Okay, finally...the second half of the previous chapter. My apologies that it took longer than expected. Hope you guys enjoy!

-Azure Eyes Silver Dragon

Téa awoke the next morning before either Mai or Serenity, easing herself carefully out of the air mattress so it didn't squeak loudly and wake them. She tiptoed out of the room, suppressing a cough and closing the door quickly as the smell of burning food reached her nose. Téa made her way down the hall, almost bumping into Yugi as he came flying out of the guest room, appearing to check on the smoky smell, and the two of them hurried to the kitchen to see Joey cranking open a window over the sink, using a newspaper to fan the smoke out of the house.

"Oof, you do know the fire alarm isn't supposed to be used as an egg timer, right Joey?" joked Yugi, fanning his hand in front of his nose as Téa slipped into a bar stool at the wrap-around counter that circled the kitchen.

"Yer a real comedian, Yuge." grumbled Joey, snapping on the draw fan over the stove before scraping the browned omelet with peppers out of a frying pan and onto a plate. Téa watched as he lined up a two half slabs of fried kielbasa onto the omelet before plopping a few dollops of nacho cheese onto it and shaking a generous amount of garlic salt over that.

"Eugh...where do you come up with this stuff?" she asked, pulling a face at Joey's creation.

"Ey! Don't knock it til ya try it!" said Joey, folding the omelet like a taco.

"I'd rather not." replied Téa disgustedly as she watched him take a huge bite out of his food, getting nacho cheese on both sides of his mouth. He looked up at her and muffled something through his mouthful, and Téa sighed, saying, "I don't speak Joey-with-his-mouth-full."

Joey tilted his head back as he gulped loudly, but Yugi answered for him first, saying, "He said, so where did you take a midnight stroll to?"

Téa felt her insides do an uncomfortable flip. "You saw me leave?" she asked Joey.

"Naw, I went to da John in da middle o' de night an' saw da back-door unlocked, an' I never leave nuthin' unlocked at night, not even a window." explained Joey, wiping his mouth with a thumb. "I was gettin' ready ta go lookin' fer de sorry weasel dat broke inta my house when suddenly you come waltzin' back in all la-dee-da." Joey narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously. "What were ya doin' wanderin' outside in d'ose skimpy clothes in da middle o' de night anyway? Ya coulda been jumped by one o' de good-fer-nuthin's dat own da streets at night."

Téa felt her face grow hot, both from anger and embarrassment and because she knew Joey was right. She couldn't argue with an ex-street kid, after all. He knew the slums better than anybody. "I was just walking around the yard getting some fresh air, that's all." she lied, leaning her head back and fixing her ponytail so Joey did see that her hands were shaking. Yugi, however, was staring over at Téa, a suspicious look in his dark eyes.

"Well, yer lucky dat nobody was hidin' in da bushes ready ta pounce on ya. " said Joey, who was too busy chastising her to notice his best friend had lied so cleanly to him. "You'da been outta luck, what wit' us not knowin' where you were an' all."

Téa rolled her eyes, saying, "Yes, father."

"Ey, I'm just lookin' out fer ya, alright?" said Joey, taking a swig of orange ramune. "If sumthin' happened ta ya while ya were stayin' unda my roof, I'd neva fuh-give myself."

Téa gave him a warm smile, her blue eyes twinkling. Joey had so much big brother energy that he often extended it to the rest of the group. "Okay, fine. Fair enough." she said, conceding.

Yugi decided it would be a good idea to change the subject before Joey started probing Téa more, asking, "So do you have any breakfast food that isn't...um..." He nodded to Joey's creation in his hand, saying, "...that?"

"Eh? Oh, right! Uh, lemme see...we got bananas an' pears dere on da counta..." said Joey, opening the fridge and sticking his head in it. "Serenity's got sum'a dese drinkable yogurt things, hard-boiled eggs, cheese sticks..." As he listed everything, he also pulled it out of the fridge and tossed it onto the counter for Téa and Yugi. Joey pulled a good-sized sphere out of the fridge, giving it a look and saying, "Whateva dis thing is..."

"That would be a honeydew melon." said Téa, holding out her hands for it, and she and Yugi both suppressed a smile at Joey's lack of healthy food knowledge.

"Yeah, dat..." said Joey, handing it to her and sticking his head back in the fridge.

At that moment, Serenity walked out into the kitchen with Mai, who stared at the heap of food Joey was piling onto the counter, saying, "Joey, you know Téa isn't going to eat all of that, right? Dancers don't eat a whole lot."

"Naw, I know Tay won't eat all dat. But Yuge's a growin' boy, right buddy?" asked Joey.

"Sure, Joey." said Yugi uncomfortably, breaking open a yogurt bottle and gulping it down.

"He's just being a very gracious host and giving us a nice selection." Téa told Mai with a giggle, and Joey beamed happily at her.

Serenity opened a drawer and took out a large knife and a melon scooper, bringing out some blueberries, grapes and maraschino cherries from the fridge and handing those to her along with the pears from the counter, and the girls set to work making a fruit salad.

A few moments later, Tristan and Bakura suddenly walked through the front door, and Joey looked up as if expecting them, asking, "Did'jya guys see anyone hangin' 'round da block, T?"

"Nope, all clear." said Tristan, tossing his motorcycle helmet on the couch. "I circled the block and went out a few more, but we didn't see any suspicious ladies sitting in a white car."

Téa almost choked on her yogurt, gulping it down loudly as she suddenly remembered Claire. "Oh, I don't think we have to worry about her." assured Téa with a nervous laugh. "I mean, if she wanted to steal our stuff or kidnap us, she would have done it in the garage at the mall."

"I guess so." agreed Serenity. "Maybe we were just being paranoid."

"Hm...maybe..." said Mai, glancing over at Téa, who had a feeling the tall blonde suspected that Téa knew something they didn't, but Mai said nothing.

Téa averted her eyes from Mai's scrutinizing look by taking out her phone and opening her recent contacts logs, suddenly remembering her call with Kaiba last night. To her upmost disappointment, the number still showed up as no caller ID and with no call-back number. Téa felt a strange fluttering in her stomach as she realized that must have been Kaiba's personal cell phone he had called her on, as the KaibaCorp main line was open to the public. She hadn't even thought of asking him for his number so they could maintain a line of contact, but then again, she wasn't sure if Kaiba trusted her that much yet.

"Whatchya lookin' at, Téa?" asked Joey suddenly, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Oh nothing. I thought I had a missed call." said Téa, closing her contacts and putting her phone back in her pocket. She was amazed at herself (and felt slightly guilty) for how cleanly she had lied to Joey twice now.

At that moment, Duke came walking out of the guest room, yawning hugely and stretching his arms over his head. "Sorry I overslept." he said through his yawn. "Healing these hands really takes it out of me. What did I miss?"

"Nothing much." said Bakura, sliding onto the barstool next to Téa. "I helped to be Tristan's eyes looking out for that lady, but she doesn't appear to be around anymore."

"Well, looks like I didn't miss breakfast." said Duke, noting the heaping pile of food on the counter. "Which is good, cuz I'm starving!"

The eight of them made quick work of the contents of Joey's fridge and the fruit salad the girls had made. Duke leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach, saying, "Phew! That was great! My compliments to the host and hostess!"

"And to Téa and Mai for helping to make the fruit salad!" added Serenity, winking at the girls.

"Yes, that was quite scrumptious!" agreed Bakura, popping the last piece of fruit in his mouth.

Tristan smothered a burp with his fist before rising from the table, saying, "Well, I should head off to the factory before my dad calls and breaks the sound barrier." The others let out laughs, knowing all too well Tristan's hard of hearing father could be heard throughout a household if he called Tristan's phone. "Anybody need a lift home?"

"I'll go." said Bakura, rising from the table. "My mother doesn't like to be left home alone for too long."

"Aren't you such a momma's boy." teased Duke, punching his shoulder lightly, and Bakura rubbed his arm and looked sheepish. "How about it, Téa? You need a ride home?"

Téa looked mildly uncomfortable, so Yugi popped in, saying, "Could I take you up on that offer, Duke? It's a long walk to the Game Shop from Joey's house."

"Absolutely." said Duke, who didn't appear to notice Téa's discomfort or her grateful glance towards Yugi.

"Mai, are ya gonna be alright drivin' home by yerself or ya want me ta come wit'chya?" asked Joey.

"How are you supposed to get back?" asked Mai incredulously.

"I'll walk, o' course." said Joey, shrugging. "Anybody messes wit' me an' dey're gonna meet da business end o' my fist."

"That's gonna be quite a hike for you; I live in the inner city square!" retorted Mai.

"Oooh, fancy." said Serenity. The inner city square was where the high-end condos were.

"Eeeh...okay, maybe I'll take da bus back, den." said Joey uncomfortably.

The group bid their farewells and thanked Joey and Serenity for their hospitality. Téa watched Tristan and Bakura ride away on Tristan's motorcycle before sliding into the back seat of Duke's car with Yugi. Duke drove them to Téa's apartment, dropping both of them off before driving away, waving a hand out the window in farewell.

"I'm glad that lady wasn't around to stalk us." said Yugi as Téa fished her keys out of her purse. "I guess she saw all those vehicles at Joey's house and thought it best not to try to break into a house with that many occupants."

"Yeah, probably." said Téa absent-mindedly, opening her door before turning to Yugi, saying, "I guess I'll see you around."

"Oh." said Yugi, looking surprised. "Uh, sure. I'll see you around."

