Truth of Heart
Disclaimer-I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! And probably never will.
This fic-my first on this site-is about a girl named Alumniera, an old friend of the Kaiba Brothers. NOT a Mary Sue fic! Anyway, she gains possession of the Millennium Scales, and soon she seeks out Yugi Muto for information, when she gets pulled into a situation where Kaiba is kidnapped.
/ ____ / Yugi to Yami
\ ____ \ Yami to Yugi
P.S. I changed these into .txt files, so now if the punctuation is messed it isn't anymore! That was because if it was on any Encoding besides Chinese Traditional it was completely unreadable...
_______________________________________________________________________
CHAPTER 1-ALUMNIERA
| SEKAI HOUSEHOLD |
Alumniera twisted in bed, rustling the silk covers. As she turned, she made out the dark outline of the Millennium Scales sitting on her drawer. She sucked in her lips. It was that thing...that non-living thing...which had caused her so much worry. Why was it, now, that it was hers? She sat up quietly, and pushed off the blankets. Reaching for the Scales, she cradled it in her arms. For some reason, she thought that it ought to belong to her...that would explain why the same Eye on the Scales was on the altar her mother and ancestors had bowed down to for so many years. But then again...the Scale seemed to hold so much power...power that she didn't deserve. Power, like Shadi had said-" Power can be one's enemy as much as one's friend." Closing her eyes, she remembered.
******Flashback******
The brutal sun shone down unmercifully upon the bustling Marketplace. A lone girl, known by the name Alumniera, walked through the streets, glancing at merchandise. Egypt was quite new for her-the strange people that crowded the streets, the silence that you felt but didn't hear. The cream-colored silk aoku she wore graced the fact that she was a visitor, and her clear, deep, sea-blue eyes complimented her pale face. Cascades of straight, thin jet-black hair tumbled to her shoulder blades; the few strands of hair behind her ears were curlicues that gently fell down her back. As she made her way up the path, a glimpse of a man in a white turban caught her attention. The man himself seemed to be studying her, but flipped his back and continued briskly toward his destination. Alumniera followed, curious. The girl rounded a corner to an alleyway. The streets were deserted. She turned, searching for the man. A hand closed around her mouth. Alumniera started, surprised. " Heed my warning," the man whispered, " Do not follow me, or you will be led to power beyond your imagination, and beyond your stature." He pivoted and went forth. Alumniera rounded, prepared to go back...but soon she was following the man, down a street, descending upon a pair of old stone steps... The man turned suddenly. Alumniera stepped back in alarm. " I..." The man's eyes gleamed, not with anger, but with...something else. " So you have chosen to disregard my warning. For this you will be tested." He turned, and a Scale with an eye on it was in his hand. The girl froze in fear. The Scale held a feather...a single, pure white feather. The other held nothing, but she could see that the feather was tilting up...then down. " Your heart is true," the man murmured, " I am Shadi. You are chosen for this Millennium Item, for it has chosen you as well. " He handed her the Scales. As soon as Alumniera hands made contact with the smooth metal, she felt herself suddenly floating away to another world...and her dead mother was there, smiling. " Alumniera...how I have missed you." " Mother? But...how can it be? I saw you buried!" she exclaimed. She came back to the real world with a start. " She was there," the girl burst into broken sobs, " I saw her, I saw her!" Shadi looked at her skeptically. " Desire is an unworthy thing," he managed, " But can be satisfied. You will have to work for it, but remember this always-'Power can be one's enemy as much as one's friend'." Then he was gone.
******End Flashback******
| DOMINO HIGH: AFTER SCHOOL |
" At least we had a sub in math. No homework." Tea mused. " Gah. Science was worse, the teach was all in a mood, and she gave tons." Joey amended bitterly. " Do any of you want to go to catch a soda or something? I don't know about any of you, but I'm starving." Yugi said, grinning. Just then a pallid white limo drove up to Kaiba Corp. " That's not Kaiba's car..." Bakura blinked. Joey whistled. " Whoever owns that is loaded. " They weren't kept in suspense long about the owner, because a young girl in an old-fashioned traditional outfit stepped out. " She looks important," whispered Tea. " Yeah." Yugi answered, frowning. Joey whistled again. " And she is hot." Tea elbowed him in the ribs. " Hey! What was that for?" he said, rubbing the spot. " She's younger than you by at least two years, idiot," she hissed. " So?" asked Joey boldly. Tea jogged him in the ribs again. Meanwhile Yugi was mind talking with his Yami.
