A/N: So, this is a revised first chapter. I am probably going to be submitting revisons of all the chapters as well as trying to work toward an ending. Hope you enjoy this, it was my first fanfiction ever and I know it needs serious work, but I can't delete it. Reviews are always appreciated. Enjoy. ^_^
Chapter One
So the Hostess Club Begins
It was the culmination of several weeks' intense work. Six young ladies, for they were not quite women, were arm in arm admiring their work. The room really had turned out as they had hoped. Once the dust had been cleared and the curtains thrown open it was just a matter of finding a few well chosen couches, some café tables and chairs, and the occasional decoration to bring it all together without looking overdone or forced.
"It's awesome." Mei exclaimed, the shortest of the young ladies present. She clapped small hands together and squealed with childish delight. Although her height and face were that of a middle school student, she was actually seventeen and one of the oldest in the room.
"Yes, agreed. It's simply perfect." Jun added with a flip of golden hair. "Well, what do you say Sayori?"
A small smiled lit the face of Sayori Koichi's face. "Yes, I believe it is very well done." She agreed. The perfect way to catch his attention. She thought. And how much fun this should be. Seeing how this whole business works out should be quite interesting, indeed. Let the Hostess Club begin.
The Ouran Academy Hostess Club
…is now open for business
Featuring:
Jun Inoue: Club President and the Princess Type
Sayori Koichi: Vice President, Financial Advisor, and the Sexy Type
Iori and Midori Ishihara: The Naughty Type
Hisa Matsukaze: The Shy Type
Mei Nagami: The Innocent Type
"A what?" Exclaimed Tamaki Suou in disbelief. He stood dramatically, gripping the arms of his chair to keep him steady. The news had not been well received by the Host Club president.
"A Hostess Club. It seems some members of the female population at this school have decided that it was necessary." Kyoya informed pressing a forefinger to his glasses. Tamaki's face returned to perfection and he sat down to process what a Hostess Club meant for his club.
"Seems pretty cool. They're like us—" Chimed Hikaru.
"Only girls." Finished his twin, Kaoru. They shrugged in unison.
Kyoya looked over his note book and his eyes fell on a familiar name. "Interesting." He spoke to himself, keeping his voice low. Among the names of Hostesses and the information he had had gathered for him, Kyoya noted the name Koichi. A childhood acquaintance, their family was involved in pharmaceuticals. With his family, the Otori's work with hospitals, they naturally sought to combine forces. The plan had worked well for several years until the falling out between the family patriarchs. Some shady deals and questionable alliances saw the end of their perspective merger. Kyoya had been seven at the time and had not seen the face of Sayori, who had been his age, since. Even the idea that a Koichi went to the same school would be enough to make the Otori's think of transferring their son. He smiled as he snapped his notebook shut.
Sayori was as cunning and dangerous as she was beautiful, if he remembered correctly. No doubt her forming a club similar to his at the same school was planned. She was not the type of foe to do anything flippantly and his name as club vice-president would have hit her radar without a doubt. The question was her intentions. He couldn't see any particular motive at that point, but he knew it would be something. It's my move, I see. Very well, I'll play. For now. He thought.
Not to be forgotten, Tamaki's musing broke through Kyoya's plotting. He was still on the topic of the Hostess Club and how it would affect him.
"They are only girls…so I guess this is not any sort of threat to our organization…they wouldn't actually be stealing any of our clients." Tamaki put a manicured fist to his chin. "I suppose this isn't exactly something we should worry about…possibly."
"I suggest diplomacy." Kyoya suggested dryly.
Tamaki rose from his position slumped in a chair dramatically. "You mean…befriend the Hostesses?"
"Sounds fun." Hikaru offered, already bored with the topic. His leg was draped over the leg of his chair, his foot rocking back and forth in the air.
"Yeah, sounds good boss. Are we done?" Kaoru reiterated.
"You mean we can all be friends?" Honey asked.
Tamaki was building up steam, the ideas forming in his head faster than he could process them. "Yes. Men, we are going to befriend the Hostesses. We should invite them to our music room…a get to know you gathering, something with a bit less formality so as not to appear over bearing. We don't want to scare them off, now. If we are to, through our different clubs, cater to the gentlemen and young ladies of this Academy, we should be better acquainted." Flourished the club president, his finger pointing dramatically in the air and ending on his chin, a careful smile on his face.
"Why do I have such a bad feeling about this?" Haruhi groaned quietly, causing Mori to smile.
"They invited us to a get together?" Iori mused looking at her nails. "That sounds so…boring."
"Never the less, we are all going." Sayori ordered. "It wouldn't look right if we do not show up."
