Love Hina: Once More
Author Notes: … I never thought I would be back here, after so long. But, after rediscovering my literary muse and dusting off my manga collection, I decided this needed to be done.
Warning: All characters, settings, and situations are part of the Love Hina franchise and are in no way, shape, or form owned by me. Step-Incestuous thoughts and actions will be present during this story; if this disturbs you, please do not read further. Please do not read this while driving or operating heavy machinery, as the writer is not responsible for any damages that may occur as a result of being distracted by this story. Please do not read if the country and/or province you are in bans you from using the internets. Restriction apply, results may vary, not valid in New Jersey, The Northwest Territories, or any country whos name starts with the letter E.
Prologue
There was a certain peace to this particular night, a late spring night haning over the sleepy, hot-springs town of Hinata. There were no loud screams coming from that dormitory on the hill; no explosion or the sickening *pop* of something breaking the sound barrier. For once, it seems, those Hinata girls and their manager had managed to tucker themselves out, giving the local residents a peace they hadn't been able to enjoy in years. After their long trip across nearly the entire expanse of Japan, all they wanted to do was sleep.
With the entire town sleeping, the only noise that could be heard was the soft chirping of crickets, and the tinkling of bells as a black figure moved through the surrounding forests, returning from its nightly stroll. Coiling its feet, the tiny creature jumped, its ears fanning out as it gracefully landed on the sill of the Hinata Teahouse window, staring up over the cliffs, past the tops of the Forbidden Annex and up into the fully, silvery moon. It took a deep breath, savoring the crisp spring air; something almost magical in the air.
However, just as it was about to curl on on the sill to sleep, its ears perked up, a strange sound breaking the silence; almost like muffled heavy breathing. Its eyes rose up at that sound, looking for the source; a thin window overhead. Leaping down, padded paws silently moving over the floor, it jumped up the stairs and into the upper hallway, tracing the sound to a slightly ajar door, using its head to gently slid it in.
Inside, huddled up on the floor was a blob of brown comforter, gently shaking in the shadows, the soft, pitiful sound escaping from it… sobbing. Her ears drooped as she approached it, eyes lowering as she realized just what was going on, circling around the futon to see a mass of black hair hanging over a pillow, tear stains leaking out from their hiding place beneath the head that made them.
"Are you alright meow?" Kuro asked, placing a small, soft paw on her mistress's head.
In response, the little gothic girl pulled her face out of the pillow, her red eyes, swollen from crying, a far cry from her ordinarily straight-laced appearance. Small gasping and sobbing sounds still escaped her throat, unable to stop the flood even for her closest friend. "kur…" she managed to get out before breaking into a long, loud cry, turning her head away from the cat, raising a hand to try to hide her face. "What… are… you doing here?"
Kuro looked on her mistress with concern. "I heard you from outside meow." She tried to look around Kanako's hand, but she just turned away again, almost ashamed. "You're still thinking about it, aren't you?"
At that, Kanako's face contorted into almost distress, yanking the comforter over herself and curling up and holding it as tightly to her body as possible, as if giving herself a hug. The waterworks broke out full-blast, a river of regrets pouring down her face as her pet crawled into her lap, trying to comfort her. "You did everything you could meow." She tried to explain, gently purring against her mistress's chest. "Perhaps it was just not meant to be."
Kanako shook her head furiously, trembling as she buried her head in her knees, unable to get out a coherent response. Kuro tried to comfort her, tears matting her fur together as she looked up at her friend's devastated face. "Its not fair!" she managed to choke out, forcing her had upwards towards the window, flailing her head about angrily. "He's my oni-san… MINE! The skank Naru ..she tricked me… tricked me into thinking she cared…" She pulled Kuro close to her chest, the tiny cat almost choking for a moment at the force.
"She's so strong, so pretty, so popular, so smart… she already had everything a girl could want." The sobs started to come back, the anger fading away as she tried to make sense of her emotions, petting Kuro's soft fur. "Why Kuro… why did she have take my everything? Why did she have to hurt him so much? Why aren't I good enough? Why doesn't he love me?" Her words grew more and more ragged, until they dissolved into sobbing again, Kuro deftly floating out of Kanako's grip before she would have been smashed against her knees.
"You couldn't help it, mistress." Kuro, tried to reason with her, floating like an angel at her shoulder. "He'd already fallen for her by the time you came meow. Even the annex coulden't break them apart." Kanako lifted up her hand, gripping hard on the finger that had once born her greatest treasure… that silver ring which had born so much hope, her life's dream come true… now all it will do is leave a deep mark whenever she abuses him.
