Mori opened Honey's bedroom door, stepping inside and approaching the bed. "Mitskuni, it's time to get up." The blonde didn't move until his friend gently squeezed his shoulder. "Mitskuni." A moan and then silence. Mori softly shook the boy.

"Mmm... think 'm sick... c'n't go t' school..."

The tall boy frowned and rested his other hand against his forehead. "You have no temperature. Do not lie, it's disgraceful."

Honey gripped his wrists and threw him against the wall with all of his strength, launching him forcefully with a well-timed kick mid-air. Mori slid to the ground, moaning lowly and holding his head. "Don't tell me what to do, Takashi. I'm no more disgraceful than a servant that doesn't know his place." Now enraged as he was a grumpy riser and insulted, he leaped out of bed and stood over his still friend. Mori slowly raised his head to stoically watch him, waiting for his apology. Honey, still in a bad mood, narrowed his eyes. "You think I'll just forgive your insolence, Takashi? I'm in a very bad mood; you should have let me sleep in peace. A Haninozuka does not forgive so easily, and now you've reduced me to this." The martial artist grabbed his friend to toss him across the room and sneer as he fell with a grunt. "I have nothing to be sorry for. I want you to apologize to me, Takashi, for disobeying." He once again stood over the man.

"I did nothing wrong. You are being childish, Mitskuni. Do not take your anger out on me."

Growling, Honey drove his heel into Mori's chest with such force that a choked groan escaped him as a rib cracked. "What did you just say to me?"

Mori looked up at him questioningly, his eyes creasing slightly the only sign of pain. "What is wrong, Mitskuni?"

"You're what's wrong! I'm tired of you thinking that you have a right to disrespect me! I'll show you that I am stronger than you, no matter your size!" His movements were so fluidly rapid that his limbs were almost a blur as powerful blows landed on the downed man. Punches, kicks, knees and elbows met Mori's stomach, face, ribs and joints. More cracks and blows were heard than grunts- in fact, most of the grunts came from Honey's efforts. Mori's cries of pain were only drawn out when a bone was broken: for anything less he was able to hold them in. When Honey stopped to take a break and inspect the crumpled boy, Mori lifted a slightly trembling hand between them.

"Do you surrender?" Honey smirked.

Takashi spit out a mouthful of blood then tilted his head back against the wall. "I n-never raised arms against you. Are you content, having beaten an innocent man?"

"You spit at me? ME?" He grabbed Mori by the throat and lifted him against the wall until his toes were just barely met the floor. He strangled him with both hands as Mori held onto Honey's arms, minding his grip. "Why won't you just give up? Just SHUT UP!" Takashi kept his gaze, unable to breathe. After two minutes studded with Mori's chest jerking in an attempt to bring in oxygen, under the harsh glare and iron grip of his friend, he began to struggle instinctively. He twisted and convulsed and clenched his hands around his attacker's arms until Honey suddenly released his grip, allowing the tall boy to crumple into a heap at his feet.

"I... Oh no, Takashi... I don't know what came over me! I was so angry and grumpy and it was so easy... I didn't realize until you only started fighting when you really had to. I'm so, so sorry!"

Mori was gasping raggedly, one hand on his neck and the other propping him up. Honey cried in distress as his broken companion struggled for air; he kneeled and reached out to cup his protector's cheek, brows creasing in worry as the usually impassive man pulled away. "T-Takashi?" It took a while for Mori to get his breath back and his feet under him, and he leaned against the wall after stumbling back. Honey's eyes continuously welled up. "Taka-chan, please forgive me, I'm so sorry!"

Mori shook his head and wheezed, "I don't understand."

"W-what? I don't-"

"You were awake and obviously very aware, so you consciously chose to do this. Why, Mitskuni?" The outwardly calm man's head was lowered, hair obscuring his face.

"I-I... I suppose since I'm so happy all the time, all the bad stuff just exploded 'cause of one little thing. I've never done this, never been so angry before. I guess it's like when anyone has a bad day for no reason, but since I'm so strong, it just... it happened so fast and I didn't think, I just lashed out. It was so easy and fast and I couldn't stop!"

After a pause, Mori nodded. "I understand. You must work to restrain yourself, Mitskuni, I can't help you if you won't listen." Honey's head bobbed eagerly. Takashi tried to walk but he moaned and dropped to his knees.

"Takashi!" Honey cried, rushing to him. "What is it?"

"C-cant walk," he groaned, looking at his friend sadly. "Too much pain."

Honey let loose a new wave of tears. "Oh, Taka-chan, I'm so sorry! H-How can I help?"

Mori wrapped one arm around his chest and covered his face with his other hand. "Leave, I must reach the bed with my dignity intact."

"B-but I can help!"

