A/N: warning for major OOC on Ruka's part and little on everyone else's XD

First Glance

It was a quiet Thursday, especially in one particular room, currently containing only two occupants - a male and female dressed sharply in pristine white uniforms. The petite girl had her head of strawberry blonde hair (tied up in high pigtails for the day) resting against the firm shoulder of the classmate next to her, sharing his screen, watching him work.

Seeing him stop for longer than necessary at one of the student profiles he'd been looking over for the last hour, she lightly nudged his arm with a finger and asked, "Takuma, who is she?"

His answer was simple, "The reason why we were all gathered."

She blinked. "She's our Center?" Shoulder length brown hair, brown eyes, small stature, and not exactly the brightest of the lot...

"She's not much."

Takuma chuckled. "Don't assume too much just based on appearance and general profile information. She seems a very nice girl."

Full rosy lips went down in a pout. "Yeah, but only because you say so." She still thought the girl was...well, just a girl.

"What are you two so concentrated on?"

Takuma looked up with his trademark smile. "Our Center."

An elegant brow went up. "Our Center?" A pale delicate hand leaned atop the back of Takuma's chair and locks of long ash blonde hair fell and curled on his shoulder as his classmate looked over it to see his screen.

"Are you certain?" Takuma could hear the frown in her voice. "She may have entered here on a scholarship, but she's terribly plain, and I do mean terribly."

"That's what I said, but Takuma said we shouldn't make assumptions."

"That's not surprising. Takuma's just being Takuma."

"What'd Takuma do?" Another student entered, his boyish face light with an inquisitive smile.

"He's letting his niceness get in the way of objectively analyzing the girl that's to be our Center."

Bright cerulean blue eyes lit up with excitement. "Our Center? She's coming here?" He stood to look over Takuma's other shoulder, his childish excitement slowly dying as he scrolled down the profile page on the screen with his eyes. "Are you sure that's her? I mean, that's...uh, that's not how I imagined our Center to be." Or look like, his mind silently supplied.

"You guys are pretty critical." Another male spoke up. "She's cute, with her innocent eyes..."

"Akatsuki, I don't like you complimenting other girls, even if it's out of pity."

"I'm not, and it's not out of pity." He said calmly.

"I...I guess she kind of is..." When you overlooked a lot of things.

"Oh Hanabusa, not you too!"

"I said 'kind of'!" He protested, raising his hands, "That's not the same as agreeing, is it?"

"What are you guys fussing over?" An airy voice interrupted. "Did Hanabusa say something again, Ruka?"

The girl in question let out a huff, crossing her arms. "It's about our Center. Rima and I both agree she's...plain, Takuma was just being polite, and Hanabusa and Akatsuki both think she's cute." She emphasized the last word with some distaste.

"Our Center? So she's finally arriving."

"Yes, on a scholarship, but in class C. You can see it all for yourself." Ruka gestured.

Clear amber eyes made an exaggerated show of squinting at the laptop screen before pulling back and a soft sigh escaped glossy pink lips. "I don't know what you guys were looking at. I don't see anything." She curled a lock of her sleek wheat blonde hair around her index finger and smiled sweetly.

Rima snorted amusedly, "You were the harshest of us yet, Sara."

Ruka fixed her hair behind her ear. "But nonetheless true."

Akatsuki shrugged. "I still think she's cute."

Hanabusa laughed nervously. Man, girls could be brutal.

"Oh Yuuki, I knew you were bright, but I never expected for you to get a free ride through Cross Academy! Let me take another picture of you in your uniform!"

"Uh, Uncle it's alright. I don't want to wrinkle it before the first day." It'd be a hassle to iron it all over again.

"Well, I guess I took enough anyway... Have you got everything ready for tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I checked twice over, just to make sure."

"Oh, good, good. I'm sorry I can't go with you to the ceremony. I'll make your favorite for the morning." He smiled cheerily. "Now, don't be afraid, keep your head high, stand your ground -"

Yuuki giggled softly at her uncle's excitedly anxious rapid words. "Thanks Uncle. I think I'll be fine."

She felt anything but, however. How could she, when she was fully aware of the Welcoming Ceremony that would be occurring tomorrow at eight fifteen sharp, to officially introduce the new incoming students who'd been accepted into the school? She felt extremely lucky to be able to step foot into such a prestigious institution, but she wondered how long it would last.

