Emi fidgeted outside Kyouya's door. It was four in the afternoon, three hours before the doors opened. After shutting down the twins plan of coming over to her house they convinced her to show up at Kyouya's house and get ready with the entire host club. The planned arrival was 430 but she wanted to be with Kyouya's before the mayhem of tonight.
Slowly she raised her hand to knock but before her knuckle made contact with the door it was pulled open.
"You've been standing here for over five minutes, am I really that scary?" Kyouya asked, smiling slightly.
She returned the smile and brushed past him towards his room.
"Spying on me are you?" She teased,
"Only taking advantage of the cameras stationed around the house." He replied smugly,
Emi rolled her eyes as she entered his bedroom. She had noticed the cameras the first time she set foot on the Ootori property, she just hadn't realized she was standing in front of the door so long is all.
~I'm such a mess.~ She thought,
Kyouya closed the door behind them and she flopped on his bed, completely at ease with her surroundings now. She could practically hear him snicker as he joined her on the bed and pulled her onto his lap.
"Why are you so flustered with this." He asked softly, rubbing his hands on her arms soothingly.
She melted into him and rested her head on his chest.
"I didn't want to trouble you."
"Well you have."
She gave him a playful slap on his shoulder which caused him to chuckle and pull her closer.
"I think something is going to happen to you." She confessed, snuggling further into his chest.
He stiffened slightly, probably confused, before using his fingertips to tip her head up and face him.
"I'm going to be fine and so will you. My personal guards will be there, nothing is going to happen."
She still wasn't convinced but she nodded and snuggled up against him again.
He sighed, "You're impossible."
He continued to rub a hand on her arm and brought another to run through her hair.
Emi wish she could've stayed there forever but of course the hosts had to make an entrance. After a few minutes they heard the door slam open and the noise of many voices shouting. Sadly she drew away from him and noticed with satisfaction that a trace of sadness flickered across his face as well before he hid it.
They both sat (at a reasonable distance from each other of course) and waiting for the stampede of people.
When the doors burst open Emi was pulled away within seconds and shoved into a nearby room with a twin.
"Ready for some fun?" He asked maliciously, opening bags full of makeup and sewing supplies.
Emi turned and saw Haruhi next to her, looking just as terrified as she felt.
"Uh, Kaoru?" Emi asked,
"What's happening exactly?" Haruhi finished,
"First of all now I understand how you guys feel when me and my brother speak," Kaoru started, "Second of all, Emi, how do you know I'm Kaoru and not Hikaoru?"
Emi looked at him for a second then at Haruhi who shrugged at her.
"You just are, I can't explain it."
Kaoru gave her a weird look and glanced at Haruhi before smiling and looking down.
"You girls are the weirdest people I've ever met." He said then pulled out two dresses, "Anyways, let's get started."
o0o
Kyouya sat with the other hosts, minus the twins, in a living room in his wing of the house. The two girls have been in locked in the room across the hall for an hour and a half.
~We need to leave in fifteen minutes.~ He thought, aggravated.
He and the other boys were fitted in matching tuxedos with different colored ties within thirty minutes and left to their own devices while the dynamic duo got the girls ready. Haruhi was being forced into wearing a dress and posing as her cousin mainly so the two redheads could dress her up, as usual.
A shriek snapped Kyouya back into attention. There had been plenty of shouting, screaming, and the sound of things breaking within the room but this was a happy shriek.
"Haru-chan and Emi-chan have been in there a long time." Hank said from his perch on the couch next to him.
"Hn." Mori grunted,
No sooner had Mori agreed did the doors to the forbidden room open and both twins emerge. They had bright smiles on their face and stood in a way that hid the two girls behind them.
"And now, the royal highnesses of tonight's ball," One twin started,
"Queen Emi-san and princess Haruhi!" The other finished and simultaneously stepped aside to reveal two elegantly dressed ladies.
Haruhi wore a magenta gown with crystals sewn into the long, ruffled skirt. The top was relatively plain and well fitted up to her chest where a bit of a boost was added to her breasts. Jewels outlined the trim and coated the sheer fabric that covered her shoulders and upper chest and wrapped around the back, acting as straps and additional coverage for the modest young lady.
Kyouya heard Tamaki begin babbling and launching himself at her but Mori held him back as Haruhi chewed him out.
In all honesty, he had only glanced at Haruhi because he couldn't take his eyes off of Emi.
She wore a mint colored gown that matched his tie and a smile that stopped his heart.
