Magister Negi Magi is owned by Ken Akamatsu and Kodansha Ltd. Tokyo in Japan, and by Funimation and Ballantine - DelRey in the United States, NOT by me.
SPOILER ALERT! Do not read this story if you are not familiar with chapters 189 and up from the raws or scanslated manga!
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"It was the second time she saved my life."
-Ako Izumi. "One Million Steps : A Journey to Megalo-Mesembria and the World Beyond." by Kazumi Asakura.
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Ala Alba in the World of Magic: Tales From the Fireside.
Chapter Six: A Swimmer, A Cat-Girl Nurse.
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Akira Okochi was by no means extraordinary at first glance. On the contrary, she was rather ordinary as far as Japanese girls went. Somewhat taller than average, her build, eye and hair color were all still completely ordinary.
As a young girl, just beginning to find joy and artistic expression in the skill of swimming, Akira was witness to, and participant in, a near tragedy that awoke something in her decidedly 'less' than ordinary.
A short-haired, timid, church-mouse of a girl in the swimming class coached by her mother slipped and fell when part of a diving board came loose. The girl hit her head, received a nasty wound sliding along the damaged diving board, then fell badly into the deep end of the pool. Leaving a trail of blood and air bubbles, she sank without a whimper into the unforgiving water.
Several girls in the class shrieked in panic or shouted for the instructor. Akira's mother and her assistant, providing instruction to other students, had not directly witnessed the accident and lost precious moments trying to understand their hysterical students.
Akira, her eyes loosing their focus, felt on the verge of fainting. Blood rushing to her head, heart pounding so hard it must surely burst, she knew the girl would die if nothing was done. Answering the call of a calming, welcoming voice within herself, she reached out with her hand and mind and 'used' the water in a manner she didn't really understand. As her mother watched with an angry look on her face, a 'wave' lifted the unconscious, wounded girl from the bottom of the pool and deposited her safely next to the damaged diving board's ladder.
Akira stood aside, oblivious to the looks given by several classmates, while her mother, the assistant coach and eventually EMS personnel worked to save the wounded girl's life.
After an ambulance came and the wounded girl was taken away. The other girls in the class, some weeping, some stoic, left on their own, or with parents who came to get them.
Akira's mother, when they were finally alone, pulled her brusquely off into the changing room. Instead of praising her for saving a girl's life, she proceeded to pummel her unmercifully, accusing her of everything from her father's bad blood to outright possession by demons.
Akira was stunned. Never truly knowing her father, she didn't understand the accusation of 'bad blood,' nor did she really understand about demon possession. All she did know was that a mother she thought loved her had hurt her for saving another person's life.
Afterwards, as Akira lay in the hospital recovering from having 'fallen down the stairs,' a strange person who seemed to be an injury counselor came to visit her. The tall, dark-haired, bespectacled person spoke of trivial things while making several odd gestures, then looked directly at Akira with a gaze filled with sorrow and sympathy.
What followed, to put it mildly, was Akira's introduction to the hidden world of mages.
Holding Akira's attention with his direct gaze, the visitor explained that what she had done was not demon possession, or of bad blood, but instead a precious gift. Something to use with caution, but not to be ashamed of. Now, the gift was not quite magic by normal standards, being more akin to elementalism, but it had been decided by people who knew of her ancestry, (something that confused Akira,) that she should still be made aware of the hidden world in the event someone from it ever requested or needed her help. The stranger continued to explain further that she would soon have a teacher who would provide further details. This teacher would help her master her gift, while also teaching her how to conceal it from those who might hurt, or try to take advantage of her because of it.
Akira woke much later that night, thinking the strange person's visit was a dream, until she saw a leather-bound journal sitting on her hospital bed's side table. Reaching out, she picked up the book, switched on a small reading lamp, and opened it to the frontispiece page. Written inside were very ordinary words:
"A Record of the Travels of Hisao Okochi."
