The Demon is Gone
A/N: Another instalment before I leave for 'Merica. But I have no internet where I was staying, so I haven't been able to post this until now. Please review if you like it.
With her head buried in the upholstery, Haruhi started to be able to block out the loud noise coming from her door. It really was just like thunder; it was loud and distressing but she could ignore it if she focussed really hard on something else.
At present it was the case studies and precedents that she needed to know for tomorrows classes.
It was such an efficient distraction that she only noticed the banging when it stopped. There were words spoken to quietly for her to make out their content. Mayimoto-san's response was easier to hear. Well, she would have needed to be deaf not to hear the woman's yelled recriminations. It was clear that someone (probably Mori, given the quiet tones) was trying to talk her down from her temper-tantrum.
Despite how embarrassed Haruhi was for her moment of weakness in calling him, she was very thankful that he had ignored her. She had had no idea how to make the woman stop and her neighbours would have enough to talk about as it was.
By the time the knock on her door sounded, she was composed enough to be sitting around. Although she still had the blanket wrapped around her in a bizarre parody of her original plans for the evening.
She wrapped the blanket around herself like a cape and went to open the door. On the other side was not just Mori but Huni too; she should have known he would come.
She looked past them, "Is she gone?"
"Yup," said Huni, "we couldn't convince her to stay and apologise." He made the face Haruhi normally associated with him running out of cake, irritated but still hopeful that everything would come right.
"That's really okay. Why don't you guys come in?" Haruhi stepped back and held the door wider.
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After enquiries as to health were made, and Huni was seated with a large slice of strawberry cake in front of him (Mori had declined), the topic of conversation naturally returned to what had just happened.
Huni had just stuck his fork into him mouth and was chewing away with a blissful expression, so it fell to Mori to bring the issue up. "What happened?"
Haruhi slumped slightly. Now that the immediate threat was gone, adrenalin was leaving her system. Its absence made her a little tired. "Your guess is as good as mine. She just showed up here and started accusing me…"
"Of trying to steal Kyouya. We know Haru-chan, she said so several times." Huni spoke around another chunk of cake.
Mori, seated in the armchair across from the couch that contained Haruhi and Huni, fixed her with his steady gaze and addressed the elephant in the room with two words: "are you?"
"No!" Haruhi was adamant. "I haven't seen him since that stupid reunion Tamaki put on. True she had told no one how much she had seen of him. She had been avoiding all thought of Kyouya since then. She didn't need that in her life.
Perhaps… Had he told Miyamoto-san about the kiss? Maybe he had made it seem like Haruhi had started it. If that was the case, then he was even more of a bastard than she had realise and she was glad to be rid of him ('keep telling yourself that' a malicious part of her mind whispered very quietly).
"I really don't know what made Miyamoto-san do any of that." Well it was enough of the truth, and no way in hell was she telling them of her suspicion.
"Mm," Mori said in a non-committal tone. Huni was re-engaged with his cake.
The conversation then turned to more general matters. How were Haruhi's classes? Fine. Where Mori and Huni's students doing well? Some of them. Did it look like any of them would do well in nationals? Huni pulled a slight face as if he had tasted something bitter, Mori explained that there was one who might do well in kendo, but that they were a lacklustre bunch in general.
Huni had just finished his second piece of cake (he would be very sad to learn that that was the last of it) when he suddenly spoke in a serious voice. "Did you notice that mark on Miyamoto-san's cheek Takashi? Do you think we need to have a talk with Kyouya about the proper way to treat a lady?"
"Ah," was Mori's response with a faint nod.
Haruhi quickly jumped to intervene. "You don't need to do that guys. It wasn't Kyouya's fault.
Huni got the complete wrong end of the stick. "Are you defending him Haru-chan? I know that she upset you but still, there is no excuse for domestic vi…"
"That's not what I mean." she cut him off, "I mean that it wasn't his fault because, well because it was mine." Her voice grew small towards the end.
"Yours? What the hell did you do that makes it your fault?" Huni was starting to get worked up and he still didn't seem to understand. It seemed that Haruhi would need to come completely clean to protect Kyouya from the combined wrath of these to. The things we will do for a friend ('Yes! Friend!' she told herself firmly, to shut down any potential for malicious mental mutterings).
"I was the one who slapped her, not Kyouya. That would be beneath even him." They both stared at her in incredulity for a beat and then Mori cracked the faintest of smiles and Huni burst into loud guffaws.
"You did? Oh hahaha, why did you haha do that? She must be at least a foot taller than ahaha than you!"
Haruhi was piqued, "I was angry, okay. She said I was common!"
That shut Huni up immediately. His face flashed annoyance before the smile returned. "Oh Haru-chan," he slipped an arm around her shoulder, "you're not common. Don't listen to her."
"Ah," said Mori.
That didn't seem to cheer Haruhi up at all. She was still sitting stiffly under the arm. He thought maybe Ursa-chan might cheer her up, but then remembered that he had left his bunny home to keep it safe.
Then he had an idea, possibly the best one of all. "Haru-chan, do you have plans for supper?"
She slumped, "Um, not really. I was going to eat left-overs."
"Well you do now, Takashi and I are going to take you out. I know this amazing little deli place." He was looking pointedly at Mori as he said this; as if trying to say 'play along, she needs this.'
Mori fell into step effortlessly, even though he had technically eaten already. "Yes, come with us." He said, smiling slightly at Haruhi.
A/N: So things are picking up now. Or at least I think they are. While writing this I had an idea for how everything is going to end. And it will be Haruhi/Kyouya, for those of you who have expressed worry that it would not be.
Please review. Reviews make me into a happy person and increase my desire to write the next chapter.
