Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (6/8)
Author: Chibi Wingzero
Rating: R
Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, Mai, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu
Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.
Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.
Chapter Title: Wishful Thinking Can be Fun
-2 days before Christmas-
Christmas was her favorite time of the year. It was a time of being with friends and family. Hopefully, her true love returned those feelings. She never knew, because she was too shy to admit it, and believed he was too, after what happened yesterday. This year everything was going to change. She wasn't going to be waiting for opportunity to come knocking on her door. Instead, she was literally going to go barging in like the lovesick woman she was.
After searching through her entire wardrobe, Anzu couldn't find the perfect outfit to wear. She wanted to wear something special for that special person in her life, namely Yami. If her schedule wasn't so hectic, she would have picked it out by now. Ever since the Christmas play, much of her free time was taken up by school, rehearsals, or her part time job.
Yesterday, she managed to get the afternoon off and headed to the Kaiba mansion for the decorating get together. She heard about it from Honda the day before and wanted to spend time with Yami. However, there were more people than she anticipated. At least she spent time with the pharaoh, even if he was too shy around her.
This afternoon, she planned on hitting the mall to find a sexy outfit to wear to the party. It also meant dealing with the mob of last minute shoppers. Still it was going to be worth it when she received her first kiss. She giggled at the thought of her fist kiss. It was going to be something she would never forget. Of course, she'd have a picture taken of the moment.
Since she didn't have a driver's license, Anzu took the local bus. There was no way she was going to walk in the knee deep snow. It would take forever to reach the mall. Plus, she was certain her toes would become frozen. Besides, it was too cold for her liking.
When she arrived at the mall, Anzu found it literally packed with many shoppers. She had to push and shove her way though, being careful not to run over any small children in the process. Normally she was a polite girl, but she needed that outfit and wasn't going to let anyone stand in her way. A few people shot her nasty looks. She didn't pay any attention to them.
The game store seemed to be packed tight with several shoppers. She figured a new game had been recently released, and she wasn't far from the truth either. A nearby poster caught her attention. A new duel monster game had been released by Kaiba Corp. She wished she could have bought the game for him, but no doubt it was going to be more than she could afford. If her mother didn't help her, there was no way she can afford to buy a sexy outfit, though her mother didn't really need to know that.
Avoiding all game stores, she made her way to where most of the fashion shops were located. She took her time looking at the displays in the window and inside the actual shop. It wasn't her wedding, but she was making a huge fuss about her clothing. Who can blame her? He was very handsome and a good catch.
Anzu found these outfits to be too plain or too common for her taste. She wanted to wear something more on the exotic side. After all, Yami was as exotic as they get. Besides, she doubted he would notice her if she wore something ordinary. No, she had to be different.
After looking through the last store in the fashion area, Anzu decided to take a break and stopped by the coffee shop. It was packed with many unhappy Christmas shoppers, but that didn't deter her. She managed to make her way to the end of the line without any major incidents. The line moved rather slowly due to the large number of orders.
When she reached the counter, Anzu saw the last person she expected to find. "Mai, what are you doing her?" She gasped, completely forgetting she was to make her order quickly. The line behind her was growing long and impatient by the minute.
"Anzu?" Mai managed to choke out. She never thought one of her friends would ever set foot within this coffee shop. Looked like she was dead wrong. Her violet eyes scanned for Yugi and company. They usually were found together for some odd reason that she had yet to discover. She exhaled with relief when she found none.
"What's holding up the line?" an irate customer yelled. She had been waiting for seven minutes, and her shoes were killing her. Many people voiced their agreement; some even added a few colorful words.
Snapping out of her stupor, the dancer made her order. She paid for the coffee and waited nearby for her order to be filled. As she waited, she thought of all the possible reasons for Mai to be working at the coffee shop.
"Hey boss, I'm going for my break," Mai called out to her manager. She hated this job, but she needed extra cash. Maybe her special someone would notice her this year, and they would share their first kiss underneath the mistletoe.
