Love Hina Fan Fiction ❯ Immortality Sucks ❯ You want me to what? ( Chapter 3 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: nomadicone 
Keitaro is asked to go solo on a mission.
Anime/Manga: Love Hina Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Comedy | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 03.22.2005 | Pages: 7 | Words: 7.9K | Visits: 672 | Status: Work In Progress
Keitaro is asked to go solo on a mission.
Anime/Manga: Love Hina Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Comedy | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 03.22.2005 | Pages: 7 | Words: 7.9K | Visits: 672 | Status: Work In Progress
A/N: Don’t own Love Hina or it’s characters, only the story idea and the warped situations I’ve put the characters into
The last few days had been tense since he and Motoko had returned from the weird place and fought what appeared to be demons. The young man was mostly unfazed by the events, though he did wonder why they’d wanted him along in the first place. The two people he’d been with, Ranma and Ryoga, had been more than capable of handling the creatures, all he’d gotten out of it was sticky and a massive headache.
Sighing, he placed the hall tools in the closet and walked down the stairs that would lead him to the main living areas of the inn. The Hinata Sou was quiet for a change with Su, Motoko and Shinobu gone to school, Naru studying upstairs and Mitsune sleeping in her room, ‘Probably sleeping off a hangover.’ he thought to himself, though he smiled.
The “Fox” was something of an enigma to him, kind hearted and generous but at the same time sneaky, conniving and double faced to get what she wanted. Keitaro smiled as he walked into the empty springs, pausing for a moment out of habit to ensure that there was no one there and that he wouldn’t be taking an unscheduled trip to Indonesia again by entering.
Pulling the sweep mop from the changing rooms, Keitaro got down to work, allowing his mind to wander as he did. The argument this morning kept playing through his mind, remembering how upset Naru was at his reluctance to disclose the activities of the night not too long ago.
“Why can’t she understand? It’s not that I don’t want to tell her...” he muttered, unconsciously scrubbing more vigorously and quickly as he allowed some of his frustrations to flow from his body in the act of physical labor. Even Motoko’s help in trying to explain that it wasn’t something they could explain had only exasperated the situation to the point where Naru was giving the swordswoman sidelong glances.
‘It’s like she doesn’t trust me...’ he thought, the scrubbing motions slowly halting as the realization came over him. The sudden appearance of two micro Keitaro’s on either shoulder hardly surprised him, after all, he WAS living in the Hinata Sou.
The one on the right was dressed in flowing white robes and had little angelic wings complete with halo, while the other was dressed in an all black body suit and that had a spade tipped tail and was holding a barbed pitchfork.
Good Keitaro whispered into his ear, “She just has issues with dealing with men and how she feels about them, deep down...somewhere...she cares very deeply for you.” he said, struggling to find the right words to describe the volatile young woman.
“Aren’t you supposed to be reassuring me?” asked Keitaro, giving the little angel a dour look with his eyebrow raised.
Shrugging the Good Keitaro blushed, “Hey! I’m doing the best I can with what I’ve got to work with. Cut me some slack will ya?” he said, getting defensive about it.
The Evil Keitaro meanwhile was cackling, not having to say much about Naru, knowing that she was overdue in her duties to show Keitaro the world via LEO.
Glaring across Keitaro’s shoulders at the little devil, “You don’t have to gloat so much ya know. It’s not like this is easy.” he scolded his nemesis.
Winking at the angel the devil picked himself up and whispered into Keitaro’s ear, “Nah, she’s not gonna trust you. She’s just a violent, uncute, tom...wait a second, wrong girl. Hold on a sec...” he muttered pulling out a book from a nonexistent pocket.
Slapping his forehead, he placed the book back into the said pocket, “Ahem, I mean she’s got the emotional development of a snail, she hides her feelings all the time and is more interested in beating you to a pulp then in talking to you. When’s the last time she actually listened to your side of the story? C’mon man, grow a spine would ya?” he pleaded, tugging on Keitaro’s ear lobe.
His head involuntarily tilted with the tug, almost dislodging the angel. “But she’s not always like that, and I DO have a lot of accidents...” he defended her without thinking, memories of sentimental moments between them washing away the more violent.
Rolling his eyes, the devil shook his head, “You are PATHETIC!” he growled, this time earning a glower from the owner of the psyche devil.
“You’re SUPPOSED to be on my side.” he said pointedly to the little devil, trying to master at least one facet of his emotional self. Never mind the fact he was having a conversation with two little beings that were only figments of his imagination.
“Bite me, you get what you pay for.” the devil shot back with a crooked smile. “As I was saying, she’s not gonna change anytime soon. How much longer do you think you can put up with getting knocked just this side of silly every time she THINKS you’ve done something perverted?” he asked, his tone showing that he already knew the answer to that.
Angel Keitaro chose this moment to interject, “The amount of suffering you receive at her hands shows her time and again how much you love her. She’ll eventually come to see that.” he said piously as if was a point of honor to get blasted at least three times daily.
The rude noise made by Devil Keitaro was pointedly ignored as Keitaro pondered his situation, wondering when Naru would see that he really wasn’t the pervert that everyone thought.
“About the same time that pigs fly...” he muttered, only to be interrupted in his musing by a gentle thump on his head and a small yellow/green flipper waving. “Myuh!” came the greeting of Tama the flying sea turtle.
“Okay, you DO have a point Tama...” he agreed, seeing the turtle and realizing that sometimes even the most strangest of situations tended to come to pass in his life. Keitaro sighed as the two entities on his shoulders decided to settle their differences like men and were currently scrapping near the base of his neck.
“Great, even the voices in my head can’t get along. Maybe I have taken too many hits lately...” he said glumly.
“Who’re you talking to Keitaro?” came a voice from the changing rooms.
It startled him to the point that he reflexively flapped his arms wildly and closed his eyes so tightly that he saw spots as his voice found a life of it’s own. “NOTHING! I didn’t see anything Naru! Please don’t hit me again!” he said, taking many steps backwards and succeeding in falling into the springs.
Naru gave the young man a look as if he was insane, she’d heard him talking to someone only to find him alone in the springs when she’d arrived. “You feeling okay Keitaro? I thought I heard you talking to someone.” she asked, wondering why he was acting so strangely, he didn’t have anyone around to be perverted with so why would she hit him?
“Oh, uh...I was, ah...talking to Tama, yeah that’s it!” he said, grabbing the happy little turtle from the top of his head and thrusting to towards the girl with a relieved grin.
“O...okay.” she replied wondering if he was feeling okay. “I was just wondering if you still wanted to study with me tonight?” she asked, feeling some remorse for how harsh she’d been with him earlier.
His blinking and blank expression started to frustrate her slightly, before he finally answered. “That’d be great Naru! I didn’t think you wanted to be around me after this morning.” he said, finally releasing Tama, who promptly flew towards Naru.
She smiled at him, “Why would you think that?” she asked, catching Tama and holding her to her breasts.
Giving her another blank expression, “Because you told me you didn’t want to be around me.” he said bluntly, wondering if Naru had been studying too much.
Her smile slowly faded, showing open irritation with the ronin, “I was angry this morning because you were being a JERK! Fine, if you want to keep that kind of attitude why don’t you just study by yourself!” she huffed to him, spinning on her heel and starting to march from the springs area.
Keitaro, used to having to move VERY quickly in order to survive his tenure at the Hinata, caught her arm before she could leave. “That’s not what I meant Naru, I just didn’t want to make you any more upset at me than you already were.” he said hastily, beads of sweat forming on his brow as he spoke. The last thing he needed was to make her even more mad at him just when she was starting to talk with him again.
Meanwhile, in the springs, a small devil was treading water and giving him a disgusted look, “Wuss.” he said quietly at how quickly he folded to Naru. His head jerked forwards as a sodden robed angel slapped the back of his head.
“He loves her you idiot, even if she does beat the tar out of him everyday...for no apparent good reason...and holds a grudge....” he said, his face growing darker as he continued speaking. Looking over at the little devil, the angel shook his head. “You know what? I don’t get paid enough to do this...” he muttered, causing his counterpart to chuckle at the realization.
Without his good and evil voices to assist him in his dealings with the emotional girl, Keitaro soon found himself on familiar footing with her, as he tried to move infront of her but only succeeded in tripping over the bucket he’d left out earlier. Tumbling forwards, he reached out to catch himself on the only thing close enough to stop his descent.
