Love Hina

Disclaimer: This episode of Love Hina is of my own creation. I do not own any portion of Love Hina. "Love Hina" and all related characters, names, etc. are ©1999-2004 Ken Akamatsu/Mixx Entertainment Inc. Love Hina is a trademark of TOKYOPOP®. All rights reserved.

Note: This series takes after the "Love Hina" manga since I haven't seen any of the anime. I'm not too sure about watching the anime anymore, they make too many changes from the original manga storyline. Manga is the way to go! But if it'll make you guys happy I guess I will watch them someday. I promise.
 

Different Promises
Chapter 9:
The Jealous Pact

Keitaro and Motoko stare guiltily at the other tenants of the Hinata House, everyone except for Su blushing in different shades. Before the two young people who just came home from their date can say a word, the rest of the girls rush them, grabbing the samurai girl and dragging her into their home and quickly slamming the door shut. The landlord sighs and shakes his head slightly. He walks up to the front door and turns the handle, but it is locked. Shaking his head again, he reaches into his pocket to get his key, but quickly finds that it isn't there. Keitaro pauses for a moment, trying to conjure up some rational thoughts. When none come, he begins to pound frantically on the door shouting, "Hey! Let me in! I live here too you know!"

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Motoko looks around nervously at her four friends, each of whom are staring holes into the young woman's head, anxious to know what happened in her date with Keitaro, and why she kissed him when they got back home. 'What do I tell them?' she thinks to herself. 'Surely I cannot tell them the truth that he talked into my ear and I felt…' she trails off with a near blush.

"So tell us," Kitsune begins, folding her arms with a badly hidden frown. "What all happened on your date, and why were you gettin' all sloppy smoochies with Keitaro just outside the front door?"

That last part causes Shinobu to blush heavily and sway back and forth. "Y-You were using your t-t-tongue…on sempai?" she suddenly falls to the floor, her mouth slightly agape and swirly eyed.

"W-We were doing no such thing!" Motoko shouts, standing up off of her seat on the couch. "It was…it was just a goodnight kiss and a way of saying thank you for such a nice date…that was all." The uncertainty in her voice is so obvious that even she notices it, grimacing as she does.

"Sure," the fox eyed girl replies in a disbelieving tone, her frown now much more visible. Throwing caution into the wind, she grabs Motoko's hand and drags her upstairs into her room, closing and locking the door.

Naru, Shinobu and Su all blink a few times, not too sure what to do now. "Well that was a little strange," the older girl comments while scratching the top of her head. The two younger girls nod, also looking confused.

______

Kitsune walks around the younger woman in a circle with her arms crossed and a very serious look etched onto her face. After a few moments of strangled silence, Kitsune finally says, "I want you to stay away from him."

The samurai girl narrows her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"I like you Motoko, you're a really good person, but I want you to stay away from Keitaro." She sits down next to the younger woman, a sincere look now spreading across her pretty features. "I've never met someone like him before. Every guy I've met is only interested in my body, but Keitaro…" she trails off, leaning a cheek onto her hand with a small smile, "when I'm with him…I feel…well I feel amazing. I mean, I know he's interested in my body, he's a guy, he can't help it, but he seems genuinely more interested in me and getting to know me as a person, and not just 'getting to know' my body and all."

"Yes, I too have noticed that about him," Motoko agrees. "Urashima does not let the lure of the female to distract him and lust him through life. He is a serious and dedicated person, and I admire that about him." She pauses for a moment and looks at Kitsune, a warm feeling spreading into her eyes. "He was so incredibly kind and respectful during our date earlier. He put my needs above everything else, even his own. Urashima did everything in his power to make me happy and make sure that I had a good time."

Kitsune nods slightly. "Yeah, he is a big sweetie. So tell me, did you guys like flirt or anything? You know, like light touches here and there?" She pushes the other girl playfully. "And what about when you kissed him?"

