The Brothers Fanfic
Part 1
Mokuba paced the floor, his anxiety growing.
His thoughts raced nervously, People don't die from childbirth very often anymore, but she's been in labor for hours. What if something is wrong? I wish I knew what was going on.
Down the hall his sister-in-law Kisara was giving birth. At first it was quiet but as the hours dragged on he heard screams more often. Kisara had requested that he not come in the room until after the baby was born and she had time to dress.
"I know you have some medical training but I don't want anyone but Seto and the doctor to see me naked like this," she had said.
Mokuba didn't want to see her naked either but he felt helpless as her screams became more frequent.
This is making me nuts. I have to get out of here for a while.
He paced down to the first floor, taking the stairs instead of the elevator to let off nervous energy. Even from the first floor he could still hear screams.
He ran out to Seto's lab where it was finally quiet, but the thought of what might be happening in the birthing room made him restless.
I need to do something. I just can't think of anything to do.
He paced around the lab looking for something to interact with. An odd looking motorcycle in the corner caught his eye.
What on earth is Seto doing with that? Knowing him he probably gave it rocket boosters that can make it go 300 mph, or fly, or something wacky like that.
His lips curved into a smile.
If that's true then I have to try it.
Mokuba felt a spark of excitement as he pulled the motorcycle out the door and into the street.
It looked like an ordinary motorcycle apart from the dashboard. It showed the usual gages such as the engine temperature, the gas meter, and the mph, but it also displayed several other numbers that didn't seem to have a purpose. On the side was a large red button with a sticky note next to it that read "push this".
Mokuba shrugged as he got on the machine and started the engine.
This should be interesting.
He took off down the street and made his way to a nearby field.
If this thing can go 300 mph or fly I don't want to be near anyone when it does.
He stopped just before going into the field and checked to make sure he had adequate medical supplies in his bag.
This is really stupid. I can't believe I'm doing this. I'm probably going to end up breaking my arm or something. At least I'll be prepared to treat it before I go home. This is why I always have my first aid kit with me. You never know what kind of awesome, childish, nonsense your brother is going to invent that you will have an irrational urge to try out.
All of the supplies in his first aid kit appeared to be well stocked.
Okay, here goes nothing.
He headed toward the middle of the field. He got the motorcycle up to 70 mph before bracing himself and pushing the red button.
Nothing happened.
That's disappointing, but it's probably for the best. I'll just drive for a while and then head home. I hope the baby is born by then. I don't know how much more screaming I can take without jumping in and trying to help.
He started to turn back to the road but before he could complete the turn an eerie purple light shot out from the headlights of the motorcycle.
That's not normal.
Mokuba blinked and when he opened his eyes he was driving through a forest in the late evening.
"What the-
He swerved to avoid hitting a tree and immediately slammed on the breaks. He hit another tree in the process and was flung through the air before rolling to a stop.
Mokuba lay still until he caught his breath.
What just happened? Where am I? Why is it evening all of a sudden? What did that motorcycle just do?
He checked his body for injuries. Luckily he hadn't broken any bones but he did receive some large bruises.
Those are going to take a while to heal.
Stiffly he got to his feet and limped over to the motorcycle. The headlights were broken and the dashboard was dark.
Seto is going to be mad about this. He really should have labeled it as a teleporting motorcycle though. At least I think it teleported me to another part of the world. I have to figure out where I am and get home.
Mokuba hoisted the motorcycle up on its wheels and tried to get an idea of where he should go. He heard the roar of a car engine to his left. He immediately turned and followed the sound out to a road.
He tried to start the motorcycle again. To his surprise it started up.
Wow. I can't see where I'm going or how fast I'm going but at least I can go somewhere.
He headed down the road hoping to see the lights of a town nearby. Instead he saw a road sign that read "Louse Street."
That's weird. I took a road named that to get to the field.
He kept going and encountered other familiar roads.
There is no way there is another city with roads that are named the same and go in the same direction as the roads in Domino. The motorcycle must have sent me to a different point in time. Did I go to the future or the past? I'm guessing past since it's more likely there was a forest that was turned into a field than a field grew a forest. I wonder how far back I went.
Mokuba sighed.
So much for not taking too long. With the display down I can't reset the machine to my own time either. Great. Why couldn't Seto invent something a normal millionaire genius would invent, like a flying car or a rocket powered motorcycle?
He took the way he was familiar with back to Kaiba Corp. It was dark but he could see that Seto's lab hadn't been built yet.
I have to figure out if Seto and I live here yet. I need his help to repair this machine. I hope the year isn't before he was born or was too young to repair machines.
Mokuba hid the motorcycle in the Kaiba Corp garage full of cars belonging to whoever lived at the Kaiba mansion at this time. He checked the license plates for the current year. To his relief he hadn't traveled too far back.
So we were living at Kaiba Corp at this time. Thank goodness. Seto is only 13 in this year though and our step-father is still running Kaiba Corp. I hope I don't run into him. I might not be able to stop myself from punching him to death. My best course of action is to break into the mansion, find Seto, and convince him to fix the time machine.
Mokuba frowned.
That's a terrible plan. Seto might not be able to fix it at this age. On the other hand, I don't have much of a choice. I can't fix it and he's the only one who might know how it works.
Mokuba rolled his eyes.
Okay, I better get started. I have to find Seto before morning. I have no idea where he'll be after he wakes up. Well, this isn't the first time I've had to break into my own house.
Part 2
Mokuba grumbled as he crawled through the air vents looking for his brother.
This was a lot easier when I was younger. I'm almost too big to fit in these now. Why isn't Seto in his room? It's almost midnight. What could he be doing? He probably fell asleep in his study.
