You must realize that in Negi's eyes, you're the villain of this tragic tale." She sensed the uneasiness in Chao and continued, "How could you ever be able to protect him when he would want nothing to do with you?" She observed the Chinese girl's face and saw a twitch. She managed to strike a cord in the supposedly untouchable girl and if she kept on this relentless assault she just might be able to throw off her cool.

"Well, it would put a bit more ease on my mind if you weren't around."

"Oh?" Dorothy came to a halt and smiled, baring her lethal fangs. "So I assume that you believe that you can just make me...disappear?" She let out an amused chuckle that served to do nothing more than annoy Chao. "Even your mother knew her limits!"

"Stop comparing me to her! What do you seriously know about her anyway?!"

"For one, "Dorothy grinned, "she was weak and foolish." The Dark Mistress threw back her mantle so her arms were exposed. "And I now see that her daughter is no different."

"W-what?" Chao blinked.

"And just as she died by my hands-"

"WHAT?!" Chao screamed to the Dark Mistress's pleasure.

"-You will suffer the same fate."

The knuckles in Chao's left hand cracked as she bit her bottom lip. Her fangs punctured her delicate skin and the blood trickled down her chin, dripping down to the floor. "You're horrible..." Chao said in a low voice that sounded like a hostile snarl. "Do you realize what your treachery caused me? Can you even begin to understand what it caused my father?" She surprised Dorothy by taking a step forward. "I lost him that night. He left and he never came back."

"Yes, I know." Dorothy smiled. "He allowed himself to be consumed in order to avenge the one that he lost. That was the final step in truly bringing him forth from the shackles you all so quaintly call, humanity." The Dark Mistress whipped her hand to the side, "And he could have been mine. I could have showed him greatness if that damn "Thousand Master" didn't show up."

"I'm setting things right this evening. I won't allow you to have Negi!" Chao declared before ripping off her dress to reveal her enhanced suit. "Even if my vampiric abilities don't measure up to your own, I have the powers of science at my disposal." She dropped into an elaborate fighting stance and faced Dorothy. "Have at you."

Dorothy regarded her with a bored expression and feigned a yawn. "Very well. I was going to dispose of you sooner or later anyway."

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Intermission...

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Negi grinned at the view of Mahora campus from the skies above. Not much had changed since he left on his travels. Even though his students had matured a bit, they all had retained a few of their old qualities when they had seen him again. Asuna was still her old self although she had become a little nicer to him. Nodoka was way more open with him than she was before and the same could be said of Yue. Both librarians actually managed to hold a conversation with him without succumbing to their usual stammers and mishaps. Haruna on the other hand kind of frightened him. Her...unique personality had manifested into something rather questionable, not to mention her new habits and interests. Setsuna's undying loyalty to her ojo-sama was still there, and Konoka was as lovable as ever.

"Now I wonder how much Chacha-chan has changed." Negi thought aloud much to Chachazero's displeasure at hearing his affectionate title for the gynoid. Negi had taken notice of this but he decided not to let the puppet know. After that stunt she pulled in the classroom he figured that she deserved a little teasing of her own. "I hear she plays that violin and the piano now, you know?" He asked the sadistic little puppet with a grin.

"Ask me if I care." Chachazero retorted dully from his arms. "Heeey, master Negi!" She whined preciously.

"Yes?" Negi inwardly cringed. He dreaded it when she used that voice. It usually meant that she wanted something from him, which required no explanation to realize that that wasn't a good thing.

"Do we really have to go to Eva's house now?" Chachazero asked.

"Do you like the idea of me living a little longer?" Negi answered her question with one of his own. He already managed to arouse Evangeline's sadistic nature when he didn't greet her properly in the class so he knew that she had something planned for him when he got to her residence. Why make it even worse by holding it off a little longer? Then again as odd as it may sound, he actually missed her in a way. Sure, she may have an odd way of showing it but she was quite endearing and affectionate when she wanted to be and he would pick being tormented by her any day as opposed to being in the clutches of Lucinda or Alice. In fact he would rather be with Alice and her clan of girls than being around Lucinda. Putting it lightly, Lucinda wasn't exactly the type of company he would ever consider...she was just out of the question.

