Disclaimer: Not mine.
AN: Last chapter. It was fun writing, and maybe one day I'll get around to write something long and evil (I do love horror stories). But for now, please enjoy the chapter and your feedback was awesome!
Miscalculation
VII
When Yoshio Ootori leaves for an appointment in Kuala Lumpur early on Sunday morning, he stops to inform Akito that they're expecting the family lawyer this afternoon, and for him to "have an eye on Kyouya" afterwards.
Akito is still mulling on how to achieve that when he sits down for lunch with Tamaki and Kyouya.
The Suou heir is talking a mile a minute, eyes sparkling and his wild gestures threatening to throw over his glass every other moment. Kyouya gives calm replies from time to time, and just nods at others. His posture is relaxed, and Aktio has to admit if he didn't know better, he would not have guessed something had occurred.
The crutch, he notices, has disappeared as well. A faint shadow of a bruise remains on his temple, but it is rendered more or less invisible under Kyouya's hair.
"Well, if he had anymore time I'd suggest we start planning the outing right now. You know how difficult it is to secure landing permission with the busier airports," says Tamaki, gazing wistfully into the air.
A host club outing, if Akito was following correctly. Possibly to Bali or Koh Samui - he didn't quite catch that part. But then he is sitting upright and setting his own glass down.
"I doubt you'd be imposing if you were to stay another night, Suou-kun," says Akito with a smile.
Kyouya casts him a thinly veiled glare, while Tamaki lights up like a supernova.
"Can I? Really?" his grin is infectious, so Akito mirrors it as he nods and says "Naturally."
Behind the subtle glare Kyouya directs at him Akito senses a question. Instead of a reply he merely raises an eyebrow - Kyouya probably reads this as a reminder to retain good relations to the Suou family, but that is not what Akito actually cares about.
He is very well aware that Kyouya will not open up to him - not even about what he is going to tell their lawyer later tonight. However Tamaki is famous for his ability to tear right through all of Kyouya's defenses. So if somebody can be there for his baby brother tonight, Tamaki is their best option.
The lawyer - a woman in her fifties - arrives on time and only exchanges the barest of pleasantries, before withdrawing into one of the ground floor studies with Kyouya. Akito is left to return to his textbooks, while Tamaki takes Antoinette for a walk.
Ichinose - the lawyer - calmly reads to Kyouya what they plan to charge Shirokawa with; and somewhere in the back of his mind Kyouya is surprised how dramatic it sounds. She gazes at him over the top of her papers, quiet and intent.
"While we have the facts and the medical evaluation -" she says, and Kyouya almost flinches (who gave her access to his files? He understands how it would have been necessary, but he can't remember having asked for consent), "We need a statement from you. Just tell me what occurred in your own words, that will suffice."
Kyouya nods - and pushes that sentiment of betrayal forcefully away. Ichinose sets a small recorder on the table.
"Shirokawa transferred to Ouran earlier this year. We have been acquaintaned before, which is why I believe he initially sought me out," and then Shirokawa had attempted to become his friend, but, if he was honest to himself, Kyouya had never considered him such.
"Last week he asked me to meet up with him down in the cellar," says Kyouya. Ichinose shows no outward reaction, but the set-up sounds probably suspicious. More suspicious than it actually is, when one is familiar with Ouran and knows the cellar is not really dark or scary.
At that time he had still expected an embarrassing confession. "While waiting there, I was knocked out, and when I came to Shirokawa and I were alone in a room."
He swallows. The room had been bare, but that hadn't mattered then, not when the restrains on his wrists had been chafing and his head had hurt.
"Shirokawa ... confessed, however his wording was rather disturbing. I did suspect some underlying psychological condition," Kyouya stops himself here. This is irrelevant. She did ask what occurred, not what he was thinking at that time.
And he hadn't really thought about psychological conditions - he had just thought Shirokawa had gone and snapped, and how to get out alive.
"I did attempt to escape, however this was futile and led to Shirokawa knocking me out again. In the meantime I believe my ..." (he can't use the word acquaintances. Not for them, even though the word friends still makes his toenails curl), "... friends noticed my absence and went looking. It was also them who eventually found me."
