"So how did he take it?" a surprisingly calm Hikaru asked once they'd let their toy go. Still laughing and trying to catch her breath, nonetheless Haruhi's mood turned slightly serious.

"We talked. He was hurt – I knew he would be – but we managed to clear up a bunch of stuff. I think we might finally be on the same page."

"That's great, Haru," Honey piped up from where he was still sitting on the sand. Just as he decided to stand, the cabin door opened and the subject of their discussion strolled out.

"So since we're finally all together now – well, we will be once Kyoya gets out of the shower – what should we do for the rest of the day?" Though there was an underlying thread of confused melancholy, Tamaki's voice was bright and cheerful and the smile on his face was genuine.

"We could always see how well Haruhi would do on a surfboard," Kaoru said with a grin. The girl in question shook her head vehemently.

"Uh-uh. No way are you getting me out in the water on a stick. Besides, the only one of you all that knew what he was doing was Mori, and I – um..." She stopped speaking abruptly as all eyes focused on her.

"Haru-chan, were you watching us?" Honey's voice was wicked, one eyebrow raised as he held back laughter. She felt her cheeks heating.

"Well, I...um, yeah. I just wanted to see what you all were up to." She blinked, wishing she weren't blushing, and knowing instinctively that she wasn't lucky enough to get out of this un-embarrassed.

"Mmm," Tamaki hummed noncommittally, stepping closer to the female host. "Well, gentlemen, it seems we have a spy in our midst." He began to walk a slow circle around Haruhi, obviously delighting in the way she turned to follow his movements. In doing so, however, she turned her back on the twins who were quick to take advantage of that fact, darting up to either side of her and grabbing her wrists, holding her immobile as their King stopped directly in front of her.

"And just what should we do with a spy?" he mused, reaching out to grab her chin with one hand and gaze deep into her eyes. The part of her mind that was still functioning knew there was no possible way her captors could have missed the shiver that ran through her but they said nothing about it, seemingly content to let Tamaki run the show this time. From behind the Host King she saw Kyoya step out of the cabin and walk over to them, raising one eyebrow as he approached.

"This is interesting," he said calmly, coming up beside the blond.

"Kyoya, it seems we have captured a spy," Tamaki said, releasing Haruhi's chin.

"A spy, you say? My my, that is a dangerous thought." Kyoya said, his voice dropping in pitch to caress her ears. This time it was obsidian eyes boring into hers – just as powerful if not more so thanks to the serious expression he wore, and the disconcerting hints of mischief beginning to glow in their depths. Haruhi had the brief thought that this was not really how she had imagined her evening with her boys to begin. Still, she found herself amused and curious and decided to go with the flow.

"What should we do with her?" the golden king asked. Beside him, Kyoya looked lost in his own thoughts, his glasses glinting in the sunlight. Haruhi got the feeling that he was debating with himself over something that had nothing to do with the current situation. She didn't have long to wonder what that might be, however, as her other friends began calling out ideas.

"The rack?" Kaoru suggested mildly, grinning at her when she turned her head to glare at him.

"Thumb screws?" Hikaru proposed from the other side. He, too, was treated to a glare that he met with a wicked smile.

"How about a flogging?" Honey's voice held a mixture of helpfulness and playfulness, though his eyes were wide and innocent as she gaped at him. Haruhi suddenly felt that she really had no idea what was going on, but in the next moment her attention was once more caught by the Shadow King. He seemed to have settled whatever internal debate he'd been having and a sly smile began to appear on his face.

"I believe there is really only one thing we can do with this particular spy." He took a step forward and gestured to the twins to release her, which they did with alacrity. Having been granted her freedom Haruhi knew she should run, but instead she was held in place by the startlingly intense look in the eyes of the approaching brunette. He stopped mere inches from her and as she looked up into those dark, dark eyes she knew she'd lost any chance of escape. The thought made her quiver, and it wasn't in fear.

Without warning he moved and in the next instant she found herself scooped into his arms and carried down the sand. At the realization that Kyoya was carrying her, her brain simply gave up. And then they reached the edge of the water and he was wading out, now ankle deep, now knee deep, and her sudden unexpected flight through the air had her shrieking in a voice she knew couldn't possibly be hers. The water was cool as she landed, splashing into its embrace with all the grace of a drunken bear, her squeal muffled by the gentle waves.

