Disclaimer: I have a pretty Yu-gi-oh wall scroll… my mom actually BOUGHT it for me!! Now if only I can convince her to let me buy the DVD set when it comes out… she's perfectly willing to offer me a pair of $50 pants while she seems to grow hives when I ask about the DVDs…. (WHICH I WILL PAY FOR MYSELF!)

Look the Other Way

PM: It just occurred to me that this title doesn't seem to make that much sense…. *coughs* Yes. Moving on. The first part of this chapter, which takes place in Seto's POV, takes place on Monday. The rest of the chapter, which takes place on Tuesday, is in Ryou's POV. Kay?

Ryou *smiling sweetly and is no longer frothing at mouth*

PM *peers at him quizzically* Are you okay?

Ryou *smiles sweetly at PM*

PM *sweatdrops*: Err…

*cardboard cut-out of Ryou falls over*

PM: *long silence* RYUUJIIIIIIIIIIIIII! KISAMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Ryuuji *snickering*

PM *smacks him*: Also, just wanted to say that it's a bad idea to kill the second main character in this story. Even if it's Baka Kaiba…. *watches as Kaiba gets chased around in little circles by fic readers* Oy….

Everyone, thank rayemars-san for helping me out with this chapter. ^_^ Wouldn't have been able to publish it if she hadn't given me the confidence to do so… And thanks to the reviewers: Pikazoom, Wildwolf (the driver? He's probably insane by now!), No Name (Meimi is going to have an important part, but she isn't really a focus of the story. She's necessary to what happens, but that could be said of all the characters), Nalan Li (Yami no Bakura? That poor guy has been soooo neglected), fani90 (Ryuuji: I don't hurt Ryou. I just enlighten him. PM: Whatever.), Angel-Belle (Just… don't kill BakaKaiba, kay?), Shenya (*smacks Yami Shenya* THIS IS NOT MY FAULT!), Shikou Yamitsuki (What about poor me? *puppy eyes*), Erfaciel (*laughs as Erfaciel-san runs after Seto with a sword*), Aznsilhouette247 (*in Legolas voice… flips hair* I'm immortal), Amiasha (I will e-mail you back! Promise!), Karadaki (How many times has Seto been called a *beep!* in these reviews? *awed*), Neko-chan (*smacks Neko-chan-chan* You should put warnings on your reviews!), KeMu (Hmm… that song should be Ryou-kun's theme song…), tuulikki (Ryou: No! I want him to suffer! *glares at Seto* PM: --;;), justine, A Laugh That is Evil (Quoting the Great Gatsby, actually. And Seto better not put Meimi up for adoption… if people don't like him now, I think they'd kill him for doing that!), Dani (Yuki *sobs* Yami: HOW COULD YOU FORGET ABOUT YUKI?!), Dark Eyed (will reply to your e-mail soon! *glomps* Missed you so much!), Shamanic Guardian Lena (It's not that difficult to write… unless it's in BakaKaiba's POV *GLARE*), and Lena (Sta… sta… stalk?!). *waves* Arigatou, minna!

~ Clipped Wings ~

"I wanted to say sorry."

Sorry seems so insignificant and I can see that in your eyes. I can see what you're doing right now… you're trying to forget what happened that day. You're trying to forget what you buried and what my presence has brought back to you.

"I shouldn't have done that to you… but I didn't want to face you when I told you."

I really could have done it in a better way, couldn't I? The note… I didn't want to face you. I couldn't because I knew and I still know that if I did, I wouldn't have been able to go through with it. If I had called you and left a message, it still would have been too intimate. I needed to do it in a way so that you couldn't see or hear me. I wanted to do it in a way so that you wouldn't want to remember it.

I don't think I succeeded. Well, that's putting it lightly; I know I didn't succeed. I knew it as soon as I heard from the dog that you had suddenly packed up and moved to America.

