ALL'S FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR
Elenion: I do not own the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise or anything associated with it. So, as is my habit, I'm posting responses to those who reviewed:
Sakura- Well I'm really glad you took such a liking to it. I hope what's to come pleases you as much as the first two chapters did.
Eternity's Angel- Thanks! I tried my best to keep everyone in character. Just let me know if I start to slip.
Peneia Teke- All I can say is a very large "thank you"! Also, thanks for checking out 'Train'. I'm so happy you like the way I write. And Seto allowing Serenity to escape is probably my favorite part of that last chapter. Glad you liked it too!
Jieli- Thanks for checking this story out! It's really a nice compliment that you're interested enough to look at both my stories. Anyways, I thought that Kaiba being the "neutral" guy was an interesting idea. And I'm so happy you liked it!
Elenion: So, again, thanks to the reviewers!! And here comes the next installment- hope you like it...
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Chapter 3
Tap! Tap! Tap!
There was a frantic rap on the door. Joey lifted his head from his hands. "Who's dere?"
"J-joey? It's m-me."
"Ren!"
The blonde teenager leapt up, dragging his wounded leg slightly behind him, and flung the newly fixed door open. There stood a rather bedraggled Serenity with large tears in her widened honey-colored eyes. Her breath was coming heavily and fast- the telltale sign that she'd just run a fair distance.
Upon sight, she threw herself into her big brother's arms and settled there joyfully with her head buried in his chest. It was such a relief just to be able to see her brother again. For a while, she had thought that maybe she never would.
"Gods, Ren, you're a sight for sore eyes!" Joey said, holding her close to his chest, "I was so worried 'bout ya! Can I get you anything? Something to eat?"
She shook her head lightly, as her brother pushed her away so that he could get a good look at her. Despite being bedraggled and distraught, it was apparent that she wasn't badly hurt, but there was something missing... "What happened to your locket, sis?"
Serenity smiled lightly, silent tears streaming down her cheeks. "I g-guess I l-lost it."
"You lost it?" Joey asked in disbelief. His sister hadn't parted with that little silver locket since she was five years old. It was practically impossible that she would be careless enough to lose it. "At least you're back." Joey gave her another bear hug. "Gods, what happened to ya?"
He immediately regretted asking.
A strangled sob tore out of her constricted throat as she buried her head in his shoulder. "It w-was l-like a n-nightmare."
"Let's save the story for later. Ya look exhausted." Joey patted her back, comfortingly.
"Mmm hmm..." Serenity stared with bleary eyes around the drab apartment and found it suddenly welcoming for the first time ever. The rising sun was peeking around the corners of the curtains playfully, giving even the faded walls of the apartment a bright tinge. 'I really thought I'd never see this place again...And I still don't understand why I'm here...'
The poor girl practically collapsed into her bed, letting the threadbare sheets flutter over her face. It didn't matter what time of day it was; Serenity was exhausted. Her big brother sat on the edge of her bed silently holding her hand until it went slack and her breathing steadied. Only then, did he rise but he turned and watched her protectively from the doorway for a moment. 'We've stayed here too long. We shoulda gotten outta here when we had da chance.'
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Seto Kaiba stood atop the once lively building of his company's competitor. Years before, he had mercilessly crushed his opponent's company and was able to score a monopoly in virtually anything electronic. It had been such a sweet feeling- that he had subdued all that was standing in his company's way. The CEO had always loved that dominance. Coming up to this place always made him recall that sensation of being in complete control.
A harsh breeze rustled his chestnut hair, blowing it into his steely blue eyes. His navy trenchcoat ruffled about his legs. A great cloud of smog hung close over the entire city. It was as if the weather had decided to reflect his mood.
There was the sound of footsteps behind him, but Kaiba ignored them. He already knew who it was.
"Not such a great view up here, Kaiba. It's always so hazy. I don't understand why you come here."
Kaiba narrowed his eyes to slits. "What do you want, Pegasus?"
A discussion of the view was obviously not the reason why he was here.
But Pegasus wasn't about to stop harassing Kaiba so easily. "So you took a girl from Marik, I hear?" By the way Kaiba stiffened, he knew that the CEO didn't want to discuss this, and it was for exactly that reason he pursued the subject. "Is she special to you, Kaiba?" he mocked.
Kaiba snorted, keeping his azure eyes on the horizon. "Far from it."
"Then why do you have that silver locket in your coat?" Pegasus chuckled with a sneer, grinning at the chain sloppily hanging out of the CEO's trenchcoat pocket.
Kaiba didn't grace the manipulative aristocrat with an answer. Instead, his hand snaked smoothly down and tucked the silver chain out of sight. "I won't ask you again, Pegasus. What do you want?" The CEO said evenly and coldly, not even bothering to look at the man behind him.
