A/N: The first YuGiOh fanfic I have ever written. xD I was a fan of YuGiOh back when I was in third grade. So I was rifling around the house one day, searching for random stuff, and I stumbled on my old YGO VCDs. Decided to watch them again and couldn't help feeling nostalgic. I missed my old deck all of a sudden; missed my BEWDs and that frickin' crush card.
Anyway, I've always liked Seto Kaiba [even did pretty much all I could to have the cards in his deck in my own deck], so I thought why not write about the guy? You ask how this wild idea popped into my head? I don't know. It's an urge. Despite my views on Kaiba as asexual character, I really thought about how he would be if he had a family. Besides, if Seto DID have one, I always wondered how he would be if he fathered a cute little girl. xD Forgive the randomness, and his possible OOCness in this fic.I tried to keep him IC though, but I'm not used to writing about him. :) On to the fluffy story.
DISCLAIMERS: I don't own Seto Kaiba or YuGioh... XD they belong to Konami.
Life's Changes
He sighed, feeling the effects of a long coming called-for headache. It was rather expected what with all the stress of life lately. He had always been used to it by then, so it wasn't any different now. In fact, he had come to terms with expecting these bouts of phantom headaches from all the pent up pressure of work and other stupid rich people trying to snatch his beloved Corporation from under his nose. And like most of the daily jargon that was his life, he was used to that too, but that did not mean it didn't tire him out. He was never one to acknowledge that he had weaknesses, because he was Seto Kaiba after all. He could handle just about anything.
No ordinary person could have overpowered his controlling step father and genius wanna-be step brother, yet he had done it. No ordinary person would have had the balls of shifting the Kaiba Corporation's focus from weaponry to gaming, but he did it. He did everything he could to get where he was now; all for the sake of his brother and in the huge hopes of giving them both a happy life. A life that they deserved, and one that they had been robbed off of after their parents had died.
Duel Monsters and gaming was an outlet; a way to relieve pent up stress and whenever his limits were strained and stretched out to the very limits of his self-control. That game had been the cause of all those inconvenient mishaps that had happened four years ago. All of it had revolved around myths and magic and other rubbish that directly involved Yugi and that infamous other self of his. (Lost soul of the Pharaoh, his ass.) He was never one to believe in such crap. It was a waste of time and thought processing, and even if he had witnessed the mind blowing reality of the god cards, there was nothing in his world that would make him believe that such a thing was possible. Even if he had gotten sucked in that memory lane by a giant engraved rock in a damnable Egyptian tomb, that was still not enough to convince him. He had seen that so-called lost soul of the ancient ruler of Egypt pass on into the next life, and that was the end of it. No more nonsense, no more useless time brooding over what could have been.
At least someone actually managed to defeat his arch rival. He still couldn't believe the leader of the Dweeb Patrol—Yugi—had managed though. The kid was smart, but not smart enough. If anything, he should have been the one kicking Atem's butt into next week; rubbing in the fact that he was better than the Pharaoh at this game—better at it than anyone, for that matter. No one had beaten him at a game of Duel Monsters; no one except for Yugi and his other self, that is. He had only been interested in reasserting his supremacy as the King of Games, and in his efforts to do just that, he only dug himself and his brother deeper into the ditch that consisted of everything he was completely adverse to.
Random oracle people carrying golden artifacts from Egypt kept pushing and insisting that it had been his destiny, and that Fate had allowed him to witness the Pharaoh's final rite of passage into the after life. Sure, Yugi's victory had caught him off guard, and maybe he had believed the destiny nonsense at some point, but after Atem had gone, he was intent on convincing himself that things would eventually return to normal.
Did that make him ignorant? Or was he really just intent on avoiding matters that would make his life more complicated than they already were?
He couldn't believe it, really. After all these years, he still found his mind constantly wandering to the events of before. So much time had passed, and he had even watched his own brother grow up, yet it was still hard to let go of the past that had left a large crater in his life. Perhaps it was one of those things that would be a part of him forever.
And just when he had thought his life couldn't get any more abnormal after that explosive whatnot with Yugi and his precious friends, he met her. At the very first sight, there had been a sense of familiarity brewing within him when he had caught a glimpse of her face.
It was not love at first sight, or second, or third for that matter. It had been a growing process, and he had been adverse to it at first, but eventually, she had unknowingly become a huge and important part of his life. As the president of his own company, it was only logical for others to see him as an incredibly busy man who shouldn't be bothered with mundane matters half the time, and that was true, because that was what he was, but she had seen something else in him. Something she had not been able to name, so she said.
