A/N: You guys wanted an epilogue, so here it is. Hope this ties up any loose ends, leaves you with that warm fuzzy feeling, etcetera.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh.

Chapter 7: Epilogue

Now that Bakura had achieved his goal he made sure that everyone knew about it. This often included wide-eyed children and terrified strangers on the street who made the mistake of commenting on Bakura's swagger and cheery attitude, and would then be forced to listen to Bakura's detailed account of how hot his boyfriend was and the many times and positions in which they had sex. At first Malik was pleased by this, delighted at such an obvious confirmation of their relationship – and of course the term "boyfriend." Then it was amusing, seeing the shocked faces of strangers and Ryou's look of disgust when Bakura regaled him with his and Malik's latest exploits.

After two months, however, it was downright annoying.

Yugi was over visiting Ryou, as had become a more and more frequent occurrence, and Malik was watching the two play chess at the kitchen table when Bakura stumbled in, wearing nothing but a pair of plaid boxers and his hair sticking straight up in the back. "Mmm, mornin' Blondie," he yawned, walking over and kissing Malik lightly on the lips before hopping up and sitting on the table. "'Time is it?"

"About 11:30," Ryou answered, tongue sticking out of the side of his mouth as he moved his knight across the board.

"Damn Malik, how are you up so early? Figured you wouldn't even be able to walk after last night."

Malik flushed but before he could answer Yugi groaned loudly. "Eww! Way too much information, Bakura. I don't see how Ryou stands listening to you two."

"Shut up, gaywad!" Bakura snarled, knocking over Yugi's pieces just to spite him.

"Hey! And I'm not gay, I like Anzu!"

"Yeah right," Bakura scoffed and turned back to Malik, ignoring Yugi's angry spluttering and Ryou's attempts to console him. "So how bout it Blondie? You really alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Malik responded shortly. He really was a little uncomfortable but wasn't about to admit it.

"Man, my stomach is grumbling. Did Ryou cook?" The thief changed the subject, idly scratching his bare chest, but Malik frowned up at him.

"Why do you always do that?"

"What, eat?"

Malik rolled his eyes. "No, talk about our sex life. Are you really that immature?"

"Yes. And it's just that great. You're one sexy piece of ass, babe."

Malik flushed but was determined not to be deterred. "Thank you. But some things are meant to be private, you know."

Bakura yawned and made a halfhearted attempt to smooth the back of his hair. "I don't see why."

"Because it just is!" Malik sighed. "Look, Bakura, you made a lot of promises to me when we started this, and it's time you lived up to them."

"Like what?" Bakura still looked uninterested, craning his neck into the kitchen to look for any remnants of breakfast.

"Like… you promised to talk to me, for one."

"We're talking now, aren't we?"

"Well... I suppose." Malik bit his lip. "And you promised to take me on a real date."

"We go out all the time."

"Not just…" The blond glanced over at Ryou and Yugi, who had replaced Yugi's game pieces and resumed their game of chess, ignoring Bakura and Malik, and lowered his voice to a whisper. "Not just to steal things or some stupid petty vandalism!"

"What else is there?" Bakura drawled. "Ryou, I'm hungry."

"There are some muffins in the fridge," the white-haired boy responded, not looking away from the chessboard.

Malik reached out and laid a hand on Bakura's leg before he could hop down from the table. "I want to go on a real date; I don't know, a movie, bowling, dinner…"

"Dinner?" Bakura perked up at that. "Yeah, I could use a nice, juicy steak. Yeah, that could work…"

"Bakura," Malik sighed, "I don't eat steak, I'm…"

"A vegemarian, I know," the other interrupted him, waving a hand in dismissal before jumping down from the table and heading for the refrigerator.

Malik grinned. "Close enough."

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When Seto had kissed Yami that day in his office the former Pharaoh thought all his problems were solved, and in a way they were – until two minutes later when Seto promptly kicked him out of his office, red-faced and declaring that Yami had tricked him again, somehow. Yami had merely sighed, shook his head, and caught the conveniently unresisting CEO's lips in another quick kiss before he left. He knew he was making progress, at least.

The next day Seto showed up at his door.

The next week Yugi-tachi caught them making out on the couch. Jou turned a rather sickly shade of green, and for some reason they all turned to Yugi suspiciously, causing the red-faced teen to throw up his hands and cry, "I'm not gay!" He then ran out of the house, and a confused Yami chased after him but quickly lost his partner – most likely thanks to Seto's "help," which consisted of following far too close to Yami and groping his butt at random times. The two soon returned to the couch to wait for Yugi's return – and enjoy themselves in the meantime.

The next month they made love for the first time, on Seto's bed in the broad daylight, door open for anyone who passed by to see, though luckily they didn't, and Yami smothered delighted laughter in Seto's shoulder and buried moans in deep kisses until they collapsed together, sated, and fell asleep under the one thin sheet that had survived the experience among the mass of soft blankets on Seto's bed.

