The Joke's On You

*** This story is a companion piece (NOT a sequel) to my fic, 'A Shovel And Some Faith'. It's not gonna make a whole lot of sense unless you've read that one first. Just a fair warning.***

Title: The Joke's on You (Or Bruce: The Continuing Story of Shovel)

Author: WhosJeebus (With special assistance from STEALUBLIND16,
BEWDBoi_1, & of course, DiceKittenDDM)

Rating: PG-13/mild R

Pairing(s): Yugi/Jou, Honda/Otogi, Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi

Beta: Jennie B. (yes, she likes pina coladas, and gettin' caught in
the rain) & AngryHamster (Hubert was his name, may he rest in peace)

Spoilers: None

Warnings: Language (of the foul variety)

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, so... me = no sue. If I DID own
YGO, I would keep the bishies in a shoebox under my bed, and take
them out periodically, forcing them to do naughty things (to each
other!) at my bidding. **sighs** A girl can dream, right?

Summary: Ingredients - A Saturday night, one bad movie, an
unattended PC, some pink socks, and more snacks than you can shake a
stick at. Mix well. Toss in one miniature Klingon and add a pinch of
denial. Serve chilled in a BMW Roadster.

~~~~~~~~~~*****~~~~~~~~~

(Saturday Night)

Jounouchi Katsuya sat slumped on the large, overstuffed sectional
sofa next to Yami, the two of them staring mindlessly at Honda and
Otogi's new flat screen television, while Honda puttered about the
room busily. The brunet's little domestic routine had been amusing at
first, but now it was becoming odd and kind of unsettling. The
ruffled, flowery apron was actually starting to creep Jou out a
bit. "Dude, sit down will ya? This whole happy homemaker act seems
uh... counter intuitive."

Honda paused in the act of sweeping crumbs off the coffee table into
his cupped palm and straightened, shooting his friend an irritated
glare. "Dammit, Jou; stop trying to show off. Say 'weird' or 'fucked
up', why don't you?" He put his hands on his hips and looked
speculatively at the blond, as though an idea had just occurred to
him. "You DO realize that Kaiba bought you that word-a-day calendar
as a joke, right?" Jou merely sniffed and turned his nose up in the
air at the suggestion.

Otogi pulled his attention away from his computer screen just long
enough to put his own two cents in. "Aw, leave him alone,
Sweetness... he's got a crush. I think it's cute."

Yami snickered.

Jou glowered fire at them all equally. "I'm gettin' sick of repeatin'
myself to you buncha losers. I'm STRAIGHT. Get that through your
thick skulls, why dontcha?"

Yami raised his eyebrows and regarded the taller boy with faint
surprise. "That's not what it looked like to me when I peeked into
Yugi's bedroom LAST Saturday night."

Amidst the noise of Honda and Otogi's assorted wolf whistles and
catcalls, Jounouchi flushed an alarming shade of red. "THAT was
nuthin' more than perfectly natural and NORMAL teenage
experimentation!" he shouted, his voice sounding a bit
strangled. "God Yams, you've become downright NOSY since you got your
own body," he murmured weakly.

"I'm sorry, Jounouchi; I can't help it. I never know what's going on
in Yugi's head anymore, and it makes me a little... twitchy." The
former pharaoh gave a deep, heartfelt sigh at this admission. "He's
at some type of bizarre, cultish gathering right this very minute,
without me. He practically ORDERED me to stay home. ME! The great and
glorious god-king of Egypt. Can you believe it?"

"No offense Yami, but you HAVE been drivin' him bonkers lately. And
it's not a cult; he's at a Star Trek convention with Kaiba. He's
FINE; let it go." Both Honda and Otogi nodded their agreement at
Jou's statement.

Yami looked at them all as if they'd suddenly gone crazy. "He left
the house dressed as a - a miniature KLINGON! Explain to me how
that's FINE?"

"Heh. Seto went as a Romulan," Jou piped in.

"See? Crush. I told you," Otogi went back to his computer as if this
declaration somehow ended the matter, his fingers busily clacking
away at the keyboard.

Jou wasn't about to let the subject drop; not without getting in the
last word, anyway. "Get bent."

Otogi froze, his shoulders stiffening. "Excuse me? Look Blondie, why
don't you just throw yourself at him and get it over with? He'll
either A: drag you home and fuck you senseless, or B: he'll murder
you on the spot. Either way, it'll be out of your system, and I won't
have to listen to you angsting about it anymore. You're KILLING me."
He turned away again, shaking his head in exasperation. "And people
call ME a drama queen..."

"GOD!! Hello? Straight? Do any of you ever LISTEN to me??"