Speaking of living longer...as much as I want Mana to attend classes again... Negi's mind trailed off as he thought about the many scenarios that could happen in his meeting with the lovely marksman. None of them ended happily, however, they did have a nice splatter of blood incorporated somewhere near his unconscious body. Something is telling me that convincing her will cost me something dear...like my life.

"So how will you convince, Captain Tatsumiya to return to class?" Chachazero inquired with a cackle. "I mean, you know that she's probably doing this to lure you to her anyway, right?"

"You know what? You're probably right." Negi nodded grimly.

"You did leave the campus without her. Not to mention you didn't even say goodbye." Chachazero added, twisting the knife in Negi's back in a manner of speaking. "She seemed pretty set on traveling with you too, which was kind of weird considering the type of person she is." Chachazero stroked her chin and joked, "Hey, she might of actually fallen for you!"

"Right." Negi rolled his eyes. "And I actually did leave her a goodbye note." He corrected her.

"You did?" The puppet sounded a bit skeptical.

"I'm telling the truth!" Negi assured her. "It read-"

--------------------------------------------------------

"Dear Mana, If you are reading this letter, then the likely hood of me still being around Mahora is quite doubtful." Mana's lips gradually curled into a frightening smirk as she read on, "Now I know we had settled that you would accompany me on my travels but I'm afraid that won't be possible due to the fact that you still must attend classes. To add further to that, the last thing I want to do is put you in danger. As your teacher, you are my responsibility and that means that your safety comes first! I would never be able to live with myself if you happened to incur a serious injury at some point because I allowed you to face such a possibility. Good luck in your new year of school!" Mana looked over at the view from the shrine for a moment before sighing as her fingers closed around the letter, crumpling it into a ball.

"Well done Negi." Mana chuckled. "...But you're going to have to come back someday and when you do, I'll make sure to get you for this."

---------------------------------------------------------

"Master Negi..." Chachazero trailed off.

"Yeah, it was a stupid idea..." He hung his head in defeat.

---------------------------------------------------

Evangeline's residence...

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The first thing Negi realized when he opened the door was the sweet soothing melody of a violin coming from the living room. It managed to calm him with it's softness. For some reason the idea of facing Evangeline didn't seem as bad as it did earlier when his mind was too busy thinking up the many painful possibilities that could follow meeting her. His body suddenly had a mind of it's own as it followed the hypnotizing melody like a moth trying it's hardest to be embraced by the seductive rays of the light. When he reached the living room, his trance had completely left him and it was replaced by a surreal feeling . There standing in the middle of the living room was Chachamaru, donning her usual maid outfit with her violin and bow in hand.

Oh, riiiight. Negi thought as his mind sought for the missing piece to the puzzle before him. She did tell me that she was practicing a few instruments before, didn't she?

The gynoid spied him from her peripheal and she stopped playing to greet him."Oh, Negi. For a moment I believed that you would not be able to make it back here." Negi payed close attention when she spoke, and swore that there was a slight hint of sarcasm. It was almost as though she was just slightly peeved at him. Unsurprisingly, he couldn't possibly understand why that would be the case.

"Why would you say that?" Negi asked innocently.

"The others had so much they wished to speak with you about." Chachamaru replied, referring to his other students. "They seemed to be unwilling to let go of you when I last checked."

"I'll admit, it was kind of hard to get away from them." Negi said with a light blush of embarrassment. "But I couldn't just forget about you and Eva-chan." Forgetting, Evangeline, alone would be criminal, not to mention just a tad bit unadvised.

"I sure could." Chachazero muttered but Negi acted as though he didn't hear her. He took a seat on one of the chairs beside the table and said, "Please, don't stop playing on my account. I really enjoyed your melody! It was pretty good, Chacha-chan!" The pleasant expression on his face easily wiped away all of her negative thoughts about him. She found that it was almost impossible to stay mad whenever he was concerned and yet at the same time she wanted to hold on to the fascinating feeling.