Although you might not believe me, I really didn't want it to be this way. I know you harbored dreams about how we would somehow manage to be together forever, and trust me… I had those dreams once too. And I believed in them because there really was no reason not to. Mokuba was fine with it, your annoying friends were fine with it, and some of the others were fine with it.

Not all of them. It would have been unrealistic of me to believe that everybody would be oh-so accepting of our relationship, especially after some of the things I've seen happen. It seems to be in human nature to shy away from the things that they can't understand, and this is sometimes one of them.

Sometimes, I think it was the pressure that finally caused me to end it. I was happy when I was with you, but when I wasn't… it wasn't that obvious. Not always, at least. Few people ever came right out and told me that they didn't want to work with me because of my decision. But… how could it be that a big businessman like me would be… that way? Otogi is lucky, in that aspect. Not as much is expected out of him, and… well, he never did seem very worried about showing off.

I mean, look at how he stands.

I think it was the stereotype. You know… marry, settle down, have kids, grow old and eventually senile. You, with your soft white hair and even softer blue eyes… you just weren't supposed to fit into the equation that social conformity had created over centuries.

And eventually, I succumbed to that standard.

"It took you over eight years to say sorry?"

I wince at your words, which seem to sound bitter but I can see that you don't really mean them that way when I look into your eyes. The soft blue is sad and most importantly, confused. You don't understand why I did it and sometimes I don't know why I did it either. And even if you did understand why I broke the relationship, you still don't understand why I chose to do it that way.

I didn't want to do it face to face because I didn't want to see you hurt. I knew you would be hurt… how could you not? I just didn't want to see it though. Both you and I know that I have a fabulous poker face… but it crumbles when I am around people I care about. And even when I try to use it, as I've done so many times before, you just look right through it. In that way, you're like Mokuba… both of you see me for who I am rather than who I try to hide myself behind.

Eight years… sometimes I believe it's still a dream. I sometimes think that it couldn't have happened, that it was a horrible dream. But dreams are nothing more than just that, and eventually I wake up.

I was hoping that I would wake up to your white hair.

I never did. At first I woke up to discover that I was alone. Then I woke up to the chestnut sheen of Mami's hair. And now….

Meimi has nightmares sometimes. She'll come to my room, hugging a ragged stuffed seal that Yami had gotten for her. Its given name is Seppen [1], but us grownups privately call it Yuki the Second. And she'll crawl under the covers… sometimes I know she's there, but sometimes I don't. And those times that I don't, I'll wake up from my own nightmares to the white fur of Yuki II, and for a moment of disoriented insanity, I'll wonder if it's you. But then I get a good look at the black eyes and my eyes will start to focus and see Meimi sleeping peacefully, and I'll know that this is not a dream.

I love her though. Not Mami, certainly, but Meimi. If we could have had a child, I think you would have been ecstatic with someone like her.

You did seem to get along with her very well in the department store. Perhaps…?

"I have to go now, Kaiba-kun."

Although… although it should be expected, I cannot help but stare. I feel as if we have suddenly degenerated 12 years, and I'm once again asking you if you would mind 'pretending' to be my boyfriend.

You looked so shocked when I asked… your eyes were wide and your mouth open and closing like a fish.

"Ryou…" Your name just seems to fall out, and I can see that you look ready to cry.

"I have to go."

Before I can reach out to grab your wrist and prevent you from running out of my life again, you turn and seem to disappear. I don't know how you managed to do that, even though you stand out so much, but even though I start running toward where you had been standing only seconds ago, I have no idea where you have gone.

If I hadn't known better, I would have suspected that the spirit of the Sennen Ring had somehow whisked you away. But that doesn't seem right. The Sennen Ring had always protected you from things that directly threatened your physical body and mental capacity… but never your emotional state. Which I suppose is a good thing because I would be dead and cremated if it had cared that much about you.

Perhaps it should. Perhaps I should be dead and cremated. Except I doubt the spirit of the Sennen Ring would be decent enough to cremate me (unless it involved burning my body by jabbing those pointers into my chest) [2]; instead, it would probably bury me six feet under.

