A Friend in Need…
By: Tezza1502
Disclaimer: Love Hina is © Ken Akamatsu and affiliates. Says it all, really!
Notes: Unfortunately, I have caught up with myself. By this, I mean that I am no longer a few chapters ahead of what I post. Writers block and life in general are to blame. (This is my hobby, not my job. Damnit!) So while the breaks between postings will grow, I am not, repeat NOT abandoning this story. They will just take a little more time to appear. Sorry! On the upside, this also means that the length will begin to creep up as time goes by.
More notes: While I have your attention, thank you to everyone for your reviews! I cannot believe I have got over TWO HUNDRED of them so far!! For a story that started out as not much more than me trying my hand at an anime other than Evangelion, it's an overwhelming response. THANK YOU ALL!!!
CHAPTER 11: That didn't stay hidden long, did it?
Mitsune approached Shinobu's door feeling more than a little nervous. All the girls at the Hinata-Sou knew of her crush on the Kanrinin. However, at fifteen she was approximately six years younger than Keitaro. It could not happen. He and they would not let it. It was something that both amused and saddened them all, watching her pine for him but knowing that she was destined for disappointment.
Standing there, she momentarily regretted convincing Keitaro to stay in the kitchen and begin dinner.
'I know he wanted to come up and explain himself, but this is something I have to do alone. I'm the one she will have a problem with. I'm the one who moved in on her Sempai.' Mitsune sighed. 'I just wish it could have happened some other way. Seeing us wrapped around each other like that was probably the worst way to find out about us.' She thought sympathetically. Taking a deep breath to mentally focus herself for the task ahead, she reached out and knocked. "Shinobu sweetie, can I come in? We need to talk."
"NO!" Mitsune jumped back at the force behind that reply.
'Damn, I didn't know she could make a noise that loud?' Despite her current frame of mind, she almost smiled at the girl's newfound volume. "I'm sorry, but I'm not going anywhere until we've sorted this out."
"GO AWAY!" Was the answering shout.
Ignoring the young girl, she tried to open the door and found it locked. Expecting this, she pulled out a couple of tools from her back pocket and inserted them in the lock. A few seconds later and she was sliding the door open to the surprise of Su and Shinobu.
"That was so cool! How'd you do it?" Su asked as Mitsune stepped inside the room.
"Oh, just a little skill I picked up somewhere." She smirked briefly at Su before turning her attention to Shinobu, who had scrunched herself at the head of the bed holding a large pillow in front of herself defensively. "Su? Would you mind giving Shinobu and I some privacy? We really need to talk about what you two saw before."
"Why? I wanna stay." A hint of stubbornness could be heard in her normally playful voice.
Mitsune tried a different tack. "Did you have a problem with seeing Keitaro and I together?"
"Nup! Su thought you two looked happy with each other." Su answered in a singsong tone.
"Thank you." Mitsune smiled at the foreigner's honest answer. "But she does." The older woman nodded towards Shinobu. "This is why we need to come to an understanding between us before it gets worse."
Su pondered that for a moment before turning to her friend and giving her a questioning look. Seeing the teen nod slightly, she rose from the bed and headed for the door.
"Keitaro is preparing dinner down in the kitchen. If you're real persistent, he might let you grab a snack." Mitsune told her as she passed. Su picked up speed upon hearing that.
"Yeah! I might even be able to talk him into spicing it up for a change. Japanese food is just so bland." She complained as she bounded down the stairs three at a time.
Sliding the door shut and locking it, Mitsune turned and approached the bed slowly. Choosing the corner away from Shinobu, she sat down. "So-"
Shinobu refused to meet her eyes.
"Shinobu, I'm sorry you had to find out like that." The teen ignored her and continued sniffling into her pillow. "To be honest, Kei and I didn't know how we were going to tell everyone. You've seen how those two react any time he gets close to one of us girls by accident." She nodded slightly. "Now imagine what they will do once they find out he is dating me." A small shudder passed through the girl's body at the thought. "Exactly. So, we hid it. Us." Mitsune sighed. "I am so scared of what they will do to him. And what scares me more is that they might move on to me next because I 'betrayed' the sisterhood, or some such crap." Shinobu looked at her for the first time.
"Naru-sempai and Motoko-sempai wouldn't do that." She whispered.
"Really?"