/ She looks familiar... /
\ I recognize her from something... \
/ What? /
\ I'm not sure...it's somewhere in the back of my mind. \
/ She's not dangerous, though, right? /
\ I doubt it. \
/Should we talk to her? /
\Let's see what she's doing at Kaiba Corporation first, and then find out more. \
| KAIBA CORPORATION |
" Hey, guys?" Yugi interrupted. " I'm going to go home first...I think I left-er, something there and I need it." Tea looked concerned. " Do you want us to go with you?" she asked. " Uh, no...no, just go get something to eat, I'll catch up with you guys later," he finished quickly. As soon as his friends were out of sight, he transformed into Yami. Slowly, Yami made his way up the marble steps of Kaiba Corp. Surprisingly, the girl was headed toward the mansion, where Mokuba and Seto Kaiba both lived. Yami frowned, puzzled. This girl wasn't here on business? He followed her, and went into the house with her, hiding behind the opened door. " Miss Sekai," said the butler curtly, " Shall I inform Kaiba of your visit?" The girl shook her dark head. " No. I've come to see Mokuba...I'll see myself to his room, thank you," she replied, her clear voice tinted with an English accent. " Very well," answered the butler dryly, and he left the room. Yami blinked, pondering how he was going to get to Mokuba's room without being seen. Inside his mind, Yugi snapped his fingers. " Mokuba once told me about a passageway he used to spy on other people...it should be right around...here!" After tapping a small ivory knob protruding out of the wall, it cleared to reveal a dark pathway. Yami closed the entrance, then walked through the hall, following the sound of the girl's footsteps on the floor above. Soon the hall leveled out, and Yami was there.
As he peered through a small hole cut in the wall, apparently for Mokuba's convenience, he spotted Mokuba himself playing a video game. He was pressing the buttons on the controller, his eyes glued to the screen when there was a knock on the door. Mokuba jumped. He hastily turned off the television, and jammed the controller under his bed. The young boy quickly dug out his homework and put it on his desk, then went to open the door. Yami smiled, amused. The girl beamed when she saw him, and Mokuba seemed to exhale a sigh of relief. " I thought you were my brother," he greeted her. " No," laughed the girl, " You've been playing video games right? Before doing your homework?" she added slyly. Mokuba grinned. " What do you need, Alumniera?" Alumniera sucked in her lips, then hesitantly spoke, not sure if she was doing the right thing. " Mokuba, do you recognize this?" she asked softly, pulling out something from behind her back. Yami's eyes widened. A Millennium Item! Mokuba studied it for a moment, then took it in his hand, and squinted. " I've seen the design before...the eye, I mean...on a friend of mine's neck." The girl's blue eyes grew larger. " Where?" she rasped.
" Well...his name's Yugi Muto, but I don't think..." Mokuba answered doubtfully. Yami bent closer toward the hole. " Don't think what?" Alumniera asked quietly. " Seto would kill me if I turned to him...you see, my brother doesn't... doesn't like him much," he added reluctantly. " Well...I'll send a messenger to ask for his presence one day, then," she resolved. Yami continued to spy, much more alert. " Hey, Alumniera..." Mokuba interrupted, as she stood up to leave, " Why didn't you ask Seto instead?" Alumniera averted her gaze, then thoughtfully said, " Seto...well, if I came and wanted to ask Seto something, he would probably send a message saying he was too busy." Mokuba thought about the days when he himself was unable to talk to Seto, because he was always working on projects or his computer. " But...you're his friend." Alumniera smiled ruefully. " Being a friend of his doesn't get me all the time he has on earth. Your brother...he's just- like that." As he turned away, Mokuba struggled with his mind, thinking of the brother he knew from his childhood, and the one that was always busy.
Alumniera looked back. The poor child, she thought, her thirteen-year old sympathy kicking in. Turning back, she dropped down softly next to Mokuba. " Has Kaiba ever told you how I met him?" she implored. Mokuba tilted his head, realizing his brother hadn't. " No." The girl tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. Yami's ears perked up in interest. Alumniera's eyes misted over as she began her story. Or to her, a memory. " You see, I met your brother when I was eight. You were five, he was ten. Gozaburo Kaiba, your adoptive father, was a friend of my father's. Gozaburo-your father-was training Seto as his successor, and as I was the top martial arts karate child competitor in the country at the moment-" " You were?" interrupted Mokuba. Alumniera laughed when she saw the look on his face. " It came to me as easily as video games do for you, and though I was only eight...well, then I was directed to combat with him." Mokuba's eyes widened. " You mean fight?" Alumniera nodded wirily.