~~~~~~~~~~*****~~~~~~~~~~

The three teenagers sat in companionable silence afterward, each
seemingly content to mind their own business for the time being.
Otogi was occupied at his computer, with Yami and Jou giving their
complete attention over to the movie, their eyes riveted to the
events unfolding onscreen while randomly munching on the snacks that
Honda brought out of the kitchen in a steady stream. He paused once,
during one of his many circuits, leaning down to press a kiss to the
top of Otogi's head and murmuring in his ear. "How you doing on that,
Sexy?"

Otogi reached up one long-fingered hand, curling it around the nape
of his boyfriend's neck and pulling him close. "God, Babe; I'm
getting SO burned out. I've been staring at the word 'remember' for
the last ten minutes, trying to figure out why it looks WRONG."

Honda laughed softly, nuzzling gently at the back of Otogi's head as
he soothed, "Don't have a panic attack, kitten. Try and relax, maybe
take a break. I'm sure you'll have it finished in time." Otogi nodded
absently, kissing Honda's wrist before releasing his hand. He turned
his green cat's eyes back to the glowing monitor, his brow furrowed
in deep thought. Honda smiled fondly at his distracted lover as he
backed his way through the kitchen's swinging door, the corners of
his warm hazel eyes creased with affection.

Things continued much in this same, serene manner until at long last,
Yami turned to look at Jou, a baffled, and slightly disgusted, frown
marring his regal face. "What IS this shit?"

"Huh? Are you talkin' about the dip Honda made, or what we're
watchin'?"

Yami waved his hand at the television, curling his lip in an insulted
sneer. "This. It's horrid."

"It's called 'Stargate', Yami. Otogi and I thought you might like it.
Sorry, man." Honda rested a gigantic tray of hors d'oeuvres on the
coffee table as he spoke, wiping away a bead of sweat from his brow.

"It's a wildly inaccurate portrayal of ancient Egypt." The pharaoh
considered his words for a moment before adding, "But James Spader is
HOT."

Jou choked on a mouthful of soda, spraying his jeans as he coughed
out, "Jesus, I'm surrounded."

Honda mumbled something inarticulate, but Jou was fairly certain he
caught the word 'denial' in there somewhere. Aloud, the brunet
scolded, "Get your feet off the coffee table, motherfucker."

The blond dropped his sneakered feet to the floor with a sullen
thump, growling softly.

Honda looked at his friend quizzically. "Why haven't you taken your
shoes off, anyway? You usually leave them right in the middle of the
floor the minute you get here."

Jounouchi opened his mouth to answer, but Yami interjected quickly,
with much perverse glee evident in his voice, "He's wearing pink
socks!" As an afterthought, he tacked on, "His undies are pink too."

Without turning around, Otogi tossed out, "See? The signs are all
adding up."

Jou buried his face in his hands. "No. Yami just has a big fucking
mouth."

The pharaoh smirked widely around a mouthful of chips. "Wouldn't YOU
like to know," he mumbled.

Honda was still awaiting an explanation, looming over them both,
somehow managing to appear threatening while wearing an oven mitt.

Jou scrubbed a hand through his hair and admitted sheepishly, "Yeah.
I AM wearing pink socks and underwear. Which isn't really supposed to
be GENERAL PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE!" He paused to fling a handy throw pillow
at Yami, striking his friend full in the face and eliciting a
startled grunt. "I did my laundry over at Ryou's, and Bakura snuck a
red shirt into the rinse cycle while me and Ry were playing video
games. Speakin' of which... have you guys ever noticed how that kid
has this weird Lara Croft fixation? Seriously. Tomb Raider? Tomb
Robber? It's not that big of a stretch, you know. Next time you wanna
hassle someone about bein' in denial, you better go knockin' at HIS
door. Anyways, all my manly whites are now lovely, pastel pinks.
Bastard."

There was much laughing all around, and Jou eventually joined in,
despite having blushed a light shade of red. Red; definitely NOT
pink, he insisted. And it was more of a masculine flush, really. Not
like that girly kind of blushing at all. Honda chuckled quietly to
himself as he gathered up empty glasses and plates. "Dude, you got
off lucky. That's the singularly MOST evil thing 'Kura's done in
AGES. I think he's saving up for something big."

