Chapter 8
Connections
Disclaimer: I don't own this series or any other series. I am just floating an idea. I am making no money, nor plan to, off this venture. If you think of suing me over this, then grow up.
I would like to first personally thank all of those reviewing my stories. I enjoy reading your comments, and try to correct the grammatical errors I miss with my final read-through as well as my spell checkers. The suggestions you all make will help make this story better for everyone to enjoy, as well as allow my to fix some plot holes I may unintentionally leave. If you find any, let me know, and I will correct them and repost the chapters.
I find that if I let thinks sit for a while in my head; I can play them out farther. Plus by trying and keeping my chapters between 2500 and 3000 words, it helps keep me from making the story slide out of control, turning a diamond to a pile of shit.
Please feel free to review, and make comments. If you find a spelling or wordage mistake, feel free to let me know. Thank you.
Also, please check out my other stories. I try to keep a constant level of dedication to all of them.
Words done in bold like this are the spoken words of the Hina sword.
Words like this are for the sword's inner monologue.
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"Motoko, I don't want you to feel sad."
She looked at him, a smile still on his face. "Why? Why are you still with me? Why are you so kind to me?"
Keitaro wiped some of the tears away from her face. "Because you need me, because I want to, because I blame myself somewhat for our battle. I do care for you Motoko, I don't know if it is love, but I do care for you. I will not abandon you, I will not forsake you, and I will always be there for you. I believe in you Motoko. You are not alone."
He won't leave me. He believes in me.
Motoko then did something that surprised her, perhaps more than it did Keitaro. She pulled herself up and kissed her husband.
But like all things dealing with romance involving a girl of Hinatasou or involving Keitaro, something had to intervene.
"Brother Daddy, it's time to play!"
Keitaro grabbed Motoko and leapt from the bench, seconds before a missile destroyed it. He turned quickly, seeing Su riding on top of her creation, a flying Meca-Tama with metallic wings. "Little sister, you should be careful. Your attack could have injured Motoko."
Su beamed a happy smile. "Nah, mommy is too fast to be hurt. Besides, I can now play with mommy and brother-daddy."
"Stay here," Keitaro said to Motoko, removing his sword from its sheath. He slowly walked away from Motoko, watching as the winged machine constantly followed him. Good, Su programmed this thing to go after me first.
You need to take it out fast, you energy reserves are all but gone, and you'll only get one ki attack.
How about helping me with a plan?
Cut the back tail flippers, which should send it skyward for you to destroy it.
Keitaro ran at it just as it took off at him. It opened its mouth to fire another blast at him, but he jumped over it, sword still in hand. He landed on its back, grabbing Su and holding her against his chest, before using his free hand to cut off the back flippers of the machine. He then jumped as hard as he could, knowing that the momentum would also cause the machine to shoot skywards, as the rear flippers wouldn't be able to control itself from doing so. As he turned in the air, he saw the Meca-Tama rise into the sky. Pulling the sword above his head, he called his attack. "Solar Cut!" He brought the sword down, releasing a bright line of ki that streaked towards Su's newest invention, striking it and causing it to create a huge explosion, reducing the fighting machine to its assorted parts.
As he began to approach the ground, he used what little energy he had left to place the sword in its sheath, not wanting to risk it cutting someone on impact, followed by wrapping his arms tightly around Su to prevent the impact from injuring her as well. When they hit the ground, they rolled for about ten feet, finally stopping with Keitaro's back towards the ground, Su still safe and secure against his chest.
He opened his eyes, his breath coming in short, ragged bursts, the feeling of extreme tiredness washing over him. He looked down at Su, who was cringing, her eyes closed tightly as she was holding onto Keitaro's shirt. She's scared!? Why!? Does she think I might hate her for the attack? "Little Sister?"
Su didn't look up. She stayed as she was, hugging herself against Keitaro's chest, a small whimper coming from her mouth.
"Little Sister," Keitaro said with a little more force, trying to shake Su from her fear. The little foreign girl finally looked at him, her eyes slightly closed with the traces of tears forming in them. "Little sister, can we not play that hard for a few days? It was fun, but I am a little tired. Tomorrow after school, we can play, but no robots, just me and you. Is that OK?"
Su sat up slightly, the tears forming in her eyes falling down her face, but not being followed by fresh ones. "You mean you don't hate me?"
Keitaro smiled, wishing he had the energy to ruffle her hair. "Nope, I still love you little sister, now go get ready for bed, OK?"