"V-very well." Chachamaru nodded before pulling the bow across the strings of the violin once more. The melody she played haunted Negi with it's deep tones but what gave him even more chills was the expression on her face as she went on. She looked so incredibly...human and for some reason it unnerved him. The moment was shattered to pieces, however, when Evangeline finally decided to make her appearance. She was greeted by the sight of Negi watching her servant play the wondrous instrument and the scene didn't fit well with her plans. Naturally she would have to set things in motion the way she preferred it to be.

"Oh, I'm seriously beginning to wonder, Negi." Evangeline snapped her fellow vampire out of his daze. At the very sight of her, Negi jumped out of his seat and quickly scurried to her. He already managed to mess up once in the classroom earlier. He wasn't about to make the same mistake twice.

"E-Eva-chan!" Negi practically sang her name as though the very heavens opened and brought her before him. "I was wondering where you were!" His act made Chachazero chuckle.

"Really?" Evangeline questioned skeptically as she placed her hands on her hips. "Here I thought you were more interested in, Chachamaru." Her eyes narrowed upon him and the young magi felt something unpleasant heading his way. "I mean, it looks as though you've completely forgotten that I exist."

"What?!" Negi quirked a brow. "Th-that's crazy talk, Eva-chan! I could never forget about you! The thought of your..." Negi thought quickly for something flattering, "beautiful smile is the only thing that keeps me going everyday!" He hoped that this would soften her up. Maybe if he kept up this act, she'd think about lightening up on him.

"Oh really?" A devious grin played upon her lips. "That's nice of you to say." The chibi-vampire turned to Chachamaru and ordered, "Go prepare a fresh batch of tea, Chachamaru. It's been a while since Negi and I've had a real heart to heart talk."

"Mistress..." The gynoid seemed quite reluctant to comply. She was still quite eager to show off her skills to Negi. "Very well." Chachamaru nodded before taking her leave. Showing any signs of disobedience wouldn't be very wise. The last thing she desired was to be on the mistress's bad side just as Negi returned. Evangeline would never let her have any time with him.

Negi watched silently as Chachamaru left the room and Evangeline set her sights on him once again. The look of hunger that slowly glazed over her emerald eyes weren't to comforting. In fact it really began to scare him because the more he simply stared at her, the more feral she became. It was like being in the same room with Lucinda again. "Now that we're alone..." Evangeline purred in a dark, sultry voice.

"Actually, I'm still here." Chachazero waved her hand much to Evangeline's annoyance.

"Right." The vampiress nodded her head slowly before saying, "Not for long." She flicked her wrist and two invisible threads latched on to the puppet's arms before raising her off of Negi's shoulders.

"Z-zero-chan?" Negi's eyes widened in horror when she dangled in mid-air.

"Hey! What's the big ide-ahhhhhhhhh!?" Chachazero had no time to finish voicing her protest before she was whisked away in to the other room by the invisible threads. Negi sweat-dropped when he realized that he was now alone with Evangeline. That wasn't exactly a good thing.

"Now where was I?" She asked with a fanged grin.

"I usually try not to recall." Negi mumbled under his breath.

"What was that?" Evangeline's right hand twitched.

"N-nothing." Negi replied with an uneasy grin. "Hey, um, why don't we sit down and talk?"

Evangeline shook her head as she took a step forward.

"N-no?" Negi swallowed herd and started to back away as his mind raced for a way to stop this scene from progressing any further. "W-well, we haven't sp-spoken in the courtyard for a while! How abou-"

"We haven't done quite a bit in a while." Evangeline countered. "In fact, I've almost forgotten how delicious you were."

"H-huh? Don't be r-ridiculous!" Negi stammered. "There was that one time-"

"The night of that ballroom dance?" She cut him off. "That didn't count and you know it." Evangeline's smirk started to look rather sinister. "Besides, there was more that I wanted to do that night that weren't able to get to."

