Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Psyche ❯ Traps ( Chapter 28 )

AN: Nearly done. I'm working on the final bits now and depending on how much I love or hate them is how long it will take to get them to you. I'm not going to do the review responses till the end of the story. I appreciate all of you, and thank you for your reviews, but I want to get this over with quick before I start whimpering again about this being the end of the story. I've loved my story and watched it grow for years. It's hard to say bye, but it also has to be done before the plot drags out into a true nightmare like those endless quest books that keep going, and going, and going, till you want to strangle the author while screaming, “Just get the the f@ckin end already! They've slogged through every bog, killed every monster, and did all the team bonding moments. PLEASE LET IT END BEFORE THE BAD GUY DIES OF OLD AGE!”

 

Psyche

Chapter Twenty Eight: Traps

 

~*~*~*

OCs

~*~*~*

Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born) Yami's son back in Egypt.

E'on: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

Jame: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

Kallon: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

Kisara: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

Koori: (Japanese for: Ice) The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

Ledowr: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be. He is also Yuai's husband.

Pepi: Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

Shimo: (Japanese for: Frost) The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

Yuai: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

 

~*~*~*

Jonouchi

~*~*~*

It was like dueling. Those first few heady seconds when your deck is in front of you, and everything is a possibility. That's what it had been like waking up to see Kiaba standing having a hissing, dragony conversation with himself.

“We'll play later then you can yell as much as you want.”

“You're louder.”

“Not likely.”

He recognized the tone in Kaiba's voice. He'd heard it before directed at himself. Half aroused, half angry, all focused. That tone usually ended up with them sprawled on the nearest stable, or even unstable, surface fucking like bunnies in spring. However, it had also been too strange, surreal almost, everything glassy and full of possibilities that could either flash into a million bright stars, or shatter into cutting shards.

“I heard you.”

“I heard you.”

Enough. No more. Time to pick up the first card and see what it was. The duel had to start sometime. He sat up, and interrupted. “Uh, hey, Seto. When did you get a twin?”

Kaiba spun around so quick Jo was surprised he didn't get neck stain. The look on both their faces said that the first card was a dud. Kiaba looked shocked, guilty, but relieved. The twin looked concerned. When Kaiba came closer, he realized he'd drawn another disaster card. Like Dark Sword, a great card, but arming a kurribo with it? Not good.

“Jo, you're talking. Are you alright?” Kiaba came closer, looking at him anxiously.

“Sure. Feel great. And I talk a lot, Seto.” Why it was important, or even noteworthy that he was talking escaped him, but it seemed important to Kaiba. All of which meant that the next card was also not the best. A lot like coming up with a two kurribos in a row. Still, the best thing to do was to trust that the cards would pull you through. Two kurribos used right could do some pretty kick-ass things.

That's when he noticed that Kaiba's twin was coming closer, and the twin looked worried.

“Jonouchi.”

Okay, now the opponent was openly smirking. The twin hadn't said his name as a question, as if asking who he was. It had been a statement. Even though this Kiaba's voice was accented and slightly deeper, he could still hear the meaning in it. The voice caressed over his name, just the way Kaiba's voice did, turning a handful of syllables into a nearly physical touch. That voice said, as plain as if he'd come out and explained it in detail, with visual aids, and special effects, I know you, and your skin, your bones, your blood all know me.

The hand was a bust. All unusable magics and weak monsters whose only use was to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. Hardly the best way to start a duel.

He looked toward where Kaiba was now kneeling in front of him. “Uh? Seto?”

A duelist doesn't give up. The cards could be fickle, they tested their owners, but if you were true they could also lead you to victory. He'd just finished with the pep talk when Yami leaned in and arched one elegant eyebrow at him.

“Not surprising really. It could be much worse.”

And that's when he realized that he had a hand full of crap and he was across the dueling field facing someone like Yami. Shit, he was toast.

