Disclaimer: Not mine. Since everyone really seemed to enjoy the first part I decided to get the second on out sooner than planed (sorry S&S fans). I'm sort of making this up as I go along so some scenes might be a little sparse when it comes to details.

Raising Trouble Pt 2

By: Dai-onna

Seto stretched out his legs behind him as he laid out on the living room floor, Yami beside him. The small boy was back in his usual leather outfit which had been laundered, and was now happily coating his fingers with bright colors of paint and smearing it onto a piece of paper in a design that only he could decipher. Seto wondered if the boy had actually heard of paintbrushes or if he was just having more fun this way. As it was his face, and most of his clothes, were dotted with various colors.

Seto found himself more at ease with the child than he had the previous day. Maybe it was because the chibi had yet to find the urge to destroy something or to cause him unlimited measures of torment. It was still early in the day though and he wasn't making any bets. 

When he looked at the miniature pharaoh he found himself being studied with unreadable crimson eyes.

"What?" He asked warily. The small boy tilted his head to the side a little, still observing him as if he were some bug under glass before shoving a relatively blank sheet of paper under his nose.

"Paint." was all he said. Seto blinked in surprise and was about to refuse when he spotted a familiar expression forming on the boy's face and decided that having paint covered hands was better than loosing his hearing when the boy started to scream again. He shuddered at the thought. That was something he had decided that he never wanted to relive. So, pushing the last remnants of his pride aside, he reached for one of the containers of paint and dipped his fingers in it, grimacing, before running them along the paper, an image already in mind. Yami, who was satisfied that he'd been obeyed, went back to his own painting and, amazingly enough, only silence filled the mansion for the next ten minutes before Yami finished his picture, holding out to Seto for inspection, beaming proudly at his 'masterpiece'.

Seto blinked at the picture before bursting out laughing. The image, which could vaguely be made out as a picture of Jounouchi was ridiculous. But, even better than that, the annoying blonde in the picture seemed to be adorned with dog-ears and a tail, something that Seto found too hilarious. When he wiped the tears from his eyes he saw that the small boy was frowning at him, obviously not happy at having his picture laughed at. Seto smiled at him soothingly.

"Can I keep it?" He asked. The chibi's face lit up with delight and he nodded vigorously, practically shoving the picture at Seto. He set the still-wet picture up on the coffee table next to him and turned back to his own picture, putting the finishing touches on it before sliding it, subtly, under Yami's nose. The painting was remarkably juvenile and certainly not of the best quality, given that he'd painted it with his fingers, but it had the desired effect.

"Black Mashishin!!!!" Yami cried joyfully, his underdeveloped speech mangling the words, making him sound utterly adorable. Seto smiled softly as the chibi fawned over the pathetic caricature as if it were some precious piece of art and, without thinking about it, he reached out, the purple paint still wet on his fingers, and swiped at the boy's nose, leaving a bright streak. The boy frowned at the streak on his nose in distaste before something gleamed in his eyes. Seto only had a minute to identify it before the chibi reached into the container of red paint, scooping out a generous amount and hurled it in Seto's direction. Seto brought up his arm to fend off the attack as best as possible but the paint splattered all over him. He looked at Yami who was smiling smugly and couldn't help the devious grin that crossed his face before retaliating in kind.

And that was how the paint war began.

Mokuba looked up from the comic that he was reading at the kitchen table when he heard laughter coming from the living room. He smiled when he realized that it wasn't all Yami's. He was glad for the miniature pharaoh's presence, disruptive as it may be. His brother needed to relax and remember what it was like to have fun. He hadn't had enough of that in his childhood. Mokuba had always felt bad about that because he knew that he was one of the reasons that his brother had been forced to grow up early though some selfish part of him was glad that he did. He loved his brother deeply and didn't know what he would have done if the older boy hadn't been there to protect him.

He sighed a little when the doorbell rang and, realizing that his brother probably wouldn't be able to hear it, he went to answer it himself.

He blinked in surprise when he found himself facing Yugi and the others and a sense of dread filled him.

"What are you guys doing here?" He asked, trying his best not to be snappish though he knew why they were probably there and he didn't like it.

Yugi smiled at him sweetly.

"We came to get Yami." He said. By the sound of his voice the small boy probably thought that he was doing them a favor and Mokuba wanted to throttle him. How dare he give Seto something so precious; and then come to take it back the very next day, just when his brother was starting to be happy again. He might become even more remote and hollow after that and Mokuba didn't think that was something that his brother could survive. His tension had had him on the edge lately, even if the older boy didn't realize it, and he needed this more than anything right now.

Mokuba glowered at the small boy and was about to tell him off when laughter once again rang out through the house, the voice clearly not Yami's. All the others looked surprised at the sound.

"Man, what on earth was that creepy sound?" Jounouchi had the nerve to ask. "It sounded like Kaiba laughing." He shuddered dramatically for effect and Mokuba realized just why his brother had such a distinct dislike for the blonde. He, himself, had to suppress the urge to call him a dog, in some form or another.

