Hello and good day for you all. Welcome to another (LOL. 'ANOTHER'. More works needed to be done) multi-chapter fanfic. But this one is... you know, not a serious story. I mean, even if the main story has ended, but I will still make more events about them. Since I fell in love with this AU. I originally wrote this fanfic (duh, of course I did) because I got an inspiration from an original doujin. Story was written from an awesome author (since the story is so touching and beautifully developed). I was thinking "What if the pairing was from LL charas?", and this happened.
I make Honoka's hair down in this story. As for Maki's, imagine that Maki is a bit taller (just a little, since she's older on Honoka) with her hair grow longer and tied up loosely on the middle, and it is placed on her front (You know, like the UR card on SIF, in where she was wearing an apron). Sorry I'm bad on describing hair models •_•
That said, please enjoy the story as always. Guess a little OoC won't hurt? ;) (I kinda forced my idea on this..)
The doujin was originally created by Hatishiro [Itou Hachi].
Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live!
The place and time is taken from an elder era in a country far away from Japan.
There was a country which was full of unusual people considered abnormal. They could have been considered normal, except for the thing attached on the top of their heads. It could move and sway easily if there were sounds in their surroundings. The owner could try to keep them from moving, but it wasn't possible when the sounds categorized as the sensitive ones reached them.
That is, fox ears.
With different sensitivity from the humans, of course the people were more talented in hearing than with normal human ones.
The other abnormality in the country: they accept same sex relationships and marriages.
As abnormal as they could be, they still built a good relationship with normal humans. For example, they weren't labeled as anything like demi-human or youkai or something else.
And this is the story about one of the many couples in this country.
Chapter 1: Intro
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Kousaka Honoka. 18 years old woman with fox ears placed on the top of her head. Wore a simple white-colored kimono with orange dots. Sitting on the tatami, the ginger-haired girl let out a low humming sound while writing on the paper in front of her.
'Dear Nishikino-sensei,
How are you feeling? I'm fine over here! Did you know that writing a letter for sensei is fun for me? Well it is! I'm still waiting for a reply from sensei, though, since... I never receive any from you. I don't have high expectations for a reply, and I can't know whether you'll read this or not. But it's alright! Since I know sensei is busy right there as a novelist.
You see, I can't wait any longer to meet you. It's so frustrating, I mean… I want to see sensei directly, sensei is my fiancé after all.
Mom and Yukiho were blaming me for spacing out too often when we work on the sweets, but it's because of I was thinking about sensei. And I also want sensei to taste my handmade sweets! I bet sensei will love them!
That's all from me for now. I hope sensei's doing your best on the novel. Take care, alright?
With love, your fiancée
Kousaka Honoka
"And done!" Honoka said as she folded the letter and put the paper—full of words written with love—inside of the envelope. She stared at the envelope for a while and grinned happily.
'I hope she'll read this one, too. I wonder if she couldn't reply because my handwriting is bad.' Shivering from the negative thought, she slapped both of her cheeks.
"Now, now. I can't think negatively about sensei and I," she said to herself. Although, it was true that she was having difficulty writing. Clearing her head of those thoughts, Honoka stood up and took the letter with her to the mail box, which stood outside her house.
Her mom. Who had been taking care of the garden, noticed her eldest daughter going somewhere and asked her, "Where are you going Honoka?"
"To send the letter I just wrote, Okaa-san!" answered Honoka, jogging at a slow pace with a big smile on her face.
'Please let this arrive at sensei's home,' prayed Honoka, hoping that nothing bad would happen to her letter. As Honoka was entering her house again, her mom said, "If you're done, go help Yukiho in the kitchen. You need to learn how to cook the main dishes, and not just sweets."
"'Kay~" Honoka replied happily.
Her mom couldn't help but to let out a small sigh, wondering how her daughter could be so energetic. She had been acting like this since her friend's mother sent a letter which contained information about her acquaintance, whom was a mature woman. At first, Honoka didn't want to accept the fact that she would be engaged. She didn't want to be a married woman yet, since it would make her look old, although she was already old enough to be a married woman.
"EHH? Engagement?" cried Honoka to her mother, surprised to hear the unfamiliar word in her animal ears, which flinched right after her mom spoke.
"Yes; the person is apparently an acquaintance of Kotori's mother. The letter from your fiancé will be sent to us tomorrow, along with a photograph," her mother replied casually.
"So we're not engaged yet…" Honoka muttered.
"I know, but you two would be engaged, right?" said her mother, who actually heard it.
"But Okaa-san... Just because I turned 18 doesn't mean I need to do this right away, does it?" Honoka said with a disappointed tone. Her mom only gave her a pat on the head.
"Yeah; it doesn't have to be now, and you can decline, you know. It's just, mom doesn't want you to be a married woman too late. I'll only help you on this one case, Honoka."
