A/N: I don't own Ouran Highschool Host Club. Thank you for reading this far and I hope you enjoy this next chapter.
New A/N 12.2017: I recently rewrote this story to change an important element in Caine's backstory that I wasn't satisfied with. I hope you all are as content with the change as I am and continue to read and review my story.
Chapter Ten: The Picnic
Kyoya wasn't someone who naturally anticipated the weekend; after all, he liked school and was in his element there. This week, however, the impending prospect of the Host Club picnic and the new member it was intended to welcome made him feel the weekend couldn't come soon enough. He planned the picnic carefully, just as he had for all of the Host Club events in the past, but this time, he noticed himself anxiously worrying over whether what he had prepared was good enough. He pushed the thoughts out of his head and forced his nerves to relax themselves, reassuring himself he had never failed to plan the perfect event and that the picnic would be no exception. In class, he noted that Caine was somewhat distracted, and Mira refrained from coming to Host Club all week, reminding him of the invisible yet undeniably powerful presence of their father. Still, Caine maintained his interest in meeting the other hosts and assured Kyoya he shouldn't worry about taking him away from his rarely present father.
Finally, it was Friday. He stayed back a moment from Host Club to tell Caine he would come to pick him up in the morning tomorrow and Caine nodded, saying he would anticipate him. Then the glasses-clad was off to Host Club, dealing with everyone's concerns and excitement over the picnic and meeting Caine. Usually, he felt a vague annoyance at having to fix everyone's problems without much in the way of recognition, but today, it was a welcome distraction from his own thoughts.
He had arranged with the Hitachiin brothers that they would be going to one of their family's private gardens, a lovely green spot on a hill overlooking Tokyo. Although he was forever concerned with making a profit from the Host Club, he also recognized their need to relax and bond together, and the start of a new school year was just the right time to make sure everything within the Host Club was going well. The introduction of new blood in the group (Haruhi, that is) was something the club would have to deal with, and they would be better able to do so without being distracted by their constant guests.
The next morning, he woke up bright and early, silently complaining as he drank his coffee that his weekend sleep would be cut into once again. His driver was waiting out front when he strode out, his face in his usual morning scowl. Luckily, Kyoya had told the man where to take him the night before, saving him from snapping at him now for no other reason than fatigue.
His driver pulled away from the house and Kyoya started dozing in the back seat. When they arrived at the Yabatsukuni house, he was jolted awake suddenly by the car stopping.
"Good morning!" exclaimed a voice that seemed to him inappropriately cheerful for the early hour. He blinked his eyes and looked up–it was Seito, smiling brightly down at him from where he stood, just having opened the car door.
"Whatever," grumbled an irritated voice, and then Caine stepped into view. He was wearing a long grey sweater coat with its hood pulled up over his head, and his eyes told the sleepy story of someone who was not naturally an early riser, a tale Kyoya knew only too well. Pushing past his surrogate father, he slumped into the car alongside his friend.
"Have a great day!" Seito continued cheerfully, handing Caine a large coffee. The boy took it with a desperate grip that told Kyoya Caine's approach to mornings was much like his own. As the car pulled away, Caine downed the coffee like a vampire thirsting after blood, leaned into the car door, and promptly fell asleep. Looking over his friend, Kyoya judged it appropriate to do the same and dozed off as well.
The two were woken once more when they reached the Haninozuka house, where they were met with a similarly sleepy host and the man who carried his tired body to the car, and again when they dropped by the Fujioka apartment, where a wakeful Haruhi graciously kept silent to afford the three sleepers some respite.
Their peace was broken when they arrived at the Hitachiin family's garden and were greeted by a blond, overly emotional, self-proclaimed prince.
"Good morning everyone!" he sang out, unconscious of the car's previously silent atmosphere.
"Senpai," said Haruhi, and the three sleepers stretched and prepared themselves for Tamaki's enthusiasm.
Honey yawned and stretched adorably, then said, "Tama-chan, we brought cake!" using his favorite diversion to give himself a reason to wake up. Mori held up a large box to back up Honey's claim and Tamaki commended Honey on his good thinking.
Kyoya shifted in preparation to getting out of the car and found Caine was leaning up against him, his head on his shoulder. He gently elbowed his friend in the ribs and the boy stirred, rubbing his eyes.
"Everything is prepared, Kyoya?" Tamaki asked. Kyoya gave him a look–if he had helped with the planning he would know– and got out of the car, Haruhi and the third-years following suit.
Caine shifted to the front of the car, taking Kyoya's offered hand and climbing out. There, he removed the sweater coat and tossed it back into the car, revealing a dark blue long-sleeved shirt and light grey jeans.
"Good morning, Suou-kun," he said calmly.
"As promised, this is Caine," introduced Kyoya.
