Author's Note at the end of the chapter
l'austrichienne: literally 'the Austrain woman', but a play on words because 'chienne' means 'bitch'. The nickname was assigned to Marie Antoinette when the general public began to dislike her, as they felt she was a spendthrift, promiscuous, and held sympathies for her former home, Austria.
"More commoners? Won't Ouran Academy's credibility be questioned?" Eloise asked, sitting with Kyouya on one of his living room's couch, with his parents sat the opposite another couch. Kyouya's mother, Akane, a busy woman, was rarely in the country. However, she was willing to come back to meet the girl that might one day be her daughter in law. She did the same for all her children, it was only right. She had a soft and lovely face, her hair pulled back into a tight bun. Her makeup was mostly simple, except for a deep red lipstick. A small side bang floated on the corner of her forehead. She wore a kimono sleeved jacket and impeccably tailored trousers, both in black, and a necklace that from afar would look like a simple chain, but upon inspection was really completely diamond studded. On her feet were a pair of low black pumps.
This was the outfit she chose to relax at home in.
"The circumstances of these new additions are rather different. Our current commoner student, Haruhi Fujioka, was a scholarship student. The five new students' mother is a Professor of Biology, and while their family was originally stationed in Japan, they all relocated to America so she could teach at an incredibly reputable institution. Ouran recognized her talent, so they positioned her here to replace the college professor that just retired, on the conditions that her children be enrolled in the Ouran school system and be allowed to stay throughout their entire education, if they so wish. She happened to have five children, hence the rather startling increase."
"I don't see why Ouran didn't just pay the tuition for a different school, as to not make such a harmful action to their public image," Eloise retorted, her back aching from trying to sit up straight. "I have no problem with commoners, of course. I just think they will feel… out of place, I feel bad for them. It also hurts Ouran Academy's image. I see no gain in the situation at all," she sipped on her tea.
"I feel that's a very narrow way to think," Akane said, her voice lovely with a hint of sharpness to it. "Some of the world's greatest people came from nothing. The Ootori name was not simply there, it was made. Not to say a pure bloodline is a bad thing, but those who have little have a very important perspective that children born into wealth can never have. To deny that perspective's importance because of something so petty is childish and naive."
Eloise almost couldn't keep her mouth from hanging open. "Of course, you are very right. I have so much to learn, still." She managed a smile from somewhere within her, though she felt as if she might cry.
"Yes, that is evident," Akane kept a straight face, not known for being withholding of her true opinion. "Most think that being rich is an advantage, but it sets many back. There are intrinsic ideologies that we must unlearn to be truly successful."
"Well, Mother, we actually should be leaving now. Eloise and I have lunch plans today."
Akane nodded. "Be back by dinner. I have been absent for so long, there are many things to discuss with you," she smiled. "I've missed you, Kyouya."
Kyouya nodded back to her, escorting Eloise out of the room.
"Weren't you a bit harsh?" Yoshio asked, though he remained unusually silent during the conversation.
"I don't like her, Yoshio. Kyouya is exceptional. She is… nothing special. Just another wealthy girl with too much money, she will prance through life acting like a child. If Kyouya is entertained by her now… which I'm sure he is not, it will fade. He needs someone that will spark something in him, not smile and nod and be a perfect housewife."
"Are you being slightly judgmental over one comment?" Yoshio shook his head. "She seems like a wonderful girl."
"I am always right, Yoshio. Call it maternal instinct. I know what's best for him and she is not it."
"I suppose we'll just see how this unfolds, then…"
…
"Okay, girls. This is it. Your brothers and sister are all situated, and here is your dorm. Do not argue with me about being together." Mrs. Akiyama, or Shiori Akiyama, was a laid back woman with occasional strict traits. Which really meant she was very unpredictable. Today, her hair was down on her shoulders, and she wore a white and beige dress with a matching jacket, right off the clearance rack of a very expensive store.
"We weren't going to argue with you, mom," Naoko, whose hair was in a high bun on her head, rolled her eyes as she spoke. She wore a cream colored sweater with white frilly shorts and strawberry printed tights.
"Don't be sassy with me, sweetheart. Your father and I are going to unpack our things, if you need any help, you can reach us on our phones, okay?" She waved them off, happily walking over to the teachers' residential hall across the campus.
"Come on, we're in room '3A'," Miyako was the oldest sibling, and her family often teased her about being a total hippie. She curled her hair, wore free-flowing lace, torn denim, sandals, and didn't really care if her bra or panties were showing (or if it was noticeable that she was wearing no bra at all, much to the dismay of her conservative father). She was also very affectionate, throwing her arms around complete strangers. Today, she wore a black maxi-dress printed with sunflowers and brown leather sandals that had long since seen their day.
