Revisionist note: Tsuruko's offer was changed in the last chapter.
See the revised version of TTLAaW: The First Day for details. In short,
Keitaro doesn't give up his family name but agrees to have his second
born child assume the Aoyama name and take over the Shinmeiryuu. If he
can defeat Tsuruko, that is.
Then To Live As a Woman
The Second Day
A Love Hina Fanfic
Tim Williams (ffml_tim@yahoo.com or fireangel37@yahoo.com)
All characters and settings are copyright Ken Akamatsu, and others.
Divergence from manga #74 (Volume 9) or anime episode 25. Fairly
spoiler-ridden if you haven't seen or read that far, but not too badly
so. This is the second part of TTLAaW and follows TTLAaW: The First
Day.
+++
Aoyama Motoko's life had changed drastically in the few days following
her marriage to Urashima Keitaro. //Urashima Motoko,// she silently
reminded herself. That was one of the more difficult changes for her to
adjust to. Cleaning the rooms that she shared with her husband was not,
though, and it was the activity she was currently engaged in. Keitaro
didn't ask her to clean up, but she did anyway.
The night of the wedding and their first day together had been horrific
in many ways, and oddly joyous in others. For one thing, it had been a
pleasant surprise for her to learn that she was not forever exiled from
her family school, the Shinmeiryuu. The fear of that exile had been
much of what lead to her attempted suicide on the wedding night, and the
offer of it the day after. Now, however, the gnawing emptiness inside
her breast had receded and finally gone dormant, if it had not vanished
completely.
As long as she proved herself worthy, her daughter would one day inherit
the school, and she would watch over it until then. The task set her to
prove herself, however, was an arduous one. She had to train her new
husband in the way of the blade and, together with him, best her sister
in honorable combat. Some part of the pride that she had clung to for
most of her life screamed for her to veritably beat Keitaro into shape
and defeat her sister on the first attempt, but other parts of her
wanted to let it go for a few years. //At least, with a standing offer
like this, I don't have to worry about inheriting the school before I'm
ready...// she reminded herself.
The night before, she had given Keitaro a lesson in kendo, and, while he
wasn't completely hopeless, he wasn't taking to it like a fish to water,
either. It was going to take a lot of time and effort to make him into
a master of the Shinmeiryuu, but that suited her well enough. After
all, she could not teach him to be better than she was herself, and it
would be years before she felt herself a true master.
As she worked, she couldn't help but notice that the he smell of him
lingered in the room, though she did her best to ignore it. As much as
she hated to admit it, she had become increasingly attracted to him over
the last few days, but that did not mean she had to like it. She sighed
softly, continuing to work. He hadn't done anything she expected and
quite a few things that she hadn't. Saving her from herself had
certainly been among his more stellar moments, in her eyes. She had
fully expected him to prove as big a pervert as she had always accused
him of being and make her into a lust object within moments of returning
from the wedding. To her surprise he hadn't touched her, even when she
was naked and pressing... the thought brought a blush to her cheeks and
she shook it off before it went any farther.
She had certainly misjudged him before, but now she was in a situation
when they had no choice but to do what a man and a woman naturally did
together. After all, was she not already making plans for the life of
their second child? She blushed at the thought. Though she was
certainly in complete control of just about every facet of her
personality, she was certainly not in control of her libido, which she
was finding had more and more of a mind of its own. For some reason, it
rather liked it when she had no control over matters, and this was
certainly prime ground for that. She shook her head slightly, clearing
out the salacious thoughts. //Kitsune would have a field day if she
knew...//
Her iron control, however, was enough to keep such thoughts internal and
any impulses well in check. Even if her pulse did quicken... She
stifled those ruminations as well. It was far too early in the morning
to be thinking of things that should be happening at night, in the dark.
On the futons she had just rolled up and placed right over... She
almost growled as she cut that train of thought short as well, though
she couldn't deny a certain tingly feeling creeping over her at the
prospect.
Considerations about nocturnal antics were pushed aside as she uncovered
something among her things which reminded of her other reasons for
wanting to take her time with the training. It had been over a week
since she attended school, and she wasn't even sure if she was going to
go back. She certainly wanted to. If she had bested her sister, she
would have asked permission to attempt admission to Toudai, but now...
She still needed permission, but from someone else. She reread the
label on the book in her hands and sighed.
When Keitaro spoke over her shoulder, she almost jumped out of her skin,
"What do you have there, Motoko?" She tried to hide the book as quickly
as possible, but it had been too late. "Oh, you're registered at the
same juku I attended. What University are you shooting for?"
She blushed and stammered, "I... n-nothing..." However, as much as she
wanted to feel embarrassed, Keitaro was not looking at her accusingly
but, rather, like he honestly wanted to know. She steeled her nerves
and just went ahead and said it. "I... I wanted to try for Toudai."
