Fanfiction by Ann Callihan
I do not own the characters of Ouran High School Host Club.
Only Marissa do I own.
"Nothing's better than an all-nighter with Pandora in the background." –Ann Callihan
Introduction to Ouran
Cracks of light gleamed through the blinds stirring me from my unsettling sleep. Wrapped in the white sheets thoroughly, I fought with the bedspread for my escape as I tumbled out of the bed. Eventually I won, being able to trudge into my bathroom only to face myself- three times. A reflection stuck her tongue out at me as I did in return, scowling at my bed-ridden hair.
Quickly, in a rather mad dash, I braided my long black hair down my back and washed my face. After performing the other needed morning functions I turned back into my bedroom to discover my dress had been laid out for me. At least they weren't going to try and help me change. I smirked lightly at the thought- all the servants, in fact everyone but me and Hard Master's wife, were males.
"Oh, Princess!" The servant at my door gasped lightly as I walked from my room. Quickly I turned expecting something to be wrong. This boy was younger than most of the other servants, but still a few good years older than me. He wore his long blond hair up in a simple pony tail, his face white with shock.
"Is there a problem?" I inquired tilting my head down slightly while kicking my left foot against my ankle. A momentary silence passed between the two of us as the man gapped at me. For a second his eyes followed my shape, then speedily flicked back to meet my own dark orbs.
A small clamor came from down the hall as a group of servants came from their morning duties. Rather than stand awkwardly in the way I bowed softly to the blond servant mumbling a quick excuse. As I turned my ears pricked at the sound of my name, but I was too rushed to over think such things.
Upon entering the kitchen area I acknowledged the staff and grabbed myself an apple, only to be declined the simple commoner food. Before I could protest I was quickly swept out into the vast dining room. Soon I found myself to be alone once again. A small sigh escaped my lips as I stood for a moment. Quickly I took my seat and pulled out my phone. Normally I don't ever use my phone, as on my home island a phone is unnecessary when you can just run a mile and get to town, let alone the other homes.
"Two new messages?" I cocked my head at the phone screen selecting the little mail button in the bottom corner. First was a number I did not recognize, the message stated something odd, about a large company that wished to welcome me into Tokyo. "Ootori." I tried to pronounce the name, coming out unsuccessful with an odd "Owi-tor-i." Shrugging I saved the number in my contact list just in case something would come up again.
Guess being a princess causes for some commotion. My second was from my father. Instantly a warm smile floods my lips as I read over his grammatically erroneous text message. Because I was trying to use Japanese more than Tagalog, my father, who once was fluent attempted to send me a text in Japanese.
"You're already out." Kasanoda-senpai slid open the door walking to my side carefully. Each of his steps seemed almost predetermined. His uniform was messy, the tie left hanging loosely from his neck, and the collar flipped up while his jacket remained unbuttoned. As I stared the boy turned away, a small hint a red creeping onto his ears, or perhaps that was his hair. Just like yesterday he wore his long hair up, bangs half down just obscuring his face.
After a moment I averted my gaze and looked back down at my phone. The screen had gone black, as I had no touched it for a deal of time. Would I be rude to respond to the texts right now, in front of Kasanoda-senpai? Or would I be rude to wait longer? Suddenly a question formed in my mind. Though I had not been thinking this over of the day, last night I know I was quiet perplexed with this problem. I turned swiftly, calling out to Kasanoda-senpai, a little loud for my voice, nearly causing the boy to fall back at his seat.
"What?" He turned at my wide eyed. I had grabbed hold of his shoulder in recoil to his flailing. Softly I left go and turned face. My head tilted to the side, my forefinger tapping at the table rhythmically. My legs crossed at the ankles and I sighed softly.
"Mmm, well, this seems dumb to ask now, after only knowing you for a day, but I don't really understand some of the cultural things here…"My hand waved around with my words, as if playing a small dance. While I spoke the stare of his softened eyes lingered on my side. His weight shifted beside me as he placed his hands on the table. "But, I was wondering, if I could call you by your first name?"
