Hey all! Sorry for the late update; I've been struggling with writing for a while, but I think I got my groove back, LOL! Thank you so much once again to my reviewers, I love you all! (blows kisses to reviewers) This chapter is dedicated to PanDora, for all the lovely reviews. On to the thanks!

PanDora: LOL, it's funny how that worked out; dedication is the first reviewer on the list. Thanks for telling me that Chapter 19 was good, and I got a kick out of your thing with carnivals. Hope you like the carnival scene, there's more to come! Enjoy your chappie, and I look forward to hearing from you soon!

Faia Ookami: I'm so glad you think so! ^_^ Thank you for taking the time to review and tell me so, I appreciate it! (hugs Faia Ookami) Hope you're still reading and enjoying, for that matter. Laterz!

Kaneda-Shotaro and Yami Tetsuo: Yay, another good chapter? Whoo-hoo! (cheers) I like thanking people personally; it makes them feel special, and whenever I review a story it kind of bites that I took so much time to write a super-long review (or even a short one) and nobody bothered to even just say, thanks to Guardian-381, personally. It might take another hour or three to do everyone, but I don't mind at all if it makes even one person happy. Whew.. OK, I'm gonna stop ranting here; thank you guys again, and hear from you soon, hopefully!

Silver: Hi, girl! Aww... I love you too, but most importantly, I love your S/J story! Keep writing it!!!!!! LOL, I hope you don't think I'm a total nutjob; my reviews tend to be random and long, very long, so I hope you didn't lose any respect for me now that it's been confirmed that I'm insane. ^_^ I look forward to your reviews; they're one of the major driving forces behind my writing, so thank you so much! Please keep helping me along; I hope you enjoy this chappie!

Kesiah: LOL, sorry about the wait, but it's here now! As you might have been able to tell from my review, I loved your story so much! Thank you for writing it and giving me a heads up, and thanks also for your enthusiasm for this fic, it's much appreciated! Love you, and hope to hear from you soon!

yuki44: Yeah, don't you just hate that damn Godforsaken writer's block? I loved your chapters; please keep writing, no matter how long it takes I'll be waiting for them! Glad you got a kick out of the Seto wearing makeup thingie, and thanks for your reviews, I love 'em! Laterz, and keep kicking out those great chapters, as I said!

Jay Kamiya: Aww, really? Thanks for telling me so! I hope you enjoy reading this chapter, and I'll try to have the next one out soon, OK? Ja ne!

keira maxwell: Glad you're enjoying the plushies, and the fic for that matter! I hope the waiting didn't kill you, though... I need my reviewers! (glomps keira-chan) Love ya lots, and hope to hear from you soon! Later!

Starfly: 0_0 OMG, are you okay?!? Poor Starfly... (huggles Starfly) I hope you're doing better; perhaps this fic will perk you up! Thank you for reviewing despite everything; must be tough to be incapacitated. ~_^ Catch you later, and feel better!

Tessabug: Wow, thanks for the long reviews, both on this story and The Ride... in reply to your request, I would be honored to be your beta-reader! Thank you so much for asking me; I promise not to disappoint if you still want me! Just send the fic to the address in my profile, and tell me what you want fixed up (like grammar and whatever) and I'll do it, no sweat! ^_^ Hey, it's the least I can do for one of my best reviewers, huh? I love you and Ignigena so much (huggles both of them) and hope to hear from you soon, both with reviews and with that fic! Laterz, Bug-chan! ^_^

D-chan and Nuva: Wow, Nuva's getting a fluff tolerance?! Miracles happen! (starts singing the Miracles Happen song from "Princess Diaries") That was such a cute movie! The carnival chapter kinda got cut in two, LOL, so this is only the first half, but enjoy anyway! Love you both, and catch ya later! I look forward to your reviews, so please keep sending 'em out!

