To Become One Seventh

by potionwine

It takes courage to push yourself to places you have never been before – to test your limits, to break through barriers. And the day came when the risk it took to stay tight inside the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. Kaoru-centric. OT7 ship.

10. Chapter 5B

CHAPTER FIVE(B)

White Team Fight!

.

B.

This is Mitsukuni.

A Haninozuka, and everything that the family name entails.

The eldest, with all its privileges and burdens.

A perceptive anti-planner, and the darker half.

Supervisor of the White Team.

Kaoru glides his fingers reverently along the gleaming, flawless yellow finish of the Gallardo Spyder, grinning maniacally at Honey all the while. On Honey's face is an expression of muted glee, its features illuminated by the garage lights glinting off the sleek metallic lines of this beautiful car to reveal a cocked brow and a sly smile hovering just barely out of sight.

The door leading to the racetrack rolls open with a grinding sound – rays of midday sun spill in like a revelation, and Kaoru stands transfixed.

There is something knowing and coy about Honey as he strides over to the passenger side and holds the car door invitingly, every bit the aristocratic gentleman that his name suggests he would be. Awed, Kaoru takes a step closer and places his hand in his senior's, who curls his fingers to give him a warm, reassuring squeeze before helping him into the car and shutting the door decisively.

Its soft top is fully retracted to provide maximum enjoyment from the magnificently clear blue skies that await them. Honey makes his way around to the driver's side in the time it takes to blink, bracing one small hand against the car soundlessly to leap into his seat in an agile slide. He leans over Kaoru – pressed near enough to envelope Kaoru in his vanilla scented cologne – snags the seatbelt and buckles Kaoru in in one unbelievably smooth movement.

"Don't let Usa-chan fly away," he whispers tenderly, voice lush with anticipation.

Kaoru can't remember when he last thought of Honey as being so cool.

Honey turns the ignition and revs the engine, his eyes wickedly ablaze with passion.

"Ready?"

.

---

.

The image of windswept, sunlit blond hair will forever be burned into Kaoru's retinas. Set off by the striking Lamborghini Midas yellow, his senior owns this car in a way that transcends property – it is something beyond physical possession, something very much like a part of Honey has been locked into the act of driving at insane speeds, at tackling difficult corners, at manoeuvring with deadly precision.

Honey loves feeling the danger, Kaoru realises, and his confidence in his skill is absolute.

They're both exhilarated from the uninhibited laps around the gloriously empty racetrack. Kaoru's cheeks are scorched from the blistering cold winds but he is glad to have witnessed this.

He is so glad to have shared in this experience.

Honey has slowed the Spyder to a slow cruise. For a person who'd obtained his Class 1 license a mere 4 months prior, his technique is far too pronounced for this hobby to have been a recent acquisition. He handles the wheel as a blade would skate across ice, his acceleration and braking is perfect, his gear changes are seamless; indeed, his demeanour evinces a familiarity and an almost-lazy ease that must have come from long years of dedicated labour and innate talent.

When Honey turns to smile at him – oh, such smouldering relish, such unimaginable brilliance –

This particular Honey, Kaoru has never once encountered. He is the distilled, lucid version of a Honey who has been forcibly awoken from sleep; the very definition of raw power compacted into a crackling core of energy.

And it hits Kaoru, it hits him hard –

This facet of Honey is the realest and truest, and

It is breathtaking.

Compelled to stare, each incapable of looking away, they bind the other in an electric exchange. The car has rolled to a stop, irrelevant where there is a lack of traffic except for the fact that there is now nothing to distract them from the irrevocable and entirely unexpected step they have taken in regards to their relationship, and Kaoru is thinking, oh god.

Oh god.

For a crazy, crazy second, he feels like there is nothing of Honey that he doesn't know. He feels like Honey is his.

Kaoru has only ever felt this way towards Hikaru and he doesn't know how to react – what is he to do, so this is how it feels, never knew never saw it coming, and it is wondrous, staggering, to have someone else willingly take themselves apart for you so that you become able to understand them. He'd been the outmatched fool who hadn't even known he was outmatched. Honey had been out of his realm of comprehension, too deep and too complex, and it is only the sacrifice of breaking himself down into his individual components that allows Kaoru to see what he'd missed before.

Quietly, "Kao-chan really is a quick study."

No, not quick at all.

A floaty, tinkling laugh. "Kao-chan is training himself to feel worthless whenever he does that. Rather than directing your attention towards your failure, why don't you direct it towards processing the new information that you've been given? Although Kao-chan usually bounces back eventually, Kao-chan's reaction time is slow. That is why Kao-chan never cuts his losses fast enough."

Stunned, Kaoru sits there numbly as he tries to regain a semblance of control over his scrambled thoughts.

Honey reaches over and fondly tucks his fringe behind his ear before exiting the car and signalling to an attendant, who swiftly makes his way over to them to retrieve the car. Kaoru is led away by his senior to the main grandstand, where they sequester themselves in one of the 10 VIP Platinum Rooms overlooking the circuit. Kaoru clutches the drink that had been served to him by another attendant as he finds out that Honey has been karting informally from the age of 6, and has been taking part in licensed racing – mostly overseas – since 8 years old.

And, he finds out that this Lamborghini is not the only toy his senior owns.

"Senpai… How big is your collection…?" he bleats weakly.

Honey fairly sparkles at him. "Twenty-three cars! They will be fully, legally mine when I turn twenty. It's interesting that this has come up, Kao-chan, because I don't think Kao-chan has realised that Yuuichi-san is trying to strike before Kyou-chan reaches his age of majority."

Words are buzzing around Kaoru's head – he knows they should mean something, yet all he can think of is, "How many cars did you say you have again?", because if Hikaru will fight, no holds barred, for a ride in the Spyder, he will die for the chance to admire and fondle a selection of the finest supercars.

"Twenty-three," Honey replies. Seeing that it is not to Kaoru's satisfaction, he elaborates, "Including an Aston Martin DB9, DBS V12; Porsche 997 GT2 RS, GT3; Audi R8 V10, A8; Maserati GT; Ferrari F430 Scuderia, 599, 458 Italia; Mercedes S65 AMG; BMW M5; Nissan GTR; and I've ordered the Koenigsegg Agera and the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport World Record Edition."

Kaoru shakes his head in disbelief. "How did I never know this about you, senpai?"

"Hee. Apart from Takashi and my parents, I haven't brought anyone here," Honey says somewhat distantly. "Although I did tell Kyou-chan about it when he asked me if I wanted to be on the club's executive council. Kyou-chan was obviously being polite; he and Tama-chan don't need my help to manage the club. I turned him down anyway, to pursue my interest in cars – I enjoy racing."

What an understatement. Even with cakes, Honey's obsession is tinged with an innocent, unrestrainable adoration; today, he'd exhibited a different form of excitement – utterly indescribable – himself the unstoppable force bursting like kindled flame, himself an agent of danger.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Honey is not someone that you'd want to cross. However, with clarity, Kaoru appreciates that his senior is content to be mostly harmless nearly all of the time. He simply isn't sure why. A ruse to mislead opponents? A deliberate suppression of himself to keep the peace? A ploy of obfuscating stupidity? A social tool to help him blend in?

Not that Honey's routine behaviour can be categorised as 'blending in' with human beings who function normally…

Does Honey even have a motive?

"Good, Kao-chan. Exactly like that."

Kaoru refocuses on his senior, completely at sea.

"Always move onwards to the next order of business. Kao-chan wants to know how Kyou-chan is so quick-witted; here is your answer. Reduce the time that you spend blaming yourself and immediately latch on to any new facts that you've been presented with. When things go wrong, enough people are going to try to shift the blame onto Kao-chan without Kao-chan doing it himself."

"Ah! That's…"

"Common sense, Kao-chan. Even if Kao-chan ends up with endless questions, it is only by questioning that Kao-chan will arrive at the answers. The right questions will lead to the right answers, and more questions will lead to more answers. When Kao-chan condemns himself, he's asking: 'why didn't I know the answer?' rather than 'what is the answer?'. Analysing your errors should come after solving the problem. Kao-chan, knowing why you've failed in and of itself generally doesn't solve anything – it's a precedent to stop you from making the same mistake the next time."

"I – I know that. Hikaru and Kyouya-senpai have mentioned it to me. I try, but it's hard for me – "

"It's hard for Kao-chan because Kao-chan views himself as a stabilising force, especially for Hika-chan. Kao-chan wants to be selfless."

Kaoru sets his glass down on the table carefully, or he suspects he may drop it in surprise later on.

"Why does – I just prefer to develop my self-awareness, senpai! I need to know where I've gone wrong! It has no connection to Hikaru!"

"Oh, Kao-chan," Honey says, and it could have been terribly patronising. Instead, coming from this master, it is caring and accepting, a calming presence that resonates within Kaoru. He sits down beside Kaoru and rests his palm against Kaoru's knee, as though he knows – of course he knows – that Kaoru responds well to physical contact.

"Kyou-chan likes to know where he's gone wrong too, but it isn't hard for Kyou-chan to stop blaming himself. Sometimes Kyou-chan doesn't blame himself at all."

"That's because Kyouya-senpai is practical and smart and he doesn't let himself waste time and effort on – "

"No. No, Kao-chan," Honey sighs. "What do the people who blame themselves have in common?"

"Perfectionism, senpai," Kaoru says promptly. "They reject anything less."

Honey quirks a wry smile. "Try again," he urges.

Kaoru racks his brains.

"Umm… But, senpai, doesn't perfectionism lead to self-blame? It's just – even knowing that they are putting a lot of pressure on themselves, perfectionists often have difficulty aiming lower."

"That's right, Kao-chan. Perfectionism leads to self-blame. They are not the same thing. Rejecting anything less can manifest in blaming other people," Honey tells him. "Takashi isn't a perfectionist, though he often blames himself. Kyou-chan is a perfectionist, yet he rarely does. People who blame themselves either take on excessive personal responsibility, like Takashi, or they are unable to let go of the past; in some cases, they do both, like you, Kao-chan. Everything about Kao-chan has everything to do with Hika-chan. In Kao-chan's mind, he is the one who is stable, constant – Kao-chan hangs on to give Hika-chan the freedom to change his mind, to be Hika-chan's home base when Hika-chan runs after what he wants. Doesn't this mean that Kao-chan naturally resists change? So when change occurs – when accidents take place – Kao-chan is looking back, turning back, scolding himself for not doing better, for not preventing it; in the end, by asking himself what he could have done to control the change, Kao-chan misses the opportunity to actually control it."

Knocked speechless, Kaoru tries to rapidly absorb what his senior is telling him. He finds he cannot dispute anything Honey has said, and he scratches the back of his head sheepishly, mouth slightly agape.

"Kao-chan is worried about becoming club president, isn't it? Let's work on it! No more worrying in silence," Honey declares. "No more running circles around us in order to find a solution. Kao-chan thinks that his emotions are his problem alone, so he doesn't express them to us. It's good, in that Kao-chan takes responsibility for the way he feels, but at the same time, Kao-chan never truly solves his problems. That's why Kao-chan invariably tries to change the external circumstances, in the belief that when the external circumstances change, his internal feelings will have to change along with it."

"Hehh… heh heh… senpai…"

"Shall we try something new, Kao-chan? Everything that Kao-chan doesn't understand, everything that Kao-chan wants to ask, will Kao-chan honestly list them out?"

Kaoru is acutely aware that though they may have left the car, Honey has never once vacated the driving seat. By this point, he is fully seized of the implications of what he'd agreed to in front of Mori's dojo – Honey and Mori's amenability to staying on the sidelines does not preclude their capacity to act when circumstances call for it, and if there's anyone who could reasonably be expected to help the twins to grow… if Honey and Mori team up to work on them…

Kaoru realises, with a sense of instinctive but ungrounded horror, that they might actually succeed.