Below that were ordinary, hand-written words powerful enough to bring Akira to tears.
"To my most precious daughter Akira..."
Young as Akira was, her father's journal proved to be a very fascinating read. It quickly became her most prized, and, for reasons she easily understood, most carefully guarded possession.
Akira's mother never came to visit her in the hospital. All the bills were paid, but it was her father's brother who eventually picked her up. A mage like her father, her uncle became her teacher, a trustworthy friend she could confide in, and a connection to her deceased father she grew to love in his place. She went to live in her uncle's home and only rarely saw her mother again. Usually at family functions, where those on her mother's side ignored her, and those on her father's side made her feel welcome.
Akira, before all that came to pass, eventually returned to the swimming class. Despite mostly new students and a new instructor, several of the girls shunned her, whispering about her being 'strange' when they thought she wasn't listening, or being just short of rude when she asked questions. If not for the encouragement of her uncle and one other person, she might have lost her joy of swimming, and never learned to be as proficient at that as she eventually became with her gift.
The girl who's life Akira saved, even while recovering in a hospital bed, wrote letters of friendship, thanking her for saving her life, (which she knew about, just not 'how' it had been done,) and saying she hoped they would be able to swim together again some day. Eventually, at a school the two of them never dreamed they might attend, they would do so.
Akira's efficiency with her gift grew through constant, continual practice of the various control and shielding lessons given by her uncle. (She normally practiced openly and privately at her uncles home, but gained a few odd looks when she would sit alone on occasion between classes, staring into her tea and using her gift minutely to heat or mix the drink.) Mindful of cautionary entries in her father's journal, and warnings to be discrete given during her uncle's tutelage, the times she openly used her abilities were very rare.
Akira's second, less obvious but still injudicious use of her ability, was made to get a ring belonging to her teacher Negi Springfield back from several students playing tag to keep it away from him. Using the water in the girl's dorm bath to subtly boost herself aloft, she caught up to the leaping Misora Kasuga, recovered the ring, then proceeded to chastise the responsible parties for teasing Negi by throwing them into the bath. (Professor Springfield was grateful for the help, but noticing later that he had made a noted entry calling her 'Very Strong' next to her picture in his class roster was a bit of a blow to her femininity!)
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Akira came the closest she'd ever come to regretting the direction of her life after following Yuuna Akashi into the strange world Negi Springfield and his Fan Club were visiting. A battle between Negi, some of her fellow students, and several dangerous people, using abilities she was aware of but thought were uncommon, resulted in mass destruction, a half-dead Negi, various injured friends and her own transport by unknown means to the middle of a nearly trackless desert.
Akira wandered around the seemingly endless expanse of sand, chasing mirages, until an agonized shriek of fear sent her running to the top of a nearby dune.
Down in a small hollow on the other side, an hysterical Ako Izumi was being dragged into a seemingly terminal fate by some form of plant or animal tendrils coming out of a sand-pit.
Without even thinking about it, Akira reached out with her now finely tuned ability to seize control of every bit of water she could sense in the ground under Ako. Having held Ako's life in her hands once before, she wasn't about to let it be snatched away from her now. Making a mental squeezing gesture with her mind, and an unconscious physical one with her hand, she ruthlessly drove the water out of whatever contained it and into the surrounding sand. Any worries she might have had about using what she knew to 'kill,' were completely forgotten when she finally ran forward to drag her convulsing friend away from the rapidly evaporating dampness of the sand pit.
Reaching an area of shade provided by a nearby pillar of rock, Akira set the faintly blue Ako down and made a quick examination of her friend's limbs. She found only a few possible sting marks, but Ako still gave one final shudder and stopped breathing.
