~Chapter Forty Five~

Calm Before The Storm

In the shadows, it awakens the desires,
And the pressure will just keep on rising.
Now the heat is on.

Where is the edge of your darkest emotions?
Where is the light of your deepest devotion?
I pray that it's still alive.

Never give in...

~Where Is The Edge, by Within Temptation

Disclaimer: Me No Own; You No Sue.

Throwing caution to the wind, I stepped closer to Kotoko, and thus the edge of the cliff, which I judged to be at least fifty to sixty feet from the ground. She smiled warmly, her face still turned to face the open ocean, and wrapped her smaller hand in mine, squeezing the limb with her own. I did not hesitate in squeezing her hand, curling five slender fingers around hers, and smiling at the beauty of the sunset. Thanking her silently for all of the time spent together. Thanking her for helping me, caring for me, and being there for me. Thanking her for being a wonderful friend.

Just like I wanted to be…

I'm so sorry, Haruhi.

Sammy's P.O.V.

Everyone was silent and motionless beneath the gold and pink glow of the sun, which slowly slipped behind the dark clouds in the distance, whispering of the coming of night. We smiled brightly, first at each other, and then into the distance, into Infinity and Beyond. Kotoko and I slowly stopped holding hands, comfortable in our own skins and unafraid of the steadily growing darkness. We were assured of the safety presented by moving across a private beach in a group – Yui, Emiko, Hana, Kotoko, and I – and continued standing together, quietly witnessing the setting of the sun and the beginning of yet another peaceful night in Okinawa, Japan.

For the first time in the many years since their deaths, I feel at peace, strangely calm and also…

In this comfortable silence, I did not think of Haruhi and her swiftly shouted words of hatred, either. I did regret letting her secret slip, especially since Haruhi guarded mine so jealously, and thoughts of what I could – and should – have done differently drifted to mind, but I did not fall into the darkness of depression that would have bowled into me if I did not have anyone with me. My heart ached, heavy with that painful feeling of missing someone or something, but loneliness was nonexistent in that moment; instead, I reveled in the quiet company of these friends of mine that perched atop the cliffs. We all stared into the sunset with open awe.

...Happy.

Sweet serenity whispered around Yui, Emiko, Hana, Kotoko, and I. It was a soft, sweet, and tender moment that I would remember forever, my mind painted with this beautiful sensation of warmth that I could only liken to being hugged by Takashi. My smile softened with gratitude; I'm happy to be here, with these kind girls, and in Japan. Friendship, I realized then, could soothe the worries and fears burning in my chest, mysteriously erasing the ache and calmly dulling the hot blaze of pain of grief like Cherry Chapstick.

Nevertheless, I could not help but feel concerned about the sudden stillness in the air, especially when I remembered that we were all suspended here, in midair, and surrounded by nothing but water. Being forced to jump off of this cliff and into the open arms of the sea? That would be the end of me! I could feel the dread of such ideas – and memories – seeping into my pores, swiftly pulling the hairs along my arms to attention and causing a chill to crawl down my shaking spine. A traitorous voice whispered nasty warnings in my ears.

Nowhere to run and hide if something goes wrong…

"Hey, Kotoko-chan," I quietly said, feeling lost and seeking her reassurance in this – please, please be senseless – moment of fear. My skin tightened beneath the onslaught of the suddenly cold wind. I shivered badly at the unexpected change in temperature, rubbing my arms up and down to banish the pebbles of goosebumps clawing at me. "Do you suddenly feel…uh, uncomfortable?"

My friend paused in her perusal of the writing carved into the rocks around the cliff, left there by countless friends and lovers, to glance back at me, concerned. She hesitated in answering for a moment, glancing around to check the whereabouts of her friends, before Kotoko finally admitted, "To be honest, Sammy-chan, I do not really feel safe here anymore…"

Immediately, Kotoko and I moved forward to gather the rest of the girls and return to the familiar sand of the beach, where the rest of the Host Club would be hanging out right about now. We all wanted to be back on solid ground, safe, and with the protection offered by the sheer number of strong and wealthy Japanese Nobles. Speaking of which, Takashi and Mitsukuni would also be there, which would greatly ease my mind, and probably hers, too. Our handsome ninjas were strong and deadly enough to fight off anything, or anyone, that threatened their friends and lovers. Believe It~!

