Ginahoshi: Gomen nasai minna!!! I didn't update because of all the
homework! X.X But now I can! Ok, now for the positions!
1. Landlord -Lizz Harper
2. Former Owner of the Restaurant (still open)
3. Former Co-owner of the Restaurant (still open)
4. Waitress- Alessandra, Amber Motoshi
5.Waiter- Mark Feld
5. Mokuba's Behind the Scene Helper (Will be explained later)- Mint Miyamoto
6. Electrician (will still explain later)- Dena Kimura a.k.a De
7. Restaurant Owner just down the street (still open)
8. Kitchen Appliance Store Manager (still open)
Ginahoshi: *looks at list* Hmmm, since there are positions still open I guess I'll fill in my own characters! Hee hee, oh and I'm so sorry Indygo, but there's only one spot for Mokuba's helper and sorry to Dough Monkey, because I didn't know which position you wanted. Now! For the disclaimer! I've decided that I will no longer read it myself! ^__^ Instead I'll get Palm Tree Head to do it!
Yami no Malik: Who?
Ginahoshi: You ^.^
Yami no Malik: I'm not a Palm Tree Head! ! *sends Ginahoshi to the Shadow Realm*
Ginahoshi: AIYEEEE x.x
Ryou: Ah hah hah, well, I'll just say it ^^;;; she doesn't own any of us ((thankfully)) but the story idea is hers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Wheeee! Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!" Mokuba Kaiba showered his older brother with his gratitude as the two Kaibas walked past shops and alleys to the new restaurant they heard about with four star ratings.
"Well, this is your birthday after all." Seto stated, barely able to contain his straight-faced exterior as a smile almost broke his outward illusion. He thanked his lucky stars that nobody else saw what he only reserved for his younger sibling.
From the outside it looked quaint and small; you could almost call it cute. The thick floor to ceiling glass windows etched with diamond shapes and the two dark brown Royal Oak doors with stone lion statues fiercely guarding at their posts on both sides even gave it a classic touch, but as they entered through those doors it was like they entered another dimension.
The sound crashed onto them like stormy ocean waves. The chatter, the laughter, the clanging, all melded into one sound, like a synchronized symphony. The bright grand chandelier was the star of attention as its crystallized glass diamonds and pearls glistened its welcome to everyone. Other individual chandeliers and lights adorned the room, giving the room a sunny aura. The carpet was plushed red; the walls and ceiling were pure white with dark mahogany support beams.
Mokuba clapped his hands and squealed joyfully. The excitement in the atmosphere further fueled his rapidly beating heart. Seto sighed as he tried to control his over-active brother. Thankfully there was a table reserved especially for them so Seto didn't have to restrain his brother from accidentally knocking over the rows of fish tanks against the entrance walls that contained bright red lobsters, crabs, and an assortment of colorful sea fish.
"Kaiba, right?" A waitress asked as she walked up to them, tray in hand.
"Yes." Seto stated matter-of-factly.
The waitress smiled and nodded her head. "My name is Amber and I'll be your waitress today." She chirped as she led them to their table. Mokuba followed her with ease, slipping under chairs and legs, but Seto wasn't so lucky. In attempts to try to weave through the tightly knit pattern of the tables he lost his cat-like grace and nearly fell three times.
"What's wrong?" Mokuba asked as he plopped himself down on the beige cushioned seat.
"Nothing what so ever..." Seto assured Mokuba breathlessly as he sank into his chair.
"Here are your menus, I'll be back shortly to take orders." Amber informed them before she quickly rushed to take care of more customers.
Mokuba glanced up and down his menu. "Oooo, all this looks so good!" His mouth watered from the aroma of food plus the delicious descriptions written on the menu.
Seto leaned back slightly in his chair "What'll you like, Mokuba?" He almost toppled over when Mokuba practically jumped across that table at him pointing at almost everything on the menu.
"I want thisthisthisthisthisthisthisthis and this!" Mokuba grinned.
"Mokuba! These dishes are very filling and big, choose only four." Seto said firmly while pushing his brother off the pinkish table cloth and up righting the napkins.
"Awwwwww." Mokuba pouted as he sat back down.
Amber returned to them with a notebook and pen in hand. "May I take your orders now?"
They nodded as they told what they wanted. After she hastily scribbled everything down she walked back to the kitchen at the opposite wall, gracefully weaving between the tables.
"How does she do it.." Seto muttered before turning his head to admire a large polished maple wood pentagon shaped statue that hung on the back wall with a gold phoenix that seemed to soar up in suspended animation.
~~~
Amber and Tea quickly zipped through the tables to the Kaibas while carrying large brown trays filled with the ordered food.
"I'm so sorry!" Tea puffed out while she and Amber set down the food on the table. "There were some problems that set back our schedule by some."
"That's ok!" Mokuba assured her. "What kind of problems?" He asked as he served himself a fried dumpling.
"Tea! Amber! Hurry! There are five orders still waiting for you!" Mark called out from across the room.
