More Slightly Lengthened Observations
Previously:
He glanced over to Motoko and nearly closed his eyes, thinking. Motoko, raven haired goddess… Er, where did that come from? Hmm, I think this analysis should wait till I become more knowledgeable in their daily routines.
Disclaimer: Don't own LH, but that doesn't mean I can't fictionize for fun.
(Note: It suddenly came to me that where I left last chapter was fairly decent of ending. Oh well, thoughts and tips for improvement are welcome.
Mtgradwell: Your probably right, but then again, some1 could've had it translated if it was put into a western paper on purpose. One can only guess how Hawklyn read about the ad in which ever paper. While your comment is true, he didn't have too much knowledge of conversative Japanese. Oh well. Myself, I don't understand much Japanese at all and I feel its more comfortable doing it this way then making Hawklyn seem "omnipresent" with full lingual knowledge, blame it on my role playing days. I hope you can understand the how and whys of my approach. And his reason will become clear in this chapter.
Godsbane: I was more thinking of Hawklyn's preference of color like Kanako's.)
Hawklyn had started to help out Keitaro in the management chores after a couple weeks of Keitaro's training him in Japanese. After a couple days of observations and watching Keitaro fly Naru or Aoyama Air, Hawklyn suggested that he make a habit of cleaning the hot springs at night……
FlashbackNaru had just punched Keitaro somewhere while Hawklyn had listened in with a grimace. He knew he'd suffer about the same fate as Keitaro if he was anywhere near the springs, so he exited the changing room and went to sit on the front steps and wait for Keitaro. He sighed and began thinking, half out loud and half to himself.
That's the third time in about 3 days he's been launched like that. I don't know how he survives, but I don't think it improves his attitude much. Those girls should be careful, over time he'll be conditioned to believe everytime he sees a breast or some thigh he'll practically be expecting a violent reaction. Way to go Naru, if you keep up like that, you're gonna kill him, maybe not physically, but you'll kill his will to live. If it goes on long enough, don't be surprised if what you did comes back to haunt you.
Everyone has limits to how much crap they can take, and Keitaro's not an exception. He came out of his reverie as he saw Keitaro limping back towards him and sighed shaking his head.
"Keitaro, before you go in, let's talk." Hawklyn's request drifted through the air toward him and the dark haired guy nodded, sitting beside him on the steps, not entirely without pain as it looked from his face however. Hawklyn decided to continue.
"This makes what, the fifth time since I started helping you now?"
An affirmative nod came back, with a rather depressed sounding reply, "Yeah… Naru hates me, and yet for some strange reason I still think she's my promise girl…"
Hawklyn tilted his head, "Promise girl?"
"Yeah, bout 16 years ago, I made a promise that I'd go with her to Toudai. We would go together."
Hawklyn nodded slowly, "So anyway, back to the chores, and the hot springs. I thinking of maybe I could clean the hot springs around say 1 am at night."
Keitaro became thoughtful as Hawklyn mentioned this, "Hmm, might have some merit in doing that at night. Ok then, we can try it and see how it works out." He moved to get up and winced, "Ow, couple more like that and I'll-"
"Yeah, I know. I'm going to formulate a plan in next few weeks to deal with this subject of transgression…"
End flashbackSince then, Keitaro had gone for flights approximately 20 times for the "atrocities" he had supposedly caused Motoko and Naru. It was for this reason that Hawklyn decided to call a house meeting, he had told Keitaro about what he was going to do and had advised him to go on errands for the day. He came down the stairs with his laptop and spotted Shinobu going toward the kitchen.
"Excuse me, Shinobu…"
She stopped to look at him, "Yes Hawklyn-sempai?"
I really wish she wouldn't call me sempai… sigh "Can you please call Naru, Motoko, Su and Kitsune to the living room please? Its for a meeting." He walked down stairs and began setting up his laptop, looking toward Shinobu after a minute for an answer.
"Y-yes sempai."
As she hurried off Hawklyn continued setting up his laptop for the talk with the girls.
Shinobu alerted the tenants to the meeting by knocking on doors and such, getting varied reactions from each of them.
Kitsune"Kitsune-Sempai, Hawklyn wishes a meeting the living room"
"Thank you Shinobu, will be there."
Naru"Naru-sempai, Hawklyn is calling meeting in the living room, he requested you by name."
"Oh really, wonder what could be so important for him to talk to us all."
"I have no idea either."
The door opened as Naru came out and joined the younger tenant in the hallway, "Might as well see what he wants." She muttered as Shinobu continued her current mission.
