Don't own Ouran but I own this fic. (Sorry, no witty quote.)

Fuck. This was the worst plan they could ever have gone through with. Being stuck behind a clerical desk, shot at from guns that outranked their own, and being outnumbered was not good. In fact, there was probably a high chance they would die, which would be perfect. Just perfect. What's the point of coming to save someone if you all die?

"Kaoru!" Haruhi screamed from her position behind the desk. All the while her hand rummaged through the messy desk drawers, but it was difficult to get a good look.

Every time she lift her head a bullet would zip past to nearly take off her ear, and having to duck to safety so often was limiting her chance of seeing much of anything. Plus, she could barely hear anything over the pops and bangs of guns being fired off, along with the occasional scream or crash of glass hitting the marble floor. It was always obvious when Kaoru hit one of their enemies though, his voice would come closer to her as he cleared a path. That progress had slowed to a turtle's speed. His voice emanated from the same distance away, and even seemed to be moving further back.

"Kaoru!" she called. Her gun was raised into a ready position, and she sidestepped in her crouch behind her desk 'shield.' Once she got to the edge she pivot to face the armored men. Hard, trained eyes marked her target and shot to kill. In the head, no possibility to survive, especially with such a weak helmet. It had cracked so easily from the shot, unlike when they'd tried their legs, arms, or torso. Even their backs were heavily wrapped to be bulletproof. How Kaoru was managing mystified her.

Haruhi's jolted. A confident smile graced her face. Helmets. "Kaoru, shoot the head only! That's the only equipment they failed to re-enforce!"

Still no response.

But then the multiple thuds of bodies crumpling to the ground filled the room. A joyful whoop had her smile growing into a stupid grin. "Good call, Haruhi!" Another thud resound along with a cry of pain. "It's clear enough. Go for the key!"

The brunette popped up. Now that she could get a good look without the chance of death her search finished in mere seconds. Haruhi held up the key for Kaoru to see. He nodded with a small thumbs up, and after killing the last soldier, sped over to her.

Haruhi pointed to a door behind them. "The security cameras are in that one. I remember the guard that ratted my position out was standing in this doorway." She slid the key through the card reader and pulled the door open. Just as she predicted televisions with live footage of the entire prison lined the walls. She split off to go to the right wall while Kaoru took the left to scan each screen. Haruhi squint, but failed to see any prisoner that resembled the one they were searching for.

"He's in this section, down the hall in Heavy Surveillance." When Haruhi looked over she saw Kaoru had turned from the TV's to face her, but he gazed at the floor in a far off daze. Kaoru scratched his head, and then blinked. "That's why they were wondering how I'd escaped...again. Hikaru must have done something to get him into more trouble," he shook his head. A soft smile graced his face, and he stared at the image of his imprisoned brother fondly. "See, I knew you still had it in you Hikaru." Kaoru straightened with a new resolve. "Okay, let's get going Haruhi!"

They marched off with confidence. The halls were empty, and would have been quiet as well if it weren't for the alarm that still warned of a 'fire.' It took only a simple walk down to the end of a hallway for them to reach Hikaru's cell. Haruhi whipped her key out and opened the door to reveal a control panel positioned in front of a glass wall. Behind the glass Hikaru paced, biting his nails and kicking at nothing as he moved from wall to wall.

"They gave him a new shirt," Kaoru noted.

Haruhi rolled her eyes. They come to save his brother and that's the first thing he notices? But it seemed as though excitement replaced Kaoru's apparel fascination. He'd all but skipped over to the glass to knock rapidly. "Hikaru!" Kaoru laughed gleefully. "Are you training for some kind of triathlon? Stop exercising and get over here!"

In an instant Hikaru's hands slammed against the window, and his face came close enough to nearly press against the glass. "Kaoru! You're here! It doesn't matter how, you can tell me later," he gushed. "I saw what they did to lock the door, if we switch the lever in the opposite direction it should unlock it."

Kaoru and Haruhi both nodded and moved closer to the blinking lights on the mechanical board. "Put the key in that slot, and then press down that blue button," Hikaru pointed eagerly. He bounced, a wide smile on his face. "Then all you have to do is push down the second lever."

