For all the Prince of Tennis fans, here's another fun fan fic to read while I'm working on my other fanfic Team Seigaku! Oh and expect a lot of OOC.

Kudos to Moonhera and his/her unnamed friend for their help and suggestions!

BTW: There's no crossing-dressing or extreme yoai in this fic.

The Seigaku Host Club is a club formed at the prestigious Seishun Junior High Academy. It is made up of a band of talented and handsome boys of the school that come from families included in blooming businesses.

To all the students at Seishun, these boys are known as the Princes of Seigaku.

Their goal, assist the students of the school by entertaining girls and showing inspiration and comfort to the boys who are in need of advice. This club has been known as Seigaku's healers that bring joy and comfort to the students'.

Think of it as Seigaku's worry free retreat site for the stressed and in need.

However even a prestigious club such as this one may carry some secrets that some students wouldn't expect...

Chapter 1 – Seigaku's New Prince

Seishun Academy, it is one of Tokyo's most famous private junior high schools known for its sports teams and exceeding grades. That is the school where our main character for this story is set to attend on this very day.

Echizen Ryoma, a 12 year old boy who just turned 7th grade, was walking down a hallway on his own, carrying what looks like a tennis bag over his shoulder. Now usually you'd expect an ordinary student to dress appropriately in uniform, however this boy was wearing a slightly different version. He only wore black pants and a white collared shirt with a tie. Also, he has messy hair and bangs that covers part of his face and over his head he wears a white cap.

It has been a week since Ryoma had started to attend this school, which was in the middle of the 1st quarter of the year and 2 months since he moved to Japan from America. Why move to America? You'll find out later. Let's stick to the present for now.

Everywhere he looked, there's always people filling up classrooms, mostly because this is free period time, when students are free to go do activities, clubs or studying. The reason why this boy is walking around the entire school was that he wants to look for a place to take a nap. Long lectures during classes seem to tire him out easily.

He had no luck so far so he tried heading to the 3rd floor by stairs.

Finally he arrived at a hall he didn't recall walking down before. It sounded quiet and there was no one around, so he stuck with this area at least.

At last, he reached a room that has the sign 'Study Hall 3' over the door. Curious, Ryoma first pressed his ear against the door and waited for a few seconds quietly. To his luck, he heard no sound coming from the room at all.

"Finally," he said with relief, "A place to take a nap."

With that, Ryoma reached for the handle and eagerly slid it open to the side.

When the door opened, Ryoma walked in and found himself looking at really neat and clean room that was bigger than he expected. There were furniture that looked expensive, some like couches the size of beds, cushiony chairs, a big plasma screen TV hung on a wall, a spotless and shiny marble floor. It's hard to imagine that this is a room located in a school, it looked more like a rich person's lounging room.

"What...is this place?" Ryoma said quietly in awe.

"Welcome," came a group of voices that came from the center of the entire room.

Standing in the middle of the room are 8 junior high boys wearing the school uniform, but altered it so that the outines and trims on the jackets are white while dark blue lines travel down the sides of their pants. The school's crest is embedded on their jacket's fronts, a gold badge with the letters SP(stands for Seigaku Prince) , and navy blue neckties. (A/N: since Seigaku's normal school uniforms aren't like Ouran high school's I kind of changed a few things!)

"Who the heck..." Ryoma thought, "are these guys?"

That was the day and moment Ryoma Echizen first encountered Seishun Academy's illustrious club that displayed the school's honor, the Seigaku Host Club.

As soon as they saw their unexpected guest walk in, the 8 boys looked at the newcomer with puzzlement, for they had expected someone quite different.

"Hey look, a newbie," one of the boys with black hair spiked up and violet eyes spoke."Yes but I never saw him before," said the boy with brown hair and side burns.

A taller boy with square shaped glasses gave a speculating look. "Hmm, 70% says that he may be a transfer student, 10% says he's an elementary student lost, and 20% says that he's a complete stranger who happens to come across our school," he hypothesized.

Then the boy with an egg shaped head turned to the first boy who spoke earlier and another boy wearing a green bandana and has a scary face. "Hey Momo, Kaidoh, he isn't in your class is he?"

"Uh-uh," the one called Momo responded while the other 8th grader gave a scoff. "Like I'd know," he mumbled, "He didn't make a good impression during the freshmen entrance ceremony."

Now at this, the boy with square shaped glasses then gave a small smile and thought to himself for a second, "You don't say..."

Sitting in the center of the group is a quiet boy with brown messy hair, wears oval shaped glasses, and a solemn expression, hardly the type to smile. He only eyed Ryoma silently while the others chatted on.

"Well I suppose he's a guest all the same," the other boy with glasses then spoke, "Welcome to the Seigaku Host Club. We are the 8 Princes of Seigaku Academy. Glad you could join us...Mr. Exchange Student."

Suddenly the boy with the egg shaped head, and happens to be the vice president, gave a surprised gasp and looked at Ryoma. "Then does that mean, you must be the new student Echizen Ryoma right?"

Ryoma never felt more nervous when he spoke his name before he even got to say it. "...You know who I am?" he dared to ask with an uneasy thought.

"Hard to not know," said a boy with brown hair and wearing a smile, "You're quite a big talk around the school lately. A child prodigy who excelled in sports and got into this school by a tennis scholarship and is a foreign exchange student from New York, USA. That's really something coming from a 7th grader."

"You really are like a hero to the rest of the freshmen you know for those who love tennis," the other brown haired boy with sideburns and a gentle face spoke.

"Yeah, we're part of the school's tennis team ourselves," said the bold boy with spiked up hair, "Care to share some stories about your accomplishments in America?"

Ryoma backed away from the group, hoping to reach the door and get the heck out. "Uh...sorry, don't have the time," he lied to make up an excuse, "Now if you'll excuse me."

Before Ryoma could reach the door, he was caught by the arm by a tall redhead boy with a band aid on his right cheek. Ryoma looked behind at the corner of his eye and saw that this boy had a pin on his uniform collar that states he's a third year student. But yet, this 3rd year acts so childish and happy.

"Hey there Ochibi, come back here!" the redhead said playfully as he hauled Ryoma back to the center of the room against his will. The 9th grader looked at Ryoma with an eager look as he asks several questions, "Say are you really from New York? Do you have any certain hobbies? Are you some kind of tennis prodigy?"