Motoko lowers her head, blushing a glorious shade of red. "I…well…what I mean is…" she stops for a second to shake her blush and nervousness off. "It was…amazing," the young woman admits, faint traces of her blush still evident. "Though I have never really kissed a male before…the sensations I felt when our lips touched…" she trails off and sighs slightly, a happy look in her eyes.

Kitsune notices this. 'Her feelings for him are a lot stronger than I thought,' she thinks to herself. 'I don't want to just give him up, but I don't want to hurt Motoko's feelings either.' She rubs her chin with a chuckle. "Girl, you and I have got a serious problem to work out concerning Keitaro." The taller girl nods in agreement. "Do you wanna share him? I bet it'd be fun! I'm sure he wouldn't have any complaints with the two of us all over him!"

"What?!" the samurai girl asks, her eyes wide in disbelief. "S-Share him?! I could not do such a dishonorable thing! I would never forgive myself if I acted in such a…" she trails off as Kitsune bursts out laughing.

"Just kidding! I'm joking!" She rubs her chin in thought. "Hmm…maybe we can sorta share him…like we each take turns dating him or something. That way, both of us are happy and we aren't doing anything wrong."

Motoko looks at the other woman hard in the eyes, trying to read her. After a few moments, she sighs in resignation. "I must admit that you do have a point there. The idea is logical and it does not seem dishonorable in any way. Perhaps we can give it a try."

"There ya go Motoko!" Kitsune cheers, reaching over and patting the other girl on the back. She pauses a looks at her, finally noticing something. "You know, you've begun to change."

"Change? What do you mean?"

She leans to the side, her hand supporting her head. "A few months ago, you probably would've freaked at the thought of even going out with a guy, much less making deals about dating him. Face it, there's something special about Keitaro, and everyone around here is changing because of him."

"I am sorry Kitsune, but that is not…" Motoko pauses, looking to the side as realization finally dawns upon her. "You are right." She suddenly frowns as she notices something. Standing quickly, she walks over to Kitsune's door, unlocking and swiftly opening it, not surprised in the least at the three young women who topple into the room. "And just what were the three of you doing?" she asks, folding her arms.

Naru's head darts back and forth, searching around for an answer. "We…uh…um…ah! Su misplaced one of her gadgets and me and Shinobu were helping her find it! Right guys?" The two younger girls on each side of her nod vigorously in agreement.

"Well that's funny," Kitsune begins, her voice filled with amusement, "because, if I remember correctly, that was the exact same excuse you used a few weeks ago when you were eavesdropping in on me when I was on the phone with that cute guy I met at the bar."

Knowing that she has been caught red handed, Naru mutters a quick, "Crap," just before she grabs both Su and Shinobu by the back collars of their shirts and drags them away, mumbling grumpily the whole time.

The fox eyed girl shakes her head slightly. "Ya know, for someone as brainy as her, you'd think she would've learned that she can't peek in on either of us. We're just way too good to not notice her."

"Yes," Motoko agrees, closing her eyes, "her patterns on eavesdropping are both obvious and sloppy." She turns and begins to leave Kitsune's room. "Although I consider you as a friend and fellow tenant, as of this moment Mitsune, we are rivals."

Kitsune chuckles mildly. "I guess you're right." She places her hands on her hips, a bright smile on her face. "Well Motoko, may the best girl win."

The samurai girl walks off without answering, though thinks, 'I intend to,' to herself.

______

Unbeknownst to both of them, a certain male figure overheard the whole conversation from outside. Keitaro, while still trying to get inside, was climbing up a tree outside of Kitsune's room in hopes of catching one of the girl's attentions so they would let him inside. He never intended to eavesdrop on the two of them talking, but since their little chat involved him, he couldn't resist listening in. Luckily for the landlord, the darkness of the night hid him from view, and he was quiet and sneaky enough to not be noticed by Motoko's sharp senses.

Slowly, he slides down the trunk of the tree, not paying attention to the bark as it scrapes across his skin, as his mind is elsewhere. 'Wow,' he thinks in awe, 'I didn't realize that those two were that interested in me.' He rubs the back of his head, absentmindedly walking back to the front door of the Hinata House. Just as he reaches it, the door opens and Motoko stands in the doorframe, smiling very slightly.

