Notes: **laughs at the song Tefla was singing!** You inspired some of this chapter ^_~
Seto backed up slowly, not especially wanting to be run down by the reindeer. "What's going on here?!" he demanded loudly.
A short little man dressed as a Christmas elf ran up to the deer frantically and grabbed its harness. "I'm so sorry," he exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, "but you don't have to be concerned. Dancer just wanted to say hello."
Seto raised an eyebrow at him. "Look, I don't have time for this," he said coldly. "Just try to keep your pets in line from now on. If you allow them to run wild, they could seriously injure someone."
The elvish man shook his head vigorously. "Oh, Dancer is not a pet!" he said firmly.
Seto was not in the mood for this. "Just tell me this—have you noticed the unusual things going on at Toys, Etc. lately?" he demanded.
The elf blinked. "Oh, of course," he said. "Hasn't everyone?"
Seto folded his arms. "Does the owner, Mr. Thorton, seem strange to you?"
"Well . . ." The elf looked from side to side nervously. "I don't know if I should say anything . . ."
"You should." Seto looked at him impatiently.
The elf twisted Dancer's harness in his hands, reminding Seto of Velma with her dust mop. He seemed to be weighing the consequences of telling Seto whatever it was he knew. At last he said, "Alright. Meet me here after the mall closes tonight at eleven," and started leading Dancer back to the North Pole display in the middle of the mall.
Seto's eyes narrowed. Those late night meetings often meant trouble. He would have to be on his guard. But meantime, he would look for more clues elsewhere.
****
Back at Toys, Etc., the six teens were helping Maureen put the wayward toys back on their shelves.
"Man, did I just see Kaiba get cornered by a reindeer?" Joey snickered.
"I think so," Yugi said with a blink.
"What's a reindeer doing in the mall?!" Mai exclaimed.
"That's exactly what I was wondering," Tristan declared.
As they replaced the fallen wildlife plushies, Joey started to sing jokingly, "Kaiba got run over by a reindeer . . ."
"Joey!!!" Tea scolded. "That's not funny!!"
Joey shrugged. "It does leave ya with a weird mental picture, though," he said, thinking of the words to the song.
Tea rolled her eyes.
"Somehow, I don't think Kaiba would appreciate it," Yugi remarked, setting the radio-controlled cars back on their display table.
"Oh my . . . what's this?" Bakura exclaimed, examining one of the stuffed animals.
Mai stared at it. "It looks like a leopard to me."
Bakura shook his head. "No . . . that's not what I meant. Look at this!" He held up a small, square, metal device.
"Whoa . . ." Tristan blinked in surprise.
"What is that thing?!" Joey demanded.
Yugi took it and turned it over and over in his hands. "Where did you find this, Bakura?" he asked.
"It was inside this animal," Bakura replied, pointing to a rip in the plush's back. "It fell out when I picked it up."
"No way," Tristan said, looking appalled.
"It looks like some kind of remote-control receiver or something," Yugi mused.
"That's exactly what it is," Maureen nodded. "They put them in the radio-controlled cars. They're what the radio tunes in with to make the cars move."
"And somehow they wired all these plushies to move around too?" Joey said in disbelief.
"It'd be easy enough, I suppose," Maureen said slowly, glaring at the plush in Bakura's hands. "But why would they do it?!"
"It's a puzzle," Yugi admitted with a sigh.
"I can't figure out what the point would be, either," Tea said, shaking her head. "Unless they just want to completely scare us silly!"
"Maybe they want us to leave the store," Yugi mused.
"Yeah, but why?" Joey wanted to know.
"Perhaps there is some secret here that we're not supposed to see," Bakura suggested.
"Yeah, but what?!" Joey said in frustration. "This is gettin' us nowhere!!"
A search of the store turned up nothing significant.
"I think we should search that weird Mr. Thorton's office," Joey declared.
"Sounds good to me," Tristan agreed.
"But we can't do that as long as he's still here," Bakura objected.
"Well, if you want to hang around until the mall closes and Mr. Thorton leaves, I guess we could do it then," Tea said hesitantly.
"I still have a lot of shopping to do," Mai announced, "so I'll leave you boys and girls to deal with the living toys." She picked up her bags and waved goodbye.
After saying goodbye to Mai, the boys agreed to Tea's idea; however, since there was still a couple of hours before the mall would close, they had to come up with something to do until then.
"We could go bug Kaiba," Joey grinned. "After all, whatever he's involved with must have some connection with our mystery, what with the way that Thorton guy reacted to whatever Kaiba asked him!"
"We don't even know where Kaiba went," Yugi pointed out.
