Chapter 10; Sheepskin Wolf and Lazy Cat:

Like I promised here is the next chapter! Hope you enjoy! Thank you so much for all your reviews, favs, and follows! It warmed my heart to see people still interested in this story after its long hiatus. I'll try to be good from now on and not keep you guys waiting too long, and that includes my other stories now that I got my life together. So let me start by thanking those lovely individuals who have left reviews, except of course I don't have time right now because I need to run off to work! Just know that it meant so much to me to hear from you guys!

Well, enough of that, on to the chapter!

It was strange how nothing had happened the entire week after Kyoya had confronted Aiko Fujioka. It was perfectly uneventful and dull. Club business was doing well, so well that Kyoya believed that may just turn out to be their finest quarter yet. There were no setbacks, no unexpected twists or costly adventures. The clients were content and the club members were cordial and pleasant as always.

Of course, such a peace would not last. It was not much of a peace at any rate, despite the previous benefits listed.

For while business was doing well the relations among the club members was anything but. Everything was strained, especially where Haruhi was concerned. Whenever she was around there was a near unbearable tension of awkwardness and guilt surrounding the other club members. Tamaki in particular was severely affected, since he could never stand to be ignored, least of all by Haruhi.

Haruhi herself was acting, in most regards, her normal self. The only difference was that every once in a while she would give Kyoya a not so secret glance full of anger. The others mostly left her be, unable to take the wrath she would fix them with whenever one of them attempted to speak to her outside of usual club affairs.

For all this, Kyoya could live with it. But of course, such was not the case. For while Haruhi was angry at everyone, him especially, everyone else was just angry at him. And for what? For trying to ensure the safety and reputation of this club? He did not deny it, perhaps his treatment of Aiko Fujioka could have been more discrete, but she had forced his hand. The fact remained that Aiko Fujioka was an acquaintance that could prove most detrimental to the club's affairs. The reputation that proceeded her was enough to begin with, but her insistence of disrupting the club's activities and endangering Haruhi's own reputation with the school and other students was too much a risk to be allowed by Kyoya.

Action had been necessary to prevent any unfortunate catastrophes in the future. And yet, by trying to prevent such a thing, Kyoya could see that he had inadvertently created one. He knew it was only matter of time until something would need to be done about the situation, before the other club members snapped under the tension.

Oddly enough the one to put things in motion was Tamaki.

The idiot took his time in finding his courage to confront him after one particularly quiet club meeting was adjourned, but when he did he was full of noble retribution.

He started by first saying that he would have confronted Kyoya sooner if not for the fact he had expected Kyoya to be a gentleman and admit his wrongs on his own. At first Kyoya did not have the slightest idea what the idiot was talking about, going on first about valor and a gentleman's duty to others. Eventually he came round to the point, approximately two hours after his speech had started. Apparently he wished for Kyoya to apologize to Aiko Fujioka for being so callous towards her feelings and general regard. If he apologized to the girl, then everything would be right again, at least that was Tamaki's sentiments.

But there were two flaws with such a scheme, however simple.

For one, it would never work. While Tamaki believed that an apology could fix everything, Kyoya was not as foolish. Aiko Fujioka may be a rather simple girl in of herself, but had her own amount of pride. That much Kyoya could tell about the strange girl. After what had transpired, after seeing the depth of anger in her wide brown eyes, Kyoya knew that no apology would fix things as far as she was concerned.

Secondly, and most importantly, why should he apologize? All he had done was prevent trouble before it could be caused. It was best for everyone involved to not have any further interactions with someone of her background. Clear and simple. And above all, to apologize to a commoner for hurting her feelings? This was not nursery school. Tamaki and the others never felt ashamed to point out the differences between their class and Haruhi's. And with Aiko being steps below even Haruhi's standing, he did not see a reason to build a lasting relation with the girl. She had nothing to give them, no use or function outside of her relation to one of their members. And that was that.

"No, that is not that Kyoya! You made Aiko cry! And now Haruhi won't talk to us!" Tamaki shouted frantically, his voice echoing throughout the nearly empty music room. Kyoya, on his laptop as usual to finalize the next month's budget, did not stop typing as he spoke.

"If that is all you want, then you can go apologize yourself."

"But you were the one who–"

"The one who drew the line for a criminal's daughter." Kyoya interrupted, taking time to look Tamaki in his eyes, "Her family's reputation is a danger to this club."