Otogi spun around in his chair, looking incredulous. "Are you
kidding? He pantsed Ryou in the lunch line yesterday! I thought
EVERYONE had heard about that."

Yami nodded sagely, understanding dawning on his face. "So THAT'S why
Ryou was threatening to run away and join a monastery..." He glanced
back over at Jou from the corner of his eyes, unable to resist the
urge to snigger once again. "Hee. Pink..."

"Alright, knock it off. I know where you live."

Yami seemed unwilling to let the matter drop, after that. "Didn't you
guys notice how Jou's been wearing his school uniform buttoned all
the way up?" Honda and Otogi nodded as the pharaoh continued. "He's
had his t-shirt tucked in every day this past week, too. You didn't
find that odd?" he prompted.

Honda caught on, smothering a small smile behind his oven mitt. "And
here I just thought he was trying to clean up his act for Mr. Tall,
Dark and Dreamy."

"Eh?"

Honda rolled his eyes. "Kaiba, you idiot."

Jou's faced darkened thunderously, and he opened his mouth to protest.

"Give it a rest, Dog-boy," laughed Otogi. "I don't blame you one bit.
Guy's got an ass that won't quit." He swiveled around to face Honda,
waving an empty glass in the air. "Yo, bar wench. Beer me." He turned
back to his typing one-handed, still holding the glass expectantly
over his head.

Honda glared at Otogi's back as he made his way past the computer
desk and toward the kitchen, his arms overloaded. "Get it your damned
self."

Otogi blinked rapidly, mentally reviewing what he might have said or
done to irritate his live-in lover. He smiled to himself as
realization struck, turning toward the two boys on the couch and
offering them a sly wink. His expression morphed into one of contrite
apology as he implored, "What's the matter, Sweetie? You know I was
only teasing..." Honda sniffed haughtily, but he seemed to be
relenting already. Otogi pressed his advantage, hopping up from his
chair and holding the door for his overburdened boyfriend. Never one
to pass up a golden opportunity, Otogi pinched the other boy's rear
as he slid by with his arms full of dishes. "Kaiba's ass is downright
BONY compared to yours, Babe. You're my one and only Pookie Bear, you
know that, right?" The two disappeared into the kitchen, their voices
low and muffled.