The male shrugged beside me, folding his arms promptly at my words. He ducked his head down slightly as he spoke softly to my request. "Well you outrank me, you can call me anything you want, Princess." My face recoiled at the title, really I wasn't a princess. Princess' have fancy dresses and impossibly perfect faces and wealth beyond imagination and Princes to come sweep them off their feet. I just have my father and some friends. My island may be small, and maybe not as rich as most countries, but my island sees me as me. Not something unattainable.
"I am no such thing, you know this. And asking for permission makes me feel more…" My words faded as I tried to sum my emotions up in a way I would not insult him. In response my body forgot language and I lifted my left hand appearing to hold an orb just as large as my hand, my fingers curved around the imaginary glass. Then, as if I threw the fake object, my wrist flicked forward while my elbow remained glued to the woodened table.
A hearty laugh bursts from the male beside me at my complex face and odd movement. "Okay, okay, I give you permission." He lifted his finger wagging the digit before my nose. "But, on one condition." I nodded my head eagerly. "No calling me senpai, it's weird, you're my same age."
I pouted, knowing that he was in a sense my superior when we trained. I tapped my chin despite the cliché of the movement. Quickly I come up with a secondary offer. "How about I only call you senpai when you train me, because you are, my senpai that is, in that department." I tilted my head down slightly looking up into his glazed auburn eyes.
Ritsu pursed his lips, a dark shade coming over his eyes. After a moment of studying me the male threw his arms up in surrender. "Okay, but only then, Mari." He glanced over at me quickly, a small smirk forming on his lips. Suddenly a whole line of servants entered before I could say anything else to Kasanoda. Each of the men carried a platter filled with some sort of breakfast type meal. My heart sank as I could not find any simple fruits on the different dishes.
As the waiters left us, going to eat in the kitchen, I glanced around, finding nothing of my tastes. "I'll be back…" I mumble softly as shuffled from my spot towards the door. Kasanoda nodded his head; the sound of feet against wood grew just as I left the room. Perhaps his parents were coming in to eat with him.
As I pushed the door into the kitchen opened with subtle chatter running up the crowded room out the open window. Some of the men sat at the small table by the window, making small talk between bites. Another group stood at the sink working on washing all the dishes they had used to cook the breakfast feast outside. The rest spread across the room, eating and conversing with another, all smiling. That is until someone noticed me starring.
"Princess!" All commotion froze as eyes turned my way. I pulled my lips back before quickly looking downwards. My hands found their way to my long braid as I regained my composure. I had only wanted a normal apple… Finally someone stepped up, the same man from the day before, who opened the door for me. "Is there a problem princess?"
I blinked lightly at his question, suddenly I felt short while looking up at him. I had rushed in so quickly I had not really seen how tall he was. In fact, looking around almost all the workers were taller than me. "Oh, I was just wondering if I could have an apple. Just an apple." More silence commenced as they stared at me as if my words were jumping on my head.
"Does the food out there not please you?" Another man, one who wore his long hair down simply, asked. I lifted my hand gently to answer him, only for another voice to ring in my ears.
"There is apple cobbler, most say that is not breakfast, but it is sweet for the mornings." This time the voice came from the small table, his face was obscured until the ring of men parted giving my full view. He was older, wearing a black beard and graying hair. My mouth hung open as I stumbled to make out words to explain.
"Hey guys, stop, she can barely speak." The first man who greeted me waved the others off. "I'll help the Princess-"
"Mari." I stood, starring down at my feet, my arms hanging beside my waist, but never touching my side. Tightly my fists clutched together as I narrowed my eyes. "Mari." I repeated once again. "Don't call me Princess, the Princess, or Princess Mari, I am just Mari." The room weighted heavily on all our shoulders, pushing a few down. Those that knew a little about my heritage backed up slowly at my stance.
"Mari, I'll help you, Mari." The man swallowed heartily taking back his previous statement. In a swift movement I crossed my arms and tilted my head. Watching while he moved the male walked over to the fridge pulling out a shiny red apple. "This is what you want?" He asked with raised eyebrows. Only nodding in response the man threw me the fruit, a small smile forming on his lips.
"Thank you." I turned away hesitatively. What was that smile for? As I exited the room a sudden feeling a warmth over came me. I lifted my head upwards, leaving my mouth half-open before uttering a word. A swift figure pulled me by my arm, a tight hold but nothing hostile.