The month after that, they had made love many more times and scared Yugi-tachi to the point where Jou's face was twisted in a mask of permanent horror – and Yami was beginning to feel dissatisfied.

"Seto?" he asked one evening while the brunet worked on his home computer and Yami lounged on the bed, watching him. "What are we?"

"Human beings. Well I'm human. You're some crazy spirit with nothing better to do than ask me stupid questions while I'm working."

Yami made a face. "No… I mean the two of us. What would you call us?"

The other sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose, and paused his work long enough to turn and look at the spiky-haired male lying on his bed wearing nothing but one of Seto's old button-up shirts and a pair of bright red boxer-briefs. "You're my boyfriend. Lover. Significant other. Whatever. Is there a point to this? I'm fairly busy, Yami."

"Life partner?" Yami asked, grinning, and Seto cringed visibly at that. "Too soon?" Yami laughed lightly and rolled off the bed, padding over to where the brunet had turned back to his computer. He massaged Seto's shoulders gently, smiling when a soft groan escaped the other's lips. "You work too much."

"If you wouldn't distract me I'd be done sooner," the brunet retorted, but twisted his head enough to catch Yami's lips in a slow, languid kiss.

When it was over Seto turned pointedly back to his computer, signaling the end of the conversation. Rolling his eyes, Yami padded over to the bed and sank down once again, grudgingly returning to his prior activity of Seto-watching. Barely two minutes had passed, however, before he got tired of this and spoke again. "Hey Seto?"

The other groaned. "What is it now?"

"Why don't we ever go out? Like, on dates?"

"I think you remember how our last date turned out," the brunet replied stiffly.

"Oh." Their first and only date had been the trip to the park while Yami was under Malik's mind control. "Well… isn't that something we should work past then? If you're afraid something bad will happen we need to get over that—"

"Yami."

"Hmm?"

"If I agree to take you out will you shut up and let me work?"

"Yes, I suppose so, but you know that isn't a polite way to—"

"Fine. We'll go out to dinner tomorrow."

Surprised but pleased, Yami made a noise of agreement before settling back against Seto's pillows and closing his eyes, humming cheerfully under his breath.

456456456

"I'm sorry sir, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave. This is a nice restaurant and we have dress codes."

Bakura, who proudly wore boots, a pair of beat-up jeans and a black t-shirt reading "I used to be schizophrenic but we're okay now," merely smirked and handed the restaurant host a wad of bills. The man glanced at the money and sniffed, handing it back to Bakura with a disgusted expression. "This is a nice restaurant, we don't take bribes and the dress code requires a jacket and tie…"

"Malik," Bakura interrupted with a wave of his hand, and one touch of the Sennen Rod later the host's expression morphed into a cheerfully blank smile.

"Right this way sirs, we have an especially nice table set up for you."

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"Oh Seto, this is nice!"

"It had better be, these reservations are a pain to get. I called early this morning and they were already nearly completely booked."

"Even for you?"

"Yes, even for me." Seto rolled his eyes as Yami grinned up at him and took his hand as the two entered the restaurant foyer.

"I just wish I didn't have to wear a suit," Yami sighed, tugging at his tie and making a face as the two of them stood at the end of a short line of people waiting to be seated. "Though I do make it look good," he added with a wink. Seto and Yami wore matching black suits, Seto's with a blue tie and Yami's with a bright red one. Though nowhere near the former Pharaoh's usual style, Yami thought he pulled the look off quite well, managing to look graceful and elegant in the tailor-made outfit. Seto of course looked effortlessly wonderful, used as he was to wearing such attire to work every day. The CEO most likely would only have felt more comfortable in something involving a trench coat and lots of buckles.

"Reservation for Kaiba," the brunet said when they reached the host, who quickly checked the roster and granted the couple a polite smile.

"Of course, right this way, sirs."

Yami and Seto followed the man, talking quietly as they passed table after table of chattering people until they reached a table for two nestled in an alcove slightly out of the path of the other tables. "Here you… are…" The seating host's eyes widened and Yami and Seto glanced at each other in confusion – two people were already seated at "their" table.

"What are you doing here?"

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Malik was giddy. There was no other word for it. Just… giddy, thrilled to be able to say that he was actually out on a date with Bakura, that the white-haired former tomb robber cared enough about him to take him out to dinner at a nice restaurant on a Saturday night. Never mind that neither of them bothered to dress up – possibly even worse than Bakura's jeans and t-shirt were Malik's skin-tight, shiny silver pants and red tank top with lined with silver sequins and rhinestones – or that they probably wouldn't pay for dinner; all that mattered was that they were together, that Bakura was taking him on a date without even protesting all that much.

Though maybe he should have expected that, like all other good things in his life, this date was destined to take a turn for the bizarre. Almost before they had even sat down, while they were still studying their menus, a group of people approached the table and a loud gasp made Malik glance up from the menu. "What are you doing here?" Bakura snapped.

