Hanako spun her pencil between her lithe fingers as she watched the clock on the wall. Class would end soon, and she couldn't wait to get out of the stuffy 2-B classroom. As soon as the bell tower chimed, Hana gathered her belongings and rushed out of the classroom. She was the first one in that hall of the second year wing, and she was determined to get what she planned over with before they started club activities for the day. Hana waited just outside of the class 2-A homeroom, and she ignored the people whose gazes slid over her while she stood by the door. Finally, her intended target passed through the doorway.
"Hey, do you have a second to talk?" Hanako asked, embarrassed that she had to be the one to speak up but knowing that she had to. After all, it was her fault in the first place.
Tamaki blinked in surprise, expecting her to have been waiting for Kyoya, "Sure."
Hanako could feel the questioning eyes on her as she stopped the blond school prince, and she realized that saying what she had to wouldn't go over well if the rest of the school was watching. "Walk with me?" she asked.
"Yeah," he voiced quietly, half scared that she was going to start yelling at him again. He followed her down the hallway, anyway, and they walked together in silence until they ended up at the courtyard. Hana stopped walking and she shoved her hands into her pockets nervously, not sure if she should just spit it out or if she should work up to saying what needed to be said. "What do you want to talk about?" Tamaki asked, much more reserved than she was used to hearing from him.
"I'm sorry," she blurted her apology out, surprising them both by how forceful it came out. It was stupid of her to avoid him. They were friends, and Tamaki was a good person. There was no good reason why she should treat him the same way that Hikaru treated her. "I've been behaving poorly lately, and I know that you mean well."
"Apology accepted," he said without any misgivings, "and I'm sorry, too. I made you uncomfortable, and I wasn't listening. You were right. I do know better, and I would never do something like that for you if you don't want it. I just want my friends to be happy."
A charming, faraway look settled on his face, and Hana felt relief and affection muddle together as she stood across from her classmate. "Thank you, Tamaki," she said with genuine gratitude.
"We better get to the club," he said, comfortable with her again as they made their way back to the second year wing. "Want to go pick up Kyoya?"
She nodded, and the two of them walked to Kyoya's locker together, chatting about the theme for the day. Tamaki rambled with excitement, and Hanako listened patiently as the leader of their club expressed his appreciation for Japanese culture days. Kyoya looked up from inside his locker and smiled at the sight of his best friend and his housemate approaching. "I see you two made up," he said with satisfaction.
"But, of course, Kyoya," Tamaki said cheerfully. "Hey, Hana, can you help me with my kimono today? I've never had to put one on by myself." The French-born student seemed both embarrassed and excited by the prospect of donning the traditional garment. Tamaki's enthusiasm for Japanese culture had always been endearing to Hanako. He had put his best foot forward to embrace the part of his identity that had been kept from him during his childhood, and in their friendship, she had found someone who appreciated their heritage and welcomed her breadth of cultural knowledge.
"Of course," she said, giving in as easily to him with his puppy dog eyes as she did to Honey. Whooping with glee, he led them to the club room which was in the process of transformation. The trio of second year students made their way to the changing room. The other hosts were in the process of getting their costumes on for the afternoon.
"And where were you guys?" Kaoru asked with his hands on his hips.
"Yeah, we had to get everything set up without you," Hikaru complained as the two older boys drew the curtains closed and Hana checked back into the main floor, worried about the temporary constructions put up without her.
"Don't worry about it," Kaoru said to her, handing her loose pages from his notebook that they had used to take notes on while the second years were out. "Mori-senpai and Honey-senpai directed all the staff members who put up the decorations, so everything is sturdy and accurate. We helped Haruhi get her kimono on right, and she got all the refreshments ready for you."
Some of her stress melted away at the surprising reliability that her clubmates displayed. It had to be the first time that they had taken care of the details by themselves like that, and for once she didn't have to scramble to make sure that everything was perfect before the doors opened. "Thanks," she said gratefully. "I'm going to help Tamaki with his hair and costume. Could you get the clip on hair piece ready for him?"
He gave her a thumbs up, and she walked over to where Tamaki was getting dressed behind a curtain. "Tamaki," she called from outside, "how are you doing in there?"
Tamaki drew the curtain back, holding his kimono as close to his chest as possible, despite the open chested design. Hana laughed quitly at his silliness and instructed him to stand in the center of the room, unbunching the sleeves of his nagajuban in the sleeves of the kimono and wrapping just below his chest for the stylistic liberties that Kaoru and Yuzuha had taken. She adjusted his kimono to an appropriate drape on his form and wrapped the first panel around his torso.
"How do you know so much about traditional wear, Hanako-senpai?" Haruhi wondered, watching the older girl working expertly around Tamaki. She remembered the other day when Hana had performed a perfect tea ceremony for Honey and their guests.
"My mother's family is very old and traditional," she explained while wrapping the obi around Tamaki's waist. "Her mother taught her, and she taught me."
Haruhi blinked in confusion as she observed the young woman who was now securing an extension to Tamaki's hair. "You don't seem like a traditionalist, senpai," Haruhi commented, taking in the girl's dark suit and considering her employment for Kyoya's family.
