14AmyChan: okay, this is based off of some actual events, but mainly, it's just fluff~! *^_^*

Amu: you really like fluff, don't you?

14AmyChan: Yes, I do~! *^_^* here are the pairings-

Ikuto: I think they can figure it out on their own

14AmyChan: In other words, don't say it until the end of the story?

Rima: Yes.

14AmyChan: All right. Enjoy the story~! *^_^*

Amu could feel the adrenaline. It coursed through her veins as she almost bounded with excitement. This year was it, she was finally chosen to ride in the glorious Box Sled Blitz with four others, an honor she had waited for ever since Ran's athletic side had kicked in. In short, this was the first time she wanted to ride it, and now she was.

An official of the blitz came by to check that everyone had the required gloves and helmet. Amu was determined to make this jump and have it last in her memory forever! So she obediently went to the pile of helmets and chose one in her size. It was one of the white ones, medium sized. That couldn't stop her excitement, though. Returning to the sled, she saw one of her friends terribly nervous. Her eyes darted around and her small frame trembled as she stood beside the Santa-themed sled.

"Rima, you're not getting nervous, are you?" Amu teased. She had heard that the jump wasn't as bad as people made it out to be. That was one of the reasons she was out here in the first place, despite Ikuto's objections. Honestly, Ikuto was a daredevil; he had no room to talk. After all, the camp wouldn't have the activity if it were too dangerous, right?

Rima shook her head. She tried narrowing her eye in mock anger, but they were too wide in anticipation. "So you were nervous from the start?" Amu asked, remembering that Rima hadn't even wanted to get on the sled at all. She was volunteered by an eager Kukai, who was also on the sled. The team consisted of Amu, Rima, Kukai, Utau (who had also gone on against Ikuto's wishes), and Yaya. Everyone was excited and/or nervous.

After a second of calculating who was watching and who had heard Amu's question, Rima deemed it safe enough to nod at her best friend. Amu smiled at her. "Rima, I talked to a girl who went on the blitz two years ago. She said it was the best bunny hop she'd ever done."

"Really?" Rima asked, somewhat skeptical, but wanting to believe it was nothing worse than that. "A bunny hop?"

"Yep, a bunny hop, so don't worry, okay?" Amu smiled, giving her friend a hug. Rima smiled at Amu, feeling a lot better. The official came by again, telling everyone that they needed to carry their sled up the hill. Feeling the anticipation and the rush, everyone grabbed a corner (or, in Yaya's case, the middle) and proceeded up the icy slope. Once, Utau had almost slipped down the hill, but Kukai had caught her and there was no fuss. Finally, they made it up the hill and set the sled down at the top.

Amu took her place in the front of the sled. It had been decided earlier that Amu would be "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", while Rima and Yaya were two other random reindeer. Yaya's portion said "Cupid" and Rima's said "Comet". Kukai and Utau were in the back as Mr. and Mrs. Clause. All the reindeer had on little cardboard antlers and everyone was holding a present. The point was to throw them in the air as they went over the jump. Amu was adrenaline pumped as she got in the seat and waved the present around for the camera to see. The Box Sled Blitz was always in the wrap-up video, so she wanted everyone to see them having a good time.

Then the sled began its icy decent.

Amu couldn't breathe anymore. Her adrenaline was gone, and in its place was a potent fear. It clutched at her heart as she watched the jump rapidly approach her. "Oh, Sh-" Amu began to curse in fear, but it was never finished because they went over the jump and Amu threw the present in the air.

But that's not the only thing that was launched out of the sled.

Every time Amu looks back on that memory, time seemed to slow down. She had been launched in the air, far out of the comfort of the flimsy cardboard sled. Her heart beat loudly in her ears, drowning out all cheering for the crash. As she came down, her head was going to hit the ice. She had to do something, so she had her arms bent out to catch her fall. This all took place in a matter of milliseconds, but to her, it was an eternity before her head and hands hit the ice.

And then time always resumes.

As she skidded down the hill, Amu put all her strength into her hands to stop the decent. The snow numbed her scarcely clad hands, and ice chunks flew into her helmet, also numbing her face. She could barely feel her foot, which seemed to be caught onto the sled. At least some part of her remained in the sled. As she finally skidded to a halt on the ice, she found that she had lost all her energy. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't talk, she could barely feel her face, and she couldn't feel her hands. It took her a couple of seconds to realize someone was shouting at her.

