Disclaimer: I do not own OHSHC; Studio Bones and Bisco Hatori own it. I only own the characters I made up and the plot.
Author's Notes: I couldn't believe I was able to finish this in a couple of hours! Have fun reading!
I'll update every week as long as I get at least a few reviews so I know people are reading. If not then I'll be force to delete it and put on another site.
Legend:
"Talking"
"When the twins say something at the same time"
Thinking
Love has its many bumps
Chapter 2
Haunted Maze Game
-Normal POV: On the Fifth floor, in the study room-
"All three of you are in high school now. And the two of you are almost done, despite your young age."
Kumiko, Tsukiko and Midori stood in front of the twin's grandmother who had called them together to speak with them.
The three girl's eyes widened and the grandmother caught their expression.
"You thought I didn't know that you skipped grades?" Her smile was mischievous, "Technically the three of you should only be freshmen, if we are merely going by your ages." She grew serious. "But what with you being farther along than you ought, it means you will need to get engaged as soon as possible."
"WHAT?!" The three said at the same time, looking at one another in shock.
"Don't give me that tone of voice." She ordered. "You, Midori. Your parents are growing weaker from work. So much travel and catering do that to a person. They want you well taken care of." She turned to the twins. "Your father is already gone and your mother eventually won't be able to continue party designing forever." Here she spoke to all three of them, "You will find good husbands for yourselves in a month or they will be arranged for you. Now go. The two of you need to practice your Gala." She looked pointedly at the twins.
Obeying the overbearing woman, they turned to see Alfeo standing quietly just inside the door.
"Pardon my intrusion Yoko-sama." He nodded to the matriarch. "Midori-sama, you have guests."
"Guests?" Midori couldn't think of who would be calling on her, "Uh, tell them to go to the library on my floor I suppose."
"As you wish." He bowed, following after the twins who were headed down the hall to the music room.
"Midori."
Obediently, Midori turned back around, "Yes, ma'am?"
"I would ask you to help your cousins find good grooms. I didn't like someone telling me who I get to marry and… I'm afraid whomever I pick won't be the best choice for them no matter what." Her eyes seemed a little sad.
"Yes, ma'am."
She seemed a little less unhappy when Midori agreed, turning away to continue her work for the upcoming reunion party their families were having exactly one month away.
Taking that to be an official dismissal, Midori left, heading for the library.
I think she just acts mean because…well I don't know why. But she really isn't a bad person. …Now who in the world would be calling on me at this hour? A nearby clock rang the fifth hour of the afternoon.
Bounding down the stairs, Midori turned into the second floor hallway and walked to the library, still deep in thought.
She absently opened the door, jerked from her mind when she saw just who stood around the room.
"What are you all doing here?!"
The Host Club stood, or sat, in various places around the room.
Hikaru spoke up from his corner, "Well, we can't come tomorrow…"
"So we came today." Kaoru finished.
"Tama has practice tomorrow, right Tama-chan?" Hunny turned to Mori.
Mori grunted an affirmative, nodding his head a little.
"Why didn't you call me? Or the twins?"
"If we had your numbers we would have." Kyouya was leaning against the wall, clipboard in hand as he wrote. "As it was, we were only able just able to find your house."
Yeah. Right. Like if he could find the house he couldn't get our numbers.
"So we decided to come anyways." Kenta spoke up.
Well that's just great. What am I supposed to do with them now?
"Midori! Where are my new children? Why haven't they come to greet their father?"
"They're upstairs on the fifth floor in the music room-"
Before Midori could get any further, Tamaki rushed out of the study.
"I'm coming my precious children!" He yelled.
Everybody either sighed or shook their heads.
"Midori-senpai, what does that room lead too?" Haruhi noticed a door in the back of the room and regarded it with curiousity.
"We tried opening it earlier but it was locked." The Hitachiin twins threw their arms about each others shoulders.
"It's a store room." She told them, "Everyone in my family has one for themselves. Once a day we go inside to our own and write down what happened. Like a diary." Midori was cut short by a ring from her cell. The caller i.d. told her that it was the twins. Three-way calling as usual. "Hello?"
"We've been told that there is a maniac with blonde hair running around the halls looking for his children." Tsukiko talked first.
"He's making so much noise it's distracting. We can't get anything done." Kumiko added.
"Take care of it. Now." They hung up.
Midori sighed. Oh Tamaki. Oh dear.
"It seems Tamaki has decided that running around the halls like a madman is the best way to find the twins." She told the others.