The kingly yin-yang combination of Kyouya and Tamaki so easily outshine everything else that it has a tendency to dominate the attention of the school population. At times it seems that the poster boy and the manager single-handedly create miracles, and it is during those moments where it slips the mind that the host club possesses two other big guns in its artillery – 'cannons' is more apt a description, and Mori is a one-man tank – who train the freaking military and are capable of serving other people's asses to them on a plate even when grossly outnumbered.

The résumé is already impressive, yet this evaluation of his seniors' might hasn't taken into account other critical factors. For example, Kaoru thinks that the average Haninozuka or Morinozuka could probably bypass most, if not all, of the security systems of the upper-class Japanese families and assassinate them; actually, considering that they socialise in the same ranks of society, they could simply let fly their shuriken during a ball. It's arguable whether they'd make it out alive, though getting to the target shouldn't pose an insurmountable difficulty. It's one of those things that, if studied too intently, makes people very uncomfortable.

Incidentally, this reminds him of a wacky story his grandmother once told him and Hikaru (… which sounds less and less wacky by the instant) – of the time where Honey's beloved grandmother, the great sensei who made Usa-chan, commissioned Kaoru's grandmother to disguise a number of sharp blades into the stalks and petals of real flowers to wear as a hair ornament to a formal dinner which had been held in honour of the visiting Queen Elizabeth II. Haninozuka females habitually opt for the distance disciplines, notably Kyūdō (and shurikenjutsu, though the family doesn't acknowledge this secretive art), to distract their enemies and support their men in the front lines of battle. It's a good rule of thumb, their grandmother had said, to presume that no Haninozuka ever leaves himself or herself defenceless.

Besides, despite being practitioners of the traditional martial arts, Kaoru is convinced that they are also masters of modern weaponry. Owing to their primary reputation, and the fact that their prescribed training regimen for the military is concerned with physical endurance and close quarters combat, many appear to take it for granted (or perhaps they hope in vain) that the Haninozukas turn their noses up at contemporary advances in warfare.

What Kaoru sees is: his senior is explicitly in tune with the possibilities of machinery.

What Kaoru hears is: he's talked to Yorihisa-sama enough to deduce that he is an extremely intelligent, if eccentric, man who emphasises continual self-improvement and makes decisions based on the benefits to his family and the Morinozuka family.

What Kaoru knows is: 1) Honey and Mori are incomparably proficient at sports because they approach everything with a 'can do' attitude. 2) Mori is short-sighted but not Honey. 3) Not only is Honey not short-sighted, his family is famously genetically blessed in the realm of visual acuity – Yorihisa-sama has 20/15 vision, and both Honey and Chika have inherited 20/10 vision from their late grandmother.

Kaoru is willing to bet that his senior has, in all likelihood, handled firearms in spite of his age. At the very least his senior would have been to a shooting range and tried his hand at airsoft guns, because no one who utilises the MachBunny IV so expertly can be devoid of some laudable level of marksmanship.

Amongst the elite, there are some more elite than others. In terms of ancestry, the Haninozuka family is on par with the Suous, which means – whisper it – they are a smidge nobler than the Ootoris. Wielding both pen and sword equally well, their legacy is a chain of courtiers and warrior generals whose influence peaked during the mid-feudal era (having associated with Honey and Mori in cozy proximity, Kaoru can see how their militant forebears would have ruled supreme), as opposed to the Ootori family, who only really came into their own during the Tokugawa period.

There's something dryly ironic about that, since the Ootoris have long thrived in the medical field; that is to say, recovery from injury and disease, much of which had been brought about by – you guessed it: war.

As Honey is a legitimate heir, his blood is technically the bluest of their assorted bunch, eclipsing their endearingly daft club president, and it is the ravages of war that led to the stripping of land, wealth and status from the Haninozuka clan, crippling them to an extent that allowed them to be overtaken in significance and clout. Having adapted triumphantly to their changing circumstances, they remain unsurpassed by new money but affluent pedigree families have risen to rival their esteemed position.

"This is senpai's plan!" Kaoru exclaims. "Senpai planned to bring me here today! To – to show me how much I – "

"Do I really look like a person with a plan, Kao-chan?" Enormous brown eyes gaze at him. "It was Takashi who wanted Hika-chan to train today. And yesterday it was Kyou-chan and Tama-chan who asked us not to interfere to give Tama-chan time to talk to you. All of Kao-chan's senpais are looking out for him!"

Erk. Really? But Kaoru had been sure that Honey was playing his hand.

"Then – then why is senpai…?"

"I agree with their plans, Kao-chan. I'm just reacting to what I thought Kao-chan needed. It's fun chatting with friends, isn't it? It lets Kao-chan know that he's not alone."

"Ah… I didn't think I was alone! I knew I was being silly."

Honey grins at him indulgently. "Kao-chan's not alone in being silly."

A self-deprecating laugh escapes Kaoru. He's a member of the host club, champions of the absurd and the nonsensical. It's amazing how he manages to feel stupid among them.

He ruminates over a number of issues while sipping at his non-alcoholic cocktail, forcing back the desire to blurt everything out indiscriminately. It's not that he doesn't trust Honey – on the contrary, he's hesitant because he doesn't know whether he'll like the answers he receives.

If he asks, Honey will reply. And Honey will be right.

Kaoru still believes that Honey had enacted a plan. It's a matter of gut instinct; just as he senses that the rest of the things Honey had claimed about what Mori, Kyouya and Tamaki were thinking is true – but he knows, he knows Honey had something to do with it somewhere. Wouldn't it be frightful if Honey had orchestrated those three into orchestrating the confrontation?

He slants a nervous glance at his senior, who's tossing Usa-chan in the air with carefree jubilance.

Can anyone be that effortlessly superior?

"Yes, Kao-chan? Ready to begin your list?"

Kaoru flinches at being caught.

"Uhh," he hedges, and to cover it up he blabs out the thing at the forefront of his mind but which he'd wished to discuss the least, "Kyouya-senpai could tell Hikaru and I apart before Haruhi."

Honey instantaneously breaks into what must be the biggest non-cake-related smile in his life.

Okay, that pretty much confirms that Mori also knows that Haruhi hadn't been the first.

Dejected, Kaoru slouches down in his seat. "I… I guess I thought Haruhi was special. I thought nobody else could do what she could. I mean, even our nanny who lived with us couldn't tell who was who."

"Haru-chan is special."

Kaoru heaves a fatigued breath. "Apparently not. Honey-senpai, what should I do? I don't dare to say anything to Hikaru. It'll ruin him."

A flash of an emotion across Honey's face, too rapid to be identified. "Has Kao-chan considered the possibility that he might be mistaken about the actual nature of Haru-chan's power?"

"… What do you mean, senpai?" he ventures, straightening a little in curiosity.

"Does Kao-chan know why Kyou-chan kept quiet about it?"

Kaoru's chuckle sounds strained to his own ears. "There's no merit in it for Kyouya-senpai. The worst case is Hikaru and I would have rejected him, and Tono would have to search for more club members. I can't imagine us sticking to him like we did to Haruhi. No doubt Kyouya-senpai catalogued it for future use anyway."

"Eheheh. It's true that Kyou-chan weighed the pros and cons, but Kyou-chan is not callous. Kao-chan should know that by now."

"I do! I kind of hope that part of the reason was that Kyouya-senpai cared about us. It's quite far-fetched, though. We weren't even friends then."

"Is Kao-chan saying that he doesn't believe Kyou-chan cares about others unless Kyou-chan is friends with them?" Honey questions in an oddly disappointed tone.

"No! No, Honey-senpai. What I'm saying is, I think Kyouya-senpai is largely indifferent to most people, but he wouldn't antagonize or harm others without provocation. Ahaha! Yeah, in general, the things that Kyouya-senpai does frequently minimise the inconvenience and risk for everyone involved! It's like he doesn't really care but he cares enough anyway, and by that time we were already 'employees of the club', so Kyouya-senpai wouldn't have… Oh. Oh." Kaoru pauses, comprehension dawning on him. "Honey-senpai is saying that Kyouya-senpai knew that to distinguish between Hikaru and I would be to hurt us."

Honey presses an achingly soft kiss on Kaoru's temple.

"Kao-chan and Hika-chan weren't ready. Kao-chan needed to have Hika-chan by his side while his world expanded. If Kao-chan had been separated from Hika-chan before their shared social circle had widened, neither of you would have survived it. Kyou-chan was aware that he could not have broken the news to Kao-chan and Hika-chan gently; given Kyou-chan's upbringing, Kyou-chan accordingly practises primum non nocere. That's why it doesn't matter that Kyou-chan can tell you apart, because Haru-chan was the right person at the right time with the right temperament. That makes Haru-chan important and irreplaceable."

It's on the tip of Kaoru's tongue to solicit a second affirmation of Kyouya's rationale, and suddenly… there's no need, because it's all true.

"Haruhi wasn't gentle!" he objects, flabbergasted. "She said Hikaru was mean!"

"She was. Haru-chan never thought it was a big deal that she could differentiate between Hika-chan and Kao-chan. Doesn't this indicate that Haru-chan has only ever seen you as individuals? Haru-chan didn't have an agenda; she wasn't seeking to impress anybody or make use of anyone – Haru-chan's kind heart made her blunt words gentle."

Kaoru has to wonder how long it has been since the three wise seniors of the club have reached this particular conclusion. This faultless logic, he submits entirely to it.

Yes.

This is the reason Haruhi has the right to say what she thinks of them individually.

"Ugghhh…" he groans as he crumples to his left pitifully and lays his head on Honey's lap. "To think I – I'm ashamed that I ever thought of myself as insightful."

"Hmm?" Honey ponders liltingly. "What did I say about focusing on your failures?"

"React fast. Cut my losses. Yeah."

Honey bobs his head in a jaunty nod. "That's how Kao-chan will learn to be a quitter like Kyou-chan."

"Eh?!" Kaoru raises himself up on his elbows. "Kyouya-senpai is anything but!"

Honey meets his eyes conspiratorially. "Eight months ago," he begins conversationally, "there was a scandal in the food importing industry. Does Kao-chan know it?"

"… Tomimeshi?"

For decades, Tomimeshi had been one of the top food importing companies in Japan. The person to whom the company owed its success, Noda Kujo, died at sixty-two years old after a short battle with cancer and his only child Noda Kuroda took over his business a year ago amidst much contention and a lack of support from the Tomimeshi's board. To increase the profit margin, Noda junior changed several overseas suppliers to people who were less ethical about handling and packaging the food; tens of thousands of people came down with food poisoning before they managed to recall their products.

"Yes. Because of his friendship with Kujo-chan, Kyou-chan had quite a lot of shares in Tomimeshi. When Noda Kuroda-san – "

Kujo-chan?!

"Wait, senpai! Wh – How do you know this!"

"Ara? Kyou-chan's family hospitals were supplied by Tomimeshi, ne? When their contract expired in 2006 and Ootori-sama decided not to renew it, Kyou-chan stayed in contact with Kujo-chan. As I was saying, when Noda Kuroda-san took over the company, the share price continued to be stable and high, and many shareholders chose not to sell their shares despite their misgivings about him. They thought that even if Noda Kuroda-san wasn't as good at running a business as Kujo-chan, he would at least keep the company going," Honey explains. "Kyou-chan sold all his shares the day after Kujo-chan passed away. To escape dead ends quickly is a skill, Kao-chan. On an occasion where something no longer works for Kao-chan, Kao-chan must quit fast and quit without guilt."

Kaoru scoffs a little. "I know how Noda Kuroda is like! He's dense. Does senpai think I'll hang on in misguided hope if I'd owned shares?"

Honey smiles sadly at him. "In that situation, no."

"And I do in other situations?!" Kaoru demands, mildly outraged.

"What does Kao-chan think he was doing with Haru-chan? For that matter, after Kao-chan's fruitless confession to Haru-chan, what does Kao-chan think he was doing with Hika-chan and Tama-chan too?"

