Painted Sky

        Ah… here we are, crusading on to chapter 6! Anyhow, due to an extreme lack of intelligence on my behalf since my brains have leaked out of my ears due to an unreasonable amount of physics, not many author notes. This chapter does happen to take place on Saturday though, which happens to be my favorite day of the week. ^_^;;

        So yay for Saturday! *giggles impishly and bounces off*

Many thanks to rayemars-san, as well as the readers! :)

Vulpes Demond of fuzzy ears ~ XD Who says Seto will break up with her? *gets slapped* Itai… kidding, really! :p

Tuulikki ~ Well, if you feed it reviews, it grows fat and starts to purr while ignoring the fact that the author wants to cut it up and eat it for dinner. *grin* I hope your studying goes well! *hugs*

Anime Girl Sasami ~ WAH! So glad I got to talk to you! *snuggle* Yah… this chapter had a bit more jumping around, especially in the last scene. *laughs* And yeah, I kinda like having the original characters being more understanding… it's something that I just prefer. Although Emi was a bit of a nasty person in her introduction, but she came around. And Mami… well, I'm trying to write a fic in her POV for "Kuwashiku" where she starts to understand Seto and Ryou a little better. Doubt I'll succeed, but I feel better for trying. With Yuriko… wah, I haven't really decided what to do with her yet. I know she cares for Seto, but I don't know if she quite cares enough to be bitter if they should break up. With Emi and Mami, I knew from the beginning what I wanted them to do… but Yuriko, it's more of whatever comes to mind. ^^;; So strange. Anyhow, sorry for that discussion on OCs… I know I shouldn't pamper them so, but I've kinda grown fond of them. And as for your question about who's narrating in the last scene… it seems to start from Ryuuji, jump to Seto, and end with Yuriko. Oo;; No wonder it's so confusing! *withers*

MarmaladeGirl ~ The translations for the titles are in the parenthesis right next to it. ^^;; Like how this chapter is called "Yakusoku", which means 'Promise'. *frowns* Actually, in the first and second chapter, the dash represents the translation… I wonder why that changed. Anyhow, in case you don't want to go back, the first chapter is "Omoigakenai Nyuusu", which means 'Surprising Information'. The second chapter is "Tomadoi" (Bewilderment), the third chapter is "Wamekitateru to Wameku" (Rant and Rave), the fourth chapter is "Kyouryouku" (Cooperation), and the last chapter was "Suketchi" (Sketchy). When I started this story, for some reason I got all my title chapters from poking through my dictionary. That led to some REALLY weird chapters, as you will later see with chapter 9 and 14. ^^;;

Rowan and Sakura ~ *giggles* Actually, when I wrote about that poor new driver, I was thinking about me being in her place! And Seto's current driver isn't doing too badly in this fic, right? Although I still can't remember if I ever gave him a name or not. X.x

Lady Shriannan Santrea ~ Wah! Glad to see you again! Yes, there *is* so much denial between the two… I almost want to slap both of them and tell them to get their act together. X.x Which just goes to show how crazy I've become….

Bronze Eagle ~ Happy birthday! I hope it was great… although if it lasted until seven, I'm sure it was! XD *pats Seto* The poor boy is lonely… it's no wonder he starts developing such strange things, ne? :p

~ Yakusoku (Promise) ~

        It was a well-known fact among the more cynical members of the business community that promises were made for the sole purpose of being broken. It was a bitter and rather pessimistic view of human nature, but that was what cynics tended to do.

        Besides, often times they had quite a bit of evidence to back up their point.

        Take Kaiba Seto for example. He had, in one of those moments where common sense mysteriously went flying out the window in order to make an unsightly splotch on the pavement, foolishly promised to do something that he obviously had no intention of doing even as he had made the promise.

        It was a pretty common occurrence, actually. Seto often made promises to people in order to placate them long enough for him to buzz for security and get them thrown out, but this promise happened to be… well, different. Ryuuji hadn't been angry at him… Ryuuji hadn't even wanted this to happen in the first place. There had been no reason to make the promise but he had nevertheless, and now he could only wonder what it would be like if he actually kept it.

