A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed. Writing this chapter made me miss living in Japan.
Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters belong to Konami and are the creative property of Kazuki Takahashi. This is a work of fanfiction.
Ghost
Chapter 9
The two siblings were out of the house much earlier the next morning, forgoing a homemade breakfast for a stop at the corner convenience store. Serenity munched on her pastry while Joey downed a canned coffee as they waited for the bus.
About an hour later, they could be found strolling through the home section of a department store, sorting through the linens for a new futon.
Kaiba sighed at the tedious chore, longing to take to the sky again. This was a far-cry from the adventure that was last night. He found himself studying Serenity more thoroughly, especially after certain recent revelations.
This girl was the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
A decidedly pretty young woman, she was of average height and build. Her clothes, while tasteful, looked notably inexpensive to Kaiba's discerning eye. They had probably been purchased in a department store similar to this one a season ago. He figured she was raised to be frugal, and he was right. Better she be realistic than flighty and shallow, he thought, slightly grateful.
He recalled yesterday how her brother had entered the Duelist Kingdom tournament a few years ago. His objective was to win the prize money, which was to go towards paying for some relative's serious surgery. The pieces fell together for Kaiba when he remembered his first true introduction to the girl months later. He watched her foolishly dive into the water to rescue her brother from a booby-trapped duel-gone-south. He remembered the memorable image of her bandages, stripped free and floating at the top of the water. He feared at the time that he had another dramatic, friendship-toting member of the Scooby Gang on his hands. Instead, though, after that initial epic entrance onto the scene during Battle City, she remained blessedly anonymous for the rest of the debacle, leaving the theatrics to the true professionals like Yugi and Marik.
He shuddered.
Some time had passed, and Joey had their selected futon in a giant plastic bag flung over his shoulder. He was hungry again, and he suggested they enjoy an early lunch in the food court.
Serenity admired the advertisements for vacation travel all around them as they went up the escalators.
"Wouldn't it be so amazing to visit Tahiti? Or New Zealand, or Saipan, or heck! Even Okinawa," she said longingly. "I wish I could afford a trip like that."
"Aw, 'Ren. Always the adventurer," Joey said with sugary affection. "I remember when we were kids. You used to climb all the way to the top of the jungle gym and spread your arms like you could just... fly away or something. It was cute."
Serenity smiled at the memory. She recalled that while she was doing that, Joey was down below picking fights on the playground. Mother would scold him terribly when he would come home with a bloody lip or black eye. His comment happened to jar loose another, more recent memory.
"You know what? I actually dreamed about flying last night, I think." Joey responded with mild interest. "Yeah. You know what I mean, right? Like actually me, floating through the sky like some superhero, twisting and diving. It was kind of awesome."
"Yeah. I've had dreams like that before. They're awesome," Joey answered, distracted by the menus on the wall. They had made it to the top floor. He thought of something else and turned to grin at his sister. "At least you didn't dream about Kaiba this time, eh?" he said suggestively.
He did not expect Serenity to pause and consider. "Actually..." Joey groaned in disgust. The ghost just smirked.
A little later, the two were seated, she munching on a hamburger and he slurping his bowl of noodles. Kaiba stood over Serenity's shoulder, his interest peaked by her vague recollection of their flight together last night. He wondered what else he could possibly get her to remember in the future.
"So, I talked to Yugi last night." Serenity froze, burger forgotten in midair.
"You didn't."
"Don't worry, he doesn't have a thing for you!" She didn't care.
"That doesn't matter! I can't believe you told him!" Joey just rolled his eyes at her mortification. Kaiba chortled.
Serenity blinked and looked over her shoulder, made curious by a strange noise she thought she heard. Joey noticed and narrowed his eyes.
"What?" She shook her head.
"Nothing. This place is noisy; I thought I heard something weird." Her brother examined her closely, coming to a decision.
"He thinks you're being haunted," he told her bluntly. Serenity blinked.
"Whuh?" Kaiba stood in shocked silence while she drummed up a response to the incredible claim. "You're serious? And you believe him?" Joey could not meet her eyes while he defended his friend.
"He's got this... special sort of insight that's hard to explain." He could not possibly tell her about the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. He looked up at his sister guardedly. "But, yeah. I might believe him."
Spooked, she gazed around herself cautiously, wondering if a ghost would stick by her in such a crowded, noisy place as this.
Said ghost was in complete shock as his quick mind tried to decide what to do with this revelation. The cat was certainly out of the bag, now. The question was whether or not he could use this to his advantage.
