Disclaimer: I have no rights over any Ouran characters.
It took a week for Haruhi to arrange what Mei quickly dubbed, "Operation Forbidden Love." Though it had only taken her Sunday to do some digging and confirm what he had told her. She also hadn't been surprised that forcing a minor to make such a deal was illegal in both France and Japan. All sorts of things changed in her life during that week.
On Monday she was sent an email by Mr. Tachiki's secretary. It informed her that she'd be working directly under Mamoru Tachiki, the youngest son.
The rest of the week she was busy helping Mamoru get setup in his office and helping put the rest of his support staff together. No one would've known from looking at them that the two of them were becoming fast friends. They maintained a very professional relationship at work.
They'd even grabbed dinner and a beer after work on Friday. This time only Zackarie had joined them. So, Haruhi had decided to bring both guys in on 'Operation Forbidden Love', since they still needed someone else to make the plan go off perfectly. And, of course, to bring Zackarie in, she had to tell them everything that Tamaki had told her, since Zackarie had known Tamaki back in France.
"You're trying to WHAT?" Zackarie exclaimed. "Haruhi! That's so unlike you!"
Mamoru nodded in agreement, "I've only known you for a week and it does seem against your character."
Haruhi shrugged, "It is against my natural inclinations, but I thought through all of the different ways I could make Alianore listen, and this is the one most likely to succeed. Besides, it's about time I put to use all of the lessons in deception Chiye and Masaye taught me."
"If you say so, what do you need me to do?" Zackarie asked.
"Is there any I can help also?" Mamoru asked, "I miss having adventures."
Haruhi smiled, "Sure, Mamoru, you can help. Here's what I need you to do…"
Carefully she explained everything. By the time they left the restaurant everything was set. The plan would unfold the next evening.
XXX
Haruhi met everyone at a shabu shabu restaurant. Haruhi took over the cooking of the meat. Soon enough the sake was flowing and Mei challenged them all to a few drinking games.
Naturally, or perhaps not so naturally, Alianore lost them all.
By the time they left the restaurant, Alianore was practically asleep on her feet. The girls had trouble getting het to walk properly, which made them all extremely happy to see Mamoru and Zackarie walk past the restaurant.
"Mamoru! Zackarie!" Mei called out, "Could you lend us a hand? I'm afraid Alianore had a bit too much sake."
"Of course! We'll always help maidens in distress!" Zackarie said with a very extravagant bow, which made the Koenig twins snicker and Alianore roll her eyes.
"Zack, you're such a dork," Alianore said, slurring her words.
Zackarie chuckled as he and Mamoru took over supporting Alianore. "Whatever, sis, you'll thank me later."
"When pigs fly," she muttered.
Mamoru chuckled, "You two are amusing. Follow me, my car is this way." He pointed down the street and everyone followed him. About halfway to the car Alianore began letting out a quiet snore.
Chiye and Haruhi fell back behind everyone else.
"Do you still need Masaye and me? A couple of guys just messaged us; they've been trying to get us to agree to a date for forever and they're in the area. We can test the waters and decide if we want to go on a real date with them."
"You guys are going on a date together?" Haruhi asked.
Chiye shrugged, "Masaye and I, we're close, you know that. We need anyone we date to understand that."
"Chiye, I've never known either of you to date anyone."
She shrugged, "Well, we've just never found anyone that understands. This time will probably be no different, but Masaye wants to try, she thinks one of them is cute."
Haruhi looked at Alianore slumped between Mamoru and Zackarie. Between the two guys, Mei, and herself, they should be able to pull off the rest of the plan.
"Sure, I think we can manage. I'll call if we need you."
"Great! Masaye, let's go!"
Masaye grinned, grabbed her twin's hand and the two of them turned and went back the way they had come. Haruhi felt a bit sorry for the two boys they were going to meet. She had the feeling that they'd need it.
Alianore never woke as they deposited her in the car and drove to Mamoru's apartment. He was the only one living alone.
