Haruhi was just about to leave for school when her there was a *ding* from her phone indicating a text message from Tamaki. She opened it and it said
***Father wants me to have lunch with him so we can't meet then. Ride with me to Mori's and we can talk in the car.***
"Oh, I forgot that Tamaki wanted to talk to me today," Haruhi hummed to herself. She texted back
***Okay. See you later.***
Hikaru and Kaoru were standing at the school entrance, waiting for Haruhi. "I hope she gets here soon," Hikaru said. "I want to be sure she rides with us to Mori-sempai's. We just have to ask her before anyone else can."
"There she is," Kaoru announced, pointing to Haruhi walking quickly toward them.
"Hey, Haruhi," Hikaru called. "You going to ride to Mori-sempai's with us today?"
Haruhi responded, "Sorry, Hikaru, I can't. Tamaki wants to talk to me so I'm riding with him."
"Wait, when did he even ask you?" Kaoru asked.
"Well, he wanted to talk to me yesterday after Host Club but I already made arrangements for Kyoya to help me with something. We were supposed to meet during lunch today, but his dad insisted that they have lunch together. He texted me this morning to arrange our talk during the ride to Mori-sempai's," she explained.
Hikaru scowled. "When can we talk to you? You have been so busy lately, we never seem to spend any time together anymore."
Haruhi chuckled. "Yeah, we never see one another. There are just classes every day and then Host Club, as well as all the unscheduled outings. Sure, we never see one another," she said, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
Snorting, Hikaru replied, "You know what I mean."
"Of course I know what you mean," she conceded. "That's just not what you said."
"Maybe we can talk after we get to Mori-sempai's? We should be able to find a few minutes this weekend," Kaoru interjected.
"That's an idea. How about after homework? Or after dinner?" Haruhi proposed.
"I guess that will work," Hikaru allowed.
Glancing over his shoulder at the front of the classroom, Kaoru interrupted, "We'd better get settled. The teacher just walked in and she's scowling at us…again."
"Kyo-chan, Takashi and I will be leaving a little early to be sure everything is ready when everyone else gets there," Honey informed the Host Club vice president fifteen minutes before Host Club hours were to end.
"That would be prudent," Kyoya allowed. "The rest of us will follow as soon as the guests have left and the room is cleaned up."
"Okay," Honey chirped. He waved to Mori and they left together.
"Well, the twins will be leaving as soon as the ladies are gone. I'm surprised how well Hikaru has been able to hide his seething because Haruhi is riding with Tamaki," Kyoya thought. "Though, I can't blame him, I feel exactly the same way. I just wish Tamaki wasn't gloating about the fact she is riding with him. He was absolutely insufferable between classes today."
Ten minutes later, Kyoya announced, "Thank you, ladies, for spending your afternoon with us. We look forward to seeing you again next week." He smiled demurely to each of them as they left the third music room, some still giggling, whether about the twins' act or something Tamaki said, Kyoya wasn't sure.
As soon as the door closed behind the ladies, Hikaru and Kaoru bolted to the cabinet where they kept their satchels. "We'll see you guys at Mori-sempai's in a little bit," announced Kaoru, cutting off Hikaru before he could make any snide comments. "He's still too upset about Haruhi riding with Tamaki to say anything civil to anyone now that the façade isn't necessary around the guests."
"Don't take too long cleaning up, Haruhi," Kyoya stated as he gathered his laptop and satchel to leave.
"I won't," Haruhi replied. "At least the twins weren't harassing Tamaki and making a big mess. It should only take a few minutes to collect and wash the tea sets."
"Well, we'll see you all there soon," Tamaki interjected.
Kyoya only nodded in response to Tamaki as he closed the door behind him. "If there were only some way that I could convince her to ride with me instead of him. I suspect that he is going to confess to her during the ride. I hope what I told her last night won't push her toward accepting his confession just because I've been holding back."
Back in the Third Music Room, Tamaki was pacing in front of the door. After five minutes, he called out, "Hey, Haruhi. Are you done yet?"
From the kitchen, she replied, "Just putting the last teacup away now. Grab our things and I'll be right there."
Tamaki was distracted as he and Haruhi walked to his limousine for the ride to the Morinozuka Compound. He was busy imaging how the conversation with Haruhi would go.
After they were settled into the back of the limousine, Tamaki took Haruhi's hand in his own and said, "Grandmother and Father approve of you to be my girlfriend, and eventually my wife. Haruhi, dear, will you be mine forever?" She looked him with dewy, adoring eyes. "Oh, Tamaki, nothing would make me happier!" Then he kissed her hand and pulled her gently into an embrace. Haruhi blushed prettily and giggle softly. "We will have a wonderful life together," Tamaki said.
