Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Psyche ❯ Reunions ( Chapter 10 )

AN: Due to a rather irritating case of carpel tunnel syndrome (Gee, thanks Doc! Gee thanks nasty keyboard!), I have to cut back on my typing. I can no longer spend all week merrily plotting, scheming, and typing. I have to be a good, little writer and scale things back dramatically. I will be trying to get the next installments out the first week of each month. I might try and sneak a chapter in sooner, if I don't have any homework that needs typing, but that will be extra-specially rare. To compensate, I'll try not to leave too many nasty cliffies, so you won't all suffer.

 

Psyche

Chapter 10: Reunions

~*~*~*

Kaiba

~*~*~*

 

It was beyond even his dreams. The wide magnificent sweep of pinions, the heady rush of air racing past his ears and burning into his eyes, the awesome flex and pull of muscle that moved beneath his body, were all impossible for even his mind to have imagined. Kaiba lay across Koori's shoulders, safely tucked against one of the armored ridges that marched down his dragon's spine, and laughed in pure joy. His dragon. HIS DRAGON. This was one of his Blue Eyes.

 

Once he had dragged his semi-conscious self off the ground, to stand weaving unsteadily in front of the white haired, blue eyed young man, that had so tantalizingly promised to take him to Jonouchi, Koori had transformed into a creature from his earliest childhood dreams. The cards should be burned. They're an insult to my Blue Eyes. Koori is a hundred times more beautiful than the pictures.

 

Don't do that, Master. If you did, we would never be able to see you. Koori's voice whispered softly through his mind.

 

They make you look short, fat and rather silly. Kaiba smiled, laying his cheek against the dragon's warm scales.

 

At least I'm not purple. The voice laughed back. Just wait till you hear Mahaddo talk about his hair.

 

Kaiba closed his eyes, enjoying the rhythmic boom of the dragons wings as it navigated through the air. When he'd designed the Blue Eyes Jet, -Have to redo that. The wings, neck and tail need to be modified.- he'd guessed dragons spent most of their time gliding. He'd been mostly right, the only time Koori really used his wings was for take off and adjusting his position in flight. He'd been wrong in thinking that it was because the dragon's weight would make bird like flight impractical. He hadn't taken into consideration one huge factor, dragons had magic. Why should a dragon expend so much energy flapping it's wings when a small dab of magic smoothed things over so easily? Why leap into the air awkwardly flapping your wings and straining when a quick flick of magic could send you whooshing into the sky like a piece of dandelion fluff in a high breeze?

 

Are you hungry, Master? The dragon whispered very quietly, as if afraid to disturb him.

 

No. Kaiba opened his eyes and looked down as the land flashed past in a colorful blur. You said you would take me to Jo.

 

Yes, Master. Master Jonouchi will be very, very happy to see you. The dragon banked and shifted their course as they reached a stretch of water that spread in glistening green blue waves as far as Kaiba could see.

 

How did Jo get here? I thought…Kaiba couldn't completely block the surge of pain that accompanied that thought. His mind sadistically replaying the bloody scene by the river. I thought he was dead.

 

Lady Yuai had him brought here. The dragon settled back into a steady glide, heading along the crescent sweep of bank bordering the water.

 

Yuai!? Kaiba frowned. When the slender girl had disappeared, he'd been too devastated by Jo's death to do much more than ask Kado to find his wandering nanny. In the press of funeral arrangements, devastated younger brothers, lonely mind numbing grief, and trying to pull together the shattered ruins of his life, the loss of a small, quiet girl had gone mostly unnoticed. Even Yugi, her boyfriend, had done little more than ask if he'd seen her and to tell her to visit when she got back. What the hell is Yuai doing in the Shadow Realm? Did some sicko trap her here?

 

The dragon seemed puzzled. Why shouldn't she be here? Look, there!

 

Kaiba looked towards where his dragon was nodding. Far in the distance, but rapidly approaching was a city. He couldn't make out the details yet, but it looked big and green, with a large, glittery structure on top of some kind of hill.

 

That's the capital city. The others and Master Jonouchi are there. The dragon swept downward, loosing altitude in a playful diving arc. The city quickly loomed closer as Koori flattened into a neat skimming flight pattern. Shimo says that they will meet us in the court yard, then we will take you to Master Jonouchi.

