Kyouya was my least favorite Host by far. He was maliciously cunning, driven by greed, heartless (to an extent)... The list could go on. 

And on.

And on.

But at that moment, I hated him all the more. First, there was the fact that Honey had been swept away because of a fault in his system. Second, Mori had almost been lost going after poor Honey (once again, because of Kyouya). And let's not forget about the fact that Tamaki was nearly devoured by a crocodile when we first set off after the adorable little blonde.

Yes. I was not in the best of moods, and Kyouya's "touching concern" drove me nearly over the edge.

"The crocodile pasture is extrememly dangerous," he stated, while scribbling something down in his infamous black book, in what had to have been pristine handwriting. The opposite of a sterotypical doctor's, I'm sure. "The piranha pond should be fixed again. And there is a problem with the position of the lever..." He turned to us with a pleasant smile. "Thanks to you I collected useful data."

My eye twitched. He really was using us as nothing more than test subjects for his ridiculous, overdramatic day spa. If Kaoru and Hikaru hadn't held me back, I think I might have tried to reshape his infuriatingly handsome face. With my somewhat petite fist.

"She's feisty," Hikaru said, his smirk turned to his brother.

"Cute when she's made too," said twin added, a devilish smile on his features. "Her face turns all red!"

"Not in the mood," I ground out through clenched teeth. Tearing myself away from them (and ignoring the laughs they shared at my expense) I stalked away, further into the godforsaken forest we had to search through to locate Honey. 

Haruhi and I walked together; he was ignoring Tamaki, who complained what seemed like every minute or so, and I the twins and Kyouya. Our silence was mutually content, and I found I much preferred his company over the majority of the Host Club members. The only ones excluded from that were Honey and Mori.

Speaking of...

Mori walked just behind Haruhi and I. He seemed.... not nervous, I suppose. But more tightly-wound than usual. 

It made me want to find Honey even more than I already did.

"Where on earth is this...?" Tamaki asked, looking around at the vivid plant life that surrounded us. 

"It must be the north gate's subtropical zone," Kyouya answered swiftly. "Ah, in that case...."

On cue, the skies (figuratively) opened, and down came the pounding rain in cutting sheets.

"It's time for the squall experience service," Kyouya finished.

"Did I mention how much I hate you right now?" I growled, shooting him the fiercest glare I could muster. I didn't look very threatening. Being soaked to the skin, and wearing only a bathing suit while standing in a downpour, set my teeth chattering despite the muggy air. I must have looked like a drowned kitten.

"Several times, yes," he replied, pushing up his glasses with one hand. His face didn't betray his smugness, but I heard it in his voice.

"Well, that's fine then," I muttered agreeably. "I still hate you."

The rain didn't last nearly as long as I expected it to, but I was still angry it had happened in the first place. Poor Honey was stuck out in the jungle all by himself. The rain wasn't going to make things easier for him. I just hoped he wasn't unconscious or worse.

At least I wasn't shivering anymore.

A little earlier, Mori had surprised me by quite literally pulling a hoodie out of nowhere and offering it to me. In all honesty, though, I was more surprised that he owned something so casual than by the fact that it seemed to have materialized out of thin air.

(A/N: Weird, I know. But in anime, crazy stuff happens all the time. People pull stuff out of thin air and act like nothing's wrong, so I thought, why not?)

The hoodie had to be his, because I practically drowned in it. The sleeves slid far past my hands, and I had to roll them up to my elbows to keep my hands free. The edge of the sweatshirt dropped almost to my knees, and you couldn't see a trace of my face with the hood up. But I was grateful nonetheless.

I pulled myself from my reverie when I heard Tamaki talking about some grand plan of his.

"Get it?!" he asked. I sweat dropped. No, I certainly did not get it. What had he been talking about anyway? "In every way, this is survival. We have to make our way safely through the jungle and save Honey-sempai! To increase our efficiency we'll divide into two teams. Mori-sempai's team and Team King! The ones who have the courage and wish to follow me, please hold onto my finger..."

