A/N: Hello again my lovelies! Hope that you are all staying safe and healthy!
What's this? Didn't have to wait a year for another update? ^.^;
I want to say again that sorry for the last chapter being so short… But that chapter was a nightmare for me to get wrapped up for some reason. Massive writer's block kicked in and I kind of just said 'screw it' and just posted what I had. I honestly feel like it was a bit of a let down and kind of thrown together, and in hindsight I probably could have just used it at the beginning of this chapter…
So quick note, I'm kind of tweaking canon again. Because in the anime Kaiba openly says that the duel discs won't work unless they're linked through the satellite systems to the tournament computer… "or a compatible system." Why? Just… Why would he allow that little tidbit? I mean this is a guy who fiercely defends his systems and his creations, so why would he allow his duel discs to work on something other than his network for the duration of his tournament? So, the little 'compatible system' thing is going out the window for this fic. Because reasons.
Thank you to all you wonderful people who have favorited and followed! And thank you to the reviewers: bunnyxstar, ChildOfSunLeo, and Luna Lillyth.
And a huge shout out to my lovely beta and best friend SerenitheUndead, and my dear friend Khiorii for helping me sort out this chapter and encouraging me to get this done so quickly.
And with that onto the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or any characters created and owned by Kazuki Takahashi. This fic is written solely for entertainment purposes. I only claim ownership of my original characters and original concepts.
Chapter 23
Rather than walking around randomly, I decided to stick with Seto and Mokuba for a bit. Again a small part of me worried that people would assume that I wasn't being impartial, but given that our friendship was common knowledge… Well the cat was pretty much out of the bag on my rooting for Seto's win. But given that I was hoping that the ending of this tournament would stay with the canon story, it was kind of a moot point.
"Hey, that's weird." Mokuba said, having come to a stop and looking over something on his PDA. Seto and I exchanged a puzzled look before Mokuba's eyes widened in shock. "Seto! The tournament surveillance system just lost track of Yugi Moto! He's disappeared!"
My brow furrowed as I struggled to remember what was happening, but the memory was too vague. All I could remember is that it was one of Marik's seemingly endless goons.
"He's disappeared? Impossible." Seto had that determined look in his eyes, but I could tell it had less to do with worry about Yugi himself and was more along the lines of 'how-the-hell-did-someone-best-my-system and the desire to get to the bottom of it'. Okay so maybe it had to do with winning, just not in Duel Monsters. Maybe that was some bizarre form of progress?
"Someone can't just disappear like that." I murmured, making sure that I had a puzzled look on my face. Not too hard given that I was still trying to remember Goon Number Whatever's name. Honestly Marik had so many followers and mind slaves, that I couldn't help but wonder just how charismatic he was in person. Or maybe it had to do with the fact that he always found people at their lowest, and offered them their deepest desire? I remember one or two of them had been promised their heart's desire if they succeeded in helping him, which made him sound like this world's equivalent to Lucifer Morningstar. Only, you know, not nearly as attractive in my book.
Seto's eyes narrowed as he continued to think before he met Mokuba's puzzled look. "Make sure the satellite link is working, now."
Mokuba nodded and started punching in commands onto his PDA, while Seto's gaze flickered over to me.
"And Mokuba, double check Reila's transmitter."
I raised an eyebrow at that last comment, glancing down at the silver bracelet that I was wearing. It still seemed odd that Seto was basically able to pinpoint me wherever, but there was a certain amount of relief that came with it too. Maybe it was just to placate my uncle, but I also liked to think that Seto valued me enough to know where I was if I needed help.
"The satellite link is working, and transmitting from all other duel discs and Reila's bracelet." Mokuba said, looking puzzled and a little worried. "It's not our satellite system big brother."
"Then someone has to be actively blocking the signal." Seto said, crossing his arms and closing his eyes as he thought.
"Why would someone go to such lengths to hide Yugi? I mean I know he's a recognizable face but we have plenty of those in this tournament." I said, stepping a little closer so that someone walking by didn't hear. Part of my mind was still trying to remember the name of the guy Yugi was dueling, while the other was at least attempting to care about my role as head of PR for the tournament. Yugi was well known in the duelist community as the one who had defeated Pegasus in Duelist Kingdom. Having such a high profile duelist disappear wasn't something that kept quiet for long.
I suppose it should seem odd, that what was basically a recreational card game could be taken so seriously, but even in my previous life card tournaments could quickly escalate to borderline violence when the players took things too seriously. Once upon a previous life, I'd participated in a few small tournaments for various card games, and there were always those handful of elitists who took competitiveness to a completely different level. I admit that I enjoy winning, but never to the point that I wanted to ruin someone else's fun. If you couldn't be a good sport and just enjoy playing, what was the point?
But here in this world, Duel Monsters was in a completely different league. It could literally make or break a person. High ranking duelists were the equivalent of social media stars in my previous world, garnering clout and fans with every win. Or, in the case of those who had access to ancient magics, more power and dominance. I guess it went to show how much I had come in accepting it as an inevitable that it didn't really phase me much anymore.
"Come on, we're heading back to Kaiba Corp." Seto said, turning abruptly on his heels and taking off at a brisk pace. Mokuba and I exchanged a knowing glance before following after him. Seto wouldn't rest until he had solved this particular puzzle.
Someone is blocking the signal from Yugi's duel disc. But I'll find him.
There was no way that Seto would willingly allow Yugi to be taken out of the tournament; not before he could do it himself. The fact that someone had the knowhow to find a loophole around his satellite system was irritating enough, but the fact that whoever it was had used that ability to go after such a well known competitor…
Seto glanced over his shoulder at Reila. He remembered Sota's warning that there was someone stalking Reila, and this situation but him on edge about it. Reila's tracker relied on the same satellite system, but it's signal was independent from the duel discs. In theory, it shouldn't be able to be blocked the same way. But it was just worrying enough to make him feel uneasy; Reila had a tendency to stumble onto trouble with seemingly little effort.