 

The city was now rushing below them, as they approached a tall white castle on a cliff. Calcite, dear Ra, a castle made entirely of carved calcite. How the hell did they manage that? He barely managed to comprehend that when Koori smoothly back winged to a graceful halt in the castle's courtyard, scattering a group of over dressed people and what looked like a rather harried Witty Phantom. The only two that didn't seem to be bothered by the playful sweep of Koori's wings were two slender white haired figures, who's blue eyes gleamed happily as they raced forward to greet him.

 

~*~*~*

Jame

~*~*~*

 

She peeked around the door and quickly retreated back into her office. Mokuba was still sitting at Kaiba's desk, with his head pillowed on his arms, sobbing his heart out. He'd done beautifully all morning as he took control of Kaiba Corp. He'd met with the board, visited all the departments, sat through at least two meetings that were whipped together at the last minute for the unspoken purpose of seeing if various people could intimidate the young kid, and proven beyond even a whisper of doubt that he was indeed a Kaiba.

 

Jame squirmed in her seat as she listened to the half muffled crying. She somehow managed to do what the others hadn't been able to. She made the grim, icy eyed, stoic boy cry. All she had done was ask him to review a couple of files that needed to be signed by the end of the week. She'd thought she was being nice. She thought the kid might need a break from dealing with the vultures that had flapped into the office to see if they could tear off a tasty bit of Kaiba's heir, so she put the files on Kaiba's desk and shooed the new CEO in to the office for a moment of quiet. She had then slipped out, hoping to find some tea or a soda for him, and when she got back, the young, somber executive was gone and a small, grieving child had taken his place.

 

I'm not good with kids! Jame cringed in her chair. What the hell am I supposed to do? Go in and say cheer up kid, so your big brother's dead and you're an orphan. It'll be alright. Oh by the way, did Child Welfare Services call yet to put you in a foster home? Multi-billionaire CEO or not, you're still eleven and you've got be have a legal guardian to make sure you eat a balanced meal?

 

She shook her head and turned as someone knocked at her door. Blond Bunny Version 2.0 stood in the door looking uncertain. Jame smiled, got up, and quietly closed the door that connected her office to Kaiba's, hoping to give Mokuba some privacy. “Hi, what's up?” Jame inwardly cringed. She'd started using slang around the office as a way of irking Kaiba. She took a deep breath. “Can I help you with anything?”

 

“Some of the employees were wondering if there was going to be a memorial or something for Mr. Kaiba.” Version 2.0's large, doe like eyes strayed to the now closed door.

 

Jame mentally translated the remark. Some of the employees, namely you, were wondering if they could get a bit more gossip by coming up here and nosing into Mokuba Kaiba's office. Hope you got a earful of the kid crying over his dead brother to take back to the secretarial pool. Jame pursed her lips and shook her head. “I believe that Mr. Kaiba is still making arrangements. I'll let you know when it is going to be held.”

 

2.0 sighed and nodded, “All right, but let me know if there is anything that I can do to…” She trailed off, waving a helpless hand towards the door.

 

“Of course. Is there anything else?” Jame sat back down at her desk, watching 2.0 bite her lip nervously.

 

“Well, there is one thing.” The blond tugged at the corner of her lapel, then glanced over to the closed door again. “We were wondering if there was going to be any…changes in the executive assistants?”

 

Ah, all bow to the gods of job security. So it wasn't about gossip, or at least not entirely. Jame shook her head. “I know of no planed changes.”

 

2.0 nodded, “Well, okay. If he needs anything, anything at all, let me know.” She looked sadly at the door. “Poor kid, it must have been so hard on him.”

 

Jame kept her professional smile firmly tacked in place. “Yes, I suppose it was. Is there anything else?”

 

“No.” The blond wiggled seductively out the door with a small wave. “I'll stop by later to see if he needs anything.”

 

Note to self. Lock the door and get another, less gossipy assistant. Jame suddenly had a image of Mokuba reaching the tender years when his hormones would temporarily shut down his brain, and him facing Version 2.0 every day. What a pleasant thought. Mrs. Mokuba Kaiba Version 2.O. His brother will rise from his grave -or memorial, or whatever you have for someone blown to bits by a few hundred pounds of plastic explosive- and hunt me down. He'd probably haunt Mokuba's sleep and tell him to keep me employed till I die of old age. Jame shivered. Time to restructure the executive assistants again.

 

With a martyred sigh, Jame started her list of thing that would need to be done to make Mokuba's life a lot easier.