Keitaro smiled broadly and laughed, though it was warm and not mocking.
"That's great!" he said with honest enthusiasm. He leaned his crutches
against the wall and sank down beside her. How he had managed to sneak
up behind her, on crutches no less, was a mystery to her, but it
probably had a lot to do with her distraction.
"Does that mean you're going to school today? I was starting to get a
little worried that you were quitting..." he trailed off.
Motoko bit the inside of her lip gently, "I... Now that I am your wife,
I didn't know if you would allow..." she trailed off as he placed a hand
gently on her shoulder. //Stupid, of course he would allow it. He's
too nice to demand I stay home.//
"Motoko, I want you to do what will make you happy." For a moment he
seemed as though he were going to stop there, but after a brief
hesitation, he continued. "Besides, your intelligence and strength are
some of the things I like about you..." he did trail off this time,
blushing slightly, and it didn't take a look in the mirror for Motoko to
know that she was blushing at the statement as well.
Married or not, they were both forging into new ground. Even a
statement of "like" was almost a scandalous declaration.
"I know it's Saturday, but doesn't your high school start in an hour?"
he asked in an attempt to change the subject. Motoko blinked, realizing
that she'd lost track of the time while cleaning and hurried to get
ready. Facing her classmates after what had happened would be rough, at
best, but a warrior did not back down from such challenges.
***
Some time later, Kitsune literally crawled into Keitaro's room. He
could understand why she was crawling, given the amount of screaming
that had come from her room the night before. Seeing her, he climbed
back to his feet and retrieved his crutch so he could hobble over and
help her with the door.
"Kei... Keitaro?" she asked, looking up at him and appearing quite
battered.
Keitaro took a deep breath and tried to keep from grinning. She had
once allowed him to fall prey to Kaolla Su's nighttime activities
without warning him, so this seemed almost a karmic turn of events.
"Kitsune..." he trailed off as he tried to think of a way to put it
gently. Failing that, he took half a step back and let loose with
honesty, "You look like hell."
Kitsune rolled onto her back, staring vacantly at the ceiling. "Ain't
my fault..." she grumbled, "Your wife was the one that threw out all of
my sake..."
Keitaro blinked and realized what was really wrong with her. It was
almost laughable, but she might not think so. "Ohhh, I get it. You're
sober."
She almost growled at him, but put her arm over her eyes instead. "So
what if I am?"
Keitaro reflected that Kitsune had become quite a professional drinker.
While she didn't get drunk too terribly often, she certainly stayed at
least two cups from sober if she could at all help it. That, combined
with the thrashing she had taken the night before, had probably been
more than she could handle. "Haruka-obasan has sake at the tea house...
here, let me help you up."
***
Motoko was, indeed, late by the time she limped in to school. Her leg
injury from the final battle with her sister made the last leg of the
journey quite difficult, at best. She hadn't realized when she was
franticly getting ready, but she had snatched up Hina and stuffed it
into her sword bag before leaving. She didn't notice until she was so
far gone that returning it would have been a major detour. It was
heavier than Shisui had been, and its presence only reminded her of the
blade she had lost.
//I should not be carrying this blade... it is not mine.// She hobbled
to the principal's office at the direction of her teacher. //Or is
it?// The principal asked her a series of questions about where she had
been for the last week, but with her explanation he congratulated her on
her happy union. //I sealed it... but it is the property of the
Urashima family.//
She apologized for her absence, but because of the family issues and her
otherwise stellar record, there was no penalty for it outside of her
need to catch up. She gained a lot of odd glances from fellow students
as she settled in after returning to class. //Shisui...//
The rest of the morning passed in a blur, but soon Motoko found herself
at kendo club. She was distracted, of course, and the different blade
certainly drew stares from those that saw it. Hina was, if nothing
else, a beautiful work of steel, though it also looked almost
malevolent. She didn't want to talk about it and was relieved that no
one asked.
Finally, she found herself back at the Hinatasou, the sun already having
sank below the trees above, though it was still a while from the
horizon. She would still need to attend her juku before the night was
out, but for now she had a couple of hours to unwind. //The hot springs
are made for times like these,// she reminded herself.
Not seeing anyone in the common areas, Motoko crept to Keitaro's room.
//My room,// she silently added. She was slowly growing accustomed to
sharing things with him, and almost growing to like it. Two days seemed
so short a time, but it also seemed like an eternity.
***
Motoko settled into the steamy water, sighing heavily. Her body ached
all over, and not just from the two day old battle injuries. She had
been forced to rush from place to place and had felt off center all day.
