No, this is not part of the actual fic! (Merely a creative way of explaining the war my muses/fav. characters [Draco and Seto] happen to be engaged in within my skull. Ouch, indeed.)
Seto Kaiba moved quickly down the dark halls. Each step echoed with ten times the original. It wasn't the wisest of moves to wonder the castle a night, Seto should have known that but he had reasons beyond human comprehension.
… Oh, alright. The Gryffindor toilet was blocked yet again thanks to Dean Thomas.
Nevertheless, Seto was in search of a proper "thrown". Though, unbeknownst to him, darker and fowler forces were being put to work. From the shadows a sinister figure watched the Gryffindor. The unknown evil smiled wickedly. Things were going just as planned…
When the opportunity neared, the figure lunged in a streak of blonde and black. Seto, nearly to the prefects bathroom, was suddenly tackled from behind. Two cold pale hands reached for him mouth, duke tape ready to secure his mouth. Of course, Seto was ready and when his opportunity came, he sent the blond into the nearest wall.
"Urgh," came the reply from the fallen figure as Seto pulled himself up. "Duck tape? What the hell is that? I'm a bloody wizard! …Stupid, cheap American authoresses… You'd think they'd find a none cliché way of kidnapping…"
"Malfoy!" Seto spat out the words at the blonde sat up a bit dazed. "You'd better have a valid excuse for that or, no matter what the authoress says you'll be hanging from your entrails. On second thought, I don't want to hear it." Seto crossed his arms and watched the blond. "What are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be lurking around in the bowls of her mind with the other secondary characters? After all, I'm the star of this fic!"
Draco let a long drown of cackles out; once they had subsided he smiled maliciously. "That's what you think Seto!" he stood to his full height, which was nearly nothing compared the CEO. "You think the authoress is focusing on you now don't you? You think you're the star! Well, guess what?"
"What?" Seto asked uninterestedly.
"The authoress has read the 'Order of the Phoenix'!" Draco sneered triumphantly. "She's been hunting down all the pictures of Tom Felton she deleted, AND she's downloaded Harry Potter wallpaper!"
Seto's eyes slivered, "Not the wallpaper…"
"Yes!" Draco said triumphantly. "And all you have to do is vanish mysteriously and she'll forget about you. Then I'll be the new muse, the center of her attention! I'll have my own fic."
"I'm not going down without a fight, Malfoy," Seto growled oblivious to his previous needs. "You know this means war."
"Yes," Draco only smirked wider. "Yes, it does."
.
.
.
Long time no see, eh?
Sorry, I've been having a hell of a week. In fact it was just like the week after that, and the one before that, too. Half my state was burning, my computer deleted my files, and after reading the Order of the Phoenix I've been unable to concentrate on writing this fic. Stupid, stupid, stupid Draco fangirl instinct…
And before anyone asks: yes, Draco is my favorite HP character, but I don't see him being anything more than he is in Rowling's series.
Sadly, the next installment will be coming either in late November (and I mean very late) or early December. My parental units decided we needed to move. The loan and paperwork for the new house went through the system surprisingly fast, I was hopping to post chapter 13 before the big move but by the way things are going I really don't think I'll be able to, seeing as the computer is going to have to go off. Again, I apologize for this inconvenience.
Questions:
Are you going to put in Shadi?
**sly grin** Have I not? …Okay, all I'll say it that many of the original cast will be involved in the end.
Was Voldemort Seto's father in ancient Egypt?
No, High Priest Seito's father was Priest Akunadean(sp?). (To find out more I suggest: w.janime.biz - there's a lot of post battle city info and manga vol. summaries or checkout: w.jenniyah.cjb.net - complete manga scans and translations.)
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Turmoil
By Kaitourei
Chapter Eleven: Of Ill Faith
"Honda, is their any particular reason why you were in Kaiba's mansion …is that guy wearing a dress?"
- Katsuya Jounouchi
Honda was over the gate
within seconds. In front of him the Kaiba mansion towered, it's plain fountain
adorning the cobbled driveway. He couldn't help the grim feeling in his stomach
as two large windows glared down at him from
the second story. On the other side of the ominous black steel bars Jounouchi
stared back blankly.
"How am I getting over?" He asked urgently.
"It's my turn to play hero, Jou," Honda answered with a sly grin; the grim feelings still in his gut. He turned to face the glare of the windows. The feeling rose. He wasn't so sure hero was the best move anymore.
"Fine then," Jou called sourly as Honda took a few steps toward the mansion. "I'll just be a lookout!" The blonde turned away from his retreating friend and the estate.
