Chapter 1
"We interrupt this program for breaking news--"
"You don't suppose that's-?" Tristan asked, hopefully, sitting up from slouching on Yugi's couch.
Yami couldn't help his doubt. The last few times, the disappointment had hurt. "Don't get your hopes up, Tristan. There's been lots of breaking news lately."
"Yeah, but--"
"Will you guys shut up?!" Téa exclaimed angrily, turning a sharp glare on them. "We won't know either way if you guys keep talking!"
Both males sighed and turned their attention back to the TV screen.
"Earlier today at approximately ten o'clock, a fire broke out in a warehouse, supposedly warehouse number seven on the pier, which decimated the facility."
"Oh, that's so important," Yugi muttered, crossing his arms angrily.
"While firefighters responded to the fire, three people were found in the water nearby, two of them in fair condition and the other in serious condition. They're believed to be the three missing teenagers kidnapped from their homes four months ago."
A stunned silence soon followed. The four teens stared at the TV for a few minutes before Téa let out an excited shriek. "We have to go to the hospital to see them!"
-z-z-z-
"This... this isn't possible. It's insane!"
"His body is healing at three times the normal human rate!"
"Put them under lock and key. Let no one in to see them."
-z-z-z-
Mokuba sat up quickly, gasping, and looked around wildly, clenching a hand over his pounding heart. He looked around wildly, then sighed in relief; it was a hospital room. A nice, safe hospital room.
"Mokuba?" Ryou asked softly, sitting up (but at a slower pace) as well. "You're awake as well?"
The younger teen nodded. "Yeah. I don't quite remember what happened, though. Just an explosion and Joey screaming something at me is all that comes to mind when I think back on it."
Both boys looked at the bed placed between them, where the blond was sleeping peacefully. The gentle rise and fall of his chest informed them that he was fine; he trusted where he was to be safe and so he slept deeply for the first in months. It would only be a matter of time before he woke up in the same, disoriented way they had, however.
"So... what are we supposed to tell everyone?" Mokuba asked softly, looking down at his hands.
"Should we tell them?" Ryou replied, turning his gaze on his lap. "Would they still accept us if we did tell them, or are they better off not knowing?"
Both silently agreed to ask Joey when he woke up. Joey had been there a good two weeks before they had and, though he was absent-minded and a bit slow on the uptake outside, was very knowledgeable about the goings on in the warehouse. He would offer up what he believed should happen and they would discuss it until a decision was made.
"...So... how long do you think it'll take--" Mokuba began, only to be interrupted by what he was going to ask.
Joey sat up quickly, panting wildly, as he swung at the air in front of him. He blinked for a few seconds, stunned that no one had been in front of him to hit, then sighed and fell back again. "Ugh... This much white can only mean we're in a hospital."
"Joey, what are we going to do?" Mokuba asked quickly, getting right to the point. "They must've seen us healing, and--"
"Answer no questions. Give a round about answer. Refuse to answer if necessary," the blond answered immediately. "It was ordered that all evidence be destroyed; we are evidence, so we'll be destroyed. Everyone who knows about us, what we are, will be killed as well. If they don't know, they can't be hurt."
"They wouldn't believe we'd be stupid enough to tell anyone?" Ryou asked, frowning.
Joey sat back up and sighed. "They believe we might be guilty enough to tell. People will ask where we were. People who care about us and will guilt-trip us into telling them. When you feel like breaking down, run and come to me. I'll take care of it."
"...Okay..."
The blond turned his head toward the door slowly, a small smile gracing his lips. "Your brother's here, Mokuba."
"Big brother?!" the raven-haired teen exclaimed, grinning. "How close is he?!"
"Close enough that you'll hear him yelling to let him in to see you. I heard we're to be kept under lock and key and no one is to see us."
"Easily fixed," Ryou murmured, turning his gaze on the window.
Mokuba frowned. "I'm sure you'd love to walk around in your hospital gown, Ryou."
"Again, easily fixed," the albino answered, smiling innocently.
The trio didn't even flinch as the door was slammed open. Mokuba did, however, jump off his bed as the door swung open, so Seto was met with a black blur before he fell to the ground. Ryou and Joey snickered to themselves but quickly put on straight faces as the elder Kaiba sent them a glare.
"Seto! You have no idea how much I missed you!" Mokuba exclaimed, helping his brother to his feet. On second thought, to comfort his brother, he added, "Oh! But don't worry! Joey watched out for me!"
