She seemed to be nice. Nice in that stupid, I want us to be friends-like way only teachers can. Kaito and his friend Hiroto exchanged glances. New. She had to be new. To their school, for they had never seen her before. And maybe new to teaching altogether. Great. They could practically smell the boredom ahead. "Well…", she said after a while. "Tomoe-san told me you have been talking about climate change. And what can be done about it. Maybe we could continue to do so, so you can tell her all about it next week." At least she wasn't about to try give them a fun lesson. "I understand you have been talking about saving energy at home, about public transport and-" She glanced at the notebook that contained notes about their last lessons. "The does and don'ts of shopping. Next on this list is a lesson about organic products, especially clothing. Can anyone tell me what organic means?" Maybe she wasn't all that bad, after all. Kaito raised his hand, thinking of what Anzu had told him last week, when he'd asked her about all those cloth samples in their living room. "Yes… Kaito?", the new teacher asked after she had checked his nametag. "In this case, it means that the plants of which a product is made are grown without fertilizer and pesticides." A slight smile crept up to the corners of her mouth, Kaito knew that smile. It was the same each and every teacher gave him when he used words normal nine-year-olds didn't use. "A few other things as well, but basically, that's right. Now, can anyone tell me what those words mean?" The new teacher turned around and wrote fertilizer and pesticide onto the board. Some of his classmates raised their hands. "Yukiko?" The shy, blue-haired girl looked at the words again, as if she was looking for a point to hold on to, and answered quickly, obviously wanting it to be over and the attention turn to someone else again: "Fertilizer is something you give to plants, so they grow faster. And pesticides kill all the insects that could harm a plant." The young woman in front gave her an encouraging nod. "Exactly. Could you repeat that so everyone can hear it?" Reluctantly, Yukiko did as she was told. Kaito began to doze off while the new teacher began to explain what organic farming had to do with their current topic. He'd heard all that from Anzu already. "Now, can someone tell me the name of a big company that produces clothes? Masako?" One after the other, the names his classmates offered appeared on the board: Levis. . Nike. He raised his hand again. "Kaiba Corporation." A slight, friendly frown was the answer. "But, Kaito, Kaiba Corp. doesn't produce clothes. They make toys and run amusement parks." Now he had to hide a smile. He loved to know things others didn't, couldn't know. "So far. But soon, they will sell clothes, too." He could hear some of his classmates snigger at the obvious ignorance of their teacher. She ignored them, or hadn't heard them at all. "Kaito, really, you're mixing that up. My husband works for Kaiba Corp., there are no such plans as you tell us." Anzu had told him not to do that. But it was too tempting. "He does? Well, my uncle owns Kaiba Corp. And he told me." Again, he could hear laughter, this time, it came from the blonde woman behind the teacher's desk. "Excuse me. I didn't mean to laugh at you, Kaito. But you must have gotten that wrong. Maybe he's leading a department of Kaiba Corp, or something. But he can't own it. Seto Kaiba owns Kaiba Corporation." The young boy rolled his eyes. How stupid did she think he was? Anyone in Domino knew that. "I know. Seto Kaiba is my uncle." She didn't get angry, but she looked a bit annoyed. Maybe at him. Maybe at the other kids, who were still laughing. "Now, Kaito, don't lie to me. You know he is not, Seto Kaiba has only one brother and we would know if Mokuba Kaiba had any children." He would. She wouldn't, necessarily. But he didn't say that. "Leave her alone, Kaito", Hiroto whispered. "She's new. She can't know it." – "I know." Kaito sighed. "But if I don't say anything now, she'll think I'm a liar. And she mustn't." Aloud, he said: "You're right. He's not my uncle. I just call him uncle, to make things easier. My mother was his wife's cousin." Now she seemed a bit confused, she obviously hadn't expected a third grader to tell so complex a lie. Only it wasn't one, but how would the teacher know? "All right." She said in an amused manner. "But now let's come back to our topic." Kaito got to his feet. "Really, it's true! I can call him, if you want me to." Suddenly, this wasn't about a stupid teacher and some private joke anymore. It was about all the people thinking he made up things to impress others, all the people who thought Kaito Kusakabe-Kaiba was a liar. Of course, Kaito was the only one to notice that. The teacher still thought he was joking. She looked at him for a moment, obviously trying to determine whether she had to set an example against pupils disrupting her lessons here, then shrugged and said: "Alright. Call Seto Kaiba, if you like." Kaito grabbed his mobile phone – the new, expensive one Seto'd given him for his last birthday – and pushed a single button.

