Episode 15

The Sun, The Beach, and the Host Club!

"Haruhi! Jin! Are you ready for the beach?"

The sisters looked up from their homework. Jin frowned a bit and scribbled one final answer down on her paper. Damn. Just as I was making headway...

"The beach? You guys were serious about that?

"Of course!" The twins smiled in mock innocence before parting to show off the plethora of swimsuits. How they'd managed to move all the mannequins into the room without the two girls noticing was beyond them. Jin gave the selection a once over before she smirked and looked back down at her opened book. All of the swimsuits, mostly bikinis if anyone cared to notice, were in Haruhi's size. Jin couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the fact that the twins were going to make sure they actually saw her little sister in a swimsuit.

That wasn't to say she was going to let them shove Haruhi into two bunches of yarn strung together in the barest form of actual clothing. Nope. Drawing a line, as it were. However, as she ran her gaze over the many different choices again, she deemed that most of them weren't leaning too close to the pervy side. Perhaps she'd let the twins have their fun. Just this once.

"Pick whichever one you like!" Jin noted how Haruhi hadn't even attempted to leave her seat and let her smirk widen a bit.

"What about this one, Haru-chan? It looks like our uniform!"

"No way, Honey-senpai. That one would only emphasize how Haruhi is about as flat as a cutting board."

Haruhi glanced behind at her sister, but Jin was only watching with amusement and offered a shrug.

Well? Aren't you going to help?

I'm not going to come to your rescue every time the boys do something... extravagant.

You're having fun with this, aren't you?

Her sister adopted a mock hurt face and shook her head side to side once, twice... then nodded with a smug smile, Little bit.

Haruhi stuck out her tongue before the redheads picked her up by the armpits and started steering her towards a pink… frilly… thing, "Nēchan…"

Jin sighed and stood up, "Alrighty boys, I think Haru has had enough. Why not let her chose-"

"But we selected this one already!"

"It's perfect!"

Whack!

A baseball bat came out of nowhere, bearing down on the twins, forcing them to release their grip on the girl between them in order to dodge the oncoming concussions. Haruhi quickly stumbled over to her sister as Tamaki began telling the redheads off and shoved her sister's arm. It barely made the taller girl shift, let alone wipe the stupid teasing look off of her face.

"Some rescue."

"Well, it was a good show. Besides, I'm sure it'll be my turn soon enough."

A pair of arms slid over her shoulders, and Jin found herself sandwiched between the Hitachiins, "Oh, no, Jin-senpai."

"You see, we've also carefully selected your swimsuit."

Their unison voice sounded even creepier when they whispered in her ear, "And it's going to be a surprise."

"...You know what? You're right, Nēchan. This is a good show."

"Shut up, Haru."

*Timeskip*

"I'm going to murder them."

"Oh come on, Nēchan, it looks good on you. A little too good I guess, but still."

Despite her sister's words, Jin couldn't help but stare in disgust at the mirror, "You're only saying that because you don't have to wear it."

Haruhi rubbed some more sunscreen into her arms as she looked her sister over again, "No, I mean it. And that top would probably look silly on me, so there'd be no reason for me to wear it in the first place."

Jin ignored Haruhi's chance at a joke, "That's because you're an A-cup while I've been cursed with freaking double D's." Jin tugged her bikini's right cup up once more, "I'm going to fall out of this freaking thing!"

Haruhi sighed but felt bad for her sister, knowing her insecurities better than anyone else, and went up behind her, "Here, I'll tighten the straps to keep it held up."

Jin sighed in relief, "Thanks, Haru."

As the younger sister tightened the right strap, then the left for good measure, she looked her sister up and down again. The twins had surprised the girls with their pick of Jin's swimsuit. For one, it was an actual bikini that showed off plenty of cleavage and almost hung lower than her hips. Jet black, no special accents, but just dead sexy looking. Which both grossed Haruhi out (the twins wanted her sister to look sexy? Eew!) and mortified her sister.

The bruise was still on her upper left arm, now a sickly yellow color instead of the dark purple it had been a week ago. It wasn't enough to offset the swimsuit, but still noticeable.

"Are you sure I can't murder them?"

"I am very sure. 96% sure. 95. Or, at least not in public."

Jin frowned, "Do you think I could, like, grab a cover or something?"

The girls looked around the changing room for anything that Jin could use to cover up, but it was pretty bare. Haruhi bit her lip.

"Maybe we can loan one from the girls? They're bound to have something."

Jin sighed, but nodded, "Okay. Let's head on out." The brunettes scooped up their school uniforms, stuffed them into the bag Jin's swimsuit had come in, and stepped out of the little tent-like changing room.

The boys were waiting, overlooking the steps leading down to the beach, already changed into their own swimsuits.

"But why couldn't we have gone to Fiji?"

"Or the Caribbean?"

"Do you think it's likely that Haruhi has a passport? I'm surprised her family was able to afford one for Jin."

"You do realize we can hear you, right?"

The six boys turned around, and their eyes instantly went to Jin's swimsuit.

"Hey, looking go-Ack!"

"JUST WHAT KIND OF SICK JOKE IS THIS? DRESSING HER LIKE THAT, HOW DO YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT? YOU PERVERTS!"

Honey bounced over to the girl, eyes wide, "Wow, Jin-chan! You look good!"

"Thanks, but I'd feel a lot more comfortable if I had a beach cover or something. Still…" Jin reached up and wiped at her forehead, casting her gaze down to the water, "it is rather hot today, and I suppose this thing should keep me cooled down enough to stay comfortable. I'm not sure how Haru can stand the t-shirt she's in."

Haruhi was fanning her face, sweat already soaking her collar, "Trust me, I'm not exactly loving it. Can we head down now? It might be cooler by the water."

"Yeah!" The twins cheered and danced away from Tamaki's continuing lecture, "Let's go!"

The eight hosts headed down the stairs, the twins and Honey leading, Tamaki not far behind and dragging Haruhi with him, followed by Mori, Jin, and Kyoya. The girls called out and waved from the beach as they watched their hosts head down to join them.

Jin tossed her turquoise and green beach towel over her left shoulder to fish through the bag she was carrying. She pulled out a pair of sunglasses and slipped them over her head, not needing them quite yet, before reaching back into her bag. After searching for a bit, and not finding whatever she was looking for, Jin scowled and held the bag closer to her face. Of course, afterwards she nearly tripped down the stairs.

Mori grabbed her arm to keep her upright while Kyoya held out a hand for her bag, "What are you looking for?"

The brunette sighed and handed her bag over, "My hairbrush. It should have a black ponytail holder around the handle too." Kyoya stuck his hand into the small bag and quickly pulled out the item.

"This?"

Jin nodded and took the brush, "Yeah. Thanks." She put the ponytail around her wrist, replaced her sunglasses onto her face, and began running the brush through her hair. Kyoya peeked into the bag yet again once the owner was busy, because unless he was mistaken Jin had packed something similar to a textbook along with a small handful of mechanical pencils… which confused him. Jin, while ahead in her studies, did not seem like the type of person to do her homework while vacationing.

But, not wanting to seem nosy, he stayed silent as she tossed the brush back into the bag and started braiding her hair. By the time the hosts reached the base of the stairs, Jin had her hair up in a French braid, which, combined with her sunglasses, bikini, and beach bag, made her look like she was a famous model preparing for paparazzi photos at the beach.

"Vol-ley-ball! Vol-ley-ball!" The twins chanted as they scooped up a beach ball and high-tailed it to a net that had been set up. Tamaki was quickly surrounded by a large group of girls, so Kyoya peeled away to regulate the situation. Mori and Honey had… disappeared somewhere, so Jin tapped her sister on her shoulder.

"How about we set up underneath that umbrella?"

"Perfect."

The two girls spread out their towels, Haruhi's towel matching her sister's except it was orange with a red stripe down the center, and situated themselves in the shade. Haruhi gauged her sister's new look.

"You look rich."

Jin flinched in mock hurt, "You wound me, Haru!"

They stared at each other for a second before breaking out in light laughter. Jin pressed her hands behind her to lean back a little and dropped her head back.

"Look, all joking aside, I'm glad we came here. It's a good beach day."

Haruhi turned her attention towards the water, but was soon distracted by the twins chasing after their beach ball down the shoreline, "Are you sure, Nēchan? You're not going to be able to do much…"

"Hey, it's fine! You don't like water parks, which I love, and I don't like the beach, which you love. Fair is fair! And it looks like the boys and guests are having a good time so far."

