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Full Circle
Chapter Two: Tumbling Dice
someone help us understand who ordered
this disgusting arrangement of time and the end
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Seto Kaiba wasn't exactly a morning person---though coming from a guy who wore a scowl as if it were a fashion accessory, it would be easier to say that he wasn't an any-time-of-day kind of person.
This week had been brutal. The phone hadn't stopped ringing, the fax machine was constantly out of ink and he was paying his secretaries overtime. Each day had started at 5:00 A.M and ended at 9:30 PM---by which time, Kaiba was so utterly exhausted, that he often just spent the night in his office. He didn't blame Mokuba for worrying about him. Just this morning, when Kaiba had finally got away from his computer screen and sauntered over to the washroom to splash cold water onto his face, he saw a phantom of himself in the mirror. Bloodshot eyes, pale skin, boneless posture---he looked like death on a stick. It was amazing that he kept going like this.
IThis account is important. I'm not going to blow it. I've been through worse.../I
Wiping his face and his hands in a fluffy white towel, Kaiba headed back into his office. Last night, Mokuba returned home from school quite excited. He had told Seto that he had a surprise for him planned this morning and that he should book him an appointment for 11:00 AM. Kaiba, though somewhat confused, complied. He supposed that his little brother had missed spending time with him.
He entered the room and saw that Mokuba was sitting on the couch, waiting for him. Seto checked his watch; he was a bit early.
"Are you ready for your surprise, Seto?" His brother asked him eagerly.
The young CEO walked over to his desk and sat down. That astringent voice of his appeared slightly hoarse. "I still have a few things to do, Mokuba."
"But you promised."
"I did, but I---"
Puppy eyes. He could not stand it when Mokuba looked at him that way--- like he had been kicked to the curb, useless and inferior to Seto's business ventures. He was one of the few people on this planet that still had the capability of arousing guilt in this emotionless husk of a man.
Kaiba sighed, and closed his laptop to give his younger sibling his utmost attention. "What is this surprise, Mokuba?"
Outside the office window, had Kaiba not had his back turned, he would have seen Tea Gardner arrive at the gate. The pretty young brunette looked about the property rather nervously, looking back down at a yellow slip of paper to double-check the address. Affirmed. This was the infamous Kaiba mansion--though it was more carpeted lawns and fancy landscaping than any actual fancy fortification.
With a defeated sigh, she pressed the buzzer and waited for the enormous gates to open for her.
Upstairs, Mokuba beamed at the sight of her arrival through the window. "Right on time," he whispered, before speaking aloud. "She's here!"
"'She'?" Kaiba sputtered incredulously. Seeing Mokuba run out of his office in excitement, he whipped around to see what his brother had been looking at outside. Whether he was high up in the second story or on the twelfth floor, there was no mistaking who it was that was making her way up the cobblestone path. A head of thick, chestnut colored hair, a pair of twinkling, ice-blue diamonds and a slender body outfitted in white khakis and a yellow tank-top. A bolt of anger creviced through him as he watched her disappear under the roof, reaching the front door. "Gardner."
Downstairs, Mokuba nearly flew down the main staircase in a race to answer the door. He skittered past a servant carrying a load of laundry and bounded towards the entrance. He had opened the door before Tea even got a chance to knock. She looked down at him, somewhat surprised. He was panting, hair in wild disarray (more than usually, at least), leaning against the frame to catch his breath.
"Hi Tea!"
She blinked. "Hi...uh... Mokuba."
He grinned at her impishly and stepped aside to invite her in. She obliged, unable to keep the butterflies in her stomach still.
The entrance hall was massive and dome shaped, with a high ceiling and a sparkling, crystal chandelier. A white, winding Scarlet-O'Hara staircase took the center of the room, adorned with gold and royal blue carpeting. Come to think of it, the entire theme of this place seemed to be different shades of blue with white accents. Expensive-looking marble statues, glorifying, classical paintings, embroidered curtains and massive white columns lining the perimeter of the area. Tea felt as if she had stepped into a fairy-tale castle. However, at the moment, she was more preoccupied with the 'beast' that resided here.
