Art Attack
By Lord Raa
Disclaim-me-do: There are no pies at the Nou Camp.
Chapter 5
The meal Tsuruko had treated Keitaro and Haruka to had been delicious, but expensive. Keitaro had seen the look on Haruka's face when she'd seen the total for the bill.
When he'd tried to get a look at the figure, Tsuruko had waved him off.
"I told you, Keitaro-san, this was an apology for my sister's behaviour earlier."
"But still-" The ronin's protests were cut off by Haruka.
"If you still insist on paying for something, Keitaro, you could buy us a drink."
"Ok, it's the least I can do for you."
"Then shall we move on?" the swordswoman asked with a smile on her face.
Back at the Inn, Naru was questioning Kitsune's logic.
"I hate the concept of the 'Christmas Cake' as much as the next woman, but that still doesn't mean that just because most men aren't interested in them, they're going to become lesbian lovers, Kitsune-chan!" the auburn-haired girl insisted.
"Oh, and what do you know about adult relationships, Naru-chan?" Kitsune asked. "You can't seem to get beyond the childish 'hitting the boy you like' stage."
"That's not true!" Naru insisted.
"Oh really, do you like Keitaro?"
"Well… I… err…"
"Then you don't mind if someone else goes out with him?"
"I wouldn't say that…" the Toudai-bound girl said, suddenly finding her fingers rather interesting.
"Not exactly disproving my point, Naru-chan, are you?" Kitsune asked, a triumphant smirk on her face. "Still, you don't just treat someone to a meal in a restaurant like Amaterasu's Garden on a whim."
"Yeah, but unless we can talk to Keitaro, Haruka-san or Tsuruko-san, we're not going to know why they went out."
"Do you think Motoko-chan knows?" the ash-blonde wondered aloud.
"She might, but she's gone to bed," Naru added. She yawned herself. "Speaking of which, I think I might get an early night, too."
"Ok, see you tomorrow."
As she sat alone, Kitsune started to have a serious think about why Haruka, Keitaro and Tsuruko would be out together at a fancy restaurant. She hadn't picked up any hint that Haruka was a lesbian, but what did she know much about Tsuruko?
Tsuruko was Motoko's older sister, she'd been married and she was someone who intimidated Motoko.
It was hardly enough information to fill out a personality profile.
Besides, Tsuruko and Haruka were grown women. If they wanted to have such a relationship, it was their business and no-one else's. But if they were having such a relationship, why would they bring Keitaro along?
What purpose would they have for bringing him along? There were other places in Tokyo for them to get to know each other better; places that didn't require a dress code and a small fortune to settle the bill.
So unless Tsuruko was asking for Keitaro's permission to date Haruka, that wasn't the reason for their dinner date.
The next possibility was that it was an apology for something. But this was the first time Tsuruko had come to visit Motoko at the Inn, at least as far as Kitsune knew. So what could Tsuruko be apologising for?
Well, perhaps it was something Motoko had done? But Keitaro never held a grudge against anyone; in fact he'd started to smile at her again, despite the lies about blackmail!
Naru's suggestion that Tsuruko and Haruka were planning to kill Keitaro and split his inheritance was just so unlikely, it was laughable. Sure, Haruka smacked Keitaro around the head when he accidentally called her "Aunt Haruka", but it wasn't even close to being in the same league of violence that Naru and Motoko had unleashed upon him.
That brought her to the final option: Tsuruko was interested in Keitaro. If Tsuruko was indeed single, why invite Haruka along? Keitaro wouldn't have tried anything improper with Tsuruko, and if he did, Motoko's tales of her sister's martial prowess would have quickly put a stop to things.
The only reason to invite Haruka along was to have an omiai in the restaurant.
And now that she thought about it, Kitsune had recalled that Haruka thought that Keitaro was good husband material.
But all evidence pointed to today being the first time that Keitaro and Tsuruko had met. So that didn't make much sense to her.
Not that love ever made much sense to her. Some of the boyfriends her school friends had gone out with were proof enough of that.
Kitsune let out a loud yawn. Maybe there just wasn't an ulterior motive? There were people who took their friends out to dinner, after all. Not everyone had an agenda.
Keitaro was trying to keep a respectful distance from Haruka and Tsuruko as they rode on the train. He thought that they were both attractive women, but felt that he'd been riding his luck all evening. Experience had taught him that an incident was going to happen sooner or later. Luckily, nothing had happened in Amaterasu's Garden – he'd even managed to keep his shirt clean.
