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Lost and Found	By : lostintheheartland Category: Yu-Gi-Oh > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 9748 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 6
Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh or anything else nor do I make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 11
- 12
- 13
Title: Lost And Found – Episode 10 - Left Behind

Author: Maggiemay

Muses and Betas: Jazzy, mofaf1, Lady Laran, Sprinkles

Disclaimer: Don't own YGO or any of it's Characters. Do own my OC's and the work contained within this work.

Summary: Life after the Pharaoh left looked bright. Looks can be deceiving. Jounouchi is a cop who finds missing people. He's found everyone he's ever searched for – except one. This is the ninth episode in the ongoing 'Lost and Found' saga.

Rating: M for Mature just to be safe.

Size:   14 pages and 6607 words.

****

Matashi Aoi glared daggers at the man currently thwarting him. "It's my turn, Roland!"

The tall, ramrod straight man gave him a smirk, "You snooze, you lose. You shouldn't have overslept Matashi-chan." The smirk faded into a warm smile that beamed down to the little bundle nursing at the prosthetic breast strapped to his chest. "She was hungry, and you missed out." The warm expression became positively sappy as the older man baby-talked to Kaiba Keiko. "Isn't that right, sweetie. Matashi-chan left you hungry, but Pawpaw Roland saved you from starvation. Mean old Matashi-chan."

Enraged and jealous, Matashi snapped "Forty-two seconds? She was hungry for forty-two seconds? You..."

When a slight curl touched the eating babe's brow, Roland snapped his head up and sent his own glared daggers. "You are upsetting her." His tone was calm and soothing, but his look promised dire retribution. The fierceness faded when Roland switched his gaze back to the baby, "Isn't he, sweetie-pie?"

The baby just made a small grunt and continued to greedily suckle. Ashira came in to check on Matashi, and Keiko only to freeze with a deer in the headlights look. "Uh.. Oh..."

"He was late." Roland said, in justification to his violating the schedule they had fought over for hours when the situation had first arisen.

Aishira frowned and looked at the clock, a puzzled frown creasing his face. "But..."

"Forty-two seconds!" Matashi wanted to yell, instead he growled it, then began to pace, tearing at his hair. "What the hell..." Instantly he clapped his hand over his mouth, and with an apologetic look at the babe, ran from the room.

Aishira gave Roland a quick, hard look and dashed out after his lover. Roland gave his little angel a conspiratorial smile and crossed to the clock Aishira had looked at. With a deft flick, he set it back five minutes. "Shh... You'll keep it between us won't you?" He whispered to the oblivious baby.

Kaiba Seto, watching via streaming, chuckled and ended the transmission. He'd asked Ai to let him watch Keiko's breakfast from the previous morning. He missed his daughter and their special morning time. A sudden thought made the genius frown. He'd have to remember to watch the clocks because more than once Roland had beaten him to feeding Keiko by a few minutes in the morning. Seto had thought there was something wrong with his alarm clock. Now he was sure it was something entirely different.

Shelving that, the billionaire got back to the business of keeping everyone safe. He kept his voice low, so as not to disturb the sleeping blond next to him on the futon. "Ai, give me a status on the searches, also have the hummer here at first light. Contact the driver right away. If he doesn't answer, contact the hotel and have them wake him up."

"Two hits, both deliveries so no in-store video. The two purchases were made online from internet cafes, both were delivered to the same address and from the OCR, the Hanko used to sign for the packages are identical. The receipts were destroyed after being scanned but the scanned images are ready to view on a larger screen." The computer relayed.

"Nothing else? What about the address?"

"There have been no more hits on the credit cards but I added in searches for that address. The current resident has been there three years, before that it was owned by TempSitu, a company that rented it to other companies for visiting executives. TempSitu was absorbed by Diversified Properties Limited three and a half years ago. The apartment was sold at that time." Ai informed very precisely.

That sent a vibration down to Kaiba's core. "DPL - The company Mokuba took over last year?"

"Nineteen months ago. Yes. It is now the properties branch of Kaiba Corporation." Just like Jounouchi, Seto didn't believe in coincidence.

