'We Fell in Love'
'Love Hina' is by Ken Akamatsu
Writer's note: There is not too much to say here right now so I will just drive on.
Time line: the week leading up to and just before New Year's Day 2013.
Chapter 7: Luck of the Draw
Returning home to the Hinata in her Mustang®, Keitaro and the three passengers in back are very surprised at how well Kitsune drives on the highway.
Carefully driving only up to the speed limit, she uses all of the proper signals, does all the proper lane changes, turns without squealing the tires, and she does not slam on the brakes even once.
This happens while Kitsune is sitting on the wrong side of the car, well at least here in Japan anyways.
In addition, she is happy that she listened to Keitaro about getting her medium car driver's license last month. At the time, she did not know why he had her do this, but seeing his present to her made it all worthwhile. To her, there is only one thing can top this but then it is much too soon for that.
Pulling up to the Hinata City limits, Kitsune asks Keitaro which road she should take.
The GPS on his smart phone points the way.
Getting a few gawks from stunned onlookers, Kitsune smiles while driving the American made sports car on the main road into town.
Smug is too mild of a word for how the Fox feels in knowing that if she has the hottest ride in this part of the Prefecture.
Driving up to the building that the residents now use as a parking garage, she pulls in and puts her hand on Keitaro's leg.
Rubbing it while smiling her thanks to him, she quickly needs to move her hand away.
In her haste, Kitsune feels something a little extra and gets a "Whoa!" from him.
"Sorry, Kei-kun," whispers the Fox slyly as she is only half-sorry. Lucky in many ways it seems, she already knows what her boyfriend is packing.
"See me later, Kit-chan," he hisses so only she can hear him.
With the headlights and the motor shutting off, the electric locks unclick, the two doors open and everyone steps out.
"Wow, Kitsune-Senpai! You're a great driver," says Shinobu holding her new laptop, which she carefully put back in its box. At the Urashima house, she and Sarah had a lot of fun with Keitaro's gift.
"You drive like an Obaa-san though, Kitsune Nee-chan," says Kanako.
Naru and Shinobu snicker.
Keitaro does not dare, he has to share a bed with her.
Getting her digs in on Kitsune, Kanako likes her new Onee-chan very much. Because she sees how happy her Onii-chan is. Along with this, Kitsune is very accepting of her being gay.
"When you own a car like this after you get your license, you'll drive like one too, Kana-chan." responds Kitsune smiling and hitting the auto-lock button. Then, she pushes the one for car alarm. This is her 'baby', and she will drive it like a tortoise if that is what it takes.
Seeing how tired Shinobu is getting, Keitaro gives the petit chef a piggyback ride up the steps while Kitsune latches onto his left arm. He also carries her laptop box because the petit girl has fallen asleep right after hopping up on his back.
"She is so light," whispers Keitaro.
Hugging him gently around his neck, the petite chef lays her chin on his shoulder.
Smiling as they start up the steps, he listening to the young girl's soft breathing.
Kitsune is very proud of her man right now for giving her such a wonderful present. So much so, that she is going to thank him in her own inimitable way when they are in bed later.
That is not the only thing she's grateful for on this evening. You see, in talking to Keitaro she found someone very wonderful that she can also rely on.
Wanting her to maintain her own life, she can keep her job if she wants to, even though they are together now and no longer needs to work.
Arm-in-arm Kanako and Naru are just a few steps behind the trio. They are just as lovey-dovey as they were in bed this morning.
Naru is very happy with her locket from Kanako and she will always treasure it. She also wants to thank her girlfriend the same way that Kitsune wants to thank Keitaro.
Haruka and Sarah pull into the resident's garage to park her Honda™ sports car.
"Hey you two, slow down back there. Haruka just pulled in," warns Keitaro. "If she sees you two going at it around Sarah-chan, she'll go ballistic." Knows that his cousin takes being a mother extremely seriously, he knows that she will rip into the two lovebirds if they get too personal with each other where Sarah can see them.
"Okay, Onii-chan/Kei-kun," says the teen couple in stereo as they switch over to just holding hands.