"I should have been there…" her voice became soulless, staring blankly out into the sky, rubbing the empty spot on her finger that still bore the indent of her ring. "Oni-san was so alone… so desperate… he had to have been, to fall for that she-witch." Kuro could tell she was trying to rationalize it, trying to grasp some comfort out of a now-shattered future. "I should have never listened to mother… he needed me, not to be cast alone into this… this harem of sadists and freaks. I just… just.."
An almost deathly silence filled the room, as she just sat there, hardly even breathing, before standing up, taking slow, measured steps towards the window, the night breeze blowing through her hair, staring down at the ground, the slightest of smiles coming onto her face.
"I wonder if Oni-san likes to fly…" she said, almost like she was in a trance, her arms resting on the sill, looking up at the moon. "I never thought I could ever be as brave as he was, but now… I'm not so scared anymore."
Kuro's ears, tail, and hair stood on end as she heard this, flying towards the window as Kanako leaned further and further forward, he face softening, as if almost… peaceful. Kuro raced forward, trying to intercept her mistress before she leaned out too far, the distance almost too far to close.
However, that is when she heard the ticking.
It echoed loudly throughout the night, as though the moon itself were a giant clock tower overhead, Kanako stopping as she opened her eyes, listening to the strange sound. Kuro, settling on the windowsill, gently nudged her back as she listened herself, even her catlike ears unable to locate the source of the noise. However, then they say it; from the steeple of the Annex, bolts of dark purple energy began to crackle, a light haze forming around the building as the ancient clock magically sprung to life, counting the second and minutes… only, to add even more surprise, the hands were moving backwards, the arcs of energy growing larger and more frequent gradually, and the movements of the hands growing faster and faster. Kanako gripped at her hand, letting out a small yelp as one of the arcs sprang like a bolt from the blue, burning against her ring finger. Once she recovered from her surprise and opened her eyes, she was amazed to see that ring, perfectly in every detail, once again gracing her finger… glinting almost mischviously in the moonlight. Yet, even then, everything seemed to almost start… swimming, even Kuro's voice and pleading meows becoming hard to understand, her body beginning to become hazy…
Everything seemed fade into a uniform pool of silver light, the weight of her troubles seeming to fade off her shoulders as Kanako floating in it, gradually loosening up, feeling herself grow lighter and lighter… warmth seeming to envelop her body, and a smooth, smooth softness, all accompanied by a slow, melodic ticking… almost like a lullaby. The light slowly seemed to morph, an image forming before her of a small, worn futon, a young girl in lavender pajamas sitting in a young boy's lap, a blank pulled up over her, a vaguely feminine shape sitting in a chair next to them, looking down with a smile on her face.
"Now, don't you two ever try to break into Grandma's special annex every again, alright? Its sealed up for a reason."
The girl seemed to whisper something softly under her breath, almost impossible to hear, but the boy spoke up for her. "Why did Grandma seal such a big room away? Don't people want to stay there?"
The feminine figure shook her head, placing a hand on the boy's head. "The building is a very special place. Lots of people used to call it the Inn of Faithful Unions. If two people go inside and spend a night together, the good spirits inside will bless them with eternal love and happiness. No matter what distance is between them, no matter what it takes, the blessing of the Inn will always find a way to bring them together." This seemed to cause the girl to look up in awe, her long bangs covering most of her face, while the boy gave a clearer look of wonderment, the feminine figure opening her mouth to say something else.
However, before she could do so, she suddenly heard a low, almost shocked shout, and the vision fell away, and Kanako found herself shooting up from a laying position, breathing heavily as her eyes adjusted to the light… and her face froze.
That mirror… that poster… that closet… those weren't there before. She continued scanning around, unable to move any part of her body other than her neck. She found herself in an eerily familiar room; a light blue comforter laid out over her lower body, and a small nightstand to her right. A small make-up kit, posters of actresses and shows that had long since faded from the spotlight, the hem of a black dress peeking out from the slightly open closet, a short bookshelf… and a mirror. But more then that, it was the voices from the hallway; light conversation by two people she knew all too well, that made her truly frightened. Then, after all of that, her eyes settled on a mirror.
Reflected back at her was a girl with bangs far too big for her head, framed by long strands of raven-black hair, a stray antenna sticking out from the top. She chest was nearly flat, her neck thin and her mouth small...
"Hey Keitaro, telephone!" she heard a firm voice call from down the hall, each word piercing her ears.
"It's from your grandmother up at Hinata." A gentler, if still authorize voice continued, almost sounding excited.
"No… really…" her voice sounded… confused, but happy, a small moan of happiness escaping her throat, her heart soring. For the moment, she was too happy, too filled with hope, to care about the oddity of the event; the legends were true; the magic of annex had worked a miracle.