No, something was going to happen soon, he could feel it in his gut.
That was why he kept both of his hands on the handle, in plain sight of his two companions.
The train pulled into the station, catching Haruka unprepared. She ended up leaning against Keitaro.
"Oh, sorry about that, Keitaro," she said. She looked down, and saw where he'd caught her. 'If only his hand was just a little higher…'
Tsuruko, under the influence of the wine, looked on, feeling slightly envious. It had been a long time since she'd last been held by a man. The fact that it wasn't their stop put an idea in her head.
As the swordswoman watched Haruka right herself and smile at Keitaro, she repositioned herself so that she could fall against Keitaro the next time the train stopped.
'Maybe this time, his hand might catch him a bonus…'
Lying on her bed, Motoko was thinking about her sister's evening out with Keitaro and Haruka.
While at first glance it seemed unfair that she was being ignored, she understood her sister's decision to leave her at home. It was something that she might have done in Tsuruko's place.
In her defence, she hadn't meant to lie to her sister, it sort of just happened. A bit like how Kitsune's situation had resulted in her sitting on Keitaro while wearing nothing but an open kimono.
But her mind kept going over why Tsuruko would take Haruka and Keitaro out to a restaurant as fancy as Amaterasu's Garden.
The Tokyo metropolitan area was hardly lacking in eateries, so it wasn't a dearth of alternative options. Almost all of these alternates were cheaper, too, which fitted right in with Keitaro's modest tastes.
So it was either the simple fact that she was friends with the manager or it was an ulterior motive that made Tsuruko decide on Amaterasu's Garden.
While Tsuruko was capable of terrible acts, she wasn't the sort of person to concoct elaborate plans as part of a punishment or revenge.
Motoko let out a soft chuckle. "I guess that it's really just a case of the simplest answer being the case."
As the train pulled into the next stop, Keitaro was surprised to find himself somehow cushioning Tsuruko Aoyama from a fall.
"Oh, sorry, Keitaro-san," the swordswoman apologised. "I'm not normally this clumsy."
Haruka sighed softly. She could see what Tsuruko was doing, and she couldn't blame her for it. The thought of Keitaro holding her in his arms was becoming increasingly appealing. She glanced down to see that Keitaro's left hand was barely two centimetres above Tsuruko's butt.
"Perhaps we should skip the drinks if some of us are a little unsteady?" the smoker suggested as Tsuruko woman righted herself. "It has been a long day, after all."
"Yeah, I'm a little tired," Keitaro agreed.
"Yes, perhaps it's for the best," Tsuruko nodded.
The next stop was the one for the Hinata Sou, and the trio disembarked. The two women cast glances at Keitaro's backside, idly wondering if how much they'd enjoy giving it a quick squeeze.
It was then that Tsuruko made a decision. She liked Keitaro enough that she was going to pursue him, etiquette be damned!
As they exited the station, Tsuruko gave Haruka a look that the smoker couldn't decipher. Was she seeking approval? Was it a challenge? An invitation?
Haruka looked away, coughing to compose herself. "Anyway, let's get going."
Over the last few days, Kitsune had spent a fair amount of time thinking about her situation at the Hinata Sou. If she had just lost her job, things would be ok in that she could probably put off paying the rent until she got a new job. If she still had a job, she was sure that she'd be able to work out a payment plan with Keitaro for the rent arrears.
However, the fact of the matter was that she had no income and rent arrears of three months. Fortunately, Keitaro had agreed to let her stay rent free until she found another job if she helped with the cooking and cleaning.
It had been a second choice option, one that she had found forced upon her.
The first option was that Kitsune got married to Keitaro in order to avoid paying any more rent or board. It had started off sensibly enough, but in order to speed things up, a series of lies had been told and Keitaro had seen through them a lot sooner than she'd expected.
But why pick Keitaro? There were plenty of rich men in Tokyo; she could have been a kept woman.
But would she have accepted being the mistress of an older businessman?
No, she definitely didn't want to be touched by a balding Salaryman in the stationery cupboard after working hours. Older men were… well, she couldn't say that they were creepy or uninteresting as she did have a crush on an older man when she was younger.
"Seta…" the ash-blonde said as she looked up at her ceiling. 'There's a name I haven't thought about for a while.'
