Chapter 3: The Deal

Dinner was a quiet, awkward affair.

Which was what Mai pretty much expected. Lets see… one abandoning father, the abandoned daughter, her border-line hostile friends and nobody there to break the ice. Lovely.

After dinner, however, they got down to business.

"So," Yorihisa began as desert was taken away. "Let's talk."

"Yes." Mai was eternally grateful her voice didn't crack because of how nervous she was. She cleared her throat lightly and went for the formal approach. "First, I will lay out some requests. You may add on your own as long as they don't conflict with what has already been said." Yorihisa slightly narrowed his hazel eyes that matched her own, but nodded. "Okay, first: I do not want to live at the estate." Yorihisa's eyes turned to slits and he opened his mouth, but she continued, not giving him a chance to object. "Please hear me out," she said. He relaxed slightly, and she continued. "We both know it would be mildly uncomfortable with me being here, and I assume you do not wish to house my friends either. So, here is the deal: me and my friends will find a house or an apartment of our choosing near this estate. You will pay half the rent, and we will pay the other half. After my graduation of my final year of high school, I will come and live here if you so wish. You mentioned you wanted an heiress in the phone call…?" At this Yorihisa nodded. He really did regret shoving his daughter out of his life and forgetting about her, and for being so weak in the face of the elders. After day of meditation and thinking upon it, he was willing to do virtually anything to earn his daughter's and wife's forgiveness. Even if only one of them was there to make amends to. "I will make any public appearances you wish me to and I will say only good things when faced with questions by the press. However, I will not be subjected to an arranged marriage of any sort."

Yorihisa was silent for a moment. "You have given me a good deal. Most people would be hassling me for money." His deep, rumbling voice had lost it's formal tone for a moment.

The Haninozuka head gave a heavy sigh and said, "Anything else?"

"Yes. I am aware that my two brothers," the word felt foreign on her tongue, "go to Ouran High School. I wish to go there, as well as my friends. They will apply for scholarships, and while I'm sure they will get in, I am respectfully asking you to pay for any who don't."

Yorihisa was silent for a long while. Finally, "Your terms are reasonable. I accept. However, until you get a place to live, you will stay here. You and your friends will also follow any rules I put down."

Mai hesitated. She was a little worried about what rules he could make, but agreed anyway. "Anything else?" she asked cautiously.

"You will be trained in the Haninozuka style."

Mai heard all her friends suck in air simultaneously. Being trained in the Haninozuka martial arts style was big honor (even if she was technically a Haninozuka by blood). But that wasn't why her friends were gasping. Everyone who knew her knew that she wasn't a fighter. Sure, she knew self-defense, but that was because it was a required class at her school. She was a yellow belt in karate, but she only took the classes to please her mother. And she knew how to use various weapons such as knives or baseball bats in a fight, but that was because the triplets taught the entire group that.

…Okay, she sorta knew how to fight, but nothing like what her was talking about! Mai started practically shaking in her seat. "I-I…!"

She felt Brittany, who was to her immediate left, patted her hand under the table, trying to calm her down. Lainie, to her right, rested a hand on her knee. Bridgett peeked at her from her sister's left, telling her, "Breathe, blondie." Lacy and Candy just watched her worriedly from Lainie's right.

She saw her father watching her unmovingly from across the table and felt like her brain just imploded. Oh god, she was having a mini-panic attack right in front of him; what must he think of her?

Slowly she bid her heart to calm, and thought over his terms. She would admit, they were reasonable. He could have just refused to take her in (even though she threatened to go to the press if he didn't. …Not one of her proudest moments…). While she wasn't trying to be a money-grubbing brat, she couldn't help but feel that she was asking for too much. A separate place to live, sending her friends to a ridiculously prestigious school…? She was willing to do all of his requests to compensate for being a burden, but that last one had her hesitating. She didn't like hurting people. Sure, she had her moments (like that time that one asshole pushed Lacy out of her wheelchair. She had seriously attempted to break his legs), but all of them were in defense of her friends or family (well, her mom. She didn't really have a family back then).

She tapped her fingers on her chair arm for a few moments before coming to a decision. Taking one final deep breath, she spoke two words. Two words that would make or break her future.

"I accept."

"What in the world was I thinking?" Mai groaned as she flopped down on the bed. She swore it was one of the softest things she ever felt, but at the moment, she didn't particularly care.

The room was large; so large that for a good 30 seconds after she first saw it she just stared incredulously. The rooms size, though, seemed not quite as big as it first was. She had refused to be in separate rooms as her friends, and so (she really did not expect this) the servants moved five more beds into the guest room for her friends as well as their luggage. After she got over her shock, she thanked the servants profusely and apologized for giving them so much trouble.

