Of course, that still didn't take away the awe she still had from living there. Almost all the other residents were simply gorgeous, with the sort of looks that boys went wild over. Plus, they went to Tokyo University, each in different stages of their studies. And then there was her, who had less curves than a straight line, and the sort of grades that one hid from her parents.
However, they seemed to take this all in stride, and brought her, the plain exam failure, into their group without a second guess. In fact, it was apparently a usual thing, since she'd seen so many people come to visit all the time who they had met in some way or another. These women seemed close to everyone they came into contact with, be it Motoko's old friends from high school, or someone who came from abroad like Sarah McDougal. Then again, there was all the strange stuff that happened in this place, and she was pretty sure that she'd never get used to it.
And now the landlord was back with his new wife, which reminded her of what it was like when she had arrived. It still felt a little odd, but good, to have been included in such a personal thing as a wedding when she had just arrived. Sure, she had only been a guest, but she hadn't known them for more than a day, after all. Now that they were back, she'd expected to have them do what she'd thought that they'd all do, which was to act reserved until they formed a real opinion of her. Instead, they were actually volunteering to help her with her dreams, and were treating her like she'd always been eating at their table.
That was why she was feeling rather good at the moment as she headed to her room for the night. She'd already done everything that she needed to in order to get ready for bed, leaving only the actual act of climbing under the covers to do. It was pretty quiet and peaceful, with everyone else having said 'good night' to each other already. Rather than being scary, she felt good as she walked along the wooden planks of the hallway, going towards a night of dreaming of her hoped for success.
However, she just didn't expect to see someone crouched next to the door to the married couple's room. At first, she had been frightened, but swallowing her fear, she crept up to see who it was. Her fighting skills might have been non-existent, but she could at least give those who could fight an idea of what they might be facing.
But she found that the person who she was coming up on wasn't some simple pervert. "What are you doing?"
Shinobu nearly did a frog leap across the span of the doorway. "Ema! I... I didn't expect to see you here."
"I was heading to my room when I saw you, and wondered what was going on."
"Well... I.... That is...."
"You know, I don't know why you'd be at the manager's room...."
"I'm not spying or anything," the elder girl whispered fiercely.
"I didn't say that you were...."
"Oh.... Right.... Umm... I do have a good explanation for why I'm here...."
"Good," murmured another voice. "Maybe you can tell me why the two of you are in this spot when you said that you were going to bed."
"Motoko! What are you doing here?"
"I thought it only prudent that I make certain that there are no problems in the inn, and walked through the entire building to make certain."
"You did?"
"You can not be too cautious these days."
"But you haven't done that since I've been here. And I didn't see you go anywhere but here...." Ema said, confusion evident in her voice.
A deep blush rose on Motoko's cheeks. "I am very concerned about the safety here."
"In this exact spot?"
"Of course.... Not that I was checking on the situation between Keitaro and Naru!"
"Certainly not," drawled an amused voice, and everyone in the hall jumped at the sight of Kitsune crouched at the door.
"When did you get here?!"
"While you guys were talking. Man.... A girl can't eavesdrop with all of you making so much noise."
"You're not supposed to be spying on them!"
"I'm not? Then why are you trying to do it?"
"Because I... am not doing that."
"You aren't? That's too bad. It can be a lot of fun."
"Oh my.... You're right," Mutsumi, who seemed to appear out of nowhere, which surprised the others in the hall... again, commented. "It does seem to be rather interesting, doesn't it?"
"Leave it all to me! I've got just the thing!" Su chirped as she leapt into the group, carrying something that looked like a combination of the speaker from a gramophone and a turtle shell.
Tama even showed up, floating cheerfully above everyone's heads.
Ema just stared at the sight before her, and wondered how she, the youngest out of all of them, had not resorted to what they were doing, while:
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(Posted Mon, 13 Feb 2006 07:16)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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