Greetings! Wow, it's been a while since the last update, hasn't it? I'm so sorry for the wait. I just hit a major writer's block for this story, and it became very hard to write. Not that I don't know where it's going or how it's going to end, because I've known that since the first chapter. It's all the little details that escape me. Hopefully, I can update semi- regularly from now on.

Thank you for the reviews, especially those of you who left gentle reminders (in this and in my other stories) for me to update. I hope that this chapter was worth the wait.

Note: I am not at home, so I don't have my usual access to the Internet. I was unable to do research on Japan/US trips for time duration and such. I do know that Tokyo, Japan, is 15 hours ahead of the city where I live, so I went off of that. If I made a mistake, please correct me. Someone, I think, mentioned in a review that Yugi's ship was taking the wrong route to New York. To clear that up, the ship is traveling along the Pacific Ocean, which means they'll arrive at the Unites States via the west coast, then go on to New York from there. My apologies if I confused anyone with that.

Enjoy!

Part 27: Tricks of the Mind

Seto Kaiba had not slept. He had gone up to his room shortly after his conversation with Wheeler, had even changed into his pajamas and gotten in bed, but had not been able to stop his mind from working long enough to fall into slumber. It had probably been for the best, because after the conversation he'd had with Wheeler, Kaiba doubted he would have been able to sleep without nightmares. After tossing and turning in bed for a few hours, he'd finally gone downstairs to the den to work, but what had happened there with Wheeler, and the draw of the alcohol, had driven him out of the room. He had ended up in the family room with the television turned to the all night news channel, hoping that it would bore him to sleep, but even that hadn't worked. He'd finally settled down to read the various reports that the people who were looking for Yugi had left for him, which had only worsened his mood. No one had been able to find anything, and Kaiba was aware that if Yugi wasn't found soon, it was likely that he wouldn't be found again.

"You should get some sleep."

Startled, Kaiba dropped the reports and turned in the direction of the voice. He was surprised to find that the sun had risen sometime while he'd been reading, and that Mr. Moto was at the doorway, as if waiting for Kaiba to invite him into the room.

"I'm fine," Kaiba said.

He waved the older man into the room and picked up the reports he'd dropped. He was unnerved at having been caught by surprise, but he normally didn't keep his control as rigid at home as he did when he was at work or anywhere else. He relaxed a bit more when he was home, which is why Mr. Moto had been able to catch him off guard. The man wheeled himself into the family room and came to a stop beside the couch Kaiba had been lying on. After a moment of intense scrutiny from the older man, Kaiba began to fidget.

"You don't look fine, young man."

"It doesn't matter what I look like, as long as I get things done," Kaiba countered.

Mr. Moto's expression changed, and Kaiba wondered what he'd said to bring about the look of surprise on the elder man's face.

"Do you really believe that?" Mr. Moto asked.

Kaiba was confused. What was Mr. Moto talking about?

"Do I really believe what, Mr. Moto?"

"Do you really believe that your well being is secondary to what you accomplish for other people?"

That only confused Kaiba further. Why wouldn't he believe it? Wasn't that what everyone else wanted from him? People could care less about him, as long as he did what he'd said he do.

"Don't you believe it?" Kaiba countered. "You want me to find Yugi, don't you? I'm looking for him, like I said I would. Why does it matter how I do it or what it does to me in the process, as long as it gets done?"

"Of course I want you to find Yugi," Mr. Moto said. He wheeled his chair closer to Kaiba, and Kaiba had to resist the urge to move away. "As much as I hate to admit it, you have a lot more resources than I do, so having your help has been very beneficial. However, I don't want you to find Yugi at the cost of your own well being."

"What do you care?" Kaiba asked, his confusion serving only to make him angry. "You hate me, remember? You're only here because I'm looking for your grandson. Once I get that done, you'll go back to your life and I'll go back to mine. You won't be responsible for my well being and won't have to deal with the consequences of my actions, so why do you care?"

Mr. Moto sighed and a deep sadness entered his eyes.

"Is that what Gozaburo Kaiba taught you, that you weren't worth caring for?"

Kaiba was speechless. Who did this senile, old man think he was? How dare he say such things?

"You don't know what you're talking about," Kaiba finally said. "You don't know anything about me or about my adoptive father."

"You're right, Kaiba, I don't know anything about your adoptive father, other than the fact that he was a ruthless man who took what he wanted by force. It's not hard to imagine what a man like that would do to an innocent boy."

