Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh Arc V or any of its plot, characters or related franchise.

This story is an expansion (i.e. backstory; also a kind of drabble thing) to the comments about Yuto and the frog in both my stories 'Red Scarves and Wooden Crosses' and 'What is Family?'. It is set pre-series when Shun and Yuto are children. In any case, it's a fairly short story – I hope that you enjoy it.

"It's probably just sitting there."

"You don't know that for sure."

"I know this is a good idea."

"You wouldn't leave me there if I needed your help."

"You're not a frog," Shun replied stubbornly.

"It still needs help."

"It can swim to the bank like any other frog."

Yuto glared at his friend who glared just as stubbornly back. From its log floating atop the mid sized pond the frog in question croaked.

"I don't care. I'm going to help it," the nine year old said firmly.

The grey eyed boy turned back to where he had first spotted the amphibian stranded in the midst of cold waters and a mournful air. Had the frog look any less pitiful when its eyes had met Yuto's, the latter would have shied away from what he was about to do complaining of slimy skin and creepy bulging throats. He would have bemoaned the possibility of rabies in such wild animals – or any animals at all – an idea he had picked up from reading the open page of one of his mother's textbooks. And Shun, Shun would be laughing at the antics of his young friend as they continued their way home through the empty park.

Yes, if that had been the case, by now they would be almost to Yuto's home where the boy's mother would have taken them in, would have offered her son's friend a mug of hot chocolate whilst forcing said beverage upon her son. By now Shun would already be halfway to his own house and Yuto swathed in the blankets on his bed. By now they would both be safe and out of the cold.

But the green hued creature had looked at him with such pitiful, pitiful eyes.

The nine year old took a step forward. Almost simultaneously a hand grabbed his arm firmly, halting the young child's progress.

"Yuto…"

"Shun," came the responding whine.

"You're not going into that pond."

"Yes I am."

"No, you're not!"

"Yes."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

It was the eleven year old who broke off first, refusing to be pulled into such a childish argument. As his considerable experience with his sister had taught him, it would get him nowhere in any case.

Shun let go of Yuto and bit his nails. It was a nasty habit, one that his parents were trying (and failing) to get him out of. The boy took no pleasure form the habit and it was one he would willing stop. Yet, it was because of things like this, because of things Yuto would pull, that his little sister would pull, that his fingers were always driven back to his teeth.

The child with the yellow glare so fabled in the unimaginable future continued to bite his nails. He would have to try and convince his friend another way.

Meanwhile Yuto had made productive use of his older friend's distraction. The nine year old had quickly shed his jacket and shoes, followed just as quickly by his socks. Almost immediately the exposed flesh of his feet had protested against the frigidness of both the air and ground, his thin arms reflexively crossing over each other against the thought of being frozen.

The grey eyed youth stood for a moment in such a position as his friend muttered a little way away. To round, solemn frog eyes blinked up at him. Yuto exhaled, whatever doubts that had begun to creep up on him leaving with the rush of air.

Another breath and the boy was moving determinedly forward once more.

"What are you doing?" Shun's sharp words cried.

Yuto gasped.

The water was truly cold, colder than the crisp winter air the nine year old discovered all too quickly as he stepped into its depths. To penguins and polar bears and researchers in icier places, more than ten degrees from freezing. To a young boy, however, it was cold. The material of his pants clung like leeches to his legs, a sensation as unpleasant as the silt squelching between his toes. Still, the young boy continued forward until the water had passed his knees, then his thighs.

"Come back up here, Yuto," Shun half commanded, half pleaded from his spot on the bank. "Frogs can swim. You don't need to freeze to death trying to get it."

"But it looks hurt," Yuto responded with overflowing childish empathy for the amphibian.

Said amphibian stared at him from the log with its mournful gaze.

"You don't even like frogs!"

The grey eyed child did not bother responding. His mind had already been made up and the outcome was as resolute as the foundations of Heartland. Come what may, the essence of the city would always remain and the boy would always jump in the pond to save the frog.

"You don't even like animals!"

Yuto moved further into the water, ignoring both his friend and his now slightly chattering teeth. The frog was not that far away from the bank, merely trapped on the log it had chosen to sit upon. Animal or not, he could not just leave the poor thing there in the cold.

"Darn it, Yuto!"

It faintly registered in said boy's mind that his friend must be very angry indeed to use what both children considered a very vulgar curse.

"I'm going to tell your mother," Shun threatened.

It did no more good than the liquid in the pond to stop Yuto's progress. The mud sucking on his feet like a selfish babe on the teat of a milk bottle faired little better in the same endeavor. The child was determined and cold and so more determined to get the stranded frog and get out of the water as soon as possible.

As it was, he had reached the point where he was forced to stand on the tips of his toes to keep his chin above the surface of the pond. Yuto looked out at the log. It was not far away; a few easy strokes and the boy would reach it. So up went his feet, switching from walking to cutting through the water with nothing beneath it save more water.

One. Two. Three revolutions of his arms in a loose imitation of freestyle that kept his head out of the cool liquid and the grey eyed boy arrived at his destination. He reached a hand to grab the hollow log whilst his other moved slowly towards the frog to reassure it, his feet treading madly to keep him afloat.

