Heart of the Blue-Eyes

by Azure Eyes Silver Dragon

When tragedy strikes at KaibaCorp, Téa and the gang rush to the aid of an old acquaintance. Set approximately three to four years after the events of Dark Side of Dimensions.

4. Never Have I Ever Had This Much Fun

Hello to my few but faithful followers! Heart of the Blue Eyes author speaking!

I may have gotten a bit over-zealous in my writing this time around. You see, in moving this next set of work from my document writer to the site, I realized that the camping trip chapter is quite large...almost three times the length of the other chapters, to be exact. Oopsie.

So here's the deal. Because this update is also a bit late, I'm going to post the camping trip in three part chapters so you're not sitting there reading and scrolling for eternity. You'll have plenty of content to keep you satisfied until the next update.

For your viewing pleasure, I present The Camping Trip, parts 1, 2 and 3! Enjoy, and see you probably next year. (In case you haven't noticed, I post in three month intervals. You can't rush perfection after all!)

- Azure Eyes Silver Dragon

---

"So let me see if I got this straight..." growled Mateo to the gang of six thugs before him. "I pay you good money to take out Seto Kaiba. You waste time playing a stupid arcade game, and then when you finally get the chance to do your jobs, you get your sorry behinds handed to you by an effeminate Brit at a card game?!"

"...and Seto Kaiba's fists." added one of the thugs weakly. He was rewarded with a smack upside the head from the gang leader, who snarled at him.

"We was tryin' to get him alone to end him in that dark arcade first, boss, but his buddies split into teams and then ganged up on us all together!" said another grunt.

"Yeah, and when that didn't work, we waited til most of the others left. It was just him, two of the girls, and the runt albino kid. It was easy pickings!" said a third.

"All the more reason why your failure is such a disappointment." Mateo pointed out angrily.

"I tried to gut him, boss!" insisted the leader, whose other arm was in a cast and a sling, his face smeared with an ugly black and purple bruise. "I had him right in arm's reach. I would've slit right into his kidney had he not been wearing this fancy armored clothing! My knife did jack and all, and it was a six-inch blade!"

"I told you to aim for his head for that very reason, you idiot!" snapped Mateo. "Did I not tell you that Seto Kaiba garbs himself in better protective clothing than soldiers in the military? Apparently I need to hire hit men with brains next time! Now get out!"

The six thugs cowered as if expecting to be hit before scrambling out of the room. Mateo let out a frustrated snarl and slammed the door after them, kicking it before storming down the hall. It seemed if he wanted something done correctly, he would have to do it himself. Thankfully the one thug that had enough brains to go back into the arcade and keep a look-out for the group's departure had given him valuable information: Seto Kaiba had apparently agreed to go on a camping trip with the rest of the lot. It was the perfect opportunity for Mateo. This time, he'd take Seto Kaiba out himself. He may have to do so at the cost of the other twerps' lives, but that was a price that Mateo was willing to pay to appease Master Ghedsu.

---

Another work-filled week passed for Kaiba, who kept himself busy in KaibaCorp's tech lab. He had been making a few more tweaks to his latest Duel Disk, specifically the neural sensors for the eye-piece (or the Duel Gazer, as he had recently dubbed it). Tag duels had sharply risen in popularity, and he had started on the modifications so that Duel partners could see each other's card hands as well as their own in the Duel Gazer's holographic displays, further improving on their co-op strategies. Since the neural sensors connected directly to the person's brain, that meant he also needed to improve on the security of the Duel Gazer for privacy reasons. It was a dangerous leap from reading Duel partners' thoughts to mind control, after all. He had to be more than one hundred percent certain the cryptographic hashing was flawless.

Kaiba sat at a robotics control module, peering through a microscope lens as he worked on the micro-filaments of the neural sensor. A tiny spark the size of a pin-head flashed as he welded the finished product together.

"Truly you could have been a neurosurgeon with those steady hands of yours, Mr. Kaiba." said Irvine, his chief technology officer, who stood off to the side and regarded his work.

"Perhaps, but there's a lot less blood and guts involved with machines." said Kaiba, not looking up from his work.

"I concur, however I find it difficult to imagine you being fazed by such a thing." said Irvine.

Kaiba allowed his half-smirk to flash. Out of all of his staff, Irvine was the most tolerable, and was second only to Roland in how well he knew Seto Kaiba.

"You've spent an awful lot of time in here recently, sir." noted Irvine suddenly. "More than usual, I might add. It's usually only the proprietary tech that deserves your most dedicated attention. Surely you could have allocated such mundane tasks as micro-welding to the staff?"

"Work distracts me." said Kaiba simply.

"Yes, I suppose keeping busy is a good distraction from life..." agreed Irvine carefully. "...also a fine way to hide away from your advisor."

Kaiba finished his work and raised his eyes from the microscope, glaring at Irvine. "And just what did Roland want you to pester me with?" he asked dangerously.

"I have no intention of pestering you, Mr. Kaiba." assured Irvine. "However, Roland's concern about succession of KaibaCorp is justified. I'm sure I don't need to tell you why this kind of technology is not something you want falling into the wrong hands."

Kaiba ignored the statement, saying, "I have five guards circling me like vultures, everything I wear is made of military-grade armor, and as I've told Roland time and again, I can take care of myself. If something happens to me, it's because others have failed long before I did."

"Your pardon, sir, but they will fail a lot faster if you don't allow them to perform their job duties." said Irvine, giving him a sideways look.

"I thought you weren't going to pester me?" snapped Kaiba, getting irritated.

Irvine sighed, saying, "Have it your way, Mr. Kaiba. But if it's pestering you're hiding yourself from, then you should know Kugame will likely do so in the coming weeks."

"He'd better not hold his breath for an answer, then." said Kaiba, rising from the control module. "Have the technicians test the fractal hashing on this prototype and draw up a full report. I want this to be so secure that no god or power in the universe can hack it."

"Yes sir." said Irvine, taking the prototype and inclining his head before leaving the room.

Kaiba made his way to the elevator, which took him from the basement tech lab all the way up to his office. Upon entering, he saw a tall man standing at his desk. He was in his later twenties, with a black goatee and combed-back hair, dressed in a sharply pressed black suit. Kaiba was careful not to let his disdain show as he acknowledged him, nodding and saying, "Ivan."

"I've brought you the MRE's you requested, along with a mess kit, sir." said the guard who had followed him the other night, indicating to the items on Kaiba's desk.

"Good." said Kaiba. Now he had food for the camping trip and a means to eat it with.

"Speaking from experience, Mr. Kaiba, they are not exactly the five-star cuisine that your chef can dish out." said Ivan carefully.

Kaiba's eyes narrowed. Ivan was not only one of his many special ops military guards, but was also specially trained in investigation and interrogation, making him Kaiba's chief private eye as well. He knew better than to come out with a direct inquiry as to Kaiba's need for such items, but still Kaiba could see right through the elite guard's tactics. "I'm going on a trip that requires portable food." he said simply.

"Which is not usually required within established civil territories." Ivan pointed out.

Kaiba kept his stoic facade up carefully, betraying nothing. "I don't need anyone knowing where I'm going. I can take care of myself." he said curtly.

"You don't need to waste your breath convincing me of that, Mr. Kaiba." assured Ivan. "That's why I didn't bother stepping in the other night with that delinquent. I know you're more than capable in most situations, even if your advisor thinks otherwise."

"Good, then you don't need to follow me on this trip. End of discussion." said Kaiba directly, snatching the packets and the mess kit from the desk and striding towards his private chambers.

"There was nothing to discuss, sir." said Ivan simply before taking his leave.

Kaiba stopped with his hand on the knob, turning to look at Ivan. He knew vagueties when he heard them. "You're not going to follow me." he warned dangerously.

Ivan opened the door to the hallway and stepped out, his face unreadable as he looked over his shoulder. "I said nothing of the sort, Mr. Kaiba." he said, his voice betraying nothing, before closing the door behind him.

Kaiba scowled and shoved open the door to his living quarters, slamming it behind him. If it had been anyone else, he would have fired them on the spot for such obvious implications, but Ivan, much like Roland, was irreplaceable. Unlike Roland, however, Ivan was more forthright and unapologetic about it, and one of the only people that refused to grovel before Seto Kaiba. Perhaps it was his relative closeness in age, or perhaps because Ivan knew Kaiba had slightly more respect for him over the other guards, being the only one that believed Kaiba could, in fact, take care of himself. That did not dissuade Ivan from doing his job, however, and so Kaiba would just have to take some extra precautions to throw off him and the rest of the security team. For once Kaiba wanted to enjoy himself and have a little privacy while he was at it.

Kaiba stuffed the mess kit and the MREs into a black backpack he had laying on the counter. He opened a drawer and added a multi-purpose tool to it as well before inspecting the contents of the bag. He had food, a kit to eat it with, a towel, a compact pillow and sleeping bag, a spare set of clothes, the multi-tool, a hatchet, a small first-aid kit, and some rope. He could make his own shelter with trees and branches, so he didn't need a tent. What else did he need?

Something to hold water. Kaiba realized before turning to his cabinets. He opened it to find a few KC logo water bottles and travel coffee mugs in mint condition, some still in the plastic wrap. He reached for one of them and took it down, then paused as his eye caught the item behind it, which he took with his other hand before replacing the new water bottle.

Kaiba kept his eyes on the item in his hand as he absent-mindedly closed the cabinet. It was a plain black thermos, and to say it was well-worn was an understatement. Its only adornments were deep scratches and scuffs, the seal worn almost to nothing and the cap cracked at the base. The leather cover that served as a buffer guard against the heat was flaking and split in a few places, the black faded to almost grey in some spots. It was far from the high-end products that KaibaCorp produced, and to anyone else it would have met a garbage disposal decades ago. But to Seto Kaiba, it was one of his few most precious artifacts, even more so than his Blue-Eyes White Dragon cards. Kaiba put the leather close to his nose and inhaled the faintest scent of printer ink, and it immediately took him back to his earliest memories, memories of the man he took after in every way.