 

~*~*~*

Jonouchi

~*~*~*

 

Jonouchi missed the dragons. He'd gotten used to Koori's solid, comforting presence; Shimo's sly humor, and the girl's gentle comfort, but now all three where off someplace and he was alone with E'on. Koori had disappeared just after breakfast, then a few hours later the other two had darted away, leaving him to the over eager care of his Red Eyes.

 

“I really don't see why we can't.” E'on was poking a Rainbow Flower that Yuai had sent to him with a note saying `Get Well Soon, or I'll feed you to the flower.' He had been startled at first, then silently laughed. The poor plant looked more wasted then vicious and had an odd habit of crooning what sounded like old protest songs from the 1960's. The pot was a bit creepy, but he found that if you fed it leftover bits of toast it would stop gnashing it's teeth and hum counter point to the flower's song, then take a nap. He was actually getting fond of it. It was the closest thing he'd come to having a radio since he'd gotten here.

 

“Really, have you heard of anyone saying we couldn't go swimming in the moat?” E'on, finally getting the strung out flower to sing something that sounded like Blowing in the Wind, settled into a chair by the window.

 

Jonouchi eyed the dragon warily. No, no one had said anything about swimming in the moat. Considering what he'd glimpsed living there, he wasn't terribly surprised. Splashing around with a group of homicidal Great Whites didn't seem like an activity that needed a too much discussion. He shook his head and pointed toward the garden.

 

“But the others aren't here.” The Red Eyes pouted. “It would be much safer if we went swimming.”

 

“In the moat?” Yuai stepped into the room, eyeing the dragon teen. “I don't suppose you've noted that Jo doesn't have a nice hide of dragon skin?” She paused, looking pointedly at E'on. “Yet.”

 

“Hey, I'd keep him safe.” E'on looked offended.

 

Yuai shook her head. “Forget it E'on.” She smiled happily at Jonouchi. “Jo, there's someone here who wants to see you.”

 

Jonouchi startled back and E'on placed himself protectively in front of his master. Yuai laughed, and motioned for someone behind her to come forward as she stepped aside. Jonouchi tensed, then felt his eyes widen as Kaiba stepped into the room, with his three dragons trailing after him.

 

Jo stood there stunned. His love looked a bit worn, more than bit tired, and a lot rumpled, but he was there, standing in the doorway looking uncertain. Jo pinched himself. He'd always heard that was how to prove you weren't dreaming. The small tingle of pain assured him he was awake. Was it a trick? He looked at the nearly beaming Yuai, and the three Blue Eyes that stood proudly behind their master.

 

“Jo?” Kaiba barely whispered his name, bowing his head. “I'm sorry Jo. I don't blame you if you don't want to ever see me…”

 

Jonouchi yanked himself out of his stupor and flung himself into Kaiba's arms, cutting off his lover with a frantic kiss. Oh, thank Hathor and Maat and Ra and Isis and Horus and even Set. Thank all the gods. You're HERE! He wrapped his arms around his love, noting that Kaiba had lost weight and feeling a surge of protective anger, and did his best to put all the love, fear, longing, and joy he felt into the kiss. He could feel Kaiba hesitate, feel the tension vibrating through his body, then he felt it break and was wrapped tightly in his lover's arms, as the kiss was returned.

 

When they finally parted, Kaiba still held him close and whispered brokenly. “Oh Gods, I've missed you.”

 

Jo stroked his cheek with his finger tips, smiling.

 

Kaiba caught his hand, looking startled. “Jo, your fingers. You have all your...” He shivered and buried his face against the blonde's neck. “I thought it was your finger. That man, he mailed me a finger and I thought it was yours.”

 

Jonouchi could feel soft tears against his skin and he wrapped his arms around his love's shoulders and nuzzled soft kisses against his ear. The small protective spark of anger flared brighter. How dare anyone do this to Kaiba. How dare anyone make his graceful, egotistical beloved shiver and cry. This was his love that someone had messed with and he'd make that someone pay. He wondered if the psycho was still alive. Five minutes ago, he had lived with the fervent wish that the wacko was dead, now he wanted him alive. Rag on me all you like. But no one touches him!

 

“Well, actually it was…” E'on started uncertainly, and was instantly silenced by the three Blue Eyes glaring at him. The little dragon cringed. “… a logical mistake.”

 

Yuai shooed him and the others out the door. “Jo, I'm leaving you in charge of him.” She grinned, looking a lot like her mortal self in that instant, pausing as she closed the door behind her. “You know how he is. Make him sleep and drag him down to dinner. There's no way he's going to any office, anytime soon, and he's defiantly not working late tonight on the computer, so don't take any nonsense from him.”

