MissDomaYuset- Hey thanks! You will just have to wait and see what is going to happen! (10 out of 10 yes!)
bunbunlover/cherryopsicle - Thanks for all of your wonderful reviews. Hopefully your questions will be answered. Don't worry, the relationship issue will be addressed, but Mokuba and someone else is Mai's first priority! Sorry about that!
5animefan- Your welcome! I always thought they had a special bond, and even if they don't end up together, they always will have a special bond. At least that's how I feel on the situation.
Growing Pain- I like Mokuba too, that's why I checked in on him this chapter. Hope this chapter suits your liking and answers some of your questions. I figured I'd throw out some more back story, it's important. So Valon will make an appearance, but it won't be that bad . . . or will it? Guess you'll have to find out! lol
Random Notes: I thought this chapter was really long, but when I was finished with it, I found it to be shorter than my other recent chapters! I'd keep going, but I think I stopped at a good place. Anyway this whole fic was supposed to be called Black Roses, and this chapter is why. Although I orginally had a much longer back story for the whole black roses things, I cut it down. Oh well. Plus I changed the name, nope it's never been called Black Roses. Honestly I forgot about the whole idea until today. Huh go figure. Sorry just my useless rambling . . . It's funny how I wrote this listening to 'For You I Will' and 'I Could Not Ask For More' Oh and I make a reference to Noah, if you don't know who he is then sorry
Disclaimer: YGO isn't mine, or all of the characters would be experiencing constant emotional pain on so many levels that people would become bored of it and the show would be forever cancelled. (J/k)
The room was dark and had a damp feeling to it. It was if one had just taken a shower and then jumped into a dirty pond for no reason. The dampness seemed to hang in the air and give the room a horrid smell of old moss and for some reason garbage.
Besides being damp it was cold, although the two usually tend to go hand in hand in certain types of predicaments.
An annoyed sigh escaped from the young boys lips. He never understood why evil people never payed heating bills . . . or why they always picked dingy places to 'hideout'. Evil people in general confused him, but he stopped trying to figure them out a long time ago.
The young boy slouched in his chair as much as he could, but it proved to be a difficult task. He was tied to the chair, and his hands and legs were cuffed to it. His head only hung in disappointment and shame for the whole occurrence.
What was taking Kaiba so long to find him anyway?
He let out another sigh, but was told to shut-up by some unknown voice. He couldn't really see because his corner was impossibly dark. At first, he thought it might work to his advantage, but after a few days with only water to fill him, escaping seemed like a wild dream.
He wasn't strong enough. The only thing he hung onto was the hope that his brother would find him. For a while he held onto the rage he felt every time Valon said a word, but Valon's voice had disappeared quite a while ago.
"This is hopeless." Mokuba thought to himself and subconsciously hung his head lower.
"Can you just shut the Hell up for a minute?" she yelled loudly as she threw the papers on the floor of the small vehicle.
"If it wasn't for you than this would never have happened." another voice shot back just as angry.
"Kaiba, do you want to find Mokuba or not . . . if you do than you'll have to get off my back and let me do what I have too." was the responding sound. Kaiba only sunk lower into the seat, if it was possible.
Kaiba was rather tall, and there wasn't enough room in the Volkswagen Beetle before. Now that Mai was there, the space became cramped and uptight.
Luckily it was just the two of them, because Kaiba still had Yugi's keys and he drove off in it just as Yugi ran out to the parking lot.
"And what is it that you know Valentine? How can you help, and besides Hell would freeze over before I was ever on your back." he replied in an angry tone. Mai bit her lip and shook her head.
Her body was still hurting, but she knew if she concentrated on this one thing, than maybe the pain would go away . . . at least until she finally collapsed when it was all over. She tried her best to ignore him, even though he only spoke the truth.
"Listen, I need to get back to my apartment . . . I'll get my laptop . . . besides that's where some of the important stuff is anyway. I'll be able to transfer everything back to you, which should give Valon a nice wake-up call." she explained hastily. Kaiba rolled his eyes, her ideas were so elementary and he knew he could have thought of better ones.
