Twilight: Geez, I'm on a roll! Take that, Kage! I don't need you after all! Right, John?

John: …

Twilight: …COME BACK YOU FURRY PAIN IN THE ASS! I…I miss you…*sobs* I don't own Ouran.

. Doe Eyes .

… an Ouran High School Host Club fanfiction

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Doe Eyes © Dragon of Twilight


Ouran High School Host Club © Bisco Hatori

This introduction format © B a y o – B a y o

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CHAPTER T H R E E:
"Fearful"

"Here's my number and address…"

"And here's mine. Hey…you live near the clinic!"

"You work there? I remembering dropping a stray cat off there; it was a calico with a completely white tail."

"I remember her! She was adopted less than a week after she was dropped off. A really sweet cat." Zenmyo tapped her bottom lip thoughtfully before sending a grin Haruhi's way. "You have to stop by some time. I could really use the help."

The sheepish yet hopeful grin from the other girl made Haruhi laugh. "Sure. I'll stop by tomorrow."

Finally, Haruhi went to present a tense Zenmyo to the mass of worried Hosts waiting anxiously behind the door. She opened the door a crack, sighing with relief as she realized that the music room was empty of everyone except the Hosts.

Tamaki was pacing around the room worriedly, muttering under his breath. The twins watched him uninterestedly, making occasional comments that made Tamaki duck his head and pace faster, though they each looked slightly anxious. Hunny and Mori had taken up a seat on a couch near the window. The small boy seemed to be amusing himself by occasionally poking the slightly groggy tanuki on the larger boy's lap, though a small frown was present on his face. Mori sat quietly, a hand stroking Pome absentmindedly with a faintly thoughtful expression in his eyes. Kyoya seemed the only one unaffected by Zenmyo's breakdown, sitting at his usual seat, typing something in a calculator.

Kyoya must have closed the club for the day. She caught Kyoya's eye, and he nodded imperceptivity at her, a faint smile playing on his lips. She winced. He probably added to my debt for that.

As if reading her mind, Kyoya smirked at her, typing faster with a kind of teasing deliberation that made Haruhi scowl. Damn rich bastards!

A shaking hand on her arm drew her attention the young woman quivering behind her. It would have been funny if it didn't seem so pitiful, someone trying uselessly to hide behind someone much shorter. Haruhi turned, giving Zenmyo what she hoped was a reassuring smile. It must have been strained, because she looked more frightened than ever, those impossibly vivid green eyes looking even larger through the magnification of her glasses.

Her offer of friendship was no lie; Haruhi sincerely liked this young woman. Her quiet, gentle nature was a refreshing contrast to the ever-excitable Tamaki, the mischievous twins and the calculating Kyoya. Not to mention the overwhelming sympathy Haruhi felt for her in suddenly being introduced to the Host Club by way of a tackle from the heaviest out of all of them.

Haruhi knew she'd have to go about this carefully. Zenmyo was unquestionably fragile, and her encounter with Mori-senpai had clearly scared her enough to make her faint. On top of that, the others had given a bad impression, overwhelming enough to make her cry. Though, the crying didn't bother Haruhi as much as the fainting. Her father's crying fits were somewhat similar; they were a coping mechanism.

Haruhi had an inkling that Zenmyo was more frightened of Mori than the combined efforts the Host Club had made to intimidate her.

She sincerely hoped that wasn't the case, but with Zenmyo's rapid, fearful glances at the couch near the window, she forced herself to be realistic. The fact than the older girl's hands began to visibly shake as she stared at Mori firmly confirmed Haruhi's speculations. She didn't think Mori would take the fact that Zenmyo was terrified of him well, either.

But Haruhi's train of thought was abruptly cut off as they were spotted. Tamaki rushed over, grabbing Haruhi's arm and yanking her out of the doorway. "Is she okay? She's not angry, right? Did you tell her we're sorry?" Suddenly, he paused, looking past her. "Uh…and where is she?"

Haruhi blinked, suddenly becoming aware that the hand on her arm had retreated. Startled, Zenmyo had let go of Haruhi's arm when Tamaki had grabbed her, fleeing clumsily back into the spare room.

Haruhi sighed heavily, shrugging off Tamaki's hands and briskly marching over to the door, reaching in, pulling a resisting Zenmyo out and frog-marching her over to Tamaki. "Try your best not to scare her, Tamaki-senpai. She's delicate."

Zenmyo scowled at her, but couldn't really contradict Haruhi's statement. A movement right in front of her had her leaping back, or she would have had Tamaki not grabbed a hold of her hands.