 

Jonouchi nodded slightly, smoothing the soft hair that rested against his cheek. He could feel Kaiba's breath hitch slightly in a sob, and snuggled closer, wishing his traitorous throat would let him talk. He'd like to say something to comfort his shaken love, something to tell him how much he had missed him. He settled for gently rubbing the shaking shoulders and nuzzling the silk soft skin of Kaiba's neck.

 

“Are you okay Jo?” Kaiba pulled away slightly, brushing his eyes absently. He looked carefully at the blond. Jonouchi looked fine. The slender body that pressed close to his felt strong. His skin was tanned in the same healthy golden glow it always took on if he'd spent any time at all in the sun. His brown eyes were bright and clear. The only thing that looked even a bit out of place was the long hair that hung down his back in loose pony tail. He reached out and tugged it playfully. “Like the hair.”

 

Jo laughed silently and tugged him toward the bed.

 

 

Kaiba, seeing the rumpled sheets and comforter nearly groaned in anticipation. It looked so soft, so welcoming, and it probably smelled like Jonouchi. The thought of laying on it with Jo in his arms was as close to heaven as he was likely to get anytime soon. Unless of course… He eyed Jonouchi. “We aren't dead are we?”

 

Jo kissed him and shook his head. He pulled off the rather wrinkled suit jacket Kaiba was wearing, as the urged the tired brunette closer to the bed.

 

“And you'd tell me if I was hallucinating?” Kaiba absently slipped out of his shoes, stumbling a bit as the left one stubbornly tried to stay on his foot.

 

Jonouchi kissed him again and tossed his tie to the floor, then went to work on the belt.

 

“And I'm not dreaming? I've been having some strange dreams.” Kaiba found himself nudged firmly onto the bed, as Jonouchi relieved him of his belt and pants.

 

The blond smiled, leaned forward, kissed him lovingly, then nipped his lower lip, before slipping his socks off his tired feet.

 

“Ow.” Kaiba sighed contentedly as he snuggled down into the covers, pulling his lover down next to him. He closed his eyes, surrendering to the first restful sleep he'd had since Jo disappeared. “If you change your mind about any of those answers, Jo. Don't tell me.”

 

Jonouchi snuggled into the curve of Kaiba's body, resting his head against one too thin shoulder. No love. I'm not changing my mind. You're here, and I'm here and we're together. No one's going to change that. Not ever again.

 

~*~*~*

Bakura

~*~*~*

Bakura grumbled and skulked down the street. At least he was pretending to skulk, it really looked more like a half hearted slouch with a grimace thrown in here and there for effect. It worked just as effectively as a full out skulk, mainly because most people hustled to the other side of the street and pretended not to see the oddly dressed man, fingering his pant's button and fiddling around with a piece of elaborate jewelry that hung from his neck.

 

“Just put this on, he says.” Bakura muttered sulkily to himself. “It's cold out, he says.” He poked at the thick tweedy, herringbone sleeve of the suit jacket he wore. It even had Ra forsaken leather patches on the elbows. “You can't be too careful, he says. Damn hikari and his damn, sweet eyes. Should have run the second I saw him holding this fucking piece of shit.”

 

He looked down at his toes, peeking out from a pair of Birkenstock sandals and shuddered. “Why couldn't I have gotten a perky midget for a hikari. Do you ever see the pharaoh dressed like this? Do you? No. He wears leather, nice, soft, sexy leather with buckles and studs and little straps that do nothing but look cool. And what do I get?” He glowered at his soft blue and green striped tee shirt that he was wearing backwards to hide the I Went to Egypt and All I Got Was This Stupid Tee Shirt logo, then shoved his hands deep into the violently colored plaid golf pants Ryou had unearthed from his father's closet and went back to pretending to skulk.

 

“Fuck this. How the hell am I supposed to sneak up on anyone dressed like an insane college professor on crack?” He eyed passing stores, wondering if any of them hid a pair of leather pants in his size. It didn't look hopeful, since most of them had signs reading `Produce', `Mom's All Night Dinner', and `Cheap Smokes.' The last one smelled of stale tobacco and beer, so he slid past quickly, hoping the spirit of the tweedy coat wouldn't try to posses him, get him to buy a pipe, and make him sit in a pub laughing insanely at jokes about the Queen Mum.

