Author's Note: It's amazing how long it can take to get another idea.
Yes, I know it's been over a year since I last wrote on anything for "strangelove." But if you'd seen what I'd attempted in the between-time, you'd be thankful. Also, I've written a novel that I'm currently trying to get published, so that's nine months out of that time. Then again, I doubt that anyone really noticed.
As for the important stuff: huzzah, more! This story takes place during the 13th volume of the Love Hina manga, starting at the same time (and overlapping, of course) Hinata 110. Naturally, that means it takes place after the "Ronin and Heart" storyline. The one continuity detail that I feel bears mentioning is that Motoko's hair would be uncut, as there would have been no reason for her to chop it off. (that's the only quibble that might come up? man, I love this story...)
As always, thank you all for the reviews and requests that I continue this. I hope y'all think this was worth the wait. Enjoy!
Mirth and Madness in Molmol
Kitsune poked her head into Motoko's room. "Did you remember to pack underwear?"
"Yes," Motoko said, not even looking up from her bag.
"Damn." Kitsune winked as Motoko raised her head and frowned at her. "What?" she asked, trying to look innocent and knowing she didn't have a chance of pulling it off. "Better hurry up, they might leave us behind if we take too long."
"They can wait," Motoko said. She stood and pulled on a black jacket, and lifted her long hair out from under it. Kitsune couldn't help staring at that - sure, they'd been together for over a year, but there was still something damn enchanting about Motoko's hair. She walked into the kendo girl's room and stepped behind her, then stroked a hand down Motoko's hair and pulled her close.
"Kitsune," Motoko said, though Kitsune could hear the desire in her voice, no matter how much she tried to hide it. "Weren't we supposed to be leaving?"
"What, you wanna go chase Keitaro too?" Kitsune chuckled. She felt Motoko tense, and knew her lover was frowning.
"Judging by how you drove back here after reading Grandma Hinata's fax," Motoko said, her voice growing stern, "you almost made me wonder if you wanted to go after him yourself."
Kitsune froze, sniggered, then started laughing so hard she had to let go of Motoko. When she recovered, Motoko was facing her, looking somewhere between upset and curious. Kitsune grinned, wiped a few tears from her eyes, and started to giggle.
"Oh, c'mon," she said, "you think I'd give up you? For him? There's not enough beer in the world to get me that drunk."
"I didn't think so," Motoko said plainly. She started to smile. "But I'm guessing you have something else planned."
"You know me too well," Kitsune said, waving a hand at Motoko. She couldn't keep herself from grinning. "Okay, get this. You know how that fax said that Keitaro has to be back here with a fiancé if he wants Hinata House?" Motoko nodded. "And he doesn't know, 'cause Seta yanked him off somewhere. So except for us, and maybe the turtle girl, everyone's going to be gunning for him once we get wherever he is."
"And that includes Kanako," Motoko said, narrowing her eyes. "I still haven't forgiven her for--"
Kitsune's grin changed to something kind of like a snarl - as close as she could get, anyway. "You and me both," she said. "No one gets to grope you but me." Motoko started to blush, and just as she was about to say something, Kitsune put a finger to her lips. "What," she said, "you gonna tell me I'm wrong?"
Motoko pulled back from Kitsune, still frowning. "She groped me," she said tersely. "She even tried to seduce me, and while dressed as Naru. Do you have any idea how traumatic that was?"
"Really," Kitsune said, raising an eyebrow. "She tried to seduce you? She just grabbed my boobs and asked how big they are." She smirked as she caught Motoko glancing at her chest. "But yeah. It wasn't really high on my list of good times. And that's why we're going with them."
"You must have something good planned," Motoko said dryly. "Otherwise, you'd be going on about how we'd have Hinata House to ourselves."
"Nah, Naru didn't look like she was too hot on leaving, and I think Haruka's still around," Kitsune said, making a dismissive gesture. "And I know you'd be all nervous about when everyone was coming back."
"Kitsune!" Motoko said, her face flushing bright red.
"Hey, it's the truth," Kitsune said. "But my little master plan is this: no matter where we end up, when we finally find Keitaro, he's going to have to choose someone. We make sure he doesn't end up with Kanako. No matter what."
