Reposting this thing.  You just deleted it the first time, didn't you?
;)

Maison Ikkoku:  Channel Surfing
	by Damon Casale

----------
For those who have never seen Maison Ikkoku, here's some quick character
synopses.  I would appreciate C&C on my characterization especially.  I
want to know if I go too far OOC, or if the characterization is too
skimpy, as it has been in my past fics.  Naturally, *any* C&C is
appreciated.  Just read the damn thing.  ;)

Oh yeah.  If anyone can do better MI character synopses, write me and I'll
include them.  8)

Godai Yushaku
	Notorious loser.  At the beginning of the series, he was a ronin,
a high school graduate who had failed his college entrance exams.  He
has a bad habit of scratching his head and laughing pathetically
whenever he gets nervous, which is whenever he's in an awkward situation
around women.  Basically, whenever he's around women, period.  In the
first episode, he falls for the very attractive manager, Otonashi Kyoko.

Yotsuya
	A mysterious lecher.  Has been known to peep at just about
anything female and with a pulse.

Roppongi Akemi
	An older woman in the habit of walking around in a negligee to
annoy Godai.  A drinker, prone to rocky relationships with tall dark
strangers.

Ichinose-san (Obasan)
	A rotund lady, alcoholic.  Has a very loud, obnoxious laugh.
Married, with a son, Kentaro.

Ichinose Kentaro
	A youngish brat.  That's all you need to know, really.

Otonashi Kyoko
	Manager of Maison Ikkoku.  "Maison" implies a mansion or elegant
house.  In reality, Ikkoku-kan (-apartments) is a run-down building always
on the verge of falling apart, especially one particular hole between
Yotsuya's and Godai's room, and sometimes another hole between Godai's
room and Akemi's room.  Kyoko is a young widow.  Her former husband was
named Souichiro.  He left her a mangy white dog (Shiro, or Whitey) which
she renamed Souichiro.

Mitaka Shun
	Womanizer tennis coach.  He has a characteristic glint to his
smile, and *never* takes second place in anything.  Well, almost never.
He has a dog phobia.

Yagami Ibuki
	Enrolled in an all-girls' high school.  Thinks Godai (her
intern-teacher) is a dweeb, but then has second thoughts...of a more
romantic nature...

<<WARNING:  SPOILERS BELOW>>

If you haven't watched the series and you DON'T want to know what happens
before you see it, I recommend not reading these final character synopses.
I would recommend not reading this fic either, since it pretty much gives
it all away anyway, but then I wouldn't get any C&C...  :P

Godai Yushaku
	Still a loser, but he married Kyoko and had a daughter, Haruka.
Still lives at Ikkoku-kan.

Yotsuya
	Still lives at Ikkoku-kan.  They *still* don't know what he does
for a living.

Roppongi/? Akemi
	Married the proprietor of the local bar where she works.  Still
drops by Ikkoku-kan every now and then just to raise hell for nostalgia's
sake.

Ichinose-san (Obasan)
	Still living at Ikkoku-kan with her husband.

Ichinose Kentaro
	An older brat.  That's all you need to know.  I mean it.  Really.

Otonashi/Godai Kyoko
	Still manager of Ikkoku-kan, but now Godai sleeps in her room.  :)

Mitaka Shun
	Married the "dog lady".  (Sorry, I forgot her name)  Had twins, a
boy and a girl.

Yagami Ibuki
	Enrolled in an all-girls' college.  STILL pining for Godai.

Godai Haruka
	Daughter of Yushaku and Kyoko.  Name means "scent of spring".

----------

	Spike idly wondered if his tie was straight as he walked up to the
porch of the next house on his list.  Checking the address once more, he
put on his best friendly salesman smile and rang the doorbell.  After a
few minutes of waiting ("I'm coming, just a moment", echoed from an
upstairs window twice), a flowery woman poked her head curiously out of 
the front door.
	"Miss Yagami?"  She nodded.  "I have something I'm sure you'll be
interested in.  May I come in?"  Before she could answer, he pushed past
her, looking around in feigned admiration of the quiet cottage, which was 
filled with embarrassingly quaint mementoes and ersatz knicknacks. "Your
choice in decor is exquisite, you know..."
	"Look, mister--"  "Spike," he interjected.  "You're a very lucky
woman, you know that?  You've been selected to receive a very special
trial offer.  Tell me Miss Yagami, have you ever wished for a little
*excitement* in your life?"  She stared at him, fumbling around for
something to say.  "Uh..well, I...maybe a few years ago but now--"  "Oh,
nonsense!"  He said, pulling out a leather case and opening it to reveal
a glowing, blinking remote control.
	"This is your ticket to freedom.  Six hundred and sixty six
channels of excitement, all yours for one low monthly payment--but let's
not discuss terms now.  I'll tell you what.  A one month free trial offer,
satisfaction guaranteed.  And I'm sure you'll never be the same again
after you've seen what we have to offer..."

