Okay, so, like, it's kinda short, and really unedited, but considering it's more than you guys have gotten in a few months, it's decent right?

Right? ? ?

Chapter 12

"This is weird."

Seto looked down, not moving. Comfortable was not a position you moved from. "What is?"

"This cuddlin' thing," Katsuya mumbled. "It's weird."

Seto raised his brow line, staring up to the ceiling that Katsuya had decided to decorate with the glow in the dark stars Mokuba had given Seto years ago for a birthday gift. Katsuya had found them while he was snooping around in one of Seto's drawer's looking for…well, Seto didn't really know what Katsuya was looking for, but finding the stars had been enough to distract Katsuya from continuing. "Is it?"

"Yeah," Katsuya tightened his fist-grip on Seto's shirt. His head was set comfortably on Seto's chest as Seto lied on his back and had his arm wrapped warmly around Katsuya. Lying there, Katsuya could hear Seto's rhythmic heartbeat.

It was so intimate. Seto probably knew it was intimate in some way but probably didn't know the extent of it. The heart was the most essential organ next to the brain. One wrong heartbeat, one wrong hit, one wrong little puncture, bruise, or clog and someone could die. Here Seto had it bared to him, literally. Katsuya slid his hand up over Seto's heart, felt it beat hard and slow against his palm.

One hard pound of his fist and he could kill Seto and Seto didn't have a clue.

"I've never done this with someone," Katsuya confessed, fisting the shirt over Seto's heart. "Neva' with Ma, or Pa, Shizuka was either too small or too big t' do it with, I neva' saw her enough. All the fucks from the gang were all just somethin' to waste time; neva' no one jus' t' spend time with."

Seto felt a twinge of jealousy hearing about Katsuya's past sex life, but lifted his had to toy with Katsuya's hair to remind himself that he, too, had his own past and with Katsuya's life he couldn't expect the blond to really stay celibate.

Katsuya's hair was a lot more soft and shiny than Seto had ever remembered and he wondered if that may have been another factor of being properly fed as a puppy. There were so many things that he had noticed, but also had missed. "I used to snuggle with Mokuba," he said. "I'll admit I was disappointed when he stopped coming into my bed to cuddle, but I suppose everyone grows up."

Katsuya moaned and buried his face into Seto's chest. "I don't know how anyone could grow outta t'is," he mumbled, his chest aching longingly. He'd never ever would have wanted to give this up. It was weird, but so… His eyelashes lowered as he savored the swell of warm emotions and a smile kissed his lips. He liked feeling like this. "I wish I had t'is as a kid."

Seto looked down again, smiling just a little. "I thought it was 'weird.'"

"It is," Katsuya said. "But it's…neutral."

Seto let out a snort and Katsuya's head flopped up with it. "That's an odd way of putting it."

"Nah," Katsuya said. "It's like, ya're so happy and comfortable and warm, ya jus' feel peace-y."

"I see." Seto pat Katsuya's head knowingly. He felt the same way too. He felt peaceful. "Most people would call that feeling peaceful."

Katsuya gave Seto's chest a soft pound in reprimand, but not over Seto's heart. He wanted it as intact as he could possibly keep it.

They laid like that for a while and Katsuya closed his eyes, sleepy. "I like ya," he said softly. Seto's ears had to stretch to hear him, and it still was difficult, but he heard it loud and clear at the end."I like ya a lot, Seto."

Seto was silent for a moment, basking in the warm and glow of the confession. His heart gave a loud, approving thump, and he couldn't stop muscles from knotting excitedly in his stomach.

"Me too," Seto stated seriously, though he knew Katsuya already knew that he adored the blond. He'd made sure to make it quite obvious after their first kiss by adding many many more kisses after it. Then, only a moment later his face twisted evilly. "I like me too."

"Jerk," Katsuya reprimanded, pounding lightly on Seto's chest again.

Seto snorted and continued to fiddle with Katsuya's locks, even as Katsuya lifted his head only for Seto to force it back down. "What?"

"Mokuba," Katsuya murmured, turning his nose into Seto's chest. "Mokuba's outside the door. He's been there for a while now."

"What?" Seto asked. "Can you smell him or something?"

Katsuya scowled, "No. I just know. Ya gotta know when someone's around t'e corner where I'm from."

The thought unsettled Seto a bit, especially since he knew it was true coming from Katsuya. He'd read story after story of people from Katsuya's neighborhood, and that was the handful that were made news worthy. He couldn't imagine anything behind the scenes. "You should forgive him. He was trying to help."

Katsuya groaned and rocked his head back and forth. "I trusted him, an' I don't trust easy, and he betrayed that."

"How?"

Katsuya lifted his head and looked wide-eyed at Seto like the CEO was insane. "He turned me int' a dog."

"A puppy."

"A dog." Katsuya snapped. "It's still a dog."

"You sound like me."

"Shut up." Katsuya sat up and Seto let him, both of them looking at the door.

Seto didn't really know how Katsuya felt—well, besides from what Katsuya told him, but he couldn't really connect with that. He'd never had a friend that he really felt that he could open up to and trust. He just automatically didn't trust anyone.

He did know Katsuya was not the same way.

Katsuya needed family, and he found that in his closest friends. They were people he expected to have his back, to never go behind him. Seto didn't see the situation as Mokuba necessarily going behind Katsuya's back, but obviously Katsuya did.

"Katsuya, think about it from his point of view. I can't necessarily describe what that is, but what would you do if you were him?"

"I wouldn' turn me int' a dog," Katsuya spat. His eyes narrowed at the door for a moment. All the anger and betrayal swimming inside him froze like a heavy coating of ice over his heart, but then he settled down, trying to think of what it must have been like from Mokuba's, Bakura's, and Marik's points of view.

