KEITARO'S JOURNEY TO HELL
A Love Hina fanfic
Written by Axel Terizaki (aterizak@free.fr), 2001 March 12th-May 21st.
Retooled by Dave Watson (aj153@freenet.carleton.ca), 2001 6 05-16.
NARU's Diary: http://www.narudiary.free.fr
ASUKA's Notebook: http://asukanotebook.tsx.org
-= Chapter Two: Havoc at Hinata-sou! SPEECHLESS! =-
The entrance doors of Hinata-sou banged open loudly as a light
brown blur whizzed through them at high speed. Mitsune's hair tousled
from the wind the blur caused, and she landed on the floor after losing
her balance from the shock wave.
"W...Wasn't that Naru!?"
She followed the dark trace of the blur on the ground, up to the
stairs.
"What's going on?"
Walking up the stairs, she headed for Naru's room.
"Naru! Naru!" she called out as she knocked on her door. She
could have opened it directly, since that seemed to be part of her
nature, but the Japanese generally aren't the kind of people who dig
into others' privacy that directly, and Mitsune was no exception.
"Go away, Kitsune! I don't want to talk to anyone!"
"Huh? What happened? How did the exam go? Why are you back
here so soon?" She wanted to ask her even more questions than that,
but, judging by her best friend's behaviour, she thought it wise to
limit them to just those.
"Please? Pretty please?"
Still no sound whatsoever. Mitsune just stared at the door in
front of her and thought about Naru's plea to leave her alone.
"Okay, okay...will you at least tell me what's going on?"
Mitsune grew impatient at this point.
"Naru?"
"M...Maybe later."
"Oh, well..."
Mitsune sighed.
"Come on, Naru..."
"..."
"Was the exam that hard?"
"..."
"Okay, we can talk about this later. Just don't be too hard on
yourself, okay?"
Naru remained quiet. She didn't really know what to say. She
just hoped that Mitsune would leave her be for a while so she could
think in peace.
"I'll see you later, then. Take care," Mitsune eventually said
before going downstairs. Even she had to admit that this was pretty
bad. She decided to see Aunt Haruka and tell her about this. This was
too unreal...as if some of the things that happened before at Hinata-sou
weren't unreal enough already.
'Kitsune, you don't know anything...' Naru just thought, almost
out loud, as she sat against the side of her bed, her face sunken into
her knees.
She had to think about all this...
* * *
There was a knock at the door.
"Naru..." called Haruka, an edge of concern discernible in her
voice. After all, she was the only real adult around, which was why
Mitsune asked her to talk to her best friend.
"Go away."
"Naru, what happened?" The oldest lady (even if no one dared
refer to her like that) of Hinata-sou was trying to inquire about the
fact that Naru just came back home only 30 minutes after the beginning
of her and Keitaro's mock exam. This was pretty strange, considering
that the exam was supposed to last for three hours. Either she had been
way too exasperated by the questions and left, knowing she wouldn't get
a good mark anyway, or she had a problem. Haruka knew that this wasn't
her first mock exam, which meant that the first possibility was clearly
unlikely.
The door to Narusegawa's room finally opened, revealing the
young woman, still in her 'study' sweater and track suit. Her face was
a mess; probably from tears, Haruka guessed, since her eyes were
slightly red.
"Naru?" Haruka asked, after closing the door behind her. An
uncomfortable silence followed.
"...I'm lost," Naru finally muttered.
"'Lost'? Why did you come back before the exam was finished?"
"I didn't feel well at all."
"Huh?"
Haruka then took a look around the room, and noticed various
books laying around the floor in a manner that made it obvious that Naru
had been reading them very recently. Her eyes widened as she noticed a
small box on the floor, with an open pamphlet with different colour
codes next to it. She made a small grimace as she realized what this
was all about. She then took her cigarette out of her mouth, which she
rarely did.
"You're not...?"
"..." Naru didn't speak, since she was too scared to say the
words herself.
* * *
Keitaro was slowly walking up the stairs of Hinata-sou, a hint
of worry on his face. Naru leaving her seat so early during an exam was
something he never thought would ever happen. He was a bit confused
because of that.
