Last week, on Love Hina the Soap Opera - Lance and Al discovered that their new manager had booked the LADS in to a concert today. Lance went on a date with Sara, and ended up becoming her onii-chan. Al solved a mystery, but ended up blowing up a bathroom and soaking Maho. The latest yakuza attempt on his life only blew up the cosplay cafe. Kojiro arrived late in the evening, but still managed to get into much embarassment. Motoko found a new robot threat in town.
(late night, a dark room in town)
"And that concludes the report I have." said a familiar, young voice.
"Good, thank you Ayane." replied a mature female voice.
The voice belonged to a middle-aged woman who sat in a leather chair at a large desk in the middle of a large room with windows for the walls which gave a nice, panoramic view of the surrounding area. She sighed and yawned before propping her elbows on the desk and resting her chin on the back of her hands. She looked exhausted, there were bags underneath her cold, grey and blue eyes that showed behind her rectangular glasses. Her long, jet black hair was spread against her back as she leaned over her edge of the desk with her chin against her hands. She resembled that of a hard-working business woman who never slept until her duty was done by the looks of her sharp and neat dress which contrasted against her exhausted and stressed expression. For a few minutes, there was an awkward silence before the woman broke it.
"I know, you want to see Kyosuke again. Right?" the woman asked.
To this, the young girl nodded and her expression slightly cheered up a bit. The woman sighed.
"Ayane, you know we cannot contact him. We lost contact just three hours ago and in the present situation we cannot risk any communications.I don't know how I can help other than tell you to pray that he's alright, although I'm pretty sure he is." she added with a cheerful smile. The girl frowned a bit and turned around to leave.
"I'll be praying alright." she said, "I just hope you will too, Godfather." and she left the room in silence.
-:-
(Miles away in Venice, Italy.)
A young man stumbled through an alley, holding his right shoulder with his left hand while bumping into the walls, garbage cans, and various dumpsters. His breath was ragged and heavy, he had a bruise along the left half of his jaw line, his overcoat was slightly torn and battered and it continuously got more and more dirty as he dragged it's sleeve against a brick wall so that he may support himself. He made it to the end of the alley before collapsing and hitting the open street with full force, letting out a low grunt of pain. He looked up as best he could and squinted his eyes to shield them from blinding lights in order to see. He saw several spectators rushing across the street to aid him. He smiled weakly and let out a small, triumphant chuckle.
"Some vacation this turned out to be." he said to himself lazily, his head swaying from side-to-side before his vision blurred and he blacked out completely.
-:-
(late night, hinatasou)
Naru stepped into the outdoor bath, tiptoeing on her slippers as quickly as she dared. The cool March air mingled with wisps of hot steam against her skin, and the light, salty smell of the spring water filled her senses. With the ghostly moonlight shimmering everywhere it touched, there was a profound sense of dreaminess in the air. The night was no longer young; everyone in the house, and probably everyone in the neighborhood, was sleeping soundly.
It was the perfect time for a relaxing dip.
There were dangers, of course. What if she were to spend too long in the water and pass out? No one would find her until late in the day, and by then it would be too late. There were few worse ways to leave the world than to be floating like a log in the middle of a hot spring. But for the sake of a peaceful bath, Naru decided she would take that risk. Some real peace and quiet—not just the kind with Sarah or Kitsune moaning about how bored they were—was as precious as gold.
Naru washed herself quickly and stepped in, inhaling sharply as her leg made its first contact with the scalding bathwater. She gave herself a moment to acclimate, then slipped away from her towel and completely into the hot spring, until the water reached her neck. Her nerves tingled like a hundred thousand tiny sparks of static electricity, and all of her muscles relaxed in a glorious, silent symphony of unwinding.
"Aaaaaaah." No expression in her life had ever been so appropriate.
There were many things to think about. Well, there was really only one thing to think about: her relationship with Keitaro. Like the light of stars, or the ebb and flow of the tides, that element of her life seemed an ever-present mystery; a timid, bespectacled, perverted cosmological constant. Just thinking about it put her vocabulary skills to the test.
She didn't even know if she could call it a relationship. It seemed that at every point where they reached some kind of understanding, Keitaro would do something to screw up again and bring them back to square one. Honestly, it wasn't her fault that he was such a pervert. She was only willing to forgive so much, and Keitaro frequently crossed the line.
But wait, the quietly thoughtful part of Naru said, couldn't it be true that most of the time, what you thought was Keitaro being a pervert was really just a misunderstanding? Isn't it possible that a series of bad coincidences have led you to the misguided conclusion that Keitaro is a dog, when he really is the sweet and well-meaning dork that you've fallen for?
Hey, wait just a minute! The cynical part of Naru protested. I absolutely do not like him! That's absurd!
Oh, come now, the quietly thoughtful Naru admonished gently. You can't go through twenty-six episodes and two specials without realizing that you like him at least a little bit. That level of sheer denial is what's absurd, more than anything else.
But before she could reach a conclusion for this internal debate, Naru heard a rustling in the bushes nearby. She froze.
Now there was something she didn't consider: At this late hour, alone in the dark, could it be possible that Naru was not alone? Even with the temperature of the hot spring, she felt a chill run down her neck. Acting on instinct, she reached for a nearby rock, standing as she wrapped her towel around.
"W-Who's there?" Naru asked, inwardly cursing for not sounding more assertive. As if in response, the leaves shook ominously again. The rock was raised and ready to strike.
Drawing in her breath to let out a scream, Naru braced herself.
Before long, a familiar head poked out from the foliage. Maho grinned as she emerged, her face touched by the rosy blush of alcohol.
"Eeeeheh!" She slurred cheerfully. It seemed to be the best greeting she could manage in her intoxicated state.
"Maho-chan?" Naru dropped the rock. "What're you doing over there?"
"Uhhh... Naru?" She blinked. "Naru-chan?"
Naru repeated the question. "What're you doing over there?"
"Just ah. Enjoying the scenery." Maho hiccupped between bubbly giggles. She produced a bottle, though of what, Naru couldn't tell. "Wouldya like a little nightcap, love?" the young magician said in English. Then in Japanese, "I think I got a little carried 'way."
"You're drunk," Naru stated the obvious.
"Wow, Naru-chan," Maho smiled. "You have such nice skin. Must be the hot spring... bathing all the time... healthy." She staggered to her feet, the bottle tipping dangerously and almost spilling as she waved it around. "I ever tell ya that you're beautiful, girl?" She gesticulated dramatically as she finished, "And you have the world's biggest boobs! I'm," she hiccupped, "jealous!"
"Thanks, I guess." Naru got out of the bath, heading over to her friend and helping her stand. "You're beautiful too, you know."
"Bah!" Maho scrunched up her face bitterly, though it was still cute in its way. "Bah! Bah! Bah!" She swayed. "You don' needta give me that. You don' needa..." Abruptly, she pulled out a potato from her apron. "I have a magic trick!" Before Naru could respond, Maho beamed and straightened up as if on a stage. "I am Maho, the all-knowing and all-powerful! You see here in my hand, jus' an ord'nary potato. But!" She pulled out a paper bag, whipping it open with a drunken flourish. "If I stick this potato into this bag and shake it up a little..." She did this and reached in with a big smile, "Presto! Potato chips!"
Proudly, she held out the untransformed potato. It took a moment for the fact to register. All Maho could do by then was stare dumbly and blink.
Without another word, she slumped lifelessly into Naru's arms.
"Maho-chan?" Naru shook her a couple of times. A more observant part of her noticed that Maho was wearing one of Haruka's outfits, modified a bit to include a skirt. Not that that was very important. Just strange. "Oi, Maho-chan!"
"Naru..." She croaked.
Naru leaned in. "Yes?"
Maho puckered her lips childishly. "Chuu!"
"Eh?" Naru held the drunk girl at arm's length. "Uh, no thanks!"
"Give me a chuu!" Maho slurred. "The magician demands her payment! I wanna chuu!"
"How about later?" Naru picked Maho up in a sloppy approximation of a piggyback ride. Tucking her towel to make sure it was secure, she slowly made her way back inside the house. "Let's get you into bed for now."
Maho pouted, swishing her arms back and forth weakly. "You're no fun. Do you only chuu if it's Kei-kun? Huh?" She giggled, "Ah, don't be so coy—"
A solid whack to the head ended all discussion from that point.
-:-
Keitaro woke with a jolt. Through his groggy, sleep-deprived mind, he could barely make out the sounds of people moving inside the house. And from the way they crashed around, it sounded terribly awkward.
"Who's making all that noise?" He glanced at the clock. It was far too late in the night, or early in the morning, for that kind of racket to be justified. Suddenly, the hamster in his mind was given a kick-start, and the wheels turned furiously toward one chilling conclusion: "Oh my god... It's a burglar!"
What was he going to do? The last time there was a robber in the house, it was Keitaro himself with a case of mistaken identity. He still remembered the distinct sensation of Shinobu's frying pan connecting with his skull—that wasn't fun. But now it seemed to be the real deal, and it was up to Keitaro to do something. But what?
He quickly ran through his options, and made a decision. Taking a physics textbook in one hand and a Tokyo Tower paperweight in the other, he dashed to Motoko's room like lightning.
He barely slid the door closed on the inside before Keitaro felt the cold wood of a bokken press against his neck.
"Move, intruder, and you will die."
"Motoko-san!" Keitaro squeaked, "There's a robber in the house!"
She loosened the pressure. "Urashima?"
"I heard the noise so—"
Motoko shushed him, pressing her ear against the door. Offhand, Keitaro noticed that she was wearing bear-patterned pajamas. If this were any other situation, he would've been inclined to smile. Then again, if this were any other situation, Motoko likely would've never let him live to tell anyone else.
She frowned. "It seems they didn't notice you."
"They?" Keitaro's heart sank. "There's more than one?"
"You should've stayed in your room, Urashima. Now we have to move quickly if we're going to stop them."
"We could just let them take what they want and leave..."
"That is not an option." Motoko scowled. "They dare to enter this house, and they will face the consequences." She slid open the door just enough to slip through. "Follow me. They're about to reach the stairs. When I give you the signal, attack without hesitation."
Keitaro nodded, wielding the paperweight in as dangerous a manner as he could imagine. It was laughable, but it was better than nothing. "Understood."
His heart skipped into his throat when he heard the shuffling of footsteps growing louder.
-:-
Naru stumbled into the main hall. Not even a few minutes, and she was already panting from the effort of carrying Maho's wiggly, inebriated dead weight on her back. She thought that all the walking up and down the steps to the Hinata house would count for something, but Naru felt like she was struggling with the anvil of the gods. How much did Maho carry in those pockets, anyway?
"Ooooh... Heehee!" Maho squirmed, taking a swig from her bottle. "Mmm!" She hiccupped. "Tastes like... Hello Kitty."
"Looks like I didn't hit you hard enough," Naru muttered. She noted to her dismay that her towel was slipping off as well, which was more than a little embarrassing when she wasn't in a position to put it back in place. Honestly, the things she ended up doing for her friends...
"Watch your step."
"Huh?" Naru asked, just before she stubbed her toe against the stair. "Ow!" Losing her balance, she fell ungracefully with Maho on the floor. "Ow... You could've warned me a little sooner."
"Ugggh." Maho shook her head. "I told you, Na-chan..."
Suddenly, someone shouted "NOW!"
The lights turned on, and Keitaro feebly held a textbook over his head, screaming wildly. His eyes were screwed shut, making his face look all the more comical for its seriousness. "Aaaaiyahhh!"
Motoko immediately lowered her bokken. "Eh?"
Naru's eyes widened. "Keitaro?"
"Kei-chan!" Maho bubbled cheerfully.
The distraught landlord opened one eye. "Narusegawa? Maho-cha—"
Maho promptly swung her bottle, hitting Keitaro neatly in the forehead. "Baka."
Naru was tempted to smile at this turn of events. But she noticed that Keitaro was staring at her far too intently. In the moment it took her to wonder why, she noticed a slight breeze, which brought everything neatly into place: Her towel had fallen completely off.
"KEI-TA-RO!" she roared in monosyllabic fury.
He flinched and ducked his head by instinct. "I'm sorry!"
But when the usual uppercut didn't come, Keitaro dared to look up. Naru's arm was being held back by Maho, who looked for all the world like she was playing some kind of game.
"Maho, what are you doing?"
"Eeeehhee!" was Maho's succinct reply.
"Let go!"
"Haha, whee!"
"Hey!" Naru slipped and fell back onto the floor, tangled with Maho's arms and legs.
From Keitaro's vantage point, as Naru struggled, she also managed to inadvertently expose even more of herself. He promptly fled the scene, holding back a gushing nosebleed and thanking the gods for sparing him this night.
"Maho-chan, I swear if you don't..." Naru couldn't help a fit of giggles when Maho nuzzled her head against Naru's neck. "Stop! That tickles! Hey!"
Maho looked up. "Motoko-san?"
Motoko hadn't budged an inch. All she could do was stare blankly at the scene before her, as she distractedly held her wooden sword in something approximating a ready stance. If she was feeling anything at that moment, there was nothing that gave those emotions away. She was just a statue.
Maho beamed. She pointed at Motoko's pajamas. "Teddy bears!"
Motoko's left eyebrow twitched. Her lips moved, and words formed, as slowly and deliberately as words could possibly be:
"I hate you."
She turned on her heel and stalked away.
The dead silence that followed was as heavy as lead. Naru looked at her friend in confusion. "Maho-chan? What was that about?"
The look in Maho's eyes was the saddest that Naru had ever seen her. She had the face of someone trying not to cry. At least, that was Naru's best guess. And when Maho spoke, the words were sober; as still as a dying breeze.
"Naru-chan, I don't want to play anymore."
Naru nodded, putting her towel back on and pulling Maho upright.
"Let's get you up to your room, Maho-chan."
"Okay."
-:-
Somewhere in Italy, a hotel room door closed quietly, and Kyosuke painfully dragged himself to the bathroom where he had a surprisingly comprehensive first-aid kit stored. After injecting himself with a carefully measured dose from a small bottle, he became more alert, after which he quickly treated his many injuries. He then immediately went to a small laptop computer, and accessed his email.
"What's this?" he asked in surprise. On the screen was a new message, flagged 'Priority one urgent'.
"Priority one urgent: We have an Omega One situation in your base location. Repeat, Omega One. Return imperative. Personal contact on arrival. Communications blackout."
Kyosuke cursed under his breath, even as he quickly shut down the laptop and started throwing his most important items into a carryall. Only a few days out here, and already being dragged back! Still, an Omega One... he hadn't had one of those in his entire career. Of course encryption could no longer be trusted if they were up against that.
Within a few minutes, he had called a contact and arranged a flight back to Japan. With luck, he could sleep on the plane and recover a bit from his injuries - and he still had a couple more doses in the bottle, although he'd pay for it later. The most important thing was to get back.
-:-
(Hinatasou, early morning)
"Al! Are you awake?"
Three loud knocks thundered through Al's head, cringing underneath his blanket with every one.
"Yo! Come on, I have to tell you something!"
Al moaned loudly, and Dizzy jumped off from his bedside spot and ran to the door. No way in hell he would make Al get up and do it on his own... he might find the window, instead. He jumped for the handle and the door slid open, revealing a stressed and tired Lance.
"Hey Diz.. where's Al?"
The little rodent pointed to the bed, where a gigantic lump was petruding from the sheets and blankets. He heard moans of misery, and the large shuffling. Then he realized that the giant monster in Al's room was indeed Al. He sounded miserable, and his voice was hoarse as he spoke to him.
"Oh,.. hey Lancey."
Lance stared at his friend who was now shuffling out of his blanket, revealing the most ill look he had ever seen. "Oh my God... what happened?"
"Just a little food poison, if you can call it something that lightly..." Al groaned, and a low grumble came from his stomach, and his eyes bulged. Dizzy made a quick attempt to save their skins by pushing Lance out of the room and closing the door after him. The sound dampeners still on the wall prevented them from hearing the most disgusting sounds known in creation.
Lance looked down at a panting Dizzy. "Just a little food poisoning, huh?"
"Grr."
"Alright, I was joking... do you think he'll be fine by tonight?"
"Grr?"
"I met our new manager at school yesterday, and she's booked us for a concert in Tokyo tonight. She didn't give me any time to reschedule..."
"Grr."
"What? What do you mean he might not be well enough to play! We can't perform without him!"
Dizzy explained to him in calm 'grrs' that Al would definitely WANT to go, but the fact was that he was simply not healthy enough to do it. Lance sighed, hanging his head low in disbelief.
"Damn gumbo..." he muttered to himself. "What about medicine? Will he be fit enough to meet me at my school's parking lot at around, noon?"
"Grr."
"MEET US IN TOKYO! Are you kidding? Our manager will fry us alive if we don't all go with her!"
"Grr?"
"I guess you're right... I wouldn't want a puking Al for two hours in a brand new limousine. Look, just make him better by this afternoon, and he HAS to be backstage by no later than 6pm. Ok?"
Dizzy gave him an affirmative "Grr." and a thumbs up.
Lance patted his tiny head. "That's my weasel."
The Kodak moment was stopped short by the sudden appearance of Su, who had his Lizzy clothes tucked in her arms, and his Strawberry-chan choker resting neatly on top. She bounced up to them with a large smile.
"Hellooo! Here's your clothes, 'Lizzy-ch-' "
"Su!" Lance whispered loudly. The tanned girl bopped her head.
They turned back to leave, and Lance waved to Dizzy. "Good luck Diz, tell Al to feel better soon!"
Su stopped and turned. "What, Al-san is sicky?"
Lance's and Dizzy's eyes flew wide open. "Oh no..."
"Su must make Al feel BETTER!" With that, the hyper girl bolted back down the hall and into Al's room. Dizzy stared after her.
"HIII AL!"
"Oh no, what're you doing here! No, stop that- WAAAHHH! DIZZY!"
