For notes, summary, etc read the PROLOGUE.
~...~ thoughts
//...// thoughts sent through a bond (like Yami and Yugi)
=========================
The Ties That Bind - CHAPTER 1
By: Takeru Takaishi
Current time...
~Yugi...Mutuo....Mutuo..~ Seto repeated in his mind, as he and Mokuba walked around the neighborhood, looking at the names on the houses for clues.
When they had arrived in the city, they had found themselves in a small park, mid-afternoon. Seto had told Mokuba that they had to go and find this "Yugi Mutuo" and couldn't stay and play at the jungle gym though Mokuba wanted to stay a bit longer. Seto had asked a few people and they had told him that Yugo lived in this particular neighborhood. Particularly helpful was a waitress at a restaurant, who seemed surprised at his and Mokuba's appearance and question for the location of Yugi's home but she proved to be the most useful of all of the people, Seto had asked.
Mokuba seemed to linger at the restaurant a bit, looking at the food hungrily and had asked Seto if they could stop for some food but Seto shook his head, he didn't want to reveal to the waitress that they didn't have any money with them. Even so, the waitress seemed to understand this and surprised them by telling them to stay a bit and returned in five minutes with a tray of food, saying it was on the house.
After they ate, Seto and Mokuba set out once more but Seto couldn't shake the feeling that the waitress was watching them the entire time they were eating.
"Look!"
Seto's eyes followed Mokuba'skeen eyes to a sign in front of a big brick house that read, 'MUTUO RESIDENCE'
"Good work, Mokuba," Seto complimented Mokuba, who in turn smiled brightly at his brother's kind words. He held Mokuba's hand in his own hand and walked up the pavement path to the door.
DING! DONG!
"I've got it, Grandpa!" Seto heard a young voice speak up from beyond the door.
"Wonder who it is?" Another voice piped up, along with several other voices.
The door opened up, revealing a smiling boy, who was about Seto's size with wide open purple eyes and strikingly colorful purple hair that sticked out in dozen's of directions with yellow front bangs. His smile was invitingly warm and gave a youthful innocence to the boy. Behind him were four other people. They all appeared to be the same age, in their mid teens. Three boys and a girl. The girl was the one that surprised Seto because she was the girl from the restaurant! The girl didn't seem very surprised to see them and this worried Seto a little. Mokuba was astonished at seeing her again and seemed too surprised to speak.
"Hi. Is this the home of Yugi Mutuo?" Seto asked politely.
"Yes...this is. I AM Yugi. Who are you?" The purple haired boy asked with a grin.
"Seto!! She's the girl from the restaurant!" Mokuba yelped finally, his eyes wide, pointing at the girl.
"Mokuba! It's not polite to point!" Seto chided.
"Seto?! Mokuba?! As in Seto and Mokuba Kaiba?!" Yugi yelped up in surprise at the revelation.
"What?! That can't be right!" Yelled the dark brown haird boy.
"Yugi...this was what I telling you earlier over the phone. Why I had to tell you before they came...it's so...so.." the girl said.
"..Bizarre! That's what it is! Tea, how is this possible?" The blonde hair boy asked.
Mokuba hide behind Seto in fear as everything exploded around them. Seto patted Mokuba comforting on the head as he asked finally, "Yes, we are Seto and Mokuba Kaiba. Why can't that be right?"
Everyone stopped shouting after he asked that question and finally, the white haired boy spoke up, "I think we need to explain ourselves, don't you think, Yugi?"
"Yes. You're right, Bakura. Come inside. We'll talk when we all sit down.." Yugi replied, leading them all inside of his house.
Seto and Mokuba walked after the others into the strange house and finally, they all came into the living room with several sofas and chairs inside. Mokuba and Seto chose a two person sofa to sit because Mokuba wouldn't leave him to sit on a chair by himself. The others chose seats to the left and right of them, forming a semi circle.
When everyone got seated, the blonde haired boy spoke up first, "Listen...you guys can't be Seto and Mokuba Kaiba 'cause..."
"Yeah, Joey's got a point..you guys are too young to be them!" the brown haired boy interrupted to Joey's obvious annoyance.
"Tristan! At least, let me finish what I was going to say for once!" Joey snapped back.
As Joey and Tristan broke up in a squabble, Yugi reached deep inside to the Millenium puzzle's power to speak to its spirit inside of him, //Yami...what do you think? Are they really who they say they are?//
//Yugi..I believe...in them..I sense the power of a Millenium item at work. Is it possible perhaps that somebody sent Seto and Mokuba from the past to the presents for some unknow purpose?// Yami answered back from the darkness.
//I thought as much...// Yugi said to him.
"Seto...Mokuba...how old are you two?" Yugi asked finally, getting Joey and Tristan back to the topic at hand.