'Why did Narusegawa run out of the test centre so suddenly? It
must be my fault...' he thought. He was so used to Naru accusing him of
every bad thing that could happen to her that it was the only answer he
could think of. The incident one month ago was perhaps the apotheosis
of the growing list of trouble Naru had been in since Keitaro arrived.
* * *
Haruka left Naru's room a little later and paused near the door,
her back against the wall, looking towards the ceiling.
"Kids these days..."
She then headed to the living room downstairs, where the others
were waiting.
* * *
Mitsune's foot tapped on the floor. She was worried about Naru,
due to the fact that she was refusing to talk to anyone, let alone
herself, her best friend. She and Naru had been together since junior
high, and were two of the first tenants of Hinata-sou.
"What can they be talking about? I never heard of Naru leaving
a test centre until the very end of the exam," Mitsune said, two fingers
under her chin, still trying to figure out what could have happened.
"I don't know, Mitsune-san. I have to admit that I am worried
as well," Motoko declared, having a very bad feeling about all this.
"Maybe she just got overwhelmed by the questions? Maybe it was
too hard for her?" Shinobu tried to find a more optimistic explanation
for this. Everyone was taking Naru's behaviour quite seriously, since
all this was rather unusual for her. Suu just played with a handheld
game, crying joyfully as she scored more and more points. Even though
she was just as worried as everybody else--after all, she was waiting
there with them--she was as irrepressible as ever.
As Haruka's footsteps resounded upstairs, they all got up from
their seats. The woman slowly walked down the stairs, her hand on the
bannister. She took a drag from her cigarette while she and the group
faced each other, and then finally spoke.
"So? Aren't you going to ask me about anything?"
"We were waiting for you to speak first, Haruka-san," Motoko
replied.
"I hope it's not too serious! What if she's ill or something
worse?" Shinobu began to panic a bit. After seeing Haruka's solemn
expression, her morale suddenly dropped for some unknown reason. The
overall atmosphere around Naru recently was enough to drive some people
crazy and make them imagine possible scenarios about what was going on.
Some pretty unbelievable scenarios, sometimes, but seldom the right
ones. And the girls at Hinata-sou were quite good at drawing early
conclusions.
"I think all of you should sit down before I begin. This is
going to be...quite interesting, if I may say."
Everyone silently obeyed the woman and sat back down in their
seats before turning to face her again as one.
"Okay. Now, you all remember what happened two months ago?"
Haruka began, as she took a seat at the end of the table herself.
"That new anime Naru has been watching?" proposed Mitsune.
"No." She shook her head.
"The fact that Japan won against the US in that worldwide
baseball championship?" suggested Shinobu. Even if this was something
she wasn't interested in at all, the media had been discussing it a lot
lately. No one could possibly avoid that fact, as Japan felt very proud
of its baseball team.
"No, not that, either."
"Naru-sempai and Urashima's accidental sexual intercourse?"
inquired Motoko, with her characteristic mix of deeply formal speech and
unflinching honesty.
"Yep," Haruka simply replied.
"What about it!?" Mitsune excitedly asked. When there was a
problem with those two, it HAD to be very interesting. And Mitsune
loved it when things got interesting around Hinata-sou.
"Naru-sempai must have been traumatized by that. How can this
be possible?" Shinobu asked, too, worriedly; she knew that Naru normally
didn't let things get the better of her, but this was definitely not
normal.
"That bastard...!" Motoko drew her sword slightly from its
sheath.
"Actually, it's not quite that." Haruka interrupted the girls,
not quite sure if she should tell them now that she saw how everyone was
already reacting...
"What is it, then?"
Haruka looked up a little and drew on her cigarette again. The
suspense nagged at the girls even harder until she spoke again.
"She's pregnant."
Sudden silence.
"EEEEEEEHHHH!!?" all the girls, including the seemingly video-
game-occupied Suu, cried in unison, obviously quite shocked by the news.
A voice could be heard from outside the living room.
