Disclaimer : I do not own YuGiOh or any of its respective characters. I have gained absolutely no money in the creation of this work. I do, however, hold claims to the story's main plot.

Summary : Why would this stupid mutt risk his life to save that of the man he despises most? And claiming to repay someone doesn't always mean you're not getting something out of the situation as well. Yaoi, SXJ, JXS

Warnings : Contains Shounen-ai, abuse, death, physical disabilities, Anzu bashing, and lots more fun stuff. Oh, and swearing.

Who Are You To Tell Me What I know?

Chapter I

"The Day"

This was it. Finally, the day they had all waited for in anticipation for about 18 years. Everyone was dressed so fancily, and Jonouchi felt so out of place in his father's old hand-me-down suit and tie. All of his friends, especially Anzu, had made such a big deal of getting to go out and buy a beautiful new outfit, special for this day and this day only. But not Jonouchi. Despite having a decent paying job and taking on various odd-jobs when possible, the teen had to spend all of his well earned money on over-priced rent, groceries, and his father's dilapidated alcohol addiction.

But as of right now, all of that didn't matter. What was important was everyone in the graduating class lining up single-file to being the walk into their own personal ceremony.

Somehow, the lot of them had convinced the principal into allowing the class to convert their traditional graduation ceremony into one nearly identical to one found in the United States. The idea had stemmed from Jonouchi, himself being half American, and originally a transfer student.

"Well look what the cat dragged in…"

The blonde rolled his eyes slightly, exhaling a pent up sigh at the sound of the voice behind him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he had hoped the brunette CEO would have forgotten about the ceremony. But then again, Jonouchi was glad the other hadn't.

"Seriously, Kaiba, I'm not in the mood to fight with you today. I just want to enjoy the ceremony." He hadn't bothered to turn as he had spoken to the male behind him. And to his own surprise, there was no flashy retort. Just the most simplistic reply the blond had ever heard Seto Kaiba direct at him.

"Alright."

That had to be the farthest thing from his mind that Jonouchi thought the other would utter. Man, if that's all it took to get Kaiba off his back, why hadn't he thought of it sooner?! Maybe he had…

Though he would probably never admit it, Jonouchi Katsuya had always enjoyed getting into fights with Kaiba. It seemed like it was the only time the tall industrialist ever paid any sort of attention to him. I was kind of like how a rebellious child would act out just to get some sort of attention from their parents. But for the blonde, it was more than just that. Somehow, over the past several years, Jonouchi had come to think of Kaiba in a different regard. Somehow, he had fallen in love with the arrogant, self-centered, demeaning, obsessive-compulsive bastard. He didn't know if it was during gym class, in the locker room when he would watch the brunette change; or in the classroom where he would stare at the back of the other's head; or even lunch, when he would catch Kaiba eating alone, too absorbed in his laptop to do anything else, when the two weren't busy calling each other names.

He had pretended to be so massively upset when he had discovered he would be sitting beside Kaiba during the ceremonial graduation. But inwardly, he had been ecstatic. To be able to sit beside his secret obsession during the most important moment up to that point in his life, it was an obscure honor.

Before anyone knew it, the class was being led out of doors, out into the warm spring air. Somewhere off, a perpetual music flowed out upon the large field onto which the student marched. They all took their seats, row by row, facing their families and friends. The rest of the school had been given the day off so as they could attend the celebration. Those graduating all had smiles upon their faces as they sought out their loved ones. However, Jonouchi knew better. His father would probably still be sleeping right now, struggling to get over his alcoholic indulgence from the night prior. And his sister, well, their mother would never allow her to attend. But that was alright. The blonde still held his smile, receiving waves from the families of his close friends.

An odd group of gentlemen dressed in black seemed to catch everyone's eye at some point. In the midst of them stood a hyperactive young Kaiba, yelling and smiling and waving.

To Jonouchi's own surprise, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Seto return the wave to his younger brother. He hid his own happiness with his already present smile. Of course, it grew when he heard the raven-haired boy calling out to him as well.

"Yay, Jo-chan!" Mokuba seemed to be even more excited than even the blonde himself. And this made his smile grow. As he turned to make a reflexive snide comment to the brunette beside him, Jonouchi stopped in his tracks.

Seto Kaiba, the man who had presumably hated him for about 4 years, was looking right at him, smiling. And all he seemed to be able to do was smile back.

The music slowly died away and everyone took their seats. The principal began talking to those gathered; about how proud he was of his students, about how glad he was to have been able to work with such wonderful staff, and so-on. Nobody really bothered to pay attention. Eventually, after near quarter of an hour, he finished his repetitive speech.

"And now, I offer to you, your salutatorian, Miss Anzu Mazaki." The two groups of crowds burst into applauds. There had never really supposed to have been a Valedictorian or Salutatorian, but after some research, the class had agreed to create the roles and give them to the class' equivalent. And that had been Anzu and Kaiba.

The bouncy brunette made her way to the podium, barely able to control herself before beginning her speech.

