: Ai Hina Aoshi :

by

- GlazedAndConfused -


DISCLAIMER

I own neither Love Hina nor Ai Yori Aoshi. TokyoPop owns them both.


"..." - denotes speech.
"(...)" - denotes whispering.
Italics denote thoughts and Japanese dialogue.
Chapter One

Autumn. A tranquil season in Japan. The oppressive heat of the summer time comes to an end as the days become shorter and the air fresher. Leaves on the trees that were once green turn crisp and a light shade of brown as they begin their slow descent from the branches to the ground below. Even as the last few months of the year are beginning to come closer, Japan is still as picturesque during the autumn and winter seasons as it is during the springtime months, when the sakura are in full bloom.

Hinata Town. A small, charming hot spring town in the Fukuoka prefecture of Japan, away from the hustle and bustle of the more urbanised areas. The fresh autumnal breeze swayed in and out of the rows of trees and bushes, making them rustle gently. The evening sky was a mixture of pale ochre and blue as the sun slowly made it's descent in the horizon. In the tranquility and serenity of this town were three people, a man and two women, walking towards the giant stone steps towards the large building known as Hinata Sou - the former inn turned into an all-girl's dormitory.

"So this is Hinata Sou, Keitaro-sama?" the voice of a young woman asked, as she leaned the side of her head on the shoulder of her male companion. The said woman was of short build, and had short, dark violet hair that barely grew past her ears, and she wore a royal blue kimono, complete with a red obi (sash) and obijime (belt), as well as the traditional Japanese sandals and tabi socks. "It doesn't appear to have changed much at all since we last came here."

"That's because Hina-san doesn't like to make any changes that may change the outward appearance of the building," spoke a taller woman with long hair that was a shade of brown, growing past her shoulders. "She stated plenty of times that she wants to keep it well-maintained and stop it from becoming run down, but at the same time she wants to retain the traditional appearance of the building."

"I can see why, Miyabi-san," Aoi said, "it's majestic. It's like a building you would only find in the more traditional towns across this country."

"How long has it been since we last came here, Aoi-chan?" the man named Keitaro spoke, tenderly wrapping an arm around the shorter woman, smiling at the closeness between the two. "It must have been around... seven years or something." I wonder why she sent me this fax... he thought, pulling out a folded-up piece of paper from his pocket, what could she possibly want? Hmm. Probably just a social call.

When the three reached the bottom of the steps, Keitaro stopped for a moment, an uncertain expression on his face, which made Aoi stop and turn to look at him with a slightly worried look. "Keitaro-sama?"

"What's wrong, Keitaro-dono?" Miyabi asked, also noticing the uncertainty displayed by the young man.

"I was just thinking..." Keitaro pondered, "will obaasan remember us? It's been that long since we last came here, and if she doesn't remember us then where will we have to stay?"

Aoi leaned up and gave the Urashima man a tender kiss on the lips, pulling back with a reassuring smile, entirely meant to comfort the young man; to reassure him that it was highly unlikely that they would have been forgotten about. Comfort and reassurance was what he could really have done with at that moment in time; it wasn't so much that he was concerned about himself, but he was more concerned about Aoi and Miyabi. As long as they had somewhere to stay that wasn't seedy or untrustworthy, then he could care less about where he would find accommodation.

Miyabi also walked over and patted Keitaro on the shoulder. "I wouldn't worry, Keitaro-dono," the older woman added, "should we be forgotten about, I'll see to it that Aoi-sama has somewhere appropriate to stay."

Keitaro smiled slightly, almost forgetting that Miyabi was Aoi's appointed guardian. Growing up as the next-in-line of the Sakuraba zaibatsu - a position that whoever she would choose to marry would also take up - her status in society would mean that she would be paid attention to a lot more than the average Japanese citizen. That, and if anything were to happen to the young woman, repercussions - be them devastating or humiliating - would be felt by the Sakuraba family. By appointing the taller, older woman as Aoi's guardian, not only would the well-being of the young heiress be protected, but it would also prevent any scandal with the Sakuraba.

After all, upon hearing that Keitaro was her boyfriend, the more important members of the family were none too pleased and had never particularly liked the idea of the Urashima man as the potential heir to the joint leadership of the zaibatsu, but they accepted it - albeit grudgingly - as he was Aoi's beloved.

