A Brief Note from the Authors: To all - Seto Kaiba is not a rock. Please don't ask us to make him one. It will not happen. It is okay for him to have emotions, he's not a robot after all...or a rock. And this chapter's kind of long...not sure if that's good or bad...Enjoy anyway! ^_^

Chapter 14

"…and Confrontations"

"Well done, boys. I'm impressed, I truly am," Seline cooed, leaning between Todd and Chalie as the put the finishing touching on the elaborate paintings on the marble floor of the lowest level of the museum.

All around them were the complex and intricately built ritual space. What was being finished was a large circle created in paints of red, white, black and gold, covered with hieroglyphics and other darker, cryptic-looking figures. Around the circle were place four tall gold poles, each with a ring of unlit candles at the top, all places at equal intervals around the paining. All around the room were tapestries and sculptures depicting the same figures that bedecked the floor.

"Everything will be ready for tonight, correct?" she asked.

"Yes, Mistress," Chalie nodded, with a slight smile tugging at his usually thin mouth, "As I have already told you many times today."

"I'm sorry, but I just can't help being a little anxious," she admitted, standing up.

Todd sat back, brushing his bangs out of his face and watching the woman stride towards the back of the room, "And is that a good or a bad 'anxious'?" he asked.

"I bit of both," she said, pulling a switch on the nearest wall and illuminating the Millennium Shield, which was up on a stand, no longer encased by glass, but rather framed by heavy red curtains. After admiring it for a moment, she turned back to them, "The necessary precautions are in order, right?"

"Yes," Chalie said, getting to his feet and brushing dust off of the worn khaki pants and black tank-top he had chosen to wear for this near-to-manual-labor task, "The counter curse only requires two people to perform, and Todd and I have it memorized. If Maeda tries to betray us, he will find himself hostless once again, and you will have the opportunity to seal him away for good once that happens. You may not retain control of the Shield, but we will still remain alive. I took the liberty of believing you would value the latter over the former."

Seline smiled demurely, "You know me far too well, Chalie."

* * *

"You're staring…" Mai said, "What? Did I spill something on my shirt?"

Joey started, wrenching his eyeballs upwards to the cynical face of Mai Valentine. He began to blush, just now realizing that his eyes had drifted without his consent, "Wasn't starin', just… lookin'."

Mai's face went slightly pink with pleasure, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't keep her features hardened in annoyance. As much as she tried to deny it, she sort of…liked the fact that she could catch him staring. Resting her elbows on the table between them, she grinned, "See somethin' ya like?"

Bad question, Joey ol' boy, very bad question… he thought nervously as he contemplated the possible answers. The truth was probably likely to result in bodily harm, but denial could end up that way as well. Little honesty never hurt anyone before now, "Yeah, you could say that…" Wheeler said speedily, stuffing another chop-stick full of ramen in his mouth in an attempt to avoid more dangerous questions.

Mai leaned back against the chair, still smiling. He doesn't realize how gorgeous he is…she mused, watching him eat, Even at his most…ungraceful. Yes, he's completely oblivious. She reached over the table and brushed a bit of noodle that missed his mouth off his cheek. "Slow down, tiger. Don't forget to come up for air," she told him teasingly.

Joey swallowed his large mouth-full, grinning sheepishly, "Sorry. I didn't mean to stare at ya like that…"

"S'alright," she shrugged, "Can't I don't enjoy it every once and again."

"Really?" the teen asked, incredulously.

"I know I get stares all the time," she admitted, "But they don't mean anything real. When it's you…I dunno…it's flattering."

"Uhhh… thanks, I think. As long as you don't mind an' all," the young man told her, one hand behind his head.

"Just don't make a habit out of it," she said, lifting her purse up onto her lap, "I'll cover tonight."

Joey put one hand over hers, one eyebrow raised, "You paid last time, Mai! Besides, it's only Ramen. Even I have enough money to pay for flavored-noodles."

"Okay…" she said, resignedly, "But shouldn't you be saving that money for college or something?"

"Yeah, but that would be a lost cause," Joey said, smiling sadly, "Even if I were smart enough to get into a college, I would never have as much money as necessary to even get in a community one, much less them fancy schools."

