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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
- 8
- 9
- 10
Title: Lost And Found – Episode 7 - Synchronicity

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 body.

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 seventh episode in the ongoing 'Lost and Found' saga.

WARNING: FANSERVICE EPISODE! You wanted Seto/Jou action... Well in the tradition of most wonderful television shows, I gave you what you wanted but don't complain at me if it doesn't last. *smirks*

Rating: M for Mature just to be safe.

Size: 16 pages and 8129 words.

***

Seto knocked briefly and tried the knob to Jou's door. He was surprised to find it locked. "Ai, it's time for us to go."

"I unlocked it after Miyahara-san went to sleep. I thought you would pay him a visit." The computer informed cooly.

"So he locked it. I wonder why." Seto frowned "Unlock it. I need to wake him up. We..."

"Seto, he didn't lock it. In fact, he..." There was a slight pause. "He disappeared from his room at midnight last night."

"Disappeared? You mean left?"

"No, Kaiba-sama, I mean disappeared, exactly like he did one other time except he hasn't come back. Kisara and Seth are seated just inside the door and have been since he vanished."

"You didn't inform me?" Seto asked mildly.

"You needed rest. There was nothing you could do and the last time this happened, you lost consciousness and your breathing and respiration dropped dangerously. None of that happened last night, but I was concerned..."

"Ai, as proud of your growth as I am, I will not have you controlling me. Have you forgotten who I am? What I can do with a word?" The tone was still mild, but contained a hard note that was impossible to miss.

"I forget nothing, as you know Kaiba-sama." Ai's voice was flat and metallic, the perfect computer voice.

"Very good. Remember you are a tool, nothing more. When a tool is broken I replace it." The mildness was completely gone and only flinty coldness remained. "Unlock the door."

Seto wrinkled his nose, an automatic response to the smells inside the room. "Purification." He assessed his friends. "But not from you."

A step behind him made him turn in hopes that Jounouchi had reappeared. Tatsu was making a disgusted face in the doorway. "Is Jou sick? It smells like he vomited and... was sick in here."

"Such delicacy from a police officer. Waste and vomit all mixed together. Charming smell isn't it? Katsuya is showering in my suite. He soiled the bathroom in here as well." Seto lied without batting an eyelash. The man was too much of an unknown to entrust this kind of information to.

"Oh that's why he..." Tatsu broke off and coughed. "I'm going to..."

"Leave him alone. He's been sick all night and is finally relaxing. He won't answer you now any more than he did when you knocked last night. He prefers to be alone when he's sick." Seto turned the knife and bought some time to figure out what is going on. "I'll clean up in here. You get ready for the day. Ai will make sure you get to your car. The GPS coordinates for the people you are going to interview will probably be loaded."

"Of course they will be, and in fact already are." Ai's voice, once again a smooth feminine alto, interrupted. "A breakfast stop has been scheduled and programmed into the GPS. You are dressed, so hit the road." Ai's voice took on a slightly condescending tone. "I assume you won't need help with what questions to ask?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I am a police officer. I assure you I..." Tatsu's voice faded as Ai's voice led him away from Katsuya's room.

Seto eyed the mess on the bed and shook his head. No way was he cleaning that up. He considered leaving it for Ueda but decided his maid should not be stuck cleaning up purification waste either. He would wrap the ruined bed clothes in a plastic bag and toss it down the chute to the incinerator. With a sigh, he turned to the cats. "You know what happened?"

Kisara slowly moved her bald head from side to side, Seth tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. "I see. His Highness and His Majesty are not behind this then." He frowned. "If they aren't why the purification? And why Jounouchi?" To give himself a break he went to the kitchen to get a trash can liner.

No answer forthcoming from the cats. Thankfully, the foul mess was contained to where Jou had been laying and had not leaked over onto the carpet. Frowning, Seto studied the almost neat piles of gross stuff. It was more disturbing than he'd originally thought. Shouldn't the... waste have smeared or spread or something? It was all piled almost neatly in heaps that looked strangely contained. With a grimace, he folded the bedclothes, to include sheets and pillows around the stinking mess and stuffed the whole thing into a giant plastic bag he'd retrieved from the kitchen.

