Miki Mae: Yeah, uh, the Rinharu preference might come back for this chapter. Sorry about that.

Riomi-senpai: Yeaaaaah... Makoto... what have I turned you into... and yet you're still in character somehow, I think... (the fact that I can write a story like this with Makoto being in character most of the time is actually quite scary if you think about it, it's like his sweet smile is a lie).

A: Yes, his parents know. Most of his story. Not all of it.

whatthehellwasithinkin: I've actually already planned out the ending completely. All that's left is getting there.

lightfromshadows: You are so sweet for giving me that change of pace, I highly appreciate it. Thank you :)

WolfPacFaan: Haruka doesn't remember these things because he doesn't want to remember. It's a part of why Makoto resents him a little. A little spoiler for your day~

WrenchingStar: Errrrrrrr... yeah, still no promises.

AlfredSamaNoBaka: Yandere!Makoto is indeed amazing in so many ways, though I'm not sure if my Makoto counts as a yandere... he's really just a deceptive bastard than a violent one. Is there a name for that? I'm doing my best to improve my writing though :x

AngelOfDarkness: Ahahahahaha... do your homework.

NyxLied: Makoto is going to do a lot of things. Most of which will have reviewers call for his death. I've already gotten a couple of those. I FEEL NO GUILT.

faendell: A novel?! As a weaboo who hopes to write a light novel in Japanese an publish it, this is the best praise I can receive! Thank you so much!

Dark,ookami: Thank you very much for your praise! I hope that you will continue to read and review! :) [For some reason the fanfiction Doc Manager refuses to safe her name when written with a period so I put it down with a comma instead.]

extremefanficaddiction: This is actually the review that kind of got me off my butt to finish writing this damn chapter. XD Thanks for your support!

I do not own Free! Iwatobi Swim Club or any of the characters in it.

I'm a little surprised because judging from the reviews, it seems that I'm getting a lot of new and foreign readers for this fanfic. 0_o I really wasn't expecting that. Where did you all come from all of a sudden?

It warms my heart to see readers willing to try fanfictions even though they have as many chapters as this one. Thank you so much!

Onward! If I have to say it, this chapter reveals a little more of Makoto's past and present self. Please enjoy yourselves.

"Master Haruka. Master Haruka, we're here. Please wake up."

Dark eyelashes fluttered open as the sleepy young master raised his head from his servant's shoulder. "We're what?" he asked drowsily, still half-asleep.

"We've arrived at the summer house, Master Haruka. Please, step outside whenever you are ready. I will go and move the luggage into the house," with that, Makoto easily slid out of the carriage and shut the door quietly in case Haruka dozed off again. The dark-haired teen wiped the sleep away from his eyes and pushed apart the crimson curtains to look outside. A smile curled around his lips as his gaze trailed upwards and he recognized the nostalgic sight from his childhood. There, starting from a narrow cobbled road, up the stone steps and past a torii, was the summer house.

The summer house was a traditional Japanese styled house with white walls with brown trim and brown roof tiles. Honestly, calling it a summer house was a bit of a stretch. This house was the original home of the late Madame Nanase, Haruka's grandmother, before her husband's business had taken off and they had moved to the mansion. That was the reason why the 'summer house' of the prestigious Nanase family was in a quiet and sleepy little backwater town. Haruka had fond memories of coming to visit this house with his grandmother.

His gaze drifted off to the side to another house, this one similar to his own in structure, but it was made entirely out of brown wood. Dilapidated brown wood. Haruka frowned as he realized that the windows were broken. The gate around the house had the door hanging on by a hinge and made sad noises when the wind blew by.

Was that house always here? Haruka wondered to himself. He opened the carriage door and stepped out to approach the apparently abandoned home. Strange. I can't recall... but...

He furrowed his brow and stepped closer to it, going up a small set of stairs and placed his hand on the gate and unconsciously leaned on it.

Didn't somebody my age used to be here?

There was a loud cracking sound and Haruka's forehead hit packed dirt as the gate collapsed beneath him.

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Makoto dragged the last of the bags up the stairs and sighed with relief as he fumbled around his pockets for keys. The sun gave him an accusing glare like he was a trespasser as he pulled out the key, which dangled on a thin chain, out and placed it in the lock. He blithely ignored the raging light and simply moved so that he was in the house's shadow, where it was cooler and easier for him to concentrate.

