SandstormAmaterasuZira: Yes, unfortunately there's a lot of build up chapters in this story but I promise you it'll all be worth it for what it's building up to! Oh, and I apologize that my review reply only came out with .Zira. For some reason takes out part of your username in the editing process without my knowledge, I'll make sure to edit that in the last chapter. Thanks for the review!

Velgamidragon: Um, sorry? Thanks for the review!

KaelynnD: Hahaha, yes! You noticed the little thing I put in there that I wanted you to see (the whole "her boy" thing) I tend to do that all the time but it really shows me that you're reading carefully when you pick out things like that. Wow, now I sound like an English teacher, hahaha, still! It's cool when readers notice little things like that. And honey, I'm planning so much, you don't even know! Hope you like the update, thanks for the review!

Cuteandsweet: Good. I hate Joey. A LOT. As you can probably tell from my story, "A Rant To Remember." Thanks for the review!

Pinkberry: All your questions about Mokuba will mostly be answered in this chapter, so don't worry! You know, I feel like sometimes I write Mokuba a little too maturely. It's hard for me to find a balance sometimes (at least I think so, sometimes I think, however, a lot of my doubts are in my head) But I worry I write him too maturely but at the same time, Mokuba IS kind of a mature eleven year old. I mean, look at his brother! It wouldn't be right to make him a complete little kid, ya know? And as for my job, yes, I'm like an English teacher. I'm a teacher's assistant for an ESL class (a class for people whose native language isn't English) Thankfully the students in my class are SO wonderful that I haven't run into any trouble thus far. Teaching is really important! I think that education is the most important thing because knowledge is power. And I'll be sure to talk about any teaching experiences I have when they come up but for now, thanks for the review!

MythCreatorWriter: I was wondering where your review was! Usually you're the first one so I was a bit curious as to what happened. I can't help the fact that I hate Joey. I try not to let my prejudice get involved with anything else but when it comes to Joey, well, he's the ultimate exception. And if you know the secret, don't tell! No one will be finding out about that for a long while now. I know, I felt strange about the confession too. Seto has another one in this chapter that's a little out of place but I definitely try to justify them as much as I can. Thanks for the review!

UnderGroundKiss: My story has helped you… IN COLLEGE?! Wow, I must be a miracle worker then because college is HARD!o.o And really, you reward yourself like that? Hahaha, I know a couple other people who do that with my story. Hell, even I do that with my story (I'll do a lot of homework and then let myself write more of the story… sometimes I have to because writing is the greatest way for me to de-stress.) As for Mokuba living with Seto in the end, well, if you re-call there was that one part… hahaha, although plans can change! You'll just have to read and find out. And I'm going to be honest there probably will be a fight between Seto/Seth and Joey. Although I haven't thought of one/a fight hasn't come up in my string of events to happen but it is so like me to have them fight anyway. If it does happen, I won't know unless I write the chapter. And you want to know what happens to Joey? My God… you have to be the only one. Hahaha, just kidding! Thanks for the review!

Episode 21: Family Weekend, Part III—Revelations

"What do you think you're doing?" An eleven year old Seto stood in the doorway that led into the kitchen. He had been living in the mansion for over a year and yet the scene he was witnessing at that very moment was something he had never seen before. "I said get out of here, what are you standing there for? GET OUT!" Seto heard his step father's commands but his legs refused to move. Seto's eyes were fixated on one person, the woman Gozaburo was holding tightly by the wrist in order to keep her from escaping.

"Please… Seto, just go," Kaori pleaded, desperate and weary, afraid of what would happen next if the boy didn't run now. Seto felt his heart tear as Kaori turned her head and accepted her fate; a beating she didn't deserve. She had given up on herself but she hadn't given up on saving Seto, a boy she had quickly began to care for since he had first arrived. Still… all Seto could do was stand there. He didn't want to leave her behind.

Gozaburo was growing impatient. "Well Seto, if you're not going to leave then I guess you'll just have to watch!" Gozaburo lifted his free hand, revealing a kitchen knife he had been hiding behind his back. Seto's eyes grew wide as the stainless steel blade sliced through Kaori's delicate skin. Pools of blood followed and spilt onto the carpet. A mind numbing scream echoed through the house.

