The next morning brought three sleepy teenage males to sitting around the pale wood kitchen table, the only sounds being made the sound of toast crunching in between teeth.
"So…there's still one class we haven't been to yet this week." Ryuuji mumbled as he stifled a yawn. His long hair made a partial mane with the way it had ruffled, and without his glasses, the light haired male looked as though he were about to go on a killing spree.
"And which one is that?" Renji yawned.
"World History."
"Ugh." Ryoka groaned, banging his head down on the table. "History."
"Hey, at least you can remember everything after hearing it." Ryuuji protested. "Some of us actually have to make an effort."
"That would be me." Renji scowled, earning snickers from both of his shorter brothers. "But hey, what I lack in photographic memory I make up for in height."
"WE'RE NOT SHORT, DAMNIT!" Ryuuji and Ryoka snarled. "WE'RE FIVE FOOT SEVEN!"
Renji shrugged, leaning back in his seat. His eyes had suddenly gained a brighter glint to them, and subconsciously, the other two of the triplets leaned away from their five foot eleven brother, wondering what they had said to set him off.
"Maybe I should bring Elizabeth with me today." He mused to himself, causing his brother's faces to go blank. Sharing a glance, they both wondered how being short had made Renji go into that particular train of thought.
"I don't care as long as you keep that thing far away from me." Ryoka deadpanned, getting up with his plate and moving over to the sink. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go get dressed. If you two want to walk with me, I'm leaving in ten minutes."
Ryuuji waved a hand vaguely at Ryoka before turning his attention back to the remaining piece of toast lying on his plate. Renji sighed; shoving the last bite of his own toast into his mouth before grabbing the glass and plate he'd been using and deposited them into the sink before taking his own leave to get dressed. Ryuuji would be fine to finish his breakfast on his own. Besides, it wasn't as if World History was the first class of the day.
-;-
Elizabeth, as she was affectionately named, happened to be a three and a half foot long caramel albino spider ball python that Renji had been given by his parents after discovering both how enigmatic the creatures were and how afraid of them Ryoka happened to be. After several years, the snake was hard pressed to not be around her partner, and Renji preferred keeping her with him most times. Although he hadn't brought her to the Academy yet, due to the fact that he needed to get used to the new surroundings first.
Moving over to the gigantic tank set against one wall, Renji opened the top of the enclosure and held out his arm, smiling affectionately at the reptile as she automatically coiled up his arm. Gently, he pulled back and ran a finger down the top of the python's skull, receiving a soft nudge in return as Elizabeth moved up around his shoulders and coiled her tail loosely around his neck, hanging like a scarf over his white uniform shirt.
"Renji! Hurry up and get your ass down here! We're leaving!"
"Coming!" he called back, grabbing his schoolbag and slinging it over his shoulder before exiting his room and closing the door tightly behind him.
-;-
"KIZUKO!"
"Yeah?" Renji, Ryuuji and Ryoka chimed cheerily back at the teacher standing at the front of the class. "Something you need, Ms. Okazaki?"
"Not you two! Tall Kizuko! What is hanging around your neck?"
Renji glanced down for a moment at the content Elizabeth hanging around his neck before looking back to the dark haired teacher with a definite 'I don't know what you're talking about' look.
"Elizabeth." He said simply, flashing a grin.
"YOU NAMED A SNAKE!?"
"Well, yeah. She is my pet, you know." He replied, tilting his head to one side and crossing his arms. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the blond Tamaki Suoh looking horrified next to Ryoka, and Ryuuji simply shaking his head as he smirked at his triplets' behavior. "Otherwise I'm sure she wouldn't be here right now."
Ms. Okazaki looked torn between grimacing and throwing Renji out of her class for the cheeky remarks he was sending her way, but before she could make a decision, there came a knock on the door. Without a further glance their way, the teacher made her way to the door to answer whoever it was, completely distracted from the topic at hand and successfully leaving the light haired triplets out of the spotlight for the rest of the class.
Smug, Renji leaned back in his seat and rubbed the top of Elizabeth's head, small little hearts popping up around the snake as he did so.
-;-
It turned out that the rest of the week turned out to be the same sort of pattern, once word began to spread that the transfer brothers were definitely a little more strange than the normal part of the population at Ouran Academy. The teachers in the remainder of the classes demanded that the male put his snake away until the end of class, to which said triplet conveniently forgot to follow through with. Personally, he was having the time of his life, being able to terrorize not only Ryoka, but the blond haired moron in their World History class who had happened to meet Ryoka in the wrong situation.
By the time the night of the party rolled around, everyone's attention had been diverted from the new students, however, and refocused on the Host Club. After all, it wasn't hard to forget when there was an entire population of female students fawning over the males in fancy uniform.
"It is so good to see you here tonight, my little lambs." Tamaki began, raising a hand in an elegant gesture. The single spotlight shining down on him had most of the female population wondering what was going to happen next. "The Ouran Host Club would like to bid you…Welcome."