Just as he fit the key into the lock, he heard a sound like a gunshot and trained reflexes caused him to instinctively hit the ground. Not even a second later there was another sound, this one a loud crashing noise like wood hitting rock.

Terrible situations whirled around Makoto's mind, ranging from somebody shooting Haruka in the carriage to the carriage getting mauled by a newfangled car. He forgot about the key and hastily flew down the stone steps. At the bottom he stopped, eyes swooping over the abandoned carriage to the equally abandoned house on his left. There was something different about the scene and his green eyes widened slightly. The gate was gone.

"Master Haruka?" he tried calling out, stepping towards the house. A tendril of nostalgia crawled up his spine.

He ignored it yet again.

"Master Haruka!" he shouted, louder. There was a small set of stone steps leading up to the abandoned house and he went up them slowly, one by one, green eyes seeing everything familiar but totally disregarding it at the same time. "Master Haruka! Where are you?"

At the top of the stairs he froze, one foot still on a step below, as the prone body of his young master made his throat go dry.

And suddenly a torrent of memories of Haruka lying too, too still on a grassy bank with his eyes shut and a cut above his eye forming a puddle of blood on his face and how pale his skin had become and how clammy his hands and face felt underneath Makoto's fingertips and how he wouldn't respond no matter how loudly Makoto screamed his name no no no no NO NO NO NO NO NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO!

"Ha..."

Makoto stumbled forward and forgot that he was still half-standing on a lower step. He tripped forward and nearly fell himself as he tossed all rational thought out of his mind and scrambled towards the blue-eyed stoic boy he had loved in so many different ways since childhood.

"HARU-CHAN!"

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"Haru-chan," a shadow covered Haruka's view of the sky and all he could see were emerald-colored eyes. "What are you doing out here, Haru-chan?"

Little Haruka sighed and patted the spot on the soft grass next to him. "Just thinking about things," he said. "I have to go home soon, though I don't want to. I like it here."

His friend sat down next to him. "Yeah. My parents are talking about going home already," his childish chubby cheeks puffed out as he pouted. "I told them that I wanted to stay here with Haru-chan, but they wouldn't let me."

"Why do you always have to stay with me?" Haruka's voice was snooty, though his friend knew that he was secretly happy. "You should learn how to do things by yourself, like swimming."

"But swimming alone can be dangerous!" his friend objected, the high-pitched voice hitting a new high note. "If I swim alone I might get swept away by the ocean!"

"Don't be silly. Water can be kind as long as you're kind to it," the little boy stood up, blue eyes sparkling from just the thought of his beloved water. "As long as you're not afraid, the water won't attack. C'mon, I'll show you," seeing the hesitancy in green eyes, he grasped a limp hand and pulled it along. "We don't have to go to the ocean. We can go to the river. We can go get Rin to come too, if you're still scared."

"I'm not scared!" contrary to his words, the little green-eyed boy bit his bottom lip and worried it between his teeth. "... If something goes wrong, then Haru-chan, will you come save me?"

"Of course I will. Let's hurry up and go."

"... Okay, Haru-chan."

"I've said it before, but lay off the 'chan', Ma - "

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"Makoto..."

"Master Haruka?"

Haruka's eyes drifted open at the sound of Makoto's anxious voice. "Makoto..."

"Master Haruka!" suddenly Makoto's worried expression practically shoved itself into his face. "Are you alright? Are you in pain? How does your head feel? Can you move all your limbs?"

Haruka couldn't get a word into edgewise between the bombardment of questions and he could feel a migraine coming on. When his servant paused to take a breath, he pressed a finger to his lips. "I'm fine," he murmured, a bit cross. "Stop screaming in my face, Makoto."

"... I apologize," Makoto's skin, normally tanned, was the color of parchment. "I was just so worried..."

"You don't need to worry, I'm fine," Haruka murmured. "You're here with me, Makoto, so I'm fine."

"... Yes," apparently satisfied, Makoto sat back on his heels and a little color returned to his cheeks. Haruka realized that he had been laid out on a futon in what he recognized as the summer house's living room.

"Did you carry me inside?"

"I did. I also bandaged your head. You were bleeding a little, and it will probably bruise... hopefully it will clear up in a few days."

"I'm not a girl," Haruka grumbled. "It's not like it matters to me."

