A/N: Holy crap, I'm Back! I'm currently watching an amv on Eden of the east with the song 'no Handlebars'. Plain Freaking Awesome.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, just the story itself.
She was in Takuma's classroom, seated on the spare chair in front of his desk. The rest of the class had already filed out at the bell to head to the cafeteria for lunch. Before he could slip away Haruhi had nabbed Takuma, telling him she had something to discuss with him privately. Perhaps he'd sensed the urgency in her voice because after the last student had left the room Takuma had swiftly locked the door behind them, much to her grateful relief. She'd been forced to wait the entire weekend and all morning to have this chance to speak with him. Friday afternoon he'd left the school right after classes to get to his other job, and, since Haruhi didn't have a phone nor a number, she'd had no way of contacting him.
An incredibly stupid oversight on their part.
Once the door was secured and Takuma back in his seat Haruhi dove straight into relating the incident that had occurred last Friday. The anxiety she was under was evident as the words tumbled out of her mouth one right after the other, spilling out in a barely structured rush as she tried to speak as fast as she could. Because of this, she was forced to repeat herself several times when she found herself speaking gibberish.
"…and that's what happened" she concluded finally.
Takuma was silent for several seconds before he leaned back with a sigh, tilting his head up towards the ceiling with his eyes closed. He chuckled dryly.
"Oh Haruhi… you've certainly gotten yourself into a splendid mess."
Haruhi turned her face down into her lap in shame. Takuma had gone through so much trouble to get her set up in the school, ensuring her safety and her secrecy, and she was repaying all his hard work by creating more difficulties for him. She truly was the worst for what she was about to ask of him next. Forcing herself to look back up at him she asked-
"Is there anything you can do about this- situation?"
Instead of answering her, Takuma got up out his seat and started to pace around the desks, moving in slow circles about the classroom. Haruhi watched silently with her eyes, waiting for him to speak. After about the third circuit around he walked over to the window nearest his desk and leaned onto the window sill, hands on the edge, and stared out over the grounds. He stood like that for a lengthy measure of time before he let out a long tired sigh.
"Oh bother- I'm just stalling, aren't I?" he said aloud. Shifting around, he leaned back into the ledge, crossing his arms and gave Haruhi a smile she could immediately tell was false. "I'm sorry, my dear, but I'm afraid my hands are tied- There is nothing I can do to resolve your crises."
Haruhi's shoulders slumped in response to his answer. She didn't bother to question why he couldn't help. She didn't need to. She'd already understood that it wasn't because of any lack of capability on his part; it was merely the complexity of her circumstances that hindered them. The unspoken facts were that the only way she could get out of becoming a slave for the host club was if either she somehow managed to procure the money needed to pay off her debt, or if she fled Tokyo. Neither at the moment was optional as she couldn't leave anywhere until Uncle returned and the only money she had was the necessary living expenses dispersed irregularly into her account.
She couldn't even get a job to help curb her debt because the rules of this lousy school forbade it.
She must have been a miserable sight because before she'd realized it Takuma had stepped away from the window and was kneeling on the ground before her, taking her hands in his.
"Are you all right, my dear?"
Haruhi gave him a weak smile and sighed. "I'm fine… I guess… part of me was just hoping there'd be a way out of this-- But of course there wouldn't be one. The only thing to do- the only thing I can do- is suck it up and try to accommodate myself to this bizarre arrangement I've landed myself into." She glanced away from him, her gaze slipping to the floor. "I'm sorry… I really am nothing but a burden for you, aren't I?"
Takuma raised a hand under her chin and forced her eyes back onto him. "Hush. That's a filthy lie and I won't hear of it- furthermore I won't let you say it. You are not a burden and I would prefer it if you cast that perception away immediately. It wounds me when you think like that."
He made an exaggeratedly sorrowful face and Haruhi laughed lightly. They were both quiet for a moment before Takuma spoke up. "If you want, I could send you home, claiming you were ill…" He trailed off, letting the offer hang in the air. Haruhi shook her head.
"No. If I go home, then I'll just be avoiding the problem at hand. Besides, if I do that those guys might see it as an escape attempt and unleash the hounds after me. Last thing I need is the police busting down my door and hauling me off to the big house." She sighed. "It's better if I just try to deal with it."
