I woke up coughing up water, while someone with a sledgehammer was slamming away somewhere inside my skull like he was trying to break free, while a weight pinned my legs to the ground. Groaning, i sat up slowly, clutching my head with my hand as i did so. What happened...oh..right… The current pool, the tidal wave, slamming my head into the side of said current pool, it all came back to me, and jerking my head around to look for Honey, I almost passed out again as the throbbing in my skull grew from a muted roar to the mental forest in my head was just flattened roar.

"Honey…" It was a low moan, and i received no response. "Honey!?" A little louder, a little more panicked. "Where are you senpai!?" A much slower glance around revealed the weight on my legs to be a sleeping Honey. Thank goodness he's alright. A smiled weakly, a hand still clutching my head, i gently shook his shoulder. "Honey? Honey wake up buddy, Mori and the rest are probably worried for us by now." He didn't stir, so i shook his shoulder a little harder. "Honey-kun wake up!" Still nothing. Time to resort to drastic measures. Deepening my voice as much as i could, i called out, "Mitsukuni!" It had the desired effect, as Honey stirred just a little bit, sleepily murmuring,

"Takashi?" I smiled softly and gently ruffled his hair.

"No buddy i'm sorry. You needa wake up Honey. I think i may have a concussion, and i'm not making it far, or going anywhere without you." He stirred a little more, but something didn't seem right. His aura was dark, angry, and he was in an almost dazed dreamlike state. Crap. He's like Maddy always was in the morning, i needa wake him up gently. However, even as i thought that, i couldn't think of an easy way to do it. Gosh darn it all. I gently shook his shoulder. "Honey, look at me buddy. Don't do anything stupid, it's me, Nala? Nal-chan? C'mon man i know you're in there somewhere under all the sleepiness." He stirred a little bit more, blinking hazy, cold, angry eyes at me for a moment. Fear flashed through me, because in those cold brown eyes, i saw no recognition. Just cold anger. It was gone in an instant though, when he seemed to snap out of the sleep induced haze, and yawing widely murmured,

"Nal-chan?" I let out an audible sigh of relief.

"Yeah Honey it's me, can you get up? I can't feel my legs." He sat up, and moving up so he was kneeling next to my head rather than my legs, he gently ran his fingers over the side of my head. It stung like a bitch, and i whimpered slightly.

"Nal-chan i'm a little worried. You're head is still bleeding, and you were unconscious for at least twenty minutes after i pulled you out of the water." I blinked at him to clear the sudden hze from my eyes.

"Thanks Honey for saving me. I'm sorry i'm inconveniencing you. I think i may have a concussion, so i don't think i'll be getting far without you right now." He nodded, his big brown eyes worried. "Let's see if we can at least get to a path to wait for the rest of the club. It'll make it marginally easier for them to find us." So saying, i went to stand up. I made it to my feet, but as i tried to take a step forward, the world pitched and spun violently making my feet collapse under me.

"Nala!" Honey caught me as i fell, and gently laid me down. When the world finally stopped spinning, i smiled weakly at him.

"Or we can always wait here and hope they find us soon. Sorry Honey." He shook his head at me, reassuring me it was no big deal. After a few moments of silence, i began to feel sleepy again. I hadn't even realized my eyes were drifting shut until Honey shook my shoulder.

"Don't fall asleep Nal-chan. You need to stay awake till we can get you to a doctor."

"Right, i know, i just...i'm really tired Honey-kun." He stared down at me with a worried frown on his cute little face. "Hey now, you're the boy lolita, don't go looking like that, c'mon give me a smile. Talk to me, keep me awake. What made you want to become a host?" He seemed to think about it for a minute, before a smile lit his face up.

"I think the best feeling is when you make someone that you like a lot laugh, and their face lights up, and they start giggling, and you're really happy that you were able to make someone so beautiful smile so much. It makes me happy to see other people happy!" I nodded, or tried to, instantly regretting the attempt.

"Yeah that makes sense. It's a good reason."

"I think all the hosts see it like that, although some of them, like Hika-chan and Kao-chan wouldn't admit it." I stared at the boy for a moment.