She looked around, realizing (with a hint of relief) that Kaiba had not come to greet her at the door.
I Why am I not surprised? /I
Mokuba noticed how anxious she looked and supplied her next guess in words. "Seto is still in his office. Follow me."
Again, Tea nodded and complied to his invitation. The two of them walked up the stairs, Tea's head whipping around this way and that to drink in the riches of this place, meanwhile trying to keep her legs somewhat steady. She was going to spend the day with Seto Kaiba. It seemed like the reality had just sunk in. It made her legs feel wobbly and an unpleasant feeling bloomed in the back of her throat. It was not going to be a good day.
I I can't believe I agreed to this! /I
When they reached the top of the stairs, Mokuba lead Tea down another long hallway, before reaching a set of double doors at the end of the second corridor. They were closed. Seto must've gotten an important phone call. Tea meekly stood behind the young Kaiba brother as he knocked, wishing that she were somewhere else.
Kaiba and she did not have much contact with one another beyond the biting insults that he often threw around listlessly like his wads of cash. Yugi and Seto were rivals, and that automatically made Tea a disgusting insect that he thought he had the disposition to step on every time the two of them had shared an encounter. Usually, she would ignore people who thought it was their eternal obligation to insult others, but for some reason, Kaiba made her unexplainably so much angrier when he did it. It seemed that every time they did meet, she was shouting at him for being who he was---a cold, irritable, bastard.
Tea breathed in uncomfortably. Yet here she was, prepared to help him. Why was it that she cared so much anyway? It was only Seto Kaiba---the last human being on earth she would imagine herself feeling sorry for.
However, looking down at the head of messy black hair and remembering the look in Kaiba's eyes when he almost lost his brother, softened her. Deep down, somewhere, Kaiba did care about people. He saved her once, after all. And while she tried to tell herself that was only because he was in debt to her friends for saving his sibling, somehow, Tea knew better.
She was going to give him a chance, she decided. She was going to show him that he didn't have to be such a rotten person all the time-that he didn't have to treat life as if it were a battle; he could let loose and be a regular guy if he wanted to.
The trick was, getting him to realize that...or let him give **her** a chance to even show him. She very much doubted Mokuba had even so much told his older brother his plans for him today.
Mokuba opened the door just a bit to peak in before ushering her in first. She blundered into the room, half-embarrassed, half angry. Not a smooth entrance at all! She was just waiting to here him voice his displeasure at the sight of her. Just waiting.
"What are you doing here?" Seto was sitting in his office chair, back turned to the two of them. She could vaguely see his expression reflected in the tinted window--the trademark, Kaiba scowl. She narrowed her eyes; forget trying to be rational...he was already starting to annoy her. All nervousness was suddenly drowned by the intense desire to strangle him.
"Tea's here to help you, Seto," Mokuba said, before Tea could retort rudely. "She's your surprise. She'll take your mind off of work for a bit."
Seto chuckled grimly. "What was it that Wheeler said once, Gardner? Oh yes..."
"Can it, Kaiba," she interrupted before he could even finish that sentence, feeling the color rush to her cheeks. "I'm not a call-girl. Mokuba asked me here because he said you needed help."
"I don't need your help."
Mokuba frowned. "Seto..."
"Don't waste my time, little brother. There's nothing a cheerleader like her can do around here." He turned around in his chair and opened up his laptop again. "If I wanted another nuisance, I would've hired one."
The nerve of this guy! "What's your problem, Kaiba?"
"I'm looking at it." He told her lazily.
"You think people are disposable; that you can do and say to them what you want and that it won't matter to them at all." Once she had started, it became a lot more easier to unload. He always seemed to have this affect on her; her face would turn crimson, her pupils would dilate and the volume of her voice would increase. "Your only concern is your stupid business--- you know there are more important things in life than money and power!"
"Oh? Like 'friendship'?" He was mocking her now. "At least come up with something original and convincing, Gardner. You're selling, but I'm not buying."