Would she be able to make any friends? What kind of people actually attended such a school? She at least knew enough the pleasant front they gave out to the public couldn't be everything there was to them. There must be a lot of pressure on all of them, with the need to keep up their grades, not only to keep whatever position they were ranked, but also to rise higher, as to not let others get ahead of them. And many of them had started during their elementary years... Yuuki couldn't imagine having such responsibilities on her shoulders at such a young age. If they had to study so hard, how did they manage a social life?

Yuuki had inevitably grown distant with her own friends as she began to place more time on her school work, staying up late going over problems and reviewing information for more solid memory. Her friends never blamed her or commented negatively on her having less time with them. They, instead, worried for her health - if she was eating enough, getting enough rest, not pushing herself too hard...

Knowing they shouldn't talk to her while she was studying, they left her short text messages, mostly containing words of encouragement that never failed to give her a newfound energy to keep going.

Sighing softly, Yuuki leaned back onto the headboard of her bed. She was going to miss them, terribly. "Kaya, Shiori..." She softly murmured, running her hand atop her silver phone.

More than one person had asked why she'd chosen such a difficult school to get in to, and she could offer no other reason than the simple fact that her mother had attended and graduated there. She'd never known either of her parents, and upon learning one of them had gone to Cross Academy, she'd immediately known where she'd wanted to go. Cross Academy was one of the very few connections she had with her mother. She wanted to see where her mother had gone to study, what type of environment she spent the majority of her days in, and, if at all possible, see if anyone personally knew anything about her. All Yuuki had had to live on were old photographs and the few snippets her uncle would share with her. She wanted more than that, wanted to be able to visualize Kuroki Juri as a tangible person.

"I know so much about Dad, but I don't know anything about you," she whispered. And I want to know and see more than just the frozen expressions of your face in your pictures.

"I know Senri's probably taking a nap somewhere, but where are Zero and Kaname?"

Sara raised a brow, "Hanabusa, you should know better than to have to ask when they're both gone." She let a slow sensual smile curl her lips. "All of us have walked in on them at least once. By now, I think it should be expected, what they're doing."

Hanabusa turned a light shade of pink at the images her words conjured. "It's still midday you know." He weakly protested.

"I doubt Kaname lets something as trivial as the time of day interfere with his libido," Sara responded matter of factly.

Rima tilted her head. "True."

Ruka tapped her lip, "For someone so composed, he sure has a lot of stamina, don't you think? Zero too. I mean, how long did they last, last time?"

Hanabusa was now a bright red. "Ruka!" Ruka merely shrugged. Akatsuki chuckled.

Takuma sighed. "I'd rather we stopped talking about our fellow classmates' sex lives."

Sara pouted. "And why not? Theirs actually has something to talk about."

Akatsuki raised a brow, "Trouble in paradise, Sara?"

She huffed. "I'll have you know, my paradise is filled with just that, Akatsuki. Have you forgotten Seiren's gone to visit that stuffy grandfather of hers?"

"Oh, right. She's coming back tomorrow, in time for the ceremony, right?"

"Yes, and until then all I have of her are her words and voice," Sara stuck out her lip, disgruntled. Her most important person had been gone for two long weeks.

"'...And his supple lips latched onto' - Zero are you listening?"

"Mm."

"Zero?"

"Nn?"

A soft chuckle filled the otherwise silent air. A long fingered hand slid through silvery hair, gently undoing any tangles it caught.

"Are you falling asleep on me?"

"...M, 'm not..."

"Is that so?"

"Uh, yeh..." Even as he said this, his lids were lowering further, going over his lilac eyes. Kaname let out another chuckle, lightly tracing the curve of his lover's cheek with his thumb.

"So cute." Wine red eyes shone softly with captivated affection. "You are so precious like this Zero."

There was a groan. "Ugh, K'name, don' tell me you, you're getting sappy..."

"My, a full sentence this time?"

"Muh...shut up an' read."

"If you can tell me where I left off, I will."

"...Mm.... Som'th'ng 'ith th lips..." There was a long pause. "Th' lips an'... K'name, jus' read."

Pink lips lifted in an amused smile. "I suppose I can give you partial credit for remembering something, no matter how...disjointed." His right hand still in Zero's hair, he raised his left, which cradled a thin book, and let his eyes go over the words. "'And his supple lips latched onto the other's heated flesh...'"

His eyes closing completely, Zero sighed softly and rubbed his cheek against the warm firm thigh under it, snuggling further into Kaname's stomach for more comfort, breathing in his lover's scent. He loved to have Kaname read to him, his voice was so soothing...

