Aoi Dragon started doing chapter 25 from The Possession (it's the chapter entitled On the Wings of a Dragon with the whole Matzu death scene) in manga style. Check out the link in my profile.

Disclaimer: ::points to fossilized Intel Celeron computer used for writing:: Seriously?

Glass Cage

Chapter 6

"She is not the worst case I have ever seen," Dr. Kim Saruka stated as she sat across from Seto Kaiba's desk in his home office. Her long shapely legs were crossed at the knee, her silvery gray business suit completing her feminine yet business oriented appearance. She was a sharp looking woman with an even sharper mind.

"How so?" Kaiba asked.

"Her phobia seems to be exclusive. Plain and simply put, she is terrified of men. I have had many patients who were terrified of every living breathing thing that crossed their paths, but Ari seems to possess an inherent strength that prevents that kind of chaotic fear."

Kaiba arched his brow at that. From the reactions he had seen her have, the woman's hysterics were about as chaotic as they come.

"You've learned this from spending one hour with her?"

"Talking with her has revealed much, especially since she has no personal memories to speak of. Sometimes a blank slate is easier to work with then a partial amnesiac when it comes to phobias. Her phobic response is involuntary, a subconscious instinct to protect her from a danger she is not capable of recognizing without her memories. Our bodies have memory cells throughout, muscle memory, and this is what induces her reactions. I believe her phobia is in fact her subconscious clinging to a traumatic memory, perhaps one that had been troubling her recently and therefore in the forefront of her memories upon the accident. Mr. Kaiba, has Ari ever been raped?"

Raped? He stared at her for a moment, her words sinking into him as his brain connected the dots. Even before the accident, she would shiver when he touched her, pull away when he tried to get close. His eyes narrowed fiercely. Matzu Omaka.

"Not…exactly," he replied icily.

"I see," Dr. Saruka nodded, her short brown hair bobbing slightly. "I ask because Ari's reactions are very similar to those of other patients I have treated who have forced themselves to forget a similar traumatic experience. Though she was not raped, the attack is traumatizing enough. Did this by any chance happen recently before her accident?"

"About a month before," he said.

"Yes, then I am certain this is what her subconscious is clinging to."

Kaiba frowned. "Are you saying that she is afraid that every man she meets is going to try to rape and kill her?"

"Not exactly. Because of her total loss of memory, her fears may extend beyond that. I think it is possible that before her loss of memory she had associated the incident with the near-loss of something even more important to her than innocence. And now that she has lost something extremely important, in her darkened mind, every man has become a threat to flee from."

He contemplated her words thoughtfully, for the first time seeing into the black world Ari had been plunged into. "What do you suggest I do, then?"

Dr. Saruka unfolded her legs and pulled a day planner from her attaché case. "I will have a session with her every other day, to work with her memory recall and controlling her phobic reactions. Nurse Jiura has been keeping an excellent eye on her. Sedation is the best way of dealing with a hysteric panic attack at the moment, but I hope to help Ari break free of that necessity. You must understand, Mr. Kaiba," she looked up from her planner at him, "I will be treating her with the possibility that she may never regain her memory. While I feel she does have the potential to recover, we must accept the other possibility as well and help her to gain confidence within herself."

"Of course."

She scribbled something in her planner. "It seems your brother has a good rapport with her."

"They were very close," he acknowledged coldly.

"Then I suggest he spend as much time in her company as possible. Anything familiar may spark a memory. As she becomes more stable, it would be well for her to be taken to places of such familiarity, work, home, etc."

"And how do you suggest I do that when I seem to trigger the worst of her panic attacks?" His voice had a sharp edge that even the composed doctor could not ignore.

"It may take some time," she spoke softly, "but she will become accustomed to your presence. Much will depend on how you act around her, but sometimes, just being around her could have a desensitizing effect. If she is used to seeing you and being near you, she may see you as less of a threat and that may open more doors. The key is patience, Mr. Kaiba."

"Patience," he echoed with disdain.

