(( No rush))

The Russian pulled Shadow in closer, seeing if he could get her to lay her pretty head on his chest. Meanwhile he noticed a crumb of cheese cake crust - tiny, really - attached to Talis's bottom lip. He waited to see if the boy would lick it off, feeling anxious to see such an erotic motion after the tease of a kiss earlier.

Meanwhile, the Host Club's VP was pleased to see the new girl nod her desire to join him. He offered his arm for her to take and turned to the buffet. "What are you in the mood for this evening? We have quite a spread available and if it is not on the menu, we shall surely bring in whatever else you like as well."

((Awww! She draws Kyoya? That's so sweet! :heart: ))

((wb hatter~ and I've been a bit distracted...by manga and being tired~ -chews gum to wake self up-)

"Ah....alright.", Momo said as she tried to relax and follow Ravendel's lead. Although, her form of relaxing might not be the best idea, so she just relaxed her shoulders and went with the flow. She really couldn't stand the silence to much, it made her feel weird. S she decided she would start a conversation...but what could she bring up...? Porn was definitely out of the question, and so was anything like it. She didn't want to say 'how are you?' since that didn't seem right. Maybe porn would be a good idea...'nooo porn. I don't need him thinking all I do is sit around watching porn or always thinking about it.'. "Sooo...what are your interests, if I may ask?". 'much better...'

((she draws most of the hosts >.> but she draws kyoya twice as much because she likes him XD. What can I say I always liked him myself XD. ))

"well... I.... probably simply a salad... with a little chicken? then desert..." She murmured nervously as she took his arm. Her own was shaking slightly from her pure shyness, her gaze slipping to the side. She was still blushing she knew and she was glad she wore her hair down. She kept her head bent forward a little so he couldn't see his effect on her.. or so she thought. She was quiet when not directly asked and glanced at her friend at the other table. She gave her an encouraging smile, half tempted to run to her as the closeness of her crush was both exciting and terrifying.

((I'm gonna have to agree with that XD))

Shadow gasped slightly, startled to be pulled close once more. She turned red, unsure what to do; she was really close to his chest and wondered if she would hear his heart beat should she kept her head there. Her cheeks got hotter as she decided to throw caution to the wind for this one moment, and tentatively laid her head down.

((I have to do the dishes real quick. brb)

Kyoya noticed how the girl shook a little but thought to not bring attention to her nervousness. When she looked to Shadow he saw it as a perfect opportunity to give the poor girl a distraction.... while seeing to his own ulterior motives as well.

"I see you know Miss Shadow." He responded. "Would you like to join at her table, there seems to be plenty of room yet?" It was true, the banquet table seated 8 and there were only 3 present so far.

His interests? Ravendel didn't really have an answer to that question, he'd never even thought about it before. In fact, such was usually his brothers area of things while he simply stuck to the easy tasks such as romance and women.

Slowly beginning to guide the girl around the floor though, being careful with her for the time being so that she didn't get ahead of herself, he considered a moment longer before responding.

"I like the more simple things in life. Falling in love, meeting new people, beautiful girls. You know, I am sure."

Smooth move. He thought so anyway.

--

Cake? Talis hadn't noticed in the slightest that he'd gotten a crumb on his face. In fact, he was too busy pigging out to even realize that he'd gotten part of the cream on the jacket to his suit as well.

Anything was better than dealing with Ravendel right now, and since they weren't in an environment where getting drunk illegally was possible, the cake was the next best thing.

Well.... at least until later when he could get the Russian host alone, anyway. That was the only thought remaining on the fore-front of his mind, allowing him to block everything else out.

Ari looked up as he spoke, her eyes briefly becoming a little more focused then before. That glint.... that hidden bit of thought beneath the perfect face. She saw it again now, but dismissed it as business, just business, even as she felt part of her wonder why it was there. What was he up to? Perhaps he merely wanted to get rid of her... she tried not to let a flicker of disappointment appear in her eyes as she thought this and looked away to her friend Shadow.

"S..sure. She is very nice..." Ari said quietly, managing a small smile. Shadow was one of the few people who understood her shyness and didn't judge her for it. Many assumed it, and her occasional English slips, were signs of snobbishness or rudeness. They thought she believed herself better then them was why she seemed so determined to be alone, not realizing that it was in fact that she didn't' think she was worthy of being here....