Unable to remember and answer all the questions, Ryoma grew impatient and had to let it out. "That's none of your business! And who are you calling Ochibi?" he snapped a little too harshly at the 3rd year.

This sort of frightened the redhead that he jumped away from Ryoma and ran behind the vice president of the club for cover. "Ah! Ochibi's scary!" he cried. The honey brown haired boy then comforted the redhead and calmed him down.

Wanting to change the subject, the vice president then spoke, "So, since you came to us, what type of assistance can we help you with Echizen? Perhaps you need some advice to accomplish school from me? Or maybe you need a good laugh by one of our talented men? Or perhaps you require just a friend to talk to? Feel free to ask."

Ryoma had no idea why these boys thought the he was asking for their services and for what. All he cared about was getting out of the room.

"Look, I was just looking for a quiet place to take a nap," he said out loud for them to hear as he slowly backed up to the side.

Unfortunately Ryoma didn't look behind him in time, for now he bumped into the wall. The sudden bump caused a framed picture beside Ryoma to rattle and slip off its hook and crashed to the floor. The picture was a photoshop image of a cactus, some parts are colored while the rest are black and white. Ryoma knew the breaking something like this must be trouble.

"Uh oh..." the redhead boy gave a troubling look, "That's not good."

"Oh no," the vice president said with disappointment, "And Fuji worked hard to enter this in our next school auction."

"Hey, it's all good," said the one called Fuji, who doesn't seem to be too sad, "That was something a friend from Italy made for me."

Nevertheless, all of the older boys looked displeased with this incident.

"Inui, how much were we going to auction off that artwork?" the leader of the group inquired, turning to their smart man. The other glasses wearing boy looked into his green notebook and searched for his answer.

"Let's see...I believe our final decision was...2 million yen," he announced. (I have no idea how much that costs! I'm from US.)

Ryoma's mind went blank the moment the 3rd year said the price. He couldn't dare try to imagine how much monthly allowances he'll have to save up to meet that price. "2...m-million..yen," he slowly repeated in dread.

"I guess promising to pay us back won't be optional," Momoshiro commented, judging from the look on Ryoma's face, "Look at the guy. He looks as if he's not rich enough to even afford a proper school uniform and nice tennis gear."

The vice president of the group analyzed one of the broken remains of the picture and shook his head. Then he turned to their club president for instructions. "What are we going to do Tezuka?" he asked.

Since it was all up to the president, Tezuka took his seat on the chair that he was sitting on in the beginning.

Serious as a judge overseeing a trial, Tezuka looked down at Ryoma with a firm decision. "I suppose if he can't pay by cash...he'll have to pay by his body," he proclaimed, "Echizen Ryoma, starting today, you are forced to be the host club's lap dog in order to pay off the debt."

Lap dog?

All Ryoma did was stand there with his mind blank again as the other boys patted him on the back, wishing him luck. The only thing he can think of is, "Why did I even come to this school in the first place?"

And that's how it is. Echizen Ryoma had no choice but to work for the Club in order to pay off his huge debt. He officially starts work when the club opens during the lunch break, the time when they usually accept people.

The club's main goal is to entertain girls and offer advice and show inspiration to the boys. Some examples would be to host a special party for ladies or give boys lessons in finding the right girl, things like that. In Seigaku, they were well known by all students and were called to be the school's worry-free experts. In truth, the princes are also the school's official tennis team. However, due to Seigaku being excused out of this year's tennis matches so they can first focus on training for an overseas tournament next year, the boys created the club to pass the time when they don't have training.

Tezuka sat on a couch with a few girls sitting on his left side while a few boys are sitting on his right. Students come to him mostly to ask for help or to ask him questions about himself, as long as they're ones that Tezuka will willingly answer.

A 2nd year student boy asked the president though looks nervous, "Tezuka-senpai, I heard that your an ace student in World History. So I was wondering um...if..."

As if he read his thoughts, Tezuka opened his eyes and spoke, "You need assistance for a certain assignment?"

Surprised that he figured it out, the 8th grader gave an eager nod. "I understand if you say no," he said honestly, "It's just that I have trouble memorizing certain events."

Kunimitsu took a few moments to think about it, keeping the boy on suspense. Finally he answered, "Tomorrow, at the library, 3:45 sharp. I only have 2 hours to spend before attending to my other work. No money will be necessary."

Thrilled and grateful, the 2nd year boy bowed his head to the president. "Thank you so much senpai!"

Now sitting beside Tezuka is a 3rd year student girl with long smooth red hair and a proper firm face as aristocrats would give. "So Tezuka-kun, I heard that the host club is now taking in a stray freshman right?" she inquired in a noble voice.

"Something related to that," Tezuka replied, "It's only for the time being."

At that moment, the said person is now entering the club room, back from doing errands for the club as part of his duties. He was carrying a bag full of items he got from the nearest convenience store.

"I'm back," Ryoma dully announced.

"Did you bring everything from the list Echizen?" the president asked, "We'll need some drinks."

Ryoma then dug into the shopping bag and took out a can. "Here you go."

To Tezuka's puzzlement, Ryoma handed him a soda can with a name that he hasn't heard of before.

"...What is this?" he questioned the club's lap dog.

"It's soda," was Ryoma's answer, "Can't you tell?"

Momoshiro, Oishi and Kawamura, curious as he is, crowded Tezuka so they can have a closer look at the foreign looking item.

"I've never tasted that kind of brand before," said Momoshiro curiously.

"Hey I've heard about this!" Oishi recalled, "This is a best seller in America. They call it Pepsi coke."

This new drink made the customers curious as well.

"I've never heard of that before."

"So what does a Pepsi taste like?"

"I've heard that they even make a snack called root beer float in America. Where they eat coke with ice cream."

"Seriously?"

Feeling quite uncomfortable with all the nonstop comments on his choice of drinks, Ryoma sighed. "Okay if you want me to get something else I'll go," he nonchalantly insisted.

But Tezuka spoke, "Hold it. We'll try this out. A drink is a drink. It's also good to try something foreign and new once in a while."

His moving speech pleased the crowd around as they applauded while Ryoma looked unpleasant. "What is up with these students?" he asked himself.

Now Tezuka was the one to make the daring move to open the first can of soda, ready to taste it first. But before he took a sip, his female customer spoke, "Kunimitsu, now do you really think you'll handle that foreign liquid?" It sounded as if she's insulting the one who bought the drink in the first place.