Naru was highly unappreciative of the locations of his hands as they pulled her down with him, her landing unceremoniously atop him in a very compromising position. Her sight went from pained surprise, to shock, then finally to the Naru specialty, anger at his perversion.
“KEITARO! YOU IDIOT!” she cried, leaping up from his arms and promptly punting him into LEO at a rather shallow angle.
Both angels winced at the contact of her foot to the rather sensitive area of their supposed master, “Wow, looks like she got some distance on that one.” said the devil quietly.
Nodding as he watched the event horizon twinkle into existence signaling that Keitaro had left the district, “At least she didn’t punch him this time, c’mon pay up. You owe me five bucks.” said the angel, extending a hand to the devil with a satisfied grin.
Grumbling at the angel, he pulled out a very tiny and very soaked bank note and grimaced at him. “You know what? You should be working with us, you’ve been fleecing me for every dime I’ve got since you’ve got here.” he said darkly.
The angel chuckled as he made the bill vanish in his robes, “Well, given what I’ve got to work with here, what did you expect?” he asked, pointing to the still breathing hard and very angry looking Naru.
The devil winced again but nodded in agreement, “True, true.” he replied, before both vanished to see if they could help the immortal one find his way back before dinner.
Meanwhile, enroute home from school...
Motoko heard a rather loud scream that quickly dissipated with the Doppler shift. Sighing, she set down Su who’d attached herself to the kendo girl, “You both head back to the inn, I’ll go make sure that Urashima is okay.” she told them firmly, making sure her sword was in place.
Su glanced at the girl after watching Keitaro’s flight overhead, “Looks like Keitaro is going places!” she joked, happy to see that her manager was so well traveled, even if he didn’t use her mecha’s to achieve his flights.
Shinobu looked torn between wanting to go with Motoko and the desire to run back to the inn and find out what happened this time. ‘He’s such a nice man, why does Naru sempai and Motoko sempai always believe him to be such a pervert?’ she wondered, stealing a glance at the firm faced girl that was gauging the distance to the KIZ (Keitaro Impact Zone).
Frowning slightly, Motoko realized that he’d gone much farther than usual, “Perhaps it would be best that I return with you after all. Urashima is used to traversing such distances in record times.” she muttered quietly, still trying to determine her own nebulous feelings for the man.
‘He acted so nobly in his efforts with the demons, yet still he is unrepentant of his perverse ways.’ she thought as the three girls resumed walking towards the inn. A quiet voice in the back of her mind reminded her that most of the occasions that his supposed acts of perversion occurred could be explained away innocently.
Her face took on the hint of a blush as she thought of the honorable man, not that she’d let him know that. ‘It would be improper of me to allow him to know that he is less distasteful then most of the male population.’ she reasoned, ignoring the same quiet voice that reminded her of her rather romantic and vivid writings that involved the man.
Su, ever the perceptive one, noticed the blush on Motoko’s cheeks, given her current position of riding piggy back on the girl. “Heya Motoko? Why’re you turning red? You feeling alright?” she asked curiously, her face inches from the older girls.
Stammering slightly as the sudden intrusion on her musings, she struggled to regain her composure. “I’m...I’m fine Su. It is nothing.” she told the girl, not meeting her eyes as she did.
Su smiled as she relaxed back, her mind whirling with plans to help her friend find the love of her life. ‘Besides, that way both me and Motoko could sleep with Keitaro that way! Now only if he’d let me show him MechaTama3.55...’ she thought, remembering her latest creation and his reluctance to play with her while she piloted it.
KIZ...
Picking up his glasses from the ground nearby, Keitaro shook his head once to clear the remaining cobwebs. “She didn’t have to punt me so far, geez...” he muttered quietly, walking from the wreckage of the sidewalk he’d landed on, ignoring the open mouthed stares he drew doing so.
Brushing the dust and debris from his pants, he looked up to the sun and got his bearings, before heading off in the direction of the inn, limping slightly as he walked. He ran over the confrontation in his mind again and again as he walked, trying to discern exactly where he’d gone wrong. ‘Besides grabbing her down on top of me that is...I know I’m a klutz and after we’ve spent so much time together she should know that by now.’ he told himself darkly, feeling worse then he’d been in quite some time.
“Why so down buddy?” came a familiarly cheerful voice, which only drew a low groan from the ronin.
“Not you...not now...” he said quietly, closing his eyes and turning around before opening them again. When he opened them again, he found that his addled mind wasn’t deceiving him for there stood the one named Bill, with the same confident smile.
“Is that any way to treat an old friend? And after all the way I’ve come to see you...” he shook his head sadly, though the smile remained in place.
Keitaro however, wasn’t in the mood for his banter, “What do you want this time? I thought we did what you needed us to do last time.” he said, folding his arms across his chest.
“Yep, you guys sure did and with flying colors I might add.” he affirmed, nonplused by the man’s attitude. “But, I’ve got another favor to ask you, that is if you’re up to it.” he offered, walking up to the man and placing an arm around his shoulders and steering him back towards the inn.
He managed to suppress a groan as they walked in such a chummy fashion, “Your favors tend to hurt...a lot.” he reminded the man, though not disagreeing to the offer out right.
“Hey now! I gave you that nifty sword didn’t I? You ask that Motoko to show you the ropes yet? She’s quite good at it ya know.” he reminded the man, mentioning the prize he’d given Keitaro for his efforts as well as the letter that accompanied it.
Glancing at Bill, he wondered what the man’s motives were for the gift. “Not yet, we’ve been, uh...busy. Besides I’ve still gotta study for my entrance exams and everything so it’s not like I can just drop everything and go train like she does.” he told him, slightly defensive as he saw the man’s look.
Bill gave him a firm look, “I’m not sure you really understood the letter then Keitaro.” he said seriously, his friendly and personable demeanor drifting into something more serious, more darker.
He pulled the younger man to a table that was outside a small café and ordered them each a water before speaking. “Look, you may not always be teamed up with Motoko and I didn’t want you to feel like you were outclassed. That sword you got is special, hell some of the people at her school would give their eye teeth for one like it.” he began, nodding as he accepted the waters from the young man and paying him with a large note. Waving off the change, he watched Keitaro’s face for a long moment.
“I keep coming back to you because you’re special. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, what with all the impact zones you leave over the surrounding districts not to mention the Keitaro Deforestation Plan you’ve been a part of.” he said with a wry smile, reminding the young man of his various impacts and destructions of trees near the inn.
Grimacing as he took a drink of the water, he nodded dejectedly, “Yeah, I’ve kinda picked that up, so has all the girls at the inn too. Just ask Su...” he muttered, a shiver running down his spine.
Holding up his hand, Bill shook his head vigorously, ‘No, thanks...really.” he said quickly, a look of something akin to fear in his eyes at the mention of the mad juvenile genius.
“What I’m trying to tell you is that this is serious, way more serious that you may realize. Do you really understand what’s at stake here if you don’t throw in a hand every now and again?” he asked Keitaro, leaning forwards on the table.
He found himself studying the man’s blue eyes, and not finding any hint of deception about the words. “I don’t know exactly what it’s all about but given what we saw over there, I know it’s not good.” he said with a defeated sigh, his shoulders slumping. ‘Great, just when my life couldn’t possibly get any more complicated or weird, HE has to show up...’ his mind told him, resigning to the fact that he’d help.
“All I can tell you is that in the end it’s more than worth it buddy, that much I promise you.” Bill said, seeing the look on the man’s face and feeling a measure of guilt at using him so without more advance notice.
He smiled at the man, though it was a bit strained, “Now then, I’m going to need you like right now. Seems like something big is coming and if we can head it off before it actually rips, then it should lose interest.” he explained, lowering his voice.
Keitaro nodded, wondering if Ranma was going to be with him this time, not seeing the pig tailed marital artist around. “What do you want me to do?” he asked, looking over Bill’s shoulder for a moment to see if any of the others would be coming.
“Basically, I just need you to go in there and use that nifty new sword to close up the weakness in the veil. Then you come home. Oh, but if they get through you’re going to need to stop them AND seal the rip...but if we move fast enough that shouldn’t even be a worry. Trust me.” he reassured the man across from at the widening of his eyes.
The immortal one swallowed hard, “Why don’t you take care of this? You seem to know when and where it’s gonna happen, why come get us?” he asked, not liking being used if this man could obviously do something about it.
