Chapter thirteen:
"Now here's my riddle." Tamaki says staring into Haruhi's eyes. He brings up a hand to his hat gently gripping the edge of it to slightly tilt it down as his eyes flutter closed. "Soon the time has come. Round and round running from door to door. A little girl lost in the vast unknown space. But the key of which she seeks to go home has more to it than she knows." He says the last part of the last sentence tilting his head up to look at Haruhi his eyes slightly glowing or so it seems. "So now tell me. What will you and so many people from a hot light that tears the thing it touches apart have in common?"
Haruhi stands there for a moment not fully sure if it truly counts as a riddle as it sounds more like some prophecy. "Well you're talking about fire at the end there." She begins as she brings a hand to her chin in thought. "But what will we have in common? No I cannot say." She says thinking hard then blinks with a gasp. "You're going to kill me!" She almost shouts.
"It won't be murder." Tamaki says with a slight bow. "But everyone here who searches so deep are always met with a certain fate."
Haruhi takes a few steps back and turns around to run away from who she is sure is a mad man. She then stops as there seems to be dark figures sitting in throne like chairs a little in front of her while Tamaki advances from behind.
"ENOUGH!" A strange yet somehow familiar female voice calls out as a hand throws itself out from the darkness revealing a purple robe with white gloves.
Tamaki stops his advances and watches the two sitting on the thrones as Haruhi stares trying to grasp where she knows that voice from.
The hand lowers going back to the arm rest.
"Haruhi." The female voice says and Haruhi blinks only to gasp as tears come to her eyes.
"M-Mom?" Haruhi gasps sounding like she's starting to hold back a sob.
A light shines on the figures like a spotlight shining from the sun.
The figure in the purple cloak has on a white mask with one side dropping down longer than the other but still mostly only covering her eyes and the mask has a partial part of yellow that is outlined in green.
The other wears a dark blue cloak and the white mask is like the ones in the purple cloak but on the opposite side so the longer sides are facing the other person and the mask is partially purple outlines in a blueish red color.
"Could… Could it really be true?" Haruhi asks bringing her hands up to by her chest in hope.
The woman in the purple cloak nods. "Yes. I am your mother. It's been so long my dear daughter. OH how I've missed you."
Haruhi hardly notices a stray tear dropping down her face. "M-M-Mom." She gasps slightly choking out the word as she just wants to burst into tears.
The other cloaked figure stands from its large golden throne. "Haruhi." Her fathers voice speaks from the figure. "I'm not actually sure how I got here." He walks down red carpeted steps moving closer to Haruhi with her mother following behind. "But I was told that you and you alone can save them. Save those that perished in the fire to avoid a much worse fate." He steps aside letting Haruhi's mother extend her hand. "I'll miss you greatly my daughter. But I have come to understand that fate works in many strange ways. Sometimes in ways that we might not like at the start." He removes his mask and the hood of the cloak drops revealing it to be indeed her father who smiles sadly at her with tears glistening in his eyes. "But they made a promise to me my dear daughter." He informs her. "If you help them then you will be reborn someday and allowed to live your life more normally. Allowed to live once again."
Haruhi's mother extends a hand out to her daughter who glances down at it. "Come with me my precious daughter." She says watching the brunette. "Take my hand and we can wait for when you'll be reborn again."
"HARUHI!" A voice shouts and Haruhi glances around noticing that there is more people here than before.
All of those that perished in the fire.
Every member of the host club.
A bunch of members of police.
As well as Mrs. Midori and Tom.
Though only the police, Tom and Mrs. Midori look worried and pleadingly.
"It is to save them." Haruhi's mother says getting Haruhi to turn to her. "The host club brought them here as witnesses. Witnesses to you freeing many trapped souls wishing for freedom. Take my hand and you can do what you were destined to do. Let this day of the thirteenth be known as the day you gave your life to help spirits find freedom."
Haruhi looks down to her mothers hand then back around herself before turning once again back to her mother. She closes her eyes for a moment then reaches out as tears fall down her face. She places her hand into her mothers and a small snake like light spirals up Haruhi's arm as all other noise fades away.
