Somethings Are Better Left Unsaid

Disclaimer: Nope. I don't own it. Wish I did. But I don't. Simple enough, ne?

Authoress Note: I'm so happy that you guys liked this fic so far! It makes me feel so loved! To quote Sango-chan "the fics you think won't go over well, always do". Thanks again for the encouraging reviews! They really make my day!

--------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 3: Goldfish, Sake, and Stolen Kisses

--------------------------------------------------------

"Come on, big brother! We're going to be late for the festival!" Serenity called, waiting impatiently outside the Kame Game Shop. She was fiddling with the pale yellow sash binding her soft blue kimono closed. The kimono was simple enough, decorated with embroidered white lilies along the hem and sleeves, but it made her feel like a princess when she wore it.

Standing beside Serenity were Tea and Mai, both dressed in traditional kimonos. Tea's was a rosy pink with a red sash, soft pink roses with green vines winding their way around the edges. Mai's kimono was a lavender shade with a dark violet sash holding it closed, her design of choice were silver feathers that glistened in the light. All three girls were growing impatient, Joey and Yugi were taking their sweet time getting ready.

"Whoever said girls take longer in the bathroom hasn't met those two," Mai remarked, wrapping a thin lock of golden hair around her finger idly.

"Seriously, it only took us three about fifteen minutes to get ready," Tea said, adjusting a lotus shaped barette in her chocolate brown hair bun, "and we had to do our hair."

"They can't possibly be doing their hair," Duke remarked, wrapping his arm possessively around Serenity's waist as he arrived behind them. He looked magnificent in his brick red festival kimono, naturally decorated with small white dice. He laughed, flipping a long lock of ebony hair from his face, "We all know Joey spends no time working on his hair, and Yugi's put so much hair gel in his that it stays that way even after he wakes up."

"Ha, ha, very funny, Duke," Joey growled, exiting the game shop with Yugi behind him. He glared at the hand Duke had around his sister's waist, still not completely used to Serenity's choice of boyfriend.

"Oh, Joey, you didn't tie the sash right," Mai scolded, adjusting the emerald green material nonchalantly. She paused, eyeing the choice of decoration on Joey's forest green kimono. "Dogs, Joey? Kaiba's going to have a field day."

Joey sighed, looking down at the brown and white dogs encircling the hem of his kimono, "It was da only one dey had left in dis color. I didn't want da dogs on it."

"I think it's cute," Tea remarked teasingly, helping Yugi adjust his deep violet kimono--he was lucky enough to find one with the Dark magician on it.

"Joey," Serenity eyed the backpack her brother had slung over his shoulder, "what's in the bag?"

"Nothing," Joey replied too fast.

"Joseph Wheeler, are you planning on causing trouble at the festival?" Mai asked in a reprimanding yet amused tone.

Before Mai could open the bag and inspect the contents, it was pulled from her grasp by Tristan, arriving in the nick of time. "It's just something to help liven up the party, guys. Calm down."

"Is it what I think it is?" Duke inquired, looking up at the bag Tristan held out of Mai's reach.

Tristan shrugged, "Depends on what you think it is, man." He yelped as Mai ripped off the black sash of his dark gray kimono. Naturally, he dropped the backpack--right into Mai's waiting arms--to reclose his kimono. "What was that for, Mai!?"

The blonde woman winked, "To help liven up the party." She opened the bag and laughed, "Wow, where did you get ahold of sake?" She weighed the bottle in her hand, smirking.

Duke grinned, "That'll definitely liven up the party!"

--------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, at the Kaiba Mansion...

"Come on, big brother! We're going to be late for the festival!" Mokuba whined. He snickered quietly; nowadays, he rarely ever whined, he was too mature for it. But when he really, really wanted something from Seto, the Whine would do it--the Puppy Eyes were his failproof last resort.

"Hold on, Mokuba. The festival is going to be there all day," Seto said as he emerged from his bedroom. His kimono was a deep midnight blue with a cerulean colored sash, trimmed in silver. Emblazed on the sleeves and hem were small shimmering Blue Eyes White Dragons with blue sapphires serving as their eyes. It was more then obvious the kimono was an expensive one, it's material was of the finest silk, the dragon symbols made of a soft silvery velvet.

Mokuba clapped happily, "Your kimono looks awesome Seto!"

