Kassehface hurr! First of all, I'd like to apologize about how long this update took. Moving to the middle of nowhere and not having internet for a month is draining. o_o
Lol Master II: Glad we could be of service in the making you hungry department. Be sure to give us a call if you ever need more help with that. ;D YAY for liking this silly story! XD
Mew: Deep down, America is actually terrified. She just doesn't want to show it. :P Thanks! Here's more! :D
Tamafanowo: Getting along FOR NOW. We'll see how long that lasts, knowing these characters. XD
Koolaid rage: Hehe, shucks, you're too kind. ;D UPDATING! Over a month later. o_o
Tenten628: OHMYGOODNESS, hold off your anger from the long wait for the update. D: Long reviews make me feel warm and fuzzy inside, and I love every word. :D
The Pizza Guy With a Hat: Well, y'know. Food fights. They solve everything. :D
CookiesRgwed: YAY! A NEW READER! Thank you for reviewing. :D UPDATING NOW! Don't give yourself a hernia. XD
LoveisaDrug009: Haha, don't worry about feeling like an idiot or laughing at a computer screen. That's my constant state. :D And I'm glad we could help you with that. XD
and then some: Friendship? Who told you that? o_O Whoever said it was lying! But, yes. Long chapters seem to be becoming our specialty. XD We just can't seem to stop writing. o_o
KITTYTUMBLE: Updating! Calm rich people? That's like an oxymoron. :D They're either having food fights in personal jets or keeling each other. :B I like the sweet choice though. XD
Jumper101: You'd BETTER NOT be lazy anymore! ...Even though we're like the epitome of laziness ourselves. XD Thank you for the non-lazy review and loving our kooky story! :D
Redrover65912: NEAR DEATHS are BAD. They're always Flyingkunai's fault. D: I usually try to make everything better again. XD Continuing! Updating! Did more! ...Moo! :D
Toboe16: AWE! That makes me feel so special. :'D I WISH I lived in Ouran. Seriously. I would probably die of happiness after a week. o_o TOBOE FTW, btw. (:
Butterflysfree: What awaits them in America? Well... American food. ;D Gotta get some meat on those little Asian bones, y'know. XD
Lolly Gag: Oh, thank you. We try. ;D
Ultimate Host: You'd better not! :P Keeping it up! Otherwise we'd have nothing to talk/text about. XD
NXT4eva: Haha, I don't think I could review to a billion reviews. XD Your words are sweet and make me feel oh-so-happy. :D You'd best spread the word! :P
SlothFromAnEgg: I hope it's just as awesome. Took us forever to write. XD But it was fun. :D ENJOY!
Forsaken Avenger: Sorry you had to wait so long. XD America might explode if that many attractive people just appeared in one place one day. For reals. o_o It sounds like a good terrorist tactic. XD XD
Shadowonground: Updating! Updating! WHAT? You didn't like chapter 7? D: Hehe, America's not ready. Not in the slightest. (:
TG101: Secrets don't make friends. ._. Everyone says Sonic's bipolar. XD I think it's more because I don't know him that well than anything else. XD Food fights make everything better. :D
Barg 'n Mark: Food is good, whether eaten or otherwise. :D
Landoll Apples: I sure hope there's not building throwing anymore. XD But, we just seem to go with the flow. ;D
SoBe-Yummies: Pfft, they don't need extra money, they works for rich people. They get paid enough. ;D Hehe, Phineas and Ferb. (:
sotorohenge: Hehe, as long as that something isn't bad, it's alllll good. :D The magic has arrived!
9anon: If it rocked so hard, how could you ever forget? XD Cake is never for eating. ;P ...Unless you're Honey. o_o
Lapras4us: Awe, you're gonna eat your cake? What a waste. XD
Juju Power: It's great that the awesomeness of this story cracked your reviewing shell. ;D You have ten thumbs? ._.
YOU ME The Man: Actually, that's how we figure anyone ever finds this story. XD Thanks for the nice words/review! It means a bunch. (:
Shock.
That was pretty much the only word to describe the look and feel that came over the human majority of the Host Club once the stepped off the plane and into the airport. While the bustling crowds were common enough in Japan, the personalities, look and people of America along were more than enough to shock the rich foreigners into silence.
