Another plot bunny! This was just fun to write...it didn't take me very long at all. I'm pretty sure everything about the universe is correct...I'm trying to think of my Reading class! That was a while ago...anyway, I hope Joey and Seto aren't OOC. I don't think they are, but I could be wrong. This isn't a puppyshipping either, just to be clear. Sorry to disappoint anyone! But I think you'd still like it...Anyway, I hope you enjoy the fic.
DISCLAIMER:I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters.
A crisp, gentle breeze ruffled his dark blond locks. He smelled the faint scent of barbecue and an open fire in the distance. Small, twinkling fireflies danced in front of him, their glow illuminating the air for a moment. They reminded the teen of the stars above him. They powerful lights that shone against a dark, shadowy background.
He was sitting on a bench in Domino City Park. He was gazing up at the sky, his eyes reflecting the glow of the stars. The stars that were billions of light-years away.
How far is that? he wondered. Pretty far, I guess.
He continued looking at them in sweet silence. He had once heard that it took the light billions of years to reach the eyes of people on Earth. And, sometimes, the stars had disappeared long before humans ever saw their light. That had always amazed him, in an odd way. But, also, it kinda scared him. It made he realize how small he was. A tiny speck in the big picture; a little mark in the universe. One of the many fallen raindrops that hit the Earth. He wouldn't make an impact on the world. The idea troubled the blond.
Am I just like a small star in the sky? A faint glow among millions?
He sighed softly. The teen ran his slender fingers through his golden locks, trying to shake the depressed feeling rushing over him.
Is that all I'll be? Just another-
A loud burst of joyous laughter broke his thoughts. The blond glanced toward his left to see two small figures. A giggle was heard again, this time by the other small figure.
"Hey, Michi! Look at dis!" a small voice called. The boy watched curiously, staying silent.
"What, Yin?" came another voice. He assumed her name was Michi, and the other Yin.
As the two figures came a little closer, he realized they couldn't be any older than seven. He saw the eldest - Yin - snap a lid on top of a jar. Michi gasped loudly, then squealed with delight.
"You caught one! You caught one!" she chanted.
What in the world...?
A sudden glow answered his silent question. The two kids were catching fireflies on a summer evening.
He had to smile a bit at this. It was a cute sight, watching the two figures darting around the park. Their laughter and voices filled the air like a jubilant song. The noise had a warm, familiar ring to it. It brought him back quite a few years...
It was around dusk on a clear, mid-July night. Two little kids were running around the park, enjoying it all to themselves. They were giggling and talking in their care-free, innocent state. Dozens of small, sparkling lights floated around them. The youngest was swirling around, her skirt swishing around her knees. She had her eyes closed as she danced around the chunk of emerald green grass.
The oldest was twisting the lid shut on his jar, a wide grin on his young face. He shoved it behind his back, an impish glint in his chocolate brown eyes.
"Hey, Ren, guess what!" he cried to his younger sister.
"What is it?" chimed a small girl with long, auburn hair.
"I got a whole bunch a'em!" the blond boasted, his head held high.
"Really?! Can I see?" chirpped the girl.
Her brother smiled, a look of teasing on his face. "Nope!" His sister gave him a long, pout, her gentle eyes wide with disappointment. "Gah, not da face! Alright, I can't say no to dat."
The little girl grinned her wide, pleasant smile. "Thanks, Joey!"
"No probelm, sis." The boy shook his head slightly. "Here it is!" He pulled a clear jar from behind his back. Inside was at least ten small, glowing bugs that flickered in the night. The sun had set completely now, and the darkness had washed over the two. But to the boy, it only showed off his catch better.
"Cool!" the girl cheered. "You're good at that, big brother."
"It was nothin'," the blonde said, but his wide grin said other-wise. He thought he was the best firefly catcher ever.
"I bet I could catch more!" the girl dared, smiling at her brother.
"Nuh-uh!" he challenged. The girl squealed, and darted toward a group of the glowing bugs. "Oh, it's on!"
So for quite a while longer, the two danced around the park, catching glowing bugs, and laughing at each other. They didn't know that they wouldn't always do this. They didn't know they would eventually grow up, and stop catching fireflies every summer. Even if they did know such things, it wouldn't have stopped them. They would still be prancing along, their eyes filled with excitement, and laughter ringing through the air.
The teen smiled slightly at the memory. It was one of his favorite times with his younger sister. And now, right before his eyes, two kids were making a similar memory. It made him smile.
Right now, the youngest was showing off her catch to her brother. This made him smile wider.
That's what Ren did.
He continued to watch them play around innocently, until he started to feel drowsy. He fell asleep listening to lullaby of their laughter fill his ears.
Not too far away, a teen of the same age was gazing at the same sky as the blond. Only he was inside a large building, perched in a cool office in front of his precious laptop. His crisp blue eyes were locked on the infinite stars that twinkled overhead the city.
How big is the universe?
Of course, being the technical guy he was, he had tried dozens of times to figure it out mathematically. He found a number a few times. On a piece of paper, the estimate he figured out didn't seem so big. It seemed like just another number, just another digit. But as he gazed upon the sky, he knew it wasn't "just" a number. It was a large, vast, open space of...nothing. It was infinite; it went on forever.
But how long is...forever?
This puzzled the brilliant teen. It made him feel powerless to the universe, and all that existed within it. It was an odd feeling. he didn't like that; he hated feeling so tiny, so unimportant. But it also gave him a feeling of security. He felt secure in his place; he liked thinking that there was something bigger than his small world. It made him feel...hopeful.