"I'm not," Hana confirmed. "My mother was something of a rebel in her twenties, and her parents disowned her for committing to what they thought was an unbeneficial marriage. They cut her off completely, but she still held on to the lessons that they taught her. She worked hard and turned my dad's business into an empire."
"Wow," Haruhi voiced simply, overcome by the impressive story of Hana's family background. She had heard people gossipping vaguely during the school day, but Haruhi never heard about Hanako's family before. In fact, Hana didn't talk about them very much. "That's amazing. I'd love to meet them one day."
Haruhi observed the gentle look of admiration on Tamaki's face as Hanako's expression became nostalgic and sad while she put the finishing touches on his costume. "My parents died some time ago," Hana admitted, stepping back to pass a final critical eye over Tamaki's appearance. She regarded Haruhi thoughtfully before offering the girl a smile, "They would have liked you, Haruhi. In some ways, you remind me of them. Well, Tamaki-sama, you're all set."
Haruhi watched Hanako pick up the loose papers that Kaoru had given her earlier and start on the next task necessary before opening the club. The honor student empathized with her senior, and she could tell that Hanako admired her parents immensely. She felt her cheeks warm as she realized that Hanako had just given her the highest praise that she could possibly could. Haruhi watched Hanako get a box out of a cabinet, realizing that she really needed to get to know the other girl better.
"Are you two ready?" Kyoya's voice sounded from the archway to the main floor, "We still have to greet our guests."
"Oh, yeah." Kyoya herded Haruhi and Tamaki to their places at the entrance. Hanako followed them into the main room and took her place next to the silk cord, pulling it to release the shower of rose petals and opening the door to the crowd waiting outside.
As usual, Hana escorted the ladies to the hosts they were scheduled with for the hour and circled around the club room, tracking food and drink orders, taking new reservations, and selling club merchandise. Hanako carried the clipboard with her during her rounds, allowing Kyoya to take advantage of the historical theme and take notes with ink and a brush. She delivered her notes to him at the low table he was sitting at, and while he read, she observed the hosts at their respective sections.
The teardrops that they used were always successful at endearing them to customers, and Hanako had to admit that of the techniques the boys used, the most palatable for her were the crocodile tears. Their guests were always so moved that they were often reduced to tears themselves.
"Haruhi, you've booked another appointment," Kyoya reported to the host sitting closest to his section. "It seems you've had a pretty steady flow of new customers lately. Keep up the good work. I'm not going to charge you interest on your debt like I normally would so keep this up and you should be able to pay it off. Although, the rental fee on that kimono you're wearing is nothing to sneeze at." The shadow king's pleasantness contrasted so starkly with the underlying threat that Hanako couldn't help but prod at the back of his shoulder with the corner of the clipboard.
"Kyoya-sama," Hanako scolded without any vehemence, "you're not making Haruhi feel any better." Hanako immediately fell silent and took a step back as two guests appeared at her employer's table.
"Hello, Kyoya."
"I can't get over how great you look in that kimono. Are you planning to release any more picture books of the Host club?"
"Unfortuately we don't have anything planned at present, ladies," Kyoya informed them with a courteous smile.
'"But doesn't the club make a lot of money…" Hanako looked up and saw the twins peeking over the paper screen.
"From the sale of promotional items?"
"That's true," Kyoya acknowledged, turning to address the brothers, "but the items are poor quality. Those picture books were full of nothing but amateur hidden-camera shots." Hanako handed the Ootori boy the developed photographs that were tucked away in a pocket of the clipboard.
The twins shot accusatory looks at Hana and said, "So, that's how he got them."
"However," Kyoya said pointedly, regaining their attention, "if we want to create some higher quality money-making products, I'm afraid we'd have to draw money from the school's budget." The light glinted from his lenses, and Hana handed him a small calculator.
"We could try to cut some of the costs of manufacturing," Hana suggested, opening up the clipboard to the page with the details regarding photo book production. She handed him the board, pointing to the areas that were most easily improved.
"Hm, yes, I see. Hanako, get in touch with the photography club and inquire about a collaboration at a reduced fee," he instructed, passing back the board.
{OR}
"Hana-chan!" Honey's familiar call cried out to her as he ran to her in his sandals.
"What is it, Honey-sama?" the girl asked, stepping away from behind Kyoya to take care of what ever it was the older host wanted.
"Can you fix my kimono?" he questioned, fake tears pooling in his eyes, "It got messed up while I was playing."
Hana noticed the second layer of silk hanging around his shoulders, loose from his running around, and she crouched in front of him, smoothing the fabric down and recentering it on his smaller physique. "You should be more careful, Honey-sama," she said as she readjusted his collar. Glancing up over the blond's shoulder, she saw Mori hovering in his ombre navy kimono. As usual, his costume featured an open chest design, and the color brought out the gray in his dark eyes. She fixed his obi and drew up the third layer of his kimono around his shoulders. "There you go," Hana said, standing up, "all better."
"How admirable of you!" Tamaki declared loudly, and Hanako turned her head to find the club president inserting himself in Haruhi's space. Standing between the pair of cousins and the twins, Hanako joined them in watching another overkill display from Tamaki. The hosts applauded for Tamaki as he piled sweets into Haruhi's open palms.
