**AUTHOR'S NOTE: I would like to thank the beta reader who offered to assist me in editing the document. It was very kind of you to offer and take the time to proofread.


Kyoya sat across from Rin at lunch, carefully observing like always as she happily humored and earnestly responded to the twins and their ridiculous ideas on one hand while continuing a more regulated and intellectual conversation with Haruhi on the other. She was clearly empathetic to the female currently disguised as a male, not pushing the antics and schemes of the Hitachiins on her while personally and actively participating in their creation. It was pleasant to see, but it was also tearing his heart open. It felt so strange; it was as if he was drowning above water, which made no sense to him at all.

"Please refrain from causing a scene and discrediting the club, or bringing trouble to the Chibana family after they so graciously showed us their gratitude. Remember that we have the honor of being published, with her sister-on-law as the author." He calmly spoke, the words colder than how he would normally put. Pushing up his glasses, he flashed them his infamous frigid smile. The twins knew to keep in check; he knew that. Though they dangerously flirted with the line many times, they always made sure to not let a single toe cross the line no matter how much they stepped on it. And yet here I am, irritated by their antics. How peculiar indeed. He internally frowned at his own odd behavior.

"We won't do anything," Kaoru was quick to assure their shadow king.

"Yeah, plus Zaina's the one who started it this time," Hikaru added, leaning back in his seat, "We're just testing the waters as per usual."

"I am trusting the both of you." He gave a simple smile as he sipped his water, hoping the liquid would clear his mind and settle the rising heat in his body. "There was quite a commotion in your class this morning, which is why I'm reminding you both."

"Oh, so it's known around school?" The twins raised their brows at the news, Rin equally surprised by this fact.

"Well, it was really out of character of her to go that far. She's already garnered quite the amount of attention with everyone here. Normally, no one pays attention to or avoids her," Rin spoke up, smiling a little at this change. "That aside, you needn't worry too much. I am aware that my family name is very much looked at and Zaina is very mindful as well."

"And yet she responded in a way that is even foreign to you?" Kyoya cocked a brow at this before taking his next bite of food.

"That is true, but she has never strayed from her duties, no matter how much I've begged and pled her to even slightly slacken her rigidity with the rules she must follow," Rin sighed, her shoulders slumping as she recalled the many times she and her siblings tried to get her to relax. "As you saw a few days prior, Suzaku had to tell her to take extra days off. Oh, speaking of my brother! I spoke with him about the survey you wished to take of the girls now that the questionnaire is complete. He's perfectly fine with me assisting in the gathering of the data. Which means we can begin collecting as soon as you're comfortable. Is there any specific way you wish to execute this?" She carefully crossed her legs as she sat back in her seat. Her back was straight, posture perfect with a simple courteous smile in place. She was a refined young lady of the highest caliber and knew to keep herself prepared for any eyes that may catch her. Much like him, it was nearly impossible to find a crack to exploit and he commended her for such consideration.

"That's excellent." Kyoya gave a small smile of his own at the news. "We can begin as soon as we get the procedure accepted by the administration. That won't be too difficult; they already know we've been running data collection. I simply need to inform them that we will be proceeding to the official survey that will be used for the article. After much thought, I think it would be best to administer the survey via computer during study hall in the computer labs. With the help of some of the teachers, we can have multiple groups complete it."

"I was going to suggest that we involve whichever faculty member we can that will be able to proctor after we fully explain what is expected of them. We can then move to the next room and repeat the process. Zaina will be running sessions as well on a separate floor, which will help us speed up the intake process," she added in agreement, her warm honey eyes never shying from Kyoya's intense brownish-grey eyes.

"I was thinking just the same. We will have to split up the years between us. For consistency, I believe we should assign a host club member to instruct with Zaina. I doubt they will question her since she already had gone around asking everyone, but to avoid any difference in data due to situation, a host club member should be present with her." Kyoya explained as he cleared room for his black notebook, flipping it open to the page with the information for the survey.

"We can do it," the twins offered, raising their hands at this information.

"Your personalities will polarize the room; it would be best to have someone with less influence." Rin lightly shook her head, some of her hair falling out of place without her realizing it. "The girls will be easily distracted by either of you. The best candidates would be Haruhi and Mori."

