AN: Be warned, more meaningless chatter ahead.
Sorry that I've been absent so long dearies. My granddad passed away recently and it's been pretty hectic. Here are some replies and then we'll jump right back in! I just wanted to tell y'all that this is now my longest fic and I've officially broken my two chapter streak! Hooray!
RM Kox: I'm glad you've been enjoying it so far! I hope you like this next chapter.
Kaylee-sempai: Hey hey, thanks for coming back! I'm going to try to expand on Haruhi's character, and we'll hopefully see some sides of her that haven't shown before... as for your ideas, I love them all! I'll definitely work some of them in along the way, though I do have some plans for family drama.
Alice: My updates are super inconsistent, seeing as I'm packing for a move right now and also sick. I'll try to get up a chapter every two weeks, and then move it down to every week, but I can't promise anything at this point. Thank you for the review!
FanfikFreakazoid: I plan to! :) Thank you very much!
Kaito Mitsuki: Ask and ye shall receive! I'm still thinking about a pairing, but I won't hide it from you once I figure it out. I want to build up Ena and the story before I move on to relationships, but she'll end up with somebody. I'm a Hikaru fan myself, and I'm really excited to write for him, and Kyoya also.
Guest 1: Yes! I love to hear that! Thanks a bunch, I hope you continue to enjoy my silly little brain child.
Guest 2: Woohoo! I'm glad everybody is in character, I'm never quite sure if I'm getting them right because everybody interprets them differently so yay! I will, for sure :)
AnimeBestie: I've been considering that too! I'll have to keep churning it around but we should know who she'll end up with (if anyone) soon. The goal is for her and Haruhi to become close pals, so keep an eye out!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Host Club.
Two hours and many cups of tea with Haruhi later, Ena was once again alone in her room.
The pie the boys had gifted her with sat half eaten on her table and she sipped the last of a mug of chamomile, turning over Haruhi's story in her head. Ena had remained mostly quiet throughout the girl's tale, preferring to listen to the whole of it before making any comments. Even when Haruhi had finished, she had maintained the silence, wishing the girl goodnight and telling her that they could talk more in the morning. Now it was just her, legs and slipper clad feet dangling over the side of her recliner and she thought and thought and thought.
At the beginning of the story, Ena had been a little horrified by the Host Club's actions, the way they had made Haruhi join the club seemed nefarious. But as time went on, and as she thought back on their actions towards Haruhi that day, things started to make more sense. Though they had gone about it in a strange way, they all cared for the girl, and they were willing to do a lot to keep her close. Following her all the way to America was a prime example of that. The fact that Haruhi told her story without judgement towards the boys worked in their favor too, Ena knew that if they had done something to truly hurt her, Haruhi would show it. That was just the type of person she was.
However, the world Haruhi described seemed so distant to Ena. It was clear that Haruhi had become accustom to the strange sort of luxury that the Host Club had, but Ena had never experienced anything like it. Ena had been middle class all her life, even swinging towards lower a few rough points in time. Her two closest friends, Barb and Lily were all in a similar boat. Barb worked double shifts to support her two younger siblings. Lily's family owned a small, but strong, grocery store, making just enough to send the only child to the school of her choice. Though, the big swimming scholarship she earned had certainly helped.
Everyone Ena knew had worked for all they had, including herself. The Host Club had never really experienced that, with the exception of the work they did within the club. But even that was a bit frivolous. Nothing too heavy duty, no real labor. Though, from the events Haruhi described around Tamaki's struggle with his grandmother and Kyoya's with his father, it seemed that they had a whole different set of problems to deal with.
Her tea was gone, and Ena still sat in her chair, slowly dozing off as she thought. She'd talk to Haruhi in the morning, and repeat what she had said before.
"Nothing they've done would make me think badly of them." Ena mused. "They may have made some bad choices, but nothing too dire or lasting. Besides, Mori was really nice to thank me earlier, and it sounded like he was speaking on behalf of the whole club."
Upon realizing that she was alone and was talking to herself, Ena packed away the last of her pie and fell onto her bed with a sigh. It had been a long day, and from the looks of it, it was going to be a long summer.