Haruhi rolled her eyes, "They only look that way because we're hosting."

"The boys or the girls?"

"Both." Her face fell into more of a scowl, "I thought coming to the beach meant we could take another day off…"

Jin shrugged and laid back on her towel completely, shutting her eyes in clear relaxation, "Hey, anything that keeps their attention off of us, right? Besides, Kyoya must've thought another day off wouldn't have gone over well with the clients."

Her sister unwound her arms from her knees and stared down at her sister, "You know, you and Kyoya-senpai have been getting along better lately. What happened?"

The tall girl shrugged, "I dunno. Maybe he realized I wasn't interested in picking fights? Or he finally decided to not be a di-"

"Um, Haruhi? Jin?"

Jin's eyes opened and she peered, upside down, at the three girls who had approached their umbrella, "Hey ladies! I love the swimsuits."

"Thanks!"

"We just wanted to know if you were going to go swimming?"

"We'd love to swim with you!"

Haruhi picked up the thread, "No thanks, girls. We were just going to sit out for the day. The water looks a little chilly." Her sister nodded, but was staring up at the umbrella instead of the girls now, grateful Haruhi had come to the beach with an excuse prepared.

"Well, then… could we sit and talk with you then?"

Identical cute smirks pulled at the Fujioka's faces, "Why would you want to do that?"

"Yeah, you ladies should go enjoy yourselves! Don't let us stick-in-the-mud's stop you from having fun."

"Like Nēchan said, your swimsuits are super cute, so you should definitely show them off!"

The three girls sighed in obvious admiration, little hearts floating above their heads. That is, until one of them seemed to snap out of it.

"Oh, I almost forgot to say it. Jin, I really like your swimsuit, too!"

"Yeah, it fits you really well!"

"I wish I could pull off something like that!"

Jin blinked, "Um... thanks! I wasn't too sure about it before, so your compliments mean a lot to me." Bright, shiny smile. The girls looked ready to melt into little puddles. Haruhi chuckled. Her sister was getting good at this.

She stood up, "I'm going to take a walk, alright Nēchan?"

"Alright, Haru. I'll find something entertaining to do, I guess." They shot each other little teasing looks before the shorter brunette took off. The three girls were quick to wander away as well, still cooing to each other about cute sibling love.

Jin, now alone, sat up and began digging through her bag. Now's probably the only time I'm going to have to myself…

"Hey! Jin-senpai!" Or not.

The brunette looked up to see the twins crouched by her feet, "Yeah?"

"We meant to ask you at the water park last week."

"What's with the anklet?"

"Hm? Oh! This old thing?" Jin stuck her right leg out to show off the braided brown string tied around the ankle. There were a few colorful fake stones dotting the string and a single book-shaped charm hung from the approximate center. It looked old and clumsily made, like a child had put it all together.

"I've had this anklet since I was 7. Haru made it for me at school, and I've worn it since. I don't think I've ever taken it off…" The girl smiled fondly at the string so the twins decided they should leave, bored, but their curiosity not quite spent.

Jin sighed before curling her leg back in again. Okay, maybe now I'll get some peace and quiet. She pulled out a purple mechanical pencil and her sketchpad and flipped to the first empty page she could find.

Most of her sketches were of people, Haru dominating a majority of the pages. Jin's style varied, but she mainly alternating between cartoons and completely realistic sketches. Some were shaded, very few actually colored, and occasionally she just dotted her pages with things like flowers or cute little animals. Jin tapped the eraser end against the blank page and looked around. A lot of the guests were playing in the water by themselves at the moment. Jin couldn't see her sister or the other hosts other than the twins. After some debate, she focused on them.

She liked to start with the face first, since that's usually a good place to start if you want to plan ahead on how big the head would be. As Jin sketched out Hikaru's nose, she smirked and contemplated playing around with her drawing to show off their 'big-heads', but in the end decided against it. This was her first time drawing a host. Best to keep to the basics.

About ten or fifteen minutes later, Jin had a pretty good outline of the Hitachiin twins on her page. There were no facial features besides their noses and eyebrows and the hair wasn't very detailed yet, but it was a very good start for the short amount of time she'd been working.

"It's a major haul!"

The brunette's head lifted at the sound of Haruhi's voice. Major haul? She stood and dropped her pencil back in her bag before following the sound of her sister's voice. Jin didn't really trust the twin's curiosity to leave her sketchbook alone should they spot it, whether in the bag or not, so she simply took it with her.

Soon enough, Jin was standing a little ways away as Haruhi shouted about the various shellfish she and Honey-senpai had found. The tall girl scrunched her face up in confusion. This doesn't seem like the kind of beach you'd find sea urchins on… or crabs... or clams... or anything Haru has in her pail... what?

"The shellfish were an apology from my family's police force." Jin jumped a bit as Kyoya spoke from behind her, but recovered quickly and turned around to face him.

"An apology?"

"For attacking you and your sister at the water park. They figured surprising your sister with a fun activity to take part in would be the best way to appeal to you."

"That was nice of them."

Kyoya glanced down at the pad of paper in her arms, recognizing the cover, "What is that? A textbook?"

"What? No, it's for my drawings. A sketchbook." Her face turned doubtful, "You have seen a sketchbook before, right?"

"Of course I have," Kyoya held out a hand, "May I?"

The girl handed it over, "Sure. I'm not quite done with the last one though." As soon as she said that, Kyoya quickly flipped to the final drawing and stared at it for a few moments.

"This is a drawing of Hikaru and Kaoru?"

"Yeah."

The boy nodded before flipping backwards in the sketchbook, pausing every so often to look over the drawings in detail. It wasn't until he got more than halfway back to the front that he spoke at all.

"These are all... quite amazing! I'm impressed! Did you draw each of these freehanded? You have incredible skill!" Jin blinked and managed a quick nod, rendered speechless at the sudden onslaught of compliments. Sure, she'd received an award or two and her family found her sketches impressive, but having Kyoya compliment her so sincerely... it felt different. Something strange seemed to be fluttering in her chest as Kyoya flipped through the rest of the book.

"Would you allow me to sell your drawings of the hosts to our clients?"

The fluttering stopped.

Jin smiled and shook her head slightly, "I stand by what I said on Saturday. You are a workaholic." Before Kyoya could respond, she waved a hand in front of her face, "That's not a 'No', by the way. I'd be completely fine with you selling my drawings. However, I don't do copies and I don't work under a time frame."

The boy smirked, "Completely original drawings. For some reason, I believe that will work just fine."

"Cen-"

"-ti-"

"-pede!"

Before the two could react, all of the girls and even the twins were running as fast as they could from Tamaki and Haruhi. Jin was nearly knocked over in the process, barely managing to grab Kyoya's arm before she was sent down. Once everyone had fled and Haruhi was in the process of getting rid of the bug, Kyoya helped the girl stand back up, which is mildly difficult when you have a sketchbook in one hand and a girl dangling off your other arm.

Kyoya winced as she let go of his arm, quickly handing back her sketchbook so he could rub at it, "You know, next time that happens, would you mind not grabbing my arm so hard you bruise me?"

The brunette huffed a light laugh, "Sorry. I didn't realize how fragile you were, Glasses." Her teasing smile was then replaced by one a little more sincere, "But seriously, I'm sorry about that."

Kyoya didn't respond. Did she just call me… 'Glasses'?

"Hey, Boss, listen up! We just thought up a new game to play while we're here!"

Jin's smile vanished and she looked at the twins from over her shoulder, "I don't think I like the sound of that…"

"It's called the 'Who Can Find Out Haruhi's Weakness' Game!"

"Yup, don't like it." Ignoring her, Kyoya walked closer to the three boys, as did Mori and Honey, all looking somewhat interested. Jin felt her jaw drop a little in disbelief. They were really going to play this game? Were they kidding?

"Eh? T-that game sounds terrible!"

Jin sighed. Finally, Tamaki proves he's not a-

"Eh, I guess you're right."

"Besides, she'd probably only share her weakness with someone she was really close too. Jin is probably the only person who knows it or will ever know!"

Jin closed her eyes in a suffering kind of look. I really hate them sometimes. She glared at the group as the redheads set the rules down. Sunset was the deadline. Winner was whoever found out first and got confirmation from either Haruhi or Jin. Not a single rule about being safe or not triggering any accidental heart attacks, Jin noted with a frown.

