Haruhi was in hell.

A rather sweet-smelling one, but a hell nonetheless.

She looked at Kyouya with pleading and panicked eyes.

He, on the other hand stared right back at her, his face devoid of all expression. In fact, Kyouya was gazing at her with an almost clinical-like detachment that Haruhi found both unnerving and upsetting.

"Kyou-ya!" she wailed plaintively, "This is preposterous!"

Haruhi glared irately at the two young women who had latched themselves firmly onto her arms. No matter how hard she tried to shake them off, they remained glued to her limbs.

Like leeches she thought waspishly.

"Ootori-sama," the taller of the two spoke up, "which among the packages have you chosen for Fujioka-san?"

Kyouya remained unaffected by the murderous glances the petite host was leveling in his direction. The stubborn set of her of her chin and the defiant tilt of her head said it all. She was going to be difficult all the way.

Which was fine by him. He was always up for a challenge anyway.

"Tanaka-san, I believe that…" His eyes swiftly perused the contents of the folder he was looking at, "Fujioka-san will have the Luxuriant Lily Package," Kyouya ended firmly.

Both girls nodded their heads in agreement.

"Excellent choice Ootori-sama," the shorter of the two murmured in approval. "I believe that the treatments will be most beneficial in helping soothe Fujioka-san's problematic disposition."

Rio Tanaka gave a small cough to cover up the fit of giggles that threatened to burst forth at the rather accurate description of the brown-haired beauty who was thrashing about frantically in their grip.

Belatedly she realized they had forgotten something. The presence of the youngest Ootori always managed to unsettle her.

"What about you, Ootori-sama?" Rio asked politely. "Have you decided how we can be of service to you today?"

Kyouya pushed wire-rimmed spectacles up his nose with a slim forefinger and replied with the barest trace of a smile, "I'll be fine ladies, go ahead and attend to Haruhi. I'll ring one of the other aides should I need anything."

He stepped closer to Haruhi and lifted her face upward so he could look into her eyes. Aaahh… as he had guessed, the magnificent darkness was blazing with ambivalence.

Haruhi's chest was heaving with the force of her ire but she refused to give Kyouya the satisfaction of another undignified outburst.

Kyouya enjoyed the sight of Haruhi trying to rein in her temper for a few more seconds before finally straightening up.

"Now, be a good girl Haruhi," he requested in a pleasant voice. "Give this experience your full attention as I will be expecting your comments and suggestions later on."

Haruhi gritted her teeth at the casually issued order. Conceited bastard. His arrogance was beyond belief she thought heatedly.

Kyouya turned to give final instructions. "You may run along ladies," he shot them a conspiratorial glance and continued, "Do your best girls. I'm counting on you to rid Haruhi of her surly nature."

This elicited an outraged gasp from the abovementioned person, which Kyouya easily dismissed.

Rio looked at meaningfully at her companion and they both glanced down at their reluctant charge (who was glowering ferociously behind the Ootori third son's broad back), and nodded at each other.

"Hai Ootori-sama," Rio stated respectfully.

"Leave it to us," they both murmured while bowing low.

"Arigatou," Kyouya returned graciously. "Now if you'll excuse me…" he turned away to take a call.

Haruhi allowed herself to be dragged away by her senpai's evil henchmen. Despite her annoyance, her mouth curved slightly at the ridiculous idea. She looked at her captors and noted their slight forms. Looks can be deceiving though, she thought wryly. While it was true they seemed fragile in appearance, their hold on her arms were like bands of finely wrought steel.

Haruhi sighed as they passed by a huge picture window. The sun which had been blazing brightly only a few hours earlier was already taking on a crimson hue. The day was drawing to a close and she still hadn't found a way to escape from the low blood pressure demon lord's presence. Her dejected huff echoed in the narrow hall.

"Fujioka-san," a soft voice broke though her dismal self-pity. "This way please."

She mechanically started moving forward. As she was about to step through the portal, Kyouya's low drawl reached her ears.

"Ah Ranka-san, it's been awhile. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Haruhi froze in place as her shocked brain tried to process the implication of those dreadful words.

Ranka-san? Kyouya was speaking with her father?

"I see… Of course, whatever I can do to be of assistance."

Haruhi began prying unwanted fingers off her person as she strained to hear more of the ongoing conversation. Nothing good ever came out of any dealings between those two, and she was sure to end up with the short end of the stick as usual.

"It's not an imposition at all. Please don't worry about it Ranka-san, I'll take care of Haruhi."

Take… care… of… Haruhi? She paled at that frightening vision. Just what kind of a favor did her father ask this time? She began struggling against the hands that bound her in earnest.

"Kyouya!" she shouted desperately, as she felt herself being firmly pulled farther away.

This was not happening. She needed to know what he meant by 'I'll take care of Haruhi' or she was going to explode.

Haruhi floundered helplessly as she was pushed through a wide doorway. The last thing she saw was the devilish and self-satisfied smirk that flitted across Kyouya's face before the heavy doors started to close.

"KYOU-YA!!"

A/N:

Hi everyone! After the long wait, chapter 11 is finally up! It's a bit short so sorry for that, I've been really swamped with work. :(

Anyway, I'll make it up in the next chapters, promise!

In the meantime, hope you enjoy!

xxxxx

Sama - (suffix) Formal version of "san." Respectful address towards important persons or those with higher rank

San - (suffix) Informal version of "sama."

Hai - Yes

Arigatou - Thank You