"Hey! Answer me!" a foreign male voice demanded.

Can't he realize I can't talk? Amu wondered, but she tried to consume the icy air. Curiously, the air obeyed in filling her hurting lungs, and the first thing it did was come right back out again in a shout of pain. It was later that she realized she had been calling out for Ikuto.

"I know it hurts" the unsympathetic voice yelled over the now audible crowd. Although they had been cheering a couple of seconds ago, they were now rustling about with anticipation at the next crash. "But you need to answer me! What is your name?"

"Hinamori Amu" Amu got out as she realized that she was still on the ground. She went to try and get herself up, but her strength had not returned to her. The voice continued asking questions.

"What's the date?" he asked. Amu tried to think of the answer, but it eluded her. She hadn't known what the date was when she got on the sled. She always was bad with dates.

"What did you just do?" he pressed after receiving an 'I don't know' from Amu.

"The Box Sled Blitz" Amu answered, forcing her hurting lungs to accept the air and push it out again to answer his seemingly endless and pointless questions.

"All right" the voice was done talking, and Amu tried once more to get back up on her feet. It was then that she was helped out by two of the jump officials. As soon as she was on her feet, Amu looked around at the now cheering crowd. Had another sled gone off while she was on the ground? It didn't seem that way. Turning her head around, Amu realized that Yaya was also being carried off the track, and she couldn't see Rima, Utau, or Kukai.

"Is Yaya okay?" Amu asked the now silent officials, for it was them that had been asking the questions. They remained silent as they led Amu off the jump track and carried Yaya to a chair. Amu's first glance at Yaya showed that she was hurting and that tears were streaming down her face, but her observation was cut short by a worried Kairi. Even though he was worried, he was still calm when he went to check her over.

Amu was led to a fence to sit down. After she had taken off her helmet so the next person could use it, she looked around, searching for the one person who may be worried about her more than her herself. Ikuto. She saw Kukai and Utau, Utau fussing over Kukai, who seemed to be more hurt than she. Yaya was sitting on a chair, being comforted and checked over by Kairi. Rima, as Amu was surprised to see, was on the back of Nagihiko.

"I told you not to do it" a rarely serious voice came from in front of her. Amu looked to find the person she had been searching for with a cup of hot chocolate in his hands. Ikuto had come. Amu knew he was right, that wasn't a little bunny hop like her friend had said it was, that was a launch, and it was scary. Amu's face regained some feeling as she realized she was crying silently. Ikuto's response was taking her hand gently and putting the cup of hot chocolate in her hands. It was a silent plea to drink it, so Amu did.

The hot chocolate made Amu feel better, and she realized that Ikuto was looking her over. Her hands had a little bruising, her head hurt, her side and ribs hurt, and her left pinkie was swollen and numb. "Move your pinkie" Ikuto said. As Amu obeyed, he breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't broken.

"Thank you, Ikuto" Amu said meekly, but what she really wanted to do was give him a hug right now. She felt so alone with just her hot chocolate. Again the crowd cheered at someone else's misfortune.

Ikuto could tell by Amu's wincing that it hurt to breathe. Remembering to be extremely careful with her, he wrapped his arms around her in a gesture that meant that he was there. The hot chocolate fell to the ground as Amu's arms, now seemingly frailer than before, returned the gesture. She silently cried from the fear of what had just happened. Ikuto gently rubbed her hair as Amu's face became buried in his chest.

Soon, the officials stated that the Blitz was over and that they could all return to their cabins. Ikuto helped Amu get up, but soon realized that she had a small gimp favoring her right side. Without a word, Ikuto swooped Amu up bridal style and began carrying her the rest of the way.

"I can-" Amu started out, but a glare from Ikuto cut her cry short. If Ikuto wanted to fuss about her, dang it, he was going to fuss about her. So Ikuto carried her up to her cabin. He wasn't allowed to go in (technically, he wasn't supposed to be in the girls' cabin area at all), so he set her down and let her test her walking ability in the safeness of walking on non-icy wood.

"Are you going to be okay?" Ikuto asked, giving her that look that said "if you lie about this, I am never talking to you again."

"I think so" Amu's breathing had become easier as more time had passed, and she could move her pinkie a lot since the swelling had gone down. She was better than she was right after the fall, and she called that progress.

"All right" Ikuto said, restraining himself from kissing her. He didn't want her to think that this was just a chance to get her to go out with him; she'd hate him for that. And besides, he was more worried about her anyways. So all he did was put a hand on her head and mess with her hair a little bit. She got a little flushed and mad, but there were no signs that the action had hurt her, and that relieved him.