"Arigato, Miyabi-san." Keitaro said, relieved. "I'm just still sorry that I placed the burden of having to come with us on you."

"Nonsense," the older woman replied, smiling softly, "Aoi's well-being is what's more important. I just hope me and Hina-san can reach a common ground where I can carry out any work needed done by the Sakuraba from here instead of having to travel back and forth all the time." She knelt down slightly and picked up Aoi's suitcase, looking up the steps towards the giant building. "Well, shall we go up?"

"Just one more thing..." the Urashima enquired, turning to face Aoi, raising both hands up to rest gently on her cheeks while he stared into her deep, royal-blue eyes. "Promise me, that if we can't stay here, you and Miyabi-san will find somewhere safe to stay. I don't want to leave you two alone and find out that something's happened."

"Keitaro-sama," Aoi reassured, "don't worry about me. Miyabi-san can be relied upon should anything happen to us... she has had training in self-defence, after all."

Keitaro cringed; he knew this all too well, as he remembered the first day he met Miyabi, with his aunt Haruka and Grandma Hina alongside him. He was 13-years-old, and had known Aoi for as long as he could remember. Having been cursed by clumsiness since childhood, the first impressions he gave out were less than impressive, as he tripped near the bottom of the massive and landed with his hands planted somewhere they shouldn't exactly have been... that is, on Aoi's chest. It was only through the said girl's intervention - not to mention by physical restraint from Haruka, and possibly even through sheer luck - that he didn't get stomped to death by Miyabi. Six years later, and the older woman had softened up and even grown to accept the Urashima man - especially as the relationship between him and Aoi blossomed throughout their teenage years - although she still tended to keep a close eye on him when he was alone with Aoi, and she still took a hardline stance towards his bouts of clumsiness.

Miyabi led the way as the trio began their long ascent up the giant steps. The journey to the small hot spring town was full of anticipation due to the fact that they were entering new, unchartered territory that was completely different to their previous home. But to balance this feeling of anticipation was also plenty of nervousness, since they had no idea what kind of welcoming they'd get. Not only that, but there was also the fact that Hinata Sou had undergone several changes throughout the years, not only architectural but also 'personnel' changes too. What kind of people would be there? It was likely that new tenants would have moved in and there would be no rooms up for rent, which would have confirmed Keitaro's fears that they'd not be able to stay there. Even so, if things came to that, then given the eldest Urashima's kind nature she would have found a way to accommodate them.

Eventually, the trio reached the top of the steps, and Keitaro walked up to the front door with Aoi closely behind. Miyabi, watching this, suppressed a slight grin. It appeared to her - as it would to any onlookers - that the young woman couldn't bear to be away from her boyfriend, no matter how trivial things may seem. Keitaro knocked on the door, only for there to be no answer. After a few moments of more knocking and more silence, the look on the Urashima man's face grew slightly anxious.

"Nobody seems to be in..." Keitaro muttered. "I wonder why."

"Maybe there's somebody around the back?" Miyabi asked. "I'll go and have a look."

"Why don't we go inside and wait for someone, Keitaro-sama?" Aoi spoke, taking one of Keitaro's hands in both of hers and smiling sweetly at him.

Keitaro reciprocated the smile. "I don't see why not," he concurred. The two walked into the building, completely failing to notice the sign beside the door which read: "Hinata Sou - All-Girl's Dormitory".


"Hello?" Aoi called, slipping her sandals off and placing them on a mat beside the door while looking around. "Is anyone here?"

The silence that filled the room was almost deafening, broken only by the monotonous ticking of the clock on the wall. The old front door creaked as Keitaro closed it. Looking around, the two noticed that being the only ones in such a large place would be slightly unnerving, had it not been for the fact that it was fairly clean and well-maintained. Keitaro placed the bags belonging to him and Miyabi, as well as Aoi's suitcase, on the floor beside the sofa, and walked to the bottom of the stairs to the first floor.

"Hina-obaasan?" Keitaro called, looking up the stairs. "Are you there?" Receiving no answer, he called a little louder, only for no-one to reply. Sighing, he turned to face Aoi. "Aoi-chan, I'm going upstairs to look."

"Okay, Keitaro-sama."