Jounouchi fell over backwards on the sofa, wheezing with
laughter. "Pookie bear! Shit, that's priceless!" Yami smiled
indulgently at his friend, scooting to the other end of the couch to
avoid the blond's flailing limbs, his attention focused once more on
the movie. Seeing that Yami's interest was elsewhere, Jounouchi soon
became bored. He'd seen 'Stargate' a dozen times at least, and he
knew better than to pester the pharaoh while he was watching TV. For
someone who was regarded by history as a great and benevolent leader,
Yami had remarkably little patience for his best friend when he was
in full-on 'nuisance' mode. He gave an exaggerated sigh, hopping up
from his seat and wandering idly around the room, looking for
something to do. Curious as to what Otogi had been working on so
diligently, he seated himself at the wooden desk, his amber eyes
scanning the screen intently. He had assumed that the other teen had
been focused on something relating to his business or Dungeon Dice
Monsters, but the header, "A Shovel And Some Faith" intrigued him
immediately. He clicked open the document and began to read.

~~~~~~~~~~*****~~~~~~~~~~

When Otogi and Honda emerged from the kitchen, leaning against one
another and giggling non-stop, they were met by the profile of
Jounouchi's stunned face, drained of all colour, and eerily backlit
by the glow of the computer monitor. His jaw worked soundlessly, and
he rotated his head toward them slowly as if his neck were moving on
well greased ball bearings. Otogi was vaguely reminded of a scene
from 'The Exorcist', and for one delirious moment, he expected the
boy's head to keep right on going. Dimly, he registered Honda's
whispered, "Oh shit," and then he was being clapped firmly on the
back as his true love scurried away with the less than helpful
admonition of , "You're on your own, man."

Jounouchi had apparently gotten his voice back, to some degree at
least, as he grated out, "What. The. Fuck. You wanna explain this to
me, Dice-boy?"

"You found his fanfiction stash, Jou. He's a closet smut writer,"
said Honda, as he seated himself in the vacant spot next to Yami,
reaching over the other boy's lap for a half-empty bowl of popcorn.

Otogi pulled up a chair and seated himself next to Jou, placing a
hand on his friend's knee. The blond stared at him wide-eyed,
sputtering in confusion. "Fanfiction? What IS this? You wrote... ME?
And Kaiba? With the - ? And the - ?" He swallowed. "I'm dead?"

"It's not what it looks like, Jou. It's for this contest, you see,
and - "

"That's supposed to make it alright?" he spat, his shock waning as
his temper began to rise in earnest.

"Well, it's not real, and... did I mention that it's for this
contest...?"

"You said that ALREADY!"

"Something about chicken, I think," Honda tossed over his shoulder.

"Oh for the hundredth fucking TIME! KFC stands for Kink Fest
Challenge, you moron!"

Honda's eyebrows shot up to his forehead. "Don't get your panties in
a wad, SWEETUMS," he snarked. "I'm just trying to help, here. Go
ahead and dig your own grave; see if I care."

"Real subtle, you ASS. Are you TRYING to get me killed?"

Jounouchi whirled on Honda. "You KNEW about this?"

"Oh yeah. I've read the whole damned thing; it's sick. He's a mad
genius, my kitten." Honda smiled proudly.

Yami had given up trying to watch his movie at this point, so he
turned around backwards and hung his legs over the arm of the sofa to
better observe the unfolding drama. He distractedly pulled a bag of
chips into his lap as he watched with undisguised interest, his
crimson eyes sparkling with curiosity and delight.

"So let me get this straight. You're entering this... this FILTH in
some kind of internet competition?" Jou asked, looking down at his
fingernails with great concentration.

Otogi nodded eagerly, a tentative smile breaking over his face.

"Out there in cyberspace, or whatever, where anyone in the world can
read it?"

Otogi nodded again, the smile faltering as he began to suspect where
this was going.

"You didn't even change the fucking NAMES!!"

"Well, it's an RP fic," Otogi said simply, like this explained
everything. Jou lifted his head and glared, his eyes narrowing
dangerously and his fist clenching in anticipation of a swing. The
green-eyed boy flinched, words spilling out of him in a babbling rush
as he tried desperately to clarify without being pummeled. "I know
it's all squicky in spots, and everyone's wildly OOC, and well, the
lemons are a bit over the top and - "He took a deep breath as Honda
came up behind him, clapping a hand over his mouth.

Jou frowned. "Are we even speakin' the same language?"

Honda chuckled. "RP fic is short Real People fiction, which is kind
of a contradiction, I know, but it's just short stories based on
actual people; usually celebrities, like say, you and Yugi."

"OK, that's just weird. What about the rest of it? The fruit and
shit?"

The brunet smiled affectionately down at his lover as he removed the
hand from his mouth. "Squicky just means that the subject matter
might gross some people out. Like Otogi's choice of kink for the KFC,
for example. Lemons are, uh, what the sex scenes are usually called.
Don't ask me why, 'cause I haven't figured that one out yet."

Jounouchi furrowed his brow and stared at Otogi flatly. "And what,
exactly, IS your kink of choice for this charming, little bed time
story, you big freak?"

Otogi mumbled something under his breath and looked away.

"Louder, please."

"I said, it's necrophilia!"

Yami whistled, long and low.

Jou shook his head, his blond hair hanging over his eyes. "You're
unbelievable, you know that? AND disturbed."

Honda nodded emphatically. "Yeah, there's lots of other fun stuff in
there too, like BDSM; you know, bondage and whips and shit? Ooo, plus
there's fisting in chapter seven."

Yami's ears perked up at that. "Fisting? Really?"

Jou looked faintly ill. "Bondage? Fisting? I think I need to sit
down."

"You ARE sitting down," the other three said in unison.

"Oh." Jounouchi turned back toward the monitor, grasping the mouse
and scrolling avidly through the text onscreen. Honda drifted back
toward the couch as Otogi sat and observed Jou's profile, shuffling
his feet and fidgeting awkwardly. Jou arched an eyebrow in his
direction. "Otogi?"

"Yeah, bud? Can I get you something?"

"Go away."

"Sure thing. I'll, uh, be right over here if you need me, 'kay?"
Otogi squeezed himself onto the large sofa between Honda and Yami,
despite the fact that there was no discernible lack of alternate
seating. He tried to concentrate on the movie, but couldn't resist
the urge to frequently turn his head and glance over his shoulder at
Jounouchi. He smiled a small, crafty smile as he noticed that Jou's
lips moved softy as he read, and every now and then he would squirm
in his seat or reach down and adjust the crotch of his jeans
slightly.