"No matter what?" Motoko asked, giving her a worried look. "Even if that means one of us?"
The two of them looked each other in the eye for a long moment. Kitsune was the first to start laughing, and Motoko soon followed. Motoko slung her bag over her shoulder, and Kitsune slung her arm around Motoko's waist. The two of them headed down to Hinata House's lobby, where Shinobu, Su, and Kanako were waiting and looking impatient.
"Took you long enough," Kanako said in that dead-calm voice of hers.
Kitsune felt the urge to smack her, now that the memory of the forbidden groping was fresh in her mind, but restrained herself. It took all the discipline that Motoko had somehow hammered into her. "Sorry," she said, giving an easy grin. "Just had to make sure my little ronin girl packed everything we might need." She patted Motoko on her ass.
Motoko gave her a look, but didn't say anything.
They headed outside and called for a taxi. Once they'd all piled in, Su yelled, "Set a course for da kingdom of Molmol!"
"T-the kingdom of Molmol?" Shinobu asked, looking like she wasn't sure what she'd gotten herself into. For a moment, Kitsune wondered if the little girl had really understood the message from Grandma Hinata, then shrugged. She'd figure it out eventually. And it'd probably be a lot more fun that way.
"'Course da kingdom of Molmol!" Su said, turning and pointing a finger at all of them. How she managed that with everyone crammed into the taxi, Kitsune wasn't sure. "The kingdom's marks were all over that thingy in Seta's bag! That's gotta be where they're headed!"
"Sounds exotic," Kitsune murmured to Motoko, then turned to the driver. "Hey, mac! Take us to the airport!" She leaned back against Motoko, piled together as they were, and grinned.
"You have no idea where we're going, do you?" Motoko asked as the taxi sped down the road.
"Nope!" Kitsune winked at her lover. "But hey, we needed a vacation. And you can study later, can't you?"
"A vacation?" Motoko asked. She shook her head. "We were just in Kyoto a few weeks ago."
Kitsune forced herself to give Motoko a serious look. "That didn't really count as a vacation, y'know?"
Motoko sighed, and looked out the window as the scenery zipped by. "I suppose not," she said quietly.
"Except for that last part," Kitsune said, leering.
"Kitsune. . . ."
Motoko reclined her airline seat and looked out the window, trying to relax. Wherever they were, it was night, and the stars seemed much brighter out over the ocean. She had the row to herself, as Shinobu, Su, and Kanako were gathered in the aisle, and seemed to have just scared off a flight attendant who'd asked them to return to their seats.
She sighed. It was all well and good to speed off to somewhere on a moment's notice; studying so much had kept her from being spontaneous. But with all of Hinata House - except Naru, who'd already gotten in, and Kitsune, who had no intentions of trying - aiming for Tokyo U, she knew her own studies weren't going to be the only ones neglected. Would this all be worth it just to get revenge on Kanako?
Yes.
She brushed a lock of hair off of her shoulder, and shook her head. Urashima's sister had chosen the worst time to show up. Kitsune had only brought her back from Kyoto a few days before, and while things were better between them than they'd been when Motoko ran off, having someone dressed as Naru attempt to violate them both had been . . . unpleasant at the very least. While she didn't think she'd ever truly become used to the feel of Kitsune's hands on her, and hoped that it would never seem commonplace, having someone else do the same was nearly enough to make her skin crawl.
Besides, no one touched a warrior without her permission. No one threatened a warrior's chastity without suffering the consequences.
Motoko paused, wondered for a moment just how much of her chastity she could still claim, then abandoned that train of thought completely. It was the principle of the thing.
Any thoughts of principles were likewise abandoned when Kitsune lay herself across the row of empty seats, putting her head in Motoko's lap. Motoko looked down at her, and Kitsune smirked.
"What?" she asked. "They're all planning how they're going to get Keitaro, they don't need their seats. Besides, it's more comfortable this way."
Motoko smiled a little. "For us, anyway," she said, and ran her fingers through Kitsune's hair, toying with the short ponytail Kitsune had grown over the past half-year.
