Greetings! As always with my Casey chapters, the bold words are in English. Enjoy!
Yyyyy
Dear Yami,
It was so much fun visiting you in Japan! I know everyone always says that the best way to learn about a culture is to experience it in person, but I guess that never really sunk in until I spent the day there. Thank you so much for showing me around, and, again, I'm sorry for swiping your jacket. (Did you really add me onto your rule list?)
Oh, yeah. I won't be able to respond to your letters for a little while, because my family is going up to a cabin for vacation. There's no mail service or Internet, so I'll respond to your letter when I get back home.
Mom says it's going to be fun for us all to relax in the wilderness, but Mitch is coming home and bringing along some friends he met in Japan, so I'm not so sure how relaxing it's going to be (sweatdrop).
On the other hand, Dad and Mitch make the best BBQ burgers, and there's a small town nearby, so maybe a tiny-overcrowded-cabin family vacation won't be so bad.
I hope you're doing well, and goodbye until next time. (And speaking of next time, I hope I get to meet your friends at some point.)
-Casey
Yami finished reading the letter and smiled. Storing it carefully back in its envelope, he set it on his desk and turned back to his suitcase, zipping it up.
"You almost ready to go?" Yugi asked, dragging is own suitcase into his brother's room. "Mitch is here."
Yyyyy
"I'm not saying I'm not happy to visit America again, and go on a free vacation, but why? I mean, you didn't have to pay for our tickets, Mitch."
Joey said to the American in the front seat.
"Actually, I didn't. My boss overheard me say I was going home for the week, and suggested I take you five along with. He heard that I know you, and that you're friends with my sister."
"Your boss?" Yami narrowed his eyes, already having been suspicious about the sudden trip. "Who is he? And why send us to America?"
"Oh, I think he's a friend of yours. Whenever you're on TV, he's usually with you. Seto Kaiba. He said that with you gone for a while, maybe his doorbell would stop ringing. I just think it's great how you guys can go over and hang out with him whenever you want, y'know? He seems like he needs more friends."
"Doorbell?" Yami turned to face the suddenly wide-eyed faces of Joey, Tea, and Tristan. "Have you three still not learned your lesson?"
"Uh, never . . . back down from a challenge?" Joey tried, much to Mitch's confusion.
"What's going on back there?"
Yyyyy
Yami knocked on the door to the cabin in lot number nine, where Mitch said he was supposed to meet up with his family. He and his friends had been checked into a nearby hotel, but Mitch had wanted to drop off his things, and Yami decided to say hello to Casey since he was there.
There was silence inside the wooden structure for a minute, and Yami almost turned around to ask Mitch if he was sure they were at the right cabin. The moment he went to, though, the door swung open.
"Hey Mitch-," Casey's eyes half-lidded and she was clad in sleepy Baby Dragon pajama pants and a black tank top. Her hair was in two braids, but still sticking out at all angles, while a toothbrush dangled from the corner of her mouth. She blinked at him for a moment, face never changing, then calmly closed the door. The inside was silent for several long seconds, during which time Yami contemplated knocking again, but then Casey's voice could be heard. "Mom, I thought you said your tea had caffeine in it."
"It does. Why?"
"Because Mitch suddenly looks a lot like my friend Yami."
Yami, of course, was only able to understand a few words, but clearly heard his name. Not sure if she was upset with his sudden arrival or not, he turned to Mitch, to see that the man was stepping by him and through the front entrance.
"C'mon, guys."
"Are you sure it's alright for us to just walk right in?" Tea asked, concerned.
Mitch turned and grinned at her. "This is my family. Of course I'm sure. Mom, Dad, Casey, we're here!"
"Mitch! You made it!" A woman in her mid-forties jogged up to him and wrapped him in a big hug. "And are these your friends?" She asked, smiling at Yami and the others.
"Yes, they are. But they hardly speak English, so do you think we could speak Japanese while they're here?"
"Of course." She stepped past her son and held out her hand for them to shake. "Hello and welcome. My name is Linda. You've already met Casey and Mitch, and my husband, Jacob, is out back. Are you going to be staying here with us?"
"No, we have a hotel in the town nearby that we're checked into. It's nice to meet you, too. My name is Yami, and this is my brother, Yugi, and our friends, Joey, Tristan, and Tea."