"Haruhi!" Tamaki called to his so-called daughter as he ran to a nearby booth stacked with colorful little knick-knacks and picked up a minature snow globe. "Isn't this adorable?"
He held it up for the female to see, and she just stared at it. "It's a snow globe of a bridge," she said dully. "I don't find giant steel structures adorable, senpai, even when shrunk and put in liquid."
The King didn't hear her however, seeing as how he was too busy looking at each and every souvenier at the stand wih growing ecstacy. The female rolled her eyes and looked around, then frowned as a question came to mind.
"Kyoya-senpai?" Haruhi looked to said vice-president, who was taking diligent notes like always and didn't look up to meet her gaze, but she knew he was listening. "How exactly are we supposed to know where to go? None of us speak English last time I checked."
A small smile appeared on Kyoya's face as he stopped writing long enough to look at her, but didn't answer.
Instead, Sonic smirked and wagged a finger in her direction. "Don't you worry your pretty little head off, princess. Lucky for you, English happens to be one of my specialties."
"It's true," Tails confirmed after a rather disbelieving silence from the club. "He is bilingual."
Honey giggled from Mori's shoulders. "That sounds contagious!" Mori smirked as he tired to stop the tiny blonde from falling in his amusement.
"So does 'postulation', but I don't see how that's going to help us." Sonic shrugged but winked up at the miniature blonde. "Besides, we can't dilly-daddle around here all day, we're got people waiting for us outside-" The hedgehog glanced at Tamaki, "-and on of them's eager to meet her 'biggest fan'."
Tamaki's face lit up like a light and the other club members half-expected him to give some sort of fan-ish squeal as he pretty much pushed the rest of them toward the exit (which took longer than they would have liked because A.) the King was nowhere near contagiously bilingual and B.) he kept getting distracted every ten seconds by the American economy). Like an excited, blond bulldozer, Tamaki didn't stop until they finally made it outside into the fleeting light of the setting sun and the warm weather that marked the change of summer to autumn, which made Haruhi suddenly grateful for her unintended change of clothes.
"Wow!" Honey exclaimed as he craned his head back in an all-but-vain attempt to see the top of the nearest skyscraper. "The buildings are almost as tall as the ones back home! Don't you think, Takashi?" The gentle giant grunted a reply, and the blonde laughed, delighted.
"And that's just the view from the airport," a new voice stated from behing the club. "Wait until you see the rest of Station Square."
The club turned to face this new stranger and found it to be a male who couldn't be much older than the Host Club themselves. Next to him stood an older male and female they assumed were his parents.
"Yo." Sonic raised a hand in way of greeting. "Thanks for meeing us."
"No problem," the younger male replied easily. "Anything for old friends." He looked from the hedgie to his other fuzzy companion then the Host Club. "You must be the club members I've heard so much about," he figured and smiled politely. "I'm Christopher Thorndyke and-" he gestured to the others "-this is my dad, Nelson, and my mother, Lindsey."
The Host Club, meaning each and every member not familiar with the Thorndykes, bowed in perfect unision (completely unrehearsed, mind you) and in the way only they could, said "It's nice to meet you" in their typical club way. Well... most of them anyway. Tamaki on the other hand stood there, stone-set and jaw dropped, speechless (which was a rare thing), his eyes set on Lindsey as if she were a rare species of butterfly that would perish within the next minute.
It was then Tamaki let out a small squeak of joy and got more than a few puzzled looks from the people around him as he grasped the hands of the woman he so very much idoled.
"This woman needs no introduction!" the King said with the kind of authority that only came when he was about to go into full blown host most. "We all should feel blessed to be in the presence of such a celestial and divine beauty!" Tamaki practically sobbed as he dropped to one knee, buried his face in his arm as he other kept a gentle grasp on Lindsey. "Never before has the world seen such... such extravagant dexterity on and off screen-"
"And you thought I was kidding when I said 'hysteric fanatic'," Sonic said in an side to Chris, who had been watching Tamaki's display with as much awe as his mom look abashed.
With something telling him this scene could go on for a while (which it was bound to do), Nelson cleared his throat loudly. "Lindsey, dear, we're going to miss our flight if we don't hurry."
"Oh, that's right!" The actress' face went to extremely flattered to sudden urgency in a mere second. "I almost forgot!" She looked at Tamaki and smiled delightedly. "I had no idea forgieners possessed such a charm. Oh, I only wish we could stay and get better acquainted!"
