I can't believe it. 50 people have this on their favourites list. I feel so honoured to be loved by all of you. Sorry if you don't understand the rules of the game; i tell you what's going on anyway.


Chapter 19- Happy Birthday Ishtars!

Before anyone knew what was happening Christmas was only a few days away. The castle was decorated to remind everyone of this fact as well as to try and force festivity upon those residing within its walls.

It was a time for Hogwarts to impress its guests. It was a time for merriment and good will. It was a time for shopping. Yes, it was definitely a time for shopping. But it wasn't necessarily a time for Christmas shopping. Two very important people had their birthdays exactly two days before Christmas and a party as well as gifts were in order to celebrate the annual event.

"Happy birthday Malik!"

"Happy birthday Marik!"

The two Ishtars grinned as their eyes landed on the pile of presents.

Yugi stepped forward. "The presents are for both of you to share so maybe you should… take…turns?"

It was too late for any of that. Both blond males had dived straight into the pile, rapidly tearing off the wrapping paper. Most likely they had not even noticed that Yugi had been talking.

Yami patted Yugi's shoulder in a comforting manner. "Forget it. They'll regret not listening when they realize they've run out of colourful paper to lacerate."

Yami's words rang true when there was a cease in the noise of paper being brutally torn. "That's it?" Malik asked.

"No, there's another huge pile hidden under the lake," Bakura said sarcastically, his eyes rolling.

"Really?" Marik asked, his face lighting up with excitement.

Bakura sighed. "Sarcasm is lost on you sometimes."

Malik stood up and brushed away the bits of paper that clung to his clothing. "Well now that that's over let's move onto the game," he suggested.

"But you've not even looked at what we got you!" Jou accused.

Malik shrugged. "Mutilating the paper is better than the actual gift," he said in a careless tone.

Jou was about to argue but Seto stopped him. "Leave it puppy," he advised. "They'll only drag you down to their level and believe me that's a long way down."

Jou nodded reluctantly. Yugi again stepped forward. "What do you want to play?"

"Strip Poker!" Marik shouted, jumping to his feet in the process.

"Good idea," Malik complimented, another grin spreading across his features.

Yugi looked nervous. "Well, it is your birthday so I guess you should get to choose but-"

"Strip Poker it is!" declared Marik.

Yugi sincerely considered banging his head against the wall. Or he could get Yami to bang Marik's head instead. He was sure Yami would enjoy doing that.

Once Ryou had found a deck of playing cards in his suitcase they all assembled around the large table in the common room. "How many people know how to play Strip Poker?" Ryou asked. Nobody raised their hand. "Anybody know how to play regular poker?" Still no raised hands. Ryou sighed irritably. "Why suggest the game if you don't know how to play it?"

"It sounded like fun," was Marik's reply. It gained him a whack in the back of the head from his boyfriend.

Ryou shook his head. "How many people know how to play 31's?" Bakura, Seto and Yugi raised their hands. "That's good enough. We'll use that instead of poker to play the game."

"Can you do that?" asked Jou.

"Yes," Ryou replied. "Bakura and I have played Strip 31's before."

The grin on Bakura's face told those sat at the table that this was going to be an…interesting game.

"So how do you play?" queried Yami.

"Everyone is dealt three cards to start with. The dealer will give themselves one card, then one to the dummy, then one to the rest of the players. He continues to do so until everyone has three cards. The person left of the dealer has the choice of whether he plays with the cards he was given or the cards dealt to the dummy, the Dummy Hand, after he has looked at his own hand. If he chooses to swap cards he throws his hand face up in the centre of the table. Every player after that must pick up a card from the hand and put down one of their own."

"What if you don't swap cards?"

"You turn over the Dummy Hand and must pick up a card from there. The play then goes on the same as before – everyone must pick up a card and replace it with one of their own. This continues to happen until someone becomes satisfied with the hand they have collected. When it is their turn they can choose not to pick up a card and instead say that they are 'Sticking'. After that has happened every player has one last go. They may either continue to improve their hand or also stick if they think they can do no better. Once it is the first person who stuck's turn they reveal their hand followed by everyone else and whoever has the least valuable hand would normally loose a life but in this case they will loose an article of clothing."

"How do you get valuable hands?"

"You collect things in suits. You add up the value of everything in your hand that is in the same suit. Jack, Queen, King are worth ten points. Ace is worth eleven. The rest are as they are numbered."

"Anything else we need to know?"

"If you get three of a kind you lay down your hand and the game automatically ends. If you get the maximum number of thirty-one you also lay down your hand. You can only get that if you have the Ace as well as any two of these: ten, Jack, Queen, King – all in the same suit of course.

"Also," Ryou explained, giving Jou a sideways glance, "If you're the first person to run out of chips you get an extra one which is called the Dog's Chance."

Jou glowered as Ryou had expected him to. Seto smirked and patted Jou's head. Jou waved away his hand but said nothing.

"So how are we applying this to clothing?" questioned Malik.

"If you loose a hand you deposit an item of clothing or jewellery. You loose when you become too embarrassed to continue or when you run out of clothes." Ryou blushed, cleared his throat, continued. "If you're the first one to loose your underwear you are allowed to keep it for another turn. If you loose then you must remove it. You can play another hand but if you loose that one you're out."

"We also have another little twist to this game," commented Bakura, the evil grin he wore sending shivers down everyone's spines. "Whatever state you quit the game in you have to remain that way for the rest of the night. This game is a mix of luck and being able to overcome embarrassment."

"Shall we begin?" Ryou asked in an almost cheerful voice.

Everyone nodded. Ryou dealt. The round was played. Everyone lay down their cards.

Ryou: 28

Bakura: 23

Marik: 17

Malik: 18

Seto: 22

Jou: 15

Yugi: 21

Yami: 24

"Damn it," Jou muttered, removing the jumper he was wearing.

