Kaiba's New Assistant

After making his phone call, during which Yugi had asked lots of questions that Jou had refused to answer, Jou walked down the stairs. He'd had to promise to explain things to Yugi the next time that they met, which wasn't such a bad thing as he knew that he would have to talk to somebody eventually and he knew that Yugi was probably the most level headed and trustworthy out of his group of friends.

Putting it out of his mind for the moment, he looked around to see if Mokuba had come down yet, but shortly came to the conclusion that the younger Kaiba wasn't around. He was about to head into the lounge to watch some television while he waited for Seto when he ran into Mrs. Doyle.

"Ah, there you are Master Katsuya," She said, "Now would you like a nice cup of tea?"

"Not right now thank you Mrs. Doyle" Jonouchi replied absently.

"Ah, go on," she insisted, "I just made a fresh pot."

From past experience, Jou knew that she would just keep on asking until he gave in, so he accepted gracefully, "Alright then, I will have one." He followed her into the lounge where everything was already set up on the coffee table. He sat on one of the expansive sofas as Mrs Doyle poured him a nice cup of tea.

She was about to walk away when Jou stopped her. "Would you join me Mrs Doyle?" he asked.

She looked torn, "I shouldn't really..."

"Ah, go on," Jou said, using her words against her, "it'll be fine."

"OK so, I suppose that can spare a few minutes," she said as she sat down opposite Jou uneasily and poured herself a cup.

"So," Jonouchi broke the silence, "Do you like working for Kaiba?"

"Well, it's different to what I was used to before," she said hesitantly, "but I've been here for so long now that I'm pretty much used to it."

"Do you miss the people you worked for before?"

"Ah, Fathers Crilly, Macguire and Hackett," she paused for a moment in reminiscence, "I suppose I do really. But a deal is a deal," she said stoically.

"So Kaiba's adoptive father really won you in a card game?"

"Well, it wasn't really like that," she said uncomfortably, "I only have to stay here until Father Crilly pays off his debt. I'm sure it won't be much longer now." She sounded rather unconvinced.

"So you really kept house for three priests?" Jou couldn't help but smirk as he changed the subject slightly. "There's a funny coincidence there."

"What on earth do you mean Master Katsuya," Mrs Doyle was confused, "There aren't any priests living here that I know of."

"Well, that's not strictly true," Jonouchi leaned forwards conspiratorially. "In his past life, Kaiba was an ancient Egyptian priest. He doesn't like to talk about it though."

"You are having me on!" the housekeeper declared.

"No, seriously," Jonouchi insisted, knowing that the woman would not take him seriously at all. "Have you ever seen my friend Yugi? The short one with the impossible hair?"

"Oh yes. He plays that card game that you children are all so fond of."

"Well, he is the reincarnation of the Pharaoh from that time. No joke. I also have another friend called Ryou. He's the reincarnation of an evil tomb-robber, but Ryou is so gentle that you'd never know it. There is a long story behind the whole thing, but it would take far too long to tell."

"So, did you have a past life too?" Mrs Doyle couldn't help but be intrigued by Jonouchi's imaginative story, despite not believing a word.

"Actually I don't know," Jonouchi admitted, "I can't remember anything myself and Yugi would never tell me when I asked him. But I trust him and I know that if there is something to tell, he will tell me when the time is right."

"I'm glad that you have such good friends," Mrs Doyle said wistfully. "It's also good to see young Master Seto associating with those closer to his own age."

"Mrs Doyle, can I ask you something?"

"Yes Master Katsuya?"

"Why is it that you call everyone by their given names? I noticed that you called the priests by their family names, so I was wondering."

"I'm not sure I understand." The housekeeper said in some confusion.

"Did no one ever explain to you about the difference between Japanese and western names?" Jou asked in astonishment.

"There's a difference?" Mrs Doyle was beginning to look flustered.

"Yes. Westerners have the family name last, where as in Japan we have the family name first. If I were to go to your country I would give my name as Katsuya Jonouchi."

"Oh! I had no idea, I am so sorry." Mrs Doyle was so embarrassed, "I know that Master S… err, Kaiba asked me to call him by his family name so many times, but I thought I already was. Oh will he ever forgive me?"

