Ave Maria
All my life I've been searching for something
Something never comes, never leads to nothing
Nothing satisfies, but I'm getting close
Closer to the prize at the end of the rope
All night long I dream of the day
When it comes around and it's taken away
Leaves me with the feeling that I feel the most
Feel it come to life when I see your ghost
The muscles in her arms would tense as she pulled her chin above the bar and balance there, gritting her teeth. She would then release her body and she would fall, dangling from the metal bar.
She would then do this over and over again for twenty times and Kaiba would watch her as he ran on the treadmill. The two had settled into an uneasy routine of coexisting where they only crossed paths in the morning when both would go through their daily workout routines.
He was more of a cardio guy then she was. As he would run, unpleasant thoughts were filter out of his brain and the jumbled conundrums that had haunted his sleep would unwind and he'd see what he had to do. He thought most brilliantly when he was jump-roping, a habit he had picked up at the orphanage to gain him some agility to prevent himself from being beat up, seeing possible reactions and situations that his plan for his new project could cause.
But he had to say that the best part of working out in the morning was seeing her. He didn't want to admit that he enjoyed having her in the house. She had the presence of a piece of artwork that when placed in the right place in the right room, turns the once ugly room into something beautiful.
He remembered the first time he had gone into the mansion, leading Mokuba by the hand as they followed Gozaburo through the labyrinth of priceless antiques and overly extravagant decorations. It was all so fancy and here he was, an orphan, dressed in hand-me-downs from one of the older kids who had gotten them at a homeless shelter. When he looked back, he couldn't imagine fitting into the life he led now. Even now, he didn't go into the East Wing of the house because of its grandeur.
When she showed up at his door, sopping wet, he had offered her a shower and a quick tour around the mansion. She ended up borrowing one of his button-down shirts, which fell to her knees, and he had shown her around. He was struck at how much the lifestyle suited her. He had noticed it when she had visited him for Yugi's funeral but it really resonated with him when she had gone into the East wing with its century-old grand piano, and she had sat down on the bench to stare around. Despite her lack of the puffy ball gown and the difference in the time periods, it would have made a beautiful painting. She belonged.
He had played on the piano several times for Gozaburo when the man was entertaining. The piano was too big and the stretch that his fingers made to hit the keys made them ache. It was like a monster waiting to eat him and often after he played, he would have nightmares. It scared him because it was a reminder of how much he needed to change if he was going to survive Gozaburo.
Mai had moved to the wall and had her fingers placed against it as she bent down, doing some ballet move. From what he had noticed from the few times he had gone to the ballet, her form was excellent, knees extending equally over her toes, butt tucked under, all muscles tight. She got out of her squat and moved to the balls of her feet, balancing, hands over her head. He could see the ridge of muscles in the back of her calves, and he made him smile. Ballet was beautiful to watch as well as graceful which was why he went every year to see at least one performance. Something about its ridged nature yet the sense of freedom and ease it conveyed appeared to him, and he saw that it did to her as well. She seemed at peace when she went through the kicks, squats, and the general demonstrations of flexibility.
His twenty-minute run was up, and he walked it until the band on the treadmill stopped moving. He had run three miles, and he grabbed his bottle of water, chugging it down.
He passed her without a word as she took his place on the treadmill and he went to the closet to get out his saber to practice for his fencing lesson.
''''''''''' ''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
The brilliant idea came to him while watching a chick-flick with Shizuka. One of the girls had been put into a center for alcoholics and now all the women were bonding as they talked about their problems to each other, sobbing and screaming and generally making asses of themselves.
Jonouchi stood up, mumbled to a sniffling Shizuka that he was getting more popcorn, and went into the kitchen to use the portable phone.
He had his counselor's number in memory and he called her up.
She answered on the first ring and he set up an appointment with her later in the day.
He microwaved more popcorn and took his seat next to Shizuka who was entranced in the movie. He was more focused on his plan.
The movie had reminded him of the theory behind group counseling. If someone wasn't willing to talk, if you put him or her in a room with people who have the same problem and are talking, the person not wanting to talk will eventually open up.
Of course, Jonouchi had no intention of forming a group therapy to accomplish that. His personal opinion of talking in groups was that it was a hideous form of treatment. Who wanted to admit that they were fucked up mentally to your friends and peers?
That was why he was going to propose it. If he had to suffer through five more sessions, he was going to make others suffer as well. Kaiba was his primary target. Why not? Kaiba was, by the law, an adult. He got to choose his care and it didn't involve being scrutinized by mental health professionals. If the therapist agreed to it, all he had to do was to get Mokuba to agree to it and then Kaiba was stuck doing it. Plus, Kaiba was a basket case of trauma and insanity. The therapist would be so concentrated on Kaiba's issues that Jonouchi would get off free.
Ah, the idea excited him so much.
''''''''''' ''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Mai did not go into living with Kaiba with the initial thought it would be easy. She didn't know the man nor did she know anything besides him except he was filthy rich and the top-ranking duelist.
Having spent several days in his home, she still didn't know much more other then that. She knew how he liked his coffee – black, a ¼ cup of coffee grinds to make one cup of coffee, his fixation for showering – she counted three a day, and that he owned a Toon Blue Eyes White Dragon stuffed animal.