The tiny rodent answered to his master's call, and the sound-proof door was soon shut behind him. Lance grinned slightly as he turned back to leave for school.
"Maybe my payback isn't over yet... heheheheh..."
-:-
(Miyako and Kojiro)
A white van drove forward, moving through the streets of Hinata easily as the morning traffic had subsided. A young Japanese woman, her short, red-dyed hair moving in the breeze as the windows were open. In the passenger seat, a young man with brown hair who was wearing a Final Fantasy Unlimited t-shirt and a pair of jeans was sleeping. The van pulled over at a large legion of steps up to the Hinata Dormitory.
"Oi, Bowie-San." The woman said, shaking Cody's shoulder. The Alaskan woke up, his eyes slowly opening, and then closing after a bit of muttering. "Oi! I bring you along to guide me to this place, and you spend all of the time asleep! Get up before I kick your butt!" This tirade of yelling woke Cody up much more quickly, and he got out of the van muttering something about yelling seiyuus.
"Well, here we are." Cody said, yawning as the woman got out of the van. Her plain, pink t-shirt ruffled in the wind, as did her blue Capri pants. The woman looked around, soaking in the sights. "So, what do you think?" The woman shrugged.
"Why don't you go up ahead? I'll just stand here for a little bit. Go get Kojiro." Cody looked at her curiously. "He's Mexican." There was a moment of silence. "Tanned skin, slanted eyes. Ahh..." the woman struggled to think of a brief description. "Nope? Err... hasn't shaved in weeks? Wimpy? I guess..." The woman then clapped her hands together. "I got it! The guy in the weird shirt!" There was a moment of silence. "Trust me, you'll get it when you see him."
Cody stared at her for a few moments before nodding absently. "Ok, then." With that, Cody walked up the steps. After the hike up, he walked up to the front door and opened it. "Hey, I'm back!" Cody said, walking in. Shinobu, Naru, and Keitaro were all sitting on the couch; Naru was reading a textbook, Keitaro was watching TV, and Shinobu was pretty much dressed in her school uniform. All three looked up at the same time.
"Cody/Cody-San/Cody-San!" Three separate voices shouted, and all three ceased their separate tasks to run over to him.
"Where have you been?" Keitaro asked, running over to the tenant. "I thought you had died or something!" Cody chuckled as Shinobu began asking him all sorts of questions and if he was OK or hurt or something.
"Ahh, actually, I got kidnapped while I was out shopping for something for Moe-Chan. They threw me in a trashcan in Tokyo. I thought I was gonna die, but then this woman was coming here found me, and I got a ride back instead of getting crushed in a dumpster!" There was a moment of akward silence. "Anyways, this woman, ahh, Mitasawa Miyako, was looking for this guy called Kojiro Chavez. Said that he got a room here yesterday. You guys know anything about that?"
There was a moment of silence. Shinobu was the first to speak.
"Mitasawa Miyako! You mean that Seiyuu who did the voice of the main character in Kitchen Maho Shodown?" Shinobu asked excitedly, her eyes glowing brilliantly in awesome worshipful radiance that just glimmered in obsession of a TV show that was probably never seen by anyone else ever! (Don't kid yourself, the exclamation point is nessecary.) Naru stared at her.
"You mean that anime with the bunny rabbit who gave cooking lessons while fighting crime?" Naru asked incredulously. Shinobu nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes! She was just so AWESOME in it! Her talent is awesome!" Shinobu began singing the theme song, totally lost in her glory, and Keitaro coughed.
"Well, I'll just go fetch Kojiro." Keitaro said, and walked off. Naru put her glasses and the textbook on a side table, and walked to the front door to greet Mitasawa, while Cody excused himself to go tend to Moe-Chan. About two minutes later, the young woman who drove Cody to Hinata walked into the front door.
"Hello?" Mitasawa asked, and came face to face with Naru. "Is this Hinata House?" Naru nodded, and bowed.
"Yes, it is. Welcome to Hinata House, I'm Narusegawa Naru." Mitasawa, slightly confused at this formality, bowed back.
"It's very nice to meet you. I'm Mitasawa Miyako." There was a moment of silence, and then Shinobu showed up out of nowhere, wielding all sorts of Kitchen Maho Shodown gear.
"Oh my God, are you really Mitasawa Miyako!" Miyako nodded slightly, and Shinobu continued. "Wow, it's really you! You were awesome in Kitchen Maho Shodown! I watched every episode, and each one was so awesome! You have so much talent!" The rest of the hurriedly garbled Japanese was mostly babbling about how she was the greatest Seiyuu in the world and other stuff. Miyako giggled and scratched the back of her head nervously.
"Err, I'm not that good, they cancelled the series after six episodes..." Miyako said, but there was no definite response, whether it was from lack of listening or simply not caring about the other twenty lost episodes. Miyako looked over Shinobu's dancing form to look at Naru, who was simply smiling as she watched Shinobu gush. Miyako then looked a bit to the right to the living room, where Kojiro and Keitaro were walking in from the third floor.
"So, how's your morning been doing so far?" Kojiro asked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he walked down the steps, obviously freshly awake.
"It's been fine. There's been some weird stuff going on, and I think tha- Oh, hello! Are you Mitasawa-San?" Keitaro asked, now seeing Miyako at the doorway. Kojiro's head instantly snapped forward, and Miyako's eyes instantly turned to Kojiro's. There was a moment of silence, and then the two leapt forward and hugged each other.
"Miyako/Kojiro!" Both of them shouted in chorus, and then they broke off, and began doing some strange sort of patty-cake game, singing some strange child's rhyme. At the end, they both grabbed each other's hands in a handshake and hugged again.
"Miyako! It's been months, how have you been doing?" Kojiro asked, breaking away. Miyako smiled.
"Oh, I've been fine! Breaking into the Seiyuu business, and I got a contract!" Miyako replied, and did a pose. "I'm gonna be famous everywhere for this gig!" Kojiro laughed.
"You know, you said that about that lame cooking show." Miyako facefaulted, and then got back up.
"I'm trying to forget that horrible incident. It's so embarrassing." Miyako said, and then both of them laughed.
Note, that this entire exchange occurred in the space of ten seconds. Thus, Shinobu, Keitaro, and Naru were all entirely dumbfounded as they stared.
Keitaro was the first to step forward and speak. "Well, welcome to the Hinata House. I'm Urashima Keitaro." Keitaro made to bow, and suddenly slipped and landed face-first, landing on Miyako, knocking her over. Keitaro, as his pathetic lack of luck and usual bumbling led him to, landed over her. The reaction was the usual.
Shinobu spazzed, Naru got pissed, and Kojiro stepped out of the way. SLAM! And with a "PERVERT!" and a punch in the face, Keitaro was flying towards the hot springs through the halls. Miyako blinked, and got up.
There was silence. Shinobu broke it.
"So, Kojiro-San... you know Mitasawa-San?" She asked, tilting her head. Kojiro and Miyako both nodded. "How?" Both of them grinned predatorily, and then turned to Shinobu.
"We're fierce enemies!" Miyako shouted, and they both turned to each other. Kojiro pulled a pair of boxers out of nowhere and placed it on his head, and Miyako pulled a pair of pajama pants on her head. "So we meet again, Boxerman!" Shinobu turned, confused.
"Boxeruman?" Shinobu asked, tilting her head. Naru raised an eyebrow.
"Again?" Naru queried, also tilting her head in confusion. Kojiro turned.
"Aha! Pajama Woman! I cannot see! Which way is up and which way is down!" Kojiro shouted, waving his hands around wildly. Miyako put on a ridiculous Kung-Fu movie fighting stance, and Kojiro did the same.
"Curse you, Boxerman! Hiyaa!" Miyako shouted, and Kojiro followed up.
"Have at you, Pajama Woman! Chiyaa!" Both of them looked at each other, and proceeded to fall down giggling madly like giddy schoolgirls. Naru sighed.
"Just kidding!" Both of them shouted, pulling the garments off of their heads. Naru and Shinobu facefaulted. "In reality..." They both stood up and shook hands. "We are best friends! Penfriends for the last twelve years, we have whined about our problems to each other and received sympathy and advice for a decade and a fifth!" They turned to the group, smiling.
... "Oooookay." Naru said. "I'm going to do some more revision now." Shinobu bowed again to "Mitasawa-Sama" and ran off to get a few more things for school, and then Keitaro turned to Kojiro and Miyako.
"Need help bringing stuff up?" Keitaro asked, and both nodded. "Well then, let's get going." And with that, stuff got moved in, Miyako and Kojiro chatting it up all the way.
-:-
(Al's Morning)
"Rush, hurry up!" Motoko pounded on the door to Al's room impatiently. If they didn't leave soon, they'd miss the train.
There was an unearthly moan and the door slid open a crack, to reveal Dizzy peering through it.
"Grr."
"He's sick?" Motoko was shaken a bit - he had been so healthy yesterday.
"Grr."
"I see, alright then, I know you will take good care of him Weasel-san." Motoko bowed and started off to leave.
"Noooo, I wanna gooooo!" Al moaned and the door was forced open further, a very pale and weak Al flopped out into the hallway.
"Rush, you are ill, stay home and rest." Motoko was a bit nervous by his actions, but at the same time angry. He needed to rest and he was trying to drag himself to school!
"Please Dizz, lemme go...Urp" Al's eyes widened and he crawled back into the room, "where's my bucket, damn that ramen cart!"
Dizzy waved and shut the door. The one time Al actually wanted to go to school, and his usually infallable constitution gave out on him.
Motoko looked over her shoulder at the Hinata house as she left, "Please get better Alexander-san."
-:-
Dizzy entered Al's room cautiously. He had left to get a snack after having made sure the blond boy had taken his medicine, and since the potentcy of the pills was not labeled, Dizzy was unsure how Al would react.
Apparently it had worked, as he was no longer on the ground moaning, nor indeed in the room at all. His pyjamas lay discarded on the floor, and the box where he kept all his dangerous props was open.
The little weasel bolted from the room to look for his confused and ill owner.
-:-
"What do you mean, it weighs too much?" Miyako asked, brushing a stray bang out of her eyes as she watched Kojiro struggle with a medium-sized cardboard box.
"What I damn well said! I can't carry it up there!" Kojiro shouted back up, lathered with sweat compared to his penfriend, who was only breathing a little harder. Sighing, Miyako walked down the steps of Hinata and easily lifted the box Kojiro was struggling with over her head with absolutely not problem.
There was silence.
"You wuss." Which, of course, lead to Miyako dumping the box of Plastic Figurines onto Kojiro's head, thus causing the "Wuss" to be trapped underneath it until Naru came by, and eventually had pity and pulled it off of him, which lead to Miyako teasing him about it and a big whole whoopalah.
-:-
Miyako streached out as she fell back on the futon that she and Kojiro had laid out onto his dorm room floor, breathing heavily from the workout. Kojiro collapsed onto the floor sweating like a pig, gasping for air. Miyako looked at him. "You wuss. You travel for a living, for goodness' sake!" Kojiro just gave her a look.
"So," Kojiro asked trying to change the subject off of his lack of physical shape. "I heard from Shinobu while she was running out the door that you actually got some Seiyuu work. She seems to be a real fan." Miyako suddenly blushed furiously and rolled over off the Futon.
"Oh, God. I was hoping that nobody would ever know about that!" Miyako said, covering her face as Kojiro chuckled. "I'm going to have to change my screen name or something! I can't believe I let them use my real name on that terrible show!" Kojiro kept chuckling, prompting Miyako to turn around and whack him. "Shut up, that was really embarrassing having to say all that!" Miyako stood up and struck a pose. "Fear not, Hamaka-Sama, I will save you with the Tamago of Justice! Omelet crush!"
Miyako struck another pose. "Have at you, Skillet-San! I use the holy Stirrer to create a fun-fun stir-fry!" Miyako made a pose as if to fall back. "Oh, no! The Evil Lame Plot-lines and silly cooking puns are too much to bear! Kyah!" Miyako fell over dramatically, landing on the bed. There was a bit of silence.
"So, you ready to start setting up?" Kojiro asked, bending up to look at his penfriend. Miyako nodded.
"Yeah. The Desktop goes on the desk, which was the heaviest thing, so..."
-:-
Miyako and Kojiro looked over the arranged room. "Finished!" He said, raising his hands up to stretch. Miyako nodded, and proceeded to sit down at Kojiro's desk. Kojiro walked over to the futon and plopped down.
"Yup, your room's all done." Miyako smirked. "Try not to mess it up aga- ohh, is that what I think it is?" Miyako was suddenly leaning over Kojiro's monitor, looking at something. She lifted it up, a pair of glasses. "IT IS!" Kojiro stared in abject horror at the pair of glasses. "You're still carrying them around like some obsessed little boy on his first crush!" There was silence.
"Give that back!" Kojiro shouted, leaping up and reaching for the glasses, causing Miyako to simply lean back, causing Kojiro to trip and fall on his face. Miyako giggled at him, causing Kojiro to get up and start swiping at the glasses for it.
After four minutes of running around the room, Kojiro gasped, falling to his knees as Miyako simply smiled at him. "If you want it back..." she said, causing Kojiro to look up at her. "let me see your back." There was a moment of silence.
"Huh?"
-:-
Naru calmly munched on a rice cracker as she looked over the majority of Hinata House from her vantage point on the roof. Things had calmed down, that weird Seiyuu had left, and now she was out here relaxing, unknowing of the storm of the soon to arrive rioters. She thought briefly about Keitaro, and how their relationship had progressed over the past few days. She blushed as she remembered the swan ride with him.
And then... POW! She had sent him flying. Naru shook her head furiously, trying to figure out her feelings. Did she like him? Did she love him? Naru sighed, putting her head on the rail in confusion.
As she thought, Ryuko climbed up to the roof, looking out towards the town below as well. "Hey, what was that van?" She asked, and Naru turned to her.
"Oh, that was the new tenant's friend. She just helped him move some stuff into the house." There was silence.
"You mean that pervert?" Ryuko asked, and Naru turned around.
"Kojiro? Pervert?" She asked, tilting her head. Ryuko nodded, and proceeded to tell Naru her side of yesterday's accident...
"NANI!"
-:-
Kojiro looked at himself in the mirror, fresh from his bath. He wore his +1 shirt, which said, in white letters+1 Shirt, and a pair of (Yet again) dockers. He looked at himself in the mirror, and after a long look, grabbed a can of shaving cream and a razor from his pocket. After a few minutes...
BAM! Kojiro now equaled Santa Clause, just not as fat. Or old. Actually, just the beard. Kojiro danced around next to the Hinata Springs in front of a mirror. "Hohoho, hohoho, Merry Christmas! Good Tidings! Eat your vegetables! Don't forget to give me cookies! Ohohoho!" Kojiro was totally oblivious to the fact that Naru and Ryuko were stepping into the Hot Springs, nor was he aware of the fact that Naru was about two steps from kicking his butt.
"Oi." Naru said, causing Kojiro to turn, razor in hand and shaving cream on face. He chuckled.
"Oh, hey Naru." Kojiro said, his "Beard" still obnoxiously white. "Hey, you said that the Hotsprings were open on Tuesdays to guys, right? Not that I mind if you kick me out, but... OK, Naru, you're giving me that creepy look that you gave Al before you creamed him. Uhh, Naru, you're kinda creeping me out, here. N-naru?"
"HOW DARE YOU ATTACK RYUKO-CHAN, YOU PERVERT!" And with a POW, out into the stratosphere Kojiro went, disappearing into the stratosphere. Ryuko looked off into the distance.
"How do you do that?" She asked, watching the now-gone Kojiro fly away. Naru shrugged.
"Practice." And with that, they went off.
-:-
Afterwards, Ryuko went back up to her room and eyed the growing pile of neglected mail on her desk. Sighing, she decided it was time to do something about it. She sat down and swiped each of the envelopes with a letter opener, then started reading the contents.
Most of it was junk, but finally she got to her bank statement, which made her eyes widen.
"I'm overdrawn! That can't be!"
She quickly scanned down the list of transactions, and found a number of very recent large withdrawals that she couldn't account for. /Shit, I'm probably the victim of identity theft/ she thought to herself. She crossed her arms on the desk and buried her face, starting to panic.
/Wait, I was on the train to Kobe when one of these withdrawals was made. I still have the ticket stub to prove it./
Gears started grinding in her head. She knew she'd have to get her account fixed in a hurry, and hopefully this bit of evidence would be enough to accomlish it.
Ryuko grabbed the train ticket stub and the bank statement and folded them into her pocket, then hurriedly dashed down stairs, zooming past people without explanation. At the door she slipped into some flip-flops and ran out of the house, hoping to catch the bus.
-:-
"I'm going out for awhile." Kitsune called as she pulled on her shoes at the door.
"See you later then Kitsune." Naru was lounging on the sofa with a book she had been reading.
The chief slacker of the Hinata house took two steps out the door before she heard several voices chanting. Within seconds she saw them crest the stairs - fifty, maybe sixty woman, all in their early 40's to late 60's.
"No more hentai, no more destruction, no more Hinata house!" they chanted.
"Coulda at least picked a slogan that rhymed." Kitsune quickly turned around and re-entered the dorms.
"Back so soon?" Naru asked surprised.
"Find Keitaro, we've got trouble."
-:-
Keitaro, Ryoko, Moe, Cody and Naru were all that stood between the angry mob of housewives, and their beloved dorms.
Kitsune was sitting on the sidelines ready to watch the fun.
"Um, good afternoon ladies, can I help you?" The landlord asked nervously as he tried to stare down the mothers.
The leader stepped forward. She was a large woman, not very easy on the eyes, and her eyes blazed with energy.
"We, the Mothers Against Vulgarity and Perverted Acts, are here to demand that either the Hinata house cease it's violent, destructive and immoral actions, or close it's doors and never pose a threat to our fair Hinata or the children of it any longer!"
