Sweet November ~ Chapter 6

AN: Good, I'm not the only one who is going to be losing sleep over this story. My mission has been accomplished.

*evil grin *

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Isis slowly sank to her knees, holding her hand in front of her mouth as tears formed in the corner of her eyes. Seto came rushing into the room, dashing over to her and holding her tightly. "Isis, are you okay? What's wrong?" She didn't trust herself to speak; she wrapped her arms around his waist, crying onto his bare shoulder. He ran his fingers through her hair. "Isis, talk to me." She shook her head, clinging to him tighter. He sighed, lifting his head. "What the hell is that doing here?" he growled, pulling her closer to him, continuing to stroke her hair. "Shh… Isis, everything will be all right. We'll just call the police and have them remove that horrible monstrosity." He planted a kiss on her temple, helping her to her feet, one hand resting gently under her arm. "Let's go," he whispered gently, guiding her out of the room with his arm wrapped tightly around her.

He led her back to the bed and she sat down, burying her face in her hands. "I'll be right back," he whispered, rubbing her back before leaving. She could barely hear him picking up and dialing the phone; all the sounds seemed to be blending together in her head. All she could see were those sunken eyes, staring at her, piercing into her soul. Five months ago, that girl had been just like her. And now… She shuddered to think about it. Seto's normally smooth voice was now a mere mumble, a droning sound that was oddly pleasing yet bothersome at the same time. She wished he would hurry up and get off the phone. She wanted him to come back and wrap her in his strong arms again. She gulped, staring blankly ahead as she waited for him to comfort her. He wouldn't be able to make her forget, but he could quite possibly make it only a memory very soon. She heard a click behind her, knowing that he had finished his conversation with the police.

Seto came back to Isis' side of the bed, sitting down next to her. He pulled her close, kissing the side of her head. "The police will be here in a few minutes," he murmured, gently rubbing her arm. She buried her head in his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist as she sobbed onto him. This was definitely not her month; she had every right to be emotional. For one thing, how the hell had that gotten in Seto's bathroom? First, it would have to pass the security and after that, someone would have had to come through Seto's bedroom. They were in there all night after they had gotten back to the house. "Isis, are you going to be okay?" he asked, nuzzling her ear.

She pulled away from him slowly, raising her face until her tear-filled eyes met his, her arms sliding off his waist. He looked down at her, deep blue eyes filled with concern. She flung her arms around his neck, throwing herself forward until her lips came in contact with his. She closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her cheek as she leaned towards him. She wanted to burn the memory away, replacing it with memories of Seto. She pulled away from him slowly, half-opening her eyes. "I'll be fine," she whispered, amazed her voice came out so clear and strong. It sounded a hell of a lot better than she felt.

He brought his hand up to her back, directly between her shoulder blades, resting his head against hers. Isis sighed in contentment, wrapping her left arm tighter around him, nuzzling his neck. Seto began stroking her back, the other arm resting lightly around her waist. The moment was perfect and Isis knew that Seto was going to keep her safe. She wasn't going to meet the same fate as that girl, at least not yet.

"You should get dressed before the police get here," he whispered gently. She nodded, reluctantly pulling away from his warmth. "Let me help," he said, walking over to the closet. "What does my Isis want to wear today?" He began randomly pulling out items. "This? Or maybe this?" She watched him from across the room, tempted to point out that she couldn't see anything before he put it back away. She had a feeling it wasn't what she wanted to wear, but more like what he wanted to see her wear. "Here we are," he said, apparently reaching a decision. He came back over to her, carrying something over his arm and she smiled weakly up at him, the smile quickly fading. "I'm not willing to share your beauty with some idiot police men," he told her, offering his hand to her.

She took his hand, rising to her feet. She took the clothes from him, her hands briefly brushing his. "I thought you said you were going to help me," she accused, turning her back to him. She put his desired outfit on, every once in a while glancing over her shoulder at him. He seemed quite content to watch with no intentions of helping. Once dressed, she wrapped her arms around herself, staring absent-mindedly at the floor. The problem was, she knew that the girl was still hanging in Seto's bedroom, a not so subtle reminder of her fate in twenty-six days. He closed the distance between them, pressing up against her back, wrapping his arms around her and resting his head on her shoulder. "I love you," she said quietly, closing her eyes. He placed his hand on top of hers, entwining their fingers, breathing in her scent.

