Rider: Konbawa Minna-san! I'm sure there are a few of you wondering what the hell I'm doing here rather that in Change of Hearts…

Star: Yes I am.

Rider: (sweat drop)Quite simply, all the OC's were making my brain hurt with writers block. So I've got something else to keep the creative juices going in the mean time

Wraiths: You will continue the other story though, right?

Rider: Yes, but no promises on when it will happen. So until then readers, please enjoy this tale instead.

ooooo

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina, Ken Akamatsu does. Check out his royalty check values if you don't believe me.

Journey of the Flower Maiden

First Seed

ooooo

Su closed the book in her hand and leaned forward with a deep sigh. She rolled over on the wide tree branch she sat on so she could lay on her back. "I love that story, but I'll finish it later." She rolled over again and began to fall from her perch, she twisted with the natural grace of a gymnast through the air to land softly on her feet. She stopped and felt the soil between her toes. "I need to add more water or my trees will start to wither." She turned as she heard someone outside in the hallway.

Shinobu was walking through the hallway carrying an armful of laundry bound for the clothesline on the roof deck. She paused as she heard the door to Su's room open. "Good morning Su." She young girl bowed. "As long as you're here, did you want me to make anything in particular for lunch later?"

Su nodded her head vigorously. "Something spicy! With bananas!"

Shinobu sweat dropped. "Ano…I'll see what I can do." She turned to resume her chore.

"Hey Shinobu?" Su called after her. "When are Keitaro and the others coming back?"

Shinobu turned again. "Sempai and Naru went with Mutsumi to visit her family in Okinawa just two days ago, so they probably won't be back for another five or six days."

Su frowned a little bit. "That's no good. I have a new mecha-Tama I want to test out and I need Keitaro's help."

"You mean you want Sempai to be your moving target again." Shinobu thought silently. "I'll try to call him before he comes home to a surprise attack."

Su turned an began to walk toward the stairs. "Did the mailman come yet?"

"Hai." Shinobu turned back to her duties. "Everything is on the table in the living room.

"Kay!" Su went running off toward the living room. Once there she leapfrogged over the couch to get to the table.

Kitsune screamed as Su suddenly landed on her stomach. "Su! Take it easy! I'm not unbreakable like Keitaro!"

Su scratched her head and grinned nervously. "Sorry." She slid off the older woman and sat on the floor as she scooped up the mail. "Bill for Keitaro, bill for Keitaro, junk mail, current resident, bill for Keitaro. Oh! Pre-approved for a new credit card!"

Kitsune snatched that letter from Su. "That one's mine."

"Is not!" Su protested. "It's for anyone! See?"

"Yep. That's why it's mine now." Kitsune grinned.

Su pouted and went back to sorting through the mail, until she came back to the start of the pile. "It's not here…" She began to search the pile again, quicker this time.

Kitsune noticed the strange behavior Su was showing. "Some thing the matter."

Su put the mail down on the table again. "It's not there." She turned and saw that Kitsune was staring at her confused. "I…ano…ordered some new parts to upgrade my mecha…but it's not here."

"Oh." Kitsune leaned back in her seat and grabbed a sake bottle hidden under the nearby pillow. "Knowing how your mechas are, the parts are probably being checked by customs agents right now. I'm sure they'll arrive soon though."

Su nodded. "Yeah, I guess…"

Kitsune watched as the Su walked away. "Man, she sure gets depressed over little things quickly. I haven't seen her that sad since the last time Motoko went on her retreat and left Su all alone." Kitsune shrugged and sipped her sake. "I'm sure she'll be fine though. Once that part arrives she'll be back to destroying this place as usual."

ooooo

Su sat at her computer with the game controller resting in her lap. The title screen for the game she hacked last week blinked repeatedly, trying to entice Su to play the game. She sighed and shut down her computer. She just wasn't interested in beating all the online gamers like she usually did.

She climbed up into the tree that overhung the pond in her room and looked out her window. She tilted her head as though she saw something in the distance. She began to climb higher in her trees until she reached the access shaft for the hidden tunnel that lead to the roof. Once on the roof, she studied the moon intently. She smiled as she saw the faintest hint of red in it.

She began to jump around the roof in her excitement. "The last time I transformed, I almost kissed Keitaro! I didn't get to last year, but this year I will." She danced around the roof some more as she formed the plot in her head. Unfortunately, she forgot the fact that she had left the secret door that lead from her room to the roof open. As she jumped around she caught one foot in that hole.

