See previous chapter for disclaimer of the YGO arc.

Chapter 15: The Conspiracy

The limousine Mokuba and Joey had come in had plenty of room for five passengers in addition to the security guard riding shotgun to the chauffeur. As they started off Kaito wondered aloud at the lack of a guard in the passenger area, at which point Mokuba and Joey tag-teamed an explanation of Joey's relatively new status as head of site security (the site being the Kaiba Corp. building or, alternately, wherever Mokuba happened to be at the time).

"Right now it's only some weekends and evenings, what with school and all," Joey concluded, "but there's only a year till graduation, and I ain't big on the thought of university. 'Sides, with how Kaiba pays his security staff I can make a living no problem, if I go full-time."

Mokuba nodded in agreement. "Nii-sama made sure that the salary of the security forces includes hazard pay. They earn it."

"No kidding." Joey's hand drifted to cover the area between his shoulder and his neck, massaging it gently. Yugi immediately changed the topic of conversation, taking the opportunity to fill Joey and Mokuba in on the basics of Dark Sage's lecture. Both boys listened with intense interest, making the occasional question or comment in a way that made Kaito quickly realize that not only did both of them know about the Shadow Realm, but they had to be Duelists in the sense Yugi and Kaiba were.

Hm, both Kaibas are Duelists. I wonder if there's a genetic factor behind that connection to the Shadow Realm. Not necessarily a direct link, but a trait that generally tends to run in families. Of course, that would mean that if I have it, there's a chance that maybe dad…

Deciding to let Yugi do all the talking, Kaito glanced over at Riku, mindful of the younger boy's tendency to brood. Judging by the islander's dour expression while he thought no one was paying attention to him, Kaito suspected that despite the news of Hakuba's improved state, Riku still felt guilty for being one of the catalysts behind the whole situation. Kaito was definitely going to need to talk to him later, and if necessary, smack some sense into him again.

…Figuratively, of course. Actually laying a hand on Riku would probably earn a sword at his throat for his troubles, given the underlying current of tension in the other boy's body language.

Since company precluded any private conversation for the time being, Kaito added it to the top of his mental list of things to do and then relaxed into his seat, enjoyed the novelty of his first limo ride until they pulled up outside the imposing skyscraper that housed Kaiba Corp. headquarters. Following Mokuba's lead, they piled out of the limousine and entered the building.

The first thing Kaito noticed as they entered was the large number of fire extinguishers present: one on every wall and two behind the receptionist's counter. The second was the way the lobby seemed to have been designed not only with good taste in mind, but also defensibility against possible assault. The third was that every employee they passed on their way through the lobby acknowledged not only Mokuba and Joey, but also Yugi. Yugi seemed to know them in turn, greeting every person who said hello by name as the group walked to the elevators. It was interesting, given how their boss had seemed distinctly unhappy to see Yugi the last time Kaito'd been around. Kaito chalked it up to being part of the many things about Yugi and Kaiba's relationship that he simply didn't know about.

"So what's the plan?" Kaito inquired as they rode upwards.

"Well, first order of business is to see whether Kaiba's locked himself in to keep people from trying to interrupt him. After that… Eh. We'll play it by ear," Joey supplied. "We're good at improv."

When the elevator doors opened, the secretary took one look at their group and breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, good… He's been worse than usual today, Mokuba-san, Yugi-san…"

"No worries, Amano-san," Joey replied cheerfully. "We got a secret weapon! Come on," he added to the others. "The dragon's lair is this way."

Upon reaching a relatively inconspicuous door (if you didn't count the fact that Kaito suspected it could hold up to a battering ram, given Kaiba's high status and level of paranoia), Mokuba tried the door handle only to find it locked. Joey reached over and ruffled the younger boys hair. "Looks like you can show off those new skills after all."

"Hey, you learned too?" Kaito asked, perking up in interest.

Mokuba smiled proudly. "I made Joey teach me when I learned he was teaching Yugi. You never know when stuff will be useful."

