Mokuba's Science Project
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of YuGiOh.
"What is that?"
The seventeen-year-old CEO stared very solemnly and warily at the creature sitting on the tile floor. The adorable chocolate lab puppy, complete with short legs and chubby paws, wagged its tail with pleasure at the arrival of Seto Kaiba. The tail wagged back and forth wildly, and the dark brown puppy barked happily, cocking its head at Seto. It stood, took a step forward to greet him, and took another step back, sensing tension. The puppy sat down and let its tiny tongue hang out as it looked Seto up and down.
Seto pushed the door back, the repressed anger heard in his voice also showing in the loud slam that followed. He looked from the pup on the floor up to Mokuba, who stood at the bottom of the giant mansion staircase with his classmate and friend Miyoko. The younger boy wore a calm, undisturbed expression in contrast to the very straight-faced glare of his brother.
"A puppy," Mokuba replied simply.
Seto took a few more steps forward and glared down at the pup directly below him, then raised his furious blue eyes to Mokuba once more. On the floor the pup rolled on its back for Seto to scratch its belly. Seto ignored it.
"No shit. What's it doing here, since I've specifically told you about dogs, cats, or any other animal?"
"Well more importantly, he's my science project," Mokuba explained. He smiled and glanced at his friend Miyoko who stood beside him. She nervously returned the smile and looked at Seto, biting her lip.
"He?" Seto echoed in question. He observed once more the puppy below him, lying on his back and panting. The pup gave a kick of his legs, indicating that he wanted to be scratched. Seto took a breath and relaxed his tense shoulders, but remained annoyed and unresponsive. A peculiar feeling, like an itch, developed in his right foot, and he fought the urge to kick the animal away from him.
"What exactly does he have to do with your science project?" the older Kaiba asked Mokuba, who glanced at Miyoko again. Seto noticed the shifty exchange and prepared himself for what he was about to hear.
"Well…" Mokuba began, looking back from Miyoko to Seto with an uncertain grin, "…my project's on psychology and human behavior." He knew what Seto was thinking at the moment—if the project was on human behavior, what did he need a dog for? "Studies have shown that having a friendly pet like a dog reduces depression, stress, and loneliness."
"I firmly believe that a dog in the house will increase my stress level, Mokuba," Seto responded.
"Well, I'm setting out to prove you wrong," Mokuba answered nonchalantly. "I've recorded your behavior over the past two weeks as the control data. Now is the experiment."
Seto's eyes widened slightly, and his jaw tightened.
"I'm the experiment?" he growled through his teeth.
He stepped forward, and a high-pitch yelp escaped the puppy. Seto's eyes darted back to him, and he immediately raised his foot in surprise, releasing the puppy's hurt tail.
"Oh!" Miyoko exclaimed in pity, and she knelt to pick up the puppy. Cradling him in her arms, she pet him and combed her fingers through his soft fur. Seto looked on with disgust, showing no apologetic gesture.
"I am not taking part in your project, Mokuba," he growled stubbornly. He walked past Mokuba and his friend and started up the stairs to go to his office. "And I'm certainly not acquiring a nuisance of a pet. I don't need furballs all over the house."
"Seto, the maids clean it every day," Mokuba answered, rolling his eyes. "You have to do it. I already turned in the other part of my project, and you're the subject. I can't change it now." His voice came out as a slight whine.
It was a lie that anything had been turned in. Mokuba had just that afternoon decided on the topic for his project after he and Miyoko had stopped by the arcade after school. Miyoko had needed to gather information and take pictures of video game players gaming under different conditions and different moods. They had found the puppy hiding in a box advertising "Free puppies!" under some apartment stairs between two buildings across the street when they returned to the limo that Mokuba used.
Miyoko had taken an instant liking to the pup, but refrained from taking him home as the little girl in her wanted. Mokuba, however, had ideas.
Halfway up the stairs Seto stopped. Mokuba watched him from behind, pressing his lips together anxiously. He needed, and wanted, Seto to cooperate.
"Is it seriously going to affect your grade?" Seto asked, sounding strained. He rested a hand on the railing and leaned heavily on it, thinking.
Mokuba smirked on the inside, and answered, "Yes. If I change subjects, I might as well not finish and fail the project. She said we had to pick a subject and stick with it." That part was true.
Seto looked to the ceiling and sighed exasperatedly. He brought his hand back to his face and rubbed his eyelids, then ran his fingers through his hair in agitation.
Mokuba was the top student of his class, and Seto took a fierce pride in that. He pushed his brother forward, commanding excellence very near perfection. It would be a waste to let the project go, as much as he wanted to. Seto inwardly battled between his desire for Mokuba to keep the top grade and his annoyance with the dog.
Releasing another hiss he turned around and glared darkly at his brother and the pup in Miyoko's arms. Mokuba quickly dropped the smirk before his brother could see it.
"What do I have to do?" Seto asked, surrendering.
A more self-satisfied than grateful smile crossed Mokuba's face, and he turned to remove the chocolate lab from Miyoko's hold. The younger Kaiba quickly carried him up the stairs where Seto stood and held him out while listing off the duties of the new dog owner.
"Just feed him, bathe him, make sure he always has water, and give him a ball to play with."