She gasped as she slipped and began to fall into the long shaft. Luckily, since she fell feet first her landing wasn't too bad, but she did fall forward and hit her mouth on one of the branches. She sat up with a groan and rubbed her mouth, her fingers came away with a small trace of blood.

She ran to the mirror that was hidden behind one of the many plants in her room. "Oh no!" She looked away from the mirror, and then back again, but the problem was still there. "I can't believe this." She pulled her lip out of the way with her finger and looked at her chipped tooth. She ran back over to her computer again and began to look up various files. "Everyone says I'm really smart. I'll just clone myself a new tooth to replace it." She worked into the early hours of the morning until she fell asleep at her terminal. "Can't let him…see me like this." She mumbled in her sleep.

ooooo

Su looked out the door to her room and checked the hallway to make sure that no one was there. Once sure that it was clear she went down stairs to the kitchen. As she had expected, Shinobu had left a plate made up for Su. Su sighed. She didn't like to hide in her room away from her friends, but she was embarrassed by her broken tooth. She ate quickly, wanting to get back to her room as quickly as possible to continue her attempts to fix her tooth. On her way to her room, she heard something, and went to investigate.

"Aunt Haruka!" Called Keitaro's voice from outside. "Boy am I glad to be home!"

Su's eyes went wide in a panic. "It's already been a week! It can't be! I have to get to my room quickly." Even as she tried to tiptoe her way to her room, she knew she wouldn't make it.

"Check it out!" Kitsune hollered. "Keitaro came through great this time! Check out these gifts!"

"Whoa! There's a real viper in that sake!" Sarah exclaimed.

Su breathed a sigh of relief. "Maybe I can get away…"

"Su?" Shinobu called to her friend.

Keitaro turned and his face paled. "Wait! Let me get ready! And go easy! The last week has been rough enough already!" He curled into a fetal position and prepared for the beating of a life time.

Su saw Keitaro and wanted to greet him in her usual manner, but if she did she would smile and laugh. "And reveal my tooth." She thought silently.

Keitaro turned as nothing happened. "Su?"

"Oh, w-welcome back Keitaro." Su greeted softly. She turned and left the room quickly. "Bye." She heard the others talking in the living room as she closed the door to her bedroom. She sat at her computer, sighed, and put her head down on the desk before staring off into space. A few minutes later there was a knock at her door.

Keitaro's voice came through the door. "Su? Can I come in?" Although Su gave no response, Keitaro entered anyway. "You left before I could give you your gift." He opened his spare suitcase. The sole contents of the bag were dozens of bunches of bananas. "I know you like them so I got you a whole lot."

Su had turned to look at him as Keitaro entered the room, but turned and laid her head on the desk again. "Thanks for the thought, but I'm not hungry."

Keitaro's jaw dropped. "You? Not hungry? Since when?" He sighed as he got no answer. He got an idea and pulled a small box from his other suit case. "I found this import game shop while in Okinawa. Want to hack it and help me level up my character?"

Su turned and looked at the box. "No thanks. I hacked it off the net before you left for your trip."

Keitaro blinked as Su didn't even move. He was about to leave when he grabbed an accomplice to help him. "Su! Help! Tama-chan's gone crazy!" He began to run around the room as the flying turtle attacked him, causing random destruction everywhere. "Quick Su! Get your E.V.A powered up!"

Su stood and climbed into her trees. "You know where keys for it are."

Keitaro stood dumbfounded as the tan girl disappeared from his view.

"Myuh?" Tama-chan landed on Keitaro's shoulder.

"I know." Keitaro nodded. "I thought that would get her for sure. We better talk with the other girls."

ooooo

Su stood on the roof, staring out over the city. She removed her school uniform shirt, leaving just the white tank top beneath it. She leaned against the railing and enjoyed the breeze that went through her hair. She looked down at the ground. "Why did this have to happen now? First the letter didn't come, then my tooth." She sighed. "And Keitaro was trying to be so nice to me and I just ignored him." She frowned. "It's no wonder they all hate me."

"Su?"

The girl jumped a little bit at the voice, but didn't turn. "H-hi Keitaro." Her voice sounded so different now that she had to keep from shouting.

"You seemed a little upset before." Keitaro stayed a little bit back from the young girl. "I was wondering if you might want to go do something fun in town with me. It might help you cheer up."

Su gasped. Keitaro was asking her out? Did that mean it was a date? She should have jumped at the chance, but… "I'm sorry Keitaro. It's alright, maybe next time."