"Yep," Kitsune said. "Can you believe the prices for beer on this flight? Sure, the ones in first class get it for free, but. . . ." She trailed off, looking about as upset as she ever got.
"Yes, I can," Motoko said, secretly thankful. She really didn't need Kitsune getting drunk and . . . affectionate when they were somewhere over the Pacific Ocean. "We still have another seven hours, so you'll have to be patient."
"That's no fun," Kitsune said, then grinned. "D'you know--"
Motoko put a finger over Kitsune's lips. "If you were even thinking about saying 'mile-high club,' you can stop right now."
Kitsune looked up at her and gently kissed her fingertip, then started to suck on her finger. Motoko felt her face growing hot, and tried to pull her hand away, but Kitsune wouldn't let it go, and even nibbled on her fingertip a little. She quickly glanced around to see if anyone was paying attention, but thankfully, most of the other people on the plane were asleep. A single bead of sweat trickled down her back, and Motoko forced herself to breathe normally.
"Kitsune!" Motoko hissed quietly. "I told you--"
Kitsune let go of her finger with one last kiss. "Hey, you're the one who suggested joining the mile-high club," she said. "I was just going to ask if you knew where the blankets are. We should get some sleep, y'know?"
Motoko closed her eyes as her temperature returned to normal, and resisted the urge to bang her head against the window. Even after nearly two years together, Kitsune still found new ways to embarrass her, or make her embarrass herself. And she always seemed to enjoy it so much. She let out a long sigh, then Kitsune's hand on the side of her face made her open her eyes.
"Do you really think I'd say we should do that?" Kitsune asked quietly. She seemed oddly sincere, and for a moment, Motoko felt bad for even suggesting it. No, not suggesting it. For thinking that Kitsune would suggest it.
"A little," Motoko said after a moment. "It seems like the kind of thing you'd want to try. After that - one time in the living room. . . ." She felt her face growing warm again.
"That was different," Kitsune said with a wink. "No one was around, and besides, the living room's a lot bigger than the bathrooms on this thing."
Motoko blinked. "What?"
"What, you think we could have much fun when it's too small to turn around in there?" Kitsune laughed, then sat up, leaving Motoko trying to figure out just what had happened. A moment later, Kitsune gave her a blanket and pillow, and curled up with her own. They got as comfortable as they could, together on the airline seats, and slept through the rest of the long flight.
"I thought this was supposed to be a vacation!"
Behind Kitsune, Motoko sighed. "Calm down. It could be worse."
Kitsune banged on the bars that kept the two of them, as well as Shinobu and Kanako, imprisoned in the airship's 'multipurpose reception area.' "Yeah," she said, "Su could have kicked us out of this thing! Dammit, Su, let us out of here!"
"You gotta admit, at least the food's good," Shinobu said. She and Motoko were standing at a table packed with enough food for a festival. "But can you believe it?" she asked as Kitsune turned around. "She's a princess!"
"Yep, we all underestimated her, no wonder she's loaded," Kitsune said, then went to join Motoko. "Regardless, we have to stop this wedding!" She looked over the table, and grumbled. "And she didn't even give us any beer!"
"I don't think I can get us all out of here, though," Motoko said, putting a hand to her chin. "And knowing Su, something bad would happen if I tried to break through the bars."
"Oh, look, it's an airplane," Shinobu said, looking out the room's one small window.
Kitsune and Motoko looked at each other for a moment, then Motoko hurried for the window. "I can get this open," she said.
"That's my girl," Kitsune said, grinning. "Any idea where it goes?"
"Outside the airship, probably," Kanako said. Kitsune looked at her. As usual, the gothy girl's face was blank. Good thing she wasn't in charge of escaping, Kitsune thought, or they'd all end up here for life. "And what makes you think Su wouldn't have done something to that, if you're so sure about the bars?"
"What, you think my kendo girl doesn't know what she's doing?" Kitsune frowned at Kanako, trying to ignore Motoko striking the windowframe with her bare hands.
"I just want to get out of here," Kanako said, looking away as though she didn't care. "I'm not letting Su get away with my brother."