"Are you sure?" Takuma asked, studying her hands. Haruhi hummed agreement. "Then I insist that you take next period off to relax." He held up a hand as Haruhi started to protest. "It's for your own benefit. There's only one period of class left for today and then the last is a free period, which means that club will probably spend their time preparing for the next session. You probably realize this already but, those boys in the host club, they're…eccentric to say the least. No, that's being far too kind. Just trust me on this. After one club session with them you'll likely be bashing your head up against a wall."
Haruhi found she couldn't dissuade him from his decision and so with a note tucked safely in her back pocket excusing her from attending next period she strolled out of the classroom. She wandered around inside the building for a while, taking the chance to explore several hallways she hadn't been down yet, before she started feeling hopelessly confused and made her way to the nearest exit. Once she was outside she followed a cement path that eventually led her towards the outer edge of the sports fields. Just a little away from the fields the path ended before a large wooden building with a thatched roof. Moving around it she plopped down on a soft spot of grass and drew in a deep breath, tasting the flower scent hanging in the air, and gazed longingly at the Sakura tree's way on the other side.
As she watched all the top most branches suddenly started to sway as a strong wind blew up from behind, coming from beyond the forest. A wave of white detached itself from the trees as the breeze tore through them, plucking delicate cherry petals off their stems and carried them high up into the blue abyss of the sky. Haruhi sat mesmerized as the cloud of white drifted closer towards her, sprinkling the fields in white as it went as the petals fluttered gracefully back to earth. It looked so much like snowfall; a breathtaking beauty, pure and untainted, yet fleeting after only a brief appearance. Like a transient vision stolen from a fantasy- something much closer to a partially remembered dream than anything that touched upon reality.
It reminded her of the village.
Haruhi felt her mood sour as soon as the thought crossed her mind and she fell back onto the grass, throwing an arm up over her face to shield her eyes from the sun.
The village- a place she had only set foot into once during her life, long ago when her mother was still alive, and the last one on earth anybody in her small family had ever wanted to return to. She only had bits and pieces of memory pertaining to that place but those telltale fragments all carried the same impression within them- a bleak, oppressive loneliness bordered within a world of soundless white. Back in those early days the only reason they went there - they being her mother and Uncle since after that first time she was never granted access again- was because of a sense of obligation that tied them to it. Much like it should have tied her.
But it didn't.
Uncle had left more than two weeks ago to return to the village. Presuming the difficulties of travel had been minimal, he should have arrived there by now… or at the very least was waiting at the designated checkpoint for someone to come and escort him into the village. This was one of the measures the Elders had put in place to keep the village safe. The biggest downside to this approach, though, was that it could take forever before anyone actually bothered to come. Haruhi shivered, recalling the long cold days she and her family had spent during the dead of winter within that broken down rickety old shack that served as the checkpoint. It had been one of the most unfavorable experiences she'd ever endured in her young life.
Still, it was better to go it this way- infinitely better. Better anyways than meeting up with one of the guards who patrolled the vast expanse of forest her kin resided within. She prayed that Uncle wouldn't lose his patience waiting and that after this business with the Elders was complete his return would be quick.
'Assuming they let him leave' a voice growled treacherously somewhere in the back of her mind.
Haruhi tried to brush the thought off like it was dirt off her clothing, but like dirt it clung persistently to her. And why shouldn't it? The honest truth was it was a worry that had been cultivating in the back of her mind, gnawing incessantly at her optimism, ever since he'd first informed her he was going back. After her mother had passed away the Elders had ordered him to remain within the village- an order that he'd defied by leaving anyways, fleeing into the night with her and her father without a single backward glance.
Going against an Elders command was considered a transgression against the village itself. Upon his return Uncle would be punished for his disobedience. It wasn't a question of if they would, only how. And in the deepest part of her heart, though it shamed her, the fear she had lay not in what they might do to him physically but in that the Elders would see no fault in keeping him detained there as the penalty for his desertion.
Uncle had promised her a month. The problem was he failed to realize it was a promise that he didn't have a say in keeping.
Haruhi sighed heavily. This wasn't how she was supposed to be spending her free time. Drawing in a deep breath she started doing her breathing exercise, imagining all of the things that were beyond her control getting blown away like petals in the wind with every exhale until her mind was completely clear. In the midst of her exercise her body settled into comfortable relaxation. The sun was shining brightly above her, the heat making her drowsy. Haruhi was contemplating about taking a short nap when the sound of crunching grass snapped her back to full attention.
