Author's note: Welcome to chapter 3, Dear Reader! I'm sorry that it's taken so long. The muses and plot bunnies were fighting again. But we've reached an accord. For now, at least. I want to thank everyone who has favorited/followed this story, it truly means so much! Please don't hesitate to comment or drop me a PM, I love getting feedback! Constructive criticism is welcome, especially if I do something seriously wrong with Puck, since I've never written a character like them. (And have zero experience with their situation, myself.) Flames will be given to Puck and the Hitachiins, so you've been warned!
Triggers: Nah. Puck's a bit of a perv, but nothing serious.
-The next Monday-
Robin spotted a familiar crop of short brown hair across the room. With a slight roll of their eyes, they sauntered over and tapped Haruhi on the head.
"Hey kitten, aren't you Hosting today?"
"Oh man, I'm gonna be late!"
They snickered quietly at the frustrated groan and helped their friend gather her things. Shouldering both bags, they dragged Haruhi down the halls, laughing at her obvious discomfort over being late. Haruhi muttered the whole time, lamenting the soon-to-be-raised debt.
"Tsk. I guess I need to keep you on a leash, Haru. You're always running late."
"I just got caught up in my studying, Puck-senpai. I know I won't get anything done with all the chaos in the club room."
Robin patted her lightly on the head in sympathy. They were only a few yards from the Third Music Room now, making Haruhi breathe a small sigh of relief.
"I really hope Kyoya-senpai doesn't raise my debt for this."
"Aw, I'm sure you'll be fine. You're a tough cookie. You can handle whatever those guys throw at you. Besides, if you get into trouble, you can always call me, you know."
"You're right. Thanks, senpai."
They grinned slightly at each other, and Robin reached for the door. It opened without a sound, but the duo stood stock still in the doorway, mouths gaping. The room had seemingly been transformed into a balmy jungle over the weekend.
"You're late, Haruhi."
Robin turned to scold Kyoya, but one look at the group derailed their train of thought.
"Oh sweet Mother of Christ..."
All of the Hosts except Tamaki were shirtless, everyone dressed in exotic cosplay that perfectly matched the jungle scenery. Robin's eyes flitted back and forth as they tried to remember how to breathe. They could barely register Tamaki babbling to Haruhi about kotatsu tables and chilly kittens and they weren't sure what else, but it took Haruhi's snarky reply to snap them out of their daze. Shaking their head and crossing themself with one hand, they strode over to Kyoya.
Before they could say anything to him, movement caught their eye. Turning slightly, they noticed a rather large snake curled around one of the skinny trees. Glancing around further, butterflies, lizards, and even a toucan could be found. Attention snagged, they dashed to the tree with the snake and carefully peeled the reptile from the trunk.
"Ohh, who's a pretty thing, then? So precious, yes you are."
"You like snakes, Robin-chan?"
They turned with a little grin and nodded at Honey and Mori. The snake had curled most of its body around their shoulders and down their arm. They stroked the reptile's head gently, cooing at it.
"Hi Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai. I like most animals, Honey-senpai. But it's true, I have a soft spot for snakes. They're so misunderstood. Aren't you, darling?"
Honey's smile grew radiant at their enthusiasm, and even Mori's lips twitched up at the corners. They made small talk for a minute or two before Robin suddenly remembered the real reason for their visit.
"Lucky thing I bumped into Haru in the library. Silly kitten had her nose so far in that book, I'm surprised there's no ink on her face. But I did stop by for a reason, I just got distracted."
By more than just the scenery. Don't stare. Do not stare. Do the thing, get gone. Don't stare! They reached into their bag and retrieved two small boxes. One was pink, with a yellow bow, and the other was a soft green with a white bow. They took a swift glance to make sure Kyoya wasn't lurking nearby before speaking.
"I wanted to thank you both for sticking up for me last week. I really appreciate it."
"Kyo-chan was wrong to do that, Robin-chan. Whatever's in your medical files isn't anyone's business."
"Yeah."
Robin shrugged, blushing slightly. But inside, they wanted to jump for joy. They grinned a little and held out the boxes, which were accepted after a moment with curious looks.