"I'm ten. Mokuba's five. Why do you ask? What do you mean that we're too young to be what we say we are? Have we met before?" Seto answered for himself and Mokuba, stretching a protective arm around Mokuba's shoulder.
Yugi saw this and commented to himself and Yami, //THIS Seto Kaiba seems more like to show displays of affection then the one we know, Yami...//
//Yes...is this how he was before as a child?// Yami asked, what they were both thinking.
"Because the Seto and Mokuba Kaiba we know are fifteen and ten years old! Yes, we do know Seto and Mokuba or you two because you're our...friends..."
"Mokuba is at least..." Joey answered under his breath, Tea shot him a glare, which he simply shook his shoulders at.
"How is that possible?" Mokuba spoke up, his child-like face in puzzlement.
"Wait a minute...when you came here, you immediately knew who to ask for..THAT can't be a coincidence....how did you know to ask for Yugi?" Tea spoke up, her face puzzled that the revelation.
"Someone told me actually..." Everyone looked at him with puzzled expressions.
Seto inwardly sighed to himself, casting his eyes downward before taking a deep breath and explaining to everyone, the details of how they got there, though he was careful to not say, WHY him and Mokuba were on the streets that late at night.
"This is too strange, guys..." Tristan said, his eyebrows frowned in concentration.
"Yeah...any ideas? I mean...what do we do with them?" Joey asked, looking upward as if asking someone above for suggestions.
Seto's temper flared slightly at the need for ANYONE to have to take care of him and Mokuba, "Mokuba and I are perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves...we don't need your welfare..."
"Yeah right, kid. You may look and may I add, act like a mini version of Kaiba but you ain't that old enough to take care of yourself!" Joey smirked, hands on his hips, towering over the smaller Seto.
"Who says we need it!" Seto stood up from the chair, angry at Joey's remark, ~Like we need his help. Even before at the orphanage, Mokuba and I were perfectly capable by ourself!~
~Oh man...can't Joey just get along with any version of Kaiba? Sheesh...~ Tristan thought with a heavy sigh.
"Joey! Seto! Listen...fighting won't solve ANYTHING!" Yugi rushed between them before things became messy.
"Let me at him! Punk kid! You gots all that Kaiba superiority around you! Well...I'll show you how not to mess with your elders!" Joey yelled angrily, not listening for once to Yugi's voice of reason.
"Come and get it, Grandpa!" Seto replied, settling himself in a fighting stance.
"Guys!" Yugi pleaded as he stood in the middle of the fierce conflict.
//Yugi..let me talk with them...// Yami spoke to him.
//Good luck..// Yugi replied wistfully before handing over control of his body and mind to Yami.
"Both of you...STOP!" Yami commanded, his voice loud and powerful, "Control yourselves!"
"What? How did Yugi just change so suddenly?" Seto exclaimed, staring up and down at Yami.
From what Seto could see, Yugi had done a 180 turn to a whole different person. The yellow bangs of Yugi's hair now shot straight up like lightning bolts and his eyes were angled more downward, less open and innocent. Instead of being Seto's height, Yugi was one head taller with different leather clothing to go with the new look.
"You're very wise instead, Seto...its taken many people a long time to distinguish between Yugi and myself. My name is Yami. I'm the spirit in Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. Yugi's switched control over to me for the time being," Yami said to Seto, his eyes staring in Seto's soul before turning to everyone in the room, "I think we should inform Mokuba and Kaiba about these...change in events. Since in a way, they are involved in this, we should tell them. Perhaps, they would have some ideas for our situation.."
~This'll be a chance for me to see, how I am in the future! Maybe even, Mokuba too!~ Seto thought excitedly.
"Good idea, Yami...maybe wtih Kaiba's technology, we could send them back to their proper place and time.." Bakura said with a grin.
Seto's eyes widen at Bakura's words, ~...back to their proper place and time...~ and remembered the place and person that awaited them back "home", ~no...~
Mokuba looked up at Seto fearfully as if he had thought the same exact thing as Seto that instant, "Big brother! We can't go back! Not back to him! Not back to--"
"Shhh, Mokuba..it's all right. We're not going back home..."
Yugi (now, back in control..), Joey, Tristan, Tea and Bakura looked at each other, curiously during this exchange, wondering what they were talking about and what secrets had been kept secret from them.."
"Well, gang...let's get going to the Kaiba mansion! It'll be quite a walk for all of us!" Yugi said with a grin and quickly went into the kitchen, "Grandpa! We're going to Kaiba's place. I should be back in a couple hours!"
He came back out with a thumbs up, "Okay! Let's get going!"
~Mansion...?~ Seto thought, a big question mark in his mind.
