Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!
I thank all my readers and reviewers for supporting me this far! Let's see how everyone reacts to my newest development!
Chapter 8: Big Surprises for Everyone
At the end of the day, when Mitsuko was cooling down from her jog home, Yugi came over to her.
"Hey Yu-nii, I just got back from the gym. Something on your mind?"
"Mi-ne, how did you get so confident and strong?"
She gazed into his eyes and smiled. "I've always been this way, at least, on the inside."
He frowned, irritated by her answer. "Why didn't you ever show it before now? You seemed to mirror my attitude, so everyone, even Jii-chan, thought we were exactly alike! It wasn't until six months ago that I knew you liked to sing karaoke, work hard for your dreams, could get better grades than me, and even had a hidden personality! Why?!"
"It wasn't until Atem came along and everyone wanted me to stay meek and shy that my real self came out to stay," she replied, then lowered her head as she sat down on the couch, controlling her breathing. She then bit her lip and confessed, "I just didn't want to leave you alone to be bullied, since you were too nice to stand up to anyone, and you wouldn't have let me protect you."
"I'm your brother! I should've been the strong one and protected you! Why am I so weak?!"
"You let people protect you instead of standing up for yourself. You let the bullies walk all over you. If it wasn't for Anzu during our childhood years, we probably would've had to change schools just to get away from all the people who liked to pick on us. I didn't like that because of our size and quiet personalities, people always targeted us, so I shielded you a little bit by taking some of the abuse. Jonouchi and Honda came along at just the right time to become our friends, and Atem as well. You have to stop having such a passive way of dealing with aggressors. Why do you think I snapped after so long? I got sick and tired of being told what to do."
Yugi clenched his fists and plunked himself down on the couch next to her. "I don't know how to stand up to people unless I'm desperate to protect someone, and that hardly ever happens anymore."
She patted his back. "Maybe you need a remedial course to boost your confidence."
"A remedial course? Like a class?"
"Yeah. I've heard of camps that focus on making you feel better about yourself and getting you stronger physically, too. I'm sure with all the Millennium Item users popping up, the bullies will start using more brutal weapons against us to steal my Millennium Puzzle. We can't have anyone fall behind and get caught by the lackeys. Everyone has to be a fighter, because playing games might not solve everything that comes our way."
Yugi's eyes hardened in determination. "Alright! I have to do this for everyone!"
"No Yu-nii, do it for you."
He nodded and she hugged him.
The rest of the group (save Atem, who'd been told by the twins the same night) was surprised to hear that Yugi was going off to a camp for several months.
"But Yugi! You'll miss school!" Anzu protested.
Jonouchi and Honda shared a look, then shouted, "GO YUGI!"
"Guys! Help me out here!"
Mitsuko put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Anzu, this is something he needs to do. Stop being such a mother hen."
"I'm not! He's going to flunk out of our year if he doesn't come to school!"
Yugi shook his head and smiled at his childhood friend. "Anzu, don't worry, I'll be doing online courses to keep up, so I'll be just fine when I get back. I'll miss you too."
Sugoroku placed a hand on his grandson's shoulder. "Come on, we're going to be late."
"Bye guys! I'll write whenever I can!"
"BYE, YUGI!"
About two months through the time waiting for Yugi to come home Mitsuko found herself getting soggy around the middle as she undressed for bed. She'd been feeling unwell lately, but that hadn't stopped her from slowing her schedule any, yet now she felt exhausted from being on her feet so long at work and from the hard workouts she put herself through to keep in shape.
What the heck? Why am I gaining weight? I shouldn't be, with my diet and exercise, even if I've let up a little because it's no longer for stress relief.
She winced as she knew something had to be up, so she ran downstairs.
"Jii-chan!" she called, as she came into the abandoned shop (they'd just closed for the night). "I think there's something wrong with me!"
She hugged Sugoroku, who stroked her head to try and calm her. He smiled and asked gently, "What's the fuss about? You look fine to me."