His dad sat in front of a box-shaped computer monitor, his fingertips beating on the ancient, chunky keyboard as he typed out what appeared to be a nonsensical arrangement of numbers, symbols and words, words like "format", "doctype", "data-test", "div", and "execute". To six-year-old Seto, it was a foreign language, and it intrigued his young and brilliant mind.

"Is that short for document?" he asked, pointing up to the spot on the screen.

His dad glanced down at him, one side of his mouth up-turning into an amused half-smile as his dark-blue eyes crinkled a bit. "Yes it is." he said before reaching down and scooping up his son with one arm, setting him on one knee. "I have a feeling programming will come easy to you, young man." he said, scratching his stubble before reaching for the thermos cup of black coffee, taking one long pull before setting it to the side far away from the keyboard. "Let's see what that head of yours is capable of, shall we?"

Kaiba exhaled through his nose, opening his eyes and gazing at the old thermos. He inclined his head affirmatively before adding it to his pack just as someone knocked on his door. "Enter." called Kaiba, looking up as Roland walked through the door. He glanced at the pack on the counter before turning his attention to Kaiba.

"You appear to be going away somewhere." noted Roland.

"You mean Ivan told you I was." said Kaiba curtly.

Roland's thin mustache stretched slightly as his mouth became a thin line. "Truthfully, when I asked him why he was bringing you military food, he suggested I go ask you myself." admitted the security chief.

Kaiba couldn't help but smirk. Ivan's ability to irk Roland was another reason Kaiba kept him around. It was simply far too amusing when the young private eye refused to be the grape vine for the security chief concerning Kaiba's motives.

"So I don't suppose I can at least know where you're going?" asked Roland.

"To be honest, I couldn't tell you anyway because I don't really know either." replied Kaiba, walking over to the sofa and dropping down into it. "I'm the blind being led by the dork squad."

"The dork squad?" said Roland, looking back at him. "You mean Yugi Muto and company?"

"The very same." affirmed Kaiba, running a hand through his hair. He still couldn't believe he had agreed to such a thing.

Possibly so did Roland, who asked, "And whatever possessed you to go along with that notion?"

Kaiba stared up at the ceiling as he tilted his head back against the sofa. "Just keeping a promise to Mokuba, I suppose." he answered.

Roland's brow furrowed. Not only was it the first time Kaiba had mentioned Mokuba since before his passing, but he had let slip a deeply personal thought. Which was very unlike him. Roland was careful not to press too quickly as he capitalized on that, saying, "Well, I'm sure your brother would approve. He was, as I've said, quite close to that lot."

Kaiba rumbled an agreement, and Roland indicated to the armchair adjacent to the sofa, saying, "May I?"

Kaiba rumbled another absent-minded agreement, and Roland lowered himself into the armchair. "As I recall, he seemed to be rather fond in particular of Miss Téa." added Roland. "I remember him telling me of her bravery during Battle City when they were both captured by those Rare Hunters. She's the reason he escaped and was able to find you and Yugi, wasn't she?"

Kaiba recalled that particular moment in history, saying, "Yeah, she was."

"I can never forget that day." said Roland, his lips curving into a smile. "One minute you're telling me to listen up over the receiver, and in the next, I had to explain to Fuguta why we had to auto-pilot one of the helicopters into the ocean." Roland chuckled, adding, "That was a difficult one to explain on the profit and loss statement."

Kaiba was only half-listening, lost in his thoughts. Yes, I saved her that day. I guess she finally repaid the favor after all these years. A strange ache pressed itself into his chest as he recalled how Téa had thanked Mokuba, but not him. It was something he had easily pushed aside after the initial blow, but now it was bothering him for some reason.

"Sir?"

Kaiba blinked and looked over at Roland. "What?" he asked.

"I asked if Yugi and friends were who you were with last weekend." said Roland, watching him carefully. "Ivan said you were with a rather large group of people."

"Oh." said Kaiba, rubbing his forehead. "Yes. We went to the arcade."

"The arcade?" said Roland, his surprise evident. "I don't know you to have ever gone to such an establishment."

Kaiba's eyes wandered to the polished blue pebbles of the lavelle table as his memories took him back to his dad again, to a time just before Mokuba was born. He had the vaguest memory of watching him play on a Pong machine before his dad allowed him to stand on his knee and try it for himself. "Not for a long time." he admitted softly.

Roland inclined his head. "Well, you have had...other obligations...that required your attention for quite a long time." said the security chief.

Kaiba knew he was talking about Mokuba, and he recalled his brother's words once again. Do everything you didn't get to do while growing up because you were obligated to my life.

"Mr. Kaiba..." said Roland.

"What?" said Kaiba, still staring absent-mindedly at the lavelle.

Roland let out a soft exhale through his nose and took off his shades, polishing them with a cloth he procured from his suit pocket. Kaiba's attention turned to the dark circles and heavy lines around the old guard's green eyes, betraying his age. "Your brother always told me he wanted to see you happy again." said Roland. "If that is the promise you made to him, that you would do more things that may make you so..." Roland returned his shades to his eyes, saying, "...then I will not stand in your way. I only ask that you would keep yourself safe when I cannot. If for no other reason than to give some reassurance this old man."

Kaiba stared wordlessly at Roland for a moment before he allowed his amused half-smile to flash, saying, "Watch who you're calling old; I'm almost halfway to your age."

"You'll see when the other half catches up to you, sir." retorted Roland with a sly smirk of his own. A beeping noise came from his pocket, and Roland turned his head, listening. Kaiba knew someone was talking to him over the comm, and wasn't surprised in the least when Roland stood again, saying, "Excuse me, I must go to the security wing."

Kaiba waved him off, saying, "As you were."

"I do hope you enjoy your trip, sir." added Roland. "You've been long over-due for a vacation."

Kaiba stared after his security chief as he exited the room. He released a sigh before rising from the sofa and making his way towards the bathroom. He may as well enjoy a hot shower, seeing as it would be the last one he would have for three days.

---

Téa adjusted the strap on her hiking bag that clipped in front of her chest, then twisted her new paracord bracelet so the compass sat on her wrist like a watch, the little needle spinning around and pointing north as she did so. "This thing really is pretty neat." she said to Mai, who had her old cylindrical brown duffle bag around one shoulder, along with an extra thigh holster to go with her other one.

"I'm so excited!" said Serenity, bouncing up and down on her feet, her sling bag and a fanny pack bouncing up and down. "I've been waiting for this camping trip for years!"

"I told ya I'd bring ya someplace fun, didn't I?" said Joey, ruffling his sister's hair, the pots and pans clamoring together as they hung from his gigantic backpack that was half the size of him. "We're gonna have a blast dis weekend, sis! I'll be sure of it!"

"We sure will!" said Yugi, adjusting the buckles on his cargo pants that held all the small tools. He also was wearing his old school bag, stuffed full until straining the fabric.

"We're just waiting for Bakura and Duke, right?" asked Tristan, a gigantic bundle of tightly-rolled sleeping bags, tents and tarps strapped to his back.

"An' rich boy." said Joey, crossing his arms and leaning against a nearby bike rail, resting his giant pack on it. "Assumin' he actually shows up, dat is."

"He will." assured Téa, nodding affirmatively.

"Ya sound so sure..." said Joey, who still wasn't convinced.

"He'll be here, Joey." Téa said firmly.

"If ya say so." said Joey, shrugging. "But if he takes too long, we're leavin' wit'out him."

"There's Bakura!" said Yugi, and he waved back as Bakura jogged towards them with a hand in the air, his tent roll hanging from his backpack bouncing off the back of his thighs.

"Phew, sorry I took so long!" said Bakura, halting before them and leaning on his knees for a moment to catch his breath. "I couldn't find my bathing suit."

"No worries, we're still waiting on Duke and Kaiba." replied Yugi.

"Speak of one of the devils..." said Mai as a gigantic red motorcycle pulled up beside them, and Duke hopped out of an attached side-car before the vehicle even came to a full stop, a large satchel bag slung over his shoulders.

"Hi, Mr. Devlin!" said Yugi to Duke's dad, who sat in the driver's seat.

"Hey boss." added Joey, glancing uneasily at the heavily wrinkled, haggard face between the two giant tufts of white hair.

"You kids have fun this weekend, and don't do anything I wouldn't do!" gruffed Duke's dad.

"That narrows it down." retorted Duke, and his dad gave him a look.

"Watch my boy for me, would you, Muto junior?" said Duke's dad to Yugi. "Now that he's 21, this one thinks he's got a liver of steel."

"Sure thing, Mr. Devlin!" assured Yugi as Duke scowled at his dad.

"I'll see you lot when you get back then." said the elder Devlin before revving his motorcycle and driving off.

"I am so ready for this!" said Duke, hoisting his bag.

"Alright, da gang's all togetha again!" said Joey excitedly.

"Almost." Téa reminded him.

"I wonder what's taking him so long?" asked Serenity, looking worriedly around at the different streets that circled the clock tower.

"He's probably not comin'." said Joey. "Seriously, did anyone honestly think fer a second dat Seto Kaiba was gonna go campin' wit' us?"

"He went to the arcade with us and participated in everything there, Joey." said Bakura, blinking at him. "I believe he'll come camping after all that, don't you?"

"I agree. It's probably the only time he can get some real privacy." added Mai. "Why wouldn't he come with us for one weekend?"

"Cuz...well...cuz it's Kaiba!" said Joey, grasping for an argument.

"Don't count him out just yet, Joe." said Tristan. "He might just surprise you."

"Doubt it. Here comes da bus!" said Joey, finally affirmed of his convictions.

A large grey bus ground to a halt with a groan of gears, puffing loudly. The doors folded open to one side, and everyone clamored into the bus. Téa paused, looking over her shoulder.

"Come on, Téa! He's not comin' an' we ain't waitin' fer him!" called Joey.

Téa sighed and walked slowly into the bus. She was making her way down the aisle when she suddenly looked up, spotting a tall figure sprinting towards the bus in a familiar hooded black coat. "There he is!" she shouted happily, and everyone turned and watched, Joey's face the picture of disbelief as Kaiba ducked his head and jumped into the bus, the door sliding shut behind him.

