The school was silent when the battlefield suddenly fell and the darkened hue of the summoner fields disappeared, the already defeated Rin looking around in horror. "Wait. Did we... who just won?" He mumbled, looking around with wide brown eyes only to see his classmates offer him only shrugs.

"I... I have no idea." Dulcine returned, glancing at the A students who seemed just as quiet and confused.

"Well, come on, let's move back." Momoka called, ushering her classmates to head back down the hall to their classroom with a quick swipe of her hand. "Salvatore will want us to be there waiting for him."

As the rest of the A students began to file back, the somewhat confused Kato twin and the aspiring reporter could only look at the other, hoping the person they were looking at knew what they were doing. But all they knew was that they might as well begin to head back to their base to see just what they were dealing with now.

"Well..." Dulcine muttered, voice petering out before a true thought could leave her lips.

"It's time to go back, I guess," Rin said. "We're not gonna find anythin' out if we just keep standing around here waiting for something to magically happen."

Nobody seemed to disagree as they began to follow Rin, filing into the classroom to find most everything there. Well, everybody except for their Rep who was nowhere to be seen. And amidst the confusion, eyes began to turn to and focus on the slightly shaking Mei, who had her head down before any of the students walked into the classroom. She was sitting in her desk, turned away from everybody else and unwilling to give anybody in the room a look, clearly being tormented by something she wasn't articulating.

"Fujioka?" Rin muttered, afraid to approach the usually stoic girl. "Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, I mean, where's Nensho?" Ruki added, not exactly as afraid as her brother as she approached the trembling girl.

"H-He's gone." Mei managed. "He, I guess he just couldn't, couldn't handle it."

Whispers shot through the classroom as the Kato twins froze, neither able to get the facts out of their lips while they just stared at her, tears beginning to form in Mei's eyes as she finally turned to look at her fellow B classmates, something that stunned the entire class within seconds. Nobody even knew the girl was capable of crying and yet, here she was, crying tears for Kiyotaka.

"Fujioka." Dulcine mumbled, watching Ruki take a step closer and offer her arms to the girl, only for the right hand of Kiyotaka to stand up and rush into them, beginning to cry into her classmate's chest.

"H-Hey, it's okay, it's all going to be okay." Ruki whispered, gently stroking Mei's somewhat messy hair. "It's just one little loss, it's okay. It's not the end of the world if we lose one time, don't you think?"

"I-It's not that." Mei hiccupped. "N-Nensho... H-He was fighting for somebody s-so important to him and he... he lost. I-I... I've never seen somebody b-break before... b-but he..." She trailed off into sobs, leaving Ruki both stunned and damp.

"Tomorrow's going to be a bad day." Rin muttered, a hand pressing to his forehead to mimic trying to help fight against a headache.

"If Nensho comes to school at all." Dulcine added, catching Rin slightly by surprise before getting him to quiet down at the realization that nothing was making him come to school at all.

"I don't think he'd do that." Mumbled Ruki. "I I think he'll just come here tomorrow miffed at himself."

"And ya think that's better than him ditching?" Toma asked, leaning against his desk with arms folded against his chest. "He'll hole himself up in his desk, barely paying attention, stewing on Salvatore and the loss, trying to figure out where he made the mistake and why it was his fault." The last bit making Mei stiffen in Ruki's grasp.

"Yes, Akiyama, I do." Ruki said, gently patting Mei's head in an attempt to calm her down.. "Because if he's here, he'll have the rest of us to try and lift him back up. I don't think anybody in this class, or Tanaka, is going to be upset with him but he's going to expect us to feel the way he does about himself. So it's up to us to take his feelings into account and prevent him from going off the deep end."

"You really think we can do that, Kato?" Dulcine said, biting on her own lip to try and keep her own tears in. The idea of the strong man she'd idealized hurting left her feeling deflated. But she'd tried her best and she hoped, at minimum, that he'd have been proud of her for fighting her hardest.