Kaiba finally had enough. He got up and slammed the papers he'd been holding down onto the nearest table. "You have no idea what you're talking about, old man. I would suggest that you stop meddling in things you're better off not getting involved in. "

With that, Kaiba walked away. He made it to the doorway, when Mr. Moto's voice stopped him.

"You're worth more than you give yourself credit for, Seto, as a person, not as a commodity, or as how much you can do for someone else. I'm sure that your parents would have wanted you to know that."

Kaiba stood rooted to his spot as Mr. Moto's words washed over him like a bucket of ice cold water. Did Mr. Moto really mean what he'd just said? With effort, Kaiba pulled himself out of his paralysis and walked away. It didn't matter if Mr. Moto meant it or not, because Kaiba was not going to believe him. Trust always came with a price, and he was no longer willing to pay it.

The stench of alcohol was strong as Joey entered the small apartment he and his father shared. He closed the door behind him as quietly as he could, knowing that he'd be in trouble if he woke up his father.

It had been very hard for Joey to get used to the fact that his mother and sister would not be living with them anymore. At first, Joey had cried and wished that his mother would come back. He didn't understand why she had left him behind while she took Serenity with her, but Joey still missed her. He didn't cry anymore, though. His father had found him crying one day and had punished him for it. Since then, Joey didn't cry, no matter how much he hurt.

Joey made his way to the kitchen to get an after school snack, because he wanted a little extra energy so he could concentrate on his homework. He wanted his father to be proud of him, so Joey studied as much as he could and got the best grades possible. He rummaged in the pantry until he found some crackers. In the refrigerator, he got out a bottle of chocolate milk. In the process, he hit one of his father's beer bottles and knocked it to the ground. The bottle shattered with a loud crash.

Before Joey could react, his father rushed into the kitchen. He came to a halt at the sight of his beloved beer pooling on the kitchen floor. The paralysis only lasted a few seconds, and when Mr. Wheeler regained his senses, he rushed Joey, picked him up by the front of his shirt and backhanded him. Joey winced as he was struck, but did not cry out. He tasted blood and since he couldn't spit it out, swallowed it.

"You good for nothing brat," Mr. Wheeler yelled as he kneeled and pushed Joey's face into the puddle of beer, causing some of the glass shards to cut into Joey's face. Some of the beer got on Joey's busted lip, which made it sting. "Do you have any idea how hard I work?" he continued, pining Joey on the floor, his face still in the beer. "I provide for you, Joseph, give you everything you need, and these are the thanks I get?"

Joey's face was now numb and his body ached from where it was being pressed against the floor. He didn't cry out, however, didn't even whimper. It would be much worse for him if he did.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" his father asked.

"I'm sorry," Joey managed to get out.

"You're sorry? Yeah, you're a sorry excuse for a son, that's what you are."

Mr. Wheeler pulled Joey off the floor and carried him to a small closet beside the bathroom. He opened the door, threw Joey inside, and then slammed the door shut. Joey heard the lock as it snapped into place, and knew that there would not be getting out of there until his father decided to let him out. Joey sat against the wall and pulled his knees to his chest.

"Why didn't you take me with you, mom?"



Joey awoke gasping, his face aching in memory of the pain of that day. He lifted his hand to his lips, but found that they were not swollen or bleeding. Instead, he found tears running down the side of his face. He was sprawled on the bed, his head nowhere near the pillows and the sheets coiled about his waist. Dazed, Joey looked around and became even more alarmed when he didn't recognize the room he was in. After a moment of near panic, he remembered that he and Mr. Moto were staying at Kaiba's house until they found Yugi. He hated dreams like the one he'd just woken up from. They reminded him of a time where he'd been helpless and scared, which was something he never wanted to go back to.

Groaning, Joey disentangled himself from the sheets and got out of bed. His stomach growled, and he decided to go downstairs in search of breakfast. Surely Kaiba could afford to keep the pantry stocked at his house. Joey walked out of the room in only his boxers and was almost knocked down by Kaiba, who was storming down the hallway in Joey's direction. Kaiba was still wearing his pajamas, so Joey figured that Kaiba had just woken up as well. Kaiba didn't look well rested at all, nor did he look happy. Seeing him reminded Joey of the conversation they'd had earlier, which made him angry.

"What's the rush, Kaiba? Are you already eager to start the day and chew someone else out?"

Kaiba barely glanced at Joey as he passed, but he'd apparently heard what Joey said.

"I don't have time for your immaturity, Wheeler," Kaiba growled. "Get some clothes on; I don't want you walking around my house half naked."