"Ah, sorry Mokuba we have to run, but if you wouldn't mind staying for another hour then we can explain what happened to you." Tea nodded and quickly rushed back to the kitchen with Amber following closely behind.
~~~
Mokuba sat, swinging his legs under his chair while slowly finishing up his sweet red bean soup. The restaurant was cleared by now and the Kaibas were patiently waiting.
"Phew. another long day." Mai commented as she collapsed in a chair.
"Hey! I didn't know you ALL worked here!" Mokuba exclaimed as Yugi, Malik, Ryou, Serenity, Joey, and Tea all sat down around the tables and waved. Three new people followed them. "And who're they?" Mokuba asked as he greeted them.
"You've already met Amber." Ryou began introducing them.
"Hi!" Amber waved.
"This is Alessandra."
Alessandra shook their hands. "Pleasure to meet you."
"And this is Mark."
"Hello" Mark nodded.
"And we don't only work here." Malik began. "We own this restaurant!"
"Oh cool! Well, my compliments to the chef!" Mokuba grinned.
They laughed. "That would be Ryou, the greatest chef in the world and the founder of the idea!" Ryou blushed and rubbed the back of his neck at that comment.
"So what seems to be the trouble?" Mokuba asked.
They glanced uneasily at each other before looking at Mokuba. "Well..."
"I'll explain what happened." Mai stated before clearing her throat. "Well, we started this on our own just about two to three months ago. We didn't expect it to be so successful so quickly, but it did happen. I suppose the rival restaurant didn't expect it either so they started sending us threatening notes, but we just disregarded that as competition tension. Then just about two weeks ago strange things started happening."
"What kind of strange things?" Mokuba asked, leaning forward in his chair, definitely interested.
"They were minor strange things, like when we were clearing the tables after closing hours the lights would flicker on and off by themselves, or the napkins would be messed up after we came back in the room. We didn't quite care, then that's when even weirder things happened."
Ryou nodded "Yes, just like last week the forks toppled over in the storage room while I was there just trying to get some more cloths. It was quite frightening."
"Or when the stove automatically turned on high heat when we accidentally spilled oil on it, it almost exploded!" Serenity added in.
"Last night was the worst out of all the mishaps." Tea shuddered.
"Why?"
Tea gulped. "Well, I was in the hallway behind the kitchen, we can show you it later it leads to Malik's office, just about to ask Malik a question when the lights exploded one by one on their own! I screamed like there was no tomorrow..."
"We all heard the noises.. So that's why we rushed to see what was happening." Mark continued for her. "When we arrived it was completely dark, the lights wouldn't work so we figured the exploding noises were the lights fusing out or something."
"We then reinstalled the light bulbs but then that's when we saw the writing on the wall!" Amber's eyes went wide from the memory. "It said in drippy blood red, GET OUT."
"We don't know what to think. Could this place be haunted or is somebody deliberately trying to scare us?" Joey furrowed his brow in deep concentration.
"This sounds like a mystery!" Mokuba nodded his head up and down excitedly.
Seto quickly knew what Mokuba was thinking. "Mokuba, no! This isn't like those computer simulated games you play with Mint! This is serious, you could get hurt! No, I won't allow it!"
"Awww, but Seto!" Mokuba whined, his eyes big and watery.
"No, absolutely not!" Seto slapped his palm on the table for emphasize.
"Pleeeeaase?" Mokuba begged, his bottom lip beginning to quiver.
Seto took one look at his brother and his heart practically melted like butter. He just couldn't resist the puppy dog look turned up a notch, but no, he just couldn't!
Ryou gave a small smile and looked up thoughtfully. "Maybe Mokuba can do it."
"WHAT?!" Everyone turned their heads to give Ryou a genuine shocked look.
"Well." Ryou continued, his expression unwavering "why not give him a chance? He does have the Kaiba mind, smart, clever, quick. I think he can do it!"
"Ryou, this isn't a Nancy Drew story!" Tea tried reasoning with him.
"Hey." Mokuba looked a little hurt. "I can do it! I swear!"
"Mokuba, don't swear."
"Sorry, big brother."
"Hmm, it's worth a shot." Malik reluctantly agreed.
Ryou smiled and turned to the others.
"Why not?" Everyone except Tea said in unison.
Tea raised her index finger. "One week. If there are no results after one week he's off the case, deal?"
Mokuba nodded and shook Tea's hand. "Deal!" He grinned "Wait till I call Mint and start first thing in the morning!"
"Mokuba.." Seto started but took one look at his brother's puppy dog look and sighed "Fine, but you better be careful."
Mokuba hugged his brother from across the table, successfully toppling over the bowl. "THANK YOU BIG BROTHER!"
~*~*~*~*~*
The next day Mokuba woke up extra early to start on his new case. He quickly called Mint after breakfast to inform her that he was on a real case and that he needed her help.
"What do you mean REAL case?!"
"I'm serious!" Mokuba insisted into the receiver.
"Alright, I suppose I'll believe you. So what's the deal now? Theft? Murder? Vandalism?"