"Well, took ya long enough!" snapped Joey as Kaiba grabbed an overhead loop before throwing off his hood to reveal his face.

"I had to sneak past the guard hounds." said Kaiba simply, glancing at Mai, who gave him a knowing smile. Kaiba's eyes roved over to Téa, who also gave him a warm smile.

"Good to see you, bud!" said Tristan, and Kaiba gave him a nod.

"Did you pack enough?" asked Yugi, staring questioningly at Kaiba's small black backpack.

"I'll be fine." was the answer from Kaiba.

"I hope ya didn't bring any o' yer fancy high-tech stuff to make it easy fer ya!" said Joey accusatorily. "I told ya we do it de ol' fashioned way."

"No fancy stuff." affirmed Kaiba. "Just some essentials and my brain."

"Well, I hope yer brain will keep ya warm an' dry, cuz I ain't sharin' a tent wit'chya." said Joey.

"I'd sooner sell my company to Devlin." retorted Kaiba.

"Hah! Thanks for the vote of confidence, dude." said Duke, beaming proudly, and Kaiba smirked in return as Joey scowled at both of them.

The bus took them outside the city, driving along the coast-line for a bit before curving inland. It was almost an hour ride up to the mountains, and Kaiba couldn't help but admire the view. The rolling green hills and rocky drop-offs were a stark contrast to the tall buildings of stone, glass and metal that overshadowed their surroundings, and Kaiba could actually see the blue sky in all its wide open glory. Finally, the bus came to the highest part of the mountain they could reach by vehicle before dropping everyone off. Everyone filed out of the bus, and Joey took the lead.

"Alright! Time fer da longest leg o' da journey!" he said, stepping over the guard rail and disappearing into the woods. Yugi and Bakura followed close behind, followed by the girls, Duke and Tristan, with Kaiba trailing the rear.

"Out of curiosity, how did you guys manage to find a camping spot all the way out here?" asked Duke as they trekked through the forest.

"It was Tristan who found it by pure chance, actually." explained Yugi. "His motorcycle ran out of gas up here on the way back from visiting his sister."

"It was awful! Not a car in sight for miles, and I was starving!" said Tristan, stepping over a tree root. "So you know me and my trusty book of edible plants, roots and berries, I went foraging for food while I waited for dad to come save me. I scavenged around for a good two hours before he finally made his way out here, and I had gone almost a mile out before I stumbled upon the area. Man, was that lake a sweet relief on my parched throat."

"A lake?!" said Serenity, her eyes wide. "There's a whole lake up here somewhere?"

"O' course. Dat's why I told ya ta bring a swim suit." said Joey, grinning broadly at his little sister's excitement. "It's fed by a rivah dat comes down from da mountain...da freshest, cleanest watah ya eva did see. Ya can see right to da bottom."

"And here I thought you were crazy for telling us not to waste space by packing water bottles." said Mai, her eyes wide. "Now I see why. I'm surprised it's not been sourced."

"Perhaps it is. Those tributaries go down the mountain quite a ways." said Bakura.

They came to a rocky precipice, and Joey called, "Goin' up!" before attacking the wall. Yugi and Bakura stepped up carefully behind him, keeping Serenity between them as they helped her scale the wall, Duke following close behind.

Téa brought the grappling hook out of the bag and handed it to Kaiba, saying, "I have a feeling you know how to use this better than I do."

Kaiba smirked and took the hook from her hands wordlessly. He stepped back a few paces, looking up and swinging the hook around in a circle by his side. His eyes found a target, and Kaiba threw his arm up, the grappling hook flying from his hands, unraveling in his other one as it sailed right over Joey's head and wedged itself between two large boulders above.

"Wow! Looks like your feeling was accurate, Téa!" said Mai as Kaiba pulled on the rope to make sure it was secure. He waited until Mai, Téa and Tristan started climbing by hand before putting his feet up on the wall, pulling himself up with the rope.

Joey stared at the rope as he continued to climb, muttering down to Yugi, "Does dat count as cheatin', Yuge?"

"Nah, when's the last time you've even seen a grappling hook?" asked Yugi cheerfully. "They're pretty old school."

"Fair enough." replied Joey, turning his attention back to the cliff.

"Come on, Téa, I'll race you!" said Mai, scaling the wall swiftly by Téa's side and passing her. Téa giggled and hopped up the rock face after Mai, kicking off the foot-holds.

"Careful!" said Tristan, as they started getting higher off the ground.

Another minute or two passed and Joey pulled himself over the ledge, breathing heavily as he shrugged off his giant pack, sitting on one end of it while he waited for the others to catch up. Yugi and Bakura followed, reaching down and grabbing Serenity's hands as Duke pushed her up by the sneaker. Mai and Téa were catching up quickly, still racing each other to the top. Téa jumped to grab a rocky hold and get a lead on Mai. All of a sudden, that same piece crumbled and dropped out of the siding of the cliff, and Téa screamed as she plummeted downwards.

"Téa!" shouted Mai, reaching for her, but she grasped at thin air.

Tristan also made a grab at Téa and missed her by a few inches, crying, "No!"

Everyone above gasped, Serenity clapping her hands to her mouth to stifle her scream as she shut her eyes tight, afraid to look. Kaiba's heart flew to his throat, and he immediately released his hold on the rope and plummeted downwards, ignoring the rope burn as it slid through his hands. He kicked off the wall and swung outwards, holding out an arm. He caught Téa around the middle and pulled her close to him, her back to his stomach. They fell back towards the cliff, where Kaiba landed neatly on his feet, his long legs keeping Téa away from slamming into the side of the cliff. Téa shrieked again as she felt herself slip, but Kaiba's arm tightened around her waist, his free arm raised over his head as his hand grasped the rope. Rocks and dirt skittered from the wall and plummeted the rest of the way down, and Téa whimpered as she watched them, clinging to Kaiba's arm. From overhead, they heard everyone release a gigantic sigh of relief, Serenity peeping open an eye before looking up from behind her hands and letting out a happy gasp. Téa tried to grab the rope, but her sweaty palms slipped on it. She seized Kaiba's arm again and trembled, her nails digging into his forearm and bicep.

"Put your arms around me." Kaiba commanded softly.

"I can't." whimpered Téa, clinging to his arm like a frightened kitten. "I'll fall."

"No you won't. I won't let you." said Kaiba, and he raised one leg and slid his thigh between Téa's legs, pushing her upwards and putting his foot back on the cliff face, giving her a secure resting spot. Téa felt a warmth in the junction where Kaiba's leg grazed against her, and she had to suppress a small gasp and a shudder at the strange sensation. "There. Now just twist around on my leg and hold on to me." said Kaiba.

Téa started to do so, slowly moving her leg over Kaiba's until she was sitting along his thigh, her feet on his opposite leg. She couldn't help but glance downwards, and she drew in a sharp breath as she noticed just how far up they were.

"It's okay. I got you." said Kaiba, his voice surprisingly gentle.

Téa took her eyes away from the dizzying height and looked up, and she took in another soft breath as her cheek grazed the underside of Kaiba's jaw. She hadn't realized just how close she was to him now that she was sitting on his thigh. She averted her eyes quickly, instead focusing on wrapping her arms around his shoulders and interlocking her forearms with her hands. Kaiba put his other foot back on the cliff and started to climb again, and Téa's heart flew to her throat at the sudden movement. She wrapped her legs around his waist, crossing her ankles to lock them, and buried her face in Kaiba's shoulder so she wouldn't look down. Kaiba ignored the strange swelling sensation in his chest, and he focused all his attention on bringing them swiftly back up to the top of the cliff.

"Téa! Are you alright!?" asked Serenity as Kaiba pulled them over the ledge. He sat Téa on the ground, her limbs sliding off of him before Joey and Duke grabbed her under the arms and pulled her back away from the ledge. She was grateful to be on solid ground again.

"I...I think so." replied Téa, still trembling. She watched as Tristan and Kaiba grasped each others' forearms, and Tristan leaned all his weight backwards and pulled Kaiba to his feet.

"You scared the daylights out of us!" said Bakura, his hand on his chest.

"Téa, I'm so sorry!" cried Mai, throwing her arms around Téa and hugging her tightly. "It's all my fault! I shouldn't have suggested we race in the first place!"

"It's alright, Mai. I'm fine!" said Téa, patting her arm. She looked up at Kaiba as he unhooked the grappling hook from the rock. "Thanks, Kaiba! You saved me!"

"Yeah, we owe you one big time, man!" added Tristan, clapping Kaiba on the shoulder, and Kaiba had to stop himself from startling at the gesture.

"Don't mention it." said Kaiba, coiling the grappling hook before looping it around his shoulder and hip like a sash. His heart was still pounding in his chest and he was desperately trying to shake off the strange sensations where Téa's body had met his.

"Yeah, Kaiba! It's a good thing you were here with that grappling hook! Right Joey?" said Yugi, looking over at Joey, who looked mildly guilty.

"O' course!" said Joey uneasily. "Now let's continue da hike, shall we? No more excitement!"

"I agree, let's keep it pleasantly boring from here on out." said Duke, and everyone laughed nervously. Téa got to her feet and followed everyone, this time walking closer to Kaiba.

---

"Here we are!" announced Joey finally, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, finally!" huffed Duke, leaning on a tree to catch his breath. "I think I got my workout for the rest of the week after that hike."

"Wow!" said Mai, taking in the surroundings. "You were right, Yugi. This is definitely no kiddy campground!"

As they exited the tree-line, they came upon a rocky beach, a small lake glittering in the sunlight. Its pristine surface was disturbed by a waterfall that cascaded down from a river that ran down the mountainside. Up ahead, a large overhang of the mountain gave shade upon a grassy patch, surrounded by giant boulders situated in a ring and a large tree that had fallen, making a natural bench along one side of the camp site.

"Come on!" laughed Téa, and she raced the girls up to the camp site, the guys following behind. The girls dropped their bags in the clearing, claiming their spot. The guys also laid claim to their spots of land.

