Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL 1. The start of a KEIKAKU

A/N: I said I was going to write Determinationshipping and by god, I'm going to do it. Even if I have no idea what the hell I'm writing; I'm just going to write and see where it goes. Also, I am going to break consistency and use Japanese names for this story, mostly because Caswell only has one name in English, compared to Takashi Todoroki.

* * *

_'Today's the day; just you wait, I'll tell you how I feel, Yuma! Then you'll have to at least acknowledge me, even if—' _

"Even if...?"

"NYAAAN! I-Inchou, I-I didn't s-see you there...!" Heartland Middle School's resident cat-girl, Cathy, screeched and jumped nearly six inches in fright, her silvery hair standing on end much like a cat's fur did when spooked.

Class representative Takashi Todoroki, called 'Inchou' by most of his classmates, merely raised an eyebrow, his mouth set in a thin line to prevent himself from laughing at Cathy's admittedly amusing reaction. "Well, I _am_ the class rep, so I have to be here in the mornings to help out Mr. Kitano. Why are you here so early? Need time to think?"

Cathy blushed madly, embarrassed that she had actually spoken her thoughts out loud. "U-uh, you could say that...nya..." Twirling her hair absentmindedly, she edged back to her desk, not wanting to make a fool of herself again.

"Oh, don't mind me, I didn't mean to pry; but you know Cat-chan, aside from me being the class rep, I'm your friend too—you can always talk to me if you have something on your mind," he flashed a quick smile at her, which was met with a shy one of her own.

"Th-thanks, Incho—um, I-I mean, Takashi..." Friends. That was something she'd never imagined she'd gain, not when her classmates thought her to be either a weird cat-otaku or some snobby rich girl. Growing up, with parents always out on business and the maids too busy to do more than keep an eye on her, felines were here only companions; in return, she shared a special connection with them unlike anything else. Cathy had always thought that she would be content with her cats, living the rest of her life quietly with her furry friends, but everything changed when she met Yuma Tsukumo.

Yuma. He was one of those once-in-a-lifetime people, the ones you never knew how much you needed until they came into your life. Sure, she had pretty much stalked and obsessed over him, even going as far as to "kidnap" his now-girlfriend, but she never regretted getting to know him. After all, wasn't it because of him that she was starting to come out of her shell, starting to get noticed by others? He'd even included her (if somewhat unintentionally) into his circle of friends, and just like that, there were suddenly five more people to talk to and be around.

Even if one of them was her self-appointed rival in love.

Takashi hummed quietly to himself as he swept up the floor and placed the trash bins in their correct positions—Yuma had shown him this video of some weird K-pop guy dancing like a horse and now the song was ingrained in his brain—before moving on to checking the computer equipment. Usually he was always the first one in the classroom (after Mr. Kitano of course), and so he'd been surprised to find Cathy wandering the aisle, muttering to herself. It really was none of his business, he told himself, but he felt compelled to try and help her anyway; whether out of his responsibility as Inchou, or simply because he cared about her, well...that was a harder line to draw. Even if Yuma had never noticed her until now, Takashi had always known her—she'd been in practically every one of his classes since elementary school, and he'd always thought of her as the shy, quiet cat-girl who never spoke to anyone. Now that she was finally getting along with others, he wanted to continue that connection. _'Although, it seems that she's pretty much still focused on Yuma, despite the circumstances...to summarize, if it weren't for Yuma, she wouldn't be hanging out with us in the first place.'_

"—uh, Inchou? Takashi?"

The girlish voice next to his ear startled him out of his thoughts, and Takashi nearly dropped the datapad (but caught it just before it hit the floor). "Y-yes? Sorry, I was too caught up in my own business—what's up, Cat-chan?"

"U-uh, you mentioned earlier that...you'd be willing to talk if I had anything on my mind..." The cat-girl looked down, a faint blush on her cheeks.

"Of course! I meant what I said about being your friend," he reassured her as he moved on to synching the data onto the main computer, "so...what did you want to talk about?"

Cathy nervously dug her toe into the floor, wondering if it was really a good idea to get Takashi involved in this. He was friends with Yuma and Kotori, but they weren't super close, not in the way Tetsuo was. Then again, who else could she talk to? She had no other female friends besides Kotori (who was out of the question), and she doubted that Tokunosuke would care all that much. Steeling herself, she decided to just go ahead and deal with the collateral later. "Well, it-it's about...Yuma...and..." She looked at him furtively, hoping he would get the hint.

Instead she got a confused look and raised eyebrow back.

_'Figures he would be just as clueless; then again, he is a guy too so...'_ Resisting the urge to smack her forehead, Cathy resigned herself to the inevitable. "You know how he's going out with Kotori, right—"

"—I think the entire _school_ knows—" Takashi commented dryly, but Cathy ignored him and plowed straight through.

"—and even though, they're both my friends, and I value that, I really do, but...I..."

"...And...?"

"—a-and...I like...him..." she all but whispered, lowering her eyes partly in embarrassment, partly in shame. She wished there were some other way, that there was some justification for her continual attraction to Yuma; but in the end, there was no denying the fact that he'd chosen Kotori over her, and now she would be painted as a villain for trying to steal their happiness away. "I know, it sounds horrible, and even I hate myself for feeling like this, but—"

"Hold on a minute, Cat-chan, I didn't say you were a horrible person, or that you were wrong for feeling like this," he managed to grasp her by the shoulders and calm her down before she burst into hysterics. "Maybe you think it's a crime to be in love with someone who's already in love with someone else, but that's what love is, right? You can't help it if you feel that way, it's just how we are; even if it causes you pain, it's also something that makes you happy, right? I mean, it's not like you're out to sabotage their relationship or anything—you _aren't_, right—and it's simply part of being...human?" Takashi stopped himself after he realized he'd been rambling on for a while, but the truth was, he wasn't really sure what to say in a situation like this. Was there even a right answer? Cathy and Kotori's rivalry was nearly legendary at this point among their classmates, yet nobody seemed very surprised at the outcome. Poor Cathy was left to pine for someone she couldn't have, and being friends with both of them must've made it ten times harder than it should've been. It was almost pitiful, really, that she would fall so hard for the one person who had opened her up, only to be rejected. "Love is...complicated...?" he finished lamely, feeling like he'd let her down.

At this point Cathy was nearly in tears, sniffling and biting her lip. "I-I know that, and I don't want to hurt either of them...but I don't think I could ever f-forgive myself if I never told Yu-Yuma how I really f-feel..."

Oh dear. He hadn't meant to make her all emotional like this—_way to go Takashi, make a girl cry while trying to comfort her—_and frantically he searched the desk for some tissues. "A-ah, Cat-chan, please don't cry, it's okay, really—aw, come now, it's fine, I promise," he sighed inwardly and handed her a stack of tissues, which were immediately snatched out of his hand and used to blow her nose.

"It-it's not that I'm not—hic—happy for them, b-but I want Yu-Yuma to know, at least, what my—hic—_true_ feelings are, e-even if he re-rejects m-me..." Cathy hiccuped slightly as she wiped her eyes, thankful that nobody else was in the room to see her in such a state. She looked up in surprise as a hand gently rested on her shoulder.

"Well, then to summarize, you should tell him, don't you think?" Takashi suggested gently. "Yuma's the kind of guy who, unless you put it right in front of his face, simply fails to notice the, ah, finer details in life. Let's put it this way—he wouldn't see a wall unless he ran right into it. And even then he'd probably just charge straight through anyway."

Despite her tears, she managed a laugh at his amazingly accurate summation of Yuma's character. "O-of course, Inchou...you're right, as always...only...only..."

"You're not sure of how to tell him?" Takashi smiled slightly, finishing her sentence for her.

"E-exactly! I-I mean, I can't just confess in front of everyone...! B-but I don't know how I'd get to be alone w-with him...and I'd rather not let Kotori know..." Once again she flushed, looking down at her feet.

"Well, first off, you should stop slouching and looking down all the time," he tilted her chin up, much to her surprise, "because if you're going to succeed in this mission, you need to have confidence in yourself! And secondly, I'd be willing to help you out, if you'd like..." The representative hoped he wasn't being too forward with his offer, given the sensitivity of the situation. Cathy however, appeared to be surprised by his proposal. "Uh, not that I'm trying to impose on you or anything—"

"—It's not that, Inchou, I'd...I-I'm just amazed that you'd be willing to help me with such a trivial issue..." As far-fetched as it seemed, she was gradually warming up to the idea of having some help in this, especially if it came from someone as level-headed and responsible as Takashi. "Th-thank you so much, I truly appreciate it." She bowed low to express her gratitude; above, she could hear him chuckling nervously at her sudden display of respect.

"Er, no need to be so serious about it, Cat-chan; that's what friends are for, right?"

Just then, the door slid open and Ukyo Kitano stepped in, papers in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other. Both teens shot straight up and tried to make themselves look busy—Takashi hurriedly resumed setting up the desk and Cathy scurried back to her seat.

"Well, this is certainly a surprise—good morning to you, Miss Cathy," Mr. Kitano greeted as he passed by her desk, amazed that someone other than Takashi had chosen to voluntarily come early to class. "And of course, good morning, Inchou—I see you're on top of things, as always."

"G-good morning, Mr. Kitano."

"Good morning sir, I've almost got everything set up—just need to put these away, and..." Takashi trailed off as he struggled to stack the papers into a mile-high tower on the desk. Luckily, Mr. Kitano was able to straighten the tower into a perfect rectangle before the entire structure collapsed.

"Thanks for your work, Takashi. Why don't you take a break before class starts?" As he spoke, the door opened and a few other early risers entered, including Kotori's friends Sei and Sachi. Kotori herself however, was not among them. Cathy could hear them gossiping amongst themselves as they strolled past her, as though she were invisible.

She sighed. Well, at least she had the Numbers Club to hang out with, if not everybody else. As she idly fiddled with the settings of her d-pad, a couple of familiar names caught her ear, and she perked up instantly, glancing in the direction of Sei and Sachi's shared desk.

"—no way, are you serious? Kotori? Are you sure you didn't see something else?"