"Ikuto, you want to walk to the cabin together?" Nagihiko asked as he walked out of the cabin that Amu was just about to enter. "I just dropped Rima off on her bed because she couldn't walk too well, so I think we should leave before the counselors get here."

"Sure" Ikuto said, taking his hand off of Amu's head and watching her go inside before joining Nagihiko on their hike down the hill and to their cabin. Ikuto hoped that Amu wasn't too hurt.

Amu gimped into the cabin where Rima was waiting. The other girls hadn't arrived yet. Rima's bunk was on the bottom, and her foot was already propped up, most likely courtesy of Nagihiko. Rima's face was beet red, though Amu doubted it was from the cold.

"Rima, are you okay?" Amu tried walking normally over to where her best friend lay, but for some reason, her hip wouldn't allow it.

"I think I sprained my ankle" Rima lost no words in her answer. Blunt as always, so Amu knew there was no head damage, and for that, she was thankful. Amu sat—very carefully—on the edge of Rima's bed, so they could talk. Amu got a glare from Rima, then a smile as she said "That was most definitely not a bunny hop."

"I didn't think it was, either" Amu smiled softly, suddenly feeling extremely sore. Her head, her neck, her hands, her ribs, and her hip, to be precise. She knew a warm shower would help, but she didn't want to just leave Rima there, so she talked with her for a few seconds.

"Thank goodness you two are okay" Nadeshko entered the cabin, out of breath. "Tadase and I saw the whole thing. The crash was amazing!"

"Glad we could entertain" Amu and Rima said dryly. As Nadeshko's face brightened in red, Amu and Rima laughed a little, but Amu stopped because it hurt to laugh so hard. "Well, I need to take a shower" Amu got up and went over to her bunk to get the necessary supplies. "I'll be back" she said as she walked into the bathroom and stole one of the showers.

"So, you were with Tadase, huh?" Amu heard Rima ask and took pleasure from Nadeshko's stuttering response. Amu gave herself a check-over. Her head? Hurt, and the upper left bit of the forehead looked like it should be sporting a bruise in the next few days. Her neck? Sore, but other than that, she couldn't tell. Her hands? They didn't look too bad, and the swelling in her left pinkie was practically gone. Her ribs? Well, those are bone, you can't look at those, but it did hurt to laugh, and that sucked. Her hip? When she looked, her right hip sported a nasty-looking scrape, and Amu worried whether the warm water would make it sting. It didn't.

By the time that Amu had finished her shower and got ready for bed, the cabin was filled with most all of the girls. Rima was still talking with Nadeshko, who was blushing madly. Utau was on her top bunk, writing in her journal and sighing exasperatedly. And their counselor, Sanjo, was sitting on her bottom bunk, looking at her walkie talkie as if waiting for something.

"Where's Yaya?" Amu asked, gimping into the room. The action wasn't missed by Sanjo, but she answered the question nonetheless.

"Nikaido-sensei and Kairi-kun went with her to the infirmary" she answered as she looked at the walkie talkie again. Sighing, she looked at Amu seriously. "I've already wrapped Rima's ankle and Utau's wrist. What happened to your side?"

"Huh?" it took Amu a second to respond to the question because she had switched gears so fast. "Do you have anything for a scrape? I got a pretty bad one on my hip."

"Let's see it then" Sanjo said, reaching for her already open first aide kid. Amu lifted the side of her shirt just enough so that she could see it, and Sanjo sighed. "That's not a scrape, that's a road burn" she corrected Amu.

"Let me see" Rima demanded, and before Sanjo could treat it, Amu turned around to show her friend. Rima eyed the injury and Nadeshko covered her mouth. Utau looked up from her writing, looked at the wound, then turned back to her writing.

"Turn back around," Sanjo ordered. "I haven't even started to clean it yet." After the stinging sensation of an alcohol cleaning pad, Sanjo taped up Amu's side and allowed Amu to let her shirt cover it up. "You shouldn't move around too much, otherwise the tape will come off" Sanjo ordered. Then she smiled. "I'm glad you're all right, though. You and Yaya had us worried after you two didn't get up."

Amu was instantly swept with guilt. She hadn't meant to make anyone worry. Then she remembered the look in Ikuto's eyes as he saw that she wasn't bleeding/dying. Remembering the obvious relief, she officially felt worse.