She didn't even remember a third of what she had done or said throughout
the day. //What's wrong with me? I'm so... unbalanced.//
However, she suspected what was actually happening. Today had been her
first day back at school since the wedding, and she was a different
person than she had been the last time she was there. Whatever changes
had occurred, they had been in her and not in her surroundings, but she
hadn't quite figured out how to reintegrate herself back into the world
she had once known her precise station in.
Relaxing in the hot springs made things seem better at that moment, but
she knew that nothing would have changed when she got out. //These are
the things that have made me soft...// she wanted to scream, but knew
that it was no good. She had found a strength in this place, and these
surroundings. The path of the warrior required dedication, she had
learned, but the surroundings were irrelevant.
She stretched and tried to work out the worst knots of tension. Her
first two days as a married woman had certainly not played out as she
had expected. Of course, she had never actually expected to be married,
so that made her expectations a suspect, at best.
She stayed wrapped in her thoughts for a while, but the sound of someone
entering the bathing area brought her back to attention. She fumbled
for her blade, but she had left Hina back in their rooms, and came up
empty. If it were Keitaro, husband or not, she was going to smash him
one. //Or you could just-// she cut off the thought before it began and
frowned. //When did I become such a pervert?// she asked herself, but
had no answer.
The form resolved itself into Kitsune as she slid into the water. "Hey,
Motoko, relaxing?" she greeted as she noticed Motoko on the other side
of the bath. "Got to go to your juku later tonight?"
Motoko gave her a quizzical look, but didn't ask how she'd known about
that. "Yes, I have a bit of a break and thought I would relax."
Kitsune settled back in the water of the hot spring sighing contentedly.
After a few seconds she nodded to Motoko, "I know what you mean... it's
certainly been a long day."
After a while, Kitsune slid closer to Motoko, a sly look on her face.
Motoko didn't retreat, though she was fairly certain that whatever the
other woman had decided to do or say, she wouldn't appreciate it.
Kitsune settled in near her and stared at her for a few minutes, as
though studying her.
Eventually, Motoko began to get embarrassed at the inspection.
"Kitsune... what do you want?"
Kitsune laughed, "Oh don't mind me, I'm just trying to see if you've got
the look."
Dreading an explanation but still oddly curious, Motoko couldn't help
herself from asking, "The look?"
"You know, the look of a woman who has become a woman," Kitsune said,
winking. "So, have you and Keitaro... you know..."
"I don't know what you're talking about," she protested, but from the
blush creeping across her face, it was clear that she did.
"Keitaro's too much of a gentleman to talk about it, but he's been
awfully cheerful today. Last night... did you make him a man?" Kitsune
asked, that same sly smile creeping across her face.
Motoko was definitely blushing. "I... no... we haven't..."
Kitsune nodded, her smile becoming wistful. "Oh, well, then." She
sighed and stretched, relaxing with several loud pops of her back. "I
guess I'll just have to find someone else to live vicariously through."
For a few long moments, silence reigned. Then, Motoko finally asked a
question which had been bugging her for a while. "If we... were to
decide to do... that... umm..." she tried desperately to phrase her
question, "how, exactly... you know... does it work?"
Kitsune laughed, but realized from the look on Motoko's face that she
was serious. She'd certainly figured that Motoko's knowledge of men
wasn't encyclopedic, but not to know something so elementary was
unexpected. "Well, it's... well... complicated."
After a while, Kitsune explained the basics with as few hand gestures as
possible. Which is to say quite a few, considering her definition of
the basics was far more than Motoko really needed to know. Motoko's
face could not have possible gotten redder by the time it was all over.
***
Keitaro, relaxing in the men's bath as best he could, heard female
voices drifting up from the hot spring below. He didn't try to listen
in, but it was hard not to, particularly when he realized his wife was
one of the two talking. This, in and of itself, wasn't very surprising.
Motoko had filled him in on her schedule, and it was certainly about the
right time for her late afternoon break. Kitsune's voice was also not
out of place, considering he had parted ways with her just ten minutes
before.
They had spent the most of the day seeing to the shopping and less than
physical chores. Kitsune was more than happy to come along, though any
kind of real work made her break out in hives. She did help, in the
end, but it was only to ensure the safety of the sake.
Now, however, she was conversing with his wife about a topic that very
nearly gave him a nose bleed. //Does this mean Motoko wants to...// he
wondered with wide eyes. He craned his head forward but didn't dare go
to the railing for a better listening position. The inevitable fall
would have set his leg back a good deal in healing time.
Instead, he concentrated on getting really clean, just in case.
***
Two days didn't seem enough time, Keitaro kept telling himself. Letting
it go longer didn't seem like a good option, but neither did doing it
now. He just wanted as much of his life back to normal as possible.
