January 3
Hinata City, Japan
Kitsune drew in a deep breath of night air as she walked through the streets of Hinata City. An unexpected warm front had blown through Kanagawa prefecture two days after Christmas causing much of the snow that had decorated the town then to melt. The warming trend had continued until now all that was left of the snow was a lot of dirty slush and a general feeling of moisture in the air.
A light jacket was all that was needed to keep the foxgirl warm as she walked. I hope the weather stays like this, thought Kitsune as she turned a corner. I never was a huge fan of winter.
A little further down the street was a sign that had the word "Highpoints" written on it in silver and blue letters. Though it had only opened eight months ago, Highpoints quickly shot to the top of Kitsune's favorite watering holes. Good food, a friendly staff and reason prices had made the new bar popular with many people in Hinata City.
But Highpoints had one other thing going for it; the décor. Almost every square inch of the bar's walls was covered in movie posters. The posters covered all of film from around the world and the last eighty or so years of movie making.
The posters and the films they promoted were often the topic of lengthy discussions among the bar's patrons. Which was entirely the point. To keep the conversation fresh and the customers coming back the posters were changed once every two months. Right now American horror and sci-fi films seemed to dominate the most space.
But Kitsune wasn't thinking about any of that as she strolled through Highpoints' door. Once inside she cast a quick look around. People sat at the bar, at tables and in booths talking and drinking. Other people were playing darts and pool, watching the TV or just walking around, drink in hand, admiring the posters.
At the foxgirl's entrance a several people waved. Kitsune had quickly become known as a regular not long after Highpoints' opening. The staff had all learned her preferences long ago and treated her with an extra bit of respect due to her being considered a valued customer.
"Kitsune! Hey, over here!" called a voice. Kitsune turned to see a blue-haired woman sitting at a table near the bar waving to her.
The woman in question was named Aoi Minase. She too had been one of Highpoints' first regulars. As people in bars are want to do the pair had got to talking one night and discovered that they had several things in common. The most important among these being a mutual love of drinking, gambling and using their extremely attractive figures to toy with members of the male gender.
Of course, there were also notable differences between the two women. The biggest was that Aoi was three years older than Kitsune. Aoi was very fond of beer and playing pachinko while Kitsune preferred sake and horse racing. Lastly was the fact that Aoi had worked steadily as a waitress at a restaurant called the Pia Carrot 2 for the last several years. In contrast Kitsune had bounced from job to job since graduating from high school.
"Hey, Aoi," said Kitsune as she headed over to the other girl's table. "What have up been up to?"
"Nothing much," replied Aoi. "And you?"
Kitsune thought back to the events from the day before as she sat down. "Oh…not much. Same old, same old."
"So how was your New Year's Day?"
"I wish I could remember," said the foxgirl as she gave the bartender a look that said, "Bring me the usual." He nodded in response.
"Wow, you must have really partied hearty," grinned Aoi as she sipped her beer. "I got pretty hammered myself but I remember a what I did. Well, most of it. The fun stuff anyway."
"I went the Hinata Shrine anniversary celebration. They had a free sake table there and…Well, let's just say I had my fill and then some."
"A free sake table and I missed it? Damn," grumbled Aoi. "I was going to go to the shrine thing with my friend Ryoko. But she somehow got her hands on two tickets to a special New Year's Day concert by Firebomber at the Tokyo Dome. So we decided going to that instead."
"I like that band too. Was it a good show?"
"Yeah, it was. We both had a great time. Was the shrine fun?"
"What I remember of it was fun."
Aoi made an amused sound and gave her glass a little shake. "When you can't remember what you did the night before, that's when you know you had a good time."
"Naru told me that Keitaro found me so wasted I could barely walk and he had to half drag half carry me home."
Aoi arched an eyebrow. "Oh, he carried you home. How romantic."
"I don't know if I'd call something I was too plastered to remember romantic," countered Kitsune. "Yeah, it was nice of him to pass on the fireworks show to take me home but Keitaro's a nice guy. There's nothing romantic between us at all so stop being silly."
The blue-haired girl had a feeling she may hit a tender spot, which intrigued her. When Kitsune did speak of her building manager she usually stared things off by saying something like, 'You'll never believe what I did to Keitaro this time!' But Kitsune's last words had come off as just slightly defensive which was enough to get Aoi's attention. A potential chance for teasing like this was not to be missed.
"Okay, what kind of relationship do you have with this guy?" asked Aoi. "Other than giving his nosebleeds and tricking him out of sake money. Or is that all there is between you two?"
