Locked in an unfamiliar room, she sat alone and cried endlessly, for lack of a better plan. She was alone for hours, not hearing a word, not seeing a soul. Her sole companion was the single candle that was quickly burning out. Out of the silence came the echo of footsteps on stone. A light was visible from the barred door, glinting from golden reflection. She refused to look at the intruder, but flinched at his touch on her back.
"Don't touch me," she snapped, obviously not caring to whom she was speaking.
"He's left you," the voice said quietly. His golden trinkets clinked gently as he kneeled beside her. "He staked your freedom on a shadow game, and he's lost. He left you here."
She bit her lip and hugged herself, suddenly cold. The man stood and extended his hand to her.
"You can stay in the dungeon, or you can come with me. Your services are needed within the palace."
Feeling like a traitor to the only man who loved her, she accepted his hand and left the dungeon with him.
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Kaiya watched the passing buildings with bitter resentment. Not that she wanted to move from her hometown or her friends, but daddy-dearest gave her family no choice. Better yet, she had to spend a month without her parents in the new house; just to 'settle the house' before they arrived. Oh, joy. She shot a cold glare into the rear-view mirror. The old pervert that she'd gotten for a taxi driver had given her a subtle pat on the ass before allowing her inside, and now he was grinning to himself.
Perverted old fuck.
As she resumed staring out the window, she kept a mental list of how this new city couldn't possibly compare to where she previously lived. The city just gave her some feeling that she couldn't describe. Everything was wrong with it, even though she'd spent less than an hour in Domino City.
Kaiya reached into her handbag and retrieved her solid black cellular phone. She gritted her teeth in annoyance at the thing. The stupid dog had chewed it, and the stupid cat had left scratches on it. It was a wonder that is still worked. She flipped it open, dialing the number for her voicemail, and waited for the messages to play. She sighed as she leaned her elbow on the window and rested her head in her hand. The driver looked up once more, smiling, and Kaiya returned his smile with a perfect view of her finger. He chuckled to himself as her messages began to play.
"One new message. Monday, twelve forty-two P.M.. Kaiya," the secretary said, then her father's gruff bark through the phone. She lowered the volume and continued listening. "Kaiya, it's dad speaking. By now, you've arrived in Domino City, and by now you've decided not to call in and check with us. Well, that doesn't matter. Just send me a message when you get this. You have the address of our new house, and the moving men are going to arrive at two with the keys. Make sure you're there to take the furniture that they bring into the house. While we're gone, mom and I expect you to go to school. Yeah, that's right. No cutting just because you switched schools midyear. And don't think I wont check up on you. You're also expected to get a job and keep the house clean. Kaiba Corp. might give you a job if you mention me. Well, make sure you text me. Bye."
Kaiya's father promptly hung up, and she forcefully closed her flip-phone. A job? Sure. Right. Thanks for not wiring money to your underage daughter, dad. She's in a strange city by herself, but it's all good. Let her live alone, and go to school, and work long hours, and cook, and clean, and . . . and . . .
Kaiya's mind trailed off, watching the old driver carefully. They had reached the designated street, but the driver had not slowed the car to look for the house number.
"Don't you dare pass my house on purpose."
She narrowed her eyes in another piercing glare at the man, who shook his head and slowed down.
"Young girls these days . . . " he grumbled to himself.
He pulled up in front of a two-story house in the outskirts of the city and turned the key, shutting off the engine. He got out of the car, slamming the door behind him, and went to the rear of the car to open the trunk.
Kaiya quickly brushed herself off when she got out after him, and stretched her limbs after the long ride. Removing the crumpled slip of paper from her wallet, she checked the address of the empty house.
"What a dump," she announced to herself, even though there was nothing visibly wrong with the house. It was located in a pleasant neighborhood. Its outer walls were painted white, with a dark wood finish for the trimmings and the small balcony located in the front. There was a small yard that was bare, except for the bright grass, and a driveway.
"You want me to take these inside?" the driver asked, interrupting her inspection.
Kaiya shook her head, her green eyes glaring icily at him.
"I'm fine, thank you. How much is the ride?"
The old man's smile faded and he seemed to realize he was defeated. He grumbled to himself and looked toward the cloudless sky as he calculated her total.
"That'll be one-hundred and sixty-two, even," he finally stated blandly.
Kaiya's grip tightened on her wallet, and her eyes shot back up to the driver.
"Excuse me? I think you're wrong."
