Chapter 27 | Mori-senpai has an Apprentice Candidate!

--several days later--

~Arabella's POV~

Back to school.

That's where I went.

Spring break was over and now it was time to go back to school again.

I was dreading going to school more than usual today.

Mainly because when I was at Hikaru and Kaoru's country club, Kaoru saw me naked.

That's right, naked.

It's been awkward between us ever since.

But, after the whole country club incident, he and I didn't really see each other or talk during the rest of spring break.

That much I was thankful for.

Unfortunately, I would have to see him today.

As usual, Haruhi and I walked to school.

"So." she said.

"So, what?"

"So, how are you and Kaoru doing...?"

I gulped and chewed my bottom lip. I was really worried she'd ask that question.

I decided to play dumb. "What do you mean?"

Haruhi gave me a look. "Don't play dumb, Arabella." she said with a sigh.

Well, that didn't work.

I sighed too. "Sorry, Haruhi. I know exactly what you mean. And... I don't really know any more... We haven't talked or seen each other since that day at the country club... so I can't really answer that question. But I have to assume it's incredibly awkward between us, now..." I said.

Haruhi nodded. "I understand. What I can't understand, though, is why Tamaki would do that... I mean, why would he shove Kaoru in a locker in the girl's locker room? Didn't he see the obvious signs above the locker room doors??? Either he somehow missed them like an idiot, or he did it on purpose."

"Which do you think is more likely?"

"Hm... That's a tough question. I mean, it's Tamaki."

