Chapter One: Unremarkable

It is a day like any other in Domino city, unremarkable to say the least. Of course there have been many, many remarkable days in Domino city but for certain this is not one of them. In fact, Domino has not seen a remarkable day in some time, or at least not that Mokuba Kaiba can recall recently. And the sixteen year old is fine with the status quo, it suits his own unremarkable self all too well.

Yes, Mokuba thinks, he is very unremarkable and it's made even more clear by his elder brother Seto Kaiba. Seto Kaiba, world class duelist, genius, landmark businessman, without a doubt Mokuba's brother is remarkable by every measure.

Mokuba's own unremarkable state never used to bother him. Sure the world didn't see him as anything but Seto always seemed too and that was enough. But something has changed in the past few years and suddenly Seto is not so present anymore. Well maybe sudden isn't the right word, it was more gradual but Mokuba has noticed more and more. Once as present as a busy man like himself could be Seto is suddenly scarce as can be. Mokuba thinks perhaps Seto assumed now that he was older he needed him less though the more cynical side of him thinks his brother just got tired of him. Mokuba would not blame him.

So what is a young man with a lot of money and almost no one watching him to do? If Mokuba was a few years younger and still wide eyed and innocent to the world, nothing worthwhile. But now he is older and like most teenagers a little bit of a rebellious streak has wormed its way into him. So on this unremarkable day, the unremarkable Mokuba Kaiba is skipping school.

The sun is shining and summer is close and Mokuba longs for the day when he can stop pretending to care about class. His life is basically planned out for him anyways. Much like Seto high school is a mere obligation, not something he actually needs. Once Highschool is through he will work full time as Vice President of Kaiba Corp and he will do that for basically forever. Standing in Seto's shadow will be a career for him.

Mokuba stands outside an arcade, one of many in the city, and shrugs his shoulders, stepping through the sliding glass doors and into a wide room filled with flashing lights and beeping game noises. The sixteen year old sits down at one of the fighting game machines, he doesn't even bother reading the name, and swipes his card in the machine. Selecting a character he starts to play, three matches won rather quickly, making Mokuba smirk in a very Kaiba way.

"Aww man I suck at this game," a familiar voice says from the other side of the side of the line of game cabinets.

"Jonouchi," Mokuba questions, setting around the side of the machine, looking over to see a tall blonde with scruffy hair sitting at one of the stools. Looking up Jonouchi grins at him standing to his full height. Mokuba has gotten a little taller but he still only reaches Jonouchi's chest.

"Hey man, long time no see," the older boy smiles slapping Mokuba on his shoulder. "Your asshole brother around here too?"

"Nah it's just me," Mokuba shrugs. "You alone too?"

"Yug is meeting me here in a bit," Jonouchi states. "Wait ...shouldn't you be in school? Doesn't it not let out for another hour and a half?"

"What you never blown off school before," Mokuba rolls his eyes. "It's no big deal."

"Ehh I guess," Jonouchi sounds skeptical but he can't really argue. He certainly did skip a lot of school, though that was mostly before he met Yugi.

"Look if you don't make a big deal out of it I'll buy you and yugi lunch," Mokuba offers, knowing Jonouchi rarely turns down food, especially when he doesn't have to pay for it.

"I'm going to make you regret that offer," Jonouchi grins his big, goofy grin.

"Jonouchi slow down," Yugi pesters, watching his best friend down his fifth hamburger in a row. Mokuba snickers, taking another drink from his shake. Mokuba counts himself lucky Yugi hadn't thought to question why he wasn't in school because he's certain Yugi could not be bought off with a few burgers and fries.

"So how have you two been anyways," Mokua interjects. "Are both of you doing the whole college thing now?"

"I am," Yugi says smiling brightly. "And Jonouchi is working at Grandpa's game shop to save up for classes. We actually got an apartment together not too far from here."

"Dang that's cool," Mokuba says leaning his elbow on the table, resting his face in his hand. "I wish I could get an apartment with some friends or something…"

"Why would you want a crappy apartment when you have that big old mansion," Jonouchi asks incredulously.

"Gets lonely sometimes," Mokuba shrugs eating a fry and looking out the window. When he looks back he sees that Yugi looks concerned. Quickly he changes the topic.

"You know I think Seto is thinking of holding a new tournament soon, you two should think about entering," Mokuba says, maybe just a little too quickly.

"Oh really," Jonouchi finally sets down his food with a smirk. "All these years and he's still chasing Yug's title."

"Guess so," Mokuba sounds rather exasperated and really who could blame him? Seto and Yugi's game has been going on for years. For many of them Mokuba loyally cheered on his brother hoping for him to get the title he so desperately wants to reclaim. Now Mokuba is exhausted with the whole thing, exhausted with his brother's obsession, exhausted with duel monsters, and exhausted with this never ending cycle of Seto's self destruction.

"Mokuba are you alright," Yugi asks, snapping Mokuba back to the small fast food restaurant. "You've been really quiet this whole time."

"Yeah, I'm alright," Mokuba gives a smile that he hopes Yugi can't see though. "Look I better get home, the bills all taken care of. See you guys later." Mokuba stands from the table with a wave.

"Later Mokuba," Jonouchi says through a mouth full of food.

"Bye Mokuba," Yugi mimics, unable to hide the worry in his voice.

Kaiba manor is almost always empty. Not in the sense that there is a lack of things, the mansion is full of things. Game machines, art work, computers and gadgets of every kind, these the mansion is full of. But beyond the maid on staff, the personal cook, and the bodyguards that come in shifts the house is very empty. If the two Kaiba brothers are here at the same time neither is really aware, and regardless it's become a rare thing.

Mokuba enters the mansion, the quiet hitting him like a wall of hard brick. He hates it here, he hates it so much it makes him sick to his stomach. Making his way to his room he sets down on the edge of his bed. His room has not changed in many years, still littered with duel monster plushies and drawings, still reflecting the young boy who looked up at Seto with starry eyes.

"Maybe I should redecorate," Mokuba says out loud just to kill the silence for a moment. Maybe he should do something, anything to change how he feels. Maybe he should talk to Seto. No, because there is no talking to Seto anymore. Seto is busy, Seto has no time, Seto has more important things than Mokuba.

Defeated Mokuba stands off the bed and walks to his desk where in the bottom drawer there is something hidden. Something stolen from Seto's office and stashed away for what has become a nightly habit, a very bad habit.

Mokuba Kaiba pulls out the bottle of scotch and looks at it callously. Seto doesn't drink often but he keeps a stocked wet bar in his office for meetings and guests. The maids keep it stocked and no one notices what is missing and what's left. Mokuba has stolen upwards of ten bottles over the past year or so, no one has noticed a thing.

Bitterly, defeatedly he takes a drink and sighs; its an unremarkable day.