Wow! I actually got the next chapter up! I have to confess I did know roughly what this chappie would entail but I got distracted on some of my other stories-I'll post them when I finish them-if I ever do.

So...The story so far is mostly Joey/Mai, with some Seot/Ishizu-that will come into the story more and more as I get through it and the Tea/Yugi pairing I will properly start to concentrate on once Yugi arrives in Domino, however, as Mai and Joey are my favourite couple I will probably be focused a bit more than a third of the time on them-and Freya; her story is becoming central to this fic, though I hadn't really planned on her coming into the story when I started it, actually, I meant to stop with Dreams, but I got the idea to do an adjacent story for Mai and Joey and that became Going Back, and things kind of went from there; before I know it I'm planning a big sequel that ties everything up.

Well, anyway, here goes nothing; Now the plot really starts to thicken...

'She's doing well,' Charlotte told Mai and Joey as they looked out their office window at Freya curled up in the shade of a tree with a book. 'You can go on out and see her Joseph, but could I perhaps have a word with Miss Valentine?'

Joey glanced at Mai, who shrugged. He left the women be, and Charlotte came over to join Mai at the window. 'I know it is instinct for a women to feel protective of a hurting child,' Charlotte began.

'What are you getting at?' Mai forced herself to be civil, though coldly so. 'Just say what's on your mind. Do you think I'm thinking about adopting Freya? I'm not, but I do want to see her settled in a good home.'

Charlotte looked over at Mai. 'Good. But please don't disappoint her. I care about her and would hate to see her hurt.'

Mai relaxed slightly; all Charlotte was being was protective, not rude.

'Freya does show signs of growing up to be a lot like you. She's got a bit of a temper if riled, but has a good heart. She's also got your eyes; ones that show her feelings and can speak for her.'

'Mmm...' Mai frowned. She'd noticed last night how much Freya's eyes were like her own. 'How did Freya come to be here? If you don't mind me asking, that is.'

'It's okay,' Charlotte continued to stare out at the small child. 'A lady brought her in when she was three. Though she said otherwise, I believe that lady was the child's mother.'

'Why? Sorry, I'm being impertinent.' Mai backed off when Charlotte frowned at her.

'Never mind. The lady had the same hair as Freya and the same shaped face and fair skin. She said the child's mother could no longer take care of her and had asked her to deliver the child to the orphanage. If she Freya's mother, she said it most likely because she didn't want to run into any obstacles or arguments when she dropped Freya off. She gave us Freya and some money and left. She said Freya's father was unknown, but after that first spiel, she didn't mention Freya's mother again.'

'And no birth certificate?'

'Nothing. We were told that Freya's last name was to be Motou, but that's all. No name of the mother, no history to tell Freya later. Nothing.'

'Mutou?' Why did that ring a bell? Apart from the obvious of course, that was, Yugi. Mai wondered. Mutou, Mutou and a lady with red hair... Mai glanced back out the window at Freya and a picture flashed into her mind. Mai gasped. No way! It couldn't be!

'Are you okay?' Charlotte's face was concerned.

Mai swallowed, hard. 'This lady who gave Freya to you, did she have ice blue eyes?'

Charlotte blinked. 'You think you know her?'

'I might.' Mai tired to keep her voice neutral. 'I can get you a picture if need-be.'

'She had blue eyes, yes. Very ice blue eyes.'

Mai frowned. 'And her hair up?'

'It was cut short, why?'

'On her neck, the middle of the back of her neck, you may have seen it as she walked away, she had a birthmark-'

'In the shape of a heart,' Charlotte finished for her.

Mai gulped.

'Who was this lady?'

Mai looked out the window, down to Freya. 'My aunt. By marriage. And if that's the case, her father may be my uncle; my father's brother-Richard Valentine.'

'Do you know what this means?!'

'That Freya has kin?' Mai's shocked brain couldn't come up with anything else.

'Well, yes, but...we could trace her parents; you may not be able to look after her, but we can get her put in a good home with you as her guardian, meaning you have a say in how she's raised, for her, this-'

'Hold on!' Mai yelped. 'This means big trouble if Freya is my cousin. My aunt and uncle got a divorce when I was fourteen. Counting back on my fingers, they probably were separated at the time Freya was conceived. So either they had a brief reconciliation or Freya's father is someone totally different, but...those eyes...purple eyes was the Valentine trademark...'

'We can do blood tests. Why don't I book an appointment at the doctor's, perhaps tomorrow; Freya had an appointment for a check-up for her arm to see if it's set correctly and healing like it's supposed to.'

'Yes, please.' Mai found her mouth was very dry.

'Why don't you go out to play with Freya? I'll make the arrangements.' Charlotte told her.

'Thanks.' Mai strode quickly out of the room, not even registering that Charlotte's eyes had gone hostile when Mai said that there would be a lot of trouble if Freya was her cousin, and headed straight for the bathroom, where she locked herself in a cubical and sank down onto the seat with her head in her hands. If Freya was her cousin-that would be a nightmare for her; for Freya, not for Mai. The Valentines weren't exactly known for their loving, big happy families. Mai would even go so far as to say there was a curse on them. As far as she'd known for years, she was the only child of three brothers, the last of her line. And she'd been so glad she was a girl because if she married she'd loose the name of Valentine, and perhaps the curse would be broken. But then, she hadn't planned to get married or to have kids, so the line would have ended with her anyway. But if Freya was Richard and her Aunt Anne's daughter...and what was with the last name; Mutou? Was it a coincidence Anne had the same maiden name as Yugi? Was Yugi somehow related to Freya? Were the two of them cousins as well? Could Anne be his mother or father's sister? She assumed she would have been Yugi's father's sister because Yugi had inherited the name Mutou, but...she didn't know anything about Yugi's family other than that he lived with his grandfather. What was going on?!

Well, I must say, that makes for a nice twist...Things start to become a bit clearer-and a bit less so-in the next one or two chappies. But in the meantime, tell me what you thought; i.e. REVIEW!!