Mai sighed wistfully, "I wish I'd gotten the chance to make it past high school." Then shook her head as if it were silly to be wishing such things and asked him, "Well, if you don't plan on continuing in school, what will you do after graduation?"

"Get a job, maybe two," he replied, shrugging, "Something simple, as long as it pays the bills."

"You could always go into modeling," Mai said lightly, as she rose from their table, "You were a big hit last weekend."

Joey placed the correct amount from his rough-looking wallet down on the table, standing up after her, "I kinda get the feeling they were just humorin' me. Like I was some big joke or somethin'."

"No!" Mai said, looking horrified and taking hold of his arm, "Not at all…the other girls were raving about you in the dressing room…actually, it made me a little jealous," she admitted.

"Yeah?" he asked, grinning nearly ear-to-ear. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, whispering in her ear softly, "Don' worry, I'm yers as long as you want."

Mai grinned, "Forever and ever?" she asked softly.

"Well, I might croak during that time period, but other than that: sure."

She couldn't help but laugh, "Let's get outta here. Dessert's on me."

"Can't argue wit' that," he said, and the two of them strode out of the diner, arm in arm, into the gathering darkness.

* * *

"The answer is still no," Kaiba said firmly, blocking the doorway into his manor, "Vitani is not fit to see anyone right now. Don't make me say this again!"

"She doesn't even know I'm here, does she??" Athena spat, "If you'd tell her, I'm sure she'd want to see me!" She made again to shove past the man who was a full head taller than her.

"She doesn't need to see anyone now! Take one more step and I won't be responsible for what happens to you," Seto warned, still jamming her from coming in, "You are breaking and entering!"

"I'd like to see you try –" Athena growled.

"Seto, what's going on??" came a voice from within the foyer and both of them turned. Vitani was standing at the foot of the stairs leading to the upper floors, dressed more casually than usually, in gray pajama-pants and white long-sleeved T-Shirt. She was still looking rather pale, and the circles under her eyes had darkened. "Who's out there?"

"Vitani!!" Athena cried, ducking under Kaiba's spread arms and running towards her sister, "Tani, are you alright??"

"Thena?" the Egyptian gasped, finding herself in the Grecian's tight hug, "What in the world?"

"Vitani," Kaiba started, flushing pink at having his actions directly contradicted by his assistant, "You need rest, not distractions."

"Seto…" Vitani said, giving him a pleading look, "My sister is not a distraction." Then she pulled back from the Greek, one eyebrow raised, "What are you doing here, Thena?"

"Oh, Tani, I've been so worried about you," Athena said, embracing Vitani once more, "You look awful…it's true isn't it?" she said quietly after a brief moment, "He isn't gone, is it?"

Vitani winced, "No…no he's not, Thena. I'm glad you're here…I'm scared," she whispered, burying her face in Athena chest.

"It's alright…" Athena murmured, "We'll get through this…I promise…"

Seto Kaiba snorted and stormed out of the room. He was the one that had saved her from rotting in an Egyptian prison. He was the one that signed the second largest paycheck at Kaiba Corp for her every week! He was the one that had gone looking for her when she disappeared! But no, she turns to this come-out-of-nowhere sister that just happens to drop by after six months! 'That figures…' he thought, disgusted, 'with my luck…'

"Boy, he sure seems to care a lot," Athena said sarcastically, looking off in the direction that Kabia had gone.

"Huh?" Vitani said, following her sister's gaze, "Oh no…Athena don't say that…I think he really does worry about me…but he doesn't like to say it. And I've been too afraid that he'll think badly of me if I ever opened up like this to him…he doesn't like weakness."

Athena's brow furrowed in thought, then asked gently, "Tani…is there something else going on here…? Between you two?" Her question was answered as the color rose in Vitani's cheeks. "I think you'd better go follow him," she said, "I'll wait for you here. We can talk again later, okay?"

Vitani nodded, smiling weakly, and ran off after Kaiba. She caught up with him in the kitchen, where he was seated on a stool in front of the counter, apparently sulking. "Seto…?" she asked hesitantly, coming up behind him, "I don't understand…what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said, not turning around, "I just thought that you two might want some time alone." His hands were fiddling around with his Palm Pilot, but next to nothing was being accomplished.

