DISCLAMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT FOR A VIVID IMAGINATION, ALL RIGHTS TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.

Chapter 1 setting the scene

It had not been a good day for Keitaro Urishima, then again it never was. He thought that now he and Naru had been engaged for six months…

"Sigh"

" This was not my fault!" he mumbled

He rolled over in his futon and looked at the clock, it was only nine pm, damn! He just wanted some sleep as he went over the day's events in his head.

QUE FLASHBACK

Every thing was going swimmingly, the chores had been done, he hadn't been attacked once yet and he was looking forward to seeing his fiancé. She was visiting her parents and would be back any moment.

While the dorm manager was happily spacing out, there was a flurry of movement behind him, had he been aware of this he would have dodged the double whammy attack of Su and Sarah. In his current distracted state he stood no chance.

WHAMM!

"HIYAS KEITARO" Su yelled

"WHAT YA SPACING OUT FOR DORK!" Screeched Sarah

He didn't even get a chance to scream, this time he was out cold!

If anyone cared to notice he flew parallel to the ground for a change, straight through three of the apartment walls and into straight into Motoko. Suffice to say the position he landed in was a major embarrassment, (and quite pleasurable in a guilty way) for the elegant swordswoman.

"EEEEEKKKKK!"

Her scream brought the whole gang running, at this time Naru made an appearance. To see her Keitaro's head stuck between the legs of a rather undressed Motoko made her go ballistic

(In fact I don't think there are words to describe the rage, anguish and horror that she felt.)

To Motoko's horror she didn't attack Keitaro straight away, she just stared… and turned bright crimson.

"YOU!…PERVERTED BASTARD!"

Naru's scream of rage broke though her haze and Motoko screamed a scream of pure hate at Keitaro's still unmoving form.

Despite the fact that all this noise, including the yell's screams and curses of the rest of the gang failed to even cause Keitaro to twitch, he was immediately pounded to a pulp and punched into orbit!

It took him the rest of the day to get back to the dorm. Actually it took all day, as he was unconscious for most of it!

He found himself automatically going to his old room in the dorm rather than the larger master room where he and Naru had been spending their nights, "best sleep alone tonight, probably good for my health!" he mused as he walked past the common room, so wrapped up his own thoughts he failed to notice a furious Naru standing there. Motoko was also there and from the state of the two girls they had definitely attacked each other.

Keitaro's indifference to all of this and coupled with him just ignoring them made Naru snap again

"WHAT? He just ignored ME!" she thought aloud and promptly went nuclear with her fists. If it had been anyone else they would have been left as a greasy smear on the wall and nothing more.

END FLASHBACK

Keitaro shivered at the rage Naru showed and checked the padlocks he'd put on the door and ceiling hatch, he knew it would piss her off but right now he just wanted solitude.

He had made that point exceptionally clear; "FUCK OFF!" was all he had said in reply to the knock at the door, not caring if it came from any of the girls. He was unaware of the effect the shouted curse had on the girls. Kanako, Mutsumi and Shinobu all started to weep to hear such words come from his room, as for the others; face fault would not describe the impact adequately. Even the normally unflappable Haruka dropped her cigarette with a startled gasp; this was not good at all.

As his thoughts slowed he finally fell into a restless sleep… It was in the early hours that he started awake, sweating and feeling both fear and shock.

"Where did those come from?" he rasped to the darkness. "Fuck! Something just isn't right with me!" He whispered hoarsely. There was no hope of him getting any more sleep tonight that was for sure. If anyone had seen him his face appeared as a mask and a thousand yard stare had set itself in his eyes his mind was racing as he remembered the vivid…. dreams? Seeing as it was half three in the morning he knew he wasn't going to be up to much later that day, and that was a thought he definitely didn't like.

NEXT MORNING…

Naru was still fuming at him over the breakfast table, everyone else seem subdued, even the normally excitable Su sat quietly. Keitaro's entrance to the scene provoked a few startled gasps from the group.

Though they had seen him look worse for wear after many an all night studying session his appearance was in a whole different category. Naru's anger was immediately replaced by horror at her own actions and deep concern for her fiancé, if anything she was frightened at his haunted visage.

"Kei-kun what's wrong?" Naru asked with a quiver in her voice, this wasn't her Keitaro before her.

"No sleep" he replied, the look that flashed through his eye's told her that there was more to this than he was prepared to say.

Naru's temper flared up again, although it was tempered with concern

" You're not telling me everything are you? Why not?" After they had gotten engaged they had agreed to tell each other everything that was on their mind, no secrets between them.

"I couldn't tell you even if I wanted to! I can't explain it and I don't want this going any further!" he snapped back harshly. The whole room went quiet at this, Naru's fist balled.

The blow didn't land, instead Naru just burst out crying, she nearly hit him but the anguished look on his face as he said those words convinced her that this was something she could not do, on top of that he was crying.

The rest of the gang went berserk; this was not something they had expected at all. Before long Keitaro got up and walked out, in complete silence, with the same anguished look on his face. They didn't see him for the rest of the day.

For the next two days it felt in the dorm that Keitaro was gone, although they had seen him several times he backed off from them with a look on his face that suggested he absolutely loathed himself.

Naru obviously took this very hard, she just couldn't match this distant, cold Keitaro to the Kei-kun she had come to know and love.

On the third day Keitaro seemed more or less back to his old, klutzy state, although it was plain that something was on his mind.

