AN: Wow.. Thanks for all the supportive reviews.. I wasn't expecting it.. I'm really kinda sporadic with my writing.. I'll try to keep up with it.. I'm not quite sure where this whole thing will end up, but I have some sort of plot swirling around my head.. It's gonna get dark.. And.. Light? Yes... And excuse any grammatical errors... 'Cause I don't care.. And I don't check over my stuff.. I only look at what has a little red squiggly line under it... But, whatever.. Enjoy..
Disclaimer: I don't own anything... But I have been looking into purchasing a personality.. Just a thought.. Oh, wait.. The butler's mine.
AN: By the way... About halfway through I stopped typing the butler's accent because it looks bizarre and I wouldn't think people would understand.. Just so you know and you don't start yelling at me for his perfect English.. Just imagine his accent and go with it..
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The limo pulled up to the front of the Kaiba mansion and dropped off its two passengers. Seto led the way up to the front door, where they were greeted by a butler.
"Good evening, Master Seto and guest," the butler said with a heavy accent that Ryou couldn't quite place. He took Seto's coat and hung it up in a nearby closet.
Ryou stood in awe at the room he had entered. It was extravagantly decorated with rich colors and expensive furnishings, yet it didn't quite feel welcoming. It felt more like a museum than a home.
"Show him to a spare bedroom, Julian," Seto spoke like Ryou wasn't even there as he made his way towards a huge staircase leading off the entrance hall. "Give him some towels and take care of his clothes."
The butler named Julian bowed and turned to Ryou, who was watching Seto's retreating form.
"Zees way, please," Julian said, his voice heavily accented, and motioned towards another staircase and led the way. Ryou followed quietly after him.
They walked silently up stairs and down the hall, Ryou watched the butler ahead of him, who turned his head to him periodically and smiled warmly. Something about the man made him feel very comfortable. Maybe it was because he was just with Seto, the iceberg. Ryou broke the silence.
"I'm s-sorry... I hope you don't mind me asking.. But where are you from?" Ryou asked cautiously.
The golden-haired man in front of him turned around, smiling brightly. His green eyes flashed with a hint of mischief, which intrigued and intimidated Ryou.
"Ah, ees my accent zat noticeable?" He eyed Ryou curiously.
"Uhh, well.."
"Eet should be. I am from France," He said proudly. "My name ees Julian Remi Louis Brideau III."
"Oh, okay... Julian," Ryou said quietly. "My name is Ryou Bakura. Nice to meet you." Ryou extended his hand.
Julian's smile broadened as he firmly shook Ryou's offered hand.
"Nice to meet you, too," He responded warmly then turned, leading Ryou over to a door. "Zis ees your room."
Julian opened the door and gestured for Ryou to enter. Ryou obeyed and stepped into the darkness. Julian followed after him and flipped on the lights.
Ryou's eyed widened. The room was ornately decorated just like the entrance hall, except the color silver seemed a prominent theme than at the entrance. This was, by far, the most luxurious room he had ever entered.
Julian, who Ryou had not noticed left his side, returned carrying towels and handed them to Ryou.
"'Ere you go, Ryou," Julian smiled and pointed to another door inside the room. "There is the bathroom and if you'd be so kind as to set your clothes outside the bathroom door when you undress then I can have them cleaned and dried for you later."
Ryou nodded slowly, "Thank you, Julian."
"Not a problem," Julian responded cheerfully, his smile never faltering. "If you need anything else, press that button next to the bed and someone will assist you."
Ryou couldn't help but smile in return to the man before him. His lightheartedness seemed contagious. Ryou certainly felt appreciative of the vivacious man's personality. He then felt saddened slightly when the man bowed and left, closing the door noiselessly behind him.
Ryou entered the bathroom and kicked off his shoes, then peeled off his socks. He peeled off his wet shirt and turned his back to the mirror to study the large bruises, painfully apparent on his pale skin. He turned his attention to the black deformities in the shape of fingers imprinted on his arms just above his elbows. He sighed thinking about how the sleeves on his shirt were nowhere near long enough to cover them. He vaguely wondered why no one had asked about them, but came to the conclusion that Seto didn't care enough to ask and that Julian was trying not to be nosey. He finished undressing and folded his clothes as neatly as he could, then set them outside the door. He turned on the water and adjusted the temperature. He climbed in. The warm water that rushed over his body was a welcome relief from the wet clothes he had just been wearing. He rinsed the cold water out of his hair then cleansed his body with some soap he found. He picked up a bottle of shampoo and laughed softly after examining it.
Pine scented shampoo? He mused. Okay, that's different.
He washed his hair with the tree scented shampoo and rinsed it out. After soaking up the pleasant heat for few more minutes then turned off the water. He shook out his hair then dried it using the towel Julian had given him. He tied it around his waist and left the bathroom. He looked down to where he had left his clothes only to find them gone. He padded over to the bed to find his clothes neatly laid out before him.
That was fast... He thought as his towel dropped to the floor. He pulled on his warm boxers and reveled in the pleasing heat that spread across his lower parts. He sat down on the edge of the bed and grabbed his jeans. He had one leg in when a booming voice sounded outside the door.
"I'm coming in," the voice said firmly as the door was flung open to reveal a glowering Seto Kaiba.
