Jaded Dice

By: Neko-chan



A/N: Well, this story is dedicated to Pikachumaniac because of several reasons. She's such a great person and I love talking with her, she's such a talented authoress (though she doesn't think so... *SMACK*), and she was the one who got me interested in Honda/Otogi. (And, as PM would say: NOT Otogi/Honda! HONDA/Otogi! LOL! Saaa... D) And--PM! I want my "Spring Tulips"!!! ;_; *pout pout pout* If I don't eventually get it, I'll change the pairings of the second chapter of this and make it OTOGI/Honda! *evil grin*

Yami: No wonder PM says that you're evil. Also... *stuffs a sock in her mouth* Urusei, baka.

...¬.¬;;

WARNING: SHOUNEN-AI!!! Honda/Otogi! (And if my threat's carried out...Otogi/Honda. ;-p HA!)

DISCLAIMER: *pokes Black Magician* Blaaa~aaackie! *evil grin*

BM: *hates this part of a fic* ... *sighs* Neko-chan doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh!.

...that's IT?!

BM: *nods* Of course it is. I stated a fact that was straight to the point (and legal), so why should I continue on from that point? *raises eyebrow*

..._





Chapter One

The pair of dice rolled across the table, finally stopping after several seconds of movement. The one of the left completely stopped--the number that it displayed was one. The die on the right, however, continued to spin on a corner, going around and around and around...seeming as if it would never stop. But finally it did. And the number that it displayed was, like its previous partner, one.

Snake eyes.

A pair of emerald green eyes frowned at this. Ryuuji Otogi was considered by many a genius with dice--and he had never rolled snake eyes before, whether accidental or on purpose. But was that a good sign...or was that a bad sign? Still frowning, he scooped up the dice and tossed them in his hand, comforted by the sound they made when they clicked together. It was a sharp sound--but he liked it. That particular sound drowned out all of his other thoughts...something that he was grateful for lately.

The door to his office softly clicked open, but Ryuuji preferred to ignore it, still absently staring out the window at the bright and sunny day. "Otogi-san?" his personal manservant inquired softly. Sighing to himself, Ryuuji crossed his ankles and debated on whether or not he could ignore his 'intruder'.

As much as Ryuuji wanted to be left alone, he couldn't do that to Tsukiko-san. He wasn't exactly a manservant--per say, at least. The elderly man had been with Ryuuji since he had opened his shop, helping with accounts, customers, media, and the like. The black-haired young man knew that without Tsukiko, he probably wouldn't have survived the first several months of running his own business. And so he turned around.

"Nani, Tsukiko-san?" Ryuuji asked, raising an elegant eyebrow as he did so.

The older man (whenever Ryuuji thought of Tsukiko, the word 'old world-ly' continued to pop into his mind) smiled slightly and bowed. "Do you remember Yuugi-minna from several weeks ago, Otogi-san?"

Ryuuji blinked. "Hai. Of course I do. Why?"

Tsukiko continued to smile that small smile of his. "Well... As Otogi-san will remember, you promised to teach them how to play DDM if they so asked. One of Yuugi-minna is here. I believe... I believe that his name is Hiroto Honda. He seems a tad bit nervous, so I would suggest that you go downstairs right now and make him feel welcome."

At this, both of Ryuuji's eyebrows shot up. If he hadn't known Tsukiko better...that would have sounded like a command. In fact, it still DID sound like a command, no matter HOW well Ryuuji knew Tsukiko. His green eyes narrowed marginally and he stood up, stretching like a cat as he did so.

When he finally finished, Tsukiko cocked an eyebrow at him and did something Ryuuji never thought was possible--he grinned mischievously. "Well, if are now done grandstanding, Otogi-san, Honda-kun is waiting for you. If you need me, just call. Ja ne, Otogi-san." And, with that, he seemed to...vanish.

Ryuuji sighed and made his way out of the doorway. Though he wasn't sure that Tsukiko would still hear him, he still said what he _hoped_ would be taken as a threat: "Good help is so hard to find these days." No answer awaited him. Once again, Ryuuji sighed and made his way down the staircase.

The black-haired youth slowed down as he neared the bottom of the staircase, deciding to make a grand entrance. Though he didn't do it often, Ryuuji enjoyed making 'grand entrances.' They often played an important role in a observer's first opinion of you...and could sometimes also be played to your own advantage. Demo...

Why was he doing so with Honda-kun?

Nibbling his bottom lip in thought, he began to twist a strand of hair around his finger. Many people thought that because of this habit (not to mention his longer than normal hair)--he was gay. It may or may not be true--Ryuuji didn't particularly care and he held all rumors in contempt. Demo... _Why_ did he feel as if he needed to make a grand entrance around Honda-kun. Iie... It didn't matter any longer; he would think on it later.

"Kon'nichi wa, Honda-kun," Ryuuji said, smiling slightly at the taller youth as he stepped off the last step. He titled his head to one side and continued to play with his hair, not even aware that he was doing so.

Hiroto blinked and looked up from the card packs that he had been examining. His brown eyes seemed to soften for a moment--but that moment was gone in a flash. He bowed slightly, "Kon'nichi wa, Otogi-kun."

And the two continued to stare at each other for several long moments, neither willing to break the silence and each waiting for the other to make the first move. Demo...

Which one _would_ make the first move?