"Of course I do." Ruki said, glancing down at the Rep's right hand who was beginning to let her go, drying her reddened eyes of remaining tears. "Don't you think so... Mei?"

The girl was somewhat surprised by the use of her first name, but wasn't exactly going to refuse this extension of friendship. "Yes, I think that'll work splendidly, Ruki."

"Then no more crying, you hear me?" She shouted, looking around the room to the defeated and whining B Class. "Tomorrow, we're going to keep all of our sad thoughts and our hurting to ourselves, because we need to stay strong for Nensho! No matter what he says, no matter what he thinks, we're going to stay right here beside him and encourage him through everything. Is that clear?"

"Yes Kato!"


He hated himself. He hated everything about himself, from that inflated ego that convinced him he was finally worth a damn and could protect the ones he loved, to the idealistic part of him that thought if he did this, he could stop Vash's hurting from ever coming back and destroying the man that held his heart.

But he was a failure.

Here he was, shaking, struggling to unlock his front door.

His parents weren't home, no, they never were anymore. Not with his father taking up defense cases all over Japan and his mother working in foreign business relations. Sometimes, it felt like they weren't a family anymore, with their lack of being there for him most of the time.

Sure, they did care for him and did do their best to be home for him when they could, but it just wasn't the same as having your family be a constant presence. He had grown used to coming home to an empty and silent home, to saying nothing to announce himself and his having returned for the day. This didn't mean there wasn't a hole in his chest when he returned to nothing and nobody, not when there were times where he wished they could be home for better or worse.

On a night like this, he could sure use them. He could use the strong words of his father and the gentle touch of his mother, he could use their unrelenting acceptance and the wisdom they'd cultivated in their longer times on the earth. They could reassure him that this crushing defeat was nothing more than a hiccup, something inconsequential that he wouldn't hold onto for much longer than a year.

But no, coming home to an empty house was the harsh and all too damning reality that Kiyotaka faced as he got the front door open. His schoolbag sunk to the floor as he stumbled inside, neglecting the idea of cooking and eating dinner and instead just walking to the couch, sinking into the cushions.

It didn't feel nice, relaxing or well earned. Instead it felt exhausting, frustrating and unwelcomed.

He hadn't earning this type of luxury, not when he couldn't even manage to win against Valvatorez. It was a fight he couldn't afford to lose and yet, he just wasn't good enough to win. He had all the chance in the world and he failed. He dropped the ball and failed the only one he ever loved.

Nothing felt worse.

He didn't want the tears to fall, not when they felt like a cry of weakness, like admitting that even now, he wasn't good enough. But there was something inside him that refused to hold it in, that practically opened his weaknesses up and displayed them for all to see. He couldn't hide, not when his eyes refused to stop blurring and his chest began shaking with trapped sobs desperate to escape.

He was a failure.

One job, one thing he had to do and he failed, he left the one person he valued more than anything out in the rain by losing. He was sure Valvatorez would feel more powerful now, that his ego would be fed now that he had undeniable proof that nobody could stand up to him because B wasn't strong enough even when their leader had all of the motivation he could possibly need. Kiyotaka could only begin to imagine how strong he would see himself as now, the idea of Valvatorez actively trying to make both his and Vash's lives harder beginning to overwhelm the broken B Rep.

If things became worse, it was all going to be his fault. By not being strong enough, he would become the reason everything bad happened. He would be the cause of Vash's pain, the unworthy man who had been in love with his childhood friend since they were in middle school. He would become the reason that Vash suffered, the friend who claimed to adore him even though he was the cause of all of his suffering. He would become the worst thing that ever happened to Vash, the reason behind all of his pain.

Or at least that's what he told himself as he lay there, eyes blankly focused on nothing as they burned from the sensation of brewing tears.

The house was quiet, practically its own little world as the B Rep finally chose to release the floodgates and subsequently his emotions, choking streams of tears beginning to stream down his cheeks and a practically screaming cry left his throat.

