After a month of having, to put up with the kid and his family Seto wasn't sure how much longer he could put up with them. He was sitting in the family room when Yami walked in.

"Seto what are you doing in here? I saw Christ playing in the playroom set up downstairs. Why aren't you down there with him?"

"Why should I?"

Yami sat down next to him. "What do you mean Seto?"

"Have you seen that so called necklace? Its nothing even close to the real thing."

"Seto are you certain?"

"I'm positive. Another thing you've spent a little more time with that kid than I have. Do you feel anything at all for that kid, I mean anything?"

"Well no, but it'll take time for us to learn to grow and trust and even love him."

"No, no it won't Yami. What was your reaction the first time you held Mokuba in your arms?"

"Seto that was different."

"How? I knew the moment Ryo put Mokuba in my arms how much I cared about him and I'd only known him a few minutes. I also noticed the moment I saw him that he looked like my mother. Besides that kid's hair color what more is there?"

As much as Yami wanted to protest and tell Seto he was wrong, he couldn't.

"Well?" Seto asked.

"All right I can't deny that the first time Mokuba wrapped his arms around my waist, the first time I heard him actually laugh it made me happy."

"Yeah, the first time he smiled it brightened my whole mood. The first time he came to me after he'd been beaten and I held him I just had this warm loving feeling. When you get to know Mokuba and he gets to know you he's so warm and loving."

"Yes, I still find it hard to believe that those bastard could just beat him like that!"

"Yami is there any hope we'll find our brother?"

"I don't know Seto I just don't know. I'd like to say yes we will but I just don't know anymore."

"Not to mention the other members of the big five will never allow him to stay. They've undermined our efforts to find our brother for years."

x-x-x-x-x-x-xx-x-x-x-x-x

At the same time, the big four were working out the last of their details.

"So it's all set up. We'll have an official letter sent informing the king that the boy and his family have been killed in a tragic accident." Nezbit said. "That should send the king over the edge."

"I doubt that." Leichter said.

"Why do you say that?" Nezbit asked.

"In case you haven't noticed neither the king nor Master Yami have spent more than 30 minutes with the kid." Leichter said.

"I've barely seen the king spend 10 minutes with that kid." Gansley said.

"Why? The brat we ran off he seemed to spend a lot of time with but we bring in one and tell him the kid is his brother and he acts like he doesn't even care!" Crump said.

"There must have been something about that other kid." Nezbit said.

"Then I propose we do something about him!" Leichter said.

"What do mean, we already have it set up if the brat returns then…" Nezbit started.

"I mean we kill the brat now. The kings obviously still got at least a little hope that the brat will return! If we destroy that hope then we destroy him!" Crump said.

"Excellent idea!" Gansley said.

"Nezbit contact your assassin he's going to go to the neighboring kingdom and take out that brat and his guardian." Crump said.

"Why the guardian too?" Nezbit asked. "That'll cost us extra on top of what we're already having to pay this family!"

"Just a precaution, I've heard the kid's guardian is the brother of a knight and even though they don't get along how do you think he'd feel about losing his brother while trying to protect the kings brat. I'd say it'd cause at least a small uproar." Gansley said.

x-x-x-x-x-x-xx-x-x-x-x-x

Meanwhile Ryo was about to take the next step to possibly becoming a guard.

"Now we have one month to go before guard selections are made. From this point, forward you will be graded on how you do good or bad. The better your point score the better chance you have of making it!" Prince Jounouchi said. "Any questions? No, good let's begin."

x-x-x-x-x-x-xx-x-x-x-x-x

Later that afternoon Ryo and Tristan were resting after their first round of a new more rigorous training regiment.

"Man this is even worse than it was last year! If I didn't know better I'd say he was trying to keep any of us from making it. I'm sure I won't make it; I'll just wait around the other six months till the king shows up. The king's standards aren't half as hard as all of this. You might make it. Your scores in everything have improved." Tristan said.

"I don't know about that. It just seems like the prince has got it in for me. If I didn't know any better I'd say he was my brother."

"Why do say that?"

"My brother never believed me to be anything but a nuisance that was in the way! He never gave me a chance to prove that I can be a knight!"

"Just wait in six months the king will return he'll review your scores and stuff and you'll make a guard if not a knight."

"I don't know Tristan. If I don't make it maybe, I was never meant to make it. Master Pegasus said I had the potential to make it as a knight. But I'm not so sure of that anymore."

"You can't just give up after only one try. Besides my sister doesn't like quitters."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"It means my sister won't be interested in you if you just give up."

"I'm not sure I'm ready for a relationship, right now."

"Come on don't tell me your not attracted to Nosaka?"

"I broke up with a girl I thought really liked me before I moved here. She said she loved me but I caught her kissing another guy."

"Ooh, tough break. That must have been hard."

"Yeah, but I still care about her."

"Forget her if she was kissing another guy she's not worth it!"

"She said it was a misunderstanding, she wasn't actually kissing him, he was kissing her and she didn't want it."

"Yeah, I had a girl tell me that once when I caught her kissing someone 9 months later they were getting married and she was having his kid."

Ryo was shocked he really hoped Shizuka wasn't like that.

x-x-x-x-x-x-xx-x-x-x-x-x

Later that same evening Ryo arrived later than normal to pickup Mokuba.

Ryo knocked on the door and Nosaka answered.

"You're late." Nosaka said.

"Yeah, I know I'm sorry. Training was majorly brutal today and it ran longer than I expected."

Nosaka pushed Ryo outside and shut the door.

"Is something wrong? Is Mokuba okay?" Ryo asked.

"He's fine. I-I wanted to ask if you had time on Saturday maybe we could take Mokuba and go to the carnival and bizarre they're holding in town."

"I don't know."

"Well just think about. I was also thinking maybe let Tristan baby-sit Mokuba and we could go to a moving picture show and maybe even dinner Friday."

"What makes you think Tristan would agree?"

"He owes me more than one favor. So what do say?"

"I don't see why not it's only dinner."

"Great." Nosaka said opening the door. "Mokuba, Ryo's here." she called out and then turned back to Ryo. "He really is a smart kid you know he's already learned how to write his name and yours."

"That's great." Ryo said.

Mokuba came running in with a piece of paper. "R-Ryo look what I learned how to do."

"It took him about a week to get the hang of it and write where its readable but it's not too bad." Nosaka said.

Ryo picked Mokuba up and took the paper. "This is really good Mokuba, I can really see an improvement in this and in your stuttering."

Mokuba brightened up. "R-Really you can?"

"Yes, I can. Before long you wont be stuttering at all." Ryo said.

Mokuba hugged him so tight he thought he couldn't breathe!

"What do say to a carnival on Saturday?" Ryo asked.

"What's a c-c-carnival?"

"Well what do you say we take Nosaka and go find out?"

Mokuba turned and said, "Really? Nosaka y-your going too?"

"Is that all right with you?" Nosaka asked.

"Y-yeah, I can't w-wait to see what a c-carnival is." Mokuba said.

"Well trust me, Mokuba you'll enjoy it." Nosaka said. "See you Friday night then, Ryo?"

"Yeah."

Mokuba was confused. Ryo looked at him and smiled.

"Nosaka and I are going out to dinner and her brother Tristan's going to look after you Friday night. I probably wont be home till late so you'll have to go to bed on your own all right?" Ryo asked.

Mokuba smiled. "Okay big brother." Then he wrapped his arms around his neck.

"Well we'd better get going. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye, see you tomorrow Mokuba."

Mokuba only waved.