Sneaking a glance down to see Zero dozing off again, Kaname shook his head. Really, he thought it rather amazing Zero could fall asleep so soundly having practical all out porn read to.

But oh, did he love a sleepy Zero.

The day of the welcoming ceremony had gaggles of excited new students swarming into the school's large theatre room, sitting down in their designated seats, giving into anxious whispering with their neighbors. They were giddy with the knowledge of being able to attend for another three years (for those that had attended either since elementary or junior high), but also for finally getting a proper glimpse of the well known members of class A.

It was safe to say none of those in the room had ever seen the top Cross Academy student in person. The other nine members could be seen around the school grounds on occasion, but the actual representative of the school was as elusive as ever. Some actually doubted if there even was a 'top student', one with perfect scores across the board. The welcoming ceremony was their one chance of getting to see him for a prolonged period of time, as he would be giving the welcoming speech.

"I heard he'd absolutely princely!"

"So handsome!"

"And his grade average..."

The chattering died down immediately as the lights on the stage were lit and the podium stood out. The students waited with baited breath as they heard the soft echo of the heels of well polished shoes hitting the hard wood underneath. Eyes widened and shoulders stiffened, some gasps escaped from surprised mouths as the tall imposing figure of their top class A student steadily strode in, his skin, uniform, and dark hair gleaming ethereally under the glowing lights.

Sara watched Kaname walk on stage with a smirk on her full glossy lips. None of the students would be able to tell, but the rest of them could clearly see how antsy he was to quickly get off and get the speech over with. She had no doubt he'd already had a perfected draft written of the speech he planned to give, but wondered if he would manage to finish before giving into temptation and just walking off. Kaname's speeches were never for long anyhow, aware of how short the students' attention spans were, and never lasted for more than thirty minutes.

"Fifty says he walks off ten minutes in," Senri mumbled, his head on Takuma's shoulder.

Akatsuki snorted. "Seventy-five says five minutes."

Hanabusa frowned. "Akatsuki..." The tall blond shrugged. "Even as he stands there, Zero's sleeping away. With only a shirt on."

Rima laughed into Takuma's other shoulder. "And you know how Zero sleeps."

Zero's sleeping habits were an unmentioned fact between all of them. When they were all younger, it'd been cute, but as they started to grow older... Well, it was definitely harder for Kaname to keep a pure mind around his partner whenever they slept in the same room, if he ever had a pure mind at all.

"Sometimes you wonder if he does it on purpose," Sara smiled. They actually had, but were proven wrong when Zero stayed blissfully unaware and asleep through their 'tests' when making sure he wasn't faking it.

"I know. He's not a sex addict like Kaname, though, so maybe he makes up for it when asleep?" Ruka tilted her head.

Sara shook her head. "He's already sex on legs when he's awake. He doesn't need to show that when he's sleeping."

"But the way he moves...it's...how do you describe it? Adorably erotic?" Rima wondered aloud.

"It's just erotic. You can only add in adorable because he doesn't know he's doing it."

"Guys, ladies, please," Takuma whispered pleadingly. "Can we not have this talk backstage? I fear we have some curious eavesdroppers and Kaname isn't going to be happy with us talking so freely about Zero's sleeping habits."

Hanabusa nodded in total agreement, his face red. Geez, he swore the girls were more perverted than the guys, with the flippant attitude they took whenever talking about sex. Or just Kaname and Zero in general.

A minute of silence followed, with the girls giving light elegant shrugs and Takuma sighing inaudibly in relief.

"One-fifty says he walks off after the first sentence." Seiren whispered softly. She paid no mind to the incredulous stares directed at her, her eyes on Kaname.

Sara giggled and kissed her cheek. "Oh, I love you, I love you, I love you!"

Yuuki couldn't believe her luck. Or lack thereof, she muttered inwardly. She was late. Very, very, late.

Ugh, I woke on time, got dressed, ate breakfast, leave home for the train, and what happens? The grouchy salaryman with his equally hateful cup of coffee, that's what! He was the one that left his stupid bag on the floor practically a foot away from his feet on a crowded train, it's no wonder someone (me) would trip over it at some point! Argh!

"It's your fault for not watching where you were going!" She mimicked the man's words sarcastically. Old geezer. Now she was late and had no idea how to get to her classroom.

"Now if I could only find a map or something..." She knew she was in class C as a freshman in the Sakura building, but as to where that was... She sighed.

"Um, are you alright?"