Instead he lead the others into the living room and everyone, save Mokuba, stared in shock at the sight of Seto, spotted from head to toe with a multitude of colors next to an equally vibrant Yami.

Seto looked at the group in surprise as they entered the room and his  stomach sank. He didn't really care that they were seeing him like this. Oh, he would later, certainly, but right now the only thing he was concerned about was Yami and the fact that Yugi and his friends would only have one real reason for being there. Yugi hesitantly crossed the room to them, careful to avoid the various puddles of paint as he did. He gave Seto a nervous smile. Apparently he was still afraid of his reaction towards him dropping Yami on him so suddenly.

"Hey, I'm sorry to put you to so much trouble, Kaiba-kun, but I decided to tell my grandpa about Yami so I'm going to take him home now. He explained and moved towards the chibi. As he did so Seto spotted the all-too-familiar expression on Yami's face and, with an odd feeling of satisfaction, covered his ears before the boy let out a mind shattering wail.

Yugi immediately put the boy down and took a few steps back, looking slightly hurt.

"Yami, what's wrong?"

The chibi stopped crying and glared at him before running over to Seto and latching onto his arm. Seto looked at the tiny boy in surprise.

"Don't wanna go wit you." He spat. "Wanna stay wit Seto." Everyone looked startled by the declaration and Jounouchi stepped forward, looking at the chibi form of his friend incredulously.

"Hey, come on Yami, why would you wanna stay with cranky old Kaiba. You'll have much more fun if you come back with us." He coaxed, reaching out a hand to the boy who startled them all by smacking it away roughly.

"Bad dog!" He said. Joey paled and Seto couldn't help it as he burst out laughing. He'd never wanted to hug the chibi pharaoh as much as he did at that moment. As it was, he had to wipe the tears of mirth from his eyes. From the looks on the others faces, they were trying not to laugh too.

Wary, Yugi once again tried to approach the boy.

"But Yami, we don't want to inconvenience Kaiba-kun anymore than we already have. He's busy and he can't spend all of his time taking care of you." He said, hoping the chibi still had a sense of logic to appeal to.

"I'm not a inconvinance!!!!" He insisted, mangling the large word. "Seto wants me ta stay here." He then turned to look up at Seto with unsure eyes and a slightly quivering lip. And gods help him if he wasn't reduced to a proverbial pile of goo. "Don't you?" His voice was so uncertain, so quiet that Seto couldn't help giving him a reassuring smile.

"Of course I do."

The small boy cheered and threw his arms around Seto's neck, holing him tightly. Hesitantly he brought a hand up to hug him back somewhat. Without disturbing the boy he looked up at Yugi who was only barely taller than him, despite the fact that he was sitting on the floor, and gave him a level stare.

"It's alright." He said softly. Yugi still didn't look certain but he didn't want to upset his Yami so he left, the others in tow and Seto breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't sure why the thought of Yami leaving disturbed him so greatly. He knew that when the boy turned back to normal  that he would have to leave anyway. And it wasn't as though he would want to stay anyway. The small chibi may have some fondness for him, but Yami, as he normally was, didn't. Did he even want him to stay once he turned back? He was afraid to answer that question. Unconsciously he hugged the boy tighter. And he wondered, when Yami did leave, if he'd be able to survive it.

Night had fallen on the town but the city was lit up by the lights of the fair. Large rides covered the normally empty grounds and music that was so cheerful it was creepy filled the air along with the delicious scents of hot dogs, cotton candy, and other delights. Stands were everywhere, whether vending food for ridiculous prices or games that were nearly impossible to win. Seto took in the whole atmosphere with a bit of awe. Somehow Mokuba and Yami had convinced him to bring them and he was taken aback by everything. Somehow, in the back of his mind, he'd known that it would be like this but actually seeing it for the first time made it something spectacular. Yami and Mokuba had similar looks of fascination on their faces.

Yami had insisted on playing some of the games first and he knew that he shouldn't have been surprised. He picked up the boy who was so small that he was getting trampled and placed him on his shoulders, letting him get a good view of everything around. They went up to one of the closest stands, which was a ring toss game, and Yami insisted on playing it himself. Seto of course obliged and he realized that he should have figured that the 'King Of Games' was a master of all games because, on the child's first throw, and second, and third, the rings went exactly where he wanted them to, earning him any prize of his choosing. The boy seemed to deliberate carefully as he eyes the massive selection of stuffed animals and things, some of which were larger than him. When he finally picked one, Seto's eyebrows rose in surprise. The vendor came back and reluctantly handed the stuffed Blue Eyes to the chibi, who then handed it to Seto.

Seto stared at the toy and suppressed the ridiculous urge to laugh. He thanked him and they continued deeper into the fairgrounds. This time it was Mokuba who insisted on what they did next and ended up on the ferris wheel, Yami sitting in his lap. Seto then discovered that, oddly enough, while he was perfectly capable of flying his own helicopter with out giving it a second thought, he apparently had a distinct fear of heights. Yami and Mokuba didn't seem to have any such problem and they enjoyed the ride thoroughly.

