Love Hina Redux
by Matthew De Mouy

Chapter 2: And so it begins

Disclaimer: Love Hina is Ken Akamatsu�s creation.  The anime is, but a 
poor shadow of the manga and we�re giving Keitaro a non-canon relative.

It was almost a year ago.  Somehow despite rushing through the test in 
such an absurdly small time he didn�t even think about the questions, he 
passed.  He�d been sure he failed, but when he went to check his 
results, to keep up the illusion he might actually get in this time in 
front of his parents, there was Mutsumi and they�d both passed.

The two of them had become quick friends.  Eating lunch together and 
spending time between classes with a familiar face was pleasant. 
Especially with the sea of classmates that seemed to ebb and flow 
leaving no real attachments.  Keitaro was disheartened in other ways. 
Despite getting in, he really wasn�t jiving with the classes in the 
pre-law major he�d originally been going for.  His grades were pathetic 
and he couldn�t seem to locate his promise girl.  Not that she would 
want to hang out with a loser like him anymore.  She�d probably 
forgotten all about him and found someone else who could make her happy. 
  At least Mutsumi was willing to be his friend.

His parents, unhappy with his poor grades, were less then happy with 
him, so when Grandma had sent a message telling him she needed him for 
something over at her old inn he�d been happy to take the opportunity. 
Maybe his parents would cool down some while he was away.  Otherwise 
they were probably going to work him to death in their confection shop 
to make up for all the money in tuition.

So here he was in front of the stairs leading up to Grandma�s old inn. 
Mutsumi had something else she was doing so she wasn�t along.  Of 
course, not wanting to inconvenience her, he also hadn�t told her about 
this.  Those other two guys had went off on their own path and he hadn�t 
seen them since before the Tokyo U entrance exam.  So really Mutsumi had 
become not only a close friend, but really his only real remaining 
friend.  Maybe here without the hustle and bustle of the University he 
could get to know some people.  Of course, people didn�t stay that long 
at an inn and they would always eventually leave.

Reaching the top of the stairs he found a familiar girl waiting for him.

�Hi, there Kei-kun, took you long enough.�

What was she doing here taking that attitude with him, again?

�Why is it always Kei-kun?  Can�t you give me a break for once?� An 
exasperated Keitaro asked.

�It annoys you.�  She stated matter-of-factly as if that explained 
everything.  �Come on, we need to get you inside and up to speed.  Some 
things have changed since you were here last and it is better we do this 
in a controlled fashion.  Well come on.�

Keitaro followed his kid sister, after the fiftieth or so time he 
stopped trying to struggle.  It wasn�t like he had an image to maintain 
anyway.  Trudging along he made his way to a room with a sign marked as 
the landlord�s room.

�Close the door.�

Keitaro complied and sat himself down on the opposite side of his 
already seated youngest sister.

�First things first, Grandma has left for a trip around the world.  She 
took Kanako along with.  I�m staying on as property manager to insure 
the place stays intact, and you don�t get overwhelmed.  You are as of 
now the landlord, Grandma has agreed to put the deed in your name as 
long as you take care of the place.  If you aren�t willing to do this 
you may flee now.�

She pulled out an enveloped with �to: Keitaro Urashima� written on it 
and put it on the table.

Keitaro looked in contemplation at the envelope for a little while. 
Might as well.  He grabbed the envelope in a somewhat forced motion and 
opened it.

�Now on to business, first of all this is an all girls dormitory, not an 
inn anymore.  Grandma decided this after the tourism crowd began to 
slack off and the place began to get rundown.  Its position allows a 
relatively short commute to Tokyo and the major colleges there including 
Tokyo U.  We presently have all of five residents, none of which are 
attending a University.

Shinobu is a young quiet girl, and she�s not very comfortable with 
herself.  She has a tendency to cry and run off.  She also happens to be 
a good cook and often does the laundry.  Be nice with her, and I would 
avoid making her cry as the other residents will not take kindly to you 
doing so.