"Tadaima [I'm home]! Is anyone here?" Keitaro said, while
opening the door to the room. The girls turned and looked at him with
various expressions on their faces. Mitsune had her eyes open, which
was quite rare. Shinobu had her hands over her mouth in shock, while
Suu just kicked her handheld game system.
"Damn, I was about to finish that game!" She looked at Keitaro
with a frown on her face, as if he was responsible for her losing her
game. Everyone else just ignored her, too focussed on Keitaro.
"Bad timing, Keitaro..." Haruka softly said.
"What are you talking about, Haruka-san?" Keitaro said,
scratching the back of his head.
"You..." Mitsune began.
"...BASTARD!!" Motoko finished, drawing her sword and instantly
cutting the table in half. Keitaro's instinct told him to run, and run
fast. His body carried out that order double-time, his brain
emphasizing saving himself over trying to figure out what was happening.
"Aaaah, I'm sorry!!! I didn't do anything!!"
Motoko, Mitsune and Suu chased him around Hinata-sou. Various
explosions could be heard as Motoko unleashed all the power she had
mastered after all those years of training on their poor kanrinin.
Shinobu was the only one still in the living room with Haruka.
"Haruka-san, is that true? Is Naru-sempai..."
"I had a talk with her and we agreed that I'd tell everyone
about it. She isn't feeling well at all and wants to be left alone for
now."
"How can this be possible..." Shinobu began to panic a bit at
the thought of what Haruka just announced. Such a thing happening at
Hinata-sou...it was just too serious to be true.
"I guess accidents can happen. Now both of them will have to
deal with the consequences and Keitaro will have to take
responsibility."
"Responsibility? Oh, god...but what is she going to do now?"
Haruka didn't reply, since she was still organizing her own
thoughts about the whole matter. Only Keitaro and Naru can really do
anything about all this, but will he make the right decisions and act
like a man? And what will Naru do? You'll soon know in the next
chapter...
Just kidding :)
* * *
L O V E H I N A - Keitaro's Journey To Hell
Powered by EDIT.COM, Winamp and Coca-Cola(TM) :P
* * *
Flashback to Naru's room, when Haruka was talking with her. The
older woman was sitting next to Naru, on her bed.
"What did I do to deserve this, Haruka-san? You've always been
there with Mitsune and I. Can't you help me?"
"Unfortunately, only you and Keitaro can really resolve this
problem," Haruka explained. "Neither Mitsune nor I can do that much
this time."
"But this is all new for me! One unusual night, and suddenly I
have tons of problems on my shoulders! And what am I supposed to do
now!? I won't be able to participate to Tokyo U's entrance exam in
seven months! I can't go back home. I have nowhere to go...I don't
want this...this child." Naru seemed reluctant to say those last words,
unable to believe that she would ever have to. She then slowly put her
head against her knees again, just wanting to be left alone.
"The weight of reality is hard to carry, isn't it?"
"You should say that to Keitaro! Always living in the dream of
that promise! Always thinking about it! Did he ever think about me
when he did what he did!? Of course not! He's always thinking of that
girl from his childhood! Maybe she doesn't even exist!" She pictured
herself screaming those thoughts right into the ear of a scared-to-death
Keitaro...
"Aren't you responsible, too?"
Naru just looked at her feet, unable to reply for a few seconds.
"Y...yes, you're right. I'm responsible for this, too..." she
muttered, her tone completely different from her earlier anger and
desperation.
"This is his *and* your fault, so both of you are going to deal
with the consequences."
"But...why me? I never did anything bad to deserve this...he,
on the other hand...he's just a low-life, a lecher, a pervert..."
Naru paused for a few seconds, sobbing a bit.
"...and a rapist."
Haruka just shook her head.
"You feel raped? Well, it's understandable, but what are you
going to do? Sue him? All the other girls told me that you were the
one who dragged *him* into the bedroom by the arm."
"No, I can't do that, obviously. I'd never have the guts to do
such a thing to him. Besides, if I did that, then, obviously, I wasn't
unwilling...ack! I don't even *remember* what exactly happened. Just
bits and pieces here and there. That idiot...he might be a jerk, but I
know..."
She paused on the edge of that sentence, and Haruka finished it
for her.
"You know that he really is kind-hearted, when all is said and
done."