Standing just inside the door to the old manse, Keitaro kicks off his shoes.
Kitsune takes off Shinobu's shoes and jacket.
Naru and Kanako remove theirs as well and put on house slippers.
Stepping into the main house, Haruka comes right in behind them carrying Sarah sound asleep in her arms. Exhausted from a long day, the girl had a lot of fun with her new family.
"Kei-kun, let's get these two to bed. Kit, will you help him with Shinobu-chan?" asks Haruka after kicking off her shoes.
Naru comes over and removes Sarah's shoes.
This gets a whispered "thanks" from her Kaa-san.
An unexpected, but very welcome call…
Smiling, Haruka gets Sarah ready for bed.
The girl had so much fun at their Oji-san's house and she loved all of her presents too.
After slipping Sarah's nightie on, Haruka tucks the sleeping girl into her bed.
Not so tired herself, she goes downstairs for a soak in the onsen. Then maybe afterwards, she will take out some good Sake for a nice nightcap.
With how Sarah is progressing, Haruka believes that motherhood is now becoming second nature to her.
In addition, Haruka is considering taking Sarah on a small trip with her just before New Year's Day. Then, they will both dress in new Yukatas and go draw their luck at the shrine for the coming year. She wants to take Sarah somewhere fun, so they can start making memories together.
Pulling out her new smart phone to leave herself a memo, Haruka sees that she had turned the device off somewhere. Remembering that she turned it off before entering her Oji-san's house, she was not going to let anything disturb her first holiday with Sarah. Turning the device back on, Haruka is surprised to see that Nomura Junpei called.
'Now there's a name I haven't seen in a while thinks Haruka happily as she strips into her bikini inside the women's changing area.
Thinking that Seta Noriyasu-san was a nice guy once, Junpei however… now this man is something even more special.
Keitaro must have given her former beau her cell number because she changed it recently after upgrading all of her electronic devices.
Nevertheless, that is not it though…
Wishing for the life of her that she had not asked Junpei to give her space when Hina Obaa-san ceded her the Tea Shoppe, Haruka believes that she could have made a better decision back then.
Now however, looking at the flashing symbol on her smart phone, she sees that Junpei has left her a message and the opportunity that she has been looking for to rekindle their relationship.
After getting her bikini on and before heading to the onsen Haruka nervously hits the message replay button to see what he has to say.
Message: "Hi Haruka-chan, it's been way too long since I've called. Gomen, my life has been very busy and hectic with being a full-time architect and a part-time Kyōju at the art college. Now though, I am taking time off from teaching and if possible, I would like to see you again if you are willing. Call me at the number you see on your screen. Oh, do not get mad at Keitaro for giving me your number, I asked him for it. Blame me. I hope to hear from you soon."
Smiling, Haruka settles into the onsen and relaxes in her favorite spot.
'Kei-kun, I'm going to give you such a big thank you for giving Junpei my number,' Haruka thinks seeing the man in question step out of the men's wash area red-faced with Kitsune hanging all over him.
Her bikini, which is extremely revealing, has a definite hint that Kitsune has really been listening to Mariko.
"Kit-chan, that's not how you wash my back," says a flustered Keitaro, "You're lucky that none of the kids are out here right now."
For the first time, Kitsune exposes her large breasts and washes his back with them. It leaves him with a major and quite painful erection, which she then orally relieves him until he floods her mouth.
"Kei-kun, if you think you're going to get any sleep very tonight, think again" says Kitsune in a sultry voice after swallowing. She is all over him like a blanket and grabs for things since they are alone on the men's side.
Wanted to do him in his father's garage, Kitsune says she is sick to death of always holding back when they are alone. Therefore, this Fox now pounces on her mouse.
They are not alone.
"Oh, gomen Haru-chan," says Keitaro sheepishly acknowledging his cousin.
Laughing loudly, Haruka rather enjoys seeing Kitsune's antics and his facial expressions.
