Disclaimer: I do not own OHSHC; Studio Bones and Bisco Hatori own it. I do not lay claim to the original idea of the Ouran Elementals; many thanks to Star-of-Seraph for her permission to use them. However, I do own this whole storyline and everything non-canonical.

Musical Accompaniment: Face Dancer by Brian Tyler on the Children of Dune soundtrack. This is awesome mood music for the beginning of the chapter, but also for the latter part starting while Haruhi is eating lunch.

Author's Notes: As always, many thanks to huamulan03 for beta-ing for me. She turned around this chapter in less than 48 hours, which is no small feat because she's so thorough and helpful. I'd be lost without her kind concrit and suggestions.

Chapter 14

Unlike her more histrionic kindred, Haruhi was not inclined to overreact about anything. She took everything in stride, rolled with the punches, and kept her cool because God knew that no one else around her could do it. But when she arrived at Ouran, carefully radiating a nothing-particularly-special-about-today serenity, she found her world thoroughly shaken. The campus was filled with more adults than students, and the teachers were herding groups of reporters away from the school with harsh words and not-so-gentle elemancy. Haruhi quickly ducked around a small cabal of protestors having a yelling contest with one of the grammar school teachers, and she prayed that no one would notice her as she dashed into the high school section of the campus.

What the hell is going on?

"Oh my God, Haruhi-kun!" Haruhi turned to see Kimiko rushing up to her side. "Haruhi-kun, did you hear the news? It's everywhere!"

"No, what?"

"The High Circle's looking for a group of teens that forged a Circle this weekend!"

Kimiko's words caused an actual stab of pain in her stomach, and Haruhi stopped in mid-step, doubled over while clutching her ribs.

OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod….

"Are you okay?" Kimiko asked, resting a hand on Haruhi's shoulder.

It took a few seconds before she replied, "Yeah, I'm all right. I'm just… surprised, that's all. Do they know who the teens are?"

"No, that's the thing. They think it's an inside job, that one of the Circles helped them."

This can't be happening this can't be happening….

"It's why Ouran's so chaotic today. There are only four elemancy-related high schools in the Tokyo area, and it's possible that students from here are guilty. Can you imagine?"

Oh God, do the others know about this?

"The school board wanted to close the school, but the Chairman wouldn't let them. He said that Ouran has nothing to hide, and that he'll allow some investigation to take place as long as it doesn't interrupt our schooling."

They were halfway to homeroom before a tingling sensation brushed the back of Haruhi's skull. She easily recognized as someone trying to communicate telepathically, and felt a moment of relief. At least one of the boys knew what was going on, and she was being called to their side.

Haruhi gratefully bowed to Kimiko and said, "Excuse me, but I have to go run an errand. Thanks for walking with me."

"Bye, Haruhi-kun. Be careful," she waved, and they headed in opposite directions.

Running towards the Third Elemancy Room, Haruhi made it to the double doors just as Tamaki did. His face was white with unspoken panic, and they entered without a word. Kyouya, Huni, and Mori were already there, and Haruhi could feel fear and anxiety though their expressions didn't slip.

"Where are-?" Tamaki asked.

"Just pulled up," Mori said, jerking his head towards the window. "They know to come up here."

No one said anything, not even mentally, and they impatiently milled around the refurnished room – Haruhi noticed their chalk circle had been cleaned away – until Hikaru and Kaoru burst through the door. After they slammed and locked it, they raised their voices in concerted outrage.

"So we were driving in and this guy jumps in front of the limo-" "-Nearly got himself run over, the idiot-" "-And starts pounding the hood yelling about the rights of normal people and how Elementals should be locked up-" "-We jumped out and ran past everyone, but there are all these people screaming about teens being too young to control themselves-" "-It was such bullshit that these people were spouting, can you believe it!"

"Did they accuse you two?" Kyouya asked, cutting through their tirade. Both stopped and shook their heads, and the real reason why they were gathered together fully descended on the group.

'Someone let it slip,' Tamaki said without preamble.

'No fucking shit,' Hikaru deadpanned, and Kaoru smacked the back of his brother's head before saying, 'So who told? Amaya-san and one of her kindred?'