Assassin of the Shadows: You're right, that IS freaky... glad I was able to lift your spirits, since I know what it's like to be down. LOL, your race car game story was funny; unfortunately, not all of us can be as good as Serenity, but I'm glad you enjoyed the arcade bits anyway! Laterz, and hope to hear from you soon!

phwee? yami hobo: Sorry, I'll let you know from now on! ^_^ New stories can always use faithful reviewers like yourself; did I mention how much I love your reviews lately? If you've updated FC since I last reviewed it, I'm very sorry that I didn't notice, and I'll get around to it soon, I promise! Laterz, you guys! (blows kisses)

DarkMagicianGirl: It means so much to know that people think I write well; thank you for your kind review. LOL, I hope you weren't up till midnight; people need their sleep! ^_^ I hope you keep reading and reviewing, ok? Later!

VampssAmby10210: Aww, I think you're cool! (huggles VampssAmby10210) Hope you enjoy this one, too, okay? Tell me whether or not you did! Laterz!

Lizzie: Ah yes, the wedding! Well, that should be on its way sooner rather than later...and The Ride, I'm getting to work on very very soon, ok? Glad my fic gave you an emotional high, as I said to Assassin, and thanks for your continued support! Love ya!

babygurl: LOL, wow, I'm glad you loved it so much! Thank you for our conversations and your beta-reading; I appreciate everything! Most of all, though, thank you for being a friend. Hope you get a laugh out of my review for Silent Tears, and keep on writing, okay? I'm sure everyone loves it! ^_^ Hope you review, although I suppose you don't have to, since you've read it already... oh well! Yeah, and a word of advice: don't use the triangle brackets in reviews! ()

FF.net deletes whatever's written there if you do. Later, and love you lots!

Princess Strawberry: Hey, Your Talentedness! I promise to read Love Me Forever ASAP, thank you for the e-mail alert! I appreciate your continued reading/reviewing; unfortunately, there's no Y/Y in this chapter, but I promise you a whole lot in the next! Sorry about that...(sniffles) Thanks in advance for your patience, and I'll catch ya later, hopefully!

Ranma Higurashi: You're tellin me it's a weird camp! I mean, seriously! ^_^ Thanks for your reviews, they mean a lot to me. Please keep reviewing both stories; I hope I never disappoint!

Lone Phoenix: Dang, that's rough... all your yaoi pics? Poor Sarah...(huggles) Thank you so much for your praise, and for calling my work "art"...that made me cry, just so you know! I love hearing what you think about my work, so please keep reviewing; your reviews are like sugar to me as well, LOL!

ZeZe: Oh, good, you're alive! (glomps ZeZe and Hiei) I hope this chapter makes such a strong impression as the last one, and hope to hear from you soon! Laterz, girl!

Firewing: Thank you for both your touching reviews. I was overjoyed to read both of them... it's always nice to find another S/J fan, isn't it? I'm so glad you liked Beauty on the Fire; it might not have taken a long time, but I really put my heart into it. Your reviews gave me some much needed-confidence, so thank you from the bottom of my heart. Please keep reviewing if you have time, okay? Oh, and yes, I am planning on attempting to write the wedding, with a little help from a friend! (nudges babygurl) Laterz!

Yami Meko: Sugar at 2:30 in the morning is never a good plan, unless of course you like being hyper. ^_^ I'm so glad that Meko thinks my story is cute, and even more happy that she thinks I'm talented! Yami Meko, my other story, The Ride, might be more your speed! (winks) Thank you both for taking the time to review; it's appreciated, believe me!

Shadowy Fluffball: Well, I did as you asked! This isn't all of the carnival, but at least I started! ^_^ Thanks for your cute review; peace out!

Warnings: Fluff, yaoi... that's about it, usual warnings, guys.

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em!

Chapter 21: Hero

Seto pushed the great bay windows of the dining room open wide, letting in a gust of early morning air as he sat down with his coffee and the newspaper. As far as he knew, everyone else was still in bed, and the servants were in the kitchen, getting breakfast ready. Annie was up and about when he'd gotten out of bed at six, an ungodly hour to be doing housework in the billionaire's opinion. Still, the maid showed no signs of fatigue; she'd had his coffee ready in the time it took him to wash and dress, and at the moment, she was finishing up her duties on the second floor of the mansion.

Annie's working, the puppy's sleeping, and I haven't seen either Serenity or Mokuba... Seto allowed himself a small smile as he opened the first section of the paper. Perfect time to relax...

