- = Chapter 4: The Trouble With CEOs! = -
(Author's Note: Just something I'd like to say. Whenever I say Kaiba 'cares about no one' or 'hugged someone for the first time in his life', the only exception is Mokuba. I mentioned it here because it would burdening to mention it in the middle of a more dramatic scene, i.e. Seto's dream. Thanks, and enjoy the story!)
- Seto's Dream -
Seto was falling, falling into the depths of the shadows of his own creation. loyally by his side, a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, staring at him with cold sapphire eyes as they hit the ground with excruciatingly painful force. Oddly, the dragon began speaking to him.
"What has happened to you, Seto Kaiba? This girl is poisoning you, killing you, with every last word that comes out of her mouth! What has become of you? You have no heart, Seto Kaiba! You care for no one but yourself! That is who you are! Accept your destiny, or be forever damned to these shadows you find yourself amongst..!"
The dragon powered up for an attack, lightning forming in its mouth, and with anger it struck him squarely in the chest..
- End Dream -
Seto awoke roughly, startled beyond all belief.
"I care.. for no one.."
--
[Goo Goo Dolls: Sympathy]
(Kaiba has arrived back at his mansion, driven by Serenity and dropped off. We join Kaiba in his kitchen, looking for a knife..)
`Stranger than your sympathy, this is my apology.. I'm killing myself from the inside out, and all my fears have pushed you out..`
'Where's the blasted knife? Dammit!' Kaiba had gone insane, his dark mind swallowing him in suicidal chaos. He grinned mischievously as he found it, ready to slit his wrists. He didn't care about Mokuba anymore. He didn't care about anything anymore. All he wanted to do was die. Unfortunately, Mokuba walked in on this terrifying scene, mouth agape in horror. "Go the hell away, you brat!" Seto said in his coldest tone he could muster. But deep inside, he was afraid.. he was just too "Seto Kaiba" to show it.
`I wish for things that I don't need (all I wanted) and what I chase won't set me free, (all I wanted) and I get scared, but I'm not crawling on my knees..'
"Big brother! No!" Mokuba cried, his face streaming with heartfelt tears, quickly grabbing the knife from Seto's sweaty, nervous hand. "Give it back! Give it back to me, dammit!" Kaiba attempted to snatch at it and instead collapsed into a messy heap on the floor, breathing heavily, eyes wide and confused, slowly drifting into his own little world..
`Oh yeah, everything's all wrong, yeah.. everything's all wrong, yeah.. where did the hell I think I was?`
"No..no! Leave me alone, Gozaburo!" cried Seto to no one in particular. "Please, no more! Leave me be..!" Kaiba was shaking furiously, tears flowing freely from his normally cold eyes. "Seto!" Mokuba exclaimed, not knowing what to do, crying even harder now. "Please, snap out of it!"
`Stranger than your sympathy, I take these things so I don't feel, I'm killing myself from the inside out, Now my head's been filled with doubt..`
Seto clutched his head in pain, screaming with anguish and agony. "Get out of my head, dammit! Get out of my body, damn you!" he said, weeping in pain, his body feeling like it was imploding inside. He was eyeing the knife clutched in Mokuba's hand, and snatched at it in anger. "No! I won't let you do this to yourself, Seto!" Mokuba said, backing away from the mentally-challenged man developing before him.
`It's hard to lead the life you choose, (all I wanted) when all your luck's run out on you, (all I wanted) you can't see when all your dreams are coming true!`
Memories of Seto working at Kaiba Corp flashed back to him, paining him further. Scenes of him screaming angrily at his associates appeared in his head, throwing a vase halfway across the room. Images of a young Kaiba and Mokuba cramped in an alleyway, shivering in the cold, pounding rain also made an appearance, followed by an even stranger image.. one of Serenity. The girl was smiling at Kaiba, hugging him warmly, while Kaiba flushed a light red and returned it. "Serenity.." he whispered, a little more calmly.