The next few minutes, full of happy relieved faces of his friends cemented the fact in. Something, somewhere was completely off. Still, he was willing to let the cards fall as they would and play his hand. Kaiba's clone disappeared quickly enough, off to do whatever Kiaba clones did in their free time, when not making Kaiba yell, purr darkly, and jump guiltily.

The next turn didn't improve much. He felt sticky, sun burned, and he had a bandage falling in his eyes. Worse, he was sticky, sun burned, with a bandage falling into his eyes at Yugi's. When he wiggled around demanding clean clothes, Kiaba had pulled him into the guest room next door, where scattered around the room was a jumble of Mokuba's things, a few of Kaiba's things, and some of his things, as if they'd been staying there awhile.

It was the plant that made him realize that his opponent had just slapped down The Dark Magician and had just torn a huge hole through his life points. It wasn't a normal plant. It looked drunk, it sang old hippie tunes, and it brought back memories of sitting in a garden watching a young, slim teen stroking its leaves, coaxing it to open and sing.

“Jo?” Kaiba was looking at him as if he was afraid of something.

“Hey, where did we get the plant?” Bluff. Hadn't Grandpa said to bluff for time?

Kaiba looked at the plant then looked warily back at Jonouchi. “A gift.”

“One freaky gift.” He grabbed a pair of what looked to be acceptably clean jeans out of a pile of clothes and headed to the bathroom, prolonging the bluff as long as he could. His reflection showed him that his little kurribos just died a piteous death and his opponent was smirking in satisfaction. He looked… different. Someone had beaten the hell out of him, which wasn't so shocking. He'd gotten into enough fights to shrug off the lump on the side of his head, the bruises, and the assorted cuts that always remained after the main event was over. It was the hair that told him about the wide, self satisfied grin on his opponents face. No one, ever, got long hair over night. It took months, even years to grow from shoulder length to brushing the middle of your back.

“Oh shit.”

A Kiaba twin…Yami Seto? Or who was it, the one from the past…Seth. That wasn't good. A yami and a hikari. How much closer could one get. The hissed conversation with Kaiba's dark, aroused purr lacing through it. The answering purr in the yami's voice.

“We'll play later then you can yell as much as you want.”

Yes. How much closer could one get?

“Jonouchi.”

The possessiveness whispering through the voice of the dark skinned, sun streaked Kaiba twin. The duel was heading south fast. A caress of sound.

“Jo, enough.”

His hands slipping across stomach muscles as someone who was not Seto quivered beneath his touch, his teeth nipping lightly, teasing the others lips open. The sinful, mischievous curl of pleasure forming in his stomach as he slid his fingers tauntingly around this not-Seto's navel, causing the not-Seto to moan a low needy sound in the back of his throat, and yield to his hands. The feel of his own mouth pressing down hungrily into the compliant brunet's mouth as the not-Seto's hands raised to caress him. His own lips trailing downward as his hand wrapped around the silky firm flesh of the not-Seto's …

He turned away, brushing the shower curtain aside and hopping into the tub. As he turned, he noticed the bright red burn mark that traced down his shoulder and spine. A sun burn? He'd been out sunning, with long hair, gotten into a fight, and came home to Yugi's house where he was now living with Kaiba, Mokuba, a Rainbow Flower, and Kaiba's yami. And it was noteworthy that he could talk?

Okay. His hand was in the gutter, his life points were zeroing down, and his opponent was grinning like Marik on a sugar high. Could it get worse?

Jonouchi groaned as he stepped in the shower and Ryou called, “Jo, I think Bakura used all the hot water. Sorry.”

He was living at Yugi's house with Bakura. Next Malik would ask him not to use Marik's shampoo, or perhaps Marik was … wait a moment…. When did the yamis have the ability to wander around by themselves?

The game was over. He was officially fubared.

~*~*~*

Jame

~*~*~*

 

“So long Kaiba Mobile.” Jame settled into a nice plumply cushioned chair.