Seta Noriyasu: archaeologist, terrible driver, unreliable and former boyfriend of Haruka Urashima.
Why had she been attracted to him? She had no interest in old bones and broken pottery, and he'd often stated that he wasn't in it for the ancient treasures.
He had a car, well a van, but so did Kentaro. That was another name she hadn't thought about for a while.
Kitsune quickly returned her attention to the reason for her crush on Seta. His unreliable nature had been the reason why Haruka had broken it off with him and Haruka was pretty forgiving.
She smiled, thinking about all the good times she'd had with Haruka: a few practical jokes and some serious teasing of their other friends. Kitsune did look up to Haruka; the smoker was so much more worldly, sophisticated and independent after all.
It was then that Kitsune's eyes opened wide.
"Did…did I like Seta because Haruka did?"
Sure, she'd joked about finding where Haruka's soft spot for Keitaro was, but that didn't mean she wanted to sleep with her. Did it?
Well, maybe a few years ago, when Haruka and Seta were dating, it might have. But that was just a combination of a girl's hero worship and a girl-crush. It was a phase, part of growing up.
But the ash-blonde's mind flitted back to how forgiving the smoker was. A few slaps and stern words had cut short the teasing and games, but Haruka had always gone along with them until she felt that they had stopped being funny.
If Haruka hadn't liked it, she would have told her not to do it again; just like how she'd broken it off with Seta and how she'd told Su not to take parts from her fridge without telling her.
"Hang on," Kitsune closed her eyes tightly as she tried to recall the first discussion about the marriage plan with Haruka. "Didn't Haruka-san sound a bit different when she mentioned getting married to Keitaro?"
Now that she thought about it, Kitsune was beginning to be convinced that Haruka had certain feelings with regards to Keitaro. Feelings that hinted that there could have been company in the bedroom if cards had been played right.
"Crap… if only I'd told Haruka-san earlier, I could have made this work. And then I could have found out about Keitaro's job…"
The trio of diners were approaching Haruka's teashop.
"I… don't think I can make it up the hill. Forgive me, but could I possibly use your toilet, Haruka-san?" Tsuruko asked with a look of concentration on her face.
"Of course," the smoker nodded as she pulled out her keys. She unlocked the door and added, "Up the stairs, first door on the left."
"Thank you."
When they were alone, Haruka turned to Keitaro. "Keitaro, I think there's something you should know."
"Oh?"
"Yes, I don't know if you picked up on it earlier, but Tsuruko-san likes you."
"Well, she did take us out to dinner," Keitaro shrugged.
"Treating someone to dinner at one of the most expensive restaurants in Tokyo is not something you do if you're feeling ambivalent about them," Haruka countered.
"Well, she said it was an apology for Motoko-chan," the ronin insisted. "Besides why should she be interested in someone like me?"
"You're a likeable person, Keitaro."
"Obviously not that likeable – I've never had a girlfriend."
"You would have if things had been different," Haruka muttered. She looked Keitaro in the eye. "So you don't like Tsuruko-san? Is that what you're saying?"
"That's not it, Haruka-san. She's a beautiful woman of wealth and taste, I'll bet that she needs her sword to keep all the men who are interested in her away," Keitaro said in his usual earnest tone. "She deserves someone better than me."
"What if she doesn't want better? What if she wants you?" the smoker countered. "What then? Are you going to hurt her feelings by rejecting her?"
The ronin sighed. He realised he was caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.
He didn't want to hurt anyone, least of all someone who he was sure could cut him into sashimi in the blink of an eye, but the way things happened around him. He was sure that he was going to hurt Tsuruko more if she was in a relationship with him.
"Or are you suggesting that women who like you have bad taste?"
Keitaro blinked. Women liked him? "Who else likes me?"
Haruka shook her head. "Sometimes, you don't see the wood for the trees, Keitaro."
The bespectacled Urashima considered those words. Sure, Shinobu liked him, but that was like the time he lusted after that idol singer when he was 13. It was just a teenager's crush, nothing more. Not to mention what would have happened if he did take things further with Shinobu…
Motoko's opinion of him had been raised to the point where she'd lied about being engaged to him. That wouldn't have happened when he first arrived, but it was far from the point where they could be dating.
Kaolla Su was Kaolla Su, who knew what she was really thinking.
Naru couldn't seem to make her mind up.
