Disclaimer: I do not own any of the multiple animes or mangas in this story. Thank you.


The Anime/Manga Revolution
Chapter 2

Promise. A bonding vow between two parties. It can be as simple as a promise to appear on time or as complex as a vow to give up fighting for a week. Promise. An item only as powerful as your honour and your word. An item you must keep dear and hold true to.

My name is Mona F. Deaden, and when I make a promise I keep it even if it kills me or if I didn't really make the promise but the person I was cos-playing as did.

I ended up going to the club yesterday and spent most of the evening cleaning the club room with the club members. It wasn't actually that bad and I had a great time, but I didn't get around to doing any of my homework. Tonight I'll have to make up for that night of fun, but I have to go back to the club first because as I rushed out, "Botan" promised to show up again. Of course today is the day when the teachers decide to assign more work. Now I have three projects due before the end of the month plus the homework I didn't do last night.

The above is the reason why I held off joining the club and why I avoided clubs all through high school. I never knew how much work I would get and that made me nervous. The last thing I wanted was to promise one thing to the club and then have to back out because of my grades. However, Botan had gotten the better of me so now I have to go back to the club room to return the costume at least. Part of me really wants to stay in the club because I never have the chance to let my imagination go wild like that. Sadly, the other more mature part of me keeps telling me that you come to Hearth University to learn and to become a work-machine, not play. The teachers constantly rub this fact in your face whenever they can. Even in our free time they keep—

"Deaden-chan?"

Butting in.

I looked up from my sheet of paper I had been writing on to see Mrs. Fujimoto looking down on me. "Yes, sensei?"

"Are you aware that the roofs are off limits to students?"

I frowned and shook my head. No one had told me that little fact. Of course, they probably assumed it was common sense but I had a habit of missing those little things. "No sensei, but I guess they are?" The wording was awkward but it was safer than saying, "I assume they are."

Mrs. Fujimoto nodded and pointed to the door. "And don't let me catch you back here."

For a second I almost filled the thought in my head as a challenge but then quickly threw the thought out. Having a personal hiding place wasn't worth being expelled. Of course both the library and roof were being watched so I had to find yet another hiding spot. I almost considered a tree but didn't like the idea of climbing in a skirt and knowing my luck, I'd get stuck.

I settled for hiding underneath a tree on the side that faced the fence that surrounded the school and worked on my writing.

Even the look of the school puts the thought into your head. The grass is always cut with strategically placed trees and brushes. Windows are always washed, and the new buildings are all skyscrapers. There are some sport fields surrounded by chain fences but only the serious and professional teams use them. When I went to check out the archery range I was told by an upperclassman, or tempered steel, that only those training for tournaments could use it. The older buildings also match the look although they are old and made of stone and not glass windows.

Only the wall surrounding the school and room 444 seem to not support the "all work no play" attitude. The streets around Hearth University get fairly dangerous after dark. The pale yellow paint with white trim that covers the high walls do a good job at making the school seem friendly and sunny. You'd almost forget that it is an inner city school with high walls that are needed to keep the less desirable people out. First day of school some kid nearly entered the school drunk and armed with a knife. Thankfully he couldn't figure out how to get into the school.

That would be another reason to avoid the club. Besides the homework, I'm staying off campus in an apartment a little ways from the school and walking home alone at night would not be bright even if I was a body-builder and armed with a tank. However, I still need to return the costume.

As I glanced at my watch, the alarm started to go off warning me that I had only a few more minutes until lunch was over. After carefully folding the piece of paper I was writing on and placing it into my pocket-sized notebook, I lifted my shoulder bag and started to make my way to class. As I entered the Japanese Language classroom, I pushed my manga deeper into my bag and tried not to give Mrs. Fujimoto a reason to notice me. Instead of sitting near the front, I disappeared into the back section of the room. I couldn't hear as well, but I would be able to learn without the fear of her noticing the manga that lurked in my bag.

Class seemed to take forever and whenever Mrs. Fujimoto walked by, I'd kick my bag under my desk. Maybe I was being silly, but I had a hunch that she wouldn't have appreciated the fact that I had ignored her advice. I was sure that if she knew that I had manga in her class she would take it and never give it back. Of course legally that would be stealing but she could say that she took it away and lost it. Then she most likely would only have to pay me the amount the manga was worth. Or she could use a threat to change my marks to make me leave the manga behind. However, I doubted there was much that could be changed. Even without her telling me, I knew that I was failing. No matter how well I paid attention, I couldn't get the hang of the Japanese. I wasn't sure if it was her teaching style or if I just was incapable of learning Japanese.

It seemed that I was the only one having major troubles though. Most of the other students knew each other from going to the high schools in the city so they knew who to ask for help. I was one of the few out of towners in that class, but I didn't like to ask for help from people I didn't know. A personality trait that was going to get me failed.