"You have ten minutes," the manager returned. If it weren't for these damn laws, there was no way he would let them go on their breaks, especially during times like these. Time equaled profits or a lack of it. He hoped for the former.
Mai didn't bother removing her apron, seeing as she was only given a short break. She managed to track down Anzu in the crowd and headed over to her. There were several questions in her mind, but some of them could wait.
"Why are you working here?" Anzu inquired as the blonde walked up to her. She knew Mai was a good duelist and earned her money from the tournaments she entered. Also, it appeared she had a fan club.
Her cheeks sported a faint blush. "Well, I needed the extra cash to buy a present, and there haven't been any tournaments so I had to get the job, Mai answered, partially ashamed for even working there. She had a good reason for it in her opinion. "The pay is lousy, but it's at least something."
"I know what you mean," Anzu sighed, remembering her part time job as a waitress. She really wanted to take dancing lessons, but her parents couldn't afford it at that time. "Many places are overpriced. It's highway robbery!"
"You said it," Mai agreed with her completely. Speaking of which, she didn't even know why the brunette was there. "Doing last minute Christmas shopping?"
Now it was Anzu's turn to blush. Hers however was darker and more noticeable. "I was looking for the perfect outfit to wear to the Christmas party." She didn't need to say the reason why she wanted to look nice.
"What Christmas party, and why wasn't I invited?" Mai inquired. She was known for being a social butterfly. Besides, parties meant free food. It wasn't like she was on a diet either. She mentally took note of the blush staining the dancer's cheeks.
"It's Mokuba's party," Anzu answered truthfully. She had no idea why Mai wasn't invited. Also she didn't want to lie either. It would be wrong of her, and she wasn't about to jeopardize their friendship. "He and Yugi planned it so I don't have any ideas."
"I see," Mai said thoughtfully. Well, if she wasn't invited, it was no big deal. It was most likely going to be a kiddie Christmas party. She didn't even know what she was going to wear for her special someone if she did actually go.
"Maybe I can ask Mokuba or Yugi to invite you," Anzu suggested. She didn't like seeing any of her friends sad. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind."
Mai bit her lip to prevent herself from asking who her special someone was interested in. It was obvious she had some competition, but that didn't mean she was going to give up without a fight. However, she wasn't going to risk telling her secret, because she didn't know how her special person felt about her. "Thanks. You wouldn't happen to be going with your special someone?"
Anzu's blush returned with a vengeance. She stammered a yes and found her hands to be very interesting at the moment. "I want to wear something nice so he would finally notice me."
"If he only cares about looks, then he's not worth it. Trust me."
-
That line kept going through Anzu's head. Of course, it would be worth her efforts. It wasn't like he was dating anyone or so she thought. They get along fairly well, but she wanted to take it up to the next level. In any case, there was no use dwelling on it. She had an outfit to find.
Sometime later, Anzu managed to find her way to Foxy Dreams. She was, at first, hesitant to enter the shop, but she changed her mind when she thought of how Yami would react upon seeing in one of their outfits. Gathering enough courage, she stepped forth into the store. It wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. There were no old and disgusting perverts or any perverts in general. The store was well organized and surprisingly clean.
A young white haired man sat behind the counter, bored out of his mind. Most of their customers arrived in the late afternoon to late evening. At this time, they were lucky to have a few customers. He glanced up when he heard the bell jingle.
The girl was shy and nervous. Obviously, this was her first time inside this type of establishment. From the way she dressed, she seemed to be the type of girl who focused on her studies. She dressed rather conservatively compared to most of his customers. To him, she seemed to be a fish out of water. If he'd had any other customers there, they would be eyeing her like fresh meat.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" The young man politely inquired, startling the already nervous girl. Inwardly, he chuckled at her reaction. She was like a bunny in a fox's den.
Anzu swore she nearly had a heart attack. She almost knocked over a stand of female condoms in the process. Looking to the source of the voice, she was sure there was no one there when she entered. Maybe her mind was playing tricks or perhaps, she was too worried. In either case, he seemed friendly enough.