Jun looked away from her mirror, her blonde hair fanning out behind her, "Well, of course we are going, my dear Sayori. A chance to show those boys that men are not the only ones with the power of seduction." Jun batted her long lashes, flashing her ice blue eyes for no one in particular.
"Exactly, Jun." Sayori agreed. "It is a necessary engagement. We must establish ourselves and this is a good chance to acquaint ourselves civilly."
"Oh, Iori, this could be great fun. Let's not start things off on a negative." Midori offered to her twin, who still looked moody. The two were completely identical. From their hazel eyes to their builds and firey hair. The only difference was Midori's bangs curved to the right and Iori's curved to the left.
"That's the spirit, Midori." Jun clapped.
Sayori's curvy raven hair nearly covered one emerald eye as she bent over her tablet. Dark eyes and ruby lips curved with delight as she looked over her file on the Host Club. The name on the top of the page was one, Kyoya Otori. Soon she would be engaging her target. Putting down her work she did consider that she was going through a lot of work for a simple act of petty rebellion, but it was the principal of the thing. Besides, the chase was fun.
"They're late." Tamaki fumed, pacing in front of the Host Club doorway. He had made sure that his appearance was extra perfect and he would hate to see it wasted. Besides, it was impolite to be late for an expressed invitation.
"They'll be here boss." Hikaru assured.
"Yeah, calm it down you're making everyone anxious." Kaoru added.
Tamaki sighed.
Knock. Knock.
"Was that a knock?" Honey asked. It was a fair question, as the knock was barely audible. The Host Club stared at the door expectantly as the doors opened and the women stood in the entrance.
Jun was in front her long hair fell loosely around her slim shoulders with the ends reaching just above her supple chest. Her blue eyes danced coyly over the host club. Behind her, Sayori was taller and more voluptuous. The raven beauty held the gaze of Kyoya with her fierce emerald eyes, while she looked challenging he feigned innocent curiosity. On either side of Sayori and Jun, the twins mirrored each other, holding their chins up and showing the delicate curves of their necks and chest. To the left was Hisa, her chocolate hair cropped to her chin, she held a hand up to her lips and her amber eyes were downcast shyly. Positioned in the front was Mei, honey colored hair was held in pigtails on the sides of her head with two pieces of pink ribbon. She had a small smile sandwiched by rosy cheeks and topped with large grey eyes. A plush frog was sticking out from behind her small frame held in her left hand.
The Hostess Club waited confidently to be invited inside the elaborately decorated room. It only took a minute for Tamaki to shake off his surprise, "Welcome ladies. I am the leader of this Host Club, Tamaki Suou." He bowed dramatically and offered his hand to the lady in front.
Jun took it gracefully and curtsied, "I am Jun Inoue, Hostess Club president." Jun flourished her hair and smiled. Both leaders assumed their Prince and Princess roles, they pulled their respective vice-presidents.
Tamaki pulled a reluctant Kyoya forward, "This is the vice-president, Kyoya Otori." Kyoya adjusted his glasses coolly.
"Our vice-president, Sayori Koichi." Jun introduced and Sayori quirked her ruby lips sexily.
The twins didn't wait to be introduced by their leader and Kaoru and Hikaru walked straight up to the twin girls who had caught their radar. "We are Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin." They said in unison, arms leaning on the door frame as they towered over the girls. "We're the little-devil types." They winked.
The girls smiled. Reaching up they grabbed the twin closest and pulled him down, Midori had Kaoru and Iori had Hikaru by the lapel. Grinning evilly the girls placed their lips on the boys' ears. "We're Iori and Midori Ishiara. The naughty types." They whispered together. Hikaru and Kaoru stood back with a look of mutual respect on their faces, receiving impish winks from the female twins.
"Hello." Honey had walked up to Mei, tugging Mori's sleeve as he walked. "I'm Mitsukuni Haninozuka. But everyone calls me Honey. And this is Takashi Morinozuka."
Mei giggled. "I'm Mei Nagami." She tugged sharply on the girl behind her, pulling her forward. "And this is Hisa Matsukaze, but she's the shy type so she probably won't be saying much." Mei added. Hisa looked up briefly to catch the eye of Mori and then blushed heavily and looked to her feet.
Honey nodded in understanding. Tamaki had stepped forward to capture the attention of the room again. He pushed Haruhi forward gently. "And this is our newest member, Haruhi Fujioka." The effeminate boy waved awkwardly.
There was a brief silence before Honey propositioned Mei to share a slice of cake with him. "We have mango cake." He added.