Finally, the blond leaned back in the leather chair, a thoughtful
expression on his face. "Huh."

Otogi physically restrained himself from groaning aloud in delicious
anticipation. "Well?"

"It's twisted, I'll say that much, but it's not totally AWFUL. I
mean, BAKURA? Ick. I don't even wanna go there. Still, it kept my
interest for a while, and everyone knows how easily distracted I can
be." He smiled sheepishly. "Your ending sucks, though."

Otogi looked disgruntled, but he refrained from commenting.
Discretion was ALWAYS the better part of valour, after all. "Did you
have any questions?" he asked hopefully.

"Kinda. So is Kaiba going to hell, or what? On second thought, never
mind. I don't actually want to know." Jounouchi stood up, stretching
languidly. "What I DO want to know is, are you the LEAST bit ashamed
of how your mind works?"

"Not really."

"Fair enough." Jou reached down, about to close the document, when he
remembered something. "Oh, while I was reading, you got an instant
message from, uh..." He paged through the various open windows until
he found what he was looking for. "Someone named 'STEALUBLIND16'. He
says, 'Hey fucker. Where's that last chapter and epilogue you
promised? I wanna get to bed SOMETIME tonight, you inconsiderate
jackass.' Hmm... One of your fans?"

Otogi laughed. "Oh no, that's just Bakura. He's my beta reader."

Jou looked to Honda for translation once more. "A beta reader is an
editor, of sorts. They read over the rough draft, check for spelling
and grammar errors, or they can be a sounding board for ideas and..."
he trailed off at the look of abject horror on Jou's face. "What?"

"BAKURA'S read this??" he shrieked. Jounouchi buried his face in his
hands again. He was beginning to think he might as well just stick
his head under a rock and stay there. "I think I'll go join Ryou at
that monastery."

Just then, there was a loud, imperious knock at the apartment door,
but before anyone could be bothered to answer, it swung open on its
own and Yugi strolled in, followed closely by Kaiba Seto. The taller
boy smirked as he surveyed the small crown gathered there. "You two
should really try locking your front door every now and then. You
never know what sort of lowlife street trash might just barge in."
His eyes locked with Jounouchi's own. "Oh. I see my warning came too
late. My apologies."

Oddly enough, it was Otogi that jumped to his defense. "Lay off him,
Kaiba. He's had a rough night." Yami broke the palpable tension by
leaping up from the sofa and bounding across the room to embrace Yugi
joyfully. He instantly began fussing over the smaller boy, licking
his thumb and scrubbing at a bit of latex glue that remained stuck in
Yugi's eyebrow. The other boy bore these ministrations with
remarkable grace, smiling patiently up at his would-be protector.

Honda stood up from his seat and straightened his apron. "How was the
convention, Seto? Can I get you anything?"

Kaiba sighed heavily. "I'm good thanks; I can't stay anyway. The
convention was pretty lame. Remind me not to let Kaiba Corp sponsor
it again next year, will you? The organizers couldn't get shit for
celebrity guests, and it's obvious they didn't try very hard, either.
I did get THIS, though." He moved aside his trademark white trench
coat to reveal a round, black button with the words, "Blow Wesley
Crusher Out The Airlock" written on it.

Jou snickered. "Heh. Blow."

Kaiba rolled his eyes heavenward, whether asking for patience or
guidance, Jounouchi couldn't tell. After a moment of silence, the CEO
clapped his hands together briskly. "Alright, guys. It's not even
midnight yet, and I'm still wired. Let's all go out and do something."

Otogi shook his head sadly. "Can't. Writing."

"If you wanna call it that," Jounouchi muttered.

Kaiba looked toward Honda expectantly. "Sorry, I can't tonight, man.
I'm the author's moral support. Except that he HAS no morals..."

Yugi chimed in before Kaiba could turn that petulantly disappointed
blue gaze on him."Kaiba, I'm beat. It took five whole hours to put
that Klingon makeup on, and another two just to wash it all off. I'm
totally done in. God, I can't BELIEVE those fangirls recognized me
under that get-up. I must have spent half the convention hiding out
in the can! I just want to go HOME at this point."

"Hmmph. Yami?"

"Sorry, Kaiba. I'll leave when Aibou does."

Jounouchi smirked. "Yeah. Haven't you heard? Yams is incapable of
independent thought since him and Yug' got split up."

Yami somehow managed to pull off the insolence of flipping Jou the
finger, while at the same time appearing vaguely hurt. The blond blew
him a kiss, and then turned to regard Kaiba, his hands on his hips in
what he felt was a suitably arrogant pose for confronting his
longtime rival.

"Anyway, ~I'M~ free tonight, Moneybags. Where ya treatin' me to?"

Kaiba appeared a bit sulky about the whole thing at first, but
finally, he gave a noncommittal shrug, signaling his mute agreement.
He reached for the doorknob and gestured sarcastically as he held the
door open for Jou. "Since I'm the one that's driving, that would be
MY choice. Grab your jacket and let's go, Mutt. Your chariot awaits."

Jou eagerly scrambled to comply, thrilled at the prospect of an all
expense paid evening on the town. Kaiba's hard partying nightlife was
legendary, but this was the first time he'd ever managed to tag
along.

Kaiba smiled to himself as he watched the blond frantically check his
pockets for keys and ID. "Do I need to stop and buy a leash? Or are
you going to behave yourself?"

Jou shrugged into his worn blue denim jacket, giving Kaiba an
irritated glare out from under his shaggy bangs."Hah. You're really
one to talk. I don't need a lecture from YOU on behavin' like a dog.
I read about last weekend's exploits in the paper, you playboy.
Really Kaiba, twins? I'm impressed."

"Don't believe EVERYTHING you read in the tabloids, Puppy." As the
door closed behind the two, Kaiba's mocking voice floated up from the
stairwell, "Wait a minute. You can READ?"

Otogi sat back down at the computer, pulling out the keyboard tray
with one hand, while rubbing tiredly at his eyes with the other. He
paused for a moment, considering. "Do you guys think I should have
mentioned to Jou who my co-author is?"

Honda snorted, turning his head to meet Otogi's eyes over the back of
the sofa. "If he's too dense to figure out the pen name, 'BEWDBoi_1',
he deserves what he's getting himself into."

Otogi shrugged and turned back to the computer, his fingers beating
out a steady, soft staccato on the keys as Yami and Yugi cuddled
together on the plush sofa, oblivious to the scrolling credits and
everything else around them as they communed silently. Honda sighed
as he stood back up, mildly put out about being ignored, but gaining
enthusiasm rapidly as he made his way back into the galley style
kitchen. He had this wonderful recipe he wanted to try...

