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I Know You're Out There Somewhere	By : Firewing Category: Yu-Gi-Oh > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 3536 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh!, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 29
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- 31
Chapter 30: No Way Out

All previous disclaimers still apply; I have no legal rights to Yugioh and do not intend by the writing of this story to infringe on the rights of those who do. I also do not own Phil Collins, Brother Bear, or the song �No Way Out�. I�m merely borrowing.
Koda of Brother Bear reminds me of Mokuba on chocolate, but that doesn�t really have anything to do with this chapter�Think of the lyrics to �No Way Out� from Seto�s POV.

��.

Everywhere I turn, I hurt someone

But there�s nothing I can say to change the things I�ve done

Of all the things I hid from you

I cannot hide the shame

And I pray someone, something will come to take away the pain

��.
Jou and Seto hadn't spoken a word to each other since leaving the hospital, and the fierce glares they exchanged probably would have been more effective communication tools had they been telepaths. The one thing they could agree on, though, was that it was definitely a good thing their hotel room had two double beds. Immediately after their arrival, Jou plopped down in a chair and kicked off his shoes while Seto headed for the bathroom, and a nice hot shower. And still, neither said a word.
When he came out, Jou got up to take his turn. As he went to walk past Seto, the other man grabbed his arm roughly. �Do whatever you want, Jou, since what I think obviously matters very little. Do you like Duelist Kingdom? Why don't you move there?�

His piece said, Seto let his puppy go and stalked out of the hotel room without giving the blonde a chance to respond.
For a moment, Joey just stood there, his heart thudding in his chest and screaming at him to run after Seto, to do everything in his power to make things right between them. His mind, however, was telling a different tale; This won't go away that easily. You might be able to get him to back off for now, but that won't make everything all right in the long run.
Mechanically, Jou forced himself to get ready for bed. That done, he took his bag and went across the hall to his sister�s room.
�Hey, Sis, mind if I bunk with you?� he asked when she opened the door. She�d been crying again, or perhaps she still was.
She nodded and pulled him into a bear hug. �I don�t want to be alone,� she whispered.
�Me neither.� He gave her a grim half-smile, and she looked up from his chest to his face.
�What about Kaiba?�
�Kaiba�s an asshole. You said so yourself.�
They had a good laugh over that before falling asleep to an endless parade of late night infomercials.
��..
Pegasus went with the Wheeler children to the hospital in the morning, missing his shadow greatly. Croquet had apparently determined that Jou was harmless, but that Kaiba definitely needed watching.
They met Maria�s main doctor in his office to discuss her case. Serenity sat in near-total silence, wringing her hands in her lap. Fortunately for all concerned, Maria had a Living Will that permitted the hospital to legally take her off life support if there was no possibility she could survive without the machines. Once the doctor had imparted this tidbit of knowledge, Pegasus and Joey asked a few questions and the four of them went to say their farewells.
It was harder for Jou than he had imagined it would be. He�d never been responsible for ending someone�s life before, and though it would be a mercy for everyone, Maria included, the entire situation wrenched his heart painfully. Pegasus was right; he loved the woman more than he wanted to believe was possible. His unbridled rage at her for leaving him and Jonathan only served to reinforce just how much she meant to him. He�d never completely recovered from what he saw as the ultimate rejection, but he'd always known that, at some point, he was just going to have to let it go. He just hadn't expected that time to arrive so soon.
Serenity had cried herself out the day before, now dealing with the ordeal in a detached manner that Jou himself could identify with all too readily. Though she�d always been closer to Maria than Jonathan, she grieved for both equally, and Joey could only imagine the depth of her pain. His own grief for Jonathan was still so raw and fresh, but he still had his biological father. Serenity was an orphan.
Within an hour, Maria Wheeler was dead, but the work of the living had only begun. The contents of the Wheeler women�s home needed to be sorted and disposed of, funeral arrangements had to be made, and the procedures for Serenity�s adoption had to be set in motion. Both teens clung to Pegasus like a life raft in an unfriendly ocean throughout all of this, and the older man was only too happy to serve as their anchor. It seemed he�d been adopted, and in spite of the tragic circumstances, he was happier than he could remember being since he�d lost Cecelia.
When he'd suggested returning to Duelist Kingdom, both Wheelers had stared at him in heartfelt horror. �Uh�You could just hang out with us," Joey had protested. "It�s the Information Age, you know. You don�t really have to go back to Duelist Kingdom. Unless your lawyer lives there, wouldn�t you have to send for someone anyway?�
At this point, Jou was not above begging the man to stay. He hadn�t talked to Seto since he�d stormed out of their hotel room the night before and he wasn�t sure that what was broken in their relationship was fixable. Even setting Seto aside for the moment, though, there was something to be said for having someone with more experience around to lean on.
�If it means so much to you, Joseph, of course I�ll stay.� Pegasus told him, pretending that he�d actually needed to be convinced.
��

There�s no way out of this dark place

No hope, no future

I know I can�t be free

But I can�t see another way

I can�t face another day
Tell me where did I go wrong

Everyone I loved, they�re all gone

I�d do everything so differently but I can�t turn back the time

There�s no shelter from the storm inside of me
��..

