Harmony of One
Disclaimer: I do not own Love Hina, any of its characters, or any thing Love Hina-ish. Ken Akamatsu does. So thank him for creating this awesome manga series.
A/N: Well, there's not much to say for this chapter except…it's finally out! Seriously, I've been one royal slacker and have not done anything for a while except school work, and perhaps play some Rome: Total War. But everything's good, so we can now enjoy and (hopefully) pleasant reading. I plan about…four more chapters after this, though I'm not going to say what they are about, so don't ask! Ha ha, imagine someone being actually interested enough to ask what I plan…Please R&R!
"…" Denotes speech
Italics Denotes thought
Bold Denotes sound effects
Certain Sounds:
GOOMPH! Means Fainting
DOOONG! Means Shock
:blah: Denotes time/time change
A scene/scene change is denoted by an extra line.
Chapter 13: A Brief Sojourn of Harmony that leads to a date!
You could almost hear the silence. Motoko lay crumpled on the floor, from the kiss, as far as Keitaro could tell. But how could Motoko, the strong-willed, fiercely-determined Motoko-chan crumple from something so…simple? Then again, Keitaro pondered, perhaps it was not so simple after all. He thought this because of another factor involved. To all his astonishment, Keitaro actually saw Motoko on the ground. Yes, he was himself again, looking at Motoko! Okay, calm down…perhaps I should pinch myself, Keitaro thought. He reached down his arm, but before he could do anything he stopped. If it is a dream, I want it to last as long as possible. Motoko groaned, startling Keitaro.
"Uh…" Motoko groaned. Her body shifted, her arms slowly propping herself to a sitting position. "What…?" Motoko suddenly gasped. She felt all over her body. "Give me a mirror!" she commanded, and like a dog, Keitaro obeyed whimpering. "I'm me!" Suddenly Motoko sprung up and started to cheer loudly, eradicating the peaceful silence that had been before.
"Woo hoo!" she cried, and she grabbed Keitaro up with her and started to twirl around in a giant circle. But just as suddenly Motoko realized what she was doing and stopped, letting Keitaro go flying into the wall. BAM! She coughed through the dust and checked once more. "Is it a dream?" she asked. Keitaro got up dizzily, and sprawled into Motoko who caught him.
"Keitaro…" Motoko said, not releasing him from her grasp. "Does this mean…we are one?" Keitaro hadn't considered the possibility before. Had the kiss moved them across the threshold, from separate to one? It seemed that the simple kiss was really complicated. Keitaro felt slightly small being held by Motoko and he stood straight up.
"Well…ah…" he stuttered, not knowing what to say. "Where were we?" Motoko's cheeks turned red as she recalled what had made them switch back. Kiss… she thought. We were…kissing. The door opened before Motoko could say anything.
"I made the video!" Kitsune said, smiling broadly. "And posted it on the web!"
"WHAT!" Motoko shouted.
"I'm just kidding, Keitaro, jeez," Kitsune said. "But do you want to see your…passionate kiss?" Kitsune asked, dragging her finger across Keitaro's face. "Huh, Motoko?"
"Ah…" Keitaro stuttered.
"NO!" Motoko said firmly without any trace of wavering resolve. Keitaro secretly wanted to see it, but by himself of course. He wanted to keep it too, because he wanted to cherish the memory of them kissing for the first time. Perhaps later when they get married it would make a…Wait, it's not when, it's if, if! Keitaro thought furiously. He had accidentally slipped in when…or was it accidental? Perhaps their recent closeness had pushed him "that" far?
"Keitaro, you're unusually stern today," Kitsune commented.
"What?" Keitaro asked. Suddenly both realized Kitsune was still in the dark about the recent unity.
"Kitsune," Motoko started.
"Err…we're back to normal," Keitaro finished for her. Kitsune looked from one to the other. She seemed ready to burst out laughing…or start crying. "Kitsune?" Keitaro asked. Tears leaked out of Kitsune's eyes as she started sobbing.
"HAHAHAHA!" she roared. "I knew it!" I knew it, of course she would laugh, Keitaro thought ironically. "It's a joke right?" Kitsune asked, wiping her eyes from the tears that had come out during her joyous roar of laughter.
"No," Motoko said. Kitsune's eyes looked up.
"Oh? How can I tell?" Kitsune said. "Perhaps I could secrets that only Motoko knows…like what kind of underwear she likes to wear."
