Author's note: Thanks again to Zeo-Chan, for all of her help with this chapter. It's not as long as the last one, so hopefully it would be as messed up as the last one! Happy reading and don't forget to review!
Kaiba stared at the computer screen, his fingers flying over the keys in seconds. Ever since he left Tamara's he had holed himself up in his office, ignoring everyone. Of course, no one would dare to bother him in one of these moods. He watched as a pair of heels slowly clicked by, the light casting shadows on the walls. He glared at nothing and reached up to rub his throbbing temples. His headache had been getting worse ever since he left her apartment and no matter what he did, he couldn't make it leave.
A few hours later, Kaiba's private phone rang twice before Mokuba picked it up, fearing that his brother would start snapping off heads in his current mood. "Oh! Hey there Unicorn, I missed you!" He greeted happily, glancing at Seto's closed office door. Mokuba's lowered his voice slightly, still staring at Seto's door. He wasn't sure if Seto could hear him all the way in the other room.
Seto glanced up, listening to Mokuba softly talking on the phone. He reached over, picked up his own phone and became deathly quiet, eavesdropping.
"Hello little brother, how was your day?" Tamara asked calmly, clearly not wanting to upset Mokuba right off the bat.
"It was good. We got out of school early the other day ago and now it's a couple of free days!" he exclaimed, smiling widely and momentarily forgetting about his brother and his brother's current mood.
"That's cool. Been staying out of trouble and keeping your grades up? I know you are enjoying Art class." She laughed a little.
Mokuba laughed as well. "Yeah, I love art. I love painting too, although most of it ends up on me and not the paper." he laughed again. "But yeah, my grades are good. Seto would skin me alive if they weren't and besides, the classes are easy." he smiled widely.
"How would you like it if my brother gave you drawing lessons? I loved that picture you drew for me. Maybe if you work hard enough, Jake will show you how to keep the paint on the paper." There was a smile in her voice.
Mokuba laughed again, a bit louder. "I'd love it a lot, Unicorn! I'd really love to! Art is wonderful, and I'm sure Seto won't mind." he was smiling as well.
On the other end of the line, there was a moment of silence, then a long sigh. "Little brother, may I ask you a question and have you answer honestly?" She finally asked in a quiet serious voice.
"Of course you can!" Mokuba said in an excited voice, ignoring the serious tone.
"How many of my father's letters did you read that you weren't supposed to?" Tamara asked in a deadly serious tone of voice.
"Oh..." Mokuba's voice trailed off. He didn't want to tell her that he had read almost all of them when he wasn't supposed to. "Uh, I'm not really sure. I only read a few out of most of them I suppose." he answered, his voice betraying the truth.
There was a soft strangled sigh from the other end. "Oh Mokuba... I'm sorry... We, my brother and I, tried to protect you from my pain..."
"Its okay, Unicorn, please don't be sad. Don't worry, it'll be all right. Actually, it was my fault. I shouldn't have read those letters." Mokuba apologized quickly, trying to cheer her up somehow. "When is the next time you're going to come by before you leave for the Academy? I'm surprised you don't just let Seto teach you."
"You know that your older brother doesn't like me Monkey, and Jake wants me to go learn with other people my age, so that I won't be lonely while Jake's juggling the company controls around. Besides, your brother is a very good duelist, but I'm not letting him get a first hand look at my deck. I might end up dueling against him someday, and I don't intend to give him an easy win, though I honestly don't think that he'll waste his time on me; not while Yugi's still soundly kicking his butt every week. If it comes to that, I might just ask Yugi to duel in my stead." Although Tamara laughed at the last bit, you could almost hear the wheels turning in her mind as she considered this idea seriously.
Mokuba sighed. "Tamara, he's really not that bad. Honest, he'd never hurt you, at least, not on purpose! He's been sulking in his office since he left you." His voice was coaxing and encouraging. "My brother's just not good with girls at all..." Then he smiled, even though he knew she couldn't see it. "In fact, I'll bet he's busy in his office right shoving as much work as he can on his underlings just so he'll be able to spend more time with you."
Kaiba snorted quietly when he heard his brother say that. Of course it was true. He'd rather be holed up in an office than out on dates with girls who were only after him for his money. But Tamara was different; she didn't want anything from him. He picked up a pen and nibbled on the cap of it. He curled his hand around the coffee cup and brought the cold coffee to his lips. His blood burned and he knew that his cheeks red. He did want to spend time with her but he was sure after what he did earlier she wouldn't want to be seen with him. He put the cup down and tapped the pocket where her ring sat. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The metal seemed to burn through the fabric, reminding him what he had done to her.
Tamara sighed. "Little brother, thanks for trying. Still, I don't think that I'm his type. Besides, I would rather focus on my studies and my writing right now," She hummed softly to herself for a minute. "Tell you what, I'll spend and entire day with you this weekend before I leave, just you and me. A little sibling's only day, no older brothers allowed. What do you think about that idea little Monkey?" There was a false brightness in her voice that suggested that she was trying to cheer them both up.