"Threat? what are you talking about, what's so threatening about the Hinata house?" Keitaro asked resisting the urge to hide behind the much braver Naru.
"There are frequent acts of depraved, lewd and over all perverted things happening here every day, just look at this!" The leader handed him pictures of him flying through the air wearing nothing but a towel, various male patrons apparently touching the females in inappropate palces, a picture of Al running down the hall wearing nothing but a fig leaf, and even a picture of Sarah wearing a slutty nightdress and chasing lance.
"It's bad enough that they themselves engage in such acts, but there are minors in this house! Look how this one has been warped into lusting after one of the male tenants who is much older then her!" The spokeswoman picked up Moe and held her close, "I can only pray we were fast enough to save this one."
Confused, Moe looked to Cody, "Master, why is this woman hugging me?"
There was a general uproar at Moe calling Cody her master.
"This poor child, manipulated into a mindset of slavery, we must stop this now!"
"Listen this is all just a big misunderstanding...you see she's just..." Keitaro began.
"Oh, and I suppose the destruction is just a big misunderstanding too? The woman produced more pictures of the things the robo-tanas had destroyed, pictures of things Motoko, Su and other Hinata housers had destroyed.
"There are reports that this one here was connected to the destruction of the hentai club he worked at, and while that in itself is a good thing, he is also connected to flooding at a local school, and the traffic accidents that occured when his weasel stole a van from some local busnessmen."
"I urr...uh...he..." Keitaro was at a loss for words, what had Al been up to in the last few days? And where on earth had they obtained these photos?
"I'm sure that if you'd all just listen to reason." Ryoko started in an attempt to come to the aid of her landlord, but the woman had started chanting again, waving their picket signs and drowning out any protests with their ocean of voices.
Just as the Landlord and the dorm dwellers were about to run inside and lock the doors a deep bass voice rang out over the crowd.
"We're men, men in tights! We roam around the forest looking for fights!"
All eyes traveled to the roof of the Hinata house, where Al stood clad in a tunic and tights a la Robin hood - complete with hat, and bow and arrow.
"See look, it's the cosplaying pervert, and he's got a hairy child up there!"
The hairy child was in fact Dizzy, trying to convince his master, who was delusional thanks to his medication, to come down from the roof.
"Oooodalolly what a nasty mob the sheriff has sent to capture little old me, well as long as Prince John is taxing and troubling the poor, I shall remain free as a bird, and you all shall end up nothing but wet!" Al drew an arrow from the quiver on his back. attached to it was a pink waterballoon.
"Rush-san, noooooo!" Keitaro cried, but it was too late, the arrow was fired and it hit it's target with accuracy that the real Robin Hood would be proud of.
The mothers screamed profanities and fled, waterballon arrows chasing them off the premisis.
"T...This... this is not good." Keitaro was pale - what had the crazy foreigner just done!
"Rush, you stupid idiot!" Naru yelled at the roof, but Al was gone, already off and running after imaginary foes, with Dizzy in hot pursuit.
-:-
(Later that morning)
"Ah, what a beautiful day it is!" Keitaro said to himself cheerfully as he swept the grounds at the front of Hinata-Sou.
He stopped and leaned against the broom he had to take a short break and memories of the previous day, his date with Naru, and...that kiss he had with Shinobu. He had confirmed that that kiss was, at least to him, very real. He blushed and looked dreamily up at the sky, resting his cheek against the tip of the broom.
"I'm so confused. I don't know who I'm in love with anymore. I mean, I know I love Naru and all but... Shinobu..." he sighed, remembering the look on Shinobu's face when she asked him to kiss her. He always knew she was cute before, but now he couldn't get her out of his mind. Sure Shinobu was a likeable person because of her nature, kind, polite, cheerful, on top of that she was one of the only girls who never beat him or took advantage of him, and he couldn't help but feel that her adorable look only helped him become more attracted to her. Shinobu...
"Gah!" he exclaimed, shaking his head to remove his thoughts. "Why am I thinking that way about a 14 year old?" he cried, "I guess I really am a pervert."
Then, something caught his eye. He saw a person coming up from the steps to the inn. He started towards that person.
"Hello! And welcome to Hinata-Sou!" He began, greeting the stranger. "Are you interested in a roo-" he stopped short as the figure slowly came into view. Keitaro dropped his broom and rushed forward. The figure collapsed and dropped to the ground as the manager arrived at his side, pushing the limp body over onto it's back. It was Kyosuke.
"Hey Keitaro! What're you doin'?" Kitsune called from the front doors. "If Naru catches you slackin' off you'll be in real trouble!" she added.
"Kitsune! Call the doctor Hikari! Quickly!" Keitaro yelled back in urgency.
"The doctor? What do you need the doctor for?" the fox girl yelled questioningly.
"We don't have time for an explanation, now DO IT!" he screamed back. Kitsune winced at the last bit - he seemed really desperate for that doctor, so she went back inside to make the call. Keitaro picked up Kyosuke's limp form, and rushed back inside.
"You're gonna make it, just hang on!" he assured the unconscious young man as they both disappeared behind the front doors.
-:-
Kojiro sighed as he walked through the town of Hinata. He sighed as he walked about, dodging past random people in the crowd. "Geeze, that's what I get for getting Narusegawa mad." Kojiro idly said as he rubbed his cheek, looking around the crowd. "I guess I should apologize when I get back to the place." Kojiro stood still for a few minutes, his eyes closed. He could almost swear that he could feel the life of the small town, its energy as he concentrated on it...
"O-Oka-san! Oto-San! Whaaa!" Kojiro opened his eyes, looking about wildly. He could have sworn...
"Oka-San! Oto-San! I can't find you! Oto-San! Whaaaa!" Kojiro finally managed to see the source of the noise, which was indeed real and not a byproduct of being punched hard enough to destroy buildings. A young girl, clad in jeans, pink tennis shoes, and a blue t-shirt was holding a pink sweater to her face and crying loudly. She couldn't have been more than ten, or younger than maybe six.
Kojiro walked forward a bit, looking at her. "Ahh, little one, are you OK?" Kojiro asked, kneeling down to look her eye to ey-
"WHAAA! PLEASE HELP ME MISTER!" The little girl shouted at the top of her lungs and hugged Kojiro as tightly as she could, causing the hugged one to gasp as he felt air constrict from his lungs. People turned and looked at the spectacle, causing Kojiro to look around self-consciously. Patting the young girl on the back, with a Feat of Strength that he wasn't aware that he could pull off, he somehow picked her up.
"Strange, I don't remember being to lift this much." Kojiro muttered in English, as he remembered moving his stuff up that morning.
-:-
Thus, it was perfectly understandable as to why Kojiro was surprised that he could lift a little girl when he couldn't lift a small amount of plastic. Kojiro jogged away from prying eyes before he got in trouble, and quickly sat down on a park bench.
"Okay, ahh, what's your name?" Kojiro asked, waving his hand in front of Ema.
"T-tell me your name first." The little girl said, causing Kojiro to choke on his own breath. What a strange girl! Her long, brown hair and freckled face was also somehow interesting, although the lone antennae hair popping out of her head was sure sign that Naru would probably have messed with this girl's head first chance she got. Women and their hair.
Kojiro smiled. "I'm Kojiro. You can call me Koji-Kun." Kojiro winced mentally as he gave himself the ridiculous nickname. Normally, anyone outside of Miyako who called him that tended to get Rock Salt as part of the treatment next time he got a cut.
Ema nodded. "I am Ema." Kojiro blinked.
"And your surname?" Ema nodded gravely as she wiped her eyes.
"Ema." Ema repeated.
"Ema-Ema?" Kojiro asked, tilting his head. Ema shook her head furiously.
"NO!" Ema said loudly, causing Kojiro to visibly wince. "Ema Maeda." Kojiro nodded.
"Ema Maeda." He repeated. Ema smiled despite her teary face, nodding. Kojiro pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped Ema's face with it, getting her to sit down without latching onto him. "So, Ema-Chan, what seems to be the problem?" Kojiro asked, putting himself at eye level. Ema started to tear up again.
"Well, I got on a train, cuz Oka-San and Oto-San were getting on, and then I sat down and then I realized that it was the wrong train and then by the time I went to the exit the door was closing and then I ended up getting trapped on the train and I ended up coming all the way here and now I'm lost and hungry and ti-" Kojiro put a hand over her mouth before she could rant on, sweatdropping a bit.
"OK, ok..." Kojiro said in a calming tone of voice. "So you're hungry, lost, and tired. Before anything else, can I get you anything to eat?" Ema thought about it for a moment, and then pointed to a Sata Andagi bun at an Okinawan food stand.
"Sata Andagi?" Ema asked, tilting her head. Kojiro nodded, getting up and pulling out his wallet. He quickly walked over, intent on feeding Ema before taking her home...
-:-
Kojiro watched Ema run around in the park, as he relaxed on a park bench. It was peaceful and quiet, just the way he liked it, although the noises that Ema emitted from her laughter as she chased around a butterfly were most definitely not destroying the peace; actually, it made it all calmer, as if this sort of thing was supposed to happen.
Ema eventually got bored of the butterfly, as Kojiro idly reminisced of the events of the day. She ran forward to Kojiro, and pointed at a nearby Nikuman stall. "Koji-Kun, may I please have a Yakisoba?" She asked politely, and gave him cute-girl eyes. Kojiro blinked.
"Err, Ema-Chan, that's a Nikuman stall." Kojiro said, causing Ema to turn and look at the stall more closely, with a squint and everything. Kojiro sighed, as Ema's eyes suddenly widened.
"Ahh, it is a Nikuman stall!" Ema said, and then rubbed her eyes. "I can't see well without my glasses, so I've been having difficulty..." Kojiro looked at her for a moment, and then raised a hand.
"Hold on a second..." Kojiro said, rooting through his pockets. After a few minutes, he pulled out a pair of glasses. "They're a little big for you, and I don't know your glasses setting, so it might be a bit too much or too little..." Ema took the glasses and put them on. They were a little big, but...
"Ah, I can see again!" Ema said, and looked back up at Kojiro. There was a moment of silence. "You look kinda weird." Kojiro facefaulted. "Like, ahh... did you ever get hit by a car?" Kojiro shook his head. "Ah."
There was a moment of tense silence. "Well, let's get you some nikuman!" And so, with cheers of Nikuman, Kojiro went forth.
-:-
"Will he be alright doctor?" Keitaro asked, a hint of worry in his voice. The doctor looked at him in confusion.
"What're you talking about? I don't even know what's wrong with him yet!" she exclaimed before averting his attention to the unconscious boy
"Oh! Sorry." Keitaro scratched his head sheepishly.
The doctor took a flashlight and pried one of Kyosuke's eyes open, checking to see if he was still conscious. No response. She put to fingers to the neck just under the edge of the jaw. There was still a pulse. She then removed the boy's jacket and was surprised to see dozens of bruises and scrapes all over the arms. He lifted his shirt up, more bruises. The doctor then checked the back, still bruises. He put everything back in place and turned to the young manager.
"Well, good news. He's not dead. But he's not going to wake up any time soon. He's taken quite a beating judging from the looks of the injuries all over his body. Has he been in a car accident.?"
Kitsune and Keitaro glanced at each other. "...Not that we know of." Keitaro answered.
The doctor sighed, packed up her things and headed for the door. "Call me when he wakes up. If he doesn't in 48 hours...call me anyway."
"Yes, thank you very much." Keitaro and the doctor bowed at each other and the doctor left.
Kitsune crossed her arms and looked down at Kyosuke through her closed eyes.
"Do ya' honestly have any idea where he's been?" she asked. Keitaro shook his head.
"Well, I want an answer and I ain't waitin' 2 days to get it." she left in a huff and came back a minute later with a washcloth and a bottle of her most inexpensive sake.
"Wait, what're you doing Kitsune?" Keitaro asked, his voice raised alarmingly.
"I heard him say he was allergic to alcohol so I'm testing to see if that fact is true!" she declared before twisting the bottle cap off, pouring a drop or two on the cloth, and slamming it onto the poor boy's nose. A second later, Kyosuke's eyes shot open.
"Ah-ah-AHHH-CHOOOOO!" he sneezed a tornado behind the cloth which had announced his awakening. Both the cloth and Kitsune disappeared in the hurricane of sneezes that followed, and then Kyosuke seemed to fall back peacefully asleep.
Keitaro looked up and sweat dropped. "Well, there goes the ceiling." he sighed.
-
(Ryuko's day)
Ryuko switched buses at one of the Tokyo stations, and eventually made it to the bank's main branch. In retrospect, she could probably have gone to one of the regional branches to do this, but she wasn't thinking clearly when she set out.
A sign over the entrance briefly caught her attention:
"Tokyo Imperial Bank: Serving the Empire of Japan for over 100 years"
She ignored it for now, and got into a long queue. As she slowly got closer and closer to the counter, she could overhear other customers complaining about strange transactions on their accounts as well, which calmed her a bit. /At least I'm not the only one/ she thought.
Finally a clerk called her to his window at the counter. "How may I be of service?", he asked.
Ryuko produced her bank statement and train ticket and explained how she couldn't account for 90 percent of her account being withdrawn over the past week, and how the ticket proved it wasn't possible for her to have made one of those withdrawls since she couldn't be in two places at once.
The clerk scrutinized the statement, then called up her account on his computer terminal and did a lot of typing, saying nothing for several minutes.
While the clerk worked, Ryuko absently fidgeted with her grandmother's key. Ever since she found it, she'd kept it on a lanyard around her neck, just in case she stumbled upon a lock that it might fit. Eventually she even resorted to chewing on it, growing more impatient as the clerk seemed to be taking forever to resolve her account.
Finally the man returned his attention to her and crossed off those anamalous transactions and wrote an updated account balance on her statement, circling it a few times. "I'm sorry for any anxiety this might have caused you, ma'am, a number of our customers have been victims of the same perpetrator. Rest assured the charges will be reversed within a day."
Ryuko gave a big sigh of relief. "Thank you."
The clerk smiled, and folded the statement up to hand it back. "Did you need anything else today? An escort into the safe deposit area, perhaps?"
Ryuko blinked. "Safe deposit area?"
The clerk nodded. "Sorry, I noticed you playing with your vault key and assumed you might want in..."
Ryuko held the key up before her wide eyes. "You think this is a vault key?"
"It does look like one," the clerk confirmed.
Ryuko explained, "This key was my grandmother's, but I didn't find the key until after she died, so I don't know what it goes to. But I'd appreciate it if I could try it out on a safe deposit box."
The clerk nodded, and gestured for her to follow him around the end of the counter.
"May I see your key, please?"
Ryuko pulled off the lanyard and handed it to him.
He read the number engraved in the head of the key. "Box 56...let's see..." Then he flipped through a drawer of index cards under the counter, pulling one out near the very front of the drawer.
"There is a safe deposit box with that number, however it hasn't been accessed for fifteen years."
Ryuko nodded. "That sounds about right..."
"It's registered to Ryuichi and Midori Yoshikawa..."
Ryuko's jaw dropped, and she could feel goosebumps forming. "Oh my..."
The clerk smirked back at her. "I'm guessing those names sound familiar. You are a Yoshikawa, correct?"
She nodded. "Midori was my grandmother's name...but I never knew my grandfather's." Suddenly she realized where her own name had likely come from.
The clerk wrote the time and date on the card, then stuck it back in the drawer. "Follow me, please."
He led her to one end of a long vault, and located the box in question. There were two locks on the box; he inserted his own key into one of them, and Ryuko's into the other, and turned them both, then slid the box out of the wall and handed it to her.
"If you like, you can sit down at the table to examine the contents, then call me when you're ready for me to lock it back up," the clerk offered.
Ryuko nodded, and the clerk left the vault, returning to the front counter.
The metal box was fairly large and heavy. As she sat down at the table and lifted the lid, Ryuko could see that it was nearly overflowing with folders. /What is all this stuff, she wondered.
The first folder seemed to contain stock certificates. Ryuko had no idea what they were worth, if anything, so she put it aside.
The next three folders were full of handwritten papers full of mathematical equations. Ryuko had a deep interest in math, but her head was spinning just now, so she didn't try to make sense of any of it.
The fifth folder contained a family tree, with a little write-up of all of Ryuko's mother's ancestors for many generations.
The sixth folder contained a map of Tokyo as it existed thirty or forty years ago, with numerous annotations regarding several specific parcels of land.
The seventh folder was full of black-and-white photographs, each with comments on the back. Ryuko flipped through the ones on the top, and recognized a few faces. Of particular interest was a large portrait of her grandparents together.
The eighth folder contained what looked like a manuscript of some sort by her grandfather.
The ninth folder was of particular interest, as it contained something that looked like an ancient scroll, about to fall apart, that had been carefully folded up. She didn't want to risk damaging it, so she chose not to examine it just yet.
A tenth folder contained a stack of miscellaneous papers.
And that was the last of it, but Ryuko was overwhelmed. /I don't have time to examine all of this right here, right now, she thought.
She called for the clerk. "Can I have a cardboard box to take all this home in?"
The clerk nodded, "Certainly," and went to fetch one for her.
She lugged the box with her on the bus back to Hinata House. When she returned home, she lugged the box up to her room, but by then it was time for lunch and she was feeling a bit tired, so she decided to wait a while before starting a more thorough investigation to the contents.
-
(Motoko at school)
"Motoko-san."
The kendo girl turned around and saw her three students/worshippers, lined up in front of her, with a serious look on their faces. Motoko gave an inward sigh - not again!
"Can I help you, girls?"
"We've had reports that you were at the festival with Rush-san on a date, can this be true?" The leader of the three asked. They seemed somewhere inbetween outraged and horrified.
"I, err, uhh...it was just..."
"Motoko-sensei, we're very worried, you've been spending more and more time with that perverted forigner and we think it's a bad idea - after all, he mooned half the student body, and just yesterday he was connected to the flooding of the hallways after school."