"Fine then," Jou muttered again.
He sighed and leaned heavily against the wall. He didn't like the idea of Honda getting all the fun, after all hadn't he proven himself in Duelist Kingdom and the whole Battle City tournament. He deserved some credit. But Honda also deserved some time in the spotlight too…
"Weird," he muttered to himself as he watched a stretch limo approach. "That limo's got the Kaiba Corp. logo on it… Honda! Get back here!!"
The blonde quickly looked through the gate. Honda was at the mansion's front door. Jou waved at him frantically. He caught Honda's attention and received a quick wave back as Honda slipped into the lion's den.
"*Kuso!" Jounouchi swallowed and stepped out into the limo's way. "If I'm going to be a look out, I better be a damn good one."
~
Seto Kaiba was never one to enjoy the outdoors. Today wasn't one of those "enjoyable" days. Subconsciously the CEO pulled his cloak tighter around himself. The atmosphere among the students was gloomy, echoing the feeling the dark storm clouds conveyed. Kaiba watched them approach. He had already arrived in the designated location minutes before. Timing was everything; one mustn't be to early, on time, or to late. He was as he intended to be: there.
A swift, sharp wind cut through the grounds as the unfortunate students of Care of Magical Creatures trooped down the steps from the entrance. Kaiba glanced around briefly, taking in all the surroundings. Hagrid's small hut was a silhouette against the darkening green of the Forbidden Forest. And farther to his beyond the corral, which the students seemed headed for, was large gnarled willow tree. He briefly considered the fact that he had never seen a student resting under its seemingly welcoming branched of shade. His attention drifted back to the approaching students. They had gathered around the niche, most of them clamoring over to the padlocked fence in hopes to see if Hagrid had placed a new animal behind it.
Kaiba knew there was no animal; he had already inspected the area. Hagrid was planning something. Kaiba hoped it didn't involve using a wand. Hagrid knew Kaiba's weakness and the CEO wasn't sure if the man would use it to against him. He suspected all the castle's staff knew about the incident in Charms class. The only way to be prepared was to be on guard.
The Gryffindors weren't huddled in their usual group due to the lack of Slytherins. The class consisted mostly of Hufflepuffs – who in Kaiba's mind were as useless as the Neville boy. The *bumblebee clad students stared toward the corral with mixed feelings, all the while chattering amongst each other, laughing loudly. They distantly reminded Kaiba of the throngs of schoolgirls in Domino.
Kaiba's attention flashed quickly toward a trio of Gryffindors, he could feel their minds eye watching him from their position to his right. Ron Weasly and Hermione Granger weren't turned toward him, but he could tell he was the subject of their reticent conversation. Kaiba caught the glance of Harry Potter, the only member facing him. The Potter boy held his cobalt ice gaze before returning to the faces of his friends.
Kaiba had learned much in the past few days. Hogwarts: A History proved to be a helpfully insightful text, as well as many other books in the library and past periodicals. He knew about Potter and why he was as famous as he was, about the history of Hogwarts, but what he couldn't find was the darkness Dumbledore was so insistent he must avoid. Not one paper mentioned the Dark Lord, Voldemort.
He might as well have been dead, but Kaiba knew that was what they – the governing powers – wished the people to believe. He hadn't taken over Kaiba Corp. without knowing a little bit about politics and human relations. The Ministry of Magic couldn't handle the widespread terror that would infuse itself in the small minds of the population. Either that or, the ministry was corrupted in some way. Kaiba didn't doubt it was both.
He shook slightly as another gust of wind swept over the grounds and Hagrid's great form came lumbering for the direction of his hut. The bearded man was adorned in a long coat of various furs, which Kaiba supposed were made from animals he had caught. His lips curled into a brazen smirk as the word "Neanderthal" came to mind.
"Hullo!" Hagrid called over the wind which carried his voice away, although as Kaiba noticed, not the Hufflepuffs' voices. "Quite a storm brewin', eh?"
The class' answer was inaudible as the wind picked up. Hagrid nodded and began to walk toward the castle. "C'mon, now!" He called. "Dumbledore lent us an area ta work in 'cause o' the wind."
Kaiba mechanically began to follow the mass of moving bodies. Hagrid lead the procession up to the front of the school. Holding the large oak doors open against the wind he smiled and nodded as the students entered to the warmth. All of them greeted him with thankful smiles.
"Mr. Kaiba," Hagrid said a bit grimly.