He sighed deeply as he stood before the closed doorway, leaning heavily
on his crutches. //Best to get it over with. Let her know I'm still a
friend.//
He knocked, but there was no answer. After a few moments, he cautiously
peeked inside, but the room was empty. Sighing he closed the door and
hobbled away down the hall. He would still have to talk to her, but for
now, at least, it could wait.
***
Though it was dark by the time she got home, Motoko still knew that
there was much more to be done before bed. She grabbed a scant meal of
leftovers from the kitchen and found her husband in his rooms, studying.
He didn't see her as she came in, and she took a moment to watch him,
smiling faintly.
The conversation with Kitsune earlier had left her a little bit
frightened by the male sex in general, in a way she hadn't been even as
a child. But the thought of doing some stuff, like the kissing, didn't
seem very scary.
He realized that she was there at approximately that point, and she
quickly hid her smile. The soak in the hot spring had done wonders for
her injured leg, and she barely even limped as she crossed the room to
sit adjacent to him at the table.
"Ah, I didn't hear you come in," he said with a sheepish smile.
"Welcome home."
She smiled back at him much the same way. "Are you ready for a lesson?
We can cover the basics of meditation before bedtime, I believe. It is
a wonderful relaxation tool."
For some reason, Keitaro gulped before answering, "Sure, just let me put
this stuff away." He did so and the table was moved aside. Slowly and
carefully, she instructed him in how to breath and how to sit, something
made complicated by his broken leg.
Eventually, he seemed to have the basic ideas down and Motoko decided he
had progressed enough for one day. They prepared for bed, and soon the
lights were out.
In the darkness, Motoko could hear her husband breath and knew that he
was still awake as well. She was too frightened to sleep, and his
wakefulness only made her heart race faster. //What am I thinking?
He's not been a pervert for a whole two days, why would he start
today?//
She relaxed a little bit at the thought, but some part of her seemed
disappointed. She was still terrified of some of the things Kitsune had
been talking about, particularly the one involving the policeman's
uniform and the whipped cream, but the basics seemed almost tantalizing.
It was with a little bit of surprise that she realized she was actually
turned on. It certainly wasn't a sensation she was accustomed to, but
she knew her body well enough to recognize the signs. //Is it his
scent?// she wondered, inhaling deeply. Keitaro didn't have an overly
manly scent, but it wasn't feminine, either. Her mind slowly went
through the possible sources of her arousal, but she hadn't progressed
much farther than the sound of his breathing when he shifted to face her
in the darkness.
Enough light existed for her to distinguish his eyes from the hazy
outline of his head, but nothing more than that. "Motoko... are you
asleep?" he asked softly.
"N-no, Keitaro..." she could feel her tongue grow thicker as she spoke,
in an apparent attempt to silence her.
"I... I just want to thank you. You've been very patient with me... you
know and my leg and all."
She gulped, excessively aware of the warmth of his breath as he spoke.
"T-thank you..."
For a few long seconds there was silence in the room. //Why am I so
nervous?// she asked herself. //I've already agreed to bear his
children... so why don't we just... you know...// She couldn't bring
herself to delve into the details, even in a thought.
Tentatively, she reached out one hand and fumbled for a moment before
she placed it on his chest. Keitaro stiffened a little in surprise, but
didn't try to stop her. After a few seconds, one of his hands came up
to rest lightly on the other side of hers. //I can almost feel his
heart beat... it's nice...//
//Why doesn't he just kiss me?// she wondered, but her brain was several
seconds behind
the rest of her body and she realized that he was. Shortly after she
had made the first move, he had moved toward her and pressed his lips
against hers.
At first, she almost reflexively tried to push him away, but when he
retreated a little in apparent fear that he had over stepped their
boundaries, she pursued him, kissing him back almost hungrily.
From that point on, it was almost as if Motoko were two people. One was
busy kissing Keitaro while the other watched in stunned silence. The
watching part managed to exert enough control to make sure things stayed
strictly clothes on and above the waist, but that was all she could
manage. Keitaro, for his part, seemed perfectly content to keep it that
way, and they continued their make out session for a while before the
fatigue of the day finally settled in over them.
They fell asleep, Motoko curled up in the crook of Keitaro's arm, though
much of the night had already been spent.
END
Author's Notes: This fic is, as much as anything else, an exercise in
writing things I normally don't write. Right now, the biggest problem
this fic is facing is a lack of proper conflict. I'm trying to decide
what kind of conflict I can introduce and also desperately trying to
talk myself out of doing a certain romantic entanglement side story.
Ideas? Suggestions? C & C? Email me at fireangel37@yahoo.com or
ffml_tim@yahoo.com. Notes of any sort welcome!