"Well...Rush-san is... err.."
"Motoko-sensei, please tell us you don't actually like him?" one of the three interupted, her voice full of shock and concern.
"Well I... "
"Motoko-sensei, do you have a crush on Rush?" The third squealed, a mask of horror worn on her face.
"I...Rush is..." The kendo girl was lost for words in front of her pupils. Did she actually have a crush on him? Were they right... no, they couldn't be! She wouldn't... would she?
"He is a honerless forign pervert, Motoko-sensei, you shouldn't be seen around him, he is nothing but a loser!"
"Now, wait just a second! Rush may be perverted, and his honor may be called into question now and again, but he is not a loser! He is a gentelman, and cares for his friends, and was an adorable child, and..." Motoko flushed beet red at her sudden eagerness to defend the boy - not for the first time.
"Motoko-sensei, you...you DO like him!" The girls looked on the verge of tears.
"Oi, you're in my way." Maho elbowed the girls out of her way and stood before Motoko, looking up, a tint of flush creeping into her cheeks as she looked over the kendogirl, who was still without a shirt, her chestwrap being the only covering she had.
"Motoko-san, I was wondering if I could talk to you about the homework from our last class."
"Hey, we were talking to her you rude little brat!"
Maho twitched. Brat? What was she, twelve?
Maho turned and smiled innocently, "Oh, I'm so sorry to have interupted - allow me to make amends." Maho drew forth from behind her back a bouquet of flowers.
"Ooooo." The girls clapped, until Maho pulled a string from the stems of the flowers and they shot water into the faces of the three girls.
"Aieeee!" They cried in shock and departed to dry before their shirts became see-through.
"Troublesome girls." Maho winked at Motoko theatrically.
"I uh...err...arigato." Motoko bowed.
She rubbed her eyes groggily, giving a weak smile in reply. The stage façade, that of Maho the All-Powerful and All-Knowing, crumbled like a dry cake. "It's ok - just have a better answer for them next time they ask you if you like him or not." The shorter girl walked away holding her head, leaving the taller one to finish dressing alone in the locker room.
"Maho-chan..."
-:-
Al was bouncing and skipping and spinning down the street, "I feel so wonderful!" He cheered leaping onto a wall and continueing his whimsical dance towards the school.
"I dunno what was in this stuff but it worked!" Al read the label to the bottle. It appeared to be in ancient Japanese and had a skull and crossbones on it.
"Wonder where Dizzy found this."
As Al pondered this, he walked clean off the low wall and fell the the ground with a "Thud."
"Rush?" a confused voice asked.
He looked up at Motoko who was looking down at him with a mix of surprise and amusement.
"Hiya, I got better." he lept to his feet and bowed.
"I noticed." She bent down to pick up the bottle and looked at it, "Did you go into my room?" Motoko asked a dark look flashing across her smooth and feminine features.
"No, why is that yours? Dizzy brought it to me, worked like a charm."
Motoko seemed to be considering if punishing Al would suffice for the weasel invading her room and stealing her ancient cure for poisioning, but decided to let it pass. He was, after all, still sporting a bandaid from falling on his face.
"So what are you doing here, you should be getting bedrest." she replied, giving him a stern look.
"Well, I wanted to get my homework for what I missed today, so you and I could maybe get some studying in before tonight, cause I have some, err...business in Tokyo tonight." Al smiled winningly, almost letting slip what he was actually planning on doing that evening.
"Oh well err..." Motoko looked down and Al noticed a tint of blush in her cheeks.
He waited until she slipped a hand into her bag and withdrew a small handful of papers, "I...took notes for you, and got your homework..."
"Wow, Mo-chan!" Al took them and read over then, very detailed and concise, "Thank you!" He embraced her in a hug before swiftly letting go, remembering who in fact it was he was hugging, "Err... could I treat you to a Ice Cream?" he asked hopefully.
Motoko, who was once again taken aback by Al's eagerness to hug people, was blushing and her hand was twitching for her sword. This seemed to be her standard reaction to being embarassed by physical contact with Al, but she restrained herself and nodded, "Y...yes, I would like that very much, Rush."
The two started off down the street, both feeling quiet good about life in general.
-:-
Haitani slumped against a lampost and inhaled from his cigarette. He had just finished the fifth of a long line of interviews he had snagged, for he needed a new part time job. The movie theater had done some downsizing and they had fired him, but not Shirai.
"What's next then..." He looked at the paper he had written, next on his list of stops was a bar just down the block, already he was tired from trying so hard to say everything the employer wanted to hear.
"If only I had a job where I could just be myself and people wouldn't care." He grumbled starting towards the bar.
-:-
Kitsune Yawned and sipped her drink casually, she needed an idea, she needed a good one, just one little idea. With one idea she could stretch it into a article long enough that the paper would pay her, she needed money and she needed it now.
The door opened and she looked up. In walked Haitani and she ducked under the table.
"Why am I hideing?" She wondered as she watched a pair of legs and dress shoes make their way to the bar, "Hello i'm..."
"Yes yes, your the new applicant for bartender?" The old man who owned the bar was famous for being short and short tempered, sharp with his tounge and his drinks.
"Err...yes sir, I have experience and..."
"Will you work on weekends?"
"If you like..." Haitani sounded unsure.
"excellent, when can you start?"
"Now, if you like, sir."
"I do, put on this apron and get behind this bar, and you - hiding under the table does not mean you can get out of your bill!"
Kitsune jerked and hit her head on the table, "Yowch!"
She slid out from under the table and rubbed her head, "I was looking for my pen you old coot!"
"K...Kitsune?" Haitani blushed, already behind the bar.
"Hi, pour me another." She held up her empty mug, casually.
He was over in an instant and poured her a cold beer, "Little early to be drinking isn't it?"
"Nah, not for an skilled slacker like myself." She hiccuped for good measure.
"Git back here and start cleaning." The old man yelled at Haitani.
The light haired man scrambled behind the bar and began cleaning glasses.
The sandy haired girl made sure he wasn't watching then slid aside the article and looked to the other piece she had to start on, something much more difficult to fake.
In fact she had spent the last four days trying to write, but all she had managed was the first two words, "Dear sister,"
kitsune thought of what she wanted to try and say, finding the feelings difficult to put to words, she began work on draining her mug, before heading back to Hinata-sou.
-:-
Kojiro walked through the streets of Hinata, heading in the general direction of the train station as he carried Nikuman-Eating-Ema on his back. Ema was making little "Mun mun" sounds as she ate, which added to the cuteness of the situation.
"You know, if I keep carrying you like this, you'll forget how to walk." Kojiro said, knowing full well that his little charge didn't care. Nor could she understand since he was speaking in English. "I wonder where you live..." Kojiro turned a corner, and blinked as he saw a pair of someone's who he recognized. Four feet in front of his face.
Al and Motoko stared at him for a moment, then stared at Ema, and then stared at Kojiro again. There was applicable silence, and then Motoko spoke. "What is that on your back?" She asked, frowning. Kojiro reasoned his odds, and decided to pull an Aizawa.
"It appears to be a Nikuman." Kojiro replied. Motoko shook her head.
"No, the child on your back." Kojiro looked over.
"It appears to be eating Nikuman." Kojiro said. Motoko raised an eyebrow.
"What is it eating Nikuman?" She asked.
"Because it is on my back." Kojiro replied. Motoko shook her head again.
"Why is it on your back?" Kojiro smirked.
"Because it is eating Nikuman." There was silence.
"... What?" Kojiro decided to push the joke, since Al was already leaning on the wall and trying not to laugh.
"That's because getting a piggyback ride makes you want a Nikuman. Great for anti-diets." Kojiro went on, and Al raised his hand, staving off the giggles.
"Hey, man, can I buy a nikuman off of you? Watching that piggyback ride is making me hungry." Kojiro shook his head at him.
"Nope, sorry, I only buy nikuman for people who get piggyback rides. And you're a little big for a piggyback ride." Al snapped his fingers, as if to say 'Aww, shucks.' Motoko's jaw dropped.
"W-what?" She asked, tilting her head, confused. Al sighed.
"Ahh, well, maybe we'll pass a stand on the way home." He said, causing Kojiro to chuckle, whom turned his head to Ema.
"It appears my passenger has finished eating her Nikuman." Kojiro said, and indeed Ema had finished her Nikuman. Ema clapped her hands as if to say "All done!"
Then Motoko snapped.
Shouting "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!" She moved to beat up Kojiro, but then remembering Ema, she turned to Al and started strangling him.
Ema looked up. "Kojiro-San, she's scary." Kojiro nodded, and reached back to put a comforting pat on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, Ema-Chan, I won't let the scary woman hurt you." Kojiro said. Motoko, suddenly blushed despite herself, and dropped Al. Kojiro smiled as Al collapsed on the floor. "See, Ema? The scary lady stopped hurting him!"
"Scary!" Ema shouted. Motoko shook her head.
"I'm not scary!" Motoko shouted, to which Ema hid behind Kojiro from.
"Scary!" Al shouted, covering his head with his hands. Motoko quickly stomped on his head.
"You stay out of this!" She shouted, as Ema was now dead set on wiggling behind Kojiro's back away from the horrible denizen from hell forever more. Calming herself down, Motoko turned to Kojiro. "Now, who's child is that and why is she with you?" Kojiro blinked, then grinned.
"You know, Motoko-Tan ("Don't call me that."), that's a good question. Ema-Chan," he asked, "why are you not with your parents?" Ema suddenly teared up.
"W-well you see, we were going for a train ride..." Ema began, her eyes slowly becoming more-tear-fulled, "And then suddenly they disappeared, and the train left and I'm LOST! WHAAA!" With that, Ema began sobbing into Kojiro's +1 Shirt(1), causing Kojiro to turn.
"See, Motoko-Rin, you're so mean!" Motoko stared at Kojiro with what could only be abject shock. "You're making Ema cry with your questions!" Motoko blushed and started waving her hands around.
"I, ah, err, I didn't mean to..." Al chuckled as Motoko fumbled over herself.
"You two have a hard time getting along." He said, motioning to Ema and Motoko. Kojiro stuck his tongue out.
"That's cuz Motoko's a big meany." Kojiro replied, causing Motoko to shake her head.
"No, no, that isn't true!" And with Al and Kojiro laughing as Ema shuddered in fear...
-
Flashback: Fall, 1999, Japan.
Kojiro walked through the streets of the small, peaceful town. It wasn't some feudal town, it had it's own water and streets and buildings, but it wasn't big, and it was quiet. Kojiro figured if there was anywhere he'd like to live on a park-bench in, it'd be a quiet, peaceful town such as this.
Of course, he wasn't here to live as he had, as a vagabond, he was here to learn from... Kojiro looked down at the piece of paper in his hand. "Kirishima Hijiri..." Kojiro said, looking at a small clinic on a corner of the street that seemed to be the only street in this damn town that was a "Business area" the rest was residential. Hesitant for a moment, Kojiro walked forward, and knocked twice.
There was silence, and a minute later, just as Kojiro was about to leave, the door opened. A young woman about 5'10, wearing a white coat, a green blouse, and a purple skirt walked out, her black hair long and silky, and her green eyes reflected the afternoon light like a kaladescope of colors.
"I'm sorry, sir, we're closed." She said, and started to close the door before Kojiro could respong.
"W-wait!" Kojiro shouted, sticking his right leg in it to keep her from closing the door on him.
Door hit Knee. Knee after being broken and fixed very sensitive. Thus, the following was heard from Kojiro before he passed out.
"I'm Kojiro Cha-AHHHHHIII!"
About an hour later, Kojiro was lying on the courtesy couch in the lobby of the clinic, a bag of ice on his knee to keep him from doing something rash. Like killing himself due to pain. "So, you're the one Ms. Minase sent." Kojiro nodded at the woman, who was sitting in an armchair on the side. "I'm Kirishima Hijiri. You must be Kojiro Chavez." Kojiro nodded again. Hijiri stood.
"While you are here, you will work hard for me. As your apprenticeship continues, I will teach you more, until eventually, you are skilled enough of a doctor to run your own business. You will receive free room and board, but otherwise, you are MINE. Understood?" Hijiri had said all of this with a solid dark face, which is why when she asked "Understood" Kojiro nodded frantically. This lady was SCARY.
But it was the only way he could learn his doctoring ways, and he swore to himself by hook or by crook...
-:-
"Thank you, Yamasugawa-sensei! I promise to make it up to you!"
The science teacher waved just before Lance closed the door to his classroom. He walked down the busy hallway, feeling relieved that he was able to get a day off from work on such short notice. But now he really owes Yamasugawa-sensei. Maybe once he found more time away from practices and shows, he can work extra hours.
He found Su as she walked down the hallway with Shinobu and their friend Akiko, and he slowed down to try to get her attention. Thankfully Shinobu was deep in conversation with Akiko and giggling, so Su had noticed him and came bouncing toward him. He still hadn't talked to Shinobu ever since the festival, and right now wouldn't be the best day for more awkward situations.
"What does Lizzy-san want of Su?" she asked playfully.
"SHH!" A few heads turned at the name, but turned away once Lance held control of Su by covering her mouth. "Su, what did I tell you NOT to do?"
"Mm uut uhlk mmuut..."
Lance took his hand off her mouth.
"To not talk about LADS in public." Su repeated.
"Good," said Lance, "Now listen carefully: I need to leave school early to load up the truck, so meet with me in the school parking lot at lunch, ok?"
"Roger!" Su saluted.
"Excellent. I'll see you then." Lance clapped his hand on her shoulder and walked of as Su ran to catch up with Shinobu and Akiko. He felt better now knowing that one other problem was off his hands, so he walked to the cafeteria to grab a snack before heading over to the truck. Most people were going to class except for some students who had an open period, so the room was nearly empty when he grabbed a sandwich and a soda from the rack and paid for it. He sat at the table near the entrance, so that the truck people would find him easier, and began to eat. Barely two minutes later another person sat down across from him so quietly that Lance didn't notice, at first.
"Hi, Lance-kun..."
He looked up from his food and gasped. "Maki-chan... I, you... where've you been?"
She looked like a real wreck. Her head was hung low, her hair was disheveled, and her eyes were puffy from what seemed like heavy amounts of crying. Even now she was sniffing. Then he remembered that he hadn't seen her since the festival, and that kiss... maybe this was why she was absent from school?
Maki kept quiet, staring down at her feet.
"I didn't see you at school yesterday." Said Lance, "And that night, after the... you just ran off. Is something wrong?"
Maki gave a quiet, hesitant reply. "Lance-kun, I think I might like you."
Now it was Lance's turn to feel awkward. "...Buh!" he said, eloquently.
"That night, on the ferris wheel," she said softly, her eyes still staring down. "You were protective of me. You probably had no choice, but... I felt that you really cared. So I thought about it, and... my true feelings came to me."
"I... well, of course I cared." He replied, "You're my friend, you were scared to death."
Then he saw her eyes begin to water and shiver. "That's all you think of me... as a friend?"
Lance sighed - he knew where this was going.
"Look, Maki-chan... you're a great friend. If it weren't for you, I'd be pretty lonely here and I wouldn't know a thing about the school system in Japan. I owe a lot to you. But I just can't see us as a couple... not this soon, at least."
She said nothing. She didn't move. It was as if she expected this sort of answer.
"Wouldn't it be alright... if we just stayed the way we are? Just for now? Aren't you happy with what we have?"
"...Maki-chan?"
Finally, she looked up. A small stream of tears dropped from her eyes, but were caught by the curved smile of her lips.
"I am happy, Lance-kun."
But just when it seemed that things were perfect, they were interrupted by a small group of big, burly men who walked through the doorway and stopped at their table. The guy in front looked at Lance.
"Are you Lance, the guy who hired us for Tokyo?" he asked.
Lance, slightly intimidated by his powerful stature, stammered as he nodded. "I, uhm, er... yeah, I am."
"The truck's outside," said the big man, "We're ready to load when you are."
"Oh, right, well... let's get started then." Lance rose as grabbed the rest of his small lunch and followed the guys out of the cafeteria. Lance turned and waved goodbye to Maki, who returned the wave with slightly lost look on her face from what just happened.
-:-
Lance waved to the white van that drove into the school parking lot not minutes after leaving the cafeteria. The movers with the truck watched as the van pulled up and the driver poked his head out of the window to the young teenager.
"Morning, Waymire-san!" Seta waved to him. "All of the stuff is in the back, Sarah helped bring it all in."
Sarah waved to Lance from the passenger seat before jumping off to open the back. Lance waved back with a smile.
"Thank you very much for the help, Seta-san." said Lance. "It was already too much for you to come back from your dig."
"Not a problem, my young sir!" Seta chuckled, waving it off. "Progress was slow as it is, so it's refreshing to come back and visit old friends again. Speaking of which, do you know if Keitaro is around by any chance?"
"I'd go over and find out," said Lance, turning to help unload the van, "I don't think he has a class today, so he should be home."
The van was completely packed with stage things and instruments, so it wasn't a surprise to see that there was more inside than he expected. They had just finished getting everything out when a limo pulled into the parking lot, sleek and black. The driver came out walked around, opening the back door for the small and attractive young girl in a school uniform. Lance recognized her as Aimi, the manager.
'Oh crap, I'm not in my disguise!' Lance yelled mentally to himself.
She looked around, surveying the progress in front of her. Her eyes were suddenly fixed on Lance.
"You there," she called to him. "A word, please."
Lance gulped and obeyed, handing over his guitar to one of the movers and walking to her.
"I don't recall seeing you before," she said sharply. "Are you one of the new movers?"
"Erm, not really." he said. "I'm with LADS... that is, I work for them!"
Aimi raised an eyebrow. "That's funny. I never knew that they had workers of their own. Just what is it that you do?"
