. Chapter One: An Orderly Chaos

It was a beautiful early October afternoon. The lobby was immaculately clean, a sign of Shinobu's pride in her work. Now that they had their first new resident at the dorm, Shinobu was running the housekeeping as a way to reduce her rent payments… which were due today. It was a Friday afternoon but, in a corner, Ema, was still in her school uniform struggling to make sense of her studies. She looked hideously hunchbacked. A closer look revealed it was just Leon sitting on her shoulder.

I'll never get used to that chameleon of hers, Shinobu thought.

Meanwhile Sara sat slouched over a couch, studiously ignoring her homework and was reading a manga, already changed into jeans and a t-shirt.

Shinobu frowned. "Sara-chan, please sit properly if you're going to use this room. We don't want to give any visitors a bad impression… urk!" Her request was cut off with a shudder as she felt a finger run up her spine from her waist to between her shoulders and then a pair of arms wrapping around her waist.

"Hey Shinobu Nee-chan? How about we get some tea together?" A lecherous voice came from behind.

"Kokeru!" Sara shouted, launching herself from the couch and kicking him in the head. "Knock it off, you dork!" She fixed a baleful stare on her boyfriend.

Getting up off the floor, Kokeru Moroboshi, adjusted his beanie hat over his blue-dyed hair, put his hand behind his head and chuckled nervously. "Oh Sara-chan, you know I'm just kidding… you're the one I'll marry."

Sara kicked him again. "Don't say embarrassing stuff like that!"

Taking long steps away from the lecherous teenager, Shinobu growled, "Sara. Can't you do anything about him?" Turning to Motoko, she whispered "Can't you do anything about him?" Preferably something violent?

Motoko sighed. "Unfortunately, he seems almost as indestructible as Urashima-san, and faster on his feet. Otherwise, my strikes might have had a greater impact on him." She folded her arms over her breasts and glared at the little miscreant as he eyed her up and down… it was as if he could see beneath her clothing, the way he leered at her.

Out of the corner of her eye, Shinobu noticed a figure slinking down the stairs and making for the door. "Um, Nagumo-san, where are you going?"

Toyama Nagumo, the newest resident of Hinata House, froze in place and sweatdropped. "Well, rent is due today, so I thought I should prepare myself for it."

"Oh, were you going to the bank?" Shinobu asked, dubiously.

"No, I was just going to hide out at a friend's place for a couple of days," Toyama said, matter-of-factly.

Shinobu winced. Here we go again… Toyama was another college student—a sophomore—but she went to a local college. Since everyone else was in Todai, it was easy to forget that other colleges existed. And City College of Hinata City was definitely forgettable. "Naru's going to be annoyed at you," she warned.

"Hey! It's not my fault! I was ¥20,000 short and I had to raise it somehow!"

"So, what did you do to raise it?" Shinobu asked, not really wanting to know.

"I went down to the track so I could win the rest!" Toyama said, cheerfully.

"So, how short are you now?" Shinobu felt like she was getting a migraine.

"¥50,000," Toyama replied with a sheepish grin.

Are you really a college student? Shinobu silently asked in disbelief.

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Since Hinata House theoretically could also be an inn and did allow for the day use of the hot springs, Keitaro and Naru had registered the building with the Ryokan association, which meant once a month, one of them had to give a report to the board on the state of the residence. This time it was Naru's turn, as Keitaro was giving a series of guest lecturers on his discoveries on Pararakelse, and she was the okami of the building.

The other okami were giving reports on their achievements. The okami of Tsuki-ta House—a rather stuck up woman with a high class established—was giving her report. "We were awarded the district award for excellence, and members of our staff were cited for high quality service."

"Thank you, Mrs. Goman," the president of the board said. "Now, let's hear from our most recent addition, Mrs. Urashima of Hinata House. So, what sort of achievements and citations does your ryokan have?

"We set a record for the most visits by the fire department for reported explosions, and the woman running the tea room was cited for drunk and disorderly conduct," Naru said, shrugging. At this point there was no use being embarrassed by the orderly chaos that was Hinata House.

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Adding to the record, there was a muffled explosion up by the ruined annex. Can we even call it "ruins" anymore? Motoko wondered. Smoking pile of rubble seems more accurate. She had definitely put her legal skills to use in order to keep Su out of jail or being deported. Not that she could defend the Molmol woman in court… she still had two years left in her degree and then there were the legal exams. But at least she could use her knowledge to dissuade the police and the fire department from pressing charges.

Off in the tearoom, Kitsune and Haruka looked up from playing cards. "That sounded like an explosion," Kitsune remarked.

"Yes," sighed Haruka. "Maybe we better deal with her before the police decide to show up. Again." She picked up a harisen and strode out.

Su, sitting on a rock nearby, ran a diagnostic on the mechatama. The sighting was still a little off, and if she didn't get it fixed soon, she'd have to push her timetable back for her number two dream. She pulled out a screwdriver and began to tinker. "Okay, Mechy 7a…" she said cheerfully. " Let's see if we can get you and your brothers ready in time for Golden Week, next year!"

Haruka strode over and smacked her over the head with her harisen. "Su, what did I tell you about trying to take over the world?"

"I wonder if that would have worked with those James Bond villains," Kitsune cracked.

