A/N: For those of you asking, yes, tempest is a weather term ^^ Its usually refered to out of control or "wilder" storms. ^w^
Disclaimer: ... Something almost all stories have in common: The disclaimer. *sighs* . I dont own or claim to own YGO. And that's all I'm gonna say, because...well..disclaimers are boring and nobody reads them anyway. (watch me get thrown off this website now for not having a proper disclaimer!)
~Chapter 2: Grin and Bare It.
"Kaiba, where are we going?"
"Shut up mutt. You weren't given permission to speak."
Jounouchi glowered at the man next to him. This was like…kidnapping! Or, in his case it seemed more like "puppy-snatching". The blonde crossed his arms and slumped down angrily in his seat, averting his eyes away from Kaiba. Kaiba noticed this action but ignored it. Let him be that way. Kaiba wasn't in the mood to talk right now. He struggled to keep his anger under control. Unfortunately, the sight of his broken brief case in his lap just made his blood boil.
"Kaiba-sama," the limo's driver looked back at Kaiba through the review mirror. "To Kaiba Corp, correct? You're coffee break is over after-"
"I'm afraid we're going to be taking a quick detour home. I have business to attend to."
Kaiba sneered and rapped his knuckles against the arm rest of the car. Jou sat sulking. So he was being kidnapped and taken to Rich Boy's mansion? Well this was just turning out to be a great day.
"I wanna go home."
"I can't allow that right now. You're indebted to me now…mutt." Kaiba ranted, not even bothering to look at the sulking blonde.
"I…dammit…" The blonde didn't have a comeback… After a moments thought and silence, Kaiba's words hit him full on.
Jounouchi Katsuya was in debt…to his arch rival... Kaiba Seto. Jou's whole body froze at the thought of it. He was in utter and complete shock…or was this feeling fear…he was so traumatized he couldn't tell. Kaiba felt him tense up and for the first real time, he actually looked down at Jou.
"What?"
"N-Nothin'. Nothin' at all."
Kaiba grimaced but left it at that, not pushing any further in the conversation. Silence once again followed. Jou hardly even noticed. His thoughts were on overdrive as they raced from different subjects in mere seconds.
"What am I gonna do? I don't have money! Every cent I've ever earned, Pops' found a way to rob me of it! The last bit I had this week was my birthday money from last year and it went into this months rent! How can I possibly pay this guy back? I'm in deep shit. That's all I can say. Maybe I can cut him a deal…Hah, like he'd ever be up for that. This guy'll be glad to suck every cent I have into his sweaty money hungry palms. 'Course he won't get much. I guess I'll end up givin' all I can give. Damn…I wish this was all a dream."
"You might as well be thinking out loud mutt." Kaiba said with a sneer. Jou's head shot up in embarrassment.
"What?"
"It's obvious to tell what you're thinking about." Kaiba answered simply, once again turning away from the blonde. "Your face is like a book." Jou gritted his teeth.
"It is not! I can hide my emotions if I want to! Hell, you don't know anythin' 'bout me!"
Jou sat up and turned his head towards the window once more, a scowl embedded in his face. Kaiba was surprised by his outburst, and didn't know what a proper response to that would be. He turned his head to his lap in concentration, but still couldn't think of an answer. He finally decided on something that sounded half-way proper and turned towards Jounouchi, preparing to say it.
"Jounouchi, I-"
"Kaiba-sama." The driver interrupted as he slammed down on the breaks. "We have arrived." Kaiba abruptly forgot about Jou's outburst and instead turned, opened his door and stepped out of the car, slamming the door once he was out.
" 'Ey! What about me?" Jou's livid muffled voice yelled from inside the car as he banged angrily on the windows. Kaiba gritted his teeth as he walked over and opened the door for Jou, pulling him out by the collar of his jacket. Jou's knees fell to the ground, his face thrust upwards, just inches away from Kaiba's glaring eyes.
"Don't claw at the windows mutt. You got finger prints everywhere." He spat, tossing Jou to the ground and walking over to slam his door shut as well. Jou angrily picked himself off the ground and dusted himself out, his blood boiling angrily.
"That may be! But ya didn't hafta throw me onto the ground ya bastard." Jou lifted his fists up threateningly. Kaiba merely looked away.
"Whatever mutt."
He held onto his briefcase and seemed to look up at the sky, deep in thought. Clouds raged around the Kaiba mansion, and off in the distance, Kaiba saw lightning flash. It was far enough away no thunder was heard to follow but it was obvious another storm was coming.