"You're not staying?" Tails asked, with no big amount of surprise, as he looked to Chris' dad, who shook his head with an apologetic expression.
"Unfortunately, Lindsey and I have another affair to attend overseas," Nelson explained solemly. "We're sorry to have to rush off like this, especially when you're just arrived, but we're more than willing to offer our house to you as an apology considering you kids will need a place to stay while you visit."
"We planned on doing that anyways, but thanks," Sonic said, and the couple laughed.
"It's such a delight to have you back, dear," Lindsey professed, pulling the hedgie into a hug nowhere near as terrifying as Tamaki's. "I know I can count on you to watch Christopher while we're gone."
"Naturally," Sonic assured, though he was pretty sure Chris could very well watch himself by now.
The Host Club bowed once more with scattered 'thank yous' and bid the couple farewell as they disappeared into the airport. Once they disappeared from sight, Chris gestured to the limo a little ways down the road, explaining how they should get going before traffic got too bad. The Host Club, minus Sonic who had 'just about enough of crowded transportation for one day', agreed and piled into the not-too-shabby limo (which was almost as nice as the ones the wealthy hosts had). The ride, for the most part after the ice was broken, was spent between Christ and the club chit-chatting about anything from the weather to the fuzzy trio that happened to abruptly jump into both their lives.
By the time they arrived at the Thorndyke manour, and the Host Club spent around five minutes gaping at the size of the property and beauty of it, the human part of said club found themselves completely drained. Cursing the evil effects of jetlag and apologizing to Chris to have to retire so soon for the night, the humanoid hosts said their good nights and went into their borrowed rooms where they were asleep within the hour.
Meanwhile, the three hosting fuzzies and Chris sat in the living room, neither group feeling particularly tired. In fact, they were more anxious than anything.
"- But since they have school, and we don't want to ruin their education, we can only look during their vacations." Tails finished explaining their predicatment to the young scientist, who nodded in understanding.
"And thise whole debt we owe them doesn't help," Knuckles added acerbically. "Every second we waste no looking for the emeralds, there's the possibility we might not find them at all."
"Oh, please." Sonic rolled his eyes. "The worst thing that's ever happened to those things is them getting thrown across outer space."
"And whose fault was that?" the echidna asked sourly.
"Not the point," Sonic replied, shooting a glare at the Gaurdian before aimlessly looking through the stuff strewn on the center table, obviously bored with the coversation.
Knuckles growled. "Considering the days we waste here is another day Eggman could take over our plant, you, of all people, ought to be concerned!"
"Maybe." The hedgehog shrugged as he picked up a magazine and flipped through it mindlessly. "But we've got plenty of time before that happens, so relax." Sonic threw the magazine back on the table and switched to a colorful flyer with a picture of a ferris wheel on it and looked at Chris. "What's this?"
Chris took the paper and scanned it quickly before replying. "It's a flyer for the annual carnival." Seeing the puzzled looks on the Fuzzies' faces, he did he best to elaborate. "It's fairly new, it just started a few years after you guys left. Basically it's a type of huge gathering with games and rides. It's actually gotten pretty popular, and I've been thinking about taking Helen this year." The last thing said in sheepish tones, Chris rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed.
Sonic's face turned thoughtful. "How many people usually show up to this thing?"
"Over half the city," Chris replied, not entirely sure what that had to do with anything.
The hedgehog eyed his red companion with a grin. "Sounds like the perfect place to find some gossip about certain emeralds, doesn't it?"
"No." The echidna could see where this was heading. "It would just be an excuse for you to waste time and not look for the emeralds, which is the whole reason we're here."
"How could checking a near-empty city help us?" Sonic asked. "People talk at huge things like this, Knux. It's not a mime convention. We go, listen for people talking about any of the mumbo jumbo that happens when the emeralds are around, get the emeralds, go home. Easy."
"Sonic-" Knuckles began, but the hedgie cut him off.
"We won't have any fun, I swear," Sonic assured questionably. "But looking there is our best bet right now."
Knuckles opened his mouth to retort, but closed it, realizing the hedgehog had a point and settled for a grunt instead. Figuring he won, Sonic picked up the flyer again and a grin slowly made its way to his face.