"Okay, how about I sell *this* deal to you, Kaiba." She marched up to his desk and shut the laptop--if Seto had not taken away his hands in time, she would have crushed his fingers. Tea was so angry right now, that she wasn't even certain what she was saying. "I'll *show* you. I'll show you things that you're missing out on being the way you are--- things that you're putting off because you're too busy being a full-time hotshot. Seven days, Kaiba. Give me seven days and an open mind and then you can judge the world whatever way you want to."
"Tempting offer, Gardner, really---but I have a corporation to run. I can't exactly take seven days off and let you amuse me with this imbecilic plan of yours."
"You don't exactly have a lack of employees, you know," arms akimbo, she looked him straight in the eye. "Board of directors, a committee... Hire someone."
Seto scoffed. "As if I would trust any one of those idiots on my executive board to run this company."
"You could trust me."
Both Tea and Seto turned around to face Mokuba, who was still standing at the door, arms crossed and overseeing this entire argument. Seeing his brother's shocked expression, the younger Kaiba strolled up to the front of the desk idly. "You're always saying how I should put my skills to a test. I'm about the same age you were when you took over Kaibacorp---wouldn't you give me a chance to at least run it for a week?"
"I---" Kaiba opened his mouth in disbelief, while Tea, seeing the events unfold, could not help a small, smug smile. For once, stupid Kaiba was at a loss for words.
"You do trust me, don't you, big Brother?" Mokuba looked up at him expectantly.
Seto was hesitant. This was a perfectly planned trap--if he said no, he would upset his brother. If he said yes---he looked over at the girl and shuddered. "Are you sure, Mokuba? It's a big responsibility."
"I can take it," the younger boy's eyes twinkled. "Besides, you need a vacation."
"Spending time with one of the mutt's friends isn't what I consider a holiday"----there was a beat. Seto looked at Tea with scrutiny before turning his nose upwards--- "a holiday in hell, maybe."
A cruel smile.
"You're no walk along the beach, either, Kaiba," Tea growled, temperature rising again.
"If I'm so unbearable, why this ridiculous proposition?"
"Because I'm sick of you being so cynical--- maybe if someone showed you...."
"I don't need you to show me anything."
"Apparently I do," her blue eyes narrowed. "Consider it a challenge, Kaiba. Seven days living a normal, teenage life. No company responsibilities, no cell phones, limos, fax machines and clients. Think you can take it?"
Kaiba smirked. "It'll be a breeze."
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End of Chapter 2 .
A/N: I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of responses I've already received for this story...and it hadn't even started just yet. Thank you all who've reviewed...and even those who bothered not to, but still read and enjoyed. I hope none of you are disappointed that these chapters are a bit short---but it helps me update a lot more frequently. Make sure to check back every two or three days (though sometimes, I might surprise you :P )
Rayne B - Thanks very much for the compliment. Yeah, Anzu *is* cool. Though, personally, I think character-bashing of any kind is pointless and stupid--what's more amusing is that people who do bash characters often are incapable of writing a good, wholesome story. Pathetic indeed. ;)
Miryoku - You'll certainly find out soon enough! Your comment was appreciated. :P
Mamono - Seto/Tea fandom *is* certainly growing, though I seem to be having trouble finding stories that are actually spell checked and depict this couple tastefully and in-character. Kaiba is not a romantic soul--- he's a cold, shrewd bastard. I clicked onto your author link and I see that you have a few stories written about this pairing---you'll certainly be hearing from me! ;) Thanks for reading! :D
AkaVertigo - Arrr... No worries, lass! I solemnly promise that I shall not butcher the characters of Tea and Seto (or any of the others) and reduce them to the fruitcakes you meet in Danielle Steel novels. One of the reasons I love Seto Kaiba's character so much is *because* he's such an astringent bastard---it makes this pairing a lot more interesting to play around with. Arigato. ^_^
Malik Fan 03 - If you've already read this chapter, your burning questions have already been answered! Dua Netjer en ek (That's Egyptian for Thank-you! :) )
Full Circle
Chapter Two: Tumbling Dice
someone help us understand who ordered
this disgusting arrangement of time and the end
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Seto Kaiba wasn't exactly a morning person---though coming from a guy who wore a scowl as if it were a fashion accessory, it would be easier to say that he wasn't an any-time-of-day kind of person.
