2 Moving

//Help me figure out why I'm stuck in the middle//

//Trying to understand why I can't//

//Why you're such a riddle//

//Got my eyes crossed//

//I'm thinking so hard and I know I'm missing the mark//

Nick Carter—"Help Me"

"Midian?" Nemuriko Campbell knocked on her older brother's door.

"What?" Midian opened the door.

"Are we really moving to...America?"

Midian rolled his eyes. "Didn't Father explain it to you?"

Campbell shook her head. "Iie. He never tells me anything." She brushed aside a strand of dark blond hair. "Well?"

"Don't get me wrong, Campbell. I don't want to move, either. But Father has his ways." Midian sighed. "This is what he told me..."

****

Campbell slowly walked into the cafeteria, oblivious to the laughter and chatter all around her. She was thinking over what her older brother had said.

Her father had always been rather strange since her mother's death. Campbell had learned to expect the unexpected from them. But America...! Although her father and many of her relatives were American, Campbell had lived in Japan all her life! Why did Gozaburo Kaiba have to send her family...out of the hundreds that Kaiba Corp employed ...to America just to develop another branch of the corporation?!

Ah, yes. Kaiba Corporation. The company her father had gotten rich from. Mr. Nemuriko knew Gozaburo Kaiba well, and often said that she and Midian should work there, "to put your 'accelerated' minds to good use." Sometimes Campbell hated being a child prodigy.

The only good part about her father's ties to Kaiba Corp was that she got to see Gozaburo's adopted sons, with whom she and Midian quickly became close friends.

Campbell rapidly scanned the lunchroom, her silvery-blue eyes searching for one person...she almost smiled.

"Konnichiwa, Seto-san."

Kaiba Seto raised his eyes from the small table at which he sat. "Konnichiwa."

Campbell sat across from him and put her head in her hands.

"What's wrong?" the eleven-year-old boy asked.

"I'm moving..." The girl's voice dropped to a whisper. "...tomorrow."

"What!" Seto's eyes widened. "So soon? But I thought..." The boy scowled scowled. "I hate Gozaburo."

Campbell scoffed. "You thought I didn't realize that? He seems rather.harsh."

The brown-haired boy rose from his seat. "That's an understatement." Campbell was silent.

"Look," she said finally. "I gotta go." She stood. "My father wants me to help pack. I...won't be in school tomorrow."

Seto sighed. "Sayonara, Campbell. I'm...going to miss you."

Campbell nodded. "Sayonara," she whispered, turning away to hide her tear-filled eyes. "I...hope I see you again." With that, she was gone.

Seto stared after her. Ever since Gozaburo had adopted him and his brother, Campbell had been his best friend. They had so much in common. Not only were the two both child prodigies, but they also shared a fierce passion for Duel Monsters. Seto and Campbell had even gone as far as building interdependent decks. They had been inseparable.

Now that Campbell was leaving, Seto felt very much alone. But he told himself he didn't care. After all, he was used to loneliness.

****

Fifteen year old Nemuriko Campbell quickly folded her last shirt. She allowed herself a tight grin. Several days ago, her father had told her that they were moving back to Japan. Part of her was excited about seeing Domino City again...but the other part of her wondered about seeing Kaiba Seto.

"Campbell." The girl's twin brother appeared at her door. "Father says the limo's ready. C'mon! It's an hour drive to the airport."

Campbell nodded and zipped her suitcase shut. "Okay, I'm ready."

****

A big screen computer stood in the middle of the room's far end. Smaller coms flanked it on either side. A network of wires lay under it all. The computer monitors were blank, waiting to be used. All in all, the room was everything a computer master could wish for.

Kaiba Seto clicked on the huge computer. He grinned slightly. This was his favorite room in Kaiba Corporation. After all, it was where he created and updated all his technology.

Seto impatiently began typing. There was to be an upload of Duel Monster data to Kaibaland, and tests needed to be run.

As he typed, Seto suddenly found himself thinking of Nemuriko Campbell. It had been almost five years since he had last seen her, and he wondered what she was doing in America, now that the Western branch of Kaiba Corp was well-developed. Although Seto never would have admitted it, he rather missed her.

An hour later, the work was nearly done. Just a few more modifications, then…

Abruptly, and before he could react, Seto felt a hand on his shoulder. A strangely familiar voice spoke up.

"I figured I'd find you here, Seto-san."

Seto spun around. His eyes widened. "No way!" he gasped. "Campbell!"

The girl grinned. "I hear you run Kaiba Corp now," she said playfully.

Seto rose from his seat. "When did you get here?" he asked, controlling his excitement.

"Just today." Campbell tossed her blond head. "My father's busy with something, and Midian's unpacking, so I snuck out to see you."

Seto didn't speak. He looked into Campbell's silvery-blue eyes for the longest time. Her formerly shoulder-length dark-blond hair had grown to the middle of her back. It was kept back in a band. She wore a blue shirt that matched her eyes under a half-zipped, black leather jacket. Her pants were black leather, and her shoes were black lined with red.

"Campbell," he finally said. "How'd you know I was here? And how'd you get past my security systems?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "Mokuba doesn't lie. And I am a genius too, ya know." She turned towards the door. "That code was rather hard to crack, though. You changed it?"

"Hai." Seto nodded. "Gozaburo's locks were too…simple."

"I'm surprised he let you change it."

"Campbell...he's dead." Seto stepped forward.

She was silent for some time. "He deserved it," she said firmly.

Seto scoffed. "You're damn right, he did!" He stepped through the open doorway. "Let's go."