Seto smiled slightly, "Yours isn't half bad either, Mokuba." He knelt to readjust the navy blue silk sash of his brother's steel-blue kimono. Mokuba had also chosen dragons for his theme, except his were a cuter, chibi-er version of Seto's Blue Eyes White Dragons. Standing up, Seto looked Mokuba over, "Now you're ready. Let's go."

Mokuba paused as he stepped out the front door, "Are we walking there, Seto?"

The tall teen shrugged, "Why not. It isn't that far. And, I can't exactly drive a motorcycle in this kimono."

The raven haired boy laughed, "All right. But, when we get there, you have to buy me a fan, and cotton candy, plus you gotta win me a goldfish."

Seto arched an eyebrow, "You drive a hard bargain, kiddo."

"I learned from the best," Mokuba replied, ducking from Seto's hand as he tried to ruffle the boy's hair. "You're getting slow, Seto!" He stuck out his tongue, racing down the front lawn.

Chuckling, Seto gave chase. The entire way to the park was nothing but a game of tag between the brothers.

--------------------------------------------------------

"Oh, wow! The park looks so pretty!" Tea and Serenity breathed, staring wide eyed at the transformation Domino Park had gone under.

Multicolored lanterns were strung between all the trees, illuminating the beautiful booths below. The merchandise at most of the booths made for perfect souviners, the game booths were surrounded by small children as they tried to win wonderful prizes.

"Hey, it does look awesome," Joey remarked, making sure to keep the bottle of sake out of any adult's sight.

"Look! It's Kaiba and Mokuba!" Yugi said, pointing to the brothers as they entered the park, Seto chased by Mokuba.

Tea giggled, "Kaiba really does loosen up around Mokuba, huh?"

A mischevious glint appeared in Joey's amber eyes as he was hit with a sudden idea. He began to snicker quietly, catching the attention of his friends.

Duke raised an eyebrow at the laughing blonde, "What's up, Joey?"

Joey grinned, "I just figured out a way ta get Kaiba to loosen up even more!"

Tristan frowned in confusion, "How?"

Chuckling, Joey held up the bottle of sake, "Easy."

Yugi and Tea exchanged worried glances, not at all liking their friend's plan.

"And just how are you going to get Kaiba drunk? I highly doubt he'd drink anything you offered him, Joey," Mai said, waving a finger at the boy.

"Dats where Mokuba comes in, Mai," Joey replied, smirking wickedly.

--------------------------------------------------------

"Psst! Mokuba!" Joey whispered from behind a tree.

Mokuba turned around, searching for the voice. He caught sight of Joey and grinned. He glanced back at Seto, "Hey, big brother, I'll be right back!"

"All right, Mokuba," Seto replied without turning around, he was attempting to catch a goldfish for Mokuba and it was taking all his concentration not to just buy the whole damn booth.

Mokuba hurried behind the tree, smiling up at the blonde, "What's up, Joey?"

"Just wanted to say hi, and see how yer doin', kid," Joey replied, toussling the boy's black locks, "So, ya havin' fun?"

Mokuba nodded vigorously, "Seto's trying to win me a goldfish right now. And I got some cotton candy, and an ice cream cone, and a snow cone, and two sodas and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down dare, you're on hyper drive right now," Joey laughed, waving his hands defensively, "I advise ya cut back on all da sugar. Kaiba's got guts, I'll admit to that much. Does yer brother get like dat?"

Mokuba shook his head while bouncing on his heels, "Nope! He kinda gets jumpy when he's had too much coffey and he thinks everything is really funny, but he doesn't go on 'Sugar Rampages', as he calls them, like I do."

Joey placed a hand on Mokuba's shoulder in an attempt to steady the energetic boy, "I got something that'll help your brother be more fun, like you!"

Mokuba's eyes went wide, "Really!?"

"Yup! Just give him this, make sure he drinks it all," Joey instructed, holding up what appeared like an innocent bottle of water.

"That water looks weird," Mokuba remarked, taking the bottle and examining it.

"It's special water, kids can't drink it, 'cause then they'd get all sleepy and miss out on da fireworks!" Joey explained, turning Mokuba to where his brother stood waiting for him impatiently. "Now go on and give dat to Kaiba."