"I'm going with Mori," I said bluntly, pushing past Tamaki to reach the tall third-year. "Haruhi? You want to come with us?"

"Sure," he replied nonchalantly.

"We'll come too," the twins chorused. "Tono's going the wrong way, anyway."

"I suppose I should go with you all," Kyouya sighed, as if this were the most annoying thing he could possibly be doing at this moment. "If you die out here, I'll have to pay a heavy fine to your families."

I forced myself to shut my eyes and count to ten, fighting off the anger that blossomed in my chest. Jerk, I thought irritably as Tamaki rejoined us out of panic from seeing us walk off without him.

I looked at Mori slightly as we walked, studying his unchanged expression. He didn't have a very expressive face, so it was hard to tell just how much Honey's disappearance was affecting him. But after seeing how they acted with one another, I knew he wasn't alright. 

And that point was proven when he suddenly fell into a ditch, one leg completely swallowed by the hole.

If he hadn't been so distracted, he would have just walked around it.

"He must be worried," I heard Haruhi mutter, while I helped Mori up. I didn't so much as help as give emotional support, but you couldn't really blame me. I was practically half his height! How was I supposed to help pull him out of a freaking ditch?

In any case, the twins' reply to Haruhi surprised me.

"He's his cousin," they chorused.

"Say what?" I asked in shock. There was no way... Mori and Honey were total opposites.

"The Morinozuka family has served the Haninozuka for generations," Kyouya said knowingly. Because he knew all this shit, and I obviously didn't. 

"Although the two families were relatives two generations ago, Mori-sempai still stays close to Honey-sempai," the twins added.

Tamaki, of course, had to be dramatic. His eyes softened, bringing him close to tears. "It's the blood still flowing in him," he said. "The same blood from past generations...."

When he began to blubber and shout, "What a touching story!" I shrugged and went back to checking Mori over. He was on the ground, examining a scrape on his arm.

"You ok, Mori?" I asked, crouching next to him. He looked to me, silent as usual, so I focused more on his arm. "That looks nasty," I muttered, nodding at the scrape. "I would help, but unfortunately, dressed like this I don't have any bandages on me. Sorry about that." My tone was light in an effort to ease the tension in the air.

It didn't work very well.

"Honey'll be fine," I said firmly. "He's smart. I've seen his ranking in his class. And if someone as nature-challenged as I am can survive a weekend camping trip in the Appalachian Mountains with my parents, then Honey can definitely survive this." 

I was shocked when Mori smiled softly. He stood and placed a large hand on my head, ruffling my hair. It was such a weird gesture, I would have laughed and pushed them away if it had been anyone else. But this time, I simply grinned.

After a moment, we both joined the group again. Tamaki was surrounded by his usual sad, dark aura. I didn't bother asking why, deciding just to go with it. Haruhi and the twins sent Tamaki into his emo-corner at least three times a day. I was only glad he hadn't begun to cultivate his mushrooms just yet.

As we walked, Kyouya's phone rang, and he went off to the side to answer it.

I wasn't really complaining.

"Speaking of which," Hikaru started, referring to something I obviously missed. Or didn't care enough to hear. "It worries me. Tono, today you haven't even once...."

"....said 'I want to see Haruhi's swim suit'~" his brother finished.

I stopped walking abruptly, head cocked to the side in wonder.

Mori and Haruhi (who didn't seem that concerned over the twins' comments) both stopped as well and looked back at me questioningly.

".....Tamaki's gay?" I asked.

Tamaki turned crimson. The twins exploded in laughter. Haruhi cracked a faint smile. Mori.... well, Mori was still pretty focused on Honey. 

Who gives a damn what Kyouya was doing.

"I-I'm n-not gay!" Tamaki stuttered.

"Well Tono," Kaoru said, smirking, "you are pretty feminine."

"And you are always hugging Haruhi and getting close to him," Hikaru added slyly.

"You shady twins! You have a better chance of being gay than I do!"

"We're brothers," they answered simply, shrugging simultaneously. "It's natural for us to be close."

"Not that close!"