Turning half in his seat and craning his head, Malik's eyes widened when he saw Seto and Yami standing behind him, looking confused, while slightly off to the side the seating host was wringing his hands. "Did… did someone seat you here? This is Mr. Kaiba's table…" the man murmured.

Bakura rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you put us here, genius. About five minutes ago."

"I… don't remember…"

Yami interrupted him. "Isn't there somewhere else we could sit?" Kaiba nodded curtly in agreement, though he kept his eyes on Malik, glaring fiercely at the blond Egyptian.

"No, I'm sorry; we're completely booked. There's at least an hour wait… I don't know how this happened, there must have been some sort of mistake. Ah… these gentlemen do have a four-person table; perhaps you could share?"

At this Yami looked thoughtful, but Bakura – who had just taken a sip of his water – burst into a coughing fit and Seto shouted "No!" loud enough to turn several heads. "I'm not sharing with… with them! I'd rather eat my own liver!"

"Believe me, Kaiba, the feeling is mutual," Bakura retorted dryly, having recovered from his coughing fit. He glanced at Malik – who had grown rather wide-eyed – and gave him a quick wink. "Besides, I think you're making my date nervous."

"I make him nervous?" the CEO spat through gritted teeth. "As I recall he's the complete psycho who tried to ruin my life!"

"Oh calm down, Kaiba, not everything is about you," Bakura returned. "If anyone has a right to complain it's the Pharaoh and he's already done that, besides I don't exactly see you suffering now."

"That's not the point! You can't just go around screwing with people's minds and thinking you can get away with it!"

"Watch me." Bakura's eyes narrowed dangerously as Seto took a step nearer, until he stood directly over the table, Malik at his left as he and Bakura glared at each other.

"Kaiba…" Malik began, but Seto interrupted him.

"I don't want to hear anything from you," the CEO snapped, flinging the back of his hand out dismissively – but as he did so his hand knocked into Malik's water glass. The near-full glass went flying through the air only to smack Malik in the forehead and drench his carefully styled blond hair and the front of his sparkly shirt.

"Kaiba!" Malik shrieked. "This shirt is dry-clean only!"

"Look what you did to my date!" Bakura snarled.

"If you hadn't stole my table this wouldn't have happened!"

"Why you…" The white-haired thief leapt on Seto, fists flying, only to receive a blow to the stomach as Seto punched him in return. Bakura kicked out and Seto tripped, grabbing the other's shoulders as he fell and sending the two of them sprawling into the table, which cracked under their weight, the sounds of snapping wood and shattering dishes echoing through the suddenly silent restaurant.

Two minutes later, the four were seated on the sidewalk outside.

"I can't believe they actually threw us out. Threw me out!"

"Do you ever shut up, Kaiba?" Bakura grumbled, tilting his head back so Malik could fuss over the growing purple bruise under his left eye. "Ouch! That stings, Blondie."

"Sorry." The wet-haired blond dropped a kiss on the sensitive spot before rising to his feet and tugging on the other's hands. "I'm soaked, can we go home?"

"Sure." Bakura stood and wrapped his arm around Malik's waist, kissing him on the lips when the blond raised his face expectantly. "Sorry your date didn't turn out the way you wanted."

Malik smiled and twined his fingers with the hand wrapped around his waist. "I think it turned out just fine."

"You know I bet if we go home early we can catch Yugi and Ryou making out or something. I know there's something going on with those two…"

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Smiling, Yami watched them go before turning back to Seto, who sat petulantly on the sidewalk muttering about bruises and his ruined suit. "They're kind of cute together, you have to admit," Yami mused.

Seto muttered something foul under his breath.

"Hey, Seto, are you okay? Bakura didn't hurt you anywhere, did he?" Yami began to run his hands up and down the other's sides, checking for cracked ribs or anything similarly damaging.

Seto caught his hands. "I'm fine. Just a few bruises." He gently pushed Yami aside so he could stand, wiping dust and grime from his expensive suit as best he could.

Yami quickly scrambled after him. "I'm sorry your suit was damaged… I shouldn't have made you come tonight. I don't need dates, really… It was a silly idea."

"No, it wasn't." Sighing, Seto gave up wiping dirt from his clothes and turned to look at Yami. He reached out a hand to brush the bangs from Yami's face and the other automatically leaned into the touch, letting the brunet's dusty hand cup his cheek. "It was something you wanted, so don't feel bad about it. I don't. Besides, it felt great to have a chance to hit that jerk; too bad I didn't get a chance at the other one."

Yami laughed. "Don't be so hard on them, Seto; after all, we wouldn't be together if it weren't for them."

"So you keep reminding me." With that the brunet turned and started walking in the direction of his car, though when Yami ran up behind him and slid his hand in Seto's, Seto gave it a light squeeze.

"So… Does this mean we can go out again?" Yami asked hopefully.

"We'll see."

"Really? Because I know this new Middle-Eastern style restaurant that I'd like to try. Oh! And I've always wanted to go to a play, do you think we can do that? Or maybe…"

Seto groaned.