AN: Hey folks, back again. Glad to see that I'm still getting positive
reviews, albeit much less than when I was cranking out the previous
series... As I've said, I'll consider an "odd pairing" if I were to write
another series for Love Hina after this. Hope you enjoy!
As always, Love Hina and its characters belong to Ken Akamatsu, all original characters belong to me and may be used with permission.
_______________________________________________________________________
For Love and Honor
Chapter 4: Toudai bound
Natsumi hummed a cheerful tune to herself as she cooked breakfast for yet another bright day in the Hinata-Sou, sprinkling a touch of spices into a pot of soup with a smile. She then began stirring the contents of a pan when she saw a shadow looming over her shoulder, and soon a hand reached out to take a sample from the soup pot.
"Hey! Get out of the kitchen!" She laughed and smacked the intruding hand with a cooking ladle, then turned to the person. "You might be the landlord, but you still have to wait at the table like everyone else!"
"Is that so...?" Sho grinned, and the two soon began chasing each other around the kitchen. Moments later Sho smiled victoriously as he sampled a taste from the soup pot with her ladle, while carrying the chef under his other arm.
"You meanie!" Natsumi laughed as she hit him, but was held firmly under his arm. "You're always picking on me because I'm smaller!"
"Trying your excellent cooking is considered picking on you now?" Sho raised an eyebrow. "I'd hate to see what you'd consider someone asking you out on a date would be...!" He chuckled as he set her down gently, but didn't notice the faint blush on her face from his comment.
Making his way to the dining room, the landlord noticed that the resident swordswoman was coming down the stairs with an annoyed expression on her face. Concerned about her well being, he decided to ask her about it...
"It's my back..." She sighed, trying to stretch. "I must've strained it earlier during training..."
"Here, hold still..." Blinking wearily, Emi suddenly blushed as she realized that Sho was standing behind her with an arm around her shoulders. As she was about to yell at him for trying to take advantage of her, she heard a sudden cracking sound and froze, then noticed that all the soreness and pain from her back had vanished.
"That's amazing! Thanks Sho..." She looked over her shoulder to thank the landlord, but found herself blushing furiously as she found her face mere inches from his. Sho, who had to lean down to help the shorter swordswoman, found himself mesmerized by the pools of darkness that were her eyes. The two unconciously found themselves drawing towards each other slowly, and Emi's heart began beating faster as she felt Sho's gentle breathing against her skin...
"Hey dork!" Sarah called out from the living room, snapping the two out of their trance and pulling away hastily. "There's some weird package here for you!"
"I... better go check that out..." Sho mumbled, straightening his clothing.
"Yeah, you do that..." Emi replied, her face still flushed. She waited until the landlord had left, then covered her face with her hands in embarrassment. 'What was I thinking?!' She thought to herself. 'I almost kissed Sho! What would've mother said if she found out? She'd probably think I was trying to take advantage of his kindness!' She then sighed, shaking her head. 'Maybe I should have a talk with Yuki about it...'
_______________________________________________________________________
"Package, you say...?" Sho asked with a raised eyebrow, as he, along with Sarah and Yuki, eyed a giant wooden crate which sat in the middle of the living room.
"Heck if I know..." Sarah shrugged. "All I know is that the mailman dropped it off at the door this morning, and it wasn't light." She then handed him a large envelope. "This also came along with it, addressed to you."
Taking the envelope, Sho noticed with dread that it had a familiar three- eyed pattern on it, but decided to open it and read the letter while sitting down, allowing the two women to read over his shoulder...
Dear Sho and Yuki:
Enclosed is my newest invention which I hope you can help me test out, I've already made sure that everything runs according to specs. So all you two need to do is simply follow the enclosed instructions and it'll be a blast! Hope you enjoy!
Your loving cousin
Raina Su
"Lovely..." Sho sighed as he glanced at the wooden crate. "I have a weird feeling this thing is going to blow up on us..."
"Why do you say that?" Yuki asked, blinking. "Cousin Raina has the smarts to create many wonderful machines..."
"Wonderful, yes." Sho replied. "But rarely stable." He then sighed and put his hands on the crate, ripping a side off with ease and revealing a mess of machinery packaged neatly within. "Oh well, mind as well get this over with..."
After a wonderfully prepared breakfast by Natsumi, the group sat in the living room and watched Sho put together the machine. Having an affinity for gadgets and machinery like his mother, the landlord quickly assembled the invention, and stepped back to view the finished product...
The machine resembled a large metallic egg-like structure, with a series of wires springing from it in all directions and connecting to a control panel in front of it. One lone wire stretched to outside of the dorm, where it was connected to a solar panel to provide power. The machine gave off a quiet hum as Sho began powering it up, its control panel lighting up to life.