"Uh…well," began Kitsune. If Aoi had asked this question a few days before the foxgirl would have said that Keitaro was just a friend, albeit one who was easy to manipulate for fun and profit. But after having shared the secret of her family situation with him Kitsune couldn't deny that their relationship had changed. Keitaro was now a confidante as well as a friend.
One who had actually made her blush only the night before.
"Hey! Earth to Kitsune!" shouted Aoi.
That snapped the foxgirl back to her senses. "Oh, uh, sorry about that. I zoned out for a second," said Kitsune as she scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.
Aoi leaned back in her chair, folded her arms across her chest and gave a little smirk. "You sure picked a convenient moment for your little trip to space. In case you didn't notice, your face has turned a bit red. Could someone be blushing? Did I hit a nerve asking about you and Keitaro? Hhhmm?"
Kitsune's hand instinctively flew to her face. Her skin felt slightly warmer than normal. Or did it?
"Dammit, Aoi, that wasn't funny!" snapped the foxgirl.
"Really? Then how come I'm laughing?" snickered Aoi through a fit of giggles.
Now Kitsune really was blushing. Aoi's going to tease me about this for weeks. I better set her straight on how things are between Keitaro and me. Otherwise I'll never hear the end of this!
"Look, Aoi, Keitaro's a nice guy and I do consider him a friend," said Kitsune firmly. "But he's just a friend. I've told you how he's got it bad for Naru. Though she's sooner kiss a pig than admit it, she likes him a little bit too."
Aoi was now over her giggles but not ready to let her friend off the hook yet. "Okay, I'll give you all of that. He likes Naru and she sorta likes him. But how do you feel about Keitaro specifically? Are you sure he's just a friend?"
Kitsune scowled and took a long gulp of her beer, which had been discreetly delivered while the two had been talking. Once that was done she exhaled deeply before looking her friend squarely in the eye. "Didn't I just say he's only a friend? Keitaro's a decent guy, but he's also a geeky second year ronin who turns into a total spaz when it comes to girls. In no way, shape or form is he my type. Got it?"
Aoi held up her hands in a placating gesture and tried to look apologetic. "Okay, okay. I was just having a little fun and your lack of a romantic life is too easy a target to pass up.
Kitsune huffed. "All right, you're forgiven. Though you're really not one to talk about someone's lack of a romantic life. Aren't you the one that's still mooning over her boss, that Yusuke guy? Which is a real waste of time since you told me he's getting married to some other girl in a few months. Am I right?"
The blue haired girl rested her elbows up on the table and lazily let her face rest in her hands. "Yeah, you're right. I guess I'm no one to talk. Yusuke's really happy and the girl he's engaged to is very nice. I should just accept the fact that I was never anything more than an employee to Yusuke and try and be happy for them but…"
"Hey, buck up," said Kitsune in a comforting tone. "You're not the only one to have someone you had it bad for leave you behind. I've been there too, you know."
Aoi nodded and looked thoughtfully into her beer mug. "Right, your tutor from high school. That Seta guy. It's been what…Three years since you last saw him?"
"Give or take, yeah, almost three years."
"And a schoolgirl crush still hurts after all that time? Come on."
"There's a difference between a crush and being in love for the first time," informed Kitsune simply. "A crush is enough like love to make you feel kinda good. But it's one-sided so even in your head you know your feelings can't hurt you.
"Being in love for the first time is different. When you realize you're in love for the first time it's like someone takes a blindfold off you that you've been wearing your whole life never knowing it. The whole world looks different and the person you're in love with…well, they just seem to shine."
Aoi gave a little smile and nodded. "Damned if you aren't right. Shining…Yeah, Yusuke did seem that way to me when I looked at him, now that I think about it. That Seta guy was like that for you?"
Kitsune nodded. "Yeah, he was. He was smart, strong, handsome and had this goofy natural charm about him. Plus, he was a Tokyo U student at the time. Trust me when I say I wasn't the only one who had a thing for him."
"That's a lots of marks in the plus column," commented Aoi. "I can see why he'd be popular with the ladies."
The foxgirl made an agreeing sound while taking another long drink. "Even though it broke my heart when he left I'm grateful to Seta. He was a genuinely good guy. If you're going to be in love for the first time it should be with someone who is a good person. Because no matter how your first love ends, the person you were in love with will, in some small way, touch every other romantic relationship you have for the rest of your life."
"You were like me, right?" asked Aoi. "You never told Seta how you felt about him the same way I never told Yusuke?"