Unable to come up with a defence after their recent behaviour, she asked something else. "Why? Why did you have to go after Sempai? After all this time, why now?" She demanded.
"Why do you like him so much?" Mitsune turned it around.
Seeing that she was honestly curious, Shinobu answered. "B-because he's kind, and caring, and he always so patient. He always tries to help us all out, even if it ends up with him getting hurt because of it." She paused, trying to find the words to summarise her thoughts about Keitaro. "He's…a good man."
"Yeah, he is." Mitsune agreed. "A couple of months ago, I noticed what you saw straight away. I also saw the pain he was going through to keep us happy. And I hated myself. Because I caused some of it. So I decided to make what amends I could to balance the scales. In doing so, I got close enough to start falling for him." She chuckled self-depreciatingly. "When I noticed what was happening, I tried everything I could to rationalise the feeling away. Nothing worked. Somehow that clueless, clumsy, wonderfully sweet baka had sunk some hooks into my heart."
"Do you love him?" Shinobu asked softly.
"Not yet." She answered after a moments thought. "I mean, I care for him. A lot. But head-over-heels, 'till death do us part and all that? Not yet." Mitsune caught and held Shinobu's eye. "But it's there. And he feels the same way."
When she heard that, Shinobu started shedding fresh tears. Sobbing into her pillow, she did not notice Mitsune slide up the bed until a pair of arms slipped around her shoulders and draw her into a hug. She struggled briefly before slumping against the older woman and crying even harder.
"I'm so sorry, Shinobu." Mitsune spoke softly as she stroked the girl's hair. "I know how much you like him. But the age difference is too great between you two. And to him, you are like another sister."
Shinobu's ears perked up at this despite her emotional state. "Sempai has a sister?"
Mitsune smiled at her interest. "Yeah. Kanako Urashima. She's around your age, I think."
They fell silent as Mitsune rocked the heartbroken teen. When she had stopped crying a while later, Shinobu spoke again. "I never had a chance, did I." Defeat was thick in her voice.
"If you had been Motoko's age, you might have had a shot. But you are too young for him. And if he's not interested, there's not a damn thing you can do that will change his mind." She said with a trace of bitterness.
Shinobu broke out of the hug and turned around. Looking intently into Mitsune's eyes, she noticed something. "You've been in that situation before, haven't you?"
"…yeah." She sighed. "When Naru and I were still in school, Sarah's dad Seta was tutoring us both. We had these huge crushes on him." She smiled in memory. "You know how you get around Keitaro?" Shinobu nodded. "Well, we were worse!"
Despite herself, Shinobu giggled at the thought.
"Laugh all you want. And what made it truly awful was that I honestly thought Naru had the better chance. So, I stood aside and let her go for it."
"Wow. What did Naru say?"
"She never knew." Shinobu blinked in surprise. "I kept what I felt a secret. And of course, nothing happened. Seta was in love with someone else. Eventually, we both gave up and moved on." Mitsune closed her eyes as she exhaled heavily again. "I've done that for her a few times over the years. Stepped aside and let her go for it." She opened them again and stared at Shinobu with a determined look. "Not this time. She's had ages to make up her mind about him. And he was suffering because of it. So I decided to be selfish for once."
Leaning back, Mitsune looked the other girl over. "So yes, I have been there Shinobu. I know exactly what you are going through right now. It's just a damn shame that you aren't older. You really could have given the rest of us a run for our money." She reached out and brushed Shinobu's hair lightly. "You are one hell of a cutie though. I'm surprised the boys at school aren't falling over each other to ask you out yet."
Shinobu blushed at that.
Mitsune's nose twitched. "Or are they?"
"Aaaauuuuuu!" Now the teen was squirming with embarassment.
"Come on. Tell me all the gory details." Shinobu shook her head and tried to shuffle away from her. "Ah-ah. None of that. Spill it kiddo, or I'll tickle it out of you!" When nothing was forthcoming, she turned words to deed. Several minutes of outraged laughter later, they settled down enough to be able to talk again.
"Um, a c-couple of older boys have a-asked me out. I always ignored them because, well…" She hesitated. Saying Keitaro's name aloud right now was too painful for her.
"It's alright." Mitsune soothed. "Look, I know I'm not exactly your favourite person right now." Shinobu nodded slightly before she could stop herself. Ignoring that, Mitsune continued, "But, if you need advice about boys or dating or anything else, come and see me. I wouldn't want you to make the same mistakes I did." She added ruefully.
