~Chapter Fifty Eight~
Mischief Managed
Welcome to the fallout.
Welcome to resistance.
The tension is here.
Tension is here.
Between who you are, and who you could be,
Between how it is, and how it should be.
I dare you to move. I dare you to move. I dare you.
Where you gonna go?
~Dare You To Move, by Switchfoot
Disclaimer: Me No Own; You No Sue.
"Well, I'm happy that everybody dropped by," Haruhi sarcastically announced then, all the while cleaning after the Hosts, much like the girl often did at Ouran, "but I think it is time to leave. I want to spend the rest of the holidays here…" She pointedly glared at Tamaki, Hikaru, and Kaoru. "…in peace."
"Great idea! We should vacation here this year and relax like you," Mitsukuni loudly exclaimed, whereas Takashi ducked his head and grinned, first at him and then at me. The Not-Naruto Ninja winked at me, and I snickered at their conniving ways. "It'll be fun, Haru-chan!"
"Yeah, Friend," I teased with wicked mischief, "We'll all have lots of fun."
Chocolate irises widened in horror.
"Noooooo~!"
Sammy's P.O.V.
"Let the Hunger Games begin…!"
"You, Katniss, shall not win them," Kyoya murmured while flicking his sliding glasses back up and reading his notes with his iPad. A small stylus darted to and fro, marking little checkboxes beside his long list of Things-To-Do. Stump Sammy-chan. Check!
Blankly, I stared at him, drawn to a sudden and unexpected stop by the shock of hearing the stern and practical teenager reference the popular trilogy written by Suzanne Collins; Kyoya tended to avoid fictional books. He also blushed scarlet anytime I tried to hand him any reading material, including The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. His suspicions might've had something to do with the fact that Kiki, Hikaru, Kaoru, and I had sneakily tried to trick – er, entice – him into reading The Fifty Shades of Grey, though…
Remembering my promise to fill Kiki in about all of his little quirks, and hobbies, and interests, I scampered close enough to lean forward and stare directly into his pale but classically handsome face. The Shadow King only glanced at me. I blinked. "…You read The Hunger Games, Kyo-kun?"
Eyes still glued to his iPad, Kyoya dryly mused, "Let us pause and think about that question. Do I read The Hunger Games, which essentially detail the struggles of teenagers being pitted against each other, fighting to the death, and attempting to survive in a utopian civilization?" Glasses glittered with lines of words from the bright screen.
"Thank you very much, CliffNotes, but I didn't hear an answer in there anywhere," I grumbled somewhat, his little lecture annoying me. Arms crossed and hip cocked to the side, I stared at him with raised eyebrows, waiting for my answer. Gimme, gimme!
"Sammy-chan, I am the Shadow King," He sighed softly. If not raised by his father to always be calm and collected, Kyoya probably would've slumped in the patio chair and rolled his chilly gray eyes. "What do you think?"
Once, I would have taken him at his word, questioned the depths of his dark nature, and feared his conniving ways. Now, however, I was more aware of his masks which, while like my own, were shaped with different feathers and sequins, and used differently. I'd tried to cover up my past, burying secrets and feelings and insecurities behind smiles. On the other end of the spectrum, Kyoya tried to hide the soft heart in his chest – his hopes, wishes, and dreams.
Smiling faintly, I thought: The Shadow King is like Hades, searching for Persephone and attempting to rule his Kingdom. He only wants to belong, and to be loved…
"…Point taken," I quipped, playfully saluting him with two fingers, before leaving him alone to finish his notes. Probably wanted to take advantage of the impromptu day of vacation (in which the Hosts bothered somebody else for a change) to catch up on paperwork. Constant Vigilance!
"Do not cause too much trouble, Senpai!" The Shadow King called, though the words did not carry any weight, threats, or promises of death. Kyoya simply wished to warn me. Our friendship had become something like that shared between cousins. Like Takashi and Mitsukuni!
One hand in the air, the other buried in a pocket, I laughingly called, "No promises, Kyo-kun!"