"Run a..."

"I'm already cross referencing the known data with any possible connections within the corporation." Ai interrupted smoothly.

"All right. Also add in the 'Chinese' variable. From the image, the Hanko is Chinese. Keep me updated. I have to wake Jounouchi, and we need to leave if we are going to meet the car on time."

***

When they emerged from their 'cell', they were met by the same monk who had taken Tatsu back to the road the night before. With grave courtesy he greeted them, then lead them down the starlit path. Their walk was silent except for the chirp of crickets and the occasional rustle of animals scurrying about their business. Jou was still miffed at Seto's teasing, the CEO wasn't a morning person and didn't want to talk anyway, and the monk was simply calm and efficient.

The hummer was waiting exactly as expected, and Tatsu was leaning back against the hood when Seto and Jou reached the road. The monk had turned back as soon as the road was in sight bidding them a silent farewell with a simple bow.

"Katsuya!" Tatsu hurried to his boyfriend, smiling warmly and leaning forward to give the blond a morning peck on the cheek. He was pleasantly surprised when Jou turned and caught his lips in a warm kiss that lasted quite a bit longer than was reasonable for an 'expected' morning kiss. When they broke apart, Tatsu was starry-eyed and flushed. He was thrilled to see that Jou's cheeks had darkened as well, the hue if not the color plainly visible even in the limited dawn light.

Seto ignored the couple and climbed into the front passenger seat, leaving the back seat for the Jou and Tatsu. Tatsu, buoyed by the thought that either Jou was growing fonder and had genuinely missed him or that Seto had done something to drive the blond away, settled in next to Jou and began to ask why they were returning so soon.

Before Jou could explain about the surviving children, Seto cut in. "We believe there was something overlooked in the original investigation. We need to speak to Thomas to verify a few points before we tell him about the marker."

"Oh." Tatsu was disconcerted, but not by the brisk tone, it was the almost supernatural glow the dash lights gave Kaiba's bright green-blue eyes. "Ah.. did you change contacts or something? Yo'r eyes are really different this morning."

"I don't wear contacts. My eyes change color according to light density and other environmental factors. It is a natural phenomena for some people. It is a trait Jounouchi and I share. If you look at his eyes, you will see they are different as well." Seto didn't bother to glance up from his PDA.

Tatsu glanced at his boyfriend curiously. He'd never noticed, not once in all the times they had worked together, but Kaiba was right. Katsuya's eyes were gold and green mixed, but the green was distinctly more prominent. "I... never noticed before."

"I normally wear contacts, but my shipment went to my apartment and I don't have any more." Jou lied easily. "Cosmetic only, 'cause it can freak people out. It's an inherited thing. Kaiba and I have ancestors that came from the same village probably."

"You guys aren't related though?" Now that Tatsu thought of it, that could be a good thing. If they were blood relatives, it added complexity and an extra layer of taboo to Kaiba's attraction to Katsuya.

Seto continued to tap on his PDA. "Not at all. He's exaggerating as usual. You'll find he tends to overreact even to the littlest things. I can't remember all the times he would try to inflict real damage on me for just playful teasing."

If Tatsu hadn't still been studying Jou's strange eye color, he would have completely missed the guilt that flashed across the blonde's mobile features. Wanting to help, the police captain tried to reassure them both. "He's grown up a lot. I'm sure he doesn’t react that way now."

"Not so you'd notice," Seto murmured absently.

"Hey! Right here you know." Jou finally spoke up for himself. "How was I to know you were only teasing? You never just play, Kaiba. You always have an agenda."

"Of course I do." Seto agreed, a small amount of humor tinging his voice. "Sometimes it's world domination, but at other times it's just to ease a tense situation between friends."

Tatsu knew by the suddenly stricken look on Jou's face that Kaiba wasn't talking about the distant past. Something had happened the night before, something that Katsuya had misunderstood. Before he could ask, Jou had rallied, "Yeah right. You never needed friends, remember Kaiba?" Jou turned to grin at Tatsu. "So how did you sleep last night? Was your bed comfy? I didn't sleep a wink. Kaiba snores."