" I was doubtful when I first saw him. Though he was two years older than me, I was tall for my age and only two or three inches shorter. He didn't seem to have much skill, but there was a stoic passion in his eyes...I've never forgotten it. I knew he could probably jump on someone and force something out of him-but all the karate moves? Impossible. I took up beginning stance-he did so as well. Now that I think about it, I don't suppose he actually had any instruction. In the beginning, I passed out a few lazy punches and kicks-Seto dodged them all, and his eyes never left what I was doing. He seemed to be...observing, almost. After that I started to aim with harder strokes, and he blocked them all, then mirrored some of the moves I just made. It was incredible. In that hour, I felt he had learned everything it had taken me to learn in a year, and we made absolutely no progress as we blocked and kicked, dodged and punched. I didn't speak to him at all that first time. Then they kept us at it everyday, alone in the courtyard, and I stopped to tell the names of the moves and how to use them. But when I found him in a room-"
" Alumniera, thank you for the touching story," interrupted a voice curtly from the doorway, " That will be enough." Mokuba snapped back to reality, and he flushed when he saw the anger in his brother's eyes. Alumniera blinked slowly, then stood and held her gaze with Seto's glare. " He-shouldn't-know," said Kaiba, between gritted teeth. As they talked, Yami wondered incredulously what Mokuba 'shouldn't know', and what had changed when Alumniera had found young Kaiba in the room... Instinctively, Yami tried to press even closer to the small hole for a better view. " It was a matter of time, Seto," she began quietly, " I can not believe that you would keep the truth away from him for so long. Your brother himself doesn't understand why you've changed, and he has reached for false clues that will lead him to no where but lies," she replied coolly. Kaiba glowered. " It was weakness. I can't tolerate it," responded Kaiba spitefully. " As weak as not being able to reveal the truth?" retorted Alumniera softly. " There are some things meant not to be told," he answered acidly. Kaiba turned away. " Come on, Mokuba. You can leave on your own?" he asked in a final tone. Alumniera's eyes gleamed. " Of course."
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Review away! Flame or compliment...whatever. Next chap. should be out soon...more Kaiba in that one.
Disclaimer-I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! And probably never will.
This fic-my first on this site-is about a girl named Alumniera, an old friend of the Kaiba Brothers. NOT a Mary Sue fic! Anyway, she gains possession of the Millennium Scales, and soon she seeks out Yugi Muto for information, when she gets pulled into a situation where Kaiba is kidnapped.
/ ____ / Yugi to Yami
\ ____ \ Yami to Yugi
P.S. I changed these into .txt files, so now if the punctuation is messed it isn't anymore! That was because if it was on any Encoding besides Chinese Traditional it was completely unreadable...
_______________________________________________________________________
CHAPTER 1-ALUMNIERA
| SEKAI HOUSEHOLD |
Alumniera twisted in bed, rustling the silk covers. As she turned, she made out the dark outline of the Millennium Scales sitting on her drawer. She sucked in her lips. It was that thing...that non-living thing...which had caused her so much worry. Why was it, now, that it was hers? She sat up quietly, and pushed off the blankets. Reaching for the Scales, she cradled it in her arms. For some reason, she thought that it ought to belong to her...that would explain why the same Eye on the Scales was on the altar her mother and ancestors had bowed down to for so many years. But then again...the Scale seemed to hold so much power...power that she didn't deserve. Power, like Shadi had said-" Power can be one's enemy as much as one's friend." Closing her eyes, she remembered.