Keitaro blinked in surprise, and perhaps a small amount of disappointment. After talking with the other girls in the attic, he had almost been convinced that Su was secretly in love with him and that was why she was acting strangely. That didn't seem to be the case anymore though. He'd have to play his ace if he was going to get anywhere with this. "That's too bad. I saw a shop offering Banana Takoyaki and thought you'd be the perfect person to try it out with."

"Banana Takoyaki!" Su's mind screamed at her. "Go! Go!" Su shook her head and instead replied. "No…I can't…I won't…"

Keitaro sweat dropped. "I can see you drooling from here."

Su turned and looked down at the floor. "I'll have to go get change first then."

Keitaro wasn't used to seeing Su so mild mannered. He smiled and nodded. "Sure, I'll wait downstairs until your ready."

Su nodded once and jumped into the secret tunnel to her room. She dressed quickly in a black, long sleeve, skirt dress with a white over overdress. She then added a wide-brim black hat with a white band around the base. She completed the outfit with a set of golden earrings that she almost never wore. She walked slowly to the living room to let Keitaro know she was ready.

Keitaro stood as Su entered the room. "Wow, I didn't realize you got so dressed up. I should go change too I guess."

Su shook her head. "Its ok."

Keitaro smiled. "Ok then. Let's go."

Su looked around the city as Keitaro lead her towards the restaurant. There were couples everywhere she looked. For a moment she was a little embarrassed, knowing that the other couples in the area were probably looking at her and Keitaro. "It's almost like a real date." Su thought silently. She considered that for a moment. "But where are the others." She looked around for a moment. "And I haven't seen Naru all day. Did Keitaro come home without her?" She shook the thoughts from her head. Whatever the reason, she wasn't going to let her thoughts distract her from the fact that she was going to have dinner with Keitaro alone.

They arrived at the restaurant after a few more minutes and Keitaro ordered the meal. He took one of the Takoyaki and sampled a small bite. "It's actually not bad, a lot better then I thought it would be really. Try it." He pushed the plate closer to Su, expecting her to scoop up all of the remaining food and swallow it down whole like she usually did.

Su reached out and took one of the fried dumplings, taking a small, almost demure, bite. "Yeah, they're good." She replied softly. She looked around for a moment.

"Su? Are you feeling ok?" Keitaro asked as he saw Su eating slowly. "You real are acting a lot different. Are you sick or something?"

"No." Su insisted. "There's nothing wrong with me." She finally found what she was looking for as an idea came to her. She reached out toward the tube of squeezable wasabi on the table, and "accidentally" knocked it off the table.

"I'll get it."

As Keitaro bent down to get the condiment, Su reached out and began to gather all of the remaining takoyaki and shoveled them into her mouth. She paused a moment as she saw the table jump, as if Keitaro had jumped in surprise and hit his head on the table, before continuing to eat. She was still chewing the final mouthful as Keitaro sat down again.

"You ate them all?" Keitaro asked in disbelief. "If you wanted to do that you should have done it from the start!" He laughed, relieved to see some of the old Su back in action.

"Oh, be quiet." Su waived her fist in a playful threat as she replied around a mouthful of food.

Keitaro laughed again. "Well, since dinner is over so quick, do you want to walk around the city for a while?"

Su nodded. "Hai." As they left the restaurant, Su took Keitaro's hand. They walked around the city a while, taking in the sites and people watching as they made small conversation. She was surprised a bit. She had lived in the Hinata-sou for almost three years, yet she really didn't go into the city to much, especially at night. She came up on one shop she didn't ever remember seeing before. "Keitaro!" She called, making sure to cover her mouth with her hand. "Look! Look!"

Keitaro turned to look into the window of the costume shop.

"It's a little kitty cat costume!" Su sighed enviously. "I wished I had brought my purse…"

Keitaro saw the familiar, playful glimmer in Su's eyes. "Would you like me to get it for you?"

Su's eyes brightened. "Would you really?"

Keitaro nodded and entered the store with Su right behind. He didn't tell her that this little gift was stretching his finances to their thinnest. He was simply happy to see her smiling again. "Here you go Su." He handed her the bag with the costume. He almost fell over as she ripped the packaging open and placed the cat ears and tail on right then and there before they headed back to the street.

Su continued to look around the city for stuff to do. "Can we see a movie?"

Keitaro nodded and they entered the theater. A few hours later they exited again. Keitaro noted the small smile on Su's face. "Having fun?"