Frustrated, she reached out and grabbed his hands, not making him drop the device, but making him focus on her. "Look – what happened this afternoon that you're not telling me? You've been acting strangely ever since we left work, like it's my last day or some-" she caught her breath, fear evident in her bright green eyes, "What did he tell you, Seto…?" she asked.

Kaiba found that he could avoid her no longer, "He said today was your last day, Vitani! Jetsu plans to somehow kill you tonight! That's why I was keeping everyone away; That's why I wanted you and I to be alone! I have a much better chance of defeating him without others around to distract me! Why do you think Mokuba is spending the night at a friend's house?" All that had been bottled up inside had found its way out, trying to shed light on the ignorance he had caused earlier that day.

For a long moment Vitani was silent, taking it all in. Then she released his hands and clasped her arms around him tightly, too upset even to cry, and whispered, "Thank you…I – I wish I knew what else to say…"

He smiled a bit, thankful that she hadn't fled again, "You need to be with your sister now. Go, enjoy yourself. I'll deal with Jetsu when the time comes."

"I think she needs to be with you a little more," Athena said, as she appeared in the doorway, "There'll always be tomorrow for us to catch up. You just make sure she has a tomorrow, Kaiba." Then with a slight wave, she headed for the door to the manor.

* * *

Outside Mai's apartment building, she and Joey were lost in a tight lip-lock; neither one wanting to relent first, each lost in the warmth of the others nearness. At long last, Mai broke away from him, whispering, "Good night."

Joey sighed, gazing longingly into her eyes. "Yeah…g'night," he said, reluctantly turning to go.

"Wait," she said, quickly grabbing his hand.

"Hmm? What?" he asked, turning back to her.

Mai bit her bottom lip hesitantly, then blurted out, "Do you wanna come up?" 'What am I doing??' she thought immediately afterwards, 'He's not ready for this…god, I wish he was ready…'

Joey's eyes widened. Had she really said what he'd thought she'd said?! 'She wants me to come up to her apartment…and that means…' He felt a shiver run through his entire body as he imagined what could possibly come next. "I…I…" he stammered.

'Oh no,' Mai thought, 'I've just ruined the whole thing…Why did I have to go and open my big mouth? I should've controlled myself…'

"Yes," he said suddenly, squeezing her hand, "I do." He swallowed nervously, but her smile relaxed him.

"Okay…" she said, "Come on." In silence, she led him into the building and up to her room. She unlocked the door and stepped inside, still pulling him gently behind her.

* * *

It was hours before the single to residents of Kaiba Manor both decided to turn in for the night. Seto set up a folding chair outside of Vitani's room, where he could wait to stop anything Jetsu had planned. Vitani hadn't been thrilled with this selected course of action, but agreed that it was probably for the best in the end.

Sleep was difficult for someone who feared having their body possessed at any moment. By 2:00 AM, however, the Egyptian girl could hold off sleep no more. When her head hit the pillow and the last strands of consciousness left her, there was a familiar flash of light and the soul in charge of the body changed. Jetsu Maeda, ancestor of the highest priest of Egypt, smiled to himself, "Enjoy your rest, Vitani. Death during slumber is always easiest." He murmured an incantation quickly and his outfit changed from Vitani's night clothes to the traditional white robes he had worn during what should have been his greatest triumph over the Pharaoh.

He put this thought to the back of his mind, comforted by the fact that his second chance was mere hours away. He rose and silently slid open one of the windows. He knew the fool, Seto Kaiba, was waiting out in the hall, so he opted for a more direct route out of the mansion. Using the woman's size and agility to his advantage, he leapt gracefully to the snow-covered yard two stories below, and then darted across it towards the wall surrounding the manor.

Several minutes later, the door to Vitani's room creaked open. Kaiba felt exhausted by the day's events. He just had to make sure that she was sound asleep and then he could head off to get some sleep. The sight that he found was startling: there was no sign of Vitani and… the window was open. The boy billionaire cursed loudly and tore through the room to get to the window. He saw the footsteps leading to the outer wall; that would be a start for now!

He leaped out of the window, not nearly as gracefully as he would've liked, but he hit the ground in a roll and was quickly on his feet, adrenaline pumping through his veins. Kaiba took no time at all following the footsteps to the wall and then climbing over it, with less difficulty than he would've thought. On the other side, the footprints continued on, but it had begun to snow again. He dashed off on the trail, knowing that if he didn't act fast, he would lose her forever.

