A/N Can you believe it?! Two chapters in one week! Hope you all enjoy :)

Chapter 26 Instructions

Lara and Kaiba were up early the next morning finalising their plans. They were dressed and ready to leave with a small carry-on bag each and Kaiba's silver attaché in hand. They were then informed by Roland that the plane was on the tarmac and ready to go wheels up. Mokuba and Yugi were waiting for them in foyer, both had anxious looks on their faces.

Mokuba approached his brother and Lara noticed his Adam's apple bob up and down, he did not say anything.

"Mokuba, you know what to do." Kaiba said gruffly.

"I do. I hope you know what you're doing." He replied softly.

"I was just thinking the same thing." He smirked. For the second time in two days Lara witnessed Kaiba embrace his brother. He pulled away and addressed Yugi.

"Yugi, do as Mokuba says. Make sure your little friends do as well." Kaiba growled.

"You have my word Kaiba." Yugi replied.

Kaiba grabbed both bags and walked out to the car. Lara walked up to Mokuba who enfolded her in his arms.

"Be safe Lara. Please take care of my big brother." He whispered.

"I promise. You won't have to tend to another wound again." She whispered back.

"I don't think that will ever be true." Mokuba smiled. He kissed the top of her head and released her. She gave Yugi a quick hug and headed out after Kaiba.

Roland brought the car to a stop at the private hangar. Their bags were taken inside the plane but Kaiba waited at the car, holding Lara's hand in his vice like grip until Roland returned.

"Roland." Kaiba growled. "You make sure they stay safe." His voice promised pain if anything went wrong. Roland recognised the warning in his tone.

"Yes sir." Roland responded.

Kaiba turned on his heel, striding to the plane with Lara in tow. She followed him up the stairs and into the much smaller but far more luxurious plane than one they usually travelled in. Kaiba strode through the plane to the lounge area at the rear and pulled her down to join him on the long cream coloured couch. He held her against his body, wrapping a protective arm around her.

The door was closed as soon as they were seated and within minutes they were up in the air, the sunshine streamed in through the windows. Lara absently ran her finger along the words "Global 8000" on the shutter of her window. This was going to be a long flight.

Kaiba turned slightly so that her back was against his chest, holding her in place with his strong arms.

"You're worried." Lara stated.

"Aren't you?" He responded in his low voice.

"Of course I am." She replied. "He's never used methods like this before. Usually he gets others to do his dirty work so he can come out smelling like roses. Usually his plans involve some sort of digital aspect. None of this is his style and that's the most worrying thing. It's out of character so he's unpredictable. I like planning. I like being able to see the patterns and predict outcomes but I can't do that now. There's no safety net." She turned around to face Kaiba.

"There's nothing that he can do that we can't deal with." Kaiba said.

"Yes, there is. He could hurt you or Mokuba… I couldn't deal with that."

Kaiba placed a finger under her chin, lifting her head so that she was looking straight into his blue eyes.

"No one will hurt any of us. I'll make sure of that." He said resolutely.

"Do you know how much you mean to me? Both of you."

"I have an idea." He replied.

Mokuba paced the living room, waiting to hear the sound of the car tyres crunch against the gravel. He had absolute faith in Roland but the fact that Kaiba and Lara were already hours into their flight and the others had not yet arrived had him on edge.

It felt like eons before he heard the car pull up. He instructed the maid to open the door immediately, keeping in mind that Kaiba would not want him anywhere near open doors or windows now that the threat was very real. When Mokuba was younger, he always thought that Kaiba over-reacted when it came to his safety, but as he grew older he could clearly see the method to Seto's madness.

He waited for everyone to be ushered inside, the door to be closed and the alarm re-armed before he stepped out into the foyer.

"Hey guys." He greeted.

"Mokuba." Joey greeted back boisterously. "What's up with sending the goons?"

"Yeah. Roland just came around and told us to pack quickly and that we had to leave." Tea added.