Nonetheless, Tezuka spoke, "If it's a soda, then it shouldn't be any different than the drinks we have here in Tokyo."

And with that, with everyone watching in suspense, Tezuka raised the can to his lips and took a few long gulps.

Seconds later, he stopped to take a moment and savor the taste.

And in an ever so calm voice he spoke, "...It is refreshing."

Excited, the other students around then requested to try some of the Pepsi.

"Echizen, make sure to serve some to the other guests," Tezuka then instructed, making sure not to leave Ryoma with any free time.

Ryoma sighed, "...Yes sir."

Approaching the annoyed Echizen is the tall boy with different glasses. He had witnessed the Pepsi taste and is amused. "As we'd expect from our captain," the glasses wearing boy commented, writing things into his notebook, "Tezuka Kunimitsu is the most esteemed out of all of us. That was why we nominated him for this club's president and captain, despite his quietness and mood."

Ryoma took a look at Tezuka again, who's surrounded by anxious girls with questions for him as he sat there calmly and quietly. "That makes sense," he said.

Takeshi Momoshiro and Kaoru Kaidoh, the group's only 8th graders, were seeing to their guests on another table apart from Tezuka's.

Momoshiro, who prefers to be called 'Momo', was talking with the girls at his table and laughing heartily. His specialty is being friendly with anyone he meets and tends to be mischievous. He wears his uniform jacket unbuttoned and doesn't wear a tie.

"Okay so then I went up to the guy and warned him to leave so else I'd teach him a lesson," he said, telling them a fun story, "But he just stared at me so weirdly I thought he wasn't smart enough to understand what I just said. So instead, I used the basketball I was holding and Dunk Smashed him so that he toppled over like building blocks!"

The boys and girls at his table were amused by his story and laughed along with him.

"Wow, you sure are funny Momo-senpai," a freshman girl said with joy.

"Maybe you should consider joining the basketball team next," a boy from Momo's class suggested.

Kaidoh, nicknamed the Viper, on the other hand, was the opposite. He hardly talked much as the girls surrounding him just stared at him sitting there with his arms crossed and with his eyes closed, making him the strong and silent type. His uniform jacket is halfway unbuttoned and he wore his tie loosely.

He then took a breath and exhaled, "Fshuuu..." to sound like a snake, hence his nickname.

"Wow...even though he looks scary and doesn't talk much, Kaidoh still looks cool," said an admiring girl.

Boys who have Kaidoh as their client admire him as well.

"If only I can be as cool as Kaidoh."

"That's the reason they call him Viper."

Now one of the girls from Takeshi's table spoke, "Here Momo, I bought some hamburgers from Burgerland for you. They're shrimp cutlet." She placed a takeout bag on the table in front of Momoshiro and he eagerly peeked inside and was pleased.

"My favorite!" he said, "Thanks!"

He then unwrapped a burger and ate it in haste. Did I forget to mention that Momo is actually quite a eater?

His not so quiet munching and the luscious sounds he makes with his mouth full were starting to bother Kaidoh.

"Oi , do you mind keeping it down?" he spoke out loud to get Takeshi's attention, "You make me sick watching and hearing you stuff your face like a pig."

His insult caught Momoshiro's attention that he paused and swallowed the recent contents in his mouth. "What did you call me Viper?" he said in aggravation, cocking his eyebrow.

"You heard me. Unless your insane chewing blocked out all your hearing," Kaidoh replied, still not looking at him.

Suddenly to the customers' startle, Momoshiro rose to his feet and stomped over to confront Kaidoh. "And who are you to talk Snakey?" he spat, "All you do is sit there and be all gloomy like Frankenstein!"

In a fit of frustration, Kaidoh glared at Momoshiro and exhaled, "Ssssss..."

"Ooh now I'm scared," Momo mocked, "Is hissing all you're going to do Viper?"

"Shut up!"

Now Kaidoh got to his feet and grabbed the front of Momoshiro's shirt and growled. Both glared at each other, electricity shooting out of eyes.

Their guests stared in suspense, wondering if they will go too far.

"They're at it again," one commented.

"Should we stop them?"

"No way! Kaidoh looks cool when he's about to put up a fight."

Ryoma could only shake his head as he watched the two continue to throw insults at each other. "They're just like cat and dog," he compared.

"It's natural here in the club," said Inui, who is currently following Ryoma in order to explain the ropes around the club, "Kaidoh and Momoshiro have been rivals since they first entered junior high. No matter what, they always find a way to argue with another."

Inui Sadaharu, 9th grader, is best known as the club's secretary and treasurer. His special trait is being the brains behind the club and is brilliantly clever. You can never expect what sort of scheme he has up in his sleeve on certain occasions.

Moving on, Kawamura Takashi, 3rd year student, who is nicknamed Taka sometimes, is a polite, shy and soft speaking boy who is timid when surrounded by lots of people. Nevertheless, he's good at being polite and tries his best to please his customers.

"Say Taka, I'm holding a party for a friend and plan to order sushi for the meal," a boy in the 3rd year and has blond hair said to Kawamura, "You're an expert with sushi. What do you suggest would be good?"

Takashi gave it a thought. "Well...I say that the fancy tuna would be good at this time of season. Oh and you have to try the Hiramasa (Yellowtail amberjack) before it runs out."

Pleased with his classmate's advice, the customer said, "You're the man Taka."

Now one of Takashi's customers, a girl with a ponytail, who's part of the school's girls softball team, shyly spoke, "Oh Taka-san, this is for you." She then held out a sparkly clean aluminum baseball bat made from the finest baseball shop in the town. "This is my thanks for helping with our softball team's training yesterday," the softball member included with gratitude, "You really helped us out a lot."

Pleased with her kindness, Takashi beamed and said, "Oh thank you." He then reached out and held the bat by its handle and tried it out.

He started, "Gee, this really is a nice ba..."

Before he could finish his sentence however, the hand that was gripping the bat now trembled and tightened around the handle. Ryoma can then start to sense a fiery aura emerging from the 3rd year as he started to growl under his breath.

"AAARGH! I'M BURNING!" he roared. Completely a different person, the girls stared in awe at this new Kawamura.

"Oh wow! Taka-san is more cool in his burning mode!"

"Look at him!"

Kawamura dangerously swung the baseball bat hard a couple of times to show his strength until somehow the bat slipped out of his fingers.

