IT'S RENOVATION TIME PEOPLE! In other words, I'm re-vamping this fic! though the whole plot will remain, you'll only find some… uh… quirks amuck the chapters!
Disclaimer on everything that I don't own!
Trouble Lies Ahead,
By Winterwing3000
School for the seniors were coming to an end. Their teacher, Mr. Tokushi was exciting the class with upcoming exams and college application forms. Looking outside, Tea envied the little kids. Outside, the trees were lusciously green and wildflowers popped out the waving grass. The window was opened, so she can hear the birds chirping merrily and the cars' engine rumbling at the streets.
"Students, please pay attention. Mr. Wheeler, stop flinging spitballs at me. Ms. Gardner, please focus your attention on the board and away from the window. Unless you would like to discuss what you were daydreaming about back there."
Blushing, she looked down on her lap. Clapping his hands, Mr. Tokushi caught his pupils' attention.
"As you all would know, your school year in Domino High is coming to an end. This means that the senior's school prom is coming up just within a few weeks. Every gentleman in here should know the drill. You are asked to come with a date. We would really appreciate your participation in the dance. But if you wish not to, then that's for you to decide. Now, your homework for the day is to prepare yourself for the examinations and submissions to college." He said this with his back to the class, writing the assignment on the board.
Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Joey throwing another saliva pit at their teacher's head. Tristan was passing notes all around the class, and one of them was on her own desk.
The dismissal bell rang, so instead of reading it, Tea stuffed it into her pocket and collected her books. Finally! I thought this day would never end… Out in the campus, students are buzzing about the spring festival that was going to take place this evening. Some girls squealed when their boyfriends asked them to the dance.
Hiding herself in a corner, Tea unfolded the note and read the scrawny writing. Tea, met the guys and I at the back of the school after class pronto. Plus, don't be late!
"Funny, we always meet after school. So why bother writing me this? Never mind." Walking down the hallway, her foot led her to the familiar door she used to get out at. Taking a step out into the green scenery, her eyes wandered across the vacant area.
"Guys! Where are you!" A gust swept by, making the deserted backyard feel lonelier than before.
"BOO!" Screaming the loudest shriek that came out of her throat, she turned around and hit the person on the head with her bag.
A loud bang and some things came crashing down. A deep groan was heard underneath all the junk and laughing came from behind the dumpster. Slowly making her way to the pile of garbage, she spotted a cluster of blond hair.
Turning her head at a 90 degree angle, she saw an erratically hair cut from the dumpster. Soon, her short and tall friend came out from their hiding place. Clutching their stomachs, Tristan and Yugi went over to a really red Tea.
Removing the thrown out litter that was all over him, Joey stood up and walked over to the rest of the gang. "Oh… that was the best! Tea, I give you a full 10 on that hit! Man, I never thought you had that in you!" Tristan was holding onto her shoulder for support.
Hearing this, Tea flushed darker that a radish. Finally getting her voice back, she started scolding. "Guys! That was mean! You don't know how scared I was. I nearly passed out! Do that again, and I'll never speak to you again!"
Walking over to her, Joey pulled out some the banana peel out of his head. "Hey Tea, you know we didn do dat on perpose! You waz alwaz so depressed! So we tried ta cheer ya up, ya know?"
Giving the blond boy a weak smile, she nodded. "I'm sorry I yelled…. But hey! Why don't we go to the festival? I hear that there's gonna be a contest! Well?"
Cheers and a chorus of agreement rang in the afternoon air. Smiling inwardly, Tea felt better already because she knew that her friends would always be here to help her.
Making a quick stop at the mansion, she changed out to the uniform and tried to dress as casually as possible. Scribbling down a note of apology and reassurance, Tea went into Kaiba's study and stuck the note between the phone and laptop. Checking herself one more time in the mirror, Tea wore a black tank top with red trimmings and a pair of belled jeans. She took her black purse and headed downtown.
Slamming the oak door shut, Seto walked over to his black blue laptop and switched it on. His blue eyes roamed the surface of his neatly stacked papers and reports.
Picking up a white slip of paper that was in between the gap of his wireless phone and the waiting computer, Seto unfolded and read it's contents. So she's not going to be home for dinner…Wait, did I just say home! Never mind. The spring festival? Must be going with the mutt and the military boy and Yugi… Yugi… what did she say last time? Seto squinted his eyes, trying his best to recall their last conversation.
"I do…. But not that one." It was back when they had a quiet little dinner, that day when Mokuba went to the arcade.
What did she mean, "not that one"? Was there another Yugi? Then his mind snapped. "Of course, the 5000 yr old pharaoh…. How can I forget…" His mind was filled with questions, but none were answered because of a knock on the door. Giving a signal of entrance, a mob of black hair popped thru the crack of the door. "Hey, big brother, where's Tea?"
