Chapter Eight: Anteiki Talk

Preliminary Note: The original version of this chapter got lost in the cloud when my computer died. I thought I had it backed up, but I guess I did it wrong. Such is the risk of using the Scrivener release candidate to write.

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Naru sighed as she worked on stuffing the envelopes with Anteiki cards on a pleasant November afternoon. Now that she had begun her fifth month of pregnancy, the baby was considered stable and unlikely to miscarry and, as the expectant mother, she was expected to send these out to family and friends. It was similar to sending out the Wedding announcements over a year ago except back then, nobody was close to graduating from Todai, and she had plenty of help. Everybody was excited about the wedding.

They were excited about her pregnancy too, but the interim steps were less exciting. Trying on a dress, picking out decorations and food for the wedding… these were a lot more interesting that watching her dealing with morning sickness, mood swings, and other bodily functions. Or griping about her size.

She shifted her position, trying to find a more comfortable position to do her work, wondering how long before her "baby bump" stuck out as much as her breasts. It was already getting close to even. She was forced to sleep on her back or side now, and she and Keitaro had to forgo a few positions in the evenings. Of course we really can't complain about that to the others.

Another part of the problem was the fact that it was November. Less than six months to go to the end of the school year. Considering many of the serious Hinata House residents were either preparing for their final exams before graduating from Todai (even Su was finding less time to spend with demolitions) or going to cram school to prepare for Todai (okay, that was just Ema), they didn't have as much time to devote to preparations as they did last year. There were the exceptions of Motoko (who was on a six year program), Shinobu (in her third year), Sara, Nagumo (a second year at a different college), and Kitsune of course. But they did have lives of their own to lead, so the help was sporadic at best… using the term "best" very loosely for the last three.

Even the ever diligent Shinobu was in the initial lovey-dovey stage of her relationship with Takane, and had a lot less free time due to their dating and talking on the phone. It's a good thing she's not a senior this year, Naru thought wryly. She would of course drop everything to help if asked. But Naru was reluctant to make that request. This is her life here. I can't treat her as if she was a teenager with plenty of free time.

At that moment, Shinobu did come in through the door, bubbly and cheerful. It must have been a good date, Naru thought, hoping that the relationship would succeed and that the younger woman didn't wind up disappointed or hurt if it didn't.

"Hello, Shinobu, have a good time?"

"Yes, we went to see Niji no Megami. It was sad, but I liked it.

Seeing Naru working alone, Shinobu hurried over and scooped up a pile of stuffed envelopes and a pen. Consulting the list, she began addressing them. "Everyone sneak off again?"

Naru gave an exaggerated sigh for comic effect. "Motoko was here for awhile, but she had to leave a half an hour ago. Nagumo made an excuse when I brought up the rent. Kitsune… she jumped up and said she forgot something. And Sara claims she had a date and left a couple of hours ago." Her expression said she was a bit dubious about that one.

"I thought that was her waiting in front of the budget movie theater across from us when we went in," Shinobu said. "She looked kind of annoyed."

"I was." Sara said, walking in and sitting down at the table.

"I said I was sorry I was late, Sara-chan!" Kokeru said, following her in, fiddling with his beanie.

"You were late because you were checking out the women walking by on the street!"

"So, what did you see?" Naru asked casually. Seta had shown up on Friday without warning, and hastened Haruka off on a weekend away. So technically she was supposed to be supervising.

"Ged's War Chronicles," Kokeru said, glumly. "Good animation but-"

"Overall a stupid movie," Sara grumbled, completing his sentence.

"I heard that the author was disappointed too," Shinobu said, perking up at the possibility of sharing some of the literature they discussed in her club. "But I think I have a Japanese translation of the books it was based on. You might like it."

"Nah," Sara grunted. "I have enough reading to do for school."

Too bad, Shinobu thought. "So, Naru," she said, changing the subject. "You have your next prenatal checkup coming up soon?"