"Ok Keitaro," she said, leaping from his body and running inside, a large smile on her face. Brother-daddy doesn't hate me. Plus he said we could have more fun tomorrow. YEAH!!!
Motoko had watched the ki attack, surprised that Keitaro even knew it. She had only seen the attack once, performed by a visiting martial arts master who was passing by the Aoyama Dojo some years ago. She stared at the explosion for several seconds before coming out of her daze, running towards Keitaro, who was now minus Su, as she had leapt off to head inside. "Keitaro, are you OK?" She looked at him, noticing his ragged breathing, as well as how little ki his body was admitting. "You look exhausted."
Keitaro laughed a little, trying to get up and falling back to the ground. "I guess the attack took a little too much out of me."
Motoko helped her new husband up, allowing her own ki to flow into him, hoping to give him enough so he could move around. They began to slowly make their way back inside. "Keitaro, how do you know the Solar Cut technique? I've only seen it once, and that guy says it is a family technique, not taught to anyone.
Keitaro was cursing under his breath. When I wake up in the morning, the sword and I are going to have a nice little chat about 'family only' techniques. If they show up wanting my head, it's lawn ornament time. Keitaro could feel that his link to the sword was gone, it was sleeping, more tired from the attack than Keitaro. "The Hina Sword taught it to me today. I guess I need to talk to the sword tomorrow. You don't think they'll show up here and ask for my head, do you?"
Motoko laughed a little, stopping her flow of ki into Keitaro. He was now walking on his own, with her help, as both were somewhat tired; her from giving Keitaro her energy, him from using up so much of his own that day. "If they do I'll tell them they can't have it without my permission. I own your pervert head, and I decide when it comes off your shoulders."
Keitaro began to laugh as well as they made their way up the stairs to their new room together. He had been surprised when Motoko had made that joke, even though part of him was afraid that she might have been serious. They made their way into the room, Motoko shutting the door while Keitaro went behind a changing screen to dress for bed. As he left it, Motoko went behind it, a look of apprehension in her eyes.
Keitaro laid the sword on its stand before returning to the bed he now shared with his wife. He made his way under the covers, his muscles beginning to scream from the assault he had put them under today, hoping that a good night's rest would allow him to feel better in the morning.
Motoko came out from behind the changing screen, dressed only in a large t-shirt and sweat pants. She made her way over to the light switch, turning it off before getting under the covers as well. She laid flat on her back, staring at the ceiling, when she felt Keitaro's hand touch hers, entwining their fingers together. She turned to him, seeing his eyes in the dark.
"Motoko, I will not force you to do anything, not out there, not in here, and certainly not in our bed." Keitaro was glad to see her eyes soften a little. "Besides, we are both too exhausted tonight to try anything, but I would like to hold your hand, if that's OK."
Motoko's response was silent. She moved under the covers towards Keitaro, giving him a light kiss on his mouth, before lying back down, her hand never leaving his. "Thank you Keitaro," she whispered, "for being so kind towards me."
Before Keitaro could say anything, his door opened, allowing a tired Su, dressed in her usually pajamas, to enter. She shut the door and climbed into the bed between the newlyweds. Climbing under the covers, she pulled the two closer to herself, draping their arms over her, before falling deep into sleep.
Motoko and Keitaro said nothing about this, just watching as Su slept. Keitaro looked up into Motoko's eyes again, seeing some happiness in them. Both knew it would be impossible to wake Su up now, so they just smiled at each other, both being a little grateful not to be sleeping alone with each other quite yet.
"Good night, my wife."
"Good night, my husband."
Both closed their eyes and fell asleep, both on their sides with their arms over Kaolla. Kaolla smiled; her dreams pleasant as she felt safe with her new family now.
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Kitsune and Naru were now outside in the hot springs, the stars shining bright, un-obscured by clouds or even a moon. Both were drunk, having downed a few bottles of the sake Keitaro had bought for the purpose. They were now soaking in the hot springs, Kitsune's suggestion, while she was trying to get her best friend to open up.
"I really messed up, you know."
Kitsune turned towards her friend, glad that she was finally comfortable enough to speak. "What do you mean?"
Naru finished her glass, motioning for Kitsune to refill it. "I could have stopped all of this. Tsuruko asked me if I had a problem if Keitaro and Motoko got married. You know what I did; I told her I didn't care. Why should I care if those two got married? And then when they failed, I just stood there, watching it all happen." She finished her refilled glass quickly, reaching for a bottle, no longer finding use with only taking small sips of the liquor.