"You know Honey, you are a lot smarter than people give you credit for." He beamed at me.

"Thanks Nal-chan!" I returned his smile.

"Not a problem senpai, not a problem." He took my silence as the cue to ask his questions.

"Nal-chan?"

"Mmm?"

"Why were you so angry at that girl's boyfriend that day? Why do you think guys were raised to walk all over girls?" Wasn't expecting that one. Well, here goes nothing.

"I have a story for you Honey, it starts when i was little. A boy sprawled next to me on the bus, elbows out, knee pointing sharp into my thigh. He frowned at me when I uncrossed my legs, unfolded my hands and splayed out like boys are taught to: all big, loose limbs. I made sure to jab him in the side with my pretty little sharp purse. At first he opened his mouth like I expected him to, but instead of speaking up he sat there, quiet, and took it for the whole bus ride. Like a girl. Then, a few months later, i protected Haruhi from a bully on the playground, and a boy said my anger was cute, and he laughed, and I remember thinking that I should sit there and take it, because it isn't ladylike to cause a scene and girls aren't supposed to raise their voices. But then he laughed again and all I saw was my pretty little sharp nails digging into his cheek before drawing back and making a horribly unladylike fist. My teacher informed me later that there is no ladylike way of making a fist." He was staring at me solemnly, and something told me he understood what i was getting at.

"Honey, girls are taught: be small, so boys can be big. Don't take up any more space than absolutely necessary. Be small and smooth with soft edges and hold in the howling when they touch you and it hurts: the sandpaper scrape of their body hair that we would be shamed for having, the greedy hands that press too hard and too often take without asking permission. Girls are taught: be quiet and unimposing and oh so small when they heckle you with their big voices from the window of a car, because it's rude to scream curse words back at them, and they'd just laugh anyway. We're taught to pin on smiles for the boys who jeer at us on the street who see us as convenient bodies instead of people. Girls are taught: hush, be hairless and small and soft,

so we sit there and take it and hold in the howling, pretend to be obedient lapdogs instead of the wolves we are. We pin pretty, little, sharp smiles on our faces instead of opening our mouths, because if we do we get accused of silly women emotions blowing everything out of proportion with our PMS, we get condescending pet names and not-so-discreet eyerolls." I looked him straight in the eye, seeing the understanding in his. "Once i got told i punch like a girl, i told him 'Good. I hope my pretty little sharp rings leave scars.'"

Honey opened his mouth, then closed it, before opening it again.

"It's like how no one ever says stuff like "girls will be girls" or "she's a girl", but the list of things a "young lady" can't do is almost endless?" I nodded my head, or tried to.

'Exactly! That's why i was upset. He hurt her, and we aren't supposed to do anything about it, because boys will be boys. I refuse to conform to that way of thinking, it's why i've survived so long, and through what i've been. So there's no way i'd back down from that." He cocked his head.

"What about your father? You backed down with him at times right?" I winced at that.

"Well….i had to. I...i don't think i loved my father Honey. I lost the ability to a long time ago, but that doesn't mean everything he did didn't hurt me. I craved his attention, i wanted him to notice and be proud of me, and what i'd done. That's the only reason i ever backed down from him. If it hadn't been for that, well...i wouldn't of." I was starting to get uncomfortable with the topics Honey was picking to talk about, so i switched the subject. "Say Honey, you talk about all this romance stuff when girls ask you questions, and you always seem to have good advice underneath all that "Well i'd give her lots of cake if she was mine' stuff. Why's that? Have someone special yourself?" I teased him at first, but my jaw fell open when he turned bright red and ducked his head to avoid making eye contact with me. "HONEY YOU DO HAVE A GIRL YOU LIKE!" The force of my excited yell startled the birds making them fly away from the trees around us, and made the jackhammer in my head pound a little harder.

He kept his face turned away from me as he syly nodded his head. GAH I'D BE GLOMPING HIM NOW IF I COULD MOVE! However, there was something sad in his eyes as he turned them away.

"Wait...Honey why is it a problem?" He was silent for a moment.

"She's scared of me, and what i can do." Ouch, yeah that's rough. "She's afraid of violence, so she doesn't really get what we do. But!" Here he cheered up. "She likes cake!" He was all hearts and smiles again at that, and i couldn't help but smile at that.

