Oh. My. Gosh.

I am so, uber, uber sorry this took so long. I know I promised in the last chapter of T.I that I would update soon, but that was ages ago...

But anyway, this is the first time I have touched this thing in about 6 months, due to major writer's block and some huge problems concerning school.

But anyway, I want to dedicate this chapter to all of the people who have been waiting for it, especially Taylor and Tsukiko for their undying support and generally good fan-ness

On with the story!


A complete lack of sleep plus an already pretty lazy Jounouchi equals a very grouchy puppy. Thanks to Kaiba, his fire-at-will temper tantrums and his loud and snotty sobbing, I ended up awake all night, my head buried underneath a pillow in a vague attempt at blocking out the noise.

I was currently in the Kitchen, finishing off the remaining chips I hadn't eaten last night. They were cold, but apart from that were as delicious as they ever had been. Outside it appeared to be sunny, but frosty. It almost appeared that everything in Kaiba's massive back garden had been painted white.

A loud yawn from the hallway made my ears stand to attention. I look up to see a rough looking Mokuba pad drunkenly into the kitchen, one hand over his yawning mouth, the other scratching his very bad case of bed hair. Apart that though, he looked perfectly normal: no big red puffy eyes or tear tracks down his face. It almost looked as if nothing had happened.

"Morning," I yapped. Mokuba smiled at me and wandered over to the table.

"Good dog, but look at this mess!" He giggled, picking up the plates and piling the dirty cutlery on them, "I'll put them in the sink and get one of the maids to wash them later. But first, breakfast!"

With almost disturbingly high levels of cheer for someone to have in the morning, or point blanc ever, Mokuba set about pouring himself a bowl of brightly coloured cereal, fetching me a bowl of dog food, and brewing a black coffee which I presumed was for his brother.

That surprised me: they were arguing just last night, and now Mokuba was making coffee for Kaiba? How weird…

About fifteen minutes later, a loud thud and what sounded like a growl from directly above us indicated that Kaiba was at least awake, if not storming about his bedroom in a fit of early morning rage.

A few moments later, however, he was down in the Kitchen, calmly reading a broadsheet newspaper and sipping on his black coffee. Mokuba was sitting across the round table from his brother, happily shovelling a colourful array of puffed rice shapes into his smiling mouth.

It was beginning to dawn on me that what had happened the previous night may have been a daily occurrence: how on earth else could they recover from an argument like that so quickly? Maybe they resolved it in Mokuba's room after all…But then why would Kaiba have been crying? How weird…

"Seto, can I go play some videogames in my room? I've eaten all my breakfast," Mokuba panted, having completed his marathon cereal ingestion in record time.

Seto briefly glanced up from his paper to give Mokuba a faint smirk and nod of the head.

"As long as you get ready for school first: and don't forget your English assignment. You know, I was fluent in English at half your age," Kaiba chuckled.

Mokuba shot out of the kitchen and up the stairs almost as fast as he had eaten his cereal.

Kaiba continued to stare straight at where Mokuba had been a moments earlier for a few seconds, before his head came crashing down onto the table.

"Damn it," I heard him growl, banging a clenched fist on the table, "How the hell does he do that?"

"I wouldn't mind knowing how either. That's a good trick: screwing up Kaiba. Must learn how to do that one…"

Kaiba suddenly sat up.

"Mokuba? Is that you?"

"No, it's me," I said, trotting over to Mokuba's empty seat and jumping up onto it.

"Who exactly is me?"

"Me," I barked, ascending the table.

"Alright, you're following me, aren't you? Get out of my house!"

"I can't: no dog flaps."

Kaiba's eyes widened as his gaze was drawn onto me.

"Why hello there, Kaiba-boy!" I drawled in my best Pegasus voice. All the colour drained from Kaiba's already pale face.

"P-p-Pegasus?" he stammered, pushing his chair away from the table.

"Not quite…" I chuckled, advancing on the steadily backing away Kaiba.

"Who the hell are you?" He yelled, leaping out of his chair and holding it in front of himself like some kind of shield.

"I'm your puppy: Boo."

Kaiba yelped.

"No: impossible, dogs cannot talk, let alone communicate telepathically…"

"Oh, I'm no ordinary dog," I growled, getting ready to pounce.

I jumped down from the table and continued my advance on Kaiba, who by now was pressed flat against the opposing wall.

"Who…what the hell are you? Why can I hear you? Why are you here? Go away!" He yelled, his fear suddenly morphing in to violent anger as the chair was sent flying across the kitchen and into the window, which, surprisingly, remained intact.

"I am the ghost of your worst enemy! I have returned from the world of the dead to haunt you and your descendants until I am avenged, I say, avenged!"

I was finding it really hard not to laugh at this point: I had Kaiba throwing furniture, backed against a wall and thinking I was some strange undead zombie puppy, destined to haunt his family.

Kaiba remained silent for a moment. Slowly, but surely, a smirk began to appear on his previously astounded face.

"Mutt." He chuckled wryly.

"Yes, I am a dog," I replied, highly disappointed with his new reaction.

"No, not 'a' mutt, 'the' mutt," He said, relaxing his grasp on the wall and walking towards me.

