Negima: Ninja Magi Sensei
A Negima Alternate Universe fanfic by Robster80

Chapter 14: Party and Peril, Part 1 – The Set Up

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Negima or its characters, Ken Akamatsu does! I write fanfiction for fun, not profit.

Opening notes: This is a Negi/Kaede pairing story. If you do not like this pairing, or not like Kaede, then please stop reading, and no flames! Otherwise, please enjoy!

Two things brought smiles to the faces of Class 2-A (most of them, anyway as Evangeline was still absent) that Monday morning. First, there were invitations for each girl laid out on their desks by Ayaka, for her housewarming party she was having on the coming weekend; her new on-campus mansion was completed and she was going to celebrate in style. Little did any of them, including Ayaka, realize that it was all a part of Asakura and Chamo's plan.

The second thing that warmed the girls' hearts was Negi's arrival to teach the class, in much better spirits than he had before the three-day weekend. Questions where he had been and what he had been doing were met with resistance by Kaede and Asakura, who held the girls back and stated that Negi would answer questions at a later time.

"You take Negi-bozu training?" Ku asked Kaede in a whisper, pulling her aside and away from eavesdroppers.

"What do you think?" was Kaede's reply, winking.

"So no want me teach him fighting no more?"

"No; you may resume your lessons, de gozaru."

Ku smiled and gave a nod.

Soon, the morning bell rang and classes began. The girls took their seats and Negi started the day's lessons.

"…Let me see if I got this right," Heathcliff said as Chamo showed him a copy of Negi's roster. He pointed a claw at the picture of Evangeline. "This one here… is a vampire?"

"Dark Evangeline, herself," the ermine replied, nodding seriously. "And she's got helpers. One is a senior high student and shadow mage named Takane D. Goodman, a daughter of one of the college teachers here at Mahora. The other is this one here," he pointed a paw at Chachamaru's picture. "She's a robot or something. Asakura-neesan and I tailed her while aniki was training with Kaede-neesan. She seems to be nice, but only when her master isn't around to give her orders. She's Evangeline's pactio partner."

"I see… We'll need to find aniki the right partner then to make a pactio with."

"And we'll need to convince aniki to accept the choice no matter what."

Heathcliff looked at Chamo with much distrust. "I assume your so-called investigating included combat experiences when you went through the other girls?"

"Only what was available from Asakura-neesan's database. Out of the whole lot, the only ones with decent combat training and/or experience are Misora, Kaede, Ku-Fei, and Mana. Although…" Chamo pointed at another picture, this one of Yuna. "This one gives me some strong vibes. According to the magi-net, her old man's a magi stationed here as a college teacher, like Takane's mother. Also, Konoka there is the dean's granddaughter and also has strong powers sleeping within her. But then again, I think, given how oblivious she is about magic and everything, she's probably been kept in the dark about her magical background by her family."

"Then let's keep it that way, or else we're both gonna be hung out to dry, and Negi, too. Same goes for this Akashi girl. …What do you think about Kaede-san, by the way? You've known her longer than I have at the moment."

"Well, for one thing, she's among the five worst scorers in Class 2-A. But what she lacks in smarts, she makes up for it in determination, honor, and her desire to be a ninja."

"I noticed that part, at least."

"Oh yeah, FYI, don't go rooting through her drawers; she's rigged shuriken to fly out if you don't know how to disable the traps. I saw the class rep do it once, and she was lucky it missed her blonde head."

Heathcliff sweat-dropped at this. "O-kay… Anyway, I'd like to get a look at some of these girls myself, if possible."

"Heh, that'll be cake; one or more of them drop by asking questions about lessons, but that's usually an excuse to come here and pal around with aniki. And from my observations, each of these girls here are nuts about him. As in they're smitten like kittens."

Heathcliff looked at the three pictures Champo pointed to: Ayaka, Makie, and Nodoka. "Hmmm, the class rep… she looks like some spoiled princess to me… gymnastics are fine, but hardly combat experience… and unless we're up against an army of strict teachers who like to give torturous pop quizzes, the library girl is definitely out."

Suddenly his eyes fall on Asuna's picture. "What about this one here, with the note "terrible kick" scribbled next to her mug?"

Chamo looked at the picture of Asuna, and his eyes widened. "Her?! Forget it; she hates aniki since she was gushing for Takamichi while he taught her classes prior to now. She's also one of the five worst scorers, but she's trying to bring up her grades so she doesn't have to stay after classes with aniki. Plus I bet if she finds out he's really a magi, she'll tell everybody about it so he gets sent home."

