So... here's the next chapter of A Love For All Seasons and things get a little more dramatic, er... yeah.

In the basis of this certain chapter, first of all, Tamaki tries to flirt with Kazumi like he does with... well... every other girl, and well... fails miserably. In addition, Kazumi gets attacked in the middle of the night by some strange men. Will she make it out alive?

PLEASE R&R! (I haven't got a review for a while... so PLLLLEEEASSSEEE!)

Disclaimer: Ouran High School Host Club (c) Bisco Hatori
Claimer: Everything else (c) me


Chapter Eight: Attacked!

The trio of third-year females walked through the double doors of Music Room 3, rose petals came outta nowhere and fluttered all around them. The host club boys were dressed up like Eskimos, and the place seemed to be covered in what looked like snow.

Oh dear… Kazumi thought, this must be Tamaki's idea. Kyoya's not stupid enough to go with this.

"Welcome ladies," Tamaki greeted, lowering his fur-rimmed hood, "Are you lost, my little kittens? Or have you come to pay a visit to our beloved host club?"

"We've come to visit," Akane stammered, blushing furiously as he approached them. At the same time, Hikaru and Kaoru led away Fumiko.

Kazumi quietly sighed as he took her hand, cradling it gently in his and began in a loving tone, "Oh, my beloved princess, though my body may be stone from the bitter cold, even in this Eskimo outfit, my heart can still be warmed only by the heat of your burning love."

She cleared her throat before answering in a completely fake yet believably loving tone, "My beloved Tamaki, take me into your arms and keep me warm from the bitter and lonely cold. Only the love that you pass into me can protect me."

"Really, my princess?" he asked, inching closer to her, eyes sparkling with happiness.

"No," she answered flatly, her expression going cold, and immediately Tamaki dropped to his corner, sulking.

Haruhi was surprised at how cold the third-year was being to him, and in truth, kinda guessed that was coming to him.

"Kazumi!" Akane scolded, hitting her lightly on the head, "Don't be so mean to Tamaki!"

"Ow," she moaned, rubbing her head, "That hurt. It's not my fault that Tamaki can be such an idiot sometimes. In any case, Tamaki, I do believe you have an appointment with Akane, correct? I'm sure she enjoys your antics more than I do."

Without delay, Tamaki instantly recovered and held Akane's hand. "Oh, so this fair lady enjoys my presence here? Why hello there, Princess," he greeted, kissing her hand romantically, "I am the exceptionally brilliant and talented Tamaki Suoh."

Honey grabbed Kazumi's arm and yanked her towards the rest of the group. "Come on, Kazu-chan! Do you wanna have some cake with me and Takashi?"

"Sure," she answered.

"I'm surprised that you still aren't swayed by Tamaki's acting," Kyoya commented as he continued writing in his little black book, "Even after a year you still give him the same reaction after acting a little yourself."

"D-Does that happen a lot, Kyoya-senpai?" Haruhi guessed, still a little taken aback.

The black-haired second-year sighed, "I'm afraid so, and Kazumi-senpai leads him on as a joke. Tamaki doesn't mind too much, however, I guess today is different."

Kazumi sighed, scratching the back of her head. "Well… if Tamaki thinks that he can just flirt with me that easily, he's wrong," she explained bluntly.

"Even after a year of being asleep, you still haven't lost your edge," the shadow king noted, "By the way, do you want red streamers with sparkles or normal white streamers?"

"Um… for your sake, the cheaper ones," she answered, "So probably the white streamers."

"By the way, sorry about your parents…" Haruhi said quietly, "Mori-senpai told us. I know how you feel. When I lost my mom, I was really sad too."

"Thank you, Haruhi," she said quietly, "I appreciate your concern." Before the mood became too somber, Honey took her hand and placed it in Mori's.

"Kazu-chan, I believe you had an appointment with Takashi, don't you?" Honey insisted, grinning as he pushed her into him.

Mori grabbed her before she tripped, pulling her close against him, making the entire group of Mori-fans squeal in jealousy while glaring at her. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

She flushed in embarrassment, nodding slightly. "I-I'm fine," she answered, "a little taken aback though. Thanks." Then she turned back to Honey as she pulled away from him before the Mori-fans glared bullets into her. "Well… didn't you say you wanted some cake?" she teased, "Let's go."

"Yay!" the young-looking third-year student exclaimed, dragging his cousin's girlfriend to the snack table, "Which one do you want? We have a whole bunch of different kinds!"

She laughed, "I don't know. How about you choose for me instead? What's your favourite cake?"

