Genre: Romance, Comedy.

Rating: M

Pairing: Kaoru and Hikaru.

Warning: Language, Incest, Slash, And Future Sexual Situations.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Ouran High School Host Club.

Summary: Life for Kaoru was always enjoyable. He lived in a small, yet humble home with his caring mother, spending his sixteen years of existence peacefully. But suddenly, after receiving a letter from a father he never knew he had, things begin to get a little messy. Especially when he meets his new brother…

A/N: Written Sunday, September 3, 2006.



"In the real world

as in dreams,

nothing is quite

what it seems."

--The Book Of Counted Sorrows



Mirror Images

Prologue

On that Saturday in December, when his life changed forever, Hitachiin Kaoru woke with a headache, developed a sour stomach after washing down two Motrin and a glass of old Coke, guaranteed himself an epic bad-hair day by mistakenly using his mothers shampoo instead of his own, acquired a paper-cut, found his summer homework swarmed with ants, eradicated the pests by firing a spray can of insecticide, cleaned up the carnage with old paper towels and hummed Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star as he solemnly consigned the tiny bodies to the trash can.

Throughout this all, he remained upbeat about the day ahead, because from his mother, Hitachiin Yukino, he had inherited an optimistic nature, formidable coping skills, and a deep love of life in addition to green eyes, auburn-brown hair and a girlish figure.

Thanks a lot, Mommy.

After convincing his ever-hopeful mother that he'd be able to finish his insecticide-soaked homework later that day, Kaoru slipped into a small, denim jacket and took his over weight beagle, Queen Alexandria, on her daily morning walk.

Along the whetstone of clear eastern sky, the sun shone brightly, sending sharpened scalpels of light out to cover nearby buildings. Out to the west, however, a harsh breeze pushed malignant masses of dark, heavy winter clouds along.

The beagle regarded the skies with concern, sniffed the cold air softly, and perked her floppy ears at the sound of snow-laden trees swaying gently in the wind. Clearly, she knew it was wintertime and that another snowstorm was due to come anytime now.

On most mornings, Kaoru walked his pooch for an hour along the overly populated streets of Tokyo, but he had a special obligation to fulfill on every Saturday that limited their excursion to the small time of twenty minutes.

Queen Alexandria seemed to have the days marked off in her furry head, because on that certain day, she always hurried along, never dawdling or straying behind. On these days she usually finished her business closer to home, as if she understood that Kaoru needed to be there to eat breakfast.

This specific morning, only half a block away from the house, she now huddled behind her favorite tree, lifted her short, stubby leg awkwardly and looked around as if she were embarrassed by the lack of privacy. And she probably was. Kaoru never could have imagined the humility of having to pee in front of hundreds of peering eyes. The thought alone made his face burn in shame and embarrassment.

Less than half a block further, the beagle was preparing to finish up her second half of morning business when a few elderly people walked by, startling her. She poked her head out from behind a nearby tree, thoroughly convinced that the wrinkled, decaying humans would reappear.

"It's okay." Kaoru tried to console the scared dog. "The bad, old people are gone. It's safe now."

Alexandria seemed unconvinced but still nonetheless came out of hiding, her faith in her master overpowering the fear she had been experiencing earlier. All the while, Kaoru waited patiently. He was blessed with Hitachiin Yukino's patience, too, especially when dealing with Alex, whom he loved almost as much as he might have loved a daughter if he had one.

He never could have gotten mad at the sweet-tempered dog. She was so innocent that it would have seemed wrong to have anyone yell at her for something so insignificant.

As the dog finished up, Kaoru suppressed a shiver as a sudden gust of cold air whipped around his body. Several strands of his auburn-brown hair were sent cascading around his pale face, successfully rousing a small groan of annoyance past his soft, pink lips.

The tall boy waspishly pulled his thin jacket tighter around his skinny body in hopes of fighting off the oncoming winter breezes. Deep down, he already knew that it would be getting colder soon, if the icicles forming on roofs were any indication.

Winter had just begun and Kaoru knew that it would only continue to get chillier as time went on and days passed. White fallen snow still lingered on the grounds, glowing brightly from atop nearby trees, bestowing a certain surreal quality to the land surrounding them. The days had been coming to an end earlier than usual, giving people less time to finish their daily chores and more time to dedicate to sleeping. While this aspect might have thrilled others, the sixteen-year-old was anything but pleased. Kaoru never really liked to waste his time doing nothing while knowing there were hundreds of other things he could have done. Productive things. Like for example, remembering what he'd eaten for breakfast over the past week.

As he took in a deep breath of lung stinging, December air, Kaoru quickly took note of the fact that his hands were now gripping onto the loop of the dog leash as if his life depended on it.