Knock, knock! "Pizza delivery!" a male voice shouted through the door.

"Who gets a pizza in the middle of winter camp?" Amu asked as Sanjo opened the door, paid the deliverer a tip and set the pizza and 1 liter bottle of soda in the middle of the carpet floor.

"Nikaido found a pizza delivering service that was doing a fundraiser, so he got some for us" she said, opening the pizza and revealing, to everyone's delight, pepperoni pizza. Everyone got two slices. Even Sanjo.

"Sanjo are you there?" the walkie talkie buzzed. Everyone stopped what they were doing and listened in on the conversation.

"Yeah, I'm here, how's Yaya?" Sanjo talked into the walkie talkie clearly and precisely. Even though her voice was clean cut, her face betrayed her worry.

"Yaya's fine, she just chipped a tooth" the response earned a collective sigh of relief from the girl's cabin. "She says that she'll get it fixed when she gets home, but other than that, she's fine."

Amu took another slice of pizza and munched on it with relief. She was glad that no one had gotten seriously injured on that frightening flight. Everyone is safe… she thought happily as she finished her pizza, brushed her teeth, and gimped over to her bunk. Remembering to be careful, she delicately hopped onto the top bunk and prepared for a bit of rough sleeping. Sleep overcame her swiftly and brought much needed relaxation.

The morning brought with it soreness for most of the girls, but they all trudged out of bed because one of the most important camp rules was to attend all meals. Amu's eyes fluttered open and she dragged herself to the edge of her bed and looked at the bunk below her. Sure enough, Yaya was there, with a pillow around her ears and muttering something about "five more minutes."

Smiling lightly, Amu got out of bed and made it to the bathroom to brush her teeth, her hair, and change into a new outfit. As she got changed, she realized that there were a couple of bruises on her knees that she hadn't noticed the night before and some had also popped up on her elbows. She was glad that they were at a winter camp and not the summer one. This way, it wouldn't be unnatural to wear pants and a sweater (or three!).

After Amu dressed herself in two pairs of skinny jeans, two shirts, a sweater, a fluffy pink snow jacket, and snow boots, she made her way slowly to the room where all of the other girls were finally getting out of bed. Well, with the exception of Rima. She hobbled out of bed.

"Are you feeling any better?" Amu asked carefully. Rima just smiled at her friend.

"Anyone would feel better after some sleep" Rima tested her foot out on the ground, but Amu could tell that she was in pain whenever she did it. "I might need to have it looked at, but I'm pretty sure I can just walk it off."

Amu just nodded. Rima tried walking past her, but Amu just couldn't let Rima try and hobble her way around the cabin. Before she could even try to help, Rima's voice came, crisp and clear "and don't you even think about trying to help me around. I'm still me, you know."

Amu chuckled a little bit at that, but had to stop suddenly. Her ribs still weren't letting her laugh. Still sucked.

Pretty soon, all of the girls were ready to go (with the exception of Utau, who had already left to meet up with Kukai). All of them walked together in the snow, knowing that there was less of a chance of anyone falling on snow rather than on the icy road.

"Ah, they're here" a voice from the base of the hill said in a cheery voice. Amu looked up from her careful walk/gimp to see that all the boys had waited to meet them under the watchful eye of Nikaido-sensei. There was Tadase, who had spoken; Nagihiko; Kukai, who had his hands in his pockets and a slightly bruised face; Utau, who was standing next to Kukai, keeping a watchful eye on him; Kairi; and Ikuto.

Amu's eyes met with Ikuto's and her heart skipped a beat. His eyes were watchful and a little calculating, yet they held that same relief as last night. Once again, Amu was drowned in guilt sauce.

"I told you they'd be here in a few minutes" Utau sighed. Her gaze shifted to Ikuto, who was still watching Amu, then back to Kukai. Even underneath that ever-present scowl, Amu could tell that Utau was just as relieved as her brother was. But her object of worry was different. Tee hee…

"Ace, do you want any breakfast?" Kairi instantly asked Yaya, who only pouted as a response. Kairi, in a sense of panic, instantly fretted, but kept on his cool mask of composure. "Are you still hurt from last night? Will you be able to eat solid foods?"

"Kairi hurt Yaya" Yaya pouted in her usual baby-like voice. Kairi now openly panicked.