"You two are acting normally again," Kaoru commented, observing Tamaki start to monologue at Haruhi.
"We made up," she informed him.
"That's good to hear," Kaoru said with relief.
"Yeah," Honey agreed, nodding enthusiastically, "I don't like it when you and Tama-chan fight."
"We weren't really fighting," Hanako assured him. "I think I may have overreacted."
"Nevertheless," Kyoya voiced, joining them with his brush and scroll, "we're all glad things are back to normal."
"Being able to cry without the use of eye drops is the mark of a true host," Tamaki claimed, creating a romantic and dramatic atmosphere around himself and Haruhi. "Tell me, do I impress you?"
"By the way, do any of you need new eye drop bottles?" Hanako asked the boys while she had all of them together. The hosts grew bored of Tamaki's excessive behavior quickly, and Hana stood casually with her hands in her pockets, waiting for them to give her an answer. Out of the corner of her eye, Hana caught sight of a figure lurking around the open archway leading in to the main floor from the receiving room.
"No, I think I'm good," Kaoru said, shaking his bottle of eye drops.
"Mitsukuni does," Mori reported with an empty bottle in hand while he carried his cousin. The tallest host took in the serious expression on Hanako's face and followed her gaze to the arch where a girl was looking in hesitantly. It wasn't long before Haruhi noticed the stranger there, as well, and the others soon followed. Hanako's casual stance shifted slightly while the others acknowledged her presence.
"Looks like the host club has a brand-new guest," the twins announced. Hana stood behind Kyoya, just next to the twins, but none of them noticed her muscles contracting, carrying her straighter that she was when she was at ease. It wasn't that Hanako met all new guests with suspicion, but in her experience, anyone who was lurking around shadowy corners was someone worth keeping an eye on.
Without waiting to give the newcomer a proper greeting, the twins slid away from the group and reconvened directly in front of the new girl, blocking her from the sight of the others. "Hanako," Kyoya said to her, "why does that girl look familiar?" Tamaki disappeared from their group, next, joining the twins in offering their roses to the girl.
Hanako couldn't be bothered to check the clipboard for the answer, because the next second, the new girl had pushed Tamaki back by his cheek, screeching, "No! Don't touch me! You're phony!" Hanako immediately left Kyoya's side, passing him the clipboard quickly, to catch Tamaki as he fell back from the force of the newcomer's shove. Hanako thrust Tamaki back onto his feet and stood close by cautiously now that the girl had demonstrated violent behavior.
"Just what I said! You're phony!" the outrage she regarded Tamaki with seemed uncalled for from Hanako's perspective. The light haired girl thrust a finger at Tamaki and continued, "I find it hard to believe that someone like you is the prince character of this host club!"
Hanako moved to stand more protectively in front of the rest of the club group. The girl had pinned Tamaki's role in the club easily, and he backed away from her in horror as she criticised him. As he rejoined the others, Hanako stepped into place between the stranger and the hosts. The roasts had completely decimated Tamaki, and he slowly collapsed onto the floor behind Hana.
Kyoya regarded the newcomer thoughtfully, racking his memory for a name to put to the familiar face, "I don't suppose you are…"
As soon as her employer spoke, a switch seemed to have flipped in the girl and she rushed forward with tears in her eyes, "It's you, Kyoya!" Hana's eyes widened in surprise and her body stiffened, prepared to intercept what she perceived as an attack.
Hanako tried to grab her by her waist, but the girl surprised her by throwing her arm out and destabilising Hana with an unexpected strength. Hanako lost her balance and stumbled back, falling into a sturdy form that caught her easily by the shoulders. Confused, Hanako watched the girl bounce from Tamaki, using him like a trampoline, to wrap her arms around Kyoya's waist. Incredulously, Hana's eyes widened at the uncommon gesture and finally remembered that she hadn't collided with the floor.
She registered the smell his familiar cologne and looked up to find Takashi watching the odd scene unfold before them. His hand grasped her shoulder firmly, and once she realized that it was his chest that had prevented her from joining Tamaki on the floor, she reached up to his hand on her shoulder, taking the back of his hand with hers and lifting it from her jacket. Surprised at the contact, Takashi's gaze shot down to her, but she was already back on the problem at hand and regaining her composure.
"My one and only prince charming," the new girl was saying dreamily as she clung to him. Horrified and confused, Kyoya made eye contact with Hanako from over the girl's head, narrowing his eyes in displeasure and silently demanding that she do something about this fiasco.
"Let's all go inside," Hanako suggested, eyeing the girl warily. "I'll go make some tea. Haruhi, please get our new guest settled in." The group split up, allowing Hanako to prepare another set for the strange girl and letting the boys change out of their costumes. They reconvened in the empty receiving room, dressed in their school uniforms and watching the newcomer with shared curiosity.
"So, how do you know Kyoya?" Hikaru was asking her, leaning against the back of a sofa casually as Hanako set a pot of tea and a teacup on the coffee table.