Mori shook his head gingerly. "No Mitskuni." The small boy ran out and the broken man could finally release a ragged sigh. After a few deep shuddering breaths he rose and clumsily, gradually made it to the bed, out of breath. He leaned his back up against the headboard deep in thought. 'I should seek medical attention but it would only bring the Haninozukas shame. I would be forced to leave him until the doctors deemed me fit- an indeterminable amount of time. No, I must stay by his side.' He nodded minutely. Deciding to wrap the worst of it and attend school with his friend, he straightened (stifling a wince) and called in a raspy voice, "Mitskuni."

The boy had been immediately outside and ran in. "Takashi?"

"Get ready for school. I'll meet you in the main hall."

"No, you have to go to the hospital! You're hurt, I know you are!"

"I will be fine." He stood carefully and limped to the door.

"You won't make it through the day like that!"

Mori turned around and looked at him soberly. "I know my limits. Do you wish to be alone until the doctors deem me fit?"

Honey shook his head meekly.

"No." Mori left and reached his own room, closing the door and leaning against it. He was still rather disoriented. He limped heavily into his bathroom and pulled out gauze. With slow, cautious movements and more than one hiss of pain, he wrapped his ribs and the areas around the bones he believed to be broken or muscles he felt had been sprained. With the bandages tightly woven around his body, he felt more pressure and restriction but slightly less stabbing aches. He'd only ever strained a muscle from practicing martial arts; this much damage simultaneously and spontaneously wreaked, especially coming from such an elite warrior, caused the throbbing pain to swell then crash on him in a wave of agony. It stole his breath at each sudden spasm and made his headache and heartache worse, but he would hide it as well as he could. It would not be worth soiling the Haninozuka and Morinozuka names just for a medical professional to coddle him. No, he'd follow his duty and swallow the pain, for his Mitskuni.

~~~~~Ch. 2~~~~~

The ride to school was a practice round for Mori. The turns and turbulence in the road jostled his injuries so he practiced masking his pain. Only once, when the driver was forced to abrubtly stop due to a rude driver and he was thrown forward into his seatbelt, did he so much as wince. He was used to masking physical pain from battles so it wasn't too difficult. The real challenge would be the emotional pain. Honey tried to be thoughtful by respecting the damage he'd inflicted, but by their arrival at school he was giddily ranting as per usual. Mori had to force a smile and act like he wasn't disappointed, worried, and a little scared. What had come over his cousin this morning? Was it a one-time mistake or a precursor to more outbursts? If it continued, would he be able to stay with him? Maybe he was overthinking the whole thing: perhaps Honey, the apparent child he was, just got grumpy and happened to have enough training ingrained to use it as an outlet. If so, he hoped that Mitskuni learned to control it before he hurt someone.

"Takashi, let's go, the bell's gonna ring and I want my morning cake!"

The day had been relatively simple for the tall student. As long as he sat still during class, the only pain that hit him was on the way to and from classes. By the end of the day he was tired but no one was the wiser.

"Taka-chan, come on, it's time for club!" Honey ran towards the abandoned music room down the hall.

"Slow Mitskuni. It's not safe to run, sleek floors." In all honesty he needed him to slow down because just the thought of trying to keep up with the hyper student made his ribs ache. They walked through the host club doors together to find the others already there.

"Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai, so glad you made it! Come give Daddy a big hug." Honey gladly leaped into his arms and they spun before Tamaki set him down with a chuckle.

"Mori, come now, don't be shy!" Tamaki threw his arms around the giant and squeezed with all of his might. It took all of Mori's concentration to avoid showing his overwhelming pain at the embrace so he couldn't focus to return the hug. The king frowned and stepped back. "What's wrong, my son? Why won't you hug your dear father?" Looking up at Takashi's blank expression, he noticed something under his collar. "What's that on your neck, Mori-senpai?"

Takashi stepped back, averting his gaze. "It's nothing."

"If it were nothing, I wouldn't see it, now would I?" Tamaki responded slyly. "Now come here so Daddy can see!" He stepped forward and reached up to his neck. Mori grabbed his wrist out of instinct.

"Don't do that."

Now the blonde pointed at the hand grasping his arm, wrapped in a bandage. "Then what happened to that?"

"An accident, nothing more. Are you finished?"

"You never let me see your neck-"

Mori's gaze sharpened. "Let it go."

"Fine, fine." He walked away, calling, "Mommy, what are you typing now?"

Honey trudged over to his protector. "Why'd you lie, Takashi?"

"I didn't."

"You said it was an accident."

"Was it not?"

"But you made it sound-"

"Would you rather I tell the truth and sully your reputation? I thought we came here so you could be yourself, not tarnished by your faults."

Honey nodded and left to chat with Haruhi in his usual bubbly manner. Mori sighed and made his way over to a couch while almost perfectly disguising his limp. He needed to sit down before his wounds overwhelmed his senses. Taking the chance to examine the hosts, he glanced around. Honey was bouncing around Haruhi. Tamaki sat looking spacey, obviously daydreaming, while Kyoya sat across from his typing away on his laptop. Mori couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw the gleam of his glasses like he'd been watching him and turned away at the last second. Hikaru and Kaoru looked bored- never a good sign. Their humdrum looks met his and they immediately came to sit on either side of him.

"Hey Mori-senpai" "How ya doin'?" "'Cause being the most devilish of anyone present" "We noticed that you were pulling some tricks of your own." The twins finished each other's thoughts in perfect alignment. It was giving Takashi a headache.

"Tricks?" His voice was only slightly hoarse now.

"You lied to the king, now that's not very loyal of you." Hikaru cocked a brow.

"And we thought you were all about loyalty!" Kaoru shrugged as if altering his view of him.

"I am loyal."

"Aha, see, we figured that." "Now we were wonder just how loyal." "Loyal enough to kiss your companion?" "Maybe they left you something in return?" The twins, sure they would find a hickey (which Takashi realized at the last moment), worked together as one loosened Mori's tie while the other yanked down his collar. They froze, though, as the bruise was a lot bigger than the kind they'd expected. It looked like someone had strangled their friend. "Mori-senpai, what happened?" Kaoru gasped.

Takashi fixed his shirt and adjusted his tie. "It is none of your concern."

The twins frowned identically. "Someone choked you!" They whispered in unison.

"Do not tell speak of it, it's my business."

"Did they also hurt your hand?"

Mori stood slowly and shook his head. "Not a word."

Kyoya watched, taking notes.