================================
~...~ thoughts
//...// thoughts sent through a bond (like Yami and Yugi)
=========================
The Ties That Bind - CHAPTER 1
By: Takeru Takaishi
Current time...
~Yugi...Mutuo....Mutuo..~ Seto repeated in his mind, as he and Mokuba walked around the neighborhood, looking at the names on the houses for clues.
When they had arrived in the city, they had found themselves in a small park, mid-afternoon. Seto had told Mokuba that they had to go and find this "Yugi Mutuo" and couldn't stay and play at the jungle gym though Mokuba wanted to stay a bit longer. Seto had asked a few people and they had told him that Yugo lived in this particular neighborhood. Particularly helpful was a waitress at a restaurant, who seemed surprised at his and Mokuba's appearance and question for the location of Yugi's home but she proved to be the most useful of all of the people, Seto had asked.
Mokuba seemed to linger at the restaurant a bit, looking at the food hungrily and had asked Seto if they could stop for some food but Seto shook his head, he didn't want to reveal to the waitress that they didn't have any money with them. Even so, the waitress seemed to understand this and surprised them by telling them to stay a bit and returned in five minutes with a tray of food, saying it was on the house.
After they ate, Seto and Mokuba set out once more but Seto couldn't shake the feeling that the waitress was watching them the entire time they were eating.
"Look!"
Seto's eyes followed Mokuba'skeen eyes to a sign in front of a big brick house that read, 'MUTUO RESIDENCE'
"Good work, Mokuba," Seto complimented Mokuba, who in turn smiled brightly at his brother's kind words. He held Mokuba's hand in his own hand and walked up the pavement path to the door.
DING! DONG!
"I've got it, Grandpa!" Seto heard a young voice speak up from beyond the door.
"Wonder who it is?" Another voice piped up, along with several other voices.
The door opened up, revealing a smiling boy, who was about Seto's size with wide open purple eyes and strikingly colorful purple hair that sticked out in dozen's of directions with yellow front bangs. His smile was invitingly warm and gave a youthful innocence to the boy. Behind him were four other people. They all appeared to be the same age, in their mid teens. Three boys and a girl. The girl was the one that surprised Seto because she was the girl from the restaurant! The girl didn't seem very surprised to see them and this worried Seto a little. Mokuba was astonished at seeing her again and seemed too surprised to speak.
"Hi. Is this the home of Yugi Mutuo?" Seto asked politely.
"Yes...this is. I AM Yugi. Who are you?" The purple haired boy asked with a grin.
"Seto!! She's the girl from the restaurant!" Mokuba yelped finally, his eyes wide, pointing at the girl.
"Mokuba! It's not polite to point!" Seto chided.
"Seto?! Mokuba?! As in Seto and Mokuba Kaiba?!" Yugi yelped up in surprise at the revelation.
"What?! That can't be right!" Yelled the dark brown haird boy.
"Yugi...this was what I telling you earlier over the phone. Why I had to tell you before they came...it's so...so.." the girl said.
"..Bizarre! That's what it is! Tea, how is this possible?" The blonde hair boy asked.
Mokuba hide behind Seto in fear as everything exploded around them. Seto patted Mokuba comforting on the head as he asked finally, "Yes, we are Seto and Mokuba Kaiba. Why can't that be right?"
Everyone stopped shouting after he asked that question and finally, the white haired boy spoke up, "I think we need to explain ourselves, don't you think, Yugi?"
"Yes. You're right, Bakura. Come inside. We'll talk when we all sit down.." Yugi replied, leading them all inside of his house.
Seto and Mokuba walked after the others into the strange house and finally, they all came into the living room with several sofas and chairs inside. Mokuba and Seto chose a two person sofa to sit because Mokuba wouldn't leave him to sit on a chair by himself. The others chose seats to the left and right of them, forming a semi circle.
When everyone got seated, the blonde haired boy spoke up first, "Listen...you guys can't be Seto and Mokuba Kaiba 'cause..."
"Yeah, Joey's got a point..you guys are too young to be them!" the brown haired boy interrupted to Joey's obvious annoyance.
"Tristan! At least, let me finish what I was going to say for once!" Joey snapped back.
As Joey and Tristan broke up in a squabble, Yugi reached deep inside to the Millenium puzzle's power to speak to its spirit inside of him, //Yami...what do you think? Are they really who they say they are?//
//Yugi..I believe...in them..I sense the power of a Millenium item at work. Is it possible perhaps that somebody sent Seto and Mokuba from the past to the presents for some unknow purpose?// Yami answered back from the darkness.
//I thought as much...// Yugi said to him.
"Seto...Mokuba...how old are you two?" Yugi asked finally, getting Joey and Tristan back to the topic at hand.