With that, the lights illuminated the hall, and the orchestra began playing a soft melody off to one side. As one, the Host Club took a bow, all of the males clad in varying shades of suits. Renji blinked against the sudden difference in lighting, while Ryoka just huffed and looked like he wanted nothing more than to escape the hell that he called 'party'. Ryuuji, on the other hand, was already weaving through the crowd of women, gaining their attention in his own subtle manner. After all, with his long hair trailing to the small of his back, and his glasses perched primly on the edge of his nose, combined with the simple black and white suit he had chosen to wear, there was almost no chance of someone ignoring him.
"As always, ladies, the Host Club members are here for your entertainment. So we invite you to dance to your heart's content. Based on their dancing skills, one lucky young lady will be chosen as tonight's Queen. The Queen's reward will be a passionate kiss on the cheek from our King." Kyoya stated in a matter-of-fact way, bringing out his hands in a smooth motion.
"Good luck to you…my darlings." Tamaki winked, flicking out a hand, roses floating around in the background. As if on cue, squeals of joy erupted from the crowd of women, and there were a good handful who simply collapsed, hearts leaping from their eyes.
"Haruhi, show some enthusiasm." Renji could hear over the sounds of the crowd. Glancing in the direction of the voices, he snorted at the distinctly unimpressed look that the brown haired host in the matching suit was wearing. Obviously Ryoka wasn't alone in the fact that he didn't enjoy these sorts of events.
"Uhh…excuse me? Renji-san…?"
Renji blinked, turning his attention to a small group of girls in brightly colored dresses blushing and muttering furiously to one another. One of them, the ringleader by the looks of things, had gained enough courage to actually step towards him and ask him something, but didn't dare move within a foot of the male.
"Is there something I can help you with?" he asked, already having a feeling he knew what the answer was going to be.
"Would you- Would you care to dance?" the ringleader asked, her cheeks stained a bright red.
Renji internally sighed, but knew he really couldn't say no. He had been raised better than that, after all. He hadn't even brought Elizabeth with him to the party, though God knew he had been sorely tempted to do so in order to scare off the foolish girls who fawned at him from the shadows. Smoothly, he flashed a grin at the girl, holding out his hand to further soothe her.
Hearts flashed in her eyes, and dazedly, she stumbled after him like the lamb that she had been referred to moments before. Rolling his eyes slightly, Renji repressed the urge to sigh once again, instead whirling the love-struck girl around before neatly pulling her close and beginning to dance.
-;-
Ryuuji, on the other hand, was having no problems in avoiding his own little group of lost puppies, considering that he was steadily moving throughout the crowd and politely declining to dance with anyone. Which really only consisted of one poor soul who had managed to build up enough courage to do so. But in the end, she hadn't exactly left heartbroken, considering that Ryuuji had murmured several lines of poetry into her ear before continuing on.
But no; Ryuuji had a target in mind as he watched the brown clad host stand awkwardly to one side. It was igniting the insatiable curiosity that all of the Kizukos possessed, and now was one of the times that he refused to simply ignore it. After all, it wasn't as if he had anything better to do.
-;-
"There she is." Hikaru commented as Mori set the extremely confused Haruhi down on her own two legs again after kidnapping her from the main hall seconds before.
"You didn't have to be so forceful!" she protested hotly, only to blink as a white bag was shoved into her arms.
"Never mind that." Hikaru drawled. "Go get changed."
"Yeah!" Honey cheered, tackling the girl from behind and sending her stumbling through the curtain that was hanging behind her.
"A little accident towards the end of the night would be quite thrilling." Kyoya said, checking his watch. An eager Honey glowed in front of him, small pink flowers hovering around his head. "And remember, Haruhi, there are only twenty minutes remaining before the party's climax. Suzushima is already waiting for you in a classroom across the hall."
"You have to ask him how he feels, okay?" Honey said seriously.
"Uh, we know this is the Boss' strategy, but this is still kind of unsettling." The twins chorused as they got to work on Haruhi's makeup.
So he is a she… Ryoka thought to himself as he watched through a crack in the door. How intriguing…
"Gentlemen, here you all are. What are you doing? The guests are waiting for-"
Tamaki froze in the middle of his sentence as Haruhi stood, turning to face the Host Club King directly. She was wearing a long brown wig to cover her short hair, and a light pink dress hung neatly against her slight curves. The twins' makeup job had been done to perfection, and her dark almond eyes were now framed with long lashes and a pale shade of blush dusted her cheeks.
"So, what do you think?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked, identical smug smirks plastered on their faces as they sidled up to Tamaki.
"Wow, you look so cute!"
"My face feels heavy and it's hard to walk in these shoes." The brunette grumbled, tottering past Honey, Kyoya and Mori.
"Good luck Haruhi!" the twins waved as she made her way out into the hall.
Ryoka easily slipped behind one of the ornate statues that decorated the corridor, his mismatched eyes gleaming in the dark as he processed what had just happened. Haruhi, whoever this girl was, was pretending to be a host for some unknown reason. What he really wanted to know now was why.
"I should probably get back to the others." He hummed softly to himself, shoving his hands in his pockets and walking in the other direction down the hall.