Mokuba smiled, "Okay!" With a laugh he raced to Seto's side. "Hi, big brother! Didja win any fish?"

Seto smiled down at his brother, holding up a plastic bag with a black fish and a white fish inside, "Sure did."

"Cool!!" Mokuba cheered, snatching the bag, "thanks, Seto!"

"No problem, kiddo," Seto said with a chuckle, "just don't shake the bag. You'll kill them."

Mokuba put on a horrified expression, "No! I wouldn't kill them!"

Seto held up a hand, "Calm down, I didn't say you'd kill them, I just said be careful." He gestured to the bag, "What are you going to call them? They can't go the rest of their short, meaningless lives without names."

"Seto! These ones are going to live more than a week!" Mokuba exclaimed, hugging the bag and frightening the two fish. "I'm gonna name them...Lily and Serenity!"

Seto arched an eyebrow, smirking with amusement, "Lily? And Serenity?" He shrugged, "All right, but I pity those fish if they're male. Their fish-friends are going to torment them."

"Then we'll have to get a cat to get rid of the rude fish!" Mokuba said with a grin. He paused, naming his fish Serenity had reminded him of his quick meeting with Joey a few minutes ago. "Hey, big brother, wanna try this really awesome drink I got?"

Seto blinked, "What kind of drink?"

Mokuba held up the bottle Joey had given him, "It's kind of like water! It's really good! Try some!" He tossed the bottle up to Seto, who caught it onehanded and examined it.

"This doesn't look like any drink I've seen before," Seto remarked, skeptical of the bottle's contents. Shrugging, he took a large drink, wincing, "This tastes horrible." He was about to toss the bottle in the trash when he heard a small whimper. He looked down at Mokuba, "What?"

Mokuba, opening his eyes wide, used his ultimate weapon, the Puppy Eyes, "Come on, Seto. It's not that bad! Please finish it."

Seto sighed, why did Mokuba always use his one weakness against him, "Mokuba, this drink tastes like feet! I'm not drinking it."

"Please? If you really care about me, you would!" Mokuba said, wiping fake tears.

"Why?" Seto asked, knowing quite well that this battle was a lost cause.

"Because!" Mokuba replied, changing his tone to a whine.

Seto cursed under his breath, still unsure what the big deal was. Holding his breath, he finished the bottle of sake in one drink. "Dammit! That was like drinking fire!"

Mokuba cheered, "Yay, Seto! You drank it all!"

--------------------------------------------------------

Behind the tree, Joey was doing his best to muffle his laughter, "I can't believe Mokuba managed to get Kaiba to drink all of it!" He hurried back to his friends. "Hey, guys! Kaiba drank it all!"

Tea shook her head sadly, "That's not very nice, Joey."

Tristan grinned wickedly, "That's awesome, man! He's gonna be regretting it tomorrow morning." He high-fived Duke.

"Joey, how did you manage to get Kaiba to drink that stuff?" Yugi asked, still not agreeing with his friend's choice of entertainment.

Joey shrugged, "It was easy with Mokuba's help," he paused, recalling Mokuba's hyperness, "Ya know, Kaiba's gone suicidal on us..."

Yugi stared wide eyed at the blonde, "What!?"

"Calm down, Yug. I just meant dat Kaiba let Mokuba have tons of sugar, da kids wound tighter den a brand new slinky!" Joey laughed.

Mai looked thoughtful, "I wonder how Kaiba acts when he's drunk..."

"If it's anything like when he's hyped up on caffiene," Joey replied with a smirk, "Den it's gonna be good." Before he could elaborate, he was stopped by a cheerful greeting.

"Hey, guys!" Mokuba called, waving happily. He was seated on Seto's shoulders and seemed to be having the time of his life.

"Hey, what's up?" Seto greeted, smiling. No one made a reply, they were too taken aback by Seto's uncharacteristic enthusiasm.

"Look! We got fans for everyone!" Mokuba exclaimed, holding up a bag. Seto laughed, lifting the boy off his shoulders and setting him gently on the ground.

Mokuba began fishing through the bag, "Let's see..." He pulled out three paper fans, "The one with the Dark Magician is Yugi's, the one with the Red Eyes is Joey's, and the one with the ballet shoes is Tea's..." He handed the three their respective fans and pulled three more out of the bag. "Okay, this one is Duke's with the dice, Mai's has the feathers and Tristan's has the Cyber Commander!"