Kitsune watched her friend, noticing how she began to desire to be drunk, hoping it would allow her barriers to drop. "It's not your fault Naru."
"Then who's fault is it?" she nearly screamed, standing up. "I could have stopped it, I could have told him how I felt, I could have told her that I was in love with him and damned if he would marry someone else. I could have stopped being a cold hearted bitch, afraid of what might happen, and just risked it all for someone who proclaimed his love for me, despite all the shit I'd put him through the past few years. But did I; no! All I did was keep my damn mouth shut, let the fear of things changing consume me."
She sat back down, tears falling from her eyes, the bottle, now half empty shaking in her hand. "I called him a pervert from day one. I never let him even try to explain those situations he always ended up in. I just always assumed the worst, took out my frustrations and anger against him. Every time he tried to show me how much he cared, explain how clumsy he could be, explain why he was in one compromising situation after another, all I could do was hurt him. Now look what my damn attitude has gotten me. I've lost the first man who loved me unconditionally, who put up with all of my baggage, who never passed judgment on me."
Kitsune watched as her friend tried to polish off the rest of the bottle in her hands. She had never seen Naru this broken up, even after losing Seta. It took you long enough to admit you finally loved Keitaro. But it's too late now. Even if given the option, he won't leave Motoko; she needs him too much now. She turned back towards her friend, now setting the bottle on a nearby rock, hand outstretched, asking Kitsune for another. But it appears you need him just as much. Kitsune handed her another bottle, watching as Naru removed the cork with her teeth before beginning to drink again. "So, what do you plan to do now, try and become Keitaro's mistress?"
Naru lowered the bottle, casting a deadly glare at her friend. "I will do no such thing." She looked at the bottle, trying to decide if she needed a drink to continue, or just wanted to drown in the bottle. "I had my chance, and I blew it. I could have been with him, been more than friends if only I hadn't let my own damn fears stop me, let myself be afraid of what the others might think, that I would lose all of you if I chose to be with him. He knew how I felt, and all I did was just ignore it, push him away, because I didn't want to be alone. Now look at me, I did what I wanted and still ended up alone. I lost someone I really loved Mitsune, all because I can't be comfortable with myself."
"You wouldn't have lost us Naru." Kitsune did a quick count, realizing that Naru had grabbed the last bottle. "We would have been happy for you. We all love the little pervert, even me. But we would have been happy with whoever he picked, as long as it wasn't Haruka."
The drunken Naru quickly spit out what alcohol she had in her mouth, managing a combination of laughing and coughing as the alcohol had managed to go down the wrong hole. "That was a dirty trick Mitsune. You could have waited until I was done drinking."
"Now where would the fun be in that? Though I do admit, that would have really killed you, losing Keitaro to his aunt, how would you have handled that."
Both girls began laughing hard again; enjoying the joke they now shared. Kitsune was happy to see her friend smiling again, if even for a moment. But the laughter soon ended, and Naru began to finish off her bottle. "I know I need to move on, even if I'm not ready to." She stood up, the water cascading off her skin. She began to walk away before turning back to her friend. "Just watch out for me Mitsune, make certain I don't try and destroy their lives, even if you gotta hit me like I used to hit Keitaro."
"Kitsune opened her eyes, indicating how surprised she was at that comment. "You mean you won't be hitting him anymore?"
"Nope, that's for his wife to do now."
And then Kitsune was left all alone with her thoughts. I'm sorry you lost out Naru, and I hope you remember this lesson tomorrow.
Besides, I know you're still hurting from this. You probably will be until you confess to Keitaro.
I just hope you don't do something foolish in the meantime.
Kitsune gathered the empty bottles and took them inside, both of their towels forgotten in the hot springs. Neither of them had noticed someone watching them from the balcony, a tear in her eyes.
She loved Onii-san, but always hurt him. He's probably better off without her. But I know she will do something stupid later on. I just hope she doesn't hurt him, because then I'll have to hurt her. She cracked her knuckles, before heading back inside, a sad look still on her face.
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If I messed anything up, then let me know including typos.
Any suggestions on how I should continue the story or improve it would also be accepted.
Also, if you have any suggestions for how this should go, let me know. My own imagination, while vast, always enjoys a new thought. Also, catch me if you don't think I am making the characters true to form, or a way to make them better.
Author note: If anyone would like to start their own stories, but need some ideas, let me know. I am thinking of making a story post of nothing but ideas. Let me know if anyone is interested when you post reviews or e-mail me. Thank you. Only you can get help to prevent writer's block.