Eventually they decided to split up. Tristan and Joey would wander around the mall, looking for anything unusual—and maybe Seto as well—while Yugi and Bakura would stay at Toys, Etc. and continue helping Tea and Maureen with straightening things up.
"You sure you don't want to come with us, guys?" Tristan asked.
Yugi nodded. "We'll just stay here. But come back here by eleven," he warned, "or you might get kicked out of the mall."
"Don't worry, Yug," Joey said airily. "We'll be back before you know it!"
Tea shook her head in amusement. "There's no telling what kind of mischief they'll get into," she remarked.
****
"Man, this mall really goes out with their Christmas stuff," Joey declared.
"You're telling me," Tristan agreed. "Look at all those live reindeer, and the elves!"
"Kaiba could be almost anywhere," Joey sighed. "This mall must have four floors!"
"Yeah, but did you ever think he'd be there?!" Tristan exclaimed, pointing. Joey stared in complete, utter disbelief.
Seto Kaiba was barreling towards them on the back of another reindeer, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake!
"He's coming right at us!" Joey yelled. "Jump outta the way!!"
"You don't havta tell me twice, buddy!" Tristan declared, diving into a nearby store, and Joey quickly followed suit.
"Kaiba, what's the matter with ya?! You're gonna get us all killed!!" Joey yelled.
Seto fought furiously with the reindeer, trying to get it to come to a halt. He pulled on the reins, clenching his teeth angrily. Slowly the animal skidded across the floor, twisting its body wildly from side to side. Seto struggled to hold on, but when the deer stopped most abruptly, the boy went flying off and crashed hard to the floor. After knocking a kiosk and some candy barrels over, the frantic reindeer turned around, stepped on Seto's chest, and disappeared around a corner, bawling madly.
Joey and Tristan stared at the fleeing animal in shock for several long minutes, and then they snapped out of their trance and ran to Seto's aid.
"Kaiba! Hey, man, are you hurt?" Joey asked. He had learned a long time ago how much a horse's hooves could injure someone, and he had the feeling that a reindeer's hooves would be just as dangerous.
Seto groaned and sat up slowly. He didn't appear to be seriously injured, but he was certain that the animal's crazed escape had left him more than a little banged up.
"What was going on with you?" Tristan demanded. "Why on earth were you riding that reindeer?!"
Seto shook his head. "If I'd had a choice, believe me, I wouldn't have been." It hadn't been his fault, actually—the deer had just ran out of nowhere and crashed into him from behind, sending him flying backwards and onto the animal's back.
Now that Joey knew that Seto was alright for the most part—except for being very shaken up and probably badly bruised—he couldn't resist teasing him a bit. "Kaiba got run over by a reindeer," he sang, and then burst into laughter.
Seto's eyes narrowed angrily. "Shut up, Wheeler."
****
Back at Toys, Etc., Yugi was sweeping the floor, Tea was restocking the shelves, and Bakura had been left in charge at the front counter while Maureen went to further examine the device Bakura had found earlier. "It's easy," she had told him when he expressed doubt about his ability to do things right. "Just check the computer for anything the customers ask for, and if something is in the storeroom it should be in a clearly marked case and easy to find."
So far things had been pretty quiet at the store, but now a stuffy-looking woman came in and walked up to the desk. "Are you in charge here?" she demanded.
Bakura blinked, surprised at her harsh tone. "Why . . . yes, I suppose I am," he said slowly.
"Then tell me where I can find the Star Wars Unleashed figures," the woman ordered. "They aren't on the shelves where they should be!"
Quickly Bakura looked them up on the computer. "Well, it says we have some cases in the back," he told the woman. "If you'll wait a moment, I could go see what I can find."
The woman sighed. "Fine. But be quick about it," she said. "I waited for the better part of an hour for someone at another store, and I don't have that kind of time to waste!"
Bakura didn't like the woman's rude tone, but Maureen had reminded him that "the customer was always right," and besides, he was too meek and shy to protest. "I'll be right back," he promised, heading into the storeroom.
He wandered up and down the aisles, carefully examining each box and crate. "They should be right around here somewhere," he mused, lifting another box down from a high shelf.
Suddenly he froze, his heart racing wildly. He wasn't alone. Someone was right here, watching him!
He whirled around to look. No one was there that he could see, but he still felt nervous. "Hello?" he called tentatively. "Yugi? Tea?"
A rough arm shot out and grabbed him harshly. Bakura gasped and struggled to get free. "What are you doing?!" he cried. "Let me go!! Please!!"
A sweet-smelling cloth was thrust over his nose and mouth. Bakura felt himself grow weak as colors swirled in front of his eyes and faded to black.