`Oh yeah, it's easy to forget, yeah.. You choke on the regrets, yeah.. Who the hell did I think I was?`
More scenes with Serenity and Seto followed, including the one where he had slapped her sharply. He choked back tears as he watched it like a movie in his head, his brother trying to stop him from shaking, but to no avail; Seto Kaiba had shut himself off from the world.
`Stranger than your sympathy, all these thoughts you stole from me, I'm not sure where I belong, nowhere's home and I'm all wrong.."
"I'm not meant for this world!" Kaiba screamed, grabbing the knife and slitting his wrists quickly before Mokuba had any time to react. He then laughed evilly, his eyes slowly rolling into the back of his head. "No!" Mokuba wept, rushing to his brother's side, Seto still chuckling to himself. Mokuba slowly began to drag him to the bathroom, knowing he would soon bleed to death if he didn't bandage up his wounds..
`And I wasn't all the things I tried to make believe I was, and I wouldn't be the one to kneel before the dreams I wanted, and all the talk, and all the lies, were all the empty things disguised as me.. Yeah, stranger than your sympathy, stranger than your sympathy..`
"My life has been all lies..! Lies, lies!" Kaiba said shrilly as Mokuba finished cleaning up his cuts. Then, he snapped, just like that. Evil clouded over his pupils, shadowing returning to his eyes, reverting to their original pure dark blue form, evil filling what was left of his battered heart and mind.
"Out of my way, fool!" he said roughly, shoving Mokuba out of the way. Mokuba simply stared with terror and shock as his brother angrily stomped out of the mansion, backpack slung over his injured shoulder..
["Sympathy" is copyrighted to the Goo Goo Dolls.]
--
"To Domino High, and make it snappy!" screeched Seto from the backseat, filled with angst and anger. The driver silently obeyed as they arrived at the school within minutes, Seto fuming as he stepped out of the vehicle and made his way into the hallway. He pushed anyone even remotely in his way, as all the other students simply onlooked with terror. Meanwhile, Serenity Wheeler was plowing through the hall hastily, knowing she was already 5 minutes late to her first class, not watching where she was going.. and unfortunately, she ran smack into Seto Kaiba, causing him to drop all his books. Seto immediately grabbed her by her throat and shoved her against one of the gray lockers furiously, and spoke in a horrifically angry tone.
"How dare you, you scum! Nobody disrespects Seto Kaiba like that!" he said dangerously, tightening his grip around her throat. Serenity looked at his dark eyes, knowing something was wrong with him, as she began to cry pure tears of sadness, scared for her life.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Kaiba! I wasn't looking where I was going and-
"Don't give me this sorry shit!" he said cutting her off sharply, releasing his hold on her neck and storming off angrily to History, and unfortunately, Serenity had to follow, as it was her next class. She was careful to hide behind corners whenever Kaiba turned around, hearing him mumble curses under his breath as he stepped inside the classroom.
--
"..and Serenity Wheeler with be paired up with.. Seto Kaiba."
Serenity grimaced slightly, remembering what had happened just this morning. She slowly turned her head to see Seto glaring at her with his sharp eyes, not forgetting, as she had hoped. She cautiously made her way to the seat next to him, trying hard not to look at him. She felt the piercing glare boring into her side as she opened her History book slowly to page 264, mentally slapping herself once again.
"You will pay, Wheeler.." Kaiba said, emotionless eyes staring at her.
"Yes, you've made that clear, Mr. Kaiba.." she said as she watched him open his book, anger filled in even the way he did so.
"Wonderful, World War I .. feels like World War III over here.." she mumbled, slightly angrily. She had to figure out what was wrong with Seto; she had seen no sign of kindness, unlike the night before, when she felt a strange feeling coming from him. She also noticed his mental state, which was not as cool and calm and it normally was. Was it bad memories haunting him, or something else? She would have to ponder that question later, as both of them listened to their assignment, and were off to work.
"Alright.. should we tackle weaponry first, or living conditions?" she said, choosing her words very carefully.
"What do you mean, 'we'? You're on your own, girlie.." he said with a sneer.