Unfortunately, life had other plans, as a certain blond shuffled in, yawning sleepily, before the brunet had a chance to read more than one article. "Morning," Joey managed to get out between yawns. "You're always up so early."

"You're always up so late, you mean." replied the other boy, setting his paper down and kissing his fiancé. "I swear, by the time you stagger out of bed, half the day's gone."

"Yeah, but I can't do that anymore, thanks to you." The shorter of the two sat down to Seto's right.

"What do you mean, pup?" The azure-eyed teen leaned back in his overlarge chair, strategically placed at the head of the table.

"Well, I'm so used to you lying right there next to me, I can't sleep once you get up." The blond grinned. "And before you ask, blankets, pillows, or any combination of the two are unsatisfactory substitutes. Believe me, I've tried." One honey-colored eye winked at Seto. "I don't exactly like being sleep-deprived, you know?"

The other boy snorted derisively in reply. "Puppy, you're anything but sleep-deprived," he said before going back to his paper, a sign that he considered the conversation over. Before he was through the first paragraph of the next article, though, a warm weight settled itself into his lap and began nuzzling his chest, causing him to draw breath sharply. "That's kind of distracting, you know?"

"Oh, good. I was afraid you'd become desensitized to affection already." Joey chuckled, and Seto felt every single breath that his love took against his bare skin. For a moment, their closeness was truly frightening to the brunet, until he realized that he wouldn't be able to live without moments like these. Love might be scary at times, but damned if I can live without it, he thought.

Once more, the ex-CEO deposited the paper down on the table, wrapping his arms around the boy in his lap. "I don't think I'll ever get used to you, puppy." he said, kissing Joey tenderly. "I love you."

"Love you too, Set." With a sigh of contentment, the blond curled up against his fiancé. "This is nice," he observed, and Seto chuckled.

"Definitely." the brunet replied.

Too soon for either of the boys' taste, though, Serenity and Mokuba could be heard coming down the stairs, chattering happily about nothing in particular. Reluctantly, Joey slid out of Seto's lap and back into his seat, just as the younger residents of the mansion walked into the dining room.

"Morning, big brother!" they said in unison, hugging their respective siblings before sitting down. For the third time that morning, Seto leaned back and picked up his newspaper again. Perhaps they'll all keep each other busy while I finish with this... he hoped.

No such luck, of course. "Big brother, when are we going down to the carnival?" Mokuba asked, and the brunet leaned around the paper.

"Whenever you guys want, just remember that it starts at ten," replied the billionaire as he went back to his reading.

"Maybe we should wait until this afternoon," Serenity put forward. "At least it won't be so cold." As if to corroborate her statement, the girl shivered through her dressing gown, and the youngest Kaiba went over to close the windows. "Thanks, Mokuba." the brunette said gratefully.

"No problem," replied the raven-haired boy.

"Afternoon sounds like a plan," Joey agreed. "That way, we have all morning to laze around and do absolutely nothing." Like a great cat, the blond stretched languidly, and Seto's eyes strayed from his reading to settle on this new, enticing sight. Oblivious to his sudden audience, Joey continued speaking even as his muscles relaxed once again, and Seto's azure gaze slid back to the newspaper. "How's two o'clock for everyone?"

Serenity and Mokuba exchanged glances. "One," countered the younger Kaiba, leaning across the table.

"One forty-five," Joey returned.

"One fifteen," the other boy said.

"One forty, final offer," With that, the blond folded his arms triumphantly.

Mokuba was about to continue with his bartering attempts when Serenity's hand on his arm stopped him. "Mokuba, we have to think of Joey too, you know," she winked. "Joey, how's about seventy-five minutes after noon?"

Without bothering to convert the higher-than-usual number into more appropriate terms, Joey shrugged. "Good enough for me." Across the table from him, a fit of giggles was about to escape the raven-haired boy, and his brother gave an amused snort that none of the other three residents of the mansion caught.