Kitsune shook her head. "No, I never did tell him. After all this time I still regret that. I'm sure that if I had Seta would have let me down as gently as he could. He wasn't the type to go after schoolgirls, after all. I guess I'd have gotten a broken heart either way. What hurts the most is the regret of not telling him how I felt."
"I hear that," smiled Aoi wistfully.
The blue-haired girl then looked at her friend with an excited look in her eyes. "Hey, Kitsune, let's make a little promise to each other right now."
Those words took the foxgirl aback. What is it with people and promises in this town? she thought.
"What kind of promise?"
"Let's promise each other that the next time we find a guy we love, and I mean really love, that we tell him," explained Aoi. "Consequences be damned, we tell him!"
Kitsune looked at her friend oddly for a moment before one of her fox-like grins crept onto her face. "You're right. Life's too short to not tell someone you love how you feel."
Aoi arched an eyebrow. "Consequences be damned?"
Kitsune's grin only got bigger. "Consequences be damned."
"Cheers to that!" proposed Aoi as she raised her beer high.
"You read my mind," said Kitsune as she too raised up her drink.
"Cheers!" toasted the pair loudly. They then proceeded to drain their drinks in one shot.
After that the pair signaled for another round which was brought a minute later. Neither girl spoke until she had another beer in hand.
"You know, the sad part of that promise is that it's a lot easier said than done," lamented Aoi as she took a drink. "Decent guys are in real short supply these days. Especially around here. God, I swear, there are days when I think that there are nothing but perverts in this town."
"No kidding," snorted Kitsune. "I get my share of perverted guy stuff from Keitaro back home. At least there it's funny. Anywhere else, unless I'm trying to weasel a few free drinks out of the guy, it's just a pain in the ass."
"Tell me about it! I'm a waitress and the Pia Carrot 2 uniforms are really cute. That combined with my naturally sexy body makes me a prime target for all the pervs that come in," said Aoi, in complete seriousness. "I like the physical as much as much as the next healthy young gal, but I really could do without sixty-year-old guys trying to grab my butt for a cheap thrill."
"I hear you," nodded Kitsune. "I've done the waitress thing a few times myself. Those geezer types can actually be worse than the young guys who just try and pick you up."
"I suppose I shouldn't complain too much," mused Aoi. "Pia Carrot is a family restaurant chain, so we don't have as bad a problem with perverts as some other places. After all, who wants to be seen trying to feel up the waitress in front of a mother and her two-year-old kid or someone like that? Besides, when someone like that does show up we just sic Miki on them."
"Miki? That's the waitress who fancies herself a manga artist in her spare time, right?" asked Kitsune.
Aoi nodded. "Yeah, that's Miki. She's pretty good with a pencil, but what she's really good at is waving around a kitchen and yelling when she gets mad."
Kitsune chuckled. "Sounds like she'd really get along with Naru. She tends to hit people when she gets riled up. And Motoko too. Get her angry and you'll get a sword in your face faster than you can 'Masamune'. Keitaro dreads ticking off either of them."
"They all do sound a bit alike," concurred Aoi. "Heck, you should see the poor sap that delivers the restaurant's vegetables. Miki's chewed him out for being late while waving a kitchen knife around so many times that the poor sap is scared to death of her. You'd think he'd just learn to be on time but…Well, that's just how he is.
"Anyway, that temper of Miki's is why whenever we have a problem with perverts we send her out to give them a little lecture on 'the inappropriateness of such behavior in a family establishment'.
"The looks on those pervs faces as she waves that knife around is great. They don't listen to word she says. They're too busy ducking to avoid getting slashed. But what makes it even funnier is that Miki doesn't even realize that she's doing anything dangerous at all with the knife. She's just too mad to notice. It's hysterical!"
"Sounds a bit like how things can get at the Hinata," said Kitsune. "I really should drop by the Pia Carrot 2 sometime. Perverts or not, it sounds like you work at an interesting place."
"That's true," concurred Aoi. "Miki's far from the only oddball there."
The blue-haired girl took a long swig from her beer and smiled. Then a look of realization flashed across her face. "Oh, hey, I was going to tell you this earlier but we got to talking about the sad state of our love lives and I forgot. If you wanna hear a funny story about some perverts at the Pia Carrot let me tell you about these two guys who came in last Friday."
"I'm all ears," said Kitsune.
"They were about your age and both had short hair and glasses. One was tall and the other on the short side. I don't remember what they called each other, but I was the one who had to serve them so I heard some of their conversation. I'm pretty sure the tall one's name started with and H and the short guy's with an S.