"I'm almost _positive_ Sachi, trust me, I know a hickey when I see one—"

"—maybe it really is just a bruise—"

"—oh puh-_leeze,_ girl, have you seen the way they're all over each other during recess?"

"...They're not that bad, Sei. In fact, I've only seen her holding hands with Yuma once or twice in the mornings. Don't you start spreading crazy rumors yourself now."

"I'm not spreading rumors, Sachi, I'm just laying the facts out—yesterday after gym, in the locker room when Kotori was buttoning up her uniform, I saw this huge purple mark right on the underside her neck! And it wasn't there _before _we started gym!"

"Oh my..."

"Don't tell her I know though, or she'll kill me—"

"Sei..."

Cathy forced herself to stop listening to their conversation, her feelings a little more than muddled after _that_ revelation. She had suspected that both Yuma and Kotori weren't quite as innocent as they appeared to be, but nobody wants to hear about their friends making out. Or giving each other hickeys. Just when she thought she was going to have to excuse herself, her d-gazer pinged, signaling that a message had been received. Curious, she opened the file, wondering who would be texting her this early in the morning.

_Hey Cat-chan, I know we didn't get to finish our conversation earlier, but if you're not busy after school, do you want to hang out downtown and talk some more?  
__-Takashi_

A little shocked, but pleased as well, Cathy was surprised at the warm feeling creeping up her cheeks. Nobody ever paid attention to her like this, much less help her out; and now Takashi of all people was asking if she wanted to hang out. Wait, did that mean it was a date? Her mind spun at all the possible implications such a simple question could stir up—what if someone saw them and got the wrong impression? _'Hold on, why am I getting so worked up over a single text? It's not like Inchou doesn't understand what's going on...' _He had offered first, so surely he must have meant it in a purely platonic manner. This was Takashi after all, and she doubted he would be so ungentlemanly as to lead her on. Feeling a little calmer, she quickly typed back her reply just as Yuma and Kotori burst through the door, arguing as usual. A couple of students looked up at the commotion, but most of the class was used to their antics by now.

"U-um, g-good morning Yuma, Kotori—"

"—how is it my fault that the alarm didn't go off in—"

"—the last time Yuma, getting up on time should be _your_ responsibility, not mine—"

"—just sayin' I _did_ set it okay?! Oh, hi Cat-chan," The boy gave a quick wave, before dumping his bag onto the desk he shared with Kotori, earning him a glare from the girl.

"Hey, you're not the only one using this space you know," Kotori grumbled, nursing a headache from the night before. To make matters worse, she couldn't find her concealer anywhere this morning, forcing her to rely on the uniform's collar to hide the hideous blotch. "Sorry about that Cat-chan—morning to you, too."

"...I-it's okay...uh, rough night?" She ventured shyly, noticing the dark circles lining both of their eyes. _'Yeah; a definite yes on the not-so-innocent part.'_ It didn't take a genius to guess the types of activities they were participating in last night.

"You could put it that way..." Kotori groaned, rubbing her temples. "_Somebody_ had the brilliant idea of hunting for Number cards well after 10pm—"

"—Hey it was a good lead, okay? And I made it up afterwards...didn't I...?" Yuma shot his desk partner a knowing glance, which was promptly met with a kick in the shins. "Ow! What was that for?!"

"_Yuma_," Kotori warned in a dangerous tone, "we're not the only ones here..."

The air suddenly seemed stifling, despite the morning chill; Cathy awkwardly turned back into her seat before she found out more than she cared to about her friends' love lives. Thankfully, she was spared when the final bell rang and Mr. Kitano called the class to order.

"All right everyone, settle down unless you want to stay in during recess!

* * *

The day ended with Cathy walking home with Yuma and the gang, just like every other day. Only this time, rather than heading towards the affluent part of town where her mansion resided, she turned towards downtown; a change that did not go unnoticed.

"Oy, Cat-chan, you're not going home right away?" Yuma chirped, casting a curious glance in her direction and wondering what she could be doing instead. Unless the group had planned beforehand, Cathy almost always headed home directly after school—for her own good, she'd explained once, although lately she was starting to care less and less of what her parents' expectations for her were.

"O-oh, I-I have some...errands to run today...nya..." Licking her lips nervously, Cathy hoped nobody would point out the fact that she never ran errands (nor did she ever need to); this business was strictly between her and Takashi, and the less everyone else knew, the better. Especially if the person asking was the very one her troubles were centered around.

Luckily, nobody seemed to really notice, and after saying goodbye to the trio of Yuma, Kotori and Testuo, and splitting with Tokunosuke at the monorail station, it was just her and Takashi. Once again she was struck with a sudden shyness, for now it occurred to her that she rarely ever interacted with other people one-on-one. With Yuma, it was always a group situation, and so she could rely on others to keep up the conversation or turn attention elsewhere. '_One step at a time, Cat-chan, you can do this.' _Still, perhaps she should have thought things through a little better—where exactly would they go anyway? The mall? _'But we're not here to do shopping...uh, a café? Might seem too much like a date though...' _Mulling over her thoughts, she walked right into Takashi's backside. "Nyan! S-sorry, I'm s-sorry Inchou!"

"Whoops, I should've told you I was stopping," Takashi rubbed his head sheepishly. "Ah, well, do you want to go somewhere...less busy?" He gestured towards the direction of the park, which currently had far less passerby than the crowded shopping plaza. "Is the park okay with you?"

"S-sure..." She fiddled again with the strands of her hair, then forced herself to stop before they all turned into split-ends.

"If you don't mind, we can talk while we walk. Time saver, you know?" The two students fell into step, with Cathy trailing slightly behind Takashi.

"Okay...well, you already know that I l-like...Yuma..." Darn. Why couldn't she control her stuttering, even after all these years? She remembered when she first started school, and everyone made fun of her awkward, stammered sentences. Eventually, it just became easier to not say anything at all; other students left her alone, and she supposed it was better than being teased, even when the loneliness became unbearable.

"Mm hmm...to summarize, you have feelings for Yuma, and you want him to know about them, even though it is highly unlikely he will return the same sentiments? And you would prefer to not have other people know about this?" Takashi wondered what he was getting himself into. Logically speaking, the most straightforward course of action would be just to convince Cathy to give up on Yuma entirely—in the off-chance that Yuma actually had some slightest bit of interest in her, all their relationships would be upended, if not greatly strained. And yet when he was listening to her true feelings, he found himself unable to dissuade her; even if it was a long-shot, even if it was only just slightly on the crazy side, he sincerely wanted to help her out. Everyone deserved at shot at happiness, and well, it was better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all, no?

"Yes, but I don't know how I would...be alone with Yu-Yuma...I-I mean, in a setting that wouldn't seem suspicious," Cathy shielded her eyes from the sun that was glaring through the tree branches lining the park. Being that school was out for the day now, there were quite a few young children scampering about, ignoring the warnings being shouted by their parents. She and Takashi sat down on a bench by the fountain. "And I wouldn't want Kotori getting suspicious either..."

If it had been any other boy, the situation would've been a no-brainer. As such, they would have to go about this in a more...delicate manner. "Hmm, that's quite a list of conditions we need to clear. But I'm up to the challenge! In fact, how about just asking him to meet you somewhere, like this park?"

"But he would no doubt tell Kotori, nya..."

"...Right. Uh, maybe you could...no no no, asking him to not say anything would just make it more suspicious..." Takashi muttered under his breath.

"Maybe I could 'accidentally' bump into him?"

"That would involve stalking him. Which I think you've already done enough of."

"Secret love letter—nyan?"

"Adding another element would make it too complex. Besides, if it's from an anonymous person, he's likely to just ignore it. What about texting?"

"Nya! That's just...so...crass! So...thoughtless! Only D-list celebrities and morons express their feelings using SMS."

"Okay, never mind then..."

"Show up at his house?"

"...How would you ensure that he'd be alone?"

"...Show up late at night?"

"..."

The gaggle of school kids had cleared out by now, and still she and Takashi were no closer than when they started. Cathy sighed dejectedly and rubbed her bare arms—the breeze was getting cool now, and because she usually headed straight home, she didn't have the foresight to bring a jacket or sweater. "Maybe we should just go home, Takashi..."

"H-huh? Oh, I suppose...it's barely four-thirty though..." He blinked a little in disbelief. Perhaps being a rich girl meant stricter curfews? Although, admittedly, he had not been able to come up with any brilliant ideas either...this was going to be more of a trial than he estimated. "Are you...did you need to get home?"

"Oh, well, n-not really...it's only, we don't seem to be making much progress here, and I w-wouldn't want to keep you any longer..." Rubbing her arms again, she made a mental note to start carrying a cardigan or something with her.

"Don't worry about me, Cat-chan, I still have time this afternoon. Although, I think we should probably head indoors, from the looks of it—it is getting kind of chilly, isn't it?" Takashi gestured toward her feeble attempts to warm herself. "We should get you warmed up—with a hot drink! My treat," he said jovially, and (to Cathy's astonishment) lead her by the hand to a small café nearby.

* * *

"—and that was when I realized that, I really liked—no, I could even say...he was my first l-love, I guess, nya." Cathy recounted her tale of falling head-over-heels for Yuma to Takashi over a steaming cup of café au lait.

"Wow. Forgive me for being forward, but it sounds just like a fairy tale. Or maybe a shoujo manga," Takashi nodded, sipping his own hot cocoa. The two of them stumbled across this tiny shop in their search to get out of the cold, and now they were sitting in a window seat in the café known as _Cat's Eye_, which was evidently more popular with college couples than it was with middle schoolers. Truth be told, Takashi was a little uncomfortable being in such a place, given that 90% of the patrons seemed to have an absolute disregard for engaging in PDA, but it had been close by, and Cathy was enamored with the cat-themed menu. He tugged his collar nervously as the couple behind them started holding hands and exchanging sweet-nothings, and hoped Cathy wouldn't get the wrong idea.

