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Chapter Text

"Big school," Chuuya awed at the large-scale building. Ouran Academy. He messed with his gloves as he waited for Dazai. Mori told him in the brief that it was for only the richest and prestigious people, more so, people with connections to people with higher power. It was an infiltration mission. To not stand out, Chuuya left his hat. He was anxious without it. 

He noticed soft footsteps behind him, ones that nobody would ever notice. If he wasn't Dazai's partner, he would have been surprised. Chuuya turned to him, he still had bandages on and the coat Mori gifted him over his shoulders. The blue uniform looked unusual on him, Chuuya was used to seeing him in only black. 

"Took you long enough." Chuuya huffed and turned away from Dazai, his eyes drawn to the school once again. 

Chuuya walked with hurried steps, he didn't want to be here for long. Dazai caught up and walked with him, he shot winks to the girls watching them walk in. Chuuya hated the extra attention and all Dazai was doing was encouraging it. 

"Lighten up, Slug." Dazai's annoying voice said to him. Chuuya let out a sigh as his frown deepened. 

"Shut up, Dazai," Chuuya muttered back. On his side, he noticed some ladies rushing off somewhere upstairs. They all looked excited as they went upstairs. 

"Let's follow!" Dazai suggested before immediately walking off, Chuuya let out a groan at his partner's behavior. He caught up to him, following from a distance. 

The girls stopped at a room. The sign said, "Music Room 3." Chuuya and Dazai stopped at the door after the women went inside, closing the door behind them. 

"Three music rooms?" Chuuya muttered. 

"It is a big school," Dazai responded before putting a hand to open the door. "Shall we?" 

Before Chuuya could stop him, he opened the door. They were greeted with rose petals and a chorus of "Welcome!" from elegant-looking boys. 

Chuuya stood like a deer caught in headlights before Dazai walked forward, snapping him out of his daze. 

"Welcome to the Ouran Host Club!" The tall blond one declared, stepping forward. "How may we help you, today?" 

This whole situation was weird, this was supposed to be a music room, right? Chuuya opened his mouth to speak but of course, that's when Dazai started speaking. Chuuya glared at him. 

"Hello! We were just following the trail of beautiful women." 

"Womanizer." Chuuya huffed under his breath. 

"I'm Osamu Dazai and the midget here is Chuuya Nakahara!" Dazai smiled and Chuuya wanted to punch him. 

"Hello Dazai and Nakahara! I am Tamaki Suoh, the president of this club!" Tamaki looked unfazed by the duo in front of him. 

The rest of the boys introduced themselves. The identical twins introduced themselves as Hikaru and Kaoru, Chuuya couldn't tell the difference and it was throwing him off. A small blonde boy introduced himself as Honey. The biggest surprise was that he was in high school and not a random kid they kidnapped. 

Honey ran up to Chuuya and jumped at him, Chuuya was going to fight but he held back as the mission was important. He let Honey climb on him. 

"Chuu-chan!" Honey exclaimed before a tall black-haired one took Honey off him. 

"That's Mori," Tamaki explained with a smile. Chuuya blinked at the name. Of course, this guy had to have the same name as his boss. Next to him, Dazai tensed but his expression never changed. 

A short boy, just an inch or less shorter than Chuuya. He looked the most normal, with brown hair and very soft facial features. 

He walked up to Chuuya and Dazai, extending a hand. "Welcome, my name is Haruhi Fujioka. It's a little crazy in here but you'll get used to it." They let out a chuckle. He seemed the most sane out of all of them. 

Chuuya shook his hand, calmer now with a normal demeanor. "Chuuya Nakahara, just call me Chuuya." 

Dazai shook hands as well with Haruhi, smiling before deciding to bother Chuuya. 

"Seems Chuuya has done the impossible and found someone shorter than him. I'm so proud." He pretended to have tears fall from his eyes. In an instant, Chuuya's mood was ruined. He growled at him. 

"I'm sixteen! I'm still growing!" He retorted, just making Dazai laugh and his scowl deepening. 

"Admitting it is the first step to accepting it!" 

"Shut up, Dazai! I'll wipe the floor with you!" 

"I'd like to see you reach!" 

"Bastard!" Chuuya had grabbed Dazai's shirt and had his fist ready before a loud rumbling erupted in the room a circle of floor rose up, and a girl stood on it, a bow in her hair. 

"The Otaku is here," Both Kaoru and Hikaru said at the same time. 

"Renge," Haruhi mumbled, looking unimpressed like this was a normal occurrence. 

"You two must join the host club!" Range declared loudly. 

Chuuya was going to decline before Dazai whispered to him, "This would be a good way to get connections." He had a point, the only downside is that he would have to talk to people and draw attention to himself. 

"Renge, you can't just invite people-" Tamaki started before he was cut off by the black-haired boy with glasses. 

"She has a point, both are good-looking and have a dynamic already." the boy chimed in. 

All of this sounded annoying to Chuuya but Dazai must have not shared his displeasure as he had a smirk and a look of amusement in his eye. 

Renge continued her rant. "It's like they are from enemies to lovers manga! Two attractive people confusing their feelings of love for hatred!"

As she spoke, more girls were interested. 

Chuuya reddened at the attention before both he and Dazai had a disgusted look. 

"Ew! That's so gross!" Chuuya growled, his cheeks red from even the thought. 

"I would never love someone under 5"5!" Dazai countered, an exaggerated look of disgust. 

