Can I
By: Xhibit B
Prologue - Daddy and Me/Mom and Us
.i do not own yu-gi-oh!.
Yami Sennen sighed as he sank into the comforting leather seat of his recliner. The lever was pulled, propping his socked feet up as he allowed the fifteen-inch MacBook Pro he was holding to rest on his abdomen. At his side, a young girl of eleven years old watched the seventy-five-inch ultra-high definition television that displayed the vibrant colours of the cartoon that was currently playing; the only sound that resonated in the living room was the constant tapping of the laptop's keys and the shrill voices of the characters from the show.
That is, until the little crimson eyed girl looked up at her father. A hint of a smile played on her lips as she leaned over on the arm of the couch. The heels of her hands were allowed to press themselves against her cheeks as she lightly kicked her feet back and forth. "Hey Daddy?"
Yami didn't bother to look up at his daughter. He was busy going over a spreadsheet that his cousin had sent him to evaluate for his business' expenses. He did still reward his daughter with an answer though, "Yes Hikari?"
"Do you think I'll ever get another Mommy," Hikari asked innocently. Her mother had left over eight years before when she was only two; dropping the little girl off on the doorstep of an orphanage where she remained for a full week until Yami finally found her… it would be another ten weeks before she would be able to come back home with her father after an all-out court battle with the orphanage. For a full six years after he brought her home, she had wondered why her mother had left her in that awful place, why she didn't want her anymore, and why she hadn't just been allowed to stay with her dad because she was sure he wanted her. "I know Momma left a long time ago and she's not coming back. But maybe I can have a new Mommy that will love me and won't leave like my real Mommy did."
Yami's fingers abruptly stopped typing away at his keyboard as slanted crimson eyes widened several fractions. He glanced up from the screen and looked over at his daughter who had immediately began to regret asking the question in the first place, "Hikari…"
Hikari slid from the side of the couch and turned back to the TV dejectedly. "Sorry Daddy, I shouldn't have asked you that."
Yami sighed, smiling sadly at his daughter before he closed the laptop and discarded it on the side table by his chair. The foot rest was pushed in as he stood from his seat and made his way over to where his daughter was sitting. Pulling the little girl into his side, he kissed the crown of her head before allowing his chin to rest there. He knew how much she wanted a mother, and if he was able, he would give her what she wanted immediately.
"Are you mad at me Daddy," Hikari asked sniffling as she looked up at her father; steady streams of tears rolling down her cheeks before dropping off at her chin.
"Of course, I'm not mad at you, Kar," Yami answered as he kissed the crown of her head once more. "It's a fair question that you have every right to ask. The only thing is that I can't give you a definite answer and I feel bad about that because I honestly don't know if you will ever have another Mom. Maybe one day we'll find you another Mom, one that's going to love you as much as I do and never leave you alone like your mother did."
"Like how you have with Grandma and Grandpa, Daddy," Hikari asked as she wiped her tears away with the back of her hand.
"Exactly like how I have with your Grandma and Grandpa," Yami confirmed with a nod. "Now, how about we go get some dinner in your belly so that you can get to bed. You have school in the morning, young lady."
Hikari nodded before she broke from her father's embrace, "Okay Daddy!"
Yami stood, wiping his hands on his pants before grabbing his daughter's hand and guiding her to the kitchen, "What do you want for dinner?"
"How about…" Hikari started as she tapped her chin, "Beef and broccoli?"
"Beef and broccoli," Yami asked, smiling at the young girl, happy that her mood had changed since their conversation. "You've got it."
.cani.
Yūgi Mutou walked into the home that she shared with her twin son and daughter. Her keys to the 2010 BMW X5 were placed in the key dish as she made her way into the kitchen, two paper bags tucked under either of her arms. "Yuki, Hiyori, I'm home."
"We're in the kitchen Mom," her daughter, Hiyori, called out to her. "Do you need help with the groceries?"
"No," Yūgi answered as she walked into the kitchen, placing the bags down before kissing each of her children on the forehead. "There were only two bags. But what you can do is put away the groceries for me while I get started on dinner."
"Okay," the twins chimed in unison before they each took a bag and began putting everything away as their mother gathered the pots and pans that she would need to make that night's meal.
Together the family of three worked at the tasks they had been assigned as they talked about how their days went.
"Then Hiba, of course, falls out of her chair drawing everyone's attention," Hiyori said recounting what had happened in her history class earlier that day. "And well, let's just say that, that is one moment Hiba Sennen will never live down for the rest of our days at Domino High."
"Poor girl," Yūgi laughed as she chopped the green onion that were to be added to the Miso broth she was making. "Anything else?"
"Oh yeah, in two weeks, right after we go on winter break, Hiba has a Duel Monsters tournament and she asked for me to go to support her," Hiyori answered happily. "She extended the invitation out to you guys as well if you want to come too. Her Mom, Dad, Uncle and little cousin are going to be there too. Did you know that her parents knew Uncle Seto and Aunt Joey? They're actually related."
"Really now," Yūgi asked, irking a brow as she glanced over her shoulder at her daughter.
"Yep," Hiyori chirped. "Uncle Seto is Mr. Atem's cousin. I only found out that she knew them because she had a picture of her and Kisara on her phone."
"It's a small world after all," Yūgi laughed. "But as for the tournament, I would love to go. I haven't been to a good Duel Monsters match in about seventeen years. I have the two of you to thank for that." She grinned, the playful jab causing both twins to laugh. "But in any case, yes. It would be great going to see Hiba duel."
"Awesome, do you want to go too, Yuki," Hiyori asked as she turned to her elder brother.
"Yeah, I'll go," Yuki answered. "This should be fun. And I have nothing better to do with my life."
"Awesome, I'll let her know that we'll be there that Saturday," Hiyori said as she pulled the white iPhone from her pocket.
"Wonderful," Yūgi said smiling, "I'll also check with Grandpa and see if he would like to join us as well. I know that he loves Hiba dearly and would be happy to see her dueling at the Domino Tournament since he did teach her the game."
"Yes, that would be awesome," Hiyori said as she typed a quick text message to her best friend, letting her know that she and her family would be at the tournament. "Hiba will be so glad to see everyone there. And I'll be able to introduce you to Mr. Atem and Ms. Mana so that you guys can talk about me staying over for Hiba's birthday sleepover in January."
"That sounds like a great idea to me," her mother answered as she added the ramen noodles to the Miso broth. "Yuki would you mind looking in the fridge for the Naruto fishcakes I bought?"
"Awesome," Hiyori chimed right as a text message came through on her phone as her brother wordlessly moved to do as his mother asked.
So, somehow, I managed to delete the story from my profile being special. I guess that's what I get for trying to edit chapters when I'm half asleep because I've caught a spelling or grammar error that I didn't catch before posting the damn thing or inconsistencies in the story that went unnoticed before posting. Bah, anyways, I'm still going through and editing the first seven chapters that had previously been posted. So, I'll update as I'm finished editing, which will be every other week or so, because school. I'm also in the process of writing chapter 8 so that will be out sooner than later after I've gone through and edited everything. Some events will change, other things will be added. So you won't be reading the exact same story over again, I promise. Anyways, I'm done babbling. Enjoy the story my loves!