Author's Info: Again, sorry for the long delay! A lot of things have been distracting me from writing, I admit (namely the FIFA World Cup, World of Warcrack, and family/friends). I am now getting back into writing though, so hopefully you enjoy the especially long chapter! I especially want to thank TsuKaza, Jade the Grey, Emily, Celesius, Toxic-Tears-123, yamiyugi4eva, Ava-Connie, Foscarrelli, rather-jovial, DaAmazingMeepers, xXchibitsukiXx, Sesshylover978, and DreamerNumber3. Comments after as usual!

The "what"s: Listening to Yu-Gi-Oh music still, and thinking about how I'm possibly going to write my second duel. I admit I am a little stuck, but I am working on it! I'm also thinking incessantly about the next match Germany plays in the FIFA World Cup! Deutschland!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, or any of the characters. All I own are my OCs, and the current plot is my idea. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter Thirty-Five

Kaiba entered the mansion after a long day at work feeling more than slightly frustrated. The meeting had turned out to be waste of his time; they were just a bunch of fools who had thought they could use Kaiba Corp. to further their own pathetic ends. "Mokuba?" he called out. He frowned when he didn't hear his brother coming; normally he could hear him practically running to greet him. Suddenly he noticed noises coming from the media room.

"Aww man! You won again!" he heard Mokuba whine. He heard unfamiliar laughter in response and frowned more, wondering who was in his home. He went and opened the door, eyes widening when he noticed Yumi sitting on the floor next to the couch, controller in hand and a childishly teasing grin on her face. Mokuba was sitting on the couch and pouting, the controller sitting next to him on the couch.

"Sorry Mokuba," she said playfully once her laughter subsided, "but you did say you were really good at this game. I figured holding back on you would be an insult. Besides, this happens to be one of my favorite racing games."

"I didn't even know there were girls that had even heard of this game, much less played it," Mokuba grumbled. "How did you start playing this game?"

"My friends in Tokyo love video games," she said, smiling a little. "We spent a lot of time in the arcades as a result. I like to play different types of games; it keeps me from getting bored. The only types of games I'm not fond of are shooters and sports games, although I have quite the soft spot for dancing games, as well as RPGs and fighters."

"Did you duel?" Mokuba asked. Kaiba listened with interest. Perhaps he could use this knowledge to help him figure out her strategies.

"Not with those friends," she admitted, "but I have a bunch of friends I duel with from time to time. Sometimes my friends that I met in Egypt fly out for a friendly little game, or they'd bring another friend of theirs who wanted to duel me. We usually just play on the mats, though. Nothing really fancy. There were a few times we came out to Kaiba Land for a duel, though. I have to admit, those were probably some of my favorite duels."

"Why do we have no knowledge of this?" Kaiba asked, revealing himself. He smirked when he saw her start and became even more amused when she glared at him and frowned.

She became serious as she said, "My friends always had connections. They were the ones who asked for an arena, so I never had to use my name or information. All you have to do is cross-reference my cards, though, and you'll easily be able to see some of my past duels. That's of no importance at the moment, though."

"And why is that?" Kaiba asked, eyebrow quirking once again. "Is there something that's more important you have to do suddenly?"

"Actually, there is," she said, "although I wouldn't call it sudden. I really must return home now. My family is no doubt expecting me, and I still have my own homework and phone calls to complete before I can get any form of sleep." She stood and looked over at Mokuba. "Sorry to have to cut it short, Mokuba. Maybe we can play more next time."

"Okay!" Mokuba said, grinning at the thought. Next time he would be ready for her. He was going to make sure to challenge her at something he would be sure to win. "See you tomorrow Yumi, and thanks for playing with me!" He watched her wave goodbye and noticed Seto look at him questioningly before turning to follow her.

"And how exactly were you planning on getting home? I know you sold the car you had in Tokyo," Kaiba said, frowning as he followed her.

"I was actually planning on walking. I'm not really worried about being robbed; I don't have any money on me, nor do I have my credit cards. Besides, my phone and laptop are completely useless to them. Even a complete idiot can see my things have heavy security systems."

"I'm not having my employee walk home," he said, scowling. He knew it would look bad for him if word got out his employee was walking back from his mansion, especially if something happened to her. He knew what sort of scum enjoyed lurking around the area at night. Not all of them were after money, either, and, judging by the reactions of their peers, she was supposedly attractive. The last thing he needed was for her to get into trouble. "I'll drive you."