"...yes, maybe," Naru quickly concluded. She had agreed to
discuss the matter with Haruka because she was the only real adult she
could ask for advice on these matters, but it looked like the discussion
wasn't taking the direction she wanted it to.
"Anyway...what are you going to do? Are you going home? You
said you couldn't...why don't you at least try? It can't be that bad
there."
"No way! My parents would kill me and prevent me from going to
Hinata-sou again!" She panicked and shuddered at that thought.
"I love it here too much. I have friends here, Kitsune,
Motoko-chan, Shinobu-chan, Suu-chan...I love them all...I mean, I don't
want to be forbidden to come here...I don't know what I'd do if I could
never see them again...!"
"So you're going to stay here," Haruka continued for her.
"I really want to, but I can't. I can't face him anymore. Not
before I sort things out."
Haruka had a bad feeling about what she meant by that.
"You're not thinking of getting an abortion, are you?"
Naru just shook her head. "No, no, of course not...I don't run
away from reality, like someone else I know..."
"But still, you run away from your parents." This last remark
made Naru recoil, as if a heavy rock had just hit the back of her head.
"Jeez...! I mean, I can't stay here, face everyone else and
just ignore him. I have to ignore him. I mean, I wouldn't know how to
react if I saw him. I think I don't want to see him, not because I hate
him, but...no, never mind. Forget about what I said."
"The fact that you like him isn't a secret here anymore, you
know."
"I said, never mind!" Naru snapped at Haruka.
"Okay, okay..."
There was a short pause, during which Naru looked straight
ahead, trying to figure out what to say next.
"Maybe I should try to find an apartment somewhere else, then."
She was desperately trying to find a solution to her problem, and hoped
that Haruka could help.
"And how would you pay for it? Apartment rent in this city is
far more expensive than the rooms here are. You could never afford
one."
Despite how cold that sounded, Haruka wasn't trying to
discourage Naru. She was just trying not to let her get her hopes up
too high, only to have them dashed at the worst possible time. Naru
just sighed.
"My only option is to stay here, isn't it?"
"I wouldn't know. Maybe you should talk about it with Keitaro.
You don't even know what he thinks about all this."
"I can't bother him with that. The Tokyo U entrance exam is in
a few months. He must take the exam and not worry. I'm condemned to
this now, so he'd better get in if I can't. He has better goals and a
dream to achieve. And he worked hard, too."
"Didn't you just say that his goals were stupid, or something
like that?" Haruka remarked again.
"..."
"You *are* lost, aren't you?"
"..."
"Aren't you?" Haruka insisted, in the exact same solemn tone.
"I guess I am..."
"What do you want to do about telling the others? They're
worried, and God only knows what they think is happening."
Naru thought for a while about that, and remained silent. She
was rarely that quiet, which made Haruka worry even more.
"..."
"Do you want me to tell them that you're pregnant, so that you
don't have to?"
"You would do that, Haruka-san? I would be so grateful." Naru
was visibly relieved. She was still worried about how they would take
the news, but at least the pressure to deliver it herself was lifted
from her shoulders.
"And I think I have an idea of what you could do next..."
* * *
Back to the present.
"Aaaah! Let me go, please! I haven't done anything!" Keitaro
screamed. The poor Hinata-sou kanrinin was tied by his ankles, hanging
over an enormous, hot cooking pot.
On floor level, Suu was shovelling chopped vegetables and
throwing large handfuls of spice and herbs (some of which appeared
similar to what anime scriptwriters sometimes smoke) into the pot and
stirring its contents with a big cooking ladle.
"You are going to pay for your sins, Urashima! This time, I
won't forgive you!" Motoko snarled. From where he was hanging, Keitaro
could see her in the middle of what seemed to be an intense round of
training or preparation. The fact that she was surrounded by road-works
signs which read 'DO NOT CROSS--SAFETY PERIMETER--MOTOKO'S EXPERIMENTAL
SUPER HIKEN ZANKUUSEN CHARGING UP' and were topped with flashing amber
lights just reinforced the bad feeling he was having about the whole
thing. Whatever the girls were up to this time, it had to be serious.