'I doubt it. Telling would incriminate her Circle before ours,' Kyouya said.

Tamaki shook his head. 'It doesn't matter. The problem is that people know.'

'I think it's my fault,' Haruhi said, unable to conceal her guilt. 'Takumi told me that I was radiating en-Circled-level elemancy at the bay, and how the High Water Elemental called him about it. Anyone from another Circle could have found out. I'm sorry, everyone.'

'You couldn't help it any more than I could,' Hikaru said, and he twined his fingers around hers in a move that was equal parts comfort and forgiveness.

'Tamaki's right, though – it doesn't matter how they know, just that they do,' Huni said. 'So what do we do?'

Without hesitation, Kyouya answered, 'Nothing. At the moment, the High Circle doesn't know who the "criminals" are, and if we can keep up the façade of normalcy, then we're not going to get caught. But it all hinges on us acting like we're at our original elemancy levels.'

'How long can we last, though?' Tamaki asked. 'I feel more comfortable today, but not completely. I know it's only a matter of time before….'

'Before you end up doing something dramatic, even if it's by accident or necessity,' Mori carefully finished.

Hikaru ran a hand through his hair. 'We can't not use our new talents; we've got to practice sometime. But even that's-'

The warning bell rang and everyone flinched or snapped their heads to the door.

'No using telepathy when we leave this room,' Haruhi reminded them. 'That's the thing that's going to give us away the fastest; if it looks like we're using elemancy – without elemancy.'

Their tattoos faded, and Tamaki said aloud, "We will still have Host Club today. Nothing extravagant, but the customers deserve a moment of ordinary life during this rather dramatic time."

Nods and murmurs of agreement to fill the space, and they exited the Third Elemancy Room at the same time. They silently split into three groups, and Haruhi walked with a Hitachiin to either side. Hikaru was no longer holding her hand, but every now and then she could feel their fingers brush against her back or arm.

We'll be all right, she thought to herself as they walked into Classroom 1-A.

The announcement came barely ten minutes after the first period class began.

"Good morning, students and teachers," a good-natured bass echoed through the speaker system; Haruhi recognized it as Chairman Suou's voice. "Due to the unfortunate gossip that has reached the ears of the media, all students are ordered to attend their elemancy classes at their specific Elemental Arenas. Testing is to be done in the presence of the visiting Circles, so I expect all students to carry themselves with nothing less than the greatest of dignity during this time. That is all."

The room was silent for barely a second before whispers and gasps flew between the students. Haruhi couldn't bring herself to look at either Hikaru or Kaoru, but she heard them force a sigh of exasperation. Suzaryuu-sensei's tattoo was glowing vivid gold in righteous anger, and it was only with the greatest of will that she suppressed the sparks dancing at the ends of her fingers. She turned to the class and said, with only a hint of defiance, "You heard the Chairman. Conduct yourselves appropriately, and this farce will end all the more quickly."

The bell rang before Haruhi knew it, and she packed her things up with almost painful efficiency. The twins were nearly bursting with bravado, but when they tossed their arms over her shoulders she could feel how much they trembled. She let their touch linger longer than usual before breaking away and following Izumino, Shisada, and Kuroha to the Lakes.

"You don't seem too worried," Izumino said to Kuroha, and he shrugged.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. Personally, I think some anti-Elem's trying to denounce high-ranking Elementals, and the easiest way to do that is by targeting their children," he said simply. Kuroha's family had political ties, and it didn't surprise Haruhi that he knew so much about public image.

"I'm a wreck," Izumino said, her hands playing with her briefcase's strap. "What if the Circles just decide to strip everyone in Ouran of their elemancy because of this? I mean, Elemental Rights these days are in such question…."

Shisada snorted. "They won't do that. If we were from one of the smaller schools, it might happen, but we're fine. I mean, Cabinet Member Izumino is your grandfather, and I doubt he's gonna let something happen to you."

"Won't hurt to be extra careful, though," Kuroha said, and Haruhi couldn't agree more.