Téa felt like hitting herself. She always sat and talked with Yugi for a few moments while they drank ramune together. They had been friends since elementary school after all. "Uh...I mean...that is, only if you needed to get back to grandpa right away..." she corrected quickly. "Otherwise, of course you're welcome to stay for a bit!"

Yugi blinked at her sudden nervousness. "Well, it's Friday, so the shop closes earlier than normal." he said. "I think grandpa will be okay by himself."

"Right! Of course! I forgot what day it is already!" said Téa, rubbing the back of her head. "Time sure flies, doesn't it? In that case, shall we have some ramune?"

"Sure, Téa." said Yugi, and Téa turned quickly and led him into her apartment before he could scrutinize her further. She turned into the small kitchen area and opened her fridge for the ramunes while Yugi seated himself at the tiny booth table. "By the way, are you feeling alright, Téa?" Yugi asked her suddenly. "You seem a little...skittish."

"Skittish? Me? What makes you think that?" asked Téa, picking her head up too quick and bumping it against the top of the open fridge, and she rubbed her head before closing the door.

Yugi raised both of his eyebrows at her. "Call it a hunch." he said, accepting the ramune from her before she seated herself on the opposite side of the booth table. "Are you still spooked from that lady that followed you last night or something?"

"Uh...yeah, I suppose so." said Téa, quickly picking up on Yugi's suggestion, busying herself with her ramune bottle. "It was a bit of a scare at first."

"At first?" repeated Yugi. "And now it isn't?"

Téa startled herself as the ramune ball snapped into the hollow opening, letting out a nervous giggle and saying, "Well, I mean, because she didn't actually stick around, right?"

"Right..." said Yugi, watching her closely as he took a sip of ramune.

Téa shifted uncomfortably. She felt like she was lying to a deity with those unwavering dark eyes of Yugi's. Perhaps that was left over from his time sharing a mind with Atem. The pharaoh was, after all, considered equal to the Gods to the Egyptians. Even without Atem's influence, Yugi had grown in his confidence and observational skills, especially with regards to his closest friends.

Téa sighed, conceding to Yugi's interrogating gaze, and said, "Okay, I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to say a word to the others. I really shouldn't even be telling you."

Yugi inclined his head, noting the seriousness in her tone, and Téa launched into the details of what had transpired the night before with Claire and Kaiba, leaving out the part where she was supposed to meet him this evening.

"So that lady that was following you, Mai and Serenity around the mall..." said Yugi when Téa had finished the story. "She was actually a guard sent by Kaiba to protect you? And you say he gave the rest of us our own guards as well?"

"Well, I don't know if he gave us all guards." admitted Téa, feeling a lot less jittery now that she had unloaded her thoughts upon Yugi. "It might draw too much attention to our group."

"Maybe." said Yugi pensively. "Gosh, I didn't think Kaiba would ever want to expend that level of resources on us. I guess he really does care."

Téa smiled softly, turning the ramune bottle in her hands so the little glass ball inside rolled around the edges, and said, "He really does. He said so himself."

Yugi looked up at her, noting her soft tone, and said, "You mean when you went to return his thermos to him yesterday morning?"

"Yeah..." said Téa, still looking dreamy-eyed at her ramune bottle.

Yugi waited a moment, but Téa didn't say anything further. "Téa, you've been acting kind of strange since the camping trip." he said suddenly.

"Strange?" asked Téa, looking up from her bottle. "What do you mean, strange?"

"I mean, you usually focus on the here and now, but lately you seem to be...distracted." said Yugi, watching her carefully. "That and Joey said the girls rescheduled the shopping trip to yesterday because you didn't go with them before."

Téa blinked out of her trance. "I was busy." she insisted, feeling herself color.

"Too busy to go shopping? That's really unlike you." said Yugi. "You'd drop everything for a good clearance sale, especially at the mall."

Téa let out a weak giggle, realizing Yugi was still watching her carefully. She cleared her throat, saying, "I'm sorry, Yugi, I've just been doing other things."

Yugi's face suddenly took on a solemn look, saying, "Téa, you've been my friend since we were little kids. You know you can tell me anything, right?"

"Yes, of course!" said Téa quickly. "It's just...well..."

Yugi's face shifted from somber to inquisitive as Téa's eyes lowered to her bottle again. "Téa, has there been something going on between you and Kaiba?" he asked suddenly.

Téa felt her face grow warm. "Um...maybe?" she said, shrugging.

"Maybe?" asked Yugi, his brow furrowing. "As in, you're not sure?"

Téa let out a sigh, once again conceding to Yugi, but this time she gave just the barest overview of her trip to the space station with Kaiba, leaving out the intimate details.

"Huh..." said Yugi, admiring the picture of Saturn that she had retrieved from her room to show him. "Well, that sounds like it was quite the experience. I'm kind of envious myself. I sure would love a first-hand look at outer space."

Téa let out a soft noise of amusement, watching as Yugi carefully placed the photo on the table. "Do you..." started Téa, suddenly nervous. "...do you think Kaiba is...um...trying to be more..."

Yugi looked up at Téa, noting the hopeful look in her eyes. "Receptive?" suggested Yugi. "Absolutely. You know Kaiba always used to keep to himself and didn't trust anyone but his brother. I think with Mokuba gone, he's beginning to feel like he needs to hold on to the people he still has in life and is no longer pushing everyone away."

"Oh..." said Téa, her face falling a bit as she lowered her eyes to the picture of Saturn. "...right."

Yugi looked from the picture of Saturn to the look on Téa's face. The pieces seemed to be coming together for him. "I'm sure Kaiba wants to be closer, Téa, he's just...hesitating." he said assuredly. "He may not be sure of himself."

"What do you mean?" asked Téa, now intrigued.

"I mean, Kaiba's been keeping up a very good facade for a very long time, making it look like he didn't need anyone in his life, maybe even convincing himself of that as well." explained Yugi. "It started with Atem's Mind Crush, and then when Mokuba died, I think more of the walls came crashing down on him. Kaiba's spent most of his life hiding behind those walls, and now that the fortress is gone, I think he realized he really didn't need to defend himself so heavily in the first place. But he's defended himself for so long that he doesn't know how to walk unguarded."

"Oh." said Téa, looking pensive and feeling a little relieved. "That makes sense."

"You've always had a way with him, Téa." Yugi said suddenly. "All those times you bravely stood up to him and pointed out when he was being too caustic...when everyone else cowered in his wake and didn't dare to question him...it's like you knew exactly how to cut clean though his defenses. Kaiba always appeared to respect you for that." Yugi gave her a knowing smile, saying, "I think he's more receptive to you in particular for that reason."

Téa let out a content hum, feeling her cheeks warming. "Yeah, I think you're probably right." she agreed. She was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Yugi, can I ask you something and you be completely honest with me?"

"Of course, Téa." he replied, sounding surprised.

"If something does happen between me and Kaiba..." said Téa hesitantly, playing with her hair. "...would you be okay with it?"

"Absolutely!" said Yugi. "You certainly don't need my approval or anyone else's, Téa."

"I'm not so sure about that." said Téa, recalling Joey's biting remarks about Kaiba.

"I'm sure the others will come around eventually." assured Yugi. "Don't worry about what the others think. Just do what makes you happy, Téa."

Téa gave him a warm smile, saying, "Thanks, Yugi. You really are a great friend."

"That's what I'm here for." said Yugi, smiling cheerfully as he held out his ramune bottle towards her. "Through thick and thin, no matter what!"

Téa giggled and clinked her bottle against his, saying, "Right."

The two of them talked for the entire length of the afternoon, about everything from Yugi's recent game development ideas to Téa's future plans when she returned to New York for her last year of college and everything in between concerning the rest of the group. Her heart warmed when Yugi told her of how close Serenity and Mai had become in the recent week, to the point where they were almost like sisters. She was sure Joey was pleased to see his little sister getting along fantastically with the woman who had been on his mind and in his heart for so many years.

"Uh-oh, it's getting close to dinner time for grandpa." said Yugi as he glanced up at the waving cat clock mounted on Téa's kitchen wall, its tail ticking back and forth to the seconds. "I should start heading back. He doesn't like to eat alone these days."

Téa also looked up at the clock, her stomach doing a flip as she realized it was half past three. "Oh wow! Time really does fly!" she said, realizing Kaiba would most likely be here in the next fifteen minutes. "Well, I guess you'd better get going. Don't want to leave grandpa waiting!"

"Right." agreed Yugi, emptying the rest of his ramune and taking Téa's empty bottle. "I'll throw these in your recycling bin for you."

"Thanks, Yugi." said Téa, giving him a warm smile. "I'll see you around!"

"See ya, Téa!" replied Yugi as he exited her apartment, placing the empty bottles gently in her recycling bin so the glass didn't break.

Téa waited until she heard his footsteps leave the porch before she raced up to her room. She didn't have a chance to take a shower at Joey's house, so she quickly spritzed her hair with dry shampoo and put on some deodorant, flipping her head forward and fluffing her hair quickly with a bit of leave-in styling conditioner. She also threw on a more appropriate button-down cap-sleeve shirt over her lace-trimmed tank top and switched out her jean shorts for a mini skirt with black leotards. She heard the sound of a car pulling up alongside the curb, and Téa raced down the stairs, hopping from one foot to the other as she slipped on some ballet flats before slipping through the door and locking it behind her. Téa skipped down her stairs, and the automatic door on the car had barely opened all the way before she slipped into the passenger seat, flashing a dazzling smile at the strapping young CEO in the driver's seat. "You're as punctual as ever, Mr. Kaiba." she said teasingly.

Kaiba let out a rumble of amusement before pressing the button on the dash that closed the automatic door, saying, "You're in better spirits, I see."