Time has stopped and Seto wished to cease from existence. Seto's legs gave out and he collapsed onto the ground. But what stung him the most, what truly tore him apart, was what he heard her scream next.

"SETO!" Seto stopped breathing and looked up. Kaori was looking at him, her arm was covered in blood and tears were streaming down her face. She looked as though she was on the brink of fainting and she had called his name, she was still worried about him. She wanted to protect him.

Never in Seto's life had he ever felt so ashamed and powerless. He promised himself from that point on, he would do everything in his power to protect this woman…

Seto's eyes flashed open and his body jerked forward. Even though Seto had dreamed this nightmare countless times in the past it never quite made it seem any less… painful. The reason being that this was not only a nightmare that awoke him from his slumber but also because he knew it was more than just another dream… it was a subconscious recollection of a horrifying event from his past. One thing Seto could never erase from his mind was the way Kaori screamed… such a scream, the yelling of his name, would stay with him forever.

Seto sat up from his bed and stretched. While doing so, he couldn't help but notice that his whole body was trembling, drenched in sweat. Seto knew this to be a result of the morning after a nightmare. Sometimes his body would go on trembling for hours even after waking up. It had been happening to him for so many years now that it was commonplace to feel this way in the morning. Seto tried to put it out of his mind and trailed over to the bathroom to begin his morning routine.

Seto: Kaori… she went through a lot of abuse, usually out of protection from me… There are some horrific things I still haven't been able to put past that Gozaburo has done to her. But you know what pains me most of all? Gozaburo wouldn't let her divorce him. He wouldn't. He got a sick pleasure from having someone to beat on besides me and he wanted her to suffer. This is one of the many reasons that living in a house with Gozaburo can only mean trouble. That man is a monster and the only reason he's showing Kaori affection is because he wants to get to me.

By the time Seto had finished showering, getting dressed, and brushing his teeth, he found that only a half hour had gone by. It was now six in the morning and everybody was sure to be asleep for a couple more hours. Seto walked over to the window in his room and glanced at the sleeping city outside. The sun would be rising soon and with no motivation to work, he pulled up a chair next to the window in hopes of enjoying Mother Nature for once in his complicated and dangerous life.

Danger… Seto could only think of Gozaburo when he thought of that word. If his step father was present, the situation had automatically become dangerous. Again, Seto's thoughts drifted back to his step mother and the gruesome past she endured for his sake. It angered him to think about, that any woman would have to suffer through what she did. This was why the minute he had taken over half of the company, he had bought a house in California and sent Kaori there without Gozaburo knowing. It was Seto's way of thanking and protecting her for all the times he didn't in the past.

Seto watched as the sun slowly ascended over the horizon, spreading light to the city below. Not even Mother Nature's greatest wonders could uplift Seto's troubled mind that seemed to be thinking of a thousand worst case scenarios a minute. The start of a new day only meant a new set of dangers lay in front of him. Seto got up, not even wanting to wait until the sun had fully risen and made a journey downstairs. He would fix himself some coffee, think of a plan and… Seto had almost forgotten. He needed to talk to Mokuba. He would do that when the boy had woken up.

It was going to be a long day.

"I don't understand. Why would you bring him here? How could you…?"

"Oh please Kaori, it's not like it matters to him."

"It matters to me that you would do such a thing!"

"Calm down, turns out he's not even the one I have to go after. My bets are on that Kisara girl…" Kaori shook his head in disbelief. Could this be real, was Gozaburo being serious? Kaori hated that she was still surprised by Gozaburo's actions when in all their years of marriage her husband had never shown a good side. It was almost as if he were pure evil…

"I don't like this and I hate that you would do such a thing to Seto and not even tell me."

"Wait, you're mad at me for not telling you? Please Kaori, you were the one that ran off and lived in a completely different country for the past couple months without even telling me! I didn't get so much as a phone."

"It's not like you cared!"

"Well, I'm your husband so don't I have a right to know?" Kaori turned away.

"I did it to get away from you…" Kaori looked down in shame.

