Note: The first A/N was written by my great friend, azure blue espeon. (she does that for me sometimes. It's really fun ^_^). All credit goes to her. I wrote the ending A/N, though :)

Hikaru: So boss...

Karou: ... what's on the agenda today?

Tamaki: I'm so glad you asked! Well we're-

Kyoya: We're here. As usual. Did you expect anything else?

Tamaki: K-Kyoya! W-When did you get here?

*Pushing up glasses* Kyoya: What are you talking about? I've been here this whole time.

*Looking nervous* Tamaki: O-Oh! I see.. W-Well, Hikaru, Karou, and I were just about to have an invigorating conversation on what we should do today and then we would go onto how you should properly treat a lovely woman. Then! Later maybe we would go out and get-

Hikaru & Karou: Actually. You were the only one there at the time so we had to ask you.

Tamaki; HUH?!

Karou: Sorry Boss.

Hikaru: But its true.

Tamaki curls up into a small ball and cried in the corner.

Kyoya: Better cheer yourself up, Boss. We do have a guest today, and we wouldn't want you to look bad in front of the ladies.

Tamaki: Kyoya! You really do care!

Off to the side

Hikaru: More like he wouldn't want others to see him like that. It would be *Air Quotes* "Bad for Sales purposes"

*Nodding head* Karou: Agreed.

Hikaru: Anyways, who is it?

Karou: Is it that girl again? She kinda depresses me out. All that talk about being worthless. Really makes you contemplate the meaning of life. And birth. And.. stuff.

Kyoya: No. I'm afraid not. Our friend was detained. By our guest who also had to be detained herself.

Hikaru: What? Detained?

Kyoya: Yes. Detained. She got a little.. Rough beforehand.

?: Hey! Let me go! Get your hands off me!

Kyoya: And here she is now.

Two strong tall bodyguards came in holding a struggling girl.

Bodyguard #1: Here you are Kyoya-san. As you requested.

*Raising an eyebrow* Kyoya: I see that. And where is the third one? I believe there were three of you sent.

*Red faced* Bodyguard #3: W-Well she put up quite a fight and Bodyguard #2 was.. injured upon detainment.

Kyoya looked at them and they nervously straightened up.

Kyoya: Leave her. I'll deal with her.

The guards dropped her and hurriedly got out of the room. The girl meanwhile defiantly looked back at Kyoya.

Karou: Wow look at that. She's still standing.

Hikaru: Even after the "Shadow King: Death stare #6" Patent pending.

Tamaki: Who are you my lovely lady? *Getting on one knee and kissing her hand* We ask that you please grace us with a name to match the beautiful face that is before us.

*Yanking her hand away* ?: Abe. You can call me. Abe.

Hikaru: Like the president?

Kaoru: Abe? Isn't that a boy name?

*Pushing up his glasses and fake coughing* Kyoya: Name-XXX XXXX. Age- XX. Gender- Female. Blood type- AB. Currently single and her hobbies include reading, video games, and petting her cats when they don't run away from her. Goes by Azure Blue Espeon on many sites but prefers Abe and has a dislike for those who call her Abelle.

Abe: H-Hey! You can't go saying stuff like that on the internet! T-Thats some private stuff there! Now some stalker is gonna come after me.

Kyoya: Rest assured. None of the sensitive aforementioned information is leaving this room. It won't even show up on the text.

Abe: ..You can do that?

Kyoya: I can do many things.

Abe: Well thats a little creepy..

*Coming up to her* Kaoru: Hey, you never said why you're here.

*Coming up on the other side* Hikaru: Yeah. Rather suspicious I might add.

Abe: I-I'm just visiting! I came to see Chidsengan, but then she kept going on about depressing stuff and putting herself down, so I had to stop her.

Kyoya: You had her tied, bound, and gagged in a pile of pillows and bean bags.

*Blushing* Abe: She wouldn't listen! What else was I supposed to do?!

The others sweat dropped.

Tamaki: Well now what are we going to do?! We're stuck here and now the conversations just going to be awkward! Nobody's going to know what to say and then everyones gonna stare at each other uncomfortably as crickets chirp in the background and and-!

Everyone stared at Tamaki blankly.

Abe: There's no need for that. Before I was rudely captured *Snicker from one of the twins* I managed to swipe some of her notes. *Coughes before reading it in a fake Chidsengan voice*

From Chidsengan's rough drafts notes:

Chidsengan: Welcome to the second chappie of 'Our World of Beauty'. As always, I don't own OHSHC (although I kind of own class 1-A's sensei, Ichitoshi [the name 'Ichitoshi' translates to 'one year', sort of like how he's the sensei of a first year class). But onto better things... thank you to all who've read and reviewed this fanfic thus far! It means the world to me and everything in the world! You're all the best, and I can't thank you enough! So before I start crying hysterical tears of joy, thank you so much to:

OfTheAsianPersausion

azure blue espeon

Fleeting Butterfly

DragonSiren7

FrogCatcher2000

Blu3P34r1

And a big fanfic family welcome to Shiranai Atsune, naisymoon, koryandrs, Guest (Lovemehateme2014 on Wattpad), and cant say that! ^_^ I promise you I'll keep writing this fanfic for all I'm worth... although, considering all I'm worth is pathetic when it comes to writing... *sighs*

On another note, just a few more announcements about the chappie before I go. One: This chappie's title translates to: 'Seeking Soirée'. And as far as translations go, Ayanokoji's last name means 'scheme' in Japanese (just in case the name Ayanokoji doesn't ring a bell, she's that pain-in-the-neck from the first episode/chapter one of Ouran who was nasty to Haruhi).

Well, that pretty much wraps it up! Please enjoy and thank you so much from the bottom of my heart! ^_^

Abe: And that's it. *Gets ready to leave*

Hikaru: What's the rush?

Kaoru: Yeah. Why are you suddenly trying to get out of here?

Abe: N-No reason. *Stomach growls*

Kyoya: It seems like our guest is hungry.

Tamaki: Fear not fair maiden! We, as the esteemed members of the host club, cannot stand by and watch as a lady such as yourself goes hungry.

Abe: Its fine. Really. I'll just go.. Make a bowl of cereal or something..

Kyoya: Nonsense. Our president has offered you food, and you're going to refuse it.

Some curtains pulled back and a large table with rich and fancy foods was shown. The wonderful aromas making Abe's stomach growled again.

Abe: ...Fine. I'll do it.

A waiter came by with a weird plate of food that she had never seen before.

Abe: Is it too late to back out now?

Hikaru & Kaoru: Yep! *Dragging her off*

Kyoya: Well this certainly will be interesting.