Averting his eyes, Lance thought up of a quick lie. "Well,.. I basically do all of the dirty work. Help load the truck, sound check instruments, set up old gigs... you could say that I was, or used to be, the manager of sorts."
Aimi threw back her head and laughed. The driver finally closed the door behind her and walked back to his seat, waiting until they could all leave.
"That's funny," she said when she was done, "I hope you're used to rejection, because I'm taking care of all managing duties from here on out. I don't know what use you could be now, but since I'm feeling merciful today, I could find something for you to do."
"Can I finish loading, at least? Our van has to leave-"
"Fine, just get going." She snapped at him. Lance gulped and turned back to load the truck. Aimi smirked as her eyes followed Lance. "He looks kinda cute..."
"Who was that, Onii-chan?" asked Sarah as he approached the van.
"That was our new manager, Aimi Sumeragawa," he said, taking out the last box which held the microphones. "She's working us like dogs, here."
"THAT girl!" Sarah bellowed. "She's no older than you!"
"But she has the experience," he said, walking back to the truck with Sarah hot on his heels with a box of wires. "I did some research on her name this morning. It turns out her father is the famous record producer Hideo Sumeragawa. It's no surprise that he would bestow his managing skills into her."
"Hideo Sumeragawa?" Sarah repeated. "Wouldn't that mean he could make a CD for you guys?"
"If we do well enough, I suppose." Lance placed the box down in the bed of the truck, allowing one of the movers to take it.
It took at least 45 minutes for the truck to be fully loaded. Now all that was left to do was wait for the remaining LADS members. The bell rang for lunch, and students crowded the hallways. Many noticed the limousine and stage props, and gathered in a large group to see what was going on. Meanwhile, Lance stepped out of Seta's van, disguised as Lizzy. Su came running to him in her own outfit, and together they met the huge yells and screams of their fans who were watching. Girls immediately took out their notebooks for autographs, and boys immediately wrote their phone numbers on paper and held them out for them. Lance waved and smiled to them, and Su bounced over to sign things.
He turned back to the van, where Seta and Sarah were climbing in to leave. He waved over to them. "Thanks again!"
"Good luck, Lizzy-chan!" Sarah called out. The van pulled out and drove away seconds later, leaving Lance with the fans and the management.
Meanwhile, Sam and Mutsumi, dressed as CIA Operatives, snuck around a corner of the school building and looked onward to the crowded parking lot in front of them. Sam mumbled something, and Mutsumi giggled.
"You don't like seeing fangirls in action, do you?" Sam turned and gave her a look.
"As a matter of fact, I... forget it. Let's just go already."
Casually, and yet somehow at precisely the right moment when no one was noticing, they ran over, snuck behind teachers who acted as security, and hid next to the equipment truck. When the last guy walked back to the front cab, Sam picked the lock with the tip of his sword and pushed open the door, climbing in and lending a hand for Mutsumi to follow. Once she was on safely, he shut the door back down.
"My my my, it's dark in here!"
Sam sighed. "Gee, no kidding.."
Minutes later, Dizzy came running around the corner, dressed up and completely exhausted. Lance picked him up, and the little weasel immediately collapsed in his hands.
"Su, let's go!" He called out. The Sarah-like girl came running up to him at his command, and together they walked back to Aimi, who was leaning against the limo and looking extremely bored.
"Aimi-san! We're all here!" said Lance.
"Finally! I was just about... no. Wait a minute." She suddenly sounded rough. "Where is Alexis-san?"
Lance immediately turned red. "Uhm... she couldn't make it here on time because of, er... family matters. She promised she would meet us in Tokyo at 6, backstage. Would that be... alright?"
Aimi stared at Lance with deep intent. With a huff, she turned and opened the door to the limo, and climbed inside. The three of them followed, and the driver came to close the door for them. Following the truck, they drove away from the school parking lot and into their new career.
-:-
"Now," Motoko said, her face much more irritated, "Since I have no wish to spend more time with you than I possibly have to, who's child is that and why is she with you?" Al looked up.
"I hope she isn't yours, dude. I don't think we can stand any more Y chromosome in the house." Both statements, a question and a comment, were directed to Kojiro, who was still carrying Ema. Kojiro looked at both of them, and then turned to Motoko.
"It's Shinobu's." Kojiro said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "I'm watching her for her." Motoko growled and drew her sword out of seemingly nowhere.
"Stop fooling with me! If you do not know where her parents are, what are you going to do to get her back to them!" With that, Ema began to cry again, probably due to the Scary Lady with the Sword. Motoko flustered again, but recovered quickly, and responded by pulling a lollipop out and putting her sword away. "Here you go, little girl. I'm sorry for scaring you." Ema accepted the truce offering, unwrapping the treat (Yum, grape) and sticking it in her mouth.
"Thank you, Scary Lady!" Ema said, causing Motoko to facefault. Kojiro cleared his throat and made his reply to Motoko, now that the tension was lowered.
"I guess I will take her back." Kojiro turned to Ema. "Hey, Ema-Chan, where do you live?" Ema looked up happily from her lollipop.
"I live in Tokyo!" She responded, nodding happily. There was silence.
"Where in Tokyo?" Kojiro asked. There was silence.
"In Tokyo!"
"Tokyo is a very large place, Ema-Chan." Kojiro said slowly. Motoko sighed.
"Well, that's that. We'll have to go look for her home." Al looked up.
"Oh, we're going to Tokyo?" Al asked, excited. "Maybe there will be some ice cream there!" Kojiro gave them both a look.
"Err, I can do this myself, mainly because I don't want to have to pay for your tickets." Kojiro said, causing Motoko's irritated response.
"Oh, no you don't! I won't let a perverted male take a young, innocent girl all by herself!" Motoko said. "Besides, we can take her by ourselves, we don't need you!" Al popped up behind Motoko, raising an eyebrow.
"Uhh, Motoko, Ema is scared of you." Motoko sweatdropped, her face becoming less zealous. She turned to Al.
"Fine, Al, pay the man!" There was a moment of silence.
"What, me?" Al asked, pointing to himself. Motoko nodded.
"Yes, you! I don't have any money, I have to pay for the window that YOU broke in school!"
"You broke it, with me as a weapon!" Kojiro sighed, and shook his head.
"You know what, forget it." Kojiro said, in English with a voice betraying his frustration. "I'll pay for the train." Al turned.
"You have money." Al observed, also in English. Motoko shook flailed her arms around.
"Stop doing that!" She shouted, irritated at her lack of English.
"Not to feed you two lunch." Kojiro said in English, and then swapped back to Japanese. "OK, let's go to the train before it leaves."
And with that, they were off.
-:-
(maho's afternoon)
The world throbbed. Like a taiko drum manned by an overly enthusiastic player, the city bumped up and down, taking the pavement and all its pedestrians with it. The walls swayed back and forth to the rhythm. And the pulsing noise permeated everything, like spilled hot coffee sucked up by a dirty towel: thump, thump, thump, thump.
Maho would've given her left arm to sleep the afternoon away. But Haruka would have none of that.
"Come on, get up. Weren't you supposed to have school today?"
"Ugggh... Onee-chan. I went. Gimme five minutes."
"It's almost five. You've had plenty of time to recover, and I drank just as much as you, so don't be a slug." With a surprising show of strength, Haruka threw up the futon. causing Maho to tumble like a rock onto the floor. "Get up."
Maho groaned, running a hand through her tangled morning hair. "But I don't even have anything to do today!"
"Here." Haruka handed her a slip of paper. "Your mission for today."
"Huh?" Maho opened up the slip and read it quietly, squinting so hard that her eyes were almost closed. Then she sighed loudly. "I have to go to Tokyo?"
"It'll wake you up." She tossed her sister a wallet. "You can use up to half of it. Now get going."
And so, Maho miserably took the train to Shinjuku station, as the world continued to throb. Now that she finally had some time to reflect on things, that's exactly what she did.
She recalled the previous night in brief glimmers: The heart-to-heart with Haruka degenerated into a rowdy man-hating session, after which the older Urashima went promptly to bed at the stroke of midnight. After wandering around the teahouse for a while, Maho eventually wandered through the inn and ended up somewhere in the bath, where she decided to take a nap in the warm, humid vapor of the hot spring. And after that...
"I hate you."
Ah. That was it.
So why did she defend Motoko back in the locker room? It was a chivalrous reflex, one that she didn't dwell on until now. But why had she done it? Even as she wondered, Maho knew the answer to that question: So Motoko hated her. That didn't really change things on Maho's side. Feelings are never so easy to wash away.
They just make everything a little more painful.
"Shinjuku, Shinjuku," the conductor droned.
Maho left the train.
-:-
"Hey baby, hey baby! Nice legs, baby!"
Living in London for much of her life, Maho had grown accustomed to the occasional pick-up attempt. There was just something about being a short Japanese girl that many Englishmen (and a few Englishwomen) found irresistible. Most of the time she would politely avoid them, since pretending not to understand English tended to make them even more persistent. But in this instance, given the crude nature of the pick-up line, her killer hangover, and the fact that she was arguably in her home country, Maho was not in the mood to be polite.
"Listen, pal..." She turned around, reaching a hand into her coat.
It was Kentaro.
"Ken-kun?"
He gasped in wild panic. "Haruka-san!" Then his eyes focused a little better. He exhaled as if he has been holding his breath the entire day. "Ah, it's just you."
She jumped up and whacked him over the head with a paper fan. "Sorry to disappoint you, you jerk!"
"Well it's not my fault you're wearing her clothes, Maho-san." Kentaro raised an eyebrow. "New look?"
Maho crossed her arms. "Hmph. More importantly, where the heck have you been since the festival?"
"Ah, well you see..." He beamed arrogantly. "I have been picking up loose women!"
Her jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"
Kentaro smirked, adjusting the collar on his gaudy white suit. "Well, Maho-san, you and the old woman must've had quite a good laugh with the Ai-chan business. I'll admit it. You had me going. Ah-ah!" He pressed a manicured finger against Maho's lips before she could protest. "Let me finish, darling. As I was saying, since your sister was so kind to let me struggle for so long before letting up the ruse, I didn't feel obligated to let her know that I quit."
"You what?"
"Throwing in the towel, giving up the goose. Surely you've heard this phrase before?"
"I know what it means," Maho gritted her teeth in annoyance.
"Good. Then be a dear and let the old woman know that I'm not going to be her plaything anymore." His eyes narrowed. "And I will have my revenge."
Maho narrowed them right back, reaching into a pocket for some explosive powder. "Oh yeah?"
"No, not really." Kentaro laughed a little too loudly. "My youth is too precious to waste on such petty vendettas. Rather, that is to say, I have spent too long pining after your fictional 'Ai-chan' and letting my playboy skills waste away in the meantime. Now I am picking up loose women to bring myself back up to speed. Then, I don't know, I could rebuild the family company, buy out the miserable Hinata house and all of its witchery..." He shrugged. "It all has to start somewhere, don't you agree? In any case, have a nice life, Urashima Maho-san. Give my regards to your nephew. Ta ta." With that, he promptly spun on his heel and walked away.
"You're pathetic."
"Oh, I'm not falling for that," Kentaro laughed, his pace slowing down. "The old, 'you're pathetic because you're running away instead of facing the situation' trick. You think you can just reel me back in and play me for a fool again?" His voice took on a slight edge. "This fish has gotten a little smarter, darling."
"You're just as dumb as you ever were, Ken-kun!" Maho shook her head. "But so is Haruka-onee-san. You both got hurt by the situation, but both of you are just hiding with your tails between your legs, instead of talking about this and figuring something out like adults! Is that any way to live?"
He sighed theatrically. "Are you finished?"
"No! I won't be finished until you come back to the teahouse and tell Haruka that you quit yourself!" She pointed at him. "I'll bet you can't. You don't hate her. You're just afraid to face her after what happened! You're afraid of your own feelings!"
Kentaro glared. People were starting to stare at the spectacle. "Give it a rest, will you? This isn't some shoujo anime."
"A bet." Maho stomped up to him until her nose was almost touching his chest. She jammed a finger right onto his collar. "I challenge you, Sakata Kentaro-san. If you win, I'll let you do whatever you want. But if I win, you have to come back to the teahouse and talk to 'nee-san. Sound like a deal?"
"A challenge, eh?" He looked around. As the one being challenged, Kentaro had the right to pick the contest. Anything related to speed or trickery was probably out—this had to be direct. But what...?
Like a moment of total serendipity, a cook stepped out of a restaurant ringing a bell. "Dinner! Dinner special!" The bell clanged. "The cook's challenge: The super-combo-Shinjuku bowl, rice, chicken ramen, udon, teriyaki, tempura, sashimi, sushi, sukiyaki, grilled salmon, somen, beef reimen, soba and kimchee all in one plate! Finish it in an hour and it's free!"
Then Kentaro looked down at Maho. The logic that took place in his head was as follows:
MahoFemale+SmallSmall Stomach Small StomachEasily Full Therefore, MahoEasily Full.
He smiled. "An eating contest."
Maho blinked. "What?"
"I'm in the mood for a big lunch. How about you?" Kentaro grinned wider. "Of course, if you're not hungry we can always forfeit."
Maho started walking toward the restaurant, trying to ignore her stomach's hung-over protesting. "You're on."
-:-
"Are you sure you want to do this, young miss?" The cook looked slightly nervous. "You understand that this establishment isn't responsible for any accidents that occur during or as a result of this meal, yes? You can still walk away, free of charge."
Maho picked up her chopsticks. "I'm not going anywhere."
Kentaro picked up his chopsticks as well. "Maybe you should listen to the cook, Maho-san. This is a rather expensive meal..."
"Oh, shove it."
"Don't worry, I intend to."
She made a mockingly sympathetic face. "You afraid, Ken-kun?"
He smirked. "Not in the slightest."
"They're psyching each other out!" The assistant cook adjusted his glasses. "This is intense!"
A random customer sipped his tea as he slammed a note on the table. "5000 yen on the little girl."
His friend sputtered. "Are you serious? But she's tiny!"
"Of course YOU would think that. You only had sons."
"You're on, old man!"
With a great display of fanfare, the cook looked up toward the clock as the seconds hand clicked steadily to the top.
The clock struck 18:00.
"Begin!"
Maho dug into the tempura first, while Kentaro went for the udon.
"Ooh, not a good start," the assistant cook said. "The grease on the tempura will make her feel full quicker. Looks like the lead goes to the guy."
The customer shook his head. "Not yet. Watch."
Maho gulped down a fried shrimp, finishing off the tempura as Kentaro reached the halfway point with his udon. Immediately, she grabbed for her bowl of kimchee, gobbling it down and moving on.
"Amazing!" The friend exclaimed. "By eating the tempura first, she coated her stomach and prepared it for the kimchee! What technique!"
"Shut up, everyone! I'm trying to watch!" The cook wiped his brow. This was just too much drama.
-:-
Thirty minutes passed. Maho and Kentaro were tied, neck and neck. On each side of the table was a frightening stack of dirty dishes, and they still had about half left to go.
Kentaro paused, a piece of salmon poised just above his lips.
"What's the matter, Kentaro?" Maho heaved, as she sucked chicken ramen gracelessly. "Feeling... full?"
"Not even close." As if waking up from a dream, Kentaro smiled cheerfully and popped the salmon into his mouth.
The battle continued for some time, until at some point Maho could only stare at her somen lifelessly.
"Fight, young lady!" The customer cheered, his own meal long since forgotten.
Suddenly, she fell right into her bowl, her face making a dull splat noise as it impacted with the noodles.
"It's over! It's over!" The assistant cook exclaimed.
The cook looked up to the sky, spatula in hand, as if imploring the gods. "It can't be over! They're only halfway through! NOOOOOOOOO!"
"M..."
Everyone stopped, even Kentaro in mid-bite. They leaned in closer to the somen bowl.
They heard it again. "M..."
"What's she trying to say?" The friend asked.
The customer cupped a hand on his ear. "Speak up, young lady!"
"M... Mizu (water)..."
"The girl wants some water!" The cook shouted near hysterically. "Give her some #$& water!"
The assistant cook came out with a beer stein full of tap water, setting it gently on the table. Weakly, Maho reached for it.
Then, in a sudden motion, she threw her head up from the noodles (spraying Kentaro with the soup) and swallowed the water in long gulps.
"Urp, urp, urp... BAAHHH!"
She wiped her mouth, eyes wide and clear. "YOSHO!"
The restaurant cheered. And the fight continued.
-:-
Kojiro, Al, Motoko, and Ema all sat at one train. The bullet train they had taken was actually pretty nice, since they got lucky and got bumped to first class due to lack of tickets. These rides usually took about a half hour, but at least it was a ride.
There was a moment of silence before someone spoke.
"WHY DID I PAY FOR ALL THE TICKETS!" Motoko asked, causing Ema to hide behind Kojiro again. They were all seated around a table in a train booth, Al and Motoko on one side and Kojiro and Ema on the other.
"Well, I was broke..." Kojiro lied, shaking his hand in a fanning motion.
"And so was I." Al also said, repeating Kojiro's motion. Motoko sighed and leaned back. A man in a fedora walked forward, and turned to their booth.(2)
"Tickets, please." Al raised a pair of LADS concert tickets, and the Fedora man shook his head. "Train tickets." Mistake rectified, Al and Co. gave their tickets to him, and the Fedora man walked off.
"Does Motoko know any other language than Japanese?" Kojiro asked in English, and Al shrugged. Kojiro turned to Motoko. "Motoko, do you know any other language than Japanese?" Motoko gave Kojiro a guarded look.
"I know a bit of Chinese." There was a moment of silence, and then Kojiro spoke again. "OK, Ema, why don't you go play with the fedora man. He seems like a nice enough guy." Suddenly, there was a smack, a pow, and a stomp. Motoko, Al, and Kojiro looked just in time to see a shady-looking German dude get thrown out the window.
There was silence.
"No ticket." And with that, everyone who hadn't had a ticket taken raised their tickets up. The three looked back at each other.