"You got that right," Joey agreed. "I think Alix-kun plans on teaching you to hotwire next."

"Go ahead, Mokuba-kun," Yugi encouraged, looking faintly relieved that he didn't have to take the spotlight.

"Okay!" Mokuba turned to the door and held out an imperious hand in Joey's direction. "Tools."

With a snicker, Joey dug into the recesses of his jacket and produced a rolled up fabric, which Mokuba set on the floor and opened to reveal Kaito's old set of spare lockpicks. He eyed the lock critically, then hunted through the various bits of metal and went to work. Kaito watched for a few seconds, evaluating Mokuba's skill level. The boy wasn't too bad for a relative beginner, but Kaiba's locks weren't going to be child's play.

"Yugi gave 'em to me for safekeeping," Joey said to Kaito as they waited, indicating the lockpicks. "Mine was made from whatever useful stuff I'd got my hands on, and he figured I'd get more mileage out of these."

Kaito nodded in understanding, then, not feeling comfortable just standing around without doing anything, pulled a deck of solitaire cards out of a pocket and began absentmindedly shuffling them. As Kid, he was perfectly capable of sitting still for long periods of time, but when it wasn't strictly necessary he always preferred to be moving in some way or another. If nothing else, it was a way to distance himself from the mindset necessary for Kid, both in his own head and that of anyone who cared enough to try associating his civilian identity with his night job. Not to mention the fact that card tricks made for good, low-concentration, self-contained entertainment, and judging by his smile Yugi was having fun playing audience.

He'd just begun a more complicated trick when the approach of a newcomer distracted him and he stopped halfway through. A very short, very red-headed, very American-looking newcomer.

"'Scuse me… are y'all trying to break into the boss's office?" Not only were the young woman's words in English, but they held a distinctly Cajun drawl.

Kaito felt himself being sized up for threat potential in an instant, even as he (and Riku as well, he was sure) returned the favor. Despite her casual clothes and relaxed manner, he could see the faint bulge of two guns hidden beneath her coat, and he had no doubt she knew how to use them. The sheer level of confidence and competence in her bearing warned anyone who bothered to pay attention that despite her youth—she didn't look much older than he was—and barely-over-five-foot stature, she was not someone to take lightly.

"Nii-sama skipped dinner last night, so we're kidnapping him for lunch," Mokuba answered. Kaito noted with faint interest that the dark-haired boy referred to his brother as 'Nii-sama' even when speaking English. She raised an eyebrow, still watching Kaito and Riku, but remained unperturbed. Holding his lockpicks in place, Mokuba glanced back at the young woman. "Hey, where's your cane?"

Her expression twisted slightly in distaste. "One, the docs cleared me from the wheelchair; I can walk on my own two feet again without assistance. Two, I am not your sibling, thank God, I do not need you mother henning me. Unlike some people," she tilted her head toward the locked office door, "I know when to come in out of the rain, when to eat a balanced breakfast, and when to shut off the damn computer and get some sleep." She turned back to Kaito and held out a hand. "Alix Gaudet, Kaiba Corp. security head."

Taking his cue from her western mannerisms, Kaito responded in English, "Kaito Kuroba, traveling magician." He pocketed his cards again and shook her hand, then grinned mischievously. "Talk, dark and broody over there is Riku."

"Well, at least I'm not luggage this time," Riku said resignedly, reaching out to shake her hand as well.

In that position, Alix was forced to tilt her head quite far back in order to see Riku's face. "You're even taller than my brothers," she declared, switching back to Japanese. The remains of her drawl sounded somewhat bizarre in the other language, but at least she remained intelligible. "I was just getting' used to not feelin' like a shrimp."

Riku shrugged silently, simply looking down at her with a somewhat wistful expression even after releasing her hand.

"Nice to meet you both. New members of the local Dueling club?" Her mouth quirked slightly.