Suddenly, a gasp sounded from the doorway of the small bathroom just a few feet away. Casey stood there, still disheveled, but looking more alert, if her bulging eyes were anything to go by. "I wasn't dreaming. You're really here. What the eff?" She shook her head, and then seemed to realize just what she was wearing, and blushed darker than Yami's eyes. "I'm gonna, uh, go change now." She mumbled.
Yyyyy
"Do you think Casey's alright with us just showing up like we did?" Yami asked Tea, figuring she might know, being another girl and all. They were now getting settled in their hotel rooms, the boys pairing up, while Tea got her own room.
"Well, being caught by friends first thing in the morning would embarrass any girl, but if you've been friends for this long, I'm sure she'll end up being fine. Then again, I've never really met her before myself, so I can't say. If I have any advice to give, though, apologize and see how far that gets you."
"That sounds like a good idea. Thanks." He stood and was about to head for the door when someone knocked on it. He opened it and was not prepared for who was on the other side. "Casey?"
She wore hiking shorts and a shirt that read 'How to keep a moron busy (see other side)', and had brushed her hair back into a low ponytail. "Hi. I'm sorry about earlier. I just didn't expect to wake up and see you at my door. Mitch told me that you're here on vacation."
"Umm, yeah. It's no problem. And I'm sorry for not letting you know we were coming."
"Don't worry about it." She smiled.
"Hi, my name's Tea. Its nice to finally meet you."
"It's nice to finally meet you, too. I've heard so much about you." Casey grabbed Tea's outstretched hand and shook it happily.
"Likewise. Though, if you don't mind me asking, I noticed your family seems to speak pretty fluent Japanese."
"And you're wondering why I'm learning how to speak Japanese in school? My grandmother is Japanese, so we all know some. I've always had a hard time understanding it, though. That, and, my only other option for a foreign language was Spanish and I don't exactly have time to finish high school while learning a third language."
"Ah, I see."
The three of them, along with Yugi, Tristan, and Joey, headed back to Casey's family's cabin. As Casey introduced herself to the boys, Yami caught sight of the back of her shirt. 'How to keep a moron busy (see other side)'. Curious, and having a sense that he had read that somewhere before, he quickened his gait to see what was printed on the front of her shirt.
Yyyyy
"You can stop blushing now, Yami." Joey said, attempting to hide his remaining snickers. "We're done laughing."
They were back at the cabin, waiting outside with Mitch and Jacob while Casey was inside with her mother. "You boys like burgers, don'tcha?" He opened the lid of the grill, laughing as Yugi's eyes went as large as the patties he was setting on the rack. "I'll take that as a yes."
"Who wants to help me gather firewood?" Mitch called.
Tristan took one look at the cold fire pit, and then turned towards the lit grill. "We're making a fire, too?"
"You can't make s'mores that, y'know. Well, you can, but it's more fun when you're able to sit around and tell campfire stories." The young man hopped up on a nearby stump to lace up his hiking boots.
"Tristan and I will come." Joey wrapped an arm around his friend's shoulders and led him after the American.
"You can learn how to fry these up, alright kid?" Jacob handed Yugi a spare spatula.
"And, I thought I could return the favor for showing me around Domino City." Casey exited the house and made her way over to the outdoor dining table, setting down buns and napkins. Tea and Linda were behind her, each carrying hotdog and burger toppings, along with plates, drinks, and fruit. "While lunch is being made, what say I give you a tour of the town? I guarantee you it's nothing like the city."
"Are you sure?"
"Go on, Yani." Jacob smiled at him. "We're going to be cooking up more than just these four burgers. Lunch won't be ready for a while."
"Um, Dad." Casey closed her eyes and held up a hand. "His name is Yami." She turned to her Japanese friend and nodded to the road. "So, you want to go? I'll lead this time."
"Alright." The hotel he and his friends were staying in was located in that town, but he hadn't been able to get a very good look at it yet. As he followed after her, he realized with a bit of embarrassment that she was now wearing a shirt emblazoned with a large drawing of a sunflower.
Yyyyy
"Every game. Every. Single. Game. What lab were you created in? No one is that good." Casey stretched her arms above her head, wincing in the suddenly bright sun contrasting the dim lights of the retro arcade they had just left.