Second Note: A Soirée is basically just a big party or event. Lots of dancing, lots of manners, lots of etiquette. That's all, nothing super-important ^_^

For the rest of the day, things were relatively calm for Haruhi. Her classes had been normal and suprisingly easy to comprehend (if not somewhat monotonous), her free time had been peaceful (despite Umehito Nekozawa, president of the Wannabe Magician's club, chasing her down in hopes of recruiting her; nothing she hadn't been able to deal with), and lunch had been uneventful (sitting at a table alone, like always... couldn't say there was anything new to report there).

All in all, October 1st had proved to be a rather boring school day on every level, the only exception being what had happened earlier outside the academy.

In all honesty, Haruhi couldn't say she was pleased that the rest of her day had been so dull.

With nothing to earn her attention, nothing to challenge her, nothing to distract her, she found her mind constantly prevaded by thoughts of what'd taken place in front of Ouran that morning.

More specifically than what had taken place, though, the people it'd taken place with; the six boys.

The twins.

Lolita-boy.

Giant.

Glasses-boy.

That Stupid Blonde.

Despite her best efforts, Haruhi just couldn't seem to stop thinking about them.

It was as if they'd somehow broken into her thoughts and had taken them captive; every little thing Haruhi heard or saw reminded her of at least one of them, if not all of them, in some way. As a matter of fact, it was really starting to get on her nerves.

Even now, as she sat in her last class of the day, everything from the murmurs of her fellow students to the gentle 'scritch-scratch' of Ichitoshi Sensei's (class 1-A's teacher's) chalk scribbling on the chalkboard, seemed to be forgotten for Haruhi's [unwanted] curiosity of the boys she'd met.

As mentioned before, she didn't have any friends at Ouran, nor did she communicate with her fellow students that much. The rare socializing she did was mostly with girls, with the exception of Ritsu Kasanoda... and occassionally Nekozawa (although he more or less just desperately needed more members for his failing club. He'd even asked the lunchlady to join, so Haruhi didn't really count his talking to her as all that special).

Yet in that one morning alone, Haruhi had done more socializing than she had in her whole month at Ouran Academy... and now she couldn't get her mind off the boys that she'd met.

In a last-ditch effort to distract herself, Haruhi pulled out a book from her bookbag that she'd borrowed from one of Ouran's four libraries and started to read, deciding she had better things to do than think about the bunch of misfits.

Unfortunately, almost as soon as she'd started reading, her train of thoughts went off the rails again at seeing the characters in the novel.

Two mischevous merchants.

A cute, talking bunny.

A big yet gentle hunter.

A crafty peasant.

... and a harebrained Fairy King...

Haruhi glared daggers at the book as her mind made the comparisons between the characters in the book and the characters she'd met that morning.

Did the world detest her so much that even library books were against her?!

With a frustrated sigh, she leaned back in her chair and watched as Ichitoshi Sensei continued to write down the lessons of the day, although her mind was hardly focused on what he was writing and doing.

Why couldn't she get her mind off the boys she'd met?, she wondered.

Did her lack of friends effect her so much that it was causing her to think of a bunch of guys who hadn't even been nice to her?

She could've argued that it was because they were all pretty cute that her mind kept wandering off towards the thought of them, only Haruhi had never been the type of girl who'd focused or cared about how handsome a guy was.

It could've been that she was just plain curious because she wanted to get to know them a little more, but, once again, she knew that wasn't the reason. Not only was she not curious, she didn't even want to see any of them ever again.

So then what could it have been that was making her think of them so much?

Was it the fact that they were such a motley crue that intrigued her? That they'd all been so different from one another?

Probably; it was more plausible than the first two options.

However, more than anything, Haruhi figured it was probably that the boys were all a mystery to her. She'd always enjoyed mysteries, even as a child, and didn't like to feel in the dark about anything. If there was a mystery to solve, Haruhi would be determined to solve it, that's just the way she was.

And from what she'd seen that morning, the boys she'd met were certainly mysteries.

Out of all of them, the lolita-boy had probably made about the best impression on her and he seemed about the friendliest (the blonde boy didn't count; he was clearly a dimwit... and dimwits tended to be obliviously cheerful). Still, there were so many things Haruhi couldn't help but wonder about, like why he was so small for a high-school student and why he'd been carrying a stuffed animal around with him. Better yet, why had he been so quick to defend Haruhi from the twins, jumping in out of the blue without even knowing what had been going on, yet as soon as that 'Takashi' guy had come along, he'd immediately backed out of the whole dilemma?

That was another thing. 'Takashi', the giant. That guy was about as scary as they came, in Haruhi's eyes. Even her semi-friend (moreso admirer) from class 1-D, Ritsu Kasanoda, was less scary... and people considered him the scariest person in Ouran Academy. True, Kasanoda had a scary face and his dad was the head of an infamous yakuza group, but as far as Haruhi was concerned, that 'Takashi' guy had him more than beat in terms of scariness. Yet for someone so intimidating, 'Takashi' hadn't seemed like a violent person. In fact, it'd almost seemed like he'd been trying to avoid fighting, if anything; keeping his answers to a minimum and actions all but null.

After 'Takashi', Haruhi's mind wandered to the pair of second years; the raven-haired boy and his blonde friend.

The raven-haired boy was just impossible to figure out. He seemed smart, and was probably about the most calm and collected out of the group ('Takashi' was more strong and silent than calm and collected), but that was all Haruhi could really make out, not counting the fact that there'd been something about the boy that had made her want to race away as far as she could from him. By the same token, though, he didn't neccessarily seem like a bad person. He had, after all, been the first to defend Haruhi (even before the blonde; though, in the blonde's defense, he hadn't noticed what was going on immediately). Yet even still, it was almost like there'd been a barrier of ice between him and everyone else; a barrier he didn't want them to breach.

Then there was his friend, the blonde.

Really, Haruhi wasn't sure what that guy's deal was, either, but in a completely different way from the raven-haired boy.

The blonde seemed to be about the most whimsical out of them... not to mention the most emotional (and the most harebrained). He also seemed painfully oblivious, from how he'd thought the twins and Haruhi had been a love triangle to how he'd flagrantly degraded Haruhi's pride in front of her (via the nicknames 'gentle flower' and 'feeble damsal'). It was obvious that he wore his heart on his sleeve and didn't care what anyone really thought of him; just like a little kid. Yet the expression Haruhi had seen in his violet eyes when he'd found out the twins had been bothering her... the feelings behind them... was anything than that of a little kid's. Those eyes spoke of something far beyond that... something far more painful...

With the blonde out of the way, that only left the twins for Haruhi to muse about.

The twins were a little different. First of all, they had a reputation that dashed pretty much every hope of good publicity for them. Secondly, Haruhi was still angry at them for what they'd done, unlike the rest of the boys who'd only gotten swept up in the ordeal (the twin-made ordeal). With that being said, her thoughts were bound to be somewhat biased against them. However, she tried her best to be non-partisan as she thought.