"I generally am when I know I'm not being stalked by random strangers." replied Téa evenly, buckling her seatbelt as Kaiba drove away from the curb.

"Try having people stalk you every waking minute some time." suggested Kaiba, who appeared to be glancing around as if looking for certain persons as he said so.

"Oh, is that why you're always in such dour spirits?" teased Téa, nudging against his arm.

Kaiba chuckled. "Yeah, something like that." he said.

Téa let out an amused hum as they turned into an intersection, which reminded her of the chase by the white car the other afternoon. "So is Claire still my guard?" she asked.

"One of them." affirmed Kaiba simply.

Téa's eyes widened a bit. She really didn't expect to have more than one guard, and her heart warmed at the thought of Kaiba further extending his resources for her. "Do I get to know any of the others?" she asked hopefully.

"No." replied Kaiba firmly. "It's bad enough that you recognized Claire. I'm technically breaking operational security letting her remain on your guard. I could be putting both you and Claire in danger if anyone was there to witness the events of last night."

Téa felt a queasy feeling in her stomach, realizing the seriousness in Kaiba's tone. "Can I at least know whether or not there's a man that should be following me around?" she asked.

Kaiba was silent for a moment, deliberating. "Yes, there is." he answered.

Téa bit her lip and tried pressing her luck. "Can I know his name?" she asked.

"No." said Kaiba. "He has a regular presence at KaibaCorp. You might run into him while you're visiting and recognize him out in the field."

"It's not Roland or Fuguta, is it?" asked Téa.

"Of course not. I wouldn't make my two heads of security into field officers." replied Kaiba.

"Aren't they your guards?" asked Téa.

"Not in the traditional sense." said Kaiba. "I have other guards that are still in the prime of their military disciplines that are better suited than either of them. That's not to say they can't still wield firearms, but you won't see Roland going one-on-one unless he absolutely has to."

"He can't be that old." said Téa incredulously.

"He is for a personal security guard." said Kaiba. "Most of them retire in their mid-thirties, and Roland's well past that mark. Fuguta isn't too far behind, either. I can defend myself better than either Roland or Fuguta would be able to."

"Is that your excuse for sneaking away from your guards all the time?" said Téa with a smile.

"That and I don't like to be watched like a vulture's prey twenty-four seven." said Kaiba.

Téa let out a hum of amusement, saying, "I can see where Mokuba got that same thought from."

Kaiba's mouth became a thin line, but he knew Téa was absolutely right. Mokuba was notorious for sneaking away from his guards all the time. The kid loved his freedom, and now the shoe was on the other foot with Kaiba having acquired all of his brother's guards in the wake of his death. He suddenly realized that this lack of a private life, not being able to go out and have fun whenever he wanted without being scrutinized as he did so, was exactly why Mokuba had been the troublesome little kid that he was.

They drove around to the side entrance of KaibaCorp, where Kaiba scanned his shirt cuff before the hidden glass doors slid open for him and admitted them into the car garage. He backed into the parking space between his blue car and Mokuba's grey one before cutting off the ignition, and Téa followed him into the elevator. Kaiba hit the LL2 button, and Téa felt them rise only a few floors before the elevator dinged and admitted them to a floor that looked like a small cafeteria with a bar and concession stand on a side wall, a giant pair of double doors up ahead.

"The auditorium is primarily used as a movie theatre for the staff." explained Kaiba, noting Téa's look at the gigantic popcorn machine, beverage dispenser, and wide selection of candy in display cases behind the bar.

"Oh." said Téa. "...so what you're saying is, Mokuba lived down here."

Kaiba chuckled. Apparently his brother's proclivity for being a movie buff was well known even outside the walls of KaibaCorp. "Essentially, yes." he replied.

"Do you ever watch anything down here?" asked Téa.

Kaiba pressed a few buttons on a panel set into the wall near the double doors as he answered her, saying, "Sometimes. I'm more of a reader than a movie watcher. I mostly just use it to practice my public speaking these days." He laid a hand on the door bar, looking over at her and saying, "Ready?"

Téa blinked, but shrugged, saying, "As ready as I'll ever be."

Kaiba pushed open the door and indicated inside with his hand, saying, "After you."

Téa walked through the double doors, and she had barely taken a few steps inside when she suddenly ground to halt, her heart in her throat. The sound of people murmuring in undertones had reached her ears, and she watched as hundreds of eyes turned to look at her from the seats of an auditorium. A wave of dizziness flooded through her mind, and Téa grabbed the wall with one hand and dropped to her knees, her other hand on her stomach as she suddenly felt like she was going to be sick.

"Téa!" she heard Kaiba exclaim, and in the next moment, he was kneeling on the floor next to her, supporting her from falling over. "Téa, are you-...?"

"Kaiba, why?!" she hissed, cutting across him. "Why would you do this to me?!"

If Kaiba was taken aback, he didn't show it. "I was just trying to-..." he started.

"Trying to what!? Give me a coronary?!" Téa whispered sharply. "When I said I wanted you to help train me to not be anxious in front of people, that doesn't mean get a whole bunch of people in one room and throw me into it without warning!"

"Téa, they're not-..."

"Seriously, did Roland just push you out of the jet without a parachute when you were learning emergency aircraft evacuation?!" snapped Téa, still talking in an undertone as more onlookers turned to stare at them. "Because that's not how you teach people!"

Kaiba had to bite the side of his tongue inside his mouth to stop himself from laughing out loud at the given example. "Okay, I get it. Let's trying something different, then." he said, pulling what looked like a mini-tablet out of his inner coat pocket. He tapped his finger on the tablet, and the lights came back on in the auditorium. Téa watched, her mouth dropping open in stunned disbelief, as every single person in the audience suddenly disappeared into thin air, leaving the seats vacant and the two of them alone in a completely empty auditorium.

"That..." said Téa, her brain still registering what happened. "That was a hologram?!"

Kaiba glanced up from the tablet, his amused half-smirk flashing, as he said, "Of course it was a hologram. You didn't really think I'd throw you in front of an actual crowd, did y-..."

The acoustics of the auditorium amplified the resounding whack as Téa brought her open palm down upon Kaiba's chest, knocking the air out of his lungs before he could finish the sentence. Kaiba had to duck away from her continued assault of slaps on his arm and torso, trying desperately not to laugh as she punctuated her words with each slap.

"YOU. ARE SUCH. A JERK. SETO. KAIBA!" yelled Téa, her voice echoing in the empty auditorium. "WIPE. THAT SMIRK. OFF YOUR FACE. THAT WAS NOT. FUNNY!

"It was a little funny." admitted Kaiba softly, and he had to block Téa's hand from connecting to his head. "Okay, fine! I'm sorry!" he laughed, trying to regain his serious composure.

"You'd better be sorry!" fumed Téa. "I almost passed out!"

Kaiba's humor disappeared in an instant, and his blue eyes took on that concerned glimmer as he asked, "The nerves are really that bad for you?"

Téa hugged her legs and lowered her mouth to her knees, looking ashamed of herself as she nodded wordlessly, and Kaiba felt a twinge of guilt in the pit of his stomach.

"I'm sorry." he said again, more sincerely this time. "I had no idea. You never even broke a sweat on the dance stage at the arcade when all those people were watching."

"That was different." Téa said in a small voice that was slightly muffled by her knees. "I was having fun there. I wasn't being judged by anyone that mattered. My performance didn't determine whether I graduate or not." Téa's voice pitched into a whine at the end of her words, and she quickly covered her face with her hands, inhaling sharply and biting back the sob that threatened to burst out of her mouth.

Kaiba felt an actual jabbing sensation in his chest at the sight, and he put the tablet aside and put his hands on Téa's shoulders. "Téa, I know it probably doesn't seem that way to you, but you have absolutely nothing to be afraid of." he said. "I'm more than certain that part of the reason you're anxious is because you simply don't realize how good you are at what you do."

Téa sniffed, lowering her hands away from her eyes and folding them in front of her mouth, and her blue eyes glistened as she peered up at him and said, "Maybe you think that, Kaiba, and it's nice that you do...but the judges know what they're looking for, and they're going to be a lot more strict."

Both ends of Kaiba's mouth raised into a soft smile. "That just tells me the other reason for your nerves..." he said. "...you're scared of what others think."

"How could I not be scared of what the judges think?!" cried Téa. "They're the ones who determine whether I'm worthy to graduate or not!"

"Because you're not trying to impress the judges." said Kaiba, and Téa gave him a look like he had sprouted five heads. "Think about it, Téa. Your senior recital is supposed to display your knowledge of everything you learned from all your years at college, is it not?"

"Yeah?" said Téa.

"So if you're as bad as you seem to think you're going to be..." said Kaiba. "...then that's more of a reflection on the college you were trained at, not yourself. There's no such thing as a bad student, only a bad teacher."

"That certainly wasn't the case with Joey." murmured Téa.

"Téa, you can't possibly be comparing yourself to the same level of inadequacy as Joey Wheeler." said Kaiba incredulously.

Téa gave Kaiba a hard look, saying, "Joey isn't as stupid as you think he is, you know! He did try to pass his classes without help! His passion is just in other things, not academics."

"That's exactly what I'm trying to tell you." said Kaiba.

Téa blinked, saying, "What's exactly what you're trying to tell me?"

"That you have passion, Téa." said Kaiba. "You love dancing. It's what you've always wanted to do. You don't have to be good at it to enjoy it, but it's because you enjoy it that you're such an excellent dancer. Even I can see that it comes as naturally to you as breathing. I guarantee you that's what the judges will actually be looking for, not how good you are. They're not going to judge you on the same level as a seasoned professional when you're still in school."