"My room was great and my bed western style and completely comfortable. You should have joined me, I don't snore." Tatsu made his invitation obvious, not just in words but with a look that he hoped the blond could read.

Seto snorted from the front seat. "I didn't sleep at all. I was up all night working with Ai. You, Katsuya, snore, hog the blankets and futon, and kick. The only way you will ever share a bed with me again is if you beg."

It was Jou's turn to snort. "Not ever gonna happen, Moneybags."

Tatsu blinked slightly. Since when did Katsuya call Seto that? "Uh... Katsuya, what is wrong with you this morning?"

"Sorry, I guess you don't know. Back in the day, he used to make dog comments to me all the time. The beg thing brought that back. Moneybags is what I used to call him back then."

"So it's a nickname from school?" Tatsu frowned slightly. "A kind of teasing?"

"You could say that." Jou allowed. With a sigh, he leaned back in the seat. "Man, these seats are more comfortable than that futon. I could do with a few more hours sleep."

"Crawl in the back like you did on the way out. You've been ill. Sleep, I'm sure nobody will mind." His boyfriend reassured.

"You'd be wrong, Tatsu." Seto corrected. "I mind because we need to talk about what we are going to say to Thomas. Roland assures me that he will meet us at the penthouse early afternoon."

"Surely there is time for him to rest?" Tatsu protested.

It was Jou who actually agreed with Seto. "Nah, Tatsu we need to talk about this because what we noticed last night was that nobody had ever investigated whether Thomas might have something to do with their disappearance. He had money and contacts. It was very convenient that he was on a business meeting, even though he was on vacation with his family, at the time they disappeared." Jou shifted slightly, as if his comfy seat had suddenly hardened beneath him. "Everyone thought it made sense, he had money and was happily married, but what if that wasn't the case? He wouldn't be the only guy to off his family so he didn't have to pay alimony or child support."

Tatsu nodded. "True, we've seen it many times." He sighed slightly. "I'll never understand that. A simple contract before marriage and all assets are protected."

"You had a prenup?" Jou gave him a curious look.

"Of course. It covered everything from shared daily expenses, children, and divorce settlements such as alimony and child support, even visitation, if necessary. Unfortunately they were, however, because it was spelled out prior to the wedding, our divorce was much less messy and time consuming than most."

It sounded cold-blooded to Jou, but then he'd never had any real money or assets to protect. "Good for you then. So what's the visitation on your son? Are we going to hang out some weekend while you're doing the dad thing?" He asked, already looking forward to getting to know a small, childlike version of Tatsu.

Tatsu hesitated, an image of Jou's almost worshipful look at Kaiba when the brunet had spoken of loving his daughter. Swallowing down his misgivings, because either Katsuya accepted him the way he was or he didn't, Tatsu forced himself to say casually. "Not something to worry about. I really don't see him more than I have to. I'm not required to take him and to be honest, I don't get along well with children." He forced a slight laugh. "I never know what to say, and they always ask questions or say something they shouldn't." The memory of the passionate greeting bolstered him into confiding. "Besides, I... I never really wanted him, he was Karin's idea, and if she hadn't gotten pregnant, we would probably still be together. She left me while she was pregnant and since the boy was outside our prenup, I filed for divorce."

The warmth and eagerness inside Jou curdled like milk left in the sun. "Say what?" He couldn't have heard that right. Tatsu had let his pregnant wife leave him? Had divorced her for getting pregnant? Had blamed her for the pregnancy when it had been his dick? Hadn't been there for his kid? Ever?

Tatsu caught Kaiba's sidelong glance and decided enough was too much. He and Jou would discuss this privately. "Ahem, let's talk about this later okay? We need to focus on this new avenue of investigation."

Jou, eyes dark brown with barely any flecks of green, gave him a steady look. "Right, we'll talk later." None of the occupants of the car mistook his tone as close to accepting. In the front seat, Seto slid his stylus into the holder and closed the cover over his PDA.