Both twins acted exactly alike, so it wasn't like Haruhi had to assess them seperately or anything like that. Both were spiteful, sarcastic, and had a lot to learn about being nice to others. They walked around with their heads held high in spite of it all, though, and what was worse, they were completely arrogant about it. Yet when Haruhi had insulted them, it had become all-too clear how fragile their confidence was; a small attack to their pride and they'd lashed out. Not so surprising at first glance, perhaps; after all, most boys had tremendous egos. But being so easily jarred by something said by someone they barely knew? It was just proof that, no matter how they acted, the twins were much more insecure than they let on.

Speaking of which...

Haruhi glanced up and looked around the classroom; brown eyes narrowing in slight concern after she had.

Now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen the twins since that morning. In fact, there'd been no sign of the Hitachiin brothers at all... by anyone.

As the hours had worn on and class by class had passed by, Hikaru and Kaoru's desks had remained unoccupied and their presence unfound.

Chatter of their absence in class 1-A had started early on (because, for all their rebellion, the Hitachiin brothers were seldom tardy). When neither Hikaru nor Kaoru had show by end of the day, however, the slight chatter turned into full-length conversations about the twins and their whereabouts; conversations that Ichitoshi Sensei either didn't notice or pretended not to hear as he wrote the final announcements for his students on the chalkboard, not even bothering to calm his class down.

Haruhi remained silent and tried to block out the class' ramblings about the Hitachiin brothers, hardly in the mood to hear anything about the twins after what happened between her and them that morning... but it soon became impossible to, and Haruhi couldn't help but hear bits and pieces of the varied conversations.

"Where do you think Hikaru and Kaoru are today?"

"I don't know,"

"Maybe they didn't come to school at all,"

"No, I bet they got in some sort of trouble and got detention,"

"Before they even came to class?"

"Yeah, I don't even think the Hitachiins are capable of that,"

"You know as well as the rest of us that those two have always been trouble, though,"

"True, but that doesn't mean that's the reason why they weren't here all day,"

"Maybe they just decided to skip school?"

"Skip school?!"

"What a shameful thought!"

"Is that even legal?"

"I think commoners call it 'playing hockey',"

"That's ridiculous. Why on Earth would they call it 'playing hockey'? Hockey's a sport!"

"Perhaps commoners have a different definition of hockey,"

"I believe the correct termonology is 'playing hooky', not 'playing hockey',"

"Yes! You're right! That's what it was!"

"What does any of this have to do with Hikaru and Kaoru?"

"Ah, who cares about those two, anyway? Those guys tried to steal my lunch on the first day!"

"They called me pathetic,"

"Well, if you ask me, I think they're kind of cute..."

"Yeah, in a rugged, rebel sort of way,"

"H-hey! Don't you two have boyfriends?!"

"Oh, right. Sorry..."

"Anyway, do you think they're alright?"

"I hope so,"

"Really? But they're so mean!"

"Well, they are our classmates,"

"And if they're attending Ouran Academy they must be from wealthy families,"

"You're right. My parents would be furious at me if I didn't at least try to be nice to them,"

"It would probably be in our best interest to befriend them,"

"But they're so hard to get close to,"

"Yeah. It's almost like they don't care about anyone else but themselves,"

"Who'd want to be friends with people like them?"

"That doesn't mean we can't worry about them, though, does it?"

"I still don't see what the big deal is,"

Haruhi lowered her head and looked back down in the book she was reading as the class continued to talk about the twins.

Even though she didn't like them (nor was she in a very pleasant mood towards them), for them to just dissapear without a trace was... odd, to say the least.

Had they gotten in trouble after all for what they'd done? There had been four other witnesses to how they'd treated her, after all. But who would've told on them?

Haruhi sighed, her eyes skimming over the paragraphs in her book.

As much as she liked mysteries, this was one time where even she was at a loss...

"HARUHI! HEY! HARUHI!" a loud, familiar voice suddenly cut through the air.

Haruhi's heart skipped a few beats and she practically jumped out of her seat; her book nearly flying out out of her hands as she was instantly jolted out of her thoughts by the sudden exclamation.

"HEY, HARUHI! ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!"

Haruhi froze in recognition of the voice.

"Oh, no," she thought to hearself in horror. "Anyone but-"

Her thought ended there, because as she looked up to see who had shouted at her, whatever suspicions she might've had about the shouting culprit were confirmed.

Glancing up, she found herself only centimeters away from the girl who sat in front of her in class; a girl with long, cinnamon-hued hair tied back with a pink bow and brown eyes who was leaning on Haruhi's desk in a way that Haruhi was sure could've been classified as a complete violation of personal space.

Haruhi sighed slightly, trying her best to regain her composure after the abrupt shock to her system as the girl leaned in even more closely.

Why?

Why, today of all days, she had chosen to talk to her?

"Oh, Haruhi," the girl with the ribbon in her hair pestered. "Did you hear me?"

Haruhi couldn't help but groan a tad, in no mood to deal with the hyperactive girl in front of her.

"Yeah... along with the rest of Ouran Academy," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that, Haruhi? I didn't quite hear you!"

Sensing there was no real way to get around the girl, Haruhi sighed once again before finally acknowledging the girl's presence.

"Good morning, Renge," she greeted flatly.

The girl in front of her, Renge's, eyes immediately lit up like Christmas Lights and she clapped her hands giddily.

"Oh, good! So you did hear me!" she said excitedly. "I didn't know if you had... or if you were avoiding me! You know, I have my suspiscions some students here have been attempt to do that lately..."

Haruhi didn't even try to make light of the statement.

"Really? Gee, I wonder why anyone would want to avoid you, Renge," she mumbled sarcastically.

"I know, right?!" Renge said, not taking not of the sarcasm in Haruhi's voice. "I've got so much to offer!"-Renge's demeanor suddenly switched in an instant and she clenched her fists furiously, her hair seeming to take on the shapes of snakes-"One day I'll show them! I'll show them all! Then they'll be sorry they ever ran away from Renge Houshakuji!"

Haruhi could only stare at the girl in exasperation; an 'anime sweatdrop' finding its way to her for what seemed like the millionth time that day.

As odd as she may've been acting, however, Haruhi had to remind herself that Renge was just naturally an emotional person, if not a little... unstable. In fact, the way she was acting that very moment was normal when compared to some of her other mood swings (for lack of a better word).

Truth be told, Renge was really a kind person. She enjoyed helping others out and doing things for them, even if most of her efforts were forced upon them by her and/or overwhelmed them.