Snickering, I searched through the small crowd of Hosts. Tamaki, Hikaru, Kaoru, and Mitsukuni had already started their game. Takashi stayed close to Mitsukuni, knowing that his older cousin might try to take things too far. Kyoya ignored them all. Meanwhile, Haruhi fumed, her head bowed and shoulders hunched and hands clenched into little fists. She huffed in annoyance as another thought crossed her mind, scowled, and stalked off to continue her chores, all while mumbling about meddlesome friends – "Stupid, rich, noisy…!"
Deciding to follow her, I shuffled quietly by Misuzu, who loudly supervised the (uh, rather sad) efforts of the others to win their little competition, and ducked into the Pension. The Okama did not notice me, or a cranky Haruhi, heading to the kitchens. Attentive brown eyes were much too preoccupied with observing the mouthwatering collection of handsome men, including Takashi. Misuzu-san can certainly look at Takashi-kun, I jealously thought, but better not touch my man!
My nose warmed, the enticing smell of freshly baked bread and desserts calling to me. I danced into the kitchen, eyes on my prize, and pounced, taking a piece of freshly buttered bread, several cookies, and the only cupcake with blue frosting. Leaning against the nearest clean counter, I promptly devoured the treats, beginning with the bread and ending with the cupcake. Blue frosting covered fingers, lips, and (though I wouldn't admit it) my nose.
"…What are you doing, Sammy-chan?"
Cheeks stuffed like Alvin the Chipmunk, I turned slowly around and smiled (well, attempted to smile, anyway). A mouthful of vanilla cupcake, blue frosting, and rainbow sprinkles made it hard to properly chew, let alone smile. My best friend startled, her mouth falling open and shoulders dropping in surprise at the sight of her hard work going down the drain – or my stomach, to be precise!
The Japanese girl lifted her hands in the air, and then in her hair, and yelped, "Dammit, Sammy-chan! I spent the last hour making all of that food! It was supposed to be for lunch, and not for yours, either! What should I do now?!"
"Order from Pizza Hut?" I kindly suggested, though with all of the food in my mouth, it sounded like I had tried to communicate using Black Speech, like the Uruk-hai. Facepalm. Why could I not sound elegant and wise, instead? Like the Elves?
Suddenly, Haruhi stopped glaring daggers into my eyes and instead tilted her head to the side in sudden recognition. "You…" She trailed off and pointed her finger at me, my expression of innocence, and then the small bag I had also nicked from the cabinets. "You're planning something, aren't you?"
My shoulders lifted at the accusation, and I shrugged at her, before pulling the plastic bag out and showing her its contents. Inside it was a mishmash of candy, with everything from milk chocolates to butter toffees. Everything inside, Haruhi comprehended with a sinking feeling, was something that Mitsukuni would eat – hook, line, and sinker. I smiled like Bruce from Nemo.
"Out," My friend commanded, her finger moving from in front of me and off to the left, to point to the door leading from the kitchens and back into the dining room. When I tried to speak up and ask for something, Haruhi deadpanned, "No," and I pleaded with her. It went something like…
"But –"
"Get out."
"But I need…!"
"Not in this lifetime, Sammy-chan."
"Please, please, please…!"
"NO!"
Five minutes later, Haruhi and I had moved from the kitchens to the storage room, and had started moving fruits and vegetables from the shelves and to the clean counters, like the Ford Assembly Line. I bugged her the entire time, pleading with her and, frankly, driving her crazy. My friend had tried to ignore me, and had buried her head in the freezer in the attempt to drown out the incessant whining. She slammed the large industrial freezer door, headed back to the kitchens, and banged her head against the nearest wall. Frost clung to her short bangs; it crackled with each thud of her forehead hitting the floral wallpaper. Thud, thud, thud.
"Please, please, please," I cheerfully said in time to the sound of her forehead being smacked against the wall. She finally stopped, turned to face me, and slumped, dropping down to the floor with a groan.