"More?" Negi made the mistake of stopping to think that one over. "What do you mea-AGH!" He cried out when Evangeline suddenly smashed into him like a bullet! They both slid across the smooth floorboards until Negi's head hit the wall of the living room. Almost immediately, fear gripped his heart when he opened his eyes again to take in the sight of, Evangeline lowering her head towards the side of his neck. "Oh ma-uhhh."

Negi felt a quick stab of pain when her fangs plunged right through his skin as though it wasn't even there. The sensation was replaced by an overwhelming sense of pleasure that made his knees buckle up. His hands tried to grip for something but the floorboards weren't much help. He opted for Evangeline's clothes much to her appreciation, which was quite audible since she moaned at the feeling of his hands on her hips. She increased the fervor of her slurping as she placed one hand on his back to hold him up towards her and used the other to support the back of his neck. "Eva..." Negi whispered faintly, trying to get a grip on his senses but they were going erratic at her touch.

"Masterrrrr! Be strong, I'm coming! Just let me...break free!" Negi heard Chachazero's voice cry out faintly from the next room. "H-hey! What're you doing in there!?" She went silent when Evangeline let out a louder moan of pleasure. "HEY! STOP THAT! $#!! $$!$!"

"...E..va..." Negi felt his toes curl.

"Ah!" Evangeline finally pulled back for air. She observed Negi, in his drunk daze and smiled. Finally, he was back home to her and now she could do as she pleased with him. "Don't lose consciousness yet." Evangeline cooed to him. "I need you to stay awake for the next part."

"Whaaa?" Negi questioned her with a slight slur,

"Good boy." Evangeline said libidinously before capturing his lips.

Unable...to concentrate...Body feels...weird. I've never...felt like this...before... Negi thought as his eyes swiveled slowly from side to side. Something deep within him was telling him to just relax and give in and yet at the same time there was something else crying out for him to find a way out. He did have to admit though...Evangeline did look like a different person whenever she got passionate. Oh please...let me wake up...in one piece...

--------------------------------------------------------------

Back to FVA...

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"Nagi." Ako thought aloud to herself as she had a seat at one of the many outdoor tables that were set up at the World Tree Plaza. She was waiting for Yuna, Makie and Akira to come with the food so she had some time to worry. That was all she ever did whenever she had time alone to her thoughts, and as much as she hated to do it, she simply couldn't pull her mind away from the "Bad things" that could happen instead of thinking positive. When it came to confidence, she was completely out of stock and she was quite a klutz. Then there was the scar on her back that she was so self conscious of. She felt that it made her imperfect; flawed, one could even say.

There's just so much on my mind today! I have to preform at the concert in front of all of those people and to put on even more pressure, Nagi is going to be there as well! Ako placed her hands over her head and bowed until her forehead came in contact with the surface of the table. She banged her head lightly against it repeatedly as her thoughts went down it's usual path of ruin. What would she do with Nagi watching her play? There was just no way she could mess up in front of him! He'd think that she was some sort of loser if she embarrassed herself in front of everyone. "Oooooh! I just can't take it!" She cried out even though it was sort of muffled due to the position she was in.

"W-wait!" She lifted her head up quickly. "But I can't just give up yet!"

"HEYA!" Makie suddenly slammed both of her hands on the table, startling the poor young woman.

"WAH!" Ako cried out, before clutching her chest as though she nearly experienced a coronary. She stared at Makie with wide eyes for a moment and cried out, "What's the big idea, huh?! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"It's just, you seemed to be having a conversation with yourself." Yuna inputted, taking a seat in front of Ako. Akira came from the side with two trays of food before setting it down on the table.

"You alright?" Makie asked, taking her seat.

"I-I'm fine!" Ako replied but the grins on her friend's faces told her that they weren't convinced by her answer. "W-what's the matter guys?"

"I think you're lying." Yuna said mischievously as she rested her chin in one hand. She leaned forward to look into Ako's eyes and whispered playfully, "Are you sure you're craziness had nothing to do with...oh, I don't know...Nagi?"

"Ah, yes, I almost forgot about that." Akira nodded. "You're going on a date with him, aren't you?" Her words made the girl fluster.