Instead of asking any questions I went along with my surroundings. The red hair whipping before my face told me I was in safe hands. "We got to hurry! I lost track of time, the school is going to start in twenty minutes!" Ritsu frantically lead me out of the grand home pushing us both into a sleek black car. "Hurry Rayu!" The redhead commanded his driver.
"Ritsu, we have twenty minutes, right? So what's the hurry?" Once I was buckled in I turned to the male. His uniform remained a mess as he hurried at his seat belt. Spastically the male glanced at me, his worry in a grand expression of darkness and leer painted on his face.
"Err, well…" Kasanoda ruffled his hair slightly while turning to look out the window. Carefully the ginger hid his face with the excuse of something interesting outside. "Traffic gets really bad in Tokyo, even if we are just a ten minutes away. And…" With his next words red started to creep on his ear tips. "I wanted to give you a quick tour of campus."
Nothing but a smile held on my face as I chuckled. My arms loosened sitting peacefully on my lap. Bliss overcame me as I looked out the tinted car window. Tokyo had something close to wonders compared to my island home for sure.
"Ep!" I let out a shill surprise as my thigh vibrated along with my bag. While trying to push away a growing blush I dug through the different pockets trying to find the source of my sudden disharmony. My phone! I held the slick black object up, terror instantly filling my whitening face. "Oh dear, that's so dumb of me!"
I sat there gaping shaking my hands back and forth while the electrical device sat on my lap. In curiosity Ritsu leaned over, placing his arm against my door side to prop himself in place. With head hovered beside my cheek as he starred down at the black smart phone. "Hmm? This is from the Ootori family, wow, got connections?" He chuckled at me while reading on with the text.
"Ahh! I meant to reply to them a half hour ago! What do I do now?" I turned my head, to face him, a simple gesture really. Until I forgot how close he really was to me. Our noses made contact, officially knowing more than any nose needs to know about another nose. Both our faces flushed, neither of us really knowing what to do.
"Wah!" Our bodies crashed forward together, him landing above me, just barely hovering as he was held up by the safety belt. I turned from under him, now propped up against the window tightly. Our eyes widened as adrenaline and hormones blasted through our system. Sure Ritsu was a cute guy, and sure maybe up close he could be called really, really cute. But the spinning car that now seemed like a death trap held bay to any other emotions than utter fear.
"Are you two okay?" The driver craned his head back to check on us. An apologetic expression filled his face as he explained. "A car nearly hit us, I had to swerve away, but we ended up off road." A groan followed soon after as Kasanoda sighed heavily.
"Looks like we'll be a little late today." He glanced down, a sad smile gleaming through his eyes. "Sorry, Mari. What a way to put a dent in your first day." As he untangled himself from the rubik-cube like seatbelt I smiled at the strange situation. My phone was clutched in my hand tightly, I was even hearing voices. Wait- voices?
Quickly I brought the phone up to my head. "H-Hello?" I spoke out shyly. Quickly I caught a glance down at the now light-up screen. The name I had entered this morning flashed into my eyes as I gasped lightly at my clumsy act. How could I be so carefree? How much had they heard? Readjusting my view I could read the time to been just under a minute. I exhaled swiftly before bringing the phone back to my ear.
"Princess Mari, correct?" A deep, but somewhat smoothing, voice came from my speaker. Chills ran down my spine as I listened to the mischievously caring sound. The man sounded younger than I had expected, in fact, he almost sounded around my age. "You called, but there seemed to be a bit of a ruckus." He continued explaining his view of the situation.
As I staggered out of the car I held to the phone dearly, clinging to it as it was my life. "Ah, yes, well. Funny you say, I had just opened your message you sent me, and well, the driver you see-" My words fumbled over another. Even in person I was a terrible speaker! Now I could barely remember how to structure a sentence in Japanese! "We nearly were hit, but instead ended up in this road side gutter. I guess we are close to the school…" My voice faded as I took in my surroundings. The road we landed in appeared to be a bottle neck into a single road lined with uniform decorations enough to shame an emperor.
