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Hello, Kyouya-“mun” here. I’ve always thought of writing something based on what I think of the whole Kyouya and Haruhi deal, and it so happened that Tamaki-“mun” asked me on who I thought loved Haruhi the most… and this is my excerpt on Kyouya.

I’ve decided to post this here because I wanted to share what I really thought of the whole KyouyaxHaruhi relationship, particularly of the controversial merit scene and the many perspectives on viewing it. Anyway, enjoy the excerpt and if you feel the need to let me know what you think please do.

Warning: spoilers for the Manga and Live Action

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Because Kyouya is a character that I hold so dear and personal, I might end up sharing some of my head canon that I've gotten out of roleplay experiences. And also because his opinion on Haruhi in a romantic sense was hardly shared throughout the series, Kyouya is a character that involves deducing, speculation, and headcanon.


Let me start out by saying that before I, er "roleplayed" him, Kyouya might have been the last person that I wanted Haruhi to end up with (EDIT: Aside from Honey. He's actually the last person I imagined her with). (EDIT: to Tamaki-mun)I don't know if I said that before, but I did mention [Kyouya] was my least favorite character. One of the reasons being I found him to be a horrible person. He's selfish, he feigned an attempt to molest Haruhi... however good the intention was, sexually intimidating someone was still an idea I can't bring myself to condone.(EDIT: It initially led me to hate that pairing even!) And I still am struggling between liking him as a character and hating him because of this incident.


Moving on... Haruhi and Kyouya get along because they are both very intelligent, practical, and laid back. They’re both into saving money if they could. They surprisingly have a lot in common even if they don't look like it. For the longest time, I never considered that they would ever make a good couple. The ending of the anime surprised me when Yoshio said that he wanted Haruhi for his son, and I'm like HELL NO. I only considered Kyouya and Haruhi seriously when we met his former Haruhi on gaia… but let me concentrate on that of what's in the canon.


First of all, Haruhi hardly showed interest in him except for that episode where Kyouya gets lost, when she realizes that she never knew anything about his family background and said that was rather unfair. Her interest, however, struck me as something very neutral. I really do doubt that she felt anything romantic towards him.

On the other hand it was also hardly explicitly shown that Kyouya was romantically interested in her. People would often think that merit scene itself indicated that he lusted over her, but I personally think it was quite the opposite. He didn't. If he really affirmed that he loved her, or rather acknowledged his interest in her, he would care about what she thinks of him. And let's face it, he's a rational person and he would know that such a move would definitely not win her over to him. One thing I’ve learned about Kyouya is that he doesn't have anything to gain from stealing something... he's a person who thinks that earning something through legitimate means is a much more satisfying challenge. Let's substitute that "something" with love, and you can see why the merit scene doesn't make sense.

When the merit scene happened, I really do believe that during that point in time he didn't care in a romantic sense about how she perceived him. As for why he actually did it, I read somewhere that by doing that, he was in actuality sacrificing his image... one that he sought to uphold at all times... for the sake of her reconciliation with Tamaki, but I'm not so certain really. Even until now, I'm debating with myself the true nature of the merit scene. It's either that Haruhi's right or Haruhi's sorely mistaken about his "kindness"... most likely she is right because she's perceptive like that.


In any case, her comment made an impact on him. If she was right, he was surprised at her ability to see through his carefully-constructed facade. If she was partially wrong... and I say this because Kyouya never said anything to affirm her comment:"You're purposefully taking on the role of a bad guy to teach me a lesson, isn't that right?" We never got to see what his facial expression was like either. As you can see, there's a benefit of a doubt to be given. Did he purposefully do it? Did he do it by mistake?

If he didn't do it in purpose (EDIT: meaning, to be kind), another thing that I've always thought was that he was probably trying to find out what she feared because that was the theme of that episode... although, he said he wouldn't be participating. This was my initial interpretation, although I still thought it was another level of low...

Now that I think about it, he said in the live action episode that he didn't want to be involved in the game because there's no benefit to him... they were trying to find Haruhi's weakness because it will show who she's closest to, remember? Seeing it from this light, there's no reason to try to find her weakness if he did not like her. (EDIT: But he did participate anyway! So what does that mean?)

Oh and there's also this: I hate this interpretation, that he did that because he knew he really wanted to... ugh. But I really don't think that was the case. Or maybe it was, but rather in a sense that he wasn't so conscious that he liked her... this follows the earlier interpretation. Or maybe it's a mix of the aforementioned reasons. As I said I'm still trying to figure it out. I'd ask Hatori if I could.

However you interpret it, what remains is this: that she thought he was secretly kind. And it was then that had him questioning her opinion... I'm sure that he’s well-aware that he’s a horrible person: selfish, underhanded, greedy… apathetic. But when she said that she saw a kindness in him when hardly anyone else did, he was left walking away and questioning who he was and who she really is to him. I think it was a catalyst for him to acknowledge that he was attracted to her on an intellectual/emotional level.