	Another sucker bites, Spike thought to himself as he
straightened his tie and walked away, passing the newly installed gleaming
white satellite dish off to one side of the yard.  There was only one last
stop to make, the one he had been saving.  Save the best for last, they
say.

*****

	Haruka closed the car door behind her, and watched as the slick
sportster squealed off into the night.  She smiled, giggling softly to
herself, and then turned to head up the walkway to Ikkoku-kan.
	She would be sixteen next week.  The years had flown by, it
seemed to her.  Was it so long ago that dad had helped her into the swing
at the park, or given her her first kitten on her fifth birthday?  But
the years had been very kind.  She was the idol of the girls' high school
she attended, and had attracted the attentions of every boy in the
neighborhood, especially Mitaka Tsui.  For a moment, she paused,
reflecting.  He was so very unlike his father, honorable and kind yet
shy and humble.  Only his smile was the same.
	She left her shoes by the door and hurried upstairs, barefoot.
She could hear the TV blaring from the manager's room.  At least they'd
let her stay in room 5, where she could be by herself.  Of course, dad was
always too self-absorbed these days to pay much attention.  Her mother had
found a gossipy group of older ladies to spend time with, and came home
later and later nowadays, now that dad had found his new hobby.
	Life at home wasn't good at all.

	Then she heard a knock at the door downstairs, and a stirring and
grumbling from the manager's room.  "Yeah, yeah...be right there."
	She ignored it and started on her homework.

*	*	*

Let us now pause for a moment.  The person (or persons) at the door is
not, in fact, Spike.  However, to further assuage your possibly frazzled
sensibilities, it should be made clear that Godai does not immediately get
sucked into the nether realm of televised terror.  This happens a little
later.

To prepare you for the chaos and destruction that lies ahead, we will now
play soothing melody #39 [insert Sonata in C here] while simultaneously
displaying soothing image #6 [wooded glen, complete with excessively cute
bunny rabbit].

We now return you to the story.

*	*	*

	Godai looked around at the empty porch, frowning with puzzlement.
Just as he was turning to go back inside, a faint whisper caught his
attention, and he looked down.
	"Would you like to buy some of my girl scout cookies?" the tiny
girl (Narrator:  well, I think it's a girl, but it doesn't really matter
in the grand scheme of things, does it?) said.  He smiled, handing her 500
yen and taking the proffered 500 yen box, not noticing the purplish
outline on its underside.  (Insert *TERRIBLE PORTENT* sound effect here)
	Godai set the box down on the table in his room, and turned to see
Kyoko glaring at him.  "You finally got up out of that chair, and for
what?  To spend our hard-earned money on *this*??"  She screamed,
pointing at the cookies.  "How could you?" And before Godai could utter a
word, she stomped back outside, slamming the door after her.
	He sighed heavily.  For the first few years after they were
married, life had been wonderful, notwithstanding his low paying daycare
job.  Kyoko had taken everything well, preferring a walk in the park to
the expense of going to the beach, and a few quiet moments alone with
him when they could be had.  But somehow, all of that had changed.  As
Haruka grew older, the arguments had begun over the smallest things.  What
color dress she would wear to school, or whether she should braid her hair
or let it hang down naturally, or...or any of a thousand different things.
An apology and making up was always quick to follow, but soon that had
changed too, and now...
	Godai was tired.  At first, Kyoko's small television had been a
minor and occasional amusement.  When he'd found himself watching the new
Sailor Moon series just to have something to do, was when he had finally
realized his predicament.  Even then, it hadn't seemed worth the effort to
change.  He'd lost Kyoko long ago, and everything after that moment was
a sham, a dreamworld filled with misery.
	So absorbed in self-pity was he that he almost didn't notice the
quiet, continuous knocking on the front door.  "Be right there," he
mumbled to himself, wondering if the little girl had gotten mixed up and
was back again.

*	*	*

	The following day dawned bright and clear.  Kyoko said an
apologetic goodbye to Miss Nishida, one of her friends who had been kind
enough to room her overnight.
	The subway ride home gave her time to think.  She knew she didn't
love Godai anything like she'd used to, and that scared her.  What could
she do?  He was so stubborn, she thought sadly.  They never talked any
more.  They never seemed to be able to understand each other.

	There was no awkwardly handsome face waiting to greet her at the
house. "He must have left for work already," she thought.  It was then
that she saw the gleaming white satellite dish, where the sapling had
been, and screamed inwardly. "That idiot!  If this is what he loves..."
	She stopped herself.  "No, I have to talk to him.  Tonight.
Please, God, let him listen..."
	Haruka dashed past her.  "Bye mom!  Like, cool satellite dish,
huh?  I'm gonna-be-late-for-school-so-bye!"  She disappeared up the
street.
	Kyoko fell to her knees, crying silently.

