[Mentar]

Originally Posted by madmac

Nagi went on a date with a boy, treated him kindly, and calmly explained that she already had another love and wouldn't be seeing him again. Hina can only wish she had that kind of grace when it comes to dating, and she's the older one.

You miss my point. This very episode you're referring to (S2 ep05) showed how much fun Nagi had with a boy her age sharing her interests. Nagi realized how much she enjoyed the time she spent with him before she felt guilty for having so much fun which could be considered "cheating on Hayate", and after she calmly told Kazuki off and returned home, she was downcast that Hayate wasn't in the least bit jealous. She then snapped at Hayate angrily, and then got jealous on Maria for cheering Hayate up with a piece of pie.

What this episode showed that when meeting with someone who fits her better in age and interests, she's having a happier time. She's showing integrity by eventually rejecting it and returning to her fantasy world, but for me, this is a potential way for her to grow and progress. To grow by eventually realizing her self-delusion and progress by looking for someone who is less of a guardian/butler and more of an eye-level PARTNER.

This, though, I find odd. Hayate and Nagi have an easy, relaxed companionship and are often seen conversing amiably about all sorts of random things. Hayate may not be an Otaku, but he's second only to Nagi when it comes to dropping anime references. Besides which, they both miss each other terribly when they're apart. Even if it's not love, I don't see how you can honestly argue that they don't enjoy each others company or have anything in common.

Outside of their Butler-Lady relationship, I simply don't see Hayate and Nagi sharing any common ground. Nagi is playing games with Sakuya or Chiharu, debating anime with Wataru, or going on expedition trips with Ayumu, but not with Hayate. Here, Hayate fills the role of a tolerant parent overseeing someone given in his care, and not of a partner who wants to share a particular experience with his loved one out of his own interest.

Can all this change? Yes, of course. But it's quite a long way to go, IMHO. Finding Nagi a better match feels easier to me *shrug*

When Maria suggested Hayate marry Nagi to pay off her debt, he had three objections.

Actually, he had a little more than that. He made clear that he could never marry Nagi ^_^;

1. I won't marry her for money.

This has already become a non-issue. Nagi is no longer filthy rich and his debt to her is more personal than financial.

2. I won't lay hand on a child.

This takes care of itself, given time. How much time is debatable.

3. There's no way a girl like her would like someone like me.

This is not exactly an insurmountable obstacle. I mean, it's just Hina redux, except Nagi has to wait an unspecified amount of time before it can work.

There's a little bit more in addition to that. It would require a total reversal of their roles. It would require Hayate to develop any kind of romantic feeling for her (at the moment, there is demonstrably none of that).

Could it happen? Yes, naturally it could. It's still the canonic ending which I consider the most likely conclusion to the story, unfortunately. So, Nagi is still the big favorite going into the race

But I for my part can say that I'm quite happy with Hina quietly continuing to rack up karma points. I don't even insist on her getting Hayate. I insist on her getting rewarded in a happy ending for her.

Will Hina beat her to it? Maybe, but probably not, at least not by much. Hina's confession could even be the catalyst for Nagi taking action.

The way I see it, if Hayate no Gotoku is to end with a clear match, the winning girl would require to be accepted and officially sanctioned by at least the vast majority of the competitors. Therefore, if Hina were to win, it couldn't be her confessing to Hayate, it would have to be Hayate confessing to her. You see how far away from an ending I am? ^_^;