"Hey, you chose to have her live with you. So get over it Kei-kun," says Haruka. Watching his girlfriend glomming him and acting lovey-dovey in the extreme, she has a quick thought about Junpei. It was of a time when she did as Kitsune is doing now.
"Ack Kit-chan, will you slow down," says Keitaro squirming around.
Doing some naughty things to him, Kitsune ignores the fact that Haruka is here.
"Kei-kun, if you can look over at me for a moment," says Haruka knowing that Kitsune has nothing on her mind right now but pleasuring her boyfriend, "I just want to say thank you for giving Junpei my number. I think you have a sleepless night ahead of you, cousin. It is because she is already in the zone. To show my appreciation, I will give you two the keys to the Tea Shoppe tonight, as it looks like you are going to need them. I'm not opening up tomorrow morning and the bed upstairs is made."
With a big smile on her face, Haruka gets up and steps out of the onsen. Watches her cousin's eyes start to roll into the back of head, Haruka gets the shop keys from her basket and jiggles them before placing them on a table.
After another good laugh at the couple's antics, she changes into a nightshirt, grabs her basket and heads to bed to be with her daughter.
The next morning…
It is very quiet in the Hinata, as two couples at least are ready to get up along with a certain bluenette.
The other couple down below in the Tea Shoppe's bedroom have recently passed out after getting totally midævel with each other somewhere during the night. It is a good thing that Haruka's king-sized bed is of good quality or she would need a new one.
Trapped by a Fox in heat, Keitaro learned many new things along the way, like how loud his girlfriend can scream. The aftermath of it all is, though she wore him out, he finds that he has nothing to bitch about when they finally get out of bed.
Now back to our show.
The sun comes through the window in Haruka's room as she decides to stay in this morning.
A snuggling Sarah causes Haruka to smile.
Since there is little to do today, she lets her daughter sleep in for a while longer.
Normally on a Sunday, Haruka would get up early and take a drive into the countryside to visit small shops along the way. In the spring, she will take Sarah with her because those trips are a lot of fun.
"Hey sleepyhead, you want breakfast?" asks Haruka softly smiling at Sarah. She cannot help but smile at the blonde-haired cutie that is starting to yawn.
"Ohaiyo, Kaa-san. I'm hungry," says Sarah as her stomach growls.
Both giggle before sitting up to stretch.
Standing up quickly, Sarah heads to the door after putting on her slippers, "I gotta pee, Kaa-san." The girl runs out the door and down the hallway to the water closet.
Her Kaa-san laughs.
Brrrrr! Brrrrr!
Hearing her smart phone go off, this does not annoy Haruka because she is usually up at this time of morning and going full bore at her place during the week.
"Moshi, moshi, this is Haruka," she says pleasantly as possible after turning after hitting the speaker function.
"Ohaiyo, Haru-chan. Did I call at a bad time?" the caller asks.
"No, Jun-kun. It has been too long since I last heard from you, and before you even ask, the answer is yes," says Haruka in rapid-fire succession, as she is happy with the man's persistence in chasing after her again. Moreover, she is still very much in love with him.
"Wow, I didn't even have to stumble through what I've been practicing on," says a happy Junpei, "I guess all I want to say now is that I've missed you."
"Same here, Jun-kun," says Haruka biting her lip, "but I've got a daughter now. Will that change things?"
It will be nice to have her own children someday with Junpei, as Sarah would make them a great Onee-chan.
"No, I know all about the custody fight you had with Seta-san," responds Junpei, "Omedetō, Haru-chan. I am glad things went your way. I hope she likes me."
"Getting a little ahead of ourselves, are we?" asks Haruka knowingly teasing him. She has absolutely no intention of letting him slip through her fingers a second time.
"Oops, did I?" asks Junpei sheepishly in return. He knows how volatile Haruka can be from their experiences together in the past. This is what attracted him to her in the first place.
She can be brutally honest.
"Gotcha, I think Sarah-chan will like you because you're so much like Kei-kun," says Haruka laughing, "She calls him Keitaro Onii-chan now and she might see you in the same way."
To him, her voice is just smiling right through the speaker.