Bill frowned at him, “It’s a long complicated story, suffice it to say that if I got DIRECTLY involved, so would someone on the other side that neither of us wants to meet.” he explained, though his face showed the loss of some color.
‘What have I gotten myself into?’ Keitaro wondered morosely seeing the man’s expression to the question. ‘Okay, okay...who’s going with me?” he asked, steeling himself to do this.
“Well, ya see...it’s kinda funny...” he stuttered, chuckling nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.
Keitaro’s eyes widened as he realized that he’d be going alone. “Oh no! No way! I’m NOT going by myself!” he said sharply, almost standing from his seat. He suddenly noticed people staring at him and he blushed and lowered his voice.
“You can’t be serious! I’ll get killed without someone to help.” he hissed at the man.
“Nah! You’ll be fine, that sword will take care of you. Besides, this isn’t suited to your friend...trust me.” he said, shaking his head at the mention of Motoko.
His eyes narrowed at the admission, “I’m not happy about this you know...” he muttered, leaning back in his seat.
Bill smiled at him, “Neither am I, but you’re the best hope we got at the moment. Now c’mon, let’s go pick up your sword and get you moving before things get hairy.” he said, his face showing his understanding at the man’s feelings.
Hinata Sou...
Keitaro walked sullenly into the inn, stilling cursing his nature to have even gotten involved in this. As he trod up the stairs that led to his room, he could hear some laughter coming from the hot springs, the sound surprisingly making him feel a bit better. Su and Shinobu were playing in the springs, sounding like they were engaged in a rather intense water fight.
As he opened the door of his room, he contemplated his life here at the inn and the people he shared it with. ‘Even with all the misunderstandings they still manage to make me feel good about being here.’ he thought, realizing that he enjoyed the complicated and stressful life he’d found himself in since taking the job of manager.
The panel in the ceiling slide to the side and Naru’s head poked down, her pretty face set in a frown at him. “I’m going to the library later to study in peace...” she began to say, her tone rather cold until she saw the wistful expression on his face.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked, her voice softening slightly before she pulled her head back up and dropped through the hole into his room.
“Nothing really...” he muttered, blushing slightly at having been caught. He chuckled and rubbed the back of his head as he regarded what he thought of as his promise girl. “Look, I’m sorry about that Naru, you know...in the hot springs...” he apologized, wanting to ease the tensions between them.
Her lips went to a firm line, though she bit back the indignant retort and simply nodded her acceptance. She noticed that he had been reaching towards a small stand that contained a single sword. “Are you taking up kendo?” she asked quietly, wondering about his sudden change of interests.
“Nah, not really...this was a gift from the other night.” he said, hefting the sword by grasping the sheath in the middle. He glanced over to Naru, noting the sudden change in demeanor and vocal tones.
“Oh...I see.” she told him quietly, feeling a bit put off at the reminder of that particular evening and both his and Motoko’s reluctance to speak of it. ‘I wonder what’s going on with those two and since when does he help her sister?’ she questioned herself as she fidgeted around trying to make sense of her sudden clash of feelings for the ronin.
“Well, I’ve gotta go...good luck at the library Naru.” he said, forcing his voice to a cheerful tone.
She glanced at him, “Hey Keitaro...” she began, her stomach tightening as she watched him start to leave. “Why don’t you come with me? That way we could get more done then if we stayed here. I mean, as long as you don’t do anything perverted or think that it’s a date or anything. I just know how much trouble you having studying.” she offered, then folded her arms across her chest defensively as she dismissed his probable feelings over being out alone with her.
He smiled to her sadly and shook his head, “I wish I could Naru but I promised that I’d help out a friend for a while. I’ll just study here later.” he replied, his feelings hurt by the way she acted towards him at times. ‘It’s not like she doesn’t know I love her...I’ve told her enough times.’ he thought glumly, wondering if she would even stop with her dismissive actions.
Naru at the moment missed his sad expression as she was feeling a hurt of her own by his rejection. “I see. So I guess that your promise to get into Tokyo U isn’t all that important to you anymore now that you and Motoko have got that new friend huh?” she said to him, her anger rising as she spoke, covering the hurt.
Keitaro gave her a look like she’d slapped him with her words, “No! It’s not like that...” he began to argue back only to be drown out by her increasing volume.
“Well, don’t blame me when you fail, AGAIN! Honestly! I don’t even know why I bother with you sometimes.” She shot back at him, turning her back to hide the pain and anger in her eyes as she verbally accosted him. Walking briskly from the room, she ignored his feeble attempts at defending his actions as she fled back to the sanctity of her room.
The man stood in the center of his room, feeling a numb pain covering him that started from where his heart used to reside. It was currently on a trip that would most likely end somewhere near his toes, being broken into a million pieces on the way. Her words echoed in his mind, adding to the doubts she’d already given him earlier.
His face fell as he blindly walked from his room, the sword tightly clutched in his hand as he started to make his way back down the stairs.
Outside the Hinata Sou, on the staircase...
A fog drifted around the feet of Bill, drawing a long suffering sigh from the good natured man that had so suddenly entered into the lives of those that lived at the Hinata. “Great, just great. What do you freaks want?” he asked while shaking his head as the three elders from the town appeared with the fog, as if by magic.
“Trouble comes before the calm...” began, his face lifting to regard the old and weathered inn at the top of the stairs.
“Destiny is fluid and ever changing...” said another looking at the man they now stood nearby.
“As is the power that can define destiny.” asked the last, looking back down the stairs.
Bill groaned to himself, “C’mon you guys! You know I suck at your riddles. How much would it kill you to just TELL me what you mean for once?” he asked them, wondering how much they truly knew of the situation.
The three elders just regarded the newest interloper into their realms, the fog thickening in the silence before totally obscuring the elders as they vanished.
“I hate it when they do that...” muttered the man, not liking the sudden appearance and message from the wise men of the town. His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of one very depressed looking Keitaro. “Hey...you look like hell, you okay in there?” he asked, concern showing in his expression as he looked at the reluctant hero.
Keitaro just nodded, not trusting himself to words after the painful confrontation with Naru. It seemed as if the promise that had kept him going all these years was mocking him, making his life a running joke for those around him. ‘That promise meant everything to me...but what if the it doesn’t mean that much to the girl I promised?’ he wondered, replaying various memories where he as both reassured and mocked for his promise by Naru.
The older man’s face was knit with concern, not liking the dejected and defeated expression on the normally upbeat young man’s face. ‘This may not be such a good idea...’ he thought, wondering if he could pull another in under such short notice. “Keitaro, you sure you’re up to this?” he asked quietly, offering the man a way out.
Shaking his head, Keitaro held to the idea that he could honestly do something on his own for a change that would make a difference. “Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just got into an argument with Naru...it’s no big deal.” he said, trying to push aside the feelings of despair and rejection.
Grunting noncommitedly at the man, Bill gave him an appraising look, but finally nodded his acquiescence. “Okay, if you’re sure then. C’mon, time’s a wastin’ hero!” he said, taking a cheery tone with him again.
“Right! I can do this.” said Keitaro, seeking the bright side of things as always, beginning to focus on what he was asked to do. ‘Who knows? Maybe I can even have something to brag about to Ranma next time I see him.’ he thought, remembering the overly confident young man.
“That’s the spirit buddy, now then...let’s get you going.” he said, pointing towards a dark shadow that was forming on the side of the stairs. “There ya go, that gate should stay open for you until you’re done. Good luck amigo!” Bill told him, nodding for him to go.
Swallowing the nervous lump from his throat, Keitaro walked through the shadow gate and entered into the place between again.
He found himself within a rocky canyon, the walls and floor once more holding the multitude of black tones that he now associated with this place. The lack of any type of familiar reference markers made him uneasy, though so did this place so it wasn’t that much of a hindrance.
Walking down the valley floor, he picked his way carefully still struck by the unnatural silence of the place. The only sounds he could hear besides his rapidly beating heart was the gentle sounds of his footfalls on the land.
There was a glimmer in the rock wall to his left, pulsing and throbbing enough to draw his attentions. It looked as though the rock itself was elastic in it’s motions, like something was trying to push it’s way through. ‘Okay, this must be it...’ he thought, holding the sword up with his right hand on the hilt while his left held the sheath.