--

"Kaito? What happened?" For emergencies, he'd told him, so Seto had a right to be a little concerned as he answered his phone now. But still, he hated the way it showed, the way anyone could have guessed in a second how much that boy meant to him. And he wasn't even related to him, technically. "Seto, my teacher doesn't believe I live with you. And she says Kaiba Corp. doesn't have any plans to sell clothes. Could you tell her?" His shoulders relaxed, but Seto tried to sound strict in spite of that smile that tried to inhabit his face. "I told you you could call me in case of an emergency. Do you call that one? You're lucky I don't have any appointments right now." The way Kaito answered, he could almost see his puppy eyes. Damn it, Mokuba must have shown him a few tricks. "I know… but can you? Please?" Seto put the finished contract in front of him aside and leaned back. "I will. But you mustn't do that again, remember. Now, let me talk to her." There was a rustle and a female voice asked: "Hello?" He felt annoyed. He'd never liked teachers, much less the sort that seemed to be more of a cheerleader than an educator. And he hadn't changed his mind just because he happened to be in love with, and married to, Yugi Muto's former personal cheerleader. "This is Seto Kaiba. I understand you have had a little discussion with Kaito. I don't like him showing off his name, but since you seem to have asked, he is my wife's godson and we have adopted him. As for the question the two of you were obviously debating, watch the local news today, if you like. Have a nice day." He put the phone back on his desk and leaned back in his chair, staring out of the window absent-mindedly. Once again, he wondered what it would be like to have children of his own, really his own. He loved Kaito, but he would like to have other children as well. Anzu and he had agreed to wait a few years, always hoping her chance to become a dancer was just around the corner. By now, five years had went by since she had lost her last job and decided to stay in Domino with Kaito and him, and no such opportunity had come. Maybe there would never be one. Anzu never talked about children these days. She seemed perfectly happy with her new job, even if she just taught children to dance instead of performing herself. She seemed perfectly happy with life in general. Maybe he should be, too. Maybe Anzu didn't want any more children.

With a sigh, he turned and went back to work.

--

"Anzu? May I have a minute?" The young woman turned from her students and looked at her employer in surprise. Then she nodded. "Of course. Young ladies, I trust you to behave yourselves while I'm gone." They stepped out on the corridor. "What happened?" Sakura, the owner of the school, looked unusually quiet, almost sad. For a moment, Anzu remembered the night five years ago, when someone had told her the news about the death of Kaito's parents. No, she checked herself, if it was something like that, Sakura wouldn't be that calm. "You know how much I appreciate your work, don't you, Anzu?", the elder woman began. The brunette looked puzzled, but signaled her agreement. Sakura seemed relieved. "Good. Then you know I'd like to keep you here. You do a good job with the kids, excellent, even. But you can do more. I'd like to help you with that, so I talked to a few friends of mine. One of them is willing to offer you a new job, Anzu. As a dancer." For a moment, Anzu didn't say anything. "Are you sure?", she asked when she'd realized Sakura wasn't joking. "You mean, as a performing dancer? On stage?" The elder one nodded. "Actually, the job would involve singing, as well, but I think you learned that as well, didn't you? My friend specialized on musical productions. For now, you would only be a member of the chorus. But they are willing to give you more important roles by and by." A smile appeared on Anzus face. "That's great, Sakura! Thank you so much. You're a real friend." She hesitated a second, then she stepped forward and hugged her employer briefly, but gratefully. "What theater is it?" Sakura gave a little sigh. "That's the problem about it. It's not in Domino. It's the Tokyo City Musical Theater."

--

He could see Anzu's silhouette through the window – judging by the faint glow that came through the otherwise dark pane, she was watching TV. "To be issued in five designs, based on popular DuelMonsters themes – Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl, Kuriboh, Baby Dragon and, of course, Kaiba Corporations signature monster, the Blue Eyes White Dragon. – " When Seto opened the door, Anzu switched off the TV and met him in the entrance hall with a kiss. "Hey. How was your day?" He put down his suitcase and wrapped his arms round her waist. "Normal. What about you?" Anzu raised her head, that until now had rested on Setos chest, and looked him in the face. "I've got to talk to you. Sakura made me an offer for a new job." Gently, Seto released her and placed another kiss on her forehead. "Wait for me. I'll just say goodnight to Kaito, then we can talk."