Su grabbed Keitaro's arm and rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. She couldn't remember the last time she had been able to enjoy a night like this. She paused a moment as she thought she heard Shinobu's voice screaming to 'let go of her Sempai', but when she looked around no one was there. She looked up at Keitaro. "This was so nice of you Keitaro." She pulled him a bit closer. "Can we do this again? Like once a week?"

Keitaro sweat dropped. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea, you know with all the other girls."

"That's ok." Su insisted. "I don't mind sharing with them."

Keitaro laughed nervously. "Well, maybe we can go out a couple more times before I go to America with Seta."

Su stopped and pulled on Keitaro's arm. "What? You're leaving?"

"Well, it's not official yet." Keitaro started to explain. "But there is a dig that Seta wants me to come along for and I was kind of thinking of going." He shook his head. "I shouldn't even bring it up until it's official, sorry I shouldn't have…" He stopped as he saw the tears forming in Su's eyes.

"So…you'll just leave me behind?" Su asked.

"I…" Keitaro began.

"Baka!" Su turned and ran toward the Hinata-sou. She looked back and saw Keitaro trying to follow her. She ran through the bushes of a near by park and picked up the stash of explosives she had hidden there previously. She tossed two of the larger bombs behind her and heard Keitaro scream as an explosion rocked downtown Hinata City.

She continued to run until she came to the Hinata-sou. She ran past Sarah without speaking to her. Su went to her room and punched some codes into her computer. Immediately, the building began to shake as the hot springs began to crack open to reveal her hidden escape balloon. She gathered her belongings into a bag climbed up to the roof. As the balloon basket passed her she jumped into it.

She looked down at the city as the balloon continued to ascend. "I hate you onii-san, and I hate you too Keitaro." She whispered. She saw the others coming up the stairs to the Hinata-sou. "Keitaro! I hate you!" She yelled down at the landlord. She stopped as she saw a bright flash of light from the general area that Motoko had been in. Then she heard Keitaro's scream, but before he collided with her in the balloon basket.

"Su?" Keitaro couldn't seem to focus, Motoko's attack had doubled his vision.

"Go away Keitaro!" Su started to climb out of the basket and up to the top of the balloon. "You and my brother both hate me! So go away!"

Keitaro followed her up to the top of the balloon once his vision cleared. He found her sitting in the center of the balloon, crying. "I don't hate you Su. Why would you think that? And even if that was true, running away wouldn't solve anything. Now lets go home where we can talk about this…" He looked around the open sky, and swallowed hard. "In a safer environment."

"Don't come any closer Keitaro!" Su yelled.

Keitaro ignored her plea and moved forward. "Talk to me. Tell me what's wrong." He gently placed his hand on her shoulders and turned her around.

"No!" Su fought against him. "Don't look!" He turned her around as she yelled, and Su realized that he could see her broken tooth. She waited in silence for a moment, then began to cry as Keitaro chuckled. "See? You hate me now too."

Keitaro shook his head. "I'm sorry Su. I don't hate you. You just look a little silly is all, I couldn't help it."

Su turned away and pouted. "That's even worse."

Keitaro sat next to Su. "Sorry, it's just, it's such a small thing to get worked up about. I didn't expect to see you get so concerned about such a thing."

Su looked up. "Why not? Appearance is important to a girl."

Keitaro paused a moment. Su had always struck him a more of a tom-boy type of girl than a girlie-girl. He had no idea she thought about stuff like this. "I guess it is." He finally replied. He sighed in relief as she seemed to take comfort in this answer. "So this is why you've been so weird this week? Because of your tooth?"

Su nodded. "Yeah, and cause my brother didn't send me a letter like he does every week. It must be because I broke my tooth that he hates me now…"

"A broken tooth is no reason for someone to hate you." Keitaro answered. "The mailman probably just lost the letter in the shuffle somewhere anyway. I'm sure it'll turn up. " He looked around and remembered that he was sitting on a balloon. "Maybe we should bet back in the basket now?"

"Keitaro?" Su held his hand to prevent him from moving. "Were you serious about going to America?"

"I have been thinking about it." Keitaro admitted.

Su nodded. "Before you go…Could you do me a favor?"

Keitaro nodded. "Sure. What is it?"

"There is something I want to do in my homeland." Su began. "A pilgrimage of sorts. Will you go with me?" She looked up into Keitaro's eyes, silently begging him to say yes.

Keitaro knew the deadline for his trip was coming soon, but Su looked so sad right now, he couldn't let her down. "I'd be honored."

"Thank you Keitaro!" Su tackled him in appreciation.

