oOoOo

Unsure of the time, the trio headed straight to the marina. They arrived to find several island staff loading box after box onto a 40 foot yacht, while Kyoya stood nearby checking things off on a clip board.

"What's all this?" Haruhi asked as they approached the dock.

"Our lunch," Kyoya replied, checking off another item on his list.

"Spoiled rich bastards," Haruhi mumbled as she climbed aboard to explore the boat.

The sailboat was long and sleek. The captain's wheel stood in the stern with seating along either side. A single mast towered over 50 feet above her head. The cabin below contained a galley, a navigation station, and a bathroom. The area was small, but richly furnished with polished wood and soft cushions on the seats. There were also three separate sleeping quarters; one with a private bath. 'This boat has more bathrooms than my apartment,' noted Haruhi, shaking her head at the excessiveness of it all. She watched the staff stow the abundance of food as she tried to stay out of their way.

Back on deck, the Host Club members were finally assembled, and were nearly ready to set sail. As it turned out, most of the members, except Haruhi of course, owned boats of their own and had plenty of sailing experience. It was decided that Kyoya would act as captain, and the twins would be his first mates.

Tamaki held out a bottle of sunscreen to Haruhi. "You should put some of this on. I wouldn't want your fair skin to get burned." he said with concern.

She reached for the bottle, but it was snatched away by Hikaru. "We'll help!" proposed the twins, and they began slathering the lotion up and down her arms without waiting for a response. Tamaki seethed as he watched the pair rub their hands over his precious daughter.

Haruhi grabbed the bottle from them. "I can handle this myself," she protested, sitting down to apply the lotion to her legs. The disappointed twins shrugged and began rubbing the lotion that remained on their hands over each other.

Finally, all the preparations were done. Kyoya gave a brief talk about boating safety, pointing out the location of the life preservers and the inflatable dinghy. Haruhi made herself comfortable on deck as they motored out of the marina. She had decided it was silly to worry about old sailor lore and bad luck superstitions. She had never been sailing before, and she was determined to enjoy this trip.

They waited until they were out of the lagoon and past the coral reef before raising the sails. Once they did, the boat picked up speed. Honey called to Haruhi from the front of the boat. "Come on up here, this is fun." She carefully crawled toward the bow, where Mori and Honey sat. She settled herself between them.

"Wheeee!" called Honey as the boat bounced over the waves.

Haruhi couldn't help but smile as the breeze blew through her hair and the sea spray splashed her face. The ride up here was rougher, and it felt like she was on a roller coaster. It was fun, but her stomach couldn't take it for long. "I'm going back to the other end," she yelled over the wind as she pointed toward the stern. Again, she cautiously made her way along the side of the boat, holding tightly to the lifeline as she went.

When she reached the stern, Tamaki cried out excitedly, "Look! Over there!" He pointed out over the starboard side of the boat. There in the ocean were fins popping out of the water, coming closer to the boat. It was a school of dolphins keeping pace with them while they sailed across the water. They all watched in amazement as the dolphins swam alongside them, occasionally breaching the waves. Haruhi had never seen anything like it in her life. She was glad she hadn't backed out of this trip. Eventually the pod broke away from the boat, and Haruhi was sad to see them go.

The ocean was dotted with many small islands. Some of them had signs of life, but others were little more than a pile of sand sticking out of the water with a tree or two on them. They slowed their pace as they carefully navigated between them. They eventually found a spot that was shallow enough for them to drop the anchor and go for a swim. Hikaru and Kaoru took in the sails, while Kyoya lowered the anchor into the water.

Once everything was set, Hikaru pulled his knapsack from under the bench where he had stashed it. "Here's your swimsuit Haruhi," he said, pulling it from the bag. "It's still damp from this morning, but that should be okay. It's only going to get wet again anyway."

Tamaki grabbed the suit from Hikaru's hand. "What are you doing with Haruhi's bathing suit, and why is it wet already? I thought you just went spelunking this morning!"

The twins flanked the girl and wrapped their arms around her. "We did," they asserted, "but you never know what you might find in a dark, secluded cave." They both smirked mischievously, leaning their heads over on top of Haruhi's.

"You unscrupulous twins! Stay away from my innocent daughter!" With that he tried to pull her out of their grasp.

She struggled to free herself from all three of the boys. "Enough!" she ordered, and they all immediately let go of her. "It doesn't matter anyway. I don't plan to go swimming right now. I would rather remain on the boat." Two dips in the water had been enough for her for one day. She did not wish to tempt fate.

Secure in the knowledge that Haruhi would not be seen in a bathing suit by the others, Tamaki relented and went below to change. Honey and Mori were just emerging from the companionway having gone below to change before the argument started. Mori did a perfect dive off the back of the boat, followed closely by Honey, who jumped in holding a colorful floatation ring. Mori swam back over to the boat and asked Kyoya to hand him a rope. He tied one end to the boat and the other to Honey's ring. "I don't want you floating away," he explained.

"Thank-you Takashi!" Honey squealed, giving his friend a hug. The pair were soon joined by the twins, who each tried to see who could make the bigger splash as he hit the water. Tamaki came out and sat on the back of the boat.

"Aren't you coming in Milord?" asked Kaoru.

"Yes, the water is fine. See?" Hikaru sent a spray of water toward Tamaki so he could experience it for himself.

"Why you…!" he bellowed and dove in to chase after the twins who swam away laughing.

"Aren't you going in?" Haruhi asked Kyoya.

"No, I think it wiser to stay right here."

"I agree," she replied with a chuckle watching the chaos in the water.

"Are you still worried about bad weather?" he asked.

Haruhi looked up. The sky above them was a brilliant blue. "No, I guess not."

"Then, you're glad you came?"

"Absolutely."

"Good, I would hate to think you weren't enjoying yourself."

"Kyoya, I'm surprised," she said looking up at him. "Why would you care if I were enjoying myself or not? What do you get out of it?"

Kyoya hesitated before answering. "I thought it would be apparent. The Host Club came on this vacation to relax and reduce stress. When we return to school, we will all be refreshed, and will be able to do our best as hosts and increase our profit."

"Right," she said, unconvinced. She smiled when she noticed a slight blush to his cheeks. Perhaps there was more to this boy than she thought.

Kyoya was feeling exceedingly uncomfortable. He did not like it when someone could see through him so easily. He had developed a fondness for the girl, but his father had also taken a liking to her. If Kyoya pursued her, he would be playing right into his father's hand. He did not like being manipulated like that. But was that a good enough reason not to go after something he desired. He looked at her as she watched the others playing in the water. She laughed as the twins dunked Tamaki under. What was it about this plain looking commoner that intrigued him so? She suddenly turned and saw him staring at her.

"Kyoya?" she questioned.

"Oh,…I was just…thinking," he replied, flustered at being caught off guard. "Maybe we should start preparing lunch."

"Good idea," she said, standing up. "I'll go get started. Why don't you tell the others so they can get out and get dried off?" She went below deck to see what had been delivered for lunch.

Lunch was not the light picnic Haruhi would expect for an afternoon outing. It was more like the grand buffet on a luxury cruise. The hosts all sat around and ate their fill of the high class fare while they laughed and joked. Everyone was having such a good time that none of them noticed the dark clouds gathering to the south east. Perhaps if they had, their excursion might have turned out differently.

oOoOo

A/N: I know what you're thinking. "Enough foreshadowing! Get on with it already!" You're right. Up next…the storm arrives!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Host Club characters. I am only borrowing them, again. I promise to put them back when I'm done. I did last time