She wasn't sure that when she got there where she would be staying. Kaiba had given her a room on the floor he slept on, and so often when she was wandering the halls late at night, unable to sleep, she would hear him screaming. One of the nights, she had peeked in and saw him clawing at the air. She didn't know what he was dreaming about and she didn't ask him when she ran into him while working out.
It was funny, the lives they both lived. They had almost identical patterns for waking. Both drank coffee, worked out, showered, and then did what they had to do for the day. Mai thought that maybe after the first day when she discovered this that Kaiba would either ask her to change what she did or he would change his routine. Yet every morning she would be working out and Kaiba would stumble in, blurry-eyed. He would shower first in her designated bathroom and then hand it over to her. When she'd get out, he was gone and at the office.
She ended up spending a lot of the time at Kaiba Land since there were free tickets lying around everywhere in the house. Duels were always going on with money at stake and she was broke, spending all her money on a plane ticket and then on a taxi, which was nearly impossible to find, to drive her the 200 miles to Domino City. She had run out of money about ten miles away from the mansion and had been forced to walk in her heels. She didn't want to ever feel that humiliated again as she did when she stood on Kaiba's doorstep.
Truthfully, she didn't know why he let her in. The impression she got about him from other people that he was cold and aloof, only warming up to his brother. She did see that. They passed each other every day in the house and never spoke a word. She didn't mind though. She wasn't one for mindless chatter either. But a cold man doesn't just allow some random girl who he met once to live in his house free of charge, giving her free reign of the place. For all he knew, she could be a serial killer or a leech trying to get his money. He trusted her and that scared her. She was used to people thinking the worst of her instantly.
'''''''''''' '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Jonouchi whistled cheerfully as he peddled up the steep hill to Kaiba's mansion. Not even physical exhaustion could cure him of his chipper mood and he set the bike down next to one of the freshly manicured hedges before springing to the door.
He hit the doorbell and waited patiently for the door to slip open. He wasn't sure anyone would be home at four p.m. because of Kaiba's insane work schedule and Mokuba's after school activities but he had gotten bored watching old TV sitcoms all alone at home.
The door opened and he stepped through, gasping at Mai who had let him in. He hadn't expected her to be in Japan anytime soon and for her to be at Kaiba's, it made him suspicious.
"What are you doing here?" he asked as she led him to the sitting room. It couldn't be called a living room because it didn't look like it ever got used. It was just a bunch of couches and chairs clustered together with a coffee table between them. There wasn't even a TV.
"I got sick of being in America."
"But, Kaiba?" He couldn't understand why anyone in his or her right mind would willingly live with the billionaire.
"He's not a bad guy, Jonouchi." She hit the button to put up the footrest.
"Maybe not to you but the guy has been giving hell to me and Yugi since the day we met him. The first time we met, he rips up Yugi's grandpa's blue eyes and then when Yugi creams the sucker, he tries to kill us…"
Jonouchi was expecting her to be shocked or angry. He didn't get anywhere near that dramatic of an emotion. She looked at him passively like she was waiting for him to finish.
"Why isn't that bothering you?"
She smiled serenely at him. " Why do you want it to bother me?"
He didn't have an answer for that, at least not one he cared to admit.
"Seriously, it's the past," Mai shrugged. " I didn't know him when it happened. The person I know is the person I met a few days ago. That is the image of him I go on."
"He was a psychopath."
"People aren't their mistakes," her eyes met his for a second before they darted away. He swore he saw sadness there but he couldn't be sure.
"Well said." A loud booming voice was coming from the doorway and Jonouchi looked up to see Kaiba standing there, smirking. Jonouchi immediately regretted what he said. It wasn't that he felt sorry; he was scared of being killed.
"Did you know, Mai, that Jonouchi used to beat Yugi up for fun? He almost killed him once with a well-placed jab to the stomach. A lot of internal bleeding with that one, funny to say I am the psychopath when you nearly killed your best friend…"
Jonouchi growled and Kaiba leveled his cobalt eyes on Jonouchi, smiling viciously. "And how about the time you decided to have the death duel with Yugi and you set him on fire? You laughed and…"
"Shut up!" Jonouchi yelled, jumping to his feet. " I was being forced to do it."
"By who? We all know you longed to be better than Yugi."
"Malik and that stupid rod of his!" Jonouchi and Kaiba were almost nose to nose for Jonouchi was standing on his tip-toes to compensate for the difference in height.
"Magic isn't real or did you forget that?" Kaiba sneered and he turned to look at Mai. " Anyhow, Jonouchi here almost succeeded in killing Yugi. If not for his sister, Yugi would be lying on the bottom of the ocean, dead! All because you cared more about getting yourself free then your best friend!"
Kaiba just nearly avoided the punch that Jonouchi threw at him, and before Mai's eyes, it was a full-on fistfight. She sighed as they both fell onto the ground in a fury of flying limbs and walked over to them. She kicked whoever was on the top of the pile, and placed herself bodily between the two.