That is, when she wasn't barreling straight at it on purpose.
The trip back to his corporate tower didn't take long. Seto kept a keen eye out, but aside from some pointing and whispering no one seemed out of place or suspicious. Stepping into the main control hub for the tournament, Seto studied the maps projected on the screens.
"Yugi still hasn't appeared on our duelist tracking screen." He mused aloud, crossing his arms. "His duel disc won't operate unless it has a connection to Kaiba Corporation's tournament computer." Turning his gaze to Mokuba and Reila, he gave them a moment to mull that over. "So, if Yugi is dueling someone who doesn't want me watching, they must be battling in a secret location that has its own internal computer dueling system."
"That's worrying." Reila said, and Seto focused on her for a moment as she continued. "I mean that would imply that someone has enough knowledge on how your system works to mimic it, to create an almost identical copy. I may not know as much about computers and networks as you do, but to be able to trick one of your duel discs into thinking that it's still on the same network…"
Seto's jaw clenched at her implication. "It would have to be someone with internal access." A few keystrokes on the computer before him brought up the dashboard for his security system. "Sabine and Aeron would have notified me if there had been any outside sources responsible."
"You are correct Seto; there have been no outside sources entering the Kaiba Corp. database." Sabine's voice could be heard on the speakers, and a small avatar of her appeared in the corner of the dashboard. "Not since the last attempted breach, which Aeron backtraced and then destroyed the connection."
"Almost fried the whole system." Another avatar appeared, this one looking like an exact copy of Seto dressed in armor. A sharp grin appeared on the program's face. "They'll think twice before messing with Kaiba Corp. again."
Reila made a sound that sounded strangely like she was choking on a laugh. Seto's gaze flickered to her, but she straightened and kept a deceptively blank look on her face. Her eyes, however, shone with laughter. Even Mokuba seemed to be having a hard time fighting down his own laughter.
Seto rolled his eyes at the two of them. Yes, he had modeled Aeron after himself, but it seemed fitting at the time. Finding and destroying the hacker's systems is something that he himself would take great pleasure in. And since he was a counterpart to Sabine… Well Reila was basically his own counterpart, with the two of them always at each other's backs. It was logical.
Sabine continued, lightly pushing Aeron aside. "However, someone from within Kaiba Corp. could theoretically access your satellite uplink system and create a ghost server to mimic it. I doubt that it would be housed within the system itself, otherwise I would have quarantined it."
Seto thought for a moment. "Sabine, administrator authority granted; search for every computer network within Battle City for a system containing any links to the Kaiba Corporation's dueling system. Isolate any systems that refuse to identify themselves to our network. Once that's done, begin investigating who has access to enough information regarding the uplink system to create a ghost server."
"Of course Seto." Sabine and Aeron's images faded off the screen, data codes flickering across the command menu of the dashboard. The map on the main screen lit up with multiple points, but they began flickering off as Sabine rejected that possibility. Eventually only three remained, and Seto felt another swell of pride; Sabine and Aeron were some of his greatest creations yet.
After seeing that little display, it was really hard not to laugh. Because of course Seto had modeled the attack half of his program after himself. It felt strangely apropos, for some reason that I couldn't quite lay my finger on. I felt a flash of amusement that an avatar of Seto had tried to fry Jillian's system, and made a mental note to tell her. She would either find it hilarious or be pissed off all over again.
Hmm, on second thought maybe I shouldn't tell her.
"I'll hit the streets. Just radio me when you find him," Mokuba said, turning to dash out the door.
"I'll go with you." I said, putting a hand on Mokuba's shoulder. His constant running off alone made me uneasy, and I remembered that at some point Marik's goons would kidnap him, and as terrible as it sounded I hoped that it would be today - tomorrow I would be at the video shoot, so if I was going to have any shot at keeping him safe it had to happen today.
Seto nodded, looking over us both. "... Be careful, you two."
"Of course!" Mokuba chimed happily, rushing out the door. I stayed a moment longer, giving Seto a reassuring smile before following at a more sedate pace. I might be in decent physical shape, but that didn't mean I had to run everywhere I went.
I gave myself a mental pat on the back for having the foresight to not wear heels today.
Catching up with Mokuba, we began heading in the general direction that all three systems were originating from. It wasn't long before Seto radioed in, giving Mokuba the exact location of the system Sabine had found.
"Come on Reila!" Mokuba said, turning and running down the street. I followed after him, dodging people and generally ignoring the questioning looks we were getting. I suppose it would make sense that people would turn and stare at people running down the street, but with the tournament going on it was a little more common than usual.
"Oh!" Mokuba's head perked up a little as he came to a stop in front of Tea and Yugi's grandpa. They both looked winded, like they'd been running around for a- oh, that's right. They were there when Yugi disappeared, and they'd probably been running around trying to find him ever since. I winced in sympathy, because although the area that Battle City covered wasn't huge, it wasn't exactly small either. Poor Mr. Moto was probably exhausted, but I could see the determination in his eyes to locate his grandson.
"Mokuba, Reila, you've got to help us." Solomon said, standing and seeming to shake off his weariness. His eyes glanced at me, and he nodded in greeting. I returned it with a small smile of my own. We hadn't interacted more than once, but he was such a kind man it was hard not to like him. "Yugi walked into a tent and he disappeared, we've looked everywhere!"
"We're afraid that he might have been kidnapped!" Tea said, her eyes wide with fear.
"We know! Seto just found out where he is and we're heading there right now." Mokuba said, taking another step forward. He appeared just as eager to get to the bottom of this as the two before us.
"We'll all go together." I said, placing a hand on Solomon's shoulder and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "We're not about to let someone take off with one of our most recognizable duelists, especially not someone who has helped us so many times."
A relieved look fell over Solomon's face, and he smiled gratefully.
"What timing." Tea said, looking like she had a little emotional whiplash. I suppose it was natural, going from extreme worry to relief that there was help on the way.
