II

A Bundle of Joy

"Haruhi?" Mizuki had just retrieved her lunch from her bag when her best friend had appeared at her classroom door, panting slightly. She was also a bit shocked to see Haruhi in a full male uniform, no glasses (they were horrible anyway) and a tidier haircut. The tall girl smirked and cocked an eyebrow, all the while inviting her friend to sit beside her with a quick wave. "Explain."

Haruhi plopped down on Mori's chair, and groaned loudly before laying her head on her arms. Mizuki waited patiently for her (now) androgynous friend to elaborate as she started biting into her egg rolls. Her eyes were closed, her face the picture of utter bliss, when finally Haruhi straightened up and looked into her pale friend with an exasperated expression on her delicate face.

"I joined a club. Actually, I was kind of forced to join." Haruhi complained, sending a glare at the desk while imagining a few certain faces on it. Mizuki stopped eating, and widened her eyes a bit. She swallowed down the last of her egg roll, and faced her best friend fully, waiting for further explanation. The cross dressing girl scratched the back of her neck, a half-smile on her face. "I kind of broke something of theirs, and now I have to be a member of the club to pay the debt."

"And why are you dressed as a guy? Actually, how did you even get a uniform?"

"They gave it to me. They assumed I was a boy when I broke the vase, and even after finding out I'm not it was kind of decided that I would continue as a boy… for club purposes." She muttered the last part a bit lower, earning another cocked eyebrow from Mizuki.

"What club is it?"

"I'm not going to tell you," Haruhi mumbled, a slight pout on her lips. The other girl couldn't help but laugh a little at her friend's antics. She wasn't offended though. So she offered the sulking girl an egg roll, and they both spent the rest of their lunch period chatting.

"Mizu-chan, Mizu-chan!"

Mizuki turned to her right, where Honey bounced on his feet, a pleased grin on his face. Mori finished packing his things and stood up, facing the girl's desk as well. A small smile formed on her lips and she stood up as well, towering over Honey easily.

"Wow, you're so tall!" Honey looked up at her, amazed at the sheer height of the girl. He then pulled her by her sleeve, surprising the girl, and placed her next to Mori. She was almost as tall as him! The tall boy looked to his side, a little surprised as well. He had noticed she was tall – she had long limbs, after all – but he had never seen her standing up, not to mention she was permanently slouching in classes. He estimated her to be around the same height as Kyoya, the bespectacled vice-president of their club. "How come you're so tall? You're a girl!"

Mizuki shrugged, a small chuckle leaving her lips. "I'm half Swedish."

After a few more 'ohh's and 'ahh's from Honey, the trio set out for the north corridor. Honey had climbed on Mori's shoulders like it was nobody's business, and then proceeded to initiate a fairly serious discussion with Mizuki – about cakes. The girl perked up noticeably as she excitedly talked about her favorites and even introduced the glutton boy to the concept of 'cake mix'. Mori stopped in front of a pair of double light pink doors, waiting for Honey to drop down from his shoulders – which he did with surprising agility. Mizuki glanced up and read 'Music Room 3' on an elegant plaque as the dark haired boy opened the doors.

"We're here!" Honey announced, skipping inside the grand room. Mizuki walked slowly behind Mori, looking around and taking in everything – which was quite a lot. The ceiling had intricate patterns of white and pink, complementing the paneled walls and marble floors. A chandelier hung from the middle of the room, reflecting the rays of sunshine that bathed the room from the wide French windows, casting quite the romantic atmosphere over the velvet upholstered chairs and sofas surrounding the various tea tables; fresh red roses in crystal vases complimented the environment.

"Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai," a tall male sporting the Ouran uniform spoke from a corner of the room, where he was seated in front of a high end laptop. He pushed up his glasses and continued typing. The newcomer swept the room with another glance, spotting no one else.

"We brought a friend!" At this, the dark haired boy looked up from the screen and took a quick look at the girl accompanying his senpais. Ah, the other scholarship student. He cleared his throat, got up from his seat and walked towards them, a polite smile on his face.

"Welcome to the Host Club. I am Ootori Kyoya; it is a pleasure to meet you." He bowed to Mizuki, the polite smile still plastered on his face. She widened her eyes a bit, but quickly recovered.

"Matsuoka Mizuki. It's nice to meet you," she replied, adding a quick bow as well. She wasn't one for formalities, but the boy was so stiff and proper it almost bothered her. Before they could talk any more, Honey grew impatient and simply grabbed her sleeve (again) and dragged her over to a set of couches by the windows.

"Kyo-chan, it's okay, Mizu-chan will be our special guest today." Kyoya observed them for a few moments longer, then glanced at Mori and sighed. He decided to retreat back to his seat by his laptop, as the other taller boy followed after his cousin and female classmate.

The short boy sat down on the plump red couch, dragging Mizuki along. Balancing herself as to avoid crashing into the coffee table in front of the sofa, she calmly sat down next to him, followed by Mori, who collected their school bags and went through a door in the back. The girl followed him with her eyes, but was soon distracted by a loud noise coming from the other side of the room.

"Oh, is that a new hime I spot?" A tall boy with light blond hair announced, a charming smile gracing his lips as he started heading towards Mizuki. Two identical boys emerged from the same door he had come from, immediately flanking him as they observed the female guest with interest. Upon reaching Honey and Mizuki, the boy got down in one knee, gently picked up the girl's hand and looked into her pale blue eyes with his own slightly darker ones. "It is a pleasure to have you in our presence, hime. I am Suoh Tamaki, the president of the Host Club."

