LOVE HINA: CHANGING HEARTS
By: Tezza1502
Disclaimer: 'Love Hina' and its inhabitants belong to Ken Akamatsu. Me? I just write pithy little AU's that occasionally find an audience.
Notes: The last chapter was getting a bit over my self-imposed word limit, so I took the scissors to it. And have no fear, this fic will not feature a lemon anywhere. I was just curious about how far you can push it. Anyone who has read my other stuff will know that I generally don't go that far. (Small dash of lemon with a LOT of soda!) Thank you for caring enough about my story to voice you opinions, though.
CHAPTER SEVEN: The Morning After the Night Before. (P2)
After escorting Mutsumi to her job at his aunties' teahouse, he dawdled for a while, distracting both of them from their work. When Keitaro noticed Haruka reaching for her fan, he took the hint. Cornering his girlfriend in a quiet spot for a kiss, he made his exit and began the long climb up the stairs to Hinata-Sou. Knowing the timetables of the residents intimately, the only person who should be up there right now was Kitsune. Which was why he had waited until a Sunday night to tell them all. He did not want to have to deal with them over a weekend, when there would be no escape from their hounding. This way, the younger tenants had school to go to, and Naru had cram school.
Sneaky? Yes. Cowardly? Maybe. But it gave them all some extra time to cool off. In addition, he could avoid being ganged up on for a bit longer.
The plan still left him with Kitsune to deal with, though.
"Hey there, stud! Got a minute?" Speak of the devil…
"Hi, Kitsune. Can it wait? I want to change out of these clothes and freshen up." He replied, not breaking his stride across the common room.
"Nup!" She grinned.
Keitaro sighed, but did not stop walking. "Well, come on up."
Scowling at having to get up off the couch, she followed him upstairs, grumbling all the way. Reaching his closed door, she began talking through it. "I just wanna chat about things while we're alone. That's all."
"Go on." He answered, fumbling around in his closet.
Licking her lips, she prepared to interrogate, err, begin a pleasant conversation with the Kanrinin. All in the interest of being a friendly tenant, of course. "How did last night go, all alone with your honey?" Her voice was thick with innuendo.
'Typical Kitsune, straight for the juicy stuff.' He thought. "Great! We've wanted to get our relationship out in the open for a while. To be able to organise dates without worrying about running into you guys."
'That's NOT what I'm asking about.' She fumed. 'Hey, wait a minute!' "Just what do you mean by that?!"
"If any of you girls had seen us together before yesterday, I would never have heard the end of it." He replied sadly. "Naru and Motoko would have put me into orbit for 'forcing' my presence upon her. Shinobu would burst into tears, and I would still be heading for L.E.O. because I made her cry. Sarah would tease the crap out of me. You would tease the crap out of me, and then blackmail me with it to keep you quiet. Of all of you, I think only Su wouldn't make some sort of fuss."
"HEY! We're not that bad." She shouted indignantly, before jumping back quickly as his door opened suddenly. Keitaro had an eyebrow raised in a perfect imitation of Haruka's 'yeah, right!' look.
"All I'm saying is, it's out in the open now. Mutsumi's happy about that, and truth to be told, so am I." Indicating for her to follow him, he headed towards the roof. "I know it was a surprise for you all, but I think you could understand our need for secrecy. Especially after last night."
Turning his words over in her mind, Kitsune stayed quiet until they were both comfortably seated facing the distant ocean. "I guess…" She agreed hesitantly. "I think what threw us all the most was your sudden change in demeanour. I mean, we all had noticed a slight difference about you a couple of weeks ago, but none of us expected something like this!"
Keitaro chuckled. "Well, you can blame Mutsumi for that. Since she and I have been together, I've been looking at my life a bit differently. Growing up, I suppose." He scratched behind his head. "I want to be a better person for her. I want her… to be proud of me." He shrugged. "So, I started trying to get my act together."
"It's working." Kitsune looked at his profile, seeing him with new eyes. 'We've all noticed. He's really trying to be better than he was before. To be more mature. For her.' A small pang of jealousy made itself known. 'I wonder if he would have done the same for any of us?' Shaking that thought away before it could take root, she gave him a meditative smile. 'Too late to wonder about what if now, girl. He's taken. Thoroughly. You made the same mistake Naru did, and he found someone else. And making a play for another woman's man is the one line I swore NEVER to cross!' She frowned, and then brightened, wondering what it would be like to be involved with this new Keitaro. Tucking her knees under her chin, she indulged herself in that daydream for a while.
Realising it had been quiet for too long, Keitaro turned to look at his companion. He noticed the wistful expression on her face. Reaching over, he placed a hand on her shoulder and nudged her gently.