"We have to hurry!" Mokuba said, taking off again. The rest of us followed, poor Solomon panting but never flagging.
"You know Tea, you could have asked one of us for help instead of running around all over the place." I said, grinning a little.
Tea panted out a laugh, which sounded a little on the hysterical side. "Didn't have any way to get a hold of you!"
"Right, remind me when we get there and I'll give you my cell number. Since it seems that weird stuff always happens to someone in these crazy tournaments." I said, laughing with her. Mokuba cast a look back over his shoulder like I had lost my mind, but I ignored it - in my mind it made sense to have a way to keep in touch with the group who were arguably the trouble magnets.
Although that moniker could just as easily apply to Seto and Mokuba. And maybe myself.
I stumbled slightly not long after, feeling a huge flare of magic from the direction that we were heading in - a huge swell of friendship, loyalty, and the need to magic gleamed gold with aqua strings laced throughout it to my magical senses, but it didn't hurt at all. In fact, it felt comforting more than anything, and familiar.
Yugi must be using his Dark Magician. It's the only card I can think of that would feel like this.
How can you be sure? There are any number of cards that could invoke the same emotions.
True, but this one is tied to the pharaoh specifically. The priest or whatever that held the Dark Magician's ka was his best friend and steadfast protector. Well maybe he didn't hold the ka but he was the only one who used it. Or however that worked.
Yet again something that the Egyptians bastardized.
Before I could ask Ydor what he meant by that last statement, Mokuba came up short in front of a seemingly random building. "Seto said Yugi's in here!" He immediately began trying to get the doors open when a voice called out from behind us.
"Hey, is everything alright guys?" Tea and I turned to see Tristan getting off of a motorcycle, helmet in hand.
"No Tristan! Yugi's been missing for hours!" Tea said, the worry evident in her voice.
"Wait, it's been hours?" I asked, gaping at her. If Seto or Mokuba had disappeared right in front of me I wouldn't have wasted so much time running around aimlessly. I would have gone straight to someone who could have found them, say the person running the damn tournament? Then again, Seto didn't have the best people skills, and if I remembered correctly the one or two times that Tea had asked him for help he had shut her down pretty quickly.
"He's missing?" Tristan walked his motorcycle over to us before nudging the kickstand into place.
My cell phone went off right as Tea and Mokuba were updating Tristan on what was happening. I stepped aside and saw that it was Hojo, but dismissed the call and sent a text instead saying that I was busy and would call him back in a minute. By that point Mokuba had gotten the door open and we all hurried inside and downstairs to find another door with a giant question mark on it.
As soon as we had stepped in the building, I hesitated for a moment; the overwhelming presence of the Shadow Realm was tangible, even from this distance. It didn't… There was no emotion to it. Just a heavy presence in the air, and a coldness that seemed to seep into your very bones, but if I had to categorize the feeling...
It felt hungry.
I shuddered and did my best to shake off the feeling as Mokuba tugged on the door. "It's bolted shut!"
Tea's brows furrowed in thought. "Hey guys, listen. What's that hum?"
We all remained quiet for a moment, and I could hear it too now that I was focusing. It was less of a hum, and more of the sound that a saw makes before it started cutting into something. "It sounds like… Saws?" I said, my memories clicking together. Arkana, that was who Yugi was dueling. The self proclaimed master of the Dark Magicians. And he had lost to Yugi, and Marik had intervened in Arkana trying to save himself. But he wouldn't actually be sent to the Shadow Realm, because Yugi would save him from being touched by those blade things. Which had never made sense to me - and by that I mean the blades themselves. How does one go about compressing and containing dark energy into a solid shape? Yugi saving the guy was a given, because Yugi was just too kind hearted to let someone have their mind destroyed like that.
As if on cue, I felt a small amount of Marik's magic leaking into the air. The sick feeling of it crawled over my skin, and I shivered violently from the sensation of it washing over my skin. This wasn't even the full extent of his power, but even just this small amount was enough to make me want to run away from it. The wrongness of it was one of the most horrifying feelings I've ever encountered. I noticed Solomon's gaze flicker over to me, but I ignored it and suppressed my reactions as best I could.
We could hear shouting on the other side of the door, in between Tristan's pounding and shouts of frustration. The shouts died out, and Solomon's hand unconsciously latched onto mine, squeezing in a silent plea for reassurance. I gave him a kind look, squeezing back. "I'm sure he's fine Mr. Moto. Yugi's a strong kid."
Solomon nodded, just as Tristan took a few steps back and rammed his shoulder into the door. I was actually a little surprised that he was able to get it open, but as the others ran over to check on Yugi I paused to look at the door. It had an electronic lock on it, allowing someone to remotely lock and unlock it at will. Glancing around, I didn't see any cameras, so how had Marik known to unlock the doors? Were they on timers? Or was he able to actively see through his servant's eyes using magic? Or, was it that he was done talking with Yugi and no longer needed to keep him contained and make sure the duel was uninterrupted?
I frowned as that brought up another question: Just how far did Marik's influence reach? His Millenium Rod was nothing to sneeze at, but given how many 'mind slaves' he had and his ability to essentially take them over at will… It was a terrifying thought. And all the more reason to make sure that I stayed off his radar completely, or hide my abilities for him as long as possible at the very least. Despite Ydor's confidence that we could take him, I still felt too new to the magic game to think that I could take Marik single handedly. Besides I didn't want to play the hero; I just want to make sure that my friends are still standing and unharmed when this tournament is done with.
I am beginning to see why you've taken this Egyptian boy as such a serious threat. Ydor said, and I figured he was listening in on my internal musing. Either that or he'd finally taken the time to look over what memories I had regarding Marik. If he has studied magic all his life, and has access to ancient teachings, then he will indeed be a difficult adversary.