It was a comforting thought that Takashi and Mitsukuni would kill anybody that dared to touch us.

"Oi, Koji…!"

Someone – who I do not know, I warily realized, heart dropping to the sand in ten seconds flat – called out in a rather loud and abrasive tone of voice, a sound that frightened Kotoko and I into backing away. He chuckled in response as another male questioned him, laughingly inquiring what could be this interesting, and then swiftly explained that there were several really pretty girls hanging out here. We were, in his words, all ripe and ready for the picking. Like Gwen Stefani and her (annoyingly catchy) song about B-A-N-A-N-A-S!

Eyes wide with horror, I started to panic and hyperventilate again as the unfamiliar voices drifted closer, and closer, and closer still. This time, however, Takashi was not here to help calm me as another panic attack darted forward to slither its arms over mine and claim me. I would have to break free of its hold, and I would have to do it alone. I needed to be strong – not only for myself, but for Kotoko, Yui, Hana, and Emiko, too!

Inhaling sharply in fear and then steeling myself, I whirled around to stare at the intruders, taking note that there were only two but that both appeared to be at least a year older than Kotoko and I, much taller, and rather muscular in stature. One was seemingly made of stone, with brown hair, murky green eyes, and sharp features, which seemed to make him more than threatening. His friend, however, was partially hidden beneath a ripped white jacket, and I could barely see a mess of black hair and black eyes enclosed within its shadow.

Neither looked strong enough to beat Takashi, but then again, neither did Mitsukuni…

What are we going to do?

I briefly permitted the thought to circle around and around inside me, a whirlwind of confusion, panic, and desperation clinging to the words, before turning back to Kotoko and the Golden Trio. No one else seemed to know what to do, if the shimmer of fear in our eyes was anything to judge by, and the realization that everyone was scared and clueless about how to react made it worse. I hated situations like this one. Instead of planning five steps ahead, like I normally would have if given the chance, I would have to be brave enough to recognize the opportune moment and act.

So, I closed both eyes and pretended that I, like Link, could feel the Triforce of Courage burning inside of me. You are the Hero of Time, Link, but I…

"Lucky~!" Koji responded with another laugh, sounding noticeably darker than his friend, and obviously more aggressive. A beer can sailed out of his hand, through the air, and down into the dirt, where it rested in silence. His swamp green eyes, unlike his mouth, did not smile down at us. "Which of these girls will be yours, then, Ari?"

My courage wavered.

…I'm nothing.

Koji smirked at his friend, who pretended to think seriously about the situation, and boldly appraised the two noblewomen standing directly in front of him – Yui and Hana. Yui, in her orange and yellow bikini, seemed to be frozen in fear, a permanent expression of horror glowing in her gray eyes. Even Hana, who was normally obnoxiously loud, remained quiet and fisted her fingers into the waist of her white bikini bottoms, too scared to do more. She carefully stepped in front of Emiko, though, and made certain that the quieter girl could not be seen so easily by these dangerous strangers. No one would hurt her cousin. Least of all these two idiots…!

His friend hummed lightly and continued to examine us, considering his options, and then smiled widely without humor. "I'm rather partial to the one with the shorter hair," Ari casually admitted and pointed his chin toward Yui, who blanched, appropriately horrified with his decision, and quickly darted farther from him.

"Fine with me," Koji said, quietly, and with his (disgusting, nasty, swampy) green eyes narrowed in disinterest. He shrugged his dismissal and slowly turned to face Kotoko, eyeing the obvious swell of her hips and chest with primal lust. She was small because of her condition – which I still needed to discuss with her – but still incredibly beautiful and noble in bearing, something Koji appeared to have noticed, too…

Anger, hot and cold all at once, coursed straight through me, a wave of emotion that I could not stifle. I scowled darkly and impulsively stepped out to stand in front of Kotoko, feeling oddly protective of the older girl. She might be four months older than me and have three inches of extra height, but I was stockier and would be much harder to knock down. My bones were strong enough to take most of his punches long enough for the Calvary – Tamaki, Kyoya, Hikaru, Kaoru, Mitsukuni, and Takashi – to arrive and then vanquish Tweedledee and Tweedledum back into Wonderland.