Mori? Kyoya's ears perked at the name she suggested. Hmm, he has been showing some interest in Zaina more than he would others. This would be a good chance to see what has been developing behind the scenes during lunch. It seems that no one else has realized that he spends time with her during lunch. It is not so easy of a conclusion to make, but the clues are there.

"Oh, Takashi would be a good option, I think. He would be able to get their attention by standing there. I'm sure he'd do it if you asked him to, though Haru would be a great option as well," Mitsukuni chimed in at this point, nibbling on his bite of cake as he hemmed and hawed which of the two would be the best.

"I'd love to help, but won't my being a new member sway them just as much as Kaoru or Hikaru for being so well known?" Haruhi asked, looking between Rin and Kyoya at this point. "If you don't think it will cause any issues, I'll help."

"That is true; they may be polarized by you as well, since you naturally attract attention in a different way." Rin frowned at this. "I suppose Mori would be the best option?" She turned to Kyoya who had not spoken up on this matter just yet. Kyoya felt her gaze fall on him as he wrote in his notebook, not responding right away. Slowly, each of the hosts had turned to him, curious to know what his verdict was on this matter.

"It is true Haruhi attracts attention differently, but I doubt it is at par with Hikaru and Kaoru. However, Mori would be the best option, as you pointed out. He is known, but is silent and makes no real motions that may gather any particular attention to himself. We can ask him at club today to see how he feels. If he refuses, then Haruhi can instruct alongside Zaina." He finally spoke, lifting his head to look at the others. His gaze lingered on Rin for a brief moment longer before shifting to Haruhi.

"That's fine by me." She nodded her head in agreement. Though she hardly dressed up for the many scenarios the club planned, she was more than willing to help with tasks such as this. It was normal and did not require her in some odd outfit matching some obscure theme. She felt her temple twitch at the memory of the various feminine outfits she had rejected despite Tamaki's insistence. She needed the designations, and yet here he was trying to expose her for being a girl. Who knows what will happen if I don't make the designations before they graduate oh! Would instructing with Zaina help lessen my number? I'm too afraid to ask, though...what if he rejects and adds more just for asking? It's not that I dislike the club or anything, it's just I can't stay in debt forever. She frowned a little to herself as she pondered the possibility, her gaze falling on the calculative vice president.

Kyoya could practically see the gears in her mind turning, her thoughts like a giant neon sign in the night displaying what she was working on. It was amusing enough to earn a smirk not missed by Haruhi, who tensed at the turn of his lips.

"Depending on what Mori says and how well this runs, I may adjust the number of designations," he answered her thoughts, surprising Haruhi even more. She sat back before leaning forward on the table with a look of utter suspicion. "It is rude to stare, or do commoners not know that?"

"We aren't that different!" He has to be psychic; how did he know what I was thinking?! I didn't say anything! She frowned a little, trying to fathom how he always knew everything. "W-well, that's good then. I'll gladly do my best to make it a success. I'd rather enjoy my time in the club than worry about a debt hanging over me." She clarified, clearing her throat a bit as she dropped her stare, knowing she had been caught.

"Oh, speaking of commoner things!" Rin clapped her hands together at the topic, grabbing everyone's attention at her sudden excitement of the subject. "Kyoya, don't you think it would be a splendid idea to have a trip to a local zoo as a club? I can't say it will be easy to have all the girls come with us, but at least us members can enjoy our time there."

The zoo? It certainly will interest Tamaki.

"The zoo? Like the one Zaina went to? I think it would be fun!" Mitsukuni eagerly chimed in after another bite of cake that was given moments ago by a fellow female classmate. "Commoners really do come up with the most convenient things!"

"We can go on our next club outing," Kaoru agreed.

Hikaru nodded his head. "It would be fun since we couldn't follow her."

"We can discuss it later today after club. Our time for lunch is ending soon," he informed as he closed his notebook and carefully stood from his seat. The others looked at the clock to see he was, in fact, correct, so they quickly gathered their things and headed their separate ways to class. The twins walked ahead with Haruhi as Mitsukuni was picked up by Takashi, who was just outside the doors as they stepped out. His simple greeting of a barely there nod was given before he walked away with his cousin, leaving Rin beside Kyoya. Carefully, he wrapped the shifted silky lock of her hair around one of his fingers and hooked it behind her ear. Rin's cheeks flushed a soft pink at the sudden touch; the feel of the pad of his finger grazing the tip of her ear and along the skin behind her sent shivers down her spine.