He couldn't believe he failed. And he surely couldn't forgive himself.


"Did you hear...?"

The whispers were impossible to escape, not when the entire class was talking about what had happened. B Class wasn't speaking, but A Class sure was, the story of their victory being sent all throughout the school. They were quite proud of themselves, especially when the opposing class was practically silent about the entire event, their unanimous silence only further fanning A's flames

Vash had tried to ignore it, especially when all of it felt like a dagger stabbing into his chest.

You didn't have to fight... but I know you. I know you're not going to let this go. I know this'll be the end of the world for you.

His head was lowered when he walked, a blue jacket covering his uniform shirt with the hood covering his face. He was hoping this would key his class into knowing he wanted to be left alone today. He would've stayed home but he just couldn't risk being home if... he... might be there. So although he felt unable to focus, he knew he had to be here to ensure his own safety and sanity.

A shaking hand reached out and grabbed the door to F Class, trying to swallow back any concern before he slid it open, all eyes focused on him.

"SENPAI!"

Oh great, there goes peace.

Before he could ever set foot in the class, he found Koto, Mio and Matsusuke practically at his feet, the athletic student looking up at him with his eyes somewhat dramatically watering. "Oh, Senpai, I'm so sorry!"

"Huh?"

"It's a s-shame, really." Koto nodded slowly, trying to stammer through his words. "T-That another class falls to the awful A-A Class!"

"Oh." Vash sighed, trying to shrug them off as quickly as he could. "It's just a loss, these things happen."

"But it's Nensho!" Matsusuke practically shouted. "Salvatore beat Nensho, your best friend and the only guy standing between A and us! What's going to keep him from coming after us, from hurting you, again?!"

Valvatorez wouldn't try anything now, would he? Vash couldn't help but bite his lip when thinking about it, shaking his head slowly. "No, I doubt fighting us again once our two month ban from battle ends is something Salvatore would do. He wouldn't get anything out of it." The Rep didn't actually know this, but he knew if he didn't say something reassuring, things would get out of hand and these three would spent the rest of the day in a constant panic.

"Senpai?" Mio spoke up, Vash slightly moving his head over in her direction, even if his face was barely visible. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong, Izuhara."

"I know it's a little cold in the school sometimes, but it's summer and nobody wears the hood up when they're inside." Mio muttered, not buying his statement for a moment.

"I said it's nothing!"

The trio exchanged looks of concern between the three of them, but none of them could bring themselves to say anything more. Arguing with Vash seemed practically pointless as they slunk back, heading to their desks while Vash only silently headed to his.

He felt awful for snapping at them and yet, he felt he had to. He knew how they'd react if they got a look at the bruise that encased his eye and forced it shut. His shaking hands adjusted his glasses, but it felt more like he was trying to keep tears from forming and falling. Everything felt upsetting and scary and yet... yet he had to bite his lip down and try and remain together.

If he played his cards right, there was a sixty percent chance he would be able to hide what happened from everybody. After all, with today being Friday, he wouldn't have to go to school tomorrow since none of his academics were meeting the next day. Yusuke and Kiyotaka would be there for baseball and swimming respectively and knowing Haruhi she would spend time watching the baseball team for the sake of it, but Vash could easily ignore Saturday all together and hide away.

Mostly from his two friends.


B Class was in a very different state, this was clear to the Kato twins when they stepped into the room in the morning. Right away, they noticed their Rep diligently writing on the whiteboard, Mei standing mere inches behind him with her sharp blue eyeseyes wide.

"Ne... Kiyotaka," She stammered. "Don't you think this is a little too far?"

"No, Mei, I don't." He shot back, getting her to flinch slightly. "It never hurts to prepare for your next step."

