Chapter 22

There's got to be a Morning After

Anna poked at and moved the food around on her plate. She didn't realize she wasn't eating anything, but Seto did.

"Is the food not to your liking? I could have something else prepared." Seto asked.

Anna snapped out of her daze. "Oh, sorry. The food is fine." Anna had been out of sorts since the attack. She wasn't nearly as flamboyant and lively as she normally was. "I have to leave tomorrow."

Seto didn't like that statement. Although she had been depressed, he found her staying there to be very pleasing. He didn't want her to go. But he also wanted her to be happy. "I told you that you could stay for as long as you liked. If you think it is time to go..."

"I have to get back. I can't hide here forever."

"It might do us some good to get back into our regular routines again." Seto tried to convince himself that it was all right for her to leave.

"We have tonight. I won't leave until tomorrow morning."

"Sounds like you could use a distraction until then." Seto advised.

"I could go for a distraction right about now." Anna gave him a devilish smirk.

"You have a plan don't you? What am I saying, you've always got a plan."

All the while Mokuba sat opposite Anna at the table and quietly observed them. Now that he got Seto thinking romantic thoughts about Anna, he just had to find a way to get Anna to do the same for Seto. But then again...Mokuba saw the stolen glance she made in Seto's direction. Maybe he didn't have to do anything.

Hours later in the darkened living room.

"Be careful Jones, because Mars doesn't have an atmosphere there is nothing to filter out the Sun's heat or radiation. If you step into the sunlight you'll be burnt alive. Let me show you." Said the astronaut on the television. He took a cigarette and threw it across into the sunlight and it instantly caught fire.

"I'm confused, if there is no atmosphere on Mars then how did that cigarette burst into flames without oxygen?" Seto asked.

"I think the better question is how did he get that cigarette out of his spacesuit without decompressing? Should he even be smoking?" Anna had a query of her own.

"These movies are so hokey."

Anna laughed at him. "Did you just say 'hokey'?"

"I believe that's the official term." Seto was glad to hear her laugh again.

"You have to give them a break; it was the 1950's what did they know? We hadn't even landed on the moon yet."

"Well if they knew Mars didn't have an atmosphere they should have at least known that it takes oxygen to make things burn."

Anna thought he was hilarious. "See, didn't I tell you an all night b-movie marathon would be fun?"

"If by fun you meant frivolous and mind-numbing, yes, I'm having a ball."

"Oh, but guess what's coming on next, 'It Conquered the Earth'." Anna made some fake horror laughter.

"Could those Americans have made worse films?"

"Yeah, like Japan was popping out blockbusters with 'Gamora' and 'Prince of Space'."

"Hey, I liked 'Prince of Space'"

"'Prince of Space'? That was made thirty years before you were born."

"I was in an orphanage remember? We had limited resources."

"I bet you like all those old movies and shows like Godzilla and Astro Boy. Wait, I just figured it out."

"Figured what out?"

"Where you got your fashion sense from, Speed Racer! The blue and white jumpsuit, the monogrammed shirts, and the ascot, you're clothes scream Speed Racer."

Seto pretended to scratch his head so he could hide his blush and embarrassed face behind his hand and arm. She caught him off guard again and he didn't know exactly how to answer her. And as always Mokuba come to the rescue. Mokuba made a moan as he flipped over on the couch, turning his back to the light from television. He had fallen asleep on the couch some time ago and neither Anna nor Seto had noticed they were too busy talking. His motion caught Anna's attention and she placed a single finger to her lips to tell Seto to be quiet. Then she pointed at the sleeping body next to her on the couch.

"Don't worry, he's a sound sleeper. You couldn't wake him if a marching band went through the room." Seto got up from his chair. "I guess I should put him to bed anyways."

Seto cradled Mokuba in his arms as he walked down the hallway to the bedrooms. Anna was glad he let her come along. He placed his brother on the bed and proceeded to remove his shoes and vest.