Seto cleared his throat. "From my research, I know that Thomas-san singlehandedly revived the traditional silk weaving industry. It has made him a very wealthy man. He is currently forty-four years of age. He was thirty-six when his wife and children disappeared. Married only once at age twenty-seven and married for nine years before the kidnapping. His wife was thirty-two when she disappeared, twenty-three at marriage to Thomas. Twenty-four when their first child was born and twenty-seven when their second was born."

"Planned." Jou remarked. "The timing says planned children. Kaiba, what about Thomas's past. He was twenty seven when he got married, no way he didn't have at least one relationship."

"He was on the way to becoming rich even then so there should have been something in the papers, but there is nothing, not even a hint of his personal life." Seto was thoughtful for a moment. "You know that means something..."

"Yeah, it means he was hiding it. That he had something to hide, a secret to protect. Anything now?"

"Not a word." A frown pulled at the brunet's brow. "One moment." He tapped the GPS screen. "Ai, are you online yet?"

"Of course I am. I've been listening." She sounded like a woman who had spent all night working and needed a nap.

"Did Roland go back to sleep after I called him?" He ignored her show of irritability.

"Of course not. He's with Thomas now. Would you like me to call him? He probably won't answer. My monitor on his phone shows that he is currently engaged in oral sodomy. A position commonly referred to as 'sixty-nine.'" Slightly less irritable, but still all too human.

Seto choked and closed his eyes, mentally making a giant note to program discretion regarding sexual matters into her matrix. "No wonder he was sure..."

"Would you care to verify? Although, the positions have changed and they are involved in analingus currently." Ai's voice was calm and completely serious.

It was too much for the driver. Without a word, he pulled over and got out of the vehicle. Within a few moments, he'd walked off into the morning mist shrouded mountains, headed towards the glow of the rising sun.

Seto took a few seconds to compose himself and shake the images from his mind before climbing into the driver's seat. As he put the car in gear, Jou protested. "Shouldn't you wait for the driver?"

"Hell no. The idiot is fired. If he can't take hearing about something that tame, he doesn't need to work for me." He sighed and grumbled rhetorically. "Where the hell do they get these weak-minded idiots?" The genius billionaire knew there was no answer so he didn't waste time speculating. "Ai, break off your monitor during sexual activity. Check back in two hours. If they are not engaged in sexual activities, call Roland for me."

"Yes. Why two hours, Kaiba-sama? Data indicates sexual activity should end in less than half an hour and..."

"Ai..." Seto massaged the frown away from his eyebrows. "Do as I say."

"Yes."

Jou chuckled slightly "Ai, Kaiba's giving them cuddle and recovery time. After sex between loving partners, it's important to just hold your lover, maybe sleep a little, and feel their closeness. He's being nice." He explained so the computer could add that to her matix.

"Kindness is unexpected." Ai sounded curious. "Why are you acting out of character, Kaiba-sama?"

"Ever hear the phrase 'Do unto others as you'd have them do unto you?' I wouldn't want to be interrupted if I..." Seto cleared his throat. "There is nothing that Roland can tell us about this now. He is not unbiased. But we did find a possible motive."

Jou gave a small frown. "Are all of your upper management gay?"

"I had no idea of Roland's sexuality. He is a widower so I presumed he was heterosexual." Seto admitted.

That struck a slight chord. "When did his wife die?" The cop in Jou was waking with a vengeance. The coincidences were getting too thick.

Ai answered immediately. "Eleven years, four months and twenty-two days. She went for a drive in the country and never returned. Her car was found in an irrigation canal a week later. Foul play was ruled out. She worked nights as a nurse and had gone for a drive during hours according to one of the neighbors who saw her leave. Roland claimed she normally would have been sleeping. He was on an out of town training seminar and reported her missing when he returned that evening."

"Any idea where Thomas was on that date?" Jou asked quietly. He didn't expect an an answer.

"According to several newspapers, Thomas was in Domino signing a contract for silk distribution." Came the surprising answer.

"Ah shit." It escaped before Jou could bite it back. "Another disappearing wife... Any children, Ai?"