"It matters to me," his servant insisted. "I hope you don't mind, but I brought out the futon from the closet. Don't worry, I gave it a good beating to get all the dust out first."

Haruka remembered the feel of the feathery softness surrounding him as a child. It's been a while since I slept on a futon on tatami, he thought with a content smile. Hesitant, he scooted over a few inches and patted the freed space next to him with a demanding hand. Makoto blinked several times before he too gave a content smile and laid down beside his master.

"... It's hot..."

"My apologies."

Makoto made no motion to get up. Haruka was fine with that.

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"It's nice to see you, King-chan~" Nagisa chirped with a friendly voice. "Although I think a nickname would be cuter with your real name?"

"Nice to see you again too, Hazuki," King nodded to the chipper blonde, as well as giving another nod to the manservant behind him. "You too, Ryuugazaki."

"My King," Rei knelt down on the plush carpet, head bowed. "I am gladdened to see that you are well. I have completed my mission," he gave Nagisa a cautionary glance, "though it was a few days earlier than expected."

King ignored him and turned to the Prime Minister's son. "You came here willingly." It wasn't a question.

"I did," another impish grin with a fearless look in his amaranth eyes. "I thought that I would save Rei-chan the trouble of getting rid of me later." Rei shot him a questioning look, but between a serious conversation of two masters, a servant's actions and words were often ignored. "Now that I'm here, what will you do with me?"

"Ryuugazaki requested a change of request for you, with the excuse that you would be more valuable with it," King rose from the red velvet couch upon which he had been seated and strode over to Nagisa with confident, long strides. Like he was handling a delicate rose, King touched the blonde's chin with his fingers to tilt Nagisa's head upwards. Nagisa's smile never wavered, not even once.

"... Hm," King dropped his hand and gave an approving nod. "It was a good call, Ryuugazaki. I'll overlook you bringing him here early."

"Yes, My King," Rei replied, eyes trained on the ground. "I am grateful for your merciful and kind decision."

"Hazuki," King addressed Nagisa directly. "You will be taken care of well here, no less than the treatment that you had back home. So don't worry. Thanks to Ryuugazaki, you won't be treated the same way as the others, though you'll be stored in the same place as them," he snapped his fingers and almost like he had been trained, Rei sprang to his feet. "Take him to his new 'room'."

"Yes, My King," Rei gave a last deep bow before he placed a calm but forceful hand on Nagisa's thin shoulder. "Please come this way, Nagisa-kun."

"Ohh?" Nagisa grinned as Rei led him out of the room down a long hallway alight with golden chandeliers. "You're not calling me Master anymore?"

"There is no master here, nor are there slaves or servants. There is merely the Order, where the inferiors must obey the superiors," Rei calmly pushed up his glasses and removed his golden earring from his ear in one fluid motion. Their steps sounded heavy, even on the fine silk carpets. "Your heritage is now nothing but a title, something of value but not of importance. Here, you are a product, and I am the Marquis," his grip tightened, which did not go unnoticed. "You are now inferior to me."

"I've always been inferior to you," Nagisa said softly. Rei appeared to not have heard. "Let go, Rei-chan. I will follow you."

Rei let go and walked away to lead the way. Nagisa, true to his word, followed him faithfully like a dog on his heels. They walked through the rich hallways, constantly twisting and turning as if they were in a maze. Nagisa felt the floor slope beneath his feet and realized that they were heading underground as windows to the free outside disappeared.

Through the enclosed hallways with little light and increasing coldness, Nagisa willingly walked.

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"Heeey~! Rin! It's Rin, right? Long time no see!"

On the cobbled streets of town, Rin, who had been walking back to the tailor shop to apologize for his behavior yesterday (and possibly interrogate Sousuke for more information), was hailed by an all too happy-go-lucky voice that didn't sound like Nagisa's. As he turned around, he was nearly run over by a man who was just as big as Makoto, enthusiasm almost stronger than Nagisa's, and hair the color of peaches and eyes the color of lilacs.

"What the - Kisumi!"

"You recognized me? Thank goodness! I recognized you right away despite your weird teeth!"