"Well, I told you I was the King of Games. You had it coming." Yami adjusted the small backpack he had brought along for souvenirs. They had exchanged their tokens for prizes before leaving, and combined them in the pack to be divided up among the rest of the group upon their return.
"Yeah, well, I've been playing pinball since I was a kid. I thought that would at least give me a leg up."
"Yeah, no. Sorry. Do you think we should be heading back now?"
She laughed. "Yami, you've asked that after every place we've been to. I know how long it takes my dad to finish when he's making barbeque. We've got some ti-,"
"Casey!" One moment she had been beside him, and the next, she was across the road. "What are you doing?" Yami (making sure to check for cars first) followed her up to a strange white van.
"My mom and I had been looking into getting a new pet. You need to talk me out of this." Casey didn't even look at him, choosing instead to focus on the glass window on the side of the vehicle under a sign announcing a pet adoption sale.
The creature she had locked eyes with was a cat. A shorthaired, black and white, male cat. His nametag read 'Mouser', and the description simply stated that a factory had owned him for the sole purpose of keeping out the rodents, hence his name. After being deemed a security risk, however, the owner had caught him and turned him over to a local shelter.
"Do . . . you speak . . . English?" A young woman wearing a shirt bearing the logo of the shelter asked in broken Japanese, obviously not sure what she was going to do if the answer was 'no'.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. Yes, I do. He's visiting, though, and only knows a few words." Casey replied.
"Are you interested in Mouser, here? He's very affectionate. The workers used to feed him all the time, so he's had no lack of human attention."
"I . . . my family has been looking to get another cat ever since our last one died six months ago. He looks so sweet."
Casey put a finger against the glass and watched as Mouser tried to sniff it. "Casey, this isn't a good idea. And we need to be getting back." While the entire conversation was going on, though, Yami refused to look anywhere in the general direction of the animals. There were a few dogs present as well, but the cats were the main problem. They were a weakness of his, but Casey needed to be talked out of walking away with one. He couldn't be encouraging her.
"I'm sorry. We should be going." Casey told the woman, turning reluctantly away from the feline. The two were just starting to walk away when Yami made the fatal mistake of looking back. Mouser had placed both front paws on the glass wall and was staring straight at him.
"Maaoooo."
" . . ."
" . . ."
" . . . and here are his new collar and kennel, and a week's worth of food. And these papers show that he's currently up to date on all his vaccinations. I know you're going to love having him in the family. Bye bye, Mouser!" the woman, Pat, sang as the three of them walked off, wondering somewhat what had happened.
Yyyyy
"So, let me get this straight." Casey sighed, head still where it had dropped into her hands. "My family vacation became a teenage culture lesson involving you and your friends."
"Yes." Yami replied through the Skype camera.
"My brother got two of your friends lost in the woods."
"That's right."
"Your brother somehow got the job of spraying my dad with the fire extinguisher every time he caught the food on fire."
"I thought you said he was good at barbeque."
"Burgers. He's good with burgers. And Mitch is usually helping him. Anyway, my mother and your friend Tia- Tea, sorry, managed to swap upwards of twenty recipes while left alone."
"Tell your mother to be careful with her Takoyaki, though. Tea's still working out the kinks in that one."
"Too late. That was last nights dinner. We brought home a cat, and you managed to learn how to change a flat tire on the way back to the airport."
"Correct. How's Mouser doing, by the way?"
The cat, hearing his name, hopped up onto Casey's computer desk and began pawing at Yami's face on the screen in confusion. "He's fine. Now, back to the important business. After all that, what did you put as a rule on your list?"
Yami put his hands in his pockets and looked away. A split second later, though, he pulled something out from his jacket and held it up in surprise.
"That's where it is?! You took Mouser's collar with you to Japan?"
"Whoops."
"Maoo."
Yyyyy
Rule 36: No coming home with new pets. (This rule can be overlooked if cats are involved) (Yami, don't. Just don't.)
Yyyyy
LONGEST CHAPTER YET! I hope you all enjoyed it! This is the last Casey chapter I have planned for a little while, but never fear, she and her brother will be back! Review and tell me your thoughts!