His family were, or are still… Tomb keepers? They protected ancient texts and have passed down knowledge from Ancient Egypt, plus they protect the Millenium Items themselves. I'm beginning to suspect that the entire family has magical abilities, or at least a basic understanding of how magic works. It's a very old bloodline, and if age has any effect on magic… Yeah that's a scary amount of power.
I left Ydor to ponder over that while I focused again on the group gathered around Yugi. Said high schooler hadn't moved since we'd entered, and I smothered a laugh at his current position.
"Quick question; is that guy alright?" I asked, pointing at the prone figure of Arkana that Yugi was still holding up.
"Uh…" Yugi trailed off, glancing at Arkana out of the corner of his eye. Everyone else kind of looked like they'd finally taken notice of Arkana, and if we had been animated I swear those damn sweatdrop things would have appeared.
I sighed, but a small smile crept onto my face. "Right, Tristan can you help us get this guy out onto the sidewalk? I'll call an ambulance and have them pick him up."
Having handed Arkana over to the paramedics, I motioned Yugi over to the side so that the others wouldn't hear. "He was one of Marik's, wasn't he?" Thankfully Tea and Mokuba were talking animatedly, so there was little chance of someone overhearing.
Yugi nodded. "Marik has no regard at all for those who work for him. Arkana's mind was almost sent to the Shadow Realm just for losing! He tricked Arkana into thinking that Marik could bring back his lost love and force her to marry him using his Millenium Rod. I just barely saved him from being touched by the dark energy disc, but he's still..." His voice trembled, and I could see that Yugi was having a hard time understanding how Marik could treat people like that.
I placed a hand on his shoulder. "Insanity has no rhyme or reason, Yugi. The fact is you saved Arkana's life, but… He'll need some serious help regardless to recover his mind again." If he ever can, I added in my mind. "Did Arkana say anything else?"
Yugi thought for a moment. "Not Arkana himself, but… Marik took control of him, just before you all came in. He said that he's trying to take Yami's power for himself so that he can take over the world. But first he needs all three Egyptian God cards, so I have to keep him from getting them."
I closed my eyes and nodded. "Right, the three Egyptian God cards." At his questioning gaze, I debated for a moment. "All three of them are present in this tournament, or at least all three will be present by the time the finals come."
Yugi frowned. "That's all you can tell me?"
I gave him a sheepish grin. "Sorry Yugi, all I know is that they're out there. The visions don't work very well for details, at least not all the time." He seemed to take me at my word, nodding before going to reassure everyone that he was alright.
Once Yugi was back to talking with the group, I called Hojo back. "Hey sorry about that. There was a little bit of an emergency that popped up and it needed the PR rep's expertise." I said once he picked up the phone.
"What happened?" Hojo asked, and I could practically hear the frown in his voice.
I glanced over at the others, who were noticeably more cheerful now that they'd found Yugi. Even Mokuba looked relieved, and I smiled at the thought that he considered Yugi a friend. It was good for him to branch out and interact with good people, despite the fact that Seto continued to see the group as just a bunch of annoying people. I suppose being anti-social was just a part of him.
"A duelist had some sort of mental breakdown and I had to call an ambulance from him. Nothing major, but I'd rather make sure that the tournament isn't blamed for negligence. The guy was convinced that winning would get him back his old girlfriend or something." I said, glossing over the facts.
Hojo snorted. "Those duelists are some of the craziest people…"
"Better not let Mai hear you saying that. You'll be limping for a week." I teased, but Hojo did have a point. "So was there a reason for the call, or are you just lost without me to tell you what to do?"
"Ha ha, very funny cousin. Actually I have a message for you. Tyler Correl called and asked if you're free to start some of the shoot tonight, that way there's less chance of being pushed for time."
I glanced over at Mokuba, who looked at me with a raised eyebrow. A part of me was devastated that I wouldn't be there to keep him away from Marik's goons. But I couldn't brush off one Alunecare; they were one of our biggest rock groups, and had been key in cementing Sarota Entertainment's foothold in America. My uncle would be beyond disappointed if I backed out of a commitment, and it would damage my reputation.
But maybe if we started shooting tonight, we would get done earlier. And that would maybe give me time to get to Mokuba and keep him away from the rare hunters.
"Of course that's fine. I'll see if Seto can drop me off at the studio, and I can get a company driver to take me home. Can you call Tyler back and let him know I'm on my way?"
"Sure thing, but I'm charging you an administrative fee for making me act as your messaging service." Hojo said, beginning to laugh. I promptly hung up on him as a response to that. As if I didn't field phone calls and deliver messages for him all the time. Jerk.
"You need a ride somewhere Reila?" Mokuba asked, putting his phone away. I figured he'd already called Seto to let him know where we were.
"If it's not too much trouble. Alunecare came into town earlier than we thought and Tyler wants to start on the video shoot tonight. The more time we have to shoot, the better the quality will be. Plus, then I won't have to worry as much that the shoot will take too long and delay my getting there for the finals." I explained, hearing a strangely high pitched squeal coming from behind Mokuba.
"No way, Alunecare? I love them!" Tristan said, a huge grin covering his face. "You're going to be in one of their videos?"
I blinked in surprise, because somehow the thought that Tristan could be a fan of metal music had never crossed my mind. Although now that I thought about it, out of all of Yugi's friends he did seem the most obvious choice for a fan of hard rock. "Yes, Tyler asked for me to be in it as a favor. He had a particular idea and theme for this video in mind and I fit the part the best, in his own words."
"That's amazing! Man you're so lucky to be able to know so many amazing artists. Do you think… Would it be too much to ask for an autograph?" Tristan asked, blushing lightly as he rubbed the back of his head.
I smiled at the obvious fanboy gushing in his voice that he was trying to hide. Once upon a time I might have been the same way, but being constantly surrounded by celebrities tended to make someone the tiniest bit jaded. "It's no trouble at all. Tyler will be more than happy to sign an autograph for you." I said, making a mental note to ask. "In fact, I'll make it a part of our deal; I'm already securing a case of taro flavored mochi for his wife. She loves them and they're a little difficult to get in America."
