Disclaimer: Yu-gi-oh doesn't belong to me, it is the property of Kazuki Takahashi.
Luna: Can I buy Yu-gi-oh from you?
Takahashi: You got a billion dollars?
Luna: Um no...*digs into her pocket* I do have...a push pin...a button...65 cents...and some lint.
Takahashi: Nope sorry...can I have the button though?
Chapter 7 - A Secret Message
"I'm very surprised at you Miss Mayoto." Mr. Hiraku said as he handed the paper to her. "You've been lacking in your studies."
"A 45!" she cried out. "I can't believe this!" Vari groaned in aggravation. She stared at the paper in disappointment and slumped her head onto the desk. Mr. Hiraku had returned their math exams back and Vari was not exactly ecstatic about her grade.
"You've failed the last 2 tests already Miss Mayoto." Mr. Hiraku pointed out. "I'm afraid that if you keep this up I'll have to pull you out of honors."
"No!" the idea absolutely horrified her. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I've just been behind a little that's all" Mr. Hiraku stared at her doubtfully as she said that. "I'm a little stressed..." she babbled on.
Mr. Hiraku's face tighten to a strict going by the rules look. "I'm sorry but..."
"Oh please don't!" Vari cried out. "I just need to catch up a little bit."
Mr. Hiraku furrowed his thick eyebrows at her vexed face. "Might I suggest a tutor then..."
"OK, I can go with that." she said.
Mr. Hiraku looked up suddenly as if an idea just popped into his thick brain. "Why don't you be Vari's tutor, Mr. Kaiba." his attention suddenly turned towards Seto, who was only half listening to their conversation.
Seto gave a skeptic look when the conversation turned on him. "I don't think that's such a good idea." he said. Vari stared down, also seemingly hesitant about this new found suggestion.
"Nonsense, your the best student in the class, so you can use your skills to help tutor the less fortunate." Vari pouted a little upon hearing this, in the back of her mind she knew he was easily going out of his way to try and insult her. Seto was about to reject the idea again, but Mr. Hiraku stared down on him in a sort of 'You don't do this you fail' look.
Seto grumbled slightly. "Alright" he gave in.
"Good" he said, smirking a little as he did. "Perhaps after school or whenever your free time might be." As the matter came to a close he walked up to the front of the room.
"He's just doing this to me because he hates me" Seto said, grunting a bit.
"Well, you don't have tutor me if you don't want to." Vari said. "I can find someone else."
"No." He said. "I know he's going to keep tabs on me somehow if I don't" he muttered bleakly.
"If you say so."
"Meet me by the entrance after school." he got up as the bell rang and walked out.
******
"Let's go to the new Slicery, I'm in for some pizza! I don't think the school lunch is enough, it's practically a small table spoon." Joey said.
Tea rolled her eyes. "Only you would say that Joey"
"And Tristen." Joey added.
"Well we can stop by I guess" Yugi said. "But I have to get back a little early. I need to help my grandpa with the shop." Vari started in the other direction.
"Hey Vari, you're not coming?" Tristen asked.
"I can't I need to meet with someone for tutoring." she hesitated to say who.
"Who you meeting with?" as if Joey could read her mind.
Vari shifted slightly. "Seto Kaiba, if you must know."
A stunned expression bounced off of Joey and the other's faces. "Kaiba? What, you lost a choice of options?" Joey asked.
"It was the teacher's idea." Vari explained. "I have to go, see you guys later"
"Alright, bye!" They parted ways.
*****
Vari tapped on her watch absentmindedly, she wondered if he was really going to meet with her. Staring down at the steps, she didn't notice a figure walking towards her until she lifted her head and jumped. Kaiba's face stared, giving her a quizzical look at her startled expression.
"You scared me right there" she said with surprise. "I almost thought you weren't going to come."
