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Courage; KonoSetsu Fic - Who else?
Topic Started: Feb 24 2007, 08:25 PM (7,308 Views)
Chigusa
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Middle Schooler
[ *  * ]
Thanks as always, minna-san!

Icha-kun - Aw! I'm glad you're still enjoying the fic. Hope it's not detracting from your school work too much though!

Jessie - I know. I feel like a heel for making her cry. Secchan deserves happiness and flowers! It's just I'm going to make her work for them first... ;)

Baka no Jitsu - Hrrm. Slightly, I guess. I hope she doesn't come over as OOC. Since these chapters come un-beta read, I know I'm going to have to do some editing and updating to make the story the correct shape, and that'll involve knocking some of the rough edges off. I guess what you're getting here is more in the way of a rough draft that anything else. In any case, don't worry too much about our Secchan. She'd had a long tough night without any sleep - I think we can forgive a little bit in the way of an overreaction. :)

Anyway, here's the next chapter - a bit longer than normal this time. Think of it as making up for chapter 3. ^_^ As always, constructive criticism is very much appreciated. Do let me know if you think characters are acting OOC or need a touch up, or if there's anything you think needs to be done.

Well... all that remains to be said is: Enjoy!


Chapter Seven: The Calm Before the Storm

The morning’s lessons had crawled by at a snail’s pace. Despite Negi’s best efforts, Konoka had found herself unable to concentrate on any of the information being thrown at her, and had resorted to alternately watching the clock and the back of Secchan’s head. The two girls hadn’t had a chance to speak since that awkward exchange outside the kendo dojo. Secchan had rushed into the classroom literally seconds before Negi arrived and barely had time to take her seat before lessons began. Now, nearly three hours later, Konoka was feeling the weight of all the words that had gone unsaid. Judging from Secchan’s body language, the young swordswoman was in a similar predicament. Her shoulders were permanently hunched, the tension in her slim body clearly visible. Whenever she thought no one was watching she would snatch a glance backwards in Konoka’s direction, but never for long enough for their eyes to meet.

Konoka sighed deeply and shifted the weight of her chin onto her other hand, her elbow propped on the desk in front of her. She glanced down at her open English book with unfocused eyes, then sighed again and refocused on the classroom clock. Not long now, she told herself. Only another fifteen minutes and she could talk to Secchan. Provided, that is, that Secchan wanted to talk to her, that she wasn’t deliberately avoiding her. That was a whole new line of thought, and a very unwelcome one. Hardly aware she was evening doing it, Konoka began to chew on her nails, eyes still fixed on the second hand of the clock. She was startled out of her reverie by a hard elbow in her ribs, and she snapped straight in her chair, stifling a squeak of surprise.

“F’r crying out loud, Konoka, at least try to look like you’re listening,” Asuna hissed into her ear.

“Sorry!” Konoka gave her friend one of her trademark bright smiles. “Looks like I drifted off again, eh?”

Asuna grunted. “Just try and get it together. Negi’ll think I’m a bad influence on you at this rate.”

“I’ll do my best!”

True to her word, for the next quarter of an hour Konoka really did do her utmost to focus on what Negi was saying, albeit without much success. She was too distracted by the possible conversations that kept playing and replaying themselves across her consciousness. What should she say to Secchan? What might she reply? When the school chimes finally sounded it was a blessed relief.

The class climbed to its feet at Iincho’s order and bowed with varying degrees of respect. But once the bow was completed, chaos descended. Half the class charged out at full speed, intent on trying their luck at the school cafeteria. The fastest might be rewarded with the school’s fabled chow mein pan, but the weakest of the herd would suffer the crushing disappointment of a plain bun, or at the very worst, the life or death trial of a super hot curry pan – the one kind of bread that never sold out, for obvious reasons. The other half of the class dug out their packed lunches; by far the most civilised option. That morning Konoka had been too preoccupied to prepare a boxed lunch, but neither was she prepared to join the charge toward the refectory. She had more important things to do.

To the girl’s delight, it seemed Secchan had the same idea. As soon as the aisle cleared, she made straight for Konoka’s desk and paused for a moment, blushing pinkly. She cleared her throat a couple of times before managing to speak.

“Konoka-Ojou-sama, I just wanted to… I wanted to apologise. For earlier.”

Konoka beamed, all the morning’s tension utterly forgotten in the realisation that Secchan wasn’t avoiding her after all. “Oh Secchan! Don’t be silly. That’s all right!”