******Flashback******
The brutal sun shone down unmercifully upon the bustling Marketplace. A lone girl, known by the name Alumniera, walked through the streets, glancing at merchandise. Egypt was quite new for her-the strange people that crowded the streets, the silence that you felt but didn't hear. The cream-colored silk aoku she wore graced the fact that she was a visitor, and her clear, deep, sea-blue eyes complimented her pale face. Cascades of straight, thin jet-black hair tumbled to her shoulder blades; the few strands of hair behind her ears were curlicues that gently fell down her back. As she made her way up the path, a glimpse of a man in a white turban caught her attention. The man himself seemed to be studying her, but flipped his back and continued briskly toward his destination. Alumniera followed, curious. The girl rounded a corner to an alleyway. The streets were deserted. She turned, searching for the man. A hand closed around her mouth. Alumniera started, surprised. " Heed my warning," the man whispered, " Do not follow me, or you will be led to power beyond your imagination, and beyond your stature." He pivoted and went forth. Alumniera rounded, prepared to go back...but soon she was following the man, down a street, descending upon a pair of old stone steps... The man turned suddenly. Alumniera stepped back in alarm. " I..." The man's eyes gleamed, not with anger, but with...something else. " So you have chosen to disregard my warning. For this you will be tested." He turned, and a Scale with an eye on it was in his hand. The girl froze in fear. The Scale held a feather...a single, pure white feather. The other held nothing, but she could see that the feather was tilting up...then down. " Your heart is true," the man murmured, " I am Shadi. You are chosen for this Millennium Item, for it has chosen you as well. " He handed her the Scales. As soon as Alumniera hands made contact with the smooth metal, she felt herself suddenly floating away to another world...and her dead mother was there, smiling. " Alumniera...how I have missed you." " Mother? But...how can it be? I saw you buried!" she exclaimed. She came back to the real world with a start. " She was there," the girl burst into broken sobs, " I saw her, I saw her!" Shadi looked at her skeptically. " Desire is an unworthy thing," he managed, " But can be satisfied. You will have to work for it, but remember this always-'Power can be one's enemy as much as one's friend'." Then he was gone.
******End Flashback******
| DOMINO HIGH: AFTER SCHOOL |
" At least we had a sub in math. No homework." Tea mused. " Gah. Science was worse, the teach was all in a mood, and she gave tons." Joey amended bitterly. " Do any of you want to go to catch a soda or something? I don't know about any of you, but I'm starving." Yugi said, grinning. Just then a pallid white limo drove up to Kaiba Corp. " That's not Kaiba's car..." Bakura blinked. Joey whistled. " Whoever owns that is loaded. " They weren't kept in suspense long about the owner, because a young girl in an old-fashioned traditional outfit stepped out. " She looks important," whispered Tea. " Yeah." Yugi answered, frowning. Joey whistled again. " And she is hot." Tea elbowed him in the ribs. " Hey! What was that for?" he said, rubbing the spot. " She's younger than you by at least two years, idiot," she hissed. " So?" asked Joey boldly. Tea jogged him in the ribs again. Meanwhile Yugi was mind talking with his Yami.
/ She looks familiar... /
\ I recognize her from something... \
/ What? /
\ I'm not sure...it's somewhere in the back of my mind. \
/ She's not dangerous, though, right? /
\ I doubt it. \
/Should we talk to her? /
\Let's see what she's doing at Kaiba Corporation first, and then find out more. \
| KAIBA CORPORATION |
" Hey, guys?" Yugi interrupted. " I'm going to go home first...I think I left-er, something there and I need it." Tea looked concerned. " Do you want us to go with you?" she asked. " Uh, no...no, just go get something to eat, I'll catch up with you guys later," he finished quickly. As soon as his friends were out of sight, he transformed into Yami. Slowly, Yami made his way up the marble steps of Kaiba Corp. Surprisingly, the girl was headed toward the mansion, where Mokuba and Seto Kaiba both lived. Yami frowned, puzzled. This girl wasn't here on business? He followed her, and went into the house with her, hiding behind the opened door. " Miss Sekai," said the butler curtly, " Shall I inform Kaiba of your visit?" The girl shook her dark head. " No. I've come to see Mokuba...I'll see myself to his room, thank you," she replied, her clear voice tinted with an English accent. " Very well," answered the butler dryly, and he left the room. Yami blinked, pondering how he was going to get to Mokuba's room without being seen. Inside his mind, Yugi snapped his fingers. " Mokuba once told me about a passageway he used to spy on other people...it should be right around...here!" After tapping a small ivory knob protruding out of the wall, it cleared to reveal a dark pathway. Yami closed the entrance, then walked through the hall, following the sound of the girl's footsteps on the floor above. Soon the hall leveled out, and Yami was there.
As he peered through a small hole cut in the wall, apparently for Mokuba's convenience, he spotted Mokuba himself playing a video game. He was pressing the buttons on the controller, his eyes glued to the screen when there was a knock on the door. Mokuba jumped. He hastily turned off the television, and jammed the controller under his bed. The young boy quickly dug out his homework and put it on his desk, then went to open the door. Yami smiled, amused. The girl beamed when she saw him, and Mokuba seemed to exhale a sigh of relief. " I thought you were my brother," he greeted her. " No," laughed the girl, " You've been playing video games right? Before doing your homework?" she added slyly. Mokuba grinned. " What do you need, Alumniera?" Alumniera sucked in her lips, then hesitantly spoke, not sure if she was doing the right thing. " Mokuba, do you recognize this?" she asked softly, pulling out something from behind her back. Yami's eyes widened. A Millennium Item! Mokuba studied it for a moment, then took it in his hand, and squinted. " I've seen the design before...the eye, I mean...on a friend of mine's neck." The girl's blue eyes grew larger. " Where?" she rasped.
