Huni and Mori didn't say anything when they found Kaoru. This wasn't really anything new for Mori, but Huni was shocked into silence at the sight of Kaoru sobbing brokenly on the green grass. They'd expected to see him distraught and crying, but… this was beyond pity. This was almost… grotesque. The sight of his pale thin limbs trembling as low, almost guttural sounds broke from his throat was too much to bear. Huni stood silently at his cousin's side, blinking and clutching his pink, long-eared friend tightly to his chest. Finally, he looked up with a questioning expression at Mori. The stoic young man nodded once and scooped up Kaoru wordlessly, who gasped and stopped sobbing in shock. Huni stared up at the thin red-head in his cousin's arms with wide, concerned eyes.

"What's wrong, Kao-chan?"

The concern in Huni's eyes took the breath right out of him, and that was all it took. The sobs started again, but this time they were interrupted by the ramblings of his distraught mind, his confusion spilling over and blurring his words.

"It was never an act, never ever and it was always just an excuse and that's why we joined but then we got attached to everyone because everyone was so good to us especially tono and then Haruhi came and she messed everything up and it was all perfect before and now it's just wrong because it's not right even though it's really God's fault and Hikaru's really the wrong one because you can't have the moon!"

Huni looked at Kaoru as sat on the edge of the water fountain and sniffled, trying to make some sense of his words and connect them to the real problem. He looked at Mori, but his cousin's face was simply confused and worried as he looked at the sophomore in front of him.

"Nani?" he asked finally. Kaoru sniffed again, calming himself.

"The twincest," he said quietly, his voice almost devoid of shaking. Huni blinked.

"So?" he replied. It really wasn't surprising. Everyone suspected, after all. "That's not wrong if it makes you happy, ne Takashi?"

"Mhm," replied the tall senior. Huni beamed, then his face turned serious.

"Tama-chan taught me that. Don't worry about what other people think if it makes you happy."

Kaoru shrugged dispassionately, his moments of hysteria over. His body had stopped shaking completely now, and he seemed more like the typical cold, disinterested Kaoru they all knew to sit alongside his twin and dole out acerbic comments to the unsuspecting occasional victim. "Doesn't matter, because Hikaru doesn't really love me anymore anyway. He likes Haruhi now."

Oh. The moon.

"And she belongs with Tono… so he's wrong. But he won't listen to me because he doesn't love me anymore." He shrugged again. "Nothing I can do."

Huni tilted his head to the side and looked at Kaoru, but his hazel eyes remained locked on the marble he sat on. He and Mori looked at each other for a few moments, and the taller senior nodded slightly.

"No," said Mori. Kaoru looked up, startled. Mori hardly ever said anything, let alone a real word.

"What do you mean 'no'? What can I do?" he asked, his stoicism cracking. "Haruhi and Tono are like the sun and the moon. They belong together. And even though I guess I like her too, and I suppose it's natural to want the moon, you can't have it. You shouldn't have it. And I love Hikaru more. So much more… than I ever should. More than he will ever love me."

"You could tell him," Huni pointed out in his typical cute blunt way. Kaoru looked at him incredulously.

"You think he doesn't know how much I love him? That's not it at all. He just doesn't care anymore. Nothing has changed for me. How could he not know that? We're twins. He knows. It just doesn't matter." His voice was full of desolate, heart-wrenching desperation now, his eyes again trained on the gray marble.

"Did he tell you it didn't matter?" asked Huni, his tone of voice unchangingly inquisitively cute and calm.

Kaoru shrugged. "He didn't have to. His actions speak volumes." He looked up at the short senior. "He sleeps on the opposite side of the bed now, you know that? He puts his hands behind his head and stares at the ceiling and takes all the covers, but he doesn't take up nearly the whole bed anymore. He stays as far away from me as possible."

Huni bit his lip, Usa-Chan still clutched in his child-like hands. Kaoru had the sudden urge to take the damn tattered bunny and rip it into pieces. Maybe Huni would kill him. It'd be almost as good as the earth swallowing him up… It'd be quick.

"Maybe he's thinking?" said Huni, but the doubt in his voice made it sound like a question. Kaoru snorted in response… like Hikaru. "I think you should talk to him."

"What will that accomplish?" asked Kaoru incredulously. Besides hurting myself more.