Téa lowered her eyes, murmuring, "I suppose you're right."

"I know I'm right." said Kaiba. "So don't worry too much about wowing the judges. Just do your best, and I'm certain you'll have no problems getting that degree."

Téa gave him a warm smile, and she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Kaiba's middle, her voice slightly muffled into his chest as she said, "Thank you, Kaiba."

"You're welcome." said Kaiba, returning her embrace with a gentle squeeze. He was quiet for a moment, then spoke in hushed tones, as if fearing someone might actually overhear him as he said, "...and don't tell Wheeler I said this, but I can tell his passion is in Dueling, even if I usually say otherwise."

Téa slowly turned her head up to meet his eyes, hers twinkling mischievously as she said, "Seto Kaiba! Did you just admit that Joey Wheeler is actually good at Dueling?"

Kaiba let out a sigh, saying, "Yes, he is good at dueling. He's still nowhere near the same level as me or Yugi."

"Oh, oooh-kay." crooned Téa, her voice singing as she leaned heavily into Kaiba.

"I mean it, Téa." warned Kaiba, his tone serious. "I will make you sign a legit NDA."

"Oh my, you're starting to sound in earnest, Mr. Kaiba!" teased Téa. "What are you going to do if I find a loophole in such a contract?"

"I'll make you loophole your way out of this!" said Kaiba, and Téa let out a shrieking giggle as he suddenly dug his fingers into her ribs, tickling her. She tried to back away, but Kaiba grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back towards him, saying, "That's right! You can't spill any secrets when you're too busy laughing, can you?"

"Kaiba, please!" giggled Téa, grabbing his hands with her own and pulling them away.

"Tell me you won't reiterate my words to Wheeler or anyone else." commanded Kaiba.

"No promises!" giggled Téa, and she muffled her shrieking giggle into Kaiba's shoulder this time as he wriggled his hands out of hers and tickled her again. She shoved her hands against his chest, and Kaiba, caught completely off guard, lost his balance and fell backwards onto the floor. Téa tackled him and tried to hold him down by his wrists, leaning all her weight into them as Kaiba easily resisted. "Okay, truce!" cried Téa before his hands could reach her stomach again.

Kaiba's amused half-smirk flashed at their shared joke, and he dropped his hands to the ground beside him and allowed Téa to rest on top of him. She folded her arms like a pretzel and leaned her chin on her interlocked wrists, gazing at him from under her lashes as she said, "You know, this isn't exactly what I had in mind when I asked you to teach me not to be nervous."

Kaiba let out a rumble of amusement, saying, "I'll admit that introducing you to a fake crowd didn't really go as planned, but from what I see, your nerves appear to be gone now, so I guess it worked out anyway."

"True, but we also got completely off topic." said Téa.

"What can I say? You're very distracting, Miss Téa." replied Kaiba, his eyes twinkling.

"I do believe you're the one that caused the initial distraction this time around, Mr. Kaiba." Téa pointed out.

"Don't talk back to your teacher or he'll put you in detention." teased Kaiba, receiving a giggle from Téa.

"Oh, will he?" said Téa, and she leveled her blue eyes at Kaiba's, her voice becoming silky soft as she asked, "...and what sort of punishment would my teacher dish out?"

Kaiba felt a strange stirring sensation in the bit of his abdomen at those words, his blood rushing to odd places at Téa's sultry voice and the look in her eyes. Before he could give a response, Kaiba heard the sound of someone clearing their throat loudly. He and Téa looked sideways to see Roland standing in the doorway of the auditorium, and the two of them immediately jumped apart like they had been struck by lightning.

"Pardon me for interrupting, Mr. Kaiba..." said Roland, his face betraying nothing. "...but there's something that requires your immediate attention."

Kaiba forgot his embarrassment in an instant. "I'll be right back. The stage is all yours." he said to Téa, who nodded wordlessly, hiding her blush with her hair and avoiding Roland's gaze. Kaiba got to his feet and followed Roland outside the auditorium, closing the doors behind them. "This had better be life-threateningly important, Roland, not some redundancy from Kugame." warned Kaiba.

"I'm afraid it's the former, Mr. Kaiba." said Roland, his tone solemn. "I just received a report from the Tier 3 team lead: Neil was found dead this morning."

Kaiba felt a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach, similar to the one he had just felt after laughing at Tea's reaction to the fake crowd. Guilt? No, he couldn't feel guilty for the scumbag that had implied that orphans were inferior. "Dead, you say?" asked Kaiba, ignoring the feeling in his stomach. "How so?"

"A gunshot to the back of his head, where the spinal cord meets the brain." said Roland. "An instant death. And it was his prints on the gun that matched the bullet in the wound."

"So a suicide." said Kaiba, trying once again to ignore the sick feeling in his stomach.

"That's what I thought, Mr. Kaiba, but Ivan seemed to think otherwise." said Roland.

"Is that so?" said Kaiba, now intrigued. "And what exactly did Ivan think otherwise?"

"That Neil was murdered." said Roland. "If you recall, Mr. Kaiba, Ivan was a sniper in his military days. He's had many a comrade fall by that very same means of death right before his eyes."

Kaiba nodded, knowing full well that was one of the many reasons he had hired Ivan in the first place. Ivan was not only a powerhouse physically, but also psychologically. He had to be in order to be the interrogator he was, but knowing what Ivan had been through in the past assured Kaiba that his best guard wasn't an easily broken man.

"We had initially sent him to interrogate the inhabitants of the apartment building, but when he saw the scene, he insisted that the amount of blood on the floor didn't match up to the amount that should have spilled out of Neil's wound." continued Roland. "As you probably know, Mr. Kaiba, an average adult male has roughly one and a half gallons of blood in his body. The forensics team measured the amount of blood spilled, and sure enough, it was far less than that. A little less than half, to be exact, and they deduced that Neil had been lying there for two days. He would have completely emptied out by then."

"So either Neil's assailant was some sick collector of bodily fluids, or he was murdered elsewhere and brought back to his apartment to make it look like a suicide." said Kaiba, catching on. "And since the attacker didn't have much time between the gunshot and the other inhabitants of the building running to investigate it, it was probably the latter."

"Indeed, sir." said Roland. "The witnesses who were nearby said they heard the gunshot, but didn't see anyone leave the apartment. We checked camera footage in and around the apartment building, but it looks as though someone had tampered with it. Whoever they were, they knew what they were doing."

Kaiba stared at nothing in particular, racking his brain. Neil had been a high-tier security agent. Not special-ops like his own guards, but still military experienced. He would not have gone down easily, and certainly not by any run-of-the-mill burglar or vandal, who would have just dropped everything and fled like a coward. This person would've had to have been of a similar caliber, if not higher...

"Perhaps you're thinking the same thing as myself, Mr. Kaiba..." said Roland. "...but I believe Neil's assailant might be the same person who tried to crash the bus you were in during your weekend trip this last Sunday."

"They couldn't get me, so now they're trying to take out my guards." agreed Kaiba. "It could be even worse than we originally thought, Roland. If they recognized Neil, a third-tier security guard outside of KaibaCorp in plainclothes, it could very well be someone still in my employ."

"That's highly unlikely, Mr. Kaiba. I'm sure they simply saw Neil leave the building the day he was let go." assured Roland. "If that were truly the case, they would go straight for you, sir. They wouldn't have a spy idling around in KaibaCorp when they could simply force your hand while you're in arm's reach. I'm sure you remember Pegasus doing so with your brother when he attempted his takeover during Duelist Kingdom."

Kaiba's mouth became a thin line as he recalled that particular incident in history. He had left Mokuba, a defenseless sheep, to be fed to the wolves that were the Big Five and Pegasus, something he still deeply regretted to this day. How he had been so careless to be bordering on negligent at the time was beyond Kaiba. He wanted desperately to blame it on the Mind Crush, but Kaiba knew it was entirely his fault. He had trusted the Big Five not to turn on him when they had done the very same thing to Gozaburo when Kaiba had usurped his seat as head of the company. Kaiba should have seen it coming years before. "So what do you suggest?" asked Kaiba, forcing himself back to the present.

"You may be right about one thing, Mr. Kaiba, it could very well have been someone who was in KaibaCorp's employ in the past." said Roland. "I won't rule that out completely, so I'm having the Tier 2 team look into past security employee files going back the last ten years, along with any company or single entity that ever had business relations with KaibaCorp, potential or completed. I'm not forgoing the possibility that it could be someone from back when you first took the helm of KaibaCorp."

"Go back even further than that, as far back as the files allow." commanded Kaiba. "I've already had people like Alistair trying to take revenge on me for crimes my step-father committed. I'm sure he wasn't the only one who was affected by Gozaburo's weapons of war."

"Understood, Mr. Kaiba. I'll see that it's done." said Roland. "Rest assured, sir, we'll find out who is behind this and get to them before they get to you." Roland glanced sideways at the auditorium doors, adding, "Or anyone else, for that matter."

Kaiba felt his stomach twist itself into knots at the implication.

"I'll take my leave now, sir." said Roland, noticing Kaiba's unease, and he attempted a quick lightening of the mood as he added, "Enjoy your...what's this one, a theatre tour?"

"Roland!" warned Kaiba, glaring daggers at the security chief as his face burned.

"I'm sorry, are you calling it something else now? I can never keep up with the trends these days." said Roland innocently. Kaiba scowled at him, and Roland bowed, a soft smile on his face, before walking off towards the elevator. Kaiba ran his hand through his hair and let out a noise of frustration before he composed himself and opened the door to the auditorium and slid through the gap before closing it behind him. Kaiba took only a few paces down the aisle before looking up towards the stage, and his militant stride slowed to an abrupt halt as he became immediately transfixed by the sight before him.