Su is a young foreign girl, who happens to be unbelievably good at 
making advanced little gadgets.  She seems to have something of a mad 
scientist air about her.  She tends to be usually cheery, interested in 
food, and prone to casual violence.  You mainly just learn to put up 
with her.  She happens to be half of the reason why we don�t have a 
particularly good reputation and so few tenants.

The other half is Motoko.  She�s into Kendo and you can usually easily 
spot her by Samurai gear.  She hates men in general and probably will be 
the greatest source of resistance to you becoming landlord.  She is 
apparently from a line of swordmasters in Kyoto who exorcised demons. 
She is exceptionally good and capable of using Ki based attacks.  You�ll 
be on thin ice with her from the start so be careful around her.

Then we have Naru Narusegawa who is close friends with Mitsune from 
their school days together.  She has a nasty habit of looking down on 
others despite or maybe because of clawing her way from bottom ranking 
to top ranked nationally within the past few years.  She is generally 
good hearted though she has some bad habits.  Mitsune would probably be 
the best source if you want to know more about that.  She is likely to 
be the organizer behind the movement behind the residents to get rid of 
you once they find out.

Last we have Mitsune who is generally referred to by her nickname of 
Kitsune.  She�s something of a slacker, but works as a freelance 
reporter.  Mainly around here she is either drinking or stirring up 
trouble.  Don�t lend her money.  She�s prone to just waste it betting on 
horse racing.  Her outward image and manner gives the impression of 
someone who �gets around�, but I honestly think she�s probably both 
still a virgin and has been single for a long time.  I think she found 
herself stuck with that impression from others and sort of ended up 
acting the part.�

Keitaro took some time to digest this information.

�This is an all girl�s dormitory now?  What is Grandma thinking?�

�Haruka is busy with other things, and Kanako and I are still minors. 
To keep the place under Urashima family management you�re the only 
option that�s really free and capable of doing so.  So maybe she did so 
to have a family member owning the place on site, or maybe she just 
wanted to see what chaos you�d stir up with this bunch, you know how she 
is.�

Keitaro sighed.  Grandma pulling crazy stunts that didn�t make much 
sense was� well normal.  You just got used to it after a while.

�Speaking of Mitsune, you can stop hiding behind the door now.�

Keitaro turned around to see a lady open the door with the look of a 
child who got their hand caught in the cookie jar.

�Uhm, hi there Mari-chan I was just passing by and��

�I�ll let you slide on the rent, for now, sheesh.  It�s just as well. 
Kei-kun meet tenant Mitsune-san.  Mitsune-san meet Keitaro Urashima the 
new landlord.  Naru�s already started her bath as per normal right?�

�Yes, Mari-chan.  Thank you, I�ll get the money.�

Mari made a dismissing gesture.  �We have no need to start spreading 
rumors.  I�ll insure he is introduced to the other tenants.  Otherwise 
there might be a more pressing need for an immediate deposit of monies.�

Keitaro mainly just watched this exchange.  Even older girls could be 
pushed around by his younger sister.  At least that meant he wasn�t the 
only one.  He had waved at Mitsune in greetings, but she seemed more 
concerned with Mari forcing her to pay the rent.  Hopefully he�d get to 
know her later, supposing Grandma�s scheme didn�t backfire on him.

�Okay let�s introduce you to the tenants.  I suggest starting with 
Motoko, then proceeding to Su, Shinobu, and finally Naru.�  Mari stated 
turning her attention back to Keitaro.

�Sounds fine to me,� was his less then enthusiastic response.

Kitsune watched them go through barely open eyes.  This could still 
prove to be interesting.

---------------

His younger sister led him to a door then proceeded to knock.  The woman 
who answered looked to be rather beautiful.

�What is it Mari-san?�

�Kei-kun meet Motoko.�

�Uh, Hi.�  Keitaro responded nervously.

