Author's note: This is my first fan-fiction to be published here. While I am interested in seeing how people like my work, I will be honest in saying that the story is mostly a way for me to throw off extra ideas while working on some of my more serious and original material. In short, this is a fun romp with an idea that I appreciate.

For the record, I have seen Love Hina, but have not spent as much time watching it as I could. It is not gonna be canonical, definitely AU (that was an error I misprinted), but I will do my best to keep to the spirit as possible. I am human, though. So bear with me.

A thanks to 'Empress Lafiel', who is not on FF, but is still my proofer and beta. She's the one who tries to keep my work within canon, but heading a different direction.

Read for certain, look for the music that's in the story if you can, and review if you so desire to.

RATED M. While not necessarily happening now, down the line...there shall be romance, but it shall be tasteful. However, to make sure that things are covered for the time being, I will rate this as M.

Further note: Love Hina is not mine, it is Ken's. We know this, but we put it here so that we're covered. All characters not related to LH (like the band) are mine.

Love Hina: Sound Secrets

a Love Hina Fanfiction

by Michael Kanagawa

Chapter One: Discovering A New Talent

Splinters.

In his teeth.

Swollen gums would not help his studies tonight.

Trudging up the massive column of stairs, Keitaro Urashima was not the picture of health at the very moment. To the average person, he would look fine. But if the same said average person looked closer at him, they would notice the slow healing some scars on his face.

As he spit a chunk of wood from the side of his face, he slowly massaged his shoulder, winding out the stiffness that resulted from his accelerated healing abilities.

He walked through the open front door, spitting out another wooden piece from his mouth, and called out a weak "I'm home". Finally back in the place that he could rest, he sauntered his way to the stairs.

He was about to reach the stairs when he saw Mitsune "Kitsune" Konno, the hard-drinking, fun-loving tenant of the Hinata Girls' Dormitory. He said nothing as he moved to the side to allow her to pass by. She looked at him with her vulpine-like smile and hidden eyes, holding back a chuckle.

"I guess y'were sent flyin' again, right?"

Keitaro looked at her flatly, and just sighed.

"Yeah. Tripped on a loose floorboard, faceplanted into Naru, launched into space, ended up with my face implanted onto the side of a plum tree."

He reached his pinky finger into his mouth, and pulled out a thick splinter from the side.

"You know, Kei-kun, I could help you with getting those splinters out of your mouth..."

She looked at him, with a split second fox-like look of mischief, and glomped him from behind. She purred into his ear.

"...with my tongue."

Keitaro froze. Images of Kitsune and him in such an embrace flashed through his mind.

"Wh-wh-wh-wh...," he stammered out, as his face went the color of a ripe apple.

Like clockwork, the geyser of blood that was inevitable roared down from his nose onto the floor, like a great red waterfall.

Kitsune wheeled him around, and gave him a gigantic foxy smile.

"At least you got your daily amount of fiber today, eh?" she slyly said, as she gave him a small peck on the head and let him go.

Like a sack of potatoes, he landed on the ground with an audible crumple.

"Oh yeah. Still got it! In spades!"

Realizing that while she wasn't going to get a chance to delay her rent today, she at least got Keitaro to go into overload. She slinked her way into the kitchen, leaving Keitaro to slowly pick his crumpled self up.

Entering his room, Keitaro just sighed as he plopped into his chair. Grabbing a small mirror nearby and a tweezers that he had on hand for accidents, he proceeded to pull out each and every small piece of plum splinter. Each splinter was painful, but he knew that within a couple hours, his mouth would be back to normal. Such was the luck of the perpetual Toudai ronin, a second-year test-taker who hadn't had much luck up to that point.

He was the resident manager of the Hinata Girls' Dormitories, formerly the Hinata Inn. Given the job and the building by his grandmother, Hinata Urashima, he excelled at his work in repairing the grounds and making sure things were up to standards.

That is, when he wasn't tripping up on something, being set up for a trick, or being beaten up for simply looking at one of the six residents in any way perceived to be "perverted".

He looked down at his studies, and realized that he was not going to be able to do much else for the night. Looking at his face in the mirror, he pulled open the door to his room. He was startled by someone outside of his door.

"Gyah! Oh, my...Shinobu. Don't scare me like that."

"I...I'm sorry, Sempai!" Shinobu Maehara, the resident chef and youngest of the boarders at the dorm, cried out, "I...I guess...I just saw you come back from...that...and I wanted to see if you were alright."