Since he wasn't sure just how much she knew about the other side of Duel Monsters, even if she was Kaiba's head of security, Kaito decided to err on the side of caution and grinned disarmingly. "…Sorta. We just got inducted into the Conspiracy against Kaiba-kun, though."

Alix looked at Mokuba. "Oh, I want to hear the story behind this… should I get the peanut butter sandwiches?"

Still wrestling with the lock, Mokuba grunted. "No, I want him out of the building altogether, or else he won't eat enough."

"…Want me to get Kambashi and his tranq rifle?"

Riku smirked, and the rest of the group snickered.

"Think we got it covered, boss lady, but thanks," Joey replied.

Kaito stepped closer to Mokuba, peering at the door. "Hey, you're doing good. Keep it smooth, all right? Feel it."

Alix looked at Kaito, cocking her head. "You know how to pick locks too?"

"It's a hobby. Mokuba-kun's using what used to be my spare kit—I gave it to Yugi-kun last time we met, in case something like this ever happened, actually."

"Well, if you're a magician, it's probably good to know. Also if you hang out with this group of trouble magnets for any length of time." She waved a hand at Yugi and company.

"Oh, I'm a trouble magnet all on my own…" All the way up to 'lethal,' in fact.

"Isn't that the truth," Riku agreed.

"Oh, lovely. Do you actually Duel? Or just play the game?"

Well, that answered that question. "Erm… Other way around, to be honest," Kaito said, eyeing her.

"…Ouch. That must have been a shock. What about you, Luggage-san?" she added, turning to Riku and smirking.

Riku rolled his eyes, probably the most childish behavior Kaito had seen from him to date. Ever since Kaito had broken through the façade of 'Ansem,' depending on his mood Riku seemed to waver between a mostly normal teenage attitude and cold, withdrawn maturity. Since he usually tended to act closer to his age when he felt more at ease, the eye-roll either said a lot about Alix's people skills or, given his earlier wistful look, she reminded him an awful lot of one of his friends back home.

"I'm the transportation. I have a few tricks, but no Heart of the Cards." He turned slightly and looked away, discouraging any further conversation.

Definitely fluctuating. Of course, the number of unfamiliar people probably didn't help. Riku wouldn't have interacted closely with so many people in such a short span of time in who knew how long.

"Got it!" Mokuba exclaimed, interrupting the conversation. He quickly put the lockpicks away and pulled the door open, peering inside.

"Wheeler, you have ten seconds to tell me why you should still have a job."

Alix stepped up behind Mokuba. "Wrong guess, chere, care to try again?"

Kaito could imagine the look on Kaiba's face as he looked up to see Mokuba's half-guilty, half-triumphant expression. "Mokuba?"

Joey pulled the door open enough to poke his head in as well. "We have a winner! You want the bedroom set, or the all-expenses-paid trip out of the building?"

"…I'm installing a retinal scanner." A sigh. "Who else is with you?"

"Yugi and Kaito-kun!" Mokuba replied cheerfully. "You remember him, right? His friend Hakuba-kun is at the game shop, but Riku-kun is here too."

Kaito joined the growing mob at the door, manically cheerful grin in place. It wasn't strictly necessary, but it would probably bug Kaiba to no end. Just because he wasn't in costume didn't mean he stopped enjoying the chance to mess with people's minds. "Nice to see you again, Kaiba-kun! Mokuba-kun was just showing me his new skills."

The CEO sat at his desk, hands still on his laptop's keyboard, eyeing them all with a wary resignation. A coffee cup rested near the laptop, and behind him the window blinds shut out what was sure to be a panoramic view of the city as well as the morning sun. "Kuroba-san, yes, unfortunately… who is Riku-san?"

"Apparently, he's the luggage."

From behind them, Riku muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "Hate you all…"

"Anyway, this is a kidnapping," Alix continued. "You've violated the cardinal rule, 'Man does not live by coffee alone.'"

"…I ate."

"The only food in the vicinity disappeared at the feeding frenzy last night, when the shift changed. You know how fast Amano-san's muffins go when she brings the chocolate ones."