Shinobu considered that. "A-are you sure? I wouldn't want to be a bother."
"Yes, I'm sure." Mitsune reiterated. "So…are we okay?"
The young girl's face acquired a serious expression. "Do you promise to take care of Sempai, and not act like Naru-sempai and Motoko-sempai?" She demanded in a surprisingly mature tone.
Mitsune put her hand over her heart, then extending her pinkie finger towards the other girl. When Shinobu did the same, they clenched their fingers together and shook on it. "I promise." She stated solemnly, sealing the deal.
"Then, we're okay." The teen said, smiling.
"Thank heavens!" Mitsune let out a huge breath. She then reached over and gave the girl a rib-crushing hug. After a moment's hesitation, Shinobu returned it.
Sitting back, Mitsune sniffled a bit. "Come on. Lets go get cleaned up. I'm guessing Keitaro will need rescuing from Su by now. Considering how much she likes her curry, we'll need to eat with fire extinguishers as a side dish if that girl gets her hands on tonight's ingredients!"
Shinobu giggled slightly at that as they left her bedroom.
Later that afternoon found Keitaro, Mitsune, Shinobu and Su all in the kitchen. The Kanrinin was assisting the resident cook in putting the meal together while they talked softly about what was happening. Tama-chan had flown in and was resting near Mitsune, who was sitting at the table dividing her attention between reading the paper in front of her and watching the others prepare dinner. The turtle was getting its chin scratched while keeping a wary eye on Su, who was salivating at the opposite end of the table.
"Thank you for helping me, S-sempai." Shinobu said with a slight blush. While she knew he could not be hers intellectually, it would be a while before her heart accepted that fact.
"My pleasure, Shinobu." He replied, glad that she and his girlfriend had reached some sort of understanding. He did not want them ignoring or fighting each other just because of him.
"Hey, where's Sarah? Did Seta pick her up, or something?" Keitaro asked suddenly.
"Nah. Sarah's still back at school. She likes to sit in on Motoko sometimes and watch her whack the crap out of her kendo students." Su replied.
"Oh!" 'That explains a few things.' He thought, glancing at the clock. "Well, I guess they'll be back soon."
Just then, a triple "We're home!" came from the entrance. Naru, Motoko and Sarah entered the room a moment later to see Keitaro standing next to Shinobu at the bench, waving at them in greeting before turning back to his task. Motoko exploded.
"Keitaro! What are you doing in here alone with-" She faltered as she noticed Mitsune and Su sitting at the table, looking at her. "Oh." Lowering her eyes, she took a step back behind Naru.
"Shinobu was feeling a bit under the weather when she got home, so he started dinner for her while she rested in her room." The Fox answered. "Is there a problem?"
Both Motoko and Naru wore expressions that all but screamed 'YES!', but neither girl spoke up on the issue. Instead, they focused on the first part of her reply.
"Are you alright? What's wrong? Are you sick?" They both asked at the same time.
"I'm fine." Shinobu replied quietly.
"Yeah. She just had a bit of heartache." Su put in.
Mitsune started to sweat. 'Oh that little-! She wouldn't?'
"What do you mean?" Naru asked, confused.
"Well, she just found out that this guy she really really liked is dating some other girl. So she's feeling a bit sad about it." Su continued, either oblivious to or completely ignoring the panic appearing on Mitsune's and Keitaro's faces. She also missed the hurt look coming from Shinobu.
'She did.' Mitsune thought, starting to sweat. 'I can't believe I forgot to tell the little so-and-so to keep quiet about us.' A panic similar to the type Keitaro experiences whenever he finds himself in the pervert patrol's crosshairs sprung into full bloom inside her chest. 'Please, oh please, don't let them figure it out!' Unfortunately, whatever deity she was praying to just then was absent.
"But the only guy she's ever shown any interest in is-" Naru put two and two together finally. "KEI-TA-RO!"
'Oh crap! We're doomed.' Keitaro thought, instinctively checking for escape routes. "W-w-what?"
Naru's voice was like poisoned honey. "Would you care to explain what Su is talking about?"
"W-why do you think it's me?" He parried weakly.
"Because you are the only person that poor deluded girl ever mopes over." Motoko joined the conversation. "So if Su is correct, this means that you are trying to force yourself upon some other innocent girl." Tightening her grip on her katana, she stood beside Naru in preparation to strike. "Who is it? Who is this girl we need to save from you?" She demanded.