"Yeah? Well, I'm the one who drove you, and I think I know how much it costs," he snapped.
Kaiya slowly reached out to her door, and slammed it shut with a force that rocked the car a little.
"Well, then. I don't think that you can read very well. Let me help you, then. It says right here that the initial charge is two-fifty . . . Oh, let's just round that to three. Then its another one twenty-five domino for every kilometer we drive. According to your meter, you drove sixty-three kilometers. If I'm correct, I should be paying you about eighty-two or so. But, I'm just a young girl, aren't I? What do I know, right? But . . . look what else is printed next to the prices. Your name and company's telephone number! Would you like me to call and verify with them? You know, just in case I got the numbers wrong."
The driver stood there speechless, with his mouth agape, and his eyes transfixed on Kaiya's piercing green-eyed glare. She reached into her wallet, pulling out the foreign currency and placing it in the driver's breast pocket.
"I can take my bags up by myself, thank you. And should you dare to touch me again, I'll make sure that your boss gets a friendly call."
Without another word, the plump man scurried to his car and drove away quickly, his tires screeching in protest.
Without keys, Kaiya sat on her front step waiting for the moving men with her family's furniture. She flipped her cell phone open, and closed . . . open, and closed . . . a thousand times before the men arrived with one long truck full with treasures that her family had collected throughout their lifetimes. How she hated her furniture. It was all ancient . . . wait, pardon me, antique . . . and good for little more than gathering dust. She greeted the men in a gruff, but polite way, and allowed them to unlock the door, hand her the keys, and begin moving things inside.
"Please, just be careful. You can place the furniture wherever you like."
She sat on one of the stools brought inside and watched as some familiar objects came into the house, one by one. The couch, refrigerator (ordered online, and sent to the house), kitchen and coffee tables, and a sofa chair were all brought into the house along with smaller objects, such as lamps and dishes.
The tallest of the men approached Kaiya with a clipboard and asked for a signature for the delivery.
"Wait a moment. This can't be it. Where are the items from my room? From my parents' room?"
The man shrugged, "This is all we were instructed to bring."
Kaiya grumbled to herself as she scribbled her name on the line and thanked the men for their hard work. Once they left, Kaiya closed the door, locking it firmly, and sat on her couch. She dialed her father's business number, knowing that it would bother him, and waited.
"Yes?" her father snapped.
"It's me, Dad."
"What are you calling me on my private number for? You know I need this for business," he growled.
"Where are my things, Dad?" Kaiya asked, trying to keep her voice calm.
There was some background noise, and she heard her father speak to the noisy group in rapid German before returning to her.
"All of it couldn't fit, so we only sent over some of our things."
"Don't you dare lie to me, Dad!" Kaiya shrieked, standing. "All that's here are a couple of tables, lamps, the fridge, and the couch! That's not even half of our furniture. I don't have a bed to sleep on!"
"Calm down," he returned. "There's nothing wrong with sleeping on the couch, and your furniture is here, safe at home. It's coming over next month, when your mother and I get there-"
Kaiya promptly hung up on him and sat for several long minutes, trying to control her anger.
How dare he leave her in an empty house?! No money, no furniture, nothing! How in did he expect a seventeen-year-old to survive on her own?
You're smart, Kaiya. You can do it!
Yeah. Those words were comforting when she was little, and Daddy cared enough to help her out with the little problems.
Kaiya checked her watch, and mentally calculated the present time to be about four in the afternoon. The sun was still shining brightly in the sky, and people were still out and about in the city, but Kaiya was utterly exhausted. She wearily trudged her way to the basement, nearly falling down the stairs because she couldn't find the light switch, and checked the electricity meters in the basement. Nothing seemed to be spurting red sparks, or emitting smoke, so she deemed it to be in order. Once upstairs again, she checked the water and found that it was working as well. She went to the room in front of the house, with the balcony, and claimed it for her own as she began to unpack a little bit of her suitcase. Removing the necessities, such as soap and a towel, she went to the bathroom and relieved her aching muscles with a soothing shower. She dumped her traveling clothes in a corner, and retrieved new, fresh clothes from her open suitcase. Once changed, she returned downstairs, and promptly fell asleep on her dusty couch.