"Well Honey, i'm sure she'll come around if you can convince her nicely. Maybe show her you're not as scary as you seem." He nodded, but when his eyes skimmed my head again, i saw the worry in them. Time to distract him before he begins freaking out for real over a little blood.

"Hey wanna know a secret Honey?" He gazed down at me curiously. "I'm really envious of you and the rest of the hosts, it's why i was so hesitant to join the club at first." He stared at me in astonishment.

"But Nal-chan, Why!?" I shrugged, looking away into the tropical forest.

"You guys are just always so….happy. Like no matter what happens, as long as you're together it's like nothing can go wrong. I don't understand that kind of relationship, i've never really had it with anyone aside from Haruhi and Maddy, and, well...it all went wrong with us." He followed my gaze into the trees.

"It's a choice Nal-chan. It's because Tama-chan loves us all that we are able to stick together. And in turn we've learned how to love each other!" His mood was so cheerful as he exclaimed that, that i couldn't help the way my lips twisted in disbelief.

"Do you really think that Honey?" He looked down at me in confusion.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I dunno. Maybe i'm just jaded, but i don't see it like that. Love is...well...love is complicated.

"Why?" He blinked at me innocently.

"Because senpai, when you fall in love with someone, you lose yourself a little, you begin to do thing you would never do, you begin to think in different ways, see people say love is what keeps us alive, but did you know love can also kill, love can hurt, love can destroy you? But you try to do so much for this thing you call love, you try to change for people you try to become a better person for people. But love will also make you blind. It makes you weak. Weak to that person you're in love with. So weak you stop thinking and you start acting more, you start losing your mind a little. All you want is the thing that you think keeps you alive. But in reality it's killing you. It destroying you. Mentally, physically, emotionally it's breaking you down day by day. But you're so in love that you don't see it. You don't want to believe it. You become blind. See people say love is what makes you keep going, people say love makes you feel alive. But in reality love can also kill. Love can also make you feel worthless." His big brown eyes were solemn as he responded to me.

"You're right Nal-chan. You are jaded." Then he smiled brightly at me. "We'll just have to change that!" I rolled my eyes.

"Good luck with that." He opened his mouth to respond, but suddenly froze, head turning, and i imagined if he was a dog in that moment he would've been frozen, nose lifted, ears poised for a sound only he could hear, and a presence only he could sense.

"Nal-chan." His voice was serious again. "You're going to need to get up and walk a little bit, think you can make it?"

"Yeah, but why? What's happening?" His eyes were scanning the trees as he helped me sit up.

"I can sense something out there. It's coming closer, and while i don't have a problem dealing with it, i can't guard you and fight at the same time, and you're in no state to be off running for help nei?"

"Yeah. Nor do i feel like becoming shark bait for whatever is out there." It was a struggle, but we managed to get up, and i made it a few shaky steps, leaning heavily on Honey as the world dipped and spun. "I-I'm sorry Honey." I was breathing heavily in an attempt not to puke. "I'm really trying here, but i don't know if i can do it."

"Don't give up Nal-chan!" His voice was fierce. "We have to keep going, i sense that this presence is malicious, but not entirely deadly so it's probably one of the lesser forms of Waru. But still, we need to be careful and get going as fast as possible. " We were moving, slowly but steadily, when i tripped and fell headfirst into a bush.

"Damn it...Honey can you help me out of this-" I looked up, lifting my head out of the dirt, and let loose a terrified shriek of horror. Scrambling back as fast as i could to avoid the small, infant like hands dripping blood that were reaching out towards me from a bush a few feet in front of the one i'd tripped into. "H-Honey! We've got company!"

* *Authors Note* *

Alright so i got a request to amp up the supernatural stuff so here you go! Also trying to give you a better understanding of Nala, and build her friendship with Honey. How's it sounding so far? Also do any of you guys know what creature i pulled out of japanese lore for this? hehe. They're…freaky to say the least. Anywho till next time! I'm going to try and update as much as possible these next few weeks, so wish me luck! Love you all! Enjoy!