Seto raised an eyebrow and turned his gaze on the blond, then snorted in disgust. "That doesn't make me feel any better, Mokuba. I'm getting you out of here as soon as possible."
"Tch," Joey muttered, rolling his eyes, then followed Ryou's longing gaze to the window. "We'll be lucky to get out of here in a month."
"Did you say something, mutt?" the brunet asked sharply, turning a glare on him.
Joey looked around in confusion, blinking innocently. "Who, me? Naw, why would I say anythin'?"
"...I want pants, Seto. Can you get me some pants?" Mokuba asked suddenly, taking the attention from Jounouchi.
Seto sighed, but his cold eyes warmed momentarily. "I suppose I can find some around here."
As soon as the door closed, the raven-haired boy let out a soft whine. "I don't know how long I'll be able to lie to him! He's always taken care of me, and now--"
"All of the money and technology in the world will not protect you," Ryou stated softly, frowning. "They will find us in due time."
"Meaning either way... we're going to die?" Mokuba asked softly, tears welling up in his eyes.
Joey growled softly and made a fist, scowling. "Like hell! I'm fighting back with all I got!" His chocolate eyes deepened to an angry amber. "And thanks to them, all I got is pretty damn a lot."
"What about when Serenity asks, Joey?" the raven-haired teen asked, frowning.
The blond relaxed his fist slowly, sorrow overtaking the anger of his expression. "...I dunno. For now, let's just tell them that we can't remember much of what happened. Just lots of fuzzy stuff. Okay? They should accept that answer for now."
"What about Bakura?" Ryou asked suddenly, looking alarmed. "We have a connection, we--"
"You can block it, can't ya?" Joey asked softly. "I usually wouldn't ask you to do this, but..."
"I understand." The albino bowed his head. "...I wouldn't want him to be hurt either."
Mokuba let out a loud, frustrated groan. "Uuugh! They ruined our lives!"
"They ruined more than that. They ruined our humanity," Ryou replied, falling back onto his pillow with a sigh. After a small pause, he chuckled softly and looked at the blond. "Now that I think about it, when Kaiba calls you a dog, it'll sort of be like an inside joke now, don't you think?"
Joey shot him a short glare. "Can it, bird brains!"
The albino smiled innocently and let his eyes flash a violent shade of acid green before returning to their natural brown. "Yes sir, Mr. Mutt sir."
A soft growl escaped the blond's lips. "I'm gonna rip your wings right outta your--"
"Hey! Guys!" Mokuba exclaimed, frowning. "Shouldn't you keep it quiet?"
Ryou smiled innocently. "It's not my fault he's so easy to mess with." He turned his gaze back on the taller boy. "Right, Mr. Mutt?"
"I'll Mr. Mutt you!" Joey replied, scowling. Unfortunately for the blond, the door opened before he could show Ryou exactly how he was going to 'Mr. Mutt' him.
Seto raised an eyebrow slightly as he found Mokuba laughing at some joke he'd obviously missed, then rolled his eyes and sighed. "I got your clothes, Mokuba. Hurry up and get dressed. We're leaving."
"Leaving?" Mokuba asked, tilting his head. He looked back at Jounouchi and Ryou. "All of us?"
"No, just you," his brother replied, scowling.
The raven-haired teen sighed sadly. "...Oh." He turned his gaze on his two companions. "...Joey, I..."
"Moneybags, do me one favor and answer a question for me," Joey ordered suddenly, looking up at the elder Kaiba. "My dad. Is it true?"
Seto scowled at him. "What are you talking about, mutt?"
The blond scowled right back at him, eyes steeling as he anxiously awaited his answer. "My dad. Is it true? Is he dead? Or was that just something they used to break me?"
"...I don't know," the brunet answered truthfully. "I've been busy."
As the older teen bowed his head, hiding his eyes from view, Mokuba quickly added, "I can ask!"
"No. I don't think I can stomach it anymore," Joey replied, not looking up. "Maybe I'll ask someone tomorrow."
"...Whatever, mutt. Come on, Mokuba."
The raven-haired teen frowned as he looked back at his friends one last time, eyes flashing a melancholy red-violet before fading back to gray. "...Bye, guys. I'll talk to you later."
"Of course ya will, squirt," Joey answered, smiling sadly. "And so will the doctors and the press."
"Shut up, Joey!" Ryou exclaimed, covering his face. "I don't want to think about it yet!"