Mutsumi was a sweet girl, but she seemed to love everybody.
That left Kitsune. Kitsune was a difficult subject at the moment. Sure, she was very attractive and she was smart and fun, but she had also lied to him. It meant that he couldn't be sure what to trust about her any more.
As Keitaro scratched his head, thinking about the situation and who could be interested in him, Tsuruko returned.
"That's much better, thank you, Haruka-san," the swordswoman smiled, clearly more relaxed. "I apologise for imposing on you further, Keitaro-san, but would it be all right if I stayed for another night or two?"
"Yes, of course, but can I ask why?"
"It feels slightly embarrassing to say it like this, but I'd like to get to know my sister's friends better. The way she described them in her letters made them sound rather interesting, however I can't take her opinion entirely seriously after the less than complimentary way she portrayed you," Tsuruko explained. "I've only known you for a few hours, but you're not the monstrous creature that I was led to expect."
Keitaro laughed nervously.
"Yes, Motoko's attitudes towards men has clouded her judgement on more than one occasion," Haruka nodded. "What did you have in mind, Tsuruko-san?"
"Something similar to this evening, only a little more informal; a meal at the Inn with everyone there," the swordswoman replied. She bowed her head apologetically. "I apologise for the assumption that you would agree to provide a large meal on such short notice. There are limits to what a guest can expect from a host."
"True, but if you're willing to help with the grocery bill and wine list, I think it'll be ok, don't you, Keitaro?" the smoker asked.
"Of course, I'll let the others know in the morning," Keitaro nodded happily. "Are you ready to head back? It's getting late and I don't want to disturb the others."
"Thank you, Keitaro-san, I appreciate your kindness," Tsuruko smiled as she prepared to finish climbing the hill.
After returning to the Inn, Keitaro walked Tsuruko to Motoko's room.
"I'm sorry, but I didn't have enough time to get you your own room organised, Tsuruko-san."
"It's alright, Keitaro-san. I'm sure that my sister won't be too put out with me sleeping in her room," the swordswoman smiled. "If she does, well I could always s-"
The door to Motoko's room opened and a sleepy, but concerned looking face appeared.
"Aneue, you're back."
"Yes, and I'm staying for another couple of days, Motoko-han," Tsuruko calmly informed her. "That's not going to be a problem, is it?"
"N-no…"
"Good," the older sister smiled. She turned to face Keitaro. "Thank you for the pleasant evening, Keitaro-san. I look forward to tomorrow evening, where I will finally get the chance to properly get to know everyone."
"T-tomorrow evening?" Motoko repeated. "But that's…"
"But that's what, Motoko?" Keitaro asked.
"We… well, Naru-sempai, Shinobu-chan, Su and I were going to visit Kobe tomorrow. We were going to be gone for a few days."
"That's tomorrow?" the ronin asked. "That's come around quick."
"Yes."
"If you don't mind my asking, what attracts you to Kobe, Motoko-han?"
"Shinobu-chan and Su have a project for their history class, and Naru-sempai said that she wanted to do some shopping," Motoko explained.
"Oh, I see," the older sister nodded. 'It might work out better this way…' "Well, I shall see you off tomorrow, but I might have to leave for home before you and your friends return. But I will get to know them, Motoko-han, you can't hide them from me forever, you know!"
"I'm not trying to hide from you, Aneue, it's, well, it's just unfortunate timing, that's all."
Tsuruko caught her sister's slip of the tongue, but said nothing. "These things happened, Motoko-han, you shouldn't worry about it."
"Well, I shall let you two get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning, Tsuruko-san, Motoko-chan."
"Good night, Keitaro-san."
"Good night, Keitaro."
Kitsune heard footsteps approaching.
'That's probably Keitaro,' she mused. 'I wonder how his evening went…'
The idea of confirming that it was Keitaro and checking up on him was tempting, but she was already in bed.
Her warm and comfortable bed.
'No, I don't need to know that badly,' she thought with a yawn. 'Besides, I've got to do the laundry tomorrow while Shinobu's in Kobe.'
Tsuruko watched her sister and friends leave for the train station. There had been a brief introduction at breakfast, but the need for a quick departure had prevented a proper chance to get to know each other.
'It is a shame,' the widow thought sadly, 'Motoko-han's friends seem nice.'
