Tornado: Hiya peeps! Sorry it's been so long since I last posted. School has been demanding.
DT: Thankies to all of the reviewers from last chapter. Now, on with the fic.
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Mokuba's POV
I knew my brother would not listen to anything that I had to say. He never does. The promise that he made me would crumble into the dust when everything was said and done. I know the girl that he kissed last night. Her face was one that no one could forget. Surely I have not. Blue-Eyes has come home.
I know that my brother senses the similarities between the girl he believes she is and the girl she truly is. These feelings that he feels towards Marshal are shadows of his feelings for Blue-Eyes. All that this proves is that he loved Blue-Eyes with his whole heart, but never got the courage to tell her.
I didn't bother pointing out the obvious resemblance between the teens. Her eyes still have that same azure tone, and her hair is still auburn brown. Even her name has not changed even though her last name has. For the IQ that my brother possesses, he is an idiot when it comes to the past.
After my brother left for the office, I gave the chauffeur a little bit of work for the day. I climbed into the Lincoln Town Car (since Seto had taken the limo to work), and gave him Sclera's address (which I had looked up). She lived in the upper class section of downtown, the section where all of the fancy hotels and restaurants are. It cost a lot to live there.
We pulled in front of a towering building, and if I had to guess, I would say it was at least eighty stories. I slipped out of the car, ordering the driver to find a place to park. My sneakers hardly made a sound as I scurried up the marble steps and lobby floor. The elevator was gold with red carpeting, a combination made for the rich and powerful. Personally I preferred blue and gold or blue and silver.
Her apartment took up the whole top floor, and it had a balcony that set the perimeter. I knocked on the white door, and waited several seconds for an answer. A tall, brunette girl answered the door with an expression of shock painted on her perfect face.
"Mokuba, what are you doing here?" she asked.
"Hello, Sclera. May I come in?" I replied politely.
She nodded hesitantly before stepping aside. The flat was beautifully decorated in the theme of black and blue. All of the metal was silver. A tall man with graying blonde hair exited one of the rooms.
"Is everything alright?" he asked.
"Yes, Henry. Could you give us a moment?" Sclera asked.
He nodded as he eyed me up. I stood my ground, refusing to be intimidated. HE soon left, and faced Sclera.
"I wanted to talk to you."
"How did you know my name?"
"I should be asking you the same question."
She shrugged. "You're the brother of a famous duelist, what can I say? Now, how did you know mine."
"For starters, my brother told me. Secondly, I recognized you, Blue-Eyes."
She fell silent. Her eyes turned towards the floor. I could see the turmoil reflecting from her eyes. I placed my hand on her shoulder after she had sat. She buried her face.
"You need to tell him," I whispered softly.
"I can't," she replied in her hoarse voice.
"Yes you can."
"No, Mokuba, I can't."
"Why not?" I asked allowing my impatience to shine.
"Because I don't want to!" she cried as she rose to her feet. "I don't want to be the girl that ran away! I don't want to be the girl that abandoned her friends when they needed her the most! I don't want to be known as a deserter!"
After her last word, she collapsed in the chair I heard small sobs escape her lips. She made a feeble attempt to stifle them, but failed miserably. I placed my arm over her shoulder. /What could cause you this much pain?/
Seto's POV
/God dammit, does the work ever end?/ I hopelessly stared at the mountain of paperwork that controlled my desktop. Everything from the stocks to the daily agenda. If it existed, I could probably find it somewhere on my desk. A knock reached my ears.
"Come in," I growled
A blonde entered the room. She was wearing a gray business suit with a black button down shirt. Her eyes traveled around the room before staring into mine from behind silver frames. I cocked an eyebrow, and waited for her to speak.
"You have a very nice office," she stated.
"What do you want? I have a lot of work to do."
"My name is Maria Fish, and I am here about the will your father left."
"That would be my stepfather."
"I'm sorry.
Apparently, your stepfather left the company in your care."
"Yes, which is why I am here."
"Correct, but what many of us failed to notice were the terms of that
inheritance."
"I wasn't aware of any obligations I had to fulfill."
"There are two. The first is that the company must make at least ten million dollars in profit, which it does. The other states that you must keep your five advisory board members, and that is where we run into a tiny problem. All five of those members have not been seen since your Battle City tournament. Would you mind explaining that to me?"
"I don't quite know how to explain that to you because frankly I have no idea."
"Well then, Mr. Kaiba, you had better come up with an explanation."