Téa was center-stage, performing what appeared to Kaiba to be a sideways slide before hopping up on the tips of her toes, her leg held up in an L shape before she turned in a circle, as if being pulled along by her lifted foot. Her foot lowered back to the floor and swept it in a semi-circle before she stepped back up on point and did another turn, this time with her lifted foot pointed in towards her knee. She stepped out sideways from that turn, appearing to slide as she hopped along on her feet before she started skipping sideways along the floor, all on point, then suddenly leapt into the air, her legs stretching out wide before she landed perfectly in fourth position. Had Kaiba known ballet terms, he'd know Téa was practicing the chasse attitude turn, followed by a rond de jambe, a pirouette, glissade, and the saut de chat. But as it turned out, this was the first time Kaiba had actually seen Téa performing ballet, and to say he was riveted by her fluid movements was an understatement. This time Kaiba caught himself and closed his mouth as he realized it had parted in awe as he watched her.

Téa let out a breath from her pursed lips before straightening from her jump, and she caught sight of Kaiba. She startled a little before smiling shyly, smoothing her flyaway hair as she said, "I didn't realize you had walked back in."

Kaiba's amused half-smile flashed as he said, "I'm noticing a trend."

Téa let out a hum of amusement at their shared joke, then walked towards the edge of the stage before turning and falling backwards, as nonchalantly as if she were dropping into a sofa. Kaiba caught her effortlessly before setting her on her feet on the floor. "So are we going to resume your training, without any further distractions?" he asked, his eyes twinkling as he said so.

Téa giggled, twirling her hair in her fingers before leveling her eyes at him, saying, "I'll try my very best, sensei."

Kaiba had to stop himself from swallowing, and he tried redirecting his thoughts by reaching into his coat pocket for the programming tablet, which wasn't there. He was about to go searching into his other pocket when he suddenly blinked and looked up at the device being held forth by Téa. "You left it on the floor before you left." she said.

Kaiba took it from her, inclining his head in thanks, all the while cursing himself internally. Since when had he become so absent-minded? Even if it was password locked, he would never have left something that important to be picked up by someone else. He may as well have left an entire laptop out in public.

"Right...first things first..." said Kaiba, getting into stance to hide his own nerves. "Stand up straight. You'd be surprised what good posture does for your confidence."

"Oh yeah! They teach us that in ballet classes...the invisible string on top of our heads." said Téa, and she proceeded to pinch the air above her head and pretend to pull upwards, and immediately her shoulders fell back into a relaxed square, her chest puffed out slightly, and her spine aligned perfectly. And just for good measure, she put her arms in a circle in front of her, holding a fifth en avant position.

Kaiba's amused half-smile flashed as he watched her. "That's pretty good." he admitted. "In that case, let's move on to the most important part."

Téa looked over him, letting her arms fall back to her sides as she maintained her straightened posture, and asked, "What's that?"

"Just breathe." answered Kaiba. "When you're nervous, you lock up and often forget to perform the most basic human function. Without oxygen, your mind becomes cloudy, you can't think straight, and eventually you'll even pass out. So when you start to become tense, just do some deep breathing...like this..." Kaiba inhaled slowly through his nose, his broad chest expanding, then parted his lips just a crack and blew out through his mouth.

Téa copied him, closing her eyes as she did so, and she already felt relaxed as her vagus nerve calmed the fluttering sensation in her stomach. She did this a few more times, and she realized she had been tensing her shoulders as the tightness in her muscles melted away.

"Good." said Kaiba. "That's the best way to do it, but you can be as discreet as you want. You could just breathe through your nose and use your stomach muscles and it'll be less noticeable, especially if you're wearing darker clothing."

Kaiba showed her, and Téa actually had to watch his abdomen carefully to see it moving ever so slightly. She blinked out of her trance and looked away, her face warming as she realized she was staring a bit too intently at his abs, which were visible through his tight black shirt. She closed her eyes again and tried the belly breathing, inhaling and exhaling softly through her nose, and she had to concentrate a bit to make her stomach rise instead of her chest.

"You'll get the hang of it with more practice." assured Kaiba, watching her try to switch between the two breathing styles. "Just one thing, keep your eyes open while you're doing it. You still want to maintain eye contact with the person you're talking with."

Téa's eyes flew open as she realized she had kept them closed, saying, "Right."

"Which brings me to the next part..." said Kaiba. "...and that's to pick a focal point if you don't feel comfortable looking someone in the eye."

"Oh, that's easy!" said Téa, brightening. "You mean like when I do fouettes!"

Kaiba was silent for a long moment, his brow furrowing slightly as he stared at her, before Téa demonstrated the ballet move where she did several turns before whipping her foot up above her knee, using him as the focal point as she cranked her head around on each spinning turn. "Oh, right." said Kaiba, shaking his head as if jerking himself out of a trance. "Yes...that. Exactly."

His flustered speech probably gave away his inner thoughts, as Téa halted her fouettes with her back facing him before looking over her shoulder with her hand held to her heart dramatically. "Whatever did you think I was talking about, Monsieur Kaiba?" she asked sweetly, her tone teasing as she leveled her gaze at him.

Kaiba was glad the auditorium was dark so that it hid his reddening face. He had been thinking of the literal translation of fouette, and his mind had conjured up images that were far from socially appropriate. He mentally kicked himself for revealing to Téa that one of his fluent languages was French. Even if she wasn't fluent herself, she most likely had at least a cursory understanding of the language used in her ballet classes. Téa probably knew exactly what he had been thinking. Kaiba looked off to the side and cleared his throat, saying, "Moving on..."

"No wait! I want to know something first!" said Téa, turning her body so that it faced him again.

Kaiba braced himself, saying, "Okay..."

"Teach me how to look people in the eye the way you do." said Téa, her face displaying her seriousness. "So I don't have to pick a focal point."

Kaiba looked back towards her again, his blue eyes meeting hers with that very same intense gaze that she spoke of. "That's just it, though; I make the eyes my focal point." he said simply.

"Yeah, but you always have that unwavering intensity that stops people dead in their tracks, no matter how confident they are." Téa reminded him. "That's what I want to know how to do."

"There's no trick to that. The majority of people feel intimidated when they're looked dead in the eye." explained Kaiba. "Myself included. I just try my best not to show it."

Téa's mouth popped open, a small noise escaping it as realization came over her. All those moments when she had stood up to Kaiba...at Duelist Kingdom, in Noah's virtual world, after Joey's soul had been taken by Dartz, and just recently when she had come running into his office after Mokuba had passed...she realized that she had always locked eyes with Kaiba. And in two of those instances, she had, in fact, stopped him dead in his tracks.

"You were intimidated..." said Téa, her hand going to her heart. "...by me?"

Kaiba's real smile appeared, making his blue eyes twinkle as he said, "You were the only one who could humble me when I thought I was the highest and mightiest being there ever was."

Téa giggled, saying, "...and that's why you never thought I was mediocre?"

"Exactly." said Kaiba.

Téa let out an amused hum, her eyes lowering to the floor for a fleeting moment before she peered up at him through her lashes. Kaiba had to do some discreet breathing of his own to settle his suddenly racing heartbeat. It secretly amazed him that Téa could do that to him with just a look. "Okay, are you ready to try everything you've learned on a real crowd?" he asked, distracting his thoughts from her gaze.

Téa's lips turned up into a smile before saying, "You mean a real fake crowd?"

"Right. Of course." said Kaiba, pulling out the programming tablet again. He walked over to a podium on the stage, sliding the stand from the angled position to flat. Téa watched as Kaiba pinched his thumb and forefinger on the middle of the tablet base and pulled, and she startled a bit as a holographic keyboard slid out of the tablet before he placed it down on the podium and started typing on the blue-light keyboard. The tablet displayed the code as he typed as easily as if he were typing on a real computer keyboard.

Téa stood up on her tiptoes and peered over Kaiba's arm, watching as he played around with the hologram code, even though she probably didn't understand a word of it. "So this is what you actually do for a living?" she asked.

"Part of it." replied Kaiba simply as he entered new code. "This is just the coding side of things. I also design and build the peripherals and hardware."

"So you're a programmer and an engineer?" asked Téa.

"Mm-hm." affirmed Kaiba, not taking his eyes off of his work.

"And you never went to college for any of this?!" asked Téa, her eyes wide with shock.

Kaiba paused for a moment as the brevity of her words hit him. All of a sudden he realized why everyone was in such awe of him. "...no I didn't." he affirmed.

"Did someone other than your dad tutor you?" asked Téa.

"No, he taught me the fundamentals of both disciplines, and then I researched the rest and built on the knowledge myself." said Kaiba as he resumed his work on the code. "And of course the three-dimensional holograms were my own invention."

Téa gave him a warm smile, her beautiful blue eyes sparkling with adoration as she said, "You really do have a passion for this stuff, don't you?"

Kaiba made a deep rumble of amusement from his throat, his real smile appearing as he did so, saying, "Yeah, I guess I do."

Téa rested her hand on his upper arm, peering up at him through her lashes as she murmured, "I know you do."

Kaiba couldn't help the swelling sensation in his chest at her touch, and it took some extra effort for him to focus on his work instead of gazing at Téa's beautiful blue eyes. Their sparkle was more noticeable in the dark ambience of the auditorium as they danced in the dim glow of the programming tablet. After a moment, he was unable to ignore it any longer. "You're doing it again." he said.