Secchan stared down at her shoes. “Um… I was wondering, Ojou-sama, could we perhaps go somewhere togeth… Er… I mean, for lunch, perhaps we could…”

“Setsuna.” The deep voice cut across Secchan’s halting words, and the two girls jumped as if they had been bitten. Tatsumiya Mana tended to have that effect on people, even when she wasn’t speaking from behind the business end of a rifle. She continued with barely a pause. If she had spotted the startled reaction, she didn’t comment on it. “The Dean wants to see you.”

“Now?” Secchan sounded half dismayed and half resigned.

“Now.”

There were no half measures about Konoka’s dismay. “Surely grandfather could give Secchan a few minutes? She’s got to eat lunch and…”

Mana turned to look at the young mage, her emotionless eyes seeming to bore into Konoka’s own. “No. The Dean was clear. He is expecting Setsuna as we speak. He won’t be kept waiting.” Her tone brooked no disagreement.

Secchan sighed and shot Konoka an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Ojou-sama. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

The girl nodded, trying to hide her disappointment. “Don’t worry about it Secchan. It can’t be helped. I’ll see you when you get back.”

Secchan nodded in return, bowed, then headed out of the classroom, Mana at her heels. Konoka found herself staring after them like an abandoned puppy, her hand still raised, frozen in a little wave of farewell.

“Foiled again, eh?” A warm hand came to rest on Konoka’s shoulder and squeezed gently. “Your granddad sure keeps them busy, doesn’t he?”

“Asuna…”

“Ah… don’t sweat it. You’ll get to talk soon, I’m sure. For now, how about lunch?”

Konoka turned to her friend, looking shocked. “Oh! I’m so sorry, I didn’t make us lunches today! I forgot to tell you…”

Asuna grinned. “S’ok. I guessed you would have other things on your mind this morning. Word on the street is there’s a brand new food stall down on the concourse. How about we score ourselves some ramen for lunch?”

*****

It seemed the school rumour mill had proved its worth once again. There was indeed a new mobile food stall tucked in beside the other eateries on the concourse, and it seemed to be doing a roaring trade. Costumed barkers roamed the concourse, handing out promotional leaflets, their colourful masks adding a new dimension to the orderly maroon uniforms that usually filled Mahora’s streets. A roped off enclosure was filled with café-style tables and chairs, most of them occupied by Mahora students enjoying huge bowls of steaming ramen noodles. Asuna performed a perfect double take at the sight of Yotsuba Satsuki and Kuu Fei at the heart of the throng, making Konoka giggle despite herself.

Kuu caught side of Asuna goggling at them and waved enthusiastically, chopsticks held aloft. “Welcome! Have you come to try ramen, aru ka?”

Asuna nodded with a faintly perplexed expression. “That’s right. But… er… shouldn’t you two be at work yourselves? Shouldn’t you be off cooking, Sacchan?”

Satsuki smiled gently. “We’re closed this lunchtime. I wouldn’t be much of a chef if I didn’t check out the opposition.”

“I guess…” Asuna wandered over to inspect the half-finished ramen. “So what’s the verdict?”

Kuu cocked her head on one side, clearly thinking hard. “Not bad,” she concluded after a while. “Is good ramen, but Sacchan’s nikumans still better, de aru. No need to worry just yet.”

Satsuki smiled wider, a blush decorating her cheeks now. “Thanks, Kuu-san. It is good, definitely. If you’re in the mood for noodles, Asuna-san, you could do much worse.”

Asuna turned to Konoka with a triumphant grin. “See? I told you this was a good move! No fighting through the cafeteria for us! Am I a genius or what?”

The mage inclined her head gracefully. “To call you simply genius would be to underestimate your skills, Asuna-sama.” She giggled again. “I’ve never known anyone quite so good at finding food.”

Asuna sidled closer and put a conspiratorial arm around Konoka’s shoulders. “Actually though, the rumour didn’t just mention the ramen. It was more focused on who serves the ramen… if you know what I mean. Feast your eyes.”

The mage raised an eyebrow but looked over in the direction indicated. The noodle chef was just ducking down to hand out the latest servings to his customers, and he was perfectly framed by the stall’s noren. A sweep of dark brown fringe had escaped from his chef’s hat, managing to perfectly offset expressive dark eyes and a light dusting of stubble. He had an easy smile, and judging from the giggles from his customers, a personality to go with it. Konoka gave vent to a theatrical sigh.