"please don't worry abotu it," Jonouchi tried to calm the distraught woman. "It's more his fault than yours anyway. He should have explained things more clearly." Jou wondered that Mokuba hadn't said anything, but then he supposed that Mokuba didn't care if she called him by his given name and he probably enjoyed watching his brother get frustrated by the whole thing.

"I always did wonder why both he and Young Master Kaiba had the same first name but different last names," Mrs Doyle pondered. "I never could ask because I thought it might be some kind of family scandal."

Jonouchi laughed out loud at that, then added, "It'll probably still be OK to call Mokuba by his given name. It might get a little confusing otherwise." He sobered a little. "Do you miss your friends and family?" he asked.

"Well, I do miss my friends a little, but we keep in touch via letter. It's always a thrill when there is a letter for me in the mornings." She tried to put a brave face on things, "As for family, Mr Doyle... passed away quite some time ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Jou replied. "You must be quite lonely. I don't think many of the staff here speak English do they?"

"Oh, its not so bad," she said, "When I really want to talk to someone I can talk to the boy that lives inside the television."

"Boy in the television?" Jou asked in surprise. There was only one person that he knew of that would live inside a 'television', but he'd thought that Noa was gone. "Is he about so high with greenish hair?" Jou asked.

Mrs Doyle suddenly looked nervous. "Oh no. I promised that I wouldn't tell Master Kaiba about him. He's frightened that he'll get rid of him." She turned watery eyes onto Jonouchi. "Please don't tell Master Kaiba about him."

Jonouchi considered his options for a moment. "I can't promise anything, but I'd like to talk to him for myself before I come to a decision." Jou figured that was the best option for now. If Noa turned out to be a threat he could advise Seto and take steps, but otherwise, why take away the only companionship of a lonely old woman far away from home?

"Thank you Master Jonouchi, that's all I can ask for," she said with genuine gratitude. She looked at her watch. "Oh my! It's almost time for dinner. I must get on so please excuse me." With that she got up and left to get on with her work.

Jou sat back and drank his tea. Mrs Doyle had certainly given him something to think about. That Noa was apparently back and living under Seto's nose without his apparent knowledge was no small thing, but he hadn't caused any trouble that he knew of so that was one point in Noa's favour anyway. Putting it out of his mind for now as there was nothing more that he could do until he'd actually talked to Noa, he decided to ask if he could bring Ryou over one day as he was sure that the old housekeeper would appreciate talking to someone who was from somewhere a little closer to home.

He was brought out of his musings as Mokuba entered the room. "Hey Jonouchi" He greeted then stopped in shock as Jonouchi turned towards him. "Holy shit! Seto wasn't joking when he said you were beat up. Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine squirt, honestly," Jou reassured the younger boy, "I've had much worse. And don't let Seto hear you talking like that!"

"Meh, Big Brother uses far worse words than that!" Mokuba exclaimed, throwing himself down on the sofa next to Jou. "Talking of which, where is he? He's going to be late for dinner if he doesn't hurry up."

Jou flushed as he remembered the reason that Seto was delayed. "He... ah... had to go freshen up a bit. I'm sure he won't be much longer."

Mokuba noticed Jou's embarrassment and he also noticed how he'd called Seto by his given name earlier. He smiled inwardly, it was about bloody time! He fingered the camera in his pocket absently hoping that he would have the opportunity to use it soon. He was sure that Seto would appreciate a picture of himself and Jonouchi to place on his bedside table at least. Then he could turn to getting more embarrassing pictures of the pair for blackmail purposes later on. He gave an evil little grin at the fun he was going to have.

Jou was giving the raven haired boy a worried look. Whenever the squirt got a look like that on his face it usually meant trouble for someone or other. He couldn't worry over it for too much longer as Seto finally arrived.

"Jonouchi, Mokuba," he greeted them. He turned to Mokuba, "Did you finish your homework?"

"Yes, big brother. All done." Mokuba replied.

"Good. I'll check it over later on."

"OK Seto," Mokuba looked shifty for a moment. "Seto?"

"Yes Mokuba?"

The boy's eyes flickered between Seto and Jou, "Is there anything that you need to tell me?"

Jou went pink and to a lesser extent, so did Seto. Both were thinking how Mokuba could be more perceptive than was good for him. However they were saved from answering because Mrs Doyle called them in to dinner.