But he was hopeless now, and she was his only way to fight this hidden enemy.
Of course him relying on her in the slightest form was a low blow and everyone knew, but he couldn't understand why she wasn't throwing it into his face every five seconds.
"Turn there." she said, pointing her finger to the left. He hated feeling like the driver but did so only because of her importance, otherwise she'd be walking.
"I'm assuming that Valon moved from headquarters, and he knows something we don't." Mai rattled on. Apparently she was talking for several minutes, but her voice become lost within the confusion in his mind. Kaiba looked at her briefly.
"What could that possibly be?" he asked, his voice full of doubt.
"Obviously that I've teamed up with somebody . . . not on his side . . . other words he wouldn't have tried to kill me and blame it on you." she analyzed to his surprise.
"Makes sense, but did he have enough time to pack up, leave and start all over again?" Kaiba asked her. Mai shrugged.
"He had all day . . . and I know he did it. Valon isn't one to let things fail. He hates it. What you don't understand Kaiba is the full effect of power . . . evil power. Valon will go to any lengths to get what he wants, and he won't have a problem killing Mokuba to get it." she explained, her voice lowered with each word.
"And you still teamed up with him?" Kaiba asked in an annoyed voice. He was mostly annoyed at her stupidity, but he didn't know why . . . it just didn't make sense to him.
"Again, you've never tasted real power. It's not just the money, or the fame. It's the control, the evil. It runs through your veins, rules you . . . and it won't let you go. It won't let you breath and pushes you to get more . . . and the only way to even sleep at night is to push yourself that far off of the edge. You've never been there." she explained in a dark manner.
"And you have?" Kaiba asked, he didn't appreciate her talking to him like he was a novice in any situation. Mai didn't answer for sometime, and only looked at the window and watched the raindrops roll down it.
"Yeah . . . I have . . . but you knew that. Deep down, and I bet you the world that you can't sit there and convince me you didn't. You don't know the things I've done, I almost did . . . and you don't want to know what I'm capable of. You just saw the show, never behind the scenes." her answer was in a harsh whisper, but instead of sounding sincere, it sounded cold and distant.
"Evil has a taste?" Kaiba asked her, unsure of what to expect.
"Yeah, sweet and sour all at once. It's horrible at the beginning . . . shocking even . . . but as you go on, it becomes sweeter until it runs with your blood and you crave it. Kinda of like a strawberry, how their sweet and sour all at once, and you think you don't want to finish . . . but then you do." was her quiet response.
Kaiba didn't answer, only drove straight ahead, occasionally higher the power of the windshield wipers and watching the rain fall. It was mostly curiosity that made him speak again.
"How do you walk away from something like that?" he asked.
"You don't. You live with . . . go through with it, but you never escape it. It haunts you, the need, makes you stay awake at night remembering every horrible thing you've done . . . and it doesn't go away. That is, until, you start doing those things again . . . and then you're numb. But me, personally, somebody always pulls me back." she explained with a bitter laugh at the end for good measure.
"And if somebody didn't pull you back?" he asked, his voice full of curiosity now. Mai only shrugged.
"I'd be down in Mexico with a bunch of hot guys, lots of money and you would be up here with no money and a dead brother . . . you'd probably be dead too." was her answer. It wasn't the answer that shocked him though, it was careless and lively way she answered it.
Silence filled the vehicle and Mai pointed in the direction of the small driveway to the apartment. Kaiba didn't want to talk to her anymore, he didn't want to think of her and he surely didn't want to be near her. She was crazy . . . and yet he kept pounding her for questions and he didn't know why.
It was unsaid, but she decided to go into her apartment by herself. Kaiba had no intention of going in, but she never knew what was going on in his mind anyway.
"I'll be right back." she said hurriedly as she exited the vehicle and ran toward the complex in which she lived. He leaned back in his seat, as much as he could, and turned the heater up.