        The question plagued him for the rest of Friday, even though he had no actual contact with the other man. The events of the previous night had placed their relationship in a somewhat awkward standstill, and Seto found himself wishing that it could have been otherwise.

        In fact, it was not until he found himself facing Kuroyama-san that he fully realized how far he had come in the past few days. Although… perhaps that wasn't quite the right thing to say, since progress wasn't a word he would apply to his relationship with Ryuuji.

        Especially since progress was the last thing he desired.

        Kuroyama-san had an almost silly expression on his face as he had shaken Seto's hand and wished him luck. There was a certain sense of giddiness in the older man's voice, making Seto suspect that the speaker was truly eager in getting rid of him… but there had also been a sense of sincerity when he had said those words. Later, as he was leaving, he heard Kuroyama-san giving the same treatment to Ryuuji, who had an expression of total confusion on his face as he had politely accepted the overly pleased yet almost concerned words.

        That expression, which had so perfectly mirrored his own, was probably what ultimately caused him to decide to keep his promise for a change. After all, it wasn't quite fair that he should be the only person wearing that expression on his face… and in the rare case that he should be shocked, he liked to think that there were still some people out there who he could stun even more.

~ * ~

        Honda had not been asleep when the doorbell rang at a suspiciously early time of six thirty on a Saturday morning, due to the fact that there were some customers from overseas and he was expected to give a huge business presentation at seven thirty. Despite that, he couldn't help but be annoyed by whoever the intruder should turn out to be, especially if the doorbell should wake up Ryuuji.

        Simply put, Ryuuji was not a morning person. In fact, he couldn't even be considered a person until he had finished getting his hair and make-up done, as well as inhaled about six gallons of caffeine-laden beverages, and even that was cutting it close. And if Honda had to deal with an overly bitchy Ryuuji at six thirty in the morning… well, an unhappy Honda was a very disturbing thing to see.

        So, before whatever psychotic idiot could ring the doorbell again, Honda jammed his finger on the speaker, growling (as civilly as he could, of course), "Who is it?"

        "Kaiba."

        He stared at the intercom as if it had suddenly grown fangs and was threatening to eat him. "Kaiba?!"

        "Are you deaf as well as stupid?"

        That immediately jolted him out of his surprised stupor, "Kisama [1]… what the hell do you want at six thirty in the morning?!"

        "Where's Otogi?"

        "What do you want with him?"

        "He's supposed to get his ass down here, isn't he?"

        "Before nine in the morning on a Saturday? Are you kidding me? Consider yourself lucky if he gets up a second before that. We're not freaks of nature like you, you know."

        "Then what are you doing up?"

        Honda bristled, a typical reaction when in interaction with Kaiba Seto. There was something about that man which tended to rile up everyone within breathing distance, and that usually involved his snobbish personality. Of course, Honda should have been used to it because he had been living with Ryuuji twenty-four seven, but it just seemed that Seto had taken that priggish pride to a level that no living human (note the living part, as it was most likely that Yami no Bakura would give the billionaire a run for his money) could ever hope to match.

        "I have work to do! You're not the only one who works, Kaiba."

        "Funny. I thought you would have just leeched off of Otogi."

        "Teme-! What do you mean by that?!"

        "You're like the make inu… always sitting at the sides of your superiors and begging for the scraps that fall from the table. I'm surprised he puts up with you, frankly, considering how much better off he could be without your interference. Or does he really need a babysitter to hold his hand?"

        Honda sucked in a breath and slowly managed to calm down his nerves. Compared to the others, Honda had relaxed considerably when it came to dealing with Seto… not even Anzu had managed the patience that Honda had gained. It was almost as if he told himself to be more mature than Seto and not to worry about the insults that were constantly being thrown at him and his friends… something that sounded rather impossible at first but was really quite possible.