"I expected that you were still out here. When the other tenants are enticed about something, they tend to forget about other things and people around them, and in this case, they forgot about you." She moves aside to allow Keitaro to enter.

"I feel so loved," the young man comments while entering, keeping his newfound nervousness under wraps to not arouse suspicion. The conversation he just heard is still quite fresh on his mind, making him a bit wary around Motoko at the moment. "Well I'm feeling really tired so I think I'll turn in early. Goodnight Motoko!" He starts to make a break for the stairs, but the younger woman mysteriously appears in front of him. "Um…y-yes? Is there something else you wanted to talk about?"

The samurai girl shuffles nervously. "Well…you see…I really enjoyed myself today and I wanted…I was wondering if you would like to do it again sometime." She lowers her head, an embarrassed blush instantly gracing her cheeks. "I mean, you agreed to do so again earlier, but I felt it would be appropriate to make it official."

Keitaro is stunned by the young woman's request. He is just about to reply, when his back stiffens, feeling that someone is watching in on them. Pretending to rub the back of his head, his eyes quickly dart around settling on the undeniable figure of Mitsune Konno, an unreadable expression on her face. At this, the young landlord feels his stomach begin to lurch. 'Oh yeah,' he thinks to himself, 'Kitsune likes me too…well that much was obvious at how much she has been flirting with me. But now I feel bad about not even thinking about asking her out. I think I should, and it wouldn't be fair to her to agree to go on another date with Motoko already even though I sorta already did…but I don't want to hurt Motoko's feelings. What should I do?"

Luckily for him, the answer comes in the form of Su, who leaps down from the third floor, falling straight for Motoko and shouting, "Heyas!"

The samurai girl looks up and braces herself just in time for impact. She catches the foreign girl and they tumble backwards, the force of her fall a little greater than Motoko originally assumed it would be. "Ah! Su! Get off of me!"

The younger girl suddenly gets a puppy dog look in her eyes, small whimpers escaping her. "But I wanted to play," she whines. "You said you'd play with me and you're not. You're boring." She crosses her arms and frowns.

"Well I can see that you're kinda busy Motoko so I'll talk to you later," Keitaro hurriedly says just before he rushes up to his room, thankful to Su for the interruption.

The young woman watches the Urashima male sprint upstairs, a sad feeling filling her up. 'He did not even give me a response,' she thinks. 'Was he lying to me? Did he not enjoy our date as much as he said that he did? I-I must find out.' Reaching up, she slips Su off of her like a body suit, the younger girl not wanting to let go of her companion. "Su…perhaps we can play some other time, I do not feel up to it right now. I promise I will."

"Okies!" the hyperactive foreigner says, leaping to her feet with her boundless energy. "But remember, you promised!"

"Yes…I did," she responds, sadly walking upstairs to her room.

Kitsune watches on with a slight frown. 'Hmm, that girl is a lot more forward than I thought,' she thinks to herself. 'I hate to admit it, but she is prettier than I am, and she's got that whole cute innocence thing going on. If she really wanted to, she could have Keitaro wrapped around her fingers in no time.' She begins to walk the short distance to his room, saying, "I think it's time to put a major kick start on the ol' charms on Mr. Landlord!"

______

Keitaro sits down at the desk in his room, rubbing his temples in agitation. "Ugh, I shouldn't have run off on Motoko like that, that was really rude of me. I'll have to apologize to her later." He looks up as he hears a slight knocking on his door. "Come in."

The door slides open and Kitsune walks in, a slight smile on her face. "Hey there," she greets. "Sorry about locking you out earlier, we were so interested in pumping some info out of Motoko that we kinda forgot all about you."

"Yeah, I noticed," he replies with a frown. "So what brings you to my room?"