When it did, Kawamura froze and blinked several times, suddenly returning to the way he was before he touched the bat. "Huh? Oh oops," he said with embarrassment, "I overdid it again didn't I?"

But his customers instead were still amazed and said commented on his interesting trait. It seems that no matter what personality it is, the students enjoyed him all the same.

Ryoma was still appalled at Takashi's strange behavior as he stood there wide eyed. "...What just happened?" he finally got the words out.

"Taka-san has a split personality. It always happens whenever he grips onto something similar to a tennis racket," said Inui, "One moment you see him as a shy polite boy, but the next he turns into a strong and confident man."

Then the doors of the club room opened and the final two princes have arrived.

The first was Kikumaru Eiji, the redhead who's a 3rd year student as well, who entered in a bouncy and light mood. "Ohayo!" he said cheerfully, "Ladies, omatahe!"

Behind him is Shusuke Fuji, the club's ever smiling genius and a 3rd year as well, and who happens to be in the same class as Eiji.

Their guests were already seated on two couches and lit up with joy once they came in the room.

"Hi Kikumaru-senpai! Hi Fuji-senpai!"

"We've been waiting for you!"

Then Kikumaru waved his hand left to right and said in a modest voice, "Now, now, I told you all that just Eiji is fine."

"Fuji-senpai, we...we saved you two some seats," one girl said, blushing uncontrollably.

Fuji took his seat beside her and said politely, "Why thank you." His pleasant and handsome smile always makes the girls go excited especially when he looks at them with his eyes closed. "Sorry we were late. I had to wake up Eiji because he was sleeping while waiting for me to finish my photography meeting."

Embarrassed, Eiji complained, "Ah Shusuke! Don't tell them that! It's embarrassing!"

Fuji looked to his friend and again smiled again in bliss. "Why not? I think it's rather cute how you sleep," he complimented with care.

At that moment, Oishi had come over to check on the two and had just heard Fuji's last comment. "Eiji, you should at least try to get more sleep at home before class if you want to avoid sleeping during classes. I mean look at you. You got dried up drool on the side of your mouth," he pointed out.

Eiji reached up and touched the side of his mouth and blushed when he felt dried up drool as Oishi pointed out.

The vice president then took out a handkerchief and dipped it in a glass of water. Then using the wet cloth, he gently rubbed it on the side of Eiji's mouth until it's all clean. "There. Just make sure you get enough sleep when you get home tonight Eiji okay?" he suggested, sounding like a perfect mother.

Eiji replied by nodding willingly and said, "OK!"

The girls who were watching them sighed lovingly. "Eiji-senpai and Oishi-senpai...Fuji-senpai and Eiji-senpai...such a wonderful friendship," one girl remarked.

Ryoma watched the three boys and think they're acting too close. "For 9th graders who are friends and classmates...they act too close to each other," he moaned.

"Oh but they are a good combination," said Inui, having heard Ryoma's comment, "Eiji and Oishi are known as the Golden Pair here at Seigaku because of Oishi's quick decision making and Eiji's amazing flashy skills. Also, the ladies find Eiji and Fuji's friendship quite interesting and deep and they are known as the Dream Pair. You see Fuji Shusuke is known as our number 2 prince after Tezuka since he's the most popular among the girls and is called the school's genius."

After hearing this, Ryoma looked again at the three boys that were mentioned and saw Eiji playfully talking with the girls, making them laugh, Fuji smiling nonstop to each girl he talks to, and Oishi being requested to sign a picture of him from another girl.

"As you can see, each of us members here serve our customers' needs based on our skills and characteristics," Inui went on to explain the basics of the club's purpose to Echizen, "I suggest you get use to all the rules and our procedures ASAP Echizen, as you may be serving us for a long time until your graduation year."

He then loomed over Ryoma with the lenses of his glasses shining, giving him a creepy and sinister smile.

"And I wouldn't suggest in trying to run," he strongly advised, "Just to give you a heads up, Tezuka's family is connected to the special police forces that are on standby whenever he needs them. I would have a passport ready should you try to escape."

Taking this as a scary warning rather than advice, Ryoma's insides shook at the thought of the possibility that Tezuka might ship him off to a faraway country away from Japan.

"What a creepy guy..." he thought.

But then his thinking was interrupted when he heard a joyful voice shout out from behind him.

"Ochibi!"

Using Ryoma's nickname that he has picked out for him, Eiji came out of nowhere and jumping onto Ryoma, pulling the little guy into a friendly hug. "Hey Ochibi, you want to join us for snacks?" he offered eagerly.

"Uh...no thanks."

"No? Then how would you like to play with my Daigoroh here?"

He proudly held up a cute, and big, brown teddy bear with a red bow tied around its neck. But Ryoma wasn't the type of boy who's interesting in stuffed animals and declined the offer. "Sorry but I don't play with dolls," he stated.

"Aw..." Eiji moaned, "Well! Too bad, so sad!" He then bounced away to get back to his customers and show them his bear instead.

As Ryoma watched, he started to get thoughts in his head concerning Eiji. "Sometimes I wonder if he really is a 9th grader."

"You know you should learn how to be social with others Echizen," said a voice from behind him.

Oishi had came in when Ryoma wasn't looking and startled the boy. Oishi continued, "You can make more friends in this school if you can at least try to talk with others."

"Yeah well maybe I just don't want people to get to know me at all," Ryoma stated, turning his back to Oishi.

Oishi was not giving up on Ryoma that easily and stepped in front of him again. "Why not?" he asked, "All of us princes here started out uncomfortable in our environment during our freshmen years, but eventually we learned to express our true characteristics in order for us to communicate better."

Then Oishi had a perfect idea, being the person who can't turn down people in need of his comforting counsel. "Hey in fact, I'd be willing to give you some lessons so you can be like one of us Princes," he excitedly offered, "Just wait, I can help you become a more sociable person you are meant to be!"

This kind of idea wasn't much to Ryoma's interest and immediately declined in his head. "Look, there's just no way-" he started in order to tell them once and for all to stay out of his personal business.

"If I may make a suggestion Senpai," Momo then spoke up having to have overheard the conversation, "Maybe it'll be a lot simpler for Echizen if people can at least see the guy's face. That way he won't look too emo and people will see the real him. For instance, what if we take off this cap?"

