THE CONVERSATION

Mai leaned over the mirrored top of the VIP area bar trying to see into the back room where the only barman was tapping intently on his phone, either unaware or unbothered by the fact that he had a customer waiting. She had shouted for service, even waved her arms to catch his peripheral vision, but nothing had worked. As she turned, searching for anyone else who might be able to help, Seto emerged out of the shadows and Mai felt her stomach flutter.

He rested his arm on the counter beside her, leaning against it with a forced nonchalance.

"Hi."

She looked him up and down forcing her face to remain neutral. "What happened to your drink?" she asked.

"I drank it."

"Huh." She studied him with an expression bordering on admiration; she hadn't taken him for much of a drinker. "Best get you another then."

As Mai returned to trying to get the attention of the barman, Seto grimaced at the thought of yet another whisky. Mai was right—he wasn't much of a drinker under normal circumstances. But then, an evening at a club with Yugi and his friends hardly counted as normal circumstances.

He glanced toward the group and sighed inwardly as they all looked away, artlessly pretending they hadn't been staring.

"This guy!" Mai swore irritably, waving a hand toward the back room. "A girl could die of thirst waiting for him to appear!"

She looked at Seto again, but he didn't respond. He was frowning, his attention shifting back to the group they had left behind. She followed his gaze to their friends, who now seemed conveniently engrossed in their own conversations.

"You okay?" she asked.

He pulled his attention back to her, noting her confused expression. "Yes," he said. "You? I mean, your arm…" He nodded towards her right arm where the strip of material was starting to come loose again.

She tugged at the loose material, recalling the surprising gentleness of his touch when he had bandaged her arm in the elevator. "There's a gauze underneath," she said, avoiding his gaze as she tucked the fabric into itself. "I thought I'd dress it up a bit but, it's getting there." She looked up to study his face where there was a faint red line that ran from his brow to his cheek. "Your cut—" She started to reach up but caught herself, pulling her hand back to her side.

Seto noticed the small gesture and he could almost feel the ghost sensation of her fingertips lightly touching his cheek. He swallowed. "I kept telling you it looked worse than it was."

"I remember," she said. "And your shoulder?"

"It's okay."

"Good." She nodded. "That's good."

They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence.

0oooo0

"No way do they like each other!" Tristan shook his head with a laugh.

"It's true!" Téa insisted, adding, "Well, Mai likes him, anyway."

Yugi turned to Mokuba. "And Kaiba?"

Mokuba nodded. "Yeah, he's definitely keen. He asked about her coming tonight and, no offense or anything, but I don't exactly think he's here for you guys."

Tristan clutched at his heart in a dramatic gesture. "I'm hurt!"

Joey shook his head, his eyes narrowed as if still trying to work things out. "Well, I can see him liking her because, I mean… but Mai liking Kaiba?!"

"Kaiba the handsome billionaire?" Téa rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it's a mystery."

Serenity giggled.

"Hold on." Tristan sat forward. "Didn't she practically bolt when he first showed up?"

Téa jabbed a finger at him. "Exactly!"

Joey frowned. "I'm confused," he said before taking another drink.

"All you need to know is that they like each other."

"Well, that's great and all but, if that's the case, why do they look so awkward?" Yugi nodded in the direction of the pair sitting at the bar and the rest followed his gaze.

0oooo0

"I thought I could give you a hand with the drinks," Seto said after a painfully long pause in the conversation.

Mai raised an eyebrow. "Paying for them?"

He was about to correct her, tell her that he meant help in carrying them, but something about her overly innocent expression made him think that she already knew that. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and said, "Sure. Why not."

He began searching through his coat for his wallet. Under normal circumstances, he would have found it without a second thought…

Mai watched him, finding some amusement in seeing Seto try and fail to find something in his coat pockets. She waited until he finally pulled something from an inner pocket.

"Don't worry about it," she said. "It's my round anyway."

Seto stared at her, trying to ascertain if her timing had been deliberate. She held his gaze for a long moment, the slightest twitch at the side of her mouth giving him his answer, and then she turned back towards the distant barman.

Seto took in a deep breath before huffing it out again. "Why is this so difficult?" he asked.

Mai glanced over her shoulder. "He's still on his phone."

"Not the drinks order," Seto said. "You."

She blinked and turned around to face him. "You… you think I'm difficult?"