"I'm sure Marik has already asked you, but I know that you're not particularly fond of him." The aristocrat- and head of the rebels' side of the revolution- took another step forward.
Kaiba's crossed his arms over his chest with his blue eyes still like slits. He knew exactly what was coming now. "The answer is still no."
"Why do you choose to remain aloof in this civil war, when you could join our side and win entirely?" Pegasus picked a golden pocket watch out of his velvet coat and flicked it open as if he were on a schedule.
"I have no interest in forming an exclusive alliance with your organization," Kaiba hissed, determinedly still watching the misty skyline before him.
Something in Pegasus' mind snapped. "You're walking a fine line, Seto Kaiba. You can't stay neutral forever."
It was a cleverly disguised threat. And both of them knew it.
"Keep your weasly nose out of my business," Kaiba growled, turning to fix Pegasus with his ice-cold glare for the first time since the conversation had begun. "You can threaten me all you want, Pegasus, but I'm still twice as smart as you'll ever be.
Pegasus' eyes flashed dangerously. "You know, your father, Gozaburo, would have-"
"My fucking stepfather can rot in hell."
There was a tense silence. The two power-hungry men glared daggers at one another.
Finally, Pegasus spoke, "I think you should reconsider our offer, Kaiba."
"I think perhaps it is you that needs to reconsider your offer," Kaiba said with a smirk, "You and your side are dependent on my company's technology or you'll lose this little war. My stepfather may have had an agreement with you, but he's gone now. I've been CEO of Kaiba Corp since I was fifteen. I think you should have learned by now that I am not the same person as my stepfather." He turned away with his trenchcoat billowing around his legs in the wind. "As far as I'm concerned, this discussion is over, Pegasus."
Fuming, the gray-haired aristocrat gritted his teeth and turned on heel without another word. As much as he wished he could deny it, Kaiba was necessary to his organization, and everything that the CEO had just said was true. So, as much as Pegasus didn't like it, he couldn't afford to push Seto Kaiba too far for fear of him turning against them.
Seto Kaiba closed his eyes, brooding over one thing or another.
Ring!Smoothly, the foreboding man flicked a cell phone out of one of his coat pockets and held it to his ear.
"Kaiba."
"Sir, we've discovered that the pay for an order of projection equipment is counterfeit."
The CEO's eyes snapped open and a scowl tugged at his features. "Which order?"
"The rebels, sir."
"That doesn't surprise me," Kaiba growled, mulling all this over in his head. There was no real money to back up that side of the civil war, mostly because they were the working class. They didn't come from privileged backgrounds as did the governmental side even though they were run by Pegasus. However, that was none of Kaiba's concern. Compassion was not one of his areas of expertise.
"Should I send someone out to their headquarters, Mr. Kaiba?""No. I'll go myself." Kaiba replied icily with a dangerous smirk. "Dispatch a chopper."
"Right away, sir."
He flicked the phone closed and stared across the skyline once more. But this time, he had a real purpose. His steely eyes methodically searched the area until he could pick out the ever-enlarging figure of one of Kaiba Corp's helicopters. There was always some price to negotiate or figure to correct these days. For one Seto Kaiba, it had become a way of life, but none of the sleazy fools would dare deceive him to his face.
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A hand slapped her smartly across the face.
Voices were echoing throughout her head..."Did I ask you to speak, you rebel-bitch?"
Her wrists were grabbed painfully... It was all so blurry.
Evil laughter..."Sweetheart, if everyone kept their word, the world would be a boring place."
Another voice, but still cold... "Leave her alone."
Being pushed in the small of the back... "Go."
Piercing blue eyes burning into her own...
With innocent eyes snapping open, Serenity awoke to a world of faded sheets and pillows. The image of those blue eyes was still teasing her in the back of her mind. Dull aches and pains were throbbing from various bruises, but they weren't quite as painful as they had been a few hours before. Slowly, she rolled over onto her back so that she could stare peacefully at the ceiling.
Those chilling eyes... the poor girl couldn't decide whether she feared and hated them or loved and revered them. Perhaps it was a little of each. It was all so confusing.
She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. As always, she listened for the telltale noise of her brother moving around in the apartment's kitchen. But she didn't hear anything... 'That's strange...'
"Joey?" Serenity furrowed her brow thoughtfully. "Joey, are you there?"
There was no reply.
The petite girl let out a deep sigh and shut her eyes again only to open them a few moments later. Sleep was evading her, and even if, somehow, she did manage to drift off, she was terrified that those steely blue eyes would haunt her again. That would just be too much for her to deal with. She didn't even know why those eyes kept coming back to her.
Defeated, Serenity rolled out of bed and stumbled exhaustedly into the kitchen. None of the lights were on, and from what she could see outside, the sun was already beginning to set. She numbly checked all the blinds to be sure that they were securely fastened for nightfall. It was by the living room window that she found a scribbled note in her brother's writing:
Sis-
I gotta see about somethin'. I'll be back soon, just don't leave the apartment. Remember ta light a candle in the window.