~ * ~

"Tousama!"

I can't help but smile weakly as Meimi runs toward me, her high ponytail starting to fall out of its tie. I have to admit that as a father who needs to take the place of her mother, I haven't been doing as good a job as I can. For example, her hair… no matter how hard I try, her hair just won't stay in the big ribbon. I've asked Emi what I should do, but she just laughed and declined to help me, much to my disconcertment.

Ryou would probably be able to do a much better job than me.

Perhaps it wasn't fair to Mami, but I was never able to stop comparing her to you. Nobody was able to come near you, and that fact weighed heavily on my mind every time I got together with another girl who was trying to replace you.

Mami… Yuugi and the others thought it was weird that I chose her. Now that I look back, it probably was weird that I chose her. She is as different from you than one could possibly be… where you were quiet, she was loud. Where you were willing to fade into the background, she would make sure everybody knew she was there. Where you were gentle, she was harsh. Where you were loving, she was possessive.

I… I think that's why she was the one who lasted. Because she wasn't anything like you, and she didn't remind me of you. The others… sometimes they would have a trait that would cause me to remember you, but they just weren't you. With her, I could never be reminded of you.

Certainly there were other reasons… business reasons. Otogi guessed it first, and although he never brought it up, it was always in his eyes, quiet and disappointed.

But because she was so different, I wasn't compatible with her. Never was.

Meimi… Mami hoped that Meimi would keep us together, but it didn't work. She didn't really care for her as much as I wanted her to, content to hire a nanny and let that do. I spent the entire two years thinking that if it was you in her place, you'd probably be changing her diapers… or tricking me into changing her diapers. You thought I forgot about that one, didn't you? How could I? It was the first time I really realized that breaking it off with you after the promised 'week' wouldn't be as easy as I had hoped. [3] But you would have wanted to be as close to Meimi as you possibly could, and it finally forced me to realize that I had to end my relationship with Mami. She just wasn't you, and since I couldn't forget you….

I didn't want to commit myself to a relationship with anybody but you. It seems kind of odd and decidedly pathetic on my behalf, but it's true. Over and over again I've wished that I wasn't so impulsive and willing to conform to the expectations that were placed upon me so long ago, but wishing never brought about anything.

You know, I could have lived with myself without you. Meimi was helping… she reminds me of you sometimes. A bit more hyperactive, certainly, but there's this gentle quality about her that just reminds me of you.

Mami threatened me when I gave her the divorce papers. I wasn't very surprised about that, and I wasn't very worried by her threats. She threatened to take Meimi from me, but I knew she wouldn't. She didn't want to take care of Meimi, so when the dust finally settled I got Meimi and she got a hefty check which kept her satisfied for about two years or so. I don't particularly care because I haven't bothered to look back on that. We talk every once in a while… more often then I would like, definitely… and I can't say that I miss her.

Unlike you.

And I was just starting to learn how to live without you.

"How was school, Meimi?" I quickly pull the ribbon out of her hair before it can completely fall off, as it had been threatening to do for a while it seems, and she lets me before quickly hugging me.

She grimaces, her nose wrinkling as if she had just smelled something foul, an action which reminds me rather disturbingly of Mami but at least she makes it… cuter, "It was okay… but I thought you were going to pick me up today? I was surprised when Yuugi-san and Anzu-san came."

"I had to take care of some business." For lack of a better word.

But since when… since when was Ryou 'business'?

"Did it go well?"

I can still see your face. You looked ready to cry, and there were thousands of emotions going through your eyes as you tried to find something to say. Tried to reply to the few words I was able to give you after such a long period of time.

Why is it that I dwell on the past so much when I should know that it's useless to do such things? Sure, we had a wonderful relationship… but was it really so special that I have spent eight years wondering how I could have let it fall to pieces? How did I, who has so much control, end up losing control over something as important as this?

A sad smile meets Meimi, "No. It didn't go well."

"Why not?"

