Mokuba's Plan
By Pearl of the Dark Age
Disclaimer: I am running out of creative ways to say, "I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh." There - I've said it.
Chapter 19
"You should've seen Mokuba yesterday," Seto said. "Right after you left, he ran around the house shouting, 'Space! Space!'" He looked thoughtful for a moment. "I thought he lost his mind or something. Is your apartment really so small?"
Amelda nodded, prickling with dignity. They were half way into their date. Every male in the restaurant wore a tie except Amelda. He had compromised by wearing his church clothes, but he still felt out of place. He was equally impressed and disdained by the extravagance of Bounenkai Restaurant. There were large vases of polished granite containing long branches of pussy-willow and birds of paradise. The granite itself was beautiful; it contained a lot of potassium feldspar and big chunks of biotite mica. A large aquarium housing colorful seahorses stood near them. The walls and carpet were gorgeous hues of blues ranging from periwinkle to a deep midnight. Candlelight made the atmosphere ambient and tranquil. It was perfect for Seto.
"Today he came home," Seto continued, "strutting about as if he'd been made Emperor of Japan!" Seto smirked. "I hate to say it, but it was really cute! I asked him what it was about, and he told me that a number of girls complimented him on his new haircut… and even a few guys."
Amelda smiled. "I was waiting for that. You know, Kaiba-"
"Call me Seto."
"Seto, I think it's time you sit Mokuba down and explain a few facts of life to him."
"What do you mean?"
"Ano, he asked me a bunch of questions, but some I felt were your responsibility to answer. I was as honest as I could be, but I don't feel it's right for me to-"
"What do you mean, 'a few facts of life?'" Seto reiterated. "What are those?"
Amelda blinked. His sadistic smile formed slowly but surely. "Could it be that you've never had a few things explained to you?"
"What 'things?'" Seto asked, losing his patience.
"Don't worry," Amelda said with a sly smile. "I'll teach you. But speaking of Mokuba, I think it's time he learned the difference between boys and girls… and all that it implies." Amelda winked.
The bridge of Seto's nose went pink. Amelda was astonished this glacier could melt. His face filled with delight. "Why, Seto! I didn't know you were so modest!"
Seto cleared his throat. "Some things shouldn't be discussed in public," he stated through gritted teeth. He glanced around to make sure no one had overheard. "Don't talk about that stuff in a restaurant!"
"What? Sex?" The redhead could not help himself. He thought Seto had looked cute when he blushed, and he wanted to see it again. It worked.
"Shut up!" Seto hissed.
Amelda laughed softly. "You are modest!" he whispered so only Seto could hear. "I thought Mokuba had been exaggerating." His cheshire-cat smile illuminated his face sadistically. I'm going to have fun with this! he thought triumphantly.
Seto was greatly aggravated. He did not want Amelda to think he had found some weakness, so he forced himself not to react anymore to it. He was trying to make him think that there was no fuel for the fire, but the savvy redhead knew better. Amelda also knew to let it go - for now.
The iron black waters looked solid under the velvet sky. The stars twinkled overhead, winking at the earth below because they knew what lay for the couple that night. After eating and drinking their fill, Amelda suggested to Seto that they walk it off on the boardwalk by the harbor. "It's only a block away," Amelda had said. Seto agreed good-naturedly, and now he was very glad he had.
The summer air felt as wonderful as it had done on the night he attended Bishonen-ai. The sound of the waves and distant horns of boats were soothing. The waxing moon struck a romantic cord in Seto he never knew he possessed. I'm going to kiss him, Seto thought. But he was still waiting for the right moment - whenever that was.
Neither were conversing, but Amelda appeared to be very content. They both enjoyed the night as it was. Amelda stopped to lean against a railing overlooking the glimmering lights of the near-distant harbor. His moonlit eyes seem to see farther than the dark horizon. Seto stood beside him. He was so close he could feel warmth radiating from him.
Amelda straightened himself up. "Sometimes I feel nostalgic at times like these," he stated. "I never saw the ocean until after I became a swordsman of Doom." He tore his eyes away from the water to look at his date. "I know your intentions, Seto."
Seto was shocked. "How can you possibly know?" he asked. He thought he had the ace up his sleeve. What happened to the opportune moment?
"I know because I feel the same way," Amelda said quietly. Seto quickly recovered from his shock. His usual veneer upon his countenance disturbed Amelda, who always wore his heart on his sleeve. "You're as eerie as the eye of the storm," Amelda said astutely. "This calm belies the truth of your nature."
"You're more like a storm than I am," Seto commented.
"So what happens when two storms collide?"
"There's only one way to find out," Seto replied. He leaned in, brushing his lips against Amelda's, when suddenly he was filled with panic. What the hell do I do? he wondered. His stomach tied itself into knots. He had never kissed anyone on the mouth before.