“Now, let’s see...” he muttered, only to hear the sound of his voice in the deafening silence. The sound of metal being pulled from the sheath echoed down the canyon walls as Keitaro finally laid eyes on the sword that he’d been given. It was exquisitely crafted, the ripples showing it’s creation by the hands of a master visible all along the blade. It was lighter than he’d imagined, almost like it was balanced for his hands. He gently placed the scabbard down next to him, then giving the sword a few practice swings.
There was a low groaning sound from the glimmer as he swung, causing him to pause and regard it for a moment. Before his eyes a large claw pierced the glimmer, then another as the two began to pull in opposite directions opening the rip before him widen.
“Oh crap...” he muttered, realizing he’d waited too long.
Elsewhere...
“Oh crap...” muttered Bill at almost the same time, now worrying about the immortal young man as he saw the creature open the rip. “That ain’t good...” he muttered quietly, leaning closer to the screen to watch how he’d handle this.
“I told you that he shoulda had back up.” came the voice of Chase, her own tone concerned as she too watched the events playing out before her.
Sighing, the man didn’t answer her instead calling up several options incase this went as badly as he feared it would. Deciding not to take any chances, he connected with an old friend, “Hey, I’ve got a favor to ask of you...it involves someone you know...” he said, then explaining the situation to the man.
The Place Between...
The rip had widened considerably before him, now allowing something monstrous to poke it’s mutated head through. It looked left and right before settling it’s hateful gaze onto the unfortunate man before him, letting out a roar of challenge to it’s meal.
Blinking, Keitaro stood there immobile with shock. He now understood exactly why Motoko wasn’t with him, the thing was a giant turtle demon. “Great, where’s Tsuruko when you need her.” he asked himself, taking a few steps backwards from the snapping jaws of the monster as it forced it’s way further through the rip.
The sword in his hand grew warm, vibrating slightly as it did, drawing his attention from what he was sure to be his death. “The sword!” he said, smiling widely as he remembered the blade and it’s supposed powers, powers that he had no idea of. “Oh yeah...” he mumbled, feeling the sudden elation leave him at the realization.
The creature’s clawed arm stretched through the rip, reaching for him while it snarled at the young man. Keitaro’s mind spun for a moment, trying to remember something that would help him in the situation, finally settling on a few memories of watching Motoko practice on the rooftop.
“Here goes nothing...” he said, clenching his teeth and grasping the sword in what he hoped was a similar position to the kendo girl’s. He held the blade before him, the warmth spreading down his arms, relaxing him into a semblance of a stance that was correct. His frayed nerves relaxed with feeling, his mind centered as he concentrated on the strike.
He moved forwards as he brought the blade over his head, stepping inside the reaching claws before him, bringing down the blade as he shouted a wordless battle cry. His life took on slow motion, every motion exaggerated as he got closer to the beast. It’s fiery red eyes, the scaly wrinkles in it’s snout, the drool that oozed from it’s gaping jaws that pitted the rocks beneath.
His senses of sight and smell seemed to be amplified, making him realize that not was this thing extremely ugly, but it stank to high heaven as well. He wrinkled his nose as he watched the glowing descent of the sword, never straying from it’s arc as it sliced into then through the head of the beast. His momentum and body weight carried the blow true, cleaving the head in half and splattering him with a gooey ichor that smelled even worse then the outside of the demon.
The clawed hand had also tracked the man, following him from behind and hitting the wannabe swordsman on the back moments after his strike. The claw, which was in a downward strike and well, rent through the clothes the man wore, opening deep gouging wounds that started at the center of his back and traced downwards. The finality of the retaliatory strike was realized as the momentum of the clam slammed into the calf of the leg he knelt on at the completion of his strike.
The leg folded under the blow, the knee wrenching as he twisted in pain before falling forwards. Keitaro’s blood decorated the ground behind him, pooling in the wounds and soaking the tattered remains of both shirt and pants. His vision swan as he felt icy daggers entering into his system that answered the fiery tendrils of pain that accompanied them. ‘This is new...’ he thought, realizing that something was seriously wrong for the first time. He’d been hit, blown up, kicked, beaten and had destroyed various large solid objects without so much as a scratch. Only now, he was bleeding and barely able to move due to the pain, lying in a puddle of his blood and the ichor of the twitching monster above him that still hung halfway out of the rip.
The warmth of the sword was rapidly fading, taking with it the centered state of mind he’d had and the only hopes of not panicking he could think of. The words of Bill telling him to close the rip echoed in his head again, forcing him to grit his teeth as he tried to lift his head to regard the jagged rip above him.
The remains of the smelly demon was slowly being tugged backwards into the hole, a set of larger and much uglier clawed hands doing the job. His eyes widened as he realized that if he didn’t close that rip and do it quickly he wasn’t going to see daylight again. The sword’s warmth flared to a new level as he tried once more to focus on the rip, his arm shaking with pain and exertion as he lifted the blade to the rip. The tip wavered back and forth as he painstakingly lowered the sword, the rip closing with the dropping of the blade.
The weapon clanged off the rocky ground around him, falling from unfeeling fingers as the man’s consciousness left him to the embrace of the darkness, his body slumping into the purplish ichor mixed with the crimson of his blood.
Elsewhere...
Bill stood up and thrust both hands into the air, giving a shout of triumph at the sight of Keitaro’s victory. “WOOHOO! I knew the kid had it in him, didn’t I tell ya....” he said, doing a happy dance around his chair as he spoke to a still worried Chase.
Grabbing the badly dancing man, she pulled his attentions back to the screen, showing the motionless and heavily bleeding body of Keitaro. “Something’s wrong...” she whispered, noticing that unlike the previous wounds he’d suffered from various sources, these weren’t healing.
Bill sat down heavily, worry and fear now eating into him at the sight. “C’mon kid, get up...please...” he whispered, praying the help he’d sent for him got there in time.
The place between...
A sound roared into the canyon, unlike any the place had ever experienced. A large white boxlike vehicle careened down the slopes of the canyon, heedless of it’s speed or the angle of it’s descent. It flipped and rolled multiple times before finally arcing high into the air and landing with the crunching of steel on it’s side and miraculously onto it’s wheels.
A door opened and an older man exited the seemingly destroyed van, blood streaming down several rivers on his face. “Hey Keitaro! Long time no see...” he said, staggering slightly due to the head injury.
He clucked quietly as he regarded the horrific wounds on the younger man’s back, shaking his head. “I’ve seen worse, this shouldn’t keep you down part-timer.” he chastised, pulling bandages and salves from the bottomless pockets of his blood stained lab coat and setting to work binding his wounds.
Within moments, the wandering archeologist was finished patching up a now groaning but semi-conscious Keitaro and hauling him back to the van. “Hmmm...I wonder what Haruka is having for dinner.” he wondered aloud as he turned the engine over and put the van into gear. With only mild grinding of metal and more than one lurching start, the two men made their way from the place between.
Elsewhere...
Chase had covered her eyes with a hand, shaking her head slowly at what she’s just witnessed. “I don’t believe this...I really don’t...” she muttered in amazement.
Bill chuckled nervously, “Well, uh...he DOES know him after and, well you see...” he began to explain only to be silenced by a raised hand.
“Don’t. Just. Don’t.” she told him icily, glaring at him as she did. “This is going to make things really complicated, you know that right?” she growled, wondering what god she’d pissed off this morning.
“Yeah, I know...but it’s going to be interesting.” he said, giving her his best, ‘Hey, ya gotta love me smile’, finding that she wasn’t in the mood and had been paying too much attention to Naru.
Bill picked himself up off the floor several feet away, holding his now bleeding nose and looking at her with shock. “You hib me” he said dumbly, watching her shake her right hand slightly.
“Noticed that didja? The next time you get a bright idea...don’t.” she warned him as she walked closer with a tight smile. “You’re GOING to make this up to him and find out why in the hell he just got hurt, and make sure it NEVER happens again, got it?” she asked quietly, her voice deceivingly friendly.
Bill knew better then to speak, just nodding as he met her eyes.
“Good, now go get cleaned up. You’re going to pay Seta and Keitaro a visit tonight and the three of you are going to figure this out. I’ll see you when you get back.” she said happily, smiling brightly at him as she left.
He shook his head as he watched her leave, “Okay, SHE’S scary...” he muttered, before taking his feet with a groan.
