As always I own nothing but my ideas.

At this point Haruhi is 14.

The next morning I woke and it took a few minutes for me to remember what turned out to be a day spent mostly in an emotionally exhausted haze. To find myself in a guest room and walking to a window I found myself to be on the second floor. Huh I don't remember going upstairs and I don't remember how I got into this room. Turning from the window I turned and headed towards the door closest to me. It was the in suite bathroom - that was bigger than my old bedroom – rich bastard. Looking at the counter I found my meager collection of face care products and make up.

Walking out of the bathroom and leaving the door ajar I opened the next door and found a prominently dark room. Except for a small night light emitting a soft pale blue light; wondering if Ai was in this room I walked up to the bed bare foot and gently moved off the occupant's head and discovered my still sleeping daughter bundled in the blankets like a caterpillar. Smiling softly I gently loosened the blankets around her and left to take a shower and get ready for school. Thirty minutes later I heard a knock on my door and a female calling out to me to wake up. Shaking my head I tightened my tie and went and opened the door to see who it was and like I had suspected a uniformed maid stood before.

Shaking my head slightly I asked, "Is Ai up yet?" Receiving a negative response I thanked the maid that looked to be only a few years older to me I went and woke up Ai. Opening the blinds and letting in the strong morning light I heard Ai groan and rustling blankets. Turning around I saw my sometimes hard to wake daughter rolling over and pulling the blankets over her head. Chuckling and going back to the bed I took the edge of the blankets and tossed it towards the end of the bed. Looking at Ai I had to fight not to laugh as she gave me sleep hazy death glare.

"Time to get up sweetie."

"No!"

Laughing I picked her up and brought her to my in suite bathroom where her things had been placed as well as mine. Twenty minutes later Ai was dried and dressed and ready to go down for breakfast. Grabbing my uniform jacket and school bag Ai and I went downstairs to see what the day was going to hold. Breakfast passed by quickly with only the eldest Ootori and Kyoya also at the table. I sat next to Ai and remained predominantly quiet unknowing of what was or might have been said yesterday.

And as realizing that the senior Ootori looked from Ai to me and then said, "We'll take this evening Haruhi."

After he had left I turned to Kyoya, "What happened yesterday?" I asked.

"We'll talk after club. Until then Ai has a uniform hanging in the closet. Hurry up and get her changed and we'll go."

"Uniform for what?"

"Ai's been enrolled in the preschool on campus."

Rich bastard! "Do I want to know how that was arranged so quickly?" Smirking he pushed up his glasses and just as quickly the smirk was gone.

Going back upstairs and changing Ai we descended the stairs once again. This time with Ai wearing a cute butter cream and white dress, with white stockings, and brown dress shoes. Grabbing my jacket that someone had put on a hanger and hung off the banister and putting it on and grabbing my bag that was set below it and grabbing Ai's hand we all excited the mansion and entered the limo and set off for Ouran.

"Is there any paperwork anything along those lines that I need to deal with for Ai's entrance?" Receiving a quirk of and eyebrow was the only response I received as Kyoya continued to go through his ever present business folder. Yeah what was I thinking? Of course there won't be – the Ootori name goes a long ways. Then again if the superintendent got involved who knows what will happen.

"Where do I take her?" Instead of answering he took a manila envelope and handed it to me. Taking out the thirty or so pages that were contained; the top page was Ai's acceptance letter. The following twelve pages contained Ai's paperwork that would need to be filled out before she would be allowed to join her class – oh joy. Shaking my head I don't even bother to comment on this turn of events.

"Mommy," Ai said in the ancient tongue, "why do I get to start now?"

Continuing on in the ancient tongue, "Because Kyoya arranged for you to be admitted."

Grabbing a pen from my bag I began filling out the copious amount of paperwork that faced me. When we arrived at the school twenty minutes later I was still on the third page. We all exited the limo and then Ai and I went to the superintendent's office. Taking the strap out of my bag I put if over my left shoulder picked up Ai and set her on my left hip and continued to hold the paper in my right hand. Entering the school I received a number of looks from students and faculty that I knew. Ignoring the questions and looks I went up to the fourth floor and entered the superintendent's outer office.

"Is he available?" I asked his secretary.

"He's in with someone and will be for another half or so Haruhi."

Huh, she remembers me. Sitting down in a chair and then putting Ai in the chair next to me I continued the paperwork. When the inner office door finally opened I was surprised to see the senior Ootori exiting and closing the door behind him.

"Haruhi," that was all he said as he continued out of the office completely. I get the feeling that he wasn't here because of Kyoya. Going back to the paperwork that still needed to be finished before either of us could go to class I was startled out of my focus when I saw the superintendent standing before and trying to get my attention.

"Oh, sensei I didn't see you." Smiling he gestured for me and Ai to enter his office. After settling Ai down in one chair and putting my bag down on the floor I sat down with the now almost complete paperwork in my lap.

Sighing he again, "This most me Ai."

Smiling I turned to the chair next to me and the weirdly extremely well behaved girl next to me. "Yes."

"Haruhi I've been informed from a few members of the Ootori family that Ai is your daughter. She's three years old. Haruhi how old were you when Ai was …"

"I was eleven start to finish. I need your word that what I say in here won't go anywhere else. Nothing written, nothing said about this conversation."

Looking a bit concerned he said "ok."

"The long and the short of it simply put is that I was raped. And with everything that was going on at the time medical care really wasn't an option for over a week later. A few weeks after that I found out that I was pregnant; I couldn't stand the thought of aborting my child. So I was homeschooled that year. To prevent a lot of questions when I started to show a false positive of TB was entered into my medical files. Kotoko acted as my tutor. Not that I was really left on my own for any length of time for about year at this point. Anything else you'd like to know?"

Sitting there looking as though he was just told that the Hiroshima bombing was nothing more than mass hysteria he didn't look as though he remembered how to speak. A few minutes later he asked, "Why didn't you give her up?"

"She's my family, my daughter and if that had gotten out which is inevitable … I didn't want that life for her. So I kept her. Our neighbors were told that Ai was their niece although in reality she was their great niece."

Nodding his head and looking completely confused he asked, "Are you done with the paperwork?"

"I'm on page eleven."

Smiling he asked me, "Of which set?"

Shocked I quickly looked through the rest of the pages on my lap and then felt like crying. Everything except the first page and the last five pages needed to be filled out. "The first."

Smiling in sympathy of the work ahead of me he told about a conference room in the elementary school that I could use to finish up the paperwork and that the first set went to his secretary, the second went to the elementary school director, and the last went to the nurses office.

Sighing heavily, I stood and heard the bell to signal that first period had ended. Collected everything I'd brought in and got Ai off the chair and headed for the door. Stopping suddenly I turned, "Why is Ai here today?"

"Testing."

"In uniform?"

"Haruhi, she's your daughter. The testing is just a formality. And her picture will be taken after the paperwork has been handed in. Come see me this afternoon after all the paperwork is done."

Turning back to the door, opening it and walking through; just before I'd shut the door I heard, "Oh and Haruhi your teachers aren't expecting you in class today."

Great missing two days in a row.