"So what is this machine supposed to do...?" Natsumi asked timidly, as she and the other tenants watched on from behind the landlord.
"We'll find out right now..." Sho replied, holding the instructions in one hand as he adjusted the controls with the other. Soon the machine began humming louder as it started working, but soon began to release hissing steam and began shaking violently. Eyes wide with horror, Sho realized what was about to happen and exchanged a look with Emi. No words were needed as the swordswoman quickly helped evacuate the tenants as the landlord tried desperately to shut down the machine, but failed as the machine exploded, sending him flying through the air...
"Dammit..." Sho swore, as the last thing he before blacking out was something large and heavy connecting with his forehead, with flames and pieces of machinery all around him...
_______________________________________________________________________
"Erg..." Sho grumbled as he slowly opened his eyes, wincing as he felt a cool cloth dabbing at a cut on his head. He looked up as the cloth was removed, showing a blurry outline of a woman with tanned skin and long blond hair looking down on him. "Mom...?" The landlord blinked, trying to clear up his vision.
"Not quite, kid." The woman giggled. "Though I'm flattered you think I look as good as your mother..."
Blinking the last of the stars away, Sho looked up to see the woman clearly. The woman had shoulder length blond hair and tanned skin. She wore a long and exquisite blue and white dress, and smiled at the landlord warmly, her emerald green eyes hidden behind a small pair of glasses.
Groaning, the landlord rested back and closed his eyes. "Oh, it's you..."
"Gee, thanks for making your cousin feel welcome..." The woman teased, then resumed cleaning his head wound, causing him to wince in pain every now and then.
"Raina..." Yuki and the other tenants arrived, and sat around the prone landlord in concern. "How is he?"
"Almost good as new." Raina chuckled. "I'm just glad that he has a hard head like his father, or him breaking my fall would've probably killed him..."
"That was you flying at me...?" Sho grumbled. "You should trim a few pounds off, cousin..."
"Hey!"
_______________________________________________________________________
After cleaning up the debris from Raina's invention, the group sat in the living room to talk. Having recovered from his injuries, Sho watched his cousin with an unamused expression as she began to address the group...
"While I am happy that my teleporting system did succeed, I really am sorry for the damage caused by the malfunction afterwards..." Yuki simply smiled and told her not to worry, while Sho merely grumbled in reply. "But I am glad to be here, seeing as I have a favor to ask of you..."
"No, you can't stay." Sho instantly replied.
"Brother!" Yuki exclaimed, "Shame on you! This is our cousin here!"
Raina simply laughed and shook her head at the siblings. "Even though I pretty much learned everything I needed at school in Molmol, most big companies won't let me work for them without a Master's degree from a recognized university..." She then shrugged. "I figured that I mind as well give Toudai a shot, and was hoping to stay with you guys while I'm here..."
"We'd love for you to stay with us, cousin." Yuki smiled, then shot a warning look at Sho to not contradict her.
"Great!" Raina beamed. "So the old lab still here? I'll set up shop there!"
_______________________________________________________________________
With the exception of Raina's arrival, the day went by quietly at the Hinata-Sou, and soon the stars laid claim to the skies as night came. Sho sat silently on the roof, watching the stars as he remembered his childhood years, where his mother would tell him stories about the different stars in the skies.
Though there was no sound, the landlord raised an eyebrow as he sensed the ki of another person nearby, but relaxed as he recognized the energy signature. Seconds later, the person sat down quietly behind Sho, resting against his back as they have every night since the tenant's arrival at the dorm...
"Your cousin seems to be a good person." Emi finally broke the silence after a long moment. "So why the worried look?"
"I'm not worried about Raina." Sho replied. "I'm more worried about the tenants getting hurt in case something happens again..."
"Don't worry about it..." Emi smiled at him over her shoulder. "They have us two watching over them, remember?" The landlord nodded quietly, and the two sat in silence again for a long time.
"Sho...?" Emi began, and quickly hid her face from his as she felt a blush forming. "I was wondering... if you're not busy this Friday...?" Tried as she might, she couldn't find the courage to finish her question, as her face flushed furiously.
"Sure..." Sho replied after a moment of silence, to Emi's surprise. "We'll go take a walk around town, maybe catch a movie, if you're interested." Sighing in relief to herself, the swordswoman nodded. Together, the two watched the stars in silence, each with their own thoughts to themselves...
_______________________________________________________________________
Like? No like? Please Review!
I'm starting to get a bit frustrated at the lack of dreams I've been having recently, hence why the chapters seem a bit shorter and lacking in content. But I hope to remedy the problem soon, and thanks to mr-winkie for his input of ideas, which you will see in the next chapter. Hope you enjoy, more coming soon!