"Fine," Haruhi huffed in irritation, hands clasped around the bottle of water I offered her. She sipped at the chilled drink and then lifted her face up. My friend tilted her head to the side, hummed, and curiously asked, "What do you want?"
Legs swinging, I swayed back and forth from atop the counter, smile big. "Nothing much, since I only need to borrow some superglue," I informed her through the small snort of laughter that I could not keep inside; it erupted like lava.
My best friend stared at me, opened her mouth to ask her question, and then promptly zipped her lips again. Instead of asking for explanations, Haruhi retrieved the little plastic tube and dumped it into my open palm. "Anything else…?"
"Yeah," I said brightly, lifting the small device hidden behind the fingers on my right hand, and smiled obnoxiously. My iPhone clicked, flashed like twinkling white stars, and then made a snap. I snickered. "Say cheese!"
Staggering backwards, Haruhi leaned against the pantry shelves and blinked the stars out of her eyes. She waved her hand in front of her small body, obviously searching for mine, and then shakily demanded, "W-What the Hell…?"
"Auf Wiedersehen!" I called, leaping off the counter and leaving her in the dust, to which Haruhi confusedly called, "Bye…?"
Leaving the Pension, I wasted little time in prancing around the lawn, dropping carefully wrapped pieces of candy here and there, like flower seeds. I didn't bother finding Mitsukuni because, as expected, the small senior found the candy – and thus, me! I glanced back to stare over my shoulder and smiled in success. An ecstatic Mitsukuni followed behind, although distantly, and consumed each one, capturing the little pieces of chocolate and peppermint candies, unwrapping them, and shoving the little treats into his mouth. Like PacMan!
"Nom, nom, nom," The Ninja mumbled through his full mouth of goodies while bending down, picking another treat from the trail of candies, and following the fallen treats like Hansel and Gretel. Off to see the Wizard! Uh, Witch…?
Anyway! Feeling victorious, I continued to lead him away and into the trees by the remains – yes, remains – of the back portion of the surrounding white picket fence. Here, Tamaki had been sentenced to fixing the fence that I had accidentally broken in touring the property while wearing heels borrowed from Misuzu. The Okama was angry at first but also had to bite his lips to keep from bursting into laughter at the stunned expression I adopted in lieu of falling backwards, through the white picket fence, and into the thicket of blackberries. I hate blackberries…
The Hosts expressed various signs of amusement, from outright laughter (Tamaki, Hikaru, and Kaoru) to condescending smirks (Kyoya and Mitsukuni) and sighs of exasperation (Haruhi and Takashi). In dealing with the embarrassment of wiping out in front of all the Hosts, I vowed to make…them …pay. So I stalked off to change my clothes, sulk, and plot their demise – like Anakin Skywalker. I cackled: All shall bow down before Darth Sammy!
After redressing, I stared in the mirror and surveyed the pair of denim shorts and red shirt bearing the words "What Does the Fox Say?!" I smiled, feeling myself again, and decided that playing around with them would not hurt anyone. It had been forever since I pranked anybody, and while I had matured enough to behave (if needed), I missed it. Pranks were so awesome! Just ask James, Sirius, and Remus!
Honey brown irises vanished behind olive colored skin. "Cake and cookies are sweet and tasty and scrumptious, but I really love candy," Mitsukuni sighed in bliss, having seated himself in a chair in the shade to snack and hang out with me and –
"Uh, Tamaki-kun," I hesitantly started, hoping to bring his attention to the tiny problem with his repairs without hurting his feelings, but Tamaki used his hands to shoo me away. The Host King then politely asked, "Can you pass the hammer, please?"
After handing Tamaki the requested tool, I settled in the grass in front of Mitsukuni, back pressed to his smaller legs. The Ninja happily pet my arm and head and continued munching. I smiled at the older teenager, pulled out the iPhone I brought with me, and began flipping through pictures in my gallery. Mitsukuni had his eyes on my pictures, curiously scanning the scenes and faces of countless places and people – Dad and Mom, Ellen and RJ, Hikaru and Kaoru, Kiki and Kotoko and Haruhi, Tamaki and Kyoya, Mitsukuni and Takashi, Caleb and Nekozawa.