"Awesome! Thanks Reila!" Tristan said, engulfing me in a hug. I momentarily froze as my cheek got mashed against the leather jacket he was wearing. What was it with this group and being so ready to hug me? First Tea, and now Tristan… I mean I wasn't exactly close with any of them after all.
"No problem." I murmured, awkwardly patting his back. Hugging Mokuba and my family was one thing, as I considered them very close to my heart, but I was still incredibly awkward receiving any form of physical affection from anyone else. Although Mai was slowly getting me more accustomed to random hugs, this was still the tiniest bit uncomfortable. I had been generally pretty hug ready in my last life, but in this one the cultural differences made me a little less hug-happy. That's not to say that Japanese people never hug, but there is a sort of stigma that hugs to people outside of your close friends and family are considered somewhat rude and incredibly personal. Younger generations didn't hold as much to that mindset, so maybe that's why they were a little more free with dishing out hugs.
"Reila."
Tristan jumped back from me so quickly I almost toppled over as I glanced to where Seto had suddenly appeared, standing beside his car with a sharp glare fixed on Tristan. Tristan, for his part, was looking pointedly away from Seto and had a deep blush on his face. I almost started to apologize, but caught myself; there was no need for me to apologize to either Seto or Tristan. Tristan was the one who had blindsided me with the hug, and Seto… Well there was nothing to apologize for. Where the hell had that impulse come from?
"Yes?" I crossed my arms over my chest, raising an eyebrow in his direction. The sudden need to be defensive was still there, and it was bugging me that it had sprung up. I can normally pinpoint what's bringing up emotions within me, but this was so out of left field that I didn't understand it.
"Let's go." Seto said, his gaze flickering in my direction before pinning onto Tristan again. Glancing at my watch, I saw that it was a lot later than I had originally thought. Tournament hours were generally restricted to between 10"00am and 6:00pm, but it wasn't strictly enforced. It was more to placate the city officials and make sure the police force wasn't having to do extra patrols around the clock. Hopefully we could make good time with the shoot today, although it would probably take at least an hour for me to get into costume and have my makeup and hair done.
Resisting the urge to snap at him about his current attitude, I shrugged and began heading to the car. I stopped as I glanced over at the group, who were watching the exchange with wide eyes. Even Solomon seemed to be eyeing Seto warily, but given the history between the two..."See you guys."
A chorus of goodbyes followed me as I stepped into the car where Mokuba was already sitting, a curious look on his face as well. I ignored it as Seto got into the car, slamming the door shut with more force than was necessary. As soon as the driver pulled away, Seto turned to look at me, his face still showing that he was pissed.
"What the hell was that?"
Mokuba almost sighed as he watched Reila visibly bristle at his big brother's tone.
"It was extremely awkward, that's what it was. Tristan overheard my telling Mokuba about the video shoot with Alunecare, and since he's a fan he asked if I could get him Tyler Correl's autograph. I agreed, and I guess he got so excited that he- why am I having to justify this to you anyway?" Reila cut herself off and turned the question back onto Seto, who somehow managed to look even more irritated than he had before.
"Maybe because you're letting some geek hang all over you? Don't you have enough rumors surrounding you and supposed romances? You're the one always saying you don't want any additional attention or rumors about you."
Reila snorted. "I didn't even see it coming! Besides if there is a picture that surfaces from it, I'm sure the shocked and uncomfortable expression on my face would make it clear that I'm not involved with him! Gah being surprised by a hug doesn't mean that I'm not showing you my full support. Take your head out of the tournament for five seconds, would you?" Reila flopped back against the seat with her arms crossed, turning her head away from Seto in a clear statement that she was done talking about it. Seto sat back against the seat as well, silently fuming as he stared out the window.
Mokuba rolled his eyes and went back to looking out the window. It was starting to become pretty obvious to him that Seto was developing some sort of feelings for Reila. He was beginning to act possessive, and get irritated at her for being around males that showed her affection or admiration. He'd been seeing it for a while, starting back around the end of Duelist Kingdom, and part of him had high hopes that Seto would finally realize it. As for whether or not Reila felt the same way…
Mokuba thought for a moment. He'd never really seen her interact with any other guys as much as she did with Seto, Mokuba, and her family. He remembered that one singer that she had worked with… Yuki? Riku? Yeah Riku, had flirted with her and made a pass or two while they'd been recording together. But Reila had politely shut him down, citing that she had a strict no fraternization policy with artists signed onto SE. Other than that, he hadn't seen anyone else really approach her with romantic intentions. Aside from that grabby guy at the party her family had hosted, but he didn't count.
He'd seen a blush or two from her when Seto did something unexpected, and she got along well with him. She was able to read his moods pretty well, and went out of her way to be supportive and soothe Seto's anger when she could. She'd kissed Seto's cheek a time or two (granted one of those times had been when they were kids, so maybe it didn't count), and was always there to defend him and back him up; but was it just friendship, or something more? He was leaning towards more, but it might only be wishful thinking on his part. He honestly couldn't see Seto being with anyone else, and there were very few people that Mokuba could picture being able to put up with his big brother's attitude the way Reila did. On the other hand, he almost didn't want to see Reila having feelings for anyone other than his brother, because he couldn't see anyone measuring up.
Mokuba was definitely not an expert, but the way that she had immediately begun defending herself when confronted might be because she didn't want Seto to get the wrong idea. Whether it was because of hidden feelings or just because she didn't like to be questioned, he couldn't be sure. But one thing was pretty clear to him, even at his young age.
Something needed to happen to knock some sense into the both of them.
Reila sighed and Mokuba turned to see her glance at Seto out of the corner of her eye. "I'm sorry for snapping Seto. But really your attitude was uncalled for. It was an innocent hug, something that thousands of fans would do in that exact situation. Tristan doesn't have as much control over his emotions as some people do." She said, motioning towards herself and Seto.