"This is a group project, Mr. Kaiba. Points will be deducted if we do not work together," she said firmly.
"Points will be deducted if we do not work together," he said mockingly. "And who said I cared?" he stated, the evil sneer not leaving his face.
"SETO KAIBA! WE WILL WORK TOGETHER ON THIS PROJECT!" she yelled at his face in a very loud and angry tone of voice.
"No," he said simply, just to make her even angrier. Yugi and Bakura (who had been watching the whole scene from the next table) had to hold her back from going Armageddon on Kaiba's throat, much to her cries of "Let me at him!" and "That Seto Kaiba..!". Never had she been so angry in her life. Usually she was kind and considerate, but the arrogant flair that surrounded Kaiba today was just too much. She eventually calmed down, and ended up doing all the work herself, and when it came time to present, Serenity did all the talking while Seto just looked around the room boredly. When the grade "F" made itself clear in Kaiba's eyesight, he growled and shredded it into tiny pieces.
"Stupid girl! You got me an F!"
"Me?! I wasn't the one who sat there twiddling my thumbs, Mr. Kaiba!"
This was going to be a LONG day indeed.
--
(Kaiba is in a closet, after making a scene of running out of the lunchroom and screaming..)
The evil state Seto Kaiba was currently is was now fighting for control, as he sat in the broom closet shivering like this morning, his head grasped tightly in his hands.
"Get out of my head! Get out of my body!" he screamed, the dark presence slowly devouring him. He didn't want to feel this way, not at all. He heard a faint voice calling out to him from outside the door..
"Mr. Kaiba? Are you in there? I came to apologize.." said the voice, as it slowly opened the door to see a very frightened looking Kaiba on the floor.
"Are.. are you alright? You look startled.." she said, taking a seat next to him and shutting the door quietly. Seto didn't reply, still shaking.
"What's wrong with you, Mr. Kaiba?" she asked rather bluntly, awaiting his answer.
"I don't know.. something is wrong with me.." he said somewhat shakily.
"It will be alright, Mr. Kaiba.. let's get you home," He nodded in silent agreement, as they headed towards the black limo parked outside.
--
"There was a strange presence inside me.. it didn't care about anyone, even Mokuba.. I haven't felt that way since before I battled.. Yugi.. I was never the same after that day.."
Serenity had remembered Yugi telling him about that.. about how Yami had banished his evil side to the Shadow Realm, changing him forever.
"Everything is alright, Mr. Kaiba.. the presence appears to be gone, at least for now.." she answered quietly, noticing the same confused look on his face as they pulled into the entrance to the mansion.
"Take this girl home.." he said to the driver. Serenity looked like she wanted to argue against his decision, but she quickly shut her mouth as he stared at her coldly. As soon as the vehicle drove away, Kaiba shook his head, remembering what had happened today as he stepped foot into his home.
- = End Chapter 4 = -
Shadow: Wow, what an exciting chapter that was ^^ Don't you agree, Seto? Kaiba: I AM NOT A MENTALLY-CHALLENGED MAN! ;-; -goes into seizures- Shadow: o_o.. Uh-huh.. sure.. without further ado, here's the preview for Chapter 5: The Date! **oooohh ahhhh**
- = Begin Scene = -
"Pleasssseee! Can Serenity come with us?" whined Mokuba, using his traditional "puppy-dog eyes" technique to try and win him over. "I really want her to be there for my birthday!"
"Tsch. Why do you want her to come?" Seto asked obnoxiously, although he was a bit curious.
"She's soooo nice, and she plays with me ALL the time! Please, Seto? She probably has a big birthday present for me, too!" he said, jumping up and down on his poor brother's shoulder.
"Alright, she can come," he said, giving in. Seto wanted to apologize, anyway, so this would be his chance. 'Bah, I actually want to apologize? What's gotten into me?' he thought to himself. Nothing much made sense to him anyway, especially not what happened the day before.. why did he grab her throat like that? But most of all, why did he even care?