Cathy giggled at his comment about her life being like a manga. "Sometimes, it does seem almost too cliché to be true...but, ever since Yuma told me how he goes through life with 'kattobingu', I thought to myself, why can't I do the same? To have the courage to chase after what I really want, nya..." She blushed at the thought of her first duel with Yuma. Back then, she had been so desperate to get his attention that she'd been willing to stoop so low as to trick him into showing up; this time around, she wanted to be honest, and show him her sincerity. Swirling her cup around so the last of the latte art dissolved into the foam, she wondered about the end of her goal. Would Yuma be shocked? Embarrassed? Maybe even happy? (She shot that thought down immediately, though.) Or, god forbid, he might be upset at her...she honestly hoped that would not be the case.

"Going through life with 'kattobingu', huh? It is pretty admirable, I guess..." Takashi liked to think of himself as a fairly capable guy, given that he'd managed to snag the position of class representative, but Yuma was in a class all on his own. Despite his rookie-level skills at dueling and a lack of academic smarts, there was a certain air about him, a certain charisma, that seemed to magnetically draw people towards him. It evidently seemed to work, as not only was he one of the most popular guys at school, but even former enemies and rivals could be charmed into becoming one of his friends. Not that he was jealous of Yuma or anything, but sometimes he couldn't figure out the logic behind such occurrences. How was it that he could even convince somebody like Kaito, who first set out to hunt him down, to not only change sides but work _with_ them? And through a single duel, no less. Takashi scoffed quietly to himself as he took another sip—maybe it all came down to kattobingu, in the end.

Their waitress, a girl who didn't look much older than them with short brown hair and a cheerful smile, wearing a standard maid outfit with cat ears and tail, dropped off their tab and collected the empty cups. Before Cathy could protest, he had already scanned the amount into his d-gazer, which automatically deducted the correct amount from his e-wallet. Paying had certainly gotten a lot handier in the 24th century. Grabbing their belongings, they headed out the door, where the waitress and proprietor bowed them good-bye.

Even though Takashi lived in the opposite direction of Cathy's home, he insisted on walking her back—"you can call me a white knight all you want, but it's not going to change my mind"—the sun wouldn't be setting for another hour yet, and there was a bus stop close by in case he really needed to get home in a hurry. As they reached a set of wrought-iron gates covered with a sprawling mass of ivy, he suddenly realized just how well-off Cathy was. Not that they hadn't known she was wealthy, but there was a difference in hearing about it and actually seeing it. The mansion spanned at least a few acres, not counting the spacious yard and lengthy driveway that wound around a European-style fountain. His eyes grew just slightly wider taking the sights, and he feared he might've stared a few seconds too long at the countless windows that lined the immense front of the manor.

"Yeah, it's something, isn't it?" Cathy joked as she noticed Takashi's gaping expression. "Still, I feel that it's too big, honestly...I mean, I'm an only child, and my parents are rarely around often enough to even enjoy it, so..."

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable," Takashi apologized.

"It's fine; I'm used to it, to be honest...and it does mean that I can have as many cats as I want, nya," She bent down and stroked the head of a grey tabby that had wandered over, who instantly started purring and rubbing against her hand.

"That's always a good reason..." Takashi reached down and hesitantly petted the cat as well. Fortunately, it did not lash out and maul his arm into a bloody mess. "...Do you ever get lonely sometimes?" Immediately, he berated himself silently for blurting out such a sensitive question. "S-sorry, that was a dumb question—"

"N-no, I don't mind...though it's true, I don't really get many visitors...but I've always got my furry friends, and they do make for very good company," Cathy replied smoothly, although the realization of just how little of a social life she had sent a wave of depression through her mind. "I think maybe people get intimidated when they find out how rich I am."

"Not me—I-I mean, me and everyone else," Takashi quickly corrected himself. "Maybe we could all come over one day and just hang out, you know?"

Cathy stopped petting the tabby and scooped it up into her arms. "...I'd like that. That's...actually a really good idea...maybe I'll even get a chance to tell Yuma how I feel!"

"Yeah! Granted, the details need to be ironed out, but, I think it's a start!" Cheered slightly by the beginnings of a plan, he walked with her up to the enormous main door. "Well, I guess I'll be heading home now, too," he started to turn away, but Cathy grabbed his arm.

"W-wait! Um, before you go, I just wanted to s-say...th-thank you, Takashi. I'm, uh, glad that you're...willing to help me and l-listen to my...troubles...and also..."

"...Yes...?"

"...I had a lot of fun today...hanging out..." she half-whispered, half-mumbled. Takashi had to strain to hear the words, but he made out most of it.

"Me too, Cat-chan. You should try it more often," he said sincerely, glad that the afternoon hadn't been a total waste. "Well...see you tomorrow, then. Bye!"

"See you at school, nya," Cathy waved as his figure slowly vanished around the bend. Reluctantly, she closed the door and traipsed upstairs to her room. Most of the servants were either getting ready for dinner or minding their own business, and her footsteps seemed to echo louder than usual as she ascended each flight of stairs. Takashi was right; she should be bolder and invite her friends over some time, rather than waiting for them to bring up the subject first. When she entered her bedroom, she collapsed face-first onto her canopy bed, too distracted to even change out of her uniform first. The tabby cat she carried settled onto the pillow near her head, purring contently.

"Today was...interesting, I think...who would've thought Inchou of all people would be willing to help me?" The tabby gave her a curious glance, as if agreeing with her. "I know, right? Still, he is a good person...and I want to make more friends, too, nya." A couple more cats appeared from various nooks around her room until her bed was covered, but Cathy was glad for their support. Getting up, she went through her closet to discern which gothic lolita outfit she should wear for tonight's dinner.

"I wonder what will happen tomorrow...nyan..."

* * *

A/N: So, this is how it begins. I'm still really stumbling my way through this story, as in, I don't even have a lot of the details (or even the plot) pinned down yet, but hopefully it'll come to me as I'm writing. (I hope.) It was surprisingly hard to write about Takashi and Cathy, Takashi more so because his personality isn't as "extreme" as Yuma's, and therefore is a little harder to pinpoint and decide on more specific aspects of his behavior. I hoped they are both portrayed pretty closely in-character.

Anyway, let's try something different with this fic; for each chapter, **when you leave a review**, you can also **leave a little "something"**, and I'll try my best incorporate them into the next (or future) chapters. So, for example, you can say "apple pie" and I'll try and insert that somewhere in the next chapter, one way or another. Please limit it to something that can be worked in with relative ease; **no** plot-ideas or OCs, please. **No** super-long-drawn-out-specific-detail-situations either. Each chapter insert will be picked at random.

Let's all support the horribly-underrated-but-adorable pairing of determinationshipping!


	2. The complications of a KEIKAKU

A/N: Finally back on track with this story. Hope everyone had a good holiday season, and be on the lookout for the secret word!

* * *

"_Yu-Yuma, c-can I speak with you?"_

"_Huh? Sure Cat-chan, what's up?"_

"_W-well, I just..." The room started shaking violently and she couldn't get those words out..._

"_Oh wait, sorry, I promised Kotori I'd hang out with her at the ice cream parlor, can we meet later?" _

_The shaking was growing worse but she could still see, the sky wasn't quite too dark yet. "—B-but wait, Yuma, I—" The figure turned and suddenly she couldn't see anymore, no matter how hard she blinked those bells wouldn't stop tolling—_

"Excuse me, Miss Catherine, but I do believe you're going to be late for school if you don't get up now!"

Cathy shot up in bed with a start, her alarm clock ringing and the maid knocking. Fumbling for her glasses, she squinted at the timepiece, the numbers "7:55" staring back at her in bright pink. "Oh no! How did I manage to oversleep so badly?" There was no time for self-pity however, and she thew on her uniform and splashed some cold water on her face; she'd just have to comb her hair during recess or something. Grabbing her bag, she slid down the banister, almost knocking over poor Philip as he came out bearing a silver tray of tea and toast.

"Goodness Miss Cathy, you should be more careful," the butler gently scolded as she snatched a slice of toast off the tray, crammed it in her mouth and waved a harried goodbye before dashing out the door. "I wonder what's got her in such a hurry this morning." Shaking his head fondly, he closed the door before noticing his now-scattered pile of bread. "Oh, dear me..."

* * *

"So, only Cathy is missing? That's unusual, I hope she's all right..." Mr. Kitano closed the screen as roll call was completed. "Okay everyone, I hope you've all got your assignments ready—"

The door suddenly flew open and Cathy sprinted down the aisle and slammed into her seat, cheeks flushed and hair flying all over the place. "W-wait, Mr. Kitano, sorry I'm late!" She fanned herself briefly before realizing that the entire class was staring at her. Gulping, she ducked slightly and hoped she didn't look half as ridiculous as she felt.

"Oh, Miss Cathy, so you made it after all. Still, a tardy is a tardy, so I'm afraid I will have to mark you as late today."

"I-I'm sorry..." If only she hadn't overslept, it was all because of that stupid dream she had. What was it about again? Something with shaking rooms and Yuma...?

"It's all right Cathy, just be a little more aware next time," Mr. Kitano smiled kindly at her and continued collecting everyone's science reports.

_'As long as I can keep my head clear, there won't be a next time,'_ Cathy thought to herself as she handed in the assignment, and resolved to 'cattobingu' harder.

___– – – – – –_

At lunch, all the boys scarfed down their food at lightning speed in order to maximize their dueling time, which left Cathy in the company of Kotori and her friends, Sachi and Sei. Aside from Kotori though, Cathy never really talked to other girls, but they seemed friendly enough.

"Cathy, did something happen this morning? You've never been late, as far as I can remember..." Kotori asked, casting a curious glance at the cat-gir's frazzled hair, which was now being hastily combed with a ruler.

"W-well, somehow I didn't hear my alarm in time this morning, nya," Cathy decided it was probably for the best if she didn't mention that she dreamed about Yuma. She winced as the ruler hit a particularly knotted patch of hair. Trust a ruler to take the place of an actual comb.

"Missing your alarm? That sounds more like Yuma, doesn't it?" Sachi and Sei giggled slightly, and Cathy could only nod sheepishly.

"Let's hope you don't become like Yuma, heaven knows he's already in enough trouble for being late as is," Kotori shook her head and cast a glance at the guys, who were already in a duel. Noticing Cathy's difficulties in untangling her hair, she offered her own brush. "Here Cat-chan, let me help you with that."

