Author's Note: …I have noticed that you all don't want me to hurt the franks. :D It gives me such joy to know that you all care about one of my most original characters/creatures!

By the by, this is almost completely a filler. There's only a little plot development here.

The Secret Serpent

Recap:

"What?! I demand junk food! I need the calories!" the brunet exclaimed. "Do they not realize that someone suffering from malnutrition can't live off of their crappy hospital food?!"

Joey frowned. "…Seto, how long has it been since you've had a decent meal?"

Seto looked away from him, suddenly more nervous than annoyed. "…Um… About the same time the repairs started on the mansion."

"WHAT! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!"

Chapter 12

Seto winced as he heard pots banging in the kitchen and looked helplessly at his brother. "Mokie, would you…?"

Mokuba held his hands up quickly. "I'm not the one who didn't eat a decent meal for a month! You can't make me go talk to him!" he exclaimed, before scampering up the stairs to his room.

The brunet sighed and crossed his arms, then decided there was nothing he could do. So, he slowly poked his head into the kitchen. "…Puppy?"

Joey slammed another pot full of water onto the stove and huffed. "Didn't eat a decent meal the whole time we were gone—I can't believe you!"

"…Puppy, I didn't mean to…"

"'Puppy, I didn't mean t' forget t' eat!'" the blond exclaimed sarcastically without turning to look at him. "'Puppy, I didn't mean t' exhaust myself! Puppy, I didn't mean t' nearly work myself t' death!'"

"…That's not what I sound like," he deadpanned, then frowned when the younger boy only huffed and threw a plastic bag full of frozen hamburger into the pot he'd just set on the stove. "Joey, really… I didn't mean to do it."

Joey huffed. "I don't care if ya didn't mean t' do it! Ya still did it! …Or didn't do it, technically!"

"Puppy…" The brunet sighed, then walked up beside him. "Calm down."

"And why should I—" the younger boy began angrily, spinning toward him, only to wince as he found the brunet not even a foot away from him. "…I…"

Seto frowned and cupped the blond's cheeks in concern. "Puppy, why are you really so angry?"

Joey turned his gaze away, blushing a little, before he finally dropped his head in shame. "…It's all my fault ya weren't eatin' in the first place, isn't it?"

The brunet pulled him into a hug quickly and sighed. "Oh, puppy, it wasn't your fault."

"Yes it was! If I hadn't just jumped t' conclusions like I always do—" the younger boy began, only to whimper as his mate silenced him with a kiss. Once he broke it, however, he turned his head away quickly. "…I know it's my fault, Seto. I hurt ya, and ya stopped carin' about yourself." He looked up at him quickly, scowling. "Why didn't ya tell me that sires don't function well when their dames leave?!"

Seto sighed again and looked away. "That would have made you stay."

"But then—"

"And if you didn't want to stay with me, I wasn't going to make you," the brunet continued, then groaned and rubbed his temple. "This may be an insult to you, but you're very predictable. I know how you'll react to most things—which is why I hide things from you. I don't want to upset you while you've got this baby inside of you, because you could hurt yourself or the baby. Once he's born, then I'll stop hiding things. Now please calm down; this stress can't be good for the baby."

Joey looked down at his feet and heaved a shaky sigh. Even though Seto didn't know why he'd gotten so mad, even though he had really hurt him, even though he'd caused him to suffer, he was still looking out for his well-being and the safety of the baby. It wasn't fair—to Seto.

"L-listen, I hafta make dinner," he stated quickly, turning his head away. "So… so could ya go and start unpackin' my stuff for me, please?"

Seto raised an eyebrow. "I don't know where a lot of your stuff goes, puppy."

"Well, if I'm gonna be in your room with ya, you better start findin' places t' put things."

"Oh. …Wait."

Joey almost laughed at the look of helpless confusion on his lover's face. Sighing, he walked over to him and gently cupped his cheek. "Seto, I'm movin' into your room with you," he stated slowly, and watched as the brunet's eyes lit up with understanding. He felt a pulse of complete and utter joy from the other boy before it was replaced by concern. "And no, I'm not doin' this for you. I wanna be with you. So put my stuff where it'll fit and I'll sort out the rest later."