"Serenity, Mai, Duke, Kaiba...come over here!" said Yugi, and the four approached the wall of the overhang, looking confused.

"What are those?" asked Duke as they got closer. Kaiba followed Duke's gaze and noticed five bottle caps that appeared to be glued to the stone wall, each with initials written in sharpie.

"It's our rite of initiation!" said Yugi cheerfully. "You guys are new here, so you all have to make your mark! Joey, you got all the stuff?"

"I gotcha, Yuge!" said Joey, pulling a four-pack of soda in glass bottles, a tube of superglue, and a black marker out of his backpack. "Alright guys an' gals, take a bottle, open it an' write yer initials on da cap! Don't drink outta it yet..."

Kaiba went along with it, scribbling his initials on the inside of the cap before passing it to the other three, who did likewise. "Alright, one by one now." said Joey. "Ladies first. Let's go, sis! Step up here!"

Serenity walked up to the wall, anticipation in her eyes. "Oh boy! I can't wait!" she said, bouncing excitedly.

"Dis is serious, sis!" said Joey, and Serenity immediately took on a serious face. "Now, hold yer bottle cap to yer heart an' raise da bottle in yer left hand!"

Serenity did as she was told, the bottle shaking in her hand a bit, showing her nerves.

"Now repeat afta me!" said Joey. "I, Serenity Wheeler..."

"I, Serenity Wheeler..." said Serenity, her face still serious.

"...do solemnly swear..." continued Joey.

"...do solemnly swear..." repeated his sister.

"...not ta tell anyone..." Joey emphasized the word heavily.

"...not to tell anyone..." Serenity copied.

"...about da super-secret hideout..." Joey whispered.

"...about the super-secret hideout..." she whispered back.

"...and I sign dis contract..." said Joey in a normal voice again.

"...and I sign this contract..." repeated Serenity.

"...and foreva seal my word..."

"...and forever seal my word..."

"...wit' my mark on dis bottle cap..."

"...with my mark on this bottle cap..."

"...and my friends as my witnesses..."

"...and my friends as my witnesses..."

"...unda penalty o' jumpin' naked inta de ocean durin' winta..."

Serenity lost her composure for a second, then said, "...under penalty of jumping naked into the ocean during winter..."

"...God save the Queen."

"...God save the Queen." Serenity giggled.

"Bakura added that last bit." said Tristan to the other three waiting, and Bakura beamed proudly.

"Now take a swig an' smash dat bottle on da wall over yer head!" said Joey.

Serenity did as she was told, taking a sip and shutting her eyes tight as she brought the glass bottle down on the wall above her, smashing it on the rock, and the rest of the soda drenched her from head to toe.

"Alriiiiight! You've been christened by de almighty soda pop! Now glue yer bottle cap to da wall an' you've been officially initiated!" said Joey, and Serenity cheered before running up to the wall. She squeezed the superglue onto her bottle cap and pressed it carefully against the rock next to Joey's old cap. "Come on, Mai, yer up! Look lively here!"

The rest of them went through the guided initiation oath and glued their bottle caps to the wall. Kaiba was last, and he gave Joey an incredulous look as he approached the wall, saying, "Is all of that really necessary?"

"Yes, de oath o' secrecy an' initiation is completely necessary, hot shot." said Joey, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes at Kaiba. "Ya ain't weaselin' yer way outta dis one!"

"Just think of it like a non-disclosure agreement, Kaiba..." said Tristan, a lot more neutrally. "...if you don't sign it, we're free to spill your secrets!"

Kaiba's jaw flexed, but he held the bottle cap in his right hand to his chest and raised the soda bottle in the other. He inhaled deeply through his nose and, in a single breath, ranted out, "I, Seto Kaiba, do solemnly swear not to tell anyone about the super-secret hideout and I sign this contract and forever seal my word with my mark on this bottle cap and my friends as my witnesses under penalty of jumping naked into the ocean during winter. God save the Queen."

Joey stared at Kaiba, his eyes huge. "Well dang...dat works, I guess." he said.

"Wow. That's a pretty impressive memory." said Bakura as Kaiba took a drink and smashed his bottle over his head on the rock wall, shaking his head to get the glass out of his hair as the sticky soda rained down upon him.

"Well, he did go last, so he had plenty of time to memorize it." pointed out Tristan as they watched Kaiba glue his bottle cap between Téa and Tristan's caps.

"And now that that's done with..." said Yugi. "Let's set up camp!"

Everyone got to work setting up tents, laying out tarps, rolling out sleeping bags, and building the fire pit, complete with a rock grill on one side and a stand with a hook to hold a kettle on the other. Mai looked up from nailing a tent stake in the ground and whispered, "Hey Téa, what do you suppose your tall boyfriend is doing?"

Téa followed Mai's gaze to where Kaiba had swiftly gathered a bunch of thin trees and made an A-line shelter against a sturdy pine, piling on pine branches and draping those with thick fern leaves. "Uh, I think he's making a tent out of trees?" she guessed, watching as he dug down into the ground underneath the shelter, hollowing out the floor and pressing the stray dirt into the bottom edges of the shelter to lay a strengthening foundation.

"Wait, I'm lost. When did Kaiba become your boyfriend?" asked Serenity sincerely, and Téa jumped towards her and clapped a hand over Serenity's mouth.

"Quiet!" said Téa in a hushed tone, her ears turning red as she glanced up to make sure Kaiba didn't hear them. "He's not my boyfriend! Mai's just being dumb!"

"But I did say boyfriend and you looked up at him." said Mai, staying equally as quiet, her violet eyes twinkling mischievously.

"You also said tall!" whispered Téa sharply, shooting her a look as Serenity giggled.

"The other guys are tall, too, but you looked up at Kaiba first." Mai pointed out with a grin.

"Cuz he's the tallest!" Téa countered. "Who do you think I'm gonna look at?"

"The one you think is the cutest." crooned Serenity, nudging Téa teasingly.

"Oh, not you, too, Serenity!" whined Téa, clapping her hands on top of her head and pulling her hair into her face as she felt her cheeks glowing pink. Mai and Serenity burst into a fit of giggles and gave each other a high-five.

"Hey yous! Enough wit' da gigglin' already!" called Joey from the other side of the campsite. "Dis trip barely even started an' yer makin' us guys nervous!"

"You should be!" Mai called back teasingly, and Téa sighed and shook her head with a smile.

Tristan took up an axe and recruited the guys to go collect firewood. Kaiba finished with his shelter and joined them with his own hatchet. They got to work chopping down small trees and cutting them into smaller wood-burning pieces. Tristan watched as Kaiba swiftly put together a huge bundle before carrying it back to the campground, saying, "Look at you go, Paul Bunyan!"

"Wow, Kaiba must have been a boy scout or something!" said Duke, watching him go.

"Or he just watched d'ose survivor videos ta prep himself fer da trip." said Joey, struggling to hack a large piece of wood in two.

"Or maybe he actually knows how to camp!" said Tristan, getting annoyed. "I know, big shock."

They all carried bundles of wood back to the fire pit, stacking it in a pile and throwing a tarp over the lot to protect it from the rain.

"Alright, now dat we got enough firewood, who's hungry?" asked Joey, laying out the pots and pans over the fire pit and on the rock grill.

"Let me guess, you are." said Tristan, and Joey grinned and went digging into his giant pack.

Kaiba watched as Joey pulled an endless amount of packaged and canned food items from his seemingly bottomless bag, up to and including an entire small cooler of cold foodstuffs. "Is there ever a time when he's not?" Kaiba asked, half sarcastic and half serious.

"Does he look dead to you?" retorted Téa.

Kaiba couldn't stop the laugh that busted out of his mouth at Téa's comment, and even his white teeth flashed for a moment as he did so. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared over at him, their eyes wide. Even Joey, whose hand was still stuffed in his bag, gaped up at Kaiba with an open mouth. Kaiba stared around at their strange expressions. "What?" he demanded.

"That's the first time we've ever heard you laugh like that!" exclaimed Bakura, his eyes huge.

"I've laughed plenty of times in front of you lot before!" said Kaiba defensively.

"Yeah, but that was a real "hahah" laugh, not a maniacal, evil-genius, villainy laugh." said Duke.

Téa giggled as Kaiba gave Duke a sideways glare. "Whatever. Don't get used to it." he said.

"Too late for that. They'll probably make a game out of seeing who can make you do it again." said Mai, and the others grinned and nodded their heads vigorously.

"Seriously?" muttered Kaiba, running his hand through his hair. He glanced down at Téa, and she caught his eye and gave him a warm smile. Kaiba experienced the strange sensation of his heart skipping a beat again. He took his hand out of his hair and looked away quickly before his blue eyes could linger on hers, occupying his mind by building the cooking fire for Joey.

Joey cooked up a huge meal out of the food he pulled out of his backpack, and they all sat around the fire pit, chowing down. When everyone was finished, Joey stood up and announced, "Alright! Now fer da fun part!" He reached into the cooler and pulled out a bottle of mint gin.

"Oh boy, here we go." said Tristan, and Kaiba watched as Joey poured the gin into clear plastic shot cups and handed them around.

"Our first game o' da night: Neva have I eva!" said Joey with a grin. "An' everyone participates in dis one!" he said with a pointed look at Kaiba, who shrugged and accepted a cup. The mint would help clean his palette of the food anyway.

"But Joey, I'm not allowed to drink!" said Serenity, looking worried as Joey handed her a cup.

"Dat's alright, sis, nobody knows we're up here, an' ya got us watchin' ya!" said Joey, placing the cup in her hands. "It'll be our secret, right guys?"

"Right!" everyone chorused, Kaiba nodding wordlessly.

"Alright, a few bonus rules before we begin..." said Joey. "If no one drinks ta yer confession, dat's a No Taker's Penalty, an' ya gotta drink one yerself. If ya happen ta know dat anyone in da circle is lyin', point 'em out an' say "Liar's Penalty", an' den dey gotta do a double shot!"

"Woo! I like these rules!" said Duke excitedly.