"Hurry up and get inside. I don't want you smelling like wet dog if it rains again."
With that said, Kaiba hurried quickly into his mansion, leaving Jou with no other choice than to follow. Once inside Jou fell speechless. This mansion was everything he'd ever dreamed of and more. He glared over at the CEO who seemed to take this for granted. He watched as Kaiba left through a room that looked like the kitchen. Jou followed more slowly as he tried to take in the mansion all at once. Kaiba poked his head back around the threshold of the room and sighed.
"Mutt, take of your shoes. You'll dirty the house."
Jou stopped in his tracks and then came to his senses.
"O-Oh yeah, sorry 'bout that." He smiled innocently and walked back over to the entrance, kicking off his wet shoes. His socks were soaked through as well, so he didn't see the difference in just taking off his shoes. His socks were just as bad. He shrugged and walked onto the wood floor anyway.
"Woooah." Jou mumbled as he caught his balance after slipping on the wood floor. His ankle already hurt enough from earlier, he defiantly didn't need to fall again. He balanced himself out and then walked in the room Kaiba had entered.
The kitchen. Was. HUGE. Jou couldn't believe his eyes. This guy actually LIVED like this? Hell, this kitchen was as big, if not bigger, than Jou's apartment. He gulped, suddenly feeling kind of intimated by it all. He noticed Kaiba had taken off his overcoat and hung it over one of his kitchen chairs, his briefcase lay solo on the table, the broken parts of it piled up next to it. Kaiba was leaning against the nearest counter top glaring at his busted case. Jou felt he was about to suffocate in this deadly atmosphere that he was, unfortunately, the cause of. Kaiba shut his eyes and began to speak.
"Now, let's ge-"
"Seto…Nii-sama…? Is that you…?" A tired voice murmured, followed by the thump of footsteps down a nearby stairs. Mokuba appeared in the kitchen, clothed in his pajamas, sleepily rubbing his tired eyes.
"Welcome home Seto…" Mokuba yawned, not noticing the blonde in the threshold yet. "I thought you were only working until 12 tonight…? It's already 2:30… What happened…?" Mokuba continued to ask, even though it was apparent he didn't really care and just wanted to go back to sleep.
"I was supposed to be back from working, Mokuba, by 12 but…unfortunately, a minor conflict has occurred." He paused a moment. "Two have actually. Go on back to bed; I can settle things easily." Jou's left eyebrow cocked. There was another reason...? He was certain he didn't count as two mishaps in the young CEO's day...There had to be something else. Unfortunately, the blonde didn't have the courage to ask.
Mokuba merely nodded and began to turn back towards the stairs, until his eye caught a certain silent blonde.
"…Huh…?" Mokuba asked, rubbing his eyes hard and then staring strangely at Jou. "…Am I dreaming? No way Jounouchi's here. Right Nii-sama?" Mokuba pinched his arm lightly then turned back to his brother.
"Ow!"
Seto smiled and walked over to ruffle the boy's raven hair.
"No…you're not dreaming. The mutt really is here. He stuck his nose in some business he shouldn't have, but everything will turn out fine. Go on up Mokuba, I'll explain in the morning."
Mokuba looked like he could care less at the moment. The only thing on his mind right now was to get back up into his bed and fall asleep soundly again. He was in the middle of a nice dream at the time anyway.
"Alright Seto. G'night."
"It's technically morning, Mokuba."
Mokuba waved him away and let out another heavy yawn as he walked back upstairs. He sluggishly gripped the hand rail and pulled himself up the stairs, slowly dozing back off.
"G'night…err…Morning, Jounouchi." Mokuba managed to say before disappearing out of sight. Moments later, a loud crashing sound was heard along with the resonance of snores. Kaiba sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Good kid, I think he's tired though. I bet he didn't even make it into his bed." Jou couldn't help but comment. Kaiba looked through his hands and gazed at him with a sigh.
"You're probably right… When was the last time you showered?"
"Eh?"
"Just answer the question mutt."
"Um…well…do you really wanna know the answer?" Jou replied sheepishly.