"W-what?!" Ako leaned back on her chair. She began flailing her hands in their faces as she stammered, "N-n-no! It's n-not l-like that! I-I just inv-v-vited him to th-the conc-c-c-cert!" She spoke so fast that the girls could only blink at her after she was done.

"Don't be silly!" Yuna snapped. "You invited him personally and he seemed to like you. You could at least have dinner with the guy! He's Negi's cousin! I'm sure he's a really cool guy to be with."

"You just don't get it!" Ako groaned, running her hands down her face.

"What?" Makie blinked.

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Walking to rehersal...

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"Ako!" Yuna called out to the shy rocker as she picked up the pace to catch up with her. Makie and Akira were still farther behind since they cleaned up after they finished eating. The brunette frowned when Ako didn't even turn to regard her, which of course, meant that she was ignoring her, and with good reason. She didn't want to be bothered with Nagi's name anymore. Well, at least until she met him face to face again. The very thought of him threw her off from everything else and unfortunately, that increased her klutz rating by ten fold.

"Hey-loh?!" Ako failed her arms wildly as if it would catch Ako's attention, however, it had not succeeded seeing as how the rocker simply walked on with her guitar strapped to her back.

Just leave me alone...please! Ako thought in growing aggravation. She resisted the urge to look over her shoulder when Yuna had suddenly fallen silent. Looks like she finally gave u-AH!

"Hey!" Yuna tapped her on the shoulder without warning. "For a second there I thought you were ignoring me!" The grin on her face was a real as a seven dollar bill. "You weren't...were you?"

"Actually, I was." Ako replied bluntly.

"Talk about subtle." Yuna rolled her eyes.

"Look!" Ako turned her head to regard her friend. "Let's have no more talk about Nagi, alright?!"

"Oh, you're such a child." Yuna grumbled.

What?! You're one to talk! The look of disbelief on Ako's face got a, "What?" from Yuna, which she merely huffed in response. The stage was in view and she could see Misa and the other girls already in practice anyway. If she could just get through this successfully, then the rest of the day would go by smoothly...at least she hoped so.

"Oh, great to see ya, Ako!" Misa waved at her fellow band member after she was done jamming. "Bought some of the other girls for a little sample of what's to come?" She asked, referring to Yuna, Makie and Akira. Two of which were still trying to catch up, visibly in the distance.

"Heh, you can say that!" Ako massaged the back of her neck nervously. She set her case down on the stairs leading up to the stage before undoing the clips to pull out her guitar. When she got up on stage with the other band members, they went on with practicing the opening and all went well to their delight until Misa decided to say, "Man! As good as we are, Nagi-chan is gonna be dying to be your boyfriend!"

BTATATATIIIIIIING!

"Aiiiiiiiieee!" Sakurako clasped her hands over her ears when Ako's guitar wail assaulted her ears viciously. One of Misa's hair strands stood up on end and Madoka let go of her snares, letting them clatter to the ground.

"A-ako?!" Misa cringed. "What the heck was that?!"

"Oh gawd, I can't do this!" Ako cried out.

"Whoa, what're you talkin' about?" Sakurako got in her way before she could leave the stage. "You can't just drop like this!"

"L-look at me!" Ako held out her trembling hands to emphasize her point. "I-I should've never invited him to the concert! If he sees an amateur like me play he'll think I'm a loser!" Ako tried to get past Sakurako but Misa ran in and made her stay still.

"Heeeeey, chill out!"

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Looking to the dysfunctional bunch...

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"What do you think?" Negi walked out of the fitting room wearing an adult version of his trademark green suit, complimented by an over jacket that fell just below his knees. Chachamaru and Chisame had to admit that he looked rather strapping...then again, the young magi had this annoying knack for looking good in anything he wore. The fact that he took an aging pill to become his older persona accentuated that fact well.

"Looking good, Master Negi!" Chachazero offered him a thumbs up from up top Chachamaru's head. She tried to accompany her master into the fitting room, however, the gynoid simply would not allow it for obvious reasons. Negi probably had not noticed the gradual intimacy the puppet was trying to share with him but it didn't slip pass, Chachamaru.