"We're not going to have fun," the hedgehog said mischieviously, with a wicked gleam in his eyes. "But I know two people who are."
The other two fuzzies and Chris just looked at each other, wondering what in the world was going on in that rodent's brain.
"Forget it."
With downright refusal soaking his voice, Hikaru handed the flyer in his hand back to Sonic, who folded his arms and tapped his foot impatiently.
"Do it," the hedgie insisted.
"No," the twin protested, then, seeing the hedgehog unmoved, sighed. "I'm not even sure she likes these kinds of things."
"So? Even if she doesn't, this is her first time in America, probably the only time," the hedgehog added after a quick though. "So I can guarantee she'd like to see it in action since it's obvious she doesn't travel much. Who are you to take that away from her?"
This time it was Kaoru who spoke. He had been listening to the duo's conversation from the bed of their borrowed room since the hedgie had less-than-subtly barged into the room that afternoon with an idea simply crazy enough to make the youngest twin wonder why the blue menace bothered to even try. "He has a point," Kaoru surprisingly agreed. "Haruhi doesn't get to travel much, and when she does it's with the whole club which is, let's face it, overwhelming. I think she'd enjoy it more if it was just a small group, or a single person," he added, looking at his older brother frutively which made the eldest twin groan.
"But why me?" Hikaru wanted to know, though the answer was obvious to everyone in the room.
"Because the rest of us will be busy doing other things," Sonic explained. "Like looking for the emeralds, since that is the whole reason we're here. But since it's her first time here and all, I don't think 'our little princess' should have to spend it working."
"Then why can't she go alone? She's more than capable of taking care of herself, you know," Hikaru stressed.
"So? This is America, twinkletoes," the hedgehog reminded as if the name itself was threatening, then shrugged. "Plus, you're the one who has to apologize to her for smacking her with a dessert, making you the perfect escort."
Hikaru shot a glare at the speedy rodent. "I wasn't the only one," he defended lamely.
"But you were the only one who hit her with a sense of, uh, malice," Sonic remarked with a egoistic grin.
Hikaru blinked. Okay, said like that, the hedgehog's statement was technically true (though he wasn't entirely sure he'd use the word "malice"), but before the twin could point out the fact he had been aiming for said rodent, there was a knock at the door.
And, because the thing called irony does exist, none other than Haruhi opened the door.
The female just looked at the trio for a moment before saying, with no real flare, "Tamaki-senpai sent me up here to tell you guys it's time for lunch." She looked at each other them in turn before asking, "What are you doing, anyways?"
"Nothing," the trio answered simultaneously, which only rose Haruhi's interest, but she ignored it by shaking her head and just walking out of the room.
She got halfway down the hall before Hikaru noticed the look he was getting from Sonic. It was one of those looks that said the hedgie had one of his most devilish plans yet, and the twin did not like it. Sonic just smirked and looked from the twin to Haruhi to the twin again. Finally, it clicked in Hikaru's head.
The twin narrowed his eyes. "You wouldn't." He said these two words with a clear warning intended behind them, but the hedgehog just quirked an eyeridge.
"Wouldn't I?" he asked, feigning confusion but unsubtly taking a step back to the door and shrugging. "Hey, if you're not going to do it, someone has to."
Hikaru shook his head in down right refusal. "I can't-"
"You can too," Kaoru cut in, feeling rather bittersweet about this whole conversation. "You have before, after all."
"Exactly." Sonic eyed the eldest twin pointively. "It's not that you can't, it's that you won't. Believe it or not, there is a difference, but if you're not going to ask her yourself, I'll ask her for you."
Before Hikaru could respond, or refuse, the little speed demon disappeared from the room and reappeared in the hall next to Haruhi, who looked at him with a 'where the hell did you come from' expression.
'He wouldn't,i Hikaru growled inwardly, despite the fact this heart was beating a mile a minute.
He did.
And it make matteres worse (or better, depending on who you are), she agreed. That having been, Hikaru couldn't exactly run out on her without some hardcore excuse, which he didn't have nor could make up without sounding a jerk (which frankly wouldn't have bothered him if he had been dealing with anyone else).
Oh well, at least he didn't have to deal with the rest of the club for the day, right?
And, coincidentally, Haruhi was thinking the exact same thing. 'It couldn't be as bad as last time,' she thought to herself before shuddering at the memory. Well, the day had been fine. It was afterward she was concerned about. But that couldn't happen again.