"Thanks, Mokuba. These fans are awesome!" Yugi said as he opened his and examined it.

Mokuba nodded, "Figured you'd like them." He pulled the last fan out of the bag with a grin, "And Seto picked this one for you, Serenity!" He handed the surprised girl the fan.

"Oh, thanks," Serenity smiled, opening the fan, "Lilies! Oh, thank you!" She hugged the fan breathlessly.

Seto waved a hand, "No problem." A slight blush was on his face which could have been seen as a result of the sake. He glanced at the sun as it set behind the trees with a startled expression, "Mokuba, the fireworks are going to start soon!"

The ebony haired boy looked worried, "We need to find a good spot!"

"You can join us, if you want," Yugi offered, "we have a great spot on the hill."

"Can we, Seto?" Mokuba begged of his brother.

Seto shrugged, "Sure. Why not."

All nine began to walk to the hill. Joey and Tristan were hitting each other with their new paper fans. Yugi and Tea were quietly talking about the pros and cons of giving Seto sake. Duke and Mai were debating the greatest new rock band while Seto hummed the tune to "Addicted".

"Hey, Mokuba," Serenity said, smiling down at the boy, "I love your kimono, the dragons are really cute."

Mokuba scratched his hair nervously, "Heh, heh, thanks. I like yours too."

"Thank you." Serenity looked down at the paper fan that matched so perfectly with her kimono, "Did you say your brother picked this fan out for me?"

Mokuba nodded, grinning, "Yup, he remembered that you said you always have lilies on your kimono." He pulled the fan he had tucked into his sash, "Seto got me this one! It has goldfish on it, just like the ones he won me!" He proudly held up the plastic bag with his two new pets.

"They're so cute!" Serenity giggled, peering down at the fish as they swam in circles in their see-through home, "Did you name them yet?"

"Yup! The white one is Lily and I named the black one Serenity, after you," Mokuba announced cheerfully.

"I'm honored to have such a pretty little fish named after me," Serentiy laughed, tapping Mokuba's head lightly with her fan, "And I promise that the next fish I get I'll name after you."

Mokuba blinked, "Really? Cool!" He pointed to the blackened sky as a bright blue firework bloomed into a flower, "Look! The fireworks are starting!"

"We better hurry up and get to our spot," Serenity said, taking Mokuba's hand and picking up their pace, "we fell behind everyone else."

The pair arrived at the large blanket spread across the dark green grass. Joey had been ingenious enough to make sure Duke and Tristan were unable to sit next to Serenity, he had managed to get the two boys next to each other and placed himself and Seto on either side of them. Serenity also noticed the arrangement, and after giving Joey a quick glare, she sat beside Seto with Mokuba on her lap.

The fireworks show was a sight to see, there were flowers and rings of a million colors. An intelligent person had manged to even make some of the fireworks take on Duel Monster shapes, including a violet Dark Magician, ruby Flame Swordsman, emerald Shining Friendship and sapphire Blue Eyes White Dragon.

Duke didn't pay much attention to the show, he kept trying to move near Serenity, and always finding Joey 'innocently' blocking his path. Seto also was not giving the fireworks their proper attention, he found himself constantly looking at Serenity, his little brother sound asleep in her arms.

{Dammit, what's wrong with me?} Seto demanded of himself, frowning irritably, {I can't take my eyes off her. She's Wheeler's sister for crying out loud! I have to get my mind off her...yet I'm failing miserably...} He sighed in frustration, slowly climbing to his feet.

"Where are you going, Kaiba?" Yugi asked, looking up from his seat beside Tea.

"No where," came the short, irritated reply. Muttering to himself, Seto wandered down the hill. He was sure he heard Joey mumble something about sake wearing off, which completely confused him. He didn't want to go back to that spot, but he would have to get Mokuba at somepoint in time. {I just need to clear my head, that damn drink of Mokuba's has been messing with me all night.} He turned quickly when the sound of soft footsteps came from behind him.

Standing coyly at a distance, Serenity smiled at him, "Hey, you okay? You just left out of the blue, I was worried."

Seto blinked, completely caught off guard, {Worried? About me!?} He looked away, trying to hide the blush that had tinted his face. Fortunately, the darkness from the tree he stood under shadowed most of his face. "I'm fine."