Most were of them, but in several pictures, I could be seen as well. I posed, laughing or smiling, with my parents, brothers, friends, and fiancé. One of the recent pictures made me cackle. "Mwahahaha!"
The Host King turned frightened violet eyes on me and hastily put several feet between us. "No need to freak out, Tama-chan! Haruhi-chan doesn't know I managed to take her picture. Just tickles the funny bone," I explained without being asked which, if Tamaki had been paying attention, should have made him even more nervous.
Instead, Tamaki began to froth at the mouth like a crazy raccoon and leapt at me, an eager and happy glow to his expectant face. "Big Sister has pictures of Haruhi-chan! Let me see! Se il vous plaît," Tamaki begged, with his hands clasped in front of him and his puppy eyes on.
Pretending to think about it, I fretted, hands picking at the edges of the screen protector. I bit my cheek (to hide laughter, though it looked like nerves) and whined, "What if Haruhi-chan gets mad at me?"
"You have my word that I will not tell her!" Tamaki declared, although it sounded like pleading since the silly teenager had yet to climb from his knees to his feet; it made it harder not to laugh at him. Heehee...
Eyes watering, I refrained from laughing, but barely. I leaned down to help him up, my arms pulling his taller form back to his true height, from which Tamaki hovered, awaiting my response. I pretended to sigh and relented, "Okay, okay! I'll show you…"
"YES!" Tamaki cheered, leaping into the air and throwing his hands up. He danced about in place after gravity forced him back to Earth, with the rest of us. "Merci beaucoup, Sammy-chan!"
"…on one condition," I added, acting like I had not heard him speak, and smiled darkly at him. My face was scary, with that dark smile and blue irises glittering with mischief. If Caleb had tagged along, I would probably hear him snickering and making references to the Joker.
Why so serious, Tamaki?
Grin.
"W-What is it?" Tamaki gulped, hearing that small telltale note in the words that spoke volumes about how much trouble I wanted to cause. He shuffled forward when I motioned him closer, stopping and starting and stopping and starting until I could lean over and whisper in his ear.
Cheek pressed to his, I playfully hummed and then chirped, "Ask Haruhi-chan out on a date!"
"…WHAT?!"
"You heard correctly, Tama-chan," I gently said, feeling sorta bad for freaking him out – and for making his voice crack – but also wanting to prod the two along. No one seemed to be planning to admit their feelings to the other anytime soon. No confessions! Nope. Nada. Zilch.
It's like Ron and Hermione, I dryly mused, thinking back to how many years it had taken the two bickering friends to admit their feelings to each other in Harry Potter and become something more. Seven years. I do not want to wait seven years to attend their wedding! Sheesh!
"But, Sammy-chan," Tamaki hesitated in asking his question, and for a reason. If I was planning mischief, why would I want to help him? Lucky for him I wanted nothing but their happiness! CoughMostlyCough. "What if Haruhi-chan doesn't want anything other than friendship?"
Debating, I finally decided to tell the truth, rather than beat around the bush and lead him on. I touched his elbow, glanced around for eavesdroppers, and whispered, "Look. You didn't hear this from me or anyone else, but Haruhi-chan likes you – and has for quite awhile. Okay?"
"…R-Really? Do you mean it?" My friend squeaked, sounding quite unlike himself. He was always confident, always certain of how to speak and act, even as a commoner or two became part of his club. Now, however, Tamaki seemed about ready to faint…
"Really," I softly reassured him, trying hard to look and sound sincere – because I wanted him to be happy. I wanted Haruhi to be happy, too. All I wanted for them, for these friends I cherished like family, was to be happy and healthy.
A moment of silence passed, before Tamaki calmly approached until I could feel the warmth of his breath. My friend slowly raised his arms, and his hands, and put them over me. He hugged, waited until I returned it, leaning against him with my arms and hands under his biceps and his shoulders. It was strange to hug somebody outside of the little bubble of friends I had made – Hikaru, Kaoru, Haruhi, and Takashi - because I could only bring myself to hug some of the Hosts. But Tamaki and I had become friends.