"Doing what again?" asked Téa, her long lashes sweeping her shining blue eyes as she blinked, which certainly didn't help the matter.

"Being distracting." said Kaiba.

Téa giggled. "Am I? Or are you just easily distracted?" she teased, playing with the buckle on his sleeve. Kaiba's intrusive thoughts started tickling in the back of his skull as she did so.

"As a matter of fact, I'm usually a lot more focused than this." replied Kaiba, trying desperately to shove the sensation and the images out of his brain.

Téa let out an amused hum as she remembered Kaiba's flustered admission from the top of KaibaCorp, and she brushed her fingers lightly up the length of his arm to his shoulder before following the side of his torso as she whispered, "And I'm not even trying."

Sensing what she was about to do, Kaiba took one hand off the programming tablet's keyboard and grabbed hers before she could move it over to his stomach to tickle him. Téa let out a surprised squeal as Kaiba suddenly pulled her towards him, spinning her around so that she faced the programming tablet and placing her hand on the podium. "Hands where I can see them." he said in the tone of a scolding school teacher.

Téa giggled and placed her other hand on the podium obediently, saying, "Sorry, sensei."

Kaiba allowed himself a brief rumble of amusement before he focused on his work again. Téa didn't have much else to look at besides the programming tablet in front of her, and she watched as Kaiba tapped his finger around it like the pointer of a mouse before typing in code. Téa knew enough math and computer science to know it was some sort of algorithmic pattern, but the complex lines of numbers, brackets, equal signs and grammar symbols, combined with words like "render", "parse" and "process", was a foreign language to her.

Téa couldn't help but feel an enormous amount of admiration for Kaiba's intellect in that moment. Besides being a polyglot in spoken languages, it appeared that coding language came as naturally to him as breathing. That combined with his ability to design and build hardware made dancing suddenly seem like a walk in the park in comparison. Or perhaps that was simply because dancing came just as naturally to Téa. She couldn't help but smile at the realization that she was more arts inclined while Kaiba was more STEM inclined; polar opposites in their respective fields. And yet Kaiba had as much admiration for her talents as she did for his. It made Téa respect him even more.

She took a hand off the podium and linked her arm around Kaiba's, leaning backwards against him and murmuring, "Thank you for doing this for me."

Kaiba paused his work and stared down at her, and Téa smiled shyly at him before closing her eyes and nuzzling against his shoulder. He seemed at a loss for words for a moment before he finally managed to get out a soft, "You're welcome", and Téa heard the slightest hint of surprise in his voice. Apparently Kaiba was not used to people expressing gratitude for his work, and Téa made a mental note to do that more often. She remained leaning against him, and Kaiba didn't seem to mind her doing so as he finished his coding work, punctuating the code with .exe before saving the file and opening another program that had KaibaCorp's logo in the background.

"Showtime." said Kaiba, and Téa giggled at his use of the word that dance troupes used before a real performance. "Go stand center-stage."

Téa released his arm and slipped out from in front of Kaiba, prancing over until she stood in the very middle of the stage, gazing out over the empty auditorium. She noticed at that moment that there were even more seats that rose from an incline behind the doors they had entered, giving the auditorium an additional twenty rows of seating.

"Ready?" asked Kaiba at his place at the podium.

Téa blew out a soft breath and nodded, saying, "Ready."

Kaiba tapped a single key on the programming tablet, and Téa saw the lines of lighting in the floor and the circular bulbs overhead start shimmering with multi-colored light. The holographic crowd appeared once again, this time with the spectators leaning forward eagerly in their seats, their anxious eyes all on Téa. She swallowed nervously. They were still so life-like. There were men in suits or dress shirts and pants, women in evening gowns or dress suits, teenagers with their phones held up as if recording video, and little kids with wide adoring eyes, looking like they were about to watch a spectacle at a circus rather than a formal performance. There was even the occasional flicker of a camera light whose operator had forgotten the etiquette of turning off the flash. All of this was undertoned by murmurs of voices in the crowd, and Téa even caught real sentences here and there, some admiring, some criticizing.

Téa felt herself starting to tremble, and she straightened her back, trying to give herself good posture. It had been so easy before without the crowd, but now it felt as though her spine was becoming as rigid as a washboard, making her tense further.

Focal point. she thought hurriedly. Pick a focal point.

She tried to focus on the doors in the back, but all that seemed to do was remind her of the twisting sensation in her gut, the urge to run away and hide from the sea of staring eyes. She started to feel sick, her head swimming under the suddenly bright stage lights. Her heart felt like it was pounding in her throat, adding to the sudden feeling of wanting to vomit.

"Téa, breathe." she heard Kaiba say, his voice distant and faint.

Faint. She was going to faint. She felt her knees give out on her, her legs turning to jelly, and Téa keeled over backwards a bit before she heard the sound of someone crossing the floor in four long strides. The last thing she remembered was falling against a warm body while a pair of strong hands gripped her arms.

"Téa..." She heard Kaiba's voice again, coming back into clarity. She felt her head turned upward, a warm hand on her face. "Téa, can you hear me? Open your eyes."

Téa's eyes fluttered open, and her vision swam a bit before Kaiba's concerned blue eyes came into focus. She was sitting on the floor, her legs buckled underneath her while Kaiba held her upright against his torso, her head leaning against his shoulder. Téa took in a rattling breath through her open mouth before she managed to mumble out, "I forgot to breathe."

Kaiba couldn't help but make a rumble of amusement from his throat. "Yes you did." he agreed. "And you're still shaking. What did you eat today?"

It took Téa a moment to recall the events of that morning, and she finally replied, "Fruit salad, a yogurt, and a bottle of ramune."

"That's it?" said Kaiba incredulously. "No wonder you passed out. You need to even out your blood sugar with some protein or your heart rate is going to add to your nerves."

"Okay, nerd." replied Téa teasingly.

Kaiba's amused half-smile flashed. Even when she was half out of it, Téa still managed to quip back at him, and it was still strangely attractive. "Come on, it's around the dinner hour anyway, so let's go eat something." he said. "Are you okay to stand?"

"I think so." said Téa, lifting herself away from Kaiba's torso, and Kaiba helped her to her feet, keeping one hand on her arm and the other hovering near her waist as he led Téa down the stage steps and out of the auditorium.

When they reached the concession stand, Kaiba walked behind it and picked up a cordless phone from its receiver. "What would you like to eat?" Kaiba asked Téa.

Téa smiled at the phone in his hand, saying, "Are you ordering take-out or something?"

Kaiba's amused half-smile flashed. "More like room service." he said. "Mayura can cook anything and have it delivered to any room in the building in short order."

"Oh." said Téa, her surprise evident. Once again, she forgot who she was with. "...right."

"You like sushi and ramen, right?" said Kaiba, remembering Wheeler's remark on the bus during the camping trip. "Mayura prides herself on her soup dishes. Her wagyu ramen is the best."

Téa felt her mouth instantly water at those very words. "That sounds amazing." agreed Téa.

Kaiba dialed Mayura's direct extension and held the phone to his ear.

"A good evening to you, Mr. Kaiba." sang Mayura's voice on the other line. "And how may I serve you?"

Kaiba's smile flashed momentarily. Mayura could see the extension that called her, and she most likely knew from Roland that he was on the auditorium floor. "With two bowls of your wagyu ramen." answered Kaiba. "Please and thank you." he added quickly as he felt Téa's eyes on him.

"Two bowls? My, you must have quite the appetite tonight, sir. Or perhaps you have an esteemed guest with you?" teased Mayura.

Kaiba had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Evidently Roland had told her more than just where he was, but also who he was with. "...and bring them to my interior room, if you could." he said, ignoring the latter comment. He picked his eyes up and looked over at Téa, adding, "Is that alright with you?"

"Of course it is." said Téa cheerfully.

"Was that Miss Téa I heard in the background?" came Mayura's innocent inquiry on the other end of the line. "Goodness, wasn't she just here the other day? It's like you must enjoy her company or something, Mr. Kaiba."

"Thank you, Mayura. See you in a moment." said Kaiba quickly before cutting the line and putting the phone back on the receiver before the chef could make his face any redder. He turned his attention back to Téa, saying, "I apologize for the afterthought. Normally I'd have you stay put after what just happened, but if you pass out with a fake crowd, you'd do it again with the real one that's likely about to come flooding down here now that my reserved time is up."

Téa glanced at her watch and realized that it was five minutes after those two hours had flown by. "So the staff can use it whenever you're not?" she asked as he led her towards the elevator.

"Yes." affirmed Kaiba, and just as he said so, the second elevator dinged, and Kaiba quickly pushed the door close button on their elevator before the other one opened. Kaiba pushed the top floor button and scanned his cuff, and Téa held tight to his arm as the elevator rocketed up to his office floor without any interruptions.

The elevator opened to the top floor, and Kaiba led Téa into his office before admitting her to the interior living chambers. He eased her onto the sofa before crossing the room to the refrigerator and procuring two water bottles from it. Téa watched as Kaiba pinched his lapel, saying, "Roland, cancel my six thirty."

"Yes sir." came Roland's response before the lapel went quiet again.

Kaiba walked back to Téa, handing a water bottle to her. "Here. Hydration helps, too." he said.

Téa hummed in amusement before accepting the water bottle, twisting off the cap and drinking a good portion of it down. She hadn't realized how parched she was, and the crisp water felt good on the back of her throat. Kaiba lowered himself onto the sofa next to her, and a thought came to Téa at that moment. "I'm not cutting into your schedule, am I?" she asked.