See the revised version of TTLAaW: The First Day for details. In short,
Keitaro doesn't give up his family name but agrees to have his second
born child assume the Aoyama name and take over the Shinmeiryuu. If he
can defeat Tsuruko, that is.
Then To Live As a Woman
The Second Day
A Love Hina Fanfic
Tim Williams (ffml_tim@yahoo.com or fireangel37@yahoo.com)
All characters and settings are copyright Ken Akamatsu, and others.
Divergence from manga #74 (Volume 9) or anime episode 25. Fairly
spoiler-ridden if you haven't seen or read that far, but not too badly
so. This is the second part of TTLAaW and follows TTLAaW: The First
Day.
+++
Aoyama Motoko's life had changed drastically in the few days following
her marriage to Urashima Keitaro. //Urashima Motoko,// she silently
reminded herself. That was one of the more difficult changes for her to
adjust to. Cleaning the rooms that she shared with her husband was not,
though, and it was the activity she was currently engaged in. Keitaro
didn't ask her to clean up, but she did anyway.
The night of the wedding and their first day together had been horrific
in many ways, and oddly joyous in others. For one thing, it had been a
pleasant surprise for her to learn that she was not forever exiled from
her family school, the Shinmeiryuu. The fear of that exile had been
much of what lead to her attempted suicide on the wedding night, and the
offer of it the day after. Now, however, the gnawing emptiness inside
her breast had receded and finally gone dormant, if it had not vanished
completely.
As long as she proved herself worthy, her daughter would one day inherit
the school, and she would watch over it until then. The task set her to
prove herself, however, was an arduous one. She had to train her new
husband in the way of the blade and, together with him, best her sister
in honorable combat. Some part of the pride that she had clung to for
most of her life screamed for her to veritably beat Keitaro into shape
and defeat her sister on the first attempt, but other parts of her
wanted to let it go for a few years. //At least, with a standing offer
like this, I don't have to worry about inheriting the school before I'm
ready...// she reminded herself.
The night before, she had given Keitaro a lesson in kendo, and, while he
wasn't completely hopeless, he wasn't taking to it like a fish to water,
either. It was going to take a lot of time and effort to make him into
a master of the Shinmeiryuu, but that suited her well enough. After
all, she could not teach him to be better than she was herself, and it
would be years before she felt herself a true master.
As she worked, she couldn't help but notice that the he smell of him
lingered in the room, though she did her best to ignore it. As much as
she hated to admit it, she had become increasingly attracted to him over
the last few days, but that did not mean she had to like it. She sighed
softly, continuing to work. He hadn't done anything she expected and
quite a few things that she hadn't. Saving her from herself had
certainly been among his more stellar moments, in her eyes. She had
fully expected him to prove as big a pervert as she had always accused
him of being and make her into a lust object within moments of returning
from the wedding. To her surprise he hadn't touched her, even when she
was naked and pressing... the thought brought a blush to her cheeks and
she shook it off before it went any farther.
She had certainly misjudged him before, but now she was in a situation
when they had no choice but to do what a man and a woman naturally did
together. After all, was she not already making plans for the life of
their second child? She blushed at the thought. Though she was
certainly in complete control of just about every facet of her
personality, she was certainly not in control of her libido, which she
was finding had more and more of a mind of its own. For some reason, it
rather liked it when she had no control over matters, and this was
certainly prime ground for that. She shook her head slightly, clearing
out the salacious thoughts. //Kitsune would have a field day if she
knew...//
Her iron control, however, was enough to keep such thoughts internal and
any impulses well in check. Even if her pulse did quicken... She
stifled those ruminations as well. It was far too early in the morning
to be thinking of things that should be happening at night, in the dark.
On the futons she had just rolled up and placed right over... She
almost growled as she cut that train of thought short as well, though
she couldn't deny a certain tingly feeling creeping over her at the
prospect.
Considerations about nocturnal antics were pushed aside as she uncovered
something among her things which reminded of her other reasons for
wanting to take her time with the training. It had been over a week
since she attended school, and she wasn't even sure if she was going to
go back. She certainly wanted to. If she had bested her sister, she
would have asked permission to attempt admission to Toudai, but now...
She still needed permission, but from someone else. She reread the
label on the book in her hands and sighed.
When Keitaro spoke over her shoulder, she almost jumped out of her skin,
"What do you have there, Motoko?" She tried to hide the book as quickly
as possible, but it had been too late. "Oh, you're registered at the
same juku I attended. What University are you shooting for?"
She blushed and stammered, "I... n-nothing..." However, as much as she
wanted to feel embarrassed, Keitaro was not looking at her accusingly
but, rather, like he honestly wanted to know. She steeled her nerves
and just went ahead and said it. "I... I wanted to try for Toudai."