"Well. I suppose it falls under the category of vandalism, since so many things weren't working..."
"Ah. so why do you need my help?"
"Duh, I can't be investigating AND researching the clues at the same time!" Mokuba rolled his eyes.
"Aw maaaan, why do I get stuck with the crummy job?"
"Mint!"
She rolled her eyes on the other line "Alright, but if you're in trouble you BETTER call me or ELSE."
"I take that as an approval. alright, I'll call you when the action starts." He hung up and quickly rushed to the restaurant, excitement and determination in his heart.
~*~*~
The restaurant was empty since it was Saturday. /Good/ Mokuba thought to himself as he walked through the oak doors. /This'll make investigating a lot easier./
"Ah, you're here early, Mokuba." Yugi commented as he looked up from polishing the pentagon phoenix statue.
"Mmmm hmm." Mokuba nodded.
"Ah, I almost forgot, you have to check out the hallway before you start. It's really something." Yugi began as he led Mokuba to the back of the kitchen, past a swinging door.
When Yugi turned on the lights Mokuba's eyes widened. "Woah.." he breathed out.
Yugi nodded. "We were all shocked."
"While we're at it, where were you when this happened?" Mokuba asked as he examined the writing closely.
Yugi looked up at the ceiling and held his chin. "Well. I remember I was on the phone in the kitchen telling my grandpa that tonight's shift would run a little late."
Mokuba took a look at the closed door across from the wall. "Is that Malik's office?" Mokuba asked pointing.
"Yep."
"Mind if I take a look inside?"
"Well, I dunno, you'll have to ask Malik. He's kinda touchy about people barging into his things unless he's in the room with them."
"Is he here today?" Mokuba asked.
Yugi shook his head. "He didn't come in today since it's a day off."
"You're here."
"Yes, this weekend is my shift in the mornings till three to tidy up the place. Serenity and Tea should be coming to help around noon after lunch."
"Alright, mind if I examine the place?"
"Not at all, I'll get back to polishing the statue." Yugi walked back through the kitchen to the main dining room.
Mokuba touched the letters. "Paint, knew it." He commented as he took out a little bag and pencil to get a little sample. It was dry and bulged a little from the wall, most likely oil paint to make it look more so like blood.
He then turned to Malik's office, looked around both sides of the hallway and quickly went to work jimmying the lock with a hairpin. "Friend or not, everyone is a suspect, I'll have to check everything."
The door unlocked with a little click. Mokuba quickly sneaked in and quietly closed the door, afraid that Yugi might hear him.
He leaned a little against the door and surveyed the room. It wasn't very big, about enough space to put a desk in the middle and file cabinets along both walls. Small privacy windows lined the back and right wall, but shades were drawn on them, making the room a little too dim to see. Mokuba closed his eyes, counted to ten, and reopened them. This was a trick he learned from the books he read to get your eyes used to dim light. He didn't dare turn on the small over hanging lamp to avoid suspicion.
Mokuba walked over to the desk which wasn't what you would call 'tidy'. Just the opposite, papers that once probably used to be in piles were all mixed together. Easy to lose something.. But something caught Mokuba's eye. There were red pieces of paper with typed letters on them. He looked closely at one and read aloud to himself.
"Move out now or else.. If you know what's best you'd pack up and leave..." All the notes had pretty much the same message. for them to stop their business.
Mokuba kept in mind to ask Yugi later who sent the threatening notes specifically. He continued looking around, trying his best to make as least noise as possible.
After looking for what seemed like quite awhile Mokuba gave up. He walked back to the door, noticed a weird squeak in the wood floor near the door, and sneaked quietly back outside after locking the door with gloved hands as to not leave fingerprints.
He decided to look around the rest of the hall, it was a little long, probably stretched the whole length of the building. He walked along to the left. There was a window there that was probably big enough to climb in and out of. He raised an eyebrow. "Probably the vandal used this window." He tried to push it open, it wouldn't budge. "Erch. it's stuck!" He tried again, still no results. "Hphm, well, I don't think anyone could get out or in from this one." He turned around and went to the other end of the hallway. There was nothing of interest there except a closet and another unopenable window.
He strolled casually back outside to the dining room and breathed a sigh of relief as Yugi was still there, now taking the table cloths off for washing.
"Yugi, can I ask you something?"
"Sure." Yugi answered without looking up from his work.
"Mai mentioned yesterday that you guys were getting threatening notes. Any clue as to who was?"
"Oh, that's easy." Yugi pointed at the place across the street. "The owner there, Giselle and her manager Josy."
"They sound French."
"They are, their accent is really heavy whenever they speak."
"You've spoken to them before?"
"More like THEY'VE spoken to US with threatening calls!"
"... Mai never mentioned any phonecalls."
"I guess she forgot." Yugi shrugged.
"Oh and one more thing."
"Yes?"
"When I was looking around the hallway I noticed two windows on either end. They looked big enough to climb through but they were jammed!"
"Ah, those never open. Even when we bought this place they never worked."