I chuckled. "Yeah, it sure is."

~~~~~~~~~~

Surprisingly, the school day was pretty non-awkward; Kaoru and I didn't see each other except for the few classes we had together, and then we didn't really talk or look at each other. So, that was nice I guess.

Unfortunately, after school came a time where I would somehow be forced to interact with him--club hours.

It started out as a normal day (or as normal it can be when you're in a Host Club) in the Host Club.

Today's cos-play, however, was somewhat different.

"Welcome!" we all said as our customers entered the Host Club.

"Tamaki," one of our customers gushed. "You're dressed as Sakamoto Ryoma, right?"

"How wild and handsome!" another swooned.

"Yes, and I'm going to make sure to steal your hearts too!" Tamaki said seductively.

The girls squealed. "It's so amazing when you speak in Tosa dialect!!!" they shouted together.

I rolled my eyes. Just another day at the Ouran Academy High School Host Club...

Haruhi shook her head. "No, it's weird, speaking Tosa dialect where he did... Still, I had no idea that late Edo era cos-play would be this popular." she said.

We were dressed in long robe-like garments that were supposed to be for "stunningly attractive, brave warriors" as Tamaki put it.

"Me either, to be honest." I agreed with Haruhi.

We also, to complete the look, had fake ponytails in our hair (hair extensions, of course).

The only difference between me and the others was that I had on a female warrior's garments, which, thank God, weren't revealing at all.

"What are you talking about? That's one of the basics of the basics." Hikaru said.

"Yeah, there are more girls that like the late Edo era than you can imagine. Especially the Shinsangumi." Kaoru added.

When he made eye contact with me, he immediately looked away.

I looked down. Jeez, is it always gonna be this awkward between us??? I hope not.

Suddenly, Honey appeared. "And in any case, among those who like it, there are LOTS of real maniacs!" he said.

Maniacs?

"Perhaps the reason for their popularity was their gallantry in giving their young lives for the sake of their country!"

We all looked over to see Renge, dressed in garments as well.

She continued. "In their single-mindedness to live the bushido code, and in the stoic way in which they comported themselves! Or perhaps..."

Kaoru suddenly pretended to faint, he fell into Hikaru's arms.

Here we go...

"Don't you die." Hikaru pleaded Kaoru.

"I-I'm done for...!" Kaoru fake-wailed.

Every girl within a fifteen-foot radius screamed, swooned, and squealed.

"... they detect the scent of something forbidden, coming from this gymnázein group of young men!" Renge said. Then, suddenly, a board came down out of nowhere and displayed a picture. "The Ikeda-ya Inn may indeed be generally well-known, but for me, just imagining the back of Hijikata-san, facing the northern lands, following the battle at Tobafushimi, sorrowfully wandering, trying to defend the Shinsangumi by himself! I could eat three whole bowls of rice!!!"

"Renge sure covers a lot of territory..." I mumbled. Haruhi nodded.

"Following your advice to not have us cast ourselves in any specific roles, saying it would be better to leave it up to our guests to freely fantasize for themselves, was definitely the right choice." Kyoya said to Renge.

Renge beamed. "Naturally! Still..." she said before she cast her gaze upon Haruhi and her appearance. "Sure enough, having Haruhi be Okita Soji would be perfect."

"He does indeed fit as the handsome, evanesent young swordsman!" one of Haruhi's customers said.

"No, Haruhi! Don't die!!!" another said.

Haruhi, not seeming to notice all the swooning over her, nudged my shoulder. "Hey, they're having a bargain sale on pork at the supermarket. I wonder if I can make it there in time... You could come with me." she said.

Hm... a bargain sale on pork, huh...?

That sounds good.

"Mori has to be Shimada Kai, right?" I heard one of Mori's customers say.

"No way, Yamazaki-san would be better!" another said.

"My dark horse choice would be Soma-san...!" a third said.

Suddenly, Mori's eyes widened before he grabbed his sword out of his garments and stabbed it through the wall.

All our eyes widened.

Mori's customers squealed with hearts in their eyes.

"Mori-senpai!" Haruhi said.

"Why the sudden stabbing?!" Tamaki gulped. "Are you mad about not getting any attention?! Please calm down! I know you only get about one word or sentence every chapter! Or, is it because you haven't had a chapter about you yet?!"

"No," Mori said before he pulled the sword out of the wall and opening the door. "We have a trespasser."

We all looked down to see a guy with red hair on the ground.

Suddenly, the guy jumped up and lunged at Mori. "Takashi Morinozuka!" he shouted.

We all gasped.

"Surprise attack?!" Hikaru and Kaoru said together.

Then, the guy fell short of Mori and hit the ground in a begging position. "Senpai! Please take me on as your apprentice!" he said.

Wait, what?

"Huh?" we all said, confused.

Mainly because we were.

Mori just stood there and blinked.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ritsu Kasanoda; first year, class D. Heir to the third-generation head of the Kasanoda Syndicate, the most powerful line in the whole Kanto area. Admitted to Ouran Academy for high school. Red hair and a mean-looking appearance; taciturn, and without friends. If your eyes meet his, you'll have nightmares for three months, if you bump into him you'll be sent to the hospital, those who talk back to him are met with an early demise and sent immediately to their graves. Also, he is feared by his classmates as the 'human blizzard', anyone who makes eye contact with him will immediately freeze over in fear," Kyoya said as he read through his black book and closed it. "Any questions?"