"Now den, who wants ta go first? Ladies?" asked Joey, looking around at them.

"I'll start." said Mai. She held her finger to her chin, humming pensively.

Tristan leaned over and whispered to Kaiba, "The rebellious teenage-runaway and world-wide traveler of the group is trying to think of something she's never done before. You may want to take a nap or something." Kaiba offered an amused half-smirk in response.

"Yeah, we might all die of old age before she comes up with something." added Duke.

Mai shot Tristan and Duke a look. "Alright wise guys, you wanna play? Let's play." she said. "Never have I ever had a crush on my best friend's sister!"

The others burst into knowing laughter, Kaiba rolling his eyes and shaking his head. Tristan and Duke cringed away from Joey's withering look before they both emptied their cups. Serenity giggled, and Mai winked broadly at her before saying, "You're up, Téa!"

"Alright." said Téa. "Never have I ever copied anyone else's schoolwork!"

"Aw man." said Joey, and he and Tristan both upended their cups. So did Duke.

"Bad boy, Duke!" said Téa, waggling a finger at him. "I hope you didn't do that with a subject like business finance you use to run your game shop!"

"Nah, I was flunking English lit." he said with a grin as Joey poured the three of them more mint gin. "I had someone else write my essays."

"Okay, let's take it up a notch. No more boring questions, Serenity!" said Mai.

"You got it!" replied Serenity excitedly. "Never have I ever gotten a tattoo!"

"Cheers, Dice Boy." said Mai, clinking her cup with Duke before they both turned up their cups.

"What, really!?" asked Joey, looking at Mai. "You got a tattoo?"

Mai winked and him, then turned and pulled her long blonde hair up, exposing the hidden purple and pink butterfly tattooed below the nape of her neck and between her shoulders.

"Whoa!" said Joey, transfixed.

"Can't say I'm surprised, but let's see your ink, Duke." said Tristan, and Duke pulled off one of his armbands to show everyone the underside of his forearm, where the Strike Ninja Duel Monster was throwing a pair of red dice instead of a kunai.

"Cool! " said Yugi. "My turn! Never have I ever gotten a piercing!"

All of the girls upended their drinks, along with Duke, Serenity pulling a face at the taste of the alcohol. She waited a good five seconds before pointing to Joey and saying, "Liar's Penalty!"

"Aw crap, I forgot." said Joey, smacking himself in the face before emptying his cup.

"Wait, what!?" cried Tristan, turning his shocked hazel eyes to his best friend as Joey held out his cup for his double shot. "Joey, when did you get a piercing?!"

"Had it all my life." said Joey, grinning as he showed the hole in one ear's cartilage. "Only wore da ring back when I was a street kid."

"Well, weren't you just the bad boy." said Mai, winking broadly at him.

"Wow, I never noticed!" said Téa, her eyes wide as Joey took his double shot.

"Me neither." said Yugi. "We learn something new every day, it seems!"

"Alright, who wants to go next?" asked Duke, refilling Joey's cup.

"I will!" said Bakura excitedly. "Never have I ever talked my way out of a citation."

"Oh, all the time with the male cops." said Mai with a wink and another flip of her cup. Tristan and Duke also upended their cups. And so, to everyone's shock, did Kaiba.

"Kaiba?!" exclaimed the entire group in perfect unison.

"What did you do?" asked Yugi, shock etched across his face.

Kaiba smirked at everyone's shocked expressions and held out his cup for a refill, saying, "I was flying my helicopter over a no-fly zone."

"Yikes! And you talked your way out of that one?!" asked Duke, his eyes wide.

"I can be quite persuasive." said Kaiba simply.

"Heh...rich privilege at its finest, ladies an' gentlemen." said Joey, refilling their cups. "An' on dat note, neva have I eva bribed anyone fer any reason!"

Kaiba set his mouth in a line, but emptied his cup again before holding it out to Joey, who hadn't moved from the spot, knowing full well he'd have to refill right away. Duke also drank from his cup again.

"We saw Kaiba, but what did you do, Duke?" asked Bakura.

"Same instance with the traffic citation." said Duke with a grin before taking his turn. "And speaking of cars, never have I ever had to pee so bad on a road trip that I went in a bottle!"

"Ew, gross!" said Mai as all of the guys upended their cups.

"You think that's bad?" asked Tristan. "Never have I ever farted in an elevator!"

"Thanks a lot, pal." muttered Joey as he emptied his cup after just refilling it.

"Joey! That's terrible!" cried Mai, and everyone burst into laughter, Kaiba shaking his head.

"You're up, bud!" said Tristan to Kaiba when they had all refilled their cups.

Kaiba thought for a moment, tapping his cup with his thumb. "Never have I ever feigned illness to get out of something." he said finally.

"Oooh, good one!" said Bakura as everyone emptied their cups.

"Have you even ever been sick, dude?" Duke asked Kaiba.

"Once." replied Kaiba simply as he watched everyone pass around the bottle for refills.

"Back to you, Mai!" said Yugi.

"Alright." said Mai. "Never have I ever had surgery."

Serenity, Joey, Tristan, and Kaiba all emptied their cups, and Yugi said, "Okay, now everyone has to say what kind of surgery they got. We all know about Serenity. What about you, Joey?"

"Hadta get my appendix removed when I was a kid. De li'l suckah busted on me." said Joey, making a face at the memory.

"That sounds excruciating." said Mai, holding her stomach as if having sympathy pains.

"It was." agreed Joey as he refilled his and Serenity's cups and passed the bottle to Tristan.

"What about you, Tristan?" asked Bakura, turning to him.

"I burned my leg on my first motorcycle and had to get a skin graft." said Tristan, passing the bottle to Kaiba before yanking up his pant leg and showing everyone the slightly discolored square patch of skin.

"Ouch, dude!" said Duke, cringing at the thought. "What did you get, Kaiba?"

"Stitches in my head." said Kaiba simply as he refilled his cup.

"Really? Where?" asked Téa, peering around Kaiba's head.

Kaiba set the bottle on the ground and pushed up his heavy bangs, and Téa and the others made a noise of surprise as they saw the long scar that ran along his hairline, hidden by his thick hair. "Holy crap! Where did you get that from?" asked Tristan, his eyes wide.

Kaiba was silent for a moment before saying, "A car crash when I was a kid."

"Yikes! That must have been scary!" said Serenity.

Téa watched as Kaiba's mouth became a thin line, and she had a nagging feeling that she should quickly change the subject before the others could play twenty questions with Kaiba. "Okay, it's my turn." she said abruptly. "Never have I ever done something underage!"

"Well, I'm doing that now, I guess." said Serenity, looking down at her drink before emptying it. Everyone drank to that one, too.

"Really, Téa? Never?" asked Mai, and Téa nodded. "Well, aren't you just the sweetest little goody two-shoes!"

Téa huffed, and Tristan quickly distracted them from any further conversation. "Alright, now everyone's gotta say what they did with this one." he said. "I can speak for both Joey and I...we snuck into a night club in high school. Yugi?"

"Ordered something off the TV when I was fourteen." said Yugi as he refilled his cup and passed the bottle along to the others.

"Wow Yuge, yer such da bad boy." said Joey sardonically. "What about you, Bakura?"

"Snuck into an R-rated movie in middle school." Bakura replied with a sheepish grin.

"I think most people have done that. And snuck food into a movie theatre." added Tristan, and everyone nodded. "Theatre food is ridiculously over-priced."

"That's why it's always good to bring a girl with a large purse!" said Téa, and the girls agreed. "What did you do, Mai?"

"Broke curfew at sixteen." said Mai. "I've always loved the night life. And you, Duke?"

"Used a fake ID to get booze." said Duke with a grin as he refilled his cup.

"Oof! Dat one takes da cake." winced Joey.

"I dunno, what about you, Kaiba?" asked Yugi, looking up at him.

"Well, I don't know if it counts since I was attending a party with my step-father, so I was being watched..." said Kaiba. "...but he let me drink brandy when I was a kid."

"When you say kid, you mean...?" asked Tristan.

"Twelve." answered Kaiba.

"Yeah, I'd say that's underage, alright." said Yugi. "Did you like it, at least?"

"It was the worst thing I ever put in my mouth." said Kaiba, and the others laughed.

"Well darn, now my life seems pretty boring." said Téa with a shy smile. "I guess I was too busy getting perfect grades and attendance at school and work to goof off."

Joey picked his head up abruptly, as if suddenly recalling something. "Hey, wait a minute! Liar's Penalty!" he said, pointing at Téa.

"Huh?!" cried Téa, staring at him, and Kaiba looked over at her in confusion.

"Oh yeah, that's right!" said Yugi. "You were working part-time at Burger Palooza when you were sixteen to save up for dance school! That was underage for our school!"

"Aaw, dang it! Me and my big mouth!" said Téa, clapping a hand to her face. She emptied her cup before holding it out for Tristan to refill again and taking another, shuddering at the intake. "Ugh. Go on, Serenity. It's your turn now."

"Hmmm...well, since Bakura mentioned R-rated movies...never have I ever paid for adult content." said Serenity with a giggle.

"Dude, put that cup to your mouth!" demanded Tristan as all the guys except Kaiba drank again. "Every guy has watched porn at least once when they were a teenager! I call Liar's Penalty!"

"She said paid for it." Kaiba responded with a smirk.

Duke let out a loud "Hah!" and applauded Kaiba, Joey and Tristan snapping their fingers and pointing towards him with smiles on their faces. The girls looked on in astonishment.

"Seriously? You of all people could afford it!" exclaimed Mai.

"Yeah, but I wasn't about to get caught with that purchase receipt on my bank records." said Kaiba, and the other guys snorted with laughter. Kaiba was amazed at himself for his honesty. Apparently five shots were getting to his head pretty fast. Téa blushed at the thought of what he may have watched.

"Ah, dat's rich." chuckled Joey, wiping his eyes. "Go again, Yuge."

"Okay, never have I ever accidentally set something on fire." said Yugi.