Honey's scrutiny is unnerving.

Kaoru shrinks in on himself, feeling about two inches tall. His fingers have gone as cold as Kyouya's and he's resisting the shudder that's threatening to crawl up his back. He has an unpleasant premonition that he's going to receive an ass-kicking from Honey, one that has been a long time coming.

"Kao-chan was the first to recognise his feelings for Haru-chan, yet Kao-chan dawdled, unable to decide between giving up on Haru-chan and giving up on maintaining the status quo. Hika-chan finally pushed Kao-chan into action; instead of making a razor-clean cut, Kao-chan then chose to mitigate his loss by helping Hika-chan when he should have pulled away."

"I helped Hikaru because I'm his twin, senpai," Kaoru hisses, the hard edge from before creeping back into his voice.

"I believe that Kao-chan felt duty-bound and was happy to help Hika-chan," Honey acknowledges freely. "But you don't fool me, Kao-chan. At a time where Kao-chan's emotions were so fresh, it must have been painful to struggle with them alone. No – the whole reason is: a part of Kao-chan still thinks that he can share everything with Hika-chan. Isn't it? If Haru-chan had accepted Hika-chan, if Haru-chan joins Kao-chan's family, then in a small way Kao-chan will have her as well."

Honey throws out these statements like… like…! Like reporting the weather, he's calm and sure and gallingly assured about their veracity.

There's compassion threading through it, which kills Kaoru.

"Even so, Honey-senpai," Kaoru whispers, "How could I just step back and leave Hikaru to suffer by himself? How could I, when Haruhi was already showing signs of affection towards Tono? On the snow mountain, Hikaru was torn between Tono and Haruhi, he was stupid and helpless and – "

"The bond between Kao-chan and Hika-chan is strong. Hika-chan is worth the time and stress of holding on," Honey yields. "Is Kyou-chan?"

Clearly, "Yes."

"All right, Kao-chan. In that case, is Kao-chan going about it the right way?"

"…No," Kaoru admits, disheartened.

"Why is it incorrect?"

"Kyouya-senpai isn't impressed by hard work. Hard work is the norm and improvement is expected." Kaoru can't stop Kyouya's time to catch up to him – with every step forward that he takes, so does Kyouya; he mightn't be able to keep the two third-year seniors in his field of vision once they begin sprinting away.

"In other words, Kao-chan knows that he's fighting a losing battle?"

When he puts it that way…

"Senpai, please don't be so harsh!" Kaoru wails.

Honey directs a piercing glance at him and falls silent obligingly. The dialogue stalls completely since Kaoru can offer no defence or justification. Tension mounts steadily amidst the sounds of their rhythmic breathing, though Kaoru appears to be the only one affected by it.

"I'll pay more attention, Honey-senpai," he says finally. "Now that I know how many things I've missed noticing, I'll keep a closer watch."

Half expecting Honey to give a nod of approval at last, he finds to his great bemusement that Honey bubbles over with amused giggles.

"… What?" he asks warily.

"Kyou-chan is not hard to read at all. He thinks he is, but he isn't, Kao-chan."

Kaoru sighs resignedly. "Maybe not for you, senpai."

"Not for Kao-chan either!" Honey chirps.

His shoulders hunched in frustration, Kaoru barely manages to stop himself from rolling his eyes defiantly. His senior catches the aborted action easily.

"Kao-chan doesn't need to worry about his powers of observation. It is because Kao-chan does see, that is why Kao-chan is feeling this way. That's the problem of being too perceptive, you know. You start to think you can do everything, because you can see everything," Honey comments as he gazes down at a group of workers emerging from the garages, resembling small insects from this distance.

Kaoru blinks at him.

After a pause, "It's interesting that Kao-chan used the term 'impress'."

"Huh?" He is thrown by the non sequitur.

"Earlier. Kao-chan mentioned that Kyou-chan isn't impressed by hard work. That implies that Kao-chan is aiming to impress Kyou-chan."

Vaguely embarrassed though unsure why, Kaoru mumbles some polite but trite excuses that Honey swiftly interrupts.

"Isn't Kao-chan being a little quick to discount his subconscious? Kao-chan has good instincts; follow them."

"So… I really do have to impress Kyouya-senpai?"

"Yes," Honey agrees, eyes twinkling. In a tone that borders on playful, he questions, "Why?"

"I wish I knew." Kaoru frowns. "I just feel it. Can't explain it."

"Hmm," Honey hums rather suggestively, neither affirming nor denying anything.

"Then again, practically everyone wants to impress Kyouya-senpai. It might be that Kyouya-senpai's opinion simply carries that much weight."

"Or," Honey proposes slowly, deliberately, "perhaps, Kao-chan, some people may have sensed that it is one of the keys to unlock Kyou-chan's defences."

"Yes!" Kaoru exclaims, scrambling upright. "Yes! Senpai also thinks so?"

"I'm surprised that Kao-chan is surprised," Honey professes. "Actually, when Tama-chan first saw through Kyou-chan, Kyou-chan reacted in almost the same way that Kao-chan did to Haru-chan."

A cursory search of his memory produces no noteworthy events coinciding with the timeframe during which the two seniors first became acquainted. Kyouya certainly never got into fights or caused any commotion in school.

"I'm not talking about the outward reaction, Kao-chan, but in terms of how you felt. When Haru-chan first saw through Kao-chan and Hika-chan, Kao-chan's first reaction was shock. What was your second?"

"… Moved," Kaoru says straightaway. "And… and, impressed. I was moved and impressed."

Honey is already nodding away cheerfully.

"Yes, Kao-chan. Both you and Kyou-chan found something unexpected. It had enough personal significance to make Kao-chan and Kyou-chan receptive. In Kyou-chan's case, Kyou-chan believes in his inherent self-worth, so the fact that Tama-chan managed to move him at all obliges Kyou-chan to be impressed with Tama-chan. To Kyou-chan, and to Kao-chan, Tama-chan and Haru-chan achieved the impossible. There's a question that's been pestering Kao-chan," he deduces astutely. As though extracting the words straight from his junior's mind, Honey gives them form and expression: "'Why is it that, even though I think I read Kyouya-senpai quite well, we aren't as close as I'd like?' The answer, obviously, is that being able to read Kyou-chan is not very important at all, Kao-chan."

In a flash, Kaoru gets it.

He attempts to convey his understanding in a series of words, mangled and unfinished "ohhs", "rights" and "of courses".

"And that is Haruhi and Tono's real power," Kaoru finishes on behalf of his senior. "The ability to bridge that last gap. The ability to tell Kyouya-senpai… to tell Hikaru and I that we've been seen through."

Honey beams at him. "Full marks, Kao-chan."

That's not the only paradigm-shifting revelation that Kaoru is experiencing – previously, he found it more than a little difficult to reconcile the knowledge that his three very wise seniors, Honey, Mori and Kyouya, could have possibly been bested in their observational and analytical skill, whether combined or separate.

Indubitably, in their daily interactions in or outside club, the three seniors have repeatedly demonstrated a thorough understanding of him, his needs, his wants, his motivations. In some areas, such as upbringing and society, they probably have a better grasp of the twins than even Haruhi does. Their acumen does not pale in comparison to Tamaki's or Haruhi's, and rather likely trumps theirs, to be honest – comically enough, it might be Tamaki's and Haruhi's characteristic bluntness in social situations that led to the breakthroughs, and not because those two had made some particularly ground-breaking discovery.

It is now that Kaoru appreciates the depth of their insight, the many layers of a debt of kindness that he had not known he'd owed. It is not merely about figuring out their true natures, but also discerning the way to protect them, and having the decency to do so; the acceptance that they are not the right person, and the patience to wait for said right people.

What does one do? How should a person respond? Kaoru doesn't think he's ever felt more humbled in his life.

"I've wanted to tell Kao-chan this since I realised that Kao-chan was struggling," Honey says, re-establishing the sort of open, welcoming and familiar physical contact that Kaoru likes best. "That Kao-chan really isn't alone. I've wanted Tama-chan's power too, to reach out, to cause change. To convince Chika."

Kaoru snaps his head up at that startling honesty, a simple sentence that is, in truth, a bundle of small confessions.

"Most of all, I wanted Kao-chan to know that, president or not, Kao-chan is loveable to all of us, and I don't believe Kao-chan is lacking anything."

The lump in Kaoru's throat is starting to hurt; he swallows once, twice – his shoes are the only things he can bear to look at, and he must have chewed through his bottom lip though the stinging feeling is coming from the vicinity of his chest…

Yet his gratitude is overwhelming, and he is fiercely seized by the desire to return some of the graciousness and comfort that have been gifted to him today. Voice trembling awfully, he injects all of his sincerity into the one assurance he knows he can give, "You are a worthy Haninozuka heir, senpai."

His senior is quiet, and Kaoru cannot decipher it.

Then, "No, I was thinking I could convince Chika that it's okay to like cute things."

Having lost his equilibrium, Kaoru takes several moments to absorb his senior's reply. He stares, and hesitantly stutters, "Uh, senpai, your priorities…" while remaining utterly unable to decide if Honey is joking or not, until a crack shows in Honey's composure – laughter escapes him in a huff, and the both of them become consumed by hysterics, their bellies aching with the effort.

They try to calm down several times, largely unsuccessfully as one of them would provoke the other back into laughter. As they gasp for breath, Kaoru studies his beloved Honey-senpai through blurry vision, and thinks his heart might burst at the seams from feeling so full.

He finds himself fervently wishing that Honey will consent to taking himself apart more often, to be this Honey more often. Noticeably more dangerous, with tantalizing hints of a sharper, shrewder personality and devastatingly penetrating intuition – are these still only the tip of the iceberg?

Kaoru no longer wants to know a Honey who is harmless, or a Honey who inspires fear by the act of waking up. No, he wants to know the nuances in between, he wants to scrape at the fabled split personality and unearth the latent power buried beneath.

"We should be getting back, Kao-chan. Takashi and Hika-chan will worry if we're gone for too long," Honey reminds him as he stands up briskly and leads the way out.

Kaoru walks behind unhurriedly, and he stops suddenly when a thought strikes him. Honey turns back to face him, mildly puzzled.

Not bothering to beat around the bush, Kaoru jumps directly to his inquiry. "Honey-senpai, how long have you and Mori-senpai been able to tell us apart?"

Honey's eyelids fall half shut in contemplation, closely measuring and gauging Kaoru.

"It's fine, senpai. I can handle it now. I want to know," Kaoru asserts earnestly.

A small smile plays around Honey's lips. "Two months after we were first introduced."

Kaoru's mouth drops open involuntarily, forming a little 'o'. He is about to yelp something to the effect of "you took even less time than Kyouya-senpai!" when his brain thankfully kicks in and restrains his tongue.

Briefly he wonders if it is a case of two heads being better than one… a look at that pair of too-brilliant eyes is sufficient to dispel that theory. Kaoru's instincts are shouting that both Honey and Mori managed it on their own, and he's frankly positive that the two eldest seniors saw fit to let Kyouya come to his conclusions in his own time.

He says, "Okay."

Although the emotions that accompanied the feats performed by Haruhi and Tamaki cannot be replicated, Kaoru nonetheless registers a detached awe – Honey has done everything right, and how can that be any less potent?

"I think, senpai," Kaoru continues, "You have a lot more of Tono's power than you give yourself credit for."

"I could say the same to you, Kao-chan," Honey comes right back at him.

Kaoru laughs somewhat haltingly. "I'm not that ambitious, Honey-senpai. I just want the six of you."

And as uncomplicated as that, wholly unlooked-for, the truth is out.

"Then Kao-chan knows what to do, ne? In martial arts, when an attack fails to take down the opponent's defences, you switch tactics. The main issue facing Kao-chan is that Kyou-chan already knows that Kao-chan is clever and observant, so Kao-chan can't pretend to be endearingly clueless. Kao-chan will need to think of a strategy to catch Kyou-chan without making Kyou-chan feel trapped."