Seto stayed silent a moment more before Mokuba saw his shoulders visibly relax a little. "I… Apologize for snapping at you." He didn't say anything more, but the fact that Seto apologized made Mokuba smile. Seto had come a long way in being less abrasive, even if the slight softening of his personality was only directed at Reila and himself.
Sometime close to midnight, I finally got home and sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. When I'd agreed to doing this video shoot, I hadn't really asked what the setup was. Now, I was almost regretting it.
Most of Alunecare's videos were pretty intense, with dark colors and frantic movements. But very little in the way of dancing. As soon as I heard the song that this video was for, I'd fallen in love with it. It was dark and sinister, heartbreaking and raw. At first when I heard it, my mind immediately thought of a fractured relationship where both parties were having doubts and seeing the cracks in their foundation; I was kind of on the right track, but needed to broaden my mind when it came to what the relationship actually was. Tyler and I had sat down for a moment before we began shooting to really talk about it, and the song is less about a physical person and more about music and the entire industry, about his love/hate relationship with it. So the part I was playing was a female who was a personification of music and the industry as a whole; seductive, beguiling, but ultimately had the potential to chew you up and spit you out, leaving a hollow shell of what the person once was.
It was kind of daunting, and a little creepy that he had asked me to play the part now that I knew that. I almost wish he hadn't told me, because as much as I love the business and the good things that came out of it, music did sometimes have a way of burning people. Fame changed people, made them do things that they would have never thought they'd ever do. Then again, it was also refreshing to see someone who wasn't afraid to admit the faults in our business. A good agency would work with artists to make them greater, and discourage destructive behavior. Sarota Entertainment employed therapists and counselors for just that purpose, to help the artists maintain themselves without losing who they were amidst the fame and glamour.
Hearing footsteps, I glanced up to see my uncle coming down the stairs, with Manabu Tanaka right beside him. The sight of Manabu, in my home, threw me for a loop so badly and I almost didn't hear my uncle begin to speak. "Are you just getting home?"
"Hello Manabu." I said in greeting, somehow remembering my manners before turning to my uncle. "Sorry that I was out so late; we were working out the choreography for one of the scenes." I shrugged, because I didn't want to get into the details. I didn't want to have to explain to my uncle and Manabu about how awkward it felt to wrap my legs around a married man's waist. Even though Tyler's wife had been there, had given her blessing, and she knew it was just for the video. It had taken at least five takes to make it appear that I was embracing him gladly.
"It's alright, we were just finishing up a meeting." He said, glancing at the clock.
Manabu came down the steps, his face intent. Before I could even say anything to him, he sank down on his knees and folded himself into a deep dogeza, his forehead touching the ground. "Reila, I am so very sorry for ever giving you the impression that you weren't welcome or respected. I humbly ask your forgiveness for any time you received that impression from me."
I have envisioned many interactions with Manabu over the years; played out so many different scenarios involving potential conversations with him, ranging from coded threats to outright shouting matches. But never in a million years did I think that he would be showing me so much deference or seeking approval so deeply that he was throwing himself on the floor. It was so shocking that I did the first thing that came to mind - knelt down and began tugging on his arm to get him to stand up again.
"No no, Manabu it's fine! Please, you don't have to-"
"Yes, I do Reila." Manabu straightened his back, but remained kneeling while I clutched his arm in my hands. "My family has brought great shame to yours and to the company. And now I know that I have been giving you the impression that I hate you, which breaks my heart deeper than words can express."
"I don't… Uncle Sota what's going on?" I asked, my voice coming out a little higher than normal. I felt a little like I'd stepped into freaking Wonderland and suddenly everything was topsy-turvy. I saw Mai and Hojo peeking around the corner, but they were just silently watching with curious looks.
My uncle sighed and came down the stairs. "Why don't we step into the parlor and we'll talk things out." Manabu nodded and slowly came to his feet, lightly patting my hand and giving me a pained smile. I followed after them both, sinking onto the couch while still staring at Manabu and trying to figure out what was happening. My uncle sat beside me, while Manabu sat in one of the chairs opposite us, his back ramrod stiff.
"Manabu, I think you should be the one to explain it to her." My uncle said, to which Manabu nodded stiffly.
There was a moment of silence before Manabu began, his voice quiet and his eyes shut tightly. "I came to your home tonight to offer my uncle my resignation from Sarota Entertainment."
My jaw dropped in response. "What? You came to… But, but… You've been with the company for so long!" A part of me had always dreamed about Manabu stepping down, but this was completely out of nowhere. His leaving would create a small amount of chaos, as we had no one who was qualified enough to take his place. I might be good, and years ahead in terms of maturity but even I knew that I wasn't nearly as ready to take over the department as I would like to be.
"Regardless, I felt - and still feel - that it is in the best interest of all that I resign. Especially after discovering who was truly at fault for the leaked materials that Royalty was using." Manabu paused, and his face did a complicated dance of emotion before he opened his eyes, shame etched deeply into the lines around his mouth and eyes. "I know that I was implicated in the emails, and your uncle was investigating to see if I was truly the culprit. I swear to you both, on my son's soul, that I had no part in selling information to the Watanabe family."
That declaration struck a deep chord; Manabu had dearly loved his son. The death of the boy had been a heavy blow, and Manabu had carried the grief with him for many years. He had still been carrying it when I had come back to the family, and it was only after my uncle, Hojo and I had moved to America that he had finally begun to heal.
"When I heard that your uncle was still investigating, I wanted to offer my assistance. However I felt it was better that we each investigated on our own, that way there would be double the proof so that I could clear myself of suspicion." Manabu hesitated, seeming unable to speak. He looked to my uncle, and waved with his hand as though asking for help.
"When Manabu came here tonight, he handed me his resignation letter before apologizing just as he did to you." My uncle said, his voice soothing and reassuring. "He then explained that he had found the one who had truly been selling information - Tashika."