The rest is history, thinks Kyouya and makes an effort to unclench his hands.
For some reason there is cold sweat making his hair stick to the back of his neck. He refrains from tugging at his color, even though Ichinose seems engrossed in scrolling through her notes.
"Very well, thank you," she says after a moment and turns the recorder off, "That should suffice. Please look through the official statement - if you agree, sign on the last page, if not, tell me what you would like to change."
Kyouya nods, and manages to keep his hands from shaking as he reaches out to take the papers.
Despite Kyouya's claims of being alright, Tamaki wakes up to the sound of whimpers in the middle of the night. He hesitates for a second, listens a moment longer - Kyouya will murder him for waking him from a normal dream - but this is definitely a nightmare.
"No," whispers Kyouya, tossing his head from one side to the other, "No."
He is asleep, tangled in his blankets, and Tamaki hates the pained frown on his face. Kyouya would never allow such an expression if he was awake - and while Tamaki may wish for him to show more emotion, he wants those to be happy ones.
"Kyouya," he says, sotto voce.
Instead of coming awake Kyouya's frown deepens, and when Tamaki calls again, he attempts to lift a hand - but tangled in his blankets as he is, he can't move. For the first time Tamaki sees panic on his friend's features, and he reaches out.
He knows touching Kyouya in this situation in not a good idea, but he's not going to let him linger in this nightmare any longer.
The moment he gives Kyouya's shoulder - very bony under the thin fabric of his pajamas - a shake, the others boy's eyes fly open. They remain wide, terrified and open - then Kyouya blinks and his features settle.
"Tamaki?" he asks, swallowing what might have been scream.
"Yes," replies Tamaki lightly, because he isn't quite certain what tone to take, "Do you want your glasses?"
"No," says Kyouya after a minuite small pause, "That's alright."
His body relaxes, but Tamaki sees a fine tremor in the hand Kyouya uses to comb a few strands of hair out of his too-pale face. He doesn't move, remaining perched on Kyouya's bedside.
None of them speaks. Tamaki knows asking Kyouya to talk about his nightmare is useless - however he is unwilling to return to his own bed just like this. Kyouya meanwhile focuses on steadying his breathing, and refocusing himself on reality - on being in his own bed, and not back in some distorted version of the cellar with a Shirokawa that looks more like a monster than a human being looming over him.
Nobody had come in that dream. He had been waiting, screaming - but nobody had shown up while that Shirokawa-monster had taken him apart, piece for piece.
He shudders, and his muscles reverberate with pain from being tense for too long.
"Would you like a massage?" asks Tamaki, sounding almost hesitant.
Whatever part of Kyouya doesn't really like people touching him is overruled fast. His back aches, he wants to go back to sleep (a good sleep) and this is Tamaki. He rolls on his stomach in reply.
Tamaki smiles into the dark room. "Very well," he says, "Just tell me if it gets uncomfortable."
And then he sets to work.
The Host Club resumes business on Monday afternoon. Customer inquiries are waved away in the most interesting manner possible. Haruhi hears Kaoru tell two girls from year one that Honey had a dentist appointment that went wrong, while Hikaru spins a mystery tale about unfortunate omens and predictions of bad luck from the black magic club. Honey backs this unintentionally by mentioning something had gone wrong with preparations, while Tamaki waxes poetic about time spent deepening the family bonds. Mori says nothing and Haruhi says she doesn't really know. Kyouya mentions scheduling conflicts, and Kuze (when passing) swears its because Kyouya fell down a staircase.
By lunch the school is buzzing with rumors, ranging from magical interference to robbery. It does bring them many concerned customers, and Haruhi realizes with interest that nobody is too interested in what actually happened. Or at least, nobody even suspects what occurred.
Kyouya, too, doesn't draw any attention. The crutch is gone, as are all bandages, and if bruises remain they have been carefully hidden away. Haruhi caught him limping a bit earlier, before the club opened, but while they're hosting he is moving as smoothly as ever.
He even remains on his feet after they have sent their last customer on their way, going through a checklist. Until Kaoru walks up to him.
"Give that to me and sit down, senpai," he says, "I'll oversee the cleanup."
