Disclaimer: If I owned Yu Gi Oh!, I'd be as rich as Seto Kaiba himself, and laughing at all of you. Well, maybe not that rich, but pretty darn close!
He was dreaming again. He knew right from the start that he was dreaming. He felt exactly as he had the previous time, when he had remembered sitting with Mokuba in a fire lit room. The haziness in the air was exactly the same, the figures just as shadowed.
'Another memory,' he thought. 'What is it this time? And why am I just remembering now?'
He looked around him. He appeared to be in a park. His body was that of a very small child, perhaps four or five years old.
"Seto!" a voice startled him. It was vaguely familiar, triggering a memory that felt far more recent than he was sure either of his dream/memories took place.
"Seto, here you are," the voice said. He turned his head to see who was calling him, when he suddenly froze. He thought he knew who the voice belonged to.
'It can't be!' he mentally screamed. He felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, and startled awake.
"No!" he sat bolt upright, eyes flying open. Breathing heavily, eyes wide, he looked wildly around the room, searching for the voice.
"Sir? Mr. Kaiba, are you alright?" Carlson's anxious voice brought him back to reality. It was the goon's hand on his shoulder that had awakened him.
He took a deep breath, calming his nerves. Finally, he spoke. "I'm fine, Carlson."
"Bad dream, sir?" The man's voice was sympathetic.
He grunted, rubbing his temples. "What time is it, Carlson? How long have I been asleep?"
"Not too long, sir. It's only a little past midnight. You dozed off just after Master Mokuba finished dinner."
Seto nodded. He remembered now. He had been especially tired earlier that night, and, though he had tried to fight it, he hadn't been able to stop himself from slipping into slumber.
It was a little over a month after Mokuba had been hit by the car, and he was being released from the hospital the next day. Seto had stayed with him the entire time, workingfrom the little boy's bedside, talking to him when he was awake, and trying to comfort his fears. His brother was afraid, Seto knew. They both were. Neither knew exactly what was going to happen next.
They had both been through a lot in the past few weeks. Doctor after doctor had inspected his brother, trying to find some proof that he may yet walk again. They had even tried surgery at one point, when they were sure that he'd recovered from the accident enough that such a move wouldn't endanger him.
Nothing. There was nothing they could do. Mokuba would never walk again.
Seto was determined that his little brother would in no way be hampered by his new disability. The Kaiba mansion already had an elevator, as did both Kaiba Corporation Headquarters and Seto's personnel laboratory. He had ordered a ramp to be put in next to their front porch so that Mokuba wouldn't have any trouble entering or exiting their home. He would do anything he possibly could to make the boy's new way of life easier for him. He just didn't know how he could help him to recover from the emotional aspect of what had happened.
Mokuba was taking it badly. That was understandable, of course, but that didn't make it any less painful to watch. He had tried to be strong at first, he really had, but lately he had become quiet, not bubbling over with chatter as he usually was. His appetite had dropped, and Seto had noticed that the shine in his brother's eyes had all but vanished. He cried himself to sleep every night, and nothing Seto said seemed to comfort him.
Seto was worried about him. He had never seen his brother become so lackluster, not even after everything that had happened to them in the past.
He looked over at the black-headed form huddled in the bed next to him. He could only hope, he knew, and that was what killed him. He hated being helpless. With a sigh, he sat back in his chair and waited for the sun to rise.
"Don't do this, little brother."
Seto looked down at the stubborn twelve-year-old glaring at him from under the covers. He couldn't believe that Mokuba was being so difficult about this.
"Nuh-uh. I won't!"
"Look, kid, I know you're upset about this, but there's nothing either of us can do about it. You might as well get used to it."
Mokuba shifted his glare from his brother's face to the nurse standing in the doorway. Or rather, to the wheelchair that was sitting in front of her.
This had been the scene in the small, white hospital room for the past fifteen minutes. Mokuba had finally been discharged, but the boy was still having trouble adjusting to the idea of needing to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. He had refused to get into the chair when the nurse came to bring him down to where Carlson was waiting to take them home.
"Mokuba…" Seto said, a growl barely audible in his voice.
The boy looked up at his older brother, his eyes large and pleading. "I can't, Seto, I can't…"
"…I don't understand, Mokuba. Why can't you? Don't you want to go home?"
"It's not that. It's just…"
"You're scared?"
