Too Much Work, Chapter 7

By: Storychan

Hey y'all! It's been quite awhile, hasn't it? -_-" I'm sorry! I swear I haven't forgotten about this story. In fact, the reason I haven't published any more chapters is because I've been writing so many little oneshots (none of which I've posted), exploring the backstory of Himeko's breakdown, breakup, and more from every possible angle.

Hmm….if I posted them, would any of you read them? I've started to wonder if Himeko-chan really has that many fans out there. -_- (I'm not talking about my IRL friends. I know y'all love everything I write. It's the rest of the FF community I want feedback from.) I also wonder if I'm making Jounouchi and Kaiba IC enough.. :/ What do you think?

But anyway I finally got some inspiration for a Kaiba/Himeko chapter! I want to explore more what they have in common, and why Kaiba shows some interest in her. Btw, I think a good name for that pairing is "Workshipping". (I want to call Jounouchi/Himeko "Brokenshipping"). Thoughts?

Enjoy this chapter and please review!

Himeko woke up the next morning to a strange sensation of wetness against her cheeks. Tears. That idiot Jounouchi had made her cry the night before. Because he's right, she realized. I've begun to question if it's worth being a mercenary when it gets me so hurt. Speaking of 'hurt', she looked down at her aching arm. A guard at the house she'd stolen from had stabbed her last night….and then Jounouchi had showed up at her house and bandaged her up. She remembered the tenderness with which he'd treated her wound, and blushed. But who does he think he is, she still thought to herself, barging in here like that?

His words hurt….but he also healed me.

"He's so complicated," she grumbled, rolling out of bed. She was still in the clothes she'd worn the night before. Work had left her too tired to change. She was still tired…too tired to wait on Kaiba, who was downstairs, probably expecting her to make breakfast.

He's an ass. Himeko scowled. But at least he's straightforward. I expect him to be an ass, and I'm never disappointed. With Jounouchi…him I expect to be better. And when he's not, it hurts. Why did he have to say those things last night?

Why did he have to make me question the way I'm living my life?

She didn't want to leave her room, but hunger eventually drove her downstairs to the kitchen. Kaiba was there, drinking his morning coffee while looking over a stack of paperwork with a scowl on his face. Typical. He didn't even look up when Himeko came in.

That was fine with her. She took some sugary cereal of Takane's (she was too tired to cook a real breakfast for herself – she'd cook something nice for Takane and Mokuba later, when they woke up) and poured it into a bowl. She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down across from Kaiba at the breakfast table.

"I'm going to need you to accompany me somewhere dangerous I'm going today," Kaiba said finally.

"That's the first thing you say to me?" Himeko griped. "No 'good morning'?"

"It's not a good morning," Kaiba argued.

"For once, I agree with you," Himeko smirked. "But why do you say that?"

"That little lost puppy was here last night, barking for you."

Jounouchi. "Oh, so same reason as me," Himeko laughed bitterly. "Why'd you let him in?"

"I assumed you'd want to speak to him," Kaiba replied with a shrug, and turned the page of one of his papers.

"I didn't."

Kaiba looked up at her now, his dark eyes boring into her own analytically. "You let him get under your skin, didn't you?" he smirked. "I heard every word last night, you know."

Himeko blushed. She hadn't known that. "It's none of your business," she retorted.

"If you're thinking about quitting, it is my business," Kaiba countered.

"I can't quit. You know that." Himeko said unemotionally, casting her eyes down into her cereal bowl.

"Of course," Kaiba smirked, "you need my money."

"Where are you going today, that you need me to escort you?" Himeko asked, changing the subject.

"A clothing store. I lost most of my things in the fire," Kaiba explained, taking a swig from his coffee mug. "Problem with that?"

"Not at all," Himeko chuckled. "I've always wanted to know where you get those ridiculously obnoxious longcoats of yours. Do they do something special to them to make them ripple behind you when there's no breeze?"

"I had no idea," Kaiba snickered, "that you were paying so much attention to my behind."

Himeko blushed and said nothing, but got up from the table faster than you could say Blue-Eyes.

