It was a month after the arrival of Joey's aunt, and the blond had been in a state of scared depression ever since, it was killing Seto inside to see his puppy so sad. He'd tried everything, but Joey's love for life seemed to have diminished, all he would do was lie in bed, and make sure Seto stayed there to. And when the brunette insisted that he needed to get up, Joey would follow Seto almost everywhere; it was annoying to say the least, but all in all, he couldn't blame the blond.
It was exactly one month and seven days since the party that the letter from the courts arrived.
Seto had managed to sneak out of bed without waking the blond, and had gone downstairs to get a cup of coffee. It was then he'd noticed the letter. He knew instantly it was from the courts, and just stood there, not wanting to read it for fear of what it may say, but needing to know at the same time.
Eventually he picked it up with trembling hands, and saw it was addressed to both himself and Joey. He walked slowly back upstairs; not quite sure how he was going to get the blond to read it without going into a nervous collapse.
"Joey." He said quietly, shaking the blond gently and watching as his butifull honey eyes opened and focused on him as he brushed some hair out of them.
"What time is it? Why d'ya wake me up?" he said, voice croaky from sleep, then he spotted the letter in his fiancé's hand, and his heart skipped a few beats. He grabbed onto it, tearing it open as Seto moved so the blond was sat in his lap, and wrapped his arms around him, resting his head on the blondes shoulder and giving him an extra squeeze for support; before beginning to read the letter over the blondes shoulder.
It wasn't good news. Delia had, by some miracle, won the case, and was coming to pick Joey up later that day. The vote was unanimous, not one member of the jury had voted in their favor, and now Joey's aunt was going to take him off to some farm an hour into the country near New York. But to top it all, while she'd been at ruining their lives, she'd managed to get a restringing order, to the affect that they were forbidden to met, unless she was present.
Seto had a fleeting image of Joey turning up on the doorstep with his aunt tied up and on a leash behind him, but it was just a fantasy, and he knew it all too well.
"Suppose I'd better pack." Joey muttered, leaning back to give Seto a quick kiss before getting up and beginning to gather his things.
"Joey. I'm sorry, I didn't think it would turn out like this. But there wasn't anything I could do!" Seto exclaimed, he couldn't bear to see Joey looking the way he did now.
"It's not your fault, I knew it would happen." Joey replied as Seto got off the bed and hugged the blond to him, crying bitterly into his shoulder. And that set Joey off as it all started to sink in. He couldn't believe he was never going to see his blue eyed beauty again. He was going to be staying on some ruddy little farm, miles from anywhere, and days from Domino, and he was never going to be allowed to see Seto, or, he suspected, any of his friends again.
By the time his aunt arrived, he was just finishing the last of his packing, grabbing things from around the house and shoving them numbly into a bag.
"Hello Joseph, are you ready to go?" She said, smiling at him.
"I'll never be ready to leave. And in a way I know I never will, we'll always be together in spirit and heart, me and Seto, we'll never be truly parted." Joey said, tears in his eyes, and Seto's now he heard that.
"You know there'll never be another." Seto muttered pulling Joey into a tight hug, not believing it had come to this so soon.
"Nor for me. I'm yours and yours only. I love you." Joey replied, choking up over the last words, beginning to cry into Seto's shoulder.
"Stop talking crap and get a move on. You'll make loads of new friends and get a lovely girlfriend. This loser will be just a sad mistake. You'll soon forget about him, let's just go Joseph, get your stuff in the car, before I have to make you. I'll carry you from this place kicking and screaming if I have to, now get a bloody move on!" Delia said, scowling at the pair.
"Good morning Seto. What's for breakfast?" came Mokuba's sleepy voice from behind them.
"No, it's not a good morning, Mokuba. For one thing, it's not morning, and you've missed breakfast." Seto replied, giving Joey one last kiss, tears streaming down both their faces, before Joey's aunt took his arm and dragged him down the path.
Seto followed, jogging after them down to the pavement and watching helplessly as Joey was shoved into the back of the car and his aunt drove off. Seto could only stand and wave as he watched the love of his life being driven away, his face streaked with tears as he waved from the back of the car, Seto waving numbly from the pavement.
&Sob& this was &Sob& better than I thought it would be. &Sob& I can't believe I was so mean! &Sniffles and wiped nose& Flame away, I know I was horrid, just as they were so close, and it was all snatched away from them again. I hate myself sometimes. Anyway R&R!