Once seated, dinner was a quiet affair. Jou didn't speak because he didn't want to tread on Seto's toes over what he wanted to tell his brother and he was sure that if he opened his mouth he would give something away. Mokuba didn't want to say anything because he was having too much fun watching the embarrassment of the older boys. Seto was just wondering how to phrase the response to Mokuba's enquiry and he wished that he'd taken the time to discuss it with Jonouchi earlier on.

Mrs Doyle came in to make sure that everything was alright and she was astounded at the silence in the room. "Well, it's all very morose in here," She observed chirpily. "Anyone would think that someone had died."

"It's nothing like that, Mrs Doyle," Mokuba piped up, "I'm just waiting for Seto and Jonouchi to fill me in about their relationship."

"Ah yes, it's so nice to see Master Kaiba with a friend his own age," she twittered on as she refilled their glasses. "Now get on and eat. The food is getting cold while you all sit there not talking." With that she walked out.

"Totally clueless," Mokuba muttered as he watched her retreat.

Seto, however, was sat in a state of shock. "She actually called me Kaiba," he said incredulously, "Why does she suddenly get it now?"

"I explained it to her," Jou said. "You always asked her to call you by your family name, but you neglected to tell her that Japanese names are the opposite way around to what she's used to." Jou chuckled, "She was actually quite confused about you two sharing the same first name and different family names but she was too polite to ask about what may have been some kind of scandal."

Seto face-palmed. It was so simple! For all that he was supposed to be a genius...

"So big brother, Jonouchi," Mokuba broke in before either one could ask why he had never said anything, "is there something going on that I should know about?"

Seto gave Jou a sidelong look. Jou looked back with an expression that clearly said 'it's up to you.' Seto thought for a moment longer before saying, "I'll discuss it with you properly later, but yes, there is something going on between Jou and myself although it is at a very early stage"

"Oh good. I'm glad," Mokuba smiled and both Jou and Seto visibly relaxed until he spoke again. "So you haven't had sex yet then?"

"Mokuba!"

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After dinner, Seto excused himself and Jonouchi and the two boys went to Seto's room. Seto sat at his desk and booted his computer while Jou, who was feeling exhausted after the events of the day, flopped onto Seto's bed with a small wince.

"I didn't think I'd get you into my bed so quickly, pup," Seto quipped as he pulled up some files on his computer.

"Ha ha Seto," Jou replied with more than a hint of fatigue clouding his voice. "I'm not that easy you know."

"I never implied that you were." Seto said.

"Mmm…"

"Katsuya?" Seto enquired,

"'M sorry Seto. I'm just so tired."

Seto felt guilty. He had forgotten that his puppy had had a very trying day. "I'm sorry Jou. I should have realised."

Jou made a move to get up. "I should go back to the guest room before I fall asleep," he said as he sat up with obvious exhaustion.

Seto got up and moved across to the bed. He put his hand on Jou's shoulder and pushed him back down. "No, it's OK. You can stay here. I'll just go and check on Mokuba's homework." With that he left the exhausted teen to sleep.

Half an hour later Seto returned to his room after checking that Mokuba's homework was completed to his satisfaction and after having quite an embarrassing conversation with the younger boy. He was unsurprised to find that Jonouchi was quite fast asleep in his bed. Leaving Jou to slumber, he went to do some work on his computer, but seeing Jou lying there so innocently was quite a distraction and eventually Seto could not resist. He closed his computer then climbed onto the bed beside Jou, pulled the comforter up and cuddled close to him. He had only intended to stay there for a few minutes, but shortly he also drifted off to sleep.

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The next morning, Seto awoke to find himself wrapped in the embrace of the blond haired boy he'd shared his bed with the previous night. He attempted to move and rise from the bed only to find himself pulled back down and snuggled. He really would have been content to lay there for a while longer, but he had a pressing need to attend to.

"Jonouchi!" he tried to rouse the other teen without success. "Katsuya!" he tried again.

"Mmfff, ten more minutes," Jou mumbled as he snuggled into Seto.

"Puppy!" Seto exclaimed, a note of strain in his voice, "if you don't let me up soon you'll end up lying in a wet bed!"