Momo then approached Ryoma and removed the cap he's wearing so he can get a better view of his face. It was right then that a spark of realization entered the boy's mind as his eyes widened. This caused Tezuka to walk up beside Momo and take a good look at Ryoma as well.

Uncomfortable with the staring, Ryoma spoke, "Excuse me, but can I have my hat back now?"

Seconds of silence later, Tezuka immediately turned to his club members and spoke to each one.

"Fuji, you know what to do," he first spoke as if he's a general. The school genius nodded as if he read Tezuka's mind. Then Fuji turned to Oishi and the two nodded at each other before running up behind Ryoma and grabbed an arm.

"Hey wait!"

But before he could ask, he was dragged away by the two 9th graders and stampeded out of the room.

Now Tezuka turned to the data man. "Inui, call the club's best hair stylist," he ordered. Immediately Inui pulled out his cell phone and speed dialed a number.

Then Tezuka spoke, "Kaidoh, Momoshiro, run down to the school's best tennis supply store and order a new set of tennis equipment."

Now the two were irked that they had to be paired together for this job, but orders are orders as they marched out of the room, not even bothering to look at each other.

"Kawamura, fill out a club member form with Echizen's name on it and send it to Coach."

Kawamura nodded as he too ran out of the room in haste.

All that's left of the club members that doesn't have a job yet is Kikumaru, who now jumped up and down in front of Tezuka with an eager face, awaiting his orders. "And what do I do Captain huh? Huh? Nya?" he asked eagerly with shiny eyes.

"Kikumaru..." the president started.

"Uh-huh?"

"...You keep the customers entertained. Don't let your guard down."

Eiji's smile was replaced instantly by a sad frown and he began to pout. "Mou..." he moaned, being left out of the fun.

However, Tezuka always has a good reason, as he approached his fellow classmate with a firm and positive attitude. He said, "Our guests will need your specialty to keep them occupied while we're absent so we won't let them down. I'm counting on you, Kikumaru."

His plan to encourage Eiji worked out well as the smiles returned to Eiji once again.

"Okay! You can count on me Captain!" he assured, saluting playfully.

For their guests' pleasure, Eiji returned to the students with his happy mood again. "Minna, gomenasai! Everyone else is going to be busy! But I'm still here!" he announced, "So until your sessions are over, please enjoy watching Kikumaru-sama's amazing acrobatics!"

Thrilled, the girls applauded in excitement as Eiji then started to perform his stunning acrobatics. (I can't explain more because Ryoma still doesn't know about this trait of Eiji.)

Half an hour later, Fuji and Oishi came into the empty classroom where they had taken Ryoma with something for him. The two held out a brand new school uniform that all club members wear in front of Ryoma proudly. "Here, try this on," Fuji recommended.

"Why should I?"

"Don't ask, just change," Oishi insisted.

And before Ryoma could protest again, Fuji placed the new uniform in Ryoma's hands and he and Oishi pushed the boy into a changing stall that's surrounded by a curtain so he can change.

The next minute later, Kawamura came into the room, panting from having to have run all the way back from the tennis store. "The hair stylist is here," he told them.

15 minutes later, after a rough trip, Momo and Kaidoh finally (and thankfully) made it back to the room. Kaidoh was carrying a brand new tennis bag while Momoshiro carried two shiny and new tennis rackets, a container with 3 new tennis balls, and several small items used in tennis that they just brought from a store.

50 minutes later, all of the Seigaku Princes gathered in the room, waiting for Ryoma to come out of the changing stall they made by hanging a curtain around an area. All of the guests and customers have left, so Eiji joined them as well, his job done and well.

After what seemed like forever, they heard Ryoma call out, "Uh senpai?"

"Come on, what's taking you so long to just change?" Momoshiro asked impatiently.

Finally the waiting was over when the curtain of the changing stall was pushed to the side and Ryoma stepped out.

"You sure this isn't too much?" Ryoma asked with an unsure look on his face.

Immediately all of the princes' eyes (minus Tezuka) widened in awe as they looked upon the fantastic result of their project.

Ryoma's hair was cut and fixed so that it shone black green and is at a perfect length. His face was more revealed now that all the bangs were gone to reveal his shiny brown eyes. He now wore the clean and proper uniform of the club given by Fuji and Kikumaru. He even was given a new clean cap, with the same design as his old one, courtesy of the club.

"Whoa...Ochibi you look so cute!" was Eiji's first comment in adoration.

"If we'd have known you look like that under that mopey face of yours, we would've helped you out the moment we saw you," said Momoshiro.

"He could make a useful addition to the club," Inui hypothesized, scratching his chin in thought, "Probability of the raised club's earnings...90%"

"You may have a good point Inui," said Tezuka. Now he faced Ryoma and pointed a finger at him. "Echizen, we are now giving you a new position in this club. Starting today, you will be working as an official prince of the Seigaku Host Club," he now declared, "If you manage to receive at least 100 students to request for you, your debt will be settled."

There was just no end to these uncomfortable changes in Ryoma's school life as he stared blankly at the senpais.

"Me? A prince?"

Having to have gained a big step in his position, Ryoma began his new role as a prince starting on the next day when the club was open for business. However, was a little difficult for Ryoma to get used to, being surrounded by anxious girls when he's not much of a talker, but he remembered the deal.

"Just remember Ryoma, you only need at least 100 people to request you" he told himself in his mind, "But how do I do that?"

Now one of his customers asked, "So Ryoma, I have to ask, what does your family do?"

"Do you have a favorite hobby?" another girl asked.

"What made you join the Princes?" the third asked.

Ryoma continued to be clueless and lost at what he should say. Then, the perfect story popped into his head.

Speculating closely on their new member's progress, Tezuka and Oishi viewed from their seats on the other side of the room. They are able to hear Ryoma tell his story to the girls sitting around him.

After Ryoma finished his tale, the girls were now filled with sympathy for Ryoma.

"I see...So your mom died 4 years ago," said one of the girls sadly.

"Does someone do the housework and cooking?" asked another.

"Yeah. My cousin Nanako does," Ryoma replied, "She's older than me and she takes care of me and my dad as if she's my second mother. But I try not to think about missing my mom too much so I can make my dad happy."

His story touched the hearts of the girls that their eyes were filled with emotion and tears while gazing at his innocent face.

"Ryoma, do you mind if we request to see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah me too!"

His plan worked out as Ryoma wanted. "That'll be nice," he said gratefully.