--

Usually the door to Kaito's room stood slightly ajar when Seto came to say goodnight, and his adopted son was waiting for him. Today, Seto found the door closed and didn't get an answer when he knocked. Bewildered, he partly opened the door and peered into the room. Kaito was sitting on his bed and looked at him sadly; his eyes still red from crying. "Why don't you want me to tell anyone I know you? Is it because I'm no real Kaiba?", he asked instead of a greeting. Seto blinked in surprise, then he stepped into the room and closed the door. "Whatever gave you that idea? I thought you knew why I don't like it!" Kaito didn't answer, so Seto sat down beside him and looked at the boy. "I want to teach you not to use your name as an excuse for everything, just because it's famous. And I want you to learn how to get what you want by earning it, not by telling people who you are. That's all." His son looked at him suspiciously. "So you don't mind that I'm only called Kaiba because Anzu adopted me and then married you?" How could he, he, of all people? "No, I don't. I couldn't", Seto added, more to himself than to Kaito. The boy raised his head and looked at him. "What do you mean, you couldn't?" Seto didn't say anything for a while. Then he asked: "Don't you know? Didn't Mokuba ever tell you our story? Or Anzu?" His eyes met a look of total confusion. "No, they didn't. What story?" The dark-haired man let his head fall back to the wall and closed his eyes tiredly. He didn't like to tell that story; in fact, he had avoided to do so until now. Never had he told it to anyone, at least not the whole one. But Kaito had a right to know, and there wouldn't be another chance to do it so quickly, so easily. "You know my parents are dead, don't you?", he asked. Kaito nodded. "Mokuba told me so. But he never said… why? I mean, how did they die?" Seto put his arm around the boy and pulled him closer. "My mother died when Mokuba was born. I was five years old then, another five years later, my father had an accident with his car. He was brought to the hospital, but it was to late. He died, too." He fell silent, arranged the words in his head before he spoke again. "We had relatives, of course, but they weren't able, or willing, to take care of us, so Mokuba and I were sent to an orphanage. Do you know what that is?" Once again, Kaito moved his head in agreement. "It's a house where all the children no one wants have to go." A bitter smile appeared on Setos face, but he didn't comment Kaitos definition aloud. He just went on: "We were still called Hida at that time. That's our parents' surname. A few years later, a visitor came to the orphanage – his name was Gozaburo Kaiba. You've probably heard of him, he owned Kaiba Corporation before me. Anyway, Gozaburo wasn't just there for publicity, he also wanted a heir for his company, since his son had died. He offered to adopt me because he thought I had potential, but I wouldn't go without Mokuba. So I challenged him: if I could beat him in a game of chess, he would adopt my brother as well. Gozaburo didn't take that seriously, of course. He was world champion of chess back then, how could a boy of twelve beat him, even with a lot of luck? Well, he was right. I didn't beat him by luck, I did because he underestimated me and didn't pay attention. That's how Mokuba and I became members of this family. Not by birth, by adoption, just like you." Kaito looked at Seto in fascination. A few minutes went by without one of them saying anything. "So you're just like me", the boy said after a while. Seto stroked his shiny, black hair. "I am. Only I didn't have anyone like Anzu to take care of me. You're lucky." The younger one smiled and crawled between his sheets. "I know. Anzu is great." Something about his words made Seto think how much they both owed the young woman. "You're right. She is. Good night, Kaito."

--

Seto was gone longer than she had expected, and when he finally sat down beside her, he looked tired. "You alright?", asked Anzu while she put her book aside and leaned her head to Seto's shoulder. He nodded, and for a moment his wife thought he wanted to say something, but he seemed to change his mind and just ran the fingers of his right hand through her hair and closed his eyes. "You said Sakura offered you a new job?", he wanted to know after a few minutes of silence. "Did you accept?" Anzu gave a little sigh and straightened her back. "That's what I need to talk to you about." She repeated the story Sakura had told her. "I'd really like to accept. You know I've been waiting for this chance for years, but… the theater her friend is running is in Tokyo. I'd have to move there." Seto thought this over. She was right, he realized, even if she used his private jet, she couldn't possibly travel to Tokyo and back every single day, and work there, too. "You ought to try it.", he said, finally. "It won't be easy, but… we'll find a solution, I'm sure of that." It didn't come out quite as encouraging as he had wished it to, but it was all he could manage. He wasn't that delighted at the prospect of seeing his wife only at the weekends for who knew how long.

--

How did you like it? I've been thinking a lot about how to start this fanfic, I wanted to show some everyday life, but didn't really have an idea what to write. Until that conflict of Kaito living with them and being part of the family, but not really being Seto's son or anything, occurred to me. I got so excited while the scene unfolded in my head! I still like it best, though the "father & son" piece is nice, as well.

The thing about Seto wanting to say something, but changing his mind: For days I planned that paragraph to begin with Seto telling Anzu how much he loves her, appreciates her being there for him, etc. But when I sat down to write it, it didn't seem quite right anymore, to sugary and cliché, I imagine Seto to be the person who FEELS this kind of thing, but doesn't really say it.

One other thing: This being the sequel to "Long Distance", I won't explain how Kaito came to live with Anzu and Seto all over again, please read the prequel, if you want to know. But if there are any questions about the time in between the two stories, five years, after all, please tell me. I made up some things, but mentioned only what I thought necessary to explain the present situation (like why there are no other children but

Kaito).