	Haruka dashed to her seat just as the bell rang, totally out of
breath.  Mom hadn't seemed happy this morning.  Her parents were probably
fighting again.  She could only do her best to ignore it and hope things
got better.  They usually did.
	She found good reason to pay attention to Kamiogi-sensei this
morning though, when she announced that there would be a new intern
starting tomorrow.  "He'll be teaching literature.  Please give him a warm
welcome."  The class giggled, and Haruka sighed.  Her job as class
representative would be all the more difficult.  It wasn't that she minded
her gossipy, carefree friends, but...somehow, she just didn't feel
comfortable making fun of authority and playing the same old practical
jokes as they did.  She knew it had little to do with being more mature
than they, but had no idea what it *did* have to do with.
	Looking at the chalkboard once more as the soft brushing sound of
the chalk moving back and forth signaled the beginning of the lesson, she
pulled herself out of her self-analyzing reverie.  She'd have time enough
for that later.

	Tsui met her in the schoolyard after school.  However, this was a
highly unusual event, though they had met after school several times
before.
	Tsui was waiting in the yard, and not in his car.  (Insert *WHY-
SHOULD-I-GIVE-A-DARN whoop-de-doo sound effect here)
	Haruka, as usual, noticed the obvious out loud.  "Where's your
car?"  Tsui smiled.  "It's in the shop," he lied.  "Let's enjoy the fresh
air for today, okay?  I'll walk you home."  She nodded, giggling.
	Tsui sighed inwardly.  His car was perfectly fine, but ulterior
motives called for a little white lie to move things along a little.

*	*	*

We pause here for a close examination of Tsui's grey matter.  [Insert
purplish-grey cut-out close up view]  [Narrator draws gun and shoots stage
artist for extremely bad sense of humor, then disposes of body and close
up]

Tsui has this crazy idea that acting like one of the gang might get him a
little more luck than acting macho and taking after his dad.  Does it
work?  Let's find out...

*	*	*

	Three seconds later, they were mobbed by the gossip patrol.  "Oh,
there he is!"  Crowed one.  "Mr. Eligible Bachelor himself!"  Said
another.  "Isn't he gorgeous?"  "Haruka, are you going steady, or can I
have a try at him?"  Tsui moaned as the girls clustered around him.  He'd
known they were Haruka's friends, but he'd always managed to stay at at
least arm's length until now.
	Haruka remained silent for most of the walk home, as one by one
the other girls gave up their cooing and wheedling, going their separate
ways.  Finally, they were alone again, and Ikkoku-kan was just down the
street.
	"You have very interesting--friends, Haruka," he managed as
smoothly as he could.  "Maybe we can talk another time, when they're not
around.  I'll see you later."  And he walked away.
	She waved goodbye, and walked into the house.  He let his eyes
wander after her, pausing momentarily with a small measure of curiousity 
as they roved past the new satellite dish, then he turned to walk
dejectedly back up the street.  She had the most perfect face, the most
beautiful long, black hair, the prettiest smile...and she was the most
obtuse person he had ever met.  But who said love ever played fair?

	Kyoko was waiting for her.  "Haruka, I need to ask you a favor,"
she began.  "Sure, mom."  Haruka tried to look as innocent as ever.
	"I--uh, I called up an old friend of mine, and he wants to meet
you and take you out to dinner tonight."  Haruka gave her mother a blank
look, nodding slowly.  "Okay.  I have some homework to do, but I suppose
that can wait a little while."  She'd grown used to fooling her mother
into thinking she didn't understand what was going on.  It made it less
painful for Kyoko who, she knew, didn't want her to worry.
	"Which friend?"  She asked.  Kyoko smiled nervously, glancing
away.  "You probably don't remember him.  His name is Yotsuya.  He used to
live here when you were younger, then moved away suddenly."
	Haruka did remember him, vaguely.  He'd seemed a kindly uncle,
very sophisticated, although dad had never been comfortable around him.
"Okay.  I'll see you tonight."  She smiled, and gave her mother a quick
hug.  Kyoko blinked in surprise, and then tearfully returned the hug.
"Where would I be without you..."