Tezuka and Oishi were impressed at Ryoma's performance in such a quick time. "Gosh...he's doing well for a beginner," Oishi was the first to comment. Tezuka gave a small positive sound as a sign of agreement.

Then Tezuka called out, "Echizen, come over here."

Following the president's orders, Ryoma walked over to Tezuka and Oishi's table and noticed that the girl from yesterday who had rudely commented on the Pepsi drinking was sitting beside Tezuka again.

"There's someone I want you to meet," said Tezuka. Then he ushered Ryoma to look over to the girl sitting next to him.

Tezuka continued, "This is my regular customer and fellow classmate, Yamashita Masami ."

Remembering that princes of the club always have to be on their best behavior, Ryoma faced Yamashita with the best smile that he can give. "Nice to meet you Yamashita-senpai," he said so politely.

Stunned by Ryoma's well behaved introduction, Oishi couldn't hold it in. He immediately jumped up and embraced Ryoma in a tightening hug. "Sugoi Echizen! Remarkably well done!" he began to praise with passion, "The way you said that was just perfect! I'm so proud!" He really is acting like a mom being proud of her child as if he has gotten a passing grade on his test.

"Oishi..." Tezuka spoke but unable to get his vice president's attention.

Ryoma suffocated in Oishi's grasp and struggled to break free but found that he can't. "Senpais!" he cried out desperately to anyone who would be listening.

Fortunately his pleas of help was seen by 2 fellow club members from the other side of the room. "Uh oh, looks like Ochibi needs help," Eiji told Fuji, concerned about Ryoma's safety.

"Then we should give him a hand," Fuji suggested playfully. Then he eyed Kawamura who was talking to girls on the table next to theirs with a clever idea popping into his head. And from his bag, Fuji took out one of his tennis rackets and called out, "Hey Taka-san, could you hold onto this for a moment?"

Right when Kawamura turned to face Fuji, he was handed the tennis racket by the genius and by instinct grabbed onto the handle.

Quickly he slipped into his second personality and yelled, "OH YEAH! LOOK OUT!"

He stampeded over to where Ryoma was being in his burning mode like a bull and using his free strong arm, he managed to grab the neck of Ryoma's shirt collar and pried him loose from Oishi. Now Ryoma found himself hanging in the air by Kawamura while everyone else was stunned by Kawamura's act.

"Oops...Taka, I think you went a little overboard there," said Fuji with a small chuckle.

"Senpai?" Ryoma said, looking down at Kawamura, "Can you put me down now?"

Still in his burning mode, Takashi gave a smug smile and laughed, "Ah-ha! How's that? I'm burning!"

Finally Tezuka himself stood up and swiped the tennis racket out of Taka's hand, instantly snapping him back to his normal self. Takashi looked curiously around, wondering how he got there and was surprised to see Ryoma hanging from his grip.

"Oh Echizen, how'd you get there?" he asked shyly. He then released Ryoma and let the boy straighten out his clothes while Oishi spoke, "Taka, you really should control your second personality more carefully."

"Sorry," Takashi mumbled shyly.

As the boys conversed, none of them seemed to notice that Yamashita was looking at them from where she sat. She seemed to be staring particularly at Ryoma with envy when Tezuka left the couch to lecture the boys.

After a first good day of hosting business, Ryoma never felt more relieved and relaxed when the club was done for the day. Now he was ready to head home and get a proper nap.

He went to his homeroom class to pick up his schoolbag, where he always leaves it before heading to the club. When he arrived at the classroom, he went to his desk but to his confusement, his bag wasn't anywhere on the desk where he left it.

"Huh? Where's my bag?"

He looked around the entire classroom but his school bag was nowhere to be seen at all. Then he figured somebody must've found his bag and accidentally mistook it for theirs or probably left it at lost and found.

Since the front office is the most safe choice, Ryoma headed for there. And while he walked down the hall, he passed by a window that has a view of the school's front yard. However, something out the window caught Ryoma's attention and he stopped to look out.

To his disappointment, his bag is seen floating in the middle of the fountain right in front of the school building. He could see all of his belongings scattered across the water, now soaked.

"...Just great," he sighed.

Now Ryoma had been searching in the fountain, barefeet with his pants rolled up, and found most of his belongings like his school books, materials and his homework. He placed these beside his soaked bag so they can at least dry under the sun. Now all that's left is his wallet, which he needed most of all because of the lunch money inside.

"Man...if I don't find my wallet, I won't be able to get lunch for the whole week," he muttered to himself.

As he continued to dig in the water, he thought he heard footsteps coming from behind him but decided to ignore it. That is, until the owner of those footsteps spoke.

"Echizen, what are you doing?"

Ryoma turned around and was surprised to see Tezuka the president standing on dry land, watching him with sharp eyes.

"Oh Captain," said Ryoma.

Tezuka looked down and saw Ryoma's wet stuff. Then his eyes returned to Ryoma showing suspicion. "How on earth did your bag happen to end up in the fountain?" he inquired.

"Well..."

Should he tell him? But if he did, who knows what the president would do?

So Ryoma answered, "I must've accidentally dropped it somehow out of the window."

When Ryoma went back to his search, Tezuka only showed puzzlement at how a ridiculous thing would happen. Then he sighed to himself and while Ryoma's back was still facing him, Tezuka slowly removed his footwear.

The next thing Ryoma knew, he heard footsteps splashing from behind him and looked up. He didn't expect to see Tezuka wading in the fountain as well, helping him with the search.

"Hey Captain, you don't need to help," Ryoma insisted.

"It's my decision," said the president firmly, continuing to scour the water, "To be a prince means you have to be there to help others. That is one of the reasons why I started the club. If you have a problem with it, then too bad."

This was unexpected coming from the quiet and serious Kunimitsu Tezuka. It seems there are some things about the clubs members that Ryoma had yet to learn completely. Nevertheless, he is grateful for the assistance.

Soon Ryoma didn't realize that he was in deep thought when he finally heard Tezuka say, "Ah, is this yours?"

He stood upright and to his relief, Tezuka is seen holding up a drippy wallet in his left hand. Fortunately it was still closed so his money is still safely stowed inside, but still wet nonetheless.

"Oh...Thanks," was all the freshman could say.