He wouldn't have turned himself into a dog, but he would have tried to do something.

His face softened and he looked pitifully at the door.

"Alright…" Katsuya finally conceded and he looked down at Seto, his eyes as soft as smooth, polished stones. "Maybe I…uh, got a little madder than necessary."

"No," Seto denied, his voice as soft and cool like silk. There was a hint of adoration in his tone and Katsuya soaked it all up. "You reacted perfectly fine for yourself."

.-.-.-.-.-.

Mokuba sat outside Seto's door. He could hear murmurs, but he could barely make out any of the words through the walls. He wondered if that was a good thing. At least Katsuya wasn't yelling or screaming, telling Seto to back off or barking about how much he hated Mokuba.

Mokuba's chest squeezed in on him. He should have thought through this more. He had everything calculated but Katsuya and that's where all the kinks should have been smoothed out the most. He hurt Katsuya, and now the blonde was going to hate him—or at least dislike him for a very very long time.

Katsuya had been there for him for so many things. Many things Mokuba had taken for granted until now—like Katsuya's hugs for instance. Mokuba was a hug person, and he had hugged many people, but Katsuya's hugs were always the best. Katsuya would wrap his arms around you and hold you like he was the happiest person because you were there. And then when Seto and him would get in a fight, Katsuya wouldn't tell him he was wrong first thing like everyone else did. Didn't tell him to stop being stupid or childish.

Katsuya patted his head, let him cry, feel better, and then Katsuya would tell him what he did wrong. He didn't know why that worked, but it did. Mokuba would miss that.

He would miss Katsuya ruffling his hair, despite the fact that he protested every time Katsuya did. He would miss the ice cream cones Katsuya would buy him, instead of the other way around. He'd miss the jokes, and games, and memories that Katsuya would make with him.

He'd miss Katsuya, a lot.

Sure, he wasn't the only one. Bakura and Marik were hit pretty hard too. After the anger from having pizza sauce shoved up his nose Bakura took a nose dive off the deep end. He looked as helpless as Mokuba felt, and Marik was the same. And, hey, Seto had found someone else to talk to, which was nice since at times Seto could be a little too informative to Mokuba.

It didn't make Mokuba feel that much better though.

He took a deep, shaky breath and stood. Gathering his nerves he walked up to his brother's bedroom door and raised his fist…to do nothing but stand there like the fool he was. He couldn't do it. He couldn't just simply knock on the door. It was too hard.

His heart squeezed in fear. Maybe he should wait until tomorrow when Katsuya could sleep on it? But he had slept on it the entire time of being a puppy. But now he knew why, so he might think differently now, right? But what if he didn't? Katsuya wasn't known for being rational so why—

"Mokuba!" He heard Katsuya hiss from the other side. His heart lurched in hope. "If ya're gonna come in, come the fuck in."

Despite the command, Mokuba hesitated.

"MOKUBA!"

Squeaking a bit he opened the door and about had a heart attack when he saw the two cuddling. It wasn't that he was repulsed by it—quite the opposite, he actually kind of liked it—but it wasn't something he was used to. Yes, his brother figure and his actual brother had been…close since Katsuya's revealing, but it was still such a shock to see them so close and not at each other's throats.

"Yes?" He said, his voice a pitch higher then he'd ever like to admit, but now wasn't the time where he could find himself to act more manly.

"We're going to talk," Katsuya said, then he shuffled around and repositioned himself next to Seto so there was a space between the two. "But we're gonna…whatever this is."

"Cuddling," Seto said. "It's called cuddling."

"Yeah." Katsuya's eyes shifted sideways, leeringly at Seto. "That."

Mokuba didn't know what to make of it, but when that leer turned to him, he was quick to get in bed and snuggle between the two of them.

"You're a lot bigger since last time," Seto commented gruffly.

Mokuba grunted. "I'm sixteen, this is kind of ridiculous."

"Whatever," Katsuya said and laid his arm over the younger Kaiba. "I'm still mad."

Mokuba positioned himself to face Katsuya and shyly looked up at the blonde through his lashes. He didn't really feel sixteen right now, instead he felt twelve again. He did have to admit though, snuggling with brothers was nice.

He'd never say that aloud though.

"Jou," he said. "I am really really sorry."

Katsuya frowned at him, look down his nose to Mokuba's face before snuggling closer and lifting his chin to rest on Mokuba's head. Seto grunted and moved himself to become more comfortable.

"Yeah?" Katsuya asked. "Really?"

Mokuba tried to nod his head, but failed almost miserably. "Really really really sorry."

Katsuya hummed and Mokuba felt the vibrations from the blonde's throat on his forehead. He went cross-eyed trying to look at it.

"I'm still mad," Katsuya whispered, but still he wrapped the arm he had lying over Mokuba tighter. "An' I don' trust ya much right now." Mokuba felt his chest sting at that. He knew trust was hard to re-earn from anyone, he wondered if it was even possible to regain it from Katsuya. "But I care 'bout ya a lot, so I'm gonna forgive ya…a little for now at least."

Seto scoffed at the idea of only a little, but Katsuya lift his leg over Mokuba and punched his heel into Seto's leg.

"OW! Fuck, damn it!"

Mokuba, unable to help himself giggled.

"What are ya laughing at?" Katsuya glared down at the youngest boy's head. "Ya're still in trouble too."

Mokuba smiled softly, he was still sad about losing Katsuya's trust and still felt bad about hurting Katsuya's feelings, but he was happy Katsuya was at least talking to him now. Hell, they were snuggling.

"Sorry."

"Yeah," Katsuya said. "You've got nine-hundred ninety-nine thousand nine-hundred ninety-nine 'sorry's to go."