“Still not got over the older man thing, Asuna?”

“Hey now… I just think that an object of natural beauty should be appreciated, don’t you agree? Not that anyone could replace Takahata-sensei of course.”

“If you say so…” Konoka gave the man another appraising look. “Although he’s not quite my type. Come on Asuna, if we’re going to eat, let’s eat.”

Thankfully the queue was quite a short one by this time, so there wasn’t long to wait. The two girls ordered up their ramen and leaned on the counter as they watched the handsome chef prepare the bowls.

“So I’ve been meaning to ask…”

Konoka gave her friend a sharp look. “What?”

Asuna grinned. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to embarrass you! I was just wondering, did you and Setsuna-san have a fight or something?”

The mage looked down and poked at the polished wood of the counter with the butt end of her chopsticks. “Not a fight. Not really. We just keep… missing each other. It’s like, whenever we talk there’s always something that one or the other of us is keeping back. I keep making her run away from the conversation. I just wish I knew what I was doing wrong.”

“Oh.” Asuna looked uncomfortable. “I wish I could help. I’m not much of a talker…” At Konoka’s look, she tried again. “Well… that is, I do talk a fair bit, but I’m not very good at it. I seem to annoy people more often than not. I’m not sure how you can get Setsuna-san to open up.”

“That’s all right.” Konoka stopped prodding at the counter and snapped the chopsticks apart. “I think it’s something we have to work out for ourselves. As friends. It makes me feel better just to tell you about it. Secchan is very important to me, and I suppose I was just getting frustrated. Thanks, Asuna.”

The moment was broken by the sound of someone coughing rather deliberately. The ramen chef cleared his throat and smiled.

“Sorry to intrude, ladies, but your noodles are done.” He passed over two steaming bowls of ramen and wiped his hands on his apron. “And I hope you don’t mind me saying, young lady, but I couldn’t help overhearing. I’m sure you and your friend will get things straightened out soon. It’s a terrible thing when two friends can’t tell each other what they mean, but wanting to change that – that’s what’ll make the difference.”

“I couldn’t agree more!” Asuna claimed her own chopsticks and waved them expansively. “See, you’re surrounded by good advice this lunchtime! Come on Konoka, stop worrying and let’s eat. You’ll feel better on a full stomach.”

*****

The two girls carried their lunch over to a spare table and tucked in with a will. The chef watched them until it was clear they were totally engrossed, then nodded to himself, and turned to address the next people in line.

“Sorry ladies! If you would just wait for two minutes, I’ll be right back.”

Ignoring the disappointed groans, the chef hung a ‘temporarily closed’ sign on the counter, slipped out of cart’s side door and disappeared around the back of the stall. When he was sure no one was watching, he produced a mobile phone and hit redial.

“Fujiwara-san?” he whispered urgently. “Yes, it’s me. Target acquired.”

He listened carefully to the response and nodded, despite the lack of anyone to see. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure.”

His first task completed, Sugiyama tucked the mobile back out of sight and resumed his position behind the counter of the noodle stand. He took the next set of orders down with a smile. “Sorry to keep you waiting, my faithful customers. Don’t worry, it won’t be long now.”
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icha-kun
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Icha-kun - Aw! I'm glad you're still enjoying the fic. Hope it's not detracting from your school work too much though!


Yup, I'm enjoying this fic very much!

New chapter. Yay~

No, I'm still working on my homework...
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Jessie
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NO! Kono-chan's in danger! O.<
Come back Secchan! ;-;
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kid386
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and the plot thickens muwahahaha :D

and fun story can't wait for more action
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BAKA NO JITSU
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Chigusa,Mar 19 2007
10:21 AM
Baka no Jitsu - Hrrm. Slightly, I guess. I hope she doesn't come over as OOC. Since these chapters come un-beta read, I know I'm going to have to do some editing and updating to make the story the correct shape, and that'll involve knocking some of the rough edges off. I guess what you're getting here is more in the way of a rough draft that anything else. In any case, don't worry too much about our Secchan. She'd had a long tough night without any sleep - I think we can forgive a little bit in the way of an overreaction. :)

She's not really too much OOC so i guess i can forgive her. You continue writing kay.
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Manori
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Very nice chapter, though it sucks Setsuna and Konoka got interrupted and Secchan had to go to the dean, hopefully nothing bad will happen to Konoka, with Secchan [hopefully] being there in time to stop whatever plot.