Part way through the lesson I caught sight of the girl with the Saiyuki pin. Today she seemed to be paying more attention and was careful about what she said. Her Saiyuki pin was nowhere to be seen, and she kept playing with her hair. For a few moments, I wondered what was bugging her since yesterday she squeezed her pencil to the breaking point when she had problems. My focus was changed when Fujimoto asked me something about kanji that I got wrong.

Finally class was over and I allowed to leave and lick the scars on my ego. The last time I took such a beating was in English class when I just didn't understand the mind of my teacher. However, my ego returned to normal in one of my many business classes where my marks were at a comfortable level. Any math based course was the best for me because I could understand what was happening regardless of teaching style. In math two plus two always equals four. In Language sometimes you use which, others that, or you use fishes or fish, sorta like life.

In life sometimes you laugh, others you cry, and finally you die. Language and life give you all sorts of options to use (especially English) and some options are more recommended than others. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out what option to use in the situation of room 444. Would I join? Would I quit? Can you quit something before you formally join? My decision would only become clear when I reached room 444.


I stood outside the door to room 444 with a freshly cleaned Botan costume in hand for a few seconds before entering. I wanted to be completely sure that I would follow through with my decision to return the costume and leave. As much fun as I could have my grades were most important and I could not afford a distraction. I needed to graduate and continue on my way to become a chartered accountant. I needed to succeed and the only way I could be sure of my success would be to quit.

With a deep breath, I put my hand on the doorknob. Turned it. And entered. The first thing I noticed was the scent of roses. The second was a tall man sitting in the desk closest to the window on the left side of the room with red hair, amazing green eyes. He was reading but looked up when I entered. To be honest, I almost forgot to breath. I had always thought that animated was the only was Kurama would look good because of his hair being flat in real life. You cannot imagine how happy I was to see that I was wrong. However, I had a hard time meeting the eyes of the animated Kurama when he looked at the screen. Even in real life the staring at me was a bit unnerving so I quickly looked away and prayed that my face wasn't turning red. At that moment, a red rose was pushed in my face and purple eyes looked down on me.

"Welcome to the Host Club, beautiful lady," the man said.

My body went slack from relief. Blonde hair, purple eyes, and a flirting attitude. Tamaki was not someone I would have to worry about and as long as Kaiba wasn't Kyouya today I should have no problem telling them I wanted to quit. All Tamaki would do would sit in a corner, and if I knew Kurama as well as I felt I did, he would just accept it. Or maybe he only did that with Hiei.

I nodded to Tamaki's greeting, said hello, and explained that I had bought back the costume.

Tamaki stared at me with wide eyes as he asked, "Why are you returning it?"

I swallowed. "I can't really join the club. My work load is just too heavy and—"

Tamaki's face grew into a grin. "Oh we can help with that." He put a hand on my shoulder and turned me to face Kurama. Of course I focused on the wall behind him. "Kurama— I mean Shuichi is the best tutor in the world. I'm sure he could help you."

Kurama smiled sweetly at me, but I shook my head, trying not to show how much I wanted to remain in the club. "I'm sorry but I really can't join. Besides my work load, I live out side the campus and the streets get dangerous."

"Where do you live?"

He even sounded like Kurama! My little brother did impersonations, but he could never get the Kurama voice down. The guy who was cos-playing as Kurama must have practiced a lot to get his voice to match John Burgmeier's tone for tone. I was so stunned that it took me a few seconds to reply. Finally, I managed to say, "Apartment number 14 in the old Taylor Building on—"

"William Street." He nodded. "Kaiba has an apartment in that area as well. We could try to convince him to walk with you."

I could almost picture Kaiba's face when they voice the request. There were no words to express his anger, and I did not like the idea of walking down a dark street with a man who acted like Kaiba. It was far too easy to picture him ditching me in an alley. I shook my head. "It's okay. I'll be fine."

Tamaki shook his head. "Of course it isn't. Shuichi, we cannot allow this lovely lady to walk home by herself. What if some person decides to attack this cute little girl?"

Kurama sighed. "Tamaki, if she wants to quit, we cannot stop her."

Tamaki let go of my shoulder and stood in front of Kurama with wide eyes. "But Shuichi."

He shook his head and stood up. With gentle hands he took the costume from me. If I wasn't already a Kurama fan girl, I would have become one quickly. He smiled down at me again. "Thank you for returning the costume. Maybe you'll join later."

I nodded and tried not to stare.

Then Kaiba entered. He took one look at me and walked to his desk while saying, "So the airhead is back."

Tamaki wagged his finger in Kaiba's face as he sat down. "Kaiba, this girl is our guest. We must treat all who enter this door with gentle care and love."