"But we're on probation, we can't participate in another Test War for two months." She mumbled, glancing up at the calendar, seeing the date reading June. "We're not going to be able to participate again until after the Summer break. Maybe we should hold off any plans un-"

"Fujioka, which one of us is the representative for this class?"

"... You."

"And which one of us actually has the right to make plans and decisions for this class?"

"You."

"Then sit down and stop telling me what to do."

This chill in his voice left everybody in the class frozen, nobody having actually expected to ever hear this type of tone from him. This was the person they feared they would end up with back when the school year began in April and suddenly this man was showing his face. Mei slowly headed back to her seat, the bewildered look in her eyes saying it all. If he was willing to scold and talk down to her, nobody was safe from this treatment and it would be in their best interest if they didn't speak to him unless they had to.

"Fujioka?"

Mei slowly turned around to meet Rin's puzzled look, her teeth severing her lip as he found his words. "What the hell is Nensho doing?"

"Planning for when we fight Class A again." She sighed.

"But we c-can't for... until..."

"I know, I know," She muttered. "But he won't hear it. There's no point in saying anything to him about it, not when he's like this."

"Kind of a sore loser, huh?"

"I don't think it's about the loss so much as it's about who he lost to," Muttered Mei. "Losing to Salvatore has opened a rather large wound and he's not coping in a healthy way."

"Think he'll stay like this for a long time?"

Mei shrugged. "Who knows? He might throw a fit for a while, he might move on once Tanaka and Seto slap some sense into him, or perhaps he'll hold it until our ban is lifted and we could fight Class A."

"It might last until August?!" Ruki gaped, clearly having no problem with interjecting herself into her brother's conversation. "No way! I can't deal with this for that long!"

"You might not have a choice." Mei mumbled. "Unless Tanaka and Seto know how to fix this, we might just be stuck with this new version of Nensho."

Word of this was quick to spread through the class, Toma peering through the class to give Mei a look that read 'Maybe we should just beat this out of him', his face twisting into a growl when she firmly shook her head 'no'.

Unfortunately, they were going to be stuck in this mess with him. Maybe it wasn't their fault that they lost, maybe it was only his or maybe it was the fault of the class as a whole. The only thing Mei knew for sure was that whether they liked it or not, they were going to be stuck with Kiyotaka Nensho in the long run. If he was going to slightly go off the deep end, he would be their mad man to try and deal with.

Mei just hoped there would be a way to try and wake him up from this frantic nature before it was too late.


The music room was quiet when Haruhi entered, a frown overtaking her lips when she noticed that neither of the guys were there waiting for her like usual. It wasn't like either to be late, which left her somewhat pouty as she sat herself down on the floor of the music room, unpacking her lunch box as she only stared at it, waiting for the other two to arrive.

It took about five minutes before one student walked into the room. For a moment, Haruhi couldn't figure out just who it was walking into the room, staring up at the hooded figure before putting two and two together and clearing her throat.

"Vash?"

He kept his head lowered, making Haruhi slightly uncomfortable as she couldn't see his face at all as he slowly sat himself down beside her. "Haruhi." He muttered, clearing his throat in an attempt to keep his voice straight.

"..." She shook her head, knowing not to ignore what was clearly something wrong. "Hey, what's going on?"

"It's nothing."

"I've known you since before we were in diapers, dummy." Haruhi huffed, folding her arms across her chest. "If you don't fess up, I'm going to tear that stupid hood off your head myself. Up to you, Tanaka." Her voice quite gruff when she used his last name.

"... Please."

"Vash, I'm not going to be mad at you." She mumbled. "I just worry about you. So you gotta take off that hood."

His hands were shaking as he slowly reached up to tug the blue cloth away from his head, Haruhi's brown eyes rather wide as she watched him do just that. And then, the moment the hood was removed, a small gasp escaped the lips of his lifetime friend.

His left eye was encased in a black-purplish bruise, basically swollen shut from the previous trauma to the poor thing. His face was dark with pain and embarrassment, unable to look at Haruhi while her terrified eyes studied his hurting demeanor.

