Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran. Still. Do you think anyone would mind if I stopped putting a disclaimer in every chapter, since there have been so many already?

And so the fluff begins. I'm sorry this fic's TamaHaru action is such a long time coming XD I can see why it took Bisco 80 chapters to hook them up now... apparently they can't be rushed. At all. Ever. I actually tried. It can't be done.

22 chapters to go ^^;

"Hey senpai, look at this!"

Tamaki shook his head slightly to jolt himself out of his thoughts and noticed that Haruhi had moved toward a stand selling tiramisu. The expo was a rather fascinating event in itself; at the door they had bought tickets that would be exchanged for food at the booths. Tamaki had paid for her, of course, despite her protests. They had nearly one hundred tickets apiece (four tickets for 100 yen had seemed incredible to Tamaki, and he couldn't resist the impulse), and so they could buy whatever they wanted freely and had no worry for running out.

"Wow!" he gasped, rushing over to her. "Is that tiramisu?"

"Yeah," Haruhi replied. "It was only two tickets. Here, try some," she held out a bite to him with the plastic fork that came with the food and he took it in his mouth, chewing happily.

"This is really good!" he said with a smile, handing over tickets to get his own plate. "Everything is so amazing! I had no idea commoners were so worldly with their culinary preferences!"

Haruhi grinned at him. "You'd be surprised," she teased lightly, chewing absentmindedly on her food. "But this is an international food expo, after all." She was looking off into space and Tamaki took the opportunity to stare at her. She looked rather adorable today, he thought with pride. She was wearing a surprisingly feminine dotted dress over her jeans and her familiar lavender jacket complemented it nicely. She had her hair arranged with several barrettes, among them the bear one he had bought her himself, and he couldn't help smiling at the sight of it. Haruhi looked absolutely beautiful to him today, and he could not tear his eyes away from her face, even when she looked back at him and blinked. They simply stared at each other for a moment until Tamaki flushed and pointed out a Korean sushi stand.

This outing, Tamaki decided quickly, had been a wonderful idea. It was nearly impossible to think of his current state of inner turmoil amid the bright bustle of the food fair, and he found himself forgetting his worries and getting caught up in it all like a child. There were bright colors everywhere and he was almost too excited to contain himself at the sights around him. However he began to find that as the day wore on, he was looking less and less at the food displays and more at Haruhi.

"Are you having fun?" Haruhi asked him over a small helping of poi and purple sweet potatoes. Tamaki smiled warmly at her and touched her wrist.

"I really am. Thanks for coming with me today," he said sincerely and watched Haruhi smile. He had never really noticed how much that smile of hers could disarm him. It could make him feel safe and clean and loved and warm all over and she didn't even have any idea.

"No problem. To be honest… there's really no one I'd rather be here with than you," Haruhi sounded serious and Tamaki's heart gave a small, not entirely uncomfortable jolt.

"Me either," Tamaki said happily, actually trying not to blush. For most of his life Tamaki had never, as a personal rule, really been flustered or awkward around girls. Haruhi seemed to have the power to make him both of these things, however. She was his one exception in every sense and it made him smile to realize it. "And thank you for helping take my mind off of my problems. I really appreciate it."

"Like I said, it's no problem," Haruhi told him, smiling at him in a very earnest and adorable way. Tamaki had to hold back a squeal. "I like spending time with you like this. It's a perfect way to spend a Sunday."

"I think so too," Tamaki smiled. The convention center was more pleasant than he had expected; he had fully anticipated paying no attention to his surroundings other than the wares of the expo. Somewhere behind Haruhi, a window was open and he smelled with a distinct sureness the drifting aroma of white lilacs. He inhaled deeply and smiled. Scent assists in creating memory more than any other scent, and the scent of white lilacs called to mind warm summer days in the gardens with his mother, rows of rosebushes broken up by the large and healthy white lilac bushes. "Can we go outside?" he asked softly.

