A/N: I just thought of this earlier today around noon. I can't believe I got this whole thing written in just a few hours!

This oneshot demonstrates a common theme (Seto saving Joey from his abusive father), but I wanted it to be a bit different and wrote it mainly from Seto's POV. I know that Joey's POV has been done to death, so I wondered about how Seto would find out about his boyfriend's abuse and what started him wondering. Next thing I know, here we are!

I do not own the characters, just the plot of fluffiness! AW! SO FLUFFY!

Recently, Joey had been avoiding his boyfriend, and it was annoying Seto to no end.

Of course, weird occurrences are practically gospel with the strange relationship the two teens found themselves in.

Not six months ago, they were the bitterest of enemies, arch-rivals that detested the very presence of the other and were always quick to fight and quarrel.

Not five months ago, they had made a tentative truce and decided to become friends…or acquaintances…at best.

Not four months ago, they had become solid friends that would hang out on a regular basis, sharing their time, opinions, and general good humor, which they both surprisingly enjoyed.

And, last, but certainly not least, not three months ago, the repressed attractions and interest they each had secretly felt for the other had sprung up from their sturdy friendship and had blossomed into intimacy.

Seto couldn't help but feel surprised that such a short amount of time could produce the relationship that he and his blond boyfriend now enjoyed. Spending all that time together, mostly to get away from the downright cliché 'lovey-dovey' relationships of the rest of the gang, had ended up getting the two former enemies together, a seemingly impossible feat. Honestly, he hadn't seen it coming.

…Just like he hadn't seen this sudden dry spell of contact from his lover.

It all started a week ago when the blond had been a little late to a dinner date over at the brunet's mansion. The slight tardiness, a mere 15 minutes, wasn't anything to be too worried over since the blond explained about some accident downtown. Seto had accepted the reason instantly, and was much too content to think anymore of it when their chosen movie started and they spent the rest of the night cuddling on the couch.

But now that Seto thought of it, perhaps it had started as soon as Joey had walked in the front door. The way the blond had carried himself had seemed…off. From Seto's perspective, the blond looked tired and worn, like he just got off a double-shift at Yugi's Game Shop where he worked….Except that neither Yugi, Yami, nor Grandpa would even hear of making Joey work more than one shift without adequate notice or a very good reason, with compensation, of course.

The next thing to tip Seto off was when they were tucked together on the couch. It had been silently agreed upon the Joey would hog Seto's right side, latching on closely but not too tightly, and lean his head against Seto's shoulder. Of course, Seto had no problems with this since it guaranteed prime make-out opportunities when all he had to do was wait until Joey was fully engrossed in the movie, lean down, and lay a light kiss onto his head. This, in turn, would make Joey start and look up at him, blushing like a strawberry. And Seto just couldn't resist such a temptation in the form of his embarrassed, flushing Puppy.

However, that night, Joey had turned the tables and switched sides. As soon as Seto had sat down, Joey had carefully climbed over to his left side, and even more cautiously, laid his arms around the brunet's waist. Seto had raised an eyebrow at that, but since Joey had immediately turned his attention to the movie, Seto held his unimportant question for another time.

After that night, it seemed like Joey was fading out of his life. Seeing him in school wasn't a problem, since he had nearly every class with the blond. Sitting with him at lunch wasn't a concern either since the whole gang had accepted Seto into their group, freeing up a spot for him right beside Joey. But it seemed after school activities, like dates and walks, had reached an all time low. Joey would disappear as soon as the bell rang, with no more than a kiss on the cheek or quick peck on the lips, constantly shying away from hugs, only for Seto to see the blond's trailing back rocketing down the hallway without a single backward glance.

For the entire week, it felt like Joey had been hiding from him, like he was scared to even be around him.

…And that hurt.

Well, not anymore! Seto was going to find out just what his boyfriend was hiding. He didn't care what it was (he secretly did), he just wanted answers as to why Joey had been avoiding him!

…But what if it turns out that Joey was cheating on him? Oh Gods, that would hurt more than anything! He wouldn't be able to handle it if Joey had been seeing someone behind his back. That kind of betrayal Seto thought the worst of. If someone felt the need to string along two other people just because they were too cowardly to break it off with one of them, then they deserved being left by both! Such pathetic cowardice disgusted him.