"I…" Motoko sputtered, "Would not deign to answer such a question!"
"Kitsune, it's really me!" Keitaro said. Kitsune looked at both suspiciously with a hand on her chin. She started to pace around and examine both head to toe. She paused behind Motoko.
"What?" Motoko asked. Kitsune then grabbed Motoko's breasts offensively. "WAAAAH!" Motoko yelped. "What are you doing!" Motoko immediately pushed away and began turning a crimson hue.
"Of course Keitaro would probably do that too…" Kitsune noted to herself.
"KITSUNE! Stop this travesty at once!" Motoko shouted drawing her sword that she had long been without.
"Okay okay…" Kitsune said, backing away. "You don't have to get so worked up; we're both girls after all."
"I might have to get so worked up if you have "lily" tendencies!" Motoko cried out.
"Why, how rude!" Kitsune said with fake emotional hurt. "I am not like that!"
"Hmmph!" Motoko grunted in reply. She sheathed her sword and it noisily slid in with a clang.
"So…it's really you, Keitaro?" Kitsune asked, going closer.
"Ye-yes…" Keitaro said warily, trying to back away unnoticeably. He failed.
"Don't worry…I won't do anything like that…" Kitsune said, giggling. "Well…I'm glad you're back to normal!" She started to leave. "Was it the kiss?" she asked, suddenly stopping by the door.
"Err…" Keitaro mumbled. Motoko nodded blushing.
"Hah!♥" Kitsune said, and she hummed as she left. The two were left staring at each other.
"Where were we?" Motoko asked, now suddenly meek.
"Ah…couple?" Keitaro asked. Motoko glanced at the door that threatened to open itself and reveal their secret that everyone knew. Keitaro's room suddenly seemed thin and unprotected.
"Well…err…" Keitaro stuttered. "Do you want to go somewhere tomorrow?"
"EH!" Motoko asked, completely caught unawares. Her countenance shifted and instead of meek she seemed very excited. "Really!"
"Ah…" Keitaro said, not sure what he had gotten himself into. "Well…it's Saturday…I have no more studying to do…err…if you don't want to…I just thought, you know, it usually starts out with a first date…if you really don't want to…" Obviously Keitaro was not very good at reading girls' emotions. Or possibly he was just unsure of it himself.
"I…yes, I want to…err…yes," Motoko said, sure but not sure. A date? How could she manage? She didn't even have any proper clothes for something like this! It seemed that she might have to ask Kitsune for help…
"Okay," Keitaro said, and he scratched the back of his head out of habit. "Well…goodnight?" Motoko looked at the clock – it was already 10:00 PM.
"Yes…" she said. "Goodnight." She left and Keitaro prepared for bed.
Motoko's Room
Motoko lay on her futon, unable to sleep even at 12:00 PM which is what her senses knew. It had been two hours since she had bid goodnight to Keitaro…her boyfriend. She felt her lips with her hand for the last time, again. She swore to herself that she could still fell the tingle of the kiss, and that single thought kept her awake more than five cups of coffee and her sister breathing down her neck. Date…am I actually doing this thing called a date with someone I love tomorrow? She blushed again in the dark where no one could see her. Just the day before she had struggled with an unrequited love, and had even begun to funnel her frustrations out in some sappy romance novel that she had started to write, but now…a date? Where did this come from? Having no experience whatsoever, or even read about it, she had gone and actually asked Kitsune what goes on in a date.
"What?" Kitsune had replied. "I would've thought you would at least know about that!"
"No, I don't know anything!" Motoko had said pathetically. Kitsune then had crept on a smile and said,
"Well, Motoko, it goes like this. First, usually men like to bring women to the movies. Start off with something easy, you know, someplace where you don't have to talk for a long time and then perhaps also get to hold her hand during the scary parts, heh heh. But after that, maybe a restaurant, karaoke, bowling, then, if he's feeling really lucky, he'll go to a hotel!"
"Hotel?" Motoko had foolishly asked. "Why?" Motoko grimaced as she remembered Kitsune's roar of laughter burst forth from her lungs and into Motoko's face, assaulting her ear drums and her pride.
