Mokuba's Plan

By Pearl of the Dark Age

Disclaimer: Kazuki Takahashi owns Yu-Gi-Oh. In case you did not know - I am not Kazuki Takahashi.

Chapter 15

The remainder of the third week passed in ample silence. Amelda had spent more time than usual at Bishonen-ai, training himself for the blindfold routine. It required a lot of patience and practice in knowing just where he was on the stage without the advantage of sight. His employees had called him crazy; they had kept insisting that he would fall off the stage. Amelda had been gone so much that Mokuba had started to complain, so he had spent the whole day on their last Friday with Mokuba, helping him with the finishing touches of his report, cooking whatever his heart desired, and playing lots of cards and board games.

On Saturday night at the end of the show, one of Amelda's waiters had told him that Seto Kaiba was in the audience. Amelda had punched him hard in the head - an automatic reflex of his flash anger. The redhead had been intimidating still in costume with the leather bondage pants and his whip wrapped around his waist. "Zen-sama," the waiter had apologized, "I'm sorry! It's not true!" He had left without an explanation for why his boss got so mad (just glad he had not been fired). Amelda could not see the audience from the stage even when he was not blindfolded, because the brightness of the lights shining in his eyes drowned out the dimly lit auditorium. So, he had no idea if the waiter's claim was true. The redhead had spent the weekend wondering if Kaiba had really been there, if Kaiba was homosexual, and what had he thought of Amelda?

Mokuba spent his last Monday devising Plan E to complement Plan D, while Amelda snoozed the day away. The younger Kaiba brother was determined to keep Onii-chan in his life. Mokuba was beginning to feel caged. He had spent over three weeks so far imprisoned within the tiny apartment. He leaned out the window often, much to Onii-chan's annoyance, wishing that he could be free and have everything his heart desired.

Tuesday arrived in blissful peace. The warm air outside was very enticing, and twice Amelda grabbed Mokuba by the scruff of the neck to pull him away from the window. "Just because your hair is short doesn't mean no one will recognize you," Onii-chan stated.

"I know that!" Mokuba defended. "It's really nice outside. I haven't been out in practically a month!"

Amelda's countenance was that of understanding. He decided since there was little time left, he might as well make it memorable. "I am going to lift the cooking ban," he informed a delighted Mokuba. "I'll teach you a few simple recipes. How would you like that?"

"Like it?" Mokuba exclaimed. "I'd love it!" So, they set about making a few different things, including lunch and dinner for the day. The redhead supervised his pupil closely. Mokuba followed instructions well. A few times Amelda slapped his hands to keep him from sticking his already licked fingers back into the batter of cookie dough they were working with.

"You can lick the bowl and the beaters after you've dolloped out the dough onto the cookie sheet," Onii-chan explained. "Quit doing that!" He slapped Mokuba's hand again as the latter tried to lick the side of his hand that dough had dripped onto. All in all, they were both having a lot of fun.

Wednesday came. The last day of Mokuba's stay was filled with a hushed excitement. Amelda awoke to the sound of stuff falling onto the linoleum floor. "What's going on?" he asked, rushing out to the kitchen.

Mokuba was partially buried under a pile of cookbooks. "I'm looking for something to make," he replied, unperturbed by the mess he made. "I want to try this!" he pointed to a handwritten notebook containing what he correctly assumed were recipes written by Amelda in his native language.

"Sweet breads?" Onii-chan asked, following Mokuba's finger. "You can't even read it. How do you know what it is you want?"

"You can translate it for me!" Mokuba said happily. "Sweet breads? That sounds delicious. Let's try that!" He stood up, scattering the remaining culinary art books around unconcernedly. He set the handwritten cookbook down upon the countertop. While Onii-chan picked up the clutter of books, Mokuba reached into the cupboard to pull out a large, cobalt-blue glass bowl. "Oooh…" Mokuba murmured, impressed by the deep color. "This looks fancy."