With a clearness of mind she later found amazing, Akira began CPR on her friend at once. Her swimming activities made learning the life-saving technique mandatory, but even after a refresher course, she always found it hard to remember the sequencing. Now, with an impossible to ignore situation focusing her thoughts, everything came to her perfectly. The breathing, the chest pumps, calling to Ako to help her out, all came in their proper order,
When Ako finally spasmd and drew in a breath, Akira nearly collapsed with exhaustion. She continued gently prodding Ako until the still pale girl opened her eyes and complained that she felt hot. Relieved that Ako was awake, Akira picked her up and carried her further into the shadow provided by the outcropping of rock. She fanned Ako as best she could until the girl settled, still feverish but breathing normally, into a restless sleep. Finally able to relax herself, she sat down next to Ako and pulled her shivering friend close. Thinking about the old, old joke told to friends in this situation: "If you die on me, I'll never forgive you!" she closed her eyes. Leaning back to rest, she fell never felt her head touch the rock.
Akira woke in the night. Feeling cramped, she gently pulled away from Ako and stood up to stretch. Looking up, she was greeted by the sight of a most magnificent expanse of stars. With all the light pollution around Mahora Academy, seeing any but the brightest stars was next to impossible. Standing there, lost in a world not her own, with the expanse of the universe overhead, Akira was filled by an unexplainable sense of peace. Her mother had not been very adventurous, but her father's journal began with just such a situation. She had no idea where she was. Worry about taking care of Ako was foremost in her mind. However, she also felt a kind of joy at sharing a similar experience with her father. He survived. For her to do any less would dishonor his memory.
Kneeling, Akira helped a sluggishly responsive Ako drink what was left in the two water bottles they brought from Wales. Placing the caps safely in a pocket, she walked away from the rock pillar and set the bottles down on a small, flat rock.
Finally, after many long, cautious years, Akira was in a position to use her ability without fear, restraint, or concern for who might be watching. Even as raspy lungs spoke about how dry the desert air was, her ability and the slight chill of the night told of the water that was there. It would not be easy, finding an oasis would be simpler, but what was this if not a time to test the positive limits of what she could do? Closing her eyes and reaching out, careful to avoid Ako and several other 'pools' she recognized as living creatures, she took control of the small amounts of water she sensed around her and began drawing it in.
Additional moisture came in to replace that which Akira pulled from the surrounding air. More still after she claimed that. Eventually, the two bottles on the rock were filled and capped, and she could allow herself to relax.
Even with the confidence her father's survival had provided, having to carry Ako quickly drove Akira to the limits of her endurance. With the sun directly overhead the next day, she heard her name called and not believing it, kept going towards a smudge on the horizon that hopefully was an oasis she'd sensed the previous night.
Suddenly help arrived in the person of Natsumi Murakami. With the actress student's fresh strength and help in carrying Ako, the three of them soon reached the welcome shelter of the oasis.
That night, with Ako still feverish but resting, Akira walked out onto the sand with Natsumi. Looking up at the stars together, they talked about their worries, about silly nonsense, and eventually about the obvious glow of a nearby city and the hope of finding help there for Ako.
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Help yes, but at a price.
Crossing a large river near the city should have warned them what might happen latter. Without any means of understanding the local language, Akira used pantomime negotiations to establish a fee. The cost for transport across the river for three was Akira suppressing her pride and submitting to the creepy touch of a ferryman running his hands over her body.
Once in the city things failed to improve. After hiding in an alley for a night and most of a day, Natsumi, using her weak grasp of Latin of all things, finally convinced a tavern keeper to give them water for Ako.
Everyone else, for reasons it was difficult to understand, ignored them, or gave them looks that promised worse than the ferryman's price.
Eventually, a tall person dressed in a cloak came to help them. Akira's still crawling skin filled her with distrust, but once more she held herself back for the chance to help Ako. After the fact, (along with some ritual that allowed them to finally understand the language,) they learned the true price of the man's medicine and 'generosity.' Dolnegus, owner of several fighting arenas and businesses further down the river in Granicus city, trapped the three of them into becoming his slaves by their acceptance of his 'help.'