"He's my fiancee, of course," the girl declared, and Hanako actually tripped over her own two feet at the outlandish claim. It wasn't that she believed the girl. It was more like she hadn't expected such a ridiculous reason. She had taken the time in the kitchen to review her student files, and once she realized that she didn't have one she checked all of her other recent files before identifying RR United's heiress.
Her incredulity at the baseless declaration morphed into amusement as she crossed her arms around the clipboard, knowing full well that Kyoya wouldn't be engaged to a client's daughter in a scenario like the one that they were working on outside of the club. The hosts gazes all seemed to turn to Hanako in that moment, wondering how she would react to the development. When they saw her usual unbothered expression poorly masking her annoyance, they turned their attention back to the new girl.
"Your fiancee?"
"Kyoya-senpai?" The twins each repeated a part of the girl's claim.
"Of course," the girl chirped. "My name is Renge Hoshakuji, and I'm transferring into Ouran Academy's First Year Class A tomorrow."
Hana made a note in her clipboard, understanding now why she didn't have any records of the girl from he school files. The club turned around as a colder gloom settled around Tamaki at the marble wall.
"Why is he sulking?" Hikaru questioned.
"Because Mommy was keeping a secret from Daddy," Kaoru answered his brother.
"Whatever," Kyoya said dismissively at Kaoru's teasing. "Why does everyone insist on referring to us like we're husband and wife?"
"Ours is a story of love at first sight," Renge said, regaining the club's attention. "I couldn't resist the way you were adoring those flowers in the backyard when you thought no one else was looking." Hana covered her smirk with the clipboard, knowing that Kyoya had a pollen allergy that caused him to develop an aversion to the outdoors.
"And how sweet it was when you reached out to that poor, little injured kitten," the international student continued. Kyoya's body guard snickered as she imagined him holding any sort of living thing. She had introduced him to Ageha once as a baby, and he had said that she was a filthy little creature. He loathed animals and had a particular distaste for strays.
"She serious?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked in identical deadpan tones.
"Could you have the wrong person?" Haruhi asked Renge, drawing her attention away from the twins.
"No way!" Renge protested furiously, "I could recognize my love anywhere! He's a gentle man who's kind to everyone but doesn't ask for anything in return. He likes solitude but in fact, sometimes he gets lonely. He looks like the star of the popular dating sim, Uki-doki Memorial!" Her matter-of-fact attitude sent the club into mass confusion. The twins ran in circles, clutching their heads, and Honey's own nauseous reaction to the inaccuracy seemed to have spread to Usa-chan and Takashi, whose gaze hadn't left Hanako despite the chaos.
The body guard hadn't even noticed Takashi watching her. She was too distracted by what Renge was saying. Hana's smirk grew into a full smile behind the clipboard, and before she knew it, she was fighting to hold back a cheshire cat grin.
"You're my real life Ichijo Miyabi!" Renge declared with her finger pointed at Kyoya's unmoving, expressionless face. As the club froze, Hanako started laughing outright. She couldn't help it, and the full blown laugh escaped uproariously until she was hugging her stomach while the boys labeled Renge as an otaku.
She glared openly at Hanako, who had finally lowered the clipboard as she wiped tears of laughter from her eyes. "And who are you?" Kyoya's admirer bore a striking resemblance to the snake haired monster of mythology that turned men to stone as she finally took notice of the shadow that never strayed too far from Kyoya. Hana straightened and stood tall with the clipboard tucked under one arm, evenly regarding the French girl.
"Renge, this is Hanako Negida," Kyoya introduced the girl properly. "She's my body guard and personal assistant."
"Your body guard?" Renge repeated questioningly as she looked Hanako over from head to toe. The girl certainly dressed the part in the black suit, but her black hair was long and silky. There weren't any blemishes on her fair skinned face, and her eyes were a beautiful color like that of warm caramel. Renge could tell that her nails were well manicured, and her suit was the highest quality possible. Hanako was tall and slender with a confident and elegant air that seemed to be a perfect match for Kyoya's cool personality. Decisively, Renge frowned and her brows knit together. This girl had to be the mean spirited love rival. The vixen. The trollop who used her beauty to ensnare men.
"I get it now," Kyoya analyzed the story, "you're in love with that character. You're projecting that love onto me, and you've somehow deluded yourself into thinking that we're engaged." Hanako noticed that simply by opening his mouth, Kyoya was able to send Renge into a love induced frenzy. "I assume this Miyabi character probably wears glasses as well."
"I keep telling you to wear contacts at club functions," Hanako pointed out. "You never listen to me." Kyoya pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose instead of answering her.
"So she made it up?" Tamaki concluded simply. "You're not really her fiancee, right?"
"Well, no," Kyoya confirmed. "I don't remember ever asking for her hand in marriage, and if I were, Hanako would certainly have known about it. Besides, this is the first time I've ever met the woman." The boys all sighed and looked at each other, the same thought passing between them that Kyoya should have said something sooner.
Renge's frenzy finally stopped, and she landed beside Kyoya on the sofa across from Hanako and the twins. "According to my research," Renge said, eyes shimmering with admiration and puppy love, "I understand you're in charge of managing the club, is that true, Kyoya?"
