DIS: I have a playlist on iTunes that is meant ideally for inspiration. The majority is all soft instrumental or piano music except for one song that has words in it. If you guys are interested, I can send you a list and maybe some of the songs. Just tell me in a review or PM me. Thanks to Sakura Takanouchi, We're In Like Sin, oOMasamuneOo, fantasia49, kurakuracha, Arana Is, ANZU&ATEM FAN, un-chan, CraziAznGirl,and Laberai Tashio for reviewing. You guys absolutely rock my socks off for reviewing on my first ever chaptered revolutionshipping fic! (cries) Anyway, here is the chapter, short though it may be.

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Chapter Fourteen, A potential disaster

Honda gazed at the café a few steps ahead of him where he had parked his motorcycle. He had told Miho he would see her, but now he doubted the intelligence of his offer. Even though he was known to throw gallant gestures left and right to women, he rarely ever thought them through. As Honda turned his helmet in his hands, he felt as though he had sunk into a deep pit of anxiety. Shizuka had never made him feel as nervous as he was feeling now, which only made the feeling more acute.

She can have my coat for all I care, he thought, taking in a deep breath and getting off his motorcycle and throwing the kickstand up. I just don't want to walk in there and ask her out like I planned. What if I ask and she says 'no'? I can't handle rejection from her... He heaved in a quick, unsteady breath and forced his feet to draw him closer to the café. As he came to the door, his hand hovered over it uncertainly. It seemed like she was interested, he told himself reassuringly. She must at least like me a little bit. Yeah...Yeah, that's it. He entered the café, his confidence faltering a bit when he saw Anzu at the cash register. Miho was beside her, the two of them talking with bright expressions on their faces.

Honda cleared his throat quietly and approached the counter. Both girls looked up, Anzu with a curious expression. If she had ever seen Honda at the café, Jounouchi was with him. An idea forming in her mind, Anzu's eyes slid to Miho's face and she knew instantly by the light blush that it was because of her that Honda had come to the café. She smiled and waved at him. "Hey, Honda," she greeted and inched her way towards the back to the flavoring bottles. Take the chance, Honda, she urged in her mind, glancing over her shoulder at him. Miho likes you. You have to see that, don't you?

"Hello, Honda," Miho quietly greeted him, smiling shyly. "Your, um, coat is at my house, so I can't give you it right now." Her smile turned apologetic and she tucked a few strands of hair that had escaped her tail behind her ear. When she lowered her hands to the counter, Miho hoped that he couldn't see the slight tremble in her fingers. She had been waiting for him to come see her at the café. Anzu's quiet withdrawal from the counter made it clear that her interest in Honda was obvious. I wonder if he knows, too?

"O-oh..." Honda blinked quickly. "That's okay. I didn't really come by for my coat. Not really, anyway." She watched him as he fiddled with the helmet he held in his hands. He stared down at it, his mouth twisting with some unknown emotion. "Um...Listen, Miho, would you...like to go out to dinner some time? Or lunch?"

When she didn't answer immediately, he raised his eyes to hers, a hopeful, almost puppy-like expression on his face. Smothering the bubbling of joy rising in her chest, she giggled and covered her jubilant smile by touching her fingers to her lips. "Yes, of course, Honda," she answered, lowering her hand to beam at him. His expression melted with relief. Both of them let out a squeak of surprise as Anzu came over, nearly toppling Miho over the counter by grabbing her shoulders.

"I could come early tomorrow, Miho, so you guys can have lunch," she cheerfully suggested, winking broadly at them both. Miho turned red, looking to Honda in question.

"Anzu..." He began in a strangled voice, before clearing his throat and continuing, "Thanks. That would be great." Honda turned his eyes back to Miho, telling her with a grin, "So...Can I pick you up here at noon?" She nodded wordlessly. With that concluded, he scampered backwards, waving at them both and then bolting out of the café. The two girls watched him run past the café, glancing at each other.

"Thank you," Miho said, sighing heavily, a smile curling her lips upward. "I wanted him to come by so badly. I know that I shouldn't have hoped that he would ask me out, but..."

"No, it's okay," Anzu assured her, releasing her shoulders. She smiled. "I think that Honda was hoping you wanted him to." She chuckled and settled in the stool across from the cash register while Miho stood beside her, resting her hip against the counter. Even though she had known Anzu for only so long, she felt that she could understand her friend. It was hard, too, as Anzu kept a cheerful façade so that no one would become worried about her. There was a thoughtful, almost wistful look about her now.

"Anzu, I know you said that – well, that you and your accompanist aren't involved or anything, but..." She leaned forward, her eyebrows rising ever so slightly. "...Would you like to become involved with him?" Anzu gave her a startled look, her mouth flying open to protest against such an idea. Miho's eyes narrowed as something crossed her face and her determined expression slid away. "I haven't really talked to him myself," she continued, allowing Anzu to collect herself, "but you seem to like him, and that you are close to him. That grand gesture he held towards you...It seemed a little more than friendly if you ask me."