"You do realize that you could have introduced yourself as a cop."
"It was supposed to be undercover. How did you know?"
"Business people don't comment about the offices, they get right to the chase."
She nodded before leaving. After the door had closed, I threw my pen at it. I had way too much shit to do without the police breathing down my neck. After Gozaburo died, I had been the prime suspect. I was innocent. He had committed suicide. And so now when my board members are missing, they look at me as well.
I shook my head and burrowed into the paper work. The day did not include any sort of break other than a five second trip to the coffee machine. Sometimes it was hard for my mind to focus on one task for long periods of time. Today was one of those days. My mind drifted in and out of thoughts and skipped across the line consciousness and unconsciousness. Finally, the mountain had been reduced to a small hill. I leaned back in my chair, allowing my eyes to fasten.
I rode the elevator in silence. A small feeling of dread began to form in the pit of my stomach. I always hated going to the top of the tower. I wondered what he would do to me this time. Would he beat me? Would he whip me? I didn't know.
The doors opened, and I stepped out of the safety the elevator provided. I strolled up to a large, cherry door before knocking.
"You may enter," a gruff voice replied.
I took a deep breath and passed over the threshold. A large man stood in front of the window, his eyes scanning the surroundings. My mouth turned to cotton, and my knees began to shake. The scabs on my wounds presented themselves with a thumping sensation. The man turned to face me.
"I think that you have completed your training. Now you can make a good business man. I'm leaving my company in your stead. I hope you will take good care of it."
"Wait, you can't just give the company to me. Nobody's going to like that."
"They won't have a choice. It's time to see how well I have trained you. Goodbye and take care of my company."
I stood there, attempting to process what I had just heard. The reality hit me as he stood right at the window. He smiled at me before launching himself out of the window.
Sclera's POV
Mokuba had left an hour ago after he promised not to tell Seto. In my mind, I ran through all of the possibilities for my situation. There weren't a lot of them. After examining each one, I decided that it was best if I don't say anything. It was getting harder for me to remain quiet.
Sunday passed in a blur, and before I knew it, I was striding through the school hallways. Joey and Yugi were already in the classroom, but they were not alone. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Seto's head buried in a thick book. I waved to the boys before going to my seat.
"How was your weekend?" Seto asked quietly.
"It was boring. Nothing like Friday night."
I saw him smirk at the pages. A satisfied feeling washed over my body. Even if it had been a devilish smirk, it was still a smirk. And a god damned sexy one at that. I continued to unpack my stuff. /At least he's being friendly to me./
"Did you get a new laptop yet?"
"I ordered one, but it hasn't come in yet."
"About Friday night..."
"Yeah?"
"What exactly was that?"
"That was never to be mentioned to anyone else along with the afternoon."
"I'll give you that. Are we supposed to do anything about it or pretend it never happened?"
"I don't know. That all depends on you."
"Well, I'm asking you," he replied, looking away from the pages for the first time.
"And I said 'I don't know.'"
Joey must have seen that we were talking because he came flying back to my seat. I was staring straight into Seto's orbs and was quickly losing myself. His eyes weren't cold and glazed with that familiar icy barricade, but there was actually emotion present. Electric pulses ran through my body, and if Joey had not been standing right behind me, I would have kissed him.
"Is there a problem, Kaiba?" he asked threateningly.
"I don't know, mutt, you'll have to ask Sc-Marshal."
"Everything's fine Joey. I'll be over in a few."
He continued to glare at Seto as he walked away. I sighed to myself before turning to the brunette beside me.
"Do you have to tease him like that?"
"I don't know if you understand this, but he wants to get in your pants."
"Like someone else here doesn't," I shot.
His face turned a vibrant shade of red. I didn't realize what I had said until the words had escaped my lips.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that."
"Well, you did. I may be attracted to you, but I don't want to get in your pants."
"You sure have acted like you did over the past day or two," I hissed feeling the blood begin to boil.
"Well, I don't. And if you're going to stand up for the mutt, you better come prepared."
"Stop calling him a mutt!" I yelled rising to my feet.
"I can call him whatever I want to call him!" he returned in the same voice as he joined me.
"And why is that? What gives you the right to do that?"
"Because he is beneath me," he hissed.
"Morally or statistically?"
he didn't say anything else. He just stood in front of me with flaming eyes. Once again I stared into his sapphire orbs. It began to mystify my mind. The sea of blue contrasted with the abyss of shadows.