Seto had ended up in the hotel bar the night before. Though he was underage, the barmaid hadn�t been difficult to bribe. A couple of shots of tequila and some blurry vision later, he had been ready to go back to his puppy, but when he had arrived back at the hotel room he had found it unoccupied. It was just as well, though, because by then the room was spinning and all he had wanted was for it to stop. Perhaps tossing back two�or was it three�shots in less than fifteen minutes hadn�t been one of his better ideas. Before he passed out, he had found the floor and willed it to quit moving.
Several hours later, thunderous pounding woke him.
�Go away!!!� He yelled at the would-be intruder and winced at the sharp pain the sound of his own voice set off in his head.
�Big brother, are you okay?� Mokuba called through the door, and Seto groaned.
�It�s too early, Kuba. Go back to bed,� the brunet admonished his brother in a softer tone as he rolled to his side, working his way toward a sitting position. With every movement, no matter how minute, waves of nausea washed over him.
�Seto, it�s eleven o�clock. Jou, Pegasus, and Serenity went to the hospital hours ago.� Mokuba informed him, clearly surprised that his genius brother wasn't even aware of the time.

Jou. Had Jou even come back to their room? Seto wondered, using the nearest bed to pull himself to his feet. As he straightened his back, though, he realized that he might be too tall and bent down over the bed with a barely stifled groan.
�I�I just need a few minutes. Go back to your room, and I'll meet you there,� Seto finally responded. That, another shower, and a pot of coffee, he added to himself.
�If you don�t show up in ten minutes, I�ll be back,� Mokuba warned, sighing to himself as he walked away. Things were so definitely not okay.

��..