He army crawled through a narrow vent from Seto's bedroom down to his study room. To his surprised Seto didn't appear to be there either.
That's weird. Where on earth is he?
Mokuba wormed his way to the kitchen and finally found an opening big enough for him to climbed out. He did so carefully to avoid making too much noise. The mansion was silent at this hour and any noise would travel a long way.
He crept along the walls checking each hallway before proceeding. It was unlikely that anyone was awake but he didn't want to take any chances.
Seto is not in the kitchen, or the dining hall, or any of the spare bedrooms. Is he not home right now? Where would he go? Gozaboro didn't take us anywhere overnight. He hardly took us anywhere during the day. The only place I haven't looked is the basement. What the heck is he doing down there?
Mokuba took the stairs down to the basement. He was tired when he arrived in the past but now he was exhausted and growing frustrated. It was close to one in the morning. He had to find Seto before morning or he would have no idea where he would be. Back then Mokuba wasn't allowed to know Seto's daytime schedule but he knew he at least spent his nights in the mansion.
Mokuba snuck inside a dark room in the basement.
Maybe I'll just sleep here for now and come up with a plan in the morning. I hope no one uses this room frequently. It isn't likely since its in the basement but I'd better find a hiding spot anyway.
He turned on the lights. A whip lay on the floor just in front of his feet.
Ew! Is this Gozaboro's creepy sex dungeon? Disgusting! I'd better find somewhere else to hide. Wait… does that whip have dried blood on it?
He shuddered.
What a sick b*******. I feel bad for the hooker that was on the receiving end of that. I have to find Seto and get out of here. Just being back in this time makes me feel like puking.
A shimmer of red caught his eye. He looked up and froze.
His breath caught in his throat. He skin crawled as he felt the blood drain from his face.
The red was a puddle of blood gathering under an unconscious Seto. He lay motionless on his side. His hands were tied together by a thick rope connected to the wall. His upper body was bare and his back had several deep slashes, parts of which were oozing blood.
Mokuba felt his heart pound against his ribcage. He ripped free of his shock and sprang to Seto's side.
"Seto! What the Hell! Please don't be dead!" He can't be dead. He's still alive in my time. He's lost so much blood he must be close to dead.
Mokuba felt Seto's neck for a pulse. To his relief he felt a faint beat. He pulled out supplies from his first aid kit and immediately got to work treating the open slashes in Seto's back.
"Hang in there Bro. I'm here. I'm going to stop the bleeding. You're going to be okay."
Talking helped him stay calm enough to think clearly. He cleaned his hands with alcohol and put on fresh gloves. He pulled out a needle and lighter and ran the needle through the flame a few times. Working as quickly as he could, he threaded the needle and pulled out several alcohol pads. With one hand he wiped the wounds clean of blood and with the other he pulled the needle through the split skin.
"You're so tiny and you've already lost a lot of blood. How long have you been left here like this?"
Seto twitched uncomfortably but remained unconscious as Mokuba cleaned his wounds and stitched his skin together. Most of the bleeding had stopped but there was still a steady trickle adding to the puddle beneath them. Mokuba worked on these areas first.
"This is why I always carry my first aid kit with me. You never know when your brother might be dying."
He had never been so grateful for a class in his life as he was for the paramedic classes at that moment.
"I told you becoming a paramedic would come in handy. Maybe you should take some medical classes. Next time it might be me dying."
He worked steadily until all the slashes had been closed. Then he wiped Seto's back with alcohol before covering it with bandages.
As soon as Seto was at little risk for infection and he was no longer losing blood, Mokuba sat back on his feet. Only then did he feel the full weight of what had happened.
Seto seemed tiny and frail. He was 13 at this time but he appeared even younger. Until a few years ago in Mokuba's time Seto had always been taller than him. He had never allowed Mokuba to see him so weak and vulnerable before. He had always seemed strong. He acted like he could handle whatever challenges he faced even when he didn't think he could.
Mokuba couldn't think of a time in his life when his brother wasn't the strong one. He never let on that he was feeling beaten down or tired. He had certainly never told Mokuba about a time when he was. Yet, here he was; tiny, frail, beaten near to death and using all his strength just to take a breath and keep his heart beating.
Mokuba could see scars from previous whippings in between the new wounds he had just treated.
Tears streamed down his face.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he whispered.
His own hands shook as he untied Seto's hands from the rope connected to the wall. His wrists were red and swollen where the rope had rubbed them raw.
As slowly and gently as he could, Mokuba lifted up his unconscious brother and pulled him into his arms. He was cold and pale. Mokuba held his head tenderly against his shoulder as his tears spilled onto Seto's cheek.
Seto's eyes fluttered open. Mokuba felt panic sink in as he stared back at his brother. He hadn't prepared himself to meet Seto like this.
A look of confusion came over young Seto's face. "Dad?" he whispered just before he fell back into unconsciousness.
Mokuba let out a sigh of relief. He had no idea how to explain his being here.
Did he just call me Dad?
Mokuba's birth father had died when he was seven years old. He couldn't remember what he looked like and hadn't realized that he had grown to look like him.
Mokuba felt like curling up in a corner somewhere and crying his eyes out, but he knew that wouldn't help anyone, least of all Seto.
He carefully got to his feet while still holding his brother. He carried him to his bedroom and placed him on his side in his bed. Mokuba pulled a couple of blankets over Seto before pulling up a chair next to his bed.
He held Seto's hand in his. Seto's hand was small by comparison. Mokuba felt like his world was upside down. He wasn't supposed to be the older brother.
He sighed. "Why didn't you tell me? Why did you deal with this alone? That's what brothers are for. We take care of each other when no one else will. If you had told me maybe I could have done more for you. You've always done so much for me. I wish I could have done more for you."