Mizuki stared at him, completely baffled. Her mouth was slightly open in a small 'o', her eyes widened. She had heard Kyoya's remark of a host club, but hadn't quite connected the dots. However, she was now getting a very clear picture of the kind of club it was. She slightly shook her head, and carefully removed her hand from Tamaki's, trying not to offend him.

"Um, Matsuoka Mizuki…" she said, her voice drifting away as she eyed the twins, who were now eyeing her with very feline grins. They were both good looking, as was every other member of the club, with auburn hair and amber eyes. However, it was the mischievous glint in their eyes that had her on guard – it reminded her of her sisters. It must have been a trait all twins possessed. Oh well.

"Such a wonderful name!" Tamaki had gone back to a standing position, but still smiled at her. "These are the Hiitachin twins, Hikaru and Kaoru. May I assume you are a fan of Honey?"

Mizuki looked at the aforementioned short boy in questioning, before quickly understanding the assumption. She turned back to the trio and immediately shook her head, however, Honey answered for her.

"Tama-chan, she's in mine and Mori's class! She's here as our friend," he said, a cute smile on his face. Tamaki nodded, his expression slightly shifting into one of excitement as he looked back at the girl. The twins also relaxed slightly, a bit more interested now. "She's a scholarship student too, just like Haru-chan!"

Haru-chan? Wait-

"Tamaki-senpai, I've finished preparing the tea sets."

Everyone turned their eyes to the back door where someone had emerged from. Mizuki and Haruhi's eyes met, and they both gasped in shock. The girl clad in the male uniform recovered quickly, a small groan emitting from her throat, whereas Mizuki simply covered her mouth in an attempt to stifle her laugh. Mori had just come into the room as well, and noticed the commotion around their corner of the room, where Mizuki was surrounded by the rest of the club members, hunching over slightly. Curious, he approached them.

"How are you here?" Haruhi said, deciding to come closer to the small group that had formed. Kyoya, aware of the situation, decided to come closer as well.

"I'm in Honey-kun and Mori-kun's class."

"Ah, great." Haruhi groaned again, face-palming herself.

"Wait, you know each other?" One of the twins, Hikaru, asked, a bewildered look on his face that reflected the others' - except Kyoya's and Mori's, of course. Both girls nodded, Mizuki now with a playful smile on her face and Haruhi with a small frown.

"But of course," Kyoya interrupted any further conversation, drawing attention to himself. He pushed up his glasses, and then proceeded. "Not only is it astounding that two students managed to earn the scholarship into Ouran Academy, they are also close friends who come from the same middle school."

Everyone stared at him in quiet wonder – the club members at the information, Haruhi and Mizuki at the fact that he had that information. The dark haired girl turned to her friend, a small frown on her delicate face. Haruhi simply sighed again, shaking her head a bit. She had already accepted the weirdness of the host club, and knowing Mizuki, she wouldn't take much longer either. The girl took everything in stride.

"I had no idea you had become a host, Haruhi," Mizuki commented slyly, her smile a bit more contained this time. Haruhi sent her a glare and turned her head to the side. She loved teasing the innocent girl. The other hosts seemed to have recovered from their discovery, and were humming with excitement. Well, Kyoya had returned to his place, assuming there was no threat that Mizuki would rat out on her friend, and Mori had simply sat down next to the slender girl, observing his friends' antics with a bit of amusement.

"Haruhi! You didn't tell Daddy you had a best friend!" Tamaki exclaimed, hugging said girl with overbearing affection. While Haruhi struggled and complained, the twin boys turned to the newcomer with a smirk. Mizuki sighed internally.

"Hime, if you would please stand up." Kaoru requested, earning a confused look from the girl. She obeyed however. Immediately, the two boys turned serious and appraised her with a critical eye.

"Hm, quite tall, slender, long legs," Hikaru commented to his younger brother, who nodded and continued his observation.

"Good hair and clear skin too. We're quite lucky, Hikaru." Kaoru looked at his twin, and both grinned at the same time. Mizuki suddenly felt slightly uncomfortable as their gaze fell on her. Uh oh.

"We have a new model!" Both announced at the same time, earning a tired sigh from Mizuki. She was used to this from her sisters, but she had hoped she could escape it in school. It seems she was being too optimistic. The devilish twins then turned around and walked inside the door they had emerged from earlier, discussing with each other in low voices.

Finally able to relax, Mizuki sunk deeper into the couch, a loud yawn escaping her lips. Her classmates eyed her with amusement as she stretched her arms and turned to each of them in turn, a kind smile on her face. However, before they could initiate what would hopefully be a less eventful conversation, Kyoya announced the host club would open in five minutes and urged the boys to prepare. Mizuki sighed again, scrunched her nose up a bit.

What a long day.

Disclaimer: Ouran High School Host Club and its characters/places and certain events belong to Bisco Hatori! However, the plot and original characters belong to me.

Here it is - second chapter! This one's quite different from the first version. However, I'm really happier with this. I feel much more assured of the characters and their interactions, not to mention the development. I'm happier with something a bit slower. Again, I am sorry to those who had already read the chapters I had posted previously. I hope you enjoy this one! I'll make sure to update sometime this week :)

Also, thank you to all of you who have followed, favorited, reviewed and simply read this! I really really appreciate it, you're precious (^_^)