This was probably the thing he disliked most about winter. The cold, while being somewhat refreshing at times, had a tendency to make him become forgetful of what he was currently doing. It also tended to get nerve-racking after having to wear extremely uncomfortable clothing for more than two months.

As Kaoru felt the leash in his cold hands being pulled along by the eager beagle now in front of him, he let his thoughts stray to his friend Mori, who was the one to purchase his winter wardrobe, as well as the tiny jacket he now wore.

'I wonder what he's doing now.' He fathomed silently, mind already buzzing with all sorts of ideas of where his long time friend could be. But deep inside, no matter how many things he came up with, the smart part of his brain already had a feeling as to where the stoic boy was.

'I bet he's with Hunny.'

It wasn't really a secret to him anymore that Mori had a crush on the smaller teen. And it wasn't a little itsy bitsy crush like the kind elementary school kids had. It was a humungous crush He still felt inexplicably stupid for not realizing how painfully obvious it had been, what with all the timid smiles and awkward glances cast between the two friends. For a while, he simply wondered how he couldn't have known for so long. It had taken him a whole three years to actually catch on.

For quite some time, Kaoru remembered he had found himself madly jealous of Hunny's adorable looks and innocent personality. The child-like teen had everything he could possibly want. For example: While the boy's eyes were a multitude of luminescent colors, all of which seemed to portray whatever mood he was in perfectly, his own had always been on the dull side. Sort of like old, dusty emeralds. And while Hunny was short and petite, Kaoru was tall and skinny, owning long legs that stretched out farther than most. It just wasn't fair how his friend had everything he wanted in appearance, when he had exactly what he didn't.

But still, if he had to choose, the only real flaw Kaoru saw the sixteen-year-old having was an unhealthy obsession with sweets.

Honestly, it disturbed him on how many sugary confections Hunny could indulge himself with. From strudels and pies, to other various types of pastries, it wasn't exactly very hard to please the blond-haired youth. Yet, no matter how terrified and repulsed Kaoru was at Hunny's eating habits, he couldn't help but think about how easy it was to pick the boy out a present. A couple bags of candy always seemed to pull through.

Sometimes he felt himself get angry with Mori when the said boy spent more time with Hunny than he did with him. But Kaoru knew that he shouldn't be over sensitive about it. He understood that if he had a chance to be with someone he liked, he'd grab that opportunity faster than the average person could blink. He would probably grab that opportunity without thinking twice, not caring about what might happen next.

But that was just him. Mori was a completely different and more complex person. The tall boy had probably thought through all of his actions before actually acting on them, taking the time to come up with a precise plan before confronting Hunny.

"Kind of scary," Kaoru thought with a small grin dancing across his pale face. "But still smart."

By now, he had taken notice of his breath, paying attention to the puffs of air as they took on a whitish-hue. Just a small hint of exactly how cold it was starting to get outside.

"I should probably hurry up and get home before I turn into a snowman." Kaoru mumbled out lowly, a small hint of humor lacing his voice. The thought of him actually morphing into a useless pile of shredded ice was highly amusing. It just went to show how much he was in dire need of a funny side capable of telling jokes. You see, he'd never been particularly funny…

Letting out a small, good-natured chuckle at his stupidity, Kaoru finally realized that Alex had led him home. They were now nearing a small house that stood smack dab between two others: its paint freshly coated and glistening alongside the old slushy snow that covered the sidewalks.

Already Kaoru could feel his nose begin to sting lightly and it didn't take him long to guess that it, along with his cheeks had probably turned a rosy red color by now.

He surveyed the nearby houses as he passed them, wondering if anyone had been at the windows to see his current state, hoping that he hadn't actually looked as silly as he'd felt.

In this small neighborhood, the homes were generally old and small, although most possessed more charm than some of the people currently residing in them. It was usually hard to have any privacy here. Since the houses were packed together so tightly, Kaoru sometimes found himself becoming uncharacteristically claustrophobic.

As Kaoru opened the wooden gate that stood proudly at the north side of the house, he followed Alexandria along the stone walkway to the mailbox; there he pulled up the lid and reached inside, clutching onto many letters as he withdrew. This was one of the many little things he could do to help his mother out during the day. It made him happy to know that he could make her hectic life a little more bearable.

When the dog accompanied him up the side steps and across the porch, Kaoru fished a pair of keys out of his jacket pocket and unlocked the door. Lightly twisting, he felt the door give way with a shrill squeak, making him want to cover his ears. Instead he refrained, quickly slipped inside and closed the door soundly behind him.

"Wilma! I'm home!" He called happily, moving aside to allow Alex access into the heated home first.