Mokuba had been exhausted an hour ago but he knew sleep would not come easily now. Not after what he had seen.
The next morning
Mokuba had fallen into a light sleep in his chair. He was pulled out of it by the sound of Seto's alarm clock going off at six in the morning.
Seto instinctively reached out and turned it off. He immediately gasped with pain. He curled up tighter in his bed and tried to steady his breathing.
Mokuba reached in his bag and pulled out a bottle of pills. "You'd better take these for the pain."
His voice startled Seto.
"Who are you? Wait- Dad? Am I dead?"
"No, but you gave it your best shot."
"Wait- you're not my Dad. Why do you look like him? Are you related to me?"
"No." It's better if he doesn't know who I am. It could screw up history if he finds out.
"Then why do you look like my birth father?"
"I just have one of those faces, I guess."
"What are you doing in my room?"
"I'm a paramedic. I stitched up your back last night after you passed out."
"Did Gozaboro send for you?"
"No. He doesn't know I'm here."
"That figures. He's never gotten someone to stitch me up before. What are you doing here if no one sent for you?"
"To be honest, I broke into your house and found you and I couldn't leave you there like that."
Young Seto looked skeptical. "So, you're a thief who has medical knowledge?"
"I'm not here to steal anything."
"Then why are you here?"
Mokuba sighed. I have to tell him some of the truth if he's going to help me. "Okay, this is going to sound crazy, but hear me out. In the future you invent a time machine. I accidentally drove the time machine here and crashed it. Now I need your help to fix it so I can get back to my own time."
Young Seto looked offended. "Just because I'm a kid doesn't mean you have to make up stupid stories to get me on your side. I'll help you steal whatever it is you want to steal just because I hate my step-father."
Mokuba laughed.
Seto glared at him with annoyance."What's so funny?"
"You are. I know you in the future and you haven't changed at all. You've just gotten taller."
Seto rolled his eyes. "Enough with the future crap. I'll help you because I owe you one for stitching me up last night instead of leaving me to bleed to death."
Mokuba's smile vanished. "You lost a lot of blood. If I hadn't come when I did you might have died."
"I wish I had. It's got to be better than this. A thief who breaks into my house takes better care of me than my own step-father ever did."
Mokuba was shocked. "You don't really wish that do you?"
"That I had died? Of course I do, wouldn't you? Every day I'm forced to study until I pass out from exhaustion. If I don't get every question right on every test then I get ripped to shreds by my own step-father. I don't really want to die. I just want it to stop. I can't keep living like this! I would have jumped out a window and ended everything a long time ago if it weren't for my brother. I have to protect him, but it's killing me to do that!"
Seto's eyes flooded with tears. He pulled the blanket over his head to hide them.
Mokuba felt tears sting his own eyes. He didn't know what to say.
"I- … uh …" he stopped fighting the tears and let them flow. "Seto, I can't tell you how sorry I am. I had no idea this was going on. I had no idea things ever got this bad. You were always so strong. I never knew how much you were really hurting. What kind of friend am I that you couldn't tell me about this?"
Mokuba put his face in his hands and whispered, "I just wish I could have done more for you. Anything more."
Seto slowly uncovered his face and stared cautiously at the strange man crying next to his bed.
"Do you really know me in the future?"
Mokuba wiped his eyes and cleared his throat. "Yeah. Want me to prove it to you?"
"Okay."
Mokuba took his phone out of his bag and handed it to Seto.
"This is a phone in my time. You can do all kinds of things with it apart from call people. You can play games, email, get on the internet, run a whole business all from this device."
Seto's face lit up as he pressed buttons on the phone. "It has a screen that responds to your touch? That's amazing!"
He painfully sat up to get a better view of the phone and opened every app he could. He asked Mokuba what seemed like a million questions about the software and how the device worked. Most of the questions Mokuba didn't understand let alone know how to answer.
Mokuba chuckled, "You always were a genius when it came to technology."
"I wish there was someone who could answer my questions."
"You'll be able to answer your own questions in a few years."
"This is the most advanced technology I've ever seen! Where did you get this?"
"In the future you can pick it up just about anywhere. It's not too expensive either. Almost everyone has one, even poor people."
"Wow!"
"Are you convinced?"
Seto still looked skeptical. "This is pretty impressive, but you might have gotten it from Japan. They're always ahead of us with technology."
"Actually that one was made in the USA."
Seto turned the phone over to see a tiny label reading "Made in the USA". He still looked unsure.
"I don't know. You still might have gotten it from an American company that's way ahead of its time."
Seto handed the phone back to Mokuba.
"Fair enough. How about you look at the time machine and see if you can fix it."
"Okay, I guess... Are you sure you don't want to steal anything?"
Mokuba laughed. "You really want to spite your step-father don't you?"
"You saw what he did to me."
Mokuba frowned. "How many times has he done that?"
"A few times. He usually only whips me two or three times, but this time I think he really wanted to kill me."
"What did you do to piss him off so much? Did you pee in his coffee?"
"No. I wish." Seto sighed. "I fell asleep when I was supposed to study for a test. When I took the test I didn't know any of the answers so I just made up stuff."
"Like what?"
"It was a math test. The questions were stuff like 'if a train leaves at 6 and travels 95 mph east and another train leaves at 8 and travels 75 mph west on the same track what time will it be when the two trains collide?' My answer was, who the crap cares everyone is still going to die from the crash."
Mokuba laughed. "I agree with that answer."
Seto smiled up at him weakly. "At least you think it's funny. My step-father said that if I'm too lazy to study for a test I'll don't deserve to run Kaiba Corp someday."
"We both know that's bulls***. No one is more deserving than you considering all you're being put through."