"Wait, why is a human weapon like yourself want to become an apprentice of Mori-senpai?" Tamaki asked Kasanoda, who was sitting across from us on another sofa.

Kasanoda sighed. "I'm not a human weapon, I was just born with a face that makes me look mean." he said.

"So, you're aware of it, Casanova?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked.

"It's Kasanoda." Kasanoda corrected them.

"Bossanova?" Hikaru and Kaoru said.

Kasanoda gave Hikaru and Kaoru the most menacing glare I've ever seen anyone give another person. "I said, it's Kasanoda!!! You wanna die?!" he shouted.

Hikaru and Kaoru immediately cowered and jumped behind the sofa. "He is indeed scary..." they mumbled.

Kasanoda sighed. "Damn it... It's all because of the way I look. From the time I was born, since I was just a little tyke, my old man would say 'cause of this mean look I have, 'He's set to be the greatest gangster of our time' and stuff like that. So, since the time I was little, I was taught how to be tough, mean, and scary. However, thanks to that gangster's education, no one ever comes near me. Even my fellas got scared and won't get too close anymore. And so, I'm all alone. But really, I too would like to play with everyone else. I'd like to play a good game of Kick the Can some time with my fellas!" he said sadly.

"Agreed! A good game of Kick the Can can be pretty awesome!" Tamaki said.

"But I don't know how I'm supposed to associate with other people anymore." Kasanoda said.

"Poor guy..." I heard Honey mumble from the table behind us where he and Mori were sitting.

"Morinozuka-senpai, that's why I need you to show me. How can you be the way you are? As mean looking as you are? Emotionless, unspeaking, and unsociable... You've got a mug like a watchdog from hell, so how is it that you're able to get those around you to like you so much? Please! Teach me your secrets!" Kasanoda said before he bowed down to Mori.

Mori just sat there, his eyes widened and his mouth slightly agape.

Then, he put a hand to his head and sighed.

"Takashi, are you okay?" Honey asked.

"I'm a little lightheaded." Mori mumbled.

"Tono..." Hikaru started.

"... are you sure we shouldn't do anything?" Kaoru finished.

"No. Leave him be." Tamaki replied.

"Huh?" Haruhi asked.

"He said he wanted to become Mori's apprentice. So, Mori must be the one that decides what to do. This is not something we can interfere with." Tamaki said as he stood up.

"Tamaki." Mori said.

We all looked to Mori.

Then, he gave Tamaki a look that read, "Help!".

After seeing this, Tamaki immediately brightened up. "Very well, Mori-senpai, if you insist! I, Tamaki Suoh, will do whatever I can to help you out!" he said.

I snorted.

"Actually, you wanted to help out so bad you almost couldn't bear it, huh?" Haruhi said to Tamaki.

Tamaki ignored Haruhi and approached Kasanoda. "Lift your head, Bossanova-kun!" he said as he lifted Kasanoda's head up by his chin.

"It's Kasanoda." Kasanoda corrected again.

"For the time being, you can call me King, Bossanova-kun." Tamaki continued, not noticing Kasanoda's correction.

Kasanoda rolled his eyes. "I told you, it's--"

"Bossanova! Are you listening at all?!" Tamaki shouted.

Kasanoda was taken aback from Tamaki's sudden outburst and nodded. "Yes, sir!" he said.

"There may be many points of difference between you and Mori-senpai, but there is one definitive thing you're lacking. That being, a lovely item!" Tamaki said.

I arched one of my eyebrows in confusion. "Lovely item?" I repeated.

"Lovely... item???" Kasanoda mumbled.

Tamaki nodded and gestured at Honey. "I would now like to introduce you to this lovely item, Mitsukuni Haninozuka, or Honey-senpai!" he said.

Honey gave an adorable smile.

"Sure, maybe Mori-senpai has a mean look that gives off a feeling of iciness at first glance. But, what if I put Honey-senpai atop his shoulders? It's like he's transformed into a forest teddy bear that little animals and all people are fond of! In addition, this lovely item also plays up Mori-senpai's tight-lipped character! Even without saying anything, just by placing Honey-senpai with him, people discover a tolerance for Mori-senpai all on their own, and they are left with a positive interpretation of him as a nice, quiet, young man! And that's the plan!" Tamaki said. "It's no exaggeration to say that most of Mori-senpai's charm was first established when Honey-senpai moved into the picture!"

All our eyes widened again. "You're right!" we said.

"Now that you mention it, Mori-senpai doesn't really do anything..." Hikaru said.

"His position is a big 'bzzt'." Kaoru said.

"Takashi," Honey said with tears in his eyes. "Were you just using me?"

Mori immediately got up out of his chair and shook his head vigorously.

"But Honey is on long-term contract to Mori, so you can't borrow him. Sorry." Tamaki said to Kasanoda.

"Am I just a rented item to you, Takashi??? Am I rented to you???" Honey whimpered.

Mori shook his head even more vigorously.

"Well, I'll think of something to take his place," Tamaki said. "However, the next thing to address is your horrible yankee fashion!" Then, he snapped his fingers. "Hitachiin brothers!"

Hikaru and Kaoru were instantly at his side. "Sir!" they both said as they saluted him.

"Come up for an image change for this man's fashion!" Tamaki said. "It's up to you two!"

"Roger that!" Hikaru and Kaoru said before they approached Kasanoda.

~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Kasanoda came to school without his new makeover.