"And I have the perfect prize for the game's lucky winner." Kyoya smiled deviously as he revealed three photos of Haruhi in her younger years. There was even a volleyball shot. He'd had a feeling that these photos would come in handy at some point. And judging by how Tamaki was following the photographs with his face, his gut feeling had been right.

Except… the other boys are glancing behind him with worried expressions. And he recalled just who had been standing behind him this whole time, listening to the conversation.

Slowly, Kyoya turned around to face Jin. To say that she looked angry with him would be an understatement. She was glaring daggers, arms at her side and her free hand clenched in a fist. There was a green aura flaring up around her, threatening to consume everything in its path.

Kyoya nearly took a step back.

"Where did you get those photos and why did you have them in the first place?"

Let it never be said that Kyoya Ootori lost his nerve around pretty girls who looked ready to drop-kick him into next week, because his voice was completely steady as he replied, "That's of no consequence."

"We'll see about that."

And she stalked away towards her sister.

The twins groaned, "Aww! Now she's going to spoil our game!"

"No, she won't…" Kyoya's eyes narrowed as he regarded the siblings, "Jin isn't like her sister. She disapproves of the photos and of the game… but she won't interfere unless someone is going to get hurt, like how she didn't call the twin's bluff when they pretended to fight. In the meantime, however…"

The ravenet held up three photos of Jin, flashing them at the other boys over his shoulder. In the first one she looked to be a little younger than ten and was smiling up at the camera, some cookie batter on her cheek and her long hair up in pigtails. The second photo was from when she was a little older. She was curled up in a chair with a pillow and blanket, her nose buried in a book with a pair of black glasses perched on her nose. And the third one showed her older still, without glasses, and painting on a canvas. It looked like she was painting a field of flowers, but she was smiling at the camera again so they could see the blue paint splattered on her cheek and the green across her forehead like someone had painted on her.

"Whoever discovers Jin's fear, will receive these photos." Kyoya smirked and tucked Jin's photos into his shirt pocket, along with Haruhi's, and smiled, "If everyone is satisfied with the rules and the prizes… I suggest we get started."

*\/*

"This is the place. The most haunted spot in Okinawa." Jin and Haruhi shared dubious looks before following the twins into the large cave. "They say that the only time you can even find this cave is at low tide, and anyone who doesn't make it out before the tide comes back in drowns, doomed to haunt this dwelling for the rest of eternity."

The two guests who'd come with them were shaking in fright, so Jin gently touched their shoulders, "Hey, I doubt any ghosts would be interesting in hurting us. If there were any, they'd probably be just as scared as we are." She sighs and looks around the cave, "It's a little sad if you think about it. I'd want to help them… if I could."

Thankfully, that did the trick. The girls calmed down and looked around the cavern, "Do you… do you really think that's all ghosts are?"

"Frightened souls? Yeah. Just people who got lost along the way..."

The redheads frowned at each other. Guess Jin was out. Kaoru grabbed the fake skeleton hand he'd hidden a while ago and snuck up behind Haruhi. He inched forward… then grabbed the short girl's shoulder.

Haruhi didn't even flinch. She looked down behind her, "What the… are you guys trying to freak us out or something?"

Kaoru couldn't even speak. What's with these girls?

Jin chuckles and starts leading the clients out, "It's alright now, ladies. No one is haunting this cave except for a pair of teenage boys." The two girls giggled, now thoroughly amused. The twins groaned as Haruhi followed the others out.

Paranormal fear strategy… failed.

"Haru-chan! Jin-chan! Come check this out!"

Jin looked up over the small rock pile where Honey-senpai was waving down at them, "I'll be there in a second!" She turned back to the guests, "Are you sure you two are okay?"

"Yeah."

"We're fine. Go see what Honey wants."

The brunette nodded with a smile, "Alright. You two go back to the beach now."

As the girls walked along the shoreline, Jin and Haruhi climbed up the rock pile. Or, more like Haruhi was the one climbing. Jin sort of bounded up, rock by rock. She and Honey had to wait a full minute at the top rock for Haruhi to reach them.

"I swear... you must have studied with mountain goats while at the Dojo."

"No. You're just slow."

"Shut up, Nēchan. What did you want to show us, Honey-senpai?"

The small boy smiled up at them before turning around and heading down the other side of hill, "This way!" Not really given much choice, the two girls followed the blond down the hill and a little further down the beach. In the end, they came across… Kyoya's police force?

"Uh… Honey-"

"Come on up, you guys!" Honey was now in the back of the big truck, gesturing for them to join him. Jin cast a glance at the group of officers watching.

"Is it really okay for us to use the truck?"

"Yes, Worthy Matron Fujioka!"

Jin shrugged, "Okay then, I'll bite." She climbed up into the bed of the truck and helped her sister inside. The second they were standing upright, Honey addressed the squad.

"Please lower the door, Private Police People!"

The group shouted in response, "Yes, sir!"

The back door shut with a snap, throwing the three into complete darkness. Jin frowned, her suspicions now confirmed. There are probably a million and one ways for this game to turn sour. Thank goodness Haru is hard to scare. The tall brunette blinked a bit, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness as a shiver ran down her bare spine. Me… a little less so… but still, I doubt they're going to discover our phobias by tonight. Anyways, back to the problem at hand, exactly how long are we going to be in this truck-

"IT'S DARK AND SCARY IN HERE I CAN'T BREATHE SOMEBODY GET ME OUT OF HERE I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!"

"H-Honey-senpai!"

"Calm down!"

"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

Claustrophobia attack strategy…. Failed.

Once the three were back in the light and Honey finally released his death-grip on Jin's leg, the sisters walked back up the beach…

Only to be stopped by a harpoon pointed at Haruhi's face. Her eyes got really big really fast, but then she noticed who was holding the weapon.

"Mori? Um… you're my senpai. Not a sentai."

Jin's lips twitched at the play on words before the harpoon was shifted to point at her. An action to which she responded by shooting the tall boy a look. Really? You've known me for how long and you think I might be afraid of a sharp object? Mori let the harpoon tip point towards the ground, looking disappointed.

Fear of sharp objects strategy… Failed.

Jin looped an arm around her sister's shoulder and steered her away, "So, Haru, what do you want to do now? The sun's starting to set… anything in mind?"

Haruhi saw a bucket and shovel still by their towels and umbrella, so she ran over to scoop them up, "I think I'll go hunting for more shellfish for dinner."

Her sister smiled a bit, "Alright. Any that have escaped your earlier hunt are probably hanging out in the shallows right about now."

The shorter girl frowned slightly, "Oh… right. Well, what are you going to do?" Jin shrugged and placed her hands on her hips, looking down the beach. Just a little ways away was a large pile of rocks, jutting out a little over the water.

"Maybe a little rock climbing. I'm sure the sunset would look even prettier from higher up."

Haruhi followed her sister's gaze before nodding in approval, "How about I hunt somewhere near there? Then we can keep an eye on each other?"

Jin smiled and tossed the sunglasses that were still perched atop her head onto her beach towel, "Sounds great. Make sure to get some more sea urchins for me, okay?" She ruffled Haruhi's hair before the two continued walking, Haruhi sometimes drifting towards the shallows to kick up a spray of water. Whenever she did so, Jin risked a glance up and down the beach. It looks like the boys have given up. Maybe they're bored? No… wait. Tamaki hasn't tried anything yet. Neither has Kyoya. But… I can't see either of them around. Where are they?

Jin's thoughts were put on hold when the two reached the rock pile. She shook away her thoughts and started climbing up the side, skipping the little worn down path just because she could. A few handholds later, and Jin found herself on a little outcropping. It wasn't all that big, and she was maybe another ten seconds from the very top, but she decided this was high enough for now.

Gently sitting down so her feet dangled over the side, Jin looked to the right and saw Haruhi picking up a clam from between her feet. She hummed contently before looking out to the horizon.

Well… I may not like the beach all that much, but this is still an awesome view. The sun was setting even lower now, painting the waves orange and white before they crashed onto the rock below her. That, plus the gentle breeze that sent the smell of salt over her created a calming scene… even if Jin still felt slightly uncomfortable.

"Hey, Jin! Up here!" Jin tilted her head back and saw three clients waving at her from the top, "We saw you climbing up, and thought it looked like a lot of fun!"