"Let's get him before he does any real damage." Kenta rolled his eyes.
Midori's POV
I ran to the fifth floor and everyone followed except Kyouya and Kenta who decided to look around the rest of the house just to make sure.
The twins split off in one direction, Mori and Hunny went searching in another and Haruhi and I went towards the music room.
"You keep good track of your ancestors." Haruhi saw the pictures of our family hanging along the walls.
"This house has been in our family for a long time. Usually the only ones that move here are the ones that have retired. People in my family have the second floor, the twin's family live on the third and the fourth floor is for guests. The fifth floor…" I trailed off. I had never really thought about it before. What was the fifth floor for exactly?
"What is the fifth floor for?" Haruhi prompted.
"I don't really know." I frowned.
We were at the music room by this time and I reached for the door handle, stopping. Strains of piano music drifted out to us.
Nobody I know can play the piano. We just have it for show really.
As quietly as we could, Haruhi and I went inside.
Tamaki, his hair glinting in the light shining in from a window, sat at the piano, the twins watching intently.
Him? He plays piano? The idiot? It's so beautiful…
I stood behind the twins, just listening.
"Midori, you never told us the Host Club was here." Kumiko said, her eyes never leaving Tamaki.
"Well I-"
The rest of the Host Club walked in.
"We checked…" Kaoru trailed off, seeing Tamaki at the piano.
"Ah. So this is where you were, my lord." The twins crossed their arms.
"Hi!" Tamaki stopped playing, "Where are Kyouya and Kenta?" He looked around, not seeing them.
Jonathan and Matthew came in, looking worried.
"There are people in the third floor library," Jonathan started.
"Did you give them permission?" Matthew wanted to know.
"That depends…" The twins looked at one another.
"Who is in there?" Kumiko wanted to know.
"What are they doing?" Tsukiko asked.
"A tall dark-headed young man." Matthew informed them.
"And another young man who's name is Kenta I believe." Jonathan remembered.
Tsukiko shrugged, "Well what were they doing?"
"Looking at your medicinal and doctoral books," Jonathan said to Kumiko.
"And your weather books." Matthew spoke to Tsukiko.
"Medicinal books?" Tsukiko frowned, "So that's how you knew to fix up my arm when Midori knocked me down."
"I'm sorry!" Midori protested at Tsukiko's unfriendly glare, "I didn't know the carpet was gone until after I started running! And they waxed the floor too!"
"There were signs up everywhere, Midori." Tsukiko's eye twitched.
"…I said I was sorry." Midori's words were quiet.
Kumiko tilted her head to the side as she looked over at Tsukiko, "The books on weather explain how you're good at predicting it." Her head slowly began turning as she spoke her next words, "Like that one time when Midori said it would be sunny and you said it was going to rain. So I went outside for a nice walk. And it started to rain." Now she was also glaring at Midori, "And I got sick because someone said it was going to be sunny. All. Day."
"I was looking at last week's newspaper! I'm sorry!" Midori pouted.
"Are we having guests for dinner?" Aurora and Dawn came in behind the butlers.
"Are you staying for dinner?" Midori asked the Host Club.
They all looked at one another.
"Sure. Why not." Hikaru and Kaoru shrugged.
"Alright then." Matthew nodded.
"We'll inform the chef." Dawn said, both sets of butlers and maids filing out the door.
"Guess what Midori?" The Takahashi twins stood up.
Feeling a little unsafe what with the glares she had been getting earlier, Midori automatically took a step back, "…What?"
"We found the third person for the Gala." Kumiko's lips raised in a half-smile.
"Really?" Midori was taken by surprise with that one. "Who?"
"Him." They pointed at Tamaki.
"Seriously? Our lord is going to be in a Gala?" Kaoru and Hikaru raised their eyebrows.
Tamaki just smiled.
"I'm going to go and check on Kyouya and Kenta." Kumiko said, exchanging a look with Tsukiko. She left.
Midori got an idea, "While we're waiting for dinner, do you want to go through our haunted maze?"
"Haunted maze?" The Hitachiin twins seemed sort of excited as they glanced a little too eagerly at Tamaki.
"Yeah. It opens a few days before Halloween but we can test it any time we like if you're interested." Tsukiko shrugged.
"If they're interested in what?" The doors to the room opened back up and Kumiko came in with Kyouya and Kenta. "I met them on the way down." Kumiko explained.
Tsukiko nodded. "The haunted maze."