 

She'd managed to transfer the surviving staff of Kaiba Corp into one of the manufacturing plants on the edge of the city. It had only involved a few minor shifts, a little jog through the disorganized jungle that passed as governmental regulations, and a small rearrangement of personnel. All in all, not bad. Kado wasn't wandering around her table feeding his ever growing caffeine addiction. Tanaka was happy with his new, non-sofa office, and accounting was actually back online and working out the last of the bugs in the books. The interviews with prospective employees were scheduled for tomorrow. The hazmat teams were well on their way to clearing out the rubble of Kaiba Corp. Architects were already submitting plans for the new Kaiba Corp Tower, and now all that was needed was Kaiba to show up and give the final approval to everything.

 

“Now… who keeps adding psych. appointments to my schedule?” Jame looked down at her computer.

 

So far, there had been three appointments that had somehow wormed their way into her carefully created schedule. Each one with the same doctor, whose secretary had no idea who made those appointments, and each was for treating obsessive-compulsive disorder and denial. Due to the last minute addition of those appointments, she had to rearrange nearly the whole week.

 

She huffed softly and started creating a list of possible candidates. Tink was her top contender. He had already gotten into his thick skull that she was too organized, and he had the computer knowledge to hack her files. Second, Drover and Pease might have banded together and added those appointments. The problem there was that neither one of them had the skills to do….

 

The telephone shrilled at her, interrupting the organizing of her revenge list.

 

“Kaiba Corporation. This is Jame, how can I assist you.” She always liked that line. Her direct orders from Kaiba was to be as un-assisting as she could possibly be. She even had permission to be annoying and rude if the person didn't take the brush-off.

 

A falsely cheerful voice chirped in her ear. “Hello, I'm Mrs. Ito. I was asked to call you in regards to your real estate inquiry.”

 

Oh. The sales person. She'd contacted one of the better real estate agencies in the area to deal with the small problem her boss's house being turned into a scrap heap. She wanted a list of possible residences available the second he stepped into the office. She'd even sandwiched the viewings in between her psychiatrist visit and an interview with the new research and development liaison.

 

“Yes.” Jame reached into the file box that sat at her feet for the appropriate file. “Did you get the specifications?”

 

“Oh, yes. I have to say, they are quite extensive.” The real estate agent gushed. “I should warn you that for all this you are looking at a house well over the three million dollar range.”

 

“I'm sure Mr. Kaiba won't mind.” Jame flipped to the specifications pages. “Do you have any properties that fit the criteria?”

 

“Just a few. There's a lovely house that opened up on the right end of the bay. It has a terrific view of the ocean from nearly every room. It also has an indoor pool with a connected jaccuzi, fully landscaped on twelve acres of property, a huge patio area that connects in a series of decks down the side of a rocky outcropping for a truly spectacular view, it is fully fenced with top of the line security features, and it has …”

 

Jame listened to the sales babble, nodding absently as she reviewed the file. When the woman paused for breath, Jame jumped in. “That sounds nice. Please arrange a preliminary showing of that and any other houses between two and five on Thursday.”

 

“Perfect. I'll make the arrangements.” The agent enthused. “Will Mr. Kaiba be there?”

 

Jame could actually see the commission dancing in front of the woman's eyes. “No. This is only a preliminary viewing. I'll then submit the best ones to Mr. Kaiba to view himself.”

 

“Wonderful.” Ahh… the sound of the dancing commissions taking a time out.

 

Jame eyed the phone disbelievingly. “Fine. Be on time. I will meet you in front of your office at two o'clock sharp. Do not be late.”

 

“Till then!” The agent cheerfully enthused.

 

Jame hung up, made a few notations in the file, filed it carefully away in the box and reviewed her schedule. The furniture people would be arriving at ten to deliver the file cabinets. She still needed to have maintenance finish sound proofing Kaiba's office at one o'clock, and the painters should be done by the end of the day. His furniture was scheduled in to arrive tomorrow morning at eight, and the interior decorator would be putting the finishing touches on everything at eleven. At noon, she was scheduled to meet with the international lawyers about the other destroyed Kaiba Corp towers, and at two thirty she had her first meeting with the psychiatrist. Luckily, that would only be thirty minutes, so by three fifteen she would be back in time to review the press releases about Kaiba's return from the dead, and contact Industrial Illusions about the preview to the next series of Duel Monster Cards.