Mitsune walked towards the pot, and stopped to look up at
Keitaro.
'And to think that what I told him was true. I never thought
that Naru would have been that careless...' she thought.
"Kitsune-saaaan, untie me! Please!" Keitaro pleaded tearfully.
Mitsune grinned.
"No way. We're not going to let you down after what you've
done!"
"But what have I doooone!?"
"Don't play dumb with us, Keitaro!" she replied, pointing at him
accusingly.
"B-but...!!!"
The discussion was interrupted when Shinobu opened the door to
make her usual announcement at this hour...
"Everyone, dinner is ready!"
"We're comiiiiing!" squealed Suu, as she dropped the handle of
the ladle, leaving it to clank against the rim of the pot. She jumped
up and down towards the dining room, happy that there was food waiting
for her. Mitsune took a last look at Keitaro before walking out as
well, soon followed by Motoko, who gave Keitaro a venomous glare before
sliding the door shut. The poor boy was left hanging by his unanswered
questions...and his ankles.
'Why won't they tell me!? Why are they leaving me like this?'
After a few moments of thinking, he heard the door opening
again, revealing Shinobu, apparently alone.
"Shinobu-chan!?"
"Please wait, Urashima-sempai. I'll get you down from there.
Just keep quiet so everybody else won't come back right away." She took
the stepladder that Motoko left nearby when she tied Keitaro up there,
and placed it near him. She then slowly and a bit hesitantly climbed...
"Don't move..." she whispered.
Taking care, she began to slowly undo the knots in the rope
around his legs.
"Thank you, Shinobu-chan. I'm eternally in your debt!" Keitaro
managed to say through the two heavy streams of tears of relief that
cascaded from his eyes. Then his eyes suddenly went very wide before
they disappeared from view.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Poor Keitaro fell into the pot
below when Shinobu had almost completely untied him. She quickly
climbed down the stepladder and helped him out of the boiling mixture.
"Oh, no! Urashima-sempai, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!"
Keitaro slumped down on the floor, his clothes wet and his skin
notably redder than usual, due to the high temperature of the water
inside the pot.
"That's okay, Shinobu-chan..." He tried to laugh a little to
ease her worries. He was probably more afraid of her being worried or
sad than he was of Naru or Motoko being mad at him.
"You really don't know what you did, Urashima-sempai?" Shinobu
asked, a bit curious and scared at the same time. She was already a bit
shocked by the news, and didn't believe it at first, but as time passed,
she gradually began to believe...
"Wh-where is Narusegawa? She left the test room so early. It
wasn't like her at all. Is she here?" Keitaro asked, obvious concern in
his voice.
"Y-yes, she's here, I think..."
"I need to see her!" he declared as he got up from the floor,
walked very confidently towards the door and slid it open without a
word. Shinobu blushed as she thought of how manly he looked when he was
like that. She knew she didn't stand a chance against Naru for his
attention, but she didn't care at all. She started to question herself
about her crush on Keitaro. Was it love? Was it admiration? The line
between these two concepts was just a blur to her. Having never fallen
in love before, she didn't know how to react...
Shaking her head, she began to remember what was going on and
stood up.
"Sempai, wait for me!"
* * *
"Narusegawa, I'm coming in!"
Keitaro slid the door to Naru's room wide open. Usually, he
would be greeted by the sight of his study partner changing clothes and
then forcefully kicked out (literally). At best, he would be able to
get out with only a few bruises.
But no one was there this time. Actually, there was nothing in
there at all. The room was just plain empty. So empty that his voice
echoed a bit.
"What the...?"
Shinobu panted as she chased after him and then stopped in front
of Naru's room. Keitaro had taken a few steps inside, a blank look on
his face, as if he didn't believe what he was seeing, like it was a
mirage in a desert.
"Ah...sempai..."
Keitaro looked around, expecting something, anything...
"W...where is she?"
He turned around and saw Shinobu standing in the doorway. She
was looking very surprised, and a bit sad, too. The fact that she knew
more about Naru's condition than Keitaro made her worry even more about
where she was. She had only a vague idea of where Naru could possibly
be.