I can't blame him--it was pretty horrible...

I can't believe Hikaru and Kaoru...

"Brother Morinozuka! Good morning!" Kasanoda said to Mori with a bow. We were all headed to our homeroom classes and Kasanoda had just approached us.

"Good morning, Bossanova!" Honey said cheerfully.

Kasanoda looked at Honey. "Hey there, Haninozuka-senpai!" he shouted louder than he needed to.

Honey shivered and ducked behind Mori. "Y-Yeah, hey there..." he mumbled.

"Brother Morinozuka, I can carry your bag to your homeroom class for you. Would you like me to?" Kasanoda inched towards Mori and held out his hands.

"That's okay, I can manage." Mori said.

I suddenly heard a weird sound... a scratching sort of sound... like something was moving...

I looked up and immediately saw where the sound was coming from.

Oh no...

"Watch out!" I shouted before I practically jumped on to Kasanoda and pinned him to the ground about a foot away from where he was bowing.

Mori must've heard the sound too, because as the exact same moment I jumped on Kasanoda, he pushed us forward and out of the way.

"What the hell--" Kasanoda started.

A loud crash was heard.

Everyone who was around us turned to look our way.

There, on the ground in the exact spot Kasanoda was bowing in, was a now broken potted plant.

Everyone gasped.

It was then another potted plant fell from the ledge above.

It was about to land right on top of Kasanoda and I when Mori suddenly whipped his arm at it, and broke it mid-fall.

Everyone gasped again as the broken potted plant landed to the far right of us.

Mori looked up at the ledge where both plants were once sitting.

"Mori! Are you hurt???" one of the girls in the crowd said, worried.

One of my customers, I recognized, helped me up and off of Kasanoda. Then, I helped Kasanoda up.

"My little girl! Are you okay?!" Tamaki asked me.

"Are you hurt?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked me.

"I'm fine." I said.

"What about Kasanoda? Is he okay too?" Haruhi asked.

I gave Kasanoda a look, asking if he was, indeed, okay.

"I-I'm fine..." he said.

"Are you okay, Morinozuka?" one of our classmates asked Mori.

"Who could've done this?" another asked.

Honey climbed on Mori's shoulders. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah." Mori said.

Kasanoda just watched as the crowd around Mori and the rest of us grew. Even more questions were asked.

But, really, who could've done this?

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Wait, you think someone's out to get Mori-senpai?"

"I'm sure of it! Clearly, he rubbed someone the wrong way! You all should be sure of it too! We were all there!" Kasanoda said.

"No way." Hikaru said.

"Mori-senpai would be the last person to rub anyone the wrong way!" Kaoru said.

"You don't know that for sure!" Kasanoda said.

"Nevermind that, Bossanova-kun! As of today we officially start Operation Bossanova-kun Image Change in earnest!" Tamaki said as he pointed at a board that said, "Turn Bossanova into an Angel".

Hikaru, Kaoru, and Honey all saluted him. "Yes, sir!" they said.

Kasanoda jumped up from where he was sitting. "Now just wait a minute! What do you mean 'as of today'?! Don't pretend yesterday's disaster didn't happen! Thanks to that, people were more afraid of me yesterday than usual!" he said.

"Bossanova-kun, I hope you don't misunderstand. We really are behind you on this!" Tamaki said.

"Yeah, we all are." I said.

"Exactly." Haruhi agreed.

"That thing yesterday was just the twins getting carried away, as usual. I hope you can forgive them." Tamaki said.

Kasanoda sighed. "Sorry. I am completely in your hands." he said.

Tamaki smiled. "Good!" Then, he went back up to the board with everyone else. "Okay," we heard him say. "Does anyone have any more ideas???"

Haruhi and I approached Kasanoda.

"Um, Kasanoda-kun?" Haruhi said.

Kasanoda looked up at us.

"If we were you, we wouldn't put too much faith in that group... They can be... Hm... What's the phrase I'm looking for...?" I said.

"Uh, over creative." Haruhi said.

"Yeah, exactly!" I agreed.

"But they were recommended to me by Brother Morinozuka... Besides, I'm the one who's imposing and asking a lot of them," Kasanoda said. Then, he looked at Haruhi and I. "Hey, come to think of it, I've never actually been introduced to you two before..."

"I'm Haruhi Fujioka." Haruhi said.

"And I'm Arabella Hashimoto. We're both first years, like you." I said.

"We also both got admitted." Haruhi said. I nodded.

"I guess that means we're all mates!" I said.

Kasanoda just looked at us. "D-Do you two like playing Kick the Can?" he suddenly asked us.

Haruhi and I looked at each other.

"Well, it's not our favorite thing in the world." Haruhi said.

"Yeah." I agreed.

"Still, it might be fun once in awhile." Haruhi said.

"Yep. I mean, I enjoy a good game of Kick the Can." I said.

Kasanoda was quiet for a second before he looked at me. "Hashimoto?"

"Yes?" I replied.

"I... I wanted to thank you for doing what you did this morning; you practically saved my hide... So, thank you for that." Kasanoda said.

I smiled. "Uh, you're welcome, but it wasn't just me, Mori helped." I said.

"I know, I just wanted to thank you." Kasanoda said.

I smiled again. "Well, thank you for thanking me." I said. Haruhi nodded.

Kasanoda just looked at both Haruhi and I with a weird look on his face.

"Bossanova-kun!"

Tamaki and the rest of them were suddenly at our side.

"Y-Yes?!" Kasanoda said, a little on edge for some reason.

Perhaps he's afraid their next big idea will turn out to be just like yesterday's...

Well, for his sake, I hope not.

"We've decided on a strategy for your lovely image!" Tamaki announced proudly.