"I would never love someone with an annoying voice!" 

"Please, my voice is fine!" 

"Don't delude yourself, shitty Dazai!' 

"This is Dazai-ist!" 

"I don't care!" 

Chuuya tightened his fists and threw a punch, earning a gasp from the other members. Dazai of course dodged and scoffed. 

"Gentlemen!" Tamaki interrupted, Mori came over and stepped in between Chuuya and Dazai. Chuuya didn't want to be separated from Dazai though, yes he'd rather not be with Dazai but he's the only one who also knows the mission. 

Dazai had moved further away from Mori, his voice was a little stiffer as he spoke. "Sorry sorry, Chuuya is just so aggressive." 

Chuuya frowned and Renge was staring at them through binoculars. 

"Perfect! Perfect! Perfect!" She exclaimed loudly, "The romantic tension is up!" 

Chuuya whipped his head to her. "There is no tension! Stop saying that!" His face was crimson. 

Unfortunately, Dazai didn't share his opinion. "She's right, the drama is good for business." He had an amused smile on his face. 

"We share the same opinion. My name is Kyoya Ootori." He writes in a notebook, and Chuuya itches to look in it. He already had a bad vibe from him for some reason. 

All the host club members huddled up, chattering about whether or not the two should join. After a minute, Tamaki extended a hand and spoke. 

"So, have you decided? Will you join the host club?" He exclaimed with a smile 

Chuuya turned to Dazai, waiting for his answer. If it was a bad idea, Dazai would be able to tell. Dazai looked at him as well, a silent conversation going between the two. 

Ootori. The name rings a bell. Mori had ordered them to get close to his father. This was the best way. 

"Yes, we will join," Chuuya announces after a moment of silence. Dazai's face has a smile but it was obvious to Chuuya he was plotting. 

Honey jumped on Dazai this time, Dazai tensed severely but didn't push him off. The twins went to Chuuya's shoulders, putting an elbow on each. 

"Welcome to the club, new toys." They said in unison, Chuuya groaned. "toy?" 

"Now now, Hikaru and Kaoru, don't harass our new members." Tamaki lectured, he then turned to Chuuya and Dazai. 

"A host's job is to make women happy." He started ranting and Dazai groaned this time. Chuuya was blocking it out. 

Honey was still on Dazai's shoulders, yelling, "Daz-chan!" Dazai looked close to snapping. 

"Boring! You talk too much." Dazai whined to Tamaki. In response, Tamaka's jaw dropped and he lost light in his eyes. He pouted in the corner. 

"Mommy!" He whined and Kyoya smirked as he replied, "Yes, Daddy?" 

"what the fuck." Chuuya muttered under his breath, flabbergasted by the display. 

Hikaru and Kaoru laughed, "You'll get used to it!" 

Mori grabbed Honey off of Dazai's back. Dazai visibly jumped, playing it off as a stretch. 

"Daz-chan! You should apologize!" Honey exclaimed before climbing on Mori's shoulders. 

Chuuya huddled closer to Dazai. He didn't want Dazai to act out and jeopardize the mission. "Just say you're sorry," Chuuya warned him under his breath. 

"Tamaki, I'm sorry, please continue," Dazai mumbled reluctantly. Tamaki jumped up, instantly soothed. 

"So, we all have a hook for our characters, Hikaru and Kaoru are the little devil type, Mori is the silent type, Honey is the boy lolita type, Kyoya is the cool type, Haruhi is the natural and finally, I am the princely type." 

Dazai paused for a moment before asking. 

"Can I be the suicidal type?" 

Chuuya blinked. 

"Shut the fuck up."

Chapter Text

"Are you being serious?" Tamaki asked, stunned at the mention of suicide. All of the guests and the host club were looking at Dazai with concern. 

Chuuya slightly moved so he was standing in between Dazai and the others like he was shielding him from their worry. 

"I'm joking!" Dazai exclaimed, it was strange to Chuuya, to see people worry. Everyone in the mafia was used to it or didn't care enough to point it out. Chuuya knew he wasn't joking but he couldn't do anything about it so he just ignored the jokes like everyone else. 

"Daz-chan! Don't die!" Honey cried, running up and holding Dazai's legs. Dazai tried to shake him off but he had a tight grip, "Get off!" Chuuya laughed at his misery. 

A glare was sent his way before Tamaki cleared his throat awkwardly to take control of the conversation. 

"So. Anyway, we need to figure out what to do with you guys." He pondered with a finger on his chin. 

"How about..." He drags out and looks around the room, pretending to be lost in thought, "What if we set up a table for you two and send some volunteers your way?" 

Hands shot in the air and Hikaru and Kaoru took two at random. In the same second, they had pushed Dazai and Chuuya to a table and seated them. 

Haruhi came back with a tea tray in his hands, he offered a cup to Chuuya and Dazai. "Just act natural and you'll do fine," Haruhi reassured and placed the cups in front of them. The cup looked expensive and well-made. Chuuya saw Dazai's finger trace the rim before taking a small sip. 

The excited girls facing them on the other side of the table introduced themselves, "Hello, My name is Arisu," The one with blonde hair said, and the brunette smiled. "And I'm Kiyome." 

Dazai dramatically went down on one knee and held Kiyome's hand, she jumped and blushed heavily at the touch. Chuuya knew he just chose her because she was closer. 