 

She nodded. Everything was in order.

 

Tanaka, standing outside her door with Kado shook his head with a small smile. “I can't believe she didn't just cancel.”

 

Kado grinned. “It's in the schedule, therefore, it's sacred.” He snickered as he walked away. “Obsessive-compulsive.”

 

~*~*~*

Yamis

~*~*~*

 

“Trust the fruit cake to have a building like this.” Bakura stared up at the ornately gothic building with its gargoyles, flying buttresses, stain glass windows, and an overly cheerful Funny Bunny animated statue waving at pedestrians on the front step leading up to the gothic monstrosity.

 

Yami grimaced, but kept walking up the stairs. They had decided to try the direct approach. Akenaden had to know they were coming, so why try to be sneaky about it. Better to conserve strength to face Akenaden and use their tricks in more subtle ways.

 

Seth trailed along behind him eyeing the statue. “What is that?”

 

“Funny Bunny.” Marik stood in front of the statue grinning at it. “It's a kiddie program.”

 

“Pegasus is a loony.” Bakura grumped, scanning the area.

 

Everything was peaceful and serene. A small flock of pigeons was cooing and strutting on the sidewalk. The trees that swayed gracefully from elegant, flower-filled gardens cast shifting patches of bright sun and light shade across merrily splashing fountains. A few pedestrians passed by, intent on conversations about lunch and coworkers. Cars whooshed past fluttering small leaves and petals of the plants.

 

The only odd thing was that no one was going in or out of the building. As they stepped inside, the lobby was empty. The receptionist's desk was empty. The small guard station was abandoned. The only noise was from the soft exhale of the air conditioning system.

 

“Who wants to just grab the elevator?” Malik motioned to where the lift was open, waiting to take someone up.

 

Bakura shook his head. “And do half his work for him?”

 

Yami also shook his head, and Seth frowned at the elevator's small interior. He missed his light. Seto could have explained things like elevators and Funny Bunny to him. The others walked over to another door and cautiously looked inside.

 

Yami looked back at the elevator then stepped into the stairwell, looking upwards at the thousands of steps leading upwards. “Just how many floors does this have?”

 

“Forty two.” Bakura slogged ahead starting up the stairs. “And his office is, of course, on the forty second floor.”

 

Yami shook his head and started his climb with Seth at his heels and Marik bringing up the rear. “Why do they always want their offices on the top floor? Wouldn't the bottom floor be better?”

 

“And miss the view of looking down on the competitors?” Marik plodded behind him. “Never.”

 

Bakura ignored them as they continued upwards, looking for traps. He was sure they were set someplace, and the stairs were the perfect place with their dim lighting, confined space, and blind curves. The only questions were where were they placed, and what kind of trap was set. If it were him, he'd do something along the lines of a lurking monster backed up with a magic pit trap. Distract with the monster and kill with the trap. Still there were other more direct ways. A timed trap set to activate a few seconds or moments after it was tripped to get everyone inside the kill zone. That might be a good one. Or perhaps a seal set on the floor…

 

Seth was actually relieved they were on the stairs. He hadn't liked the looks of that elevator, and while the stairs with their grill work showing drops of hundreds of feet weren't the most comforting thing, he liked having his feet set on something solid if the unexpected exploded around them. He kept an eye on the pharaoh, half listening to him bicker good naturedly with Marik about building size making up for physical endowments. He'd often had the same idea when looking at some of the more massive temples and statues that he'd grown up around. He remembered on old High Priest of the previous pharaoh who'd built a funerary temple that had taken over an entire hillside with statues, gardens, columns, and inscribed walls that had towered nearly up to the heavens. He knew for a fact, after living in the same temple compound with the man and sharing the same bathing pools, he had been woefully unimpressive.