The light goes into her chest and the ground begins to glow.
Though Haruhi doesn't really notice those that perished in the fire are being lifted upwards as the roof vanishes to reveal clouds with a giant golden gate that opens.
Each person who goes up past the cloud line they grow wings and a halo. They each look gratefully and happily to Haruhi who has given them their freedom by opening the gates of heaven for them which is something that they couldn't have done on their own... Not without Haruhi's help.
Tamaki smiles as he watches them go hands at his side and he raises one hand waving goodbye to them glad to see them go to a more happier place where they can truly be free.
With another flash of light after the gates close once everyone that perished in the fire is through Haruhi and her mother are gone.
All those that were there when that took place have their eyes snap open in a gasp as they find themselves where they were before they saw the vision.
Mrs. Midori and Tom turn as the host club appear around Haruhi looking at her as blue visible energy is going from Haruhi down to the ground.
The ground sends out light blue with hints of green mixed in waves that just pass over everything lighting it up as each wave shoots across the land without causing any wind or even a sound.
After a few moments it stops just as the host club disappear.
Haruhi lays there with no sign of life or any of the energy from before anywhere to be seen from her.
Mrs. Midori runs over and grabs Haruhi tears forming in her eyes. "Haruhi!" She cries shaking the young girl in hopes that she will awaken. "HARUHI!" She slumps in defeat after a few attempts and she sobs.
Tom comes over and places a hand on her shoulder as her shoulders shake with sobs. "It was her choice in the end." He says in an attempt at comfort.
"But now she is home. Her key to go home was to make her choice of what she will do at the end of the maze of puzzles set up just for her to help her along." Tamaki says making the two adults turn as he is behind them. "We have been watching you here while we guided Haruhi to where she would make her choice. Along the way we helped her climb to her peek to make sure that it did as we wanted it to." He explains keeping his hood up to help cover his identity though Tom can tell that it's Tamaki by the voice. "It was her own decision to do as she did. But do not worry. There was no lies. She will one day be reborn and free to live her life." Then with a swarm of shadows Tamaki teleports away leaving the two there in the room alone with Haruhi's corpse.
….
Haruhi's father walks out onto the walkway just outside of his home and he looks up to the sky. "Haruhi…."
Some red rose petals go past him and he turns watching them as they do a loop in front of him then travel off into the distance as he watches.
Haruhi's father smiles sadly. "I'm so proud of you." He says then a tear falls down her face.
…..
Haruhi was given a proper burial and no one was blamed for her death. She was given a special headstone that said that she gave her life to let many other spirits finally go to heaven. She was a hero in her own special way.
Even the host club attended though they remained at a distance instead of joining the mourning crowd. They ended up turning and leaving to head off on their own free now to go wherever they want whenever they please as they are no longer tied to Ouran where they helped so many spirits that are now in heaven.
….
Death works in strange, wondrous and mysterious ways. It can never truly be predictable and no one will ever truly figure it out and fully understand it. Some will say that there is nothing when we die while others will insist that there is an afterlife. Though with death both opinions are in a way correct but which one you'll get will depend on death's decision. For death will control what you find after your mortal life passes and you begin your spirit life.
But one thing is certain…
Everyone will die one way or another.
It is unavoidable.
….
The host club are chilling happily at an abandoned mansion deep within a huge thick wooded forest. They had used their magic to fix it and now they call it their home away from others. They decided upon this so they don't have to hide what they can do or who they truly are.
Tamaki, who has his hood down like the others, leans back in his chair as he looks up to the ceiling before his eyes flicker to look to the sky outside. "One day…" He whispers to himself. "One day you will come back to this world." He turns away and looks to his hand that is clenched but raised to let him look. "Perhaps if we are still around that day. We will see each other again." He opens his palm revealing about six red rose petals. "I wonder what and who you'll become." He smiles and blows on the petals letting them fly out of his hand and head out of the window that opened just for them. "Whatever it is I'm sure you'll be wonderful at it.
The petals head along and do a spiral around Haruhi's grave before continuing off on their way.
The end.