Title: Stranger things have happened

Author: Sakura Takanouchi

Summary: The lights are off, the camera's batteries died…but there's no lack of action when a lost bet throws two of the unlikeliest people together in one of the most extraordinary of circumstances.

A/N: Warning; this chapter is basically akin to me throwing up ideas onto this page. Think about it. Actually, don't.

Disclaimer: Don't own it. It is my plot, though.

Chapter Two: Your loss may be my gain, but it's still your loss

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The rest of the world may have been still resting in their beds, but one girl was ready to take on the day. In the time it takes some people to merely get out of bed, she had managed to get out of bed, shower, and eat something that didn't come from a box.

The clock struck 9 as Serenity rolled out her yoga mat and slowly started to breathe, closing her eyes and letting the rays of the sun wash over her. That was one of the reasons she loved her apartment. Sure, it was cramped, cluttered, colorless, and costly, but did it have a view.

Not long after she had finished graduate school, she had visited this apartment right before sunset and had bought it on the spot, just for the huge windows in every room. She even had a small balcony that connected to a portion of the tiered roof via a fire escape ladder. It didn't hurt that it was in the 'artsy' part of downtown Domino; she needed someplace close to the art supply store where she worked. It was perfect, and once she had enough money to fix it up it would be presentable to company. She blushed to the roots of her hair just thinking about letting anyone see this mess. Her apartment was stocked with classic dorm furniture- futon, fridge, and tiny twin bed to boot. Blank canvases as well as finished ones leaned against every wall. She would rather die than let anyone in; her friends constantly reminded her of that.

She fumed silently, going through the poses and meditation. 'This is supposed to be my time, not time to remember how absolutely right they all are!' Serenity couldn't remember a time when she was in control of things. She spent her teen years constantly under the shadow of her brother, Joey. 'They treat me like such a child!' But opening her eyes and looking around, she hated to admit that, at 25 years old, things could be a little better.

She was grasping for a ray of hope. 'At least I've got my own place, and I paid for it myself, with money from selling my paintings.' She had to part with her favorite, a bold, modern yellow sunflower on a blue backdrop, to pay for this place. Thoughts drifting uncontrollably to meetings past, she cringed at the memory of more criticism.

"You never have any money, Serenity. You can't be a poor student forever."

"Hurry up and get a boyfriend, that way you can move in with him!"

"Ssh! Her brother's coming. Oh Serenity, your hands have paint all over them…"

Pushing all thoughts of meditation aside, she curled up in front of the TV to watch the morning news. Why did everyone have such a problem with how she chose to live her life? Maybe this was why she valued her independence so much. This part of her life meant so much right now, and she didn't want to change a thing.

The shrill ring of the cheap wall phone brought her out of her reveries.

Other people had other plans.

"Hello—"

"Oh good, Serenity, I didn't know if we were going to get a hold of you!"

She rolled her eyes. 'What, did she think that I would be somewhere else?'

"Well Mai, now that you do have a hold on—of me, what is it?"

"Just a small lunch today; I want to make sure that my bridesmaids are ready to help me with every step of the way. I can't believe how excited I am! Well I'll be outside your apartment at 11; okay? Bye!" Click. I let the phone rest back in its cradle on the wall.

This past Christmas, her brother, Joey, had finally got up the courage to propose to Mai Valentine, and everyone couldn't be happier. It was about time, she'd been expecting it, and now a date was finally set. August 20th was the big day. That reminded her; she needed to get Joey and Mai a wedding present. Eyeing the blank canvases in the room, she had the perfect idea…

She had lost herself in the painting, an all too familiar feeling. So far, the canvas was now painted red, fading out darker at the corners. Using several shades of the color had given the background an added depth. Happening to glance up at her wall clock, she nearly dropped her brush. 'Yikes! Mai's going to be here in 10 minutes!' Making sure to wash her hands of all paint, she quickly changed into a yellow shirt and jeans. Sperry's that matched her eyes completed the ensemble. She could hear her cell phone ringing, but now where did she put it?"

'Apple bottom jeans, boots with the fur…'

Following the music, she made her way into the bedroom. There it was, hiding below her purse. Taking the purse along, she grabbed her keys and made her way outside.

Mai couldn't help but be conspicuous in her deep purple convertible. She had pulled up right in front of the door, annoying delivery people and mailmen alike. She tossed her blonde curls over one shoulder upon seeing her soon to be sister-in-law.

"I got us a reservation at Maggiano's, so we can't be late. Come on!"

Serenity hopped into the passenger seat and they drove away. "Tea is going to be meeting us there, ok? I can't wait; I've been bursting to talk about all of our plans for…the wedding!"

Both girls couldn't help but shriek at the mere mention of it. Now this was going to be a summer worth remembering.

"Next time, Mokuba, I swear I'm choosing the place…" Seto growled in frustration. Sure, this place had a reputation for good food, but the ambiance…? And he hated family-style dining, just give him his own portion, how hard of a request is that?

"I invited you, I choose. Besides, you like Italian," Mokuba said, picking up a piece of bruschetta and popping it in his mouth.

"This is tacky, loud, annoying, food-sharing,"

Mokuba ignored the growing list of faults. He liked the place, always had. It was elegant, yet casual. Italian music weaved its way around the tables. And man, could they serve bruschetta.