As Keitaro walked upstairs, he remembered the visits he used to take with Haruka to Hinata Sou, even before he met Aoi. His first memory was of a time when he was being shown around the old building and got lost in the upper levels... a little incident that annoyed his parents no end, and made him giggle slightly whenever he thought about it. Walking through the hallways as if he still remembered the layout even several years since he last visited. Managing a smile at a few more warm and fond memories from his childhood visits to Hinata Sou, he absentmindedly opened the door...

"Hina-obaasan, are you in he --"

...and halted in his tracks, eyes widened, as he noticed that in the room right in front of him was an auburn-haired young woman, possibly in her late teens, with her skirt around her ankles and her knickers visible as she started to remove her jumper. Aware that she was not alone, and fearing the worst, she turned around and found Keitaro standing in the doorway; his eyes widened to the size of saucers. A fierce blush spread across her face, and her face contorted into a visage of unadulterated fury as she noticed where his eyes were looking.

"HENTAI!" she screamed, rearing her fist back and thrusting it forward, fully intending to land a perfect haymaker squarely on the jaw of the so-called 'pervert'.

Naturally, given Keitaro's history of clumsiness, he failed to notice the fist of the auburn-haired girl flying towards him until it was too late to move out of the way.

What the hell...! was the only coherent thought his mind could conjurebefore the girl's fist introduced itself to his face.


CRASH!

The resultant impact from the attack directed towards Keitaro for his misfortune resonated throughout the entire building, which derailed Aoi's train of thought. She quickly ran as fast as her kimono and sandals would allow her to go to the bottom of the stairs, and looked up, concern for her boyfriend etched all over her face.

"Keitaro-sama? Are you alright?" she called.

What she heard next was Keitaro's voice, seemingly screaming an apology. "GOMEN! I DIDN'T THINK ANYBODY WAS IN THERE!" This was followed by the said person running down the stairs faster than she'd ever seen him run before... he really must have landed himself into a bad situation to say he was running fast enough to put an Olympic gold medalist to shame.

"COME BACK HERE YOU PERVERT!" Aoi heard another scream from behind her, and turned around to see the auburn-haired young woman; her eyes literally oozing rivers of embarrassment and anger as she was in hot pursuit of the so-called 'pervert'. Turning her attention back to the predicament Keitaro managed to get himself into, she followed the two wherever their feet would take one another...

...and could only stand and watch as Keitaro, who had seemingly run through his entire life's savings of good luck in less than five minutes, found himself running face first into another woman's cleavage. This woman had short, sandy blonde hair and her eyes closed, making her look as if she had the face of a fox. Instinctively, Keitaro chose that moment to back off and run as if his life depended on it. Why the building was, so far, barren with the exception of one or two women, he had no idea, but

"Huh?" The fox-eyed woman enquired in confusion. "Naru, who was that?"

"That guy is a peeping tom pervert!" the other fumed, neither of the two knowing of Aoi's presence.

'Pervert'? Aoi thought, her eyes widening in surprise. No... Keitaro-sama isn't a pervert; I know him better than that. It must be just a misunderstanding. Shaking her head fiercely, she opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get a word out, three more girls - this time, teenagers - arrived on the scene, seemingly to see what all the commotion was about. Two of them were barely even into their early teens, one with dark purple hair closely resembling that of Aoi's, and the the other with tanned skin, rosy cheeks and bleached-blond hair. The other looked to be around in her mid-teens; an intimidating tower of a girl with raven-coloured hair that flowed past her shoulders, and eyes that could shatter diamond with a single glance. She wore a crimson hakama and white gi, and had what looked like a katana in her hand by her side.

"Where is the pervert?" The raven-haired swordswoman asked. "Once we find him he will taste the sweet justice delivered by my blade..." As if to emphasise this threat, she unsheathed her katana, the attractive glimmer of the polished steel in the light providing an ominous hint of what would be in store for the hapless young man once the jig would be up for him.

"He's gone towards the open-air bath!" the auburn-haired girl replied, to which all sans the fox-eyed woman ran. The said woman turned to face Aoi and slowly walked up towards her.

"You wouldn't happen to know the man they're talking about?" she spoke.

"Hai, I do," Aoi replied.

"I see... well I think you should follow them. Because by the time they're done with him, I doubt there'd be much left of him..." the foxy woman finished, turning to follow the other girls out into the open-air bath.