"Oh my," The male sounded the least bit surprised, or even worried. In a sense a hint of happiness echoed from the man. "That sounds tragic. Shall I send an escort to come fetch you? It would only take a few moments." Kasanoda glanced over to me, as we were now standing beside the undamaged, but stuck car. We two exchanged glances speaking in blinks and movements of eyebrows before we came to a conclusion.
"Well, I'm sure that the tow will be here soon, Rayu has already begun to call them." I smiled, forcing the cheerful ignorance through the phone line to his ear. Kasanoda nodded his head approvingly, something about this scenario seemed off. Why would a total stranger, who I don't even know how he got my phone number, offer me help? Is that even legal? I narrowed my eyes slightly at my thoughts. All this trouble began to bother me, as my mind began to pinch tightly against my forehead.
Taking my polite decline and throwing it out the window, the male chuckled through the receiver. The mischievous sound caught me so off I forgot to even listen to his next words. My mind repeated the sound, wishing that his body was before my so I could match his stance to his voice. After a momentary silence I clicked back asking what he had said last. "I have called a school worker to go fetch you, and I will meet you in the lobby for your tour. You will get here on time, but the tour will go into your first class. I will see you then." Quickly the man hung up leaving me in a state of stammer.
"What did he say, Mari?" The redhead before me took another step closer to me. The driver watched us, switching his attention between our conversation and the voice in his own phone. Rubbing my silk covered arms I muttered a few things, incomprehensible to all but me. The phone found its way into my bag, Kasanoda being kind enough to have grabbed it from the car when he exited.
After I gathered my breath I looked down the twisting road, seeing a sleek black car round the corner. "He sent help." I mumbled turning towards Kasanoda. "Ritsu…?" I questioned burrowing my eyebrows together. "That was a student, wasn't it?" Slightly more aware and less numbed I focused on his expression, seeing no attempt to hide the disdainful scorn.
A minute later and we were at the school entrance. I gaped at the royal design, how intricate each detail as, from the smallest flower to the largest of buildings. Everything was beautiful beyond comprehension. The school was separated into three separate buildings, each mirroring a palace of Europe. A school official, someone dressed in a simple, yet genuine, uniform smiled kindly to me and Ritsu as they held open the side door for us. Careful not to trip on my dress I walked forward, taking tentative steps towards the buildings. I looked up towards the tops, circling myself to see each separate building. "Wow…" I gasped lightly. Everything seemed even more amazing up close.
"Miss Callieen, Mr. Kyoya Ootori is waiting for you past the door." The escort scooped his head slightly, as if nudging me towards the grand building. A defining chime rang through the school yard, causing Ritsu to jump up unexpectedly. The escort now turned to the nervous redhead giving him instruction to go to attendance for his pass to enter first class late.
Before leaving he glanced back at me, a worried expression filling his face. He frowned promptly, then lifted his right hand to wave goodbye. "I'll see you at lunch. Have a good day." A forced smile curved his lips up. I smiled somberly at the male. His wishes to give me a tour were diminished, but I was no less happy with him. To reassure his confidence I grabbed hold of his hand, turning the boy to face me, then pulled him towards me, as if to hug, but left our arms out to the side, and our bodies side by side.
"That means Farewell, to the ones we consider most important." I backed up dropping his hand smiling innocently. A soft shade of red covered his cheeks as he grinned back at me. Now in a happier mood Ritsu left heading to his destination. Now I was left to meet this Ootori.
I carefully opened the door half expecting a complete creep to jump from the shadows and tackle me. Rather a strange boy, I faced a handsome, tall, young man. He turned from his place at the counter to greet me, his dazzling smile sending chills down my spine. Though his face read one emotion, his body said another. Immediately I stopped, narrowing my eyes. Forgetting language I half backed up, leaving only the balls of my feet on the ground, my hands appearing the drape beside my sides loosely while they actually were quiet tense.
His body language was terrible, destructive, and sinister. Who was this 'Ootori?' He walked towards me unwavering in pace, holding out a hand of welcome. He bowed kindly to me, though his movements were too smooth. Once we were face to face I noticed the clipboard he held so dearly to his side. Obsessive, confident, only in his own interest… His personality screamed at me. Would everyone here be like this?
"Welcome to Ouran, Princess Marissa."