Shadow: I own YGO!!!!! (Sees lawyers) No I don't! Seto save me!!! Cowers behind CEO

Seto:shakes head It's ok guys, I've got this one.

Lawyers: Ah man!

Jou: anime sweat drops OK onto the rest of this note

Seto: What note? We're just standing here!

Shadow: pats Seto on head This is where the all might authoress comes in Seto.

Seto:rolls eyes Ok 'all mighty authoress' What do we do?

Shadow: points to two people standing off to one side We thank the reviewers Seto.

Jou: Hey T-me! LOL thanks, we're glade you like how we did that.

Shadow: I actually stole that line from a friend of mine, she's got it on a t-shirt she made in Graphics class.

Seto: Glares at other person Faery Goddyss- Truthfully we could care less for your criticism of our writing, but just so you know- THAT USUALLY HAPPENS WHEN YOU HAVE LESS THEN A MINUTE AT THE PUBLIC LIBRARY!!!!!

Shadow: pats Seto on the back Feel better?

Seto: nods surprisingly, yes.

Shadow: Good! You'll also notice that in my YGO fics, I'm a lot more playful than in my other ones… That's because this was actually the first fic I wrote and it makes me all bubbly just typing it out.

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Seto's POV

My brother's asleep now. Probly dreaming of Noah, who we will have living with us in a matter of weeks.

But my mind is as far from Noah as the sun from the stars.

I look at the young man lying in my arms as we watch a movie, in my bed. Saw 2, if I remember correctly. I'm not really paying attention, except when Jou hides his face in my chest. Like he is now.

"Is it over?" he asks.

"It's over." I reply running a finger down his side softly, feeling him shutter in response.

He acts like he's paying attention to the movie, but I know he's not.

Gently, I slip a hand under the large shirt I let him barrow, not that he'll actually wear it all night. Thinking back to episode in the limo, I feel my body harden. Smiling evilly, I whisper in his ear. "You have to finish what you started, pup."

"And what was that, Dragon." He whispers back.

"Well." I take the lobe of his ear in my teeth. "Something about my scars."

"You stopped me from doing that, remember." He pulls away and straddles me. Wrapping his arms around my neck, he leans his forehead to mine. His lips are so close that when I lick my lips I taste his. My hands are on his hips, slowly I move them up under the shirt.

I feel his stiffen as I move towards his shoulders. Frowning, I shove him up into a sitting position.

"Seto?" He asks.

"Shirt, off." I whisper harshly. When he doesn't move I whip the shirt over his head and turn him slightly. Scars, long scars that cover each other across his shoulders and upper back. They're whip scars. "Who?" I choke out, seeing red.

"Don't Seto." He tells me. "If I hadn't gotten in his way he would have gone after Serenity."

I freeze. "Your father did this to you?" Yes, Garbanzo beat me, and he was the reason for the scars on my chest, but he wasn't my father. I look into Jou's warm brown eyes. "Please tell me he doesn't still do this."

"I can't lie to you, Seto." He pulls the shirt over his head.

I can feel unwilling tears fill my eyes. I want to protect him, always. "We'll fix this." I pull him into my arms, dimly hearing a scream from the movie. "You can come live with me and Mokuba, Noah's moving in with us soon. And your sister can come when ever she's in town."

He wraps his arms around my neck, his head agents my shoulder. We sit like this for what feels like forever, but it doesn't seem like enough.

There's a soft knock at my door. "Enter." I call, pulling back from Jou.

The door next to the TV. opens enough for my little brother to stick his head in. I can see his red eyes from here. "Bad dream?" He nods.

"Come on." Jou says, moving to lie down.

A Mokuba smile, runs across the room, climbs up the center of the bed and slips under the covers between Jou and me. Jou holds him close with a smile. "It'll be ok in the morning. Go to sleep."

I flip off the T.V. and DVD player, looking over at the two before lying down beside them. Mokuba's head tucked securely under Jou's, safely tucked into sleep.

