"So, I'm starting to think I should be worried about the fact you haven't been sitting still for the past half-hour," Zero commented idly, not even so much as glancing over at Rin, even as he extended a hand and placed it firmly on the top of her head in a hopeful—but vain—effort to keep her from bouncing repeatedly up and down on the spot.

She winced and tried to duck out from under his hand -her head was still sore. "I'm fine," Rin said, speaking so quickly it almost sounded like she had said one word instead of two.

Zero was already suspicious about her excitement as it was, considering he highly doubted that his presence alone was enough to get her this jittery, but this new chipmunk style of speaking was also a clue.

"Rin," he said slowly, glancing down at her.

"Huh?"

She wasn't looking at him. She was staring straight ahead at something that had her complete and undivided attention and it bugged Zero to no end that it wasn't him.

"What did you eat tonight?" he asked her, resisting the urge to push down harder on her head as she continued to bounce on her seat. "You can't sit still and you're talking a mile a minute."

"I told you, I'm fine. I just had a couple drinks and some cookies."

"Besides, she always talks a mile a minute; it's your own fault if you can't understand her." Isabel said, then stood to get another hot coco.

Cookies… That was warning light number one. She'd had cookies…

"How many cookies did you eat, Rin?" Zero asked. "I'm serious. I need an exact number, and I need you to tell me what you drank with them, too."

Casey, sitting just to the left of Zero, and a witness to the whole exchange, couldn't help the wry smirk that made its way onto her face as she watched the platinum blond boy struggle with her friend. She knew precisely what the issue was, but whether or not she should clue Zero in was a completely different matter. After all, if Zero found out she'd let her near that…Well, she just wouldn't tell him.

With a quiet giggle to herself, she redirected her attention to the stage where a couple of sophomores she didn't recognize were performing a pass-worthy duet of Taylor Swift's "Haunted".

Unfortunately, her little moment of mirth didn't escape Zero's notice, and he immediately pinned her with a dark glare.

"You laughed," he accused her.

She turned, feigning surprise.

"I what?" she asked innocently, her eyes wide in her practiced "I don't know what you could be accusing me off" stare. A stare, mind you, that was perfected because of time spent with Zero.

"Don't give me that bull, Case, you know exactly what I'm talking about and you also know exactly what's up with Rin and why she's jumping all over the place like all her mind functions are set to full speed ahead," he told her, and narrowed his eyes at the girl, determined to intimidate the truth out of her.

"Trust me, Zero," she said with a little grin. "It's better that you don't know. You'd have a panic attack and then I'd have two nutcases on my hands. Then what would I do?"

"I don't give a damn what you'd do then, but you're gonna do now is tell me what she's had to eat and drink tonight and when she had them," Zero commanded.

Casey raised an eyebrow, then glanced around the boy to look at Rin, who still seemed off in her own little world for the time being, though Casey was more than certain that her friend was fully aware of what was going on and was just pretending not to so that when Zero finally connected the puzzle pieces she wouldn't get the sharp end of the stick when he decided to beat them.

"She just told you she had cookies," Casey told Zero simply.

"And what did she drink?" Zero asked through gritted teeth. He was starting to lose his patience, and he was just about ready to smack Casey over the head if she didn't get with the program and cooperate.

Casey eyed the boy for a moment, judging just how much more she could pull his tail before he'd finally turn around and bite her hand off, and, figuring it wasn't enough to risk her good hand, she sighed, closed her eyes with a pained expression, and confessed. "She's had two cups of coffee, and, no, they weren't decaf."

There was total silence, and Casey almost winced as she imagined the murderous gleam in Zero's eyes.

"You let her," the boy said, and she could hear the menace in his voice, "Drink two buckets of caffeine!?"

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, Kiryu," laughed a new voice, and Casey opened her eyes to spot Ichijo as he sauntered over to them, followed closely by a rather enchanted looking Isabel, two mugs of steaming cocoa in his hands. He caught her eye and winked reassuringly before inserting himself easily between her and the now furious teenager on his right as Isabel sat on Casey's other side. "It's not like coffee is going to hurt her or you. At least not if you calm down a bit and take a breath."

"I don't want to take a breath," Zero snarled. "I want to strangle Case for letting her near caffeine!"