End of chapter notes: Okay, what’s a Love Hina story without Seta? I know that there’s no crossovers with this one, but I promise the return of some of the Ranma cast next chapter as well as a new guest star to join our poor battered hero. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter even if it was a bit darker then normal. (Posted this onto MediaMiner for my lone reviewer. This is for you HyperMan, well, this and the next chapter...lol)
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You want me to what?
Keitaro raised a tired arm to wipe the sweat from his brow, looking satisfied as he observed the hall he’d just spent the last few hours fixing and polishing. ‘At least that’s done now, that leaves the hot springs...’ he thought, picking up the supplies he’d brought with him.The last few days had been tense since he and Motoko had returned from the weird place and fought what appeared to be demons. The young man was mostly unfazed by the events, though he did wonder why they’d wanted him along in the first place. The two people he’d been with, Ranma and Ryoga, had been more than capable of handling the creatures, all he’d gotten out of it was sticky and a massive headache.
Sighing, he placed the hall tools in the closet and walked down the stairs that would lead him to the main living areas of the inn. The Hinata Sou was quiet for a change with Su, Motoko and Shinobu gone to school, Naru studying upstairs and Mitsune sleeping in her room, ‘Probably sleeping off a hangover.’ he thought to himself, though he smiled.
The “Fox” was something of an enigma to him, kind hearted and generous but at the same time sneaky, conniving and double faced to get what she wanted. Keitaro smiled as he walked into the empty springs, pausing for a moment out of habit to ensure that there was no one there and that he wouldn’t be taking an unscheduled trip to Indonesia again by entering.
Pulling the sweep mop from the changing rooms, Keitaro got down to work, allowing his mind to wander as he did. The argument this morning kept playing through his mind, remembering how upset Naru was at his reluctance to disclose the activities of the night not too long ago.
“Why can’t she understand? It’s not that I don’t want to tell her...” he muttered, unconsciously scrubbing more vigorously and quickly as he allowed some of his frustrations to flow from his body in the act of physical labor. Even Motoko’s help in trying to explain that it wasn’t something they could explain had only exasperated the situation to the point where Naru was giving the swordswoman sidelong glances.
‘It’s like she doesn’t trust me...’ he thought, the scrubbing motions slowly halting as the realization came over him. The sudden appearance of two micro Keitaro’s on either shoulder hardly surprised him, after all, he WAS living in the Hinata Sou.
The one on the right was dressed in flowing white robes and had little angelic wings complete with halo, while the other was dressed in an all black body suit and that had a spade tipped tail and was holding a barbed pitchfork.
Good Keitaro whispered into his ear, “She just has issues with dealing with men and how she feels about them, deep down...somewhere...she cares very deeply for you.” he said, struggling to find the right words to describe the volatile young woman.
“Aren’t you supposed to be reassuring me?” asked Keitaro, giving the little angel a dour look with his eyebrow raised.
Shrugging the Good Keitaro blushed, “Hey! I’m doing the best I can with what I’ve got to work with. Cut me some slack will ya?” he said, getting defensive about it.
The Evil Keitaro meanwhile was cackling, not having to say much about Naru, knowing that she was overdue in her duties to show Keitaro the world via LEO.
Glaring across Keitaro’s shoulders at the little devil, “You don’t have to gloat so much ya know. It’s not like this is easy.” he scolded his nemesis.
Winking at the angel the devil picked himself up and whispered into Keitaro’s ear, “Nah, she’s not gonna trust you. She’s just a violent, uncute, tom...wait a second, wrong girl. Hold on a sec...” he muttered pulling out a book from a nonexistent pocket.
Slapping his forehead, he placed the book back into the said pocket, “Ahem, I mean she’s got the emotional development of a snail, she hides her feelings all the time and is more interested in beating you to a pulp then in talking to you. When’s the last time she actually listened to your side of the story? C’mon man, grow a spine would ya?” he pleaded, tugging on Keitaro’s ear lobe.
His head involuntarily tilted with the tug, almost dislodging the angel. “But she’s not always like that, and I DO have a lot of accidents...” he defended her without thinking, memories of sentimental moments between them washing away the more violent.
Rolling his eyes, the devil shook his head, “You are PATHETIC!” he growled, this time earning a glower from the owner of the psyche devil.
“You’re SUPPOSED to be on my side.” he said pointedly to the little devil, trying to master at least one facet of his emotional self. Never mind the fact he was having a conversation with two little beings that were only figments of his imagination.
“Bite me, you get what you pay for.” the devil shot back with a crooked smile. “As I was saying, she’s not gonna change anytime soon. How much longer do you think you can put up with getting knocked just this side of silly every time she THINKS you’ve done something perverted?” he asked, his tone showing that he already knew the answer to that.
Angel Keitaro chose this moment to interject, “The amount of suffering you receive at her hands shows her time and again how much you love her. She’ll eventually come to see that.” he said piously as if was a point of honor to get blasted at least three times daily.
The rude noise made by Devil Keitaro was pointedly ignored as Keitaro pondered his situation, wondering when Naru would see that he really wasn’t the pervert that everyone thought.
“About the same time that pigs fly...” he muttered, only to be interrupted in his musing by a gentle thump on his head and a small yellow/green flipper waving. “Myuh!” came the greeting of Tama the flying sea turtle.
“Okay, you DO have a point Tama...” he agreed, seeing the turtle and realizing that sometimes even the most strangest of situations tended to come to pass in his life. Keitaro sighed as the two entities on his shoulders decided to settle their differences like men and were currently scrapping near the base of his neck.
“Great, even the voices in my head can’t get along. Maybe I have taken too many hits lately...” he said glumly.
“Who’re you talking to Keitaro?” came a voice from the changing rooms.
It startled him to the point that he reflexively flapped his arms wildly and closed his eyes so tightly that he saw spots as his voice found a life of it’s own. “NOTHING! I didn’t see anything Naru! Please don’t hit me again!” he said, taking many steps backwards and succeeding in falling into the springs.
Naru gave the young man a look as if he was insane, she’d heard him talking to someone only to find him alone in the springs when she’d arrived. “You feeling okay Keitaro? I thought I heard you talking to someone.” she asked, wondering why he was acting so strangely, he didn’t have anyone around to be perverted with so why would she hit him?
“Oh, uh...I was, ah...talking to Tama, yeah that’s it!” he said, grabbing the happy little turtle from the top of his head and thrusting to towards the girl with a relieved grin.
“O...okay.” she replied wondering if he was feeling okay. “I was just wondering if you still wanted to study with me tonight?” she asked, feeling some remorse for how harsh she’d been with him earlier.
His blinking and blank expression started to frustrate her slightly, before he finally answered. “That’d be great Naru! I didn’t think you wanted to be around me after this morning.” he said, finally releasing Tama, who promptly flew towards Naru.
She smiled at him, “Why would you think that?” she asked, catching Tama and holding her to her breasts.
Giving her another blank expression, “Because you told me you didn’t want to be around me.” he said bluntly, wondering if Naru had been studying too much.
Her smile slowly faded, showing open irritation with the ronin, “I was angry this morning because you were being a JERK! Fine, if you want to keep that kind of attitude why don’t you just study by yourself!” she huffed to him, spinning on her heel and starting to march from the springs area.
Keitaro, used to having to move VERY quickly in order to survive his tenure at the Hinata, caught her arm before she could leave. “That’s not what I meant Naru, I just didn’t want to make you any more upset at me than you already were.” he said hastily, beads of sweat forming on his brow as he spoke. The last thing he needed was to make her even more mad at him just when she was starting to talk with him again.
Meanwhile, in the springs, a small devil was treading water and giving him a disgusted look, “Wuss.” he said quietly at how quickly he folded to Naru. His head jerked forwards as a sodden robed angel slapped the back of his head.
“He loves her you idiot, even if she does beat the tar out of him everyday...for no apparent good reason...and holds a grudge....” he said, his face growing darker as he continued speaking. Looking over at the little devil, the angel shook his head. “You know what? I don’t get paid enough to do this...” he muttered, causing his counterpart to chuckle at the realization.
Without his good and evil voices to assist him in his dealings with the emotional girl, Keitaro soon found himself on familiar footing with her, as he tried to move infront of her but only succeeded in tripping over the bucket he’d left out earlier. Tumbling forwards, he reached out to catch himself on the only thing close enough to stop his descent.
Naru was highly unappreciative of the locations of his hands as they pulled her down with him, her landing unceremoniously atop him in a very compromising position. Her sight went from pained surprise, to shock, then finally to the Naru specialty, anger at his perversion.