~~~~~Ch. 3~~~~~

Takashi Morinozuka was the "strong silent type" but by no means was he dim-witted. He knew, being just as intuitive, that the Shadow King's interest was peaked. Kyoya could share his notes with Tamaki and the secret would be exposed. Mori left the curious twins and carefully moved to sit with him. A few minutes later the manager stopped typing and closed his laptop, adjusting his spectacles. "Do you need something, Mori-senpai?" His voice lilted and head tilted.

"I'm no fool, Kyoya. I'm sure you understand the situation."

"Well," the onyx-haired boy shrugged gracefully, "I have noticed that you're in pain, no matter how well you hide it. The bruises, the limp, the bandage all suggest that you're injured enough to be midful of what you let others see. For whatever reason you don't want anyone to know what happened. Judging by your colder-than-usual interactions with Honey-senpai, he's involved. Am I correct?"

After a pause Takashi nodded and gingerly leaned back in his chair.

"And you want me to keep this to myself."

Another silent nod.

"I'm willing to do that. For a fee, of course."

"What do you want?"

"As you know, I deal in information. I want to know exactly what happened." The Shadow King cocked a brow expectantly, pulling out his black book and pen.

"Mitskuni woke in a bad mood and took it out on me. He was too angry to restrain his prowess and strength. I took the hits."

"How badly are you injured?"

"It's mostly bruises, a few broken bones."

"Have you properly dressed them? I can't have an incapacitated host."

"I will manage."

"As an Ootori I have extensive medical knowledge. Allow me to asses your health or have you admitted to one of our facilities."

Mori grunted and gestured for him to follow to one of the back rooms. They entered the room without attracting attention. Once the door was closed, Takashi unbuttoned his jacket. He pulled off the tie and unbuttoned his dress shirt. Finally the tall student painstakingly pulled off his undershirt. Kyoya pushed up his glasses and stood behind him to help unwind the gauze; the cloth fell and Kyoya circled him in deep thought. Most of his torso was covered in a rich motley of bruises. Kyoya began pressing here, pulling there, assesing the wounds. When the usually silent giant gasped or groaned the Shadow King had found the deepest wounds. Many areas were bruised through the muscles, others were a sickly yellow hue due to the shattered bone beneath. Several ribs were at least cracked, his wrist snapped, and Mori had already reset his dislocated shoulder.

"Mori-senpai, is this all of the damage?"

"My ankle is sprained."

"I must say that your tolerance for pain is impressive. Will you be able to mask it until you've healed? It'll take much longer without proper medical attention."

"Yes."

"Honey-senpai really did a number on you. It can't have been easy, sitting idly as your closest friend did this. You never fought back, did you?"

Mori lowered his head. "At the end, he strangled me. I needed to breathe, he was going to kill me before his conscience returned. I struggled but made sure not to harm him."

"How did he come to his senses?"

"I think that because I reacted as tamely as possible under his fists, my struggling only when it was absolutely necessary and uncontrollable jogged his memory of my innocence. He said he was reminded of my loyalty by my refusal to retaliate."

Kyoya shook his head. "You are quite admirable. That's why you refuse a hospital, you'd shame his name and be taken from his side. It's rather noble of you."

Mori lifted his chin. "Will you help?" He nodded to the gauze. The Shadow King solemnly assisted his injured friend.