"…Probably not. Here, follow me. I'll show you our shower. I need to put Mokuba to bed anyway. Then, we'll get down to business." He finished the last of his speech with a sneer as he walked upstairs. Jou followed hesitantly, not sure if he was ready to face Kaiba's angry brief case wrath. As they turned the corner after the flight of stairs, Mokuba was seen sacked out on the floor, a mere few feet away from his room. The door was slightly ajar and the whole hallway, along with the rooms, was totally dark. Kaiba pointed down the hallway.
"Our bathrooms that way, last door on the right."
Jou merely nodded and stepped quietly over Mokuba; he tip-toed the rest of the way down the hall. He fumbled his way down the long stretch hallway and tripped into the room, catching himself from a face plant with the door's threshold. He caught his breath and waited for his heart to rise out of his stomach. Jou fingered around for a light switch and finally found…four. He raised an eyebrow and flipped all of them on. The bathroom lights lit up along with a very loud fan. He did a small inward scream as he fumbled to turn it off. He flipped each switch on and off at least once before settling that the third to last switch controlled the fan. After flipping that one down and the rest up Jou shut the door quietly and slumped to the floor in relief. He wiped away imaginary sweat before standing up and facing the bathroom. He nearly choked on his spit. He couldn't believe his eyes. Bathrooms were supposed to be small, cramped rooms with an occasional shower, not a whole other living space! Jou's jaw dropped as he examined the huge room that consisted of a shower, bath, toilet,... and five sinks. This just wasn't right...
Jou shook his jealousy away. He peeled off his socks and tossed them aside, letting his feet touch the cold marble floor. He shivered a bit as he continued to undress until he was only in boxers. He limped over to the shower and tried to turn it on. The water roared out, missing the tub completely and instead poured out onto the floor.
"OH FOR CHRIST'S SAKE!" Jou yelled loudly and turned and flipped knobs in an effort to shut the water off. He finally did the magic combination and the water shut off. Jou sighed and leaned up against the sinks. This was torture. He looked down at the water mess he made and sighed. Kaiba was going to kill him.
~o~o~o~o~
Kaiba slowly stroked sleeping Mokuba's hair as he lay him down in his bed. With all the noise Jou was making, he was surprised the kid was still asleep. Even after being scooped up by Kaiba and put in his bed, the boy hadn't moved. Kaiba sat on the foot of his bed another minute, just watching his peaceful brother's face as he slept. Kaiba gave his hair another stroke before he got up to leave. As he slowly began to shut the door, he heard Mokuba say something quietly in his sleep.
"Must…wait…for…Seto…Can't fall…asleep…" The raven haired boy tossed onto his side before silently snoozing again. Kaiba felt guilt tug at his heart. His brother had been waiting for him, thinking he'd have been home around regular time. Kaiba shut the door silently and leaned his back against it, silently cursing at himself. Mokuba was so tired because of him…He couldn't help but feel bad. It wasn't Jounouchi's fault he was late either really...He had planned on working overtime anyway. Another sleepless night wasn't going to kill him. Jounouchi's raging voice woke Kaiba from his depressed state.
"OH FOR CHRIST'S SAKE!"
Kaiba sighed and silently smiled. Jounouchi Katsuya…he was a strange one. A bit mentally challenged to…but definitely strange. Kaiba rocked himself to his feet and began to walk towards the bathroom, light seeping from under the door. He stood outside it for a moment his arms crossed in front of his chest. He heard Jou curse under his breath as he thumped around in the bathroom. Kaiba reached out and rapped a few times on the door.
"What?" Jou snapped.
"What do you mean "what"? This is my house. I'm the one who should be asking the questions."
Silence.
"Does the mutt need help or something?" Kaiba continued anyway.
Silence.
"…N-No." Jou finally answered.
"Like I'm going to believe that bullshit." Kaiba spat and placed his hand on the knob. "I'm coming in." He turned the knob before Jou could protest and let himself in. Jou stood a few feet in front of him in only his boxers (which were drenched) and a scowl on his face; he was breathing heavy, Kaiba guessed due to anger. He was holding one…no…two soaked towels. The floor underneath was sparkling clean…and damp... with mutiple scattered puddles. Another dog joke found it's way into his head, one dealing around not being "house broken" but he kept it to himself.
"I didn't say you could just barge in here, ya prick!" Jou yelled in an effort to cover his boxers up with the towels. Kaiba rolled his eyes.
"It's my house you know. Besides, you're making such a racket I'm surpirsed the city's still asleep."
