Some years ago, Third Music Room

The door clicked shut as the twins left him alone.

The late afternoon light poured through the windows. Deep pink and orange dappled across the decadent walls and chandeliers. Now was the chance to catch up on the weekly accounts.

His taps on the keyboard created small echoes in the quiet of an unused music room, like ripples in a pond. At one point he sat back, after he'd checked through emails and spreadsheets, and watched as the sky turned darker and the sun sunk lower in the horizon.

In that silence, Kyouya sighed.

He had heard it only yesterday, a slight slip of the tongue from his father. Nothing he wouldn't have ordinarily paid much attention to, but there it was. Like a snake burrowing its fangs into a sleeping victim. They wouldn't know till they woke up. And Kyouya was going to watch it happen in slow motion from his prison cell, paralysed from helping.

"Working late, are you?" Tamaki stood at the door, his slender fingers on the handle, and smiled at his friend. "What would we do without you?"

"I thought you went home," said Kyouya, turning back to the laptop.

"I left something behind."

Tamaki strode across the room to the corner where Kyouya sat and laid himself down on the couch next to him. Light slid across his face, golden glints in his eyes.

Kyouya pushed his glasses up to his face and stared at the screen like a statue. He didn't know what he was looking at, or if there was anything to read. It was all one blurry mass but he didn't want to wipe his eyes.

Tamaki was talking. Kyouya wasn't sure what he said but his voice was like a smooth breeze on a warm afternoon. It was just like the King, one so eloquent, who could play with words with such ease. A genuine kindness poured from him. In Kyouya's passionless world full of glacial interactions, Tamaki was a blooming sun. Life grew wherever he went.

It was only when Kyouya shut his laptop did the cold air hit him. The words caught in his throat like a stone pushed inside a vein.

"There's something you should know." Tamaki's smile had dissolved, the spark in his eyes subdued. "Kyouya, are you listening?"

He stared at his friend, almost afraid of what was to come. "What is it?"

"I really want to dye my hair black, but will the Club lose money?" Tamaki pouted a little. "I just wanted to try it out!"

The stone shrivelled, out of sight. Kyouya smiled. He didn't remember answering, but Tamaki's pout grew bigger. All he could see was the light shining on Tamaki's blonde hair, a halo glittering around the King.

Kyouya

Are you listening?

Children screamed in the park. They ran in circles around him as he sat with a cup of coffee on the bench. They pushed each other down the slide, flew high on the swings, and chucked sand at each other in the sandbox.

And even in the midst of the noise, he heard her voice.

"But why this park? It's so busy, the one near the apartment was much better."

"Haruhi, trust me, Yumiko will like this one."

Kyouya clenched the paper cup. He looked up and saw his daughter toddle shyly towards the sandbox, only a few feet away from him. She stretched her hand out to hold a lone bucket before it was snatched away by a little boy.

"No, that's mine!" he yelled as he ran away.

Yumiko's face buckled, mouth wobbling, but she didn't cry. Instead, she stumbled back to Haruhi and wrapped her arms around her legs.

"See, the kids here are too mean," said Haruhi to her father.

"Let's sit over there," said Ryoji, nodding vaguely at the bench.

Haruhi hadn't noticed him at first as he sat by himself under the shade in a sea of children. He wasn't sure if he should stare at her, try to catch her eyes, but he looked at Yumiko instead. She barely noticed him and held on to Haruhi's finger with her little hand as they walked towards the bench.

It didn't take much effort to contact Ryoji Fujioka—his phone number hadn't changed from when Kyouya sought him out to do a background check on Haruhi at Ouran. It turns out he was just as pleased to hear from him.

"You two really need to get it together," Ryoji had said the day before. "There's a child involved. For your daughter's sake can't you come to an agreement?"

"It's not that easy—"

"Look, Haruhi's a sensible woman; you know that. If you're not getting through to her, then it's probably because of something that doesn't sit right with her, for a good reason. You just have to find out what it is."

"Look who's here! Why, if it isn't Kyouya!" said Ryoji with a big smile.

Haruhi said nothing to him at first. She crouched down to Yumiko's level, who simply stared at her father. Soft brown locks were tucked behind her ears, chubby cheeks a blush red. Her eyes were big and brown and warm. Kyouya had a sudden urge to scoop her up and hold her tight.

"Yumiko, this is your daddy, remember?"

If anything had made Kyouya feel more like a failure, those words hammered it home. He wasn't there for his daughter. He hadn't kept her safe, didn't look out for her. The last thing he wanted was to turn into his own father.

Yumiko shook her head and wrapped her arms around Haruhi's neck, burying her head in Haruhi's hair. She was probably still upset from the bucket, but that didn't make Kyouya feel any better.

"Sorry, I think she just needs her nap," said Haruhi. "Should we even be meeting… here?"

"Public places are safe," muttered Kyouya. It was like he had a bad mark on him. "That's what the Captain said, at least."