"Anyway, as soon as they came in I could tell they were going to be trouble. They just had that horny guy look to 'em, you know? So I show them to their table and as they're sitting down the short one tells me that my uniform is cute, but not as cute as I am."
Kitsune rolled her eyes. "That old line? I heard that one plenty time when I did the waitress gig. Let me guess, he said it while addressing your chest and not your face."
"Bingo!" confirmed Aoi. "It's no secret that the Pia Carrot restaurants make it a point to have both cute uniforms and cute waitresses. After all, any good family restaurant has to have a little something for dad and big brother. So I'm used to those sorts of comments and don't mind them for the most part.
"But this guy…I could that what he *really* wanted was me bringing him food while wearing nothing but an apron with Aoi ala mode for dessert."
"That's a colorful image," said Kitsune. "But what about the tall one? Was he eyeing you too?"
At that question Aoi scowled. "Oh, I wish he had been. Instead he was eyeing sweet little Mina who was serving some people a few tables down."
"Mina? Isn't she the really young one?" asked Kitsune, her face clearly in concentration. "Sorry, but I'm having trouble remembering the names of everyone you work with tonight for some reason. Which I should know considering that you've talked about them plenty of times."
"Forget it," dismissed Aoi with a casual wave of her hand. "I once forgot my own phone number even though I've had it for years. Anyway, yeah, Mina's the young one. She's fourteen but is going to be starting high school soon. Mina's older sister, Azuza, works with me too. Even though Mina's still in junior high, Azuza managed convince Ryoko that she was mature enough to handle a job like this."
"Ah, now the fact that Ryoko's not just your best friend but the manager of your branch of the Pia Carrot I do remember!" proclaimed Kitsune happily. She then grinned in embarrassment. "Uh, sorry, didn't mean to interrupt. Go on."
"I'll give her credit where credit's due, Mina's a good worker, the customers all love her and all of us at the Pia Carrot treat her like a little sister," began Aoi. "So seeing this guy give Mina one of 'those' looks really got under my skin. That, and the fact that while I was taking their order the short one 'accidentally' dropped his fork on the ground so he could try and look up my skirt while he picked it up. But I've had that tired on me plenty of times so I was able to move so he couldn't see anything."
Kitsune nodded as she listened. "The accidentally dropping the silverware routine. The first time I worked as a waitress and a guy pulled that on me I didn't realize what he was doing until it was too late," lamented the foxgirl. "That was how I learned the hard way that there actually are some times when thong panties just aren't a good idea.
"Word must have gotten around to the local perverts real quick because before I knew it I had guys trying that on me half a dozen time a day. Even after I switched to regular panties. I eventually had to quite that job to get away from those pervs. Which was a real shame since the pay was good."
Aoi was giggling again. "That's sad, but also kinda funny. No doubt about it, life's rough for us working girls. But let me finish up my story.
"When I went to get those two pervs' food, that was when the tall one made his move. He called Mina over, pretending to have a question about something on the menu most likely. Then he starts in on her. I was still waiting for their food when I looked back and saw that he was talking to Mina and that she was blushing. And I don't mean the good kind of blushing. So I called to Miki, who was in the kitchen chopping vegetables, 'Hey, Miki. We've got perverts at table #9. One of 'em's hitting on Mina right now.'
"Damn, but I've never seen Miki move so fast. She was over there lecturing and waving her knife around in a flash. Those two creeps where petrified. I think the short one might have even been crying a little bit. It felt so good to see those two get what they deserved.
"Anyway, the second Miki finished her 'lecture' and went back to the kitchen those two jumped up, tossed the money for their food on the table and bolted for the door. They were both in such a hurry to get away from Miki they almost each other down trying to get out of the restaurant. It was priceless!"
"Aw, that's great!" laughed Kitsune. "So what was that one perv saying to Mina? I hope it wasn't anything too nasty."
"I don't know," shrugged Aoi. "I asked what he said to her later but she didn't want to talk about it. I figured she's been through enough for one day so I let it drop. But I don't think whatever that guy said to her could have been all that bad. Those two were more the horny loser type rather than the real sicko type. Plus, Mina's the shy, innocent sort. She blushes pretty easy."
"Sounds like Shinobu," said Kitsune. "You should see the shades of red she'll turn if romance or anything relating to good 'ol s-e-x comes up. It's pretty funny."
"Ah, to be young gain," sighed Aoi. "I'd hate it. Going through being a teenager once was enough for me."
