Wow, so, a lot of work spent on this chapter, particularly near the end. I kept reading the previous chapter thingees and couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. I came to the conclusion that they were dry. My friend Molly read them and told me why. Apparently I'm not puting enough description into them. Or at least the words are below what I'm trying to convey. So, lots of fun new words towards the end of the chapter. You can expect that the rest of them will be similar. Sorry if that bothers you! Also, I imagine that as I get more comfortable with the flow of the story I'll start to relax. Thus my writing with improve. Whoo!

For those of you who were reading the story before I started it over, the surprise mentioned later on is as much a surprise for you as it is for the gang. I hope you like it. In addition, chapters from the old story will be posted very soon. I'm going to edit them a little and then post them all at once. So, you can expect a bunch of chapters to read without having to wait.

Also, I learned some new names. For those of you totally familiar with both the Japanese and English names of the characters, you might have been confused as to why I was using Japanese names for some of the characters and English names for others. I blame ignorance! But yes, thanks to the lovely anime fanlisting website, I have been schooled. At least, my knowledge has increased. I don't know whether the Japanese series bothered to give Rebecca Hawkins a different name.

I would like to remind you of that X-Men fanfic that I mentioned in the last chapter. It's called Love Lost and Found and it needs a new owner. The current owner has the fic up for adoption. It's brilliantly written and deserves a new author. If you've checked it out or are planning to, please let me know. It would give me some manner of peace to know that it's going to be taken care of.

Next chapter is going to be very short. Like, really, really short. Please bear with me. All I need to do with the next chapter is set something up. I might add in a little somethign to make it more interesting. Still, really short.

Alright, enough talk, enjoy!

Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 2

Jonouchi found himself cooking in the kitchen. The smell of bacon strips submerged in oil combined with the crackling sound of cooking fat brought a very disgruntled Shizuka from her room.

"Oniisan, you know I don't like bacon. It does murder to my pores," Shizuka complained while attempting to rub the rest of the sleep from her eyes. Some of it wouldn't come off so she began to vigorously rub at her eye, finally dislodging the last of it. When she removed her hand she revealed a very red orb which began to twitch and blink. It was beyond her control. Giving up, Shizuka proceed to plop herself on the couch and close her eyes once again. Jonouchi grabbed a plate of eggs and set it on the coffee table in front of her. Then he turned to face his sister who squirmed slightly, wallowing in the warmth that the rising sun had placed on the couch.

Jonouchi whispered in her ear, "Oneesan, that's why I made you-"

"AHHH!" Jonouchi was cut short by his sister, who, startled by the noise right in her ear, had jumped into a sitting position, ramming her head into her brother's nose. Jonouchi tried to fight the reactionary sneeze that always came when he was hit in the nose while Shizuka threw her head around wildly. Seeing that no attackers were in the room, she turned to look at her brother. A quizzical look plastered itself upon her face when she saw her brother clutching his nose with both of his hands.

"Oniisan, why are you holding your nose? Did you sneeze again? You know I don't like it when you sneeze in the house…" Shizuka's scolding voice trailed off. Jonouchi tried very hard not to yell at his sister.

'Honestly,' he thought, 'this is my house. I should be able to sneeze in it if I want to.' He understood that his sister hated germs, but one sneeze wasn't going to kill her. Shaking his head, the reactionary sneeze subsided; he headed back to the kitchen to watch over his bacon. He liked to take it off right when it started to get crispy; a few seconds after that could ruin it and he would have to throw the whole batch away. For some reason he just couldn't stand eating bacon if it wasn't absolutely, on the dot perfect. He was satisfied with where his bacon had gotten to, so he took it off the skillet, put it on a plate, and brought the plate to the coffee table. The automatic timer on the television went off, and with a flash of brilliant light the television turned itself on.

'Ah, the wonders of Japanese technology and a plate of bacon,' thought Jonouchi. He was quite stunned and amused with some of the things that the Japanese had been able to come up with. American food was, well, American food.

The news report was on. Seeing as there weren't any other interesting programs on the air at seven in the morning, Jonouchi decided to watch it, each crispy, doused-in-grease bite of bacon countering the bad news of the night. Meanwhile, Shizuka stared at her brother with wide eyes. He had begun to shove three pieces of bacon in to his mouth at a time which was something that Shizuka had never witnessed anyone do.

"Slow down, Oniisan, you're going to choke. And if you choke then you're going to spew bacon bits all over the couch and the carpet and the coffee table and then…" Jonouchi tuned her out. A particularly interesting news report had just come on.