"...Um...sure, whatever." Chisame crossed her arms childishly and looked away to hide her blush, which elicited some girly squeals from a few nosy girls that were trying to sneak a peek at Negi. As much at the net idol hated to admit it, being a little girl again wasn't so bad even if it happened against her will. It allowed her to wear outfits that were out of her reach before in a manner of speaking.

"You look handsome..." Chachamaru complimented him sheepishly. She felt unusual whenever he looked the way he did now. It was a slightly different feeling from when he was in his normal, child-like form.

"Thanks, Chachamaru!" Negi told her with a smile before observing her adorable state of dress. The gynoid donned a rabbit suit. "You look really cute by that way!"

"D-do I?" Chachamaru felt her face heat up. Negi-kun thinks I'm cute...She turned away from Chisame when the little girl regarded her with an odd expression.

I'm not crazy but I could've sworn she was blushing. Chisame thought in bewilderment. But she's supposed to be and androi- I mean a gynoid...right? She shook her head and heaved a sigh. "Well, it's too late to convince myself that this is a dream."

"What was that Chisame-chan?" Negi asked.

"W-was I speaking to you?" The little girl glared at him.

"N-no." Negi stammered. "Oh, you look pretty cute too!" He complimented her when he realized that he said nothing about her...curious choice of clothes.

"Whatever..." Chisame grumbled, feeling her cheeks flush. Luckily, Kotaro decided to step out of his fitting room before Negi could get a good look at her face. He glanced over his shoulder just to makle sure he wasn't seeing things but Kotaro cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Whaddya think?" The dog demon asked, crossing his arms.

"I think you look like a thug." Chisame answered him with a smirk.

"Yep." Chachazero nodded her head.

"H-huh?" Naturally her answer caused a vein to bulge from his forehead. "How did ya' come to that reaction?! I think I look pretty good!"

"I don't." The puppet hammered him another time.

"I think you look cool." Negi said with a grin.

"That ain't helpin' much." Kotaro sighed.

"Anyway," Negi started off as he turned away to get going. "Let's go meet up with Ako and the others." He picked up Chisame and perched her upon his shoulders much to her growing embarrassment and Chachazero's displeasure. He didn't give any of them much time to voice their feelings, however, since he just started walking out of the store...they paid of course.

"We missed our chance, Mei." Takane told her underling as they walked through the plaza together. "If those paparazzi members hadn't shown up..." The blonde magistress paused to scowl at the commotion that followed their intrusion. "They're such pests!"

"And your accidents at the tournament doesn't help us much." Mei added, causing her "onesan" to blush a shade of crimson brilliance. "They just can't get enough of you."

"Quiet you!" Takane snapped. "You don't think Negi...thinks poorly of me...do you?"

"Negi isn't that way." Mei assured her. "I'm sure he understands that it was just some misfortunate accident." Mei rolled her eyes for a moment and thought, That has a habit of coming back on occasion...

"He didn't even notice us at that tea ceremony!" Takane pouted. "The nerve."

"Well, he did look down." Mei reminded her.

"Oh...right." Takane tried to shake off the thought that plagued her earlier. "I-I don't know what came over me. Ever since that night I ended up in the infirmary, I've been feeling a little different." An awkward silence was shared between the both of them as they continued to do their rounds through the plaza until Mei suddenly perked up. The red-head saw Negi and the others coming out of the clothing store and nudged Takane quickly.

"What is it, Mei?" Takane glanced at her underling.

"It's Negi-sensei!" She whispered to her, pointing at the approaching bunch. "A-and he's all grown up again." Her last words managed to pull Takane out of her stupor. Just what was Negi doing, parading around like that?! Wasn't he still recovering from the tournament? Before Mei could say another word, Takane was suddenly stomping towards Negi and the others with a look of annoyance upon her lovely features. It was clear to Mei that she may have ruined Negi's day.