"...she left..." Shinobu heard herself whisper as she understood,
or so she thought.
Keitaro frantically rushed up to her, dropping to his knees to
meet her eyes, and grabbed her shoulders. His eyes were open wider than
Shinobu had ever seen them before.
"Shinobu-chan? Did you say something? Do you know where
Narusegawa is?"
"Urashima...sempai..."
"Do you know?"
"I...I don't...honest."
"Damn..." Keitaro looked down. Shinobu did the same, the
sadness etching deeper on her face.
"And no one wants to tell me what's happening..."
Shinobu didn't know what to do. Should she tell him? She was
scared, too, almost as if she was the centre of the problem herself.
Still, maybe it was because she felt close to Keitaro, and to Naru to
some extent, that she was scared. Scared that she might not see Keitaro
again. She felt stupid, having a crush on a guy who loved another
woman. Part of her wanted to take advantage of the situation and steal
Keitaro from Naru, in some way, but another part of her wanted them to be
happy, plain and simple.
"Urashima-sempai..." Shinobu was still looking down.
"Huh?" Keitaro looked up a bit, surprised.
Shinobu shook her shoulders, which made Keitaro's hands fall to
his sides. She turned back and began to walk towards the room's door.
"Shinobu-chan?"
"Urashima-sempai...promise me you'll be a good father," she said
softly before running off to her room, leaving Keitaro standing there in
Naru's empty room.
Our hero just looked blankly in front of him, the transparency
of his glasses gone, as if he was computing what Shinobu just said.
Computing, computing, computing...task complete, transmitting results to
mouth...
"...What?" was all his brain could manage to make him say.
His eyes then caught a book still laying on the floor in a
corner of the room.
* * *
"Did you forget something?"
Naru was unpacking some boxes in a room which was different from
the type in Hinata-sou. Haruka was helping her a bit by carrying the
boxes out of the room after she unpacked them.
"...I can't find it. I probably forgot it in my room..."
"Want me to go get it?"
"No, never mind. I'll get it myself," she said as she stood up
and headed outside.
She was a little nervous. She didn't really want to bump into
one of the tenants. They would want to ask her a lot of questions, and
she didn't want to answer them now. She just didn't feel ready yet,
which was one of the reasons why she asked Haruka to tell her friends
what was happening. She was grateful to the woman for freeing her of
that pressure...and for providing her with another roof to sleep under
while waiting for things to settle down a bit.
She looked at her watch, and smiled. Now was the time when most
of the people living in Hinata-sou would be eating dinner. She could
get to her room without encountering anyone. Or so she hoped.
She quietly opened the front door and went upstairs, to where
her room was. But as she opened her door, she bumped into
something...or, rather, someone. Rubbing her forehead in pain, she
opened her eyes, only to see Keitaro in a similar situation.
"Ouch...Narusegawa!?"
She was a bit shocked. Out of all the people she wanted to see
now, Keitaro was one of the last, just after her parents. Most
importantly, he was holding what she was searching for.
Her diary.
Why it was connected with Keitaro for a second time was one of
those mysteries she couldn't explain, like why they both were late on
the first day of an important exam, or how, every time they wanted to
have a serious talk, someone interrupted them. She quickly regained her
composure and stood up.
"Give me that, now."
"Narusegawa? Are you okay!?" He stood up as well, and held out
her diary, which she violently grabbed from his hands.
"Hey!"
"Goodbye," she said before turning back and running away.
"Wait!" He ran after her and grabbed her arm, stopping her in
her tracks. She tried to break out of his grasp, but to no avail.
"Let go of me!" she pleaded, tired of all this. She felt like
was going to break down if she was forced to be with him for another
minute. Still, she hoped deep within her heart that he was going to
apologize, crawl at her feet and show her how sorry he was about what
happened two months ago...
"I didn't read it this time, honest!"
This shocked Naru more than if she had actually caught him
looking at it. All he wanted to tell her was that he didn't read her
diary again!? He didn't even say sorry for the trouble he was causing
her now? That...