In the blink of an eye she was on her feet, turning just in time to see two people swiftly appear not eight feet away from her as they rounded the corner of the building. She cursed herself for letting anybody get that close without noticing. If she'd had full use of her senses they wouldn't have made it even eighty feet without her knowing about it.
Damn curare.
The moment they saw her they came to an abrupt halt and Haruhi allowed herself that moment to study the pair. The both of them were male, dressed in the high schools uniform, one with light brown hair that grew down to the neck while the other had spiky short hair and multiple ear piercings1. With a start Haruhi recalled that she'd seen both of them in her class. An aura of doom hung over them and even as Haruhi contemplated on what to say the one with long hair smirked and stepped forward.
"Well, well" he said moving until he was only a few feet away from her, which was too close for her. "Lookie what we've found here- it's the schools infamous commoner."
Haruhi felt her face flush and she glared angrily at the boy, her lips slightly curling back to bare her teeth. Would the bastards never drop it?!
"Careful man", said spiky as he came up behind his companion. "He looks like he might bite."
'Well there's an idea' Haruhi thought. Instead she gritted out, "What do you want? I've done nothing wrong."
"Well now, that a matter of perspective, don'cha think?" said Longhair as he dropped the smirk. "After all, ya did manage to snatch the highest score, didn't ya?"
"What-" she started to ask when suddenly the boy moved and before she could react Haruhi was shoved against the building, the impact causing pain to rocket up and down her spine. Through eyes blurring with pain she looked up to find Longhair glowering down at her with an arm resting outstretched on the part of the wall next to her head. Spiky followed up to stand beside him, a near identical scowl on his face.
"Tell me short shit" the boy sneered in her face "just how stupid are ya? Do ya even realize just how much trouble yer actions have landed the rest of us in?"
"What- do you mean?"
"I'm talking about Kasanoda, Dumbass!" Longhair snapped, making her flinch.
"Until you came along Kasanoda always held the top grade in class. It was an unspoken fact that if ya didn't want to die ya didn't try to outdo him. But now that you've gone and surpassed him, there's no tell'n what he'll do. The guy can kill just by lookin' at ya! Do ya see now the danger you've put us all in Fujioka?" Longhair said, spitting her name out like it was something nasty.
Haruhi stared up at him, her mouth hanging slightly open in disbelief. Then the gist of everything the boy had said finally sunk in and she started to tremble as raw anger boiled up within her. The bastards were ganging up on her because she'd done her homework and gotten a better grade than somebody else? Better than this Kasanoda? 'Of all the stupid, presumptuous, arrogant…!' She was caught between mentally berating them and digging her nails painfully into the palms of her hands to keep herself from lashing out that she almost missed what Longhair said next.
"So, since we don't want anybody gett'n hurt, I suggest you be a good boy and-"
And with that, the last of her reservations snapped.
From day one she'd put up with all the crap that this school and its people had thrown at her but this was the final straw. The camel's back had finally broken. As all her rage bubbled up from her core, spilling into her veins, her eyesight tinged with red and she started to shake. Longhair was still talking but she couldn't hear another word over the increasing thrum of her own blood filling her ears. The world was starting to come into a sharper focus, her whole body was tense and as small pains began to riddle her body she realized she was dangerously on the verge of turning.
She also realized she didn't care.
"Hey!" Longhair snapped. "Are ya even listening to me, ya little-"
Crack!
Everything seemed to freeze as the sharp sound of something breaking suddenly cut Longhair off. Glancing up the three of them saw a bokutō embedded in the wall above their heads. Following the length of the wooden sword, they all turned their heads to see a young man dressed in a jacket and hakama looming over all of them. With a start, Haruhi recognized him as one of the guys she'd seen at the host club last Friday- the tallest one.
"M-m-Morinozuka?" Longhair squeaked in a tremulous voice, and Haruhi's eyes flickered back to her assailants to see that both boys had gone perceptibly pale. With a tug, the tall male pulled the sword out of the wall and the boys quailed under the action. Longhair broke out into a cold sweat and Spiky started gulping nervously as he hefted the sword up to rest against his shoulder, staring down at them quietly with unforgiving eyes. Looking into those dark orbs she shivered when she felt the same potent strength shifting behind them as before.
"Morinozuka-sempai", Longhair tried again "this- this isn't what it looks like- we were just- that is to say, we only-"
Whatever he was about to say next never made it past his lips as all the strength left him and his body slackened when those black eyes and their unbearable scrutiny fell on him. In a flash Spiky suddenly grabbed Longhair by the jacket and bolted, hauling his companions limp form behind him. Haruhi stood staring after the pair as they made their hasty retreat, wondering what the heck had just happened when a grunt made her turn back to the tall male- Morinozuka wasn't it?- to see him watching her.