Slowly that thought filtered through Jou's sleep-fogged brain and he let Seto go. "Sorry. It can take me quite a while to get going in the morning."

"Yes, I noticed," Seto said as he leaned in and gave Jou a quick kiss. He got up and made a bee-line for the bathroom. Once he was done in there he came back to find that Jonouchi had turned over and gone back to sleep. He chuckled at the cute picture his puppy made and decided that he could let him have another half hour of sleep while he checked his emails.

It wasn't to be half an hour later before Seto felt a presence behind him. Jou draped himself over Seto's shoulder and kissed him on the cheek.

"Good morning sleepyhead," Seto said with amusement as he reached up and mussed Jou's hair affectionately, "Do you feel better this morning?"

"Yeah," Jou said as he stood up straight again and yawned widely. "A good night's sleep does the world of good, although I am still a bit stiff and sore. So what's the plan for today?"

"Well, first, obviously, is breakfast," Seto chuckled as Jonouchi's stomach growled on cue, "then we'll be heading in to the office. You can clear Keiko's desk and arrange for any of her personal effects to be sent on then I'd like you to start looking into likely candidates to be my new secretary. I have plenty to be getting on with in the office so you'll probably be on your own for most of the time."

"OK Seto," Jou replied, "I'll also make sure to go through her desk very carefully. I always thought there was something a little off about her and I'm a bit worried that there was more to what happened yesterday than there appeared to be on the surface." He shrugged, "It's better to be safe than sorry anyway."

"I agree with you," Seto said, "but I'm glad you mentioned it." He looked at the clock. "Now go and get yourself washed and dressed. Breakfast will be served soon and I don't want you to be hungry today."

"As long as you eat properly too," Jou shot back as he made to leave the room. "You're even bitchier than normal when you're hungry."

Seto didn't answer, but simply shook his head and turned back to his work.

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Once at the office, Jonouchi had spent the morning going through Keiko's desk and had amassed quite a pile of personal effects. However, in amongst the pile of make up and feminine hygiene products there were a couple of items of interest. One was Keiko's cellphone, which was out of power. Another was a small paper notebook full of information that he thought could potentially be damaging to Kaiba Corporation in the wrong hands. Finally, right at the back of one of the drawers, there was a folder with several employee records inside, none of whom Jou recognised at all. along with information on Jonouchi himself. He cleared all the useless stuff into a box then walked into Kaiba's office with the rest.

"Hey Seto," Jou said as he walked into Kaiba's office, "I think I found something. Well, several somethings actually."

"Really?" Seto sounded surprised despite himself. "She must have been quite the amateur then. What did you find?"

"First off I found this notebook in the top drawer." Jou handed it to Seto who started to read. "I'm guessing that she kept it in the drawer as it may have seemed a little odd to keep pulling a book like that out of her handbag, whereas removing a book from a drawer and taking notes would not look out of the ordinary."

"Hmm," Seto mused as he continued to read. "Most of the information in here is not really sensitive, but it is concerning that she was keeping notes on it at all. It does make more sense of why she kept on pushing for more responsibility, but I had hoped that finally finding a personal assistant would make her give up."

"That isn't the only thing," Jou said as he handed over the folder full of copies of employee records. "I found this right at the back of the filing drawer. I don't recognise any of the people in that file, but she also had a fair bit of information on me in there which explains how she knew about my past and academic record."

Seto looked through the folder, flipping from record to record. He looked a bit shocked. "Well, it's no wonder you don't know these people," Seto said, "They all ceased employment before you started here." He flipped through again, "In fact if I recall correctly, the one thing they have in common is that Keiko took over their jobs when they left or were fired. I'm surprised that she didn't remove or shred the evidence, which just goes to show what an amateur she was."

"So I guess she was looking to do the same thing to me?" Jou asked.

"Not that it would have worked, Pup," Seto was quick to reassure, "I doubt that there is anything she could have brought to me that would cause me to doubt you and I'm sure you would have a reasonable explanation for anything that might."