Haruhi's voice pulled Tamaki abruptly from his mind theater when she asked bluntly, "So, what did you want to talk about, sempai?"
As he reached for her hand, she scooted to the far side of the seat. Tamaki looked hurt, but decided to proceed as he had imagined. "Grandmother and Father approve of you…"
"I'm not entirely sure I approve of them, especially your grandmother and how she treats you," Haruhi interrupted.
Tamaki tried to continue, "They approve of you as my girlfriend…"
"What do you mean, girlfriend?" Haruhi blurted out. "You constantly refer to me as your 'precious daughter,' even though I keep telling you not to."
"This is not going the way I planned at all," Tamaki thought ruefully. He tried again. "I know that our relationship has not been romantic, but Grandmother and Father explained to me that it would be beneficial to our futures to be established as a couple now, before anyone else tries to interfere."
"Wait a minute," Haruhi said, holding up her hand. "You've never asked me and I've never agreed to be in a relationship, romantic or otherwise, as a couple. Just because that's the way it happened in your imagination, does NOT mean that's how life will really go."
"But…" Tamaki interjected.
"Sempai, you know I want to become a lawyer. Right now I have no interest in a romantic relationship. It will probably be years before I'm ready to think about something like that."
Tamaki started to open his mouth to protest further, but Haruhi glared at him. He pouted for a few minutes and then he sighed in acceptance. "Okay, that's what I'll tell Grandmother and Father when they ask about our relationship."
"Thank you, sempai. We're both still young so there's plenty of time to worry about a relationship in the future."
There was an uncomfortable silence between them for a few minutes. "I need to figure out how to distract him so he doesn't dwell on his disappointment and start trying to grow mushrooms here in the car," Haruhi thought.
It only took a minutes before she decided on a course of action. "Hey, sempai, would you tell me about your childhood in France? You mentioned once that you spent most of your time trying to keep your mother smiling. What was school like? Did you have any friends?"
Tamaki brightened. "Oh, I haven't thought about France since I moved to Japan because Grandmother seems to disapprove of everything French. I didn't really have time for friends, but there were these two kids that I hung out with at school. We were all targets of the school bully because all three of us had one parent who was not French."
"Tell me about them," Haruhi prompted.
"Chloe was the school bully. She always got away with things because her father was the mayor of Paris. Marinette and Nino stuck up for me. Chloe called us all foreigners and insisted that we 'go home.' Marinette's dad was a top-notch baker from a traditional French family and her mother was Chinese. Nino's mom was French but his dad was Moroccan.
"Marinette declared that we belonged together, not because we were half-French, but because we were French-plus. She always tried to be sure that everyone was happy. I guess that's where I learned some of it." Tamaki grinned at the memory.
"She was tiny, but fierce, as well as kind, brilliant, and creative. Everyone was drawn to her, except Chloe, of course. Nino had a relaxed attitude and loved music. He always had his headphones, escaping into the music if Chloe got to be too much."
Haruhi commented, "They sound like really good friends. It seems like Marinette made quite an impression on you."
Chuckling, he continued, "We never did anything outside of school because I was so concerned about my mother, but we were practically inseparable at school."
"Do you still keep in touch?" Haruhi asked.
Tamaki shook his head sadly, "I hadn't thought about them since coming to Japan. Grandmother insisted that I could have no contact with anyone in France, so I guess I forgot about them as a defense mechanism."
Haruhi smiled. "I'm glad you have such good friends growing up." Then her expression turned dark. "I just wish your grandmother hadn't given you such an ultimatum. It wasn't fair to you—or your friends."
"C'est la vie," Tamaki replied, shrugging. "At least I've been able to make such good friends here."
"I hope we will remain friends, even though I am not interested in a romantic relationship with anyone right now," Haruhi said hopefully.
"But, of course," Tamaki responded. "As you said, we have plenty of time for that. But for now, we have arrived," he finished as the car stopped in front of the main house at the Morinozuka Compound.
Looking out the window, Haruhi saw the rest of the Host Club waiting for them.
After Tamaki and Haruhi climbed out of the car, Honey grinned at everyone and announced, "I will be acting as emcee for the weekend, at Takashi's insistence."
"Hn," Mori affirmed.
"First, we will be headed to the library to complete our homework. That way we can just have fun all weekend and not worry about school until Monday," Honey continued.
Mori led them down several corridors to a set of ornate double doors. He pushed one open and gestured for the others to enter. It was a large room with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves lining three sides. The fourth side was composed completely of windows, allowing in plenty of natural light. Scattered around the room were several furniture groupings; some around tables, some in conversation circles, and even one facing a fireplace.
