Well, the quarter came to a close, and with it came a new chapter. All of the people, myself included, that have been waiting for fluff are being led on. This is fluffy plot. Okay, it's mostly fluff. I don't like to admit it, but it's true.

PS. I need more human contact!

"Cagalli," What? Athrun? "Cagalli, wake up."

Huh? I opened my eyes to find myself snuggly in my bed, my bed back home. Athrun sat beside me in a chair by my bed.

"Oh, what time is it?" I groggily sat up, to look at my bedside clock.

"Noon, sleepy-head," Athrun said as he mussed my hair.

"Hey!" I shot. I hate it when people muss my hair!

"Well," Athrun stood up and turned his back towards me. "Are you ready to get back to work?" he said in a half-sigh.

"Jona still thinks he's in-charge?" I worked myself over to the side of my bed.

The coordinator nodded. I didn't want to deal with Jona, and from the looks of things, Athrun didn't want to either. But these things have to be done. After all, what kind of representative wound I be if I didn't deal with a witless leader?

"I don't have a choice, do I?" I released as I stood, noticing what I was wearing. "Umm. Athrun, when did we get home?"

"Three in the morning, why?"

"Well, when we left the PLANT, I was wearing my representative uniform. I don't remember changing, and I would've remembered this." I faced him and tugged on the frilly pink pajamas I fully believed he dressed me in.

"Well, I thought it looked nice." Athrun turned to give me one of his devilish smiles. Before I could react, he used that damnable coordinator speed of his to jump across my bed and push me over onto it. I blinked, staring up at him. What did he just do? I pushed against him to roll him over. He let me, but soon enough, he pushed me again. So we wrestled for a while, and I genuinely enjoyed the game, though I did hope no one would come in and draw their own conclusions.

I eventually lost, but only because I let him win. I knew the game was over when Athrun pinned me and leaned down until his lips caught mine. His warmth enveloped me, and there was a fire in his kiss. I allowed myself to get lost in it, but only for a moment. I was contemplating breaking the kiss to breathe when I heard a knock at the door.

Athrun immediately leapt up to make sure it looked like nothing was going on, and that's when we heard it. The lavender coated voice of that purple-haired freak lofted in. "Cagalli-san, I heard you were home. I was wondering if I could speak with you."

Athrun mouthed a request to open the door, but I shook my head. The media would have way too much fun with me having a man over, especially if it was my bodyguard. I pointed to my balcony door, whispering to Athrun to hide as Jona began testing my doorknob.

"Hang on a minute, Jona-chan! I'm getting dressed!" The tampering ceased. Athrun swiftly exited the room while I threw tee shirt and khakis on over my pajamas, wanting to hurry. I sauntered off to the door, putting on the illusion that I had been awake for hours, though my hair being tossed about from my wrestling match didn't really help the look.

Upon opening the door, I found a much disheveled man scrambling to get back to his feet. It looked like Jona had been curled up in the fetal position, rocking back and forth like a madman. But he sprang to his feet in an awful hurry. "Oh, Cagalli, I was, uh-."

"Jona?" I interrupted his stammering; not wanting to see what was going on. Luckily for us, about this time, Kisaka was coming.

He stopped and regarded the scene for a moment, obviously finding it humorous. While suppressing a chuckle, he greeted us. "Good morning, Cagalli-san. It's nice to have you back with us." He bowed slightly, and then turned to my companion. "Jona-chan and I have missed you more than you can imagine." Kisaka smiled evilly, almost accusingly, at the purple-haired man.

"Oh really? What's happened that I should know about?" I turned to the older man.

"I will tell you everything over dinner. Alex-san was nice enough to schedule it in for all of us." Kisaka smiled. "I'll expect to see you there too, Jona." With that, he left, leaving me with Jona.

"What's happened?" I asked stupidly.

"I- I- just wait and let Kisaka-sama tell you." Jona then walked away, seemingly fearful. Okay, something was up, and why wasn't anyone telling me?! I turned back into my room and slammed the door.

"Oh Alex-chan, please come here." I called, in a slightly sadistic tone. Someone was going to tell me, and I wasn't about to wait for dinner. Athrun pulled back the outer curtain of my balcony and slipped back inside. "Tell me," I began as he slunk further into the room, "Alex-chan, why did you schedule a dinner meeting for me tonight?"

Athrun opened his mouth like he was about to tell me, but then shut it without saying a word. You bastard. I guess he decided that this would be a good time to play with me. "Well, you'll find out then, now won't you?"

"Yes, but," I walked closer to him, fully intent on getting my information. "I might need some preempting." I said, once I was close enough to draw circles on his chest with my finger. Yes, I was playing with his emotions, and I knew full well what I was doing. I was winning. The great Athrun Zala was about to crack. I had it. He shook ever so slightly.