He pulled a small package out from his jacket pocket. Yumiko leaned over as curiosity grew in her watery eyes. Kyouya tore the plastic packet open and pulled out a small doll. It had dark polyester hair and a cute, red smile.

"Here you go," he said softly. "She's your friend."

Yumiko took the doll in her hands, her little mouth open in surprise. She looked shyly at Kyouya and hugged the doll tightly before smiling at him. Like the sun had entered his mind, Kyouya felt the cold thaw inside him.

"Right, give her to me," said Ryoji. He clapped his hands once and pulled Yumiko gently from Haruhi. "Let's go play on the swings!"

"Be careful," called out Haruhi, concern in her eyes. "Maybe I should go with them…"

"I don't think your father would let you do that," said Kyouya.

She hesitated for a moment before turning around, hovering around the bench.

"That was sweet of you, with the doll."

"Well, she is my child." The words came out crassly, but that wasn't what he meant. "You can sit here. I won't bite."

They sat in silence, both watching Yumiko intently on the swings. Her small hands wrapped around the chain as she was pushed into flight, Ryoji keeping her at a gentle speed.

"You dad seems to get on with her."

"He's always liked kids," said Haruhi. "He was always the fun one."

Kyouya frowned. "If there's any fun, it'll never come from my family."

The leaves rustled in the tree overhead, the sun glinting through the gaps across the ground. Haruhi said nothing else. Perhaps she didn't want to upset him.

"About what happened, in the police station—"

"It's fine, Kyouya." Her words were curt but then her eyes softened. "I'm not engaged. I needed an excuse to stay close to Miyo."

She explained her hunch, that Kaoru's future father-in-law was hiding something. How he recognised her from that day in the courtroom and she made up the excuse of being engaged to Hikaru.

"I bet he loved that," muttered Kyouya, trying not to grit his teeth.

"Well, no. I'm pretty sure he thinks I'm just using him. I guess I am, a little. Besides, that's not what's important right now.

"Ian Fielding didn't want to come to Japan until the last minute. They came to Tokyo two weeks before Cho's death, and then he claims he's going for a run in the neighbourhood when they are about an hour's walk apart.

"From what I hear from Miyo, he's been in a bad mood since arriving. And when I met him, he certainly didn't like me."

Kyouya pushed his glasses up and brought out his phone. "I'd read that Accenture Electronics bought out a small venture based in Tokyo, two weeks after the… after Cho died." It hurt to say it, but he cleared his throat. "A failing technology company. I'm sure I can find the parent company name…"

He nearly dropped his phone.

"What is it?" asked Haruhi.

Yumiko shrieked with laughter on the swings, the doll sitting cosily next to her.

"Kyouya?"

Their eyes met.

"The Suoh Group. Chairman, Tamaki Suoh."

Hikaru was bored.

It was different being bored on your own. With Kaoru, it wouldn't have taken them long to find another attraction, another activity to distract themselves with. But now as Kaoru was busy with wedding preparations, Hikaru found himself lost in a haze.

Though he was back in his family home he missed the privacy of his own apartment. Perhaps that's what made him even more bored—being holed up in one room for most of the day.

He cracked his fingers over his head while yawning and rolled off the bed to slouch towards the door. His gaze wandered back to his phone left on the covers. Haruhi hadn't mentioned anything about the ring and he didn't want to press it. In fact, he needed to take his mind off of everything.

A breeze drifted through the corridor from an open window. Hikaru followed its direction absently, hands in his pocket, in search of a distraction. One foot in front of the other, he wondered when his brother would be back.

They always knew this time would come, where their lives would irreparably split. Only it was Kaoru who seemed to bear the brunt of it back in Ouran, obsessed with his pumpkins, knowing full well that Haruhi had broke into their isolated world without intending to. And with that, Hikaru had been enamoured by her.

Kaoru grew up first. He knew he couldn't always be with his brother and began his soft separation back in school. It was only when he brought Miyo home with a serious smile on his face that Hikaru realised it was real.

There were more open windows across the east corridor, where the Fieldings were staying. Hikaru didn't pay them mind. Mrs Fielding was demure and pleasant while her husband could be volatile if the wrong fuse was set. But he liked Miyo, and so kept his mouth shut where he could. She was sharp and clever yet possessed a charming disposition. They hadn't played the Which one is Hikaru? game with her. They didn't need to, not when they'd changed so much themselves.

Still, Hikaru often wondered if she could have guessed them apart if she knew them as young boys.

"—my part, now do yours. I want my half."

Hikaru stopped before the end of the corridor. The last door that led to a small library was left ajar. A crackly voice kept talking.

"I'm sorry? No, no. I did everything as asked. You gave me a dead deal, I want a better share of the business."

Leaning forwards a little, Hikaru looked in the room. It was dark, save for a small laptop open. A dark figure sat at the desk, hands tightening around the phone he spoke into.

"With the greatest of respects, your empire is dying. I can bring it back to life."

Ian Fielding shut the laptop down and swung the chair around to face the wall.

"What do you mean, 'you don't do business with murderers'? I only acted on your behalf!"

