The Twelve Days of Christmas

As usual, the snoring resounding in his hair awoke Yuugi that morning. It was truly a strange snore, as he was coming to realize. It was very quiet, sounding more akin to a purr.

Not that he was complaining. It was actually quite endearing to wake up to.

Yawning as he pushed the sleep from his eyes, Yuugi became aware of the arms wrapped tightly around him. Yami was actually holding on to him more tightly than the previous morning. Turning to face Yami, he tried to sit up and wake him, finding the task to be, instead, rather difficult. Yami pulled him closer, hugging him like a child would a plushie.

Yuugi sighed in frustration, wanting his usual shower and some breakfast. "Yami," he tried, poking the Aldar in the chest. "Yami, wake up!"

"Grr…hmn..fhmhm," Yami mumbled, nuzzling his face into Yuugi's hair. Yuugi sighed hard into Yami's chest. "Yami!" He cried. It didn't seem to do any good.

All right. He had a problem on his hands. He wanted a shower and food, and he had a snoozing Aldar Lieutenant immobilizing him to his bed. He needed a solution.

Of course! Think of something in Estukenteh that would wake him up. Let's see…let's see… Goodnight wouldn't do it. Neither would 'mine' either.

Maybe…Yuugi growled, unable to come up with an answer.

In his lack of ideas, Yuugi yelled out the first thing that came to mind. "Istahleh, wake up!"

What did that mean again?

Yami blinked his eyes open, starred at Yuugi sleepily, and smiled widely, starting to run his fingers through Yuugi's hair. "Meeteh minyane, istahleh," he purred.

That's right, Yuugi remembered now. It meant beloved.

Yami surprised him when he wrapped him up in a passionate kiss, then shocked him even further when he began to rain kissed down Yuugi's jaw line, nipping every now and again.

"Ah, ha…mmmh…Yami, ah...don't do that, I would like to get up now. Ahhh…"

Maybe Aldars had some ancestral ties to leaches, as Yuugi was coming to find out that Yami seemed to be permanently attached to his neck. Oh, this hickey is going to be a big one… Without meaning to, Yuugi arched his back, causing him to become spooned against Yami like a little kitten. "Yami," he half growled, half pleaded. "I need my breakfast, and I…ah…mmmh…I need a shower…"

There was a crash from somewhere down the hall, snapping Yami to attention and allowing Yuugi to wrench himself free…right onto the floor.

Thump!

"Owe," Yuugi moaned, rubbing the spot on his back that suddenly began to hurt again. Cursed spine, he was never going to be able to get rid of that sting.

"Help!" someone cried, the continuous pounds of someone running drawing closer and closer.

"Get back here you wretch!"

Yuugi stood up quickly, going to his door and peering out. Just as Yami came up behind him and wrapped his arms around him, the frazzled Elsarian Jou pummeled into his room. "Hide me," he pleaded, ducking behind the two.

"What the hell's going on," Yuugi asked bewildered.

"Just hide me," Yuugi's friend pleaded.

"Oh, for Christ's sake, go in the closet if you have to."

Jou squeaked, but complied anyway, and before Yuugi could turn to go the bathroom, another person ran into his room, looking around widely.

Yuugi stopped short, looking cautiously at those crazed icy-blue eyes. "Bakura-san," he said warily. "What are you doing here?"

The deranged caretaker looked at him angrily. "Where's the Elsarian? I've got a bone to pick with him."

Yuugi shivered slightly. "You've got me. I just woke up, and was on my way to the shower." Yuugi didn't talk to Bakura much, but in his opinion that was just fine. The Lieutenant was now under the impression that he was crazier than Ishtar.

Bakura growled lowly, slowly advancing on Yuugi. The Lieutenant would have backed up, too, had it not been for the fact that Yami was standing right behind him. Funny, he'd almost forgot he was there.

Yami growled dangerously, and Yuugi looked up at him in surprise, seeing the Aldar barring a set of rather impressively large canines. So, there is a difference between Humans and Aldars…

Bakura stopped his advancement, stopping in surprise himself. "Hmm, not a morning person, huh?"