BANG BANG BANG BANG!
"AHH!" Ena fell out of her bed with a start, having been woken up by the aggressive knocking on her door.
Rubbing her sure to be bruised legs, she checked her bedside clock.
Who the hell woke me up at seven on a Saturday?! Ena jumped up angrily, woken up by the shock of the time. With a determined march, she threw open her door, glaring daggers before she even knew who was there.
"What?" Ena asked icily.
Tamaki and the twins flinched away from her, hiding behind a tired looking Haruhi. Mori stood in the back, a sleepy Honey at his side. And propped up against wall appeared to be an unconscious Kyoya.
"Sorry Ena, I couldn't stop these idiots." Haruhi looked apologetic. Ena felt bad for the poor girl, probably still suffering from jet lag and the change in time zones.
"Ena, why are you so grumpy?" Tamaki asked in horror.
Ena composed herself a bit, straightening in her doorway. "It's is seven o'clock, on a Saturday. Don't you know that all Americans sleep in until at least ten on weekends?"
"Is that true?" Tamaki whispered to his girlfriend.
"Don't ask me, ask the American you dummy." Haruhi scolded.
"We just wanted you to make us some breakfast Ena-chan!" Honey swayed a bit on his feet, still pretty out of it.
Ena sighed, rubbing her forehead wearily. She should have known that his "innocent" inquiry about her cooking abilities earlier would have lead to this.
"Yeah, make us food!" Hikaru demanded, though one glare from the exhausted teen shut him up pretty well.
"Here is what's going to happen." Ena announced in a no nonsense voice. "You are going to drag Mr. Comatose over there back to his bed, as well as Honey. Haruhi and I are going to get to sleep for at least another two hours, and the rest of you are going to remain silent in that period of time. Then, at eleven o'clock, no earlier, you can all come over and I will make you brunch and coffee. Everyone clear on the plan?"
The conscious boys nodded, Haruhi starting to zone out a bit.
"Good. Now go." Ena commanded with a shoo motion.
The twins looped arms with Kyoya and dragged him down the hallway towards his room. Tamaki and Mori lead their charges back to their respective rooms as well. Ena paused a beat, waiting until the sounds of people getting in bed quieted and the hall was silent. With a sigh of relief, she trudged back into her room, collapsing once again on her bed, and setting an alarm for ten, so she could get up and ready for the crazy train.
Ena slept in a trance like state until Amos Lee's Sweet Pea started to play from her phone. Still feeling a bit out of it, Ena flipped on her coffee machine on the way to the shower. Relishing the hot water on her skin, she stayed in a bit longer than probably necessary, slipping into some sweatpants and a loose fitting tank top with the original Star Trek cast on it. Considering the fact that everyone had already seen her in her pajamas, Ena didn't feel the need to dress up. After towel drying her mane of hair, she pulled it back into a tight french braid and returned to the kitchen.
Taking into account how many people were going to be eating with her, Ena made a full twelve cups of coffee, planning to put that into her heavy duty termos and to start another batch. She also pulled out all the ingredients for pancakes, deciding against adding bananas, in case there were allergies she didn't know about. She wrote a quick note on her whiteboard as a reminder to ask later. Ena took out her nicer silverware and plates, setting the table before returning to the kitchen to make the meal.
Eleven o'clock rolled around just as she was making the first cakes, and soon enough there was a knock on her door. Expecting one of the livelier boys, Ena was surprised to see Kyoya at her door, staring at his smartphone angrily.
"They set an alarm that said you have breakfast and coffee." Was his brief explanation.
"Right." Ena responded, as if that make complete sense.
Kyoya took the head of her table, trying to figure out how to reset his alarm. Ena brought the termos to him, as well as milk and sugar, and left a mug for him to make his own coffee. An easy silence sat between them, as the man drank his (black) coffee and Ena made pancakes and a fruit salad simultaneously. The bacon was in the oven, as well as some sausage in a pan on the stove. Ena threw some of the soy patties Lily had left the last time she was over in a pan as well, remembering Karou's words from before. Though it was likely he had just been trying to irk his brother.