"Perhaps it would have been easily if the students were instructed to meet here instead of the outdoors. Or is this school so far behind that a simple memorandum is out of the question?" Kaiba asked without a glance.
He didn't bother waiting for the professor's flustered reply. Kaiba walked past him into the chamber. He stood in the large assembly room between the great hall and rows of classrooms. In front of him great marble stairs rose, leading up toward the Gryffindor common room. He was in the west wing of the castle, where he had first encountered Professor McGonagall
"That was rude," Harry Potter said, appearing in front of the brunette. Hermione and Ron were behind him, much like - Kaiba remembered - Crabb and Goyle were with Malfoy. He dropped his gaze to meet Harry's.
"And are you going to be giving me a lesson in etiquette?"
"You need one," the Weasly added. "Hagrid's just was trying to be civil. I don't see why though, especially how you almost blew him away or whatever in Diagon Alley!"
Hermione gasped, "Ron! Oh, Ron…"
"I did not 'almost blow him away or whatever'," Kaiba said coldly, the conversation about Hagrid behind him. "But I believe the question is how do you know about that… incident."
"Listen, Kaiba," Harry said bit more confident than usual. He locked eyes with the CEO. "We overheard, okay? It's not as if we wouldn't find out about… you know… you unique, er, problems. Why don't you just give this defensive attitude a rest."
Hermione sighed, "We know that you're not a regular wizard."
"So there's nothing to hide," Ron commented hopefully.
"You think you've got this all figured, don't you?" Kaiba raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Fine then, believe what you want. You're far from the truth, but I realize you insufficient minds need some sort of explanation."
He turned to leave the trio and found Hagrid in front of him. Kaiba's eyes slivered, "Out of my way… Professor."
"Not so fast, Kaiba," Hagrid said steadily. "If ye weren't payin' attention everyone's been pairin' inta groups o' four. I believe ye're goin' ta be stayin' righ' here."
"I'd prefer to work alone," Kaiba growled.
"Can't do that," He said as he set a fairly large crate on the ground in front of the four. It had air holes and Kaiba immediately noticed a shaggy creature vainly trying to attach itself to exposed Hagrid's fingers with its teeth.
"*Lepulvis egyptia," Hagrid said fondly patting the box. "Dangerous ta a ind'vidual. 'Specially if they're wild, which these 're." He turned to Harry with a twinkle in his dark eyes. "If ye get any grief jus' call me over."
With that said, Hagrid turned to the class. "Now, if one o' ye'll take of the lid, the rest can look inside. Make sure ta keep yerselves away from the beastie. They can get feisty…"
"So," Hermione said enthusiastically, with a hint of worry. "Who'll open it? I mean Lepulvis egyptia are quite dangerous, like he said…"
Ron looked at Kaiba weakly, "You? …Or not."
"I'll do it." Harry bent down toward the crate. He slowly slid the lid back and Hermione and Ron peaked in with interest. Kaiba glanced at the creature warily before a shocked expression penetrated him mask, "You must be joking."
"What's wrong?" Harry asked, having seen the CEO's show of emotion.
"Nothing," Kaiba glanced down into the crate. Huddled in a corner was a large ball of shaggy brown fur. Large dark eyes glowered up at him in a feral manner. Inside the crate was a Kuriboh, a very real, very angry Kuriboh. The CEO didn't know whether to laugh or - since crying was not possible for his image - kill Hagrid.
"Oh. My. Gawd! How cuuuuuuute!" a sudden screech had erupted from a Hufflepuff group. Kaiba watched a brown haired girl reach into the crate to pet the fur ball. He felt a bit of mirth coil it's way onto his face as the Kuriboh fastened its hairy body to the Hufflepuff's face.
~
Honda waved back at Jounouchi. He couldn't make out the blonde's face because of the extensive length between the driveway and the front door, but it didn't seem to matter at the moment. The brunette smiled to himself, Jou needed the quite worrying, Honda Hiroto was all grown up and he could handle a dangerous situation.
He pushed the elegant door open with ease.
"First bad sign," he muttered to himself. He knew someone like Mokuba Kaiba wouldn't leave the door to his brother's multimillion-dollar estate unlocked. Honda vaguely wondered why any alarms hadn't gone off when he jumped the gates… Perhaps Mokuba was anticipating his arrival.
On further inspection, he ruled out the latter thought. It was dark inside and the light switch was not locatable. Furthermore, the hall he had stepped into was cackled with layers of dust. Honda ran his finger along a wall and watched the deposit flack away with a slight touch. There was no way Mokuba had been in this out for the past few days, or anyone for that matter. Hadn't Kaiba been gone for roughly two weeks? [2]
"*Ikkene."