"You alright?" he asked in a deep voice colored with concern. Seeing the same concern reflected in those eyes, those impossibly dark eyes centered solely upon her, and feeling the absolute sincerity behind both caused an unexplainable rush of warmth to blossom within her chest. This was the first hint of kindness she'd received from anybody besides Takuma in this school. At that moment, she honestly felt like she could cry. Aware that he was waiting for an answer she quickly batted down the desire and pulled herself back together to reply.
"Um-yes. Thank you." She said hesitantly, cursing the unintentional stiff tone invading her voice. She wanted to say more, to let him know just how much she appreciated his help, but she kept drawing up a blank on what to say next.
There was a small pause of silence before Morinozuka simply nodded his head once before turning and walking towards the back end of the white building. Haruhi watched him go until he turned the corner. A part of her wanted to follow after him. Instead, she turned the other way and ran back up the cement path towards the school, her mind overrun by an onslaught of questions she just couldn't find the answers to.
"Where will you take me for the summer Tamaki?" The girl asked inquisitively.
"Wherever you wish to go…" the blond boy implied softly.
"What's your favorite kind of music?"
"Whatever you like, I like…" he breathed suggestively.
"I baked a cake today. Will you have a piece?"
"Only if You feed it to me." He whispered seductively, bringing his face up close to the girl's as she blushed and giggled shyly, sparkling CGI flowers blooming gracefully around the pair.
Haruhi felt one of her eyebrows twitch and she quickly shifted her attention towards the twins as one of them gave a shout.
"Hikaru!! How could you tell that story in front of everyone?" Said the one twin looking genuinely distraught as tears began to leak out the corners of his eyes.
"Sorry, Kaoru…" Said Hikaru, face wholly apologetic, rising smoothly up from his seat until he was elevated above Kaoru. Then, reaching out to cup his twin's face with both hands and tilt it up, he leaned down until their noses were nearly touching.
"…You're just so adorable when you're pitiful…"
"Hikaru…!!" Kaoru cried out, tears streaming freely down his face as more CGI flowers swirled softly about their heads.
As the girls they were with squealed in open delight Haruhi felt a quiver of disgust run up her spine.
"How soppy can you get?" she said aloud, thinking that all these guys were in a world of their own.
"We simply apply our individual talents to meet the needs of our customers." Someone spoke up beside her. Turning with a start she saw the guy with glasses, Kyoya as he'd introduced himself to her, standing not a foot away. Pulling a book out from under his arm, he flipped it open to a certain page before handing it to her. "Tamaki, by the way, is our number one draw." On the page was written 'Request Data' and as she read the figures below it she nearly choked when she saw that the blond idiot actually had a request rate of seventy percent.
"You'll handle basic chores for a while." Kyoya continued as he plucked the book out of her hands. "You can refuse of course, and leave… but my family's reach is long and wide. You have a passport, I trust?" He said to her while smiling sweetly.
'In other words, if you refuse can you get out of Japan before I get my hands on you?'Haruhi translated in her mind, while she stared into a smile even the devil would be envious of.
"That's right Funky-oka! You've got $80,000 worth of chores to do." Tamaki whispered as he snuck up behind her and blew down her neck.
"EEYEW!" Haruhi squealed as she hopped away from him, franticly wondering just how the hell these guys kept sneaking up on her. Oh, right. It was because she'd taken another pill just before she came in. Takuma had said to take just two a day, but after almost turning on those two guys earlier, she hadn't wanted to take any chances. Perhaps she should have.
"Don't do that!" she said, raising a hand to cover the back of her neck.
"Oh? Don't care for that particular technique?"
"I have no interest in any techniques." She said with a huff, turning to face him. "Man or woman-", 'human or beast', she added silently. "-how we look is… irrelevant anyway right? It's what's inside that's important!"
"Well, that's true…" he said, and for a moment, Haruhi actually started to believe that maybe he might be human after all.
Then Tamaki struck up a despairing pose while the projector threw off sparkling light. "…and so cruel… how god sometimes bestows perfection inside and out!"