She had kicked Jonouchi, it turned out. The heel of her shoe did what Kaiba hadn't managed to do – make him bleed. His lip was torn up and his clothes were rumpled but otherwise he looked to be in perfect health. Kaiba was lying on the ground; breathing heavily with a sedated grin on his face like he had just ran a marathon that he had been practicing for what seemed like years.
"Stop it. Both of you haven't always been the greatest person. But you're here now, a better person than you were then. I don't need to know what you did," she scolded and she sat back down in her chair as she watched carefully as the two boys sat down on opposite ends of the couch.
"Why are you here, mutt?"
Mai rolled her eyes. Kaiba couldn't get past provoking him. But Jonouchi wasn't much better. She could see him getting angry.
Jonouchi smiled. He wasn't sure how to break the news in the best way so he decided to take the direct approach. " Kaiba, you have to go to group therapy with me."
Mai watched them as they got into another fistfight and she sighed again, sitting back to watch the entertainment being offered to her.
''''''' '''''' '''''' '''''' '''''' '''''' ''''''
"You're a moron," she mumbled as she pressed the icepack to Kaiba's clothed back. He hissed at the cold that seeped into the skin and he swore he could hear her giggle.
"It's not my fault he decided to be an asshole, " Kaiba responded as he scooted closer to the banister so she could sit on the same step as him.
She shrugged as she picked up the bottle of peroxide and dipped the cotton swab in it. " Turn towards me."
"Why?"
"You have a cut on your forehead. It needs to be disinfected."
Kaiba grabbed the mirror off the step above them, and stared at himself in the mirror. There was a gash like she said but it wasn't bleeding too badly.
"It doesn't need to be."
She rolled her eyes. " Yes, it does." She raised the cotton swab and he ducked away from the advancing hand.
"Please, don't," he mumbled.
She stopped immediately and handed him the swab. Something told her that it wasn't a plead because he would feel pain or discomfort but because it was something from his past that he was afraid of, like it honestly terrified him.
She watched him swab himself and he handed the bloody ball back to her. She set it in the pile of things she needed to throw away along with the band-aid wrappers and excess tape for the gauze.
"Are you scared of being touched?" she asked.
He didn't answer. It really didn't matter to her if he did. They sat there in silence
"I don't know why he decided to do this to me," Kaiba suddenly spoke.
"Counseling? It's obvious, isn't it? He wants revenge for all the times you teased him. What better way to humiliate you then getting you to open up and spill your deep dark secrets."
He chuckled, leaning back to stretch his body along the pathway of steps. "It's a good plan but I can't be forced to talk."
"You'll talk," Kaiba looked up at her, confused. " You can go in being as quiet as you want to be but it's their job to draw you out and get you to talk. Even the most stubborn person can not say a word to them." She leaned back to lie next to him. He could feel the heat radiating off her and he ignored his impulse to get closer to it.
"You talk like you know."
"I don't."
"You don't like talking about yourself."
"How acute of you."
He noticed that she didn't look at him when she answered, not showing her smile. Her blonde hair was making a carpet on the stairs, spread out around her face like a fan, lightly brushing his arm.
He focused on ignoring the itchy feeling and his need to brush it away from his hypersensitive skin. But he couldn't resist and he moved his arm. Her eyes shifted to him after he did it but she didn't comment. He was grateful.
"I'm going to put them away. Do you want anything while I'm up?"
He shook his head and he saw her bare feet with the cherry red nail polish on her toes walk up the stairs, carrying the medical supplies up to the guest bathroom.
''''''''''' ''''''''''' ''''''''''' '''''''''''
It was the Amber Room, a maze in which he wandered for hours until he found the door he needed. He climbed the spiral staircase like a crazed animal, hands and feet scrambling up the stairs with the echoing noise of slapping flesh filling his ear.
The door that stood at the top was the same color as the walls and floor were, amber, but they somehow seemed darker because of the aura that he felt seeping out of the door. He knew it was the one he wanted and he pulled on the rung. It slid open with a loud clang and he walked in.
Yugi was standing in the room, back turned to him. The spikes of hair had more blackness to them then what had been there previously, and the clothing was no longer tight leather and belts but a flowing white robe trimmed in gold. Sandals adorned the feet and he waited patiently for Yugi to turn around and acknowledge him.
It wasn't Yugi who turned around to face him. It was the other Yugi, the pharaoh and he gulped as the ruby eyes settled on his.
"Why did you do it?" the deep voice rumbled.
"I don't know."
"Why did you do it?" the voice repeated again.
"I don't know why I didn't."
He kept his eyes lowered, indicating respect, but the pharaoh didn't care and he felt the small fingers clutch around his throat. It took both hands to wrap themselves around his neck and the other Yugi stood on his tiptoes, pressing his thumbs into his windpipe to halt the airflow more quickly.
"Why?" His head was being shaken back and forth and he couldn't answer because of the motion and the lack of oxygen running through his veins that allowed him to form coherent sentences.
"Why! Why! Why! Why!" It was chanted like a mantra as he was backed into a wall and his head was slammed at every pulse of the word into the golden engravings.
"Why didn't you save him?" The Pharaoh was screaming now and tears were staining his face.
The grip of his neck loosened and he removed his head from the distinct print it had made in the wall, wiping the blood off the wall with his hand as to not stain the beautiful surface.