Dr. Saruka smiled. "A virtue for some and a vice for others. I will be back in two days, Mr. Kaiba," she said as she stood. "It may sound hokey, but it is something I tell all of those involved with my patients and I have come to find it makes a difference. Don't lose hope, Mr. Kaiba."

Hope? That Ari will no longer shrink from me, will remember who she is, will remember that I love her? I wouldn't dare.


"She seemed nice," Mokuba stated.

Ari shrugged. "I guess. At least she doesn't look at me like I'm crazy."

"You're not crazy, Ari, and I won't let you say that you are," Mokuba stated firmly.

Ari smiled at him and offered no argument. Of all things, I know I'm not crazy, not yet anyway.

The first time Ari had met Kim Saruka, she had remained generally quiet and allowed El Jiura to do much of the talking. Ari wasn't sure if she used to be the kind of person who had a preconceived idea about Psychologists, but she felt disinclined to talk about her fears with anyone regardless.

When Dr. Saruka returned two days later, Ari permitted herself to be drawn into a conversation about the weather.

"Do you like winter, Ari?"

"It's okay, I guess."

"Some people find it lonely because the nights are long and cold."

"I can see why they feel that way," Ari agreed. There was something chilling and depressing about the bare trees she could see through her window.

The conversation had progressed along those lines for the entire hour and Ari was surprised to find opinions drawn out of her that she never knew she had.

"You are not an empty shell, Ari," Dr. Saruka had told her when their session ended. "You're just a little lost. You'll find your way back soon enough."

After that, Ari decided Kim Saruka was someone who just might be able to help her.

"Teach me a new game, Mokuba," she asked and he smiled in his delightfully cheerful way as he granted her request.

This became her routine. Mokuba was with her always, except for a few hours in the mornings devoted to his studies, but she usually slept late. The sedatives had a lingering effect on her when it was necessary that she take them.

When the elder Kaiba was gone, Mokuba led her about the mansion, talking endlessly about Kaiba Corp and his big brother. None of his stories triggered anything within her mind but she listened attentively in hope, especially when he spoke of his brother. It was evident in his voice that nothing could ever endanger the love he had for his brother, and in a way Ari was envious.

It must be wonderful to be loved like that, she thought. The way Mokuba spoke of the glacier made him sound almost human, but Ari had difficulty reconciling what she knew with what she heard. Despite her fear and anxiety, she was fascinated by the man who was said to be her boss, who cared enough to bring her into his home. It was much like the fascination one terrified of snakes might have with a cobra in a glass cage. A deadly obsession, but one she could not shake because she hungered for information about the strikingly handsome man who held her fate in his iron grasp.

Then every other day, Dr Saruka came and they talked about what she had been doing with her time. Kim encouraged her explorations outside of her room, even to venture outside of the mansion into the gardens, but Ari was still quite fearful of that. She had quickly discovered that besides the household staff, which seemed to all be women, there were numerous security guards on the estate as well. One was the bright-eyed man she remembered from the hospital, Sojo. He would watch her warily from a distance, but he never came near. None of them did. They knew better.

Knowing there were men around made her uneasy, but she took comfort in Mokuba's presence realizing that his word had as much power as the elder Kaiba and none would come near her as long as she stayed with him.

For two weeks this became her routine: sleep late, tour the mansion, play games. It was something she could live with, especially since she had the ever-amiable Mokuba Kaiba to spend her time with. It was calming and at times in laughter she forgot that she had forgotten. Then the request came.

No, not a request. It was definitely a command.

"Maybe I should give you a sedative," El Jiura stated as she studied Ari's anxious face.

"So I can fall asleep into my plate?" Ari asked and offered a timid little laugh that shredded itself apart.

"I don't like this at all," El returned. "But he did say that you were to dine with the family tonight and it isn't wise to oppose him. Mokuba will be there of course. Perhaps you can sit with him?"

