[Fic] Le Roi D'Ombres (Host Club)
Title: Le Roi D’Ombres (The King of Shadows)
Fandom: Ouran High School Host Club
Characters: Kyoya-centric with appearances of other characters
Genre: You tell me (I don’t know myself)
Word Count: 911
A/N: Since I've been in quite the posting mood, I'm digging up some old OLD fics that I wrote. From other fandoms as well. ^^' I just want to have it archived somewhere, in a sense. Don't bother reading XD I wrote this many many a years ago and, I don't know, it's always had a special place in my heart. (And only really makes sense? Maybe, if you know of the series I never finished reading the manga though, just the show).
Spring softly descended upon the inhabitants of Japan, quietly beseeching them to emerge from their comfortable dwellings with tickling breezes and caressing scents.
It was a lovely day and people were eager to go out to greet the coming Spring and say a fond farewell to her sister Winter.
Everyone was outside enjoying the change Nature provided, most especially the Host Club, whose members were weary of the confining nature of Winter and restless to exert the hibernating energy.
However there were no clients today, enabling the members to leisurely enjoy the balmy spring weather and instead of pleasuring others with their company, they were allowed to indulge in themselves. Of course, “no clients” did not mean that the Host Club members were spared from a few gaggling girls that happened to pass by. They were few and far between and that pleased the members all the more. For once, they wished to be left in peace.
While all the members were gathered outside, one lone person opted to take this leisure time and work on updating the club’s finances. Kyoya Ohtari never passed an opportunity to further the club’s finances, today being no exception.
Many would call his too ambitious nature at fault, but Kyoya never saw too much ambition as a fault. He considered it one of his many assets. Why waste a day outside when you could be working on better things behind the scenes. That was the thought process of the proclaimed Shadow King, which had earned him the name in the first place.
Sitting at one of the many tables dotting Music Room 3, Kyoya was diligently typing away on his laptop. The table overlooked the garden in which the other Host Club members were currently occupying. Of course, it was not mere chance that the table Kyoya happened to commandeer as his work station also happened to provide the best vantage to view the other members hard at play. But Kyoya would never admit such a weakness, the same weakness that earned him the term Mother.
The room was silent, except for the rhythmic tap tap tapping from the keyboard, punctured occasionally by the rustling of paper. Various sounds floated in from the window left slightly ajar. The mischievous laughter of the twin devils, the delighted squeal of one hyperactive senior, a more subdued chuckle from his counterpart, the enraged yell of Father, the surprised shout of his daughter -- all this, Kyoya took in, processed, and kept for future use, as he did with most things, without missing a beat, continuing the cadenced tap tap tap on his laptop.
The sun continued its journey across the skies and it was mid afternoon when Kyoya was finally roused from the world of numbers and figures, not by shouting and cries, but by a soft laugh trickling in from outside. Before Kyoya knew what he was doing, Curiosity led him to the open window.
Clear, inquisitive eyes searched the garden for the source of that sweet sound. Kyoya noted that the twins had gone to find mischief elsewhere -- easily bored because of the lack of victims. Hunny, with Mori in tow, went in search of sweets for his afternoon snack. But two people were still unaccounted for. Doing another quick sweeping search, his sharp eyes spotted two figures shaded beneath a blossoming sakura tree.
Haruhi had been nestled underneath the tree since afternoon, having cleverly snuck away from the twins. She had a book in her lap, and it was probably this that was the source of Haruhi’s amusement, quietly reading until her thoughts were carefully and cautiously prodded by another.
Kyoya saw Haruhi tilt her head up in slight surprise to be met by a pair of twin violet eyes. Tamaki hesitantly voiced a question, his confident posture replaced by a humbled position. A soft smile spread over Haruhi’s lips and a hand reached out to guide the nervous lord into a comfortable position beside her under the tree. The atmosphere around them soon settled, and the breeze soon carried not only the sweet scent of flowers, but the voice of Haruhi as she softly read to her king.
All this was played out in front of Kyoya. His mind memorized. His ears recorded. His heart constricted. His throat lodged. His eyes -- quickly covered by the glare of his spectacles.
Returning back to his seat, Kyoya quickly resumed his work, quietly chastising himself for having gotten distracted in the first place. Any sign of emotion was quickly masked in favor of an indifferent façade.
It was what was required of him, what was deemed his duty. In order to survive, in order to succeed, Kyoya learned early on that sacrifices had to be made.
With that mantra repeating in time to the tap tap tapping of his keyboard, Kyoya forever buried his Love under Ambition, who could better serve him in this world.
He knew he had had plenty of opportunities, more than enough chances to express…but he never did.
He had gracefully, however reluctantly, stepped down, but had never stepped out, allowing an opportunity for Tamaki to seize the crown --which would seem, he had succeeded in doing, once again claiming the spotlight, but this time, from a more precious audience.
As the sun slowly sank into the warm embrace of Evening, the Shadow King quietly slipped back into his realm. After all, he was not born to take the spotlight.
.:. He knew his place…unfortunately, it was not by her side .:.