Her dress was long like Haruhi's but flowed instead of ruffled. Her bodice was tight and when she approached he noticed the back was laced up in an intricate corset. The sweetheart neckline accentuates her breasts in a way he found completely captivating, though he had trouble admitting it to himself. There were jewels along the trim and scattered all over the bodice. A few strips of crystal dripped down her skirt so when she moved it appeared as if she was wading through water.
"They gave me a strapless dress with a goddamn
Kyouya. How am I supposed to do anything in this?! What if I need to pee?" Emi said angrily, standing directly in front of him with her arms crossed.
Instead of answering he pulled her into a kiss that after a few seconds melted into a hug.
"You look beautiful." He whispered,
Emi stuttered and pulled out of the hug, her cheeks reddening under the makeup.
"It's the twins, they're the magicians."
"No," He responded, "They just accentuated what was already there."
He took a step back so he could get a better view and continued to be awed by her beauty. He also noticed that her arms and back were void of bruises and scars, as if they were erased from her body.
~The twins must be better at makeup than I thought...~
She looked up at him and through the mascara covered eyelashes, the tear drop diamond earrings, and the uncharacteristic blush, he still saw the strong woman he fell in love with.
"I tried to hurry them along but they kept adding stuff and making adjustments." She said,
Suddenly she leaned in and whispered so no one else could hear, "Do you have any idea how many layers they forced on me. If we dance you're gonna have to pull some weight."
He couldn't help laughing and he continued laughing until his sides hurt and he fought for breath. At some point Emi had joined in and after they beat down the laughter they held hands and giggled the whole way out to the car. Kyouya ignored the astonished stares his friends gave him and instead enjoyed this moment of bliss with his girlfriend.
o0o
The car ride was silent, it seemed everyone was still stunned by Kyouya's outburst. Emi was giddy with happiness, she had wormed out the real Kyouya and shown it off for others to see.
They pulled up to the school banquet hall and Emi leaned over and asked for the time.
~I need to know how much time I have to work with.~ She thought nonchalantly,
Kyouya flicked his left wrist and displayed his watch for both of them to see.
~Time to panic.~
Within seconds of the car stopping Emi had launched out of the car with Kyouya on her heels. She tucked the excess fabric of her dress in her arms and sprinted into the royalty themed hall to watch over the final preparations of the dance. From her spot by the refreshments she heard Kyouya directing roses and other details. After a few minutes of stress and instruction the pair met at the grand staircase and dragged themselves to the rest of the hosts.
"Do you usually work with fifteen minutes when finalizing preparations?" Emi gasped, already cursing her heels for jeopardizing her movements.
"Of course," Kyouya answered coolly, still as perfectly handsome as before, not a wrinkle in sight.
At the top of the stairs he looked over and they continued to the classroom they had set up as host headquarters.
"But usually I finish it in thirteen minutes instead of five."
Emi peeked up at him and saw a small smile on his lips. She giggled lightly and grabbed his hand and together they returned to the other members of the club.
"Doors should have just been opened, we need to prepare for the opening display." Kyouya said as he entered the classroom.
Instead of desks, Tamaki insisted on putting couches and a mini fridge of refreshments for the hosts. All the boys were lounging on the prepared furniture and Haruhi was grumbling about rich bastards and money or something.
~She is so sensitive to this stuff.~
"Oh Emi, you've ruined everything!" Hikaoru wailed, wilting on his brother.
"We have to try and fix her, dear brother!" Kaoru replied, fake crying on his shoulder.
Emi looked on at the scene confused and when she shot a questioning glance at Haruhi she was answered with a shrug.
"Uh... What's wrong?" She asked softly,
"She doesn't even know!" The two redheads yelled before jumping apart and grabbing Emi's arms.
"Time to fix," One started,
"You're mistakes!" The other finished,
Emi gulped and was dragged behind a curtain to a mirror and another mountain of makeup, she sent a pleading look at Kyouya but he too answered with a shrug and then curtains closed.
Ten minutes later her makeup was 'back to normal' ~Even though it was fine to begin with~ and she was standing next to Kyouya behind the two large brass doors above the grand staircase. Host introduction was scheduled in two minutes and she was preparing for the hordes.
"We forgot one final thing," Kaoru whispered from behind her,
"I swear if you try to fix my eyebrows one more ti-" She started but when she turned, she froze. In the hands of the twins were two elegant, yet simple, silver crowns. One was slightly bigger and more regal while the other, though equally gorgeous, was more delicate and shaped like a tiara. Embedded in each were light blue gems that matched the color of Emi's dress and Kyouya's tie. ~Naturally.~
"What are these?" Kyouya asked, looking at Emi,
"I don't know either," she replied, staring at the headpieces in awe.