Kaiba shook his head, saying, "It was just a status update meeting, which Roland can brief me on later. If it was a collaboration meeting, I'd be a bit more concerned."

"What's a collaboration meeting?" asked Téa.

"It's a conference with business partners and clients to discuss supply chain improvements, project expansion, new market ventures, etcetera." explained Kaiba.

"Ah..." said Téa. "...and good business dictates that the customer always comes first?"

Kaiba shrugged. "It depends on the customer, but generally speaking, yes." he said.

"Why would it depend on the customer?" asked Téa, blinking.

"It's pretty easy to figure out what's a worthwhile business venture and what isn't." said Kaiba. "When you have your maker's mark on a product, you have to be careful who you allow to use it, otherwise it could hurt the business's image."

"Example?" asked Téa cautiously, remembering Mai's comment at the charity ball about how Kaiba had a public image to upkeep.

"Like when Pegasus bought a certain number of my Duel Arenas for his Duelist Kingdom tournament, that was a good business venture." said Kaiba. "It promotes the card game he created while also promoting my technology to bring it to life; wins for both of us. And it's good for public image. The random start-up guy that walks in asking to use my technology for his new market venture in virtual reality porn games..." Téa choked on her water, and Kaiba waited until she recovered a bit before saying, "...not so much."

"Did someone seriously come to you with an idea like that?!" asked Téa through her laughter.

A smirk crossed Kaiba's face before simply replying, "You meet some interesting people in my line of work. Some that have more gall than others."

"No kidding." agreed Téa, wiping the tears of mirth from her eyes. "I hope that was the worst one you ever dealt with."

Kaiba shook his head grimly, saying, "Oh no, that was tame compared to a lot of others. I had a few too many of Gozaburo's old military partners try to ask me to use my technology for what they call enhanced interrogation. You can imagine why I turned those down."

Téa felt an uncomfortable twisting sensation in her gut. "They'd really do that?!" she asked.

"What Noah did to us, trapping us in a virtual reality world and using our own memories against us, that was just the tip of the iceberg." said Kaiba. "If that's what he extrapolated on with my original draft of the technology, we probably wouldn't have stood a chance against what he could have done if he had lived long enough to let Gozaburo's influence corrupt him even further. There wouldn't have been any redemption for him at that point."

Téa shuddered, recalling her own bodily prison of ice in her duel against Krump, and also remembering the future that Gozaburo had planned for Kaiba and Mokuba, and realizing that was child's play compared to what could have happened. "So when you had said you wrote better code when Noah was in diapers..." asked Téa, recalling her memories from that time. "...that was actually your code, because you hadn't yet realized Noah was older than he appeared. What he used was your original source code?"

Kaiba inclined his head. "It was the first idea I had ever run by Gozaburo when I was thirteen years old, and he threw it back in my face." he said. "Typical of him that he'd steal it and use it for himself without my knowledge, claiming it was his."

Téa felt her heart sink as realization hit her. "That's why you were dead-set on everything that happened with the shadow magic of the Millennium Items and the Orichalcos being magic tricks?" asked Téa. "You were hoping Gozaburo didn't leak your technology to others?"

Kaiba inclined his head. "I knew exactly what my technology was capable of, and that there would be people who tried to use it for nefarious purposes." he said. "That's why I never allowed it to be public domain or open source, so if it got to the wrong hands, I knew it was my fault, that I had agreed to it being used in those ways." Kaiba rubbed his forehead with his thumb and forefinger, as if massaging away a headache, and said, "I should have known the moment he rejected it that he'd turn around and use it against me. But thirteen year old naive me just took it at face value, that he was an old man that had no appreciation for games and technology for it. I could have saved us that entire headache if I had just taken back that draft and destroyed it so he wouldn't have gotten his filthy hands on it."

Téa let out a soft exhale through her nose, leaning over and laying a gentle hand on Kaiba's arm. "You always do this to yourself, don't you?" she asked.

Kaiba took his head out of his hands and looked over at her, asking, "Do what?"

"Blame yourself for things that happened in retrospect." said Téa.

Kaiba's amused half-smile flashed weakly. She had hit the nail on the head, as usual. "Everything just seems so obvious in hindsight..." he said.

"But you didn't have that hindsight back then, Kaiba." said Téa gently. "If you had actually known what would have come of your actions, obviously you wouldn't have done them, right?"

Kaiba glanced away, saying, "I suppose."

"Well, I know." said Téa, rubbing his arm. "Especially when you were only thirteen, you weren't as cynical of the world compared to when we first met you..."

Kaiba's mouth became a grim line. That was a highly debatable thought, considering his worst moments in life happened before Gozaburo was even in the picture, but Kaiba said nothing.

"All you wanted to do was bring a little joy and light into the world with an amusement park and some gaming technology." continued Téa. "You never had any malicious intent behind that, so don't blame yourself for a mishap of your youth." Her hand slid from his arm down to his hand, and she squeezed it gently as she added, "Besides, at least a little good came from it. If we hadn't gotten stuck in Noah's virtual world, we would have never found out about Gozaburo and how he treated you and Mokuba, and..." Téa sighed, looking ashamed of herself, and laid her head against Kaiba's shoulder, saying, "...and I probably would have kept on thinking you were just an arrogant, spoiled jerk...no better than the people who trapped us there."

Kaiba looked over at her, seeing the pained and guilty expression on her face, and his free hand moved unconsciously over to hers. "It would have been perfectly warranted." he assured her.

Téa attempted a half-hearted smile, saying, "I suppose."

"I know." reiterated Kaiba. "It took me longer to mature, remember?"

Téa let out an amused hum at their shared joke. "Yeah." she agreed. "...but your redemption in the virtual world probably helped."

"You would have straightened me out eventually, I'm sure." assured Kaiba, flashing a half-smile.

Téa burst into giggles. "Oh sure, like the high and mighty Seto Kaiba of ages past would have allowed me to do that." teased Téa, nudging against him.

Kaiba chuckled, saying, "It's like I say, you can't make me do anything."

Téa's picked her head up and looked him in the eye as she caught the remark. "So you did allow me to straighten you out." she said.

Kaiba shrugged. "What can I say? You were a compelling force, begrudgingly so." he admitted.

Téa's eyes twinkled mischievously as she said, "I guess I'm an excellent Trebuchet after all."

Kaiba caught the twinkle in her eye, and realization dawned on him too late.

Téa smiled triumphantly, saying, "So what was that about I can't make you admit anything?"

Kaiba opened his mouth to respond, but his retort was caught in his throat.

"That is what you said, isn't it?" asked Téa sweetly. "You said I was very persuasive and I made you cave enough to allow me to straighten you out, and it drove you up the wall." She giggled at Kaiba's stunned expression. "Hey Kaiba...guess what?" she said, and she leaned towards him and whispered, "You lost the bet.", popping the T on the roof of her mouth.

Kaiba's mouth became a thin line, but it was curling upwards at the sides. "Well played, Miss Téa." he replied simply, and Téa giggled.

At that moment, there came a knock on Kaiba's door, and Kaiba was silently grateful for the respite. He got off the couch and crossed the room quickly to open the door for Mayura, who walked in carrying a large tray with two charcoal ceramic bowls, chopsticks, renge spoons, a small glass decanter and two teacups. "Thank you, Mr. Kaiba." said Mayura before giving Téa a wink, adding, "Now how many CEO's do you know that will open a door for wait staff, Miss Téa? He's a perfect gentleman, isn't he?"

"Of course he is." she said, giving Kaiba a knowing glance.

Mayura set the tray on the table before them, and Téa couldn't help but lean in and admire the arrangement in the bowls. The wagyu was thinly sliced and laid around the edges of the bowl in a fanning spiral, drizzled with a light line of truffle oil, with fresh parsley sticking out from under one side of the swirl of ramen noodles like the leaves of a bouquet while shiitake mushrooms lined the opposite side, all topped with bean sprouts, scallions and a sliced egg. Téa could see the sesame seeds and smell the garlic and ginger wafting from the beef broth.

"Oooh, Mayura, this both looks and smells amazing!" said Téa, trying her best not to drool.

Mayura beamed proudly. "...and it tastes even better!" said the chef. "My wagyu ramen has won many a cooking contest."

Téa took a sip of broth from her renge spoon, closing her eyes and savoring the harmony of flavors that greeted her taste buds. "I believe it." she said dreamily.

"Why thank you, dear. Is there anything else I can get you?" asked Mayura.

"I'm good, thank you." said Téa.

"Of course." said Mayura. "And you, Mr. Kaiba?"

"That's all." said Kaiba, putting his hands together and inclining his head before saying, "Itadakimasu, Mayura."

"Of course, Mr. Kaiba. You two enjoy." said the chef, bowing slightly to Kaiba and giving him a sly knowing glance before leaving the room.

"Itadakimasu?" asked Téa, raising her eyebrow at Kaiba.

"It's a formality that basically means 'I humbly receive and thank you for the food' in Japanese." explained Kaiba, setting out the teacups.

"Aha..." said Téa. "...and how do you say nerd in Japanese?"

Kaiba's amused half-smile flashed as he poured the tea, but he answered, "Otaku."

"Okay, otaku." teased Téa, and Kaiba rumbled in amusement.

Téa picked up a slice of the wagyu with her chopsticks and popped it into her mouth, and she looked to be in seventh heaven. "Oh my...it just melts in your mouth like butter." she said after she had swallowed her mouthful, wasting no time in going for seconds.