Keitaro smiled broadly and laughed, though it was warm and not mocking.
"That's great!" he said with honest enthusiasm. He leaned his crutches
against the wall and sank down beside her. How he had managed to sneak
up behind her, on crutches no less, was a mystery to her, but it
probably had a lot to do with her distraction.
"Does that mean you're going to school today? I was starting to get a
little worried that you were quitting..." he trailed off.
Motoko bit the inside of her lip gently, "I... Now that I am your wife,
I didn't know if you would allow..." she trailed off as he placed a hand
gently on her shoulder. //Stupid, of course he would allow it. He's
too nice to demand I stay home.//
"Motoko, I want you to do what will make you happy." For a moment he
seemed as though he were going to stop there, but after a brief
hesitation, he continued. "Besides, your intelligence and strength are
some of the things I like about you..." he did trail off this time,
blushing slightly, and it didn't take a look in the mirror for Motoko to
know that she was blushing at the statement as well.
Married or not, they were both forging into new ground. Even a
statement of "like" was almost a scandalous declaration.
"I know it's Saturday, but doesn't your high school start in an hour?"
he asked in an attempt to change the subject. Motoko blinked, realizing
that she'd lost track of the time while cleaning and hurried to get
ready. Facing her classmates after what had happened would be rough, at
best, but a warrior did not back down from such challenges.
***
Some time later, Kitsune literally crawled into Keitaro's room. He
could understand why she was crawling, given the amount of screaming
that had come from her room the night before. Seeing her, he climbed
back to his feet and retrieved his crutch so he could hobble over and
help her with the door.
"Kei... Keitaro?" she asked, looking up at him and appearing quite
battered.
Keitaro took a deep breath and tried to keep from grinning. She had
once allowed him to fall prey to Kaolla Su's nighttime activities
without warning him, so this seemed almost a karmic turn of events.
"Kitsune..." he trailed off as he tried to think of a way to put it
gently. Failing that, he took half a step back and let loose with
honesty, "You look like hell."
Kitsune rolled onto her back, staring vacantly at the ceiling. "Ain't
my fault..." she grumbled, "Your wife was the one that threw out all of
my sake..."
Keitaro blinked and realized what was really wrong with her. It was
almost laughable, but she might not think so. "Ohhh, I get it. You're
sober."
She almost growled at him, but put her arm over her eyes instead. "So
what if I am?"
Keitaro reflected that Kitsune had become quite a professional drinker.
While she didn't get drunk too terribly often, she certainly stayed at
least two cups from sober if she could at all help it. That, combined
with the thrashing she had taken the night before, had probably been
more than she could handle. "Haruka-obasan has sake at the tea house...
here, let me help you up."
***
Motoko was, indeed, late by the time she limped in to school. Her leg
injury from the final battle with her sister made the last leg of the
journey quite difficult, at best. She hadn't realized when she was
franticly getting ready, but she had snatched up Hina and stuffed it
into her sword bag before leaving. She didn't notice until she was so
far gone that returning it would have been a major detour. It was
heavier than Shisui had been, and its presence only reminded her of the
blade she had lost.
//I should not be carrying this blade... it is not mine.// She hobbled
to the principal's office at the direction of her teacher. //Or is
it?// The principal asked her a series of questions about where she had
been for the last week, but with her explanation he congratulated her on
her happy union. //I sealed it... but it is the property of the
Urashima family.//
She apologized for her absence, but because of the family issues and her
otherwise stellar record, there was no penalty for it outside of her
need to catch up. She gained a lot of odd glances from fellow students
as she settled in after returning to class. //Shisui...//
The rest of the morning passed in a blur, but soon Motoko found herself
at kendo club. She was distracted, of course, and the different blade
certainly drew stares from those that saw it. Hina was, if nothing
else, a beautiful work of steel, though it also looked almost
malevolent. She didn't want to talk about it and was relieved that no
one asked.
Finally, she found herself back at the Hinatasou, the sun already having
sank below the trees above, though it was still a while from the
horizon. She would still need to attend her juku before the night was
out, but for now she had a couple of hours to unwind. //The hot springs
are made for times like these,// she reminded herself.
Not seeing anyone in the common areas, Motoko crept to Keitaro's room.
//My room,// she silently added. She was slowly growing accustomed to
sharing things with him, and almost growing to like it. Two days seemed
so short a time, but it also seemed like an eternity.
***
Motoko settled into the steamy water, sighing heavily. Her body ached
all over, and not just from the two day old battle injuries. She had
been forced to rush from place to place and had felt off center all day.