Himeko returned to the kitchen later, after Kaiba had left to handle some business, to start making Takane and Mokuba's breakfast. The smell of bacon frying soon woke the two children, who came bounding down the stairs excitedly.

"Good morning, Mama!"

"Good morning, Himeko-oneesan!"

Their cheerful greetings brought a smile to her face. This is what I work for, Himeko reminded herself. Having enough to feed her family was worth working with Kaiba, no matter how infuriating he could be. She dished a helping of bacon and eggs onto each child's plate.

"Thank you, Oneesan!" Mokuba smiled.

"You're welcome, sweetie," Himeko replied. She wondered how Mokuba could be so sweet and polite when his brother was the exact opposite. She saw him pull out Takane's chair for her and wondered where he learned it from.

She didn't think Kaiba had a side like that. Or, at least, she'd never seen it. Or had she?

Don't you dare say I'm not helping you, Himeko!

The night of Takane's half-birthday stuck out in her mind. The kindness he'd shown was unusual for him. The reason for it, she figured, was that he knew what it was like to be the only thing that mattered in a child's eyes. She wondered what else they might have in common. She'd been working with Kaiba for a long time now, but their conversations had rarely ever taken a really personal tone. Kaiba was all business. But that was just how Himeko liked it. Unlike her interactions with Jounouchi, what she and Kaiba had wasn't complicated. She stood in the corner while he worked, and made sure nobody shot him. It was simple. Simple was the opposite of Jounouchi. Kaiba was the opposite of Jounouchi….which was why she liked him.

Wait, Himeko thought. Since when do I like him?

Kaiba picked that moment to stroll in, wallet in hand. "Let's go," he commanded tersely. "I have a lot of shopping to do and not a lot of time."

Himeko nodded curtly and followed him out the door. They walked through the city, Himeko always three steps behind, scanning all around for threats. She found none, and at last they arrived at a fashionable boutique that Himeko could never have shopped at, even with the salary Kaiba gave her.

She looked under every rack and behind every curtain, searching for hidden assassins. When she found none, she returned to Kaiba's side and followed him as he approached the cashier's station. When he did, she gasped. Behind the counter in the uniform of a sales associate was a familiar face.

It was one of the girls she'd went to Domino High with, before she got pregnant. Her eyes fell on Himeko. She recognized her. Shit.

"Hime-chan!" she squealed. "I haven't talked to you in forever!"

"Yes," Himeko replied coldly. "Not since you and every other girl except Anzu decided to ice me out when you heard I was with child."

The girl's smile shrank. "So you actually kept the baby?"

"Of course. I love my daughter."

"I see," the girl said, eyes steely with judgement. "Are you and her father still together?"

"No."

"Oh," the girl replied. "Well I guess I'm not surprised. I heard you were dating a lot of guys back then."

Himeko went red and her eyes narrowed. "What did you say?" she snapped.

"Well," the girl simpered, "I did hear a rumor that you had quite a few boyfriends back then…that you weren't sure who the father of your child was."

"You bitch!" Himeko shrieked. "I was with ONE man, and he was my HUSBAND!" Kaiba's arm was holding her back before she even realized she'd lunged or pulled out her knife.

"Leave her alone," Kaiba ordered.

"G-get out of this shop right now or I'm calling the police!" the girl cried, eyeing the blade in Himeko's hand with terror.

"Let go of me, Kaiba," Himeko growled. He did, and to his surprise, she put her knife away and followed him out of the shop.

For half the walk home, Himeko and Kaiba didn't speak. They didn't even look at each other.

Finally, Himeko said something, if only because the awkward silence was killing her. "I'm sorry I ruined your shopping trip," she muttered.

"Don't be," Kaiba replied, looking at her eyes for the first time, which had widened. "That woman had no right to make such groundless accusations against you."

"But it's not like I could've just killed her," Himeko protested.

"You could've." Kaiba smirked.

"I'd go to jail!"

"Come now," Kaiba chuckled. "In your line of work, you know by now how to commit a murder without leaving behind any evidence. And I would've been your only witness."