Cathy was surprised at Kotori's offer. "Oh, you don't have to..." But the other girl was already pulling the brush through the strands, and so she could only sit quietly while Kotori untangled the wind-blown knots. "...Thank you, Kotori."

"No need to thank me Cat-chan, it's what friends are for, right?" She smiled and Cathy felt the warm glow of friendship in her heart, glad, not for the first time, for friends like these.

Outside, a loud cheer erupted as one of the boys apparently summoned an ace monster. "I wonder who's dueling?" Sachi stood on her stool for a few seconds, before hopping back down. "Ooh, Inchou's facing off against some upperclassman!" This got the attention of all the girls, and lunch was quickly forgotten as they vied for the best view through the glass windows. Cathy managed to squeeze her way between Sachi and Kotori, and turned on her d-gazer to follow the fight. Takashi had managed to summon Vaccinegale onto his field while his opponent was completely wide open. She watched as Vaccinegale decimated the other duelist's lifepoints, and found herself cheering along with the other girls, even though he wouldn't be able to hear them through the glass. Takashi shook hands with his opponent, and then the other boys, namely Yuma and Tetsuo, ran up and gave him a high-five.

"Wow, guess Inchou is still a formidable duelist," Sei commented as they returned to their seats. "Makes me wonder if I shouldn't take up dueling myself."

"Eh? Well, why don't you then?"

"Because Sachi, you already know I'm pretty much all thumbs when it comes to all those complicated rules. Give me a basketball and some hoops and I'll be good for the whole day, but memorizing card strategies? No thanks." The short-haired girl sighed wistfully at the thought. "Still, if I had someone like Inchou teaching me, maybe it wouldn't be so bad..." She and Sachi shared a knowing glance and they both erupted into giggles.

For some reason, Cathy felt her stomach turn a bit at the thought of Takashi teaching—no, just hanging out with someone other than their group. Which was completely unreasonable, given that he interacted with nearly everyone as the class representative. _'It's just because those two aren't part of our Numbers Club...it wouldn't be right for them to get involved...wait, what am I thinking?' _Before she could ponder any more on the subject, the guys made a boisterous entrance, still congratulating Takashi on his win.

"Nice combo, Inchou! I think I'm going to have to challenge you next!" Tetsuo clapped him heartily on the shoulder.

"Hey, that's not fair, I already called it outside!" Yuma whined, which was met with a glare from the larger boy.

"Then I guess we should duel for the right to challenge Inchou next!"

"That's fine by me—" both guys stopped short as they noticed the girls crowded behind them. "Whoa, looks like the class rep's got some new fans," Yuma joked, sidling away from the group to join Kotori.

"Ah, Inchou, the way you dueled out there was amazing! It really suits your position!"

"No kidding, you made that third-year look like a third-rate! Maybe you could teach me your secrets sometime," Sei commented rather saucily, which only made Cathy's ire grow. If class didn't start soon, she was afraid she was going to maul someone.

"Well, if you really want to, I can teach you the basics. It's really not that hard to learn," Takashi offered kindly, much to Cathy's chagrin. But of course, it was only natural that someone like Takashi would extend his kindness and generosity to everyone, not just his friends. That thought didn't make her feel much better though.

"Really Inchou? That's so nice of you, maybe we can—"

"—I-I can do it!" Seven heads and fourteen eyes turned to stare at Cathy. Oops. Maybe she shouldn't have shouted. "I-I mean, I can teach you how to duel, too..." It was unnerving with everyone's attention on her, but she steeled herself.

Takashi's eyes seemed to light up at the idea. "Yeah, in fact, I think that's a better idea! Cathy's a great duelist as well, there's a lot you can learn from her. Besides, I might not be able to spare enough time from my duties to really show you all that much," he laughed lightheartedly.

The two girls turned in surprise at the suggestion. "Oh, Cathy? Well...we wouldn't want to trouble you..."

"It won't be any trouble. Really." Cathy forced herself to smile, and in truth, maybe it would be a nice change of pace to talk to girls other than Kotori.

They glanced at each other, unsure of what to say now that their plans had gone in a rather different direction. It was clear that they weren't all that interested in dueling in the first place, only the person who was offering. Luckily for her, Kotori cut in before she could run her mouth off and say something stupid.

"That sounds great, I've actually been kind of interested myself for some time now. You don't mind, do you?" Although her face was serene, the tone of voice she used was the same one she used when Yuma was starting to get on her nerves. Sei and Sachi were obviously no strangers to this side of Kotori, and could only nod meekly in agreement.

The duelist next to her, however, took notice. "Hey, I thought you weren't interested in dueling! That's what you always told me whenever I asked you."

"Well, I changed my mind, especially after watching you guys improve."

"You could've asked me, you know..." Yuma grumbled, but Kotori simply poked him in the ribs.

"So, how about it, Cat-chan? Would you mind showing us the basics of dueling?" She gave Cathy a wink.

Her lips curled into a feline smile. "I'd be glad to."

___– – – – – –_

Class was over without too much more that day. Their usual Numbers Club meeting was kept rather brief, as there had been little unusual activity lately. Cathy and Kotori were in charge of cleaning up the classroom that day while everyone waited outside. It was a little awkward, and though Cathy wanted to ask Kotori whether or not she was really interested in dueling, she couldn't think of how to start.

"I'm sorry about their behavior at lunch today."

Cathy was momentarily confused by the apology, until it clicked in her mind who Kotori was talking about. "Huh? O-oh, it's fine...why are you apologizing? It's not like you did anything."

"No, but I could tell they were getting on your nerves." Cathy cringed a bit, embarrassed at how easily she had let that slip, but the other girl just gave a slight laugh. "Don't worry, sometimes they can annoy me as well. But they're good friends, once you get to know them."

"I think so too...uh, do you think they were serious about learning how to duel?"

"Dueling? Umm, maybe...I know they like watching, but I think out of all of us, I'm probably the most serious about it." Kotori pondered a bit, thinking of how to best phrase her friends' personalities. "Sei's really into sports, and Sachi does gymnastics, so to be honest, I'm not sure they'll really be interested in going as far as I am, but if you're willing I'll make sure they listen. By the way, why did you offer instead? Not that I'm complaining or anything," she quickly added, not wanting to insinuate anything.

"Uh—" Good question. Why had she been so insistent on making sure they didn't hang out with Takashi? Was it because she wanted to prove herself, or was it because she was..._jealous_? But that couldn't be, she was in love with Yuma...wasn't she? Maybe this was just her overprotective side speaking, the same way a sister wouldn't want their brother to get mixed up with someone she didn't approve of. _'But why Inchou of all people, and why now...?'_ An uneasy feeling of alarm ran through her, and she decided that Kotori didn't need to know about those uncertainties. "—I-I figured that, I should probably have more friends outside of our club, and...it seemed like a good opportunity, nya." Licking her lips nervously, she hoped Kotori didn't notice the long pause.

Fortunately, the other girl was too busy dumping out the dustbins to pay much attention. "That's great! Actually, I'm kind of excited. I think you'll like them, they're nice people. Then we can all hang out together!"

Cathy was cheered some by this thought, and the uncertainty eased a bit. "Yeah, sure...nya!" She yelped in surprise as Kotori gave her a quick hug. She wasn't used to physical contact aside from her cats, but she managed to return the hug.

"I think it'll be fun! Maybe I can eventually beat Yuma in a duel! Then he can finally stop nagging about me only watching on the sidelines." Cathy laughed a bit as she imagined Yuma's face as he lost to his girlfriend.

"Uh...ahem, are you guys okay?" The two girls turned and stared at the boys, who in turn were staring back at them. Too late, Cathy realized that they were still hugging each other, and the two groups stared at each other in an awkward silence.

"We were just, uh, having a girl moment. Don't worry about it," Kotori quickly let go and brushed past the boys. "We're done anyway, so we can get going now."

"Oo...kaay...if you say so."

* * *

The group headed out together, and parted into their usual groups; only much to her surprise, Takashi joined her, claiming something about have to check out a place downtown before heading home. Nobody gave his comment another thought, and so for the second day in a row, Cathy found herself walking home with him. For some reason it felt a little different than yesterday, but she couldn't quite pinpoint the difference yet.

"You did great today, Cat-chan." Takashi congratulated her as they headed down the sidewalk.

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"When you made the suggestion to help Sei and Sachi learn how to duel. To be honest, I was actually kind of relieved," Takashi rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I didn't want to be rude and turn them down, but the truth is I really don't have that much free time. Also, I'm not that great with girls..."

Cathy was surprised at his self revelation. Inchou, not good with people? Sure, he didn't have the same magnetic pull that Yuma did, but most everyone in the class she knew looked up to and respected him. "I-I don't think that's true...everyone likes you, Inch—Takashi."

He only laughed and looked a little more embarrassed by her sincerity. "Eh, that's nice of you to say, but to summarize, it took a lot of practice to be able to talk that easily. That's why I think it's great that you're really making an effort."

"By teaching them how to duel?" She was still a little puzzled. Takashi chuckled a bit at her confused face; it was kind of adorable, actually.

"That's part of it, but just interacting with other people overall. I think—no, I know it'll help increase your confidence. Then you won't have any problems talking to Yuma!"

Oh, of course; that was what he meant. "You really think so?" The cat girl twirled strands of hair around her finger, a nervous habit that she had yet to break. A chance to talk with Yuma...and to confess her feelings...it all seemed too good to be true, but if Takashi believed she had a chance, then why shouldn't she? After all, she did promise to herself to 'cattobingu', just like Yuma always had his kattobingu.

"Yeah, and who knows, maybe you'll become friends with them too. You can't just keep talking to us all the time. It's good to have different friends that you can talk about different subjects with." Takashi said good-naturedly, genuinely glad that Cathy seemed to be making some inroads on curing her social anxiety. Perhaps Yuma was really just a starting point; the real issue was Cathy's own insecurities about her ability to socialize with others, outside of simply dueling. Maybe he'd get a chance to know her better as well, in normal, friend situations, instead of involving life-or-death Numbers chaos. _'Though really, I wonder where she got the idea that I was good with girls? Aside from her and Kotori, it's not like I really hang out with them all that much.' _ He smiled inwardly to himself, a bit flattered but also pleased. All too soon it seemed, the gates of her mansion loomed in front of them. Cathy bowed again, thanking him for his company on the way home, especially since it meant he was going out his way.