"Are you planning to call you grandmother today?" Kyoya asked a little while later, as Ena grabbed some orange juice from the fridge. He seem less volatile now that he had some caffeine in him.
"Yes, after brunch actually. You can stick around if you'd like, I can tell you a specific time then."
Kyoya nodded, chugging down another cup of coffee. Ena was glad that she had the foresight to make two batches, at the rate he was going she'd need three.
Tamaki and Haruhi were next to arrive, the later looking much better rested. Tamaki looked wary of approaching Ena, but when she placed a glass of OJ in front of him with a 'good morning' and a smile, he relaxed visably. Soon everyone was in her room, all talking and laughing together as Ena raced around her small kitchen, getting everything ready.
"Would you like some help, Ena?" Haruhi asked when she noticed the girl struggling to hold four things at once.
"That would be amazing." Ena nodded, handing off the syrup and butter dish and returning to the kitchen to grab the second pot of coffee.
Soon a platter was set out on the table, filled to the brim with pancakes. The fruit salad was set next to it in a glass bowl, and the meats were in the corners of the table. A small plate with soy patties was placed at Karou's elbow, and the termos was refilled with the fresh coffee. Ena stood over her meal proudly, taking in the group's excited faces.
"Alright, everybody, dig in!" That was all the encouragement they needed, and soon everyone's plates were stacked high with the cakes and fruit, syrup passed around as well as the bacon and sausage. Ena sat back in her chair, drinking a mug of sugary coffee languidly. She let her eyes close, just listening to the sounds made by the club, feeling very at home in their chaos.
"Ena-chan, are you still tired?" Honey asked her worriedly, tugging on her shirt a bit.
"Nah, just catching my breath. Brunch was a bigger production than I was expecting it to be."
"'Still tired'?" Kyoya questioned, taking a moment to look up from his phone.
"I see." It dawned on Ena that Kyoya hadn't woken up at all earlier in the day. "So you don't know that these yaboos woke me up at seven, demanding food."
Kyoya's expressions turned a bit darker. "I didn't until now."
"You probably also don't know that they dragged you down the hall in your sleep, fully intending to tote you around until you'd woken up."
"Is that so." Kyoya's glare turned to the rest of table, more specifically Tamaki. The blond had been sinking deeper into his chair throughout the exchange. "We'll have to discuss this, seeing as it's the second time this has happened."
Tamaki wilted even more at the venom in his friend's voice. Ena felt bad for him, almost.
"How could you?" He whispered to her.
"I'm sorry, I'm a bit out of it." She picked up a piece of bacon. "Maybe if I hadn't woken up so early..." Ena took a savage bite from it.
Tamaki flinched back.
"What blood type are you?" Kaoru piped up from across the table.
Ena rose an eyebrow. "AB, why do ask?"
Tamaki and the twins all turned pale. "No reason."
Ena turned to Haruhi with another confused look.
"Kyoya-senpai is type AB, as well as Honey-sempai. Neither of them enjoy waking up."
"Hmm. Bit silly to peg traits on blood types." The girl commented.
"We haven't been proven wrong yet." Tamaki muttered in reply.
"And, unfortunately, that means they believe they're validated." Kyoya rolled his eyes. Ena snorted.
"I get the feeling you've had this conversation before."
"Yeah." Haruhi sighed. "Many, many times."
"Well, don't worry too much." Ena laughed. "A bit more coffee and I'll be regular Ena, not grumpy morning Ena."
The boys with the more moronic tendencies looked relieved, and everyone returned to eating their fill of the nearly forgotten meal.
"Maybe we should have brunch every day!" Honey exclaimed suddenly.
"Hahaha no." Ena shook her head. "I'm not getting up everyday to make tons of food. Besides, my grocery funds won't be able to handle your appetites."
"Once a week?" Haruhi suggested.
"That could be better, but we could have it a different person's room every week."
"I can't cook." Everyone but Haruhi chorused. Haruhi shook her head dejectedly.
"I guess it's between you and me then Haruhi." Ena sighed into her coffee.