“KEITARO! YOU IDIOT!” she cried, leaping up from his arms and promptly punting him into LEO at a rather shallow angle.
Both angels winced at the contact of her foot to the rather sensitive area of their supposed master, “Wow, looks like she got some distance on that one.” said the devil quietly.
Nodding as he watched the event horizon twinkle into existence signaling that Keitaro had left the district, “At least she didn’t punch him this time, c’mon pay up. You owe me five bucks.” said the angel, extending a hand to the devil with a satisfied grin.
Grumbling at the angel, he pulled out a very tiny and very soaked bank note and grimaced at him. “You know what? You should be working with us, you’ve been fleecing me for every dime I’ve got since you’ve got here.” he said darkly.
The angel chuckled as he made the bill vanish in his robes, “Well, given what I’ve got to work with here, what did you expect?” he asked, pointing to the still breathing hard and very angry looking Naru.
The devil winced again but nodded in agreement, “True, true.” he replied, before both vanished to see if they could help the immortal one find his way back before dinner.
Meanwhile, enroute home from school...
Motoko heard a rather loud scream that quickly dissipated with the Doppler shift. Sighing, she set down Su who’d attached herself to the kendo girl, “You both head back to the inn, I’ll go make sure that Urashima is okay.” she told them firmly, making sure her sword was in place.
Su glanced at the girl after watching Keitaro’s flight overhead, “Looks like Keitaro is going places!” she joked, happy to see that her manager was so well traveled, even if he didn’t use her mecha’s to achieve his flights.
Shinobu looked torn between wanting to go with Motoko and the desire to run back to the inn and find out what happened this time. ‘He’s such a nice man, why does Naru sempai and Motoko sempai always believe him to be such a pervert?’ she wondered, stealing a glance at the firm faced girl that was gauging the distance to the KIZ (Keitaro Impact Zone).
Frowning slightly, Motoko realized that he’d gone much farther than usual, “Perhaps it would be best that I return with you after all. Urashima is used to traversing such distances in record times.” she muttered quietly, still trying to determine her own nebulous feelings for the man.
‘He acted so nobly in his efforts with the demons, yet still he is unrepentant of his perverse ways.’ she thought as the three girls resumed walking towards the inn. A quiet voice in the back of her mind reminded her that most of the occasions that his supposed acts of perversion occurred could be explained away innocently.
Her face took on the hint of a blush as she thought of the honorable man, not that she’d let him know that. ‘It would be improper of me to allow him to know that he is less distasteful then most of the male population.’ she reasoned, ignoring the same quiet voice that reminded her of her rather romantic and vivid writings that involved the man.
Su, ever the perceptive one, noticed the blush on Motoko’s cheeks, given her current position of riding piggy back on the girl. “Heya Motoko? Why’re you turning red? You feeling alright?” she asked curiously, her face inches from the older girls.
Stammering slightly as the sudden intrusion on her musings, she struggled to regain her composure. “I’m...I’m fine Su. It is nothing.” she told the girl, not meeting her eyes as she did.
Su smiled as she relaxed back, her mind whirling with plans to help her friend find the love of her life. ‘Besides, that way both me and Motoko could sleep with Keitaro that way! Now only if he’d let me show him MechaTama3.55...’ she thought, remembering her latest creation and his reluctance to play with her while she piloted it.
KIZ...
Picking up his glasses from the ground nearby, Keitaro shook his head once to clear the remaining cobwebs. “She didn’t have to punt me so far, geez...” he muttered quietly, walking from the wreckage of the sidewalk he’d landed on, ignoring the open mouthed stares he drew doing so.
Brushing the dust and debris from his pants, he looked up to the sun and got his bearings, before heading off in the direction of the inn, limping slightly as he walked. He ran over the confrontation in his mind again and again as he walked, trying to discern exactly where he’d gone wrong. ‘Besides grabbing her down on top of me that is...I know I’m a klutz and after we’ve spent so much time together she should know that by now.’ he told himself darkly, feeling worse then he’d been in quite some time.
“Why so down buddy?” came a familiarly cheerful voice, which only drew a low groan from the ronin.
“Not you...not now...” he said quietly, closing his eyes and turning around before opening them again. When he opened them again, he found that his addled mind wasn’t deceiving him for there stood the one named Bill, with the same confident smile.
“Is that any way to treat an old friend? And after all the way I’ve come to see you...” he shook his head sadly, though the smile remained in place.
Keitaro however, wasn’t in the mood for his banter, “What do you want this time? I thought we did what you needed us to do last time.” he said, folding his arms across his chest.
“Yep, you guys sure did and with flying colors I might add.” he affirmed, nonplused by the man’s attitude. “But, I’ve got another favor to ask you, that is if you’re up to it.” he offered, walking up to the man and placing an arm around his shoulders and steering him back towards the inn.
He managed to suppress a groan as they walked in such a chummy fashion, “Your favors tend to hurt...a lot.” he reminded the man, though not disagreeing to the offer out right.
“Hey now! I gave you that nifty sword didn’t I? You ask that Motoko to show you the ropes yet? She’s quite good at it ya know.” he reminded the man, mentioning the prize he’d given Keitaro for his efforts as well as the letter that accompanied it.
Glancing at Bill, he wondered what the man’s motives were for the gift. “Not yet, we’ve been, uh...busy. Besides I’ve still gotta study for my entrance exams and everything so it’s not like I can just drop everything and go train like she does.” he told him, slightly defensive as he saw the man’s look.
Bill gave him a firm look, “I’m not sure you really understood the letter then Keitaro.” he said seriously, his friendly and personable demeanor drifting into something more serious, more darker.
He pulled the younger man to a table that was outside a small café and ordered them each a water before speaking. “Look, you may not always be teamed up with Motoko and I didn’t want you to feel like you were outclassed. That sword you got is special, hell some of the people at her school would give their eye teeth for one like it.” he began, nodding as he accepted the waters from the young man and paying him with a large note. Waving off the change, he watched Keitaro’s face for a long moment.
“I keep coming back to you because you’re special. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, what with all the impact zones you leave over the surrounding districts not to mention the Keitaro Deforestation Plan you’ve been a part of.” he said with a wry smile, reminding the young man of his various impacts and destructions of trees near the inn.
Grimacing as he took a drink of the water, he nodded dejectedly, “Yeah, I’ve kinda picked that up, so has all the girls at the inn too. Just ask Su...” he muttered, a shiver running down his spine.
Holding up his hand, Bill shook his head vigorously, ‘No, thanks...really.” he said quickly, a look of something akin to fear in his eyes at the mention of the mad juvenile genius.
“What I’m trying to tell you is that this is serious, way more serious that you may realize. Do you really understand what’s at stake here if you don’t throw in a hand every now and again?” he asked Keitaro, leaning forwards on the table.
He found himself studying the man’s blue eyes, and not finding any hint of deception about the words. “I don’t know exactly what it’s all about but given what we saw over there, I know it’s not good.” he said with a defeated sigh, his shoulders slumping. ‘Great, just when my life couldn’t possibly get any more complicated or weird, HE has to show up...’ his mind told him, resigning to the fact that he’d help.
“All I can tell you is that in the end it’s more than worth it buddy, that much I promise you.” Bill said, seeing the look on the man’s face and feeling a measure of guilt at using him so without more advance notice.
He smiled at the man, though it was a bit strained, “Now then, I’m going to need you like right now. Seems like something big is coming and if we can head it off before it actually rips, then it should lose interest.” he explained, lowering his voice.
Keitaro nodded, wondering if Ranma was going to be with him this time, not seeing the pig tailed marital artist around. “What do you want me to do?” he asked, looking over Bill’s shoulder for a moment to see if any of the others would be coming.
“Basically, I just need you to go in there and use that nifty new sword to close up the weakness in the veil. Then you come home. Oh, but if they get through you’re going to need to stop them AND seal the rip...but if we move fast enough that shouldn’t even be a worry. Trust me.” he reassured the man across from at the widening of his eyes.
The immortal one swallowed hard, “Why don’t you take care of this? You seem to know when and where it’s gonna happen, why come get us?” he asked, not liking being used if this man could obviously do something about it.
Bill frowned at him, “It’s a long complicated story, suffice it to say that if I got DIRECTLY involved, so would someone on the other side that neither of us wants to meet.” he explained, though his face showed the loss of some color.