Seto opened his mouth to argue, or complain, or something, but was immediately cowed when the blond shot him one of the dirtiest looks he'd ever seen. "…O…kay," he agreed after a moment, then fled out of the room.

Joey almost cackled.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto moaned quietly as he felt someone kissing him gently and slowly blinked his eyes open, then frowned in confusion. "…Where am I…?"

"You're still a little tired after the whole hospital deal, aren't ya?" Joey cooed, slowly stroking the brunet's hair. "You fell asleep in the library."

"Did I?" The brunet rubbed his eyes tiredly, moaning again when the younger boy slid onto his lap and kissed him again. Once the blond pulled away, he offered him a groggy smile. "Mm, maybe I'll fall asleep in the library more often."

"Maybe next time I'll just let you miss dinner," Joey replied, placing one last kiss to his lips before standing up. "Come on, Seto. Ya need t' eat somethin' fillin'."

The brunet sighed and heaved himself out of the chair. "What's for dinner? Something with ground beef, I assume."

The younger boy flashed him a smile and replied, "Beef stroganoff. I didn't have the chance t' get t' the store and buy that beef fillet that ya like so much, so I did the best with what I had. Ya know most of that stuff is goin' bad because of how long it's been in—" He mewed in surprise as the brunet grabbed him from behind and looked back at him confusedly. "…Seto?"

"You're amazing. I just thought you might like to know that," Seto whispered, before pressing a kiss to his cheek and continuing toward the kitchen.

Joey touched his cheek where the brunet had kissed it in surprise and looked down at his feet. His surprise quickly melted into shame. How could he ever think that Seto would hurt him, would do something as terrible as raping him? Seto would never be that horrible—he had been the horrible one, the bad mate, all because he was too stupid to realize that his mate was possessed!

Seto froze as he heard a small sob, then turned around sharply. "…Joey! Oh, God—what did I do?!"

The blond whimpered and held his arms out for a hug. "Hold me please."

The older boy was quick to do as he was told, frowning in concern as his lover sobbed into his chest. "…Joey, what's wrong?"

"You… you'd never understand!" Joey exclaimed, looking up at him sadly. "You'll just send me away, and—and regret everything we've done! I… I-I don't want ya t' leave me."

The brunet began petting the younger boy gently, shushing him as he continued to cry into his chest. "Shh… Just tell me what's wrong, puppy. Get it off your chest."

"Nn…" The younger boy whimpered and looked away from him. "…You… Ya remember when ya had that nightmare? Before I got mad at ya, and ya fel outta bed?"

Seto frowned again. "…Yes…"

"You… Something made ya loopy—not yourself. You att—" He cut himself off nervously, but then the brunet began petting him again, comforting him enough to continue. "…You attacked me. You were gonna m—fuck me. Even though I didn't want it." He flinched as the older boy stiffened in his arms and hurriedly held him tighter. "It wasn't you, though! I learned some stuff—somethin' had possessed ya! It wasn't you! And—and I know—I hurt ya so bad, because I didn't realize that you'd never do that to me! I… I'm a horrible mate!" he sobbed, burying his face in the other boy's shoulder.

"No, no, no…" The Dragon Master hugged him tighter and nuzzled the top of his head. "Stop saying that. You're not a horrible mate. You're just… afraid."

"But what do I have to be afraid of?!" Joey exclaimed, looking up at him desperately for an answer. "You're so kind, and lovin', and patient, and I—I—oh, God, my parents and their stupid fucked up relationship—and I'm draggin' it into mine-!"

Seto hugged the blond still closer, letting him nuzzle into his neck the way he knew he liked to in order to feel safe. "It's okay, Joey. Calm down."

After a few minutes of just murmuring quietly to the smaller boy, assuring him that everything would be okay, he leaned back and tried to process what he'd been told. So something had attacked him and made him molest his own mate, and he had known nothing. All he remembered was going to sleep with his mate, then walking into the cave to try and comfort him only to get yelled at. All of the time in between was a blank—not that that was anything special, because he often found himself missing parts of days if they weren't significant enough to warrant his attention.

But his puppy was blaming himself because he hadn't been able to see that it wasn't him doing those things to him.