"Okay, she's definitely out. …This looks like a tough case."

More than you know, dragon. More than you know…

"…That's all for day," Negi said as the final bell rang, ending the school day. "We'll be having a small test on Thursday, so hit those books, girls. If there are any questions, I'll be available for help after 5 o'clock this evening at home."

"All rise! Bow!"

As he gathered his things, Negi sighed; he was still concerned that Evangeline had again skipped his class. He was starting to think about approaching Takamichi or Dean Konoe for help with her absence, but then he'd have to mention the attacks on Cherry Blossom Path and everything else.

No; I have to resolve the matter myself. After all, she is my student. …But how do I deal with her?

"Negi-sensei?"

Blinking out of his thoughts, he turned to see Ayaka standing next to him. "Yes, Yukihiro-san. How can I help you?"

"O-oh, no, sir. It's just…" Blushing she handed him a small envelope. "This is for you. But please don't mention it to anyone. It's a surprise." Having said this, she bowed and took off running, giggling like a schoolgirl.

"What was that about, de gozaru?" Kaede asked. She had stayed behind and now was alone with Negi.

"I'm not sure. It looks similar to the envelopes that the other girls received before class. What did yours say, Nagase-san?"

She shrugged. "It was an invite to her housewarming party this weekend; her new home on campus is finished and she's moving out of the dorms on Wednesday. But I don't think I'll go, de gozaru."

"Why not?"

"Well, I do have my training trips. And you'll be coming with me as well."

"That is true… but wouldn't it be a shame if you missed parties just for training? I mean, it's not every day one gets an invitation…" As he speaks, Negi opened his envelope and pulls out a small card. Flipping it open he gasps. "This… this is an invitation to Yukihiro-san's party as well… only… she's making me the guest of honor?"

Hearing this, Kaede reached out to take the card. "May I?" After Negi handed it over, she read it carefully. "She's included that you'll be escorted to the party early… right after afternoon classes on Friday. And she'll not take no for an answer."

This doesn't feel quite right. I wonder if Chamo and Asakura were up to something while we were away…

Frowning, Kaede handed the invitation back to Negi. "On second thought, maybe I will attend this party. After all, if you're going one way or another, then sessha should be there to have your back."

This made Negi smile. "Very well, we'll both attend. …But I wonder who else was invited?"

"I've returned, master," Chachamaru called out after she entered the cabin and removed her shoes. She walked away from the front door and made her way past the living room and up the stairs to Evangeline's bedroom. "Master?"

"I heard you, Chachamaru," Evangeline stated, lying in bed. "How were lessons?"

"Quite well. However…" She pulls out her invitation and an extra one for Evangeline. "Ayaka Yukihiro presented me with an invitation to a party she is having this Friday evening at her new mansion on Mahora grounds. She provided one for you as well, master."

"Like I care. I hate hanging out with those boring kids. …Who else was invited?"

"Everyone else in the class."

"And boya?"

Chachamaru shook her head. "I do not believe so, master."

This made Evangeline sit up. "That's strange. Knowing her crush, Yukihiro should have given him an invite or something. Keep a close eye on the boya in the meantime. Oh, and what about the plan?"

"I'm in the process of acquiring the required data. It will be two or three more days yet before I can achieve your desires, master."

"Good. Keep me posted, and Takane as well. She won't want to miss this…"

Asakura typed furiously at her laptop's keyboard, Chamo sitting atop her shoulder watching her work. "Do they suspect anything?"

"Kaede-neesan does, but not enough to concern us. And that dragon's totally in the dark about the plan. However, he's not sure if Negi should attend."

"He's cute, but you were right – he is protective of Negi like a kid brother. Think he'll stay at the dorms while Negi and Kaede are at the party?"

"Hell no; he'll follow by hook or crook. So… what exactly are you doing?"

"I'm devising the game for the party. I got Satomi working on a little something to spice the action a little, and I got Hasegawa to agree to help work the cameras. But the selection process is all mine. Look here…" She points at the screen. "I've subtracted myself, Evangeline, Chachamaru, Satomi, Hasegawa, and Yustoba from the list of girls for the game, which leaves 24 total to participate."

"24? I thought there were 31 girls in the class?"

"There are, but seat number 1 never shows up, and the dean leaves it as is. Anyway, I've divided the 24 into 6 groups of 4. Among the groups, two out of the four will be selected to participate in the game. Each pairs will start at a different point in the mansion and work their way to here, this room, where the guest of honor will be waiting unawares."