"You really don't know?" Kitsune had asked, holding her sides in pain. Motoko remembered she had leaned closer and whispered into her ear. "Well…at a hotel…you do 'that'…" Motoko blushed red again. No, Keitaro wouldn't do that, she told herself, but every time she thought about the date, she reached the same conclusion and could not fall asleep. Kitsune had offered to lend her clothes, though Motoko had flatly refused, and lingerie because Kitsune had abhorrently insisted it she might need it in case they get "that far." She shuddered. Of course, she hoped at one point they might get "that far" after she has married him, but on the first date…No, he was too much of a gentleman. Motoko had said such to Kitsune who again decided to snort in laughter.
"He's a pansy, that's the only reason why he wouldn't do such a thing…of course, if you do go to a hotel, you should tell me," Kitsune had finished, winking while Motoko had shamefully sputtered out nonsense causing Kitsune to laugh for the last time that night as she walked away.
Motoko still, however needed clothes, and she decided that she would have to go shopping with Kitsune, unfortunately. Shinobu might take it harshly if she went shopping for clothes for a date with her "Sempai" and Su…well, you just don't do these things with Su. Hey, I could ask Komachi-chan and Sakura-chan! Motoko thought suddenly. That is a good strategy, Motoko thought, and having decided this, she decided that finally she could go to sleep. Just before she drifted off to sleep however, she put her right hand to her lips and felt a tingling. Strange…
:Saturday, March 6th:
Keitaro's Room
Why did something feel so weird? Keitaro thought. It was not so odd that this would be the first thing Keitaro thinks upon awaking at the crack of dawn. First of all, why was he awake at the crack of dawn? He never woke up at dawn. Second of all, he has been the opposite gender for a month, and simply being that made one feel odd.
I guess this is what getting a sex change operation feels like, Keitaro thought, than instantly shuddered either from the thought or from the cold. It was still early March and the nippy spring wind was blowing gently through his window that somehow had gotten open. He shuddered again, this time definitely from the cold. What time is it? Keitaro thought groggily and saw the clock read 5:30 AM. The sun had just risen and had begun to shed its little rays over the horizon like a little child peeping out from behind his hands. Okay, I have a while. Time to sleep…
But sleep did not come. Why did sleep evade him? Something bothered him greatly and he could not sleep. He felt alert and honed.
Hmm…why would I feel like this? Keitaro wondered. Oh well, he decided that since he could not sleep, and since everyone else was, it was a prime chance to take a soak in the outdoor tub! Of course, he quickly wrote a sign as he gathered his clothes and towel. As he traveled down to the baths, he checked the girls' rooms and saw that all of them were asleep. Good, he thought, and stuck his warning sign on the door. He shed his clothes and stepped into the bath, soaking in the hot water. Ahh… he sighed mentally in relief.
Motoko's Room
Motoko's clock buzzed at 5:30 AM, loudly and irritating Motoko's ears so that she pounded it off, almost crushing it under her strong hand. She felt incredibly sleepy, though she usually wakes up at five to do her exercises. Keitaro's laziness must have been left in my body, she thought, and this thought scared her. Had her body become clumsy, perhaps, as well? Finding no satisfactory method to discover this, Motoko got up. She had woken up this early so she could take a bath, then go shopping very early with Komachi. That's right, I should still call her. Of course, she wouldn't be awake this early… Motoko had in mind a store that she had sometimes walked by, and she remembered it opened at 7:00 AM. Why did I wake up so early again? Motoko asked herself as a yawn came over her. Oh well, at least I can soak in the hot tub, Motoko thought, and she went to do just that.
Hianta-sou Open Air Bath
Keitaro was in a stupor, partly caused by the heat and partly from his total relaxation he was feeling. He had never felt so relaxed, nor so good before, and he guessed he probably wouldn't feel such again. His mind sank into a blissful state of no thoughts, just existing. Suddenly he heard a noise, and reflexively looked at the door and cringed.
Oh no, did someone not see the sign! I thought they were all asleep! Keitaro immediately thought. If it was Narusegawa… But nothing came, and Keitaro found himself wishing Narusegawa. He sighed loudly, now his thoughts upon Narusegawa. Why had she left? It didn't help anything.
No no no! another side of his brain shouted. You have a date with beautiful Motoko-chan today and you're thinking about that? Shame on you!
"But…" Keitaro stuttered. "I can't help it!"
Bad bad man! You play with people's hearts like that and then where will you be? With no one! You need to decide!
"I…have…" Keitaro said, clearly not sure.