"That would be me." Came a firm answer. Their faces turned to the source of the voice.
"Huh!" Naru recovered first. "You're joking, right?"
"No, I'm not." Mitsune answered coldly, getting to her feet and walking over to her now petrified boyfriend. She made sure she took Tama-chan with her to ward off Motoko. "Kei-kun asked me about a week ago."
"Yeah right! What's the scam?" She demanded, trying to tune out the whimpering coming from Motoko as the turtle was carried past her.
"No scam. I just realised what was in front of me finally and decided to take a chance." Standing beside him, she flashed Keitaro a reassuring smile.
Ignoring her friend, Naru turned on Keitaro. "What are you paying her to cover for you? Or is she getting free rent out of this."
"I-I'm-" Clearing his throat, he started again. "I'm not. Kitsune and I have been getting closer for a while." His voice grew firmer as he continued. "Before she was injured, she let me know that she was interested in me. I was a bit surprised, so I thought long and hard about what she was offering before I asked her out. I haven't regreted it." He gave her hand a squeeze.
Motoko looked closely at their faces, taking the time for once to search for any falsehood. Naru decided to skip that. "Prove it!" She challenged.
Mitsune rolled her eyes. 'Oh for…well, at least they haven't started swinging at us yet!' She rationalised. "And how would you suggest we do that?" She argued back.
They wracked their brains for an answer. "Um…"
"Kiss her!" Su shouted, wanting to help.
"Yeah! If the dork can pucker up and plant one on Kitsune without him fainting or her throwing up, I'd say they're telling the truth." Sarah put in, not believing for a second that Keitarto could actually pull it off.
Mitsune raised an eyebrow. "Well?"
Naru was troubled. On one hand, she seriously doubted that Keitaro was capable of doing anything with a girl without getting a nosebleed and passing out. On the other, she did not want him doing anything with another girl, much less her best friend. That girl was sex on legs when she wanted to be. There was something else going on here. She had no doubts on that point. She just could not see the shape of it. And Mitsune's recent behaviour towards Keitaro was worthy of concern also.
Motoko, however, was surprisingly agreeable to the suggestion. At least, as far as it would put an end to this charade. While she was still very uneasy in Mitsune's presence for a wide variety of reasons, the least of which was the way she had so cruelly slammed her status as a warrior, this farce had gone on long enough. Time to expose the truth and punish those who sought to conceal it!
"Very well." Motoko agreed, stunning them all. "One kiss. If you can make us believe that you are in a relationship, we will not punish you for hiding it and hurting Shinobu's feelings." Naru whipped around and stared at the samurai in shock, but finally nodded uneasily and let it go without saying a word. To say anything would lead to awkward questions about her own emotions that she was not ready to deal with yet.
Not wasting a moment in case they realised how ridiculous their idea was and changed their minds, Mitsune quickly moulded herself against Keitaro and set about convincing their audience of the truth of their feelings for each other.
Keitaro froze for a second as Mitsune's arms wound themselves around his neck. However, as her lips ignited a small fire in his chest, he forgot about everyone else in the room and consentrated on pouring everything he had into returning his girlfriends passion. Wrapping his arms around her, he gently took hold of the back of her head as their tongues danced with each other.
Ignoring the gasps coming from behind them, Mitsune lost herself in his lips. Surrendering herself completely to the moment and the warmth radiating from his body. She honestly did not know how or even where the whole encounter could have ended if someone had not cleared their throat loudly. Reluctantly, she pulled back from Keitaro and looked at him with wild eyes.
"Woah!"
They turned at the exclamation to see Sarah trying to keep Su's hands from her eyes. Su, in turn, was struggling to do the same to Shinobu, who was almost glowing with embarassment at seeing such a hot-blooded display of affection. Naru and Motoko were just staring, red-faced and slack jawed.
Turning around within the circle of his arms, she looked at them with a self-satisfied expression. "Well? Was that enough? Or do you need more proof." She taunted.
At hearing the smug tone in her voice, Naru growled. "You're enjoying this? Rubbing our noses in it like that!" Her hands began to clench and unclench at her sides as a vein began throbbing on the side of her head.