"Where am I going to get the food for this?" Haruhi grumbled to herself.
"Lucy's family owns a grocery store, and I do odd jobs there often enough that I get an employee's discount. We could use it whenever you need to go shopping."
"Really? I don't want to be a bother."
"Of course! It be no trouble." Ena smiled easily, finishing the last of her pancakes.
"Thank you." Haruhi smiled back.
"Haruhi! I'm so glad you're making girl friends that you can shop and cook with! Surely you're feminine side will shine brighter!" Tamaki was so overcome that he switched back to Japanese.
"That's kinda sexist you know." Ena commented drily.
"Whaaa...?" Tamaki gave her a gobsmacked look.
"You're implying that shopping and cooking are things only women do and , that by doing them, they'll make Haruhi more feminine. It's a bit sexist."
The room was silent. Tamaki just stared at Ena, his brow furrowed in thought. Suddenly he jumped from his chair.
"You're absolutely right!" Tamaki cried. "It is! How could I be so thoughtless! I'm trash." He fell into a corner in dispar.
"He's doing that thing again." Ena noted. "That wasn't really what I was expecting."
"What did you expect?" Kaoru asked curiously.
"I thought he might get angry." She admitted. "What's traditional and customary in Japan is different from what is here, where housework is more ambiguous."
"Tono isn't like that. He probably didn't even realize that he was perpetuating a stereotype, he was just being ridiculous and speaking before he thought." Hikaru shrugged.
Everyone stared at him in various stages of shock.
"Wow Hikaru." Haruhi spoke first."That was really wise."
Hikaru crossed his arms defensively. "What? Am I not allowed to have ideals?"
"No, it's just that, you're usually insulting people when you do choose to talk." Ena explained.
He narrowed his eyes. "I say what's on my mind."
"And that's fine!" Kaoru assured him. "You just have to know when to say what you're thinking and when to hold back."
"Hmm." Hikaru sipped his drink moodily, something he seemed fond of doing.
"Ena." Mori rumbled, giving her a pointed look.
"Oh right, I'll call her after brunch when I call my grandma." Ena informed him.
"Whaaaaa...?" Tamaki repeated, having rejoined humanity. Everyone else seemed to share the sentiment.
"I'm scheduling a tour of the university for Mori and Honey." The girl told them all patiently.
"Ahhh." Tamaki nodded, as though he understood, but turned to give Haruhi a confused look.
"Mori and Honey are going to school in a different building and need someone to show them where their classes are." She restated.
"Ahhhh." Tamaki seemed to fully understand.
With that, everyone returned to their food, gobbling up the last of it it record time. Honey and Mori were the first to leave, saying they had some things they needed to unpack. The twins followed and Tamaki and Haruhi left after helping with some dishes. Kyoya remained at the table the whole time, ignoring Tamaki's pointed looks and not-so-subtle requests to help. Soon it was just Ena scrubbing at the bacon pan and Kyoya looking something on his phone.
"Alright, I'm going to call my grandma about the van now." Ena announced, grabbing the landline from the wall.
Kyoya nodded in response, not really looking up from his work.
"Hello?"
"Bonjour Mémé! It's Ena!" Ena smiled down the line.
"Ena! Ma ours! How are you?" Mémé asked.
"Ça va bien, et toi?"
"Trés bien."
"Oh good! Mémé, I have a question for you." Ena glanced up at Kyoya, who had looked up during the conversation.
"Oh? I may have an answer."
"I have some transfer students staying here from Japan and they need some transportation while they're in town. I was hoping you'd let them rent the old delivery truck, it still runs right?"
"Oh yes, just fine!" Mémé confirmed. "I just stopped using it because I don't have anyone to deliver arrangements."
"Great! Could we come by and look at it tomorrow?" Ena asked.
"That would be fine! How about two o'clock?"
Ena mouthed 'two okay?' at Kyoya and got a nod in return. "Sounds good. I have to go, au revoir Mémé!"
"Au revoir petit ours! See you soon."
Ena ended the call with a grin, replacing the phone in the cradle and grabbing a pen to write the time on her whiteboard. Kyoya seemed to also be programming it into his phone and writing it in his book, which seemed like overkill to Ena.