"Nii-sama, you can't work 24 hours a day. You promised."

The slight twitch around Kaiba's eyes would have been a wince in anyone else. "All right, give me five minutes."

"Fine, but we're gonna stand here and glare the whole time," Alix promised.

"I have no doubt," Kaiba stated dryly. "What are you dragging me into this time?"

"It's a surprise," Joey countered with a Kid-worthy grin.

"Nothing bad, we promise," Yugi added.

"I fail to be reassured."

Kaiba transferred his laptop to a briefcase and stepped out of the office as the group clustered in his doorway moved out of the way. He scanned the room, and when his gaze found Riku standing beside Yugi, his posture changed subtly. Nothing showed on the teenage CEO's face—Kaiba wore his stern impassivity the same way Kaito knew he hid behind smiles and mischief—but Kaito'd learned how to read body language as a part of his talent with disguises. Kaiba was not happy to see Riku. Out of the corner of his eye, Kaito noticed that Alix had caught the change as well, judging by the way her eyebrows had shot up.

…You didn't notice Riku before because he didn't want you to, but I'll bet you remember he was there, now. You recognize a potential threat when you see one, though, and it's probably killing you that you somehow missed it entirely last time. This should be… interesting.

The rest of their group also seemed to have spotted the difference as well, though only Yugi likely had any idea about the reason behind it. Kaiba said nothing, however, and no one else commented on it as they headed back to the ground floor. As they went, Kaito realized that the security personnel looked more amused than anything at seeing their employer being escorted out of the building by their miniature mob.

"Does this happen a lot?"

"On occasion." Joey smirked.

"Two days after Nii-sama hired Alix-kun, we got him hustled out the door with nothing but a sandwich and some onigiri…"

"The woman stole my laptop," Kaiba grumbled, although without any real bite.

Kaito chuckled. "I like you," he informed Alix. She grinned back.

"Yeah, yeah. Flattery will get you nowhere. I may not be as good a pickpocket as you or Joey, but I get by."

He raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think I'm a pickpocket?" Not that he couldn't…

"The way you move, the way your hands work… The way you sized up my pockets, my guns, and the bulge from my wallet."

She was good. Might as well have some fun, then—time to get Riku to lighten up a little, and maybe get a head start on bringing Kaiba back from being on edge. Besides, he didn't get to show off often, and he had no doubt that everyone present wouldn't object to learning more about just what he could do. Kaito wouldn't put it past Joey to have suggested bringing them along on this little escapade for precisely that reason.

"I probably could pick your pocket, if I wanted, but your cash is safe from me. Your keys, not so much." He twirled them on a finger, grinning at her amused expression.

"I didn't think you'd go after the money… or you wouldn't have let on you were looking at it. Can I have those back, please?" Kaito quickly moved his hands, leaving the keychain clipped back on her belt. "Wow. You're good," she laughed, unconsciously returning his assessment of her.

Kaito grinned. "You should see what I can do with a tablecloth."

"You know, there are people in this world who actually have respect for the law. Admittedly, I don't know any of them personally…" Kaiba ducked into the limousine waiting for them at the curb, followed by his kidnappers.

"What, Yugi-kun doesn't count? And is that any way to talk about your own brother? I'll admit Joey's a lost cause, and make no promises for myself…" A resounding snort from Kaiba, Joey and Mokuba answered Kaito, and Yugi turned faintly pink.

"You haven't known Yugi for very long, have you?" Alix asked. In the background, Mokuba had turned to give directions to the driver.

"Well, we met him a while ago, but only for a day before we had to leave for America. He and Solomon-san are giving us some help now, though… our friend Hakuba-kun needed some basic magical training."

Kaiba's frown deepened at the mention of magic, but he refrained from comment.

"Does he know about…?" Alix directed the question at Kaiba and Joey, glancing briefly at Yugi.

"The hitchhiker?" Joey nodded. "Yeah, though they ain't been formally introduced."

