Mokuba was used to threats but when they came from Yugi, Mokuba knew from experience that he couldn't take them lightly. The King of Games did not make idle threats during his Duels. He really would forfeit the game if he felt he had no reason to continue.

Why hadn't Mokuba thought of this possibility?

Because he had thought he could sucker Yugi into kissing him instead of asking him straight out. But Mokuba had been afraid. Afraid of being embarrassed if Yugi said no and super afraid of what his brother would say if Yugi told him about it.

Yet as terrifying as that was, and with OCC now in full effect, there was no way Mokuba was just going to let him forfeit. Yugi wouldn't say anything to Nisama anyway because promises were something else he didn't give idly.

Mokuba stared point-blank at him. "If you think that quitting is the only way to beat me then go for it. I'll get to tell Nisama that I defeated you."

Yugi met his eyes. "I thought your rules said we couldn't tell anyone about this Duel."

"If you wimp out now, the rules go out with you."

What? Yugi looked from his Deck to Mokuba and then back again. "Why are you doing this, Mokuba? What is it that you really want?"

"Play to the end and find out."

Yugi glanced at his Deck again and hesitated a minute longer before flipping over a Magic card. "I'm giving up eight hundred of my Life Points to activate Premature Burial and bring Beta back to the field." He took it from the Graveyard, set it in attack position and flipped a second card. "Then I'll equip my Black Magician Girl with Magic Formula to raise her attack points to twenty-five hundred."

Yugi's firepower now added up to thirty-nine hundred points. More than enough to destroy Mokuba's Monsters and the rest of his Life Points all at once. The information caught his breath and held it like a vice grip. This was it! Yugi was going in for the kill!

"Your turn."

The vice grip loosened and Mokuba's breath shot out in a silent, outraged gasp. The move shouldn't have surprised him after Yugi's last few disappointing turns but Yugi had sacrificed enough Life Points for the Premature Burial card to put himself right into jeopardy. Why? He had to know that not capitalizing during this turn could very well hand Mokuba the Duel during his.

Mokuba glared at him. "What are you doing? This is-I don't want to win this way!"

Yugi smiled. "No? Then we're in a stalemate. If we continue not to attack then we're going to sit here until a Deck runs out of cards."

"But-but that's not fair!"

"I know."

Mokuba pounded on the table. "You're ruining everything! Why couldn't you just attack me and get it over with?"

"Why couldn't you just Duel me without all these little tricks and conditions?" Yugi countered softly.

Nothing was said for several seconds. Then Yugi repeated, "It's your turn."

Mokuba picked up The Fake Trap and added it to his hand. He couldn't let the Duel end that way. Damn, Yugi had really screwed up the operation. He had weasled his way out of every one of Mokuba's traps and it now looked like he was going to weasle his way out of the Duel altogether.

How the heck did he always manage to get out of such sticky situations anyway?

By using his brain! Think! Forfeiting was the last thing I thought he would try to do but he threatened to do it anyway. Isn't there something I could do he wouldn't expect?

Mokuba jerked his eyes back and forth across the cards. How could he win? What could he do? What did Yugi think he WOULDN'T do?

He thought and thought and suddenly it hit him. Of course! An attack! Yugi wouldn't expect it because he still believed that Mokuba was trying to win. But with OCC, an attack against Yugi's stronger monsters meant an automatic three cards in Mokuba's Graveyard and the end of his Life Points.

So Mokuba reached out, slowly switched his Crocodilus into attack position and calmly announced, "I'll use Crocodilus to attack your Beta Warrior, Man Eating Plant to attack your Buster Blader and Leghul to attack your Black Magician Girl."

Then, just as calmly, he laid his hand cards on the table, set his three monsters in the Graveyard and walked over to Yugi's side. Somehow, those bubbles in his stomach had changed themselves in a herd of stomping rhinoceros's. Not from nerves, but from excitement instead. It wasn't easy for someone to get the best of Yugi so to actually do it felt pretty darn good.

Speaking of Yugi, he stared at Mokuba as if he were from another planet. It made Mokuba smirk as he leaned close to Yugi and whispered, "You win."

His breath ghosted over Yugi's mouth and chin and the older boy flushed at the slight contact. If there hadn't been so many drawbacks to the situation, he might have enjoyed Mokuba's closeness a whole lot more. But with Yugi's inexperience, Mokuba's age and the fear of angering Kaiba, Yugi couldn't enjoy anything.

Wait, what was Mokuba doing anyway? Yugi tried to move back. "Wait! No-!"

The boy lurched forward and caught Yugi's mouth with his in mid-protest. Unexpected tingles shot through the both of them- good, bad, frightened, excited- until Yugi put his hands on Mokuba's shoulders and pushed him away. "W-wait!"

Mokuba complied but only for a moment. "One," he whispered before he leaned forward again.

Yugi was glued to his chair, still tingled and half in shock. Mokuba's lips touched his again, slower, easier, giving both boys a chance to get used to the pressure of being mouth to mouth. It was still a little awkward but in no time Yugi forgot why kissing his rival's younger brother was a bad idea.

Several long moments passed and Mokuba pulled back to observe Yugi's face. His eyes were bright and his cheeks were flushed. It was a huge difference from the confident, game-faced expression he had worn in Mokuba's dreams but the boy found it no less exciting. Mouto Yugi, putty in his hands. Wow.

"Two," Mokuba counted again.

This time Yugi surprised him by leaning forward and initiating the last kiss. Mokuba eyes widened before he closed them and slipped back into those tingles.

Okay, so maybe HE was the putty but no matter. Operation OCC: Successful.

But no longer covert.

Yugi's mouth was too busy to smile, but he couldn't help but do it mentally as he recalled Mokuba's earlier words:

"Then my penalty will be that whenever you destroy my monsters, you're gonna have to kiss me."

Whenever YOU destroy my monsters. Not 'Whenever they go to the Graveyard'.

Yugi brought up a hand, tangled it in Mokuba's hair and with great amusement, silently finished the words the first kiss had cut off.

No penalty.