A glooming peace this morning with it brings.
The sun for sorrow will not show his head.
Go hence to have more talk of these sad things.
Some shall be pardoned, and some punished.
For never was a story of more woe
That this of Juliet and her Romeo.


Kaiba sighed and snapped the rose colored book closed and traced the black cursive lettering with his fingers. So that's what happened with Romeo and Juliet. They died pitifully. What wimps.

But then he thought of the "Gypsy" from the night before and sighed again, pinching his nose. What he had felt when he looked into Iris' eyes could only be what Romeo felt when he looked at Juliet. Did that mean that he was doomed to face what Romeo did?

He shook his head quickly. Romeo and Juliet was only a story, drawn from the mind of a master playwright. But then he remembered it was based off of two real lovers, who died for each other in 1303 (REAL FACT). A wild thought passed through his mind: What if they were reincarnations of these two people? And then he thought: That's ridiculous. Egypt is enough.

Kaiba yawned and looked at the clock. It was early morning; he had spent the night reading the play. He decided a few hours of sleep was better than none at all, so he laid his head down on his pillow and closed his eyes, aching with fatigue. He was asleep in no time.

Mokuba crept into his room. Yes, his brother was asleep, finally. On the bed near him was the book he had to read in English class. The raven-haired boy picked up the book and looked at the first few lines, but could not understand the old English. Billy the Bard certainly did enjoy confusing the readers with "thee" and "thous" and "Do you bite your thumb at me, sir".

The young Kaiba looked at Seto's sleeping face. Something had changed when he came home earlier that night, and he had yet to decide if it was for better or for worse. For one, Seto Kaiba seemed gentler, more lighthearted, even. Mokuba pondered upon this while gazing at his brother's face. Then, a slow, knowing smile spread across the young boy's face. He knew, he knew the answer.

His brother was in love! The impossible had happened. Mokuba silently whooped for joy and crept back out of the room and back to his still-warm bed.

English class, the next day. Ms. Dawson dreaded going to that class. The one with Seto Kaiba, Iris Thorton, and Joey Wheeler. Those three were opposites in three ways, and they always caused an uproar, every day, every single frickin' day.

However, as she entered the classroom, she found Iris waiting for her, with a worried look on her face.

"Anything wrong, Iris?"

Iris looked up, surprised. "N-no," she said quickly.

Ms. Dawson seriously doubted the young girl's answer, but didn't press. If she wanted to tell her anything, she will when she was ready. Ms. Dawson sighed and readied her papers at her desk. The students by now should have read the first three scenes in the book. The bell rang, and the children began streaming into the classroom.

"Okay, I'd like to start an activity today," she started, before she was rudely interrupted by Kaiba entering the room in a frazzled manner. He handed her a late slip.

"Mokuba turned off my alarm clock," he said simply. Ms. Dawson took that as an apology and nodded towards his seat.

"As I was saying…" Ms. Dawson coughed and continued. "Today in class, we will read Act 1 Scene 4 and do an activity on Queen Mab. Now, I need a Benvolio, a Mercutio, and a Romeo to read it. Any volunteers?"

Iris immediately raised her hand, and Ms. Dawson appointed her to be Mercutio. Joey eagerly raised his hand also, and was assigned Benvolio. The teacher looked around the room, but there were no more volunteers. She sighed, pinched her nose and, hoping for the best, assigned Romeo's part to Kaiba.

To her massive – and I mean massive – surprise, the haughty CEO did not argue, merely grumbled and stood in the middle of the classroom with the other two students. Joey looked disgruntled, but Iris looked passive. The girl was still unsure of how to react in public to last night.

"Yes, well," Ms. Dawson stuttered, unsure of what to do with the surprising passiveness of the three usually opposite forces. "You may begin."

The three students performed actually quite well. Indeed, they were not going to make it big on Broadway, but they were better than some, who read theirs with flat monotones.

While they read, the teacher noticed that Iris and Kaiba were getting along quite well, better than yesterday, no doubt. Joey clearly did not like the CEO's presence, but as long as the taller brunette didn't start anything, the blond didn't have an excuse to start bickering. But what really gave her a headache was how Kaiba and Iris could have changed overnight. She looked around the class and remembered seeing some slips of paper hanging around. There had been a party last night, she recalled. Of course! But that's not possible, is it? That kind of stuff only happened in stories, in Romeo and Juliet. Impossible, she said to herself. I'm taking this in entirely the wrong way.