"OK!" Ema said, and ran off to talk to the fedora man. There was silence, and then Al spoke.
"Well," he asked, looking at Motoko, "what shall be our next move?" Motoko thought about it for a second, and then spoke.
"Well, we should probably ask her if she has any personal information, her family name, her age, the school she goes too, but Tokyo is a big city. Maybe if we asked the police..." Kojiro looked at Motoko sharply.
"No, no police. We do this ourselves." Motoko glared at him. No police? What was he thinking? Just as she was about to ask that, Al spoke up.
"Yeah, he's right. The police would probably think we kidnapped her. I mean, look at me." Al motioned to himself. "I look like a homeless man, don't I?" Kojiro coughed.
"I have accrued the same reputation in Tokyo during my brief stay here in the Red Light District." Motoko and Al stared at him. "Criminal activities. Hey, I didn't know that the Yakuza ran outta the place next to the gutter I was sleeping in, OK?" They continued to stare, and after a beat, went back to their talking.
"Well," Motoko said, "I look like an outstanding and trustworthy citizen, because I am. I'll go talk to them." Al raised a hand.
"Ahh, Motoko, according to Su, you're considered a violent criminal who hangs out with strange people, mainly lunatics." Motoko blushed and looked down. "Well, I mean, lunatic isn't too far off to describe me, and you do hang around with me..." Al continued, totally oblivious to Motoko's condition. Kojiro sighed as they pattered on.
Suddenly, the radio from another man's seat turned on. "An important announcement from Maeda Industries..." Everyone turned to the radio across the section. "Mr. Maeda's daughter is missing. A reward of a total of 1,000,000 yen will be given in full to someone who finds and returns her." As a description of Ema was played out, one by one, people began looking at her. Kojiro got up and walked over to Ema, who was now wearing the fedora and a leather jacket.
"Ema-Chan, let's go now." Kojiro said. "It's almost time to get off of the train." Ema nodded, and with a final Bye-Bye to the ticket-man, she walked with Kojiro back to their booth. Now, with everyone seated and about a minute left in the ride, the adults planned their next move.
"So, no location as to where to drop her off..." Motoko muttered, as the train stopped and an announcement went on the speakerphone, stating that the train had arrived, so everyone get out so they can get the next group in. The group stood.
"Yeah, well, I guess we can just wander around until we find it..." Al said, and Kojiro shook his head as everyone started walking out the door.
Eventually, all four of them had ended up escaping the hustle and bustle of the train station and ended up outside. As they began moving towards the nearest park, a man suddenly leapt outta nowhere and grabbed Ema roughly.
"THAT 1,000,000 YEN REWARD IS MINE!" He shouted, and was about to run off with the now confused girl, but then Kojiro, being the closest one, acted. Pulling out a syringe with some strange chemical in it, Kojiro stabbed the man in the neck with it, causing him to stiffen, then collapse. Ema fell out of the man's grasp and ran over to Kojiro.
"S-scary!" Ema said, hugging Kojiro. "People are just trying to scare me!" Kojiro looked down at her. Motoko growled as more thugs showed up, and drew her sword.
"God's Cry Form Seven, Evil Cutting Blast!" Motoko shouted, and with a single Ki Blast, took down 20 of them. Within seconds, they were instantly replaced by more greedy thugs.
"I think," Kojiro said, stepping back and lifting up Ema, "That we should beat a hoof and get outta here." Al turned to him, confused.
"Beat a what?" Al asked, tilting his head even as more thugs began walking over. Kojiro rolled his eyes.
"RUN!" And Kojiro and Al ran away, leaving Motoko in the dust. She turned.
"Wha- Wait for me!" And with that, the four ran from an unlimited amount of thugs...
-:-
(Maho and Kentaro)
"Oh god, I'm going to be sick again..."
Kentaro heaved into the recycling bin next to a vending machine.
"Get out of my way!" Maho shoved him aside and began throwing up herself. Pinned neatly on her shirt was a gold "number one customer" medal from the restaurant. Meanwhile, passersby conveniently found a reason to walk on the other side of the street.
Maho leaned against the wall, slumping over like a rag doll. "I am never, ever doing that again."
"Ugh," was Kentaro's only reply. He reached into his pocket and drew out a few 100-yen coins. "Want a soda or something? It'll help your stomach settle."
"I'll pass, thanks." She looked at him. "Don't forget, you have to show up now."
"What?" He cracked open a lemon drink. "It was a tie!"
"Don't give me that. I finished thirty seconds before you did." Maho pointed at her medal. "Who's the champ? Huh? Yeah, that's right."
"Okay, okay." Kentaro grimaced. "Well... How is she?"
"Who?"
"Haruka."
"Ooh, no '-san' or anything." Maho chuckled. "She's... I get the feeling she wants to see you again." She stood up. "For closure, maybe. If nothing else."
Kentaro drank his soda in silence.
"I knew it, Ken-kun."
"Knew what?" He raised an eyebrow.
She smiled sweetly. "You want to talk to her too, don't you?"
"Now don't start making assumptions..."
Maho nodded. "All right. Just make sure you see her. Remember, you promised."
Kentaro tossed his can into the bin. "Tomorrow."
"What? Why not tonight?"
"I don't know. I need to brace myself." He began walking away. "Ja ne."
"Pfft. Typical male." Maho grumbled. "Tomorrow or I'll kick your ass!"
"Yeah, yeah." He waved.
Maho smiled, picking out a can of cold coffee from the vending machine.
It was odd, but she felt a little happier now. Just a little.
-:-
"Roger that, I'm dusting off now to pursue the target. She seems to be escorted by two civilians, one identified as a previous target, Al Rush, and the other is still unknown. Unit Bravo, circle around and flank them from the south . We'll then proceed to waypoint Foxtrot and box them in at the choke point where Unit Charlie will be waiting. Remember, the girl is our top priority. If one hair on her head is lost, the whole operation will be for naught." a female voice monotonously spoke into a radio.
"Roger, what of the two escorts?" an adult male's voice crackled in return from the radio.
"Capture them and bring them in for interrogation. Do not kill them either. Remember, this is a shadow op. So abort when the authorities arrive and keep civilian casualties to an absolute zero, you got that?" the female voice said again.
"I copy." the other voice crackled on the radio again.
-:-
Al and Kojiro gasped for breath as they sat on a park bench, Ema standing on it and jumping up and down, and Motoko stood, not breaking a sweat.
"Weaklings." Motoko said, and Kojiro and Al simply sighed. "Well, now what?" Kojiro, Al, and Motoko all put on faces in thought as they thought. After a few moments, Kojiro looked up.
"Why don't we send Motoko to that office building over there?" He suggested, and both Al and Motoko looked at him. "Motoko can use her Feminine charms to get some information and then we'll go drop off Ema at the appropriate place." Motoko glared at Kojiro.
"What are you saying about my Feminine Charms?" Motoko asked, growling. Kojiro held up his hands in surrender, not wanting to get hurt.
"I'm just saying that anyone would rather talk to you than you me." Kojiro said, and Al nodded.
"I agree. Who would you want to talk to, a bum, a Gaijin dude, or a beautiful young woman?" Al asked, and promptly ate Ki blast from Motoko's embarrassment.
"Remind me never to compliment you." Kojiro said, stepping away. Motoko sighed and nodded.
"Very well, I shall go talk to them. Do not leave this spot, or I shall be very cross with you."(3) And with that, Motoko was gone, and Kojiro and Al were left to play with Ema.
There was silence.
"So, anyone know how to play Poker?" Kojiro asked, holding up a deck of cards.
-:-
Al, Ema, and Kojiro looked into each other's eyes, trying to discern what their intentions were. Kojiro put a couple of Oreos forward. "I see your bluff and raise you two cookies.
Al nodded. "I'll call." Ema giggled and put her hand down.
"Royal Flush." Kojiro and Al threw their hands down, a four-of-a-kind and a Straight.
"Darnit, how are you so good?" Al asked, giving the last of his Oreos to Ema. Kojiro pushed his two, and held onto his last Oreo preciously.
"Oto-San took me to Vegas once and someone taught me how to play cards." Ema smiled. "Wanna play again?" Kojiro and Al both shook their heads. "Aww." Ema giggled, and Kojiro and Al relaxed on the bench.
"Wow, it's been a while since Motoko left, huh?" Kojiro asked, and Al nodded.
"Yeah, I wonder where she went." As they sat there, out of nowhere, two dozen white, unmarked vans appeared out of nowhere, parking in front of them. Kojiro raised an eyebrow. Then the helicopter, some kind of assault chopper complete with anti-infantry guns, hovered down, which caused Kojiro and Al to stare down the guns of the military Helicopter. Yakuza gang men came out of the vans, filing off until they were in ranks outside of their vans.
The sound of a megaphone being turned on echoed throughout the park space and a young, female voice boomed on the speaker. "We don't want to hurt you. Just put the girl down and take three steps back with your hands up in the air. Do not try to resist or escape." The yakuza foot soldiers stopped in their tracks and waited for their captives to comply.
Ema tried to make herself as small as possible behind Kojiro's back to hide. She trembled in fear, "Kojiro-San, I'm scared!"
Kojiro and Al looked at each other. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Al asked, and Kojiro nodded. Al turned back to the crowd. "I surrender!" He shouted, causing Kojiro to slam his head into a wall.
"Goddamn coward..." he muttered, and held Ema closer to him. "Get lost, you goddamn lawless losers!" He shouted, and throwing Ema on his back, proceeded to run away. Al turned.
"What the heck are you doing!" he shouted, before running after him.
The same voice on the microphone yelled after them. "Hey! Get back here! Halt or we'll be forced to fire upo-oh screw it! After them!" The helicopter dusted off into the air as the line of yakuza fell back to their black, unmarked vans to pursue the escaping bunch.
Al and Kojiro, Ema in tow, dashed through the streets of Tokyo, dodging rampent Yakuza cars as they attempted not to die. One swerved feircly, and Al rolled to the side as he heard it running over a shopping cart. Another nearly did him in as it slammed into the wall directly in front of their path.
"Why the hell aren't they attacking you!" Al yelled, as he jumped over a fire hydrant. Kojiro looked about as he ran, and started running for a parking garage.
"Because they want Ema safe, and killing me might do the same to her!" He shouted. "Follow me!" Al obliged, chasing as fast as he could to escape. As they sprinted into the parking Garage, Kojiro looked quickly for something fast that he and Al could both escape in, and that he could steal.
Kojiro saw his prize in the far corner, and as he ran to it, he patted Ema on the shoulder from where he was, as she had started to cry. "There, there..." He said, bending down and starting to rig the motorcycle, with a conviniently placed sidecar. "Koji-kun's here for you. I'll take you to your Oto-San, I promise..."
Al chuckled as he ran up. "Koji-Kun?" He asked, plopping into the sidecar. Kojiro growled at him.
"Call me that and I'll force-feed you Cyanide." He said, and smiled as he got it working. Kojiro slammed the gas, and put it in reverse. The motorcycle moved backwards, and Kojiro turned it around. "Ema-Chan, hold on tight..." He muttered, and slammed the gas.
Within seconds, the motorcycle had lept up the parking ramp and out and over the vans, putting him at eye-level with the pilot of the helecopter.
"After them! I'll head them off northbound at waypoint indie!" the girl's vioce crackled in on the radio.
"Right!" all the yakuza confirmed. Kojiro looked behind him and saw the cobra turn around and leave. What were they planning?
However, he had no time to think further about their plans. He was no Jedi or psychic, but the Yazuka vans hitting the gas towards them caused him to slam on his own gas, and then there he was, weaving between traffic at top speed, his reflexes being tested to the limit. Ema was screaming, Al was screaming, but Kojiro had no time to consider them, lest he die.
All sanity was ignored as he weaved left and right, dodging vans and 18-wheelers and large, bipedal tanks, and eventually he managed to turn a hard right and under an 18 wheeler.. a feat that vans were simply too tall to accomplish, marked or not. In a horrid screeching of tearing metal, the vans pursuing them met a very stopping stop.
Kojiro and Al looked back and laughed as they realized their victory. They turned back forward, Al's mouth saying "We did it!", and then stopping, as they saw something they did not want to see...
The Cobra hovered before them, cutting them off, its cannons aimed at the motorcycle.
"Please stop!" the same voice commanded them from the gunship. "If you come quietly I won't have to use force and we'll let you go. Just give us the girl and leave!"
Kojiro growled as he looked at the chopper, and turned to Ema. She continued to cry, clenching onto Kojiro's shirt. He looked back, and nodded. "OK, Al, here's the plan," He muttered, as he put his feet on the ground to get it ready to go. He continued to mutter, and nodded as he slammed on the gas, feet holding the motorcycle in place, if barely. "Got it?"
Al nodded. "I gotcha." He said, and started to reach into his backpack. Kojiro nodded, and let go of the ground, slamming the motorcycle into motion, directly for the helecopter, and more so towards the tunnel directly behind it.
The helicopter pivoted around to follow them and fired it's main guns. The bullets tore up the pavement after Kojiro sped toward the entrance of the tunnel where the Cobra could not follow. As they disappeared the chopper proceeded toward the other end. The pilot inside grinned and spoke into the radio. "They're on their way, stand-by."
On the other side of the tunnel, the motorcycle emerged, going well beyond the speed limit as it ran onto a freeway. As it got onto the onramp, it drove forward for a few seconds, and then the sidecar detached itself, rider included. Steering left hard, it nearly flew off the off ramp nearby, scrambling for balance as it went downhill.
The motorcycle continued on at top speed, dodging through traffic; and then screeching to a halt as the driver saw the Yakuza men and the helicopter. The driver was quickly seized and yanked off the motorcycle, and he was held down. Ayane came out of the Copter, looking at the mess.
"Ma'am!" One Yakuza said, looking up. "The girl isn't here!" Ayane growled.
"WHAT! Who is that, then!" They yanked the helmet off of the driver, and Al smiled.
"Hi there." He said, and Ayane growled in frustration. "Damnit, hold him here, I'll go get the girl!" With that, she ran back into the helecoptor, and it lifted off and went to go find Kojiro. The Yakuza men walked forward to deal with Al.
-:-
Al whimpered, his face and body being pressed roughly roughly agenst the ground by several large men in suits, hopefully he had bought Kojiro and Ema enough time.
"Ok we got the Ok from the boss, they found the other two, they don't need this one anymore." One of them said.
The American groaned and attempted to stand, finding the several men sitting on his back made this impossible.
He did however feel a now too fimilar piece of metal pushed agenst the back of his head, "This is gonna lose me some Karama, I better make sure to donate to the temple after this." One of the men chuckled.
"excuse me." Said a female voice that made Al's stomich do a flip.
The men on top of Al gave a groan and fell off, Al stood and almost cried with joy at the sight of Motoko, her sword drawn, almost glowing with the energy she was putting out.
"This boy is here is a friend of mine, and I don't let my friends get outnumbered." She smiled, she'd enjoy this practice.
Al watched as she fought, though the men were larger and many were shooting, none could seem to tag the kendo girl as she zipped around them, hitting them with blasts of chi and sword swings. These were not ment to kill, just to harm, which they did quiet well.
Al watched in fascination and awe, something about the way she moved, effortlessly from person to person, so fluid and graceful. It unlocked the feelings he had been debating over so long, and he now knew how he really felt about the raven haired girl he had met only two days after arriving in japan.
One of the men in suits was slipping away down the alley while Motoko was busy with the others, this did not escape the notice of the large american who darted off around the corner after him.
The mobster noticed he was being followed and began knocking over trashcans trying to slow down Al.
It worked, the clumsy Americans luck seemed to have run out and he tripped, crashing to the ground roughly.
"I'm not even gonna worry about the Karma I might lose for this." The leader of the small group smiled down at Al like a demon.
"This is it..." Al closed his eyes, for the third time awaiting the end from the barrel of a gun.
There was a groan and a thud and Al opened his eyes, Motoko grabbed him by his shirt and hauled him to his feet, amazingly strong.
"T..thank you so much Mo-chan!" Al went to hug her and she slapped him, causeing him to stumble back a step, "Ow! What'd I do!"
Motoko was fuming "You and the Hentai-san abandon me in Tokyo, I don't have a clue where you went, and then I see you running down a street with a mob of men in suits after you! You could have been killed, what have you to been doing!" She demanded, looking almost more angry with Al then she had with the men.
"I...I...I'm sorry." Al bowed and proceeded to tell her everything that had happened sense her departure to ask for directions, begging her in apologetic tones to forgive her, all the while continueing his bowing.
"Please forgive me Mo-chan!" he asked earnestly looking up at her.
She paused, thinking it over then nodded, "Alright, but you still owe me that ice cream cone."
Al stood up, stars in his eyes, "Yay!"
The two of them started off for the nearest ice cream parlor, "You know I feel i'm forgetting something." Al said scratching the back of his head.
There was a long pause then both of them cried out, "Ema and hentai-san!"
The set off running to find them.
-:-
Kojiro and Ema relaxed on another bench, the Motorcycle Sidecar leaning on a wall nearby. Ema had calmed down, and Kojiro was trying to catch his breath. Eventually, Kojiro broke the silence.
"So, Ema-Chan." He said. Ema turned.
"Hai, Koji-Kun?" She asked, tilting her head.
"Well, your dad's rich, right?"
"Hai." Ema replied. "Why?" Kojiro shrugged.
"Well, I was wondering, wasn't anyone watching you? I mean, you're his daughter, you think he'd have someone babysitting you." Ema made a small sound as she thought.
"Ano, maybe it's because he doesn't like babysitters? He's kinda proud." she giggled. "Although I'd like you to be my babysitter!"
Kojiro coughed, looking upwards.