Seto nodded, but he seemed deeply hurt by his step-father's cruel words.
I had no idea Gozaboro got to him that much. He always seemed confident in himself when he was around me.
Mokuba tried to lighten the mood. "What was another question?"
Seto half smiled as he thought. "A car travels from point A to B in 2 hours, then from point B to A in 4 hours, then back to point B in 1 hour. If the distance from point A to B is 225 miles how fast was the car going during each trip?"
"What was your answer?"
"I said it doesn't matter because the car is being driven by an idiot who wasted a ton of gas taking super long trips between two places that he could have consolidated into one trip if he had planned ahead."
Mokuba doubled over with laughter.
Seto chuckled softly. "I wish my step-father had a sense of humor."
Mokuba's smile vanished. "I knew he was an $$hole but I didn't know he was evil. I can't believe what he did to you."
"I think he really meant to kill me. He left me for dead last night."
Seto pulled his knees up to his chest and hid is face in his arms as he started to cry again.
Mokuba fought the urge to cry as he watched, unsure what to do. "I really am sorry. I wish you weren't alone in all this."
Seto wiped his eyes. "At least you're here. You're the nicest thief who might be insane that I've ever met."
"I guess that's better than nothing. I wish I didn't have to go back to my own time. I wish I could stay and help you somehow."
"It doesn't matter what you wish. You're stuck here anyway."
"What?"
"Even if it is true about the time machine I can't fix it."
"Sure you can. You invent it."
Seto looked at him square in the eyes. "Look at me. I'm just a stupid kid. I can't do anything. I can't protect my brother. I can't even protect myself. It's all I can do just to survive. What makes you think I'm capable of anything? I'm nothing."
Mokuba felt frustration growing inside him. "So you're giving up without even looking at the machine?"
"I'm sorry. I'm not the genius you think I am. I'm just a scared little kid."
Mokuba clenched his fists. He stood up.
"No. That is not who you are."
"You don't know anything about me. Just leave me alone."
"No! You listen to me. I know who you are. You are Seto Freaking Kaiba. You never give up, no matter what the odds are. You keep fighting and you give your enemies Hell for as long as you can."
"Shut up! I'm not who you think I am!"
"Yes you are!"
Mokuba put his hands heavily on Seto's small shoulders and looked straight into his despairing eyes. "You are the strongest person I have ever known, or will ever know. You've always been there for me no matter what kind of deep s*** we find ourselves in. You're going to keep fighting. You're going to give your b******** step-father Hell. Then you're going to win. That is who you are, Seto Kaiba."
Seto's young face changed into realization. "Mokuba?"
Mokuba stepped back startled. "Uh- what- no!"
"Its you! You're Mokuba!"
Although it was painful, Seto got to his feet and hugged Mokuba tightly around the waist.
"Dang it Seto. Why do you have to be so smart?"
Mokuba felt his shirt getting wet from Seto's tears. Between him and his brother he had always been the more affectionate one, but that wasn't saying much since neither of them were very affectionate with each other. It was strange to be hugged by Seto at all. It was even stranger to be hugged by a tiny version of him who was crying as softly as he could.
Mokuba awkwardly padded his head.
Seto eventually let go and looked up at Mokuba with big, innocent, watery eyes.
Why does he look so cute? It's like I'm seeing a teddy bear version of my brother.
"You came back to save my life didn't you?"
Mokuba shuffled uncomfortably. "I really wish that were true, but I came here completely by accident. I didn't know the time machine was a time machine until it took me to the past. You really need to label the stuff in your lab."
"Then how did you know to come to this exact time to save my life?"
"I didn't. The the date for the time machine was already set when I started driving it."
Seto thought for a moment. He stiffly shuffled over to his desk and pulled out a yellow notebook from the top drawer.
"Hey, you shouldn't move around so much. Aren't you in pain?"
Seto grunted, "I'm fine."
He took out a pen and started writing in the notebook. "What time did you get here last night?"
"About midnight. Why? What are you doing?"
"I'm making a note to myself to set this date on the time machine after I invent it."
Mokuba was impressed. "Okay. I just hope you don't forget."
"Obviously I don't."
"Yeah, time travel is weird."
Seto finished writing and turned to look at Mokuba.
"You look a lot more like Dad than I thought you would."
"To be honest, I can't remember what he looks like. I didn't know I looked that much like him until you mistook me for him."
"Is that my blood all over your clothes?"
Mokuba looked down at himself. He clothes were covered in blood stains. He had been so worried about Seto that he hadn't noticed his own gruesome appearance.
"Um, yeah."
Seto shrugged. "What am I like in the future?"
"Basically the same, except taller."
"What's the future like?"
"Well, you know, we all have flying cars and take vacations on the moon."
"Really?"
"No, I was being sarcastic."
"Oh… How old are you?"
"I can't answer that."
"Why not?"
"You shouldn't know too much about your own future. It could mess it up. I've probably already messed it up by being here."
"I don't think time travel works that way. Everything that you change in this time has already had its effect on the events in your time. You can't change what's already happened."
"What if it can change?"
"Then your memory would have already been altered and you wouldn't know any different. So can you tell me about my future?"
"Nice try, but no. I'd rather be cautious than sorry."
Seto thought for a moment. "So I'm an adult in your time?"
"That should be obvious since I'm an adult."
"Do I have a girlfriend?"
"I can't answer that."
"Is she hot?"
"I still can't answer that."
"Do we make love?"
"What?"
"Do we?"
"That is none of my business. Stop asking questions I can't answer."
"Can you at least answer this? I have a plan to take over Kaiba Corp within the next few months. Does it work?"
Seto's large young eyes stared up at Mokuba with intense desperation.