Chamo chuckled at the thought of Negi sitting in his room when one of the pairs visits him. "Yeah… and while you all are in class on Friday, I'll draw the pactio circle around the building and enforce it so it won't fade after only one pactio kiss, thus earning mucho pactio cards for the black market. …So, you already got your pairs picked out?"

"Not quite. I know Ayaka will want to participate so she's already down as a definite candidate. Once I make the list, I'll slip it to Satomi and she'll rig the lotto so the ones I picked get chosen for the game."

"…Add Kaede-neesan to the list."

Asakura paused, blinking. "What for?"

"She's not book-smart, but she's no dummy. Once she gets wind of what we're up to, she'll be after us pronto. Better to have her among the pairs to soften the blow, I say. And throw in Misora-neesan, too. Just in case."

"I gotcha; if either one makes the pactio with Negi, then he'll gain a more reliable ally against Evangeline."

"Exactly!"

Asakura then thought of something. "Say, did Heathcliff get to examine Kaede like he did Misora?"

"Nah. He's still making observations on her when she's in the dorm. Plus, he's researching ninjas to try and better understand her, and he sneaks out to find and scope out your classmates for his own investigations. Though unlike me, he's still a young dragon with not so much knowledge about the world and how it works."

"And he's not a pervert."

The comment made Chamo twitch. "…That, too…"

Evangeline opened her eyes to see Takane and Chachamaru standing before her. Getting up form where she had been sitting on the roof of the Academy, she stretched. "What's our progress?"

"Your toy here says she's ready to enact the plan," Takane stated. "However, there's something bugging me about this party your classmates are having."

"Satomi-sama has been toiling away with several robots that Asakura asked for use at the party," Chachamaru explained. "From the data I hacked from my creator's files, these robots are able to emit a beam that forces clothing completely off of a person struck by it."

Evangeline's one eye twitched. "Somehow, I'm not the least bit surprised. All anything young people have on their minds are sex, sex, sex! At least boya's got his head on straight still, given he's only 10. But I've no doubt the longer he associates with those bimbos in my class, he'll be corrupted before he's 13. IF he lives that long, that is."

"You're really going to kill Negi Springfield, aren't you?"

Shocked, Evangeline turned to Takane. "What did you just ask?"

"Well, it would be natural. I mean, he is the son of Nagi Springfield, the Thousand Master-."

"But killing him… no. I've had my share of killing over the hundreds of years I've lived. Even that gets old after a while. No, I won't kill him… just drink his blood and then make him my personal toy. That should be more satisfying."

Takane sweatdropped. "And you were just saying young people today just had sex on the brain."

"I'M NOT A FRICKIN' LOLITA!! I'd wait till he aged properly first, like a fine wine."

"…So when do we strike?"

"Tomorrow night," Evangeline stated. "During the party… before boya gets smooched."

Chachamaru and taakne exchanged looks. "What are you talking about, Master?"

"Yeah, what's this about Negi getting-?"

"I only figured it out today, the true purpose behind this little social gathering of Class 2-A. Yukihiro doesn't throw parties, she just organizes them; and never at her own place. Given how attracted she is to boya, my guess is someone convinced her to throw this party and invite the class to attend. And my bet is that someone wants to have boya get one or more pactio contracts made during the whole thing."

"But suppose Negi Springfield has already made a contract with Kaede Nagase-."

"He hasn't; I would have felt it by now, and so would have you and Chachamaru."

"Then… maybe we should do it tonight and-."

But Evangeline shook her head, smiling. "Tomorrow night. This party will help me out more than boya. After all, I still have influence over Izumi and Sasaki… Heh, heh, heh, heh…"

"No."

"I'm going with you two."

"This is not up for discussion."

"I'm still going to this party."

"I could chain you to the toilet, de gozaru."

"I'll just melt the chains."

Kaede and Heathcliff glared at each other; they had been arguing over Heathcliff tagging along with Negi and Kaede to Ayaka's party for the weekend. Kaede had pointed out that while Ayaka's new home on campus was a huge place, there were going to be almost 30 girls in attendance and that was a great risk for one of them to find a baby dragon hiding in the place. Heathcliff argued back that he could hide in Negi's room for the stay, and that he'd pretend to be a stuffed toy. He also pointed out that he needed to further his investigations for finding a suitable pactio partner for Negi.

"I've already stated that I would be Negi-kun's partner."

"You? I haven't even tested you yet, sister."