 

After trudging upwards for a small eternity, Bakura stopped, frowning at a cement slab of a landing they were approaching.

 

“Problem.” Bakura slunk forward carefully. “There is something there.”

 

“Hmmm. Not much of a power signature.” Yami hummed softly, looking carefully around at the walls and stairs they were standing on.

 

Marik brushed by so he could stand with Bakura trying to get a look at the floor of the landing without coming closer. “Could be a seal.”

 

Seth considered. “Yes, that would fit the feel of it, but it's a little odd that a seal is detectable when it's unactivated.”

 

“Could a secretary of some other office worker tripped it?” Marik advanced another step and peered at the top of the landing.

 

Nothing was laying there. Nothing showed on the floor or the walls. Marik looked up towards the stairway hang above it. Nothing.

 

“We can't just stay here looking at the walls.” Bakura growled, prowling forward.

 

Marik caught his shoulder. “Wait a second. What if we go find a pedestrian and toss the pedestrian onto the landing? There were a few of them down below.”

 

Bakura narrowed his eyes, looking at Marik, “You want to carry some schmuck up thirty flights of stairs?”

 

“Errr. No.” Marik shook his head. “How about a secretary?”

 

“No.” Yami came up to peer over the edge of the landing. “One of us should go.”

 

“I vote for him.” Bakura gave Marik a shove forward. “He's expendable.”

 

“I'll go.” Seth stepped around them. “I remember how to deal with these. It's simple enough.”

 

Yami nodded and Seth stepped up to the landing. A small buzzing sound filled the air, a whiff of something burning, and Seth shook his head making a small gesture with his hand.

 

“An annoyance.” Seth looked down at the faint traces of the seal under his feet. “It wasn't set correctly. That's why we could detect it.”

 

“He really isn't doing well in the spell department.” Marik ambled up and stood next to Seth looking at the seal. “He really flubbed up the Dark Magic Attack, now he can't get a simple paralysis seal to work.”

 

The trudging continued. More stairs with the only highlight was Marik finding a nice mechanical pencil that he twirled around his fingers and occasionally used to write obscene messages on the walls. More trudging.

 

“I swear to all the gods, I will personally destroy every Stairmaster I ever come across.” Yami groaned as he paused on the thirty fifth floor to rub his thighs.

 

Bakura and Marik collapsed on the steps stretching their legs out in front of them with relieved sighs. Seth thumped himself down on the floor of the landing with a tired slump. The stairs were never ending. They just kept going, and going, never to stop.

 

“Tell me again about this elevator thing.” Seth looked over to Yami.

 

Bakura snorted, “You get in the box and cables haul the box up to the top with a pulley system. When you get to the correct place the door opens.”

 

Seth leaned back. “Cables are easy to cut.”

 

Yami nodded. “Foreword.”

 

Marik bounced to his feet and started up the stairs. “Personally, I always liked the idea of gassing people in an elevator shaft. The screams, the helpless pounding on the elevator door, it seems so… cozy.”

 

Bakura glared at his back. “Remind me why we brought him along.”

 

“Cannon fodder.” Yami stretched up to his toes in one last attempt to work the kinks out of his legs.

 

Bakura grunted and started up the stairs. “Good thinking.”

 

Seth waited till Yami was heading up to follow. “Are they always like this?”

 

Yami nodded. “Just go with it, and if by any chance they actually do try to kill each other step aside and hope they take each other out.”

 

Seth nodded continuing the weary trudging. It wasn't until Marik started singing 1000 Bottle of Beer on the Wall, that he really took his pharaoh's words to heart. By the time there was only 450 bottle of beer, he was sure that if Bakura didn't try to kill Marik, he'd do it. He was just contemplating if one could drown a person with a thousand bottles of beer when Marik suddenly stopped.

