Run.

Get away.

Just a bit further. It's only a bit further!

You tear through the woods, ignoring how the overgrown, thorny brush slices through your skin. You don't pause-- you can't. Pausing means getting caught; getting caught means... you honestly aren't certain. It feels as if you can't be certain about anything anymore. Nothing makes sense. No one makes sense.

That's why you have to run.

You hear voices behind you and for a split second your mind goes blank. There is nothing but fear. All-encompassing, overwhelming, mind-numbing fear. You hesitate.

The distraction causes a mistake; your foot catches against one of the numerous branches in the undergrowth. You go down hard. You can't pause, however. The sharp pain in your knees realses your mind from the trap it'd fallen into. You scramble to your feet, ignoring how something sharp scratches your soft palms.

You start to run again. The calls are closer. Your breath comes hard, your heart feeling like it might burst from your chest. Your legs don't cooperate like before-- pain lacing the limbs with every step you take.

You fall again-- this time because of a small dip in the earth hidden as a result of the trees blocking out all but small amounts of moonlight. The moment you hit the bottom of the small drop, you roll to your feet and try again. There's no time to think-- no time to realize what this drop down means.

You run.

Then, there's no ground to run on.

You pitch down, down, down. Nothing but open, black air lies beneath you.

A scream tears from your lips--

"Shush, shush, calm down, it's okay... Shh...."

You're clinging to someone.

That's the first thing your mind can grasp onto. Within seconds of the thought you've blinked open your eyes; dark blue fabric is the only thing you see. Your heart is racing-- whether from the nightmare or this situation you really aren't certain.

"You're awake, then?"

Without warning, you're released. Not prepared for the sudden change in support, you fall backwards on your sheets. Instinctively, you draw your covers up and over your chest, fingers clasping around fistfuls of fabric. The moment your eyes flick up to meet the person who'd been holding you, you find yourself unable to hide your surprise.

"Ky-Kyouya-san?" you murmur.

He doesn't respond-- instead choosing to raise one finger to press his glasses back in that delicate manner you are quickly coming to recognize as his. The second of silence gives you a moment to reign your scattered thoughts into order and take stock of the situation.

Kyouya, rather than sitting on the edge of your bed as he had been when you awoke, is now standing to the side, body tilted away from you. As if noticing the fact you're studying him, he offers a small sigh and points towards your nightstand. A quick look reveals a silver tray settled atop the light-toned wood. Settled atop of it is what you assume to be your breakfast and a small cup of tea.

"You are free to go wherever you wish after you eat," Kyouya says. "I've laid out clothing for you in your closet. The masters have requested I tell you that neither of them are too busy for you to drop by if you wish. Young master Touma is reviewing his English in the library and Master Asahi is doing paperwork in his office. Master Asahi has also expressed a wish for me to inform you that even if you don't drop by, he'll come by later to check on your head. Before, you would take your baths in the evening, so he intends to stop by afterwards as to avoid having to replace your bandage twice in a day. As both are focused on their work, they intend to take meals individually."

Apparently you won't be talking about what just happened.

"And Itsuki? What is he doing?"

Kyouya offers you a studious expression and you turn your attention back to your tea, focusing on plucking it from the tray so you don't have to meet Kyouya's eyes.

"... he doesn't wish to be interrupted," Kyouya says.

"Do you get along with Itsuki, Kyouya-san?" you ask. "It seems you're the only person he talks with."

"I am the house's sole butler."

You change approaches. "Yes, but do you like him?"

"It matters not whether I dislike or like the young master," he answers coolly. "He will still be the young master despite whatever feelings I hold, therefore I will serve him."

"So you don't like him," you conclude.

Kyouya hesitates. "I never said that. I simply don't believe my feelings about the young master hold any relevance."

"Then... you do like him?"

He shifts from one foot to the other, his gaze flicking towards the door. You hide a smile behind your teacup. Kyouya's expression might be cold and impossible to read but his body language says everything.

"Does the young mistress need anything else?" he asks, dismissing your question.

You laugh, drawing Kyouya's full attention back to you. "No, that'll be all, Kyouya-san."

"Then, if you don't mind..." Kyouya replies as he offers a small bow.

He starts towards the door. Your nightmare, the exact events growing dull to your thoughts, sends images flashing through your mind. Something about it bothers you.

"Wait," you say and he pauses. "What about Asahi-kun, Touma, and Kouta-san? What do you think of them?"

Kyouya doesn't turn to face you. His answer is clear though his body language, however. His back muscles draw tense, shoulders pushing together as he stiffens. If you hadn't been watching him so closely-- some part of you far too familiar with his mannerisms-- you wouldn't have caught the action at all.

"My answer is the same as before. Please excuse me, I will wait in the hall for some time in case you need help with your clothing."