"It wasn't under the best of circumstances, either. And probably before you were hired, because I can't imagine you ever letting something like that happen."

Alix thought for a moment. "Oh! Was that the mess with the loony out front? Yeah, that was about a week before I got here."

"Between that and the Black Pharaoh, it made it quite clear I needed new security." Kaiba gave Mokuba a forbidding look as the dark-haired boy absconded with his brother's briefcase and deposited it safely beyond the CEO's reach. Mokuba responded by crossing his arms and making a face.

We've previously established that you guys attract the weird and the dangerous, and that does not sound good. I probably shouldn't even ask, but…

"Black Pharaoh?"

"God, that's a story and a half, and I wasn't even there." Alix rolled her eyes.

"Doesn't sound like someone you'd want to meet in a dark alleyway." Or anywhere else, for that matter.

"No. He wasn't." Joey rubbed the side of his neck again.

"He's one of the reasons why we weren't surprised at the thought of living Darkness, before," Yugi offered quietly. "We've fought off two attempted incursions of Lovecraftian entities in the past six months."

…Lovecraft. Ok, I'm not big on horror lore, but I know bad news when I hear it. Am so not thinking about whether Nameless Horrors are limited just to this world, or whether they're in any way related to Heartless themselves…

"…Ouch."

"Basically," Joey agreed.

"Wait a minute," Alix broke in, eyebrows going up again. "You have run into stuff like that before? You weren't kidding when you said trouble magnet."

"Really,really long story, but… yes. Not exactly anywhere around here, though. Hey, did you use any cards?" Kaito asked Yugi and Joey, steering the conversation away from more touchy subjects. "I wouldn't mind some pointers from a Duelist's perspective, not just a player's… I don't even know anyone who plays back home."

"Oh, yeah…" Yugi put a hand under his chin contemplatively. "Well, actually, you'd have to ask Bakura-kun or Kaiba-kun. They did most of the card-based Dueling. Mine was more me and Yami turning the puzzle against the Black Pharaoh."

Okay, the pyramid is apparently more than just a kind of spirit-trap.Interesting.

"I have work," Kaiba stated shortly. "Building any kind of deck is time-consuming, and you're looking to complicate matters even further."

"Nii-sama…" Mokuba sighed in exasperation and leaned against his older brother. Kaiba automatically put an arm around Mokuba's shoulders, but made no move to change his answer.

"I don't think I've met Bakura-kun. Am I likely to do any better if I ask him?"

Joey and Yugi exchanged glances.

"He might like you."

"Tell him you're a thief," Joey added. "That'll probably work."

"Oh?"

"He's got a hitchhiker too. Former tomb robber."

"Well, isn't that interesting…" Riku murmured. Kaito had to agree.

"I guess I'll have to look him up later, then. I think I'll forget to mention that I always give back what I steal, though…" In fact, probably best to leave out the specifics of Kid altogether. An unconventional thief can still be called a thief.

Joey snickered. "You do that. Meet us after school tomorrow and we can introduce you then."

Kaito nodded, and the rest of the time before and during lunch was mostly filled with idle talk, getting to know each other beyond 'Hey, some of us survived a potentially deadly situation together!'. Alix and Joey did most of the talking, plying Kaito and Riku with questions about themselves and stepping around issues that were obviously not open for discussion.

For most of lunch, Riku seemed satisfied to let Kaito take the majority of the spotlight, though as time passed he seemed to relax in their company. Kaito talked mostly about magic and his life as it had existed before he became Kid, making exception for a few stories about Hakuba. Since the blond detective wasn't there to defend himself, and stories were best told when the subject was present to turn beet red and sputter, Kaito decided to go easy on him for the time being.

Easy being a relative term, of course. The idiotic Holmes cosplay outfit that Hakuba had worn when he'd first arrived in Japan was fair game for mocking at any time. And then there was his complete and utter lack of casual clothes... and the time Kaito had taken the cricket-chirp sound mechanism out of a kid's toy, set it to go off at random, and snuck it into the lining of Hakuba's school bag. He wasn't even sure if Hakuba had ever actually found it, because a week into the prank Hakuba had gone back to England without warning or explanation, and a little while after that Kaito had met Riku.