"…and expensive," Amelda informed. He commenced organizing the cookbooks onto a nearby shelf. "I only use it to serve food for special occasions - not cooking. Don't drop-" Too late… The beautiful bowl slipped through Mokuba's hands like butter. It bounced once upon the floor and shattered into a thousand pieces upon the second hit. Mokuba looked terrified at Amelda, expecting to see and feel the wrath any moment. The redhead just stared at the floor, disbelievingly. He gulped a couple times and looked into the frightened eyes of the culprit. "Don't move," he warned. "You might cut yourself."

"I'm sorry," Mokuba pleaded. "I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay," Onii-chan said kindly. "I know it was an accident. Don't move." He grabbed a fine-bristled hand broom and a dustbin. He proceeded to sweep up the shards upon the floor and dumped the lot into the wastebasket. "Don't move," he cautioned again. He found an old, worn towel, dampened it with water, and used it to wipe up the tiny, splinter-size glass pieces that lay almost unseen on the linoleum. He wiped Mokuba's shoes as well, just to be sure that he would not be spreading them around as he walked. Amelda threw the towel into the trash and let out a sigh of relief.

"Can I move now?" Mokuba asked timidly.

"Yes," Amelda smiled at him. "Don't worry. You're not in trouble." The redhead handed him dry towel. "You dry," he instructed. "I think I should handle all the large dishes from now on." Mokuba was not sure if it was okay to laugh or not. He was equally surprised as he was nervous that Onii-chan did not flare up in anger.

"I'll replace it," Mokuba informed him. Amelda only nodded. Mokuba asked if they could make all the desert breads that Amelda had invented. He wanted to try all sorts of different things, but Onii-chan pointed out that they only had so much flour, eggs, and butter. "Okay…" Mokuba conceded. "We'll only make two. What does this say?"

"Pumpkin."

"And this?"

"Zucchini," Amelda answered. "This is squash, and this is…" he continued on down the list without being needled by Mokuba. "So, which two would you like to try?" Amelda asked once he had finished reading them all.

"Butternut squash and…" Mokuba tapped his finger on his chin, giving himself more time to decide. "…walnut maple. That sounds good. I've never even heard of them before."

A few hours later the small apartment was wafting with enticing aromas, causing Mokuba to drool. They ended up with six loaves total (as each recipe made three). He had managed to eat half a loaf of each kind of desert bread, while Amelda only had a few slices. Onii-chan wrapped up a couple of the uncut loaves, left for several minutes, and came back empty handed.

"What did you do with my bread?" Mokuba inquired hotly when he returned.

"Your bread?" Amelda smirked. "I gave them to the old lady who lives across the hall from me. She's very sweet and always invites me over for sushi and tea." Mokuba grumbled, at a loss for a good argument. "You ate so much I'm not even sure if you can eat your dinner," Onii-chan chided.

It turned out Mokuba's appetite was voracious. He insisted he needed lots of food so he could grow tall. For dinner Mokuba had requested that Onii-chan make him something that was from his homeland. They had spiced lamb, spinach, goat cheese, and a kind of pita bread with ajvar. (18) Mokuba had wrinkled his nose at the spinach, but discovered it was prepared in a way that he thought tasted pretty good. Normally at home he refused to eat what he called "green slop," because it had a vinegar taste to it that he did not like. He did not know what this spinach had been prepared with, but he was more determined than ever to have Onii-chan supplant the Kaibas' current chef.

Mokuba felt like the last two days were the best two days of the month. When Mokuba went to bed on their last night together he cried himself to sleep. He awoke hours later with a start. Something was wrong. Darkness pressed upon his eyes, and he strained to see in the night. There was no night-light, since Amelda hated them. The window curtains were pulled shut. Mokuba made to get out of bed to open them when he realized what was wrong. Strong arms were holding him tightly, and he could not move. "Onii-chan?" Mokuba called. He received no answer. He hoped it was Amelda who was holding him. It felt that way. The redhead possessed a toned, beautifully sculpted body not just for show, but for strength as well.