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It was the next morning when Kaiya finally awoke from her deep slumber. Her back cracked painfully from hours of sleeping on a couch that was certainly not made for sleeping. She grumbled incoherently to herself as she trudged over and around the boxes that lined her floor. When she reached her destination, the kitchen, she kicked boxes aside, looking for the coffee brewer. Kaiya located the magical device and set it upon the empty kitchen counter, beside the sink, and plugged it into the nearest outlet. She smiled as she thought of the fresh coffee she would be drinking in a matter of minutes. That is, until she realized there was no food in the boxes. Not even something dry and canned, like coffee. She cursed loudly, causing the old lady next door to jump in surprise and look for the cause of the disturbance.
"Coffee, coffee, coffee," Kaiya cried in anguish as she raced up the stairs and dug through her handbag for the wallet she'd carried. She sat on the floor, cross-legged, with the wallet sitting in front of her.
Oh God of all currency. Please let me have enough money to get some coffee . . .
Kaiya opened her wallet and dumped the contents out onto the floor. She immediately grouped the similar monies together and counted them several times. She had ten euros, fifteen U.S. dollars, and twenty domino. That had to be enough money. For now, at least. She'd have to find a bank and exchange the rest of her money, and find a job. Kaia sighed deeply as the realization set in. She was alone. Utterly alone, and without money or a job. She reached for a pair of dark jeans and a black shirt and began to change. There was no better time than now to start the job search. And she needed coffee really badly.
With a plastic bag at her side, and a warm cup of coffee in her hands, Kaiya sat on a bench in the park that afternoon. It had taken nearly an hour to locate the local grocery store, but the mission was accomplished, and some rations were retrieved with the money she had exchanged. Now, all that was left was a mere five domino. But that could wait. Kaiya closed her eyes ad leaned her head back, feeling the warm sun on her face. The warmth made her feel slightly better, but the twinge of worry remained in her stomach. Within her pocket, her phone beeped twice which signaled an incoming text message. It read: "You have an appointment at Kaiba Corp. Be there 3! Dad."
With that, Kaiya further abused her phone by slamming it shut, and stuffing it into her pocket. She checked her watch and decided to head home to prepare for the job interview.
Walking along the streets, Kaiya noticed something odd. Here, Duel Monsters was everywhere. It seemed that she couldn't pass a single person who wasn't making a trade, or dueling on the street. How sad. Kaiya scoffed mentally and dumped her Styrofoam cup into a bin. She took in a deep breath and looked around, finally noticing a large Kaiba Corporation advertisement in the window of a nearby toyshop. Pictured there were children playing Duel Monsters, and some Japanese characters (which took Kaiya several minutes to decipher). What seemed the strangest was the atmosphere of the poster. Instead of light, and fun (like most toy advertisements should be), it was somewhat gloomy. Shifting her gaze, Kaiya's eyes rested on someone in the backdrop of the poster, with piercing blue eyes and a stern expression. Yeah. That guy was ruining it.
"Window shopping is free, but don't you want to come in and buy something?"
Kaiya was startled by the voice of a young woman who stepped out onto the street, smiling at Kaiya.
"I'm sorry," Kaiya said, trying very hard not to mess up her Japanese. "Can you tell me who is this, right here on the poster?"
The young woman looked a little confused as she followed Kaiya's gaze.
"You mean this man? That is Seto Kaiba, the CEO of Kaiba Corp. Didnt you know?"
Kaiya flushed a little. This seemed like common knowledge, but she didnt know it.
"I'm not from around here," Kaiya grumbled. "Could you tell me where is the Kaiba Corp building, please?"
With an odd look, the shopkeeper pointed behind Kaiya to a tall skyscraper, with the letters 'KC' displayed on the top floors. Kaiya quickly thanked her and rushed off, walking quickly toward her new house.
How old is that CEO? I thought the owner of Kaiba Corporation would be some dirty old man with too much money. That CEO couldn't possibly be much older than I am...
Thoughts about the mysterious CEO of the company that her father had just recently signed with made Kaiya's head spin.
Just wait till Dad finds out that he's working for a kid.
Kaiya sighed and placed the items she had purchased into the new refrigerator: milk, some eggs, bread, franks, and some beer, just for good measure. Hey, if you've got a well-developed glare, why not use it to your advantage? Kaiya sighed as she shut the refrigerator door. She was lonely, and she kept talking to herself. Not out loud, of course. That would mean she'd be going mad.
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"Excuse me," Kaiya snarled through her teeth. The secretary on the first floor had been ignoring her quite well and Kaiya was barely holding her anger at bay. "I have an appointment."
The secretary lazily looked up and asked for her name.