Serenity took a few tentative steps closer. {What am I doing? He can take care of himself! I shouldn't be worrying about him, he's not my boyfriend!} She shook her head, screwing her eyes shut.

"Are you all right?" Seto asked, an unintentionally worried tone in his voice.

Serenity looked up at him with startled cocoa eyes, "Y-yes." She noticed with surprise that he had moved a few feet nearer to her.

"Serenity," Seto hesitantly started, "I don't know how to say this, I've never said it before, but I..."

{He what?} Serenity stared at the tall teen, her breath caught in her throat, {Oh, God. What is he going to say...?}

Seto sighed heavily, "Wheeler would probably kill me if he knew I said this, but, I think I'm in love with you. I haven't been able to get you out of my mind since you came by my home a few days ago." He was looking her straight in the eyes and there was a peculiar glint in the deepths of his cerulean eyes.

With a start, Serenity realized it was sincerity, sincerity and bewilderment, in his eyes, something he never showed to anyone. "Kaiba-"

"My name is Seto," he interrupted.

"Seto," Serenity repaired, unused to the name, "I, I don't know what to say..."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said it, I was an idiot," Seto muttered, appearing ashamed of himself as he turned to leave.

Serenity grabbed his hand, "Wait! That's not what I meant. Look, I know what you mean, but, Duke..." {Duke? Do you even have feelings for him anymore!? Kaiba--no, Seto--has been the only one on your mind for the past week!}

Seto looked down at his feet, "I know." He looked back into her eyes, "Forgive me for what I'm about to do..." Without warning he swept her into a fierce kiss, fierce but surprisingly gentle.

Serenity remained startled for a moment, but before she knew it, Seto had moved away from her, a dark red blush on his face.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what possessed me to do that," Seto apologized, stepping back. He didn't wait for a response, he just hurried back up the hill.

Serenity stood rooted to the ground, a hand to her mouth, "He...he kissed me..."

"What are you whispering about, Serenity?" Duke asked as he strolled down the hill, glancing at Seto as he hurried past, "Whats with Kaiba? He seems to be in a hurry."

Bursting into guilty tears at the sight of her boyfriend, Serenity raced off, disappearing into the dispersing crowd.

"Serenity!?" Duke immediately chased after her.

Seto, reaching the top of the hill, lifted Mokuba into his arms, startling the boy awake, "Come on, Mokuba. We're going home, now." Without so much as a farewell to the others, he stormed off.

"What's up wid him?" Joey asked, blinking in surprise.

Mai shrugged, "Some people tend to get really cranky as the sake wears off."

"So, for Kaiba he gets doubly cranky," Tristan remarked with a short laugh.

"Told you that sake was a bad idea," Yugi and Tea chorused.

Joey looked suddenly nervous, "If he ever finds out, he'll massacre me!"

"You better pray Mokuba doesn't tell him about your little encounter," Mai said, chuckling.

"Oh, man," Joey's shoulders slumped, "I'm as good as dead..." He began to pluck blades of grass when he spotted a small plastic bag. Grabbing it, he groaned, "Aww, man, Mokuba forgot his goldfish, I'm gonna have to bring 'em to him now..." He grimaced at the thought of running into Kaiba with a hangover and out for revenge.

========================================

KT: Hehe, I hope you guys liked that chapter! know I ended it weird, but there's a method to my madness. (Pokes plastic bag with her new goldfish, 'Shii-chan the 2nd' in it.) Hi, fishy! Shii-chan the 2nd says to review if you really love Mokuba and Seto!

A Small SideNote Concerning Flamers: My sister, Sango5, who is an awesome authoress when it comes to humor and romance, has quite a few of her fics on I love her stories, they always make you laugh or say "Awww." but recently, some gutless loser reviewed, no FLAMED, one of her best fics! Flamers are the absolute most idiotic and pointless people on this planet. They live to tear down writers' self esteem, and to make matters worse, they don't have the spine to sign their reviews with their pennames, it's always anonymous! It really riles me up and I know from experience that when you get a flame you tend to never want to go near that fic again. So, to all those spineless, heartless, detail obsessed flamers out there...GET A LIFE!! (Naturally, this does NOT apply to those who use constructive critism, they're actually helping.)