With that, Kaiba opened the door to the room three doors down from the one Joey had slept in, walked inside, and then slammed the door shut. Joey was left staring in surprise, not at Kaiba's rudeness, but at the fact that he'd slept so close to Kaiba's room. Joey shuddered at the thought. Before he could turn away, the door to the room next to Kaiba's opened and a still sleepy Mokuba poked his head out.

"What's going on? Was that my brother I just heard?"

"I think your brother woke up on the wrong side of the bed," Joey said.

"I should go talk to him," Mokuba said as he came out of his room.

"He's in a pretty bad mood, Mokuba. Why don't you just let him cool down a bit before you talk to him?" Joey suggested, thinking it was way too early to be subjected to Kaiba's mood. "Why don't you show me where the kitchen is instead?"

Mokuba seemed to debate with himself for a moment, before he slumped his shoulders in defeat. "Follow me, Joey."

Joey did as he was told and they headed for a room at the back of the house. As they got closer to the kitchen, they heard movement inside.

"Good, the cook is already making breakfast," Mokuba said.

"That's good to hear, because I'm starving," Joey commented.

They walked into the room and were surprised to find Mr. Moto in the kitchen instead of the cook. The elder man looked up as they entered and greeted them with a smile.

"I was just about to start breakfast, but this kitchen isn't designed to accommodate someone in a wheelchair," Mr. Moto said. "The cabinets and cutting surfaces are too high."

"You don't have to cook, Mr. Moto," Mokuba said. "We have someone to do that for us."

Mr. Moto sighed, and Joey saw sadness flicker through his eyes.

"Yes, she was here, but I think your brother scared her off. I'm not sure what he said to her, but shortly after he spoke to her, I heard the front door slam shut."

Joey moved deeper into the kitchen and rummaged through the cabinets and refrigerator to get Mr. Moto what he needed.

"You saw Kaiba too?" Joey asked. "I ran into him upstairs and he almost ran me down. He did manage to yell at me, though."

Mr. Moto remained quiet, choosing instead to take the skillet and eggs Joey had in his hands.

"Can you chop some tomatoes and green peppers for me, Joey? I want to make American omelets," Mr. Moto said.

Joey stared at the back of the man's head for a moment as Mr. Moto retrieved the vegetables from the refrigerator and it dawned on him that Mr. Moto had something to do with Kaiba's bad mood. He wondered what had happened, and was sorry that he'd missed it. He turned to Mokuba to ask where he could find a knife, and noticed the pensive look on the younger Kaiba's face.

"I need to talk to my brother," Mokuba said.

"Why bother?" Joey asked. "Let him brood in peace."

"He's my brother, Joey, and whether you believe it or not, there are many reasons why he acts the way he does."

Joey's anger rose in response to Mokuba's anger. "I'll give you a reason, Mokuba. Your brother is a spoiled, rich, brat, and he pouts when he doesn't get his way, like right now."

Mokuba was about to say something, but then changed his mind. "Sometimes you're absolutely clueless, Joey." He hopped off the stool he'd been sitting on and headed for the door.

"I'll have breakfast made in an hour, Mokuba," Mr. Moto said. "Be here, and bring your brother with you."

Mr. Moto didn't turn to make sure Mokuba heard him, nor did Mokuba acknowledge the request. Joey had a feeling that Mokuba would do what Mr. Moto asked.

"You'd be surprised what you learn from a person just by being around them."

Joey turned back to find Mr. Moto looking at him. "What do you mean?"

"I knew Seto when he was younger, before his parents were killed," Mr. Moto said as he went back to beating the eggs. "They'd bring him into the shop to buy Duel Monsters cards, and Seto and Yugi would play together."

Joey shrugged. "I don't understand where you're going with this, gramps."

"Seto wasn't always like he is now."

Joey laughed. "I don't believe it. I think Kaiba was born with his nose up in the air and something stuck up his rear end."

Mr. Moto turned to him. "Don't judge what you don't understand, Joey. Just as you have your family secrets, so does Kaiba. If anyone can sympathize with that, it's you."

Somehow, Joey couldn't picture Kaiba being at the mercy of anyone, much less someone in his family. His one family secret was the fact that his father beat him, but Joey doubted that anyone had ever gotten close enough to Kaiba to do that to him. Mr. Moto had to be mistaken.

"Joey, will you cut the vegetables, please?"

Joey snapped out of his train of thought and reached for the vegetables. He'd have to ask Mr. Moto more about this later.

"Seto?"