        So, rather than choosing to rise to the bait, Honda decided to get straight to the point. Besides, it might end up throwing Seto off-guard for a moment, and who wouldn't mind that?

        "So what are you doing here, Kaiba? Somehow, I doubt that this is just a courtesy call, right?"

        Seto frowned at the intercom, almost as if he was surprised at the sudden change in attitude. Which he probably was, since he had gotten so used to Yami no Yuugi's cheerleader friends always trying to insult him right back rather than being intelligent for a change.

        Or perhaps because… well, he had been expecting Ryuuji. Not Honda… sure, he had known that the two lived with each other, but he had never really understood their relationship. Why did Ryuuji need to share rent, for example? That guy was rich enough to buy the entire building if he so desired (granted, he would probably be bankrupt afterwards), and there weren't exactly any practical reasons for it. He had, in those superfluous and decidedly unwelcome fits of insanity, sometimes wondered if their relationship was something deeper than it seemed… but that couldn't be right. Last he had heard, Honda was dating the make inu's sister, and Ryuuji was still single. It seemed to most people that the relationship was completely pragmatic… but that just did not explain why Ryuuji needed it in the first place.

        He might have pursued that train of thought further, but he was getting rather tired of standing outside. And the best way to get inside was to just stop fooling around and get this over with, so he explained (rather sourly, it must be added), "Otogi is supposed to come out here."

        "I told you. He doesn't wake up before nine on Saturdays. If even then. I'm sure he would have told you that if you had bothered to set a time."

        Well, no. But he was sure that was just a bit of oversight on Ryuuji's behalf. Honestly, if he was the one organizing this, they wouldn't have to waste time like this.

        "Are we going to continue this conversation through the intercom or are you going to let me up?" Seto replied smoothly and rather impatiently, his tone clearly saying that he had no interest in such a possibility. He was getting rather cold, and he didn't want to be standing outside any longer. Sure, maybe he had made a mistake by coming a bit too early… but that wasn't really his fault, was it? He just didn't like to waste time.

        In the apartment, Honda scowled at the intercom, as if under the impression that Seto could actually see him. However, that didn't stop him from buzzing Seto into the apartment complex. After all, this was Seto… and they all knew Seto well enough to know that he wasn't a serial killer and….

        Then again, considering what had happened during Death-T, he might want to rethink that statement a bit more. Unfortunately, by this point, Seto was already in the building and Honda could only hope that this time, Seto had left the hired assassins and chainsaw men at home [2].

~ * ~

        An awkward silence had settled between the two men upon Seto's arrival. Much to Honda's relief, Seto had indeed come alone and unarmed… in fact, he hadn't even brought the silver briefcase that was remarkably handy for knocking down innocent victims who he had just stolen cards from (a.k.a. Yuugi). The lack of weaponry, however, had not made the meeting any better, and Honda was decidedly wary as he let Seto into the apartment.

        "So what now?" he finally asked.

        "You could wake him up," Seto replied flatly as he crossed his arms.

        For the first time that morning, Honda let himself smile, "You're welcome to try… I'm not going anywhere near his room right now. But let me warn you now, he's not going to be very happy if you do."

        "What? He needs his beauty sleep or something?"

        "You have no idea."

        Seto had not replied to that, and Honda didn't push the matter. The two had, from there, settled down in the kitchen… or at least Honda had. Seto just sat at the table, leafing through the newspaper that he had brought idly after refusing any drinks or food. From the way he had so quickly refused, one would think that Honda had somehow drugged the food and spiked the drinks before offering them to the CEO.

        There was the sudden sound of the door opening, and two heads swiveled to look at the lone being walking down the hallway towards them.

        "Hon… da?"

        Seto couldn't help but stare as Ryuuji walked into the kitchen, one hand rubbing his half-closed eyes as he yawned again. And of course, there was a lot to be staring at, such as the normally meticulously kept black hair that was released from its tight ponytail, allowing it to fall down his back… as well as all over his face. Ryuuji's choice of clothes was also note-worthy; a plain black shirt and underwear dotted with little seal faces.

