Cerulean Eyes
Disclaimer- Must we really need to say this? Fine. We do not and never will have the talent to own something as good as Yugioh!
Apprehensive
His heart was pounding as he raced home from school, not even bothering to call Roland for a limo to pick him up. His backpack was whipping him in the haste of his frenzied sprinting.
With luck, he'd be able to make it home first and plead with his brother to not let her go to an orphanage. His indigo eyes were worried and stressed as he approached the main doors of the Kaiba mansion.
Please let her be alright…000
He sat at his desk, transfixed at the laptop screen. He had called for the company to send him the data of the tournament, providing him with some work to take his mind off the situation.
She had amnesia. And he'd have to deal with her until the doctors could take her in. He rubbed his temples in frustration, resolving to not pay any attention to her. Yes…that was right. He'd provide her with food and shelter but that would be all.
He stood up to retrieve some files, his white cloak billowing out behind him. Let Mokuba deal with her. He had enough to do as it was, running Kaiba Corp and also the upcoming tournament.
000
She sat on the bed, mind searching blankly for something to do. She knew her name. But that was it. She even doubted she could remember the rules of that game the younger, kinder boy had shown her.
What was his name?Miserably, she slumped in the seat. She couldn't even remember the younger boy's name. What would happen to her now? She felt inferior and worthless-unable to even recall something she had just learnt from as recent as last night.
She sighed again, hoping that one day was already over and she'd be one step nearer to staying in the hospital. She was better off there than here anyway…
000
He stopped outside the huge door of the mansion and flung it open with force. Breathlessly, he ripped off his shoes, letting it bounce and land in the middle of the walkway, and tore up the stairs to his brother's study.
Flinging open the door, he saw his older brother shoot up in surprise at the frantic visitor. Then, he watched his older brother sigh and then sit back down.
"Back so soon Mokuba?"
"Where is she?" He asked breathlessly, struggling not to sound hysteric, "Seto! You didn't really put her in the orphanage did you? Please tell me you didn't!"
His brother scowled.
"You know," The CEO began, "That would've been a good idea-"
"SETO!"
His anxious voice surprised the elder Kaiba who quickly grumbled, "Yes. She's here and apparently has to stay here for at least a fortnight."
"Really?" Mokuba's tone was suddenly breathlessly hopeful.
"Do you think I'd lie to you?" Was the irritated response.
Mokuba grinned. Typical Seto. His older brother always answered questions with questions. That was good but it was irritating if he did it really often.
He half ran and half stumbled out of the room until the older boy called him back.
"Mokuba," His brother remarked, raising an eyebrow, "Have you taken a look at yourself?"
He looked down, indigo eyes widening and blushing as he realized he had one sock on and he was still wearing his schoolbag.
"Oops…"
000
He grumbled as he sat back down. Mokuba's little 'interruption' had given him a fright. He frowned at the thought of Mokuba's anxious and scared indigo eyes. Did the younger boy really care for that stranger-Kiera- so much?
Mokuba had barely known Kiera and yet, it seemed as if he cared for her like a long-lost friend. Seto Kaiba sighed again and then willed his logical mind to think.
"Mokuba is a bit more caring than most," He reasoned aloud, "He'd do that to any stranger that was injured and helpless."
But even as he said those words, his mind and heart knew it was not right. Mokuba cared for Kiera like a sister. The little colt had never done that to anyone before. Kaiba growled in frustration as he sank into his comfortable chair again.
It was all Kiera's fault. If she hadn't turned up, he'd be at work, his mind would no be teeming with questions eagerly waiting to be poured out and Mokuba wouldn't have stuck up for someone and resisted his orders.
000
She sat on the chair, blankly looking at the pale blue walls. Blue…she liked blue. She didn't know why but she liked blue. Maybe it was because of the cloudless blue sky outside. Or maybe it was because of that card the younger boy had shown her.
She didn't know what it was. He had told her but she had forgotten. But it was from that game of…Duel Monsters. Yes, that was it. The white dragon. She didn't know why but she loved the card.
Those jewel blue eyes had stared back at her, unfathomable but powerful. She could tell it was powerful although neither of the two players had managed to summon it because of the condition of three sacrifices. A flash of memory from the night before came to her…
He flipped up a card, indigo eyes excited. She blinked as a crystal blue eye looked out at her. It was a dragon of some sort, pure white with vicious looking claws. She peered at it, wondering…
Where had she seen that before? She could not remember… A frown was increasing on her face as she struggled to retrieve a single shard of memory from the sea of confusion.