"Naru?" he whispered as he touched her hand at breakfast, she recoiled at the touch at first, but soon lovingly embraced his hand with hers. " Look I know I've been acting strange lately, I don't want to hurt any of you"

"Then what's up, Sempai" Shinobu asked quietly.

" I've not been able to sleep since you all attacked me the other day, but" he raised his hand to silence their inevitable reaction, at this Naru just stared at him, not sure as to hug and kiss him or to launch him into orbit. " Its not you, I've been having some very horrific nightmares, which I don't want to elaborate on further. So please just allow me this much as I try to piece this together." The last part wasn't so much as a plea as more of an order.

At this moment his chair leg gave way causing him to fall, grabbing Naru and pulling his shocked fiancé onto of him. The assembled girls sweat dropped at this, he had managed to grab hold of Naru's breasts as he fell, and the end result was a Naru-Punch! This was more like Keitaro.

For the next few days' life returned to normal at the Hinata Apartments, if there is such a thing with the residents of this place. Keitaro was sporting a few more injuries as of late, proving to the girls that he was over his "emo" stage. He had even returned to the master bedroom with Naru, and was starting his third night in there again.

This unfortunately was not to last as about three am:

"NOOOOAAAAHHHHHRRRRRRGGGG!"

The howl (was it rage or pain they would never know) that shook the very foundations of the hot springs town brought every member of the household bursting into the room, most of the girls were ready to attack Keitaro on sight, even Haruka had here harisen out when they noticed that Keitaro was sat bolt upright with a look of terror on his tear streaked face.

" Kei-kun, Kei-kun what is it? Was it another nightmare?" Naru was holding him close with a look of distress on her face, cheeks wet with tears. Keitaro for his part continued staring straight through the assembled crowd of now concerned onlookers.

" They were dead, all of them, and I could do nothing to stop it?" he turned to Naru as he said this, his voice cracked and a look in his eyes that spoke of broken sanity, "even you!" at which point he embraced Naru as if he feared to loose her.

Naru had no words to counter this and just started sobbing on Keitaro's bare shoulder. She could do nothing to help him, nothing at all.

The gathered crowd murmured amongst themselves and decided to let this sorry episode pass unquestioned and slowly dispersed.

It seemed as though Naru's presence had a calming effect on Keitaro as a warm light entered his eyes, although they didn't know it the ensuing tenderness and passion of that night was the last either of them was to experience with each other for nine months

The next morning there was a letter in the mail addressed to Keitaro, it was good for them all that he didn't open or read it in front of them as he usually would, why, he recognised the handwriting on it, and the fact it was in English. At the sight of it, his usual cheerfully confused expression changed to something all together darker, in fact the look of realisation and focus on his face scared even Motoko and Haruka.

"I'm going to need some privacy, this involves family. I'm sorry Naru this also means you" his voice was grave and stern at this point, there was no arguing with this request, it was final. As they all sat aghast at his mood swing they heard the sound of the padlock on his old room snapping shut.

"Well shit! I don't like this one bit, I've never seen him like this!" Haruka's voice started out as it usually did, nonchalant but ended with a sob. At this everyone in the common room shuddered, Haruka normally didn't seem to get affected by the entire goings on, but something about Keitaro's behaviour had completely disturbed her.

The content of the letter would never be known, he burned it as soon as he had read it. It all made sense to him now, the dreams, the feelings; he would now be able to tackle this head on. All of this he was thinking of as he wrote down letters, explaining that he had to go away for quite some time, and for them not to get worried or angry with him it was something he just had to do…

As he left he checked once more that everything was in order, he had left envelopes or all the girls containing a short letter and in both Haruka's and Naru's envelopes he left cassette tapes as well explaining that he couldn't say why he was leaving but that he would be back this was a promise.

If the lone pair of eye's watching him from the balcony could have seen his face, they would not have recognised the man she loved. The predatory grin and steely gaze set on his features as he saw the author of the letter at the bottom of the steps… The two of them greeted each other as only their kind could and left together in an unmarked black van. With that Keitaro was gone from her life.

"THAT FUCKING BASTARD!" Was all Naru could scream as he left.

Later that morning, or should that be mourning, judging by the atmosphere in the house the residents had all read the letters and in certain cases listened to the final words Keitaro was going to say for a long time the anger was palpable.

"When that asshole gets back I'm going to murder the bastard" growled Shinobu, this of course surprised every one but it was understandable given the circumstances. It was Haruka who first came to defend the absent landlord, "Naru, you listened to the tape he left you didn't you"

Naru by way of reply broke down again, "Yes, several times" she hissed with venom for her "fiancé" dripping from every word, "I just wish he would die!" the words were barely audible.

Taken aback at the sheer anger within her Haruka waited to allow her to simmer down somewhat. After a verbal tirade that would have made Roy Chubby Brown flinch she waited quietly for what Haruka had to offer,

"Did you hear the sound in his voice," it wasn't a question it was a statement, "he really didn't want to do this, but he didn't have a choice" Haruka burst into tears at this, she didn't know why but she got the feeling they wouldn't see him ever again. She said as much through her tears and was being comforted by Motoko, of all people she also saw the truth in what had been said, both verbally and written.

For all of them the next six months went by very, very slowly, for Keitaro however things started moving at a very rapid pace, in fact things spiralled into chaos far sooner than planned.