"No," Seto said quickly. "Not you - talking to you. It shouldn't feel this difficult. Like it was when we were first trapped in the elevator. And I thought…" He frowned. "I mean, I don't want to have to start again from scratch. I don't have time for that."

"Oh, that's right. I forgot how busy and important your life is."

"No, you see, that's exactly what I'm talking about! I don't - I thought we had got past the sarcasm and the misunderstandings."

Mai looked at him. "Yeah," she said. "I did too."

"So… what happened?"

Mai tilted her head as she studied him, trying to figure out if the question was genuine. "You didn't call, Kaiba." Her voice was sharp. "That's what happened."

Seto stared at her for a moment before barking an incredulous laugh. "Is that it?"

Mai scowled.

0oooo0

"Uh oh." Serenity's voice cut through the conversation. "She looks mad."

The group turned as one to see Mai's eyes narrow, her stance becoming even more guarded.

"Okay," Tristan clapped his hands together like a casino dealer. "Who wins in an argument between Mai and Kaiba?"

"Mai," came the response from everyone except Mokuba who shook his head.

"I don't know, guys. When my brother gets into his stride and gets all cold and calculating - he can be brutal."

They all looked back to see Kaiba holding up his hands, his face a picture of defensive confusion.

"But on this occasion," Mokuba grimaced at the sight, "yeah, probably Mai."

0oooo0

"So you wrote your number on some legal waivers and medical forms – I – I don't get to see all that!"

"You're telling me you couldn't get access if you wanted?"

"To private files? No – I mean, well, not legally. I guess, if I'd been in the country. But I shouldn't be able to."

Mai paused. "You left the country?" Her scowl softened slightly. "Where did you go?"

Seto let out a breath. "London," he said. "Where, among other things, I spent an inordinate amount of time looking for you."

Mai made a face. "In London?!"

"Online." He found himself wanting to smile at her confusion. "To find you, or your number or email or anything. And I can tell you, you've really mastered the whole hiding thing."

Her posture softened and she gave him a small shrug. "Necessity dictates."

"And it's also clear that you don't pay your taxes."

She grinned and shifted her position in a way that seemed like an invite. "You know, no one said."

"No one…?"

"Oh," she gave a caustic chuckle, "I called. In case you were thinking I was sitting around waiting for you, I wasn't. I got all proactive and I called your office."

He looked at her sharply. "I didn't get any messages."

"No, well, do you know how many people randomly call your offices each day in the hopes of getting through to you? Huh?" she let the question hang, noting his small frown before answering it herself. "Thirty to fifty people. Every day. Now ask me how I know…"

Seto raised a questioning eyebrow.

She knocked a fingertip against the bar before pointing at him. "Because they tell you." She shook her head as if pained by the memory. "The guy on the switchboard tells you, just before he cuts you off, just so that you are in absolutely no doubt about what an embarrassing, delusional cliché you are."

Seto's face was unreadable. "I see."

"Yeah."

There was a long pause before he caught her gaze, a smile pulling at the side of his mouth. "That sucks."

Mai stared at him for a moment and then burst into laughter.

0oooo0

"Oh man. What did Kaiba do this time?"

At Joey's words, they all turned to see Mai doubled over, leaning so far that her head almost touched the bar.

Serenity gasped. "Is she okay?"

"No, wait." Yugi broke into a wide grin. "She's laughing!"

Tristan looked on in disbelief. "Kaiba made someone laugh?"

"He's laughing too."

They stared, open-mouthed, as Mai threw her head back, shaking with laughter, while Kaiba's smile transformed his usually stern expression.

"This feels all wrong!" Tristan said after a moment.

Serenity clapped her hands together. "I think it's really great."

Joey turned away, folding his arms. "I still think it's really weird."

0oooo0

"No matter what I said, the guy just went, 'Yeah, that's what they all say.' I couldn't make him believe I wasn't just some random fangirl!"

"I never knew. They don't tell me that stuff."

"Well, I just hope you realise the humiliation I put myself through on your behalf."

"You think that's bad? I've had to make small talk with Wheeler all night, just to get close to you."

"That's why you're here?"

"When Mokuba said he was coming out with Yugi and his irritating friends and said there was the slightest chance that you'd be here..." He shook his head. "There's nothing on this planet that would make me come here otherwise."

Mai's grinned, her skin growing warmer by the second. "That's quite the sacrifice on your part," she said.

"I mean, coupled with the fact that it must be about 4am London time…"

Her grin softened as she studied his face. "Was it worth it?" she asked.