"I'm getting fat even though I'm not sitting around or eating junk food, and I've been feeling really nauseated for a couple months now!"
Pushing her away so he could look at her better, his eyes narrowed as he noticed she had gained weight around her middle that he hadn't noticed until now. He patted her head and soothed, "Now come along, we'll take you to the hospital if you're concerned. Atem!"
At the hospital, Mitsuko and Sugoroku were shocked when they found out what was "wrong".
She was pregnant.
She was furious as she screeched mentally, /HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?! I'M ONLY SIXTEEN! HAVE YOU NO SENSE OF PROPRIETY, YOU PERVERT?!\
Atem winced at her volume inside his head and didn't look at her, a red hand-shaped mark on his cheek. /As I've told you the last hundred times, I didn't mean for it to end up this way. I was unfamiliar with the modern conveniences which could've prevented such a thing from happening. It wouldn't have mattered had we been in a serious relationship.\\
/"IT WOULDN'T HAVE MATTER HAD WE BEEN IN A SERIOUS RELATIONSHIP", MY BUTT! I WOULD'VE NEVER HAD SEX WITH YOU IF I'D KNOWN THAT'S WHAT YOU WERE DOING WITH ME! YOU KNEW EXACTLY WHAT YOU WERE DOING AND I WAS WONDERING WHY I FELT SO TIRED AND SORE THE NEXT MORNING! I WASN'T GOING TO SLEEP WITH ANYONE EXCEPT MY HUSBAND! WE HAVE HIGH MORAL STANDARDS IN THIS FAMILY, FYI! FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES, IF WE'D STILL BEEN FIFTEEN, JII-CHAN WOULD'VE HAD YOU ARRESTED FOR RAPE! YOU'RE LUCKY HE DIDN'T HAVE YOUR HIDE WHEN HE FOUND OUT YOU'D MADE ME PREGNANT!\
/I'd appreciate it if you stopped screaming at me for something that happened two months ago.\\
/NO WAY, NO HOW! YOU DESERVE A HEADACHE FOR THIS! IT'S NOT EVEN EQUAL TO THE TORTURE AND HUMILIATION I'M GOING TO FEEL THESE NEXT FIVE MONTHS AT SCHOOL! DO YOU KNOW WHAT PEOPLE WILL SAY WHEN THEY SEE I'M PREGNANT AT SIXTEEN?! I MIGHT HAVE TO NOT GO AND SUFFER THROUGH THIS ALONE!\
/I already feel guilty enough for not courting you properly before you became with child without you biting my head off at every opportunity.\\
She growled and crossed her arms over her stomach, tapping her toe to try and keep herself distracted from railing on him some more for good measure. Sugoroku had already done so when they'd found out. Even now, he was burning holes into the side of the teenage pharaoh's head as he fumed silently.
When the doctor came out and called Mitsuko's name, she stood up and walked over, her grandpa right after her and her boyfriend last. They walked into the room and she sat on paper-lined table, shooting glares at Atem whenever she could.
"Alright, lie down so we can see if the baby's okay, since you haven't had any prenatal care before this."
Mitsuko slid her shirt up to expose her stomach while a nurse gave her some shots she'd needed for her first check-up. She turned to the screen as it was turned on. She gazed at the fuzzy picture until she heard a heartbeat.
"There it is, Mutou-san. See here? That's its head..."
To think I'm going to be a mom in seven months...
At that thought, she smiled.
When Yugi arrived home, Mitsuko was lying on the couch, eight months along. Set was massaging her feet, while Atem's lap was her pillow. She had a wedge of cantaloupe resting atop her stomach, a few bites out of it.
"When did Mi-ne get pregnant?"
Mitsuko was so relaxed that she didn't even turn her head or open her eyes at the sound of her brother's voice. She just yawned and greeted, "Welcome back, Yu-nii."