Tristan set the bottle upright after refilling his own cup, and Kaiba snatched it from him and pretended to upturn the entire bottle into his mouth. Everyone burst into fits of crying laughter, nodding agreement as they recalled the various instances. Kaiba smirked and emptied his cup.

"Lots of trial and error with gaming tech machines, huh?" asked Duke knowingly.

"Pretty sure I remember him doing it on purpose a couple of times." said Tristan, and Kaiba inclined his head with a chuckle as he refilled his cup, and Tristan pointed and exclaimed, "Oh! See that, guys? Point for me!"

"Is somebody keeping score?" asked Yugi.

"Tristan and Téa each have a point." said Serenity with a cheerful smile.

"Okay...Bakura?" said Mai, re-centering the game.

"Never have I ever..." started Bakura slowly, pausing as he thought for a moment. "...hmm...oh! Gone skinny dipping!"

"Well, that's a Liar's Penalty on you, too." said Yugi. "We've all had river baths on this trip."

"Oh right. Sans river baths on camping trips, then." amended Bakura quickly.

Kaiba watched, his eyes widening in shock along with the others, as Téa emptied her cup.

"Téa?!" cried Yugi, Joey, and Tristan all at once. "When?!"

"I may have participated in an innocent little hazing ritual at college." she admitted coyly, twirling her hair in her finger and batting her eyelashes innocently.

"Were there any guys around?!" asked Serenity, her eyes wide.

"Of course not!" said Téa, and Kaiba was relieved at her response. "It was my sorority group!"

"Hah, you're a sorority girl? Cute." said Tristan, snickering along with Joey and Duke.

"What's wrong with sororities?" asked Téa defensively. "They do community service, build leadership and interpersonal skills, and help you get job placement after you graduate!"

"Fair enough." replied Tristan. "Alright, Joe, it's your turn."

"Hmmm..." said Joey scratching the side of his face pensively, then snapped his fingers and said, "Aha! Neva have I eva been kissed!"

"Like, on the lips or just in general?" asked Duke.

"In general, but no family!" amended Joey quickly.

Duke and Kaiba emptied their cups. Téa glanced over at Kaiba, but distracted everyone by saying, "Duke?! Someone kissed you?"

Duke grinned, saying, "One of my fangirls at school was braver than most." He looked over at Kaiba, adding, "You know the pain, too, huh?"

"Sure, let's go with that." said Kaiba, being careful not to glance over at Téa.

"Anyone we know?" asked Yugi, leaning forward eagerly.

"Maybe." said Kaiba simply, keeping his stoic facade up. Téa could feel her heart fluttering strangely in her chest, and she was careful to keep her eyes down in her lap, pretending to admire the way the firelight danced in the reflection of the plastic cup.

"Yer not gonna tell us, eh?" asked Joey.

"We're playing Never Have I Ever, not Twenty Questions." said Kaiba, and the others let out laughs while Joey gave Kaiba an annoyed look.

"Heh, alright then, I'm up." said Duke. "Never have I ever-..."

"No wait, Liar's Penalty!" said Tristan suddenly, jumping up in his seat and pointing at Yugi, who gave him a confused look. "Rebecca Hawkins, remember?"

"Oh shoot, you're right." said Yugi, blushing as he recalled the incident before emptying his cup and holding it out for his double shot.

"Hah, good catch, Tristan!" said Duke, grinning before continuing. "As I was saying, never have I ever been drunk."

"Oh dat's a load o' bull if I eva heard it!" said Joey. "I call Liar's Penalty!"

"I second that notion." said Mai. "I believe Duke Devlin never being drunk like I believe Joey Wheeler would turn down a free five-star buffet."

"I'm serious!" insisted Duke. "I mean like, absolutely steamin' drunk. Never been! Honest!"

"I'd believe drunk and foolish enough to attempt driving, but never drunk at all?" said Bakura incredulously. "The way you put down alcohol? I don't buy it for a second."

"I don't drink that much!" said Duke defensively.

"Also Liar's Penalty." said Tristan, and Duke shot him a glare.

"I'm telling you, I've never been drunk in my life! Not even tipsy!" persisted Duke.

"Okay, now yer really just hypin' yerself up." said Joey. "I've literally seen ya trip ova a barstool and den run inta a sign dat was right in frunna yer face.

"Hey, it was dark in that bar, okay? And it was midnight. Give me a break!" said Duke.

"You callin' me a liar?!" barked Joey, cracking his knuckles menacingly.

"No, I'm just sayin' I had an alibi is all!" said Duke quickly, cringing away from Joey.

"Alright, Duke. You're giving us little choice here." said Yugi, pulling out his phone. "We'll just have to settle this with an unbiased third party."

"What are you doing?" asked Duke as Yugi scrolled through his phone contacts.

"You'll see." said Yugi simply, pressing a name and putting it on speakerphone. The group waited with confused looks on their faces as the dial tone sounded three times.

"Hello?!" came a gruff, gravelly voice over the line.

"You've got to be kidding me!" cried Duke. "My dad is not an unbiased third party!"

The others burst into laughter, Kaiba smirking. "Hi, Mr. Devlin!" said Yugi cheerfully.

"Well, I hear laughter and my son belly-aching about something, so I guess he isn't dead in a ditch somewhere." came the voice of Duke's dad over the phone.

"Nope, everything's fine." said Yugi. "We just needed to ask you a question for verification."

"Yeah, cuz yer son's probably lyin' to our faces!" added Joey loudly.

"Joey!" said Serenity, nudging him.

"I don't even know what you're about to ask me, but you're probably right, Wheeler." said the elder Devlin, and Duke scowled at the phone. "What's the question?"

"Has Duke ever been drunk before?" asked Yugi.

"Absolute, one hundred and ten percent smashed drunk." clarified Duke with a pointed look.

"Hmm..." thought Duke's dad. "Well, if you're talking about just alcohol, then nope, my boy keeps his liquor down pretty well."

"See?!" said Duke, looking pleased with himself. "Told you!"

"...but drunk on pain medication after getting his wisdom teeth pulled? Now that's a whole different story." finished Duke's dad. "I even got that one on video tape."

"Aw, Dad, come on! I told you not to tell anyone about that!" cried Duke as the others burst into fits of crying laughter.

"Oho! Looks like dat's two Liar's Penalties!" cried Joey. "You owe us from earlier! Gettin' yer wisdom teeth pulled is a minor form o' surgery!"

"Okay fine, you got me there. I'll take the one from earlier, but not this one!" said Duke. "Drunk means too much alcohol, not loopy on pain drugs!"

"Actually drunk is a term used to mean any form of altered state caused by intoxication by drugs or alcohol." Kaiba pointed out.

"Whoa, you even got Kaiba in on this argument!" said Yugi, his eyes wide.

"What?! No way! I don't believe it!" said Duke. "I need proof of that!"

"Okay, come here, Mr. Webster." said Téa, pulling out her own phone. "Time to settle this argument once and for all."

"You kids sound like you're having way too much fun out there in the woods." came Duke's dad over the phone again. "I'll leave you to it then."

"Okay, thanks for your input, Mr. Devlin!" said Yugi.

"Yeah, no problem. Just bring my boy home in one piece, would you?" said Duke's dad.

"Absolutely! Bye now!" said Yugi before hanging up the phone.

"Okay, here we go." said Téa at last, reading off of her phone. "Straight from the Merriam-Webster dictionary...drunk...number one, having the faculties impaired by alcohol. Number two, dominated by an intense feeling, e.g., drunk with rage..."

"Oh, well, Joey's been drunk then...with Brooklyn rage!" interrupted Tristan, and the others laughed while Joey gave him a sideways look.

"Number three, relating to, caused by, or characterized by intoxication." said Téa. "And if I look up intoxication..." She paused for a moment as she typed it into her phone, then read the result out loud. "Aha! The condition of having physical or mental control markedly diminished by the effects of alcohol OR drugs! You were right, Kaiba!"

Kaiba's amused half-smirk flashed, and Joey whooped triumphantly, saying, "YES! Dat's a one hundred percent, irrefutable Liar's Penalty! Bottoms up times two, Dice Boy!"

"Man, I can't catch a break around here." said Duke, finally upturning his cup before holding it out for his second shot.

"Well, if he hasn't been drunk before, he probably will be tonight!" said Bakura as he poured Duke's third shot, and Duke shuddered before accepting his fourth and final shot.

"Okay, now that we finally got that squared away, who's turn is it?" asked Yugi.

"Mine." said Tristan. "Never have I ever stood up a date."

Mai and Serenity drank, and Joey gave his sister a baffled look, crying, "Whoa whoa, back up! Who's da wise guy dat asked ya out on a date, sis?!"

"Duke." said Serenity, giggling, and Joey gave Duke a withering look.

"Wait, you stood me up?!" cried Duke, ignoring Joey's look. "You said you were sick!"

"Sorry, that's when I feigned illness to get out of something." giggled Serenity, glancing over at Kaiba, whose amused half-smirk flashed while the others laughed and Duke scowled.

"Wow, you actually stood up Duke Devlin?" laughed Mai. "That must've been a first."

"It was." muttered Duke, now looking sullen.

"Alright fine, I guess I'll forgive ya." said Joey. "Who's turn izzit?"

"Kaiba's." said Bakura, looking over at him.

Kaiba thought for a moment again, then said, "Never have I ever been on a blind date."

"Dang, he's good at this." said Yugi as he and everyone else drank.

"Pretty sure ya coulda just said date in general, Kaiba." snickered Joey.

"Joey!" said Téa, giving him a disapproving look.

Kaiba's mouth became a thin line. "Actually he's right for once." he admitted.

"Really?! You've never been on a real date ever?" asked Mai, blinking in surprise, and Kaiba shook his head in response.

"Is dat really surprisin'? Who'd wanna date dis guy?" asked Joey as he refilled everyone's cups.

"You obviously weren't paying too much attention at the charity ball, Joe." said Tristan, and Kaiba's amused half-smirk flashed.

"I meant fer his personality, not his money!" retorted Joey.

"Aw, don't be so mean, Joey. Kaiba's not that bad." said Serenity.

"I hate to agree with Joey, but unfortunately that probably is all the girls care about." said Duke.

