Author's Note- I actually just spontaneously decided to write this chapter one day, after I got over a massive period of writer's block. Unfortunately, I also picked this same day to smoke my first cigarette, also known by the charming alias "cancer stick". Needless to say, I severely regretted it. I was unable to walk in a straight line for 10 minutes, felt nauseous, and generally felt terrible. I am still feeling the effects, so forgive me if my writing style feels below par. Moral of the story is- Don't smoke ;). I do sincerely hope you enjoy this chapter, and don't be too harsh with me on the citrus, I'm still a virgin! XP

Italics – Thoughts

Bold – Stressed words

Underlined – Telepathic communication

Underlined Italics – Magical incantations

'Underlined Italics in Apostrophes' – Unspoken magical incantations

"Underlined Italics in Quotations" – Spoken magical incantations

DISCLAIMER- I do not own Negima. If I did, it would be much, much worse.

"Se-chan… I love you…."

"I love you too, Kono-chan."

Blushing a deep crimson, the pair embraced, hands intertwining and lips locking. The young swordswoman became aggressive, forcefully thrusting her tongue into the young mage's mouth, exploring every inch of her love's mouth. After several moments of kissing, the two broke apart for air, gasping.

"Se-chan…. I didn't know you could be so rough….."

Startled, the young swordswoman stammered "I-I'm sorry, Ojousama. I did not know what came over me-"

Konoka leaned over and placed a finger over her love's stuttering mouth, smiling shyly and blushing deepest crimson.

"Shhhh…. It's alright, Se-chan. I actually kind of like it…. Is that naughty of me?"

"I-I-I, that is to say, uh… Wh-wh-why are you saying such things, Ojousama?"

At this, the young mage frowned slightly, a grumpy expression evident on her face at her partner's unconscious use of the hated "Ojousama."

"Se-chan, what did I tell you about calling me "Ojousama"? I'm not a master, nor are you a servant! We are equal partners, from now until we die! So-start-acting-like-it!" The young mage punctuated each word with a hard jab, which both startled and turned Setsuna on.

"Ah, Kono-chan, not so hard…"

The young mage giggled, saying "Awwww, is the big, bad Shinmeiryu swordswoman hurt from a little jab? Well, if you're that sensitive….. Why don't we try….. THIS!"

"Ahhh! W-w-wait, Kono-chan! Ahhhnn….. Not there! Stop…. No…. Ahn…."

The young mage had jumped her protector, inadvertently grabbing and caressing the young swordswoman's bandaged chest. Upon realizing this, she smiled and leaned over to kiss her eternal partner.

"Se-chan… Even your boobs are muscular! So hard and firm… Mhhhmm…"

"Ahhh- don't touch them like that! They're sensitive, I tell you- Ahhh!"

Konoka leaned down to bring her face level to her partner's chest, and began unraveling the bandages that had kept the young swordswoman's tender chest from sight.

"Se-chan… I love you…. Will you please accept my gift?"

Unable to take any more arousal, the poor hanyou's mind went blank, and fountained blood from her nose, the words "Se-chan… I love you…" ringing throughout her overwhelmed senses.

"Eh? Se-chan, your nose is bleeding! A-are you alright?"

The worried young healer was puzzling over what could have brought on the onslaught of nasal hemorrhage, and decided that the quickest possible course of action would be to simply heal her.

"How in the fudge did that happen? I mean, she's a half-demon! She can defeat Tsukuyomi with her body torn to pieces and come out fine but she faints from a nosebleed? Well, it is a pretty severe one, granted, but still, what happened?"

Deep in thought, the young healerbrought out her contract card, summoned her artifact, and performed a simple rejuvenation spell to stem the flow of blood, which was now staining the carpet at an alarmingly rapid rate.

"Oh, crap! That carpet's white! That'll be a major pain to clean up later…"

While worrying over the state of the carpet, Konoka did not notice that Setsuna's nosebleed had not stopped. Indeed, it had only made it worse, spurting out in fatal quantities.

Deep in thought, Konoka noticed sudden warmth creeping around her knees, and then looked for the source."

"Hey, what was tha- OHMYGOD! Her nosebleed's even worse! Why didn't my rejuvenation spell work? Isn't it supposed to restore vitality to and strengthen the recipient? What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?"

The young healer did not know, however that her spell had worked very, very well on the young hanyou, and that it was because it had worked so well that Setsuna's nosebleed increased so severely. For the rejuvenation spell increases vitality and fortifies the senses, in order to increase effectiveness in battle. However, the reason for her nosebleed was not because of a lack in vitality and dulled senses, but rather an overabundance of each. Thus, the only purpose the spell served was to empower the cause of her partner's nosebleed.

"Okay, calm down girl, panicking in this situation isn't going to do you or Se-chan any good. Alright, now who knows about what to do in this kind of situation… Ah! Negi would probably know what to do! I'll talk to him right now!"

She sent her frantic thoughts over to Negi the moment the mental connection was established, completely abandoning all thoughts of calmness, overwhelming the boy with a flood of urgent messages mashed together into an indiscriminate lump.

"Whoa, whoa, steady there, Konoka. Calm down, take a deep breath, and then tell me what happened from the beginning. What is all this I hear about Setsuna dying from blood loss?"

The young mage, regaining her composure, explained the situation as best as she could, without including the more graphic details.

"Well, it seems that your rejuvenation spell backfired, creating an effect opposite of what you originally intended due to an incorrect analysis of the symptoms of Setsuna's nosebleed. In that case, why don't you simply try draining some of her vitality? If this nosebleed is caused by an overabundance of energy, then draining some of it should solve the problem. Try "Reductum Vitae." That should dissipate all of the excess energy and restore balance to her body- Although, do be careful about the amount of power you put into the spell. Knowing you, if you used your full strength you would probably end up turning Setsuna into a vegetable."

"O-oh, okay, I'll be sure not to make it too strong. Thank you so much, Negi-kun!"

"No problem, it's both my pleasure and duty to assist those in need, and give Setsuna my regards when she awakens, okay? Bye now, I think Asuna's calling me…."

The young mage wasted no time in initiating the spell, and, taking Negi's warning to heart, carefully regulated the amount of power going into the spell.

"Adeat. Contract with Negi Springfield activated for 30 seconds. Reductum Vitae"

Immediately upon the enactment of the spell, the geyser that had been spurting forth from the hanyou's nose died down completely, leaving only a massive stain of red on both clothing and carpet. Konoka, feeling slightly drained but satisfied by her effort, lay down beside her partner, eyelids feeling heavy, and snuggled closer, embracing Setsuna from behind before falling asleep.

Author's Note- Sorry for the tease ;P
No lemon for this chapter, but I promise you, there will be lots and lots of both mouth-puckering lemon and sweet citrus later down the road. This chapter was originally supposed to be a character development scene, but, like all true stories, grew a will of its own and took me down an unlit path. Again, sorry if this chapter felt slightly choppy or rough: I was being an idiot. Remember, rate and review! (It makes me write faster. It really does. And if you don't believe me, then let's set a deadline. I will update by 4/6/11, but I will take a day off for every review, fave, or add to watchlist ;)