Takuma was surely a prophet. Haruhi found herself leaning heavily against a wall, on the brink of caving her head into it while that fool prattled on and on, unaware that he didn't even have an audience anymore. 'Gah! This guy, he's just so… so… oh what's the word I'm looking for? Not bothersome… it means that, but more…'
Haruhi held her chin in one hand while she puzzled it out. An instant later when it came to her she smashed a fist into an open palm. "I got it!"
"Ah! You got what?!" Tamaki asked excitedly, believing he'd shed enlightenment on yet another soul.
"You're Annoying!" She said, pointing a finger right into his shocked face. A moment later, Haruhi was left standing in utter bewilderment with the twins suddenly next to her, roaring with laughter, as Tamaki fled to the nearest corner of the room and huddled down into the fetal position. As if on cue, all the lights in that part of the room shut off, and Tamaki was left swathed in darkness.
"That's telling him!!" Hikaru hooted out as he leaned onto his brother for support.
"You tore off a big chunk and swallowed it whole!!" Kaoru gasped, holding his sides while he patted her on the head.
Haruhi merely ignored them as she stepped closer towards Tamaki. 'I- just said what was on my mind… but I guess he didn't take it too well.' She thought as she reached a hand out to touch his shoulder.
"Umm… Tamaki…"
"KING." The twin's laughter cut off abruptly.
She stopped, lowering her hand. "What?"
"That's what they call me here. You too, or I don't know you!!" Tamaki replied stubbornly.
'Are you serious?' "Well… then… King, I-" Haruhi stopped as the twins fell into another fit of snickering. Looking back at them, she caught the two of them trading looks with each other and glancing over at Tamaki as they bit into their fists to keep from laughing any louder.
"King, you say?"Hikaru managed to get out a few seconds later.
"I'm sorry milord, but aren't you just a little mixed?" said his twin a second after, making Tamaki flinch. "After all" they said as one, "if anybody we're to be King here, wouldn't it have to be-"
"Sorry we're late, guys!" a singsong voice called out into the room. Passing through the main entrance, the smallest member waved at them as he was carried piggyback style into the room by the tallest. Haruhi felt an oddly nervous twinge enter her chest as she watched the tall male cut a path across the room, gliding with effortless grace around all the tables and chairs scattered about the room as he moved smoothly towards a circle of girls who greeted them warmly.
"Hunny! Mori! We've been waiting." said one of the girls with a bright smile.
"Sorry. I fell asleep waiting for Takashi to finish kendo." Haruhi heard Hunny reply as he was lifted off Mori's shoulders and set on the floor. Rubbing his eyes tiredly he said "still a bit sleepy", before he lunged onto the lap of the nearest girl, who shrieked excitedly as the boy snuggled into a comfortable position on top of her.
"Is he really a third year?" Haruhi asked, doubt lacing her words as she watched the girls chatter quietly to one another as the small boy drifted back to sleep. Her eyes shifted over to the tall male as he took his own seat, silently pouring tea into all the ladies cups before he started slicing up the cake that had previously lain untouched, ignored by all the girls who continued to fuss over how cute the other one was. "He looks like he ought to still be in grade school. And about Morinozuka-san…"saying the name out loud came easily enough, and she wondered briefly as to why she'd thought it would be before shaking it off and continuing on, "…how come he hasn't said a word since he came in?"
"Looks are deceiving." Tamaki explained as he stepped up next to her, already over his funk… not that anybody had really been paying attention. The twins had already scampered off elsewhere. "Despite his appearance and how he interacts with everyone, Hunny holds the highest grade in the third year class. And as for Mori, well, silence is his thing."
Haruhi sighed as she closed her eyes, giving up any attempt to understand how this club functioned. "Honestly, all I wanted was someplace quiet to study…"
"Yeah, what 'bout at home?" Tamaki asked. It was an innocent question yet Haruhi stiffened as she realized that she didn't have a ready alibi- It's not like she could tell him the real reason why! Her mind scrambled to come up with something half-way believable.
"Uh- well, um, the thing is my- my father…" Haruhi winced at the way that word seemed to tumble just as readily out of her mouth, and she sent a silent plea of forgiveness for what she was going to say next. "… My father brings his girls over during the day." She finished, feeling traitorous at the way it sounded as it came out, at how she was dragging her father's reputation through the mud.
"Oh…" Tamaki said, momentarily taken aback, unsure of what to say to that. "Well- I guess that does put a crimp in things. And he's skimpy with tuition?" He said glancing pointedly at her clothes.