"Back off," I quietly said, but I could hear the stern note ringing in my own voice, and I could feel the shards of ice sparking in my eyes, which glared at Koji and Ari with unconcealed hatred and disgust. Neither, however, seemed to be bothered by this display of aggression on my part. My demands were not met, either. Instead –

"Huh…" Koji slowly smirked, his annoyed expression melting into one of pleasant surprise, and shifted closer to circle me, a critical stare glued to my chest, hips, and other assets. His cold and calculating gaze was strangely discomforting, and I squirmed uneasily beneath his attentions. "I think I'll take the foreign chick, Ari – Blondie seems to be the fighter in the group!"

Tweedledum raised his left eyebrow in question, but I noticed that his friend did not appear overly surprised with his choice in female company. In fact, Ari appeared almost amused when Koji stepped forward to trail his fingers down my clenched jaw, his smile wider than before. He snickered, "Have fun taming that one!"

My heart stopped briefly, but I inhaled sharply to restart the flow of blood roaring in my veins, praying that I would not faint. I could hardly think straight through the pounding in my ears and wished only to run away, screaming for Takashi. It would be impossible to leave, though, while everyone else remained in peril. Koji and Ari were not going to leave without hurting someone, either. I blanched in fear and swallowed in a desperate – uh, valiant – attempt to keep the food from lunch down in my stomach, where it belonged, but it was slowly starting to feel too difficult to manage. I was scared, too scared to be doing this, and yet…

I wanted to hurt him for scaring Kotoko, Yui, Hana, and Emiko.

"Who are you?" Hana suddenly demanded, frightened but standing resolutely in front of her two friends with her arms outstretched in a protective manner. When Ari moved closer to her, Hana spread her arms wider and placed the slender limbs in front of the Yui and Emiko, stubbornly guarding the quieter girls from these vile strangers.

"Name's Ari, but for you…" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, causing Hana to wrinkle her pert nose in disgust, and pointed to his disturbingly quiet friend. "This is Koji," Ari added, and mainly for my benefit, too, since his cheerful smile widened into a smirk when I flinched back from Tweedledee, horrified with this turn of events. "He likes blondes."

"No shit, Sherlock," I hysterically retorted in English and wrapped both arms over my middle, which seemed to clench and unclench in fear. My eyes shut subconsciously against the image of Koji and Ari swiftly moving closer and pressing in on us as a pack of hyenas would if hungry, silently wishing that I could just fall off the face of the Earth and…wake up….

My lips trembled in fright, and I whimpered without thinking about it, too deathly afraid of what would happen to us to realize that this defenseless sound only fanned the flames burning in their eyes. How do I end this nightmare…?

"This is a private beach, Ari-san," Hana continued, much quieter this time but with just as much stubborn strength, and then pointed down the cliff. Delicate fingers gestured to the various signs at the gates that warned against trespassing on private property. "We would appreciate it if –"

Her voice dropped into nothingness, however, because I touched her arm in warning, attempting to let her know that these men would not take well to commands; Hana hesitantly bit her bottom lip to silence her next words. Koji moved toward her again, a menacing aura surrounding him, but I quickly stepped forward, defiantly crossing my arms over my chest and staring at him in barely concealed fright. That dark voice from earlier returned to smile at me, amused, and traitorously hissed that I should leave Hana to fend for herself.

Save yourself, Sammy! Run away! Just like you've always done…

My soul ripped asunder and screamed: NO!

"What do you want from us?" I growled out in anger, my eyes cold, hard, and shining with unease. My chest rumbled with the force of the words leaving my small form, and I stiffened, back straight and fingers poised to claw out his nasty green eyes.

Trying to sound tough and probably failing miserably, I might add…

"You know what I want," Koji whispered into my ear, a small breath of hot drunken air washing over my open eyes and mouth, to which I retched in disgust. His lips brushed just beneath my ear, an inch below where Takashi kissed earlier. "I want to fuck you."

As I attempted to pull back, stunned at his blunt declaration, Koji placed his larger fingers on my wrist, circling it like silver handcuffs that could not be broken with normal means. He tightened his ironclad hold when I swiftly pulled the limb to my chest and smirked darkly, humorlessly. I was petrified because Koji comprehended that I couldn't yank it away. He could smell it. A shark with bloodlust, Koji was readying himself for the kill, his sharp teeth bared in another show of dominance.

"You're bored, right?" Koji continued lowly, dark eyes narrowed and burning with hunger that was entirely unfamiliar to me as a shy, awkward teenage girl. Yes, Takashi sometimes looked at me with what I suddenly realized to be lust, but I could also tell that Takashi would not hurt me or use me. He loved me!