"Strawberry!" he cheered, pulling out dishes of cake and setting them on the table, "You're going to love it, believe me!"

She laughed once more, taking a seat along with the other clients that requested Honey and or Mori. "I'm sure I will."

Tamaki cleared his throat and stood up. "Attention everyone, the Ouran host club is sponsoring a dance in 3 days. I know this is a little late notice, and all of us here truly apologize. We've rented out the school's largest hall for dancing, and we hope to see you all there," he announced.

Well… I'm glad he didn't mention my birthday being then, Kazumi thought in relief.

Why didn't Tama-chan announce Kazu-chan's birthday? Honey thought at the same time. As he opened his mouth to speak, Mori immediately said quietly, "Mitsukuni, don't." He saw his girlfriend's expression turn from one of worry to relief and back to worry. Once Honey reclosed his mouth, Kazumi sighed in relief, her eyes sparkling in thanks at Mori. He dipped his head in acknowledgement.

As the afternoon continued, the host club finally closed, and the boys changed back from their cosplay outfits. Out of all their clients, only Kazumi remained. "Well, today has been interesting," she said as she uncrossed her legs and stood up from her chair.

Tamaki looked at her with large, sad puppy eyes. "You were so mean to me in front of your friends, Kazumi-senpai."

She giggled. "Of course," she replied coolly.

Mori wound his arms around her from behind, his head resting momentarily on her shoulder. "Hello," he muttered into her ear.

"Hey," she answered, turning in his arms to look at him, "Did you have a good time today?"

He kissed her gently, one arm slipping around her waist as the other rested on her cheek. Then he replied, "Yeah."

She smiled. "Me too."

"Is there anything specific you want to do at the party, Kazumi-senpai?" Tamaki inquired.

She shook her head. "Not really, it's up to you guys what you want to do," she insisted.

"It's our job as members of the elite Ouran Host Club," Kaoru began.

Hikaru smiled, finishing the sentence, "to make every girl happy. That includes you. Mori-senpai told us about the death of your parents, and well… we want to ease your burden a little by showing you a good time."

The third-year female forced a smile. "It's not like I'm not having a good time," she argued, slipping out of Mori's embrace, "Really, I am."

Kyoya took her by the hand and gracefully spun her in a circle before pulling her closer to him, one hand around her waist while the other was holding his note book, showing her his notes. "What do you think?" he asked, "Does it meet your standards?"

Her chocolate eyes glanced through the neat handwriting as Hikaru, Kaoru, Tamaki, Honey and Haruhi tried to glance over their shoulder's to look, but, they were unsuccessful. So what resided in Kyoya's little black book continued to remain unknown to the rest of them. "Yeah," she answered, "That looks about right. Not too expensive for the host club's budget but still should bring in a great time. Do you need help with the calculations?"

The vice-president shook his head. "I can take care of this, after all, this party is also for your birthday," he replied.

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean is 'also' for my birthday?" she demanded before smirking, "Are you thinking you could also use this opportunity to draw in more customers and perhaps bring up the host club's budget? That's what I was kinda thinking."

"Exactly," he agreed, "You're a remarkable young woman, Senpai."

"Thank you," she replied, a dark smile on her face, "You're not too shabby yourself."

Haruhi stepped back in shock. She's just as evilly brilliant as Kyoya! She thought, I can see why Kyoya is somewhat affectionate towards her. That's actually just a very… scary… thought…

"Kazumi," Mori said quietly yet sternly, "You ready to go home?"

"You'd like that, wouldn't you, Senpai?" Hikaru teased unintentionally, not meaning for it to slip out. Then his face went red with embarrassment and said, "I-I'm sorry, Mori-senpai, Kazumi-senpai! I-I didn't mean to-! It's not like I-! I-I didn't mean to make it sound like-!"

The rest of them all laughed.

"It's okay, Hikaru," Mori chuckled, "We all know that you were probably joking." He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer against him. She rested her head against his shoulder.

"We'll see you guys tomorrow," she said, "Have a good evening you guys."

"Bye," Haruhi called after them, "See you tomorrow!"

"Bye Takashi! Bye Kazu-chan!" Honey shouted, waving with one hand while holding Usa-chan tightly in his other arm, "Have a good night!"

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In the limo, Kazumi turned to her boyfriend. "Takashi, I think for today I just want to return to my apartment," she told him, "I have to start restocking everything in my fridge and stuff, not to mention clean up around the house. I'm not living at your house all the time, right? I don't want to be a burden to you."

He kissed her gently. "You're not. Believe me, you're not a burden; not to me, to Satoshi, or to my parents. But if you insist on going home today, it's fine with me," he said.