"Really? Glad you like it, but please be careful!"

"We will! Do you want to join us up here? The view's amazing this high up!"

Jin nodded, "Sure! Give me a minute." She reached behind her and gripped the rock wall tightly before pulling her legs back over the edge. Carefully she stood back up and turned to face the wall, securing her first grip to start her upward climb.

"Hey, there are chicks up there, man!"

Jin froze, her eyes widening as a gruff voice fell from the top of the cliff.

"Aren't we lucky? You girls wanna hang with a couple of locals?" Quickly, Jin began climbing up the rock face. The guy's slurred speech could only mean one thing, which meant the girls were in danger.

In about seven seconds, Jin was hauling herself over the side of the cliff and planting herself between the girls and the "locals". Leveling her coldest glare at them, she snarls, "This is a private beach. Please leave immediately and we won't call the police."

The long haired boy tossed aside his empty beer can and eyed the top of her swimsuit, "Private beach you say? So does that mean we're all alone, Doll?"

"Come on…" the other boy moved forward and attempted to grab her wrist, "We just wanna show you girls a good-"

Jin grabbed the boy's wrist and squeezed, cutting him off with his own shout of pain, "No thank you. Like I said, you should probably leave if you know what's good for you." Watching the boy drop to his knees in pain made guilt swish around in her stomach, but if she had to use her scary face to get these drunks to leave, then so be it.

"Nēchan!" The six looked at the path just in time to watch Haruhi empty her newly filled bucket of sea creatures on the other boy. "How about you boys quite bothering them? You're not allowed to be here, weren't you listening?" Jin dropped the boy's wrist and ran to try and pull her sister to safety behind her.

"Haruhi, no! Why didn't you go get the others?!"

"Jin!"

The brunette spun around. The boy she'd just released had grabbed one of the girls by her waist. She growled, but couldn't even take a step before Haruhi was crying out for her as well. Jin twisted her head back around and saw Haruhi being held by her wrists. Only now did her sister seem to understand the danger she was in. Jin had to think fast. She grabbed one of the girls and pushed her towards the path leading down the other side of the hill.

"Go! Get the hosts!"

She took off running and Jin turned back towards the others. Haruhi was grappling with the boy who now had her shirt in his hands, but the other girls were just crying out, trying to hide their chests from the boy with grabby hands.

She focused on him first.

Jin pressed her palms to the girl's shoulders, the ones that were touching each other, and pushed them apart. The hoodie-boy looked confused for a split second before the brunette's head shot forward and knocked into his. He dropped to his knees in a daze while a few stars danced across Jin's vision. She pulled the two girls away from the boy and started pushing them towards the trail when one of them pointed over her shoulder.

"Jin! Help Haruhi!"

Her sister was now being held closer to the edge of the cliff, the water crashing below her. Jin's head was still aching from her little stunt, but she jogged across the rock, reaching out, "Haruhi!"

"I hope you can swim!"

It was like she was watching it in slow motion. The boy released his grip on Haruhi's shirt and shoved her backwards. The girls locked eyes for a brief moment before Haru was was gone over the edge.

"Haruhi!" Jin grabbed the boy's shirt collar and ripped him away from the edge, simultaneously choking him a bit. She bent her knees, ready to dive in after her sister's shrinking form…

But didn't move. It was like some solid metal anchor was keeping her feet pinned down. It didn't matter that Haruhi was currently falling into the ocean, where she could be knocked out or even killed from this height… Jin couldn't force herself to move.

"Haruhi!"

A blond blur passed Jin's right side as Tamaki dove over the edge of the cliff.

But Jin could do nothing but stare as Haruhi screamed until she hit the water.

Her hands shook. Bitter disappointment and rage bubbled up inside her chest, tainting her vision red. A cruel, mocking voice echoed in her head, Some Guardian Angel. You're supposed to protect her! If you can't even brave the ocean, then what use are you as a sister?

"Jin!"

The brunette spun around and saw the two local boys slowly recovering from her headbutt and the accidental choking.

Her vision tunneled. Charging forward, Jin nails the long-haired boy in the nose with her elbow. As his head jerks back, she spins around to kick him in the chest, knocking the wind out of him and sending him flying.

The second boy seems to be smarter, because he tried to run. Jin catches up to him easily, as he was still slightly dazed after the beer and headbutt combination. She fists her left hand in his shirt and pulls him backwards. He spins around, probably to try and fight her off, but she sends her right fist straight into his nose. He face plants the ground in a knockout.

The other boy groaned in pain from across the rock but didn't seem like he was getting up anytime soon, so Jin faced the girls.

"You okay?" They nodded, staring at her in admiration. "Good… back to the beach, then. The police will get them."

*Third Person P.O.V.*

Unknown to the three girls, there was another boy peeking out at them from behind the rocks. He clenched his hand around his empty beer bottle and eyed the really hot chick in the black bikini. Normally, he'd be all over her and her pretty... everything. She was just his type.

But he couldn't think about that. He'd just witnessed that little bitch take down his two best buddies without so much of a fight! Pissed off didn't even come close to how he felt.

As the girls slowly made their way down to the beach, he looked down at his empty bottle and formed a really bad idea. Sure, if he'd been sober, he might've stopped and thought about it a little more. Probably let everything go and focus instead on helping his friends recover from their wounded pride and facial injuries. But, unfortunately, he was drunk.

And so he put his "plan" in motion.

*\/*

Jin was silent as the three made it to the bottom of the hill. The whole way down she'd heard nothing but praise and thank-you's and questions about Haruhi's health. She nodded and shrugged with her responses, but all she could think about was Haruhi. Why she'd gone up to face the boys. And Jin's utter failure in protecting her.

"Jin, look!"

The brunette looked up from the sand and saw three familiar looking forms running towards them. It looked to be Hikaru, Kaoru, and Kyoya. She raised a hand to wave just as something hard cracked against her skull. A high-pitched scream ripped out of her throat as she heard the sound of shattering glass and felt something cut into her head. Pain exploded in her mind and she reacted without thinking.

Before the two girls were even finished screaming in surprise, Jin spun around and knocked the boy down with a roundhouse kick. The remaining bottle tumbled out of his grasp as he hit the sand, unconscious.

She panted, the pain in her head growing into a substantial headache. Reaching up, she tenderly ran her fingers through her hair to pull out any large glass bits. There weren't any, probably because she'd braided it so tightly. But... she felt something wet and sticky in her hair.

Beer?

She pulled her fingertips away red.

Nope.

Jin stumbled as the girls screamed in terror. From behind her, two arms wrapped around her chest just before her legs crumbled beneath her. Slowly her body was eased downwards until her legs were stretched out in the sand, her upper body leaning backwards against someone's chest. Long fingers tenderly cupped the pain filled side of her head as a deep voice next to her ear barked out an order to… subdue? Some canoe? The glue? The ringing in her ear was too loud to really hear him correctly.

Her vision darkened and Jin was barely aware that it was because her eyelids were closing. The same voice spoke again, softer this time. It said her name. Something about… staying awake. Yeah... there it was again. Stay awake. Jin, stay awake.

That's right. I have to stay awake. Haru is scared… she doesn't like it when I fall asleep before her when she's scared.

Haru…

Haruhi!

Jin forced her eyes open and grabbed one of the arms around her. Kyoya's face swum in front of her eyes, looking very concerned for once.

"Jin?"

She struggled to make her mouth form the right words, "Haruhi… safe?"

"Yes."

Jin nodded once before her head fell forward and the world dissolved.

*Kyoya's P.O.V.*

"Haruhi… safe?"

"Yes."

The girl nodded before her eyes shut and her head lolled forward. A foreign feeling filled my chest, making it tighten. Was this… panic? I re-secured my left arm's grip around her waist and looped my right arm under her knees, standing up with her in a bridal carry. The two clients, Asa Himura and Midori Kato if memory served correctly, were staring at Jin's limp body in horror.

I stare at them, "Run to my family's villa on the hill! Tell any staff you find to call for a doctor! You'll be escorted to your hotel afterwards!"

They nodded frantically and took off, leaving me behind to carry the girl. I adjusted my grip a little more and noticed a small trickle of blood starting to drip down the right side of her face. Her hair was all but soaked with it, making her head stick to my shoulder, and my left hand was coated with it. I felt sick. And I'd felt even worse when I lied to her about her sister's condition. I didn't know anything about where Haruhi was, or why Jin didn't think she was safe, but I had to say something.

