Hey all! Wow... over 5 months since my last update... but One last Breath is now alive once more! *bounces* You have to remember, it'll be playing second fiddle to Forever Dreaming, since that is my major work right now... but I'll try to update here when I can!
Thankyou everyone who reviewed and told me to get a move on! This chapter is for all of you, becuase I love you! *huggles all round*

*~*~*~*~*~*

He'd lost Mokuba.

The thought just kept replaying through Seto's head over and over again. His brother. His baby brother. Little Mokie. He was gone. Lying on that bed, surrounded by doctors, defeated by one of the few things Seto couldn't protect him against, his body being slowly destroyed even now.

He was gone.

Seto faintly felt someone tugging at his arm, but he paid it no heed. As far as he cared, he wasn't in his body any more; he was beside Mokuba's bed, softly shaking him, telling him to stop playing this game and wake up. After all, that's all this was, right? Just one of Mokuba's silly little pranks. Any second now, he'd sit up and laugh his head off, scaring the doctors half to death and making Seto run across and smack the stupid boy for frightening him so badly.

Any second.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Nurse! 20cc's of insulin!"

The addressed nurse nodded and scurried to the cupboard just outside the door, jabbing a syringe into the top of a particular bottle and filling it. In the mean time, the team leader was pumping on Mokuba's chest, cursing fluently between his teeth as he stared at the heart monitor, willing it to flicker just once. "Come on, beat, for fuck sake…"

Another doctor was stood by, warming up the electro-shock machine. They didn't want to use it unless they had to, but if they did, it would have to be ready there and then. Given the weakened state of Mokuba's body, using it could do more damage than good, so it was only to be a last resort. Tapping numbers into the keypad, the doctor set the machine to the highest power that he dared.

The nurse returned and handed the syringe to another doctor, who quickly and precisely jabbed it into Mokuba's chest, where the major damage seemed to be. If they could just get his heart going again, there was a small chance he'd be able to keep fighting.

The problem was getting it started.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Jou clutched at Seto tightly, afraid he might try to do something stupid. To run across and move the doctors out of the way so he could try to help; to start screaming at them to do their jobs, distracting them; or run off somewhere. Jou knew from experience, if the worst really had happened, the last thing Seto would need was to be alone. Especially now that he'd crept out of his emotional shell. Seto had never had to deal with even the minor setbacks emotionally before – so now, when a big one threatened, he was totally unprepared. He would need everyone around him to help him through it.

Feeling Seto begin to strain at Jou's arms slightly, Jou gripped him tighter. This was hard for him too – harder than he could've possibly imagined. Mokuba had become a younger brother to him – and he an older brother to the young, raven-haired boy.

*~*~*Flashback*~*~*

"Seto… you and Jou… I just wanted to tell you…" Mokuba grimaced slightly, the effort of talking hurting him hugely. "I'm happy for you, niisamas…"

*~*~*End Flashback*~*~*

'Niisama…' The thought floated through Jou's mind like a feather in the breeze, drifting randomly, almost intangible, but definitely there. And like a feather to the air, the thought sliced through him, graceful in motion but devastating in effect. He could feel his defences beginning to weaken. Despite all he'd gone through when Serenity had died, Jou still couldn't handle this. It was like reliving it all over again.

Looking at the doctors surrounding Mokuba, Jou could almost see Serenity lying there instead. So cold, so broken, so lifeless, like a torn rag-doll… a rag-doll that could never be stitched back together. Pretty, broken, poisoned little rag-doll…

And now he could see Serenity move, see the little rag-doll sitting up, smiling at him. Suddenly, they were the only ones in the room, the room all that remained of the universe, and he took a step back.

'Why do you fear me, Jou?'

Jou's heart fluttered. Her lips hadn't moved; the smile hadn't wavered, and he'd still heard her speak. The eerie smile still steady, her voice came clear in his head, insistent and firm.

'Why do you fear me Jou?'
"Sis… I…"
'This isn't real, you know. I'm not laying on that bed.'

Jou's eyes widened. "But… Serenity…"

'Jou, it isn't me that's suffering now. I'm fine. Look around you; open your eyes to everyone else's pain. They need you now, not me. You protected me as long as you could, but now it's time to move on. Don't forget me… but let me be free. Right now, Seto needs you most of all.'