‘What have I gotten myself into?’ Keitaro wondered morosely seeing the man’s expression to the question. ‘Okay, okay...who’s going with me?” he asked, steeling himself to do this.
“Well, ya see...it’s kinda funny...” he stuttered, chuckling nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.
Keitaro’s eyes widened as he realized that he’d be going alone. “Oh no! No way! I’m NOT going by myself!” he said sharply, almost standing from his seat. He suddenly noticed people staring at him and he blushed and lowered his voice.
“You can’t be serious! I’ll get killed without someone to help.” he hissed at the man.
“Nah! You’ll be fine, that sword will take care of you. Besides, this isn’t suited to your friend...trust me.” he said, shaking his head at the mention of Motoko.
His eyes narrowed at the admission, “I’m not happy about this you know...” he muttered, leaning back in his seat.
Bill smiled at him, “Neither am I, but you’re the best hope we got at the moment. Now c’mon, let’s go pick up your sword and get you moving before things get hairy.” he said, his face showing his understanding at the man’s feelings.
Hinata Sou...
Keitaro walked sullenly into the inn, stilling cursing his nature to have even gotten involved in this. As he trod up the stairs that led to his room, he could hear some laughter coming from the hot springs, the sound surprisingly making him feel a bit better. Su and Shinobu were playing in the springs, sounding like they were engaged in a rather intense water fight.
As he opened the door of his room, he contemplated his life here at the inn and the people he shared it with. ‘Even with all the misunderstandings they still manage to make me feel good about being here.’ he thought, realizing that he enjoyed the complicated and stressful life he’d found himself in since taking the job of manager.
The panel in the ceiling slide to the side and Naru’s head poked down, her pretty face set in a frown at him. “I’m going to the library later to study in peace...” she began to say, her tone rather cold until she saw the wistful expression on his face.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked, her voice softening slightly before she pulled her head back up and dropped through the hole into his room.
“Nothing really...” he muttered, blushing slightly at having been caught. He chuckled and rubbed the back of his head as he regarded what he thought of as his promise girl. “Look, I’m sorry about that Naru, you know...in the hot springs...” he apologized, wanting to ease the tensions between them.
Her lips went to a firm line, though she bit back the indignant retort and simply nodded her acceptance. She noticed that he had been reaching towards a small stand that contained a single sword. “Are you taking up kendo?” she asked quietly, wondering about his sudden change of interests.
“Nah, not really...this was a gift from the other night.” he said, hefting the sword by grasping the sheath in the middle. He glanced over to Naru, noting the sudden change in demeanor and vocal tones.
“Oh...I see.” she told him quietly, feeling a bit put off at the reminder of that particular evening and both his and Motoko’s reluctance to speak of it. ‘I wonder what’s going on with those two and since when does he help her sister?’ she questioned herself as she fidgeted around trying to make sense of her sudden clash of feelings for the ronin.
“Well, I’ve gotta go...good luck at the library Naru.” he said, forcing his voice to a cheerful tone.
She glanced at him, “Hey Keitaro...” she began, her stomach tightening as she watched him start to leave. “Why don’t you come with me? That way we could get more done then if we stayed here. I mean, as long as you don’t do anything perverted or think that it’s a date or anything. I just know how much trouble you having studying.” she offered, then folded her arms across her chest defensively as she dismissed his probable feelings over being out alone with her.
He smiled to her sadly and shook his head, “I wish I could Naru but I promised that I’d help out a friend for a while. I’ll just study here later.” he replied, his feelings hurt by the way she acted towards him at times. ‘It’s not like she doesn’t know I love her...I’ve told her enough times.’ he thought glumly, wondering if she would even stop with her dismissive actions.
Naru at the moment missed his sad expression as she was feeling a hurt of her own by his rejection. “I see. So I guess that your promise to get into Tokyo U isn’t all that important to you anymore now that you and Motoko have got that new friend huh?” she said to him, her anger rising as she spoke, covering the hurt.
Keitaro gave her a look like she’d slapped him with her words, “No! It’s not like that...” he began to argue back only to be drown out by her increasing volume.
“Well, don’t blame me when you fail, AGAIN! Honestly! I don’t even know why I bother with you sometimes.” She shot back at him, turning her back to hide the pain and anger in her eyes as she verbally accosted him. Walking briskly from the room, she ignored his feeble attempts at defending his actions as she fled back to the sanctity of her room.
The man stood in the center of his room, feeling a numb pain covering him that started from where his heart used to reside. It was currently on a trip that would most likely end somewhere near his toes, being broken into a million pieces on the way. Her words echoed in his mind, adding to the doubts she’d already given him earlier.
His face fell as he blindly walked from his room, the sword tightly clutched in his hand as he started to make his way back down the stairs.
Outside the Hinata Sou, on the staircase...
A fog drifted around the feet of Bill, drawing a long suffering sigh from the good natured man that had so suddenly entered into the lives of those that lived at the Hinata. “Great, just great. What do you freaks want?” he asked while shaking his head as the three elders from the town appeared with the fog, as if by magic.
“Trouble comes before the calm...” began, his face lifting to regard the old and weathered inn at the top of the stairs.
“Destiny is fluid and ever changing...” said another looking at the man they now stood nearby.
“As is the power that can define destiny.” asked the last, looking back down the stairs.
Bill groaned to himself, “C’mon you guys! You know I suck at your riddles. How much would it kill you to just TELL me what you mean for once?” he asked them, wondering how much they truly knew of the situation.
The three elders just regarded the newest interloper into their realms, the fog thickening in the silence before totally obscuring the elders as they vanished.
“I hate it when they do that...” muttered the man, not liking the sudden appearance and message from the wise men of the town. His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of one very depressed looking Keitaro. “Hey...you look like hell, you okay in there?” he asked, concern showing in his expression as he looked at the reluctant hero.
Keitaro just nodded, not trusting himself to words after the painful confrontation with Naru. It seemed as if the promise that had kept him going all these years was mocking him, making his life a running joke for those around him. ‘That promise meant everything to me...but what if the it doesn’t mean that much to the girl I promised?’ he wondered, replaying various memories where he as both reassured and mocked for his promise by Naru.
The older man’s face was knit with concern, not liking the dejected and defeated expression on the normally upbeat young man’s face. ‘This may not be such a good idea...’ he thought, wondering if he could pull another in under such short notice. “Keitaro, you sure you’re up to this?” he asked quietly, offering the man a way out.
Shaking his head, Keitaro held to the idea that he could honestly do something on his own for a change that would make a difference. “Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just got into an argument with Naru...it’s no big deal.” he said, trying to push aside the feelings of despair and rejection.
Grunting noncommitedly at the man, Bill gave him an appraising look, but finally nodded his acquiescence. “Okay, if you’re sure then. C’mon, time’s a wastin’ hero!” he said, taking a cheery tone with him again.
“Right! I can do this.” said Keitaro, seeking the bright side of things as always, beginning to focus on what he was asked to do. ‘Who knows? Maybe I can even have something to brag about to Ranma next time I see him.’ he thought, remembering the overly confident young man.
“That’s the spirit buddy, now then...let’s get you going.” he said, pointing towards a dark shadow that was forming on the side of the stairs. “There ya go, that gate should stay open for you until you’re done. Good luck amigo!” Bill told him, nodding for him to go.
Swallowing the nervous lump from his throat, Keitaro walked through the shadow gate and entered into the place between again.
He found himself within a rocky canyon, the walls and floor once more holding the multitude of black tones that he now associated with this place. The lack of any type of familiar reference markers made him uneasy, though so did this place so it wasn’t that much of a hindrance.
Walking down the valley floor, he picked his way carefully still struck by the unnatural silence of the place. The only sounds he could hear besides his rapidly beating heart was the gentle sounds of his footfalls on the land.
There was a glimmer in the rock wall to his left, pulsing and throbbing enough to draw his attentions. It looked as though the rock itself was elastic in it’s motions, like something was trying to push it’s way through. ‘Okay, this must be it...’ he thought, holding the sword up with his right hand on the hilt while his left held the sheath.
“Now, let’s see...” he muttered, only to hear the sound of his voice in the deafening silence. The sound of metal being pulled from the sheath echoed down the canyon walls as Keitaro finally laid eyes on the sword that he’d been given. It was exquisitely crafted, the ripples showing it’s creation by the hands of a master visible all along the blade. It was lighter than he’d imagined, almost like it was balanced for his hands. He gently placed the scabbard down next to him, then giving the sword a few practice swings.