"Uh…T-Tamaki-san…" Her face flushed a bright red, and she tugged slightly at her hands in the hopes he'd get the hint.

"Oh, she looks uncomfortable, milord." The twin she knew now as Kaoru called from lounging on a couch next to his brother, who was picking at the assortment of sweets placed on every table.

Hikaru picked up the conversation easily, speaking through a cookie in his mouth. "She's the Shy Type."

Shy Type? That must be some kind of Host-Speak.

"Oh!" Tamaki let go of her and bowed regally while flashing her a sincerely apologetic smile. "Well, I'm so sorry for tying you up, Zenmyo-hime." He clasped her hands again tightly. "We weren't sure of your intentions and overreacted. Please, let me make it up to you."

Zenmyo froze. What did he just call me? She was torn between embarrassment and intense hatred.

She hated pet names. She'd gathered so many over the years from so many different people that she couldn't tell if people were being antagonistic or not. She couldn't interpret people's intentions through words well, and she'd learned the hard way that not everybody wanted to be nice. Haruhi she trusted. Haruhi had gentle eyes and a soft smile. Haruhi wasn't one to lie. Haruhi wouldn't hurt her.

So it was Haruhi she retreated to, wrenching out of Tamaki's grip to return to the girl's side, addressing the Host Club nervously over Haruhi's much shorter shoulder.

"I-I'm very sorry for the trouble I've caused." She bowed low, hoping her messy brown hair would hide her burning face. Through the curtain of tawny strands, she nervously watched the Host's reactions.

The twins glanced at each other before making an identical dismissive gesture at the exact same time. "Eh, whatever," they intoned in unison.

Zenmyo felt her eye twitch.

The one she knew as Kyoya didn't even look up from his laptop, voice distracted and indifferent. "It was time to close for the day anyway, and the concern for Mori-senpai's pet will draw in more customers."

Astonished at the sheer, brilliant opportunism of this, Zenmyo almost straightened up to gape briefly at him. He's like a vulture!

She heard a snort from Haruhi and glanced over to look at her new friend. A grin tugged at her lips despite the tense situation as she watched Haruhi mouth the words, "Opportunistic bastard." A laugh drew her attention to the couch near the window, which was suddenly almost totally obscured by a mountain of sweets. A small hand waved from over it as Hunny laughed cheerfully, brandishing a fork.

"It's okay, Zen-chan! You were just doing your job." He leaned over and patted Pome, who purred under his touch.

Briefly forgetting exactly who was holding the tanuki, Zenmyo crossed the room without thinking, kneeling in front of the tanuki and holding out a careful hand. Pome looked at her with a friendly if wary attitude about him. Zenmyo caught his eyes, hoping that those beady black eyes could see how sorry she was and if he could possibly forgive her. A relieved smile formed on her face as Pome sniffed briefly at her hand before giving her fingers a cautious lick.

"You're so sweet." She murmured at the friendly mammal. She grinned slightly, gently stroking at his ears. "Does this mean you forgive me?"

As if in response, Pome jumped from the lap of whom he was sitting on to rub enthusiastically against her leg, pushing her over slightly. Laughing in relief, she sat and pulled Pome onto her lap, playfully ruffling his fluffy fur and giggling as he shoved his face into hers.

Hunny laughed happily, squeezing his bunny close. "He likes you, Zen-chan!"

"And I'm so glad!" She answered with a laugh, gifting the tanuki with a gentle hug. She looked around at the others to include them, smiling widely. "Thank you all for forgiving me."

Unnoticed by her, Mori had been watching the young woman thoughtfully for almost the entire time. When he'd seen her level the rifle at Pome from the window of the second floor, he'd immediately taken off for the grounds, fear and panic rushing through his veins. When he tackled her, he'd only thought of stopping her from taking his furry friend and when she actually bit him, he'd almost leapt back in shock. The determination to keep the tanuki away from him had given her unexpected strength, and he'd used more force than he meant to in keeping her pinned.

When she fainted, he realized his mistake and resolved to apologize to her once the Club had determined her motivations. Whether she meant harm or not, it didn't matter; he felt guilty for attacking someone so much smaller than he. The fact that they soon learned she was only doing her job made it worse. After observing her for a while, he'd determined that she genuinely didn't mean to cause trouble, and was in fact scared out of her mind. Now, he couldn't imagine that he ever thought that she was dangerous.

Zenmyo's frame was willowy and fragile, with small hands and thin arms. He noted that her clothes looked comfortable and easy to run in. Under her glasses, the glimpses he'd gotten of her eyes established that they were wide and anxious. A mop of tawny hair allowed her to hide those nervous eyes and her stance was always uncertain, ready to flee at a moment's notice. Skittish and frightened.