"I don't break my promises. If I said I was going to come, I would come." he stated. "Let's just get this over with." as if the idea of being a tutor was a nuisance to him, he showed it quite well. He lead her to the street where a big stretched black limousine was waiting patiently for them. Vari stared, obviously flabbergasted. Seto smirked a little at her expression. The driver opened the door for them. Inside were real leather seats with a small TV, a cooler, and other little gadgets to tinker with.
"So this is what being rich feels like" said Vari. "Not bad if I say so myself."
Seto didn't say anything to this, but merely informed "We'll have to stop and pick up my little brother." as they got in the car.
"You have a little brother?" that thought never dawn on her about Seto.
"Yes, I have a little brother." Seto said sarcastically. "Is there anything wrong with that?"
"No" said Vari. "It's just that, I never knew you had a brother. I'd love to meet him." Again Seto said nothing.
There was an awkward silence for a while. Vari just looked out the window, in a daydreaming sort of way. The limo pulled up in front of the Elementary School. The street was bustling with children. Vari saw all the children leaving with their parents, some stayed in the playground, others in front of the school. All of a sudden a spiky black haired boy waved in their direction and ran over to the car. Vari notice this boy couldn't be more then maybe 10 years old.
Kaiba opened the door and the little boy slipped in. "Hey big brother!" he said cheerfully.
Seto gave a simple nod and said "Hey" then waved his hand, signaling the driver to drive.
The boy looked over across from him, just noticing Vari there. "Who are you?" he asked.
"I'm Vari." she said with a smile.
"She just coming over because I need to tutor her" Seto explained.
"What's your name?" Vari asked.
"Mokuba" he replied.
"It's nice to meet you Mokuba" Vari said smiling sweetly. Her mother always said, first impressions are the best.
"It's nice to meet you too." he cheerfully replied.
"I would never have guessed he's related to Seto." Vari thought to herself. "He's almost the exact opposite."
"Are you the one that gave Seto that dreamcatcher?" Mokuba asked after a long pause.
"Yes" she answered.
"That's cool! Seto hung it up over his bed and..."
Seto gave a small distracted cough. "Mokuba..." he said, trying to hush his little brother.
Vari grinned a little at Seto. "I see..." She grinned even more when Seto's face redden just a bit. "I'm glad to hear you using it." she said kindly. "Does it work?" she asked.
"I guess..." he said, not wanting to go any further in the matter. Vari sensed this and stop, not wanting to embarrass Seto more.
The driver pulled up to the front gates. As Vari got out of the limo, her eyes bogged a little at the size of the enormous mansion. "Well considering how rich you are, I expected it would be slightly bigger." she teased. Mokuba laughed, as they went inside. It was a spacious hall, which revealed several other different rooms. Right in front was the main staircase which curled at each end leading upstairs.
"We'll go into the study room." said Kaiba. "You should go start on your homework" he said turning towards Mokuba.
"Can't I play just a little first?" he pleaded.
"Mokuba..." Seto started.
"Maybe your brother is right, you can do your homework now then play video games till your head explodes after you finish." Vari said grinning.
Mokuba considered the idea. "I guess your right" he said. He started up the stairs and ran to his room.
"He's cute" she said, her eyes following his retreated form.
"Let's get to work." said Seto, ushering her to the study.
*****
After 2 hours of agonizing over formulas and equations, Vari's head was swirling with numbers. "I can't do this!" she moaned.
Seto was also looking frustrated as well. "Come on, this is just the basics! A ten year old can do it!"
"That is not helping me" she complained.
"And the last two hours didn't help you either I suppose?"
Vari glowered a little. She couldn't think straight. "I wonder how I ever got into Math Honors." she muttered.
"I wondered that also." said Seto incuriously.
"I'm more of a history/literature type person." Seto snorted, of course she was, her father is in the archaeology field. "Ask me about Napoleon and I'll tell you about his reign of imperialism. Ask me about pyramids and I'll tell you what, where, when, and why they were built."
"Seems like you read a lot of reference books."