"You know, you don't have to keep me company every day...I can get home myself..."

Truthfully, this new roundabout did add another extra 20 minutes to his walk home, but he found himself not caring very much, especially since he usually walked him alone too. "I know, but I have to say, you make for much better company than empty air! Anyway, I, uh, really enjoy your company too. I mean, not that it's bad at school or anything, but sometimes it's nice to just, y'know, hang out together, just...the two of us..." As soon as he realized what he just said, he blushed and looked away awkwardly. "Wait, no, that came out wrong—argh, what I meant was, that, it's nice to talk to you alone, without everybody else's background noise..." he looked at Cathy, who was turning a healthy shade of pink, "...aand I just said that out loud, didn't I?" He slapped his forehead in frustration. So much for being smooth with the ladies. "See, this is what I mean when I said I'm not great with girls."

Cathy couldn't keep her lips from curling up, and she gave a quick giggle before forcing herself to calm down. "It's all right Takashi, I know what you mean too. And I feel the same way...uh, I-I mean, you know, I feel happy talking to you too...u-uh, n-nyan! ...Th-that is to say..." Both teens stood at the gate awkwardly. Why did things always get so embarrassing whenever she tried talking to boys? They were friends, so she shouldn't have any reason to think he would take her the wrong way, right?

Right...?

"L-let's just agree to walk home together, unless one of us has something to do. I mean, to summarize, neither of us are against it, so why not?" Takashi hastily ended the moment before things got too complicated.

"Y-yeah, okay..." Secretly she was relieved that Takashi cut off the conversation, otherwise she might've said something stupid again. "So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow in class then?"

He nodded. "Same to you. Oh, and I don't know what happened this morning, but I hope you were okay," he gave her a curious glance, to which Cathy could only stutter some incoherent phrases about "alarm clocks" and "dreams". Waving goodbye, he headed down the path and Cathy waited until she could no longer see his back before wandering inside in a bit of a daze, unsure of the jumble of feelings that were now swirling inside her head. In her stupor, she nearly walked into Philip for the second time that day, this time as he was about to set the dinner table.

"Oh! Miss Catherine, is something the matter with you? Knocking me over once in a while isn't unusual, but twice in one day is quite a feat." Somehow, the butler managed to catch all the forks and knives back onto the tray before they scattered all over the floor.

"S-sorry Philip, I'm just...tired. I didn't sleep so well last night." The servant merely patted her shoulder comfortingly and proceeded to carry her bag up the stairs.

"No need to fret my Lady, we all have our off days. Perhaps a nice cup of tea and a good book will be the cure?"

What would she do if it weren't for Philip; the elderly butler had been a part of her household as long as she could remember. With her parents frequently away, he had become somewhat of a grandparent figure in her life, someone who always knew what to say or not say if she had a bad day, and then bring up a cup of hot, milky tea and a book he thought she'd might enjoy. "Thank you, Philip," she whispered gratefully as he set her bag down on a chair previously occupied by a napping calico.

"It is my pleasure, my dear. Now, why don't you change into something comfortable and I'll be right back with that tea and novel I promised," the butler ushered himself out the room as quickly as he had entered.

Flinging open her generous walk-in closet, she selected a casual miniskirt to pair with a black cat-eared parka, finishing the outfit with a pair of pink-and-black stripey kneesocks. Not a second later, Philip announced himself with a short knock and entered carrying a serving tray bearing a china teapot, porcelain cup, milk and sugar cubes. "Enjoy, Miss Cathy," he winked as he set the tea down on her nightstand, along with a rather worn copy of _Through the Looking-Glass_ by Lewis Carroll. It had been passed down through her family for generations, and though it had suffered a bit from being dropped into the bathtub one too many times, Alice's adventures never grew old for her.

As she flipped through the familiar words and sentences again for the umpteenth time though, instead of being transported back to Wonderland, she found herself thinking about Takashi. How he was so nice, and helpful, and willing to listen even though he was busy with his own duties. _'Yuma's only ever complimented me on my dueling skills...I wish he would talk to me about other things too, like, does he have any pets, o-or what his favorite dish is...'_ In comparison, Takashi was much more observant, and chose his words with the utmost care. Well okay, maybe not _that_ formally, but he certainly caught on to her subtleties much better than Yuma. _'And I can't believe he'd just help me like this so selflessly...whereas all I ever do is wish for selfish things...'_ A nice warmth was spreading through her body, and she realized with a start that it was similar to how she felt whenever Yuma was on her mind.

And now it was happening when she thought about their class president. Cathy set down her cup down hastily, the tea nearly sloshing over the edge, but she was too agitated to notice. The sudden dawning of her possibly changing feelings was almost too much, she hadn't even successfully gotten over her first crush and now she could be falling for another friend! _'N-no, I can't think that...Takashi is a good friend, he's a good person, it-it's not surprising that I end up comparing him to Yuma...'_ Thinking of Yuma, she was simultaneously relieved and yet depressed that he still made her feel warm and comfortable. _'Keep your head together girl, remember, your goal is to tell Yuma your feelings! This will be all for nothing if you end up falling for someone else!'_ The novel lay forgotten on the nightstand now as she paced the length of her bedroom, trying to convince herself that she was simply feeling the coziness of her new friendship with Takashi.

"Oh, whatever will I do with myself, nya?" She bent down and picked up the calico that had been rubbing against her legs, taking comfort in the soft fur. "I'm not crazy about boys, am I?" The kitten simply purred and rubbed its nose against her sleeve. "You're right, this isn't about being boy-crazy, it's about gaining enough confidence to talk to Yuma!" A knock interrupted her monologue, and Philip came in with what must've been dinner on a serving tray.

"I figured you would prefer some privacy tonight, Miss Cathy," he sat the tray down and collected the tea set. "Also, I took the liberty of running the bath water and laundering your uniform. Your cats have been groomed and fed, and should you be running late again tomorrow morning I have set an alarm for you as well." With the empty tea set in hand, he closed the door, leaving Cathy with the calico still napping in her arms. She gently set it onto her bed and opened the lid to reveal french onion soup, her favorite whenever she had a cold or was feeling down.

Philip really did know her too well.

* * *

"So, in order to adjust for this year's festival budget—no no no, they're not going to care about the budget," Takashi sighed and scratched his head as he attempted to figure out the class' budget for the student council meeting tomorrow. Each class had a limit, and theirs was was already over the limit quite a bit, despite the festival not taking place for another two months. The only way was to convince everybody to cut down on the number of activities they planned, but he knew that would probably cause a riot among his peers. _'Maybe I should just cut them out and say that I had no choice...'_ Normally he was proud to be responsible for taking care of class activities, but there was no denying the roadblocks that came with trying to please a class of 30-plus students. _'Sometimes, I think the only reason I got so good at talking was out of sheer necessity. Speaking of which, I wonder if Cat-chan's okay? I've never seen her late before.' _Ever since their conversation at the cafe, she seemed determined to change herself. Which wasn't a bad thing, and Takashi agreed that coming out of her shell would help her out in the long run; but he feared that perhaps he may have inadvertently pushed her a little too much. _'I hope she doesn't think she needs to change everything about her! I have to say, I like her the way she is right now.'_ Cathy may have been painfully shy, but after forming up the Numbers Club with them, he had observed her slowly becoming more social and less quiet. It was a shame, really, that Yuma either failed to or didn't appreciate her traits—a good listener, loyal friend, and a kind, quiet soul. It wasn't that Takashi didn't like Kotori or admire her tenacity, but personally he preferred someone who didn't have a tendency to vocalize her every concern. Kotori wasn't afraid to voice her opinions, especially when it involved Yuma, and he had a feeling she could be quite the scary girlfriend when enraged.

_'Yuma doesn't know what he's missing...then again, he and Kotori are already pretty compatible, in terms of personality. Maybe it's a good thing I don't have anyone to compete with.'_ Immediately he smacked his head against his desk. This was the second time he caught himself having more than just "friendly" feelings towards Cathy, and it was starting to scare him. Sure, they were fairly good friends, and he enjoyed hanging out with her, but that didn't mean he wanted to go out with her or do romantic things the way Yuma and Kotori did...at least, that was what he kept telling himself.

"_Hey, what's wrong with wanting a girlfriend? Isn't that what middle school's about? Experiencing romance?" _

Takashi jerked around in his seat, but there was nobody behind him.

_'What the—who are you?'_

"_I _am_ you, duh. But you can call me your unconscious. See, I know what it is you desire, deep in your heart, even if you don't realize it yet."_

He groaned. This was not the time to be playing shoulder-angel-devil with himself, not with a load of meeting notes to write up. _'Uh huh. Well, thanks for the advice, but I can deal with this myself.'_

"_Hey hey now, what's with the cold shoulder? I'm just trying to help."_ The Voice was being unhelpfully loud, and begrudgingly Takashi gave in. He was going to be scrambling at the meeting tomorrow, but now that this train of thought had started, it was nigh unstoppable.

_'Fine. What are you talking about?'_

"_Isn't obvious? Why not have Cathy fall for you instead? Then she doesn't have to pine over Yuma anymore, Kotori can stop fighting her for Yuma's attention, and you get a girlfriend! To summarize, everyone wins!"_

_'Not if it's forced! Remember how we got into this in the first place? Helping her confess to Yuma?'_

"_Yeah yeah, so what? You ever consider the fact that she might change her mind?"_

_'I—no, no, I am not going to be swayed by some frivolous desires! Cathy and I are good friends, and I'd like to keep it the way it is.'_

"_...Fine, be stubborn like that; though I have to say, for a class president, you sure are dense," _the Voice sneered tauntingly, and Takashi felt his irritation go through the roof.

"I am not—!"

"Takashi, is something wrong?" His bedroom door opened and his mom, already wearing her bathrobe and about to head off to bed, peered in with a bewildered look.

"U-uh, mom, hi! I was just, uh, checking over the budget for tomorrow's meeting—it's a little over—yeah, sorry about that! Chuckling nervously, he made a show of packing up his bag for tomorrow.