Motoko, upon noticing the only male body present, gave him a look one 
would give an insect that wasn�t worth the effort of squishing.  Turning 
back to his younger sister, �You have an odd taste in men Mari-san. 
What is he doing in our dormitory?�

Keitaro could just feel Mari�s inward grin at that.  He was doomed.

�Actually he�s my older brother.  He�s been at Tokyo U and since me and 
sis have been helping to run the dormitory we have only had 
correspondence through mail.�

Either he set this off prematurely or his youngest sister would.  The 
problem was he wasn�t sure setting off prematurely would help him.

�So you decided to show him around the dormitory?�  Her voice conveyed 
the feeling that while not exactly comfortable with this idea she�d 
allow it.

Not sure, not sure.

�Actually we received a notice from Grandma.  You see he�s the new 
landlord.�  Mari stated matter of factly.

�WHAT?!!�

Too late.

�See the paperwork is right here, the deed has been transferred to be in 
his name as long as he stays at and insures the upkeep of the Hinata House.�

Motoko�s eyes flared and she was now giving him a look that made it 
perfectly clear he was now a bug worthy of squishing.

�I don�t accept this.  This is insane.  A�a man being the landlord of an 
all-girl dormitory?!  What if he�s some kind of pervert?  What�s going 
to keep him from taking advantage of us?�

�Well for starters he�s to much of a wimp too, intentionally, do 
anything of the sort.  Second this is grandma�s idea.  You can always 
file a protest with her if you wish.  You, however, know how she is 
about these things once she gets on with one of her ideas.�

Motoko looked slightly mortified and slowly slid the door closed.

That hadn�t gone as he had expected.  Keitaro began to stretch out an 
arm as if to stop her, but ended up dropping it lamely.  �Couldn�t you 
have done that another way?  She looked so��

Mari just shook her head.  �You can be simply to nice sometimes.  If I 
didn�t go about it that way she might have decided to simply run you out 
of here before I could explain.  Don�t worry she�ll be okay.  She might 
not want to see you for a while.  This goes completely against her moral 
code among other things.�

�I see.�

�Oh and just for the record she�s only 15, so don�t start getting any 
funny ideas.�

�What?!  I wouldn�t��

�I saw you checking her out.�

�I was doing nothing of the sort.�

Mari merely grinned.

---------------

Keitaro could really only gape in shock at the room before him.  There 
was a jungle that looked bigger then the room should by all rights be 
able to contain inside.  A short, tanned, little girl had answered the 
door.  She didn�t look that threatening.  Mari must have been 
exaggerating like with that man hater comment.

�Who�s this Mari-chan?�  The girl asked.

�This is Keitaro Urashima, he�s the new landlord.  Kei-kun meet Koalla Su.�

Su stuck out a hand.  �Pleased to meet ya.�

Keitaro nervously took and shook her hand.

�Well he still has to meet the other tenants so we�ll be going now, Su.�

Once outside of earshot Keitaro comment, �She seems harmless enough.�

Mari gained a knowing smirk.  �I suppose.  On the other hand she�s 
probably figuring out what would be the best WrmDs to use on you right 
now.  Afterall you represent a new test subject.�

�WrmDs?�

�Weapons of relatively minor Destruction, usually plenty of boom but 
non-lethal � most of the time.�

�You�re pulling my leg.  This is just another exercise in how you can 
annoy me isn�t it?�

Mari merely smiled.

---------------

They came up on a landing where a little girl was hanging out clothes to 
dry.  She diligently went about her work, with a quiet air about her.

Mari motioned that Keitaro stay where he was when they climbed the steps 
to the point they were level with the landing and walked up on the girl.

Closing the distance on her she tapped her lightly on the shoulder. 
�Shinobu?�

�Yes?�  Came the nervous, quiet reply, which Keitaro could only barely 
make out, as she turned around.

�See that guy over there.  He�s my older brother.  Grandma has decided 
he�s going to be the new landlord.  Okay?�  Mari explained in a kind 
caring voice Keitaro had never heard her use before.

Shinobu nodded.