I smirked slightly at their foolishness. There was never a dull moment with the Host Club, that much was certain. But I shook my head and turned away from the bickering trio. There were more important things to worry about.

"Mori-sempai? It's not that way," Haruhi said. He was pointing in a different direction from the one Mori was turned to. "Honey-sempai should be...."

"No. It's this way."

"Whoa, Mori spoke," I muttered, somewhat in awe. I'd only heard his voice a few times, but I was still captivated by it. All the other hosts, excluding Kyouya, had such high voices. But Mori didn't. He sounded so mature.

In any case, Mori started tearing through the undergrowth in the direction he'd been gazing in. Haruhi and I scrambled to catch up with him, pretty much leaving the other hosts behind. Haruhi found it hard to push through the bushes and plants; I found it nearly impossible. I was shorter than Haruhi (but taller than Honey, at least) so I kept tripping on things he found easy to step over. And it was just my luck that my foot snagged on a twisted root, and I catapulted into the dirt.

"Shit," I hissed. Pain flared through my ankle, shocking my nerves to the breaking point. My breaths hissed out through my clenched teeth. I had broken my ankle once or twice before, and I could tell it wasn't as bad as those times. But holy shit! It still freaking hurts!

"Micah!"

Haruhi dropped to his knees in front of me, a worried look on his normally passive face. "Ah... are you hurt?"

"It's not that bad," I lied, forcing a smile onto my face. "Just twisted my ankle a little, I think."

"That's still bad," he insisted, frowning. "You should see a doctor as soon as possible."

"Ugh, I'll pass," I muttered. A doctor.... That would most likely be someone who worked for Kyouya's family. I didn't particularly want to owe him anymore than he claimed I did, and that seemed like a great way to be in his debt for a while longer. 

"Besides, we've still got to find Honey." I pushed myself up off the ground, trembling arms supporting my weight. Sweaty strands of ebony hair fell into my face, and I huffed irritably in an attempt to dislodge them. 

Didn't work.

"But you're...." 

"Injured."

"Huh?" I looked up, surprised to see that Mori had doubled back to find us. On my hands and knees, he towered over me, and yet he wasn't intimidating. Shaking off my surprise, I pulled out my most convincing smile. "Not really," I said. "I'm fine, I promise. I've been hurt worse. You all should just focus on Honey, ok? He's the one who-- Ah!" 

Before I knew what had happened, Mori had swept me up into one arm, careful to keep my throbbing ankle as still as possible. I really tried to ignore the explosion of heat that turned my face such an embarrassing red. "You're injured, Micah," Mori said, like this explained everything.

But I accepted it, because I was more caught off guard by him calling me by my name. In the short while I'd known him, he'd never once used my name. He only ever called out to Honey, calling him Mitsukuni instead of his given nickname.

How weird, I thought.

Haruhi kept up with Mori this time, easily enough that I suspected Mori slowed his pace so that the boy wouldn't be given as much trouble. He kept glancing up at me, and I had to fight back the pain to offer him a sweet smile. After a while, he smiled back.

"Um, thanks, Mori," I managed when we had been walking for some time. The going wasn't awkward, exactly, but what with my inability to be around guys for extended periods of time without becoming nervous and jittery.... Ok. It was kinda awkward. "I mean, you didn't have to and I know you want to find Honey, so I must be slowing you down, and I'm sorry about that--"

"You are welcome," Mori said, effectively shutting me up. But he smiled while saying it, so I happily shut my mouth, and nodded. 

Our search was peaceful, and without incident. That is, until we were suddenly surrounded by men wearing military camouflage and carrying lethal-looking guns.

Which, of course, were pointed at Mori.

"Put that small boy down!" they ordered.

Boy....? Damn. My hood is up isn't it?

"I'm not a goddamn boy--"

I was cut off as they tired to forcefully pull me from Mori's arms. My instincts kicked in, and I did my best to kick them away, unwilling to let them have their way. Unfortunately, that only set another round of fire surging through my ankle.

"Shit! That hurts like hell!" I gasped, immediately withdrawing my leg.

