Love Hina - Still A Woman
Keitaro Urashima leaned against the railing of the second floor patio, and sighed. Naru Narusegawa turned to look at him, slight disgust on her face.
"You know, that's the third time you've sighed pathetically in as many pathetic minutes." She said. Urashima smiled at her, and she allowed herself to smile back. He really wasn't so bad, and she really wasn't so agitated at him. After all, they were dating...
"So what are you thinking about that's making you sigh so much?" Naru asked, running her fingers through her hair. Keitaro turned his face upward to catch the suns warm rays, taking a few minutes to phrase what he had to say.
After a few minutes, Naru began to get impatient, and Keitaro could tell. He decided to settle on a single word.
"Motoko." He said simply.
Naru slapped him upside the head, and glared at him. "Oh really, so you got me with you, and now you're after Motoko?" She asked. "Fast worker, albeit completely stupid." She said. "Motoko won't only NOT fall for you, she will kill you for suggesting whatever you're thinking about." She said. Keitaro sighed again. "You didn't listen to me." He said.
"Oh, then do explain." Naru said sarcastically.
Motoko accepted the pile of towels from Shinobu, and nodded to her. "I'll take these to the closet on the second floor." She said. Shinobu thanked her, and Motoko walked toward the stairs. As she climbed the staircase, her stomach growled lightly, yet she ignored it. She carefully reached the top, not wanting to drop the towels that Shinobu had just folded. As she walked down the hall, she heard voices on her left.
"...thinking about that's making you sigh so much?"
Motoko recognized it as Naru's voice, and continued down the hallway. She was nearing the balcony where she suspected Naru was at. A few minutes of silence, and Motoko continued walking. She was just about to cross the part of the hallway that merged with the balcony, when she heard Urashima's voice say her name.
"Motoko." He said softly, and she stopped, slipping against the wall to hear what he had to say. If it was anything perverted...
Motoko's ears were greeted by Naru's tirade, then Keitaro's tired defense. Naru seemed not to believe him, and she wondered what he was going to say.
"Well," Keitaro said. "It's like this. Remember back in the winter, when I got sick while I was supposed to be studying for exams?" He asked. Naru nodded. "Yeah, what of it?" She asked. Keitaro waved her off. "Patience, I'll come around to it." He said. He took a second to remember what he was talking about, then continued. "Anyway, so yeah, when I got sick, and everyone had their 'miracle cures'-"
"You mean the ones that almost killed you?" Naru asked, snickering.
"Yeah, them ones." He said. "Well I distinctly remember Motoko holding up a gecko and a toad, but it was the way she held them that really got to me for some reason." He said. "She held them by the legs, with just her thumb and pointer finger, with her pinky in the air. Whether she was afraid of them, didn't like the feel of them, or was just being dainty, I remember thinking that it was an incredibly woman-like gesture." He said.
Naru cut him off once again. "I'm still not seeing where this is going." She said.
"Patience young Padawan, you will, you will." Keitaro said. "So anyway, this summer, just a week ago, she was wearing the cutest tank top, and a nice pair of cut off jeans." He said. "I'm sure you remember what pair I'm talking about, for everyone commented on her appearance and said that she was starting to become more feminine." He said.
Naru nodded. "Yeah, I remember." She said. This time she didn't say anything sarcastic or snide; instead she decided to see if this idiot could connect some dots and pull something coherent out of this mass of seemingly unrelated sentences.
"Well there were a bunch more occurrences, like one time I was walking by her room, and her door was open, and I saw her combing her hair. Anyway, I didn't want to get blamed for peeping or whatever, so I hurried on." He said. "When I came back about a half hour later, she was still combing her hair." He said.
Naru raised an eyebrow, prompting him to explain himself. He did.
"Does Motoko sound like the type of chick to spend half an hour on her hair?" He asked.
Naru thought about it. "How long ago was this?"
"Umm, 'bout three days ago." He said.
Naru thought about it. Keitaro stared out over the balcony, waiting for her to speak. Finally she did.
"Okay, I admit it. I haven't a clue where you're going with all of this." She said.
Keitaro sighed, and explained himself.
"No matter how you look at it, with all the training she does, the forms she practices, the arts she tries to memorize, the old school clothing she wears, Motoko is still a woman." He said. "She might try to hide it, saying she doesn't care about boys, wearing loose clothing, older clothing, and occasionally, like last week, tight clothing, then denoting it to the hot weather, she was still trying to hide it." He said.
Naru looked at him. "And this bothers you?" She asked. Keitaro shook his head. "No, I'm not done." He said.
Naru nodded. "Okay..."
Keitaro winced. "Okay, you're probably going to hit me for this, but the truth is, Motoko is a very beautiful woman." He said. He shut his eyes, and waited for the hit. A few seconds later, when it didn't come, he carefully opened one eye.
Naru was staring at him, blushing lightly. "So? Continue!" She said.
"R-right. Um, anyway, Motoko is very, very pretty-"
"Yes, I heard that, no need to repeat it." She said flatly. "And what's the deal with the extra 'very'?"
"Huh?"
"No, nevermind. Continue." She said.
