First off, I'd like to thank all of you that took the time to review the
first chapter. I really appreciate it. Also, I'd like this story to be the
best it can be, so if any of you have any suggestions, whether it be
technical (grammar, spelling, whatever) or maybe ideas for the plot of the
story, I'd love to hear from you. Enjoy the second chapter, and watch out
for more, as I intend to finish this story sometime in the near future
(Keyword: intend).
***
The next day at school began normally, but it didn't stay that way for long. Yugi walked into his classroom and sat down next to Joey. They both watched their classmates walk into the room, but their attention was focused on one.
Seto Kaiba walked into the room last, and that in itself was odd. Kaiba was always early. He stumbled over to his seat, sat down, and stared down at his desk, as if hypnotized by the wood grain.
"See?" Yugi said, looking back at Joey. "He's been that way since last Tuesday."
Joey nodded. "Yeah...he does look out of it. Ya gonna give him back his locket?"
"Yeah."
Yugi got up, walked over to the other side of the room. The desk next to Kaiba was empty, so he sat down. Kaiba didn't react. He pulled the locket out and set it on Kaiba's desk. "Hey, Kaiba?"
The response was a tiny, almost nonexistent flicker of his eyes.
"Uh...you dropped this yesterday? I thought...well, I figured you'd want it back."
Again, Kaiba didn't react. But his eyes were now focused on the locket. Yugi frowned, decided to be direct. "Uh...listen, Kaiba. I-Is everything alright? I mean, did something happen? 'Cuz I gotta say...you've been acting kind of weird lately and...well, I'm worried about you."
A sudden movement caught him by surprise, and it took Yugi a moment to realize that Kaiba had shot to his feet, and now had him by the collar of his shirt. His cold cobalt eyes blazed with wrath.
"Don't bother!" he snarled, loud enough for everyone to hear. "Everything's fine, damn it, just fucking perfect!!"
He whirled around, stalked out the door, pushing a surprised instructor out of his way. Yugi heard the hall monitor tell him to stop, then a crash as something hit a locker.
Shocked and worried again, Yugi took a deep breath, looked back at Joey. His eyes, as well as everyone else's, were wide with surprise.
He picked up the locket and shuffled back to his own desk, eyes locked on his feet. He couldn't pay attention to his instructor; all that was on his mind was Kaiba, and his outburst at a harmless question.
***
At lunch, not surprisingly, Kaiba was nowhere to be found. Yugi sat down with his other friends – Tristan Taylor, Tèa Gardner, and Ryou Bakura – and immediately forgot about his food.
"What happened this morning?" Tèa asked. "What did you say?"
"Nothing," Yugi said. "I just asked him if anything was wrong. He's been acting strangely lately, and yesterday I found his locket on the ground. I just tried to give it back to him."
"Looks like he wasn't interested," Tristan noted.
"Well...I'll keep it for him, anyway. I just don't get it! Why'd he blow up like that? It was a simple question."
"Not so simply answered at times," Ryou said softly. "There's obviously something wrong, but he probably just doesn't want us to know about it. You know how Kaiba is. He doesn't like showing weakness."
"It isn't weak to tell someone if something's wrong!" Yugi protested.
"It is for him, apparently," Ryou replied. "He isn't a social person, Yugi, he's a businessman. He's probably used to having everything he says used against him. That's how business is, as far as I can tell. I think if he wants to tell us what's wrong, he will. We should just leave him be."
"Yeah...but whatever's up with him, it's big," Joey said. "Did you guys notice his shirt? It was only half-buttoned, at the top. And that half wasn't done right, either. It's like he tried to button the thing, couldn't, and just gave up halfway."
"Hey, yeah!" Tristan said. "And his hair? It was all messed up, like he didn't bother to comb it. And you know Kaiba, he's always so neat and precise. It just isn't like him. And one of his pant legs was stuck into his shoe."
"I'm worried, guys," Yugi said. "It's just...too weird. Kaiba's never acted like this before."
"Yeah. I mean, I seen him angry before," Joey said, "but he's usually all calm and threatening. It ain't like him to just...scream like that."
"Something huge must've happened," Tristan said. He took a sip from his milk carton and grimaced. "I swear, someone's gotta fire that lunch lady. She's even got the milk recipe wrong!"
That succeeded in lightening the mood, and Yugi finally began to eat. But in the back of his mind, there sat Kaiba, with his disheveled hair, his half-buttoned shirt, and a pant leg stuck in his shoe.
"Wonder if he lost a bunch of money on some business deal or somethin'," Joey said. "Could be somethin' simple as that. Losin' money always gets people messed up."
"That doesn't explain why he didn't take his locket back, or why he broke it in the first place," Yugi said. "That's what confuses me. What made him mad enough to break it, and what made him shocked enough to make him a zombie. He's been like that for a week, guys."
Tèa shrugged. "I don't know, but I think we should try to help him."
"Easier said than done," Joey muttered. "He won't talk to any of us normally. What makes ya think he'll talk to us now, when he's like this? Like Ryou said, if he wanted to tell us, he would've."