Two pairs of hands grabbed my shoulders. I saw the pointy tip of Yugi's hair step between Kaiba and me. he spoke to the taller teen, but Seto's eyes never left mine. I allowed the boys to direct me away from them. It was odd. One minute we could be getting along, and the next we could be on the brink of warfare. Joey sat me down in a chair and Tristan stood in front of me.
"As much as I'dve loved ta see yah take Kaiba down, I'm afraid dat you'll get in even more trouble than yah were on Friday. I don fell like takin another trip tad a councilor's office."
"I don't either Joey."
Yugi had returned from his peacemaking expedition. He stared at me with a semi-aggravated look.
"What is it with you guys and not getting along with Kaiba?"
"Yug, I don think anybody gets along wit Kaiba."
"Sclera, what was that fight about?"
"Yeah, I'd love ta know dat too."
"I was telling him not to call Joey a mutt."
"And dat got im riled up? Yug, I don think dat guy's stable."
"Joey!"
We laughed and talked for a while before departing to first period. The morning continued to flash by. Soon I was scurrying to lunch trying not get ran over by Joey. I watched as he loaded up his plate with anything and everything that the cooks had. He knew each one by name and the amazing part is that they knew him. Behind me, Tristan burdened his plate with the same stuff that Joey had. I laughed at the pair as they stuffed their faces while walking to the table. Tea made a disgusted face as they sat down and shoveled the food in larger quantities.
"I think I just lost my appetite," she stated.
"I'll take your food!" Tristan said.
"No way, man, I get it first."
"I predict that they will die because they killed each other trying to get some food," I stated.
"Nah, I think one will kill the other, but later die trying to get some food," Yugi said as he watched the two of them argue.
Yugi and I were taking all of their untouched food and shoving as many sweets as we could into our mouths. Once we had stole of their good treats we returned to our normal lunches, pretending as though nothing had ever happened. Tea laughed at us, but didn't say a word to the bickering couple. Once they finally saw that Tea had already eaten everything on her plate, they wentt to finish their lunch.
"Hey where's my honeybun?!" Joey cried.
"You ate it, Joey, remember?" Yugi said.
"I did? When?"
"When you were walking to the table," I piped.
"Yeah, Joey," Tea insisted.
"Oh, damn."
"Hey, all my sweets are gone too. Who did this?" Tristan said eyeing Tea, Yugi, and me.
"It was the sweet little Easter bunny that got hungry," I said quickly before sprinting out of the cafeteria.
Joey and Tristan leapt out their chairs and tore off after me. I was having trouble keeping myself from falling because my shoes were anything but a pair of Nikes. I just rounded the corner when I smacked into something.
Seto's POV
After my morning incident with Marshal, my day could not have gone any worse. The teacher caught me sleeping five times in class, and if I had not been one of the most powerful people in Domino, he probably would have given me detention. It didn't quite make sense to me why I had reacted that fast to Marshal's words. In the back of my mind, the little kid that I once was calling out to me. Dragon didn't exist anymore. He had killed along with Seto Sarassi. I wasn't that kid anymore, and yet his voice still accuses me in the midst of night.
I stayed in the classroom while the rest of the kids left for lunch. I pondered the things that had happened over the course of my life. It was all one big timeline of doom. /Nothing can happen to me now that I haven't already seen. The next person to leave my life will be… That day is far away./
I finally left the classroom to prevent my mind from thinking about the future and the past. I was just about to round the corner when a streak of blue and pink smashed into me. I nearly fell to the ground, but I heard the girl, whoever she may be, land with a thump. I looked down to yell at her, but the words failed in my throat when her cobalt eyes stared up at me. I felt the feeling creeping back into my heart. An image flashed through my mind.
A small girl was climbing tree. As she reached for the next limb, the branch she was on gave way. I watched as she tumbled to the ground, and rushed to her side to find a pair of big blue eyes staring back with a smile.
"I'm sorry, Kaiba. I didn't mean to run into you," the girl said quickly.
"Don't worry about it, Sclera. Here give me your hand," I answered holding my hand out for her.
She looked into my eyes with furrowed brows, but soon accepted my outstretched hand. I pulled her up, but somehow she tripped and fell into my arms. I stared into her eyes as they peered at me, and I felt the ice slowly dripping away. My face inched towards hers, but was interrupted by the faint sound of sneakers. I saw the two idiots round the corner, and I shoved the girl in their direction. She seemed taken by surprise because her mouth was slightly ajar.