 

He was half way to the local market, when the Ring vibrated against his chest. He frowned at it, then lifted it to look at it more closely. One of the little pointers feebly wobbled, as if it was trying to point to something, but it wasn't entirely sure where it wanted to point. He concentrated. The other pointers zinged to attention. Four pointed toward Domino City Museum. Marik, Isis and…he concentrated…Shadi. One pointed firmly toward the pharaoh A quiet night home with your light, hmmm? But the last trembled indecisively. The Eye? It was the closest he'd come to getting any reaction from the Ring about the Eye. When he noticed the Eye missing, he'd blasÄ“ly reached for the Ring and asked it to find the lost item. He'd been irked that the Ring hadn't even twitched at the request. Now it seemed at least a bit interested.

 

He looked around. A few people were hurrying past, on the other side of the street. A couple of cars were drifting by, peopled by happy families out searching for food. Remembering Marik's comment, he did a quick scan of the ground and gutters on the off chance the thing was rolling around ordering mochachinos.

 

The pointer shivered slightly and wiggled slightly to the left. Bakura hitched up his white belt, cursed his doe eyed light, and trotted across the street, following the weakly vibrating pointer. As the people on that side of the street suddenly found important errands on the other side, he looked around. Nothing seemed out of place. The street had no dark alleys for convenient lurking. No suspicious people dove hastily out of sight. There wasn't even a menacing bird hovering over head to lend an air of mystery. There was a small shop called Bessie Anne's Boutique that seemed to specialize in frilly shirts made of day-glow fabrics, a dismal store that fixed knives, clocks, and watches, and a small corner market. He bravely poked his head into each one, but was met with nothing but a few startled looks by the proprietors. The Ring shivered again and went limp.

 

“Damn.” He looked up and down the street, then gave the Ring a half hearted shake. “Great, just great. Not only can't it find the Eye, but now it's not even pointing to the other items.” He dropped it so that it lay back against his chest. “Why did I want these fucking things in the first place? The seriously fuck up your after life, don't do shit when you really need them, and malfunction at odd times.” He poked the Ring irritably. “I should have listened to the priest and stole the Key or the Scales or something. Hell, I should have just assassinated the idiot pharaoh in his sleep, went home, got married and tried to populate Egypt with white haired tomb robbers.” He shook his head and returned to his quest for cool clothing, muttering about how many pretty wives he could have had, how he would have spent his life dressed in the finest linins, and happily remained in ignorance of the word plaid.

 

~*~*~*

 

The shadowy figure peeked out from the dressing room of Bessie Anne's Boutique and dropped a horrifyingly bright orange shirt on a nearby chair, as it frowned at the thief's retreating back.

 

Hmm. You got a bit too close there. Perhaps I got a bit careless. The figure walked casually out the door and watched the tomb robber slouch down the street. I believe another distraction is in order. Now that Kaiba is paying for his sins, I can clear up a bit of old business. It wouldn't do for you to interfere.

 

~*~*~*

Kaiba and Jonouchi

~*~*~*

 

It was nearly evening when Jo woke up. Half asleep, he buried his face against the warm body next to him, groggily wondering why Koori was getting so boney, and tried to hide from the dimming sunlight. The body beneath his cheek, moaned sleepily and turned over, wrapping him in a hug, mercifully blocking the evil light. Jo snuggled closer, and noted that Koori was wearing a shirt, a shirt with buttons down the front. His bleary mind pointed out that Koori generally wore a loose fitting tunic when he was in human form and slept naked. Jo shoved the thought aside, for the far pleasanter prospect of falling back to sleep.

 

“Ahhh, I think you're supposed to feed him, now.” E'on's voice prodded him back into the land of wakefulness. He waved an annoyed hand in the general direction of his dragon, and kept his eyes stubbornly closed. E'on could find toast for the flower all by himself.

 

“Yes, I remember Lady Yuai saying something about dinner.” Koori assented from E'on's direction.

 

Jo frowned against the chest he was cuddled against. How could Koori be there and here? His foggy mind pondered this a moment, then he opened his eyes to get verification that Koori was in two places at once. He pushed himself up and stared down at the sleeping brunette, who held him in a loose embrace. His mind sprang back to life and the Shadow Realm seemed a much better place. Even the dopey flower warbling a song that was amazingly close to Moon Shadow seemed wonderful. He reached out and ran a wondering finger down Kaiba's cheek, thrilling at the smooth skin that roughened slightly into a light five o'clock shadow.

 

“It's dinner time.” Koori nodded to a pair of pants and a dark blue tunic that Shimo held. “You need to wake Master up and get him dressed.”