It was unreasonably cold and he didn't understand why. Not that he cared, there was only one thing that was on his mind.
His little brother . . . and that was it.
At least, that's what was supposed to be it. He patiently waited for her to return but soon found himself sighing in annoyance.
It had only been three minutes but he wanted out of this whole predicament and he wanted his brother safe. It seemed simple enough, but he knew it couldn't be.
Her previous words ran through his head as he leaned against the steering wheel. Why was he still thinking about her? Why did he even care?
He knew she was crazy, and everyone knew that. Yet there was something about her, or to be more accurate everything about her, that made him think of curious things.
But somewhere, deep down within him, he felt some sort of weird connection toward her. It was almost like a pull toward her. He tried and tried to pull away but somehow he was always drawn toward her.
He didn't know why he felt this way, but he did deny it. He would hardly admit it to himself.
She reminded him of his stepfather. She was just like the power-hungry man who would stop at nothing for power. It was that same man that Kaiba destroyed at such a tender age. It was weird to compare her to a man who created a virtual brother to the two boys, as if that would really save Noah anyhow.
Kaiba rolled his eyes at the thought of Noah, his virtual stepbrother . . . and it hit him how dysfunctional his family was. His father would rather die than live in failure.
Kaiba doesn't know why he saw that quality in Mai, but he did.
When Kaiba looks at her though, actually looks at her, with complete eye-contact . . . all he sees is the shadow lingering behind the amethyst. It's just darkness and he stupidly wonders if it goes on forever.
He knows it can't, but he still wonders.
Sometimes he wonders, if that's what people see when they look at him. Do they see the thirst for more in his blue orbs or do they see a shadow lingering behind them? The shadow of the perfect duelist that he once was . . . the cold shadow he had become by shutting himself off to everyone but Mokuba.
The thought of becoming like his father or Mai quickly flickered through his mind, but he hastily pushed it away. The occasional doubt or fear that hits him bothers him. He shouldn't be scared or unsure. He's Seto Kaiba, the Seto Kaiba, and he should be above that.
He laughs pathetically at his musing and then looked at the clock. He had been sitting in silence for the past fifteen minutes. How long could this really take?
He sighed and pushed the door open. He stretched his legs and entered the complex, annoyed at the extra effort.
He didn't know which room was hers, but he went into the one with the open wooden door, for some reason the number that was supposed to be on the door was lying on the ground.
He just stepped over it. Upon entering he saw glass splattered all over the floor.
Chairs were thrown all over and pieces of wood were cluttered around them. Papers were also ripped and lying on the floor.
It seemed that the glass cabinets were missing the glass pieces, along with whatever was supposed to be in them.
The television, couch, and VCR were the only things in tact though. Even the broken lamps laid on the floor with pieces of the light bulbs surrounding them.
Mai stood in the middle of the wreckage motionless.
"Mai?" Kaiba called. This was getting him nowhere. He knew that it was a horrible experienced when one was robbed, but this was ridiculous.
"Listen, we have to find my brother." he continued. It sounded as if he was speaking in monologue. His voice never faltered or changed pitch. Honestly, he sounded rather bored.
She remained unresponsive.
"I know you were robbed but you just have to deal with this later." he said again rather tactlessly. For some reason he felt like he had to keep talking. Maybe because if he talked, then she would fall apart and he would be absolutely hopeless.
"I know who did it." she said in a voice that was barely below a whisper. If the room wasn't dead silent then he wouldn't have heard it at all.
Kaiba rolled his eyes and stomped his foot impatiently.
"That helps me how?" was his angry question. He didn't care who robbed her and he didn't care about how she felt. He wanted his brother, his company, his pride . . . he wanted it back. She took it away from him, so why should he feel for her?
She let a small sound escape her lips. It sounded like a laugh, but could have been a sigh. Kaiba will never know. She only pointed toward the couch as slow as she could.
Kaiba rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time that day and walked over to where she was standing. On the couch was a blank videotape. On top of the video tape laid five black roses which were fully alive. Yet on top of them laid a dead rose and most of its petals laid along the couch.