"I think they need to see grandmother first." Kumiko pointed out.
"Oh right. We'll introduce them, then go." Midori decided.
-Normal POV: In the study-
Still at her desk with sheets of paper spread out everywhere, their grandmother looked up with the three girls came into the room quietly, followed by the Host Club."
"Grandmother, this is the Host Club." Tsukiko indicated the boys behind her.
"Ah. The Host Club." Yoko scrutinized them from where she sat, then turned her eyes onto the Takahachi twins. "Then Midori wasn't lying for you when she said you were meeting new people."
"I would never lie to you about that." Midori said, her chin rising a little in defiance.
"Yeah…yeah you would." The twins whispered gratefully in her ear.
"Alright. Go have fun." She waved them off, immediately turning back to her work.
They all left.
"So, you want to play or are you going to chicken out?" Midori put her hands on her hips as she addressed the Host Club members.
"Then let the games begin." Tsukiko and Kumiko gave each other an evil smirk.
-At the Haunted Maze-
They traveled on the grounds until they reached a large building with the words 'Haunted Maze' in ominous letters across the entrance.
Kyouya and Kenta were sent off to the main control room.
"There'll have to be somebody running things." Was Tsukiko's argument when the others disapproved.
There were four entrances into the maze and everybody divided up. The Hitachiins stood in front of the first entrance, the Takahashi twins second, Tamaki, Haruhi and Midori made up the third and Hunny and Mori took the last.
Taking a cue from Kumiko, Kyouya pressed a button and the entrances opened up, revealing a deep gloom beyond. Everybody ran inside.
The Takahashis
"Heheh. It seems Kyouya knows what he's doing." Tsukiko couldn't help another smirk as fog poured out of various unseen vents and covered the floor.
"Well he's going to make it interesting, that's for sure. He is taking pictures after all."
"How do you know that?"
"He pulled his camera out while he was walking off. If the Host Club is popular, they can probably make lots of money off of things like that."
"Heh. There ought to be some good pictures too. Come on, let's get out of here. I don't want to miss any of the action." Tsukiko's smirk remained as she and Kumiko easily navigated their way out of the maze, making for the control room.
The Hitachiin twins
They walked along, glancing around as the fog rolled towards them.
"I don't think we're going to get to have any fun." Hikaru noted as the maze began to shift around them.
"We won't be able to find anybody." Kaoru agreed.
"Oh well." Hikaru shrugged, noticing that there was a hand on his shoulder, "What?"
"Hm?" Kaoru looked over at him.
"Did you need something? Am I too far ahead of you?" Hikaru, who had been walking a few steps in front of Kaoru, dropped back next to his brother.
"No." Kaoru shook his head.
"Then why are you touching my shoulder?"
"I'm not." Kaoru held up both of his hands.
"…If those are your hands. And these are my hands. Then who's hand is that?"
They both looked back to see an army of skeletons marching towards them, the captain's boney hand engulfing Hikaru's shoulder.
Tamaki, Haruhi and Midori
"That sounded like Hikaru and Kaoru." Haruhi looked up, hearing screams of bloody-murder.
"It is a haunted maze." Tamaki seemed rather nervous himself.
"I haven't been through here yet." Midori admitted, "I've been busy planning for my birthday party. Which reminds me, you all have been so nice, would you like to come? It's next Saturday."
Haruhi nodded, "I don't think any of us have anything planned."
As they walked, they noticed something glowing a ways away from them. They came to a fork in the path, the glow coming from the right.
"A firefly?" Haruhi asked.
"It's not summer yet." Midori said hesitantly, not sure herself.
The light came closer. And closer.
"Are you…ready to die?" Stepping into their view, a corpse regarded them hungrily, a torch in one hand and a knife in the other.
Midori screamed, turning back to go the way they came. She screamed again when she saw that a second corpse was coming closer from behind, grinning madly.
The three of them dashed off down the left hallway, running as fast as they were able.
Hunny and Mori
"Takashi, did you hear that?" Hunny looked around as screams echoed through the maze.
Mori nodded, glancing around before moving forward again.
Hunny was sitting on Mori's shoulder, Bun-Bun clutched close to his chest.
A dark figure appeared in the fog.
"Hello?" Hunny called.
The figure disappeared, Mori continuing to walk after a moment.
"Hello." A voice hissed into Hunny's ear.
"Nnn!" Hunny buried his face into his stuffed bunny's body.
Mori gracefully made a sweeping kick at the creature behind them, but was surprised when it did nothing.