"Have someone send in a checkerboard or somethin', squirt! Bird brains and I 're probably gonna get really bored!" the blond added, right before the door shut behind the two Kaibas.
Ryou looked appalled. "'Bird brains?!' That is so rude!"
Joey scowled at him. "And how do ya think 'Mr. Mutt' makes me feel, huh?!"
"I didn't do it to be mean!"
The blond opened his mouth to reply, then paused. "...The gang's on their way up. I can hear them."
Ryou sighed and covered his head with his pillow. "Ah, they won't let them in!"
"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Joey answered, looking mildly amused. "If Yami or Téa have anything to say 'bout it."
"...Or Bakura, if he's with them," the albino added softly, uncovering his face.
Joey let out a bark of laughter that was more bark than laugh and slapped his thigh. "Oh, I wish I could see 'em try to stop 'im!"
"Oh, I hope he doesn't hurt anyone too badly..."
The blond waved it away. "He won't want to get on your bad side right after ya got back, Ryou. Don't worry about it."
-z-z-z-
Seto frowned slightly as he watched his brother moving from one side of the limo to the other, gazing out the windows as if he was expecting to see something. "Mokuba, what's wrong?"
The younger Kaiba didn't even pause in his crawling toward the opposite window. "Nothin'. Just worried about Joey and Ryou. After all, Joey's the one that took care of us."
"...Took care of you how?"
The raven-haired teen stiffened, hand clenching into a fist, before he crawled back to the other window. "He kept them from hurting us."
Seto felt a wave of anger welling up. "Who--"
"Seto, I'd rather not talk about it," Mokuba interjected, turning to look at him sadly. "I... It's just... too soon. Maybe I..."
"As long as you promise to talk to me at some point," the brunet replied, sighing, as he looked out the window next to him.
The car was silent for a while before Mokuba suddenly stated, "I want to be able to see Joey when I want, Seto. I know you don't like him, but he took care of me. ...I... would appreciate being able to thank him."
Seto sighed again. "...Just how exactly did the mutt 'protect' and 'take care of' you?" he asked skeptically.
His younger brother smiled sadly, but the pride he felt for Jounouchi still showed. "When they tried to beat Ryou and me, he'd get in front of us and wouldn't let them. He took our beatings for us." His smile slowly faded. "Since he made more trouble than Ryou and I, they kept calling him bad names like 'worthless mutt' and 'bastard dog.' ...And... they kept telling him that even if we escaped, he'd have nowhere to go, because they'd killed his father. So even when he gets out, he's going to be homeless. I wish he didn't have to go through anymore pain."
"...I see." Seconds later, the brunet's pocket began to vibrate and beep to the tune of a song that he didn't know nor did he care about. He pulled out a bright green cell phone and raised an eyebrow, then tossed it at Mokuba. "Your cell phone. I found it on the floor the morning that you-- ...I found it on the floor."
Mokuba blinked innocently but opened the phone. "Hello? ... Joey, what's wrong? ... Well, yeah, I mean-- ... Don't panic, Joey, it-- ... So who are you staying with?" He paused, then burst out into cheerful laughter. "He seriously said that?! Pft, he would!" He paused again, nodding slightly as he listened to what Seto guessed was Jounouchi ranting, before shrugging helplessly. "Sorry, Joey. I'd invite you to stay with us, but I'd like to spend some time with my brother. ... No, I understand. Okay. Bye."
"Who's he staying with?" the brunet asked, trying not to seem interested.
"Ryou. Apparently Bakura, Marik, and Malik managed to frighten the hospital staff into letting them go," Mokuba answered, the amusement he felt clear on his face. The amusement soon fell from his expression. "...Though his father is dead, and his mother doesn't want to take him. Now he's got to deal with Bakura on a twenty-four hour basis."
Seto snorted and turned his gaze back out the window. "That's something I'd never wish on anyone."
"Even Gozaburo?" Mokuba asked softly, unsure if the question would set his brother's anger off.
The brunet was silent for a few minutes. "...Do you think it would be possible for that crazy yami to drag Gozaburo's soul from hell so he could torture it?"
"Uh... Let's talk about pie," the younger teen answered, smiling nervously and rubbing the back of his head. "Do you think you could make an apple pie?"
"I thought we agreed that I'd never try to use the kitchen if you'd never try to fix the plumbing on your own again?"
"...Let's stop by a bakery and pick up an apple pie," Mokuba sighed, knowing that they were both hopeless in the kitchen unless it was coffee or cup-of-noodles.