"Well, we should still find out what's wrong, and try to help."
"Like to know how." Joey took a big bite of his chicken sandwich.
Yugi would have liked to know, too. It didn't worry him so much that Kaiba was acting strangely. That could be explained just like Joey had said. Maybe he lost money, or something happened with his company. But the locket...that was the problem.
Yugi sighed, deciding he'd think about it later. He finished his lunch, talked to his friends about nothing for a while, until the bell rang and he went back to class. Like in the morning, he couldn't pay attention.
When he got home, he didn't bother to get a snack like he usually did, but went straight up to his room above his grandfather's game shop and went to sleep. Thankfully, he had no dreams.
***
He woke up at about 4:30, and went downstairs into the shop, where his grandfather stood behind the counter, reading a newspaper that was spread out before him. Solomon looked up at his grandson with sympathetic eyes.
Yugi raised an eyebrow. "Uh...something wrong?"
"I'm afraid so, Yugi. Your little friend, Mokuba? He's...he's gone missing."
"What?!"
Solomon showed him the paper.
It was a small column, with the word MISSING as the headline. There were five pictures, three girls and two boys, and sure enough, one of the boys was Mokuba. He'd been missing since...
...last Tuesday.
That was it!
"Oh, my god..." Yugi whispered. "I...I can't believe it...does it say anything else? Does it say what happened?"
"No. I'm sorry, Yugi."
Yugi ran to the phone. He had to call Joey! He punched in the numbers and listened impatiently. Finally, on the fifth ring, Joey answered.
"Joey Wheeler, talk to me."
"Joey, it's Yugi. I figured it out!"
"Figured what out, Yug? 'Bout Kaiba?"
"Yeah! Come over! Quick!"
"Be right there, Yug."
***
Joey set the paper down and nodded. "So that's what's got him all messed up," he said. Yugi nodded. "I can see why he'd be worked up. I know I'd be...But, wait...That still don't explain the thing 'bout the locket!"
Yugi looked up, surprised. "Yeah...you'd think he'd want it more than ever now. Why would he...?"
Joey frowned. "Maybe we oughtta go over to Kaiba's mansion, see if there ain't nothin' we can do to help."
Yugi nodded. "Yeah. Mokuba's our friend, too. We should help out."
Joey walked over to the doorway. "C'mon, Yug, we'll take my car. Let's go quick. 'Fore it gets dark."
Yugi checked his jacket to make sure he still had the locket, grabbed the newspaper as an afterthought, then followed his friend out to the used Hyundai parked just outside. Joey hopped into the driver's seat, and Yugi slipped into the passenger's.
They drove in silence to the Kaiba mansion.
***
The next day at school began normally, but it didn't stay that way for long. Yugi walked into his classroom and sat down next to Joey. They both watched their classmates walk into the room, but their attention was focused on one.
Seto Kaiba walked into the room last, and that in itself was odd. Kaiba was always early. He stumbled over to his seat, sat down, and stared down at his desk, as if hypnotized by the wood grain.
"See?" Yugi said, looking back at Joey. "He's been that way since last Tuesday."
Joey nodded. "Yeah...he does look out of it. Ya gonna give him back his locket?"
"Yeah."
Yugi got up, walked over to the other side of the room. The desk next to Kaiba was empty, so he sat down. Kaiba didn't react. He pulled the locket out and set it on Kaiba's desk. "Hey, Kaiba?"
The response was a tiny, almost nonexistent flicker of his eyes.
"Uh...you dropped this yesterday? I thought...well, I figured you'd want it back."
Again, Kaiba didn't react. But his eyes were now focused on the locket. Yugi frowned, decided to be direct. "Uh...listen, Kaiba. I-Is everything alright? I mean, did something happen? 'Cuz I gotta say...you've been acting kind of weird lately and...well, I'm worried about you."
A sudden movement caught him by surprise, and it took Yugi a moment to realize that Kaiba had shot to his feet, and now had him by the collar of his shirt. His cold cobalt eyes blazed with wrath.
"Don't bother!" he snarled, loud enough for everyone to hear. "Everything's fine, damn it, just fucking perfect!!"
He whirled around, stalked out the door, pushing a surprised instructor out of his way. Yugi heard the hall monitor tell him to stop, then a crash as something hit a locker.
Shocked and worried again, Yugi took a deep breath, looked back at Joey. His eyes, as well as everyone else's, were wide with surprise.
He picked up the locket and shuffled back to his own desk, eyes locked on his feet. He couldn't pay attention to his instructor; all that was on his mind was Kaiba, and his outburst at a harmless question.
***
At lunch, not surprisingly, Kaiba was nowhere to be found. Yugi sat down with his other friends – Tristan Taylor, Tèa Gardner, and Ryou Bakura – and immediately forgot about his food.
"What happened this morning?" Tèa asked. "What did you say?"
"Nothing," Yugi said. "I just asked him if anything was wrong. He's been acting strangely lately, and yesterday I found his locket on the ground. I just tried to give it back to him."