"Eh? K-Keitaro-sama will be hurt?" Instinct kicked in and Aoi, again, ran as fast as her traditional clothing would allow her to go.

Keitaro-sama... please be alright...


"Oh, no... this is a dead end..."

Keitaro's luck had just taken a turn for the worse when he reached the open-air bath. While it did help that it was a fairly large area so he could move around quite a lot, the bad news was that there was no way to get out other than via the door or over the bamboo fence, which would invariably collapse under the weight. He had two options... a) face the girls and at least try escaping through an opening, or b) climb over the fence and risk getting hurt. Either way, he'd be caught, so it was a lose-lose situation. Resigning himself to his fate, he dropped to his knees and instinctively raised his arms to his head, while trying to plead with the girls.

This, however, had no use. The auburn-haired girl, who was ominously cracking her knuckles, and the swordswoman, getting into her battle stance, had white-hot embers burning in their eyes, signalling that the pain that he would endure would be more than just a slap on the wrist for his misunderstanding, and an aura of absolute rage and fury that would have been visible to the naked eye.

"HENTAI!" shrilled the older of the two as, for the second time that day, she reared back her fist and readied herself to attack, fully intent on launching the poor young man into orbit.

Around Pluto.

CRASH!

The sound of Keitaro's body flying through the air and crashing head on through a concrete wall and wooden support pillars resounded through the air loud enough to make onlookers wince. What used to be the outer wall of the women's changing room that also led to the open-air bath was now reduced to a pile of rubble and splintered wood, as the impact was stronger than even the aggressor had anticipated. She didn't care, though; he was a pervert that needed to be taught a lesson. Both girls walked over to where he lay, and Keitaro noticed the fierce scowl on the kendo girl's face as she raised her katana above her head.

"How dare you peek on Naru-sempai as she changes! You foul, corrupt, dishonourable being! Have you no shame? Shinmei Ryu... ZAN GAN KEN!"

SLASH!

Keitaro's body was sent flying for a second time, back to where he was previously... only this time, fate chose to intervene once again, in the form of the blond-haired gaijin who leapt up in the air and readied herself to add even further to the young man's misery...

...again.

SMACK!


"Eeek!" Aoi screamed as Keitaro's battered and bruised body flew from out of nowhere, crashed through one of the pillars and landed right in front of her. As soon as she recognised who it was, her eyes widened and tears formed at her eyes. "K-Keitaro-sama!" she cried as she dropped to her knees beside her boyfriend and cradled his head in her hands. "Keitaro-sama! Are you okay? Please, speak to me!"

Keitaro moaned lowly in pain as the girl named Naru and the swordswoman made their way through the hole in the wall of the changing room to find him. The fact that his head was in Aoi's hands and on her lap didn't help matters, as it seemed that their rage directed towards him only intensified.

"Y-You... beast...!" she growled, pointing her katana at the young man. "First you peek on Naru-sempai, and now you try to molest this frail young maiden!" Like a woman possessed, driven by nothing but hatred and malice, she advanced towards the two. "I shall end your perverted ways once and for a --"

"Stop! Stop this right now!"

The look of rage on the swordswoman's face was soon replaced by one of surprise, as was that of Naru's, as Aoi vehemently got up and stood between her and Keitaro in an attempt to prevent any more harm coming the young man's way.

"But he tried to molest you! Why are you protecting him?"

"He did not try to molest me," Aoi simply stated, with more than a hint of defiance to her words. "he is my b --"

She was cut off by the sound of two pairs of footsteps calmly approaching the scene. The smell of cigarette smoke that filled the air was enough to alert Keitaro that his aunt, Haruka, had arrived alongside Miyabi; the former with a cigarette hanging from her mouth and her face blank and emotionless. If there was ever a time where he could be highly thankful for his aunt's presence, then it would be now; he could always rely on Haruka to explain things, and doing so now would save him from almost certain death at the hands of the two young women that stood across the room from him.

"Miyabi-san told me you and Aoi-chan were here, Keitaro," Haruka spoke, taking her cigarette between her fingers and blowing out a puff of smoke. I see he's met the girls, then... she thought, slowly shaking her head.

Miyabi merely stood there, her face with an expression of shock and awe as she witnessed the destruction that surrounded her. What on Earth... has happened here?

