OoC ♥ Application
( fandom student application )
PLAYER INFORMATION
PLAYER: Kisha
AGE: 23
CONTACT: AIM: tasogare sage
PERSONAL LJ: astronomia
CHARACTERS PLAYED: N/A
CHARACTER INFORMATION
NAME: Haruhi Fujioka (Western Style)
CANON: Ouran High School Host Club
CANON REFERENCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ouran_High_School_Host_Club
AGE: 16
GENDER: enrolled as male/biologically female/mentally gender neutral
YEAR IN SCHOOL: HS1
ENROLLMENT: Scholarship student
APPEARANCE: This is Haruhi.
She is actually a girl, not a boy.
She does make guys look gay though.
She has a harem!
She often does cosplay with the Host Club.
All the girls love her.
But as far as everyone knows, she's a man.
PERSONALITY: One might think, judging by the look of Ouran, that Haruhi is a shoujo heroine surrounded by beautiful men. While this is technically correct, she isn't blushing over them and thinking about kissing them (that would be Tamaki's role, for the record.) In fact, she isn't even aware of any interest they might have in her. Or interest she might have in them. Interest like that hardly seems practical or worth noting, especially when she has an exam to study for.
That's right: Haruhi is practical, level-headed and calm. She's the sort of person who checks newspapers and flyers for sales and marks them down ahead of time so she knows to get up early on Sunday with coupons ready. She does her homework done on time without being forced and completes chores because, really, they wouldn't get done otherwise. Even in the Host Club she carries out any task, whether it's chatting with girls or fetching coffee, with a sort of calm efficiency. This is what has earned her the title of the Natural Type, never seeming to try for the charm and clear-minded nature that comes to her, well, naturally!
If it sounds like she's a responsible person, that's because she is. She got into Ouran in the first place by working hard at her studies, searching for scholarships and not letting herself panic or worry. She is determined but like many of her traits, it is tempered by her rational thought processes. She wanted to get into Ouran to fulfill her dream. So she worked hard and did it all on her own. When it comes to Host Club duties, she generally does them with only minor complaint and grumblings, since she does have a debt to pay off and monetary debts especially are something she knows to take care of. Money is a nice, practical concern that she can reason out. At home, she is the one who cooks and cleans, who makes sure there are groceries and fresh sheets.
All of this responsibility stems from her mother. She lost her mother at a young age and that has been the biggest influence in her life. Her mother was a lawyer who fought and worked hard, yet always took care of her family as well. Basically she did it all with enthusiasm and determination. When she died, Haruhi took over those duties, just as determined as her mother, if only to do her proud. Even as a little girl, she walked to the grocery store to buy food by herself and learned how to cook and clean, managing resources and just about anything else needed. More than anything, she wanted her dad to relax and be all right, since he also worked hard and now was without his wife. He took it hard and so Haruhi bore any sadness and loneliness quietly so he wouldn't worry. She grew up fast as she could for everyone's sake, including her own.
One large decision influenced by her mother was Haruhi's chosen career as a future lawyer. She is very much aware of how deep her grief runs and how much this loss has shaped her. She knows that she is, basically, chasing her mother's shadow. But it is her dream as much as it is her mother's memory and in that way, she can feel close to her mother again and do something that she thinks her mother would have been proud of. She has a deep conviction for what she's trying to do, in right and wrong, and wants to carry on that work because it suits her just as perfectly as it did her mother.
This sort of determination and knowing her path has lead her to be a highly independent person. It isn't just that these are her responsibilities but rather they are hers alone. She hates to burden others with her troubles or with work when they don't need to be bothered. It's less of a conscious act these days and simply how she operates. She'll fill out any and all forms she needs to herself, do applications and work without telling others and generally you'd be hard-pressed to see her so much as ask for help on homework, though doing homework together is okay. This does mean she won't ask for help when she actually needs it, though, or realise that her work ethic and manner of thinking sometimes worries others.
In fact, she rarely realises what others think of her at all. Because she is so independent and focused on her path, she doesn't take into consideration what value others put on her. In the same way she doesn't ask for their help, she doesn't imagine them involving themselves with her. Because she doesn't do much critical thinking to this end, she can often be blunt to the point of rudeness and not realise what others are trying to say to her. She sees no reason to hold back thoughts and feelings and speaks freely, for better or worse. This doesn't mean she's unkind, far from it. But sometimes she can hit the nail on the head in an uncomfortable way if you're not used to people seeing right through you. To put it simply, she doesn't care what others think and so she doesn't put any thought into it. If you're being selfish, she'll say so.