" Well...his name's Yugi Muto, but I don't think..." Mokuba answered doubtfully. Yami bent closer toward the hole. " Don't think what?" Alumniera asked quietly. " Seto would kill me if I turned to him...you see, my brother doesn't... doesn't like him much," he added reluctantly. " Well...I'll send a messenger to ask for his presence one day, then," she resolved. Yami continued to spy, much more alert. " Hey, Alumniera..." Mokuba interrupted, as she stood up to leave, " Why didn't you ask Seto instead?" Alumniera averted her gaze, then thoughtfully said, " Seto...well, if I came and wanted to ask Seto something, he would probably send a message saying he was too busy." Mokuba thought about the days when he himself was unable to talk to Seto, because he was always working on projects or his computer. " But...you're his friend." Alumniera smiled ruefully. " Being a friend of his doesn't get me all the time he has on earth. Your brother...he's just- like that." As he turned away, Mokuba struggled with his mind, thinking of the brother he knew from his childhood, and the one that was always busy.
Alumniera looked back. The poor child, she thought, her thirteen-year old sympathy kicking in. Turning back, she dropped down softly next to Mokuba. " Has Kaiba ever told you how I met him?" she implored. Mokuba tilted his head, realizing his brother hadn't. " No." The girl tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. Yami's ears perked up in interest. Alumniera's eyes misted over as she began her story. Or to her, a memory. " You see, I met your brother when I was eight. You were five, he was ten. Gozaburo Kaiba, your adoptive father, was a friend of my father's. Gozaburo-your father-was training Seto as his successor, and as I was the top martial arts karate child competitor in the country at the moment-" " You were?" interrupted Mokuba. Alumniera laughed when she saw the look on his face. " It came to me as easily as video games do for you, and though I was only eight...well, then I was directed to combat with him." Mokuba's eyes widened. " You mean fight?" Alumniera nodded wirily.
" I was doubtful when I first saw him. Though he was two years older than me, I was tall for my age and only two or three inches shorter. He didn't seem to have much skill, but there was a stoic passion in his eyes...I've never forgotten it. I knew he could probably jump on someone and force something out of him-but all the karate moves? Impossible. I took up beginning stance-he did so as well. Now that I think about it, I don't suppose he actually had any instruction. In the beginning, I passed out a few lazy punches and kicks-Seto dodged them all, and his eyes never left what I was doing. He seemed to be...observing, almost. After that I started to aim with harder strokes, and he blocked them all, then mirrored some of the moves I just made. It was incredible. In that hour, I felt he had learned everything it had taken me to learn in a year, and we made absolutely no progress as we blocked and kicked, dodged and punched. I didn't speak to him at all that first time. Then they kept us at it everyday, alone in the courtyard, and I stopped to tell the names of the moves and how to use them. But when I found him in a room-"
" Alumniera, thank you for the touching story," interrupted a voice curtly from the doorway, " That will be enough." Mokuba snapped back to reality, and he flushed when he saw the anger in his brother's eyes. Alumniera blinked slowly, then stood and held her gaze with Seto's glare. " He-shouldn't-know," said Kaiba, between gritted teeth. As they talked, Yami wondered incredulously what Mokuba 'shouldn't know', and what had changed when Alumniera had found young Kaiba in the room... Instinctively, Yami tried to press even closer to the small hole for a better view. " It was a matter of time, Seto," she began quietly, " I can not believe that you would keep the truth away from him for so long. Your brother himself doesn't understand why you've changed, and he has reached for false clues that will lead him to no where but lies," she replied coolly. Kaiba glowered. " It was weakness. I can't tolerate it," responded Kaiba spitefully. " As weak as not being able to reveal the truth?" retorted Alumniera softly. " There are some things meant not to be told," he answered acidly. Kaiba turned away. " Come on, Mokuba. You can leave on your own?" he asked in a final tone. Alumniera's eyes gleamed. " Of course."
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Review away! Flame or compliment...whatever. Next chap. should be out soon...more Kaiba in that one.