Kyoya chose the table in darkest corner, hoping to minimize the glare on his computer screen. Tamaki followed him, asking, "Hey, Kyoya, would you confirm that I have all the homework on my list. I keep feeling like I forgot something."
"Let me see," Kyoya responded, reaching for the list in Tamaki's hand.
Meanwhile, Honey and Mori settled into the armchairs near the fireplace. It was a warm day, so no fire was laid in the grate. The chair and ottoman placements made it obvious that this was their usual place in the library. The two seniors settled in with their books, reading intently.
The twins followed Haruhi to the large table directly under the windows. She pulled out a notebook and started checking things off a list.
"Hey, Haruhi, would you check over my homework to see if I missed anything?" Kaoru asked.
"Sure," she replied. Taking the packet of paper he offered, she flipped through them slowly. "It looks like everything is here, except the worksheets we were given today in math. Oh, and you may want to read through your science essay. I only glanced at it, but you may want to break down that extremely long sentence in the third paragraph. It gets a little confusing near the end."
"Thanks, Haruhi," he said as he took back the papers. Then he started to dig through his satchel, looking for the missing worksheets.
Hikaru smirked, "Would you do the same for me?"
"Sure," Haruhi responded, ignoring the taunting in his expression and tone.
Hikaru just grinned at his brother and they moved their chairs closer to Haruhi from either side.
Glancing first at Hikaru and then Kaoru, she said, "If you two are going to sit that close, don't be surprised if you get elbowed or a book shoved into your papers. I need space to work on my homework."
Exchanging a look, the twins moved their chairs away slightly, giving her a little more room, though not much. "Thanks," Haruhi muttered as she turned her attention to her homework.
The next hour was filled with shuffling papers and quiet murmurs. Finally, Haruhi heaved a sigh and smiled. "Done," she said quietly to herself. Then she started packing her books and papers back into her satchel.
Hikaru and Kaoru finished their math worksheets and packed their books and papers away as well. "Now that homework is done, can we talk?" Hikaru asked.
"Okay. Can we just talk quietly here? I'd rather not get lost looking for someplace else to talk," Haruhi replied.
He glanced over at Kyoya and Tamaki in one corner and then Honey and Mori by the fireplace. "I guess here is fine," he murmured. "What did Tamaki want to talk to you about?"
Haruhi chuckled, "His grandmother and father seem to think that I would be a good girlfriend—and eventually wife—for Tamaki. I told him that I am focused on becoming a lawyer right now and don't have time for a romantic relationship."
"Oh," was Hikaru's only reply.
Kaoru interjected, "You don't have romantic feelings for him?"
"No, I don't," Haruhi confirmed. "I guess that's why I've never recognized when boys confessed to me, I'm just too focused on becoming a lawyer. Romance just seems to be a nuisance." Placing one hand on Hikaru's shoulder and the other on Kaoru's, she continued, "Until you guys, I didn't really have that many close friends. So, thanks, guys."
Takashi quietly inserted a bookmark at his place and closed his book. Setting it on the table between his and Mitsukuni's chairs, he reached over and tapped his shoulder. Mitsukuni looked up and nodded in response. Placing a marker in his own book, he set it on top of Takashi's.
"It's almost time for dinner," Mitsukuni announced. Once he had everyone's attention, he continued, "Takashi's parents request that we join them for a traditional formal dinner this evening. Afterwards, they will be leaving to attend Satoshi and Yasuchika's tournament this weekend. We should put our school bags in our rooms and wash up. You will each find a formal hakama for you to wear dinner this evening."
Haruhi finished dressing in the lovely hakama the Morinozukas provided for her. She nervously opened the door to her room, hoping she could find her way to the dining room without getting too lost. She startled when she saw Takashi waiting for her. "Mori-sempai, do you need something?"
The corner of his mouth lifted slightly. "Would you allow me to escort you?"
Her eyebrows knit in confusion. Then her forehead smoothed as comprehension dawned. "You came to escort me to the dining room. Thank you. I was little worried about getting lost."
A few minutes later, they arrived in the dining room where his parents and the rest of the host club were waiting for them. Everyone turned to look at them as the door opened to admit them.
Mrs. Morinozuka stepped forward. "Now that we are all here, I would like to begin our evening together with the traditional tea ceremony. Haruhi, would you please assist me?"
Intrigued, Haruhi watched as Mrs. Morinozuka slowly, deliberately, and methodically performed the formal tea ceremony. She had never had the opportunity to watch someone so well versed in art. After the preparations were complete, Mrs. Morinozuka said, "Haruhi, if you would please serve the men, beginning with the oldest."