Iris started saying her monologue about Queen Mab, the queen of dreams, and Kaiba's head snapped up. Ms. Dawson noticed something in his eyes that she hadn't noticed before… or had been absent. Apparently, so did Joey, and he looked strangely at the CEO. Finally, the scene ended with Benvolio saying, "Strike, drum," and the three students returned to their seats.

Ms. Dawson found it took a minute to regain her voice and to start the activity. She just hoped the rest of her day wouldn't be as stressful.

The bell rang, signaling the end of English. Joey dragged Yugi out of the classroom quickly to talk about the day so far (namely Kaiba), but Ms. Dawson called out, "Iris, Kaiba, could you stay please?"

Curious, Kaiba stayed, and Iris did also. They stood side by side in front of the teacher's desk. Kaiba felt the girl's heat radiate off of her skin, and his heart trembled giddily, making him feel a bit faint, but not in a bad way. He was overcome with a sudden urge to sweep her up and kiss her violently, but he restrained himself. These feelings were so surreal; they should just stay in the fairytales where they belonged.

"You two," Ms. Dawson started. "Something happened last night at the party. Yes, I know about it, but it's out of my hands, what you kids do these days," she added at their confused glances. "I'd like to know what."

"Is something wrong?" Iris asked timidly.

"No, no, nothing wrong, just…" Ms. Dawson paused as she searched for the right word. "Different. Something's really different about you two. Usually, you bicker and make this class a living hell for me, but you guys seem so passive right now."

"Er, well…" Iris stopped and spared a glance towards Kaiba, who looked contemplative. "I, um, we…"

"It's nothing," Kaiba interrupted.

"It's okay, you can tell me," Ms. Dawson pressed. She was sooooooo curious. She just had to know. Kaiba looked at Iris, who looked back into his eyes. He was sure she was feeling the same way he was when he looked at her. He looked back at the teacher, who had a look of understanding plastered on her face. "I get it now," she whispered. "You two… Fairytale… Romeo and Juliet?" Her words became detached and undecipherable. But she knew. Kaiba stiffened. She knew.

"Can you keep a secret?" he asked her. The teacher looked into his cold blue eyes, but they didn't seem so cold as before.

"I'll keep it with my life," she promised. The minute bell rang. "You two get to class, sorry for keeping you."


School wound down for the afternoon, leaving Iris tired. She was about to leave when she felt a strong, warm hand pull her to the deserted side of the building. She looked up into familiar blue eyes and was immediately revitalized. She stood on tiptoe and pecked his lips.

Kaiba smiled softly and held her close. "Forbidden love," he whispered. "Ah, how tantalizing."

"Tempting," she corrected him, and he smiled again.

"The forbidden fruit brought Eve her demise," he said. His deep voice was heaven to her ears.

"But that fruit was delicious," she replied. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. She realized that he was being careful, wanting only to please. He started to pull away, but she put a hand on his neck and forcefully planted a kiss on his mouth. Her heart was floating miles above her head, and she was sure his was too.

But harsh voices broke through their Eden. They jerked apart in time for Joey and Yugi to round the corner, with Yugi saying, "I don't see what your problem is…"

They stopped, and Yugi let out a little "Oh."

"See the problem we have here?" Joey pointed out to his short friend. "This is just one of the many things that point to the apocalypse in 2012!"

"Joey, that's not for a while," Iris said slowly. She noticed that she and Kaiba were still quite close in proximity, so she took a hesitant step away. She didn't want to leave that warm body, but… forbidden love had its cons too.

"And that might not even exist," Kaiba said harshly, narrowing his eyes.

"Eh, what were you guys doing back here, anyway?" Yugi asked tentatively. Iris frowned. How were they going to get out of this mess?

"Why do you care?" she snapped instead. She didn't know about Yugi, but she was sure Joey wouldn't take lightly to the blossoming romance happening right under their noses.

"Joey, maybe we should leave them alone," Yugi said under the two pairs of glaring eyes, tugging on his friend's sleeve.

"I want to know what's going on here!" he argued.

"Joey," Kaiba said quietly and murderously, "if you don't want any serious bodily harm to befall you, I suggest you leave." Iris shivered at the tone, and was glad it wasn't directed at her.

Joey's eyes actually widened. Not because of fear, but because Kaiba had neither called him Wheeler, nor called him Mutt. Something was different, and he was going to find out. Yugi continually tugged on his sleeve, and finally he said, "Fine, let's go." With a hard backwards glance, the two left the grounds unscathed.

Iris looked back at Kaiba, speechless. What now?

Kaiba sighed and looked at her. "I think we best be going home," he said. "I have to pick up my brother."

Iris nodded dumbly, and watched the taller boy walk away. She waited a minute in the shade of the school before walking home.


