Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Muddy Hands ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

Title: Muddy Hands

Chapter: 2/?

Author: Madyamisam

Pairings: Seto/Jou

Rating: NC-17

Beta: Daisy

Spoilers: None.

Disclaimer: Madyamisam doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh

Summary: From plot bunny #16084, Seto has always been able to buy his art credit but this year there is a new head of the department who cannot be bribed and he actually needs to take the class to graduate. Of course he finds this out with only three weeks left in the term. The instructor generously offers his best student to act as his peer tutor; Jou of course. The course is pottery and Seto has to produce 3 complete pieces to graduate.

 

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"Well, shall we get started?" Seto snapped out of his murderous thoughts of tracking down and killing the ditzy art teacher to glare at the blonde next to him.

"It figures that only those that are academically challenged would find such interest in this ridiculous subject," he rasped. Jou narrowed his eyes. His infamous temper sparked to life almost instantly, but he took a moment to count to ten before he answered.

"Kagashi-sensei asked me to come here and help you out. The sooner we get this over and done with, the sooner I can go home." Jou turned to soak his hands with the muddy water. "Since we've got the throwing wheel out we can start by making a bowl; but first I have to introduce you to the types of tools you'll be using." Jou noticed that the CEO was still standing there with the stupid metal briefcase he always carried. "Well come on; this is ~your~ art credit on the line here." Seto looked wary- as if trying to decipher and reconfigure a particularly complicated software program that he'd developed at his company.

`I don't get it… This is the perfect opportunity to mock me… so why…?' Reluctantly, Seto placed his metal briefcase aside and approached the blonde. He then took his blazer off and rolled up his shirtsleeves. Jou randomly tossed him one of the class's shabby aprons that were covered in spots of paint and permanent marker graffiti messages. When the brunette put it on he noticed the words written in capital letters down his front: I SUCK DICK… $10 PER

ORGASM… SPANK U. Kaiba glowered over at the sniggering blonde.

"Mutt I am going to kill you…"

"Sorry… Here; I'll get you another one… This is the reason why I bring my own stuff." Jou rummaged through the pile and tried to look for an apron that didn't have ~other~ kinds of obscene messages written on them by previous wearers. He finally found one that was unmarked and waited patiently for Kaiba to put it on before plopping his butt on his table. "I won't go over the history; I'm sure you can find ~that~ out for yourself on your computer so I'll just teach you the techniques. Since we'll be using the wheel we'll be using `pugged' clay, which is just the fancy way of saying that the clay has water mixed into it. Before we start throwing we need to have the clay wedged so, considering the time restraint, I'll just show you the simplest type of wedging. It's called `Cow-head wedging; you should be able to get a pass with that." Jou pulled out a full plastic bag and scooped a few large handfuls out, plopping it onto the art table. He then kneaded the large pile deftly with strong fingers and palms. The brunette stared at the hands working into the brown lump and absently massaged a tense shoulder.

`He's… pretty good with his hands…' he thought. After Jou had finished kneading he switched on a strange machine sitting on one of the side tables. "This is called a pug mill," Jou said as he stuffed the machine with clay and then added water… a ~lot~ of water. He switched the mill on and listened to it grind. "While we're waiting for this stuff to get pugged I'll show you the tools. There's a large number of them but, since we're only using the throw wheel for this session, I'll just introduce you to the ones we'll need while using ~that~. Since you'll be making a bowl, the one you'll be most likely to use is the gyubera tool. It's typically used for your basic bowl shape."

"Cow's tongue?" (1) Seto asked incredulously.

"Yeah… I know; it's a stupid name but this is the traditional tool used by one of the main industries of pottery making in Kyushu,

Japan." Seto looked at the flat piece of wood with a slight curve at one end. He then went to examine another strange looking tool, which was just a flat and smooth disc "We'll also be using the Marugotes A and B." Jou continued. "Type A Marugotes are used for large curves whilst Type B's shape smaller curves and are useful for smoothing out the transition of the bowl's bottom to the side wall. The blonde then pulled out the tool he had used whilst making his vase: a wire attached to two sticks. "But ~this~ is my favourite tool… the Yumi."

Joe looked fondly at the implement in his hand. "I named it Asami

(2)." Seto narrowed his eyes at the freaky blonde.

"You ~name~ your tools?"

"Yeah… so? You named your ~laptop~ Maggie; (3) what's the difference?" A slight tinge of pink reached the brunette's face.

"How did yo- well at least I didn't name it after a female psychopath with commitment issues from an overrated Japanese horror film," Seto spat. Suddenly, the two realized that they had had a conversation that didn't have the words `mutt' and `moneybags' thrown into the argument. Silence reigned between the two as they watched the pug mill pump out the clay. The tinge of pink on their faces turned to red as Jou tried to ease out a great big, wet clay sausage from the machine to prevent it from jamming.

"Freak," Jou suddenly said. Seto immediately responded to the restoration of normality in their lives.

"Mutt."

"Techno geek."

"Third rate duellist."

"Moneyballs…"

"Bitch…" they paused as the red shot up on both their faces.

"Let's just stop with the insults…" Jou whispered and Seto nodded in agreement. There was silence between them as they waited for the pug mill to pump out the last of the giant, wet sausage. They breathed a sigh of relief when it was over and each scooped a handful of the freshly pugged clay. "First I'll show you how to wedge the clay before we put it on the wheel." He carefully kneaded the clay to the desired shape and watched as the brunette followed diligently, making a near identical copy. Then Seto sat on the stool whilst Jou stood in front of him. "You have to make sure that your clay is centred well in the middle of your wheel." Jou instructed. "This is the most critical step to making a good bowl." Seto placed the clay in the middle. "Ok… apply pressure to the pedal slowly, and when you get to the speed that you're comfortable with, stick with it. Then it's just a matter of getting your hands dirty." Seto nodded, pressed the pedal gently, and started moulding. The wet smoothness felt nice to the touch as the mound to began to form. "Hmm… a little bit too much water but it should be ok. Start forming your cylinder," Jou instructed. Seto eased a finger into the middle of the smooth clay mound. `This isn't so hard…'the brunette thought as he began drawing up the cylinder. "You're speeding up…" Jou warned and, before Seto knew it, the cylinder started to warp and collapse.

Out of reflex the brunette accidentally pressed harder into the pedal, sending the excess water from the clay splattering across his apron and into his face. Seto took his foot off the pedal and noticed that the cylinder had collapsed pathetically on itself.

Cursing, he wiped himself down and glared at the blonde, daring him to laugh. "Let's try this again," was all that Jou said as he remoulded the clay back into its original cow-head wedge. He then grabbed another stool and sat down behind Kaiba.

"What do you think you're doing?" the brunette hissed.

"Helping you out…"

"I think you're getting a little comfortable mutt; now keep away from me. I can do this myself…"

"It's the only way I can help you here rich boy! I'm sorry I'm no

Patrick Swaze-" The blonde was cut off with a slap of mud smacking him in the face. Jou's eyes darkened when he brushed the clay from his face to glare at the equally furious brunette. "Alright… this means… war…" Jou growled as he scooped a handful of clay.

 

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(1) The literal Japanese translation of a gyubera is `cow's tongue'

 

(2) Name of the female psychopath from the 1999 Japanese horror film:

Ôdishon (Audition) Her methods of killing and torture are acupuncture needles to pinpoint painful pressure points on the body and also the use of `piano wire' for decapitation.

 

(3) Named after Maggie Simpson from `The Simpsons'

 

A/N: Sorry for the wait... I've had a pretty rough week at the uni with essays, seminars and lab reports but it's all behind me now... *mutters* at least until the exams... *shudders*