Yes, you have decided to be a "couple," but this thing about Narusegawa and Motoko must be resolved.
"I…" Keitaro said, but stopped. He knew that been at odds with both girls, and both hated him when he had first around (he has conveniently forgot that everyone hated him at first). But studying with Narusegawa and going on that trip with her…her smile…
"Keitaro?" Keitaro turned and for a second almost swore he saw Narusegawa, but it was a fleeting moment. Motoko appeared wrapped in a towel.
"Motoko! Um…" Keitaro said, blushing red and turning around. "I didn't see anything!" Keitaro heard a splash and stiffened.
"Keitaro…" Motoko said. "Um…let me wash your back…"
"Uh…" Keitaro stuttered. Why is she going this far? Keitaro thought. I'm not ready for this level of commitment! "No…that's okay, I'll leave!" Keitaro said, and he stood up to do exactly that. However, he felt an arm grab him and push him down.
"It's okay, I'll do it," she said, and Keitaro felt a cloth on his back slowly rub up and down. That Keitaro felt odd was an understatement – it was even worse than the first time, because then at least Keitaro had been, even though by force, blind folded. And it was by necessity, too.
"Motoko…" Keitaro started, trying to take his mind off this thing right now.
"Yes?" she asked, scrubbing hard.
"Err…when do you want to leave?" Keitaro said, not very clear at all. Motoko figured out what he was talking about, but remained calm nonetheless.
"I want, that is, I would prefer to leave at, uh, eleven?" Motoko said, ending in a question, because she wasn't sure about anything that had to do with dating.
"Okay," Keitaro said, and he lapsed again into an uncomfortable silence. Soon, the scrubbing ended and Keitaro breathed a sigh of relief.
"Your turn," Motoko said, and Keitaro's eyes bulged.
"What…I, I'm not…ah…ready…" Keitaro stuttered. While he had already, of course, seen Motoko in the buff, it was an accident and he hadn't really gotten to see anything. But if it was voluntary and Keitaro was touching her…
"Please," Motoko said. "If... (Motoko blushed) we are to ever become a couple, we have to do things like this…"
"Ah, okay…" Keitaro said slowly, accepting what she said but not really wanting to do it. He turned around and immediately had to cover his nose. Motoko's bare back was facing him with nothing covering, not even a towel. Obviously she had one in the front, but the back was all bare. "Hold on," Keitaro said through his hand that was over his face covering his nose. He quickly washed off his hands and brought his towel and put it over his nose. He turned back around and though he felt something his nose did not bleed. He picked up the cloth and, trembling, his hand neared Motoko's back. He saw that Motoko was also shaking slightly. The instant his hand touched her back, he felt like he should retract it. I'm betraying Narusegawa!
"Please, Keitaro," Motoko said. "I think…" but she didn't finish her sentence. However, the effect on Keitaro was to wrench his heart so that he did not take his hand away. Today, at least, I should focus on Motoko… Keitaro thought, and he scrubbed her back. Of course, even if he wasn't confused he wouldn't have known how to do this properly, because he hadn't had any practice. He didn't bathe with other guys and even if he did, guys usually have too much pride to ask each other to wash his back.
"Ah…Keitaro, you're not doing it right. You have to scrub harder," Motoko said, blushing red.
"Oh…okay," Keitaro answered, and continued. "Uh…I'm done," he said.
"You didn't go low enough," Motoko said, and she coughed at the end to distract herself.
"Oh…" Keitaro said, and he picked up the cloth again. He closed his eyes as he started to clean. O…my…gosh…any lower and I'll be touching her—
"Thank you Keitaro," Motoko said, and she stood up and wrapped herself in a towel. "I'll see you at eleven, then." She exited the bath and Keitaro stood there.
"Ah…" he stuttered.
Motoko's Room
Motoko lay on the ground of her room, breathing heavily. What had she just done? She had let Keitaro wash her back, and his hand against her back was almost as intense as the kiss she had experienced. She recalled the feeling of his touch again…
"No no no!" Motoko chastised herself. That was almost the vilest thing she had done! And yet…her heart started to beat even faster than it had been. "No no no!" she repeated, though it seemed quite useless. What was she doing, anyways? She sat moping to herself, and came to the conclusion of the futility of her efforts. Obviously, she realized, doing that didn't do anything to help their relationship.