Both teenagers looked down, searching for the listed items Hikaru had given them. Haruhi made a noise of accomplishment, and then forced her stolen key into it's proper location. Kaoru however was still having trouble finding the blue button. His eyes scanned over the board, squinting in concentration.

"I don't see it." He leaned down further. Sighing, he met the irritated eyes of his twin. "Are you sure that's what we're looking for?"

"Kaoru, I know you're retarded, but you're not color blind too!"

Kaoru froze and slowly, after recovering from his initial shock, straightened into a stiff wide-eyed stance. His eyes filled up with water, but they never overflowed. Instead, they narrowed into a hardened gaze that locked onto his brother with the intent to pierce through him. "Hikaru, you know I hate that word."

"What? You get to hurt me but I can't hurt you back?" Hikaru pressed his palms to the glass that separated them. His voice deepened to a harsh growl. "That's a little unfair. If you pull a low blow then so will I."

The younger of the two boys stood still, and then went back to his search. It took him less than a minute to find the button this time. Kaoru's hand came crashing down on it, and then he drove the switch to slam into reverse. The door opened with a soft click.

"Kaoru..." Haruhi hesitated in following him out of the room and to the hall. His whole demeanor had changed to become uninviting, and the sudden silence made her shiver with unease. It worsened when Hikaru finally caught up with them. Kaoru's shoulders rose as his muscles grew taut. "Kaoru, are you okay?"

"No, I'm not," he ground out, but she noticed a slight shake in his voice, one that Hikaru seemed to catch on to. The older brother frowned briefly and then switched back to his tall, confident strut.

"You're going to cry now?" Hikaru taunted. "Geez, and you joke about me pissing myself, you're a fucking crybaby." Kaoru took in a sharp intake of breath.

"Hikaru, stop."

"Don't defend him, Haruhi. He's been giving me shit all week. It's time for me to have my own fun."

Except he looked far from amused, there was no sign of a smile on his face. His body mirrored Kaoru's in rigidity but unlike Kaoru, Hikaru fidgeted with every stray hair or strand on his clothing while he walked. He'd already pulled at his pants three times, in the same spot despite there being nothing significant on them to tug at.

"Kaoru, I think we came in from this way." Haruhi pointed, and his eyes sluggishly followed her finger. This couldn't be the Kaoru she'd come to know in the past few months. Could he have really forgotten everything they'd done to get inside that fast? The gun fight may have tired him out, but he'd never become this spacey.

"Oh, yeah you're right." She expected Hikaru to comment at his brother's sudden forgetfulness, but his mouth seemed to have been sewn shut. "I remember now. Sorry, Haruhi. I'll help you a little bit more from now on." He drummed on the top of her head lightly with a smile and passed by to return to his position as leader. "It's always good to have someone with a photographic memory on the team. Thanks."

For the rest of their walk Kaoru and Hikaru remained tense and silent. Kaoru's lip trembled. Occasionally, he would clench his watery eyes shut and suck in a deep breath. Hikaru's face had no emotion. His lips were set in a straight line, and he concentrated only on what was ahead of him. It was as if they were trying to pretend the other never existed.

The moment they got to the door they'd come in from, Kaoru worked on unlocking it. Apparently the use of a card reader for this particular door was forgotten. Although they passed by a few more like the one blocking them.

The tools fumbled around in Kaoru's clumsy hands. He couldn't even control himself enough to position them properly. They danced around the keyhole, stabbing at air until they clattered to the floor. He stood and dropped his arms to his side. In a monotone voice he apologized. "Sorry, I guess I'm too stupid to do this."

"You're being ridiculous. It's not like you haven't taken an insult before, Kaoru. This is a bit excessive." Haruhi's words were ignored.

"It's okay if you agree, Hikaru." Kaoru smiled at him, but it was bittersweet. "We're not in middle school anymore, you don't have to pretend. Besides, it's not like mom and dad are here to stop you, so you don't have to worry about getting in trouble."