- = End Scene = -
(Author's Note: Just something I'd like to say. Whenever I say Kaiba 'cares about no one' or 'hugged someone for the first time in his life', the only exception is Mokuba. I mentioned it here because it would burdening to mention it in the middle of a more dramatic scene, i.e. Seto's dream. Thanks, and enjoy the story!)
- Seto's Dream -
Seto was falling, falling into the depths of the shadows of his own creation. loyally by his side, a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, staring at him with cold sapphire eyes as they hit the ground with excruciatingly painful force. Oddly, the dragon began speaking to him.
"What has happened to you, Seto Kaiba? This girl is poisoning you, killing you, with every last word that comes out of her mouth! What has become of you? You have no heart, Seto Kaiba! You care for no one but yourself! That is who you are! Accept your destiny, or be forever damned to these shadows you find yourself amongst..!"
The dragon powered up for an attack, lightning forming in its mouth, and with anger it struck him squarely in the chest..
- End Dream -
Seto awoke roughly, startled beyond all belief.
"I care.. for no one.."
--
[Goo Goo Dolls: Sympathy]
(Kaiba has arrived back at his mansion, driven by Serenity and dropped off. We join Kaiba in his kitchen, looking for a knife..)
`Stranger than your sympathy, this is my apology.. I'm killing myself from the inside out, and all my fears have pushed you out..`
'Where's the blasted knife? Dammit!' Kaiba had gone insane, his dark mind swallowing him in suicidal chaos. He grinned mischievously as he found it, ready to slit his wrists. He didn't care about Mokuba anymore. He didn't care about anything anymore. All he wanted to do was die. Unfortunately, Mokuba walked in on this terrifying scene, mouth agape in horror. "Go the hell away, you brat!" Seto said in his coldest tone he could muster. But deep inside, he was afraid.. he was just too "Seto Kaiba" to show it.
`I wish for things that I don't need (all I wanted) and what I chase won't set me free, (all I wanted) and I get scared, but I'm not crawling on my knees..'
"Big brother! No!" Mokuba cried, his face streaming with heartfelt tears, quickly grabbing the knife from Seto's sweaty, nervous hand. "Give it back! Give it back to me, dammit!" Kaiba attempted to snatch at it and instead collapsed into a messy heap on the floor, breathing heavily, eyes wide and confused, slowly drifting into his own little world..
`Oh yeah, everything's all wrong, yeah.. everything's all wrong, yeah.. where did the hell I think I was?`
"No..no! Leave me alone, Gozaburo!" cried Seto to no one in particular. "Please, no more! Leave me be..!" Kaiba was shaking furiously, tears flowing freely from his normally cold eyes. "Seto!" Mokuba exclaimed, not knowing what to do, crying even harder now. "Please, snap out of it!"
`Stranger than your sympathy, I take these things so I don't feel, I'm killing myself from the inside out, Now my head's been filled with doubt..`
Seto clutched his head in pain, screaming with anguish and agony. "Get out of my head, dammit! Get out of my body, damn you!" he said, weeping in pain, his body feeling like it was imploding inside. He was eyeing the knife clutched in Mokuba's hand, and snatched at it in anger. "No! I won't let you do this to yourself, Seto!" Mokuba said, backing away from the mentally-challenged man developing before him.
`It's hard to lead the life you choose, (all I wanted) when all your luck's run out on you, (all I wanted) you can't see when all your dreams are coming true!`
Memories of Seto working at Kaiba Corp flashed back to him, paining him further. Scenes of him screaming angrily at his associates appeared in his head, throwing a vase halfway across the room. Images of a young Kaiba and Mokuba cramped in an alleyway, shivering in the cold, pounding rain also made an appearance, followed by an even stranger image.. one of Serenity. The girl was smiling at Kaiba, hugging him warmly, while Kaiba flushed a light red and returned it. "Serenity.." he whispered, a little more calmly.