"Haruka-san?" The foxy, blond woman asked. "Who are they?"

"The young man is Keitaro, my nephew. Beside him is his girlfriend, Aoi-chan, and beside me is Miyabi-san, Aoi-chan's personal guardian," the Urashima woman answered, turning to face Keitaro, Aoi and Miyabi. "The woman with the short hair is Kitsune-san. The girl with the sword in her hand is Motoko-chan. Shinobu-chan is the young girl with the violet hair, Naru-chan is the one with the long auburn hair, and the young gaijin over there is Su-chan." She took another puff on her cigarette, and sighed before continuing. "So, I assume you got Hina-obaasan's fax then? Probably the same time as I got it."

"Hai," Miyabi answered, "but we cannot seem to find her. Perhaps you would know where she is?"

"I'm afraid Hina-obaasan has gone travelling, to 'sample the delights' - as she put it - of hot springs around the world," Haruka replied. "She's been gone for a year now."

"I see..." Keitaro replied, downheartedly. "But that doesn't explain why she wants us here?"

"She would like for you to stay here. For what reason, though, I have no idea."

"Nani!" the girl named Naru stood up and yelled, "No way! The other two I have no problem with, but not this guy! This is an all-girls' dorm if you remember!"

Motoko nodded her head in concurrence, her eyes closed as if she were concentrating deeply. "I must agree with Naru-sempai. He is a pervert, and a male; there is simply no place for either in this building."

Haruka ignored what Motoko and Naru had to say. "This place does need a kanrinin, what with Hina-obaasan having been gone for a year or so. And I can't take charge because I'm running the tea shop at the bottom too."

Miyabi nodded her head in understanding. The only question that was left on her mind was if Keitaro would last for more than five minutes in the presences of Naru and Motoko, given the fact that they had attacked him no more than a few minutes previously. It would also place a great deal of unnecessary stress on Aoi; she cared too greatly for Keitaro to see him go through any more pain and suffering. As grateful she was of Haruka's presence and attempt to help them out in terms of living arrangements, it was an inevitable win-lose situation.

"And after all," she continued, "it would save you money, commuting to and from Todai. Don't you think, Aoi-chan, Miyabi-san?" Unseen by the other tenants, she flashed a quick wink at Miyabi and Aoi, who both quickly caught onto the plan Haruka had in mind.

"That's true, Haruka-san," Miyabi said, smiling.

"Hai, it would also mean a shorter journey," Aoi spoke, nodding her head in agreement.

"T-T-Todai!" All of a sudden, each of the tenants surrounded the Urashima man, all of them with shocked expressions on their faces. "You mean, Tokyo University!"

Keitaro had a slightly confused look on his face. "But Haruka-obaasan, I don't --"

THWAP!

He was quickly cut off by a strike to the back of the head from Haruka, a fold-up fan in her hand. "Hai. He's a sophomore, just starting his second semester." She turned to look at Keitaro, who was sprawled on the floor, dazed from the power of Haruka's blow. "...aren't you?"

"Oh, hai, hai..." he reluctantly agreed, rubbing the back of his head.

"What's Todai?" Su asked, hanging off Motoko's back, her arms wrapped around the older girl's neck. "Is it good to eat? Does it taste good?" Most of the tenants were, at least by now, used to her odd questions as to what is edible and what is not. Miyabi and Aoi raised an eyebrow each at her strange questions, but decided to think nothing of it for the time being.

Kitsune, with a mischievous glint in her eye which nobody noticed, slinked over to Keitaro and wrapped an arm around him; an action which made him feel slightly uncomfortable and Aoi even more so as. "So, Mr. Toudaisei..." she spoke slowly, running a finger up and down his chest as she grinned seductively. "What's your major?"

"U-Um, Law..." Keitaro gulped.

"Did you hear that!" The foxy woman shrieked in delight, her eyes widened and gleaming. "He's studying a major in Law! He's going to become a world-famous lawyer!" She turned around so nobody could see her expression and placed a finger to her chin; her eyes closing once more in deep, pensive thought and her previously seductive grin turning to a conniving, devious one.

This is an opportunity I cannot let slip through my fingers... she thought, his grandmother owns this place, and he is studying for a career in a great job... if I get lucky then he'll be loaded in years, and I'll be rolling in it!