"So?" Tamaki persisted with a pout, his ability for circular logic uncanny. He was leaning against the table Kyoya was working from, hands clenched in an anger that was quite rare with his carefree nature. Perhaps the week of Haruhi's silence had more effect on Tamaki than Kyoya had originally imagined. There was no telling, what with his strange fixation on the commoner ranging from fatherly to lovingly. But that was of no concern now, expect as far as it concerned Kyoya's current annoyance.

"So, do you even know what her father is in prison for? You should not be so lenient." Kyoya told him curtly, to which Tamaki immediately replied angrily.

"And you should not be so judgmental!" With this, Tamaki touched a hand to his heart, and Kyoya sighed as he prepared himself to be assaulted with yet another speech about morality.

"Is he the only criminal in the world? And what is a criminal? Simply a man who has been caught for deeds which others are rich enough to get away with. Do we not have students who are the children of criminal leaders? Gangsters? Men and women who have shoved their way to the top though dirty tricks and backstabbing? Why should our treatment of Haruhi's cousin be any different than the treatment we give our guests who may or may not allegedly come from similar backgrounds?"

Kyoya paused in his typing as Tamaki wrapped up his little monologue. A disturbing thought crossed his mind, one that he could not quite so easily dismiss.

The idiot has a point...

Be that as it may, what is done is done.

"This is different. She has a direct link to one of the host members." Kyoya countered after a moment's pause. To this Tamaki had his own retort.

"Are you saying none of us have flaws or are related to unsavory people?" The president's voice grew stern as he said this, losing its vapid anger.

Kyoya once more had to pause in order to look his friend in the eye. While in general an idiot, he did have his moments of brilliant insights, now an unfortunate example of such. Kyoya could see that there would be no way of convincing Tamaki of what he had set his mind to. He was resolute in having Kyoya making an apology to the commoner.

Kyoya sighed silently to himself. Yes, Tamaki had a point, and for once a very valid one. Kyoya's ability to weigh the benefits or defects of any situation, speculation, or yes, even person, had been obscured. It was uncharacteristic of himself, just as it was for Tamaki to be the one between the two of them to make the most sense.

While yes, building a genial relationship between the Host Club and one Aiko Fujioka would not be beneficial, it was too late to think in such terms. Now, it was more of an investment for peace that he should mend the gap that he had created. If he did so, then things would return to normal, or as normal as they could ever be in this place. It was too late to keep Aiko distant from their affairs, at least so much as Haruhi's impression on the wellbeing of the club was concerned. When Haruhi was upset, the group was, for she had that disturbing effect. And Haruhi was upset because her cousin Aiko was.

Things could have been different perhaps, if Aiko had been made distant from the very beginning. Kyoya supposed he had only himself to blame really. He should have just called the police when she had assaulted his car. Better yet, he probably should have let his chauffer run her over. But now it was too late, the group's emotional welfare was at stake. After all, they were selling a product here, their image and cohesiveness, and it may not affect their sales now, but in the long run Kyoya knew that whenever the tensions of the group got a little high-strung, sales always went down. The best course of action would be to mend as much as was necessary so that order was restored within the group, and if that meant humoring Tamaki and Haruhi by giving what they thought he owed to the commoner, then so be it. What was best was best.

It was quite obvious what needed to be done. So why hadn't he admitted it before? Why did it take Tamaki of all people to point out to Kyoya what was best for the group?

It can't because of…her? That I perhaps did go too far and cannot admit?

No.

Not in the slightest. She was just a mere annoyance, one that he did not wish to bend his pride to, that is all. A criminal's daughter, a commoner, a being insignificant outside of this small matter. He was not incorrect in his actions. Certainly not when he was within his rights as vice-president to act as he did, however callous the others thought him. But his being right did not matter in this case.

There was no right or wrong where business was concerned. Only what was best.

With this, Kyoya, very reluctantly, nodded towards Tamaki. Understanding what this meant, the president of the Ouran High School Host Club stood himself up straight, wearing his wide naïve grin.

"Excellent! We shall begin planning immediately! Make all the reservations necessary! And go order a crown!"

Kyoya narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"A what?"

.

.

.

And so, that is how Kyoya found himself on his knees before a commoner, holding her hand and asking for her forgiveness. The others readily agreed to go along with their president's insane plan, promising to do their best. They wanted to be back in Haruhi's affections as soon as possible. And yet, it was upon Kyoya to bend his pride and speak words that were scripted beforehand according to plan.

Except of course, as he predicted, not everything went smoothly.