Annie brought their food in a few moments later, and as Joey dug in, his eyes met his sister's. "I don't know how you do it," he got out between bites. "You've always got the perfect compromise for everything." The blond winked knowingly at his younger sibling. "Don't worry, I'm sure Mokuba won't be too depressed once he finds out we screwed him over."

"You know, somehow I'm not too worried about that," Serenity said, pushing a bit of scrambled eggs onto her fork and staring out the window, trying to hold back a grin.

"Yeah, Mokuba's pretty mature." Joey's chest puffed out proudly. "Almost as mature as me."

At this, Seto, Mokuba and Serenity all exchanged glances before going back to their food, or, in Seto's case, the morning paper. If you only knew, puppy. Seto thought.

* * *

Ryou, for his part, had been up since five o'clock that morning, unable to sleep a second longer, no matter how comforting being curled up against Bakura was. He had tried warm milk, a walk around the block, and even reading three chapters ahead in his History book, but nothing seemed to be able to put him back to sleep, although the above 'remedies' had certainly made him tired. Beaten, the albino hikari finally settled on a pot of strong coffee, hoping that would get him through the day.

He had gone through half the pot before the realization dawned that it was already nine o'clock, and he hadn't seen or heard Bakura all morning. Refilling his coffee mug, Ryou went upstairs and stuck his head into their room. I hope he's okay, thought the white-haired boy as he opened the door quietly.

His darker half was reclining on their bed, fast asleep. In his arms, he clutched Ryou's pillow, which had somehow gotten tangled in an armful of blanket, as though it were his light himself. Ryou was amused for a moment by this, but what really struck him was just how innocent Bakura's face appeared in the light drifting through the half-drawn curtains. He wasn't completely relaxed, but he was about as unguarded as Ryou had ever seen him.

Although he was loath to disturb his yami's rest, the albino boy leaned down and shook the spirit of the Ring gently. "'Kura, wake up," he said, taking care to keep his voice low. His darker half was jumpy at the best of times, and Ryou really didn't feel like a black eye that morning, no matter how sorry Bakura would be afterward.

The former thief buried his face into his light's pillow, curling up with it unconsciously and muttering something unintelligible. Ryou shook him a few more times before finally deciding to change tactics. Trying to disturb his darkness as little as possible, not that it would have mattered, the shorter of the two boys slid into Bakura's arms, tossing the pillow and blankets aside. Immediately, the spirit's arms tightened around him possessively, as though his subconscious were capable of recognizing the difference between the pillow and the real thing.

Leaning up just the slightest bit, Ryou pressed a kiss to his boyfriend's lips. Hard chocolate eyes snapped open to meet his own as the hikari ran one hand halfway through Bakura's hair, coming to rest in the center of the sleep-tangled ivory mane. The yami's eyes slid shut once again, yet there was no doubt that he was awake; his embrace had become just short of painful, and he was kissing Ryou back with a fervor that one would usually associate with that of a starving man towards food.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," snickered Ryou as he tried vainly to extricate himself from Bakura's ever-tightening arms.

The former thief leaned in close to his light. "I dare you to repeat that," he said, trying his best to sound menacing without cracking up in the process. The sight of his boyfriend grinning up at him didn't exactly help matters, of course, and before long, Bakura was laughing right along with Ryou.

"Sorry, I enjoy breathing," replied the other boy, finally managing to get out of their bed. Bakura looked a bit downcast, until Ryou leaned down and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, without opening himself up to being trapped again. No matter how sweet the prison was, he couldn't afford to waste one of his precious days of freedom. "Come on, 'Kura. It's seriously time to get up. You're missing the whole day."

The tomb robber sighed. "What's so great about getting up? It's too cold, too bright, and since we're probably going to see the pharaoh and his friends at some point, too annoying."

"Maybe so, but I wanted us to go out and do stuff today, which involves getting up." Ryou winked as he made his way to the door. "So grin and bear it, okay, 'Kura? I'll have breakfast ready in a few minutes."