"Right, so, being a pretty girl, I started wondering why she would try to hide it." He said. "Sure, she practises swords, but that's no reason to cover yourself up, with the impression that your not attractive." He said.
"Wait, wait, how do you know Motoko thinks she isn't attractive?" Naru asked.
Keitaro smiled. "Because you were once like her." He said. Naru glanced sideways at him, not sure if she should hit him yet. "Explain." She said.
"Well, haven't you noticed, any time I look at Motoko, she blushes, then proceeds to beat the living shit out of me?" He asked.
"Yes, and that's because you're a pervert and deserve everything that comes your way." She said, matter-of-factly.
Keitaro ignored her.
"No, you were like that too." He said. "When I first came here. Although it was a little harder to get that reaction, all I had to do was look at you and smile." He said. "You, being insecure about your looks, proceeded to beat the fuck out of me, and call me a pervert."
Naru couldn't argue with him there. He was certainly correct.
"After a while, you dropped the sweater, and realized that you look pretty with or without your glasses, and your attitude, and the way you presented yourself to others changed drastically."
"And you think that this is the case with Motoko?" She asked. Keitaro nodded. "Yeah. Sure she's been working a bit more on becoming lady-like, but that isn't even the problem. She's always been lady-like, she just hasn't shown it." He said. "It's like she's suppressed it so she can become sort of gender-neutral, to focus on her training." He said.
"But the real problem, as I see it anyway, lies in the way she presents herself." He said. "She wears concealing clothing, doesn't smile, doesn't make any attempt whatsoever at being charming, or trying to present herself as a beautiful girl, it's just annoying." He said.
Naru laughed. "AHA! So just because Motoko doesn't dress in skimpy clothing, and flaunt her sexuality around, you're all pissed off!" She said.
Keitaro shook his head. "NO! Okay, that came out a bit wrong." He said. "What I really meant was, even if she keeps the baggy, concealing clothing, that's fine with me. It isn't my purpose to ogle her." He said seriously. "What I'm bugged about is, Motoko doesn't realize just how beautiful she really is, and it saddens me that her state of dress and her presentation of herself is a direct view of how she thinks she should look, or does look." He said. "Even if she kept the samurai clothing, if she would just be comfortable combing her hair around everyone else, or be comfortable with the rest of us to be able to relax for a while, then I'd be happy." He said softly. "But I always get the feeling from her that she has to keep up an air of neutrality, of slight anger. She doesn't have to, and if she knew that, then I think she'd be able to relax a bit." He said.
Naru thought about it.
"You should tell her that." She suggested.
Keitaro shook his head. "NO WAY!" He said, laughing. "It took me almost fifteen minutes to explain myself here, with you. Imagine if I had to explain all that to Motoko, I'd get so nervous that I'd probably mess it up, and have her hate me for thinking that I was trying to insult her." He said.
"Say, why do you get so nervous around her, anyway?" Naru asked. "None of us do."
"Um, have you seen her kill me on numerous occasions, for offenses both real and imagined?" He asked.
Naru laughed.
Keitaro smiled. "No, that isn't it." He said. "I get so nervous because she's such a beautiful girl, and when I see her I lose my concentration." He said. "I can't focus too well when she's around, and when I can't concentrate, I end up making a mistake, and she end's up killing me, and thinking less of me." He said.
Naru was silent, but listening to Keitaro's words, she started to suspect that he liked Motoko.
"Well, anyway the point I was trying to make was that I just wish she could be comfortable around with the small things, the feminine things, like combing her hair, or wearing whatever clothes she wants, without having to prepare excuses like "it's so hot" or anything else." He said. "I feel like I've pretty much bonded with everyone else here except Motoko." He said. "If she was more comfortable with herself, then maybe we could bond, and become something like tentative friends." He said.
"Then maybe I'll be able to tell her all of what I told you." He said.
Naru was silent for a few more minutes, and they both watched the wind rustle the treetops out in the distance.
Motoko was silent, trying to comprehend all that she had heard. So he thinks I'm pretty, but thinks that I don't show myself the way that I should...? No, not the way that I should, the way that I should be comfortable with. He thinks that I don't think I'm very attractive, when, according to him, I am.
Motoko felt her cheeks heat up, and she decided to put the towels away, and eavesdrop no more. She walked silently back the way she had come, figuring she'd go the long way around.
As she left though, she heard Urashima speak one more time.
"She hides behind baggy samurai clothes, and practises swords, tries to keep a neutral, aloof air about herself, tries to erase all evidence of her feminine side, but in reality, her armor's cracking. She's showing her beautiful face more and more everyday, every day becoming more open and comfortable with all the things she would have found unnessecary a few months ago." He said. "She might not like to show it, but she's still a woman, and a very beautiful one at that."
A/N: Just my take on Motoko's attitude, state of dress and opinion toward things like charm, caring, affection, and basically showing her feminine side. All throughout the manga though, she makes unconscious feminine choices, and they are the influences for this story. Motoko might try to hide it behind her sword, but she's still a very pretty woman. Maybe another chapter with Motoko's reaction to Keitaro's words, if I get around to it.