Heart versus mind
Summary: Anzu uprooted herself from her sheltered life in Domino to fulfill her only dream—to become a successful and famous dancer in New York. She's surrounded by new and different people in contrast to her former life, until she meets up with one person from her past that she'd rather have forgotten: Seto Kaiba. (Azureshipping)
Disclaimer: Sadly, Yu-Gi-Oh is not, was not, and never will be mine. Not a single cent is gained from this fanfiction.
Note: Four years have passed since the ceremonial duel. Take the ages of everyone in the anime and add four years to it. Romance/angst featuring Azureshipping. Don't like the couple, don't read…unless you want to give them a try :D. That is all. Oh wait, almost forgot to thank my beta reader: Forest Sentry Koneji.
Chapter 1- From Dreams to Reality
Two hours into practice and she finally had the chance to sit and rest a bit on the cold floor stretching out her legs. She looked like a total wreck. Her black leotards and tank top clung to her sweaty body while the grease from her hair made her hair bun fall apart.
"Anzu! Are you seriously trying or are you just slacking off?" The instructor yelled. Anzu glared at her Russian ballet professor as tears welled in her eyes. It's not as if she wasn't trying, but Ullana insists on seeing perfection after learning the steps once. Not that she wasn't able to, but she had a lot on her mind. A lot of aspiring dancers were auditioning for the female lead role and the pressure was getting to her—especially with the constant 'reminders' from her teacher.
"Anzu, are you liste—"
"Yes! I can hear you!" She snapped. Immediately she realized her mistake and rubbed the temples of her head. Arguing would just make practice more difficult.
"Is that so? I couldn't tell by the way you've been dancing recently. If you want to survive in this business you better stay focused or the competition will crush you."
'Survive?' Isn't that what she was barely managing to do? Taking into account the student loans, tuition for private dance lessons, and the cost of living in New York, she had accumulated quite a large debt with only a meager job at a local café as her financial resource. It's not like she didn't know what she was getting herself into when she began her career; her parents foresaw all her present hardships.
"You are a smart girl. Use your intelligence and take up something that will secure your future. Your father and I don't want to see you end up struggling for survival," her mother waited for a reply, staring at her intently in a mother-knows-best kind of way, but her silence showed her disagreement.
"You know how much dancing means to me."
"Anzu, do you really want to do this? You're only eighteen. So young and naïve, you don't know the value of security!" Her mom asked exasperated shaking her daughter by the shoulders. Her father's eyes were averted to somewhere else, tired of knocking heads with his daughter every time this topic would come up.
"Mom, dad, this is my dream! I know it's not what you want from me, but I really believe this will make me happy. I promise you, I won't fail." Her parents were unable to speak. Countless arguments made them realize that nothing that they could ever say would even make a dent to that stubborn head of hers.
"Please…" she begged as she gently placed her hands over her mother's, "let me go."
'Go.'
"You're not ready to move out."
'Move.'
"I want to dance!"
'Dance!'
Anxiety locked her in her head again and mixed the continual orders coming from Ullana with her own thoughts. She could see the scowl on her instructor's face from the mirror wall. Apparently she'd been zoning out far past the designated break time.
"Glad to see that you've come back to reality. Now, begin, from the top!"
A cheery melody filled the studio as the pianist started to play. On cue, Anzu began pirouetting around covering the majority of the dance floor making sure her posture was perfect, her toes perfectly pointed, and all the while managing to keep her face poised disguising the pain of holding one's entire body weight on a single toe.
"That's better, but you're still restricted. You need to learn how to let go. Release any inhibition and express the character. Even if you dance well, you need to be able to convince the audience or better yet, the judicators that you are capable of and worthy of dancing this part!"
Anzu was lucky to have gotten Ullana as her ballet instructor. Though she was strict, she had good reason to be. Ullana, before she retired, was a prima ballerina gracing the stages of many European theatre houses. Even though Anzu had been dancing her entire life, Ullana could always pinpoint little flaws in her dancing.
The clock at the opposite side of the room read twelve noon—which marked the end of the lesson. Her instructor waved her hand in dismissal and sighed, "We're out of time. That's enough for today." Both Ullana and the pianist left the dance studio leaving Anzu there alone.
Practice did not go well for her. How could she be breaking like this? She was so close, always close – but never exact.
'Well, that was rigorous as always.' Anzu dabbed the white fluffy towel on to her perspired forehead. It's been four years since high school graduation. Ever since she was accepted into Juilliard her life completely revolved around dancing. This was her final year as an undergraduate dance student and she still had not landed a leading female role. There were a lot of amazing dancers, considering she was in New York, a city dedicated to the arts. She was one of the nine-hundred-ninety-nine-thousand-nine-hundred-ninety-nine in a million. She was replaceable and she hated it. There was one way to get to the top, and it was also the easiest. To be a 'successful' dancer would mean to snag the eye of someone influential that would be a 'patron'.
Anzu sighed.
'No.'
She just couldn't imagine herself doing it. Thinking about all the other young girls that whored themselves out to the nearest man that would ensure their roles left her utterly disgusted. No, she, Anzu Mazaki, would not succumb to becoming some scumbag's joy toy. Even if that meant she would always wind up getting supporting roles.