The uneasy feeling arose in Honda's stomach once again, but he pressed on. The next room he entered was at the very end of the hallway. It was the extensive and probably once used for entertaining guests – if the Kaiba's ever had any. It was an overly varnished living room complete with a comfortable, expensive leather sofa, matching chairs, recliners, and not to mention the ten by twelve plasma TV covering most of the north wall.
Honda faced the room, his mouth open in aw. "Only the best for the best," he scoffed sourly.
Again, the seating and appliances were covered in a soft dust. The only reason that much dust could pile up in a matter of days was if someone was frequently entering the house or something was open. Honda scowled as a slight breeze ruffled the tips of his gelled hair.
A window was open.
Slowly the brunette made his way toward a tall curtained window. He drew back the drapes carefully. The window was partially open and he could see the front of the estate. The expressionless hedges, the brick walling, the tall back gates and the limo in next to them.
"Oh, no…" Honda froze.
He could see Jounouchi on the toward the driver's side, his hands gesturing wildly. As hard as he strained his eyes couldn't make out the limo driver. The windows were black, but that wasn't the problem. Jou was now pulling up his fists in rage. Honda could see the blonde's rage from the windowsill.
A hand protruded from the window. It was holding something. Honda held his breath as something small and bright hit Jounouchi and sent the blond sprawling to the ground. He inhaled sharply, a wild look in his eyes as the limo pulled away and Jou sat up, scratching his head.
Honda was out of the living room and through the hall within seconds. Like a hurricane he flew past the front door, leaving it ajar. His breath was coming in short bursts of air and his muscles were become tense. He could still see Jou's form sitting disoriented in the driveway.
"Jounouchi!" Honda gasped as he stumbled over toward his blond friend. "Jou, are you alright?"
The blonde looked up, "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"
"That limo! You were hit by something! …Weren't you?" Honda noticed Jou's inquiring stare through the bars, "What?"
"Honda, is their any particular reason why you were in Kaiba's mansion?" Jounouchi asked with a perplexed glance around. His eyes fell on the dead man on the lawn. "…Is that guy wearing a dress?"
"What the hell are you talking about?" Honda had stopped dead in his attempt to scale the gate. "What do you mean? And weren't you the one who found the dead guy!"
Jou scratched his head from his position on the ground and looked back at Honda weakly, "I did?"
~
"You think that's bad? What if you're sister came in and told you Defense Against the Dark Arts was her second favorite class! It's taught by a Malfoy!" Ron said indignantly, catching the attention of everyone with his voice range, which was a large amount of people.
Harry and Hermione exchanged glances. They had been hearing this from Ron all after Care of Magical Creature's, when they had met up with Ginny who was exiting Defense Against the Dark Arts. Even when Ginny tried to explain that his class was interesting and, in some possible way, fun – Ron had blown sky high. To say the least, Ginny had slapped Ron for calling her "*Bloodtraitor" and left, nearly in tears.
"Besides Lupin, Professor Malfoy shouldn't have much competition in for popularity," Harry said in a weak voice. "I mean Quirrell had Voldemort in his head, Lockhart was a fraud and, well, a compete idiot, and Moody wasn't even really Moody…"
Ron sighed heavily as they trooped on toward the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. "Can you even hear yourself, Harry? You're defending him!"
"I am not," Harry frowned. "All I'm saying is that you shouldn't have been so tough on Ginny."
"If she ended up trusting that slimy bastard and he or his ferret featured son hurt her…" Ron's eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't have to lock them in Azkaban after I'm was through."
"Ron!" Hermione hissed. "Ginny is old enough to take care of herself. What we need to find out is why such an obvious Deatheater was allowed into the school."
"I'll bet the Ministry is behind this," Ron huffed. "Probably Fudge."
"They haven't mentioned anything about Voldemort in the Daily Prophet. I wouldn't doubt it, knowing Malfoy's wealth," Harry added darkly.
"Well, whatever it is," Hermione pushed the door open. "Have you noticed that there aren't any Aurors in sight? Ever."
Ron shrugged and took his seat, "Who knows, maybe they've been called back?"
The classroom was partially empty, save Seto Kaiba who was typing on a thin silver laptop and Draco Malfoy. Harry couldn't help notice the smirk Malfoy directed toward him as he took his seat.
"No," Harry said in a lower voice. "We'd know, Dumbledore would tell us."