"Dumbass!" Rin shoved him backwards and straightened his wrinkled clothes while taking in the appearance of his friend that he hadn't seen for such a long time. Shigino Kisumi wore a fresh white cotton shirt with black buttons and brown pants with matching suspenders. He had gotten a lot bigger since the last time Rin had seen him, which was almost more than seven years ago. Changing so much was natural, Rin supposed, though perhaps not maturation-wise. His burgundy eyes landed on the shining silver triangle earring on Kisumi's right ear. "If you greet me like that, you'll be in a hell lot of troubles with your masters!"

"As an old friend, should you say such cold things?" Kisumi complained. "Besides, my new masters treat me pretty well now. I'd say that I'm like a surrogate son!" he grinned easily at Rin, and it didn't at all seem forced. He couldn't help but smile a little himself at that.

So... Kisumi is doing well then? That's good...

"So what are you doing here? On an errand?"

"Something like that," Rin glanced down the street where he could see Yamazaki Tailor's. "I was going to go see Sousuke," he turned back around. "What about you? You going to visit your old master too?"

Kisumi laughed brightly and Rin had to marvel at his grit. Kisumi had been Sousuke's manservant and playmate when all of them were children. The bubbly, pink-haired Kisumi had been highly popular among the rest of the servants of the Yamazaki house, especially the maids. Due to unfortunate circumstances though, Kisumi and his younger brother Hayato, who was still an infant at the time, were forced to leave along with their parents. How or why, Rin didn't know the details. He hoped the fact that Sousuke couldn't stand Kisumi didn't have something to do with it.

"Sousuke kind of hates me, but he's still a friend so I do want to see him!"

Rin winced a little at the bluntness. Trust Kisumi to stare dislike in the face and treat it like nothing. "Uh, well, you can come with me then," they resumed walking in a comfortable silence. "So, how's Hayato?"

Kisumi grinned. "He's doing alright. I haven't seen him for a while, to be honest. We've been separated, though I try to keep in contact every so often."

"Really?" Rin's brow furrowed. "Is he okay...?"

"You're so nice, Rin," Kisumi slapped him heftily on the back and nearly toppled him over. "But don't worry. Hayato will be fine."

"Maybe he's as strong as an ape, like this brother," Rin muttered, straightening himself. "So what are your masters like now?"

"Oh, they treat me really well. It was only difficult for the first few years that were like a 'training' period, I guess," in a planned motion he rubbed his chin like an old wise man. "But now, I've climbed up to the near top of the hierarchy so I've been getting better treatment of late. It's really nice."

"Hierarchy? Like a servant hierarchy?" Rin frowned. "What do you mean, near the top? Are they promoting you to a butler position?"

"Oh, it's just something that my masters do. Don't worry about it so much," Kisumi waved an airy hand. "How's Makoto?"

"Makoto's doing pretty well, but as far as I know he's involved in some sort of shady shit right now - " Rin's voice died in his throat and he rounded on Kisumi like a shark circling in on its prey.

"What's the matter? That's a scary look in your eyes~"

"Kisumi," Rin growled. His voice rumbled from his chest and sounded like a ferocious beast. "You don't know Makoto."

"Yes I do."

"No you don't. I've never introduced you!"

"That doesn't mean that I don't know him. All slaves know each other, you know?" Kisumi grinned and fingered the silver triangle earring. "We met a long time ago and have been friends since then after all. Sometimes even more than friends," he waggled his eyebrows in a way that was supposed to be humorous, but at the moment to Rin it was only an annoyance.

"How long ago?"

"When we were ten?"

"That's when Makoto disappeared..." puzzle pieces started to align themselves in Rin's mind. "Kisumi."

"Yes, Rin?"

"Who are your masters?"

"Oh, Rin," a sly, fox-like smile wormed its way on Kisumi's mouth, his eyes narrowed with good cheer. "I thought you'd never ask."

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"These will serve as your quarters for the time being."

"Cool! A cell!"

Rei sighed as Nagisa cheerfully dove into the prison and then pressed his face against the bars with his tongue sticking out. "Nagisa-kun, most people do not refer to a cell as 'cool'."

"Well, I've never seen one!" Nagisa objected, still cheerful. His eyes took in the damp stone walls and dim lighting. "You shouldn't worry so much, Rei-chan. I'll be fine. It might be a bit cold but I'm young! I'm hotblooded!" to prove his point he jumped up and down and ran a lap around the cell, nearly tripping over the ruined mattress on the floor. "Ooops!" he gave a good-natured giggle. "My bad!"