"Not much," she replies, clasping her hands behind her back and walking around Keitaro's room, smiling inconspicuously. "Just wondering what you were up to." She begins to pace around his room, looking around at the little knick-knacks he has, deliberately not looking at him. 'Come on,' she thinks, 'I'm bugging you…tell me what I want to know!'

The young man watches Kitsune pace around his room, realizing that she's not going to leave until she gets something. "Okay," he sighs, "what do you want?"

Smirking in victory, the slightly younger woman stops her pacing and hops over to the table, sitting down opposite of Keitaro. "Well…since you put it so nicely…Motoko didn't tell me too much about your date, and I need details. Where all did you two go? I know you didn't spend the entire time at a restaurant, Motoko may be boring, but she's not that boring."

The Tokyo U student chuckles slightly. "Well we stayed in the restaurant for a little while and we talked and stuff. After we left, I took her to a photo print club so we could have our picture taken. It's an old hobby of mine, don't ask," he adds. "The sun was starting to set so I took her to the park, and we talked a bit more along the way. When the sun set, we reached the middle of the park. There's a big fountain there and…"

"And there was a really cool water show," Kitsune finishes, nodding in remembrance. At his curious glance, she answers, "One night a while back…well…I was a bit drunk after I left one of the bars in town. I was crossing through the park for a shortcut and I walked into a big area where that fountain was, just as was starting its show. I remember it was really pretty…but I don't remember how I got back home." The two share a nice bout of laughter after this.

Keitaro stops laughing after a couple of seconds, watching the fox eyed girl in front of him. Thoughts of the conversation he overheard just a little bit ago plays over and over again in his mind. Thinking that now is good as a time as any, he decided to ask, "So…um…Kitsune, I was wondering if you wanted…I mean if you're interested…well…would you like to go out with me sometime?"

Kitsune instantly stops laughing, a surprised look now adorning her face. "Wha-what?! You're askin' me out?!" She rubs her chin with a smile. "Boy, I was actually planning on asking you out, but I guess you turned the tables on me!" She leans forward and ruffles his hair affectionately. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" Before he can stop her, the younger woman leans in further and gives him a quick kiss on the lips. "My schedule's free so come talk to me whenever you want to go out on a date stud." She turns around and leaves his room, giving him a small wave just before sliding his door shut and walking away.

The young Urashima sits a little taller after Kitsune leaves. "Boy, that went a lot better than I thought. I guess being direct was the best choice." He begins to slump as another young woman enters his mind. "I have to talk to Motoko tomorrow. I need to apologize for running off on her without giving her an answer. I really would like to go out with her again."

______

Several hours later, it is the middle of the night and everyone in the Hinata House is sound asleep…everyone that is except for one certain young samurai girl. Motoko shuffles slightly on her futon, trying desperately to go to sleep. Unfortunately for the young woman, sleep is not coming to her, and it is not the foreign girl with the death grip on her that is keeping her awake, but rather the thought of the only male that is living in the house. "Urashima," she mutters out loud, not worrying about waking Su since she knows that it takes a lot to awaken her, "did I do something to scare you away? I can't rest until I know."

Reaching down, she unbuttons her nightshirt and unties the strings on her night pants. Stealthily, she slips out of her clothing, leaving them in place so Su is content to squeeze her clothing that is still strong with her scent. Motoko wraps her arms around her bare chest, a chill running through her from the slightly cold night air. She walks over to her small dresser and pulls it open, reaching inside and grabbing the first piece of clothing she can find. Fortunately enough, it is an oversized shirt, like the kind Kitsune likes to wear to bed all the time. The young woman slips into it, surprised at how comfortable the shirt feels on her body. "Perhaps I will wear something like this to bed once in a while," she comments to herself.

Moving silently, she makes her way down the stairs to the landlord's room. Knowing full well that he is asleep, she slowly slides his door open and peeks inside. The moonlight has flooded into his room, giving her a good view of everything inside. Keitaro is sleeping soundly on his futon. Motoko peeks her head in a bit more, whispering, "Urashima?" When she gets no response, she slips into his room and tip toes her way to the young man's sleeping form. She kneels down next to him and pokes his shoulder lightly, whispering, "Urashima?" again.