Haruhi found she wouldn't have a lot of time to think on it since His Majesty had his own agenda. He had taken to forming an "English class" after lunch with Tanaka, the butler of the household, and as noble as his efforts were, Haruhi was really the only one who kind of paid attention (the honor student in her couldn't help it). And after less than an hour, everyone else dispersed, considering it pointless since they weren't going to be in America long anyways.
Instead, Tails took to showing Honey (and, inadvertently, Mori) the garage and introducing them to Chris' grandfater who was exceedingly delighted to find "new minds to mold"; Tamaki had taken to blaming the twins about everyone leaving his class (for some reason only known to him) and was having a rather animated "conversation" with them about it, though one of them had his mind on something else entirely; Kyoya made his way back to his room and was clicking away at his laptop; Knuckles had wandered off somewhere, seemingly unnoticed; and Haruhi found she wasn't quite used to the time differences just yet and decided to take a nap, and she didn't wake up until the next day.
Well, she didn't wake up as much as she was pulled out of bed and forced into a cute little lavender strapless dress that went a little past her knees, a little white sweater with sleeves to her elbows and long, wavy hair extentions to boot (Sonic had told the maid, Ella, about the "situation", as he called it, between the female member and one of the twins of the Host Club, and she was more than willing to help at any cost, claiming it was practically a tragedy).
Haruhi was muttering to herself about how she could never sleep in when she was on "vacation" and pulling at the top of her silly dress as she was waiting on the spacious front porch for Hikaru. In all truth, the dress fit her perfectly and there was really no need for her fuss. At least, that's what the elder twin thought (and the thought brought that stubborn blush back to his face) when he finally came through the front door to meet her.
"Mornin'," he muttered, not really looking at her.
"Hey," Haruhi replied, still tugging at her dress, though not as noticably. "Ready?"
The twin grumbled something along the lines of "As I'll ever be," and he nearly dragged his feet to their transportation.
By the time the limo vanished from view of the front porch, Tamaki stumbled out the door, Sonic and Kaoru right behind him. "How could you let this happen, Sonic?" the King whined. "How could you let my precious daughter go out with that ruffian again? She should've gone with me, her loving father!" The blonde sobbed loudly, falling to his knees in front of the hedgehog.
Sonic's brows were furrowed at Tamaki as he watched the seemingly pathetic scene. He looked up to the younger twin who just shrugged with a look on his face that said he was used to this sort of thing. The hedgie cleared his throat, and Tamaki looked up at him from the ground, his eyes expectant and full of tears. "I'm pretty sure you could be very helpful while we look for the Emeralds, your highness. That's why I let Haruhi and Hikaru go together. The red-headed menace would just get in the way, you see."
Tamaki's face clearly lit up at the thought, and he got to his feet quickly. "Of course I would be an excellent reference for you. I am very smart, you know." He continued his little rant and made a walked a little circle, thinking hard, and Sonic winked up at Kaoru who just snorted.
Mere seconds later, the rest of the Host club was out on the porch, fuzzy portion included, waiting for their own limos to go search the town or the carnival.
"Splitting up should make it faster," Sonic pointed out as groups were made.
"And the faster, the better," Knuckles grumbled from the door, but no one seemed to hear him.
After a few minutes of lots of arguing (Tamaki really wanted to go to the carnival to "keep an eye on his daughter", but Sonic's will was immovable, and he didn't want His Majesty interfering in any way), the groups were set, and everyone went their seperate ways.
"You really think we'll find something at this carnival?" Kaoru questioned the hedgie before he got in the car.
"Who knows?" Sonic shrugged. "But I would never miss your brother's little 'date' for anything." He smirked at the twin, and a gust of wind announced his leaving. Kaoru blinked a couple times before shaking his head and getting comfortable in his seat, a slight smile on his face.
The other twin's face wasn't as joyous, however. He was still rather irritated at the hedgehog for setting this whole mess up, and he hated that he couldn't even glance at Haruhi without his face getting hot. The female wasn't really paying attention to him, though. Everything around her seemed to catch her eyes, from the carnival games and all the silly little prizes they offered to the roller coasters that creaked menacingly whenever the cars rushed by. She thought it was all rather ridiculous, but everyone around them seemed to be having a good time.