"I hadn't realized something had fallen out of place," she finally managed to whisper. The soft feathery sound was an arrow through his control, testing his tolerance and cool. His eyes narrowed slightly as he gave her a simple smile. "Thank you," she smiled back, cheeks glowing with a hint more rouge.

There's no way you're planning something with such an innocent reaction. You're simply begging me to do more to you and yet here we are in the middle of school. Is this a challenge? he wondered, smirking a little as he bowed to kiss the tips of the hairs just before it completely slipped off his finger. "No trouble at all; I figured it best handled personally instead of creating a scene with the others."

You say that and yet here you are doing all this! Rin's heart thumped against her chest very much like the day at the zoo, his hypnotic eyes and smooth voice easily taking over her good sense telling her to pull away. It kept her rooted in her spot as her eyes widened at his effortless words. How he did this to her was a mystery, making her feel so high off the ground. She never wanted to come back down, and yet she knew very well that she needed to keep herself grounded. "Ah," was all she was able to muster as he straightened up. She noted the confident smirk that tugged at the corners of his lips, the attractive and genuine curve covered by the mask of propriety they donned for the others.

"It seems the others have walked on ahead of you; shall I escort you to your classroom?" he offered, breaking her slight stupor as she turned to see they were the only ones remaining in the hallway. It was a bit of a relief, but the fact that they could have been seen sent her heart into a new sort of frenzy.

"It seems so." She cleared her throat. "If it's no trouble, I would very much appreciate it." She smiled, composing herself once more as quickly as he had been able to.

"No trouble at all," he assured, turning on his heel to walk with her through the halls. As they made their way in pleasant silence, Zaina came running towards them.

"My Lady, my apologies for arriving late. I had not expected them to leave you behind." Zaina bowed to Rin, her left hand over her heart as she bent at her waist. Her black locks spilled over her shoulder from the sudden motion, Rin and Kyoya staring at her with slight surprise at her sudden words.

"Zaina, please stand up! You needn't apologize; I wasn't lost!" She quickly reached for her dear friend, pressing on Zaina's shoulders to motion for her to stand. "I stayed behind with Kyoya. He," she began to explain, but abruptly stopped as she recalled what exactly he had done moments ago. I can't tell her that! I can barely even think of it without blushing, I'll definitely need to add some foundation or something to cover the redness!

"He…?" Zaina slowly stood at the pause, cocking a brow as she noted the flush that rose in Rin's cheeks. Her grey eyes flickered over to the male in question who was as cool as ever. There was an extra bit of pomp to him at the moment, an arrogance that Zaina was unable to ignore.

"Yes, sorry, I just needed to gather my thoughts for a moment." Rin quickly recovered, clearing her throat before speaking once again. "We had been discussing details about the survey earlier in lunch. I hadn't noticed something, so he had kept me to show it to me." It's not a lie...but my heart is still beating so fast! He's absolutely relishing this all, isn't he? She wanted to give him a piece of her mind at the moment, but she was not about to risk Zaina getting more information than needed. They already don't get along; this will certainly cause more tension.

"Is that so?" Zaina spoke softly. Her gaze fixed on Kyoya before she turned back to Rin. "Are you alright, My Lady? Your face is quite flushed; do you feel unwell?"

"I feel perfectly fine; I was just a little warm in the cafeteria today. I had something spicy for lunch, that may be why." She casually brushed off the concern, giving a genuine smile to help ease Zaina's worries. "I probably should put something to cover up the redness though, if it's so alarming." She carefully stepped around the true reason, hoping she would be able to escape the minefield she currently found herself in.

"If it's simply the food, I'm sure it will go down. You do enjoy spicy food, but perhaps you misjudged the amount of spice to add this time around. A cool drink should help you. I shall purchase one on the way to class. As for you Mr. Ootori, thank you for walking My Lady this far."

"Zaina, you can call him Kyoya at the very least!" Rin frowned at the formality she was showing again.

"There's no need to push for that; she can refer to me with either. I will see you both during club activities today." He pushed up his glasses and turned on his heel to head towards his classroom, instead.


Outside the front doors of grand academy stood a young brunette dressed in the famous canary yellow uniform. She stared up at the tall ornate double doors, a smile on her pink glossy lips at finally stepping closer to her goal. Now all she needed to do was find him, which she doubt was a challenge. There was no way someone of his stature would pose troublesome to find.