I gasped, my thoughts crashing to a halt. "Your wife?" My voice sounded so small, and Manabu visibly flinched at my words.
No one spoke as we each got lost in our thoughts. I for one, couldn't believe what I was hearing. Tashika was responsible? She could barely use a computer, let alone know how to alter timestamps or hide evidence so well that I had called in Jillian to uncover it. And why would Tashika betray not only our company, but her husband as well? Without Manabu she wouldn't have the lifestyle that she loved so much. He was the only reason she was able to have the fabulous clothes, the parties, and interact with our social class. She might have been able to snag another rich husband in her youth, but not now.
"The unhappiness in my marriage is the worst kept secret within Sarota Entertainment." Manabu said finally, pulling my attention back to him. "And I am ashamed to admit that I have done little to change that. I have allowed myself to turn a blind eye to my wife's unhappiness, and have instead buried myself in work and allowed myself to forget that a relationship takes effort. And that is what led to this shameful situation."
"Kaiji Watanabe was using Tashika." Uncle Sota's voice was still very gentle, and I could now understand why he was acting this way; to admit that you're wrong is bad enough, but to openly admit that your failures have caused so much damage must be mortifying for Manabu. Like many people that I find myself around, he's a prideful man.
Sometimes the cultural differences blurred together in my mind. My mother and father had not stuck to the stereotypical marriage culture that other families sometimes did, meaning that they were more forward and open with their emotions and feelings. But Manabu had been raised in a purely Japanese household, so there was much more pressure on him to uphold the standards of that societal view. Problems within a marriage were not to be broadcast, and should instead be dealt with out of view of any others. By not handling Tashika's unhappiness and instead allowing it to become so well known was a mark against his pride, and also against him as a man.
My uncle continued, pulling me out of my thoughts. "Tashika was led to believe that Tashika would be cared for and given every happiness she could desire, and she became convinced that Sarota's downfall would bring them closer together."
"I was never insane except upon occasions where my heart was touched." I quoted, before feeling a flush of shame. "Manabu I don't mean to imply-"
"No, Tashika was not thinking clearly and was driven to desperation. Desperation is just another form of insanity." He said, looking away. "By giving more attention to my work than my marriage, I drove her to resent Sarota Entertainment, which is what made Watanabe's offer seem like it was the only course of action. But that still does not excuse her behavior, nor does it exonerate me from playing a part in it."
Uncle Sota shook his head. "Manabu, I told you before that I did not accept your resignation, and I still do not. I do not believe in punishing someone for something that they cannot control. You cannot know the future, and now that you know the cause of this predicament, you can assist us in fixing it further."
"Any more attempts to fix it will make outsiders suspicious of what we're covering up." Manabu said, running a hand through his hair. "Reila's idea to bring on as many of Royalty's workers as we could was a stroke of genius, and saved us a lot of face with the public. And her dropping hints that Royalty had stolen a song she had intended for her album helped smoothe things even further."
I flushed at the compliment. "I was just doing what I thought was best for the company."
Manabu smiled at me proudly, and I felt like I'd been sucker punched. There was no mockery on his face, he genuinely looked like he was proud of me. "As you have always done. Your parents raised a wonderful daughter."
Hearing Manabu praise my father was just shy of too much to take, and my jaw dropping open for the umpteenth time tonight probably showed him just how shocked I was. Manabu looked uncomfortable and turned his gaze away from me.
"I admit that I… I struggled with my emotions a little when you first returned to the Sarota family." Manabu said, his voice having gone quiet again. "It's true that I had a tremendous amount of affection for your mother, that I had intended to ask her to marry me. But now that I am older, I look back and realize that it was a young man's love that I felt for her. Not the deep love that your parents shared. I was jealous of your father, of course. And seeing you, who favor him so much… I'm ashamed to say that although I tried to put the past behind me, I don't think that I ever fully succeeded. But then you began to grow, and as time went on I began to see less of how you favored your father, but how you are a reflection of them both. The passion and devotion of both of them live on in you. You inherited your mother's cunning mind, but also her devotion to family and her loved ones. And your father was also able to charm and beguile anyone and find the silver lining in any situation, just as you do."
I sat back, tears forming at his praise. Hearing him speak so eloquently about my parents. I could hear the admiration in his voice when he spoke of my mother, and there was even a respect that could be heard when he spoke of my father. "I… I thought you hated my father." I finally said.
"I never hated Marcus. I was jealous and angry, but never I never hated him. He loved Katsumi in a way that I could never have. There was only ever one man for your mother, and that was your father." Manabu admitted, and just like that it felt like we were truly seeing each other for the first time.
Maybe I had let my feelings paint my interactions with Manabu in a different light. Maybe I had misread every compliment and interaction because I had convinced myself that he still harbored hatred for my father. What happened between Manabu and my mother was in the past, and it was time I let it go. Seeing him so humble, seeing the shame and brokenness on his face… I couldn't find it in myself to continue to hold a grudge against him. It wasn't that I pitied him, but I could see how much it was costing him to admit these things to me. I wanted to give him something to reassure him that I not only understood, but that I didn't think any less of him. If anything, I felt that he was a bigger man than most would be in this situation. Not only had he come clean about what his wife had done, but he was willing to give up his career and his standing in the industry to make amends to us and the company.
Maybe he loved Tashika more than I had originally thought. I shouldn't have listened to gossip and rumors about the two of them, and I damn sure shouldn't have fed into them. I was old enough to know better than to do that sort of thing, and I felt guilt and shame creeping up my spine. But I dismissed them quickly. Because now I had a chance to make it right.
I stood up, walking over to Manabu and kneeling down, placing my hand on his. "I apologize for speaking ill of you in the past Manabu. Can we start fresh? Let's both agree to move on and give each other a better chance than we started with."
Manabu smiled, and although there was still some shame in his eyes he looked relieved, like his heart felt a little lighter. "And I apologize for ever giving you reason to doubt me. I would like very much to put the unpleasantness behind us."