"What?"

"You're a freshman right? That uniform..."

"Oh, yeah, I am." And so was the girl, if the number of rose pins on her dark collared jacket was anything to go by. "Do you know how to get to the Sakura building? I'm in class C, and I really need to get there."

"Class C in the Sakura building? That's where I'm also headed. Wakaba Sayori."

"Really? That's great! Kuroki Yuuki!"

"Nice to see a friendly face. I'm guessing you were late for the welcoming ceremony?"

"Er, ah, yeah," Yuuki admitted sheepishly. "This guy and his coffee..."

Sayori nodded, a sympathetic smile on her lips. "A woman and her temper for me," she sighed. Yuuki laughed lightly. "Wow, talk about a way to start the semester, huh?"

"Rather terribly, yes," Sayori giggled. "Oh, I doubt you heard, but it looks like we didn't miss much at the welcoming ceremony today."

"Why?"

"The top student, Kuran Kaname, I think his name was, just took off, they said."

"Took off?"

"Mm," Sayori nodded amusedly. "The first time something like that has happened too, which is what has everyone talking. All he said was: 'I would humbly like to welcome the students, old and new, to a fresh start at Cross Academy High, thank you.'" A friend of hers had texted her a quick message of it.

Yuuki blinked, incredulous. "That...that was it?"

Sayori laughed, "Yup." She kind of wished she'd been there for it.

"What?" Zero demanded. "All you said was what at the ceremony?"

Kaname sighed. "Please Zero, not you too."

"Yes, me too, if what they've told me is true," he narrowed his eyes.

"Oh? And what have they told you?" Kaname asked, a touch of amusement coloring his tone.

"You barely went up there for ten seconds before you walked off, idiot!" Sara was laughing her ass off in the back, as Senri talked to him about it over the phone. Hanabusa was spazzing and Takuma was worried about the resulting consequences Kaname would suffer for finishing the ceremony the way he did. But apparently, Seiren was a couple hundred thousand yen richer. Apparently.

"Ten seconds...well, if I calculate how long my sentence was..." Kaname laughed lightly as he was cut off by a cushion to his face. "Please Zero, is it something to lose your temper over?" He pulled his disgruntled lover into his arms, between his parted legs, and planted light kisses across the back of his neck. "Is it?"

Zero shifted uncomfortably. If only his neck weren't so sensitive... "You should have finished what you planned to say," he muttered. "I know you had a draft written."

"So you aren't happy I threw the ceremony speech for you?"

"I never asked for you to do that," Zero scowled. "We weren't even doing anything. I was sleeping, for god's sake! Why would you do that?"

"Because you were sleeping." Kaname said matter-of-factly. "You know what that does to me."

Zero closed his eyes and screamed the loudest he could manage in his mind before letting out a deep sigh and leaning back against Kaname completely. There was no winning with him, was there?

"Zero, are you really so mad?" Kaname gave Zero's hips a few gentle rubs, resting his cheek on the slope of his shoulder. "Are you really?" He murmured softly.

Zero let out a reluctant smile and raised his hand to pat Kaname's head. He could practically hear the, 'I'm sorry if you are, I'll never do it again.' in his lover's voice. "No," he breathed out. He turned his head and his smile grew as Kaname kissed him softly over his shoulder. "No, I'm not," he mouthed against his lover's lips, "but you are going to apologize to the chairman, aren't you?" He whispered, brow raised.

Kaname actually grimaced before planting kiss at the corner of Zero's lips and muttering, "The man will never let me live this down."

Zero snorted. "At least you don't see him everyday. What do you think the rest of our class is going to say? The chairman's nothing compared to what the girls are going to tease you with. They had a bet going too. Seiren won."

Kaname buried his face into the soft pale neck in front of him and groaned.

Disclaimer: No own Vampire Knights.

Thank you for reading! Thank you so much to all those who've favorited and reviewed Sweet Confectionaries! *smooch* XP Love all of you!

This is from before Zero ever met Yuuki and became friends with her. The other members of class A don't know anything about her either, hence the title. Hope the girls didn't sound too harsh ^^;

As to why they're all so casual with each other, including calling each other (namely Kaname and Sara) by their given names without honorable suffixes, is because here, they're all (relatively) human, and grew up together without much of the strict hierarchy in VK pressuring against them. They've all gone through a lot together, and bit of teasing and pranks or bets and talk of each other's love lives aren't going to give offense. With how long they were together, class A members are pretty much a second family.