"What? You figured me out!" I said, backing of in equal fear of him. He was tall, and highly intimidating, even in a white bathrobe and boxer shorts…

Suddenly, he paused and turned around.

"No, not possible: dogs cannot talk, Katsuya can barely talk, and why the hell would Katsuya be a puppy?"

"Because I died, retard, remember?" I shook my head, "Two days ago…as far as I know…"

"What?" Kaiba raised an eyebrow, "But…Katsuya is alive: he's been in school every day this week, and he's been the same old idiotic, but evidently fit and well, idiot the whole time…and it's Thursday. Two days ago was Tuesday."

Wait a second: if I'm not dead, then what the hell am I doing here? That can't be true.

"Want proof?" Kaiba said, grabbing me around the middle and hoisting me onto his shoulder, "You've got it,"

You know, it's almost a disappointment to see Domino high again: I kinda figured after I was dead, I would never have to return to school or continue my education.

But no, just to prove to me (and probably himself) that Katsuya Jounouchi is alive and well, he's brought me here, hidden in his school bag (thank goodness he left that silver briefcase of his at work) with a few stale dog treats and an impenetrable bottle of water.

Outside I could hear voices, and they were familiar…

"So, how did last night go?" I heard someone ask

"At the arcade?" I heard another person, presumably Yugi, answer.

"It was great! As per usual, Yugi beat everyone at everything and got high scores on every machine-" What sounded like a muffled Honda said.

"Almost every machine," Anzu interrupted a hint of mischief in her voice.

"Oh, get beat at DDR again, did we? You didn't tell us about that one," Otogi chuckled. I heard an indignant "Humph" from Yugi, before a loud noise from above me (which sounded like Kaiba throwing up, but probably just clearing his throat) abruptly ended their conversation.

"Hiroto, Yugi, Otogi, Mazaki, "He paused, "Mutt,"

"Umm…morning, Kaiba," Yugi greeted suspiciously, "What brings you here?"

Suddenly, I felt myself being hoisted out of the bag by a very large, painfully cold hand.

"This," He stated, holding me out with both hands for all to observe.

"What the hell is going on Kai…Oh my God…"

If I was the type to do so, I probably would have fainted: standing in front of me, dressed in his scruffy school uniform and carrying a tattered brown shoulder bag containing his school supplies (or lack thereof), was, well…

Me.

"Umm…Kaiba, bringing live animals into school is against the rules," Yugi nervously pointed out, his face reddening for no apparent reason other than the fact that Kaiba had just pulled a live puppy out of his bag and told him to look at it.

"Oh, so if I kill it, it won't get me in trouble? Works for me…"

"No!" I yelped, almost in synchronisation with other me.

"What was that, Wheeler?" Kaiba snapped.

"Which one?" I growled.

"Why the sudden protest? I would have expected a violent videogame junkie like you to revel in the thought of actually killing something in this reality, especially a sweet, innocent puppy like this."

The human me responded with a grunt and folded his arms.

"Why should I give you a reason, Kaiba?" He snarled.

"You don't have to. I think I understand perfectly well what's going on: I'm just quite surprised you had the adequate technology, or intelligence, for that matter, to pull something like this off,"

"What do you mean?" I barked in almost perfect synchronisation with the human me.

"Don't play the fool, mutt," Kaiba snarled, thrusting me in the human me's general direction, "Take it back to the alleyway where you found it. How on earth did you even find out I was getting a puppy? And how did you get inside the shelter to swap it?"

Kaiba's voice was getting louder and angrier with each word. He was beginning to gather quite an audience…

"I suppose you are a seasoned criminal: I expect the act of breaking and entering, as well as theft, are second nature to you. But what I don't understand is where you got the bugging technology, and how on earth you set the microphone to a frequency that only I could hear. Or maybe you bugged me to. Did you by any chance happen to break into my house and put one of those devices in my ear? Well, I'm sure all will be revealed soon enough. Take your mongrel," Kaiba snarled, dropping me on the floor, "It's settled then." Kaiba turned, and walked away.

"What the hell was that about?" The human I screeched at Kaiba's back, "Why the hell would I need to bug your house? What would be the point of that? And what the hell do you mean by seasoned criminal? And since when have you liked dogs? Hey! I'm talking to you!"

Without warning, the human me reached into his bag, and pulled out an already battered English book and sent it flying at Kaiba. And, thanks to my great aim, it hit him square in the back of the head.

Kaiba froze in his tracks.

Suddenly realising the possibly fatal consequence of what he had just done, the human me turned and ran.

Too late: Kaiba had him dangling off the ground several inches, held up by the collar of his school shirt.

"I was going to let it go, but it seems you have something of importance to tell me. However, there are better ways to catch my attention," Kaiba growled, dropping me on the floor, quickly followed by my English book come projectile, "Now, what did you want to tell me so badly you threw a book at me?"


Yay! Umm, that certainly moved the story on a bit. Figured out what on earth is going on yet? I'm sure you have, it's almost painfully obvious...

The references to the Jounouchis get very confsuing here, don't they? Ha ha! They are meant to be, do not fret : )

And OMYGODSHNESSLESSISH! Puppy Love is officially part of two C2s! I dunno if that's good or not, but I'm very pleased with that : D Thank you all!

-hands out Jou the puppy plushies and dog biscuits-