-;-
Spotlights snapped on, lighting up the couple as they darted through the cherry blossom trees. Pausing, the pair shielded their eyes, wondering where on earth the light was coming from.
"Ladies and Gentlemen." Tamaki's smooth tone said softly. "It is now time for us to begin the final dance of this evening's festivities."
The doors to the hall opened, and curious partygoers flooded the small balconies that overlooked the grounds below. Among them, Renji and Ryuuji. The two males had been avoiding most of the girls for the evening after the initial start to the evening, and had then proceeded to retreat for their own safety. However, it hadn't deterred the girls to continue, for lack of a better word, stalking them. No, they had persisted, and Renji was now seriously beginning to regret not bringing Elizabeth along for company.
"The last waltz of the night has been chosen by the Host Club for...this couple." Tamaki gestured with a hand in the direction of the Princess Kasuka and Suzushima, who looked as though they didn't quite know what to make of this situation. However, Suzushima gained enough nerve to offer a hand and ask the Princess to dance with him, so things couldn't be all that bad.
"What did I miss?" Ryoka asked as he smoothly slid between his brothers. Ryuuji shrugged nonchalantly, while Renji simply nodded his head in the direction of the now dancing couple.
"Not much, actually."
"Huh. I've got something you should know. Tell you later." The mismatched triplet muttered, waving off the now curious stares he was receiving from his brothers.
"Ah. May this awkward couple be forever blessed!" The blond Host Club leader sighed dreamily, swinging his arms out and nearly taking out poor Haruhi, who looked unamused with the male's usual antics.
"And now we'll announce the Queen of the ball!" Hikaru yelled cheerfully, a banana peel dangling from his hand.
"Congratulations to Princess Kanako Kasukazaki!" Kaoru added, a banana peel also dangling from his hand.
"How much do you want to bet something's going to go wrong here?" Ryuuji murmured out of the corner of his mouth to Renji. Said male tilted his head to one side thoughtfully for a moment before shrugging.
"Twenty."
"You're on."
"And for her reward, a kiss on the cheek from the King!" Hikaru grinned. It didn't go unnoticed by any of the triplets that the banana peels had suddenly disappeared from the twins' hands, but they were focused too much on the looks on everyone else's faces to really be paying attention to what the consequences might be.
"Haruhi Fujioka will stand in for Tamaki!" Kaoru called, facial expression not changing a bit from the cheery grin plastered all over his face.
"Kyoya did say that a little accident towards the end of the night might be even more thrilling for everyone." The twins smirked as both Tamaki's and Haruhi's faces looked horrified.
"There's no way I can kiss her." Ryoka heard Haruhi hiss to the other hosts.
"If you do it we'll cut your debt by one third." Kyoya chimed in casually, writing down something in his notebook.
"Well, it is just a peck on the cheek…"
The supposed male began stepping down the steps towards Kanako, and the girl moved forwards to greet Haruhi.
"Hey! You don't think this is Haru-chan's first kiss, do you?" Honey asked curiously, leaning over the rail.
"What?" Tamaki moaned breathlessly before launching himself through the air. "Wait, Haruhi!"
However, the damage had been done. The banana peels that the twins had earlier slipped onto the stairs came into play, and the King of the Hosts just happened to slip on one, accidentally shoving the two girls together.
The problem was, the peck on the cheek turned into a full on kiss that neither of them had been expecting. Roses bloomed around the pair, and their wide eyes continued to stare at one another for a long moment before jumping away like they'd been electrocuted.
Squeals erupted from the crowd of women watching, and the triplets cracked up at the astonished horror they could see on the Host Club King's face. Money traded hands for a brief moment, and then Renji and Ryuuji were back to laughing at the expense of the eccentric male who had unwittingly caused this embarrassment.
-;-
"Now that was worth coming for." Ryuuji snickered as the triplets walked along the side of the road, all three in the simple black and white suits. However, Ryuuji had unbuttoned his shirt, Ryoka had completely discarded the tie and cuffs, and Renji was carrying his jacket under one arm. "The look on their faces!"
"That one host, Haruhi…isn't actually a man." Ryoka stated calmly. "I was doing some exploring-"
"Hiding." Renji coughed.
"Exploring." Ryoka snapped before getting back on track, "And I saw her with the hosts. Turns out that she's just dressing up like a host for some reason."
"That's odd. I wonder why." Renji mused, tilting his head back to look up at the sky.
"No idea, but we should find out!" Ryuuji chimed in eagerly before tripping over a crack in the sidewalk and doing a full faceplant into the ground.
"Y'know, I have to wonder how you're usually so good at sneaking up on people…and then you go and do something like this." Ryoka snorted, grabbing his brother by the scruff of his neck and righting him again before continuing on. "You're going to want to try and do something about that if you want to be an assassin or whatever the hell it is you want to do."
"Ah, shut up."
"Why? Did he hit a nerve?"
"YOU'RE ALL AGAINST ME!" Ryuuji wailed amid his brothers laughter.