"He's hurt!" one soldier-type shouted.

"Hurry! Protect the boy!"

"Idiots!" I hissed. 

Mori refused to give in to the (admittedly) intimidating men, and tried to fight them off while simultaneously protecting both Haruhi and I.

"The bastard is showing resistance!! Prepare to fire--"

As my blood ran cold, there was a sudden shout:

"Takashi, Micah, Haruhi, move out~!!"

Honey came swinging from the trees on a vine with a (very adorable) war cry and crashed into the soldiers closest to us, sending them to the ground with a single kick. 

"What?!" someone cried. "What do you think you are doing, you small brat...!!"

Honey swung around, and I let out a small unintentional gasp. I had never seen such a hard look in Honey's eyes before...

Honey flipped the offending man to the ground, and then proceeded to demolish the others who attempted to get in his way. Before long, there was ring of groaning men surrounding little Mitsukuni Haninosuka.

"Heh." Honey dusted off his hands, looking around. "You dare to be so noisy when you can't even fight properly?" He pointed, er.... pointedly at the men around him, his eyes bright and determined. "If you mess with my friends, you're a goner!"

"Kami," I breathed, momentarily forgettting the flaring pain of my twisted ankle. "That was amazing. Who knew Honey was such a brilliant fighter...."

"Haruhi! Micah! You alright?!"

Tamaki and the others came bounding out of the jungle, huffing and puffing from los of breath. They seemed surprised at the carnage around us, but not because it was Honey who had obviously caused it.

"I don't know what happened, but it seems like everything is fine," Kaoru said calmly. He and his brother were poking an unconscious man in the cheek with some stick or another that they had found, completely ignoring the scene of Tamaki attacking Haruhi in a hug going on behind them.

"Hold on," Haruhi stuttered as he tried to force Tamaki away. "How did...?"

"You didn't know?" Hikaru asked. "The Haninozuka are renowned for martial arts. During his secondary school, Honey-sempai participated in the National Championship with judo and barehanded fights. He won, of course."

Haruhi practically fainted from the shock of it all.

I just sighed, a small smile on my lips. "You were great Honey," I said brightly. He beamed at me, hands held proudly on his hips. I chuckled and looked back up at Mori. "You can let me down now," I told him. "Honey'll probably want to ride on your shoulders, and I can walk, I'm sure."

"No."

"No?" I echoed, confused.

"I don't wish for you to injure yourself any further."

"Oh..." I was grateful I hadn't taken down the hood of his sweatshirt just yet; the shadow it cast over my face helped to obscure the blush that spread over my cheeks.

"Honey-sempai, how did you get here?" Hikaru asked, dragging me from my embarrassed stupor.

"Well, I got to the edge of the pool and afterwards I started looking for you guys," the little blonde answered amiably. He then turned to Mori and took hold of his arm, pulling him down enough that they were almost eye-to-eye. Of course, I was there too, and just did my best not to ruin their conversation.

"Takashi! I praise you for protecting Mi-chan and Haru-chan!" Honey sang, while reaching up to ruffle Mori's short hair. That, honestly, left me a little dumbfounded, but I ignored it. "You weren't too lonely without me, right?"

"Not really."

I peeked out from under my hood to see Honey, and blinked. He was pouting thoughtfully, looking between Mori and I. Rubbing my eyes, as if I were seeing things, I turned my head. 

Mori was giving me a look as thoughtful as Honey's, which for come reason made my cheeks burn all the more. 

"Anyway~" Honey reverted to his happy-go-lucky self with a heart-melting smile. "Carry me to the exit~"

And without complain, Mori scooped up Honey and set him on his back. Honey wrapped his arms around Mori's neck and hugged his sides with his knees, making sure he wouldn't fall while Mori ran. And run the third-year did, carrying both Honey and I with ease, all the way to the exit.

And I couldn't help laughing in joy. These hosts were annoying and clingly, with overpowering personalities. But most all of them were sweet, and I was beginning to feel.... almost grateful for having met them.

At the very least, I knew the rest of the school year was going to be interesting.