Vari shrugged her shoulders. "Not really, it's because I spent most of my childhood, playing in dig fields and excavation sites with my parents. After all that, you learn a thing or two." She stared at a vase making her think of something. "My father loves to collect artifacts. He would always say they can tell a story about the past." She smiled a little. "I guess that's why our house looks like a mini museum."
Seto looked at her. "You love your dad, don't you?"
"Of course. Who wouldn't?" she said. "What happen to your parents?" she asked without thinking.
Seto looked away slightly. "Their dead." he said simply. He almost sound casual about it.
Vari's expression dimmed. "I'm so sorry. I should have asked that. I didn't know what I was thinking."
Seto just shrugged. "You didn't know."
"But still..." Vari stopped not knowing what to say. She looked at the clock on the wall. "I better go. I took too much of your time already." Seto nodded and lead her out of the room and to the front door. They both saw Mokuba there. "Hey, finished that homework of yours?" she asked.
"Yep, I'm free!" he jumped for joy. Vari laughed at the eccentric little boy. "Are you leaving" he asked.
"Yep, I have to get going, your brother has work to do."
"Are you going to come back?"
Vari smiled at him. "Sure, how about it? Same time, same place?" she turned looking at Seto. He nodded in agreement. "Alright then, Bye!"
"Bye!" Mokuba waved his arms as they watch her walk down the street from their door step. "She seems nice" Mokuba said.
Seto didn't answer, he just stood watching Vari go.
*****
Shiro came home earlier then he had been these past couple of weeks. His wife walked in the living room.
"Shiro you're home!" Maaya said in surprised. "I'm so glad." she kissed him on the lips. "I was worried you were spending so much time in the Research Center."
"I'm sorry, it's just that we're really close to getting it done. After Kaiba's generous donation, it's going faster then I expected it to be."
"I'm glad to hear that." she said smiling. "So, tell me about your day."
"Well nothing much, but I did run into Hajime again." he said with a exasperating sigh.
"Oh no, what did you two fight about now?" Maaya asked the minute he told her.
"I found him looking at our deciphering files. I confronted him and questioned him. He just denied it, saying he was looking for his drafts on a book he's writing. Apparently he accuses me of taking it, like I would even want to read anything of his."
"And I bet that's when you two started biting each other's heads off." Maaya said filling in the story.
"Well...you can say there was a little dispute. And Nyri was there breaking us up yet again. Actually he was the one that found Hajime there. Hajime still denied it."
"Well someone had to be there to hold you down. I'm glad it was Nyri."
"I swear, he's up to something, I can't put my finger on it." Shiro said with a skeptic look.
"Let's not think about it right now." Maaya said. "Let's just relax and spend a little family time."
"Good. I'll go put my things away in my study." he started towards the room.
"Oh, I put a batch of your mail on the desk." said Maaya.
"OK, I'll go look at it." he said walking into the study. He set his bag and briefcase down on the floor and strolled over to his small desk. Right there was a pile of envelops, he started going through them. "Junk, Junk, Bill, Junk... What's this?" he asked himself. It was a yellow envelope. There was no return address. He wondered how it could have been sent to him. His curiosity commanded him to open it, and he did. Inside was a small piece of parchment, it felt a little like cloth.
On it was a clear message:
YOU CAN'T HIDE IT FOREVER.
A/N: I lied, I said I was going to be away for a while because of studies, but I thought to myself "Screw it" and sat down writing like mad on chapter 7...hehehe ^_^ Not that it took me so long, in fact it took me around 2 hours the most to write it. That must be record breaking time for me. Apparently I was too lazy to uploaded it. Sorry guys! ^_^ I must confess there's not much happening in this chapter, except for the whole letter thing. That should keep your minds puzzled for a while....hehehe....I said I'd focus on Vari more and I am... revealing little bits about her. So that's about it, yea...alright...I'm going now....bye...
R/R! I need more reviews!!! Thanks to all that reviewed!!!