He made his way to the Pharaoh who was kneeling on the ground and he bowed, thanking him, and he walked out of the Amber Room.
Kaiba opened his eyes to see Jonouchi staring at him, hand covering his mouth as if he was trying to cover the fact he wasn't laughing though his shaking body was enough proof that he was.
"Why are you laughing?" Kaiba asked.
"I never knew you screamed like a girl," Jonouchi managed to get out between bouts of laughter and Kaiba glared before reaching over to grab a tissue. He dabbed the back of his head and checked the tissue to make sure he wasn't bleeding.
Jonouchi looked on curiously before commenting, " I didn't know you could cry either."
Kaiba snatched another tissue and wiped his eyes, continuing to glare at the blonde. " Why the hell are you in my room?
"It's ten. Time for our appointment!" Jonouchi smiled evilly and Kaiba would have smacked him if the boy were in his arm range.
Jonouchi left the room to allow Kaiba to change and Kaiba walked over to his dressers where his alarm clock was perched. He stared at the clock and wondered if the world was going to end. He hadn't slept past seven in years.
He rummaged through the closet and decided on his Battle City uniform of the white trench coat and black slacks with the signature belt with his initials on it. It gave him the appearance of normality, he felt, since the public had seen him in the outfit before.
Downstairs, he found the therapist sitting in one of the armchairs in the center of the cluster while Mai was sitting on the couch opposite of Jonouchi who was in the Lazy-Boy yawning, barely keeping awake. He took a seat next to Mai on the couch, and the therapist turned her face to look at him.
"Hello there. What's your name?"
Kaiba stared at her in disbelief. He considered being polite but why would he want to be nice to someone he didn't invite into his life? " I am positive that you know who I am, …" his eyes flickered to the nametag. " Tularosa."
It was funny. She looked Japanese. Maybe she was educated in America or some Spanish speaking country and decided to rename herself after her chosen people. Psychiatrists weren't the most popular people in Japan. Everyone wanted to just keep quiet with his or her problems and suffer; denying her money to list off the bullshit that everyone knew deep down but had no intention of changing.
"And you, my dear," she turned to Mai who instead of listening was painting her toenails with a peachy nail polish. Kaiba wanted to grin and wished he had done something that blatantly disrespectful. Then again, she wasn't required to be here. She could leave at any time unlike him who had unfortunately promised Mokuba he'd see it through to the end.
"What he said," she mumbled, making a gesturing moment with her chin as she smoothed the brush of her tiny pinky toenail, not getting any of it in the crevice between the nail and skin. Kaiba was impressed.
Ms. Tularosa didn't glare at them but she certainly couldn't hide the flash of anger that crossed her eyes at the audacity the teens were showing. "Before we start our session, I would like for all of us to state our goals for the period of time we will be spending together," Kaiba tried not to laugh and he was shot a dirty look. "You first, Katsuya."
"Uh…I don't have a goal."
"Come up with one. We can not accomplish anything if we do not have something to set out for."
The blonde tangled his hand in his hair, using as fingernails as teeth of a comb to straighten up the disheveled strands. He looked thoughtful then confused, and Ms. Tularosa sighed, looking down at her watch.
Jonouchi gave Kaiba a pleading look and Kaiba shook his head. He wasn't going to bail the person out who sent him to this waste of time. The look shifted to Mai and she mouthed something to him. Jonouchi's nose crinkled as he got confused, and Mai mouthed it again, a light hiss coming out of her whisper.
The idea registered in the blonde's head and he spoke to the therapist who was expectantly waiting for his answer. " My goal is to get out of going to these sessions as soon as possible," he told her.
The therapist's jaw dropped literally and Kaiba covered his mouth to hide his laughter. He could see Mai smirking out of the corner of his eye as she moved to her long fingernails, pressing white stickers to the fingers to do a French manicure.
"That isn't a goal, Katsuya. Please give me a more realistic one."
She had a very proper voice, suited well for a doctor. It was calm and didn't show emotion well. Kaiba wanted to see the image shattered.
"Uh, doc…that is my goal. I don't want to have to see you anymore." Mai lost it and chuckled, a high-pitched nasal sound compared to the overall silence of the room. Both of the boys cracked a smile and the doctor's eyes turned to Kaiba.
"Seto, what…"
He interrupted her immediately. " Kaiba. I prefer to be called Kaiba."
"Why is that?"
He met her eyes. " I don't like people who I don't like using my familiar name." He stared her down until she relented on the question that was threatening to escape from her.
"And what is your goal, Kaiba?"
He had to think about that. He chose to take a similar route. " I want you out of my house."
"If you want me to leave, then why did you invite me here in the first place to have this meeting?" she asked.
"I didn't. The mutt here decided to blackmail into this."
"Mutt?" she questioned. Kaiba kept silent, not wanting to explain. He noticed Jonouchi didn't speak up either to defend himself. He felt a growing camaraderie for the boy against their common foe.
The therapist sighed at yet another dead end and turned to her last victim. " What about you, Ms. Kujaku."
"Mai," she corrected.
"Mai, what goals do you have for our sessions together?"