Koji, however...

Fingers trailed slowly down my sides, leaving an invisible trail of disgusting residue behind, and settled heavily at my waist. Strangely, and much to my confusion, Koji murmured, "Why not hang out with me and Ari? Just the three of us! It would be fun…"

Why would there need to be three of us? I hesitantly mused, completely lost and confused about how that could possibly work with two men and only one woman – me. Shouldn't there be two men and two women, or…?

But Ari, I noticed, seemed to like that suggestion. He'd removed his hands from Yui and Emiko, who were shivering in fright and attempting to shrink into the cold rock beneath their feet. Yui met my eyes, at which point I nodded, signaling to the girl to take Emiko and hightail it out of here. I smiled painfully, the muscles in my jaw seemingly frozen into a grimace of fear, and robotically said, "That does sound like fun, Koji-san."

Without warning, Kotoko lunged forward to prevent anything untoward from happening, but Hana reached out just in time and fearfully gripped her arm, pulling her back to safety. My friend gasped out in horror, reading what I wanted to do in my eyes, and exclaimed, "No, Sammy-chan!"

"You're Sammy-chan, then, eh?" Ari needlessly asked in response, pleased, and his lips twisted into a crudely painted smile. A compliment, wrapped strangely in sexual implications, escaped his smirking lips: "Pretty nickname, Sammy, which I can't wait to scream…"

Underneath his words – which I tried desperately to ignore, if only for my continued sanity – I muttered, "Run, Kotoko-chan!" She looked about ready to argue with me, especially about the order to take the Golden Trio with her; thus, I hissed, "We can't fight these men! You need to find Mitsukuni-kun! Tell him to bring…" My voice cracked right in half. "…please, bring Takashi-kun with you, okay?"

She stared into my eyes, which watered with unshed tears, and then nodded slowly in assent. "I will be right back," Kotoko promised, her words ringing with sincerity, "and I will be certain to bring Morinozuka-kun with me." Brushed her cold hand against mine, her fingers there one moment, and then gone in the next. Her desperately whispered words echoed in my ears –

"Wait for us."

Then, I was cold, pathetically silent, and all alone in my misery – I remained tense until the sounds of footsteps pounding against the sand faded entirely. Only then did I relax, shoulders and expression slackening in relief. Koji and Ari seemed to take this as a positive reaction and immediately slinked forward, reaching out to touch me. I closed both eyes in fear as one curled his hand into my right bikini strap, pulling it downward to reveal the curve of flesh beneath its material. His friend touched the ring in my navel and then skimmed the area just beneath it, tracing the hem of the bikini bottoms at my waist. My heart hammered in my ears, a never ending drum of blood singing in fear and desperation. Please hurry, Takashi…

"How about you and that idiot just leave her alone?"

It was not, however, Takashi that warned Jekyll and Hide against touching me. Eyes slamming wide open in horror, I zeroed in on my closest friend in Japan. No, I could not – did not, did not, did not want to – believe it. Just when I thought, hoped, and prayed to God that all of the girls to be safe, I heard her surprisingly steady voice call out a warning to Koji and Ari. I could only stare, horrified, at the determined face of the new arrival: Haruhi.

"She does not want your nasty, filthy hands touching her," Haruhi darkly hissed, before lifting her plastic bucket and throwing dozens of pointy crustaceans at his tender back. Somewhere, in the midst of flying crabs and lobsters, a strangely familiar creature landed in his hair ripped his claws into Koji, who screamed loudly in pain.

Thanks, Sebastian…

"Stupid fucker…!" Koji immediately removed his hands and whirled around to face his attacker, still attempting to reach the sharp shells sticking to his back – and failing miserably, too. He finally admitted defeat, pointed to Haruhi, and scathingly snarled, "You're going to regret fighting me…"

Slowly, Koji stepped forward, his left foot and then his right moving faster and faster, until –

"No," I whispered, momentarily ripping free from the confinement of two strong, iron arms and swiftly running forward to help Haruhi, to protect her. Because Koji was close – too close, too close, too close – for comfort. "…Haruhi!"

