Guardian Angel

By: Jenna

Disclaimer: Standards apply. I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or anything related to the show. I only own Angelique and this fanfic. Nothing more.

Author's note: I'd like to thank my beloved Kris for all of his help and inspiration for this story! If it weren't for you, love, I am sure I would have never placed this story down into words!

All of the little 's throughout the chapters indicate a small author's note at the end of the chapter it is in.

Chapter 1

At long last the bell rang, signaling the end of the day. Kaiba waited for her, he walked quickly, but made sure to stay near her, not wanting her to lose him in the crush of people to get out. They headed for the limo; the driver gave a questioning look towards Angelique. Kaiba nodded curtly and the driver opened the door, letting them in, then getting in himself and driving.

Angelique held her book bag on her lap, smiling softly as she played with the buttons on her school jacket's sleeve. "This sure beats the bus..." She murmured, biting her lip at her lame attempt to make small talk with him.

Kaiba remained quiet, still looking ahead. He was oblivious to everything, again thinking back on his duel with Yuugi. There had to be some way...he knew that Yuugi hadn't cheated, knew that he had gotten it legally, but how. There was no logical way that it could have happened, no logical way.

She bit her lip still, glancing up at him. She caught the look on his face, studying him a moment. She could tell his thoughts were elsewhere, smiling at the sight. Looking away, she jumped at the feel of the limo stopping and turning off, the sounds of young children filling her ears. She looked at the door as it opened, the chauffeur greeting a small black haired child.

"Hey, Nii-chan!" He stopped short, blinking at the girl. He cocked his head to the side, looking at her. "Big brother? What's going on? Who's this?"

Kaiba looked down, "She's my assigned study partner Mokuba. She'll be here for a few hours to review for the exams. Beyond that, I want you to prep the computer upstairs to run the program again." He explained along the way, Mokuba nodding in understanding.

Moments later, they pulled up to the Kaiba home. They headed inside, the house was large, also very well furnished. On a small table was a platter of food, apparently placed there recently. Kaiba turned, "I had asked for this in case you became hungry while we studied. I'll be with you in a few moments, if you wouldn't mind waiting here. Mokuba could keep you company until I get back."

Angelique nodded. "Arigato." She bowed gently, smiling at him.

Kaiba returned the bow then headed upstairs, immediately changing his clothes and then stowing his books away. Mokuba could keep her occupied for a small period of time, he just wanted to check a few simulations, see if maybe he had been wrong...

Mokuba stayed with Angelique, as asked. But, she noticed a slightly angered look on his face. It seemed... Misdirected… As though he was angry with someone, but the person wasn't anywhere nearby.

"Kaiba-san?" Angelique knelt down to his level. "Is something the matter? You look as if you have something on your mind..."

Mokuba turned somewhat angrily, "I don't want to talk about it and it's none of your business whatsoever!" He angrily snapped, then a few moments later he looked embarrassed. "Gomen nasai, I didn't mean to yell at you like that, it wasn't your fault."

She smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, Kaiba-san. I'm quite used to it, actually..." She ruffled his hair. "But, those aren't you're worries..." She placed her book bag on the floor beside her. "If you do want to talk, even though I am sure it isn't none of my mind, I would be pleased to listen."

Mokuba sighed; it wasn't like most of the others hadn't heard. "You remember that duel people were talking about? The one where my big brother was beaten? It was that punk kid Motou Yuugi! The two of them were dueling and he had Yuugi on the run. Nii-chan had three Blue Eyes White Dragons on the field. Then, Yuugi pulls Exodia on the last turn. Winning the game. He didn't win because he was skilled, or anything like that, it was LUCK! And now, everyone is fawning over him! I heard that he even got invited to Pegasus's elite tournament. It isn't fair at all! Nii-chan works like a madman to be the greatest, he traveled the world and traded and bought all of the greatest cards. He built a deck that simply can't be beaten. Then Yuugi comes..." Mokuba growled angrily again, "And he doesn't even win, just lucks out! All of a sudden, people are acting like he's some genius player!" He scowled angrily again.