The Lakes was surprisingly organized despite the sudden descent of the fifteen First Years, but Hongo-sensei had everything under control. Near the edge of the waters, Haruhi saw him speaking to two Water Elementals that she automatically understood to be en-Circled. One was a woman with light blond-brown hair tied severely on the top of her head, dressed in a professional's suit and skirt. The other was a slightly balding man in his mid-thirties, wearing shorts and a T-shirt and looking rumpled.

Hongo-sensei was not in good spirits about this, but Haruhi was surprised by how unhappy the Circle members looked about this. Almost as if they were afraid for us – or themselves.

Haruhi suddenly wondered if she was not the only person in the room who was hiding a forbidden Circle.

The bell rang, signaling the beginning of classes, and Hongo-sensei called for everyone's attention. "I would like to introduce you to the Water Elementals who will be observing today's elemancy lesson: Raikatsuji from Circle Enari and Wakai from Circle Hashimoto," he said, gesturing to first the woman then the man, the latter of which pulled out a clear glass sphere.

"We're going to measure your elemancy with the use of spellglobes," Wakai said evenly, and Haruhi's gut tightened. "This will be a painless, harmless test, and take no more than a few minutes of your time." Behind them were two sets of folding shoji screens, obviously for privacy during the tests.

Hongo-sensei gestured for the group to take their seats at the desks, and he sat at the head of the class. "We will call your name when we're ready for you. Until then, please do not use any elemancy, as it will disrupt the testing. After you are through testing, you are free to go to the study halls.

"Izumino Hanabi and Kuroha Takanobu."

Haruhi watched them each walk behind one of the paper screens, and she wished she could watch and see what was coming. All she could do was sit across from Shisada and stare into the distance over his head, and her mind frantically whirled with schemes and ideas.

The real show of an en-Circled Elemental is their power level, so they're going to be seeing if our levels match our age. What could an empty spellglobe have to do with anything? Wouldn't control over a normal spellglobe be more indicative?

But whatever it means it still comes down to power levels, and they'll sense mine halfway across campus.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and nearly jumped, but it was simply Izumino stopping by to grab her bag. She was pale and shaky, but she gave Haruhi a watery smile of relief.

"Shisada Ryuusein," Hongo-sensei called out, and the other boy went to Wakai with grace and poise in his step.

I'm next, Haruhi thought, and fear made her calm. And I know one thing – if I can reduce my elemancy level, I can get away with this. I just need a chance to use up my elemancy quickly and efficiently.

Then Kuroha stepped to the desk, threw Haruhi a meaningful look, and walked out of the Lakes with his bag in hand.

"Fujioka Haruhi."

She didn't flinch nor hesitate, slipping behind the screen and sitting before Raikatsuji with quiet poise. The woman looked Haruhi up and down with an icy gaze before holding out the empty spellglobe. It was barely bigger than a peach.

"This globe will automatically take half of the elemancy in your body. With it, I can measure whether the amount within the spellglobe is an appropriate amount for someone of your age. Please hold out your right hand," she said in a voice that brooked no argument.

Haruhi looked behind Raikatsuji at the Lakes glimmering in the early morning light, and the answer flashed through her mind. She summoned her tattoo and held out her hand to accept the spellglobe. Before its glassy exterior brushed her skin, Haruhi touched the Lakes and pushed as much of her elemancy into its sparkling depths as possible, cutting through Hongo-sensei's protections as if they weren't there. The Lakes didn't so much as ripple with the additional power.

Then the sphere landed in her hand and she couldn't focus on anything but the spellglobe stealing her elemancy. It didn't hurt, that much was true, but it felt like something was stretching her arms and legs as far from her torso as they would go. Haruhi bit her lip to hold back a cry, and it felt like hours before Raikatsuji took the globe back, studying it with detached interest.

"You're quite a powerful young man," she said, weighing the globe in her hand. Then she studied it through the filtered sunlight, rolling it between her fingers. "How old are you?"

"Fifteen."

She gave Haruhi another appraising look, but let out a sigh of acceptance. "Well, your elemancy level is high, but nowhere near en-Circled. If ever you want a job as an Elemental researcher, call me. We could use talents like yours."