She didn't even remember a third of what she had done or said throughout
the day. //What's wrong with me? I'm so... unbalanced.//
However, she suspected what was actually happening. Today had been her
first day back at school since the wedding, and she was a different
person than she had been the last time she was there. Whatever changes
had occurred, they had been in her and not in her surroundings, but she
hadn't quite figured out how to reintegrate herself back into the world
she had once known her precise station in.
Relaxing in the hot springs made things seem better at that moment, but
she knew that nothing would have changed when she got out. //These are
the things that have made me soft...// she wanted to scream, but knew
that it was no good. She had found a strength in this place, and these
surroundings. The path of the warrior required dedication, she had
learned, but the surroundings were irrelevant.
She stretched and tried to work out the worst knots of tension. Her
first two days as a married woman had certainly not played out as she
had expected. Of course, she had never actually expected to be married,
so that made her expectations a suspect, at best.
She stayed wrapped in her thoughts for a while, but the sound of someone
entering the bathing area brought her back to attention. She fumbled
for her blade, but she had left Hina back in their rooms, and came up
empty. If it were Keitaro, husband or not, she was going to smash him
one. //Or you could just-// she cut off the thought before it began and
frowned. //When did I become such a pervert?// she asked herself, but
had no answer.
The form resolved itself into Kitsune as she slid into the water. "Hey,
Motoko, relaxing?" she greeted as she noticed Motoko on the other side
of the bath. "Got to go to your juku later tonight?"
Motoko gave her a quizzical look, but didn't ask how she'd known about
that. "Yes, I have a bit of a break and thought I would relax."
Kitsune settled back in the water of the hot spring sighing contentedly.
After a few seconds she nodded to Motoko, "I know what you mean... it's
certainly been a long day."
After a while, Kitsune slid closer to Motoko, a sly look on her face.
Motoko didn't retreat, though she was fairly certain that whatever the
other woman had decided to do or say, she wouldn't appreciate it.
Kitsune settled in near her and stared at her for a few minutes, as
though studying her.
Eventually, Motoko began to get embarrassed at the inspection.
"Kitsune... what do you want?"
Kitsune laughed, "Oh don't mind me, I'm just trying to see if you've got
the look."
Dreading an explanation but still oddly curious, Motoko couldn't help
herself from asking, "The look?"
"You know, the look of a woman who has become a woman," Kitsune said,
winking. "So, have you and Keitaro... you know..."
"I don't know what you're talking about," she protested, but from the
blush creeping across her face, it was clear that she did.
"Keitaro's too much of a gentleman to talk about it, but he's been
awfully cheerful today. Last night... did you make him a man?" Kitsune
asked, that same sly smile creeping across her face.
Motoko was definitely blushing. "I... no... we haven't..."
Kitsune nodded, her smile becoming wistful. "Oh, well, then." She
sighed and stretched, relaxing with several loud pops of her back. "I
guess I'll just have to find someone else to live vicariously through."
For a few long moments, silence reigned. Then, Motoko finally asked a
question which had been bugging her for a while. "If we... were to
decide to do... that... umm..." she tried desperately to phrase her
question, "how, exactly... you know... does it work?"
Kitsune laughed, but realized from the look on Motoko's face that she
was serious. She'd certainly figured that Motoko's knowledge of men
wasn't encyclopedic, but not to know something so elementary was
unexpected. "Well, it's... well... complicated."
After a while, Kitsune explained the basics with as few hand gestures as
possible. Which is to say quite a few, considering her definition of
the basics was far more than Motoko really needed to know. Motoko's
face could not have possible gotten redder by the time it was all over.
***
Keitaro, relaxing in the men's bath as best he could, heard female
voices drifting up from the hot spring below. He didn't try to listen
in, but it was hard not to, particularly when he realized his wife was
one of the two talking. This, in and of itself, wasn't very surprising.
Motoko had filled him in on her schedule, and it was certainly about the
right time for her late afternoon break. Kitsune's voice was also not
out of place, considering he had parted ways with her just ten minutes
before.
They had spent the most of the day seeing to the shopping and less than
physical chores. Kitsune was more than happy to come along, though any
kind of real work made her break out in hives. She did help, in the
end, but it was only to ensure the safety of the sake.
Now, however, she was conversing with his wife about a topic that very
nearly gave him a nose bleed. //Does this mean Motoko wants to...// he
wondered with wide eyes. He craned his head forward but didn't dare go
to the railing for a better listening position. The inevitable fall
would have set his leg back a good deal in healing time.
Instead, he concentrated on getting really clean, just in case.
***
Two days didn't seem enough time, Keitaro kept telling himself. Letting
it go longer didn't seem like a good option, but neither did doing it
now. He just wanted as much of his life back to normal as possible.