Mokuba stood outside of his brother's room, nervous and worried. Seto could get into horribly bad moods, which Mokuba hated to see. Not that Seto was ever violent to him or mistreated him, but it scared Mokuba anyway. What Mokuba hated most, however, was when Seto got upset. Anger normally followed an incident that upset him, because Seto was very good at playing it off, either by pretending nothing was wrong, or by getting defiant and aggressive. Those times always made Mokuba feel helpless, because Seto would never talk to him and Mokuba could offer nothing else in order to help.

When Seto didn't answer his door, Mokuba opened it and walked into the room. He was surprised to find it empty, because he'd heard Seto come inside about fifteen minutes ago. Mokuba momentarily panicked, until he heard the shower running in the bathroom. Sighing in relief, Mokuba settled down on the neatly made bed to wait. The fact that the bed was still made was a sure sign that Seto had gotten no sleep the night before.

It wasn't long before Seto came out of the shower. He was dressed in a pair of black slacks, and his hair was still dripping wet.

"Mokuba, what are you doing here?" Seto asked when he noticed Mokuba on the bed.

"You didn't get any sleep last night, did you?"

Seto dropped the towel he'd been drying his hair with and went inside the closet to finish dressing, momentarily ignoring Mokuba. When he came back out, he regarded Mokuba with a piercing intensity that put Mokuba on guard. There was definitely something on his brother's mind, which Seto was trying to hide.

"No, Mokuba, I didn't sleep, because I had several things to take care of."

Seto walked around his spacious room, gathering what he would need for the day; Mokuba debated whether to keep quiet and pretend nothing was wrong, or to bring up what had happened earlier with Mr. Moto.

"What happened with Yugi's grandfather?" Mokuba blurted out, before he lost his nerve.

Seto turned to him, quickly masking the look of surprised on his face with one of indifference.

"Nothing happened. Mr. Moto was just prying into things he had no business getting into."

"What things?"

"It doesn't matter Mokuba; the matter is finished."

Mokuba got up and went to stand in front of his brother. He took a hold of Seto's hands and gripped them tightly.

"You're upset, Seto. I can see it, even though you're trying very hard to hide it. Please, big brother let me help you with this. Tell me what happened. Tell me what Mr. Moto said that got to you like this?"

Seto squeezed Mokuba's hands in return, and then led him back to the bed where they both took a seat. Seto smiled slightly, and even though it was a sad smile, Mokuba could tell that it was genuine.

"Mr. Moto brought up the question of self worth," Seto explained, "and it made me think of mom and dad, and Gozaburo. You know what that usually does to me."

Mokuba nodded. Yes, he definitely knew how that went. His own experiences with their adoptive father had not been anywhere near as bad as his brother's, but they gave him nightmares anyway. He had witnessed Seto's nightmares enough to be well aware of how badly they affected him.

"I'm okay, Mokuba, don't worry. The conversation with Mr. Moto just made me think about some things, nothing more."

Mokuba looked into his brother's eyes and knew that he was lucky to have gotten even this much out of his brother. He nodded in understanding and hugged his older brother tightly. Mokuba smiled when his brother patted him on the back.

"You can talk to me if you need to, Seto, you know that, right?" Mokuba asked as they broke the embrace.

"I know, Mokuba. Thank you."

"Okay, I'm going to go shower and change so I can go have breakfast."

Seto looked guilty for the barest of moments. "About that, Mokuba, I fired Taka earlier this morning, so we're going to have to make breakfast today."

Mokuba grinned. "Mr. Moto told me about Taka. He's making breakfast and he instructed me to come down in an hour and bring you with me."

Seto chuckled. "He really is a pushy, old man, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he is."

It was dark again. To Yugi, it seemed as if had been dark for the last day and it was beginning to wear on him. The darkness made him feel edgy, afraid, as if something or someone were waiting to hurt him if he weren't on guard, and he hated it. Yugi wasn't exactly sure what he was afraid of, but the fear was so persistent that he was beginning to wonder if something had happened while he'd been sleeping. He should ask Ryou, but he and his father were in the dining room eating breakfast and Yugi didn't want to go outside of the room to look for them. He shrugged. It didn't matter, anyway. He had a mission to complete, and he would push everything else aside until he'd done it.

Yugi was currently sitting in one of the comfortable chairs in the receiving room of the suite. Ryou had acted very strangely when they'd woken up. Yugi had asked him what was wrong, but Ryou hadn't said much, other than he'd had some trouble sleeping. Yugi found that strange, because he'd been able to sleep just fine. Wouldn't he have felt if Ryou had tossed and turned during the night? He'd dropped the subject, because Mr. Bakura had been in a hurry to leave for breakfast, and it had been very apparent that Ryou didn't want to talk about it. Yugi would have to ask him about it again later.