Kaoru snorts. "That's not possible, senpai!"

"It's not impossible, it just needs imagination. And Kao-chan has plenty of that, doesn't he?"

Rosy pink blossoms dancing spiritedly around his person, Honey's broad smile puts angels to shame with its radiance.

.

---

.

"Change for dinner, boys." Their father waves them upstairs as soon as they arrive home to be met by too many Hitachiins under one roof than is strictly advisable.

Kazuha passes them in the hallway and pinches them on the cheeks in a decidedly un-grandmotherly fashion, displaying the devious smirk that seems constantly unnoticed by everyone else but the twins. Hikaru tries to make her trip by accidentally-on-purpose snagging her ugly kimono on his studded watch and the fabric actually rips, leaving the twins in a mixed state of alarm and satisfaction.

With a sinister eyebrow curved upwards, the demon lady returns to her room to replace her dress while escorted by her husband, a role model for ninjas.

They are in the midst of congratulating themselves when a flurry of energy bowls them over.

"Outfits on the bed!" their mother yells, propelling them into their room by bodily force and slamming the door behind her as she scurries away to the veritable explosion of noise that is emanating from the main dining hall.

They primp and preen to uphold their mother's illustrious reputation, and by the time they exit their room, the grand hall is packed with the rest of the extended family, with more entering through the great double doors.

"Oh man," Hikaru groans, stuffing one hand into the trouser pocket of his perfectly creased bottle-green velvet suit and using the other to prop himself against the parapet lazily. His pearl white silk shirt shimmers where it catches the light from the crystal chandelier, exquisitely accessorised with a cravat of fine champagne-gold brocade and an emerald ring the size of a postage stamp.

It might be rather narcissistic since they're identical, but damn Hikaru is hot.

"Now, I did say that we'd be having dinner with the family." Yuzuha materialises behind them, the tiniest strain of admonishment prickling their skin disagreeably. "My babies, you both look marvellous."

"I see we have vastly differing interpretations of 'family', Mother," Kaoru tells her, rather tetchy at this unannounced big event. Usually the twins adore parties, planned or otherwise, but their enjoyment of these parties is dependent on the attendees, and Kaoru has already spotted some people that he'd sooner call enemies than family.

"I thought you said 'grandparents'," Hikaru grumbles.

"Other family members have turned up," their mother explains shortly. Upon examination, Kaoru observes that she appears a little tense around the jaw; before he can ask about it discreetly, they are joined by their grandmother, who is resplendent in the most elegant kimono Kaoru has ever seen.

So the family is dressed to kill. Nothing out of the ordinary there.

"Yuzuha," their grandmother says imperiously, her bearing incomparably regal as she makes her way down the staircase, supported by her husband like a dowager empress of old. Yuzuha rains several more kisses upon them before chasing after her mother.

His parents seemed happier in the morning, Kaoru reflects privately.

An arm braces against each of the twins' backs, gathering them up and gently pushing them forward. Their father's deep voice sounds softly in their ears, "Let's go."

.

---

.

Schmoozing comes easily and fluently when one entertains for a living.

Hikaru and Kaoru fall into their routine, sans incest elements for propriety's sake, and by the last course they have racked up the general good favour of approximately eighty percent of the extended family.

The accomplishment is less remarkable than it sounds. Of that eighty percent, most are not intimately acquainted with the core of the family, which means that they've retained their geniality and healthy appreciation for the… quirks and originality of Kaoru's immediate relations. The remainder of the twenty percent are people who will never be convinced of the twins' goodness, like the aunt who (tried to) raise them (extremely unsuccessfully, in Kaoru's opinion), or they are the distant relations who harbour personal vendettas because of the core family's comparative status and wealth.

Ding-ding-ding-ding!

The attention of the table is diverted by the clear tinkling of a bell held in the right hand of Kaoru's mother.

"Thank you all for joining us tonight," Yuzuha launches into her speech with artful poise. "Seems that us Hitachiins are truly incapable of hosting low-key affairs."

Her sentiment is greeted by a considerable roar of fiendish laughter and rowdy applause.

"The more the merrier!" Ren's husband claps enthusiastically.

"Hear, hear!"

Hikaru sends a mental poke his way to indicate a bunch of conspicuously more subdued people – even after all this time, their father's very proper Japanese side of the family has retained their faint apprehension at this lack of decorum, although Kaoru knows that they are incredibly fond of their daughter- or sister-in-law.

They are intimidated by Kazuha, however, and the twins' repeated allegations of their maternal grandmother's nefarious nature must not have lent them any sense of peace.

"More is definitely merrier!" Yuzuha echoes. "Hence, Yasuhiro and I are delighted to announce that we are expecting."

A hush falls upon the seated crowd.

WHAA-AA-AAAT, Hikaru yowls down their twin channel.

Someone around the massive table chokes on their dessert.

To describe them as gobsmacked is putting it lightly. Kaoru and his brother are seventeen! That is not an age at which normal people should expect to gain siblings!

A riot erupts; in the joyous chaos, there's a family who isn't particularly thrilled about the news, admirably though they hide it. Kaoru nudges Hikaru and turns to the most quick-witted person from whom to take his cues – sure as can be, Kazuha has her gaze fixed firmly on her younger sister and brother-in-law.

Yuzuha and Yasuhiro are heartily accepting well-wishes from the others. To an ordinary viewer it may seem that their attentions are altogether occupied, yet Kaoru realises that they are adeptly avoiding Yuzuha's cousins, and then accepting the most minimal of compliments from them.

Later, Kaoru says to Hikaru. They kiss and hug their parents, permit themselves to be annoyed at being kept in the dark, and resolve to spy on their elders after the guests depart.

.

---

.

"Ow!"

"Shhh!"

Hikaru glares at his twin. If you want me to be quiet, don't step on my fingers!

If you don't want me to step on your fingers, crawl slower!

Kaoru makes to turn his head back to the front when he feels a smarting sensation on his bottom; evidently, Hikaru had decided to pinch the nearest accessible surface on his brother's body. Reflexively, Kaoru jabs his foot backwards and it makes contact with its unfortunate target.

They're navigating the house using the hidden passageways that they used to use as pesky young troublemakers. Where once they could get from one room to another with utmost dexterity, abandoning the adults to their befuddlement at the vanishing acts, they've now outgrown their secret maze.

'Get a move on," Hikaru growls, clasping his arm where Kaoru'd kicked him. "If we miss their conversation it'll be your fault."

Arranging his body to squeeze through a stooped doorway, Kaoru emerges into a crevice that offers a prime view of the interior of the library, the best room in the mansion to have conversations in confidence. The intimacy can be enhanced by dimming the lighting and selecting the seats in the corner, obscured by heavy shelves and protected by soundproofed walls.

The clock in the grand hall chimes two o'clock through the still night. Pregnant women shouldn't be keeping late hours, but there reclines their mother in the plushest chaise with one hand held between both of her husband's.

"Yuzuha," the twins' grandfather advises, "you should go to sleep. Your mother will take care of this."

"Quite right, dear," their smitten father says, reaching over to pull his wife's sleeping robe more snugly across her chest. His hair is damp from his bath before, as is their mother's.

Yuzuha sighs. "Am I being selfish?"

Kazuha lets out a rude sound that could have been made by Hikaru in one of his foulest moods. "My parents wanted me to have the ikebana school. I only have you, my daughter. You are entitled to want your children to inherit the school."

"But my boys love fashion, so Aunt Midori was hoping you'd name her grandchil – "

"If my sister or your cousins came to any premature assumptions about my successors," Kazuha begins archly, pausing in the act of sipping her flower tea, "then they have only themselves to blame."

"They've had their eye on it for a long time, Mother. And I didn't stop them because I didn't think I'd have any more children."

Their grandmother flaps a hand dismissively. "The way they rushed here today was disgraceful. Flimsy excuse of a gift! Hikaru and Kaoru shouldn't have to choose a career as a favour to me; and you, my Yuzuha, shouldn't have to be pressured into giving up your right to take over the school."

She sets the teacup down on the low table and rises, finality etched into her posture. "This is my decision: I will hold on to the school until we've had the chance to decide whether your youngest has the interest and aptitude for ikebana."

"Even I think it's a bit much to make them wait for fifteen or twenty years, Mother," Yuzuha says wryly.

"Nonsense. I still have decades left in me," the matriarch says confidently. "They'll be waiting for fifteen or twenty years anyway."

At her comments, their grandfather presses his lips together to withhold a chuckle.

"Thank you, Mother." Yuzuha and Yasuhiro bow deeply towards her. "We're sorry that it'll make you look bad."

"Not as bad as their gift would have made me look," she mutters disgruntledly as she sweeps out.

Kaoru sees his mother turn inquisitively towards his grandfather.

"I'm afraid," comes the regretful reply, "that your children wrecked the kimono."

"Thank good – I mean, oh no. Is Mother upset?"

"Not at all." Their grandfather yawns widely. "Kazuha thought it was hideous. She was determined that they should be unable to force her to wear it."

The adults titter mischievously and retire to bed, leaving Hikaru to rail indignantly about being played by the evilest villain to walk the earth.

.

---

.

For the second successive morning, the twins wake at an unholy hour.

"Ugghh…" Kaoru moans piteously and burrows into his blankets when Hikaru flicks the lights on. He is plagued with the misfortune of having the most pigheaded twin in the universe, and he proceeds to lodge his complaint with whichever deity might be listening in.

"Yeah, yeah, I guess that means you wouldn't bawl like a baby because you were separated from me for a second."

"I was a baby!" Kaoru scowls irritably. "And you cried too!"

Hikaru rolls his eyes. "Good, you're up. If we don't make our way to Tono's house in half an hour or less, we'd basically have to go straight to school."

Unwilling to endure this again, Kaoru wills himself upright and readies himself for what he hopes will be an uneventful day.

.

---

.

"Hikaru! Kaoru!" Tamaki shoots up from his chair in astonishment, breakfast utensils clattering on the table.

"Morning, Tono."

The three of them shuffle around awkwardly, hemming and hawing; predictably, Tamaki breaks the silence.

"Are the both of you okay? I – I wanted to visit you yesterday but Kyouya said…"

Hikaru blurts out, "I'm sorry," concomitantly with Kaoru's, "Are you okay?"

"I'm sorry too!" Tamaki bursts into tears and rushes at them with arms a-flailing. "I was so worried!"

When Tamaki says that he's been worried, he really has been. In a way that normal people cannot begin to imagine. He has this saving people thing where he needs to be in the physical presence of those that he is concerned about, and he'd fly to the moon and beyond to make that happen because he's just… he's just so idiotically pure.

Kaoru drops his head onto one of Tamaki's shoulders, wondering why Tamaki has to be so excruciatingly sincere about everything, pointless or useless or not, and how is it that his heart hasn't been blasted apart by other people's callousness and ignorance.

It rends Kaoru's own heart to think of feeling the emotions that Tamaki has actually felt, and Kaoru is smart enough to know that past a certain point, the miracle is not that people can love, but that people still love.

Tamaki is the reason Kaoru gets murderous when he hears schoolmates calling the hosts fake; maybe the rest of them are from time to time but Tamaki alone should be exempt from this disparagement. Well, Haruhi and Tamaki. Kaoru is far from the only one who holds this sentiment – non-club-members do not know that this casual insult is one of the most affecting to the club, since everyone except Tamaki and Haruhi takes it personally as an affront to the two of them despite knowing better. When simmering with veiled fury, Kyouya has the tendency to swipe more items than usual to auction off, and weeks will pass without incident until some calamity befalls the originator of the remarks entirely by accident.