Seto backed up slowly, not especially wanting to be run down by the reindeer. "What's going on here?!" he demanded loudly.
A short little man dressed as a Christmas elf ran up to the deer frantically and grabbed its harness. "I'm so sorry," he exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, "but you don't have to be concerned. Dancer just wanted to say hello."
Seto raised an eyebrow at him. "Look, I don't have time for this," he said coldly. "Just try to keep your pets in line from now on. If you allow them to run wild, they could seriously injure someone."
The elvish man shook his head vigorously. "Oh, Dancer is not a pet!" he said firmly.
Seto was not in the mood for this. "Just tell me this—have you noticed the unusual things going on at Toys, Etc. lately?" he demanded.
The elf blinked. "Oh, of course," he said. "Hasn't everyone?"
Seto folded his arms. "Does the owner, Mr. Thorton, seem strange to you?"
"Well . . ." The elf looked from side to side nervously. "I don't know if I should say anything . . ."
"You should." Seto looked at him impatiently.
The elf twisted Dancer's harness in his hands, reminding Seto of Velma with her dust mop. He seemed to be weighing the consequences of telling Seto whatever it was he knew. At last he said, "Alright. Meet me here after the mall closes tonight at eleven," and started leading Dancer back to the North Pole display in the middle of the mall.
Seto's eyes narrowed. Those late night meetings often meant trouble. He would have to be on his guard. But meantime, he would look for more clues elsewhere.
****
Back at Toys, Etc., the six teens were helping Maureen put the wayward toys back on their shelves.
"Man, did I just see Kaiba get cornered by a reindeer?" Joey snickered.
"I think so," Yugi said with a blink.
"What's a reindeer doing in the mall?!" Mai exclaimed.
"That's exactly what I was wondering," Tristan declared.
As they replaced the fallen wildlife plushies, Joey started to sing jokingly, "Kaiba got run over by a reindeer . . ."
"Joey!!!" Tea scolded. "That's not funny!!"
Joey shrugged. "It does leave ya with a weird mental picture, though," he said, thinking of the words to the song.
Tea rolled her eyes.
"Somehow, I don't think Kaiba would appreciate it," Yugi remarked, setting the radio-controlled cars back on their display table.
"Oh my . . . what's this?" Bakura exclaimed, examining one of the stuffed animals.
Mai stared at it. "It looks like a leopard to me."
Bakura shook his head. "No . . . that's not what I meant. Look at this!" He held up a small, square, metal device.
"Whoa . . ." Tristan blinked in surprise.
"What is that thing?!" Joey demanded.
Yugi took it and turned it over and over in his hands. "Where did you find this, Bakura?" he asked.
"It was inside this animal," Bakura replied, pointing to a rip in the plush's back. "It fell out when I picked it up."
"No way," Tristan said, looking appalled.
"It looks like some kind of remote-control receiver or something," Yugi mused.
"That's exactly what it is," Maureen nodded. "They put them in the radio-controlled cars. They're what the radio tunes in with to make the cars move."
"And somehow they wired all these plushies to move around too?" Joey said in disbelief.
"It'd be easy enough, I suppose," Maureen said slowly, glaring at the plush in Bakura's hands. "But why would they do it?!"
"It's a puzzle," Yugi admitted with a sigh.
"I can't figure out what the point would be, either," Tea said, shaking her head. "Unless they just want to completely scare us silly!"
"Maybe they want us to leave the store," Yugi mused.
"Yeah, but why?" Joey wanted to know.
"Perhaps there is some secret here that we're not supposed to see," Bakura suggested.
"Yeah, but what?!" Joey said in frustration. "This is gettin' us nowhere!!"
A search of the store turned up nothing significant.
"I think we should search that weird Mr. Thorton's office," Joey declared.
"Sounds good to me," Tristan agreed.
"But we can't do that as long as he's still here," Bakura objected.
"Well, if you want to hang around until the mall closes and Mr. Thorton leaves, I guess we could do it then," Tea said hesitantly.
"I still have a lot of shopping to do," Mai announced, "so I'll leave you boys and girls to deal with the living toys." She picked up her bags and waved goodbye.
After saying goodbye to Mai, the boys agreed to Tea's idea; however, since there was still a couple of hours before the mall would close, they had to come up with something to do until then.
"We could go bug Kaiba," Joey grinned. "After all, whatever he's involved with must have some connection with our mystery, what with the way that Thorton guy reacted to whatever Kaiba asked him!"
"We don't even know where Kaiba went," Yugi pointed out.