"I'm looking for something to wear to a Christmas party," she replied hastily. She didn't have to tell for whom she was dressing up. It was none of his business.
A white brow was raised. "Let me guess, you want to impress someone?" He figured a conservative looking girl wouldn't wander into his store unless she had someone special in her life or someone worth changing her looks for.
A bright blush was his answer. "Yes," Anzu managed to squeak. –How did he know? Was he reading my mind- After what she had been through, she wouldn't be surprised if her grandmother returned from the dead.
Upon seeing her confused face, he chuckled. "No, I'm not reading your mind, and I can't see into the future either." His chuckle turned to a soft laugh when she perfectly imitated a goldfish. "I get that all the time. Most people don't know I'm a very observant person."
"Oh," the dancer said as if she was in a trance. "I want him to notice me." She said, her blush returning. Brushing a stray lock of her hair away from her face, she glanced around as if she was afraid of being caught there.
The young man stepped out from behind the counter and moved towards the clothing section of his store. "As you can see we carry a wide selection of outfits. I'm sure you'll find something to snag your guy."
By now, Anzu's blush would put a tomato to shame. With some help, she found something to wear to the party. She wanted the naughty Mrs. Claus suit, but they didn't have any in her size. They did have an elf suit; however, it didn't look good on her. She settled for a reindeer outfit, complete with fake antlers and a tail.
As she was heading to the counter, the dancer spotted something unusually pink. She wondered what it could be since most of the items there weren't brightly colored. Well, there were a few things, but they weren't colored pink. When she approached the bondage aisle, she noticed they were pink furred handcuffs. They looked rather cute, and a smile crept over her face as she thought of the many possibilities. She picked up a pair of them and headed over to the counter, where the young man was waiting with her outfit.
This was going to be an interesting Christmas for her.
-
Glue.
Slap.
Press.
Repeat.
Finding some free time, Jou managed to place the finishing touches on the special gift for Seto. He glanced around his work area and found extra pictures. He tried to give back some of them, but the younger Kaiba refused them to take them back, saying they were extras. It made him wonder what Mokuba was up to and Yugi too since they both helped him with the gift. So in short, Jou ended up with several pictures of Seto, Mokuba, and their small group. Once he sorted through the leftover pictures, he figured he would make Seto another special gift. Unfortunately, he didn't have the material in hand so he needed to head out.
It wasn't that he didn't like going out, but he didn't like dealing with last minute shoppers. Past experiences have taught him; yet, he always seemed to forget or didn't have enough money early so he ended up fighting those last minute shoppers. He planned on avoiding the mall all together, because it seemed to attract them with their sales and Christmas hype. Besides, he just needed one item, and it wasn't worth the hassle since he had two gifts for Seto.
Speaking of which, Jou had a hard time deciding whether to give the brunette the present in person or as a secret admirer. In either case, there would be negative affects. If Jou gave it in person, Seto could laugh at him, saying that the blond was an idiot for thinking he swung that way or he could flat out reject him. On the other hand, if he sent it as a secret Santa gift, Seto wouldn't know who sent it to him and would probably believe it was another person that gave it to him. There was a bright side to these decisions. Seto might return Jou's feelings or the blond might be able to discover where Seto's heart lay.
-Maybe I can ask Yugi about this. - Jou thought as he exited his home, donning a thick jacket. It seemed to be a logical choice since Yugi was more sensitive and understanding when it came to relationships.
Trudging down the snow covered side walk, Jou was trying to decide where to go. The mall would be his last resort and only if he was desperate enough to try. One time he had nearly been run over by a large lady, who was running to get the last pack of duel monster cards, which he was about to pick up. Nevertheless, he was forced to look elsewhere for the pack.