He'd come out of the cabin to a sight most intriguing. Haruhi was being held in place by the Hitachiins, while Mori and Honey stood by silently. Directly in front of her stood Tamaki, but as the blond was facing away Kyoya couldn't see his expression. Haruhi's, however, was clear as day, and the wide-eyed startlement couldn't quite mask the excitement glowing beneath. He wandered over to stand beside his lover, taking the circumstances in with an amused glance. Tamaki's declaration that they'd captured a spy made him want to chuckle but he stayed quiet. He had no idea what was prompting him to go along with the situation, but for the first time Kyoya saw merit in playing just for playing's sake. He was tired of thinking, at least for the moment. All of his problems, his concerns, his responsibilities – they would all still be there when he deigned to contemplate them again. There was nothing so immediately pressing that he couldn't relax for a bit. The freedom in this thought was as welcome as it was unusual.

Had he considered it he would have likely realized it wasn't relaxation he craved, but companionship. Tamaki had shown him that there was more inside him than just the third Ootori son, the businessman, the driven and determined scholar. And standing on this golden stretch of sand, surrounded by the people that had somehow claimed places of importance within his soul, Kyoya finally understood that here, in this time, this place, with these people, he could truly let go and just be for a while. It was freeing; it was frightening. Mostly, though, it was exhilarating, and he allowed himself to embrace the idea. As such, he did the one thing no one would have ever expected him to do. He picked up Haruhi and flung her into the ocean.

He was still trying to wrap his mind around the way she had felt in his arms for that brief moment when she stood, sputtering and drenched and looking...utterly adorable. Behind him he could hear the disbelieving laughter and shocked exclamations that were the inevitable result of seeing the Shadow King act so blatantly out of character, but most of his attention was focused on the soaking wet girl that was slowly stalking closer to him, her clothes clinging in ways that threatened his composure, vengeance gleaming in her eyes.

"Kyoya-senpai, I hope you can take as good as you give," she muttered as she walked past. Having expected her to stop in front of him, the fact that she stomped past him shot a tendril of doubt through him. Had he misjudged so badly as to make her angry? Composing his expression he turned slowly to face the beach. He was a little too slow, however. With a yell of amused revenge she attacked. He didn't have time to blink but his arms came up reflexively only to immediately be filled with a still-dripping Haruhi. She barreled into him with the force of a freight train, shocking in one so small, and the collision knocked them both off of their feet. Kyoya gasped as he hit the water first, the female host landing on top of him and dunking him completely beneath the waves.

In those few short moments under the water his eyes met hers and a warm shock of understanding passed between them like an electric current through their veins. It was gone in the next moment, though the aftershocks could still be felt, and then he was climbing to his feet and it was the most natural thing in the world to reach down, grasp her hand, help her stand. She was laughing and it was a few moments before Kyoya realized that he was as well. They stood their in the shallow water, holding hands and laughing until they were gasping for breath, and some deep part of Kyoya's psyche finally admitted that for the first time in his life he felt completely at peace and whole.

After the others had gotten over the chock of seeing the natural host and the cool host standing in the sea, fully clothed and dripping wet and laughing like deranged loons, it didn't take long at all for them to rush forward and join in on the fun. Soon the air was filled with shouts and giggles as the entire Host Club dove and splashed and tussled in the ocean. Haruhi was enjoying the hell out of herself. It was as though for one day, this one shining afternoon, they could stop being who they had to be and instead fully embrace who they were. Eventually, though, the setting sun and their own exhaustion prompted the seven friends to stumble out of the water and flop down on the beach.

"I'm hungry – is anyone else hungry?" Hikaru's voice was tired but happy.

"I could eat a cow," came the reply from his twin where he lay a few feet away, one arm flung over his eyes.

"We could ask the servants to bring us some dinner and dessert," Honey suggested, making no move to get up off of his stomach.

"If someone wants to head to my camp and bring back the blue cooler chest, I can make us all some dinner," Haruhi offered, sitting up slowly. To her surprise Tamaki leaped to his feet and headed off in the direction of her camp, his long legs eating the distance to the treeline quickly.

"Would you prefer a campfire, or should we bring out the propane grill?" Kyoya asked, sitting up as well and rubbing his eyes with one hand before putting his glasses back on. Haruhi pretended to think a moment but it wasn't a hard decision.

"We need a fire. It's not a beach party without a fire." She grinned at him and he smiled in return.

"Are we having a beach party?" he asked.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "But fires are more fun anyway. A propane grill would make me feel too much like one of you pampered rich bastards." Her grin was cheeky, and she got the feeling if he'd been anyone else the Shadow King likely would have stuck his tongue out at her. After a few moments of sitting still, she rose to her feet to start setting up a fire pit only to find that Mori, Honey, and the twins had beat her to it. The tall host was arranging the pit while Honey, Hikaru, and Kaoru brought wood from the pile beside the twins' cabin. She blinked in shock.