"I think you guys should come through to the lounge so I can explain everything." Mokuba said. He then called the butler. "Please have all the luggage taken up to the guest rooms on the east wing." He instructed. The butler bowed and Mokuba joined the others in the lounge. They were already chatting to Yugi. Mokuba sat on the single seater couch and crossed his legs ankle over knee. He ran his finger along his bottom lip trying to arrange his thoughts and in that moment, he never looked more like Seto Kaiba's brother.

"Let me try to make this as concise as possible but I do need to start at the beginning. We met Lara when she escaped from some goons that had kidnapped her. Seto and I helped her, we found out pretty quickly that her brother, Zigfried had arranged it. He wanted to eliminate her in Domino so people would suspect my brother. He wanted to weaken Kaiba Corp. It didn't work, Lara went back to Germany and found that Leon was involved as well except he didn't know the full extent of Zigfried's plan and was deceived as well. Lara asked us to help her exact her revenge but with a great result for us if it worked."

"Buying Schroeder Corp." Tea interjected.

"Yes. You see Zigfried and his mother had Lara's father killed. So Seto agreed to help and the buyout has gone well. In August Zigfried was kicked off the board... lost his job. A few months later he tried to come at us but Lara and Seto hatched a plan to keep us safe which worked until now. He has some information that we found out to be true. It turns out our stepfather had dug it up and Lara's father probably got it off Gozaburo after a hack. Anyway, it turns out that Yugi is family." Mokuba looked at Yugi, ignoring the collective gasp in the room.

"Say what?! You and rich boy?!" Joey exclaimed at Yugi.

"Yes Joey. Just let Mokuba finish." Yugi replied.

"It turns out that Yugi's mother and our mother were sisters but they were estranged. My mother died giving birth to me, Yugi was three at the time so he would never have known. Anyway, Zigfried knows this and has threatened Yugi, Seto, Lara and I." Mokuba finished.

"So why are we here?" Mai asked.

"Because we don't know what Zigfried is planning. If he wants to hurt Yugi or me, all he has to do is come after you guys. That's why Seto asked me to make sure everything is sorted on this side while he and Lara go to Germany to put an end to Zigfried's plans."

"What threats has he made Mokuba?" Tristan asked.

"Do you really have to ask Tristan? But it's Seto and Lara I'm most worried about. He wants to hurt her as badly as possible. He said wants to hurt Seto and make her watch." Mokuba said softly.

"Rich boy can be pretty ruthless. Why doesn't he just take care of it like last time?" Joey asked.

"Because Ziegfried's a loose cannon now. He has nothing to lose and if we go after him in the same way, he will retaliate as badly. If not worse."

"Why is he being so specific about what he wants to do to them?" Tea asked. "I mean with the rest of us it's just kill 'em and be done with it..."

"Because he knows that Seto and Lara love each other." Mokuba informed.

There was a collective "Oh." from the group.

"Who would have thought we'd see the day Kaiba was in love." Tea mused.

Lara sat on the cream leather seat at the polished wood table, staring into nothingness as the thoughts of everything that has happened played on her mind. She had come such a long way from tumbling out of that van and now, here she sat, waiting to end this war once and for all. She always knew this day would come but now that it had, she was worried. She had something to lose now. She never had that before. She never once thought she would find love, let alone a love as extraordinary as the one she had with Kaiba. She always struggled with the concept of love, it had always been hard to say the words and since saying it to Leon, she had not spoken them. He broke that part of her and it angered her that he had the power to do that.

Kaiba watched her keenly. He was worried too, just as worried as he had been every time Mokuba was in danger as a child. He watched as rays of sunlight caught Lara's black hair making it shine, as it kissed her skin turning it lighter than it already was, as it reflected in her green eyes making them look almost ethereal. This woman with her immense beauty, sharp wit, extreme intelligence and cunning mind, was his; and he protected what was his.

"What's on your mind?" He asked in his typical way, pulling her from her thoughts.