"No." The computer kept to the single syllable. She could have added more, but she logically assumed any information about Roland would need to be vetted by Seto before discussing it in front of Jounouchi and Captain Miyahara.

"You're barking up the wrong tree." Seto snapped. There was no way he could see the man who held his daughter and called himself PawPaw, a murderer. Roland was an excellent employee and an even more loyal friend. No way in hell.

"I didn't say he was." Jou replied evenly. "But there are some things that must be looked at. You know that."

"Fine. But he," Seto agreed, then threw Tatsu a dark look. "Doesn't speak to Roland without an attorney." And just like that Tatsu went from being a comrade to being an enemy. At least in his own perspective. To Jounouchi, it was more complex, because even though Tatsu was the person he was dating and even though Jou was an ex-cop, he actually agreed with Kaiba, not because of loyalty to Roland, but because of the odd conflicting emotions he had for Kaiba himself. As an ex-cop it shouldn't have mattered, but it did. And that disturbed the conflicted blond more than the coincidences.

Tatsu held up his hands to placate the obviously furious brunet. “I’m not the one who said anything. We need a lot more information before we make any connections between a current relationship with your head of security and Thomas. For all we know this is a one off thing that they will both regret tomorrow. It could be a long term affair that both wives were all right with. We simply don’t know enough.” The captain was political enough, experienced enough, to know how to diffuse this kind of situation. It was true; they didn’t know enough and jumping to conclusions can lead to leaping off a cliff of sheer stupidity.

Tatsu was a rank amateur in political maneuverings when compared to Kaiba Seto, and Seto proved that by simply shrugging and reiterating. “You don’t speak to him without my legal team present.” The brunet kept his eyes on the road.

“Of course.” Tatsu agreed, biting back a sigh. “What did you find out about the marker? How did it open up the current avenue of investigation?”

“The woman was alive when she was found. She had crawled up from the wreck and said that her husband was trying to kill them and begged for sanctuary. She died within a few minutes. The children were retrieved later from the car. Their situation was … equally grave”   Jou tapered off his explanation, trying to tell the truth, but not give away that the children were still alive. If Tatsu knew the children were alive, he would send a hoard of officials to the monastery to retrieve them.

“Well, she would have known. Are you sure it was the missing family?” Tatsu asked, just to make sure. He didn’t doubt Katsuya or Kaiba, but he liked to cover the basics.

“Yeah, matched her description and she left behind a few things. There is no doubt.” Seto butted in coolly.

“Too bad.” Tatsu meant it. People liked happy endings, and it could be a major career boost to have a happy ending that splashed internationally.

"We reviewed the information we had and because Thomas had an alibi at the time and had no motive, he was only given a cursory investigative look. But if his wife's dying words are true, then there was something overlooked." Jou rubbed the back of his neck tiredly. "We need to talk to him and see what could have motivated him to do it or her to think he had."

"Hmm... Could she have been delusional?" Seto pondered thoughtfully. "Ai, do we have access to her medical records?"

"They were included in the police records. I am scanning.   There are no diagnosis of any kind of mental illness noted, except for an episode of depression at age seventeen. Successfully treated. Nothing unusual, except that on her last pregnancy she is listed as Gravida three."

"Three pregnancies? They had two children? Any listing of a miscarriage or abortion?" Jou frowned slightly.

"No. Although our records only go back to age seventeen."

"School records?" Seto asked. There had to be physicals from school. They were required.

"Her father was an instructor of western literature at Tsinghua University from the time she was four until she was seventeen. We don't have any records from that time." Ai explained carefully.

"Tsinghua University?" Jou was thinking hard. "Where have I heard that from?"

"Huang Zongxi told the maintenance worker that he spent four years there." Tatsu reminded, suddenly excited. "He could have been there when Thomas's wife was there. They could have known each other."

"She left there sixteen or seventeen years before she was kidnapped." Jou scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Weird, but I think if this thing with Thomas goes nowhere, we might have to go over to China."

"Hmmm... Ai, are the yearbooks for Tsinghua University posted online? Any from the two years before she left?" Seto didn't wait for an answer. "There are photos of Huang Zongxi when he taught here. Use facial recognition software and look for matches in that timeframe. Start with western literature students and student aides."