"She couldn't have stopped me if she wanted to," Rin piped up then, a small smirk on her face as she glanced up at Zero. "I mean, it's basically like open bar here, Zero. Why do you think it's 5 bucks to get in? 'Cause it's all you can drink."

Zero glared at her for a moment, then gave it up as a bad job and turned back to Ichijo. Catching sight of the mugs of cocoa, he narrowed his eyes again before leveling his dark stare at the blond, who smiled jovially as he sipped at one of the cups, obviously unperturbed by the anger now directed at him.

"Something the matter, Kiryu?" he asked innocently.

"Where did you get those?" Zero asked, glancing pointedly at the mugs.

"Over there," Ichijo replied, nodding his head towards a moderately sized card table that was piled high with Styrofoam cups, mugs of cocoa and decaf and caffeinated coffee, labeled respectively, and all manner of sweets for sale. "It's really good. You should try some."

"You've gotta be kidding me," hissed Zero, staring in horror at the towering tubs of coffee. "Rin! Is that where you got the coffee from?"

"And the cookies," she admitted, bobbing her head in ascent, "And the brownies and cupcakes…"

"Son of a…!" Zero jumped to his feet, abandoning his attempt to keep Rin in one place, and instead marched over to stand directly in front of the table. But rather than take up a cup or a cookie, he turned abruptly to face Rin and planted himself firmly in the way, leaning against the table. Clearly, this was his new plan to keep her from the table.

Casey couldn't help but snicker at how silly he looked, all official looking and the rest of it as he stubbornly barricaded the table from Rin.

"Hey…" Rin pouted. "Don't be like that."

"No mas," he said tightly. "You've had enough coffee and who knows what else to send you skyrocketing."

"She hasn't already?" grinned Casey.

"Don't make it any worse than you already have, Case," Zero suggested tersely. "You're already number one on my list of people to hold responsible for this mishap."

"Of course I am," sighed Casey, shaking her head and folding her arms over her chest. "It's always my fault."

"Always," agreed Rin with a little snicker. "At least in Zero's book it is. Now, come on, Z, take a seat and get a grip. I'm fine."

Zero's eyebrows rose so high they threatened to disappear into his hairline. "Oh, yeah?"

"Yes," sighed Rin, exasperated. "What makes you think I'm not?"

"Oh, I dunno, Rin," the teen said in his best "I'm an idjit" voice, "Maybe the fact that you're still bouncing up and down like a rubber ball!"

And, to be honest, she was. She hadn't held still for the past hour and there was no telling when she was going to stop her incessant bouncing.

"Come on, Z, don't be so stingy," she sighed rolling her eyes.

"I'll be stingy if I want. You're not coming back to this table for anything and I'm not moving for anything," was the answer she got. Casey had to admit, it sounded like something her baby brother might say…

"Case…"

Casey glanced around as Rin called her name, sounding about ready to cry.

"What, Rin?" she asked.

"Zero won't let me get more cookies or coffee," Rin was whimpering now, her eyes stretched wide as she took on the expression of a brutally kicked puppy. "Make him be nice to me."

"I am being nice to you," Zero grumbled, arms folded over his chest as he glared straight ahead. "I'm making sure you don't have a sugar rush and then crash and burn. Not to mention how high your blood sugar must be! I can practically smell how sweet you are right now!"

No one dared make a joke about that with the current circumstances, but that doesn't mean that Casey didn't file away that line for later.

"But…" Rin sniffled dramatically. "But…"

"No buts," Zero said, unmoved. "No more sugar or caffeine until you've worked off what you have now."

"Well, then," huffed Rin, finally giving up her pity-invoking ploy as she realized the platinum haired boy was in no way about to move. "I'll just have to sneak in, then."

"You have fun with that," chuckled Ichijo. "The day someone sneaks by Kiryu is the day he has to admit defeat as the ninja he is."

"Zero's a ninja?" Casey asked, turning to blink in surprise at her blond companion. "I thought he was just really good at being sneaky."

"Nope, he's an honest to goodness ninja," Ichijo declared with a fierce nod. "The bravest and most accomplished ninja you'll find anywhere."

"I'll take your word for it," Casey said with a small giggle, then, sensing a change in the atmosphere around her, she looked back around to find that Rin was no longer sitting in her seat. "Hey, where did she—?"