For a moment, when Aiko first walked into the room, dressed and primped up for the night of pampering they had in store her for, Kyoya was taken a bit aback in surprise. When made to look presentable, her hair curled and lips painted, she looked quite appealing. Almost elegant. It was quite troubling to admit it, even if just to himself. But it only made sense, for when Haruhi was forced to get in touch with her feminine side she managed to look striking, such as she did for this occasion.

However, what occurred next was not surprising to Kyoya in the least.

"I don't want your apology. I never wanted an apology."

It was as he predicted. Aiko was far too proud. But in a way, it still managed to intrigue him, especially that last part…

.

.

.

The Host Club was silent after Aiko made her proclamation. Kyoya did not appear phased at all, though he did rise from his humiliating position before the girl, letting go of her hand. In his it felt small and soft, and just as warm as he remembered it from the last time they touched. He took a step back, wanting to distance himself in case she reacted physically. He had been expecting her to attempt to strike him again, she being of the more violent persuasion, but no. All she did was continue to stare into his eyes, her own rich brown eyes unwavering.

As all had gone as Kyoya expected, he knew that it would only be a matter of mind till Aiko Fujioka either stormed off or told him off. Either would do, for then afterwards the idiots behind him would put the matter to rest, and Haruhi would see that he did all he could to mend whatever damage she laid blame on him. Still that she, to quote, 'never' wanted an apology made him wonder…

"But, Lady Aiko–" Tamaki began after a dreadful moment of silence, only to be cut off by Aiko herself.

"I don't want you to apologize to me." She said, never looking away from Kyoya who watched her with intrigue, "You're free to have your misinformed opinion about my father and myself. Everyone else welcomes themselves to it."

Kyoya's expression reflected none of his thoughts, but inside he was smirking. So, even she realized how silly all this was. His apologizing to her. She was not as affected by his words as everyone made her to be. She was made of much sterner stuff. In its own way, it was commendable. But it did make all this feel like an even bigger waste of time and finances, if it was all for nothing, not even the sake of a commoner's pride.

Aiko paused for a moment, letting the silence take over and force everyone further on edge. When she continued, her eyes looked down, breaking contact from Kyoya's eyes for the first time.

"What you said, the basic facts, are true. And though I would have preferred to have left it undiscussed in public, I am not hiding anything." She said with a tone that made Kyoya suspect that she was, in fact, hiding something. Perhaps she was not as resilient as he had thought, but it seemed deeper than that. What she said did not come from a place of pride, but shame. But it could be him trying to imagine something complex in an unassuming individual that simply was not there…

Kyoya took a moment before he spoke, and when he did Aiko's dark eyes snapped back up to meet his.

"Then, what do you want?"

"What I want…is for you to apologize to Haruhi." She told him resolutely before glancing to her cousin, "She wasn't supposed to know. None in the family wanted her to know. You told her, and now she worries."

Haruhi was about to speak, most likely to say that her cousin need not have sacrificed and suffered in silence, but was beaten by Tamaki.

"But, Lady Aiko, we wanted to do this for you too." He said with an earnestness that seemed to surprise Aiko. Her eyes widened slightly, as if such a concept was foreign to her. But she seemed to recover quickly while Kyoya happened to be preoccupied with what that idiot meant by this 'we' business. He was the one who had to make all the arrangements against his better judgement. This unwanted apology cost almost of fifty thous–

"We called you a punk. We judged you." Continued Hikaru for the group, causing the others to nod in agreement. It was Haninozuka who stood forth to speak next.

"We should have known that anyone who is as close to Haruhi as you are, has to be a good person."

"Deep down." Added Kaoru.

Aiko's expression remained neutral after her initial surprise. She did not betray anything that could explain that first instinct she had, not whether it had been due her inexperience with such kind consideration or because it had affronted her pride. For Kyoya though, he could see some signs of nervousness start up in her posture. The way she would sift her weight slightly from foot to foot was a telltale he had noticed the last few times they met.

Why would she be nervous to hear that the others, for lack of a better term, held a good regard of her? Again, it was intriguing…

But in the end, Kyoya decided that now would be the moment for him to get this all over with. And as quickly as possible.

"But, I shall do as you wish." Kyoya announced before he bowed to Aiko's precious cousin, "Haruhi Fujioka, I give you my heartfelt apologies."

Aiko watched with scrutinizing eyes, as if to find a fault in him just then. But he performed his unfelt apology flawlessly. All looked authentic…until Tamaki threw a wrench into the works.