Mamoru put his sailing skills to good use and carefully tied Alianore to the only chair in apartment. He then poured Haruhi a glass of ice water.
She put the glass up to Alianore's neck. She quickly began mumbling and stirring. Then Haruhi put the glass to Alianore's lips, where she drank quickly, so quickly that she started coughing, she tried to raise her hand to her mouth and found it wouldn't move.
Alianore's eyes immediately flew open and looked around her quickly. She visibly relaxed when she saw Mei and Haruhi standing in front of her.
"Girls, what are you doing? Why am I tied up? Is this some sort of joke?"
Mei shook her head, "Nope, we just needed you to sit still long enough for us to talk to you."
Alianore frowned, her brain still foggy, "Talk to me? About what? What's going on?"
"We need to talk about Tamaki Suoh," Haruhi said in her calm, lawyer voice.
Alianore's eyes widened, "TAMAKI?!"
Haruhi nodded, "Yes, you see, I ran into him last week."
Immediately Alianore's eyes narrowed again, "What did that scumbag say?"
Haruhi sighed, "Alianore, he was sobbing. I don't think I've ever seen anyone so upset before."
"Hmph! Serves him right! Trying to talk to me after the way he treated me!"
"Alianore, have you ever stopped to listen to what he has to say?"
"Listen? Why should I listen to him? He'll just pull that host club crap of his and try to get me to forgive him."
"Why must you be so stubborn?"
Zackarie chuckled from his seat behind Alianore, "She's the Queen of Stubborn, that's why?"
"ZACK?! What the HELL are you doing here?! Untie me at once! As your big sister I command it! You know what Tamaki did! You know everything!"
"Sorry sister, but I already listened to what Haruhi had to say, and I trust her. She doesn't misjudge people. I think you should give Tamaki a chance to explain. Plus, she did some research to verify what he told her."
Alianore closed her eyes, took a deep breath and slowly released it.
"Okay, Haruhi, if you verified his story, I'll listen, but I make no promises to forgive."
Haruhi smiled, "Do you want me to tell you? Or do you want me to arrange a meeting so he can tell you?"
"I think–"
She was interrupted by a doorbell.
Haruhi frowned and looked at the door, "Who…"
"Um…I'll get it!" Zackarie said quickly, jumping up and running over to the doorway.
He opened the door a crack and Haruhi could just make him out as he hissed, "I told you to wait downstairs!"
"I couldn't wait any longer!" a very familiar voice whined.
Haruhi sighed, "Mamoru, Mei, untie her. Alianore, I'm sorry, but it looks like your idiot brother took the decision out of your hands. Do you want me to make him go away?"
Alianore glared at her brother, who was still whispering heatedly with Tamaki.
"No, I'll handle them."
And, once she was untied, she did handle them.
She stormed over to the door, grabbed the back of Zackarie's shirt and forcibly removed him, while at the same time grabbing the door handle and swinging it open.
On the other side of the doorway stood Tamaki Suoh, backed by the two redheaded twins Haruhi had encountered twice before.
Zackarie was smart enough to back away from Alianore once he regained his balance. Haruhi found it rather interesting that he ended up hiding behind Mamoru, who was just relaxing on the far side of the room, watching everything with an expression of mild amusement.
"Well, Tamaki, I'm listening," Alianore said coldly.
Tamaki opened his mouth to speak, but no sound emerged. It was Kaoru who spoke instead.
"Uh, boss, do you need us to do something?"
"Yeah, boss," Hikaru added, "this situation does not look terribly safe." His eyes seemed fixed on the way Alianore's curly hair was beginning to move around her head, like a tornado was brewing in that mass of curls.
Tamaki closed his mouth, gulped, and then opened it again. This time sound emerged, "Uh, no, I'm fine. I-I need to talk to Alianore." He glanced around the apartment, at all the people watching him. He gulped again, "Um, Alianore, can we, um, go somewhere else?"