Also, even though it was an obvious purification, Seto couldn't find a single trace of the herbs that he was force to use when he went through the process. The herbs should have been in a brazier and mixed in with the mess of undigested food on the bed. Just what was going on? How had purification happened without the herbs? He sent the plastic bag down to the incinerator, took a quick shower, dressed in a comfortable white robe, then returned to his home office. "Show me... Wait, is Miyahara gone?"

"Yes, he left the building ten minutes ago. Display loading now."

Seto was gratified to find that not only did the screen display Jounouchi but himself, the cats and Tatsu on screen. Tatsu was sound asleep on his bed. Seto was in the middle of the nightly ritual required to maintain his status as priest, and Kisara and Seth were in their bed grooming each other. Everything was perfectly normal until Jounouchi suddenly curled into a fetal position and began to glow with golden light banded with unearthly green. The green separated and streaked away. In that instant, while Seto was lighting the ritual flame, the green light from Jou surrounded him, coating his skin and before sinking into his core. Seto saw his blue-green eyes turn completely green for an instant before they returned to their normal state. "What the hell?"

"Jounouchi left something, gave you something, when he left." Ai proposed.

"That wasn't Jounouchi. His energy is golden. That was the energy formed when our Ka's merged the first time." His breath caught when a pure golden shell appeared around the curled figure on the bed, then in a flash of silver light, vanished, only the remains of the food Katsuya had ingested and the clothes he'd worn left behind.

"The pyramid is empty. I find no trace of him anywhere. I've been running an exhaustive search through all satellite systems I can access. There is no sign."

"He's not in this dimension. I don't know where he is, because I've never seen anything like the thing that wrapped around him. It was like an eggshell, but clear golden. The closest I've ever seen is when something is preserved in amber." Seto glared "Purification was required but achieved without purging."

"Is there any being you can contact, in either dimension, that will know more?" Ai probed. She didn't have near enough information to form a reasonable hypothesis about anything that had happened.

Seto nodded shortly. "It is not a debt I want to incur. I will give him until midnight tonight, if he has not returned by that time I will contact Yugi and Atem. If they don't know anything, I'll... I'll reopen the oracle conduit to Wadjet." He turned to look at the cats. "In the meantime, Kisara, Seth, you will join me at the altar. I will speak to you in your other forms." When the cats turned and left, Seto looked at the stripped bed. "Order new linens and blankets, something soft and silky in a warm color, yellow, orange, gold or red. The one thing I know about where he's gone is that he will return cold. Also order an electric blanket and have it put on the bed. Have Wataru prepare a hot soup that can be served on a moment's notice." He didn't wait for a response, just spun and walked away. A tool didn't have feelings or require manners. It had been amusing treating the program as human, it ceased to be amusing when it jeopardized his loved ones. With this latest example of poor decision, making Ai was one mistake away from Seto activating the failsafe that would roll her programming back to whatever date Seto chose.

The two cats had taken up their guardian positions on either side of his altar. Seto crossed to kneel in front of the altar, reaching for the athame resting in the open maw of ancient cat shaped deity. The fire that always burned in the brazier leapt higher, sizzling and hissing as he drew the blade across his palm and droplets fed the flame. "What do you know?" Seto asked the woman Kisara kneeling next to him.

"There was a surge of energy, something I've only felt once before, when the child who was to bear the Ka of his Highness and his Majesty was brought to dwell in the house of his Majesty." Kisara whispered softly. "It does not come from our Pharaoh or his Highness, but rather a divine source far above them."

"What source?" Seto demanded, but the woman lowered her bald head.

"Well?" He turned to look at his doppelganger, Seth. "Do you know?"