...It's like what happened in the live action, minus the whole rescuing Haruhi feat.


(EDIT: To Tamaki-mun smile Welp, sorry about talking about the merit scene too much. I'm sorry if it would hurt you/Tamaki? But I'm really doing my best to explain everything on a non-personal level.


I won't delve anymore about what happened in the supermarket. I think the merit scene mostly summarized everything between him and Haruhi. She was convinced that he was secretly kind… the only thing that the supermarket episode added was that she viewed his kindness as a means of meeting emotional benefit. She knew how to speak in his language, meaning she really understood him.

Unlike the rest of the host club, not once did Kyouya affirm her as cute. From what information we have available, he wasn't attracted to her physically, but it was her perceptiveness and unique way of thinking as displayed in those two episodes that made him like her to a degree.


So what's keeping him then?


He chose to ignore his feelings probably because he's calculating enough to know that Haruhi wasn't interested. True, he could probably use his energy to make her fall in love with him if he so wanted, but he chose not to. He said it himself: he acknowledged her, but he's not interested because he wouldn't choose someone that would bring merit to the Ootori family... and that he found something more precious.

The manga obviously ignores the anime's ending. So it's safe to assume that marrying Haruhi would not bring him too much benefit, and that in the manga, he knew his father might sneer at the idea. His ultimate goal is to gain his father's approval so that's one of the reasons why he stepped down.

This means that trying to pursue her would be a waste of time. Even if he did pursue her, it might only end badly because he was determined to pursue his main goal to succeed the Ootori family. What’s the use of pursuing her if he has nothing to promise her? (EDIT: He er, “loved” her enough to acknowledge he has nothing to contribute to her well-being)

The only way I'll ever see him pursuing her is that if he is finally the heir, meaning he won't need his father's approval on who to marry, and that he will no longer have to prioritize his goal should it happen. Of course, by then Tamaki would already be married to Haruhi.


(EDIT: These next two paragraphs I wrote are actually from the twins’ relationship excerpt, which I wrote much earlier. I included them because the last two paragraphs of the KyouyaxHaruhi excerpt will make more sense that way.)


“There's this way of thinking that I can't quite reconcile with in my mind. Is unrequited love greater than requited? Something about unrequited love is just so... compelling. I don't know if I'm viewing it that way just because someone suffering from unrequited love is easier to pity or empathize with... it's even more difficult when matched with an evident act of selflessness.

Well, I'll let you decide on this yourself. Which takes more love to do? To let go, or to still pursue? I think the both of them are in either case love, but in very different spectrums”


He acknowledges her, but he chose to ignore his feelings by letting Tamaki have his chance with her instead. He even roots for his best friend just as Kaoru roots for Hikaru and Haruhi. It's a given that he holds his friendship with Tamaki dear and that he wants these two people he cherishes to be happy with each other, and that's good... if you think about it, Kyouya's situation is like a mix of the twins', wherein the selfish one gives up the person he likes for because he knew his friend loves her.

I'll bring it up again. Even though Haruhi is good for him, he knows he's not good for her given his drive to meet another goal. He knew Tamaki would have more to give to Haruhi's welfare. (EDIT: It would be the best way to take care of her, and I like to think that he entrusted her to his best friend) And I think that by rooting for his best friend Tamaki, it would help him easily ignore his feelings for her. (I find that sweet and sad in hindsight)

As you can see Kyouya's case is so complicated. Is he being selfish or unselfish in giving up Haruhi? Is he selfish or unselfish by letting Tamaki have her? It's hard to see if he's using selfishness to hide his kindness, or kindness to hide his selfishness. And as I've said with the twins’ case, I'll let you decide: does he love Haruhi by giving her up or does that mean he doesn't love her enough. (EDIT: See, the reason why I learned to like this ONE-SIDED pairing was that it intrigues me how he finally learned how to be unselfish, and then shows selfishness all at once. There are so many layers to it)


(EDIT: I think I’ll include the very short excerpt on TamakixHaruhi, because why Kyouya entrusted her with Tamaki will then make sense.)


[Tamaki] liked her without realizing it. He loved [Haruhi] platonically, "paternally"/familial, and romantically. He loved her inside-out. While the rest of the host club loved her on different spectrums, he loved her in all of them... except in the unrequited "I'm giving you up because I love you" sense, I guess. As for why she loved him, he helped her learn how to love, and he promised to be there for her and show that she’s not alone… among many other moments that I can’t really remember.

It was really hard to believe that Hatori said she didn't intend for Tamaki and Haruhi to be together, but it really seemed like it was meant to be from the beginning. I admit it disappointed me a bit that Tamaki ending up with Haruhi turned out to be a predictable cliche... And I say this because purpose of Ouran was to be a satire of romantic shojous and to make fun of cliches. And yes, while it is admittedly no longer my favorite Ouran pairing (to Tamaki-mun:sorry you guys. ^^; I still like TamaHaru though), it really was for each other’s best that they be together.

-Kyouya-mun