Despite the lightly falling snow and the mounts of it on the ground, the streets were rather busy. Many stores had more than their average number of customers. Every one of them held their doors open later than usual, since the profits were high. Most family owned stores were opened as well, including the two game shops. Even though the area was bustling with the Christmas shoppers, there was more than enough room to maneuver, unlike certain places.
Shoving his hand in his pocket, Jou ignored the colorful Christmas displays and those annoying carolers, who, in his opinion, had nothing else better to do than to annoy the hell out of others. This opinion was the same as Seto, Bakura, Marik, and at times Malik. He watched as a few children engaged in a snowball fight before being reprimanded by their mothers. They were kids for crying out loud; they were supposed to have fun. He supposed he felt that way, since his own childhood was pretty much destroyed by his father's alcoholic activities. Basically, he raised himself, and when he was old enough, he had to get a job to support the both of them. He had to grow up faster than most children.
Down on the corner of the block, there was one of those volunteers for a charity. He wore a large Santa suit and was ringing a bell as he politely asked for donations. If he had enough money, he would have given a little. He knew what it was like to go without food for days and not having something warm to wear. That was before he became a bully and acquired a legitimate job. His budget had always been tight, because he was either buying food or beer, which his father never appreciated. Somehow he forced himself to save enough money to buy Christmas presents for his friends.
Today he had been paid. Since he was putting in more hours, he had a little extra to spend on his present. If he had something extra, then why wasn't he donating it like he wanted to? Love was completely blind and at times. Or in this case, totally out to lunch.
His little walk eventually led him to a bookstore. Jou didn't think it would be there, but it couldn't hurt to take a look. If one of his friends caught him in there, he or she most likely would faint. Okay, it wasn't that drastic, but Jou and books never seemed to get along. The only 'books' he appeared to read were comic books. Actually, bookstores carried comic books, but he usually went to a comic book store. They had more of a selection.
Once he entered the store, Jou loosened his jacket. It was a lot warmer in here than out there. As usual, the store had several Christmas decorations and Christmas oriented products out on display. Some of them were on sale to encourage shoppers to buy them. He strolled past them, not even giving them a second glance. Seto hated that kind of stuff unless it involved duel monsters. No one knew the reason behind his, even his brother was confused.
Making his way down the aisle, he felt someone roughly bump into him and was about to tell that person off when he realized who it was. "Otogi, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in your game shop doing something or another?"
The said person turned around with an equally shocked expression. He recognized the voice, but he was having a hard time accepting the fact that Jou was in a bookstore of all places. "I should be asking you the same thing. You never are one to visit a bookstore." Once the mutual shock wore off, Otogi was the first to answer the question. "I have a few errands to run, and I needed to get away from my shop. It's a madhouse down there with the newly released duel monster game. I'm having a hard time keeping the shelves stocked, and Yugi tells me it's the same over at his place."
"You poor guys," Jou teased in a friendly manner. Ever since the Battle City Tournament, they had become friends, but not close friends. It was a start to say the least. "I'm glad I don't work in a game shop for that matter." He did however feel sorry for Yugi.
"Lucky bastard," Otogi grumped under his breath before remembering that Jou never answered his implied question. "What are you doing here out of all places?" A light blush was his response. "Doing some last minute shopping for your boyfriend?"
"What?" Jou sputtered, trying to form a coherent sentence and failing miserably. Didn't Yugi say everyone knew he had a crush but no on who?
Upon seeing the blond tongue tied, Otogi knew he was right. He had his suspicions when he saw Jou not reacting to drop dead gorgeous women, even if it was only in pictures. "It's not hard to figure out for someone with my intelligence level." He wasn't even going to add that anyone could read him like a book. A smirk found its way onto his face as he clasped his hands behind his neck.
Jou narrowed his eyes in a suspicious manner. "Yeah right." He wasn't going to buy that excuse. Most likely someone told him, and he hoped it wasn't Yugi, Ryou, or Malik. It was hard to be mad at any of them, because they had very overprotective boyfriends who wouldn't hesitate to send his ass to the shadow realm should he upset their lovers. "That's the day hell freezes over." Actually it had and Satan was currently throwing a hissy fit.