Her appetite diminished, Serenity tossed the rest of her meal in the trash bin. Joey had no such ailment and finished his completely. The two then packed up and returned to the apartment to drop off their purchase and plan their upcoming afternoon.
Serenity idly wondered if dinner reservations should include room for one more.
.
In the end, it turned out that reservations would not be a problem. Téa had invited her over to prepare for tonight's lantern festival, celebrating the end of Obon. Serenity had completely forgotten the date, and was grateful for the other woman's thoughtfulness.
"What do you think about this one?" Téa emerged from her closet with a long cotton yukata in hand, offering it to Serenity for the evening's festivities. Patterned in vibrant blues and a bold white, the ensemble was completed with a thick, silvery obi. Serenity smiled.
"I love it."
Seto absolutely refused to be around for this ludicrous fiasco and elected to recline on the couch in a sitting room next to Téa's. He could hear the girls through the thin walls and hoped that counted well-enough as surveillance.
"Are you going to wear one?" he heard Serenity ask the other girl.
"You know what? I think I will this year. It won't feel as weird with someone else doing it, too." Téa had forgone the tradition the past few holidays, feeling as if she had somewhat grown out of it. She thought it might be a fun throwback.
The girls sorted through the fabrics, finally settling on one they thought might compliment the maturity of Serenity's. There was a lot of giggling involved, and Seto prayed for deliverance.
"When's the last time you spoke with Mai?" Serenity asked quietly after a change in topic. Téa looked up from her task as she helped Serenity get her outfit on for the evening.
"A while," she said compassionately. "She left for some tournaments in America about a year ago, and she's only emailed a couple of times since then." Serenity frowned.
"Doesn't she know we miss her? I don't think I understand that woman at all." Téa did, too, but she also knew what a role model Mai had been for the younger woman. While being related to Joey surely meant that some of her spunk was inherent, Téa believed that her relationship with the fiery blonde bombshell helped cultivate that potential into what she saw before her today.
Of course, Serenity was likely also bitter that her brother had been left high-and-dry. Their relationship over the years had always been more of a dance than a marathon, and Mai seemed to finally need some space. One day, she just broke it off and was on a plane within twenty-four hours. Yugi said she had cried the entire way to the airport.
"Well, I think Mai is what you get when you combine independence, recklessness, and spontaneity into a woman without roots," she said wisely, tightening a wrap on Serenity's midsection. "I think she just needs time. She knows she has the best friends in the world here. She'll be back one day." Téa smiled up at her. Serenity still pouted.
"It'd sure be great if she hurried up and figured that out." Téa laughed.
"I guess not everyone's had as lucky a hand in life as you and me, I guess." Serenity looked at the girl dressing her with slight incredulity. She grew up in a single-parent household with a mother who worked constantly and struggled to pay the bills, separated from a beloved older brother for years, and was struck down by a debilitating, deteriorating illness. She kept her snarky thoughts to herself.
The afternoon shadows had lengthened dramatically by the time the two girls were ready to go. Téa had particularly loved arranging Serenity's abundant hair, commenting on its length and color. By the time Kaiba had finally considered moving from the couch, his shock was dramatic. He almost did not even recognize his charge anymore.
Wrapped in a swirl of blue with silver accent, he watched as Serenity slipped on her wooden sandals at the front door. A set of pins and clips kept her auburn locks up, exposing an elegant neck. Both girls had been blessedly sparing with the application of makeup, and Serenity had on just enough to make her eyes pop. Kaiba gulped.
They waved farewell to Téa's parents and headed out the door to meet the boys at the train station. They were predictably rowdy when they caught up with them.
"Whoa-ah, lookit what we got here! I'm gonna be beatin' the men off you two with sticks tonight!" Joey teased. Téa smacked him in the shoulder while Serenity just laughed and Yugi grinned. Bakura was far more polite.
"You two look lovely." Serenity blushed prettily at his compliment, and Tristan gave them a thumbs up.
When the train arrived at the platform, the six of them boarded, brimming with flourishing anticipation.
One ghost followed, still a little stunned but significantly more sedated.
A/N: Obon is an absolutely beautiful Buddhist festival honoring the dead and is actually celebrated in some capacity in many other Asian countries. On the final day, Japanese families light paper lanterns and float them on a body of water in order to guide the souls of the visiting dead back to the afterlife. Definitely search for some images, because words cannot do its magic justice.
It turns out this website enjoys eating my page breaks. If any transitions seem rough, it may be a result of glitched formatting. Many apologies.
I might make this two-a-weekend update a regularity. Big things coming next chapter. Hope you enjoyed!