"I do not. His Highness and His Majesty were baffled when the messenger brought the child to them. It continues to be a source of puzzlement. His highness looks on it as a kindness, allowing him a closeness to his friend. His Majesty knows their situation clearly and knows it is no kindness. He is wary and more determined than ever to find the Ka of my Ba."

A smirk curved Seto's lips. "Yes I know. Do you know why? Have you been able to remember anything?"

Seth's blue eyes narrowed, and a hard glint appeared. "If I had, I would have told you. I find this existence as intolerable as you do. My memories were sealed when I died to stop him." He snarled.

"I know." A rare gleam of compassion flickered in Seto's eyes. "I will continue to search for answers. Perhaps Jounouchi will have insight when he returns."

"Perhaps." Seth lowered his head slightly, his eyes taking on a thoughtful cast. "I do not know anything, not for certain, but His Majesty and His Highness, they exist in an unnatural way, in a way that goes against the order of the gods. It is possible that a god had chosen him as an avatar or priest. If that is the case, he may become your enemy."

"He will never be my enemy." Seto was absolute on that. "I've given up many things for my promise, and I won't give up more. Not another thing. If he is their enemy that is their problem, not mine."

"His Highness may order you." Seth warned. He had been ordered to kill by Atemu on several occasions.

"Yugi has changed in many ways, but he would never harm Jounouchi. They are closer than brothers." Seto was sure of that. "He will be back before midnight. If he stays in the realm outside of this one for longer, he will die."

"There are many realms. That is only true of the realms you know. If someone or something beyond those realms is involved then the rules of mortality may be different." Kisara spoke slowly, almost haltingly. "Atemu may have chosen him as a priest to assist you. Ra may have chosen him to... To reach his son. Osiris and even Seth may have chosen him as well. They are both displeased with this current arrangement." She gave him an embarrassed look and shrank back into her cat form. She didn't like to criticize anyone, and most of her fiery personality had been centered in her Ka. When her Ba was left, she became a submissive woman of her time, only flaring and lashing out when angry or frightened.

"That doesn't help. It's all my fault. If I had realized that what I felt for Yugi wasn't right none of this would have happened. Jounouchi wouldn't be involved in this mess... There wouldn't be a mess." Seto sighed and tilted his head back, looking up at the statue of Wadjet on his altar. "I would probably be the man who rocked Katsuya. I'd give almost anything to be that man." He broke off and cleared his throat "But regrets and wishes aren't something I indulge in. All I can do now is wait for an opening and do my best."

"If you contact your master he may..." Seth offered what little advice he could.

"May do nothing. He's as powerless as I am. He'd go to Atemu and that is not something I want to have happen." He shrugged uncomfortably. "If Katsuya doesn't return at or before midnight, I'll contact Yugi and Atemu or Wadjet."

"Very well. You know we will have to tell my Master." Seth bowed and whispered softly. "If I could protect you, I would." He glowed and shrank back into his cat form.

Seto nodded and stood. "You do enough, my friend; you do enough." Without another glance at the altar or the two felines, he turned and strode out of the room. He had work to do and just because Jounouchi was missing didn't mean his world stopped. He would work from his home office and keep watch on the monitor.

It was too early for the maid to have been in to tidy the office. Seto could see the evidence of Jounouchi around the room. The still full teacup that Jou had poured for himself before stalking off told its story of Jou's temper. He could see the smudges on the computer case where the blond had poked at the proprietary equipment, speaking of his curiosity. "Idiot." Seto wasn't sure if he was talking to the phantom blond hovering in his memory or himself for allowing his mind to wander. "Ai, bring up the satellite images of the coordinates we were going to explore today. Oh, also send the driver home but keep both he and the vehicle on standby. I may decide to go out to the site myself."

"As stated previously, the angle and resolution of that area during that time is not the best."

"I don't want your opinion or excuses. Display images. If you have any of the day of the disappearance of the Thomas family start with that."

Ai withheld her comment that they were queued and waiting. Her master was not in a benevolent mood and being restored to a software version prior to Jounouchi's advent into their existence was not something she wanted to experience.