"Really? Hm.."
"Listen, I have to finish up something in the kitchen, I'll talk to you later Mokuba!" Yugi waved as he carried a bin of the dirty table cloths back to the kitchen.
Mokuba looked at his watch, 9:30, searching through the office took longer than he thought. It wasn't quite lunch time yet so he decided to do a little more investigating.
"Maybe they're up by now..." Mokuba muttered to himself as he started walking to the residents of the other workers. First stop, Ryou's Apartment.
~*~*~
Mokuba stood patiently outside Ryou's room on the second floor after ringing the door bell.
"Coming." Ryou assured before opening the door. "Oh, hello Mokuba. Good morning, would you like to come in?"
"Thanks, that'd be nice." Mokuba nodded as he walked inside, surveying the small but very neat living quarters.
"Would you like some breakfast? I was just fixing myself some." Ryou offered as he led Mokuba to his living room.
"No thanks, I just had breakfast at home." Mokuba told him as he sat down on the couch.
"Now then.." Ryou settled down in a seat across from Mokuba's, took a sip of tea, and set it down on the coffee table "how's the search going?"
Mokuba smiled. "I haven't found anything yet, but I still want to thank you for having faith in me."
"No problem, I know you can do it."
"May I ask some questions?"
Ryou laughed a little "Why wasn't I surprised? Go on, ask away and I'll give you as full an answer as I can."
"Ah-hem." Mokuba cleared his throat "Where were you that night of the wall incident?"
"Hmm," Ryou took another sip of tea. "I was most likely in the kitchen cooking more orders, since that is my job."
"Did you see anyone enter through the door that leads to the hallway that day? Anyone besides the ones you already know?"
"Not that I know of."
Mokuba nodded. "Oh, and this one is just for fun."
"Alright."
"Where'd you get that phoenix statue hanging on the back wall? It's so pretty!"
"Well, we didn't really get it anywhere. It came with the building sort of."
"Sort of? What did you mean?"
"There's a basement under the far corner of the main dining room. You can't see the entrance door because it's covered by the carpet, but that's where we found the phoenix statue. We called our landlord but she checked her files and there was no claim to it so we sort of just used it." He shrugged.
"What's its monetary value?" Mokuba asked.
Ryou laughed. "Are you planning on buying it?"
"Oh no, it just looked like such a great piece of craftsmanship, plus it looks old, might even date way back to the Ming dynasty!"
Ryou shook his head. "You never know, maybe its ancient, maybe it's just a replica. Either way, it does give a nice touch to the room."
"What if someone tries to steal it?"
"Well, three months and no attempts."
"But what if the vandalism is because of the statue?"
"I don't think so." Ryou shook his head.
A crash from the kitchen suddenly jolted the two. They turned their heads to look only to find a disgruntled Yami no Bakura, hair toused and messy with a very bad mood.
"Ryou, I wanted RAW SAUSAGE you think I can STAND all that oil you use to fry it?!"
"Ohh dear." Ryou turned to Mokuba. "I'm sorry, but I have to take care of this, come back later if you have more news."
"Ok!" Mokuba quickly waved before dashing out the door when a cup was thrown at him.
~*~*~
"That was scary.." Mokuba had to admit as he started walking home. It was already 10:55, Seto'll want him back for lunch soon.
"I'm home." He called out before plopping down in a red plush dining room chair.
"Finally, I was beginning to wonder if you were lost." Mint smirked.
Mokuba raised an eyebrow. "When'd you get here?"
"Just about half an hour ago." She shrugged. "I have to admit your cooks did prepare a wonderful lunch for you."
"Oh.. Hey. wait a second. YOU ATE MY LUNCH?!"
She grinned as she took off the covering from the remains.
"You big meanie head." Mokuba groaned, his stomach starting to complain.
"So did you find anything yet, DETECTIVE?"
"Not yet, except that the threatening notes come from specifically the rival restaurant owner Giselle and her manager Josy."
"Nice going."
"At least I got some information." Mokuba thought carefully. "Oh, and I have something for you to do."
"Oh goodie."
"Can you do some research on the building where my friends own the restaurant. They said they found this huge maple wood pentagon statue with a gold phoenix on it in a basement. Nobody claimed it yet, but I'm wondering if it's real.... if so then maybe someone might try to steal.. if not then.. eh, its just a pretty piece of art."
"Can I see it?" Mint asked.
"Sure, I'll take you to the restaurant right now, but first a quick snack since SOMEBODY ATE MY LUNCH."
~*~*~*~
Mokuba and Mint arrived at the entrance around 1:30.
"Good, Tea and Serenity should be here to help clean up too. I can question them."
Just as Mint was about to push open the oak door a loud scream and crash was heard.
"What's wrong?!" Mokuba asked as he and Mint quickly ran inside, then gasped.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ginahoshi: Heh heh heh, I'm mean, I left you off at a cliffhanger.. Well, many apologies for updating so late! @_@ Oh, and I also hope that the people in the story don't mind how I make you act and things like that ^^;;; well, please R&R! Bye!