She turned her attention to Kitsune, who had just started to hang a basket of fresh laundry out to dry. The ash-blonde's technique caused Tsuruko to realise something. 'She's not used to chores. Motoko-han's description of Konno-san was of someone playful and slovenly. What's made her change?'
A glum looking Keitaro emerged from his room.
"Is something the matter, Keitaro-san?"
"My part time job isn't going as well as it was," the ronin admitted.
"Would you like to talk about it?" Tsuruko asked.
Keitaro shrugged. "I don't know…"
"Despite what Motoko-han might have told you, I can be a very sympathetic person."
"I appreciate the offer, but I've got to get through this myself. I don't want the others to know what I do."
The swordswoman was intrigued. Motoko had mentioned that Keitaro had a second job, but she didn't have any details to share.
Kitsune had finished hanging out the laundry and approached the two. "Is something wrong, Keitaro? You're looking a bit down."
"It's nothing, I'm just having a bit of difficulty with my job," Keitaro answered. He looked around, clearly uncomfortable with discussing the situation.
"You know, you never really told us about your job…" the short-haired girl teased. "Perhaps we could help you?"
"I don't know," the ronin said. "I'm going to the kitchen, do either of you want a drink?"
"Please could I have some tea, Keitaro-san?" the swordswoman asked politely.
"If you're putting the kettle on, I'll have some tea, too," Kitsune smiled.
As Keitaro left earshot, Tsuruko turned to Kitsune. "What do you know about Keitaro-san's job, Konno-san?"
"Please, call me 'Kitsune'," the ash-blonde insisted. "As for Keitaro's job, well, we know it's some kind of writing gig. He uses a pseudonym, but that's about it. He must have some reason for keeping it a secret, but…"
"It would be rude to dig deeper," the swordswoman nodded, not quite getting the exact reason for Kitsune's discretion. "But still, you must be curious as to what he does?"
"It wasn't so bad at first," Kitsune replied.
"But?"
"But a few weeks ago, curiosity did start to get the better of us. We haven't ransacked his room or anything, but we did ask a few questions. That's how we found out about his pseudonym. 'Biggun', I think."
"Interesting name," Tsuruko commented. "I don't suppose you think Keitaro-san is some sort of manga artist, do you?"
"It's possible, I guess, but he hasn't got the time to do it full time. He's trying to get into Toudai."
Sighing as he put the kettle on, Keitaro couldn't shake the feeling that things were going to change very soon.
His run of inspiration had been good, but the reception to his latest idea hadn't been quite what he had expected: despite the usual favourable reaction to his art style, the editorial staff did not like the story.
They had felt it a step down from his usual standard, that it was lacking something.
"Maybe I've just run out of writing talent?" he asked with a rhetorical sigh. "Just as well, I don't know how I managed to keep everyone from finding out for this long."
"Finding what out, Keitaro?" Kitsune asked as she entered the kitchen with Tsuruko beside her.
"Nothing, I'm just being silly," the ronin insisted.
"It's clear that something is bothering you, Keitaro-san," Tsuruko said firmly. "Would you like to talk about it?"
"Not really," Keitaro said, his discomfort becoming clear as day.
"Oh, don't be like that, Keitaro," the ash-blonde pouted. "We might get the idea that you don't like us…"
The artist closed his eyes and shook his head. "If you really want to know, I've had something rejected at my job. And if I don't get something to replace it, I'm in danger of being reassigned."
"Reassigned to what, Keitaro-san?"
"I… it's hard to say without telling you all the details," Keitaro replied.
"Then tell us the details, Keitaro," Kitsune smiled.
"I can't do that, Kitsune."
The sound of the kettle boiling cut off the discussion for the moment. After filling the teapot, Keitaro looked up to see that the two women standing not two metres away from him were still looking for answers.
"Why can't you tell us the details, Keitaro?" Kitsune demanded. "You already said that it's nothing illegal that you're doing; so why all the secrecy?"
"Because I know what you'll say and do if you knew," Keitaro shot back. "You'd tease me and Naru and Motoko would get the wrong idea and try to hurt me."
"What about me, Keitaro-san?" Tsuruko asked. "What do you think I would say or do if I was to find out?"
"You'd also misunderstand things, Tsuruko-san."
"Perhaps if you were to explain things, then I, we, might be able to help you. Or at least, not get the wrong end of the stick," the swordswoman smiled.