"Well, don't stress too much sweetie, you should get to bed." The door closed and he heaved a sigh of relief. _'Thanks for nothing, head voice.'_ Of course, there was no response. The lights dimmed as he climbed into bed, physically and mentally exhausted from the day's events.

If he was really going to keep his promise to Cathy, he'd have to gain a better hold on his own feelings.

* * *

A/N: I'm sorry this took so long, I really am ;A; but I hope it was worth the wait, as I wanted to make sure it was good. I hope this is not progressing too fast, I want to really develop their relationship over time, but I felt if I made another platonic chapter, then it would become boring pretty fast. Secretly in my headcanon I've always imagined Takashi to be kind of an awkward academic at heart, so this is how I've portrayed him. I've made Cathy and Kotori's friendship more obvious than in the show, b/c I feel that if Kotori is going out with Yuma then Cathy would at least have the sense and dignity to leave them alone. And yeah, Philip the elderly butler is an OC I made just so Cathy would have _someone_ to talk to at home.

The secret word randomly chosen this time was **"hugging"**, submitted by **animecartoonlover36**! Leave another one with your reviews and I'll choose another one!


	3. A KEIKAKU for tea time

A/N: I have seen each and every review/comment that comes my way; so yes, I know how eagerly some(?) of you have been waiting for the next chapter. All I can say is, time is a premium when you work; it's just the way it is.

* * *

The meeting hadn't gone terribly well. Then again, he'd kind of known from the start that he was practically shooting himself in the foot by not preparing better. Most of the upperclassmen paid little attention to his reasons as to why their budget had to be higher than the quarterly allowance, and in the end, nothing really changed, except he was grumpier and more tired than when he went in. Cathy hadn't said much during their now-daily walk home, and he suspected that she had sensed his less-than-stellar mood.

That was one trait that Takashi really appreciated about her; the ability to empathetically adjust to others. Perhaps it was a side effect of being shy for most of her life, but in any case, he was grateful for her silent support and understanding. "I'm sure the class won't really mind, nya," she'd mentioned quietly as they'd stepped off the campus and onto the road. Their walking-home-together had become so routine now that nobody in the Numbers Club said anything about them when they headed off. In the beginning, Tetsuo had casually brought up the observation that the two of them seemed to be hanging out a lot more often, but nothing more came from that.

"_Er, I-I'm not implying anything, I'm just sayin', you two have been walking home a lot lately..."_

Well, at least it seemed like nobody was getting the wrong idea (not that he wanted them to), which made it all the easier to deepen their friendship. Ever since that inner argument he'd had with his unconscious, he'd fought to tamp down those feelings whenever they surfaced too close. It wasn't worth it for their friendship to suffer; it had taken so many years for Cathy to finally let go of her innate shyness, and he wouldn't trade the relationship they had now for anything else.

But of course, it would be nice to have his cake and eat it, too.

"U-uh, Takashi, are you okay?" He finally snapped out of his reverie after he realized that Cathy had been trying to get his attention for the past five minutes.

"I'm sorry; I know I shouldn't keep thinking about letting the class down, but in end, I guess I'll always be the type of person who has to do everything right." Takashi sighed and crossed his hands behind his back. What a nuisance those meetings were; sometimes he secretly wanted to just throw everything out the window and say what he wanted, just to see their reactions. What would they think, the usually goody-two shoes class president lose his temper? '_They'd probably think I'd gone crazy or something_.'

Just as they passed by the same cafe that first sparked this routine, he noticed Cathy pause for a moment, gazing at the storefront. "What's the matter, Cat-chan? Is there something interesting going on?"

"Huh? Oh, it's...it's nothing, really..." The girl tugged her hair nervously, as was her habit when she was on the verge of revealing something, but too embarrassed to say. Takashi gave her a reassuring smile, as if to say it was okay.

"It's okay Cat-chan, if you want to go take a look, we can go inside. I don't have a lot of homework, since I already finished it at the beginning of the week." Before Cathy could even dismiss his offer, he held the door open and ushered her inside. Once inside, he could see why she had been so absorbed. The entire interior of the store had been decorated in all manner of cat-related items (as if it weren't cat-themed enough already), from the streamers hanging precariously from the ceiling to the free cat-ears and tail accessories that were being offered to patrons.

Maybe he shouldn't have been so hasty, but it was too late for second thoughts.

"Oh, welcome back!" The same friendly waitress as last time led them to the window table, oblivious to the fact that one out of the pair was more reluctant than the other. "To celebrate our café's first anniversary, all patrons today receive free cat accessories!" She dropped off two headbands with cat ears and a matching tail.

"Well, that was nice of them, but I think I'll—" Takashi was about to slide the free gifts into his bag, until he saw Cathy already donning her accessories with glee. "...Nevermind then..." he muttered mostly to himself, and awkwardly attempted to put on the headband. The tail, however, was strictly staying off.

Their waitress came back and took their order (hot chocolate and milk tea) before dashing off to greet another couple. Unlike last time however, Takashi wasn't really sure what to say, since they hadn't exactly planned on stopping anywhere. Fumbling for a topic, he complimented Cathy on how well the ears and tail fit her. She giggled and turned a bit pink, insisting that it was only because of how much time she'd spent around cats that allowed her to emulate their behavior in everyday life. "I know it sounds weird, but I really can understand what they say, and they understand me." She wrinkled her nose a bit at the strong smell of coffee that was wafting from a nearby table, just like one of her kitties would. Takashi found himself resisting the urge to suddenly pet her on the head.

_'No Takashi, she is not a cat, she is a person; more importantly, she's your friend...even if that was very cute...'_ He had never been more relieved when their drinks arrived, giving him an excuse to concentrate on something else.

"Nya, Takashi? ...Can I ask you for your opinion on something?"

"Hmm? What is it?"

"Remember that day...when you encouraged me to reach out other people through dueling? I've been thinking...well, I wouldn't want them to feel obligated, but maybe, if they had another reason to come..." Once again her finger started twisting her locks, and she became very interested in the cup of hot, milky tea.

"So...do you have any ideas? I can always help you out," Takashi prodded gently, wanting Cathy to come into her own.

"Oh, I thought about some ideas, but I'd like to hear your opinion, if you wouldn't mind nyan," those large cat-eyes blinked at him, and he found it hard to look directly at her.

"I don't mind at all. What did you have in mind?"

Cathy scooched her seat closer to the table, as if wanting to keep their conversation private. "I wanted an occasion that wasn't centered around dueling, and given my...hobbies, I thought it might be fun to have...a..."

"...Yes...?" Her voice was a whisper compared to the lively atmosphere around them, and he tipped his chair forward to lean in.

"U-uh...I hope it doesn't sound too weird...but I was planning a tea—oh, watch out!" Cathy shrieked as Takashi's chair toppled over and he crashed into the table. Time seemed to slow as she helplessly watched the cup flip through the air, do a perfect 360 and then dump the entirety of its contents right on top of his head. "Oh no, Takashi, are you all right?!" Ignoring the stares from every other customer in the café, she reached over and started wiping off the hot chocolate as best she could with her napkin, while the waitress rushed back with a mop and some more towels. "You didn't get hurt did you, Inchou? The drinks were still hot, and you could've gotten burned—" she rambled as her mind raced through all kinds of thoughts, ranging from how embarrassed she was to have caused him to tip over, to hoping he was not mad at her, and relief that he hadn't been injured. "I-I'm really, really sorry, Takashi...if I had only spoken up, you wouldn't be in this mess..."

Takashi winced slightly from the the towel. Truth be told the liquid had scaled his skin, but not serious enough to be a burn; at most, he'd just have to put an ice pack on for a few hours when he got home. He did feel quite embarrassed though, crashing into the table like that. _'Boy, I hope Cathy doesn't think this is all her fault; if anything, I should've been more careful.' _By this point, most of the spill had been cleaned up, and the other patrons had gone back to their business. "Ah, Cat-chan, you didn't get your clothes wet, did you?"

Cathy shook her head. "No, I was lucky, in a manner of speaking...uum, I think we should probably get you cleaned up a bit before you go home, nyan." She stared at his chocolate-stained uniform and wondered if Philip would have any tips on getting it out before the stain set. "Especially since I was the one who asked you to come with me, and well, I can't let your uniform stay dirty!"

"Cat-chan, it's okay, really, I'll be fine—"

"No buts, Takashi! You're always looking out for others, so, why can't others look out for you?" Takashi attempted to mutter some sort of comeback, but she'd left him with little choice, especially after she paid for their drinks (the waitress brought them in to-go cups this time).

___– – – – – –_

"Well now Miss Catherine, I do believe this is a first for you," Philip remarked lightly as Cathy ushered in a rather defeated-looking Takashi. It had taken her ten minutes of badgering and 'no excuses' before he finally gave in and reluctantly agreed to have his uniform laundered at her mansion before heading home. Triumphant, she marched them home and explained their predicament to a slightly bewildered Philip, who then nodded sagely and said the uniform would be ready within the hour. "Nothing to it, Master Takashi, you are more than welcome here."

He lead them to what Takashi presumed must have been the laundry room (it had to be), only instead of the crammed space he was used to, this looked more like an industrial cleaning center that would be used at a professional cleaner's, rather than someone's home. Once Philip set the machine to the correct settings, he politely cleared his throat. "Excuse me, Master Takashi, but I can't very well wash your clothes while they are still on you. Unless of course, you would like to join them in the washing machine."

"Oh—er, right, sorry about that..." Takashi blushed a deep red as the butler gave an amused chuckle. While he wasn't exactly bashful, Cathy either hadn't realized what was going on or was not bothered by it. "Uh, is there a place where I could...you know..." he jerked his head towards the door, hoping to get some privacy.

"Nya? O-oh, o-of course, sorry about that...there's a bathroom just outside. And Philip, would you mind fetching something from the _special_ closet?" For a second, Cathy wondered what Takashi would look like taking off his shirt, but she immediately banished that fantasy without a second thought. _'Bad Cat-chan, bad bad bad! Thinking of your friend like that...'_ Her self-chastising didn't stop the blush that was spreading from her face down her neck, though. Fortunately, Takashi was sequestrated in the bathroom and Philip was busy getting a change of clothes for him.