Eventually they decided to split up. Tristan and Joey would wander around the mall, looking for anything unusual—and maybe Seto as well—while Yugi and Bakura would stay at Toys, Etc. and continue helping Tea and Maureen with straightening things up.
"You sure you don't want to come with us, guys?" Tristan asked.
Yugi nodded. "We'll just stay here. But come back here by eleven," he warned, "or you might get kicked out of the mall."
"Don't worry, Yug," Joey said airily. "We'll be back before you know it!"
Tea shook her head in amusement. "There's no telling what kind of mischief they'll get into," she remarked.
****
"Man, this mall really goes out with their Christmas stuff," Joey declared.
"You're telling me," Tristan agreed. "Look at all those live reindeer, and the elves!"
"Kaiba could be almost anywhere," Joey sighed. "This mall must have four floors!"
"Yeah, but did you ever think he'd be there?!" Tristan exclaimed, pointing. Joey stared in complete, utter disbelief.
Seto Kaiba was barreling towards them on the back of another reindeer, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake!
"He's coming right at us!" Joey yelled. "Jump outta the way!!"
"You don't havta tell me twice, buddy!" Tristan declared, diving into a nearby store, and Joey quickly followed suit.
"Kaiba, what's the matter with ya?! You're gonna get us all killed!!" Joey yelled.
Seto fought furiously with the reindeer, trying to get it to come to a halt. He pulled on the reins, clenching his teeth angrily. Slowly the animal skidded across the floor, twisting its body wildly from side to side. Seto struggled to hold on, but when the deer stopped most abruptly, the boy went flying off and crashed hard to the floor. After knocking a kiosk and some candy barrels over, the frantic reindeer turned around, stepped on Seto's chest, and disappeared around a corner, bawling madly.
Joey and Tristan stared at the fleeing animal in shock for several long minutes, and then they snapped out of their trance and ran to Seto's aid.
"Kaiba! Hey, man, are you hurt?" Joey asked. He had learned a long time ago how much a horse's hooves could injure someone, and he had the feeling that a reindeer's hooves would be just as dangerous.
Seto groaned and sat up slowly. He didn't appear to be seriously injured, but he was certain that the animal's crazed escape had left him more than a little banged up.
"What was going on with you?" Tristan demanded. "Why on earth were you riding that reindeer?!"
Seto shook his head. "If I'd had a choice, believe me, I wouldn't have been." It hadn't been his fault, actually—the deer had just ran out of nowhere and crashed into him from behind, sending him flying backwards and onto the animal's back.
Now that Joey knew that Seto was alright for the most part—except for being very shaken up and probably badly bruised—he couldn't resist teasing him a bit. "Kaiba got run over by a reindeer," he sang, and then burst into laughter.
Seto's eyes narrowed angrily. "Shut up, Wheeler."
****
Back at Toys, Etc., Yugi was sweeping the floor, Tea was restocking the shelves, and Bakura had been left in charge at the front counter while Maureen went to further examine the device Bakura had found earlier. "It's easy," she had told him when he expressed doubt about his ability to do things right. "Just check the computer for anything the customers ask for, and if something is in the storeroom it should be in a clearly marked case and easy to find."
So far things had been pretty quiet at the store, but now a stuffy-looking woman came in and walked up to the desk. "Are you in charge here?" she demanded.
Bakura blinked, surprised at her harsh tone. "Why . . . yes, I suppose I am," he said slowly.
"Then tell me where I can find the Star Wars Unleashed figures," the woman ordered. "They aren't on the shelves where they should be!"
Quickly Bakura looked them up on the computer. "Well, it says we have some cases in the back," he told the woman. "If you'll wait a moment, I could go see what I can find."
The woman sighed. "Fine. But be quick about it," she said. "I waited for the better part of an hour for someone at another store, and I don't have that kind of time to waste!"
Bakura didn't like the woman's rude tone, but Maureen had reminded him that "the customer was always right," and besides, he was too meek and shy to protest. "I'll be right back," he promised, heading into the storeroom.
He wandered up and down the aisles, carefully examining each box and crate. "They should be right around here somewhere," he mused, lifting another box down from a high shelf.
Suddenly he froze, his heart racing wildly. He wasn't alone. Someone was right here, watching him!
He whirled around to look. No one was there that he could see, but he still felt nervous. "Hello?" he called tentatively. "Yugi? Tea?"
A rough arm shot out and grabbed him harshly. Bakura gasped and struggled to get free. "What are you doing?!" he cried. "Let me go!! Please!!"
A sweet-smelling cloth was thrust over his nose and mouth. Bakura felt himself grow weak as colors swirled in front of his eyes and faded to black.