1. Landlord -Lizz Harper
2. Former Owner of the Restaurant (still open)
3. Former Co-owner of the Restaurant (still open)
4. Waitress- Alessandra, Amber Motoshi
5.Waiter- Mark Feld
5. Mokuba's Behind the Scene Helper (Will be explained later)- Mint Miyamoto
6. Electrician (will still explain later)- Dena Kimura a.k.a De
7. Restaurant Owner just down the street (still open)
8. Kitchen Appliance Store Manager (still open)
Ginahoshi: *looks at list* Hmmm, since there are positions still open I guess I'll fill in my own characters! Hee hee, oh and I'm so sorry Indygo, but there's only one spot for Mokuba's helper and sorry to Dough Monkey, because I didn't know which position you wanted. Now! For the disclaimer! I've decided that I will no longer read it myself! ^__^ Instead I'll get Palm Tree Head to do it!
Yami no Malik: Who?
Ginahoshi: You ^.^
Yami no Malik: I'm not a Palm Tree Head! ! *sends Ginahoshi to the Shadow Realm*
Ginahoshi: AIYEEEE x.x
Ryou: Ah hah hah, well, I'll just say it ^^;;; she doesn't own any of us ((thankfully)) but the story idea is hers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Wheeee! Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!" Mokuba Kaiba showered his older brother with his gratitude as the two Kaibas walked past shops and alleys to the new restaurant they heard about with four star ratings.
"Well, this is your birthday after all." Seto stated, barely able to contain his straight-faced exterior as a smile almost broke his outward illusion. He thanked his lucky stars that nobody else saw what he only reserved for his younger sibling.
From the outside it looked quaint and small; you could almost call it cute. The thick floor to ceiling glass windows etched with diamond shapes and the two dark brown Royal Oak doors with stone lion statues fiercely guarding at their posts on both sides even gave it a classic touch, but as they entered through those doors it was like they entered another dimension.
The sound crashed onto them like stormy ocean waves. The chatter, the laughter, the clanging, all melded into one sound, like a synchronized symphony. The bright grand chandelier was the star of attention as its crystallized glass diamonds and pearls glistened its welcome to everyone. Other individual chandeliers and lights adorned the room, giving the room a sunny aura. The carpet was plushed red; the walls and ceiling were pure white with dark mahogany support beams.
Mokuba clapped his hands and squealed joyfully. The excitement in the atmosphere further fueled his rapidly beating heart. Seto sighed as he tried to control his over-active brother. Thankfully there was a table reserved especially for them so Seto didn't have to restrain his brother from accidentally knocking over the rows of fish tanks against the entrance walls that contained bright red lobsters, crabs, and an assortment of colorful sea fish.
"Kaiba, right?" A waitress asked as she walked up to them, tray in hand.
"Yes." Seto stated matter-of-factly.
The waitress smiled and nodded her head. "My name is Amber and I'll be your waitress today." She chirped as she led them to their table. Mokuba followed her with ease, slipping under chairs and legs, but Seto wasn't so lucky. In attempts to try to weave through the tightly knit pattern of the tables he lost his cat-like grace and nearly fell three times.
"What's wrong?" Mokuba asked as he plopped himself down on the beige cushioned seat.
"Nothing what so ever..." Seto assured Mokuba breathlessly as he sank into his chair.
"Here are your menus, I'll be back shortly to take orders." Amber informed them before she quickly rushed to take care of more customers.
Mokuba glanced up and down his menu. "Oooo, all this looks so good!" His mouth watered from the aroma of food plus the delicious descriptions written on the menu.
Seto leaned back slightly in his chair "What'll you like, Mokuba?" He almost toppled over when Mokuba practically jumped across that table at him pointing at almost everything on the menu.
"I want thisthisthisthisthisthisthisthis and this!" Mokuba grinned.
"Mokuba! These dishes are very filling and big, choose only four." Seto said firmly while pushing his brother off the pinkish table cloth and up righting the napkins.
"Awwwwww." Mokuba pouted as he sat back down.
Amber returned to them with a notebook and pen in hand. "May I take your orders now?"
They nodded as they told what they wanted. After she hastily scribbled everything down she walked back to the kitchen at the opposite wall, gracefully weaving between the tables.
"How does she do it.." Seto muttered before turning his head to admire a large polished maple wood pentagon shaped statue that hung on the back wall with a gold phoenix that seemed to soar up in suspended animation.
~~~
Amber and Tea quickly zipped through the tables to the Kaibas while carrying large brown trays filled with the ordered food.
"I'm so sorry!" Tea puffed out while she and Amber set down the food on the table. "There were some problems that set back our schedule by some."
"That's ok!" Mokuba assured her. "What kind of problems?" He asked as he served himself a fried dumpling.
"Tea! Amber! Hurry! There are five orders still waiting for you!" Mark called out from across the room.