A delicate smile graced her features. "I was just thinking how far I've come. From that first day I met you to now, a lot has changed. You threatened to leave me at the hotel if you didn't like my answers." She laughed at the thought.

"But I didn't. I don't make many mistakes." He smirked.

"Mr Kaiba, do you have an infinite pool of cockiness?" She teased.

"You would know." He growled.

"Oh, I do." She winked. She got off her seat and re-joined him on the couch. "Seto I don't know what's going to happen in the hours and days to come but I want you to know that I'm eternally grateful that I got to meet you and Mokuba and be a part of your family."

"Lara." He growled angrily. "No one is dying."

"I hope not, but if the worst should happen, I want you to know that."

He turned his head away, refusing to look at her. She grasped his face in her hands and forced him to look at her.

"You have to know that."

"I do." His eyes were blazing. "Understand this, I am not losing another member of my family."

It was not long before the plane touched down. Kaiba and Lara swiftly exited the plane with their bags in tow, she led the way to a small counter in the airport where she retrieved a set of car keys. She wrapped her fingers around them, smiling to herself. She caught Kaiba looking at her.

"This is my baby." She laughed a delicate chime. He shook his head as they walked to the parking bay that held her car.

"Your tastes are rather singular." Kaiba teased when he saw the charcoal Audi RS7.

"Why change perfection?" She smirked. They climbed in and she roared off in the direction of her apartment. "I bought this one first, it was so much fun to drive. I really missed it when I was away from her."

"Her?"

"Every car is a 'her' Seto." She rolled her eyes. "I had to get one in Domino. Anyway, there is a company here that does long term storage of vehicles. They make sure the cars are looked after and they deliver them to an address you specify. These guys really are the best." She took a deep breath, her car never lost that new car smell that she worked so hard to keep. She loved driving, it took her mind off things for a little while no matter how bad they were.

They arrived at Lara's Berlin residence. It was not a very tall building with its ten floors but it was interesting in shape with its geometric design and triangular balconies. She parked the car next to a silver Porsche 911 GT2. Kaiba cocked his eyebrow up in appreciation of it.

"It's mine." Lara smirked as she got out of the car. "I asked them to drop it here." They retrieved their bags and headed into the building.

"Hello Ms Schroeder." She was greeted by the doorman. "Something was left for you."

"Thank you." She smiled kindly as she took the envelope from him. Lara and Kaiba stepped into the lift and ascended to the eighth floor where Lara opened the door to reveal her spacious apartment bathed in afternoon sunlight. Kaiba stepped in after her and locked the door behind him. He took a look at her apartment. It had an entirely open plan living area with light coloured hardwood floors. It was modern with clean lines and was much bigger than the apartment she currently lived in.

Lara opened up the envelope to find an invoice and a black pouch that held her car key.

"Seto." She called. He turned around and she tossed the key to him which he effortlessly caught. "Just in case you need a car. Just don't bend it." She warned playfully.

Lara removed all the white sheets that covered her furniture and in no time the apartment looked like home again.

It was long after nine p.m. when Mokuba's phone buzzed to life, it was Kaiba and relief coursed through his body.

"Hey Seto." Mokuba answered.

"Mokuba, is everything okay?" Kaiba asked.

"Yes. The guys are here. I explained everything to them and they understand."

"Good."

"How's Lara?" Mokuba asked.

"She's fine. Mokuba, I need you to keep an eye on the trackers. I will activate them, make sure everything is being recorded to our home server only. I'll message you when they are activated."

"Sure bro."

"We'll speak soon." Kaiba hung up.

"Be careful big brother." Mokuba whispered to the cell phone in his hand. He decided to check on the others, he told himself that he wanted to make sure they were okay but mostly he wanted the warmth of company and his work could not provide that.

None of them were in their rooms so he descended the staircase silently and heard voices coming from the kitchen.

"What a crazy situation." He heard Tea say.

"Well, Kaiba's a bit of a cold bastard but Mokuba is pretty cool." Tristan said. Mokuba walked in at that moment. They all stopped talking at once.