"Maybe," was Anzu's faint response. "It's just...well, like you said, he's my accompanist. How could I possibly become involved with him if all the world is trying to see us as working partners? Not only that my father doesn't like pianists. He hates them. He even met Yami and hated him."

"But why?" Miho asked, shocked.

"My mother ran away with a pianist." Anzu gave a slight smile, meeting Miho's sympathetic gaze. "It's alright, though, Miho. Even after I found out about that, I never judged Yami. I haven't known him for very long, but I trust him. I think there's something about his own parents that he's trying to forget. And besides, he's been really nice to me and helping me out with this. I don't think I could have gotten my career off to such a smooth start if not for him."

The conversation ended there, as a customer approached the counter. Miho watched, envious, as Anzu's face transformed into a bright, welcoming mask. She could never be as happy as Anzu after such a saddening conversation. As she reflected on it, it seemed that there was always some secret revolving around one's parents. Her own family was dysfunctional and thrived on arguing. That Anzu's mother had run away with a pianist and Anzu had to rely on one to practice for rehearsals and auditions was ironic. It was no wonder her father felt so bitter.

Even after the customer had left, they did not continue the conversation. Instead, Anzu cheerfully spoke to her about her day out with Jounouchi Katsuya's ex-wife, Mai. Frankly, Miho was surprised that Anzu and the older woman was getting along so well. When she voiced this, Anzu had shrugged and explained, "She told me that she always gets jealous when Jounouchi associates with any girl, even if they're not married. I kind of feel bad for her, Miho. She doesn't have any girl friends except for Shizuka, and let's face it – Jounouchi's sister is way too naïve for a girl like Mai."

"Does she still love Jounouchi?" Anzu nodded. "It is always hard when a person has to give up their spouse while they still love them."

"Jounouchi didn't have any choice but to divorce her." Anzu ignored the questioning look Miho sent her, subtly indicating that it was not her place to discuss her friends' marital affairs. Miho accepted that gracefully, pulling another stool beside Anzu's and leaning over on the counter, her elbows propped on the top with her hands bracing her head.

It was a surprisingly slow day.

X

Ryou, sitting cross legged in the middle of the stage, flicked a look to the doors. Yami did not pause in his playing, for which Ryou was grateful. He had been planning on continuing to practice with Anzu for the next few days, and was a bit stressed over it. He chose not to tell his friend, as Yami would likely become surly, but he had recently found out through his connections that a certain acquaintance of his and Yami's would be judging the auditions. Their acquaintance was also a dancer, exceedingly better than Ryou because of where he originated from and his tall, lithe form. No doubt he would arrive at an inopportune moment, as he generally did.

Thankfully, the male that entered the auditorium was not their acquaintance; he seemed to know Yami, though, or else he would not continue to stroll towards the stage. Ryou vaguely mused, He would be a good dancer with such a figure, as he sometimes did when meeting new people. Once the male was walking across the stage, Yami paused in his playing and peered round to look at his visitor.

"Otogi," he mildly greeted, smiling pleasantly. Ryou rose to his feet, also smiling at Otogi with a warm, kind smile. "This is my friend, Ryou Bakura. He's helping Anzu practice since he teaches dancing. Ryou, this is Otogi Ryuuji." Ryou glided forward, his hand extended politely. Otogi Ryuuji appeared startled by this before taking his hand in a firm grip and then released his hand.

"Nice to meet you," Otogi said. "It's good to see that someone will be helping Anzu practice for the auditions. They're looming closer, I hear."

"Yes," he replied, instantly liking Otogi's social personality, "quite close. I am confident that she will be able to get the main parts of Odette and Odile. Actually, she is one of the better dancers I have helped. I'm a little envious of whoever taught her. They did a good job at it." Otogi smiled fondly, as though remembering a particularly memorable time in his life.

"She is a very good dancer," was all he offered, his smile in place. "Anyway...Yami! I have some rather doleful news for you. I will try my hardest to wipe that impish smile of yours right off your face." Yami gave him a dry look in return. "As you know, I have been dealing with some of your finances since I'm the one who has a mind for math and – honestly – you suck at it. You asked me to, and I did. The small things, that is. I don't keep track of your other apartments or villas or whatever the hell you have. I got a pissy e-mail today from the man that originally takes care of your finances." Yami let loose a long-suffering groan at this information. "Ah, ha. See? I told you it was depressing news. In any case, he was incredibly sarcastic and added some rude insults. Naturally, I e-mailed him with a similar e-mail. This all happened this morning, mind you. All he said in return was, 'You better stay out of my path, because I'll be in Domino by this afternoon.'"

"Kaiba is coming to Domino?" Ryou questioned, surprised.

"Oh, you know him, too?"

"Well, yes...I have had occasion to talk with him. If I remember correctly, he's only dealing with your finances because his father did, is that right, Yami?" He turned to look at the pianist, who nodded, appearing glum and annoyed.