A one million Drachma price for help seemed steep, taking five to seven years to pay off, until balanced against Ako's life. Still, even if forced to wear collars marking them as slaves, for the moment, they were safe, sheltered and fed. Their Ku-Jin boss Mama was strict, but kind and fair. As long as they lived, there was the belief their teacher, Negi Springfield, if he lived after the chaos of their arrival, or one of their other classmates, would come and save them.
Now, if only Dolnegus' thugs would leave them alone. A few earlier incidents seemed to have escalated to outright harassment of Ako.
Akira rushed over to Ako to defend her friend. She was even reaching out to Natsumi Murakami's cleaning water for possible use as a weapon when the skinniest of the thugs muttered something at a glass sphere and her body went into shock induced spasms. She fell to her knees, reaching up to pull helplessly at her slave collar as it continued to deliver unceasing shocks. While Natsumi and Ako watched helplessly, her torrment continued until the thug deactivated the ball and she fell to the ground.
In a strange kind of slow motion, Akira saw Ako Izumi's Mahora Fest crush Nagi Springfield rushing across the verandah. The shocks had weakened control over her ability, and the sense she used to find water saw not the grown water 'aura' of Nagi Springfield, but that of Negi Springfield, her ten year old teacher! The possibility Negi might have abilities like her own father only served to increase her confusion.
Nagi,(Negi?) shouted about not letting the thugs harm his students. Then punched the skinny thug out.
Not easily intimidated, the thug's response to Negi(Nagi?) and Kotaro's(?) threats was to start shocking Ako and Natsumi. Both boys looked quite ready to start into serious violence because of that. Fortunately, the Ku-Jin Mama showed up and quickly put an end to things by pummeling the thugs for trying to damage valuable slaves through blatant stupidity.
Mama dismissed them from their duties after Negi(Nagi?) had a talk with her. Akira wanted to rest, but her perception of reality was crashing, and trying to resolve things was causing rampant logic loops in her mind. Kotaro was Kotaro. That meant Nagi had to be Ne... and that he 'did' have similar abilities to ...! Even after Mahora Fest, with it's special effects extravaganza 'Mars Attacks' game, she never gave any serious thought to Negi's actions or seeming abilities. Hadn't he just been one of Chao Lingshen's 'Hero' units? If her child teacher could do things like her father talked about in his journal, it would explain many things about the previous year spent in Class 2A.
Such thoughts plagued Akira's mind as she tried her best to converse with 'Mr. Springfield,' but in the end it proved fruitless. Chisame Hasegawa finally convinced her to rest, and she went back to her quarters before passing out in yet another unceremonious heap on her bed. Saved or not, she had the feeling things were not about to get any easier for her, Ako, or Natsumi anytime soon.
tsuzuku
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Author's notes:
The visitor is Professor Akashi. The person who was watching Akira for magi/ministra potential was either the assistant instructor or another student in her class. (Shizuna Sensei? Yuuna's mother? Takane Goodman? Kasuga Misora? So many wonderful possibilities!)
Akira, based on her tarot/anime-style Pactio card, is here presented as a water elementalist. She has control over her ability and keeps any signature that might exist suppressed. Negi, with his stronger ability to sense magic, might have noticed at two points.
First: When he cured(?) Akira of Evangeline's vamp-taint.
Second: When Akira helped him recover the ring given to him by Evangeline. (Or perhaps he was distracted the 'great-tracts-o-land' surrounding him in the bath?)
Why would he not say anything?
Because he is an English Gentleman.
If Akira chooses not to tell him, she has her reasons and Negi would not force such a confession out of her.
This Akira, still concerned about involving her non-mage friends, told Natsumi a half-truth about why Ako collapsed.
Count me among those who think Ako, while perhaps having a latent healing ability, is nothing more than a cute girl with a nasty scar.
Natsumi Murakami's entrance is next! Chapter 07: "The Actress."