Now, when this though ran through Seto's head, it had terrified him to his core. He could feel the cold fingers of hurt and broken pride wrap themselves around his stomach at the thought of his Puppy finding someone else to cuddle and kiss and spend time with. He just couldn't believe that Joey was capable of such a horrible thing! Calming himself before he reached panic level, he decided to think about it rationally.

Joey was a person that valued loyalty and honesty above everything else. That he knew for a fact. He'd seen the blond deck bigger and stronger guys just for playing jokes on others by lying to them and deceiving them in order to take advantage of them. He also never lied himself. Oh, he always tried to deflect the question if the truth was particularly brutal or blunt. However, when asked a direct inquiry to his face, Joey always told the truth, no matter what.

So why would he think that Joey would be such a hypocrite and be guilty of the same faults the blond hated in others? He couldn't. Joey just wasn't the type of person to be so cruel and underhanded. If Joey was really that dissatisfied with their relationship, the blond would have let him know. The fact that he had yet to receive that dreaded call or meeting, telling him they were over, just confused Seto even more.

After spending a good few hours in his office thinking it over, he had resolutely decided that Joey was NOT cheating on him. Something else must have happened. Running the facts through his head again, he stumbled on something. Joey had mentioned an accident downtown that had made him late for their date. Looking through their latest stack of newspapers, he checked to make sure the date was right and began to look through the articles. There wasn't a single accident report on any page. He even checked the next two days' papers. Nothing.

So, he was right in assuming that whatever had caused his Puppy to act this way, it had started the night of their last date. Whatever had made Joey late was the source of the blond's disappearances. But what was it?

He mentally reviewed his boyfriend's work schedule. Joey usually worked during the afternoons after school, when the young teen and kid crowd was at its strongest. He would help out the Mutou family by manning the counter, carrying boxes of new shipments, taking inventory, and helping little kids make their selections. Their date was set up for Saturday night, so Joey had not worked that day.

That left either friends or family.

Delving deep into his eidetic memory, Seto recalled hearing Yami, Bakura, Marik, and Tristan setting up their own dates with their significant others for that night as well. Something to do with a stupid bet over who could be the most romantic or whatnot. Seto highly doubted that Yugi, Ryou, Malik and Duke would have appreciated knowing that their special dates were all to win a bet. This led Seto to conclude that Joey wasn't held up with friends or surprise visits from friends before he came over.

That means it was family related.

However, this gave Seto pause. In reality, now that he thought of it, Seto barely knew anything about his boyfriend's family other than that his parents are divorced and that he has a younger sister. Thinking hard, Seto remembered a few times in their early friendship that whenever a question regarding family came up, Joey would either try to change the subject or clam up completely. In fact, just two weeks ago when a Parent's Day occurred at school, Joey barely said a word the whole day and had promptly disappeared when the parents started showed up.

Now, Seto at least understood why Joey might have wanted to sequester himself on that day since his parents never showed. He and his brother had been orphaned when they were quite young, so Seto knew the pain that a family function at school usually brings for those with a less than idyllic home life, so he had joined Joey for a quiet cuddle session in the back of the school library until the parents left. Deciding to avoid the whole issue of parents, Seto had expertly distracted Joey and himself for the whole hour. Coming back to the present, Seto now questioned the wisdom of that decision.

So now Seto had a problem. He had carefully deduced that Joey's recent behavior had something to do with his family, most likely his father since he was Joey's legal guardian. That only left one question. What had his father done to cause such a drastic change in his Puppy's behavior?

Perhaps he never told his father he was gay? That would definitely be a touchy subject for any family to deal with, regardless of the slight growth of gay and lesbian tolerance in society. Maybe his father was a closet homophobe and found out about their relationship? Maybe his father told him to stop seeing Seto, and Joey's recent actions were him trying to distance himself from Seto and their homosexual bond? But that didn't make sense either.

Seto had personally seen Joey defend his relationship with the CEO in front of a lot of people. He had even seen his beloved Puppy face a raging hormonal group of terrifying fan girls when they heard about Seto's taken status!