Joey sat down with his friend Yugi. The blond looked around the fast food restaurant and, satisfied that they wouldn't be disturbed, turned to the spiky-haired borderline midget. "There's something going on between Kaiba and Iris," he said seriously in a low tone.

"Maybe it's love," Yugi said absently, sipping his milkshake. Joey had been ranting all day.

"But Kaiba is physically unable to love!" Joey rebutted. Yugi rolled his eyes. This again. "It has to be something else!"

"Or it could be love," Yugi pressed. "Remember Romeo and Juliet?" Joey nodded his head only slightly. He was never one for reading Shakespearian. "Well, they fell in love at first sight, without a moment's notice. It could've happened at that party last night."

"But that kind of stuff only happens in fairytales!" Joey protested.

"So does magic," Yugi said sleepily. The day was sooooo hot, he thought. "But there's a Pharaoh from ancient Egypt occupying my mind.

"Touché," Joey said. He paused, thinking up new arguments. Before he could say anything, Yugi exclaimed, "Look, it's the Kaibas!"

Joey looked over and saw Mokuba and Seto Kaiba enter the fast food restaurant. Mokuba had apparently persuaded the older boy to bring him here. The elder Kaiba didn't even notice them as they joined the queue at the register. Joey grinned evilly. This was a perfect opportunity to corner Kaiba. He waited until they had a table before approaching them. He placed both hands on the table, preventing any easy escape. The two Kaiba brothers looked up in surprise.

"So, Kaiba," Joey said, feeling like a judge in court. "Tell me, what is your relationship with Iris Thorton?"

Kaiba snorted. "What, so your suspicions have made you jealous?"

Joey took a moment to reply, before confirming in his mind that he felt drawn to Iris in a more cousin-like way. Happened to a lot of people he wasn't close friends to, actually. "I am not jealous," he snapped. Kaiba rolled his eyes in a disbelieving way, but didn't reply. "I think something fishy is going on between you two."

Great, Kaiba thought, now the Mutt was after him and Iris. Couldn't the world leave them alone? But then again, Fate's cruel hands twisted Romeo and Juliet's lives. Since their stories were so eerily similar, it wouldn't be impossible.

"So tell me," Joey pressed, "what is it?"

"Hey, if my brother doesn't want to talk, leave him alone!" Mokuba cut in. He didn't care where his brother's happiness came from, just as long as it was there. Joey glanced at Mokuba, but otherwise ignored him.

"Kaiba," Joey continued. "What were you doing after school with…"

"I said leave him alone!" Mokuba shouted, standing up.

"Mokuba," Kaiba said softly. The black-haired boy looked back at him, his eyes stinging.

"Seto, I just want you to be happy," he said. The young Kaiba turned his glare back at Joey. "Leave us alone, Wheeler," he said angrily.

If this was any other person, Joey would have punched the guy. But it wasn't, it was Mokuba, younger and weaker. But he refused to give up.

"I want some answers!" he shouted.

"Joey," Yugi protested, "not here, in the public."

"Men's eyes were made to stare, so let them," the blond growled. Suddenly, a very angry black fluff-ball barreled into him. Mokuba knocked him down unexpectedly.

"Mokuba, no!" Kaiba shouted, standing up as his little brother brawl it out with the older enemy. Yugi tried and failed to tear the flailing kids apart. Mokuba threw punches, but Joey blocked them and didn't fight back too hard, suppressing his bullying instincts. He didn't want to hurt the kid, but this was too much! He picked him up and hurled him away. Mokuba rolled on the linoleum, jarred but relatively unscathed.

Kaiba, however, would not stand for it. Joey got to his feet only to be hit backwards with the CEO's fist in his jaw. The blond retaliated by socking him in the stomach. Momentarily stunned, Kaiba wheezed and struggled to keep standing. Joey took this chance to escape to the outside. As much as he believed in his strength, he wasn't so sure he could win in a fist fight with Kaiba.

But the tall brunette followed him outside. Yugi stayed behind to care for Mokuba, but perhaps Joey would need more care.

"Don't you dare ever lay a hand on my little brother!" Kaiba roared fiercely. He aimed another punch at Joey, but it was dodged and he got struck in the jaw instead. He bit his tongue and cursed when he tasted blood. Without a moment's hesitation, he swung his leg around and knocked Joey aside with a kick. The fast food restaurant's manager rushed outside at that time and broke up the fight.

"Okay you two ruffians!" she shouted hoarsely. "Break it up and get the hell away from my shop!" As the manager stalked back in, Yugi and Mokuba appeared. Mokuba immediately went to Kaiba, and Yugi approached Joey.