Angelique bit her lip. She had thought maybe that the rumors at school where true, but she was never really one to believe such things. Placing her hand on his shoulder, she gave him a small smile.

"I'm sorry, Kaiba-san..." She whispered, understanding the boy's anger. "Life is cruel like that... The person that should get all of the rewards for their work ends out being trampled to the bottom by someone with better dice rolls..." She knew her words helped little, but she felt she needed to say something to help soothe the boy's anger.

Mokuba sighed, "That's the problem though. Nii-chan is so mad about this… He won't give up until he figures out how it happened. Yuugi's deck is above the forty-card limit… But, then again, so is Nii-chan's. My brother watched every other match Yuugi played. There's just no way he should have gotten Exodia out like that. Nii-chan got so mad he even refused to enter Pegasus' tournament after he found out they admitted Yuugi. I think he's doing it as a form of protest to say that only talented players, not lucky ones, should be allowed in. Otherwise what's to stop dogs like Jounouchi-san or his friend, Honda-san from entering into Duelist Kingdom?"

Angelique couldn't help but giggle at the thought of those two. "I will say one thing about them, they are a pair of cards... But, their intentions are true at times... But, Kaiba-san... No willing, hard working duelist should be denied the right of challenge. Even the lucky ones... It's how the lucky ones become skilled players."

Mokuba shook his head, "Nii-chan had to win hundreds of tournaments to get where he is, to gain his title. Dinosaur Ryuzaki, Bandit Keith Howard, Inspector Haga… Each one of them had to battle duelists from around the world in massive tournaments. Now, Yuugi gets in on one fluke, just one game. THAT is why Nii-chan won't play. And why I think he plans on having some words with Pegasus soon."

Kaiba growled at the sounds of their conversation and came down the stairs, looking angered at Mokuba, "Mokuba, what we're doing is none of anyone else's business. Besides that, Karenza-san came here to study, not to hear about the idiocies of Pegasus or of the setbacks I have faced." When his little brother moved to protest, he placed several textbooks on the table, ending the conversation. "Now we had best begin." He sat down, taking a piece of sushi and eating it, then cracking open a book on ecosystem biology.

Angelique bit her lip, standing from where she knelt beside Mokuba. "Kaiba-kun… Don't yell at him… Onegai?" She took her seat beside him, removing the same text from her bag. "I asked the boy... He only did the respectable thing and answered... Gomen nasi..."

Kaiba sighed, "I'm not angry with you or with him. I simply don't think that it's appropriate for him to tell everyone everything. I have no problem with you, and I'm glad that you've calmed Mokuba down." She saw a trace of... Was that gratefulness on Kaiba's face? Well, at least he seemed friendlier.

Mentally, however, he was still frustrated, and angry with himself for yelling at Mokuba. The boy was just repeating what most people knew, and opinions sensible people had. He sighed. A thousand times, and each time his research showed he should have won, each time Yuugi had only four pieces, the odds were astronomical that he would have drawn the final piece, especially given constant reshufflings, so it wasn't even possible that the deck was stacked...

Angelique slowly moved her pen over the papers in front of her, wishing she had kept her mouth shut. It served to cause trouble elsewhere just as it did at home. She attempted to read a section of the text, but her mind wondered, her eyes staring blankly at the pages. Sighing, she read the first question on the page aloud, more to herself than anyone else, trying to focus.

Kaiba nodded, "Right, each creature is technically interdependent in an ecosystem. The eagle and ant need each other because each thing that gets damaged causes repercussions throughout the entire ecosystem, theoretically leading to a collapse or necessitate the formation of a subspecies."

Angelique looked at him a moment before giggling. "So you are a walking textbook." She blushed, bowing her head in apology. "Gomen... I couldn't help myself..."