"He owns a large marketing industry of all sorts of things," Yami informed Otogi. "His father was not right in the head and used to produce weapons of war for his own enjoyment. Once Kaiba took over the company, he completely reversed the products. When his younger brother died while their father was still alive, he came up with the idea of making children's toys. That's where he's most popular, I suppose, but he comes up with all kinds of things, mostly technological. I never really paid attention. When he met me a few days after the late Kaiba's death, he hated me on sight. That was just fine with me, because I don't care for him myself."

"Interesting...You have to text me when he comes by. I want to witness you being an asshole to someone. It's very rare. I might even film it so that I can laugh at it later." Yami scowled moodily.

"You film it and you won't be given a chance to see anything. I'll tackle you to get the camcorder out of your hands."

"I'll just hire people to film it then."

Yami shrugged. "Then you won't have to worry about me. Kaiba will be suing them and you in an instant. He probably thinks someone will take his head and put it on a turkey so that he is making turkey sounds and post it on the internet." There was a pause as everyone considered this. Yami and Ryou grinned, amused, while Otogi, the more practical of the three, wondered how one would go about doing that. "Anyway," Yami spoke up again, checking his watch, "it's well into the afternoon now. Anzu is supposed to be arriving soon. I should call her and tell her to cancel if I have to endure Kaiba today. I'd rather not take out my bad mood on her."

While Yami dialed Anzu's number, Ryou thought it rather depressing that he would have to deal with Kaiba's derisive remarks and then his dancing acquaintance's arrogant assumptions. He certainly had come to Domino at a bad time. But, of course, that was natural.

Meanwhile, Anzu was jogging down the street towards the opera house. She was, in fact, almost ten minutes late. It wasn't as if she had been late before. However, her phone was dead because she neglected to charge it last night, so if Yami called and she was unable to be contacted, he might assume something was wrong or simply go home. She was supposed to practice with Ryou again that day, though, and didn't want to lose any time that she might improve on her dancing. She needed to get this part in Swan Lake.

As she approached the opera house, panting a bit, she noticed that a man was exiting a sleek, black limo. She might have paused to stare, except she was late and the man looked like one of those cold-eyed, pompous businessmen. She reminded herself to turn her nose up at him if he happened to cross her. Wouldn't that make him feel nice, having a mere middle-class female without a steady career sneering at him? Anzu stifled a laugh as she hurried to the doors, right behind him.

The aggravating man was taking his time.

Once she was through the doors, she raced ahead of him to the auditorium doors, throwing them open dramatically. Yami, Ryou, and Otogi were standing on the stage in a triangle-like shape. She hastened to the stage and gasped out, "Sorry! I'm...late!"

"Oh, Anzu..." Yami said, blinking. "I was trying to call you, but it went straight to your voice mail. This is a little awkward. I'm actually expecting to see someone and was going to cancel our practice today. I intend to leave here as soon as possible. You and Ryou can certainly practice on your dancing."

A bit disappointed, and irritated that she had run for nothing, she released a long breath, pushing her bangs from her forehead as she absorbed what he had said. They were supposed to be practicing to Yami's actual playing instead of a recording so that she became more accustomed to his piano playing. It would help her dancing, she supposed, but it bothered her that he wasn't going to be there at all in the auditorium. "It's up to Ryou if he wants to do it by recording," she decided with a small shrug. "You might have called me earlier, Yami, if you had to meet someone."

Ryou and Otogi's eyes drifted to Yami's stung expression, interested in his response. "Well...Yes," he slowly conceded, "but I wasn't aware that they were to see me until Otogi came and told me."

At this, Anzu's irritation grew. "So you're going to drop our daily meeting for some other person that sprung this on you today?"

By Yami's perplexed appearance, it was clear that he was at a loss of how to deal with this accusation. He looked to his two friends desperately, hoping that they would intervene. However, Ryou knew better than to become involved when a woman was angry and Otogi was finding this entertaining; this predicament was much like one that a married couple might find themselves in. He wondered if Yami wanted to settle down and get married now that he was getting a taste of what the less enjoyable parts of it might be.

To Otogi's disappointment, Yami's discomfort did not last long as the auditorium doors opened and closed, announcing another visitor. A bit exasperatedly, the three males turned to see who it was now, and Anzu followed their movement. Yami and Ryou were dismayed to see that it was Kaiba striding forward, his face set in standard disinterest; Anzu and Otogi simply did not like the sight of him, so wealthy and sure of himself.

"I can see I arrived before you were given a chance to leave, Yami," Kaiba remarked coolly. "You have a bad habit of slithering away when I am trying to meet with you."

Everyone's eyes turned to Yami, who appeared less than enthused to see Seto Kaiba.

X

DIS: Ayah! My shortest chapter yet. I was going to make it longer, but then thought, "No. Let them suffer and wonder what will happen now that Kaiba is in the picture." Anyway, I am just glad I finally finished this chapter. I was stuck on it for awhile, but then I made myself sit down and think of how I wanted the story to end. As long as I have an ending for a story, I can continue. By the way, does anyone know who the dancing acquaintance of Yami and Ryou's is? I'm not sure when he will appear – perhaps soon. I gave some hints when I described him. Please leave a review on your way out; I would like to know how I'm doing so far. Ciao!