Hanabi, by Midori Sakura

Summary: Young Setsuna Sakurazaki has never seen fireworks before. On a exceptionally warm August day, Konoka Konoe feels that it's up to her to make sure she's the one to watch those beautiful bursts of light with her friend.

I don't own Setsuna and Konoka, but I do, however, own Kumiko, who makes a brief appearance in this story. This is my second fanfic on this account, and my first Negima story. In my opinion, KonoSetsu is the cutest thing ever.

Enjoy the story. Reviews are highly appreciated!

It was unusually hot and humid at the Konoe residence. Of course, it was known to be hot and humid at this time in August, but that didn't prepare the young girl wandering about the gardens for the inevitable sleepiness that would ensue. It was a rather quiet afternoon, and the small steps the girl took could be heard by anybody around.

The five-year-old dragged a tree branch behind her as she walked, which scratched against the gravel, weeds, and tiny wood chips on the ground below. Her zori thumped softly against the wooden planks of the bridge that led to the part of the yard where the giant willow tree was. She loved the willow for all that it was—she could play under it whenever she was allowed outside, it kept her nice and cool on sunny days like this one, but the most important reason she loved this tree was that it was her and Konoka's secret world.

Smiling to herself, Setsuna unconsciously picked up speed and half walked—half skipped—to the weeping willow where she knew her friend was. Sure enough, when she reached its protruding roots and ducked under the low branches, she caught a glimpse of Konoka wading in the shallow pond in close proximity to the tree.

"Secchan!"

"Kono-chan!"

Setsuna hardly had time to react before Konoka ran towards her and grabbed her hand. "Hey, Secchan, you're finally here! I have a big surprise for you!"

Her eyes sparkled and smile widened at the sound of the news. "Ehh? Really?"

Konoka giggled and nodded her head. "Yeah, but it's going to be at nighttime so we have to wait a little longer." Seeming to notice the stick in her friend's hand, her curiosity took over and soon her surprise for Setsuna temporarily slipped from her mind. "What's that for?"

Cheeks growing a light pink, Setsuna peered at the stick. "I thought I should bring it in case of wolves or bears or something."

"Silly Secchan, there aren't any of those in the garden. Come on, let's play!" Konoka began pulling her towards the pond.

Setsuna hesitated slightly. "Kono-chan, are you sure we can play in the water today?"

However, there was no response from the other girl. She was too busy grinning and guiding Setsuna to the edge of the pond to answer. Deciding to trust Konoka's judgment for the day, she happily followed her into the soothing, wet sanctuary.

---

It was not until the girls had finished playing in the pond and eaten their fill of strawberries and watermelon on the back porch that Konoka began to feel funny. In fact, she was in the middle of telling Setsuna a story about a kitten that could roller skate when her stomach began to hurt. Stopping mid-sentence, Konoka frowned and remained motionless, a look of utter discomfort on her face.

Setsuna was keen on noticing something was wrong. Worriedly, she looked at Konoka with concern. "Kono-chan, what's the matter?"

"Secchan," she whined, "I…" Konoka's stomach felt like it was being squeezed, shaken and turned upside down at the same time. Before crying out as something inside her constricted painfully, she was able to choke out the words, I want Kumi-neechan!

Seeing Konoka in such a terrible state almost brought Setsuna to tears as well. She was caught between staying with her and running to go find someone to help. Her mind was made up as she saw Konoka curl up on the floor and hold her stomach tearfully. After blurting out that she would be back in a flash, Setsuna darted off in search of anybody in the Konoe household that could help Konoka.

Kumiko, an instructor at the Folk music school, was a pretty, young woman about the age of nineteen. Between classes, she would sometimes help watch over Konoka and Setsuna, so it was no doubt that she had grown emotionally attached to the children as well as the other way around. Both Konoka and Setsuna felt comfortable around Kumiko, and Kumiko was always happy to see them.

She was sitting in one of the rooms reading a book when all of a sudden—

"Kumiko-san!"

She turned to the source of the yell and saw a frantic Setsuna running towards her. "Setsuna-chan, what is it?"

Setsuna paused to catch her breath, but she couldn't seem to force enough air into her lungs. She knew she was wasting precious time, so she continued to speak anyway. "Konoka's sick," she told her. She didn't know what was really wrong with her, but to Setsuna, she didn't look too well.

A worried frown appeared on Kumiko's face. "Oh no, where is she?"

"She's in the room in front of the garden," said Setsuna, gasping. She already felt kind of tired from the autumn heat, and running around the house didn't help one bit. Kumiko was already heading down the hallway towards the place where Konoka was, and Setsuna followed her out. Something churned anxiously inside of her. She hoped Konoka was okay.