"You really don't have to do that," she said, taken aback. "If you're that concerned, I can just take a taxi."

"You have no money. You said so yourself."

"I'll pay him as soon as I get home, then. I'll even leave the door open to prove I'm not trying to get out of paying him," she said seriously.

"Are you really that desperate to be out of my company?" he asked. "If so, why did you stay until I came back from Kaiba Corp.?"

"I didn't want to leave Mokuba alone," she answered honestly. When he eyes narrowed in suspicion, she sighed. "I guess you've heard that a number of times from secretaries who wanted to use Mokuba, so I won't ask you to believe me. I'll let my actions speak for themselves." She turned and began walking to the door.

"And where do you think you're going?" he asked, moving to block her path. She scowled when she was forced to stop, making him smirk. He was going to get answers from her. He was tired of people using his little brother to further their own ends. He growled as he remembered Pegasus and his attempts to use Mokuba to take control of Kaiba Corp.

"I'm going outside to wait for a taxi, what else?" she said angrily. "Look, I told you already, I don't want to use your brother to get to you. That's not fair to you, and it's certainly not fair to Mokuba. You asked me to take Mokuba home, but you never specified whether you wanted me to stay or not. I didn't know what to do, so I left the choice to Mokuba. I told him I would leave when you returned home because I needed to get home. If you don't believe me, ask Mokuba."

Kaiba growled at her condescending tone. He approached her and smirked as he noticed she was backing away. He placed his hands on either side of her the moment her back hit the wall. "Who do you think you are that you can speak to me that way? I could fire you right now, even put you in jail if I wanted."

"Go ahead then," she challenged. "Use all the power at your disposal. That doesn't mean you've beaten me. It only means you rush to conclusions before you know all the facts." Her eyes bored into his with an intensity he hadn't seen from anyone else. He released her and strode away angrily, unable to keep his composure at the fire in her eyes.

"Are you coming or not?" he asked without turning around, even though he had stopped. She frowned in confusion, unsure of what he meant. When she realized he was still offering her a ride, even after everything she'd said to him, she sighed, wondering at his stubbornness. She decided she may as well follow him, going through the door leading to his garage and seeing him get into a Mercedes. She couldn't help but eye the car enviously. It was quite the car.

Kaiba saw the way she looked at his car and smirked. Of course he owned top of the line cars. Why waste his money on anything less than the best? Clearly even she could appreciate that. He smirked even more when she admired the interior after getting in. "I didn't think you would be interested in cars, Makoto."

"I wasn't for a rather long time," she admitted. "Up until a few years ago, I never saw a point in having a car like this, nor did I really know one make or model from another. Sure, my guy friends admired them, but not me."

"Why the change of mind?" he asked smugly. Finally, he re was something in which she was normal.

"A guy I met in Egypt and I began talking. He was the son of one of the archeologists my father is very close friends with. He wasn't particularly obsessed or anything, but some of the cars he told me about I liked too. I figured I should at least start paying attention from then on."

"You liked him," Kaiba said, smirking more as he sensed something he could use to his advantage.

"I did," she agreed readily, making Kaiba look at her in surprise before turning his attention to starting the car. "That was some time ago, though. My tastes have improved drastically since then. Take this Mercedes, for example. Much as I like this car, or even a Lamborghini, my dream car is actually an Audi S5. Powerful, yet sophisticated, and it doesn't entirely break the bank, either."

Kaiba glanced over at her. He had to admit an Audi showed good taste. Even so, he was still doubtful of her intentions, especially given the double meaning of her statement. There were many who only said such things because they thought he would favor them, but he wasn't readily deceived. Besides, he still had to break her will and admit his superiority. He frowned when he heard her groan.

"If you keep this up, Kaiba, I will gladly reconsider the job," she threatened. "The only reason I'm your assistant is because it's the only job you were willing to offer me. If you really didn't want me interacting with Mokuba, then say so. If not, can we please drop the subject?"

He frowned more, wondering why she was being so uptight about the subject. It wasn't as though it was personal on her part anyway. He had his brother to protect, on the other hand, which meant it was incredibly personal to him.

"Kaiba, there is something I want to know," she admitted after a moment's silence. He glanced over to affirm he was listening before turning his attention back to the road. "I know Shinogame is coming on Sunday for a meeting. I was just wondering if—"

"If you would be allowed to attend the meeting?" he asked, smirking. She flushed slightly in embarrassment. "Why would I have my personal assistant going into meetings with me, Makoto?"