`Oh yeah, it's easy to forget, yeah.. You choke on the regrets, yeah.. Who the hell did I think I was?`
More scenes with Serenity and Seto followed, including the one where he had slapped her sharply. He choked back tears as he watched it like a movie in his head, his brother trying to stop him from shaking, but to no avail; Seto Kaiba had shut himself off from the world.
`Stranger than your sympathy, all these thoughts you stole from me, I'm not sure where I belong, nowhere's home and I'm all wrong.."
"I'm not meant for this world!" Kaiba screamed, grabbing the knife and slitting his wrists quickly before Mokuba had any time to react. He then laughed evilly, his eyes slowly rolling into the back of his head. "No!" Mokuba wept, rushing to his brother's side, Seto still chuckling to himself. Mokuba slowly began to drag him to the bathroom, knowing he would soon bleed to death if he didn't bandage up his wounds..
`And I wasn't all the things I tried to make believe I was, and I wouldn't be the one to kneel before the dreams I wanted, and all the talk, and all the lies, were all the empty things disguised as me.. Yeah, stranger than your sympathy, stranger than your sympathy..`
"My life has been all lies..! Lies, lies!" Kaiba said shrilly as Mokuba finished cleaning up his cuts. Then, he snapped, just like that. Evil clouded over his pupils, shadowing returning to his eyes, reverting to their original pure dark blue form, evil filling what was left of his battered heart and mind.
"Out of my way, fool!" he said roughly, shoving Mokuba out of the way. Mokuba simply stared with terror and shock as his brother angrily stomped out of the mansion, backpack slung over his injured shoulder..
["Sympathy" is copyrighted to the Goo Goo Dolls.]
--
"To Domino High, and make it snappy!" screeched Seto from the backseat, filled with angst and anger. The driver silently obeyed as they arrived at the school within minutes, Seto fuming as he stepped out of the vehicle and made his way into the hallway. He pushed anyone even remotely in his way, as all the other students simply onlooked with terror. Meanwhile, Serenity Wheeler was plowing through the hall hastily, knowing she was already 5 minutes late to her first class, not watching where she was going.. and unfortunately, she ran smack into Seto Kaiba, causing him to drop all his books. Seto immediately grabbed her by her throat and shoved her against one of the gray lockers furiously, and spoke in a horrifically angry tone.
"How dare you, you scum! Nobody disrespects Seto Kaiba like that!" he said dangerously, tightening his grip around her throat. Serenity looked at his dark eyes, knowing something was wrong with him, as she began to cry pure tears of sadness, scared for her life.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Kaiba! I wasn't looking where I was going and-
"Don't give me this sorry shit!" he said cutting her off sharply, releasing his hold on her neck and storming off angrily to History, and unfortunately, Serenity had to follow, as it was her next class. She was careful to hide behind corners whenever Kaiba turned around, hearing him mumble curses under his breath as he stepped inside the classroom.
--
"..and Serenity Wheeler with be paired up with.. Seto Kaiba."
Serenity grimaced slightly, remembering what had happened just this morning. She slowly turned her head to see Seto glaring at her with his sharp eyes, not forgetting, as she had hoped. She cautiously made her way to the seat next to him, trying hard not to look at him. She felt the piercing glare boring into her side as she opened her History book slowly to page 264, mentally slapping herself once again.
"You will pay, Wheeler.." Kaiba said, emotionless eyes staring at her.
"Yes, you've made that clear, Mr. Kaiba.." she said as she watched him open his book, anger filled in even the way he did so.
"Wonderful, World War I .. feels like World War III over here.." she mumbled, slightly angrily. She had to figure out what was wrong with Seto; she had seen no sign of kindness, unlike the night before, when she felt a strange feeling coming from him. She also noticed his mental state, which was not as cool and calm and it normally was. Was it bad memories haunting him, or something else? She would have to ponder that question later, as both of them listened to their assignment, and were off to work.
"Alright.. should we tackle weaponry first, or living conditions?" she said, choosing her words very carefully.
"What do you mean, 'we'? You're on your own, girlie.." he said with a sneer.