"Piece of shit," Chuuya said under his breath, just because he couldn't stand Dazai's presence. Dazai reacted with an annoyed glance before going back to Kiyome. 

"My sweet Kiyome, would you please do me the honor and commit double suicide with me?" The question lingered as he let the charm drip into his tone. 

"It would be my dream to die with such a beautiful woman." He added, kissing her hand. It would have been romantic if it wasn't so morbid.  Chuuya lightly smacked Dazai's head, he jumped back and pouted at him, pretending he was hurt. 

"Chuuya! Domestic violence!" He cried, rubbing his head. His one unbandaged eye staring at him, a black void.

"It's not domestic! We have never dated!" Chuuya shouted back. He felt like he just admitted something but didn't know what. 

"It's still abuse!" Dazai whined, saving Chuuya from having to think about what he said. 

Arisu and Kiyome giggled at the scene and went to start a conversation with the two men. 

"Nakahara, why do you wear gloves and a choker? I don't usually see guys wearing chokers" Arisu teases in a lighthearted manner. 

Chuuya tensed instantly, messing with his gloves. "None of your business." He said defensively, instantly regretting it as he saw her face fall. 

Avoiding her gaze, he apologized. "I'm sorry, it's a sensitive subject, I shouldn't have yelled." Tentively he reached a hand over and placed it on top of hers. 

Arisu smiles and asks in a soft tone after a moment, "Are you alright, Nakahara?" 

His tone was quiet, his eyes still looking away. "I guess a little better now," he looked her in the eye and smiled softly. "I'm glad you're not mad at me, your opinion matters to me." 

As he spoke, it was like a breeze filled the room, scattering rose petals around as the tender moment was displayed more. Arisu gave him a lovestruck look he'd ever seen. If she was a cartoon her eyes would be hearts. 

Suddenly Tamaki showed up next to him, "That's perfect!" He shouted, a look of pride on his face. 

"What?" Chuuya asked, not understanding. 

"Amazing! The tough guy who has a soft spot! You should lean into that more!" Tamaki continued loudly. 

"huh?" 

"That could be your type!" 

Chuuya raised an eyebrow and Dazai elbowed him to get his attention, "A new role for you, Chuuya." 

Chuuya groaned loudly, instantly more tired. "Godamnnit." 

"Don't be so negative, Chibi." Dazai chuckled and put a hand in Chuuya's hair, patting it condescendingly. 

Chuuya pulled away and glared again, "Don't touch my hair!" 

"Chuuya is so aggressive, yelling at a poor girl and now me!" he taunted before Chuuya flicked his forehead. 

"Ow! You know I hate pain!" He whined, rubbing his forehead. 

Chuuya went back to talking to Arisu, she was friendly and easy to talk to, unlike a certain loser next to him. 

"Nakahara, what do you do for fun?" Arisu asks, curious about what he would say. 

"A good fight, nice and fair." Chuuya nods with his answer. 

"Surprising! You are quite short so do you make it up in strength?" Arisu tilts her head. 

Chuuya pouted and looked away as he nodded. She gives an amused smirk, "That's so cute!" 

He blushed and an embarrassed smile played on his lips. "Whatever," Chuuya remembered his role, unfortunately. She chuckled and then turned to both Chuuya and Dazai. "What brings you two to Ouran Academy?" 

Before they could make up a reason, the session ended and the ladies started filing out, Arisu and Kiyome stood and waved goodbye, "I'll request you next time!" They said in sync. 

Chuuya got up from the table, picked up his cup and drank all the tea fast so he didn't need to dump it. Haruhi cleaned and he left Dazai to go up to him. 

"Hello, Fujioka." Chuuya greeted. 

"Hey, Chuuya. Do you need help?" He responds with a calm smile on his face. 

"I was wondering if I could help you clean. 

Haruhi paused and then smiled, obviously not used to being asked if they wanted help cleaning. "Sure, I'd appreciate that. Can you wipe down the tables?" Chuuya nodded. 

Wiping down any stains and the germs he can't see, he isn't that against cleaning and he finds this mildly enjoyable. 

"I didn't take you for someone who enjoys this kind of thing," Haruhi said suddenly, not in a rude way but in an honest observation. 

Chuuya shrugged, it was a fair assumption.

"It's a nice shift from chaotic life." He admitted, finishing the table he was cleaning. 

"Yeah, it's calming to clean after so much crazy stuff." Haruhi smiled sweetly, Chuuya noticed that he had more of a feminine look. Not that Chuuya cared. 

Dazai showed up next to Chuuya, "Didn't know you were such a housewife, Chuuya. Maybe you could be my maid?" He didn't rise to the bait. Haruhi chuckled and Dazai didn't seem happy that Chuuya didn't respond. 

Tamaki walked up with Kyouya following behind him. Tamaki cleared his throat to get their attention. 

"Since you two are members of the host club, we should let you in on the host club's secret." He stated before Kyouya added, "My family has a private police, full of armed guards." 

The threat was laughable. Chuuya and Dazai were the most powerful people in the mafia. But the fact that they were being threatened was interesting, the secret must have been serious. 

"Haruhi is a girl." 

...What? That's all? That's the big secret? Chuuya guessed that boys were the only ones allowed to join but Haruhi being a girl isn't groundbreaking. 

He blinked as he processed the information, "That's it?" 

Tamaki and Kyouya seemed a little surprised by their nonchalant behavior. "I mean, it's a secret that was a big deal to us," Tamaki mumbled with wide eyes. 