"Looks like he wasn't interested," Tristan noted.
"Well...I'll keep it for him, anyway. I just don't get it! Why'd he blow up like that? It was a simple question."
"Not so simply answered at times," Ryou said softly. "There's obviously something wrong, but he probably just doesn't want us to know about it. You know how Kaiba is. He doesn't like showing weakness."
"It isn't weak to tell someone if something's wrong!" Yugi protested.
"It is for him, apparently," Ryou replied. "He isn't a social person, Yugi, he's a businessman. He's probably used to having everything he says used against him. That's how business is, as far as I can tell. I think if he wants to tell us what's wrong, he will. We should just leave him be."
"Yeah...but whatever's up with him, it's big," Joey said. "Did you guys notice his shirt? It was only half-buttoned, at the top. And that half wasn't done right, either. It's like he tried to button the thing, couldn't, and just gave up halfway."
"Hey, yeah!" Tristan said. "And his hair? It was all messed up, like he didn't bother to comb it. And you know Kaiba, he's always so neat and precise. It just isn't like him. And one of his pant legs was stuck into his shoe."
"I'm worried, guys," Yugi said. "It's just...too weird. Kaiba's never acted like this before."
"Yeah. I mean, I seen him angry before," Joey said, "but he's usually all calm and threatening. It ain't like him to just...scream like that."
"Something huge must've happened," Tristan said. He took a sip from his milk carton and grimaced. "I swear, someone's gotta fire that lunch lady. She's even got the milk recipe wrong!"
That succeeded in lightening the mood, and Yugi finally began to eat. But in the back of his mind, there sat Kaiba, with his disheveled hair, his half-buttoned shirt, and a pant leg stuck in his shoe.
"Wonder if he lost a bunch of money on some business deal or somethin'," Joey said. "Could be somethin' simple as that. Losin' money always gets people messed up."
"That doesn't explain why he didn't take his locket back, or why he broke it in the first place," Yugi said. "That's what confuses me. What made him mad enough to break it, and what made him shocked enough to make him a zombie. He's been like that for a week, guys."
Tèa shrugged. "I don't know, but I think we should try to help him."
"Easier said than done," Joey muttered. "He won't talk to any of us normally. What makes ya think he'll talk to us now, when he's like this? Like Ryou said, if he wanted to tell us, he would've."
"Well, we should still find out what's wrong, and try to help."
"Like to know how." Joey took a big bite of his chicken sandwich.
Yugi would have liked to know, too. It didn't worry him so much that Kaiba was acting strangely. That could be explained just like Joey had said. Maybe he lost money, or something happened with his company. But the locket...that was the problem.
Yugi sighed, deciding he'd think about it later. He finished his lunch, talked to his friends about nothing for a while, until the bell rang and he went back to class. Like in the morning, he couldn't pay attention.
When he got home, he didn't bother to get a snack like he usually did, but went straight up to his room above his grandfather's game shop and went to sleep. Thankfully, he had no dreams.
***
He woke up at about 4:30, and went downstairs into the shop, where his grandfather stood behind the counter, reading a newspaper that was spread out before him. Solomon looked up at his grandson with sympathetic eyes.
Yugi raised an eyebrow. "Uh...something wrong?"
"I'm afraid so, Yugi. Your little friend, Mokuba? He's...he's gone missing."
"What?!"
Solomon showed him the paper.
It was a small column, with the word MISSING as the headline. There were five pictures, three girls and two boys, and sure enough, one of the boys was Mokuba. He'd been missing since...
...last Tuesday.
That was it!
"Oh, my god..." Yugi whispered. "I...I can't believe it...does it say anything else? Does it say what happened?"
"No. I'm sorry, Yugi."
Yugi ran to the phone. He had to call Joey! He punched in the numbers and listened impatiently. Finally, on the fifth ring, Joey answered.
"Joey Wheeler, talk to me."
"Joey, it's Yugi. I figured it out!"
"Figured what out, Yug? 'Bout Kaiba?"
"Yeah! Come over! Quick!"
"Be right there, Yug."
***
Joey set the paper down and nodded. "So that's what's got him all messed up," he said. Yugi nodded. "I can see why he'd be worked up. I know I'd be...But, wait...That still don't explain the thing 'bout the locket!"
Yugi looked up, surprised. "Yeah...you'd think he'd want it more than ever now. Why would he...?"
Joey frowned. "Maybe we oughtta go over to Kaiba's mansion, see if there ain't nothin' we can do to help."
Yugi nodded. "Yeah. Mokuba's our friend, too. We should help out."
Joey walked over to the doorway. "C'mon, Yug, we'll take my car. Let's go quick. 'Fore it gets dark."
Yugi checked his jacket to make sure he still had the locket, grabbed the newspaper as an afterthought, then followed his friend out to the used Hyundai parked just outside. Joey hopped into the driver's seat, and Yugi slipped into the passenger's.
They drove in silence to the Kaiba mansion.