"Well, I talked with Kisaka and he told me all about what's gone on since we've been away," he gulped, obviously enjoying the attention.

"And?"

"He told me that Jona has attempted to sign the country over several times."

"What?!" I leapt back. That weasel was still trying to take the country? "You mean the Sarans are still trying to steal Orb?"

"Hey wait now, you can't do that!" Athrun shot, upset.

"What? What'd I do?" I tilted my head in confusion.

"You can't just lead me on like that and then just drop it!"

"I can when it's a matter of national security. Now, I need to get changed and swing by the office before dinner. What time is that for anyway?"

"Five, but you can't do that!" he looked upset. God, why does he have to look so cute like that?

"Get out so I can get dressed properly, please." I then walked to my closet to find something to wear. I heard footsteps behind me, but disregarded them. I knew it was just Athrun letting me dress. I grabbed a decent, cleaner pair of khakis and a nice shirt out of my closet and laid them onto my bed. Once I thought my blue-haired friend was out of the room, I pulled off both layers of clothing and walked into my personal shower. I cranked the hot water all the way up before stepping in.

I like hot showers. They make me feel clean, and I love the way the water massages my back. I realized that my hair had grown since I had left Orb. I wasn't too happy about that, but I couldn't deal with it now. After I had washed, I stepped out into my bedroom to dress.

Wait. This wasn't right. I set out a pair of khakis and a red shirt, not this skirt-suit set. "Athrun!" He switched my clothes while I was in the shower, didn't he? I knew he did. No one else would have the nerve too. In the middle of my mental rant, I saw a quick shadow move on my balcony. Making sure I was well wrapped in my towel, I peeked through the curtain. I knew full well that it was Athrun out there, but I was just making sure.

Yup, there he was, sure as the sunrise, and in twice its glory. He leaned against the balcony railing, resting on his forearms, letting the wind play through his hair. Though his back was to me, I could just imagine his eyes as he surveyed what remained of Orb's wilderness. They'd be soft, taking in what adventures he could. He was a work of art; natural or engineered, art was art, and beauty was beauty.

He began to turn. I dropped the curtain, remembering my lack of appropriate clothing. I walked back to the bed and regarded what he had set out for me. Well, the shirt was nice. I figured I'd split the difference with him and wear the shirt with my choice of pants.

My final ensemble was the green dress shirt, with a non-cargo pair of tan pants. I took a deep breath and walked out onto my balcony. I set foot on the cool concrete, shivering a little at the temperature.

Athrun turned and instantly adopted a disapproving look. "Cagalli, where are your shoes?"

"I didn't know it was cold out here." I defended.

Not wavering, Athrun just walked to me and laid a hand on my shoulder. He then, led me back inside and downstairs to the foyer. Various maids that had been busy with cleaning looked up when we entered the room. None of them watched me. All their eyes were on Athrun, but he never gave them any attention. He took my hand and, never taking his eyes off me, he led me over to a couch.

We sat down and he reached under the furniture for a moment. I wondered what he was fishing for, but I soon got my answer. He brought a thick, yet nice pair of brown shoes out from under the couch. Then he produced a pair of socks from his pocket and handed the articles to me. With a wry smile, I pulled on the socks and the shoes.

"There, now you can go outside." Athrun smiled a sweetly.

"Ha! This was all about my shoes?" I asked, almost in disbelief.

"Yeah, why do you ask?"

"I don't know; I just thought there was something else. That's all." I looked down. I don't like expecting more than what I should. It always makes me feel bad, without fail.

"What else would there have been?" he asked, with a curious tone.

"I told you, I don't know."

"Do you feel let down?"

"What? Did you plan something?" Did he know I was expecting something more than shoes?

"Well, I was just returning the favor, for earlier," he smiled, knowingly.

"I hate you sometimes." I spat.

"I love you too, Cagalli." He wrapped an arm around me and pulled me close. "But, I did tell you, that you can't just lead me on like that." His other hand cupped my face and brought my lips to his.

His kiss was on fire, just like before. It wasn't normal, but it wasn't bad. Just different. More serious, like he wanted something. It wasn't playful, like our earlier kisses. There was a tension in this one. I didn't want to let go without understanding what was behind it, but before too long, he pulled away.

"Cagalli, I guess its time to go," he looked sullen.

I had forgotten the day, my plans. I needed to check the office, and then there was dinner. I have responsibility. "Yes, I have to go. I need to check up on the office before they close it down for the day."

"Okay." Athrun stood and extended his hand to help me up. "May I drive you?"

I nodded. We had to get moving; the offices close at five, and it was already four. Not to mention, I had to leave early to make it to dinner in time.

One last evening remains.

I liked the wrestling idea, but I didn't want to have to change my rating, so I kept it innocent. Sorry guys, but you'll live.

Thank you, to all of my reviewers, please keep at it. I will finish this, eventually.