I give a rare smile. My Family.

I slip my arm under Jou's head and drape my arm across there waists.

My last thoughts before I slip into sleep are of the painful death that will come down on whomever trys to hurt them.

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Moukuba's POV

I hear my big brother's soft breathing. He's asleep.

Noah.

Tears gather in my eyes again and I buried my face in Jou's t-shirt.

There was a letter on my desktop when I went to bed tonight. From my love. My Noah.

Dear Mokie,

It will only be a few more days before I am devitalized. But there is something I should tell you, since Seto will not know. The body I'm transferring to is 8 years old, so I'm blocking all my memories. The block will remove its self when I am 15, till then we can not be together. Don't bother trying to talk me out of it, by the time you've read this letter, I will have begun the final download, and stopping the process may lead to a total deletion of me.

I'm not doing this to hurt you my love, but to save you, because I love you. I want you to go on with your life, Mokie. I will always love you but I want you to be happy.

Forgive me? I'll love you always,


Noah.

A tear slides down onto Jou's shirt. I'll wait. I won't love anyone. I won't date anyone. 7 years isn't that long. And it'll pass quicker when he's here.

I'll have what Seto has with Jou. That perfect love with someone meant for only me. I'd wait forever for Noah.

My eyes are heavy. Yes, I'll wait.

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Jou's POV

The sun's beating down on my closed lids. I hate that. But dad won't let me get curtains; he says it's a waist of money.

With a groan I bury my head in my pillow.

Wait… my pillow is worn cotton, not soft silk… I open my eyes.

Seto. I slept at Seto's last night. Dad's not here to kick my out of be on this beautiful Sunday morning.

I smile and stretch. It's nice to have such a big bed to myself. But that's not how I went to bed. Seto and Mokie. I sit up. The room's empty, slipping out of bed I check the clock. 9:00. Breakfast.

"Where is he? Jou!"

I freeze. Dad. My drunk father is yelling. Here. In Seto's house. All I told him was I was staying with a friend. How did he find me?

"Where is he Kiba?" Came a second voice.

Ah Honda. My oh so loyal best friend.

I walk further down the hall, so I can look around the corner at the top of the stairs. I can feel my eyes go wide and the blood drain from my face.

The whole gang's here!

Marik and Bakura look like they want to tear the place down brick by brick. Ryou is trying to hold Tristan back and Yugi is having a hard time with Yami. Malik is just standing there giving Seto the evil eye.

Seto!

My dad has Seto shoved up agents the wall by his throat.

"Dad, stop!" I shove myself from my hiding place and down the stairs. Everyone looks at me. Of course I must be a sight in Seto's shirt and pajama pants.

"Jou!" My dad yells, dropping Seto and reaching for me. "There you are! You should have called!"

"I did." I shove past him to kneel beside Seto. "You were just too drunk to remember."

"Now, son." He reaches down to pull me to my feet. "Don't start this now."

I push his hand away. "If you've hurt him, you'll be surprised what I start." I turn to Seto. "You ok, Dragon?" I rub his back.

"I'm fine Jou-pup." He pats my leg, head bowed. "Just a little winded."

"Jou?" Honda chokes out. "What's this?"

I shoot him a glare. "What does it look like, Honda?" I growl. "I'm trying to see if my drunken father has don't any permeate damage to my boyfriend!"

Everyone in the room draws in a surprised breath.

Suddenly, Yami falls to the ground, Yugi's grip haven been relived in surprised. Then the youngest teen lets out a cheer fallowed closely by Ryou and Malik.

I shake my head and look back at Seto.

His ice blue eyes are wide, his lips slightly parted. It's really hard not to ravish him her on the spot, but my friends would probably have a coronary.

"Come on, up." I slip an arm around his waist and help him up to his feet, his arm around my shoulder. The others fallow us into the living room, most still in a disbelieving daze so had to be pushed and pulled along by Ryou and Yugi. Malik can't help because he's to busy dancing around.