* * *

Athena dragged herself up to Bakura's apartment, feeling an invisible weight pulling her downwards as she did so. She knew that Kaiba would do everything in his power to keep Vitani safe, but who knew if that would be enough. She wished there was more that she could do, but she also knew that trying to do anything would only hinder Kaiba's efforts and put her sister in even more danger. Then why did you even bother coming…? said a small voice in the back of her mind. She pushed the door of the apartment open, thinking, You know, that's a really good question…

"That sure took a while," Diana said, looking up from her seat at the kitchen table, "Did you get in?"

"Yeah…" Athena nodded, "I got to see her…she's looks terrible…but Kaiba insists that he knows what to do…"

"And you actually trust him??" Nick asked, coming out of the bathroom dressed in gray sweatpants, with a towel draped over his shoulders.

"I do…" Athena said, "If you had asked me yesterday, I definitely would've told you different but tonight…I saw a side of Kaiba I never thought I'd live to see. I think he really does care about her…and I trust that…"

"Wow…" Diana said, resting her chin in her hands, "Still…don't you think we should at least keep an eye on what's going on?"

"What are you suggesting?" Nick asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Diana crossed the room to where their things were stashed and unzipped her duffle bag. Inside were folds of what looked like old sheets and out of them, she pulled a gold statue of a slim, emerald-eyed cat. "I think it's time I got some use out of this," she said.

"Excellent…" Nick said, grinning, as all three siblings seated themselves in the Living room.

Diana waved her hand over the stature, murmuring an incantation, and with a brilliant flash, the statue blinked its jeweled eyes up at her. She stroked it gently and told it, "Seek out the darkest evil locked within the pure heart of our sister." The gold cat purred and leapt from Diana's lap, slinking to the door and vanished through it like a ghost. Diana raised her hands to her chest as a misty orb began to form between her palms. As she let go of the ball, and it floated between the three siblings, already they could make out the cat's perspective of the stairs leading to the first floor of the building. "Now all we can do is watch…and wait," Diana said, leaning back against the couch.

* * *

"It is nearly time, my Pharaoh," Shadi said, finally moving from his meditative position. He seemed unaffected by the bitter cold where he, Yami, and Void stood just outside the Domino Museum.

"Yes, I can sense a powerful magic approaching." The ruler of Egypt nodded, still leaning against the double doors.

Shadi turned to Void, "I have no doubt that you will perform your part well. You need only distract him until I can complete the spell."

The young man nodded, though he looked nervous. Shadi placed the Millennium Key above both of their heads and they disappeared from view.

Void walked several paces, positioning himself in front of the doors leading into the museum.

Barely a minute had past when the magically-annulled man saw the approaching figure of Vitani, or rather, Jetsu Maeda. The other seemed not to notice him. He merely climbed up the many steps to the entrance of the large building uncaringly, stopping only feet away from Void. He raised an eyebrow, gazing lividly at his former servant, "I thought I would only be killing one of my servants tonight." Jetsu said cruelly, sneering, "Where have you been hiding these last six months, Void?"

The young man swallowed hard, and set his jaw. "I have not been hiding anywhere," he said, without a trace of fear in his voice, "And I will not permit you to enter this building."

Maeda slid the sword out of its sheath, then began taking slow steps towards Void, "I have no time for your idiocy tonight, Void. You always were a sniveling little fool; I should have done away with you the same night I killed your parents. Why I thought that you would be a suitable servant escapes me now." He raised the blade and pointed it straight towards the young man, the point mere millimeters away from the vulnerable throat area, "Move."

A brief fire flickered in Void's eyes, as he was forced to absorb this piece of information that he had so longed for. He had not wanted to find out this way, but now there was no undoing it. Quickly, he reached within the folds of his cloak and drew out a sword of his own, taking one step back so that the blades were just nearly touching. "No." With that Void rushed forwards, swinging downwards with his blade towards Vitani's mid-section. Shadi had told him to take any action necessary to keep Jetsu from entering the building, even attempt to take Vitani's life. Not that the Pharaoh had been informed of this.

"What is he doing??" Yami whispered harshly to Shadi from their hiding place, "What did you give him permission to do?"