Once his light was gone, Bakura managed, through some force of will, to drag himself out of bed and to the bathroom. Immediately, he shivered; the tile floor might as well have been ice under his bare feet, and the window he'd been meaning to fix was open about halfway, letting gust after gust of chilly air into the house. The yami splashed warm water on his face and ran a comb through his hair before trying his best to shut the window, which refused to stay closed under any circumstances. Finally, he gave up, finished up in the bathroom as fast as possible, and immediately retreated to the relative warmth of the bedroom he shared with his light, where he proceeded to get dressed.

"And people call me a sadistic bastard," he thought aloud as he pulled down the warmest sweater he could find. "At least I'm not dragging anyone out in this hell-spawned weather."

* * *

By the time Bakura actually got downstairs, Ryou had had a steaming bowl of oatmeal and an equally steaming mug of coffee ready for a few minutes, and was tapping his foot against a table leg impatiently. At the first glimpse of his yami, though, the white-haired hikari degenerated into a fit of hysterics. "Bakura, I know that you're cold, but this is ridiculous!" he managed to say between giggles.

The taller of the two boys was wearing at least four layers of shirts, two of which appeared to be long-sleeved. He had somehow gotten two pairs of pants on at the same time, and in addition to the four pairs of socks that covered his feet, Ryou's winter gloves encased his hands. "I don't see what's so funny, hikari," said the tomb robber, sitting down and making a valiant effort to hold a spoon in one gloved hand.

Ryou's laughter subsided gradually. "You know, 'Kura, that's what the heater's for."

Bakura's spoon fell to the table, whatever progress he had succeeded in making lost. "The heater, you say? Sounds like another technological monstrosity."

"Perhaps you'd call it that," the lighter of the two boys nodded, making his way to a knob on the wall and turning it. "However, I think it just might solve your problem."

A short time passed, and Bakura noticed that the room was definitely getting warmer. Experimentally, he slid one glove off, and when he didn't catch frostbite immediately, picked up the spoon and devoured the now-tepid oatmeal in the space of fifteen seconds. He took the coffee a bit slower, pausing frequently to shed an item of clothing and cast it aside, much to the chagrin of his light, who had to go around picking everything up and putting it away.

However, by the time Bakura was comfortable in one layer of clothing, Ryou was boiling in his sweater and jeans. With a great, heaving sigh, the white-haired hikari got up from the love seat where he and his yami were sitting and tossed his white sweater onto a kitchen chair. This amused Bakura to no end; his normally prim and proper hikari finally letting loose? "Looks like I must be rubbing off on you, huh?" he observed, tugging Ryou down into his lap. The shorter boy was now only wearing a thin button-down shirt and his usual tight jeans, and it was getting harder and harder by the second for Bakura to keep his hands off him.

Fortunately, I don't have to, chuckled the spirit of the Ring as he touched his lips to Ryou's, letting his hands slide beneath his light's shirt, causing the boy above him to inhale sharply, breaking their kiss.

"So, that's how it's going to be?" the shorter boy panted as he mimicked what his yami had just done to him, and Bakura growled, tackling him to the couch and reclaiming his lips forcefully.

If this keeps up, I don't think the temperature outside's going to be an issue, was the tomb robber's last thought before he sank into a state of mind-numbing bliss.

* * *

At one-thirty, Seto pulled the Mercedes into one of the better parking spaces near the carnival grounds. Joey was sulking with his arms folded in the passenger seat, Serenity was reading in the back seat with a satisfied smile, and Mokuba was bouncing up and down with barely contained excitement.

"I'm never going to trust you again, Sis," the blond said, craning his neck to face the younger passengers.

"It's not her fault you can't add, Joey." Mokuba interjected, defending the brunette seated beside him.

"Well, it was a dirty trick," Serenity admitted, "But still, if you leave yourself that open to it, you probably deserve to be taken in." Having said her piece, she went back to her book.

As his fiancé pulled the key out of the ignition, Joey shot him a halfhearted glare. "You're supposed to be on my side!" he practically whined. "Why didn't you tell me what was going on?"

Seto thought over his many options for a moment before replying. "A good master should always allow his puppy to make his own mistakes," he laughed, sliding gracefully out of the vehicle. "Besides," he continued, leaning back in, "it was just too hilarious to watch."