Eight minutes later, the determined pounding on the hotel room door renewed itself.
�What do you want?!� Seto snarled, stalking over to the door in nothing but his boxers and throwing it open, only to come face to face with Jou.
�Uh�I forgot my key. I talked to Mokuba. He�s worried about you." Jou picked his keycard up from the table. He fidgeted with it for a moment before sliding it into the back pocket of his jeans. His throat was suddenly dry, and Joey swallowed heavily before continuing. "I just thought you should know that Maria died. Pegasus is going to stay in the States with us and help us take care of what needs to be done, so I guess that means you and Mokuba can go back to Domino if you want. Father will send someone to clean out my apartment.� Joey explained quietly.
�Father?� Seto choked out. �So that�s it. You�re leaving me.�
Before either man knew what was going on, Jou roundhouse punched Seto in the face. Seemingly on auto-pilot, he stepped into the room and shut the door while Seto lay sprawled out on the floor, trying not to black out from the horrible pain reverberating throughout his head.
�When you were sober, you told me to leave. Now that you're hung over, you want me to stay?" Jou sat down on the side of the bed, buried his face in his hands, and finally broke down. "Excuse me, but the only mother I ever knew just died, and I can�t handle your bullshit right now!�
Seto crawled over to his sobbing lover and rested his head on Jou�s knee, stroking the blond's leg slowly, allowing the repetitive gesture to bring him back to reality. �I�m such an asshole.�
Jou snickered and sniffled. �Yeah, that�s the general consensus around here.� He reached for the box of tissues on the nightstand between the two beds, wiping away his tears roughly.
�I will never be able to accept Pegasus, Jou.� Seto told him frankly, some of his former strength and stubbornness having returned with his lover.
�I know,� Joey admitted softly, �but Seto, he seems so different now. Maybe it was the Millennium Eye that made him do those terrible things.�
�Yeah. Right, Jou,� Seto scoffed, ever the skeptic.
A heavy silence followed, Joey stroking his boyfriend's hair absently and Seto content to simply bask in his touch. �Where does that leave us?� Joey finally asked, shattering the pretty illusion.
�I�m not willing to share you with him.� Seto told him flatly, and Jou nodded. He had expected nothing more or less.
�You really need to quit seeing everyone as a rival, Seto. I�m not asking you to accept him as your father, but I was hoping you could learn to tolerate him for my sake.�
�What do you think I�ve been doing, Jou?� Seto demanded. �This is why I wanted to know what you were going to do about Pegasus; I didn�t want to get involved with you if he was going to be a part of your life. I wanted to believe it would be all right, but it obviously isn�t. How can you build a case of temporary insanity for him just because he had a gold eyeball stuck into an empty socket? After everything he�s done, Jou� he plays with people�s souls just to amuse himself, and you're prepared to choose him over me!�
�You won�t even give him a chance, Seto!" Joey's pain was quickly being filtered into rage. "Is this an ultimatum? You or him? I�m sick and tired of having to defend everyone in my life to you!� His blind fury bolstering his strength, Joey shoved Seto back onto one of the beds
Seto�s anger overcame his hangover then, and he sprang at the blonde, forcing him down onto the other bed. His eyes blazed with blue-white fury as his long fingers wrapped around Jou�s throat. He wanted to squeeze the life out of the pedigreed mutt, wanted to look into those honey brown eyes and watch him struggle as his life was snuffed out. In that moment, Seto hated Joey with every fiber of his being, hated the blonde for making him weak, for making him feel, for being the son of his worst enemy. If his alcohol-fogged brain had been functioning properly, he would have realized his rage at Jou was badly misplaced, but in his current state of awareness it was all perfectly logical and justified in his eyes.
Jou clawed at the powerful hands at first, fighting the onrushing waves of dizziness, but eventually quit resisting. He wasn�t about to be forced into choosing between his father and his lover; he would rather be dead than face losing another person that he loved.
Surprise shattered the haze of anger permeating Seto's thoughts when Jou went limp, and the brunette's knees buckled under him as his hands relaxed spasmodically. His azure eyes now soft with regret, he watched his puppy sit up, gingerly touching his throat.
�I don�t want to lose you, Pup.� he said in a low tone of voice.
�You just tried to kill me!� Jou tried to shout, but what came out instead was a hoarse whisper, made vicious by his ire. �You think Pegasus is insane? You ought to look in the mirror sometime." The look of pain that crossed Seto's face as he spoke these words didn't escape him, but Jou was beyond caring about his would-be murderer's feelings. "You�re trying to force me to give up the only blood relation I have left, and you don't even realize that it�s not just about me anymore. I have to think about what�s best for Serenity too, just like you do with Mokuba, but you're too possessive and pigheaded to see that!�
�You don�t know what you�re doing, Jou.� Seto growled back, but Joey refused to hear him.
�Get your brother and go home,� the blonde murmured as he swept past his lover on the way to the door.
Seto stayed where he was once Jou was gone, not even daring to breathe for the knowledge that when the numbing shock wore off, his emotions would kick in. He could not allow himself to be governed by his heart as he had for the last week. Fervently, he tried to convince himself that all he felt for Jou was wanton, carnal lust, that he couldn't allow himself to let down barriers it had taken a lifetime to create for something so unimportant and inconsequential.
Uncharacteristically, Seto Kaiba failed miserably.
He started to go to retrieve his puppy, but his stomach chose this oh-so-convenient moment to protest against its acidic contents. He only just made it to the bathroom in time, but his heart sang a moment later when he heard someone enter the room. Jou has the only other key card. It has to be him. With a huge effort, the dragon master pulled himself to his feet, clinging to the bathroom sink for support. Hoping against hope that his beautiful golden lover wanted to work their difficulties out.
�Big brother? You look terrible��
�Kuba�� Seto�s heart sank as his little brother entered the bathroom, and his knees buckled, nearly sending him back to the tiled floor. His eyes found their reflections in the mirror above his support, and as disgusted as Seto was with his current appearance, which was more appropriate on a drunken slob than the CEO of Kaiba Corp, he had an awful feeling that, if Joey left for good, he'd be seeing a lot worse.
�Are we going back to Domino?� Mokuba asked softly, dragging him out of the darkness of his own contemplations for a moment. The younger Kaiba had been in his and Tristan's room when the others had returned from the hospital, and he had heard close to everything that had gone on in the next room.
Once it was over, Joey had gone to see him with very obvious red finger marks on his neck, already darkening to an even more obvious purple. Silently, he had handed Mokuba the key card to Seto�s room, pausing on his way out to suggest that the younger boy find out what his brother�s plans were. That had left him feeling confused and uncertain, to say the least. Now, he stood in his brother�s room waiting for Seto�s answer, and those feelings paled in comparison to what was lancing through him right then.
�No.� Seto told Mokuba�s reflection, sighing disconsolately. �Would you go get Jou, please?�
�Sure.� Mokuba sprinted off to carry out his mission, eager for the chance to help and hoping that things weren�t as bleak as they seemed.
��
Tristan knocked on Serenity�s door. He had come to the conclusion that Joey and Mokuba had more guts than brains, especially when it came to dealing with Seto Kaiba. He hated that it probably wouldn�t be long before he�d be patching the torn pieces of his friend�s heart back together again. Why couldn�t Jou find a nice guy to settle down with? Someone like, say, Ryou Bakura?
�Hi.� Serenity answered the door emotionlessly.
�Feel like some company, Sweetness?� He asked with a hint of a smile that he hoped would come across as comforting.
She waved him in, as though his presence made no difference to her.