Because I hurt you too much to have it go well. It's hard to forget something like that so quickly, and I would have been very surprised if you had. I probably would have pinched myself to make sure I was still awake.

"It just didn't, Meimi," I sigh, closing that topic of discussion before switching to a different one, "Anything exciting happen to you?"

"Anzu-san and Yuugi-san took me to the shelter to see Michelle-san after they picked me up. She was really mad though. Tetsuji had just painted the cat green. [4]"

~ * ~ Tuesday

"Finally awake, Bakura-kun?"

I walk in to see Otogi-kun with his arms around Honda-kun's chest as the latter tries to cook some semblance of breakfast even though there's an extra head on his shoulder. I've never seen Otogi-kun in such a state of disarray before… it looks like he's taken a shower recently because although his bangs are dry and already all over the place, his hair has not yet been pulled into the usual ponytail and he had yet to tie on his bandanna. Plus he's only wearing an oversized black t-shirt and a pair of boxers.

I so did not need to wake up to see this.

"Ha… ha… hai…" I stutter as I continue to just stare. Otogi-kun ignores my stare, and Honda-kun is so engrossed in making breakfast that he doesn't notice.

"Why don't you just sit down? It'll be done in a bit," Honda-kun finally speaks, never taking his eyes off of breakfast. Which is this rather burnt mass of something unrecognizable.

Apparently, Honda-kun's cooking skills are about as lacking as Otogi-kun's skills.

Otogi-kun obviously thinks so as well because he sighs into Honda-kun's ear, "Even I can cook better than you, Hiroto… I still don't get why you won't let me cook once in a while."

"Jeez, let me think about that," Honda-kun drawls lazily as he empties the gunk into a plate (I sincerely hope he doesn't plan on making me eat that), "That incident with the fire department?"

Otogi-kun looks offended, "That was only one!"

"One too many."

"At least my food was edible." And on that point, I have to side with Otogi-kun… I think I'm going to get sick if they try to feed me anything that wasn't made by somebody else. I genuinely fear for my life, and I'm really not just saying that without having very good reason.

"Before or after it was sprayed with a fire extinguisher?"

I can't help but pale as Honda-kun turns, probably to hand me that alien substance on the plate, but he's having difficulties doing so since Otogi-kun is still attached to him. I have this odd desire to start worshipping Otogi-kun and the ground he stands on….

Honda-kun sighs and turns as best as he can when he has Otogi-kun's head on his shoulder, "Let go of me, Ryuuji."

"No," Otogi-kun sticks his tongue out, "I won't force Bakura-kun to submit to your horrible cooking just so that you can prove to me that not everyone gets food poisoning when they try to eat it."

Well, that was an unexpected show of good will.

Then, before I can blink, Otogi-kun starts nuzzling Honda-kun's neck and Honda-kun responds by kissing the top of the black hair. My stomach is starting to roll, and I can't tell if it's from the prospect of eating Honda-kun's cooking or from this display of affection.

I'm jealous of them.

The realization is slow to hit but as soon as it does, I cannot help but realize how true it is. It's not that I want to have a display of public affection, which I happen to know that Otogi-kun and Honda-kun engage whenever they feel like it (and it seemed they especially like to do it in crowded places), but just to be able to show that type of affection.

Seto and I… I think the closest we ever got to public affection was when we made out in front of the auction house. Except… it was dark and… and…

I always wondered, before and after our relationship ended, if we had actually loved each other by that point at the auction house. It's highly debatable and I don't know the answer… I don't know if I ever will.

Somewhere along this point, the kiss between Honda-kun and Otogi-kun has progressed to a loud thump due to the fact that Honda-kun has 'accidentally' shoved Otogi-kun down onto the ground and they're now looking ready to….

Well, I'm glad that at the age of 30 or so, they haven't lost the passion of their romance.

Finally, after about twenty more seconds, I realize that I'm going to get sick if I stay here any longer. And if I don't leave, I'm going to destroy their happy little lovemaking by either barfing on them or trying to strangle them.