"I don't know what's so bad. I always walk out of our house by myself and nothing bad ever happens to me." she said as-a-matter-of-factly. Kojiro choked on his own air, as he stumbled. "I-i see." he finally managed to say, as he got his wind back. He had choice words for a parent who didn't watch their child... "You have any siblings?"
Ema shook her head. "Nope, I live alone." Ema replied rather sadly. "But that's why I want you to be my babysitter!" her mood changed dramatically, she squeezed his neck. "You're fun Koji-kun!"
Kojiro chuckled. "Well, I guess I wouldn't mind keeping you company, then." he said, considering what might happen then. This kid wasn't like his baby cousins; they were loud brats, but she was quiet, nice, cheerful, and she didn't smell as bad.
"Really!" Ema asked, hyped up all the more. Kojiro nodded.
"Yeah, it sounds like fun." Ema grinned widely.
"Yay! Koji-Kun likes me! Yatta!" Kojiro chuckled at this exclimation. Although the wording WAS a little weird. What did she mean by that? He shrugged the feeling off, chalking it to his poor Japanese.
Ema yawned. "Koji-Kun, I'm tired." She said, and she yawned again. "Good night." And just like that, Ema was asleep.
Kojiro let her use his shoulder as a pillow, damn his short-ness. He leaned back, watching her sleep. "Well, I'll just wait here for her to wake up." Kojiro muttered. "The fact that I'm pooped doesn't hurt either." With that, he leaned back and relaxed.
He felt at peace, then he felt a gust of wind, then he felt the ground vibrate underneath his feet, then he heard a whirring noise in the distance. Oh no, not again. He peeked an eye open and saw the annoying helicopter again, hovering above the ground some 35 yards away and he knew it was training its guns on him.
Kojiro sighed, knowing that the jig was up, as the Helicoptor landed. Kojiro just sat there, awaiting his fate. Suddenly, the Helicoptor door opened up, and a girl, no older than 16, jumped out of it, and raised an M-16 to his head.
"Goddamnit, this is the last time I'm telling you, give her up or die!" Kojiro sighed as he stared down the gun's barrel, and was about to tell her to do her worst, when suddenly a loud, booming male voice spoke up.
"WHAT is going on here!" Kojiro turned, and Ema instantly woke up. A large businessman was standing behind him, and Kojiro saw Al and Motoko with him.
"Oto-San!" Ema shouted, leaping up the bench and running over to him. Mr. Maeda hugged his daughter, and looked up to Kojiro, and the much more threatening girl. "Now, what has happened?" The Yakuza soldier sweatdropped.
"Er, what happened was, uhh..." the girl stuttered, not quite sure what to say. Kojiro spoke up, mentally slapping his forehead.
"The young miss here was simply guiding us here and keeping the High-school delinquents that seem to tarnish this fair city from bothering young Ema here." Mr. Maeda nodded that he understood. "Right?" He continued, turning to the Yakuza girl.
"Er, ah, yeah. What he said."
Ema spoke up, "Oto-San, Oto-San, since you're going to Hong Kong a week or so, can Koji-Kun baby-sit me?" Mr. Maeda looked at Ema, surprised.
"Wow, you usually don't like babysitters." Mr. Maeda said, ruffling Ema's hair. He turned to Kojiro. "What's your name, kid?" Kojiro was a bit miffed at being called kid, but he didn't particularly care.
"I'm Chavez Kojiro, Sir. It's a pleasure to meet you. Ema-Chan here speaks highly of you." Kojiro discreetly hide some of his earlier opinions from his face. Mr. Maeda nodded.
"Well, I am going overseas to do some business stuff." Mr. Maeda said, tweaking his non-existent mustache. "If you'd like the job, I guess I can give it to you." Kojiro considered this. "Of course, I'll pay you handsomely in addition to the 1,000,000 yen." This helped make up Kojiro's mind.
"OK." The young man said. "I'll do it." And with that, Kojiro shook Mr. Maeda's hand.
"Deal. Now, you live at the Hinata House, right?"
-:-
Kojiro sat in the limousine, Motoko sitting across from him, and Ema in the back seat. About five minutes earlier, they had dropped off Al at some concert place, and they were heading back to Hinata Inn. Kojiro thought back over the day, and turned to Motoko.
"Hey, Ayoma-San." Motoko looked over, slightly irritated.
"Yes, Hentai-San?" Motoko asked, causing Kojiro to wince.
"I asked you not to call me that." He replied, looking slightly put out.
"Then what is it?" Kojiro scrunched his face up, and then spoke again.
"Well, it seems that today's been a little weird. Stiff dialogue, taking turns talking, I'm surprised you didn't say anything to me at the end there." Kojiro tilted his head. "What I'm trying to say, is that today seems a little... weird. Like someone's been playing with our actions or something." There was silence, and then Motoko rolled her eyes and looked away. "What! I'm serious! Hey, don't ignore me! I'm not that crazy! G-gao..."
BONK!
"Hey, what was that for!"
"For saying Gao."
"Who are you, Haruko Kamio?"(4)
-:-
"Su, stop messing around with my sword!"
The tanned girl laughed playfully as she swung around the cheap plastic replica of the Master Sword, nearly knocking over clothes and breaking mirrors. Dizzy was cowering in his costume in a corner, avoiding the deadly swings, and Lance had tried to rush in to grab it away from her, with no such luck.
"Su, be serious for just one second...!"
"I am the chosen one!" Su cried leaping upon the table of free food and stabbing a bag of Doritos. She tugged at the blade trying to free it but she had stabbed it deep into the wooden table. "Aw, it's stuck."
Lance sighed. "Move over, I'll get it."
Su jumped off the table just as Lance climbed on, and with two hands he gripped the hilt of the blade and tugged hard, with no gain.
"Blasted sword..." he tugged harder and harder, until finally he wrenched it free with such force that he lost his balance, and he was pushed up and off the table, landing on the ground with a loud THUD!
Dizzy growled a snide remark about the Californian not being the 'one true king' as they watched the blade fly through the air and bury itself in the door.
Lance tossed him a glare. "You little runt..."
The door swung open slowly, and Al with a look of pure bliss almost floated into the room, ignoring the fact that the blade and almost taken his head off as he had been leaning against the door listening for Lance and the others.
"Al!" Su cheered leaping upon Al, who merely allowed her to land on his head rather then trying to stop her.
"THERE you are!" Lance yelled, pulling himself to his feet. The outcry was made in anger, but he nevertheless kept a smile on his face.
Al grabbed Lance, Su and Dizzy in a bear hug, squeezing them all, "Oh friends I rejoice at our reunion!"
"Turning... blue..." Lance wheezed.
Dizzy bit down on Al's arm, and though the large one seemed not to notice he let them go and gracefully began dancing around the room, the same stupid grin on his face as when he had entered.
"Al, where've you been?" Lance said with an impatient tone, "You were supposed to be here half an hour ago!"
"I was helping rescue a kid from some guys in suits, and then myself being rescued by an angel sent from above to cut through my deep dark fears of commitment and show me the true joys of life." Al said plainly still dancing stupidly.
Su giggled "What'd he say? Was that Japanese or English? Su didn't understand."
"Lance didn't either..." said the confused boy, dressed in a green hat, tunic, and gloves with white tights and light brown running boots. He was, quite sexily, dressed as Link from the Legend of Zelda video games.
"Say, where's Sam and Mutsumi?" Al asked. "I thought they were our new bodyguards."
"Oh, they are." Said Lance, "I just tipped them off that an army of fangirls may raid the stage, so they're over there right now. I don't think he believed me, but it was better than having to see him practice stupid poses in front of me..."
Dizzy rolled his eyes under the sheet he wore (a blue Ghost from the Pac-Man games) and held Al's costume up to him.
"Oh thank you friend, what is the theme for our costumes tonight?" He asked oblivious to the clearly Link-like Lance.
"I made a last-minute change of song on the way here," said Lance. "Remember the one I wrote, 'Old School Nintendo'?"
"Oh yeah, I liked that one." Al wandered behind a dressing screen, "Hey why does my costume have so much hair on it?"
"Because, for once, You only need to doll up your face, because the rest of you will be covered with the Donkey Kong suit." Lance grinned mischievously, placing his hands on his hips.
Al lumbered out into the room, and could easily be mistaken for the video game version of Donkey Kong as he returned fully dressed, "And I'm dressed like this, as the innocent one?"
Dizzy grumbled that Al shouldn't complain as the weasel would be playing drums around a bed sheet Ghost costume.
"Should it really matter? People already know who we are. Our manager gave information about us to the concert staff, so that they could hand out pamphlets about every band."
"I photo-shopped a cute piccy of us for it." Su smiled as she began playing with a fake mustache she had donned in the imitation of Nintendo's star plumber, Mario.
"I didn't even know I had one of these." Al muttered distractedly, flexing the muscle-bound gorilla costume.
"Su was able to find one after digging through the dumpsters at the Nintendo office building here." Lance said proudly.
"So that's why I smell like a hobo."
"Grr."
"I bathe daily, you rat."
As Al checked out the rest of his outfit, and the rest of the group composed themselves for the big show, three pairs of ears were pressed against the door and three pairs of eyes watched it intently.
"Just as I thought..." said the short haired leader of the Moto-kites.
"B...but that means the one sensei harbors feelings for is a pervert after all, I had hoped her judgment better!" whimpered one of the two lesser skilled minions.
"I knew it looked suspicious, that blond one just walking backstage like he owned the place." The third one muttered.
"Quiet, girls!" the leader whispered. The other two obeyed silently.
"We need to do this carefully," she continued. "We'll let them perform tonight, but once they're done,... we'll do everything we can to stop them from ever humiliating themselves,... but most especially us."
"B...but they cheated, their not even real girls, why not just blow the whistle on them now, they already defeated us once!"
"We'll give them a choice, that much they deserve." She whispered back. "If they don't abide to our wishes, they will be publicly humiliated in front of all of Japan..."
"It is as Motoko-sempai always says, everyone deserves at least one chance."
"That's not the choice I'm giving them." She barked back. "If they don't tell the public the truth on their own, then we'll expose them ourselves. Either way, their exact punishment shall be received. There is no way out it this time, Rush..."
Back in the room Al sneezed rather violently within the gorilla suit, several times to the point of tears forming, "Man who's plotting against me this time?" He muttered.
"Eh?" Lance asked, confused.
"Grr." Dizzy explained Al always thought sneezes meant a plot against him was being hatched, or someone in the future was walking over his grave.
"Or a ghost is walking through me." Al added as he put the finishing touches on Su's makeup.
"...You surprise me everyday, Al." Lance shook his head at the overly-suspicious monkey sitting in front of him
"Considering how many people I bother every day it shouldn't surprise you." Al smiled at his work, Su looked cuter then ever.
"Everyone hates Al at some point." Su giggled
"Al, why are you putting make-up on Su? Mario doesn't wear lipstick, last I checked."
"Adds to her femininity, after all we may be dressed like boys this time, but we're still girls inside...err...with boys inside that."
Lance winced, "Don't make my brain explode Al, not before the show..."
"Yeah, all the makeup in the world wouldn't fix that mess." Su began skipping around the room.
"You're on in five, LADS!" called a stage hand from behind the dressing room door.
Lance picked up his sword lying on the ground and faced his band. "Ready guys? Er.. girls?"
Al and Dizzy fiddled with their Egg-kuns before calling out with Su in differing girl voices, "Ready!"
Lance clicked his on and screamed in his girly voice, "Then let's ROCK! Bring them in, LADS on three!" Lance held out his hand, which was soon covered by two more hands and a paw.
"One, two, three,..."
"LADS!"
As they filed out of their room and toward the open-air stage, the three Moto-kites crept out from their hiding spot near the door and into the dressing room, searching for any and all evidence that would lead the rising stars to doom...
-:-
The hit new musical group LADS had just stepped onto the open air stage, and met their biggest audience yet. The entire courtyard that stretched for miles ahead of them was filled with well over 5,000 people, including a space heavily filled with previous fans who saw them at their first gig at Hinata and came all the way to Tokyo to see them play again. All eyes were on their outfits, and the cheering grew louder. The whole place was filled with just the fans that Lance wanted; underappreciated nerds and gamers. Lance, Al, Dizzy, and Su's eyes sparkled at the sight they beheld - their future fans, cheering and clapping for their first big show.
Lance grabbed his guitar from the stand and faced the crowd, all distractions gone and a huge smile on his face. "Are you ready to rock, Tokyo!"
His outcry was returned with double the noise they heard while entering the stage.
Dizzy clapped his sticks together four times, and the band began to play a little tune that the crowd immediately recognized. Over the music, Lance spoke once again to the audience.
"Do you guys know of an American song called '1985' by Bowling for Soup?"
They knew it, alright. And showed it by an enormous applause.
"Well then, we''ll sing it to you adding in the one thing they forgot about that year... OLD SCHOOL NINTENDO!"
They were now jumping on their feet in appreciation. The tune grew harder, and the real song began, with a jump and a soft "Woohoohoo!"
"Woohoohoo!"
Lance and Al banged their heads close together, and Lance spinned around once and returned to the mike for the first verse.
"Jimmy just blew the bomb, His money was all gone. Bullies took his pay, And broke his GBA. His nightmares were fulfilled, When he played Silent Hill. Only good at one game, He never knew the name. "
All 5,000+ audience members were fully attentive and rocking out. They knew this song well, as it was one of the few American rock songs to hit the singles list in Japan.
"He was gonna be an expert, He was gonna be so l33t. He would win Super Smash, Just using his bare feet. His skill at PVP, Was his worst enemy. But bust the NES, And he will, show you, he's best."
Lance, Al and Su jumped after the last word, and came back down jamming harder than ever.
"Instead of Halo, and DS, They were all just BS. There was Metroid, and Contra, And Legend of Zelda. The police were afraid, He'd shoot his school in fierce rage. But you won't find none of those, In old school, old school, old school Nintendo."
"Woohoohoo (Old school Nintendo) Woohoohoo "
Lance looked over at Al, who nodded back to him with a wide smile fueled by excitement and adrenaline. Su of course was loving every moment of it. Dizzy stepped one of his free feet down on a pedal, and bursts of confetti shot out from air cannons beneath the stage, sending the crowd into a state of hysteria.
"He's played all the classics, Memorized them all. "Mega Man", "Earthbound", And "Tyson's Punch-Out"! He kicks ass at Pong, But not DDR songs. Don't you mess with him, At a game of "Earthworm Jim"
"What is all the hype over Xbox? And who the hell's idea was it to buy from Microsoft? All these new games, making Jim sick. Whatever happened to slumber parties, Playing "Duck Hunt" on the-"
"Classic, game console, Plant the roots of our soul. There was Ninja Crusader, And Tiny Toon Adventures. You may think it's kiddy, And PSP is pretty. But you're wrong on both of those, So go play, old, school, old school Nintendo."
"Woohoohoo !"
At this point, Lance stepped out and performed a sweet guitar solo that perfectly matched the one in the original. The crowd was on their feet and pumping their fists in great respect.
"Woohoohoo!"
"So mainstream, make it end, Why was Mortal Kombat such a crazy trend? And when was Sony so badass? Please stop this now, now, NOW!"
"...And go play-" BOOM! (bigger confetti bursts)
"Games will make you drool, Cause Bomberman was so cool. With Bionic Commando, But nothing will beat Mario. So stop with the debates, You'll never get your facts straight. So let's turn the notch down low, And play some Nintendo."
"Samus, Luigi, They were all so peachy. Playing with Link, hey what's that? It's Simon Belmont killing Drac'! There's some things you can't miss, Like highest score on Tetris. Like Jim says, you need to go, With old school, old school, old school Nintendo."
With the last riff and bang of the drum, the crowd knew sadly that the show was over. Without a second to lose, they used every second that they were onstage to clap, cheer, jump, pump fist, yell, scream, and love-out-loud. The LADS stood together at the edge of the stage and bowed, smiling and waving to the audience. Then for a few short minutes they posed in their outfits for pictures (which were many) before leaving the stage. Al blew humongous kisses to his adoring fans and followed the rest out.
-:-
The door to the dressing room swung open and banged against the wall as LADS entered, cheering and laughing, buzzed from another successful show. Sam and Mutsumi joined them, but he was soon dragged out by Mutsumi, who saw a food cart full of watermelons being pushed across the hall.
"I'm starting to like this." Al giggled girly like as he skipped across the room in the clunky oversized DK outfit.
"I'm already loving it." Lance added, slapping Dizzy a high-five as they entered the room.
Su shut the door behind and threw her costume off, "That was soooo much fun!"
Al covered his eyes, "Behind the screen for that Su, don't wanna see that!"
Lance was already turned away, and he moved on to Al. "Did the costume feel alright to you?"
"S'alright, little warm though." Al un-zipped the suit and clouds of steam filled the room.
"GRR!" Dizzy threw his Pac-Man Ghost costume aside and opened a window. Lance shielded his eyes, and turned away to his chair to change back into his normal clothes. Luckily for him, Su was already dressed and dancing happily around the remaining puffs of steam and he walked over.
BAM!
Click, Click, Click!
Al threw his hands in the air, "Don't shoot!" He cried thinking the men who he had distracted earlier had come back for him.
The three girls in uniform stood before them, a camera in each hand and a smirk on each face.
"Hey, wait, don't I know you three?" Al asked still holding his hands in the air.
"Grr." Dizzy covered himself with a music sheet as he, like his owner was in between clothes
Lance, still in his outfit, acted quickly and said in a high-pitched voice, "Hey! We're not interested in photos or autographs right now, so you girls should-"
The leader laughed loudly, slamming the door behind them. "Don't play funny with me, Waymire-san. I know who you are."
"Who is this Waymire-san?" Al asked, unaware that while he was in his boxers his face was still girly and he still had on his egg-kun choker.
"Rush-san, I can only assume that you are the one behind all this, and we will not allow this deception!"
Lance looked from the girls to Al, who looked completely shocked. Finally he wrestled the Egg-kun choker from his neck and took off the hat and wig. "Alright. You got us."