---

In her rush to find an adult figure for Konoka, Setsuna had unintentionally snagged her hair ribbon on…something, and it was pulled off. She hadn't noticed she was gripping it tightly in her left hand as she sat on the floor next to Konoka's futon, watching the sleeping girl intently. Her left palm was hot and sweaty from her strong grip.

She felt a little better when Kumiko consoled her and told her that Konoka merely had a stomach ache. It was nothing deadly. However, her heart still went out to her best friend, who was hurting and she could do nothing about it. So, she did all that she could. She sat down right next to Konoka and refused to part with her.

It had been about an hour, and sitting still for so long made Setsuna's knees hurt. She loosened her posture a bit. She sighed. There was nothing to do.

Crawling over to the window, Setsuna peered outside. The sky was slowly turning orange and the trees outside made scary shadows on the ground below. She decided to put her hair back in her side ponytail. Setsuna skillfully wrapped her ribbon around her hair and tied a neat little knot to hold it together.

After watching over Konoka for a while longer, Setsuna yawned. She was very sleepy. She rubbed her eyes.

I can't go to sleep now, she thought, I have to make sure Kono-chan's okay.

A couple more minutes passed, and Setsuna was drifting off to sleep. Every so often she would begin to nod off, but then catch herself and jerk awake again. No, I can't sleep, she would think to herself. I have to watch Kono-chan. I have to…

Kumiko returned to the room to find Setsuna curled up on the ground next to Konoka, fast asleep. She smiled at the loyalty of the young girl to her friend. Being careful not to wake either of the sleeping five-year-olds, she tucked Setsuna inside the futon next to Konoka.

"Poor dears," she whispered to herself. "I was hoping they would be awake for the fireworks show tonight."

---

Being a light sleeper, Setsuna would usually awaken at the slightest noise or disturbance. This is why, when the first explosion cracked through the air, she bolted upright in the futon. It took a moment before she could shake off that awful feeling of disorientation and look around the room. Another loud crack sounded from outside, making her jump in surprise.

Something caught her eye. The shining wooden floors of the room reflected multicolored flashes of light. Following the source of the mysterious light and loud noises, Setsuna scrambled out of the tangles of the blanket wrapped around her and went to the window.

Her mouth opened in fascination at what she saw in the sky. Rainbow bursts of…something illuminated the evening sky overhead. It was like nothing Setsuna had ever seen before in her life. It was an enthralling moment—she was a bit intimidated by the horrible snarl of the lights in the sky, but at the same time it was beautiful! Setsuna stood by the window, standing on her toes to try and take in as much of the sight as possible.

Meanwhile, Konoka stirred slightly in her sleep. At the next bang of the fireworks, she blinked her eyes open. It didn't take long for her to recognize the noise as fireworks. Those were the fireworks she was supposed to watch with Secchan! Jumping out of bed quickly, she found Setsuna by the window.

"Kono-chan!" Setsuna cried in surprise. "You're awake. Your stomach, is it feeling better now?"

Konoka nodded, but there was an undeniable feeling of disappointment inside her. Peering out the window, she saw the grand finale of the sky show before it all disappeared. The sky consumed the pretty lights and lay darkness in its place. The only remaining light came from the gleaming stars. The moon was nowhere to be found.

The liveliness the fireworks brought was gone now, and silence filled the room. The two children stood together, looking out the window as if searching for any trace of the colored lights. There was nothing, and this realization struck Konoka's heart deeply.

"Hey, Kono-chan," Setsuna spoke, noticing her friend's forlorn expression, "now what's wrong?"

Konoka burst into tears suddenly and turned to face Setsuna. "Secchan! Those fireworks… I was supposed," she let out a sob, "to watch them with you!"

"Fireworks," repeated Setsuna quietly. "Oh! That's what those lights were."

Nodding again, Konoka sniffled. "I wanted us to watch them together, under our tree! Secchan never saw fireworks before, so I wanted to show them to you!"

Whenever Konoka was sad and crying, Setsuna always felt a bit of her emotions inside herself, too. She reached out and hugged Konoka, and she felt her snuggle close to her. "Don't cry, Kono-chan. The fireworks…I saw them all! They were beautiful."

Swallowing thickly, Konoka pulled away from Setsuna's embrace and met her gaze. "Were they, Secchan?"

"Mm! All the colors…they were very pretty."

Soon enough, Konoka rubbed the last of her tears away and began to giggle. "Then I'm happy," she said, smiling at Setsuna.

"Kono-chan, let's watch the fireworks together next time," Setsuna told her. She, too, was grinning.

The two girls spent the rest of the night laughing and spending time with one another. Although Konoka's surprise for Setsuna didn't go as planned, and some tears were shed, the day ended on a happy note. Konoka never felt sad when Setsuna around, and Setsuna was always happiest when spending time with her best friend, Konoka.