Keitaro gave her a smile, as he gave a short bow.

"I'm okay, Shinobu. My pride's hurt a little, but nothing majorly damaged besides getting a face full of wood."

"W-what?!"

"Don't worry about it, Shinobu. I'll be alright. I did want to let you know that I'd like my dinner up here in my room tonight. I'm going to be studying, and I just don't want to be disturbed."

"Oh. O-okay, sempai. I hope you feel better..."

He wanly smiled at her, and closed the door.

Dinner was a relatively lively event. Exchanges of the circumstances of Keitaro's latest "perversions" were told around the table, with the two main instigators of the conversation being Naru Narusegawa and Motoko Aoyama.

"I cannot believe the nerve of him! The fool thinks he can do an impersonation of a car accident with my breasts!" Naru said, in an exaggerated tone, "I told you all that he was a pervert."

Kitsune looked at her, and chuckled while downing a glass of sake.

"As hilarious as it may have been, ah wonder if he didn't actually trip on the floorboard like he said," she said, putting a finger up like a wisened sage.

"Even if he did, he's a man. He should have some control over the direction of his perversion," Motoko replied, with an aura of hate surrounding her.

"Well, I don't know 'bout you, but I've had some trouble with th' floor in that area."

Naru looked at Kitsune with a plain look on her face.

"He did it on purpose. You know this. Floorboards are nothing more than a convenient excuse."

A boisterous voice suddenly piped up.

"They're also fun to use as a ramp for experiments!" Kaolla Su, the foreign exchange student from Molmol and resident engineer/mad scientist kid exclaimed, as she shoveled the remains of a meatloaf into her mouth.

"Um...I...I had some trouble..." Shinobu started to say.

"If I have to beat every perverted thought out of that man, so kami-sama help me, I will do it. Floorboards or no floorboards," Naru interrupted, crossing her arms and nodding her head.

Shinobu looked at her, sighed, and went back to cleaning up the kitchen of the dishes she made.

Kitsune stood up and stretched her arms up.

"Well, I've had a good week, so I'm goin' out tonight. Don't wait up for me, y'all."

Naru looked up at her as she was leaving.

"Where are you going?"

"Ah, there's a club that opened up about 3 months ago that I've never been. I've been thinking about goin' there for a while."

As she spoke, she never stopped walking.

Naru let the topic drop, as Kitsune went up the stairs. As she climbed up, Motoko leaned over to her pervert-hunting comrade-in-arms and whispered a few words.

"You're right, Motoko. But, she's also our friend and an ally. We leave her be, we continue to take care of the pervert," the honey-brunette replied.

As they spoke the word, their subject of conversation appeared at the bottom of the stairs. He passed by them, hearing what they had just said, but choosing to ignore them.

"Shinobu, thank you for bringing the dinner upstairs. You did a magnificent job," he said to her, gratefulness coursing through his eyes.

For her part, the brightening of her eyes upon seeing his also brought a brightening in the color of her face.

"Th-th-thank you, Sempai. It was nothing..."

"It was still exquisite. I appreciate it."

She just looked at him, while the color of her face deepened into a near-crimson color.

He turned around and walked out of the kitchen, passing by the Pervert Patrol yet again.

"I'm going out to clear my head. Don't wait up for me."

Naru's face twisted into annoyance.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going? We're supposed to study tonight!"

Keitaro just looked back at Naru and sighed.

"I can't study while I'm still picking splinters out of my teeth. You'll have to go without me. Mutsumi should be here soon to help you out."

"But-"

Keitaro grabbed his jacket, and walked out the front door.

Naru just fumed as she walked over towards the coat rack in the corner.

"I'm going to find out where he's..."

A hand landed and squeezed her shoulder.

"Naru, let the man go."

Naru turned around, her face screwed into a disgusted position.

"He's a cowardly male," Motoko said, dismissal heavy on her lips, "Give him the night to lick his wounds, and he'll come back, same as he always does."

"Grrrr...I hate it when does this. It means I have no control over him."

The kendo-girl just shook her head, as she walked back towards her room. Naru, finally giving up the chase, turned around and went back to her room to get ahead in studies.