Inspired by the deliberate movements and attention to detail displayed by Takashi's mother, Haruhi felt challenged to perform her portion of the ceremony with the same precision. Mindfully, she accepted each cup of tea from Mrs. Morinozuka and walked in the traditional slow mincing steps to its intended recipient. The first cup was presented to Mr. Morinozuka with Haruhi first ceremonially turning the handle to position it correctly for him to grasp it and smoothly take a sip.
After Mr. Morinozuka took the obligatory sip, he nodded. This was Haruhi's signal to return to Mrs. Morinozuka for the next cup of tea. She repeated the process, presenting tea to Mitsukuni, Takashi, Tamaki, Kyoya, Hikaru, and Kaoru. Then she presented a cup to Mrs. Morinozuka and finally took a cup for herself. With a nod and a lift of the corner of her mouth, Mrs. Morinozuka expressed her approval of Haruhi's performance.
Once everyone had finished their tea and returned their cups to the tea tray, Mr. Morinozuka signaled that it was time for dinner. He escorted his wife to her seat at the foot of the table before taking his place at the head. "Takashi, you will sit here at my right. Mitsukuni, you will sit at your aunt's right and Haruhi will sit at her left. Kyoya, please sit here at my left and Tamaki, you sit next to him. Hikaru, please sit next to Takashi. Kaoru, you sit between your brother and Haruhi."
After arranging everyone to his satisfaction, he signaled for the servants to serve dinner. The first course was miso soup, followed by cucumber salad. The main entrée was grilled mackerel, accompanied by rice and a thick meat and vegetable stew.
It was a quiet dinner, with minimal talking. Other than requests to pass around dishes, most of the talk about school, graduation, and summer plans. "You must all come to Takashi and Mitsukuni's party following the graduation ceremony," Mrs. Morinozuka announced quietly as servants began clearing the table.
Mr. Morinozuka stood and declared, "We will be leaving now. After the tournament, we have a series of meetings to attend in Hong Kong. We will be returning on Wednesday."
The Host Club all stood and bowed respectfully as Mr. and Mrs. Morinozuka left the room. The subtle tension in the room relaxed as Mitsukuni declared, "Let's get our swimsuits on and go lounge around the pool." There were murmurs of ascent from the other hosts.
Haruhi looked around at the boys sitting around the pool. Hikaru and Kaoru were flicking water at Tamaki, just to get a reaction out of him. Surprisingly, Kyoya did not have a notebook or his laptop with him as he relaxed in a lounge chair. Takashi and Mitsukuni were poking around in a storage building, pulling out chairs, balls, and other pool-related items.
"Now may be a good time to bring up my idea about the Hinan family," Haruhi considered. "I'll ask Kyoya what he thinks."
Approaching Kyoya, she said quietly. "Sempai, may I ask your advice?"
The expression on his face caught her off-guard. He was relaxed and smiling softly at her question. "If you are going to ask if now is a good time to tell everyone else about your plan, the answer is 'yes'."
Haruhi playfully swatted at his arm. "How is it you keep reading my mind? That's exactly what I wanted to ask."
Tamaki and the twins paused in their horseplay as they noticed Haruhi approach Kyoya. All three frowned at the interplay between the cool host and the natural. "What's up between those two?" Kaoru was thinking. "What's mommy talking to daughter—Haruhi about?" Tamaki wondered. "Who does he think he is?" Hikaru fumed.
Haruhi took a couple steps toward the storage building so all of the other hosts could hear her easily. She said, "I know you guys have been wondering about the law books I've been pouring over lately and how distracted I've been."
Takashi and Mitsukuni hurriedly sat down in a couple of chairs they had pulled out of storage, watching Haruhi intently.
Speaking rapidly, she revealed the news of her internship. Then she started outlining her idea of establishing a new family registry just as she had explained it to Kyoya when she asked for his help.
When she paused, Kyoya spoke up. "I think there is a lot of merit to Haruhi's idea, and not just because it provides me with a secure trustee for my investments." He chuckled as he thought about the connotations of 'merit.'
"In fact, I believe in the idea enough that I am contributing a property to be used as the family estate, Hinansho, which means 'Place of Refuge' quite appropriately," he continued.
Haruhi resumed her explanation. "Kyoya made me realize that there are probably a lot of aspects I haven't thought about and he suggested asking all of you for input. I need your ideas because I want the Hinan family to be available to all of us in an emergency." She started to tense up as she remember the impetus for creating the family, the implications for herself as well as Tamaki and Kyoya.
