Me: Well I guess you aren't cold-hearted.
Kaoru: You portrayed me like that! *whines*
Me: Keep whining if you want this fic to be a…
Kaoru: *snaps his mouth shut*
Me: And you call yourself a man.
Hikaru: I know, right?
Azumi: *sadly shakes her head* They're both idiots.
Me: I thought just Kaoru was a little child…
Hikaru and Kaoru: HEY!
Azumi: See?
Me: …
Azumi: Anyways since Haruhi needs rest, I will do the disclaimer. InfiniteSnow doesn't own OHSHC or any characters or the original plotline. However she owns this story and any OC's, like me.
oooooo
Three weeks passed ever since Haruhi was heavily injured. Haruhi got better with a little amount of blood a day that Kaoru gave to her, significantly improved her health. There was a point to where Haruhi felt no internal pain and would be able to get out of bed.
Sunlight filtered through her bedroom window. Haruhi jumped out of her bed.
She rushed out of her room and was about to sneak up on Mizumi, when a hand yanked her back.
"What do you think you're doing?" a creepy tired voice came.
Haruhi sweat dropped and turned around to see Azumi with half-sleep in her eyes, "Ahahahaha, nothing! I'm just hungry."
"Whatever. That creepy blonde dude and his miniature minion are coming here again and he requests for you to show up or else he might tear a lion apart," Azumi wearily shrugged her shoulders.
Now Haruhi was curious, "Azu-nee, you're hiding something from me."
Azumi was now the one to sweat drop. Haruhi is so analytical at times it makes her jump out of her skin.
"…"
"Come on, spit it out."
"It is just, Tamaki Suoh, you know that tall blonde dude?" Azumi did not want to give him any honorifics.
Haruhi nodded, expecting the worst.
"Yeah, well he fell in love with you at first sight, so he is willing to dump his current wife, Ayame, and force you into a marriage with him at all costs," Azumi twiddled with her fingers when she spilled the truth. Her news got the desired effect when Haruhi considerably paled.
"And to make it worse, the little creepy blonde that accompanied him to the dinner has a wife who knows the skills of black magic, and is using it to his abilities to help Tamaki. This is terrible, so I decided, you can't be left in the dark in this. If I do not open your eyes to the truth, then you will be in danger," Azumi worriedly completed her narration.
Haruhi paled but kept her composure when she spoke, "Would…would it be best…if I leave?"
Now Azumi paled and she pulled Haruhi into a suffocating hug so the girl couldn't escape even if she wanted to."
"You are not going back to that abusive dad. You are staying here, and you are staying with all of us. I am not letting you go through more torture, over my dead body!" Azumi scolded.
Haruhi immediately relaxed. She was so glad she had a sense of belonging.
Azumi smiled and didn't want to break the moment. She didn't want to meet the evil blonde lord who had it up his stupid nose he can get anything he wants at the snap of his fingers. He can have anything in the world…except for Haruhi.
Haruhi is only for Kaoru, Azumi thought with a determined expression.
"Come on, duckling, let's get you polished up for right now. In case you haven't noticed, morning is when vampires are supposed to have dinners," Azumi chuckled.
"But then how come every morning I saw you guys would eat breakfast instead of a formal dinner?" Haruhi complained.
Azumi rolled her eyes as if the answer was the most obvious in the whole, wide world, "Because we didn't want to make you feel out of place, Haruhi. You were worth it. And you will always be worth it."
Haruhi felt very warm inside to know that Azumi thought she was worth all the hard work.
Her father never said that to her.
He always cared about himself more than her.
A hand yanked her towards the dressing room, and Haruhi yelped.
"Azu-nee!"
"What? We need to get ready, am I wrong?" she innocently smiled at Haruhi.
Haruhi sweat dropped and allowed Azumi to drag her towards her bedroom.
[1 hour later…]
The two girls were in a flurry of puffy dresses.
"Hmm…how about a cocktail fuchsia pink dress?" Azumi waved the dress in front of Haruhi, analytically speculating her.
