[[I will preface this with an admission of a mistake I made. This story was written 4 years ago, meaning I was 20 years old. I was far old enough to be aware that the mistake I was making was awful. I whitewashed two characters for the sake of this story, ignorantly. I am ashamed of such behavior, and am in fact working (slowly) on re-writing this piece to offer a far more proper representation of the struggles of minorities in modern Japan, which was my original intent. Unfortunately, the way I sought to accomplish this was improper, using Russian heritage. I am doing thorough research into an actual indigenous group in Japan known as the Ainu, native to Hokkaido and the northern islands connecting to Russia. I promise to do my absolute best to represent this culture with respect and equality. If you have any facts about the Ainu culture, or are of Ainu descent and wish to share with me, please do! Thank you so much for your understanding, and hopefully this mistake of whitewashing can be properly mended!]]

Yugi often wondered just how much Kaiba actually worked. It seemed like every waking moment of every day was consumed by the need to accomplish some new task for the Kaiba Corporation. There were moments, of course, where he stopped to spend time with his brother, or take part in competitions, but other than those sparse moments, he was working for KaibaCorp and KaibaCorp alone. He had already been witness to just how far Kaiba was willing to push himself, and the following months of recovery from a nearly fatal onset of peritonitis weren't the easiest to witness. He had become frail and skinny from the operations he had to endure, and yet still he refused to fully acknowledge just how bad things had gotten. He just took it as another challenge to obliterate, gained some weight back, and continued to work.

It was a continuous cycle that only pushed everyone else so far away. Why would anyone wish to live that way? He couldn't understand it, but he wasn't about to assume anything about a friend, anyway. All he focused on from that moment forward was successfully dropping by Kaiba's office and wishing him well. And, of course, managing to work up the courage to actually enter the very daunting corporate building. There was always something about these kinds of skyscrapers that made him nervous. He always felt so small, even smaller than he already was. Finally, he swallowed back enough of his nerves to open the door and enter, a paper gift bag in tow.

The woman at the front desk, who was perhaps in her mid-to-late thirties, looked up from her computer, seeing only the top of Yugi's head from behind her desk. "Um... May I help you?" she asked, a hint of confusion in her tone.

Yugi stood up on the toes of his shoes to see her fully, holding up the gift bag. "Yes! I'm Yugi Motou, a friend of Seto Kaiba. I'm here to visit him."

The receptionist was obviously skeptical, furrowing one brow and then saying, "I'm sorry, Mr. Kaiba isn't open for appointments today. He's very busy."

Yugi had no doubt of that. Kaiba was always busy. But before she could continue in her shooing, a young boy's voice cut her off, "It's okay. He really is a friend. I invited him." The two looked in the direction of the voice, seeing Mokuba dressed in an expensive looking school uniform, with a school bag slung over one shoulder. "Come on, Yugi, I'll show you up."

As the two walked, Yugi couldn't help but ask, "You're going to a school? I thought Seto would want you tutored."

"He didn't want me to end up cooped up like him." Mokuba smirked and rubbed under his nose, "I'm going to a private school, where most CEO's kids go. Everyone still knows my brother's name, but at least they don't really bug me about him."

"Are you making friends?"

Mokuba nodded very slightly. "It's hard, since I'm very young for the grade I'm in. I'm hanging out with a bunch of rich bratty teenagers. They kind of remind me..." Mokuba looked away, cutting himself short.

Yugi perked a brow, "Remind you of what?"

"They remind me of Seto before you helped us," Mokuba reluctantly answered.

Yugi was quiet, but his face easily read of understanding. He recalled that moment, watching the spirit of the Millenium Puzzle lock Kaiba's soul away until he could find himself again. I wasn't the one who helped him. You were. No, that's not true, the Spirit spoke up, I caused the wound, he stitched it shut, and you kept it clean. You did as much as I.

"Here's the door. He might still be on the phone with Industrial Illusions, I'm not sure."

"Industrial Illusions? What for?" Yugi asked.

The younger of the two shrugged and shook his head. "All he said was something about securing the rights for Duel Monsters, so that he could make a hand held system for digital decks. Less paper waste, and it makes it easier to duel online," he explained, then gently pressing his ear against the door. "I heard the phone click. He's done, I think." After whispering that, Mokuba opened the door quietly, walking in and gesturing for Yugi to follow, "Seto, someone's here to see you."

Yugi walked around the corner, eyes immediately scanning over the room and, more importantly, the man standing behind the desk with a fairly vexed expression. He was wearing a tailored black suit, with a grey button-up and no tie. Once their eyes met, an expression of mild confusion swept over Kaiba's face. "Yugi, what are you doing here?" He still had yet to gain back all the weight, but his skinniness no longer showed too much on his face, rather just in how thin and boney his wrists were, and how much his collarbone showed.