        Little. Seal. Faces.

        A moment of silence followed as Ryuuji blinked at the kitchen's occupants.

        Occupants. As in more than one.

        He blinked.

        And blinked again as he thought he recognized those blue eyes.

        "I must still be dreaming," he finally mumbled flatly as he turned and stumbled back towards his room at record speeds, shutting the door quietly as he entered and leaving one very shocked individual in his wake.

        Honda, on the other hand, could only try to hide his smile of amusement with a cough that caused Seto to turn back to him with an equally dispassionate look. It had always amazed him how Seto could change his expression in less than half a second, but it wasn't something he was going to comment on if he valued his life.

        "As entertaining as all of this has been, I need to get going. My customer presentation starts in half an hour and I don't think they'd like it if I explained that I was late because my roommate's boyfriend came early and wanted to be amused."

        Honda moved very quickly, and he had to be thankful for that. His words did not take that long for Seto to process, and as soon as the brunette had figured out exactly what he had said, he was on his feet and frothing like a rabid dog that needed to be put down quickly.

        However, by this point, Honda had practically run out of the apartment, and the only response he got to his cursing was a slammed door in his face.

        For a moment, Seto could only gawk at the door in an almost horrified shock. This… this was not a good situation. He had just been completely one-upped by an idiot, and now he was trapped in an apartment with a half-naked sex god (nobody heard that, by the way) who wore underpants that had little seal faces.

        Perhaps Yami no Yuugi had taken over his body or something of the sort. After all, the pharaoh's spirit was the one who was obsessed with seals (even to the point when he had donated a vast majority of his money to wildlife foundations in order to save those fluffy creatures)… perhaps he as the one who was responsible for the rather interesting choice of clothes.

        The reminder of Yami no Yuugi brought about an odd pang… one that he had been able to ignore for a long time. He had no idea why these feelings were coming back, and it made him wonder if there was something in the air that was screwing around with his mind.

        Or… or maybe it was…?

        No. No, that was ridiculous. He wasn't even going to entertain that possibility. Ryuuji had nothing to do with these thoughts… had nothing to do with any of this. Ryuuji was a person, not some mystical being who was capable of bringing about such profound changes in his thinking.

        He wasn't anyone.

        Slowly, he walked back to the chair and sank in, folding his hands and resting his chin on them as he glanced around the kitchen. The last time he had been in a kitchen was when Yuriko had cooked, and her kitchen had been a messy, disorganized room that she managed to find her way around in a flurry of ingredients and dishes. His own kitchen, which he barely ventured into, was a stark contrast to it with the sterile white walls and structured patterns.

        Ryuuji's kitchen… or really Honda and Ryuuji's kitchen, but at the moment he had more important things to think about than how accurate his thoughts had to be… was a mix between the two. It wasn't messy but there was a certain sense of homeliness that could not be denied. The kitchen was obviously used but kept clean and neat, and there were signs of life everywhere there. A magnet frame with Yuugi-tachi stared at him from the refrigerator, and papers were scattered all over the table. Most of them were for Ryuuji's game, but there were also some scattered scribblings… unfinished drawings and sketches.

        He frowned as he flipped through the sketches. They ranged from people to scenes, and some of them were much better than others. Most of them were of… decent quality, at least.

        He had never expected Ryuuji to be able to draw. The raven-haired inventor just… had just never struck him as the artistic type.

        The things one learned everyday….

~ * ~

        Ryuuji did not wake up until past nine in the morning, and by that point he had more or less forgotten the events of the morning. So it was of no surprise that he got up and immediately went into his normal pattern of behavior… getting dressed, doing his hair, putting on the usual make-up, and in general making sure that his appearance was just as meticulously done as every other day of the year. There was a practiced calmness about his movements that only came from experience, and it wasn't long before he found himself opening the door and walking out.