Hikaru's head is perched on Tamaki's other shoulder, his features drawn. Kaoru knows that his twin honestly feels terrible and guilty about it all – perhaps it is an aftereffect of the talk he had with Honey yesterday, but Kaoru is sensing his limitations, painful though the knowledge is to bear. This is Tamaki's and Hikaru's problem, and Kaoru isn't the one who can dictate when and how things will work out.

Again he feels that little pang of powerlessness and – yes, envy.

Tamaki's beautiful musician fingers curl around the tendrils of Kaoru's hair at the nape of his neck at this very moment and Kaoru feels something that cannot be explained by words.

A profound warmth.

Kaoru knows that Tamaki is no Kyouya or Honey; it was a coincidence that Tamaki drew Kaoru closer to himself just when Kaoru was feeling poor. It's often difficult to pinpoint how much Tamaki actually knows and when he's just winging it. Kaoru has never known someone who simultaneously knows so much and so little at the same time, so wise and yet so much the fool; it keeps him perpetually off guard.

When he looks up, Tamaki has water pooling in his eyes and his characteristic grin plastered on – every inch of him genuinely, wholeheartedly overjoyed to have them there with him; his face is open and his manner magnanimous, and Kaoru suspects that this is exactly it, because Tamaki may not always have the capacity or inclination to investigate the roots of people's problems but he always makes people feel better.

At the end of the day, that's what people are really searching for.

They pull apart, all three of them, sniffling and laughing. Hikaru and Kaoru hadn't bothered to have their morning meal because they knew that Tamaki would coerce them into joining him; when Hikaru settles down across from Tamaki, he's brighter and more relaxed than before.

Kaoru, too, is changed from before.

The truth is, Tamaki marks a before and an after in the twins' lives.

"We're going to be big brothers!" Hikaru bursts out excitedly, immediately, and Kaoru recognises that his twin wanted to share this with Tamaki first.

"Aaaaugh!" Tamaki squeals ecstatically like he's the one getting a new sibling. He and Hikaru babble crazily over the future Hitachiin, deciding on any number of ridiculous things that they're going to do with and to a child, and Kaoru is doing his utmost to participate, only he's on the cusp of an epiphany…

As he watches Tamaki elicit an answering warmth from Hikaru, he understands what it is that Kyouya wants – needs – from his best friend.

These past months at Kyouya's house have enabled Kaoru to construct an image of the person Kyouya was and would have become had his life not been invaded by Tamaki. Though Kyouya is cold by nature from his innate personality and his family environment, Kaoru deeply intuits that he doesn't want to be cold in person. Before he met Tamaki, he must have had no way to bridge the gulf of difference between his nature and his person. Tamaki, then, is the sort of person that Kyouya knows he will never be, and whatever Kyouya does, he wants to preserve the warmth Tamaki has.

That's why whenever Kyouya thinks that Tamaki is exhibiting his 'warm' traits, Kyouya defers to him to the point of driving the club penniless on countless occasions for excessive events, and also why he reacts unforgivingly and punishingly towards people and situations that threaten Tamaki's ability to stay spirited and full of life.

"Kaoru!" Tamaki says, likely because he's been zoning out for a while. "Finish your eggs, we have to go to school!"

Chatting animatedly, the twins head over to their car with Tamaki's arms slung over them affectionately. In the course of the journey to the academy, Tamaki carves out at least five more opportunities to dispense his legendary hugs, almost as if he doesn't want them to go without.

.

---

.

English Paper
常陸院 馨 Hitachiin Kaoru - 98/100

It is the highest mark in their year level for the October Midterms.

Kaoru can't help but wish he was still second place. He says nothing of it, conscious of how stupid he'd seem.

At lunch, Hikaru advertises Kaoru's marks to Tamaki and Kyouya when the seniors seek them out. Tamaki heaps praise on him in between mouthfuls of rice, and Kyouya is Kyouya, reinforcing that they know him and he has nowhere to hide.

Indeed the marks are great. His seniors are telling him so in their own way, and Kaoru believes them.

.

---

.

Kaoru transfers his school bag to his other hand as he watches the car door shield his two third year seniors from sight. The seniors are headed to Kyouya's house to change into their business suits, then they're off to chair the meeting with their executive team.

Beside him, Hikaru is smirking at smatterings of curious onlookers who're trying none-too-subtly to glimpse their two friends, who are for all intents and purposes the most influential individuals of the student population. Snide amusement aside, Hikaru's soul feels aglow with something – pride. Kaoru's twin is thinking that their seniors are pretty awesome, and yeah, so is Kaoru.

"Oi, Tono," Hikaru says as he raps on the jet black window. It rolls down soundlessly. "Sure you wanna bring breakfast for me tomorrow? Don't trouble yourself if you get home too late today. It's not like Mori-senpai lets me starve."

"Yes!" Tamaki insists. "I found these commoner waffles! You said you'd teach me how to mix maple syrup and strawberry syrup and chocolate – "

"You were going to bring waffles?!" Hikaru grieves, throwing his head backwards forlornly. "I can't! Mori-senpai says I can't eat sweets after training! Only proper food like fish and beans!"

From the corner of his vision, Kaoru sees Kyouya's lips twitch.

"Then I'll bring commoner beans! Did you know that commoners buy frozen beans out of the pods?"

"Why don't you allow Mori-senpai to serve up a nutritious menu instead, Tamaki? Don't sabotage other people's efforts," Kyouya chides absently while perusing some charts and statistics on his iPad.

Crushed by the setback, Tamaki declares that he will join Hikaru for his training to earn his meal. Hikaru tells him that he'll be a nuisance if he can't keep up with Mori's regime and Tamaki takes exception to the insinuation that he is unfit, and they spiral into a tangent about their stamina and muscle size.

"I expect that we will be done by eight thirty at the latest, which allows plenty of time for Tamaki to obtain his required amount of sleep before your athletic showdown at dawn," Kyouya says coolly, flicking a look at Kaoru over the top of his spectacles.

Pleased, Kaoru dips his head to signal his assent to the invitation.

"That is, if we might kindly be permitted to leave now."

The terrifically courteous request, delivered with the trademark Kyouya smile, induces Tamaki and Hikaru to quake in their designer school shoes. Hikaru snatches his hands away from where they'd been examining Tamaki's biceps and springs back into position on Kaoru's left.

Being on this side of the fence is nothing short of hilarious.

"See you tomorrooooow!" Tamaki hollers.

Hikaru ducks his head and scratches it lightly, gratified and unable to suppress it. "Huh."

Yes, Kaoru has picked up on it too – that Tamaki is keener than usual to accompany Hikaru. Way, way overdue, it's a fantastic thing for them to reinstate the balance of their friendship in the wake of Haruhi. Love and friendship can definitely co-exist.

"Atelier?" Hikaru asks as they get into the back of their limo.

"Yeah."

"Hey, Kaoru," Hikaru says, sidling up close enough for his nose to graze Kaoru's jaw once they have privacy. "Mori-senpai gave the go-ahead for me to apply for permission."

It takes a couple of beats for Kaoru to figure out what his twin is talking about, and when he does he basically screams, "When?!"

Hikaru falls back onto the leather seats and laughs, dizzy with euphoria at his accomplishment. "Lunch! After I messaged him to tell him about our new sibling!"

"And you waited s – god, Hikaru! Why didn't you tell me?!" Exasperated, Kaoru half climbs onto his brother to make his demands. "Idiot. Why didn't you!"

"'Cos you were being even more of an idiot," Hikaru retorts. "Last year, the highest anyone ever got in any second-year English exam was 96 and that was Kyouya-senpai. Who – let me remind you, my increasingly dunderheaded twin – was happy for you."

"Ohh," Kaoru says coquettishly, "so you were being thoughtful and considerate to me?"

"We were all being thoughtful and considerate to you, my dear Kaoru," Hikaru replies with the straightest face he can summon. It does not last long before he cracks up.

He might be making a big joke out of it, but Kaoru knows the truth when he hears it. Touched, he leans in and kisses Hikaru.

"Thank you," he whispers.

"It makes me wanna punch you," Hikaru informs him with a lopsided grin, then presses another hard kiss to Kaoru's lips, "when you don't see how much the rest of us want you to be happy."

"Believe me, I know," Kaoru assures him, and rests his body against Hikaru's contentedly.

.

---

.

Kaoru is bent over his flat patterns in an unconvincing attempt to appear busy. In fact, he is eavesdropping on the conversation between the boss and her eldest son. Sitting across from him, Ren is similarly engaged in this covert activity – she might be getting another student soon.

Their academy expressly prohibits students from working in part time jobs in school rule #9. After receiving Mori's text message, Hikaru had gone to collect an exemption form, the only way to circumvent the rule. Parental consent is required and the exemption is mainly given to last-year students, although the twins have successfully applied for it for previous modelling stints. Kaoru, Kyouya and Tamaki are currently on the long term license, authorising them to work alongside study.

Through the glass, Hitachiin Yuzuha is assessing a potential successor. Her entire office is waiting with bated breath.

Kaoru has to applaud his brother's courage and zero hesitation; he himself would have chosen to wait till they were at home. The staff is anticipatory about Hikaru because Hikaru embodies the part of Yuzuha that they see, that they know. To them she is visionary, enterprising, extravagant and tough as nails.

Creative souls often have a stronger ability to discern the personalities of others; since Chikako, Kaoru has conjectured about the possibility that other employees may have drawn inferences about the twins based on hunches and gut feelings. Presumptively, this makes Hikaru the impulsive, wilder, outrageous one in an industry where lunacy and audacity are sought after and celebrated.

It's not that Kaoru isn't brassy, but that he is less.

Those closer to Yuzuha, those who know her vulnerability, might postulate that Kaoru is the exemplification of that. Kaoru is her generosity, her rationality, her sobriety, her fear of failure. He is the part of her that thinks of others' welfare, that's paradoxically trapped by romance and innocently dependent on whimsical fairy tales to survive.

It doesn't keep him awake at night, for in these Kaoru is sure:

The success of the House of Hitachiin, S.A. originated from this precise combination of his mother's qualities. Neither half can be dispensed with.

Surer still he is of his brother. Hikaru isn't a conceited, unfeeling asshole. They aren't one-dimensional creatures nor are they the sum of their mother's parts.

Of most personal relevance is probably this: Kaoru thinks he has strength. He doesn't need to be the strongest in order to be strong, and he doesn't have to be the boldest in order to be brave. He thinks of Honey and Mori, their persistence and their forbearance – and he finds in himself the promise of mettle.

And when Hikaru says, "Kaoru, mum wants you to show her your drafts", when their fingers brush as they pass one another, when the news spreads like wildfire that both heirs-in-waiting have now been installed in the company, Kaoru takes a step closer to his dream.

.

---

.

The twins get to knock off at six because of an office party held for Yuzuha by her staff. On fashion websites and forums, her pregnancy is the hot topic, and her staff wants to be first in line to find out the details.

Kaoru excuses himself despite being welcome to stay. He has a duty to fulfill and something to find out.

Hikaru'd tagged along after spending those two hours getting a start on creating and compiling his portfolio. He hasn't been assigned to any instructor yet, so he'd been working by himself, occasionally darting surreptitious glances at Kaoru.

They pull up beside the kerb in a peasant part of town and a phone call later they are joined by a flawlessly made-up Ranka, from whom Kaoru receives a doting, womanly kiss. Kaoru is going with Ranka to visit Misuzu and Misuzu's friend at the hospital; it'd been an uphill battle getting Ranka to agree because Ranka didn't think that Kaoru should have to witness "this sort of adults' thing", and it was only the underhanded reminders that Ranka wouldn't get to work on time if he wasn't chauffeured and that he needed to support Haruhi financially that ultimately persuaded him.

"Waaa!" Ranka gushes enviously. "I wish I could have given my Haruhi a sibling! Your mother must have had you two when she was very young!"

Hikaru has taken to the habit of keeping everyone up to date about the Hitachiins' headline story, luckily sparing Kaoru from having to buoy Ranka's mood.