Just like Mokuba.
The thought made him smile slightly. The wide grin his brother had gave him hope. A strong sense that made him want to keep trying harder to do what he could for his little brother. Anything at all. It gave him the motivation to keep moving.
As he gazed up at the sky, he remembered a simple question Mokuba had asked him one day.
"Seto?"
"Hm?"
"What's it like to...have such responsibility?" came his younger brother's voice.
This made the CEO stop in his tracks. He turned to see the black-haired kid gazing up at him. "What do you mean?"
The boy hesitated for a moment. "I mean, you take care of me, the company, school...You have a huge weight on your shoulders. I wanted to know...what it was like."
For the first time in a while, the brunette was at a loss for words. "Uh, well...I don't know. I've never really known... any different."
"I know this is getting kinda touchy, but...would you change it?" Mokuba looked straight into the teen's cold eyes.
"And you mean..."
"I mean, would you change it? If you could have a chance of no responsibility, would you take it?" Mokuba tried to hide his curiousity, but the CEO could see it in his face.
"Honestly..." The teen thought a moment. Would he change it? "No," he decided. "I wouldn't change it."
His brother was satisfied with the answer, and smiled. "Alright. Thanks, bro!"
"Wait." Mokuba stopped, and turned around. "Why'd you ask?"
"I just wanted to know. You never take a break..." his voice faded.
He smiled a bit. "Thanks, Mokie."
A warm smile greeted his own. He didn't need to say a word.
The teen smiled softly, thinking of the conversation. As he did, he yawned widely. He shook his head afterward, and laughed a bit.
Mokuba's right. I do need a break!
He glanced at the clock on his laptop.
12:41
Not nearly late enough to go to bed, especially for him. He sat there, pondering what to do. For once, his mind wasn't in his work. He didn't want to go to bed, and Mokuba was already asleep.
He tapped his foot lightly on the ground, the steady rhythm constant. Then, an idea sprang up. He hadn't done this in a while, especially without his younger brother. But, it could be just what he needed.
I'll go for a walk.
The blond was still in a deep sleep, snoring softly. The kids had went home a while ago, since it was far after midnight. But he slept on peacefully, memories filling his head. He thought of his childhood with Serenity, and all of the fun times they had. Even in his sleep, he had a small smile gracing his lips.
Little did he know, a person was walking slowly toward the direction of the bench. The teen could hear soft snoring, breaking the sweet silence he was savoring.
Raising an eyebrow, he thought, Who's this?
As he approached, he saw golden locks draped over a teen's face. He smirked slightly, knowing exactly who it was. Only one person had that color hair. It was the last person he expected to see, but he wasn't entirely shocked.
He was about to continue his walk when he heard the other stir groggily. "Uh! What happened?" came the familiar voice.
The CEO turned on his heel, and faced the teen. "You fell asleep, mutt," the brunnette icily stated, venom coating his words. He saw the teen jump slightly in surprise at the answer.
He turned quickly to see a pair of cold blue eyes staring him down. "What are ya doin' here, moneybags?" the blond asked, still half-asleep.
"I could ask you the same thing." He folded his arms, a smug look on his face.
"...I'm just...well, I'm just...thinking," came the answer. It wasn't something the other had expected. He expected a stupid insult that he could easily snap back.
"I didn't know you could. I'm impressed."
"Ha, ha. But seriously, what are ya doin'?" The teen glanced up at the other, his chocolate eyes staring into his icy orbs.
The CEO frowned down at the boy he considered a mutt. "I guess you could say I'm doing the same thing."
"What cha' thinking about, then?" he asked curiously, his gaze never wavering.
"Something your brain would never be able to comprehend, little mutt," the taller sneered.
The blond laughed slightly. "Try me, moneybags."
He sighed, and leaned against the bench slowly. "If you must know, I was thinking about the universe."
"No kiddin'? Me too."
The CEO snorted conceitedly, his face set in a smirk. "Please! Like you would ever think of something so...beyond your reach. You can barely even pass Science class!"
Ignoring the last statement, he asked, "Beyond my reach? Moneybags, nobody can comprehend the universe!"
This stunned the rich teen a bit. Had he really just said that? "I could tell you how many-"
"How many what?" the blond interrupted. "Stars? Ha! The stars are like grains of sand on a beach; uncountable. Planets? Please! Galaxies? How could you? Face it! That is one thing that is beyond your understanding."
The brunnette hesitated before answering. "That was...interesting. How did you figure that out, mutt?"
"This may surprise you, but I actually read, moneybags." This time it was his turn to sneer. The pair was silent for a moment. They both glanced up at the sky, and looked at the millions of stars glistening at them from above. "Does it facinate you too?"
Another silence.
"Yeah...I guess so."
The blond tore his eyes from the night sky, and looked at the CEO. "Then maybe we aren't so different after all, huh?"
"...Maybe not."
"I gotta go, moneybags. See ya 'round!" He got up, and started heading toward his house.
"Wait, Joey."
He turned on his heel, and looked back at the other. "Yeah?"
"This doesn't change anything, got that?"
"Yup," he grinned. "Wouldn't have it any other way!"
They both began walking in opposite direction. One toward a large mansion, the other to a cramped apartment. Two seperate worlds; and yet the both looked up in awe at the same sky. Ironic, huh?
"Wait!" cried a startle blond. "You called me...Joey!"
The brunette stopped in his tracks. He stood there for a second, taking in his words.
"...I guess I did."
Good? Bad? I'm not sure. Go ahead, review! Hope you liked it D.
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