"I could figure that much." Gozaburo wasn't even remorseful that his behavior had driven her so far away. Kaori decided to stop focusing on the clearly broken relationship they had and question him about the only thing that truly mattered to the both of them. Kaori looked back up at him with gentle and fearful eyes.

"What are you… going to do to him?" Gozaburo had walked over to his computer to do something.

"Nothing, if I can find that key fast enough. Then this will be all over." Kaori stared at him.

Gozaburo: Kaori is the final piece to the puzzle. Kaori cares about Seto like a mother would for their child. And although Seto doesn't consider her his mother, he feels the same way towards her. Things can't possibly go wrong for me if she's under my control. I suspect that I will have Seto's key by the end of the weekend, guaranteed.

"This was all part of the plan… wasn't it?" Kaori walked towards him, "Everything was, from the very beginning. There's no show, there aren't any strangers, it is all just… you, controlling everything!" Kaori raised her hand, about to strike Gozaburo's skull from behind when Gozaburo twisted around and grabbed her arm in mid-air. Gozaburo kept a tight grip on her wrist as he rose from his chair.

"Your stupidity still has its way of surprising me…"

"I guess I could say the same about your cruelty." Gozaburo smirked and moved his face closer to Kaori's face.

"I know you're the closest thing there is to being a trusted friend to Seto, so you're going to be a good girl and do whatever it takes to help me get what I want," Kaori, against her will, locked lips with Gozaburo as he had pressed his face against her. She wanted to scream in fury but Gozaburo's forceful lips kept her from doing so. After a minute, Gozaburo pulled away from her and let her breathe, "And should you fail… well, let's just leave it at that."

Kaori's eyes widened. What had she gotten herself into? But more importantly… how was she going to be able to save Seto this time? All hope seemed lost.

Seto wandered down to the kitchen around ten in the morning, assuming he had waited long enough for everyone to wake up. To his surprise and also in his favor, Mokuba was the only one up. The boy was sitting by himself at the table, a full bowl of cereal in front of him, but he didn't look the least bit interested in eating it. Mokuba actually looked quite the opposite, he appeared as though he was about to fall asleep in it.

Mokuba was supporting his head with his arms as he hovered over the uneaten cereal. Mokuba's eyes were closed… he might've already fallen asleep. Seto walked over to him and gave him a light tap on the shoulder. Mokuba immediately woke up and opened his eyes.

"Wha—I didn't do it," Mokuba said in a sleepy voice.

"Mokuba it's me." Mokuba looked up and tried to focus his vision. He smiled after a few moments.

"Oh Seto-sama, it is you. How's it going?" Mokuba mumbled, his eyes slowly attempting to close again.

"I get the feeling you didn't get much sleep last night?" The sound of Seto's voice woke Mokuba up once more and caused him to be attentive.

"No… not really." Seto hated the next question people had always asked him when he was a child and had trouble sleeping, but Seto felt it was necessary to find out what was wrong.

"Any particular reason why?" As Seto's suspected, Mokuba's face darkened with a quiet shame that only he was aware of and Seto could understand.

"…No." Seto put away Mokuba's bowl in the sink and then walked back over to him.

"Come on. Let's go back up to bed." Seto bent forward and picked Mokuba up. Mokuba tried to struggle but he was too tired to make a fuss.

"No… I don't want to…" Mokuba mumbled, practically falling asleep at the end of every word. Seto carried Mokuba back upstairs and all the way to his bedroom without too much trouble. Mokuba had fallen into a light sleep during the five minutes it had taken him to walk back to his bedroom. But the moment Seto laid him back onto his bed, Mokuba woke up once more. "You didn't have to do that," Mokuba murmured, opening one eye. Seto pulled the covers up and over Mokuba's body.

"I know," Seto said, tucking him in. Mokuba shifted underneath the covers and got into a comfortable position. Mokuba hugged the pillow that lay under his head and closed his eyes.

"Thank you…" Seto knew this was the part where he was supposed to leave and let Mokuba sleep but he wasn't ready to leave yet. There was one more thing he needed to do.

"Mokuba… can I ask you something?" Seto asked.