"Mister Kaiba, the police are here to see you. They say you called."

He kissed Isis, reluctantly pulling away from her. He pulled her hand up, brushing his lips softly across the back of it. "I'll be right back," he promised, starting to walk away. She turned to watch him go, wrapping her arms tighter now that she no longer had his warmth. She wanted to tell him to stay, to let someone else deal with the police. She wanted him to stay and protect her. Her fingers clutched at her arms and she flinched as he walked out the door.

Tears threatening to come back, she turned away from the door. She wiped her eyes, turning her attention out the window. That damn bird was still sitting there, looking at her with his beady black eyes, head cocked slightly to the side. She took a step forward, hand outstretched to the tiny creature. The bird took flight, leaving her alone with the exception of the "girl" in the next room. With a frustrated sigh, she spun around, collapsing onto the bed and burying her face in the pillow. It smelled like Seto and that at least was some little comfort. If she closed her eyes she could almost imagine that he was there next to her.

The door opened and she heard several people coming into the room. "Right this way," Seto said in his strong sexy voice, pointing to the bathroom.

One of the officers saw Isis on the bed and stopped Seto, placing a hand on his arm. "Who is she?" he asked, pointing at Isis.

Seto glared at the finger, pushing it down with a growl. "It's impolite to point. She's my girlfriend," he told him, casting a worried glance in her direction.

"Is she the one that found the body?" Seto nodded once. "Do you think she'd mind if we questioned her?"

"Why the hell do you need to question her?" he asked angrily, coldly, without raising his voice. "My girlfriend found a decaying body in my shower this morning." The man gulped, taking a step away from Seto. "What more do you need to know?"

"Well, Mister Kaiba, we will have to run a few DNA tests," he said, effectively changing the subject. "Safety procedures even though I'm fairly certain you haven't had the girl in you shower for that long." The other two men came out of the bathroom, carrying a plastic bag between them/ Seto and the officer watched their progress as they went out the door. "We'll send someone over to do a thorough investigation later and we'll call you if anything important comes up." He followed his comrades out the door.

As soon as he was gone Seto turned his attention to Isis who was still lying on her stomach on his bed. He walked over, sitting down next to her and running his fingers through her hair. "They're gone, Isis," he said, lying down on his side next to her.

She lifted her head, turning towards him. "It was horrible, Seto," she told him.

"I know," he said tenderly, placing his arm around her and pulling her closer. "But it will all be over soon." She wished she could believe him; however, she felt that this time he was wrong.

November 6th

The memory of the dead girl haunted her so much that she hadn't been to Seto's house since. Eventually, she convinced him to come over to her apartment for a change. It was at that moment she realized she had absolutely nothing in there. She stood frozen in her kitchen for several moments, wondering exactly what she was going to do now. The obvious answer was for her to go shopping. However, that meant going outside and into the chill November air. After about five minutes of indecision, she figured she would go out now while everyone else was out there. She put her jacket on, grabbing her keys and stuffing them in her pockets.

She stepped outside, shivering as a chill breeze floated by. The plan was to get to a store and get back as soon as possible. She would be safe then. She quickly set off, pulling her jacket tighter. 'Isis…' She wasn't going to listen to it; she was just going to keep walking. 'Isis…' It felt like something was following her, getting closer with every step. 'Isis…' It was right behind her now, so close she could actually feel it. She wasn't going to turn around… Whatever was behind her grabbed her shoulder and she jumped around in fright… to run into Jounouchi… "Sorry, Isis. Did I scare you? I called your name but I guess you didn't hear me."

She smiled in relief. She never once thought that she would be so grateful to see him. And… "You're in one piece!" she exclaimed happily, giving him a quick hug, giggling just a little.