"Yes," Naru said. "The Quad Screen Test. Dr. Juse said ordinarily it would be optional for my age. But since I conceived in Pararakelse shortly before the measles outbreak, she wants to monitor the baby's health. So that means it's not just a blood draw. I have to do an amniocentesis."

Because of Mutsumi's studies, everyone was familiar with medical terms. "Damn," Sara said. "You're braver than I am letting somebody ram a harpoon into your guts."

Everybody winced and glared at Sara. "Thank you so much for that mental image," Naru growled. She grimaced. "Well, at least we'll be able to learn whether the baby's a boy or a girl."

"You mean you don't want it to be a surprise?" Shinobu asked. If I became a mother—she colored slightly thinking about what it would entail—I'd want to have a surprise.

"Naru smiled. "Well, Keitaro and I decided that if we know what the baby will be, we can start referring to 'him' or 'her' instead of 'it.' And we can narrow down the choices for baby names."

"Ara, ara," Mutsumi said, materializing in the doorway. "I have some ideas for you!" She slid into a seat next to Naru. "How about, Keiichi, Naruo, Narutaro, Keiko, Narumi, or Keina?"

The others sweatdropped. "Well," Naru said. "We do have a few candidates, but with one of them, we would want to ask the person's permission to use the name before telling everybody."

"Really?" Motoko asked, coming in. "Whose name is that?" She pushed Kokeru out of the way and sat at the table. Kokeru moved closer to Shinobu, chuckling lecherously. Shinobu and Sara both elbowed him in the head, causing him to retreat from the room.

"That would kind of defeat the purpose of wanting to wait to get permission, wouldn't it?" Naru replied.

Realizing she had lost her place in the list, Shinobu paged through it. She noticed something… or more precisely, an absence of something. "Um, Naru? Did you forget to put your family's name on the list?"

The smile disappeared from Naru's face. "I… don't think they'd be interested," she said cautiously. After all, they couldn't be bothered to come. They only sent Mei along. Not that she had any hostility for Mei. None of that was her fault. She had been happy to see her half sister, but the fact that her father and stepmother couldn't be bothered to come still hurt.

"But… they're family!" Shinobu protested. With her own parents ready to divorce as soon as she graduated, she knew she'd be grasping at straws to have a chance to heal rifts.

Naru's expression softened, understanding Shinobu's distress. "I've made my peace with it…" Sort of, I guess. "I just don't want to be disappointed by them any more." Her expression changed. "Oops. I think the baby has to use the bathroom." She excused herself and hurried out.

Shinobu stared at the pile of unaddressed anteiki waiting to be mailed. She did have the list of contact information in her room… a holdover from the time she managed Hinata House while they were on Pararakelse. It's just not right! she thought to herself. Carefully she palmed an envelope and excused herself from the room.

When she returned, Naru was back. Casually, she slipped the addressed envelope into the box of addressed envelopes. Nobody noticed.

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During the day, Kitsune ran the Hinata Tea Room. At night, it was a private "bar" that usually served the residents and their friends. Some nights, Shinobu just liked to come there to relax after school and working around Hinata. She hoped everybody would assume that was the case this time too.

"Heya, Shinobu!" Kitsune called out. "Shouldn't ya be out with or talking to your boyfriend on the phone?"

Okay, maybe some won't. Shinobu went over to where Kitsune was sitting. "I—umm—well I wanted to ask…" she began speaking softly.

"Ya want to ask something personal and don't want the others to overhear?"

Shinobu flushed. "Well, you've known Naru better than the rest of us."

Kitsune held up her hand. "Let's set some ground rules here. I'm not gonna give up any secrets here. But if you wanna ask about something that's not secret, that's different."

"Oh… well, it's about her parents. She seems to shut down every attempt to discuss them." She quickly outlined the incident that afternoon. "She's hiding the fact that she's unhappy about something. I mean, it's not like when she was fighting with Keitaro but you know how it is when she holds it in."