"Assailant subdued, sir!"

The twins had finished tying the boy up with a piece of rope I don't recall them having a moment ago. They were staring hungrily at him still, like they wanted to pay back the favor for him making Jin bleed.

"Good, my police force will collect him later." That was all I said before the three of us hurried back towards the center of the private beach, where the stairs that lead to my family's villa were. My heart pounded, and I was sure the 1st years beside me felt the same. The girl in my arms could be bleeding out for all we knew, and the knowledge that her attacker would be charged with assault and battery on top of trespassing was very a poor substitute. It didn't help that I couldn't run very fast with the heavy girl in my arms. My muscles strained in ways I didn't know they could, but I refused to slow down.

That being said, it took us almost two minutes to reach Mori and Honey-senpai. They were standing by the water with a drenched Tamaki and Haruhi. Despite Jin's condition, I felt some relief knowing at least that I hadn't lied to her about her sister.

We drew closer and I heard Tamaki shouting at the small girl about something. Honey interrupted him once he saw us, seeing his old friend in my arms and shouting her name in cautious panic. The other three hosts turned in our direction soon after.

They saw Jin.

Haruhi's face changed from annoyance to fear in an instant, "Nēchan? Nēchan?!"

"There should be a doctor either standing by at the house or on his way," I handed the hurt girl to Mori who quickly scooped her up securely in his arms. For a second he simply stared at his childhood friend, worry flooding his face. As strange as it was to see Mori-senpai showing any sort of emotion, we didn't have the time for him to absorb the situation. I grabbed his forearm to make him look at me.

"You're stronger and faster than I am! Go!" The tall boy clenched his jaw and nodded in abrupt understanding before racing up the sand, the six of us right behind them.

*Timeskip*

I sat very still in the plush chair, not feeling any of its comfort. In front of me was a hospital bed. White sheets, beeping monitors, the works. Jin Fujioka was laying on her back in the center of it, white bandages wrapped around her head and a few wires connected here and there along her body.

My mouth felt uncomfortably dry as I watched her. It was too quiet in the room, despite the irritating beeps from the machines. The others were somewhere else in the villa, each of them having left at one point or another. While I'd been explaining to the others what had happened, Haruhi had burst into tears and needed to be escorted down the hallway by the twins. That lead to Honey-senpai walking away without a word, which took Mori-senpai with him. Tamaki was obviously still troubled by his fight with Haruhi and left soon after them.

I had to stay behind, by myself. After all, someone needed to explain to Jin what had happened once she woke up. Dr. Nakahara had assured us that she probably wouldn't wake up for a few hours, but even so…if she woke up sooner I didn't want to leave her alone in this strange room where she might try to stand up and hurt herself further.

My eyes dipped to look at my left arm. I had changed out of my white t-shirt and washed my hands between explaining the accident and the doctor finishing up with Jin's bandages, but it was like I could still see the blood stains. My left hand looked darker in color than my right one. The sick feeling in my stomach returned with a vengeance. I've never seen someone I know that injured before, bleeding and passed out, let alone touched them. And she just looks so pale.

"Hey, Glasses." My head jerked up with a start.

Jin was watching me with a small smile, "You gonna tell me where I am?"

For a moment I couldn't speak. It felt like a wave of relief had just washed over my entire body, so I simply relished in the calming feeling. She was awake.

The moment passed and I remembered she'd asked a question, "You're in my family's Villa's emergency medical clinic. Dr. Nakahara just left, but he says you'll be fine. The cuts on your head didn't require any stitching and you should be fully healed in less than a week."

Jin hums in amusement, "Emergency medical clinic. You guys have an arcade in here too?"

She made a move as to sit up and I jumped from my seat, lightly grabbing her arms to keep her from moving more, "Don't over-exert yourself!" Jin stared at me, determination in her eyes.

"Will you help me sit up, then?"

I sighed and nodded, releasing her in order to pile her pillows up around her back and sides, "Really, what use is wrapping bandages around your head if you're just going to accidentally pull them off? Do you know how the rest of the club would react if you hurt yourself further?"

Jin sighed and dropped her head lightly onto my right shoulder. I paused before dismissing it. She was probably exhausted and I did just tell her not to move.

"Let me guess. Honey cries. Tamaki blames the twins. Haru freaks out. And you get a headache, right?"

I couldn't help but chuckle softly and continue adjusting the pillows around her, "Correct."

Quickly finishing with the pillows, I pulled away and helped her lean back against them. She was now sitting upright, but still reclined backwards a bit.

"Thanks, Kyoya." She spared me a soft smile of gratitude before pointing at her head, "So, what's the damage?"

A quick decision made me sit down on her bed, near her knees, "In a word, you were lucky. Your assailant hit you hard enough to break the bottle, but despite knocking you out there wasn't much damage where the broken glass was concerned. Most likely due to how intoxicated he was at the time and your french braid. You simply have a few minor cuts. You will have to apply some anti-bacterial spray twice a day for the next week, you are not to stand for too long or participate in any strenuous activity or you risk blacking out again for that same time frame. And Dr. Nakahara had to completely shave the back of your head to tend to your wounds."

Jin's eyes widened so fast it was comical, nearly flying out of her bed, "WhAT?!"

I struggled to keep a blank face while she panicked, but not even a few seconds later the girl scowled at me, leaning back into her pillows, "I suppose you think you're some comedic genius?"

I smirked, "Quite. Your face was priceless."

My classmate grabbed the pillow that I'd stuffed by her left side and swatted me with it, "Since when did you stop acting like a stuck-up prick?"

"Unclear. Perhaps I'm just tired. Or relieved."

Jin hit me lightly a few more times before she grew tired and leaned back again, a smile playing on her lips, "You're a jerk, Kyoya Ootori."

I shake my head. Her words of endearment were something to get used too. I stood up again, ready to leave her and tell the others that she was awake, but stopped. A question revisited me. Actually, two did, but I was thinking of one that was far more important.

Jin noticed.

"Kyo-"

"Why did you confront them by yourself?"

The following silence stretched between the two of us for a long time. Jin held my gaze, and I wasn't about to back down either. A strange anger was now taking over. Jin didn't look like she was looking forward to answering my question, but I needed one. I needed to hear her reasoning for being so… so… calm about this entire situation.

"I confronted them because there was no one else nearby who could have. I knew I could fight them off and I wasn't just going to stand by and watch and wait for reinforcements."

My anger grew and began spilling over the edge, "You might be an honorary Haninozuka, but clearly you were not prepared for this, so why?!"

As I continued to glare at the girl, I noticed that the rage I felt at this moment wasn't at the inconvenience of the flower baskets or even at the knowledge that a handful of damn locals (I'd been informed recently that there had been more than one) could enter my family's private beach while drunk. No, the reason I was so furious was because this girl, whom I was beginning to grow comfortable with enough for verbal banter, was dumb enough to put herself in so much danger that she ended up on a hospital bed! It didn't even look like she cared!

Jin looked like she was growing upset herself, leaning forward and practically spitting out her words, "I handled the two boys I was facing just fine, thank you very much! And in case you didn't notice, I did send one of the girls down to you guys for help! If things had happened like I'd planned, I might not have even needed to lift a finger against those idiots!"

"But they didn't!"

Jin snapped her jaw shut and looked down at her hands, suddenly subdued, "Haruhi… she came up. I tried to protect her, told her to turn the other way and get you boys for help, but she was too far away. And she wouldn't listen to me. I couldn't protect her and the girls at the same time and..."

I sat on her bed suddenly, surprise making my legs feel a little weak, "So...are you blaming… Haruhi for your injury?" The mere thought of that accusation coming from Jin was mind-blowing, let alone the fact that she'd just called her sister by her full name instead of 'Haru'.

"No!" Jin looked back up quickly, which probably made her head ache, "She didn't mean to get me or anyone else hurt and she just wanted to help! Besides," she tangled her fingers together in her lap, "I do take a lot of the blame for why she did it." Now I was beyond confused.

"Why? With the way you two behave I would've assumed that she'd go for help once she knew you were protecting the guests."

Jin sighed and tucked her feet up until she was sitting in the butterfly position under the covers, "I… I left her alone last year. It was hard, for the both of us, to go from having a constant companion to being all alone after all these years. I handled it better than her because it was me who did the leaving and I have a few more "life-experiences" than her. But Haru...she thinks she can handle everything on her own now, even when she can't. I won't always be around but I won't always be far away either… and I wish she knew that."