Haruhi's knees almost gave out, but she managed to sketch a deep bow of respect before grabbing her bag and walking out of the Lakes. She wanted to go to the fountain – her peace, her refuge – but knew better than to walk outside into the awaiting eyes of reporters and anti-Elems. So she went to the Third Elemancy Room, double locked the door behind her, and collapsed against the wall. She clasped her hands over her nose and mouth, breathing deeply and trying not to hyperventilate as relief stole the strength from her body. Haruhi wanted oh-so-badly to touch them, physically and mentally, but knew that even the smallest distraction could be the end of their charade.

Please, God, please let the guys be all right. Please take care of them please take care of them oh please take care of them.

When her composure was fully returned, she headed back to the homeroom; the twins would return to class unless something was terribly wrong. She walked through the door – and was joyfully embraced by a Hitachiin on each side.

"Haruhi," Hikaru purred in her ear. "I missed you so much."

"Didn't you yearn for us, too?" Kaoru murmured.

And, because if she had acknowledged her concern it would have given so much away, she simply sighed and said, "I knew you'd be fine. Would you please let me go?"

Despite the chaos going on within and around the school, the rest of Haruhi's classes went without a hitch. None of the teachers looked out the windows or even hinted as to the fact that there might be an illegal Circle within the hallowed halls of Ouran Elemental Institute. The twins were as boisterous as usual, using their immense acting skills to their benefit, and Haruhi appreciated their efforts. It was easy for her to slip into her normal routine and forget, for the moment, that she was one of the seven being hunted.

The reminder came at the end of the day. Urugi-sensei had barely finished outlining the homework for the following day when a forceful banging interrupted his thoughts.

"Enter," he said with a sigh and a wave of his hand. One of the teachers opened it, and Haruhi recognized him as the Sukizuko-sensei, the new biology teacher.

"They found them! They found the unsanctioned Circle," he said, and a small roar went up in the room. Even without opening the connection, Haruhi could feel the twins' shock like an icicle through her mind. She reached out a hand beneath the desk, and Kaoru gripped it like a lifeline.

"Where, here?" Urugi-sensei asked sharply, but Sukizuko-sensei shook his head and the room went quiet.

"No, at Asahara High School. One of the kids confessed about an hour ago, and it's just gotten to us now."

Urugi-sensei touched his hand to his chest. "Oh, thank the gods. Are the Circles still here?"

"No, they left. They even dispersed the reporters and anti-Elems stalking the gates," he said, then nodded at the class as he headed out. "Sorry to interrupt."

The final bell rang loud and cheerfully, and the trio nearly ran to the Third Elemancy Room. They beat everyone else there, and after Haruhi shut the door she was sandwiched in a three-way hug between the twins. It wasn't one of the teasing, flirting hugs that they did when annoying Tamaki; she could feel the shaking in their arms and their tremulous mindvoices, filled with the emotions that they held back all day.

'We're okay, we're okay,' Hikaru whispered, his arms around hers and Kaoru's shoulders. His face was buried in her hair, and she could feel his fluttering heartbeat against her back. 'I thought they were going to tear us apart. I thought we'd never see each other again.'

'But it's all right now, they don't know about us,' Kaoru gently reassured him, holding Haruhi against his chest as if she'd disappear if he let her go. 'We're safe, thank God, and we've still got each other.'

Haruhi just hugged them back, saying nothing but letting them rest inside her mind. They jumped apart when someone jiggled the door handle, and relaxed as Tamaki fell through the door with Kyouya sliding in behind him. The blond nearly tackled her, breathing out incomprehensible words in French that she understood to be a mix of joy and gratitude at her well-being. Again, Haruhi put up with it for a minute before peeling him off her.

"We have about fifteen minutes before customers arrive," Kyouya said, and then his mindvoice added, 'I'm surprised that we all managed to avoid being caught. The chances of one of us being found out were extremely high.'

"Is business all you think about?" Kaoru retorted, following the double conversation. 'Maybe we're more talented than you give us credit for.'