Now, Seto would never admit it on pain of death, but sometimes his fans were scary, even for a powerful CEO of a multi-billion dollar international corporation. The depths of their zealous devotion and borderline stalker tendencies just creeped Seto right the fuck out. It was one thing to find numerous love letters in his locker on a daily basis, and even the occasional banner and t-shirt with his face on it, but when a particularly crazed group had dented his reinforced steel guard gate during one of their 'mob' moments and sent one of his bodyguards to the hospital with a two broken legs and severe PTSD, it just became too much.

Seto will admit, though, that he had been concerned for his Pup's safety when they encountered the enraged group. He was about to call for his security team, grab his Puppy, and run like Hell when Joey had taken a stand. He had told them, in a firm, steely, practically frostbitten voice that if they had any ideas about trying to break the two of them up, even if they were girls, they would be dealing with an unstoppable wrath that not even Lucifer, King of Hell, could match. He told them, in detail, that they would find themselves in a sphere of pain and agony that they couldn't even imagine. The last glare that Joey sent their way, Seto could barely repress a shudder, even now, at the outright hostility, rage, and defiance that blazed in his Puppy's amber eyes.

When the once proud mob unfroze from their petrified positions, they stampeded in the opposite direction as quickly as humanly possible, and neither Seto nor Joey had heard a peep from them since.

So, okay, his Pup is honest and loyal, almost to a fault, and is definitely NOT ashamed of his homosexual orientation. Why wouldn't that apply to his father?

…Unless his father is the one person Joey can't stand up to. Then, he would have a problem. No one likes to disappoint their families. And considering the caring, loving heart his Puppy possessed, perhaps he was afraid he would disappoint his father so much that he would be abandoned. And recollecting how his mother had just left him behind, separating him from his sister for nearly six years, it was understandable that Joey wouldn't want the only family he had left to leave him.

Well, this madness was going to stop now. After analyzing all the possible reasons Joey was pulling away from him, Seto had decided that enough was enough. If Joey's father had such a problem with Joey being gay and being in a relationship with another boy, then his father never deserved to have Joey as a son. Steeling himself for the upcoming confrontation, Seto logged onto his computer and hacked into the school's records for Joey's address. Joey had conveniently forgotten to tell Seto where he lived, but now that he thought about it, perhaps that had been intentional on Joey's part. Avoiding unnecessary unforeseen confrontations (like the one about to happen), I guess.

Once he had retrieved and memorized the address, he logged off and left his office. He walked purposefully down the hallway, down the stairs, and towards the door. Entering his garage, he chose his favorite black mustang, fired up the engine, and sped off down the driveway.

Turning onto the street, he remembered the address, and realized that it was in the worst parts of town. Not exactly the dirtiest slums in Domino, but a close second. Maybe that was another reason why Joey never told Seto where he lived, he was ashamed of his place of residence and his neighborhood. Possible, but something to think about later. Right now, he needed to concentrate on how he was going to deal with Joey's father and his boyfriend's eventual wrath when he finds his lover unexpectedly on his front doorstep.

In roughly twenty minutes, Seto found himself cruising down darkened streets littered with trash, vagrants, and broken down buildings. Seeing the decay and ruin affecting everything around him, Seto wondered how Joey could look so happy all the time when he had to live in such a hopeless place? To see this neighborhood falling apart around you every morning when you go to school, Seto was surprised Joey even smiled at all when confronted with so much desolation. Finding the right street, Seto quickly found Joey's apartment complex…and almost wished he hadn't.

If the outer streets were bad, then this building was even worse. Seto could see was used to be a bright pastel blue hue on the walls, peeling, faded, and chipped while coated in grime and suspicious red-brown stains. The various windows of the building showed increasing states of neglect with cracks, chipped glass repaired by duck tape, and even a few bullet holes in different shutters. Being only slightly worried about his car in this neighborhood, Seto made his way over to the stairs. Looking at them, he was surprised they hadn't already collapsed. The wood was creaky and warped, slightly wavering with each step he took. He found that grabbing onto the handrail didn't help ease his fears since in most places, the rail wasn't even attached to the steps beneath him. Swallowing the nervous lump in his throat, Seto carefully climbed the steps to the second level.

Walking down the trashy hall to the final apartment, Seto hesitated for a moment. Behind this door were his boyfriend and his father, the love of his life and the reason why their relationship was taking a nosedive. Behind this door was a confrontation that would ultimately decide the future of their relationship. And that made Seto was nervous. Very nervous. Hostile takeovers and exploding islands he could handle, but dump him into a personal problem and Seto would become just another teenager, stumbling and anxious for it to be over. However, no matter how anxious he became, he was willing to risk it for Joey and what they had together. So with that final thought, he raised his hand and knocked on the door.