Looking down at her clenched fists, she said, "I have to admit that I've had a lot of nightmares since the Ouran Fair."
"Were they because of your fall from the carriage?" Tamaki asked, worriedly.
Haruhi snorted. "Actually, no. My nightmares have been about different ways I've lost contact with you guys, like Kyoya and Tamaki being disowned and disappearing or something happening to my dad and my being sent away."
The twins stepped up to either side of Haruhi and each draped an arm over her shoulder hugging her gently. "Don't worry. We won't let that happen."
Relaxing, Haruhi chuckled. "Yeah, I should have known I couldn't get rid of you that easily." She reached up and wiped her hand across her face, trying to hide her tears.
Seeing her discomfort, Kyoya stood up and drew everyone's attention. "This weekend, we should give some thought to other aspects that the family will need. To that end, I am making arrangements for a tour of the property on Sunday afternoon. But for now, let's have some fun." With that, Kyoya pushed Tamaki into the pool.
In spite of how late they had stayed up watching movies, Haruhi woke up early. She paced restlessly in her room. She was feeling anxious and having second thoughts about the idea of the Hinan family. "Does it really make sense? Am I just seeing problems where there really are none? Do the guys think I'm being controlling?"
Hearing a noise in the hallway, she opened her door a crack to see what was going on. "Why are Honey-sempai and Mori-sempai up so early?" she wondered.
Mitsukuni and Takashi, both dressed in gi, walking quietly down the hall. Hearing a door open, Takashi turned and looked at Haruhi. Noting her puzzled expression, he murmured, "Workout. Want to come?"
Looking down at her t-shirt and sweats, she shrugged and replied, "Sure."
They walked to the dojo in comfortable silence, enjoying the crisp morning air. Takashi stepped to the windward side of Haruhi, blocking the worst of the wind from chilling her. She smiled up and him and nodded her thanks.
As the guys began their usual morning workout in the middle of the mat, Haruhi tried to follow along off to one side. Takashi smiled at her encouragingly. After fifteen minutes, she was sweaty and exhausted. Mitsukuni said, "That's really good for the first time, Haruhi. Takashi and I are about half done now."
Haruhi sat down to catch her breath as she watched them complete their routines. Mitsukuni walked over and settled down next to Haruhi while Takashi walked over to the wall rack and took down a shinai.
"Takashi will need another half hour to complete his kendo routine," Mitsukuni explained.
"That's fine, Honey-sempai," Haruhi replied. "Thank you for letting me tag along this morning. I really enjoyed the workout. I know I've avoided PE classes at school, but I hate the way people judge me because I'm not very good."
"I'm glad you came. If you want me to, I can teach you the basic forms so you can do it at your own pace when you have time."
She considered his offer for a moment. "I think I would like that, Honey-sempai."
"Okay," he replied. Then his brows knit and he frowned slightly. "Um, Haruhi? Would you consider calling me Mitsukuni instead of Honey-sempai? At least outside of school."
Shrugging, she said, "If that's what you want, I'd be happy to…Mitsukuni."
He smiled broadly. "Thank you. With graduation approaching, my parents have been insisting that I need to act more mature. I figured I would start by asking my friends to call me by my name, rather than a nickname."
"I understand. As long as you don't think I'm being disrespectful at school if I call you 'Mitsukuni' and forget the 'sempai'." Hearing a soft whistling sound, Haruhi turned to watch Takashi with the shinai.
Mitsukuni sighed. "It's really getting to be a struggle between being strong enough to be myself and being obedient enough to meet my parents' expectations. I understand that I need to practice self-control, but sometimes it feels like they have an idea of what they want me to be that is totally different from who I am."
Haruhi laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Sometimes parents have an idea of what they dream you'll become and that dream doesn't fit how we see ourselves. It's hard to balance their expectations against your true self." She chuckled. "Just look at my dad and me. I wear simple no-nonsense clothes, but when the Host Club travels somewhere, he re-packs my bags with frilly, feminine clothes."
"But you look so cute in those clothes," Mitsukuni interrupted.
Shaking her head, she responded, "That may be so, but I'm not always comfortable in dresses and ruffles."
"I guess I see your point," he replied. "Just as you can still be true to yourself in the clothes you don't like, I can still be true to myself without the sweets and the cute act."
Smiling, she bumped his shoulder with her. "See, more mature already."
They looked up as they heard Takashi replacing the shinai in the rack and they saw him nod in satisfaction.
"Let's go shower and dress so we can have breakfast," Mitsukuni said, jumping up and holding his hand out to help Haruhi up as well.