"I've been waiting for you to do so since we came back from the mountain."

The baby dragon turned his back to Kaede, crossing its arms. "Yeah, well… I wanted to do more research on your kind first. I'm not sold on a ninja being a good pactio with aniki."

"Maybe… or you actually don't know what you're doing."

That made Heathcliff turn around, flapping his wings to get himself up to Kaede's eye level. "I do, too, squinty-eyes!"

Kaede smirked. "Prove it. Test me."

"Fine." Heathcliff glided back down to the floor and began his examination of Kaede. However, unlike with Misora, he was more hands-on in his approach. This didn't phase Kaede, however. She somehow guessed what Heathcliff was trying to determine: whether she was properly built for future "possibilities." This guess was based on a similar scenario she had read in a chapter of Ranma ½ a while back.

When Heathcliff reached Kaede's waistline and hips, he took out his tailoring measurer and checked all three of her measurements. He gave low whistles after he did her hips, waist, and bust. "You sure you're 14?"

Kaede nodded. "And I'm only the 3rd in my class with the most generous chest." She then rubbed her chin, looking up at the ceiling. "Or was it 2nd? Honestly, I don't recall too well, nor do I care much."

"Good to know; a woman should respect her body, not use it to her advantage or to break hearts for fun."

"You and I have that notion in common, de gozaru; among other things in common, such as Negi-kun's wellbeing in mind."

"And I know you don't fully trust that ermine, either. He's up to something, I'm sure of it; and that Asakura… the moment I laid eyes on her, I knew she was trouble." Heathcliff finally moved away from Kaede, rubbing his chin as he tried to make up his mind. "…I'm going to have to think about this."

"You're still not going," Kaede stated, "and that is that. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a walk. I feel like clearing my head for a little bit." Grabbing her jacket, she moved to the door and left the room.

A pactio with Negi-kun… I'm still not sure why I offered to make one with him, but it wasn't fully because of Evangeline-dono. Wasn't it? Besides, it would only be a probationary contract; he's still a young boy, not ready to make a permanent pactio with anyone.

"Love is on your side."

Kaede stopped in her tracks when she recalled Konoka's words from the day they had first met Negi. Once more, she found herself wondering if she was falling for her child teacher. Bathing with him for one thing was something that surprised her even more than it had Negi; she'd never shared a bath before, not even with her parents, or the Fuka twins when she once took them on her training trips.

She tried to reason that it had been only to cheer Negi up and make him forget about Evangeline for a while. It did work, but back then, she had started to wonder about her relationship with Negi. After all, she did make the joke that she could be his girlfriend when he got older. Or had it really been a joke?

"…picked some good choices for tomorrow's game, Asakura-neesan."

Kaede blinked; that was Chamo's voice. She turned and found herself at Asakura's dorm door. Her curiosity made her sneak to the door and gently press her ear against the wood, trying to hear better.

"The last two were what bothered me the most, but I just picked two random girls and figured they were better than nothing at all."

"Meh, it'll work out somehow. And these will be mutually beneficial to aniki and us. I can have the pactio circle completed by noon tomorrow, 2:30PM at the latest."

"And if it all goes well, Negi will have up to ten pactio partners to Evangeline's one. Plus the extras we make will be worth big bucks."

Frowning, Kaede pulled away from the door and turned around,. She marched back to her room and walked right in and back into the bedroom to find Heathcliff sulking on Negi's bunk.

"I've had a change of heart, de gozaru; you'll be coming with me to the party, but you must not be found out. Do you understand?"

"…Yeah, but why the-?"

"I'll explain later. Just be ready to go tomorrow when I get back from classes. We'll be going once I change clothes and pack what I need." Chamo-san, Asakura-san… I don't know exactly what your plan is, but you're both going to learn not to play with a young boy's emotions, or his lips…

End Chapter 14

Closing Notes: I'm just as surprised as you all are that I got this out so fast. Lately, I've had a slump in my video gaming, so what else is there to do besides watch movies and websurf? WRITE!

And so we're leading into the big party and pactio game. Who'll be involved? Who'll get to kiss Negi on the lips? And what is Evangeline up to? We'll find out next chapter.

Also, the US release of the Negima OVAs (Original Video Animation) has been announced for this October. I for one am psyched as it's animated very well (though I've only seen the Spring OVA and not the summer one), and with any luck, it'll eventually lead to the 2nd Negima anime coming to the US, plus the new OVAs that will be released with several volumes of the original Japanese manga.

Please read & review.