"Well, yeah. Wasn't that the whole point to your stupid test?" Mitsune answered, unaware of the danger signals. "It was your idea, remember."
'Oh crap!' Keitaro noticed the telltale signs of Naru's immanent flare-up. "Um, Kitsu-chan, maybe now isn't such a good time for this." He pointed out.
Mitsune finally picked up on Naru's emotional state. 'Uh-oh! Maybe I finally went too far.'
Unfortunately, in getting his girlfriends attention, Keitaro had broken the final straw in Naru's mind. "Kitsu-chan!" She screamed, drawing her fist back. Who she was aiming for, even she would be unable to tell you right at that moment. "BASTARDS!"
Mitsune whimpered at the approaching pain, hoping that it would not hurt so badly this time. Upon hearing that, something in Keitaro snapped. "NO!"
-FWAP!-
Not feeling the flying sensation she remembered from the last time this had happened, Mitsune wondered if her mind had blanked out and spared her that memory. 'Maybe I slept through the recovery period this time?' She opened her eyes to find that somehow she was now behind Keitaro. Looking past him, she saw that he had caught Naru's fist in both hands, and was now holding her firmly in place. She noticed that the others were looking at him with surprise, and no small amount of trepidation. Glancing up at his face, she could easily understand why. The fierce determination blazing there in his eyes was startling to behold.
While they were all frozen he pushed Naru backwards suddenly, causing her to stumble and fall to the floor. Straightening up, he assumed an unfamiliar posture while making sure that he was between Mitsune and the rest of the tenants. "While I know that our relationship comes as a surprise to you all, there is no excuse for this kind of behaviour. Kitsu-chan has already been hurt once because of such recklessness. I will not allow it to happen again." He stared at them all in turn. "I don't care that you take it out on me. I can handle it. She can't. Do not let this happen again."
Seeing them all nod slightly, he put an arm around Mitsune and led her out of the room. As they reached the doorway, he turned and addressed Shinobu. "How long until dinner is ready?"
"A-about an hour, Sempai." The young girl answered with barely a stutter. She was still way too stunned from what she had just witnessed to be nervous about talking to him.
Keitaro nodded. "Very well. Please call us when it's ready." He looked around the room again before exiting with Mitsune.
Leading her upstairs, he managed to make it to her room before the adrenalin rush wore off. Shaking, he collapsed onto her bed, dragging her down with him.
"Holy shit, Keitaro. That was amazing!" She whispered as she curled up in his arms. "I didn't think anything could stop one of her punches."
"Yeah well, I'm just grateful Motoko didn't try her luck as well." He responded weakly. "Damn, haven't pulled a stunt like that in years. I am so out of practice!"
Rolling up on to an elbow, she stared at him. "Will you be alright?" She was slightly worried at how drained he appeared. She had never seen Motoko like this after one of her attacks. 'But then, she gets plenty of practice.' She thought with a trace of bitterness
"For now." He groaned. "What do you say to avoiding the others and having dinner in our rooms tonight?"
"Make it this room right here and you've got a deal." Mitsune agreed easily.
Back in the kitchen, they all continued to look at where Keitaro and Mitsune had walked out in silence. It was broken by Naru snarling with frustration as she got off the floor. Cracking her knuckles, she started after them.
She had not taken two steps when a hand fell on her shoulder, halting her progress. Turning, she found Motoko holding her back. "Wha-?"
"Let them go, Naru." She stated firmly.
"What? Why!" Naru demanded, trying to shrug off the iron grip holding her in place.
"Not here." Motoko indicated for her to follow. "Shinobu, please let us know when dinner is to be served." She asked as she walked out and up to her room. Naru followed a moment later, more out of curiosity than anything.
The three younger teens were left to stare at each other.
"He looked like brother." Su muttered, breaking the silence first.
"Kinda reminded me of papa when he's annoyed." Sarah added, almost to herself.
Shinobu shrugged and turned back to her cooking. "I'm just glad sempai didn't get hurt." She commented. "You two should get cleaned up before dinner." She suggested to the others as she became absorbed with her job. It had been a roller coaster of an afternoon, emotionally, so a mundane task like preparing a meal was just what the doctor ordered to help push all her swirling thoughts to the back of her mind until she was ready to deal with them.
Even more notes: Motoko and Naru have a talk about recent events. Downstairs, Shinobu, Sarah and Su have their own conversation. Next time: Deep and Meaningful!