Before Haruhi could open her mouth to say otherwise, Azumi sighed with frustration, and tossed it into a pile labeled "NOPE".
"Seems that calm colors fit you better," Azumi sighed.
She picked out a baby blue off-shoulder gown and black flats and imagined Haruhi wearing it. Then her eyes sparkled and she said, "Perfect. Change into it."
Haruhi was about to change when she turned around and said, "What about you?"
Azumi smiled and held up a long sleeved dark violet gown, "I have myself covered. With these high heels."
Haruhi, satisfied, then changed into the gown and heels and let Azumi comb her hair down. Scars still showed on her pale arms and legs and even on her cheeks, but they were so faint. Kaoru just has to do a few more treatments and they will be gone for good.
Azumi put some make up on the scars, and when they were gone from sight temporarily, she smiled and said, "Let's get this over with, shall we?"
Haruhi gave a tentative nod, and let Azumi lead her down the staircase.
Azumi almost choked when she saw the blonde king, miniature minion, and the minion's wife were perched at the dinner table. Mr and Mrs. Hitachiin were looking extremely furious, but kept quiet. Hikaru wanted to throttle the blonde king, and Kaoru wanted Tamaki to die a slow torturous death.
"Speak of surprises. They're early," muttered Azumi, eyes filled of hate.
"Better than late, darling," Tamaki shrugged like he was innocent and took a sip of his Darjeeling tea.
Hunny snickered and Azumi shot him a glare to shut up and he sealed it off, and Reika stopped shuffling through her chess pieces – representing all the human sacrifices she had in her life game of chess.
"Let's get this over with so I can shove you out of here ASAP," Azumi had no sense of formality around with backstabbers. Especially Tamaki.
Tamaki wanted to show the girl to her own place, but was cut off when he saw the twins glaring at him to shut the hell up. Immediately he fake-smiled and settled down and ate the dainty little sandwiches when in reality he wanted to burn the platefuls on the dining table. Smirking, he looked at the brown haired beauty, donned in her favorite color of blue.
Smirking, he studied her face, captivated with the beauty that Mother Nature seemed to only gift a handful of young damsels in the world.
Straight bangs, and evenly cut shoulder-length hair that went slightly past her shoulders, a mere three inches longer. Her face was heart-shaped, and she wore no make-up at all except slight lip gloss and slight blush. Her eyes were big, brown, and completely blunt and honest. She had a cute nose and small pink lips. Her frame was slim and petite and she had a good height of five foot five. Lovely physical dimensions of a vampire, right?
It is an understatement to think, by a photograph of her, as a human. She looks too good for a human, Tamaki thought as he stirred his dark wine and ice cubes around, I guess I will have to play my charms to lure her in for my wife. Even Ayame can't compete with Haruhi's looks.
Haruhi, catching the boring eyes on her, looked Tamaki face-to-face, and didn't care to show a hint of disgust mixed in her normal nonchalant expression. Tamaki's eyes widened, but Haruhi promptly ignored him and took a sip of water as the maid course was served.
Azumi tensed underneath her seat, as she shot a look at Hikaru.
I think he is up to something, she conveyed through telepathy.
We will keep an eye on her after dinner, Hikaru nodded. They turned to Kaoru and conveyed their secret plan. His face held a firm expression but eyes that filled of bloody hell to kill Tamaki right then and there. Keeping his cool, he calmly agreed with Hikaru and Azumi.
And luckily, Tamaki was caught up with his fantasies to even notice the secret plan forming.
oooooo
After the tense dinner, Haruhi felt she needed to go out into the garden and get her fresh breath of air in there. Running into the garden carelessly, she hitched her gown up and ran.
She paid a silent thanks to Azumi for picking out flats. Or else she would've snapped them in two pieces and go through a three hour seminar from Azumi to never ever do that again, with a lot of scolding.
Slowing down her walk, she sat on a stone bench, and looked at the bright sun. The beautiful and bright morning kissed her skin, and she felt it was paradise, until she heard footsteps behind her.