Keitaro sweat dropped as he felt himself slipping over the edge of the balloon. "Not good, very not good." He screamed as he plummeted over the side. He looked up to see a young woman swing down from the balloon top on a long rope. The next thing he saw was floor of the basket. He rolled over and stopped. "Su! Why are you?" He looked up into the sky and saw a red moon.

Su, now in her adult body, smiled at Keitaro. "I save your life. I think I deserve a reward for that." She started to lean in towards Keitaro's face. "Besides, we got interrupted last year, and every one else at the Hinata-sou has gotten their chance. Now it's my turn." She pressed her lips against the shocked Keitaro's lips in a deep kiss.

Moments later, Keitaro pulled away from Su. "Wow…" He reached into his mouth and pulled out a small, chipped tooth. He blushed brightly as he handed the tooth to Su. "I think this is yours."

Su blushed deeply. "Oh my. I guess that was just a baby tooth." She smiled to reveal a new tooth had grown into place as a result of her transformation.

Keitaro stared a moment. "Wait, the tooth you were so upset over…it was…" He leaned back and began to laugh.

Moments later Su was also laughing. "I'm sorry I was so silly."

Keitaro shook his head. "It's ok. He looked out over the side of the basket. "So? Where are we headed?"

Su pointed off into the horizon. "We'll start in Molmol."

"Molmol?" Keitaro scratched his head. "I've never heard of it."

Su smiled. "I'm not surprised, not many people have."

"What's in Molmol?" Keitaro asked.

"My brother, and my sister." Su replied. "My bother is the acting regent there."

Keitaro noticed that Su looked a little sad as she said their names. "Acting regent, as in a king? Then you're a princess?"

Su nodded, then shook her head. "It's hard to explain."

Keitaro nodded. "What do you need from your brother?"

Su smiled sadly. "To say good bye…"

"Good bye?" Keitaro shielded his eyes as the wind gusted up, moving a cloud into the way of the red moon. He watched in awe as Su literally shrank into her child form again right before his eyes.

Su yawned loudly. "I'm sleepy." She leaned against Keitaro and put her head on his shoulder.

Keitaro sighed and smiled as the young girl fell asleep in minutes. He looked out to the stars in the distance, wondering what this trip would be like as the balloon floated casually toward their destination. Soon the gentle rocking of the balloon had put him to sleep as well.

ooooo

Naru entered the Hinata-sou tired and worn. Thanks the countless headshots she had taken at Mutsumi's house last week, she had spent most of the day in the hospital getting poked, prodded, and scanned to make sure there was no lasting damage. She saw everyone cleaning up the mess of colossal proportions, even for the Hinata-sou. "What happened here?"

The others quickly filled the Naru in on Su's strange behavior and abrupt departure.

By the time the story was finished, Naru was ready to explode. "That baka wouldn't even go to the hospital with me, and now he's run off with Su!" She turned and stormed out only moments after coming home. "I'm going to kill him this time. I swear I'm going to kill him. And no jury would convict me for it."

"Sempai didn't run off with Su." Shinobu tried to clarify. "He tried to stop her from leaving, but…" Her voice trailed off quickly.

"I am not surprised that a man as spineless as Keitaro failed such an easy take." Motoko stated, her voice dripping with disapproval.

"I'm sure launching him at that balloon with your fancy attack didn't have anything to do with that." Kitsune teased. "You were rather vicious with that attack. He might have passed out after he got there."

"It was the only way to get him to the balloon in time!" Motoko defended herself franticly.

Sarah shrugged. "Su probably just tazered the dork into submission and then dumped him into the ocean to get rid of him." She stopped as she saw the others staring at her. "What? She did say she hated him. Who knows what she'll do."

Shinobu looked around. "Guys? Naru didn't come back."

Motoko looked over at Kitsune. "You don't think she would go after them, do you."

"I think that's exactly what she's going to do." Kitsune looked around at the others. "Which means there's only one thing we can do."

"Call the police?" Shinobu suggested.

"Hell no!" Kitsune turned and grabbed her travel bag. "Come on people! Road trip!"

Moments later, the Hinata-sou stood empty.

ooooo

First Seed Planted

ooooo

Rider: So? What do you think?

Star: Not bad, but I want to work on COH.

Wraiths: I'll hold comment until I see more.

Rider: You guys are not helpful at all. Anyway readers, all comments and criticisms are welcomed. I realized this was a slow start, but it will pick up later. So, please leave something if you have the time. 'Till the next, live well all.

Star: Bye bye!

Wraiths: Peace.