With that, he's gone. You sigh, but just sip at your tea rather than call after him again. Dismissing the matter of the boys from your mind, you focus on the other important matter. The dream, no, nightmare felt real. Even though it's now a fight for you to pull the exact events to the forefront of your thoughts the fearful emotions still linger.

Was... it really a dream? The thought causes your fingers to grow tense around the teacup. What if it wasn't?

Question after question about everything going around around you continues to pile up in your mind. Many of them are questions you've had before. Touma is the most honest out of the siblings-- and the easiest to deal with-- but some part of you tells you that the answers you seek won't be found by visiting the childish boy in the library.

Your mind made up about what you should do with your day, you quickly pick over your meal and finish off your tea before moving to your closet. Much like the day before, Kyouya has laid out your whole outfit including a pale pink ribbon. The outfit today is what appears to be a modified kimono-- as it hands just a few inches past your knees but has sleeves that have room for arms at least double, if not triple your size. The pattern seems to be simple sakura flowers.

Asahi again? You wonder. Traditional seems like Asahi... but it's rather cutesy. Perhaps Touma?

Whatever the reason, you manage to get the thing on without too much trouble, only having to call Kyouya back to help you secure the sash. He doesn't even give you the chance to thank him upon finishing. He steps away, grabs your tray, and promises to bring more tea by later as he escapes.

You really must have made him uncomfortable earlier. Perhaps an apology is in order. At the same time, you're rather certain he'd brush an apology to the side as unneeded.

Deciding that you also should brush this matter to the side for now, you step out into the hall and make your way to where you remember Asahi's office laying. Then, you offer a few hesitant knocks.

"Asahi-kun?"

"Come in."

At the sound of his welcoming voice, you slip through the door. Asahi is settled at his desk. Asahi gestures you towards one of the two seats settled in front of it and gives you permission to pull it up close to the desk itself.. As you do so, you glance at the numerous thingssettled upon the desk's surface.

To the right of you he has a rather large stack of what appears to be official documents that you imagine to be reports from the hospital. The left, back side holds a typewriter that must be hiding a drink brought by Kyouya, as you can smell that distinct floral scent of that tea he always brings you. Directly in front of Asahi he only has a few pieces of parchment, that you realize appear to be a handwritten letter.

It suddenly occurs to you that you have no idea what day it is. A quick glance at the letter as Asahi pulls a stamp from his top drawer provides you an answer to the unasked question.

Sunday, April 23nd, 1921...

The date doesn't mean much to you, if you're being honest. It explains the pleasant weather outside-- as like with everything else, the facts about weather in this area is easy to call up in your mind, even if where 'this area' was, was beyond your capabilities to recall.

Amnesia is strange. It is as if all the formation your mind once held has been put into storage lockers. The keys to the lockers that hold day to day information-- such as what the weather should be like or what the name of a constellation is-- are all hung on a keyring at chest height. Once you've unlocked the lockers the information is there. You don't have to think too hard about it.

The keys to matters such as the piano laid a bit higher and you had to stretch to reach it. But, it only took a bit of effort. As soon as you had it, you were good.

The keys to your memories were too high to even see.

"Himari?" Asahi prompts.

You realize you're being rude. You haven't said a word since you entered-- too distracted by your thoughts. At some point while you were distracted he finished stamping his letter, signed it, and put it away in an envelop that he drops into a mesh basket. When his eyes meet yours, you offer Asahi a sheepish smile.

"Sorry."

He waves you off before settling his elbows atop his desk. Asahi then presses his fingers together, resting his chin atop the tips.

"How has your morning been?" he asks.

You hesitate, his question bringing all of your own questions to the forefront of your mind. He cocks a questioning brow and once again you find yourself giving him an apologetic smile. You just can't seem to keep your mind in one place today.

"Good," you say. "How about your morning, Asahi-kun?"

He drops his hands, a small chuckle escaping his lips.

"Rather boring. As you can see," he gestures towards the stack of papers to his right, "Being the master of the house has its downsides."

"I'd imagine," you reply, then hesitate. "Um... Asahi-kun?"

HIs eyes flick to you-- his attention having wavered towards his paperwork for a split second. "Yes?"

"Do you mind if I ask you some questions? You can work while I do, it's nothing super important. There are just a few things I'm curious about..."

"Feel free. I will answer anything you ask of me."

Tension drops out of your shoulders, relief fluttering through you. You hadn't expected any different, really, but it's nice to hear Asahi say it. As you consider what your first question should be, as there are too many for you to even know where to start, Asahi pulls a paper-clipped file off of his stack of reports.

"I'll start simple," you decide. "What's my surname?"

Asahi's lips twitch upwards. "Koizumi."

"Koizumi... Koizumi Himari," you murmur, then force yourself to the present. This isn't the time to cringe over the fact that you had to ask your own name. "Next, then. Touma said you were a doctor..."