"So basically, everything," Seto said. His voice carried a skeptical hint of sarcasm. "I don't have time to give the mutt baths, let alone play with him." He critically eyed the pup, examining him from head to tail.
"Seto, you have to," Mokuba told him. "Oh, and walk him regularly."
Seto sharply locked his widened eyes with Mokuba's in shock. "Mokuba, I cannot walk him, unless it's from my study to my room." He raised a cynical eyebrow as he looked back at the puppy, who blinked and stretched forward to lick his chin. Seto stepped back and said, "And I do not know where that thing's sleeping, because it is not my room."
"Don't worry, I got everything he needs already," Mokuba assured him. "Before you go to bed, take him down to the basement. I bought him a doghouse, a food dish, and bed."
"Perfect," Seto muttered.
Reluctantly he held out one hand, as his other held his briefcase, and took the puppy from Mokuba. To support him, Seto allowed him to lean against his chest but flinched and turned his head away when the pup reached up to lick his chin.
"Aw," said Miyoko as she ascended the stairs toward them. "He likes you."
Seto responded with an eyeroll. "It's a one-way sentiment." He then forgot the puppy for a moment and gave her a questioning glance. "Are you partnered with Mokuba for this?"
Miyoko shook her head. "I'm doing my own. We stopped at the arcade to gather my data. I'm studying how different conditions affect video gamers."
With a grunt Seto acknowledged her. He then turned and started back up the stairs with the puppy, resentment in his every step.
"Feed him at six," Mokuba instructed from behind.
"With pleasure," Seto replied over his shoulder with no enthusiasm.
Once inside his study Seto set the pup down. He actually dropped him before the last couple of inches above the floor, but the puppy seemed to take no notice and energetically started running behind his master, chasing after the tail of his grey trenchcoat. Seto refused to acknowledge him until he laid his briefcase on his desk and sat down in his swivel chair. He sat back and considered the pup for a small second, resting his cheek against his knuckles.
The pup sat down and proceeded with its tail-wagging, letting his mouth hang open as he stared up at Seto. He stood again and cocked his head. When Seto emitted no response other than to stare back, the pup let out a couple of high-pitched barks.
"Okay, first thing's first," Seto said. "I'm teaching you to shut up."
The puppy paused, cocked his head again, and continued his stare. Seto again did not respond except to look the pup directly in the eye. He knew that animals generally consider that a challenge, and the pup took it and immediately barked again.
Seto quickly leaned forward and clamped the dog's mouth shut. "Hush," he ordered.
The puppy blinked and tried to pull away from Seto's grip, but Seto's hands held his head firmly in place. He shook his head hard, trying to shake from Seto's hold. The pup then stopped moving, blinked timidly again, and silently looked up at Seto. When his master removed his hands, the pup jumped back and elicited three squeaky barks.
Quickly Seto leaned downward again. The puppy had expected it, but he had failed to move fast enough to escape. Seto's hands enclosed his snout again, and the pup struggled once more in vain, releasing a whimper through his nose.
"Hush!" Seto repeated more loudly. The dog in his firm grasp became silent again, blinking in the same nervous manner.
This small training lesson continued a few more minutes the same way, until Seto felt that he had spent enough time on it and needed to get to his real work. The obedience school would continue later, when Seto had treats to bribe the dog with.
The sound of the whirring laptop commenced after Seto opened it on his desk, and he turned his attention to it as he turned to the screen and began typing. The pup cocked his head at his owner. Bored from getting no attention and sensing that a ritual like the previous one would occur if he made any noise, he stood and trotted under the desk to lie down curled up at Seto's feet.
At the peripheral sight of the pup's movement, Seto glanced downward below his desktop to find him still around his feet. He then turned his gaze to the laptop screen again as he typed, until a thought struck him: what to call the animal.
He thought of what would be acceptable to Mokuba, since he was sure that anything effortless as "Dog" or "Brown" would warrant disapproval, and Seto didn't feel like meeting resistance from his brother. He considered the dog's physical features.
Brown fur…not "Brownie." "Fuzzy"? Absolutely no Kaiba possession would be referred to as something that sounded that childishly ridiculous.
Big brown eyes. Seto's brow wrinkled slightly. The pup's eyes vaguely reminded him of something, along with his mannerisms that emphasized his size. One example would be of how far the pup had to tilt his head to look Seto directly in the eye. Continuing to type the teenager again thought of the wide brown eyes that lacked any hint of intimidation. His blue-eyed gaze strayed in thought to the bookshelf on the right side. Seto's eyes fell on the three yearbooks from previous years at Domino High, and he was quickly reminded of school life along with what other students did—duel.
A small hmph passed out Seto's nose, and his mouth turned up at the side out of slight amusement.
"Yugi."
He continued with his work on the laptop, but thought of the connection. He instantly decided that no pet of his would be named after his archrival, no matter how alike the appearance of their eyeballs were.
Seto's blue eyes rose from the screen as the perfect name clicked. A small smirk found its place at his mouth again. Yugi was definitely not the right name.
"Wheeler," he murmured, satisfied. Below Seto's desk, the dozing puppy opened his eyes at the sound from his master.
author's note:
Had this written eons ago. Hope you liked it. Please leave a decent, thoughtful review. And this is a one-shot, so there absolutely will not be any continuation. The author has spoken.