He came over and Set commented, "You look much more confident and muscular than when I last saw you, Yugi-san. How was camp?"
"It went fine, if you call the torture I went through 'fine'. Where's Jii-chan?"
"He's at the store," Atem answered, stroking his girlfriend's hair. "Mitsuko said she needed more cantaloupe and we'd run out of chocolate ice cream."
Yugi crossed his arms and demanded, "When did Mitsuko get pregnant, Atem?! Were you messing around with her while I was gone?"
Mitsuko waved a hand. "It's all water under the bridge now, Yu-nii, but if you need to know, it was the night after Atem beat Kaiba-kun in that duel."
"You mean... When did you find out?!"
"When I was two months along. I'm eight now, so I've had a lot of time to get used to that I'm going to have kids soon."
"You're having twins?! I can't believe you're so relaxed about this! You're only sixteen!"
"Nope, our birthday was last week, remember? I'm seventeen now. Until about twelve weeks, I thought I was just having one."
Set smirked and murmured to Yugi, "Massaging her feet does wonders for her mood. Believe me, she screamed enough at him the six months after she found out. Sugoroku-san invited me over, since Atem told him how well I could keep Mitsuko-san in a good mood, and she'd almost miscarried because of the stress she had."
Mitsuko opened her eyes and smiled at her twin. "You've really gotten confident and strong since you went to camp. You say it was utter torture?"
"Yeah, I swear it was harder than basic training."
"How would you know?"
"Just a comparison. What's been going on with you being pregnant? Have you been teased a lot at school?"
Atem sighed and shook his head. "Much, much worse. I had to protect her from bullying to death threats. I got an earful from the rest of our friends, too. They're now fiercely protective of her and are at her beck and call, if she needs it."
"Where are they now?"
"Not home from school yet. Mitsuko couldn't sleep at all last night, so I stayed home with her and Set decided to skip just this once to keep her happy and relaxed."
Mitsuko took a bite out of the wedge of melon and growled impotently, "You wouldn't be able to sleep either if you had nightmares of your classmates' constant teasing and with two babies kicking your innards to mush."
Yugi then brightened as she slowly was helped up so she was properly sitting up. "You're huge! How can you even move at all?!"
"Carefully." She winced as her back began to burn again. "Very carefully." She hissed out in agony and Atem held her hands as she allowed it to pass. "Since I'm of short stature, I was told after my fifth month I'd have to be on bed rest, so I've been given maternity leave from school and work. It really, really sucks."
She held her stomach as the babies kept up their constant barrage. Atem stroked any free space left and Yugi asked, "Can I feel?"
"Of course, since you haven't gotten to yet."
Yugi placed a hand on her huge baby bump and his eyes widened at the feel of the babies moving just under her skin. "It feels like they're wrestling in there."
She snorted. "If they are, they've chosen a heck of a time to start. I feel like I haven't slept in weeks."
"Does that mean I woke you when I came in?"
"No, no, I was just relaxing, since I'm hungry."
She soon polished off the wedge of cantaloupe and handed it to Atem. He got up to throw it away, and as soon as his weight left the couch, she shrieked and held her side, which made all three young men stare at her in panic. Atem tossed the rind at the trashcan and cried, "What's wrong?! Are you in labor?!"
She shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks as she squeezed her eyes shut. "I think...I think I broke a rib!"
Atem nodded to Set, who carefully lifted her up and they both rushed to the back door, Atem on his cellphone calling Mokuba. Yugi, who was confused, followed them.
"You have this all set up?"
Set nodded. "Just in case something like this happens. This is the third rib she's broken in two months."
"So she's still healing from the last two breaks?! How are you letting her move at all?!"
"She's stubborn, you know that."
In very little time, the limo pulled up and they piled in, Atem holding Mitsuko's hand as she pressed the other to her side.
This is the worst...pain! Even if I know what a broken rib feels like... There's no exclamation I can put there!