Dazai had a similar look before chuckling like he heard a funny joke. "I already figured that out, it was obvious." 

"You didn't want to be rude," Chuuya said, reading Dazai's intentions like a second sense. 

Dazai nodded to his words and then looked at Tamaki but mostly Kyouya. "We promise not to tell." He put his pinkie out and Tamaki did the same. 

Chuuya requested to make some coffee and Haruhi handed him a bottle. 

"Instant coffee?" He looked at the product. He got a cup and put the coffee in it then hot water. 

"Wow! I thought only commoners knew how to make instant coffee." The twins said in unison, appearing on either side of Haruhi. 

"It's just cheaper than regular coffee." Chuuya shrugged, taking a sip from his cup. 

"But you're rich, aren't you?" They ignorantly asked, tilting both their heads in sync. 

Chuuya didn't understand these people. 

"I just don't have enough time to ground my coffee beans and I just want coffee fast." He explained he dedicates most of his time to the mafia, he doesn't have the patience to wait. 

"What do you do in your time then?" Kyouya suddenly questions, writing in his notebook as he speaks. He seemed the smartest but not smarter than Dazai so they have the upper hand. 

"Work with the business," Chuuya states, that it was technically true. 

Tamaki's eyes brightened and he jumped up, "How hard-working! You dedicate so much time to work! You must be the heir!" 

Chuuya blinked at him, "I'm not." He didn't want to be, being the Port Mafia boss wasn't a need of his. 

Kyouya adjusted his glasses and scribbled something down before asking, "Then what is your role in the family business?" 

Chuuya chose his words carefully. "I'm more so... The one who makes sure things go correctly." 

Before Kyouya could ask more, Dazai put a hand in Chuuya's hair and added, "He's underselling himself! He's like the backbone of the company." There was a sense of honesty in his words that only Chuuya could pick up on. He looked up at him with questioning eyes, staring into Dazai's one visible empty eye. It was dark and showed who he was really. 

"It's surprising for someone so short," Dazai added and the earlier tenderness vanished, Chuuya glared and kicked his shin. 

Dazai winced and whined dramatically as he hopped around, "Ow! Chuuya! That hurt!" 

Tamaki, seemingly oblivious to the tension, moved to a vase and picked up a flower from the side. A blue forget-me-not. His fingers clasped the stem and gently put it in the vase next to the other multicolored roses, white, red, blue, pink, dark purple, deep blue, and orange. Next, he placed a white chrysanthemum, right next to the forget-me-not, as if they were intertwined together. 

"What's that, Tama-chan?" Honey asked, tugging at Tamaki's sleeve. 

"New flowers, Honey-senpai." He smiled gently, it was like he was a different person from the confident buffoon he was before, taking an honest role instead. 

He reminded Chuuya of Dazai but Tamaki turned from acting a fool to a kind, aware person. Dazai on the other hand turned from a fool to an empty face. It made Chuuya feel a sense of pity but also anger. 

"Anyway! Today's meeting has ended!" Tamaki announced Mori and Honey walked out first. Once everyone filed out, Chuuya started walking with Dazai to the apartment Mori got them for the mission. 

"What interesting people!" Dazai exclaimed with his stupid smirk. 

Chuuya was more focused on the mission, "We need to get closer to Kyouya." 

Dazai's expression went serious. "I'm aware, we will have to play with them until they let down their guards." 

"What do we do in the meantime?" Chuuya asked as they arrived at the nice apartment, he turned the key and opened it. 

"Sneaking into the principal's office and looking at the files might be helpful," Dazai said as he sat on the couch. "Convincing them to let us into their homes." 

Chuuya nodded, "Then search the place for information, hope to find something damning." 

Dazai paused then added in a very serious tone, his deep eyes searching Chuuya's. 

"We can't let ourselves get attached, this is all for the mission."

Chapter Text

After classes that Chuuya zoned out on, he arrived first at the club. The room was decorated with lanterns, cobwebs, candles, and black-out curtains so the room looked dark. He looked around aimlessly, biting his lip as he waited for people to arrive. 

Kyouya was the first to walk through the door, surprised that Chuuya was early and alone. 

"Hello, Nakahara." Kyouya greets as he waits with Chuuya for the others. 

"Hey." Chuuya replied before asking, "Have you seen Dazai?" 

Kyouya raised an eyebrow and shook his head, studying him with his eyes, like he was trying to probe Chuuya's secrets through his eyes. Chuuya bit his lip from the negative tension in the room. 

"No, I haven't seen him." Kyouya replied after a moment before starting a conversation. "Nakahara, we are doing a theme today and the twins got specially made outfits for the club." 

"How did they know my size..?" He asked in response, slightly creeped out. Kyouya shrugged. 

Haruhi entered and then Tamaki, chatting to her loudly, with Haruhi barely responding. Tamaki looked at Kyouya and Chuuya before exclaiming, "Chuuya, you're early!" 

Kyouya stepped in and added, "He was actually here before me." Tamaki gaped and Haruhi laughed. They went up to Chuuya and she helped him fix the hat that was reminiscent of a jiangshi. It was bright red and his hair had a gold clip in it. The sleeves were long and he kept his arms bent at the elbow for the look. He put in a long blue earring and the paper talisman was placed on the hat, hanging in his face. 

Haruhi helped him with the makeup, putting purple under his eyes. As she did so, she observed and said, "You're here early today, Nakahara." 