"To further prove our heartfelt apology," He began with his insipidly cheerful voice, obviously excited about what he was about to say, "the Host Club extends a permanent invitation to one Aiko Fujioka, for any and all Host Club activities, for free! She will be welcomed and treated as our guest, as we are in her debt for being friend and family to our dear Haruhi!"

Kyoya felt like someone had him over the back of the head with a hammer. This had not been a part of the plan. They were just to make Aiko feel special for one evening, apologize, and win over Haruhi's favor again so that all club activities would go smoothly once again. This…this was unplanned. This was all Tamaki.

…that…that idiot…

The other Host Club members looked surprise to hear this, but otherwise not affected, not to the depth Kyoya was. He'd have much rather been slapped by Aiko again.

…I'll kill him. I'll just kill him. For free? Why free? That idiot…

This too surprised Aiko as once more her eyes widened. She looked around at them all, even Haruhi, who was looking a little shocked herself. But once again Aiko was quick to recover. Soon her eyes narrowed accusingly, focused mostly on Tamaki, who was unprepared for what happened next.

"You can't be serious. You'd really think I'd want to waste any more of my time with you idiots?" She hissed, causing Tamaki to shrink to the size of child before her imposing figure. Her hands on her hips, Aiko went on, head high and gaze disapproving.

"If you guys think that I would ever want to be a guest that comes over just to fawn over your egos, you're sadly mistaken."

The Host Club went into a kind of shock, Tamaki especially as he turned pale and started to retreat to his happy place. Kyoya could not help smirking to watch their great president's plan be thrown back into his face. He had it coming to him to think that Aiko was any different from Haruhi in her intolerance for extravagant gestures.

But after a moment of this shock, along came another as Aiko's face softened into a pensive look. Kyoya narrowed his eyes in suspicion to see an expression that made his wary. It was that look of hers again, that almost bored, mischievously catlike expression that could not be read. His suspicious feeling was doubled after she spoke once more, this time more collected, controlled.

"But…if I can be guaranteed some time with Haruhi and free rich kid food, then maybe we could work something out." She said with a smirk that came off as more mischievous than playful. Before any of the others could speak, Aiko gestured to Haruhi.

"Haruhi accepts your apology."

"I do?" Asked the younger cousin with a blatant look. Aiko nodded for the both of them.

"And I accept your invitation as a guest to the Host Club." She said resolutely. Tamaki, with surprising recovery, smiled and cheered.

"Hurray!" He shouted, and the others relaxed as the tension in the room immediately lifted.

"Now it's time for the coronation!" Applauded Haninozuka.

At this Aiko lost her smirk.

"Wait, you guys were serious about that?"

"Of course!" Said a gleeful Tamaki as he produced a crown that had been hidden up to this point. "We wish to make you Queen of the Host Club for a day! Starting now!"

"But boss, it's night." Stated Hikaru, causing Tamaki to shrug.

"Well, it's the thought that counts." He mumbled before turning back to Aiko, "Now hold still!"

She was having none of it, and immediately started to step away from them.

"No! Back off! My hair is nice looking for once and I don't want you ruining it!"

With that, a small chaos ensued as Tamaki, with the eventual help of the twins, tried to wrestle the crown onto Aiko's head. She put up an impressive fight, but it was useless. Eventually after a few bruises and swears, the twins got it on her and then lead her defeatedly to the throne. Anyone could tell that she looked extremely uncomfortable, but the others cheered and applauded.

"There, our beautiful queen!"

"And Haruhi is a princess!" Said Kaoru as he snuck up beside Haruhi, his brother not far behind. For the most part she had kept herself out of all of this, just watching and waiting for it all to screw up somehow. She was surprised to hear Aiko accept, even if on her behalf, an apology. But her cousin had always been kind, deep down. It almost made her smile.

Now however she frowned deeply, giving the twins a hard glare.

"Don't involve me in this."

"Aw, come on. Have some fun for once." The twins pleaded.

"You call kidnapping a couple of girls at midnight, making them dress up, and throwing a party fun?" She growled.

The twins shrugged nonchalantly.

"Well…yeah."

Haruhi's face twitched.

"Rich kids."

The rest of the night was spent rather peacefully. Well, as peacefully as this recipe for disaster could be spent. The caterers hired for this small event came and laid out the food at long table, at which the head sat Aiko and her impromptu throne. The others ate and chatted casually and pleasantly, mostly with each other or Haruhi. Aiko concentrated mostly on her food, not bothering with the small talk everyone else participated in.