"Keep your bitch on a leash. Not everyone will be as nice as I was when you smack into them."
I could not stand the hurt in her eyes, so I turned away. I glanced back to see the mutt with his arm over Sclera's shoulder escorting her back to the lunch room. Taylor was glaring at me, but I turned and kept walking.
"Kaiba!" a male voice called. "Kaiba, stop right there!"
I turned to come face-to-face with Taylor. He was shorter than I was, but even if he'd been taller I wouldn't have cared. He glared at me making a feeble attempt to intimidate me. Even when his glare failed, his confidence didn't deflate.
"What is it between you and Sclera? Don't give me that bullshit nothing. I want to know," he hissed.
"You're barking up the wrong tree. I see the way you look at her and the way you treat her, you and the mutt both. Incase you haven't realized this, I'll tell you: you have no chance."
"Oh and you think that you do? How could you when all you do is push her away? At least Joey and I treat her right."
"News flash, she won't go out with losers like you."
"And a news flash to you Kaiba, she won't go out with an asshole," he growled before turning away.
I watched carefully as he stormed off. "She won't go out with an asshole." i knew how true that statement was.
Sclera's POV
After Seto had pushed me away yet again, I began to think that it was hopeless. I could never turn him back into the person that he was before. Dragon was too far gone, only Kaiba remained.
I had been so close to receiving another kiss. I wonder, had Tristan and Joey not arrived when they did, would it have had a different outcome. If they had arrived earlier, would he have helped me up? If they had arrived later, would they have caught us in a kiss? I would never know.
I was tired of playing the cat and mouse game. It was so frustrating to be close to him one moment and in the cold the next. I walked into math class with my head inclined to the ground. Ryou looked up as slumped into the chair next to him. His chocolate eyes surveyed my face.
"What happened to you?" he asked.
"Seto. I just can't figure him out. One moment he feels one way and the next he feels a totally different one. Like today, I was running away from Joey and Tristan (Yugi and I ate their pastries), and suddenly, I smack right into him. He's not an ass about it, he actually helps me up, and then just when we were about to kiss (some way or another I ended up in his arms) Tristan and Joey come flying around the corner. The next thing I know he's telling them to 'keep their bitch on a leash' Do you get that?"
He sat there, trying to form a conclusion from the facts that I had given him and his previous experiences. I could tell he had a theory, but was unsure of the validity of it.
"Perhaps, he feels more comfortable when others are not around, or he could not want to admit that he is attracted to you."
The teacher walked in, allowing me time to mull over the two theories that Ryou had presented. Both were valid, but I began to think that it was a combination between the two. I remembered the look in Seto's eyes as he stared into mine. There was want and need blended into one. I had felt his hot breath as I inched towards his face.
Math ended and I was jogging to homeroom. Joey met me at the door. Tristan, Tea, and Yugi were sitting at a cluster of desks. They smiled at me as I walked in. I struck a pose earning a laugh from everyone in the classroom. Even Kaiba, who probably thought that I couldn't see him had chuckled or at least smiled. I sat on my chair backwards so I could face the four teens in front of me.
"I'm ready ta duel anyone dat thinks they stand a chance," Joey announced.
"Stand a chance against what?" Tristan inquired playfully.
"Hey, watch it. Joey Wheeler is a great duelist. I made it to da Duelist Kingdom and Battle City finals, so ha."
"You think you can take on anyone in this room?" I asked.
"Oh no, I don't think, I know."
"Try me on for size," I challenged.
"Sorry, but I don wanna have ta whip your butt in front of all these people, especially since you're da new girl."
"I think you'll have your hands full when you see what I have in store for you."
Several people began to gather around to see us duel. It took no more than twenty minutes to wipe out all four thousand of Joey's life points. Some of his moves belonged to that of an armature.
"You may be good Joey, but not good enough."
"Aight, yah beat fair and square. Where'd yah learn ta duel like dat?"
"I taught myself. Once I figured out the rules it was no big deal. Besides, it runs in my blood."
"Yeah, Yug's grandpa taught me. Dat's where I learned about the heart of the cards."
"I believe in something similar to the heart of the cards, except it is a bit different."
"What do you believe in?"
"I'll tell you another time. Come on. Let's get out of this hell-hole"
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Tornado: I tried to make this chapter long to make up for the length between updates. R&R.
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