Mokuba sighed. I can't say no to someone that cute. "I guess I can tell you that. Yes it does, and you become the best CEO Kaiba Corp has ever had."
A glimmer of hope shined in Seto's eyes. He looked as if a huge burden had been lifted from his shoulders. He relaxed a little and breathed more easily.
"Thank you," he whispered.
"Look, why didn't you ever tell me about this? I had no idea Gozaboro was treating you like that. Do you have any idea how scared I was when I found you bleeding to death in the basement? You scared the Hell out of me."
"I guess I never told you because I knew you would find out about it eventually."
"A little warning would have been nice."
"It's not like it's my fault, you know."
"I know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to sound like that. I just wish I could have been there for you."
"You're here now."
"Yeah, I guess so."
Seto's stomach suddenly growled.
Mokuba smiled softly. "I'd better sneak down stairs and get you something from the kitchen."
"You don't need to do that. I have food here."
"You do?"
"I keep a stash hidden up here for when I get hungry in between meals."
"That's a good idea."
Seto stiffly walked over the middle of the room. Carefully he got down on his knees.
"Hey, be careful. I don't want you to rip those stitches."
"I'm okay," he said in a strained voice.
He lifted a loose floorboard. Underneath were two boxes. One was full of packaged pastries and cartons of juice. The other had a deck of playing cards, a deck of duel monster cards, and a chess board.
Mokuba didn't know why he felt surprised. "You are one dang clever kid."
"Thanks."
Seto pulled out several pastries and cartons of juice.
"Where did you get all this?"
"From the break room in the office."
"That figures."
Mokuba sat on the floor next to him and they each opened a pastry and started eating. They couldn't help staring at each other as they ate. The situation was bizarre to both of them.
Seto said with his mouth full, "Do you get taller than me?"
"I think we're about the same height."
Seto smiled satisfied. He thought of another question. "Do you have a girlfriend?"
"I had a girlfriend a couple years ago but it wasn't working out so we broke up."
"Oh. Sorry."
"It was for the best. We weren't right for each other."
"Do I have any kids?"
"You really need to stop asking questions about your future."
"But what's going to happen has already happened."
"I'm just not sure if that's how time travel works."
"Maybe we can figure it out. Can you think of anything from your past that could be explained by you coming here?"
Mokuba thought a moment. An idea came to him. "My niece," he whispered.
"Your what?!"
"Crap! I can't believe I just said that out loud."
"I have a daughter! What is she like? What's her name? Does she look like me? Did I have her on purpose or was she an accident? Am I with her mom? We're not divorced are we? Am I a good father? What if I'm a terrible father?"
"Whoa! Whoa. Slow down. She isn't going to be born for a long time from now. I shouldn't have told you about that anyway."
A little smile pulled at Seto's lips. "I'm glad you did. Now I have something to look forward to. Hey wait- what does she have to do with time travel?"
"Maybe nothing. I just think its weird that as soon as you found out that your wi- uh, the lady who is birthing your child was pregnant with her you knew the baby was going to be a girl. You were so sure even though it was medically impossible to tell until a couple months ago when the ultrasound confirmed that the baby was a girl."
"I guess now we know how I knew."
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Did you say 'the woman who is birthing your child'?"
"No. Maybe."
"Is my wife in labor right now?"
Mokuba sighed in annoyance. "Why are you so dang smart?"
"Is she okay? Is the baby okay?"
"I'm sure she's fine. People don't die from childbirth like they use to. I need to get back to my own time and make sure everything is alright."
Seto looked really worried. "Our Mom died after she had you."
"I know but she was really sick before she got pregnant. Your future wife is a strong, healthy lady."
Seto didn't look entirely convinced.
"Look, medicine has come a long way. I'm sure she's fine. Don't worry about it."
"If you say so."
"I shouldn't have told you about any of this."
"At least now we know you didn't travel to a parallel universe when you went back in time, and what happens in this timeline effects yours."
"Yeah, that's true."
Seto sat thoughtfully for a moment. "So I have a family someday." The idea comforted him.
Mokuba knew he shouldn't have told him about his future family but he was grateful that it offered some comfort at such a dark time in Seto's life.
Seto yawned and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.
"I know this is weird but you are adorable."
Seto looked up at him insulted. "Give me a break! I'm 13 and I'm turning 14 tomorrow."
"Your birthday is tomorrow?"
"Yeah, I know, happy freaking birthday."
"No, I think something significant happens on your 14th birthday. I'm trying to remember what it is."
They sat silently for a moment.
Mokuba gave up. "It will come to me later."
"I guess I look weird to you since I'm an adult in your time, but you look pretty weird to me too. You're like a giant, hairy version of my brother."
"You're like a cute, little teddy bear version of my brother."
Seto shot him a warning look. Mokuba couldn't help chuckling at it.
Seto yawned again.
Mokuba looked worried. "You should get back to sleep but you probably have to go to school."
"No I don't. If I try to leave this room Gozaboro will lock me in here for a few days. He won't let me out until I recover enough to walk normally so that the servants don't find out what's happening and report him for child abuse."
"He's such a b******. At least we don't have to worry about someone finding me in here. That would look weird."
"And I can go back to sleep without anyone bothering me."
"How are you going to get food? There aren't enough pastries for a few days."
"One of the servants will push it through that slot in the door."
"Oh. I always wondered what that was for."
Seto finished his pastry and looked depressingly at the floor. "I'm tired but I think the pain is going to keep me awake. I've never been whipped this much or this deeply before."
Mokuba pulled a flask out of his bag. "Try this. It can help relieve the pain and cause you to sleep."
"What is it?"
"Tequila."
"I'm not old enough to drink that."