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Mutsumi passed through the reception area, dressed up and wearing makeup, bumping into Kanako who was just arriving from Todai and Naru who had just returned from her meeting. Toyama promptly vanished. "You've got a date?" Kanako asked.

"Shh," Mutsumi hissed. "Yes, I have my senpai who I'm seeing tonight," she whispered, after looking around to see if Kitsune was within earshot. It wasn't that Mutsumi felt ashamed of her boyfriend or was doing shameful things on a date. But if Kitsune found out, she'd never hear the end of it.

Kanako thought back and remembered that silly game they played after Naru had chased down Motoko. How two people had admitted they had people they liked and Mutsumi was evasive. Of course she had been defensive of her brother at the time, so it was easy to have missed clues from the not guilty. "Okay… will Naru be all right with you away?"

Mutsumi sighed, a bit tired of people treating her as some sort of masked surgeon with all the answers. "Naru knows I'm going." Naru nodded in confirmation. "And if there's an emergency, it's going to beyond my skill, so call a doctor." Now that Naru's 'baby bump' was beginning to show, the concerns were beginning to grow.

"Naru knows you're going where?" came Kitsune's voice in an audible leer.

Mutsumi winced. "Out," she said, sounding like a sullen teenager.

And out she went. Shinobu turned to Naru. "Oh, Naru… your stepmother called. She said she got your anteiki announcement and wanted to meet with you, and wondered if you could set up a time to do so." Naru hadn't sent her family one. Shinobu had thought it a shame to exclude them and had sent one to them surreptitiously.

Naru's smile didn't reach her eyes. "Thank you Shinobu. I guess I'll call her." Her tone and expression said otherwise.

But you should! Shinobu thought, wishing that her relationship with her own parents was better. Right now she felt like her parents couldn't wait for her to graduate so they would divorce.

"I'm back," Keitaro called out, interrupting any retort Shinobu might have made, as he removed his shoes and entered. He kissed his wife and turned to the other girls gathered around. "Hey, Shinobu," he called out, "have you seen the—" At that moment, Hachi jumped up in delight, crashing into him. Stumbling forward, he tripped over Tama and pitched face forward, arms flailing as he fell towards Shinobu.

Shinobu winced as she knew where those flailing hands were likely to wind up. "KYAA… ah?" She looked up to see that Naru had interposed herself between her and Keitaro, catching his face between her breasts.

Naru caressed the back of his head. "Oh hey, honey. What were you looking for?"

Shinobu shook her head. "Somehow, I feel let down…" she murmured.

"What was that?" Naru asked.

"Err, nothing" Shinobu said. I really need to find my own boyfriend, she chided herself.

Eventually Keitaro removed his head from between Naru's breasts. "Oof," he grunted. "You've gotten bigger there since I left."

"Took you long enough to notice," Naru whispered back. The two of them shared a goofy smile of promise that made the others glad they had soundproofed the manager's room.

Kitsune smirked. "I'm jealous," she said in a teasing tone. "Maybe I should get pregnant so mine will get bigger too."

"Kitsune!" Naru squawked, embarrassed, face red.

"Hey, take it easy, it's just a joke!" Kitsune said with a shrug.

And, like that, they everyone began moving their separate ways, carrying out their plans for the start of the weekend.

Kitsune found herself alone as she entered the Hot springs. Sighing, she undressed and sat on a stool, washing herself before entering the spring. She cupped her breasts in her hands and studied them. She hadn't really been joking about being envious of Naru. But not because of the size. I wonder what it would be like to be in a relationship where being pregnant by a man wasn't something to avoid, but something desirable…. It wasn't something she ever wondered about in her past, but now that she was 27, slightly a month past her birthday—an age Japan looked on as being past her sell by date—she began to think more of her past choices and what she had to show for them. The answer she kept coming up with was not much.

Thoughts like that usually wound up with her getting drunk and feeling sorry for herself. Tonight was no different, and the girls had to get her dressed, haul her up to her room, and put her to bed.

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Author's Notes

Well, I didn't learn my lesson and am working on my third story. It starts about two months after the end of Barriers. I thought this one would be good to cover some of the material involving the other characters and how life moves forward for them too. This first chapter is aimed at introducing these issues, and covering them as we go along.

The opening for this chapter was actually the original beginning to Forever and a Day. But as it became clear that adding Kokeru to the story was going to make it unwieldy, I reworked that beginning and saved this one for whenever I introduced Kokeru. Fans of Urusei Yatsura might recognize the name.

Toyama Nagumo was inspired by the main character of the City! Manga. Originally, she was supposed to turn up in Barriers, but that was also going to make it unworkable. But with Keitaro back in Japan for now, it seems more stable an environment with no more jumps between Japan and Pararakelse.

Ryokan = inn.

Okami = a general manager of a ryokan. Often the wife of the owner, though this is changing.

"Golden Week" A week of holidays that takes place roughly April 29-May 5.

"Yes, I have a senpai." This was alluded to in Barriers, Chapter 6.

Aniteiki are birth announcements, They're normally sent after 16 weeks of pregnancy because by then the baby is considered stable and unlikely to miscarry.

"Sell by date." It's a term I picked up from watching Shomuni. After age 25, a woman is often seen as too old for marriage.