"That goes double for me," nodded Kitsune. "I hope Shinobu will have an easier time being a teenager than I did. Right now she's got her first love thing going on with Keitaro of all people."
"You're sure it's not just a crush?"
Kitsune shook her head emphatically. "No, the way she looks at Keitaro is the same way I used to look at Seta. It's the real deal. I'm sure of it."
"Then I guess that makes her a pretty lucky girl," smiled Aoi as she took a drink from her beer.
The foxgirl had a puzzled face. "How so?"
Aoi made an amused smile. "Weren't you just talking a few minutes ago about how 'If you're going to be in love for the first time it should be with someone who is a good person. Because no matter how your first love ends, the person you were in love with will, in some small way, touch every other romantic relationship you have for the rest of your life,' right?
"And you said earlier that Keitaro *is* a nice guy. You don't think he's the sort who'd take advantage of her, do you?"
Kitsune made a dismissive gesture with her hand and snorted. "Of course not. He's probably had a naughty thought about her from time to time, but Keitaro would never do that to Shinobu. I've told you have she looks up to him and even calls him 'sempai'. You can tell by the look on his face that the way Shinobu looks up to him means a lot to Keitaro. He'd never do deliberately do anything to hurt her. Or anyone else, now that I think about it.
"Besides, the big dope hasn't got clue one that Shinobu feels anything more than respect for him. Though it's glaringly obvious to anyone who isn't named Keitaro Urashima how she feels about him."
"So like I said, she a lucky girl," repeated Aoi. "Her first love is someone Shinobu both likes and respects, who cares a lot about her feelings and would never try and take advantage of her or hurt her. I this big bad world that's a pretty rare thing."
Kitsune gazed into her beer and considered her friend's words. "I guess you're right," she said after a long moment. "Shinobu is pretty lucky. That was a good observation, Aoi. I never really thought about it like that."
"I didn't really do anything," shrugged Aoi. "I just repeated back to you your oh so poetic musings on love from earlier, Ms. Poet."
"What's with the 'Ms. Poet' stuff?" said Kitsune while giving her friend an odd look.
Aoi was smiling to herself again. "I'm just saying that what you were saying about first loves earlier was pretty poetic. I never really pictured you as the poetic sort."
"Aw, come on!" said Kitsune. "You make it sound like I said something out of Shakespeare or something. Besides, you've spent enough time in bars to know that booze and talking about your love life will turn *anyone* into a poet. Usually a bad one. So knock it off."
The blue-haired girl had one last dig to get in on her friend. "You used to write really angsty poetry when you were a teenager, didn't you?"
Kitsune blanched and glared at her friend. "Aoi!"
The other girl snickered loudly. "Hey, don't feel bad. It's something most teenage girls do at least once or twice. I admit it. I did that a few times.
"Hey, did you save any of them? Can I read them, Ms. Great Poet Kitsune," begged Aoi in an exaggerated voice.
"AOI!"
"All right, all right. I'll stop. From now on no more talk about romance, okay?"
"Okay," huffed Kitsune. "Come on, let's get with the gettin' blitzed. God knows I could do without remembering the last few minutes in the morning."
"Before we do that I just want your opinion on one last romantic thing," said Aoi. "I know what I said a second ago but…well, indulge me."
"Oh, all right," sighed Kitsune. "But make it quick. This beer's not getting any colder."
"Do you think that there really is a special someone out there for everyone?" asked Aoi simply.
Kitsune noted the serious look on her friend's face before pausing to consider. The foxgirl thought deeply for several moments before looking Aoi in the eye again. "Yeah, I actually do. I don't know why, but I do. My past experiences with love sure aren't evidence to support that, but that's how I feel. I guess…I guess I still like to think that there's some hope yet for romance."
Aoi gave a small, slightly sad smiled and raised her beer glass. "Yeah, I guess that's how I feel too. So here's to romance. May it lead us two sexy gals to our special someones."
"And may that day be sooner rather than later," added Kitsune with a melancholy smile of her own.
"Cheers!"
To be continued…
Author's notes: Well, after an absurdly long time, here is chapter three. My apologizes to everyone reading this for making them wait so long. Suffice to say there were several factors that lead to the delay.
The first was after chapter two that I felt it would be best to take a little break from Foxheart in order to keep myself fresh. So I went and did some work on a Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Oh My Goddess! fic called Brimstone Raising that I've been working on for…well, about three years now. It's the longest fic I've ever done at about 60,000 words and counting. And the end of the story is still a ways off too. Sometimes I really do wonder how I get myself into these things.