Mokuba tugged Yugi along by the arm, pointing to the gift bag, "He wanted to stop by and see how you were doing."

Kaiba stared for a little while longer, then sat down, one eyebrow quizzically raised. "... And I suppose a phone call couldn't have sufficed? How did you get here?"

Before Yugi could speak, Mokuba cut back in, "I gave him a ride in one of our limos." His older brother gave him a short glance, followed by a quiet sigh, then looked back to Yugi, who was awkwardly standing in the middle of the room, unsure of when exactly to hand the gift over.

"Um... Yes. We've been talking online for a while. I know I visited enough to drive you crazy at the hospital, but I just waned to drop by and see you when you were well, and to give you this." He gingerly placed the gift bag on the table.

Kaiba was dubious of accepting the gift, but when he saw the encouraging nod from his younger brother, he reached out and picked the bag up, looking inside. He pulled out a sleek looking wristwatch, made from a blue-tinted silver. He eyed it for a while, noticing that it was coated in platinum. "How exactly did a game and hobby shop owner's grandson afford this?"

Yugi chuckled nervously and shrugged, "Oh, well, everyone kind of chipped in. We wanted to get you something that would match your Blue Eyes cards, so we saw that and couldn't resist."

The CEO placed the watch down, feeling that awkward feeling of not exactly knowing how to respond slowly growing. It would be polite to thank Yugi for the gift, but at the same time, his instincts told him it would show weakness. "He loves it! He only gets that look on his face when he really likes something!" Mokuba assured.

Kaiba let out a soft huff and looked at his brother, as if to quiet him, which he did. Mokuba apologetically smiled, grasping his hand's behind his back.

Yugi blushed faintly and looked to the side. "I-I'm glad if he does. I... um... I heard that the stocks for Kaiba Corp are raising steadily again. It seems like the public really has faith in you."

"They don't have faith. The stocks are raising because of the previews of the new Duel Disks at the Tokyo Tech Convention last week. People are preparing for the boom of products." Kaiba said simply. Yugi was hushed, bashfully rubbing the back of his neck and smiling just slightly.

"Well, I guess either way it's good, right? And who knows, maybe people do have faith. Did you hear about the candlelight vigils some people were having while you were in the hosptial?" Once again, Kaiba's attention was fully caught, and that awkwardness began to sneak back, "Most of them were kids. So many children look up to you, that stock brokers know they'll always back you up, and so they buy Kaiba Corp stocks."

"Dont' be ridiculous," Kaiba said shortly, standing up, "I don't have time to banter over such things. I have another meeting with a game developer in twenty minutes."

Mokuba gave Yugi a sympathetic sidelong glance, while Kaiba buttoned up his shirt fully and snagged a tie off of the coat rack as he passed it on his way to the door.

"I don't expect you'll want to just sit like a dead fish in my office while I'm away. Go... find something to do." Kaiba nonchalantly said before giving Yugi a final glance, then walked out.

When the door closed behind him, Yugi let out a small sigh, looking down. Mokuba shook his head, "I'm sorry, Yugi. You know how he is. There's just some things he has a really hard to responding to. I was kind of hoping he'd say 'Thanks' for the gift, but..."

Yugi quickly turned back to face Mokuba, a smile on his face as he waved his hands. "Oh, it's okay! I know what he's like. I get the feeling he appreciates the gift, he just... doesn't know how to express it." The younger Kaiba smiled back and nodded. "So, should... should I go now or?"

"You don't have to! I have some pretty cool video games up at the penthouse." Mokuba tucked some of his hair behind his ear. "The limo is still parked out front, so we can go now."

It was a nice car ride to the apartment. Yugi couldn't help but be awe-stricken at the lavishness of the penthouse. He knew the Kaibas were rich, but this was beyond anything he'd expected. No expense was overlooked, and every comfort was included. There was even a housekeeper, who greeted them both at the front door. She took Mokuba's bag, heading up to his bedroom, and the boy guided Yugi to the living room. "You know... I wasn't really expecting you to call me, to be honest." Yugi said, a bit absent mindedly, while looking around the apartment. "Let alone invite me anywhere. Is there any reason why?"