Mokuba was already outside the car by that time, and Serenity followed suit, once she had placed her book neatly on her seat. "Come on, Joey," she said. "Would it really have made that much of a difference if we'd left twenty-five minutes later?"

The blond's mind flashed back to the make-out session that he and Seto had cut short in order to be ready in time. "Yeah, it would have," he pouted. They probably wouldn't get a chance to pick up where they'd left off until that night at least.

"Well, try to have fun anyway." The brunette winked. "Besides, you've gotta win me one of those huge teddy bears!"

"What?!" The elder Wheeler demanded incredulously, but his sister was already standing with Seto and Mokuba. Sighing heavily, Joey joined them.

I can just tell this is going to be a total blast, he thought to himself.

* * *

They wandered around the fairground for a time, taking stock of all the booths and rides they might want to return to later, until Serenity fell in love with the oversize stuffed panda bear at the archery stall.

"Big brother, win that for me?" she begged Joey, her brown eyes glittering.

Seto chuckled as his fiancé slapped a bill down on the counter. "This should be entertaining at the least," he said.

"All right, Mr. Cynical," grinned the blond confidently as he pulled back the bowstring. "Watch this."

The arrow imbedded itself in the wall to the right of the target, a total, pathetic miss, and the tall brunet was powerless to stifle a fit of laughter, which in turn drew a growl from the other teen. "Oh, you've definitely got me riveted now, puppy." he snickered.

"That was a practice shot," Joey covered smoothly, drawing another arrow and setting it to the bow. This one, at least, made it to the outer edge of the target, which was nowhere near the bulls-eye required to win Serenity the prize she wanted.

"Third time's a charm," the blond breathed as he let his last arrow fly. It missed the bulls-eye by inches, and Joey bit back a particularly foul curse.

Serenity took one last, longing look at the panda before slipping her hand into her brother's. "Thanks for trying, Joey," she said, trying her best not to sound disappointed. "I never really wanted it, anyway."

Before the elder Wheeler could reply, three hollow noises were heard, one right after the other. Turning around, Joey saw Seto holding the bow he had just been using and three arrows, still quivering, embedded in a neat triangle formation in the bulls-eye.

"One prize each," he said easily, tossing a bill down on top of Joey's. "Keep the change," he told the stall operator, and the man nodded joyfully once he saw just how much the billionaire had thrown down.

Serenity, of course, took the teddy bear as her prize. Joey thought the entire thing was stupid until he caught sight of a Red-Eyes Black Dragon plushie that he just had to have, and Mokuba, after much deliberation, wound up taking a Blue-Eyes plushie that, except for the color scheme, could have been the exact twin of Joey's prize.

"Why the Blue-Eyes?" Seto asked his little brother as they walked on.

"It reminds me of you," the younger Kaiba replied, wrapping his arms around the brunet. "Thanks, big brother."

"Yes, thank you, Seto." echoed Serenity. When Joey made no move to say anything, the girl nudged him. "Joey?"

The blond looked up, disoriented. "Yeah, Seren'?" It was obvious he had been about a million miles away.

"Aren't you going to thank Seto for winning us these prizes?" Uncomfortably, the younger of the two shifted her new toy to her other arm.

"Oh, right. Thanks, Set." The words were spoken flatly, mechanically, and once they were said, Joey retreated back into his shell. Worried, Seto made a mental note to confront his fiancé about it as soon as he could. However, he certainly couldn't do it with their siblings around.

"Mokuba, Serenity," the brunet said. "How about you go back to that refreshment stand we passed a while back and get us all some ice cream?" Taking out his wallet, he handed the necessary funds to Mokuba. "That should be enough, I think."

One glance at the bill in his hand, and the younger Kaiba cocked an eyebrow at his big brother. "This would be enough to buy out the Good-Humor man's truck." he said, walking over to Serenity. "You should leave your bear here," he told her, placing his Blue-Eyes plushie on a nearby bench. "I'm sure Joey and Seto can guard a stuffed animal between them."

Seto searched Joey's face for any kind of reaction to Mokuba's insinuations, but the blond remained as impassive as ever. Damn, this must be something really bad, the brunet thought to himself as Serenity handed her stuffed animal to her brother and chased after Mokuba. Joey sat down on the bench, setting the toy down next to him, and Seto sat down beside him in turn.