"Got who?" Al asked as he was attempting to climb out the window, it was however much too small and Su pulled him back into the room.
"Grr."
"I'll tell you what we want, a confession, out there in front of all those people, right now!"
"We can't do that!" Lance yelled, "We've gone this far, we won't give up now!" "If you don't we will, you are lying to all those people out there and it's wrong!" The leader continued, seeming to have prepared her answers in advance.
Al suddenly went very pale as he saw the leader glaring at him, "And we'll show these pictures to Motoko-san first."
"Look," said Lance, "Can't we agree on something here? We'll pay you whatever you want, you can even take all the earnings we get tonight!"
"You dare imply we would be moved to the accepting bribes? How dishonorable!"
Al was already in the corner writing his confession speech, "If I confess will you not tell Mo-chan please?" He whimper tears in his eyes.
Dizzy slapped his owner, "GRR!" Pull it together man!
Lance hung his head low, thinking hard to himself.. For the first time, he had no idea what to do...
"Hurry up, Mutsumi! I KNEW something was going to happen..."
"Hold on, let me grab one more melon!"
The girls turned, grimacing at their soon-approaching danger. The short haired girl turned back to Lance with a glare that meant serious intent.
"You're lucky, this time. You have until Thursday to reveal yourselves, or I promise you, WE will!"
The girls ran and hurtled out of the open window, landing on soft grass and sprinting out of view just as Sam knocked down the door and sword at ready. Mutsumi waved happily at everyone with her one arm that didn't hold a bunch of watermelons.
"I saw something going wrong here." Sam said in a near-serious tone. "What's going on?"
"Err..." Al began. Lance cut him off. "It's nothing, Sam. Al just had trouble with his outfit."
Sam looked on at Lance with a look of disbelief and irritation. But for once, he didn't argue back and sheathed his sword. He turned back and blocked the doorway with Mutsumi, so that no one could peek inside.
"Hey, look what Su found!"
Lance, Al and Dizzy looked over at Su, who stood at the makeup desk and held up a piece of paper. They walked over and crowded around her, and Lance read out loud,
"Lizzy-san, Alexis-san, DiDi-san, and Su-san,
Great job on the concert tonight. I know I seem like a jerk to everyone, but I really like the music you're playing. But someone's gotta care about the money and fame, right?
Anyway, I've met with the administrators of the concert, and they (along with the audience) were thrilled with your performance, and they have agreed to host a solo concert for you all this Thursday, at the main concert hall in the downtown district. Everyone in the audience will be given three tickets - one for themselves, and two for friends or family, so the crowd should be nearly tripled by your next performance. Once we get this gig done with, then the REAL tickets get sold, and you may even be given a record deal with my father, Hideo Sumeragawa. Just don't slack off.. If you have plans, rearrange them. We can't afford to miss out on this show.
I'll meet you outside with the limo. Don't stop for autographs, we have a schedule to meet..
-Aimi Sumeragawa."
Lance groaned heavily. This meant more late-night practices, and another day of begging, pleading, and sneaking. But the other side of him was ready to burst with excitement, with the promise of fame and big opportunities.
"What do you guys think?" He asked them.
Al shrugged, "It's cool by me, if it's cool with you, bud."
"Grr!"
"Yayy, Su wants more friends!"
Lance smiled and nodded. "Then it looks like we have another big show. And after that, we'll REALLY be big shots!"
"I don't mean to interrupt," Sam yelled back to them, "But we have to back at the Hinata in two-and-a-half hours, so make it quick."
"Whatever you say." Lance chuckled and went back to putting on his first Lizzy costume, so that he may walk outside safely, drive back home, and end another great day.
-:-
Shinobu walked carefully along the corridor, carrying a tray of tea and snacks for Keitaro and Naru, who were studying in Naru's room. Her mind kept going back to Sunday night, when Keitaro had kissed her as fireworks exploded above them... and had then told her that she'd be too young for him for several more years.
She bit back tears. She could bet that he'd never kissed Naru like that! Couldn't he see that they were made for each other, and a few years (well, OK, seven years) was nothing when they were fated to be together?
Anyway, it was only a matter of time. As long as Keitaro remained single, then it might take a few years, but he would be hers, eventually!
With this thought in mind, she timidly knocked on Naru's door, and slid it open.
Around the kotatsu, Keitaro and Naru were chatting amicably. Shinobu noticed with growing horror that they even both blushed when they touched hands in passing over an eraser!
"Oh no!" thought Shinobu to herself in a panic, "Sempai and Naru-sempai are getting into a 'love-love' situation! This is bad! I have to stop it!" She looked around wildly, before grasping the first plan that came into her head.
"Sorry, sempai," she murmured to herself, "But this is for your own good!"
Walking forwards with the tea, Shinobu 'tripped' and fell forwards. As she had expected, Keitaro jumped up to catch her, and so it was a simple matter to end the fall with his head in her lap.
Shinobu blushed crimson with embarassment.
Naru also went crimson, but with a totally different emotion.
"Keitaro! You... HENTAI!" screeched Naru, and with a swift kick, launched the hapless ronin out of the room.
"I can't believe I was actually starting to like that pervert!" Naru said crossly, as Shinobu took the chance to escape the room. She was pleased that she had put paid to Keitaro and Naru's relationship for the time being, although there was a fair amount of guilt for her duplicity which caused Keitaro's injury.
But it was necessary, to protect their future.
-:-
If anyone had been listening in on Sam and Mutsumi as they rode back in the back of the van that evening, they would have heard a strange conversation.
"There was something going on in there, I know it!"
"It certainly looked like it - Lance-kun is so adorable when he tries to tell fibs! - but I never felt anything coming..."
"Come to that, what on earth was a trolley full of watermelons doing out there in the corridor in the first place?"
"I don't care what you say, I think there is a big problem building up..."
"If that's the case, then why haven't I seen anything coming? I'm the trained one, aren't I? But... I agree, those watermelons (although very tasty and fortuitous) were a bit unusual. I can't help but feel just a little worried, somehow..."
-:-
Ema ran up the steps of Hinata House, giggling as she ran up. Kojiro was following, jogging up the steps as he was a wuss and not suited to running, and Motoko was taking her sweet time walking up the stairs. Ema made it to the front door first, and Kojiro followed. Keitaro was sitting in front of the door, wiping sweat off of his brow.
"Hey there, Kojiro." Keitaro said, waving. Kojiro replied in kind.
"Hey there, Keitaro." Keitaro looked to Ema, who was now dancing around.
"Hey, who's this?" Keitaro asked, resisting the urge to pat the little one on the head and give her a cookie, since he was short on cookies on his person.
"This is Maeda Ema-Chan. I'm gonna be babysitting her for a friend." Kojiro quickly summarized the day's events, short of his occasional flashbacks. Keitaro nodded.
"Well, I suppose she can stay if she'll be in your room. Sure, OK." Keitaro put a thumb up, and Kojiro grinned.
"Thanks, man. Ahh, I don't suppose you could assemble whoever's here right now in about fifteen minutes? I haven't introduced myself to many people yet, and I'd like to get that over with so I don't run into strangers." Keitaro nodded.
"Sure." As Keitaro got up, he paused. "Hey, what's in the package?" He asked, tilting his head. Kojiro looked at it.
"Oh, this? L&L Plate Lunch.(5) Picked it up on the way here. Hopefully, it'll make a decent peace offering for that lady who tried to kill me." Keitaro nodded thoughtfully.
"Who, Ryuko-San? Yes, I suppose that an apology would be best." And with that, Kojiro went inside to put Ema someplace safe, like the living room, and went to go apologize to Ryuko-San.
Ryuko sat back and relaxed, fatigued by the day's events. Ryu was sleeping in his PDA-Sleep, her room was in some order, and the Inn was secure from the insanity that was this Mothers against Hinata House thing. God was in His Heaven and all was right in the world. She closed her eyes to take a quick doze before dinner, and then...
Knock-Knock. Ryuko opened her eyes. Knock-Knock. She got up, slightly irritable. "Who is it?" She asked, walking to the door.
"A deeply apologetic tenant of the Hinata Dorm who is here to be spared from your wrath through tribute, Ma'am." Was the reply. Ryuko paused for a moment, and then opened the door. Kojiro was there, fully bowing while holding up the L&L plate lunch, the epitome of food, two-scoops of rice, and Macaroni Salad in a quick make deal. And it was still warm, too.
"I beg forgiveness from my rather rude and uncouth actions yesterday. In tribute I bring this, knowing full well that it doesn't nearly make up for my horridly rude actions. I pray that you will even consider forgiveness, and realize that if you do not, I deserve any and all forms of punishment." Kojiro groveled.
There was silence.
"Err, thanks." Ryuko picked up the Plate Lunch of L&L goodness and opened it. And inside, was beef Stew.
"I just grabbed something, so I have no idea if you'll like it or not, but hopefully you'll enjoy what I picked up." Kojiro looked up. "So, am I forgiven?" Ryuko took a few bites, and looked down.
"Well, OK, I guess I forgive you." Kojiro went back to bowing.
"Thank you thank you thank you, mucho gracias, Arigato Gozaimasu!" Kojiro thanked over and over again, head low. Ryuko sweatdropped.
"Uhh, yeah. You owe me one, though."
"Oh, of course, I will strive to do what you wish!" There was silence.
"Are you making fun of me?" Ryuko asked, arching an eyebrow. Kojiro looked up.
"Uh, no, not particularly. I gotta go down and go introduce myself. Cya later!" And with that, Kojiro walked down the steps and out to go say hello to everyone.
Ryuko blinked. "Okay..."
Kojiro looked at the Hinata House members, all assembled in the living room, all on various chairs and couches, and spoke to address them.
"Hello." He said, looking at them one by one. "I am Kojiro Chavez. I'll be staying here for a while, I guess. I'm originally from Hawaii, Oahu to be precise, and I came here to travel abroad, but I didn't plan ahead far enough and I ended up living homeless around a bunch of cities until I made my way here, where I managed to put the money I made doing odd jobs and working as the 'Kyoto Marionette Master' to use." Kojiro nodded. "And that's about everything about me that's interesting. Anyone who I haven't already met care to introduce themselves?
Cody spoke first. "I'm Cody Bowie. It's a pleasure to meet you, man." He and Kojiro shook hands, and then Cody stepped back. Kojiro looked through the group of people. Actually, he had met most of them...
"YOU!" A younger man came out of the crowd, his face angered and in rage. "You're the Kyoto Marionette Master! You have a lotta nerve showing up here!" Everyone looked at Sam. Kojiro watched him for a moment, and then shrugged.
"Who in the Nine Hells of Baator are you?" He asked, causing Sam to facefault.
"It's me! Samuel McShannock!" Silence reigned once again.
"Nope, sorry, I'm totally clueless." Kojiro shrugged. "I don't think I owe you money, but otherwise I'm totally lost." Sam drew a sword out of nowhere, causing Kojiro to step backwards.
"Damnit, I challenge you to a duel!" Sam raised the sword into the air. "Now, to avenge my honor!" There was silence.
"Honestly, dude, I don't fight Middle Schoolers. I got beat up by enough of them in Senior year.(6)" There was further silence. "That means I decline to duel you. Please don't hit me with that sword, it looks sharp and you could put someone's eye out with the pointy end. I don't like bleeding. Especially when I'm bleeding my own blood. You know, as opposed to someone else's blood. Like, another guy's blood. Yeah."
There was further silence.
"I'm going to go, then. I have to babysit, and I thank ya'll for listening to me. Have a great night." And with that, Kojiro bowed, and walked up the stairs to go play with Ema and have a good night's sleep, since he was too tired to eat anyways.
Eventually, everyone else filed out, leaving Sam alone.
"... Hey! Where did everyone go?"
-:-
Sam decided to go out for a walk to clear his head. Why had he let himself get so riled up again? He couldn't even remember, in fact, what the guy had done to piss him off so long ago! Ah well...
It was as he walked around the corner of Hinata-Sou that Sam suddenly was hit by another vision.
He was in this very place, and just walking past the bushes ahead. Two large men leapt out, wrestled him to the ground, and placed some sweet-smelling rag over his face... he tried to call out, but everything was getting faint...
Sam stopped abruptly in shock. What the hell! He looked at the bushes ahead - nothing looked out of place. Still, something was up - he'd better go back inside, and get Motoko to check the place out, or at least pick up his sword.
It was slightly after Sam had turned back towards the entrace that two large men leapt out from behind the garbage bins, and wrestled him to the ground.
As Sam started to pass out from the chemical in the rag held over his face, he heard some words from a third person he had not previously spotted.
"Yeah, this is him. He turned back, didn't he? Get him to the safe house, fast."
-:-
"Kei-kun! Wake up!"
Keitaro reluctantly left his dream (involving Naru, Motoko, Shinobu and an extra-large vat of whipped cream) to find himself being shaken awake by Mutsumi. His self-preservation instincts kicked in.
"Sorry! I didn't mean to be in your room! Narusegawa, I can explain! I... hang on, this is my room..."
"We don't have time for this, Kei-kun!" snapped Mutsumi, uncharacteristically. "Something important has happenned, and I need you all down in the lounge, now! I'm getting the residents, just get yourself down there!"
Before Keitaro had time to ask this strange woman who she was, and what she had done with the real Mutsumi, she had left. Shrugging, he quickly put some pants on, and went downstairs. At least he'd be able to find out what the hell was going on.
-:-
A few minutes later, Keitaro was in the lounge. So were all the other tenants, with the exception of Kyosuke, Sam, Kojiro, Shinobu, Cody and Moe. Then Mutsumi walked in.
"Okay everyone," she began, "I know you all want to know what's going on, and I'll explain it now.
First, yes this is me, no I haven't changed, I was just pretending to be a ditz. The reason will become apparent shortly.
Secondly, Sam has been kidnapped."
At this point, things temporarily dissolved into a chaos of questions, before Mutsumi managed to gain quiet again.
"Yes, I know who has kidnapped him, and I know why. And I also think that, if we work carefully, we can rescue him. But we need to go tomorrow, and I need to know if you'll agree to come before I give you the details."
Keitaro stepped forward first.
"I don't know what is going on," he started, "but it's my duty to help out my tenants. And I know I can trust you, Mutsumi-chan."
"We'll come!" shouted Al, grabbing Lance and jumping forwards. "Where danger calls, no self-respecting hero would ..."
His words were cut off when Maho floored him with a large baseball bat pulled from a pocket somewhere.
"Well, I guess I'll have to come, then," stated Motoko, quietly to everyone's surprise. "You'd not last five minutes without a proper warrior present."
"Count me in, too." stated Maho, briefly.
"Mecha-tama can help!" shouted Kaolla.
"I suppose I should be there to keep an eye on those hentai..." grumbled Naru.
Ryuko signalled her acceptance, and even Kitsune claimed that there was nothing better to do, anyway.
"How about you, Sara-chan?" Mutsumi asked an apparently unoccupied sofa. Sara popped up from behind.
"Hey, how'd you notice me? Anyway, I'm coming if onii-chan is. Someone has to keep him safe!"
Keitaro, though, was worried "Hang on a minute," he said, "I'm not too happy about Sara and Kaolla coming, particularly if this is going to be dangerous!"
Mutsumi sighed.
"Kei-kun, I already knew everyone would be coming. You can't stop either of then, if they decide to come. Why do you think I didn't bring down everyone? I only brought the ones who would agree. And that brings me onto the explanation."
Everyone went quiet at this point. Mutsumi seemed so different tonight...
"Alright. The people who have kidnapped Sam are a... secret branch of the Japanese government. Although it could just as easily have been a similar organisation from the Yakuza, or even another country. And the reason he has been taken is that they are always on the lookout to capture people with precognitive ability such as Sam... and myself."
This revelation shocked everyone. Motoko looked pensive, and thought 'So that is how he managed to fight me to a draw! I must talk to him again.' Keitaro, however, had picked up on the last words.
"You mean - you can see the future! If so, how come you didn't stop him from being captured? For that matter, how come he didn't see it coming?"
Mutsumi sighed. So much to explain, and so little time!
"Yes, I can see some of the future, although not all of it. I didn't stop him from being captured because I didn't know it was going to happen. And he is very untrained, and so probably didn't see it coming either. This is why precogs have to hide themselves beneath harmless personas and not usually reveal their ability"
"But, if you can see what's coming, then you know exactly how we can rescue him! No problem, eh?"
"You have to remember that there are already precogs working for this organisation - and they can also see us coming. Every time one of us gets a vision, we will change our plans accordingly. It all comes down to who is the best..."
Mutsumi paused, and gave a smile that was much more like her usual one.
"... but I'm pretty good."
-:-
In Kyosuke's room, silence reigned. The wind blew in gently through the open window, and the moonlight shone down onto his empty futon.
Author's Notes
We're coming towards a wrapping up of most of the current plotlines. Probably another three or four chapters to go.
Sorry that this latest chapter took a couple of months to arrive! It's not the fault of the rest of the group - blame the editor's new daughter (Cathy) who has taken up all the time over the last month.
Footnotes from Kojiro
1. Yes, I own one.
2. Indiana Jones, this man is. Or is supposed to be. If you've watched the movies, you'll get the joke. (7)
3. This refers to Haeleth's Kanon translation, which is for British people. One of the girls, Nayuki, more than once, leaves the main character, Yuuichi, in one spot at the shopping centre, and tells him to stay there, or she'll be "Very cross." I doubt anyone will get the joke, though.
4. For one, haven't you ever felt like that? Like the whole day was scripted? For another, the last few lines refers to AIR, a kick-butt anime/Ren'ai game.
5. Food of Heaven, man. Though you gotta go exercise afterwards, or you'll gain weight.
6. Most EMBARASSING Hospital visit EVER.
7. Footnotes in Footnotes are the best. Don't blame me, X to the Zoltan started it.