They merely replied that it wasn't so much trouble compared to what her elder brother and his friends got up to.

(That made her wonder just what in the world kind of people were her brothers)

After everybody had gotten unpacked, though, a sense of dread had settled in Mai's stomach, weighing down her and her mood like a block of lead.

"Don't worry so much Mai. Believe me, this is way better than an orphanage or foster care." Lacy patted her hand. The girls had all flopped down on Mai's bed, Mai laying on her back, her legs dangling over the edge. She had let her hair out of her braids, and it spread out above her in a pale gold halo. Candy, who was laying on her side above Mai's head, was playing with it, contemplating fishtail braids or french. Lacy was resting her head on Mai's stomach, while Mai resting her hand on Lacy's head. Bridgett had taken her spot against the ornate wood backboard, her sister leaning against her tucked-in legs as Bridgett tried to undo her complicated French braid. Brittany's legs stretched out and sat atop of Lainie's, who was sitting back on her hands with her feet in front of Candy's face. All six were perfectly comfortable with being tangled up in each other.

Mai sighed. "I know, it's just… I feel as if I'm not supposed to be here. I'm not from this world, despite who my family is. I grew up in Brooklyn with you guys. I eat hotdogs with Mark at his cart; I like to haggle with old Mrs. Charleston at the Saturday Market. I… I'm just…" She struggled for words. "I'm not a part of this world. I'm not even from this universe!"

Her friends were silent as she talked. After years of knowing her they understood that they needed to just let her unload; otherwise she would keep it all in and start crying or getting angry in the most inappropriate situations (they learned that the hard way). On rare occasions she would start to hyperventilate.

"And it's not just that; I'm such a burden. Asking for my own place to stay - what was I thinking? I was such a brat! I mean, I don't think you guys would want to stay here. I certainly don't. But… ugh! He must think I'm some sort of money grubber!" She kept talking until, finally, she wound down. She just lay there, enjoying the warmth of her friends surrounding her and the soft bed beneath her.

She moaned in her head. 'What was I thinking coming to Japan? I should have let us all stay in New York. But wait, no. This is a new chance at life for everybody.'

As Mai continued to debate inside her head, her friends stayed quiet. After she unloaded on them, she would just lay there for a while, deeply involved in her after-rant cool-down session.

It was silent for a long, long while.

Bridgett had finally undone her sisters braid and was finger-combing it. Lacy had propped herself up on her elbows and was tracing patterns in the bedspread, occasionally exchanging glances with Brittany. Candy was making small braids in Mai's hair, making only the smallest grunt when Lainie set her feet down in the curve of her waist, away from her face.

Finally Mai let out a long sigh. "Thanks for listening guys."

"Dun' we always?" Lainie asked kindly.

They stayed like that for who knows how long - eventually Mai's eyes drifted shut and her breathing evened. Her friends slowly, carefully, extracted themselves from the bed and set Mai down under the covers. Lainie picked up Lacy and set her down in her own bed under the covers. The rest of the girls quickly followed, all crawling into their own soft guest beds without bothering to change into their pj's.

Candy was the last to bed, having been the one to shut off the light. She pulled off her socks (she couldn't stand to sleep with them on) and pulled the rubber bands out of her hair. She ruffled her deep red hair and climbed into the guest bed, practically melting into the mattress.

But, as comfy as the bed was, she just couldn't get to sleep.

There were, exactly, three reasons why she wasn't getting the nightly visit from the Sandman right about now.

1. She always, always had a hard time falling asleep in unfamiliar surroundings. The first time she had a sleepover at Mai's apartment she was up until three in the morning. Nothing was more unfamiliar to her than a rich person's guest bedroom the size of a large apartment.

2. She had forgotten to take her melatonin. She had ADHD and if she didn't take melatonin an hour before she went to bed… well, let's just say it was better for everyone if she remembered to take her pills.

And 3. She had too many thoughts buzzing in her head. A few of them were wondering if her sheets were silk; a couple more were wondering what was for breakfast tomorrow. But, a majority of her thoughts were focused on her friends. Specifically, Mai. Candy had been to Mai's mom's funeral. She wouldn't say she and the woman were super close, but she was sad at her passing. She was a remarkable woman, despite her circumstances.

Mai's mom, Miyako Watanabe* (her maiden name), was a gentle soul, and quite the lady. Mai favored her more in the looks department, though Candy now saw that Mai's hazel eyes were exact replicas of her fathers, if not with a more golden hue, like her mother. Ms. Watanabe had had platinum blonde hair, luminous eyes that were more golden than brown, and a fine bone structure, making her dainty and short. Age had given her crows feet at the edges of her eyes, and soft smile lines. Candy always remembered that whenever she saw her, she was in awe of Mai's mother's beauty.