Seto leaned forward, gazing at the road intently. "Why here?"

"What?" Jou blinked at the sudden change of topic.

"Why here? Why did the kidnapper setup to come here? He arrived well ahead of time and became familiar to the locals. Why here? How did he know they were going to be here?" The brilliant CEO elaborated. "Ai, how far in advance was the Thomas's itinerary posted? Was it ever made public that they were going to be here?"

"No. In fact this particular stop was last minute according to Thomas. The meeting he attended was shifted to here from Domino at his request. His wife wanted to come here. Thomas and his business acquaintance didn't mind so they humored her." Ai's carefully neutral tones fell into a thoughtful silence.

"Another thing to ask about." Jou half sighed. "What was the name of the business acquaintance?"

"Wang Piao. He was the head of distribution for Japan and China for Maru Textiles." There was a barely discernible pause. "He passed on within a few months after the kidnapping. He is survived by his wife, a forty-two year old son, and twenty four year old grandson. His wife returned to China after his death seven years ago."

"Son and grandson?" Jou asked just to make sure they covered all bases.

"There is no record of them ever leaving China." Ai affirmed. "Would you like for me to run a search for any images or information on them?"

"Yes. Send the results to my PDA." Seto ordered briskly.

"Yes Kaiba-sama." She agreed, equally brisk.

To Tatsu, who had begun to tally up all of the searches, questions, and duties, it was outside enough. Ai was an absolute gem of a hard worker, and Kaiba didn't bother to even say please or thank you. As the political creature he was, he knew an asset when he ran across one. "Thank you for all of your help Ai... if I may call you Ai?" He gave Seto a pointed look. "I know you work for Seto, but I wanted to tell you how much I appreciate all of your hard work. Seto is very lucky to have someone as devoted to him as you are."

"Thank you, Miyahara-san. It's nice to know my efforts are appreciated." The computer's voice actually took on a note of pathos. "Kaiba-sama rarely expresses himself so eloquently." Now she sounded almost like she was fluttering her eyelashes at Tatsu - if she had eyelashes that is.

Tatsu blinked at his boyfriend when Jou suddenly stifled what sounded like a snicker. His gaze turned to Seto when the ungrateful brunet snapped. "Now is not the time to test your regrettable sense of humor or attempt your newfound flirtatious skills. Who have you been speaking to?"

"Matashi and Aishira have been quite informative on several topics. They have very unique ways of communication. It is quite a learning experience, although I am not sure you would approve of some of their conversations around Keiko."

"Hmmm you... We will discuss your sudden tendency to redirect." Seto frowned at the console. "Get to work. I expect answers before we reach Domino." Without missing a step, he flicked his green-blue eyes to Jou. "Now you can crawl in the back seat and sleep. Tatsu you look exhausted as well, you sprawl out on that seat and catch some shut eye."

When they would have protested he gave them an impatient glare. "You two will yammer on and distract me, now go to sleep and leave me in peace."

Jou gave up the protest and grinned as he crawled into the third seat. "Don’t hafta tell me twice."

Tatsu sighed and leaned back in his seat. He wouldn't sleep, but he would relax and think about the threat. Somehow, it just didn't seem solid, like they were missing something crucial, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He was still considering it when he was lulled into sleep by the steady hum of the tires and subtle vibration of the motor.

When Seto was sure they were asleep, he queued up the information Ai had given him the night before. Green-blue eyes glinted with knowledge and rage. Only two satellites could have caused the interference, only two. The original number hadn't factored in the amount of energy required to make such a direct attack. There were only two who could generate that much power. One was privately owned and had been no challenge for Ai to hack into. The second was owned by the government and used by governmental agencies, and as such the usage was logged, if not monitored. At each incidence of blackout, the satellite was being utilized by Domino Police Department to run axis searches... broad spectrum bursts of energy targeting a certain area, and in these instances the energy was directed at KC Satellite.