Hikaru's only response was to lower to retrieve the fallen items, and then slowly lift himself to work on the lock. His concentration never left the lock or the tools in his hand, he didn't even attempt to acknowledge his twin.

"What is this really about?" Haruhi lay a hand on Kaoru's back. Finally, she was beginning to catch on. The tense atmosphere, the references...Hikaru must have hit a nerve. She bent her head down and let her eyes glaze over in thought. Retarded, Hikaru had said that hadn't he? It had to be one of her least favorite words on a list amongst others equally as disgusting and degrading. It's true meaning of slowing down no longer seemed to be considered valid, instead it meant someone who was stupid or mentally challenged. Both boys however looked and acted very healthy. Then why...?

"Tell me what you really think, Hikaru." Kaoru's breathing grew ragged. He tried to take deep steadying breaths, but it failed to calm him. One by one tears began to slide down his cheeks. He tried the breathing technique again, only to exhale a near silent sob instead. Beside him, Hikaru popped open the lock and pushed open the door to lead them inside a storage room. "I guess you're mute now. We're a perfect defective pair. They used to call mute's dumb too didn't they?"

There. Those words caused Haruhi to backtrack through her thoughts. Looks meant nothing, and she'd come to find that her new friends were close to professionals when it came to acting. After believing their lies about not hiding or going through her belongings one too many times, she'd come to know their acting skills very well. "Hikaru, what is he talking about? Is something wrong?"

"You've already been kind enough to announce part of it, Hikaru. Why don't you give her the other half too!" Kaoru spat.

"It's none of her business," he whispered. His hand came to rest on Kaoru's arm, only for a moment. Kaoru grabbed a hold of both of his brother's shoulders and shoved him to stumble back into a shelf.

"Oh, now you decide to keep your mouth shut," Kaoru growled.

The angered boy stormed over to a corner of crates and other sturdy looking odds and ends to kick them, rather than calmly sliding them, over to hit the wall beneath their escape window. Hikaru moved over to help stack the boxes into a sort of stair type formation, only to be forced backwards once more. This time Hikaru stumbled to fall over a box. Gravity wasn't kind to the eldest twin. He landed onto his back hard, and hit his head on a shelf on the way down.

"Fuck! Kaoru, what the hell?" Hikaru twist in pain on the floor. His eyes were sewn shut, and his hands cradled the back of his head tenderly as if he could nurse the pain away. "That fucking hurt!"

"Sorry, did you hit your head?" Kaoru sneered over at him. "Good, maybe something got knocked around in there. Let's hope it awakens Dad's genes and fucks up your brain. It would suck not being able to be good at math anymore wouldn't it? Isn't that your favorite subject?"

"Now you're going too far, Kaoru," Haruhi piped.

"I'm going up, follow behind me, Haruhi." That was the only answer she was given. After that he disappeared up the stacked boxes and out of the window. Heaving out a long sigh, she helped Hikaru up and followed after Kaoru just as told. Both she and Hikaru landed to fall onto the muddied ground, and then had to run after Kaoru's now fading back. He'd already gotten halfway to the wall they'd crawled along when they first arrived.

Hikaru was quick to leave Haruhi behind as well so he could run up to his twin. "I'm sorry, I went too far." Kaoru's steps only quickened. Haruhi had to jog to keep up with the new pace her two friends were setting. "Kaoru, please don't run away from me. I really am sorry. I shouldn't have said it. It was just the first thing that came to mind."

"So that makes it okay?" Kaoru asked. When he turned to Hikaru he looked miserable, just as bad as when he'd first heard Hikaru had been captured. Kaoru had cried back then too, but now felt so much different from the sorrow he'd displayed. He growled lowly, "You know I could have said so much worse, Hikaru. This retard at least knows not to go after someone's weakest point." He balled his fingers into tight fists. "And I was only pulling those jabs to make you fight for yourself! I didn't want you to get killed. I won't be able to save you every time you get in trouble!"

All the tension in his body dissipated, and Kaoru stood in a limp stance. His shoulders drooped, and his arms were like dead weight at his sides. "I don't think I even care anymore, Hikaru..."