Mai had largely inherited her mothers looks, something that made Candy slightly jealous. She had her mom's delicate bone structure and short stature, cutting off at five feet on the dot, nine inches shorter than Candy. Her hair was a light golden blonde, not completely platinum like Ms. Watanabe's, and Mai had a habit of keeping it in two braids at the bottom of her head, her bangs on the left side a little to short to be tied up and so held back with clips so they wouldn't be completely in her hazel eyes. She had a natural creamy complexion like her mother, but was slightly tanned from hanging out with the girls outside.

Though Candy would tell Mai (and any other person who asked) that she was really pretty, she wasn't drop-dead gorgeous like her mom.

What Mai didn't inherit from her mom was Miyako's outgoing personality. Mai was a rather quiet, nervous girl who worried too much and always took others troubles upon herself. And that's what worried Candy.

Mai (way too often to be healthy) would take up others burdens as her own and, more often than not, that would lead her into… not-so-fun situations. Candy knew that in this brand new rich-person world (because let's face it - they might as well be in a whole new dimension now) they would have to tread carefully.

Another thing about Mai was that she had the habit of bottling up her emotions. Outbursts like the one that happened earlier were few and far between, and only happened when she was stressed.

Like, stressed to the point of shooting herself in the head.

And another thing, Mai always acted like a carpet for others to walk on. She never stood up for herself, ever. Her friends were a completely different story, however. Once, this bully named Michael tipped Lacy out of her wheelchair. They literally had to pry Mai off of him before she actually broke his legs (like she was attempting).

Candy could go on and on about Mai's faults and self-sacrificing attitude (that annoyed her to no end - she loved the girl to bits, she really did, but she needed to learn to stand up for herself!), but she would say this about her friend - she was brave. All throughout Ms. Watanabe's funeral Mai kept a stuff upper lip, taking condolences with grace and only letting the dams burst once she was at home. Mai faced down thugs that were twice her size when they tried to mug her and Candy, and didn't think twice about punching the grease-ball in the gut when he touched her.

(She had gotten a broken arm, but that's beside the point).

As Candy remembered more memories of her friend, she realized something. Mai may not be the smartest of their group (that title belonged to Lacy), or the strongest (Candy herself had that one covered), or even the most naturally gifted (the triplets could kick anyone's ass at that); but she tried as hard as she could. Candy didn't want to sound like a wuss (she may be a girly-girl romantic, but she is not a sap), but Mai was the heart of their group. Without her, none of them would likely had even talked to each other. She took the initiative and brought them together, even with as timid as she was.

Candy sighed and decided heavy thinking time was over. It was probably past midnight and they had a busy day of house shopping ahead.

She smiled slightly, though, as she thought of how eventually Mai was going to worry herself sick one day for no reason.

Candy drifted into dreamland, thinking that it would be nothing chicken soup and love couldn't fix.

Disclaimer: Warning: Spoiler Alert - Santa isn't real. And therefore, so are my dreams of ever owning Ouran Highschool Host Club

*a name isn't stated, so I made one up

I'M A HORRIBLE PERSON!

Omygosh. I haven't updated in, what, six months? I really am awful.

But! I have reasons (not very good ones, but reasons nonetheless):

1. School. High-school is EEEEEEEVIL!

2. I was editing and improving past chapters (they were small changes, but I think they make the story better)

3. I lost part of my drive for this story. It's still there, but not on the forefront of my mind as it was before. My inspiration is gone as my fickle imagination is perpetually getting me started on things I usually don't finish

4. I was writing new stories. In fact, I have just published one. It's a Blue Exorcist (Ao No Exorcist) fanfic, so if you like that fandom, and are a fan of Amaimon, you should go read it. (BTW, please excuse my shameless plug)

Okay, so we get a lttle insight into Candy and her thoughts on Mai. Candy isn't meant to sound like a bitter character, she has nothing but love for Mai and is actually a sweetie, she just has a big attitude. She and Bridgett don't get along sometimes. Also, in response to Calloniel's (hope I spelled that right) review, I just wanted to say that this will not be a stereotypical six-guys-meet-six-girls-and-they-spontaneously-fall-in-love-against-all-reason.

No. Just no

I have plot twists thought out that you may or may not see coming

So, as always, gracias for waiting, reading, favoriting, following, and reviewing. It warms my heart. Adios, and please review!