Hikaru trudged along beside her, his hands stuck in his pockets and his face a little gloomy.
"You bored?" Haruhi's voice made the red head jump slightly.
"Kinda," he muttered, looking around, anywhere but her face.
"You wanna go back?" The female seemed completely indifferent, but Hikaru didn't want to disappoint her.
"Nah, we just haven't gotten to the fun stuff yet." He cringed inside. He really did want to look around; the commoner's carnival was fun (well, the last one he went to back home was anyways), but he was with his brother last time, not Haruhi. Sometimes he really just didn't know what to do around her, and that made him feel weird.
"If you say so," she answered, staring at a carnival game where people were throwing darts at balloons, some of them missing terribly.
Hikaru sighed. "Do you wanna go on a roller coaster?"
Haruhi shrugged. "Never really been a big fan."
The twin's expression quickly went from shielded to shocked. "What?" he asked dumbly.
"Well, only 'cause I've never been on one." The females words had no excitement or much of anything, but Hikaru couldn't believe what he was hearing. She was eyeing another game where people were tossing rings at empty bottles.
Hikaru was about to retort with something along the lines like commoners could ride roller coasters too, when he heard a quick "Pssst" from behind him. He turned quickly to see Sonic gesturing for him to come closer. The twin turned back to Haruhi, but she wasn't paying attention, so he quickly shuffled to the hedgehog's side. "What are you doing here?" The acid in Hikaru's voice clearly there, Sonic quirked an eye ridge.
"Strictly business. Looking for the emeralds and all that, y'know. But I just happened to be in the neighborhood." Sonic glanced Haruhi's way; she hadn't even looked away from the game, and she was making her way towards it ever so slowly. "I hope you're being polite, twinkletoes. All that hosting, and you can't handle a second date?"
The twin sighed, exasperated. "We're doing just fine. It's not my fault-" Sonic cut him off by raising a gloved hand.
"Blah, blah, blah. Your fault and all that jazz. I've heard that shpeal before." He pointed to the female who had taken to figuring out the American money by herself (and with the broken English she'd learned from the little lesson the day before) and was trying the ring toss game and failing miserably. "Bet you didn't even notice she was interested in that, huh?"
"Of course I noticed!" Hikaru eyed Haruhi, a bit of confusion plastered on his face that Sonic noticed instantly.
"Sure you did." He rolled his eyes quickly before the twin looked back to him, his face annoyed. "Look, bud, you'd better learn to pay attention or things will end up just like last time." Hikaru's expression changed in a second from irritated to concerned.
"How'd you know-"
Sonic cut him off like he hadn't even started speaking. "She's looking for you, you'd better hoof it!" And with that, he ran off, a quick gust of wind all there was left to prove he was ever there at all.
Hikaru turned around quickly, and sure enough, Haruhi was scanning the crowd. When she spotted him, she walked over, easing in and out of the wave of people easily. "There you are," she said. "Where'd you run off to?"
"Bathroom," the twin lied quickly.
"Well, you could tell me next time," Haruhi said evenly, starting to walk again. She glanced toward another game that had squirt guns that the people shot into a clowns mouth (which Haruhi found to be slightly creepy) and inflated a balloon above. She furrowed her brow, trying to figure out how it worked, and Hikaru finally took notice to her curiosity.
"You wanna try?" he asked easily. He found it much easier to talk when he knew what was going on in her head.
Haruhi looked a little taken aback by his question but nodded slightly. "These games are weird," she muttered, taking a seat in front of one of the water squirters.
The guy behind the counter raised his eyebrows at her Japanese and Hikaru handing him the money needed for the two of them to play. "Every game has a winner!" he announced loudly in English, as he did before every game started, and a gong announced the game to start. The two foreigners caught on quickly and pressed the buttons on the water guns. It was a close race, but in the end, Hikaru won (but only because he pushed Haruhi's gun at the last minute, earning him a slight slap to the arm). He grinned triumphantly as he was handed a little stuffed panda.
Before Haruhi even got off her little stool, Hikaru pressed the panda into her hands. She looked up at him, slightly abashed. "Hey, what am I gonna do with it?" he asked, letting go of it and forcing her to take it. Haruhi smiled a little, grasping it tightly as Hikaru got up and started walking away.