"Oh, why do I even bother with her?" Mei shook her head. "Well, I better head over there with her before she does something she'll regret." She rushed after Takane to try and clam her but the blonde magistress was already close to making contact with Negi by the time she was in reach.

"Negi-kun!" Takane's voice cut through the bustling crowd. At the very sound of her voice, Negi flinched and looked around frantically fro the source of the voice. Kotaro and the others, however, saw her as clear as day light.

"W-where is she?" Negi asked fearfully.

"Ahead, you twit." Chisame told him with a tap on his head. The young man went stiff when he heard his student's reply and slowly turned his head to take in the sight of the blonde vixen. She had her hands on her hips and a look of murder on her face that sent shivers down his back. What did she want with him now? Was she back to hurt him for what he did to her at their match during the tournament?

Or worse?! No, no, no! She wouldn't look this composed if she was experiencing the turning stages. Negi shoved all of his lingering fear to the back of his mind and greeted, "Good afternoon, Takane! I'm glad to see that you're alright!"

"Sure." Takane quipped, narrowing her eyes. "You seem to be chipper yourself."

"Um, what?" Negi blinked quizzically. He saw her beckon him forward with a finger and broke free from the bunch to close the distance between them. "What's wrong?"

"Ahem..." Takane's gestured to Chisame with her eyes and Negi got the message.

"I'm going to have to let you down." Negi told Chisame.

"Sure." Chisame said dully before Negi grabbed her by the waist to raise her up, off his shoulders. When her feet was back on the ground she walked back to Chachamaru and Kotaro. It didn't help her much that she was feeling a bit of disappointment from being taken from the comfort of Negi's shoulders.

"So could you tell me now?" Negi asked. "You look a little...er, mad."

"Well, for one, you're walking around as an adult with your students!" She snapped at him. "Do you realize what sort of danger you could be in if, Gandolfini sees you?!"

"Takane-"

"Do you want to be turned into an ermine?!"

"O-of course not!" Negi replied. "But don't worry about it. As long as nobody knows who I really am, it's alright!" He let out a nervous chuckle when Takane shot him a glare. "L-look, everyone thinks I'm "Nagi"...my cousin."

"You have a cousin?" Takane raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"It's just a cover up."

And a fine looking one at that. Takane found her thoughts wandering as her eyes strayed all over him. This wasn't lost on, Mei whom was feeling just a bit nervous around Negi herself. Takane felt a weird tingling in her canines and let out a soft sigh. For some reason I get thirsty whenever I'm around Negi...B-btu that's not relevant at the moment! Takane shook of her inner musings and asked, "Why are you all dressed up anyway?"

"Oh, um, I just have a little engagement to fulfill!" Negi answered sheepishly.

"An engagement?" She echoed him darkly. "With who?"

"...A friend." Negi answered vaguely.

"Specify please!" She demanded much to his growing panic.

"Um, so what are you two doing?!"

"Don't try to change the subject!"

"Patrolling again?" Negi leaned over towards, Mei with complete disregard for Takane. The red-head blushed as the close proximity between them and nodded bashfully.

"Th-that's right." Mei answered with a light blush.

"Hey!" Takane stomped her foot.

"Good luck!" Negi's dazzling smile made, Mei's legs feel like jelly.

"Thanks!" Mei smiled broadly. Oh gawd, he is so cool!

"Oh, and Takane?" Negi caught the blonde off guard when he turned his attention back to her.

"W-what?" Takane pulled away when he took a step towards her.

"I'll try to make up for the match later tonight. Okay?" Negi told her. At that moment, Takane's mind smashed into a brick wall and was having a hard time trying to pick up the pieces. Negi inwardly cheered at his cleverness and gestured to the others discreetly to get moving. All Takane could do was nod and watch him walk off dreamily.

"Onesan?" Mei called to her but she was out of reach.

He wants to see me tonight? Takane melted before slapping herself. "AH! Bad thoughts!" The blonde magistress shook her head frantically to force off the steam that was whistling out of her ears. "Cripes! I let him get away!"

"Yep." Mei quipped.