There was silence after her explanation. I didn't know exactly what to think of it. So, Haruhi was the one who was really at fault here, and Jin knew it. I was still upset at Jin for some reason, one I couldn't quite place yet, so I made to stand up. Perhaps some fresh air would clear up my thoughts.

"I'm sorry."

"Hm?"

"For making you all worry," Jin lifted her left hand, pulled back a little, before reaching forward to lightly rest her fingers on the back of my hand, "I didn't mean to do that, and I feel bad." Her fingers wrapped around mine and gave them a light squeeze. I looked down at where she was touching me. Normally, physical contact isn't exactly my favorite thing in the world, but this time it felt nice. Reassuring, even. Like she was proving that she was here, and awake, and well. The Nurturing Type at her best...

I spared her a small quirk of the lips, "You didn't do anything. It was the boy who hurt you that made us worry about anything at all… but apology accepted." I went to pull away again, but she tugged on my hand before I could.

"Kyoya?"

"Yes?"

"Is Haru really okay?"

Well. It looks like she's back to normal.

I stood up, giving her hand an experimental squeeze and a smirk, "You can see for yourself at dinner."

Jin smiled and leaned back in her bed, letting go of my hand and taking the warmth with her, "Okay."

*No One's P.O.V.*

Well, this looks like the place.

Jin checked the small, impromptu map in her hand that Kyoya had left with her before leaving. If she'd followed all of his directions correctly, then this should be the dining room. A sharp pain stabbed above her right eye and she let out a quick breath, pressing her hand against the wood. She turned her head and stared out the window, the darkness doing wonders for the pain.

Only… it looked like a storm was rolling in. She hadn't done any weather checks before coming, so she hoped it wouldn't be a thunderstorm. Hopefully just a small rain shower. That would be nice, especially after how this day went.

Once the headache passed, she straightened back up and decided to just go for it. Pushing the doors open, Jin looked in and saw the rest of the host club. They seemed to be admiring her sister, who was in a pink dress. Jin smiled.

"Well, at least I wasn't the only one." The others turned at Jin's voice and their faces lit up.

"Jin-chan!"

"Wow, Jin! Nice dress!"

"Nēchan!"

Haruhi leaped forward and hugged her sister tightly, a few spare tears leaking out in relief, because there was a big difference between hearing your sister was okay, and seeing it.

Jin squeezed Haruhi's shoulders quickly before pulling away, "Sorry, Haru… but I get light headed easily with this thing." She gestured up to her bandaged head before bringing her hands back down to rest on her sister's shoulders. "We have a few things to talk about later, but for now, how about we eat some dinner?" Haruhi didn't really like the sound of this promised discussion, but she smiled anyways.

"Alright, Nēchan. And I like your dress, by the way." Jin cast another look down at her outfit. Her father must've snuck the dark blue evening dress into her suitcase without her knowing about it… which was sort of impressive on his part.

"Jin-chan, are you going to be okay?"

The tall girl smiled at her friend, "Yes, I will be. And I'm sorry you guys, for making you worry about me."

Honey hurried over and hugged Jin around her waist, "It's okay, Jin-chan! We forgive you!"

"Yeah, it was all that idiot boy's fault anyways!"

"We're just happy you're safe!"

"Mmm."

"Yeah. I'm glad you're safe, too."

Jin pulled away from the multiple hugs and spotted Tamaki sulking behind a column. She noted how Haruhi wasn't looking at the blond either, so she had a feeling they'd had an argument of some kind. Haru wouldn't meet her eyes, so she couldn't find out that way either. The boys were looking at her sister expectantly, but Haruhi didn't seem like she was about to speak again.

The dinner that followed was, if possible, even more awkward and uncomfortable. Jin's mouth was salivating at the thought of crab-legs and sea-urchin, one of her favorite meals, but the tension made it hard to enjoy it or strike up a conversation. And Haruhi stuffing her face with any shell she could get her hands on was not helping in the slightest.

Jin cast a nervous gaze at her sister. Is she trying to make herself sick? It wasn't like she could ignore the strange behavior either. She was sitting directly across from her sister, probably because her seat was the closest to the bathroom should her head injury make her nauseous or something, and the person beside her was one of the few who could lead her to said bathroom.

Everyone else was uncomfortable as well. Before they'd all dug in, Kyoya had been scribbling nonsense sentences in his journal, just to look like he was doing something. Honey was fidgeting in his seat. The twins were silent for once. Tamaki was flinching every time Haruhi cast aside an empty shell. Jin rolled these actions in her mind for most of dinner before something clicked.

Does Haruhi… not realize she should've gone for help? A sick twist in her stomach made her set down her crab. Or perhaps that was from Haruhi finishing up her twenty-seventh crab leg.

"Don't you think you've had enough? Give it a rest!" Tamaki weakly tried to point out.

"Excuse me?" Jin buried her head in her hands as Haruhi continued to stuff her face, "I thought that you weren't speaking to me."

One more snap of a leg and Tamaki had had enough. He roughly pushed his chair back and stood up, "Fine. Be a child. Kyoya, would you mind showing me to my room?"

The ravenet to Jin's left patted his lips with his cloth napkin, "Very well. Excuse me, everyone." The two boys walked silently out of the room. The doors banged shut and Haruhi's head dropped.

"Maybe he's right… I should learn how to protect myself."

The remaining five teenagers at the table relaxed into their chairs, "So he finally got to you, huh?"

"Yeah… I guess so." The shorter girl peeked up across the table, "Nēchan, maybe you could give me some lessons?"

Jin poked at the small pile of empty crabs on her plate, "I suppose I wouldn't mind… but that's not really the point, Haruhi." At that word, Haruhi felt something akin to being punched in the gut and swiftly looked back down at the tabletop, fiddling with the corner of her napkin. Nēchan said my full name. Did I really mess up that badly?

"To be honest, we were all worried about how recklessly you acted."

"The boss and your sister especially. Jin-senpai even refused to black out until Kyoya-senpai told her you were okay."

Haruhi gasped softly, "But… I didn't cause you any trouble."

"Haru-chan, you fell off a cliff. Jin-chan might have gotten hit in the head with a glass bottle, but that was a fluke and she's also trained in martial arts. We were all worried about you… because you went up even though you could've gotten really hurt. I think you should just apologize, kay?"

Haruhi blinked, "You guys… were worried about me?" She looked back over the table, "Nēchan?"

Jin sighed and looked her sister in the eyes, "Haruhi, you needlessly put yourself in danger. I'm sorry, but… I would've been able to fend the boys off long enough for the proper authorities to be called without getting violent if… What I mean to say is, I'd feel much better about going off to college or wherever in the world I may end up in if I knew you had figured out when to fight and when to go get help." She smiled gently, "You don't need to handle everything on your own, and I'm not the only person you can depend on either. We're all here to help each other."

The younger Fujioka stared at her sister for another few moments before reaching up to rub at her bare arms, "Guys… I'm really sorry."

Instantly everyone was hugging Haruhi, cooing over how cute she was and forgiving her immediately. Jin, of course, had to hang back a little, but was comfortable just watching from her chair.

Until Haruhi's stomach made a weird gurgling sound.

"Uh… is something wrong?"

"I'm not feeling too good…"

Jin's eyes widened, "You ate too much crab. Come on, let's get her to the nearest bathroom!" The brunette jumped to her feet and grabbed her sister's arm, pulling her and the other boys out of the dining room.

They got maybe twenty paces away before Jin slowed down and dropped to her knees, clutching at her head with a groan of pain. Thank goodness the boys acted as quickly as they did. The twins each grabbed one of Haruhi's arms and continued steering her to a restroom while Mori gently scooped up his friend, cradling her in a similar way to how he'd carried her off the beach earlier. It was just his imagination, but he felt like he could still see blood dripping down her face and making her hair sticky.

Honey raced ahead of the two, opening and closing doors until he located her suitcase and beach bag, "Here's Jin-chan's room, Takashi!"

Mori hummed and carried the whimpering girl inside, laying her down on her bed and offering her the glass of water and pair of pills waiting on the bedside table. Jin carefully clutched the water and took a sip of it first before swallowing the pills, one by one. Once she finished, Mori put the empty glass on the nightstand and tucked the girl in under the covers.

