Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina…

A low, howling wind swept over the countryside, rattling the bare branches of the surrounding oak trees. It was terrible night. Even the stars had hidden themselves behind the billowing storm-clouds that shadowed the landscape. At the top of the twisted hill stood a tall, weathered-looking castle. The stone walls gleamed against the sporadic flashes of lighting. The dual towers that loomed over the structure looked gnarled and twisted, even against the cloudy sky. Suddenly, a scream echoed from the second story window of the citadel.

"No… NO!" the doctor screamed. "It's a monster! A monster!" A flash of lightening temporarily illuminated the tiny room, revealing a large operating table, surrounded by an assortment of flasks, test-tubes and devices. The doctor turned and staggered out of the room, collapsing in a trembling heap on the hallway floor. "MONSTER!"

Keitaro pressed himself firmly into the back of the sofa, reflexively clutching a seat-cushion to his chest. The living room was completely dark, save the dull glow radiating from the television screen. He had never been particularly good at dealing with the horror genre. Unfortunately, there was nothing else on this late at night, and after only a few minutes, he found himself completely enthralled. He wanted to leave, but something inside him wouldn't allow him to turn away.

"MONSTER!" the television howled.

"Oh man," the landlord shuddered, "where is the monster? It was right there a minute ago…! Oh no… What if it-?!" Before he could finish, a strange sensation drew his attention to his left shoulder. "W-wha-?!" All word escaped him. His forehead chilled under the cool sweat collecting at his temples. There, resting by the crook of his neck, sat a single, monstrous hand. The long, bloated fingers curled forward in an arch, each one ending in a gleaming black claw. Its sickly green skin was covered in a network of bulging veins and blemishes. Every drop of blood in his body suddenly froze over. This was it. He was going to die.

Suddenly, in the midst of his panic attack, Keitaro spotted a mound of short blonde hair poking up from behind the sofa back. A pair of fox-like eyes emerged from beneath, followed by a Cheshire grin.

"Boo," Kitsune whispered.

"K-K-K-Kitsune-san…?! What are you doing, here?! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"I know!" she chuckled, barely able to restrain her amusement. "You…! Ya shoulda seen the look on your face! …Priceless…!"

"Ha… ha," he muttered, "very funny…" Kitsune stepped out from behind the couch and plopped down beside her fear-stricken manager, dropping the rubber monster glove on the coffee table.

"Aw… c'mon… Ya have to admit it was pretty good…!"

"Did you really come all the way down here just to scare the life out of me, or was there something you wanted…?"

"Nah, that was pretty much it," she shrugged.

"Figures."

"You sure are up late, even for you, Keitaro."

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd watch a little T.V. This is pretty much the only thing on, though…"

"What's it about?"

"Well, this doctor loses his wife to some rare disease, so he tries to cheat death and bring her back from beyond the grave. But, instead of reviving his wife, he ends up creating a horrible monster that breaks loose and rampages all over the castle…"

"That's it…? Pretty cliché if ya ask me…"

"Well, it IS late-night television; what do you expect?"

"Good point."

"Um… Kitsune-san?" Keitaro murmured, staring sheepishly off to the side. "I was thinking about what you said the other day… You know; about me dating other women… Do you really think I could pull it off…?" Kitsune arched a curious eyebrow at the blushing young landlord. Despite his reluctance, he seemed serious enough, she decided.

"I don't see why not," she said at last.

"R-really?! You think so?!"

"Sure," she grinned. "It's really not as complicated as everyone makes it out to be. All ya really need is attitude."

"Attitude?" he echoed. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it pretty simple. Take me, for example: I don't get dates just because I've got a killer rack… It's the way I carry myself. Ya have to be cool and sure. Make it look like you're God's gift to the world. That's when people will start to notice you. When someone seems sure of themselves, it makes everyone else want to gather around them. Call it envy, curiosity, whatever… The fact is that attitude can help even the ugliest mug; and you're not ugly by any means, Keitaro."

"B-but I'm not confident, like you, Kitsune!" Keitaro protested. "You have reason to be sure of yourself! You're beautiful, and smart, and fun…!"

"Well, yeah, I guess I am pretty amazing," Kitsune said, teasingly, "but you know, no one is confident ALL of the time…" Keitaro's eyes widened with astonishment.