Chuuya paused and bit his lip nervously, "Just didn't want to be left." Haruhi gave him an unreadable look but didn't press it. 

Dazai still hasn't arrived and the guests started filing in. Chuuya went to Arisu and started chatting. 

_____________ 

Dazai looked around the principal's office, he had already made an excuse for the principal to leave the office. 

He eyed a file cabinet and went over, carefully opening it and grabbing a file with the name, Ootori. 

Looking through it and taking pictures to view later. He was going to show Chuuya when they got back to the apartment. 

After searching around for longer, Dazai steals a piece of candy and starts walking to the Host Club. 

Entering, Dazai was slightly surprised to see the dark room illuminated by lanterns. Each member was dressed as a Jiangshi. 

A person with a dark cloak and a cat puppet in his hand. They were loudly talking to Tamaki, Haruhi, and the twins.  Dazai went to the changing room and saw Kyouya, he seemed to be waiting on him with an outfit in hand. 

"Hello, Dazai, you are late." He said handing the outfit to him. Dazai took it and went behind the curtain to change. 

"My bad!" He said back playfully. He didn't mean it and didn't hide it. Dazai sensed the head shake Kyouya gave. 

"What were you doing?" Of course, Dazai had a lie ready, Kyouya might be smart but he was confident that Kyouya wouldn't figure him and Chuuya out. 

He pretended to think, "Asking classmates to commit with me!" He exclaimed. Kyouya chuckled. It sounded fake, a calculation. Dazai could sense the facade and feeling of annoyance off of him. Did he get a sense of superiority when he saw through Kyouya's mask? Maybe. 

Dazai stepped out with his costume on, his bandages looking loose but still tight so they wouldn't fall off when walking. 

When he and Kyouya walked back to the club room, hearing the happy chatter contrasting the darkness of the room. 

Chuuya went up to Dazai instantly. It reminded him of a dog running up to greet its owner. Until he was elbowed in the side. 

"Where have you been, bandaged idiot!?" Chuuya lectured, tone sharp but the way his eyes traced over Dazai for injuries, betrayed his worry. 

Dazai chuckled and patted his head mockingly, "Were you a good doggy and waited for me?" he cooed. 

Next was a punch to the face, Dazai didn't bother to dodge, amused by his behavior. The hit made his cheek sting but it seems Chuuya made it weaker for appearances. 

Dazai let out a laugh but the feeling of unraveling startled him, he put a hand over the bandages of his eye to keep them in place. Chuuya reacted instantly and scoffed as he started to tighten his bandages. 

"Office," Dazai whispered as he did so, making use of the proximity. Chuuya nodded subtly. 

"Why did you go now?" The 'without me' was left unsaid. 

Dazai sighed, "Timing, I have photos." Chuuya gave him an unreadable look and tightened the bandage on his eye. 

A swift hand put the phone in Chuuya's pocket, letting him have the first thorough look into the photos. Maybe it was because it would be suspicious if Dazai went to look at it while already being late. or maybe it was an apology? Even Dazai didn't know. 

Chuuya excused himself and left, Dazai went to where the others were. 

The twins were wearing the same outfit with the same hat on their heads, "Which one of us is Hikaru?" They exclaimed in sync. 

Anyone less wouldn't be able to tell, but Dazai had already noticed small things like eyelashes and the most subtle signs of individualism. Haruhi walked by and scoffed but in the friendly way she always does. 

"I don't get why you two are so popular," She says as they pass. The twins huff and speak in unison again. 

"Why are you such a buzzkill? Do you want to play the Which one is Hikaru game?" 

Haruhi rolled their eyes, "no." Dazai zoned out after this, he was bored, Chuuya was reading and he had no entertainment. He was brought back by Hikaru and Kaoru doing spins. 

"Guess which one of us is Hikaru!" 

This game was too easy for Dazai, Hikaru was on the left. He stands a bit differently, has shorter eyelashes, and a tiny string on his shoes. Dazai however wasn't sure if anyone else could get that, maybe Chuuya if he cared. 

Haruhi pointed at Hikaru. Dazai was slightly surprised but in a different way. Haruhi was observant. That could be bad. 

Dazai looked at their faces as Haruhi walked away, shock painted on them. 

After a moment, Tamaki came up to Hikaru and Kaoru, showing them a laptop, "How did you get these pictures of Haruhi!?" 

As a member of the host club, Dazai went over and looked, it was a photo of Haruhi topless, it was photoshopped because of the male body. 

Dazai was bored so he purposefully tried to annoy Tamaki, "Wow! Haruhi! You look good!" 

He grinned as Tamaki looked more enraged. He started doing a weird stomping thing like a toddler throwing a tantrum. 

Chuuuya finally came back, returning the phone in Dazai's pocket subtly. Now that his dog was back, he lost interest in Tamaki. 

"Chibi!" Dazai exclaimed and leaned against his shoulder. Before Chuuya could reply, Tamaki was still angry at Dazau for his harmless comment. 

"As her father! I demand you take it back!" 

"...her father?" Dazai and Chuuya said in sync, it was unfortunately reminiscent of how the twins did it. 

"It's best not to mention it," Haruhi said in an unimpressed tone before looking at the photos. 

"Can we just not edit photos of me?" She muttered, slightly annoyed. This type of thing must have happened before. 

"But where's the fun in that?" Hikaru and Kaoru said, tilting their heads in different directions. 