The blonde girl looked up, dipping the nailbrush into the white paint and tightening the top. She lightly shook her fingers to allow the air to dry the nails and she replied, " I have no goals nor am I a part of this session. I just came here for the entertainment."
The therapist had no response for that other then a disappointed stare and she turned back into the circle so she could see all three. " I have some goals for our time together. Since none of you are taking this seriously, my goals shall be your goals. I want this to be a place where friends…"
Jonouchi coughed loudly.
She ignored him and continued. " …Where friends can talk amongst each other about their problems and be treated with respect. I want for you to wander your hidden depths and bring out your darkest fears and confront them. All of you are still in grief over the tragic losses you have been dealt and reliving the horrors of that faithful day. I want you to come out of this with hope and the realizations…"
Jonouchi and Kaiba cracked at the same time and burst out laughing, stopping the poor lady half way through her speech.
"What's so funny?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at the two boys.
Neither was capable of answering, Kaiba still laughing and Jonouchi wheezing for breath.
"Did you do any research prior to the listing of your goals or do you give these goals to every client you meet?" Mai asked.
"I don't get what you are inferring."
"We're not your normal clients. In case you haven't noticed, none of us have any intention of opening up to you or each other. This isn't group therapy no matter how much you are trying to pretend it is. We all know each other and we don't like one another. As for our grief and how we deal with the aftermath, it quite frankly doesn't involve you…"
"How does it not involve me," the counselor yelled, finally losing her temper. " I am a licensed professional who is trained to deal with your problems. I don't see three young adults who are dealing with their issues. I see three children who gang up on the voice of reason so obviously in pain and denying it so ferociously. I see…"
Mai interrupted her again. " What right do you have to tell us how we should be feeling or what we should be doing at a certain time? You may be a professional but you have no clue where to start with our problems. You never had to be in some random building and watch the people all around you being shot at. People are yelling at you in a language you don't understand and you run for your life, ducking behind others who get shot instead of you as you targeted. You don't have to watch your friends get shot or yourself kill to keep your life. You don't have to kill your own friends who are begging for mercy as you try to find an exit and they see the gun that is strapped to your side and see their way to salvation. You don't have to see everything in life gone in one split second and left with the knowledge that nothing will ever be the same again. All you know, Ms. Tularosa, is what you have read out of a textbook about people like us and your sessions with drug addicts and anorexics in America. So don't tell me what we do is wrong. We are coping and that's enough."
The room was dead silent except for the quick breathing from Mai as she caught her breath and then the sound of water being swallowed as she tried to relieve her parchedness. Jonouchi was staring at her in fascination while the therapist was in shock and face had turned white. It was only Kaiba who thought of what she had said. For the first time, he had seen her actual reaction to the attacks. All previous times it had come up, the topic had been avoided and no emotion was shown. But now, she looked like the girl she was on the cover of the magazine, the wild haunted warrior whose strength shone even stronger when she was vulnerable.
He watched Mai exhale and grab the tub of peach nail polish to paint on the rest of the manicure, and he stood up.
"Tularosa, we will have an appointment with you in two days, same time, if you want to see us. We will finish the hour in our own time. You will still be paid for your services," he told her and she nodded dumbly at him. His butler escorted her to the door and Jonouchi looked at Kaiba confused.
"Why'd you do that? I thought you didn't want to see her again."
"I don't, mutt. But we're caught in this contract with her and this was the quickest way to get rid of her."
Mai held up her hand to stop Jonouchi from replying and she scooted to face Kaiba. " What is in the contract? Like what are the terms of the sessions."
Kaiba's face blanched and he motioned for his butler to retrieve the folder from his desk.
"What's wrong?" Jonouchi asked.
"I just remembered something. You signed the contract when?"
"Right after Yugi's funeral. I wanted to stay here and so they faxed Shizuka the papers and I signed them and sent them back."
"Did you read them?"
"Uh…no."
"Fuckin' mutt," Kaiba mumbled, snatching the papers away to hand them to Mai. The girl scanned them, reading both sides, and she sighed. Kaiba took it as a bad sign.
"It says that the minimum amount of appointments Jonouchi has to have is five, so we have four left no matter what. However it does say that if she believes that he is in need of more therapy, she can extend the number of appointment indefinitely until she believes him to be cured. And as for you, Kaiba, your contract binds you to Jonouchi so you will be stuck as well."
Jonouchi growled much like the dog he was always being called and Kaiba scowled. He was impressed that Mai understood the contract though. His lawyers always had to explain them to him because he found the cramped tiny writing and eloquent prose annoying. He liked things to be simple and clear-cut. Her understanding it so quickly and easily made him again wonder where she learned it.
"So basically, if we want to get out of seeing her, we have to met her goals and look like we have changed," Mai continued and both boys nodded. "We all have to pretend to be friends and actually talk about our problems in front of her, to show we are cooperating."
"Alright. Sounds good. But I have one question. Why are you participating in this with us when you aren't bound by the contract? Shouldn't you be avoiding it like the plague? You don't have to share anything personal or embarrassing. You should get out while you can."
She laughed at Jonouchi's comments. " I don't like her. And besides, I am the only one to get out of it because unlike both of you, I am an adult and have no one who can override my decisions like you, Kaiba."