If anything can be said about Mitsune Konno, it's that she has an impeccable taste for the spirits. At the Hinata, she was constantly chided for imbibing in too much sake, though sometimes that seemed for the better as she was able to expose the kanrinin's "perverted tendencies" to swift justice at the hands of Motoko and Naru.

For Kitsune, however, it was less about getting people in trouble, and just having a good time. And having started drinking during high school, she always knew how to have a good time.

If someone recommended a club for her to visit, she always took the advice to see how it turned out. If she rated it well, people would know about it through word of mouth, and there would usually be a higher turnout. If she panned it, business would usually drop a bit before leveling off at just about even.

While she knew that her opinion of places was regarded in some parts of society, she didn't understand just how much influence she had. Showing up to a new club would make people nervous, if they knew who she was. If people didn't know her, however, she could get a good feel for what was going on.

This was one reason why she never usually hit a new club straightaway, and would always "pre-funk" in a usual hangout before moving onto the new club.

After taking two hours in the greatness of the service at her favorite "pre-funk" spot, a little hole in the wall in a relatively nice part of Hinata City, she walked her slightly tipsy self down the street. A few blocks down was the sight of the new club she wanted to visit, built into a former three-story office building. "He's On The Jazz" was a new venture, and a risky one. Jazz was not a big thing in Japan, and smooth jazz even more so.

Kitsune walked down to the club, and looked at the gentlemen at the front door. Even before she arrived, the men parted ways so she could move through.

No guest list, eh? I'm guessing these guys are just to make sure no one gets rowdy, she thought, smirking while taking some mental notes about the place.

She walked through the doors and through a quiet outer coat-check area. She could faintly hear the sounds of saxophones and keyboards, and the thumping of drums.

After checking her jacket at the desk, she walked in and beheld a sight of smoothness she could never have imagined.

The back walls were lined with a red velvet, giving the feel like an old time theatre. A short set of stairs to her right led to a mezzanine with tables and chairs and all the feeling of a cozy restaurant. Below, down a set of ornately decorated stairs, the wooden floor would hold a few standing tables while opening up a sea of blank space for dancing, if need be. Off to her left was a gigantic bar setup with high shelves and mirrors, and copious bottles full of the beautiful elixir that would whet the young fox's thirst. The bar looked to be made of wood, with small neon lights running up and down the bar like a set of landing lights on a runway.
As she swished down the stairs to the bar, she waded through the numerous people who were enjoying their time listening and or dancing to a band she couldn't identify right away. She found an empty bar stool, and sat down. Secretly pulling out a couple thousand Yen from between her ample breasts, she winked at the bartender and asked for an Old Fashioned. She would order the same three drinks, and their quality would determine if the bar was worthy of her continued patronage or not, but before she would do so, she'd start with one.

As she stepped off the stool, her foot brushed something along the rails below the seat. She noticed, attached to the bar, elevated pedals that would allow standers to be comfortably cushioned on air.

Nice touch. Comfort for the standing folk, comfy seating for the barflies, she remarked to herself. She glanced over to the house band as they were finishing the set. The band seemed to be as mixed in their personnel as the drinks of the house. From her vantage point, she could see two Americans, two Japanese, and one darker-skinned gentleman up on the stage.

The bartender laid the drink in front of her, and she gave him a wink as she turned back to the band. She looked at the band again, to get a sense of who they were and what they offered. She payed little attention to the drummer and the percussionists, as well as the darker-skinned keyboardist. The female guitarist and singer seemed to be vibrant. The only one she couldn't get a good read on was the saxophonist, as he was turned away from her and playing on the other side of the stage.

She tapped the shoulder of the guy in front of her, who turned around and looked a little annoyed.

"Oy, you know who the band is?"

The man's face brightened up.

"Yeah, that's Cognac. Formed about 5 months ago. They have some real talent there."

"How do you know?"

"Cause I've been following them since. They became the house band here about a month back, and they've slowly been getting more people in."

Kitsune mused over this, smiling all the more.

"What do you know of the band?"

"Well, the three white guys are from America. I think they go to Keio. The darker-skinned guy is from Lebanon, as far as I know. He's married to a Japanese lady, but other than that, I don't know much. The girl goes to Meiji, and is considered the East's answer to Peter White..."

"Who?"

"Peter White. Smooth jazz guitarist. Great guy. If he comes to Tokyo, he will probably come here."

"How about the sax-man?"