The game continued with many varied results. Ryou and Bakura were practiced masters of the game but Yami and Yugi were quick learners. Seto wasn't doing too badly either. Jou was in trouble. Malik and Marik had picked up the game quickly but then got caught up in watching the other slowly loose their clothing and started doing much worse.

Still, it was Jou who was first to get the Dog's Chance. By that time everyone had removed something. Socks, shoes, jumpers were the first to go. Jou, Malik and Marik were down to their boxers. Seto was down to his trousers and underwear. The rest still had their shirts and trousers.

Jou, deciding to keep his dignity, retired after gaining the Dog's Chance. The Ishtars decided to go all the way (no surprise there) but both were the next to loose. Seto followed Jou's lead and gave up before he lost his boxers. This left only the experts.

"Ra damn it," Bakura cursed as he removed his pants.

Yami chuckled. "Getting agitated Tomb Robber? It's only a game you know."

Bakura gave him the finger and they continued. Yami was the one to loose that round. He stood up and began the struggle to remove his trademark leather pants. Bakura laughed while others sniggered as Yami tried his hardest to get out of the leather he loved so much.

"You do know that if you can't remove it you loose don't you?" Bakura asked, a smug grin plastered on his face.

Yami growled. "Why don't you think about this another way Bakura? I beat you so if I can't defeat these leather pants that means they're tougher than you."

That effectively shut Bakura up.

A few rounds later Ryou was leading two articles of clothing to everyone else's one. Yugi was getting nervous at this point. With both Yami and Bakura still in it this game was going to be fought until the bitter, naked, end. This was not an appealing scenario for the shy tri-coloured haired boy. The only reason he had stayed in the game this long was because Ryou was still there. Ryou was as shy as he was; if they were in real trouble of having their privacy invaded he would have pulled out earlier.

Now Yugi was starting to doubt this assumption. He remembered Ryou saying he and Bakura had played this before. Before as in when they were in a secret relationship? Most probably.

Was Ryou also going to stick it out until the very end? Did Yugi want to do the same? Did he dare do the same?

The round ended and Bakura lost. Bakura slipped off his boxers and flung them into the middle of the table carelessly. Marik's eyes wondered below the table and he was punished by a swift blow to the head from Malik. Ryou's eyes also wondered but he was not punished by an upset boyfriend. Instead he blushed deeply when Bakura caught his eye and winked.

"I give up," Yugi declared before Yami could deal out the cards.

Yugi looked down, slightly ashamed he had admitted defeat before the true battle had begun. He looked up when Jou placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't fret Yugi. I did the same thing remember?"

Yugi nodded, suddenly feeling silly. He returned his gaze to the game and the looks of extreme concentration on each player's face. It was anyone's game now. The person with the most luck would be the winner now.

Once Bakura was knocked out it was between Ryou and Yami. One item of clothing each. One person had to loose twice for the other to win.

The hands were dealt. The players looked at their cards. They took turns improving their hands, trying their best not to throw away cards that would help their opponent.

In the end Ryou had a Queen of Hearts, a seven of Hearts and a three of Hearts. Yami had a King of Clubs, a nine of Clubs and a King of Diamonds.

With as much dignity as he could muster Yami removed his boxers. He couldn't afford to lose the next round. He needed to beat Ryou twice to win.

Again the cards were dealt. This time Ryou ended with a seven of Diamonds, five of Diamonds and Ace of Spades. Yami had the Queen and Jack of Clubs with a low Heart.

Ryou removed his boxers, trying not to be unnerved by Bakura's lustful eyes watching him intently. It was do or die time. The fate of the game depended on a single hand.

Everyone held their breath as cards were picked up and discarded. Who would be the first one to Stick? Who was going to come out on top?

Ryou smiled as he picked up a three of Spades. He lay down his hand. Three threes. Game over.

Yami stared in disbelief as around him the others cheered. If Ryou had dropped his ten of Hearts earlier Yami would have won by getting 31. But now it was over and he'd lost. It wasn't fair!

Meanwhile Bakura was giving Ryou his victory kiss. Such a simple gesture was now getting steamy and had captured Marik and Malik's attention. They cheered the two on which annoyed the white haired males greatly. "Let's take this into the bedroom," Bakura suggested.

Ryou agreed and the two disappeared. With their entertainment gone the Ishtars decided to follow their example and left to reap the benefits of them both being naked.

"Bedtime Puppy," said Seto as he rose from his chair.

Jou looked to the clock on the mantelpiece above the fire. "Why? It's still pretty early."

"You're pretty stupid sometimes aren't you?" commented Seto.

Before Jou could reply he was dragged away into Seto and his room, leaving the two tri-coloured haired teens on their own. "It's alright Yami," Yugi said kindly, putting his arms around his love.

"I lost," Yami said sulkily.

"These party games aren't about winning and loosing; they're about humiliating other people," Yugi tried, hoping to distract the saddened pharaoh.

"I still lost," Yami said in the same sulky voice.

An idea came to Yugi. "No you haven't yet," Yugi whispered in Yami's ear. "You've only lost if you give up. Don't you realize what we're wearing?"

"Nothing." That was when it struck him. A smirk slid onto Yami's lips, the gloom lifting. He turned to look at Yugi and changed his smirk into something that resembled a sincere smile. "You always know the best ways to cheer me up."

Yugi smiled too. "I'd be a terrible boyfriend if I didn't."

Yami stood up and took Yugi's hand. "I think it's about time we turned in too. I wouldn't want the others to be the only ones having fun."

"What are we waiting for then?" Yugi asked before they walked towards their shared room, a night of pleasure awaiting them all.


Please Review!

PS. If you have any ideas for the remaining character's birthdays i'd really like to know them!