~~~~~~~~~~~

We all stared at Kasanoda's appearance.

He had cat-ears on his head.

After a few more seconds of staring, Honey spoke up. "He's a cat-monster." he said bluntly.

We all turned around and huddled up so Kasanoda couldn't hear us.

"I don't get it! Renge told me that kitty headbands are all the rage these days...!" Tamaki said.

"Well, naturally, there are limits to what placing ears on him can do to temper the frightfulness of his appearance." Kyoya pointed out.

"Sir, that was pretty weak." Hikaru pointed out to Tamaki.

Kaoru nodded. "Yeah, if you're going to do it at all, then look..."

The twins then held up a maid's uniform. "... you've got to go all the way and make him a kitty-eared maid!" they said together.

"Are you guys making fun of me?" Kasanoda asked, irritated.

Suddenly, a knock on Music Room 3's doors was heard.

"Come in!" Tamaki sang.

The doors open to reveal a guy with a ponytail in his hair. "Uh, excuse me, is Young Master Kasanoda in here?" he asked.

Then, his eyes landed on Kasanoda, who the twins just finished getting the kitty-eared maid uniform on.

The guy's eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

Kasanoda immediately pinned him to the doors.

"I-I'm terribly sorry! I didn't mean to interrupt your private pastime...!" the guy said.

"Who are you saying has a private pastime?! Damn it!" Kasanoda shouted, clearly embarrassed.

Then, he snatched the kitty headband off his head and threw it to the ground. "That's it! I can't take this anymore!" he shouted before he left the music room and ran off.

The guy followed him. "Young Master! Wait!"

I picked the kitty headband off the ground.

"But really, I too would like to play with everyone else. I'd like to play a good game of Kick the Can some time with my fellas!"

I sighed.

"Hm... I wonder if Kasanoda-kun really needs an image change..." Haruhi said.

"Yeah..." I mumbled.

"You're right," Honey said. "I just hope he realizes it soon."

~Third Person POV~

Kasanoda retreated to the gardens of Ouran.

He crouched down by a rose bush and sighed.

"That Kasanoda is always in a bad mood..."

"Yeah, he really scares me!"

"They say you shouldn't look him in the eye!"

"Ugh... Why am I like this?" Kasanoda asked himself. Then, he reached carefully into the rose bush and pulled out a large box with holes in it.

Then, he opened up the lid and looked inside.

Inside the box laid a sparrow with a bandage around one of its wings.