"Ugh... You're rude, Okaa-san. It's not like I wouldn't be able to get someone in a short time," pouted Honoka. Her mother only chuckled from seeing her daughter's reaction to her teasing.
"I know, dear; you're my daughter, after all. It's just that your aunt recommended this person to be paired with you," explained her mother.
"But she has Kotori to worry about."
"And Umi is at her side already. Besides, both of their parents don't have any problems with them being together."
"Oh, that's right. Wait—Okaa-san, don't tell me you're jealous that your friend's daughter already has a daughter-in-law while you don't?" Honoka pointed out.
Her mother let out a sigh. "Didn't I say I'm alright even if you don't accept the proposal? And I only told you this because Minami recommended it. Let's continue discussing this tomorrow and we'll both see the outcome," she said before leaving her daughter alone in the room.
Honoka only nodded slowly and said, "Okay then…"
...
"Honoka, the letter has arrived," called Honoka's mother as she opened the envelope and took out the letter and the photo.
"Let's see..." she flipped the photo around to a face-up position.
"...Ara, such a mature-looking woman. Moreover, she's a true beauty," she mumbled to herself, amazed by the person's appearance on the photo.
"I feel sorry for her for having Honoka by her side," she sighed, not noticing her daughter had already appeared nearby.
"What was that, Okaa-san?" asked Honoka, curious about her name having been said.
Her mother, who thought that she was all alone, flinched upon hearing her daughter's voice. "Ah, Honoka, you startled me!"
"Ehe... But you're the one who called me. And I didn't do anything wrong, did I?" whined Honoka.
"Um... right. Anyway, come and sit here. You need to see the photo of your fiancé." Her mother gestured for her to come. Honoka moved quickly to her mother's side. Despite not wanting to be engaged, she was still curious about this person who might be her partner in life.
"Here." Her mother passed the photo to her when Honoka sat beside her. Honoka took it, and her eyes widened eyes after she looked at the picture. She couldn't tear her eyes away from it. Staring at it deeply, Honoka scanned the whole photograph. Faded-pinkish fox ears and fiery scarlet hair, along with the lavender eyes, which managed to lock Honoka's in place immediately. Even if she wanted to look away, she just couldn't.
'So beautiful…' she thought to herself.
As Honoka was lost in her own thoughts while staring at the photo, her mother took the letter and started to read it.
"Nishikino Maki. 25 years old. Never been in any relationship. Lives alone until just recently, when she was accompanied by maid. A novelist who focuses on romances. Financial condition is so-so. Bad at house work. She's a cold person and kind of a perfectionist. Not athletic at all, and often stays up late."
Silence followed after the letter was read to its end.
Honoka's mother gulped, "…All of this is... about her?" she said, breaking the silence that had suddenly fallen between them. Honoka didn't reply, though she did hear all of them.
'Cold and perfectionist…'
"Guess she's out of question, eh?"
'I want to meet her…'
"Okaa-san!" Honoka stated.
"Yes?"
'I want to see her!'
"I accept the engagement! I'll do it!" Honoka said enthusiastically. Her mother only blinked in surprise. She knew very well that her daughter had always been careless, but to think that she would accept that quickly.
"Are you serious? I won't support the idea of divorcing if you happen to taste the bitterness later," reminded her mom with very a serious expression. She couldn't bear to see the hopeless look on Honoka's face at that moment. In the 18 years she had accompanied her daughter through life, she had never (not even once) seen her look like that.
"I won't… Maybe~" she stuck her tongue out.
"Honoka..."
"N-No! It just that, I feel like I will be fine! No, I definitely will be fine, Okaa-san!" Honoka said, trying to convince her mom.
"What's the basis of your confidence?"
Honoka posed like she was thinking deeply about the answer.
"...Intuition?" That was the only word she could rely on.
"..."
"Okaa-san ~! I'm being serious here! I believe that I'll be— No, I know we'll be fine! Just… Urghh… I can't describe it! But-"
"Okay, that's enough." Her mother stopped her not-getting-anywhere blabbering.
"Huh?"
"It's alright. If that's your choice, then I won't refute it," she said with a gentle smile. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to do anything, letting her do as she wished was most likely the best choice. Needless to say, she actually didn't have any choice left. She was facing her daughter's infamous stubbornness, after all.
"Okaa-san …" Honoka eyes were sparkling. "Thank you!" she jumped happily towards her mother and hugged her.
"Do your best with her, alright?" her mother replied as she rubbed Honoka's back. Honoka nodded, keeping her ever-present wide smile on her face.
"Uhn! I will!" Honoka's mother recalled Minami's words from her letter. There were some sentences which she didn't read aloud to Honoka.