"Jii-chan, Mitsuko's just broken another rib, so would you come to the hospital? They might make her stay this time. Yes, I know that it's time for that, but you know your granddaughter." Atem rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, you're blaming this all on me, but how was I supposed to know she'd conceive twins? Runs in the family? That makes me feel so much better." He shook his head and raised a hand. "Just come once you drop the groceries back at home, alright? You don't need to yell at me again over a broken rib."
He hung up the phone and went silent, a miserable look on his face.
/Quit beating yourself up over this. The babies are almost here and I'll be able to heal.\
/Jii-chan just won't forgive me for making you pregnant at so young and that you were threatened at school like you were. I shouldn't let you forgive me for what I've done.\\
/It's happened and almost done. I...\ She shuddered as she felt an ache run through her back and stomach. /I think I'm in labor now.\
/What?!\\
/Didn't you feel that?\
/I thought that was just the pain from your broken rib.\\
/This one's different. As soon as they tape up my rib, I'm going to have to deliver them.\
Atem sighed and announced to the other two, "Mitsuko says she's in labor now, too. I think the pain of the rib breaking finally pushed the twins over the edge."
Set shook his head and Yugi's look of concern was creased onto his face.
"So do you know what you're going to have?"
Mitsuko jerked her head as she tried to shake it, but Atem answered, "She decided that she didn't want to know until they were born."
They arrived at the hospital and the doctor who had been seeing her clicked his tongue. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Another rib? You have violent babies, Mutou-san."
"I...I'm also in labor."
"Well then, once I get this wrapped properly, I'll get you to a delivery room."
She nodded and whimpered as he pinned the bandages tight.
"Okay! Let's get you changed and comfortable!"
Everyone there rolled their eyes and moved out of the room.
For the next five grueling hours, Mitsuko went through the ordeal of giving birth to twins. It was twice as painful because of her broken ribs, but she managed without passing out. She was about to cuss out Atem when they were finally born, but then she saw his face when he held his firstborn, all words died on her tongue.
"I've waited for such a long time for you, do you know that? Over three thousand years to hold you, my beautiful child. You're my heir and are blessed that your mother and I are your parents. I love you, even if I've just met you. Yuto."
The baby boy took after his father in every way, down to the wild hair. He screamed in protest as he struggled within his blankets, before he fell asleep, exhausted.
His brother, on the other hand, took more after his uncle, thus, more like his mother. He didn't cry as much as his brother, he calmed down and was content to look at his mother with crossed violet eyes, clutching at her finger she inserted into his palm. She cooed at him and whispered, "You're going to be best friends with your brother, like I am with mine, right? My Mamoru-chan."
His reaction was to yawn and fall asleep.
I'm tired too, but I have to deal with everyone else first.
Sugoroku came in to see his twin great-grandsons asleep in their parents' arms and came over to Mitsuko first. "He's just like Yugi when he was a baby, Mi. Can I hold him while you rest?"
"Of course, Jii-chan."
The old man gazed down at the new life with pure love in his eyes. "You know I've loved being your grandpa, Mi, and I'm sure I'll love being a great-grandpa to these little guys." He shot a stern look at Atem. "Make sure these two don't have siblings until after high school."
Atem nodded, handing over Yuto to Yugi, who held his nephew a bit awkwardly. He smiled and looked up at his sister. "I come home, expecting a big welcome, but I never thought I'd be an uncle so soon. Oh, just so you know, our friends are here to see the new babies, too. Should Jii-chan and I go out so you can have a moment alone?"
Mitsuko nodded and closed her eyes, preparing to have a good rest when she could.
"Mitsuko."
"What?"
"Will you marry me when we get out of high school?"
"It depends."
"On what?"
"On whether we can survive the next year going to school, me working and going to the gym, with twins."
He swallowed in nervousness, but took her hand. "I'll support you all the way."