He stood there speechless, unsure of what to say really. This meant nothing to him, and yet he could tell that it registered in her mind.
"Why six?" was his only question. She didn't answer, and only looked forward at the darkness that crept into the corners of her apartment.
"Half a dozen . . ." she answered. It was practical of course. They stood there for some time before Mai finally took a deep breath and threw the flowers on the flower before jumping on all of them except for the dead one. She put that inside her jacket while Kaiba wasn't looking.
She picked up the video tape and closed her eyes for a moment. Clearing off a spot on the couch, she motioned for Kaiba to sit down.
"I think I'm supposed to watch it." she responded to his uneasy look. She pushed it in her VCR, turned on the tv and took a seat beside Kaiba.
She made a wincing sound as she did it, but they both ignored her pain. If only she had a hot tub . . .
The tape started by showing all of the static that it usually does. Suddenly a persons face popped up. Behind them was darkness, so their location was secure.
"Mai." the person said. Even though Kaiba was only sitting by her, he could actually feel her tense up at the image on the screen.
"Well Mai, I guess you went soft again. Can't ever go through anything can ya? You know what your problem is, well besides the obvious, you're afraid of commitment." the man said with a laugh. It was obviously Valon, but his voice was full of pain and greed now. It was no longer filled with the kindness toward Mai as before.
"Guess I wasn't good enough. It happens. I can deal. You won't be able too though. Nope, that'll suck. Joey's getting married and you're left alone." he continued.
Mai's finger hovered over the stop button on the remote. She was tempted to shut him off and burn the tape along with the remains of her stupid broken possessions. To her surprise though, Kaiba grabbed the remote and placed it on the couch.
He didn't know why, but he felt that the tape might be important. Also, there was the fact, that somewhere deep within him he felt a sort of pity toward him. She was sitting to him, broken in mostly every way possible and she was still trying to help. She was trying to fix what she did. Not to mention the fact that she was wet from being outside, but she wasn't drenched.
She ignored him.
"So here's the deal sweetheart. I've got Mokuba. You know that. I've got the money and your laptop, of course you know that. Unfortunately I did take your supply of painkillers, but I doubt you found that out. By the way . . . that whole chase thing, I never meant for it to go that far. I didn't want you hurt or killed, just scared. But no, you couldn't go off to paradise, you had to complicate things." Valon's eyes were starting to water at this point and disbelief filled his voice.
Kaiba heard Mai mutter the word bastard, but he let it go.
"I never meant that . . . I just wanted you to be happy. Somewhere deep down I know you believe that. But this mess called life got caught in the way. You want Mokuba back, don't you? You'll have to come and get him. Alone. I thought that that would suit you. At Kaiba's old office, on the rooftop."
"But don't worry, Mokuba won't be alone . . . he's got a friend with him. Man, she's awfully pretty too. Long auburn hair . . . if you weren't such a looker I might have gone for her. I mean, doesn't everyone else. Isn't she who Tristan and Duke long for. Pathetic, spending your whole existence pining over the love of a woman, who doesn't want you. I know, been there. Bet you can guess who our new friend is."
"I'm sure that Joey will fill you in on how it happened, so I won't waste your time. But there is something I do want. But you don't get to know until tonight. I want you there at 2:00 in the morning. And if you're not, then I'll kill both of them. I always knew the girl was like a sister to you, but what will Joey say when he finds out you got his sister killed?" Valon was teasing her now, in the cruelest way he knew how.
"Oh, and by the way Mai, I knew you'd like the flowers." With that statement, the video ended static filled the screen again.
Silence and the dull buzzing of the room seemed to be the only sound there was at that moment. Mai took a deep breath, and with it, pain spread through her stomach.
She inwardly flinched and closed her eyes momentarily.
"Uh, what time is it?" Mai asked. Her voice had become hard and determined, as if she was dueling. Kaiba hadn't heard her speak like that in a long time.
"Uh, I don't know . . . a little after midnight." was his response. Mai but her lip and nodded.