"Who did this?"

"Haruhi... I..."

"Who. Did. This?" She growled, having expected to hear Valvatorez's name escape his lips. And well, if that really was the answer, the C Rep had half a mind to take the man out with her own two hands, regardless of what would happen to her.

"It... I..." He was shaking, arms slowly wrapping around his body as he tried to stop himself from violently trembling or even breaking down. "It... M-My D-Dad."

Her eyes widened as those two words escaped his lips. Naturally, both Haruhi and Kiyotaka had hated Gerard Taylor for years, or rather ever since they were children. They were never oblivious to the abuse that Vash clearly had to endure, but up until this point, it had more or less only be neglect. Gerard had never put a hand on his kid, which is why Haruhi and Kiyo had more or less opted to hate him silently from the background, knowing making their feelings on the matter known would do nothing but hurt their friend as the knowledge that his father was abusive only became more apparent and made life ultimately harder for him.

"He... he hit you?"

This wasn't something that she had prepared herself for, this wasn't something that she thought he would actually do. She wasn't prepared to hear that Vash had been hit and she certainly wasn't prepared to handle this situation long term. But what she was prepared for was the short term as she looked up at Vash's shaking form, the F rep unable to stop himself as a sob escaped his throat.

"O-Oh god, no." Haruhi shook her head as she scooted closer, pulling him into her arms before he could get a word out. "H-Hey... it's all okay now... I'm right here." Feeling his arms wrap tightly around her as he began to cry into her shoulder.

She hated his dad, she always had but never like this, not with a burning desire to make him hurt like his child was. She'd had to comfort Vash many a time due to crisis caused only by his father and yet, this wasn't like those other times. None of them thought he'd ever actually hit Vash and yet, here he was, sobbing about the unthinkable having happened to him. They didn't know what to do and yet, she remained there, holding him tightly as he violently sobbed into her shoulder.

Maybe it was for the best that Kiyotaka skipped out on lunch as Haruhi held her friend. If he knew all this had happened, both of them knew he would absolutely lose his shit and make everything about this so much worse.

Haruhi wasn't sure how, but at minimum, she knew she had to do something to try and help somebody who meant the world to her.

She was going to help him, she just had to.


"And that's it... his dad hit him and I... I just don't know how I'm going to fix it."

Haruhi and Yusuke were out on the town, not a date or anything, just the two of them spending time together as Haruhi munched on a strawberry crepe.

"Hit him?" Yusuke mumbled, shaking his head slowly. "Oh God, I can't imagine."

"Yeah," She sighed. "I mean, his dad's always been the worst, but none of us thought he'd ever actually lay a hand on his kid."

"I don't think you can fix that though. I mean, you can't make his dad go away or anything, that guy is always going to be Tanaka's dad whether you like it or not."

"I know, but he's alone in that house. Only child. And sometimes, he's home alone with only his dad with nobody there to calm him down or keep him from going crazy with stress and fear." Haruhi mumbled. "If he just had something or somebody to help him out, maybe it would make home a better place for him. It's not like I can let him stay at my house all the time, at the end of the day, he's gonna have to go home. He's gonna either have his mom to protect him or he's going to be alone and in danger"

"Well, you can't just get him a sibling."

"True." Haruhi pouted, taking another bite of the crepe. "I just, I can't do nothing."

"Excuse me?"

The two C students turned their attention to a meek voice, seeing a middle school student standing there nervously. She fiddled with her glasses, trying to find her voice. "I... uhm, would you happen to like cats?"

"Er..." Yusuke's voice catching his throat as he tried to reach for Haruhi's wrist to pull her along before she could get attached.

"Cats?" Haruhi blinked, her eyes lighting up. "Of course I do!"

Too late.