Kurama nodded. "Actually she is leaving."

Kaiba blinked once before turning to look at me with a smirk on his face. "So the teachers warned you about us and you listened, little girl?"

I kept my mouth shut and waited for the end of the conversation so that I could leave. However, Kaiba had other plans.

"Or maybe you couldn't take playing with the big boys."

Kurama turned so that he was able to face Kaiba, and I learned that Kaiba wasn't the only one with a scary glare. "That's enough Kaiba. She already explained her reasons." He turned to slightly face me once again before saying, "You'd better be going before the buses stop."

I nodded and started to walk towards the door when I hear Kaiba laugh. "I told you Kurama. If the club is going to stay open, we need members with more backbone. Not little weak-kneed girls."

"Who said I was weak?" Against my better judgement, I turned back to face him.

He rolled his eyes. "You think I couldn't notice it without help? Your whole attitude betrays you."

I kept my mouth shut as I tried to think of something to say that wouldn't give him any ground. "And what else does my attitude tell you then?"

His smirk widened. I probably should have said something else. "Well it tells me that you—"

Kurama stepped between us and put a hand on my shoulder. "Kaiba. That's enough." To me he said, "I'll walk you to the gates."

I shook my head. If there was one thing I was good at, it was fighting until I had nothing left, regardless of mental scaring, and no school or guy was going to change that. "Go on," I said.

For a second, it looked like Kaiba was going to let me have it. Then a huge crash was heard. We all looked to the left to see Tamaki buried under a pile of desks. He weakly grinned as he said, "Sorry. I was trying to put the Botan costume away when the desks collapsed."

I sighed but did not make eye contact with Kaiba again. Although I hadn't watched the anime in years or read the manga recently, I was not about to give him another chance to get me mad. Knowing me, I would probably end up rejoining the club just to spite him. However, as the other two boys helped Tamaki out from under the desks, my eyes fell on the Botan costume. I took in the worn edges and messy sewing. Someone had worked hard on making the costume, only to leave it here to be covered with dust. It didn't seem right. My eyes wandered the room for one last time. All of these objects had been left by their owners because they were no longer wanted. It was sad, but I needed to keep moving ahead.

A thought popped into my head suddenly. Was that what the owner of the toys and costumes thought when they left them here? Did they think that only by leaving the toys and games of childhood and teenhold they would survive the adult world? I could not imagine leaving my collection of manga and anime to rot. They were my sanity, my guides, my comfort.

My mind returned to high school. How many times had I backed away when I had a chance to join something because of the slim possibility of homework? I never joined the badminton team, never went on the ski trip, and never joined the drama team. All because of fear for my grades even though it was proven that I could get buy with a 70% without trying. And how many times had I sat in my room doing nothing?

However, I had already said that I would quit. How would I say that I would like to rejoin the club? Was it even within acceptable boundaries to say something like that?

More thoughts came to my mind, and I barely noticed when Tamaki was finally out from under desks. I snapped back to reality when he tried to put the costume back in a box on the top shelf. Somewhere in my half-decided mind, it was realized what I was going to do. As Tamaki started to get on the desks again with Kurama and Kaiba watching, I took a step forward. Hoping I wasn't going to seem really pathetic I said, "Excuse me."

All three boys turned to face me but I focused on Tamaki's face, which was the most friendly and welcoming. His eyes seemed to sparkle as I struggled to find the right words. Finally the words came out.

"I could be part of the club for a little while, if you guys don't mind."

Tamaki's face lit up like Christmas came early and he got just what he wanted. Jumping down from the desks, he grabbed me in a hug and spun me around. Oddly, instead of being creeped out, I was amused. Eventually he let me go and turned to the other boys.

"Kurama, question her," he announced. "Kaiba—"

"No."

Tamaki turned to Kaiba with the same wide purple eyes. "You don't want to help this lovely flower?"

With a glare Kaiba went and sat down. "She can join the club but don't expect me to help."

With a gentleman's chuckle, Kurama turned to me and started walk over to his desk. "Before we give you some more costumes, we need to know more about you."

I nodded and sat down in the chair beside his desk and watched as he pulled out some paper and a pen. "How familiar are you with anime and manga?" was the first question he asked.

I tilted my head to side to show my confusion. "Well I watch mostly shonen animes."

Kurama wrote down something on the paper but it was in Japanese. "Such as?"

"Well the Dragon Ball series, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Yu Yu Hakusho." I frowned as I tried to remember any other animes I had watched. "I've also read Ushio and Tora."

"Any other animes?"

I nodded. "Sailor Moon, Inuyasha, Card Captors—"

His eyes narrowed. "Japanese or American?"

"Both for Card Captors and Inuyasha, but only American for Sailor Moon."