When they were finally on the ground again, Seto had to resist the urge to drop to his knees and kiss the gravel. He then decided to steer his two charges away from any other rides that went over four feet off the ground and back towards the games. Those were safe enough. Well, at least until Yami won them all and the vendors all lynched them, accusing them of cheating. But hey, that's what having millions of dollars to spare is for.

Thing actually got pretty fun in his own opinion. At least until, as predicted one of the vendors didn't take to well to Yami winning at his rigged game. Consistently. When he accused the small boy of cheating, something that, in itself , was entirely ridiculous, the small pharaoh challenged the man to a game of his own. Seto, who hadn't been terribly surprised by this, considered warned the man, but then decided against it because up until that point he had actually been enjoying himself. So he and Mokuba watched with peaked interest when Yami pulled a card deck out from god-knows-where, and explained his rules to the man. They would each draw three duel monsters cards from the top of the deck, then they would add up the attack power of each card and the person who had the highest overall attack power would win. If he won, then the man would have to drop his accusations. If the vendor won then Yami would return all of the prizes that he'd won from him. And, just to prove that he wasn't cheating, he allowed the man to shuffle his cards. They both drew their three cards. The man added up his attack power and smirked at the boy with an expression that Seto distinctly didn't like and he had to resist the urge to punch the man out for picking on a kid in the first place. When he set down the cards, Seto looked them over appraisingly. Curse of Dragon (2000), Demon Summon(2500), and Gaia (2300) an overall power of 6800. It was high and the man seemed certain that he would win but Seto knew, better than he did, the cards that were in Yami's deck and that the child still had a chance to win. And if he had a chance then, with Yami, odds are he would win. He had complete faith in him.

One by one, Yami set down his cards. Black Magician Girl (2000), Black Magician (2500). They all held their breath as he put down his final card and Seto couldn't help but smirk when he saw it. Magician of Black Chaos (2800). Overall: 7300.

Seto could tell that the man wanted to object but they had draw quite a crowd and every last person was in Yami's favor. If he did further accuse the boy of cheating then they would get angry and he would more than likely get fired. Something that Seto found himself wanting to see more and more.

His attention shifted back to Yami when he saw the chibi yawning and Mokuba was on the verge of doing the same. He glanced at his watch and realized that it was late so they headed home, loading the limo with the menagerie of toys that the miniature pharaoh had won. So much that they barely had room for themselves in the usually spacious car.

When they got back to the mansion Mokuba went off to bed without a hassle and Seto carried the chibi who had fallen asleep in car up to his room, tucking him in before going back to retrieve something from the car. He looked at the stuffed Blue Eyes fondly, wondering why the first thing that the boy had won had been a gift for him. A part of him wished that the pharaoh would never turn back to his original form. But that was overwhelmed by the hope that he would and that the strange tenuous friendship that they had begun to build while he was chibi would remain intact. And maybe grow into something more. He wanted that desperately, but he wasn't holding his breath. Hell, the odds were, even if he did go back to normal, that he might not remember what had happened anyway.

With a sigh he went back up to his room, Yami still sleeping soundly in the bed and set the stuffed dragon in the corner before pulling back the covers and laying down. For a while he just watched as the chibi boy slept, thinking and drifting until he finally fell asleep.

Yami woke up to the sun shining brightly onto his face. He groaned slightly and pulled a pillow over his head to block it out. It was then he realized that something was definitely wrong. For one, the only bed he slept on was in his soul room and it didn't have windows for sunlight to pour through, the second was that his arm had been wrapped around something large and firm, holding it close, and that something—no,  someone—had been holding him as well. He cautiously opened his eyes to find himself staring at Seto's sleeping form. For a moment he just blinked in surprise, staring at the beautiful boy who looked remarkably unguarded in his sleep before the memories of why he was there in the first place came back to him. His eyes went wide at first but then he smiled softly as he remembered the past two days that he'd spent with the brunette. The baths, the ice cream coved kiss, the baths, the paint war, the baths, the fair, and, oh yeah, the baths were pretty memorable too.

Softly, so that he didn't wake the other up, he brushed some of the reddish-brown hair out of the other's face, giving him a clear view. His smile widening ever so slightly, he leaned in and kissed the brunette tenderly.

"Arigatou, Seto-kun."

With that he extracted himself from the other's arms carefully, stopping only to walk over to the other's desk, scrawling a quick note on the expensive stationary before quietly sneaking out of the house.

Seto

It seems that I am back to normal but I didn't want to wake you up. Yugi is probably worried about me so I am going home to assure him that I am alright,

Thank you for what you have done for me. I appreciate the trouble you went to. I know you didn't have to.

I will find someway to repay you.

Yami

~~Owari~~

Sigh…… Well that's done. The epilogue will probably be out in an hour or two; it's not very long. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. Reviews are good. e-mails are better *hint hint* ^______^ Either way, let me know what you think.