He looked at her, feeling the warmth of her gaze deep in the pit of his stomach. "I think so."

A movement beside them broke the spell. "Can I get you something?" the barman asked.

0oooo0

"I do this for a living, I can manage," Mai insisted, expertly lifting six glasses between splayed fingers. "I'll come back in a sec."

Seto took a slow breath as he watched her walk away, her long legs moving effortlessly across the floor, her hair bouncing with each step. His thoughts drifted, just for a moment, before the buzzing of his phone pulled him back. Lifting it out of his back pocket, he frowned as he saw the name on the caller display.

"Roland?"

"Mr Kaiba, I—"

Seto cut him off. "Roland, you'll have to speak up, I'm in a club."

"A where?" Roland's voice was stronger, but his tone was confused.

"A nightclub," Seto repeated steadily.

There was a pause. "Did you say—"

"Roland," Seto snapped irritably, "was the purpose of this call to discuss my choice of leisure activity?"

"No, Mr Kaiba, sorry. And I'm sorry for calling you so late."

"It's later there, isn't it?"

"It's stupid-o'clock sir, yes. But something's come up. I'm at the hospital with MacIntire. The police are here - they want to speak to you."

"Now?" Seto raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, sir, an Inspector Griffith is very insistent that he talk to you immediately."

Seto narrowed his eyes slightly. "Is he there?"

"In the next room, sir. I took the liberty of giving him the office number and let him call that whilst I called you on your cell."

"Thanks for the heads up. What are your impressions?"

"On Griffith? He's ambitious. A little aggressive. Nothing you haven't seen before."

Seto nodded. "Get him and put him on."

"Yes sir."

Seto slid onto the barstool, glancing across to where Mai was handing out drinks, her face lit up by a wide smile as she shared a joke with Téa. His own lips pressed together in a thin line as he contemplated the conversation he was about to have. Already bone-weary from travel, he pushed down the disappointment that his other world was crashing in on his evening, just when things had been getting back on track. He glanced at the whisky Mai had ordered for him and indicated to the barman that he should take it away, just as a man with a strong London accent came on the line.

"Mr Kaiba?"

"Yes."

"Mr Seto Kaiba?"

"Yes."

"You're speaking to Inspector Griffith of the Metropolitan police force. I'd like to ask you some questions regarding a Mr Owen MacIntire who is currently in intensive care at St Bartholomew's Hospital."

There was a long pause and Seto gestured to the barman to get him a soda water.

"Mr Kaiba?"

"I'm listening."

"We have witnesses who tell us that you were on the scene when MacIntire fell from the rooftop, as well as witnesses who tell us that you were seen chasing the man through the bar housed in the building below."

Again, there was a pause.

"Mr Kaiba," the man's voice sounded annoyed, "this is a serious allegation."

"I'm sorry," Seto said, paying for the drink, "what exactlyisthe allegation?"

"That you were involved in the near-fatal incident that put Mr. MacIntire in the hospital - and that you then fled the country to avoid legal consequences."

"I see." Seto took a long drink.

"I know that you're some big-shot business man and you probably think you can buy yourself out of trouble, but that won't work with me. Your father may have been able to sidestep the rules in the past but that's all changed. You can no longer assume any sort of diplomatic immunity – "

"Inspector," Seto cut across the tirade, his voice cold and hard, "let me assure you that I neither assume diplomatic immunity nor do I seek it. Furthermore," he continued as the Inspector tried to speak again, "if your force has had dealings with myadoptivefather in the past then that reflects far worse on you than it does on me."

He glanced up as Mai approached. The sight of her was a reminder of what the inspector was taking from him - and his words became razor-sharp. "The fact that you are prepared to level vague accusations at me over the phone simply tells me that you have no solid evidence against me, otherwise I am sure the NYPD would be conducting the interview in person."

As Mai came to a stop beside him, he gave her the briefest of smiles before returning his focus to the call.

"And, if you really believed, for one moment, that I would be prepared to have this conversation in a public place, over an unsecured line and without my lawyer then you have seriously misjudged me."

Mai cocked her head to one side as she tried to understand the conversation, her brow furrowed in concern at his mention of lawyers.