Haruhi isn't the type for speeches but rather simple statements of truth. There isn't much in the way of a brain-mouth filter, which is fine, since her obliviousness to things regarding herself generally keeps her safe from stumbling over anything like Tamaki's crush on her (or the crush she feels for him.) In this way, she might not see why you're insulted or upset and carry on as usual.
One curious thing about Haruhi is that she is very gender-neutral or agender. She doesn't identify heavily with either gender, not caring if people see her as a guy or a girl. In fact she spends the entire first episode mistaken as a guy and never once protests or corrects anyone when they call her a boy. There's no reason to, in her mind, because gender just doesn't matter at all. With sexual preferences, she still doesn't care, even noting that it's nice to have attention from girls sometimes during the Host Club. She comments she 'might be into this' and her first kiss was with a girl. An accident but not one she seemed to mind. She just doesn't see it as a big deal. She states to Tamaki, "guy or girl, looks and all that, none of it matters." She doesn't understand why gender might play a role in how others view her, either. In fact, an easy way to piss her off is to make judgements on her based on gender norms and expectations. She believes in true gender equality. Much of this is influenced by her father, who is bisexual - though he swears off women after his wife's death - and also very comfortable as a woman in full drag (this is murky on if he is Trans or not as he's called an Okama, a Japanese drag queen, yet seems comfortable identifying as Haruhi's father and also as a woman. Again, likely influencing her views with this sort of fluidity.)
She is also brave and when she stands up for someone, she doesn't care about the consequences or her place or gender or any labels like that. She follows through with her words because she feels they are right. This strong sense of justice, inherited from her mother, and her lack of consideration for herself can make her reckless at times but she doesn't care unless it burdens someone else.
All this said, Haruhi isn't an unhappy person or somehow a downer. She participates in the Club activities and though she might roll her eyes at the dramatics or note how silly it is, she loves every moment of it, feeling like it's a dream come true in itself. She works so hard that she rarely had time to enjoy herself with friends before now, so the Club offers her a chance to actually be really happy. And she has, truly, made friends that she cares deeply about. They may be idiots and rich bastards but she loves them and considers their friendship something she values now. It has made her more aware of herself and through them she explores new feelings and new emotions, expanding her world and their worlds all the same.
Her dream to become a lawyer is always number one but now she feels she is allowed to enjoy herself, sometimes, and sometimes she can ask for help or tell others how she feels. She's still blunt and responsible, she can still be very anti-shenanigans and snarky with a dry sort of humour but that is just part of who she is. She is a kind person who works for herself and others, practical always trying her best, even if she can get a bit lazy at social things.
So overall, she isn't really a typical shoujo heroine. But she has a harem of guys and girls anyway, so she's not doing too badly. Now if only she wasn't oblivious to them.
COMPUTER APTITUDE: Haruhi is decent enough with computers. She doesn't use them a whole lot but she's learned how to. She's the type to read the manual and all the stupid help pop-ups, too, so the basics won't be a problem. Also being practical means she doesn't really care about any of the other features except the ones she uses.
AU HISTORY: Once there was a girl from a surprisingly progressive family. She was a very happy young girl, who was loved by her parents and loved them very much in return. Her mother was a successful lawyer, always fighting hard for her clients. Even this early in the girl's life, her mother's work and support influenced her greatly.
And then her mother died.
Naturally, this had a rather big impact on Haruhi. From that moment on, she took over the role of caretaker in the house. She did all the chores that she could, walking alone to the grocery store to do the shopping and figuring out the cooking on her own. Her father was a wreck with the loss of his wife and she didn't want to stress him further. She tried to handle everything she possibly could on her own and often left him out of the loop. Her father became a full on okama - a man who dresses as a woman - around this point and declared himself gay since, although bisexual, Haruhi's mother was the only women he could love.
Suffice to say, Haruhi grew up in an interesting household. Children at school sometimes teased her over her father but she ignored them. She saw nothing wrong with his life. She often busied herself with studies and household chores and taking care of her father. She did have friends and many people had crushes on her, though she was oblivious. Mostly she studied. So her life went on like this through middle school.
At some point, she had decided to become a lawyer. To be honest, she had probably decided that the moment her mother passed on. Maybe even before. But it was a dream, something that would make her mother proud and do justice to her memory while bringing Haruhi closer to her. And obviously if she was going to be a lawyer she had to be the very best lawyer she could be. To accomplish this, there was only one high school to go to: Ouran Academy.
But Haruhi had some issues with money. While not exactly poor, compared to the average Ouran student, she might as well have been wearing rags and living in a bathroom. To get in as a scholarship student, she had to have the finest grades possible. In middle school, she was finally able to apply for the Academy and, to no one's surprise who knew her, she managed to get in.