The slight twitch in Hikaru's eye showed that he had a question, so Dazai did him a favor and asked for him. 

"Haruhi! How did you tell the difference between Hikaru and Kaoru?" 

"I was wondering too, Haru-chan!" Honey said when he suddenly appeared. Dazai looked him over with suspicion. 

He did some research and Honey was one of the best fighters, surprising but won't be too much of a problem. These people don't even know of abilities and unfortunately for them, Dazai had a very powerful ability-user on his side. 

"Well, how should I put this? Hikaru's speech and actions make him come across as more mischievous than Kaoru." 

Kaoru started laughing.

"I don't see what's so funny, I speak my mind and don't hold back." he paused. "It's sneaky people like Kaoru who are troublemakers." 

Kaoru stopped laughing.

"You were quick to call Haruhi your toy but you were quick to make a pass at her! Admit it! You are actually in love with her!" 

Tamaki started freaking out, "There are some things that must never be said!" 

Hikaru ignored Tamaki and yelled back, "Why would I fall for her!? She looks like a tanuki!" 

Laughter from Dazai was next, he covered his mouth with his hand. Chuuya elbowed him but he looked amused. 

The argument continued until both stormed out, leaving everyone else in silence. 

"...Can we dismiss the club early!?" Dazai broke the silence. Kyouya was typing on a calculator and Tamaki just laid his head down on a table. 

"Whatever..." You would assume something horrible happened to him; he got slightly yelled at. 

Chapter Text

"Third son must hold some resentment," Chuuya muttered as they sat in the bedroom, analyzing the photos. Dazai was lying on the bed, using a hand to close the curtains from the early Saturday sky. Chuuya was sitting in a desk chair. 

"Dad probably likes the other kids more, lol," Dazai adds playfully. 

"Don't say 'lol' out loud," Chuuya replied as he rolled his eyes. 

Dazai shrugged, "It's more efficient." 

Chuuya fought the urge to roll his eyes again, he swiped at the photos as he thought. "Transactions to private bank accounts, lots of money too." 

Dazai sat up and smirked, "Blackmail material, perhaps?" 

"It could be leverage," Chuuya paused to think before continuing. "If we can figure out what he's hiding, we can use it." 

Dazai hummed and then pulled out a laptop, "First things first, let's get into that email!" 

"How do you know the password?" Chuuya tilted his head. 

Dazai took a dramatic pause before saying slowly, "It was his first child's birthday." 

Chuuya felt a tension in the air at the words but ignored it, "So, what does it say?" 

Dazai started scrolling through it, "This is his main one so there isn't anything that criminal but!" He turned the laptop screen to Chuuya, "Before he made the personal one, a hospital worker emailed him this."

Chuuya got close to read it aloud. 

"Dear Ootori, I've noticed that inspectors aren't quite doing their jobs, I don't mean to be rude but all they do is talk to the hospital staff for almost 5 minutes then leave without looking around. If you have time, can you look into it? Regards, Sakura." 

A grin was plastered on Chuuya’s face, definitely paying the inspectors off. 

"Ah, Chuuya get under the covers" Dazai suddenly said, alert, he logged out of the email and closed it at record speeds. 

Chuuya jumped to the bed and pulled the blanket over himself and Dazai, pretending he sleeping. 

"Dazai! Chuuya! Let's go see the twins!" 

Tamki suddenly shouts. In Chuuya and Dazai's home. 

Honey jumps on the bed and starts trying to get them up, Dazai clings to Chuuya's arm in the chaos. 

"Hey! That hurts!" Dazai yells to no avail. 

Before long, Chuuya and Dazai were out of bed, standing in a daze. Haruhi gave them a sympathetic look. 

"Let's get in the car!"Honey grabbed Chuuya's arm and Dazai was dragged along. A limo was set up outside. 

It was only Honey and Tamaki being super hyper but it was too much even without Hikaru and Kaoru. 

"You two live together?" Tamaki inquired, Kyouya even lifted his eyes from his notebook. 

Chuuya gave a glance to Dazai, silently telling him to talk. The tiny glance back was enough for him to start talking, "We don't have family businesses but we both belong to a wealthy one, we live in Yokohama but we decided that we should rent an apartment here for school." 

"Interesting!" Honey exclaims and would have jumped at them if Mori hadn't stopped him. 

The drive is too hyper for Chuuya, causing him to just zone out. Or that's what he would have done if he wasn't with the enemies. 

Dazai had a good idea of pretending to be asleep, leaning on Chuuya’s side. 

Luckily they were at the mansion where the twins reside. They all filed out, Chuuya kept to the lie of Dazai taking a nap, shaking him a little harder than necessary. 

Dazai whined loudly and Chuuya promptly hit his shoulder. 

Tamaki didn't bother knocking which is not etiquette but Chuuya didn't care enough to judge. Walking in, they were assaulted by the sound of arguing before both boys went to the door. 

"...What's with your hair?" Haruhi was the first to ask. One had pink hair and the other blue. 

"I didn't want to be anything like Kaoru," Hikaru said with his flamingo pink hair. 

"... How did you sleep?" Tamaki nervously made small talk. Kaoru was the one to respond, "I had a horrible dream that I had pink hair! It looked so bad." 

"Wow, that's crazy because I had a dream my hair was an ugly blue!" Hikaru retorted, causing Kaoru to trip him as he walked closer. 

Chuuya found annoyance in this as Dazai seemed to find it amusing. But both their eyes were looking around, covering each side of the room. 