"Yeah," Kitsune said, growing serious. "And as Mutsumi likes to remind us, Naru needs to avoid stress." She leaned back in her chair. "Well, ya know the basics, right? Her mother died when she was very young, her father eventually remarried and then had a child with Naru's stepmother."

Yes, I remember Mei. I met her at the wedding."

"Well, I don't know how much of it was her parent's fault or how much of it was Naru's… other issues," Man I wish I knew about that issue when she was younger. "But anyway, she was really quiet and withdrawn, kind of spacey, ya know?"

"Yes…" Shinobu said, recalling her conversation with Haruka that disastrous night when they had almost destroyed Keitaro and Naru's marriage. "I do recall hearing that. And I guess that might tie in with being treated for depression?"

"Could be," Kitsune said, taking a drink from her fruit juice. "But I think part of the problem was Naru felt like an outsider in her own family. My guess is with a new baby in the family that belonged to both her father and her stepmother, maybe she became an afterthought?" She shrugged. "I'm just guessing of course. Naru's not usually a person who holds onto old resentments… she wouldn't be able to keep up with the new grief we cause her every day… but perhaps she doesn't have any reason to think that her parents feel any different about her, true or not."

"Hmm," Shinobu nodded. Ever since that night, she tried to give Naru the benefit of the doubt, and what Kitsune said did make sense. Still… "I just think it's sad. I wish my parents would reach out to each other in the same way that I wish she'd try reaching out to them."

"So do I," Kitsune nodded, getting out another can of fruit juice. "But hell, the last time she saw them was in her induction ceremony for entering Todai. Her parents never even came to her wedding. Maybe Naru has no reason to think they've changed."

"Well, maybe they'll respond to the anteiki?"

Kitsune put down the can. "Wait, whaddya mean, respond? I thought Naru had decided it wasn't worth the risk of being rejected again.

"Ahh… well I sent one to them?" Shinobu said, suddenly wondering if she had miscalculated.

Kitsune facepalmed. "Shinobu… I know you meant well by doing that. There may be no harm done if they don't respond. There may be good if they respond positively. But did you ask yourself if Naru isn't ready to face her hurts again?"

"Oh." Shinobu faltered. I honestly didn't think about that. "But… but it could work out!" she said defiantly.

"Well, I hope you're right, kid, I really do." Kitsune smiled slightly. "Naru could use healing there. I just hope this won't just blow up in everybody's face.

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Author's Notes

Anteiki. Birth announcements. In Japan they're sent out after 16 weeks (they call it the fifth month, and they consider pregnancy to last ten months).

Niji no Megami. Also known as "Rainbow Song." Came out in late October, 2006. I haven't seen it myself. The plot description sounded sad hence Shinobu's (possibly erroneous) reaction.

Ged's War Chronicles (Gedo Senki) is the Ghibli movie we know of in the West as Tales From Earthsea. It was released on July 29, 2006 (Hence, the discount movie theater where Kokeru and Sara saw it). Kokeru and Sara's editorial comments reflect my own (^_~).

"Keiichi, Naruo, Narutaro, Keiko, Narumi, or Keina." According to Love Hina Mugendai, these are all names proposed by Mutsumi. They're male and female names that can be made from either Keitaro or Naru's names or a combination of both.

"Her half-sister." This might be a good point to remind readers that this series of fanfics is based on the manga, not the anime. I know that the anime says that Naru's father died and her mother married a widower who had a daughter named Mei. (the name is from the anime, but I'm told that Akamatsu adopted it). But in the manga, we learn through a flashback of an overheard conversation that Naru's mother died when she was very young… much too young for Mei to be born yet. So, based on what I culled out of the manga, her story is her father remarried and he and his new wife had a child together… which might explain why Naru was living in Hinata House and not at home in chapter 1 of the manga.

"that disastrous night" See Forever and a Day.