Shadi did not break his concentration and continued his Egyptian spell, simply shaking his head to wave away Yami's question.

Jetsu did not move until the last second possible. He swung his extended arm ninety degrees to the right, making the Millennium Sword connect with Void's rapier rapidly. The move cleaved the weaker, steel sword in two, the magic qualities of the Millennium Item clearly more powerful that a normal object. The startling move threw Void completely off balance. Jetsu lashed out one foot and knocked Void to the ground. He glared down evilly at his former servant, his weapon raised, "If you will not move, you will die!"

As he brought the weapon down, he froze in mid stroke, glowing with a misty yellow light. He cried out in rage as Void scrambled to his feet. The young man watched as Shadi and Yami came back into view, Shadi holding the Millennium Key and Yami looking grim. He was not looking forward to facing off with Maeda again, but at least this time, it would not put his host in any danger.

"We must act quickly," Shadi said, ignoring the string of Egyptian curses Jetsu was hurling at them all, "The holding spell will only last long enough for me to open up the girl's mind. After that, it will be all up to you."

"I'm ready," Yami said. Shadi raised the Key up to Jetsu's forehead, where the burning red symbol of the Egyptian Eye was visible.

Before he could enter into the man's mind, more footsteps reached their ears. Yami turned, trying to see who the approaching figure was through the light snow that had begun. Void's eyes widened, "Is that not Seto Kaiba? What is he doing here at this hour?"

"It is him," Yami said, nodding slowly, "And I have a hunch as to why he showed up here…"

"He cannot help the girl, my Pharaoh," Shadi spoke up warningly, "His magic is weak."

Yami's eyes narrowed, "Somehow…I don't think that's going to stop him."

Void brushed past the strange trio down the Museum steps, meeting Kaiba at the foot of them. "You should not be here," he said, "You will only be getting in the way. Don't–"

"Get out of my way," Seto said angrily, pushing past Void and dashing up the stairs.

As he approached, Shadi muttered, "If you are to act, now would be the proper time, Yami. Before he can interfere."

"I know…" Yami said, but he did not move.

Kaiba pulled the Rod out from its place on his belt, raising it towards Yami and Shadi, "What are you doing to her? This is my battle!"

"I expected you would come," Yami said calmly, "Your battle is to take place within Vitani's mind, and we have simply restrained Maeda long enough to let you enter it, with the aid of Shadi's Key."

"What are you talking about?" Seto Kaiba asked, confused.

"Why don't I show you Seto Kaiba?" Shadi asked, his voice weak and his brow covered in sweat, "Good luck, Mr. Kaiba. You're going to need it."

Before Kaiba had a chance to ask how it was possible to enter the mind of another, he felt a hard jolt from somewhere around his naval and was suddenly enveloped in a wash of color and images that passed by to quickly to be recognized. After a few dizzying seconds, he landed on a hard surface, on his back. Moaning slightly of nausea and soreness, he sat up, rubbing the back of his head and trying to will his eyes to adjust to the dimness more quickly.

As he stood, he took in the strangeness of his surroundings. The building he was in looked like a crumbling temple, with pits of stone falling off the walls and torn tapestries hanging limply on them. There were flickering torches nearly about to go out in a few places, and as he wandered closer to where the most seemed to congregate, he found himself standing in front of a large stone altar. Lying on the altar wearing a worn-out, white dress, and bedecked with tarnished gold jewelry, was Vitani. She was unconscious, her skin was covered in bruises and cuts, and her face was streaked with old tears.

With a trembling hand, he reached out to touch her face, fighting back the fury that was brimming inside him. "What has he done to you?!" he whispered.

"Nothing," came a concise, male voice from behind him. Jetsu Maeda, in his true form, stepped out of the shadows and into view, "She's been beating herself up for the past six months, about her time spent as my servant. It made it that much easier for me to gain control of her feeble mind and body."

"You bastard…" Kabia growled, wheeling around and pulling the Rod out of its holster, "I won't let this continue."

"There's nothing you can do to stop me now, I'm afraid," Jetsu told him, shaking his head as he walked the few steps up to the altar, ignoring the presence of the Millennium Rod, "You were a fool to come here, Seto Kaiba. Shadi's spell will have worn off in a matter of minutes and all this commotion is sure to attract Seline. Then I'll be able to get out of this pathetic host and into my own body."