"That's not a question," Asahi says, flipping a page of his report as your cheeks flush.

"No, it's not. Um... what do you know about amnesia, Asahi-kun?"

He pauses, page mid-air, and looks up at you.

"You want to know if your memories will come back."

You nod. Asahi drops the page, his lips forming a pursed line for a moment. Then, he sighs, reaching his free hand up to run through his messed locks.

"There's no way to know for certain," he answers after a moment. "The research is still ongoing, there is a lot we don't know about the subject. What I can say is that... well, for some people their memories simply need time to return-- which is why I said that things may clear up in a few days. Your head could be just a little mixed up from the fall.

"For others, it doesn't work that way. Most commonly for these, it's seen that memories, if they can return, come through a trigger." He pauses and offers you one of those smiles you have come to see as charming, yet soothing. "Which makes your living here ideal-- many of your childhood memories are locked to here. Your parents... well, you were often alone when you were younger, so you came here quite often. Our parents had a strong friendship that extended beyond their businesses."

Your fingers play together in your lap, the way he skipped over your parents lingering in your thoughts. Before, he'd said they went overseas... but then what was that small pause when he was speaking? Your teeth worry your bottom lip for a moment before you give into the rather dark answer your mind provided you.

"Are my parents really overseas?"

Asahi is silent for a moment, his gaze studying you before he gives a rather reluctant shake of his head.

"No."

"...oh."

Some unidentifiable emotion pangs your heart. You realize that it isn't sorrow-- at least, not at hearing of their probable deaths. Perhaps it's at the fact that feeling sorrow is impossible. To you, they were strangers. Simply two individuals that had impact on your life, yet you never met. You know you should feel upset-- and to a degree you do-- but it doesn't match the feeling strong swirling through you.

Perhaps... it's guilt. Guilt at the fact you don't remember these people.

Even as all of this washes through you, you realize that Asahi never said they were dead. His expression says it, but the words have yet to leave his lips.

"Then why aren't I living with them?" you ask.

His fingers drum on his desk. Obviously, the conversation isn't easy for him even if his expression has been carefully schooled into only showing pursed lips and a slight crease in his brow, nothing else to indicate how he feels. After a moment Asahi seems to resign himself to explaining and drops his fingers flat on the wood.

"Your mother fell sick when you were younger," he begins. "She never fully recovered and passed away around ten years ago. Before then, you were only around here for long periods of time when she was ill and your father was concerned about you falling sick. After that, your father-- who had always been traveling for work even before her death-- couldn't afford to stay home and care for you. So, you'd visited even more often. Last winter, his driver lost control of the car during an ice-storm. You moved here after that."

Despite hearing all of, this, your feelings on the matter only waver slightly. Again, there's that faint sorrow at the loss of these "strangers," yet the... guilt is stronger.

"I... see."

Asahi falls silent for a moment, perhaps giving you time to take this in, before he gives a loud sigh. His left arm is settled atop of his report, his fist resting against the elbow of his right. As you watch, slightly startled by the uncharacteristically loud noise he'd given, Asahi drops his head atop of his left arm and hangs his right hand over his head.

"Ahh, I really didn't want to tell you that," he mutters.

"It's alright," you find yourself reassuring him. "I... I'm fine. It's... it's easier to hear then you'd imagine."

His eyes search you. "Truly?"

You nod and Asahi seems to relax somewhat. His eyes never leave you, however. When you raise your hand to self-consciously brush back a strand of your hair that has fallen loose, Asahi suddenly catches it with his right. You go tense.

"I'm glad," he murmurs. "Upsetting you is the last thing I wish to do."

He presses your palm against his cheek, his eyes never leaving yours. Your face burns and for a full-minute you're frozen in place.

Then, you snatch your hand back and abruptly stand.

"I..." you begin, voice faltering when he offers you that faint, amused smile of his. "I..." You look anywhere from him and your eyes catch sight of his almost-empty tea cup. You snatch it from his desk and back away. "I'll go fill this for you!"

Asahi's soft chuckle follows you as you flee the room.

A/N: It is worth noting that I've made a few, unremarkable edits to the past chapters. I thought I might mention them although they don't have much real effect on the plot. 

1. Rather than winter break I edited the time period to spring break to better match the weather that's being seen. 

2. Touma wears trousers, not jeans. Asahi tends to wear day-kimonos (his clothing was never mentioned in his original description). 

Now, for the other part: who's chapter would you like to see next? We only have two more left for the initial, required bonding chapters (you always gotta have them for a good reverse harem)! Kouta or Kyouya, who do you wanna see? Also... who's your favorite so far? Anyone you like/dislike more than the others? What about a ship~? Anyone have your favorite person for her to end up with just yet? Who do you think she'd be worst with? 

Sue me, I'm curious.