A self-proclaimed otaku who always carried a spare cosplay costume in her bookbag, Renge's only real problem (aside from being an anime/manga/videogame fanatic) was that she had very limited control over her emotions and let them get the better of her no matter what the circumstances. That, and, like so many of the students at Ouran Academy, she'd been spoiled by those surrounding her. The most prominent figure to do so was her dad, Reynard Houshakuji, a world-renowned entreprenuer who'd dedicated his life to giving Renge everything she wanted after his wife (Renge's mom) had dissapeared when the girl was only three.

Certainly everyone had understood Reynard's intentions: help take the girl's mind off everything by giving her more and more of what she wanted. It apparently hadn't been a problem at first, until Reynard discovered that his wife hadn't dissapeared at all and had only signed a contract for a worldwide modeling tour (without telling him, yet she blamed him for their lack of communication). After that, Reynard had tried to ween Renge off the overly luxurious lifestyle she'd grown accustomed to... only to find that not only didn't he have the heart to do so, but Renge wouldn't let him. So years passed and Renge grew increasingly more spoiled and more and more like her mom, until finally, Reynard decided it would be best for her to interact with people her own age and sent her to Ouran Academy in her middle school years.

Renge hadn't minded in the slightest. She'd easily taken control of the class she'd been put in in middle school, and had become a ring leader of sorts to the students there, although most students were just plain scared of her. And when Renge had walked through the door of class 1-A on the first day of highschool, those that'd been in middle school with her had all but hidden under their desks in terror.

Haruhi could've almost laughed at the memory, except that now, one month into the schoolyear, it'd became more than clear why the students had reacted the way they did. After only spending a day with the high-strung otaku, Haruhi had been absolutely exhausted from the young Houshakuji's incessant talking, [unintentional] rich girl antics, and random mood swings... and after putting up with it all for a day, Renge had somehow declared Haruhi as her "best friend in the whole world".

Meaning, simply put, that while Renge was a nice girl and all, she just wasn't Haruhi's cup of tea... and Renge was oblivious to it.

"Anyway, Haruhi!" Renge started loudly, staring the Fujioka straight in the eyes like a lawyer would with her client. "Did you know?!"

Haruhi resisted the urge to massage her temples; somehow, Renge had managed to give her a terrible headache.

"Know what, Renge?" Haruhi muttered weakly; along with her headache, her ears were still ringing from her classmate's high-pitched voice.

Renge slammed her fists down on Haruhi's desk.

"Rumor has it that the twins are missing!" the otaku shrieked, before proceeding to grab onto Haruhi's shoulders and shake her. "Don't tell me that you haven't heard about it yet! It's all over the school!"

"No kidding," Haruhi said flatly, yanking herself from the otaku's grip.

Glancing at her book once again with a completely disinterested expression on her face, she tried her best to ignore that Renge was there, but to no avail.

"Haruhi," Renge whined. "Do you have any idea what this means?"

"Do I want to?" Haruhi's response was one of irritance.

Irritance that, clearly, Renge hadn't picked up on (or had just simply chosen not to acknowledge).

"THE TWINS MUST'VE BEEN SHANGHAI'D!" she exclaimed, slamming her fists on Haruhi's desk once again; this time so hard that the latter actually felt sorry for it. "No! Not just shanghai'd! Shanghai'd by pirates to be used as a bargaining chip to attain their parents' money! Of course! That's what it is! It's just like when the beautiful princess Chikyū was kidnapped by a gang of such scoundrels before being saved by the handsome peasant Ryōkai in Umi no Densetsu!"

"Umm, Renge, I'm pretty sure that the twins aren't in that kind of situation," Haruhi mumbled. "And what's all this talk about princesses and peasants? And what the heck is Umi no Densetsu, anyway?"

"Only one of the biggest Shojo mangas currently in circulation," Renge sighed, her eyes taking on the shape of stars. "The name literally means 'Legend of the Seas'. Doesn't that just sound so romantic?"

"I'm... still not sure what any of this has to do with the twins,"

"My point is they're in big trouble!" Renge's mood altered in an instant. "Wherever they are, whatever happened, I can assure you that it's something so serious that Kikaru and Haoru won't be able to come to school for quite a while!"

Haruhi 'anime sweatdropped' a tad.

"Hikaru and Kaoru," she corrected.

Renge shrugged nonchalantly.

"Whatever. You knew what I meant," she said. "What I'm trying to say is I know I'm right! You should never question the senses of an otaku!"

"I wasn't questioning your senses!" Haruhi laughed nervously ("just everything else about you", she added silently).

Fortunately, Renge seemed pleased with Haruhi's answer and quieted down slightly; opting to talk under her breath about her otaku-minded fantasy of Hikaru and Kaoru's kidnapping by pirates rather than to Haruhi, something the Fujioka heiress was more than happy about.

With a contented sigh, she looked back down at her book and almost finished reading an entire sentence...

... before Renge piped up again.

"You know, now that I think about it," she started as Haruhi cringed.

"Please no more otaku fairytales," Haruhi silently begged.

Surprisingly, though, Renge didn't lapse into a conversation based on anime, manga, videogames, or flagrant otaku-ism.

In fact, she said something that actually caught Haruhi's attention.

"Where does the twins' wealth come from?"

Haruhi blinked.

"What do you mean, Renge?"

Renge pursed her lips in thought; folding her arms over her chest and furrowing her eyebrows like a businesswoman about to make the most important decision of her life would.

"Think about it, Haruhi," she said seriously. "Almost every student at Ouran Academy is of direct lineage from a prestigious family, and if they're not directly from such a family, they're closely related to them,"

"Yeah, so?" Haruhi asked, not quite sure where Renge was going with the conversation.

Renge sighed impatiently.

"So that means that their families are well-known," she said plainly. "Everybody who's anybody knows who they are and what kind of business they're in,"

Haruhi quirked a curious eyebrow.

"Okay," she agreed. "So you're saying...?"

"I'm saying that I'd never heard of the last name Hitachiin before those two came along," Renge explained, her eyes narrowing in suspiscion.

Haruhi shrugged.

"Maybe their family's new wealth," she supplied. "You know, more up-and-coming than most of the families here at Ouran; not as well-known but just as wealthy,"

"Haruhi, you don't seem to understand!" Renge snapped. "My dad's dealt with nearly every high-name family out there, and not even once did he mention any Hitachiins to me! And not only that, but he's worked with some of the hardest families to even get in touch with... Suzushima, Takaoji, Fujioka... you name it, my dad's met them! So if he can get in touch with such high-class families, then I'm pretty sure he could get in with some new wealth piddly-winks like the Hitachiins,"

Haruhi flinched slightly at Renge's mention of the name Fujioka and quickly diverted the topic.

"So... what do you think the Hitachiins are a product of?" she asked quickly. "A political family? Entreprenuers? Maybe actors?"

Haruhi's tactic worked.

In the next second, Renge was deep in thought about what kind of family Hikaru and Kaoru came from rather than talking about high-name families like the Fujiokas (much to Haruhi's relief).