Kaiba hummed in agreement as he chewed a shiitake mushroom. Téa raised a long strand of ramen out of the bowl, using her renge spoon to hold the bottom and guard against the noodles splashing back into the bowl. She held the spoon close to her lips as she pulled the ramen into her mouth, chasing it down with a spoonful of broth. It was hands down the most scrumptious bowl of ramen she had ever tasted, and she couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness in her gut when she took the final sip of broth and emptied her bowl.

"That was easily the best meal of my entire life." she said, leaning back into the sofa with a look of complete satisfaction on her face.

Kaiba finished the remainder of his tea and set the cup on the tray, saying, "I have to agree that it is extremely difficult to best Mayura's cooking."

Téa stifled a yawn in her hands. "There's just one problem..." she said. "...a nice, warm bowl of ramen always makes me just want to curl up in a ball and sleep."

Kaiba fought against his own yawn that threatened to come up in response to hers, saying, "Why is that a problem?"

"Because I was supposed to keep practicing against stage fright now that I have enough protein in me to not pass out again..." Téa reminded him. "...and I can't very well do that if I fall asleep on your couch."

Kaiba's amused half-smirk flashed. "Tomorrow's another day." he said simply. "...and I wouldn't be so ungallant as to make you sleep on my couch."

Téa stifled a surprised giggle with her hand to her mouth. "Kaiba!" she cried, trying to hide her shock. "I wasn't actually suggesting I stay the night!"

"Oh." said Kaiba, and Téa could have swore she heard a hint of disappointment in his voice. "Well, if you had wanted to, you were welcome to my bed. I'm not much of a sleeper anyway."

Téa felt her face grow warm at the thought, and she pretended to start braiding her hair to hide her blush. "Well, thank you." she said. "That's very gallant of you."

Kaiba let out a rumble of affirmation as he stretched, his shoulders and spine cracking as he did so, before reclining against the sofa and resting his arms along the back. Téa couldn't help but smile to herself, realizing that Kaiba had used the oldest trick in the book as his first move towards her. But she was receptive to it nonetheless, and she slipped out of her ballet flats before curling her feet up beside her on the couch and leaning into Kaiba's side. She felt his head move as he stared down at her, as if he couldn't believe it actually worked, and Téa gave him a coy and knowing smile before resting her head against his shoulder. She broke the silence momentarily, asking, "So what's my prize for winning the bet?"

She felt the reverberation of Kaiba's amused hum against her forehead. "Name your terms, Miss Téa." he said. "I'm sure we can come to an agreement."

Téa smiled at the business formalities despite her nervous heartbeat. She inhaled slowly through her nose to try and calm it, appearing to think for a moment even though she already knew what she wanted to ask. She just needed the courage to do so. "Take me to Kaiba Land." she said at last. "Just the two of us."

Kaiba was silent for a terrifyingly long moment, and Téa knew why. She was asking him to do something he had promised to his brother and had not only failed to follow through, but never got the chance to make up for it. By all accounts, her wish was not only bold, but brash. If Kaiba hadn't remembered his last promise to Mokuba, he may have denied this request. But as it turned out, he remembered in that very moment.

"I think I can make that happen." said Kaiba at long last.

Téa released the anxious breath she had been holding in, and she wrapped her arms around Kaiba's middle, squeezing him gently. "Thank you." she whispered to him, hoping he realized her sincere concern for him.

Kaiba nodded wordlessly, and Téa closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of his breathing for a while, her head easing along with the rise and fall of his chest. The rhythmic beating of Kaiba's heartbeat combined with his body heat and the warmth from the ramen made Téa drowsy, and before she realized it, she had drifted off into a content sleep.

"Téa..." she heard Kaiba whisper.

"Mm?" she hummed sleepily, not opening her eyes.

"It's nine thirty at night." murmured Kaiba. "Am I taking you home?"

Téa made a noise that was more of a grumble than a response.

"Can I have a more coherent answer than that?" replied Kaiba, the amusement in his voice evident.

Téa let out a sigh through her nose, her hand clenching Kaiba's shirt.

"Téa, if you're wanting me to bring you into my room to sleep, I have to insist on verbal consent for that." insisted Kaiba gently.

Téa smiled and peered open her eyes to meet Kaiba's, saying, "If you're okay with it, then yes."

"I'm okay with it." affirmed Kaiba.

Téa closed her eyes again, and she felt Kaiba's arm slide under her legs before he lifted her easily off the sofa, carrying her to a room somewhere behind where they had been sitting. She felt him shift her upright enough to take his hand off her back and open a door, and after a few strides and the sound of sheets being pulled aside, she felt herself lowered onto a soft mattress and covered with the blankets. "I'll be right outside." she heard Kaiba say. "Sleep well, Téa."

Téa made another sleepy acknowledgement, and she swore she felt Kaiba brush her hair out of her face and rest his hand on her head before she drifted off into a deep slumber again.

Kaiba was on his laptop on the sofa, getting a head start on his email, the stock reports, and department financial allocations when there was a knock on his door. "Enter." he said.

The door opened, and Roland walked in, closing the door behind him. "Burning the midnight oil are you, sir?" asked the security chief.

Indeed, it was a little after one o'clock in the morning. Kaiba usually woke up around three in the morning, his first two hours dedicated to breakfast, workout and personal hygiene before he started his day around five in the morning. Today was much different than normal.

"I took a four hour nap, I'll be fine." assured Kaiba, answering Roland.

"It's good to be productive, Mr. Kaiba, but I'd advise a proper rest in order for you to be at your best." said Roland. "You didn't sleep well the other night either, and it's not wise to accumulate sleep debt."

Kaiba had to resist rolling his eyes, but his advisor was right. He hadn't been sleeping well for some time, actually. He was often awoken in the middle of the night, either by disconcerting dreams or stomach pains, likely due to indigestion. If Roland had been paying attention to his recent decline in appetite, he'd probably chastise him for not eating as much either. His meal with Téa last night was the most he had consumed in a week.

"You had an actual reason for bothering me at one o'clock in the morning other than this, I'm sure?" said Kaiba, abruptly changing the subject and getting to the point.

"Yes, of course, sir." said Roland. "I was just going to brief you about the status update meeting. Irvine is finished with the initial testing of the prototype Duel Gazer, and it passed all security checks. He was going to ask you if you wanted to proceed to the beta testing phase."

Kaiba nodded. The beta test would be having actual people in a Tag Duel, with four active Gazers to test the shared hand and mental strategy functionality. "Yes, see that it's done." he said. "Was there anything else?"

"That was all, Mr. Kaiba." affirmed Roland.

"Good." said Kaiba, closing his laptop and shifting into a recline on the sofa. "Then if you'll excuse me, I'll make good on your advice and get a longer rest."

Roland's brow furrowed as he watched Kaiba settle into the sofa and close his eyes. "On the couch, sir?" he asked. "Wouldn't you rather do so in your bed?"

"Yes, but it would be highly improper of me to do so while there's a lady in it." retorted Kaiba.

There was a markedly long silence, and Kaiba peered open one eye at Roland, who appeared to be simply standing there and staring down at him. "Is there a problem?" asked Kaiba.

Roland glanced over at Kaiba's bedroom door, then back at Kaiba. Finally he spoke, sounding cautious as he asked, "You mean Miss Téa...?"

"Yes, she's still here." said Kaiba impatiently. "Apparently she loved Mayura's cooking so much it put her in a food coma, so she's staying the night. Her compliments to the chef."

"I see." said Roland. "...but you're not-...?"

"What part of she's not my girlfriend is so difficult for you to grasp?!" snapped Kaiba.

Roland inclined his head, perhaps to hide the smile that was playing at his lips. "My apologies, Mr. Kaiba." he said. "In that case, should Mayura send a maid for her when she wakes?"

Kaiba opened his eyes and stared at Roland. "Why on earth would I want a maid to see her?" he asked. "The last thing I need is gossip among the service staff."

"That may be so, Mr. Kaiba, but Miss Téa would likely be more comfortable with another lady should she require something pertaining to her hygiene or likewise." explained Roland.

Kaiba made a silent "ah", realizing the wisdom in those words. For obvious reasons, he and Mokuba never had female service staff tend to their private rooms, with Mayura being the only exception when she served food in the living areas.

"Though I do agree with your notion that the maids can be quite chatty, sir." said Roland. "As an alternative, I'd advise having a female guard being the so-called man in the middle, or woman in the middle, as it were. The maid can bring items to the guard, and the guard to Miss Téa. The maid need never lay eyes on your guest, and the guard is sworn to secrecy for security reasons."

Kaiba nodded. "I concur." he said. "I'm sure you know which one to employ for such a job."

"Yes, sir. I'll get right on it." said Roland, and he gave Kaiba a bow before saying, "I'll leave you to rest now, Mr. Kaiba. Good night, sir."

Kaiba closed his eyes and rumbled an acknowledgement, and he heard Roland leave the room. It wasn't long before Kaiba felt himself drift off to sleep.

***Note from the author***

A few things here:

1. The literal translation of fouette is whip, in case anyone missed that.

2. I'm aware that Yu-Gi-Oh! is technically set in Japan, so by all accounts, Téa should know Japanese. But seeing as Kaiba and Yugi were the only ones who retained their Japanese names in the U.S. version (4Kids), we're gonna go with the notion that the others are not natives. That's the gift and the curse of localization: it can be left up to interpretation. I personally pick and choose aspects from both the Japanese and the English versions, obviously leaving out the less kid-friendly aspects of the Japanese version and anything that would cause a continuity error (*coughceremonialduelcough*).

3. Not making any promises here, but I may very well post the next chapter next month. I'm going on vacation for most of August, and when I get back, my place of employment is going to be slammed due to flu season. Yay medical field. Stay tuned!