"...BAKA!!" she screamed, and, with a swift movement, reared
back and sent him flying through the window on their left with one of
those punch techniques only she and lots of other anime girls knew
about. She then turned around again, headed downstairs, and to her
destination:
Haruka's house, near the Hinata teahouse.
* * *
A few days passed...maybe a few weeks. Mitsune didn't really
know. Being unemployed and not really having anything to do all day, one
tends to lose track of time a bit. As she looked at the calendar in the
entrance hall of Hinata-sou, she sighed. It had just been one week since
Naru had "disappeared" from the all-girls' dormitory. Still, as panic
began to get to the girls, Haruka did a great job reassuring them that
Naru was fine, that the older woman knew were she was now, and that Naru
insisted on being left alone for now. There was nothing anyone could do.
Not even Keitaro, who insisted on seeing her because she was a tenant of
his dorm, as he said. However, Haruka made it perfectly clear to him
that going after her at this time would be purely suicidal for him.
Still, to Mitsune, it seemed more like weeks passed instead of
days. Naru was her best friend, and, even if she didn't show it much
around the others, she cared about her a lot. They were among the first
to move into Hinata-sou, and Grandma Hina had always treated them like
her own daughters. Actually, she had done this with all her tenants,
but Mitsune felt like she and Naru were her favourites.
She was worried about Naru, and the fact that she didn't have a
job now wasn't helping things at all. As she walked out the front door
to go out for some fresh air, she saw Haruka climbing up the stairs.
"Hey, Haruka-san!" she called as she waved at her. The woman
was still in her work outfit, and walked up to talk to her when she
reached the top of the stairs.
"Mitsune? Shouldn't you be searching for a new job?"
Mitsune looked kind of embarrassed and scratched the back of her
head.
"Come on, there are more important things to worry about. What
brings you to Hinata-sou this time, Haruka-san?"
"I have to talk to Keitaro. Is he here?"
Mitsune shook her head.
"No, I haven't seen him today yet. I guess he went somewhere
early this morning."
"I see...then I'll come back later. Excuse me." The woman
turned around and started walking back down the steps.
"Haruka-san, wait!"
Haruka stopped and looked back at Mitsune.
"You know where Naru is, right? Please, take me to her."
"She told me specifically that she doesn't want to see anyone in
the world except me at this point, and until you prove me wrong, you are
part of this world. You know what I mean?"
"Look, I'm her best friend. I have a right to see her, don't I?"
Haruka sighed, and then spoke to her.
"What do you think of all this?"
"What do you mean?"
"This whole mess. Don't play dumb with me."
"Oh..." Mitsune cupped her chin with her fingers and looked up at
the bright blue sky, thinking a bit...
"I guess this is unfortunate for both of them. I mean, if Naru
and Keitaro didn't like each other, do you think that they would have done
that, even drunk?"
Haruka took a drag from her cigarette.
"What's your point?"
"They would have done that sooner or later. They just should have
used protection. Both of them."
"So you're blaming Naru, too?"
Mitsune paused briefly. "Yeah, kinda. I guess it's not ALL
Keitaro's fault. Even if she's my best friend, I know when she's wrong
and when I have to support her."
"I see. Well, come with me."
Mitsune's eyes opened as she smiled to herself.
* * *
As Haruka opened the door to one of the guest rooms in her
house, Mitsune could see her friend sitting on the floor, Indian-style,
playing an old video game system.
"Naru, visitor for ya," Haruka announced. Naru immediately
turned her head around and gasped when she saw her friend standing
there.
Mitsune raised her hand a bit, as if to calm her. "Don't worry,
I won't tell the others anything. I just wanted to visit you, Naru. I
was getting worried."
"...Come in."
Mitsune carefully stepped into the room.
"I need to get back to work, so I'll leave you two alone."
Haruka then disappeared before sliding the door shut.
Mitsune looked at Naru playing her video game, and couldn't help
but notice how odd it looked, strictly because of what she knew about
Naru's condition.
"How are you feeling, Naru?"
"I went to the doctor yesterday, and he gave me a proper test.
I'm now officially pregnant. That's pretty much all I'm feeling."
"How come you're not studying? Are all your books still in
those boxes?"