"Your grandmother speaks French?" Kyoya asked suddenly while Ena wiped some pancake batter off her counters.
"She's from there, actually." Ena explained, taking a seat across from him. "She and my grandfather moved over when they got married, and started their flower shop here."
"Why are you the only one out here with her?" Kyoya was scribbling in his book and Ena suspected he was recording her life story.
"She's my grandma on my dad's side. My mom loves her to bits, but there's some tension there. My mom doesn't like that she sided with my dad during the split and she doesn't like that my mom moved us across the country." Ena traced the grain on the table.
"How do you feel about your parent's divorce?"
Ena looked up, giving him an uncomfortable look. "What are you, a psychiatrist?"
"Just trying to figure out your angle." Kyoya shrugged.
"Well, first of all, I don't have an angle." Ena leaned back in the chair. "Secondly, I don't mind too much. I was young, they were young. It's not their fault that they fell out of love with each other."
"You seem to handle it all very maturely." Kyoya commented.
"Yeah, I guess? The way I look at it is, if they hadn't separated, I wouldn't have gotten my stepdad and my little brother, so it's worth it. I'm not on the best terms with my dad, but, it's like, 'at least he's trying', you know?" Ena gestured vaguely.
"Yes, I suppose I do." Kyoya responded, equally vague.
"Soooo..." Ena drawled, sitting upright in her chair again. "What are you guys planning to do today?"
"We'll probably rest. We still have," Kyoya checked his watch, "about seven hours until jetlag wears off completely. By that time, it will be almost eight o'clock at night and there will be little we can do."
"You calculated?" Ena rose and eyebrow.
Kyoya grinned slowly, more teeth than smile. "I always calculate. Also, you still have to call your friend concerning Mori and Honey's tour of the university."
"Right!" Ena exclaimed, jumping out of her chair. "I'll do that now."
Kyoya nodded, checking one last thing in his book before standing and pushing in his hair. "I have some work to do, so I'll be heading back to my room now."
"Great!" Ena exclaimed, then wincing slightly. "I mean, not great that you're leaving, but, uh..."
"I understand." Kyoya waved placatingly.
"Great." Ena repeated, more calmly. "Um, thanks for the weird bonding moment or whatever that was. I get a lot of apologies about the whole thing and not a lot of opportunities to talk about it."
Kyoya smiled again, this time looking a little less like a shark and made his way out the door and to his room.
Ena shook her head, reaching for her phone once again. "These kids will be the death of me."
Ena made quick work of asking her friend about the tour. Megan, being the sweetheart she was, said yes on the condition that they all went out for dinner afterwards. She wanted to meet the others and spend some time with Ena, who she hadn't seen much since graduation. They arranged to meet up on Monday afternoon for the tour, and the rest of them would hang out in town before going to a restaurant.
Ena popped down the hall to tell Honey and Mori and managed to get out of staying with them to eat cake. Although, Honey talked his way into making her to promise to come back another time, and Ena was sure one of her afternoons was going to be spent listening to the small boy chatter and eating copious amounts of sugar.
The rest of the day was spent languidly, a far cry from yesterday's shenanigans. Most of the other students had already gone home. Even though the option of staying for the summer was available, it wasn't common for anyone to actual do it. Most of them wanted to be with their families for the three months off, or at least away from the school.
It was just beginning to hit Ena that it was unlikely she'd get a chance to go home this year. The Host Club was a handful and she probably wouldn't be able to get away from the school at any point that summer. The last time Ena had seen her family was Christmas break, and it was looking like that would be when she'd see them next.
Ena was lounging on her couch and reading a book when a knock came at her door.
"It's open!" She yelled, sitting up and dropping the book on her coffee table.
To her surprise, it wasn't one of the boys or Haruhi, but rather Lucy, looking a bit embarrassed.
"Hey Luce!" Ena stood, giving her friend a quick hug. "Whats up?"