As Tamara had hoped, Mokuba laughed in delight. "That sounds great! I'll make sure that Seto doesn't pout in his jealousy. He might get greedy and decide not to share such a pretty girl!"
Seto licked his lips, rolling his eyes at the comments exchanged between the two. Seto sighed and put the phone back into its cradle. He'd make amends with her sometime, but not right now. He put on his glasses and pushed them up all the way on the bridge of his nose. He went back to working, ignoring the two.
Clearly feeling much better now, Tamara laughed warmly. "Somehow I doubt that. I fully suspect that both our brothers will be more than glad to have us otherwise occupied while they snarl and snap at each other like older brothers do. Anyways, I've got to go, Yugi and Joey will to be coming over to help me figure out the dungeon dice and duel monsters games, I'm also going to have Yugi take a look at my Dueling Academy laptop, it's being a pain in the butt." She laughed again. "Thanks for cheering me up little brother."
Mokuba laughed again. "You're welcome, Unicorn. I'm glad you cheered up. Have fun with Yugi and them." He said goodbye before hanging up. He glanced towards Seto's closed door. "I know you were listening big brother," He called out, rolling his eyes and letting out a breath.
The next morning, Tamara dressed carefully and joined her brother for breakfast, though she mostly picked at her food.
Meanwhile, Mokuba woke up late and in a very foul mood. "Seto! I need a ride!"
Seto woke up as he heard his name being hollered. He rolled over and slowly blinked open his eyes. "Why, of all days, today?" he grumbled, rolling over again and putting his feet on the floor.
"I woke up late. Sorry! I think I broke my alarm clock again." He was dressed neatly in his uniform and was trying to deal with his hair. Knocking on his brother's door, he entered the room. "What are you going to do today?"
Seto rolled his eyes and stood up, stretching. "I don't know yet," He said through the door, rummaging through his closet and choosing the first shirt he found.
"Jake sounded really tense when I talked to him last night. Did you three have a fight?"
Kaiba's hands shook and he shrugged on the shirt. "No," he snapped, shaking his head.
He sighed. "Never mind, just hurry up, I'm gonna be late." Mokuba replied and left the room.
"Fine, fine," Kaiba snapped grabbing a pair of tan slacks and slid into them. His brother was being awfully bossy this morning and it was pissing him off for some reason.
A record-breaking ten minutes later, Mokuba hugged his brother and bolted inside. "Have a good day brother! Let me know if you're going to be staying overnight at the company again." He shouted over his shoulder before he disappeared.
The door closed and Kaiba was left in silence. He patted the bundle in his pocket and he closed his eyes. Wearily, he let out a deep breath and opened his eyes again. Today, for some reason, wasn't going to be a good one.
In their apartment, Tamara played with her food nervously as her brother continued to rant and rave in his rage. She knew better than to interrupt him when Jake was in this state.
Kaiba had driven over to their apartment, glaring the whole time. He knew that Jake would be pissed and it made it even madder. He gripped the steering wheel and put the car in park. Today, well yesterday, was his last day of being single and he hated the thought.
Jake was still lecturing his twin even as he put his dishes in the sink. Hearing the doorbell ring, Jake left the room to answering it. When he saw Seto Kaiba standing there, his emerald eyes went icy even as he stepped back to allow the other man inside. "Good morning Mr. Kaiba." He said in a quiet but cold voice.
"Good morning Mr. Fear," he said, his own gaze just as chilly as the other. He could make out Tamara's form in the background. "Is she ready?" he asked, looking the other way and down the hallway.
Tamara had turned herself in the dining room chair before she slipped her arms into her crutches to stand up. "Good morning Mr. Kaiba." She answered in an emotionless voice. The redhead was dressed in a long white skirt and a white suit jacket over a dark ruby shirt. Her red-gold hair had been twisted into a thick crown that had been wound around her head except for two locks that framed either side of her face. "I trust that my appearance pleases you today more than it did yesterday." Her face was completely expressionless in addition to the bland tone in her voice.
He nodded his head. "Yes, it's much better today." His gaze barely flickered in her direction; instead it remained steady with Jake's. "Well, are you ready to go then?" he asked, patting the pocket where the ring rested against his chest.
Her twin had followed Kaiba into the kitchen. Seeing the barely touched cold food in his sister's plate, his temper was scraped away a little more. "Are you finished eating? You've barely touched your breakfast at all." He snapped as he strode over to her.
"Yes brother, I'm not very hungry. Thank you for staying for breakfast." Seeing the anger flare in her brother's eyes, she bowed her head and left the room, dragging her feet slightly as she limped along down the hall without further speech. It seemed as though she walked in a jerky fashion, as though she couldn't quite make her legs move on her own without great effort.
Jake silently watched her leave the room, seemingly too angry to speak, even as mingled pride and pain shone in the depths of his eyes. When she had disappeared from sight, he shook his head and picked up her plate to dump the food into the garbage can before putting her plate into the sink.