"Ladies and gentlemen, friends and loved ones, my fellow classmates. It's an honor to be able to stand here before you today. Finally, we've reached the end of our long journey, together. And as we finish this tale, a new one has just begun. After today, we shall all begin the next chapter of our lives. But we will not be left behind. We shall be bringing with us many things. Memories, gains, losses, hardships, friendships, loved ones, and a respect well earned. For many of us, it will be difficult to move on with our lives and leave our friends behind. But as we move, we grow. As we grow, we remember. And those memories will be with us for the rest of our lives.

"Our years here in Domino have helped us develop into the upstanding people you see before you today. And we shall continue to develop throughout the many more years of our lives. But today, we have finished setting the foundations of our futures. Today, we strike out on the first steps of a new adventure. And with the help of everyone here today, those seen and unseen…" As this point Anzu paused for a moment, glancing away from the crowd of young and old alike, and looked over to her friends. They were all scattered about the graduates, but they were there. With a slight clearing of her throat and a wipe at her teary eye, the brunette girl continued. "With the help of everyone here today, both seen and unseen, we offer to you the future of our town. The future of our country. The future of our world." But the time she finished, tears were streaming freely down the girl's face, as she looked out upon the crowd watching her. Trying to hide her embarrassing display, she quickly forced a bit of laughter. "And now we present to you our Valedictorian!" She smiled as her azure gaze turned towards Kaiba, who was looking right back at her.

And Jonouchi was watching them both, and his heart ached. The blonde had always had an overactive imagination, had always been quick to jump to conclusions. And the way he saw the two looking at each other was too much for the blonde. Maybe they liked each other? What if they had already confessed their love? Did he really have no chance? He already knew how unlikely it was that his secret love would ever return his feelings, and he knew that deep down, so long as Seto was happy, he would be too. But thinking of him being in a relationship with his friend, it made Jonouchi want to cry.

He wasn't expecting the sudden turn Kaiba made, directing his warm smile towards the blonde. It was only for a moment, just before the brunette CEO stood to go take his place at the podium. But it was there. Jonouchi returned the smile, though it went unseen, as he looked back out to the crowd gathered. He sensed Kaiba stand, and as his bronze gaze scanned over the many faces, something odd caught his eye. A glint of metal where it didn't belong. The semi-automatic came into focus before anyone else seemed to notice it. Jonouchi acted on reflex.

"Get down!" In one swift motion he was on his feet, not half a step behind the honored Valedictorian, grabbing the taller male, and pushing him to the ground. But they didn't make it there safely. As soon as the holder of the gun had seen the blonde stand, he had opened fire in the direction of the multi-billionaire. And as Jonouchi forced the brunette down to the soft grass below them, while the masses of gathered people took cover with their arms and behind chairs, the blonde felt his own body jerk in pain, felt the blood begin to flow out of his body.

Gasps and screams rang out amongst the crowds. Two of the men in black placed Mokuba behind them protectively, while the others instantly went after the gunman. But Kaiba wasn't paying attention to any of that. All he could see, could focus on, was the blonde laying on the ground beside him. At the pools of blood staining those golden locks, the green grass, the pale decrepit suit and tie.

Jonouchi's bronze gaze settled upon Kaiba as the pain swept through him. All he could think about was if Seto was alright, if he had been able to protect him. Sparks of black and white sprang up into his vision, clouding his sight of the brunette's face.

"Seto…" It was the only thing his mind could register as the shouts around him became whispers. He didn't bother to care that everyone else was running around like mad in shock and fear. Something in him forced his hand to rise, reaching to brush Kaiba's cheek. But the brunette, acting out of haste, quickly grabbed hold of the blonde's hand with his own.

"Stay with me, Mutt! You're going to be okay!" His voice was shaky and dry, not even completely believing the words coming out of his own mouth. He could vividly see the color draining from the cheeks of the male before him. And Seto Kaiba had to fight to keep his demeanor strong. But his sapphire eyes became a window to his inner fear as he watched Jonouchi's eyes begin to sag closed. Why wasn't the damned mutt listening to him?! "Jonouchi, no, come on, open your eyes!" He took a moment to look up around him, trying to find someone with at least some wits about them. Easier said than done with a situation like this.

But then his eyes landed on the Motou child, and his hopes flared. He had a cell phone in his hands, and despite the tears streaming down the short male's face, he seemed to be at least somewhat calm. "Motou!" His voice was livid with the emotions coursing through him. He knew he startled the spiky-haired boy by the way he jumped at the sound of his own name. But when he saw his blonde friend laying on the ground and the pool of blood surrounding him, Kaiba knew he had gotten the other's attention. "Hurry, call an ambulance! Jonouchi's been shot, he doesn't have long!"

Yugi didn't bother to take the time to reply to the command. He had seen instantly that Katsuya was hurt, and he had to do something! His hands flew over the buttons on the portable phone, and in moments he was speaking to someone at the other end of the emergency line.

Jonouchi had barely been able to hear Seto calling out to his friend, telling Yugi to call for help. Everything had gone black, but he could still make out a few sounds about him here and there. But the most predominant sound was Kaiba's constant voice, telling him he was going to be okay, and to stay with him. But as the vague sound of sirens began to penetrate his pain-stricken mind, everything fell away, and unconsciousness surrounded him.

A/N : I don't know how traditional Japanese graduation ceremonies work, but I'm kinda basing this off of how my own went. Kinda. That's about it for Author Notes. For now. Please R&R.

Kitsune Seven