"I'm ten. Mokuba's five. Why do you ask? What do you mean that we're too young to be what we say we are? Have we met before?" Seto answered for himself and Mokuba, stretching a protective arm around Mokuba's shoulder.
Yugi saw this and commented to himself and Yami, //THIS Seto Kaiba seems more like to show displays of affection then the one we know, Yami...//
//Yes...is this how he was before as a child?// Yami asked, what they were both thinking.
"Because the Seto and Mokuba Kaiba we know are fifteen and ten years old! Yes, we do know Seto and Mokuba or you two because you're our...friends..."
"Mokuba is at least..." Joey answered under his breath, Tea shot him a glare, which he simply shook his shoulders at.
"How is that possible?" Mokuba spoke up, his child-like face in puzzlement.
"Wait a minute...when you came here, you immediately knew who to ask for..THAT can't be a coincidence....how did you know to ask for Yugi?" Tea spoke up, her face puzzled that the revelation.
"Someone told me actually..." Everyone looked at him with puzzled expressions.
Seto inwardly sighed to himself, casting his eyes downward before taking a deep breath and explaining to everyone, the details of how they got there, though he was careful to not say, WHY him and Mokuba were on the streets that late at night.
"This is too strange, guys..." Tristan said, his eyebrows frowned in concentration.
"Yeah...any ideas? I mean...what do we do with them?" Joey asked, looking upward as if asking someone above for suggestions.
Seto's temper flared slightly at the need for ANYONE to have to take care of him and Mokuba, "Mokuba and I are perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves...we don't need your welfare..."
"Yeah right, kid. You may look and may I add, act like a mini version of Kaiba but you ain't that old enough to take care of yourself!" Joey smirked, hands on his hips, towering over the smaller Seto.
"Who says we need it!" Seto stood up from the chair, angry at Joey's remark, ~Like we need his help. Even before at the orphanage, Mokuba and I were perfectly capable by ourself!~
~Oh man...can't Joey just get along with any version of Kaiba? Sheesh...~ Tristan thought with a heavy sigh.
"Joey! Seto! Listen...fighting won't solve ANYTHING!" Yugi rushed between them before things became messy.
"Let me at him! Punk kid! You gots all that Kaiba superiority around you! Well...I'll show you how not to mess with your elders!" Joey yelled angrily, not listening for once to Yugi's voice of reason.
"Come and get it, Grandpa!" Seto replied, settling himself in a fighting stance.
"Guys!" Yugi pleaded as he stood in the middle of the fierce conflict.
//Yugi..let me talk with them...// Yami spoke to him.
//Good luck..// Yugi replied wistfully before handing over control of his body and mind to Yami.
"Both of you...STOP!" Yami commanded, his voice loud and powerful, "Control yourselves!"
"What? How did Yugi just change so suddenly?" Seto exclaimed, staring up and down at Yami.
From what Seto could see, Yugi had done a 180 turn to a whole different person. The yellow bangs of Yugi's hair now shot straight up like lightning bolts and his eyes were angled more downward, less open and innocent. Instead of being Seto's height, Yugi was one head taller with different leather clothing to go with the new look.
"You're very wise instead, Seto...its taken many people a long time to distinguish between Yugi and myself. My name is Yami. I'm the spirit in Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. Yugi's switched control over to me for the time being," Yami said to Seto, his eyes staring in Seto's soul before turning to everyone in the room, "I think we should inform Mokuba and Kaiba about these...change in events. Since in a way, they are involved in this, we should tell them. Perhaps, they would have some ideas for our situation.."
~This'll be a chance for me to see, how I am in the future! Maybe even, Mokuba too!~ Seto thought excitedly.
"Good idea, Yami...maybe wtih Kaiba's technology, we could send them back to their proper place and time.." Bakura said with a grin.
Seto's eyes widen at Bakura's words, ~...back to their proper place and time...~ and remembered the place and person that awaited them back "home", ~no...~
Mokuba looked up at Seto fearfully as if he had thought the same exact thing as Seto that instant, "Big brother! We can't go back! Not back to him! Not back to--"
"Shhh, Mokuba..it's all right. We're not going back home..."
Yugi (now, back in control..), Joey, Tristan, Tea and Bakura looked at each other, curiously during this exchange, wondering what they were talking about and what secrets had been kept secret from them.."
"Well, gang...let's get going to the Kaiba mansion! It'll be quite a walk for all of us!" Yugi said with a grin and quickly went into the kitchen, "Grandpa! We're going to Kaiba's place. I should be back in a couple hours!"
He came back out with a thumbs up, "Okay! Let's get going!"
~Mansion...?~ Seto thought, a big question mark in his mind.
================================