Whirling around, she saw it was Tamaki, the blond king who spied on her throughout the dinner.
"Liking your stay here?" he smirked as he watched her confused expression.
Haruhi nodded.
"Well don't get used to it. Probably they are using you," Tamaki sat down next to her.
Haruhi's eyes widened, "What…?"
"You don't know, do you? They've hurt you. You thought that this was going to be a good escape from whatever hell you might've experienced in your past, but no. This was no warm, comforting home. It was, until three weeks ago," he smirked as he saw Haruhi's eyes widen and tears leaked out.
"Shut up. You do not know anything," she bitterly shot back.
"Sorry, m'lady, but I guess I am the know-it-all here," he mocked sadness as he let his shoulders droop in fake sympathy.
Before Haruhi could reply to the snide comeback, cold water splashed on her face and shoulders and arms, causing the make-up to peel away. To her horror, the faint scars and bruises and marks showed around her upper body limbs.
"See, they've physically marked their loathing and anger for you on your own body. I mean, this is just your hands and face. Probably your legs have worse gashes," Tamaki cracked a sinister smile.
Haruhi's eyes watered. They would never use her, like her father.
Her father used her as a channel to get his anger out, but the Hitachiin family was different. The day that Mizumi picked her up from the snowy ground was the day one of her clean slate.
They would never throw her away like a broken doll to the corner, would they?
Tamaki smirked in triumph when his words of lie were getting to her. She was falling for this false poison, and he loves this, owning her like a marionette and crumbling whatever happiness the Hitachiin family has.
Haruhi picked herself up and ran to the front door, the exit of the garden.
Azumi, Hikaru, and Kaoru had witnessed this and were angry that Tamaki sounded so convincing that even they could fall for their lie.
They wanted to kill him for poisoning Haruhi and making her cry.
"All right. We can fix this. Just give me a spear," Azumi cracked her knuckles.
Hikaru sent a horrified expression at his wife and said, "Why use a spear when she is coming this way?!"
Azumi's face paled, but when Haruhi burst in, she didn't stop there, she hurried up to her room and closed her door. She didn't even slam it. And that is what shocked Azumi.
She has the right to slam it closed, but if she daintily closed her door, she has enough energy to snap a volcano in half. Azumi took a deep breath, and looked at Hikaru and Kaoru.
"You two," Azumi started, "confront the blonde idiot and kick him officially out of this house because if I handle with him, I will murder him. I will comfort Haruhi and tell her the real truth."
Kaoru sent Azumi a thankful smile, and Azumi scoffed and said, "I'm doing it for Haruhi. No thanks to me."
With that she spun on her heels, and went to Haruhi's room.
When she came, she heard distant sobbing from the door. Sighing softly, she went to the door and gently said, "Haruhi, may I come in?"
"Go away."
Azumi knew Haruhi wanted to comfort her, even though she put up a tough front, she was breaking down on the inside.
When Azumi came inside anyways, Haruhi spoke.
"Are you all using me?"
Azumi's face drained of color, "What?"
"Are you all using me who then in the end will throw me in the corner when you got what you want?" Haruhi looked at Azumi with stern eyes.
"Haruhi, listen-" Azumi started but got cut off.
"Is all the wounds and injuries I got a mark of your family's hatred towards me?" she shot another accusing argument.
"Those injuries were because of Kaoru. He lost control of himself because he was controlling himself of your blood. He craves you and knowing you would be mortified to be changed against your will, he starved himself and used substitutes to control himself from lunging at you. But substitutes can go as far until he had no choice to let his inner monster out. It was out of control and he regretted it when his sanity flew back to him in the end. Because he loved you with all of his heart, he neglected all of his family duties just to offer you his blood as medicine to heal you and stay by your bedside and stroke your hair in your sleep," Azumi gently told her.
Kaoru, you will be angry when you find out I told her. But do know it is the only way, thought Azumi.
Haruhi was shocked and could say nothing to that.