Kaiba cocked an eyebrow at Jake, a frown creasing lines onto his face and around his jaw. "Why didn't you help her?" he asked, glaring at her brother. He stepped forward to go after Tamara, the fight between them forgotten for a moment.
"She has her pride too." Jake replied sounding as though he was speaking though clenched teeth. "If she wants my help, she'll ask for it." He turned on the water to rinse the dishes. "Until she asks me, I stay out of her way, and she does the same for me."
Meanwhile, Tamara had made it down the hallway and had finally gotten her door open. She was grateful that Kaiba hadn't seemed to have paid her any attention, and commented on her awkwardly swinging rear end. "Merciful Goddess this really hurts…" The girl hissed softly to herself from between clenched teeth as she made her way toward her desk where she had parked wheelchair.
"Yeah, it looks like you're in pain," He said, poking his head around the corner and he had the feeling he startled her.
The redhead yelped and had to make a grab for her desk to avoid from falling on the floor. "Yikes! Don't do that! I have a hard enough time staying on my feet without getting scared out of my wits!" She exclaimed, biting back a painful cry. Her face felt hot, and she knew that she was blushing darkly.
He chuckled. "Sorry, I had a feeling I'd scare you." He scurried to her side and bent down, set on helping her stand up.
Grinding her teeth, she forced her shaking legs to support her weight again. Once she felt secure, Tamara turned and made her way to her wheelchair before turning around to finally take a seat. Pushing herself up properly into her seat, she swung her footplates back into place and sighed in relief.
He gazed at her with a sad expression, as he watched her force herself to stand and move on her own, rejecting his help in absolute stubborn silence. She was so small and pale compared to him, so delicate while he was the dangerous beast in this territory.
She kept her eyes closed as she carefully got her breath back. "Wow, I need to start working out again or something; this shouldn't tire me out this fast." She murmured as she buckled her seatbelt into place and checked herself out in the mirror to make sure she still looked okay. Her legs began to spasm up and down, but she ignored them calmly.
"Why haven't you been working on it lately?" He asked, trying to sound concerned, but not too concerned. Kaiba mentally rolled his eyes at himself, knowing that sounded so lame. He wanted to help her, but he knew that they were both too proud to even suggest the idea, and he didn't want to intrude or otherwise be rude to her by asking that personal question. In his mind he already knew the answer to the question. He sighed and used his left hand to rub at his throbbing temples before moving to her side. The comparison in heights was extraordinary between the two; her 4'11 and his massive 6'1 towering over her. He licked his lips and put a hand on the handle bars.
"I've been busy trying to help my brother. Though I use the crutches whenever I'm in the apartment or otherwise alone. I used to be able to use a walker too, but lately my balance hasn't been right, and I don't feel like kissing the floor." She answered, taking his ring from the box that had been sitting on her desk and putting it in her suit pocket above her heart as she spoke. Tamara pressed down hard on her knees to make them stop from shaking before she turned the power on. "Well, I think I'm set, let me just get my last instructions from my brother, and then we can go."
Kaiba nodded, trying to understand. Maybe it was something he wouldn't understand unless it was happening to him. He watched her press on her knees and he swallowed the lump forming in the back of his throat. "Uh, what about your engagement ring?" he said, slightly confused. "And why don't you go ask your brother to go with us?" he asked as well, hoping that if he extended the invitation to her brother that Jake would like him a bit more.
"Oh! Thanks for the reminder. I'm not really used to wearing jewelry." She said, smacking her hand against her forehead before she turned her chair and opened a drawer to take out a second ring box. "I'll ask him, but I don't think he'll come. The people at FearCorp aren't making the transfer of power easy for him, and of course, I'm not allowed to accompany him..." Tactfully, Tamara did not add that her brother really didn't like the idea of his little sister marrying Kaiba.
He knew she was hiding or keeping something from him but he ignored it for the moment. "Well, why is that?" he asked, stubborn and confused about what she had said. Why weren't they making the transfer easy, and why wasn't she allowed to accompany him?
"I don't have a share in the company. If something happens to Jake and he has no sons, the company will automatically go to my husband instead of directly to me." She explained blandly. "If I'm not married, it will go to one of my father's relatives." Shrugging, Tamara slipped the simple engagement ring on her right hand before changing the subject. "Is it cold outside?"
Kaiba nodded, working hard to hide the smirk that was just pushing to make itself known. He needed things to work out in order to take over FearCorp and he would have to turn things up more. He shrugged his shoulders to her question. "Dunno. It feels fine out there to me but then again, I like the cold." he glanced towards the door. "But why don't you have any shares in the company?" he was prodding but he was curious.
"Because I'm a female, and my great-grandfather couldn't stomach the thought of his daughters or grand-daughters inheriting his 'great work', so he made it legally impossible to transfer ownership to the females in the family." She explained with an angry chill in her voice as she shrugged into her letterman jacket.