Hikaru's face had taken on a white pallor during Kaoru's confession. When he could only gawk at his twin rather than give a proper response, Kaoru shook his head. "I'm sorry what I did upset you. I should have used a different method, I know that now." The youngest twin closed his eyes shut tightly as if in pain. "Please stay away from me, Hikaru. I don't want to talk to you, I don't want to see you, I don't want you to leave again, but I don't want you anywhere near me either."

This time Hikaru's eyes filled with water. "You're kidding," he choked.

Kaoru lifted his head to stare past his twin and at the brunette behind him. "Let's go, Haruhi." She stood her ground. "Haruhi, please I'm still not okay. I just want to go home," he pleaded. His voice trembled with his pent up emotions.

Haruhi sighed and let her head droop. Silently, she shuffled over, dragging Hikaru by the hand on her way past so he could uproot from the soil beneath him.

When they finally arrived in their safe haven, Kaoru rushed past Tamaki and Kyouya to slam the door of their shared bedroom shut. Next, came heavy shuffling and dropping of items, followed by the loud screech of metal being dragged across the floor. It came to bump against the door, causing it to shutter in its frame.

"If he moved my bed he'd better put it exactly where it was when he's done," Kyouya mumbled offhandedly. He licked his finger, and then turned the page to his novel, not even bothering to glance up. Not like he needed to, Kaoru's loud actions screamed that something wasn't right.

"People are typically offended by that word, Hikaru. I'm not surprised that he's upset." She followed behind the boy to stand outside the barricaded bedroom. Inside she could hear muffled noises, but she couldn't quite make out what they were. Both jumped back when the door shuttered violently from the force of something heavy colliding with it. "But I've never known anyone to get this upset." Her eyes caught the door handle. "That lock has never worked, maybe you can try to force the bed back when you push the door open."

Hikaru immediately jumped into action. He turned the handle and leaned his entire body weight against it to do as he was told. The bed blocking his way inside budged slightly, allowing them to get just enough time to glimpse in and watch Kaoru speed across the room. He slid back, losing the battle, when another bed scratched at the floor to be added as additional support. Now the door barely opened enough for them to peek inside.

Screaming, Hikaru pound both fists against the wooden door. "Kaoru, let me in! I'm sorry! Just let me in so I can talk to you! Please don't shut me out. I don't think I can handle that!"

A strangled, watery voice answered back. "Leave me alone! I told you I don't want to talk to you!"

"What did you say to him, Hikaru?" Tamaki asked, rushing over. He skid to stop, but not before nearly tackling Haruhi from his lack of depth perception and ability to control himself.

"I called him stupid," Hikaru ground out through clenched teeth.

"That's NOT what you said, Hikaru!" Kaoru's muffled voice rang out through the door. Another object was thrown, this time to rattle the wall nearest to them. "If you had just called me stupid I wouldn't be this-" The youngest twin's voice cracked, and a flurry of objects rained against the wall opposite them. Neither door nor wall got a break from the earthquake-like scenario Kaoru was forcing them to withstand.

At the top of his lungs, Kaoru roared, "Go away and leave the retard to rot alone!"

With a sigh, Kyouya pushed past the stunned group to knock twice on the barricaded door. "Kaoru, you're being over-dramatic. Let me in."

The creaking of a bed could be heard and then Kaoru's voice float out to them much clearer than before. "Kyouya?"

"Yes." He leaned casually against the door, and flipped through the pages of his book before snapping it shut. "Stop acting like a child. Open it."

Kaoru's timid voice came once again. "You know where the other passage is. Come through there."

Kyouya smirked at his rejected friends and sauntered away, leaving Hikaru to shout in confusion. "What other passage!"

The ending of this was fun to write. Kaoru and Hikaru have hit their peak. All of this tension is fun~ Plus I really like playing with the idea of giving Kaoru a disorder that he was born with. I dare you, guess what it is. I'm curious.

Also, I don't agree with the word 'retard' used as a derogatory term, and please don't be offended by it's use in this chapter and probably the next as well.

As always, drop me a line via PM or review~ It's always fun to talk to you guys!