Huni shrugged cutely, and it made Kaoru want to scream. How could he look like that when he was breaking into pieces inside? How could the world remain unchanged while he fell apart? But as much as he wanted to hate the seniors for interrupting his misery, for not leaving him to rot, he couldn't for the same exact reasons. They cared… even if they didn't quite understand. And that was more than he could say for his beloved twin right now.

I'm getting as bitter as him, he thought sullenly.

"Just to make sure you're not wrong," Huni said. "It doesn't make sense to be so sad when he never said so."

Kaoru opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again realizing it was futile. He nodded, having no intention to do any such thing. But he didn't want to go home, to torture himself tonight. In his head he began to think of a way around it, of a way to be able to not have to spend any extra time at the Hitachin Mansion.


Kyoya looked up from Tamaki's face as Kaoru walked in with Huni and Mori, the younger boy's eyes and nose red from tears he had obviously shed. Hikaru started at the sight of his brother, his face flooding with worry and guilt at the state he was in. But as he made to get up, Kaoru walked right by him without a single word, without even acknowledging his presence, to look down at Tamaki with a worried expression. Hikaru stared after him, blinking, in shock and sat down again heavily as if someone had physically struck him.

So the game has changed, then, he thought, then mentally snorted. Ha, at this point the game is over. Now it's all about the reactions.

He looked down at his sleeping friend again, and sighed inaudibly. Look at all this trouble you're causing, baka. Look at it, because I am going to make you pay if you get better. He blinked.

When you get better.

"He's going to be fine?" Kaoru said quietly, his doubt making it a question. Kyoya took a deep breath, making his voice loud enough for the whole room to hear.

"The doctor said it was just a cold mixed with a case of insomnia. He said it wasn't bad enough for pills, he just needs lots of fluids and he can't go anywhere or get out of bed unless he has to. He can go back to school when he can walk in a straight line and he's no longer tired," he said. Relief swept over the little gathering in a wave, seeping into their minds like sea water, even breaking through Kyoya's pessimism. "I think it would be beneficial if he had someone he knew well to stay with him, but I'm far too busy and I don't think any of you-"

"I'll do it."

There was complete silence in the room as everyone looked at Kaoru incredulously. He was still looking down at Tamaki, but there was no way he didn't feel the stares at his back. Kyoya tried hard to read his face, but it was shadowed due to the position of his head. His slate-gray eyes flitted to the others. Huni was pouting slightly as if he was disappointed in the red-haired younger twin, Mori's face stoic as usual. Haruhi was very obviously shocked, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open as she stared at Kaoru. And Hikaru… his expression was painful to look at, a mask of tortured guilt and shock, his breath coming in inaudible, shallow, labored bursts as he stared at his other half. It was the most painful expression he'd ever seen on the face of the twins, and if he hadn't seen worse from Tamaki the other day he might have actually been phased by it. As it was, it shocked him a little, and he turned back to Kaoru.

"I'll stay with him," he restated, clearing his throat. "Huni and Mori have training, you have… whatever it is you do, and Haruhi is too much of an overachiever."

Kyoya did not miss the fact that he hadn't mentioned his look-alike at all. "…thank you, Kaoru. We're losing money every day he's not at the club. If he's not in school, some girls in our class won't even bother to go, because there's no hope at all he'll be there."

"Yeah," he said, quietly. "I'll call and have my things brought over. I can send any designs to my mother with Tono's scanner and computer."

"I can tell them, Kaoru," Hikaru said desperately in a strained voice. His statement wasn't even acknowledged as Kaoru pulled out his cell phone. "W-"

"I'll do it right now," he said to Kyoya. Kyoya nodded, not letting an ounce of his shock register on his pale face. What in the world was going on? He began to walk out of the room, his phone pressed to his ear.

"Hai, I'll be staying at the Suoh Mansion until he's better… Hai… And don't forget…" he closed the door behind him, and Hikaru let a barely audible sound rip from his throat before he put his face in his hands. Haruhi looked at him worriedly but wisely said nothing as Hikaru sat there like a memorial tribute to grief, every line of his body dripping with it like it'd been dumped on him from a bucket.

A/N: Well… interesting turn of events. Depressing, but interesting…

Well, what do you think? I've been trying to stay true to character but it's a little hard since they've never put the characters in a similar situation to compare my writing with… anyhow, R&R and tell me how great/horribly I'm doing.

As always, suggestions, comments, flames all welcome!