"Eh, I guess," Hikaru says offhandedly. "I mean, she was twenty-one. Didn't Ranka-san have Haruhi at nineteen? Our mother married our father when she was nineteen."

"Ahhh, it couldn't be helped. My Kotoko was already pregnant when we got married, so actually I married when I was nineteen too! You know how it's like when people are in love." Giggling reminiscently, Ranka adds, "If my Kotoko was still alive, I bet our relationship would be as good as your parents!"

Kaoru coughs delicately and struggles not to laugh at Hikaru's shudder.

"Don't worry, Ranka-papa. You can become a youthful grandmother instead," Kaoru consoles him.

"Not too soon! I want to see Haruhi become a lawyer like her mother!"

Hikaru chortles. "Tono is the sort who believes in the sanctity of marriage. He might be French but he'd probably want to do things the traditional way."

It's Ranka's turn to go green.

"Noooooo!" he wails, shaking his head violently with hands over his cheeks.

Kaoru is in stitches; it's hard to get out of the car in this state. He uses Hikaru as a human crutch as they enter the hospital lobby.

The smell of sanitizers is pervasive yet oddly unoppressive – it reminds Kaoru of dinners at Kyouya's. When his senior's elder siblings are present, it clings to their clothes from a long day's work… and sometimes Kyouya himself has this smell of fresh clean linen. On the Ootoris, this smell does not translate to death or decay but professionalism of the highest standard.

Without stopping for directions, Ranka heads to the elevators and presses the button that takes them to the floor where the recreational facilities are located. He then proceeds to try to make them wait for him in the cafeteria.

"No," Kaoru repeats, causing Hikaru to look askance at his pushiness.

Leave it, Kaoru.

"Papa-san wouldn't make Haruhi wait here."

"I would!" Ranka exhales, rather put out. "I really would, Kaoru-kun."

Kaoru, seriously, just leave it.

Damned if Kaoru can admit openly why he so enormously wants to go. He wants to stare at Ranka, to will him to understand, and he can't because the person who reads Kaoru best in the world is standing right beside him.

"Fine," he deflates, tightly controlling his disappointment.

Ranka blinks in confusion and ambles back to the lifts.

Ookay. What was that?

"Nothing," Kaoru curtly shelves the subject away and walks towards the secluded inner garden.

"Hey," Hikaru barks, grabbing his arm. A ticked off Hikaru is a blunt Hikaru. "You know that Haruhi doesn't need you to become a surrogate son for her father, right?"

"Yes," Kaoru says, consciously gentling his voice. "Sorry."

He doesn't say, "It's not that", or "It's something else". It would be a mistake to discuss the real issue at this time, at this place.

Hikaru releases his hold and they plop down wearily on a wooden bench beside the koi pond, already feeling bored.

"D'you think mum'll assign us to different teachers?"

"Who knows. O-Ren-san seems to think you'll be her student too."

"Do you want that? Or would you prefer some other arrangement?"

Kaoru ponders his next words carefully. "I think we'll benefit from diversifying our skill base."

"God, you sound like Kyouya-senpai."

A surprised chuckle escapes Kaoru. "I'm saying, the same teacher will teach the same set of skills and, well… I don't think your learning style is compatible with O-Ren-san's teaching style."

"Yeah!" Hikaru harumphs. "The studio was worse than a graveyard at night! If not for the fact that I know your style so well, I would've thought O-Ren-san wasn't teaching you anything!"

"She lets me go out of the office to daydream and take photos as and when I like," Kaoru defends his mentor, "and she always asks for the story behind my aesthetic."

"Perfect teacher for you, then," Hikaru confirms. "Oh, Mother is good."

"Exactly. Probably means she'll find someone who doesn't mind being engulfed by hurricanes to tutor you," Kaoru suggests, maintaining a cordially meditative tone. "Oh, no, wait, she might have to include warnings about avalanches of fabric, volcanic eruptions of inspiration, droughts of books from the shared library… Best to search for a thrill-seeker equipped to deal with natural disasters of varying – "

It's Kaoru's favourite trick to use on his brother. With a 50% success rate, if one properly regulates one's intonation, one can score a great number of points against Hikaru before he realises and retaliates.

"Agh! Stop!" Kaoru wriggles futilely after being tackled.

"Are you receiving lessons on how to be a superior jerk from Kyouya-senpai?" Hikaru demands."Is that what's happening? 'Cos you're going to find yourself banned from associating one-on-one with senpai."

They're fortunate that it is dinner time and most patients are back in their wards, or their roughhousing would have garnered criticism.

Flat on his back and breathless with laughter, Kaoru closes his eyes. He doesn't have the slightest inclination to fight Hikaru off. "Stop blaming senpai. I've been doing this to you since we were five."

"And Haruhi thinks I'm the meaner twin," Hikaru mutters balefully, earning a smirk in return. "At least Mori-senpai makes me a better person, unlike your Kyouya-senpai."

"Mori-senpai makes everyone better people. Anyway, you owe plenty of your personal development to Kyouya-senpai too, whether you know it or not."

"There's no club without Kyouya-senpai, I know."

Kaoru pushes himself up passionately, needing to impart to his twin the gravity of their debt. "No – no, it's more than that, Hikaru. We can't even begin to – there's no us without those four seniors."

"I was joking, you know that right? Of course I like Kyouya-senpai, why else would I be organising a birthday party for him?"

"Oh! Have you and Honey-senpai gotten a start on that? Kyouya-senpai doesn't want anything fancy, what with finals and Ootori Pharmaceuticals and all."

Cackling in a way that makes the hairs on the back of Kaoru's neck stand up, Hikaru confides that "Mori-senpai said something that gave us the craziest idea, it's absolutely genius – "

"Woah, woah! Kyouya-senpai doesn't like crazy!"

The response Kaoru gets isn't "don't worry, it's a good crazy!" or "nah, it's not that crazy!", hopefully conveyed with the requisite amount of lucidity and overall awareness to restore Kaoru's confidence in his twin's soundness of mind.

No. His suicidal twin says, "Tough. Senpai's getting this for his birthday."

Kaoru gawks, bearing an uncanny resemblance to the koi fish.

"Look, Kaoru!" Hikaru jibes, pointing to the pond, "You've gained several more identical brothers!"

Dignity out the window, Kaoru lands a thwack on his brother's head and jumps up. "Come on. I'm going to check you into the hospital while we're here, because if I don't, Kyouya-senpai will."

"It'll be fine!" Hikaru chirps blithely. "Honey-senpai's all for it! Okay, tell you what – Mori-senpai and I are gonna discuss it with Tono tomorrow. If the three of them agree, you know it's a good idea. Besides, Mori-senpai and Honey-senpai will be there to deflect most of Kyouya-senpai's wrath. I mean, assuming Kyouya-senpai gets angry in the first place, which he really won't."

"Yeeaaaah," Kaoru quibbles. "See, the problem is what happens after the party. By virtue of their senpainess, Mori-senpai and Honey-senpai are free from Kyouya-senpai's vengeance. We aren't."

"Scaredy-cat. And it's not a party, it's a sleepover."

"A sleep – oh my god, Hikaru. You want to piss him off for more than a day?"

The meaner twin's face is illuminated with delirious depravity. "A whole weekend!"

"I want no part of this," Kaoru disavows on the spot.

"You don't even know what 'this' is," Hikaru challenges.

"Thank god for small mercies. I'm completely irreproachable. When Mother gives birth, I'll make sure to tell our new sibling stories about his or her eldest brother's ignominious death as a cautionary tale."

Hikaru laughs it off, devil-may-care. "Have more faith in Mori-senpai. He's the one working out the chinks in the plan. It will work, Kaoru. Mori-senpai, he… "

Trailing off, Hikaru mutely gives a one-shouldered shrug.

"… What?" Kaoru prompts curiously, watching his brother's Adam's apple bob up and down.

"He… gets it. You know, understands. Us. Things. I think he… Uh, about Haruhi… Just. Our senpais always know a lot more than they let on. Wait, maybe it's just that I'm slow. D'you know things that you aren't telling me?"

"Erm," Kaoru says nervously. "Like what sorts of things?"

"I don't know, you tell me!"

"Isn't Mori-senpai telling you what you need to know?"

Hikaru slouches over. "Some things, yeah. Slowly."

"Then we should follow Mori-senpai's timing," Kaoru decides. "Or if we want to talk more about this, we should do it at home."

One or two patients have begun filtering into the inner garden for a relaxing stroll after their meal. A teenage girl with a cast on her leg limps past them and greets a middle-aged lady who has gone bald from chemotherapy. A grey-haired man, very thin, very sick and heavily wrinkled by hardship, brings his wheelchair to a stop about a metre away from the twins – there is a packet of pea-sized pellets on the blanket draped over his lap. He smiles benignly at Kaoru and Hikaru before tossing the reddish-brown food into the pond; Kaoru guesses that he must be a long-term patient for the koi seem to recognise him.

Home, Hikaru chooses.

Kaoru nods accommodatingly.

Ne, Kaoru, you never said where you and Honey-senpai disappeared to on Sunday. Honey-senpai said something to me the other day, I don't know if it means what I think it means or if I'm reading too much into it, and if it means what I think it –

The ring and rattle of a cell phone cuts Hikaru off.

"Hello? Ah, Mori-senpai? Yeah. Uh huh, I have. She said yes! Yeah…"

Kaoru tunes out of their conversation and focuses on the brightly-coloured fish and the fluid movements of their sinuous bodies. He is idly drifting through the possibility of a scaly, form-fitting iridescent dress when he spots the lanky young woman at the same time she notices him.

Like him, Hacker-san does a commendable imitation of a carp's gobbling mouth.

Recovering first, Kaoru winks at her but does not make any other outward indications of their acquaintance. Of all the places to meet, it's in 'enemy territory'.

The thought brings a sudden chill.

What is Hacker-san doing in an Ootori hospital? She can't be allied with Yuuichi or something, can she?

Hacker-san is unmistakeably stunned to see him, and there's no undercurrent of 'oh shit, I've been careless'. Either she should be making a living as a professional actor, or Kaoru is correct in believing that he's a passable judge of character.

Sure she'd furnished him with details of her background. However, as Kaoru told his dad, he senses that it's a combination of truth and lies, almost as though she'd tried to be honest wherever she could but couldn't exactly tell him specifics like her year of graduation if she really wanted to hide her identity. Hence, her alma mater (University of Tokyo) and degree (Bachelor of Science, Department of Information Science) are probably accurate, as is her marital status (single) and age (23 to 24-ish). Without a doubt the high school and town of birth are bogus, and she has no current place of residence to falsify since Kaoru is arranging a small flat for her as part of her wages.

It's hard playing this game of trust.

In the contractual document, her photograph is attached to bind her image to the obligations of their employment relationship. Even the family lawyers are unclear as to how it will stand up in a court of law, so they'd privately counselled Kaoru that in the event of a breach of contract by Hacker-san, they should turn her over to the official authorities to pursue a criminal prosecution for identity fraud and obtaining money by deception instead.

This lateral problem-solving is jolly good, except what Kaoru wants is talent and loyalty. Through their regular emails, it's gradually apparent that they co-ordinate well together. It would be a pity to lose at this stage.

"Oh, you're here," rasps the man in the wheelchair. He's addressing Hacker-san, who's chewing on her bottom lip irately and directing a substantial amount of surly heat towards… Kaoru.

There are times where Kaoru wonders if he's letting his instinct drown his reason, and then there are times like these, when Hacker-san treads across the grass to crouch down in front of the gentleman and says tersely, "Yeah. How've you been, dad?"

It's not a lie; she must know that she's supplied Kaoru with the means to track her life history.

"Fine, fine," the old patient soothes her with the familiarity of a long-established routine. To Kaoru's eyes, he's going to kick it at any moment. To Kaoru's ears, he's a loving father who's worried about his daughter and desperately sorry to her for putting her through this ordeal.

