Chapter 9
Disclamer: I do not own Ouran High School Host Club... Or the strange array of Naruto characters that have entered into the story.
The family had awkwardly served dinner at the table, every now and then speaking to their rather odd guest. It was mostly silent though, and even Misuzu sat rigidly in her chair. Despite the hatred she had shown earlier, she couldn't help but tremble in his presence. The man was so shady; no matter where he was, his darkness seemed to follow behind him, dimming the lights and spirits in the room to match the ebony coloring of his cloak. Out of the few customary things she had pushed herself to ask him, all they could find out was that he was a distant relation of theirs and that he was very religious… (If you can even call it such.)
"So, ummm… Mr. Umehito, my husband mentioned that you were part of the clergy?"
"Yes," he said, and his cat puppet, Belzenef, scratched the back of its head. "I am the leader of the Dark Brotherhood." Whilst saying this, he stabbed his meat with the steak knife, causing all of the juices to flow into his corn and potatoes.
Renge watched him do this with wide and fearful eyes, but Sakura was unfazed, and deigned to ask, "So, are you guys like a group of satanic worshipers or something?" Haruhi and Hinata would usually scold their sister for being so rude, but they were still partly in shock from the strange visitor, and quite frankly, they saw that she had a point.
He chuckled evilly. "No, but we do get a lot of those that want to join. Of course, before they do, those little lost lambs must be cleansed of their sins and herded back to the Lord our god, more specifically, the Church of England."
Haruhi, now curious, inquired as to their means of funding. After all, they probably weren't maintained by the Church itself. He answered her with the greatest reverence toward a one lady Éclair Tonnerre. Apparently, he was born into much wealth, but his family cut him off once he 'embraced his inner darkness'. Lady Tonnerre saw this, and helped steer him on the correct path. She provided him a position as a clergyman, earning back the approval of his family and his great fortune. Of course, in the process of all of this he had formed the Dark Brotherhood, an affiliation devoted to God and the darker side of his divine plan. Since he wouldn't receive his inheritance until after his parents were dead, lady Éclair had provided most of the funds.
Hearing all this, Misuzu perked up. Perhaps with some careful planning, she thought, the estate wouldn't be entailed at all. She now spoke more openly with Mr. Umehito, telling him of the new residents at Netherfield, and how Hinata was likely to receive a marriage proposal 'any time now'. Hinata blushed furiously, pretending to wipe her face to hide behind her napkin.
It had been a week since the arrival of Nekozawa Umehito. Misuzu, in an effort to attach him to one of the girls, tried persuading him to go out into the daylight. The conversation went on as such:
They were in his bedroom, curtains tightly shut and towels shoved beneath the windowsill. "You must be forced to go out sometimes. My, is it dark in here! I'll let in a little light." She drew the curtains and removed the towels, sending Nekozawa into a hissing fit before he fled under the bed frame.
"I only venture out at night… Or in extremely overcast weather." Belzenef was in the middle of the floor, baking in the heat of the sunlight. Nekozawa made a move to grab him, but quickly withdrew his hand when the light touched it. Haruhi walked by the open door, and surveying the scene, came over and placed the cat doll under the bed, receiving a curt 'thanks'.
She stood up, rather perplexed. Had Misuzu somehow scared him under there? "May I inquire about the current situation?"
"The light," Nekozawa offered weakly, "it burns us!"
"Ah, of course it does." Haruhi could think of nothing else to say in such an odd scenario. However, she quickly replaced all of the towels under the sill and tied the curtains shut.
Nekozawa crawled out from under the bed, shaking slightly as he stood up. "God bless you, dear cousin. I could have died under there!" He embraced her tightly, and she patted him on the back, also motioning for Misuzu to help get him off her. Her stepmother, however, had an alternative set of plans, and walked away gleefully, paying no mind to her suffocating daughter.
Haruhi struggled for air, and Nekozawa let go, rather unwillingly. "Well, I'm glad you're all right. What was going on, by the way?"
"That woman," he came closer, and whispered into her ear, "I think she's trying to have me killed!"
Haruhi's sudden mirth made her cousin jump, but he somehow found it in himself to join in her laughter. (She was quite contagious, you see.) "Don't worry; she has that affect on most everybody. Hey, if you need anything, just come see me."
"Alright," he was practically beaming at this point, and she left him standing there like that, feeling somewhat brighter than usual.
Haruhi continued on her path down to the kitchen, grabbing a banana and rushing back up to her room. She viewed the computer screen, seeing many impatient, 'Hello, are you still there?' type messages on the chat page. She smiled to herself before quickly typing out, 'Yeah, I'm here."
"What took you so long?"
"Small situation with my mother: the usual."
"Ah."
"So…"
"So?"
"I was thinking…"
"Yes?"
"Can you quit interrupting me and let me get on with it?'
"I apologize; I was having far too much fun. Go on."
"I was thinking, (before you so rudely interrupted me) that you and Tamaki should go somewhere with us."
"…I sense ulterior motives under your written tone."
"*sigh* Look, my mom wants us to bond with our cousin, and I think it would be torture for Hinata and me to have to… Well, you've met my sisters."
"And now the truth comes out. Question is, why should I be forced to endure their company?"
"Well, I hope you'd go for the sake of my sanity. Or maybe you just enjoy my company that much."
"LOL Very well then, it's a date. Call me when you need me."
"Thank you so much!!! (You do realize that you probably saved my life.)"
"Are you implying that you would be forced to commit suicide without my company? *tsk tsk* Getting a little clingy now, aren't we?"
"…"
"I take your silence as a yes."
"…"
"Perhaps I should take it a step further and say that you need me and that you couldn't do without me."
"…"
"A little assurance in the matter would be appreciated."
"…"
"This isn't funny!"
"LOL You deserved it. :P Oh, GTG, my cousin wants to talk to me."
"I'll see you soon then. Bye."
"Bye."
A/N Yar, sorry for not updating in so long and for the chapter being short. However, I do hope that you sense some rising action in the story! Anyway, during the days that I was idling away and not updating, I started making some illustrations for the story, and I was thinking that I should put them up somewhere so that they can be easilly viewed... I don't know... Please tell me what you think! (In the form of a review, that is!) :P