"Big brother," Mokuba moaned.

"Are you hurt?" Kaiba asked.

Mokuba shook his head. "No, I'm fine, but are you alright?"

His tongue and jaw were sore, and he was short on breath, but he assured his brother that he was fine.

"Seto…" Mokuba said hesitantly. "That Iris girl, you like her, don't you?"

Kaiba froze and looked over to Joey and Yugi. They had not overheard anything, or at least that was how it seemed. "Where did you hear about that?"

"In your and Joey's argument," Mokuba said, "he mentioned a girl. You like her, right?"

Kaiba sighed and ran a hand through his chestnut hair. "Yeah, I suppose so…"

Mokuba grinned and hugged his brother tightly. "I knew you'd find someone."

Joey looked up, regretting his choices as he watched Mokuba embrace his brother. But then Téa ran up, out of breath.

"You guys!" she gasped loudly. "It's Iris, she's…!"

"What's wrong?" Everyone looked towards Kaiba, who had stood abruptly. Téa raised an eyebrow at him, but continued.

"She's been in a pretty bad accident!" she explained. "She's in the hospital, unconscious. She might not wake up anytime soon, it's really bad." She stumbled when someone pushed past her. She was surprised to find that it was Seto Kaiba, heading – no, sprinting – towards the hospital. "What's up with him?"

"I've just figured it out," Joey said, his brow furrowed. "He must really like her."

They looked at the retreating figure and contemplated for a few seconds at how that was possible. But it was too late now, they agreed. The quickly followed the star-crossed teenager.


At the hospital, Kaiba stopped only long enough to find her room number. How could he finally be so happy, only to have it wrenched away from him? Was he truly cursed, like Romeo and Juliet?

He raced to her room, ignoring the displeased shouts from the nurses and doctors in the hallway. He burst into her room, and stopped in horror, his heart stopping with him. His beloved Iris, what a sight! How could such an evil fate befall her? He looked at the heart monitor, beeping slowly but steadily. He sat in the stiff white chair and leaned over her bed to hold the hand nearest to him. His heartbeat felt feeble, only slightly reenergized by her cold hand.

A doctor came in and looked at him. "You her boyfriend?" she asked. Kaiba shrugged, and the female doctor didn't press.

"What happened?" Kaiba asked hoarsely.

The doctor shifted through the papers on her clipboard before answering. "A car crash. She was on a bus, and the bus got hit with a truck. One of her lungs has been punctured, and she might not make it through the night." She looked at the brunette, unaware of who he was. She saw pain in his eyes before he wrenched them away, back towards the honey-haired girl. "I'm sorry," she said apologetically. "It seems a shame such a young girl should have her life cut so short." She watched him for a moment before leaving the room to let them be.

Outside, a short spikey-haired kid, a tall blond, a brunette girl, and a younger black-haired kid arrived breathless. "What's happening in there?" the blond asked.

The doctor smiled sadly. "Are you Iris Thorton's friends?" she asked. They nodded quickly. "Well, another kid stormed in there a minute ago, and I've told him what's happened. Miss Thorton might not make it through the night."

The group of teens (and tween) looked heartbroken. The doctor smiled a little at them again before going off to get some medicine for her other patients.

Yugi, Téa, Joey, and Mokuba stood in the doorway, watching Kaiba as he sat hunched over with his head in his hands. Mokuba was the first to approach him, putting a small hand on the elder's arm.

"Big brother," he said softly, "let's go…"

Kaiba looked at him. His face was eerily calm. "What?" he asked quietly.

"Let's go," Mokuba repeated. "I don't think you really want to be here…" He trailed off, losing words to say by the second. Kaiba understood what his little brother was trying to do, though, and stood up and followed him out of the room. He didn't even acknowledge the other three people there.

Yugi had to admit, it was very strange seeing the cold, the ruthless Seto Kaiba acting this way. He almost suspected magic, that something had interfered, but he knew that wasn't it. But something still felt off. He was pretty sure Kaiba wasn't one of those people who would just – dare he say it? – fall in love at first sight.

Yugi entered the room, looking at Iris before moving to the window, where outside he saw Kaiba and his brother walking slowly away from the hospital. He knew that as long as Mokuba was there, Kaiba would find reason to live, even if Iris didn't make it.

A loud frantic beeping drew his attention away from the window. The doctor from before as well as a few nurses raced in, crowding around Iris.

"What's happening?" he asked, terrified.

"Her heart, it's giving out," one of the nurses told him. Yugi's eyes grew wide in horror.