Sighing, Seto shook his head, then cupped the blond's chin to tilt his head up for a gentle kiss. As the younger boy whimpered against his lips, he lifted his hand to brush his tears away. After breaking the kiss, he began to press comforting kisses along his cheek until he reached the corner of his eye, where he paused until the tears trickled to a stop.

Joey hiccupped quietly and sniffled, then lifted his teary gaze to the older boy's and bit his bottom lip. "…Aren't you angry with me?"

The brunet gave him another quick kiss before leaning his forehead against the smaller teen's. "Of course I'm angry. You should have told me sooner." He frowned and pressed another faint kiss to the blond's lips before continuing, "I would have been able to help you then, puppy…"

The blond looked away from him and sighed helplessly. "…I just seem t' be makin' all the wrong decisions. I'm sorry, Seto."

"Hmm… Up, pup," Seto ordered, giving him a firm pat on the butt, before grabbing the back of his thighs.

"Ooh!" Joey blushed as he was lifted upward and hooked his legs over the brunet's hips. He blushed even more when Seto looked down at his stomach and smiled. "Seto…"

"Mm, when you get near the end of your pregnancy, I may not be able to carry you like this." He chuckled quietly. "The baby's in the way."

The blond frowned and looked away from him. "…Why are ya bein' so kind t' me, even after I told ya I…"

"Puppy, you had every right to be afraid. I'd be afraid too, if I were you." Seto nuzzled his neck lovingly. "Please trust me when I say I'm not mad at you. Okay?"

Joey sighed and laid his head on the brunet's shoulder. "…Okay."

"If you need me to prove it, I'll willingly skip dinner and take you up to our room—"

"YOU NEED TO EAT!"

"Okay, okay, I'm going!"

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto wasn't quite sure where to put anything, apparently. Joey sighed and rested his head in his hand, shaking his head slightly in exasperation. "Seto, you're a genius. Why couldn't ya figure this out?"

"I don't know where you like to put your things!" the brunet exclaimed defensively. "Don't look at me like that!"

The blond stared at him blandly for a few more moments before sighing again and stepping further into the room. "Alright, let's unpack all of this crap then." He turned toward the older boy and tilted his head. "…Could ya just put my clothes in the dresser with yours, please?"

Seto frowned in confusion. "Wouldn't you still want your own dresser?"

"Probably after I have the baby. Until then, I'm just gonna steal your sweatpants and sweaters."

The brunet blinked at him for a few moments, stunned, then scowled. "Are you going to wear my underwear, too?"

Joey snorted and dug into a box to pull out his toiletries. "Psh, like I'm even gonna bother with underwear. The baby's gettin' too big, and I don't wanna spend money buyin' huge underwear that I'm never gonna—well, okay, I'll need one more time, but—OHMYGOD!" He jumped as he felt a hand slip down the back of his pants and tried to scramble away, only to find himself spun around to be hugged firmly against the brunet's chest. "S-Seto!"

"Mm, you really aren't wearing any underwear," Seto murmured, giving the cheek beneath his hand a squeeze.

"You could've just asked oh my God let go of me get your hand outta there!" the blond exclaimed, reaching back to grab his wrist. He mewled quietly as the older boy began kissing his neck and closed his eyes tightly. "Ooh… W-we should get some of my stuff unpacked, S-Setooo…!"

The older boy chuckled and began kissing his neck. "We will."

Joey squirmed frantically, shivering as the brunet's teeth dragged along his neck. "But I can't do it when you're touchin' me like this!"

Seto pressed a few more kisses to the blond's neck before finally releasing him. "Fine, but I'm doing naughty things to you when we go to bed."

The younger boy squeaked in embarrassment and hurriedly disappeared halfway into a box to find something. What he was finding, he wasn't quite sure, but he needed to do something that could keep himself busy—and away from his grabby mate!

He jumped slightly a few minutes later when he heard a startled shriek and turned around, only to have to quickly catch a shoe box as it was flung into the air. "Ack!"

"…Why didn't you tell me there were still dragons in there?!" Seto shouted, glaring at him.

Joy poked his head out of the box and squeaked in outrage, then ducked back into the box with a huff. Codi poked her head out and blinked for a moment, then smiled brightly when she saw Seto. Then, she ducked back down into the box as well.