Once at Ouran, she became even more devout with her studies. Before at least she had some friends and socialized a bit, though studies always came first. But now she simply went through her schooling, not speaking with the other students. It was all work and no play.
Until one day, while trying to find a quiet place to study, she stepped into Wonderland.
Well, not literally, but fairly close what with the rose petals flying everywhere. She's stumbled onto the Host Club, which was basically rich pretty boys entertaining rich women for fun and profit. And the way they saw it Haruhi was a dude looking for a good time. She dressed pretty badly and she'd always been androgynous, so to be fair, it was an easy mistake to make.
But then, in her panic to get away, she broke a vase. A vase they were going to auction off. A vase she definitely couldn't afford.
And so she became their slave a.k.a. newest Host.
Of course, everyone but Tamaki figured out she was actually a girl before the end of the first episode. It took Tamaki right up until that end to realise that, yes, Haruhi was a girl. A girl that made him blush, oh my. Is that a love interest we see? Probably. This is a shoujo! But anyway, naturally, the logical conclusion is to have Haruhi hide her gender from the entire school now so that she can continue to work off her debt in the Host Club, which is what she does. Haruhi, being the gender conscious being she is, didn't give a damn either way and so the Host Club was united.
Now, a lot of Host Club hijinks happen from now on. Renge, an otaku from France, invaded the club soon after in pursuit of Kyouya, a member bearing striking resemblance to her favourite dating sim character. Even once she got over her delusions, she decided to stick it out with her new friends.
They continued making girls happy and growing closer until the group decided Haruhi needed to go to a real beach. It was a Host event but a fun one, where the incest-friendly twins Hikaru and Kaoru - both taking some interest in Haruhi - battled against Tamaki - who has had interest already but still thinks of himself as her father - to find what scared the unshakeable Haruhi. Their efforts all failed while Haruhi was busy fighting off some thugs who were trying to get too fresh with the girls on the beach.
Tamaki rescued her but it started a big fight over Haruhi's capabilities. While Tamaki banked heavier on gender issues, the others too were worried that Haruhi might run into dangerous situations alone. Haruhi, who had always dealt with things alone, realised she had people to rely on now. Tamaki, meanwhile, got to learn Haruhi's fear of thunderstorms and kept her calm through one.
Eventually the group raids Haruhi's house in order to see how she lives. They meet her father, who hates Tamaki because of his obvious crush, and we find out Kyouya and Ranka have been in contact, much to Haruhi's dismay. We also learn she does talk about the Host Club at home, meaning they really do matter to her.
Short but sweet, Haruhi much later has a dream while sleeping after school about her mother, telling her to enjoy the dream of a student life. By now, Haruhi has more than accepted her new life but loves it.
Over the summer break, Haruhi accepted a job. Naturally, the Host Club had to track her down. They battled for the honour of staying at the inn where she worked - again with Tamaki versus Kaoru and Hikaru being the real battle - and in the end the twins won. A boy Haruhi used to know happens to come by, however, and the Host Club is shaken. All of them had been rather lonely people and in varying ways felt belonging with Haruhi. This especially shook Hikaru, whose crush on Haruhi was developing slowly. Kaoru arranged a day out for the two of them to make up for the way they acted at realising that Haruhi had a life outside of the Host Club.
During their time out, however, they fight when they run into the boy again and Hikaru takes off. A thunderstorm rolls in and Tamaki took charge as the only one who knew how it terrified Haruhi. He called Hikaru and Hikaru managed to find where Haruhi hid herself, in an old church, comforting her as Tamaki had.
But of course, everyone needs to date Haruhi, so it was Kyouya's turn. Kyouya had the pleasure of being dragged out by Tamaki for a visit to a commoners' festival of some sort, a.k.a. a supermarket event. They sort of abandoned him and Haruhi ran into him. It was basically a date where Kyouya realised Haruhi has some very interesting points of view, someone who can see past him in a way most can't, and Haruhi realised Kyouya's interesting views aren't always profit and merit. He has a heart, too.
Fast forward to an important marker in Tamaki and Haruhi's relationship. A yazuka heir named Kasanoda came to the Host Club to find out how to be friendlier and better liked, tired of being feared. They became friends in the process but Kasanoda accidentally waked in on Haruhi changing clothes and realised her secret. He pretty much fell head over heels for her.
Tamaki was still oblivious to his feelings, thinking them fatherly affection, and it caused an imbalance as he grew jealous, angry and rather brain-broken. He tried to get between the two and while his reasons and feelings were questioned, in the end he remained mostly secure that it was just fatherly love. Mostly. The other Host Club members realised Tamaki might understand soon but didn't push it, since Kasanoda got rejected; on accident, since Haruhi is clueless.