This week had been brutal. The phone hadn't stopped ringing, the fax machine was constantly out of ink and he was paying his secretaries overtime. Each day had started at 5:00 A.M and ended at 9:30 PM---by which time, Kaiba was so utterly exhausted, that he often just spent the night in his office. He didn't blame Mokuba for worrying about him. Just this morning, when Kaiba had finally got away from his computer screen and sauntered over to the washroom to splash cold water onto his face, he saw a phantom of himself in the mirror. Bloodshot eyes, pale skin, boneless posture---he looked like death on a stick. It was amazing that he kept going like this.
IThis account is important. I'm not going to blow it. I've been through worse.../I
Wiping his face and his hands in a fluffy white towel, Kaiba headed back into his office. Last night, Mokuba returned home from school quite excited. He had told Seto that he had a surprise for him planned this morning and that he should book him an appointment for 11:00 AM. Kaiba, though somewhat confused, complied. He supposed that his little brother had missed spending time with him.
He entered the room and saw that Mokuba was sitting on the couch, waiting for him. Seto checked his watch; he was a bit early.
"Are you ready for your surprise, Seto?" His brother asked him eagerly.
The young CEO walked over to his desk and sat down. That astringent voice of his appeared slightly hoarse. "I still have a few things to do, Mokuba."
"But you promised."
"I did, but I---"
Puppy eyes. He could not stand it when Mokuba looked at him that way--- like he had been kicked to the curb, useless and inferior to Seto's business ventures. He was one of the few people on this planet that still had the capability of arousing guilt in this emotionless husk of a man.
Kaiba sighed, and closed his laptop to give his younger sibling his utmost attention. "What is this surprise, Mokuba?"
Outside the office window, had Kaiba not had his back turned, he would have seen Tea Gardner arrive at the gate. The pretty young brunette looked about the property rather nervously, looking back down at a yellow slip of paper to double-check the address. Affirmed. This was the infamous Kaiba mansion--though it was more carpeted lawns and fancy landscaping than any actual fancy fortification.
With a defeated sigh, she pressed the buzzer and waited for the enormous gates to open for her.
Upstairs, Mokuba beamed at the sight of her arrival through the window. "Right on time," he whispered, before speaking aloud. "She's here!"
"'She'?" Kaiba sputtered incredulously. Seeing Mokuba run out of his office in excitement, he whipped around to see what his brother had been looking at outside. Whether he was high up in the second story or on the twelfth floor, there was no mistaking who it was that was making her way up the cobblestone path. A head of thick, chestnut colored hair, a pair of twinkling, ice-blue diamonds and a slender body outfitted in white khakis and a yellow tank-top. A bolt of anger creviced through him as he watched her disappear under the roof, reaching the front door. "Gardner."
Downstairs, Mokuba nearly flew down the main staircase in a race to answer the door. He skittered past a servant carrying a load of laundry and bounded towards the entrance. He had opened the door before Tea even got a chance to knock. She looked down at him, somewhat surprised. He was panting, hair in wild disarray (more than usually, at least), leaning against the frame to catch his breath.
"Hi Tea!"
She blinked. "Hi...uh... Mokuba."
He grinned at her impishly and stepped aside to invite her in. She obliged, unable to keep the butterflies in her stomach still.
The entrance hall was massive and dome shaped, with a high ceiling and a sparkling, crystal chandelier. A white, winding Scarlet-O'Hara staircase took the center of the room, adorned with gold and royal blue carpeting. Come to think of it, the entire theme of this place seemed to be different shades of blue with white accents. Expensive-looking marble statues, glorifying, classical paintings, embroidered curtains and massive white columns lining the perimeter of the area. Tea felt as if she had stepped into a fairy-tale castle. However, at the moment, she was more preoccupied with the 'beast' that resided here.