Anyway, the next and biggest factor was that I'm in college so classes, homework, studying and hanging out with my friends were also pressing on my time.
Lastly was the fact that in February I found out I'd been accepted as an exchange student to Sapporo University in Sapporo, Japan. Which is where I am as I write this on a warm June evening. As you can imagine, adding in getting everything lined up for eight months overseas (I arrived in May and go home in December) took up even more of my time. Plus, once I got here I had to settle in, start classes, and learn to get around as so on.
But now I'm in a comfortable grove so hopefully I can speed up the next chapter. I had to leave all my Love Hina manga back at home, but used manga can be had here for about 10% of what I'd pay in the US, so I'll likely just get the whole series again just to have as reference.
I already picked up Love Hina Zero and Infinity. If you don't know those are special editions of supplementary material that were put out for the diehard fans. There's no new LH stories or anything, but there's a gold mine of great information in them. One little fact I discovered is going to have a HUGE impact on the story in later chapters. I've never seen this bit of information mentioned anywhere else so I hope you don't mind if I choose to keep it to myself for now.
Now for a few ruminations about the story itself. The main thing in this chapter was introducing Aoi. As I was thinking about Kitsune while working out this story it occurred to me that we know that she drinks with other people when she goes out, we know absolutely nothing about who those people are. At the same time I'd also been thinking that Kitsune needed someone outside the Hinata to talk with, but not necessarily share the more intimate and personal details of her life. Making that person one of her drinking buddies seemed the perfect way to kill two birds with one stone.
The thing is, Aoi isn't a character I created. I actually lifted her from a computer game/anime called Pia Carrot 2. To save someone the trouble of pointing this out later, I'll tell you up front that the Pia Carrot series started off as a series of hentai games. However, like titles such as To Heart and Kannon before it, Pia Carrot's strong story and likeable characters lead it to break out and enjoy mainstream success. There was also a Pia Carrot 3, but I honestly don't know much about it.
Both Pia Carrot 1 & 2 had three episode hentai OAV series which I've never seen. I have, however, seen non-hentai Pia Carrot 2 DX OVAs (DX stands for 'deluxe' in Japan). Aoi's character is sort of a mix of how she was in the anime and how it was in the game.
There were three reasons I choose to us Aoi. The first was simply that she was my favorite character from Pia Carrot 2. Second, she really was a lot like Kitsune so she seemed a perfect choice as Kitsune's friend. Finally, I just wasn't that hot on creating an original character. I'm not a big fan of OCs since most stories I've read that have them to be dominated or just dragged down by new characters.
However, I'm not totally against original characters. You can only tell so many stories with established characters so new characters are needed to keep things fresh. I've done a few original characters in my time because I thought they were needed not to be some addition to the cast, but to simply tell the story I wanted to tell. I guess that in the end I feel that original characters work best when used wisely and in moderation.
That said, while planning out this story I came up with something I wanted to explore that could only be with an original character. It's a theme that has been explored to a degree in the Love Hina universe before, but I wanted to take a different slant on things and so an original character was needed.
Sorry for being so vague, but this is also something that won't be showing up for a long time but I wanted to talk about it now. But I will tell you this; one thing it won't be a new girl moving into the Hinata. That's been done in other stories and I really have no interest in going there.
It also will not be some new guy trying to steal Kitsune away, though I will admit to briefly considering trying something like that. However, that was tried with Kentaro going after Naru in the anime. I was never really taken with Kentaro as a character so I decided not to go there.
There's actually a long story behind my calling the bar Highpoints. But in a nutshell that was going to be a under 21 club that was going to be a main location in an original series that I planned for a few years then lost interest it.
The Highpoints in this story was pretty different that the way I first imagined it. For this story I just thought, "If I were to open up a bar what would I want it to be like?" In the end I drew on all the trips I've made to various Plant Hollywood restaurants for how the décor would be. Though in my bar you don't have bad rock music cranked up so high you can't talk with the people at your table and the hamburgers aren't badly cooked and overpriced.
With the longwinded stuff out of the way, let's get to some of the Easter eggs in the story.
I was going to go to the shrine thing with my friend Ryoko. But she somehow got her hands on two tickets to a special New Year's Day concert by Firebomber at the Tokyo Dome. So we decided going to that instead.
Firebomber is the name of the rock band the main characters were members of in Macross 7. Just as an extra tidbit, I've actually been to the Tokyo Dome once. It really is a pretty nice place.