A few minutes later they re-entered, the butler putting the dirty uniform to soak while Takashi awkwardly shuffled around in his borrowed suit, looking uncomfortable. The outfit had originally belonged to Cathy's father when he was a young boy, and remained in the family as a treasured heirloom; that hadn't stopped her from using it to play dress-up in her younger days, however, and now it seemed there was good reason to keep it around after all.

"Thank you very much for letting me wear this, but are sure it's okay? Philip said it was your father's, right?" Takashi asked discreetly as the two of them climbed the winding staircase up to Cathy's room. Watching his clothes spin around in the machine was not, in their minds, the most entertaining thing in the world, so upon the butler's suggestion, they decided to troop upstairs and kill some time, perhaps with a round or two of duel monsters. "I'd hate to accidentally tear it or something..."

"No, don't worry Takashi, it's fine. Actually, I used to wear them when I was little, pretending I was a rich Victorian gentleman..." Cathy blushed lightly as she spoke, a little embarrassed at revealing her childhood silliness. Since when had her room seemed so far away? She was sure it only took a minute from the bottom of the stairs to the top, but for some reason, it seemed closer to five today.

"Oh really? Somehow I can imagine you doing that..."

"N-nya, it was...just how passed time, I guess..."

"I guess that explains your impeccable fashion sense then," he teased slightly, though he did truly think that she looked quite gorgeous when dolled up in her gothic lolita dresses. As he settled onto a plush ottoman in her enormous bedroom, he realized that Cathy never did finish explaining what her plans were. "Ah, Cat-chan, I guess you never did finish telling me what you were planning, huh?"

Cathy blinked a bit, absentmindedly petting a cat before the words made sense. "Oh! Yes, I guess we did get rather distracted afterwards...well, to summarize, I was thinking of hosting a tea...party...?" She winced slightly, the words somehow sounding flimsier than they had in her head. "You don't...you don't think that's bit, childish, do you?"

A tea party. _'Huh, well leave it to Cathy to think up of something as whimsical as that.'_ Granted, it wasn't something that he would ever think of doing, but it did fit in well with her image, and really, all parties were just an opportunity to hang out and interact with people. "No—I mean, sure, it's a bit...unusual maybe, but being different's not a bad thing, I think," a calico cat started rubbing the side of arm affectionately, and he cautiously scratched its ears, hoping it wouldn't turn on him.

"...You're not just saying that to be nice, are you?" Cathy peeked at him from behind her mountain of throw pillows, looking very much like a feline herself. "Also, why are you sitting so far away? Are my cats really that scary?"

"Of course not, Cat-chan! I sincerely think it'd be a fun idea," Takashi rushed to repudiate both statements, jumping onto her fluffy bed in the process. The cushions on the bed, coupled with the sudden force of him landing, caused him to sink towards the pillow pile. "Uh, whoa—!"

Luckily, the fall was softened by the surrounding pillows, but that didn't prevent Cathy from being slightly squashed under him. "U-uhm, Takashi...could you please move?" He was rather heavy, especially since she was being fenced in by the cushions. Her face heated up as she realized she could feel his breath fanning her cheek and the faint 'thump' of his heartbeat as he struggled to right himself.

Takashi bolted upright, once he realized exactly where he was. "Ah! Uh, sorry, I'm sorry Cat-chan, I did not mean to crush you like that..." Ah, this was bad, very bad; he was already in a rather precarious situation of being at a girl's house, in her room and _on her bed_, and of course fate had to just have him 'accidentally' fall on top of her. Right. Well, as long as he didn't panic it would be okay...right?

"I'm okay Takashi, don't worry. After all, there _are_ a lot of pillows on my bed...huh, maybe I should put some away, nyan," Cathy arranged them so they would not trip unsuspecting visitors.

"So, I think—"

"—You think they'd—"

Both of them stared at each other for a second, before breaking into a fit of laughter. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off Cat-chan," Takashi leaned back, resting his head on a throw pillow. "What were you saying?"

"It's just...do you think Kotori's friends would be okay with a tea party? I mean, I guess it sounds okay to you, because you've been my friend for a while, but I don't know... What if they think it's too juvenile? I-I mean, what are girls supposed to do at each others' houses anyway?" A slight feeling of panic was starting to rise, as Cathy realized that she hadn't exactly come up with a back-up plan. "Oh no, what if they think I'm...some sort of weirdo?!"

"Err, I think you're over-thinking things a bit, Cat-chan," Takashi sweatdropped slightly as he watched Cathy drum her fingers nervously along the back of a particular siamese, though strangely the cat didn't seem to mind at all. "I really don't think they'll be that—"

"—Takashi, what do girls usually do when they hang out anyway?"

If he had been drinking anything, it would be spat out all over by now, but luckily for both of them this was not the case. Takashi stared at her, dumbfounded that she would ask him such a question. "U-um, I...I don't know...? Ah, I...it's not like I'm a girl, Cat-chan..." he ran a hand through his hair in slight exasperation.

"...But you're so good with everyone, surely you must have _some_ idea, nya..." The cat-girl pouted slightly, hugging the pillow close to her.

Takashi resisted the urge to let out a sigh. "...To be perfectly honest Cat-chan, I think you're doing fine by yourself. It's not as if you have to get my approval for everything, you know." It wasn't that he minded being her confidant, the one who could listen to her problems and help her out in return; on the contrary, he secretly relished the fact that she could put her trust in him, and he genuinely liked helping people out. But of course, there was such a thing as too much dependency, and Takashi wanted Cathy to develop her own confidence as well. "Even if it turns out that Sei and Sachi aren't interested, at least you know that you tried, and frankly, I think it would be their loss if they turned you down."

"...Oh. I guess..." Cathy flopped over all of a sudden, startling Takashi slightly as her head rested on a cushion near his lap, but he figured it was just one of her many feline-like habits that she'd picked up over the years. "...I don't understand, Inchou. How come when I talk to people like you, and the rest of the Numbers Club, the words come out so easily, but whenever I think about anyone else...it seems so scary..."

"There's nothing wrong with taking one step a time," Takashi found himself laying down on his side as well, as his neck was getting rather strained trying to peer down at her all the time. Besides, the bed was pretty comfortable, and the warm room was making him rather drowsy. Cathy must've noticed the change in his voice, because before he knew it, she was draping a soft coverlet over him. "Hey, I don't think a nap is exactly appropriate at a time like this..."

"Well, I don't exactly see you protesting, nyan," she teased back, snuggling underneath the blanket herself. "You know how Napoleon won all those wars without losing any time to sleep? Cat naps, that was his trick." She let out a yawn and he couldn't help but notice how pointy her canines seemed.

_'Right. Remind me to never get on her bad side if I can help it.' _The whole situation seemed just a tad strange—going over unexpectedly to a girl's house, then taking a nap in her bed _with her in it at the same time—_but it also felt comforting somehow, as if he was meant to be here. _'All right, I guess a quick nap couldn't hurt...and Philip said he'd let me know when uniform is clean...'_ Resigning himself the the inevitable, Takashi carefully eased a pillow out from underneath a rather fat persian, who only gave him the slightest of hisses before grudgingly moving to another location. Then, with Cathy already seemingly in a deep sleep, he brushed off the cat hairs and closed his eyes.

___– – – – – –_

"_Halt! Who goes there?"_

"_Y-your majesty, please, I'm just passing through the gates, and I'm really about to be late—"_

"_Excuse me, but did you just talk back to me, nyan?!" The scepter banged onto the floor with a resounding 'thump' and he shrank back even further until he felt the cold steel of the guards' lances digging into his back. "You have exactly three seconds to apologize before it's off with your head! One..."_

"_But I'm—well, I sincerely apolo—"_

"—_three! That's it, off with his head nya!" A chill ran down his spine as a giant Monster Cat lumbered in, a pole axe raised above his head..._

"NOOO!" The covers flew off and the cats yeowled at the sudden intrusion. It took Takashi all of two seconds to realize that there was no giant cat monster with pole axes and that Philip was very calmly standing at the foot of the bed, his uniform neatly starched and ironed.

"...Well, if you so adamantly insist, Master Takashi, but I strongly urge you to think it through," Philip broke the silence after a few seconds, placing the clean clothes in front of him. Cathy, meanwhile, had woken up after her cats had started making a fuss.

"Huh? ...Takashi? Philip? What's going on..." She rubbed her eyes and yawned, oblivious to the chaos that had occurred only a few seconds earlier.

"Wait, what? I-I'm sorry Philip, I don't think I heard your question...?" Takashi's head was spinning a bit, but at least Cathy hadn't caught him in a moment of extreme embarrassment. Hopefully Philip wouldn't mention it to her...actually, scratch that, he wouldn't put it past the butler to spill the beans the second he walked out of the house. "I was...that is to say, I was dreaming..."

"Of course. Although, it seemed more like a nightmare... As I was asking earlier, seeing as the hour is getting late, would you like to stay for dinner, and then we can chauffeur you home afterwards?"

At this suggestion, Cathy hopped out of the bed and pulled Takashi onto his feet. "You should, Takashi! I-I mean, if you don't need to be home so soon...I wouldn't mind at all if you stayed."

"Uhh..." Thing were moving just a tad too fast for his still-sluggish brain to process fully. So Cathy was asking to stay for dinner. Sure, why hell not, he'd already done his laundry and even taken a nap in her bed, might as well round out the entire set, right? "If it's really all right, I'd definitely appreciate it. Though, I should probably call my mom first, otherwise she'll start wondering why I'm not home..."

Cathy nodded. "Sure nya, I'll be waiting outside." She and Philip stepped out of the room, but not before the butler popped back in one last time.

"Oh, and one more thing, Master Takashi—please feel free keep that suit on. No need to get your uniform all out of sorts again, after all."

And before he could protest, they were gone again, leaving him alone. Unsure of what to make of the situation, he decided to call his mom first before she panicked and dialed the police.

"Hello? Takashi, is that you? Where have you been all this time? Are you all right?" Mrs. Todoroki's worried face appeared right away on his d-gazer.