That was news to Kaiba. He had never thought of her age. From the surprised look on Jonouchi's face, it had never crossed his mind either. " Just how old are you?" he asked.
"24. I am a Scorpio and I used to live in America. I am currently penniless, homeless, and have no family to fall back on. That's all you need to know," she smiled at Jonouchi. " You?"
"17. Aquarius. Uh…I live alone?"
"That was a lame summery of your life," Kaiba remarked.
"Can you do any better?" Jonouchi shot back.
"Sure. 17. Scorpio. Owner of a multibillion corporation, champion in chess, duel monsters…" Jonouchi coughed and Kaiba amended what he said. " ….Was a champion in duel monsters, Tetris, and I am the sole caretaker of Mokuba."
"Wow. That tells me so much about you, Kaiba," Jonouchi rolled his eyes.
"It's better then yours. At least mine lists my accomplishments."
"Well, everyone knows you are a billionaire and a top-class gamer."
" And everyone knows you live alone!"
"They do not! I just started living alone a few days…"
"Guys, shut up!" Both boys immediately quieted down. "It's not important whose was better. The only thing that does is that we now know something about each other's life."
" I don't want Kaiba knowing about my life, " Jonouchi mumbled.
"Why's that?"
Jonouchi didn't answer but Mai read the subtext. Jonouchi was scared of his life not measuring up to the adroit Kaiba who appeared to have everything in the grasp of his palm.
"Kaiba, what about you?"
"I don't like talking about myself." It was bad enough that Kaiba's past was an open book in many of the adventures that Yugi had led his friends on, but it had only been Anzu and Yugi who had noticed the flaws it revealed. People being allowed to see your flaws will be your downfall. It wasn't just a saying that Gozaburo slammed into his head but a lesson he had learned countless times.
"No one does, Kaiba. But both of you are missing the point. Group counseling is not about healing. It's making friends with people similar to you who will help you when you falter. It's learning to deal. And I know you two don't like each other a whole lot, but you two are the only ones left on your merry little bandwagon of friends. And if you talked to each other without you, Kaiba, making fun of Jonouchi, and Jonouchi allowing his taunts to get to you, you'd realize that you aren't that different."
Jonouchi processed what she said quickly, watching Kaiba out of the corner of his eye. He didn't want to make friends with such an arrogant prick who spent his life trying to outdo other people. But Mai was right. Kaiba was his only link to the life he had once had and there were many times he did respect about Kaiba. Of course, they were hard to think about when he was with Kaiba but he knew if he thought about it for a long time, he could think of something.
"I have a question I need answered," Kaiba said, ending the contemplation. " I've noticed this before. How do you know so much about psychology?"
Neither noticed how uncomfortable she looked before she answered. " Observation."
Kaiba was going to respond when he felt the vibration at his hip. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and flipped it open.
"Hello?"
He listened for a few seconds and slapped the cover down, standing up. " I have something I have to pick up in the mail. We'll talk during dinner."
He sprinted out the front door and Jonouchi grabbed the remote off the coffee table to turn on one of the few TVs in the house.
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''' '''''''''''''' '''''''''
There was too much deja vu and Kaiba should have realized something was going to go wrong with the dinner when he returned home from visiting the post office two hours away. Jonouchi and Mai had been sitting across from each other in his small kitchen, reserving the two end chairs for him and Mokuba who was hovering by the microwave, waiting for the ice cream to defrost in the microwave.
They were all lined up by the counter to get mashed potatoes, meat loaf, and broccoli in cheese sauce, or to take out whatever leftovers were in the fridge. Kaiba entered the room to find Jonouchi standing in front of the mashed potatoes, wide-eyed and face pale and sickly looking.
"Don't like them?" Kaiba commented.
Jonouchi slowly shook his head and curiosity got the better of him and Kaiba wandered to the other side of the counter to peer at what Jonouchi's eyes were so fixated on.
It was a bowl of some white creamy liquid, or maybe it once had been. It was now a crimson color, and he wrinkled his nose. It didn't look too edible.
"It looks like blood," Kaiba dryly commented. Jonouchi nodded, and Kaiba caught the sight of Jonouchi's hands shaking. It obviously reminded him of something and he heard the clicking of heels against the floor.
Mai came up behind him and picked the bowl up, dipping her spoon in it. She took a sip of it and sat down at the table, seemingly unaware of the pair of eyes that followed her. She took another sip and a swig of her soda, and focused her attention away from her food and onto the two boys who were gaping at her.
"Why are you giving me such strange looks?"
Jonouchi kept staring and Kaiba hit him in the side with his elbow. " Get moving, mutt," he hissed and it snapped Jonouchi out of his trance and the boy went back to piling mashed potatoes on his plate. He turned his attention to Mai. " What are you eating?"
"Vanilla Yogurt. It's all you had and I didn't like the flavor so I added some canned cherry filling to it."
He didn't know he owned canned goods and he sliced into the meatloaf. He must have gotten it into a tough piece because despite his sawing, the meat wouldn't separate. Growling angrily, he moved the butcher knife up into the split half of the meat loaf and slammed it down, hoping to break it apart. A loud clanging noise rang out as the knife hit the glass plate the meat lay upon, and everyone with the exception of Mokuba who was calmly eating his ice cream jumped. Kaiba backed away; staring at the knife angled 45 degrees into the meat, afraid.