"I don't know," the otaku mused. "Actually, to tell you the truth, I don't think they act very much like part of an esteemed aristocracy at all,"

"What... do you mean by that?"

"Think about it, Haruhi," Renge said sternly. "Every student here at Ouran Academy, no matter what their parents' endeavors are, have had a simliar upbringing: filthy rich and pressed for presentability. Basically, that means that we've been prepped to be our finest since we were born. We've been raised to be polite, understanding, and congenial towards everyone we meet; to never act out of place, even when things don't go our way, and to always make it a point to remind others just how wealthy we are by the way we handle ourselves,"

"Alright..." Haruhi said, bewildered.

She knew where Renge was coming from somewhat; after all, what she was saying was true. Haruhi knew from experience that there was more pressure on the children of the wealthy to behave accordingly at all times than there was with more 'common folk'...

... yet how any of it tied into the twins was still a big question mark.

"What I'm trying to say," Renge started, sensing Haruhi's perplexion. "Is when's the last time those Hitachiin brothers were ever polite, understanding, or congenial towards anyone? When have they not acted out of place? Where have they ever reminded anyone of their wealth through the way they handle themselves?"

"Never," Haruhi answered flatly, recalling what had happened earlier with the twins.

"Exactly!" Renge exclaimed, snapping her fingers in conclusion. "Which makes me believe that their upbringings were probably not nearly as privleged as most of the students at Ouran Academy! No person from wealth would act the way they do! And if they were going to be brats, they'd be snobs, not total menaces!""

Haruhi's eyes widened at Renge's words.

"Wait a minute, Renge," she started. "You don't think that... Hikaru and Kaoru are-"

"Commoners? Who knows?" Renge finished her sentence. "There's one thing I'm sure of, though, and that's that you're the only student Ouran has down as attending by means of a scolarship... and you act like you were bred with more class than they were! And you're a commoner!"

Haruhi cringed at being called a commoner once again, but stayed calm.

"I don't think so," she said coolly. "If the twins, or anyone else here, were scolarship students, I'm sure the faculty would let us know,"

Then again, they had agreed to cover up Haruhi's wealthy status, but somehow, this just seemed different. Haruhi really meant it. She had complete trust in Ouran and their levels of honesty.

"Who can say, Haruhi?" Renge finally sighed, slumping into her chair comfortably. "All I know is if something like that happened..."-her eyes suddenly grew wide with an all-too familiar otaku-esque look-"It would be just like in San-nen no Kōsha! Oh, Haruhi! Have I ever told you about that show?! It's about this class of handsome third year students who get transfered to a girl's school on their way to a camping expidition! When they get there, they meet this girl who pretends to be rich so she can fit in with the rich boys, but the cute leader of the guys, Hiromaru, goes ahead and finds out her secret! And then-"

Renge continued to ramble on after that, but Haruhi steadily lost interest and her mind drifted away from Renge's otaku fantasyland and back to the twins.

She doubted that Renge's theory about the twins being of lesser class was acurate, no matter how they acted.

However, the conversation had made Haruhi curious about the twins' pasts...

Where were they from?

Who were their parents?

How was it they could afford to attend Ouran Academy?

What had happened that had made them the callous troublemakers they were?

Haruhi frowned, looking down at her book once more in yet another futile attempt to read it.

The last thing she wanted to do was think of the twins... of any of the boys she'd met that morning.

Yet why did all her thoughts seem to steer towards them?

Just then, the door to the classroom slammed open, demanding everyone's attention, even Ichitoshi Sensei's.

A chorus of gasps sounded through the room as the students took in the two boys who were standing in the doorway... two of the six boys who Haruhi had been wondering about all day.

Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin were covered in paint and caked in what many of the girls were desperately hoping wasn't dirt (it was); looking more discheveled than Haruhi had ever seen anyone look and even more bitter than they usually did.

"Ah, Hikaru, Kaoru," Ichitoshi Sensei said kindly, eying the two of them slightly. "How nice of you to finally join us... although, I'm afraid we're on our final class of the day,"

"That's fine," one of the twins said dryly (which one, Haruhi couldn't tell. The one with the right part... wasn't that Hikaru? No, Kaoru...).

Ichitoshi Sensei's eyebrows knitted slightly.

"Is there... any reason why you two didn't manage to make it till class until now?" he asked gently, giving the twins the benefit of the doubt.

Amber eyes sought out Haruhi with a glare as the twin with the left part (Hikaru?) replied.

"We got in trouble for something that happened this morning," he answered as coolly as possible. "Kaoru and I spent all day whitewashing some dingy old fence where the academy horse track is,"

"Not that we mind," the twin who Haruhi was now sure was Kaoru, said. "It was better than having to spend all day in a stupid classroom, anyway,"

Ichitoshi Sensei sighed a tad, but kept his gentle smile.

"I see," he murmured tiredly. "Well, in any event, it's good to have you back. Please take your seats,"

Hikaru and Kaoru didn't respond.

They only made their way to their desks, eyes narrowed on Haruhi the whole while as the class began to buzz about the them once again.

"See, I told you they got in trouble,"

"I suppose you were right, after all,"

"I can't believe it, though. I didn't think it was possible to before even coming to the classroom,"

"I'm just glad they weren't playing hockey,"

"Hooky,"

"I wonder what they could've done to earn a punishment like white-washing,"

"Especially the old fence at the horse track,"

"I don't know, but it must've been something that angered the chairman,"

"Their parents must be ashamed of them!"

"I'm ashamed to call them my classmates!"

"Is it still wrong that I think they're kind of cute?"

"Why Ichitoshi Sensei treats them so nicely is beyond me,"

Haruhi found herself lowering her head as the twins took their seats on either side of her; shrinking back slightly as they continued to glower at her for all they were worth.

They'd said they'd gotten in trouble for what'd happened that morning, and it was obvious they thought it was because of her; that Haruhi had tattletaled on them after all.

She knew for a fact she hadn't, though, which left her guessing who had.

It had to have been one of the other boys she'd met that morning, and judging from the way lolita-boy had backed out of the fight before and how that giant, 'Takashi', hadn't exactly seemed like the type that talked too much (or tattletaled), that left the blonde doofus and his raven-haired friend.

The blonde was a safe bet; from what Haruhi had seen before, it was impossible for the boy to be quiet for five seconds.

Then again, the blonde seemed like he would be more of the type to settle things with the Hitachiins one-on-one rather than complain to the chairman about the events.

So that left...

The walking block of ice that was the blonde's friend.

Haruhi could almost picture that more, considering the raven-haired boy seemed like the studious type who would get someone else in trouble just for the sake of looking like an ideal student (that would be something more along the lines of malicious than studious though, wouldn't it?).