"She's out with her friends… why?" Looking down, Mokuba shuffled his feet on the carpet.
"Oh… well… I thought that she might have wanted to go the festival with me. But I guess not, can I go?" Letting out a snort, Seto thought. How ironic. Fate must be playing with me…
Giving a nod of approval, Mokuba gave him a smile and went to change. Might as well go with him… even though it's not really my thing to be attending such foolish things when I have business to take care of.
Waving at the gang that was in front of her, Tea ran to them. Serenity, Duke and Tea were there too. "Hi guys, sorry I'm late. The train had an accident so I kinda had to walk the rest of the way here." They all nodded, accepting the tardiness of their late friend.
"Alright! Le's go and party! I'm tired of waitin'!" Joey dragged Mai and Serenity with him as he went looking for some fun. Tristan, Duke, Yugi, and Tea all sweat dropped as Mai hits Joey on the back of his head and called him a pervert for touching her. Serenity, being a peacemaker, tried her best to keep Mai and her brother from making a scene in the middle of the street.
Clearing her head from what just happened, Tea asked the group that was still with her. "Okay….. why don't we go have some fun?"
Grinning maliciously, Tristan hooked his arm around Duke's neck and said, "Yeah, why don't we have some fun dice boy? How bout the dunking pool?" Swiftly getting out from his grasp, Duke backed up.
"Eh…. I think I'll pass…. Hehehe…" Putting on a rat face, Tristan started taunting the dungeon-dice creator. "What? Afraid of the water, Devlin?" Tea and Yugi rolled their eyes and walked away, knowing that that conversation would never come to an end very soon.
"So Yugi, whatcha wanna do?" Looking down at her childhood friend. Shrugging his shoulders, Yugi came back with a response quick as the question was asked. "I don't know. We could always find something to do."
Looking around, Tea spotted a lonely tavern at the corner of the block. Fortune Telling was posted up on the top of the little tent in bold wavy gold letters.
Pointing at it, Tea exclaimed, "Hey! Why don't we go there? I'm pretty sure that this time, no Bandit Keith would be here to take the puzzle." Smiling, Yugi agreed.
Inside, the tiny space was covered in deep purple and gold. Scents of jasmine and arousing perfume lingered in the air. A table with tarot cards was placed in front of them, with one chair on each side. "Hello? Anyone here?" Tea asked, seeing that no one was present at the table.
"Yes dear? How can I help you?" A short old lady said, coming in from the back of the tent. She wore golden hoop earrings with matching bracelets and necklaces. Colorful scarves swirled around her body and a long thick purple skirt trailed the floor.
"Um… well I wanted to have my fortune told. So does my friend over here."
Smiling a mysterious smile, the elder introduced herself. "Welcome my dears, I'm Madame Oshiba. Please take a seat one of you." Giving Yugi a slight nudge in the ribs, Tea motioned for him to go first. Taking his seat nervously, Yugi eyed the fortuneteller with troubled purple orbs.
"So my dear, what would you like to know in your future?"
"Uh… could you tell me…. Uh…If I'm gonna have a bright future?" He knew that this was a lame question. But he couldn't think of anything else while being stared down by this bogus teller.
Shuffling the black cards, Madame Oshiba's closed her eyes as she placed them on the table in a row of six. Then she placed four more below the six. Putting down the rest of the cards, she drew the one from the top and began flipping over the cards.
"Ah… I see… a darker spirit has been removed. Interesting… Tell me… have you been feeling rather alone since? Because this great beast," She said, pointing one of her long bony fingers at a card with a golden phoenix. "It represents loneliness. As if your other half has left you." Thinking to himself, Yugi fidgeted as he remembered that Yami had left him.
"But don't worry, my cards shows me that your future is rather shocking and mysterious after this spirit left. However, there is a barrier… yes yes… a barrier keeping you from reaching something." The raven hair lady shuffled out four more cards from the deck.
"Hm… seems as if my cards are done with you. It shows me no more of the troubles and fortunes that lies ahead. They only tell me of the tranquility of your counterpart's loved one would be broken." Nodding vigorously, Yugi slipped out of the cushioned seat and gave Tea a big shove.
"Your turn Tea. I'm sure that you guys would want privacy, so I'll be looking for the rest of the guys. Bye!" Yugi, running as fast as his legs could carry him, went speeding down the street.
Gawking at his speed, Tea didn't notice that Madame Oshiba was pouring some tea. "So, my dear." The mysterious voice snapped her attention back to the future psychic. "Have some tea. It would keep you relaxed; I've noticed that you were a little trouble. Both physically and mentally when I was helping your little friend. So what would you like me to tell you my dear?" her voiced dropped a knot and the little candles hanging above her flickered.