Afanassii chuckled while he watched his beautiful male guest eat so vigorously. He wondered if that was generally his habit, or if this was nervous eating? He decided to test the waters a bit to see if the latter was the case and he took great care to ensure no one nearby was watching while he retrieved his arm from behind Talis, tucked a finger under his chin and leaned in to gently peck him on the cheek.

If the Raven-haired beautiful gent did not immediately pull away, he would discretely lick off the tiny crumb as well.

The feel of the Russian shifting his position was enough to make Talis look up from his plate with his mouth still full of food, only to be rewarded with a finger being pressed against his chin and a kiss being placed upon his cheek. Such simple actions being taken in his already semi-flustered state were enough to make him gulp the mouthful of cake down, only to choke on it for a moment in the process.

When he'd finished coughing and spluttering, he arched the eyebrow of the eye not covered by the eye-patch and glanced at the crimson haired male rather curiously.

Nassii was flirting with him again, which would only prove trouble for the russian host later on.

Kyoya nodded at Staria's words. "I haven't had much of a chance to get to know the young lady myself yet. But she does seem very pleasant company." When they turned to walk to Shadow's table, Kyoya's eyes widened for the briefest of moments, a drop of sweat clinging to his otherwise motionless brow.

He glanced just in time to see Talis's reaction but was unsure as to what the cause of it was. Though with the Rake sitting comfortably so close to him, he feared the worst.

Keeping his composure he raised an eyebrow. "Is everything all right, here?" He asked, first looking at Talis and then - shifting to a harsh glare - at Afanassii himself.

Shadow, still leaning against the Russian's chest, couldn't help but giggle at what had transpired before her. Yes, watching Afanassii kiss Talis on the cheek made her blush, but his reaction afterwards was rather funny. Although maybe it was rude to laugh; if the rolls were switched she knew she wouldn't want to be laughed at.

She also vaguely wondered how Ari was doing with the cool type; she hoped she was having fun she knew she deserved it.

However that thought quickly left when she saw her come to their table.

"haha, I'm more into going out to clubs and driving my parents insane. Although, I have to say, it is nice to meet new people. You get to see what others are like and make friends.", Momo said smiling. She couldn't help but laugh a little when she mentioned the 'drive my parents insane' thing. Oh, she really did enjoy that. Although it was fun, they would be more harsh and keep her from doing what she liked. They just wanted to make her a 'proper' young lady who does what she told and marries someone they approve of and more...Just thinking about it ticked her off, so she always tried to keep it off her mind most of the time.

Ari noticed the sweat instantly, wordlessly handing him a handkerchief from her bag to wipe it off. If she were brave enough she might have wiped it off or said something but she wasn't. His glare at the other male didn't help either, and it made her worry about what she walked into. She gave a 'help me' look to shadow as she closed her handkerchief in the host's hand. She then released him, sitting in a chair next to shadow's empty side. This must have been why he wanted to go over here... to chide the flirty red head without making a scene...

Shadow was too worried at how Kyoya had glared at the redhead, before realizing what position is was in. She quickly raised her head away from him, turning cherry, before smiling at Ari as she sat down next to her. "Ari! I'm so glad to see you!" Shadow laughed lightly, pulling her into a hug, "I did not know you were coming tonight." she beamed, holding Ari's hand.

It was true that Afanassii was one of the reasons why he wanted to sit at that particular table. Ever prudent and efficient, he was looking for a way to please everyone at least partially. Taking the girl to sit by her friend allowed him to virtually "kill two birds with one stone".

In the end, the only one who truly suffered from the arrangement was Afanassii, who regarded the VP's arrival with a roll of his eyes and promptly retracted his sprawling arms, careful to not upset lovely little Shadow from her position, should she choose to keep it. He looked up at the chandeliers and whistled, every bit the picture of feigned innocence.

It wasn't until the two girls were talking that Kyoya realized he had taken the girl's hankerchief without noticing. He smiled, touched by the rare sentiment the girls' favor had given.

"Everything is fine here... President.."