        As soon as he got into sight of the kitchen though, he froze. And very nearly turned around to walk right back into his bedroom, except then Seto had to open his big fat mouth and say, "Did you get enough beauty sleep, Ryuuji?"

        "Shut up," he snapped before the words completely sunk in. "And what the heck did you just call me?"

        "Well, I figure that since I saw you in your precious seal-dotted pajamas, then our relationship must be intimate enough to go on a first name basis."

        "What?!" Ryuuji squeaked as his face started to turn very red as a certain scene began to flash through his head. A certain scene that mainly seemed to involve a very disgruntled and rumpled game creator standing in the doorway wearing an over-sized T-shirt and… oh kami-sama. The next word that came out of his mouth sounded very much like a small, agonized whimper as he covered his face with one hand, "No…."

        In a way, part of Ryuuji wondered why he was panicking so much about this incident. But the rest of him was too desperate trying to find a way out of this mess. Unfortunately, most of those ways seemed to involve the poor guy conveniently knocking himself out, or at the very least a certain blue-eyed brunette getting his ass kicked into the next century. Certainly nothing remotely plausible….

        "Been taking lessons from Yami again?" Personally, Seto was deriving a great deal of pleasure from Ryuuji's self-inflicted torture, but then again, this was Kaiba Seto we were talking about. If there was a day when he didn't get any amusement from somebody's pain, then the world was probably starting to come to an end. "Although really. It's one thing to be asking him for tips on how to play your own game… but fashion advice? You must really be hitting an all-time low if you are desperate enough to be asking him about that…."

        "Can't you just shut up for a change?!" Ryuuji snarled back as he finally straightened, temporarily forgetting his embarrassment in order to direct his anger at the CEO. "It's like you don't understand the concept of politeness… knowing you, I have no doubt of that, in fact. But honestly, can't you just shut up?!"

        The little outburst only caused Seto's eyebrow to quirk ever so slightly, "Is there some reason why I should? I thought you liked hearing the sound of my voice."

        "The only thing I like about you right now is the idea of you taking your ass off my chair and moving it outside this apartment. I'm sure you know the way, or do you need a guide dog to show you?"

        "That's quite rude, Ryuuji. Considering you were the one who invited me here. Is it my fault that you came traipsing around in your underwear?"

        "Maybe I did invite you but that doesn't mean I actually wanted you here!" Ryuuji shrieked back. "And stop calling me that!"

        "It's your name, isn't it?"

        "I don't call you 'Seto', do I?!"

        "I never said you couldn't."

        The billionaire's calmness was really starting to get on his nerves. Correction… it had gotten on his nerves a long time ago, but now he was just at the stage where he was completely losing any sense of logic.

        "Get out!"

        Seto didn't budge. "No."

        "Get out before I make you!"

        "And how do you propose to do that?" Seto asked an almost tired tone. As amusing as all of this was, Ryuuji's little temper tantrum was starting to get a bit… well, overused. He couldn't help but wonder why Ryuuji was bothering to even try and threaten him if he didn't leave… let alone actually physically try to make him leave. He was also relatively surprised that Ryuuji could lose control so easily. Of course, he knew that the raven-haired man didn't have nearly as much self-control as he did, but this was borderline ridiculous. Every single time it seemed like somebody was taking away control from him, Ryuuji would just snap.

        Then again, he tended to do the exact same thing. Except Seto did something very intelligent to ever keep that from happening; he kept that control as much as he possibly could.

        Simple, really.

        "Look," he decided to try and be a little civil, although only god knew why. Even Seto wasn't sure, and this was his own brain! He was rather annoyed by that concept, since if there was one thing Seto had to have control over, it was definitely his brain. Unfortunately, his mind seemed to have a different idea, and it preferred to run all over the world naked singing 'walla walla walla!' at the top of its nonexistent lungs.

        Luckily, Seto had become very good at functioning on auto-pilot.