He sighed deeply as he stood before the closed doorway, leaning heavily
on his crutches. //Best to get it over with. Let her know I'm still a
friend.//
He knocked, but there was no answer. After a few moments, he cautiously
peeked inside, but the room was empty. Sighing he closed the door and
hobbled away down the hall. He would still have to talk to her, but for
now, at least, it could wait.
***
Though it was dark by the time she got home, Motoko still knew that
there was much more to be done before bed. She grabbed a scant meal of
leftovers from the kitchen and found her husband in his rooms, studying.
He didn't see her as she came in, and she took a moment to watch him,
smiling faintly.
The conversation with Kitsune earlier had left her a little bit
frightened by the male sex in general, in a way she hadn't been even as
a child. But the thought of doing some stuff, like the kissing, didn't
seem very scary.
He realized that she was there at approximately that point, and she
quickly hid her smile. The soak in the hot spring had done wonders for
her injured leg, and she barely even limped as she crossed the room to
sit adjacent to him at the table.
"Ah, I didn't hear you come in," he said with a sheepish smile.
"Welcome home."
She smiled back at him much the same way. "Are you ready for a lesson?
We can cover the basics of meditation before bedtime, I believe. It is
a wonderful relaxation tool."
For some reason, Keitaro gulped before answering, "Sure, just let me put
this stuff away." He did so and the table was moved aside. Slowly and
carefully, she instructed him in how to breath and how to sit, something
made complicated by his broken leg.
Eventually, he seemed to have the basic ideas down and Motoko decided he
had progressed enough for one day. They prepared for bed, and soon the
lights were out.
In the darkness, Motoko could hear her husband breath and knew that he
was still awake as well. She was too frightened to sleep, and his
wakefulness only made her heart race faster. //What am I thinking?
He's not been a pervert for a whole two days, why would he start
today?//
She relaxed a little bit at the thought, but some part of her seemed
disappointed. She was still terrified of some of the things Kitsune had
been talking about, particularly the one involving the policeman's
uniform and the whipped cream, but the basics seemed almost tantalizing.
It was with a little bit of surprise that she realized she was actually
turned on. It certainly wasn't a sensation she was accustomed to, but
she knew her body well enough to recognize the signs. //Is it his
scent?// she wondered, inhaling deeply. Keitaro didn't have an overly
manly scent, but it wasn't feminine, either. Her mind slowly went
through the possible sources of her arousal, but she hadn't progressed
much farther than the sound of his breathing when he shifted to face her
in the darkness.
Enough light existed for her to distinguish his eyes from the hazy
outline of his head, but nothing more than that. "Motoko... are you
asleep?" he asked softly.
"N-no, Keitaro..." she could feel her tongue grow thicker as she spoke,
in an apparent attempt to silence her.
"I... I just want to thank you. You've been very patient with me... you
know and my leg and all."
She gulped, excessively aware of the warmth of his breath as he spoke.
"T-thank you..."
For a few long seconds there was silence in the room. //Why am I so
nervous?// she asked herself. //I've already agreed to bear his
children... so why don't we just... you know...// She couldn't bring
herself to delve into the details, even in a thought.
Tentatively, she reached out one hand and fumbled for a moment before
she placed it on his chest. Keitaro stiffened a little in surprise, but
didn't try to stop her. After a few seconds, one of his hands came up
to rest lightly on the other side of hers. //I can almost feel his
heart beat... it's nice...//
//Why doesn't he just kiss me?// she wondered, but her brain was several
seconds behind
the rest of her body and she realized that he was. Shortly after she
had made the first move, he had moved toward her and pressed his lips
against hers.
At first, she almost reflexively tried to push him away, but when he
retreated a little in apparent fear that he had over stepped their
boundaries, she pursued him, kissing him back almost hungrily.
From that point on, it was almost as if Motoko were two people. One was
busy kissing Keitaro while the other watched in stunned silence. The
watching part managed to exert enough control to make sure things stayed
strictly clothes on and above the waist, but that was all she could
manage. Keitaro, for his part, seemed perfectly content to keep it that
way, and they continued their make out session for a while before the
fatigue of the day finally settled in over them.
They fell asleep, Motoko curled up in the crook of Keitaro's arm, though
much of the night had already been spent.
END
Author's Notes: This fic is, as much as anything else, an exercise in
writing things I normally don't write. Right now, the biggest problem
this fic is facing is a lack of proper conflict. I'm trying to decide
what kind of conflict I can introduce and also desperately trying to
talk myself out of doing a certain romantic entanglement side story.
Ideas? Suggestions? C & C? Email me at fireangel37@yahoo.com or
ffml_tim@yahoo.com. Notes of any sort welcome!