Before Kitsune could tell Kanako just how sick and twisted that sounded, there was a snap, and a squeak as the window opened. "Okay, it's open!" Kitsune said as she hurried over to Motoko, who was pushing the window open wide. "Time to make our--"
"Mrrghh!" Motoko stumbled back as though she'd been hit, and Kitsune caught her. There was a large red shoeprint on her face.
Kitsune blinked. Sure, this had been a pretty weird trip already, but that was just plain out there. "Damn, girl," she said, "what did you do?"
"I thought I heard Naru's voice a moment ago," Shinobu said quietly.
"Outside?" Kitsune shook her head, and looked back to Motoko, whose eyes still looked out of focus. "Motoko? C'mon, what happened?" She gave her girlfriend a shake. "If you don't wake up, I'm going to--"
Motoko gave her head a violent shake, and coughed once. "What . . . I don't know what that was," she said, getting to her feet. "But we can't get out the window. I didn't see a ladder or anything like that."
"So how - how are we going to get out of here?" Shinobu asked, balling up her hands and looking worried. "We have to stop Su before she m-marries sempai!"
"This whole trip's getting really damn disturbing," Kitsune muttered, then looked at Motoko. "You thinking we should hit the bars?"
"Not like you'd want to, I'm sure," Motoko said, giving Kitsune a small smile. "And I'm sorry, but this technique's too advanced for you, for now."
"S'okay," Kitsune said. "You know I like watching you work." She leered at Motoko, who blushed just a little, despite the giant red mark on her face.
"If you two are done, we need to get moving," Kanako said. Kitsune and Motoko both glared at her, but Motoko took a few steps toward the bars and raised her hands. She concentrated for a moment, then pulled back one hand.
"Blazing Light Slash!"
There was a flash, and then nothing, and then the bars fell over all at once, knocked out of the wall. Motoko stood there, breathing deeply. Kitsune ran up to her, spun her around, and kissed her. She felt Motoko's face growing warm, then hot, and finally broke the kiss.
"I love you," Kitsune whispered, making it sound like a joke but meaning every word. From the look in Motoko's eyes, she knew her lover understood.
Then an alarm started going off, and they both winced.
"Come on, you guys!" Shinobu called. She and Kanako were already halfway down a hallway that led away from the room. The sound of running footsteps came from nearby.
Motoko grabbed Kitsune's hand, and the two of them started running. They caught up with Kanako and Shinobu, and ran left at the first intersection they reached. The footsteps grew quieter, then more came from a different direction.
"Running around and breaking things," Kitsune chuckled as they ran. "Almost like we're still at Hinata, eh?"
At the end of the hall in front of them, three tall women in suits turned the corner and started running toward them. They weren't armed, but they looked serious. For a moment, Kitsune wondered if dreadlocks were somehow standard issue for guards in Molmol.
"Not quite," Motoko said, looking determined. "Remember what I taught you about hand-to-hand, we're going to have to go through them! Shinobu, duck!"
Motoko sailed into the air with one foot extended, flying over the small girl, and Kitsune leaped right after her. Kanako had already gotten to the guards and had knocked one to the floor. Kitsune's first blow missed, but she followed up with a spinning kick Motoko had spent three weeks teaching her, and connected.
"Hah!" Kitsune yelled, feeling pretty damn proud. She glanced over her shoulder, and saw that Motoko and Kanako had already taken down the other two. "Show off," she said, winking at Motoko.
"Kitsune!" Motoko yelled, then charged at her, fists ready.
Kitsune dodged as Motoko punched the third guard three times in a blink, and the guard didn't get up. Shinobu looked up, and Motoko motioned for her to go with Kitsune. "We'll take the front," Motoko said, nodding back to Kanako. "Let's go."
Three hallways later, they found a map of the Amallan Kaollan that took up most of one wall. Kitsune and Shinobu leaned against the wall, breathing hard, while Motoko and Kanako looked over the map.
"What," Kitsune asked after a minute, "doesn't it say 'you are here' somewhere?"
"It's not that simple," Motoko said, peering intently at the map. "Most of it's in whatever language they speak here, only a few parts are in Japanese."
"We were here," Kanako said, pointing to a large square room at the edge of the map. She pointed to a circular room right at the front of the blimp, colored banana yellow. "Su should be here."