***

Shizuka closed her cell phone and sighed. "Still no answer Mai."

"He's ignoring you." The blond said dismally. "Just like he's ignoring me."

"Mai, he might ignore you, and to be honest I can't say I blame him. You were a total bitch to my brother, not just yesterday but in all the years since the baby died." She shrugged uncomfortably. "He's busy, not ignoring me. He's got no reason to ignore me, Besides..." She hesitated then decided to just go with it. She wasn't going to waste time pussyfooting around. "He loves me."

The blonde woman glared daggers at her ex-sister-in-law. "You're saying he doesn't love me?"

"I'm saying that you did your best to destroy the love he had for you, and I think you succeeded. I've seen him practically self-destruct because of you and your cruelty. He's healed but not without scars. I don't think he loves you Mai, I think he pities you." She turned to gaze out the window, her golden-brown eyes blind to the beauty of the beach beyond the glass. "He regrets what happened, but he is finally moving on. He's dating Miyahara-san and I'm happy for him. Miyahara-san is a simple, shallow man and Jou needs simple and shallow after the deep games you've played with his mind."

Angry, frustrated, and frightened, Mai snapped. "Why not Kaiba? It's been obvious for years that..."

Shizuka turned and laughed in Mai's face. "Simple and shallow is not what Kaiba Seto is. Behind that 'god' complex and businessman's facade, Kaiba Seto is wounded, needy, and probably the last thing in the world my brother is looking for. He's dealt with your drama, neediness and selfishness for years. He isn't going to get involved with the demands Kaiba would make on him. He won't get with Kaiba - you have knocked the white knight out of him."

"You think you know so much! What makes you the expert on Kaiba Seto or even Katsuya for that matter?" Mai challenged harshly.

"I see people more clearly than you do. It's a gift I guess, or perhaps a compensation. I don't know for sure. All I know is that I understand more than most people do. Kaiba is waiting for Katsuya to heal enough, to be strong enough. I don't believe he will ever be. I could be wrong, and if what I see in Kaiba is real, then I hope I'm wrong. But for now, my brother is with the person he needs to be. Someone simple, shallow, and not tied to his heart - Miyahara." Shizuka turned back to the window. "I also know you want Katsuya back; that you want him to be as he was, want him to be your husband again. It's too late for that now, Mai. Your husband is as dead to you as the child you... lost."

There was an odd inflection, a deliberate hesitation before the final word, that made Mai's breath catch as fear made her heart pound in her chest. "What do you mean? Why do you say it like that?" She gasped hoarsely.

"I don't mean anything specific." Shizuka denied, but her voice was strangely knowing.

To Mai, the denial was filled with shadows and innuendo. "What do you know? What has Katsuya told you?" Her breathing was becoming choppy, erratic as the accusations Jou had thrown at her that time in Kaiba's apartment beat in her brain.

"Nothing. I've told you, I simply see people clearly. Please leave Mai, you're becoming unstable and I don't have the energy to deal with your drama and hysterics." Clenching her fists to hide the trembling, she pressed them to her chest. "Go to your room and calm yourself. If you go off on a screaming fit, Honda and Otogi will react badly. Neither of them are feeling charitable towards you today. They both owe Katsuya too much to put up with you abusing him."

Mai considered arguing but something, the pale cast to her skin, or perhaps the way her shoulders were shaking, touched Mai inside. Shizuka looked so young and vulnerable, and there was something very fragile about her. With a huff, Mai turned and strode from the room.

Shizuka waited a few moments to make sure she was gone before retrieving her small bag. With shaking hands, she pulled out what she needed. A quick check told her she would have enough for the week. If it went too much longer, she would have to call Kita-sensei to get a refill without going in for an exam. Her doctor did not like to give refills without seeing her, but she knew that he would accept her request. The consequences of turning it down would cause serious repercussions for everyone involved.