---------------

Naru finally finished her usual afternoon soak in the hot springs. 
Kitsune had a look on her face that made it clear she knew something was 
up, but wasn�t willing to relinquish the details when she asked.

Getting dressed and leaving the changing room she noticed Motoko was out 
in her Samurai gear and was pacing in agitation.  Well, she had studies 
to get back to.  She noticed a dark headed human shaped blur, which was 
following a red headed blur that was surely Mari.  There must be a new 
tenant, and from the looks of it they just finished introducing her to 
Shinobu.  That must be what Kitsune was on to.

---------------

They knocked on Naru�s door.  A few seconds later a girl in sweats and 
glasses slid open the door.  For some reason she looked disappointed as 
she adjusted her glasses looking at Mari�s companion.

�What is it?�  Came her voice with just a note of annoyance.  She had 
been in the middle of studying.

�I�ll make this quick.  This is Keitaro Urashima, my older brother, he 
is now the landlord.�

Keitaro brought up his hand to wave.

�I don�t have time for this.�  The door slid shut.

Keitaro�s hand flapped down lamely.  The greeting on his lips instantly 
halted.

�Well, that went well.�  Mari commented.

---------------

Going back down the stairs to the common room they found Motoko pacing 
and Kitsune lazing around on the couch.  Noticing their arrival Kitsune 
stood up and held out a hand.

�Well, welcome to the house landlord.�

�Thank you.�

He shut his eyes with a grin on his face as he reached out his hand. 
However instead of getting her hand somehow he got his hand caught in 
something else.

Opening his eyes he got a eyeful as he found out he�d somehow managed to 
have the bad luck to get his hand caught in Kitsune�s shirt pulling it 
up and Kitsune wasn�t wearing a bra.  He quickly shut he�s eyes.  This 
was bad.

�I�m sorry.  I�m sorry.�

He didn�t hear what Kitsune�s response was over the cry of �Pervert!�

---------------

Motoko had been at something of a loss.  Arguing with Lady Hina once she 
had made up her mind about something was futility itself.  Trying to 
force the issue, the way of the fool.  This situation, however, couldn�t 
be allowed to go on.  Then again, Mari usually was keeping thing well in 
order so maybe it could be � tolerated.

Observing Mari�s brother coming down the stairs she noted once again he 
was anything but masculine.  Yes, maybe this could be tolerated.

Then he flipped Kitsune�s shirt when she greeted him.  No, this couldn�t 
be tolerated.  This entire situation stank of wrongness.  It was up to 
her to once more set things right.  With a cry of �Pervert� she drew her 
sword and charged.  Just as she was about to deliver divine justice to 
this miscreant she felt a tug on her sword.

Mari with a solid grip on the back of the blade comment, �You know the 
rules.  No bared steel in the house unless it�s a clear self-defense 
situation.�

�Let go, he�s assaulting Kitsune.�

Kitsune commenting about a lack of free viewing was lost in the exchange.

�He�s not really assaulting her.  He probably hardly saw anything.  He 
just had the bad luck to have to accidentally do the wrong thing at the 
wrong time.  This happened a lot at home.  It really isn�t his fault, he 
just has really bad luck.�

Motoko began to feel chagrined as she reevaluated the situation.  Then 
Mari mentioned it was a reoccurring thing.  Clearly this was not the 
actions of someone who merely had bad luck, but that of a pervert who 
would even peep on his own sister and managed to convince her otherwise. 
  He needed to be brought to justice.

As Motoko seemed to begin to reevaluate the situation Mari loosened her 
grip.  When the blade was ripped from her grip she realized something 
was amiss.  Deciding on a course of action she immediately dashed for 
her groveling brother and scooping him up dived for the nearest secret 
passageway after turning a corner only barely ahead of Motoko.

Authors notes: Kanako at this time would be ~14 years old so I�m putting 
Mari at ~13 years of age or to put it another way Su�s age.  I can tell 
you up front unlike Kanako she won�t be after Keitaro.  I hope you are 
enjoying my humble attempts at writing a decent story.

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