Because he is such a wonderful man, she can never tease Junpei too much.
Walking quietly back through the traditional door, Sarah comes over to the end of the bed. Kneeling down on it, she waits for her Kaa-san to finish with her call.
"Got to go, I'll bookmark your number and I'll call you later today, bye Jun-kun," says Haruka in rapidly before closing her cell.
Looking down to the end of the bed, Haruka sees Sarah looking at her questioningly.
"Kaa-san, did you find a boyfriend?" asks Sarah smiling, "If you did, I hope he's like Keitaro Onii-chan."
With Haruka smiling broadly, Sarah sees that she has a certain gleam in her eye.
"How did I manage to get such a smart daughter?" asks Haruka rhetorically.
Sharing a good laugh, the two then get ready for the day ahead.
Keitaro and the genius inventor…
If is it truly possible to have a human version of a 'Close Encounter of the Third Kind', this is it.
Sunday afternoon…
Just about three days away from New Year's Day, Keitaro is trying to have a peaceful day after Kitsune kissed him good-bye before heading off to work.
Since the Tea Shoppe is not open today, Sarah is with Haruka.
Haruka royally busted Keitaro's chops about the mess that he and Kitsune made on her old bed and, after a good laugh she tells him that's exactly what she expected would happen.
It takes Keitaro a whole day and some aspirin to recover from the sexual wrecking ball that Kitsune has become. Happy that she had to work today, he would have dropped from sheer exhaustion if it had continued. For some reason or another, she has been a real dynamo in bed lately.
Loving the fact that his Kitsune-chan is gorgeous, feisty and loves him with all of her heart, she sometimes she scares the living begeezus out of him. Thankful as always for all of her quirks, her energy greatly recharges his batteries when he has had a long or exhausting day.
As an added bonus, she has become a great lover too.
While waiting for Kitsune to come home, Keitaro is tinkering with some of the pipes that feed the Hinata's hot water from the main source back by the old Annex. He is making sure that the water feed is not slowing down due to the colder weather.
He walks back an older place that is back a little higher up on the Hill.
In his mind, Keitaro wants to add onto the Hinata as he wants to have Junpei do all of the architectural designs. Then, he is thinks of hiring the company Kitsune's friend Ruka works for to do the overall contracting and actual work. He is not going to wait forever to get this done.
Looking over the dilapidated state of the secondary Urashima clan home, it will all come down and have another structure put into its place.
Having already done some preliminary sketches out here, and knowing now that this place is his, he wants to carry on the work of re-building and adding on to the Urashima clan's ancestral home.
After a few more mental notes, and seeing to it that the flow of hot water continues unobstructed, he heads back.
Well ladies and gentlemen, ready or not here she comes…
Having seen a few strange things in his life, Keitaro has seen nothing like what he is seeing now.
A strange looking craft hovers off the ground heads his way at a very rapid clip.
"What the…," is all Keitaro gets out of his mouth when he sees a dark-skinned blonde-haired gaijin whip by him sitting at the controls laughing maniacally.
"Kaolla-chan, don't hurt my Keitaro Onii-chan," hollers Sarah from the back seat of the hovering vehicle that has just whizzed by.
'So she's back,' thinks Keitaro trying not to laugh, 'This must the genius girl who goes to Tokyo U that everyone's been telling me about.'
Watching in fascination, he watches the flying turtle-shaped hover-type craft going along with someone piloting it who knows how to have fun behind the stick.
He has his motorcycle, but this hovering contraption is way beyond that.
After another minute of having some fun doing stunts in the back lot, the machine comes to a halt next to Keitaro.
Shutting off the machine, a slip of a girl undoes her harness and jumps onto Keitaro before he knows what hits him.
Finding himself on his back, a laid-out Keitaro has a young girl on his chest who is almost as tiny as Shinobu.
With such a sweet innocent smile on her face, he cannot seem to get upset with her.
Things are now going to get very interesting around the Hinata…
"Oops, I hope I didn't break him before we've even had a chance to play yet," says Kaolla smiling sweetly.