Motoko"Motoko-sempai, Hawklyn has called a meeting, requested you to come."
Motoko sighed as her meditation was interrupted, "Ok, will be down."
And finally there was Su, the energetically hypersonic genius girl who was Shinobu's best friend of the bunch, at least since Keitaro had been here.
"Su, Meeting in Living room, will give you a banana bunch if you come."
The door opened immediately and Su's face poked out, "Bananas? Okay!" Su exited her room and grabbed Shinobu's hand pulling her to the living room.
Hawklyn had just finished setting up his laptop when he saw Kitsune enter the room. He nodded to her in greeting, "Hello Kitsune."
She yawned, still getting over a hangover as she plopped onto the couch, "Hello… David isn't it?"
Hawklyn nodded as he turned on his laptop and waited while it booted up.
"So what's the meeting about?" Kitsune asked, trying to determine whether she really needed to be here or not.
Hawklyn regarded her for a minute before speaking, "The subject is one that interests all of you, that's why I asked for all of the tenants to be here. As for Keitaro, he's doing errands, and before you ask, yes he knows about this meeting."
Kitsune narrowed her eyes as she gazed back to him, listening and turning over what he had just said in her mind. She frowned inwardly as she thought introspectively, Hmm, seems suspicious, but I'll hear him out, couldn't be that bad of topic.
Naru was next to arrive on the scene, followed by Motoko.
"Hey Kitsune." Naru greeted as she came to sit down by her long time friend. Glancing over to Hawklyn, she saw that he was typing things into his laptop as he waited for the others to arrive. "Hawklyn, can I ask what the reason for this meeting is?"
Hawklyn looked up at her, his blue eyes firm, "Patience Naru, Shinobu should be back with… Ah, here they are." Hawklyn smiled slightly as the energetic Su bounded into the room, carrying Shinobu her shoulder.
"Su is here, bananas? Bananas!" Su spotted the bunch of bananas and grabbed the bunch with her other hand as she went along with Shinobu following to sit on a empty couch.
Hawklyn cleared his throat as he looked up from his laptop, placing it on the table in front of him as everyone waited for him to speak.
"About the subject of this meeting and why Keitaro is running errands right now…" He glanced at each of them in turn, yes, eye contact was hard for him to do, but he was doing his best at it. "Since I've been here, I have noticed that Keitaro has ended up airborne around seventy or so times. As far as I have been able to ascertain, those instances have occurred the most around the hot springs, the stairs, or Keitaro's room."
Naru frowned and interrupted him, "So what? He deserved my fist each time he did something perverted-"
Hawklyn cut her off, a bit annoyed at her tone. "Right, and the Japanese won world war 2… But anyway, as I was saying before you interrupted me. Have you really taken the time to ask questions about what happened before you send him into the stratosphere?"
Naru was not liking the question, so she tried to escape it. "Questions aren't important. If Keitaro would stop falling on me or any of the others—"
Hawklyn bore in on her, "Answer the question please."
Naru scowled at him, then looked at her hands in defeat, "No, I haven't asked questions—"
"So you just react correct?"
"Yes."
Hawklyn nodded and turned to Motoko, "Motoko, I'm sure by now you know what the question is. I realize Naru has done the majority of the Keitaro launching since I've come here. But I have seen on occasion where you and Naru reacted similarly in dealing with Keitaro. Now, if I was to accidentally fall and Shinobu happened to get caught in my tumbling down the stairs and we landed in front of you, tell me honestly what would happen."
Motoko sighed and looked towards the floor as she answered, "I would judge you to be vile and lecherous and attack you on the basis that you were hurting Shinobu."
Hawklyn gazed at her glimmering onyx hair as he listened, "So you would ask no questions either then?"
Motoko horizontally nodded her head in reply, "No Hawklyn-sempai. Like Naru, I would simply act."
Hawklyn nodded, going back to his laptop and entering something into it. From behind it, he asked them both, "Tell me, how expensive are questions compared to bodily injuries?"
Naru answered first from behind a silken shield of red hair, "No where near expensive.
Motoko nodded, gazing toward Hawklyn while she spoke, "Questions are free, bodily injuries are not."
Hawklyn nodded his head approvingly, "Very good." He looked up at them and addressed the group, "All of you, have you considered that we all have limits to how much stress we can each take?"