"Ah, sorry Mokuba we have to run, but if you wouldn't mind staying for another hour then we can explain what happened to you." Tea nodded and quickly rushed back to the kitchen with Amber following closely behind.
~~~
Mokuba sat, swinging his legs under his chair while slowly finishing up his sweet red bean soup. The restaurant was cleared by now and the Kaibas were patiently waiting.
"Phew. another long day." Mai commented as she collapsed in a chair.
"Hey! I didn't know you ALL worked here!" Mokuba exclaimed as Yugi, Malik, Ryou, Serenity, Joey, and Tea all sat down around the tables and waved. Three new people followed them. "And who're they?" Mokuba asked as he greeted them.
"You've already met Amber." Ryou began introducing them.
"Hi!" Amber waved.
"This is Alessandra."
Alessandra shook their hands. "Pleasure to meet you."
"And this is Mark."
"Hello" Mark nodded.
"And we don't only work here." Malik began. "We own this restaurant!"
"Oh cool! Well, my compliments to the chef!" Mokuba grinned.
They laughed. "That would be Ryou, the greatest chef in the world and the founder of the idea!" Ryou blushed and rubbed the back of his neck at that comment.
"So what seems to be the trouble?" Mokuba asked.
They glanced uneasily at each other before looking at Mokuba. "Well..."
"I'll explain what happened." Mai stated before clearing her throat. "Well, we started this on our own just about two to three months ago. We didn't expect it to be so successful so quickly, but it did happen. I suppose the rival restaurant didn't expect it either so they started sending us threatening notes, but we just disregarded that as competition tension. Then just about two weeks ago strange things started happening."
"What kind of strange things?" Mokuba asked, leaning forward in his chair, definitely interested.
"They were minor strange things, like when we were clearing the tables after closing hours the lights would flicker on and off by themselves, or the napkins would be messed up after we came back in the room. We didn't quite care, then that's when even weirder things happened."
Ryou nodded "Yes, just like last week the forks toppled over in the storage room while I was there just trying to get some more cloths. It was quite frightening."
"Or when the stove automatically turned on high heat when we accidentally spilled oil on it, it almost exploded!" Serenity added in.
"Last night was the worst out of all the mishaps." Tea shuddered.
"Why?"
Tea gulped. "Well, I was in the hallway behind the kitchen, we can show you it later it leads to Malik's office, just about to ask Malik a question when the lights exploded one by one on their own! I screamed like there was no tomorrow..."
"We all heard the noises.. So that's why we rushed to see what was happening." Mark continued for her. "When we arrived it was completely dark, the lights wouldn't work so we figured the exploding noises were the lights fusing out or something."
"We then reinstalled the light bulbs but then that's when we saw the writing on the wall!" Amber's eyes went wide from the memory. "It said in drippy blood red, GET OUT."
"We don't know what to think. Could this place be haunted or is somebody deliberately trying to scare us?" Joey furrowed his brow in deep concentration.
"This sounds like a mystery!" Mokuba nodded his head up and down excitedly.
Seto quickly knew what Mokuba was thinking. "Mokuba, no! This isn't like those computer simulated games you play with Mint! This is serious, you could get hurt! No, I won't allow it!"
"Awww, but Seto!" Mokuba whined, his eyes big and watery.
"No, absolutely not!" Seto slapped his palm on the table for emphasize.
"Pleeeeaase?" Mokuba begged, his bottom lip beginning to quiver.
Seto took one look at his brother and his heart practically melted like butter. He just couldn't resist the puppy dog look turned up a notch, but no, he just couldn't!
Ryou gave a small smile and looked up thoughtfully. "Maybe Mokuba can do it."
"WHAT?!" Everyone turned their heads to give Ryou a genuine shocked look.
"Well." Ryou continued, his expression unwavering "why not give him a chance? He does have the Kaiba mind, smart, clever, quick. I think he can do it!"
"Ryou, this isn't a Nancy Drew story!" Tea tried reasoning with him.
"Hey." Mokuba looked a little hurt. "I can do it! I swear!"
"Mokuba, don't swear."
"Sorry, big brother."
"Hmm, it's worth a shot." Malik reluctantly agreed.
Ryou smiled and turned to the others.
"Why not?" Everyone except Tea said in unison.
Tea raised her index finger. "One week. If there are no results after one week he's off the case, deal?"
Mokuba nodded and shook Tea's hand. "Deal!" He grinned "Wait till I call Mint and start first thing in the morning!"
"Mokuba.." Seto started but took one look at his brother's puppy dog look and sighed "Fine, but you better be careful."
Mokuba hugged his brother from across the table, successfully toppling over the bowl. "THANK YOU BIG BROTHER!"
~*~*~*~*~*
The next day Mokuba woke up extra early to start on his new case. He quickly called Mint after breakfast to inform her that he was on a real case and that he needed her help.
"What do you mean REAL case?!"
"I'm serious!" Mokuba insisted into the receiver.
"Alright, I suppose I'll believe you. So what's the deal now? Theft? Murder? Vandalism?"
"Well. I suppose it falls under the category of vandalism, since so many things weren't working..."
