A/N: ~Hey guys! Attention, pretty please?~

For anyone who didn't see, I posted a one-shot earlier this week, Innocence and Dragons. This current chapter relates directly to that shot. If you haven't done so already, I highly recommend you read it before you get to this. It was partly written to integrate into Shift. You don't have to, I suppose, but then you won't understand what a large chunk of this is talking about and you'll miss a lot of the meaning, as well as a recurring theme I've begun weaving into this story from now up until the end, so… wouldya, please? Thank you so much! And anyone else who's read it already, thank you, and please read on!

Seto Kaiba was supposed to be using his time to prepare for a meeting with his financing team for Kaiba Land. He had already done so - having organized his paperwork, prepared a visual presentation, and signed any documents that had needed finalizing - though being this efficient was typical for himself. This left him a few precious moments to stand atop his empire like a king in his castle, staring out the floor-to-ceiling window in the office of his US headquarters. The Californian scenery outside his tower was refreshingly exotic compared to the familiar sights of Domino City, Japan.

Kaiba's eyes saw none of it.

He was too heavily absorbed in his own world - one that had no claim to a land in particular. He was dwelling on his "supernatural" situation, and for once, that damned spirit had finally left him with some peace. Now that he thought about it, however, he hadn't so much as sensed the other's presence since waking that morning. Kaiba was not going to complain about the quietude. He was a private man, and frankly, having a constant companion was, as it were, cramping his style. Even Mokuba, who was the center of the CEO's world, could be a little too affectionate for the older man's comfort at times.

…Mokuba. That's what Kaiba's thoughts truly orbited around this afternoon. How all of this affected him. Originally, the brunet's motivation had been focused solely around ridding himself of his internal annoyance of the spirit. If not for that, would he have done anything with the puzzle? Likely not. However, he found himself carrying it with him halfway across the globe, and even ensuring that he had it safely stowed in his briefcase whenever he so much as left a room.

Then there had been that foolish old man, who just had to run off at the mouth. Who the hell does he think he is anyway, threatening me with Mokuba's safety like that? The man's audacity had left him fuming for the remainder of that afternoon. But now he had to reconsider. What was he trying to accomplish now by working with, instead of against, the spirit? Could something really happen to Mokuba if this item were not returned to Yugi? If so, what? He was apprehensive to find out. Kaiba prioritized his own safety and self-preservation as far as his duty as Mokuba's shield was concerned. He was Mokuba's guardian; he was the boy's protector, and that role came first. But if something was threatening to endanger Mokuba's safety directly, was it not his job to eliminate it? Somehow, initially, he had not taken the threat as a warning to do such a thing for his brother.

And then there was the painting. That cracked image… it had seemed so trivial at the time. Old paint does crack. But Kaiba had been unable to shake the idea from his mind. How it tortured Kaiba to imagine his brother, his own little treasured gem, shattering to bits. Was that… could that really be happening? That place was supposed to be a reflection of his own mind; his own life. Could his actions be… breaking his little treasure? Absurd, Kaiba wanted to call out. But was it, really?

Kaiba found himself suddenly reminded of a bedtime story he had told his younger half once. It was not long after Kaiba had taken over his stepfather's company; the story had been an attempt at comforting the young boy after the recent change in their lives.

He had been making the story up on a whim, but had certainly been able to draw similarities to those recent events. However, it wasn't until now that he finally started to understand how profound, and how relevant, the anecdote truly was.

Kaiba's mind wandered back to instances he could recall his brother disagreeing with his actions. Every decision he'd made, he'd done thinking it would better both of their lives. But how many times had the young boy lashed out at him for those very choices? Their stepbrother had brought to light a few of those issues while they had been trapped in his virtual world.

"Checkmate," Ten year old Seto had claimed.

"Ah!"

"You lose."

"No! How could you beat me?"

"Now you have to adopt us like you promised, Mr. Kaiba!"

"That was the day I took control of my future." Seto Kaiba - the new ruler of the Kaiba empire - had stated boldly while watching the memory from the orphanage window.

"Yeah?" Mokuba had challenged from beside his elder. "Well it was also the day you stopped calling me Mokie," he snapped.

"If it wasn't for me, we never would have escaped that rat hole. I turned our lives around that day."

"Hmph. I liked the way it was before we got here! At least back then, you actually smiled once in a while!"

Kaiba shuddered, recalling how the boy had very nearly been pulled down into the nothingness that lurked behind the orphanage door. Had Kaiba not been on guard and expecting a trap, had he been just a split-second later in reacting… that may have been the end of Mokuba. And that would have been the last thing Seto Kaiba would have heard his only remaining family member say to him.

He shook his head, trying to clear it of these depressing thoughts, but it would not be the end of them.

Kaiba remembered Noah's brainwashing technique. He suspected Mokuba didn't. He figured the violet-eyed boy had been spared the guilt, or whatever emotions he might have felt over the event. Kaiba wouldn't know for certain, however; they never spoke about the incident.