"What's wrong, puppy?" he said, trailing the back of one hand down his fiance's cheek gently.

Joey had every intention of remaining aloof, unreachable by whatever Seto might try, but one look into those sapphire eyes, the perfect blue of the sky on a clear day, and the blond melted into his love's welcoming embrace, resting his head on the billionaire's chest.

"I let Serenity down," he began. "I couldn't win her this stupid bear, and to make everything worse..."

The realization dawned on Seto in a rush. "...I won it, and two other prizes, like it was nothing," he finished, and Joey sighed heavily. "I'm so sorry, Joey. I didn't even stop to think about how you would feel. I just... couldn't stand to see her so disappointed."

"But I'm her big brother!" cried the blond, leaping to his feet. "She's supposed to look up to me. I'm supposed to be her hero, the one she can count on for stuff like this."

"You are her hero," interjected Seto, also standing.

The shorter boy scoffed. "Who'd want me for their hero when they could have some super-perfect demigod like you?" His gaze fell to the ground, stray locks of blond hair shading his honey eyes, and Seto was shocked into silence.

"I would," a quiet voice said, shattering the tense atmosphere, and Joey turned to see his sister, carrying an ice cream cone in each hand. Her eyes were moist as she handed the ice cream to a conveniently placed Seto and wrapped her arms around her older brother's waist. "Joey..."

The blond tore himself from her embrace, flopping back down on the bench. "You deserve so much better, Seren'." he said, and one tear stained the ground at his feet.

Serenity moved over to kneel on the bench beside her brother and, brushing his hair aside, kissed him on the cheek. "So what you can't hit some stupid target?" she said. "You're my hero because you're brave, and strong, and so many other things that I want to be." She looked over at her new panda bear and smiled. "I promise you, it'll take more than that for you to disappoint me. A lot more."

For a time, Joey didn't react, but once the magnitude of what his sister had said sank in, he wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her shoulder. "Thanks, Seren'." he said, his voice still thick with tears. "You're already more than I ever think I could be."

"I couldn't have said it better myself, big brother." Serenity grinned, returning the hug twofold. They stayed like that until Seto came up to stand beside them, grinning.

"Am I to take it neither of you wants your ice cream?" he said, gesturing with the already melting treats. Joey nodded vigorously, grabbing the double-scoop of strawberry and practically inhaling it, while Serenity nibbled delicately at her single-scoop vanilla. The Kaiba brothers ate identical chocolate ice cream cones, Seto approaching the task slowly and methodically and Mokuba tearing into his.

As they ate, they all tried to decide where they were going to go next. "I think we've had enough games," Seto said, winking at the Wheelers.

"Ooh, then we can try the rides!" Mokuba leapt up so fast that it was a wonder that he didn't spill what was left of his ice cream. "The bumper cars, the Ferris wheel, the roller-coaster..."

At the mention of this last one, Joey's stomach rumbled. "Not after I just ate, please," he groaned, and the others exchanged glances.

"Don't listen to him," Serenity grinned. "He's going to be fine in a minute."

"How do you know?" The blond asked, intrigued.

The brunette polished off the end of her ice cream before replying. "Because I've never been on a roller coaster, and you're taking me on one as soon as these two are done." Laughing, she skipped off to throw out her napkin, rejoining the others after a moment.

"Why me?" Joey demanded of the sky once again as Mokuba and Seto finished off their ice cream, the elder Kaiba wiping his younger brother's mouth out of habit.

"All comes with the territory of being a hero," the brunet said, raising his voice to be heard over Mokuba's grumbling as Serenity dragged Joey off in the direction of the ride. The Kaiba brothers followed, Mokuba muttering about being treated like a baby and Seto making a mental note to tone down the showing off around his fiancé.

* * *

All right, this isn't the end of the carnival scene by a long shot; Yugi and Yami haven't shown up yet, for starters.... I'd have finished it off here, except that I didn't want to wait two weeks to update.^_^ Please review, ok? Ja ne!