Chapter 4 – Games
The next instalment in my little crazy tale is about, as the title states, dinnertime. At least the start of it. Let the chaos and calamity begin. Hope they realize what they're in for. Oh, and there is literally 10 seconds of fluff in this chapter. You'll see what I mean when you read it.
I love my plot bunny. She's so soft, warm, and fuzzy. I'm glad she came back from the Bahamas with a nice tan. I really missed her.
Disclaimer: My plot bunny came home with shot glasses and a bottle of to-kill-ya (tequila). She forgot to pick up the ownership of Yu-Gi-Oh on the way. Sigh. I'll have to stay a poor university student for a while yet. Oh and this disclaimer applies to chapter 3, too. Got so excited to post it that, after a couple shots of the lethal stuff, I forgot about the legal mumbo-jumbo.
On with the plot…
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Seto stared in disdain as Wheeler cut him off in mid-stride as he crossed the living room. His teeth clenched together and his fingers tightened around the silver bowl he was holding, wishing it were Wheeler's neck.
"And what do you want?" The ice in his voice should have stopped him in his tracks but no, the mutt kept coming at him. Shining brown eyes stared innocently into his and Seto could almost hear the gears grinding in protest in the blonde's brain. The mutt was up to something. He was actually trying to think. Impressive.
"Here, Kaiba, let me take dat fo' ya." Joey literally tore the bowl out of the CEO's hands and passed it off to Tristan without so much as a glance behind him, like a football player executing a pass according to a playbook, who passed Téa and Yugi on his way into the kitchen. The three of them had it all figured out.
If Kaiba was faking friendship, then the only way to keep Téa out of his evil clutches was to keep them as far apart as possible. At all times, one of them had to be near her. That way Kaiba wouldn't have a chance to talk to her alone. Then, she, in her sweet innocence, wouldn't be able to divulge any sort of information to that arrogant snake. The plan was simple and foolproof.
They, of course, hadn't written Mokuba into the equation when they'd formulated their plan on the phone yesterday.
He had his own plan. Even though he'd been sworn to secrecy, via the pinkie swear, to not breathe a word of the new relationship to anybody, Mokuba was determined to let the two of them have some "together-time" through the course of the evening. Not a lot, just a minute or two to exchange a private 'hello'. He may not like the idea of kissing girls, just the thought of it gave him a serious case of the heebie-jeebies, but it was totally obvious that Seto did. He'd do everything possible on the face of this earth to make his brother happy and if kissing was what did it, then so be it.
Poor Téa. She didn't even know she was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
DING DONG DING DONG
DING DONG DING DONG
"Pizza's here," Yugi stated a little timidly. The tension in the room was so thick, he almost doubted a chainsaw could cut through it. Yami wasn't helping matters any as he stared avidly through Yugi's eyes at the possible showdown between Joey and Kaiba.
"Let me guess. Wheeler's contribution to the potluck." It wasn't a question. Joey's smiling eyes turned into smouldering pools of lava and the hand not holding his wallet clenched into a fist.
"If it wasn't Christmas Eve, I'd…" Joey started to say. Kaiba's "Hmmph" stopped him mid-sentence.
"You'd what? Give me another mistletoe kiss, Wheeler? Haven't you learned by now that I don't kiss dogs?" The proverbial line was being drawn and Seto couldn't help but taunt Wheeler into crossing it. The glare he could feel Téa boring into him didn't really simmer him down too much.
"Why, I oughta…"
DING DONG DING DONG
DING DONG DING DONG
"Joey, just get the door." The exasperated sigh echoed around the living room. Those two were never going to get along, she thought. "And I'm warning the two of you. You'd better be on your best behaviour tonight or else." That ominous tone of voice made the tips of Seto's ears burn but the sneer never left his lips as Joey shuddered involuntarily. Seems that Joey had more reason to fear her than he did.
"Awright, already," Joey muttered. Turning his eyes to Kaiba once more, seeing the triumphant smirk in his eyes was too much to handle. All he wanted was one clear shot and Tristan holding the jerk's arms. Instead, he said, through gritted teeth, "Wouldja mind?"
Seto gracefully stepped aside, letting the mutt pass him in order to reach the door, and walked further into the living room, his eyebrow arched at Téa. A single look from her and he knew that she meant what she said about the 'or else'. Just because the two of them locked lips didn't mean he was going to get special treatment. Well, as long as the mutt stayed muzzled, he'd play nice tonight, too.