I need to slow down, Motoko thought. But what was fast? What was slow? She knew nothing and felt awfully confused. For a moment she thought she just might call her sister, but then realized what kind of reaction she would elicit.
Imagined Telephone Conversation
"Ne-chan, m-me and Keitaro…I mean, K-keitaro and I have—"
"Wonderful!♥" Tsuruko said. "I knew it would happen!"
"You did?" Motoko asked.
"Of course! This is usually what happens when bodies are switched. The two people fall desperately in love with one another. Have you done 'it' yet?"
"NE-CHAN!" Motoko yelled in embarrassment.
"Why not? After, it's your destiny. Oh, and I do assume you have your bodies back, don't you?" Tsuruko asked.
"Well…yes…" Motoko answered slowly.
"See? You two are already in perfect harmony! In just a few weeks, he'll be proposing to you, you wait and see!" Tsuruko chuckled.
"Ne-chan!" Motoko whined loudly. "Don't say that so soon!"
"Oh ho ho, little sister, I know a lot more about this than you do. What have you two done recently?"
"Well…I did wash his back…and told him to wash mine…b-but, it was an accident!" Motoko blurted.
"Accident, little sister? I think not," Tsuruko said. She chuckled over the phone a bit more. "It is obviously your body telling you what the natural course of action should be."
"Ne-chan!"
"Tell me when you want to do "it" with him."
"NE-CHAN!"
End of Conversation
That would be…horrible, Motoko thought horribly for a moment. She rolled over, still preoccupied in her thoughts. But…he did invite me to a date today! Motoko thought, worrying. She got up, finally, and went over to her closet and opened it up. Nothing, Motoko thought sullenly, looking at her pathetic collection. Why did she bother anyways? Most it was samurai clothes, though she did own some shorts and tank tops. Nothing good, Motoko thought again. Someone knocked on the door and slid it open without bothering to wait for Motoko to answer.
"Hello!" Kitsune said. Motoko spun around and slammed her closet doors shut.
"What is it?" she asked, with a suspicious edge to her voice. Kitsune noticed it and smiled.
"Why, aren't you edgy this morning? Is it possibly because of your sad small collection of cute clothes?" Kitsune asked, leaning her head back and putting her hand on her chin in "wonder." "Or any clothes at all?" Motoko glared at her with unbridled hostility. Kitsune ignored it like she always did and brought out from behind her back several items of clothing. "You should thank me," Kitsune said as Motoko looked at it suspiciously, remembering what Kitsune had offered last night for "clothes." "I picked out the best stuff. Any guy would go nuts if you wore this." Kitsune threw them to Motoko who deftly caught it.
"Is it decent?" Motoko asked, picking up several pieces that included a tank top, t-shirt with a cute design on it, white blouse, shorts that were incredibly short, and a mini-skirt.
"Of course it's decent!" Kitsune said. "I would wear it." This did not comfort Motoko at all. She immediately put the tank top away, since it wasn't that warm. In fact…
"Won't I freeze if I wear this?" Motoko asked, looking at the mini-skirt she was holding up.
"Of course not. Many people do it all the time!" Kitsune said. She flashed a smile in an effort to seem sincere. It didn't work.
"I don't like mini-skirts. Perhaps I will have to wear one of my long—"
"No way!" Kitsune interrupted. "I won't let you. You can't go out in a long skirt! It's so…un-seductive!" Kitsune exclaimed, and Motoko couldn't tell if she was joking or not. "Don't you want him to fall in love with you even more? How will you two ever get it on if you don't dress prettily?" Motoko looked at Kitsune in a way that clearly showed she didn't believe a word she had just said. "C'mon, I know about these things." Motoko still looked doubtful.
"I don't know…" she said, holding up the extremely short skirt.
"It's supposed to be warm today anyways," Kitsune added, hoping it would convince her to put it on.
"I'll…try it on," Motoko finally conceded, and she put it on and looked in the mirror.
"Perfect!♥" Kitsune positively said, almost squealing with delight. Perhaps it was like the time where Motoko was forced instead of choosing, but whenever it was like this Kitsune smiled. "Let me go get Keitaro!"
"No!" Motoko immediately shouted. "No, please don't!" Kitsune stopped at the door of her room, hand on the handle. "Please? It's…sort of embarrassing." Kitsune almost snorted in laughter, but for some reason she stopped herself. Embarrassing? She's going to be wearing it in front of him anyways! Kitsune thought, but maybe she wanted to save it…At any rate, I guess I can let her at least knock his socks of later, she thought.