In return, Alix regaled them all with stories both from growing up in Louisiana as the youngest in a long line of security specialists, and a few of the more entertaining (read: embarrassing) stories from her last few weeks of working under Kaiba Seto. Such as the incident a few days ago, when Joey had been running an errand for Mokuba only to be nearly bowled over by a half-hysterical plumber who had burst out of one of the bathrooms, desperately brandishing a plunger and shrieking about mutant alligators in the plumbing. The head of site security had ended up having to sort the whole mess out, which had proved no easy task.

"Apparently," Joey broke in dryly, "one of the absentminded scientist types from R&D managed to drop one of the latest miniature-hologram-prototype doohickies down the sink. Understandably, the guy who got called to clear the clog was not expecting to come face-to-face with a Two-Mouth Darkruler when he tried to look down the drain. Of course, it took several hours of calming the guy down, rounding up everybody working on the floor, tracking down the person who called the guy out in the first place, getting a face full of hologram myself, holding tools, parts, getting squirted with dirty water and stuff I'd rather not think about, and finally pulling the gizmo out only to have said absentminded scientist cheerfully announce 'Oh, so that's where that got to!' in order to figure it all out in the first place…"

Mokuba cheerfully took over at the telling of the compensation that Joey had demanded of him in addition to double overtime. Taking shameless advantage of the tendency Kaiba had acquired to reflexively start eating any sandwich his brother handed him rather than risk the consequences of failing to do so, Joey convinced Mokuba to hand him a whipped cream sandwich. The security footage of the look on his face when he'd absently tried to bite into it had mysteriously gone missing, but Joey maintained that being assigned to patrol R&D for his four successive security shifts had been worth it.

Mokuba also volunteered a story from before either Alix or Joey's time. Apparently, the staff on one of the floors had gotten together to set up a surprise birthday party for a matronly, well-liked receptionist. Not daring to consult higher management for something so frivolous and figuring that it should only take a few minutes anyway, they had secretly set up in a conference room not scheduled for use that day.

Unfortunately, the conference room they chose happened to be the same one where another employee had left a piece of equipment Kaiba was working on after a presentation. The CEO had walked into the darkened room to pick up his prototype, only to register lights flaring on and a group of people coming at him, the foremost carrying something between them, and the start of a shout. Sheer reflex had sent one foot up in a kick that connected perfectly with the mystery object, launching it out of their grasp and toward the ceiling, and in the next instant he had been under and then on the other side of the heavy conference table in a defensive position.

Several seconds of mass panic, confusion, and airborne boysenberry pie filling later, the various occupants of the room had frozen into a tableau of sinking realization as the awareness of exactly what had just happened gradually percolated. After several more seconds of frozen, staring silence, Kaiba had eventually straightened, and, deliberately, crossed several steps to retrieve his prototype before turning and walking equally deliberately to the door. Where he had paused for a moment and, with dignity, recommended that next time, they should book a room through proper channels.

Alix found this story hilarious. "Wow, boss, maybe you really don't actually need a bodyguard. I don't believe that pie will ever again menace the populace."

Kaiba glared briefly, then returned to finishing his lunch in stolid silence. Kaito'd noticed that this seemed to be routine for the other boy, given the way that his entourage seemed to blithely ignore any and all threats or attempts to control a given situation.

Undaunted, she continued, "And I am certain that the staff on that floor have an entirely new appreciation for the formidable nature of their CEO."

"Kaiba Seto, master of pai-jutsu!" Joey grinned madly.

"Then you must be even higher ranked than he is, Joey-kun." Riku broke his silence with a sly smirk, taking the others by surprise. "The way you eat, pies probably flee when they see you coming."