"Technically I'm not either."
"Why do you have that then?"
"I have a bit of a drinking problem. Don't judge me. I'm trying to quit."
Seto wasn't sure how to respond to that. "You know, you're really different than I thought you would be."
"Well, life never turns out how you expect. Are you going to try some or not?"
"Are you sure it will help?"
"Yeah, I've used it for pain relief before."
Seto cautiously took the flask and sipped a little. He immediately gagged.
"This is disgusting!"
Mokuba laughed. "It's an acquired taste."
"Which is another way of saying its gross."
"Pretty much."
Seto choked down another sip.
"Do I play duel monsters in the future?"
"Yep."
"Am I the best?"
"You certainly think you are."
He closed his eyes and took several more sips. "When do I meet my wife?"
"When you do."
"Do I love her?"
"Of course. Why do you think you marry her?"
Seto's words become slower and his eyelids start to droop. "Does she love me or my money?"
"She loves you and you two are very happy together?"
He took another sip. "Are you lying to make me feel better?"
"I wouldn't lie about that."
"Good."
Seto's head bobbed up and down as he struggled to stay awake.
"I think you've had enough of that." Mokuba took the flask from his hand and screwed the cap back on.
Absentmindedly, Seto let his head fall into Mokuba's lap. He curled his legs to the side and was instantly asleep.
Wow. It doesn't take long for tequila to effect such a tiny body. I wish it affected me that quickly.
Mokuba looked down at his brother. He had already been through a lot but he was still innocent at this age. He rested his hand on Seto's small shoulder.
I wish I could protect you from all the pain you're going to face, but you can't change the past, even with a time machine.
Seto awoke to the growling of his stomach. He felt as if he hadn't eaten in days. He found himself in his bed with the covers pulled over him. He looked around for Mokuba but didn't see him anywhere. He did see that a large sandwich had been shoved through the slot in his door.
Stiffly he got up, shuffled over to the sandwich, and started eating.
"I hope Mokuba got something to eat," he said out loud.
"I did." Mokuba's head popped out from under the bed.
"What are you doing down there?"
"Sleeping mostly. I had to stay hidden just in case someone came in here to check on you."
Seto wasn't sure what to think of this strange grown-up version of his brother as he watched him worm his way out from under the bed.
"How is your back?" Mokuba asked.
"It feels a little better."
"Good, because I finished the tequila with lunch."
"Did you sneak down to the kitchen and get something."
"No. One of the servants shoved a burger through the door about six hours ago."
Seto almost choked on his food. "Its dinner time?"
"You've been asleep all day."
"Wow. I've never slept that long before."
"Sleep is the best thing you can do to heal your lacerations, apart from eat a lot, drink plenty of water, and try not to move too much."
"Are you a doctor?"
"No I'm a paramedic."
"That's someone who responds to emergency situations right?"
"Yeah, basically."
"How long did it take you to become that?"
"A few years."
"Do you work in a hospital?"
"I worked for a hospital as part of an ambulance team that responded to health related 911 calls."
"That explains a lot."
"I've seen a lot of things, but it's different with your own family. I've never been so scared as when I saw you on the floor bleeding last night."
"Was it that bad?"
"My gut reaction was that you were dead. I knew you survived but I wasn't sure how. You lost a lot of blood."
Seto's eyes filled with fear. He pulled his knees up to his chest and ate smaller bites.
Mokuba tried to reassure him. "I don't know for sure but I don't think you ever have to go through that again. Your plan to take over Kaiba Corp works, remember?"
Seto nodded but still looked anxious.
"In fact your plan starts tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?"
"On your 14th birthday. I remember what happens now. Gozaboro gets really sick and doesn't come to the office for the next three days."
"That's perfect! That gives me enough time to meet with the big 5 and set up my plan to take over Kaiba Corp. By the time Gozaboro goes back to work it will be too late to stop me." Seto's anxiety disappeared as he thought about his future. A thought crossed his mind. "It seems a little too perfect though."
"What do you mean?"
"I've been living here for almost two years and Gozaboro has never been that sick before. He's gotten colds but he still goes to the office, even when he has a fever."
"I guess he has nothing but his job to live for since his wife left him and everyone else hates him."
"That's not the point. It seems like an awfully big coincidence for you to show up here with who knows what kind of medicines in your bag and for Gozaboro to get really sick the next day."
"This is why I can't watch movies with you. You always predict the ending."
"What do you poison him with? Do you kill him?"
"Consider that a birthday surprise."
Seto smiled devilishly as he thought about it.
Mokuba changed the subject. "Are you going to finish that?"
"No. You can have the rest."
"Are you sure? You need the energy more than I do."
"I'm full. It was a big sandwich."
Mokuba took what was left and started eating.
"So where did you hide the time machine?"
Mokuba swallowed a bite. "In the garage. You made it look like a weird motorcycle. I was thinking we would wait until night, sneak out of the mansion without triggering any alarms, you would use the tools in the garage to fix the machine, and I'll take off before anyone wakes up. I hope the right tools are in there."
"Well it's not the best plan but I can't think of anything better."
"By the way, one of the servants shoved a textbook through the door with some worksheets you have to fill out. They're over here."
Mokuba pulled the book and papers out from under the bed.
"S***! I never get a break!" Seto yelled. "Not even after last night."
"It's not so bad. I'm pretty knowledgeable about the topic. You're learning about different systems in the body and what they do. You also have to memorize the bones and muscles in the human body. I can teach you how I memorized them. That should help you ace the test."
"Really? Thanks. It will be nice to have a study partner for once."
"I wish I could take the test for you but you'll be tested on it after I leave."
"Just helping me memorize all this is a huge help."