The rest of the day went rather quickly, the duo playing nearly every game in the carnival twice, and after much convincing (considering Hikaru was in a much easier mood), they rode the biggest roller coaster that was available when the sun was starting to set. They got off laughing, Haruhi pushing Hikaru playfully. "I can't believe you talked me into that." She was gripping her new tiny panda and checking her hair for any falling extentions with her other hand.
"It was worth it, seeing your face." He laughed openly but stopped when he noticed her fussing. "Hey, stop. You look fine." He spoke without thinking and felt his face grow a teeny bit hot and looked away quickly.
"Not that it really matters," Haruhi said, boredly. "I just wanna make sure I didn't lose any of them. That'd be a pain."
Hikaru muttered a reply when Haruhi noticed a stage surrounded by chairs near the edge of the carinval. "You wanna take a rest?" she asked, pointing toward the small group that was growing around the chairs. Before they could take another step, her stomach grumbled loud enough for the two of them to hear, even over the bustle of all the people around them.
"I'll go get us something to eat," Hikaru said, thankful to have something to do. "I wonder what American food they sell here," he wondered aloud before disappearing in the vast ocean of people, and Haruhi wandered over to the seats around the stage and saved the twin one next to her.
The red head was standing in line, rather impatiently, when, he heard a "Pssst" behind him again. He rolled his eyes before turning around to find Sonic gesturing for him to come to him. Hikaru didn't move this time, however. "I'm in line," he mouthed for the hedgie to see, and Sonic zipped to his side. "Well, how are things going?" he asked, looking around. "Did you ditch her again? What's with you, man?"
"I did not ditch her. I'm getting food," Hikaru defended, scowling at the head of the person in front of him. "What do you want now?"
"Just letting you know what's goin' on. Your friends found an emerald in town, and we heard some rumors about some weird goings on around some woods. Oh, and I'm gonna be singing along in the musical number tonight."
Hikaru nodded absently until the last bit clicked. "Wha- Why?" He scrutinized the hedgie that was so much closer to the ground than he was, who just shrugged.
"I'm like a celebrity, and it would make the masses happy. Besides," he winked up at the confused twin, "It's something special." And with that, he rushed away before Hikaru could say anything more.
"Was that Sonic the hedgehog?" the person behind him asked, and the rest of the line started chattering excitedly even louder than before. Hikaru grumbled to himself the whole wait in line and all the way back to where Haruhi was sitting rather patiently, people watching. The twin handed her her corn dog, which she eyed with a tiny bit of scorn, before he took his seat.
"What is this?" the female asked, raising the corn dog by its stick and twisting it in her hand like it would look more appetizing from a different angle.
"I don't really know, but I saw a lot of people eating them," Hikaru answered dully, glaring at the stage.
Before either of them could say anything more, some upbeat music started playing through the speakers, and the crowd around them cheered. A young boy with red hair and in an orange striped shirt came to the microphone and announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, the Ferbettes!" He waved his hand to a group of girls behind him who waved to the crowd. "I'm Phineas and this is Ferb-" he motioned to a boy with green hair and purple pants, jamming on the guitar in his hands "-and we're gonna sing a song! But tonight we have a special guest to help us! Give it up for Sonic the hedgehog!"
Sonic ran on stage and waved both his arms above his head, and the crowd grew even louder, most of them getting to their feet. "This is for a couple in the audience who clearly needs a little help," he said into the microphone, and everyone laughed lightly, except said couple who didn't understand English.
The opening of the song was filled with gibberish that Haruhi was trying to decipher when Sonic started singing the first verse in Japanese, though the crowd was continuing in their own tongue, so most of them didn't even notice.
My baby's got her own way of talkin' whenever she says something sweet, and she knows it's my world she's a-rockin' when my vocaulary's incomplete. I know it may sound confusing. Sometimes I wish she'd give it to me straight, but I never feel like I'm losin' when I take the time to translate.
This time, between the silly words that made no sense, Sonic sang to clear some things up.
Bow chicka bow wow, that's what my baby says. Mow mow mow, and my heart start pumpin'. Chicka chicka choo wop, never gonna stop. Gitchee gitchee goo means that I love you.