"What? Oh- no, I'm- what I mean is, we're okay. He- still has just a few issues with money he's got to deal with. That and, I guess, neither of us was too big on spending any extra cash. I mean, the money from the inheritance did help to get me into this school, but, I- we both felt that it was pointless to spend on anything we could live without. You know, like uniforms or the lunches- things like that. Not that we couldn't if we wanted to- it's just… we prefer to live the simple life. Besides, I don't want to be any more of a burden to him. Along with everything else, he was stuck raising me pretty much by himself for ten years."
Tamaki was quiet for a few seconds as he looked at her. Then he brought a hand up to his chin as he seemed to study her more closely.
"So you live the simple life, you say? Simple like how?"
"Well…" she said slowly, not really sure what to make of his question. "…even though we got money, we're still living in the same apartment complex I grew up in. Nothing's really changed- accept that we have a few extra zeros in our account."
"Hmmm." Tamaki leaned back a bit, but he didn't take his eyes off her. "I'd define that situation as pathetic!"
"Huh? No, it's-" Tamaki cut her off however as he barreled on.
"Tell me, before you came into wealth, were you subsisting on rice and horseradish?" Dumbstruck by the turn in conversation Haruhi didn't react quickly enough to hold him off when Tamaki suddenly grabbed her by the shoulders. She was shocked to see that his eyes were streaming with tears. "You did say that your father had problems with money, didn't you? Were you so poor that, in order to pay off one of your father's outrageous debts, you might've been sold off to a mean master who'd overwork you and leave you crying into your pillow night after night!?"
"What the…!! Where'd this come from!?" she shrieked, wriggling out of his grasp.
"Whoops!" he said stepping back, whipping out a handkerchief to blow his nose. "Sorry, I've been hooked on reruns of 'Oshin' lately. You could have been living it…"
'Wrong! It's not the same!' she thought, getting seriously pissed at the moment, though at him for being an idiot or at herself for not coming up with a better lie, she still wasn't sure.
Sniffing back more tears his face went suddenly serious. "Very well- I'll cut you a deal! You've made it clear you have no intention of paying us back with your inheritance, but because I feel sorry for you I'm willing to give this method a chance. Your appearance makes the task all but hopeless, but I will do my best to teach you. Let's see, let's make it… 100!" He said, pointing a finger into her stunned expression.
"Huh?!" 'What the hell's he going on about!? What's he saying?!'
Yes!" he cried as if she'd agreed with him. "If you can garner 100 customer requests, I'll waive your debt to the Host Club! Just imagine it! You'll be the Star Host for all girls who love 'Oshin'!!"
'I… I don't want toooo!!!!' Haruhi cried out silently, her unvoiced wail of despair swallowed up by the never-ending ether of space.
The large room was faintly lit by the dim glow cast off by only a few oil lamps set high up into the ceiling. Beneath the guttering lamps shadowy figures moved amongst one another, the low murmur of their voices filling the space with a subdued atmosphere. Near the back of the room two of the figures sat away from the others at a small round table pushed off into an otherwise empty corner. From the center of the table a tiny flame flickered weakly on the wick of a candle, casting barely enough light to illuminate the features of the people surrounding it. The feeble yellow glow succeeded in pushing back the darkness just enough to reveal that one had a finely groomed black beard with silver streaks that covered everything while the other possessed more feminine features that showed up in the hairless softness of the skin and the delicate curve of the chin. Between them, various papers and manila files were spread out on the rest of the table's surface.
"So, do I have the approval to move forward with the proposed plan?" the feminine one spoke softly in a low voice.
The bearded fellow was silent for a moment, idly shuffling the papers around into organized piles before finally speaking up.
"The evidence you have compiled is certainly compelling… but not concrete." He replied gruffly, saying it in a way that barred any further argument on the matter. "You've presented nearly everything required except verifiable proof. I have the authorization of the Association to grant you the go ahead, but I will only do so if you can supply a substantial piece of evidence. Find it, and you shall have the approval you seek. Although… I have to wonder-", the man said, his voice now taking on a patronizing tone "-your investigation in this matter has already been underway for four months. Can you do it, or should we have someone more… capable take over?"
The only response was a vicious smile before the candle suddenly went out.
A/N: You'd think writing slightly altered scenes from the manga would turn out to be easy, but the fact is when you're trying to be creative with your wordplay, it sucks major donkey balls.
1- They're the two D class guys that were in the third episode with Renge; the manga, not the anime cause those guys were just plain fugly.