"It's fine guys." Mokuba said. "There isn't anything I haven't heard you say about my brother." He said tiredly.

"We know he's a good guy Mokuba." Yugi said kindly and Mokuba smiled.

"Guys, I know Seto is difficult to be around but maybe one day you'll get to see him like I do. You should see him around Lara." Mokuba chuckled.

"Yeah Mokuba's right." Yugi said. "He's different; calmer."

"Except last night." Mokuba said looking at Yugi.

"Does that happen often?" Yugi asked.

"No. Last night was a first, but they are both hot headed." Mokuba shrugged.

"What happened last night?" Tea asked.

Mokuba pulled the tub of ice cream away from her, taking a large spoonful into his mouth. He handed the tub back to Tea and told them the tale of the night before. It felt good to talk. Mokuba was wound so tight he thought he may snap. He had no idea what was happening in Germany and the waiting was going to kill him.

"Typical Kaiba." Tristan laughed at the end of Mokuba's story.

"I still don't get it." Mai said in her superior tone.

"What don't ya get Mai?" Joey asked.

"Kaiba and Lara. He could have his pick of anyone but he chose her." She replied.

"Don't be like that Mai." Joey responded.

"You know, I know her better than any of you. Everyone has their opinion of her, the business world loves her because she's great at her job, the media loves her because she knows how to work them, her family detests her because she's better than them but I get to see every side to her. The side that sat with Seto and I when she found out about our past, the side that loves fiercely, her protective side, her childish side, her insecure side, the vengeful side, the side hidden from everyone because she doesn't want anyone to know her pain. I've seen her compassion, her anger, her intelligence. If you knew her half as well as I do, you'd change your opinion. A little while before Seto's birthday, the two of us went to the park, just for a walk during lunch. There was this little kid there bawling their eyes out. Lara went to the little boy who had become separated from his parents and got him to stop crying, she promised she would help him find them. She bought him an ice cream cone and spent almost an hour looking for this kid's family. When she found them, she turned from the little kid's angel into an absolute dragon, berating the parents for losing their child. She had held up a meeting for almost an hour because she refused to leave that kid with anyone but who they were meant to be with. She worked late that night to make up the lost time but that was also the day I saw how much family meant to her."

"People do nice things all the time Mokuba." Mai said.

"They do, but no one does that and refuses to let anyone know what they did. Those managers complained to Seto about her tardiness, I explained to him what had happened. She's a gem and the only reason you don't like her, Mai, is because you feel threatened." Mokuba said bluntly.

"What?!" Mai exclaimed, shocked.

"Just admit it so everyone can move on and not worry about a petty issue." Mokuba said.

"I just don't trust a Schroeder. And everyone goes on about her intelligence, such a genius in her field. I mean really..."

"You have not seen her work. Lara is amazing. She's not a genius like Seto or Zigfried, but do some reading on Schroeder Corp. and you'll see what I mean." Mokuba smiled.

"So, do you think we'll hear wedding bells?" Tea gushed.

"Oh, I know my brother, he's never letting her go." Mokuba answered.

Lara and Kaiba were contemplating their next move, trying to find way of anticipating anything that Zigfried might do. They chatted into the night, fairly confident that they could handle him. The only thing that nagged at them was Mokuba being so far away. Roland kept Kaiba updated to the movements of the men and when the guards had begun their watch. They were exhausted and knew they had to rest well if they were to be of any use the next day. Lara was about to take a shower when her phone beeped to life. It was a text from Zigfried.

"How good to have you in my town. That's a nice new plane Herr Kaiba has. Lara you will come to the house tomorrow, alone. Don't disobey me, poor Mokuba and his friends will suffer if you do. That house isn't as impenetrable as you think".

A/N: The story about the kid in the park that Mokuba relays to everyone was actually going to be in one of my chapters but I didn't like the way it fit so I decided to include it here. I think it works better this way.