'Don't worry; I know that the candidate is not that trustworthy based on her background, but we're talking about your daughter here. She knows what she wants after all.'
'… Minami, you jerk.' She cursed her friend, who knew all along that this would happen. She herself hadn't expected that love at first sight would exist in Honoka's life. Especially only from a photograph.
"Now that this has been settled, I'll tell Minami that you agree without being forced or requiring any special conditions regarding the engagement."
"Okay… And what should I do after this?" Honoka asked, not knowing what steps she should take to move forward.
"You can start by sending her letters until both sides decide when to meet."
"Letter, huh? Okay~" she said happily. Thinking that things would definitely go smoothly, Honoka decided to start writing a letter the next day, and...
…
"…This is harder than I thought," Honoka groaned. She threw herself down, changing her position from sitting to lying down. She wasn't used to writing. She rarely wrote about things such as those. A letter for her fiancé meant that it had to be a formal one, and Honoka was a person who was unfamiliar with formalities.
"I wish I could see her already…" While hoping for the unlikely to be true, she noticed a figure walking past through her room.
"Ah! Yukiho~!" Honoka shouted, surprising the namesake, whose ears flinched.
"Geez, Nee-chan, don't shout like that. Can't you be more ladylike?" Yukiho complained.
"Ehe… Sorry, Yukiho. I kinda need your help right now," Honoka replied, giggling in embarrassment from being scolded by her little sister.
"What is it, Nee-chan?"
"You see, I need to write this letter and…" Honoka allowed her sentence to fade away while scratching her head with a dumb smile.
Yukiho only sighed at how her elder sister was acting.
"And you can't do that?" she asked.
"But this is the first time I write a letter like this, you know! And I don't know my fiancé very well! I don't want her to have a first bad impression of me after seeing how bad my writing skills are…" Honoka looked down at her feet.
"Okay, Nee-chan, I understand already. Don't be so sad," Yukiho said, comforting her sister; seeing her like that brought Yukiho nothing but a feeling of pity and guilt.
"Yukiho…" Honoka's eyes became teary.
"You're overreacting, Nee-chan." She hit Honoka's head lightly, and Honoka only gave an 'owie'.
Yukiho smiled at her sister, "I did hear about this, but I don't know about her at all. Mind sharing your knowledge of her?"
"Ah, wait a second." Honoka rummaged through her kimono's pocket and found what she needed.
"Here's a photo of her."
She passed the photo, which was the one she got from her mom after asking her to let it become hers. Yukiho accepted it and Honoka told her about her fiancé, repeating the same things as what her Mom told her
"She's beautiful!" Yukiho exclaimed.
"Hehe, right?" Honoka giggled, happy to hear a compliment from her sister directed towards her fiancé.
"Yeah…" Yukiho said, her bright smile slowly dropping, "Speaking of perfection, your companionship with her would only ruin it…"
"Yukiho! Geez, you're so mean! And don't joke around when you're putting on that serious face!" Honoka said, beating her fists gently against Yukiho's shoulder.
Yukiho only giggled. "I get it, Nee-chan, stop hitting me already." Honoka stopped and puffed up her cheeks. "Well, addressing her cold personality… I don't know that you two will match each other."
"Don't worry! Everything will work out just fine!" Honoka said confidently, wondering if her sister was being optimistic or stupid. She just shrugged it off.
"…If you say so."
"So, about what I should write…"
"Oh, that's right. Well, firstly, Nee-chan should address her properly."
"...Nishikino-san?"
"Remember that she's a novelist?"
"…Ahh; Sensei!" Honoka pointed out.
"Yeah, that's right. And most novelists are always stressed out because of the deadlines—"
"Are you talking bad about her?" Honoka cut her off. Yukiho deadpanned.
"…Let's just say she often experiences it, so Nee-chan better ask her how she's doing, and tell her about fun things…" Yukiho noticed something and stopped.
"What's wrong?"
"No, I just thought that, if it's Nee-chan, I know you wouldn't have any trouble with that," she said with laughter in her voice.
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Nothing." Averting her eyes, Yukiho tried to change the subject.
"Anyway, why doesn't Nee-chan try to write it now? Just imagine that nee-chan is writing a letter to a friend, but this one is older. And nee-chan can have me to check it later when you're finished."
Honoka gave it a thought for a second. "Guess you're right. Yosh, thanks, Yukiho!"
"Uhn. Then, I'll go back to work. Write properly, alright?"
"Of course! You can count on me!" Honoka replied happily.
Yukiho stepped outside the room, only to find her mom standing there, who had watched them talking together.
"Okaa-san?"
"Yukiho, are you finished taking care of Honoka?"
"Yeah. It felt like I have a little sister just now." Her mother laughed.
"I agree…" She trailed off before continuing. "She is really into this."