"Wait… So you mean even you…?!" Kitsune's mouth turned up in a sober smile. He could hardly believe it. Every time he had seen her, she always wore the same, self-assured grin, no matter what the circumstances may be. Never once had he seen her falter or give in to uncertainty. Had all that just been an act?

Keitaro watched as she rose from the sofa and arched her back forward in a catlike fashion. As his eyes traced the smooth, generous curves of her form, he couldn't help but think of think of a feline stretching after a long nap.

"I think I'm gonna hit the sack," she announced, resignedly.

"Oh, okay… Goodnight, Kitsune-san."

"G'night." With that, Kitsune left the living room and climbed the stairs to her room. The waning smell of booze welcomed her upon entrance, the fading remnants of the night before. Kitsune took a moment to shed her shirt and pants before climbing down onto her futon. She noted how pleasantly cool the bedsheets felt against her bare skin.

"Confident, huh?" she whispered into her pillow. "I guess that's one way to put it." As she lay there amongst the ruffled fabric, her mind began to replay the conversation she'd just had. Images of Keitaro flooded her mind; the way he smiled, the way he blushed. As awkward as he was, she couldn't deny the latent charm she sensed, radiating from him. It would only be a matter of time before he, himself, realized this magnetism. The more she thought about it, the harder it became to resist smiling. "Keitaro Urashima… If I'm not careful, I might just end up falling for you…"

XXX

"No way!" Keitaro exclaimed, looking away from his window-washing. Because he had neglected to clean the upstairs bathroom the night before, the "Committee" decided to move up his window-cleaning duties by a day. This, of course, completely disrupted his normal time tables, but for some reason, he didn't mind so much. "You've got to be kidding!"

"I kid you not," Kitsune replied, sipping the foam from her beer can. "Three dates in one night."

"But… how?!"

"It wasn't that hard… I just convinced all three guys to make reservations at the same restaurant."

"Isn't that risky?"

"Probably," she grinned. Unbeknownst to the pair, a few of their roommates had gathered to spy on them from the cover of the kitchen. Naru watched them converse for a moment before turning to her companions.

"Is it just me, or do Kitsune and Keitaro seem to be getting a little chummy?"

"Indeed," Motoko nodded, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Chum-chum-chummy!" Su chimed in from behind.

"I wonder what's going on with those two, anyway…?"

"I am not sure, but I have definitely noticed an upsurge in the amount of time they spend together. Urashima must be up to something."

"I'm not so sure it's Keitaro we should worry about…"

"ACHOOO!!!" Keitaro paused to rub his nose with the back of his hand. "Oh… I hope I'm not coming down with something…" Kitsune hung around until Keitaro finished the downstairs windows, then retired to her room. For some inexplicable reason, she was feeling particularly creative today. 'Might as well type out a few words while I've got time,' she decided. No sooner had she pulled the typewriter out of its black, plastic case, Kitsune heard a knock at her door.

"Kitsune? It's me, Naru. Mind if I come in?"

"Uh… sure." Naru stepped into the room and slid the door closed behind her. "What's up?"

"You tell me."

"Hm?"

"You've been spending a lot more time with Keitaro, lately… Any particular reason why?"

"Naru, I'm surprised…!" Kitsune said, teasingly. "It's not like you to pry… If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a little jealous…"

"Me, jealous of that brainless pervert?! Y-yeah right!" Even Naru had to admit that her tone was less than convincing. "I-I was just wondering, that's all! If he knew what was good for him, he'd be studying, instead of chatting it up with you all day!"

"Touche."

"I didn't mean it like that…!"

"I know, I know," she chuckled. "Well, suppose I was to say I happened to be interesting in him… What would you say to that?"

"I'd say 'you're joking, right?' I mean, really, you can't be serious…!"

"Why not?"

"Why not?! Look at him! He's lame, he's stupid, he's clumsy, he's a total pervert, he never does anything right, and he breaks practically everything he comes into contact with! He's a walking disaster area!"

"Are you sure you don't like him?" Kitsune prodded. Naru felt her face flush red, though she wasn't sure which was more responsible; Kitsune's incessant repartee or her evasive responses to every question she asked.

"YES. I'M SURE!"

"I see…" Naru let out a long sigh of defeat. This conversation was going nowhere. She had know Kitsune for years, and if there was one thing she had learned, it was that if Kitsune didn't feel incline to disclose, you'd probably never know.