"Don't you want to know why I asked you to come here?" Seto paused at his brother's words, partially amazed at how Mokuba could articulate with his mouth so full. Well, they certainly were not there just for lunch, there had to be another motive. Mokuba took his silence as an invitation to speak. "Not that I have to tell you any of this, but we've just started the first part of Operation: Spread the Word! We've decided to pull a major publicity stunt to kick off our production—"

"But you haven't even started production yet." After getting himself into this agreement, Seto had been up half the night researching about filmmaking, so that at least one of them would know what they're doing.

"Open auditions!" Mokuba called gleefully, unable to hold it in any longer. "For A-list stars as well as total amateurs. Everyone has a chance to star in the movie, so it will generate tons of buzz about this." Mokuba looked starry eyed as he continued. Seto chewed on the appetizers slowly. Mokuba actually made sense…generate publicity as well as the chance to hire a nobody…for much less money. Maybe his brother knew what he was doing after all. Good, because Seto hadn't even began to think about what he would request if he won the bet.

"Our auditions start in three days," Mokuba said, snatching the last piece of food right as Seto leaned in to grab it. "Once we have our cast, filming will begin. We've already got the entire sets ready, and we're even going on location to film for two weeks!" Seeing Seto's disgruntled expression, Mokuba smirked. "Jealous much? Didn't know that making a movie would be this much fun? Well, you can come with us if you'd like."

"I'd have to come, just to make sure you didn't do something stupid."

At that moment the waitress came, balancing a huge tray laden with plates. Placing a huge bowl of meat and pasta on the table between them, Mokuba immediately began to dig in, moving large amounts of pasta from the main bowl to his own plate. Seto looked on in disgust. "That's your half of the bowl."

"Whatever." Mokuba's mouth was already half full with pasta, stopping only every few minutes to get a drink or wipe his mouth before tucking in as avidly as ever. "Let's just eat lunch."

"Come on girls, its lunchtime!" Mai Valentine led the way as the trio entered the restaurant. They found themselves in a small reception area adjacent to the bar. Serenity looked around in amazement at the space. Wood paneling served to warm up the space; antique photos only encouraged the intimate atmosphere. This was nice, almost too nice.

"Why did you choose this place?" Serenity asked her friend as she marched up to the podium, announcing the reservation under 'Valentine'. They were led into the main dining room, two stories of red leather booths and gleaming tables hid happy patrons and delicious food- Serenity's soul craved to be a part of it.

They were shown up the grand staircase to a booth overlooking the main floor. Serenity scooted in; she sat alone across from Mai and Tea. Almost as soon as they were settled, a handsome waiter came to take their drink orders. They were joking and talking about what to order when Mai suddenly glanced over her menu. "Hey, guys! Look over there! No, ugh, don't make it obvious!"

Tea and Serenity turned around, from where they were practically hanging over the railing. "What are we even looking for?" Serenity asked.

"See that guy sitting in the booth on the lower level, the third one from the right corner? Doesn't he look a lot like Mokuba?" Mai leaned in to get a closer look.

"Mokuba? You mean Mokuba Kaiba?" Tea's gaze focused. "Yeah! Wow, he's grown up, hasn't he?"

"He may be grown up, but he still hasn't learned how to eat," Serenity said, giggling, as the girls watched Mokuba, strands of pasta falling out of his mouth.

"Do you know that KaibaCorp practically controls every electronic or tech. company in East Asia?" Tea commented, drawing strange glances from the other two. "Hey, I read, you know," she replied defensively.

"Well, I heard that the Kaibas are ruthless at business, doing whatever they can to remain ahead of the pack," Mai said, sipping her water. "I would hate to be involved in any way to them."

"Who's he eating with?" Serenity asked, squeezing a lemon wedge into her water.

"Probably his brother," Mai said, shrugging it off. "Heartless bastard if I ever saw one."

"I've never heard anything positive about him," Serenity said as garlic bread sticks and oil were placed on their table for the girls to share.

"That's because you're Joey's sister," Tea stated emphatically, dunking a bread stick into the oil. "Joey will probably never forgive the man for putting him down all through high school."

Serenity nodded, taking a bread stick for herself. If everyone had this opinion on him, this had to be the truth. No one could be that misunderstood. She remembered Joey retelling dozens of stories of scuffles between Kaiba and her brother. They always ended with Joey punching Kaiba, so he got what he deserved…right?

As the chicken parmesan was delivered to their table, Mai's eyes shone with delight. "I almost forgot what we came here for," Mai said. "We have barely three months before I… get… married!" The girls squealed, drawing the attention of several tables nearby.

"We need to go over so many details!" Tea said, twirling some plain pasta on her fork. "Like tell us all about the reception, dinners, bridal shower, bachelorette party, everything!"

"I want to know about the dress," Serenity said dreamily.

"That's why I invited you all out to lunch," Mai said smugly. "I want your input and help for everything. In fact, to answer your question, Serenity, we're all going shopping next weekend!"

The girls squealed again. Cries of "purple", "no, peach", "you want WHAT!" echoed around the table. Serenity smiled. Things were looking so great, and everyone was so happy. Nothing was going to bring her down.

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A/N: A treat of a new chapter for you! I hope everyone likes, this work was very well-received, 50 hits in less than 24 hours! Now if I'd just get some comments… I really want to know everyone's take on my story. It is by no means planned out, I take all advice cheerfully!

Quick question: Does everyone think I'm getting Seto and Mokuba's brotherly relationship right? I want to portray them as real siblings that argue a lot and have short tempers and peculiar personality quirks- much like typical Mokuba and Kaiba! I just feel like they've both outgrown the juvenile, 'I love you, big brother!' awwww relationship.

Thank you for reading! Next chapter will be up in time for my spring break, I promise!

Sakura Takanouchi