"There are some nightshirts in the top drawer." Seto pointed to a dresser.

Anna opened the drawer and pulled out a shirt. "Oh look, he does own other clothes."

Seto changed Mokuba's shirt. Since Anna was there he felt it was best that he didn't change him out of his jeans. He tucked in his brother and gave him a quick pat on the head before turning out the lights and leaving the room.

Anna was impressed at how he cared for his brother. "You're the closest thing he has to a father."

"Scary, isn't it?"

"He doesn't think so."

They went back into the living room and Anna sat down. This time, without Mokuba's prying eyes, Seto was more courageous. He sat next to Anna on the couch. This was a first for him. He had always tried to find some barrier between them, whether it was a table, desk, or even on the far end of a car. He just didn't know how to act around her anymore, especially when they were alone. Seto pretended to watch the movie while he was thinking of what to do next.

"Ya know, this might be worth while venture." Anna said. Seto was wondering if she meant them. "Outer space is basically unexplored and unclaimed. Think of all the natural resources that are out there for the taking. Scientists say that one of Jupiter's moons might have oceans of liquid methane. Can you imagine what could be done with vast quantities of liquid methane?"

Seto was relieved and disappointed she wasn't talking about them. "There are only two problems with space travel. Primarily there is the cost."

"Not the way I crunch numbers. None of this seven hundred dollars for a hammer, crap."

Seto smiled. "And second, it's generally accepted that the solar system is communal property. You can't lay claim to celestial bodies."

"That's a bunch of bull. When they landed on the Moon, the Americans may have said it was for all mankind, but if you ask them, they'll tell you they own it. If you put the time, money and effort into placing a human on another planet no one on Earth can discount your claim. If you land on it, you own it."

"I think you may have more resistance from the international community to this than you think."

"Actually, the more I think about this, the more I like it. We'll build a ship and we'll head off, no business meetings or deadlines to worry about, just the quiet of space. Then we can find a nice little planet to populate. It will be perfect."

"Populate a planet? Just the two of us?"

Anna was a little embarrassed, she didn't mean for it to come out sounding like that. "I mean, we could bring other people along. Besides, we can't go anywhere without Mokuba."

"Good! I wasn't planning on having that many children."

Anna was trying desperately to find a way to change the direction of this conversation. "Technically, to populate a planet, it only takes one person. So you can have a planet and I can have a planet. Then we can open trade negotiations."

"I'd be lonely on that planet all by myself."

"Some people choose to be alone."

"No one likes to be alone." Seto was looking right at Anna now. "It's not a choice they make; it's something that happens to them."

Anna knew he was referring to himself and she felt very sad for him. "Seto, you will never be alone. You have Mokuba...and you have me." She wanted to see his reaction so she turned her head toward him. Surprisingly she found that he had leaned in toward her and they were now face to face. They were only inches apart and she could feel an unseen draw to him. If she felt it, then he did to. She had to do something quick. "I'm your friend, and I will always be your friend." She slowly moved her head around to face forward before he could get any closer.

The mood was tense. Seto didn't understand why she was so resistant to his advances. And Anna was nervous that he was going to make advances toward her. She knew she had to distract him, make him think of something else, something he was more passionate about.

"So what are you going to do with this Duel Monster thing?" Anna asked.

"Duel Monster thing?"

"You've told me about your idea for a Duel Monster based theme park, so what's the next step? I know you've thought about it."

"I've thought about it."

"And?"

"An academy to train duelists."

"Really?"

"You sound surprised."

"Actually, I find this very interesting. Tell me more."

"It would be an academy for the best of the best. They'd be trained in strategy and techniques by the top instructors."

"Where do you find instructors in Duel Monsters?"

"There are some excellent trainers in the league who teach the younger generations. A luxury some of us didn't have. All the duelists my age and older are self-taught."

"That's a good thing. That means that you and others like you are more creativity and are more intuitive about the cards. It might be worth it to have some of them come in as guest instructors. Give a different perspective."