This time, Keitaro stirs a bit. Groggily, he opens his eyes and blinks a few times. "Wha…who's there?" he asks while sitting up. As he adjusts to the light, his eyes make out the slim athletic figure with long raven hair next to him and his senses pick up the young woman's familiar and quite strong aura. "Motoko? Why are you in my room?"

"I…I couldn't sleep," she answers truthfully. "I had something on my mind at it was preventing me from getting any rest."

As his brain begins to function at a normal level, he is reminded of what he did earlier. "Listen Motoko, if it's about me running off on you earlier when you were asking me about another date, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, but…well…to tell you the truth, I overheard you and Kitsune talking about me in her room." The young woman gasps slightly. "I'm sorry about that too, I was trying to get your attention, but then you started to talk about me and I listened in."

"So that was why you ran off?" she asks while drooping her head, unsure of what to feel at the present moment.

"Yeah, well that and Kitsune was watching us and I didn't want to hurt her feelings by agreeing to go on another date with you when I haven't even taken her out yet." He scratches the back of his head. "She stopped in here a little bit after I ran off on you and I asked her out." At this, Motoko's head snaps up sharply, the faintest traces of a frown on her lips. Keitaro doesn't notice as he continues on. "You know, I'm really glad you came down here Motoko. I was planning on talking to you tomorrow morning and apologizing and all…and…and I wanted to officially ask you out again on another date." Just as he says this, a cloud passes overhead, covering up the moon and instantly darkening up his room. If the cloud hadn't have blocked the light at that moment, he would have seen the amazingly glorious smile that spread across Motoko's lovely face.

"Do…do you mean it? Did you truly enjoy going out with me?"

The cloud moves away, basking his room in the soft moonlight once more. Leaning forward, the Tokyo U student affectionately pokes the samurai girl on her nose, getting a blush in response. "Of course I enjoyed it. You're an amazing young woman Motoko, and I'd love to get to know you better." Keitaro suddenly notices that, from his new position, he can now see down the collar of Motoko's oversized shirt. His eyes widen as he sees that she is not wearing a bra, or chest bindings in her case. 'Oh wow,' he thinks in awe.

The young woman notices his gaze. She quickly leans back, covering her chest with a scowl, but it is soon replaced by a forgiving smile at Keitaro's surprised and apologetic look. 'He is most definitely a male,' she thinks with a near chuckle.

"Sorry," he mutters, his face deep red with embarrassment.

Motoko surprises the young Urashima when she leans in and wraps her arms around him. "I suppose I will let it slide just this once…pervert." The feeling of his silent laughter, added with her feeling of peace of mind quickly lulls the young woman into a nice slumber.

"Um…Motoko?" Keitaro asks after a few moments of silence from the younger woman. "Are you asleep?" The only response he gets is Motoko snuggling her face into the crook of his neck. Shaking his head, Keitaro shifts his position so he is off of his futon. He gently lays the samurai girl onto it, pulling the covers up to her neck. He moves a stray hair away from her face and whispers, "Goodnight Motoko," before getting a spare pillow and blanket out of his closet and leaving his room so he can sleep on the living room couch.

As the landlord begins to feel sleep overtake him on the bottom floor, Motoko sleeps happily in his room. She shifts around a bit in her sleep, moving to her side and digging her face into his pillow, subconsciously inhaling his scent deeply and letting out a sleepy, "Keitaro."
 

To be continued…

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Author's notes: Well there you have it. Now our dear landlord has asked out both the warrior and the fox. The competition for his attention and affection is going to escalade up to new heights!

In the next chapter, Motoko will leave for a few days for a trip with her kendo club at school. What will Kitsune do with this golden opportunity and just why is Su clinging onto Keitaro like that? Find this out and more next chapter. – lighthawkdemon

Questions or comments? E-mail me at: lighthawkdemon@yahoo.com