�Joey went to talk to Kaiba. I can�t understand why he tries to be friends with that jerk,� she confided to Tristan. �He�s cold and mean and acts like he owns the world. Besides, all they do is bicker and argue.�
These few words apparently sapped most of her remaining strength, and she sank down on the hotel bed, crying softly. As Tristan put his arms around her, rocking her gently, he came to the awful realization that Jou was keeping certain important details of his life from his little sister. She had no way of knowing that her brother�s relationship with Kaiba went far beyond than the commonly accepted definition of friendship, and to Tristan that seemed incredibly wrong.
Serenity drew back enough to look up into his face, and her tone made her resentment of Kaiba crystalline. �I know Joey works for Kaiba; that was part of the custody agreement, but do they really have to hang out together too?�
Tristan sincerely hoped that the question was rhetorical. It was Joey�s place to explain his love life to his sister, not his. Even so, though, Tristan wouldn't lie about anything to his girlfriend, who had been through so much already, were he questioned directly.
Serenity sensed the growing tension in her boyfriend's limbs, and her brow furrowed in confusion. �Tristan, what�s wrong? What aren�t you telling me?�
�Sweetness�you really need to ask Joey why he spends so much time with Kaiba. I�m not too fond of him myself.� That was the best he would do for his friend, and Tristan prayed it would be enough.
To his relief, she sighed and relaxed in his embrace, and they lapsed into a comfortable silence. Despite the outward calm, though, Serenity�s mind was traveling to painful places she didn�t want to explore. She didn�t want to think about facing the house that she had shared with Maria for so much of her life when, a little over a day ago, she had had no idea she would be thinking of her life with her mother in the past tense. She wracked her brain for a subject to talk about that had no bearing on her current state of affairs and brightened as she hit on a topic.
�Do you think Joey will ever work up the courage to ask Mai out? They would make such a cute couple. Tea told me that Mai�s had a crush on my big brother ever since they met at Duelist Kingdom.�
Tristan was stunned at the sudden switch, to say the very least, and his mind raced as he tried to figure out some way of keeping his best buddy's secret without lying to Serenity. His first instinct was to run for the hall and scream Joey�s name at the top of his lungs until the blonde showed up, then shove him into his sister�s room until he squared things away with her. He would have done it too, if not for the knowledge that Joey was trying to square things away with Seto at the moment. Any way he looked at it, the timing was just really bad.
�Tristan? What is it? Did I say something wrong?� Serenity asked with a puzzled frown.
�Of course not, Sweetness. It�s just that you should take this up with your brother.�
�I need to ask him about Mai and Kaiba? Are Mai and Kaiba dating?� Something didn�t add up to the petite auburn-haired girl, and she wasn�t about to let it drop until she found out just what it was.
Tristan groaned. He�d been cornered, and there was nothing he hated more. �Sweetness, Mai doesn�t even figure into the picture. Joey likes her, but to him she�s just a good friend. He�s not romantically attracted to her.�
Serenity nodded, accepting this explanation until an image of the stunningly beautiful Amazon blonde drifted into her mind. How could her brother not be attracted to Mai? Any red-blooded male on the planet would agree that she was hot.
�But she�s so pretty and she likes him and��
The disappointment in Serenity�s voice broke Tristan�s resolve. Why me? he thought despairingly, trying to make himself believe that maybe it would be easier for both her and Jou if he was the one to break the news to his girlfriend. He remembered how he and Jou had treated her like a porcelain doll at the hospital without making any headway, and that it was only once Joey had laid everything on the line for her that she had accepted it.

Besides, she was a New York City girl, for crying out loud. She should be able to take it straight.
�Joey is gay and Kaiba is his boyfriend.� Tristan stated simply, bracing himself for the coming storm.
The blood drained from her face and her eyes went huge with horror. Too late, Tristan realized he�d made a terrible mistake. Even under the best of circumstances, she might not have accepted Joey�s homosexuality as easily as she had the news that he had been adopted, and these were anything but the best of circumstances.
�No�he�you�re wrong�you�re lying!� she cried, pushing him away. He tried to get a hold of her again, to get her to calm down, but she slapped and clawed at him, struggling to break free. �Is this your idea of a joke, Tristan Taylor?! I hate you! I hate all of you! I don�t ever want to see any of you again!�

One more hard push and Tristan ended up on the floor while Serenity sprinted for the door. She was gone before Tristan even got to his knees. Futilely, he pounded his fists into the plush carpeting. He had to go after her; in her present state of mind, who knew what she might do or where she might go�but first, he had to confess his sins to his best buddy, and hopefully get some reinforcements in the process.
��
Croquet answered the door of Pegasus� suite to a tearstained and bruised blonde. The older man seemed strangely underdressed to Jou without his sunglasses; the teenager wasn't used to the piercing grey stare, captivating though it was. That same gaze turned dangerous quickly enough, though, when Croquet got a look at the finger imprints on Jou�s neck. Visibly tense, he stepped back so his master�s son could enter the chamber.
It dawned on Jou quite suddenly that Croquet�s protectiveness of Pegasus would naturally extend to the members of his family, but that knowledge was chilling rather than comforting. He covered his throat with his hands unconsciously, attempting to conceal the tell-tale marks of his near strangulation out of fear for Seto. Pegasus, gentle and refined as he was, could be a ruthless and dangerous man when provoked.
Joey sank down into the chair across from his father, who was reading the newspaper. Pegasus barely glanced at Jou as he cocked his eyebrow nonchalantly, �That went well, I see.�
The silver-haired man folded the paper and casually laid it aside as Croquet removed the wine bottle from the ice bucket, gathered up the plastic liner, drained off the water, and deftly wrapped the makeshift ice pack in a linen napkin. Wordlessly, he offered it to Jou, who was watching the entire display with fascination. He had never really given Croquet a second thought until right then.
�It will help with the discoloration and swelling.� Croquet explained when Joey continued to stare at him as though he had never seen him before.
In a way, Joey hadn�t. He suddenly realized that Croquet wasn�t Pegasus� bodyguard, head of security, or manservant. Croquet was his father�s guardian angel, his friend and his family, and this sudden knowledge made Jou smile impishly.
�Thanks, Uncle Chris,� he grinned.
The look of shock and bewilderment that transformed the stern man�s face for a moment was almost frightening. It seemed that Croquet wasn�t a tin soldier in a charcoal suit after all. Finally, the older man gave a long-suffering sigh.
�Sir, wasn�t it enough for you to torture me? Did you find it necessary that I should suffer your son�s antics also?� Eager to get away from the two kindred, playful spirits, he shook his head and went to find some task that needed doing.
�Well done, Joseph.� Pegasus congratulated the blonde with a chuckle.
Jou's sense of humour had left with Croquet, though. The infinite void in his chest where his heart had been made him wish Seto had just finished him off. How was he supposed to continue living when he felt like this, when every breath seared through his chest with the pain of a thousand flaming brands?
Pegasus frowned as he watched his son�s composure crumble. �Hmm�Joseph, I am less than impressed with Kaiba-boy�s recent actions.�
�You think I should just give up on him?� Jou demanded defensively. He wondered if Seto had been right, that Pegasus would take every opportunity he could find to drive a wedge between them.
�Yes. For the time being, at least. Seto has tasted defeat before, and it is not his favorite flavour by any means. Give him a chance to comprehend what he has lost, and perhaps he will gain a greater appreciation of you.� Pegasus advised gently.
�Uh�like how long?� Jou asked, his fingernails digging into the armrests of his chair as he glanced around the room for a clock.
��.
Tristan and Mokuba found themselves at Pegasus� suite at the same time, both of them needing an audience with Joey immediately.
Tristan rapped on the door three times, but before he could go for four, the door was flung open wide by a hopeful looking blonde with a battered neck. Jou�s face fell in disappointment when neither of the boys in the hall turned out to be the one he wanted to see.
�Jou, I don�t know how to tell you this�� Tristan began.
�Joey, Seto asked me to come get you. He wants to talk to you.� Mokuba cut the tall brunette off.
�Hold on, Squirt. I need to talk to Joey!� Tristan shot back.
Joey looked from one to the other. This was a definite case of supply not meeting demand, and his heart nearly overrode whatever common sense he had left. All he heard was �Seto� and the desire to bolt off in whatever direction Mokuba wanted to take him seized his entire being.
�Tris, can it wait? I really need to talk to Seto too�� Joey pleaded with his best friend.
Tristan�s eyes turned obsidian with anger. �Fine, then. I�ll keep it short and simple for you, Jou. Serenity split. Now run off and go play with your boyfriend!�
�What do you mean Serenity split?!!!� Joey yelled.
�Yeah, I thought that might get your attention.� Tristan�s shoulders slumped, his rage already fizzling out. �Can I talk to you alone for a minute?�
Joey nodded, and they headed to Tristan�s room, leaving Mokuba to wonder just how badly Seto was going to react to this new development. When he got back to Seto�s room, though, he found his brother passed out and snoring on one of the beds. Having narrowly averted a close encounter with the dragon master, Mokuba contented himself with the remote control and the TV.
��.
�You what?!� Joey screamed at Tristan so loudly that, in the next room. Mokuba jumped.
�Joey, the important thing now is that we find her. You can kill me later,� Tristan promised.
�I don't even have any idea where to start looking for her! This is New York City, not Domino! How could you just let her leave like that?�
�I didn�t �just let her leave�. Do you really think I�d let her out of my sight for a second if I could help it?�
Joey�s scowl deepened as he thought about it.