The climax came at the big school festival. By now, the Host Club was closer than ever, both thanks to Haruhi and Tamaki, almost living a whimsical dream life together. Sadly, the adults had other plans. They crashed the open Host Club event, with Tamaki's wicked grandmother forcing him to escort the daughter of a business group, a girl named Eclair, and Kyouya's father slapping Kyouya and calling all their efforts wasted.
It turned out that Eclair was there not only to buy out Kyouya's father's company but to become engaged to Tamaki as well. Tamaki felt he had no choice and went with the arrangement due to his grandmother being a control freak and his own depression at feeling as though he'd made his friends' lives more difficult because of the club.
Of course, they couldn't let their friend do something so stupid. They rushed after him and it was Haruhi that managed to get to him in a rather impossible but amazing carriage versus car race, declaring her love for the Host Club and telling Tamaki they all cared for him. Tamaki was moved by her words but declarations from moving vehicles are dangerous. Haruhi fell off the bridge and Tamaki jumped after her and they somehow safely landed in the river below.
A happy ending for all! Especially Kyouya, who secretly bought out his father's company before Eclair could, then gave it back to him just to show he didn't need it. Everyone had a good time at the dance, though Tamaki and Haruhi remained more or less oblivious to their true feelings.
But, well, Tamaki's plans for France had already been made and grandmother wasn't too happy seeing control taken away, so Tamaki got shipped off anyway to Reims Academy. Haruhi magically won a scholarship that she feels suspicious about since she knows she didn't apply for it. But, well, she wanted to study abroad anyway and Kyouya seems to be making a new debt for her, so it works.
As a final note, Kyouya filled out all the applications and registration forms before Haruhi could even see them and put her down as 'male.' Haruhi, given her views, doesn't really care. She suspects it's for Host Club reasons and doesn't see a reason to protest it.
SAMPLES
INTRANET/1ST PERSON SAMPLE: Ehh, I was dreading a care package for this reason. Not that I'm ungrateful but I needed new notebooks. He wouldn't know that but something useful would have been nice. It's pretty common sense what a student needs. But this...? [She's holding something pink and frilly and it's hard to tell what it is, exactly, except that it's probably meant to be worn. She frowns.] What am I supposed to do with something like this? Did he really expect a different reaction...? [With a sigh, she stuffs it back into a box.] If anyone wants it, they can have it. It will be wasted otherwise. I guess I'll just buy notebooks in town tomorrow.
LOG/3RD PERSON SAMPLE: Haruhi was still reeling. Only a few days ago she had been in Japan, finishing up the school festival activities at Ouran Academy. Now she was here at Reims, a completely different Academy in a new country. No one had actually asked her - when did they ever? - but in a blur of papers and hugs and suitcases and a passport Haruhi had known that any protests wouldn't have mattered anyway. It could be worse.
It wasn't Ouran but it was nice here. Part of her plan was to study abroad and France would look nice on her records. On the plane, she'd been able to read up on the school. She could pursue her dream just fine here. And maybe, just maybe, some quiet part of her heart was soothed to know Tamaki was here, too. Kyouya, too, but Haruhi had yet to deal with the strange fever that had plagued her the night of the festival. It just seemed to linger now.
So fresh air and a walk around campus it was. As the thoughts drifted from her mind to the lovely scenery around her, she felt her health returning. Just for now, she could breath easy.
One deep breath later she was coughing. Smoke? Cigarette smoke. Haruhi peeked around the wall for the source and saw a young boy lighting up.
"Ah, that's against school policy," she said, stepping around fully.
A boy looked up with some odd look screwing up his face. "The hell does that matter? Gonna tell?" He sneered but Haruhi just frowned. Probability said he would get caught anyway when people smelled his clothes. Why would someone want that on their record?
"Having the chance to get an education here shouldn't be wasted." Her voice was stern and she walked closer, snatching the cigarette. Before he could stop her it had been crushed under her heel. "It's disrespectful to the school."
And then she simply turned and started to walk, only to have a hand grip her arm and stop her.
"You think you're funny or some teacher's pet?" His voice was raising but Haruhi didn't care. Louder people tended to just be stupid.
"No. But you were breaking a rule. You'll get caught by someone else eventually. If your time here suffers, you'll only have yourself to blame."
They stared at each other before he let go. He said nothing else and just kicked the ground before running off in the opposite direction. Did he really think she'd tell? It'd be pretty pointless to say something now that it had been handled.
Haruhi sighed and started back to the dorms. Her relaxing walk had been ruined. But at least she'd stopped something troublesome.
People really were strange sometimes, to gamble such opportunities. She wouldn't waste hers.
HAVE YOU READ THE FAQ? Yes! A rabid wombat would be unleashed.