"Um, I wanted to find a way to apologize to the exchange students for yesterday." Lucy pulled some slips out of her bag. "So I bought some tickets to the big Fourth of July carnival for you guys. I know it's not for a while, but getting your tickets early is always good. I hope that's okay..."
"No, Lucy that's awesome!" Ena exclaimed, smiling widely. "Here, let me roundup the guys and you can give the tickets to them yourself!"
"Oh, that's really not necessary!" Lucy tried to stop her but Ena was already down the hallway, knocking on doors.
"Lucy has something for you guys!" Ena guided everyone back into her room.
Everyone stood, looking expectantly at the little redhead. She blushed through her freckles and held out the eight tickets bashfully.
"This is a 'sorry' for yesterday. I swear I'm not usually that tactless, I just tend to say what's on my mind without thinking."
The group all turned to look at the King of Being Filterless himself, Tamaki, but he was oblivious.
"They're tickets to our Independence Day carnival. It's not for another month or so, but this way you don't have to worry about them being sold out." Lucy explained.
"I'll hold onto them." Kyoya stepped forward, taking them from the girl and putting them in his little black book. "So they don't get misplaced between now and then."
"Thank you very much Lucy-chan!" Honey launched himself at her. "I forgive you for yesterday!"
"Oh, good!" Lucy said, one part confused and two parts relieved. "I'm really glad."
"Will you be coming too?" Honey asked, blinking up at her.
"Um, I only bought enough for you guys..." Lucy started but froze when Honey began to pout, "...but I'm sure I could get one more!"
"Yay!" Honey cheered. "Didja hear that Takashi? Lucy-chan will go to the carnival with us!"
"Yeah." Mori nodded, prying the boy off Lucy.
"On behalf of the Host Club," Tamaki interjected grandly, "I accept your apology and thank you for your generous invitation!"
"Great?" Lucy looked like she wasn't sure if she meant it.
"Tamaki, you're scaring her." Haruhi rolled her eyes at her boyfriend.
"No, it's fine?" Lucy still sounded unsure.
The twins snorted, poking Tamaki's sides and began teasing him in Japanese. Lucy looked even more lost. Ena pitied the poor girl, and was thankful that her friend didn't have to be a major part of the madness that was the Host Club.
"Don't you have a swim practice today Luce?" Ena asked, creating a means of escape for her friend.
"Oh right! I do." Lucy looked relieved.
"Isn't the season over?" Kyoya asked with a raised brow.
"It is, but I have to keep in shape over the summer and I swim with a non sanctioned team in July." Lucy explained, gathering up her bag and heading towards the door. "It was nice seeing you all again!"
"Bye Lucy!" The group chorused at the girl.
"I like her!" Honey noted thoughtfully.
"Yeah, she's not so bad." Hikaru allowed feinting disinterest.
Everyone stared at him for the second time that day, but this time he blushed and grumbled to himself before leaving for his room.
"What was that?" Tamaki asked bewilderedly.
"Improvement." Kaoru smiled faintly, before following and waving at the group. "See you guys later!"
"What was that?" Tamaki repeated, more confused than before.
"I don't think it's for us to know." Haruhi told him gently, dragging him back to his room.
The remaining four stood a beat before Ena commented, "Well that ended on a strangely profound note."
"It always seems to." Mori added and the last boys left.
"Those dramatic rich kids." Ena wrinkled her nose after them, dropping onto her couch and shaking her head.
AN: I'm writing ahead a bit so that we don't get behind again hopefully, and should be posting every week from now on!
Here's a translation of Mémé and Ena's converstation:
"Ena! My bear! How are you?"
"I'm good. And you?"
"Very good!"
...
"Goodbye little bear! See you soon."
Also, Mémé is a name sometimes used by French children for their grandma. Ena is the type to keep calling her Mémé even when she's older.
For your incentive to review, consider this! Ena likes to set ringtones she finds applicable to the people in her life, like Bohemian Rhapsody for her mother (MAMA OOOO) and the Batman theme for her stepdad (Richard? Dick Grayson? Get it?). I have a few others planned out, but what ringtone do you think Ena would set for Haruhi? Any kind of music, our leading lady really isn't picky with genre.