It was Mokuba who finally got up and pulled the knife out of the meat, patting his brother on the back comfortingly. Kaiba muttered an uneasy thanks and sat down with his dinner guests.
It was complete silence as they ate. No silverware brushed against the dishes, no slurping or sounds of people ingesting food, not enough a single breath. It seemed like everyone was scared to make a sound because it would set someone else off.
"Do you have to eat that right next to me?" Jonouchi growled, the only one willingly to break the silence. Kaiba followed his gaze to Mai who was spooning the reddish pudding into her mouth.
"Why does it bother you?"
Jonouchi just glared at her. Kaiba could see out of the corner of his eye that his brother was leaning forward, trying to figure out what was going on.
"It's just very red," he whispered to the blonde girl.
"It's not your blood," she responded.
"Please…"
Mai sighed and stood up, picking up her bowl. She moved rather deliberately, walking to the trashcan and she stepped on the lever, opening the top. Her eyes met Jonouchi's as she slowly scraped the red clumpy pudding out of the dish and then poured the liquid section out of it.
She returned to the table to face an ill-looking Jonouchi. He took a sip of his water before muttering, "Thank you."
"Welcome," she answered, leaning back in her chair.
Another uncomfortable silence was threatening to take over the room so Mokuba spoke up. " So, Mai…when did you get your start in dueling?"
Kaiba was proud of his brother. The question was innocent and didn't provoke confirmation. It was perfect for getting to know someone with and he did want to know more about the girl.
However the question didn't have its desired effect. A shadow passed over her face and her eyes lowered, looking sad before they returned to Mokuba. " I was ten and I needed money. I stole cards off some kid I met on the street and used his deck at a tournament and I won. The prize money was good so I kept doing it."
Jonouchi and his brother seemed to accept the answer but Kaiba found it vague. It told everything but nothing in particular. It was a prime tacit in not lying but not wanting to talk about it either. He knew…he used the approach far too often.
"Did you use your Harpies back then?"
She paused, eyes wide like a deer caught in the headlights, and she shook her head. Again, Kaiba found it an interesting reaction.
"Someone I really cared about gave them to me." She walked over to the fridge and pulled out a carton of orange juice. She poured herself a glass and returned to the table.
"Who was he?" Jonouchi asked the minute he sat down.
"What makes you think it was a he?"
"You're not a lesbo, are you?" The poor blonde was panicking and Kaiba laughed.
"She never said that, mutt. She didn't even say if it was a lover. It could have been a family member or a friend," he said and Jonouchi's expression relaxed into a familiar glare.
"I knew that!"
"So, Jou, do you have something against lesbians?" Kaiba teased.
"Of course not! I love lesbians. Cool people, they are. Don't mind those gays either…" He waved his hands around frantically. It gave Kaiba the impression of denial. "I just didn't want Mai to be that way."
"Reason?"
Jonouchi snarled and Kaiba smirked. It seemed the blonde had a little crush he didn't want to admit to, and he turned his gaze to Mai. She was drinking, acting unconcerned about the fight taking place next to her, but he knew she was watching every movement and reaction.
"I'm just not comfortable having friends that swing that way," Jonouchi explained, trying to redeem himself.
"You do," Kaiba pointed out.
"Huh?" Jonouchi looked confused and Mokuba's ears perked up.
"Ryou was gay."
"What?"
Kaiba was surprised the mutt didn't know. It was obvious to everyone else in the school. Ryou was always being beaten up for no good reason even with his friends being the people they were and rumors were always floating around that he was gay. Then there was the time he caught one of his guards standing next to Ryou's bedside after he had passed out during Battle City. He had paused, thinking it was just that, guarding the body, but after he saw the guard kiss his cheek, he knew. It didn't bother him too much. The guy died when they had crashed into the docking station that Noa's mind was stationed.
"He dated one of my bodyguards."
The glass of lemonade slipped out of Jonouchi's hand and smashed, glass flying everywhere. Mai squealed, jumping out of her chair to avoid the pieces that threatened to slash her.
"You're lying."
Kaiba shook his head. " I'm not."
Jonouchi looked like his entire world had crashed down on him. "He…he would have told me something like that. He…he was our friend. He can't be. He can't be…" he mumbled.
"He was your groupie."
"He was not!"
Kaiba rolled his eyes and Jonouchi exploded. "How dare you defile his memory?"
"Not all the memories we hold of people are correct," Kaiba shot back. Jonouchi climbed to his feet, prepared for a fight and Kaiba stood up as well.
"If I can't trust what I sense then what is right?"
Kaiba didn't believe that the words came out of Jonouchi's mouth. They were philosophical, too smart for Jonouchi and he paused, not sure what to say.
"We have to trust one another."
It had been awhile since Mai had spoken and they all waited for her to continue what she said. Her mouth was open, ready to say something, but she never found her voice. They watched surprised as she left the room. Kaiba sighed and walked around to the other side of the table to clear away the dishes. It had been very productive. Mai didn't tell anything about herself and he and Jonouchi fought. He was beginning to see a pattern.