PLAYER INFORMATION
PLAYER: Kisha
AGE: 23
CONTACT: AIM: tasogare sage
PERSONAL LJ: astronomia
CHARACTERS PLAYED: N/A
CHARACTER INFORMATION
NAME: Haruhi Fujioka (Western Style)
CANON: Ouran High School Host Club
CANON REFERENCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ouran_High_School_Host_Club
AGE: 16
GENDER: enrolled as male/biologically female/mentally gender neutral
YEAR IN SCHOOL: HS1
ENROLLMENT: Scholarship student
APPEARANCE: This is Haruhi.
She is actually a girl, not a boy.
She does make guys look gay though.
She has a harem!
She often does cosplay with the Host Club.
All the girls love her.
But as far as everyone knows, she's a man.
PERSONALITY: One might think, judging by the look of Ouran, that Haruhi is a shoujo heroine surrounded by beautiful men. While this is technically correct, she isn't blushing over them and thinking about kissing them (that would be Tamaki's role, for the record.) In fact, she isn't even aware of any interest they might have in her. Or interest she might have in them. Interest like that hardly seems practical or worth noting, especially when she has an exam to study for.
That's right: Haruhi is practical, level-headed and calm. She's the sort of person who checks newspapers and flyers for sales and marks them down ahead of time so she knows to get up early on Sunday with coupons ready. She does her homework done on time without being forced and completes chores because, really, they wouldn't get done otherwise. Even in the Host Club she carries out any task, whether it's chatting with girls or fetching coffee, with a sort of calm efficiency. This is what has earned her the title of the Natural Type, never seeming to try for the charm and clear-minded nature that comes to her, well, naturally!
If it sounds like she's a responsible person, that's because she is. She got into Ouran in the first place by working hard at her studies, searching for scholarships and not letting herself panic or worry. She is determined but like many of her traits, it is tempered by her rational thought processes. She wanted to get into Ouran to fulfill her dream. So she worked hard and did it all on her own. When it comes to Host Club duties, she generally does them with only minor complaint and grumblings, since she does have a debt to pay off and monetary debts especially are something she knows to take care of. Money is a nice, practical concern that she can reason out. At home, she is the one who cooks and cleans, who makes sure there are groceries and fresh sheets.
All of this responsibility stems from her mother. She lost her mother at a young age and that has been the biggest influence in her life. Her mother was a lawyer who fought and worked hard, yet always took care of her family as well. Basically she did it all with enthusiasm and determination. When she died, Haruhi took over those duties, just as determined as her mother, if only to do her proud. Even as a little girl, she walked to the grocery store to buy food by herself and learned how to cook and clean, managing resources and just about anything else needed. More than anything, she wanted her dad to relax and be all right, since he also worked hard and now was without his wife. He took it hard and so Haruhi bore any sadness and loneliness quietly so he wouldn't worry. She grew up fast as she could for everyone's sake, including her own.
One large decision influenced by her mother was Haruhi's chosen career as a future lawyer. She is very much aware of how deep her grief runs and how much this loss has shaped her. She knows that she is, basically, chasing her mother's shadow. But it is her dream as much as it is her mother's memory and in that way, she can feel close to her mother again and do something that she thinks her mother would have been proud of. She has a deep conviction for what she's trying to do, in right and wrong, and wants to carry on that work because it suits her just as perfectly as it did her mother.
This sort of determination and knowing her path has lead her to be a highly independent person. It isn't just that these are her responsibilities but rather they are hers alone. She hates to burden others with her troubles or with work when they don't need to be bothered. It's less of a conscious act these days and simply how she operates. She'll fill out any and all forms she needs to herself, do applications and work without telling others and generally you'd be hard-pressed to see her so much as ask for help on homework, though doing homework together is okay. This does mean she won't ask for help when she actually needs it, though, or realise that her work ethic and manner of thinking sometimes worries others.
In fact, she rarely realises what others think of her at all. Because she is so independent and focused on her path, she doesn't take into consideration what value others put on her. In the same way she doesn't ask for their help, she doesn't imagine them involving themselves with her. Because she doesn't do much critical thinking to this end, she can often be blunt to the point of rudeness and not realise what others are trying to say to her. She sees no reason to hold back thoughts and feelings and speaks freely, for better or worse. This doesn't mean she's unkind, far from it. But sometimes she can hit the nail on the head in an uncomfortable way if you're not used to people seeing right through you. To put it simply, she doesn't care what others think and so she doesn't put any thought into it. If you're being selfish, she'll say so.
