Haruhi pulled herself together eventually, deciding to stop feeling sorry for herself. It wasn't easy, but once she stood up and began looking through her supplies to choose something for lunch she began to feel a small bit better. By the time her rice and fish were heated she was nearly back to normal. And after she ate, she felt enough like herself again that she decided to try and finish the book she was reading.
She idly wondered what her boys were doing, but chose not to go spying again – at least not yet. Right now she just needed the quiet. Maybe later she'd venture down and see what hijinks they were getting up to. She settled back against a tree and opened her book, letting herself slip into the pages with a gentle sigh. She'd gotten the book from her father as a present a few years back – apparently he felt a historical romance was just the thing his too-serious daughter needed to escape reality for a bit. Outwardly she'd thanked him. Inwardly she'd rolled her eyes. The book had then collected dust until she brushed it off and tucked it in her backpack. She didn't know what had prompted her to do so, but she had to admit she'd found herself glad she did.
The heroine was the youngest daughter of a peasant tradesman, a fair man who loved and doted on his family. As such the girl was better educated and more outspoken than most of her peers. Her intelligence and attitude left her a bit of an outcast amongst the townsfolk, but those same qualities caught the attention of a nobleman who was passing through. He was a young widower, last heir to a fairly large holding in a neighboring kingdom, and he had a little girl who was barely more than a toddler. When the heroine saved the child from a nasty fall off of a riverbank – proceeding to then lecture the nobleman about his atrocious inability to watch his own offspring – the man was both insulted and intrigued by the no-nonsense peasant woman. After much work and negotiation he finally convinced her to step into his employ as governess and nanny.
Despite her own skepticism Haruhi felt herself enjoying the book. It wasn't so much the story itself that appealed to her; overall, it really was a rather typical example of the genre. What caught and held her attention was the way the author seemed to get into the minds, into the very psyches of the characters. The writer – a woman, perhaps, though it wasn't unusual for a man to adopt a feminine nom de plume – took the two dimensional world of print and added that difficult third dimension with subtle skill. Haruhi thought she might look up the author after her vacation, perhaps see what else she (or he) had written. If their other works were anywhere near as well-written and engaging as this one, the host figured she may just have found herself a new favorite author.
Munching on a baggie of chopped vegetables, a cool bottle of water sitting in the sand beside her, Haruhi let the turmoil of the morning dissipate to be replaced with a fictional world. It was a good trade.
He'd just finished setting out the food when the knock on the door announced his guest. He opened the door wide and returned the American's hug emphatically. Much like she was prone to doing with his daughter, the older woman held him at arms' length to give him a visual once-over.
"Damn, my boy, you're just as good-looking as ever," she said with a grin. "I still say Koto was one lucky woman."
"Carrie, you look great as always!" he replied honestly, accepting another hug. She poked him in the shoulder.
"Flattery will get you everywhere, darling," she said with a laugh. Suddenly she turned serious. "So how 'bout we crack open a couple of these beers and you tell me what's got you so upset?"
"I never could hide anything from you, could I?" he sighed ruefully.
"Nope." Stepping back so she could pass him, he closed the door and joined her at the table. The middle-aged blond took a seat and passed him a bottle, grabbing one for herself as well. A few moments of silence passed as they sipped their beer and availed themselves of the tray of finger food he'd set out. Finally, though, he felt her evaluating gaze on him, weighing him in her mind.
"So what's wrong, Ryo?" He looked down at the table, overcome with the sudden urge to stall
"You know, you're practically the only person that still calls me Ryoji," he mused.
"That's how you introduced yourself to me," she shrugged. "Does it bother you?"
"Not at all," he said, shaking his head. She reached out and put a friendly hand on his knee. The platonic gesture was more welcome than even he realized it would be.
"Seriously, hon, what's got you so upset? I haven't seen you looking so worn since Koto passed on." He sighed, toying with his bottle.
"Is it that obvious?" he asked, and she nodded in response.
"Does it have to do with Haru? She seemed fine when she and her harem came to lunch." He raised an eyebrow at her choice of words, but the humor was short lived.
"Kind of. Sort of. Not really." With a deep breath he reached over to the papers beside him, picking up a fat manilla envelope and handing it over. He didn't say anything – couldn't say anything. While his friend opened it and began to peruse the papers within he drained his beer and idly reached for another. A random thought crossed his mind – he never drank at home at all, and he never drank beer unless he was with Carrie – but he was driven out of his musings when he saw her eyes widen, saw her shake her head in denial. He knew she'd understood what she was reading. Soon enough she looked up at him, tears gathering in her eyes as they silently asked the question she couldn't voice. He just nodded.
"Ryoji...no..." she said, her voice low, pained. "Are they sure?" He nodded again. This time the tears really did fall. She reached out and pulled him into a hug, sorrow infusing her clutching gesture, and in the welcome embrace of one of his and Kotoko's oldest, closest friends he finally let himself go as well. He'd held it together for months now, even longer than he'd alluded to Haruhi, not wanting friends or work acquaintances – or heavens forbid his stubborn, loving, independent daughter – to see how absolutely terrified he was, how tenuous his grip on stability had become. The strain of it all was finally just too much.