Kaiba rolled his eyes and watched her shrug on the jacket. It looked strange, to see something so large on her small frame. He moved close to the back of her, his fingers absently threading themselves into her hair again. It was his favorite pastime now, playing with her hair. It made him feel in control and saner if he did that.
Tamara seemed to find this amusing, but bent forward to get his fingers out of her hair. "Don't mess up my crown." She said, but smiled slightly to take the sting out of her words. "It takes forever to fix on my own."
Amused, Kaiba laughed. "I won't touch your precious crown, princess." he leaned down and blew the last word across her earlobe, just to see how she'd react.
The redhead closed her eyes and shivered, the lines of her jaw tightening. "Let's go." She managed to say in a strangled voice.
Kaiba smirked from behind, the grin wide and stretching even wider. He now knew a weakness and he intended on using it wisely. "Oh really, I thought we could stay here a bit longer and have some fun talking?" he blew across her ear again, his lips touching it slightly.
Tamara nearly jumped out of her own skin at his touch of his lips on her ear, if her seatbelt hadn't been on; she might have gone though the ceiling. "We aren't alone you know." She said, struggling to make her voice calm even though her heart was pounding.
"Oh, I know that," he whispered, hoping to seduce her a bit more. He enjoyed her reaction and it made him itch to push it a bit farther. He trailed a finger lightly over her ear and waited.
Sucking her breath through her teeth, she tried to turn him off before she lost it. "If you want to be rid of me in a few months, don't try anything. I'm very happy being a Vestal, and I want to stay that way." She ground out, while at the same time trying to get control of her suddenly disobedient body.
Kaiba let his fingers fall farther, lightly coming to rest on the surging pulse point just behind her ear. "Oh, but what if I don't want to get rid of you after all?" he asked quietly, his voice low and almost dangerous sounding. He loved the power rush he was getting from having this kind of control over her.
"That doesn't mean I'm easy. Besides, you can have any other girl whose better appealing then me." She replied, trying to break contact by rolling her power chair forward.
He reached out, stumbling a bit and his hand landed on the wheelchair. "Oh, but I don't think of you as an 'easy' type of girl. A very stubborn young lady but not easy," he said, looking up and still trying to hang onto his charm as he stared at her.
She swallowed hard, trying to do it so he wouldn't notice, as she turned to face him. "Thank you. I think." Although she sounded calm, her eyes were huge and dilated.
Kaiba felt heat rush to his face as he gazed at the look on her face. It suddenly made him feel... Like... Oh, he couldn't even describe the thoughts that were now racing though his fevered brain!
"Tammi! I have to move, call if you have trouble today." Jake's loud call echoed sharply down the hall. "Don't bother waiting up this time, I'm going to be burning the midnight oil again, so you'll on your own for dinner."
Tamara's eyes dimmed sadly in disappointment. "Again...?" She said sadly to herself with a resigned sigh before raising her voice in answer, "Yeah okay, no problem! I'll be working on my writing anyway tonight. Love you twin!"
"I love you too honey." Jake replied, followed by the slam of the door closing.
The spell broken for the moment, Tamara closed her eyes to take a slow cleansing breath. "Well, that most certainly stinks." She muttered as she spun towards the door, intent on heading to the kitchen to make sure that she could get to food for dinner. "I hate it when he does that… never mind the fact that this kitchen isn't even remotely accessible to me yet." Tamara sounded completely in control of herself again.
Kaiba cocked his head sideways, resisting the urge to snicker at her. He followed her into the kitchen and waited. "Well, that was a surprise," he mumbled, glancing towards the closed door. He felt a rush of protectiveness and annoyance when her brother said he wouldn't be coming home until late or even going to go there to be a witness.
Shaking her head, she rummaged around and put a cup of instant noodles, a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter together on the counter where she could get to them easily. "Okay... That should do it for dinner." She said to herself, Seto having been forgotten behind her.
"That's your dinner?" Kaiba exclaimed, his eyes wide with shock. Damn, she ate worse than he did! He cleared his throat and looked in the other direction.
"I'm used to fending for myself, but I can't cook in this kitchen." She said with a shrug. "We can go now." She didn't seem at all upset by the simple meal on the counter. "It'll be a long walk for you unless you want to drive on ahead wait around for me." As she spoke, Tamara modestly snapped up her jacket to her chin to avoid looking at him, hoping that he wouldn't try anything else until she'd cooled down outside.
Kaiba snorted at her reply, still glaring around the kitchen. He turned his attention back to her. "I'm fine walking. I could do with some exercise anyway," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
"All right then." Tamara replied and grabbed her house key. "Let's go get this over with while we can." She said as she rolled out of the kitchen.
"All right," He said, following her out of the kitchen. He did raise an eyebrow to her strange statement but he pushed it aside, hoping things would be all right for the day.