Haruhi isn't the type for speeches but rather simple statements of truth. There isn't much in the way of a brain-mouth filter, which is fine, since her obliviousness to things regarding herself generally keeps her safe from stumbling over anything like Tamaki's crush on her (or the crush she feels for him.) In this way, she might not see why you're insulted or upset and carry on as usual.
One curious thing about Haruhi is that she is very gender-neutral or agender. She doesn't identify heavily with either gender, not caring if people see her as a guy or a girl. In fact she spends the entire first episode mistaken as a guy and never once protests or corrects anyone when they call her a boy. There's no reason to, in her mind, because gender just doesn't matter at all. With sexual preferences, she still doesn't care, even noting that it's nice to have attention from girls sometimes during the Host Club. She comments she 'might be into this' and her first kiss was with a girl. An accident but not one she seemed to mind. She just doesn't see it as a big deal. She states to Tamaki, "guy or girl, looks and all that, none of it matters." She doesn't understand why gender might play a role in how others view her, either. In fact, an easy way to piss her off is to make judgements on her based on gender norms and expectations. She believes in true gender equality. Much of this is influenced by her father, who is bisexual - though he swears off women after his wife's death - and also very comfortable as a woman in full drag (this is murky on if he is Trans or not as he's called an Okama, a Japanese drag queen, yet seems comfortable identifying as Haruhi's father and also as a woman. Again, likely influencing her views with this sort of fluidity.)
She is also brave and when she stands up for someone, she doesn't care about the consequences or her place or gender or any labels like that. She follows through with her words because she feels they are right. This strong sense of justice, inherited from her mother, and her lack of consideration for herself can make her reckless at times but she doesn't care unless it burdens someone else.
All this said, Haruhi isn't an unhappy person or somehow a downer. She participates in the Club activities and though she might roll her eyes at the dramatics or note how silly it is, she loves every moment of it, feeling like it's a dream come true in itself. She works so hard that she rarely had time to enjoy herself with friends before now, so the Club offers her a chance to actually be really happy. And she has, truly, made friends that she cares deeply about. They may be idiots and rich bastards but she loves them and considers their friendship something she values now. It has made her more aware of herself and through them she explores new feelings and new emotions, expanding her world and their worlds all the same.
Her dream to become a lawyer is always number one but now she feels she is allowed to enjoy herself, sometimes, and sometimes she can ask for help or tell others how she feels. She's still blunt and responsible, she can still be very anti-shenanigans and snarky with a dry sort of humour but that is just part of who she is. She is a kind person who works for herself and others, practical always trying her best, even if she can get a bit lazy at social things.
So overall, she isn't really a typical shoujo heroine. But she has a harem of guys and girls anyway, so she's not doing too badly. Now if only she wasn't oblivious to them.
COMPUTER APTITUDE: Haruhi is decent enough with computers. She doesn't use them a whole lot but she's learned how to. She's the type to read the manual and all the stupid help pop-ups, too, so the basics won't be a problem. Also being practical means she doesn't really care about any of the other features except the ones she uses.
AU HISTORY: Once there was a girl from a surprisingly progressive family. She was a very happy young girl, who was loved by her parents and loved them very much in return. Her mother was a successful lawyer, always fighting hard for her clients. Even this early in the girl's life, her mother's work and support influenced her greatly.
And then her mother died.
Naturally, this had a rather big impact on Haruhi. From that moment on, she took over the role of caretaker in the house. She did all the chores that she could, walking alone to the grocery store to do the shopping and figuring out the cooking on her own. Her father was a wreck with the loss of his wife and she didn't want to stress him further. She tried to handle everything she possibly could on her own and often left him out of the loop. Her father became a full on okama - a man who dresses as a woman - around this point and declared himself gay since, although bisexual, Haruhi's mother was the only women he could love.
Suffice to say, Haruhi grew up in an interesting household. Children at school sometimes teased her over her father but she ignored them. She saw nothing wrong with his life. She often busied herself with studies and household chores and taking care of her father. She did have friends and many people had crushes on her, though she was oblivious. Mostly she studied. So her life went on like this through middle school.
At some point, she had decided to become a lawyer. To be honest, she had probably decided that the moment her mother passed on. Maybe even before. But it was a dream, something that would make her mother proud and do justice to her memory while bringing Haruhi closer to her. And obviously if she was going to be a lawyer she had to be the very best lawyer she could be. To accomplish this, there was only one high school to go to: Ouran Academy.
But Haruhi had some issues with money. While not exactly poor, compared to the average Ouran student, she might as well have been wearing rags and living in a bathroom. To get in as a scholarship student, she had to have the finest grades possible. In middle school, she was finally able to apply for the Academy and, to no one's surprise who knew her, she managed to get in.