Hikaru stumbled back. His shoes squeaked on the floor. Before he could run, Ian Fielding had already opened the door wide.

"Ah, Tweedledum. I thought I'd heard a rat." His square frame filled the doorway despite being a couple of feet shorter. With his free hand Fielding rubbed his bald head. In the other he clutched his phone. The crackly voice was silent.

"I was looking for my brother," said Hikaru, his throat dry.

"I'm sure you were," said Fielding. "Let's cut this little dance, shall we? What did you hear?"

Hikaru was not afraid of this small man, quite the opposite, but he didn't know him or what he was capable of. And with those last few words, he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"Nothing important," he said before stopping short. "Unless there was something important in your phone call that someone else shouldn't know about?"

Fielding scoffed. "Business calls are private. I wouldn't expect a rat like yourself to know."

The gloves had come off.

"I might be a rat, but at least I'm no murderer."

Hikaru was playing with fire without knowing how close he was to being burnt. Fielding looked startled before his face melted back into cold fury. He stayed silent.

"Let's see what the police has to say about this," said Hikaru. "Better yet, your daughter."

He edged away slowly, keeping his eyes on Fielding, and turned around to walk briskly down the hall. The heat of Fielding's stare burned into his back. He heard a door close in the distance but kept walking until out of sight before he broke into a run down the stairs.

Yumiko bawled in the middle of the park, thick tears rolling down her cheeks. She stomped her feet several times before tugging on Haruhi's blouse.

"I think she's hungry," she said. "I guess it's time to go—"

"I'll take her home. You two sit and chat, catch up! I'm sure you've got lots to talk about," said Ryoji. Haruhi glared at her father as he took the crying toddler in his arms and hummed a lullaby as he walked away. She sighed and massaged her head.

"He can be very forceful sometimes," she muttered.

Kyouya chuckled softly as he took off his glasses to wipe them on his shirt.

"But what does this even mean?" she continued. "If Fielding bought a small part of the Suoh company? And this company is under… Tamaki's name?"

Kyouya shrugged. "Technology isn't what the Suoh's are known for, so perhaps their small venture failed before it could start. It's likely to have been a part of the business his father put in his name to start him off. Maybe they just didn't take his name from it after he… he was gone." Though it still seemed odd Kyouya couldn't think of another solution to this. "Fielding's clearly dipping a toe in the market and going for a low risk angle."

Haruhi brushed a hand through her hair, which had grown much longer. It hit her shoulders with a shine in the russet brown. It made her seem much older. More like her mother.

"I should probably go. We've caught up enough, right?" she said, mocking her father's tone.

"I can walk you back," suggested Kyouya.

For once, she didn't resist.

They walked through busy streets in the centre of town that were awash with the golden glow of the late afternoon sun. Restaurants were beginning to open up, cafes taking their final orders. Small groups of families and couples seemed to swarm wherever the eye could see. He wondered when he could ask Haruhi to dinner, or even just for an ice cream.

"Kyouya, are you listening?"

"Hm, what?" He had disappeared into his own thoughts.

Haruhi stared up at him and shook her head. "Ah, no. Don't you find all this weird? That we're all being gathered up again, after being apart for so long?"

"It's not a big deal. We're all connected by our past, not to mention our families often do business with each other. Of course, not yours," he added, to which she rolled her eyes on cue.

"I know, but it feels odd. Something's off."

"Is this your lawyer sense tingling?" he joked.

They walked through a small square with a fountain the middle. Its flowing water glinted in the light.

She stopped walking and turned towards him. "Before he died, Tamaki wanted to tell me something. I had to leave early that day for a dentist appointment, but he said it was important. Sometimes I wonder what he wanted to say—"

Kyouya shook his head. "He always had something urgent to say and believe me, most of the time it was as inane as whether or not he should dye his hair."

Haruhi stared at the fountain behind him.

"Do you miss him?" she asked quietly.

Kyouya hesitated. He couldn't bring himself to think about it, let alone put it into words. That the one person who brought him from dark to light had disappeared into an abyss, never to return? In the days when they thought life was limitless, never did he think that the sun would be extinguished.

And then, of course, there was the snake.

"More than—"

Haruhi's phone blared out into the quiet afternoon. She scrabbled for it in her bag.

"Kaoru? Wait, slow down, what did you just say?"

She looked at Kyouya, taking her ear away from the phone. "Have you heard from Hikaru today?"

Kyouya shook his head. "Why would I even be in contact with that—"

"No, we haven't. If you saw him this morning, couldn't he have just gone for a walk somewhere? Wait, hold on…" She put the phone on speaker. Both she and Kyouya leaned in.

"—four missed calls from an unknown number and left a message on my phone but it was cut short. Haruhi, this isn't like him, I know something's wrong. I tried calling his phone but he doesn't pick up."

Kyouya looked at her, a worried expression filling her face.

The phone went silent before Kaoru began to sob. "Haruhi, I think Hikaru's gone missing."