Things continued on, and eventually the two dragon duelists slipped into a steady routine. Mr. Kubo finally closed his shop, having made enough money to retire. He also gave Jounouchi a very generous cash bonus, insisting that he could never have made it without his help. The teen at first refused- Mr. Kubo was moving, after all; he would need some money for that- but eventually Jou relented as the man hugged him and shoved the bills into his jacket.

So Jounouchi became a full-time employee of KaibaCorp, working in their covert 'office relations' sector. He was rather talented, if not a bit over-eager, and he worked every weekday shift until the end of business. At which point he would meet Roland outside, who would dutifully drive him to the Kaiba Mansion.

Occasionally, Jou was able to drag Seto home early, much to Mokuba's delight. But if Seto seriously protested he would leave him be- he knew the massive stacks of paperwork on his desk weren't for show.

Truth be told, Kaiba rather liked being forced out of the office by the blonde. Sometimes he suspected himself of being difficult just to get the other duelist riled up. It was a daily game, of sorts- one that neither was willing to lose. Jounouchi was thrilled whenever Kaiba was able to come home right away, but he didn't pressure him when he couldn't. Instead, the large-hearted employee would fetch Seto a cup of coffee or something 'to munch on' as he worked. On those nights Roland (who was growing fonder and fonder of the spirited teen) would drive Jounouchi home before returning to pick up his boss.

Mokuba was thrilled to have someone home nearly every night to listen to his school stories and play games. Unfortunately; however, the younger Kaiba soon learned that as fun as Jounouchi was, he could also be strict about on things- although not as bad as Seto. But Mokuba still had to do his homework and chores before they could goof around with video games and movies.

Slowly, it evolved that Jounouchi would spend the night on weekdays, as well. The first time, Kaiba found him and Mokuba asleep on the couch; the Nintendo system still running. It had been a late night at the office and he felt bad about the two waiting up for him. So he took Mokuba up to his own room (he was getting heavier, Seto swore) and left Jou on the couch.

The next morning Jou apologized, but Kaiba waved him off and offered him a seat in the limo. Soon it became routine- work, go to the mansion, sleep over, wake up, go to work, lather, rinse, repeat. Jou really only visited his apartment on the weekends, but it was nice to have a place to hang out with the gang. Kaiba and Mokuba were usually invited, but only the shorter brother stopped by regularly. No longer very involved in KaibaCorp, the raven-haired duelist was always glad for a chance to duel with friends.

Several months passed, and the Kaiba brothers were starting to feel far more relaxed overall. Mokuba loved their new 'roommate,' as it were; and Seto was glad to have someone he could trust both working in the office and keeping his brother happy.

But the older Kaiba was currently watching Jounouchi as he moved about the 42nd floor of the building. He was glaring at the screen, his eyes unusually icy as he watched the figure racing about. He was not leering at Jou, of course; but instead at the newest secretary.

He felt his shoulders tense when he saw the bubbly hussy pestering Jou. Her long, orange-red hair was always fanned behind her, and she giggled constantly. Not to mention her business outfits were always just one toe above 'inappropriate.' But as annoying as she was, Kaiba didn't care about her, personally- rather, it was the fact that she was becoming a bit too personal with his favorite personnel manager.

The busty redhead used any excuse to call him to their floor and touch the blonde boy- tapping his shoulder to get his attention, holding his arm for support as she leaned over a laptop, hugging him tightly after he helped her fix some- wait.

'She did NOT just do that-"

Seto gave the screen his fiercest glare, almost as if he expected the woman to burst into flames. The deceptive little trollop was clearly violating company policy.

Like many Japanese companies and offices, explicit displays of affection were prohibited at KaibaCorp. Sure, Seto would overlook this once in a while (like last month, when one of the 7th floor secretaries announced that she was expecting her firstborn) but he certainly wasn't going to make an exception for this... this... succubus!

The incensed CEO stormed out of his office, barely stopping to tell his receptionist to hold his calls. She was startled to see her boss fly out of his office, but she knew better than to question it.

Meanwhile, Jou was trying to find a way to escape the 'orange octopus' (as he'd mentally nicknamed her).

He finally managed to give her the brush-off, and the lanky employee rushed to the elevator. He was about to step inside when he realized he wasn't the only occupant.

"Erm, Kaiba?" The blonde blinked- why was the CEO using the general staff elevator?

But the affluent adolescent didn't offer an explanation. "Good morning. Is everything alright?"

The blonde awkwardly shuffled his feet as he stepped into the opposite corner of the elevator. The golden doors slid silently closed behind him.

"Actually... I was wonderin' if I could talk wit' ya."

The brunette feigned ignorance on what just happened. "Alright."

"I, uh, I know this is an odd request, but, um, I was wondering... ya know how I work on floors 30 through 45?

'Oh crap- he's going to request more time on the 42nd. Great.'

Jou awkwardly scuffed his shoes as he stuttered. "Would it be, er- is-is there some way I can, um; maybe switch the 42nd with someone? Jus' the 42nd ?"

'...what?' When Kaiba didn't reply, the blonde employee figured he'd made a mistake.

The younger duelist started waving his arms frantically in defense. "Sorry, sorry! It was jus' a thought; I know it migh' be a hassle, but I think it'll help me get more work done in th' end!"

Seto couldn't resist goading his rival a little more. "Hmm... you only want to switch one specific floor? That's an odd request."

Jou's face grew somewhat irritated as he pouted (in a manner even Kaiba had to admit was endearing). "It's just that the orange octopus won't stop- oh crap, sorry! I mean Ms. Yamagata! She's not a squid!"

Jou was shocked to see that Kaiba was laughing- faintly, but definitely laughing.

"It's fine, Jounouchi- I was actually going to have her sent to another department. Her work has been rather abysmal since she left the 18th floor."

The American-born teen looked relieved. "Thank heavens- I didn't wanna skip that floor, but she kept botherin' me like crazy!"

The older boy smirked. "Truth be told, she was annoying me too."

This led to a confused Jou blinking at him. "Eh? But I didn't think you'd even met her-?"

Kaiba tensed up, realizing he had almost been caught. But he wasn't an expert negotiator for nothing.

"No, but I do try and at least check out my newest employees- indirectly, if I have to. Particularly if they don't seem to spend much time working."

"Oh." Jou let out a grateful sigh. "Well, thanks Mr. Boss-man."

"Don't call me that."

"Oops, sorry- I meant to say, 'thanks, Mrs. Boss-man!'" Jou snickered teasingly.

"...you're gonna be working the 42nd floor exclusively from now on." Jou's snickering quickly stopped, but the 'Boss-man' did manage a faint smirk as they both stepped out of the elevator.