Kasanoda took it and sat down at the foot of a large fountain. "Look, I brought you something to eat. Hm... Let me see how that wing is doing..." he said before he checked the sparrow's wing. He smiled. "Well, it's looking much better now!"

"Wow, a sparrow!"

"How beautiful."

Kasanoda immediately looked up and saw Haruhi and Arabella. "Eh?! What are you two doing here???" he asked.

"What happened to your sparrow?" Arabella asked.

"Well, it fell from its nest the other day and I could tell it was hurt, so I took it to a vet and he said it would heal in no time." Kasanoda said.

"Aw! That's so sweet!" Arabella said.

"Can we feed it some food?" Haruhi asked.

Kasanoda just looked at them. "Y-Yeah, sure..." he said before he gave both Haruhi and Arabella some food to feed the sparrow.

Kasanoda watched both of them.

"I'm Haruhi Fujioka."

"And I'm Arabella Hashimoto. We're both first years, like you."

"We also both got admitted."

"I guess that means we're all mates!"

Kasanoda kept watching them. Hm... Now that I think about it, these two don't seem to be afraid of me. Just look at Hashimoto... her beautiful, dark brown eyes fill with wonder and happiness instead of fear when I'm around her...

And, look at Fujioka; what huge, dark eyes he's got... So sparkly... He really looks like a chick...

Chicks are especially afraid of me... I've never been able to talk to one, let along TWO like this...

Kasanoda's eyes widened as he realized what he thought. But, Fujioka's a GUY!!! What am I thinking?!

Haruhi and Arabella both looked up.

"Hey! Watch out!"

Suddenly, a can flew across the garden, in the air...

And right towards Kasanoda, Arabella, and Haruhi.

But, Honey suddenly appeared in front of them, and kicked the can up in the air, away from them, before it could hit them.

But, when Honey kicked it, the lid flew off and red paint came spilling out, all over both Arabella and Haruhi.

The paint covered a portion of both their uniforms.

The sparrow was startled, and it flew out of Haruhi's hands as she was feeding it.

The three of them watched it fly away.

"It... flew away..." Arabella mumbled.

Kasanoda looked up at it and smiled. "It flew away." he said.

"HARUHI!!! ARABELLA!!! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!?!? IS THAT BLOOD?!?!?" someone screamed.

Tamaki had arrived on the scene.

"No, we just got some paint on us, that's all." Haruhi explained as she and Arabella got up.

Kasanoda stood up too. "Are you sure you're both alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, we're fine." Arabella said.

"Hey! Get off of me, you bastard!"

"Yeah, you big idiot!"

They all looked to see Mori holding a firm grip on two guys that were struggling against his hold.

"This is real messed up of you, Kasanoda!" the first said.

"Yeah! Not only did you kidnap our boss's kid, you're also using musclemen like this one!" the second said.

"You rotten kidnapper! Now, give us back the kid!" the first added.

"Silence, you ruffians! Here's some rope!" Hikaru and Kaoru said before they jumped on the two guys.

"What's this about?" Kasanoda asked.

"You know what? You were the one they were after all along, Bossanova-kun. We decided not to say anything until we found the culprits. To avoid from having any disturbance, you know?" Honey said.

"So then, you helped me? Why?" Kasanoda asked.

Mori answered by putting a hand on Kasanoda's head and saying, "We can tell just by looking who the bad guys are."

Kasanoda's eyes widened.

Haruhi and Arabella looked down at their clothes.

"Things just love spilling on me, don't they?" Arabella grumbled.

"We're gonna go change." Haruhi explained to everyone.

By now, the entire Host Club was there.

"Go on, then." Kyoya said.

"Okay then, my little girls!" Tamaki chirped at Arabella and Haruhi.

Hikaru and Kaoru approached both girls. "Need some help~?" they both asked pervertedly.

Haruhi eyed both of them. "Drop dead." she said bluntly. Then, she and Arabella walked away.

Arabella blushed, remembering the time at the country club, in the girl's locker room...

"Well, Kaoru would really like to help! Especially with Arabella!" Hikaru called after them. Apparently, he remembered too.