So, once Mitsuko came home from the hospital, she was given a six weeks off further (so her ribs could heal properly), but Atem didn't take a break at all (two weeks for him), which proved to be a mistake, because he often napped during class and collapsed in gym.
When he and Yugi came home after the first day, Mitsuko was feeding Mamoru while Sugoroku was holding a sleeping Yuto. He dropped his backpack and dropped himself on the loveseat next to his girlfriend, closing his eyes.
"I told you to take a break with me, but no, you have to go to school to, and I quote 'get a break from the twins'," she reprimanded as she gently bounced Mamoru to get the feeling back into her arm. "Tell me, Yu-nii, was he falling asleep during class?"
Yugi nodded and chuckled as Atem scowled at him. "He slept through all of lunch, nothing but the bell could wake him." He then frowned. "Are you sure you don't need help? You'd be able to get more sleep that way if I took a turn."
/He's right, you know. You're already exhausted and it's only your first day back to school.\
/I had to stay up countless hours into the night as pharaoh to run my country. How am I not able to cope with the schedules of the twins?\\
/It's because they keep us up all night. I nap when I can, which is when the twins are actually sleeping at the same time. Your body can't take the stress of going to school and concentrating almost the full nine hours, so you pass out. Have things improved at all?\
/Unfortunately, no. In fact, it's gotten more vicious. At this rate, we'll have to switch schools.\\
She sighed. /Even with the new and improved Yu-nii?\
/With him in the mix is the reason it has gotten so bad. He stands in the front, right next to me. The stronger our defense of you gets, the fiercer their offense. Now I'm starting to regret ever thinking that laying with you for a single night was a good thing.\\
/We can't do anything about that now, so we might just have to transfer schools if things haven't quieted down by the time I'm well enough to return.\
They both snapped out of their trance when the door to the shop opened and Set called, "Hello up there!"
Mitsuko got up, having had burped Mamoru while she'd been talking to Atem. She called back, "We're here, Set-kun! Come on up!"
There seemed to be a scuffle below and the sound of someone being forced up the stairs followed before Kaiba was shoved into the room, Set and Mokuba behind him. Kaiba crossed his arms, disgruntled as he grumbled, "I can walk myself."
Set grinned and countered, "If that was so, why'd I have to drag you all the way here?"
Mitsuko ran over and hugged the pale brunette around the waist. "Kaiba-kun, you're finally awake!"
He flushed in chagrin and patted her shoulder. "Hello, Mitsuko-san."
Mokuba was almost vibrating in excitement. "I was so happy when Nii-sama woke up this morning!"
Kaiba huffed. "You knocked the wind out of me, Ototo. I think I have a bruise on my stomach."
Set snickered and walked over to Atem, who was almost asleep, his head leaning over until it was hovering just over the arm of the loveseat. He smirked and grabbed his sides, the former pharaoh starting so bad he fell over onto the other side of the short couch. He glared at Set, who was laughing. "Would you quit your antics?! It isn't amusing any longer!"
"You were about to fall asleep, I couldn't have you falling off the couch and bruising your royal crown, could I? I did you a favor."
Atem jumped up and lunged at him, only for him to dodge and the pair ran out of the room. Kaiba snorted and eased himself into the chair Atem had just vacated. "They act like pair of children."
Mokuba plopped down next to him, overcome with giggles. Yugi raised his eyebrows. "I thought so too, until I learned they're cousins. Set-san likes to press Atem's buttons and it usually ends up with them wrestling on the floor somewhere. I think Atem secretly enjoys it, since he hasn't killed Set-san yet."
Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Here I thought me being gone would've sobered him up at least some, but no, he's become more infantile. Do I have to be the adult in our family?"
Mokuba sighed and slumped back into the loveseat. "Set-nii-sama knows when to be serious, Nii-sama, he just likes to be a kid around Atem-san, because they never got to play as kids."