"Hey, Mori-sempai, you were pretty impressive with the shinai," Haruhi stated.
"Takashi," he replied, flatly.
At first Haruhi thought she had offended him, then the light dawned. "Oh, I understand. Thank you for allowing me the privilege of using your first name…Takashi."
His brow quirked and the corner of his mouth rose slightly. "Hn."
She laughed. "Takashi, you were pretty impressive with the shinai. No wonder you've been national champion."
The trio arrived at Haruhi's door first. "We'll be back in fifteen minutes to escort you to the dining room," Mitsukuni said.
"Thanks, guys. I'll see you then," she replied as she closed her door.
Hurriedly, she showered and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. Just as she finished tying her shoes, there was a soft knock on her door. She jumped up and headed for the door. Opening it, she found Takashi and Mitsukuni waiting for her. "Right on time," she said, smiling.
Together, they walked down to the dining room. Even though it was only seven o'clock, they found the rest of the hosts waiting for them, including Kyoya.
"You're up early, Kyoya," Haruhi teased.
"I had a very relaxing night so I feel fully rested," he returned.
Tamaki bounced lightly on the balls of his feet. "Let's eat. I'm starving."
Takashi walked over to the sideboard where food had already been laid out and gestured for everyone to help themselves. After they each filled a plate, they settled at the dining room table.
After the initial silence while they were eating, Hikaru spoke up, "So, what are we doing today?"
There was general chaos as Tamaki, Hikaru, and Kaoru all suggested activities for the day. The next hour was spent discussing the various possibilities for the day before they headed off to enjoy the activities they chose.
Sunday morning during breakfast, there was a *ding* heard by everyone. Kyoya pulled out his phone and checked the text message he had just received.
"It's all been arranged. We are expected at the property at 1:00. That gives us plenty of time for the street fair that Tamaki wanted to see this morning, since it is in the same direction as the property. We can either find food at the fair or stop somewhere on the way."
"Yeah!" Tamaki cheered.
Kyoya continued, "We'll also have time on the way home to go someplace nice for dinner. There's a superb sushi restaurant where I can make reservations."
Haruhi's face lit up at the thought of fancy tuna. The corner of Takashi's mouth quirked upward knowingly at Haruhi's expression.
"And we'll still have time for the treasure hunt tonight before it gets too dark to find the clues," Mitsukuni interjected.
As the limousine turned into the entrance to the property, Horita looked over at Tachibana. "The kids really wore him out at the street fair," Horita mused. Tachibana's elbow rested on the window ledge and his head was resting precariously on his fist.
Horita stopped the car in front of the main house where Miss Fuyumi was waiting. He chuckled as he glanced in the rearview mirror. Jostling Tachibana's shoulder to get his attention, Horita grinned and jerked his thumb toward the back seat.
Tachibana turned around and saw that all seven of their passengers were asleep. Kyoya's head was resting on Haruhi's and she was curled into his side. Mitsukuni's head was in Haruhi's lap and his feet were resting on Takashi's lap. Takashi was slumped down slightly with his head resting on the back of the seat, cocked in Haruhi's direction.
It was harder to see Tamaki and the twins because they were seated in the rear-facing seat closer to the driver. However, Tachibana could tell that Tamaki was sandwiched between the twins, who had their arms wrapped around Tamaki, practically nuzzling into his neck from either side.
"It's good to see Master Kyoya so relaxed," Tachibana thought. "He looks so comfortable leaning against Haruhi with her snuggled into his side. I almost hate to wake them." Before getting out of the car, he pulled out his phone and took a picture of the four in the far back seat. He climbed out of the car and gestured for Fuyumi to join him at the back door of the limousine. He showed her the picture on his phone before he opened the door.
"You have to send me a copy of that," she whispered insistently. "He looks so cute like that. She's been good for him, almost as much as Tamaki."
"I know," he responded. Opening the car door quietly, he nudged Kyoya's shoulder gently.
Kyoya opened his eyes a slit and glared at Tachibana. He was about to growl, "Leave me alone," when he realized he was not at home in bed. Slowly he looked around the back of the car, taking in the sleeping forms of his fellow hosts.
When his eyes fell on Haruhi nestled against him, he smiled softly. Placing a tender kiss on her hair, he whispered, "Haruhi, we've arrived. It's time to wake up."
She startled and sat up, her head narrowly missing Kyoya's chin. Haruhi blinked, looked around, and then smiled. "Well, I guess the fun we had at the street fair wore us all out."
Schooling his expression of fondness, Kyoya said, "I will go talk to Fuyumi while you wake the other, and you better start with Honey-sempai. Tamaki will have a meltdown if he sees this." He gestured to the young man whose head was snuggled in Haruhi's lap.