"This is a group project, Mr. Kaiba. Points will be deducted if we do not work together," she said firmly.
"Points will be deducted if we do not work together," he said mockingly. "And who said I cared?" he stated, the evil sneer not leaving his face.
"SETO KAIBA! WE WILL WORK TOGETHER ON THIS PROJECT!" she yelled at his face in a very loud and angry tone of voice.
"No," he said simply, just to make her even angrier. Yugi and Bakura (who had been watching the whole scene from the next table) had to hold her back from going Armageddon on Kaiba's throat, much to her cries of "Let me at him!" and "That Seto Kaiba..!". Never had she been so angry in her life. Usually she was kind and considerate, but the arrogant flair that surrounded Kaiba today was just too much. She eventually calmed down, and ended up doing all the work herself, and when it came time to present, Serenity did all the talking while Seto just looked around the room boredly. When the grade "F" made itself clear in Kaiba's eyesight, he growled and shredded it into tiny pieces.
"Stupid girl! You got me an F!"
"Me?! I wasn't the one who sat there twiddling my thumbs, Mr. Kaiba!"
This was going to be a LONG day indeed.
--
(Kaiba is in a closet, after making a scene of running out of the lunchroom and screaming..)
The evil state Seto Kaiba was currently is was now fighting for control, as he sat in the broom closet shivering like this morning, his head grasped tightly in his hands.
"Get out of my head! Get out of my body!" he screamed, the dark presence slowly devouring him. He didn't want to feel this way, not at all. He heard a faint voice calling out to him from outside the door..
"Mr. Kaiba? Are you in there? I came to apologize.." said the voice, as it slowly opened the door to see a very frightened looking Kaiba on the floor.
"Are.. are you alright? You look startled.." she said, taking a seat next to him and shutting the door quietly. Seto didn't reply, still shaking.
"What's wrong with you, Mr. Kaiba?" she asked rather bluntly, awaiting his answer.
"I don't know.. something is wrong with me.." he said somewhat shakily.
"It will be alright, Mr. Kaiba.. let's get you home," He nodded in silent agreement, as they headed towards the black limo parked outside.
--
"There was a strange presence inside me.. it didn't care about anyone, even Mokuba.. I haven't felt that way since before I battled.. Yugi.. I was never the same after that day.."
Serenity had remembered Yugi telling him about that.. about how Yami had banished his evil side to the Shadow Realm, changing him forever.
"Everything is alright, Mr. Kaiba.. the presence appears to be gone, at least for now.." she answered quietly, noticing the same confused look on his face as they pulled into the entrance to the mansion.
"Take this girl home.." he said to the driver. Serenity looked like she wanted to argue against his decision, but she quickly shut her mouth as he stared at her coldly. As soon as the vehicle drove away, Kaiba shook his head, remembering what had happened today as he stepped foot into his home.
- = End Chapter 4 = -
Shadow: Wow, what an exciting chapter that was ^^ Don't you agree, Seto? Kaiba: I AM NOT A MENTALLY-CHALLENGED MAN! ;-; -goes into seizures- Shadow: o_o.. Uh-huh.. sure.. without further ado, here's the preview for Chapter 5: The Date! **oooohh ahhhh**
- = Begin Scene = -
"Pleasssseee! Can Serenity come with us?" whined Mokuba, using his traditional "puppy-dog eyes" technique to try and win him over. "I really want her to be there for my birthday!"
"Tsch. Why do you want her to come?" Seto asked obnoxiously, although he was a bit curious.
"She's soooo nice, and she plays with me ALL the time! Please, Seto? She probably has a big birthday present for me, too!" he said, jumping up and down on his poor brother's shoulder.
"Alright, she can come," he said, giving in. Seto wanted to apologize, anyway, so this would be his chance. 'Bah, I actually want to apologize? What's gotten into me?' he thought to himself. Nothing much made sense to him anyway, especially not what happened the day before.. why did he grab her throat like that? But most of all, why did he even care?
- = End Scene = -