A tick appeared on Hana's forehead as her suspicion flared, "Where did you get this information?"
Renge glared at her coldly for a second before Honey stepped in with his usual upbeat energy, "That's right! Kyo-chan is our director."
"You're the club's director?" she repeated, inching closer to him on the sofa. Hanako's pen started tapping the binding of the clipboard, and another tick appeared on her temple.
"Hey, sis," Kaoru prodded her with his elbow, whispering, "knock it off, you'll burst a blood vessel."
"That's perfect!" Renge's girlish squeal drowned out the rest of her best friend's statement, "Oh wow, I've always wanted to wear a sandwich board to advertise a business."
"We don't advertise," the twins commented dryly from both sides of Hana. "We're just a host club."
"I've made up my mind," she ignored the twins openly. "From now on, I'm going to be the manager of this host club!" A third tick appeared on Hana's other temple, and the tempo with which she tapped the clipboard increased. All of the hosts other than Kyoya exchanged concerned, hesitant looks, some of them looking at Hana nervously.
"Actually," Haruhi spoke up, "Hanako's responsible for most of the managerial tasks. I don't think that we need another one." Renge rounded on Hanako furiously, who had finally stopped tapping the clipboard and held the other girl's demonic glare unflinchingly.
"Um, listen, Kyoya," Tamaki cautiously broached the present issue with Kyoya, crouched behind the sofa to hide from the tense, storm-like atmosphere that had settled over the club room as Hanako and Renge stared each other down.
"It's like watching a cobra and a mongoose," Haruhi muttered with the twins taking shelter behind her as the spirits of the two animals seemed to manifest behind Renge and Hana respectively.
"Miss Hoshakuji is the only daughter of a very important Ootori family client," Kyoya brushed off Tamaki's attempt to nip the drama in the bud. "So please be polite and try not to offend her, alright?" Tamaki relented and hung his head in defeat as Kyoya smiled pleasantly at Renge, "It would be nice if Hanako didn't have carry so much work on her shoulders all the time."
The two girls stood down as soon as Kyoya intervened, and Hanako caught his gaze, silently asking him if he was sure about this. The hard, unyielding order in his stony expression told her that he was, and she sighed, shrugging haphazardly and saying, "I do have other responsibilities."
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Honey cheered and swung over to her, "Yay! Does that mean you'll have time to sit with us now?" She glanced at Takashi, who seemed just as interested in what she had to say as Mitsukuni.
"Well, boys, I can't wait to work with you," Renge said pleasantly, a content smile on her face.
"I hope you're sure about this," Hanako leaned over Kyoya's shoulder and said to him quietly, skepticism plain on her face as she regarded the new lady manager.
{OR}
The next day, the club called for a meeting promptly before their usual business to discuss the potential new addition to their board of executives. They held court around a coffee table, with the hosts and Hana seated in a circle, cups of tea set out in front of each of them.
Tamaki started them off, "I thought about it a lot last night, and maybe having a lady manager isn't such a bad idea." Hanako looked at the boy sitting beside her with rapt attention.
"Why do you say that?" the twins asked from across the coffee table.
"Well, it's fairly obvious, isn't it? Renge just transferred into the same class as Haruhi. So, if Haruhi has a girl friend around, it could bring out the female within her. Renge's girlish air of tenderness might be able to stimulate Haruhi's own sense of femininity," Tamaki's unlikely fantasy failed to appease the room. Hana wondered where exactly this air of tendrness was yesterday when the gorgon barged into their club disruptively. Despite the obvious lack of convincing, Tamaki continued, "Now is our chance to help Haruhi get in touch with her feminine side! This is an important project men! She doesn't have any friends in class right now except for these two shady twins shady twins."
Tamaki pointed at the boys sitting across from the second year students, and Hanako lowered his arm patiently, saying, "Don't be rude."
"That's no good for her," Tamaki insisted.
"Like you have room to talk," the twins cocked their heads to the side skeptically.
"Respectfully disagree, boss," Hikaru said, drawing a magazine from his jacket and opening it down the middle, revealing a photograph taken two winters ago for Yuzuha's spring collection.
Kaoru pointed to the advertisement like it was evidence, "Hanako should be enough of a good example on Haruhi. As you can see, she's been modeling all of our mom's girly designs her entire life." Haruhi leaned forward out of curiosity, wondering what the picture was.
It looked like something out of a story book. There were rolling green hills with a single white painted garden table and chair. A spread of afternoon tea covered the vintage iron, and standing beside it, looking off into the distance was a beautiful girl with waist length black hair in a flowing white sundress and a large tawny hat. Haruhi's jaw slackened in awe as she looked between the beautiful girl in the picture, the very picture of femininity and grace, and the stern looking girl sitting between Tamaki and Kyoya, one black clad leg crossed over the other and her dark hair gathered in a high ponytail.
"It isn't a good use of Hanako's time to get caught up in Tamaki's personal schemes," Kyoya voiced moderately. The twins grit their teeth in frustration at Kyoya's dismissive attitude for their own distinct reasons. Hikaru resented that Kyoya didn't seem to care despite Hanako's commitment to him, and Kaoru disapproved of Kyoya's lack of concern for Hanako's position in the host club.