Pulling off his shoes, throwing his keys down and taking his first steps, he could already begin to feel the warmth seep into his body and heat up his once freezing limbs. It felt inexplicably good to be out of the cold and in a building with a working heater, not having to worry about obtaining frostbite or going into a state of hypothermia.

"It's good to be home."

Queen Alexandria barked her agreement at his statement, waddling over to a small bowl placed on the ground before beginning to enthusiastically lap water from it. Kaoru knew that the dog would be there for a while, so he went on ahead, leaving her behind to enjoy some relaxation time alone.

Sauntering down the hall, Kaoru scratched the back of his head. His frizzy, un-brushed hair hung in erratic clumps all over his face, but he held no concern anymore in his current state of disarray—predominately because nobody except his mother was likely to comment on it. That aside, the only thing he had on his mind was what his mother had made for breakfast, even though by now, it was already past the time they regularly ate. He sighed, his small shoulders slumping a bit as he turned into the dinning room. Now the likelihood of having something warm to eat was rather slim.

Whistling a random song that he'd heard before but couldn't quite place where, Kaoru pushed the heavy kitchen doors open and entered. He took measured steps as he walked forth, his long legs daintily stretching out in front of him as he closed the distance between him and his destination.

When he came inside, the kitchen was practically glowing as he looked about, its old granite counter tops emitting a lemony-fresh sent as he passed them by. The familiar fragrance tickled his nose pleasantly, allowing him to let out a sigh of contentment, as well as an animalistic growl from his stomach.

The tiles on the floor were sparkling brilliantly as he walked upon them, not a speck of dust present to tarnish them out of their beauty. A dim light shone peacefully overhead, casting queer shadows across the room and onto the walls, reminding him of a giant painting he once saw in a book.

All in all, Kaoru thought the ambiance it roused was gorgeous. At that moment, he once again understood exactly why this was his favorite place in the whole house. Because even though the home was smaller than most, him and his mother took great pride in keeping it neat and tidy.

Clearing his mind of all previous thoughts, Kaoru finally noticed that he'd reached the kitchen table, its oak wood surface staring up at him proudly. Years of use had begun to take its toll on the piece of furniture, its battle scars consisting of long scratches and dents embedded in the wooden surface. But still it stood after enduring the abuse, refusing to be thrown away.

Smiling fondly, Kaoru dropped the letters he held in his hand onto the table, watching quietly as they splayed out gracefully.

—"Come to Sally's Salon! The bigger your hair, the more we'll care!"

—"Our product will make your hair grow in less than a minute or your money back! WARNING: DO NOT USE IF BALD."

Laughing lightly and scanning over a few more of the advertisements, he was just about to turn around in search of something to eat when he suddenly saw a piece of mail poking out from behind the others with his last name written on it.

Freeze.

Curiously and quickly looking back down at the table, Kaoru searched through the letters, all thoughts of food fleeing his mind. He successfully pulled out the manila envelope and let out a small victory cry, the name written on it looking up at him tauntingly.

'Hitachiin Mamoru'

He could already begin to feel his heart constrict painfully, a feeling of anxiety shooting down his back and all the way to his toes. A million thoughts coursed through his head as he silently mouthed the name, testing it out on his tongue before letting his fingertips glide over the letter's smooth cover.

Before he knew what he was doing, Kaoru felt his fingers rip through the envelope, successfully pulling out a small, neatly typed up piece of paper.

As he slowly looked through the letter's contents, he felt his body begin to shake and his throat begin to dry. It hurt for him to swallow now, his tongue rough like sandpaper and feeling just as thick.

Even as Kaoru let the letter drift slowly from his hands and onto the floor, he couldn't stop the new found information from entering his tired brain.

'I never even knew I had a brother…'

A/N: Good grief, I'm sorry about the shortness of this chapter. But you have to remember; this is a prologue after all. Prologues are supposed to be short, yeah? Anyways, I do plan on continuing this story. It's going to be a Multiple Chapter fanfiction, as well as an Alternate Universe. Weird, huh? I haven't seen many long stories with Kaoru and Hikaru paired up, so I finally decided to write one of my own. I promise that the next chapter will be much longer than this one is. Hopefully it'll be written better too… And I'm sorry if the prologue seemed rushed and not detailed enough. I'll take care of that next time. After all, it's hard to write things when you're only fourteen-years-old. I guess a lot of the things I write don't seem grown up enough. So please, somebody tell me if I should continue writing this. Constructive Criticism is definitely welcome. Reviews would be nice. In fact, they would be very nice. (Insert Smile Here) –Incompetence

© Copyright 2006 Incompetence (Fanfiction ID: 984898). All rights reserved. Distribution of any kind is prohibited without the written consent of Incompetence.