"Y-You do?" The middle schooler smiled. "Would you happen to be interested in a kitten then? Y-You see, my cat recently had kittens and my Mom wouldn't let me keep any of them. So I-I've been trying to give them away to a good home."

"Haruhi." Yusuke knew what she was going to do, what she was thinking. "Come on, we really shouldn't."

"Just a peek?" She mumbled. "Come on, that much couldn't hurt, right?"

"... Fine..." The baseball player sighed.

Haruhi pulled Yusuke over as the both of them peered into the box in the middle schooler's hands, the eyes of the C Rep widening at once as she slightly gasped in slight delight.

"Oh my gosh, they're... they're so cute!"

Four kittens rested themselves in the box, crawling atop one another and pawing at the top of the box in hopes of getting noticed by the two people peering at them, desperate to be pulled free of their cardboard prison.

And although she knew she shouldn't have, Haruhi couldn't help but pick one of them up, reaching into the box and selecting one of the mewling kittens who caught her eye almost immediately. The calico kitten's main fur color seemed to be white but she was covered in orange and black spots, the cat nipping at Haruhi's index finger the moment she was picked up.

"Oh, it's so cute." Haruhi cooed as she cradled the kitten against her chest.

"Haruhi." Yusuke's voice stern as he tried to remind her that they were only looking.

"She's got a big personality." The middle schooler snickered. "She was always the one tearing up the drapes, or chewing on her Mom's tail. You'd have to be willing to train her to listen if you wanted to take her home"

"Yusuke, we can't just leave her here!" Haruhi said, holding the kitten closer to his face so he could see the innocent and wide yellow eyes of the can. "We gotta take her!"

"Well, I can't! I've got two dogs, they'd tear her apart."

"Well, I cou- ... Can't take her," Haruhi's excitement fading the moment reality struck her. "My Dad's allergic to cats. We couldn't ever have one because if he walks into a room where one used to be, his eyes water up and he starts sneezing all over the place."

"Then we can't take her with us." Yusuke shrugged. "This is why I told you not to look at them, you were only going to get attached to what you couldn't have."

"I guess you're ri..." Haruhi paused for a moment, thinking her words over before shaking her head. "Wait... I know what we can do with her!"

"Haruhi, no" Yusuke muttered, staring at the woman and shaking his head. He knew Haruhi and he knew what she was thinking. This wasn't going to end well, but he knew no matter what he said, Haruhi was going to do exactly as she pleased.


When the knock came at the door, Vash couldn't suppress the groan that left his lips as he headed to open it.

Please, just please don't let it be Kiyotaka.

"Vash~!"

Just Haruhi. Vash couldn't help but bite down his lip at the sight of the girl, holding a shoebox with holes sloppily put through the cardboard.

Oh no.

"Haruhi?" Vash swallowed down his concern. "What's... What did you do?"

"Hear me out, okay?" She said, offering him the shoebox with a wide grin. "I think, I think this might help how you feel about coming home everyday. Maybe we can turn dread and fear into excitement?"

Vash didn't want to take it, but he knew he more or less had to with how Haruhi was almost shoving the box into his chest, his shaking hands grasping the shoebox and slowly pulling the lid off to reveal a sleeping kitten nestled up in a bright pink blanket.

"H-Haruhi, why?" Vash muttered., anything but impressed "I don't like animals."

"I know it sounds crazy, but animals... well, they're known for being practically therapeutic." Haruhi said. "Just being around an animal is known to help people's stress and blood pressure levels. I know you don't think she'll be that helpful, but I know the two of you would be fast friends."

"I don't this this is a good idea" He looked up at the trying to smile girl, knowing that the kitten, and the large bag probably containing kitten food, cat litter and accessories, were all her attempt to help him overcome the pain of his homelife. "Haruhi, come on, you know this isn't going to end well."

"Just trust me, okay?" She said, trying to smile. "I know it sounds crazy, but I think the two of you will get along pretty well. And not to brag, but I'm almost always right about these kinds of things."