 

He was standing a few steps short of the next landing. “I can see the seal this time.”

 

“Damn. Only two more flights to go.” Bakura grumped, taking the opportunity to stretch out his legs.

 

Seth stepped around him and Yami. “I'll take care of it.”

 

Marik shook his head, “Nah, I've got it. It looks like a Nephaine seal. It doesn't even look like it was done right.” He sighed. “I should give classes… the quality of evil doing today is really pathetic. No pride. No craftsmanship.”

 

Seth shrugged and sat down to rest. “Fine.”

 

Yami sprawled across a few steps to rest. “I wonder why only seals? I would have used traps.”

 

Bakura shrugged and sprawled across the steps wondering if any vending machines had beer, “No imagination.” He cocked his thumb to where Marik was working out the kinks in his legs before tackling the seal. “I'm with him. This guy's rather pathetic.” He smirked. “Then again he was one of your priests…hmmm….your uncle too. Yep. Inbred and stupid….”

 

Yami growled, eyeing the thief. “So speaks the man who got his ass kicked by my inbred, stupid priests.”

 

Marik gave one last stretch and stepped up the final few steps and looked down at the seal on the floor. What kind of moron uses light colored chalk for a trap seal. Better to use grey. It blends in better. He stepped to the edge and raised his hand over it, beginning the spell to banish the seal. It was simple enough. The Seal of Nephaine was a basic confusion spell, just as long as he didn't step into the seal itself, it wouldn't affect him.

 

Bakura yawned and made a tired, half-hearted, insulting gesture at Yami, “Almost to the top. Any idea of what his favorite spells are?”

 

Yami settled back onto the stairs after returning the gesture. “He used to favor your trick, sealing souls in inanimate objects.”

 

Seth shook his head. “He tended to use indirect attacks and subtle…”

 

A huge flash of crimson light flared through the stairwell, a power surge of magic slamming into the three and flinging them back into the wall of the lower landing. A loud shrieking wail twisted around them. Yami managed to drag himself back to his feet and look up to where Marik was now surrounded by a wall of red and yellow lights swirling around him.

 

“Shit! Marik!” Bakura stumbled up the stairs. “Double seals, one inside the other.”

 

Seth grabbed Yami as the pharaoh leapt forward. “No. Don't touch it!”

 

Marik was standing frozen with one hand extended outward. His blue eyes looking at nothing. The red light spiraled around him in flashes of blood and gold. As they watched, Marik slowly started to fade.

 

Yami fought free of Seth, reaching out to Marik's dissipating form. “Marik!”

 

“What the fuck is it?” Bakura yelled, diving to the floor as a swirl of gold and red orbs flared outwards towards them.

 

Seth ducked as another surge of power blew through the stairwell, grabbing his pharaoh and flattening him beneath him. The wailing reached deafening levels then abruptly stopped. A clatter of metal hitting concrete chimed down the stairs. The three yamis cautiously looked up and then cautiously crept towards the landing. There was no sign of Marik, only the Millennium Rod lying on the landing gleaming faintly.

 

“Fuck.” Bakura looked down at the seal now burned into the cement. “Where the hell is he?”

 

Seth looked down at the seal. “Reintegration.”

 

“What?” Bakura stepped back. “You mean he's…”

 

“Back to being part of Malik.” Yami nodded then turned to Seth. “Is the seal still usable?”

 

Seth shook his head and stepped forward. “No. It's probably the reason the other seal didn't work, or why there isn't any traps. This type of seal draws a tremendous amount of power to set. To leave it open ended, to be used multiple times, would take more power than even a dozen well trained priests could manage. Akenaden simply didn't have the power to do more than this one spell.”

 

“What about Marik? We're now one short.” Bakura looked down at the Millennium Rod, then shrugged and bent to pick it up.

 

The Rod skittered out of his grasp with a metallic his of metal scraping on concrete. It rolled to a stop at Seth's feet, waiting like a patient puppy for its master to notice it. Seth gave it a disgusted scowl and scooped it up, grimacing as it slipped its way into his mind with a satisfied hum. “We'll make do.”