Yukiho nodded in agreement.
"Let's leave her alone and get back to work, shall we?" asked her mother with a smile.
Yukiho nodded again. "Uhn."
'I wonder how many letters she's written to her since that time.' Honoka's mother thought, still watering the plants.
"…Okaa-san."
"…"
"Okaa-san!"
"Kya~!" Her mother startled and let out a little scream. Turning towards the source of the sound, she sighed in relief.
"Honoka… Seriously, you must stop scaring me like that," she said. But then she remembered a time where the same situation happened. 'Déjà vu?' she thought to herself.
"Well, I'm sorry. Besides, you're spacing out, Okaa-san. The water is leaking out everywhere, see?"
"Huh—? Uwahh..." Her mother hurriedly moved to watering a new plant.
"So, do you need anything from me?" Her mother asked after she positioned herself rightly.
"Yukiho asked whether we should grill the fish Otou-san just caught or smoke-dry them."
"Well, go with 'grill', dear," she said, after giving a quick thought.
"Okay~" Honoka replied and started to go back to the kitchen. Before long, her mother remembered something and called her back.
"Oh right, Honoka~."
"Hmm?"
"Minami told me that you two will have your first meetings two days from now," said her mother. Honoka could only blink before asking for a confirmation.
"...Huh?" Honoka asked her mother to repeat herself. She wanted to make sure that what she heard was true, about the event that she had awaited for a long time.
"I said that you two will meet each other in two days," her mother said once again. Honoka, now assured, grinned widely.
"Me and whom?" she asked, pretending that she still didn't know already, even though her intentions were easily read by her mother due to those sparkling eyes and that wide grin.
"...You know the answer, don't you?" her mother replied it with confused tone. Honoka only giggled in response.
"Hehe, well, I can't help but be this excited, now can I? After all, this is gonna be our first time." Honoka laughed sheepishly with a faint pink tint to her cheeks.
'Yeah it is, but don't let people misunderstand the truth because of your work choice,' her mother thought, sweatdropping.
"Anyway, that's all there is to it. Now go back and help your sister again. She must be tired of waiting."
"Yes~" Honoka replied, running lightly while humming to herself. 'Two days from now...' The same thought replayed in her head endlessly.
She really couldn't hold her smile back anymore.
Dear Nishikino-sensei,
Have you heard about our scheduled meeting? It's tomorrow! I wonder, will I be able to sleep tonight? You know, the overflowing excitement might likely be keeping me awake. Nah, just kidding. Staying up late would make my face look terrible tomorrow. But saying I'm having a hard time sleeping is kinda right, eheh.
Are you having a great time over there, sensei? I hope sensei is fine as always. Don't stay awake too late, alright? Tomorrow is our important event!
That's all from me, please take care.
With love, your fiancée
Kousaka Honoka
"...Tomorrow, eh?" a certain redheaded fox woman mumbled to herself. Night had fallen in the country, replacing the 'king' with the 'queen', along with her little guardians, lighting the dark sky for a time. Accompanied by a dim light in her room, a book and a pen with its ink could be found sitting in front of her, along with the piece of paper which she just read. Looking at the clock, she sighed.
"Guess I can't fulfill her wish for me to sleep… Damn deadline."
She stood up and moved to the kitchen, the feeling of tiredness causing her eyes to become heavier than they should be. Helping herself to a cup of coffee, she brought it with her to her work room. Taking a sip, she placed the cup on the table and her eyes caught sight of a framed photo, which was of a smiling ginger haired fox woman.
"I wonder how I should face her tomorrow... I haven't even made any replies to her letters." Deeply in her own thoughts, the woman didn't notice that she had been spacing out for a while. After she regained her consciousness, she looked quickly at the clock and widened her eyes.
"Seriously, what are you doing, Maki? It is so not like you to have your thoughts wandering out of your own head," she mocked herself. Composing herself so that she could write again, she took a last glance at the photograph. Unknowingly, she smiled slightly at the photo.
'I can't say if I'm nervous or excited about tomorrow.'
.
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...Seriously I messed up. I planned that this one would be on my HonoMaki's oneshots but... BUT..! I can't. Somehow I must make this story kind of long (And I notice that this would be way too long to be considered as one-shot). I hope no bumpy roads await us ahead.
If I chose this one to be posted on the oneshots collection, I won't make it in time. Because I will make another pairing with the same AU as this one. (If I don't make it in time, then my plan on making another story of another pairing will be ruined)
Anyway, I'm sorry for not updating. Like I said, last semester. And I can't believe I still braved myself to make this story despite my school's tests already started. *Swings yolo flag*
Lastly, hope you like it. If you do, please click the review button... and of course write something on it, okay? =)
PS: I need to stop making multi-chapter fanfics. One who can't cooperate with times very well...