There was a flash of light, and Yami was suddenly standing in front of him. The spirit's face was etched into a mask of worry, and his posture communicated the same thing. Yugi didn't remember ever seeing Yami like this, and it worried him.

"What's wrong, Yami? Did something happen? Are you okay?"

Yami looked at Yugi, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Did something happen? Why would you ask me that?"

Yugi frowned. What was wrong with Yami? "What do you mean why would I ask you? You look as if something is seriously bothering you."

Yami sighed and walked towards the other end of the room. He stopped, turned, and continued to examine Yugi. The constant scrutiny was beginning to make the younger man nervous.

"Did you sleep well, Yugi?"

"Yes, Yami, I slept just fine," Yugi replied. "Ryou was the one who had trouble sleeping, remember?"

Yami nodded. "You do know why we're on this ship, right?"

Yugi got up and walked to where the spirit was pacing. Annoyance was slowly creeping through him at Yami's obtuseness.

"Of course I know. Why wouldn't I?"

"I'm just making sure. You know how you got those bruises as well, correct?"

Now Yugi was really annoyed. Where was Yami going with all of this? Where would he have gotten bruises from? Yugi looked down at himself and was surprised to find that his arms were covered with bruises and scratches that were still raw. His eyes widened, and he looked up at Yami. Yami, for his part, didn't seem surprised at all. He took Yugi by the hand and led him into the bathroom, where he positioned the younger man in front of the mirror. Yugi gaped at the sight of himself in the mirror. Most of his face was swollen, his lips were split and swollen, and his neck sported some finger shaped bruises. Yugi pulled his shirt away from his chest and saw that it, too, was bruised and scratched.

"How did you get them?" Yami asked again.

For a moment, Yugi didn't have an answer for him, because he couldn't remember having been in an accident or anything that would have caused him so much damage. After he thought about it for a bit, however, it started to come back to him.

"Shadow's people took Joey and me back to their warehouse," Yugi explained. "Joey is okay, right?"

Yami nodded, but the look of distress was still on his face.

"Shadow, or his people, probably beat me up before I escaped," Yugi added. He shrugged and walked out of the bathroom. "I'm happy that I escaped, I doesn't matter how it happened."

"It does matter, Yugi. Do you remember how you escaped?"

Yugi thought about it and was surprised that nothing came to mind. He should remember, shouldn't he? Hadn't he remembered before?

"I don't remember, Yami," Yugi said, panic creeping into his voice at this sudden gap in his memory. "I remember being in Tokyo, but even that is a bit fuzzy. I got all of the information on Shadow from Mike in Tokyo, I do remember that. I remember being back at my house, until Bakura found me."

Yami's look of distress shifted to one of outright fear, which only served to spike Yugi's own fear.

"What's wrong, Yami? What happened to me?"

Yami shook his head and walked closer to Yugi. The spirit examined the shorter duelist, and Yugi could immediately tell that Yami knew something. His eyes said it all, and Yugi knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that Yami knew what was going on. A part of him became enraged at Yami for not telling him and leading him around like he had, while another, stronger part of him wanted to run to the bathroom again and shut the door so that he wouldn't have to hear what Yami had to say. He debated whether to run or stay and face what was obviously distressing the spirit of the puzzle, but decided that he couldn't run from Yami, no matter how far he went.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on or not?" Yugi asked, his voice rose in annoyance and anger.

There was a small pause, before Yami finally answered.

"You're repressing."

Yugi frowned. "What?"

"You're repressing the memories of that day."

Yugi thought about what Yami had said. Repressing? How was that possible? Wouldn't he have had to experience something horrific for his mind to want to block it? It wasn't possible. He wouldn't be alive if that were the case. Yami had finally lost it; that was the only explanation.

"You're out of your mind, Yami. I think you've been hanging out with Bakura too long."

Yugi turned around and walked back into the bedroom. Perhaps he would join Ryou and his dad for breakfast after all.

"I'm not making it up, Yugi. I saw the evidence in your soul room last night."

Yugi's annoyance now turned to anger. "You were in my soul room? Why?"

Yami took a step back, apparently surprised by the question. "You've never minded me going into your soul room before."

"Well, I mind it now. Stay out of it unless I say it's okay."

Yami's eyebrows shot up and he opened his mouth to defend himself, but decided not to.

"I think I'm going to go outside," Yugi said and left the suite and the surprised spirit behind.
Next up: Yugi finally arrives at his destination. Well, not quite, but he's in the United States, at least. He'll have to give Mr. Bakura the slip first. Yami worries and gets Bakura involved. Kaiba and gang get closer to finding Yugi.