Though for some reason, it doesn't seem like it will be that easy...

Can't wait :)
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Chigusa
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Ah, back at last! Apologies for the wait, minna-san! I guess it's natural that the thesis work should stop me writing as much as I'd like, but it can get frustrating.

I guess this chapter more or less speaks for itself. Back to the action... :D (and apologies for the chapter title. Probably won't be retained, but I couldn't resist just this once...)


Chapter Eight: The Second Raid

Konoka propped her chin on her hand and watched Asuna’s frenzied attack on her ramen, a half smile on her lips. There was something about Asuna’s tremendously one-track mind that managed to be oddly soothing. If there was something more important to do or think about other than food, that would be getting her full attention.

Asuna looked up for a half second and paused, mid-chew. She raised an eyebrow and gestured in the direction of the girl’s three quarters’ full bowl. “Something wrong with it?”

Konoka shook her head. “It’s delicious. I’m just not that hungry.”

Her friend swallowed her mouthful of noodles and shook a reprimanding finger. “Shame on you, Konoka. Eat when you can, and never let food go to waste. Those are truly words to live by.”

That got a laugh. “Sure, if you’re from the middle ages! How old are you, again?”

“Good advice never gets old,” Asuna retorted, managing to achieve an aloof tone despite the flecks of sauce around her mouth. “It merely becomes classic.”

Konoka grinned. “Like good men, you mean?”

“Exac… Hey! Are you laughing at me?”

“I wouldn’t dare, Asuna, honestly.” Konoka laid her chopsticks on the table and let out a contented sigh. How Asuna managed it, she had no idea, but she never failed to make people feel better, just by being around and being herself. She looked around at their surroundings and felt the tension run out of her even more. The sun was shining, she was surrounded by good friends and happy feelings. Things weren’t as bad as all that. As soon as Oji-chan had finished with Secchan, the swordswoman would come and find her, as promised. And then they would talk and everything would be fine again. Everything.

A clatter followed by a loud slurping noise brought Konoka’s attention back to her friend, just in time to see Asuna lowering her now-empty bowl back onto the table. The girl sighed, covered her mouth in an attempt to be ladylike, and belched.

“Ahhhhh… Now that’s what I call ramen.”

“I think everyone else calls it that too, you know…” Konoka trailed off as something caught her eye, and she turned to look.

Asuna straightened in her chair, catching the change of mood. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s probably nothing… but don’t there seem to be a lot more barkers around than there were before?”

The girl twisted around to look. “Yeah… And they’re very close to the stall they’re supposed to be advertising.” She stood up, slowly. “Let’s get out of here.”

Konoka laid her palms on the table, began to push herself up out of her chair,… and then all hell broke loose.

A sound like thunder rolled around the concourse as a series of explosions rocked the area. Immediately the air was full of smoke and screams; the crash of tables and chairs overturning as people fought to escape. A ringing filled Konoka’s ears and every other sound was muffled, as if heard underwater. She tried tentatively thumping her ear, but it did no good. She must have been too close to one of the explosions, she realised. Shocked and disoriented by the blast, she didn’t even notice Asuna beside her until the girl grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her.

“Konoka? Can you hear me? We have to get out of here!”

She nodded, drew breath to reply, and choked on the swirling smoke. The acrid smell of burning was overlaid with a cloying sweetness that turned her stomach. A wave of light-headedness washed over her and she felt her knees weaken. Acting on instinct, she raised a hand to cover her mouth with her sleeve and coughed violently. Distantly she heard Asuna speaking.

“There’s something in the smoke. Try not to breathe too much.”

Konoka felt Asuna’s grip shift to her upper arm, and then she was being towed along, edging between tables. She stumbled on something and glanced down to see to her horror that she had tripped on someone’s outflung arm. It was only then that she registered the bodies that lay like discarded rag dolls among the ruins of the tables and chairs. The bile rose to the back of her throat and she swallowed hard. The visibility in the smoke screen was next to nothing, and just for a second, she was glad. If she couldn’t see them clearly she didn’t need to think about injuries, about whether they were even alive anymore…

And then the thought hit her. She was a healer. These were her schoolmates. She couldn’t just run away without at least seeing if there was something she could do for them. The mage pulled back, prompting Asuna to stop and turn.

“What are you doing? We have to go!”

She shook her head violently. “I have to…,” she caught a shallow breath through the material of her sleeve and continued. “Have to see if they’re all right!”

