Sit back, relax, and enjoy the fic! - Tombrobber's Gal
Oh and I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh (I know, the show would be so much better if they listened to me and put a Dairy Queen in Domino…)
The Tournament from…Hell? Or was it Heaven?
By Tombrobber's Gal
Ch. 2- Ice and Fire
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Monday. The most hated day of the week. The day where you have to wake up and go to school or work or wherever. You can't just roll over and go back to sleep like on Sunday- the world will go on without you, and you will be blamed for it.
Seto Kaiba comprehended this in the one brief instant his alarm clock shrilled at 6:30am. Then, he slammed the snooze button, hoping to compose himself in about five minutes. He didn't reckon on one factor though- how hard he hit the Snooze. His alarm clock died silently, without the slightest implication to the CEO…
Serenity Wheeler realized the same fact. Except, of course, she didn't have a snooze button to hit- the alarm clock was purposely put on the far end of her room. Muttering under her breath, the teen brushed her teeth while looking blearily for her school uniform. Making a gurgled exclamation of triumph, Serenity spit in the sink, wiped her mouth, and threw on her school uniform with her usual disgruntled sigh. A mini-skirt. Out of all the sexist people in the world, why did Joey's principal have to insist on the girl uniform being a skirt? Serenity ambled into her room, grabbing her hairbrush and a sock. Brushing her hair with one hand, the auburn haired soccer player managed to yank on her socks with the other. She then proceeded down the hall where she yanked her blonde brother out of bed, "Jooooooeeeeeey!" Serenity yelled, "We're going to be late!" She flipped on the lights and left the room, satisfied when she heard some movement. Running down the stairs, she grabbed three cereal bars, their backpacks, and their duffel bags.
Ten minutes later, a tousled Joey Wheeler tumbled down the stairs, dressed for school "…Ren…?" he managed around a yawn, "Wh….what's going on…? How late are we?" Serenity tossed him his backpack and duffel bag, along with the truck keys, and they left the apartment.
In the car, Serenity handed him two of the cereal bars, while munching on one herself. They drove to school in silence: Joey being too focused on breakfast and the road to talk, and Serenity not being much of a morning person. They peeled into the school parking lot with about two minutes until the tardy bell. Serenity waved to her brother, who was still stumbling out of the car, and rushed to her first class, AP English.
English. Advanced Placement English. It sounded fancy enough, but, Serenity thought as she skidded down the hall, it is nothing compared to my old school. There, Basic English would have translated to AP English here. The tardy bell shrilled just as Serenity entered the classroom, taking her standard seat next to Rebecca Hawkins.
"Morning, Seren."
"Morning, Becca."
The teacher strolled in just after Serenity did, deftly pulling out the roll call sheet. "Hawkins, Rebecca."
"Here."
"Kaiba, Seto."
Silence.
"Kaiba, Seto? Has anyone seen Mr. Kaiba today…?" the teacher asked cautiously, wondering if the CEO had a meeting that he wasn't told about. "Hmm…well, I guess he's absent…"
The CEO in question had just rolled over, opening his eyes to a knock on the door. "What is it…?"
"Big brother…?"
"Yes, Mokuba?"
"Don't you have to be in school…?" the younger Kaiba questioned, fully dressed and ready to go to his school.
The older Kaiba glanced at his alarm clock, which still flashed reassuringly 6:45. Wait, flashed? Alarm clocks only flash when they're…. "Dammmmmnnnnnit!" Seto yelled, rolling out of bed and grabbing his own neatly pressed school uniform off a hanger and yanking it on. "Mokubaaaaa! Why didn't the maids wake me up!" he yelled.
"Seto, we just figured you had a meeting to go to and were sleeping in…or that you had already left-"
"What time IS it!" he gurgled, brushing his teeth furiously.
Mokuba smiled slightly at the picture of the most terrifying man in the world frantically brushing his teeth. "It's 8:45, Seto."
"I hate Mondays…" Seto muttered, grabbing his briefcase and rushing out of his room, hurriedly yanking on his motorcycle helmet. "Listen, Mokuba, I have soccer practice again because of the tournament, so I'll be home around six, okay?" he called over his shoulder. Seeing his brother nod, he leaped onto his silver motorcycle and peeled out of the mansion.
"Today…" the teacher began, "We start Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a renowned playwright in early century England. Can anyone name one of his works? Anyone? Yes, Mr. Motou."
"Didn't he write Romeo and Juliet?" Yugi asked.
"That is correct, Yugi. Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare's better known tragedies. It was very popular because it dealt with all the aspects of a good play. Suspense, drama, love, intrigue…" the professor continued, "It was the perfect combination of the elements. Perfectly written. Suspenseful up to the end. We will be studying this play up until the end of June. As you all know, Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet as a play. Plays are not meant to be read. They are meant to be acted out, felt from the heart. Casting will begin tomorrow for the play. Each of you will have the main part of Romeo or Juliet at least once, since there are only 15 of you, including Mr. Kaiba. The play may be found in your Literature textbooks on page five hundred and seventy-"
The door banged open, revealing a somewhat flustered looking CEO.
"As I was saying, five hundred and seventy four…" the teacher continued, motioning for Seto to stay where he was. "You will memorize any passage you wish, as long as it is at least four lines long. You can memorize scenes with other people if you wish to, just have it ready by tomorrow. You have the rest of the class to work on it. Mr. Kaiba, if I may see you at my desk for a moment…?"
Rebecca flipped open her book, watching the CEO regain his usual cold demeanor, "I wonder why he's late? Seto Kaiba is never late."