Returning his smile, I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze before returning to the couch. "So how do we move forward?" I asked, now that we all were in agreement on moving forward and packing this situation away forever.
"I have already moved any office equipment back to the Sarota building. From now on, Tashika will not have any access to company files or the computer network at all." Manabu said, sitting back and looking a little more at ease. "Also, I will be hiring an assistant to help take some of the workload off of me so that I can truly work on my relationship with Tashika. Something that will be infinitely easier now." At my curious look, Manabu got a rather sheepish look on his face. "Tashika is pregnant."
I felt floored by that news. Tashika was in her early forties! It's not that it was impossible to become pregnant at that age, but… I cleared my throat. "Congratulations. Forgive me if I'm being insensitive, but the child… It's…"
"Mine, yes." Manabu looked embarrassed, and I felt bad for asking but I felt that I had to. I ignored my uncle's stern look, something that Manabu saw as well. "It's fine, Sota. It is a concern given recent events. I have confirmation that Tashika was never physically unfaithful towards me."
"Of course she wasn't." I said automatically, because although I had asked I despised the idea of infidelity. It had never made sense to me, in this life or my first. If you were that unhappy in a relationship, breaking up was better than cheating in my opinion.
"Manabu and I will be working more closely in the future as well, to ensure that such a data breach never happens again. We're talking about implementing a stricter security system on the network and taking steps to ensure that sensitive information cannot be taken off of the system without two authentications from either two department heads or one department head and the CEO. That way our interests are always safeguarded." My uncle said, joining into the conversation again. "I've already begun searching for someone to hire to design the system."
"I know someone who can help with that." I said, immediately thinking of Jillian. She would have to move to Japan temporarily, but as she didn't have any family it wouldn't faze her too much.
Manabu cleared his throat. "I doubt that Seto Kaiba would have the time, given his current tournament and his own company to run."
I blinked at him before smirking. "Seto isn't the only computer genius I know. It's the same person I hired to help find the leak in the first place." I turned to Uncle Sota, who had met Jillian before. "Remember Jillian?"
"Ah yes. Ms. Heard is a brilliant computer expert. So that's who you hired? I assumed that you had asked Kaiba for help." My uncle said, although I could tell he was already weighing over the pros and cons of hiring Jillian.
"No, I try not to involve Seto in our business too much. Like Manabu pointed out, he's busy enough with his own company. Besides, he would never let me live down asking him for help on that scale." I said, making a face.
Manabu chuckled. "Kaiba does have a certain… Way of gloating when someone needs help."
"Don't I know it." I mumbled, but laughed all the same. I could admit Seto's faults, and as long as people were being good natured while pointing them out I could laugh along with them.
"Ms. Heard would agree to moving to Japan for a time?" My uncle asked, and I could tell he was ready to agree.
I nodded my head. "I'm about eighty-five percent sure she will. But we would have to agree to cover her moving expenses and arrange for her to get a work visa into the country. If you want to draft up a contract and salary figures I'll handle talking it over with her."
My uncle agreed, saying that he would get the contract drawn up in the next few days. After a few more moments hashing out ideas for additional security measures, Manabu stood. "I should head home, and speak with Tashika about our future."
My uncle and I stood as well, walking him to the door. "Tell her how happy we are by the news, and if either of you needs anything, please don't hesitate to ask." I said, shaking his hand. Manabu smiled warmly, and after saying goodnight left the house looking like the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders.
My uncle put his arm around my shoulder, steering me up the stairs. "I'm sorry to spring that on you so late at night. Manabu was… He looked like I had knocked the wind out of him when I told him that you had concerns that his anger at your father was making you feel as though he hated you."
"I guess I was… Holding onto the need to defend my father." I said, shaking my head. "I mean it would have been nice to have some sort of heads up, but it's good that we got everything out in the open and taken care of. Not only for ourselves individually but for the company as well."
My uncle sighed and nodded. "Alright Reila, it's almost one in the morning and you need to be at the studio at 8:00am. So I don't want you to dwell too much on tonight, I want you to march right to your room and get to bed. Coffee is not an adequate substitute for a good night's sleep."
I rolled my eyes, but he did have a point. I was going to have a long day ahead of me tomorrow. "Alright Uncle Sota. Good night, and sleep well."
"Good night my dear." My uncle said, smiling at me proudly before walking to his own room.
A part of me did feel lighter now that the truth was out, and that Manabu and I had put our differences aside. I can't say for sure that I will ever consider Manabu a friend, but I was optimistic that we could at least be friendly business associates and work for the greater good.
If only dealing with the potential fate of the world could be handled so smoothly.
A/N 2.0: So just a little tidbit, the pose that type of bow Manabu was using, the dogeza, is used to show deference to a person of higher status, as a deep apology or to express the desire for a favor from said person. That's per Wikipedia, so if I got something wrong with the use of it or put it in the wrong context… Well I'm an American trying to understand cultural differences, so apologies in advance if I got it wrong or used it in a way that it wouldn't normally be used. Wikipedia learning can only go so far.
And that wraps up the loose ends where Manabu and Tashika are concerned. They'll make appearances from time to time but I wanted to tie up that plot thread because I don't see it going anywhere in the future. Honestly I had never planned on adding it into Monachopsis at all in the beginning, and once I'd added it in I honestly didn't know where to go with it. I hope that it doesn't seem like too much of a let down and that it doesn't just come across as bad writing.
Goes to show that sometimes writing takes on a life of its own.
Just a heads up to you all, given the fact that I won't be returning to work for the foreseeable future (go into the casino industry they said, the casino industry is recession proof and there will always be work they said .) I am planning on taking this time to go back and make a few corrections to the earlier chapters of Monachopsis. Mostly grammar, spelling, and the few times that I forgot to italicize things, etc. I don't really plan on making any major changes, but if something major does change I will be sure to let you all know.
Again thank you for your support, and please everyone stay safe and healthy!
~Panda-chan