"Is it because I was the one who thought of a Santa-themed sled?" Kairi asked, his eyes pleading that Yaya not be mad with him. The rest of the group was stunned that Kairi could pull off a look like that—what with his always-present composure—but Kairi and Yaya didn't notice. "Ace, I'm sorry!"

"Kairi did it again!" Yaya's pout became deeper, and obvious sting was in her eyes. She was genuinely hurt, but by what, no one could decipher.

"What did I do?" Kairi asked, sending everyone into another round of shock. No one, not even his own sister, had heard him so upset. "Ace-"

"It's Yaya!" Yaya finally stormed. Her pout was on the verge of becoming a temper tantrum. "Kairi always calls Yaya 'Yaya' when no one else is around, but always calls Yaya 'Ace' when everyone is around! Kairi called Yaya 'Yaya' last night, so Kairi should call Yaya 'Yaya'!" When her little rant was over, Yaya turned away from a blushing Kairi, also blushing herself. Everyone else was doing their own little blush/smirk/giggle/egging on of Kairi.

"Yaya, do you want any breakfast?" Kairi asked in a semi-whisper. His face was like that of a tomato. Yaya instantly turned around and nodded happily, grasping onto Kairi's arm and following him to the dining hall. Everyone did a silent celebration for the awkward couple.

Following Kairi and Yaya, but letting them walk ahead so they could have their space, everyone made their way to the dining hall. Utau was fussing over Kukai, who was limping worse than Amu was, until about halfway there.

"Utau, I'm not a kid" Kukai muttered. Even though he loved the attention he was getting from her, this was a bit much. "It's just a few bumps and bruises. I'm sure I'll be fine in a few days."

"Yes, but if you don't watch where you step, you're going to get hurt even worse than you are now" Utau pushed, keeping an eye out for any black ice. She knew what a pain that stuff could be, especially when you're already hurt.

"And I am!" Kukai sounded a little frustrated, and it was a first for most everyone there. Utau, however, seemed unfazed by the change of tone.

"No, you're not" Utau also sounded very frustrated, even Ikuto raised his eyebrows in surprise. He had heard her cold, calculating, and even raging pissed off, but never frustrated. "You wouldn't even be in this position if it weren't for me!" her words seemed like they just slipped out of her mouth, and her hands instantly went to cover her mouth, as if doing that would cause all the words to just erase themselves from existence and no one would have ever heard them.

Kukai just stood there shocked for a little bit. The remainder of the party simply stood there, basking in the awkward silence. After about twenty seconds, Kukai smiled. Not big and flashy, just a soft smile. He also kind of chuckled at Utau, who was blushing a little bit. "It's not your fault, Utau. It's just that I'm a bit of an idiot sometimes" Kukai broke the silence with some random line that made no sense to anyone.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Utau asked, her eyebrows knit together in suspicion and embarrassment. Her hands were slowly going down to her side, but one of them was plucked from midair.

Kukai, who had gently grabbed Utau's wrapped wrist, held it up for her to see. "You got hurt because of me. I begged you to go on the sled with me and you got this."

"It's not a big deal" Utau blushed, trying to pull her hand away from Kukai, but he held it in a firm, but soft, grip.

"It is to me" Kukai said, looking Utau in the eye. "I don't want you to get hurt, especially because of me. So protecting you from the fall was the least I could do."

This time, Utau succeeded in pulling her hand away, but this time, she did so with a smile. It was also a soft smile, and if you didn't know her, you probably wouldn't have caught it. But everyone there knew her, so they caught it. "Well, you still need to be careful" Utau managed to say.

"I could do that" Kukai started grinning, which gave everyone a bad feeling. "Or I could race you to see who makes it to the breakfast hall first."

"I just told you to be careful!" Utau protested.

"Winner gets a prize!" Kukai insisted, speeding up. Before Utau could protest, Kukai was off like a shot. Grinning, and definitely unable to back down from a challenge, Utau followed suit, leaving the rest of the group to wonder what had just happened.

About two thirds of the way there, Rima started to slow down substantially. Nagihiko, Amu, and Ikuto all decided to walk with her, and urged the others on to go ahead.

"Just make sure that that boy doesn't do anything to my sister" Ikuto ordered as Tadase, Nadeshko, Sanjo, and Nikaido hurried on to collect Kairi and Yaya and make their way to the breakfast hall.

After a few minutes, Rima stated "And twelve became four…" Nagihiko chuckled at that. Rima, confused, glared at the boy. "I wasn't trying to be funny."