Eventually though, when the food had been exhausted, the conversation became more amiable. The twins and Tamaki were once more pestering Haruhi, who with due credit fenced them off politely so as not to cause too much of a scene. Aiko herself even spoke some with Haninozuka and Mori, who sat next to her, about martial arts. But the conversation eventually fell a little flat after Aiko mentioned how she disliked sweets and no, she did not want to eat any cake with Haninozuka.

Things were quieting down. The twins became more persistent in their bothering Haruhi in order to provoke Tamaki for their amusement. Haninozuka and Mori say in another corner and ate sweets. Aiko sat on her throne, sipping coffee. Kyoya, who had distanced himself some time ago from the group, sat typing on his computer.

It was approaching two am. If he worked quickly enough, he could figure out a way to fix the budget to make up for this deficit. It would be possible, but it would be tight. He was trying to save the funds for the Summer Gala, of which the club's successful future, and his in part, rested upon. That Tamaki wanted to waste money on this of all things would irritate Kyoya for some time to come. But what was done was done. Hopefully the tension that had been building amongst the others had been dealt with, and all would be well again.

Except, of course, that now instead of being rid of Aiko Fujioka, she was now to be treated as a guest in future. A guest that got everything free.

Kyoya's brow twitched.

That idiot will pay. And pay dearly. Everything will come out of his pocket, see how much he likes how much 'free' really costs –

"Hey."

Kyoya looked away from his computer screen to see that without his notice Aiko came to stand beside him. He did not bother to rise from his seat, but managed a smile despite the anger that still boiled inside him.

"My Lady Aiko, is there anything I can do for you?"

Aiko frowned, her arms folded in front of her.

"Drop the nice act, pretty boy." She said with a pointed glare, "I want to talk to the fangs, not the sheepskin."

Kyoya lifted a brow in interest. With a quick glance that was guarded behind the glare of his glasses, he noted that the others were well distracted before replying.

"You have a strange way of putting things. But alright…what do you want?" He finished, losing his smile before turning back to his computer. Aiko took the seat next to him, her gaze never straying from his face.

"I know that you only did this on behalf of the Host Club. And for Haruhi. That's one of the reasons I especially didn't want your apology. It was fake. Like that smile you always wear."

"Oh?" He asked casually, though the corner of his lips turned up into a malicious smirk. Think what he may about her being a simple creature, she did manage to say the most surprising things.

Aiko nodded firmly.

"I hate lies, and I won't take it from anybody. Not even you."

Now Kyoya was fully smirking, from amusement.

"Now that is interesting." He said cynically, "Seeing as how your father was a notorious con-man and forger."

"Yeah, go figure." Aiko shrugged.

After that she was quiet for a moment, allowing Kyoya to go back to his typing. For the most part he was able to ignore her, but by what she said before she still had plenty more to say to him. For now it seemed she was gathering to words, and found them quickly enough.

"You certainly went through a lot of trouble to fake an apology, I'll give you that. I mean," At this she took off the embellished crown to inspect it, "Is this thing real gold or what?"

"We strive to please. Authenticity is merely an expense in the end." Kyoya stated simply.

Now it was Aiko's turn to smirk as she leaned in a little closer.

"Oh really? And how much does yours cost?"

Kyoya did not react, though some part of him was amused at her mockery. And seeing as how she wanted to, as she put it, speak to the fangs, Kyoya decided to speak simply and plainly.

"The others may be willing to be made humble and apologize to you because they believe they have hurt you. And that, consequently means they have hurt Haruhi." He wanted her to understand that the others did not care for her outside of their own selfish means. Not even Tamaki, for all his noble ways. This, all of it, was done for Haruhi and for the self-image the others had for what the Host Club stood for. Nothing more. But it was unnecessary, as she herself nodded before looking towards the others.

"I more or less noticed that they care for her." She watched indifferently as Haruhi started to laugh at something Hikaru said, only to then a moment later roll her eyes at Tamaki. Kyoya nodded.

"More or less. And because they care, they wanted to make you happy for her sake, so much so that they are willing to forget what they heard about you so far."

"But you're not." She spoke as she turned back to look at him.

Not a question. A statement. And a clever one at that. Just as he had her figured for a simple creature, she shows the signs of a troublesomely shrewd one instead.