�No. We�ve got to find her. Now.� Before this pronouncement had even registered in Tristan's guilt-fogged brain, Jou charged back to his father�s suite.
Upon hearing of the latest complication, Croquet smoothly removed his sunglasses from the breast pocket of his suit. Thus armed and prepared for action, he awaited his master�s command. Though he'd been pretty idle for the past two days, this was a situation that his abilities were well tailored to.
Pegasus simply nodded, giving his head of security full consent to take whatever steps were necessary to find the confused young girl. That done, he turned to Jou with a thin, rueful smile. �Your Uncle Chris will help you find Serenity, Joseph.�
�U-Uncle C-Chris?!� Tristan stammered.
Jou ignored him in favor of Croquet. �What do we do?�
�Call her house. It�s unlikely she will have had time to arrive home yet, but it is probable that she will go there first. Does she have anyone she would go to-a friend, neighbor, or a relative?�
Jou shook his head. �I don�t know.�
�We will go to the house ourselves then, Joseph, as we originally planned. If she isn�t there, a quick investigation should turn up some indication of where she would go.� Croquet took great pride in having been able to give Jou a basic rundown of detective technique that his master's son seemed to understand. Perhaps the boy was only hopeless when it came to close personal relationships.
�Okay.� Jou nodded. �Let�s do it.�
He fumbled with the cell phone Croquet handed him until he managed to get Serenity�s phone number punched in, and six rings later, the answering machine picked up. �Serenity�Sis�if you get this, please stay put until I can get there. I�m sorry. I�ll see ya soon.� He disconnected, feeling like he�d been destroyed from the inside out.
��
Mokuba watched The Weather Channel for two minutes, the Home Shopping Network for three, the History Channel for four and a half, and stayed almost interested in a documentary on cloning on the Discovery Channel for seven minutes. Tired of channel surfing and his brother�s snoring, which sounded like an inordinately loud freight train, he decided that Tristan and Pegasus had monopolized Joey long enough. He returned to the silver-haired man's suite, surprised when Pegasus himself opened the door.
�Hey, where is everybody?� Mokuba asked, peering past Pegasus into the empty suite.
�Mokuba, how charming. I was becoming bored.� Pegasus invited the younger Kaiba in with a wave of his hand. �Croquet spent the morning arranging for a few of my favorite foods and beverages to be delivered. Would you care to join me? I do so tire of dining alone.�
�Where�s Joey?� Mokuba demanded.
�Tristan�hmmm�informed Serenity of Seto and Joseph�s�uh�merger. It seems she did not approve and left rather abruptly. I chose to stay behind in case the young lady returned while the others are attempting to locate her.� Pegasus explained.
Mokuba was crestfallen. Seto had been apprehensive about Pegasus� interference in his relationship with Joey, but it was Serenity that he should have worried about. Mokuba didn�t doubt for an instant that if she wanted Joey to leave Seto, he would, especially now that Maria was gone.
Pegasus patted Mokuba on the shoulder, and he looked up into the single amber-brown eye with tears in his own. Pegasus understood the boy�s fears all too well, and as such attempted to console him.
�She�s frightened and bewildered, Mokuba. Her mother and her brother have been her anchors in this world and suddenly, she feels as though she has been cut off from both of them. She believes she is alone, lost on a stormy sea.� Pegasus felt slightly lightheaded, and his eye closed as his mind reached out for Serenity's. He could sense her, yet he was unable to locate her physical position. Mokuba stared at him in bewilderment as he came back to himself. �Joseph will find her and I am certain she will discover that he is still there to be her anchor. She�ll accept it, Mokuba. Serenity loves Joseph as much as you love your own big brother. Speaking of whom, what is dear Kaiba-boy up to?�
Mokuba felt reassured, and a smile spread across his face. If Serenity loved Joey half as much as he loved Seto, she would want her big brother to be happy, regardless of what that meant. �Seto�s sleeping. I think he got drunk last night.�
"I see," Pegasus replied, unable to suppress a grin of his own at the thought of the iron-willed Seto Kaiba doing something as frivolous as getting drunk. �Well then, if you have no pressing engagements to attend to, would you do me the honor of keeping me company, young Master Kaiba?� Pegasus was all charm and formality, and Mokuba couldn�t help but grin. Aristocratic and old-fashioned, Pegasus belonged in a different century, but he seemed determined to make do with the one he found himself in.
�Sure. I�m starving!� he accepted enthusiastically.
Five minutes later, Pegasus had laid out a banquet before the young boy. Caviar, sushi, exotic cheeses, tropical fruits, croissants, chocolate truffles, and even a fourth of a goblet of sweet white wine rested on the table before Mokuba's bulging eyes, and Pegasus winked conspiratorially. �I won�t tell Seto if you won�t."
Mokuba giggled, shyly sipping the wine. He found that he liked it and thought how angry Seto would be if he knew Pegasus was corrupting him.
�Pegasus, would you teach me some dueling techniques?" Mokuba asked suddenly. "I know the basics, but Seto�s never taken the time to really teach me.�
Pegasus� half-raised wine glass froze in mid-air as he contemplated Mokuba�s request.
�I really need some help with building a strong deck. How do you know what cards to use? There�s so many of them,� Mokuba continued. He couldn�t understand why Pegasus was so shocked by the request. After all, Pegasus had invented the game and taught it to Seto, who had earned the title of World Champion.
�Do�do you have a deck of your own, Mokuba?� Pegasus managed to get out once his heart started beating again. Though he was honoured that Mokuba thought enough of him to want to learn from him, he knew that if Kaiba ever found out about it he would believe that Pegasus was scheming to use Mokuba as leverage in some twisted plot. True, he had set a precedent for Kaiba�s fear, but that was so last year.
He couldn�t say that he feared Kaiba would take his life. No, Pegasus was far more concerned about the clever little gears spinning between Kaiba�s ears. There were certainly worse things than death; living, for instance, when all that you loved was forever beyond your reach, no matter how long your grasp might be.
�No. I�ve got a few cards at home, but they�re not really a deck.� Mokuba replied.
�Hmm�� Pegasus got the hotel edition of the Yellow Pages out and let his fingers do the walking. He contacted the best gaming shop in the city and sweet talked the manager into delivering the store�s entire stock of Duel Monster cards to his suite. Once he convinced the manager he was the Maximillion Pegasus, he had her wrapped around his little finger. As if the world needed more than one Maximillion Pegasus, he chuckled to himself.
An hour later, he and Mokuba sat in the middle of the floor with several dozen empty foil wrappers and innumerable cards strewn about in a deep discussion on the strategies of building the perfect deck when they were interrupted by a loud knock at the door that could belong to no other but Seto Kaiba. To Pegasus, this was something akin to being caught with your hand in the cookie jar.
�I�ll get it.� Mokuba offered, getting to his feet.
��.
Jou, Tristan, and Croquet took a taxi to the Wheeler women�s house, but the unbelievably long drive was making Joey jumpy and fidgety. He wasn�t worried that Serenity would hurt herself, but he was afraid that, in her unstable and vulnerable condition, someone might hurt her. He kept his fingers crossed and prayed that she had just gone straight home.
Tristan tried to ignore Joey�s squirming while berating himself for letting Serenity slip away, and a frigid silence between he and his best friend was the result. Tristan would have liked to have gone into more detail about what had led up to Serenity�s flight, but he wasn�t comfortable saying anything more than he had already in front of Croquet.
Joey was also getting on Croquet�s nerves. He had no animosity toward children, but the blonde was wiggling as much as a five year old that needed to use the bathroom. Croquet had elevated maintaining motionlessness to an art form, and he used their non-constructive downtime to mentally assess the options for finding Serenity had she not returned to her residence. He figured that was probably safer than whapping his boss�s son upside the head in the overcrowded backseat of the taxi. After all, who knew what horrible, inhuman punishment Max would come up for him next?
Finally, they reached their destination. Serenity�s home was a small, two-story, middle class house, painted a vibrant shade of yellow. Croquet asked the taxi driver to wait while Joey approached the house, but as Jou tentatively reached out to ring the bell, a large black woman came to the door.