"I'm… I'm going to go see oniisan right now. I'll pick up breakfastonthewaybye!"

Before they can react, if they have even heard, I quickly rush out of the apartment. Running away from a dream I once had, rushing towards a future I never wanted.

~ * ~

"I don't suppose you're hungry… I seem to remember something in the news about your friend nearly setting the apartment on fire," Erika-san looks at me suspiciously. Not that any actual answer is required, especially since my stomach decides to give a very well-timed growl.

So I was wrong… I didn't have time to pick up something to eat on the way. The trains were especially crowded because I had the bad enough luck to rush out of the house just as rush hour was starting to pick up.

"And you're skinny enough already…" oniisan sighs and shakes his head. I just glare at him, resisting the urge to throw my cup at his head. But then Erika-san would have whacked me for breaking one of her cups, and I've had enough experience with that, thank you very much, "What, you been starving yourself or something?"

"I am perfectly fine, thank you," I mutter. I swear, sometimes oniisan has nothing better to do than torment me… I know that big brothers have some type of duty to do that and all, but I think he takes it to the extreme and I am frankly not happy with that.

"Suguru, stop picking on him!" Erika-san comes to my aid and shuts him up… temporarily. However, I have a feeling that the only reason why she's doing that is because she wants to lead the next attack.

I have this strange desire to turn around, run back out the door, and hop on the next plane to America.

Again, well-timed, Erika-san places her hand on my shoulder and forcibly seats me, giving me a look that clearly says 'you're not weaseling your way out of this one'. I just groan.

In the past couple of years, I've only seen oniisan, Erika-san, and my nephew Ikumi about four times… once every two years. They visited me right after I got settled down and three times afterwards… once with otousan and okaasan. Each of those four times have more or less been a disaster (in my opinion), since oniisan is naturally nosy and Erika-san is no better. The result was many situations in which I wanted to kill somebody.

I have a suspicion that this time is going to be no better.

"Here," Erika-san places a plate of actual food before me, and I mumble a thanks before I eagerly start to munch it down. I'm absolutely starving, and I've recovered from the nasty illness I contracted from looking at Honda-kun's dreadful attempts at cooking. Honestly, there are certain people who should not be allowed to cook, and it seems that both Honda-kun and Otogi-kun fit that category.

"So…." Oniisan has that look in his eyes which promises great harm to my mental state, "How has your trip been so far? Good? Bad? Educational?"

I glare.

He smiles knowingly, "So you saw him, hmm?"

"Suguru!"

"Yes Erika? Love of my life?" he turns to look innocently at Erika-san, who smacks him with the spoon she was holding before sitting down at the table. Erika-san is about a centimeter shorter than oniisan, and she has short black hair which falls into her eyes. She has two piercings in each ear, something that oniisan is always complaining about because he claims that it costs twice the amount as just one piercing in each ear since she has to wear two pairs of earrings. I think he would have gone further if she hadn't threatened to give him a couple piercings.

"Stop torturing your brother."

"Isn't that what he's here for?"

Last time I checked, that was so not in my job description.

She sighs and turns to me, shrugging, "I don't know what to do about him. He's impossible to handle! No wonder his mother was so eager to get rid of him!"

"You married me."

"If I remember correctly, I was drunk at the time."

I groan as the two of them completely forget that I exist and start bickering, as Honda-kun and Otogi-kun had done before. Not that it matters anymore because I'm starting to get used to it. I think I got used to it a long time ago, actually, but it's not always a bad thing. It can even be a good thing at times, for there are times when I really don't mind being overlooked.

Like this one, especially since I have a suspicion that oniisan has a desire to speak about a subject that I wish to avoid for as long as I possibly can. Although the longer this trip goes on, it seems to just be making this subject more obligatory. And I certainly don't need that.

"So, Ryou," oniisan turns back to me, and I groan softly, "What are your plans?"