"Thank, Mori-senpai."

The boy hummed and gave her right hand a gentle squeeze before leaving. Jin closed her eyes, but the harsh pounding in her head wouldn't let her sleep, despite it dulling ever so slightly. She knew it wasn't the pills just yet, but they probably wouldn't hurt either.

Three minutes later Jin couldn't take it anymore. It was like she could feel something wrong. It wasn't in her head. More like a gut reaction. And it was bugging her like mad.

Knock knock

"Hey, Jin? Do you have some lotion? I got a pretty bad sunburn… what happened? Why are you already in bed?" Jin sat up slowly and Tamaki was quick to rush to her side and help her. For a moment Jin ponders whether Tamaki had subconsciously influenced Kyoya to do the same for her earlier.

"Haru got sick from all the crab she ate, and I stood up too fast to help her and got a really bad headache."

"Haruhi is sick?"

"Yeah. My headache is mostly gone now, but I don't know where Haru is. Could you help me find her? I know I'm probably just paranoid, but I'm getting worried." Tamaki hesitates for a moment before nodding and sitting beside Jin.

"I'm afraid the lotion is going to have to wait…"

"It's no big deal, I'm sure Kyoya has some. Put your right arm around my neck and shoulder. We don't want you hurting yourself again." Jin did as he instructed and soon the two were steadily walking towards the door. She tried to walk a little faster, but Tamaki's grip around her waist kept her at a moderate pace, "Hey, don't get too worked up, Jin. I'm sure Haruhi is safe and sound."

Jin nodded, keeping quiet. No need to tell Tamaki about the uneasy feeling she had in the pit of her stomach. Something was... off. And she had a feeling Haruhi was smack-dab in the center of it.

*With Kyoya and Haruhi*

Haruhi stared up at the boy hovering over her body. There was a hand pressed into the mattress by her shoulders, caging her between two arms that suddenly looked much stronger and more intimidating than they had before. Her heart pounded wildly, but not in the good way. A white noise filled her head, lungs freezing in her chest.

Kyoya didn't move. His eyes were narrowed dangerously, hair hanging down to give him a more wild expression... but at the same time she could see the discomfort flickering in his eyes.

Suddenly she understood. He was doing this to prove a point. Exactly how much danger she could've been in. If the boys had figured out she was a girl. But… would someone like Kyoya ever be able to go through with such a horrific action? It was almost impossible for her to imagine.

Which gave her the advantage.

"You won't do it. It wouldn't do you any good, or give you a benefit..."

Kyoya regarded her blankly for a moment, almost like he hadn't heard her. Then his lips curved in an amused smirk, the closest, she assumed, he probably would ever come to smiling before pulling away. He appeared to be holding back his amusement as he brought a hand up to rearrange his hair, "I suppose you're right, in your own way."

"-and you wouldn't want to upset my sister, either."

Of course, at that, he couldn't help but chuckle, turning back to the girl sprawled out on the bedspread, "Now, why do you assume that I care about upsetting her?"

Haruhi sat up on his bed, smiling herself, "Um, other than the fact that she could easily put you and the rest of your police force in the hospital?"

Her words sent a hint of fear to the base of Kyoya's spine. He looked away, as if that information didn't actually frighten him, but a cold feeling started to spread through his chest. Forget actually going through with his fake threat, just being in that previous position most likely would've angered Jin enough to break every bone in his body and leave him for dead. It was an odd feeling to know you could imagine the same person with a white picket fence and two children bouncing around and as the bringer of the apocalypse.

The brunette tilted her head and leaned to her right, trying to look her senpai in the face, "Look, it's pretty obvious that you respect her a lot, especially now that you two are finally starting to get past your annoyance with each other. And since a friendship with Nēchan might help you in the future, you wouldn't do anything bad to me because it would make Nēchan lose all respect for you. But all business matters aside… I have a feeling that you want to be friends with Nēchan anyways, no matter the benefits."

Kyoya doesn't say anything. He can't think of a response. Did he want to be friends with Jin Fujioka? Having friends wasn't exactly something he was known for, but before he can consider it further they hear a voice from the hallway.

"Haru? Haru, where are you?"

Haruhi quickly stands up and hurries over to the door, opening it, "I'm right here, Nēchan. Kyoya let me use his bathroom."

Tamaki, with Jin hooked over his shoulder, slowly walked into the room. The taller girl smiled at Kyoya, "Well, that was nice of him."

Everyone in the room quickly notes that Jin is leaning very heavily on Tamaki. Kyoya even felt a twinge of concern. Does she really care so much about her sister that she'd work herself to blacking out to find her?

He answers his own question quickly, Duh.

"Nēchan, are you feeling alright?"

"Um, not really," the taller brunette loops her other arm around the front of Tamaki's chest, gripping onto his left shoulder with both hands and making him hold her around the waist to keep her upright, "I-I kind of… I think I need to sit down. Tamaki, could you…"

The blond moves the girl across the room and into the chair Kyoya had been sitting in a little while ago.

"Well, it looks like you're in good hands now, Jin. Kyoya, I'm going to borrow your lotion. Have a good night everyone." And he left. Haruhi visibly deflated, so Jin waved her off.

"Go apologize. It's not like you don't know where I am."

Haruhi nodded and hurried out of the room, calling her senpai's name. The door shut softly behind her, which was a gift to Jin's softly pounding head. She closed her eyes and panted slightly, feeling slightly annoyed at how breathless she was. She had literally been walking for maybe two minutes. Tops.

Hearing the sounds of shifting fabric, Jin peeked through her eyelids and saw a shirtless Kyoya holding a bottle of water out for her. She smiled gratefully and took it, "Thanks. Do you think you could put a shirt on, now?"

"First, it's no problem. Second, no, I will not. Are you going to tell me what happened?"

Jin goes for a smirk, but it looks pretty half-hearted, and took a sip before answering, "I got hit in the head with a glass bottle. I thought we covered that already?"

Kyoya doesn't look amused, so she takes another quick sip and follows up, "A hit on the head mixed with a small surge of adrenaline. Not the best combination, I must say." Another sip, "And by the way, about you lying to me earlier? I'll let it slide. For now."

Finally Kyoya's lips quirked up in a smile, "Noted. Well, since you're here, I must admit that I am curious about something and would like a few answers. If you can provide them."

Jin takes another drink and gestures for him to continue with her other hand.

"I couldn't help but notice that you didn't jump into the ocean after Haruhi when she fell. Why?" The lip of the bottle stopped, just barely tapping at the girl's lower lip. Slowly, it was lowered into her lap, where she wrapped both hands around it. Jin's gaze had dropped to the square foot of tan carpet in front of her toes.

"...Tamaki was-"

"I highly doubt you were even aware that Tamaki was behind you. Why didn't you jump?"

He waited again, but this time the girl didn't respond at all. Kyoya crouched down in front of her, looking at her face in the same way Haruhi had, "Are you afraid of the ocean, Jin? Is that why you don't like the beach?"

Her eyes flicked up to meet his before turning towards the window, "No… not really. I just… IhaveGaleophobiaalright?"

It takes a moment for Kyoya to register her words, since the last sentence had come out all at once, "Galeophobia?" She nodded slowly. "And that is the fear of…"

"Sharks. Look it up."

Kyoya regarded his classmate before standing back up, walking over to his own suitcase, pulling his laptop out of the front pouch, and quickly powering it up. Jin drained the last of her water and watched as he took a seat across from her and started typing.

Less than a minute into his search, Kyoya looked back up, "Well, that explains a lot, I suppose."

"Suppose it does. Just… don't tell the others. I don't need them trying to test if I'm really afraid of sharks just so you can win some stupid pictures."

Kyoya looks at her in mock-surprise, "Pictures… I don't-"

"Oh please, you have photos of my sister, of course you would have some of me too. By the way, I don't appreciate how you boys went about the contest. You tried to scare us. What if Haruhi really was afraid of enclosed spaces and had a panic attack? How would you have felt then?"

Kyoya had the decency to look a tad concerned, "It says on the website some people who suffer from Galeophobia have panic attacks. Do you-"

"Yes, I do, and it's not pretty. Last time it happened it went on for hours and I couldn't get a decent amount of sleep for a week." She leaned forward, "How would you boys have liked to experience that in person?"

"I am...glad that we didn't. I apologize."

Jin stands up and smirks, eyes growing soft, "Apology accepted, Kyoya." She waved at him before walking out of the bedroom, "Good night."