"Here's what's going to happen," Seto continued, his voice steady. "In twenty-five minutes you will call me on my home-office number which my associate, Roland, will give to you. At that time, I will happily tell you everything you need to know about what happened as well as my involvement in it. But, shouldyou insist on trying to intimidate me over the phone; try to involve the media in any way or make the mistake of comparing me with my adoptive father ever again, then I will ask my legal team to step in and you will find your investigation snarled up in so much red tape you'll be drawing your pension before you get the opportunity to speak to me again."

There was a long silence during which Mai's astonished expression softened into a look of admiration. She gave him a smile and made the motion of mic drop.

Seto's lip twitched. He turned away, forcing himself to stay focused. "Well?" he said into his phone, trying not to let the humour infect his voice.

"Twenty-five minutes?" the Inspector sounded like he was talking through clenched teeth.

"Twenty-five minutes," Seto confirmed.

"Fine," there was a click, and the line went dead.

Seto turned to Mai, allowing himself a deep breath before he threw the phone lightly into the air and caught it again, pushing it back into his pocket, satisfied.

"What was that?!" Mai asked.

"A hangover from my visit to London."

"What the hell were you doing over there?"

"Tracking the men who bombed my offices. One of them fell off a rooftop, which is creating problems." He paused a moment, catching her eye. "To be clear, I wasn't near him at the time."

"Hey," Mai held her hands up. "I'm not judging."

"Right," Seto narrowed his eyes, "but I wasn't."

Mai stepped closer to him, holding his gaze. "Did he die?"

Her closeness meant he was barely considering Griffith all of a sudden. "No."

Mai shrugged. "Well then."

He reached up, his fingers lightly brushing the side of her face. "I do have to go though."

Mai tilted her head, leaning into his touch. "Right." Her voice was so soft it could barely be heard above the music below them. "Twenty-five minutes."

"More like twenty now."

She sighed and stepped backwards, the playfulness creeping back into her voice. "The fun never stops, huh?"

He made a face. "Speaking of fun, I suppose I should say goodbye to the dweeb squad."

He started walking towards the waiting group and Mai followed after, talking quick steps to keep up with his long strides. "Oh, I've got to see this."

As they approached the group, Seto's mind was already transferring to what Mokuba referred to as his work-mode. There was a definite purpose to his stride and, when he came to a halt next to Tristan, all conversation died instantly as his commanding presence seemed to wash over them.

"Something's come up, I have to go," he stated coolly. "Yugi, have a good trip back. Maybe, when the show arena is up and running again, you could come back over? All expenses paid again of course."

Yugi blinked up at him in surprise. "Err, that would be great Kaiba," he smiled, "thanks."

Seto turned to Joey, Tristan, Téa, and Serenity, opening his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he simply dipped his head.

Tristan and Joey gawped in disbelief at the almost pleasant gesture while Téa grinned, jumping up from her seat.

"Bye, Kaiba," she said brightly, stepping in for a hug, only to freeze under the icy look he shot her. With an awkward laugh, she swiftly downgraded to a handshake."

Seto glanced at Mai who was regarding him with a raised eyebrow, her eyes glittering in her barely contained amusement.

"Mokuba," he turned now to his brother, "I'll… see you at home."

Mokuba gave him a questioning look, but Seto dismissed it with a quick motion of his hand which told him that now was not the time to discuss matters. He glanced around the group once more and gave another faint smile before turning away.

Mai walked with him, hesitating as they reached the top of the stairs.

"Are you staying?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Unlike you, I actually quite enjoy being around these people."

He looked over her shoulder to where they were all watching the exchange with fascination. "They make it difficult."

"Difficult?"

"To say goodbye. While they're all gawping."

She rolled her eyes. "Who knew you were so coy," she teased.

Raising herself onto her toes, she kissed him, her lips curving into a smile against his as a cheer erupted behind them. She pulled away, laughing lightly at the pained expression on Seto's face.

"It wasn't that bad, was it?"

"It would have been a lot better under almost any other circumstances," he said.

"Well, we'll have to see about that then, won't we?"

He caught her gaze, and the fleeting sense of self-consciousness was forgotten as he contemplated her words. "Soon?"

"I hope so." She smiled and then tapped her empty wrist as if she was wearing a watch. "But you've got to go - you're on a deadline."

"Right."

He turned and made his way down the stairs, trying to decide whether the pain of the evening had been worth it. As he passed by the two men who had tangled with Mai earlier in the night, both sitting with their legs apart and cradling cold bottles of beer next to their battered privates, Seto gave in to the overwhelming desire to grin.

It was only when he was sitting down at his desk to take the call from London that he realised he still didn't have her number.