Someone tapped her shoulder, startling her, and when she looked around, she also found she had to look up to see Kaname standing right next to her, his gaze angled in the direction of the coffee table.

She followed his line of vision to see that Rin had abandoned her post at the table in order to pursue her quest for coffee and sugar, and was now making her first attempt to get around Zero, which was not proving to be in any way, shape or form easy. The Disciplinary Committee member had already cut her off and was pointing his finger to Rin's seat, indicating that she sit down and stay there. "But, Z!" Rin started to plead, but Zero wasn't about to give in that easily. Taking her by the hand he all but dragged her back to the table, put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her forcibly back down into her seat.

"Stay," he commanded, then marched back to his position by the coffee table. "Next time, I'll use real force."

"That wasn't real force?" grumbled Rin, wincing as she rubbed her shoulder. He had a tight grip, she had to give him that much. "He just manhandled me and now he's saying he'll use "real force" if I try to do it again!"

"I think he means he'll use his gun," Ichijo informed her as he handed Kaname one of the mugs of cocoa he was holding.

Casey felt her jaw drop at his words, and nearly cricked her neck turning to look at Zero, who didn't seem in the least bit bothered by what had just been said.

"Zero!" she exclaimed. He glanced over at her, eyebrows raised. "You brought a gun onto a school campus?!"

"I have a signed form that says I can have it here," he said calmly. "And it's not like I'm going to kill anyone."

"Anyone that we know of," muttered Rin, looking the boy up and down. "Why do you need a gun here, anyway?"

Zero opened his mouth to respond, but Ichijo beat him to the punch.

"America's a dangerous place, you know," the blond informed Rin, as though the girl hadn't already seen for herself the kind of evils that America was home to. "And, me being the wuss that I am and Kaname being the priss he is, we need protection. And Kiryu's hardcore."

"Is he now?" snorted Case, disbelieving. "If he was hardcore, he wouldn't need a gun to keep Rin away from the coffee and cake."

"I'll do whatever's necessary," Zero said curtly.

"Uh-huh…" Rin sounded like she didn't quite believe that. Casey didn't either for that matter, but Rin and Zero's issues were none of her business. She had different things to worry about anyway.

Like the fact that Kaname was sitting so close to her on her left side she could practically feel him exhale as he blew across the top of the mug of cocoa in his hand. She literally felt like her space bubble had just been thoroughly and unapologetically punctured by an invisible pin and Kaname was now invading.

She glanced over at him just to see what he was doing, and felt a jolt to find him watching her out of the corner of his eye as he sipped casually at his cocoa.

"W-what?" she stammered, a little defensively.

Kaname lowered the mug and smiled serenely. "What?" he echoed back at her. "I was just admiring the view."

"What view?" she muttered under her breath, turning away as she felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment.

She heard him chuckle softly but didn't dare look back. Instead, she turned her attention to Ichijo, hoping for a distraction.

"So, are you doing a performance or anything tonight, Senpai?" she inquired, tilting her head to look up at him, since he was still a good amount taller than her while he was sitting.

"Me?" Ichijo looked surprised that she would ask. "I'm not sure yet. I might, but I'd hate to get shown up by someone else here." He laughed aloud. "After all, your school has a great deal of talented students."

"If you say so," Casey sighed, shrugging. "I know Rin and Izzy have talent. I don't know what I'm supposed to have."

"Oh, you do so have talent," Ichijo told her, giving a little prod in the ribs so she squeaked and glared at him. "Don't look at me like that, even Kaname thinks so."

He looked over Casey's head at his friend, beaming.

"Don't you, Kaname? You think Casey has a lot of talent, too."

"Of course." Kaname smiled when Casey glanced over her shoulder at him, and she felt herself blush all over again.

Rin, watching from Ichijo's other side, stifled a snort by disguising it as a cough and quickly turned her head away so her friend wouldn't see her smirking. Casey didn't notice a thing; she was too busy avoiding Kaname's eyes and fiddling the hem of her cami.

"I'm not that talented," she mumbled, embarrassed by both Ichijo's and Kaname's praise.

"She's so modest," sighed Ichijo, shaking his head. "You won't get her to admit a thing, I swear… It's almost like you don't want us to realize you're talented."