Mitsuko settled down next to Sugoroku again, who was silently observing Kaiba. "Maybe he'll teach you to act your age, Kaiba-kun. There's time for work and then there's time for play. You don't give yourself enough time to relax and be a teenager, between raising Mokuba-kun and slaving at KaibaCorp. I'd bet you don't even know how have fun anymore."
Kaiba's eyes narrowed at her blunt comment and then they rested on the twins who were asleep. "You allow yourself too much leeway, if you having twins at seventeen is any clue."
Yugi hissed at the insult and Mokuba punched his brother's arm. Mitsuko kept her calm, although she could've slapped his face for that. It wouldn't do to get angry, it's what he wants. Why don't you do the opposite? That ought to throw him for a loop. "Yuto and Mamoru are a happy accident, I've come to accept things as they come—"
"You dare to insult my granddaughter for something she had no fault in?!" Sugoroku snapped as he leapt off the couch, handing Yuto to Yugi. "She deserves no such slight for being a teenage mother! Why I ought to—"
"Jii-chan! You calm yourself!" Mitsuko ordered as she placed a hand on his arm. "You know the doctor said it's bad for your blood pressure! Now sit down and be quiet!"
Sugoroku took her scolding quietly and sat down, crossing his arms and closing his eyes. "You're right, Mi."
She nodded and turned to Kaiba, who was smirking at the old man's reaction. She knew exactly how she could have her revenge. She stood and asked sweetly, "Do you want to hold Mamoru?"
He stiffened immediately and shouted, "Are you crazy?! Kaiba Seto doesn't hold babies!"
Mokuba coughed back a laugh and teased, "Holding a baby isn't so bad, Nii-sama. Even I've held Mamoru-chan."
Mamoru, who'd been close enough to hear Kaiba's yelling, woke and started crying. Mitsuko held him out. "Take him and calm him down. You made him cry."
With a look of disgust, he took the wailing infant and winced when Mamoru didn't calm immediately. A loud thud came from the direction of the bedrooms and she smirked as she ran into the hallway.
"Set-kun! Atem! Don't break anything with your roughhousing!" she called in Ancient Egyptian, putting her hands on her hips as she found them in Atem's room.
Set was sitting on top of Atem, his wrists in one hand and the other was mussing his hair. It was then that Atem heard Mamoru crying. He strained to get up, when Mitsuko held up a hand.
"Let Kaiba-kun handle it, I think he's enjoying it."
Set grinned and gave his cousin a hard nuggie. "Give up yet? Say 'uncle'!"
Atem shook his head. "I'll never lose to you, Set!"
"Oh come now, you'll never get out of this position unless Mitsuko-san decides to help out, and judging by her face, she's willing to watch you lose painfully."
"I can always think of something without outside help!"
Mitsuko's smirk spread into an evil grin. "Make him scream, Set-kun."
Set brought out his secret weapon, which drew out an unmanly shriek from the pharaoh. Atem was able to squirm his way out from underneath his cousin and fled to the bathroom to disinfect his face. Mitsuko broke out in uncontrolled giggles and shared a high-five with Set while they listened to the Ancient Egyptian curses coming from the bathroom. She shook her head and thought, Another victory for Set. If Atem keeps losing like this, he's going to have a reputation of having a weakness against his cousin's hilarious, if not immature, tactics. She heard Mamoru screaming for her and shook her head. If only Mamoru would get used to other people holding him. "I think we'd better rescue Kaiba-kun before he faints from the stress."
When they entered the living room again, everyone was laughing at Atem's scream and flight to the bathroom, save Kaiba, who was so pale from trying to calm the baby down, he looked to lose consciousness any minute. Mitsuko took pity on him and scooped her baby up, who instantly calmed at the feel of familiar arms holding him.
"I thought I was going to die..." Kaiba wheezed, shivering as he folded his arms shakily.