"When you got injured heavily all of us lost lots of sleep thinking how lonely it will be if you died, then our happiness, kindness, warmth, serenity, and everything wonderful would go along with you. We would be nothing, and we would forever mourn. Do know that you are loved here, and we want you to be here. We will not allow you to go back to that abusive father of yours," Azumi finished her little mini speech.
Haruhi's eyes watered and she stuttered, "R-Really?"
Azumi nodded her head and nodded warmly, "Of course."
Then letting tears drip, Haruhi ran across her bedroom and jumped on Azumi, pulling her in a hug, even though she was the shorter one of the two.
Azumi smiled at this, and said, "Do you understand now?"
Haruhi sniffled, "I do. He almost fooled me."
Azumi nodded, "He sure did. I think Hikaru and Kaoru are going to throw him out."
At the mention of Kaoru's name, Haruhi's face flushed bright red and she buried her face into Azumi's violet gown.
Azumi noticed this and pulled Haruhi from her and analyzed her face, completely caught off-guard to see Haruhi blush, because she never did. That girl had an emotionless and an I-don't-care mask. Now she was blushing at the mention of Kaoru's name! It was official, Haruhi was in love.
"Aw, look who is in love-love with Kaoru-chan!" Azumi loved putting a girly honorific at Kaoru's name when she can.
Haruhi blushed even brighter and hugged Azumi again hiding her face from view.
Azumi laughed as she said, "Don't worry. When you and Kaoru finally admit you love each other I have your white-veiled occasion planned out! It is going to be a vampire wedding and you will be converted into a vampire."
Haruhi comically froze and Azumi chuckled hard. Haruhi is so fun to tease.
"Ah, young love indeed. Reminds me of when Hikaru had to tease his love for me," Azumi chuckled. It was like playing cat-and-mouse.
Haruhi smiled, and snuggled even deeper in the hug.
oooooo
Hikaru and Kaoru stood with cold faces on at Tamaki and Mitsukuni and his wife.
"We are going to ask you to leave and never come back," Kaoru spoke up.
Tamaki didn't like this. If he never was allowed to come back then that means…
"And you are prohibited from seeing Haruhi Fujioka ever again," Hikaru finished his train of thoughts for him.
"You can't do this to me," Tamaki sent hard glares at the twins.
"Unfortunately we can. You are guilty of trying to push her to her limits. You do not know the real reason behind the scars yet you wove a story to brainwash her and used it to her advantage. I think my wife did a good job in explaining the truth to her, but we don't need sinister people like you tainting her again. We need to let her be with whoever she wants to be with. And judging the situation, when she gets the facts straight, will only hate you more than ever," Hikaru glared at Tamaki.
Tamaki clenched his fist and Hunny 'tsked in disgust. An epic card game failure brought down on him. Hunny made a mental note to never help Tamaki again in his stupid love affairs.
Sending his wife, Reiko, a glance she nodded evilly behind her fan, and spoke up, "And my husband and I wanted to tell you we are sick of your love affair, so after we leave today, we aren't going to get messed up in your stupid and brainless plans. Let's go, dear."
She swiftly turned on her heels and Hunny walked in pace with her.
Tamaki glared hard at the twins and then snarled, "This isn't the end of it."
Then leaving as quickly as he came, he left.
Hikaru sighed a huge sigh of relief and wearily looked at his brother, "Let's hope my wife did a good job."
Kaoru could only look down in embarrassment and nod.
"I'm sure the girl's heart lies with you brother. She surely accepted your feelings by now. Just let her admit it back. Girls need time unlike us. They are…how should I put it?" Hikaru scratched his head, "Crafty. They are very artistic with their declarations. I knew it took Azumi several years to admit it she loved me when I loved her from the moment she didn't get infatuated with me. Give Haruhi some time. She is more perceptive than my wife is."
Kaoru smiled at the little joke and felt warm at the kind words.
All he needs to do is give everything a little bit of time, and she might realize her feelings.
Who she really loves, deep down inside.