Kyouya just gave him a look of dry disbelief.

'How did you do it?' Haruhi asked, suddenly curious as to how her kindred escaped detection.

The twins glanced at each other. 'Our control sucks, and we know it. We practiced for about an hour at home, purposefully draining our elemancy so that we wouldn't accidentally hurt someone today,' they answered, both reading and speaking each other's thoughts with fluid ease.

'Bled out my elemancy into the Deserts,' Tamaki explained, and Haruhi's thoughts echoed her similar encounter.

Kyouya pulled out a spellglobe barely bigger than a plum from his pocket. It glowed a deep, royal purple. 'We should all start carrying one around,' he said before stowing it away.

"So now we can put all this behind us, right?" Tamaki said, not quite a question. "This uproar will be no more than an easily forgotten nightmare in the history of Ouran."

"We can only hope," Kyouya nodded. 'Though I wonder about the fate of the Circle from Asahara.'

'I don't. It's not us, so who cares?' Hikaru tossed off.

Haruhi opened her mouth to disagree, but was quickly interrupted by Huni and Mori walking through the door. They smiled upon seeing everyone, and the first thing Huni said, after locking the door, was, 'We're safe for now, but it might not last. We're going to have to be extra careful in case the Circles are secretly keeping watch on the school.'

'Tomorrow will be especially important, considering it will involve Arena practices,' Mori said.

The clock tower chimed three o'clock, and it was as if a switch had been flicked. They began preparing with almost manic energy, and soon welcomed their customers with very open arms.

None of the ladies commented on the way Haruhi's hands slightly shook as passed around teacups and plates of treats.

Her father must have just barely beaten her home because he was still in his Ranka clothes preparing dinner as she staggered through the door.

"Hello, sweetheart! Have a good day?" Ranka joyfully asked, and then saw the look on her face. "Oh no. What happened? Do I have to kill one of those hosting boys – preferably the ditzy blonde?"

"No, it wasn't them. Have you been watching the news?"

He hadn't, and Haruhi curtly filled him in. By the time she was finished, she could see how pale he was under the makeup.

"Oh my God," he whispered. "How do you feel?"

It was a good question; she didn't have an answer. Right now, all she felt was quiet and numb. He shook his head, almost chastising himself. "Stupid question, I'm sorry. Oh, Haruhi, maybe I shouldn't have let you… you know."

"It's not your fault, Dad," she said bluntly. "And I think I'd have done it anyway. I just... I feel so edgy, and I hate it. I know the others are fine, but I have this terrible feeling of someone watching me, like someone knows and they're just going to knock on the door and steal me away. Or steal them away."

He gently took her briefcase from white-knuckled fingers. "Go change and relax while I'll make dinner, daughter mine – and no arguments."

She didn't fight him, needing the downtime though she'd never admit it. As she changed, she stared at her face in the bathroom mirror. It was almost shocking that she still looked the same as she did three days ago… except for the violent, bruise-purple circles under her eyes and the pallor of someone slightly anemic. Same nose, lips, hair, skin. It felt like lifetime since she forged the Circle, and almost expected to have a large sign on her forehead reading 'En-Circled!' in bright Light-shining letters. Even her tattoo looked the same, betraying no hints of what lay beneath the surface.

I'm still me, no matter what happens, she thought, stroking her mirror image's tattoo. She gently reached out to her kindred and barely brushed their minds. She didn't need to talk to them, but wanted to reassure herself that everything was okay.

'It's all over now. We'll be fine,' Tamaki promised.

It was weird for Tamaki to be right, but he was. The next day at school was as uneventful as ever. No anti-Elems were staking claim on Ouran's lawn, no reporters trying to slip into its halls. None of the teachers brought up the past chaos, and only in the darkest recesses of the school did anyone mention the gossip of Asahara's unsanctioned Circle.

By Friday, things were forced into normality and Haruhi was fine with that. She simply practiced her elemancy by honing her control rather than explode with power. Her kindred offered to let her use their elemancy rooms when she liked, though for the time being she chose to work in private and master the art of telepathy. The boys were having harder times with it, though they, in turn, were much more comfortable with their new elemancy levels.

