Chapter Two: The Debt
Evangeline sat quietly on her bed in her home, thinking of what had just happened. Yesterday, an old enemy had revealed himself to her, and god only knew what he was planning. She wondered how Chachamaru was doing, she seemed quite damaged. Her arm would be replaced and she would be fine, but still she couldn't help it. She sighed and looked out the window, it was raining outside. It was only a small shower, but it soothed her mind for a moment. She stood up, rubbing her temples as she headed to her door, closing it. She was still in her school uniform, and she wanted it off and wanted to be in something a little more comfortable. She unclothed herself and put on a white silk night gown and laid herself down in bed. She closed her eyes, he was still on her mind. A thought then popped into her head, Negi and Setsuna felt the pressure of his power, so that ment he might reveal himself to them as well. She knew he wouldn't try anything to hurt them, at the moment that is. She sat up, looking back out the window, watching the rain slide down the window pane. She stared at the ground, closed her eyes and sighed heavily. She crawled under the blankets, turned onto her side and slowly fell asleep.
Setsuna ran through the rain, the only thing sheltering her was her arm. She was holding a paper bag filled with a few things Konoka needed. "Wish it wasn't raining!"She exclaimed as she continued on running, picking up speed with each passing step. Her eyes suddenly became strain as she stopped dead in her tracks, she fell to her knees. The pressure from before...It was back again, and pushing down even harder. She struggled to stay upright and tried pushing herself up. "So...Set-Chan..."A soothing male voice said quietly from behind her. "Nice to see you..."He said with a hint of sarcasm. Setsuna gritted her teeth, her eyes quickly examining the area around her. She pushed herself off the ground, gritting her teeth hard. "D-Damn..."She uttered silently as she turned, trying to see this mysterious figure. Her eyes went wide after she saw Kojima standing there, it almost made her want to jump clear out of her skin. "Are you having trouble standing up Set-Chan? Oh, well then let me help you..."Kojima suddenly disappeared, using a Shunpo technique to appear right in front of her. She twitched while he outstretched his hand to grasp at her neck. She quickly slapped his hand away and jumped back. As soon as she landed, she stumbled slightly and bumped into something.
A hand grasped around the back of her neck suddenly, apparently what she had bumped into was Kojima. She let out a silent yelp as her eyes grew wide. She clenched her fists, trying to raise them. The pressure was getting heavier, and her arms felt like they were lifting three tons of cinder. She bit down on her lip, "K-K-Kojima! S-Stop!"She managed to say. He lifted her up, letting her dangle there in his hand. He grinned, "Stop?"He chuckled, the pressure was suddenly gone. He dropped her and she fell quickly to the floor, landing face first in the wet pavement. A small trickle of blood ran down from her nose, she banged it slightly against the pavement and this just happened to be the outcome. "Well Set-Chan, last time I did that you had me on my back in mere seconds, why are you the one on the floor now?"Kojima said quietly. Setsuna growled low, jumping up and taking a stance. Kojima raised his hands defensively, "Calm yourself...I won't attack you anymore...For now..."He crossed his arms, tilting his head slightly to the side. The rain was getting harder and pelted down on the both of them. Setsuna kept her stance, she would not let her guard down for a moment around him. She glanced down towards his legs, trying to find his Shadow. "Damn it..."She said quietly, she couldn't tell. The sun was blocked out at the moment, so for all she knew his Shadow could be right behind her and ready to strike.
Kojima sighed, "Well it is obvious why we cannot talk, keep acting like this and soon no one will want to be around you," "You're one to talk heathen!"Setsuna snapped back at him. Kojima laughed, "Good ol' Setsuna, as fiery as ever..."Kojima said with a grin as he turned his back to her. Setsuna blinked, becoming a bit less tense but still stood her ground. "Kojima! Why are you here? You have no reason to be here on the human plains!"Setsuna exclaimed, watching him carefully also. Kojima took a deep breath, "I'm here to repay a debt...As for how I'm doing that, well you'll just have to find out..."Kojima said with a nod. He stuck a hand in the air, waving it slightly. "Later Setsuna...Tell Negi-Kun I said hi...Will ya?"Kojima disappeared. Setsuna fell to her knees, panting heavily. She gritted her teeth, she felt weak, how could she have been beaten that bad? How could she protect Konoka like this?! She slammed her fist against the ground and let out a yell.
There was a quick flash of lighting and a loud boom of thunder. Seconds after Evangeline awoke with a yell, panting heavily with beads of sweat running down her forehead. "T-That dream..."She said quietly, staring down at her blankets, still panting. "Kojima...Did he...?" "Did I what?"Kojima's voice erupted into her right ear, making her jump and scream. Kojima laughed, he was sitting on the bed next to her, a wide grin on his face. Evangeline grew red in the face with anger, "Who said you can come in here?! And who said you can sit on my bed, let alone be this close to me!"She snapped, pounding a fist on his head. "Owwww! Eva-Chan! That hurts!"Kojima whined as he flailed his arms about while Evangeline twisted her fist about on his head. Finally she ceased her attack so called and stood up from the bed. "What do you want now?"She said quietly, not looking at him. Kojima moved to the edge of the bed where she was most near, "Just came to see how you were doing of course little miss!"Kojima said nodding. Evangeline rolled her eyes, "Yeah...Sure..."She muttered silently, she remembered why she hated him so much now. "Hey...Eva-Chan...That Negi...Is he...Nagi Springfield's son?" "Hm? Why do you say that?"Evangeline said quietly, glancing down at him. "He shows a great resemblance to Nagi, and I heard that his abilities are amazing...Seeing how you've been here longer, I thought maybe you would know something..."
"Well I guess I should...but that kid is not Nagi's son!"Evangeline snapped. Of course, she was just trying to veer him away from Negi. She was lucky that he didn't know Negi was really Nagi's son. This was going to make it a bit easier for her now. "Look Kojima, whatever your here for is probably a trivial and pathetic reason, so you should go back from where you came..."Kojima suddenly grasped Evangeline, holding her by the arms, it made her jump and yelp silently. "It is not trivial or pathetic! My debt needs to be settled!"He hung his head low for a moment, his grip on her arms began to loosen. She stared at him with a slightly gaping mouth, what had gotten into him and what kind of trouble was he in now? She found it ironic that he wasn't the one here to cause random trouble. The thought of this actually being serious made her mind tick away into her thoughts. He let go of her arms, "I don't expect you to understand...I'll come back one day to tell you..."He said quietly and turned away from her. He sighed and suddenly disappeared. Evangeline stood there for a moment as another flash of lighting and another loud boom of thunder struck the air. She closed her eyes, what kind of trouble was brewing up now...?