Mokuba cocked his ear behind him, hearing Joey close the front door and return towards the kitchen with his pizza. Now was the time to implement his little plan. Throwing Téa a million watt grin, he stopped and innocently dug his sock-covered toe into the carpet. "Seto?"
"What is it, Mokuba?" Seto's voice sounded interested. What was his brother planning now? Tristan popped his head out of the kitchen and all eyes in the room focussed on the youngest Kaiba. Joey stopped behind him, his arms holding six huge pizza boxes.
Mokuba played his trump card. "Um, I forgot the sleepover bags in the car. Can you and Téa help me get them? They're kinda heavy…" his voice trailed off and a sidelong glance at his older brother showed him a tight grin that was barely held in check. Leave it to Mokuba to come up with something like this. The kid was too smart for his own good. Thank God, he was on Seto's side.
Joey caught Tristan and Yugi's eyes and gave a slight imperceptible nod. Kaiba wouldn't dare try anything in front of his little brother, would he? Probably not. So if it were the three of them out there together getting the bags that would be all right. But just to be on the safe side…
"I'll help ya, Mokuba." Joey walked around and came to rest in front of the boy, pizza boxes still in hand. "Just wait while I …"
"It's okay, Joey. He asked me, so I'll go help. You, Tristan and Yugi get the table ready. You know the drill. Just like the last time, only we need six settings and probably two decks. They're in the drawer next to the silverware." Téa stepped forward and let her hand casually brush against Seto's arm as she placed it around Mokuba's shoulders. "C'mon kiddo, let's go get your stuff and let you get settled in. The boys can take care of the kitchen for a change."
With that said, Téa led Mokuba towards the front door, a grinning Seto only a step behind the two.
Yugi, Tristan and Joey just stared, mouths open as the other half of their party headed out the front door, closing it softly behind them as they exited the house.
Tristan and Joey exchanged a glance before Joey dumped the boxes in Yugi's waiting arms and they bolted for the living room window. Kaiba had undoubtedly parked on the driveway. They could watch everything from there, in case anything… untoward… happened to Téa while they were outside.
Yugi shook his head sadly, as the two jockeyed for a better position, and went to finish getting the kitchen ready. It would be useless to try to tell those two of his suspicions for what was really going on between the other two. That would complicate matters beyond belief, not that they would believe him anyways. They were so set on the idea of Kaiba 'harassing' Téa that they would never listen to reason. Walking into the kitchen, he regarded the pizza boxes he still held in his hands and grinned. Sometimes their skulls were as thick as pizza crust. The deep-dish kind.
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Téa shivered a little in the cold outside as she and Mokuba led the way to Seto's car. A silver BMW sat at the very end of the driveway, gleaming brightly in the light streaming from the single lamp set on the property.
A quick look back at the house showed two heads peering out at them from the living room. What was with those two? Ever since the trip to the mall, they'd been acting kind of weird. And they didn't trust Seto as far as they could throw him with one hand tied behind their backs. What the hell was going on? Joey had even played interceptor from the minute the Kaiba's had shown up on her doorstep. Now they were spying on her. Did they suspect something was up between the two of them or were they still on about the notion of him harassing her? She didn't know nor did she really care at this point – she just wanted the two of them to grow up.
And then there was Seto. Now was the best time to deal with that situation. The last thing she wanted was to embarrass him in front of Joey, Yugi and Tristan. That would just add fuel to the fire.
"Do you really feel the need to taunt him that much, Seto?" Téa asked. Mokuba snickered. They all knew exactly which 'him' she was referring to.
"He threatened me first. Am I not allowed to defend myself?" She'd surprised him again. No tirade. No tongue-lashing. Just that quiet, resigned tone of voice. A twinge of guilt twisted through him and the snow-covered concrete he was walking on suddenly became very interesting.
Mokuba stared up at Téa. He'd never seen someone put Seto on the defensive so easily. One comment from her and Seto was ready to cave. Amazing. His respect for her grew tenfold, even though she did like kissing.
"Alright. I'll give you that. But promise me you two will place nice for the rest of the night." Téa flipped her hair over her shoulder and saw the downcast face, hunched shoulders and hands in pockets. Slowing down, she let him catch up. With those two yahoos staring at them, she couldn't slip her arm through his, reassuring him that she wasn't angry. Instead, she had to settle for nudging him with an elbow til he looked over at her.