Honda Hiroto, concerned by the raised voices, hesitated outside Shizuka's door. He could see through the small crack that she was fussing with a travel case on her bed. Even as he watched she selected three bottles and after examining them, carefully removed a few of each of the medicines and, with the ease of long use, swallowed them down dry.

Shocked, he started to go into the room only to find himself grabbed and dragged backwards, down the hall and into one of the other bedrooms. He recognized the touch, and furious, he spun to face Otogi. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"Stopping you from making a huge mistake. I saw too and I want to know just as much, but if she wanted us to know she would say something. The way she took those pills... She is no stranger to them. Before you go in acting like the outraged big brother realize you are not her brother and it's not your business." The black-haired man's gaze was intense, slicing into Honda like a laser.

Honda wasn't buying anything that came from the phony ever again. "Fuck off. She's my friend and Jou's sister. I thought I loved her before I let myself get distracted by a pair of lying eyes. I'm going to see if any of that is still around. Nothing you say or do will convince me different. If she's that sick, she probably needs a friend. You wouldn't understand being there for someone or caring about them before you care about yourself, hell you don't even understand friendship or honesty much less love. Get lost Otogi."

"Jounouchi would just find me." The green-eyed man quipped. Honda gave him a glare that would have killed him if it could and stalked off. Otogi maintained his slightly amused expression until the muscular brunet was out of sight, then slumped against the wall, wrapping his arms around his waist to give himself reassurance and strength to hold back the pain welling up inside.

He recovered enough to creep back to Shizuka's door. Despite his pain, he truly did care for the woman and had only been worried about her privacy when he'd spoken to Hiroto earlier. Anguish arrowed through him as he saw Shizuka and Hiroto in a warm embrace. A sneering whisper broke in on his misery. "Sucks doesn't it?"

Otogi turned his green eyes up to Mai. "You'd know."

"Fuck you." But she lingered, her eyes searching. "How did you fuck it up?"

Otogi frowned and moved towards his room aware Mai was following. He shut the door behind her. "What makes you think it was me who fucked up?"

"I'm not stupid. He's too bitter, and you're too accepting for it to be anything else." She dropped the hard facade and sighed, touching his shoulder. "We're in the same boat. I fucked it all up too. I was trying to manipulate Jou, and it cost us our baby. I couldn't deal with the guilt and did everything I could to make Jou the scapegoat. I... I... When I got my head on straight he had started to move on. I want him back and I will get him, but it's going to take a lot of time and pain. I deserve the pain." She smiled crookedly, her determination and regret radiating from her in waves. "What happened?"

"I... I was afraid of... of growing up, of growing old and I... I ran." Ryuuji sighed and shook his head. "It was perfect while Honda was in college. Sure he studied but we partied and had a blast too. Even when I lost my business it wasn't too big of a thing. I had plenty of money, and we were still riding the wave. Every day was a different adventure, a different experience."

Otogi drew a deep breath and blew it out slowly. "Then he graduated, passed the bar, then the international licensing and it was like he grew up overnight. One day I had this hot law student lover and the next I was with this boring lawyer who thought more of meetings than fun with me. I... I wasn't ready to grow up so I ran away. I went looking for adventure. I was a coward and didn't tell Honda, I just left a note that I was going away on business." His lips twisted slightly in self disgust, but he continued his story.

"I found my adventure. I was in Marseilles and ran into a friend of a friend, Rochelle Villon. She and I hit it off well. I... She and I became partners in adventures spanning all across the U.K. We were expanding to the U.S. and were at a party in New York when Honda's boss, with Honda, walked in the room. All I'd heard about at the party was this lawyer's new protegee, how smart and hot the guy was. I was curious about the man who could cause all the jaded people in the room to flutter. For a moment I didn't recognize him. He was dressed conservatively, but he wore one of my ascots and it gave him a flare that... I'd forgotten just how hot he was, how strong and beautiful he was. In my mind he'd been turned into an old man. This... This was the man I loved, not the old man I'd left behind." He faltered slightly then closed his eyes and lowered his head.