Konoka wrenched her arm out of Asuna’s hold and dropped to her knees beside the nearest body. There was no blood, she realised, and the questing fingers that felt for the fallen girl’s pulse found a steady, regular heartbeat. “She’s asleep!”

Asuna frowned. “It’s the smoke. Konoka, we have to get out of this stuff, or it’ll be us next. We can check on everyone later. Please.”

There was no arguing with Asuna’s practical logic. Konoka climbed back to her feet and took her friend’s hand. “All right. Let’s go.”

The girl nodded. Then her grip suddenly tightened on Konoka’s hand and her eyes widened. “Get down!” Without waiting for a reply, Asuna threw herself bodily at her friend, bearing her sideways and down. The two crashed to the ground together, and a pair of grasping hands managed to grab nothing but air. Konoka gaped upwards at the masked barker that loomed above the fallen schoolgirls, its bright yellow and blue costume incongruous against the background of smoke and wreckage. Dazed chocolate eyes met the blank hardness of the figure’s black visor, and for a second time seemed to stand still. Then the moment shattered, and the figure lunged downwards, hands reaching for the fallen mage.

Konoka twisted away, rolling desperately in an effort to gain her feet. She made it up as far as her knees when the smoke moved in front of her, and a costumed figure emerged out of the concealing fog, closely followed by another. The features of both were hidden by their visors, and they moved in total silence, spreading out and closing in like predators with their prey.

The mage stumbled backwards, on her hands and knees now, ever more aware of the light-headedness that blurred her vision and sapped her energy.

“Asuna?” Her voice quavered, and she hated herself for it.

“Stay close to me.” Asuna’s voice was only just audible against the ringing that still filled Konoka’s ears, but she sounded grim. “Adeat!”

There was a flash of light, and the approaching figures paused. Konoka took the chance and scrambled to her feet. It was only then that she realised just how dire the situation really was. She and Asuna were stood back to back, surrounded by five of the costumed barkers. The appearance of Asuna’s harisen seemed to have stopped them for the time being, but Konoka knew that couldn’t last. The seven of them stood in a frozen tableau, all waiting for someone else to make the first move.

Asuna hefted her weapon and widened her stance. “If you see a gap…”

She didn’t have a chance to finish. Two of the barkers leapt forward from opposite sides, one for Asuna, and one straight for Konoka. They attacked in dead silence, hands extended, fingers spread like talons.

Konoka ducked and sidestepped, and once again the attacking figure was left empty handed. From behind her there was a flash of light and a sudden inrush of air which set the smoke billowing wildly. Even as Asuna spun into a turn, harisen raised to strike Konoka’s attacker, the mage knew what that meant. The barkers weren’t people at all. They were summoned demons. The creature managed to get an arm up to block Asuna’s powerful swing, but that wasn’t how the harisen worked. No sooner had the giant fan made contact, then the demon imploded, leaving behind nothing but shreds of vapour and a disturbance in the enveloping smoke. Konoka bit her lip. She hadn’t really needed confirmation, but this proved it. She was the target of this attack. It was her fault that any of this had happened. Her shoulders sagged and her head bowed, but she straightened suddenly as she felt a firm warmth behind her. Asuna stood tall, harisen braced in a high cross-guard, back to back with her best friend.

The red-head glanced back over her shoulder. “Don’t worry Konoka. I’ll protect you.”

“Asuna…”

For a moment, she sounded so much like Secchan that it brought a lump to Konoka’s throat. If only Secchan were there right now.

“I’ll…” Asuna’s voice faded and trailed off, and Konoka suddenly felt her friend’s stance shift behind her.

She spun around, just in time to catch Asuna as the girl slumped to the ground. The harisen slipped from nerveless fingers as Konoka was borne to her knees by a combination of Asuna’s dead weight and the ever-present fatigue caused by the smoke.

“Asuna? Asuna!”

Asuna’s eyes flickered shut, then open again. “I… sorry… can’t… tired…”

Konoka ignored her own light-headedness and the leaden tiredness that seemed to drag at her limbs, and shook her friend by the shoulders. “Don’t sleep, Asuna! Fight it!”

“Sorry…” Asuna’s eyes slid closed, and her breathing became deep and regular.

“No!” But shaking did no good. Asuna was deeply asleep.