She leaned more towards the window of the driver. "Clarence, do you think you could drop me off at my apartment before heading back to the Morinozuka Estate?" she asked politely.

"Of course, Miss Shirozaki," he answered, making a turn.

When they arrived, Kazumi opened the door and stepped out with her schoolbag, but not before giving Mori a passionate kiss and a warm smile. "Love you," she whispered.

"Love you too," he replied, "Stay safe."

Once she disappeared through her front door, Mori told the driver to go, knowing that his girlfriend should be safe in her apartment.

Kazumi removed her shoes and went to change after taking a shower. She changed into a white t-shirt and dark blue jeans. She opened her fridge and sighed, before looking up at the clock.

"Great," she groaned, "It's 7 and already dark. Just how long was I at the host club? Wow… time sure does fly by quickly when you're having fun." Well… I think I should be able to make it to the supermarket and back without any trouble, she added silently, grabbing her wallet and slipping back on her shoes, well… even if I do run into any trouble, I should still remember the moves Honey taught me, not to mention my experiences with a sword, both from Takashi and the lessons I took. It's better if I take my wallet instead of my purse...

She arrived at the supermarket without any trouble, and bought a lot of groceries, carrying several large shopping bags out. She sighed in relief. No trouble so far, she thought, suddenly seeing a group of rowdy men coming towards her direction, thought too soon…

"Hey, little lady, why don't you came and play with us?" one of them taunted, and Kazumi backed away in instinct.

"No, thank you," she replied, knowing very well that she was outnumbered, "If you're looking to rob me for my money, I'll gladly give it to you as long as you leave me alone."

One of them grabbed her, and she dropped her groceries in attempt to pry them off. She was viciously pinned against the wall as they surrounded her. "Nah, why don't you give us your body?" he hissed, inching closer to her face, "You are quite attractive."

Oh great, she thought, kicking him in the groin before following in a roundhouse kick.

"Damn it," another guy hissed, pulling out a knife and slashing her in the arm before stabbing her in the side.

Kazumi winced as she held her bleeding side. This could be a problem, she thought, I can see why Mori constantly worries about me; I'm a magnet for trouble.

"Come on, girlie, dance!" the man with the knife hissed, trying to cut her.

Skilfully, she managed to dodge it and trip the man, grabbing the knife from him and poising it in front of her protectively.

"J-Just leave me alone, okay?!" she shouted, her voice dripping with hints of fear, "Please, someone help me!"

"There's no one here to help you. You've all alone," another guy informed.

Accurately, she threw the knife and it stabbed into one man's abdomen, causing him to crumple to the ground. Then she felt a stinging pain on her cheek as a single bullet grazed her, imbedding itself into the wall behind her.

In her momentary lapse of shock, some of them grabbed her and started beating her till she collapsed on the ground. One of them pulled out a long wooden rod, about to whack her on the head with it, hopefully knocking her out.

Kazumi's hand snatched out and grabbed the rod before it fell on her and twisted it out of the other man's grasp, leaping back onto her feet and lashing out with the stick of wood, expertly twisting it and turning it, smashing it against the weak points of the man with the gun, causing him to crumple. The gun suddenly went off, and by miracle, just barely nicked Kazumi's other arm. She attacked the other men until only she was left standing and panting, with blood trailing down her arms and cheek, as well as a few scratches on her legs and forehead. She was leaning heavily on the long wooden rod and the wall, suddenly hearing running footsteps approaching her. She looked up at the figure, and heard him shouting, "Kazumi-senpai!"

"Kyoya?" she breathed in wonder, collapsing back against the wall, slipping down into a sitting position, "W-What are you doing here?"

Ignoring her, the youngest Ootori brother pulled out his cell and called his police force. "It's me, get a team assembled and send an ambulance and a doctor," he ordered before snapping it shut as he kneeled next to her, "Senpai, are you okay? What happened?"

She nodded. "Only a few scratches and bruises, nothing that won't heal," she assured, "Oh, these guys attacked me, apparently going to rape me or something. What are you doing here Kyoya?"

"I was going to stop by to check whether you wanted to assist me with the designs. I tried calling your home and your cell, but you weren't there. I called Mori-senpai and he said that you didn't go home with him. So, naturally I decided to come by your house, and that's when I heard these men yelling in pain after a gunshot," he explained as the sound of sirens got closer.

"W-wow, t-that was pretty fast," Kazumi commented, feeling a little weak from the blood loss. When she had collapsed on the floor, she hit her head on a rock or something, and blood trickled from her forehead.