Serenity shrugged, beginning to skim the material, "Who cares, Becca? I just find it amusing that he's late, yet he acts like it's the teacher's fault. What an idiot…" she continued as Seto walked by the desk, "I mean, the rest of us have lives, but we at least manage to get to school on time…"
"You wouldn't understand the corporate world, Wheeler. Even the basics are too complicated for you." Seto growled, picking up a note Serenity had been writing to Rebecca during the lecture. He smirked as Serenity reached for it, "What's wrong, Wheeler? Something you don't want me to see…?" he asked, opening the note.
"'Becca…'" he read with a haughty grin, "'Why do we have to act out this play? Don't know, Seren, but I hope it's me and you-know-who as Juliet and Romeo…'" he paused, his cold glare traveling to Rebecca's bright red face, "Ah, Hawkins, something I should know about?"
Serenity leapt up again, snatching the note, "How about I read the last line for you, Kaiba?" she spoke with venom, "It's from me to Becca. It says 'anyone but Kaiba.'!"
"Ah, I'm hurt, Wheeler…really, I am…" he drawled, sitting in the seat behind them, "You should go out for Juliet. It would be fun watching you kill yourself…" he laughed.
"Kaiba- you little-" Serenity began, her face furious. But, the bell rang, causing Rebecca to hastily pull Serenity out of the classroom.
"Chill, Seren, we're above him, remember?" she soothed, "Besides, you can save it for the soccer field. We got practice after school today, or have you forgotten that too…?"
Serenity burst out of the locker room, first as usual, and began to run laps around the soccer field, pouring all her frustration into running. After about two laps, Mai ran out of the locker room, joining her, "Hey, hun. I heard that good-for-nothing- jerk of a CEO gave you and Becca some trouble this morning."
Serenity just shook her head, "He makes me so mad, the haughty way he looks at us, as if we're beggars or something."
Mai whistled softly, her eyes locked on two familiar faces, "Speak of the devil, Seren…"
Serenity glanced up the hill, a low moan escaping her as she saw the CEO walking with the boy's soccer coach, followed by the rest of the guy's soccer team.
"What in the world…?" The girl's coach asked with confusion, "We booked the field for today…"
The boys' coach jogged up, clipboard in hand, "Afternoon, Coach. I just wanted to do some conditioning with my boys here for the upcoming regional tournament. You mind if we team up with you for practice…? You know, laps, then some cross country trails?"
The girls' coach shrugged indifferently, "As long as you don't slow my girls down. Serenity!"
"Yes ma'am?"
"Ten laps. Then Trail A, followed by ten more laps, then Trail B. You follow?"
"Yes."
"Let's get her done, then!" she yelled, blowing the whistle.
Serenity broke into an easy lope around the field, ahead of most of the others. Tea jogged up beside her, bending over slightly so she could talk with out being overheard. "Seren…I dare you to…"
(5 minutes or4 laps later...)
Serenity's eyes sparked with mischief, "Oh, it's on now, Tea…" she whispered, pulling further ahead of the group.
Tea dropped back, until she was next to a bored looking CEO. "Kaiba….I bet you can't keep pace with Serenity- she's one of the faster people on the team."
Seto ignored her, continuing to run, but Tea continued, knowing she had his attention, "Guess your scared. Serenity is, after all, a really good runner…oh well, later Kaiba!" she dangled the last insult in his face before joining Rebecca behind Seto.
Serenity was now leading the pack by a good half a lap- she wasn't the captain of her team for nothing. Seto's gaze pierced her, his competitive mind urging him to catch up. I don't lose to Wheelers. he thought, increasing his pace until he was even with Serenity. Then, he slowed down a bit, panting slightly. Serenity was small but slender, her long legs carrying her easily.
"Wheeler."
"Save your breath for running, Kaiba." Serenity growled, edging forward slightly.
Seto met her pace as they entered the woods, and arched an eyebrow at her annoyed expression. "Something wrong in your little bubble, Wheeler?"
Flashback-
"…I dare you to keep pace with Kaiba the entire practice. You are, after all, pissed off at him- so show him a bit of your running style- make him sweat. You know he can't back down from a challenge…"
Serenity shook her head, frowning, "Coach wouldn't approve, you know that."
Tea laughed, "Yes, but she wouldn't know- you could do Trails C and B and be back before us, so don't worry." The tall brunette's gaze bored into her, "Unless, you're scared of that hot body he has…"
She took the bait. "Oh, it's on now, Tea."
End Flashback-
Serenity met his icy gaze with her own fiery one, "One guess, Kaiba. And since you are obviously not working well today, I'll give you a clue…" she commented drily, "Think back…to English, Kaiba…" she turned onto course A.
Seto continued going to C, then turned and looked down at her haughtily, "Well, Wheeler, considering you are such a good runner, shouldn't we take Course C?"
"What? But only seniors are allowed on Trail C. It's really dangerous this time of year, too- the rain makes landslides."
"Awww…is the little Mutt scared…?" Seto asked, smirking.
Serenity glared and ran past him onto the trail, "Just try and keep up with me, Kaiba!"
Rebecca glanced over at Tea, who was smiling triumphantly, "What is it, Tea? What did you just do?"
Tea's smile widened into a grin, "I just mixed ice and fire…"
Questions, Comments, Concerns, and Reviews
Thanks to all who reviewed Ch. 1! Sorry I didn't update sooner- my weekends have been so busy…
Nothing really important I feel like addressing…oh, wait! That's right, WAIT! There is one thing that I should address because people were asking about it…
THE NAME OF THE GAME IS SOCCER! (some people have not caught on to that fact- I don't mind, that just means I wasn't being clear enough...I'll work on it!)
That being said, I'll get working on Ch. 3!
Rate and Review!
Bakura: (whisper) and don't forget to FLAME-
Tombrobber's Gal: (covering his mouth) Just stick to reviewing and rating, please! Until next time!