Kitsune blinked. "Yeah, that makes sense," she said. "Got a quick route?"
"I think so," Motoko said, pointing to a blue line that went from somewhere near the room they'd been in to the yellow room. "But I don't know what this means. It could be just another hallway, but I think it's something else."
"Never try," Kitsune said, coming up behind Motoko and hooking her chin over the dark-haired girl's shoulder, "never know. Y'know?" From the look Motoko was giving her, Kitsune knew that they were both thinking of the last time she'd said that, and all the fun that had been. They both started to blush.
Then, the sound of footsteps came again, more this time. Motoko frowned, and Kitsune did the same, though she was trying not to giggle. This had to be the worst place for a romantic vacation ever.
"Three halls up, then one right," Motoko said. "Go."
They took off running again. Another group of guards came at them, and Kitsune recognized the three they'd beat up a moment ago before the fight started. This one took longer, and when they finally reached the place they'd been going, Kitsune was just about ready to surrender to the next group of guards. This just kept getting better.
"What's a bathtub like that doing in a blimp?" Shinobu asked, putting words to what pretty much all of them were thinking.
Kitsune stared at the giant pool. "This thing can get us to Su's room?"
"That's what the map said," Motoko said, and kicked open what looked like a locker next to the pool. A few snorkels tumbled out. "It's not far. Time for a swim."
"Well, this just figures," Kitsune said, stepping over next to Motoko as the other girl handed out snorkels. When Motoko looked at her, Kitsune winked at her. "We get wet and for once we're not alone. . . ."
"Kitsune. . . ."
"And you're not even wearing white," Kitsune finished. She brushed her fingers over Motoko's as she took her snorkel, and kissed the kendo girl on her cheek. "Ready to take the plunge?"
Motoko just shook her head. "While I'm sure that we'll live through this," she said quietly, "you're making me wonder about far too many things."
"Nah," Kitsune said, putting an arm around Motoko's waist. "Nothing to worry about. We go for a swim, save Keitaro from marriage, and get outta here. What's the worst that could happen?"
Several minutes and a short swim later, Kitsune got the answer to her question.
They burst out of another large pool, coming up in a large room mostly taken up by a gigantic bed that looked like it should be in the swankiest of love motels. Su was on the bed, half-naked and reaching for Keitaro, who was mostly-naked and reaching for Naru, who was fully clothed. For a moment, everyone in the room froze.
"Wow," Kitsune said after spitting out her snorkel. "If this could get more wrong, I actually don't wanna know."
"I think that's a first," Motoko said, though she sounded more stunned than anything.
Keitaro grinned sheepishly. "Would it help if I said I was glad to see you?"
The room's door slammed open, and some of the same guards ran in. "It's the prisoners! Get 'em!"
"M-Motoko?" Shinobu asked, looking worried.
"Hmph." Motoko turned, a determined look on her face, and the battle was on again.
Kitsune ducked low, trying to ignore all the boot-to-the-head action going on, and made her way over to the bed. "Much as I'd love to watch my girl kick some ass again," she said, grinning at her friends, "we've gotta get you out of here. Sorry, Su, but these two are--"
"Blazing Light Slash!"
The flash from Motoko's attack blew out the windows that covered one wall, and winds started ripping through the room. Naru and Keitaro tumbled off the bed, Su shortly behind them, and Kitsune grimaced. "Damn!" She glanced to the fight. "Oh, great, even worse."
Motoko and Kanako were being driven toward the window by Su's guards, and the crazy girl was cheering them on. "I see you hire the best, Su," Motoko said, smiling in that way she always did when in the middle of a really good fight or a really good-
Kitsune shook her head, and looked back to Naru and Keitaro. Naru was running, Keitaro was going after her, but they were both getting too close to the broken window. She watched as Naru thwacked Keitaro with a pot, then heard a yell from the fight.
"Not good enough!" one of the guards said, kicking Kanako across the room.
"Naru, look out!" Keitaro yelled as Kanako slammed into Naru, sending her out the window.
"Oh, shit!" Kanako yelled, followed by "Kyaahh!" from Shinobu.