 

Jonouchi looked at the thin shadowed face of his lover and hesitated. Even asleep, Kaiba looked completely exhausted. I just can't leave you alone. Can I? He stroked the sable brown hair, noting that it wasn't as silky soft as normal. Why do you do this to yourself?

 

“Dinner.” E'on dropped a pair of boots to the floor with a loud thump.

 

Kaiba groaned and tightened his arms around Jonouchi's waist. Jo sighed and nudged him, deciding he'd make Kaiba sleep late tomorrow. Come on. Time to wake up and eat, so I can put you back to bed with a full tummy.

 

“No. No. You're not there. Go away. You're not there.” Kaiba curled away from him, pulling the covers closer around him.

 

Jo blinked and looked up at the dragons. Koori was frowning worriedly. The other two shifted uneasily, glancing back and forth from Koori to Kaiba, then back to Koori. E'on looked confused. Jo reached out again to shake one thin shoulder, but Koori pulled him back.

 

“Maybe you should get dressed. I'll wake Master up.” The dragon looked uneasy about something, which made Jo frown and poke him for an explanation. “He's having a nightmare.” Koori carefully drew Jonouchi out of the bed. “He's dreaming that your ghost is haunting him, hurting him. It might be best if I wake him while you get dressed.”

 

Jo shook his head stubbornly and sat back down on the side of the bed. Not a chance Blue Eyes, and why the hell can't my dragon read my mind?

 

“Actually, I can, but I think it's kind of rude, so I pretend I can't.” E'on muttered sheepishly.

 

Gee, how nice. Jo pinched the bridge of his nose, then shook his head and reached over and nudged Kaiba again.

 

The brunette curled into a protective ball, clutching the covers. “No. I don't see you. I don't.”

 

Jo picked up a pillow and whacked his lover with it, causing Kaiba to gasp and bolt upright with a cry. He looked around wildly for a moment, then reached out and pulled Jonouchi into his arms.

 

“Good morning, love.” He kissed Jo softly.

 

Jo pointed out the window at the setting sun.

 

“Someplace it's morning.” Kaiba pulled him down to the now very rumpled sheets, nibbling at his lips.

 

“Sex later, food now.” E'on poked Jo's shoulder. “Man, I thought Yuai and Ledowr were bad. Are all humanoids like this? Sex, sex, sex?”

 

The Blue Eyes girl smacked the littler dragon. “Out. Just get out and don't come back till you get through puberty.”

 

Kaiba smiled against Jo's lips. “You've actually been putting up with all of them?”

 

Jo pulled his head back down, resuming the kiss, with a little nod.

 

“Sweet, very sweet.” A sarcasm laced voice drawled from the door. “And to answer your lovely question E'on. Damn right we do. Remind me to get someone to show you why, later.”

 

Jo let Kaiba go and looked over toward the door where Ledowr leaned in the doorway.

 

Kaiba narrowed his eyes, annoyed at the interruption. “What are you doing here?”

 

Ledowr smirked, “Simple, if I want sex tonight, I've got to do at least one nice thing for Yuai. This is it. Be happy. And now that I've guaranteed I'll get laid, I'm out of here.” He pushed himself upright and sauntered away.

 

“Humanoids are weird.” E'on grumbled and followed after him.

 

The two lovers sighed in unison and pulled themselves out of the embrace of the cozy bed and let the three Blue Eyes bustle them into well dressed wakefulness.

 

The dinning hall was a huge, cavernous room with white columns carved like vine covered trees wound up to a green marble ceiling. The walls were carved with birds, leaves, flowers and an occasional woodland creature. The floor, covered with thick brown carpets woven into the likeness of scattered leaves, gave off a faint sound of crushing leaves when you stepped on it. The room, while undeniably a master piece of decoration, gave Jonouchi the creeps. Maybe it was the fact that the carvings tended to move if you watched them long enough, maybe it was the shadow filled corners that looked more like hungry, lurking carnivores than pleasant grottos, he didn't know, but he was happy to walk in next to Kaiba and the dragons at his side.

 

The only ones in the room were Yuai and Ledowr, who were chatting at the end of the long table. For once, they seemed to be getting along peacefully. Yuai was smiling happily, while her partner smirked in a slightly less mocking manner than usual.

 

Still feeling a bit uneasy, even with his lover at his side, Jonouchi kept the table between himself and the black magician when they reached the couple.

 

“Hi guys. Are you hungry?” Yuai waved one hand and the Witty Phantom materialized out of one of the lurking corners, hustling small, platter bearing, Beaver Warriors to place dishes of food on the table.

