Disclaimer: Yugioh is the creation of Kazuki Takahashi.

For Silvershadowfire, whose review totally inspired this ficlet.

Seto's Penguin

(A side-story for "Gainful Employment")

By Lucidscreamer

Seto stared at the plushie black and white bird gazing winsomely up at him from the recently opened gift box on his desk. The penguin had a cheery red ribbon tied around its neck like an oversized bow tie and wore what Seto considered to be a far too knowing expression on its embroidered face.

With a growl, he read the accompanying card for the third time.

"Thanks for hiring Yami," the scrawled writing declared. (It should be impossible for handwriting to seem chirpy, but Seto was convinced this particular handwriting managed to achieve it. Chirpy... and just a bit smug. Possibly this was more annoying than Yami's habitual smirk, though the judges were still out on that one.) "You are a very brave man. Here's a little token of my appreciation. Sincerely, Yugi Mutou. P.S. Mokuba told me about KC Antarctica. Good luck with that. You'll need it! XD"

Crumpling the card, Seto hurled it in the direction of the trashcan, not caring that he missed. He snatched up the penguin, fully intending to send it to the same fate... and hesitated.

The little plush animal was soft and somehow comforting to hold, even if it had been given as a joke. He stared at it for a long moment before tucking it in the space between his telephone and pen caddy, where it beamed at him with bright button eyes and a ridiculous yellow beak. Hang in there, buddy, it seemed to say. We'll get through this together!

He groaned and rubbed at the incipient migraine building in his left temple. Now he was hearing imaginary friendship speeches. When had he sunk so low, anyway? ...Oh, right. Two p.m. Wednesday afternoon (a day that would live in infamy), the day he'd been suckered into hiring Yami "I'm only hanging onto the title of World Champion because the thought of aggravating your ulcers gives me the warm-fuzzies" Mutou.

Seto growled and glared at the double doors to his office, some brand new sixth sense warning him that his doom (AKA Yami) was about to be visited upon him again. As the doors swung open to admit the Pharaoh, Seto's hand curled around the toy penguin.

If all else failed, he could always throw it at his nemesis...