Almost immediately he heard a small crash from inside, accompanied by a loud, deep unintelligible voice that certainly didn't belong to Joey. He then heard quiet footsteps leading to the door before the knob turned.

"Look, we ain't interested in any-" Joey managed before he squeaked in shock at seeing his boyfriend at his front door. His eyes grew so wide they looked like dinner plates as the color drained from his face.

"Seto?" Joey whispered shrilly before whipping his head around, praying to God that his father hadn't heard him. When he turned back after hearing nothing, he fixed Seto with a harsh glare.

"What the Hell are you doing here?" Joey quietly demanded. Seto took the glare and calmly replied, hoping to keep his boyfriend's temper from flipping out.

"I came to see you and find out why you've been avoiding me this past week."

Hearing this come out of Seto's mouth, Joey quickly blushed and fidgeted with his oversized old shirt. He couldn't tell Seto why he had been flaking on him lately. Seto would never accept it. He'd break up with him on the spot, the blond had convinced himself. He just couldn't tell him! He had to get Seto out of here!

"Seto, I think you need to leave. This neighborhood is dangerous." Oh, yes, remind your rich boyfriend what kind of trash he's dating. But Seto didn't move from his doorway.

"I'm not leaving without an answer, Joey. I know it has something to do with your father."

Joey's eyes grew wide again as he nearly slumped against the door and began to stutter. "H-h-how do you k-know that?"

"I thought about it. It started when you were late to our dinner date last Saturday. I know you would never cheat on me, since you hate dishonesty with a passion. It wasn't your job since you don't work on the weekends. And I know it wasn't your friends since they were all on dates that night as well. That only left your family, and since you live with your father, he is the most likely suspect."

Joey just stood there, gaping at how Seto had so clearly rooted out the source. Of course, it was his father's fault! But he couldn't let Seto find out exactly how it was his father's fault. The brunet would leave him for sure if he ever found out!

Seto watched the emotions play across his Puppy's face. There was shock, as expected, but also fear and shame. Joey was hiding something very bad if he was reacting this way when usually any other threat would be shrugged off. He had to find out what it was! Hoping to soothe his lover into revealing his secrets, Seto slowly approached the blond and began to wrap his arms around him. He was hoping to distract Joey with a bit of cuddling so he could ask his question up front. But, this plan was derailed when as soon as Seto put the slightest pressure on his sides Joey quietly whimpered and cringed away from his touch.

Seto's mind came to a screeching halt when he saw his Pup's face scrunch up in pain. Putting two and two together, Seto's gaze hardened.

Joey realized that he had royally messed up when he saw Seto's eyes darken and his face form what he called the 'terrifying-psycho-don't-push-me-bitch' CEO face. Shrinking back from his boyfriend, Joey was shocked to find his arms held firmly, but not hurtfully, in the brunet's hands. He watched Seto's eyes travel from his face to his waist and watched helplessly as one pale hand reached for the hem of the old shirt and lifted it up. Joey could feel tears filling his eyes because he knew what the brunet would find. What met Seto's gaze must not have been too pretty since the brunet's stoic features exploded into shock and horror.

And it wasn't.

Seto was horrified to see large, dark purple and black bruises littering the golden skin of Joey's torso. Mainly on Joey's left side, the edges barely beginning to heal. Well, that explains why Joey switched sides on him during their date. He couldn't have taken his usual place without experiencing devastating pain and giving the bruises away. Looking up, he saw crystal tears sliding down Joey's face, his eyes clenched tightly shut as he began to shake. Seeing the fear and sadness reflected on his boyfriend's face, Seto felt his heart twist.

He slowly reached up to wipe away the tears, startling Joey out of his tension to look up at him with heartbreaking scared eyes. Giving Joey a small, supportive smile, Seto held him close but not close enough to irritate his injuries. And with a calm but firm voice he asked the one question that had consumed his mind when he saw the bruises.

"Who did this to you?"

Joey jumped again, trying to look away from Seto's determine blue eyes, but couldn't from the hand holding his face in place.