He nodded and wrote down the titles in English before asking, "What was the first anime and manga you read, and how old were you?"

"I watched Sailor Moon before I turned three but I don't really remember when. And Yu-Gi-Oh was the first manga I read."

"You don't recall when?"

I nodded.

"Interesting that you started watching shojo and then switched to shonen."

I shrugged and looked around the room amused by how Tamaki was badgering Kaiba. Kurama's next question focused me to return my attention towards him. "Do you write or make videos of anime or manga?"

I nodded. "I write fanfictions for Yu Yu Hakusho mostly."

"Is that your favourite anime?"

I nodded and prayed that he wouldn't ask me who my favourite character was. Thankfully he didn't. Instead he asked, "What are your areas of strength in school?"

"Maths and science are my strong points. Languages, not so much."

He nodded. "When you say science, do you mean all three?"

I shook my head. "I didn't take biology."

"A shame."

I shrugged. "Accountants don't really need to know about the ecosystems."

He smiled slightly as he finished writing. "I would ask how you take becoming angry, but I believe I already know how."

I glanced over where Kaiba was glaring at Tamaki. He had me there, not that I would expect anything less.

"The final thing I have to ask you is this."

I nodded and waited.

"Which characters do you see yourself being most like?"

I frowned and looked down at my feet as I thought. "Well I have a temper like Kagome."

"And you are stubborn."

When I smiled, I realized in the back of my mind it was for the first time that day. "That's true, but I like to think that I'm a bit more level headed in some matters in life."

To my relief he did not question me, but instead waited while I thought of another person I saw as being similar to myself. "I also act like Botan I suppose."

He blinked. "In what way?"

"I tend to smile when I'm upset, and can be fairly obvious."

"Another trait Kagome and you share."

I nodded again before trying to think of anyone else. "I care a lot for rules and responsibility like Keiko but that's all I can think of."

He nodded and wrote down something before folding the paper up. "The way I see it, you seem like a very sweet caring girl with a dangerous wrath when angered."

I had to look down at my feet at that point or else start blushing. Thankfully, Tamaki walked over to give me a book. The cover was falling away from the spiral binding and the pages were food stained but the title was impossible to mistake. "This is the code of our club," he explained. "It's very important that you read it cover to cover." I nodded and he turned to Kurama. Without a word, they walked over to where Kaiba was so that he could put in his two cents.

Feeling that overhearing would be rude, I started to read the book. On the first page were badly drawn manga characters surrounding the title, "the Code of Anime Manga Addicts" and on the second was the basic rules of the club. The first rule stated that, as I had learned on my first day, members must act in character the moment they enter the room. The next few were about basic respect and trading. The third page listed all the special days in the club. As I was studying them I couldn't help but over hear the boys.

"So what do we have?" Tamaki was asking when I started playing attention.

Out of the corner of my eyes I saw Kurama hand him the paper and reply, "It seemed that Umino's idea of making her a Kagome was not far from the mark. She certainly has the personality. However, she could be acting." He turned to Kaiba. "You said that she pretended to be a meek and helpless first year when she first opened the door?"

He nodded. "She ruined her illusion when she picked a fight with me."

"And won it too if Umino was to be believed," Tamaki added with a grin. "How did she manage to tip your chair with a broom?"

Kurama frowned. "Wasn't she acting like Botan at that point?"

Kaiba shook his head. "Botan would not act like that unless she was confronting Yusuke. She wouldn't dare do something like that to me."

"But she did." I focused on the code when Tamaki glanced in my direction. "Somehow she reminds me of you Kaiba."

"If you want to live, you will never repeat that Tamaki."

Kurama nodded. "All the same, we do need members. Acting or not, this girl might just be the breath of fresh air we need to keep the club going. If we train her, she'll be able to manage the club with Tamaki when we leave. Isn't that right Kaiba?"

Kaiba nodded. "Remember, if she is acting, then there are no doubts about why she is here."

"We'll remember. Miss?"

I looked up to see all the men looking at me and nodded. "Yes?"

"We found some costumes for you to try on."

I nodded and looked behind him to see Tamaki who was holding a black wig, Kagome's green and white school uniform as well as a blue skirt, pink jacket, and a blue ribbon.

"You'll look so cute in these," he said with a grin.

Unable to do anything else I nodded before saying, "Do I really have to be Anzu in those clothes though?"

The look on Kaiba's face was priceless, and I had the feeling I was really going to enjoy this club, homework or not. And if I did have homework… well I'm sure Kurama could be helpful. Haha.


A/N: This was a pain to write but as soon as Kurama showed up all was well. You can tell who my favourite is, can't you? As for Tamaki, if I screwed up on him, please let me know. I haven't watched Ouran in detail. Thanks for reading and reviewing. I'll try to update soon!

-D101