 

Kaiba nodded and sat down. “Have you ever seen Jonouchi not hungry?”

 

Yuai laughed, “Well, I did hear something about a half eaten hamburger.”

 

Jo ignored that, busy eying the corner, as he settled into the chair next to Kaiba, wondering what, or who else, was creeping around in there. The dragons settled into seats, nodding polite greetings to the two, not looking even a little bothered by the dark places. Jonouchi relaxed and helped himself from the platter nearest to him. It looked like some kind of broiled fish. Noting that Kaiba was only taking tiny portions of food, Jo put a large serving of that dish on his plate.

 

Kaiba eyed his suddenly crowded plate and shook his head. “Half eaten? What did it bite him?”

 

“No, I killed it first.” E'on supplied as he scuttled into the hall and thunked himself into a seat next to Shimo.

 

“Killed it?” Kaiba inspected his food warily.

 

“A small Hungry Burger.” Koori nudged Jonouchi's shoulder and motioned to another platter and nodded to Kaiba's plate.

 

Jo eyed the orange vegetables, nibbled on one experimentally and scooped a small pile onto his lover's plate, next to the fish. Kaiba glowered at his dragon, who pretended not to notice, which allowed a serving of something like roasted potatoes and a roll to migrate next to the veggies and fish.

 

Yuai snickered softly. “Welcome to the Shadow Realm, where even meals are an adventure.”

 

Kaiba fended off another helping of vegetables. “I'll be happy to get home then. I have enough problems without fighting my food.”

 

“Eerr, well, yeah.” Yuai suddenly sounded a lot less happy. “About that…”

 

Jonouchi stopped trying to sneak a meat pastry onto the edge of his love's plate and looked questioningly at her.

 

“About what?” Kaiba eyed the golden haired version of his nanny suspiciously.

 

“You two can't go back.” Ledowr shrugged, leaning back in his chair. “You're here permanently.”

 

“What do you mean, we can't go back?” Kaiba froze in place.

 

“When I got Kallon and Ledowr to bring Jonouchi here, it was sort of a rush job.” Yuai worried her lip nervously. “We had to snatch him fast, or that man would have killed him.”

 

Ledowr yawned. “He's stuck here unless someone from your world summons him back. Seeing that everyone in your world thinks he's dead, what are the chances of that?”

 

“You're the same way. Usually, if someone wants to travel back and forth between the realms, you have to leave a opening in the transport spell. We didn't have time for Jo, and the one who sent you here never wanted you to return.” Yuai looked down at the table sadly. “I'm afraid you're both going to be here for awhile.”

 

“No. I can't. Mokuba needs me.” Kaiba shoved away from the table and stood up. “There's no way I can stay. Can't you contact the yamis, or send someone to tell them to summon us?”

 

“We can only go so far. Even Mahaddo, who has close ties to your realm can't stray too close to it's boarder. Koori probably came the closest in millennia, and he was only able to get there because of your presence.” Ledowr waved lazily, as if brushing something aside. “Since Atem sealed the Shadow Magic, it takes an amazing amount of power to get to your realm.” Ledowr grabbed a bread stick and munched on it, as he spoke. “It took us over four thousand years to gather enough energy to punch through to fetch Yuai back.” He shrugged. “If you don't mind waiting, we could try it again. Of course by that time no one will remember you, but what is that phrase? Patience is it's own reward?”

 

“I can't accept that. I have to get back.” Kaiba paced agitatedly, running his fingers through his hair.

 

“Accept it or not, it doesn't change the facts.” Ledowr stood up and stretched.

 

“If it helps, you can keep an eye on Mokuba.” Yuai poked her chaotic counter part. “Kallon has a magic birdbath that lets you see into the other realm.”

 

“A magic birdbath?” Kaiba sounded doubtful.

 

“Don't sound so dubious.” Ledowr tossed something onto the table. “A man who wanders around wearing a toe of a sock stuffed with mint, shouldn't look down on other people's magic trinkets.”

 

Kaiba had forgotten about the little sock charm he'd been given. “Not my idea.”

 

“Not too bad, actually. Completely ineffective since it's the wrong kind of mint, but not too bad.” The magician ambled out of the room.

 

Yuai rolled her eyes and stood up. “Would you feel better if you checked on Mokuba?”

 

Kaiba nodded and followed after her as she walked down the hall and exited through a half hidden door. Jonouchi and the dragons looked mournfully at their plates, then got up to trail along.