"That's not true at all." said Mai, winking broadly at Kaiba as she added, "He's tall, rugged and handsome, too, right girls?"

"Don't forget generous, protective, innovative and intelligent." added Téa.

"Alright already, quit strokin' his ego before his head explodes!" snapped Joey, and Kaiba's smirk flashed again before he gave Téa a grateful glance. "It's yer turn again, Mai."

"You're just no fun at all, Joey." said Mai, grinning at his evident jealously. "Never have I ever taken a shower in the rain."

"Aw, really? Best feeling ever." said Téa, emptying her cup, and Kaiba glanced over at her.

"Yeah, unless yer pops fuh-got ta pay da wata bill an' ya gotta stand unda da nasty drain pipe." said Joey, up-turning his cup along with Serenity.

"Aw, yeah, that stinks." said Téa sullenly, and she decided to lighten the mood a bit. "Never have I ever been in an adult toy store."

Joey, Tristan, Duke, and Mai all drank to that one, and Bakura blinked, saying, "Oh my!"

"Did you guys actually buy anything from it?" asked Serenity, her eyes wide.

"Oh, I'm sure they did, and based on your earlier question, Serenity, I'm sure the answer will be unanimous." grinned Yugi. "On three guys. One...two...three..."

"Porn." said Joey, Tristan, and Duke at once, and the others laughed, Kaiba smirking.

Mai said something else that was overshadowed by the guys, and Serenity said, "Sorry, I didn't hear you, Mai. What did you say?"

"Chocolate." said Mai, smiling innocently.

"Huh?" said Serenity, blinking innocently. "Why would you buy chocolate from a-...?"

"LALALALALA!" shouted Joey, covering his sister's ears, and the others burst into laughter, and even Kaiba had to press his lips together to prevent a laugh from busting out of his mouth.

"Okay, cut it out, Joe. It's her turn." said Tristan, wiping tears from his eyes.

Joey took his hands away from Serenity's ears, and she gave him a confused look before shrugging and saying, "Never have I ever hitch-hiked."

"Nyeh-heh, how can we eva fuh'get dat time in Cali?" said Joey, and Téa giggled as she, Yugi, and Tristan also drank along with him. Mai and Duke also took a drink. "Yer turn, Yuge."

Yugi hummed pensively, thinking. "Never have I ever bathed in a public fountain." he said.

Joey sighed, saying, "It was betta dan da drain pipe." before he and Serenity emptied their cups.

"Does dipping a handkerchief in it to wipe off grease count?" asked Tristan.

"Did you stick any of your appendages in the fountain?" asked Yugi.

Tristan sighed, saying, "My arms."

"Then yes." said Yugi with a grin as Tristan also drank. Everyone watched in shock as Kaiba also emptied his cup.

"You bathed in a public fountain, Kaiba?!" asked Mai, giving him a baffled look.

"I was five years old." said Kaiba quickly.

"Aaaw!" said Téa endearingly, trying to imagine what a young Seto Kaiba would look like.

"Darn. I was hoping for a good drunken skinny-dipping story." said Duke, and Kaiba rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Go ahead Bakura." said Yugi.

"Um...hmmm..." said Bakura, thinking. "Oh, never have I ever been to a nudist beach."

Mai was the only one who drank to that one, and Joey looked at her with wide eyes, saying, "Really? Were ya completely nekkid?"

"Best way to get an all-natural, full-body tan, hun." said Mai, winking broadly at him.

"Dang, guess we need to go beach-hopping sometime, eh Joe?" said Tristan, nudging him, and Duke snickered as Joey gave him a look, his face red. "I kid, I kid. Your turn, man."

"Yeah right." muttered Joey. "Neva have I eva kissed anyone."

"You already asked that." Bakura pointed out.

"No, I asked if anyone had eva been kissed." corrected Joey. "An' now I'm askin' de opposite."

"I'm assuming no family again?" asked Yugi.

"Dat's correct." said Joey.

Téa and Duke both emptied their cups, and Kaiba glanced over at Téa while the others gave her baffled looks. "No way! Téa?!" cried Mai. "Who?!"

"None of your business, that's who." quipped Téa, being careful not to look over at Kaiba.

"Was it Duke by any chance?" asked Tristan with a grin.

"Ew, no!" cried Téa, looking disgusted, and Duke glared at them both.

"Hey! I'm a good kisser, thank you very much!" said Duke, sounding offended. "But don't take my word for it..."

"Don't even think about it, Dice Boy!" cried Téa, backing away as Duke pretended to lean in with a grin on his face. "You've had way too many shots if you think I'd stoop to your level!"

"Ouch! Gonna need some aloe vera for that burn!" said Tristan, and Kaiba chuckled along with the rest of them. "Yeah! Got him again!"

"I hate to admit it, but she's right." slurred Duke. "I'm nearing my limit, so let's end it with this round. Never have I ever been in a relationship."

No one drank to that one, and Joey said, "No taker's penalty!"

"Aw, dang it." said Duke before emptying his cup, burping loudly and holding his stomach as he winced and groaned from too much intake. "Ugh...Tristan, please say something that I've never done before. I can't take much more of this..."

"Alright. How about, never have I ever done it?" asked Tristan.

"Tristan!" Everyone cried in unison, and even Kaiba's stoic facade cracked on that one as his eyes widened.

"Geez, I can't believe you went there!" said Yugi, his eyes huge.

"What? Duke said to say something he's never done!" said Tristan defensively.

"Yes, but still, there are ladies present!" said Bakura, looking shocked.

"Yeah, my li'l sista included!" added Joey with a disapproving glare.

"In case you forgot, Serenity's the one who first mentioned porn! That's pretty much the same thing!" said Tristan. "I figured it would be another No Takers...and by the looks of it, I was right!" he added before emptying his cup.

Kaiba shook away his surprise, silently relieved at the response. "Wow, alright then." he said, still shocked. "Never have I ever been in handcuffs."

"Like, getting arrested or-...?" started Mai with a mischievous glint in her eye.

"Alright already! My sista's still here, ya know!" shouted Joey with his hands over Serenity's ears again as she blinked innocently at Mai's unfinished question.

"Well, the last one was No Takers, so I'm pretty sure he means arrested." said Tristan. Once more, no one drank, so Kaiba emptied his cup.

"Wait! Liar's penalty!" said Serenity, pointing to Mai. "Remember your duel with Marik on the blimp during Battle City? You were cuffed to that giant stone!"

"Ugh! Did you have to remind me?!" groaned Mai, and she took a double shot, shuddering at the memory.

"Well, in that case, speaking of duels we'd rather forget..." said Tristan, and proceeded to point at Yugi, Joey, and Téa in turn. "You three are Liar's Penalties, too."

"Me an' Yuge were in foot cuffs, not handcuffs!" argued Joey, and Yugi nodded agreement.

Tristan glanced over at Kaiba, who shrugged and said, "To his point, I did say handcuffs."

"See?!" said Joey.

Téa sighed, saying, "Well, that still leaves me, so..." She held out her cup for the double shot.

Duke suddenly stood up and grabbed the empty gin bottle. "Alright! I vote for a classic to end the night!" he said, placing the bottle on its side on a rock in the middle of the campsite.

"Really, Duke? Spin the bottle?" asked Tristan incredulously. "You must be really smashed if you think that's gonna happen."

"No way! Not wit' my sista here!" Joey snarled at Duke, and Tristan indicated to Joey with his upturned hand as if emphasizing his point. "I see wha'chyer up to, pal!"

"Oh come on, man, just one round!" pleaded the slurring Duke. "One spin per person, that's it!"

"Devlin, you do realize there's six guys and only three girls, right?" asked Kaiba with a smirk. "Evidently you also failed statistics along with English literature."

"Uuuuuh..." droned Duke, now realizing his error as he looked around, the girls giggling.

"Hah! Yer right, Kaiba!" said Joey, snickering gleefully. "Alright den fine, Duke, we'll do it! Serves ya right if ya land on a dude!"

Duke let out a short, nervous laugh. "Re-spins?" he asked weakly.

"Nope! Gotta kiss da one it lands on! No take-backsies!" said Joey with a huge grin.

"I'll stay out of this one." said Kaiba, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms, an amused smirk on his face as he prepared to watch the hilarity ensue.

"Oh no ya don't, wise guy!" said Joey, pointing angrily at him. "Everyone participates! Ya eitha gotta spin or ya gotta accept yer fate if da bottle lands on ya! D'ose're da rules!"

"I'll do the latter, then." said Kaiba, shrugging. "At that point, there's only a one in nine chance it'll land on me. I don't know about Fate, but I know those are pretty good odds I won't have to swap saliva with another guy."

The girls giggled again, and the guys looked at each other uneasily. "Alright, Duke, you asked fer it, so you go first!" said Joey, and Duke gulped, but grabbed the bottle and gave it a spin. The bottle twirled around for a bit before slowing, and the mouth of the bottle slowly ground to a halt, pointing at Tristan.

"WHAT?!" said Tristan, cringing away from the bottle. "YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!"

"DANG IT!" said Duke, pounding his head with his fists, and the others burst into laughter.

"Come on, Kaiba, you gotta admit Fate has a sense of humor." said Yugi to Kaiba, who shook his head with a smirk on his face.

"Alright guys, let's see da smooch!" said Joey, snickering like a school kid.

Duke and Tristan sidled stiffly next to each other, their lips pressed firmly shut as they leaned forward and lightly pecked the other's mouth before jumping apart and spitting on the ground, wiping their mouths. The others were in stitches.

"Alright, my turn!" said Joey, jumping up.

"Three guesses on who he wants it to land on." Téa whispered sarcastically to Yugi, who chuckled knowingly and nodded.

Joey gave them both a look before twisting the bottle back a bit and spinning it with a flourish, and it whirled around and around rapidly. The bottle slowed to a stop and landed, once again, on Tristan. "Aw, COME ON!" yelled Joey, and the others started laughing again. Kaiba closed his eyes and pressed his lips together, as if he was trying not to let a laugh bust out of him.