Either way, however, Haruhi wasn't in a good situation... wedged in-between two, angry Hitachiins who looked like they'd clobber her the first chance they'd get.

The atmosphere was so tense that, for once, she didn't even mind Renge speaking up out of the blue and distracting the twins.

"So why are you two here, anyway?" the otaku asked the Hitachiin brothers as Ichitoshi Sensei read through the final announcements of the day. "You two are supposed to be kidnapped by pirates!"

Both Hikaru and Kaoru's glares faded into expressions of utter confusion.

"Huh?" Hikaru queried.

"Yeah, just what exactly are you talking about?" Kaoru added.

Renge laughed sheepishly and waved her hand dissmissively at them.

"Oh, no, never mind!" she chuckled. "I just thought it was pretty sudden the way you walked into class and all after missing for almost a whole day. Kind of makes people think you were shanghai'd or something like that. No big deal. Although..."-once again, Renge's mood switched drastically as she looked between both boys skeptically-"You both must've done something huge to get in so much trouble that the chairman would order you to whitewash something instead of just your typical detention. So, what was it?"

The twins shared a slight glance before narrowing their eyes on Haruhi, who only slumped all the further into her seat.

"Actually," she started nervously. "I think it's better if we just forget about the topic for today, Renge. I mean, I'm sure the Hitachiins have already been reminded enough of what they did, and-"

Before Haruhi could get any further, however, Ichitoshi Sensei's voice rang through the classroom and promted everyone's attention to be directed at him.

"Ah! Princess Ayonokoji! You're here!" he exclaimed, looking kindly at a young woman as she stepped into class 1-A.

All eyes immediately switched from being on Ichitoshi Sensei to the girl.

The girl was dressed in an Ouran Academy highschool uniform and was maybe about a year or two older than the first-year students. She was relatively tall with auburn hair and dark eyes that were a contrast to her fair skin. There was no doubt she was beautiful, however, there was just something about her that seemed condemning about her; a certain scrutinizing air that was almost as bad as the twins'.

Haruhi quirked an eyebrow at the girl as a sudden feeling of recognition nagged at her.

It felt as if she'd seen this girl somewhere before; a vague memory of sorts... at one of her dad's parties or expos, maybe?

Ichitoshi Sensei turned to the class and gestured towards the redhead as she took her place next to him; silently observing everyone with her scrutinizing gaze.

"I'd like to introduce you all to Ayanokoji Sukimu," Ichitoshi Sensei started. "She's a third year student here in class 3-A. She'll be a regular her in class 1-A with us for a little while,"

Ayanokoji gave a graceful curtsy, as was customary.

"How do you do?" she greeted, her voice level, yet cold as ice.

Ah, Ayanokoji Sukimu. Now Haruhi remembered where she'd seen the girl before.

A chorus of excited whispers immediately sounded through the classroom; most of them about how "pretty" Ayanokoji was, others about how much of a "privilege" it was to have someone from the prestigious Sukimu Group visiting their classroom.

The Sukimu Group was, after all, related to royalty and was one of the most esteemed families in Japan as a result. Even in Ouran, an academy teeming with the elite, those with the last name Sukimu were regarded in high precedence.

As for Ayanokoji, Haruhi had met the girl a few times before at some of her dad's parties, although it'd been about ten years since they'd last crossed paths... not to mention those times that they'd seen eachother, Haruhi had been going through an awkward stage (loose teeth and glasses). Haruhi had never been fond of Ayanokoji. Even as a child, the Sukimu heiress had been privy to the habit of acting like a complete snob, and the time she'd spent at Ryoji Fujioka's parties had mostly consisted of bragging to everyone about how she was the only child born to inherit the Sukimu name in her generation, not to mention looking down on everyone she deemed unworthy (Haruhi could recall that one time she'd even yelled at a butler for the way his suit was tailored). She'd been so unpleasant that it's actually led Ryoji to cut off all contact he had with the Sukimus, though how a kid who'd only been seven at the time could've been the root of such a drastic action confused Haruhi to this day.

On the other hand, however, Haruhi had been completely unaware that Ayanokoji was attending Ouran Academy. In fact, the last she'd checked, all the daughters of her dad's wealthy friends (or former associates) had opted to attend the Lobelia Girl's Academy; an academy of equal eliteness, though not nearly as refined as Ouran.

With no one at Ouran to recognize her from her dad's social affairs, it'd been relatively easy for Haruhi to keep her identity as a Fujioka under wraps... however, with Ayanokoji attending the same academy...

Fortunately, the young Sukimu heiress didn't seem to recognize her at all; in fact, she didn't even seem to notice Haruhi was in the room at all.

Breathing a sigh of slight relief and silently cheering her five-year-old's self irrecognizable awkward phase, Haruhi was about to turn her attention back to Ichitoshi Sensei when a sudden voice made her jump.

"Ichitoshi Sensei," the Hitachiin sitting to the left of her called, not bothering to raise his hand like most [polite] students would. "I've got a question,"

Ichitoshi Sensei sighed, obviously not in the mood to deal with either of the Hitachiin brothers (judging by the expressions on their faces, neither was the rest of the class)... but smiled nonetheless.

"Yes, Kaoru?" their teacher said a patiently as he could.

His response was met with an angry glower as the Hitachiin that had spoken folded his arms over his chest.

"I'm Hikaru," he corrected tersely.

Ichitoshi Sensei overlooked the furious expression on his student's face and continued.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, although he sounded more exasperated than apologetic. "Now then, Hikaru,"-he emphasized the name greatly before continuing-"What is it that you'd like to know?"

The twin everyone could now identify as Hikaru pointed to Ayanokoji.

"You said this girl was a third year student..." Hikaru started; Ayanokoji visibly bristling in offense at being referred to so simply as 'this girl'.

Ichitoshi Sensei nodded.

"That's correct," he agreed.

Hikaru shared a glance with Kaoru, who immediately seemed to read his brother's thoughts, before they both turned to Ichitoshi Sensei in perfect unison.

"If she's a student from class 3-A..." Hikaru started.

"... then why is she here in class 1-A?" Kaoru finished his brother's sentence with perfect timing.

Haruhi eyes widened slightly at the statement.

She'd been so distracted about Ayanokoji recognizing her that she hadn't even realized how odd it was that a third year student was visiting a first year class.

"Not to agree with the Hitachiins," Haruhi began flatly, ignoring the boys' eyes boring into her as she spoke. "But first, second, and third years all have their seperate classes and time schedules. So shouldn't Miss Ayanokoji should be in the middle of her free period now?"

Haruhi couldn't help but feel a tinge of relief when Ayanokoji still showed no signs of recognizing her while Ichitoshi Sensei cleared his throat slightly.

