Well, Ok I figured that since it's been probably about a year, that it's time for an update. I've actually made it off to college and I'm doing this instead of studying. I actually don't have a whole lot to do here so I'm hoping that I'll stop neglecting this, but you know, I think I've made similar predictions before…and you can see how that went. I've been out of practice of writing for a while and this is the hard part to try and keep them in character so we'll see how this goes.

I'd really like to thank everybody who reviewed. You are the BEST. I'm dead serious. You guys are the reason I actually came back to this site. Smooches.

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Chapter 4 2 mutts and a brother

Jou handed over the money and received his food. He picked a booth in the back and started eating slowly; well, eating slowly for him anyway; trying to figure out what he should do about Kaiba. He still hadn't figured out how he was gonna pay him back or how in the world he was supposed to go to school with the stuck up snob. Then his mind started wandering to Tuesday, which is when he would go back home. He kept hoping that maybe his dad just wanted to sober up without any distractions and that things would be all hunky-dory when he got home. While it was a nice thought, wishful thinking got him nowhere so his mind switched to more pressing matters as he took the last bite of his Quarter Pounder. What was he going to do now?...

Kaiba was typing ferociously at his computer. It was supposedly his lunch break, but of course, when you're a CEO of a multi-million dollar company, you don't get lunch breaks. He was typing a prototype for a new virtual reality game. It was still in the developing stages; in fact, all Kaiba really had was an idea; but it seemed promising. Suddenly, he heard his loudspeaker on his phone, located at the corner of his desk, crackle. His secretary's voice flooded his office. "I'm sorry to bother you Mr. Kaiba but you have a visitor." Confusion flickered behind Kaiba's eyes for a moment. Who would be calling on him during this time? He pushed a button and responded back, "Well, who is it?" in a rather annoyed tone. "Well, it looks like your brother and a mutt." Kaiba shook his head. He was sure that he couldn't have heard right. For one, his brother never came to visit him at the office because Mokuba knew he was too busy and did she say mutt? Something was not right with this situation. Again he pushed the button and cautiously said, "Go ahead and send them in…"

A little bell jingled to signify that Jou had entered the store. He wasn't really shopping for anything but he wasn't sure what else to do with his time. He had chosen to enter a small little gift shop. He was trying to think of ways he could pay back Kaiba, but he was rapidly running out of ideas. He thought about getting a job, but he knew that wouldn't work very well because his dad would not let him work and he knew that nobody would hire him in his current condition with his nose swollen and black eyes. He couldn't borrow it from a friend because then they would start to question. He thought about gambling it on something, but he couldn't risk losing what precious little he already had. He wondered if he could work it off by doing things for Seto, but he wasn't sure that was going to fly either. He couldn't think of any other options and a deep sense of hopelessness flooded him. He stuck his hands in his pockets, and with his head down, he shuffled out of the store and wandered over to a park bench.

Sighing, he sat there and watched all the little kids play, without a care in the world. Faintly smiling, Jou remembered when he was like that. His dad didn't always use to be a tyrannical monster. His smile faded. It wasn't until his mom left and took his sister with her. Jou often wondered why he was left behind. He noticed a man throwing a frisbee for his dog. It soared through the air in Jou's direction. Landing about a foot in front of him, the dog trotted over. Jou had always loved animals, so as the dog approached he smiled a little more and proceeded to talk to the dog. "Hey fella', What's your name?"

"Bark"

"No." Seto said calmly. He was looking at the dog sitting in his office with a cold, steady stare. The puppy stared back up at him with his honey colored eyes, his tail slowly wagging. It was eerie how familiar those eyes looked. Mokuba again pleaded, "But Seto! They were going to kill him! I couldn't let them do that! Look how he needs me! I promise you won't even know that it's there. I'll take care of him! You always said I needed more responsibility, what better way to do it than with a dog?" Seto said again just as calmly, "No. Mokuba, we are not dog people, we are not cat people, we aren't even hamster people." Mokuba still persisted, "But Seto, I'm lonely, you're never around and I'm stuck all alone in that big house…all by myself in a huge mansion." He made sure that the last point was crystal clear.