He didn't understand what had gotten into him when he finally caved in to the selfish need for a companion. He didn't have many friends—probably had none, and for the most part of his life, he had always been alone. He had always believed that Mokuba was the only other person who he would gladly live with and die for, so Kisara's companionship and her arrival into his life with a fresh set of unfamiliar feelings had taken him aback and had unlocked a side of him that had been kept tightly shut within himself for so long.
His little brother had stressed the fact that Seto needed someone else other than him in his life. There were things that only family—namely brothers could offer, and there were other things that other people should.
It started out awkwardly at first because he was so unused to showing affection. He once overheard girls talking about how they liked it if the guy were to go all romance novel cheesy on them, and he had figured that that would be potentially problematic. He was not a man of a thousand words. He was not mushy...and he didn't know the first thing about romance. He had thought about that when they had begun dating, but he soon figured out that Kisara didn't want him to be anyone but himself, because that was what she loved about him.
Settling down to a married life had not been one of the main goals of his existence. Having a well established life, running a multi-million dollar gaming Corporation, revolutionizing gaming, spending it with his brother—that's what he had planned out, but getting married and starting a family of his own, that had not been part of the itinerary he would have printed out if he was crazy enough to do so.
The vivid comic expressions of the press when the news of their engagement had been leaked was almost enough to make him laugh. Almost. Perhaps the world had not expected the young billionaire's readiness to move on into a consensus that involved a large commitment. But here he was, in the now.
It's been five years since the wedding, five years since he had tied himself down at a young age... He couldn't really believe how fast time flew either.
A soft timid knock on the polished door managed to shake him out of his daze. A frown crossed his features as he realized once again that, not for the first time, he had zoned out on working in favor of accommodating the foreboding thoughts lurking at the back of his mind. He blinked and tried to rub the weariness present in his eyes before he acknowledged the person on the other side of the door.
"Come in." He called out.
The door creaked open and a small round face peeked into the room, wide crystal blue eyes shining as it fixed him with a hopeful stare.
The hardness in his cobalt blue eyes immediately melted at the sight of that innocent angelic face looking straight at him; chestnut brown hair done in an elegant braid hanging across one shoulder.
"What's the matter?" He asked in a soft voice, putting a little effort into not scaring the little girl away.
The child stepped into the room, closing the door behind her as quietly as she could. Her bare feet shuffled on the blue carpeting on the floor, obviously unsure about how to explain the situation and why she was disturbing him in the middle of his office tasks. He sighed through his nose at that, hating the vibe he seemed to emit all the time. Heck, his own daughter was often unsure about how to act around him. Well, he was trying; that didn't mean he had to be good at it.
"Daddy, I can't sleep." The five-year old mumbled intelligibly, approaching his office chair with a forlorn look on her small face. The little girl could speak so well already that his brother had once commented that the child had inherited Seto's intelligence.
"Why not?" He asked just as softly, carefully lifting his daughter up so she could sit on his lap.
The girl shook her head, soft brown hair swaying. "I just can't." She mumbled in an adorable voice, fiddling with the long sleeves of her father's black shirt.
"Do you want me to read you a bed time story?" He asked, smirking smugly as he kept a protective and steady arm around her waist.
The little girl frowned and stopped playing with his clothes long enough to give her father an apprehensive look. She said nothing; just shook her head at him, chestnut hair swaying. She immediately pointed at the glowing computer screen that displayed multiple windows of computer codes and documents and spreadsheets.
"Teach me what you're doing." She insisted in a strong voice; well, as strong as she could manage with her dominant cuteness.
Seto Kaiba chuckled under his breath, lifting a hand to stroke the top of his daughter's head. "That might be a bit much for someone your age, don't you think?" He asked, blue eyes glinting with mischief.
His daughter grumbled something grumpily under her breath. "It's a challenge." She insisted. "And I like a challenge." She met her father's gaze evenly, eyes stubborn and stormy. Something she might have inherited from him.
Seto smirked. "If you say so."
Up until now, he still couldn't believe the kind of combination his daughter had made between him and his wife. Their little girl had inherited her mother's beautiful bright crystal blue eyes and innocent demeanor. Her body structure was delicate and seemingly fragile, just like her mom. But Kisara always insisted that little Serophia was her father's daughter. The little brunette possessed a fiery and strong-willed nature that she could only have inherited from the CEO of Kaiba Corporation. Besides that, she had Seto's hair color, his nose and his mouth. More often than not, their little angel had always loved tinkering with things; playing with this, messing with that, putting random stuff in her mouth.
At an early age, he had caught Serophia curiously messing with a prototype duel disk in his office. That would have been a cause for alarm, but he had not minded. The girl was curious, and he knew without a doubt, that just like him, she would be itching to satisfy that curiosity. While that little incident had caused a few drawbacks, Seto was not perturbed. If anything, his annoyance were more on the people who worked under him who couldn't do their job properly.
