A white rabbit runs past under my disbelieving eyes, screaming "I'm late! I'm late! Her royal Highness is going to have my head for this!" while watching a ridiculously large pocket watch. He jumps into a gaping hole that suddenly appears in my father's manicured green lawn and barely emits a "squeak" before entering freefall.
White mist.
And suddenly, I'm falling into the empty darkness while this smirking fiend of a cat is all I can see. For some incomprehensible reason, he keeps telling me "You're going to the Queen of Hearts! You're going to the Queen of Hearts! Hehehe!" in a half-crazed, self-satisfied way. I feel bad for the poor creature; he's obviously in possession of only half a mind.
White mist.
Playing cards scatter all over me and scramble, using tiny, spider-like hands and feet, away shrieking "the future! the future!" the whole while, except for one card, The Fool, who grins stupidly up at me and makes a face he obviously finds amusing before chuckling to himself and ambling away.
"Do you like them?" And, out of the blue, I have a companion. She leans down towards me and, in an instant, all I can see are her golden eyes.
"Wh-who are you?" is all I can manage and it escapes my lips in a most unmanly squeak. The girl smiles indulgently – everyone seems to be finding humor in the strangest things today – and whispers, "Why, silly, the Queen of Hearts of course!"
"Milord!" Hiroshi's flaming red hair burns itself into my view as the last vestiges of Morpheus' kingdom fades from my eyes. His twin, Kazuo, is never far behind, and, together, they drag me from my prone position on the "throne," my favorite armchair, a luxuriously soft, pale gold and crimson affair. I blink wearily at them, a pair of identical pranksters, before scowling my acquiescence.
In the dressing room, a thousand odds and ends lie scattered on the burgundy carpet as Hani fumbles through the stacks of outfits (which are taller than him) in search of his costume. A piece of feminine pink silk catches me unawares and briefly blinds me as I laugh at his antics. Upon hearing my voice, both Hani and Nori turn towards us. Although my field of vision is completely swallowed by rosy pink, I can imagine Nori's curt nod and I can hear Hani's ecstatic greetings as he throws himself at us.
"Hiro-chan! Hiro-chan!" An 'oomph' – what Hani lacks in size, he more than makes up in speed – then "Ka-chan! Ka-chan!" before an identical scenario ensues. Then I hear "Aki-chan!" and know it's my turn so, ignoring my completely blinded state, I attempt to back up – straight into a Japanese screen. As chaos ensues, Kyo stalks in, his customary black laptop under one arm and our "menu" under the other.
Despite his notorious bad-boy appearance as well as a somewhat belligerent reputation, Kyo is a brilliant mathematician and was hand-groomed by his father to become the heir to one of the most prestigious families in Asia proper. Although they fancy my ignorance, I am, in fact, quite aware that my friends and fellow members often call Kyo the "Shadow King" because of his enormous managerial capabilities.
With the entrance of Kyo, everything is set back into its normal order quite quickly. Within the span of a few moments, every last one of us is in his costume proper and ready to welcome our patronesses.
And this is my family – fun-filled Hiro and Ka, sweet little Hani, quiet Nori, intelligent Kyo, and, of course, yours truly, Aki – and, together, we welcome you to the Host Club.
THE HOST CLUB IS NOW OPEN