Floating inches off the ground, a skeleton in a dark robe holding a scythe look out at them from under his hood.
Hunny leapt from Mori's shoulder as Mori began trying to pummel the thing. When he realized it wasn't working, he scooped Hunny up and began running down the path.
In the Control Room
"How are those pictures coming out, Kyouya?" Kumiko sat in one of the chairs, controlling the events folding out beneath them.
"Better than I expected." He passed a few to her.
"Hey, they're almost at the exit." Tsukiko pointed at the Hitachiin twins.
"Not for long." Kenta reached over Kumiko and pressed a button, changing the maze walls around.
"Thanks." Kumiko nodded to him.
"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that they haven't figured out this is all robots and holograms." Kyouya pushed his glasses up higher on his nose.
Hitachiin twins
They were still running, almost out of breath in the hopes of finding the exit quickly.
After a few more paces they stopped, both bending over and resting their hands on their knees to try and catch their breath.
"Did we lose them?" Kaoru looked over his shoulder, fearful that he would spot the army just behind them.
"NO!" Hikaru pointed to their front as figures appeared in the mist, grabbing Kaoru's arm and taking off.
"Hikaru! Kaoru!"
It was Hunny.
"Hunny!"
"We though you were the skeletons that were chasing after us." Kaoru told him.
"Not me!" Hunny said, still clutching Bun-Bun. "Let's stay together."
They all agreed.
Tamaki, Haruhi and Midori
The three of them finally stopped running, collapsing to the ground to catch their breath.
"That…was scary." Midori said, still nervously glanced around them all the time.
"Who made this thing?" Haruhi wanted to know.
"The twins. They wanted to make a haunted house but their grandmother wouldn't let them."
"I hope they are okay!" Tamaki said gallantly, "It would be awful if something happened to my daughter or my son. …Especially with those unscrupulous twins running about!" His eyes widened when he realized that the Hitachiin twins may have already found them, "I'll save you!" He announced, taking off into the fog.
"I wonder if we should tell him that Tsukiko is a girl." Midori watched him leave.
"He's a little dense that way." Haruhi said dryly.
"I say we go this way." Midori pointed in the opposite direction of where Tamaki ran.
Haruhi followed her.
"I can't believe it…" Haruhi looked around them. "We got out."
In the Control Room
"I've lost track of Haruhi and Midori." Tsukiko said.
"Tamaki ran off without them." Kenta noted, seeing Tamaki running madly.
"They must have gotten out." Kumiko decided, leaving to go and fetch them.
"Looks like the twins got out first." Midori mumbled to Haruhi as Kumiko came running up to them.
"Hey! Glad you made it out alive and in one piece. We're still working with the others."
With 'the others'
Tamaki ran directly into the twins, the trio crashing to the floor.
"My Lord! Where have you been?"
"Looking for you, you devil children!" His eyes flared, "I know you only agreed to come in this maze so that you could toy with my new son and daughter!"
The twins looked at one another, "Actually we came in here to do that to you. But we couldn't find you."
"What have you done to them?" Tamaki demanded.
"I haven't seen them." Hikaru shrugged.
They all looked at one another, none of them remembering seeing any glimpse of Tamaki's 'kids'.
"Where are Haruhi and Midori?" Kaoru looked behind Tamaki, expecting to see the two coming out of the gloom.
Tamaki's mouth opened, then hung open as he realized he had left them behind in hi fervor for the Takahashis.
"You left Haruhi and Midori? Alone?" Hunny's eyes got big.
"Nonono, ahahaha. I um I didn't leave them alone! They have each other! It will be a wonderful chance for Midori, sweet Midori, to have an influence on Haruhi! Maybe they will buy dresses together! And play dress-up!"
"Where does he get this stuff?" Hikaru and Kaoru shook their heads.
They all started walking, taking a new direction none of them had gone in before. It felt like hours that they wandered around, running into monsters, running away from monsters, getting lost, never really finding their way again.
Hikaru sighed, "There is no way out,"
"Of this place." Kaoru sighed too.
"I'm tired." Hunny yawned.
Mori grunted agreement.
"I cannot…leave my children!" Tamaki weakly began walking again.
The others sighed heavily and started moving in the other direction, astonished to find themselves out of the maze and staring at Tsukiko and Kumiko who stood in front of them, arms crossed over their chests.
"Wha-?" The Hitachiin twins looked around.
"How did this happen?" Hunny's grasp on Bun-Bun was looser.