Anzu left the studio tired and frustrated. Her grumbling stomach said it was time for lunch. She headed towards a local deli shop that was a couple blocks from the studio. As she was walking down the busy streets jam packed with people she realized just how alone she was. In a heavy populated city, she knew only a few people which were acquaintances, colleagues, and professors. She had adjusted herself to her new home, but she missed her real friends back in Domino. It was hard, making new friends. When she thought about it, she didn't even want new friends. Since, it's not what she came here for.
Dance. That's what's most important right now.
Looking back, he always knew that he would get what he wanted. His dream of building his chain of amusement parks around the world became reality. Deals with foreign investors were so successful that there was at least one Kaibaland in Asia, North America, and Europe. His health took a great toll due to his neglect for his own limits, but it was all worth it and he had absolutely no intention of stopping the expansion of his corporation. Even now he was working in his dark office at the top floor of Kaiba Corp. tower, finalizing the details to his upcoming project at one of his American branches.
The bright glow from his laptop was the only light illuminating his face. His eyes were strained from staring at a white screen lined with paragraphs of small black text, but he finished his work efficiently. The last step of his nightly routine involved him checking his numerous unopened emails. He only skimmed for anything that was marked urgent.
'American KC Business proposition', he read. Same old news. There were always people asking him to make deals and their ideas were, for the majority of the time, ridiculous. Only a select few ever piqued his interest, which practically meant any business foray that was related to games, Duel Monsters, or technology.
There was this one sender, Mr. Huxley, that has been constantly pestering him for the past month on an investment deal. The man's persistence was aggravating and annoying since his inbox was completely flooded with emails from him. Begrudgingly, he clicked the first unopened email in his inbox that was sent from him.
Dear Mr. Seto Kaiba,
As you know, the fameof your Kaibaland amusement parks has garnered the attention of numerous people in the corporate world.We, the people of a humble company called Duelist Playhouse, wish to partake in your upcoming expansion project in New York. Since the city is occupied by endless towers of bank corporations and hotels, there is not enough land to build another Kaibaland. However, we're wondering if you'd be interested in investing in a Duel Monsters Museum that showcases all the different kinds of monsters and duel monster legends in wax form. I really wish to meet with you in person to discuss it further. I won't back down until you give me a chance.
Edward Huxley
"Wax monsters… ridiculous." Seto Kaiba had read enough. New York had limited space, but he did own the KC skyscraper in the heart of the city. He had many proposals concerning museums about duel monsters, but he thought it would be better of making the monsters into solid holograms instead of wax. If the museum ever caught fire than there would definitely be a loss of profit. Besides, his corporation already owned a couple in Japan.
At first hearing, it sounded like a complete paradox. How can a hologram be solid? A small feat to accomplish, really. His company was already developing a way to make holographic projections appear and feel three dimensional.
His mental pondering was interrupted by a soft knock on the door.
"Hey, big brother," Mokuba entered the dark room and plopped down on one of the couches. "It's already two in the morning. Haven't you worked enough?"
Seto looked up from the computer and gave his brother a blank stare as if his younger brother did not already know the answer.
"You need sleep." Mokuba spoke nonchalantly, knowing his advice wouldn't be heeded.
"Sleep is for the weak, Mokuba. I've learned to live without it. Anyways, I've just finished." Mokuba often stayed at Kaiba Corp tower as well, in support for his brother. Usually, Seto would make him go home, but Mokuba was resolute in his own choices.
"So, anything interesting?"
"It's not my definition of interesting. Stupid? Yes. This, Mr. Huxley, has been proposing that our corporation invest in a duel monster 'wax' museum. What a joke."
"Totally. Who needs wax when you have the best holographic technology in the world!" Mokuba chimed in agreement. Seto smiled, satisfied with his little brother's faith. "I mean, what century are they from? Unless, the Americans are into those kinds of things? Are you planning on investing in it?"
"I'm thinking about it. He won't stop pestering me until I meet him. It's true that their ideas of attractions are …less advanced, but we could tweak the original idea. Anyways, I have an entertaining idea." As long as it could attract the attention of bored people that were willing to spend their money, there would be potential. He was certain that his new idea would turn this mundane museum into something exciting.
He closed all the running applications on his desktop and shut his laptop off.
"Let's go home. We have another long day ahead of us since we'll be heading to New York."
"Oh, I won't be joining you." Mokuba stated so matter-of-factly that it startled Seto.
"The Domino Kaibaland mainframe had been infiltrated by a pair of juvenile hackers that managed to override the security system. They messed up the coding to a lot of rides, including the Blue Eyes White Dragon rollercoaster. A couple of kids were left hanging upside down for a couple of hours today. We got quite the complaints. Luckily, they didn't file any law suits against us."
Seto only nodded. Mokuba could handle it by himself. Hearing him speak so professional reminded him that Mokuba had grown up to be a great vice president. He understood that Mokuba was learning how to be independent from him and did so by managing parts of the KC Empire by himself. Though he was proud, he sometimes missed the days where he could just drag his little brother wherever he desired.
"Fine. Get everything back in line by the time I come back."
Etsuko's note: Just laying out the foundation, thus the slooow progression. I know the scene with Kaiba in his office is probably one of the most overused scenes, but I'm limited to canon. As for Anzu, she's finally living her dream in New York. Hurray! Oh, and Ullana is read as "You-Lee-Yanna" in case anyone was wondering the Russian pronunciation. Any comments? Characterization ok? If you're a ballet dancer and have any information you'd like to share, that would make my life easier. If not, I'll have to research about it. =.=