Otogi merely chuckled. It wasn't the mutt's fault he was that dense. Then again it could be. Maybe he was dropped on his head too many times when he was a baby or something. This irritated the blond to ends. "What do you plan on doing about your boyfriend?" –I wish he would pay attention more attention to me than her.-
"He's not my boyfriend," Jou stuttered, his blush deepening. He wasn't even sure if Seto swung that way, but Mokuba kept convincing him to give the gift to Seto. Damn, he completely forgot the younger brother knew his secret. Not good, especially if he and Yugi were planning the party or at least that was the impression he received. "At least not yet anyways. I hope he will be."
"I know the feeling," Otogi sighed this time, leaning against the sturdy wall. If only Honda looked his way for one, then he would definitely see the signs. He had started by dropping subtle hints such as spending time with the group and giving him glances every now and then. Unfortunately, the brunette was dense, but in reality he was more focused on her. "If she wasn't there, then he would have been mine by now."
Jou was caught off guard, his embarrassment momentarily gone. His mind tried to make sense of it. First of all, Otogi admitted to liking a guy. That wasn't too surprising since he dressed a certain way and acted that way too. Second, wasn't Otogi after his sister or something? Not that he wanted it. It confused him all to hell, because he and Shizuka talked about it in one of their many conversations over the phone. "I thought you were after my sister."
"She's nice and all, but she's not the one for me," Otogi said, choosing his words very carefully since big brother was here. He knew Jou wouldn't hesitate to let his fist do the talking in public. The blond was very protective of his sister especially after their time spent away from each other. Shizuka explained to him their family trouble and how Jou wasn't getting along with their mother. It surprised him that she would tell him, but after he had seen them interact, he figured that she thought it was better to explain. "The more I thought about her, the more I realized I liked her as a sister rather than girlfriend. It's really strange, but not any stranger than who I have feelings for."
"I'm not sure if he even swings that way," Jou confessed, becoming a little more comfortable talking about his love life or lack of it with the dice master. For some strange reason, he trusted the guy, even with their past. It might have something to do with their current situation. They had some sort of connection and brotherly type of bond. "If I do anything, he may freak out. At least you know about yours or at least I think you do."
Shaking his head, Otogi replied, ""No, I don't think so since he likes Anzu, though I don't see why."
"You know if you try to hit on Yugi, Yami would send you to the shadow realm in the blink of an eye," Jou winced as he remembered the threats the pharaoh had made against him. Yami thought Jou was too close to Yugi, but the little hikari proved his loyalty, and the blond reassured him by not hitting on Yugi.
Otogi gasped in terror as he stumbled away from the wall. "After what we've been through, there's no way I'm messing with Yugi, Ryou, or Malik. I happen to enjoy living even if it is a pain at times."
"So if you don't like them or their counterparts," Jou said, trying to piece the puzzle together, "then that means you like either Kaiba or Honda." He tried not to growl when he said Seto's surname.
"Take a chill pill," Otogi tried to calm the irate duelist. From the way he mentioned the billionaire's name, he figured Jou had feelings for Seto. "I'm not interested in that brunette. Honda, on the other hand…" He had that dreamy look that fan girls normally get whenever they were around their crushes.
In less than a second, Jou went from pissed off to being confused. –Honda? Honda, out of all people, Otogi loved Honda? I must be dreaming or something. Maybe it was something I ate or didn't eat. I don't know- "Are you sure about that?"
"I just wish he would look my way for once," Otogi sighed dreamily. It was tearing him apart that Honda was so near but so totally out of his reach.
-Even if I can't get Seto, maybe I can help them get together. Honda deserves to be happy, and as his best friend, I will make it happen, one way or another. – Jou thought as his lips twisted into an evil smirk.
-
No requirements, but more character development for Anzu, Mai, Otogi, and Jou.
Can you guess who Mai will be paired up with?