"But…" Keitaro sighed. "Fine, if you promise not to tell anyone, I'll tell you what my job is."
"I give you my word that I will not tell anyone, Keitaro-san."
"My lips are sealed, Keitaro."
The ronin took a deep breath. "I don't know if you know, but I like to draw a bit when I was younger. Someone decided that I was good enough to draw things professionally.
"And because of this, I used to draw for a writing team. The team broke up some years ago. I don't know the details, I was just a kid and when they said that I wasn't going to be drawing those stories, I didn't ask. To be honest, it was a little weird for me to be illustrating those stories."
"Who did you draw for, Keitaro-san?"
"A writing team called 'Red Dragon'. I wasn't the only artist, and I only did one or two volumes in their anthology series."
"Red Dragon… the name doesn't ring a bell," Kitsune mused. "So what did you draw for them?"
"This is why I asked for your promise not to tell anyone," Keitaro said as he poured three cups of tea. "I illustrated a volume of 'Tales of Ribaldry'. I also contributed a story and the artwork for a couple of stories in another of the publisher's magazines."
Tsuruko blinked. "I'm sorry, Keitaro-san, but 'Tales of Ribaldry' sounds like it's an adults-only publication."
Keitaro laughed nervously. "Yeah…"
Kitsune giggled. "I guess Naru-chan was right when she said you were a pervert, Keitaro…"
"It's not what you think, Kitsune, I mean that was before I came here to the Inn."
"So what is the problem with your current job, Keitaro-san?"
"Part of my job now includes writing and illustrating my own stories. My last submission didn't go down well," the ronin explained. "I'd worked really hard on it, but the editors felt it was "a bit too much like a Comiket doujin" and rejected it."
"Why did they say that?" Tsuruko asked.
"I took what I thought were romantic comedy tropes and tried something original," Keitaro answered. "However, it was decided that I was just writing a parody of some popular titles. I was, sort of, but obviously I made the characters too unrelatable."
"Oh, but still, I'm sure that you'll come up with something else that they'll like, Keitaro-san," the swordswoman smiled reassuringly.
"I have two weeks to give them a proof-read draft of a 20 page manga story and I don't know what to write."
"Two weeks? That's a little bit harsh, isn't it?" Kitsune asked.
"I had the rejection note two weeks ago, but then certain events happened which distracted me," the artist said, handing over two cups of tea.
"Ah…" the ash-blonde said, knowing full well what Keitaro meant by that.
It wasn't like Kitsune had wanted to sabotage Keitaro's career, in fact she had no idea about this rejection. It was just that her own situation had started to go horribly wrong at the same time. Keitaro would still have a place to stay and there would be food in his belly.
The same couldn't have been said for Kitsune.
"What was the last story of yours that had been well received?" Tsuruko asked. "Perhaps you could go back to something along those lines?"
"Freeter Deluxe? I suppose, but I don't like retreading old stories. Besides, it's not like I've ever come up with something like Journey to the West that can be told and retold in all sorts of settings," Keitaro replied. "So, now you know why I'm feeling a bit down."
The trio drank their tea in silence for several minutes before Keitaro started to notice Tsuruko's body language.
He had been too nervous to pay attention to it last night, but he was starting to get an inkling as to what she liked and what she was looking for in a man.
"Is something the matter, Keitaro-san?" the widow asked after she realised that she was being casually, but closely observed.
"I… Sorry, Tsuruko-san, I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable, I just…" the ronin took a deep breath. "I tend to notice certain things about people. Sometimes, I can get a feel for what they like. Sometimes it takes a while to realise what it is, but sometimes I can get a handle on things pretty quickly."
"Oh, really? And what does this gut instinct of yours tell you about me?"
"Promise you won't hit me?"
"I promise I will not hit you, Keitaro-san," Tsuruko said solemnly.
"Variety and adaptability," Keitaro said, shying away to avoid righteous wrath.
"What is that supposed to mean, Keitaro?" Kitsune asked. "Variety and adaptability are words you'd use to describe an actor."
The artist took a deep breath. "What I mean by that is that I have this feeling that Tsuruko-san is willing to try a variety of things and that can mean adapting to different roles."
"What sort of role might I be willing to adapt to, Keitaro-san?"
"Remember that you promised not to hit me, but things like the traditionally male role of initiator."
To be continued…
Pre-read by Chi Vayne, previewed on various intertubes.
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