"Ser… renity?"

Jou suddenly became aware of a sound by his feet. Shaking his head and looking down, he saw Seto kneeling on the floor, his legs having given out from under him, sobbing like a broken man. Gasping softly, he knelt down beside his koi, pulling him against his chest, where Seto did nothing but cry quietly. "Come on," Jou whispered encouragingly. "It's not over yet… we've got to keep strong."

"Why?" came Seto's voice, a rasp of bitterness between the sobs. "What good will it do now? Mokuba's gone, what difference does being strong make right now?"

Before Jou could reply, one of the doctors came over, evidently in a hurry and with good reason. Barely leaving a break between words, he spoke rapidly but clearly, making sure every second counted. "We need to use the shock machine," he stated. "It could be the only way to bring Mokuba back."

Seto's voice came up from the floor, a growl evidently among the pain. "So do it then."

The doctor nodded, but continued by the book nevertheless. "We have to ask your permission, because the machine could harm Mokuba, given his weakened state right now, and-"

Before Seto could speak, Jou jumped up. Serenity was right; there was pain all around him, and all he'd been doing was thinking about his own problems. Now was the first chance to begin to turn it about. "WHAT DIFFERENCE WILL THAT MAKE?!" he screamed at the doctor, tears rolling down his cheeks as the combination of sadness, anger and grief began to overcome him. "LOOK AT HIM!" he yelled, pointing a finger at the bed, his whole arm quivering as he fought the urge to either collapse in tears or throttle the doctor who was wasting precious time. "HOW THE FUCK COULD IT GET ANY WORSE RIGHT NOW??? JUST USE THE MACHINE!"

The doctor took a pace back, totally stunned by this outburst, but nodded slowly. Even before he'd begun to turn, he yelled to his team to start preparing Mokuba for the treatment, rushing round to the opposite side of the bed and taking his position.

"Puppy…" came a voice from the floor. Jou looked down, and saw Seto looking up, tears in his eyes. "Thank you…" he choked out, slowly climbing to his feet. "I think we both needed that to be said…"

Jou simply nodded, helping Seto to his feet and hugging him closely. "Be strong?"

The nodded reply Jou felt against his shoulder was confirmation enough, and he tightened the hug, Seto flush against him now. A hand rested on his shoulder, and Jou glanced down the see Yugi looking up at him through teary amethyst orbs. "All of us, Jou. All of us, strong for Mokuba."

Swallowing a lump that suddenly came to his throat as tears refilled his eyes, Jou nodded. "Thanks Yug'" he choked out, before burying his face into Seto's neck. "We need yas…"

Yugi nodded in reply and turned to face the bed. 'Come on Mokuba' he silently willed. 'You can do this… just fight for the ones you love…'

By his side, Yugi's small hand fisted, the knuckles turning white as he silently egged Mokuba on towards survival. He'd done it for Yami once before; now he had to do it again.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Clear!"

Mokuba body lurched as the high voltage shock arced through him, jumping almost completely off the bed. As the boy dropped down limply, the heart machine flickered once, then died again. The standard result of a failed effort. Teeth gritted, the operator rubbed the pads together again, striking up the charge until the machine was ready. "Clear!" he cried, clamping the pads down onto Mokuba. Again, the boy's frail form jerked. Again, the machine flickered.

Again, it died.

As the operator prepared for a third charge, the head surgeon leaned over and performed the heart massage on Mokuba once more, pumping as hard as he dared. They couldn't justify using too many more shocks on the patient, and he knew that there wasn't anything else they could do after that.

"Clear!"

The doctor hurriedly jumped back as the boy was jolted once more, and glanced anxiously at the monitor. Again, nothing.

'Shit…'

Suddenly, with a hollow, rasping, painful gasp for breath, something he'd been deprived of for so long, Mokuba's eyes flashed open, and he arched up, racking coughs harshly escaping him as the breath was released. The monitor began to beep again – weakly, but it was an improvement all the same.

Mokuba was alive.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Whoo... apologies for the shortness, but nyah...
Oh, and as a forewarning... although I now have an ending to aim for, I don't think it's going to be very good... if it does mess up, I apologise even now. I'll try to save it, but... nyah, better than not finishing at all, ne?
Please review! ^_^