A loud booming noise exploded above them, causing several other students to enter the classroom and Kaiba to put away his laptop. Harry looked over at Ron and Hermione; both were solemnly waiting for the professor. Harry noticed the desk had been arrange in an odd order. Six row of desk and a long with wide pathway between the third and forth row. Each side faced each other.
The houses were segregated themselves, Slytherins on one side, Gryffindors on another. Across from him, he could also see Malfoy bragging among his peers. Harry couldn't help note that Kaiba had chosen to sit in the Slytherin side.
The door opened once more and the tall, pale professor stepped in. Harry felt sudden urge to jump up and shout, "Deatheater!" at the top of his lungs. He resisted.
"Hello and welcome to your first class of Defense Against the Dark Arts for this year," Professor Malfoy said briskly. "Let us hope that it is more successful than your previous years." He strode toward his desk, which faced the class, and sat down. "I have been reviewing the lessons for the past four years and, to say the least, I'm very sorry I didn't put my son in Drumstrang."
He folded his hands together. "Hogwarts students seem to have fallen behind. And this cause seems to be the professors reliance on outdated textbooks. Therefore, this year the class shall be graded on physical and oral presentation. If a student cannot perform up to standards, she or he will be given the chance to accept extra credit in the form of essays with topics of my choice."
"Lenient…" Harry heard Hermione whisper suspiciously.
Professor Malfoy looked over the class, catching Harry's glare. "Can anyone tell me what you last studied?"
The class stared back at him in blankly. Hermione had not raised her hand, though everyone knew she had the answer, though Draco Malfoy had his hand high in the air. The professor looked them over casually.
"Ms. Granger," He said suddenly. "You always seem to have any answer."
Harry saw Draco's smirk falter. The blond dropped his arm and watched his father in anticipation.
Hermione flushed from the shock of being called upon, "Um… We studied curses, mainly the Unforgivables."
"Correct," Lucius Malfoy said smoothly. If Harry hadn't seen him in the graveyard with Voldemort he might have believed he was decent. Which, Harry supposed, was what the Professor wanted. "Ten points for Gryffindor."
Draco Malfoy was now completely speechless. The Slytherins were looking at him and then to his father in confusion. The Gryffindors were more so confused. A Malfoy had awarded them house points. Harry glanced at Ron who was looked unfazed by the historic moment.
Ron rolled his eyes, "I don't believe it. You saw him in the hallway…"
"And since we have been studding curses," Lucius continued. "We're going to start with dueling. I believe you have had a bit of an idea if you attended the Dueling Club the late Professor Lockhart taught, although I daresay a muggle could have instructed and returned better results."
He walked slowly toward the isle of desks. The sequence in his dark cape flashed momentarily, caught in the torchlight. "Since I do not know how far you all are, I would like two volunteers to step up." No one moved, save Draco who went ignored.
"Alright then, don't everyone jump up," Lucius said coolly. "How about Mr. Potter and Mr. Kaiba?"
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*Kuso = Japanese, "Shit" (Usually said to ones self.)
*Lepulvis = Latin, lepus(rabbit) + pulvis(dust) – egyptia = the word "Egypt" with a Latin suffix "ia". (I could find not a Latin word for "Egypt")
*Ikkene = Japanese, literally means: "it's (this is) not good" (Usually said to ones self.)
*Bloodtraitor = A Potter-verse term, the worst kind of blood there is (below Mudblood) – belongs to someone whose betrayed their kin (family).
[1]"Bumblebee clad" The Hufflepuff colors are canary yellow and gold in the book, while in the movie they are black and canary yellow – which I'm using, since I feel it looks more appropriate.
[2] Just to clarify, Kaiba entered Diagon Alley a week after he met Dumbledore and this chapter takes place almost a week (five/six days) after the sorting. So, like Honda said, roughly a week has passed.
Endnotes: All right, I have one final comment. If any ideas you posted in the reviews are used, please don't feel offended of I incorporate them into the story without giving you the credit. I have planned this story out since the third chapter and I intent to keep the ideas that are rightfully mine. On the other hand, if you posted an idea and I suddenly have a way to fit it into the story so that it makes sense, you will receive the credit. And BTW, thanks so much for your wonderful feedback!
Next Chapter: It's Time To Duel
We meet back up with the Tag team!Yamis – Yami no Yugi and Yami no Bakura. On a plane. Together. Alive…? (Well, atleast their host's are. ^^;) How did they pull this off? And at Hogwarts Harry and Kaiba prepare to duke it out -- The-Boy-Who-Lived vs. The-Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Die. Who will win?