"It's nothing fancy, just a little thing. I know you have a sweet tooth, Honey-senpai, so I brought you raspberry-lemon cake from my favorite bakery."
Honey's squeal of delight interrupted them, but they laughed softly at the look of rapture on his face. With another little smile, they turned to address Mori.
"I'm given to understand you prefer more traditional, not so sweet things, Mori-senpai. So I brought you a matcha cake with almond buttercream."
Was that...an actual little smile on his face? They blinked, and Mori's stoic mask was back in place, though they thought his eyes shone just a bit brighter. Before Robin could think of anything else to say, they got their breath knocked out of them as Honey suddenly flung himself at them. His arms banded around their waist and squeezed. Their eyes widened in panic, but Honey was hugging them too tightly to escape. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph! What is he gonna say? God, I don't want to deal with this so soon...
"That's so sweet, Robin-chan! You're so thoughtful!"
"Yeah, thanks."
After another moment, they let out a shaky breath and patted the blonde awkwardly on the head. Honey gave them an extra squeeze before letting go and bouncing back to his place beside Mori. Robin breathed a tiny sigh of relief when he simply grinned radiantly at them. Mori raised an eyebrow slightly, concern darkening his eyes. They offered him a small smile and shrugged, one hand gingerly pressing against their ribs. Honey-senpai hugs hard! He's so strong, oh my God... STOP! Do NOT board that thought train. Abort mission! Abort! Danger, Will Robinson!
They mentally slapped themself before even the tiniest hint of a blush formed, shaking their head slightly. What is wrong with me today?
"Oh yeah. You might want to think about putting up some kind of warning sign."
"Warning sign? Like what, 'Beware of animals'?"
Robin snorted out a little laugh and shook their head. How can he sound so bloody innocent? With a wry grin, they gestured at Honey and Mori, then vaguely waved in the direction of the others.
"More like, 'Beware of nosebleeds', senpai. With you lot running around all half-naked and yummy, it's bound to look like the elevator scene from 'The Shining' in here."
To their slight surprise, Honey and Mori both blushed faintly. Then their surprise grew when Honey snickered quietly before breaking into full-blown laughter. Shock quickly gave way to humor as they realized their senpai was familiar with that particular film. Interesting... I'll have to ask about that when I've got more time. Ugh, but if I don't leave soon, I'll be late. They made a little more small talk with the third-years, then bid them goodbye. They started toward the door, then rushed back with a laugh.
"Sorry darling, almost forgot."
They unwound the snake from their body and nudged it back onto one of the skinny trees. They gave the sweet reptile another little scratch, waved at Honey and Mori, and sauntered toward the door again.
-The next day-
The next day found Robin once again dragging a reluctant brunette through the halls. Their laughter was light as Haruhi grumbled and complained the whole way.
"It's just a waltz, kitten. It can't be that dreadful."
"Easy for you to say. Rich jerk."
Robin laughed out loud as Haruhi flushed crimson and started to apologize. They waved a dismissive hand, then patted the flustered girl on the head.
"No worries, really."
Haruhi breathed a small sigh of relief. She was really glad Puck-senpai seemed to be the complete opposite of the other students. They grinned slightly at each other before Haruhi remembered that she had to practice dancing. Robin snickered at her dejected expression as they opened the door to the Third Music Room.
"Wow, Haruhi, you're actually on time today."
Robin thought that perhaps they were the only one to hear Haruhi's quiet growl of frustration. They patted her shoulder reassuringly.
"Oh come on, be nice. You know how important studying is to Haru."
"Haru-chan! Robin-chan!"
Haruhi and Robin both braced themselves for impact. When the chipper blonde launched himself at Robin, Haruhi's relief was palpable. Robin, on the other hand, let out a small grunt as their senpai landed with a thump and a wild giggle, latching onto their back like a hyper spider monkey. Quickly regaining their balance, they hooked their arms under Honey's legs to steady him and keep them both from tipping over. They had just a second to be grateful that they put their long hair into twin braids that morning.
"Hey senpai. Would you mind flicking my braids to the front? Kinda pulling on them, there."
"Oh! Sorry, Robin-chan!"
"Aw, it's alright. No harm done."