"Nagisa-kun..." Rei sighed. Without further ado, he swung the door shut and locked it. The key he pocketed. "You will be fed three times per day and you may have water any time you wish. If you need to go to the washroom, please call for the guard on duty," he nodded towards the poor excuse for a bed. "And if you want, I will bring you blankets and pillows. There are plenty of extras, so don't hold yourself back."

"For a prison, the treatment is pretty nice!" the blonde remarked. The cell he was in was the very first in line, the directly in front of the main door. He leaned his face against the bars again and gazed at the empty cell diagonally across from him. "Are you expecting more people?"

"There is already a fair amount of people here," Rei pushed up his glasses. "The cells next to and diagonal to you are empty but will be filled up soon."

"With who? Haru-chan?"

"Yes. Makoto-senpai should be bringing two more people - " Rei suddenly gasped and clamped a hand over his own mouth. "Curses!" he muttered to himself. "I forgot!"

"Rei-chan?"

"Makoto?" came a voice from further down the hall of prison cells. "Did you say Makoto?" the voice was distinctly female. It was high in pitch and soft in tone.

"Miss?" Nagisa called out. He couldn't see the speaker but even so he squashed himself against the bars as hard as possible. "Do you know Mako-chan?"

"Mako-chan?" another woman's voice came, also from down the hall. This one was a little lower and mature sounding. "Hee hee hee... that's quite a cute name. Maybe I'll call him that when he comes to see me."

"Excuse me?" the first woman's voice snapped back. "You act like he'll come down here to see you?"

"Who says he won't?" challenged the second woman.

"I say," a third woman's voice, this one even higher pitched and strong on the ears. "If he comes to see anyone, it'll be me."

"Fool! He told me that he loves me! He's sure to come and visit me!"

"He loves me! He said that he'd support my dream of becoming a scholar even though I'm a woman!"

"For a scholar, you aren't that smart! Makoto-san said that he'd help me with my family's farm!"

"He said that loves me!"

"No, he told me that he loves me!"

Nagisa winced as the voices rose to a screaming pitch and Rei too had to cover his ears as the sounds echoed and reverberated off the stone walls. Nagisa counted the voices of at least six women, though he thought that there might have been more.

"Who are they?!" he shouted over the din.

Rei shouted back, "They are the women whom Makoto-senpai brought here for the sake of the grand event!"

"How many are there?!"

"About ten, including the men! The other two will bring it up to an even dozen!"

The voices eventually gave way to sulky muttering and even an insane laugh or two. When it was quiet enough, both boys lifted their hands from their ears. "Mako-chan's quite a smooth operator," Nagisa said in a hushed voice. "Those women are completely blind to what happened to them, aren't they?"

"It happens quite often when you fall in love," Rei ran a hand through his hair and gave an uncharacteristically rough sigh. "There's a reason to why they say it is blind."

Apparently their voices weren't low enough to escape the sharp ears of women trapped in darkness, figuratively and literally. Again the voices competed in a screaming match and Rei and Nagisa were forced to clamp down on their ears again.

"Shall I bring you some earplugs as well, Nagisa-kun?"

"That would be nice, Rei-chan."

"He loves me!"

"No, he loves me!"

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"Master Haruka."

"Mmm?" Haruka cracked a single blue eye open to meet an earnest green gaze. He had been on the verge of falling asleep with Makoto's arm as his pillow. "What?"

"I love you."

Haruka felt his breath catch in his throat as he felt warm lips to his forehead to accompany those three little words. How strange it was that such words suddenly became the center of his whole world. His life. His everything.

"Me too," he murmured back. "I love you too."

A kiss was shared under clear starry skies with nary a dark cloud in the sky.

You probably realized it, but they are in fact in the Iwatobi neighborhood with their houses from the original anime/novel. I thought it would be easier in comparison to completely making up a new place; Iwatobi has everything I need in it anyway.

So, uh, yeah. If I haven't established it yet, I'll you now: in this story, Makoto is a complete asshole.

BUT THE OVA THOUGH MAKOTO HAS SOME SERIOUS SPLIT-PERSONALITY GOING ON WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE CONFIDENT IN SHOOTING GAMES PUT THAT WATER GUN DOWN THIS INSTANT MY SON YOU'RE SCARING SOUSUKE.

Speaking of Sousuke, I'm starting to really ship him together with Gou.

That is all for now.