"W-w-what makes y-you-"

"Just stop, Puppy. You're a terrible liar and hate lying anyway. Please, tell me who hurt you."

Forced to look deep into Seto's eyes, Joey found his resolve breaking. He couldn't keep his secret anymore. Not when Seto was looking at him like that! He hated lying to the brunet about anything, that's why he always kept his mouth shut whenever the subject of family popped up. It was better to not say anything at all instead of lying to his boyfriend, Joey believed. It had worked…until now.

Sighing in emotional exhaustion, and preparing for the inevitable breakup that was sure to follow, Joey replied.

"My dad."

The silence that followed could have been cut with a knife. Joey could feel his eye begin to betray him again as they started to fill with more tears. Wrenching his face away, he hid his eyes beneath his shaggy blond bangs, just waiting for Seto to tell him how weak he was and how he never wanted to see the blond again.

I KNEW IT WOULD NEVER WORK OUT! WHY WAS I SO STUPID NOT TO REALIZE IT SOONER! I knew that if he ever found out, he'd dump me for the trash I am! I just knew-

"You're moving in with me. Tonight."

I can't believe he found out! I-

"WHAT?"

"I said that you're moving in with me. The sooner, the better, which will be tonight. No way in Hell I'm leaving you here with that son of a bitch!" Seto growled, holding the blond closer to him.

Joey could only gape at him for a second time at the unexpected offer.

"But, Seto-"

"JOEY? WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU, WORTHLESS MUTT?" Joey's father shouted angrily, instinctively causing Joey to flinch away from the voice. Seto's eyes hardened with rage at hearing those insults being screamed from another room in the small apartment. Seto barely realized he was moving towards that voice until Joey grabbed onto his arm to stop him.

"Seto, please, stop. Don't-"

"No, Joey. I'm not letting you stay here with him. We're getting your stuff and we're going back to the mansion where it's safe. Puppy…let me protect the one I love."

This last sentence was whispered gently, tenderly, into Joey's ear, causing his heart to stop as his arms fell limp. Joey turned his bright honey eyes to Seto's warm cerulean ones, and for the first time, saw the unrestrained love and care radiating from them. Seto really loved him! He honest to God loved him!

Feeling Joey let go of his arm, Seto continued into the apartment, stopping short of what was considered their living room/dining room/kitchen where a large, beefy balding blond man sat in a stained reclining chair surrounded by beer bottles. Even from eight feet away, the smell of liquor was almost overwhelming. Turning back to look at Joey, he could see a fearful expression take over the blond's face…fearful, but with a small dash of hope. He smiled once more at his boyfriend before walking further into the room.

"Dammit, brat, what the Hell took you so long?" Joey's father slurred before turning around to see, not his worthless son, but a complete stranger. "Who the fuck're you?"

"The name is Seto Kaiba, your son's boyfriend."Seto replied in a haughty sounding monotone. Joey's father reared back in anger and shock.

"WHAT'D YOU MEAN 'BOYFRIEND'? JOEY, GET YOUR WORTHLESS FAGGOT ASS IN HERE!" His father shouted, stumbling out of the chair.

"First of all, your son is NOT a faggot. The term is gay. And secondly, he isn't coming. He doesn't need some drunk fool beating him and hurting him anymore. He's moving in with me. Now." The finality of Seto's tone demanded no argument. Too bad Joey's father was too drunk to catch on.

"There no way in Hell that he's going to live with your faggoty ass!" Joey's father rebelled, moving threateningly towards Seto. Seto just smirked at the perfect opportunity to expel some of his anger over the whole situation. When Joey's father staggered into striking distance, Seto let loose with a hard, jarring right hook, catching Wheeler Sr. in the chin and knocking him flat on his back, out cold.

When he deemed the drunk man to be completely unconscious, Seto turned back to see Joey leaning heavily against the door frame. His amber eyes were streaming with copious tears, but the smile on his face was blinding. Joey immediately rushed forward to catch hold of Seto's torso, disregarding his wounds for the moment, and cried into his chest. Seto, ecstatic to finally have his Puppy back in his arms, held him firmly with respect to his bruised ribs and sides. He allowed his boyfriend to cry out his sadness, happiness, and relief at finally being set free from his hidden abuse. Seto had found him when he needed it most, and rescued him.