*	*	*

Quick cultural note:  Even familial relationships for orientals tend to be
arm's length.  I do say "tend to be", as I'm trying to avoid a
generalization here like the plague, but it's not easy.  Anyway, the love
is usually more or less there, as it is for western families, but the
physical contact usually isn't to any great extent.  I don't know why this
is, but it suffices to say that physical contact means more in the context
of oriental culture than it does in western culture, in general.  Perhaps
we gaijin (well, most of us anyway) should take note.  ;)

*	*	*

	It had been an exhausting day.  Godai watched the tunnel lights
flash by from the subway car, thinking about last night.  The children he
watched at the daycare center were a source of constant encouragement,
being without a care in the world at their tender age.  Or nearly so,
anyway.  If Kyoko were home tonight, maybe they could spend some time
together and watch a good romance movie--no, that wouldn't do.  He was
dying to try out his new dish, but somehow he didn't think Kyoko would
like the idea of spending quality time in front of the one-eyed monster.
Not to begin with, at least.
	The trouble was, he'd gotten so used to spending his nights
watching the tube that he couldn't think of anything else to do.  Maybe
Kyoko would have an idea.

	As it turned out, she did have an idea.  Kyoko was dressed in a
white evening gown, her only extravagance on the frugal family income, and
money well spent.  Godai could do nothing but gape.  "Kyoko--?"
	"Yushaku, you promised me and my father something when you
proposed to me that night, long ago.  Do you remember what it was?"
	He stared at her for a second, and gulped.  "Y-yes," he stammered.
He'd promised never to make her cry.  And he'd broken that promise many
times over.
	She sat down.  "I can't make you keep that promise.  But Godai..."
Kyoko gazed at him sorrowfully.  "Do you still love me?"
	Godai, shellshocked, was speechless.  Knowing he had to do
something quickly before the moment was gone forever, he sat down beside
her on the tatami mat.  From so long ago, memories of his nervousness
around Kyoko surfaced, bobbing on a restless, roiling sea.  She had still
loved her dead husband, and he had always been afraid of losing her to the
better man.  Now there was no Mitaka Shun, yet he was in danger of losing
her forever again.
	Softly, gently, he closed his eyes and met her lips with his.
Holding her for a moment in eternity, he felt her give in to the kiss.
	"Yes.  I'm sorry.  I've been a fool.  Can you forgive me?"
	She smiled faintly, and wiped away a tear.  "Not yet.  Go get your
coat."  She pointed to a hastily scrawled note on their door.  "Let's go
for a walk."

	The night air was warm and embracing, and the full moon shone down
on a quiet neighborhood.  Late spring was the season of the blooming of
love, and the evening could not have been more perfect.
	Unfortunately, the romantic atmosphere wasn't enough.  Five
minutes later, there was a scream outside.  "No, I do NOT want to watch a
romance movie afterwards!"
	Godai had blundered again.  "Remember to engage brain before
activating mouth," he thought to himself resignedly.  "I'm sorry, I wasn't
thinking," he said quickly.  "Maybe a candlelight dinner--where are you
going?"
	Kyoko looked back at him.  "I'm going to my mother's.  I've had
enough for one night."
	Every single time he did something wrong, she ran away.  Every 
single time he made a mistake, she refused to listen to him.  "WHY DO YOU
HAVE TO BE SO STUBBORN??" he shouted at her swiftly retreating back.
	Kyoko turned.  Godai gulped again.  She marched back and raised
her hand, ready to let it fly--
	A solemn beeping interrupted them.  The satellite dish swiveled
around and pointed itself at the two of them, as a stiff breeze began to
blow through the yard.  They started to run...slower...and slower...
towards the gate...then...
	There was a bright flash, and then silence descended upon
Ikkoku-kan.

*	*	*

	The subway car ground to a halt, disgorging its rivers of
passengers.  Yotsuya and Haruka waited until the tide had ebbed, then
followed the crowd outside.
	Yotsuya was silent during the short walk back to Ikkoku-kan, a
tall dark stranger wearing a grey trenchcoat that utterly failed to confer
any sense of anonymity.  "It was a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Yotsuya,"
Haruka said, trying to break the stillness.  "Thank you for the
okonomiyaki."  She smiled nervously, then walked toward the house.
Yotsuya really gave her the creeps.
	"The pleasure was all mine, I assure you," he replied smoothly
from the gate.  "Thank you for allowing me to escort you home.  Perhaps we
can dine again soon."  He gave a slight bow.  "Please give my regards to
your mother and father."  With that, he oozed back into the darkness of
the night.
	"Strange man," she thought to herself.  "I wonder what he does for
a living?"
	The door was cracked open.  She went in and closed it behind her,
glancing down the hall and noticing the note on her parents' door.
	"We went for a walk.  Don't wait up for us.  Love, mom," she read,
and smiled happily.  "Maybe things aren't so bad after all."
	That night, she slept soundly, dreaming silly girl dreams.

Damon Casale, scyth@miis.edu / scyth@andrew.cmu.edu
Spam, spam!  WONDERFUL spam!  ^_^