They dashed around the room while Honey clung to their back, laughing joyfully. They completely ignored the twins chasing Haruhi, and Tamaki's pouting in a darkened corner. They spotted Kyoya, sitting alone and writing in a notebook. They were certain it was a Death Note or some similar nefarious item. Kyoya was just too spooky to use a regular notebook. Mori leaned silently against one wall, keeping a keen eye on the hyper duo.
After a few minutes, they had to stop. They screeched to a halt by one of the fussy, frilly little sofas. Honey dropped gracefully to the floor, and they sat immediately. More like, they flopped bonelessly onto the sofa, dropping their head into trembling hands. Honey stared for a moment, worry clouding his eyes, then poked them lightly in the shoulder.
"Robin-chan? Are you ok?"
"I'm fine, senpai. It's just been a while since I've been ridden that hard."
They raised their head and gave him a little smile and a wink, to which he replied with a blush and a bright grin of his own before bursting into laughter. The two chatted easily for a little while, joined quietly by Mori after a minute or so. Robin found the scene rather comfortable, especially once their breathing evened out and their heart quit pounding like a jack-hammer.
"So, Haru says you're having some kind of dance. At least, I think that's what she said. You know, between the cursing and hateful muttering."
"I heard that, senpai."
"Aye, of course you did, kitten. I wasn't muttering."
Robin grinned at the petite brunette when she stuck her tongue out. They geared up to trade a few more playful quips, but were interrupted by the door opening to admit a pretty brunette girl in the yellow uniform dress. They noticed Tamaki rushing over to greet the newcomer, but they popped up and beat him to it. They took the quiet girl's hand in their own and bowed slightly as the blonde slunk off to his corner to pout.
"Tráthnóna maith, a mhuirnín."
They pressed a gentle kiss to the back of the girl's knuckles, smiling brightly when a slight blush spread across her cheeks. They released her hand after just a second and straightened up, but stayed just a little closer than propriety allowed.
"You must be Princess Kasugazaki. Though Haruhi failed to tell me his dance tutor was such a stunningly lovely lady."
Kasugazaki's cheeks turned an even darker shade of red, and she stammered momentarily. Haruhi took pity on her and stepped up to properly introduce them, giving Kasugazaki time to recover. Which turned out to be bad for Robin, because that gave Tamaki the opportunity to rush over. He grabbed them up in a tight hug and spun them around, squealing.
"That was perfect, Puck! What a splendid gentlemanly display! Absolutely marvelous!"
Robin let the psycho babble for another minute before admitting to themself that he wasn't going to voluntarily release them. With a little sigh of annoyance, they broke his hold and flung him away. He landed on a nearby sofa with a yelp, and dashed back to his corner, muttering again. Robin righted their shirt and smoothed it out, not noticing several jaws gaping open.
Within seconds, however, guilt started to gnaw at their brain. They groaned quietly, rolled their eyes, then strode over to where the blonde pouted, seemingly bathed in gloom. They cleared their throat, then knelt and placed a hand lightly on his shoulder, speaking gently.
"I do apologize. You were hugging me so tightly, I couldn't breathe. But that's no excuse for using such excessive force. I'm sorry, Tamaki. Are you injured?"
Tamaki's head whipped around instantly, and Robin nearly shrank back at the bright smile on his face. They stood and took a cautious step back, then offered him a hand. His smile seemed to get even brighter as he clasped their hand and popped to his feet. Before they could retreat he had them in another tight hug. Though, thankfully not quite the smothering embrace of a moment ago. They patted his back lightly, then extricated themself from his grip.
"No harm done, my friend! And what a lovely apology!"
Robin blinked, briefly dizzy from the blonde's mood swings. They glanced around, trying to find an escape, but his next words struck a sharp little blade of ice through their heart.
"I have decided! We simply must have you as a Host!
AN2: Just a quick thing. Puck (like Sky in my other story) will occasionally speak Gaelic. I know it's not common, so I'll translate in the end notes. For example, "Tráthnóna maith, a mhuirnín." means "Good afternoon, darling." Puck is a shameless flirt, it's true! Until next time, Dear Reader!
Oh, and comments keep the bunnies from rioting!