"Well, hold up. You need some makeup too," Kitsune said, coming over and bringing out some.
"Make-up! Eww!" Motoko said foolishly.
"Eww? Let me remind you most people wear this," she said, pointing to a lipstick tube. "Now come over here," Kitsune said.
"No!" Motoko said. "I'm not putting that on."
"C'mon," Kitsune said. "It's not dangerous." She put some on to show her. "See?"
"Now I'm definitely not putting any on. It's touched your lips!" Motoko complained.
"Don't be such a weenie!" Kitsune said. She approached Motoko with the tube of lipstick held out. "C'mon, now pucker up so I can put it on. It'll bring out your lips!"
"That's okay!" Motoko said, backing away into the wall holding her hands out in defense. "I don't want my lips to stick out!"
"But how will you know if you've kissed him? Come here!" Kitsune said. Motoko blushed, but did not falter.
"No!"
"Only a dab!"
"No!"
"C'mon! It won't hurt!"
"NO!"
:11:00 AM:
Hinata-sou living room
Keitaro was waiting for Motoko to come down. He hadn't seen her since the "bath" and that worried him. What if she decided she hated me? Keitaro thought nervously. Suddenly a thought popped into his head uninvited. Then I could feel no shame in going after Narusegawa again! He glanced around again, this time feeling guilty, to see if Motoko had perhaps read his mind. Of course not, that is impossible, he thought, chuckled nervously to himself.
"Sempai?" a nervous little voice asked. Keitaro turned around and saw Shinobu with her fingers twiddling.
"Yes?" Keitaro asked. Of course he was still dense about Shinobu's attraction to him (which is why she never entered the equation when he thinks about these things), but he knew Shinobu respected him a lot.
"Sempai…err…" Shinobu stuttered, walking closer. "Are you…" She didn't finish her sentence.
"Am I…?" Keitaro asked confused. Shinobu silently shouted at herself. C'mon, ask it! Don't be shy! He won't lie! But then again, perhaps Shinobu would rather have him lie to him than hear the truth. I know the answer anyways… she thought sullenly, dropping her head down in defeat. Suddenly Keitaro put his hand on her shoulder.
"Shinobu? Are you okay? I feel like you haven't been well in the past couple of days," Keitaro asked. Then he laughed out loud self-consciously. "Of course I'm probably just reading in to things." No! You're right! Shinobu thought miserably. But you can't help me… "Hey…" Keitaro said. He put his hand on her chin and looked at her in the eyes. "You shouldn't be so down; it isn't good for someone your age to be depressed. Even though I don't know what it is, whatever it is can't be insolvable. I'm sure if you put your heart into it, you'll do great! Shinobu is always like that—whenever she puts her heart into something, immediately everything starts to brighten." Keitaro finished his little speech with a warm chuckle. "I like you better when you're happy."
Shinobu's eyes started to tear up, and she bowed swiftly.
"Th-thank you Sempai," she said. Sniffing, she wiped the tears from her eyes. Even though he can't be like that, at least he cares a lot… Shinobu thought, and though it was a sad thought, she had come to this conclusion finally. It wasn't easy. Much deliberation had occurred while Keitaro and Motoko were in the midst of their emotional thriller ride, and Shinobu had come to terms. She did love Sempai, and wanted primarily his happiness. She would have shuddered if she had forced him to do anything that would cause unhappiness, and she wished him the best of luck in her heart.
"Ha-have fun…" she said, and went away before Keitaro could utter a replyl.
"Uh…thank you?" Keitaro asked, not sure what he had done. He shrugged his shoulders.
"KEITARO!♥" Keitaro turned around though he should have known what was coming. BAMM! "Hiya!" Su said, landing on her feet and looking at Keitaro on the ground.
"SU! You nearly killed me!" he cried. "And right before my…uh…"
"Date?" Su asked, grinning madly. Keitaro nodded quickly, as if doing so for too long would bring shame and embarrassment upon his ancestors, forcing him to commit seppuku. He still felt slightly odd about using the term "date" and would rather not say anything at all. If forced, he might say "outing."