"Hey, everyone!" Renge called out, opening the door. "You'll be happy to know that your new manager, Renge, has baked all of you some cookies." She revealed a bundle of sweets from behind the door, wrapped in frilly pink paper. Tamaki gasped and circled to the door.
"Isn't she ladylike! I'm so moved by your generosity!"
Renge side eyed the club president, "I didn't bake these cookies for you, you phony prince." The insult sent Tamaki right back to his gloomy wall, and Renge hurried right up to Kyoya. "I'm sorry I burnt them a little bit. I did the best I could and I already know what you're going to say. Oh, you're always so sweet to me, Kyoya." Renge cupped her face, not noticing that Hanako swiped the cookies from her and tossing them to the garbage, suspicious of the goods. Mitsukuni leapt into the air and intercepted the balled up nuggets and traipsed to the window.
"She wasn't kidding," the boy lolita inter and said around a mouthful. "These cookies really are burnt."
"Don't eat that, Mitsukuni," Takashi came up behind his cousin protectively. "It's bad for you." Hearing the criticism, Renge screamed and chased the cousins with the fury of Medusa herself.
"She's scaring me!" Mitsukuni cried from under Takashi's arm as Renge chased them back and forth across the floor. Walking to the window, Hanako waited for an opportunity and stepped in, grabbing Renge by the wrist and stopping her in her tracks.
The new student glared at Hanako, who was already looking down at her with poorly disguised disdain, "Miss Hoshakuji, please don't present yourself as a security threat to the host club. Otherwise, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." The body guard's grip was tight on Renge's wrist, firm and unyielding. A protective aura radiated from the taller girl, warning Renge that she would not hesitate to literally throw her out of the club room if she had to.
Renge steeled her nerves against the intimidating young woman, "There's nothing you can do to keep me away from my Kyoya!"
Not one to be challenged, Hanako stood nose to nose with Renge and grit out, "Try me." The two girls glared at each other, one opposing the other whose intentions seemed to grow increasingly dangerous. Finally, Renge turned her nose up with a petulant hmph. Hana let go of the other girl's arm and took a step back, feeling a tug on the hem of her jacket.
"I'm thirsty," Honey told her, his hair mussed from Takashi running back and forth, carrying his cousin like an American football.
"I'll be right back," Hana smiled at him indulgently. She walked to the kitchen and fixed a mug of milk for Mitsukuni. The girl took his request as an opportunity to collect her patience. It wasn't as if she had a problem with other girls. Despite her bad track record with frivolous middle school girl friends and the over-eager fans she dealt with daily, Hanako generally made it through the day without losing her self-control. Checking the clock on the wall, she deflated considerably. It wasn't even three fifteen.
Hanako returned to the receiving room, handing Honey his favorite mug and finding her place beside Kyoya as Haruhi rebuffed Tamaki's outburst, saying, "This is sexual harassment, senpai."
"What did I miss?" Hanako asked Kyoya. She failed to see how the club had devolved to this conversation while she had been in the kitchen.
"Oh, nothing much. Just the usual idiocy." Hanako and Kyoya stood impassively as the daily chaos of the Host Club ensued. Tamaki protested fiercely in his defense, inconsolable despite the twins' mild efforts to apologize.
"Every single one of you!" Renge yelled, gaining the club's attention and finally silencing Tamaki. "Except for Kyoya, all of your characters are lukewarm!" The twins and Tamaki started as she pointed at them, and Hanako narrowed her eyes with distaste. "Each of you needs to have some sort of dark side, you understand? Girls are vulnerable to handsome young men who are troubled!"
Hana bit her tongue as the bulldoze that was Renge continued, "If you keep carrying on like this, it's only a matter of time before the girls get tired of you and stop coming all together. Are you trying to ruin my precious Kyoya's business? As your manager, it's my duty to change your character backgrounds." Hanako stood diligently at Kyoya's side as Renge's tirade horrified the hosts into submission.
Renge's hostile take over scared tears into Mitsukuni's eyes, and he wailed into Takashi's elbow. Hanako's annoyance built as the new girl re-labeled each of the hosts, starting with Mitsukuni. She declared him to be a baby-faced thug, and his wailing grew louder before she moved on to Takashi, who she decided would be the flunkie. She cast the twins as basketball players enslaved in their own world, and Haruhi became the victim of constant bullying. Then, she turned to Tamaki and provided him with the background story of a lonely prince. With each role, Hanako felt as if Renge was taking sandpaper to her patience and wearing it away, and throughout Renge's speech, Hanako loudly ground her teeth.
Renge finally fixed her intense criticism on Hanako, standing beside Kyoya with extreme displeasure obvious on her face. After all, who was this girl to show up after one day of knowing these boys, boys Hanako had known throughout her entire life, and presuming to know what their characters needed? Hana stewed in her annoyance on her friends' behalves. They had sides that were plenty dark. Who in the hell was Renge to assume that they didn't have dark sides just because they didn't broadcast their pain?