He raised an eyebrow as he looked at her with a confused expression. "Why wouldn't I be?" She shook her head, and he took a step backwards. "So, what are you doing?"

"I'm shopping. I finally realized my apartment has absolutely nothing in it," she admitted.

"Mind if I come with you?" he asked. "Yuugi's grandfather kicked me out of the store." He grinned sheepishly. "Said I was too much of a distraction or something like that." They started walking in the direction of downtown Domino, Jounouchi walking at her left side. "Can you believe that?" he asked indignantly. She shook her head, listening to him rattle on about the unfairness of getting kicked out of the store. Glad to have some company, and one that was so extremely conversational as well, she smiled, occasionally casting a glance in his direction. The current topic of discussion trailed off and Isis looked over at him, worried that something had happened. He kept looking over his shoulder, a nervous tendency that was doing nothing but eat at her own sanity. "Isis, I think we're being followed."

Great, that was exactly what she needed to hear. She bit her bottom lip, spinning around to face whatever it was. A black cat stopped when they did, sitting down with a loud meow. "It's a cat," Isis said softly.

Jounouchi turned around to look at it, stepping slightly in between her and the creature. "Is that the same cat I kicked the other night?"

Isis studied the animal, its piercing yellow eyes and its sleek black fur. The cat yawned and Isis vividly recalled the cat that blocked their way and hissed at them. "I think so," she hesitantly, fearfully, admitted. In fact, it did bear a striking resemblance to the other creature. Except this one didn't look like it was going to attempt to kill them anytime soon.

"That's just freaky," Jounouchi muttered. She had to agree with him. "Maybe Yuugi was right about the seven years bad luck." He stepped back and Isis rolled her eyes.

"There's no such thing as bad luck," she insisted, giving him an accusatory glare. Honestly, her life had been bad enough without him giving her more reasons to be paranoid. "Come on, I don't want to be outside forever." She turned and started walking away, praying to the gods that the cat didn't continue to follow them. After a few moments she heard Jounouchi start to follow her. She was oddly comforted by his presence, something familiar in a world that was rapidly changing around her. Jounouchi started chattering again, and Isis smiled, glad that at least one of them was holding onto sanity.

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"So, exactly what happened between you and Kaiba?" Isis stopped mid-reach for a box of granola bars. He had been pleasant, it not a bit overly noisy, since that had arrived at the store. Last time she had checked he had been talking about Yuugi or Mai, she had lost track, and had seemed quite happy to stay on that topic for quite a while. Now he had the nerve to bring up her relationship with Seto. She glared at him. "I mean, you just didn't decide to stock up at you apartment. You spend most of your time at his house.

She continued walking, trying to think of something she could say that would not result in her punching him. "Nothing happened between Seto and I."

He raised an eyebrow at her as he continued to follow her like an obedient little puppy. Hmm, she was beginning to think perhaps Seto had a point with the dog comments. "Really? Then why are you getting stuff for your apartment if you're still with him?"

"Well…" She wasn't exactly sure if she should tell him. After all, she hadn't even told Seto anything yet. Then again, he and Yuugi already knew about some of the phone calls. So, she quickly told him the entire story, starting with the newscast on the last day of October. She even told him about the writing in the mirror before she discovered the body. "That's why I've been staying at my apartment," she finished. She waited for Jounouchi to say something, anything, hopefully something funny. However, all she received was silence. She turned around, checking to make sure he was still with her.

Granted, he was still following her, but he was visibly shaking. She couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. "That's… a bit scary…" he stuttered. Shit, she had completely forgotten he was a big scaredy-cat at heart. Well. She wouldn't be the only one having nightmares now, and besides, he had asked. "Thanks for that. I'm not going to sleep ever again, but…"

"Oh, I'm sure you have someone to comfort you in the middle of the night," she suggested slyly. Knowing him there probably was some girl out there he occasionally shared his bed with.

"No, I don't," he shot back, looking at her as if she had committed some horrible crime by mentioning it.

She had to admit, she was as bit surprised by that statement with the way Jounouchi always acted. "Fine, then spend the night at Yuugi's and have him protect you."