        Ryuuji glared, impatiently waiting for whatever Seto was going to say next. He had a feeling that he wasn't going to like it, but it wasn't as if he had a choice. Seto was a very stubborn person, and if he wanted somebody to listen… well, that person listened. Besides, he couldn't help but be a little curious about what the ass was going to say. Not that he would ever admit it, of course!

        "You asked me here, whether or not you actually meant for me to come. I fulfilled my part of the bargain, which was actually taking the time out of my life to come here. You've already wasted enough of my time, and I'm not going to leave until you fulfill your part of the deal, got it?"

        "You could always leave," Ryuuji repeated even louder, as if hoping that by ignoring what Seto said he would somehow get rid of the stubborn brunette.

        "And make this a complete waste of my time?" Seto raised an eyebrow. "Don't make me laugh, Ryuuji."

        Ryuuji could practically feel the vein in his forehead throbbing as Seto emphasized the use of his first name. Simply put, Ryuuji wasn't very comfortable with people using his first name; it made him feel very awkward. The only person who had used his first name in the recent past was Malik, and before him… his parents.

        Parents were never a very comfortable subject for Ryuuji to broach. His mother had died relatively young and rather unexpectedly. And his father… ah, his father. Never a subject that he wanted to go anywhere near. Sometimes, he wondered what his father was doing… where his father was. But that usually led to that small voice in his head whispering 'as long as he isn't here…', which always led to a small sigh of relief that seemed to be permanently lodged in the back of his throat.

        But here… in the now? Ryuuji didn't want Seto using his first name, even in such a mocking gesture. Or was it because it was a mocking gesture? He couldn't be sure of anything these days.

        It was just that the use of his first name – the symbol of closeness in Japanese society – was something that brought up memories of people who were close enough to hurt him that much.

        At that particular moment though, he chose to block it all out. "Are you actually implying that you have a sense of humor?"

        "I don't care what you think I'm implying. I told you what I'm here for, and I told you what it would take to make me leave."

        "… but you promise you'll leave as soon as I teach you?"

        "Something like that," Seto smirked as he put down the book he had been reading. Ryuuji didn't look very pleased with this development, and it was a wonder he was going along with it so easily. "Interesting drawings, by the way."

        Interesting was one of those words which could mean just about anything. It wasn't like 'nice' or 'bad', which actually expressed an opinion, albeit a mild one. Interesting, on the other hand, could mean both. It could show an awe for an object, but at the same time it could be a turn of phrase essentially saying 'How oddly pathetic… I wonder how that is possible? Interesting.'

        Which is why, in short, Ryuuji was absolutely unpacified by the statement. If anything, he was annoyed by it, as it proved that Seto had been going through his private belongings. Sure, those sketches had been lying there for anyone to see… but that didn't mean that Seto actually had permission to look through them! It didn't matter what Seto could have said; anything could have been misinterpreted into something negative and the same, uncaring and irrational annoyance would appear.

        Thus, after Ryuuji pointed Seto down the hall into the game room that he had set up (not specifically for this occasion, of course), Ryuuji stayed back for a moment to shuffle his pictures together into a messy, unorganized pile.

        "I don't call you 'Seto', do I?!"

        "I never said you couldn't."

        It took him about twenty seconds to crumple up all the pictures and stuff the remains into the trash can.

~ * ~

        If there was one word Seto would have used to describe Ryuuji, it was that he was a strategist. Which he had to be, since the game he had created relied more on strategy than on strength. Figuring out how the dice should fall, which ones to choose… it couldn't be only about power, the theme that Seto had for so long relied on when it came to his deck. No, this was about something completely different… something that came naturally to Ryuuji for reasons that he couldn't quite figure out.

        Not that he actually wanted to, of course.

        "I told you that you shouldn't choose so many high-powered dice, Seto. You're not Yami-kun… you can't rely on luck every time. The point of the game is to have monsters that can defend you. The player with the most monsters doesn't always win, of course, but sometimes it can be a great advantage because it gives the opponent a distraction while the player can find some way to exercise a more complicated strategy," Ryuuji said for what had to be the millionth time as Seto rolled his dice only to come up with mismatched symbols. "Is there some reason why you didn't listen, or are you just deliberately trying to annoy me?"