"Hii!" exclaims Suou enthusiastically. Then, aside, to Kyoya, as if Caine wasn't standing right there, he added, "He knows who we are already. That must mean you've talked to him. Kyoya, has he agreed to be a host?" Kyoya noted with amusement Caine was already getting to see what Tamaki was like and wondered what the boy thought of the emotionally overwhelming host.
"Why don't you ask him yourself?" replied Kyoya, giving Tamaki the side-eye for his foolishness. Tamaki didn't seem to see it, or if he did, his foolishness was unaffected by it.
"We want you to be a host!" He said to Caine, bright with excitement.
Meanwhile, Caine looked Tamaki up and down, starting to add personality traits to the overall picture of his understanding of the blond boy.
It's interesting to see someone who doesn't even attempt to contain his emotions, he thought.
He ran a hand through his silver hair, smoothing its unruliness.
"I'm not entirely opposed to it," he offered diplomatically.
"Yay!" cried Tamaki and Honey in unison, "A new host!"
Caine raised his eyebrows at their boundless enthusiasm, then chuckled to himself.
"We'll see," he said simply.
Tamaki was prevented from pressing further by the arrival of the Hitachiin twins.
"Welcome to the hilltop garden!" they announced in unison.
The rest of the club followed them up to the view.
"Wow," chorused Caine and Haruhi softly, neither having seen it before.
"Isn't it just great?" agreed Tamaki. The two ignored him, appreciating the view.
"We'll go get the picnic fare," offered the twins. "Sir, why don't you help us?"
Tamaki turned from admiring Haruhi admire the view.
"Okay! Come on Haruhi!" he replied, following the twins back down the hill the way they'd come.
"This really is impressive," Caine told Kyoya. Kyoya took a moment to admire the view, then began introductions.
"Caine, these two are Haninozuka Mitsukuni and Morinozuka Takashi, the club's third-years."
"You can call me Honey!" said the golden-haired child, smiling at Caine divinely. Even though Kyoya says he's a year older than us, it's hard to believe with all that youthful energy and charm, Caine thought.
"Mori, please," says his tall, dark-haired companion laconically. Now him, there's no mistaking he's a third-year, Caine mentally added.
"Ah, It's a pleasure to meet you, Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai," he replied aloud, "I'm Caine."
"Yay, Caine-chan!" Honey exclaimed. "Come play with us!"
As Mori carried Honey down the hill, Caine turned to Kyoya.
"Yes, he calls everyone by familiar nicknames," explained Kyoya, knowing the question Caine held in mind.
"Come on Caine-chan! We have kites!" came the cry from below.
Caine shrugged his shoulders at Kyoya and strolled casually down the hill.
"What did you say to convince him to come?" Kaoru asked Kyoya, having come up behind him.
"We don't call you the shadow king for nothing, sir," added Hikaru. "We know you have some scheme."
Kyoya was about to deny it when he heard a voice.
"Why did you leave me with all of the baskets!" complained Tamaki loudly, interrupting them.
"Are you kidding, sir?" Kaoru criticized, turning from the shadow king to the official king.
"Haruhi is carrying much more than you are," added Hikaru.
"Senpai," Haruhi struggled to say, weighed down by their picnic lunch. Kyoya rushed to her side and alleviated her burden. "Thank you, Kyoya-senpai," she said in reply.
They spread the picnic blankets Tamaki had carried on the ground and started taking out the food.
"I'll go get the others," offered Haruhi, heading down the hill to where Honey, Mori and Caine were flying kites.
There is one problem standing in the way of Caine becoming a host," Kyoya told Tamaki, sitting down next to him on the picnic blanket, "and that is the matter of Mira-sama."
"Mira-sama?" asked Tamaki, confused.
"As I understand it, Caine and Mira-sama are childhood friends. Caine is worried what effect his joining the Host Club could have on this friendship," explained Kyoya, tactfully obscuring Caine and Abel's true relationship and preserving Caine's desired anonymity.
"Ah, I understand," replied Tamaki, who, as usual, did not really understand, "Maybe we could dress Caine up as a woman, so Mira-sama wouldn't recognize him!"
Kyoya sighed, forcing himself not to roll his eyes. Tamaki's ideas were ridiculous, as usual. "I don't think that would work, Tamaki," he said, long resigned to Tamaki's crazy plans.
"But we could dress him up differently," Kaoru commented, no doubt planning up strange new costumes.
"There's got to be some way Mira-sama won't recognize him," added Hikaru, "maybe with makeup, as well . . ."
"Maybe Caine-san could just talk to Mira-sama," suggested Haruhi, who had returned with Honey, Mori and Caine in tow, "perhaps she actually wouldn't mind him hosting."
Kyoya gave thanks for Haruhi's ability to see to the heart of the problem and propose the most logical and simple solution.
"I suppose it's possible it might be that simple," he replied thoughtfully.
"Enough of worrying," said Hikaru.
"Let's eat," said Kaoru, finishing his twin's sentence. Together, they took chopsticks and dug into their picnic lunch.