Mei's eyes grew in size, "Mango cake? I love cake!" She grabbed Hisa's hand and followed after Honey who was dragging along an unsure Mori.
Tamaki offered a seat to Jun, who sat daintily in the chair offered. "It is very diplomatic of you to allow a commoner to join your club." Jun commented to Tamaki as she set about fixing her tea. She did not sound condescending, but rather truly seemed to find this a compliment.
"We see it as an opportunity to embrace things outside ourselves. Haruhi is one of our most promising members, and his insight on the commoner's lifestyle has been most enlightening. We have recently tried such delights as instant coffee." He emphasized the words 'instant' and 'coffee.'
"Well, thanks boss." Haruhi mumbled sarcastically. Tamaki flashed her a smile.
"Instant coffee?" Jun put a hand to her mouth. "Oh my, and you actually drank it?"
Tamaki nodded bravely.
"Stupid rich snobs." Haruhi groaned, upset that she had been forced to sit at the table with them while they talked about commoners as if they were some sort of alternate species. Although, when she thought about it, she supposed that wasn't so far off.
The twins were off in their own corner. "We go with the forbidden love angle. It drives girls crazy." Hikaru continued. They had been discussing methods and the Hitachiin brothers seemed quite proud of their success and ingenuity in obtaining it.
"Anything to put a smile on a young lady's face." Kaoru added.
Iori considered the brothers with level eyes. "That's interesting. Midori and I employ a similar tactic. I would think that men would be more vulnerable to it than women, though."
"What are you trying to say?" Hikaru asked, uncrossing his arms. He sensed there was a note of patronization in her tone.
Iori smiled innocently. "I was only saying that I'm a little surprised that such a tactic would work for you." She ran her fingers through her hair, making sure to flip the ends in Hikaru's face.
"I think that she's challenging us, brother." Hikaru said putting his arm around Kaoru's neck.
"I agree."
"A demonstration?"
"A demonstration."
Hikaru and Kaoru did their most popular routine and when they turned to the Ishihara twins their faces fell. Iori was yawning and Midori had fallen asleep on her sister's shoulder.
"Is it our turn?" Iori asked quietly. The bothers seethed.
Midori went to sip at her tea and tipped the cup a bit too early, spilling some of the dark liquid on her blouse. "Oh, Iori. The tea's very hot."
Iori cooed. "Here, Midori." Iori took a piece of ice from a nearby ice bucket and after loosening her sister's blouse so that the top of her chest was visible she rubbed the ice gently over the sore skin. Midori leaned back and hissed as if the ice hurt her, biting the end of her thumb. "Better?" Iori asked after a second.
"Much. Thank you sister." Midori whispered. Then, Iori removed the ice and Midori buttoned her top back up and they looked at their challengers.
Hikaru and Kaoru's mouths were hanging open and their faces were a brilliant shade of scarlet. Iori reached forward with her finger and lifted Hikaru's mouth closed. "There, there, sweetie. It's not your fault."
Midori did the same to Kaoru, "Does this mean we win?"
Hikaru, still in a daze, managed to mumble, "That's not fair…"
"Breasts are cheating…" Kaoru finished.
Iori and Midori laughed.
"And this is Usa-chan." Honey said holding up his favorite plush bunny. "Isn't he cute?" He asked, meaning, aren't I cute?
Mei clapped her hands together, "Oh, he's adorable. Can I introduce him to Mimi-chan?" Mei asked, pulling out her plush frog. Honey's eyes went wide.
"Look Usa-chan. A new friend."
Mei giggled.
Mori and Hisa sat at the adjacent table. Neither of them spoke and Hisa only looked up from her plate once. And once her eyes met Mori's she blushed and bit her lip before looking back at the table. Mori sipped at his tea, watching the young girl intently.
"So…how…how do you like working as a host?" She finally whispered. Her small voice was melodic and beautiful. Mori wondered why she didn't use it more often.
"It's nice." He replied.
Unexpectedly, she laughed. A twinkling giggle that grew into full out laughter, and she leaned back making her full face visible. She was truly beautiful when she was happy and not hiding behind her hand. Once she settled down, her hand returned to her mouth and she blushed.
"Oh…I-I'm sorry about that. I sometimes suffer from nervous laughter…only when I'm really…well…um…nervous…" She twisted her fingers in her napkin, her head bent fully parallel with the table.
"Don't be sorry." He said finally. Hisa looked at the tall intimidating boy in front of her and smiled, her hand still covered the corner of her mouth.
Sayori sipped at her tea carefully. Her long legs were crossed over each other and her eyes didn't leave the face of her adversary.