Once at Ouran, she became even more devout with her studies. Before at least she had some friends and socialized a bit, though studies always came first. But now she simply went through her schooling, not speaking with the other students. It was all work and no play.
Until one day, while trying to find a quiet place to study, she stepped into Wonderland.
Well, not literally, but fairly close what with the rose petals flying everywhere. She's stumbled onto the Host Club, which was basically rich pretty boys entertaining rich women for fun and profit. And the way they saw it Haruhi was a dude looking for a good time. She dressed pretty badly and she'd always been androgynous, so to be fair, it was an easy mistake to make.
But then, in her panic to get away, she broke a vase. A vase they were going to auction off. A vase she definitely couldn't afford.
And so she became their slave a.k.a. newest Host.
Of course, everyone but Tamaki figured out she was actually a girl before the end of the first episode. It took Tamaki right up until that end to realise that, yes, Haruhi was a girl. A girl that made him blush, oh my. Is that a love interest we see? Probably. This is a shoujo! But anyway, naturally, the logical conclusion is to have Haruhi hide her gender from the entire school now so that she can continue to work off her debt in the Host Club, which is what she does. Haruhi, being the gender conscious being she is, didn't give a damn either way and so the Host Club was united.
Now, a lot of Host Club hijinks happen from now on. Renge, an otaku from France, invaded the club soon after in pursuit of Kyouya, a member bearing striking resemblance to her favourite dating sim character. Even once she got over her delusions, she decided to stick it out with her new friends.
They continued making girls happy and growing closer until the group decided Haruhi needed to go to a real beach. It was a Host event but a fun one, where the incest-friendly twins Hikaru and Kaoru - both taking some interest in Haruhi - battled against Tamaki - who has had interest already but still thinks of himself as her father - to find what scared the unshakeable Haruhi. Their efforts all failed while Haruhi was busy fighting off some thugs who were trying to get too fresh with the girls on the beach.
Tamaki rescued her but it started a big fight over Haruhi's capabilities. While Tamaki banked heavier on gender issues, the others too were worried that Haruhi might run into dangerous situations alone. Haruhi, who had always dealt with things alone, realised she had people to rely on now. Tamaki, meanwhile, got to learn Haruhi's fear of thunderstorms and kept her calm through one.
Eventually the group raids Haruhi's house in order to see how she lives. They meet her father, who hates Tamaki because of his obvious crush, and we find out Kyouya and Ranka have been in contact, much to Haruhi's dismay. We also learn she does talk about the Host Club at home, meaning they really do matter to her.
Short but sweet, Haruhi much later has a dream while sleeping after school about her mother, telling her to enjoy the dream of a student life. By now, Haruhi has more than accepted her new life but loves it.
Over the summer break, Haruhi accepted a job. Naturally, the Host Club had to track her down. They battled for the honour of staying at the inn where she worked - again with Tamaki versus Kaoru and Hikaru being the real battle - and in the end the twins won. A boy Haruhi used to know happens to come by, however, and the Host Club is shaken. All of them had been rather lonely people and in varying ways felt belonging with Haruhi. This especially shook Hikaru, whose crush on Haruhi was developing slowly. Kaoru arranged a day out for the two of them to make up for the way they acted at realising that Haruhi had a life outside of the Host Club.
During their time out, however, they fight when they run into the boy again and Hikaru takes off. A thunderstorm rolls in and Tamaki took charge as the only one who knew how it terrified Haruhi. He called Hikaru and Hikaru managed to find where Haruhi hid herself, in an old church, comforting her as Tamaki had.
But of course, everyone needs to date Haruhi, so it was Kyouya's turn. Kyouya had the pleasure of being dragged out by Tamaki for a visit to a commoners' festival of some sort, a.k.a. a supermarket event. They sort of abandoned him and Haruhi ran into him. It was basically a date where Kyouya realised Haruhi has some very interesting points of view, someone who can see past him in a way most can't, and Haruhi realised Kyouya's interesting views aren't always profit and merit. He has a heart, too.
Fast forward to an important marker in Tamaki and Haruhi's relationship. A yazuka heir named Kasanoda came to the Host Club to find out how to be friendlier and better liked, tired of being feared. They became friends in the process but Kasanoda accidentally waked in on Haruhi changing clothes and realised her secret. He pretty much fell head over heels for her.
Tamaki was still oblivious to his feelings, thinking them fatherly affection, and it caused an imbalance as he grew jealous, angry and rather brain-broken. He tried to get between the two and while his reasons and feelings were questioned, in the end he remained mostly secure that it was just fatherly love. Mostly. The other Host Club members realised Tamaki might understand soon but didn't push it, since Kasanoda got rejected; on accident, since Haruhi is clueless.