"Don't worry, you can't die!" Su said. She brought out a corsage. "Here, I made this for you." Keitaro took it and examined it; it looked normal but knowing Su… "It's a secret microphone and video camera to record your first date!"
"What!" Keitaro exclaimed. He sure as heck didn't want evidence for this. The talk would be bad enough.
"Plus," Su continued, taking it back, "If you pull on the stem it acts as a pepper spray, so you can protect Motoko like a man should," she said
"I don't think Motoko needs my protection—" Keitaro started but Su had pulled the stem already to show Keitaro. SPRAAAAYYY!
"MY EYES!" Keitaro yelped in pain, falling to the floor and writhing in agony.
"Oh no! Keitaro, are you okay?" Su asked in worry. She bent down over him and shook hard. "Wake up!"
"I'm awake!" Keitaro cried. "Just in pain!" He stood up, but stumbled around and was forced to lean on the couch for support. This is when Kitsune entered.
"Keitaro, prepare to meet the new and improved…are you okay?" she asked, noticing Keitaro stumbling over. "Are you…drunk?"
"No…" Keitaro said. "Just a bit dizzy. Su sprayed pepper into my eyes." Kitsune looked at Su who shrugged her shoulders.
"I didn't mean to," she said.
"Don't worry," Keitaro said. He stood up straight and stopped floundering around like a drunk. "I'm ready."
"Really?" Kitsune asked. "Are you ready to have your socks knocked off?"
"Ah…?" Keitaro asked. "What are you talking about?"
"Motoko. She took all day to dress up for you," Kitsune explained.
"WHAT!" Keitaro yelped. He started to panic. "B-but, I-I didn't do anything, I'm not even wearing a collared shirt! Look at this!" he shouted, pointing to a hole in his sweat-shirt that he was wearing.
"Don't worry!" Kitsune said, shushing Keitaro. "Motoko, come down!" Keitaro turned around and saw Motoko descend the stairs. He felt like gasping, but no air came out and he coughed and sputtered instead. It wasn't that Motoko was so stunningly beautiful in the sense that she was sparkling with jewels and glistening with make up that would accurately enhance her natural beauty, but that Motoko was radiating and inner beauty that was enforced by her own self and the slight tinge of make-up that Keitaro could make out, the mini-skirt she was wearing, and the blouse that fell delicately upon her like a cloud loftily riding in the sky. It seemed — as best as Keitaro could put it — entirely natural that Keitaro was struck with awe. Is this…Motoko? Keitaro's brain said through the muck that was in his brain. Keitaro was overcome and stepped back.
"Keitaro?" Motoko asked. "Are you ready?" Motoko's voice cut through his thoughts and Keitaro reacted like a love-sick tongue-tied school boy.
"Err…plehaps…I…ah…y-yyes?" Keitaro replied. If Motoko had asked him to strip to his boxers and dance like a monkey Keitaro probably would have replied the same – he didn't know what he was saying.
"Please take care of me today," Motoko said, coming closer and bowing her head slightly.
"Oblay…" Keitaro said, and he and Motoko walked out of the Hinata-sou, Keitaro slightly stumbling as he went.
"Why'd Keitaro get so weird?" Su asked, puzzled by Keitaro's reaction to Motoko. "Motoko just got dressed up and put on a little make up. I can do that!" Kitsune chuckled.
"Su, when a girl gets dressed up and the guy sees her for the first time, that is when they fall in love. Motoko has never done anything like that before which is sort of good if you think about it. That way, nobody has ever fallen for her. Keitaro's brain who has feelings as well for her probably amplified her beauty tenfold. It's pretty simple," Kitsune explained. Su pondered this while Kitsune watched Motoko and Keitaro walk down the stairs, slowly disappearing.
"So if I get dressed up, Keitaro will fall for me?" Su asked. Kitsune sweat-dropped.
"Wait a couple years," she said, and she left the living room for her room.
"I can change that," Su said, and she went back up to her room.
A/N: Well I finished another chapter. Sorry that I haven't done anything for about a month, but I had a lot of work. Right now, though, the work has decreased and I can go back to writing, though I am going on vacation for about a week next next week, so no update then. I'm going to finish this soon, as I said before, because right now about three story ideas are bursting in my head so I need to finish this. Please R&R! As always, humor is what I think I'm good at (at least better at) than romance, and it may be all trite and horrifically shameful on how it is horrible writing. Any reviews on that would be helpful!