Kyouya gazes at him over the top of his glasses for a moment, before handing everything over. "Enjoy," he says, and then Tamaki drags hims away, but not before giving Kaoru a thumb-up.
Haruhi feels like smiling then. They may not be family, but it is nice to see that there is honest connection between them all. This is not just about future contacts, or business relations ...
She feels a lot less like smiling when she comes home long after dinner. Kaoru had drafter her and Hikaru in (they also needed to prepare in case they intended to keep the club running) - and hast vastly underestimated how long clean-up would take.
Kyouya resumes his normal working schedule after this, with the result that he usually collapses in his bed from exhaustion sometime and sleeps like the dead. Even on the day of the dread psychologist appointment, he feels more exhausted than nervous.
Telling the tale a second time is easier. He doesn't lose himself in sketching his own thoughts, even though the psychologists more or less asks him to. His pulse remains calm most of the time - there is an uncomfortable spike when the man asks about what-ifs and nightmares - in the end Kyouya resumes to answer honestly.
"Those will probably never go away completely," says the man eventually, "But for most people they become less frequent and intense after a while. However, at other times they cause effects that may very well affect a person's work and social life. There are medications that can be used in those cases..."
He trails off and eyes Kyouya carefully.
"I don't think that is necessary," says Kyouya with a polite smile.
"Well, feel free to inquire should they be," replies the man, "Other than that, I would recommend talking to a person of choice sooner or later."
Kyouya nods. He doesn't think he will talk about those moments down in the cellar or his nightmares anytime soon. Not to Akito, Fuyumi of father - and neither to Tamaki. But he has to admit he didn't mind Tamaki's company that Sunday night.
Maybe that will suffice.
Thursday sees Hunny take away Kyouya's tablet and hand it to Kaoru, saying "You need practice."
Kaoru, Hikaru and Haruhi know better than to protest. Kyouya raises an eyebrow, but Hunny waves him over to a testable, where two plates (cake and sandwich) are waiting. Mori already sits in one armchair like a silent guardian statue.
Hunny smiles sweetly and Kyouya can't really do anything but sit down.
"Eat," says Hunny, as Kyouya fails to move, "Or do you want to hold Usa-chan?"
Kyouya pushes his glasses up, and picks up the sandwich without a further word. When he is chewing, Hunny set his dessert fork down.
"You know, if you want to, you can join Mori and me at the dojo. We practice privately four times a week," says Hunny, "It would be fun if you came along. We could invite the rest of the club, too."
Haruhi and the twins could do with some self-defense lessons. Tamaki too, unless he has a chance to employ his legendary kick.
"Let's think about it," replies Kyouya, and takes another bite of the sandwich. He isn't that hungry, but Hunny is not far from turning dead serious - a situation he would rather avoid. (And Akito has started nagging him about his eating habits, too. Which is annoying, because Kyouya knows he has lost weight, but then he always does when he gets very stressed. He'd rather wait for his nerves to calm before forcing food down his throat.)
"Great," says Hunny cheerfully, "We'll practice and then we'll have cake."
Yoshio Ootori happens to come home for a few hours on Saturday night the following weekend. He is fairly surprised to hear laughter echo down one of the long corridors - and heads down to investigate.
What he finds is a curious convention of staff members (their chef and two kitchen aids, two of the drivers, a gardener and Kyouya's personal bodyguards), an unfamiliar, slightly over-enthusiastic dog, Kyouya and Tamaki joined in a half-circle around a far-too small table. On the other side Tamaki was demonstrating something (it may have been cooking, a ninja's assassination move or a surgical maneuver), and it had the vast majority of onlookers in stitches (it was not clear if that had been his intention).
And while Kyouya was not laughing out loud, Yoshio found the smile (smirk?) on his youngest son's lips endearing.
He was under no delusions that Kyouya wouldn't forever live with the memory of what Shirokawa had attempted. But maybe, maybe...
Just maybe things would turn out better than he dared to hope.
Fin
Thank you all for reading so far. I hope you enjoyed it, and while I could go on, I believe this is a nice point to have it all end. (in other words: I did to the character what I set out to. ) :)