"Sure," Mokuba replied without opening his eyes. He could've already fallen asleep for all Seto knew. Seto took a deep breath. Seto knew what he was about to ask was deeply personal and their conversation could go one or two ways.

"Sister Theresia Unno told me about the way you are at the orphanage when you're with potential parents… how you misbehave and don't act like yourself." Mokuba opened his eyes and looked up.

"Did you ask her about me?" Mokuba asked in an accusing way.

"No, no, she told me all on her own. She said she worried about you and she didn't understand why you did it." Mokuba was silent. Seto continued forward with the conversation after several minutes of silence, "You never wanted to be adopted, did you?" Mokuba gave up trying to sleep and sat up. He didn't look Seto's way as he spoke.

"When you're rejected enough to think you'll never be adopted and then adopted once only to find yourself put back in the orphanage by social services, you discover that eighteen is a magical number to anticipate more than fear."

Mokuba: As an orphan, you learn two things. The first thing is that you need to be adopted as early as possible because if not, you'll run into the problem of the second thing. The second thing being the realization of turning eighteen and the possibility of living alone if you can't find a family to adopt you. Every orphan fears that possibility and it has happened to some of them. I was one of the only ones that wanted something like that to happen. I wanted to live on my own, even if that meant living on the streets with no home.

Seto placed his hand on Mokuba's shoulder. Mokuba eyes traveled up to meet Seto's confused face. Whenever Mokuba talked about this with anyone, they could never understand what he meant. Mokuba was fully prepared to try and explain himself a couple more times before he would eventually give up in rage and leave the conversation be. But that wasn't what happened. Seto didn't seem confused, not one bit.

"I understand," Seto even said, affirming Mokuba's thoughts.

"You do?"

"Of course… I felt the same way… only it wasn't while I was an orphan, it was while I was living here." Seto hated living with Gozaburo. It was worst then living in an orphanage. Mokuba understood that this was what Seto meant. "I promised myself that when I turned eighteen I would leave this place and never come back again."

"Well, what happened? I mean, you're eighteen now, aren't you?" Seto nodded and smiled.

"This is true… I suppose other things got in the way; things such as taking over Gozaburo's company and then with this reality TV show and… you." Mokuba's attention was caught but he was too tired to say anything about it. Mokuba leaned back down and rested his head on the pillow, closing his eyes.

"I'm going to bed now…" Mokuba stated in a sleepy voice, no longer having the energy to talk.

"Okay kiddo, you do that. Have a good sleep." Seto got up from the side of Mokuba's bed and walked over to the light switch quietly. He flicked off the light and was about to close the door when he heard Mokuba say one more thing.

"Hey Seto-sama?"

"Yes?"

"You're the best." Seto said nothing and closed the door. Even as he walked down the hallway and down the dining room where nearly everyone had already woken up and started eating breakfast, he couldn't help but hide it. Mokuba's words repeated over and over in his head and it only caused him to feel it more and more.

Happiness… Seto was happy. And it showed.

A/N: Awww… what a cute note to end the chapter on, am I right? Okay so I know all of this stuff has been uber cute emotional stuff but you guys are going to be excited when I get into the romantic stuff!(yes! Let it be known that the next chapter does contain romance!) So get excited for that! And also, guys, thanks so much for your reviews. They really mean a lot. It's so great to come back from a long day of classes and work and friendship dilemmas to see what you guys think of my stuff. Really, it's great. I really enjoy writing and as a writer, of course, it means a lot that there are people who enjoy what I do. I know I probably say that a lot, but I just wanted to mention it again so that you know I mean it! I hope everyone's been having a great day and have a good week! I suspect I'll be updating again Saturday since Sunday is Superbowl Sunday and Friday is going to be my girls' night out (That's right! I plan my weekends around my writing!) Well, anyways, I best be going before I ramble on for too much longer. See ya!

P.S: Gosh, I hate going on and on and on and then forgetting the key points I want to mention in the author's note! So if you guys were wondering or curious about the flashback/dream at the beginning, yes, this is the same dream Seto had at the beginning of Episode 7, just more detailed and he doesn't get interrupted. Now it's probably lame that I said that, but I thought I might just clarify unless anybody asks. Okay, now I'm gone for real this time!