"Mokuba has chosen sides based upon his own free will, Seto." Noah had claimed. Kaiba scoffed at the thought. Looking at Mokuba, hearing the droning undertone of his voice, it was clear he was not in his right mind. But that hardly mattered. "Looking back," Noah continued, "Maybe you should have treated him with more respect. I give him the support you never could. Hmph."

"Noah, I'm only going to say this once. Release Mokuba now. This is our fight. Is that clear? He has nothing to do with this!"

"There you go, disrespecting Mokuba again. Acting like his opinion means nothing."

Had he done that? Had he made a habit of belittling the most important person in his life - nay, the only person who mattered?

"How could Mokuba be forced to turn against me? Maybe I have been too hard on him…" Kaiba recalled asking himself during the duel his stepbrother had turned his flesh and blood against him.

…And then there was the end of Battle City. That was more recent; that was fresh. That still stung.

"…I don't think destroying the tower is going to solve anything. All it's going to do is cause more destruction, more anger, and more hatred."

"Mokuba…" Even after all the times Mokuba had tried to stress that he was growing displeased with his older brother's path, Kaiba was still shocked to have the boy speak against him - to defy him outright.

Maybe he was too used to Mokuba following him blindly. He shouldn't have been fooled by his own expectations. He should have caught on.

"I think what Yugi said about you is right! You're filled with hate!" Kaiba flinched at the memory. What had felt merely like a stated fact at the time now felt like an accusation; an insult. As though Mokuba were berating him for it.

Because that's what he was doing. But Kaiba had let it roll off his back like nothing. He was filled with hate. He was also apathetic to the fact. He didn't care that he had hardened himself to the world. To life.

To Mokuba.

"Why don't you smile anymore?" Mokuba had continued. "I know our childhood wasn't the best, but at least we had fun sometimes. And now, you're always in a bad mood, and I want it back the way it was!"

"Those days are over!" Kaiba had declared recklessly.

"They don't have to be!" No, they didn't. "You can change!" Yes. He could. And he intended to. The question was… how?

Kaiba returned to his desk and folded his legs. He did not approve of picture frames or other trinkets cluttering his desk space. But he did make a point of keeping a few digital photos stored in his computer files. He pulled them up, flipped through the images. Most were self-shots Mokuba had taken of himself and given to his brother.

"Why are you giving these to me? I don't work so much that I've forgotten what you look like, you know," Kaiba had asked him flatly once. Mokuba just shrugged an cracked a smile.

"Oh, you know. In case I ever go missing, so you have something more recent than the picture in your locket to show the police," he had morbidly joked. Even after the kid said it, his grin was still bright. Kaiba had given him some tactless, off-handed remark about using stills from one of his television appearances.

Mokuba is so underappreciated, Kaiba let himself think while flipping through the rest of the pictures. In the few shots where the CEO actually made an appearance (which mostly happened only in the photos taken by media photographers at their numerous public events), Kaiba noticed that he wasn't even attempting a grin in a single one of them. Nothing more than a scowl - or at best, a triumphant smirk - crossed his features. He sat back and reflected.

Why hadn't he taken the kid with him on this trip? He was always leaving the boy by himself. And hadn't he practically begged to be allowed to tag along? What had been his reasoning for denying him? Schoolwork. No, Kaiba thought. That was my excuse. I didn't want to run the risk of Mokuba getting in the way. I can't afford wasted time this month. But when had that ever really happened?

Kaiba Corp was under attack by Pegasus and the Big Five, and Mokuba, whilst kidnapped in Pegasus's castle tower, had taken it upon himself to try and fix his nii-sama's problem by taking Yugi out of the Duelist Kingdom tournament himself. Kaiba had been kidnapped within his own virtual game and was about to be offered as a sacrifice to the great beast, and Mokuba had come to the rescue disguised as princess Edina. Kaiba Corp's Grand Prix tournament, Siegfried von Schroeder and his virus. Mokuba just couldn't wait to find a way to help. Kaiba's head began to spin thinking of all the countless times his loyal little Mokuba had jumped to the occasion to lend a hand for his big brother.

Of course. How dare Mokuba get in the way of my drive? How dare Mokuba's presence threaten to disrupt my focus and throw me off track… off track from my job. My job which I maintain… so that Mokuba can have a better life. My job which I maintain… for Mokuba. Kaiba let out a deep sigh, and his head fell back against the backrest of his chair. He could've smacked himself for being so blind.

He minimized the folder of pictures and stole a glance at the clock. It was 3:48 pm. He could spare ten minutes before his meeting down the hall at four. He opened his video chat program and checked for his brother's name among his list of contacts (which was otherwise made up solely of his business associates), found the boy to be logged in, and hit the call button. Eager violet-grey eyes appeared on the screen but a moment later.

"Hey Seto!" Kaiba nodded in greeting to his kid brother.

"I'm returning your call - or should I say calls," he corrected himself. "What was it you wanted to speak to me about?"