Looking down at Keitaro, she know he must feel like a tackling dummy right now.
"Keitaro Onii-chan, are you alright?" asks a concerned Sarah.
Undoing her harness, she jumps out of the hovercraft and kneels on the ground placing Keitaro's head in her lap.
"Yeah, I'm fine Sarah-chan," responds Keitaro allaying the fears of the young girl, "I just didn't expect to catch a flying girl before I could set myself."
No movement for a few seconds.
"By the way Kaolla-chan, would you please get off my chest?" asks Keitaro looking up at the smiling young teen. Though she is as light as a feather, the ground is very cold and it is starting to leech through his jacket.
"Sure, Onii-chan," says Kaolla. Putting a mittened hand on the ground, she shifts her weight and pushes her lithe body into a one-handed handstand before flipping onto her feet.
In awe of this girl's flexibility and strength, Keitaro and Sarah applaud her.
"Okay then," says Keitaro getting up with Sarah and Kaolla's help. Thoroughly impressed, he likes what he has seen so far.
"I see you've met Kaolla Su, Kei-kun," says Haruka coming up the path towards the trio.
"You might say that, Haruka," he replies while brushing off the front of himself.
"Sarah-chan, did you have fun?" she asks her daughter trying not to laugh.
"Hai, Kaa-san," says Sarah smiling while heading over to her, "It was great."
Knowing Kaolla well enough, Haruka trusts that the genius girl will not let anything happen to her daughter. That is why Sarah was having fun in the back seat.
Even Haruka has taken a couple of rides with the resident 'Einstein', telling her cousin she does this because it is fun.
"Let's head back in so I can thaw out and make my formal introduction to Kaolla-chan," says Keitaro still brushing snow off as Kaolla climbs back into her contraption.
"Mecha-Tama Mk II, away!" hollers Kaolla as she heads back to the Hinata leaving behind a trail of maniacal laughter.
Turning down another ride, Sarah decides to walk back holding hands with her Kaa-san and Keitaro.
Twenty minutes later…
In the common room sits Keitaro, Haruka, Sarah, Shinobu and Kaolla Su.
Making some coffee, tea and cocoa for the quartet that has just come in, the petite chef decides to join the others because all of her work is complete for now.
The others are in the midst of small talk when Ringo, Kina and Mariko come in the door together.
Smiling, Kaolla watches as the newer residents remove their shoes.
With that going on, Keitaro tells her that there are six new people living at the Hinata now.
This news pleases her.
"New playmates," Kaolla says with a huge grin on her face.
The three look at each other before looking at the young blonde dark-skinned foreigner sitting there on the couch with Shinobu.
They then come in and sit down.
Living here for just about a year, she has just returned from visiting her family.
"Minna-san, this is Kaolla Su of MolMol," says Keitaro formally introducing the blonde genius to the three, "She is a Princess of the Royal line of that island nation. She's also a robotics and mechanical engineering student at Tokyo U."
"Wow, Tokyo U," says Kina smiling at the young teen, "You must be smart then."
The other two women are greatly impressed that such a young teenager is a student at their nation's most prestigious University.
"I just like building things, Kina-Senpai," says Kaolla in flawless Japanese, "I surprised 'Onii-chan' with my Mecha-Tama hovercraft a little while ago".
This statement surprises the three returning residents who look from Kaolla to Keitaro.
The place erupts in laughter and looks of awe.
They then listen to the girl describe some of the things that she is working on.
Keitaro turns bright red when Kaolla tells them about how she had greeted her newest playmate outside.
An interesting phone call…
Hormonal teenage girls are bad, but a horny hormonal teenage girl who can wield a Katana is even worse.
Monday is a very boring day for Keitaro.
Everyone else takes off, either to go shopping or to work.
Deciding to take care of some of the pile of paperwork that Kanako has sorted out and/or printed up for him, he does not know what he would do if she were not here. In times like these, he likes having an Imouto-chan around who thinks the world of him.
Opening his laptop, he begins to answer his many e-mails, but…
Bzzzz! Bzzzz!