"Woooaaaah!" Naoko spun around in the foyer of the dorm, in awe over the size of the flatscreen TV in the living room and the ornate European furniture that decorated the room. The floors were marble, the walls a white-pink color. To the left was a kitchen and dining table, to the right a living room, and beyond that two bedrooms with queen sized four-poster beds and desks. Both rooms overlooked the gardens, and there were wide windows around the dorm. "This place is amazing!"
"It really is," Miyako responded, a little less hyper than her younger sister. But still very, very excited.
"Hey, Miyako! I wonder who we're going to meet here! I just can't wait for school to start tomorrow," Naoko ran from room to room, checking in every closet and peeking out every window. "I'm kind of scared though," Naoko stopped in her tracks. "I mean, what if these rich kids don't like us…"
"Naoko, anyone who doesn't like you because of money is someone you don't want to be with. You've never had problems making friends, you're fun and energetic and outgoing. They're just people, so treat them like anyone else, okay?" Miyako playfully put her thumbs up.
"Yeah," she sheepishly laughed. "I guess you're right. They're just people," and with that, she continued to skip through the apartment.
…
The Host Club was a a strange mix of hyper and tired and upset. Well, Tamaki was, and the Twins would always be dramatic, and Honey was always hyper, just with a little worry today. Haruhi, as usual, was cool and collected, thinking about the sales she was missing by being at lunch more than Kyouya's future.
"They're heeeeere!" Honey called, looking at the Mercedes Benz parked on the street. They sat at an outdoor table of a new, posh Ginza cafe. Kyouya, wearing a black sweater-jacket and a smart pair of black jeans, escorted the brunette in a floral-printed shift dress to the table, his hand hovering behind the small of her back.
"Thank you all for coming to meet me today," Eloise curtsied at the table, her curled hair bouncing. "I am Eloise Vigier, and it is a pleasure to formally meet you all."
The table went around introducing themselves, Tamaki telling his cheesy Host Club lines. The table soon fell into an awkward silence, with Kyouya smiling politely for an uncomfortable amount of time.
"I recognize your dress from the Dolce catalogue," Kaoru tried.
"Oh, yes. You have a great eye for fashion. I just adore them, don't you?"
The Twins and Eloise soon fell into a rapid-fire conversation about fashion, which slowly faded as the rest of the table remained awkwardly silent.
"And, Haruhi? You're a scholarship student, right? How is that? Ouran must be pretty wonderful to someone of your…" she stopped herself, four words too late. Tamaki shot a death glare from across the table, though it quickly vanished behind his princely smile. "I didn't mean that."
"It's fine, you're not the first to point out my social standing and I'm sure you won't be the last," Haruhi relaxed in her chair. "Don't worry about it," still, the table was deathly silent.
"Eloise, are you going to marry Kyou-chan?" Honey asked, out of nowhere, smiling innocently as the club glared at him.
"Oh, well… if Kyouya will have me," she hesitated, "but, that's still a very far off thought," she smiled at Honey, then to the rest of the group. Kyouya smiled and nodded as well, as charming as ever. "Is anyone else just starving?" She smiled again, though this time it seemed forced, and she felt as if she might cry. For the second time that day. "We ordered so long ago, where could our food be?"
Needless to say, lunch did not go as smoothly as she hoped.
…
"Can you run a bath?" Eloise asked a maid, who nodded and hurried away. Unable to make her way up the stairs, she slumped down to the second step, her head in her hands. "Can someone get me a phone," she yelled, urgency in her voice. She dropped her head to the railing, a maid bringing over a cordless phone. She started to dial her father's number, but decided against it.
Mama? No.
Celine? No, she was on vacation, wasn't she?
Agnes? Oh, right, Agnes hated her, now.
She threw the phone across the foyer, starting to cry into her hands.
"Young Miss, what's wrong?" An elderly maid stood before her.
"They hate me! Already, they hate me! One day and I messed everything up," her voice was barely there. "I'm just… so alone," she sobbed.
"A beautiful girl like you is never alone, you'll see," the maid gently touched Eloise's shaking shoulder, and walked up the stairs. Still, she cried, wishing to just go home.
So, firstly, you may have realized that this is the second 'Chapter Two'... sorry about that! I realized that my original story plan didn't make sense, because Miyako was a scholarship student like Haruhi, and in the same class, so how would they both stay at the top of their class to keep their scholarship? (A fight to the death, perhaps?). I also didn't really like what I did with Miyako's character, I was really trying to fit her into the story, but it kept on feeling forced, so I decided to rewrite, and now I think I'm satisfied. This chapter ended up being more Eloise focused, so the next chapter will have more of an intro to Miyako. Sorry to cause any confusion!
Secondly, I made up a character for Kyouya's mom! I know there's not a lot of clarity on that whole subject, so I just decided to run with it.
Thirdly, in this story I will mostly be dropping the -chans and -sans and all that (except for Honey saying -chan), and the last name thing, because it makes my life a lot harder, heh, sorry!
Lastly, you can call me Bambi, and please tell me what you think of the story so far! Thank you for reading!
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