"Uh yeah, mom, sorry I didn't tell you earlier, but I'm at a friend's house right now..." Takashi was wondering what was the best way to explain his current situation. Not that Cathy was a bad person or anything, but if he let on that she had invited him over to her house, he was bound to be interrogated like a common criminal the second he stepped in his house.

His mom hadn't caught on yet, luckily. "Oh? Whose house? Are you at Tokunosuke's? Did you want me to pick you up?"

"Err, no—I'm at Cathy's house...um, I think you remember Cathy, back from elementary school? Anyway, she accidentally got my uniform dirty, so she insisted on getting it cleaned at her house before I went home."

The line was silent for a few seconds as his mom furrowed her brow, muttering to herself. "Cathy...Cathy...oh, you mean Cat-chan? Is she still as adorable as ever?"

"Y...yes? But to summarize, she asked me to stay for dinner, and they offered to send me home as well. So you don't need to worry about me." Takashi was wary of his mom's suddenly cheerful attitude, but he knew better than to question her.

"Well then, sounds like you've got everything taken care of! Remember your manners dear, and say hi to Cat-chan for me!" With that, his mom hung up, and Takashi breathed a small sigh of relief, glad that she hadn't probed any deeper. There was no guarantee that would be the case when he got home, though.

The grand staircase seemed to stretch before him as he stepped down, the scent of a delicious meal already wafting up. To his surprise, Cathy had changed into another outfit, this one a long-sleeved, one-piece black dress with a lacy black overskirt. When she had actually changed, or where even was beyond him, but she did look awfully pretty, and he nearly missed his footing on the last step because he couldn't. Stop. Staring. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Cat-chan." Philip mysteriously appeared just as he approached the table and pulled his chair out for him, all in a perfect symphony of movements.

"No worries Takashi, it's your mom, after all. You should let her know you're okay," Cathy signaled Philip, who reappeared with the first course, soup. She hoped Takashi would be all right with a more Western-style menu; not content to travel all over the world, her parents (when they were actually in residence) attempted to bring the continent of Europe to their abode, hence her growing up on meals that included French onion soup, Beef Wellington, and soufflé. To her slight horror, she noticed Takashi poking at the dish, rather than breaking into it as she had already done. _'Oh no, I should've asked him first if he would've preferred a more traditional Japanese meal!'_ She had been so keen on trying to impress him that it had completely slipped her mind that, despite their friendship, the two of them came from very different backgrounds. "I'm sorry Inchou, did you want something else for dinner instead?"

He had not been expecting that question at all; no, Takashi had been, at the moment, busying himself with trying to figure out just how one was supposed to eat this soup...pastry...thing? The simple answer was to just ask Cathy, but he didn't want to look like a fool, and besides, weren't class presidents supposed to be well-versed in the ways of other cultures? Apparently not. Unfortunately, Cathy had mistaken his lack of knowledge with lack of appetite, which was certainly not the case. "Oh no no, that's not it Cat-chan, it's just...ah, I guess to summarize, this is the first time I've seen this type of dish..."

Oh. _Oh._ Cathy felt rather silly as she realized his problem. Although, whether it was worse than him not liking the food, she wasn't sure. "Nya! That was so foolish of me... Here, I can show you how. You just take your spoon, and break open the pastry on top. Then you spoon in the soup, and eat them together."

"Ah, of course, that makes sense now...hmm, it's quite savory! I like this quite a bit—ah, what is it called?"

"French onion soup. It's my personal favorite...I always have it when I'm sick, or if I've had a bad day...kind of like comfort food, nyan."

"So, do you always have these types of dishes? Or do you like Japanese cuisine too?"

"When my parents are home, it's almost always European or American...but I like all types of food too, from around the world. Oh, speaking of which, if I do host the tea party, would you...would you mind helping me plan it? Not all of it of course, but I'd feel better if I could ask someone for ideas..." The finished dishes were replaced by two parfait glasses at this time, all taken care of by a stream of white-jacketed servants moving to some invisible conductor.

"Sure, I'd be more than happy to. After all, I was the one who suggested that you try and make some more friends outside our circle...? Uh, Cat-chan, are you all right?" Takashi dropped the sentence midway as he realized that Cathy's eyes had taken on a strangely glazed look, as if she was contemplating some grand masterpiece.

"...Oh. Sorry, I'm fine...more than fine, actually, because it just occurred to me how we got into this plan in the first place... It was all so I could tell Yuma how I felt, and since we never did come up with a good plan for that, either, maybe I can combine them together..." Her voice grew higher and the words started spilling out a little faster, now that she was on a roll. "I can't believe I didn't see it earlier, but the tea party—that's how I'll achieve my goal!" Funny how easily she had forgotten that—wasn't it because of Yuma that she had become closer to Takashi in the first place? And now it had become more than just proving herself to Yuma; she was going to teach Kotori and her friends to duel, of all things, and hopefully get to know them better as well. _'How uncanny, that all these things eventually lead back to Yuma. Even if he doesn't return my feelings, I'll still always be grateful to him for bringing me out of my own isolation...'_

"R-right, of course..." Takashi quickly covered up his surprise. To be perfectly honest, the plan of helping her confess to Yuma had completely flown out of his mind by this point. It seemed almost arbitrary now, the only reason they were still aiming for it was because that had been the factor that started this entire snowball rolling in the first place. And yet he couldn't explain it, but instead of feeling genuinely happy for her, he was surprised to feel...resentment. Towards Yuma, of all people. _'Is this what they call a thankless job?'_

"_Actually, I believe it's called jealousy," _An unfortunately familiar, sarcastic tone rang out in his head again.

_'Oh what the—not you again! Can't you pick a better time to come out? Such as, not when I'm eating with the girl I'm trying to help?!"_

"_Don't you mean, the girl you're trying to get?" _

_'I—no—don't you even go there!'_ The dessert had been neglected for some time now, and Takashi hurriedly spooned in a mouthful, lest Cathy think he was turning into a slack-jawed zombie.

"_Too late, I'm your subconscious, remember? I already know what you're thinking before you even realize it. And I always tell the truth."_ Takashi gritted his teeth and pretended to not be having an inner argument with his own self. He hated to admit it, but even he knew that he could no longer ignore the growing feelings he was having for Cathy. It was easy enough to keep it tucked away during their everyday interactions, but whenever they were alone, he found it harder and harder to keep his fantasies in the purely "friendship" zone.

_'...I hate you, you know that?'_ He stabbed the bottom of the parfait glass to emphasize his point.

"_Again, you're just hating yourself; seriously, this is a perfectly common situation—a girl gets caught between two guys, so what do you do? You show her that you're the right one for her, obviously!"_

_'And pray tell, how would I go about doing that?'_ Before his subconscious could come back with a snarky retort however, the last few dishes were being cleared into the kitchen and Takashi was forced to pull himself back into reality.

"Oh my, I didn't mean for dinner to go on so late—Philip, could you take Takashi home right away? His mom must be worried to death at this hour!" Cathy scurried up to her room and came bounding down with his backpack and uniform wrapped inside a neat _furoshiki_. "Let's go Takashi, otherwise we might have trouble getting up tomorrow."

"Right. Um, thank you all for the meal, it was great!" He hastily bowed towards the assembled servants (who apparently all lined up in front whenever their mistress left the house) before dashing out after Cathy, feeling just slightly embarrassed.

___– – – – – –_

"Well, here we are Master Takashi, right on schedule." Philip effortlessly pulled the black sedan up to the sidewalk. The lights were still on, which meant his mom was no doubt still waiting up for him. He felt slightly guilty, but she did seem rather happy for him, so maybe it would be okay. Cathy stepped out after him, handing the package over.

"Well...thank you very much for your hospitality, Cat-chan. And I don't just mean the dinner—which was fantastic, by the way—but y'know, actually cleaning my uniform and all...oh, but I guess that's technically Philip's handiwork, huh?" He bowed formally towards both of them.

"I should be the one thanking you, Takashi, for being such a good...friend..." her lips quirked and before she could control it, her face lit up in a smile, possibly one of the largest he'd ever seen on her face. "You should definitely come over sometime again; Philip and I could use the company, nyan."

"Yes, Master Takashi, please remember that you are always more than welcome at Miss Catherine's abode." The grey-haired butler smiled with his eyes.

"I...I'd be glad to, Cat-chan. W-well, anyway, you should probably get home and get to bed too, so goodnight, and thank you!" Takashi waved rather haphazardly at the same time he sprinted up the steps. Cathy stayed and waved, until the door opened and he disappeared inside, leaving the front quiet and dark again. Sighing to herself, she sank into the backseat, hardly aware of the vehicle's movement as Philip took them back home.

It was official; she had been holding off on accepting it for as long as she could, but after this night, she knew it was all but confirmed.

Cathy Catherine was falling for the class president, Takashi Todoroki.

And she was falling hard.

* * *

A/N: EDIT-okay, I fixed up the typos and added in words that were somehow missed the first time around. Secret word was pretty mundane this time, so you may or may not have noticed it ("smile" chosen by katsu uchiha).


	4. PAUSE: An Author's Talk

**A/N:** Okay guys, since does not have a system of responding to anon reviewers, this is the best solution I can think of. To begin with, I'm very glad to know that many of you really like this story, and support determinationshipping (yay!) I always read each review that comes in, and it's great to know that support for my fics are out there.

However, as I have mentioned before, I am also, unfortunately, really busy with real life, which includes working full-time as well as taking care of errands that make up ordinary life. As such, as much as I'd love to update on a more-than-once-every-two-month basis, it is simply very hard to do; especially since I try and keep a rotation going between my (as of now) two fanfictions, as well as drawing fanart.

So unfortunately, for all my readers out there, I can only say, please have patience; I try to write whenever I can spare a moment or two so the wait time isn't, say, half a year, but please understand that this system is not perfect, and things will happen. Like they say, good things come to those who wait.

Thank you all my readers, for your continued support.

-TFRiD Queen

P.S. I did not plan for this fic to be any more than a T-rating at most; this story is mostly about Takashi and Cathy's budding relationship, so I plan to take it slowly. If I do decide to write an M-rated fic, it will be as a stand-alone, one-shot.


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Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL, Humor, Romance