"Ah. so why do you need my help?"
"Duh, I can't be investigating AND researching the clues at the same time!" Mokuba rolled his eyes.
"Aw maaaan, why do I get stuck with the crummy job?"
"Mint!"
She rolled her eyes on the other line "Alright, but if you're in trouble you BETTER call me or ELSE."
"I take that as an approval. alright, I'll call you when the action starts." He hung up and quickly rushed to the restaurant, excitement and determination in his heart.
~*~*~
The restaurant was empty since it was Saturday. /Good/ Mokuba thought to himself as he walked through the oak doors. /This'll make investigating a lot easier./
"Ah, you're here early, Mokuba." Yugi commented as he looked up from polishing the pentagon phoenix statue.
"Mmmm hmm." Mokuba nodded.
"Ah, I almost forgot, you have to check out the hallway before you start. It's really something." Yugi began as he led Mokuba to the back of the kitchen, past a swinging door.
When Yugi turned on the lights Mokuba's eyes widened. "Woah.." he breathed out.
Yugi nodded. "We were all shocked."
"While we're at it, where were you when this happened?" Mokuba asked as he examined the writing closely.
Yugi looked up at the ceiling and held his chin. "Well. I remember I was on the phone in the kitchen telling my grandpa that tonight's shift would run a little late."
Mokuba took a look at the closed door across from the wall. "Is that Malik's office?" Mokuba asked pointing.
"Yep."
"Mind if I take a look inside?"
"Well, I dunno, you'll have to ask Malik. He's kinda touchy about people barging into his things unless he's in the room with them."
"Is he here today?" Mokuba asked.
Yugi shook his head. "He didn't come in today since it's a day off."
"You're here."
"Yes, this weekend is my shift in the mornings till three to tidy up the place. Serenity and Tea should be coming to help around noon after lunch."
"Alright, mind if I examine the place?"
"Not at all, I'll get back to polishing the statue." Yugi walked back through the kitchen to the main dining room.
Mokuba touched the letters. "Paint, knew it." He commented as he took out a little bag and pencil to get a little sample. It was dry and bulged a little from the wall, most likely oil paint to make it look more so like blood.
He then turned to Malik's office, looked around both sides of the hallway and quickly went to work jimmying the lock with a hairpin. "Friend or not, everyone is a suspect, I'll have to check everything."
The door unlocked with a little click. Mokuba quickly sneaked in and quietly closed the door, afraid that Yugi might hear him.
He leaned a little against the door and surveyed the room. It wasn't very big, about enough space to put a desk in the middle and file cabinets along both walls. Small privacy windows lined the back and right wall, but shades were drawn on them, making the room a little too dim to see. Mokuba closed his eyes, counted to ten, and reopened them. This was a trick he learned from the books he read to get your eyes used to dim light. He didn't dare turn on the small over hanging lamp to avoid suspicion.
Mokuba walked over to the desk which wasn't what you would call 'tidy'. Just the opposite, papers that once probably used to be in piles were all mixed together. Easy to lose something.. But something caught Mokuba's eye. There were red pieces of paper with typed letters on them. He looked closely at one and read aloud to himself.
"Move out now or else.. If you know what's best you'd pack up and leave..." All the notes had pretty much the same message. for them to stop their business.
Mokuba kept in mind to ask Yugi later who sent the threatening notes specifically. He continued looking around, trying his best to make as least noise as possible.
After looking for what seemed like quite awhile Mokuba gave up. He walked back to the door, noticed a weird squeak in the wood floor near the door, and sneaked quietly back outside after locking the door with gloved hands as to not leave fingerprints.
He decided to look around the rest of the hall, it was a little long, probably stretched the whole length of the building. He walked along to the left. There was a window there that was probably big enough to climb in and out of. He raised an eyebrow. "Probably the vandal used this window." He tried to push it open, it wouldn't budge. "Erch. it's stuck!" He tried again, still no results. "Hphm, well, I don't think anyone could get out or in from this one." He turned around and went to the other end of the hallway. There was nothing of interest there except a closet and another unopenable window.
He strolled casually back outside to the dining room and breathed a sigh of relief as Yugi was still there, now taking the table cloths off for washing.
"Yugi, can I ask you something?"
"Sure." Yugi answered without looking up from his work.
"Mai mentioned yesterday that you guys were getting threatening notes. Any clue as to who was?"
"Oh, that's easy." Yugi pointed at the place across the street. "The owner there, Giselle and her manager Josy."
"They sound French."
"They are, their accent is really heavy whenever they speak."
"You've spoken to them before?"
"More like THEY'VE spoken to US with threatening calls!"
"... Mai never mentioned any phonecalls."
"I guess she forgot." Yugi shrugged.
"Oh and one more thing."
"Yes?"
"When I was looking around the hallway I noticed two windows on either end. They looked big enough to climb through but they were jammed!"
"Ah, those never open. Even when we bought this place they never worked."
"Really? Hm.."