"And you're the promiscuous groupie who needs attention from a harem of handsome boys for validation!" Renge declared of Hanako's character. Hanako bit her tongue so hard that she almost drew blood.
"No way," Hikaru said firmly, his confusion at what had just played out immediately gone as his eyes went cold.
"If you cast Hana in that light," Kaoru spoke up in an equally resolute voice, "neither Hikaru nor I will take any part in this." Haruhi was surprised by how quickly the twins spoke up. She remembered that they had stood up for Hana when Ayanokoji started insulting her when Haruhi first joined, and all of the hosts had rallied around the girl. It was clearer to Haruhi, now, that the twins were more protective of Hanako for some reason, and she wondered if the other girl and the brothers were particularly close.
Renge turned to Kyoya, enlisting his help, but he shook his head and said mildly, "I can't force club members to do anything they don't want to do."
The self-proclaimed manager gave up but recovered quickly, "It's actually much better if you're not recast since you aren't a host. We'll just cut your lines," She made shooing motions at the body guard. Hanako fell to the background as Renge stepped up to Kyoya while Tamaki immersed himself in his new role. She caught Kyoya regarding the scene with interest and mild amusement, and she knew that he was just waiting to see where this all went. "I have costumes, a filming crew, and a script ready for all of you. Alright! Let's get started!" Renge spurred into action like a whirlwind, and Hanako was left behind as the new girl herded the hosts away. Stepping through the empty club room, Hana wondered how much longer it would be before this charade imploded.
When she rejoined the boys and Haruhi, Hanako found that the twins had been put in Ouran basketball uniforms and a make up team had been allowed into the dressing room. Annoyance bit at her as she wove around the busy crew members. Who the hell were all these people and why were they allowed into the club room without her approval? Renge had turned the club on its head, and Hanako couldn't keep up with her.
"I don't want to do this," Kaoru told her once she found him sitting in a chair for one of the makeup artists. She read his doubtfulness easily. He was just as skeptical as she was about Renge's plans for the Host Club, and he didn't want to support anyone who wanted to paint Hana as anything other than the friend she was to all of them.
"We'll be fine," she assured Kaoru whole-heartedly despite the irritation and doubt she had been feeling since Renge appeared. When he looked at her quizzically, she smiled and said, "When has anything Kyoya decided ever hurt the club?"
{OR}
Hanako followed the crew move through the Ouran campus, watching from the sidelines as they filmed. Renge had somehow filled the stands of the basketball court with fans, flown in a Hollywood filming team, and gotten the twins to play a sport. She followed them to the courtyard and stood with Kyoya out of special effects' rain while the twins and Tamaki had their scene.
"Mitsukuni doesn't have a mean bone in his body," Hanako remarked, annoyed as she read the script while the boys performed. She passed a critical eye to Kyoya, "How long are you going to let this go on?"
The boy stood next to her with his arms crossed casually, watching the act, "Relax, Hanako, just enjoy it for what it is."
"And what exactly is it, sir?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Kyoya's mysterious little smile appeared, and he didn't say anything. They continued to watch as the show progressed to Haruhi's escape from Honey and Mori. As she expected, Mitsukuni's mean expression couldn't hold against his sweet nature, and he was quickly reduced to tears.
The boy sobbed and leapt into Haruhi's arms, crying, "I'm so sorry, Haru-chan! I can't do this anymore!
"Cut!" Renge shrieked and ended the scene. "What's wrong with you? You've got to stick to the script!"
"How'd we go from changing our characters to shooting a movie about them?" Hikaru asked from his chair.
"And why is there an entire film crew here to shoot it?" Haruhi added, drying her hair with a towel.
"Apparently, she flew them in from Hollywood," Kyoya informed them. Hanako read over his shoulder and frowned at the math he was doing to project what the club could earn and save by letting Renge do as she pleased. "Don't you recognize the director? He directed the vampire movie, Millennial Snow. It was the number-one grossing box-office hit in America last year."
"And another thing," Hikaru smacked the script, "how come this stupid script portrays Kaoru as the pitcher?"
"Yeah," Kaoru agreed.
"Gross," Hanako gagged as Haruhi turned around in confusion. The body guard gave her attention to the excitement happening around them. She hated having this many people on school grounds without having personally screened them first. She spent the entire afternoon dividing her attention between watching their surroundings and watching the show. While they took a break under the afternoon sun, Hanako noticed Renge chatting with a group of male students away from the production. The new girl brought the other students she was talking to with her as she came back to the set, and as they got closer, Hanako realized that they looked more intimidating than the other students who had been playing extras and recognized them from the D class.
"What's with this girl?" Hana heard one of the students demand, offended by whatever starry-eyed Renge had said.
"Excuse me," Hanako said to Kyoya, who acknowledged her with alert, stone gray eyes.
She walked down the courtyard, hearing the other boy protest, "Whatever my dad does has nothing to do with me!"
"Let go of me!" The student protested while Renge grabbed hold of his arm and pulled him towards the set, giving him instructions and completely unaware of her surroundings. Hanako ran the rest of the way.
"Hey! You think you can push me around?" the boy demanded, pulling his arm from Renge angrily. "You don't even know me!" He punctuated the statement with a shove and pushed the bossy girl.