"Let's go back to your room before you catch a cold."

"The fish haven't had their dinner," the man argues, "and old Abe-san is always trying to overhear our conversations. He still doesn't believe you're my daughter; he thinks I have a son with a girlish face, like that singer whats-his-name."

Kaoru forces himself to inhale and exhale calmly. Notwithstanding that he's behaving like Abe-san, at least out of respect he has angled his body away from them.

Hacker-san scrubs at her cheek restlessly. "I have better things to do than prove him wrong, dad."

"It wouldn't hurt to dress up a – "

"Dad!"

"I'm not saying it because I think there's anything wrong with you, Kanon. I'm saying it because it's good for you to find a companion, otherwise who will be with you when I die? Loneliness eats people alive, my stubborn daughter."

Hacker-san is visibly distressed, mostly – Kaoru reckons – as a result of his presence.

His attention is seized by a bump to his upper arm. Phone jammed against his ear, Hikaru is gesturing to him to go someplace. Kaoru acquiesces by rising to his feet and walks away without turning back, trusting Hacker-san to have enough awareness of their location and to presume that they will be conferring about it tomorrow at their designated headquarters.

"Where're we going?"

"I'm gonna head over to Mori-senpai's. Satoshi and I are helping senpai to build a pen for Piyo-chan. Come with?"

A glance at his watch leads Kaoru to refuse the offer, since he has just enough time left to drop off Ranka at work before heading over to Kyouya's. He walks his twin down to their limo, where Hikaru makes him promise that he won't go to Misuzu's friend's ward out of a misguided sense of duty.

It still really isn't about that, but whatever.

Gloomily, Kaoru re-enters the hospital complex and waits in the lift lobby, tapping one foot against the vinyl floor. Two men, one in a white doctor's robe and another in a run-of-the-mill suit, follow him into the enclosed space.

The doors slide close and, shit.

"Hitachiin Kaoru-sama, we mean you no harm. Please cooperate," Suit requests formally.

Robe whips out an ID card and scans it against a panel above the lift buttons to reset them. He selects the button that takes them to the eighth level of the patients' wing. In a non-threatening yet immensely constraining way, they manoeuvre him down the corridors towards the restricted access lift lobby of the tall office block, by which time the only question is which of Kyouya's family is behind this.

The elevator stops at the apex.

Kaoru's heart plummets. Bracing himself to the best of his ability, he steps out.

The front office is clinical and clean – ludicrously, harrowingly clean. Not a single item out of place and no sign of human inhabitation save the lone secretary wedged between a mirror at the far wall and a desk made of glass and shiny stainless steel. Papers and files have a bizarre way of behaving themselves in Ootori-dominated environments. They lie neatly in orderly stacks beside the shockingly monotone stationery, the world famous Ootori logo emblazoned across the letterhead.

The secretary has full view of the two straight-backed guest seats that are situated on either side of a cube made entirely out of glass. On top of the cube lies the sole item of beauty: a vase of blown glass, transparent with inky black swirls like diffused smoke, and topped with the crystal flowers from Waterford's Marc Jacobs Collection.

The flowers bear the hallmark of Kiyomi's taste. A gift from the daughter-in-law?

It seems that Suit and Robe have accomplished their mission by depositing Kaoru literally at Ootori Yoshio's door. The secretary takes over from them, tapping a switch to open the freakishly seamless outward-facing mirror and ushering Kaoru into the interior.

The room redefines Kaoru's perception of noise-insulation.

At this height, the hustle and bustle of the congested Tokyo streets is negligible. Through his association with Kyouya, Kaoru knows that Ootoris favour noiseless workspaces, but…

Surely not this extreme?!

Ootori Yoshio's pen ceases its movement.

Kaoru bows stiffly from the waist, appropriately deferential. "Ootori-sama, how do you do?"

"Sit down, Hitachiin-kun," Kyouya's father bids from behind the imposing executive desk as he resumes annotating a document.

Deftly, Kaoru lowers himself into the chair opposite and waits.

And waits.

And waits.

His carriage does not sag and he does not fidget.

This is hell.

Ootori Yoshio must want something from him, but for the life of Kaoru he cannot fathom what. Like son like father, their propensity for time economy compels them to do their own work while testing other people. To be fair, their examinees aren't always quick on the mark.

The spark of light reflected off Ootori-sama's Montblanc provides the Eureka moment.

"We're doing very well in the club," Kaoru reports. "Last week, the day before Ootori-sama came home to Japan, we had a calligraphy competition in several different languages. The winner was Izumiya Chiyo of the Izumiya family, who wrote in Japanese, Korean, English, French and Russian. Kyouya-senpai and I are discussing ideas for our future themed sessions; this Friday we are doing a steampunk cosplay and we hope to do a nautical theme on a cruise ship after final exams. Preparations are also underway for us to celebrate Kyouya-senpai's birthday with him."

"Hm, I see."

Kaoru inclines his head respectfully. "Yes."

"Is my son a good teacher?"

"The best," Kaoru vouches.

"Are you struggling with the demands of the role?" Ootori Yoshio switches the silver file for a notepad and begins to jot down his criticisms of the document in dot-point form.

"No," Kaoru answers carefully. "I am adequately supported by the people surrounding me, and Kyouya-senpai's guidance is precisely tailored to strike a balance between allowing me to reach my potential without pushing me past my limits."

"In that case, I presume you must not take your responsibilities seriously, Hitachiin-kun." Finally, the severe businessman meets Kaoru's eyes unwaveringly. "Considering that you have not taken the initiative to provide me with updates of your club activities."

"I – " Kaoru gulps, mind racing. "I'm sorry, Ootori-sama. I will strive to be more diligent."

"You accept that it was your error?" Yoshio probes.

"Yes. Kyouya-senpai entrusted it to me, but I let it slip from my memory when I was compiling my portfolio."

The man isn't buying it.

"Is that so? Kyouya has not selected an apposite candidate, nor did he follow up on your progress? I did not expect my son to lack the aptitude for personnel management."

"No!" Kaoru refutes, agitated. "No. That is…"

Oneechan taught him that the optimum way to lie is to use the truth.

"That is, I lied."

For the barest fraction of a second, something like triumph darkens Yoshio's otherwise impassive features.

" – to Kyouya-senpai. I assured senpai that I would contact Ootori-sama, though I have been putting it off because you scare me," Kaoru dissembles, wishing that he isn't actually feeling the terror he is projecting. The muscles in his back are all knotted up.

Yoshio's mouth does not curve even as he eases up on the burrowing pressure of his stare. If it wasn't for Kaoru's acquaintance with Yuuichi, he'd have missed that shadow of mirth. The guy works hard to cultivate a healthy fear in other people, why shouldn't Kaoru tell him he's succeeded?

"I see. You consider that a long-term solution to your predicament?"

Clearly not if you're going to haul me here by brute force.

"No," Kaoru says again. "Kyouya-senpai is always on top of things; I would have had to answer to senpai eventually. I just… wanted to talk to the other parents first… get some practice… before having to be appraised by Ootori-sama."

He falters.

After a few beats, with another bow that obscures his face from Yoshio's view, he continues, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have. It was rude of me to single Ootori-sama out. Please forgive me."

It's rather a relief to stay in this position, Kaoru discovers. Thank goodness for humble bowing; how do the Westerners deal without it? Without a polite way to avert his eyes, he'd have frozen over into a solid block of ice.

"You are certain that my son had nothing to do with your neglect?" Yoshio asks impassively. "That would mean you have failed at the outset of my appraisal, Hitachiin-kun, and that your measures have been entirely counterproductive."

Kaoru takes an inaudible breath – it burns down his lungs. "Yes, I know. I will improve."

The computer on the desk steals Yoshio's attention, and he pays Kaoru no more heed except to say, "I shall not keep you any longer, Hitachiin-kun."

Standing up and, yes, bowing lowly, Kaoru is craving freedom as he backs out of the office with his act still mostly together when Yoshio launches his parting shot.

"Lest Hitachiin-kun believe me to be a cruel man, I think there is no need for either of us to inform my son of what has happened here. Your oversights are matters of the past. I should not wish Hitachiin-kun to meet with trouble."

Upon processing those words and understanding their hidden implications, Kaoru thinks, what bullshit, sparing a moment to feel a flare of animosity and indignation that Yoshio should arrogate to himself the right to dictate Kaoru's relationship with Kyouya.

He does the prudent thing and flees.

.

---

.

"There you are, Kaoru-kun!" Ranka fusses worriedly. "Where have you been?"

Kaoru had dashed out of the hospital to where his chauffeur was waiting only to be accosted by Ranka. They'd agreed to meet here at 7:30 pm to allow Ranka to get to work at the okama bar.

"I'm sorry," he wheezes, checking his watch. The hands show that it is 7:39 pm. "My driver will drive faster; you'll get there on time, Papa-san!"

As he is speaking, he is pushing Ranka into the car and squashing himself in too.

"W – Wait, Kao – "

"Drive, drive!" Kaoru bellows at the Hitachiins' long-suffering driver, who scrambles behind the wheel and nearly drops his keys in his frenzy.

Ranka is thankfully dumbstruck at the sudden haste and offers up no more protestations nor puts up any more resistance. The car hurtles out into the main roads and speeds along to Tokyo's nightclub district.

Kaoru apologises to Ranka once more, abashed at his lateness.

"Stop, Kaoru-kun," Ranka interjects. "I know that 20 minutes is enough. Where were you? Driver-san told me that Hikaru-kun left a while ago."

"Ah, yeah, he went to Mori-senpai's house. I was somewhere else in the hospital, I lost track of time," Kaoru explains, stretching out his legs.

Ranka purses his rouge red lips in thought as he surveys Kaoru's ungainly sprawl.

Apparently having made up his mind about something, he winds down the coal-coloured screen separating the driver from the rest of the limo. "Stop the car."

"Eh?" Kaoru straightens.

"I said, stop the car."

The hapless chauffeur complies with Ranka's demand, turning into one of the more deserted residential streets.

"Ranka-papa, what – "

"Good boy, Driver-san," Ranka praises with a feminine giggle. "Now get out."

Horribly perplexed, the driver looks to Kaoru who really is in no better position.

"Driver-san, listen to me," Ranka says sweetly, gripping the driver's chin with manicured fingers, "I'm not kidnapping your master. We're just going to have a little chat. Privately."

Unceremoniously slipping back into his male voice, he finishes with, "So get out and stand at a distance until we call you."

Obediently, the cowed driver wobbles out on unsteady legs.

Ranka doesn't speak even after they are left alone.

Bzzzt, bzzzt, goes Kaoru's phone. He ignores it.

"What is it, Papa-san?"

Thick, unnaturally long eyelashes close over a pair of embellished eyes. Ranka's glittery silver eyeliner underscores a palette of peacock feather hues. He isn't wearing much blush today, opting instead to show off his excellent complexion which has been enhanced through judiciously applied foundation and concealer.

When Ranka opens his eyes, he asks a question that is both perceptive yet staggeringly blunt, proving in one fell swoop that he is truly Haruhi's father.

"Kaoru-kun, have you considered that you might be homosexual? Or at the very least considered that you are bisexual?"

He did figure it out after all, the reason I wanted to visit Misuzu-chi's 'friend'. Kaoru can't help but smile.

"Yeah, I've thought about it," he answers honestly. How can he not, being the uke in his feature attraction at the host club?

Something soft and sad creeps across Ranka's face.

"Mm," he breathes in patient understanding and impulsively pulls Kaoru into an embrace. It's a funny thing, the way Ranka is holding him – the unvoiced burden of the world and the shroud of perfume so distinctly like a mother; the low-pitched murmur and the bigger-sized hands so much like a father.

"Um, uh, Ranka-papa, it's not like – I mean, I'm not sure, I still don't know – "

Ranka's gaze seems to say: I know.