"Moshi, moshi! Keitaro here," he says.
"Hello, Urashima-sama. This is Aoyama Tsuruko," says the person on the other end, as her words seem to have an edge to them, "I've called to let you know that Motoko is on her way back to the Hinata even as we speak."
"She shouldn't have a problem being here though. I run the place now and not Hinata Obaa-san. There are other new residents here for her to get to know and learn from" Keitaro says cryptically knowing how Tsuruko plays everything close to her chest.
Even though the two clans are blood-related now, it still does not stop the games sometimes.
"So you know what's expected of you Urashima-sama," says Tsuruko trying to convey a hidden warning.
"Let's cut through the crap, Tsuruko-san," responds Keitaro tersely, "Motoko-chan still has a bad attitude because she's hormonal right now and boy crazy. I have heard this from two of the other girls here. She uses your marriage to my cousin Shigeru as something to focus her anger on, but I think it is more like lust, if anything. I make no promises that she will not have her attitude challenged now. She is also still angry that Kanako humiliated her after challenging my Imouto-chan two years ago and that probably still sticks in her craw. So I hope you warned her that I won't coddle her like Hina Obaa-san did."
His words to Tsuruko are flat out blatant.
"Good. My apologies for being harsh Keitaro," says Tsuruko sounding like she has just exhaled after holding a long breath, "It's about time someone shows some steel and is willing to stand up to my beloved Imouto-han. Yes, she has been driving all the male students crazy around here. She's having a lot of trouble growing up."
"If she challenges me I will answer her," Keitaro says making sure that she knows he is serious, "However, if she draws a Katana or Bokken at me there will be trouble. Kanako-chan gets difficult for me to control sometimes when she's angry, and she can cripple Motoko with little effort if she doesn't hold back."
"I just hope you don't lose your temper with her," says Tsuruko concerned, "Haruka has told me that would be dire for Motoko-han if you were to black out."
"Sorry if I sound so harsh Tsuruko," says Keitaro trying to be apologetic, "but Hina Obaa-san really tried to pull one over on me by manipulating the way I got the Hinata. So far, everything is okay here since I moved in about a week ago. Right now, the last thing I need is an expert with a Katana and the Shinmeiryu way on the loose around here. However, that is not even the thing I am dreading. I'm still trying to get a handle on everything so a bad-tempered hormonal and horny Motoko is something that I don't need right now."
He likes Tsuruko personally, but he is not looking forward to dealing with something that she should have corrected before sending Motoko back here.
"Keitaro," says Tsuruko changing tack and trying to be more conciliatory to the new owner of the Urashima ancestral lands, "please, do anything you think that will help my sister. I love her more than anything in this world, save for my husband, because she is the only direct family that I have left. If you need to discipline her, do so, but do not allow her to fight with Kanako. I know that she will become the greatest Samurai that has ever been conceived by the Aoyama if she can just grow up and get by her hormonal anger."
"I agree Tsuruko and I'll take care of her as I would any of my tenants or friends," responds Keitaro sounding more like the Kanrinin that he is, "I promise to also e-mail you regularly with how she's doing. For now let's just bide our time and let's pray that our Karma is good for the upcoming year."
"That's all I can ask. Shigeru says hi and say hello to Haruka, Kanako and little Sarah-chan for me too. I hope we both draw good luck this coming New Year's Day and pray for good results," says Tsuruko feeling much better than when this call had started.
"I will and I hope you draw the best luck too," says Keitaro before hitting the icon on his smart phone.
'It's going to get very dodgy over the few weeks around here and Motoko isn't even my biggest headache,' thinks Keitaro plugging in his phone.
Drawing a deep breath before releasing it slowly, he goes on about his business.
'I guess it's just one mess at a time,' he adds getting back to work.
An hour later, after closing out his laptop.
Heading to the Tea Shoppe, Keitaro wants to tell Haruka about the possibility of some turbulent times ahead.
"I'll meet her across the way when she comes back," is the only thing that Haruka can say, as she understands why her cousin is in such a dour mood right now.