He nodded, eyes downcast.
Seto crouched down next to the bed, looking his brother in his eyes. "You don't need to be. It'll be alright. You'll see."
"...You promise?"
Seto nodded. "I promise. Now… I've just about had it with this place. What do you say we go home?"
Mokuba hesitated, then smiled sadly and allowed them to help him into the wheelchair.
No one spoke during the trip to the main entrance, where Carlson and the limousine were patiently waiting. Mokuba sat with his head bent and his shoulders hunched, not looking up at the various people scattered around the hospital. He didn't want to see their stares.
He was relieved when they finally reached the long, black car that was waiting for them. Carlson opened the door for him, and Seto helped him into the back seat. Mokuba made a note right then and there to learn how to enter and exit the car by himself. He didn't want to need to be helped anymore than was necessary.
He buckled his seatbelt as Seto got in the other side. "All right there, kid?"
He nodded. What else could he say?
Carlson got into the driver's seat, glanced at the two boys via the rearview mirror, and turned on the engine.
The ride to the Kaiba mansion seemed to take forever, in Mokuba's mind, but in reality it was little more than fifteen minutes before they were pulling into the long driveway.
He waited impatiently for Carlson to get the wheelchair out of the trunk. They had had to borrow one from the hospital for now, though Seto had already made an appointment to get a custom-made one. That would take some time, however, and until then, Mokuba would have to make do with the slightly wobbly affair that was typical Domino City Hospital stock.
He gritted his teeth as he was once again helped into the chair, mentally cursing the event that had done this to him.
He was about to wheel himself up to the front porch when he felt someone start to push him; looking up, he saw his brother holding onto the chair's handles.
"Seto, don't!"
Seto, hearing the anger in the boy's voice, immediately let go. "What's wrong, kid?"
"I can do it myself!"
Seto blinked, but didn't let any other sign of his surprise show. "Very well, Mokuba. My apologies."
Mokuba glared at him, suddenly feeling very angry. "Just leave me alone!" he shouted, and began furiously wheeling himself towards the ramp to the front door. It was unlocked, do to the various staff who were in the mansion on any given day; he wrenched it open, flung himself through, and raced towards the elevator.
"Wait, Mokuba!" he heard his brother call, but he ignored him as the elevator doors swung shut. He clumsily turned himself so that he could press the button for the second floor, where his bedroom was located.
He waited impatiently for the lift to reach its destination. His heart twisted after he tried to tap his foot impatiently, only to be rudely reminded that he could no longer do so.
Finally, the doors slid open, and Mokuba charged through them. He reached his bedroom, threw open the door, and hurdled inside.
The door slammed shut behind him, and Mokuba bent over, breathing heavily. It was hard work, and his arms were unconditioned to being used in this way. His fingers were sore from the many times he had accidentally hit them on the wheels, and the muscles in his arms ached from the strain. Feeling completely miserable, he wheeled towards his bed. He had some difficulty climbing into it, but after several attempts he managed to curl up on top of the covers.
Angrily, he slammed his fist into the pillow before sagging down and burying his face in it. Why me? he thought, tears running unwanted down his face.Why does stuff like this always happen to me? He squeezed his eyes shut, shaking, and never noticed when he fell into a troubled sleep.
Seto Kaiba stared at the elevator doors, which had just swung closed, swallowing his brother like a great silver monster. His face was expressionless, but his heart was in turmoil. He didn't understand why something like this had to happen to his innocent baby brother.
He heard Carlson come up hesitantly behind him. "I'm sure he'll come around eventually, sir. Just give him time. He needs to adjust." The goon's voice was gentle as he addressed his employer.
Seto waited a long time before answering. "I hope you're right, Carlson. I really, really hope you're right."
A/N: Whew! Finally finished with this chapter! Took me long enough, didn't it? It's a bit short, but that's just 'cause it's just setting up for next chapter.
Speaking of which… Things are going to start heating up very soon. (evil grin)
Anyone know any synonyms for "wheeled?" This is going to get awfully redundant if I have to keep saying, "Mokuba wheeled here," or, "Mokuba wheeled there." It's not like I can say he walked somewhere, is it?
Oh, before I forget… See the nice, shiny button down there? The one that says, "Submit Review?" Well, maybe if enough people let me know what they think, I'll feel so guilty that I'll have to get up the next chapter soon! You never know; it's worth a try!