Now, she sat in front of him, fearless, a wide smile on her face as she played with Pome with all the enthusiasm of a fellow animal lover, ignoring the fur that was shedding all over her clothes. Mori could feel a warm smile curve his lips and he reached out, putting a hand on that tawny mop and ruffling. His indication that he'd forgiven her as well.

Her hair, though viciously tangled, was feathery to the touch, and as she looked up at him, startled, he caught a good glimpse of her eyes. An almost supernaturally bright green, they were like a cat's eye, and though lacking the slit pupil the color was the same. The round shape and how large they were reminded him of something, though a sharp gasp abruptly cut off his train of thought before he could grasp the answer.

Zenmyo couldn't help herself. Initially, when she'd felt the hand that was large enough to almost cover the top of her head, she'd been both amused that she was being treated like someone's pet and happy at the warm touch of another person. But when she looked up, all those warm emotions disappeared under a cold tide of terror, wrenching a gasp from her throat as she met a pair of gray eyes.

Jerking away so hard and fast that she tipped over onto her back, Zenmyo scrambled away from the tall, dark boy, only stopping when her back hit someone's legs. But her terrified green eyes didn't leave the now-startled gray ones.

Mori. Her brain supplied, almost against her will. His name is Mori. "Oh, I-I'm sorry, I j-just meant to—I didn't mean…" She babbled uncontrollably, scrambling to her feet and backing away. Even sitting down, he was much taller than she was, and his presence seemed to tower over her even from all the way across the room.

She continued to back away, stumbling over chairs and tables, all the while a constant stream of unintelligible babble flowed from her mouth. The harder she tried to stop, the more panicked and rapid the stuttering became. The relief she felt when the doorknob dug into her back was indescribable.

"I-I should get going now—"

Reach behind me…

"—Nodoka's probably waiting for me—"

Turn the knob…

"—So I'll stay away from Ouran from now on—see you later, Haruhi—"

And she was gone, bolting out of Music Room 3, running through the maze-like halls of Ouran to find a path that would take her home.

Everyone stared uncomprehendingly at the door as Pome scurried over to it, scratching a little at it.

"…She left her bag."

Everyone's eyes snapped to Kyoya, who didn't seem to want to acknowledge all the stares directed at him, and simply pointed to the bag at his side with his pen. Tamaki walked over to it, picking it up and looking at it blankly as Haruhi sighed.

"I'll have to bring it to her tomorrow."

Hikaru and Kaoru assumed identical thinking poses, shooting sly looks at the dumbstruck tall Host. "I wonder why—"

"She freaked out—"

"When she was talking to Mori-senpai."

"He did attack her," Haruhi pointed out the obvious, frowning at the other Host's obliviousness.

Tamaki seemed to come back to himself, muttering quietly. "A terrified expression like that doesn't belong on a maiden's face."

Hunny frowned sadly. Lower lip quivering, he hugged Usa-chan tightly. "I don't think she likes Takashi."

Haruhi sighed, watching Mori's face as the wheels turned in his mind. First shock, then hurt and guilt filled his eyes as he gazed fixedly ahead. Slowly, he bent to rest his elbow on his knee, cradling his face in his hand. Pome padded slowly up to him, head quirked inquiringly. All eyes settled on the spiky-haired Host as Hunny tugged worriedly at his sleeve.

"Takashi? Are you okay?" He asked anxiously, brown eyes wide and puppy-like.

Slowly, Mori turned to look at Hunny. "Aa. I'm fine."

He attempted to rise, putting his hand on the table to push himself up. Immediately, the table gave under the amount of weight Mori was putting on it, leaving him sitting on the floor with a pile of sweets strewn around him, staring blankly at the expensive carpeting.

"Mori-senpai's feeling guilty again." Kaoru pointed out the obvious.

Hikaru jumped in, looking grave. "He's just going to get clumsier if we don't do something."

Kyoya frowned; punching in the amount the pile of sweets Mori had ruined in his calculator and the amount needed to clean the carpet. He made a mental note to add the total to Haruhi's debt as he closed the laptop with a snap.

…Shit.

A/N: Well? How'd I do?

Special thanks to; sethrox9730, WerewolvesMoon, KageNoNeko, novellover, LookOutShe'sGotAPen, and Mariel of Fantasy. And, as always, my beta HowCouldThisHappenToMe.

Thank you!

Signing out,
Dragon of Twilight!