It felt odd to Mokuba, who was never once touched by Amelda during the night. The latter did not move much in his sleep, but he did talk a lot in a language the former did not recognize. Mokuba's eyes adjusted to the darkness. He wriggled and twisted around within the embrace to come face-to-face with a sleeping Onii-chan, who tightened his hold on him. "Onii-chan, wake up!" Mokuba called again. This is weird! Mokuba thought, except on Mondays, Onii-chan wakes so easily. Unless…

"Moj malen majmun," Amelda whispered with brotherly love. "Ja ljubav te!" His eyes were shut tight.

Oh cripes, not now! Mokuba thought. He's trapped in his mind! It scared Mokuba enough to just hear the nightmares, and being held by Amelda during one was going to be even worse! They always started off kind of sweet, like the way Onii-chan was smiling now, and then…

Amelda shuddered. He winced. He started to quiver violently. Tears leaked out from sealed eyes. "Let me go, Onii-chan!" Mokuba smacked him hard across the face to try and wake him, but it was no use. Bombs could go off outside their window and Amelda still would not wake. He started to sob, calling out Miruko's name over and over again - quietly, as if he were searching for him. Then…

"Miruko!" as if he found him. At this point, Mokuba felt his eyeballs were going to pop out he was being squeezed so hard. "Moj malen majmun… Ja osnivati te!" Amelda exclaimed happily. Mokuba knew the worst was yet to come. The nightmares came in different varieties, and he was recognizing the pattern of this one. He braced himself. Suddenly, Amelda screamed, "Ne!" He started to sob uncontrollably, his anguish unbridled. Writhing with an unseen pain, Amelda screamed out Miruko's name again and again, mixed with "Žao mi je," and "Ja je propustila te!"

Mokuba was so terrified, he was entranced. He felt as if his hair would catch fire - he was burning hot. He did not move a muscle, waiting for the nightmare to end. There was one last, "Moj malen majmun…" and it was over. Onii-chan fell silent, released Mokuba, rolled over onto his stomach, and buried his face in his pillow. Mokuba scrambled out of the bed, breathing heavily, eyes watering, and stared at Onii-chan like he had never seen him before.

Mokuba gasped when the thought hit him, How would Nii-sama react to something like this? Mokuba began to seriously wonder if he should cancel Plan D and E. Nii-sama can't stand criers. He can't stand this sort of emotional stuff, especially if it's on a nightly basis. Mokuba was sinking. Mokuba was falling into despair. He felt deeply concerned for Onii-chan, and he missed his Nii-sama so much. In a few more hours, I'm going to be heading home!

Mokuba stumbled out of the bedroom. He needed a breath of fresh air. The cool tile of the kitchen floor felt soothing against his hot feet. In a few quick steps, he reached the refrigerator. The bright light inside stung his iris as his pupils contracted to adjust. He found the pitcher of water he was searching for, and poured himself a glass. It went down in three short gulps. Mokuba sighed, releasing the tension. He replaced the pitcher and put the glass on the countertop. Looking out the kitchen window, he could see the brightening horizon of the coming dawn.

He opened the window, letting the cool twilight breeze wash over his hot face. He exhaled his despair. Velvet eyes observed the coming of the sunrise. Maybe I should not be so selfish, he thought. I could end up hurting the both of them. He only wanted the two of them to get along. Plan D was for that. Plan E was to get Amelda to move in with him and Nii-sama. That was going to be risky. Maybe even too risky.

I want Nii-sama to have love in his life, Mokuba reasoned. It would do him a lot of good. I won't be in that house forever. He sighed deeply. Onii-chan needs someone who understands him. Love could be just the thing he needs as well. Mokuba began to wonder again if there was a small possibility that Nii-sama was gay. If he is, Mokuba thought, I definitely have to try everything possible to bring them together.

So, Mokuba revised his plan. He was going to wait and see if Nii-sama was definitely not interested in women, but men, and then enact Plan E. He was still going to go with Plan D because he wanted the two of them to at least get along. That way he could still visit Onii-chan when he missed him.

A/N: If you are wondering about translations, please re-read the beginning of Chapter 1.