Tezuka then tossed the wallet to Ryoma, who caught it with his left hand. Seeing that his work is done, Tezuka began to head out of the water. But before he left, Tezuka spoke with seriousness in his voice, "Echizen...are you sure you dropped your own bag in the fountain?"

He seemed to have suspicious thoughts about the lie Ryoma told him and needed to make sure.

With Tezuka awaiting his answer, Ryoma said, "Yes. Guess I have to be more careful next time."

This time, Tezuka didn't ask again. Instead, he said, "...I see."

What the two didn't notice was that somebody was watching them from one of the classroom windows on the upper floor. As soon as that person has seen Tezuka and Echizen conversing together, the figure backed away from the window in silence.

The next day was another day of business for the Seigaku Princes. But today was most unusual for Ryoma mostly because for his customer today, it was Masami Yamashita who requested to see him.

As the 3rd year sat across him with her eyes gazing at him and her hands placed in front of her, Ryoma couldn't help but suspect that Masami must be planning something. Why else would she want to see him when she hates him obviously?

"So Ryoma-kun, I heard that someone had dropped your schoolbag in the fountain on purpose," Masami finally spoke, sounding concerned, "That must've been terrible."

For now, Ryoma decided to play along. "Well yeah," he replied as if in a normal conversation, "But I was able to find everything okay."

"With the help of Tezuka-kun I presume?"

Ryoma didn't even mention Tezuka but yet somehow she knew. "Well...yes."

Masami then gave a small chuckle. "You silly boy. You do realize that Tezuka only helped you out because he takes pity on you?" she inquired, resuming to her snobbish behavior, "Tezuka may show acts of kindness to you just because you're new, but know that he'll never actually

From these words, Ryoma then figured out the reason behind her hatred for him. "I get it..." he spoke, "...You're jealous of me aren't you?"

Masami then showed shock in her eyes as if she has been insulted. "Me? Jealous? How dare you!" she spat in bitterness. To punish him, Masami got to her feet and raised hand, preparing to slap Ryoma in the face. However Ryoma's instincts kicked up and he got up so suddenly that he bumped the table and grabbed her raised wrist. The two are stuck in a difficult struggle that soon the two toppled over on the floor.

"Somebody do something with this boy! He's gone mad!" she cried out, hoping that someone would grab Ryoma. Masami's yells caught the attention of everyone in the room and saw Ryoma still pinning Masami's hand to the ground.

The next Ryoma knew, he felt something wet splashing against his back that caused Masami to be silent.

The whole club room was silent as everyone's eyes were on Ryoma and Masami.

It turns out that Momoshiro and Kaidoh have arrived at the scene and dunked glasses of water on both Ryoma and Masami.

Tezuka then approached the two with his sternest frown as his eyes narrowed down on the two of them. He then held out his hand and helped Masami to her feet.

Immediately Masami looked as if she's going to cry as she sought Tezuka's comfort and placed her hands on his chest. "Oh Tezuka-kun, Ryoma tried to assault me out of nowhere!" she immediately accused in the most convincing act of her being hurt, "He shouldn't even be a part of your club!"

But instead of siding with her, Tezuka remained stern and serious. "I'm disappointed in you Yamashita," he said, "Is this the best lie you can come up with...especially after you dumped Echizen's bag in the fountain yesterday?"

The guests were surprised that such a prestigious 3rd year student would do such a mean act to a freshman.

Masami's eyes widened, showing a small sign of guilt. But she wasn't giving up so easily. "So who cares? You don't even have proof!" she stated.

"I wouldn't think so," said Inui, with his sly genius smile, "It turns out that our club members can gather some valuable data."

To prove what he meant, Inui held up his green notebook and opened it up to show a photo taken from yesterday, showing the truth of the disappearance of Echizen's bag. It was a shot of Masami herself, tossing the same schoolbag Echizen owns into the fountain.

Yamashita was confused. "How did-?" she began.

"You'll have to praise Kikumaru here for his sharp eyes and Fuji's excellent photo taking," Inui motioned to the Dream Pair, who are standing at the side with proud grins (Eiji was playfully sticking his tongue out), "It was coincidence that the two were nearby the scene of the crime in order to take this photo."

With the jig up, Tezuka now turned to the culprit, no longer going to be Mr. Nice Guy anymore for what's coming next.

"Such acts will not be accepted into our club," he said strictly, "I'm afraid that you'll no longer be listed as our guest. Please leave now while we're still being respectful for the other guests."

Masami couldn't believe what she's hearing. "Tezuka Kunimitsu...you're so heartless! All of you are!" she shouted.

And in a fit of frustration and drama, Yamashita ran straight out of the club room without another word, never to bother the princes ever again.

Once she left, several of the princes gave signs of pleasantness.

"Well glad that she's dealt with," Eiji said with relief, "I never really liked her anyway."

"I agree," said Momoshiro, "Never trusted her the moment she set foot in this club."

"However..." Tezuka then interrupted the pleasant moment and looked down at Ryoma, who's still sitting on the floor, "Echizen, you still caused quite a disturbance in the middle of our business. For that, your debt will now be raised to 1000 customers."

Shock hit Ryoma once again as his debt has been raised.

"1000?"

"Make sure to record that down Inui," Tezuka suggested.

Already working, Inui has just scribbled down another note in his notebook and said, "Check."

Then Ryoma saw a hand held out in front of him and looked up to see that it belonged to Kikumaru, giving him an encouraging smile as usual. "Nya don't mind, don't mind," he assured. Taking his offer, Ryoma grabbed his hand and was pulled back up to his feet.

"You're going to need this," said Fuji as he held up a shopping bag purchased from the school store, "It's a spare uniform. We wouldn't want to catch a cold in that wet uniform now do we?"

At least grateful for his generosity, Ryoma took the bag and nodded, "Thanks."

While Ryoma stepped into the changing room again to get out of his wet uniform, the others waited and sat around.

"Boy, 1000 customers eh?" Momoshiro smirked, "Our new guy's going to have a rough journey with us huh?"

Then Oishi noticed that something fell on the floor after Ryoma walked into the stall. He got down and picked it up, noticing that it's Ryoma wallet. "Oops. Echizen must've dropped this," he said to the others.

But after looking down at the open wallet, Oishi noticed that there was something interesting inside. "Hm? What's this?" he said curiously. This caught the curiosity of some of the others that they came over.

"What is it Oishi?"

They crowded the vice president so they can peek inside the wallet as well.