As always, Love Hina and its characters belong to Ken Akamatsu, all original characters belong to me and may be used with permission.
_______________________________________________________________________
For Love and Honor
Chapter 4: Toudai bound
Natsumi hummed a cheerful tune to herself as she cooked breakfast for yet another bright day in the Hinata-Sou, sprinkling a touch of spices into a pot of soup with a smile. She then began stirring the contents of a pan when she saw a shadow looming over her shoulder, and soon a hand reached out to take a sample from the soup pot.
"Hey! Get out of the kitchen!" She laughed and smacked the intruding hand with a cooking ladle, then turned to the person. "You might be the landlord, but you still have to wait at the table like everyone else!"
"Is that so...?" Sho grinned, and the two soon began chasing each other around the kitchen. Moments later Sho smiled victoriously as he sampled a taste from the soup pot with her ladle, while carrying the chef under his other arm.
"You meanie!" Natsumi laughed as she hit him, but was held firmly under his arm. "You're always picking on me because I'm smaller!"
"Trying your excellent cooking is considered picking on you now?" Sho raised an eyebrow. "I'd hate to see what you'd consider someone asking you out on a date would be...!" He chuckled as he set her down gently, but didn't notice the faint blush on her face from his comment.
Making his way to the dining room, the landlord noticed that the resident swordswoman was coming down the stairs with an annoyed expression on her face. Concerned about her well being, he decided to ask her about it...
"It's my back..." She sighed, trying to stretch. "I must've strained it earlier during training..."
"Here, hold still..." Blinking wearily, Emi suddenly blushed as she realized that Sho was standing behind her with an arm around her shoulders. As she was about to yell at him for trying to take advantage of her, she heard a sudden cracking sound and froze, then noticed that all the soreness and pain from her back had vanished.
"That's amazing! Thanks Sho..." She looked over her shoulder to thank the landlord, but found herself blushing furiously as she found her face mere inches from his. Sho, who had to lean down to help the shorter swordswoman, found himself mesmerized by the pools of darkness that were her eyes. The two unconciously found themselves drawing towards each other slowly, and Emi's heart began beating faster as she felt Sho's gentle breathing against her skin...
"Hey dork!" Sarah called out from the living room, snapping the two out of their trance and pulling away hastily. "There's some weird package here for you!"
"I... better go check that out..." Sho mumbled, straightening his clothing.
"Yeah, you do that..." Emi replied, her face still flushed. She waited until the landlord had left, then covered her face with her hands in embarrassment. 'What was I thinking?!' She thought to herself. 'I almost kissed Sho! What would've mother said if she found out? She'd probably think I was trying to take advantage of his kindness!' She then sighed, shaking her head. 'Maybe I should have a talk with Yuki about it...'
_______________________________________________________________________
"Package, you say...?" Sho asked with a raised eyebrow, as he, along with Sarah and Yuki, eyed a giant wooden crate which sat in the middle of the living room.
"Heck if I know..." Sarah shrugged. "All I know is that the mailman dropped it off at the door this morning, and it wasn't light." She then handed him a large envelope. "This also came along with it, addressed to you."
Taking the envelope, Sho noticed with dread that it had a familiar three- eyed pattern on it, but decided to open it and read the letter while sitting down, allowing the two women to read over his shoulder...
Dear Sho and Yuki:
Enclosed is my newest invention which I hope you can help me test out, I've already made sure that everything runs according to specs. So all you two need to do is simply follow the enclosed instructions and it'll be a blast! Hope you enjoy!
Your loving cousin
Raina Su
"Lovely..." Sho sighed as he glanced at the wooden crate. "I have a weird feeling this thing is going to blow up on us..."
"Why do you say that?" Yuki asked, blinking. "Cousin Raina has the smarts to create many wonderful machines..."
"Wonderful, yes." Sho replied. "But rarely stable." He then sighed and put his hands on the crate, ripping a side off with ease and revealing a mess of machinery packaged neatly within. "Oh well, mind as well get this over with..."
After a wonderfully prepared breakfast by Natsumi, the group sat in the living room and watched Sho put together the machine. Having an affinity for gadgets and machinery like his mother, the landlord quickly assembled the invention, and stepped back to view the finished product...
The machine resembled a large metallic egg-like structure, with a series of wires springing from it in all directions and connecting to a control panel in front of it. One lone wire stretched to outside of the dorm, where it was connected to a solar panel to provide power. The machine gave off a quiet hum as Sho began powering it up, its control panel lighting up to life.