"I can't do that!" Jounouchi protested. "His grandfather kicked me out, remember?"

"Well, then you can survive all alone with your nightmares."

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In the end, she had been convinced to come along with him to help him persuade Yuugi to let him stay, but only after they had taken the things back to her house. They went to the back door after Jounouchi reassured her that it was okay. Luckily for them, Yuugi was the one to open the door. "Jounouchi-kun? What are you doing back here? I thought my grandfather kicked you out?" He turned his attention towards Isis. "And you brought Isis-san with you?"

He nodded. "Yuugi, I need a place to stay for the night. Isis inconsiderately told me a horror story" –Isis rolled her eyes- "and I don't want to be alone tonight now."

"I don't know, Jounouchi-kun. My grandpa was pretty angry with you." For the first time, Isis wondered exactly what Jounouchi had done to become such a huge distraction. Yuugi's face softened and he smiled at Jounouchi. "But I'm sure I can find a way to put you on his good side again." Jounouchi cheered, leaping inside. Yuugi laughed, turning his attention back to Isis. "You can come in if you want," he told her, gesturing inside.

She decided to take the invitation, following the retreating form of Jounouchi into the living room. When she got there, he was already reclining on the couch so she took the chair. Yuugi joined them a moment later, sitting down on the couch near Jounouchi's head. "Is Jounouchi-kun afraid of ghost?" Yuugi teased, running his fingers through his friend's hair.

Isis smiled, leaning back in her chair. Seto wouldn't be at her apartment for another hour and it would be nice to spend some time in such pleasant company. "You know damn well I am," he said, grabbing Yuugi and pulling him down next to him. "So stop laughing at me," he continued, wrapping his arms around Yuugi's small waist.

"Jounouchi, hands off my grandson." Jounouchi sat up on the couch, plopping Yuugi down next to him and removing his arms.

"How does he do that?" Jounouchi mumbled, looking a bit depressed. Yuugi laughed, shaking his head. Isis relaxed a bit more, feeling safe that nothing was going to happen to her here.

The phone rang and Yuugi went to get it. A few moments later, he returned with the phone, a puzzled expression on his cute little face. "Isis, it's for you."

She wondered who could be calling her and more importantly who would know that she was there. She didn't know the answers, so she hesitantly took the phone from Yuugi. He returned to the couch next to Jounouchi and the two of them began to promptly ignore her. "Hello?"

"Isis, it's been a while…." The damn caller was back. She steadied herself, taking a few deep breaths. "That mongrel likes you. He just doesn't put the puppy act on for anyone you know."

"Who?" she asked, casting a quick glance over at Jounouchi.

"Stop playing dumb… You know perfectly well who I'm talking about. What's more Isis, I think you like him, too." She turned away, biting her lower lip. "So tell me, my beautiful November, do you actually think he can protect you better than Seto can? After all, you told him everything and Seto nothing. Don't you think Seto would believe you?" She stayed silent, contemplating hanging up. Of course, she already knew that wasn't going to work. "Don't worry. All the girls fell in love with someone else before it was over. So how did you like my June? Isn't she gorgeous?"

"So that was you…"

"Of course, who else would it have been? One more thing, November, if you tell that dog one more thing, I'll kill that little friend of his. How much do you think that will hurt him?" She glanced over at the two on the couch. Yuugi was sitting on Jounouchi's stomach and had the taller boy's arms pinned above his head. "He would be devastated, wouldn't he?" She blinked, a single tear rolling down her cheek. "Consider this your only warning." She distinctively heard a click before she placed the phone down.

She took one last lingering look at the pair on the couch before heading towards the door. "Hey, where are you going?" Jounouchi asked her, just before she reached the door.

"I have to go or I might be late for my date with Seto." She chanced a look back over her shoulder. Yuugi had let Jounouchi up, and he was now sitting up, watching her. "Goodbye, Yuugi, Jounouchi," she said, walking out the door.

~Wow, what an interesting twist that came out of gods know where. That last part at Yuugi's house was completely unplanned but I'm hoping a few of you enjoyed it. Remember to review if you want me to continue. ^-^