-Joey
Serenity sighed, rubbing her eyes sleepily. These days, it was always one thing or another. There was never any time to rest and recuperate.
Silently, she grasped a small candle and with precision that can only come from practice, she lit a match and set its fire to the candlewick. Her throat constricted at the thought that she had just done this... the night before... Lavender followed by azure eyes flashed in her mind, causing her to reflexively close her own eyes.
When she had built up the courage to open her eyes again, the sight of the warm, flickering flame greeted her. It provided some comfort but nothing too substantial. She carefully slid it in front of the blind as the customary signal- rebel. The darkness was enclosing around the city. Serenity wrung her hands almost involuntarily.
'I hate the dark.'
Tired and sluggishly, Serenity ran a hand through her auburn hair, which- through the events of the past twenty-four hours- had become disheveled and dirty. And now that she thought about it, a shower would feel really nice on her aching limbs.
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Joey limped back to the apartment door hurriedly. In his rush, he fumbled clumsily with the key in the lock. It seemed to take a lifetime, but he was finally able to burst through the door and limp determinedly into the room.
"Sis? Yo, sis?! You in here?" Joey shouted into the shadow-ridden apartment. A pang of panic went through him. Dragging his pained leg, Joey searched through the rooms. "SIS?!"
But then he heard the shower running, and his fear gradually began to leave him. He pounded frantically on the warped bathroom door, unheeding the trembling groan from its hinges under his fists. "Serenity?"
Serenity's head snapped around in the dark bathroom. Her only light was a candle shielded from the trickling water by a small glass jar. In one fast motion, she turned off the rusting, leaky taps. "Joey?"
On the other side of the door, her big brother breathed a shuddering sigh of relief. "Yeah. I need to talk to ya."
Hastily, Serenity wrapped a towel around her and wrung out her sopping hair. With one hand, she grabbed the jarred candle, and with the other, she unlocked and cracked the door open so that half of her face was showing through. "Talk to me about what?"
"Listen, I just talked ta Mai, and the other side is scaring all of Domino with bomb threats. They say it's because our unit killed their captives."
Serenity just nodded and worriedly waited for him to continue.
"And I was thinkin' dat, well... Dat maybe dis has gone on long enough. I know dis guy dat can get us outta here, Ren." Joey watched his sister's face for a reaction.
She looked shocked and her mouth opened slightly. The thought had never even occurred to her. She had always thought that she and her brother would help fight it out until the end. "You mean: leave the country?"
"Yeah. Leave dis country and dis war," Joey replied, hoping she'd agree. "If we're gonna go, we gotta go soon. For some money, this guy'd smuggle us outta here, and den we wouldn't have ta be in dis war anymore."
"I don't know, big brother. I don't think I could leave... just like that." Serenity fixed her brother with wide honey-colored eyes. She slowly lowered her gaze, feeling unbidden tears pool together and threaten to stream down her cheeks. Honestly, she didn't know why she would be sad about leaving a country that had caused her nothing but heartache, but she had lived there all her life. It was like a part of her, and leaving it in the middle of a revolution just felt like abandoning it.
"Well, think about it, and lemme know, ok?" Joey asked as Serenity made to close the bathroom door.
A small nod.
"Hey," Joey suddenly said, putting his hand on the door to prevent her from closing it, "How did ya lose dat locket? I know it meant da world ta ya. Ya've had it foreva."
Serenity looked at her feet and opened her mouth as if to say something, but then she seemed to think better of it. Her eyes rose to match her brother's. "I... I d-don't know." With some hesitation, she pushed the door closed despite Joey's hand on it.
For a few moments, she just stood before the closed door with the dark of the small room appeared to stifle the small candle's flame. She bit her lip still staring blindly at the door. The petite girl couldn't help but wonder why she was lying. It wasn't something that was in her nature, and here she was, lying to her own brother.
She turned to the mirror and examined her reflection in the dim light of the candle. Everything about her reflection was so familiar... Tears were threatening to spill down her cheeks. She knew that she was lucky to be standing there, looking at her reflection. Serenity wiped the tears out of her eyes with a careworn washcloth. 'And after all we've been through, we might just... leave...'
An image flashed through her mind then. It was that one image that she feared and admired:
Icy blue eyes.
Her hand went to her neck, feeling the collarbone that had born her silver locket for so many years. She found herself fervently hoping that Marik wasn't going to do anything to him once he discovered what Seto Kaiba had done. No matter who it was, Serenity hated to see anyone be hurt. She would feel so guilty if anything happened to him because of her.
'I owe him so much.'
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Elenion: Comments always appreciated, and PLEASE don't hesitate to correct my mistakes.
Chapter 4 is in the works.