Konoka held her friend close and glared up defiantly at the costumed demons that surrounded them. And as one, the creatures stepped forwards, three pairs of hands outstretched, unstoppable, reaching…
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Jessie
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OMG! O___O
You can't stop there! XD I want to know what happens! XD
Oh, man, I love this chapter! *___*
It was great! I raid it so fast because it was so good! *__*
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Manori
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Ah, evil cliffy. Though, Great chapter. Hopefully Secchan or someone else will arrive on time and save Konoka ^_^

Can't wait for the update :)
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Serai
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Secchan to the RESCUE!!!


please, theres to little setsuna pwnage lately
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icha-kun
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Yippe... New chapter~
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takuyar
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OMG! Great fic you're writing here! Continue writing please!
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Chigusa
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Thanks for the support and encouragement as always, minna-san! This is another long chapter, which I guess is a side effect of writing action. Do let me know what you think - whether things would do better being cut down or what works and what doesn't.

I agonized for a while about how to render speech patterns in English. In the end I decided I would keep Kuu Fei's "aru" mannerism as is, since I can't think of a useful way to translate it, but I've left Kaede's "de gozaru" implied in the way she talks. Again, do let me know what you think about this - I'm open to ideas on how to deal with this particular problem. Oh, and attack titles I've left in either Japanese or Japanese phonetic expression, a la vol.6 of Del Rey's manga translation. You'll see what I mean as you read.

Anyway, back to the action. Hope you enjoy!


Chapter Nine: Out of the frying pan...

There was nothing she could do. Nothing. Konoka slapped away the first set of hands with a force born of desperation, but she couldn’t defend herself from three directions at once. The second and third costumed demons grabbed an arm each, and she was wrenched up and away from Asuna, helpless in the demons’ vice-like grip. She tried fighting, but the only reaction from her captors was to lift her bodily off the ground so she swung between the two of them. She kicked out sideways, scoring hit after hit, but with no effect. The demons didn’t even make a sound as they turned mechanically and began to stalk through the detritus of the explosions. Asuna’s limp body was completely ignored.

Konoka struggled wildly, and without thinking about it, took a deep breath of the smoke-laden air, filling her lungs.

“ASUNA!” she screamed. “WAKE UP!”

Asuna twitched, her hand flexing as if reaching for her vanished harisen. Konoka’s heart leapt. Had it worked? She wasn’t allowed time to find out. Even as she stared intently at her fallen friend, the ringing in her ears increased, and her vision blurred. It was as if she was staring down a tunnel, the entrance getting further away with every passing second. The smoke, she realised. Filling your lungs with drugged smoke… not a good idea. Her muscles went slack and the darkness surrounding her vision crept steadily inwards. She couldn’t even struggle anymore.

Suddenly the grip on her right arm vanished and she felt herself drop, swinging down and to the side, held only by her left shoulder. Then that vanished too and she collapsed to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Barely conscious now, she fought to keep her eyes open.

“What…? Who…? Secchan…?” Her voice was a hoarse whisper, fading as the sleeping drug claimed her.

Something moved at the edge of her constricted vision, and the pinkish blur of a concerned face staring into her own appeared. But the battle against sleep had gone on too long, and she could fight no longer. Konoka’s leaden eyelids closed and she slid into darkness at last. As consciousness slipped away the last thing she heard was a distant voice.

“Konoka-dono?”

*****

A mile away, hidden in the dense bushes of one of Mahora’s many parkland areas, Fujiwara Mari fought the growing urge to scream. Her legs were numb from kneeling in the same position for too long, her hair had turned into some sort of twig-filled birds’ nest, and to cap it all, someone was killing her demons. She jammed the tips of her fingers against her temples and massaged furiously, trying to keep her concentration. Even this close to the scene of battle, maintaining control over multiple simultaneous summonings required hideous amounts of willpower, and it was getting harder and harder to function. Every time one of her demons was exorcised, it was Mari who got the mental backlash. If she lost control, who knew what would happen?

She screwed her eyes shut and pressed one hand against her transponder earpiece. “What the hell is going on?”

There was a long static-filled silence before Sugiyama replied. “It’s hard to make out through the smoke…”

“Don’t give me that! Just tell me what you can see!”

“They’re fighting. The target’s previous defender has fallen, but two more are fighting for her now. They’re good.”

“I know they’re good,” Mari growled. “I feel it every time they take out one of my agents, remember? Why don’t you do something?”

“Like what?” Sugiyama’s voice was the epitome of sweet reasonableness.

“Like lend a hand!”