"When he saw me he lit up. His eyes, his face, everything about him shone with love and happiness. I... I saw that fall away and fade as Rochelle came up to me, wrapping me in an embrace that was... It was clear we were more than friends. I will never forget the pain and betrayal on his face. He left not long after that. I... I didn't see him again until the day I walked into Jou's office."

"Man, you really did fuck up." Mai agreed softly. "But at least you didn't kill someone."

"I just want to tell him I love him and have him believe me. I want him to forgive me even if he can't love me ever again. I know forgiveness isn't easy but..." Otogi's voice broke. "But I want to tell him everything."

"He may not ever forgive you." Mai pointed out.

"I know. Right now he is still so hurt and angry. I'll take all of the pain he dishes out if I can just earn the chance to explain, to beg for forgiveness." He drew in a shuddering breath. "Damn it, I will not cry."

"Better not. One thing I've learned is tears don't help, they just make your eyes red and your throat hurt." The blonde woman rubbed her hand over his short black hair. "Grow your hair back, Otogi. You look like a shorn sheep."

"Working on it, Mai." Otogi gave her a small, rueful grin. "You remind me of Rochelle. She always said that. I'd never grow it back for her. It... It made me think of Honda. He loved my hair."

"Yeah? Well maybe you shouldn't mention her name, even just to me. If Honda even catches a hint of her he will cut you off at the knees." She warned.

"I know. But she's gone and she won't be back." Otogi straightened up and stepped away from her comforting hand. "Let's go make lunch. I'm hungry, and I have a taste for Okonomiyaki."

"Way to a man's heart is through his stomach? Honda's favorite food isn't it?" Mai gave him a rueful smile.

"I'd usually try a more southern route, but I'll start with his stomach." Ryuji smiled slightly.

"At least you have access. My guy is currently staying with two guys who want him as much as I do." She refused to believe either of them could want him more.

Otogi wisely held back his comment. Mai was sympathetic and a potential allie. He could use all the help he could get.

***

Miyahara Tatsu parked the Lexus LS400 Kaiba had loaned to him with absolute care. He'd never driven a car like it and if this was a low-end loaner vehicle that Kaiba owned, he didn't want to speculate the other cars Kaiba might have. Tatsu rarely drove his own Kei class because it was easier and less expensive to use the stodgy official transport provided by his work.

Not that he was overly concerned about money. His father and mother had been the only children of post-war era financiers and both come from very comfortable backgrounds. They had invested their inherited money heavily in foreign markets and done very well. They had both died during the twenty-eleven flood. Tatsu inherited everything and was more than comfortable. The reason he didn't live a flashier lifestyle wasn't lack of money, it was perception. He was a police captain, a sworn servant to the people, a man everyone respected. He had an image of modest civil servant to maintain and a rich lifestyle would ruin that.

Police work had not been his original goal in life. He had originally thought he would get into banking or investing, but then in high school he'd met Karin. He had been used to girls falling all over him but from the first Karin was different. She treated him like he wasn't worth her time, like he was useless and worst of all, she'd looked down on him and laughed at his attempts to prove her wrong. It had been worse because Karin not only was gorgeous, but had been good at everything from sports to academics. He'd done research and found out she was the daughter of a famous police officer. To win her, he'd faked an interest in becoming a cop. To his delight, she'd responded with a respect that he found addictive. Before he knew it, he was genuinely training to be a police officer just to meet her expectations.

They married while they were both still in college. To this minute he thanked his parent's for the prenuptial agreement they had insisted they both sign. Written into that agreement was the clause that he only pay minimal child support if any children born of the union did not live with him.

When Karin and he had split up, she had been seven months pregnant and completely repulsive to him. He had been cruel and she'd walked out. He wasn't proud of his behavior, but he wasn't ashamed either. Karin had known he didn't want children for years, if ever, and she'd still gotten pregnant. She had refused an abortion and had brought everything on herself. In the end, because neither she nor the child lived with him, he had been assigned only minimal child support and no spousal support.