�May I help you, young man?� she asked, clearly annoyed by the intrusion.
�Uh�we were looking for Serenity Wheeler�s house.� Joey explained, certain that they were at the wrong place.
�This is it. I�m the landlady, Sadie Stone. And you are?� she prompted.
�I�m Joey Wheeler, Serenity's brother,� he introduced himself.
�I didn�t know Maria had a son,� she said testily, shifting so that her more than ample frame blocked the doorway totally.
Joey sighed. Somehow he wasn�t surprised that Maria had never talked about him. �Is Serenity here?�
�Yes. I�ll see if she wants to talk to you.� Sadie Stone retreated after locking the front door.
In spite of the cold shoulder Joey had gotten from her, he felt deeply relieved. He turned back to where Tristan and Croquet were waiting by the taxi and gave them a grim thumbs up. He wasn�t out of the woods yet, but at least they had found his sister.
A few minutes later, the landlady returned and dramatically put her hands on her hips. �She�ll talk to you, Joey Wheeler, but I don�t know what kind of young man would allow his sweet, innocent baby sister to wander the streets on the very day her mother passed on.�

Her need to express a motherly reprimand satisfied, she looked to Joey�s companions and waved them over. Sadie let Jou and Tristan in on the front porch but stared at Croquet as though he had escaped from the set of Men in Black III and could at any moment turn into a two-headed, green-spotted extraterrestrial.
�Who are you?� she asked bluntly.
Croquet was at a loss to explain himself. Used to being Pegasus� shadow, he was comfortable with anonymity and, for the most part, passing through life without being noticed. He had no reason to lie, but it would also be difficult to explain the complexities of the truth, so, as was his habit, he said nothing.
Jou stepped in for him without hesitation, �This is my friend Tristan and my Uncle Chris.� He shrugged at Croquet whose eyebrows were crawling into his hairline.
�Is that so?" The landlady gave Croquet one final glare before turning back to Jou. "Your sister is upstairs, in the room on the left." Leaving Joey to his own devices, she gestured to the other two men, finally relenting. "I�ll get you two some refreshments. Come on.�
Jou bounded up the stairs two at a time. The door on the left was open, and he strode in cautiously. His sister�s bedroom was nice; a built-in bookcase framed a window seat that was occupied by stuffed animals and dolls. Instead of books, the bookcase held books on tape, a painful reminder to Jou that, as the light and color had faded from Serenity�s world, she must have turned to sound for comfort. He was saddened that he had not been around to face the darkness with her. She must have felt so alone.

At first, he didn�t see her in the small bedroom, but then he realized that she was on the floor with her back to the bed on the far side of the room. For lack of a better idea, he went and sank down beside her.
�Why didn�t you tell me, Joey? Not about you and Kaiba, but�but that you like guys that way? You could have told me anytime. Anytime would have been better than today!� Her face was angry, red, and streaked with tears. She had yet to look at him. �Mom should never have left you with Dad. He didn�t raise you right! Don�t you know same sex relationships are wrong?!�
Serenity wasn�t the only one who was angry now. Joey stood and pulled her up none too gently by the shoulders, pressing her back into the wall. His own tears blazed hot trails down his cheeks. Maybe she would always despise him for what he was, but he wasn�t going to tolerate her putting down her father. It was too easy for her to lay blame on the dead for the faults of the living.
�Look at me, Serenity! Look at me!� he demanded harshly. �Dad was a good man, a good father! He did his best. Maybe that wasn�t good enough for you and Mom, but it was good enough for me! So what? I�m gay. I always have been and there isn�t anything I can do to change that. It�s just the way it is. I�m still the same person I was a few hours ago when you were afraid I�d go back to Domino without you! You can accept it or hate me for it, but don�t you ever blame our dad! I never intended it to be a secret! The subject just never came up!�
Serenity was definitely looking at him now, or more specifically at his neck.
�Did Kaiba do that?� she asked, pointing a shaky finger at Joey�s neck.
All of Jou�s energy left him then. He was so tired. Life was an uphill battle, and his hill seemed to be steeper than most.
�He didn�t know what he was doing.� Joey defended his lover softly.
�So not only are you gay, you�re also in an abusive relationship with a rich grade A jerk?!� she sniffed.
�Please don�t, Sis.� Jou sank down on her bed. �Look, I had to make a choice between trying to save my relationship with him and coming after you. As you can see, I chose you, even though I love you both. Seto isn�t an easy guy to figure out. He hates Pegasus, and he has every right to. He�s being torn apart inside as much as any of us are. I love him, Sis, but you still come first.�
He sobbed when he was done, telling himself that it was better this way. Seto couldn�t meet Pegasus on neutral ground, and they could probably never get their flawed relationship to work anyway. Everything in him screamed against this theory, however, and for the briefest moment he wanted to run back to Seto�s arms, regardless of the cost.
Serenity sat beside him and wrapped her arms around her brother�s muscular body, simply holding him.
�I�m sorry, big brother. We�ve got to stick together. I guess�I guess I�ll just have to adjust. Can you forgive me?� she whispered meekly.
He smiled weakly at her. �I�d forgive you anything, Serenity. Just don�t scare me like that again.�
�I promise, Joey.� she paused and looked at her watch. �Sadie was going to take me to the funeral home and help me make arrangements for Mom�s funeral. I sort of lost it, didn�t I?�
�Yeah. Sadie is about as protective as a mother grizzly bear,� Joey smiled grimly.
Serenity giggled. �Actually, she reminds me a little of you in that respect." As her giggles subsided, her face dropped back into a serious expression. "Will you go to the funeral home with me? Then we can go back to the hotel, and you and Kaiba can work things out.�
�No. It�s too late for that. I�m sure he�s on his way back to Domino.� Resignedly, Jou shook his head, hoping to shake off his despair as well. �For now, at least, we�ve got things to do. Let�s get to them.�
��
A/N: I�m aware that this leaves off in a really bad place. Sorry about that. This is only half of the songfic and half of the actual chapter. I had to split it in two because it�s just too long. Chapter 31 is the rest of Chapter 30. I hope to post them fairly close together.
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- 31
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I Know You're Out There Somewhere