"Um… could you tell me why so many people are after me? I can't really figure it out. I know this sounds crazy and all, but can you?" With pleading eyes, Tea looked at the teller, waiting for the answer. Laughing at her stupidity, Madame Oshiba smiled mysteriously and said, "Of course, what you ask is what I do best."
Repeating the shuffling of cards, Oshiba organized the cards and started to read them.
Shatter any broken pieces
The stars will not forget the mission
Even if drunk by the darkness once
before long your self will shine
"This is you, a kind and sweet spirit. The people that are after you, well they're not exactly nice. You've fallen into their hands before, have you not?" Closing her eyes, Tea thought for a while when she recalled a few times when she was captured. "Yeah. I've been captured many times."
Turning another card, it reveled a hideous monster raising a being over its head towards the black sky. "Ah… they are offering you. Using you as a sacrifice for a ritual no doubt." A black void came next. Stars and spirits were being sucked into the hole. "But something always stops it from occurring. It destroys the ritual from being completed. Someone or something always comes to your aid. Now what's this?" An elf wearing a green gown with a silver crown was kneeling on a circle of light, as if praying to the heavens. "This is getting interesting…"
Les Etoile The stars
In the war of the stars, a life that ended...
La Lumiere The light
...will be reborn by the memory of love
La Fatalite, La Fatalite, de l'amour The fatality of love
Tilting her head, Tea looked suspiciously at the old woman in front of her. "What's so intriguing Madame Oshiba?" Shaking her head, Oshiba replied, "Nothing dear, it's just that they're wanted a pure soul. One that is like yours… but it surprises me even more with this."
The last of the six cards was a demon of green and red. He wielded a black silver sword that was stained with blood. "It represents the past. There was a deadly battle. I suppose that the rest of the cards would tell me, that is if you would like to continue."
Tea had turned a little pale at the sight of the disgusting card that was at the end of the table. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she said nothing, leaving silence as a yes.
Follow the legend that is handed down
If traced in reverse, you are there
Both scattered tears and betrayals
Everything, become a purified ceremony
"An evil was unleashed…. Great troubles arose among you and your past lover. And now they've been brought back, but they are hidden in the shadows… Now, here's something… they can't keep you in place. Hm…. The past is revealed to you dear, but don't look back or it would be written down in your history. My cards tell me that if you do, you would only have faith to believe in after your trapped."
Letting the words sink in to her, Tea stood up and paid the lady. "Thank you for your telling. Have a nice day."
Walking out to the street, she heard the mysterious voice, "Don't take my words too lightly, my dear. Or you will regret your actions because I know. So heed my warning… or else all would be lost…"
Les Etoile The stars
To the war of the stars, an end will not come...
La Lumiere The light
...as long as the living witness' dream exists
La Fatalite, La Fatalite, de l'amour The fatality of love
What did she mean? Don't look back? Look back to what? Are those psychos after me just because of my past? I don't even want to get there… why would I only have faith to believe in afterwards? I don't understand… this is so confusing… and I thought I was going to have a great time…where are your friends when you need them? Heaving a sigh, Tea continued walking down the street, looking for familiar signs of her comrades.
"Hey! Tea, wait up!" A voice shouted behind her. Turning around, Tea saw Mokuba running up to her and Kaiba, taking his time, was walking behind his brother. The younger Kaiba wore a t-shirt and blue khakis. Kaiba was wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of slacks and a blue trench coat over his attire.
Les Etoile The stars
In the war of the stars, a life that ended...
La Lumiere The light
...will be reborn by the memory of love
La Fatalite, La Fatalite, de l'amour The fatality of love
"Hey Mokuba! I didn't expect to see you here. Especially with Kaiba…." Tea turned beet red when she saw Kaiba staring at her, but turned her attention at Mokuba. "Ah…. Well…you see, I was bored and I heard about this at school. So I wanted to see what it was like. Plus, it's my first time here."
Understanding what he meant, she let him tag along. Soon enough, she found Joey and the other girls. Ryou was with them as well. Duke and Tristan were with Yugi at a game booth throwing rings at a glass bottle. When they finished their competition, Tristan and Yugi had their arms full with huge teddy bears.
"Here you go Serenity. I know how much you like stuffed animals!" Giving him a grateful smile, Serenity accepted the gift and gave him a peck on his cheek.
"Thanks Tristan!" Tristan was practically in heaven, if Duke and Joey weren't there to knock him to his feet. Giggling, Tea suggested, "Why don't we go and look for some competition! I think I saw a dance floor down there when I was looking for you guys."