"Right," Himeko said, rolling her eyes, "and you wouldn't report me, because you need my menial labor."

"I'm serious, Himeko," Kaiba said, stopping in the street to focus on her. "You could have killed her if you wanted."

"If you really feel that way, then why'd you stop me?"

"Because I wanted to ask you why what she said bothered you so much."

"Are you for real?" Himeko cried. "Am I not supposed to care that she basically called me a slut? That she believes ridiculous lies about me and judges me just because I'm a teen mother?"

"I personally," Kaiba said coolly, "stopped caring what anyone thought of me years ago. And do you know why, Himeko?"

"Why?" Himeko asked, crossing her arms.

"Because I could destroy them with a word. If I felt like it, I could buy that shop and then fire that girl. She'd be out on the street. I could ruin her life in seconds."

Himeko blushed. "Would you…really do that for me?"

"I don't have to," Kaiba smiled. "The mere knowledge that I could is enough to make me feel so superior to her that her opinions stop mattering. And then there's you, Himeko. You could end that girl's life in a second. You have power over her."

"I'm not going to just kill her, Kaiba. Get real." Himeko replied rationally.

"And that's just it," Kaiba laughed. "She only lives because you felt like letting her live. Doesn't that make you feel powerful? Doesn't that make you feel better?"

Himeko realized that for some reason, it did. When the rumor mill had started back in high school and she'd started getting picked on for her decision to keep Takane….when Jounouchi had died on her, abandoned her….when she'd had to raise her child alone….for so long, she'd felt so helpless. But when she'd decided to learn to fight and became a mercenary, she felt strong again. The power to support herself? The power to rip out a man's throat if she so desired? It brought her a sense of delicious strength.

What I told Jounouchi, Himeko realized, was wrong. What I do doesn't bring me only unhappiness.

"I've always believed," Kaiba continued. "That living a successful life is the best revenge. And I've been very successful, no? I'm the CEO of a multi-million dollar company. I'm the most powerful man in this city."

"How nice for you," Himeko sighed, rolling her eyes again.

"But you, Himeko," Kaiba grinned, drawing closer to her, "are the power behind the throne. Even I only maintain my power over this city because you choose not to assassinate me. Every time you choose to kill or not kill a VIP in this town, you're choosing who will be king."

"King, huh?" Himeko laughed. "Is that what you think you are, you egomaniac?"

"I may have too much ego," Kaiba admitted. "But you could stand to have a little more. After all, I could lose everything if you wanted me to. You are just as powerful, in that way, as I am."

Himeko felt a surge of pleasure at his words. Was it because he was praising her? No. It couldn't be. Then what was it?

"That glorious feeling you can't name," Kaiba smirked, "is power. And if it's not making you feel better enough….so you know, I pay you ten times more money than that girl makes."

"Is money all that matters to you?" Himeko asked. "Tch."

"What else should I care about?" Kaiba replied with a quirk of his eyebrow.

"What about….friends?"

"I don't have any friends," Kaiba freely admitted. "I don't need them. When that idealistic brat Yugi was spouting off about the power of friendship back in the day, I always thought he was a moron. I don't need anyone else. I can take care of myself."

"That's how I feel now, too," Himeko confided. "After Yugi-kun and all the others abandoned me to go play hero….I want nothing to do with them. I'm fine on my own."

"Yes, you are," Kaiba agreed. "That idiot Jounouchi who keeps coming back to you like a lost puppy? He may want you to change back into the silly little high school girl you were before, the one who believed in the power of friendship and love and trusted everyone…..but I don't. That girl was stupid and useless, and not worth my time. The new version is a stronger woman."

"Yes," Himeko realized with a real smile, "she is." Jounouchi wants to tell me that the way I live now is wrong….but this way has kept me and Takane alive when he did nothing to help us. I guess part of me does like Kaiba, because he doesn't make me long for the past, like Jounouchi does. He makes me think that the person I've become is exactly who I should be.

"That person," Kaiba smirked as she brought his face even closer to Himeko's, "is also far sexier."