Joey's jaw dropped at the unexpected contribution, but he quickly recovered. "Whoa! Would you look at that. Looks like he's not just a clone of Kaiba after all!"

"Shut up, mutt."

"Nah, he's just shy—Hey!" Kaito protested as Riku flicked an ice cube at him.

"Again, why do I put up with you? Forget Sora, you're worse than Kairi."

"Who's this?" Alix asked, leaning forward.

Riku shrugged, looking like he hadn't entirely intended to mention the other two but nonetheless not too distressed by the slip. "My best friends as a kid."

Kaito eyed Riku.That kind of phrasing had better be because you're pretending to be thirty rather than because you're afraid of meeting up with them again. You do look pretty relaxed right now, though, so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.

"Don't just leave it there, tell us about them." Alix grinned. "It's your turn for a story, chere — I already told y'all about when I stopped a purse-snatcher with a bowl of soba noodles and wasabi, and Kaito-kun told us about the cricket-chirper he snuck into the lining of his friend's schoolbag. What've you got for us?"

Riku smiled faintly. "You're really a lot like her… which means I'm not about to get out of this, am I?"

"Nope!" came the gleeful reply. "Talk."

"All right, all right…" Riku looked into the distance briefly. "The three of us grew up by the beach, with an islet not too far offshore, so all the kids had rowboats. Sora and I tended to compete for bragging rights on all sorts of things, and when we'd boat-race Kairi would pace us on foot from the beach. I usually won, but there was one time when I was eight…"

A real smile spread across Riku's face. "I don't know when or where he got it, but halfway in Sora pegged me in the head with a starfish and pulled ahead when I was distracted. It fell back into the water before I could throw it back, but I managed to grab a flounder and smack him with that, and then he started splashing me, and… it kind of went downhill from there. And then, after the water war finally died down, we looked up to see Kairi sitting on the edge of the bridge we'd designated as the finish line for the fastest, prim as you please and with this smug little smile to add insult to injury. She didn't let us live down that she'd beaten both of us for a week."

Alix laughed. "I like her. If you still keep in touch with her, bring her by for a visit sometime."

"Gaudet-san, I'd be scared of what she might pick up from being your company," Riku responded dryly.

"You should be." Kaiba ignored the way all heads turned in his direction, but Kaito suspected the CEO's sharp eyes still caught the brief thumbs up that Mokuba flashed Alix's way. Between the comment and the reaction, Kaito figured that for Kaiba's rather skewed baseline of evaluation, this was relatively relaxed enough to satisfy his keepers. Which said it all, really.

He'd also decided that he wanted to keep Kaiba from getting anywhere near Hakuba for the time being. No one acted this cold around people who obviously cared about him without hiding some nasty scars. Hakuba didn't need to have to deal with that kind of thing.

As lunch wound down, Kaito saw Alix and Yugi exchange glances. "So, Yugi, since you seem to have free time today, how do you feel about an extra self-defense lesson?"

Yugi smiled. "Sure! You know," he added, "you should spar with Riku. He's even got a sword, so he'd be good at hand-to-hand, wouldn't he?"

…And if that isn't manipulation, I don't know what is.

"I wanna see that!" Joey interjected, grinning. Riku looked torn between amusement and wariness, but eventually he shrugged.

"If you'd like, Gaudet-san. It's been a while, but…"

"Sure thing. I'm always open to new blood," Alix responded, her smile showing more teeth than was strictly necessary.

Kaiba sighed. "If you lot are going to be using my gym, I'd better stay and make sure you don't wreck it."

Yugi smirked, looking rather like his hitchhiker.

And manipulative on multiple fronts at once, even. Getting to see Riku in action and keeping Kaiba out of his office at the same time… I play mind games sometimes, and I'm good at them, but half the time I win because the other side doesn't always know that I'm playing. You'd know, and you'd be a challenge, at the very least. If this is you operating on spontaneous ideas, I would really hate to try out-thinking you.

…Not that it wouldn't be fun…

11/07