"So what is this machine supposed to do...?" Natsumi asked timidly, as she and the other tenants watched on from behind the landlord.
"We'll find out right now..." Sho replied, holding the instructions in one hand as he adjusted the controls with the other. Soon the machine began humming louder as it started working, but soon began to release hissing steam and began shaking violently. Eyes wide with horror, Sho realized what was about to happen and exchanged a look with Emi. No words were needed as the swordswoman quickly helped evacuate the tenants as the landlord tried desperately to shut down the machine, but failed as the machine exploded, sending him flying through the air...
"Dammit..." Sho swore, as the last thing he before blacking out was something large and heavy connecting with his forehead, with flames and pieces of machinery all around him...
_______________________________________________________________________
"Erg..." Sho grumbled as he slowly opened his eyes, wincing as he felt a cool cloth dabbing at a cut on his head. He looked up as the cloth was removed, showing a blurry outline of a woman with tanned skin and long blond hair looking down on him. "Mom...?" The landlord blinked, trying to clear up his vision.
"Not quite, kid." The woman giggled. "Though I'm flattered you think I look as good as your mother..."
Blinking the last of the stars away, Sho looked up to see the woman clearly. The woman had shoulder length blond hair and tanned skin. She wore a long and exquisite blue and white dress, and smiled at the landlord warmly, her emerald green eyes hidden behind a small pair of glasses.
Groaning, the landlord rested back and closed his eyes. "Oh, it's you..."
"Gee, thanks for making your cousin feel welcome..." The woman teased, then resumed cleaning his head wound, causing him to wince in pain every now and then.
"Raina..." Yuki and the other tenants arrived, and sat around the prone landlord in concern. "How is he?"
"Almost good as new." Raina chuckled. "I'm just glad that he has a hard head like his father, or him breaking my fall would've probably killed him..."
"That was you flying at me...?" Sho grumbled. "You should trim a few pounds off, cousin..."
"Hey!"
_______________________________________________________________________
After cleaning up the debris from Raina's invention, the group sat in the living room to talk. Having recovered from his injuries, Sho watched his cousin with an unamused expression as she began to address the group...
"While I am happy that my teleporting system did succeed, I really am sorry for the damage caused by the malfunction afterwards..." Yuki simply smiled and told her not to worry, while Sho merely grumbled in reply. "But I am glad to be here, seeing as I have a favor to ask of you..."
"No, you can't stay." Sho instantly replied.
"Brother!" Yuki exclaimed, "Shame on you! This is our cousin here!"
Raina simply laughed and shook her head at the siblings. "Even though I pretty much learned everything I needed at school in Molmol, most big companies won't let me work for them without a Master's degree from a recognized university..." She then shrugged. "I figured that I mind as well give Toudai a shot, and was hoping to stay with you guys while I'm here..."
"We'd love for you to stay with us, cousin." Yuki smiled, then shot a warning look at Sho to not contradict her.
"Great!" Raina beamed. "So the old lab still here? I'll set up shop there!"
_______________________________________________________________________
With the exception of Raina's arrival, the day went by quietly at the Hinata-Sou, and soon the stars laid claim to the skies as night came. Sho sat silently on the roof, watching the stars as he remembered his childhood years, where his mother would tell him stories about the different stars in the skies.
Though there was no sound, the landlord raised an eyebrow as he sensed the ki of another person nearby, but relaxed as he recognized the energy signature. Seconds later, the person sat down quietly behind Sho, resting against his back as they have every night since the tenant's arrival at the dorm...
"Your cousin seems to be a good person." Emi finally broke the silence after a long moment. "So why the worried look?"
"I'm not worried about Raina." Sho replied. "I'm more worried about the tenants getting hurt in case something happens again..."
"Don't worry about it..." Emi smiled at him over her shoulder. "They have us two watching over them, remember?" The landlord nodded quietly, and the two sat in silence again for a long time.
"Sho...?" Emi began, and quickly hid her face from his as she felt a blush forming. "I was wondering... if you're not busy this Friday...?" Tried as she might, she couldn't find the courage to finish her question, as her face flushed furiously.
"Sure..." Sho replied after a moment of silence, to Emi's surprise. "We'll go take a walk around town, maybe catch a movie, if you're interested." Sighing in relief to herself, the swordswoman nodded. Together, the two watched the stars in silence, each with their own thoughts to themselves...
_______________________________________________________________________
Like? No like? Please Review!
I'm starting to get a bit frustrated at the lack of dreams I've been having recently, hence why the chapters seem a bit shorter and lacking in content. But I hope to remedy the problem soon, and thanks to mr-winkie for his input of ideas, which you will see in the next chapter. Hope you enjoy, more coming soon!