"You son of a bitch!" Kaiba roared, sprinting forwards, swinging at the older man with the hatchet-like end of the Millennium Rod.

Jetsu had the Sword in his hand in an instant, managing to block the attack at point-blank range. The two men struggled mightily against each other for a second or two, when Maeda lifted his other hand and pointed it at Kaiba's chest. A small orb of black-light appeared in his hand without warning and he yelled loudly, forcing the orb into a beam of energy that smashed right into Seto and knocked him backwards off of the altar.

The young man picked himself up quickly, clutching at his chest, only to find a hole burned in the front of his jacket. He tore it off, as it only impeded his movements anyway, and turned back to Maeda. "What the hell was that?"

"Simple, pure energy," Jetsu said, sheathing the Sword and forming another red orb in each hand, "You see, in this realm we can do no harm to each other in mere conventional, physical ways. With the proper magical training, one can conjure these blasts with pure concentration of energy. I've had six months to develop a skill unique to only this place, but your soul will be destroyed long before you could even begin to comprehend how to manage it." He spun one orb on his forefinger playfully, "Not only that, but if you try to evade my attacks, the damage to the wench's already feeble mind will be much too severe for her to ever recover from."

Kaiba growled in frustration and clutched the Millennium Rod tightly. If physical attacks wouldn't work he'd have to move on to Plan B. That would have been fine, he mused, if there was a Plan B. He'd never gotten the chance to learn to control the Rod, so he'd have to play this one by ear.

Before he could even begin to think of his next move, Jetsu fired another blast at him. There was ample time to avoid it, but Vitani's mind was at stake here. He lifted the Rod in front of him as a shield and found that, although the shock wave knocked him backwards, the Rod had absorbed most of the blast on its own. Somewhat relieved, he stepped forwards again, not having a clue as to what he should do, except that he had a means of defending himself now.

"Little annoyance!" Jetsu shouted, sheathing the Sword once again and sprinting forward at top speed.

Kaiba swung the Rod as a reaction, but the metal axe seemed to go right through the man. Jetsu put his right hand above Kaiba's (which was still gripping the Millennium Item firmly) and put his left up to Seto's face. The next blast seemed weaker than the previous two, but perhaps it was simply the temporary fatigue at having used so much magic in so little time.

Seto was thrown into the stone altar on which Vitani lay, and in the midst of all the pain tearing through his face, he felt the heavy weight of a soft body falling on top of his. Through bleary eyes, he realized that Vitani had rolled off of the altar, and panic gripped at him. Trying to ignore the fact that he could barely see to tell where the next attack might come from, he cradled her in his arms, struggled to his feet and set her back on the altar.

"Sentimental fool," Jetsu spat, tossing the Millennium Rod aside. The Priest slowly began his trek back to where his opponent stood, looking around on the walls, "This place certainly has gone downhill in six months," he commented mildly, "You used to be able to see the scriptures on these ramparts so easily. I would think that you would be interested in them, Seto Kaiba. You're mentioned in quite a few of them."

Kaiba was leaning against the altar, staring down at Vitani's helpless, desecrated form as Jetsu's words sank in. "What are you talking about?" he panted.

"Vitani has a long line of Egyptian history, much like you and I. Her ancestry has been interlinked with yours since the time of the Millennium Items and the Shadow Games." He turned away from the writings on the walls of Vitani's mind, smiling at Kaiba, "Ironic, how both of your lines will end together as well."

"…Interlinked with…mine…?" Seto echoed, turning around with difficulty.

Jetsu lifted both hands as an enormous orb of black light and red sparks formed between them. With a roar, he released it, letting it sail across the chamber, incinerating the altar and blowing both Kaiba and Vitani into the air. Seto hit the nearest wall and slid to the floor. As he tried to crawl over to Vitani's lifeless figure, Jetsu swooped down upon him, grabbing hold of him by the hair and yanking him upwards violently. "Get it through your thick, bleeding head, boy," he hissed, "Do you think the connection between you is a coincidence? Read the wall! You should understand before I send you both to hell."

Kaiba's eyes traveled up to the top of the hieroglyphics and it was as if one of Ishizu's flashbacks had been placed before him.