She looked around, realizing (with a hint of relief) that Kaiba had not come to greet her at the door.
I Why am I not surprised? /I
Mokuba noticed how anxious she looked and supplied her next guess in words. "Seto is still in his office. Follow me."
Again, Tea nodded and complied to his invitation. The two of them walked up the stairs, Tea's head whipping around this way and that to drink in the riches of this place, meanwhile trying to keep her legs somewhat steady. She was going to spend the day with Seto Kaiba. It seemed like the reality had just sunk in. It made her legs feel wobbly and an unpleasant feeling bloomed in the back of her throat. It was not going to be a good day.
I I can't believe I agreed to this! /I
When they reached the top of the stairs, Mokuba lead Tea down another long hallway, before reaching a set of double doors at the end of the second corridor. They were closed. Seto must've gotten an important phone call. Tea meekly stood behind the young Kaiba brother as he knocked, wishing that she were somewhere else.
Kaiba and she did not have much contact with one another beyond the biting insults that he often threw around listlessly like his wads of cash. Yugi and Seto were rivals, and that automatically made Tea a disgusting insect that he thought he had the disposition to step on every time the two of them had shared an encounter. Usually, she would ignore people who thought it was their eternal obligation to insult others, but for some reason, Kaiba made her unexplainably so much angrier when he did it. It seemed that every time they did meet, she was shouting at him for being who he was---a cold, irritable, bastard.
Tea breathed in uncomfortably. Yet here she was, prepared to help him. Why was it that she cared so much anyway? It was only Seto Kaiba---the last human being on earth she would imagine herself feeling sorry for.
However, looking down at the head of messy black hair and remembering the look in Kaiba's eyes when he almost lost his brother, softened her. Deep down, somewhere, Kaiba did care about people. He saved her once, after all. And while she tried to tell herself that was only because he was in debt to her friends for saving his sibling, somehow, Tea knew better.
She was going to give him a chance, she decided. She was going to show him that he didn't have to be such a rotten person all the time-that he didn't have to treat life as if it were a battle; he could let loose and be a regular guy if he wanted to.
The trick was, getting him to realize that...or let him give **her** a chance to even show him. She very much doubted Mokuba had even so much told his older brother his plans for him today.
Mokuba opened the door just a bit to peak in before ushering her in first. She blundered into the room, half-embarrassed, half angry. Not a smooth entrance at all! She was just waiting to here him voice his displeasure at the sight of her. Just waiting.
"What are you doing here?" Seto was sitting in his office chair, back turned to the two of them. She could vaguely see his expression reflected in the tinted window--the trademark, Kaiba scowl. She narrowed her eyes; forget trying to be rational...he was already starting to annoy her. All nervousness was suddenly drowned by the intense desire to strangle him.
"Tea's here to help you, Seto," Mokuba said, before Tea could retort rudely. "She's your surprise. She'll take your mind off of work for a bit."
Seto chuckled grimly. "What was it that Wheeler said once, Gardner? Oh yes..."
"Can it, Kaiba," she interrupted before he could even finish that sentence, feeling the color rush to her cheeks. "I'm not a call-girl. Mokuba asked me here because he said you needed help."
"I don't need your help."
Mokuba frowned. "Seto..."
"Don't waste my time, little brother. There's nothing a cheerleader like her can do around here." He turned around in his chair and opened up his laptop again. "If I wanted another nuisance, I would've hired one."
The nerve of this guy! "What's your problem, Kaiba?"
"I'm looking at it." He told her lazily.
"You think people are disposable; that you can do and say to them what you want and that it won't matter to them at all." Once she had started, it became a lot more easier to unload. He always seemed to have this affect on her; her face would turn crimson, her pupils would dilate and the volume of her voice would increase. "Your only concern is your stupid business--- you know there are more important things in life than money and power!"
"Oh? Like 'friendship'?" He was mocking her now. "At least come up with something original and convincing, Gardner. You're selling, but I'm not buying."