With the last three words he locked eyes with Hikaru and shot a glance at Haruhi who was watching the scene with as much enthusiasm as she was willing to show. The boy looked Haruhi's way, and she looked back, a small smile on her face. "This song is so pointless," she shouted above all the din, but Hikaru was thinking something else entirely.
The hedgehog let the boy named Phineas and a tall, read-headed girl finish singing the rest of the song in English, but he hung around and help sing the background parts. When the song was over, everyone on stage took a deep bow, and the crowd cheered excessively, even as the performers were leaving the stage.
"Seems like a popular song," Haruhi guessed correctly, standing up and stretching. "Even though the words made no sense."
Hikaru chuckled weakly. "Yeah, no sense." His mind was racing, wondering when Sonic would appear and make him look a fool in front of Haruhi, but the hedgehog never came, even when they were walking to the street to their waiting ride. The night was rather comfortable, a slight breeze working its way through the whatever trees there were and rustling the leaves making a nice, crisp sound. Hikaru dared a glance Haruhi's way, but her face in the pale moonlight was enough to make his heart skip a beat.
Damn, he thought to himself. Get yourself together. It was just a stupid, pointless song. Why did music always do this to him?
They were walking through a smalle field between the carnival and the road when they heard a loud pop and thy sky lit up bright red. They turned around and saw fireworks shoot through the stars just to explode into tons of different colors. Haruhi smiled. "I love fireworks." She gazed up at the lights and hugged the little panda Hikaru had given her.
But Hikaru wasn't looking at the fireworks. His eyes were locked on Haruhi and how the colors reflected off her large, dark eyes and how pretty a smile looked on her face. He reached a hand towards her, not exactly sure what he was going to do. "Haruhi, I-"
She turned to him, and his heart nearly melted when her eyes met his. A million thoughts rushed through his head, but the only thing that really made it through to understanding was the stupid song's line: Gitchee gitchee goo. His hand shot back to his side, and he bit his tongue to hold his thoughts back. Instead, he said, "We should go, it's getting late."
Haruhi's face looked ever so slightly downcast when she turned back to the fireworks. "Yeah, I guess you're right," she agreed, and she turned back around and headed for the road.
Hikaru watched her walk and cursed himself a million times over. He turned back to the carnival and cursed Sonic twice as many times before turning back and following Haruhi. When the two were finally to the street and in the limo, Sonic and Kaoru muttered angrily at each other from behind a tree.
"See? I told you he wouldn't say it," the younger twin argued in a stage whisper.
"He was going to, and you know it!" Sonic whispered back.
"I think I know my brother a little better than you, Sonic."
"Well, you're both dummies, so I can see how it would be easy for you."
Before Kaoru could say anything against that, Tails' head appeared from the leaves above them. "Why are you guys whispering?" he asked, cocking his head to the side and twitching an ear back. "They're gone."
The duo under the leaves looked at each other, confused, and shrugged in unison.
"Now things are going to be worse between them," Kaoru muttered, rubbing the back of this neck.
"Or, they'll act like it never happened. They're really good at that, those two." Sonic shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.
Tails jumped out of the tree and hovered above them. for a moment before plopping down in front of them. "What're you guys talkin' about?" he questioned, waving his arms to balance himself.
The red head and blue hedgie glanced at each other before patting the kit's head. "It's nothin', little bud," Sonic assured.
"They're both just pretty dense, is all," Kaoru clarified poorly.
"If you say so." Tails pushed their hands off his head and pointed with his thumb to the road. "Well, Honey's probably wondering where I am, so I'll just see you guys in the limo." He paused. "Well, I'll see you, Kaoru." And with that, he prepped his namesakes for lift off and flew away.
When the two were alone, the taller one sighed and shook his head. "My brother is a hopeless cause."
"Him and you both,dude," Sonic laughed. Kaoru furrowed his brow at the hedgehog who just shrugged. "Just sayin'. See ya back at the house." And a quick gust of wind announced his leaving yet again. Kaoru rolled his eyes and started for the limo waiting for him where he was sure Honey and Tails were laughing about something together.
He wondered if he could ever just wipe these intruders from his memory once they left, but after a second thought he knew that would be impossible.
Finally! Sorry for the long wait, but it's finally here! :D You'd best review 'cause it makes us want to write faster! ...Well, whether or not that's true, you should review anyways. (: And don't forget to read the side stories! Which will be updated soon enough! :D