After the tears had slowed, he looked up at Seto and smiled again before leaning up to catch his lover's lips in a kiss. He submissively allowed Seto to dominate his mouth, relishing the feeling of Seto's tongue caressing his own, tasting and teasing and comforting. He felt the brunet's arms snake around to the back of his head, holding him still to continue the long-awaited victory kiss.

Seto felt like he was on cloud nine when Joey lifted his head for a kiss, the first real kiss in almost a whole week. Instantly feeling the blond's mouth open to him, he couldn't control his desire to reclaim his territory by thoroughly exploring the familiar warmth and flavor of his honey-eyed lover. Moving his tongue and lips with expert ease, he kept the kiss going until they were both out of breath and panting with pleasure.

Seeing Joey's amber eyes look up at him, filled with reciprocated love and desire, warmed Seto's heart. But as much as Seto would have liked to continue making out with Joey, they had business to finish up. Looking down at Joey's father to confirm that he was still out cold, Seto looked back at Joey with a determined gaze.

"Where's your room? We're packing you up while we have the chance and getting out of here."

Joey nodded solemnly and led Seto over to a battered door on the side.

When he opened the door, Seto was glad that he had made it just in time. Joey's room was barely considered a room at all. The only furniture that the four walls contained was an old stained mattress on a flimsy box spring, covered by a single measly sheet and flattened pillow. Looking to the side of the mattress was a small dresser made of boxes, two stacked on top of the other. The rest of the room had nothing but dingy carpet and dented walls. Seto didn't want to contemplate how the walls became littered with scars since he didn't exactly want to be charged with murder if he thought about it too much. He watched Joey glance sheepishly at the room, obviously embarrassed over how bad it looked. Seto rubbed his arm in comfort before gesturing where his stuff was.

Joey walked over to the two boxes and began to open them, carefully taking out his only two school uniforms, some extra t-shirts, two pairs of jeans, some socks, some boxers, and a medium sized duffel bag. Arranging everything in the bag and topping it off with his Duel Monsters deck, he zipped up the side and put it on his shoulder. Turning around, he started walking towards the door and Seto.

For Seto, watching his boyfriend pack what seemed like a weekend's worth of clothes caused his stomach to plummet to his feet. He NEVER knew that Joey had so little to his name, so little to live off of from day to day. Well, not anymore. He fully intended to supply Joey with everything he needed as soon as they were settled in the mansion. He would personally make sure that Joey wanted for nothing.

Taking Joey's hand into his own, he started walking towards the door but was held back when Joey stopped. Looking back with a contemplative expression on his face, Joey smirked what could only be described as a 'Kaiba' smirk.

And now the Seto saw what the 'Kaiba' smirk looked like for himself, he finally understood why everyone thought he was scary looking at times.

He watched with great interest as Joey slowly walked over to the prone, unconscious form of his father. Taking a second to look at him, Joey smirked again before rearing back and landing a punishing kick to his father's nuts. The balding man surfaced to consciousness for only a moment, long enough to let out a high-pitched girly squeal, curl up into a fetal position, and fall unconscious again. Nodding his head, Joey turned around to bounce back to his boyfriend's side and take his had again.

Seto just looked at him. "What?" Seto jerked his head towards the curled up form on the old carpet.

"Hey, I've been wanting to do that for years. Let me have my moment." Seto sighed before kissing the blond's forehead.

"Okay, Pup, whatever you say. Now let's go home."

"Home?" Seto looked down at the innocent question, finding the adorable sight of his Pup tilting his head to the side like a real Labrador puppy. He couldn't stop the loving, happy smile that came over his face.

"Yes, Pup. Home."

A/N: I feel so awesome for cranking this out in one day! Now, I know I should be working on Dreams of Wonderland, and I am! Just, not at the moment obviously. I'm brainstorming ideas for the next chapter since the last disappointed me.

BUT HAVE NO FEAR, MY DARLING READERS, I WILL RETURN WITH AN EVEN BETTER, FUNNIER, AWESOMER CHAPTER THAN BEFORE! And do you know why! ~.^

WE HAVE A NEW CHARACTER JOINING THE GROUP! SO STAY TUNED FOR THE NEXT EXCITING EPISODE OF DREAMS! OF! WONDERLAND! XD