Yami squeezed around Yuugi tightly, and Lieutenant Motou almost wheezed. "Melaseh," Yami growled dangerously. "Me-eht tu."

"Yami," Yuugi squeaked. "Can't breathe…"

Bakura narrowed his eyes, but seemed to believe what Yuugi had told him earlier. "If you see that blonde imp, make sure you send him my way." The white haired man turned and walked quickly away. Yami let go of Yuugi, thankfully, allowing Yuugi to breath in precious air again.

"Is he gone," Jou whispered from his closet.

"Yes, and what the hell was that about?" Yuugi demanded.

Jou stood from amidst the hanging clothes, rubbing his neck nervously. "I was eating some of the fudge, and all I said was that it needed more sugar! Honest! And then he went nuts!"

Yuugi rubbed his head. "You Elsarians and your obsession with sugar. The fudge was fine in my opinion, but you probably just insulted his partner's baking."

Jou shivered. "I think he's worse than Ishtar. And I can't help it that Elsarians don't have sugar on our planet! The stuff's damned good!"

Yuugi let out his breath slowly, counting backwards from ten in his head. Wouldn't it be nice when this vacation was finally over? "I'm getting in the shower," Yuugi stated finally.

As he started to walk past Jou with Yami still attached to him, Jou opened his mouth and said something. "Ah, Yug?"

"Yes?"

"I ah…I think your hickey is still wet."

Yuugi flushed hotly, growled, and headed into the bathroom.

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Yuugi sat down with a pleased sigh at the kitchen table, ready to indulge in his instant omelet. Eggo brand waffles had come out with the rather tasty breakfast treat twenty years ago, after the fall of the instant French toast.

"Good morning to you, Lieutenant! It is indeed another good day today! Have you taken a look outside lately? The snow is up to the windows!"

Yuugi almost chocked on his breakfast as the combined perkiness of Captain Malik's voice hit him and the startling revelation of the fact that they were currently snowed in.

The little nerve above his eye twitched again. Perkiness, mornings, and now we're snowed in. Oh, baaaaaad combination…

Malik walked up to him, extending his hand full of chocolate. "Fudge?"

"No thanks," Yuugi replied.

Yami walked back up to Yuugi from the pantry, growling at Malik as he did so and wrapping possessive arms around Yuugi. "Knu me-eht!" He cried. "Melaseh!"

Malik's eyebrows went to his hairline, and he looked rather startled. "Lieutenant?" Yuugi could see the gears in his head begin to spin. "Oh, I understand now. Re-eth be. He'll be quite possessive today."

"Hn. I hadn't noticed, captain," Yuugi replied sarcastically.

"Really?" Malik asked surprised.

Yuugi smacked his forehead, and Yami growled again.

Footsteps behind him captured Yuugi's attention, and he noticed as Ishtar traipsed into the kitchen as well. "Motou," he greeted.

"Captain," he replied.

Ishtar looked at him and smirked, something that usually put Yuugi on edge for hours. "Nice hickey."

Yuugi growled, covering his neck.

"Oh my, where did you get that, Lieutenant," Malik asked him worriedly.

"Yami was imitating a leach this morning," he stated bluntly.

Malik blushed deeply, but didn't bother to comment further.

"So, who want to make tunnels in the snow," Ishtar questioned. "And I'd better get an answer. Kaiba is still outside in his igloo, and I won't have the Vulcan council after my ass for letting him freeze out there."

Yuugi sighed audibly. "All right, I'll get my radon laser. I guess someone's got to go and 'rescue' the ice cube."

Ishtar waved him off. "No, just find it and give it to Ensign Jou. He needs something to keep him busy, and to keep him out of Bakura's hair, too. If you didn't notice this morning, I came quite close to losing him as a living crew member."

"He hid in my closet," Yuugi commented.

"Ah, good, so I've got you to thank for saving his scrawny rear end."

Yami continued to glare daggers at Malik and Ishtar, but Ishtar seemed to remain oblivious of that for the duration of breakfast.