After finding nothing of importance, Chuuya turns to Dazai, making eye contact. Dazai's eyes were always like a void, threatening to drag Chuuya into them like a black hole. Every time, he has a difficult time dragging his attention away before he drowns in them. However, it was always Chuuya to looked away first. 

"Chuu-chan? Daz-chan?" Honey's voice snapped Chuuya out of his trance. That was the only warning he got before the twins fought ending up with Honey being thrown in it, Chuuya went to catch him, alongside Mori. 

Chuuya caught him and placed him down but Chuuya had the suspicion that Honey could have caught himself. Mori looked down at them.

"..." 

"..." The silence is loud. Mori didn't seem angry but it could be a trick. 

He lifted his hand and... gave Chuuya a pat on the head, it caught him so off guard he wasn't even offended. 

Chuuya looked in Dazai's direction, seeing his dark eyes flicker with something before it went away, so subtle anyone else wouldn't catch. 

"Your momma wears too much makeup!" Two voices yell simultaneously. 

The argument seemed boring, Chuuya wished that they could just get the blackmail and leave but unfortunately, they had to wait. 

After what seemed like a while, a hand grabbed Chuuya's arm and subtly led him away. Despite his instincts, he didn't throw a punch, just tensed uncomfortably. 

"Chuu-chan! Let's go explore!" Honey dragged him along as the others followed. 

When he's released, Honey jumps on his back, forcing Chuuya to give him a piggyback ride. Mori was keeping a check on the twins with Kyouya. 

Despite the awkwardness of the action, Chuuya wasn't actually that mad about it, it even reminded him of when Elise or Q blackmailed him into doing the same. Plus Chuuya was sure he wouldn't drop Honey and even if he did, it wouldn't be that painful. 

However, his good feelings were crushed by Dazai giggling at them, more so Chuuya. He felt a dog comment on the way, unfortunately, "Wow, what a good dog!" Chuuya was not proud to admit he was pissed at that. 

For the sake of appearances, he didn't punch Dazai's lights out, he settled for hitting his arm. Quite harshly. 

"Dazai, it is not elegant of you to aggravate Chuuya," Tamaki said then started a long lecture. Yes, it was childish of Chuuya to make faces at Dazai, but he liked seeing Dazai's displeased face. 

"A host is to be proper and not make such comments, our job is civil and..." He rambled on for longer. 

"Chuu-chan! Can you go faster?" Honey requested with a wide grin. Chuuya sighed but obliged it would be best to have good relations plus he was fond of Honey. 

As they wandered around the mansion, Honey pointed at a painting with child-like enthusiasm, "Woah! Look, Chuu-chan! Isn't that so pretty?" He leaned forward making Chuuya bend his back. 

He nodded and glanced at it, it was a painting of a rabbit, "It's nice, you seem to like cutesy things like bunnies." 

Honey giggled and tightened his grip on Chuuya’s shoulders, "I do! It makes me happy! What makes you happy, Chuu-chan?" 

Chuuya was taken by surprise and thought for a long while before responding, "Many things make me happy, like fighting. I enjoy a good, fair fight." 

"I like fights too!" Honey exclaimed and Chuuya’s first thought was to raise an eyebrow, but knowing Honey's background, he didn't doubt it. 

"What do you think of sweets?" Honey asked. 

"I enjoy them sometimes," he responded. 

Honey's expression got brighter and jostled around on Chuuya’s back, "I love sweets! Takashi makes the best cakes. Wanna bring Daz-chan and have cakes?" 

"I don't think Dazai likes a lot of sweets but I can bring canned crab and he'll be content." Chuuya thought out loud, recalling Dazai's peculiar eating habits. 

Honey giggled again, "Daz-chan is funny! It's nice that you know what he likes to eat. You must be close!" 

Chuuya shrugged, feeling a little awkward, "We've been through a lot together. It's complicated." 

Honey hummed and rested his chin on Chuuya’s shoulder, looking deep in thought, his voice going softer as he spoke, "It's good to have friends who understand you, even if it's complicated. Takashi and I have been together since we were little, He's always there for me." 

Chuuya smiled at the genuine words, "It's good to have people like that." 

Honey climbed down from Chuuya's back and grabbed his arm to run down the hallways. 

___ 

Dazai was bored out of his mind, while Chuuya was doing whatever with Honey, he was stuck with Tamaki still lecturing him. 

"As king of The Ouran Host Club, I command you be a gentleman to the guests and other hosts," Tamaki droned on. 

Dazai tuned him out and assessed the area, every potential exit, every plan idea if they were suddenly attacked. He figured they could rely on Mori and Honey to get rid of them but if it was ability-users. Chuuya and Dazai would have to blow their cover. 

His gaze darted to Kyouya, watching him write in his notebook. Dazai noticed his calculating gaze when they briefly made eye contact. That could make the mission a little harder, Kyouya seems to be the smart one in the group. 

"And I expect you to apologize to Chuuya," Tamaki's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. 

Dazai nodded blankly, fighting an eye roll, though he kept up the facade. His entertainment finally came back, walking through the door with a slice of cake and Honey dragging him into sight. 

Upon Chuuya's arrival, Tamaki pushed Dazai in Chuuya's direction. Then he tripped on a random banana peel, no one was eating bananas so that was strange in itself. 