There was a low groaning sound from the glimmer as he swung, causing him to pause and regard it for a moment. Before his eyes a large claw pierced the glimmer, then another as the two began to pull in opposite directions opening the rip before him widen.
“Oh crap...” he muttered, realizing he’d waited too long.
Elsewhere...
“Oh crap...” muttered Bill at almost the same time, now worrying about the immortal young man as he saw the creature open the rip. “That ain’t good...” he muttered quietly, leaning closer to the screen to watch how he’d handle this.
“I told you that he shoulda had back up.” came the voice of Chase, her own tone concerned as she too watched the events playing out before her.
Sighing, the man didn’t answer her instead calling up several options incase this went as badly as he feared it would. Deciding not to take any chances, he connected with an old friend, “Hey, I’ve got a favor to ask of you...it involves someone you know...” he said, then explaining the situation to the man.
The Place Between...
The rip had widened considerably before him, now allowing something monstrous to poke it’s mutated head through. It looked left and right before settling it’s hateful gaze onto the unfortunate man before him, letting out a roar of challenge to it’s meal.
Blinking, Keitaro stood there immobile with shock. He now understood exactly why Motoko wasn’t with him, the thing was a giant turtle demon. “Great, where’s Tsuruko when you need her.” he asked himself, taking a few steps backwards from the snapping jaws of the monster as it forced it’s way further through the rip.
The sword in his hand grew warm, vibrating slightly as it did, drawing his attention from what he was sure to be his death. “The sword!” he said, smiling widely as he remembered the blade and it’s supposed powers, powers that he had no idea of. “Oh yeah...” he mumbled, feeling the sudden elation leave him at the realization.
The creature’s clawed arm stretched through the rip, reaching for him while it snarled at the young man. Keitaro’s mind spun for a moment, trying to remember something that would help him in the situation, finally settling on a few memories of watching Motoko practice on the rooftop.
“Here goes nothing...” he said, clenching his teeth and grasping the sword in what he hoped was a similar position to the kendo girl’s. He held the blade before him, the warmth spreading down his arms, relaxing him into a semblance of a stance that was correct. His frayed nerves relaxed with feeling, his mind centered as he concentrated on the strike.
He moved forwards as he brought the blade over his head, stepping inside the reaching claws before him, bringing down the blade as he shouted a wordless battle cry. His life took on slow motion, every motion exaggerated as he got closer to the beast. It’s fiery red eyes, the scaly wrinkles in it’s snout, the drool that oozed from it’s gaping jaws that pitted the rocks beneath.
His senses of sight and smell seemed to be amplified, making him realize that not was this thing extremely ugly, but it stank to high heaven as well. He wrinkled his nose as he watched the glowing descent of the sword, never straying from it’s arc as it sliced into then through the head of the beast. His momentum and body weight carried the blow true, cleaving the head in half and splattering him with a gooey ichor that smelled even worse then the outside of the demon.
The clawed hand had also tracked the man, following him from behind and hitting the wannabe swordsman on the back moments after his strike. The claw, which was in a downward strike and well, rent through the clothes the man wore, opening deep gouging wounds that started at the center of his back and traced downwards. The finality of the retaliatory strike was realized as the momentum of the clam slammed into the calf of the leg he knelt on at the completion of his strike.
The leg folded under the blow, the knee wrenching as he twisted in pain before falling forwards. Keitaro’s blood decorated the ground behind him, pooling in the wounds and soaking the tattered remains of both shirt and pants. His vision swan as he felt icy daggers entering into his system that answered the fiery tendrils of pain that accompanied them. ‘This is new...’ he thought, realizing that something was seriously wrong for the first time. He’d been hit, blown up, kicked, beaten and had destroyed various large solid objects without so much as a scratch. Only now, he was bleeding and barely able to move due to the pain, lying in a puddle of his blood and the ichor of the twitching monster above him that still hung halfway out of the rip.
The warmth of the sword was rapidly fading, taking with it the centered state of mind he’d had and the only hopes of not panicking he could think of. The words of Bill telling him to close the rip echoed in his head again, forcing him to grit his teeth as he tried to lift his head to regard the jagged rip above him.
The remains of the smelly demon was slowly being tugged backwards into the hole, a set of larger and much uglier clawed hands doing the job. His eyes widened as he realized that if he didn’t close that rip and do it quickly he wasn’t going to see daylight again. The sword’s warmth flared to a new level as he tried once more to focus on the rip, his arm shaking with pain and exertion as he lifted the blade to the rip. The tip wavered back and forth as he painstakingly lowered the sword, the rip closing with the dropping of the blade.
The weapon clanged off the rocky ground around him, falling from unfeeling fingers as the man’s consciousness left him to the embrace of the darkness, his body slumping into the purplish ichor mixed with the crimson of his blood.
Elsewhere...
Bill stood up and thrust both hands into the air, giving a shout of triumph at the sight of Keitaro’s victory. “WOOHOO! I knew the kid had it in him, didn’t I tell ya....” he said, doing a happy dance around his chair as he spoke to a still worried Chase.
Grabbing the badly dancing man, she pulled his attentions back to the screen, showing the motionless and heavily bleeding body of Keitaro. “Something’s wrong...” she whispered, noticing that unlike the previous wounds he’d suffered from various sources, these weren’t healing.
Bill sat down heavily, worry and fear now eating into him at the sight. “C’mon kid, get up...please...” he whispered, praying the help he’d sent for him got there in time.
The place between...
A sound roared into the canyon, unlike any the place had ever experienced. A large white boxlike vehicle careened down the slopes of the canyon, heedless of it’s speed or the angle of it’s descent. It flipped and rolled multiple times before finally arcing high into the air and landing with the crunching of steel on it’s side and miraculously onto it’s wheels.
A door opened and an older man exited the seemingly destroyed van, blood streaming down several rivers on his face. “Hey Keitaro! Long time no see...” he said, staggering slightly due to the head injury.
He clucked quietly as he regarded the horrific wounds on the younger man’s back, shaking his head. “I’ve seen worse, this shouldn’t keep you down part-timer.” he chastised, pulling bandages and salves from the bottomless pockets of his blood stained lab coat and setting to work binding his wounds.
Within moments, the wandering archeologist was finished patching up a now groaning but semi-conscious Keitaro and hauling him back to the van. “Hmmm...I wonder what Haruka is having for dinner.” he wondered aloud as he turned the engine over and put the van into gear. With only mild grinding of metal and more than one lurching start, the two men made their way from the place between.
Elsewhere...
Chase had covered her eyes with a hand, shaking her head slowly at what she’s just witnessed. “I don’t believe this...I really don’t...” she muttered in amazement.
Bill chuckled nervously, “Well, uh...he DOES know him after and, well you see...” he began to explain only to be silenced by a raised hand.
“Don’t. Just. Don’t.” she told him icily, glaring at him as she did. “This is going to make things really complicated, you know that right?” she growled, wondering what god she’d pissed off this morning.
“Yeah, I know...but it’s going to be interesting.” he said, giving her his best, ‘Hey, ya gotta love me smile’, finding that she wasn’t in the mood and had been paying too much attention to Naru.
Bill picked himself up off the floor several feet away, holding his now bleeding nose and looking at her with shock. “You hib me” he said dumbly, watching her shake her right hand slightly.
“Noticed that didja? The next time you get a bright idea...don’t.” she warned him as she walked closer with a tight smile. “You’re GOING to make this up to him and find out why in the hell he just got hurt, and make sure it NEVER happens again, got it?” she asked quietly, her voice deceivingly friendly.
Bill knew better then to speak, just nodding as he met her eyes.
“Good, now go get cleaned up. You’re going to pay Seta and Keitaro a visit tonight and the three of you are going to figure this out. I’ll see you when you get back.” she said happily, smiling brightly at him as she left.
He shook his head as he watched her leave, “Okay, SHE’S scary...” he muttered, before taking his feet with a groan.
End of chapter notes: Okay, what’s a Love Hina story without Seta? I know that there’s no crossovers with this one, but I promise the return of some of the Ranma cast next chapter as well as a new guest star to join our poor battered hero. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter even if it was a bit darker then normal. (Posted this onto MediaMiner for my lone reviewer. This is for you HyperMan, well, this and the next chapter...lol)
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