Jou mumbled something else before speaking loudly again and throwing the towels down in discust. He could really care less right now. It was a bit...awkward... and uncomfortable, to be standing half naked in the bathroom with your arch rival, but was it really any different than P.E?
"I hate your shower."
Kaiba didn't really hear him. He had to admit, his thoughts were elsewhere. And they weren't on making up stupid jokes either. Jou looked half attractive standing there, drenched in the water, and his tan muscular body seemed to attract Kaiba for some reason. A slight blush rose to Kaiba's cheeks after he realized what he'd just thought. He didn't even realize Jou was calling his name in annoyance.
"Oiiii! Kaiba?" Jou called walking closer to Kaiba and waving a hand in front of his unresponsive face. Kaiba came to his senses quicker than expected and slapped Jou's hand lightly.
"Get your paw out of my face."
Jou took a few steps back, an amused grin on his face.
"Well, excuse me." He turned his back on Kaiba and walked back over to the shower. He fell to his knees and fiddled with the knobs that worked the thing. He shook his hurt ankle lightly, determined not to let Kaiba notice.
Kaiba's eyes couldn't help but drift off…and he soon found himself staring at Jou's a-
"Hey Kaiba, mind helping me out?" Jou asked turning to face his rival. He gave him a confused look as he saw Kaiba had zoned out again. Jou glared at him. He'd teach Kaiba to zone out when HE was around. A mischievous grin spread across the blonde's face as he leaned over and grabbed one of his dirty socks. He took quick aim and chucked it at Kaiba's face. That'd teach him.
Kaiba found his thoughts being interrupted as his face was greeted by something cold, wet, and smelly. He instinctively threw the thing on his face away as far as he could before turning on a snickering Jounouchi. Actually, snickering was an understatement. Jou was doubled over in laughter at the sight of Kaiba getting a face full of his smelly sock.
"How's that for a wake up call, eh Kaiba?" Jou grinned and wiped away fake tears. Kaiba sneered and kicked Jou's shirt across the room. The dense wet shirt flew through the air and smacked Jou's face. After a moments pause, Jou had finally sunk in all that had just happened. He laughed and pulled it down, tossing it to the side.
"I guess I kinda deserved that one."
To Jou's surprise, Kaiba actually smiled back.
"Yes you did mutt." Kaiba walked past Jou and fixed the shower for him, explaining the not-so complex shower.
"See? It wasn't that hard, idiot." Kaiba said simply after standing back up. Jou looked transfixed at the knobs, and then finally looked back up at Kaiba.
"Yeah? I know, I was just testing' ya."
"Testing me? You think I wouldn't know how to work my own shower?"
"…"
"Give it up Jou, you suck at comebacks. End of statement." Kaiba turned on his heels and walked towards the bathroom exit. "Come downstairs when you're done, I'll let you borrow one of my shirts I guess, since those," he gestured towards Jou's school uniform. "Are filthy."
Jou crossed his arms.
"Nah they ain't."
Kaiba merely cocked his left eyebrow.
"…Okay, yeah they are."
Kaiba nodded in approval. "I'll have the maids wash them in the morning and get them back to you." Kaiba quickly gathered Jou's clothes, leaving his socks untouched.
"And after that," he glared, "we'll discuss your debt." Without another word, Kaiba shut the door soundlessly behind him.
Jou flipped him the bird before slipping his boxers off and stepping into the shower.
"Gah!" He yelled jumping out and falling to his ass due to the slick floor. His head flew backwards and hit the back of the showers wall. "Ow…That damned Kaiba…"He swore through gritted teeth as he rubbed his head. "He made it that cold on purpose."
What Jounouchi didn't know was that Kaiba had left the bathroom with a secret smirk that he kept all the way downstairs.
"That will teach the mutt to obey."
A/N: Wow, I didn't expect to get 10 reviews on just the first chapter! I'm really happy I did though and that people are actually liking my story so far. I hope I can continue to make it interesting! Also, if there are some mistakes (grammer...spelling ect.) It's because I write these things at two in the morning and attempt to go back and edit them then as well. (Excuses, excuses, I know) I reread this chapter and tried to proofread it best I could. (After awhile I get tired of re-reading my own work...sad I know.) This time I proofread it at seven in the afternoon! So I hopefully didn't make to many mistakes this time. Oh and sorry for the long Author Notes (To those of you who actually read it!)
Who wants to torture Jou more? *evil grin* I DOOOOO~! X3 I'll try and cut the guy some slack...just a little. :3