"Oh, most definitely," Haruhi replied, grinning mischievously.
After Kyoya climbed out of the car, Haruhi ran her fingers through Mitsukuni's hair and whispered, "It's time to get up." He just whimpered and pressed closer to her.
Remember that Mitsukuni, like Kyoya, was difficult to wake up without incurring his wrath, she bent down and tenderly kissed him on the temple. "Mitsukuni, we're here," she said, shaking him gently, but to no avail.
Bemused, she decided it might be easier to wake Takashi and have him carry Mitsukuni out of the car. Running her hand softly up and down his arm, Haruhi said, "Takashi, wake up. We're here."
He slowly opened his eyes and blinked several times, as if to clear sleep from them. Looking at Haruhi, he smiled fondly and sleepily. Haruhi blushed slightly at the tenderness in his gaze. Then he looked down and saw Mitsukuni's position in her lap. The corners of his eyes crinkled as his smile broadened.
Then Takashi looked across to the other seat and his smile became a grin. Haruhi followed his gaze and had to stifle her laughter. At first glance, it appeared that Tamaki had stepped into the middle of one of the twins' brotherly love acts.
"The twins look like bookends with Tamaki the only book on the shelf," Haruhi whispered, still trying to suppress her amusement.
"Hn," Takashi responded, chuckling quietly.
"Takashi, you take Mitsukuni and join Kyoya. I'll wake those three." Smirking, she pulled out her phone after Takashi gently removed Mitsukuni from her lap. Positioning it to record the boys when she woke them up, she thought, "This should be good and I don't want to miss any of it."
Haruhi nudged Tamaki's foot with her own. He just grunted and shifted position. His shifting cause the twins to tighten their hold. Hikaru waved a hand vaguely and murmured, "Just five more minutes, Mom."
At the sound of Hikaru's voice, Tamaki's eyes snapped open and he looked to his left and right, clearly confused by his position between the twins.
Tamaki yelled, "What are you two devils doing?" He tried to get up but the twins hugged his tighter and nuzzled his neck. "Let me go," Tamaki shrieked as he struggled to escape the clutches of Hikaru and Kaoru.
Kaoru's eyes opened and he realized that it was not Hikaru that he was clutching, but Tamaki. "Tono, I always knew you were a pervert. How did you get into bed between me and Hikaru?"
"He's just satisfying his curiosity," Hikaru purred. "Haven't you seen how he watches us during our brotherly love act at Host Club?"
Struggling to break away, Tamaki sputtered incomprehensibly. Hikaru and Kaoru continued to chuckle indecently as they stroked his chest and arms.
"Alright, break it up, you three," Haruhi stated, putting away her phone before they could notice they were being recorded. "We're here to see the property, not engage in depraved behavior."
Tamaki let out an incensed "Well, I never" as he finally fought free of the twins and bolted out of the car. The twins followed more sedately, pausing at the door to each offer Haruhi a hand as she climbed out of the car.
"Over here," Fuyumi whooped, waving her hand wildly in the air.
Haruhi suppressed a snicker as she noticed Kyoya rolling his eyes, standing just out of Fuyumi's line of sight.
"You guys have got to see this place. It's fabulous!" she gushed. "The whole of the property is just under fifty acres with a variety of venues and amenities, including a small man-made lake. It was designed for executive retreats and exclusive conferences."
Turning around, she placed her hands on her hips. "This is the main house. The lobby has high ceilings and discretely placed elevators. There are three wings and each wing has three floors. The north wing, directly in back, is for the support staff and it consists of thirty-six apartments, twelve per floor. The garage is directly north of the staff wing and there are an additional twenty-four apartments."
Fuyumi gestured to her left. "The first floor of the east wing has the fitness center and sixteen deluxe rooms. The second floor consists of twelve executive suites."
She turned and gestured to her right. "The first floor of the west wing has the lounge, the restaurant, and eight deluxe rooms. The second floor consists of an additional twelve executive suites."
Throwing her arms out wide, Fuyumi continued, "The third floor of both the east and west wings is continuous and consists of ten executive apartments. That floor can only be reached by the executive elevator with a special key."
The hosts were starting to get a bit restless listening to Fuyumi. The only one who was not starting to fidget was Mitsukuni, who stilled looked sleepy as Takashi continued to carry him. Haruhi chuckled. "Fuyumi, you sound like a real estate agent trying hard to make a sale while hiding some major flaw."