 

Yami stepped forward and headed up the last of the stairs. “Akenaden has a lot to answer for. Let's not keep him waiting. We can see what can be done for Marik when Akenaden is out of the way.”

 

Seth followed with Bakura grumbling behind him up the last two flights. They cautiously opened the door to the forty second floor. Like the lobby, there was no one present. The secretaries were gone. The office doors were all open and vacant. Only the door to the executive suite was closed.

 

“He's got to be in there.” Bakura stalked foreword.

 

~*~*~*

Kaiba and Jonouchi

~*~*~*

 

Jonouchi looked suspiciously at the coffee Honda handed him. “You made this?”

 

“Shut up and just drink it would you.” Honda thumped down on the couch and clicked the TV on then clicked it off as Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Kaiba turned to glare at him. “Sorry, sorry.”

 

Yugi turned back to the other hikaris. “Okay, so chaining them to our beds won't work. Anyone else have a good idea?”

 

“Ryou's suggestion of dumping the Millennium Items into the Shadow Realm sounds good.” Malik sipped his cola and glared off into space. “I'm sure Yuai would do you a favor and keep them there for awhile.”

 

Kaiba snorted, “That's great for you, but mine is roving free without an item. I prefer dumping the lot of them on an island and let them replay Castaway. If I feel forgiving, I'll even throw in the soccer ball.”

 

The hikaris thought it over. Honda eyed them carefully from across the room. Anzu, Mai and Mokuba were hiding in the kitchen. Ever since Malik realized that his dark was missing, all the hikaris had become rather…. Evil. Honda drank his coffee and picked up his discarded history text.

 

“I wouldn't want to be Yami when he gets back.” Jo muttered, watching Yugi viciously bite into a carrot stick, then chew it up, each clench of his jaws making his teeth grind ferociously together to decimate the tiny vegetable.

 

Honda eyed Ryou, who was playing with a pencil, stabbing it into a pad of paper as if murdering it, over and over again. “I suddenly feel bad for Bakura too.”

 

Jonouchi considered Kaiba. His lover was being rather restrained, in a homicidal, if-I-move-too-much-I might-kill-someone way. He puzzled it over then looked away. It wasn't any of his business. A yami's business was their hikaris and a hikari's business was their yamis. There wasn't room for anyone else. Except of course if you've been playing mattress inspector with the yami.

 

Honda flipped open his text and started to read. Jo watched him for awhile, glanced over to where the others were scheming over their sodas, then got up to go look at the flower again. It gave him an odd feeling every time he looked at it. The flower wasn't dangerous. Kaiba had shown him how to feed the plant by feeding its pot bits of toast, sending both into a contented, twisted rendition of Georgie Girl. The flower wasn't much of anything except strange, but every time he looked at it, he would remember something: sitting at a window looking over a garden, a slender, black haired, red eyed teen grinning at him; a tree with burning leaves in the center of a pond; sitting on a step with not-Seto's arms around him, resting against the dark's chest.

 

He sat down at the desk that the flower sat on and stroked its leaves like he remembered the teen doing. The flower burbled a second then started warbling something like Que Sera Sera. He watched it sway back and forth in time with the tune.

 

“Jo?” Kaiba stood at the door watching.

 

“Hey, Kaiba.” Jo smiled breezily at him. “You know, this really is a great flower.”

 

Kaiba nodded and came in to sit on the bed. “What's wrong?”

 

“Wrong?” Jo felt himself jump guiltily. “What could be wrong?” Oh, and by any chance do you know if I fucked your yami? And how ticked off are you if I did? He looked out the window with avid interest as if the entire English fleet was sailing through the small back ally.