I went the Hinata Shrine anniversary celebration.
One of the goodies in Love Hina Infinity is a map of Hinata City. From that I was able to learn the name of the shrine where everyone went for New Years. I've since gone back and made corrections regarding this in the earlier chapters.
When Kitsune did speak of her building manager she usually stared things off by saying something like, 'You'll never believe what I did to Keitaro this time!'
This was a line I was actually a bit dubious about because I wasn't entirely convinced that that was how Kitsune would talk about Keitaro. But then I got to thinking about the way she seemed to enjoying toying with him just after he arrived at the Hinata. While it's true Keitaro was pretty much a stranger to her at that time, I still think that up until the events of the last chapter that the fun she would have got from messing with him would still be there.
Did I hit a nerve asking about you and Keitaro? Hhhmm?
Originally this chapter was going to be my version of the story Keitaro and Naru taking their practice exams from volume 2. But as time passed and I found that I still hadn't started on that I began to feel bad for the people out there who I knew were looking forward to more. So after some thought the idea of a little side scene popped into my head.
The whole point of this chapter was to really drive home the fact that Kitsune's relationship with Keitaro has changed on a fundamental level. Aoi's asking her about her relationship with Keitaro kinda forces Kitsune to start to really realize this. She was sorta aware that their relationship would change after she told him about her family but the full consequences of that are just now starting to hit her and she's a little uncomfortable with that.
I also wanted to point out that at this point Kitsune and Keitaro are essentially just friends. Friends who were a lot less close just a two days before.
I kinda like to think of the romance I'm trying to create between the two at this point being like a snowball rolling down a mountain. The snowball has just starting rolling and isn't much to look at right now. But it'll get bigger as it gains momentum and will finally come to an end with a big crash of some sort.
The crash, I'm afraid, you'll just have to wait for.
That Seta guy. It's been what…Three years since you last saw him?"
A large part of the planning of this story was sitting down and working out a timeline of events and trying to figure out just how old the characters would have been when certain things happened. Since I knew I'd have to leave it behind when I came to Japan one thing I did before leaving was go over as much of my manga as I could and try and create my own timeline to bring with me to help me keep track of everything.
I thought it turned out pretty well considering that I'd never done anything like that before. Then I got Love Hina Infinity only find that it had a far more detailed timeline than the one I'd made. Of course, I can't fully read it but I'll still make the best use of it I can.
Being in love for the first time is different. When you realize you're in love for the first time it's like someone takes a blindfold off you that you've been wearing your whole life never knowing it. The whole world looks different and the person you're in love with…well, they just seem to shine.
When I was trying to write how Kitsune felt about Seta I did a lot of thinking about how I was the first time I fell in love, how it changed me and the fact that I never told that girl how I felt about her. I think that those feelings are something that most people go through at some point in their lives so putting myself in Kitsune's shows was pretty easy for this part.
Aoi arched an eyebrow. "Consequences be damned?"
Kitsune's grin only got bigger. "Consequences be damned."
Kitsune's got a real 'devil may care' attitude and I wanted to show that that aspect of her personality really does color her feelings on all relationships. Remember the 'carpe diem' line from chapter one?
I get my share of perverted guy stuff from Keitaro back home. At least there it's funny. Anywhere else, unless I'm trying to weasel a few free rounds of sake out of the guy, it's just a pain in the ass.
This was another bit I worried about a little. Clearly Kitsune enjoys having people think she's sexy a lot. But how a guy actually hitting on her would make her act is something we really don't see in the manga. Just based on my own observations of men and women I think that Kitsune might enjoy the attention at first, but that even she has her limits on that sort of thing.
That's why I had the bit in the last chapter where Kitsune realizes that the reason she blushed after Keitaro told her he thought she looked pretty when she smiled was because she was hearing a genuine compliment from someone. It wasn't just a cheap line to try and get her in the sack. Of which I'm sure Kitsune has heard many over the years. After all, there's a difference between someone looking at you and thinking you're sexy and someone looking at you like you're a piece of meat.
Women are many things and stupid is not one of them. When it comes to those types of looks they can tell the difference with uncanny accuracy.
I like the physical as much as much as the next healthy young gal, but I really could do without sixty-year-old guys trying to grab my butt for a cheap thrill.
Here I'm actually drawing on some of the horror stories told to me by my friend Julie about some of the stuff she's had to endure while working as a waitress. While I never had it as bad as does, I used to work as a hotel desk clerk. So I have some knowledge of what it's like to have to deal with a constant stream of abuse from total strangers and have to stand there, take it and smile at them the whole time.
