"Look at her, Tamaki. Aesthetically perfect in every way."
Tamaki's eldest cousin, Masako Bianchi, is all set to inherit the Suoh companies from her conservative grandmother.
But in reality, she's not as perfect as she lets on. In the households of...
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My skirt is red, the fabric floating around my thighs with every step I take.
I'm one of many, part of the scarlet cloud as it floats toward Ouran Academy; led by the Zuka Club, we move as one, elegant figures clothed in crimson and albicant cloth.
Standing on my tiptoes, I spot immediately the willowy form of Benibara, short brown hair ruffled by the slight breeze as she walks towards the rosy school. Walking, I decide, is not the right word for how she moves; even her gait is ethereal, body gliding over the ground.
Looking around, I take in the sight, so beautiful as to be painted. Green hedges border every pathway, plants both native and exotic filling every patch of soil. Passing one, I suppress a smile as I notice the plant- a lobelia. Sumptuous hues of lavender and lilac practically overflow, specks of ivory bursting from the ground, reaching for a place among the existing blossoms.
Beside me, a long limb extends, plucking from the plants a single flower. I start, head jerking to see who it is as the same hand presents to me the delicate bloom, petals surreally vivid against their pale skin. I look up, unsure of the motive behind this act- who in Ouran would approach a student of Lobelia Academy?
Seeing the culprit, I relax.
Tucking another flower into my hair, Benibara beams down at me, coaxing from me a genuine smile in return. Her reaction is quite dramatic: abruptly, she launches into a speech, waxing poetic about how my expression could substitute the sun or bring warmth in the fiercest blizzard, playing up every angle. Catching her glance towards me, I giggle at the fiercely emotional spiel, coaxing from her the beginning of another, before she stops short.
At her sudden movement, I spin around, only to behold my junior as she supports a young boy clutching a paper bag. Beneath the surface of the brown material, bulky shapes are visible, all of them with the same dimensions.
It's quite out of character for Benio to show kindness to a boy; then, as she speaks to the youth, my confusion is resolved.
"It'd be a shame for any harm to come to that cute face of yours, young lady."
Inadvertently, my hand covers my mouth in surprise, realisation flooding me as I hurry over to the pair and offer a hand to the girl seated on the path. She takes it, fingers cold as she steadies herself before brushing down her trousers, dismissing any dust that may have gathered on them from the stone path.
A single sunbeam catches my eye, reflecting off the surface of my watch. I am suddenly reminded of the culture exposition, hastily saying farewell to Benibara and her new companion before setting off towards the building's main square.