Seto grimaced a little over this idea. With guest instructors that meant less control over what was being taught.

Anna noticed his disapproval, but she had an agenda. "Okay, so it's not a good idea for some of the top duelist to teach. For instance I met these two really creepy guys at that duel center, and they claimed to be highly ranked."

Seto smirked as he remembered whom she was talking to when he first saw her. "Weevil and Rex."

"You know them?"

"Unfortunately."

"Definitely not them." Anna smiled. Seto was glad to see her smile again. It had seemed like forever since he saw her happy. "But what about some of the others like Mai Valentine, I've heard she's really good. And there's the guy that came in second at Duelist Kingdom...Joey Wheeler."

"Not Wheeler! He's an idiot."

Anna was shocked that he said that. Not because Joey was her friend, but because she thought the exact same thing. "Okay, what about the World Champion, Yugi Mouto?"

"You sure know a lot of duelists."

"Photographic memory, remember?" She tapped on her head. "And you're avoiding my question. What's wrong with Yugi Mouto?"

Seto huffed and crossed his arms. Anna knew what that meant.

"He bested you, and you hate that." Anna's words struck home and turned his face away from her, he didn't want to answer. She took the opportunity to change her position on the couch. She backed up against the arm of the couch and faced where he sat. She pulled her legs up in front of her to make a barrier between them. "Do you hate him?"

"I'm not allowed to hate him. He has helped me in the past. And he's a friend with Mokuba."

"But you want to hate him? Simply because you can't defeat him. Is winning that important to you?"

"You're asking a lot of questions." Seto was getting defensive.

"That's because I'm not getting any answers."

He turned his whole body to face her. "It's not the winning. It's the game itself. When I had nothing else, I had Duel Monsters. It kept me going when Gosaboro took Mokuba from me, when he took everything that was important to me. It's my game, and I will not let someone else take it from me. Not Yugi, not anyone!"

Anna was surprised and a little frightened. She had never seen this side of him. He was so angry and yet so passionate. He did have a soul and it had been beaten and bruised worse than that attacker had done to his body.

"Do you hate me?" Anna asked.

"No, I could never hate you."

"But I defeated you all those times."

"It's different with you. You may have defeated me, but you showed me a side of the cards I didn't know existed. For that I'm grateful."

"Good. I don't think I could have taken it if you hated me." She decided to lighten the mood so she smiled and played with her hair. "If you haven't noticed I'm emotionally needy and I need everyone everywhere to love me all the time."

"Oh yes, I've noticed."

Anna smiled at him. He helped her forget about what happened just a few days ago, and for that she was grateful. She glanced over at the television. "If you like that last movie, you're going to love this one."

"I can't say that I particularly 'liked' that last one."

"Oh come on, a big blobby alien in a cave taking over people's minds, what's not to love?"

Seto leaned back against the couch, "You are so weird."

Yugi answered the ringing telephone with, "Hello, Mouto residence."

"Yugi?" Was the response on the other end.

"Anna! Where have you been? I've been calling you for days."

"Something happened to me, Yugi."

"What? What's going on?"

"It's hard to explain over the phone. Can you come over?"

"Yeah, I'll be right over."

Every time Yugi went to Anna's apartment he never knew what he was going to find. She always seemed to come up with something he totally didn't expect, and this was no exception. She answered the door and Yugi was confronted with the huge black bruise on her face. It had diminished some over the past few days, but it was still a commanding presence on her face.

"Oh no! Anna, what happened?"

"You better come in."

Yugi stepped inside and took his normal place on the couch. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her injury. She sat beside him. She was dreading this, but she had to tell him.