"I must say that I was surprised, at first." Kyoya said. He sat across from Sayori, but he had not touched his tea. He pushed his glasses into position and studied his opponent. She seemed completely at ease. Her eyes even betrayed a sense of boredom. He still couldn't figure out her plan, but Kyoya could be very patient.
"I'm sure you're wondering what my master plan in all this is." Sayori said suddenly. Her crimson lips quirked at the corner. He was really so easy to read sometimes.
Kyoya's face remained impassive. He continued to lean back in his chair, his arms and legs crossed elegantly. He remained silent. If she was willing to speak then he was not going to risk missing anything.
"I am going to be honest here, Kyoya." She put down her cup quietly and leaned forward. Kyoya quirked an eyebrow at the use of his given name, but remained silent. "The Hostess Club is not an elaborate plan to sabotage you in any way." She assured. "I have no interest in you economically. To be honest, I think the very thought is just juvenile."
Kyoya wasn't sure if he should believe her, but he continued to listen quietly. There were many things to consider and he recorded each movement in his memory to find any sense of uncertainty or hesitation. Of course, he found nothing.
"So," She started after a pause. "Can we put aside any thought of rivalry between the two clubs? It is bad enough that are parents are at each other's throats. All those years of negotiating with the lawyers and finding settlements…that's all water under the bridge now."
"See, that depends on your real reason for forming the Hostess Club. I have yet to hear it and I'm not going to pretend here, there was obviously some sort of motive that had you transferring to my school to start a club so similar to one that I was a member of. The coincidence is just too strong."
"The idea of a Hostess Club sounded fun. It was unfair that the men in this school would never experience the rare joy that you give to all the women who walk through those doors. There's nothing wrong with that is there?"
"No. I shouldn't think so." He adjusted his glasses. "Of course, if that is in fact the only reason."
Sayori smiled. "To the point then. I do see you as an enemy. It's hard to look at the face of an Otori without automatically assuming hatred. My father was very adamant about my family severing any ties with your family." She slid her chair closer to Kyoya. "However, I don't want that to be the case. I don't want to be part of our parent's war any longer. I do not hold with their beliefs or their opinions. The business is going to my brother," Her voice dripped venom over the last words before regaining their cool indifference. "So. I have no use for their trivial quarrels now. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"You are saying that you are not going to affiliate with your family name. You are not bound to their beliefs, traditions, business, or even enemies." He chuckled. "I must admit that the thought is very liberating. Even mildly appealing, but I know my loyalties and I do wish to take over for my father one day."
Sayori looked away for the first time. "Kyoya. Kyoya. You feel absolutely no desire to be your own person? Free from the name of Otori? Free to do…whatever you wish?" Sayori reached for his hand, which was resting on the table between them. He didn't pull away, but he was immediately alerted to the change in atmosphere. Could she really be suggesting what he thought she was suggesting?
"The cool type." Sayori mused. "It suits you."
"Miss Koichi, what are you getting at? I don't like dancing around issues." Kyoya said sternly. Though he remained where he was and allowed her warm hand to rest over his.
"I'm saying that my father has lied and betrayed and cheated on my family for long enough. I'm done playing by his rules and I have to say that I am feeling very rebellious at the moment." She traced her finger over the back of Kyoya's hand, he remained immobile. Her voice dropped lower, purring at him. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't interested in you as an Otori. My interest, however, is political. It's for the mere fact that you would make my father crazy."
"Are you suggesting a courtship? Because I would have to deal with my father as well. And I do not wish to be on his bad side. I have plans."
Sayori scrunched her nose. "Courtship sounds too…formal. Too nice. But, honestly, I don't care what you call it. I'm just here for the fun of it and I was thinking you might enjoy a bit of relaxation as well. You certainly look like you could benefit." She smirked and then she waited.
Kyoya considered the proposition from the beautiful girl sitting beside him. He couldn't lie to himself and say he wasn't tempted. She was beautiful, smart, and definitely up to his caliber in the area of manipulation. He doubted he would be bored entertaining a woman like her. Whether he liked it or not there was an attraction. However, that wasn't going to decide anything. He had learned early on that those types of instincts were better ignored. There were too many consequences on his end that he wished to avoid. Unlike her, he still wished to
remain on good terms with his family.
"I'm afraid I will have to decline a relationship on any level other than the one we would have dealing with business for the clubs." He stated blandly. "I don't think it will be in either of our best interests."
Sayori smiled. "As you wish. We will remain rivals." He nodded and she stood up, leaning over him and making sure to give him a full view of her open collared outfit. She bent close to his ear. "For now."