He glanced back into the box, seeing the sleeping kitten inside. Well, he couldn't deny that she was pretty cute and yet, well, there wasn't much he could say other than that. He'd never had a pet before and he had no idea what to do with her. He knew cats were pretty independent, but he would still have to participate in her life and it felt so odd, but he didn't think he was cut out to be an owner of some little cat.

"Just trust me. Okay? If things are really that bad, I'll come back and find a new place for her. But, but I think this is a really good thing for you to try. A nice change of pace and a reason to smile a little big more."

"I... Fine, I trust you." Vash mumbled as he looked back at her, watching her face light up.

"You'll really take her!?"

"Yeah, fine, I'll try this out and keep her." Vash said. "Just, just don't be surprised if I don't fall in love with her like you think I will."

"Psh, I know you will." Haruhi teased, waving him off playfully. "You can pretend you don't already care for her, but I know you. I know you'll fall in love with her before you know it. I mean, come on, nobody is a bigger softie than you!"

Vash couldn't help but roll his eyes at the statement. He'd never been a pet person, so there was no way he was just going to magically fall in love with some little kitten. It wasn't like him.

He was trying to do homework when the kitten woke up. She'd woken up when he'd first carried the shoebox up the stairs into his bedroom, but she'd lost interest almost immediately, nuzzling against the blanket she'd been curled up in and drifting back to sleep within moments of being placed in a corned of the room.

This time was a little different as she stretched, leaping out of the shoebox and beginning to trot around the room with her tail pointed straight up. She was clearly interested in the entire room, but when spotting Vash diligently working on school work, the kitten grew eager for attention.

He wasn't paying her any mind until he felt the sensation of tiny claws pricking against his toes, the teenager cringing and peering down to see the young cat was pawing at his uniform pant leg, her tiny claws retracting and extending her claws into the leg playfully.

"What are you doing?" Vash mumbled, the kitten refusing to pay him any mind as she took notice of his socks, the kitten's paws finding their way onto his sock and pressing her claws into the heavier tops of them, finding her claws getting trapped in them for a moment as she tried to yank them free.

Well... she's clearly curious.

"You like that...?" Vash found himself asking the cat, her wide yellow eyes looking up into his as she managed to pull her paw free, the kitten laying herself on her back and pawing up at him playfully.

Okay... so she's kinda cute.

Vash found himself pushing his chair back, the sound spooking the cat who sat up, mewling at him as the teenager slowly moved his hand in closer, his palm resting atop her head as he scratched behind her ears. She seemed to like this, rubbing her head against his skin, surprising the teenager quite a bit as she ran her body against his arm, purring loudly all the while.

"S-Stop that." Vash stammered. "Y-You can't just do that."

Well, clearly she could, the kitten rubbing against him and only beginning to purr all the louder as if to challenge his statement. Vash trying to pretend it didn't touch him for a moment longer before he sighed, giving into temptation and scooping the somewhat surprised cat up. He plopped her into his lap, the little creature's ears perking up as she assessed the bedroom from a higher point of view.

He tried to focus back up on his homework, while the kitten would bat at his moving elbow, more interested in the movement than Vash himself. And every time he looked down at her curious eyes, at her rapidly moving ears and constantly flexing paws, he couldn't help but smile gently.

He let his left hand sink down and pet her gently, the kitten relaxing in his touch as she began to lay down in his lap with her legs tucked under her body, tail casually swishing from side to side as he stroked her soft fur.

"Just don't tell Haruhi, alright?" He whispered to the cat as he went back to his homework, petting her all the while. Maybe the idea that she was some kinda calming agent wasn't crazy, but this didn't mean he was just going to fall in love with her, did it?

Vash didn't know. But at least for now, he couldn't say he minded having the kitten in his lap. Her purring was somewhat calming and her fur was rather soft.

But no way, he wasn't gonna fall in love with this little kitten.

Not at all.