She glanced over her shoulder and took in the four pairs of eyes watching them before turning to look at the twins. "Okay, but those two don't come."
"Of course!" Tamaki said as he grabbed Alianore's hand and pulled her past the twins and out of Haruhi's sight.
"Well, do you think she'll really listen?" Mei asked.
"I think she will, she'll realize that things won't add up if she doesn't. She's smart," Haruhi said.
"I agree," Zackarie said, "but, in the meantime, what do we do with those two?" He pointed at the twins, who were looking down the hallway after Tamaki and Alianore, twin expressions of mischief on their faces.
Haruhi's eyes narrowed, these two troublemakers weren't going to mess up her plan, not if she had anything to say about it!
"Mei?" Haruhi asked.
"Yes?"
"Operation Distract Twins."
Mei grinned, "One."
"Two," Haruhi said.
"Three," they said together as they moved forwards. They each managed to grab one of the arms of the twins just as they turned to move down the hallway.
Before the boys knew what had happened they were yanked into the apartment, with two girls between them and the only exit.
"HEY! What did you do that for? That really hurt!" Hikaru said as he rubbed the arm that Haruhi had grabbed.
Haruhi snorted, "Oh, stop being such a baby, Hikaru."
The twins froze and looked at her in shock, "How do you know our names?" they said together.
Haruhi rolled her eyes, what was it with twins? "Your names? As far as I know you each have your own name. You're Hikaru," she said pointing, "and you're Kaoru. Now, come sit, we're not letting you go anywhere until Tamaki and Alianore have talked."
She moved to go sit next to Mei, who'd taken a seat next to Zackarie and Mamoru. When the twins didn't follow she turned to face them and put her hands on her hips.
"Come on! I know the rest of your partners in crime aren't here, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy yourselves."
Their eyes grew even wider.
"P-p-partners in crime?" Kaoru stuttered.
Haruhi rolled her eyes at them. How were these people friends with someone as smart and complicated as Hunny, or someone as serious and strong as Mori?
"Yes, partners in crime – the rest of your Ouran Host Club. If you want I can call and ask Hunny to come, but I doubt that Reiko would like it. She'd probably curse me. Now, Mori might come. Especially if we told him that you're trying to hurt the reconciliation of Tamaki and Alianore."
The twins abruptly sat on the floor where they'd been standing, still staring at her in shock.
"Wait, Haruhi, their names are Kaoru and Hikaru?" Mei asked.
Haruhi nodded, taking a seat and taking the cola Mamoru handed her.
Mei's eyes grew really wide.
"Then-then that means….they're my bosses sons! The Hitachiin Twins!"
Haruhi looked over at the two shell-shocked redheads and then back at Mei, "So?"
"So, that means you can't just say things to them! They're extremely well-connected and powerful! You'll lose your job if they say so!"
Mamoru started laughing at that.
Mei scowled at him, "What?"
"Mei, don't you know my name?"
She frowned at him, "Why is your name important?"
"I'm Mamoru Tachiki."
Mei's eyes widened as she realized what his name meant when combined with the fact that he was sitting on the floor of his apartment with Haruhi and her friends.
"Oooo, well, then go right ahead, Haruhi. From what Mrs. Hitachiin says, these two boys need to be taken down a peg or two."
"Well, if anyone can take a pair of annoying twins down a few pegs it would be Haruhi," Zackarie said.
Haruhi looked at the twins and shook her head, "But what if I don't want to take them down a few pegs?"
Everyone laughed, but it was Mei that said, "Doesn't matter if you want to or not, you can't help yourself."
"You really can't," put in Zackarie.
Haruhi sighed and stared at the twins, she supposed they were right. She really couldn't help it.
Author's Note: And with the addition of the twins she's now met, and is getting to know, five of the six male Host Club members. Just another chapter or two of friendship focus and our male lead will enter the show.
Enjoy! :)