The Ootori's private police force immediately arrested the men, putting them in handcuffs before shipping them off to a prisoner's hospital to get treated for their wounds. Paramedics and a doctor leaped out of the ambulance and ran to Kazumi's side. The paramedics began to tend to her wounds and bandage them as the doctor checked her of any signs of a concussion before beginning to patch up her side wound.

"K-Kyoya?" she mumbled as the doctor injected a painkiller into her, "D-Don't tell Mori. He'll find out soon enough. I don't want to make him worry tonight."

"Sir?" the doctor addressed, looking at Kyoya with deep green eyes, "She's going to be alright. She just needs some rest. The side wound isn't very deep, so I don't think she needs to get stitches so soon. However, she must not move it a lot, or else the wound will open back up again." He turned back to his patient, "Miss, I recommend that you keep your bandages uncovered by any articles of clothing, with the exception of the one on your waist, so that they don't get warm and irritate your wounds, and you can probably remove them in a few days time, with the exception of the side wound, of course. Don't work yourself too much, seeing that your minor concussion will probably make you a little dizzy for the next few days. Also, just a warning, but you may experience a few fainting spells due to the medications in the painkiller."

She nodded. "Thanks, doctor," she replied.

"Do you know where she lives?" the doctor inquired Kyoya, "We can give her a ride home to rest."

He nodded, looking back at the older student. "It's not very far, so I can help her back," he said, helping her up while throwing her arm around his shoulder while slipping his arm around her waist. Kyoya took several of her grocery bags and allowed her to carry the lighter ones. "Thanks, doctor."

The brown haired medical man bowed. "It's an honour to serve the Ootori family."

Kazumi groaned as they walked back to her apartment, "This is just sad. I get attacked on my second night just a few blocks from my own home. I can completely see why Mori constantly worries about me when he's not with me. He's going to give me heck for this tomorrow at school."

"I highly recommend that you get a lot of sleep, Senpai, so its best that you go to class a little late," he explained, "I'm sure your teacher won't mind. I'll have a note written for you in which you can give to your teacher when you go in late."

"Thanks, Kyoya," she said, forcing a small chuckle as she joked, "I guess I can't help you out with the designs tonight, huh?"

He chuckled, "Whenever you're feeling better before the party, I don't mind if you offer your assistance."

They looked and saw Haruhi's father running over to them from the apartment. "Oh, Kazumi! Are you okay?!" he shouted, taking note of the bandages and blood.

She smiled. "I'm fine, Ranka," she replied, "Where's Haruhi?"

"Studying and finishing up homework. We heard the commotion with the sirens and I thought it was best to stay in. When I saw you two coming back, I told Haruhi to stay and that I would be back," he explained.

"Ranka," Kazumi began in a serious tone, "I would greatly appreciate it if you refrain from informing your daughter about my current condition. I don't want her to worry tonight. She and the others will find out soon enough tomorrow."

He dipped his head. "I understand," he agreed, "I assume you don't want me to tell the other host club members too, right?"

She nodded. "I'd really appreciate it, thanks," she said, eyes slightly fluttering.

"Excuse us, Ranka, but I need to get Kazumi-senpai into bed before she passes out," Kyoya excused.

He stood aside immediately. "Ah! Of course!" he exclaimed, taking the shopping bags from Kazumi's fingers, "I'll come with you and put away the groceries."

"Thanks, Ranka," Kazumi said quietly, looking at the second-year supporting her, "and thank you Kyoya. If you hadn't have found me, I don't know when help would have come."

"It's no problem," he retorted as they climbed up the staircase to unit 204, "I'm glad you're okay." He took the key from her pocket and opened the door, all three of them taking off their shoes before Kyoya laid Kazumi down on the futon in the main room, pulling the blanket over her while putting the key on the table beside her. "Goodnight, senpai. Sleep well," he said, standing up to leave the room.

"Thanks, Kyoya," she sighed, closing her eyes, "Good night."

Meanwhile, Ranka neatly put away the groceries, some in the fridge and others in the cupboards. Kyoya slid closed the room door and wrote a note on a piece of paper, excusing Kazumi from being late the next morning. He left it folded on the countertop.

"Thanks for your help," Kyoya said quietly.

Haruhi's father smiled. "It's no problem, Kyoya," he replied, closing the fridge and folding up the empty bags and placing them on the countertop next to the sink.

Both men left, the door locking shut behind them, and Kazumi slept peacefully that night, nothing but her breathing and the whirring of the fridge being the only sounds in the apartment.


Well... that's it for now. I hope you liked this chapter. I'll update soon!

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