Mokuba, yes he will be there. He is the only thing about this place that feels certain. I would be lost without him. But still… I don't want to be near that man! He'll…he'll… Ari was startled by the sharp truth that she didn't know what she feared.

If I refuse, will he come for me himself? Kim said I should endeavor to widen my experiences, try and face my fears instead of running from them…

"Will you come with me, El?"

The young nurse nodded her head emphatically. "For certain! Your welfare is my duty to protect, Ari."

Ari took a deep steady breath and grabbed the woman's hand. "Okay. I'm ready."

El Jiura offered a sympathetic smile and led her out of the room. Anyone in their right mind would be anxious in Seto Kaiba's presence, but poor Ari had no confidence of her own to protect her from this encounter.

He didn't look up. It took all of his strength and will to keep his eyes on the newspaper he clutched in his hands when he wanted nothing more than to swallow her with his eyes. Dr. Saruka's words were the basis of his resolve. Just be there. He knew a single glance would send her running back into her room and so much farther from him. So he pretended that she was not even there.

"Hi, Ari!" Mokuba chimed cheerfully as the woman stepped nervously into the dinning room.

It was far from ostentatious. For being a rich man, Seto Kaiba was not pretentious in the least when it came to his home. The table was large enough to seat ten when a far more elaborate table would have filled the room just as nicely. The glacier sat at the head with Mokuba three places to his right. Ari wondered over the distance between them when she realized that her plate was immediately across from Mokuba's, three places to Kaiba's left. Relief washed through her as she saw she would not have to sit beside the man.

El led her to her seat and Ari offered a timidly brave smile to Mokuba.

"I'm glad you could come down, Ari," Mokuba stated with unwavering cheer. "It must get lonely eating by yourself all the time."

"I-I don't mind," Ari spoke softly. She stiffened when she heard the sound of paper shuffling, but a sidelong glance told her Kaiba had merely turned the page and still had not once cast those powerfully unnerving eyes in her direction.

Ari wanted nothing more than to bolt, but both Mokuba's and El's presence acted like a barrier preventing her escape and as Mokuba began to prattle on in his youthful enthusiasm, ignoring his brother as much as he ignored them, she found her anxiety easing ever so slightly.

Never did she forget the man sitting just three seats away from her as she timidly answered Mokuba's questions and tried to pay attention to his conversation. The boy's entire focus was on her as if he could not even see his brother sitting silently at the end of the table.

She only picked at her food, her anxiety having demolished any appetite she might have had, but she kept her seat and not once looked towards the door. A soft thump startled her and she was nearly half out of her seat when she turned her glance in the direction of the sound.

Kaiba pushed his chair back and with paper in hand strode out of the room without a word or a glance for either dinner companion. Ari stared after him for a moment and then looked back at Mokuba who favored her with the widest of his grins. It was then she realized she had passed some kind of a test and seeing the pride in Mokuba's blue-violet eyes brought a smile to her own face and a lift to her heart.

Maybe Kim is right. Maybe I can overcome these fears after all.


Kaiba stood listless just outside the doorway of the dining room, listening to the conversation that continued after an uneasy moment of silence caused by his departure. Throughout the dinner, Mokuba had carried the extent of the discussion, keeping Ari's focus on him rather than the somber figure at the head of the table. It had been planned on in advance.

Mokuba as usual had been more than enthusiastic about helping. Having seen Ari's panic attack the last time Seto had been near her had pained the boy considerably and made him realize why his big brother had become so withdrawn. Mokuba knew nothing of Seto's jealousy, but it mattered not. The fact that they had been able to stay in the same room together for half an hour had been ground breaking.

Now that he had left, the lilt in Ari's voice told him she was once again at ease. Belated laughter shattered his heart and bleeding within, he returned to his office to lose himself in his work.


kikoken- some would assume that Ari wouldn't be afraid of Kaiba but do recall that 1) she never was a very trusting person to begin with, 2) She and Kaiba didn't exactly get off on the right foot the very first time they met nor did they have a whirlwind romance, and of course 3) Kaiba is the world's most intimidating man.