 

E'on snatched up the basket of bread sticks and handed them out as they trotted to catch up. “What's the rush? Couldn't we finish dinner first?”

 

Shimo chomped down his bread and grabbed another. “It's got to be a mortal thing. Note that Lord Ledowr and Lady Yuai finished their meals.”

 

Jo poked him.

 

“You seem to be the exception.” Shimo smiled. “You have a good grasp of the importance of eating before running off to get into trouble.”

 

Jonouchi nodded and nearly slammed into Kaiba's back as he stopped outside a door. Yuai carefully unlocked it, then stepped back to let them enter first.

 

“Kallon treasures this thing, so be careful.” She closed and locked the door behind her once they were all in, then stepped over to the birdbath picking up a silver pitcher on her way over. She handed it to Kaiba. “Okay. You just need to pour this into the birdbath and think of Mokuba.”

 

Kaiba gave the pitcher a sour look, but poured the contents into the birdbath anyway. Jonouchi leaned closer to look as the silvery water swirled around and suddenly shifted, showing a picture of Mokuba listlessly reading through a pile of papers. The kid seemed to be sitting in Kaiba's office at Kaiba Corp.. Behind him, the night sky filled the windows.

 

“Oh Gods, Mokie.” Kaiba breathed. “What are you doing there?”

 

Jame walked into the scene and seemed to be talking to the younger Kaiba. Mokuba shook his head stubbornly and continued reading.

 

“Go home Mokie. Just leave it.” Kaiba shook his head. “It's not that important.”

 

Yuai touched his shoulder. “I'm sorry, but he can't hear you.”

 

Kaiba nodded, “Can't you do anything?”

 

“No. I'm stuck here just like you.” Yuai looked back at the swirling water. “I tried to get Kallon and Ledowr to send me back to my body, but…” she trailed off sadly.

 

“Your body's still there?” Kaiba frowned. “Then why hasn't anyone found it? Where did it go?”

 

“I'm sure Kallon did something…” Yuai stopped with a gasp.

 

The scene had changed. Instead of Mokuba's forlorn little figure, a slender blond girl was walking across a street. The little figure stopped, looked around then walked down a busy street.

 

“Oh dear Ra.” Yuai stepped away from the sight of her own body walking around without her. “How?”

 

Kaiba leaned closer, looking carefully at the tiny form as it strolled through the evening crowds. “Here's a better question, when did you get the Millennium Eye?”

 

“What do you mean?” Yuai edged warily back to the sight.

 

Jo leaned closer, hanging over Kaiba's shoulder, as his love pointed.

 

“Look at the left eye. I've seen it on Pegasus's ugly face long enough to recognize it.” Kaiba grimaced. “You've got the Millennium Eye where your normal eye should be.”

 

Yuai covered her present eye, “I have the Millennium Eye? No way. Wasn't it bad enough to be saddled with the necklace? Why do I have to have the Eye? And look so skanky too. Did you notice that? I look like a worn out ho.”

 

“What the hell is going on?” Kaiba watched as the other Yuai darted into a store. A second later Bakura walked through the scene. Once he'd passed, the tiny, skanky Yuai reappeared and trailed after him. “What the hell is going on?”

 

~*~*~*

Review please.

 

As you've probably noticed, I haven't given the Blue Eyes girl a name. I've been toying around with the character and wondered how many of you would like to see Kisara make an appearance as the Blue Eyes? Or would you rather she remain a dragon girl with the name of Yuki? Let me know.

 

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Daebird: Thank you for the great review! Well, Kaiba and Jonouchi are finally together again, but I got evil with poor little Mokie a bit. Oh well, one segment of angstiness gets over and another begins. When I wrote Kaiba's scene last time, I spent a lot of time thinking over everything I'd done to him. I just couldn't see torturing the poor guy for months and it not having an effect. You'll have to wait to see what the long term effect will be.

 

dragonlady222: Sorry about keeping you waiting for so long. Kaiba's rather shaky grip on reality is still open for debate, but now that he has Jonouchi looking after him, he should improve. Should of course being the operative word. Seeing that it's only chapter ten and there is still ten chapters to go and new problems popping up all over, things are far from over.

 

emeralisle: You've asked a very good question. Why hasn't anything happened to the hikaris? True the attacks have been centered on Kaiba, but as the series keeps pointing out, those Millennium Items are awfully tempting, and the innocent hikaris are easy targets… Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I'm always thrilled when I hear from a happy reader.

 

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