"Right, fine, okay." she said. Pushing herself off of the couch she walked over to the small desk. The drawer was still in it, but the items in the drawer were undisturbed.
Kneeling on the floor, Mai looked through the papers and the other things one usually has cluttered in a drawer.
After a few seconds of this, she found what she needed. It was a small gun, but it worked for her.
"You're kidding right?" Kaiba asked as he peered over her shoulder.
"Got a better idea?" she asked sarcastically. Kaiba only stood there and shrugged.
"You'd really shoot him?" he asked. For some reason the thought of Mai with a gun was disturbing to him. Maybe it was because she was emotionally distraught.
"Kaiba, haven't you learned by now that to get through to a person you have to use their weaknesses. Unfortunately for Valon, I know his weakness." she replied.
"What is that?" asked Kaiba, for he was skeptic. Mai only rolled her eyes as she stood up.
"You don't get to know. That's between us." was her response. She was walking toward the doorway now in such a determined manner that Kaiba didn't want to stop her.
He gazed at the broken flowers on the floor and gave them a quizzical look.
"What were the flowers for?" he asked, rather seriously. Mai looked away from him and toward the door.
"It was . . . after I defeated Pegasus, Valon took me out to celebrate. At the end of the night he gave me six black roses. They were my favorite kind, ever since I was a little girl. I didn't know how he knew, but it was nice . . . that he cared enough to do it. After that is was a usual thing, another person defeated, another six. But after the downfall of Dartz he stopped . . . they were a reminder, a reward, of the people's lives I destroyed. I used to be proud of it, excited for them, but I told him that I never wanted to see another one again. Not until I knew that we were completely done." she explained and for some reason her determination was fading.
Kaiba watched her curiously. How she changed moods so quickly was remarkable to him. He never knew anybody that could change on a dime. He wondered if she considered becoming an actress.
She was closer to the door now, and a feeling of impending doom rose in him.
"Shouldn't we inform Wheeler about what's going on?" he asked before he could think of what he was asking. He didn't know why, but her abrupt way of acting was worrying him.
"No, we . . . sorry, I have to go as soon as possible. You can't possibly think that he made it easy for me to meet him?" she asked as if he was stupid.
"You can't possibly be serious. I understand the whole 'take back the day and stand up for yourself' type of thing, but you can't do it by yourself." Kaiba told her. His voice was rising with each second and the calm manner he might have had disappeared.
"It's not about what I think, it's about what I have to do." Mai said annoyed. Why did she have to explain everything over and over again?
"It's my brother in danger and I'm not going to let you go alone and lose." Kaiba yelled. He was obviously upset and the shaking in his voice was somewhat uncharacteristic of him. Mai figured that it was the most human emotion he had shown in front of someone for a long time.
"Too bad I have too." she said. Glancing over toward the kitchen, she grabbed a chair leg and hit Kaiba over the head with it. It was such a quick action that he didn't have anytime to retaliate.
He fell over on the floor with a loud thud. Mai drug him so that he was leaning against the backside of the couch.
"Sorry sweetheart, I will save your brother and I'll save Serenity . . . but I can't have you interfering." she told him, although he couldn't hear her. She was surprised at her sudden strength.
Standing up she grabbed a pen and a piece of paper. Somewhere deep down she had a feeling that Yugi or Joey would show up in her apartment looking for her.
Joey or Yugi,
Don't worry about Kaiba that was my fault. He'll wake up soon if he isn't already gone. I'll explain everything later . . . I've got something I've got to do. Don't wait up, but I promise I'll fix everything.
Mai
She threw the pen on the floor and placed the paper on the kitchen counter, knowing it was visible.
Shaking her hair around she felt the inside of her pocket for something of vital importance to her. She immediately found it and quietly left the apartment.
Upon walking outside she glanced at Yugi's car. Although cute, it wouldn't fit her needs. She quickly hot-wired her neighbor's black Viper and jumped in.
It was time for her to step up, and she was ready.