I stare, confused by this seemingly random question. Seemingly since I do think it's random but knowing oniisan, there's probably some horrid reasoning behind it. "What do you mean by that?"

He laughs with the air of someone who knows more than everybody else, "Oh, Ryou, don't play stupid right now. Especially now, it's not the time. But tell me Ryou, if you can. Why did you come back?"

Oh my god… what on earth is he saying?! I hate this, I really do hate this. My mind decides to go into a complete shut-down as I try to get some form of coherency out.

"Jyou… Jyou… Jyounouchi-kun…"

Oniisan sighs with the air of somebody who is voluntarily putting himself through a lot of torture, and it reminds me of Seto, "Ryou…"

"Is this really the time to lie to yourself?" Erika-san interrupts, causing me to look at her in confusion. I hate it when the two of them play such mind games with me… it just makes me feel stupid, and that is definitely something that I need more of. I already feel stupid many times a day… it's gotten to the point that I'm unnaturally used to it. Before I can speak, she continues, "You've already done it so many times, Ryou. You shouldn't do it anymore."

"You came because of him, didn't you?" oniisan takes unfair advantage of my stunned silence to press on his point, "Why else would you come?"

That causes a bit of anger to stir within me. Why does everybody think that my world revolves around Seto, just because I'm… I'm… seemingly obsessed with him or something! Which I'm not!

"I care about my friends, oniisan. Why can't you just accept that that's the reason why I came?" I snap, not liking this scenario at all. And I also do not like the state I'm in.

He waves me off, "I'm sure that's part of the reason, Ryou. But is it really the entire reason? Or did Jyounouchi-kun's phone call make you realize that you couldn't very well run away from it forever?"

"How did you know…" I cut myself off before I can finish the question of how oniisan could have known that Jyounouchi-kun called. I don't quite recall telling him, but I suppose that Jyounouchi-kun must have called him to tell him that I was calling. Or at least, I'm going to just assume that for now because all this thinking is making my head spin.

"Seto…" the word feels somewhat alien to me right now… not as bad as before because I've finally acknowledged that I can't keep forgetting about him without having my sanity affected (not that I was ever very sane in the first place, I suppose), "He's… he's not my problem anymore."

"Not your problem?" oniisan grins, "Says the boyfriend of about four years? As long as you still care about him, it's still your problem. From what I've heard, he's been waiting for you."

"Waiting for me?" I cannot help but laugh rather cynically, "I don't think so."

I don't know why everyone seems to think these things. When we were first getting together, both Jyounouchi-kun and Otogi-kun were under the impression that he actually liked me. Okay, well, they were right and everything… but still!! That was before, this is now. And I'm pretty sure that nothing is going to be happening between the two of us.

"He divorced her," Erika-san points out.

"So? Otogi-kun said she wasn't the most pleasant person to deal with."

"He never remarried? Doesn't that tell you anything?"

Once upon a time, it might have. It really might have, but that was a long time ago. It's just that… I've had eight years to mull over these things, and that's really eight years too many, but I have always been a coward and I am scared of having to go through the same things again. Once is enough and more than enough, and I don't think I'm ready to possibly subject myself to all of this if it shouldn't last.

"No," I can't help but reply flatly, "Not anymore."

Erika-san looks at me sympathetically, "Ryou…."

"He might be ready to try again. I don't know what he went through these past eight years, but he seems to have gotten along well enough without me. But me? I'm not ready to try again, all right? I'm just not," I sigh as I lean back, "And I don't know if I ever will be."

~ * ~

Oniisan and Erika-san were kind enough to drop the subject, and I'm very grateful to that. We went around the subject of Seto as much as possible, and I was almost able to forget about him.

Although I suppose that's not saying much. But it's rare that I can completely forget him, reinforcing the concept of myself having an obsessive-compulsive disorder with him. Not that that's a good thing, certainly. But it's true considering how I haven't been able to forget him.

Oh yeah. I'm pretty sure I've gone insane.