"I'm not talented," repeated Casey with a deep sigh. "You're all just insane enough to believe I am is all."

"You know," Zero said slowly from his guard post by the coffee table, "For someone who's not talented, you're a really good actress to pretend like you don't know what the heck we're talking about."

Rin watching Zero for a second, thinking over his words, then grinned over at Casey, who blinked back at her in astonishment.

"He's got a point, Case. You have some good acting skills."

"You've got to be kidding me…" Casey looked down at her toes, in total disbelief. "You guys really think I'm something, don't you?"

"Of course we do," Ichijo said, looking amazed that she would have to ask such a ridiculous question. "I mean, really, is it that hard for you to see that—Kaname Kuran, what are you doing?!"

Startled by Ichijo's sudden outburst, Casey and Rin both turned in unison—even Zero glanced over—to see that Kaname was reclining slightly against the side of the table, mug in hand, looking mildly surprised as he watched two twin trails of hot cocoa sliding down the front of his chest, which was just visible through the opening of his button down silk shirt.

"Oh, for crying out loud," Ichijo sighed, starting to get to his feet. "You're hopeless! Who in the world spills hot chocolate on themselves, anyway? You're eighteen years old, this should not be an issue!"

"You sound like an overly concerned mother," Kaname noted with a small exhalation, setting his cocoa down on the table and failing to hide a small smile. "Sit down, Ichijo, I can clean myself up."

"Then why aren't you?" Casey couldn't help inquiring, trying very hard not to stare at the Night Class President, and failing in every way, especially considering the fact he was starting to unbutton the remaining fasteners on his shirt. "And why are you taking your shirt off?! You only need a napkin!"

Kaname looked up at her, his russet colored eyes sparking with surprise.

"Oh, then would you mind helping me, Keishii-chan?" he asked, smiling softly. "I'm afraid if I stand up I might soil my shirt."

Casey glanced up at his face and felt her stomach lurch to see him watching her so attentively.

"You…" she began, about to remind him that he'd just told Ichijo to sit down, then lost her train of thought right in the middle of her argument.

"I…?" Kaname inquired in his musical voice.

"Oh, brother," muttered Zero, rolling his eyes. "Kuran, if you want her to lick it off your chest, all you have to do is ask."

"Eh?!"

Casey turned to gape in horror at Zero, who didn't look anywhere near as apologetic as he should after saying something so perverted.

"Zero!" she exclaimed, her face flushing red. Her jade colored eyes widened in disbelief. "You pervert!"

Rin couldn't help herself, she burst out laughing, even though she guessed that Casey would no doubt give her grief for it later; if her friend could think straight later, that was. At the current moment, her friend seemed to too brain damaged by all the lewdness going around to think straight. Rin could practically see the steam coming out of her ears from her embarrassment.

"Why are you laughing?" Casey wailed at her. "That's not funny! He's such a pervert!"

"I don't know who's the bigger pervert at this point," Ichijo admitted, snickering as he looked between Casey's pink and mortified face, Zero's deadpan expression, and Kaname, who was still leaning back on the table without making a move to clean himself off. "Kiryu just said what Kaname was thinking, after all."

"What?!" Casey almost squeaked, hand flying to her mouth.

"It's true," Ichijo told her with a wry grin. "Just look at his face, it has "lech" written all over it."

"W-wha-?" Casey made the mistake of looking over her shoulder, and, sure enough, Kaname was watching her with half closed, "bedroom" eyes, and a small, secretive little smile on his face. "Why are you looking at me like that?!"

He blinked once, slowly. "How am I looking at you exactly?"

"Oh, forget it," she exclaimed, getting to her feet and striding over to the coffee table. Without really thinking about it, she snatched up a napkin and then proceeded back to the table where Kaname was lounging. "You're hopeless…All of you!"

"Is that so?" Kaname asked with a small chuckle.

"Yes, it is," she mumbled, leaning over Kaname without another thought and reaching forward to dab at the hot chocolate trails on his smooth chest. "Every single one of you, but especially you…"

"Especially me?" Kaname inquired. "And what makes me so hopeless, since you happen to be the one wiping hot cocoa off of my chest."

Casey stopped dead in the middle of dabbing at the chocolate trails, her face turning beet red, as she realized he had a very valid point…

Damn it…