Opening the apartment door, she waited for him to step out into the hallway before shutting and locking the apartment door before silently rolling down the corridor towards the elevator. Her face looked impassive and calm, as though the redhead was already preparing herself for the seemingly very unpleasant task that had been set before her.
He watched her, wondering what was going through her mind at the moment. He was still a little irked about her brother, but then again, her brother might not have been to keen on the idea and that was probably why he was staying away. He chewed at his bottom lip, the surge of nervousness suddenly overwhelming him.
"This wasn't what Jake wanted for me..." She said quietly, as though reading his thoughts. "We always thought that once father died, when we were finally free..." Tamara sighed and pressed the down button for the elevator, shaking her head sadly. "I wanted to go to University in order to get my degree, Jake wanted to go to Venice and attend art school."
Kaiba nodded, unsure what to really say. "What did you want to study in university?" he tried to sound honest and interested.
"I wanted to major in Creative Writing. I've even tossed the idea around of becoming a teacher as well to support myself." She said, almost absently, the elevator dinged and Tamara rolled inside it.
"Really?" he said, his fingers stroking his chin. Ideas flew through his head a mile a minute. He could talk her into going to college, but he didn't like the idea of her becoming a teacher. Maybe he could use that against her? He thought to himself slyly, trying not to smirk as he stepped into the elevator to stand beside her.
"Yes, I had even gotten all the information I wanted for attending there. I had almost convinced my brother that I'd be safe enough on my own, even though the University was in another state, but when mother died..." She shrugged sadly. "Maybe when I am finished with Duel Academy, Jake will see fit to let me move back to the States."
"Ah, but Mokuba would be sad if you went away. He's been waiting years to see you again." Kaiba hedged, hoping it might sway her mind towards staying. "Why not wait awhile longer? Maybe you might find the right university here?" he said again, his back pressing against the elevator wall.
"Perhaps you are right in this case Mr. Kaiba." She admitted slowly as she thought. "I'll try to do some digging while I'm at the Academy to see what other options I can find. Though, to be fair, your younger brother isn't fond of my attending the Academy either." She answered as she watched the numbers change, Feeling nervous, the redhead absently played with the shining loose lock of hair that framed the left side of her face as she waited.
Seto nodded. "I'm not surprised about that," he said, chuckling. His younger brother wasn't happy with his Unicorn unless she was around him a lot. He reached out, plucked the strand of hair from between her fingers and carefully tucked it back behind her ear. The elevator dinged and he motioned for her to go forward. "After you," He said, hoping to charm her with his smile.
Mildly annoyed that she'd been caught playing with her own hair, she couldn't help but smile slightly back before exiting the elevator. Tamara was grateful that although she was dressed in white, she looked more like she was attending a business meeting with her brother rather than her own wedding. After exiting the elevator, she waited for him calmly.
Seto followed her out, waiting for her to lead the way. He swallowed back the sudden jump of nerves. This was nothing more than business. Business he was ready to hurry and get it over with.
Tamara shivered as the cool air hit her face, but never said a word to Kaiba. As they went down the street, she wordlessly prayed to the goddess for both strength and forgiveness for the blasphemy that was about to take place with this fake marriage.
Seto also was praying. But as if any God would answer his selfish prayers, he thought as he gazed down at Tamara. It was strange, things turning out like this. What were their parents' intentions arranging this marriage? Some new, twisted game only those two knew the rules in? He let out a strangled, almost silent breath of air. It was times like these that he wanted to know the answers, know the whys and wherefores of the game, and how to play the rules. He shook his head, attempting to clear the cluttering thoughts. It wasn't good to space out like this.
"Damn it all." She muttered in low anger. "Just because they made their lives bitter, they had to do the same to us."
Had he spoken the last part aloud? He wondered as he gazed at her. "Yeah, damn them to hell. They must enjoy doing this…" Seto muttered, his gaze darkened with furry.
"They are, but I'm not willing to let them rule me. We'll be rid of each other soon enough."
Seto snorted, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. He was going to agree with her, but in the back of his mind, he wasgrasping at straws to come up with something to make her stay.
They continued to travel silence for an hour. When they finally got to the Justice of the Peace, Tamara took a deep breath. "Well this is it... Goddess, forgive me for this blasphemy..." She whispered to herself. Straightening her shoulders, she schooled her face into a calm mask. "Let's get this over with before one of us changes our mind."
Seto nodded in agreement. "Yes, the sooner it's over, the better," he muttered under his breath.
She drove up the ramp and opened the door for him wordlessly.
Kaiba raised his eyebrow at her. Why had she made that comment? And why in the hell was she holding the door open for him? He shook his head and trailed behind her. His nerves were calming down but his mind was screaming at him.
Shrugging, her mask never slipped as she started filling out the paperwork needed for the marriage license, giving him the pen when she was finished filling out her parts.
He narrowed his eyes at the paper and took the pen. No matter where he went, there was always paperwork to fill out. And it was rather annoying nowadays. He glanced (well, more glared) down at her and wrote in his name at his parts as well.