Talis did his best to keep his tone light and somewhat unamused, despite having had a choking fit only moments before. Inclining his head forwards some, he turned his gaze to the face of the male and arched an eyebrow.

"Your host was merely inquiring as to my well being, seeing as how my brother showed up unexpectedly."

It was an easy lie, considering it wasn't an exact lie in it's entirety anyway. Truth be told, he believed that was exactly what the Russian's intention had been and he made a silent note to thank the red head for it later.

For now though, he simply managed a smile. "He is quite adept at his duties as a host, you know. Providing distraction and entertainment when one needs it, you ought not to be so hard on him, sir."


----------

Surprising even himself, Ravendel listened intently to what the girl had to say in return about her interests and even chuckled some when she mentioned driving parents insane.

He could relate, doing the same thing when it came to his sibling and loving every moment of it too.

Funny thing was though, he never had to do anything other than simply being himself.

"Are you hungry by chance?" He asked her gently as he continued to glide her around the floor, happy already that she seemed to have forgotten her hesitance to dancing only a few moments before. "Perhaps some cake, or whatever else they offer here?

Ari flushed as her friend made such a fuss over her but was intensely relieved. She hugged the girl back and seemed a little less stiff then usual. Here she had an ally. Here she didn't need to keep up her guard so much, always afraid that she'd embarrass her grandfather to whom she now owed so much. These rich people... she didn't know how to act around them, all but shadow who held her hand and stayed her friend.

Still, she glanced at Kyoya as fascinated as ever. She'd never told anyone about her crush but shadow had likely seen how much more frequently she drew him then the others and figured it out. Now the urge to draw him would come on her even stronger as eh gave a rare smile. There was something different about this smile, even if he hadn't wiped the bead of sweat she felt too shy to point otu. It was almost.... gentle. She wanted to draw it. She had to draw it but she was afraid to draw it with him right there so she simply fiddled with her bag in thought. Would he sit by her or go about his other duties she wondered absently...

Shadow noticed the look in her friend's eyes and the way she fiddled with her bag; tale-tell signs that she was itching to draw. Shadow hadn't seen many drawings of hers but knew that each one was very beautiful. She patted Ari's hand and gave her smile, hoping that she would take as a sign to draw if she truly desired to. Shadow liked being here with Afanassi and perhaps as well Talis, but with Ari here, she didn't feel like a wall flower as much.

In fact she felt like introducing Ari to Afanassii, but decided to see what Kyoya would do first.

Kyoya pulled out a chair for his guest and glanced at the bag she was inadvertently drawing attention to. After seating her, he took a place by her side, taking care not to sit between herself and her friend. He shifted his attention to Talis for a moment, nodding his approval that the boy had managed to speak his mind without sounding quite as head-strong as he had before.

A waiter came by shortly thereafter and Kyoya placed the lady Staria's request before turning to the others at the table in general. "Shall I order anything else for the table?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

Afanassii found himself beaming from when Talis defended him. Yes, indeed he was trying to cheer the boy up but Talis was also incredibly fine and he was enjoying every second of being near him and hoped to get to know him more.

Momo actually did feel hungry. It'd been a while since she last ate something. She nodded at Ravendel, "Yeah, I'm kinda hungry. If there is cake, hopefully they'll have red velvet."

(fff I can't think of much. sorry)

(( It's all right. A fast-paced thread like this can be difficult to keep up with. No one here should worry too much about the quality of their posts - it's just for fun! ^.^ ))

(yeah, but I always feel bad when I put out short posts. :lol:)

(( As Moonie says - "short posts = faster replies" XD ))

Ari glanced at shadow as she patted her hand, blushing faintly and shaking her head. She was afraid to draw where she could be seen... let alone by the one she wanted to draw! Still... he seemed to be focused on the others more.... perhaps if she was careful? She absently thanked Kyoya for placing her order and then fiddled with her bag a moment longer. Finally unable to keep herself from doing so she took out her book and her lead pencil.

She held it at an angle and partially closed so it would be difficult to see for Kyoya and began to draw him as she had seen him earlier. Of course, he was the kind that could probably charge modeling fees so even if he discovered her maybe he wouldn't read to much into it. She told herself that to keep herself calm but was soon lost in the sketching anyhow. She had to get every detail perfect...