"Barely a week after the strange monster holograms disappeared heralding the return of many people thought to be dead, selected individuals within the Japanese government and others of the higher social order, particularly here in the city of Domino, have gone missing. Police forces have informed us that they can find no connecting piece to suggest that these disappearances are related. They say that given this city's history with things of a stranger nature, however, they would not be surprised if they were. Due to the lack of suspects or any video recordings of the kidnapper, we have no description to offer you. The commander of the police force here in Domino simply suggests that you keep off the streets at night and avoid contact with any stranger who seems shady in any way to you. If you have any information, you are asked to call the Domino police headquarters."

Jonouchi's body began to shudder. His spirit had always been deeply rooted in the idea of helping anyone and everyone he could. It was a gift of sorts, his wish to help innocent people, but such gifts always come with curses. When he found a situation beyond his control like this one was, his body would shake uncontrollably in reflection. It is rare that such a gift is bestowed upon people without some sort of catch. He had noticed such things in Kaiba as well. For all of the money, intellect, and power that the CEO had, he came up lacking in peace, family, friendship, and love most of all. It was a sad thing to watch someone as powerful, as important as Kaiba was, be brought to their knees in an emotional manner by something that Kaiba regarded as his saving grace. Jonouchi found it hard to watch the man at times because of his ability to look at people at just see how they were feeling. Jonouchi didn't need to read body language; he could simply see the pain, the frustration, the anger emanate from within the center of Kaiba's very being.

'Tsh, so what?' Jonouchi found himself regarding, silently. 'The man hates you. He has never been kind to you, ever. Why should you care about his-'Jonouchi looked at his hand. It was red, and a stinging on his cheek told him that he had just slapped himself. 'So this is compassion. Unconditional love. Or…is it something else? 'He continued to sit as though mesmerized by his hand.

"Jonouchi Katsuya, are you listening to me?" Shizuka scolded once again. "You know, you really ought to pay attention to people more often when they're speaking to you. I know that it isn't the only reason, but this probably has something to do with why you and Otosan-"

"Why we don' wha?" Shizuka was interrupted by the swaggering, beer bellied form of their father who came, feet shuffling, out from behind the hall corner. He had little decency and came bearing no shirt at all. Such foul behavior disgraced his father figure more in Jonouchi's eyes. Even with their twelve foot distance, Jonouchi could smell the alcoholic residue in his father's mouth, the pungent odor of far too much sake. "Wha' is this mess on the floor! Look at all this garbage!" Jonouchi looked at the sparse floor which he had cleaned last night before going to sleep.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Katsuya." Jonouchi had ceased referring to his father as Otosan. To him such a name required trust and respect, neither of which Jonouchi held for the man.

"Yeah, you betta be sorry, you ungrateful little wr-" Before Mr. Katsuya could finish he passed out and landed with a sickeningly wet thud on the floor. Jonouchi sighed walked toward his father in routine fashion while Shizuka wailed about their poor father. Shizuka's rant continued as Jonouchi dragged their father by the arms to his bedroom and placed him back on the bed. He closed the door behind him, and, resisting the urge to lock the door as well, headed back to their living room, hoping to enjoy the rest of his day.

Barely two seconds later, the phone rang. Jonouchi launched himself toward the phone. The only people who had his home phone number were his friends and telemarketers. As it was only just after 7:30 in the morning, he doubted very highly that any annoying salesmen were calling. His hand was inches from the phone when Shizuka grabbed it and clutched it to her face. She gasped when she heard the voice on the other end.

"HONDA! Oh, Honda, how are you feeling? Did you sleep well? How is your family? Can I come over? I want to see you. Is that alright? Are we doing anything later?" Shizuka asked in rapid succession. She always had been one for such conversations and her surgery, rather than humbling her, seemed to make her realize how short her young life would be. At least that's the way she saw it. Jonouchi had thrown a pillow at her when she tried to explain it him.

Jonouchi closed his eyes to try and calm himself down. The color of his face reflecting the fury inside of him, he asked with a quivering voice, "May…I have the phone now?" Shizuka gave him an incredulous stare and then went right along talking. Jonouchi's eyes opened and flashed dangerously in response. Shizuka shrieked and dropped the phone, retreating to the safety of her room. She locked the door.

Jonouchi's chat with Honda was a short one. "Hey, Honda, how are you…you want me to come over later…Shizuka too, got it…Kaiba has a surprise, hmm, I wonder what that could be…movies…sure, I can pick a couple up, any requests…okay…Ryuuji's going to pick me up…got it, I'll see you later…bye." He hung up the phone. Then, yelling, "Shizuka, we're going to the video store!"

A predominantly strident snore awoke Jonouchi's father. He sat up abruptly and looked around his room, completely confused by his surroundings. Hs brain was still suffering the aftereffects of last night's rice wine get-together at the local tavern.