"What did you say to her?" Kotaro asked Negi as they walked quickly.

"Nothing!" Negi answered quickly. "Let's go see, Ako."

Ako closed the door of her dressing room behind her and sighed deeply. The anxiety she was feeling was almost unbearable and the queasy feeling that was building in the pit of her stomach only added to the unpleasant feeling. She didn't want to let her friends down but she wasn't feeling all to confident at the moment. "This sucks." She mumbled. She looked at herself in the mirror for a moment and raised a hand to her head to lift up a strand of her hair.

"I'm such an average girl. What would Nagi ever see in me?" She let go of her hair and focused intensely upon her reflection. "Sure, my hair and eye color stand out but...oh, what's the use?" She gripped her left shoulder with her right hand and looked over her shoulder. "I can't forget about my scar...the other thing that sets me apart from others..." She unbuttoned her shirt and let it fall. Her bra followed along to the floor and she turned her back towards the mirror; the scar running across her back now visible.

"Man, I'm depressed..." She said, looking away from the mirror. She didn't even want to think what would happen if Nagi saw this horrible thing. At least she thought it made her look ugly. Who would want a girl with such a large scar?

"Who?" She said to herself as she turned back to look at it again but when she did, she found something wrong with her reflection. Instead of seeing herself with her back to the mirror, she saw herself...looking back at her with a disturbing grin.

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself." The Ako in the mirror told her. Ako turned around to face her reflection and rubbed her eyes to confirm if her mind was merely playing tricks on her. "Who are you?" She asked.

"I'm your desires."

"Huh? Th-that doesn't make sense." Ako blinked.

"Oh, yes it does. You've been so filled with self doubt that you never come to realize me." The Ako in the mirror grinned widely, exposing her fangs and let out a disturbing giggle. "Right now you want Nagi. Don't deny it. You want him to hold you," She licked her lips hungrily. "You want to taste him."

"Th-that's not true!"

"There you go again. Always trying to ignore your deep desires. Haven't you noticed a certain distinct feeling whenever he's around you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Jealousy whenever he's with someone else?" The Ako in the mirror pressed her hands against the glass.

"Nagi-san!" Ako squeaked in shock. "W-who is that woman with him?! He d-doesn't have a girlfriend already, does he?!"

"Will you deny that?"

"...No." Ako bowed her head.

"You fail to realize your own beauty. The beauty that Nagi sees in you." The Ako in the mirror pressed her cheek against the mirror with a lustful sigh. "I can help you realize all this and I can help you claim him for yourself. Nagi will belong to you and no one else. He will hold you and only you. He will "Love" you."

"L-love me?" Ako raised her head quickly.

"Yes. Just embrace me and we will be one again." The dark Ako grinned and her fangs poked out again. "Press your hands against mine."

"A-alright." Ako nodded slowly. She leaned toward the mirror and almost pressed her hands against her vampiric counterpart's hands but just as they were about to make contact, the door to her dressing room opened without warning to reveal-

"Ako, are you in her- oh my gawd..."

"N-NAGI?!"

Evangeline suddenly flinched in Negi's futon and sat up straight with eyes wide in surprise. "What the.. It almost feels like the boya is in trouble..." She stayed quiet for a moment and shrugged her shoulders, "He can take care of himself."

To Be Continued...

It's been a while but I hope to have made up for that with this chapter. As you can see, the past and the future is catching up with Negi in different shapes and forms. The impending javelin over Mahora campus is about to drop and it's going to cause some commotion...believe me.

Chao and Dorothy are finally showing their true colors towards each other but how will their confrontation end? Surely a Dark Mistress like Dorothy is going to be more than a problem to handle and more importantly, what happened to Negi in the future?

Well, the next chapter might shed some light on those issues...or it'll just plague you with even more mysteries. On a side note, if you're just a bit confused with the last scene, then just turn back to vol. 3. Negi said that he would "devampirize" the girls that Evangeline turned but I decided to add in that little twist for fun.

Um...Devampirize?

...nevermind...

Traingham...