Ryou looked at the tall man in the doorway in shock then quickly pulled on his pants.
"S-sorry," Ryou mumbled as a streak of crimson spread across his cheeks. He stood up, buttoned his pants, and picked up his shirt. Seto plucked the shirt out of his grasp and looked down at the boy. Ryou gazed at Seto, a look of fright and confusion radiated across his face.
"Calm down," Seto grumbled. "I'm not going to hurt you."
Ryou relaxed slightly then stood silently, waiting for Seto to explain.
"What happened to your arms?" He asked frigidly, looking at the dark marks circling Ryou's arms.
The thin, silver haired boy stood frozen, studying Kaiba's face, caught off guard by the question.
Seto folded his arms, "I'm waiting."
Shit, I should have prepared myself for this... Not that I was expecting him to ask... I better think of something... He thought, squirming under Kaiba's 'I'm-going-to-kill-you' glare.
"You see.. What had happened was... I..." Ryou began. Maybe he'll believe I fell down the stairs?
As if reading his mind Seto cut him off.
"And don't give me some bullshit about falling down the stairs," He said harshly. "Don't lie to me, I'm not in the mood."
Ryou made the intelligent choice of deciding to tell the truth.
"Honestly," Ryou mumbled then lowered his eyes. "I don't want to tell you."
"Well, that's obvious... Oh, well. I don't care..." Seto replied, crossing the room and opened the drawer of an antique dresser in the corner of the room. He rummaged through the dresser and pulled out a black long sleeve turtleneck. He tossed it to Ryou, none too gracefully. Ryou caught the shirt, despite his shock of Seto's reaction. "Don't stand there like an idiot. Put that on and follow me."
Seto blew past the boy without a second glance. Ryou hesitated then pulled the shirt over his small frame and followed Seto out of the room and down the hall. He struggled to keep up with the young CEO's pace, having to take two steps for every single step of Seto's. Ryou followed a few paces behind Seto, amusing himself with the thought of how the Kaiba Mansion was the last place he thought he'd be tonight or any other night for that matter. Ryou was so caught up in his thoughts, he didn't see the taller boy stop in front of him. He walked straight into Seto's solid body and was thrown backwards, landing on the floor.
"Clumsy idiot," Seto grumbled, grabbing Ryou roughly by the arm and pulling him to his feet.
"Ah.." Ryou hissed and winced in pain as Seto's hand wrapped around his inured arm like a vice.
"Whoops," Seto scoffed cruelly, then quietly whispered, "Sorry."
Though he knew Ryou had not heard him, he didn't bother repeating himself. Seto turned his attention to the door he stopped in front of. He turned the handle, swung open the door, and ushered Ryou inside.
The room in which Ryou now stood was the quintessence of every little boy's dream. There was a huge plasma screen TV and every single game system in circulation. It went without saying that there was an incredible sound system that went along with it. Not only was there an entertainment center, but there was also an impressive looking computer set up along the far wall. Aside from all of the electronics there were several shelves full of hard bound leather volumes, no doubt brimming with information any person could ever want to know. What Ryou had over looked in his survey of the room was a raven-haired youth even smaller than himself. Seto now addressed the boy before him.
"Mokuba, I brought you a friend to play with," Seto said, his usual coldness had dissipated, eliciting a strange glance from Ryou.
The youth, who was sitting in a pile of pillows on the floor in front of the TV, turned his head in their direction. His face lit up in a brilliant smile when he saw the friend his older brother had spoken of.
"Hey, Ryou!" Mokuba happily greeted the pale teen in the doorway.
"Hello, Mokuba," Ryou responded, smiling.
Mokuba and Ryou had previously met several different times in the park. Apparently it's the place to go when you want to escape. They had quickly become friends during the times they met and had looked forward to hanging out with each other. That is, until Bakura found out and only let Ryou leave the house at night, When Mokuba was sure to be at home. When Mokuba called, Bakura would forbid Ryou from answering it. Needless to say, it was difficult for Ryou to keep friends.
"Don't just stand there," Mokuba said excitedly. "Come over here and sit down."
The door slammed behind Ryou, declaring Seto's departure. Ryou walked over to Mokuba and his harem of pillows and plopped down next to him.
"Don't mind Seto," Mokuba chirped. "He's just in a permanently bad mood."
"I can tell," Ryou smiled.
Mokuba tossed him a PS2 controller and stated they would be playing Soul Calibur 3. At about 5 in the morning Julian entered with orders from Seto that it was time for bed. Mokuba and Ryou said their goodbyes and Julian led Ryou back to his room.
"Good night, Ryou," Julian said when they had arrived at the correct door.
"Good night," Ryou responded sleepily.
Julian smiled that infectious smile of his, bowed, and walked away.
Ryou entered his room and closed the door behind him. He made his way over to the king size bed and climbed in, covering himself with the warm blanket. He fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.
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AN: I feel like that took a long time to write... And type.. Maybe I just get distracted too easily... I did watch 3 different movies while typing this.. Yea.. Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter. I feel like both chapters have been pretty weak.. What doesn't kill me makes me stronger, right? Yea... Let's go with that.. Reviews make me feel tingly inside... Make me feel tingly... (Sadistic smile)