As promised here it is! Apologies for the late hour but I just finished typing this baby up :) It was supposed to be a second part to chapter 7 Lies but I thought "Musings" did this one more justice. Eh.

Thanks to all those that reviewed and added this story to their alert/favorite lists =D

As always, Soul Eater is not of my creation *weeps in corner*

"Kid, come on! We were supposed to be there hours ago! Its already getting dark!"

"No! Not until I have perfectly straightened all the paintings!"

"You did that this morning!"

"They could have moved since then! Why don't you go on without me? I'll catch up with you guys!"

"Exasperated, Liz went upstairs, grabbed Kid by the collar and dragged him all the way as she and Patty made their way to visit Soul.

He struggled all the way.

Stein didn't know what had compelled him to come over without a better excuse.

You didn't want her to be alone.

Ha. As if. If he were a more decent man he would have been satisfied with that excuse.

You just wanted her for yourself.

Ah. There it was.

There had been only so many minutes of awkward silence Maka could take which had led her to desperately suggest they watch a movie. He had agreed, his mind drawing up scenarios of her snuggling up to him on the couch. Those plans had quickly gone down the drain though as she had promptly placed a HUGE bowl of popcorn between them.

And to make things oh so much better the only movie Maka could find was Titanic. Apparently all the other ones had disappeared.

Don't take her wrong, she was thrilled that he had actually come to visit her but she really did not know how to act so to be safe, she took refuge on the other end of the couch farthest from him, using the popcorn as some sort of shield.

Great, Maka could you be anymore childish? And what the hell happened to the other DVDs?! I didn't know Soul even owned Titanic!

While she tried to focus on something else but him, Maka gave the TV screen her full attention which gave Stein the chance to continue his observations. She was curled up, giving her attention not on him. Her hair was neatly done in her customary pigtails.

I have never seen her with her hair down he realized. Hm.

He was trying to figure out why a man his age would suddenly find a girl barely in her teens…interesting…..especially in that way.

Maybe your naturally mad nature is manifesting in a sudden onset of pedophilia?

Hm. That could be possible if only he would notice other girls her age. Girls who had bigger assets. So no, it had to be something else.

Something less depraved maybe?

It could be genuine affection you know. Or the start of it.

At that, he had to smile. Stein. Creepy old Stein. Finally after so many years of ignoring the fact that he had a heart and opting for more macabre pursuits was finally showing signs of change thanks to a mere 14 year old girl he had know for what? Two months?

Alright, maybe it wasn't that far fetched. Maka was a strong meister. He had seen her soul multiple times and he knew that she had a lot of potential. If she kept up her training it was possible she may be up to his level someday.

Is that what appealed to him? Her skill? Potential or otherwise?

Maybe that was it. The fact that someone would finally rise up to his level (and maybe beyond) intrigued him. But enough to make his mad heart beat a little faster everytime they were near?

Unlikely. There had to be something else.

It had to be something physical then.

Here, he began to check out her legs again which was pretty much the only sexually attractive asset she had.

Was it that? Her legs? If it truly was just that then he was disappointed. He never pegged himself to be so shallow.

And now that he was thinking about it, why had she acted so strangely back at his classroom all those days before? All he did was touch her on the shoulde-

Ooh. He had touched her. Did he repell her? Obviously that wasn't the case anymore or why else would she have let him stay? She could have easily made up a lie to make him go away.

And yet she is sitting at the farthest end of the couch using a bowl as protection.

Hm.

He was going to try a little experiment then. As soon as she went to dip her hand to get more popcorn he swiftly moved his too so they would touch. He expected her to flinch away but her hand just lingered there until she finally removed it albeit a little awkwardly.

Hm. Well, that had been awkward. Better than fear though.

As soon as they had touched he noticed his heart give the slightest little jump.

He was began to remember the first time he had touched her skin. It was so soft and still young which made it perfect for experiments. He had done so on her father so why not continue on his next of kin?

He could even make a study on how much she had inherited from him. And soul had the potential of becoming a Gregorian soul which made it even more-

Down boy.

Right. She was her student. She was off limits. He couldn't view her as a potential experiment.

"Professor?"

"Hm?"

" The movie. It ended."

"Oh" He had been so engrossed in thinking about her that he had forgotten to even watch his favorite part.

He noticed it was late. Very late. So not wanting this visit to turn any more inappropriate he decided it was time to leave.

Getting up he said, "Well Maka, it was nice spending time with my favorite student".

Ooh he hadn't meant to let that slip.

He had expected her to get uncomfortable at that but instead she meekly smiled as she followed him to the door.

" Uh, yeah it was nice professor".

Stepping out into the hallway he turned around to face her.

"Well, I'll see you at school" he said and before she could say anything else he began to walk off. He didn't mean to be so abrupt but he felt someone coming and last thing he needed was to be seen leaving Maka's apartment at this hour. And if his soul perception was anything to rely on, that person approaching was none other than-

"Oh Hey Professor Stein!"

Shit.

" Black*Star", he said, nodding at his student quickly before continuing his way home. He relaxed a little. Realizing Black*Star couldn't possibly think it odd of him leaving one of his female students' apartment at this hour- wait. What had that been in his hand?

It couldn't be Maka's glove could it? No. Quickly turning around he realized Black*Star had already entered her apartment. He would have to put him in his place tomorrow then.

So there it is. I'm sorry this raises more questions than it answers them but you'll have to wait for the next chapter (which should be up by this weekend).

Also, if Stein (or anyone else for that matter)is not in character than let me know. Stein can be funny and silly sometimes but hes mostly of a serious nature so i've just been trying to juggle between those two.

And if this is dragging sorry again. I'm just trying to make it so they both dont just fall for each other out of the blue. But if enough of you complain i'll speed it up or write longer chapters.

And to just throw you guys a bone, two characters will get their heart broken...possibly 3. sorry!

And if you can guess which part of Titanic is Stein's favorite, you get a cookie :3 Also, any idea who is responsible for the missing DVDs?

Alright until next update! And thanks again for all the love!