It did not matter. Amelda took over, filling Seto's mouth with milk and honey. The panic was swept away in torrents of pleasurable waves. Amelda's touch made him hungry for more. His hands rubbed up around his torso and embraced him. Amelda's soft lips and caressing tongue felt like something he had been thirsting for all his life. He drank the kiss deeply as if it were life saving water in a forsaken desert.
Losing track of time, they kissed passionately for a while until a passing old lady told them to rent a room, to which the snarky redhead replied, "Only if you're paying for it!" She laughed, Seto blushed, and Amelda proposed in a husky voice that they go to his apartment.
When Seto walked in twenty minutes later he was astounded that this was the place Mokuba had lived for a month! Amelda gave him time to survey the room while he made tea. Seto took in the teddy-bears, David, the pink bean bag, the chili-lights, and the knife. The last part surprised him the least. "What happened here?" he inquired, indicating the embedded kitchen utensil.
"Oh, this guy wouldn't put out his cigarette," Amelda replied. "So I put it out for him."
"Can't stand smoking?" Seto asked rhetorically. "Mokuba told me that you are adamantly anti-drug."
"Yeah," the redhead said casually. "I've got enough issues as it is." He elected to not elaborate further. "Let's play a game!"
"Huh?" Seto asked. He was still stuck on the reason behind the last statement. "What game? I don't have my cards."
"How about truth Monopoly?" (1) Amelda suggested, digging out the box without waiting for a reply.
"What's that?"
"It's like regular Monopoly but with a twist like a drinking game," he answered. "Every time you land on one of the four corners or to get out of Jail you have to answer a question truthfully. It's like the game "Truth or Dare." I leave out the dare part because…" he laughed, "it's just too dangerous with me around."
"Any question?" Seto asked apprehensively. This could get personal!
"Yup!"
They sat down on the floor at the short coffee table in front of the couch. The pacifist explained all the rules, and they rolled to see who went first. Seto was banker and Amelda the Real Estate Agent. Two hours into it they were really animated. Tea switched to double espresso shots. Amelda was giggling like mad; even Seto was loosened up. "Advance to Vermont," Amelda read off his Chance card. He moved his little token around Go, collected $200, and bought the last yellow property to complete his monopoly.
"No fair!" Seto protested. "You have three monopolies already and I only have one! You keep ruining mine!"
"Just lucky I guess," Amelda giggled mischievously. "You have the green one - that beats any of mine!"
"I could have had the blue, but you stole Broadway!"
"I did not steal! I simply landed on it and acquired it before you."
"I landed on it first!"
"You were broke!"
The truth was that the redhead wanted to defeat Seto even if it was only a board game. He had played Monopoly ever since he was six years old, and after surpassing his father and his Nana, he had a hard time finding anyone who would play with him until he met his best friends. Varon refused after three games. Raphael only needed two to firmly decide to never play again - with anyone. Amelda was simply the best. "Doubles, you have to pay me!"
Seto scowled and handed over the rent. He moved his token again and landed on Just Passing. He looked at Amelda expectantly for the "truth" question.
His date looked thoughtful, fishing around for a good one this time. "Before you were orphaned, what did you want to be when you grew up?"
Seto thought about it, trying to stretch his memory back. He was a little more comfortable now searching through dark corners he had previously pretended did not exist. It helped that Amelda landed on the corners more often than he did - albeit Free Parking. "I think that there were a couple a different things, but the one I remember was the ice cream man."
"You wanted to be the ice cream man?" Amelda asked, incredulous.
"Think about it," Seto said, smiling. "It's the best job in the world when you're a kid."
"True," Amelda replied, chuckling. "My turn." He rolled and landed on Park Place.
"You owe me!" Seto said gleefully. Amelda paid his rent, and Seto rolled - hoping for a ten. He got a nine, again. "Damn! I already own that!" He moved his token nonetheless and handed the dice to Amelda.
The redhead collected his salary as he passed Go again and landed on Mediterranean. He bought it. Seto looked glumly at him. He had the other purple. They rolled a couple more times, moving around the board and exchanging currency. Amelda spoke up. "How about a business deal?" he prompted.
"You can do that?" Seto asked.
"Sure," Amelda said. "I told you about it when I read the rules. I will give you Broadway if you give me $500 and Baltic."
"What?" Seto looked at Amelda like he was crazy. "You want the cheapest property and give me the most expensive one? Are you insane?"
Amelda shrugged. "Call it sentimentality," he said. "I am particularly attached to the purple properties. Besides, the $500 evens it out, and we'll both have monopolies."
Seto smirked. He scrounged for what remaining money he had left. After exchanging the title deeds and the money, Seto only had two dollars left. For the first time since he took over Kaiba Corp, he had been duped in a deal.
"My turn," Amelda said.
"Is it?"
"Yeah, you can only propose a business deal at the start of your turn before you roll. And you can only buy houses before you roll. I'll buy two hotels," Amelda said as he handed back the $500.
"What?" Seto exclaimed.