"Nice!" said Duke, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Dude, this thing must be broken!" said Tristan, staring in disbelief at the bottle. "Come on, re-spin! I don't wanna end up kissing everybody!"

"Nope, Joey said no re-spins." said Mai, the girls giggling. Joey and Tristan grumbled, then stiffly touched mouths before turning away and sticking out their tongues with noises of disgust.

"Brings a whole new meaning to the word bro-mance." said Bakura with a chuckle, receiving withering looks from Joey and Tristan. Bakura smiled and waved apologetically at them.

"Alright wise guy, let's see yer spin!" snapped Joey.

"Okay." said Bakura, and he walked towards the bottle and gave it a twirl. The bottle spun quickly until it landed on Mai. "Oh dear." said Bakura, blushing darkly.

"Aw, lucky you!" said Mai, beaming at Bakura as Joey glared daggers at him. "Come here, handsome!" Mai lifted Bakura up by the collar of his sweater and planted a firm kiss on his lips, releasing with a loud smack. Bakura dropped back to the ground, his eyes huge and his entire face a beacon of red in the dark as his lips shimmered with Mai's lip gloss.

"Well, I guess you can't say never have I ever to that anymore, Bakura." said Yugi with a grin, and Bakura laughed nervously, still glowing like a fire hydrant.

"Lucky jerk..." muttered Joey, still glaring at Bakura from under his mess of dirty blond hair.

"Alright, let's give the guys a break. My turn." said Mai as she spun the bottle. Joey, Tristan and Duke looked eagerly on at the bottle, silently praying, but it stopped on Serenity.

"Seriously?!" said Joey, looking downcast.

"Aw, you sound so disappointed." said Mai with a wink. "Well unlike you guys, I don't mind showing some love to my lady friends. C'mere, Serenity. Gimme some sugar." She pulled Serenity towards her and kissed her with a smack and a loud, "Muah!" and Serenity pulled away in a fit of giggles, holding her pink cheeks.

"Let me try!" she said, and she spun the bottle. This time only Tristan and Duke watched the bottle eagerly before it landed on Joey.

"Aaaaaw, yay! I got my brother!" said Serenity, giggling at her brother's annoyed look.

"Eh, whateva. It's betta dan kissin' Tristan." said Joey, letting his sister kiss him.

"Just look at it this way, bud: you kissed Mai by proxy." said Tristan, and Joey grinned.

"Whatever." said Mai. "Let's see your spin, Tristan."

"Alright." he said, leaning forward and spinning the bottle. "Come ooooon, Lady Luck! No more guys. Give me a girl." chanted Tristan, clenching his fists eagerly. The bottle slowed and pointed to Serenity, and Tristan sprung up from his seat on a rock and pumped his fist in the air, shouting, "YES! JACKPOT, BABY!"

"Cool it, would'jya?!" said Joey, the vein ticking in his forehead, and Duke looked morbid. "Be respectful wit' my sista!"

"Of course." said Tristan, and he walked forward and placed a gentle hand under Serenity's chin, turning her face up before planting a chaste kiss on her lips. Mai and Téa let out a simultaneous "Oooooh!" before bursting into giggles, and Serenity pulled away, holding her cheeks to hide her blush and giggling as well. Tristan looked to be in seventh heaven, swaying before he dropping back down to his seat on his rock.

"I can die happy now." he said dreamily, his cheeks glowing as he looked smugly over at Duke, who sat with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face as he glared jealously at Tristan.

"Doesn't this mean you kissed Joey again by proxy?" he grumbled, and Joey and Tristan both shot him a look.

"Just means I kissed Mai by proxy, too!" Tristan shot back. "That's two girls for me. How are you doing?" Duke's scowl deepened in response.

"You're up, Téa." said Yugi, and Téa nodded and stood. She walked to the bottle and laid her hand on it, spinning it with a twist of her hand.

"Nice spin!" said Tristan as the bottle whistled slightly, twirling like a top. It took almost a solid minute for the bottle to start slowing, and everyone watched as the spinning nozzle came back into focus. The bottle made one final slow twirl before halting, pointing towards the overhang.

Téa's eyes were huge. Everyone made noises of astonishment. Kaiba blinked and looked up, staring at the nozzle of the bottle, which was pointing straight at him.

"Hah!" exclaimed Joey suddenly. "Looks like it's time to accept yer fate, Kaiba!"

Kaiba scowled, a bead of sweat on his forehead. Téa's cheeks were pink and she gazed over at him, rooted to the spot. "Well go on, hun!" said Mai teasingly to Téa. "Don't keep us waiting!"

Téa took a deep breath to steady her nerves before walking towards Kaiba, and she saw him swallow as she approached, giving away his own nervous tension. She lowered herself beside Kaiba, giving him an apologetic glance before riveting her eyes onto his jaw. She placed her hands on either side of Kaiba's face, and Téa felt him stiffen under her touch. He had to relax just enough to allow Téa to move his rigid jaw, turning his face gently up towards hers. Téa took another deep breath before leaning in, her hair falling like a curtain.

Kaiba blinked as he felt Téa's thumb slide over his mouth, out of sight from the others. He quickly closed his eyes to prevent his gaze from flitting towards their mouths and giving away Téa's trick, pretending not to notice. Mai cocked her head to the side, her brows slightly knitted together as she hummed inquisitively, but said nothing. Téa made a quiet smacking noise with her lips against her nail before sliding her thumb back to the side of Kaiba's face and pulling hers away. Kaiba opened his eyes and gazed up at Téa, a strange look in his dark blue eyes as he regarded her for a moment before catching himself and turning his eyes away.

"See, dat wasn't so bad, was it?" said Joey with a grin, and Téa blushed and returned to her spot near the fire. "Consider yerself lucky, Kaiba. Yer one a' de only three guys who got a girl."

"Not so. Yugi hasn't spun yet." said Bakura, and Téa was given a perfect excuse to turn her attention to something other than Kaiba, feeling his eyes on her once more.

"Alright. Here goes." said Yugi, leaning forward and giving the bottle its final spin. The bottle halted on Serenity, and she giggled as Yugi blushed.

"Aw, Yugi!" she said, leaning forward and kissing him.

Joey sighed. "Whateva, it's Yuge." he said, and Yugi smiled sheepishly.

"Alright, we're done here. Let's turn in for the night." said Mai, her eyes on Téa. "Us gals are gonna go hit the shower. And don't anyone think of following us! I brought pepper spray and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Téa pulled a mesh travel container with her shampoo, conditioner and body wash out of her bag. She avoided glancing over at Kaiba as she led Mai and Serenity down the beach, around the corner and out of sight from the guys. They trekked for a bit until they came to a rocky watering hole, over which the river made a seven foot waterfall, perfect for them to stand under.

"I'll stand guard first, in case they try to use binoculars or something to try and peek." said Mai, crossing her arms and keeping her eyes towards the campsite.

"Good idea." said Serenity, standing next to her as Téa stripped and stood under the waterfall.

"By the way..." said Mai slowly, glancing behind her as Téa began to shampoo her hair. "What was with the stage kiss with Kaiba earlier?"

"Huh?" said Téa, pretending to not hear Mai over the waterfall.

"Don't play dumb with me! I saw your thumb over his mouth." said Mai. "You thought you were slick using your hand on the opposite side and hiding it with your hair, but I saw it."

"Wait, you didn't actually kiss Kaiba?" asked Serenity, her inquiring eyes on Téa. "Why?"

"He looked uncomfortable." said Téa, blushing as she scrubbed her scalp. "Plus he didn't want to play in the first place."

"Since when were you so considerate of Seto Kaiba's comfort?" asked Mai as Téa rinsed the shampoo out of her hair.

"He's just now coming out of his shell and going out places after his brother passed away, Mai." said Téa, squeezing her body wash into her loofah and starting to wash the rest of her body. "I didn't want him to regret coming on this trip."

"You think he'd regret kissing you?" asked Mai, and Téa looked at the ground and shrugged.

"I think he wouldn't have minded." said Serenity as Téa rinsed off. "He likes you, Téa."

"How do you know that?" asked Téa, stepping out from under the waterfall and grabbing a towel, sitting on a rock ledge nearby.

"I just know." said Serenity confidently as Mai stripped and entered the waterfall next. "I'm good at reading people and deciphering their emotions. Kaiba always looks at you with gentle eyes, not that hard, mean expression he usually has."

"I didn't really notice..." said Téa, looking pensive as she sprayed a leave-in conditioner in her hair and combed out the knots with a double-toothed, detangling comb.

"I do." said Serenity with her characteristic smile, her eyes closed with a cheerful expression. "Trust me, Kaiba likes you, Téa. He likes Tristan, too, but in a buddy-buddy kinda way."

"Tristan's the only one who's never given him any crap, and was even protective of him and Mokuba." Téa reminded her, recalling the times Tristan rescued Mokuba's soul-less body from Pegasus' castle as well as the time Tristan had stopped his own body taken over by Nesbitt from harming Kaiba in the virtual world. "Of course he gets along with Tristan."

"If we're going by the logic of never giving him any crap, then Kaiba should hate you." said Mai, leaning her head back into the waterfall and massaging shampoo into her long blonde locks.

"I meant the only one of the guys!" huffed Téa. "Kaiba would never give any lip to a girl!"

"Maybe he would have if you had let him." said Mai with a broad wink, and Serenity clapped her hand to her mouth to stifle her fit of giggles. Téa groaned, hiding her reddening face in her palm.

The girls made their way back to the campsite, now dressed in their sleeping clothes, towing their dirty laundry in a mesh bag. The guys were already snoring away or just starting to fall asleep. They entered their tent and settled into their sleeping bags. Téa looked up through the clear plastic roof of their tent, gazing at the twinkling stars until she felt her eyelids grow heavy on her, and she drifted off into a deep slumber under the cover of night.

From his makeshift shelter overhead, Kaiba gazed up at the same night sky, his hands behind his head and his long legs crossed over one another. He closed his eyes, breathing in the crisp air as the warm summer wind rustled his hair, lulling him to sleep.