"Kitsune nodded her head slowly, "Yeah, but with Keitaro it seems that he has no limit-"
Hawklyn interrupted her, "Even Keitaro has a limit Kitsune." He then traveled his eyes over each of them, focusing mostly on Naru and Motoko, "Have any of you ever considered the possibility of Keitaro snapping under the strain?"
Everyone slowly shook their heads and Hawklyn sighed as he did some things with his laptop and turned on the tv.
"Excuse the background wallpaper, but I'm going to show you some crude scenarios of what could happen. I apologize for my art talent, but anyway…"
The video clip started as everyone watched Keitaro fall down the stairs again and land on Naru, who smacked him through the roof again. As Keitaro flew through the air, a caption appeared.
How much more will he take?Eventually, he landed in a lake and then swam to shore, with another caption.
Before he breaks.
He was walking home now, looking really sad and downtrodden.
After he lands, he needs to decide.
It showed Keitaro with a devil and an angel on each shoulder, thinking.
What will he do; good or evil?
It showed the devil beating up the angel part.
Will he snap with all the pain bottled up within?
The next scene showed Keitaro as a near incarnation of Dracula.
Or will he choose the same road he's always chosen?
Bottling his pain up inside yet again.
Hawklyn stopped and turned the tv off before gazing at the girls, "What do you think now?"
Naru spoke first, "I-is that true about pain being bottled up inside?"
It was Motoko who answered her, "Yes Naru-sempai, pain can be bottled up inside-"
"-And if left too long," Hawklyn took over for Motoko, smiling to let her know he was grateful for her answering. "It can eventually snap if left unvented. In fact, between Naru's punches and Su's unintentional hello kicks. I would appreciate it if both of you treated Keitaro a little better for the next week or two to see how it goes. Alright?"
He stood and gazed at each of them as he concluded, "And please remember that I'm only here to help you out. This is only the first of several such meetings we will have. There will be a time where I will meet with each of you separately. For now, you are dismissed, please take to heart what I've said so far."
He ended and started packing up his laptop in the midst of a room that was digesting upon his words only to pause he added, "One more thing, do not try to misinterpret what I've said, I hoped I made what I said as clear as possible for you all. Please don't hesitate to bring a question about what I've said to my attention if you wish for a deeper understanding. Thank you Ladies for listening."
A Few Minutes Later…
"Wow." Naru blinked, her head still playing ping-pong with what Hawklyn had told them. "Did anyone else get what he was saying?"
Motoko nodded slowly as she looked at Naru, "Yes, Hawklyn-san seems to be a very intelligent person. If anything, that was the nicest way of requesting something that I've ever heard in my life.
"But-"
"Narusegawa, let me finish. What I meant was that as much as Hawklyn-san may be a male, tonight he has certainly come across very intelligently correct?" Naru nodded quietly as she again thought to herself, ending what she was saying because at this point, it didn't seem to matter.
What are my feelings for Keitaro? Ok, I know that I love him, but yet I'm afraid. What if he is as the other guys in my life have been? That is something that I just can't deal with right now…
Motoko was also lost in thought, but for herself, she would never admit openly how much the male got her minds attention. There was something odd about Hawklyn, he seemed to be giving a lot more then he was getting.
Hawklyn, you are a very honorable man. I feel your comments were correct about how we've been treating Keitaro. It is true how we have been presuming his faults to be purposeful and therefore perverted. Myself, I believe I will give him more of a doubt in the future before attacking him.
Motoko stood, "Well, I shall go back to my meditations." And then left for the roof, into on doing some training.
Naru decided she needed to work on her studies and started up the stairs to her room. She really wasn't getting along with the deep stuff Hawklyn was saying, but she could see the point he was trying to make.
However, her stubborn will got in the way. She could not allow herself to be vulnerable and dependent in the public eye. She wanted control over her environment, and she was afraid of what might happen if she allowed someone to be dominant over her. She wanted to lead, wanted to be seen as strong. She didn't wish to be made vulnerable and in her opinion, weak. She was afraid of her heart, and therefore she wanted to keep it sealed up.
All these thoughts ran through her mind as she stepped into her room and closed the door behind her. She gazed toward her study area and slowly approached it, "But I refuse to give up on making Keitaro mine." She vocalized to herself while clenching her right hand into a fist of determination. "I will not give up."
(A/N: I should note that this takes place before volume 9 of the Manga. And Sarah is off with Seta to help explain her absence. At this point, Hawklyn has made the girls aware of the treatment they have given Keitaro and will step back into the background as this goes on. I will try to spend some plot time with Shinobu, Su and Kitsune, but I can't promise much.)