"That's the Blue Eyes White Dragon," The little colt told her, "My brother likes this card. He's got three!"
His voice was proud and she could tell he was very pleased and also in awe of the older boy. So she had just sat there silently, trying to figure out what the memory was…
The sound of a door opening brought her back into reality. It was the little boy from yesterday!
"You're still here!" He said, sighing and looking as if he could drop to the ground in relief.
"Yes?" She hesitantly spoke up.
"Sorry," The little boy said sheepishly, "I was just worried Seto might've sent you to the orphanage. I'm Mokuba in case you forgot."
In case you forgot…She winced but thankfully, Mokuba didn't notice.
"Anyway, I thought we might continue with the Duel Monsters game," He chattered cheerfully, taking out the deck of cards from who-knows-where, "You still know some of the rules?"
She had forgot most of the more complex rules but the basic idea was still in her head. It didn't matter anyway. He was more than happy to show her again.
As they were completing their third duel, Mokuba looked up.
"Sorry," He began, "I didn't get your name yesterday. What is your name?"
"It's…Kiera," She replied, her tone catching on the edge of anxiety.
"Oh," Mokuba chirped cheerfully, "How do you say it? Ki-e-ra?"
"Kye-ra," She corrected him gently.
"Oh! Okay Kiera!" Mokuba said cheerfully, "Now…my move!"
000
He sighed reluctantly and turned a switch in his computer. The flickering laptop screen shuddered to a halt and turned an inky black. Checking the time on the clock, positioned on the wall opposite his, he walked down the stiars.
"Get dinner ready," Was all he growled to the maid who scrambled downstairs like a mouse in pouncing range of a cat.
He walked briskly past Mokuba's room and distinctly heard the voice of his little brother.
"I switch my Blade Knight to defense mode!"
He peeked cautiously into the room and saw Kiera and Mokuba playing Duel Monsters. A twinge of envy sprang through his system. Mokuba was laughing and concentrating while Kiera smiled gently and played along.
When had he, Seto Kaiba, ever made his brother laugh like that? When had he ever played Duel Monsters with Mokuba and impressed the younger boy with his superior dueling skills? Questions pierced his mind like knives, all painfully stabbing his heart.
But a will of solid steel settled within him as he cleared his throat loudly and walked in. Both Kiera and Mokuba looked up.
"Dinner," He said briskly and glanced scornfully at Kiera, "Hope you can eat."
She nodded and stood up with Mokuba. Mokuba looked hesitantly at his brother, suddenly the fearful, timid child he was.
"Let's go then," Kaiba growled.
000
Dinner was a silent affair. His older brother seemed to be making an effort to not speak to any of them and Kiera seemed to have trouble handling a fork. Finally, out of pure frustration at seeing her trying to jab the fork into the food, the older Kaiba had ordered for a sandwich.
He lowered his indigo eyes at the plate, trying hard not to snap back at his brothers' harsh tone. He had found that ever since Kiera came, he, Mokuba, had dared to defy Seto's orders more than once. This relieved him. He didn't want to become a mindless puppet with no say of his own.
Determindely, he stared at his plate. The slice of beef and the heap of mashed potatoes at the side did little to help improve the situation. There was no denying what he knew. Seto hated Kiera. A lot apparently. He, Mokuba, could only watch.
He sighed again and lowered his eyes to the plate, listening to the awkward silence that lingered over the huge dining table.
000
She lowered her eyes and stared hard at her plate, trying not to make a sound. She had had trouble using the fork and now, the sandwich was vile. But she did not dare to speak up or complain.
The elder Kaiba looked annoyed-positively furious. But she felt confused. Did she do something wrong? Was she really such a huge bother to him? She had done everything he asked without a sound or complaint. She had followed his orders and had not spoken to him.
Wasn't that what he wanted? Didn't he want her to leave him be? She had done that but it didn't seem to please the older boy at all. In fact, it seemed to infuriate him even more. Kiera felt her eyes lowering to the sandwich and then at the older Kaiba's cold eyes.
So she picked the sandwich up gingerly and began to eat slowly, nervously peeking at the brown haired man sitting at the head of the table. The sandwich was disgusting. She could swear it contained only a green paste with leaves. But she had no choice. She had to please him so that he didn't leave her out in the rain again.