"Listen, I have to finish up something in the kitchen, I'll talk to you later Mokuba!" Yugi waved as he carried a bin of the dirty table cloths back to the kitchen.
Mokuba looked at his watch, 9:30, searching through the office took longer than he thought. It wasn't quite lunch time yet so he decided to do a little more investigating.
"Maybe they're up by now..." Mokuba muttered to himself as he started walking to the residents of the other workers. First stop, Ryou's Apartment.
~*~*~
Mokuba stood patiently outside Ryou's room on the second floor after ringing the door bell.
"Coming." Ryou assured before opening the door. "Oh, hello Mokuba. Good morning, would you like to come in?"
"Thanks, that'd be nice." Mokuba nodded as he walked inside, surveying the small but very neat living quarters.
"Would you like some breakfast? I was just fixing myself some." Ryou offered as he led Mokuba to his living room.
"No thanks, I just had breakfast at home." Mokuba told him as he sat down on the couch.
"Now then.." Ryou settled down in a seat across from Mokuba's, took a sip of tea, and set it down on the coffee table "how's the search going?"
Mokuba smiled. "I haven't found anything yet, but I still want to thank you for having faith in me."
"No problem, I know you can do it."
"May I ask some questions?"
Ryou laughed a little "Why wasn't I surprised? Go on, ask away and I'll give you as full an answer as I can."
"Ah-hem." Mokuba cleared his throat "Where were you that night of the wall incident?"
"Hmm," Ryou took another sip of tea. "I was most likely in the kitchen cooking more orders, since that is my job."
"Did you see anyone enter through the door that leads to the hallway that day? Anyone besides the ones you already know?"
"Not that I know of."
Mokuba nodded. "Oh, and this one is just for fun."
"Alright."
"Where'd you get that phoenix statue hanging on the back wall? It's so pretty!"
"Well, we didn't really get it anywhere. It came with the building sort of."
"Sort of? What did you mean?"
"There's a basement under the far corner of the main dining room. You can't see the entrance door because it's covered by the carpet, but that's where we found the phoenix statue. We called our landlord but she checked her files and there was no claim to it so we sort of just used it." He shrugged.
"What's its monetary value?" Mokuba asked.
Ryou laughed. "Are you planning on buying it?"
"Oh no, it just looked like such a great piece of craftsmanship, plus it looks old, might even date way back to the Ming dynasty!"
Ryou shook his head. "You never know, maybe its ancient, maybe it's just a replica. Either way, it does give a nice touch to the room."
"What if someone tries to steal it?"
"Well, three months and no attempts."
"But what if the vandalism is because of the statue?"
"I don't think so." Ryou shook his head.
A crash from the kitchen suddenly jolted the two. They turned their heads to look only to find a disgruntled Yami no Bakura, hair toused and messy with a very bad mood.
"Ryou, I wanted RAW SAUSAGE you think I can STAND all that oil you use to fry it?!"
"Ohh dear." Ryou turned to Mokuba. "I'm sorry, but I have to take care of this, come back later if you have more news."
"Ok!" Mokuba quickly waved before dashing out the door when a cup was thrown at him.
~*~*~
"That was scary.." Mokuba had to admit as he started walking home. It was already 10:55, Seto'll want him back for lunch soon.
"I'm home." He called out before plopping down in a red plush dining room chair.
"Finally, I was beginning to wonder if you were lost." Mint smirked.
Mokuba raised an eyebrow. "When'd you get here?"
"Just about half an hour ago." She shrugged. "I have to admit your cooks did prepare a wonderful lunch for you."
"Oh.. Hey. wait a second. YOU ATE MY LUNCH?!"
She grinned as she took off the covering from the remains.
"You big meanie head." Mokuba groaned, his stomach starting to complain.
"So did you find anything yet, DETECTIVE?"
"Not yet, except that the threatening notes come from specifically the rival restaurant owner Giselle and her manager Josy."
"Nice going."
"At least I got some information." Mokuba thought carefully. "Oh, and I have something for you to do."
"Oh goodie."
"Can you do some research on the building where my friends own the restaurant. They said they found this huge maple wood pentagon statue with a gold phoenix on it in a basement. Nobody claimed it yet, but I'm wondering if it's real.... if so then maybe someone might try to steal.. if not then.. eh, its just a pretty piece of art."
"Can I see it?" Mint asked.
"Sure, I'll take you to the restaurant right now, but first a quick snack since SOMEBODY ATE MY LUNCH."
~*~*~*~
Mokuba and Mint arrived at the entrance around 1:30.
"Good, Tea and Serenity should be here to help clean up too. I can question them."
Just as Mint was about to push open the oak door a loud scream and crash was heard.
"What's wrong?!" Mokuba asked as he and Mint quickly ran inside, then gasped.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ginahoshi: Heh heh heh, I'm mean, I left you off at a cliffhanger.. Well, many apologies for updating so late! @_@ Oh, and I also hope that the people in the story don't mind how I make you act and things like that ^^;;; well, please R&R! Bye!