No matter how he looked at it, and he'd tried from various areas, a police officer, possibly the recruit from eight years prior, was involved. They had a mole or a leak. As much as he wanted it to be Tatsu, just to tear Jou and Tatsu apart, he knew it wasn't. Tatsu simply didn't have the brains to run this kind of operation. Filing the information away he keyed in a manual search for someone of Chinese descent, with similar ages and backgrounds, anyone who has a sketchy or questionable history, something unverified. Seto had a strong feeling that if he looked close enough he would find the person threatening them, and he'd find them wearing a uniform and badge.

****

Shizuka hummed happily as she dished up her breakfast. She hadn't bothered to cook for everyone else simply because they hadn't been up. She should have known that as soon as they smelled food, they would converge like ants at a picnic. When Otogi tried to snitch her bacon, she smacked his hand with her spatula. "Uh uh. Make your own."

"Aww c'mon. Don't be greedy." Green eyes pouted at her.

"Don't be lazy. I made this for me. Get your own, I'm not your slave." She had a master, but he wasn't in this realm. Deliberately, she slid into her chair.

"Bacon, eggs, pancakes, and green tea? An American breakfast. Aren't you afraid of getting fat?" There was a hint of malice in Otogi's voice.

"No, I'm not. I hope I do get fat, fat as a pumpkin. Fatter still." She grinned at their shocked looks.

Mai gave her a cool look. "You don't want to do that. The hottie you were screwing on the beach last night won't want you if you're a cow."

Otogi and Honda looked shocked speechless. Shizuka just smirked. "Jealous? And yes he's a hottie, hotter than the fires of hell actually. He owns me - my soul, my heart - every part of me. He won't give a damn if I get round as a pumpkin since he planted the seed."

"Holy fuck! Shizuka!" Honda was scandalized. "When did you start talking like that? Behaving like a... a... Jou is going to be so pissed! Why did you tell him where you are? Don't you know about the danger you put us all in?"

"I doubt he will tell anyone where we are. He came from very far away just to see me and trust me, I didn't increase the danger around us." She shrugged. "He will protect me for as long as it takes."

"Damn it Shizuka! What is going on with you?" Mai hissed as she grabbed the red-haired woman's shoulder, accidentally pulling the neckline of Shizuka's long-sleeved shirt aside, showing the red scratches on her chest.

Mai released her as if she'd been burned. "Fuck, he did that to you?"

"I asked him to." Abruptly Shizuka was out of patience. "My sex life is none of your business. My personal life is just that - personal and mine. None of you have any room to talk. I don't have time to deal with your drama. I have every reason to believe I got pregnant last night. I hope with every beat of my heart I am. There is nothing I want more than the baby I'm carrying. It is the ultimate gift. Now all of you shut your mouths and fix your own breakfasts. If you want to say anything to me, now and in the future, it will be in calm, nice tones conducive to a healthy baby. If you can't follow that - shut the hell up and leave me alone." Without another word she bent to her healthy breakfast, already picturing the food making the babe inside her plump and healthy.

"Shizuka..." Honda's voice was a mere thread of sound. She lifted her luminous eyes from her plate. "Yes?"

"I... ahem... I'm making some miso. I... It is supposed to be good for babies. Would you like some?" The brunet offered softly.

"I'd love some. Thank you." She smiled gratefully.

"Miso!" Mai's voice was harsh with anger and disapproval. "She just admitted to fucking some guy on the beach to get pregnant, and that's all you have to say? Miso?"

Honda tried to find words, but Shizuka had no qualms. "I'm honest about what I did. Were you planning on telling us about spending the night in Otogi's room?" Her smile was razor sharp. "I saw you sneaking out this morning."

Her gaze darkened as she switched it back to Honda. "I'm sorry. I..."

The brunet turned away from the wide-eyed blonde woman, Otogi, and Shizuka. Holding on to his composure, he crossed to the cupboard. "You don't owe me an apology. I should thank you. I wasn't close to forgiving him, but you've only shown me that his words and actions are... He hasn't changed. Still the same cheat."

Surprisingly, Otogi surged to his feet. "We were talking. Honda. We didn't have sex. We are both in the same situation, and we needed to talk. We both fucked up and lost the men we loved. We aren't going to fuck up again, especially with each other."