Joey frowned. "Jeez, we toss this box all over the place. How are their eggs stayin' in there?"

"…They're magical," the brunet spat, still glaring at him. "Do you know what it feels like to open a box and see living things in it!?"

"…Do you know what it feels like t' be sucked into a book world and find out that you're in charge?" the blond deadpanned. "Honestly, I'm surprised ya didn't find 'em sooner."

Seto huffed and crossed his arms. "Don't forget that I was with you when we were sucked in."

Joey blinked at him for a moment, then shrugged and turned, setting the dragons' 'nest' on a nearby table. "Whatever. Ya still should've expected them."

"Wha-? …Just for that, I'm going to do especially naughty things to you and you won't stop me."

The blond squeaked and dove back into a box.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Well, the room was nice and tidy now, all of the boxes had been emptied, and Joey had finally placed Joy and Codi in the bathroom. He didn't know why they liked the bathroom. It concerned him a little. He'd ask Soumya about it later. …After he apologized to Kisara for ever thinking her master would hurt him.

Joey gasped quietly as Seto grabbed him from behind and began kissing his neck. "Seto-! I-I didn't think ya were serious!"

Seto hummed quietly and stroked the blond's stomach slowly. "But it's been an entire month without you…"

"Can ya make it a month and a day?!" the younger boy squeaked, then began struggling with more force. "Seto, no! Please, I don't wanna—"

The brunet frowned and immediately released him, and felt a pang of hurt and sadness when his mate scrambled a few feet away and turned to face him, as if… as if he didn't trust him enough to leave himself vulnerable. So his puppy was sorry he hadn't trusted him before, but… he still didn't trust him.

Joey frowned as the brunet suddenly turned and walked for the door, then quietly asked, "…Seto?"

Seto paused in the doorway. "…I would never force you into something you don't want," he snapped after a moment, then continued walking.

"…Huh?" The blond groaned when he realized what he'd done. "Seto-! Seto! Wait, that's not what I meant!" He ran for the door and peered out into the hall but only found himself in time to watch the brunet's office door slam shut. "…Seto…" He whimpered for a moment before hesitantly walking over to the door that had closed on him. "…Seto?"

"Go to bed, Joey."

Joey winced as the cold tone and took a step back despite himself. "…B-but Seto—"

"Go. To bed."

The blond flinched again, then let out a helpless sob and turned to do as he was told. Even though he'd made up with Seto, even though he'd told him what had happened and why, he was still hurting him and making him angry. Seto was wrong; he was a bad mate.

Seto listened to him go and sighed. He wasn't angry anymore, but he was frustrated. Why would Joey just pretend that everything was okay? That they'd made up and nothing was wrong? His puppy just didn't understand how a normal, healthy relationship was supposed to go. One partner wasn't supposed to keep secrets or hide feelings from the other; that's why they were called partners!

And he couldn't even blame Joey.

He'd lived through his parents arguing and fighting and yelling until finally one of them got fed up and left. What was worse was that the one that got fed up and left—his mother—had taken the only one he truly cared about—and had truly cared about him. He was probably terrified that eventually, Seto would just get fed up and leave him, too, and maybe take the baby like his mother had taken his sister.

Sighing, the brunet stood up from his desk and began toward the door. He'd made his puppy cry.

Seto peeked into the bedroom and frowned in concern when he found the blond splayed out on the bed, still in his clothes, and sobbing into his pillow. Sighing in momentary defeat, he slipped into the room and made his way over to him to strip off his pup's socks. As the younger boy mewled and looked up at him in confusion, he busied himself with gathering his pajamas and turning out the lights.

Joey whimpered as the older boy stripped him of his shirt and replaced it with a thicker, softer shirt. "Seto—"

The brunet placed a finger to his lips and shot him a silencing stare, then continued to help him change. After he'd tucked the younger boy in and had stripped down to his boxers, he slid beneath the covers and placed an arm over the blond's waist, allowing him the chance to remove it if he felt uncomfortable.

He couldn't help a quiet purr as his pup turned and snuggled against his chest, still whimpering a little as he fell asleep.

They'd talk in the morning.