I really can't think of anything that will instill in you a hatred for all humanity more than a couple of months working a job in the service sector. That experience actually helped me to understand why Kitsune hops from job to job all the time. After about three months I'd had all I could take of the desk clerk job and quite.
After all, who wants to be seen trying to feel up the waitress in front of a mother and her two-year-old kid or someone like that?
Pia Carrot 2 fans will of course know that the people Aoi is talking about here is sexy single mom Harue and her cute two-year-old daughter Kaoru.
Originally I was just going to have Aoi be the only character from the Pia Carrot 2 game in the story. But as I wrote my rabid PC2 fanboy instincts kidded in and I ended up referencing most characters in the game. Heck, I even put in the vegetable guy from the Pia Carrot 2 DX OVAs.
I guess I do own people not into Pia Carrot stuff a small apology for indulging myself like that. But looking back I think it was a good idea. Talking about her co-workers was a fun and effective way of fleshing out Aoi's character a bit more.
Maybe down the road Kitsune will take Aoi up on her offer to visit the Pia Carrot 2 with the rest of the Hinata gang possibly in tow. I could really have some fun with that. Plus, it would give the LH cast some new to play off of other than each other.
I'll have to give that idea more consideration.
For reference, that Yusuke guy Aoi's in love with was the hero of the first Pia Carrot game. The girl he's marrying is presumably whomever anyone playing Pia Carrot 1 thought he should have ended up with in the first game. Personally, my favorites were Yukiko and Yukari. If you want to get a bit more insight on the Pia Carrot 2 characters has some good information and a lot of fantastic (non-hentai) images from the game can be found at
Get her angry and you'll get a sword in your face faster than you can 'Masamune'.
There's a lot of history associated with swords bearing the name 'masamune'. But I was mostly thinking of the fact that weapons by that name can be found in several Final Fantasy games.
They were about your age and both had short hair and glasses. One was tall and the other on the short side. I don't remember what they called each other, but I was the one who had to serve them so I heard some of their conversation. I'm pretty sure the tall one's name started with and H and the short guy's with an S.
Boy, Haitani and Shirai just never learn, do they? I wonder what they were doing in Hinata City though. ;)
I liked writing the part where Aoi and Kitsune talk about the relationship between Keitaro and Shinobu. Not only does it give a bit of a look into how others see that relationship but it also highlights some of Keitaro's best points to Kitsune.
"What's with the 'Ms. Poet' stuff?" said Kitsune while giving her friend an odd look.
This bit came out of some concern I had as to if I was making Kitsune a bit too philosophical. So Aoi's teasing and Kitsune's retort about how drinking turns everyone into a philosopher in my mind serve to bring things back down to earth.
I've actually had what Kitsune was talking about happen to me. While I was writing this section I kept thinking back to a night I went out drinking with a good friend of mine and we ended up having a long talk about this one girl we both had really strong feelings for until we were both pretty trashed. We talked a lot about the bitter side of love that night, believe you me.
However, I do think that Kitsune does have a little philosopher in her. Remember the story where she pretended to be in love with Keitaro just to make Naru shout and her to stop had Kitsune giving Naru a little lesson on "The A-B-Cs of love?" I think that is one of Kitsune's shining moments in the manga.
You used to write really angsty poetry when you were a teenager, didn't you?
I know girls who really did do this when they were in high school. Somehow I could just picture Kitsune during one of those really bleak times everyone has in high school grabbing some paper and pouring out the sort of bad poetry on fifteen year old girls can write.
I added than in mostly because it just seemed a really human thing to do and that it also reminded readers that in my Love Hina universe Kitsune went through some very hard times during her adolescence.
"Do you think that there really is a special someone out there for everyone?" asked Aoi simply.
One of the themes of Love Hina is Keitaro and Naru, who were pretty much meant for each other since they were children, finding their way back to each other and falling in love again. But since this is Keitaro and Kitsune's story I wanted to put in her take on if there is someone out there for everyone.
Given the way she acts towards Keitaro and Naru's relationship and sex in the manga it is hard not to feel that Kitsune has something of a unique view of romance. But under all that I do like to think that she's something of a romantic at heart. I think that's why she pushed Keitaro and Naru together so much.
Anyway, it's time I wrapped this up. After the heavy angst and emotional stuff of the last few chapters I'm looking to get back to more of the comedy aspects of Love Hina next chapter. Stay tuned.