Honda shrugged and busied himself at the stove. "Talking... Business trips. Right whatever. It doesn't matter to me at all. Fuck who you like, not that you ever stopped." Honda forced a light chuckle. "I can't wait to see Jou's expression when you tell him he's gonna be an uncle, Shizuka." A thought brought him up short. "Shit, you have to tell him right off your baby isn't mine. He's going to kill your boyfriend."

Shizuka laughed and shook her head. "No, he won't." A faraway look stole the laughter from her eyes. "Believe me, when we talk, the last thing he's going to want to do is cause trouble for me and Maa... the baby's father."

Honda gave her a doubtful look. "Shizuka, you're his baby sister. He will not be happy about you getting knocked up."

"He will be happy, maybe not right away but he definitely will be happy." Shizuka sighed and stood. "I don't think I'll have the miso, Honda. I'm going to lay down. I'm a little tired." She turned to leave only to find herself closely followed by Mai. "If you're going to be dramatic or a bitch, don't bother. I'm too tired."

The blonde gave her a searching look. "You're the one who was bitchy hun. I just want to talk to you. I figure if you're pregnant you might want some tips from someone who has been there."

Shizuka stared at her ex-sister in law, weighing her carefully. "I will listen but Mai, I don't trust you. You like to cause pain and I won't let you hurt me or my baby." She turned and padded to her room.

"Shit, what is wrong with you? Why are you suddenly so cruel?" Mai burst out.

Wearily the red-haired woman sank to her bed. "Cruel? I guess to you I am cruel. Mai, do you know what SLE is?"

"SLE?" A frown plucked at her brow.

"Systemic Lupus Erythematosus is an autoimmune disease. It affects all parts of the body. It causes pain, swelling, and damage to organs. It can range from mild to severe. I was diagnosed when I was small and spent most of my childhood in and out of hospitals. Jou didn't know anything about it until he was a teenager. You probably remember when Jou paid for the treatment to restore my vision. Since then I've thought that I was in a dormant phase. No flares or major complications. I thought I had years and years to..." She shook her head slightly. "It doesn't matter. I was sick a few weeks ago and went to my doctor. After a few tests, he determined that my SLE had been attacking my heart and kidneys for years, silently doing damage. The structures are so badly damaged that my doctor says that I have less than a year to live before they fail entirely. There is no 'cure' just treatment to lessen pain and allow me to function as normally as possible. I will continue to decline until I die." She took a shuddering breath and let it out slowly. "Jou doesn't know. I was still coping with the news when all of this happened. The only part of me that is fully functional is my reproductive organs. I... I want to live my dream to have a family and leave a legacy of love. I won't live long enough, but if I... I spoke to the doctor. He said that if I get pregnant my immune system may even out and buy me some time, or it may go on the offensive and kill me faster. I will probably live long enough to have the baby, but not much longer."

"What? But... Isn't there something? A transplant?" Mai's normally nasal tones were hoarse and shaking.

"I am not eligible because of my condition. Mai, I got pregnant deliberately because I want to give my brother a piece of me to have when I'm gone, and I want to leave a legacy of love. So if you think I'm cruel, I will only say this... I don't have time or energy to deal with your and Otogi's games. I won't pretend something I don't feel, and I won't make nice. I've got nothing left to lose." Shizuka stood and walked to the bathroom. "I am going to shower now. I'm not going to ask you not to tell anyone, I'm not that big a fool. I only ask that you guys let me tell Jou in my own way, in my own time."

"But... Doesn't he know? I mean..."

"He was a kid when I was diagnosed, and we lived apart for years. I doubt he knows my actual diagnosis, and I know he doesn't have a clue about my terminal condition. Mai, I'm going to shower. If you want to talk later, we can. Right now, I need to be alone."

Mind whirling with confusion, grief, denial, and several other emotions she could barely understand, Mai stumbled from the room.

***
Sorry it was late, RL has a way of distracting from writing.
Join us next time Same bat channel same bat time.
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