"Well, that was quick," she muttered. The boys chuckled.

"You're offering to cook, Haru-chan. The least we can do is get everything set up."

"Honey-senpai is right," Tamaki said as he approached the rest of them, dragging the huge blue and white cooler behind him. "So what can we do to help?"

In short order Haruhi found herself directing a passel of rich boys in the proper way to make shish kebab. As she tossed together the ingredients for a lightly seasoned rice dish and put it in a covered pan at the edge of the flames, the twins cheerfully chopped vegetables. Kyoya and Tamaki had agreed to cut up chunks of pork and chicken, while Honey darted towards his cabin, Mori following as usual, to prepare a surprise dessert the senior host assured everyone would be 'absolutely yummy.'

By the time the sun had truly begun to trek towards the horizon, dipping its toes delicately beneath the waves, the hosts were sitting in front of the campfire happily munching on skewers of flame-roasted meat and veggies as well as Haruhi's family recipe rice dish. The food disappeared quickly amongst cheery mumbles and happy conversation about everything and nothing. Once dinner was cleared, Honey zipped into his cabin and came back out with a large covered casserole. Setting the round dish in front of Haruhi, he grinned excitedly.

"Since you're here with us now, I thought we could celebrate by sharing some of my super-special white chocolate blueberry mousse." With a flourish that would have done an accomplished chef proud he pulled off the lid and the delectable scent of the sweet dessert wafted into the air. Haruhi hummed appreciatively.

"I'm not usually one for overly sweet snacks, but this smells incredible." She reached out and took the dish and spoon he handed her.

"It tastes even better," he promised, watching as she sampled the confection. Haruhi scooped up a bite of the frothy treat and lifted it to her lips.

"Oh. My. God," she moaned. His expression upon seeing her enjoyment was radiant. She took another bite, her eyes closing in bliss. Because of that she missed the pleased smiles her friends wore, happy that she was happy. Before long, though, they were all enjoying the dessert, the dish emptying faster than school hallways after Friday's final bell. Thoroughly satisfied, Haruhi leaned back on her hands, looking up at the sky with contentment.

"You know, guys...I really did miss you all." She heard murmured replies all around, but at the moment her mind was food-hazy and lethargic, and what she said next had absolutely nothing to do with anything.

"It's amazing how bright the stars are out here."

"It is beautiful," Tamaki said softly. He sat up straight and looked at each of the hosts in turn. "I have an idea," he exclaimed, turning his gaze to the twins. "Hikaru, Kaoru, go into all of the cabins and bring out as many blankets as you can find." He looked at Mori next. "Mori-senpai, could you put the fire out? It's a warm night and we won't need the light."

"Tamaki, what are you doing?" Kyoya asked as the three hosts addressed thus far began to stand up. The Host King smiled widely.

"It's a perfectly clear night. We're all here together on this beautiful island. I thought it would be nice to simply lay on the sand and stargaze tonight. We won't have many chances for something this simple and lovely when we get back home."

"I think that's a great idea, Tama-chan!" Honey bounced to his feet. "I'll go ahead and take all our dishes and food back inside."

"I'll help," offered Haruhi. By the time she'd stood up he'd already stacked the dishes and cups together and was heading back to the cabin. Haruhi grabbed her cooler chest and followed, leaving Tamaki to coordinate the placement of the dozen or so blankets the twins had just returned with. Stepping up into the building, she put the cooler out of the way against a wall and was about to head back outside.

"Haru-chan?" She turned to see Honey standing behind her, eyes shining.

"Yeah?"

"I'm really glad you're with us now. So are all of the rest of the guys. It just wasn't the same without you." He reached out and drew her into a hug and she sighed, completely comfortable in his embrace.

"I'm glad to be with you all," she murmured, feeling his hands slide from her shoulders to her wrists. "It was...weird...without everyone."

"Even with the chaos and confusion?" he teased gently, leaning back to meet her eyes. With a wry smile she nodded.

"Even so."

"You know what this means, though, right?" he asked. She saw the wickedness in his gaze and regarded him cautiously.

"What?" she asked, her voice careful. His hands slipped from her wrists to settle on her waist and she blinked, trying to control her shiver at the gentle caress.

"It means you won't be able to tempt me into your bed again tonight." His voice was matter-of-fact, but one look at her sudden blush and her shocked expression cracked his composure and he started to chuckle. He leaned forward to brush a quick kiss against her cheek before taking her hands once more.

"Come on. There's a billion stars out there that we want to share with you." Still flustered, but totally happy, she allowed the senior to lead her back out to the night-washed beach where all the rest of her boys were waiting.