Tamara sighed and waited for him to finish so that the license could be processed, nervously twisting the ring that was on her other hand. Once it was done and they had the legal paper, they went before the Justice of the Peace.
Seto cleared his throat, tugging at his collar. He suddenly found it very hot in the room and he wanted out of there now. His eyes darted down to her ring she kept twisting on her finger. He coughed, clearing his throat. "Try not to puke when I kiss you. Things would look weird," he mumbled, looking in the other direction.
"I'm a better actress than that." She muttered back, taking his ring out of her suit pocket before pasting on a smile as the priest came into the room.
The priest greeted them, but when it came time to the vows, she spoke her own instead of repeating the words given to her. "I promise to honor, respect, and to be faithful while in this marriage." Tamara refused to lie; even to a god she didn't serve. There was no love in this union, and she knew it. There was only peace in her face, no tenderness or even affection in her gaze as she slipped the ring onto his hand.
A little surprised, the priest turned to Kaiba and waited.
Seto sighed quietly before making his vows. "I promise to honor, respect, remain faithful, and to take care of this woman in this marriage." His mind was screaming at him. 'Why bother to make those vows? She'll be gone in a couple months,' the annoying little devil voice prodded at Seto. He slid the ring on her finger and half met her gaze. He wanted to show her, to speak his real vow to her to show her how much she was beginning to mean to him. However, he knew the feeling wasn't mutual and for once he didn't feel like bending someone to his will. He settled for letting his breath out with a silent hiss before his gaze returned to the priest. The priest's eyes were confused but he continued. Under his breath, Seto whispered, "I actually intended on keeping you longer than those three months," he glanced sideway at her.
It wasn't until Kaiba had bent down when the priest said that Seto could kiss his bride that Tamara answered, just before her lips lightly brushed his own. "I highly doubt that Seto Kaiba." The answer spoken and the chaste kiss given, she started to pull away from him.
Seto raised his eyebrow at her; he would have to teach her how to kiss. He smiled then looked towards the priest.
Tamara thanked the priest and smiled at him as she slipped her arm into Kaiba's outwardly appearing to be a happy bride as she waited for him to lead her out of the room.
The priest, believing that mask that she wore, shook Kaiba's hand and wished him great happiness with his new bride.
Kaiba shook the priest's outstretched hand before laying a hand on Tamara's shoulder and guiding her out. Once they were out of the room, he looked down at her. "I'm going to have to teach you how to kiss," he chuckled to himself. Already his mind was thinking about tonight. "So, I was thinking, to celebrate, let's go out to eat." he said, his tone serious and the underlying thought implied. "Then we'll spend some 'quality' time together back at the mansion instead of the lonely apartment." he continued on, hoping that he was making sure he was firm with what he was saying.
"I know how to kiss; I just don't like kissing in public." She said coolly. "The mansion might not be a good idea. Mokuba's going to notice the rings on our hands." Tamara answered as they started back to the Fears' apartment. "Now that we are married, do you really feel like we need to see the fakery though in private as well as public?"
Seto snorted. "Mokuba is at a friend's house for the weekend or a bit longer so that won't be a problem. As for kissing in public, you might want to get over that. Sooner or later the media will be all over this and we'll have to pose. And besides, it might be better than going back to an empty apartment." Seto pointed out, resisting the urge to twist his lips upwards in a smile.
"I'll be at the Academy next week before the media ever gets wind of this." Tamara pointed out, but shrugged anyway. "Might as well, Jake will be gone again tonight."
Amused, Seto mentally smirked. He smelled an easy victory but he didn't want to gloat just yet. "So what would you like to do tonight?" he asked, changing the subject.
"I was originally planning on fighting with that piece of junk Academy laptop that Crowler gave me." She said, her mouth tightening in suppressed anger. "I still can't get it to work, and I've had it for a week. To be honest, I'm about ready to kill the thing by throwing it into the nearest water source." By the expression on her face, while the idea itself was amusing, Tamara was being completely serious.
Seto had to laugh at this. He knew someone who could fix the computer (along with himself) but he wasn't about to tell her that. Actually, he was grinning because he told Crowler to give her that piece of crap computer in the first place. He snickered at her and said, "I could have someone look at it for you if you'd like." he was trying to still be nice. Something that was hard for him to do. He licked his suddenly dry lips and waited for her answer.
"Please! I even asked Yugi to take a crack at it while he dropped by last night, but he was just as stumped as I was. I had to take the hammer away from him before I was tempted to use it myself!" She said, looking grateful as she drove by his side.
He narrowed his eyes for a moment before he cracked up laughing. It was a funny picture he was getting from her story. Just the same, Seto was a little irked because Yugi had been welcomed over there. How dare the little snot!
She sighed when he laughed, and continued on in thoughtful silence. Tamara was worried about what he had said after his vows, but hoped it was an empty bluff.