However, what Ranka verbalises is the history behind Misuzu's friend – ex-boyfriend, to be precise. The three of them met when they were younger, back when Misuzu was still in the closet, and Misuzu fell hard and fast for this guy who was lively and magnetic and the personification of everything Misuzu did not have and could not be in his respectable desk job. By Ranka's account, it was a great but ill-fated romance since the guy had issues (mainly related to substance abuse), and Misuzu left him when the guy took money out of the bank account that Misuzu had set aside for Mei's education without Misuzu's permission.

It hadn't been any sort of frightening sexually transmitted disease that hospitalised him. Kaoru knows that out gays in his home country are in less danger of homophobic violence than in some western countries since the Japanese typically employ ostracism; unlike many of his fellow countrymen, Kaoru also knows that sexually transmitted diseases aren't 'limited to westerners' – his mother has given them a fairly liberal education and extended stays in a number of European countries, particularly France, means that Kaoru hasn't been kept in a bubble of ignorance.

Ranka tells him that Misuzu has kept in contact with his ex out of concern that he might overdose on drugs – a valid fear, as it'd turned out.

"Will he be all right?"

"The doctors are trying," Ranka replies. "It doesn't look good. He hasn't regained consciousness. Misuzu-chi will be all right, of course. Maybe not now, but he will be. One day. Just like how I survived after I didn't have Kotoko around anymore."

Kaoru squeezes Ranka's hand encouragingly.

"I'm fine, Kaoru-kun," Ranka sighs faintly with the faraway glaze of remembered pain. "Only that in those months… I missed having someone's arms around me. I didn't want to move on and I didn't know if Haruhi would blame me for moving on… I hope you fall in love someday, Kaoru-kun, whether man or woman. I hope you never find yourself alone."

Ranka regards him seriously, more parental than Kaoru has ever known him before.

"And if you aren't that lucky, go and paste something to your forehead that announces to the world that you want to be held, to be kissed; that you want to know how that is like. You of all people weren't made to be on your own, Kaoru-kun."

Kaoru ducks his head and laughs diffidently. "I'm actually really choosy, Papa-san. I don't think it'll be easy for me. I won't settle for less – I can't."

"Kaoru-kun has to admire someone very much," Ranka surmises confidently, "in order to love that person, ne?"

Of course, Kaoru thinks to himself. Ranka is the same. Kotoko was the coolest, cleverest, most capable woman he'd ever met, and he worshipped the ground she walked on. Kaoru had fallen for those exact qualities in Haruhi, and he imagines that he will continue to fall for people who tick the boxes of cool, clever, capable.

The primary drawback of being attracted to these strong, independent types is that, "I'll be terrified."

Ranka identifies with him, as Kaoru now knows he would. "When Kotoko and I married, I worked till I dropped, I cooked and cleaned, I wish I could have carried Haruhi and done everything for my Kotoko; day after day I dreamt of her becoming the best lawyer in Japan. Kaoru-kun, the greatest proof of loving someone is to wish for their success. That was so hard, because I was always afraid that when it happened Kotoko would leave me… in the end, it's a risk you have to take."

Okay, Kaoru nods. Okay.

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Ranka was late to work anyway.

Kaoru had checked his inbox while on his way home for a bath – Hikaru had sent word that he'd rather stay at Mori's overnight to cut down on travel time, which would allow him to wake at six instead of five thirty in the morning.

It seems that Hikaru's sleeping habits are increasingly healthy and regular while Kaoru is keeping later hours than usual – undoubtedly a byproduct of the company they've been with.

After firing off a brief email to Hacker-san, Kaoru heads over to Kyouya's as agreed and is notified by Tachibana that Kyouya has been delayed by an extension of the meeting, chiefly due to Yuuichi and Akito's unforeseen participation in it.

Kaoru feels a spike of trepidation. The show was meant to be run by Tamaki and Kyouya! It's their team, and if Kyouya's brothers hijack it they will undermine the two project leaders whose young age already puts them at a disadvantage.

Vexed, he is pacing around Kyouya's spacious bedroom instead of focusing on the album of award-winning CG character designs like he'd originally intended. His laptop, left abandoned on the bed, displays the activities log on their club database. Stark blue highlights indicate the dates that Kyouya has absented himself and Tamaki – not as many as Kaoru had feared, and Tamaki's violet text inserts appear to compensate for it by arranging other sessions.

Kaoru's seniors' determination to fit their friends into their lives is… spine-tingling. Heaven knows it would cause Kaoru's ego to swell if he didn't watch himself. It must be a little dangerous to be so valuable to someone else.

It's past nine and Kaoru gets the impression that it won't be a short wait. Removing his cropped-sleeve blazer and hanging it up beside Kyouya's coats, he wanders down to the hi-fi home stereo to plug in his senior's iPod.

In his leisure time, Kyouya listens almost exclusively to classical or orchestral music and his preference for the Austro-German composers is pronounced, for his collection is comprised of operas from Mozart, Wagner, Richard Strauss, and further includes Bach, Händel and Mendelssohn; yet he displays his signature unwillingness to confine himself as well as that constant drive for personal enrichment, which is why there is always a playlist tucked away that's filled with recently released singles of very modern pop songs sung by crooning and rocking celebrities. Also, there are official soundtracks and theme songs of famous movies and games, which Kyouya claims assist him to polish his competence in hosting.

It's side-splittingly funny whenever one of those un-Kyouya songs starts playing.

Nobody ever laughs out loud, at least not in front of Kyouya.

Kaoru droops onto the fluffy bed in a loose curl to edit Friday's schedule of appointments and to mark on the roster Hikaru's unavailability by reason of his modelling commitments, and before he knows it, the day takes its toll and he succumbs to sleep.

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Notes

(a) Big, big bonus points to whoever has figured out which popular character I've modelled Honey after. His darker side is simply delicious. I was thinking how to make Honey hot (please see Chapter 41, page 30; 'so manly' LOL) – you know, kakkoi – and of course the answer is sleek fast cars! Dangerous speeds! Slinky metallic bodies! It goes without saying that Lamborghini makes everything sexier :D

(b) The racetrack is essentially Fuji Speedway, though I have chosen not to name it in the story proper.

(c) References:

Mori's short-sightedness: in the manga, Mori gives his extra contact lenses to Haruhi for her initial transformation into a host – Chapter 1, page 29.

School rule #9: Chapter 18, page 46.

Ranka and Kotoko's love story: omake Chapter 70.5.

Ranka and Kotoko really were pregnant with Haruhi before they married: Chapter 76, page 12 (Kousaka refers to their marriage as a shotgun marriage).

(d) I have searched for a suitable name for dear Mr Hitachiin for ages and ages. I love the twins' parents, can you tell? Here it is:

Hitachiin Yasuhiro (常陸院 · 泰裕): Yasuhiro can actually be written in one of 4 different kanji.

1 - 泰裕: "calm and leisurely"

2 - 泰弘: "most calm"

3 - 恭弘: "most respectful"

4 - 泰博: "abundant tranquillity"

Yes, the point is that he is an OASIS OF CALM. *cracks up*

Interestingly, many of the host club parents have canon first names starting from 'Y': Yuzuha, Yoshio, Yuzuru, Yorihisa.

(e) I seriously forgot about exams. I forgot that my characters, students in high school, have exams. OTL. That's why Kaoru is getting back his results so late hahahaa just pretend Kaoru's English teacher was sick. Usually midterms last only about 3 days, and fewer subjects are tested than during the finals.

Here is the Japanese exam timetable:

Midterms in first and second trimesters, but not the third which is shorter.
- First trimester midterms: late May.
- Second trimester midterms (Kaoru is now in the second trimester): late October.

Finals are at the end of all trimesters:
- First trimester finals: early in the month of July
- Second trimester finals: end of November-start December (Yes, Kyouya is one of those unfortunate kids whose birthdays generally land in the exam period/study week; the rest of them have birthdays that fall well clear of the exam timeframe)
- Third trimester finals: March

(f) Many of Ranka's comments from the conversation in the car come from Jane Birkin, who says that she fell for people who were 'pretty damn wonderful' throughout her 65 years. I definitely believe that the more Kaoru and Ranka respect someone, the easier and harder they fall in love. That sort of love never leaves them either, because it is based on precisely that most unshakeable foundation of relationships.

In fact, here is someone who's put it in better words than I can, so I'm just going to cut and paste it. I hope you don't mind. You know who you are, you lovely person, thank you ;)

Underlining is mine:

She [Haruhi] is his [Kaoru's] Most Important Person next to Hikaru, but maybe even a little more important because Kaoru puts Haruhi on a pedestal (whereas his perceptions of his twin are much more realistic and honest) and idolizes her in ways that he never really does with anyone else.

[…]

And because Kaoru is someone who likes being stuck in moments, I don't think he'd ever let go of her because loving her, loving the club, makes him feel safe.

Where I'm coming from, I noticed that Ranka basically thinks of Kotoko the same way. Certainly I agree that there is a conviction in both Ranka and Kaoru that Kotoko/Haruhi is in some intrinsic, indefinable way a greater and better person.

The thing is, I also absolutely agree that Kaoru likes being stuck – he's a dreamer and he can afford the luxury of that dreaming because of his wealth and his chosen profession. But I also believe that Kaoru is surrounded by people who can help him come unstuck. That's actually the overarching goal of 1-7th, that the people who know Kaoru so well and love him so much will do it in a way that doesn't destroy him in the process.

These 7 people are so entangled that they can't exist separately any longer. That's why a lot of the two-people standalone couple relationships feel somewhat unbelievable except for the main Tamaki/Haruhi, and that's only because the mangaka directed her concerted efforts towards it.

In a way, Haruhi and Tamaki are the ones most protected by the rest of the club (I've alluded to this previously) – the rest have been known to keep their observations to themselves, and we don't get that much development in some relationships in the canon work, like Haruhi-Mori, Kyouya-Hikaru, etc, because they lack screen time.

Yet the point of the manga ending is: "host club forever". Don't you think it means something special that the rest of the club dropped everything to follow Haruhi and Tamaki to Boston in the manga? Side characters always suffer a little, this is true of all works. Simply by changing around the lead characters from H & T to K and K, suddenly so many behind-the-scenes possibilities open up – new ways for the characters to connect and new discoveries to be made.

If you make Hikaru and Mori the leads, once again you get another perspective, another branch of unexplored stories.

Turn that around in your minds for the moment, and we'll continue our analysis in the next chapters!

For now, when Kaoru is taught different ways to love, when Kaoru begins to change…

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Acknowledgements

It occurs to me, with no small amount of pleasure, that I have captured exactly the sort of audience I wanted. The truth is, the OT7 is predicated upon a healthy liking and appreciation of ALL characters, even if a person may have favourites. It is rather hurtful to see character-bashing, since I feel that Hatori-sensei has gone to extensive lengths to show us aspects of each character that is worthy of admiration.

Without naming anyone, I have to publicly express my gratitude at the many supremely intelligent and insightful comments about the Ouran characters that I've received. They have helped me immensely while writing this. My debt to these people is vast. Sometimes I gasp in sheer amazement at how clearly all of you have understood Hatori-sensei's characters. For example, the rounding out of Mitsukuni and Takashi as more than just caricatures, I owe a lot to one person in particular. Thank you, sweetie, for horrifying me with your interpretation on Honey's dark side LOL.

In fact I am going to beg for more of those amazing analyses right now. Hahaha. For anyone who feels like sparing the time and effort to share your opinions, thoughts, beliefs, feelings about any of the characters or the plot, please please do drop me a private message. A few sentences is more than brilliant, and if it is essay length I will absolutely plough through it, and I will make this a better homage to the world of Ouran.

Thank you just for reading my fic. When I write this, I am always hoping it makes you smile and laugh.

17/02/2012

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Continued in Part C.