"Thank you, Seto," Jou said. "That really means a lot. There is one more thing that will need to be looked at before I have Keiko's stuff forwarded to her." As Seto raised an eyebrow in enquiry, Jou placed the cell phone on his desk. "The battery is dead and it'll have to be plugged in before we can check the records, but one of the security guys said that there was a report of a sound like a phone ringtone constantly coming from the outer office last night. It would make sense that she would try and run the battery down by continually calling the phone if she thought that there was anything sensitive on it."

"You are getting almost as paranoid as me," Seto said in amusement, "and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Of course, with her being put out of the picture and with you being my personal assistant..." Seto tailed off and looked at Jou speculatively.

"What are you getting at Seto?" Jou asked. He didn't like that look.

Seto shrugged, "With Keiko gone and assuming that she was reporting to someone, I wouldn't be surprised if that someone were to feel you out to see if you would be amenable to... selling information."

"You really think so?" Jou said in surprise. "You do know that I'd never do that to you, don't you?"

"I do know that," Seto said soothingly, "but if it does happen, maybe we could use it to our advantage, to spread misinformation."

"I... I don't know," Jonouchi said, frowning slightly. "You know that I don't like to lie."

Seto held up his hands, "I won't force you to do it if you don't want to," he reassured, "but bear in mind that this person, if they exist, would not hesitate to destroy me – or you if you get in the way." He looked into Jou's eyes with all the sincerity he could muster. "Just consider it, OK?"

"Alright Seto," Jou said reluctantly, "I'll consider it."

"I can't ask any more of you than that," Seto said, "Now would you come over here for a moment please?"

Jou complied but looked at Seto quizzically, "What for?" he asked as Seto spun his chair so he was facing the blond.

Seto looked up directly into Jou's eyes. "So that I can do this..." With that he reached up and pulled Jonouchi down into a bruising kiss. As soon as Jou had realised what was happening and had instinctively taken control, Seto surrendered willingly. They kissed for several long minutes, tongues caressing each other in a sensual dance before Jou pulled away and looked at Seto in such a predatory way that it took his breath away. Seto let out a low moan as Jou leaned forward and began to suck on one of his sensitive earlobes before slowly kissing his way down Seto's neck.

The atmosphere was getting heated. Clothes were loosening, hands were roving and things would have gone a lot further had Mokuba not made his presence known with a discreet cough.

"You know, this probably isn't the best place to do that kind of thing," the black haired boy said with a smirk on his face as Jou suddenly launched himself away from Seto. Jou had an utterly horrified look on his face that changed to one of pain as he landed hard on his behind. "Why, anyone could just walk in." Mokuba had an innocent look on his face that was totally fake.

"Point made, Mokuba," Seto said ruefully as he straightened himself out, smoothing his rumpled clothes. "So what brings you here? I thought you had plans for today."

"Oh, I do, but that's not until later on," Mokuba replied, smirking slightly as Jou picked himself up off the floor and rubbed at his sore behind. "I just wanted to see how things were going."

"They were going just fine until you interrupted," Jou grumbled before Seto could answer. "Haven't you ever heard of knocking?"

"But if I knocked how would I manage to take such delicious incriminating photographs?" the imp said as he waved the camera in front of the two older teens. "Don't worry your secrets are safe with me." He backed slowly towards the door, "On second thought, fill me in on what happened later, I really need to go now!" With that he dashed out of the door as Seto and Jou both launched themselves after him. Unfortunately, by the time they made it to the outer office, Mokuba was already in the lift and was waving to them as the doors closed.

"Damn, he got away." Jou exclaimed as Mokuba was finally out of sight.

Seto shrugged, "There's no help for it now, but I will speak with him over this later on."

"But what if those pictures get out, Seto?" Jou was obviously agitated.

"Jou calm down. Do you really think that Mokuba would let anything like that happen? He knows how to keep secrets."

"Sorry Seto," Jou said contritely, "You are right of course. It's just that..."

"I do understand," Seto said as he placed a calming hand on Jou's shoulder. "Still it does drive the point home that we should not be doing that kind of thing here. There is too much risk."

"Sorry Seto," Jou said again.

"Nonsense. That was my fault. You have been so restrained, not even putting a hand on me until I pulled you into that kiss." He paused and took a deep breath, "And we still have quite a bit to do, but its lunchtime so how about we step out for a bite to eat?"