There was another pause. “Fujiwara-san, I am just one mage. Of the two fighting your demons, one is without doubt a martial arts grand master, and the other is plainly a ninja. Even through the smoke I know a ninja clone technique when I see one. I was told my role here was to observe, and observe I shall. What on earth did you think I could do against two such opponents?”

Mari clenched her fists so hard that the nails dug into her palms. He was right of course. They had chosen this plan of attack with the hope of avoiding actual battle. If there was enough panic and confusion, she had reasoned, Konoe’s inevitable protectors would be distracted, giving her a window of opportunity to snatch the little princess herself. The smoke was a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it would serve to hide whatever transpired from the rest of the campus. On the other, it would confuse and incapacitate anyone caught up in it. The drug had been Sugiyama’s idea. But it seemed that Konoe’s bodyguards were better than she had expected. Better than she had hoped, at any rate. No wonder her first strike had been so ineffective. Sugiyama on his own really would make no difference at all. Not that it made her feel any better to admit it.

“Yeah…,” Mari muttered. “Well…”

Sugiyama cut her off. “Wait!”

“Huh?”

“Konoe’s not moving. Looks like the drugs finally did their job.”

“She is?! Wait… drugs? Plural?”

“One in the smoke, one in the ramen. Konoe buying food at the cover stall was too good an opportunity to miss. I slipped her and the red-head a little extra something. Just to make sure.”

Mari ground her teeth together. The man didn’t even have the simple humanity to sound pleased with himself. Still… this was still her operation, and if it succeeded, she would be the one reaping the credit, not Mr. Perfect out there hiding behind the counter of his little ramen stall. It was a risk, but it might just work. She nodded to herself.

“All right. Stay there. Let me know if anything new happens. I’ll try sending in the big guns.”

“Understood.”

The connection clicked off, and Mari took a deep breath. If things had been hard to hold together before, they were going to be positively nightmarish now. She winced as she felt another of her demons vanish back into the ether at the hands of Konoe’s two guardians, but forced herself to ignore the pain. She had more important things to deal with. Reaching into her shirt she produced a stack of charms, each marked by a beautiful calligraphy inscription. She spread them on the ground before her, fanned out in a gentle arc, then closed her eyes and held her hands out over the charms at shoulder height, palms downward.

Her lips moved in a silent incantation and a red light arose from the papers, illuminating her race with an angry glow. The calligraphy strokes seemed to writhe and twist like snakes amidst the redness, and Mari’s face twisted into a snarl, teeth bared, eyes scrunched shut as tight as they would go. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead and ran down her cheeks. Finally she flung her head back and gave vent to a wordless howl of effort and pain. As if in answer the charms caught fire, and the black ink strokes rose up out of the red flames, twisting and turning in the heat. As one, they flared white for a split second, then vanished.

*****

In the confusion of billowing smoke, demons were dying. Kuu Fei pivoted gracefully on one foot, then stamped down and thrust back with her elbow, putting all the force of her body weight behind the blow. The costumed demon behind her doubled up and imploded a second later in a rush of air. The martial artist couldn’t help grinning. This was the kind of fight she liked, fast and deadly, giving her every chance to use her close-range combat skills to their fullest. Kaede too was in her element. Any ninja prefers to work using concealment, and the swirling smoke could have been made for her. She moved through the wreckage of the outdoor café with the grace of a dancer, whirlpools in the ever-present fog marking the demons that fell in her wake.

The ninja swung into the cover of an overturned table and sent a shuriken winging toward an isolated demon. It connected with the back of the creature’s neck with a satisfying thunk, and the crouching figure vanished without a sound. That was the disturbing thing about the fight – the lack of noise. The demons made no sound no matter what was done to them, and the whole combat was conducted in eerie silence. Kaede’s three shadow clones briefly appeared and then vanished into the smoke once more, caught up in their own close-range, hit-and-run battles.

Caught in a moment of stillness, Kaede took the opportunity to assess her surroundings once more. She could still sense a multitude of demons around the human fighters – too many, considering how many had already been sent back to whichever hell had spawned them. A ringing sensation in her ears distracted her for a second, and the ninja frowned to herself. It seemed the drugged smoke was getting to her at last. They needed to gather Konoka and Asuna and make their escape soon.

“Kuu-dono?”

The young Chinese wasn’t in sight, but the sounds of battle marked her close proximity. “Yes? Having fun, aru ka? Demons don’t know what’s hitting them!”

“We must be leaving this smoke, Kuu-dono. Are you able to clear a path for us if this one carries our friends?”