Naru sighed.
"Mitsune, you KNOW I won't be able to take the entrance exam
now."
"Won't you be able to at least participate? I've never read
anywhere that a pregnant woman couldn't take one."
"It's already my second month. The exam is in February and it's
July now. What do you think that means?"
Mitsune thought about this a little. "That there are only seven
months or so left before the exam and you're due to give birth sometime
during the month the exam takes place."
"Pin pon."
"I see. So you'll take the exam next year, won't you?"
Naru seemed to think about this for a minute.
"I don't know yet. Maybe, maybe not..."
"And...what about Keitaro? Did you at least tell him about
this?"
"..."
"You didn't."
"So what? He's an idiot, he wouldn't understand."
"He might be an idiot, but he's still our kanrinin. He's always
been very understanding and he..."
Naru suddenly turned her head back towards her friend, eyes wide
open, nostrils flaring.
"Mitsune! I don't want to talk to him. I don't want to see
him. I don't even want to talk about him! Why do you think I left the
dorm!?" she replied, angrily.
Mitsune just smiled in response.
"You'll never change, Naru..."
"Hmph..."
"You look like a kid afraid of facing what she has to do."
"Ha! Would you rather be the one who's pregnant!?"
The fox lady grinned.
"Hmmm. I might ask Keitaro if he's free tonight. After all, if
you did it with him, he HAS to be good in bed, somehow..."
Naru kicked her game system and smacked the power button off
hard.
"Don't joke about that! I don't even REMEMBER how he was!" She
blushed, not entirely out of anger.
"Yeah, yeah, you probably just don't want to admit that he was
good. No one can forget that much after just a couple of bottles of
sake."
"Kitsune, you're my best friend, but if you keep talking to me
like that, you're going to leave this room sooner than you might want
to."
Mitsune just laughed.
"Come on, Naru, what's the point of not admitting the truth?"
Naru ignored her and switched her game back on, once she calmed
down a little.
"Okay, let's skip the subject. I just wanted to see how you
were doing and remind you that I'm here for you."
"...Hmm. Thanks," Naru managed to say, with not much gratitude.
"And, hmm, well, everyone at Hinata-sou's been freaking out
about you. Even Keitaro."
"You're not going to bring him up again after I told you not to,
are you?"
Mitsune thought about this for a few seconds.
"Actually...I don't know. It's just that, since he's the only
guy among us, he's kinda special and we can't help talking about him.
Since he came to Hinata-sou, everyone's changed. Shinobu pulled herself
together, Motoko became more feminine and learned how to tolerate men,
Suu has someone to kick now and looks happier than ever...and I have to
admit that he broke the monotony of my life there, too."
"..."
"What about you?"
Naru seemed to think about that for a while.
"Yeah, he changed my life, too. He got me into the deepest
trouble I've ever been in," she said, bitterly.
"Didn't he help you study for Todai, too? Even though you
failed once, he gave you some of his determination. I know that you
would have given up after that first failure if it wasn't for him,"
Mitsune said, trying to cheer her up.
"So what?" Mitsune didn't succeed.
"Oh, never mind, you'll never figure it out. I'll come back and
check on you another time, okay? I have to go look for a job now!"
"..."
Mitsune looked around a bit and headed for the door. She opened
it, took a final look at her friend, and left without another word.
After she left, Naru switched her game system off again and sat
on her bed. She picked up her old familiar stuffed Liddo-kun doll, and
hugged it tight.
"What does everybody think that my situation is so wonderful?
What should I do, Liddo-kun?"
*squeak squeak*
She stayed like that for some time, still holding the doll to
her, hoping to find the answers somewhere in the comfort it had given
her since she was a little girl. For now, all she could do was hope
that it could give back some of the love she'd given it all her life.
---
Beware of the next chapter: "Here comes a new challenger! TURTLE!"
Author's notes:
Sorry for the long delay, but lots of things happened in April, and I
couldn't really work on the fic.
Retooler's notes:
Sorry to you readers, and to Axel, for taking so long to do my thing
with it as well. I hope you all found it worth the wait.
Take care,
Axel Terizaki
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