Walking the opposite way she came from, the gang went to search for the dance floor. While her friends were chatting with Mokuba, Tea slowed down her pace until she was in step with Kaiba.
"So… why did you come?" Tea said, trying to start a conversation with her boss.
"What else? I can't let my little brother coming here alone and hanging out with a bunch of immature goody goods. I also had nothing better to do." Kaiba said with indifference.
A frown formed on her face, "We're not immature. Sure, sometimes we can be a little naïve… but no one in the world is perfect. Not even you. And we are not a bunch of goody goodies. Sometimes we fight, even if it's not really important. Plus," Tea lowered her voice, "You saw how I was back then…"
She didn't continue the sentence from there. He knew why, she didn't want to bring up anything now that she's out of there.
Reaching their destination, loud music roared over the crowd that gathered there to dance. Joey pulled Mai to the dance floor and started shaking his body to the beat. Tristan and Duke surrounded Serenity.
Some girls were crushing Ryou when they were dancing up on him. Yugi and Mokuba were over by a tree talking about duel monsters. Looking up at Kaiba, she knew that he wasn't going to dance. So instead of going to the floor herself, she pulled him with her among the other people.
"What the hell do you think you are doing!" Seto shouted over the blasting music in order for Tea to hear him.
"Geez… don't shout. I can hear you perfectly because I'm so close to you!" Tea shouted back at him. "And for what I'm doing. Well… let's just say that I'm gonna make you dance!" A mischievous grin spread wide on her face. Seto had a deep scowl etched on his forehead. "You are never going to make me dance Gardner."
Laughing, Tea spun around before facing him once again. An evil gleam shone in her sapphire eyes. Her lips quirked into a smirk. Putting her forefinger under his chin, Tea said, "You wanna bet, Seto Kaiba?" For once, I actually feel more… comfortable saying his name… Never mind.
AN: Thanks!
Chikorita-Trainer1: I'm glad that you like it! It's kinda hard to update so often with exams in the way, but don't worry! I'll update as soon as I can, maybe even once or twice a month….
island's lily: blushies thanks…. I thought it was really short
KekeM: thanks for the complement! But I think I'm still weak on the English… it's really not my best subject… and about Seto's personality… eh… I guess he and I just went through just about the same things…. lol.
kagome87: sweet? I don't think I added that much sugar to it…just kidding! Thanks!
Mamono: lol. It's better that no one hears it… cuz sometimes squeals can kill someone! Well, at least I think it does… Plus thanks for the ideas! I'll somehow try my best to write it out! I don't think my summary really works with what I'm trying to type, ne? Maybe I'll try to change the plot a tiny bit!
hieiandbotan4ever: lol, I'll update soon!
tea/anzufan: woah…. Don't worry…. I'm not on writer's block! tries to keep tea/anzufan cool whew…. That was hard! I love your ideas and I'll try to blend it with the other suggestions… k? and I won't be discontinuing the story, I won't be leaving it there… sweatdrops and I hope that it would mix….lol
julia: thanks for the pointers on spelling!
Yami Viper: viper? Eks….. plus thanks for the idea! It would be great help later on!
Azurite: thanks for the great tips! I do have weak spots on spelling and grammar…. But I'm trying my best to improve! And about the format, I'm really sorry because I type it up on doc. and not html. format. I usually don't know what happens, but I will try and edit all my errors and plug in some more details, that is if I don't overdo it, when I'm free from my schoolwork. I'll make sure that everyone would get to the area of why those people wanted to kidnap Tea! But for now, just keep guessing and put together the clues that I drop down here and there!
Sweet Cherry Kisses: Yay! You finally reviewed! lol…. I guess sometimes people usually do something first before the other… smiles innocently about the specials, well…sometimes they're unexpectable because I just post them according to the months of the year. Hmm… seems like you've caught on to why they've tried capturing Tea… oops… I'm not supposed to spill the beans just yet! But your random guessing, well I think that they're guesses hehe, are very warm to what I'm thinking! So you keep that in mind!
The lady winged Knight. S: hehe… I guess I'm keeping lots of people guessing for now, ne? Head hangs down All that shame…. I feel soooo unloved! sniffs so many people are point out in my weak spot…. Don't worry Yami would be kicked into the picture soon! Chibi Yami pops out and kicks Faith Ouch… like I've said to many readers, keep on guessing! I know what you mean…. Joey and Seto might be hanging onto each other's necks if you leave them together for 2 minutes!
Malik Fangirll: thanks for telling me! Cuz I don't think I noticed… to busy writing reports! Hehe… I hope they won't get it mixed up too!
Serenity Komoshiro: Thanks a tons! I'm contemplating on how I should merge the ideas from all ya'll! But don't worry! I'll get them straight and typed…. I hope… hehehehe