"Sure. There's a courtyard right there," Haruhi said, pointing to an exit several yards away. Beaming, Tamaki followed her as they traded tickets for some fragrant ceviche with pita chips and then moved through the doors from air conditioning to warm sunshine. The scent was even more overpowering here, and as they found a place to sit on the cement rail that bordered the raised gardenia gardens, Tamaki felt a distinct sense of peace. Haruhi was eating quietly and looking at the flowers, and Tamaki watched her. She ate with a quiet dignity and she looked quite beautiful among the gardenia blossoms. For a moment he swore time stood still. Haruhi always took pleasure in eating so it made him happy to watch her as she was doing it. In that quiet moment with the distant murmur of voice and the cheerful chirping of birds, something shifted inside of Tamaki. Somewhere in the garden a novice played a violin quietly, coins clinking into the case, and Tamaki extended his hand to Haruhi through the sun-filled air over the sound of a heartfully played rendition of a Bach concerto.

"Will you dance with me, Haruhi?" he asked her quietly, and she blinked at him over her plate of ceviche, looking completely surprised.

"Huh?" she asked rather inelegantly, and he giggled a bit, the pain of his problems left behind in the dust. He was happy to be here with her, happy to be alive, and he found it shocking that this moment of happy gaiety could be so close in time to yesterday's fervent melancholy. Haruhi had a gift when it came to him, and he wondered if she knew it.

"We might as well take advantage of the music, right?" he said, pulling out all the stops with his host charm and smiling intimately at her. "It sounds lovely after all."

Haruhi watched him incredulously for another moment and then smiled, setting her plate down. "Sure, why not?" she asked, and he was happy to see that she was indeed loosening up; when they met she never would have dreamed of saying yes. Slowly her hand came to his through the fragrant air and her warm skin connected with his. He felt a familiar electric charge and smiled at just how deeply she could affect him. He clasped her tiny hand in his own and placed one arm on her waist. Her hand came up to grip his shoulder and he smiled.

"Now just when did you find the time to learn the ladies' end of the waltz, Haruhi?" he asked playfully with his eyes shining, shamelessly flirting and he was sure she knew it.

"Kyouya-senpai made me learn it before the festival when we were all waiting around for news about you, since I was dressed as a girl that night and all. I'm surprised you're just noticing it now. We danced together once before, remember?"

Tamaki did remember. Going back he felt the heavy pulse of the fireworks rocketing through him, saw their brilliant colors on her face and felt the slender willowyness of her under his hand. He remembered being grateful above all else that she had come for him in his moment of indiscretion and then danced with him, closer than with all the others. Possibly that moment was what started these rampant feelings, and he was grateful for it.

"Of course I remember," he told her, far bolder than he usually would have dared as he leaned down and pressed his mouth close to her ear as he spoke. "How could I not remember dancing with such a charming partner?" he pressed a kiss where his mouth had been and then pulled back to see the results of his actions. Haruhi looked a little pink and a little pleased, and if he was not mistaken she looked a little embarrassed. He resisted the urge to tell her how cute she was.

"You're the charming one, remember?" she asked with a grin for more playful than she normally would have chanced. It was like this courtyard was an entirely different world for them. "That is if you still have a seventy percent request rate."

Tamaki laughed a genuine laugh and moved his hand from her waist for just a moment to ruffle her hair. She was a better dancer than he had previously given her credit for, and they moved easily together in the flower-scented air as though they were born to do so. With sun on her, Haruhi's hair flared brilliant in the sun and rather than its actual brown it was flashes of gold, of red, mahogany melting together with silken strands like bullion on fire. Her cheeks grew rosy from the sun and took on an almost golden glow from the light, eyes bright in the sunshine. Their eyes locked for a moment, then stayed locked for longer than was appropriate. Tamaki actually blushed at the intimate way she was staring at him; he had never seen her give this kind of look to anyone before. He felt special and he felt honored, waltzing slowly with her in this private corner of courtyard. Tamaki felt, when he was with her, happier and livelier than he had in days. Simply looking at her, his heart swelled with joy and love and a million emotions without names but with sensations as clear as the sunny day. It was certain to him now as she pressed closer than he would have imagined she would dare that he knew he could not allow this feeling to escape.

For Suoh Tamaki always would there be another fond memory attached to the smell of white lilacs. Because it was at that moment, pressed closed to Haruhi with the sound of violin music in his head, he knew that no matter what, ignoring all consequences, he could never let himself lose her.