The climax came at the big school festival. By now, the Host Club was closer than ever, both thanks to Haruhi and Tamaki, almost living a whimsical dream life together. Sadly, the adults had other plans. They crashed the open Host Club event, with Tamaki's wicked grandmother forcing him to escort the daughter of a business group, a girl named Eclair, and Kyouya's father slapping Kyouya and calling all their efforts wasted.
It turned out that Eclair was there not only to buy out Kyouya's father's company but to become engaged to Tamaki as well. Tamaki felt he had no choice and went with the arrangement due to his grandmother being a control freak and his own depression at feeling as though he'd made his friends' lives more difficult because of the club.
Of course, they couldn't let their friend do something so stupid. They rushed after him and it was Haruhi that managed to get to him in a rather impossible but amazing carriage versus car race, declaring her love for the Host Club and telling Tamaki they all cared for him. Tamaki was moved by her words but declarations from moving vehicles are dangerous. Haruhi fell off the bridge and Tamaki jumped after her and they somehow safely landed in the river below.
A happy ending for all! Especially Kyouya, who secretly bought out his father's company before Eclair could, then gave it back to him just to show he didn't need it. Everyone had a good time at the dance, though Tamaki and Haruhi remained more or less oblivious to their true feelings.
But, well, Tamaki's plans for France had already been made and grandmother wasn't too happy seeing control taken away, so Tamaki got shipped off anyway to Reims Academy. Haruhi magically won a scholarship that she feels suspicious about since she knows she didn't apply for it. But, well, she wanted to study abroad anyway and Kyouya seems to be making a new debt for her, so it works.
As a final note, Kyouya filled out all the applications and registration forms before Haruhi could even see them and put her down as 'male.' Haruhi, given her views, doesn't really care. She suspects it's for Host Club reasons and doesn't see a reason to protest it.
SAMPLES
INTRANET/1ST PERSON SAMPLE: Ehh, I was dreading a care package for this reason. Not that I'm ungrateful but I needed new notebooks. He wouldn't know that but something useful would have been nice. It's pretty common sense what a student needs. But this...? [She's holding something pink and frilly and it's hard to tell what it is, exactly, except that it's probably meant to be worn. She frowns.] What am I supposed to do with something like this? Did he really expect a different reaction...? [With a sigh, she stuffs it back into a box.] If anyone wants it, they can have it. It will be wasted otherwise. I guess I'll just buy notebooks in town tomorrow.
LOG/3RD PERSON SAMPLE: Haruhi was still reeling. Only a few days ago she had been in Japan, finishing up the school festival activities at Ouran Academy. Now she was here at Reims, a completely different Academy in a new country. No one had actually asked her - when did they ever? - but in a blur of papers and hugs and suitcases and a passport Haruhi had known that any protests wouldn't have mattered anyway. It could be worse.
It wasn't Ouran but it was nice here. Part of her plan was to study abroad and France would look nice on her records. On the plane, she'd been able to read up on the school. She could pursue her dream just fine here. And maybe, just maybe, some quiet part of her heart was soothed to know Tamaki was here, too. Kyouya, too, but Haruhi had yet to deal with the strange fever that had plagued her the night of the festival. It just seemed to linger now.
So fresh air and a walk around campus it was. As the thoughts drifted from her mind to the lovely scenery around her, she felt her health returning. Just for now, she could breath easy.
One deep breath later she was coughing. Smoke? Cigarette smoke. Haruhi peeked around the wall for the source and saw a young boy lighting up.
"Ah, that's against school policy," she said, stepping around fully.
A boy looked up with some odd look screwing up his face. "The hell does that matter? Gonna tell?" He sneered but Haruhi just frowned. Probability said he would get caught anyway when people smelled his clothes. Why would someone want that on their record?
"Having the chance to get an education here shouldn't be wasted." Her voice was stern and she walked closer, snatching the cigarette. Before he could stop her it had been crushed under her heel. "It's disrespectful to the school."
And then she simply turned and started to walk, only to have a hand grip her arm and stop her.
"You think you're funny or some teacher's pet?" His voice was raising but Haruhi didn't care. Louder people tended to just be stupid.
"No. But you were breaking a rule. You'll get caught by someone else eventually. If your time here suffers, you'll only have yourself to blame."
They stared at each other before he let go. He said nothing else and just kicked the ground before running off in the opposite direction. Did he really think she'd tell? It'd be pretty pointless to say something now that it had been handled.
Haruhi sighed and started back to the dorms. Her relaxing walk had been ruined. But at least she'd stopped something troublesome.
People really were strange sometimes, to gamble such opportunities. She wouldn't waste hers.
HAVE YOU READ THE FAQ? Yes! A rabid wombat would be unleashed.