She then turned back to face the other tenants. "He's a Todai student, and I suppose we can trust him. Besides which, Naru, aren't you studying for the Todai entrance exams?"

"Hai, but I don't see what that has to do with anything," the temperamental girl replied, a slightly perplexed look on her face.

"He could help you with your studying if we let him stay! After all, he's been through it all himself, so surely he can't be anything less than helpful."

"No," Naru spoke quietly, trying to keep her demeanour calm. "I've said it before and I'll say it again; this is an all-girls' dorm, and to top it all off he's a shameless pervert! I don't care if he's a Todaisei or not, he's still a guy."

"Well at least think of Aoi and Miyabi," Kitsune continued, feigning concern. "If you don't let him stay, where will they have to go?"

"C'mon Naru!" Su whined, latching onto the older girl's arm. "Don't be a meanie!"

"Motoko-chan!" Naru called, turning to the samurai girl with the faintest traces of hope that she'd back her up.

"As much as I dislike the idea of a male, and a pervert at that, staying under the same roof as us," Motoko spoke, her eyes closed and her katana resting on her lap, "I must concur that as he has had first-hand experience of the entrance exams, his presence can only be beneficial to your chances of passing."

Naru stood in her place, her fists clenching and unclenching involuntarily and a vein throbbing on the side of her head. "Argh!" she growled after a moment, throwing her arms up in the air exasperatedly. "Fine, he can stay! I have no problem with the other two, but if he pulls another perverted stunt like he did earlier, he is out on his ear! Agreed?"

"Agreed," the other three tenants spoke.

"Well Keitaro," Haruka smirked, her cigarette still hanging from the corner of her mouth, "it seems like they've decided to welcome you in... eventually. Well, let's get you three to your rooms."

Keitaro was just about to make his way up the stairs when he unexpectedly encountered resistance in the form of Motoko's katana, unsheathed, blocking his path as he went to pick up the suitcases belonging to Aoi and Miyabi.

"Motoko-chan?" He enquired, an eyebrow raised in confusion.

"First of all," the swordswoman spoke, calmly, "don't think that you have the right to refer to me as "chan", because you most certainly do not. Secondly, while we have welcomed you here, albeit grudgingly, before you go any further than here, you are to clean up this mess." She pointed towards the collage of rubble and splintered wood that was caused by the impromptu 'flights' he went on after being attacked by herself and Naru. "After all, you only have yourself to blame for getting yourself into the situation you did by peeking on Naru-sempai, so it is only fair that you clean up the mess you have made."

"Bu --" Keitaro tried to protest.

"Have I made myself clear?" Motoko interrupted, her voice with more than a hint of steel behind it that promised further pain for him if he did not comply with her instructions.

"...hai."

After being shown to the cupboard where all the cleaning materials were stored, Keitaro pulled out a broom and walked over to the area of destruction nearest to him. Shuddering at Motoko's threat, he shook the thought out of his head and focused on the job at hand.

"This is going to be one long evening..." Keitaro sighed as he started sweeping.


: END CHAPTER ONE :

: AUTHOR'S NOTES :

Been a while, hasn't it? Since I failed practically all of my A-Level exams, I am officially out of education... until Monday that is, since I start studying at a new college for a degree in Software Development. So I figured that since I have around a day left until then, I may as well catch up with some fanfic writing. :)

The idea for this fic came to me after reading the first five volumes of Ai Yori Aoshi. For those of you who haven't read it, it's very similar to Love Hina... although, dare I say it, I think it's much better so far. No male-bashing in it and no temperamental, fist-happy redheads who punch first and don't ask later. I'm hoping to make this around 30 chapters or so long... though whether I actually complete this or not is all down to how college goes throughout the next two years.

Another fic I have in mind is titled Obsessed With Your Touch; a darkfic. The premise? Kanako's unrequited love for Keitaro burns more intensely than ever after his marriage to Naru, and she becomes more determined to make him hers. What lengths will she go to in order to accomplish this? Will be rated 'M' due to scenes some may find disturbing, as well as violence and some pretty strong language.

And with that, I end these ramblings. Next chapter will be released... well, when I can be arsed really. :P Maybe sometime this week, depending on whether or not I can get on the computer.