"Oh, uh, it's not really a big deal. Never mind. Sorry I made such a fuss about getting a hold of you. I hope I didn't disrupt your work too much."

"It wasn't a bother."

"Then I should probably let you get back to work. Sorry to bug you." He flashed his older brother a grin to convey that everything was alright on his end.

"Hang on a minute, Mokuba."

"Hmm? Is something wrong?" It was odd for him to receive a call from the CEO in the middle of a workday.

"Nothing's wrong. I just wanted to talk to you."

"Ok. About what?" Straight to business. Kaiba might have been proud if he wasn't too busy feeling wracked with guilt.

And how did I ever let it get this bad?

"Nothing in particular, Mokuba," he answered. He tried to keep his tone light, and it seemed he had succeeded.

"Oh…" Mokuba's concern had flashed to confusion, but was shed entirely and replaced with glee all in an instant, being hit all at once with the realization that his ever-busy guardian was taking out time for small talk with him. "…Ok!"

Kaiba decided he could stand to be a little late to his meeting. Nothing in this building happened without him, after all.

"Well, how are you?" Mokuba started.

"I'm doing fine, little brother." Kaiba had to strain himself not to instinctually answer with 'I've been busy', knowing it would only put pressure on the younger to let him out of the video call early. He didn't want that. "Boring businesses functions. You know how it goes," he said dismissively. "I'd rather hear about what you've been up to." Mokuba was grinning as he began rattling off the many activities he'd been up to in his brother's absence, spilling all the ways he occupied time by himself. Kaiba allowed himself a light smile. The way this small gesture seemed to make his baby brother's eyes light up would be forever worth it.

"Mokuba?" Kaiba broke in at a point where his brother seemed about to switch topics.

"Yeah, Seto? Oh, you probably have to go, don't you?"

Kaiba mentally cursed himself. Was that all Mokuba could suspect he would say?

"No, not yet. I was just wondering… do you remember that bedtime story I told you a while ago, not that long after we took over KaibaCorp-"

"Back before I was officially 'too old for bedtime stories'?" Mokuba made air-quotes with his fingers, trying his best to mimic his brother, and earning a chuckle from him for it.

"Technically you were a little old for it, even then." Kaiba smiled fondly. "I think you were eleven."

"So which story are you asking about?"

"The one about the Dragon Tamer and th-"

"…and the Wizard?" Mokuba finished for his brother. "Yeah, I remember that one. It was one of my favorites." Now it was Mokuba's turn to smile fondly. "Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering if… well, if you understood back then what it meant."

"Of course. Well, maybe not right away when you told it, considering that I was half-asleep, but I've interpreted your not-that-subtle symbolism since then. Turning the seahorse dragon into wood? Yeah, I caught that. And obviously the Dragon Tamer was supposed to be you."

"Perhaps making up stories wasn't exactly my forte, but they seemed to entertain you well enough as a child."

"Wasn't that the whole point?"

Kaiba nodded. "What about the Wizard?"

"Gozaburo." Mokuba answered plainly. "…Why are you bringing this up?" The boy asked. Kaiba was unable to detect whether the hint of an undertone in his brother's voice was curiosity or suspicion.

"No reason, I guess. It's just been on my mind."

"Well, you know…" Mokuba said sheepishly. "I've decided since then that I don't think the ending was really so sad after all."

"Oh no?"

"No. I think it's just sweet."

Kaiba did not smile, but his eyes softened, and Mokuba noticed.

"Do you think the Tamer ever found a spell to cure his dragon, Seto?"

"I should think so. After all, with all that magic he learned, he was a pretty unstoppable guy, don't you think? Who's to say he couldn't find what he was looking for?"

"I think you're projecting." Mokuba said with a twinkle in his eye.

Kaiba did smile this time. "So what if I am?"

"Nii-sama, what ever happened to the wizard?"

"…We don't really care about what happened to him." Mokuba smirked at his brother's answer. "I believe the tamer, and his little treasure," he emphasized the last word, "would be better off without him anyway." Now Mokuba was beaming.

The clock hit 4:08 pm. The CEO didn't notice.

For anyone who didn't catch it in Innocence and Dragons (though I thought it was lamely obvious), yeah, the bedtime story was pretty much a fairy tale rendition of Seto's and Mokuba's childhood experience with Gozaburo. I didn't write the story: Kazuki Takahashi did. I just magic'ed and dragon'ed it up a bit. I couldn't even fool eleven-year-old Mokuba, now could I?

Episode quotes are taken from the English 4Kids anime, in the following episodes (listed in respectful order): The first flashback scene is from season 3, episode 100; the second from season 3, episode 116, and the third - you guessed it: Season 3! Episode 137.

I want to make sure I take the time to thank everyone who's been following, favorite-ing, and especially to those who review! Your feedback is immeasurably valuable to me, and gives me so much encouragement to keep writing. Thank you all so much for the support, and I hope to see you all next week!