Coming into the back door of the shop, he avoids Sarah because he never wants to be upset around her.
As soon as he talks to Haruka, he sneaks out the back door again just as quietly as he entered.
Who would have guessed?-
Sometimes when you expect the worst it does not happen, let us see a case in point…
Pacing back-and-forth in the common room, Keitaro and a few others wait for Motoko to come home.
"Kei-kun, she's a lot more difficult than me," says Naru trying to be conciliatory, "I had Kana-chan to let me know about how really nice you are, but she can be very unpredictable."
Also in the common room with them is Kanako, Kaolla Su, Shinobu and Kitsune.
"Thanks, Naru-chan," he replies, "She knows me and Kana-chan quite well, and that in of itself could be a problem."
Hearing her beloved Onii-chan's words, she then nods to her girlfriend. It seems right then that the common room's temperature instantly drops twenty degrees even though the fireplace is going at full tilt.
Knowing from experience, that if anyone threatens her precious Onii-chan, Kanako can get very scary.
She does not have an uncontrolled explosive temper that gets out of hand. No, Kanako gets to concentrating on how to eliminate targets with intricate strategies that she can come up with on the fly.
Keitaro knows that Kanako's intellect rivals that of Kaolla's, but in a different manner. As a master strategist and organizer, she can either act very swiftly or draw things out to make you wish you were dead.
They all sit there in the common room as Shinobu ferries light snacks and hot tea to everyone while they wait for Haruka to bring Motoko up from the tram station.
The door slides opens and three people quietly come in.
The middle of the three is a tall, very beautiful teenager with knee length jet-black hair. If it was not for the fact that she has on a Hakama and Gi, this young beauty could easily pass for 'Yamato Nadeshiko' if she was clad in a Kimono or Yukata.
Standing in the middle of the foyer, Motoko has her backpack and rolling carrier with attached three small travel bags on it.
Not knowing what to expect, as she did a lot of thinking on the train, most of her thoughts were on how she is falling way short of her ideals of being what a Samurai should be. Especially in this modern era and that, she would like to meet a boy her age. She will call her Ane-ue later and tell her these revelations but first, she has a few fences to mend.
Now that she is sixteen her hormones are raging like crazy.
After taking off her backpack, an unarmed Motoko comes into the common room and gracefully bows to Keitaro. Her wrapped Katana is with her luggage.
"Konnichiwa, Keitaro-sama. It has been a while," says the tall teen after she straightens up, "I place myself under your protection while I am here. I beg to be dismissed so that I might take care of my luggage and rest before dinner."
Turning to Shinobu, she says, "Please, Shinobu-chan. Call me when dinner is ready".
Then spotting her old rival Kanako sitting with Naru, Motoko steps over to that part of the room.
Bowing to Kanako, Motoko quietly says, "I wish to apologize for harsh words that I've said to you in the past, Kanako-san. Please, let us start over with a blank slate from this time forward". Saying this, she bows to her again.
With this accomplished, Motoko once again bows to Keitaro before she spins on her heels and leaves the room.
"Well, that was a whole lot of nothing," says Kitsune quietly after Motoko disappears upstairs.
"I'm grateful that nothing happened, because I've never seen anyone who can wield a Katana like she can," says Haruka who is very familiar with the Aoyama clan. Tsuruko is her best friend now that Julia MacDougal is gone.
Clinging tight to her Kaa-san, Sarah does not fully understand the situation.
"I've known her for almost two years and that's the first time I've ever seen her do that," says Naru a little puzzled as she is just about squeezing the life out of Kanako's hand.
"She really surprised me after what Tsuruko had said on the phone earlier," says Keitaro scratching the back of his head and looking over at Kanako.
Their eyes meet, she shrugs at him.
"Yeah," says a mystified Kanako as Motoko totally sideswipes her with the apology. In needs to find out what has changed her attitude, she wants to know if it is an illusion or real.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Keitaro will just do the formal introductions with Motoko later, such as after a good shot of Sake or something.
And so it goes…
End of Chapter