Amelda showed him the title deed to Baltic. "Fifty bucks a house, five houses to a hotel, times two properties equals 10 houses, which is $500." Seto grumbled as he deposited the money in the bank and handed Amelda two plastic red hotels. His opponent garnished his purple properties with his new acquisition. "The reason they're sentimental," Amelda elaborated, "is because I've bankrupted my opponents with these little beauties!"
Seto looked at the red hotels ominously. He was on Pennsylvania. It would not be long before he landed upon them. "I only have two dollars," he said. "How do I pay for it?"
"You mortgage your property!" Amelda answered joyfully. "I get free rent on anything mortgaged! My turn!" He rolled a twelve (two sixes) and landed on Free Parking. "Alright!" Amelda ejaculated. "My question?"
Seto was still numb from the unfairness of the roll. "Oh… uh… what is your darkest fear?"
"That I'll go insane and kill the one I love," Amelda answered without hesitation. He was dead serious, and Seto gulped at him. "I told you I have issues," Amelda said solemnly. "Doubles - I roll again."
He rolled and got a ten, which landed him in Jail. "Oh, right before I was coming around to the green, too," he said in a mock disappointment. "Next question?"
Seto snarled at him, but calmed down to ask another one, "What is your biggest regret in life?"
"I'm using my one 'No Comment' pass," Amelda stated firmly. They were both allowed one question that they did not have to answer. Seto had already used his when Amelda asked what his favorite sexual fantasy was.
"My turn," Seto muttered. He rolled, passed go, and landed on the first purple. Mortgaged a few properties to pay Amelda. On his second turn, after which Amelda had rolled to try and free himself from Jail, Seto got snake eyes, and landed on the second purple. His face reddened in anger as he mortgaged the last of his property other than the green to pay Amelda for the second time in a row.
The redhead was beside himself. He remained in Jail until the third turn, paid his bail, and landed on the railroad that Seto owned.
Seto looked at the meager earnings in disgust. He looked at all the hotels and houses that the redhead had erected and his lone, unfurnished monopoly. He could not deny the fact he was going to lose. How can I lose a board game to Amelda? he admonished himself. "Hurricane!" he shouted, inhaled a deep breath, and blew it out across the board, blowing all the little houses and hotels, money, and cards everywhere! "I win!"
"Seto!" Amelda exclaimed. "If you forfeit-" But he could not get another word out. Seto had swiped the board off the short coffee table, knocking everything to the floor; jumped over the table, and landed on Amelda, kissing him like there was no tomorrow.
The sun rose a few hours later, bathing the room with the soft light of the dawn. Amelda woke up first. His back ached from sleeping on the floor on top of a little hotel piece. He gingerly rubbed the spot the plastic had indented into. His exposed abdomen was sticky with dried saliva and body fluids. His unbuttoned shirt wrinkled in desperate need of an iron. His bladder throbbed painfully from all the espresso. He got up quickly, knocked Seto over onto his back, ignored the head rush, and ran into the bathroom.
The flush of the toilet woke Seto. For a second, he could not remember where he was or how he had gotten there. He sat up upon the dingy carpet, looked around, and it all flooded back to him. He grinned happily. "That was fun," he said to Amelda as the latter emerged from the bathroom.
"Yeah." Amelda stopped, picking Seto's pants that he was stepping on. "I can sew the buttons back on your shirt if you want," he said, glancing at Seto's shirt that lay draped across David.
"It's alright," Seto said. "No need to trouble yourself. Just throw it away. Next time, take the time to unbutton it instead of ripping it open. You could get expensive."
"Why throw it away?" Amelda asked, incredulous anyone could be so wasteful. "I'll just find the buttons and sew them back on!"
Seto glanced around the messy apartment and then at his new boyfriend. He swallowed. "You can find buttons in this?"
Amelda scowled at him. "Then, if you're throwing it away, I'm keeping it for myself!"
"Whatever," Seto murmured. He stood up and retrieved his pants. "Let me borrow one of yours."
"Here," Amelda said, handing him a iridescent blue T-shirt emblazoned with kanji: Bishonen-ai. "You can keep this."
"Thanks," Seto said uncertainly. He never wore T-shirts, but he put it on. It looked pretty sexy with his black slacks. He plucked the form fitting shirt. "Free advertisement?" (A/N)
Amelda rolled his eyes. He was on his knees, hunting for buttons. He was keen to find them. He considered it romantic to have something that was once so close to Seto's skin to be his. "If you want breakfast, there's some eggs in the fridge," Amelda suggested helpfully. He found five out of eight buttons so far.
"Breakfast? What time is it?" Seto looked at his watch and swore loudly. "Mokuba!" He grabbed his remaining possessions quick as lightning. "Goodbye!" he said a minute later at the door. "I'll call you!"
The door closed before Amelda could respond. He stared at the door in silence for a moment. "I found the last button," he said in a depressed voice to the empty room.
A/N: If anyone is willing to do a fanart of this or anything else in this fic, please let me know! Thanks!