Too troublesomely. This may lead to problems…

"No, I'm not." Kyoya said honestly. Behind his glasses shielded eyes, he made contact with Aiko's dark chocolate ones.

"They don't know the full extent of your father's circumstance. Neither does Haruhi I presume. Though they know that your father is in prison, and that you yourself have a less than perfect record with the law, they do not know the full story."

Aiko's gaze hardened bitterly as she almost growled, "Neither do you."

Kyoya had nothing to say to that. It was an obvious lie, as he had accessed official records and documents of the very events they were speaking of. All was laid out there in black and white. What her father did. What she did. What she would most likely do. What she would most likely become.

"I don't want them to know." Aiko continued, her expression stern and bitter, "Ever. Especially Haruhi. I'm not hiding anything, but that doesn't mean I want everyone to know."

"So long as it benefits the Host Club, you and your father's secrets will be kept safe." Kyoya assured her. He could have lied and sworn to keep it all a secret, circumstances aside, but somehow he felt that she would see through that. But even the truth was not enough for her as her brow rose skeptically.

"And I'm supposed to trust you that you won't blow the whistle without cause?"

"You have my word as an Ootori." He lowered his head into an informal bow. But Aiko did not bite.

"That's worth almost nothing to me."

"Then you have my word as a gentlemen."

"That's worth even less."

Now this caused Kyoya to smirk in amusement, Aiko too. For a moment her words were like an old joke between the two of them, just for the two of them. But the moment quickly passed as she then went to press on.

"And when it does become beneficial to spill my secrets? What then?"

Kyoya lost his amusement to once more speak the truth, hoping it would not become a habit with her.

"We'll cross that bridge only if we must."

Aiko nodded, finding his answer acceptable. That catlike expression of hers was back again, sly and satisfied looking, as if they merely had a pleasant chat about something meaningless.

"Well, I guess I made my point and you made yours."

Kyoya nodded in agreement.

"It appears so."

Aiko then stood up, her tight dress adhering to her body's motions to make the simple motion strangely graceful. Kyoya watched fixedly as she gave him a lazy smirk.

"We'll be seeing a lot more of each other, pretty boy. Let's just try to be courteous to one another."

There it was again. His suspicious feeling. This whole conversation felt like a veiled attempt to threaten him and test his boundaries. She was testing him, having him draw lines for her to cross. She had something planned…something. His intuition was certain of it. She wouldn't have accepted the invitation to the Host Club or his apology to Haruhi without it. It had to be that…

…then again, it could be him trying to imagine something complex in an unassuming individual that simply was not there. She was certainly catlike, but in the end she was more of the household variety than anything that would offer up any real danger. She could just be trying to watch her back and make certain he wouldn't cause her trouble for herself, the same as he was doing. It could have even just been the offer of free fancy food, a bribe that often motived Haruhi to do the club's bidding. Yes, as he said it himself before, she was a simple creature, though proud and stubborn.

But…was she truly simple? Or just simply surprising?

"But of course. I look forward to having you as a guest, Lady Aiko." Kyoya sarcastically replied. His tone did not offend her, instead she smiled at him with that infernal catlike expression.

"Didn't you hear pretty boy? It's Queen Aiko now."

She picked up the crown, placing it back onto her head before turning to walk away. Kyoya's eyes narrowed once more in suspicion.

Whatever her intentions, whether she had anything planned or no, she was going to be a problem. And an annoying one at that.

He watched her continue to walk away, her hips swaying confidently as she announced to Haruhi that they were now leaving. She also said she would be keeping the dress. And the crown.

A definite problem…

Okay, so just so you guys know, Kyoya won't always be such a jerk where Aiko is concerned. It's just that so far, with these first ten chapters, they have just been introduced and tensions between their different backgrounds have come ahead. Besides, as far as Kyoya is concerned, when no one seems beneficial to him, he does not keep up appearances. I mean, anyone remember his reluctant day out with Haruhi, him being a bit of a jerk to her when none of the other club members were around? It's the same here (since like Haruhi pointed out deep down he is not so bad), except of course Aiko has managed to also get on his bad side. SO…I guess I'm saying is that this relationship is gonna take a while to build. But trust me, it will be a ton of fun to watch this train wreck. So stick around kiddies. Now that Aiko has a free pass into the Host Club, things are gonna get good.

...oh, and Aiko's motivation for accepting the invitation and the weak apology will be explained in the next chapter, which I'll let you all know, will be placed during the 'Covering the Famous Host Club' episode. Just a little spoiler for you all. Love love!