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He waited until it was dark out and he slit the manila envelope open. He pulled the tape out and slipped it into his pocket before leaving his office to go to the boardroom. He had a TV in there and since it was on the far side of the house, no one would hear the commotion.
He passed Mai's room first and he heard noise. Worried that she was awake, he paused by the door, and listened. Besides the sound of his own heartbeat echoing in his ear, he swore he could hear soft crying.
He wanted to confront her and tell her it would be okay. It was the same feeling he often felt for Mokuba shortly after Duelist Kingdom when Mokuba began having the nightmares of being trapped in the card. He would scream for hours and Kaiba ended up sleeping next to him for weeks until it ended. He never told Mokuba that he had the same dream.
But he knew her. She was like him. She didn't want anyone to see her weak. So he wandered down the hall and stopped at Jonouchi's room. All he could hear was snoring and he quickened his pace, hitting the double doors that led to the other wing.
It was cold in there, almost like a freezer despite the warm temperatures outside. He wrapped a blanket around his shoulders and entered the boardroom, padding over to the cabinet. Opening it, he pulled out the TV and slipped the video in, grabbed a box of tissues, and took his seat in front of the TV, unprepared for the sights that would soon greet his eyes.
Author's Note: Another chapter is out of the way. It is the longest chapter so far and yet I feel I have said nothing. It didn't turn out how I planned but I don't know where to fix it so…
Onto my theories and why I did what I did
Kaiba and Mai: I don't see Kaiba as someone who understands romantic love. He knows devotion and love for one's own kin and that is why I say that he likes Mai at the house because she makes the house look pretty. She is a beautiful object to him and that is important in a sense to the way she is between Kaiba and Jonouchi. She is the thing they want to acquire such as a vase. It's like spontaneous shopping. It looks good, you want to buy it, so you do. But you never looked at the whole thing to see its flaws.
Mai: Mai's psychological analyses are the vital part of the healing process. Though she admits no feelings about herself, she is the true voice of reason behind the three teenagers. I would think it's out of character for her to make those assumptions. Of all the characters with the exception of Kaiba, Mai uses psychology when she duels. She intimidates people with her whole card-scenting thing to throw them off their game by making them believe she has an advantage and she takes advantage of her looks, making sure to look as feminine as possible so she appears weak.
I also can picture her as someone who does like to work out. Of all the girls, she is the most built, not just in the chest department but everywhere. She seems like she could kick someone's ass and I tried to think of exercises that she would do. Dancing would one of them. She's very aware of herself and her body which comes from exercise, yes, but dancers are probably the most aware of all athletes about their body shape and their conditioning. Plus it makes a good image for Kaiba to watch.
Ryou: I had no intention of making Ryou gay. It was during an hour of writer's block when the thought occurred to me because I was looking for a way to end the scene, realizing that I wasn't able to accomplish what I wanted to do with this chapter. It's hard to do anything with any of the characters because so few of them are left, and the ones that are left have no real relation to Mai, Kaiba, or Jonouchi.
Ryou is the only one in Jonouchi's group who isn't a part of it. They always claim to include him but in any event, he's never there. It makes you wonder why he was friends with them in the first place. It could have been because of his Yami and wanting the puzzle but I think he was looking for people to protect him. His past is an open book and he is so meek. I see him as a uke.
I considered making Yugi gay for the same reasons I chose Ryou but I thought it wouldn't work as well. Who would he be gay with? Yami? That would be some sick form of masturbation. I had a great line for Kaiba if I had went with that idea, but I forgot it now.
The listing off of the birthdays: Mai tells them her birthday to try to get them to open it. Yet none of them say anything about themselves except for their astrological signs. That says a lot. I am a Scorpio like Mai and Kaiba both are, and I do know a few things about Jonouchi's signs. The characters do semi-fit their birthdays. I always found that weird how it works out. Kaiba, in the series, is dark, brooding, and powerful. Those are all Scorpio traits and you find a lot of those in Mai to a different degree. I will do more research on Jonouchi's signs later.
Kaiba and Touch: I think Kaiba would be afraid of being touched by people. He is introverted, for one, and he obviously has some scars from his childhood. Gozaburo probably beat him and could have done other crap to him, and so he sees people as enemies. No one gets near him in the series with the exception of Mokuba. Being adverse to touch isn't something that is absolute. There are certain people who can touch you and it doesn't creep you out. Mokuba would be one of those people for Kaiba because he is his brother.
And I find it funny that the people who hate being touched are the ones we want to touch the most. Enough said on that.
Jonouchi and Kaiba: All the two boys do ever is fight. I wanted to show the way that both will skew the truth in order to win the argument. Kaiba knew very well that Jonouchi had no control over himself in the duel with Malik as does Jonouchi know that Kaiba has changed for the better and has saved their asses far many more times then he had tried to kill them. They both find excuses to insult the other because they view each other as competition, not only for Mai which I have been trying to hint it, but as alternate ways to live their lives.
I hope you enjoyed this. It is sort of long and I was going to write more for this chapter but I decided to be nice to myself. Next chapter will consist of the video footage Kaiba got from the shootings.