"You gave up. So you got out." Kumiko told him.
Tsukiko nodded, "But Tamaki still hasn't given up. It's getting dark."
Kyouya and Kenta joined the group.
Kenta had seen the clouds, "It looks as if it is going to rain as well."
"Go ahead. We'll get Tamaki." Kumiko said over her shoulder as she and Tsukiko took off back into the maze.
"Are you sure you'll be okay?"
"Yeah. We know our way around." Kumiko grinned at Kaoru and Hikaru.
The Hitachiins shrugged at one another and followed after the others who were headed for the house.
"My children!"
It didn't take long for the pair to find Tamaki. He came staggering towards them with his arms outstretched.
"It's okay now! Daddy's here!" He hugged them both.
They rolled their eyes, "It's getting dark. Let's go."
The rain was pouring when they got outside.
"Hurry!" Kumiko shouted above the storm, taking off.
Tamaki nodded, though she didn't see Tsukiko, following after her.
They ran quickly, wanting to get out of the rain.
I have this strange feeling that something bad's going to happen. Tsukiko looked around her at the brooding sky, seeing also the back of Tamaki's jacket which was getting wet.
A crack of lightning split the sky, striking a tree.
"Tamaki! Move!" Tsukiko dove forward, pushing the blonde out of the way.
Tamaki stumbled out of harm's way, turning back to see Tsukiko trapped.
"Tsukiko!" He ran back, trying to move the tree off of her but it was much to heavy. "Kumiko!" He shouted.
Kumiko turned back, her eyes widening as she saw her sister's situation.
"Kumiko, get help! Get the others!"
It's three minutes away…there's no way… Kumiko only nodded, taking off at breakneck speed for the house.
"Tsukiko…" Tamaki knelt down next to her, "My brave, brave son. Why did you do that?"
Tsukiko sighed painfully, "I'm not your son."
"Yes, yes you are, stop saying that!"
"No. I'm not. It is physically impossible for me to be your son."
"Yes you- …" Slowly the meaning of Tsukiko's words dawned on him. "…you're a girl?"
I can't believe he's such an idiot. Wait. Yes. Yes I can. "Yes. I'm a girl." Tsukiko coughed.
Tamaki stood watch over her helplessly as her coughing increased. It seemed an eternity before they heard people coming. Hikaru was the first to crash to a halt on the ground next to Tamaki, one hand on the tree.
"Tsuki-chan!" Hunny ran forward, the others close behind him.
The trunk of the tree hadn't fallen on her, but she was caught in the dense branches, just her face barely visible. Tamaki had cleared away a place for her to breath as best he could.
Together everyone was able to get the tree off of her enough that they could pull her out.
"Tsukiko? Tsukiko!" Kumiko turned her twin over, getting her face out of the mud.
Kyouya felt the girl's forehead. "She has a fever. Maybe more. She needs to get out of the rain."
Hikaru picked her up, Tamaki taking off his jacket and draping it over her.
They all rushed off again in a determined pack surrounding Hikaru, reaching the house, too concerned to be tired.
Kyouya immediately made some calls as soon as they were in the door and Tsukiko was rushed off to one of his family's hospitals.
Everyone left, to tired and worried to think about supper.
Midori headed to her room, collapsing as soon as she hit the bed. But somehow, Kumiko just couldn't bring herself to go to sleep.
Kumiko's POV
I couldn't sleep. I laid down for a while but I couldn't sleep.
I got up finally, going and staring outside at the balcony, the rain pouring and the thunder reverberating throughout the house.
I should have seen that she was behind. I should have noticed.
I went out into the hall, then into Tsukiko's room, sitting in the middle of her bed as if being closer to her things would mean I was closer to her right now.
Kyouya just rushed her off, didn't even think of asking me to come. I didn't think to ask.
And when I told them what happened, Hikaru took off so fast that we could barely keep up.
Flashback
I ran inside, glad to see the Host Club hadn't gone to far. They sat in the living room.
I was breathless and couldn't talk.
"Kumi-chan?" Hunny cocked his head, "Where is Tama-chan and Tsuki-chan?" He had a piece of cake in his hand, happily munching away.
"Tsukiko...lightning struck a tree…and she pushed Tamaki out of the way…and she's trapped…"
Immediately everyone stood, rushing for the door, but Hikaru was the fastest, down the path before we were out of the house.
End Flashback
My eyes began to close, tired from the running and the worrying. I fell asleep on her bed, dreaming of her.