"Oho, now that guy has a history. If we knew what it was, that is. He's the only one who isn't in university. No one knows anything about him, except that some are thinking he could be the next great musician to take the West, like Keiko Matsui."

She looked at the saxophonist, and tried to see if there was anything she saw in him. He seemed to look like any normal man around her age. She noticed that he liked to interact with the crowd a bit, and a few other features of him.

That man's got a cute butt. I wonder...

Just as she was thinking about moving closer, she turned back to quickly enjoy a taste of her drink. As the liquid flowed across her tongue, and down her throat, her brain exploded with ecstasy at the taste.

Oh man, if the band is any good as this Old Fashioned...

Her thoughts were interrupted with the end of the song.

"Thank you, everyone!" the guitarist and singer of the band called out, "Thank you for coming tonight!"

Kitsune turned around and noticed that the crowd had since gotten bigger, and the room a bit more compact with the swelling size of the crowd. The clapping from the crowd was quite a scene, something different from some clubs she went to.

"Before we continue, let me introduce you to our band. In the back, the master of beats, and not a master beater, on drums it's Charles "The Thumpa" Thomas!"

The drummer proceeded to do a whirling dervish of flourish, before bonking himself in the head.

"Off to our right is the master percussionist, the man born with maracas in his mouth, all the way from Richmond, Virginia: Jamie Cross"

The percussionist answered with a few quick shakes and juggled his maracas and a tambourine.

"Our bass-man in the back, is also an American. He's got the plunk, and he's all hunk, his name is Craig Jacobs."

The bass player played the bass bridge from "You Can Call Me Al" in response.

"Our keyboardist from the cypresses of Lebanon, Mr. Rafik Elodidi!"

The keyboardist played the first lines from "Money (That's What I Want)", and smiled.

"Finally, the last member of our crew. The rovin' ronin that loves his sax by the fire..."

Kitsune cracked up at the remark, as she would finally get a glimpse of the only one she didn't recognize.

"He would be Mr. Casual...if the moniker was not already taken. He's a man of mystery, and of good health. He's our special sax-man, we call him "Special Kei".

The saxophonist turned around and faced the crowd. He wore sunglasses, but the unmistakable face caused Kitsune's eyes to go as wide as a telescope lens, and made swallow her drink wrong. As she started coughing, and as the saxophonist played a couple bars from Kenny G's "Songbird", many many thoughts raced through her head.

Oh my God! That's Keitaro!

She looked back up, after catching her breath, and she looked at him waving to the crowd.

"Alright, here's a new one. Paul Taylor did this, and now we're covering it. This is "Supernova"."

As the song started playing, she just looked in awe at the way Keitaro moved. The song was a call and answer song during most of the 'verses', with the keyboards and sax taking up most of the lead. Keitaro moved himself alongside the keyboardist, to interact and create a dynamic atmosphere of music.

Kitsune grabbed her drink and pounded it down. She looked at the bartender, giving him another thousand yen and ordered a scotch and ice cold water. She looked back at Keitaro, as he moved forward to the front of the stage. Smiling at the people in front of him, he glided the music along as the people swayed.

That man has got them eating out of his horn. Wow, where did he learn how to play? She thought to herself, in awe.

As she enjoyed her drinks, she watched for the rest of the night as Keitaro played his heart out, and had fun while doing it. As she watched more, she drank more, and she enjoyed every piece of what he played.
Finally, last call came up. She looked at the bartender, and she flashed him a smile.

"Thanks for a great night. I like this place."

"We're glad you do, Kitsune."

She looked at the bartender, and seeing that she knew she was made, she gave him a wink and a thumbs up, approving of the place.

"The drinks were great, but the band took the cake. I'm coming back."

"Tell your friends!" the bartender replied, smiling.

As she stumbled up the stairs and out the door into the cool air, she slowly turned towards the direction of the dorms and walked back in bliss.

If Keitaro is hiding that from the rest of us, then maybe there's more that I need to learn about him.

She giggled to herself, as she weaved her way back to the Hinata House. She knew that this night would change a lot of things, though in what way, she couldn't even tell.

Note: You can probably tell who is gonna be paired up with who. Other than that, the next one will be posted when I get around to it. Gotta be in the mood for it, eh? Also, if people are wondering about the song that Keitaro and "Cognac" are playing, go to Youtube and look for "Supernova" by Paul Taylor (featuring Jonathan Fritzen). You may just like it.