"Haruhi, don't!" Hana called to the girl worriedly, but it was too late, and Haruhi had already leapt in to save Renge from falling against the ladders. Hanako grabbed the other student's arm just as the crash sounded and she glared at them, "What was that for?"
Fear settled onto the boy's features as he recognized Hanako. "I just wanted her to go away!" he insisted.
"If you judge people by their appearance, you're stereotyping them and you'll never see the person inside," Hana heard Haruhi saying and felt a wave of relief knowing that she was okay.
"What happened, Haruhi?" Hana turned and saw Tamaki turn the corner.
"I've got it, Tamaki," Hanako assured her friend, noticing the way his eyes narrowed when he saw Haruhi's tears. Her assurance went unheard, and Tamaki grabbed the boy by the front of his shirt, wrenching him from Hanako's grasp and throwing him against the wall.
"So, which one of you jerks started this?" Tamaki demanded dangerously. The boy against the wall paled even more and cast a pleading gaze at her over the blond's shoulder.
"Wait, Suoh!" the other boy implored, "It's not what you think! That girl started it! She was giving us a hard time!"
Haruhi got up shakily, and Hanako moved to help her stand, "He's telling the truth, senpai. It wasn't their fault. They were provoked." Tamaki let go of the boy and walked to Haruhi. At the same time, Hanako stepped away to let the two have a moment. Satisfied that Tamaki and Haruhi were okay, Hanako smiled a little bit when Tamaki started laughing, relieved that nobody was hurt.
The sound of glass shattering put Hana on alert, and she immediately stood straighter, body tense and searching for the source of the break. Turning around, she saw Kyoya's hand wrapped around a large rock, smashed into the lens. Hana took in Kyoya's angry, merciless expression and tucked her hands into her pockets, walking around to pick up the clipboard from the ground beside him.
"Why?" Renge asked in a small voice. "Is something wrong?"
"I'm terribly sorry, but I cannot allow there to be any record of a club member engaging in violence," Kyoya informed her evenly, sharp eyes honed in on her and devoid of sympathy. "I think you've caused enough trouble around here, Renge. Please stop being such a pest."
"A pest?" Renge repeated, her large eyes brimming with tears as Kyoya shattered her fantasy. "But you're supposed to pat me on the head and tell me not to worry! You're supposed to be kind and affectionate, Kyoya! Why are you acting so differently now? Tell me why!"
"Because that's not the real Kyoya," Tamaki said gently. Hanako looked at the boy standing next to her, eyes as cold as ever and his interest in what was playing out renewed. She opened the clipboard and found the non-disclosure agreements that had been prepared preemptively by the Host Club.
"Alright, everyone, I'm going to need signatures from everyone on set today!" she bellowed to the crew and started to pass out the contracts. Security guards emerged from the outskirts of everyone's attention, having been waiting around the corners of the school, alerted by Hanako's earlier suspicion. They took the contracts from Hanako and proceeded to pass them out, collecting all traces of evidence from the crew.
Hana turned to Kyoya with her hands on her hips, "All of this could have been prevented if you hadn't let it go on for so long. How are we supposed to do damage control with the Hoshakujis?" They had worked so hard to make a good impression on Renge's father, and Kyoya had just put the girl in tears. She couldn't think of anything that could remedy that.
"I'm sure it'll all work out," he said easily, his poised and neutral demeanor back in place over his harsh personality. Looking him over, Hana wondered how he was so good at hiding his real feelings behind that perfect mask he wore so well. Her gaze landed on his hand, and she saw thin streaks of red covering his fingers. "What is it, Hanako?"
"You're hurt," she pointed out, reaching for his hand wrist and carefully holding his hand up for inspection.
He watched her search for any glass embedded in his hand, her warm, almost golden eyes regarded his scratched fingers intensely. "It's hardly anything to worry about," he tried to placate her, pretending not to notice that her own cool fingertips were currently over his pulse.
"No, we have to go back to the club room," she said stubbornly. Hanako turned and started to walk towards the stairs, guiding Kyoya after her by his wrist. "I have to clean the cuts and put an antibiotic on. They might get infected if you ignore it." He watched her long hair sway behind her as she led the way, the ends of her hair brushing over her waist. Kyoya's gaze traveled up to her face, and he noticed that her brow was drawn in concern over his well-being. "You didn't have to smash the camera, you know," she reprimanded. Kyoya felt her tight grip on his wrist and resigned himself over to her care, eyes never leaving her face as they walked back into the school alone.
A/N... Sorry about the late post! I've been writing essays and trying to share information about protests in the U.S, and my brain has been so occupied by what's happening that I couldn't write anything for entertainment. Please consider how you can be involved and show your support to the black community and protestors. If you feel too far or too young, please know that you can be involved in a way that is best for you. If anyone genuinely just wants to learn or talk to help process what's happening, please feel free to message me. To my readers in other countries, we see your strife and your battles, please stay strong and thank you for the love you send.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for reading :) Who do you ship so far? What do you think Hana's relationship with Renge is going to be like in the future?
Next time: A family feud. Hanako has never seen the twins fight like this before.