There was a heavy thud and a swirl of air, and Kuu suddenly appeared beside the ninja, a mischievous smile on her face. “Leave it to me. Kuu Laozi could handle these enemies with eyes closed, aru yo!”

The martial arts master bounced forward, heading for the two crumpled figures that lay close by. She and Kaede had arrived on the scene too late to catch Konoka and Asuna before they passed out, but they had been protecting them ever since, fighting off any approaching demons before they could get close enough to lay hands on the unconscious pair. She had nearly made it to Konoka’s side when her knee suddenly buckled underneath her and she stumbled, only to be caught in Kaede’s strong grip.

The ninja stared at her friend, a worried frown creasing her brow. “Will you be all right? This one is starting to feel the smoke’s effects as well.”

Kuu laughed, though there was a hard edge to it. “Don’t worry. They need to do better than drug in smoke to take out Kuu Laozi!”

Kaede gazed at her a moment longer before giving a single decisive nod and turning her attention to the sprawling figures that were Konoka and Asuna. With just two fluid movements the ninja hefted her friends, carrying them one over each shoulder. Once they were secure she exchanged looks with Kuu. That was all the signal the pair of them needed, and without another word they broke into a run, the young Chinese leading the way.

Immediately three of the silent demons leapt to the attack, blocking the girls’ escape route with their bodies. It was a wasted effort. Without slackening her pace in the slightest, Kuu drew back her fist.

“Matiponchuan!”

The blow slammed through all three of the demons, instantly reducing them to their component particles. Martial artist and ninja sprinted through the spot the demons had been defending a second later, footsteps hammering on the stone flagged courtyard. That was when it happened. The sky seemed to darken and bright flashes of light suddenly cut through the fog of smoke. Both Kaede and Kuu’s heads snapped up as they felt the vast increase in killing intent at the same moment. Kaede had time to get out just one word.

“Kuu…”

Then a dark shape loomed up in front of them, fully twice the size of the demons they had been fighting. A fist rushed through the swirling smoke, and Kuu dodged to one side, spinning on one foot to direct a kick up at her new opponent. A second massive hand rushed out of the grey haze, and before she knew what had happened, the girl was lying on her back yards away, gasping for breath.

“He… he caught my kick… No one…”

Kaede froze in place, senses tingling as four more of the huge creatures appeared from the smoke’s cover to surround them. There was no mistaking that these demons were a far cry from the costumed barkers who had been their opponents. The killing intent in the air was palpable, and the skill displayed in casting down a martial artist of Kuu’s standard left the ninja in no doubt. They were in trouble. She sank into a defensive crouch, eyes flicking between the demons she could see, horribly aware of one more behind her. What would they…

There was no time her to finish the thought. As if on some silent signal, two of the demons charged forward, directly towards her. They moved terrifyingly fast, and as the distance closed, the ninja got her first good look at her new enemies. They were tall, a good twelve feet high if they were anything, with broad muscled chests, and arms so long that they hung down to their knees. Their skin was grey, a charcoal hue that blended with the smoke, highlighted with the flashes of white that were long jagged nails, and two curving horns that rose from their foreheads.

Kaede jumped back and sideways, avoiding the first demon’s claws by no more than a hair’s breadth, encumbered as she was with the bodies of her two unconscious classmates. A frantic duck saved her from the slashing backhand swing that followed the first wild swipe, but there was no way to avoid the third attack that crashed into her stomach and threw her, Konoka, and Asuna backwards into a heap several feet away. She struggled free of her friends’ bodies, only to find herself staring up at the imposing bulk of her attacker as it stood over her, fist raised to strike. There was a blur of movement, and she raised her arms to cover her face, knowing even as she did it that they would be scant protection. She flinched, anticipating the pain to come.

Which somehow didn’t arrive. Kaede blinked in surprise and lowered her guard just enough to see. A slight figure stood between her and the horned demon, limbs trembling with the effort of blocking the creature’s attack, sword blade bright against the clenched knuckles of the demon's fist. Setsuna’s voice, however, was rock steady.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Kaede-san. I’ll take it from here.”
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icha-kun
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Nobody
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I love long chapters! :w00t:
You're the best, Chigusa...
Keep the good work!
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Jessie
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KonoSetsu Fan!
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Yay! ^_^ Secchan has arrived! ^___^
Secchan will kick ass for those who hurt Kono-chan! *evil grin*
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