a/nSo, I don't think anything in this has language you would only know as a debater, but feel free to PM or review to ask if there is. Policy is essentially evidence based, really fast-speaking debate in which the same topic is kept all year and one is either affirmative or negative. While this is not my event, it is the most common in college, and thusly will be the event used in this here fanfic.

BTW, there really is nothing better than the feel of knowing your about to logically kick ass. Anyone who's never tried debate should. end author note

…...

At a party, you were utterly lost, and in school you were awkward at best. Practice was rather cozy, but nothing in the world could beat the feeling of walking into an actual debate, the sound of intellect and practiced speeches filling the air as you took a deep breath and stood tall. Here, you were confidant, a queen in her castle; soon everyone would learn to bow. Yes, nothing could beat the feeling of a suit, heels, and a well written case. Especially when you had a wonderful partner like Kankri to back you up, his voice perfect in enunciation and tone in spite of the speeds necessary to make a good policy case. Dirk, in his attempts to woo you, offered to carry in your evidence tubs, and was regretting it, seeing as he was currently lifting his own as well, straining under the weight but pretending not to.

"Alright in contention one, sub point C, we have that..." you were going on, and for once, your partner actually understood what you were saying. In high school, your coach had a habit of sticking you with the novices who didn't have partners, and usually lacked skill as well. Such was the consequence of being the one who made cases instead of friends on the team, and thusly lacked a loyal, stable partner.

"No, that's card 14D, not 14C. Remember, that was the one on South Africa." He corrected, walking next to you, his laptop bag strapped to his black-suited shoulder, a red turtleneck underneath, of course. He had every bit of evidence you had on it, but you were a traditionalist. People learned 34% better from paper than digital script, after all, not to mention faster on average, something important when you needed to shove an hour long speech into 8 minutes while still inflecting everything.

"That's right. Alright, so if they ask about our ninth point..." yes, this was the most wonderful feeling in the world, or at least that's what you thought until you got into a round, with your mind running, ensuring that each and every point was defended and refuted. Crossfires where each question was loaded, and you managed to deflect and turn them with practiced ease. The rush of adrenaline as you made the point you knew would win you the round, and the smirk you hid for appearance's sake as the other team frantically searched for something to counter it with until their minutes of prep time elapsed, and they grasped at straws.

Needless to say, by lunch you were out of your heels and dancing about as you chose not to partake in the mediocre Papa John's with extra pepperoni, dancing to the imaginary symphony you were conducting in your head. Kankri was sitting down, eating a sandwich he'd brought himself, not one for greasy foods, and Dirk and John went over their aff case, which apparently had an inherent logical flaw they had forgotten to cover with evidence. Two rounds down, two more pre-lems and make two breaks to go and then you got to send word home that you'd won your first college level debate.

"Are you sure that you can handle caffeine well, (y/n)? Kankri asked, raising a brow and taking another bite of turkey and provolone.

"I'm fine. This is just my natural ass-kicking high. Nothing to do with the soda." you responded, wishing they would hurry up and bring out the next rounds, even if they were power-matched. It took a while for them to figure out who to pair up with who, but that didn't make you any less impatient as your dancing became anxious pacing around the table your team had claimed for it's own.

"Will you th'top that!" Sollux shouted, currently printing evidence for the other team, and agitated by your nervous energy. You scowled, but sat next to Kankri nonetheless, tapping your feet and fingers.

"Can your really not relax? You aren't this bad in round." Kankri said, and you sighed.

"I hate waiting. I want to hurry up and get this done. I came here to debate, not wait for half an hour while they figure out how to put people's names into a computer." you complained, angrily chugging down another Dr. Pepper.

"I dislike waiting as well, but is it really worth spending next semester's book funds on soda to not just calmly wait for them to finish their work. Not to mention that everyone else would actually like to eat something, rather than inhale it."

"Pansies the lot of you. Eating on competition is for wimps. If you eat, it takes energy from your brain for digestion as well as blood and thusly oxygen. I think better hungry." you explained, popping the tab to another fizzy distraction.

"Then we could go over our cases. We should be neg next round, and we didn't go over that as much at practice." he suggested, finishing his food and neatly wiping his hands before pulling his laptop from its synthetic cloth and foam protection.

"Good idea. We didn't really hash out sub-point A fully, so I was just going to read my version. They weren't all that different, just the use of card 11H over 12A."