~~~~~~~~~~*****~~~~~~~~~~

Inside Kaiba's black BMW Roadster, Jounouchi fumbled with the fancy
shmancy ergonomic controls, frustratedly trying to adjust the
passenger side seat. "Damn Yugi and his stubby legs! You'd think a
teeny, little Beemer would be small enough for him, but noooo..."

Closing the blond's door with a chuckle, Kaiba's smirk grew even
wider when Jounouchi gave a small jolt, startled when his fingers
finally located the correct button. His seat glided smoothly into
place with a low, mechanical hum, and he gave a quick sigh of relief
as he stretched his legs out in front of him. "How the hell do YOU
fit your big, damn, gangly self in here?

Seto sank gracefully into the plush leather driver's seat and turned
his face slowly toward Jou. "I'm very... limber."

Jounouchi swallowed hard at the heat evident in that blue-eyed gaze,
before he attempted to conceal his awkwardness. "So, uh, where we
goin?"

Seto started up the car and made his way down the narrow, private
street. He didn't answer Jou's question until they were out on the
main highway and picking up speed. A LOT of speed, Jou noted with
unease. "I thought we'd drop by this club I know downtown. It's VERY
exclusive. It's also members only, but it won't be an issue if you're
with me. I've taken Otogi as my guest plenty of times."

"Sounds swank. What's it called?"

"Alchemy. Heard of it?"

Paling visibly, Jounouchi carefully calculated his odds of surviving
a leap from a vehicle moving at such a high velocity. He really,
REALLY didn't like the predatory smile that spread over Kaiba's
handsome features as his shadowed eyes made note of Jou's
discomfiture. The blond smiled back tremulously while at the same
time covertly edging one shaking hand toward the door release. As the
black BMW sped off into the night, the sound of Kaiba's richly
amused, yet somehow UNNERVING laughter mingled jarringly with
Jounouchi's panicked cursing at the child-proof locks.

~~~~~~~~~~*****~~~~~~~~~~

the end