Two sets of blue eyes met and brightened while Mokuba just rolled his and silently gagged. Bleh, mushy stuff. Throwing Téa's arm off his shoulders, he raced ahead and waited for them by the car. He really didn't want to be near them when they were going all lovey-dovey. Disgusting.
"All right, I'll try my best but if he attacks me…"
"You have every right to defend yourself. Just no more outright provocation allowed."
"Deal." A quick, hidden handshake sealed it.
They'd reached the car by this time and Mokuba was patiently waiting for them, resting himself against the side of the vehicle, a revolted expression on his face as he rolled his eyes once more.
"Okay, you two, here's the plan," Mokuba started. The other two looked at him, both wearing identical questioning looks. "Since the bags are in the trunk and I know that Joey and Tristan are looking out the window, I'm going to slip to the front of the car on the other side and count down slowly from ten. Do whatever it is you want to do and when you hear me say zero, break it up. I don't want a repeat of yesterday."
"So, this was what you were planning before we even left the house, Mokuba?" Seto was impressed. Even he hadn't figured that Mokuba could be so deliberate when he was plotting.
"You got it, big brother," Mokuba smiled triumphantly. He hadn't surprised his brother like this since… since… the mistletoe incident a few days before.
"Your brother was right when he called you a mischievous little scamp," Téa said, her blue eyes laughing at the quick-wittedness of the younger Kaiba. "Thanks."
Mokuba had the decency to blush before he opened the trunk with Seto's keys and scampered away to the front of the car, making sure to keep himself down low so those two in the window wouldn't see him.
"And why, pray tell, are Joey and Tristan watching us?" Seto asked as the two of them moved behind the opened trunk of the car and he slipped his hands around her waist. They were cold, she thought, and shivered against him.
"They think you're harassing me," she replied with a smile, slipping her own arms around his waist and letting him feel how cold her hands were. They should have worn coats outside. Oh well, they had other things to think about right now.
A soft laugh met her ears and his smile made her stomach do flip-flops. A muffled whisper of "Ten" could be heard from the front of the car.
"Am I?" he asked her, his mouth slowly lowering towards hers.
"Nine."
"No way," and their lips met in a welcoming kiss. Heaven stood still and the stars shone brightly down on the two of them. Forever still wouldn't be long enough to enjoy this.
"Eight."
Her hands traced lines up and down his back as the kiss deepened before they parted for a breath of air.
"Seven."
He pulled her closer, his hands mimicking her movements.
"Six."
Tongues met and playfully battled for dominance.
"Five."
The battle drew to a stalemate and soft sighs echoed through the still night air.
"Four."
Whispered nothings encouraged him to kiss her lower and she stood on tiptoe so he could.
"Three."
The corner of her mouth was his next target. Then her cheek.
"Two."
His hands left her waist and plunged into her long, silky hair. The scent of lemons surrounded him. Damn, another company.
"One."
Her hands reached up and mussed his hair. She would never get tired of seeing him look dishevelled.
"Zero."
Seto and Téa broke apart smiling just as Mokuba rejoined them from his perch at the front of the luxurious vehicle.
"All right, can we get the bags inside now? I'm cold," Mokuba asked. Seto reached down and ruffled the kid's hair before grabbing the strap of his pack in the trunk and slinging it over his shoulder.
"Of course," Seto replied as he reached for the strap to Mokuba's pack. Téa was quicker and she gently slapped his hand away.
"I got it," he stated. Mokuba's pack was the heavier of the two of them since he'd insisted on bringing along some toys to play with, which included his Gameboy SP and likely thirty or so games. Including the one Seto had bought for him at the mall the other day.
"No, you don't. If I have nothing in my hands, they're going to get suspicious and think something's up. Do you really want that tonight?" Téa slung Mokuba's pack over her shoulder and looked at Seto. He seemed to be weighing what she'd said.
"Yeah, Seto. If you carry them both, you'll ruin the whole thing!" Mokuba whined as he jumped up to reach the end of the trunk in order to shut it.
"I guess you're both right. I'm outnumbered two to one," he finally replied, his hands trying to straighten the mess Téa had made of his hair. HER hair looked perfect, as usual. Not a strand out of place. No matter what he did, he just couldn't muss it up as easily as she mussed his. He was going to have to find a way to change that.
Hefting his pack higher, he started towards the door and missed the shared look between his girlfriend and his little brother. If the two of them ever planned something together, he would be in big trouble. Téa once more placed her arm around Mokuba's shoulders and gave a gentle squeeze. The questioning look made her smile.