"Okay, how about I sell *this* deal to you, Kaiba." She marched up to his desk and shut the laptop--if Seto had not taken away his hands in time, she would have crushed his fingers. Tea was so angry right now, that she wasn't even certain what she was saying. "I'll *show* you. I'll show you things that you're missing out on being the way you are--- things that you're putting off because you're too busy being a full-time hotshot. Seven days, Kaiba. Give me seven days and an open mind and then you can judge the world whatever way you want to."
"Tempting offer, Gardner, really---but I have a corporation to run. I can't exactly take seven days off and let you amuse me with this imbecilic plan of yours."
"You don't exactly have a lack of employees, you know," arms akimbo, she looked him straight in the eye. "Board of directors, a committee... Hire someone."
Seto scoffed. "As if I would trust any one of those idiots on my executive board to run this company."
"You could trust me."
Both Tea and Seto turned around to face Mokuba, who was still standing at the door, arms crossed and overseeing this entire argument. Seeing his brother's shocked expression, the younger Kaiba strolled up to the front of the desk idly. "You're always saying how I should put my skills to a test. I'm about the same age you were when you took over Kaibacorp---wouldn't you give me a chance to at least run it for a week?"
"I---" Kaiba opened his mouth in disbelief, while Tea, seeing the events unfold, could not help a small, smug smile. For once, stupid Kaiba was at a loss for words.
"You do trust me, don't you, big Brother?" Mokuba looked up at him expectantly.
Seto was hesitant. This was a perfectly planned trap--if he said no, he would upset his brother. If he said yes---he looked over at the girl and shuddered. "Are you sure, Mokuba? It's a big responsibility."
"I can take it," the younger boy's eyes twinkled. "Besides, you need a vacation."
"Spending time with one of the mutt's friends isn't what I consider a holiday"----there was a beat. Seto looked at Tea with scrutiny before turning his nose upwards--- "a holiday in hell, maybe."
A cruel smile.
"You're no walk along the beach, either, Kaiba," Tea growled, temperature rising again.
"If I'm so unbearable, why this ridiculous proposition?"
"Because I'm sick of you being so cynical--- maybe if someone showed you...."
"I don't need you to show me anything."
"Apparently I do," her blue eyes narrowed. "Consider it a challenge, Kaiba. Seven days living a normal, teenage life. No company responsibilities, no cell phones, limos, fax machines and clients. Think you can take it?"
Kaiba smirked. "It'll be a breeze."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
End of Chapter 2 .
A/N: I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of responses I've already received for this story...and it hadn't even started just yet. Thank you all who've reviewed...and even those who bothered not to, but still read and enjoyed. I hope none of you are disappointed that these chapters are a bit short---but it helps me update a lot more frequently. Make sure to check back every two or three days (though sometimes, I might surprise you :P )
Rayne B - Thanks very much for the compliment. Yeah, Anzu *is* cool. Though, personally, I think character-bashing of any kind is pointless and stupid--what's more amusing is that people who do bash characters often are incapable of writing a good, wholesome story. Pathetic indeed. ;)
Miryoku - You'll certainly find out soon enough! Your comment was appreciated. :P
Mamono - Seto/Tea fandom *is* certainly growing, though I seem to be having trouble finding stories that are actually spell checked and depict this couple tastefully and in-character. Kaiba is not a romantic soul--- he's a cold, shrewd bastard. I clicked onto your author link and I see that you have a few stories written about this pairing---you'll certainly be hearing from me! ;) Thanks for reading! :D
AkaVertigo - Arrr... No worries, lass! I solemnly promise that I shall not butcher the characters of Tea and Seto (or any of the others) and reduce them to the fruitcakes you meet in Danielle Steel novels. One of the reasons I love Seto Kaiba's character so much is *because* he's such an astringent bastard---it makes this pairing a lot more interesting to play around with. Arigato. ^_^
Malik Fan 03 - If you've already read this chapter, your burning questions have already been answered! Dua Netjer en ek (That's Egyptian for Thank-you! :) )