"Naru!" Motoko cried, then looked to Kitsune, who just held up her hands. Now what . . . ?
Out of the corner of her eye, Kitsune saw Keitaro rush past her, grab something, then run for the window. He leaped, and Kitsune saw something on his back. Where'd he get a backpack up here?
"Kitsune!"
Kitsune looked over to Motoko. She was standing next to a trunk of some kind - it must have been knocked open, Kitsune thought, either in the fight or when the window broke. There were more backpacks like the one Keitaro had spilling out onto the floor, and Motoko was putting one on.
Everything came together in Kitsune's head at once, and before she had a chance to panic, Motoko had run for her, scooped her up in her arms, and leaped out the window.
"Motoko I love you but I don't wanna die like this!" Kitsune yelled all at once as the world spun around her and there was suddenly nothing but air.
"You won't die!" Motoko yelled, sounding oddly calm for what she'd just done. "Do you think I'd let you?"
Kitsune blinked, and held tighter to her lover. "Not a big death!" she said, grinning as wide as she could. "But you can pull that cord anytime! Or d'you want me to pull it for you?"
"Kitsune! This isn't. . . ." Motoko sighed, then pulled the cord dangling from her pack's shoulder. There was a woomph, and a giant three-eyed parachute billowed out above them. Kitsune held on tight as their fall suddenly turned into a float, and she looked down at the world spread out below them. It was dizzying, so she looked at Motoko instead.
"Wow," Kitsune said. "Saving the girl by leaping after her with a parachute. You weren't kidding about being traditional." Motoko just smiled at her. "Y'know," Kitsune continued, leering a little, "I know we just jumped out of a blimp, but this is kinda romantic. I didn't know you had it in you."
Motoko blushed, but didn't look away. "We couldn't stay there, not when we'd just helped Keitaro escape," she said. "I don't think we want to know what Su would do to us for ruining her wedding."
"Yeah, if she was ready to jump Keitaro, I don't wanna know how twisted she could get," Kitsune said, but she couldn't stop grinning. "Hey, you hear that?"
They both looked down at the sound of a propeller. A small plane, the one that had yanked Keitaro away from Tokyo U and started this whole mess, was flying toward them, and was about to reach Naru and Keitaro. Kitsune laughed wildly, and pointed. "Aim that way!"
Once they were on the plane, Seta looked back at them and grinned around his cigarette. "Now that all the lovebirds are safe," he said, "how 'bout we get the heck out of here, huh?"
"Wise idea, Seta," Motoko said. Kitsune could hear the respect in her voice; not everyone got that from her. "Where are we going, anyway?"
"The Todai capital," Seta said. "We've got a ruin to find and something to return, so--"
"Look over there!" Keitaro yelled.
Kitsune looked, and wished she hadn't. Three-eyed blimps filled the sky, looking armed and dangerous and very very angry. Kitsune gulped. "Maybe we should have stuck with the parachute," she said to Motoko, trying not to sound nervous and utterly failing.
"I'm still not letting you die," Motoko said, squeezing Kitsune's hand.
"Just when it looked like we were getting outta here alive," Naru said, turning on Keitaro, "you screw it up!"
Keitaro threw his hands up, shielding his face. "And how's this my fault?"
"Guys, better buckle up back there!" Seta said before taking the plane down into a dive.
Kitsune clung to Motoko, then looked at her and tried to wink, but had a feeling it just came out as squinting. "Next time, we stay at Hinata!" Motoko just nodded and put her arms around Kitsune, who kept hoping that they'd get out of this alive.
"Hold on tight, we're going down!" Seta yelled from up front.
Kitsune held back a lewd comment, and got a quick glimpse of thick green jungle out the front window before the plane plowed into it. There was a crash and a rumble, and everything in the plane was tossed back and forth. When they finally stopped moving, Kitsune found herself still clutching to Motoko, her face buried in the kendo girl's chest. To Kitsune's immediate regret, Motoko was still wearing binding.
"Kitsune, are you all right?" Motoko whispered.
Kitsune raised her head, slowly. "The earth moved," she quipped, then gave Motoko a silly grin and collapsed. Today had officially been just too much.