Seto seemed to almost echo her thoughts. Would he make good on his promise of keeping her around? Would things be better or worse if he did? What did he really want?
When they got back to Tamara's apartment building, she pressed the button for the fourth floor, seeming to have forgotten Seto was beside her even though her wedding ring now glowed on her left hand.
Her new husband wasn't helping matters because he too had disappeared into his own world. He was aware of Tamara beside him but he didn't acknowledge her presence. His own ring glowed in the light.
A minute later, Tamara unlocked the door to her apartment and drove inside. Throwing her key on the table and unsnapped her heavy coat and took it off, lightly tossing it on the couch. "Whew, at least that's over with." She said as she relaxed. Straightening her suit jacket, she checked the answering machine. "Well, it looks like I'm on my own for the day, since Jake doesn't seem to need me at the office…" Shaking her head, she smiled to herself in amusement as she drove her chair into the kitchen to get something to drink.
Seto chuckled at this. She really had forgotten he was with her. "Planning on changing so we can go back to the mansion?" he asked, his voice echoing off the still bare walls.
Tamara jumped in her startlement at being reminded of his presence. "I'm just getting a drink. What about your car? You're going to get a ticket." She said, trying to cover her jump.
"A ticket? For what?" He raised his eyebrows at her sudden jumpiness and hid the smirk that played at his lips. He stuck his hands into the slacks and waited.
"For illegal parking." She replied filling a glass with water and drinking it slowly to steady her nerves.
Seto snorted at that. Like he couldn't bribe people to do whatever he wanted. Flash enough cash and there were always people willing to make things disappear. He waltzed over to where she was and leaned down, letting his warm breath fan across the back of her neck and ear to regain her attention.
The redhead almost choked on her water and turned her head slightly, shooting him a tear-filled but dirty look before putting the half-filled glass on the counter before she dropped it, getting her breath back. "What was that for?" Tamara finally asked when she could breathe again.
Seto snickered. He loved seeing her reactions to when he did that. "No reason," he shrugged his shoulders, still snickering.
Muttering darkly to herself, she picked up the glass again and drained it before putting it into the sink. Then she took the extra minute to put the food that was supposed to have been her dinner neatly away before leaving the kitchen and heading towards her room, firmly shutting the door behind her.
All right," Seto said, following her. His hand caught the door and he glanced back. "Is it locked?" He asked, eyebrow high (his new trade mark around her).
"If you open that door, you are going to wish had been!" She shot back, then smirking she added. "Mokuba might not agree with me, but I think you'd make a very pretty girl." As she spoke, she took off her shoes with a bit of wiggling, and she cursed in vexation when one of the prongs of her gripper snapped in the process. "Note to self, get new gripper." She muttered angrily.
For some reason, it surprised Seto to hear her curse in that manner; she just didn't seem the type to use that kind of language. Although he had laid one hand on the doorknob, Kaiba found that he was rather reluctant to put that serious sounding threat to the test. As he waited impatiently for her to come back out, his respect for this otherwise meek looking redhead went up a notch or two.
About ten to fifteen minutes later, the door opened again. Tamara was still wearing the red silk shirt that she had worn under her suit jacket, but was now wearing a pair of jet black jeans that fitted her body well. Her red-gold hair had been left in its crown, only she had pinned back the looks that had framed her face so that Seto couldn't mess with them. She was holding an ugly but well made mint green backpack in her lap with her right hand, and was holding the broken gripper loosely in her driving hand.
Seto blinked, and then rolled his eyes at her. "We'll get a new one if you'd like." he said, snickering again. His eyes finally fluttered up and down her body. He liked the black jeans she was wearing; they matched the shirt just right, although being selfish, he still wished she was wearing blue instead of red. He smiled before looking away from her.
"I'll have to write a note to Jake before I leave, this is ridiculous! This is the third gripper this month! At this rate, I'm going to have to have Jake send me a new one every week when I'm at the Academy..." She did not look to be in a good humor as she handed him her ugly mint green backpack.
"What do you have in this bag? And what is up with the color?" he wrinkled his nose in response as he glared at the bag again. Then he reached down, plucked the broken gripper from her lap and held it in his hands. "Do I even want to know?" he asked, chuckling.
"About what's in my bag or what happened to my gripper?" She asked, driving into her brother's office to write that note.
"Both," Seto said, still chuckling. He had a feeling what happened to the gripper but not was in the bag.
"I broke my gripper getting my shoes off." She picked up a pen and began to write. "I put a change of clothes, the academy laptop and the cords that go with it, a few notebooks and a few pencils and pens in my bag." Tamara tapped the pen against her lips for a minute. Her topaz blue eyes looked far away as she considered what else to write. She didn't add that she packed her notebooks in case she got bored, her brother was in and out all of the time because of his work with the company, and she didn't expect things to be any different with her new 'husband'. Now more than ever Tamara was very grateful to her beloved twin brother that she'd only need to put up with him for a few days before leaving for Duel Academy's island to attend school!