They got started on it right away. Mokuba told Seto about his schooling and different experiences he had working with medical emergencies. Hearing real life stories helped Seto learn the material much faster than reading the textbook.
"So you delivered three different kids on the same highway?"
"Not in the same day. The hospital is right off that highway. Rush hour is the worst time to go into labor."
"Wow. So why aren't you helping my wife give birth right now?"
"She didn't want me in the room. I would have to see her naked to help with the delivery and we both felt awkward about that."
"That's a good point."
"It's better to have an obstetrician there anyway. They receive a lot more training in childbirth than I do. The doctor delivering your kid has delivered over 500 babies in her career."
"That's a lot of kids."
Mokuba checked the time. "It's almost midnight. Do you want to start on the time machine or do you want to study more?"
"I think I'm prepared for the test. We finished all my homework an hour ago. Besides, I want to see how this time machine works."
"Alright. Let's do it."
Mokuba didn't allow Seto to travel through the air vents. He worried that maneuvering through them might cause his stitches to rip. Mokuba traveled through the air vents and Seto krept through the mansion on foot. He had snuck out several times before and knew how to do it without getting caught.
They met in the garage and Mokuba showed him where he had parked the time machine.
Seto was unimpressed. "You were right. It looks like a weird motorcycle. There's nothing special about it."
"This is why you need to label things."
"Well, your headlights are broken and the display is down. If that's all that's wrong I can fix it by morning."
"I hope that's all it needs."
Seto got some tools from the shed and started dismantling the front of the motorcycle. He took the display off. Underneath it was an ominous dark cube.
"What is this thing?"
Mokuba took a look. "Oh. I was wondering where that went."
"What is it?"
"It's a quantum cube. You got it from an evil guy who tried to kill you."
"... Okay. What does it do?"
"It opens portals to different dimensions. You were using it to look for a friend of yours who died."
Seto stared at him. "I honestly can't tell if you're being serious right now."
"I know. I get that a lot. I am being serious right now though."
"Wow. I didn't think technology would be capable of that in my lifetime."
"You're one of the few people in the world who can travel to different dimensions... and points in time apparently."
"The machine is set up so that when this red button is pushed the cube emits a light through a concentrated lense. It shines out the headlights and that somehow creates a portal."
"So if we fix the headlights it should be fine?"
"Well the connections from the cube to the display are smashed too. They have to be replaced with new connections."
"Can you do that?"
"Yeah but it could take a few hours. You'd better get comfortable."
Mokuba sat in a chair near Seto and played games on his phone. He dozed off a few times as the night dragged on and eventually fell asleep. Seto worked steadily. He often pulled all-nighters without trying when he was focused on a project.
Seto finished repairing the machine and tapped Mokuba's shoulder to wake him up.
Mokuba jumped. "Huh! What's going on?"
"I finished the time machine. It should work now."
"Oh. Good. What time is it?"
"About 5:15."
"Dang. I better go. People are going to wake up soon."
They both heard the door to the mansion open.
"Right on cue." Mokuba got up and looked out the garage door.
"Who is it?"
"Its Gozaboro."
Seto clenched his fists. "What is that $$hole doing out here this early in the morning?"
"Looks like he's smoking a cigarette."
"That's not what I meant! What if he sees us?"
"He won't. Seto listen, stay in the garage until I leave and don't let the security cameras see you going back into the mansion. I don't want you to be associated with what I'm about to do."
Seto's eyes grew wide. "What are you going to do?"
Mokuba gave him a devilish smile that made him nervous. "I'm going to get you a birthday present."
Mokuba suddenly took off running toward Gozaboro. Seto ran to the garage door and peered out while keeping most of himself hidden.
Gozaboro stood with his back to them and didn't notice Mokuba approaching.
"Hey you!" Mokuba screamed.
Gozaboro turned to look at him.
"Yeah, I'm talking to you, you old, fat b******!"
"Who the Hell are you?" Gozaboro demanded.
Mokuba then proceeded to shout insults at him so foul that they are illegal to publish in most countries.
He took off running away from Gozaboro while laughing like a maniac.
"Get back here you little s***!" Gozaboro tore after him.
He yelled more unprintable insults at him.
While running Mokuba pulled a gun out of his bag. He turned and shot Gozaboro in the stomach with it.
Gozaboro stopped running and staggered forward. "Did you just shoot me?"
"Hell yes I did!"
"I'll have you killed for this you little-
Gozaboro collapsed face first into the grass. Mokuba calmly made his way back to the garage.
Seto fell to the floor with laughter. He couldn't remember ever laughing so hard. He laughed until tears came out of his eyes. He was still laughing when Mokuba stepped back into the garage.
Mokuba beamed at him. "I thought you would like that."
"You're crazy! You said he got sick. You didn't tell me you shot him!"
"I didn't shoot him with a real bullet, unfortunately. It's just a poison dart."
"A poison dart?"
"I made the poison myself. It knocks your target out for several hours and when they wake up they'll be puking for two or three days. I discovered the effects of the ingredients on accident. That was not a fun weekend."
Seto's face held the biggest, most impressed smile Mokuba had ever seen. "You're the best brother ever!"
"I know." Mokuba twirled his dart gun like a cowboy before stuffing it back in his bag.
"You're really scary too. What else do you have in that bag?"
"A few grenades, some daggers, a real gun. You know, normal stuff."
"Did you serve in a war or something?"
"No but it seems like it."
"What happens to you?"
Mokuba laughed. "Don't worry about it. Everything works out."
Seto looked up at him with terrified awe. "I'm just glad you're on my side."
"I could say the same about you. You become quite the bad $$, I mean more than you already are."
"Really?"
Mokuba nodded. "I'm sorry I can't stay. I wish I could do more for you."