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"Ahh!!! Jou! You freak! Why the hell are you here?!"

"Ah, shut up Kaiba! I never said I wanted to help you!"

Yuugi sat in the living room, listening to the sound of the two Ensigns yelling and bickering with each other coming through the snow tunnel. Seto had begun to be even more uncooperative lately, and Yuugi couldn't exactly place why. Usually he just ignored everyone around him, and he was quite good at it. At the moment, though, he was lashing out and reacting badly to everyone but the captains.

The front door was open to nothing but snow, and luckily it was sticky enough that it didn't come pouring through. Jou used the laser gun that Yuugi had built (and luckily brought along) to blast his way through to get to the igloo outside.

"Katsuya, I'm going to rip you limb from limb!"

In fact…the person he was getting along least with lately was Jou.

Yuugi shivered slightly as Yami nipped at his earlobe. "Don't you ever quite," he snapped, having to reposition his legs. Yami smiled, reaffirming his hold around Yuugi's waist.

"Do that, and I'm going to report you! You know the Admiral is just waiting to fry your ass!"

"I'll show you fried ass!"

Yuugi heard Jou squeak, and then suddenly saw him jump out of the snow tunnel and land at his feet. His wide blue eyes looked at Yuugi pleadingly. "I think he's going to kill me! Help! You're a higher rank!"

Ensign Kaiba pounded into the living room, looking from Jou angrily, then Yuugi in an almost blind fury. "Let me kill him, Lieutenant. You won't miss him."

"Oh, I may not, Ensign, but NASA sure will. If you kill a navigations specialist, you'll find yourself navigated to the lethal injection chair." Jou looked up at Yuugi with fake hurt in his eyes, and Yuugi simply shrugged at him.

Kaiba snarled savagely, but left just the same. "Stay out of my way, Jonouchi, or it'll be the death of you yet!"

"Meyelestuk ke-et!" Yami yelled after him, teeth barred.

Jou looked up at Yami questioningly. "We have got to figure out what he's saying all of the time."

Yuugi simply sighed. "He's good at keeping people at bay, that I have to admit. Did you notice his canines? I'd swear they were like a vampire!"

"Oh yeah, didn't you know that Aldars are even more carnivorous than humans? They love their meet."

Yuugi felt his hickey. "Yeah…I'm beginning to notice."

Jou frowned, noticing the action. "Better hope there isn't a day when he becomes physically fixated on you."

"Don't jinx me, Jou," Yuugi pleaded. "I've already got enough on my hands."

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Yuugi let out all of his breath, feeling the weight of the day leaving him. It was night, thankfully, and it was nearly time for bed.

He was rather surprised at just how quickly the days were moving for him. Already four were down, and just eight more to go.

Well…just eight…he didn't know what else was on the way. He hoped it was nothing too stressful, such as what Jou proposed earlier that day.

But if they were funny, such as when Yami literally snapped at Ishtar that afternoon, Yuugi could get used to it. The Earthen captain actually had to move his hand away from Yuugi's soda; otherwise he'd have lost a finger.

Yuugi was just grateful neither of them was subject for a court marshal yet. At least not until Yami was back to his normal self again.

"Off to bed yet, Lieutenant?" Malik asked him from the doorway to the den. "Most everyone else already has."

"Yeah, just about. I was just letting Yami finish of his chocolate pudding. He loves that stuff, you know?" Yuugi watched as Yami happily licked off another spoon full.

"Yes, he always has been on the strange side. The favorite dish of most Aldars is usually a rare steak or seafood."

Yuugi rolled this around in his head. "I suppose that it only fits that he'd be the first Aldar to life bond with a human."

"Yes, I suppose so."

The two fell silent for the moment, and Yami sighed contentedly, putting the now-empty container on the side table, resting his head sleepily on Yuugi's shoulder.

"I think it's time for bed," Malik observed. "Kunigh, friend. We will see each other again in the morning."

"Kunigh," Yuugi replied. "See you on the morrow."

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Oh, just wait till the next chapter… Review for me? Pretty please?