"I was just getting to that," he said, his voice making it apparent that he was answering a question of one of a student he actually liked (a.k.a. not a Hitachiin). "You see, it has to do with this time of year,"

Haruhi cocked her head towards her right shoulder slightly.

"This time of year?" she repeated. "But, Ichitoshi Sensei... what's so special about it? I mean, I know it's October, but that's not really so much of a deal, is it?"

Ichitoshi Sensei opened his mouth to say something, when he was abruptly interrupted by a shocked shriek.

Before Haruhi could even comprehend what was going on, she found herself only centimeters away from the face of Renge Houshakuji, who was leaning on the Fujioka's desk with her palms in what could've been called an extreme invasion of personal space.

"You mean you didn't know?!" Renge trilled, her voice so high-pitched that it caused every student in the class to jump slightly.

"Didn't know... what?" Haruhi asked, a perplexed expression on her face.

Renge laughed hyperactively, her brown eyes glistening with a combination of excitement and... something that greatly resembled insanity.

"About the Ouran Academy Soirée, of course!" she exclaimed in a know-it-all tone of voice; pumping her right fist in the air with enthusiasm.

"The Ouran Academy Soirée?" Haruhi was surprised to hear the voices of the Hitachiin twins echoing her own.

The person seated behind Haruhi, a brunette, brown-eyed girl named Momoka Kurokano (the daughter of two diplomats), was the next to join in the conversation with an excited squeal.

"Yeah!" she added enthusiastically with a wide smile. "It's one of the biggest events of the schoolyear!"

"Nay! Not one of the biggest events, Momoka!" Renge cut in. "The annual Ouran Academy Soirée is the biggest event of the schoolyear!"-she sighed dreamily and stared off into the distance, though what she was looking at exactly was something Haruhi wasn't quite sure of-"The annual Ouran Academy Soirée... a timeless event that the school has been holding since the time it was built! An event that many say was first established as proof of Ouran's founder's affections for his beloved; an elegant ball held by him that would prove his love for her!"

"Sounds kind of sappy, if you ask me," Hikaru muttered.

"Yeah," Kaoru agreed in the same, flat tone of voice.

Renge's eyes flashed in fury as she turned on them with the rage of 1,000 army men.

"YOU SAVAGES HAVE NO APPRECIATION FOR THE BEAUTY OF LOVE!" she screamed at the twins furiously.

Her rage was gone as soon as it'd come, however, as she lapsed into her little dreamworld once again with sparkling eyes; so much so that Haruhi could almost see hearts and roses appearing around her.

"Anyway, our founder's proof of affection for his dear one was hardly wasted," she went on, clasping her hands together like a girl in love herself. "They married shortly thereafter and watched over Ouran Academy together, and after they handed over control of the school to their successor, it was decided that every schoolyear, Ouran Academy would host the most beautiful, the most elegant, the most wonderful extraveganza in the history of elite academies... a tradition that would come to be known worldwide as the legendary annual Ouran Academy Soirée! Such a spectacle, such an amazing event... I could eat three bowls of rice just thinking about it!"

Haruhi blinked blankly as Renge finished the tale with a dramatic pose, her mind less on the legacy of the Ouran Academy Soirée than it was on what she had ever done to deserve such odd and nerve-wracking classmates... and Renge. Yeah, Renge was definitely in a league of her own.

"So what?" Hikaru asked, his voice cold with boredom. "That still doesn't explain why Ayanokoji, a third year, is here in the first year class,"

"It all has to do with the annual Ouran Academy Soirée!" Ichitoshi Sensei happily blurted out; determined not to let Renge steal his limelight once again. "You see, each year, just before the soirée rolls around, all classes are canceled to focus on preperations for the event. Which year class someone's in become irrelevant, as we all work together in order to make the soiree a success. First years can work with third years. Second years become more than mentors to middle schoolers. Teachers and students are friends, and even elementary students are involved in the prelude to the most prestigious event in the world!"-his sanity all but abandoned him as his eyes seemed to double in size and sparkle with childlike longing and enthusiasm-"The annual Ouran Academy Soirée is a time of year where everyone is a friend and the world is the way it should be! A true tribute to the founder and his beloved; an universe of prestige and wonder they'd be happy to see! It's so wonderful it almost makes me cry!"

"Don't fight it, sensei!" Renge exclaimed, comical tears streaming down her own face.

"Can it, otaku," both Hikaru and Kaoru muttered simultaneously.

Shooting them a slight glare, Renge then turned back to Haruhi.

"Anyway, it's huge!" Renge exclaimed. "I can't believe you've never heard of it, Haruhi!"

"Well, I am new here," Haruhi muttered.

"That's no excuse!"

"I just didn't think Ouran would host something as outlandish as a soirée," Haruhi said flatly (although, after thinking it over a bit more, it made complete sense. Everything Ouran Academy did was outlandish).

Renge calmed down slightly and shook her head with a small 'tsk' of sympathy.

"Poor Haruhi," she sighed. "It must be so hard for you... being the only commoner at this school... unaware of our traditions and events. You must feel so alone,"

"Yes," Momoka agreed, her eyes filled with tears. "To not even know what the Ouran Soirée was... our hearts go out to you,"

"Hey, the twins didn't know what Ouran hosted a soirée every year, either!"

"Don't bring us into this," the twins said simultaneously, prompting a short glower from Haruhi.

Her anger was turned into exasperation, however, as the girls in the class continued to bemoan 'poor, commoner Haruhi's ignorance'; prompting their subject of pity to 'anime sweatdropped' a tad before looking back at the Ouran Soirée details Ichitoshi Sensei was now writing on the board, although her mind was hardly focused on it.

It was only times like those, when the other students viewed her as a 'pitiable commoner' that she wished she hadn't agreed to her dad's deal; times when she wished that she could tell everyone she was a Fujioka in order to not be looked down on (although, that was what the deal was all about, wasn't it? Becoming friends with people who didn't look down on her regardless of what her last name was).

All else aside, however, Haruhi was genuinely astonished that she'd never heard of the annual Ouran Academy Soirée, especially given that she'd thought she'd heard everything there was to hear about Ouran from her parents. Being that the soiree was such a big deal, she was sure her parents would've told her about it. In fact, she was more than sure that her dad would've raved about it. Yet this was the first time she'd ever heard anything about the soiree, meaning that either her parents hadn't wanted to tell her about it (for some reason).

But why?

"In any event," Ichitoshi's voice sounded through the classroom, snapping Haruhi out of her thoughts again. "As preparation for the Ouran Academy Soirée, all classes will be on a hiatus until after the event. In addition, classes of the same rank and different years will be assigned to work with one another. Meaning our class, class 1-A, is going to be working in unsion with classes 2-A and Princess Ayanokoji's class, class 3-A. Are there any other questions?"

Haruhi went to say something, but the rest of the class chiming "no, Ichitoshi Sensei!" overruled her, leaving their sensei to nod.