"You weren't trying, but you did punch the timing" Nagihiko came back, unfazed by the sudden glare he was receiving from Rima. Both Amu and Ikuto wondered the same thing: What had happened in the cabin before the arrived?

Rima only scowled in response. She tried to gimp her way forward, but soon fell and almost landed in a patch of snow. Keyword: almost.

Amu was surprised at Nagihiko's sudden boldness when he caught Rima and wasted no time in tossing her onto his back.

"Wha-What are you doing?" Rima asked; her face redder than a rose. Amu could tell that at the same time, she was comfortable where she was, but too proud to quietly let herself be carried to the dining hall.

"Same as last night, I'm carrying you" Nagihiko said with a smile. It was one of those smiles that seemed polite, but hid a darker aura. Amu prayed that she never had to be on the dark end of that smile. Rima, however, didn't feel the same way.

"Well, that was last night, I couldn't walk then" Rima tried squirming her way down, but Nagihiko only shifted her so that she couldn't get down. "I can walk now, so let me down!"

"No" Nagihiko said. Amu and Ikuto simply watched as the scene unfolded. "You said the same thing then, too. I let you walk for a little bit, but you always kept falling into the snow" Nagihiko's words seemed to sting at Rima's pride, and she quit struggling long enough to hear him out. "I don't want to have to only pick you up when you're too tired to carry on. Just let me carry you the rest of the way there. I don't mind and you're not heavy."

"You know you shouldn't talk about a girl's weight, Nagi" Rima bluntly pointed out from Nagihiko's back. He only smiled as a response.

"Could you two just go on without us?" Nagihiko asked Amu and Ikuto. "I'm pretty sure that Rima doesn't want anyone to see her pride so mortally wounded."

As they listened to Rima complain playfully that Nagihiko had wrecked her mood, Amu and Ikuto continued their slow, but faster than Nagihiko pace to breakfast.

Amu tried walking right, she really did. Her hip was just bugging her, though. She couldn't help the fact that she walked with a slight gimp now, but it still bugged Ikuto.

"Why?" was all he asked. It was one little word, and Amu was set on the edge, ready for a barrage of guilt. She continued to walk, trying to think of some way to apologize. After a couple of seconds, she simply decided on "I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" Ikuto asked; his eyes flashing with something that Amu had feared ever since he had come to check on her last night: fury, with a slight hint of fear. "Amu, why did you do it? I told you you were going to be hurt! I told you not to go on that thing! What on earth possessed you to try a stunt like that?"

"Ikuto, I'm not that hu-" Amu, still shocked that Ikuto had called her without his famous '-koi', tried to console him, but Ikuto wouldn't hear of it.

"Not that hurt? Amu, you can't walk in a straight line!" Ikuto didn't use '-koi' again. Amu knew he was really upset, but she didn't know what she could do to stop the on flood of guilt, but she somehow stopped the overflow of the associated tears. But with that came the price of no talking. So her lips stayed sealed and her head down, in case some tears actually did escape.

Ikuto knew he was probably upsetting Amu, but at that point, he didn't care. He wanted answers. Why had she tried that stupid stunt? What could possibly have convinced her to get into that flimsy little cardboard sled and fly through the air like a rag doll? Ikuto took a second to breathe. He noticed that Amu wasn't talking. Or looking at him. Just as the ground as she pathetically gimped forward. Had to give her credit, though. She was trying to walk straighter and more normally. "Amu, tell me why" Ikuto pleaded again, wanting to hear her reasons.

At that point, a single tear escaped Amu's façade. Her hand instantly reached up to take it away from both of their sights, but Ikuto had spotted it first. His quicker, yet gentle, hand snatched the tear off her red face. Amu did her best to breathe and not hyperventilate. And definitely not cry anymore.

Ikuto wondered why Amu had cried. It wasn't something she'd do at a time like this. She'd heard Ikuto be mad before, and she knew he was a little overprotective, so why cry now? It was then that it hit him: He had never been mad at her before. Ikuto thought it over and realized that this was the first time he'd intentionally been mad at Amu. Just as he was about to say more, she finally spoke up.

"I thought- I thought it'd be fun" Amu said in a tiny voice. Ikuto, with his catlike hearing, barely caught it. He decided to stay quiet so she could elaborate, and she did. "I talked to some friends who've done it before, and they said that they didn't get too hurt, just really shaken up. So I thought it'd be fun to go this year."