Mokuba was hesitant to answer, allowing a pause to fill the air as he turned on the game system that was hooked up to the very large and expensive looking flat screen. He looked back at Yugi, then turned to face him. "Well... You remember what happened to him. He worked himself sick, and he didn't tell me. But..." He sat down on the couch, resting his arms over his knees, "When we were leaving that first night, I overheard you talking to him. You told him it was okay to rely on others, and to be honest about needing help when he did." Yugi nodded to affirm, "The next day, when I visited him alone, he told me that he wasn't going to ignore when he needed to see the doctor, or take medicine, or rest. He's never said anything like that before."

Yugi was a bit surprised that his words had even possibly gotten through to Kaiba. He sat down, raising his brows and looking at the floor, "Well, that's a good start."

"Exactly. It's a start. I know I can't make him change this kind of thing on my own. He doesn't let me. He's gotta be the strong and protective older brother, you know? But you, you might be able to help me get through to him about what he does. And... Well... He needs friends, I just don't think he realizes it yet. Maybe you can keep showing him how friends can help?" Mokuba lifted his head up to glance Yugi's way, "I know you've been trying to a long while, now, but... but maybe after what happened, he's a little more receptive?"

A soft smile grew on Yugi's face, and he nodded happily, "I'll do my very best, Mokuba. Don't worry about that."

Mokuba grinned in return, and held up one of the controllers, "Promise?"

"Promise," Yugi answered, taking the controller.

Kaiba held his briefcase steadily in his hand, looking at the wristwatch, which now resided on his free wrist. He had stopped by the office to pick up a few things, and couldn't keep his mind off of the gift. And so, he simply put it on, staring at it occasionally while he was driven home. He shook his head with a small sigh, closing the door to the penthouse behind him. He heard the quiet footsteps of the house keeper upstairs, and spotted the top of two heads from behind the couch. A fighting game was in tense progress on the television in front of them.

It certainly wasn't hard to tell who the two were. Both were so familiar that only a glance told him what he needed to know. He felt just the slightest mix of irritation and uncertainty at Yugi's presence, but still opted to act as casually as he could. He tossed his coat over the back of a bar stool in the dining area, and placed his briefcase on the counter. Mokuba recognized the familiar pattern of sound, and paused the game, standing and turning around. "Oh, Seto, you're home already?" Yugi looked over his shoulder at the man.

"Already?" Kaiba tilted his head a fraction of an inch, "It's nearly ten at night. You should be in bed." his tone was a bit different, when he was at home. Even with Yugi there, he still seemed a bit more at ease.

Mokuba sheepishly grinned while ruffling his own hair. "Oh... uh... yeah."

All Kaiba needed to do was nod his head in the direction of the stairs, and Mokuba knew it was time to go upstairs and change into his pajamas. He tensed his lips, then looking at Yugi for a moment before heading over to the stairs. After a few moments, only Yugi and Kaiba in the room.

"I hope I didn't keep him up too late," Yugi offerred apologetically while standing.

Kaiba shook his head. "He stays up until two a.m. Routinely. He just thinks I don't know. I figure, as long as he's in bed, he'll fall asleep eventually." He tucked his hands in the pockets of his slacks. "What are you doing here? I would have guessed you'd have gone home after I left the office."

"Well, Mokuba invited me here." Before Yugi could continue, he noticed Kaiba's wrist. There it was, the faint gleam of the wristwatch. A faint blush ran across his features, and he smiled just slightly. "Um.. Anyway-"

"It's fine." Kaiba cut Yugi off, looking to the side. "I know that... after everything, Mokuba has found quite a bond with you. If he wants to have you around, I won't deny him it." He walked past Yugi, looking at the television screen, "I trusted you with his care while I was ill, and you did... well enough."

There was a warmth in Yugi's chest when he heard that. He didn't know why, but it was a deep compliment to heard those words from Kaiba's mouth. It was obvious how much he cared for his younger brother, and to know he did a good job taking care of the boy, and gained Kaiba's trust in being a friend to him... There was nothing better than knowing he was one of the lucky few who received the honor. "Th-... Thank you," he humbly bowed his head.

Kaiba looked over his shoulder at Yugi, then turned back around. "If you need a ride back to our home, there's a car ready for you out front. My driver won't mind the extra time spent."

Yugi nodded, "Right. I should head back. Grandpa is probably staying up to to make sure I get home." He headed towards the door, while Kaiba looked away again. Pausing for a short time, Yugi turned about face. "Oh, and Kaiba," the other glance over, "I'm glad you like the watch." Yugi gave one last smile, then left.

Kaiba looked down at his wristwatch, feeling both regret for having put it on, and a strange feeling of accomplishment. He questioned whether or not he might have actually enjoyed seeing Yugi's reaction to him accepting the gift. Frustrated, he sat down in a chair by the couch, crossing his legs and leaning his head against his hand in thought.