"Yeah, uh, I don't think so," Ari drawled out in annoyance and snaked his arms out again to keep me in place, directly in front of his torso. "Let Koji take care of his business, eh?" He buried his sharp chin into my shoulder, digging into the tender flesh without a care, and leered down at me when I winced in pain. "Then we'll show ya a real good time…"

Unsurprisingly, Koji picked Haruhi up without much problem, easily curling his hands into her blue shirt to keep her from escaping his wrath. He snarled down at his shorter opponent, his lips parted to reveal two rows of teeth, stained yellow with the residue of alcohol. Not knowing that the supposed male was actually female, Koji pinched her arms and sneered – "You have some really skinny arms!"

Ari, who was slowly succumbing to the call of the alcohol flowing in his veins, grinned at the scene with amusement, his voice low in his drunken haze. He eyed Haruhi with another short burst of laughter and loudly teased, "He's trying to act the part of the hero when his arms and legs make him look like a girl!"

Because Haruhi is a girl! I wanted to scream my silent thoughts out loud, yelling the truth to the rest of the world; however, I subconsciously determined that it would only make matters worse, so my words of horror stopped at my parted lips, frozen in place. Haruhi…is…a…

"Fucks like you should just drown in the ocean!" Koji growled between his clenched teeth, before lifting her small form high, like a poor sacrificial virgin, and then tossing her right off the edge of the godforsaken cliff. He stared down at the falling girl blankly and without mercy, a small gleam of satisfaction glittering in his green eyes.

Game Over.

Time seemed to increase to the speed of light, but I could not breathe, too busy holding tightly to the breath that escaped from me eight years ago. My lungs ached with the remembered force of the water rushing down, down, down inside of me. I could hear her voice screaming at me to move, to swim, to fight for the light of another morning, but I could not think clearly as memories smacked into me without pause. How could this be happening again? Why her? Why me? Another person, who I loved beyond words or measure, was going to be taken from me…

No, Mein Schatz! Your kleine Schwester! Protect her!

"SAMMY!"

Sarah?

…dead…

No, Haruhi!

…dead, dead, dead…

I need to protect Haruhi!

My body slumped into what appeared to be defeat, and then – I jerked backwards into Ari, slamming into his head with my own, a snarl of pissed off pain escaping me at the contact. He howled out in pain, immediately placing his hands to his gushing nose, stemming the flow of red blood spraying from his nostrils like water. Then, I stomped his unsuspecting toes with the soles of both feet and slammed two elbows into his stomach during this moment of pained distraction, pleased that I could fight back and hurt him like Haruhi, Kotoko, Yui, Hana, Emiko, and I were now. We would suffer from months, if not years, of nightmares. A broken nose was the least that I could do for revenge!

Somewhere, in the hidden part of my mind, I could hear Chibi Sammy clutching her stomach in laughter and hysterically screaming something about – "SING like Sandra Bullock!"

Wind rushed through silent ears when I ripped out of his arms and two steps forward, however, cancelling out the sounds of her satisfaction. Resolute, I breathed in sharply and tensed, dropping into a position that Caleb would take before going on a morning run, arms and legs curled toward the ground. With that in mind, I darted to the edge of the cliff, deaf to the frightened voices of Tamaki and Takashi loudly screaming at me to STOP. My mind could not process anything other than the flashing images of Haruhi falling into the black abyss, down below. I could hear her, could feel her hand in mine when I dragged her down the hallways at Ouran High School, toward the Third Music Room. Laughter whispered in my ears. Warmth spread through me.

Something in me shifted, like dozens of forgotten puzzle pieces clicking together for the first time in years, and then…

I jumped.

***Author's Note***

What do you all think? Did I do good? Huh, huh, huh?

I think that this is pretty awesome, surprisingly enough, and I love this chapter to death, which does not happen often! So, Sammy and Haruhi have started to make up and will finish rebuilding their unbreakable bond - making it stronger - in the chapters to come. No Takashi in this one, yeah, but Mister Strong and Silent Type will definitely be prevalent in the next two chapters. There is also a, um, surprise in Chapter Forty Seven. ;)

Hope you all liked this chapter! I know that Koji and Ari cursed too much, kinda like Sammy used to do, but I think it was needed to emphasize the themes in my story, which tend to be much darker than what is shown in the anime or manga. Please read and review! I would love to hear if you all liked this chapter as much as I did! How about 590 reviews? Because 600 is near! I am so excited!

Speaking of excited, how about The Hobbit Pt. 2, huh? I can't wait to see it! My brother and I already have tickets! :D