"I was attacked." Yugi gasped gently at the news. "It was in a parking garage on the other side of town. He came at me from behind. He had a gun." She paused waiting for Yugi to say or do something, but he didn't. "He hit me." She gently touched the bruise on her face. "He tore my clothes and he tried to strangle me." She pulled down her turtleneck to show him the marks on her neck. He still didn't say anything "I managed to get away, but he wasn't going to give up. And the only way I could stop him was to shoot him with his own gun."

"Is he?"

"He's dead."

"Oh, Anna, that's horrible. I can't imagine."

Anna didn't say anything, she just waited.

"Why didn't you call me? I would have come over; I could have done something."

"After it happened I didn't want anyone to see me, I just wanted to hide. And I did."

Yugi sat there, trying to figure out what to say.

'Damn it Yugi!' Anna thought. 'Hold my hand, embrace me, kiss me, do something! Don't just sit there. Can't you see I need you?' But Yugi didn't do anything. Anna wondered how someone so sensitive could be so insensitive. He had no clue what to do. How to comfort her. But someone like Seto who was completely aloof and void of emotion could know exactly what she needed. That's when she realized that both of them put up masks. Seto pretends to not have a heart because he doesn't want people to know that he actually has one. And Yugi is sensitive and sweet with his words so he doesn't have to be so physically. What a mess she had gotten herself into. She started to wish that Yugi had some of Seto's traits. Even traits that she originally thought were bad were now very impressive to her. Like Seto's ego, which was at times blown out of proportion, gave him confidence and reassured him that what he was doing was right. Yugi had none of that. He was shy and timid about almost everything in his live. If they hadn't been engaged, Yugi would probably never get up the guts to ask a girl out. The whole engagement must have been a huge relief to him, he didn't have to make the decision, it was made for him. How did he ever become a Duel Monster Champion? Wait. It wasn't him; it must have been Pharaoh playing those duels. It had to be. Pharaoh was a ruler and a god; he would have the strength and will power needed. And hopefully he had the compassion too. Anna wondered if she would ever find out. But poor Yugi, he wasn't what she needed right now.

"I was afraid this kind of thing would happen." Yugi stated.

"What thing?"

"Now do you understand why I was so concerned about the way you were dressed on the beach? Your clothes, the flirting, guys get the wrong idea."

Anna was quickly becoming outraged. "You think I brought this upon myself?" Anna got up and stood there glooming down on him.

"I'm not saying you wanted it to happen..."

"It has nothing to do with that!"

"You said yourself that he tore your clothes. You know what he was after."

'So this was how it was going to be?' Anna said to herself. But what she said to Yugi was, "Get out!"

"What!"

"You heard me, get out!"

Yugi stood to meet her, "Anna, I didn't mean..."

"I don't care what you meant." She cut him off mid-sentence. "I want you to leave!"

Yugi walked to the door and once he passed through the archway she said, "don't come back." And she slammed the door behind him.

Yugi could have kicked himself, 'stupid, stupid, stupid!' he repeated to himself. Why did he saw that? He said what he was thinking, which obviously was the wrong thing to do. Why are girls so emotional? 'What am I going to do now?' he asked himself as he walked home.

Inside the apartment Anna was fuming. "How could he say that? He has no clue what it was like. He didn't even try." That's when she realized that only one person understood and that was because it happened to him too. "Damn it all to hell!" She proclaimed and she went into her bedroom and packed some clothes.

She found Seto in his office working late as usual. There wasn't a secretary to warn him so she went right in. As soon as she entered the room he saw her. Seto was overjoyed that she came back, but he didn't want her to know that.

"What are you doing here?" He asked plainly.

"I had to feed Googie."

"That's a lot of fish food," he gestured toward her bag.

"I'm going to fatten him up." Anna smiled. "And if you didn't mind, I think I'd like to stay here a little while longer."

"I thought you had obligations to attend to?"

"I do. And I was working on it this afternoon but I decided it wasn't what I needed right now. So I said 'screw it' and I left."

"And what is it you need?"

"I need friends. And you're the best one I've got."

Seto thought about it for a second, "Then all I can say is...welcome home."