"Kaiya Watari."
With a sigh, the woman half-heartedly flipped through the pages of the book in front of her.
"You're on the ninety-firstfloorhaveaniceday."
She rushed through the last words as she yawned and Kaiya rushed into the open elevator to avoid further aggravation. Once the doors were shut, she asked if someone would please press the button for the ninety-first floor, which is when she realized that she was in an elevator filled with old men in business suits who were looking at her rather strangely.
"Something I can help you with, gentlemen?" she snapped, and they quickly returned to minding their own business.
Once she reached her floor, she stepped out and looked around. The same marble tiles adorned this floor, and the walls were painted the same blue-gray color. Only this time, there was one desk, with one secretary, and a pair of doors behind her.
"Can I help you?"
"My name is Kaiya Watari, and I have an appointment with Mr. Kaiba at three o' clock."
The secretary nodded, confirming what was in her book.
"Just a moment," she said, and picked up her phone. She held down the first button as she spoke, "Mr. Kaiba, your three o'clock appointment is here."
There was some sort of yelling, or snappy comment, because the secretary winced before hanging up the phone, and sighed as she allowed Kaiya inside.
Kaiya smoothed out her blouse, squared her shoulders and walked inside. The office of the CEO was very simple; the desk faced the door, and the walls were painted a pleasant green color. The wall behind the desk was replaced with a ceiling-to-floor, wall-to-wall window.
Where the king may watch his subjects...
Kaiba sat at his desk with his hands folded, his chin leaning against it with an un-readable expression. She extended her hand and walked toward the desk, introducing herself, but was promptly cut off.
"You're here to take the job of my personal assistant?" he asked sharply. His voice was deep and his tone meant that he was all business. His piercing blue eyes were the same as the ones captured on the poster of the toy store. His hair, a dark brown color, fell into his eyes but did not obscure his gaze. He wore a deep green collared shirt with a thin, blue coat over it. He squared his shoulders, and Kaiya could tell that she was under his scrutiny.
Dad forgot to mention that this was a personal assistant position...
"I am, sir," she said trying to conjure up a confident smile.
"Get out of my office. You're just a child."
A nerve was struck.
"Excuse me?"
"Get out of my office. I don't need to waste my time with you."
"Well, Mr. Kaiba," Kaiya began slowly as she stuffed her hands inside her pockets and strolled toward his desk. "I don't believe that you've given me a chance. After all, I could be the best personal assistant in the entire world, and you could be sending me right out of your office without a proper interview."
Kaiba studied her for a few moments, then picked up a manilla folder on his desk. He opened it to the first page, and began to read, "Kaiya Watari, age seventeen. Born in Tokyo, Japan. Spent six years in Munich, Germany. Spent the last nine in New York City. Mother: Asune Watari. Maiden name, Jinta. Father: Kosuke Watari, who seems to have signed with my company a month ago. Correct?"
Kaiya nodded dumbly, surprised at the information, but the CEO read on, "You've currently taken residence in the outskirts of the city, but your father is currently is Frankfurt, Germany on business."
"Where did you get all this information?" Kaiya asked, keeping her voice calm.
"Information isn't free, but it certainly is useful. Lets see what's so useful about you..."
The CEO flipped the pages slowly, scanning the lines that dictated her life story.
"So, Watari. It seems that there was a scandal in both New York, and Munich. You were caught in Munich for hacking into government files, but your father cleared that up, no doubt... And in New York, you were found to be working on some computer virus, but that was shut down... You've got quite the résumé."
He closed the file and leaned his chin on the knuckles of his right hand. He watched Kaiya carefully, waiting for her to break; waiting for her to spill her dirty secrets.
"Mr. Kaiba," she said, an attitude change showing. She smiled dangerously, and folded her arms behind her back as she stood before him. "You see, Im not familiar with Japanese laws, but back in the United States, that file you're holding would be an invasion of privacy. And as for the accusation in Munich, that never went through. My father may be rich, and have some sort of influence, but he has better things to worry about than something as petty as his daughter hacking into some government files. And in New York, there was no computer virus. I was in the mainframe of my father's company, and merely making sure all his international accounts were in order. Cant have him laundering money, you know. I suggest that you find a better source next time, and make sure you get your information straight."
Seto Kaiba smirked at the girl who stood in his office and extended his hand to her.
"I believe that you may have a place here, Ms. Watari."
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Short? ; Review and make it longer.