Seto frowned. Mokuba had taken out his trump card. Kaiba sighed in defeat. "All right, but when I get home, I'm writing up a list of rules for this…I suppose you have a name for it?" Mokuba smiled, "Yup, I'm going to name it Patch." Seto's eyebrow raised a fraction as his little brother went on further to describe why, "Because he had a white patch over his right eye." That name also sounded too familiar for his liking, but Seto said nothing. Finally shooing the dog and his brother out his office by telling them to head on home and promising that he would be there in a couple of hours, he sat down at his desk, quickly finishing typing up the blueprints for his new invention. He then filled out and signed all contracts and paperwork, and true to his word, was out of the building around 2 hours after Mokuba and the pup had left.

Entering his room back at the motel, Jou was feeling sorry for himself. He wasn't sure what he should or could do. Flopping on his bed, he stared up at the ceiling, trying to detect a pattern. Giving up, he lay on his side. Looking at the time, he realized it was approaching 7. Jou figured he'd go outside looking for dinner.

Exiting the house, Seto and Mokuba climbed into their limo. Since Seto was actually home for dinner, they decided to go out. Seto quirked his eyebrow, looking straight at Mokuba, surprised that he hadn't said where he wanted to go yet. Mokuba had a sheepish grin on his face. "Please Seto?" The older Kaiba instantly knew where Mokuba wanted to go, and opened to his mouth to protest, then thought better of it and leaned forward to tell the driver, "Olive Garden, make it snappy." Mokuba gave a shout of glee. "This is the best day ever."

Jou wasn't sure where to go, but the Olive Garden was right there. (s/n: I have to get this plot moving a little bit, sorry I know it's cliché but it's the best I could come up with) Scuffling over there, he crossed the street without looking. He never looked, because although he never thought about intentionally killing himself, he thought if he accidentally stepped in front of a moving car…well his troubles would be over. He almost got his wish, he heard a screeching of tires and saw a black car coming towards him.

Opening his eyes, Seto eyes flashed with blue fire. Enraged, he yelled at the driver, "What the hell happened?" The limosine driver look petrified, managing to stammer "I'm incredibly sorry sir, but he just walked out in front of me, like he had a death wish." Kaiba leapt out of his car and to his surprise, although he wasn't sure he was surprised anymore, Jou standing within an inch of his car, a blank look on his face. Seto wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or somewhat worried. He wasn't sure if Jou had stepped in front of the car on purpose, because he didn't look scared. Confused, but no flick of terror was etched in his features, in fact he almost looked disappointed. Seto had a bad feeling that if he didn't intervene further, that Jou might do more stupid things.

Jou woke up from his stupor. Thinking things were all over, he was surprised to see himself still standing in front of the car. Letting out his breath, he looked around and saw people staring at him as if he was a lunatic. As his eyes slowly made it's way around, he saw Kaiba. His eyes widening, he looked at the car in front of him, and he realized that it wasn't a car, but a limo. A smile crossed Jou's face, almost laughing at the irony. He wasn't really conscious of what was happening, he didn't notice Kaiba come towards him, he didn't feel it when Kaiba grabbed his arm and dragged him to his limo, he didn't hear when Mokuba questioned what happened. Jou just sat there with a stupid smile on his face.

Kaiba was sure that the mutt had lost it. He had no choice, he couldn't allow him to go on by himself, he would pose a danger to himself and society. Sighing, Seto dragged him into the limo. Mokuba spoke as soon as Seto entered the backseat, "What happened, isn't that the guy you don't like? What about dinner?" Kaiba calmly explained, "We are the Kaiba's, Olive Garden will deliver for us. As for him," Kaiba nodded to Jou, who was still smiling and staring off into space, "well, we're getting 2 mutts into our house for tonight anyway."

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Well, I know it's not long…and I'm really not sure that I like it all that much. I'm pretty sure they both got a little bit out of character. There might be some revising to this chapter if I get inspired by a better idea. At least now I know where this story is really going. Please review. Please, It doesn't hurt I promise. I love criticism and praise for my work. It means someone took the time to read it. Pwease Pwease Pwease! You'll be my favorite if you review. Ok, hope I made my point, Review. Hopefully Chapter 5 will come soon.