Kaoru turned red. "You drop dead, Hikaru." he snapped at his brother.

"You dumbasses!"

The rest of the Host Club and Kasanoda looked down at the two guys who were both now tied up.

Suddenly, someone kicked both of them to the ground.

"Stop! That's enough of your foolish misplaced blame!"

It was the guy with the ponytail from earlier.

"Don't you get it, already?! I left because I was sick of hanging around with the likes of you! Get lost already, will ya'?!" he shouted at both guys.

They both looked at each other, scared, before they slowly scrambled away the best they could (from being tied up and all).

Kasanoda approached the guy. "Tetsuya, you're..."

"I'm terribly sorry for not telling you, I am Tetsuya Sendo, son of the godfather of the Kanto branch of the Sendo Syndicate. I have long been opposed to the any-means-necessary methods of the Sendo Syndicate," Tetsuya explained. "And at length, one rainy day, a year ago, I got into a big fight with my old man, and ran away from home. I'd never felt as anxious before as I did then... I had nowhere to go, and everyone else along the streets just passed by me, as though they couldn't even see me. Just then, Young Master... Young Master, the first time I laid my eyes on you, I immediately knew what kind of person you were. Afterward, I joined up with the Kasanoda Syndicate and you accepted me with kindness. I know, Young Master, that you're more self-conscious and awkward than most people, and yet, you're warmer than most people. And, it's not just me; everyone in the syndicate knows. They just don't say anything since they know it would embarrass you," He looked up at Kasanoda. "I, Tetsuya Sendo, wished to be someone like you, Young Master. So, I cut my ties with the Sendo Syndicate and consigned myself to make my home among Kasanoda Syndicate. Please, allow me to remain loyally at your side, Young Master, from here on out, as well."

Kasanoda just stared at him.

"Oh!" Tetsuya suddenly said. He pulled a wrapped up umbrella out of his bag and handed it to Kasanoda. "Here. The weather looks like it might get bad soon, and we don't need our Young Master catching a cold, now do we?"

Kasanoda stared at the umbrella before he took it. "You guys...," he mumbled. "Thanks. I'll use it."

"Of course!" Tetsuya said with a smile.

"What a great story! I'm touched!" Hikaru and Kaoru cried together.

"Oh! I should apologize to Fujioka and Hashimoto! It's 'cause of me they got paint all over them," Kasanoda said. He turned to the Host Club. "Where did they go, again?"

"Haru-chan and Ara-chan went to the music room to change!" Honey chirped.

"Oh, thanks! I'll be right back!" Kasanoda said before he ran off.

"Okay! Oh, and Young Master, let's play a game of Kick the Can later!" Tetsuya called after him.

"Yeah!" Kasanoda called back.

Tamaki smiled and watched him go. "We did a good thing today!" he said.

"You didn't do anything, Tono." Hikaru and Kaoru both pointed out.

"More importantly, does anyone care that Kasanoda went to the same exact place where both Haruhi and Arabella went to get changed?" Kyoya said.

About three seconds later, Tamaki and the twins' eyes all widened in horror, upon realizing what Kyoya said.

"Haruhi!!! Arabella!!!" the three of them shouted.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kasanoda entered Music Room 3, which was empty.

"Fujioka? Hashimoto?" he called.

No answer.

Kasanoda closed the door behind him and walked around the music room.

"Hm... They must be in the prep room..." Kasanoda said to himself.

Then, he opened one of the doors in the music room.

"Fujioka, Hashimoto? I just wanted to say sorry for--" Kasanoda cut himself off when he saw Haruhi and Arabella.

Arabella had just finished taking off her shirt, so her bra was showing.

Haruhi's was too.

Kasanoda looked at Arabella for about a second before his gaze shifted to Haruhi.

His eyes widened at what he saw.

Both Haruhi and Arabella immediately turned their backs to Kasanoda.

"G-Get out!" Haruhi said as Arabella waved Kasanoda away frantically.

"S-Sorry!" Kasanoda immediately scrambled out the door and slammed it shut.

He took a few heavy breaths outside the door, letting what he saw sink in.

What. The. Hell?!