Ikuto paused for a second. Literally. He had stopped walking, and Amu, not having noticed it until a split-second after he had stopped, also stood still. They waited for Rima and Nagihiko to pass, who were being somberly silent as they passed, but continued to laugh as soon as they had gone by. Amu waited for Ikuto to say something.

"It was for fun?" Ikuto finally asked; disbelief in his voice. He thought Amu wasn't the kind of girl to go out on a feeling like that, especially in athletics. That was more of— "Was it Ran's idea? I thought the Charas were supposed to stay at home." Ikuto's eyes slanted downwards. When he had talked to Amu about the blitz before, there hadn't been a heart on her head, just her normal x-shaped hairpin.

"They are at home" Amu said quickly. And it was true. All the Charas had stayed home to enjoy peace and quiet in the royal garden. "It's just that- I guess Ran's rubbing off on me…" Amu smiled when she thought that she was changing little by little into who she wanted to be, but scared that Ikuto might not like that change.

"Well, she is who you want to be, isn't she?" Ikuto asked; resignation in his voice. Amu feared that he wouldn't even want to be around her anymore, until he smiled at her. "Just make sure that you don't get hurt, all right, Amu-koi?"

Amu felt so relieved, she walked back to Ikuto and held him tight. Surprised, yet happy, Ikuto returned the affection. On an impulse, he kissed her head softly. He could tell that Amu was smiling with happiness. It was the perfect moment.

Until both of their stomachs growled loudly, demanding to be fed. Smiling, and in Amu's case, a little embarrassed, they walked hand-in-hand to the dining hall, where everyone else was waiting for them.

EXTRA! THROUGH THE EYES OF THE BREAKFAST LADY

First, a cute little couple, a young boy with green hair and a girl with orange hair, walked through the door. As they got their breakfast, they kept smiling at each other. The girl never left the boy's side once. They came and left together, and it was really kind of adorable. [Kairi x Yaya]

Right after those two had gone off to find a table, I saw, through the glass, an older girl with waist-long blonde hair run up. She stopped and waited for an orange—almost red-haired—boy to run up. They had a small argument, but neither seemed offended, so I didn't intervene. The girl looked like she was asking something when the boy full-on kissed her on the lips. I thought it was sweet, and apparently, so did she. The cute couple walked into the dining hall, grabbed their breakfast, then followed the younger couple into the eating area. [Kukai x Utau]

After them, a pair of counselors appeared with two students. I believe the counselors were in a relationship, but the relationship of the two students (a blond-haired boy and a purple-haired girl) seemed to be just beginning. They were very awkward and the counselors often laughed. Right afterwards, the guy counselor would mess with the blond-kid's hair and the girl counselor would just place her hand on the shoulder of the girl and smile. This group wasn't too intriguing as they grabbed their breakfast and followed the first two couples to their table. [Nikaido x Sanjo and Tadase x Nadeshko]

Not too long afterwards, another purple-haired kid came to the door. It took me a second to realize he was carrying someone. A small blonde-haired girl. I promise you, the girl looked like a little porcelain doll, she was so adorable! They were talking about a kiss and something about last night. It must have happened during the Blitz because boys aren't allowed in the girl's cabin area. At all. Still, as they grabbed their breakfast, I could tell that they had something of a love-hate relationship going on. I just love love-hate relationships~! [Nagihiko x Rima]

The last couple of that group to walk in was a girl with bubble-gum pink hair and an older boy with midnight-blue hair. I should know what midnight blue is, I saw it during the Blitz. Anyways, it looked like they were cooling off from an argument that ended with a sweet touch. Although I was worried if the relationship was legal or not (well, he was at camp, so he has to be younger than 18, right? She obviously was), I decided that they make a really adorable couple. They held hands the entire way through the breakfast line and as they followed their group to their table. [Ikuto x Amu]

How did I keep track of all of this, you ask? They were the only group that made it to breakfast late that day, that's how.

14AmyChan: oh yeah, something I forgot to mention, in here, Nadeshko and Nagihiko are actually twins. *^_^*

Everyone else: LIKE WE COULDN'T FIGURE THAT ONE OUT!

14AmyChan: I don't see why you're all so mad…

Amu: it's just because you pointed out the obvious…

14AmyChan: well, now you're just being mean…

Ikuto: Please read and review to be nice to her *sexy smile*

14AmyChan: *passes out from nosebleed* *^_^*

Amu: She knows you're mine, right?

Ikuto: Forever and always