"Here," Yuto murmured softly. "I won't hurt you. Let me take you back to solid ground and out of the cold." He paused, thinking. "It might be easier if I just guide the log back. What do you think?"

The frog blinked.

Yuto's hand on the log slipped. The arms of the nine year old flailed wildly in an attempt to maintain his balance in the water.

This action was soon followed by an almighty splash as Yuto's limbs tangled briefly with the log and pulled half of it under as he descended into the depths of the pond.

"YUTO!"

Not a second later and toes found the bottom of the pond and pushed off it. Like a cork Yuto burst back through the liquid surface, his arms and legs already working to keep the boy afloat. The frog glided merrily past the spluttering boy with barely a ripple marring the cold water behind it.

"YUTO! YUTO!"

"I'm fine, Shun," the grey eyed and now thoroughly soaked boy called back. "You don't need to come in. I can make my own way back."

Common sense battled with a fierce protective instinct upon the point where the water of the pond mingled with the muddy bank. Eventually common sense won out and Shun remained where he was halfway to knee deep in the water, knowing it would do no good if both of them ending up wet but keeping an anxious eye on his younger friend all the same.

Yuto, meanwhile, focused on making deliberate strokes slowed by the cold that would push him back towards his friend. It took only a handful of strokes to push him back to where his feet could securely walk along the floor of the pond. Now his teeth truly were chattering, regretting the unneeded rescue mission as much as his burning cheeks.

Although, if one were to be completely honest, the flush in Yuto's face was likely from more than mere embarrassment.

"Annoying…creature." His chattering teeth made it hard to get the words out.

"I told you the frog could swim," Shun muttered as he helped pull his younger friend from the water.

"Shut…up."

"We need to get you home." The seriousness of the older boy's voice cut off any complaints from his shivering companion before they could grow. "At least you were smart enough to take off your shoes and jacket."

Said items of clothing were hastily shoved back on him along with Shun's own jumper. Yuto was left reeling for several minutes, the cold muddling his thought processes. It was only after they took several steps towards the direction of home that he even realised what had happened.

"But…you'll…get cold, Shun!" The grey eyed child cried as he tried to wriggle out of his friend's gifted article of winter warmth in as fiery a fashion as his subdued state allowed.

"Leave it on, Yuto," the eleven year old said firmly. "I'll be fine. You were the crazy one who went into the pond."

"Shut…up!"

Yuto almost toppled over his numb feet and bulky layers as he attempted to shove his larger friend. Shun caught him with an amused smirk. The expression quickly morphed into one of concern, however, when the younger child sneezed.

"Home. Now."

There was no arguing with that tone so Yuto did not try. Instead he stumbled along with Shun tugging roughly on his hand both to ensure that they stayed together and to hurry the nine year old child's pace.

In reality it did not take long for the pair to reach their destination; they had not been far when they had been waylaid by a seemingly stranded frog. Yet, to Yuto, every step was tiring. His teeth were still chattering and his wet clothes chaffing his skin. His arm hurt from where Shun had refused to ease up on his grip or swift steps. His nose was beginning to run and also would not ease up no matter how much he sniffed. Overall, he was more than annoyed at the slimy creature that had been responsible for it all.

This had not helped with his dislike of frogs at all.

But the grey eyed child could not deny that he would do the same again at the next woeful look an amphibian sent him.

"Shun, why are you so- Yuto! What happened?"

The child in question blinked owlishly up at where his mother stood against the door leading home. He sneezed once more.

"Come inside, now," the woman ushered the two boys into the house with great concern. "We need to get you out of those wet things and into something warmer. Here, Shun, sit down. You look freezing too. I'll call your mother and tell her you'll be staying the night, unless you want her to fetch you? Could you tell me what… What do you mean he was trying to save frog? Of all the stupid things…"

The fierce scolding Yuto received from his mother that night was nothing compared to the very near scare of pneumonia that had Shun throwing coats over Yuto when the younger child so much as glanced outside for the remainder of the winter. Needless to say that he was kept away from any ponds and frogs as well.

And from the midst of his semi-permanent cocoon of blankets when his mother had finally conceded he could relocate to the couch instead of his bed, words had been hammered into his head alongside a firm finger poking him with every syllable.

"Frogs that can swim don't need saving."

And every time the words were followed by a childish "eww" when Yuto sneezed on his stern older friend in response.

Age wise, Shun is about 3 years older than Yuto (given the former is 17 in the anime where the latter is 14). In this story I figured Yuto's birthday was before Shun's and so he's 9 and Shun in 11 (technically 2 years between them). At 9 I figured Yuto would be a good enough swimmer (assuming he has learnt how to swim) to swim on his own a short distance in a mid-sized and shallow pond, despite the water being cold (albeit not freezing). If my facts are off, then my last defence is that this is fiction… ;D

At this point, I don't think Yuto has met Ruri, at least officially, considering the anime shows he was good friends with Shun first. Thus she doesn't appear here (except when Shun mentions her). On the length of Shun and Yuto's friendship, I could be wrong with the year they became friends/how long they were friends for (I wouldn't expect it to be too long before 9 and 11 though - and Yuto at least met Ruri when he was 11 to 12 - and at this point I don't think they are quiet best friends yet as they are on the show) but ah well. It works in my head and for this story, so you'll just have to forgive me.

Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed this short little story from me. I would appreciate it if you could leave a review.