Fuyumi blushed. "Sorry, I guess I got carried away. It really is a beautiful place. On one hand, it's too bad about the whole embezzlement/fraud thing that kept if from opening. On the other hand, the scandal created a substantial discount on the purchase price, which was very good for us."
Kyoya attempted to interrupt her, but she pressed on, ignoring him. "In addition to the main house, there are twelve cottages, each with four bedrooms. Six of those are to the west of the main house, near the formal gardens, the gazebo, and the sakura grove." She gestured off to her right again as she described the areas.
"The other six cottages are to the east, near the koi pond, the meditation garden, and the tournament-sized dojo."
"A dojo?!" Mitsukuni inquired, now fully awake and intrigued. "Can we go see it?" Takashi set Mitsukuni on his feet before he lost his grip on his exuberant cousin.
Smirking at the senior's change in attitude, Kyoya was finally able to interrupt Fuyumi's 'sales pitch.' "Let's go look it over. Fuyumi, you can tell us about the different features as we pass them."
The group followed Fuyumi as she led them around the east end of the main house. "On the way to the dojo, we will be passing the koi pond and meditative garden. They were purposely placed in proximity to the dojo to provide quiet places of contemplation between bouts or lessons."
By the time she had finished her explanation, they reached the dojo. Mitsukuni and Takashi stepped in and stopped just inside the door. Takashi quirked an eyebrow and nodded in approval. Mitsukuni expressed his impression much more vocally. "Wow! This is incredible. Look, they even have the sliding walls to divide the space to allow multiple uses at the same time. This is great!"
Everyone grinned at the martial artists' reactions, both silent and boisterous.
"Come on," Fuyumi piped up. "There's so much more to see."
Next she led them westward, behind the main house, across a well-manicured lawn and past a man-made lake.
Looking around at the open space, Tamaki commented, "This would be a great place to hold picnics, events, or fairs. I can just imagine…"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Hikaru teased. "You're always imagine things."
"Maybe you should see a doctor about that," Kaoru finished.
Everyone laughed as Tamaki sputtered at the twins. "You twin devils! I'll get you!"
Fuyumi spoke up. "Okay, here is the west side of the property. The gazebo would be ideal for small concerts or plays."
"Hey, Hikaru," Kaoru shouted, "wouldn't this be ideal for a photo shoot? Just look at the possibilities. From one angle you would have the lake. From another, the formal gardens."
"Wow," Hikaru responded. "You're right, it would be."
Kyoya cleared this throat, drawing everyone's attention. "We need to leave soon to make our dinner reservation. If you all agree that this would be a good home for the Hinan family, I will have Fuyumi start the purchase process."
The group cheered. Fuyumi declared, "That sounds unanimous. I will get right on it. Have a good dinner and I'll see you soon."
The hosts hurried to the waiting limousine and climbed in.
"Haruhi sits next to me this time," Tamaki insisted. "I don't want to be stuck between those two against." He glared at Hikaru and Kaoru.
Kyoya rolled his eyes. "Fine. The twins can sit over here with me. Honey-sempai and Mori-sempai can sit over there with you and Haruhi."
Everyone settled in and chatted happily about different aspects of the property. All except Haruhi, who sat quietly, thinking, "Am I doing the right thing? Is that the right property? Will the Hinan family be able to afford to maintain it?"
Kyoya noticed the expression of deep thought on Haruhi's face. "Haruhi, is there something wrong? Don't you like it?"
All of the other hosts looked at her expectantly. "It's a great property, with some many good features. I guess I'm just worried about what it will take to maintain it. Will the investment custodial fees paid by Kyoya be enough to cover the expenses? It just hit me that I don't have an adequate knowledge of estate management, finance, and investments to even make a guess."
"I don't know much in those areas myself," Tamaki inserted. "We should do some research this week and talk about it in more depth next weekend when we're at Honey-sempai's."
"A very sound idea," Kyoya said. "We each know a little about how a household is run. Haruhi, you may know more than you realize. Come with a list of areas that you think will need to be addressed. Make note of any that are particular interest to you."
Mitsukuni looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"For instance, your list may include the gardens, the dojo, kitchen staff, security, and transportation. In your case, your particular interest may be the kitchen staff. You could include notes on what staffing is needed, how that area could fit with or overlap another area," Kyoya clarified.
Everyone turned to look as Takashi spoke up. "You mean, like having security officers who are also well-versed in gardening to patrol the grounds discretely?"
Kyoya looked impressed. "Exactly. That is an excellent idea."
Everyone was startled when the door opened and Tachibana announced, "We have arrived."
Mitsukuni hopped out first and announced, "Yeah! Time for dinner…and cake!"
The others laughed as they followed him into the restaurant.