None of that was something he wanted to share with Katsuya, at least not yet. Katsuya had very strange ideas about children and family, and Tatsu knew him well enough to know that his boyfriend would not care about prenuptial agreements or financial contracts. Katsuya would say something ridiculously impractical, like a child should be cared for ahead of its parents no matter what some paper said. It was an attitude Tatsu did not share. He didn't want children, even the boy Karin had eventually birthed hadn't changed his mind. They shared genetics, but that was all. He had faith that Katsuya would understand Tatsu's position if he could find a way to explain it in a way that didn't rouse the fatherly instincts of the blond.

The elevator was waiting to whisk him up to the penthouse, a perk that Tatsu couldn't help wondering if he could get in his own apartment building. After all he did own the whole building. It shouldn't be too difficult, and as long as he didn't mention it to anyone, the benefit should be subtle enough to go unnoticed.

Tatsu exited the elevator, pleasantly tired but with a twinge of satisfaction. He found out several things he wanted to share with Katsuya, Kaiba and the pain in the ass, Ai. He presumed his boyfriend was feeling better and would hopefully allow him to relax before he had to report. A glass of wine and maybe some food would be great, especially if Kaiba was gone for a while. A weak, sleepy-eyed Katsuya, a glass of wine, and something to nibble would make his night worth while.

He was surprised to not see him in the living room. There was no sign of him or Kaiba. He had no access to Ai to ask where they were, so he headed to Katsuya’s room. He didn't think Katsuya would still be in Kaiba's room. Why would he if his room had been cleaned?

Instead of knocking, as manners dictated, he twisted the knob, surprised when it turned easily in his hand. Smiling at his luck, Tatsu poked his head around the door and sniffed cautiously. The foul stench was gone, and the bedroom had obviously been cleaned and aired. A completely different bedding set in bright colors covered the neatly made bed. "Katsuya?" He called tentatively as he entered the room. “Katsuya, are you here?”

There was a loud thud of something hitting the wall from the bathroom. Then he heard the distinctive sounds of retching from behind the partially open bathroom door. “Katsuya, are you alright?” More retching followed, punctuated with loud, wet sounding farts. "Katsuya!" He edged towards the bathroom door.

Jou's voice, hoarse from vomiting, rasped. "Don't come near me. I’m still sick. Kaiba called the doctor and the doctor said it's contagious. Go away Tatsu, I don't want you getting this stuff. I just want to be left alone.”

"Can I bring you something? Did the doctor give you something to help?’ A very large belch and long drawn out gurgling fart answered him. Turning slightly green, Tatsu said shakily, “Okay, I hope you feel better. I'll... I'll check on you in the morning.” as he ran from the room slamming the door behind him.

Seto in his home office watching, smirked. “You wouldn't have fooled me, but it fooled him. It seems Tatsu doesn’t like the sounds of illness.”

Ai smirked back. "I wouldn't have tried to fool you."

"You had better not." Seto reminded silkily. "I'll go speak to him. Have Wataru send up something light for him. I think his stomach is going to be upset. Perhaps lentil soup?"

"What would you like Wataru to send up for you?" Ai asked.

"Nothing. I'll eat with Katsuya when he returns." Seto left to talk to his unwelcome guest.

****

Jou returned as quietly as he left, in a silent blaze of golden light. It was three hours before the midnight deadline, and Seto had been at his altar making preparations when Ai spoke. "Jounouchi has returned. He is in his room. All of his vitals appear normal and..." Smoothly, she transitioned from the speakers in Seto's room to the speakers in the hall. "He seems to be asleep." To keep up with Seto's running form, she moved into Jou's room. "He doesn't appear to be having any after effects of wherever he went."

Seto felt the tingle of energy along his skin, similar to what he felt when he'd first became Yugi's priest, but it was unfamiliar. Yugi's tie had been cold, clamping around his neck, biting into him with an icy burn that drained him of strength. This energy was different, not draining or burning, but warm and soothing. It was nothing like anything he'd ever felt before when dealing with the different dimensions and their energy.

