Chapter Text
Yuugi liked to believe he was a patient person. He kinda had to be, what with his self-imposed pacifism. But even he had a limit to the amount of sheer stupidity he could take before losing his temper, and Officer Whosit wasn’t making it any better. True, Yuugi could be less....... prickly, but the man’s been asking the same questions for a week now, and he was getting tired of it. He already got the third degree every other week from Dr. Akiyama, he didn’t need some tight-ass officer he couldn’t be bothered to remember the name of joining the ranks of people who just wouldn’t shut the fuck up.
“For the last time, sir, I wasn’t anywhere near Karita-sensei last week. I was at home, and both my parents and my grandfather can tell you the same thing!” Yuugi bit out, just barely managing to restrain himself from shouting. He hated the fact that the officer was looking down on him. He wasn’t even being subtle about it either, the way most people taller than him would be. No, the dude was standing in the back of the room with his arms crossed, looming over not only Yuugi, but the vice-principal as well. The vice-principal (what was his name again?) shifted nervously, scratching his cheek in discomfort.
“Now Inspector, m-maybe we should let Mutou-kun go home for the day? He’s rather insistent he had nothing to do with Karita-sensei’s......unfortunate situation, and if I remember correctly you need to actually charge him with something to continue interrogating him?” he said, darting a worried glance at Yuugi. Honestly, Yuugi would appreciate the man standing up for him, since he’s never really had a decent relationship with the vice-principal (being a slacker with a bad reputation would do that), but......the look in his eyes said it all. He wasn’t helping Yuugi because he believed him, he just didn’t want to end up on the wrong end of his temper......just like most everyone else that bullied Yuugi.
The inspector scowled, but acquiesced. There was nothing more he could ask Yuugi, not here anyway, but that didn’t stop him from giving Yuugi a suspicious glare on the way out. Once the door was shut behind him, Yuugi relaxed slightly. It was getting to be a chore, holding back the Spirit when this kept happening. It’s like he was chomping at the bit, reacting not only to Yuugi’s anger, but at the whole situation, nevermind the fact it was his fault in the first place. Yuugi scowled down at the Puzzle, unable to help himself. “Was there anything else you needed, Vice-Principal?” he asked, glancing up at the man through his bangs.
Apparently, the Vice-Principal didn’t like whatever he saw in Yuugi’s eyes, because he paled drastically and waved him out. Yuugi didn’t even have the energy to be sad or annoyed, so he just nodded respectfully and stood to leave. He was hungry, and still had a bunch of English homework to catch up on so that Chouno-sensei left him alone. He didn’t push it, opting instead to begin the long, lonely trek home. Normally he’d walk with Anzu, but....she seemed to be avoiding him lately. Again. He’d thought they were over that after Death-T, but apparently not.
He glared at his shoe locker as he swapped over, lost in thought. He only had the vaguest idea of what had happened there, but he did remember telling Anzu and Jounouchi about the Spirit. Emotions ran too high after that for him to remember clearly what had happened, but something had to happen, right? Anzu had been spending more time with him after that, until sometime in February when she just......stopped. Sure, she still talked to him in class, but that’s class. He missed the days where they’d just hang out in his room, playing the Famicom, eating chips, gossiping.....he missed his best friend. She’d been drifting for years, but....for some reason, he’d taken her for granted. Now she might never come back, and it’d be too late to apologize for all the times he’d assumed she would always be there.
Yuugi’s musing was cut short by someone slamming the locker next to him, startling him enough that he whipped around with an elbow out on instinct, catching Jounouchi in the gut. He paled, backing up slightly. “J-Jounouchi-kun! Sorry, you scared me! Are you alright?!” he asked, hands waving frantically as he tried to assess the damage. Jounouchi groaned good naturedly, rubbing his ribs gently.
“Damn bro, you got some bony-ass elbows! I’m fine, I’m fine, my bad for sneakin’ up on ya. Just wanted to catch ya before y’left for the day, and you were a bit more lost in dreamland than I thought,” he said, grinning widely. Yuugi relaxed a bit, glad he hadn’t hurt Jounouchi. A small, dark corner of his mind whispered about how Jounouchi was lucky it was a Thursday, because he’s been finding knives in his pockets recently and no matter how many times he threw them out, they always came back. “Anyway dude, listen. Y’know that new Magic and Monsters or whatever game everyone’s playing?” he asked. Yuugi nodded, raising an eyebrow.
“You mean Duel Monsters?” he asked. Jounouchi clicked his fingers, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Duel Monsters! Right, that’s the one. Anyway, I wanna get into it but......well, t’put it bluntly, I suck. Like, major suck. No matter what I do, I can’t win a single match! Can you tell me what I’m doing wrong? Hell, Mazaki beat me, and all her monsters look like desserts!” he ranted, falling into step beside Yuugi as they headed for the game shop. Yuugi snorted, burying his nose in his scarf.
