#but because it's Jounouchi he is irrationally angry

[alectoperdita]

Listening to yesterday's Vergecast episode where they interviewed someone who runs an independent HomePod repair service, including the fact that he will stream the repairs he does so people can be involved and also learn about the process.

And that got me thinking about Jounouchi and his Duel Disk. In DSOD, we see Honda repairing Jounounchi's. But what if eventually Honda gets too busy to help him out and he just has to try and fix it on his own. Because he sure as hell isn't going to pay an arm and a leg to use the official KC repair service.

He starts by googling and watching tutorials made by others who are in a similar situation as him. And he's able to put it into practice for other people, breathing new life into Duel Disks that fellow duelists are convinced are gone and resigned to buying the newest model from KC.

Now in terms of scale, Jounouchi can't significantly affect Kaiba's bottom line. He's just one guy and he's repairing the Duel Disks of people who would otherwise be hard-pressed to upgrade anyway. There are always going to be people who want the newest and shiniest.

But when he finds out that Jounouchi has a booming small business of refurbishing last-gen Duel Disks, Kaiba gets pissed. He gets pissed for all the reasons. One, Jounouchi is probably violating some warranty terms. Two, who does Jounouchi think he is, digging through the guts of Kaiba's products?? Three, Jounouchi!!! HOW DARE?!?!

Jounouchi gets slammed with a cease and desist. And that can only mean one thing: war.

[alectoperdita]

aughghghhg i need to draw but i have too many questions to ask!!

It's literally going to be too long so I put it under keep reading HAHAHA

Have you thought of a few scenarios yet...? 👀

from this post

Mitsurugi would probably be suspicious that Kaiba has gotten involved with something shady. Jou's not exactly subtle in his signifiers about being in the yakuza. As for Naruhodo, that likely depends on the context in which they meet? If it's in a social setting, like both pairs just ran into each other on the street and made introductions, Naruhodo might just think Jou's a friendly guy. I mean his best friend is Larry, so not like Naruhodo doesn't already have friends that act kinda shady. 😅

Ohh yeahh! Actually I thought regardless of what scenario Naruhodo meets mob joey, his first impression would be like a mix between Larry (friendliness?) and Klavier (because Jou oozes that charisma + suaveness and flashiness).

Also I think (hmm, maybe you think otherwise) but Naruhodo would be able to tell that they're dating(?) if he notices Kaiba's body language, such as looking more relaxed and not as much tense, and letting Jou like, let's say put a hand on Kaiba's shoulder for example.

this one you posted

Seto's a complete simp for Jou. It's only going to get worse as time passes. 😂

How so.... 👀👀👀 I would like to know... or will it be shown later in the fic?

Seto is intensely possessive and jealous, and he's terrible at hiding it. Does his best not to think of what other people Jounouchi might be fooling around with when he's not around (Jounouchi is not sleeping with other people but God forbid they actually communicate), but knows he can't begrudge them because they never agreed to be in a relationship.

What examples do you have in mind where he shows his jealousy without Jou in presence? 👀 Maybe for example, he's sitting at his desk typing out and suddenly he recalls his image of Jou in his douchey jacket from Ch 3 and sitting next to the hostesses?

I think the main hesitation with doing the "Jou kills Gozaburo and Seto helps him cover it up" is that it would have immense impact on the tone of the story. I could do it as part of a series, so that this earlier reconnection stuff is somewhat separated from a more serious murder cover-up plot.

In general, I don't think Jounouchi would do this lightly/in cold blood. It would have to be in defense of Seto, as in Seto is in immediate grave danger unless Jounouchi stepped in. There's also the possibility of Jounouchi doing it in revenge of some great wrong Gozaburo might have done to Seto. That said, I can't come up with any reason I like that doesn't feel overdramatic.

But it's still a fun scenario to consider.

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Oooo I had forgotten about Klavier. I haven't played the Apollo Justice games yet. But yeah, I can see how Naruhodo would recognize a bit of that showy/flashy vibe from Klavier.

It's true, though. Jounouchi is a tactile guy. And it's in character for him as a gangster to be touchy and close, like slinging an arm over Seto's shoulders. In this case, he's not doing it to intimidate or unsettle Seto. He just wants to be close to Seto cuz he likes him and he understands what he can get away with with the persona he plays in public. What is most telling to Naruhodo is tglhat Seto allows Jounouchi to do that and hover in his personal space.

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Seto is very thirsty for Jounouchi. His mind can't help but go in the gutter/right to sex when he's near Jounouchi. He gets so irrationally angry about Jounouchi's fashion sense sometimes, yet he can't get him alone and fuck him fast enough. And then there are the times when Jounouchi's clothing doesn't offend him, he's just kinda weak for him. Jounouchi in a leather jacket is his ultimate weakness. 🤣

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He and Jounouchi text a lot. So I imagine that Jounouchi also likes telling Seto about the stuff happening around him, like other employees at the club. In fact, I think a lot of the times they're texting is later at night so Jounouchi is usually at the club. Might occasionally take selfies and send them to Seto, sometimes with other employees or club goers/regulars. That's guaranteed to drive Seto a little batty. Especially if he's writing late-night documents/emails, and then all he can think about is Jounouchi dancing and drinking with other people in the club. Has half a mind to slam his work laptop shut and go down to the club himself. Jounouchi's always trying to convince him to go...

[alectoperdita]

Hi there I luv your fics and so happy to have found your tumblr 'Meeting upon the threshold' made me fall back into by first OTP again. Curious what after affects you think would happen in that verse would canonKaiba just repress everything or would he end up thinking about that world again and again. What would happen if he fell back in there again? Thx U for making me fall back into KaiJou hell.

Aww, thank you anon. Always brings a smile to my face to hear people enjoy my writing. I adore this ship so much and love sharing in the love with others.

Meeting upon the threshold is a fic that falls under one of my favorite motifs to write: Kaiba vs. Kaiba. In this case, it's a post-manga/DSOD Kaiba vs a post-DM anime Kaiba.

As for what happens after the short, post-DSOD Kaiba goes back to his world and probably doesn't think about it for a long time. In actuality, that's what he claims and tries to do, but once in a while, it'll pop up in his head. To the point where he gets irrationally angry after the first few times. Because it's so ridiculous. Him with another person? Especially someone as mediocre as Jounouchi? What could any version of him possibly see in Jounouchi?

It can go several ways from there.

One, Kaiba tracks down the Jounouchi of his world. He's anything from pleasant and seems to mostly use it as an opportunity to take his frustrations on someone. Jounouchi is shocked at first because he hasn't seen Kaiba in years (probably close to a decade). Then he's just angry and isn't going to take Kaiba's shit lying down. I doubt the meeting ends amicably. But because Kaiba is so prone to fixation, he might turn up again later. Maybe from there a spark of reconnection can be rekindled, however slowly.

Two is the more toxic route. Kaiba is angry, and he often feels compelled to crush what angers him. So maybe he finds a way back to that parallel universe with the goal of breaking up Seto and Katsuya. At first glance, he's nearly identical to Seto. Especially to the people who are not close to Seto. As for how he's considering breaking the two of them up? I kinda have this vision of him trying to trick Katsuya into bed. How does this make sense? He is the same Kaiba that decided to confirm their relationship by kissing Katsuya instead of like asking, lol. This Kaiba's a seething mess of emotions he refuses to understand/process. And I imagine if he managed to succeed, that probably only complicates things further. 😈

So take your pick! And I hope you enjoy your stay in Kaijou hell! <3