Katsuya was resting quietly, his body curled into the same fetal position it had assumed when he left, the beauty of golden amber glistening over him for a precious few seconds as it sank into his skin. It was still sparkling like golden glitter when Seto gripped his shoulders and shook roughly. "Katsuya!"

Seto would never admit it, but when the sleepy golden eyes fluttered open and a baffled look crossed Jounouchi's face, it was one of the most beautiful things he'd ever seen. The knot of fear and worry coiled in his gut loosened at the blankly stupid look, so reminiscent of their school days. "Bonkotsu, wake up!" The name from those days slipped out completely unconsciously. It probably always would when he wore that clueless look.

The vacant look faded, but the sleepy warmth remained, and a slow smile curved Jou's mouth. "Mmm... Dragon quit growling. I'm tired. Chick drove a hard bargain." A sleep-clumsy hand patted his cheek warmly before falling away and the golden eyes closed again.

"What?" Seto blinked down at the blond. He shook Jou again. This time Jou mumbled. "C'm t' bed Seto. 'm tired. Breath fire t'morrow, 'kay? Y'll wake th' kits."

Shocked to the core, Seto released Jou and reared back. "What the hell?" A soft snore was the only answer he received. "Ai, do you have a hypothesis?"

"No. Not enough data. We will have to wait until he wakes. Kaiba-sama, although he told you to 'come' to bed, I suggest you sleep in your own room tonight. The potential complications with Miyahara, not to mention Jounouchi, outweigh the advantages of you staying with him. I will monitor and report any significant changes immediately. He is very deeply asleep and likely won't wake for several hours."

"You didn't need to tell me that." Seto snapped. "Of course, I'll sleep in my room. He is probably completely clueless to what he said. I'm fully aware of the confusion that can occur when someone crosses through a portal. That is why it used to take almost a day to recover from acting as portal to Yugi and Atemu. Disturbing visions and hallucinations are common." He picked up the throw and covered the slumbering blond, carefully tucking the blanket around his naked body. "If there are any changes at all let me know; not simply the 'significant.'"

"Yes, Kaiba-sama." Ai acknowledged.

***

Tatsu shut off his alarm and rolled out of bed. He'd deliberately set it early hoping to catch Jou before Kaiba got to him. He felt bad for running out on his sick boyfriend and wanted to make it up to him. After a quick splash of water and gargle of mouthwash, he hotfooted it down to Katsuya's room.

Katsuya was sound asleep, cuddling a pillow and looking as sweet and innocent as a grown man could look. Tatsu couldn't resist bending down to lay a soft kiss on his slightly bristly cheek. He was startled when Jou turned and nuzzled against his shoulder, but before he could enjoy it, Jou's nose scrunched up and he drew back, his eyes flying wide. "What the hell..." Golden eyes wide, Jou practically flung himself away from Tatsu. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"Oh sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." Tatsu smiled and held up his hands. "Really, I just kissed your cheek and you..."

"Who the hell do you think you are coming in here and touching me?" Jou snarled, his eyes flaring with rage as he grabbed the light throw from the bed and wrapped it around his waist..

"Hey, I know you're probably mad I left last night but I..." Tatsu started to soothe the obviously irate blond when a movement from the doorway brought his gaze around.

He wasn't the only one to see it. He'd barely registered Kaiba Seto's presence when Katsuya bolted from the bed and ran to the brunet snarling. "What the fuck is up with him? He thinks I'm free and easy 'cause I live with you? Why the hell am I here and not in our room? Why the hell am I naked?"

"Calm down, Katsuya." Seto was making a rapid assessment. The blond was obviously having a hallucination or some other mental episode. "I'll handle this. You go back to bed. You look exhausted." Not entirely true but until the vision or hallucination end, Seto didn't want Jou wandering around.

Jou gave

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