Friends hugged friends, and told them not to do drugs, and not to drink and drive, and all of that other fun stuff!
See, Caleb, I smugly thought to myself, Barney does teach you useful stuff!
The Host King gently removed himself from my arms and stepped back to smile sweetly, lips pulled back and white teeth shining in the light, like the models for Colgate. "I will begin courting her, then!" Tamaki declared, promptly returning to his normal self.
"Good!" I chirped, before commencing with the fun part of Operation Matchmaker. Simply put, I caught him off guard, pushed him against the recently mended fence, roughly pulled him down by the collar of his expensive shirt, and stared him in the eye. ...Dun, dun, dun!
"Listen carefully, Suoh Tamaki," I quietly said, and when Tamaki hurriedly inclined his blonde head, I threatened, "You hurt her; I will hurt you. Just because I used to be a commoner girl does not mean my creative threats cannot be backed." Evil Smile. "In fact, I guarantee that being a commoner girl makes it easier to creatively maim you." Pause. "And Caleb will probably help out – if only to pretend to be gangsta!"
Yes, I liked Tamaki. I thought of him as a good friend and, though I would not admit to it anytime soon, another little brother. Thinking of him as a younger sibling and looking out for him, making certain that nothing too terrible happened because of his harebrained ideas, had become second nature because Tamaki had started it; Big Sister, Tamaki liked to call me. I warmed. He cared, and in turn, made me care.
Sweating bullets, Tamaki attempted to lean back and put some space in between his body and mine, acting like I could actually harm him or something! Me! Ha! The Host King still trembled, though, and weakly agreed, "Of course!"
Fondly, I smiled at him, though the other teenager did not notice the change in expression. My death grip relaxed, and I stepped back, giving him some more space. Tamaki exhaled, feeling relieved because I had removed the fist I had buried in his collar. The Host King obsessively straightened the crinkled material, fretting about his (no, not really) messy appearance, and wailing, "What if Haruhi-chan sees me now? I look horrid!"
Damn French Fry…
My heart lifted, feeling lighter than it had in awhile, and seemed to soar. I smiled at the feeling of happiness and tried to imprint this vacation – a wonderful time with friends and laughter and fun – into my memory. As I walked off with those memories playing inside, Tamaki suddenly stopped messing with his clothing and called out to me. I stopped. Paused.
"What is it, Tama-chan?" I asked him, turning back around to face the younger man. My head to the side, I examined his serious expression and strong countenance. Tamaki, like Kyoya or me, was a person with several masks. And I could not help but wonder: Is this the real Tamaki?
"You ask that I don't hurt her. I cannot promise that I will not hurt her because I do not make promises that I cannot keep." My friend set his face in stone, making his boyishly handsome face look fierce. Think: Rabid Chihuahua. "But I will treat her like the princess I believe her to be," Tamaki strongly vowed, "…and that I promise!"
"Good," I laughingly exclaimed, before teasingly lifting two fingers to point from my eyes and to him, "because I have my eyes on you!"
Walking off to the sound of his laughter, I stuck both hands in my pockets and smirked.
Mischief Managed!
***Author's Note***
Okay! A brief introduction started last chapter, with most of the funny stuff (messing with Kyoya, Haruhi, Mitsukuni, and Tamaki) in this one. My next chapter, which is mostly planned out, will continue with the funny stuff (messing with Hikaru, Kaoru, and Takashi). After that is where the fun really starts, especially for the upcoming lemon which, yeah, I moved back two chapters; it will be done soon!
Lots of friendship and relationship stuff heading this way, and fluff and angst, too! It will be jam packed. ENJOY! ;)
Also: FOUR YEARS, and FIFTY SEVEN CHAPTERS, and ALMOST 800 REVIEWS?! I LOVE YOU ALL!
Please Check Out KEY TO MY HEART. Upcoming Lemons Will Be In There. :)
PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!
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