Sero yawned loudly in the middle of Seto's explanation of what he was doing with the spreadsheet document on his computer.
"When's mommy coming home?" She mumbled, interrupting her father's discussion.
"Tomorrow at noon." He replied immediately. He knew the little girl missed her mother. His wife would often sing to Sero if she ever found that she couldn't sleep.
He resumed working, keeping half of his attention on the little girl on his lap who was happily opening desk drawers and curiously taking out whatever was in it to examine it in the gloom. He could remember the time she had stumbled on him working on his duel deck once, and he had seen the curiosity shining in her eyes. She didn't question or ask what he was doing, but she had watched intently as he examined the cards in his trunk and switched cards with the side decks and his main deck. Sero had sat on his lap then, just like she was now, and she had picked up one of the cards with her tiny hands, staring at the graphic illustrations and the tiny words printed out on it. She had only been three then, mumbling broken words with a hint of her gradually fading baby speech.
He was normally not a person who would think something was cute (the very thought of that for someone like him was unthinkable), but ever since Serophia was born, she had become the exception. He couldn't deny it. He never admitted it out loud, but he had always gazed at the little girl with a certain fondness in his eyes. To have this concrete knowledge that this intelligent and angelic child was his daughter, and she was too darn adorable...and unbelievably charming when she would ask for something. He could never deny her anything. Mokuba also fell for her charm all the time, unable to fend off his niece's requests. Kisara had smirked at him knowingly once, and commented that Sero had Seto wrapped around her tiny finger.
"I miss her." The little girl sighed wistfully.
"I know." He replied a bit distractedly. "I do too."
Sero yawned again and replaced the puncher back into the drawer before she sat back and leaned against her father's chest, closing her eyes contentedly. "So Binary codes are simply zero and one, and that's the only type of language that computers would understand." She murmured, reiterating what her father had told her earlier when she asked him to teach her whatever he was doing.
"Right." Seto nodded once, still focused on what he was doing on the screen.
"I remembered." Sero smirked, her voice confident and unbelievably sure of herself—a trait she had picked up from him, no doubt. "Do I get mudpie cake as a prize for that?" She mumbled, slipping ever closer to sleep with the sound of her father's steadily beating heart.
Seto rolled his eyes, smirking with amusement at his daughter's antics. "Have your uncle get it for you." He checked his email, filtering the list of junk as he did the sifting.
Serophia yawned again and fell silent. He had himself absorbed in his work again, and he only thought to check on his daughter a few moments later when he remembered that she was still perched on his lap. Finally, he closed the last window that was open on his desktop and glanced down at the sleeping figure nestled comfortably against his body. Little Sero sighed in her sleep and he caught her mumbling her mother's name. One of her little fists clutched the material of his black shirt as she shifted around, trying to get comfortable.
The small rare smile that appeared on Seto's face could not be helped. He silently got up from the confines of the swiveling chair, Sero asleep and dreaming in his arms. He was careful not to move her around too much, because she was such a light sleeper. After shutting down his computer, he began the walk through the hallways of the mansion to take his daughter back to her room.
Kisara had designed their daughter's room herself. It wasn't childish like most kids' rooms were. The interior design fit a young adult better than it did for a child, but Serophia didn't seem to mind. She liked it in fact—just another queer thing about the little Kaiba. Her large study desk was at the far side of the room. It was stacked haphazardly with school books and other books. His daughter's bed had an insane amount of pillows scattered all over, and there were a number of stuffed animals too, in different sizes. The room was dimly lit with the wall lamps that gave a soft glow in the midst of the darkness. The main light in the room was switched off for the night.
Seto silently approached the bed and with one swift motion of his hand, drew back the comforter and the blanket so he could lay the sleeping girl quietly. Serophia snuggled closer into her pillows after her father tucked her in, a small content smile on her pretty face. The CEO smirked smugly, and ever so quietly leaned down to press a soft kiss on his baby girl's forehead. Come morning, he would have that mudpie cake ready, and they could go to the airport to fetch his wife.
Maybe a lot did change in the past few years, maybe some things didn't. He had never been sure of what had been true about the whole ordeal with Yugi's other self and his entire involvement in the whole plot, and what had been delusional, but he could certainly say that he was sure of one thing: that he married an amazing woman and he had a wonderful daughter—just another addition to the family he already had in Mokuba...
A/N: I suck at writing this, but as I've said, this is my first YuGiOh fic, so bear with me. Anyway, please leave a review if you want, but I'd really appreciate one, just so I know what you guys think. xD Thank you for reading. :)