        "The world doesn't revolve around you," Seto replied shortly without ever looking up. His board was practically empty, with only two monsters. Ryuuji's side was practically teeming with them, and Seto couldn't help but note that Ryuuji had once again made sure to stretch his pathway from one side to the other, thus forcing him to find a way to destroy all of Ryuuji's monsters before he could reach his opponent's Dungeon Master.

        "It doesn't revolve around you either, in case you haven't noticed."

        "I didn't ask you."

        The two fell into a silence again as Seto glared at the board, as if hoping that by the power of his glare, Ryuuji's pieces would jump up screaming and scatter all over the place to give him free range of the entire board. Unfortunately, despite his best attempts, the pieces stayed where they were.

        Ryuuji rolled his eyes and threw the dice, not even bothering to announce it. His dice had been very low-leveled ones, so as expected he got a monster. Tiredly, he picked up one of the three dice and placed it on the board in the only area left on Seto's half of the area.

        "You've basically just lost again, you know," Ryuuji looked at him. "Are you even bothering to concentrate? I thought that the great Kaiba Seto would be a more interesting opponent."

        He should have been, shouldn't he?

        But for some reason, he just couldn't concentrate. He knew all the rules… understood the main points of the game. But right now, he couldn't take that information and apply it. It was as if everything had gotten stuck at some faucet and refused to come out, leaving him only with… himself.

        It didn't help that his thoughts kept wandering back to last night. The way Ryuuji had looked at him, with that shocked and almost betrayed expression.

        Betrayed?

        No, that couldn't be right. That… just couldn't be right. And even if it was, that was Ryuuji's problem. Not his. What did he care about any petty feelings Ryuuji might have? Which were none, of course, but anyhow… yes. There was nothing here that he had to worry about.

        Except for the fact that over the past few days, the only thing he had been thinking about was… well, Ryuuji. Understandable, since he had waken up to find said idiot lying in his bed. But really, this should have been the type of thing that he immediately dropped, rather than stretched on for an indefinite amount of time.

        The deal for civility, for example, had really been just that. An attempt to cure himself of having to think about Ryuuji, since wasn't anger the entire basis of their relationship (if one wanted to go so far as to call it that, of course)?

        Perhaps it had been, in the beginning… but now? He couldn't be so sure of that now.

        And that single fact disturbed him more than one would imagine.

        "I guess you want to start over," Ryuuji grumbled, bringing him out of his little frolic through the mind of an obvious madman. Ryuuji was becoming extremely annoyed, especially since they had been playing for several hours and he didn't seem to be getting anywhere. There were advantages to playing against Yuugi [3], apparently, even if some of the disadvantages included getting his ass kicked quite mightily.

        Seto didn't bother to reply, his answer already clear.

        Or at least, that's what Ryuuji figured.

        But as he was cleaning up the pieces, a clear and calm voice suddenly slammed right into him like a ton of very spiky bricks, "What's that?"

        Ryuuji paused in his movements to look at Seto with an extremely skeptical expression. Currently, Seto was in a very typical 'Kaiba-Seto-I-Know-Everything' pose, with his body leaned back into the chair and his elbows resting on the arm rests, the fingers of his hands knitted together as he looked at something behind Ryuuji's head. Perhaps that was why he was so skeptical; after all, why would Seto be in that pose yet still be asking a question? It seemed rather contradictory, if you asked him.

        However, nobody was asking him. So, sighing loudly and without even bothering to turn around, he snapped back, "It's a painting."

        "I know it's a painting," Seto replied in an exaggeratedly calm monotone. "What is it supposed to be about?"

        For a moment, Ryuuji didn't reply. He didn't want to reply. What he wanted to do was stick his tongue out at Seto and say something along the lines of 'that's for me to know and you to find out!', but that wouldn't be very mature so he didn't. Instead, he continued to glare at Seto for some hint at what was wrong with him… perhaps Honda had drugged his drink? Or he had been inhaling some rather oddly colored fumes? Or maybe…?