"Tha' was one wild nigh', huh?" he asked the empty room before his stupor caused him to slip off of his bed and on the floor. A single, more than audible obscenity escaped him as his arms lifted himself off the carpet. He took another look around before realizing that he was actually in his own room with his bed, his beer stained sheets, his nightstand, his lamp, his desk. Mr. Katsuya had a habit of asking himself questions out loud, which once again manifested itself with his question, "Where is ma food!" Mr. Katsuya liked to have his food brought to him. It made for easier leisure time when he could simply have the boy bring it to him. He hated Jonouchi. He hated him because he was everything he wanted. Jonouchi had friends who supported him without the need of four tequila shots in their systems. Jonouchi had a place to get away from home. Jonouchi had money, although he was too soft-hearted to use it like Mr. Katsuya knew he could. Jonouchi had traveled much, and made something of himself. Most fathers would have been proud, but only because they had secure lives. Mr. Katsuya did not. He couldn't truthfully say that he did. Everyday he went down to the bar, drank himself to exhaustion with other cold, lifeless people, then came home and collapsed on the bed to waste half a day sleeping. That boy was lucky, and that boy knew it. Mr. Katsuya wanted to be lucky. Mr. Katsuya was jealous.

He managed to find his way to the door and opened it. When he looked down at his feet to make sure that they were working properly, he saw a clean floor.

"I told you guys to pick up this trash!" he yelled. "You guys never do anythin' I tell ya! I ough' to ring your necks!" His knees buckled and he crashed headfirst onto the floor, his body landing in a construed position that most people could never hope to achieve by any other means. He laughed to himself, too overcome by the alcohol in his system to realize what had just happened.

Their phone rang; it rang and rang and rang. It rang seven times before than answering machine picked up.

"Otosan?" Shizuka's shrill I'm-in-public-so-I-have-to-make-myself-known voice rang through the room, aggravating Mr. Katsuya's hangover. "Just in case you're worried, we're at the video store. Honda wanted us to pick up some movies for later tonight. Everyone's going over to the game shop. I guess Kaiba has a surprise for people. Knowing him he's devised another brilliant way to play duel monsters. Anyway, we'll be heading back home once we've got the movies. Kaiba says that we need to look good. That's going to require that I reapply my make-up and stuff. See you in a bit, Otosan." She hung up.

Mr. Katsuya lifted his fist up in an antagonistic, almost comicalfashion. "Jonouchi!"

Videos, shoes, keys, plastic bags; all came flying through the doorway as Jonouchi and Shizuka returned home. Shizuka had decided that she couldn't live another second without talking to Honda so while they were at the video store she called him. They had been chatting it up for a good two hours or so and Jonouchi was really starting to worry about what the phone bill was going to look like. He just knew that his father was going to make him pay it, too. Mr. Katsuya always did that.

"Oneesan, it's time to get off the phone. We need to get ready and-" Jonouchi's sentence was interrupted by an ill-intentioned glare from his sister. Then he got an idea, and a devilish grin spread across his face. "Fine," he said, "but you're the one who's going to look bad when you show up with bad make-up." 'Well, that worked,' he thought to himself as Shizuka bounded toward her room. Jonouchi looked at the clock above their door and jumped. It was nearly time for them to leave for the game shop. Not unlike a rabbit, he dashed to his room and grabbed the best shirt he could find: a black button down dress shirt of which he had cut the sleeves off a couple months ago when they got to small. Dawning that and a pair of khakis, he pounded on his sister's door. He nearly hit her on the head when it opened.

"Are you read? We really, really need to get out of here." Shizuka nodded in the affirmative and they headed towards the door. As Jonouchi's hand reached for the door, a hand collided with the back of his head, sending his head into the wall. Jonouchi crumpled to the floor.

"Where is he?" Honda said looking at his watch. "They should have been here 15 minutes ago. They're walking here so I know they can't be stuck in traffic. You think we should head over there?" He looked at Kaiba. Kaiba, who had arrived almost an hour early, walked out the door and turned sharply toward Jonouchi's house. Yami, who was still taking over to Yuugi while Yuugi rested, ran out after him. Honda sighed and followed, his whole body struggling to support some unseen weight on his shoulders.
Meanwhile, Jonouchi lay unconscious in a heap on the floor. His father was bellowing obscenities at the boy, still so drunk that he couldn't even recognize that Jonouchi couldn't hear him. Shizuka had fled from the room dashing out the front door and kneeling just outside. This is what Kaiba saw when he got to Jonouchi's house far ahead of the others. He moved swiftly passed Shizuka and entered the house to see Mr. Katsuya raise his hand with intent to hit a boy on the floor. It was the mutt.