Since it's getting late and I want to beat rush hour, they've finally let me go since Ikumi got back in time for me to greet him, give him a gift, and spoil him rotten.

"Will you be coming back before you leave?" Ikumi smiles brightly as I get ready to go.

"Hopefully," I grin, ruffling his hair which is a blackish-blue, "But I can't guarantee I will be able to get you something else. Your parents, for the oddest reason, think I'm spoiling you."

Well, we both know that I am… but we both have failed to acknowledge it.

"Of course you're not," is the innocent reply as Erika-san sighs.

"Say good-bye to ojisan [5], Ikumi."

"Ja ne [6], ojisan!"

"Come back soon, Ryou. We missed you a lot," Erika-san grins and she also waves as oniisan ushers me out to the door. I wave at them both casually.

"Heh… see? It wasn't that bad," oniisan decides to ruffle my hair and I squeak in indignation. He is always doing that to me, and he knows I dislike it greatly.

"Define bad."

"You're always so bitter," oniisan sighs as I shrug and start to walk away.

Bitter?! BITTER?! What the heck is he talking about?!?!?!

"Oh, and by the way…." I pause to look at oniisan, who has a rather sadistic smile on his face. No, I don't know what side of the family he got it from, but I can't help but be a little happy that at least he didn't leave any for me….

"I'm the one who gave Jyounouchi your phone number."

My jaw drops.

"Ja ne," he waves at me before slamming the door in my face as I stutter.

Ever since I agreed to come to Japan, everything has been spiraling out of control. I didn't think any of this would happen… I thought that I would be able to avoid Seto, avoid his memory, avoid all of this. But instead, it's like I've jumped off a cliff hoping that my wings would spread in time to save me, only to discover that they've been clipped and I'm falling to a fate I could never control in the first place.

Translations and Notes:

[1] Snowflake

[2] The punishment of the Sennen Ring refers to a scene in volume 15 where Pegasus is explaining what happened to a thief that stole the Sennen Ring and was thus forced to undergo a test to show whether or not he was the destined owner. Since he wasn't, the pointers dug themselves into his chest, fire came out of his mouth, and he dropped to the ground a skeleton. The cremation refers to the Japanese preference of cremation over burial.

[3] Reference to the chapter 6 in "Fairydust", where Seto and Ryou ended up volunteering at a shelter.

[4] Michelle and Tetsuji both come from "Fairydust" chapter 6, "The Ugly Umbrella". Michelle is the volunteer who helped acquaint Seto and Ryou to their surroundings, and Tetsuji is the baby that Seto was stuck taking care of.

[5] Uncle

[6] See you later

PM *whining*: I cannot write Seto POV right now… I don't know what's wrong with me! It's just not working! *sits down and cries*

Yami: Loser.

PM: *SMACK* Anyhow, today I'm introducing two special guest stars (kinda… one is always forced to be here and the other one isss new)! Yami-kun the great-great-great-great-great-great…

Yami *genuinely shocked*: What?

PM *ignoring him*: great-great-great-great-great-great-etc, etc, etc grandpappy of Neko-chan-chan! *ducks FPoD*

Yami: WHAT?!?! *turning red… and probably seeing it too!*

Neko-chan: GREAT-(etc, etc)-GRANDPAPPY! *glomps Yami*

*counting… three, two, one….*

Yami: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! *bonks PM with a mallet* STOP THIS! STOP THIS! YAMERUUUUUUUU!

PM: You two have to be related! You both like hitting me with blunt, heavy objects… *rubs head* Ouch….

Neko-chan *smiles sweetly before bopping PM on the head with the FPoD*

PM *wails*: ITAIIIIIIIIIIIII!

Yami: I'm going to KILL whichever descendents of mine spawned this evil demon….

Neko-chan *still glomping on*: You owe me birthday gifts.

Yami *has attack of the eyebrow twitchies*

PM *massaging forehead which is rapidly bruising due to many whacks*

Pikachumaniac