“I mean, I can help, but wait ‘til we get back to my place, yeah? I dunno about you, but I don’t feel like dragging your deck out of a storm drain because you were impatient,” he chuckled. Jounouchi scoffed, nudging him gently, but agreed. They spiralled off into a conversation about nothing in particular, and Yuugi managed to forget the unease he felt about Anzu, just for a moment.
Of course, Jounouchi brought the mood down a second later when he asked what the vice-principal wanted. “I mean, he’s got you in there like every other day now. I don’t even get sent to the old man’s office that often, did something happen?” Yuugi scowled, harshly kicking a rock and watching as it skittered into the street.
“It’s the fuckin’ cops again,” he grumbled, burying his face further into his scarf. “This time it’s about Karita-sensei, they think I’m the one who put him in the coma. No matter how many times I say I was at home, they don’t believe me.” He scoffed, crossing his arms. “I mean, it’s fair to assume it was me, but it really wasn’t this time. I haven’t blacked out at all this month! Lost time, sure, but not blacked out. It’s all fuckin’ moot though, I was at home having a game night with my family. It was Mom’s birthday, and Mama made sure to be home for it. She’s not home too often, so I wasn’t gonna miss that!” He huffed again, glaring at the sidewalk. “It’s just.....ugh. I just wanna know why they’re so on my ass about it lately. Like, they don’t give a shit when I’m gettin’ my ass handed to me, but as soon as some people go missing, or Himura starts running his mouth they care?” He sighed, peeking over at Jounouchi. “Sorry, you....probably didn’t wanna hear all that complaining,” he muttered.
“Don’t worry about it man, I get it. People......suck. I really am sorry that I was one of those assholes, and it really is shitty that they only care now that you’re the one gettin’ in trouble.” He sighed, stretching his arms behind his head. “I heard a rumor that Ushio was out of the hospital, so maybe he’s the one behind it? The sudden interest, I mean. Bastard always did hold a grudge.....” he muttered. the conversation tapered off then, both of them too down and unwilling to continue. The rest of the walk to the game shop passed in silence, both of them lost in thought until it was broken by the cheerful tinkling of the shop bell.
“Oh, Yuugi, Jounouchi-kun! Welcome back!” Grandpa called, carefully making his way down from the ladder he was standing on. Yuugi winced slightly when the ladder wobbled, but Grandpa apparently feared no god nor man, as he nimbly hopped off the rickety ladder like a man fifty years his junior. “Are we still watching the tournament finals tonight? Kei-chan is home tonight, so she and Ren-chan will join us,” he said. Yuugi’s eyes lit up, and he smiled brightly.
“Mama’s home?! Awesome! Yeah, let’s watch the finals, but I gotta help Jou-kun with somethin’ first,” he cheered, bad mood forgotten entirely. He grinned at Jounouchi, nudging him gently in the ribs. “Looks like you’ll get to meet Mama sooner than I’d thought! Wanna stay for dinner?” he asked. Jounouchi laughed, startled, but agreed.
“Man, I ain’t gonna say no to free food! I’m an idiot but I ain’t stupid!” he laughed, nodding to Grandpa before heading for the stairs, kicking the snow off his sneakers on the mat. Grandpa stopped Yuugi before he could follow, pulling a box out from behind the counter.
“This came for you earlier, I didn’t know you ordered something?” he said. Yuugi frowned, eyeballing the box.
“Yeah.....I didn’t either.” He looked closer at the shipping label, hefting it out of Grandpa’s arms. “There’s no name on the return address.....whoever sent it really didn’t want me knowing who it was,” he muttered. Unbidden, his mind snapped back to Kaiba. He was just extra enough to do something like this, and if it weren’t for the fact Yuugi knew Kaiba was in a coma, he would’ve blamed it on him. He shook his head, resolving to ignore those thoughts for now. He couldn’t do anything about it, and despite all his searching, he didn’t know how to reverse the magic that kept Kaiba hostage in his own mind. “I’ll figure it out later. Thanks for holding it, Grandpa,” he said, gently knocking his head against Grandpa’s shoulder. “Is Mama home now, or is she still at work?”
“She’s at work, Ren-chan went to meet her at the station. They should be home around 6, Ren-chan said they were going to do some shopping while they were out.” Grandpa sighed, cracking his back with a startling pop. “Ah, young love. I just hope they don’t get so caught up they forget about the finals. I have it on record, but some things are just so much better live, you know?” he laughed. Yuugi chuckled, nodding.
“Ain’t that the truth. Anyway, I’ll be in my room. My arms are tired, and Jou-kun and I still need to do homework and everything,” he said, heading for the stairs.
He didn’t notice Grandpa’s smile dropping slightly as he watched Yuugi go, an immense, undefinable sadness in his eyes.