I'm back! Did ya miss me? Or did you come back for the story? Either way, I'm glad! I've noticed I already have some favorites and followers so thank you guys for that! Also I have a beta reader! We may be a little slow at updating but I hope it's not too bad for you guys? I know I'm enjoying writing this just as much as you guys are enjoying the story (hopefully).

Here's the next chapter! But first the disclaimer!

Disclaimer: I do not own OHSHC!

Last Time

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"She said no. Well then. I guess we'll just have to punish you accordingly."

Chapter 2

No matter how hard I tried to prepare for the hit, it always took my breath away when the whip lashed my back. How long had it been since I'd said no? It felt like years but what was left of my active mind said it had only been a week. My hair was greasy from not taking a shower and I could smell the scent of infection coming from my back. I hadn't gotten an ounce of sleep and I'd been locked in a pitch black room the entire time unless to be taken to be whipped. Don't ask how I went to the restroom.

It would've been so much easier to agree to my parents' terms but something told me to deny them the power they had over me. Plus they never gave me another chance throughout the torture.

The nurses "cleaned" my wounds, yet all it did was make them burn to where I felt like blacking out. Knowing this, my parents gave me this "medicine" that refused to let me. They lashed out at my skin, they broke my ribs, they let rats into my room at night that nibbled at my toes, and they whipped my feet. I knew I wouldn't be able to walk right for a long time.

I'd been tied down to a chair, and they'd forced food down my throat when I refused to eat. It was more than I could take in at once and I ended up barfing it back up. They threatened to cut my tongue out and to cut me open to take my stomach if I didn't gratefully accept the food.

After a while I had stopped crying. I quit screaming from the pain. I lost all sense of feeling. It was almost bliss. That is, until they knocked it up a level. They took from holding me down into a sink full of water, to submerging me completely until I nearly blacked out. They whipped my arms and back instead of my feet. I couldn't move, I couldn't think. Instead of rats, they let in cats. I guess I didn't have to worry about pests anymore, or my hygiene.

Instead of breaking my bones, they crushed them one by one and then used some kind of chemical to bind them back together which only hurt more. They put me in my dark room only to pull me out into a bright light, nearly blinding me. They'd ring things in my ears to where I nearly grew deaf. Instead of going only one or two days without eating, I went 4 or 5. Then they shoved even more food into my body. The only times they gave me water was with the food. I'd be lucky to keep it down. I couldn't move, I couldn't think, I became nothing.

This went on for months, or so the maids had said. It felt like eternities. One day, I remembered one simple speech I'd given them in answer to a question I think dealt along the terms of giving up and coming back to the 'family'.

"You can beat me, you can torture me, you can try to do anything you like. But you only have power over me that I give you. If I don't give you power to control me, to hurt me, you'll give up eventually. You can't force me to do anything. You inject food and water into my body, but I just throw it back up. You whip me and tear at my body to hear me scream, yet I never do. You only have the power I give you. And I will never give you any!"

I don't remember how long I'd been tortured before or after that, but they did give up after a while. The maids said I'd been tortured off and on for different things and then continually after that speech. It had been worth it in the end, having been able to get away.

Then I was disowned from the family and kicked out of the house. They never knew I was afraid of them. They think I'm some kind of monster, not reacting to the pain. Yet they were the ones who caused me the pain. They left me with one final threat of never being able to go to the police, seeing how high up they were in the Japanese Monarchy. I'd been scared of talking back or to anyone ever since.

End of Flashback

I got up out of bed, shaking only slightly from the memory/nightmare. Then I noticed the note on the nightstand.

Dear Akari,

I'm sorry I left without saying a proper goodbye, but I could tell by the way you were sleeping, you were remembering those days. Only now do I realize how scared you were, how scared you are. I'm truly sorry.

Love,

Your Big Bro

I crumpled up the note and threw it in the trash. I wasn't someone who treasured things, let alone having the room to keep them. Within 30 minutes, I was ready for school and heading out the door. It's not like this was the first time I'd had a nightmare about the past. I headed out the door and locked it behind me before taking a random route to school.

When I walked into the classroom, everyone was talking about something happening that day. The teacher, surprisingly, noticed me standing in the doorway. I guess it was easy though, considering I was late.

"Ah, Akari, glad you could make it to school today. We're having our physical exam later today and we're all getting ready. I have divided this class into groups to stay together and paired you up with the Hitachiin twins and Haruhi Fujioka. They'll be in the back," she said.

"Thank you, Sensei," I replied with no emotions showing through my voice. Then I headed to the back and spotted the trio. "Haruhi Fujioka? Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin? I've been paired up with you," I said curtly, knowing full well how the twins would react. To my satisfaction, they did. Or well, Hikaru did.

"Yeah? And mind telling me exactly, who you are?" Hikaru asked.

"My name's Akari,," I replied, a fake smirk plastered on my face. One glance at Haruhi told me she wasn't buying it. I noticed she'd been pretending to read a book and I decided to leave her alone.

"How come I've never seen you before then? There's no way you could be in this class, I know every single student."

"Give her a break Kaoru, maybe she just transferred today," Kaoru said, coming to my defense. I blinked in slow confusion.

"Why did you call him Kaoru? Your obviously Kaoru," I asked. That was until I saw the looks on their faces. I saw Haruhi twitch and glance up. One look from her eyes told me that I'd done something rare. Obviously, people didn't tell them apart easily. Although it wasn't that hard. They say they switch their hairstyles but they really didn't.

"H-h-how did you know I was Kaoru?" He asked.

"You part your hair to the left. And you also fell for my trap. If you can figure that out," I said matter of factly. I hadn't known 100% and had decided to take a gamble. Luckily enough, he clued me in. I could tell they were trying to study me, but I was obviously doing a good job of keeping my barriers up.

"Akari, you look tired, I can even see it under your glasses. You have circles under your eyes, and your body posture is tense," Haruhi said bluntly. I was a little taken aback by the fact that she noticed just how tired I was. I sighed internally, making a note to try and hide the dark circles with makeup or something.

"I'm fine. This is how I've always looked. And if you say anything about my hair Hikaru, I'll cut yours off," I said, noticing the way he was staring at my hair. I even noticed Kaoru itching to touch it. I hadn't brushed it this morning and it must've been as bad as I imagined. I saw them flinch away, surprised I'd noticed them.

"Students, it's time to head to the area where we will be commencing the physical exam. If you will follow me please, and stay with your group!" Called the teacher to all the students. By the way Haruhi was fidgeting, I could tell this was her first physical exam here, just like me. This would be interesting.

And that's the end for now! Did you guys think the twins were ok? I didn't really want to mess with Haruhi this chapter. I'll have more interaction between Akari and Haruhi next chapter hopefully. Plus I'm scared of how I won't be able to portray her character correctly ;_; I've set up the polls for who Akari should end up!

Let me know what you think and don't forget to leave a review! I'll try to get chapters that focus solely on one on one time with the hosts. That way you guys can see how badly I'll probably write each one and decide on who she ends up with from there!

Edited on 6/30/15