Shutting the door softly behind her, Jin remained still for a while. I just shared my deepest, darkest fear with Kyoya Ootori. She let out a puff of air that almost resembled a laugh. I must be losing my mind…

The window at the end of the hallway lit up with a bright light just before a low rumble echoed through the house. Jin felt her chest tighten up as any trace of amusement vanished. Shit.

She wanted to run… but her legs simply refused to put one foot in front of the other faster than a light jog. Thank goodness Kyoya's room wasn't that far from Haru's. Jin opened the door and nearly fell into the bedroom.

"Haruhi!"

No one was there, but she heard a faint 'Nēchan' coming through the left wall. Her bedroom. Jin didn't even bother shutting the door before stumbling next door.

As soon as she opened the door a quivering lump underneath the comforter cried out, "Nēchan!" Tamaki was sitting beside the lump and seemed to be trying to pull the blanket off, so Jin stumbled forward and pushed his hands away.

"Haru? Haruhi, I'm here!" The blanket fell away and the small girl hiding beneath it quickly latched herself around her sister. Kind of like a koala. Tamaki would've found the action adorable if said girl wasn't also whimpering and shaking like a leaf.

Jin starting rubbing Haruhi's back and stroking her short hair, making shushing noises by her ear and rocking back and forth, "Shhh… shhh… it's okay, Haru. I've got you." The small girl seemed to relax in her arms, but the tension returned as another roll of thunder shook the villa.

"Jin, what's wrong with her?"

She raised her voice slightly, "Haru is afraid of thunder and lightning. I need you to go into Haru's room, go through her bag, find her headphones and music player, and bring them back here. Quick!" Tamaki was out like a shot, leaving the door open as he went, so Jin returned her attention to her sister.

Scooting backwards so she could sit cross-legged on the bed with Haruhi seated in her lap, Jin continued to pet and rock her baby sister. Haruhi's shivering would ease up, but each boom of thunder would freak her out again.

Jin sucked in a deep breath and leaned her head down so her mouth was right beside Haruhi's ear, an English song rolling off her tongue.

"Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens…" Haruhi took in a shuddering breath, but her shakes stopped completely.

"Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens…" Jin smiled as the arms wrapped around her neck didn't tighten as the thunder rolled overhead again.

"Brown paper packages tied up with strings, these are a few of my favorite things…" Haruhi sighed and moved her head so she was pressing her ear against Jin's chest, right above her heart.

"Nēchan? Where's Tamaki-senpai? Wasn't he here?"

Jin nodded and kept stroking her sister's hair, "He went to get your music. He'll be right back, and then we can get you to bed."

Haruhi nodded mutely and curled up in Jin's embrace, who continued to sing the next verse.

"Cream colored ponies and crisp apple strudels

Doorbells and sleighbells and schnitzel with noodles

Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings

These are a few of my favorite things…"

Haruhi jumped a bit when the next thunder hit shook the house, but didn't go back to choking her sister out. Jin sighed and cradled her sister close, "I'm sorry, Haruhi."

"Hm? Nēchan? Sorry? What for?"

"I… I wasn't there for you. I left you all alone and because of that-"

"Hey!" Haruhi hugged her sister, nuzzling her shoulder gently, "You and I both know that's not true. Or did you already forget what really convinced you to go to America?" Jin fell silent, so Haruhi kept going, "I get it now. I do. I guess I'm just not used to being able to depend on anyone else besides you and Dad. And, I wanted to help you for a change. I thought I could help, but I just made a mess of things."

For another few moments, the two were silent. Then Jin smiled and kissed her sister's forehead, "Well, there's nothing wrong with wanting to be a hero and help those in need. Just try not to throw me off my game next time, okay?"

Haruhi scoffed and lightly shoved her sister's chest, "Oh please, it was you who threw off my game."

Jin snorted in response, "Haru, the only thing you did was splash a guy with sea urchins and fall of a cliff."

"Yeah, but didn't you see the motive I had for falling off that cliff? I distracted the boys to let the girls get away!"

"Haruhi, their was a second boy who would've just held the girls while his friend pushed you over."

"He didn't."

"Because I headbutted him."

The small girl laughed lightly, "Okay, maybe I shouldn't laugh… but I saw that happen and it was perfect payback." Jin smiled, but it was short lived as another peal of thunder rumbled across the sky and Haruhi stiffened.

She slowly fell backwards, taking her sister with her and laying her down by her side, "Hey, let's get some shut eye. Sound good?"

Haruhi nodded silently and shut her eyes as Jin resumed singing

"Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes

Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes

Silver white winters that melt into spring

These are a few of my favorite things…"

*With Tamaki*

"Oh, come on! It's gotta be in here!" Tamaki frantically pushed aside pajamas, shirts, pants, and even a plastic bag that seemed to hold Haruhi's wet clothes. He frowned deeper and tossed it out of the case to keep looking. Why can't I find it?

He unzipped the front pocket of the suitcase and stuck his hand in all the way to his elbow, but he couldn't find anything that might resemble headphones or a music player. Groaning in frustration, he went back to her clothes. Trying not to unfold anything or touch something… delicate, made the whole process slow, which made Tamaki uptight.

She was miserable! And she's probably in tears right now, waiting on me and my incompetence! His mental movie theater looped through the scene he'd left back in Jin's bedroom. Haruhi sobbing in Jin's arms, calling out for her prince while Jin cried with her, cursing Tamaki's name for being late.

In desperation, he lifted a pile of what seemed to be white, frilly tank-tops, and nearly cheered. The headphones! And the music player was plugged into them already!

"Hey… boss?"

Tamaki's body froze in place, but his head whipped around to see the entire host club, save for Jin and Haruhi, watching him from the doorway.

His voice was weak and squeaky when he spoke, "What are you guys doing here?"

"Well, we wanted to check up on Haruhi. You know… since the last time we saw her she was about to redecorated the floor with crab meat."

"But, I guess she's not here."

"Tama-chan, why are you holding Haru-chan's singlets?"

Tamaki paled and dropped the offending fabric, "It's not what it looks like!"

"You nasty pervert!"

"A panty thief! In our club!"

"I said it's not what it looks like!"

"Haruhi!" The twins took off towards Jin's room, "The boss is going through your-" They cut themselves off and stared into the bedroom. Tamaki felt like all the blood in his body drained to his toes. What if Haruhi doesn't want the others to know about her fear? What if they make fun of her? What if they use it against her? WHAT IF KYOYA GIVES THEM HER PICTURES?!

Honey, Mori, and Kyoya all walked over to stand by the twins as well while Tamaki panicked internally.

"Awww… Jin-chan and Haru-chan are so cute!"

"What?" Tamaki peeked his head into the doorway. His heart skipped a beat.

The sisters were lying down side by side, fast asleep. Jin was on her back, her left arm wrapped around Haruhi's shoulders and pulling her close so she was tucked into her side, head on Jin's shoulder. The girls were breathing deeply, chests rising and falling in time with each other. Thunder boomed in the distance and Haruhi shifted a bit, her left eyelid twitching, and Jin responded by holding the small girl closer to her, pressing her face into the top of Haruhi's head. The girl instantly quieted.

"So… so precious." Tamaki could feel himself tearing up. This was sibling love at its finest.

"First digging through her laundry-"

"-now watching her sleep."

"Is there no line you won't cross?"

The following thunder covered up the blond's sudden scream. The girls only shifted again as the bedroom door was shut for the last time that night.

*\/*

"You'd better watch your back, Haruhi."

"It looks like the boss' perverted mind is after you. I wouldn't put a panty raid past him."

Tamaki felt like he could shoot beams of heat out of his eyes, he was so mad, "HOW MANY TIMES MUST I TELL YOU THAT IT WASN'T WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE?!"

Haruhi ducked her head to hide her smile as she slid into the car. Jin just laughed out loud, tossing their bags in her sister. Tamaki turned his glare towards her.

"What are you laughing at? You know that what I'm saying is true!"

The girl regarded him with her big brown eyes, "Of course I do, stupid. But I also know that whether the others take my word for it or not, they're not going to ease up on the name calling." She grins and slips into the car, "It's just too much fun to rile you up!"

Tamaki gaped at her, but quickly snapped out of it as the limo drove away, "Hey! What are you doing! You can't leave me here!"

Jin and Haruhi only laughed harder.