"Oh stop it, it wasn't that bad. Unlucky for you, Mamoru only likes me. If you'd held Yuto instead, he would've been just fine once you'd relaxed. Mamoru's a good baby, but only in my arms. He doesn't even like Atem. Yuto's a good baby all around, letting anybody hold him without complaint. You keep up your attitude about not liking kids, you'll be a horrible dad when you have them."
He gave her a cold glare, which she brushed off easily.
Atem emerged from the bathroom, blotting his face with a towel. "Don't you ever do that again Set, even with Mitsuko's permission!"
That set off the chuckles and giggles yet again, even Kaiba smirked and mocked, "What'd he do Damiri, lick your face?"
"You should know by now that my name isn't Damiri, it's Atem, and no, he didn't lick my face, he drooled in my ear and down my cheek into my mouth."
"EEEEWWWW!" Mokuba and Yugi shouted at the same time, shuddering. The dark-haired fourteen-year-old gave his adopted brother a squeamish look. "You did that, Set-nii-sama?! You're disgusting!"
Set grinned with a shrug. "He wouldn't give up when I'd clearly had him pinned. That's what cousins do. I would've done it when we were children in the ancient past, so why not now?"
"You'd do that to me if we were wrestling?"
"It's different when we play, Mokuba-ototo."
Atem suddenly noticed that Mitsuko had been moving around as usual. "What did the doctor say?" he scolded, guiding her back to the couch. "Stay. Still. I don't care if you're not in pain because of the drugs he provided for you, stay down or I'm going to make you stay in bed."
Mitsuko scowled and held her side with one arm while the other cradled her newborn son. "I'm walking slowly, what more do you want? I have to move around or I'll never get off the baby fat."
Kaiba watched her actions and raised his eyebrows. "Did you crack a rib from falling?"
She shook her head. "I broke three of them because these two wouldn't stop kicking so hard. One's healed already, the other two are just barely beginning, even with a week in the hospital. You wouldn't believe how much more it hurt to give birth naturally when each push moved my damaged ribs. Breathing was like being burned with a pair of hot pokers. If I can help it, I'm never, ever, ever having twins again."
Yugi sighed and rubbed his forehead as Atem settled down next to him. "I'm thankful I wasn't born a girl like you, Mi-ne. I don't think I could handle pain like you do."
Mitsuko shrugged and smiled down at Mamoru, who was slowly falling back asleep. "What'd you expect? I've trained my body for months before I got pregnant, so things were easier to handle than if I'd stayed out of shape."
Atem smoothed his mussed hair down and almost the instant he stopped, he dropped onto the arm of the couch, fast asleep. Set grinned deviously, but Mitsuko raised a hand. "Let him sleep, would you? Today's been hard on him, since he hardly slept last night."
Set pouted as he leaned against the back of the couch by her shoulder. "You're no fun."
"I let you have your fun. Now leave him alone."
Kaiba snorted and shook his head. "He can't handle one all-nighter? What a weakling."
Mitsuko rolled her eyes. "Have you pulled an all-nighter while taking care of twin newborns, then went to school the next day, without coffee or an energy drink to keep you awake? I'll give you another factor: I couldn't get up from bed, so he had to bring both babies to me so I could feed them, and he had to change all the diapers himself. If he insisted on me being in bed all the time, Jii-chan wouldn't have had my help today with taking care of them. Sure I could've caught up on sleep, but I'm not selfish, even when injured. They're my sons too, not just his."
"I appreciated the help Mi," Sugoroku chimed with a pat to her shoulder. "With Yugi and me to help you two, you should get used to their schedules in no time at all."
Set/Atem silliness! I love it! For those of you who didn't like the time-skip in the middle, well...I couldn't really think of a day-to-day or even month-to-month thing to do with Mitsuko's pregnancy, sorry!
How does everyone like how I made Yugi? With him as a side character instead of the main, it was mentioned to me that he would have to go to "man camp" to get the guts and strength to match his sister.
Did anyone notice something...odd about Kaiba's reaction to Mitsuko's greeting?
Please review!