"We didn't buy them if that's what you're thinking." Hikaoru said,
"One of the guests is the first in line for a well-known jewelry store and offered to make us custom crowns on the request that we auction them off next week and return 60% benefits to the jeweler." Kaoru said,
Kyouya looked slightly stunned but hid it before anyone else could catch on,
"If you had included Emi or I we probably could have bartered for a better deal." He said coldly,
~Awe, he really does believe in my abilities.~
"Why did you hide it from us?" Emi added, trying to sound welcoming so the twins wouldn't get scared off.
"We wanted it to be a surprise!" Hani added, appearing beside the twins,
"You too Hani-senpai?" Emi asked,
"All of us were," Haruhi added
Emi looked around and noticed everyone had crowns with different metals and styles. The only ones with similar qualities were hers and Kyouya's. She couldn't help smiling up at Kyouya and giving his hand a squeeze. She could practically feel him release his annoyance and accept the present given to him.
"Thank you for your efforts." He said, "With these we will surely be the princes and princesses that our guests have dreamed of. If we are done, let's go meet our impatient guests."
The ball started off with a bang. The guests adored the crowns and most people especially adored how Kyouya and Emi matched. Music from the live orchestra began and signaled the beginning of a long night of dancing. Each host took a guest to dance with, even Haruhi despite being disguised as her own cousin. After an hour of dancing with various partners Emi spotted Kyouya pulling away from a girl. The second year student was babbling away and frantically grabbing onto his jacket. Emi couldn't help the glare of anger that spiked through her as she stalked over to the pair.
"Excuse me," Emi said as she tapped on the girl's shoulder.
The girl glanced back and when they made eye contact she gasped and began talking even faster to Kyouya.
Emi paused to collect herself before firmly grabbing the girl's arm and turning her around. ~And off my boyfriend.~
"Kyouya has many guests, it's hardly fair to take him all to yourself." She forced herself to say sweetly,
"You just want him all for yourself, it's not fair!" She cried before stomping off to a group of girls that glared at Emi.
Emi slowly turned back to Kyouya and lifted an eyebrow.
"We've had a good run, let's go freshen up in the back real quick." She said,
Kyouya nodded and together they walked out. They remained an acceptable distance apart so as not to arouse curiosity. When the curtain separating the venue from the school closed Emi grabbed Kyouya's hand and began dragging him to the host headquarters. She could feel him attempt to avoid her train with little success but she didn't care. Rounding the corner she burst into the classroom and sent up a small prayer, thankful that no was in it.
"Are you okay? Did she do anything to you?" She said, running her hands along his chest, searching for any device the girl might have planted.
"I'm fine Emi." Kyouya said calmly and took her hands in his. "She was just a jealous girl that snuck in with her group of other jealous girls. She practically forced me to dance with her then tried to convince me to break up with you. I'm fine, I promise."
Emi stared into his stormy grey eyes for a five count before relaxing.
"Okay. If that's the case I'm going to stick close to you for the rest of the night. It annoys me when people treat you like an object." She said,
~No one else is going to touch unless they want to mess with me.~
Kyouya surprised her with a chuckle before pulling her into a hug.
"My knight in shining armor." He whispered in her ear.
"Shut up." Emi replied, giving him a playful punch on the chest and remaining in his arms.
~He's so gentle when he holds me...~ She thought blissfully.
"While we are in here I am going to take this thing off." Emi said, pointing at the silver tiara,
"What's wrong with it?" Kyouya asked, releasing her from his embrace.
"There's a pointy part that keeps digging into my head," She replied as she slowly removed the accessory, wary not to rustle her perfectly styled hair, ~The twins aren't going to 'fix me' again if I can help it.~
She removed it and ran her fingers along the edge to find what was annoying her. On the far edge was a sliver of silver jutting out randomly.
"Guess this jeweler isn't that great, huh." Emi said, setting the piece on the table of the temporary headquarters.
"Here," Kyouya said, holding out another tiara, "It's fake, but it's better than nothing."
"Where did you find it?" She asked, putting it in position,
"The twins always haul around a bag of random fashion supplies, I remembered seeing this in there." He replied matter-of-factly,
"It's not so heartfelt but the whole matchy-matchy thing was overdone anyways." She said, frankly,
"We should return before we arouse suspicion." Kyouya said, a smile on his face and a palm out, waiting for her.
Emi nodded and together they walked back to the ballroom, hand in hand.