"You're on!" Jou exclaimed as the promise of food had driven the previous drama from his mind. "But instead of going out, could we order something in? I don't want rumours that you beat your personal assistant to get around." He gestured towards the scratches on his face and his black eye to illustrate his point.

Seto smacked himself on the forehead. "Sorry Jou. I completely forgot about that. We should have used some concealer on it or something."

"No worries," Jou replied, "I should have remembered myself but I think I've been a little distracted lately." He smirked at Seto, letting the CEO know exactly what the distraction was and Seto smirked in return as he led Jou back into his office and called for takeout.

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The afternoon was spent quite productively. Seto went back through Keiko's employee records to see exactly what she had been up to while in his employ as Jou busied himself searching out potential candidates within the company for the secretary's job. Soon, Seto had mapped out Keiko's trail through his company and it showed a typical sleep, blackmail and sabotage her way to the top kind of profile. Seto resolved to find out what the human resources department had been up to as this type of behaviour should have raised several flags.

A charger had also been found for the cellphone and there were plenty of sensitive text messages sent to one particular number, although neither Jou or Seto knew who it belonged to. Kaiba had not been able to turn up a contact address for the number through any of the means that were currently at his disposal, soon coming to the conclusion that it must have been a prepaid model purchased just for this purpose. He also elected not to call the number as to do so may tip off whoever it belonged to that they had been rumbled, although he did keep that as an option for the future.

Time passed quickly and soon it was time for them to go home for the evening.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay over again?" Seto asked as the limo pulled away from Kaiba Corporation, "I can't help but worry that..."

Jou raised one finger to Seto's lips. At the contact, the brunet shut up completely. "Seto, I appreciate that you'll worry, I really do, but I have to go home. If I'm not there when I should be then there could be more trouble, but even if my dad is there he's likely to be so far out of it that he'll be no problem and hopefully he'll kill enough brain cells that he'll have forgotten that press conference ever happened."

"If you are sure..." Seto wasn't convinced.

"Seto, I am sure." Jou said with a conviction that he didn't really feel. "And before you say it, yes, I promise to call you if I need to."

"I guess that's all I can ask," Seto said in resignation as the limo began to approach the more seedy side of town.

"Could you stop the car here please?" Jou said suddenly. Seto looked confused but complied and told the driver to stop anyway. "I'll walk from here," the blond continued, "Seriously, it wouldn't do for me to be seen getting out of your limo in my neighbourhood."

"But... could you be targeted because you work for me now?"

"I can take care of myself, really," Jou reassured the other boy.

"Alright then." Before Jou could get out, Seto pulled him back for one last kiss. "If you change your mind, you are more than welcome to come over."

Jou flushed red at the invitation and was thankful that the lighting inside the limo was quite dim. "I'll bear that in mind. Are you sure that I'm not needed at work tomorrow?"

"I'm sure," Seto replied, "I may pop into Kaiba land sometime in the afternoon, but you shouldn't need to be there."

"Good. I'm planning to head out with Yugi and the gang tomorrow. It's been a while and I think Anzu is convinced that you've brainwashed me or something."

"Well, it's definitely the 'or something'," Seto smirked. "But I will do my best not to need you tomorrow."

"Why don't you join us?" Jou asked, "I know for a fact that Yugi won't mind."

"I'm sorry Jou," Seto said with genuine regret, "Although I can tolerate some of the group there are one or two of them that I just cannot co-exist with."

"Yeah, I getcha," Jou said, thinking in particular about a certain raven haired dice freak, "but the offer still stands if you change your mind."

"Alright Pup," Seto said, "now you'd best get going. We've been sitting here for a while and I don't want to get a ticket."

"See you in school on Monday then," Jou said as he finally exited the limo. He shut the door and watched longingly as the vehicle pulled away and out of sight, then pulled himself together, broke into a jog and was soon home. Carefully, he opened the door and crept inside, thanking goodness that his dad wasn't home and he'd managed to dodge that bullet. He quickly made his way to his room and locked the door, the usual mantra of 'only a little longer' rolling through his head. His 18th birthday couldn't come soon enough!

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This one took longer than I expected because I didn't have as much chance to work on it as I'd hoped. I was also trying to keep the length of the chapters down, but this was leading to some odd stopping points so I'll just cut where it seems best in future.

Thank you for reading.