Beside the spot where Ryoma's ID card is displayed, there was another picture. It had three people, a man, a woman and a boy who looked 4 years old. The little boy was wearing a distinctive white cap with the same symbol on the front and the boys knew at once that it must be Ryoma when he was younger.

The woman was holding the boy close in her arms and smiling, must be his mother of course. Now the boys turned to see the man that is patting Ryoma's head standing beside the woman close.

What's interesting to the boys is that this man is wearing a tennis jersey and shorts and holding a wooden tennis racket slung over his shoulder. His hair was long and tied in a ponytail so he look like a samurai warrior from the past.

Now call it strange or whatever, but as the boys continue to stare at the man, they couldn't help but think that something feels familiar about his appearance. "Hold on...why do I have a feeling I've seen this guy before?" Momoshiro wondered out loud.

Everyone, except Tezuka, Fuji and Inui, thought the same thing, but how is it familiar?

But then there was a small clue. Oishi noticed that there were words stitched on the left side on the front of the man's jersey and squinted so he can make out the writing.

"S...Samurai Nanjiro...?" he read the words on the man's jersey without thinking.

It was then Oishi and everyone else suddenly got a big surprise at the sound of those two words.

"Wait...Samurai Nanjiro as in...the champion worldwide tennis player who won 5 US Open matches and is one of the 5 distinguished finalists for the Grand Slam?" Kawamura spoke in astonishment.

Samurai Nanjiro is the club's bigshot hero in tennis. He gained his fame by managing to enter the US Open as a pro tennis player as Kawamura had explained. But all that changed when Samurai Nanjiro was set to win his big match that'll earn him the title as Grand Slam champion, the world was shocked when news reported that Samurai Nanjiro disappeared and retired from the tournament without a single clue to where he went. This continued to be the biggest mystery to tennis fans such as the princes.

Seeing that the boy who's changing in the changing stall right in front of them actually has some sort of connection with their hero, the princes were speechless.

Kikumaru anxiously asked, "Eh? But how does Ochibi know the famous Samurai Nanjiro?"

"Who knows," Momo said, "But that we have a chance to know what happened to Samurai Nanjiro after his disappearance. I'm betting you Echizen has the answers!"

It was here that Ryoma, now changed into a dry uniform, came out of the changing stall and saw his sempais staring into his wallet. "Why are you all looking in my wallet?" he asked suspiciously.

Momoshiro was the first to approach Ryoma for answers. "You lucky dog you!" he remarked, wrapping his arm around Ryoma's neck, "What exactly is your connection with Samurai Nanjiro? Come on! We got to know! Do you know what happened to him after the Grand Slam tournament?"

"Yeah, how do you know Samurai Nanjiro nya?" Eiji begged eagerly.

Now Ryoma wondered why the sudden questions until he noticed the picture of his younger self and the other two adults in Momo's hand and figured it out. "The man lives in the same house as me, so yes I always see him, what with him being me dad and all," he replied unemotionally.

Suddenly, the jaws of most of the sempais (except Tezuka, Fuji and Inui) dropped with silence but shock filled their eyes.

"HUH?" nearly everyone exclaimed, "YOUR DAD?"

Inui showed no change in emotion as he only pushed his glasses up while Tezuka remained silent. (In other words, Inui knew all along. Big surprise.) Also, even Fuji was standing there chuckling to himself, he eventually found out along the way. (I mean hey, that's why they call him a genius.)

"Why so surprised?" Inui spoke, "It's obvious that there are several similarities in their appearances. And not to mention, Echizen has been accepted into this school by a tennis scholarship specifically due to amazing at his previous school." Obviously Inui must've researched more information concerning Ryoma's background without permission.

Inui's point has proven to be a fact, for as Oishi and the others now took several seconds looking at the picture of Samurai Nanjiro then switching to look at Ryoma, they can sort of some resemblance by their faces.

"Mou Shusuke!" Eiji whined, "You could've clued us in on this sooner!"

"Gomen," Fuji said, still can't help but smiling, "But I wanted to see how long you guys would take to figure it out."

But even after this strange surprise, there was still an unanswered question, why keep this a secret?

"But...why...how...?" Oishi stuttered, still lost from the sudden discovery.

Ryoma explained, "Dad and I moved here because he wanted me to attend this school thanks to the scholarship. But I didn't want to cause a ruckus seeing that this school is full of my dad's fans so I never mentioned dad at all when I registered."

"Uh...I think that's understandable," Kawamura said in his opinion.

Ryoma bowed his head to the upperclassmen, for the first time. "I would be most grateful if you keep this a secret senpais," he requested, "At least during my time as a prince."

Keep a secret that the son of Japan's famous tennis player is a part of their club? That sounds really difficult especially for fans like the 8 princes.

Finally Tezuka gave his answer by sighing. "It can't be helped," he announced to his fellow club members, "From here on out, no one is to reveal to anyone of Ryoma Echizen's relationship to You-Know-Who. Clear?"

"Hai!" the others responded together.

But in their minds, Tezuka and all of the original princes have one goal in their heads, that is to find out what of the famous Samurai Nanjiro, and this 7th grader was their key to finding out.

And so, the Princes of Seigaku now have a secret to keep. Nobody in that school will ever know that the host club's new member turns out to be the son of a famous athlete celebrity. How will this club continue to keep this secret?

Next time:

Eiji: Ah! Ochibi makes an excellent prince!

Oishi: Demo, we still should know what happened to the Samurai Nanjiro! Echizen, please tell us Echizen!

Fuji: Oishi, don't get too worried. You'll be able to find out at the physical exams coming soon.

Everyone: ...Physical exams?

Ryoma: Huh? What physical exams?

Momoshiro: Wait, then the whole school will know that Echizen is Samurai Nanjiro's son!

Inui: Chance of secret to be let out...98%

Ryoma: Oi, hold on-.

Takashi: This is bad right?

Eiji: Wah! What'll we do to help Ochibi?

Ryoma: Excuse me, but don't I get a say in this-?

Tezuka: Minna, relax and don't let your guard down! We're moving into action on the next chapter!

Everyone except Ryoma: Hai!

Next time Chapter 2, Protect Echizen's Secret!

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter! I know it's different since I didn't included the whole main character disguising as a guy plot, but please enjoy it all the same! I apologize if it's too much words, I'm not good in writing things down so perfectly. Please review!