"See, downtime can be just as productive. No need to give Sollux a heart attack." he said, pulling up the 700+ page document that had all of your evidence in large print. He had bad eyes, so the 8 font you printed yours in wasn't gonna work for him. He needed more like 22 to be able to see it clearly. It gave you a headache just to see it so big, having to move your eyes so fast just to read at the same speed. You told him once that he would get arthritis from pressing the down key so much, having to keep up with his speaking pace, which was even faster than yours when he really got into it.

"Alright, then. But you see, this one here goes better with sub point B..."

You were so tired by the end of final round, ending at about 9 PM after waking up at 4 that morning, that you stopped caring about how Kankri saw you and just went to change into the clothes you'd brought in case the suit got too uncomfortable. It wasn't painfully unsuitable, but the restricted movement was starting to annoy you, and so you, like many of the others, were waiting for awards in clothes that barely passed as pajamas. Gym shorts that came down about an inch from showing your ass, and the thin-strapped black tank top that had served as your undershirt all day. You'd worn a red collared shirt to resemble your partner without matching to the point of tacky, but that was now neatly balled up and shoved in a Walt-Mart bag to be ironed and hung at a later date.

Kankri had switched to black sweat pants, but maintained his sweater. You'd simply wrap yourself in your sub-arctic sleeping bag if you got cold on the bus, and the thirty second walk to said bus would be bearable for the sake of being comfortable.

With your competition high running down, you found yourself falling asleep, drifting off and leaning on Kankri's shoulder as your head became outrageously heavy. If he minded, he didn't show it, but you were too exhausted to be thrilled at his compliance. You got an hour an a half of rest before the sound of applause roused you, meaning that someone had brought the awards out, and more importantly, the envelope containing the winners, like a Grammy show that you had to be intelligent to win.

The other events went by painfully slowly, as they saved policy for last, being the most anticipated event. Third place went to Dirk and John, and you stood and clapped, cheering for your victorious associates while hoping that you beat them. It was the "I want you to win, but me to win more" attitude held by anyone who was on an inception team: one where you were a team within a team. Second went to the people you had gone against in finals, nearly guaranteeing what you had decided for the sake of positive visualization to be inevitable from the start.

First place went to Kankri and yourself, the trophy coming nearly to your hip, and being too heavy for you to carry it. Knowing this, Kankri accepted it as you shook the man handing them out's hand, smiling politely and thanked him. Soon you were dismissed, and Coach Nior appeared from the tab room he had helped run with a big smile and ballots, congratulating both of his teams and offering to buy you dinner. At the mention of food, nearly 11, your stomach made a growl to make a lion green with envy.

"That's what you get for not eating." Kankri said, almost scolding, but mostly playful.

"Can we just hurry up and get to the part where I stuff my face on the coach's dollar? 'Cause that would be great, guys." you responded, leading the way to your 6-seater bus in spite of the fact that it was locked and your coach/driver had to be there to let you in anyway.

The cold hit you like a wall, but you trudged forward, leaving the noble Texan to carry your tubs for you again, your bag with clothes money and copious amounts of mints and chewing gum that was slightly less copious than before you arrived. You wanted to ask Kankri for his jacket, or maybe appeal to Dirk's sense of chivalry and ask for his, but your feminist tendencies wouldn't allow you to do something so stereotypical, so you just stood shivering until the bus was opened, at which point you rushed to your sleeping bag, reveling in the warmth of it's plush insides. Kankri chuckled as he walked over to you, sitting down next to you, and setting the trophy in the extra seat for stuff at the front.

"Aw, come on. Can't wear something like that and then cover up." Dirk said, walking past you and winking.

"I'm pretty sure this trophy means I can do whatever I damn well please." you responded, smirking at his feigned offense.

"Well now, that was just rude. Maybe you should try and make I up to me. A kiss'll do nicely, I think."

"This is why I liked an all boy's team." Coach said, putting the keys in the ignition, "less sexual harassment. Just make sure you don't get reported, boy. I'd hate to have your scholarship revoked."

"It's fine, coach. As long as he keeps his hands to himself." you gave him a pointed look, and then turned to the front, eager to reach whatever Chic-Fil-A you would be eating at that night.

"I can't ever remember having that much fun, so thanks Kankri." you said, halfway through the three hour drive home with the other three debaters asleep.

"I had an excellent time as well. There is no need to thank me."

"No need, but I want to anyway. You can keep the trophy, and we'll trade off."

"Very well. You should get some sleep. You haven't finished your essay for British Lit, and it's due Monday."

"Don't remind me! It's a struggle being a lazy perfectionist, okay?" Even as he spoke you found your eyelids heavy. Deciding to test your luck, you placed your head on his shoulder once more, drifting into the sweet abyss of sleep, cuddling to him in the guise of seeking a pillow.