Carrie was sobbing just as hard as he was. For a long time they just sat there, neither wanting to talk even if they'd had the breath to do so. But eventually tears stop – even the most painful ones. After a while they were sitting back in their chairs.
"Does Haru know?" she whispered. Ranka nodded.
"She doesn't know all the details. I don't want her to worry more than she already is."
"So what's going to happen if..."
"When," he interjected glumly. She glared at him, waving her hand in a brusque motion.
"I said 'if' and I meant 'if.' I may have left my mother's religious bullshit in Texas but I kept my belief in possibilities and miracles." He almost smiled at her rebuke. "At any rate, what will happen to Haru?"
"Well, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about." He handed her the other set of papers, watching her read them, seeing the moment comprehension dawned. She didn't say a word until she'd read through the entire packet. Once she finished she looked up at him, a soft expression on her face.
"You've really thought this through, haven't you?"
"Of course. She's my little girl. She's all I've got left."
"And this is all legal?"
"As near as my lawyer friends can tell, it is."
"Have you let Haru read this?" He shook his head.
"I only got the final draft the day before she left for her trip. I figured I'd talk to her after she got back. I want her to have a decent vacation. She deserves it, so much...but if she had this to dwell on, well, I doubt even her boys would be able to help her enjoy herself."
"They really are fond of her," Carrie said with a chuckle, choosing to change the subject for a while to let them both get over the rawness of their current emotions. The auburn-haired okama smiled indulgently.
"More than fond, I think, in at least a few cases." This time it was the woman's turn to smile.
"I only got to meet four of them, but I'd say you're right. Those were four very besotted young men. How on earth did that particular set of friendships come to be, anyway?" Ranka laughed.
"Well, I still don't know all the details, but I'll tell you what I do know." Settling back, he began to regale his friend with what he knew of the exploits and situations of the infamous Ouran Host Club.
As a group they decided to break for lunch. To everyone's surprise, the Host King was the one to suggest splitting up for food and a nap. The rest of the guys were shocked, Honey even going so far as to place his hand against Tamaki's forehead to check for a fever, an action that made the taller blond laugh.
"Really, I'm fine. But we've been so active all morning. I just think it would be a good idea if we rested up for the surprise I have planned." His smile was excited and the collective group of teens weren't sure whether to be curious or worried. Most opted for both. Still, the idea of a nap after such a fun, if tiring, morning was welcomed.
It didn't take long for Tamaki to drop off to sleep, and Kyoya had to admit to himself that he was beginning to get used to the warmth of another person against him. Once the blond was sleeping peacefully the Shadow King dropped all pretense of work and closed his notebook. A moment later and he was tapping away on his laptop, doing what he did best – finding out information. Honey's attitude earlier had made the Ootori son uneasy. Something was wrong and it had to do with Haruhi. That was completely unacceptable. But due to the cryptic vagueness of the senior student's comments, he had no real idea where to begin looking.
He knew nothing was wrong with her physically. He kept a close eye on the health and welfare of not only the female host but the others as well – an easy task, considering who he was. He had access to her past checkups and medical records. He knew what they said. Her only physiological problem was her eyesight, but her contact lens prescription was up to date and he knew of no other issues. Therefore the medical idea could be ruled out.
Financial problems, perhaps? He couldn't see money putting that serious look on Honey's face or that dark tone in his voice but it could be a slight possibility. However, he spoke to Ranka fairly frequently – at least twice a week, if not more – and he'd not gleaned any hint of misfortune from those conversations. On the contrary, Haruhi's father had recently mentioned that they were secure enough financially that he could begin to set aside money on a regular basis. The okama was planning to make an offer to buy the bar he'd worked at for so long. It would take several years to save the funds, but whereas Kyoya had been supportive and congratulatory, he'd not offered to help – even though the amount needed wouldn't even have given him pause. The third son of the Ootori patriarch fully understood the need to make one's own way in life.
So, finances were an unlikely culprit. He wouldn't rule it out entirely but it definitely wasn't high on his list of subjects for worry. Perhaps Haruhi was thinking of leaving the Club – or even departing Ouran altogether? That made even less sense than monetary problems. She wouldn't have worked so hard to gain entrance to and continually earn her place in the prestigious school just to leave halfway through. No, Kyoya doubted there was anything that could knock Haruhi off her chosen path. So what could it be? What could have bothered Honey enough to have him ask to speak to him privately? To seek out Kyoya himself in particular? What did he specifically have to offer a situation? Suddenly he knew. His fingers flew over his keyboard, pulling up pages, sending off queries, praying he was wrong. And in less time than he would have thought he found his answer – and he didn't like it one bit.
Author's note: Updates two days in a row! Yay! Why, you ask? Because tomorrow is my fifth anniversary and the hubby and I are celebrating with a camping trip to a lake - therefore, I won't be updating again until we get back next week. So I leave you with another chapter - enjoy!