        No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find anything.

        "It's a sky," he finally mumbled.

        "A sky."

        "Is there some sort of problem with that?" he shot back. When there wasn't any reply, he continued, even though he knew that he didn't really need to.

        But part of him wanted to. It was the first time anyone had asked him about the painting, and even though it just had to be Kaiba Seto who was observant enough to wonder about it, there was a part of him that wanted to explain it.

        There was also a part of him that wanted to string up that particular part and burn it alive, but that is a completely different story.

        "When kaasan [4] was painting it, I asked her what it was supposed to mean. She told me that it was supposed to mean anything I wanted because it was open to interpretation. Looking at the sky, she said, could mean lots of different things. Some people think of freedom while others feel like the weight of the world is starting to cave in on them. I didn't really understand it when she told me… I was pretty young. But she told me that it was supposed to mean anything you wanted it to mean, and that was like life. It all depends on your interpretation. You do what you see fit, and your life is meaningful only if you think it is. And in the end, that's all that matters. Not what anyone else thinks. Only you. Nothing means anything if you don't think it does, no matter what everyone else tells you. And anything can mean everything as long as you believe it does."

        Seto couldn't help but stare at Ryuuji… not only because of what he was saying, but because of the way he looked. The other man had a slightly glazed-over look and an odd half-smile as he relived the memories… memories that meant so much to him even though he hadn't been able to understand them at the time.

        The things one learned everyday….

        "She died after that. And with tousan [5], none of that stuff ever mattered. I think he would have thrown away the painting except it was the last one, and that wouldn't look good to everyone else. So he kept it, and after he left, I kept it. I think she would have liked that."

        Seto didn't say anything, not a word. And by this point, Ryuuji had noticed the look that he was being given. Somehow, he managed not to blush or become flustered or anything to show discomfort with what had happened; instead, he continued to clean up the board in order to prepare for a new game.

        A new game. A new chance.

        A new chance at just about anything.

Commentary:

[1] You followed by any expletive that you so wish to put there.

[2] Referring to volumes 4 through 5 where Seto basically created a theme park completely devoted to killing off Yuugi-tachi. Quite worrisome, really. The chainsaw man refers to chapter 32 when in order to save Georgie (Honda's perverted nephew… and I swear, that is what Kei-kun told me his name was! I heard they did something different in the translations, but she told me that it was supposed to be that!), Jyounouchi ended up facing off with a serial killer that had a happy chainsaw (okay, so that isn't the exact description, but he wears a mask and has a chainsaw. End of story.). Oh, and I think the serial killer dies at the end of that little face-off. Takahashi-san was a tad bit more morbid back then…. ^.^;;

[3] In the manga, Yuugi played against Ryuuji, not Yami no Yuugi. Yami no Yuugi was a bit… ah… busy with the fact that his puzzle was somewhat broken.

[4] Kaasan, short for okaasan, which means mother.

[5] Tousan, short for otousan, which means father.

        *jumps around and raises hand in the air* Hai, minna~! PM can be a total sap person when she wants to be! *giggles* But at least the title is finally explained… uh… kinda.

And for a bit of humor, courtesy of rayemars-san:

"The two fell into a silence again as Seto glared at the board, as if hoping that by the power of his glare, Ryuuji's pieces would jump up screaming and scatter all over the place to give him free range of the entire board. Unfortunately, despite his best attempts, the pieces stayed where they were."
 
Seto: Oh, wait...I was using the wrong power. It's not the glare, it's....
 
Seto: ...the power of YUKI'S!!!!!
 
Ryuuji: ....
 
Seto: *waves hand dramatically* Yuki's! I call you forth! Attack with CUTENESS POWER~!
 
Ryuuji: *promptly buried under a pile of stuffed seals*

=(^.^)=

Pikachumaniac