 

Kaiba gave him a look. A look that plainly said his point had just been proven. Jo squirmed, watching Kaiba's reflection in the window. He hated worrying Kaiba over nothing. So what if he couldn't remember… well, apparently the last few years to go by how long his hair had grown. Though it was odd that Mokuba hadn't aged in the least…

 

“Why don't you start with the last thing you remember.” Kaiba prodded.

 

“Remember…Uhhhh, what's that got to do with…” Jo cringed as Kaiba gave him another look. This one said nice try.

 

“Okay, so my memory's a bit spotty.” Jo mumbled, looking everywhere but at Kaiba. Oh look, someone dropped a paper clip.

 

“Do you remember…” Kaiba stopped then shook his head. “Okay, maybe it would be better if you did that on your own.”

 

The look on Kaiba's face now said there's something you should know, but I'm not going to tell you. Jo considered the possibilities: a strange flower, the yamis having bodies, living in Yugi's house with Bakura and Marik, Yami Seto, all the yamis running off leaving their hikaris almost murderously worried, the tense expressions on everyone's faces, the broken furniture in the Motou's living room.

 

“Jo, about Seth…” Kaiba started.

 

Okay, brace yourself… Jo glanced at Kaiba's face. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a really bad thing that Kaiba looked…guilty. Kaiba could make most anything into being his fault. Jo sleeping with Yami Seth could easily have been twisted around to most any form for Kaiba to torture himself with. Computers? Kiaba's good. Dueling? Not bad. Running a multi-national corporation? He's got potential. Finding something to tear himself apart with? Absolute genius.

 

“I had sex with him.” Kiaba bowed his head, looking down at the floor, like a small child confessing they'd broken the goldfish bowl and put Mr. Fish in the toilet to live then accidently flushed.

 

Jonouchi waited. There had to be more. There was the whole part of him giving…Seth?.. a hand job. But Kaiba didn't look up, and he didn't say anything. “And…” He prompted.

 

“I'm sorry, Jo.” Kiaba's blue eyes darted up to look at him uncertainly then flashed away, hiding.

 

“Uhhmmm…okay….” Jo nodded. “Did I know about this, ya know, before?”

 

Kaiba shook his head.

 

“Okay. Here's another question.” Jonouchi watched Kaiba brace himself. “Did I sleep with him?”

 

Kaiba stopped looking intently at the rug and frowned up at Jo. “No. Not that I know of.” His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Why?”

 

“Hehe.” Jo scratched the back of his head. “Just wondering.”

 

Kaiba looked even more suspicious. “Why were you wondering?”

 

Jo inspected the drapes. One minute he's sorry. The next I'm the one squirming. “Just curious.”

 

Kaiba stepped forward. “Jo?” He paused and then shook his head. “He said you…”

 

“He said what?” Jonouchi glanced over to where Kiaba was standing looking thoughtfully at him.

 

“He said you and E'on were playing one day. Do you remember that?” Kaiba reached out, touching his arm.

 

“Sorta.” Jo mumbled.

 

Kaiba was quiet a moment. “Jo, talk to me.”

 

Jonouchi looked up from where he had been doing a minute inspection of the drapes. “I remember…some stuff. It's just kinda jumbled.”

 

“I'm sorry, about…Seth, but I can't say…”

 

“Seto…do you still…?” He forced himself to meet Kaiba's eyes. “Are we still…together?”

 

Kaiba reached out, his hand touching Jo's shoulder hesitantly. “Yes. As long as you want me.”

 

Jo looked up. “Hey.” He laughed softly, pulling Kaiba towards him. “That's going to be a long, long time.” He touched his forehead to Kaiba's, his lips hovering a breath from Kaiba's. “One question though.”

 

Kaiba jerked uneasily under his hands, his eyelashes fluttering nervously against his own. “What?”

 

“Just how good was he?”

~*~*~*

Authoress and her tired muses dodge behind flame proof bomb shelter waving small peace flags. It was necessary! I love Marik. He's one of my favorite characters to write, but it had to be done… I'm still working on a way to bring him back. After all, where would the hikaris go when they need a plan to keep their yamis in line?