"Very well," he said, then turned to Ayanokoji. "Is there anything else you'd like to say?"

"No," Ayanokoji said coolly. "I only came here today to represent my class. Though, I would appreciate it if wse could talk after class,"

"Of course," Ichitoshi Sensei smiled warmly before nodding to his students just as the final bell rang. "Alright, then, that's the bell! Have a wonderful day, everyone! I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Thank you, Ichitoshi Sensei!" the class chorused cheerfully.

Their teacher gave one last smile before the students scurried to gather their bookbags and homework assignments; chattering excitedly with one another about the Ouran Soirée.

Haruhi, on the other hand, made a beeline for the classroom door despite Renge's protests for her to stay and chat.

Between the twins and Ayanokoji, the last thing she wanted to do was stay there any longer than she had to be.

Just before she could leave, however, Ichitoshi Sensei stopped her.

"Oh, Haruhi," he started kindly.

Great...

"Yes, Ichitoshi Sensei?" Haruhi responded as calmly as she could.

Ichitoshi Sensei rummaged through his desk a moment, looking for something, before finding whatever it was and handing it to Haruhi.

"I know you're new to Ouran Academy," he said gently. "So maybe these can help. They're papers on what the Ouran Academy Soirée is and the proper protocol for it. Anything else you can think of, just ask me, alright?"

Haruhi nodded, mustering a smile for her teacher.

"Thank you very much, Ichitoshi Sensei," she said gratefully.

"Haruhi?"

Haruhi glanced to her left to see Ayanokoji looking at her pensively; twirling a strand of her auburn hair in her fingers thoughtfully.

"Yes," Haruhi answered levelly.

"As in Haruhi Fujioka?" Ayanokoji prodded.

...

Uh-oh.

"No, Princess Ayanokoji, I'm afraid yo're mistaken," Ichitoshi Sensei immediately came to Haruhi's defense. "This is Haruhi Hatori. She's a scholarship student here at Ouran,"

"I see," Ayanokoji murmured, studying Haruhi once again with her dark eyes.

After a few moments, the Sukimu heiress finally seemed to be convinced and lowered her head apologetically.

"I'm sorry," she said, though the tone of her voice made it clear that she was anything but. "You looked a little like someone I knew once. I had no idea you were just a scholarship student,"

The way Ayanokoji said 'scholarship student', with such disdain, was enough to make both Haruhi and Ichitoshi Sensei cringe, but fortunately, Haruhi's teacher was able to keep his composure and ushered Haruhi gently out the door.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," Ichitoshi Sensei laughed lightly. "Though Haruhi's the best student in our class, so that makes her just as good as any heiress,"

Ayanokoji sniffed.

"I'm not so sure about that," she spat bitterly.

Ichitoshi Sensei's smile wavered.

"Either way," he said good-naturedly, turning to Haruhi. "Have a nice day, Miss Hatori. Please make sure to review the papers I gave you,"

"Of course, Ichitoshi Sensei," Haruhi nodded. "Have a nice day,"

"You, too, Haruhi,"

"Good day, Miss Ayanokoji,"

"Good day, Haruhi," came the cold reply.

Without giving it a second thought, Haruhi all but raced out of the classroom in breathless jaunts; not stopping until she was as far away as possible from class 1-A, Ayanokoji, and the twins.

What a day it'd been.

And now she had to learn all about this Ouran Soirée, too?

Haruhi sighed, leaning against one of the many walls of the school hallways.

How had the course of her life spiraled out of control in the course of a mere eight hours?

Not that it mattered.

She didn't have time to wonder how it had gotten to be the way it is... what she had to focus on was how to handle things.

Because she was, no matter how she hid it, a Fujioka.

Fujiokas were problem solvers.

Fujiokas didn't worry about some old acquaintance finding out about their real identity.

Fujiokas weren't concerned about two twin terrors who were more than likely after revenge although they'd done nothing wrong.

Fujiokas didn't spend their time thinking about people they'd met earlier that morning who'd piqued their curiosity.

Fujiokas didn't fear simple Soirées because they were worried about working with kids from other classes who might discover their secrets.

Fujiokas could handle anything.

Yes, Haruhi was most definitely a Fujioka.

But sometimes, she wished she really was carefree commoner Haruhi Hatori.

Tamaki: 0.0 That... was it?

Honey: Kind of a dull ending, right, Takashi?

Mori: *nods* Hmm.

Haruhi: -_- Hey, Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai, we were supposed to stay in the back room until the next A/N... although... *skims the chapter once again* It was pretty... umm... not... that... great.

Kyoya: *adjusts glasses* It's obvious Miss Chidsengan's coming into her own as an author, so a little support might be well-deserved at such a pivotol moment in her budding career.

Tamaki, Honey, Mori, and Haruhi: ... is that Shadow King talk for 'the chapter was pathetic'?

Kyoya: Not at all. I'm just here to encourage her as a friend. *mutters* Because she's a friend with benefits...

Everyone else: What?

Kyoya: Nothing...

Chidsengan: Alright, I know, this chappie was terribly-written and I'm a loser. But I've got more important things to worry about... like what happened to my friend after Hikaru and Kaoru took her away?

Honey: Abe-chan took a limo back home. She says 'hi'. ^_^

Chidsengan: ^_^ Oh, good, at least she's alright. Now, where was I...? Right... *cries hysterically* I'm so sorry I'm such a pathetic author! You all deserve better than this! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! TT_TT

Tamaki: *hands her a rose* Don't cry, my princess. Everything will be alright. Except, maybe your writing...

Chidsengan: TT_TT

Haruhi: -_- Not helping, senpai...

Kyoya: Miss Chidsengan, might I remind you that you still have to thank everyone for reading your fanfic in the first place?

Chidsengan: *stops crying* Right! Anyway, despite my complete lack of talent, thank you so very much to everyone that read this! I can't thank you enough, so please... help yourself to this virtual buffet of fancy food... *pulls back curtain to see it... gone* What? Where'd all the food go?

Hikaru and Kaoru: We ate it.

Chidsengan: -_- ... Kyoya, call the chefs...

Kyoya: *dials chefs on speed dial*

Chidsengan: ^_^" In any event, thank you all so much once again! I can't wait till chappie three and to see you all again!

Tamaki: *dramatically* The Host Club will be waiting for you!

Chidsengan: -_- ... yeah, whatever floats your boat, blondie... *smiles* For the rest of us, let's just go with thank you and I can't wait to add all your names to our ever-growing fanfic family! ^_^

Haruhi: How is that a consolation prize for your writing skills?

Hikaru and Kaoru: It's not. Her writing's too terrible to compensate for.

Honey: Yep! ^_^

Mori: Mhmm.

Chidsengan: TT_TT ... they're right... it is...