"Are you serious? You've already done so much. You saved me from bleeding to death, you made it possible for me to meet with the big 5 without Gozaboro finding out, you gave me the best birthday present I've ever gotten, and you've told me that someday I'll have a family and be happy. What more can you do?"
Mokuba's face became serious. He got down on one knee and put his hands on Seto's shoulders.
"I have to warn you, just because you know how things will go doesn't mean it's going to be easy. You'll have a lot of enemies and they'll push you to your breaking point. You have to promise me that you will never give up again, no matter how hard it gets."
"I promise," he said without hesitating. "And I promise to always take care of you. You saved my life so I'll protect you with it."
"I know you will. From my point of view I'm paying you back for all the times you've saved me."
Seto suddenly hugged him tightly. Mokuba hugged him back being careful not to put his hands on any of his stitches.
"You know, I am going to miss getting to be the older brother for once."
"I'm going to miss not having to be the strong one for once."
Seto let go and they looked at each other for a moment.
Mokuba got up. "Well, I better get back to my time."
"Yeah, make sure my wife and daughter are okay."
"I'm sure they're fine. You're with them."
Mokuba got on the motorcycle and started the engine.
"Thanks for everything," Seto said.
"No problem. I'll see you later."
Seto smiled. "I can't wait."
Mokuba looked back at him one more time before taking off down the driveway.
Back in his own time, Mokuba drove the motorcycle into Seto's lab and cut the engine it just before hitting the wall. He jumped off and ran out the lab door where he almost ran into Seto.
"Seto! Where's Kisara? Where's the baby? Are they okay?"
"Calm down! They're fine. They're both resting."
Mokuba paused to catch his breath. He couldn't remember the exact time he had left so he wasn't sure what would be happening when he got back. He felt a wave of relief wash over him when he heard that the baby was born and everyone was alright.
"It took you longer to get back than I thought it would. You forgot what time you left, didn't you?"
Mokuba looked at his brother. "I take it that was your sticky note on the machine?"
"I had to make sure you pressed the right button."
"It's a big red button. How much easier can it be?"
Seto almost smiled but stopped when he saw the stains on Mokuba's clothes. "I really did lose a lot of blood."
Mokuba nodded. "You really scared me."
They stood in silence for a while unsure what to say.
Then Seto added, "You'd better get cleaned up before you see the baby."
Mokuba had almost forgotten about the baby. "Yeah, okay."
They both turned and headed back to the mansion.
"Now that you're back I'm going to check on Kisara and Jojo."
"Jojo?"
"We named the baby Joline. It was Kisara's idea to call her Jojo for short."
"You named her after our Mom?"
Seto nodded.
"Jojo. That's cute."
Seto smiled.
They went in opposite directions after entering the mansion. Seto went to the birthing room to be with his wife and daughter. Mokuba went to his bedroom to shower and change his clothes.
Mokuba thought as he cleaned himself off.
This trip back in time explains a lot about Seto. He always treated me like an equal, even when I was just an annoying little kid who kept getting kidnapped. He never treated me like the dead weight that I was. The whole time he knew that I would one day save him.
Now I know why he was so confident on the day he took over Kaiba Corp. Every challenge after that he remained confident that he would win. Maybe he didn't know if he would win but he knew everything would work out alright in the end.
Mokuba dried off and quickly dressed himself. His excitement grew as he thought about meeting his niece. He almost ran to the birthing room where he softly knocked on the door.
Kisara called out, "Come in."
Mokuba entered the room. Kisara and Seto sat on the bed together. Kisara held a tiny bundle of blankets with a round little face peering out of it. Seto had his arm around Kisara's shoulders. Both of them seemed to be glowing with joy.
Kisara looked up when Mokuba entered the room. "There you are. Where have you been? Jojo was born an hour ago."
"It's kind of a long story."
Seto answered her question, "I sent him to take care of a situation in the lab. I wasn't sure when he would be back."
"What situation? What happened?" Kisara looked at the two of them.
Mokuba shrugged. "It doesn't matter now. I took care of it."
"Why are you two being so secretive about this?"
Seto assured her. "I'll tell you about it later."
"Okay but don't forget."
Mokuba noticed that Seto's left hand was in a cast. He wondered why he hadn't seen that before.
"What happened to your hand?"
Kisara blushed. "Um, well, when the baby was coming out it really hurt so I grabbed Seto's hand, and I accidentally broke it."
Seto added, "In three places."
"I said I was sorry."
Mokuba was impressed and terrified. "You broke it? I thought normal women were scary when they're in labor."
Seto teased, "We're lucky she didn't burn down the room with white lightening."
Kisara looked embarrassed. "That doctor is never going to make a house call for us again."
Seto laughed.
Kisara changed the subject. "Mokuba don't you want to hold your niece?"
"Of course."
Mokuba sat on the bed near the couple and gathered the little bundle in his arms. The baby stretched and yawned.
"She's beautiful." For the fourth time in the last 24 hours Mokuba felt like crying.
Kisara beamed. "Seto cried the first time he held her."
"That's because you broke my hand."
"Admit it, you were happy to see her."
Seto smiled. "Alright, I was."
Kisara giggled as she turned and kissed his cheek. Seto's smile grew as he wrapped his arms around her.
Mokuba looked from the new baby to the happy couple. He had never seen his brother so happy before. A couple of years ago he would have never thought it possible that Seto could be so happy. He had been in a constant state of denial and depression ever since they were adopted as children. Then he found Kisara and started smiling again. Now the two of them had a daughter and they couldn't seem to stop smiling.
Mokuba sighed with relief. I told you everything would work out. It feels like it took forever but you have a family now and you couldn't be happier.