Their only setback was the inability to create Balances. No matter how hard they tried, none of them made any sort of progress. Haruhi didn't attempt to call Takumi or Amaya for help, nor did they contact her.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Haruhi still couldn't let go of the feeling that something wasn't right.

"Hey, Haruhi, can I have a piece of that?" Hikaru asked, then immediately grabbed a bite of her leftover tonkatsu with his fork. "Yum! Good stuff you got here."

She smacked his fork away as he reached for a second bite, and skillfully parried Kaoru's chopsticks with the other hand. "You two have your own lunches. Stop trying to eat mine."

"I don't mind sharing," Hikaru teased, holding a forkful of smoked mussel and risotto in front of her lips. "Want a bite?"

Haruhi actually opened her mouth to comply – the Ouran lunches were spectacularly well-made – when Kyouya's voice cut into her thoughts.

'We have an emergency! Everyone, come to the Second Library!'

Hikaru dropped the fork and Kaoru choked on his drink. Haruhi quickly boxed up the rest of her lunch without a second thought, and the twins dumped their trays and ran out the lunchroom hot on her heels.

"Oh man, I hope he's just overreacting about the Host Club finances," Kaoru muttered under his breath.

"It has to be important if he actually broke down and connected us during school hours," Haruhi reasoned.

It wasn't a reassuring fact, coupled with the sudden backlash of Tamaki's shock, Huni's anger, and Mori's concern as they dashed through the halls.

They entered the library and headed towards the back of the room; there were individual rooms that students could use for personal study time, and Kyouya always took the one farthest down the line. They knocked on the door, solid wood with only a small window so teachers could check up on students, and Mori's somber face greeted them.

"We have a problem," he said, ushering them in.

"We always have problems," Hikaru said. "Started with last Saturday."

No one cracked a smile. Kyouya was facing the door, laptop open, and Tamaki was across from him, head in his hands. Huni, for once, wasn't floating, but standing behind Kyouya with a grim look. He silently backed away as the trio came forward.

On the laptop's screen was the school website. All Ouran students were given an e-mail address so that classroom information could be more efficiently transmitted, and Haruhi's eyes scanned the letter.

She was holding Kyouya's shoulders for support when she finished reading.

TO: ootori. kyouya at ouran. edu. jp

FROM: coh78n3 at ultimation. net

SUBJECT: Circle Details

To Ootori Kyouya,

I have evidence as to your involvement in an illegal Circle-forging. Though it was reported that the criminals have already been identified, I know that you are one of the seven that the High Circle is looking for.

You are from a wealthy family. I can only imagine the stain that will come upon its name if word of this unfortunate incident is made public. Therefore, I offer a deal; 100,000,000 yen for my silence.

Meet me in the center of Takaoji Park, away from the two walkways and near the grove, at 10:00 PM. Bring the money in small, unsuspicious bills in a nondescript backpack or briefcase. If you do not show nor leave the payment, this night will be the last night you ever see your kindred.

- Voice

P.S. In case you doubt my veracity, please open the attachment.

And in the upper right-hand corner of the screen was an image of Haruhi walking into the Vivid Lain VIP room with Takumi and Amaya.

Author's Notes (10/08/07): God, I love cliffhangers. Don't you? : :insert evil smile: :

Yeah, I'm a cruel and unusual authoress. I'm so bad, in fact, because I won't be able to update until the 22nd of October. Everyone's going to have to wait two weeks for the next part. However, I promise that it will be well worth your time. After that, though, you may be forced to wait until December for my next update. However, I'll try to get another chapter out before Halloween. No promises, but I'll see what I can do.

I also apologize for the fact that the email addresses in the last part of the chapter look so funny. Efefdotnet doesn't like writers embedding any sort of web address in their stories, so I had to fiddle with the whole thing to make it actually show. Sorry.

Thank you to all my readers and reviewers, by the way. You guys have a way of making me laugh and cheer and clap my hands every time I read your comments. Everyone's so impassioned about the Host Club/Circle Fujioka that it really adds fuel to my fanfiction fire.