Annoyed, Seto rolled his eyes at this. He was curious why she packed her notebooks but he didn't feel like asking. He had a feeling she wouldn't tell him the real reason why. "What's with the color though?" he asked, his nose wrinkled. It was one of those what-the-hell-were-you-on-when-you-chose-this types of bag. He chuckled at his own thoughts but stopped it. He shifted the bag from his hands and glared at it. He was going to have to find a way to depose of it without her knowing.
"All my other bags, the bottom will rip out of them after a few months of use. I've had that bag for four years now, and it's survived. I don't care how it looks; it works just fine for me so I'm not beingpicky about it." She replied without looking at him, finishing the note and folding it up. "Frankly, all my heavy textbooks can fit in there, so I'm not getting rid of it while I can still use it." Putting her brother's pen back exactly where she found it, she backed up away from Jake's desk and motioned to Seto to shut the office door behind him after she left the room. Going back into the kitchen, she put the note on the table where her brother could find it when he first came into the room.
Seto rolled his eyes again and put the bag down for a moment before picking it up again. His nerves were grating on him. He wanted to get home, and very soon at that. "Let's go," he said, shutting the door behind her, following her closely. He glared down at the ugly bag again. This thing was seriously going to disappear tonight, even if he had to burn it. He held in his snort of laughter. He leaned over the couch and picked up her coat, then slid it over her slowly when she leaned forward. He was ready and he wasn't about to take no for an answer. "Ready to go now?" he asked, his warm breath flooding the skin on the back of her neck.
Tamara swallowed, but otherwise nodded as she slid her arms into the sleeves, grabbing her key. "Where's my bag? I didn't hear it go over the handlebars, and you'll need the laptop if you wanted your contact to fix it." She asked him when she saw Seto didn't have it, and that it wasn't on the back of her chair. Frowning, she looked about ready to turn back towards her bedroom to get it, seemingly not concerned about who was behind her; as Kaiba's gaze turned cold and piercing, banking the heat that had been there just seconds ago.
He smirked but it didn't reach his eyes. "Its right here," Kaiba replied, the bag was still in his hands and he mentally cursed it with all his might. 'Wonder if I could sneak a new bag in its place?' he thought, still glaring at it. "But surely you won't be need all of this for tonight?" he asked, looking to his right. 'Let's just hope she'll bite and we can leave this ugly thing behind... If things go my way she won't be like that for much longer.' He grinned to himself then hid it quickly so she wouldn't see it. 'I need to find out her favorite foods, maybe if I play my cards right, it would help to loosen her up and put her in a more relaxed mood towards me.' He thought to himself again.
She brightened when she saw that the bag still in Kaiba's hands before she frowned thoughtfully as she considered his words, not really wanting to fight with him on the first day of their 'marriage', but unwilling to give him too much ground either so she offered a compromise instead. "If you really want me to, I'll leave the laptop here so long as you don't forget your promise to have it looked at, but I still want to take my notebooks and my clothes with me. I don't trust my twin not to sneak a peek at what I'm currently working on."
Seto nodded, he had a feeling that was all he was gonna get out of Tamara so he was going to take it. He handed her the bag, waiting for her to get the laptop out of it. But he did have to chuckle at what she said about her twin. "I know you'll take your clothes. But would your twin really take a peak?" He asked his mind in the gutter as he said the last part.
"I'm not letting him get a hold on my baby novel or my poetry notebook." She replied unzipping her bag and taking out the Dueling Academy laptop and its cordage then carefully driving back to her bedroom to leave it on her desk. Tamara returned a few minutes later and zipped her bag back up before turning around so he could put the bag on the back of her wheelchair. "No one looks at my work until I'm ready for comments and suggestions."
"Oh, and that also includes me?" Seto asked, winking at her, hoping to get her to say no. He rolled his ankles and waited for her to say something again.
"That goes for everyone... which reminds me, I must find a new editor... Bother... what a chore." Grabbing her key again off the table, she sighed.
Amused at this one-sided conversation, Seto chuckled. "Maybe I could find someone for you?" he suggested, leaning down slightly to rest on her wheelchair. He glanced back at the bag. Tonight, when she was asleep, he would sneak a peak and she would never know.
"I'll consider that if I can't find someone." She replied. "Are we going to split up? Or how are we going to handle getting there?"
Seto pulled the tiny phone from his pocket. "I'll call someone," he said, then turned his attention to the phone. Turning his back, he spoke quietly into the phone then snapped it shut a moment later. "I've called in a van, it'll be here in fifteen minutes." he said, smiling.
Tamara nodded. "It has a ramp right?" She asked, motioning to the door.
"Of course," Seto said. He made sure to threaten the guy a little to remember that big detail.
The redhead couldn't help but smile and shake her head.
Well, ready to go?" Seto asked, smiling still. His mind was still racing and he wondered if she could hear his heart pounding his chest.
She nodded, and opened the door. "Let's go."