"Hey! You okay?"
Kitsune shook that fantasy away. "Huh? Oh sure. Just thinking, is all."
"Oh. Alright." He replied. "So, any chance you'll ease off and let Mutsumi and I be?" He asked hopefully.
Kitsune tipped her head back and cackled maniacally. "HAH! Hell no! Life at Hinata-Sou is about to get more interesting than it has in ages! You honestly think I'm gonna sit back and miss out on all the fun?"
Keitaro's shoulders slumped. 'Ah well, it was worth a shot.'
Seeing this, the fox brought herself under control. "Seriously though. I'm glad you two found each other, despite what some of the others may think. And while I may try to get a rise out of you both from time to time, I swear that I will not interfere with your relationship." She favoured him with the sweetest smile he had ever seen grace her face. "You're a good man, Keitaro. Make sure you keep her happy."
"I plan to." He grinned back, relieved that Kitsune was ultimately on their side.
Deciding she had said enough on the matter, Kitsune changed subjects. "C'mon, you slacker. Enough lollygagging! You've got chores to do." She slapped him playfully on the shoulder. Groaning, Keitaro rose to his feet and made his way back down the stairs, with her following close behind. As they were about to go their separate ways, she stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.
"Kei? If you ever want any ideas as to where to take her out for dinner, or something, come and see me. I'll give you some advice." She smiled at him again, softly. "Free of charge."
Trying to decide if there was a catch to her proposal anywhere, Keitaro finally smiled back and accepted her offer. "Thanks, Kitsune!"
"Your welcome. " She nodded slightly. "See you 'round." With that, she made her way back to her former position on the couch, happy with her good deed for the day. Keitaro watched her saunter off, wondering what other surprises awaited him in the near future.
For a change, life was reasonably pleasant for the new couple over the next few weeks.
Without trying to appear too eager for details, the girls bailed up Mutsumi for a grilling in the hot springs as soon as they could manage. Despite their best efforts, and a few bottles of Kitsune's more expensive sake, Mutsumi deftly sidestepped their questioning by smiling smugly and telling them what they already knew about the Kanrinin. Namely, that he was kind, and gentle, and patient. The only details she added to the general pool of knowledge was that he was also a great kisser! Moreover, that his hands were firm yet sensitive when they roamed over her body. The resulting red faces worn by the others after that statement had nothing to do with the temperature of the water in the hot springs.
At the meeting held by the tenants in the attic later to try and dissect what they had learned from Mutsumi, the only thing to emerge was a strong undercurrent of envy.
After she took Keitaro aside for a few words of her own, Motoko kept her distance and restrained herself in his presence. The few times she did feel inclined to take him to task over some slight, real or otherwise, Mutsumi would either be nearby or hear about it soon after. At seeing his girlfriend become so distressed over Keitaro's 'punishments', the samurai soon lost her taste for dishing them out. For the first time, Motoko was feeling real doubt over the validity of her actions. She began meditating more frequently to try and discover the core of this new uncertainty within herself.
Su was Su. Despite this, the kick-to-the-head greetings were curtailed, although not ceased altogether. Testing of new inventions upon his body was also in decline, simply because no-one residing at Hinata-Sou was capable of withstanding a full-force Mutsumi pout.
Even Sarah was not exempt from this. Pranks were harder to enjoy when your target's girlfriend would glare at you disapprovingly after you pulled them.
Put plainly, Mutsumi was gently setting boundaries around Keitaro. She was not jealous of the individual friendships the other residents shared with him. She was not stealing him away from them. She was simply letting them know that she would no longer tolerate their physical assaults upon his person.
Naru avoided the both of them like the plague. Like Motoko, she was re-evaluating her actions over the past year and a half. Unlike Motoko, Naru did not have an alternative outlet for her feelings such as meditation or practicing with a katana. The resulting stress was putting her on a razor's edge.
The hardest hit by Keitaro and Mutsumi's relationship was still Shinobu. First loves are special, no matter how they end up. She still considered him 'her' Keitaro, despite the age difference. No matter how long ago those two knew each other, or what promises were made between them, she had seen the kind man he had grown into as an adult first! Which made running into them kissing each other in the quiet places around Hinata-Sou occasionally a singular torture. And fantasizing about taking Mutsumi's place within the circle of his arms was NOT HELPING! Shinobu understood Keitaro and Mutsumi were trying their best to be subtle about showing their affection for each other around her out of respect for her feelings, and knowing she had zero right to make a fuss over it made the situation all the more bitter.
With all this tension suffocating the inn, something had to give.
Notes: Three guesses who snaps. T
L.E.O.: Low Earth Orbit. That place Keitaro is punched to from time to time.