"Clear!" someone shouted, and a zapping sound could be heard. This happened a few times, but alas, it was not enough. The heart monitor changed its blips to one long pitch. Iris was… dead.

Screams could be heard from outside, as well as gunshots. Yugi whirled around and ducked as the window broke. The rest of the room's occupants rushed to the window also. This was happening much to fast! Yugi could only define that thought as his head buzzed faster than lightning.

Outside, a madman had broken away from prison, and he was wielding a machine gun. He was mowing down anyone he saw.

"Kaiba!" Yugi shouted frantically, turning around and pushing past the people to run outside. His friends followed him without hesitation, though only to try and make him hesitate.

By the time they had gotten outside, the police had already arrived and taken the madman. They were tracking him, and had responded to the screams in record time. But Yugi followed a pained moaning to a shadowed alleyway and stopped in his tracks.

Kaiba was there, his hands covered in blood as he tried to stop the bleeding that was coming out of Mokuba's chest. And… he was crying. Tears spilled from his eyes as he looked up at Yugi.

"He's dead," he moaned. "My only brother, the only person I have loved for a long time, he's…" He voice choked up and he couldn't say anymore. Joey, and Téa caught up, and understood immediately when they saw the clear liquid fall from the cold man's eyes.

"Oh no," Téa whispered. This whole ordeal seemed… surreal. Like this shouldn't be happening. But the frozen, snow-packed truth hit them like a rocket. A few paramedics found them and took Mokuba's body away, despite Seto's frantic pleas. The threesome of friends followed the paramedics until when they looked back, all they saw was the swish of Seto's cloak to let them know he had left.


Seto had a determined look on his face as he marched away from the apothecary, a small vial clenched tightly in his fist. Yugi and his two friends were still there, in the hospital entrance, when he arrived, but he forcefully pushed past them. They wondered what he was doing, but he was moving to fast for them to keep up. They could only guess at where he was going, and tried to beat him to it.

Seto first stopped at the Morgue. He gently scooped up his little brother's body and carried it with him to the elevator. It was luckily empty, despite the hospital's sudden business, and he stood like a statue as he waited for the lift to stop. When it did, he marched rapidly towards the memorized room number, the room that still held Iris' body. How he knew she was dead, no one could figure out. But he did, and that's where he went.

It was empty, but doctors were chasing him, trying to get him to stop whatever he was doing. He turned around and locked the door.

As the doctors tried viciously to open it, he turned towards the bed. He carefully set Mokuba's corpse down and lifted Iris' up instead, taking away any wires that had her attached to the bed.

New fists banged on the door. "Kaiba, open up!" Yugi screamed. Seto looked up, his eyes dead with unfeeling.

"There's no more point," he said, loud enough for the people on the other side to hear. "There's no more to life."

"But what about your company!?" Téa tried. But Seto didn't answer. Instead, he looked at Iris' closed eyes and gently kissed her cold dead lips. He slumped to the floor where Mokuba was and cradled his head and kissed his forehead.

With the only two people he had loved in this world, he took out the stopper in the vial and took a fatal gulp. "And thus with a kiss, I die!" he yelled triumphantly. He hugged the two corpses tightly as he felt the poison sweep through his body, his aching heart strongly thumping it around. His breathing grew short, but he was happy. He grinned at the door as Joey finally took charge and thrust through the window with his fist. The doctors swarmed in, but it was too late.

The scene was a sad one. Against the wall sat Seto Kaiba, hugging Mokuba Kaiba and Iris Thorton. Yugi and Téa embraced each other and started to cry at the lifeless forms while Joey just stood shell shocked.

The CEO had taken his life so quickly when the other two had died. But now they were together, at wherever the deads' spirits go to, somewhere happy. However, they were totally gone, and the others had seen it happen. They supposed they should feel a bit better; after all, Seto lost everything in a few short minutes. His life would have been bitter if he stayed. But a world without the ruthless brunette… How? How?

Him and innocent Mokuba and young Iris. Dead and gone, buried together, alone but for each other.

A glooming peace this morning with it brings.
The sun for sorrow will not show his head.
Go hence to have more talk of these sad things.
Some shall be pardoned, and some punished.
For never was a story of more woe
That this of Iris and her Kaiba Seto.

End of Act 2


You know, the actual Romeo and Juliet story took place over four days. I did it in two. then again, I left out the marriage and the banishment, yadda yadda yadda.

Hope you enjoyed. If not, just don't say anything. It was nice to complete something for a change. And if you did enjoy it, tell me your feelings when you read it. I want to know how readers feel. Just curious. Thanks!