In the living room we find Mokuba enthralled in an episode of 'Passions'

"Mokuba turn that off." Seto shakes his head. "Go make sure everything's ready for Noah."

Mokie does as he's told, making a quick exit when he sees my father.

"Noah?" Yami asked blankly.

"A boy from America I'm adopting." Seto says as we sit on the couch. "I figured Mokuba could use a friend, being as I'm not here a lot."

I tuck my legs under myself, leaning into the cup Seto's body makes, his arm firmly around my shoulder.

Silence rages as everyone settles themselves.

Yami decides it's up to him to break the uncomfortable mood. "Soo…" He clears his throat. "How long you two been dating?"

"About a month and a half." Seto says without a pause.

Honda frowns. "That's when we started that project for Health. The one were we were paired up and had to go threw the adoption process…"

Seto's smile shocks my friends. "Yes."

"And this boy…" Malik frowns. "Noah?"

"He's the son of an old friend of Mokuba and mine." He jesters to a picture on the mantel of the fire place. "David Miller and his wife, Molly. The four of us went to the same orphanage. David was adopted before Mokuba and I. Molly never was adopted. They died in a car accident almost a year ago. I started the adoption process a short time later."

"It takes months, sometimes years to adopt…"

"When they died, David and Molly left Noah to me. The adoption is just a formality."

"When's the little bugger getting here?" Bakura spoke up, only to receive an elbow to the ribs.

"With in the next couple of weeks."

Dad stayed quiet threw the whole exchange.

"Dad," He looks up. "Please…"

His face screws up in a rage. "'Please'. Is that all you have to say?"

Tears form behind my eyes, but I don't let them fall. "Dad, please don't."

"Don't what?" His face is turning red. "Get upset? I beyond upset." He launches himself to his feet. "Just like your mother! Running off with some rich son of a bitch because he gets you something nice!" He's standing in the middle of the room now, coming toward Seto and me. "Given him all you got, aren't you?!? Slut!" He raises his hand.

I flinch, cowering into Seto's arms. But the blow doesn't come. Slowly I open one eye.

I'm not in Seto's arms anymore. I'm in Malik's. Ryou and Yugi are standing in fount of me, but I can see Seto.

He's standing in front of my dad, the older man's on the floor, hand to his bloody face. Yami, Marik and Kura are standing too. I can't see Honda; he's probably looking for security.

My eyes settle on Seto. He's only wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but he holds himself like he's at one of his board meetings, facing down the people who say he's too young.

"Hey Kiba!" Honda appears. "I couldn't find a suit so I just called a cab."

"That's perfectly alright." Seto's cold eyes turn to my father

"You'll pay for this Kiba!" He yells. "I'll make sure of that! I'll go strait to the Police!"

One of Seto's eyes comes up. "Who do you think they'll believe? Me, Seto Kiba, who has witnesses and video surveillance," He points to the camera in the corner. "Or you, the town drunk?"

My dad roars to his feet and makes to throw a punch at Seto. Bad move, the man ends up back on the floor, even more bloody and bruised.

Outside, a car honks.

"Your ride is here, Drunk." Seto nods to Marik and Bakura, who've been moving ever slightly forward threw the whole episode. "And expect a call from my lawyers… Oh and child welfare also." He then turns to me completely ignoring the man as he's dragged out. "Pup?"

I'm crying, I know I am. I try to stop but the tears come harder and faster.

"Set-o." I throw myself into his arms, letting the tears run unchecked. No one's ever stood up for me before.

I cry for what seems like hours. I'm really tired now and my eyes are heavy. I'll close them. Just for a little while.

Shadow: yeah! Another chapter!

Seto: yesand it only took you…. Four and a half months

Shadow: WellI started working on End of the road…. And you just kinda….

Yugi: got pushed on the back burner! waaaaaaa

Shadow: I'm sorry! Yugi don't cry!!!!!!!! I promise to work on it more….

Yugi: sniff Ok…..but I want a little girl by the end of the story….

Shadow: Deal glops Yugi