Mokuba grinned innocently, lifting his face from his own homework as he butted in, "Nah, it's ok, he likes showing that off anyway. You're just the first girl that liked it that much, though." Mokuba then took the few moments of stunned silence and seeing his brother looking angry chose to take off up the stairs.

This only served to make her giggle once more. "He's so adorable... So full of life and very intelligent for his age..." She looked back down at her papers, writing on them a moment. "... He admires you very much..."

Kaiba nodded absently, "Yes, I suppose that he does… No matter how frustrating he can be at times." He continued, suddenly pausing for a moment. "Something I've wondered… I've seen you in the labs before, doing work with programming and the like..."

Angelique nodded. "I've been helping Kinami-sensei with a few of the projects for the school... It's helping me to get some extra money right now..."

Kaiba actually pondered for a few moments, "I'll make you a deal. If you help me with something I need to program, you can stay later. I'll have my driver take you home if you wish. I need some assistance in this and you seem competent in what I need."

Smiling, she nodded. "I'd love to help anywhere I can." She stated.

Suddenly, a thought struck her; one that should have struck her sooner. She bit her lip then, her eyes down casting. "Is it alright if I call home a moment, though?" She asked rather briskly. "There's something... I need to check up on..."

He nodded, "Most certainly. You can use the phone in the office, we'll be working there anyway." Leading her upstairs to his office, she saw images of the Blue Eyes White Dragon all around her, as well as piles of documents. Kaiba pulled a chair over by the main computer.

"We can both work here." He handed her the nearby phone, "I'll be outside the room. Once you're done, tell me and we can begin work."

She bowed her head in thanks before dialing, waiting a moment as it rang. She winced at gruff, half drunk voice on the other end. "Don't yell... It's me..." She sighed as the voice uttered endless curses at her. His voice rose constantly, forcing her to pull the phone from her ear. She argued with him a moment, her voice trying to stay calm. "I left you a message..."

The voice cut her off. She held the phone away from her ear once again as he screamed, "You better be home before I get back tonight, or else."

She groaned, hanging up the phone, rubbing her face. 'Why do I even bother...' She thought.

Kaiba heard the scream on the other side of the door. His eyes hardened. He didn't take kindly to people like that, no matter who they were, he didn't take kindly to it. He would find out more later on, then he would decide what he would do about it.

Angelique took a few breaths, collecting herself, acting as if nothing had happened when she called to Kaiba, letting him know she was done. She could only hope that he hadn't heard. Pulling her school jacket off, she tossed it over the back of her chair, glancing over her arms to make sure all bruises were covered.

Kaiba opened the door slowly. He sat down with her and explained the nature of the program. "It's basically an attempt to compress the hologaphics codes for the duel stations into something much easier to store and process, however I want the detail to be of similar or greater quality."

She looked the system over a moment. Moving her fingers over a few keys, she easily found the statistic and layout charts. "Hmmm..." She looked down at her fingers thoughtfully a moment. She turned her eyes to the screen again, looking at the encoding. "Well, have you tried simplifying the system's coding? You know, using loop holes to cross similar information?"

He nodded, "That isn't the problem. The problem is that no matter what the data either won't fit into storage space, or it simply can't be read. I've tried everything that I can think of, but I'm not a programmer."

Angelique smiled. "Hmm... Well, first off, we need to figure out what the compressed database can and cannot read... That will make things a little easier..." She leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs at the knee and her arms over her chest. "From there, it might be a little of guess and check, though..."

He paused, "The problem is that if I compress the data into certain file types then I need to have readers, the thing is that I basically need it to be much smaller, if I add the readers then it makes the Unit too large and bulky, but without the readers it won't work..."

She nodded. "I see..." She thought a long moment, glancing back up at the screen in front of her. Typing a moment, she looked through at the information on the duel stations. This was going to be harder than she thought...

This is just a little information on Angelique that I think I should warn you all of. This character is, in a way, an outlet to some of my problems in life. I'd much rather write out my frustration than take it out on a person. Please, bare with me on this…