000
He could not believe she was actually eating the sandwich he had given her. She should know it was avocado and spinach but she didn't seem to care at all. Perhaps she wasn't going to be a bother.
He smirked to himself. What a coward. While many others would've chosen to ask for something else, she had chosen to eat it despite herself. He grinned to himself, satisfied.
But little did he know that someone knew his true intentions. Someone saw his satisfied smirk and the glint of cruel amusement in his steel blue eyes as he watched her chew. And that someone would not stand for it.
As he retreated to the study and sent Kiera and Mokuba off to bed, that someone came to his room. The person he least expected to act this way.
"Seto."
That word was not a question. It was not a timid plea. It was a firm statement, defiantly toned and very angry.
"What is it Mokuba?"
"Seto," He repeated, his tone almost sounding cold, "I saw what you did to Kiera."
Oh great…He grimaced.
Mokuba was going to plead with him to give her some decent food and water and then lecture him about 'friendship' rubbish he had gotten off Yugi and his weird gang.
"I saw what you did to Kiera," Mokuba said again, as though worried his older brother forgot, "And I'm not happy about it."
He blinked, all his plan of a counter argument forgotten. He stared at his little brother, standing in the doorway, seeming like a whole new person. A person who cared for others and stood up for them.
Someone who didn't just linger behind his peers but someone who would talk back to him if not satisfied. Someone who had gained confidence.
And that was why he had said, "Fine. I'll give that girl some decent food and drink. Go to bed Mokuba."
"And-"
That was another surprise.
Never had Mokuba spoken up after he had made amends, "I want you to treat her nicely. Don't sneer at her or tell her she's lower class. She's my friend."
He blinked as the whole image of his younger brother crumbled beneath him. Mokuba was growing up. And he, Seto Kaiba, should treat his little brother according to his brother's age. But his pride would not let him give Mokuba whatever the younger boy wanted.
And all his life was based on would not just get thrown away because his little brother had grown up. No way. So he remained silent.
"Please Seto!" That old pleading voice was back, but with a touch of new firmness.
He felt a tiny, tiny tingle of affection for his little brother deep within him. So he nodded and said, "Alright Mokuba. Now go to bed."
And he hoped Mokuba did not see the little smile that played across his lips as the younger boy left.
Author's NoteWell? What do you guys think? This chapter's significance was that we wanted to show you guys the slow change in Mokuba. He's starting to stand up to Seto. And Seto is starting to warm up towards changes. Smiles Did we do alright?
Gosh it's getting hard to think of more 'A' words that fit the content of the chapter. Anyway, wow! We got a huge number of reviews! Keep it up guys and big thank yous!
SerenityMeowth- Hehe. But it's not all about romance. We also want to reflect Kaiba and Mokuba's changing personality as the show progresses (eg. Doma saga and also Grand Prix. Always changing. And we can't forget Egyptian Memory Arc.) But yes, more time to spend together. Grins Thanks for your review!
setos angel01- Thank you for the review!
Darkblinds- Hope you didn't have too long to wait! Lol.
Jennifer- Thanks for the review!
Rikki K- Hahaha. That's true. We're basically describing from Seto's point of view (And let's face it-he doesn't believe in the so-called nonsense. A bit different from what we do usually, which is from Atem's point of view in Soaring over Nile) Thanks for your review as usual!
Sfkjesgfiuj- Thanks for the review!
chocolatelover1- Thanks!
RedEyesDarknessDragonLady- Thanks for letting us choose our character. We'll try and get to that if time permits. Okay…first review:
I know the changing of views is confusing but that's part of the mystery isn't it? If we just said Kiera's POV or Mokuba's POV, it would just give it all away. Hope you don't mind. We want you guys to try and figure out who is saying what.
If you have some trouble identifying who's thinking or talking, we'll slip in more clues (eg. If we wrote something like: And he saw Seto glaring at her, you'll know it isn't Seto's point of view won't you?)
Thank you for putting us on your favourite stories list and thanks for reviewing!
ANAYAS-CREATOR- You go Anaya! We'll review as soon as we can. Or maybe we already did…hmmm…Goes and checks Yep. We did
DarkAngel4u- If you've seen the Egyptian Memory Arc, I think it'll help a lot and make more sense in terms of…past life. But we won't give much away will we? You'll find out whether there's romance. Lol. But knowing Seto, it'll probably take a year for him to warm up. Thanks for reviewing!
Thanks for your reviews people! Hope you've enjoyed this chapter!
Gardevoir Mages