"Nevermind…" With bland look of resignation, Naru turned to leave.

"See you at dinner!" Kitsune could barely bite back a snicker as she watched her friend trudge out of the room and shut the door. 'Sometimes, I love being me…' she thought with a grin.

XXX

'A two, a five, a nine, a jack and a queen,' Keitaro thought, bitterly. 'Another bad hand.' So far, he hadn't won a single hand the entire night. Shinobu suggested they all do something "fun," after dinner, to which Kitsune proposed a "low-stakes" poker tournament. If nothing else, it had proved interesting.

"I'm out," Keitaro sighed, dropping his cards face-down on the table.

"As am I," Motoko concurred. A pair of poker chips rolled to the center of the table and rattled to a stop.

"I'm in," Kitsune announced.

"I'll raise." The blonde gazed across the table to see Naru staring intently into her face. She had been like that all night; glaring daggers between Kitsune and an understandably befuddled Keitaro. As far as he was concerned, he had done nothing to deserve this unpleasant attention. Of course, Kitsune knew better.

"What's that… ten? Okay… I'll see your ten and raise you five."

"I'll re-raise," Naru pronounced. Another set of chips clattered across the tabletop. Kitsune paused. This seemed highly unusual for Naru. Unlike herself, Kitsune's friend had always been one to "play it safe," even in games that required an element risk. The way she saw it, either Naru had a considerable hand or she was attempting to buy her way out. It was then that Kitsune spotted something in the redhead's eyes; a strange fire burning rightly in the back of her head. Kitsune's lips parted in a clever smile. Now, she understood. This had nothing to do with cards at all… This was, as she put it, a "pissing contest."

"I'll raise another ten…"

"I'll re-raise five more…!" The table went silent. All eyes shifted between the two remaining players.

"Z'at so?" Kitsune murmured. "Hey Keitaro, how would ya like a night off?"

"W-wha-?!"

"Hey, what are you trying to pull, Kitsune?" Naru growled.

"I've got a proposition for ya: How about we raise the stakes on this game a little?"

"I'm listening…"

"The winner takes everything in the pot, and gets to take Keitaro here out to dinner on Thursday night... Meanwhile, the loser stays home and does of the landlord's cleaning for that night."

"Kitsune-san…!" Shinobu and Motoko exchanged glances while Keitaro looked on in quiet desperation. Had he missed something? Since when was this poker game about him?

At the other end of the table, Naru sat chewing her lip in quiet ambivalence. The logical part of her insisted that Kitsune was a much better gambler and it was best to back down, now and cut her losses. But, the proud, hot-headed part of her urged her on. 'Go ahead, take the bet,' it said. 'Don't let her push you around, like that! You can win!'

'Don't do it, Naru-sempai,' Motoko contested inwardly.

"Fine," Naru huffed. "Let's do it!"

"Let's see what you've got…"

"Full house: aces over tens!" Naru slapped her cards down on the table, face-up for all to see.

"Wow, Naru-sempai!" Shinobu exclaimed. "You're amazing!"

"Wow… Yeah, I guess she is…" Kitsune frowned. "But, not amazing enough." A sudden flush of white drained the colorful smile from Naru's face. No. No, it wasn't possible. There was just no way. She watched in horror as Kitsune placed four kings and a queen on the table in front of her.

"Cowboys… Four of 'em."

"Wha-?! B-but I-!" Naru struggled to speak, but her mouth couldn't find the words. She had lost, completely lost. Keitaro's lips parted as if to say something, but before he could utter a sound, Naru bolted from her chair and rushed out of the living room.

"Narusegawa!" he called after her.

"Naru-sempai?!"

"My, my," Kitsune sighed. "That could've gone better…"

Author's Note: This chapter is considerably longer than the others (I didn't think it would be this bulky, but, oh well) but I hope you enjoy, regardless. By the way, I got a few reviews that sent up a yellow flag, so I figured I'd better address this now, rather than later: this is not a "Naru-bashing" fanfiction. Sorry, but bashing characters has never been my thing. I find it more effective (and constructive) to focus on a budding romance rather than turning on a character I'm not fond of. This doesn't mean that I'll do Naru any favors, mind you. Well, now that that's out of the way, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it for you. Leave some comments on my board and I'll do my best to deliver.