Dazai did not want to get the cake on himself so, yes, he was slightly grateful that Chuuya, being ever the gentleman, caught him with his other arm without the cake. 

"Mackerel, don't be tripping around!" Chuuya sighed like it was so annoying for him to save Dazai from hitting the floor. 

Tamaki made a coughing sound to remind Dazai to apologize, why would he say sorry if he was right? 

Dazai is a genius so, the best way to get Tamaki off his back, in his brain, was to grab a spoonful of Chuuya's cake and put it up to Chuuya's face. 

"Chuu chuu, here comes the airplane," Dazai cooed and was slightly surprised that Chuuya didn't beat him but he looked like he wanted to. 

Chuuya swallowed the cake and promptly punched him.

Chapter Text

Tamaki must have thought it was a great idea to make the group play games as a way to get Hikaru and Kaoru to make up. They picked partners, Mori and Honey obviously teamed up first. Haruhi watched as Chuuya reached for Dazai's wrists but was avoided. Chuuya's response was a glare that made Haruhi shudder, but Dazai wasn't moved at all.

"I want to be with Haruhi!" Tamaki, Hikaru, and Kaoru said in unison. Haruhi didn't even want to play, did they think they were kids? A hand grabbing her wrist interrupted her as it was held above her head.

"Me and Haruhi are a team." Dazai announced, smirking at Haruhi, there was always something off about Dazai to Haruhi. The bandages were strange, and the part that was the most unsettling was his one visible eye, it was fully black at times, pure darkness, a black hole in his head. She notices the empty looks on his face when he thinks no one is watching.

Tamaki and the twins both go to yell, but Kyouya raises a hand, stopping their protests from leaving their lips. "They are team two."

Haruhi watched as Tamaki complained as he teamed up with Hikaru, leaving Chuuya and Kaoru as the final team and Kyouya as the judge. Each person wrote down a phrase, and they got to their seats on the couch. It was a big living room, do they really need all this space? Haruhi's place was almost the size of this room.

"We got this, Haruhi." Dazai nodded as Haruhi was deep in thought. "We're going to win!" But the look in his eye said he knew they weren't. Why would he say that if he knew they weren't going to win, it didn't make sense. Haruhi was struck with the realization that Dazai was thinking about past just the game, like he was waiting for something, like he was planning something farther than most can comprehend... or he was just trying to raise spirits.

As they decided on charades, Tamaki started the round, he started to waddle around like a penguin. Wait! That might be what he is, Haruhi looked at Hikaru, he seemed to be having a hard time guessing, it felt like a action movie.

"Time's up!" Dazai shouts before Kyouya. "What was it?" Hikaru asked, "Penguin."

Haruhi went up next, she picked out a paper, "Dazai." Dazai? How can she act like Dazai? She opens her eyes a bit wider and tries to give a dead-eyed look. Wait, could Dazai even guess himself? She felt silly, this was such a tiny little detail. But the look Haruhi was trying to imitate was looking straight back at her.

It was cold and chilled her to her core, one eye staring through her like he could see her every thought or insecurity. After a moment, though, Haruhi was broke out of her fear by the timer going off. "No point for team 2." Kyouya spoke, restarting the timer. Haruhi expected to be more scared of Dazai as he broke the look back to normal, but she found herself feeling more sad.

How does someone so young get a look like that? She thought of it more as dropping his guard than putting up a front. It was to scare her away from what was inside him. A strange darkness that has seen more things than she could imagine.

"What was your paper?" Dazai asked, leaning towards her. Haruhi showed him, and he looked at it intently before grinning. "I bet the slug put this in! Good thing I put down a dog on one of mine." Haruhi looked at him. "There's no absolute proof that he'll pick that one." Dazai's smile never wavered, looking deeper into it, she noticed the way his eyes didn't smile with him, making it look like a cheap imitation of a real smile.

Mori and Honey went up. Honey started to bounce around on the floor before Mori silently said, "Rabbit." They got a point.

___

Dazai was bored, and what's the best way to stop boredom? Make his mission a bit more interesting! So he was making a show of his intelligence to get Haruhi suspicious of how smart he is. Chuuya was going to punch him when he found out, but Dazai couldn't help but find that being more interesting than this silly game, it's all easy, child's play for him. Even Haruhi's small opening of the eyes was simple. 

Dazai wasn't immune to surprise, though, so when Haruhi looked at him with a hint of empathy, it made him angry. The look of pity made him want to something to replace it with something else. He felt his irritation rise as he looked at the brown eyes trying to peer through his facade.

The only saving grace was Chuuya going up and sighing loudly at his card before getting on all fours, he always tries the hardest at games like this and it always ends with Dazai recording and laughing. But when Dazai got upset, even that wasn't enough to get rid of it.

"Are you okay?" Haruhi whispered to him. Has he got sloppy or something? He's great at hiding himself, so why is this happening?

"I'm fine." He responded quickly with a slight edge to his words, his fingers were picking at his bandages on his wrist. He made small holes in his bandage as Haruhi went up for his turn. He gave a lousy answer and they still had no points. Haruhi looked at him and finally spoke slowly, "You don't have to tell me anything but you should know that I won't judge you."

It was a weak comfort but Dazai found himself more surprised by the sincere tone. No one in the mafia had such a tone, you had to be suspicious of everything so these words that sound so pure was a strange change. 

Dazai fixed a better smile on his face and made a promise to keep up a stronger front so there isn't a repeat of this.

Mori and Honey ended up winning.