Kaiba didn't know what, but something made him close the ten foot gap between himself and Jonouchi's father. He lost control of himself and when his eyes finally refocused he found Mr. Katsuya out cold on the floor.

Yami appeared in the doorway. "Honda is outside comforting Shizuka. What happened." His eyes locked onto the boy on the floor. "Oh my…"

"Call my limo," Kaiba said, hoisting Jonouchi up into his arms.

"But, Kaiba, I don't-"

"I'll give you the number. Just get the phone."

Kaiba placed the unconscious one on the love seat with grace and then sat down beside him. The blonde's bangs rested askew on the back. Slowly, his eyes opened and focused themselves, adjusting to the light that now poured into them. A balcony. The fingers that were entangling themselves in his sunshine hair. The smell of vanilla incense. The sound of Marik's maniacal laugher. His senses were returning to him. He could see and smell and feel and hear. There was blood on his tongue. He could taste, too. With great difficulty he tried to lift himself up only to collapse back against the pillow beneath his shoulders. His head was swimming.

Kaiba continued to weave his fingers though the boy's hair with surprising ease. Whatever shampoo Jonouchi used, it did marvels for him. The movement of the hair against his stationary fingers told him that Jonouchi was moving. He looked down to see the boy attempting to snuggle closer to the love seat cushions. This sight brought a rare smile to his face. 'I'm falling for a mutt,' Kaiba thought to himself. 'That's not so bad, though, is it?' Kaiba gasped. These thoughts bring another one to his mind, one whose deep, almost raspy voice he could hear coming from the game shop entrance. Gently removing his fingers from the blonde's hair, which brought on a puppy like whimper from the boy, he bounded, skipping most uncharacteristically for the game shop's card room.

A silhouette stood tall, dark, and handsome at the entrance to the shop, waiting for a familiar face to appear before he allowed himself to be coaxed past the threshold. The arrival of Kaiba was what he was waiting for. He placed one, then two leather booted feet inside the card room as he took off his jacket, his sinewy body contorting itself in more than a couple positions to accommodate the sleeves. Otogi, who was leaning against one of the glass showcases, felt his stomach turn. Anzu, standing next to him, shared his discomfort as she willed herself to not throw up. Silence descended on the room. People waited for something to happen.

"Finally you came, Kaiba," Grandpa Motou said with a chuckle, finally ending the awkwardness. "He was just telling us about how shy he can get around people he doesn't know."

"Why don't we fix that problem then," Jonouchi said with a yawn when he entered the room. The man's void like eyes darted towards the newcomer. He looked Jonouchi up and down. A curious malevolence rose up in the man and he decided to judge by what he saw. He did not like the boy and that was that. His malicious comments would have to be discreet, though; he did not think he could get away with crude and forceful discourtesy.

"Um, right, well, um…" stammered Kaiba, for once completely lost for words.

"I'm Rebecca Hawkins," stated Rebecca matter-of-factly. She toyed with her college uniform pleated skirt in an attempt to show off the fact that she was indeed a child marvel.

"I'm Anzu," said the other school girl stereotype as politely as she could. She held out her hand to emphasize her demeanor. The man took her hand and kissed it lightly. Anzu had to once again will herself not to vomit.

Introductions were made in a roundabout fashion. Much to everyone's surprise, Yami would not warmly approach the stranger as he usually did when meeting new people. Instead he introduced himself from afar. Jonouchi's introduction was met with hidden hostility from the man. Kaiba's guest attempted to crush Jonouchi's hand when they shook. Jonouchi was quite glad when he let go.

Everyone stood looking intently at the new man. There was an aura about him. This aura was far from pleasant, however. In fact, it made Yami and Jonouchi recoil. Both took a conscious notice of their common reaction to the newcomer. Seconds turned to minutes, and minutes turned to hours. It was as though the calm before the storm had fallen upon them all and they waited in anxiety for the man to say something. It was entirely possible that the man was trying to build up suspense because the longer he waited the more the anxiety grew. His lips parted slowly. Jonouchi could see the struggle that both halves put up. The skin clung together and fought to stay that way. It was like they were protecting the group from something vicious and macabre that was about to rear its repugnant self from within the nadir of his blackened soul. They lost that fight and began to reshape themselves, allowing his mouth to form a weighted sentence.

"I," he said closing his eyes as he smirked in some contemptible manner, "am Sayuu."

What did you think? Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Constructive criticism? Random hello's? Something? The whole "your story has been hit (insert number) times" thing is getting kind of depressing. I wonder if there's a way to turn it off. That would make me happy. Oh well, such is life. Please respond with something and I'll be sure to give you a big hug. See? Rewards!