"Thanks again." Sincerity shone through and Mokuba found that he was inexplicably pleased to have helped them have some 'together time'. Would he be able to plan another one for them through the night? He thought about it hard and decided it couldn't be that hard to outwit Joey and Tristan.
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"They're comin'!" Tristan exclaimed, grabbing Joey's arm and pulling him away from the window. "We gotta make ourselves scarce."
The two 'yahoos' made a beeline for the kitchen. A startled Yugi looked up from his task of transferring his macaroni salad to a nice, glass bowl instead of the plastic Tupperware he'd brought it in.
"Did the spying prove worthwhile?" Yugi asked, trying his hardest to ignore the Pharaoh's pleas to 'retrieve an effervescent beverage from the fridgerator'. He still couldn't call it 'pop' and his handle on slang was none too keen either. Neither was his ability to use appliances the way they were meant to be used.
"Nah, de bags were in de trunk so we couldn't see much," Joey replied, pushing his mop of hair away from his face in frustration. "Téa and Mokuba walked ahead of Kaiba until dey slowed down near the car to let him catch up. Den Mokuba ran ahead. And I don't tink dat Kaiba would pressure Téa for information in front of his little brother. He knows how Mokuba feels about her."
"Have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, Kaiba isn't really… bugging her?" Yugi put this out tentatively, wondering at the reaction he was about to get. Joey and Tristan stared at him as if he'd lost all of his marbles. Why couldn't he have just kept his mouth shut? Sometimes he spoke before he thought. Yami decided this would be a good time to stop asking about a beverage and just listen to see what those two said.
Joey went to a drawer beside the stove and pulled one open. Stubs of pencils, books of matches, elastics, screws, nails, a half-eaten box of Golden Buds, a writing pad or three and six decks of cards littered the inside of the junk drawer. Pulling out two of the decks, Joey thought hard about what Yugi said.
Pulling open the fridge door, Tristan peered inside for a second before grasping the handle on the jug of fruit punch. Homemade fruit punch, judging by the pulp floating on the top. Leave it to Téa to make something healthy like that, he thought. Closing the door slowly and turning around, Tristan thought hard about what Yugi said.
"No way," both of them replied simultaneously. Just then, the front door opened and excited chatter filtered in over the noise of backpacks being unslung.
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"Well, since you guys are all going to be sleeping in the basement, why don't we just move them down there right now. You can spread out your sleeping bags by the fireplace," Téa was saying as the three boys came out from the kitchen.
Oh, no. She wasn't going to spend another minute near that Kaiba, Joey thought as he made a move across the living room. She was way too close to him. Heck, their shoulders were almost touching. Grabbing his own pack from beside the couch, he stopped next to Téa and neatly got between her and Kaiba. The older one.
Glaring daggers, Joey took a hold of the pack Téa had been carrying and 'accidentally' bumped into Kaiba, pushing him further away from Téa in the process. Let's see how he handles this, Joey thought gleefully. "Let's get dem downstairs den. C'mon, Tris, grab yours and Yugi's. I'm starving."
Seto's mouth tightened to a thin line and he was just about to say something when he caught Téa's eye. The look warned him again to play nice. "Let's go. The sooner we get this done, the sooner you can have some dinner, Mokuba. I know you're hungry, too."
A pin was heard dropping three blocks away. Kaiba hadn't insulted Joey for the first time in… in… years. Shock pervaded the entire room before Téa finally broke the silence. "Is the kitchen all set up, Yugi?"
Gulping once, Yugi looked at his best friend and replied, "Yup. Everything's ready. The cards just need to be shuffled."
"We're playing cards while we eat? Cool! What are we playing?" Mokuba asked. This was something new to him; he'd never been allowed to play games while eating dinner.
Téa flushed. She'd forgotten how young Mokuba was. Would Seto mind the name of the game? Turned out it was a problem she didn't have to worry about as Tristan blurted the answer.
"A game called 'Asshole'," he replied.
"Yeah, that's a game you should be good at, Kaiba," Joey said, snickering at his own quick-wittedness.
Kaiba looked ready to kill him, judging by the fire that flared in his eyes.
Great, World War 3 was about to erupt in the middle of her entranceway.
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Hope you enjoyed my fourth chapter. Geez, Joey and his mouth. Can't wait to til the next chapter when they start playing the game. Oh and if you don't know how to play it, it will all be explained next chapter. There is a reason they need pennies…
Best wishes to all,
Aphrael21 ;)