"Because this particular personal assistant can get you an even better deal with Shinogame Electronics," she said seriously. Kaiba scoffed. He highly doubted her ability to get better parts from Makoto Shinogame. Even if she could, it wouldn't require her being a part of his meetings. She was just bluffing in hopes he would buy her story and give her a little more power.

Yumi sighed and looked out the window. The truth was she knew better than to mention Shinogame's latest product at this time, but she was growing impatient at the thought of testig it with Kaiba's holographic technology. It was her project after all, hers and Kuro's. She knew Kuro would never give Kaiba the technology if he heard what her real job was at Kaiba Corp. The last thing she needed was Kuro's outrage getting in the way.

Kaiba stopped in front of her house and waited for her to get out of the car. He frowned when he noticed her hand pause on the handle.

"I just wanted to say thank you for driving me home," she said, "and for picking me up before work. It was very kind of you. I'll find my own way to and from work from now on, so you won't have to worry about it anymore." She opened the car door and put her feet on the ground. "I'll see you in school tomorrow." She stood and walked to the door, waving goodbye before pulling out her keys. She unlocked the door and went inside after watching him drive away.

"Who was that?" Tsuki asked as she watched her sister walk in the door. "It's not every day someone drops you off in such an expensive car. Was it Kaiba?"

Yumi sighed. She should have known Tsuki would have noticed. "Yes, that was Kaiba. He took me home after I stayed with Mokuba at the mansion. No doubt it was the closest he'll ever get to saying thank you. Oh, and before you ask, we didn't talk much. He's suspicious about why I stayed with Mokuba, and I'm still trying to understand why I can't sit in on that meeting with Shinogame on Sunday."

"Shinogame is coming?" Tsuki asked, objective forgotten as she stared at her sister. "What about Kuro? Is he coming too?" Yumi's silence made her worried. "You're afraid of how they'll react if they see you as his personal assistant. Do you really think Kuro would shut down the project?"

"We need those parts if we're ever going to take these holograms to a higher level. I don't mind telling him after, when it's just the two of us, but I don't want to make this personal."

"Tsuki, what have I told you about holding up your sister at the door?" Shinji said with an amused expression. "Let her at least go and change." He looked at his elder daughter and smiled at her aggravated expression. "Have you eaten yet, Yumi?"

"No," she admitted, "I hadn't even thought about it. Things were rather busy." Her stomach grumbled. "I guess my growing appetite is going to remedy that soon enough." She laughed. Shinji chuckled.

"There are some leftovers in the fridge. I didn't know if you would be eating here or not. I wasn't sure how much work you had to do."

"Thank you Father," she said, heading off to the kitchen after smiling gratefully. She groaned and rolled her eyes as she heard the two of them begin talking once she was out of the room. Some things would never change, she supposed.

"So, Kaiba drove her home," her father mused. Tsuki grinned knowingly. She knew her father would begin to see things her way soon enough. She knew this was a good sign; it meant the two were at least putting their pride aside long enough to get something accomplished. That was only the first step, though. It would be some time still before either of them would be willing to admit defeat.

"There is one slight problem, though," she admitted. "I don't know that Kuro will take Yumi and Kaiba's 'relationship' very well. He's sure to take Kaiba's challenges personally, despite what Yumi says. Hopefully he doesn't mess things up for her."

"I'm sure everything will be fine," Shinji asserted. "You know Yumi; she'll figure it out. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she gets in that meeting after all."

"You're probably right," Tsuki said, grinning. "She's my sister after all. Kaiba doesn't stand a chance against the Makotos!"

"You know, Tsuki, you never did tell me how your time at the arcade was," her father said, grinning as he watched her flush. He knew she hadn't been expecting him to ask about her day.

"Yes, Tsuki, I'm also quite curious about how your day was," Yumi said, smirking as he entered the room. Tsuki knew she was enjoying the revenge for her hints about her and Kaiba.

"Well, there really isn't a whole lot to talk about. Yugi, Tea, Tristan, Joey, and I went to the arcade. I played some DDR with Tea and then raced with the guys. Mostly, though, I just watched the guys play games. They're pretty obsessed," she admitted.

"Yes, well, they are gamers," Yumi said slyly. "I'm sure Yugi especially is quite the gamer." She was entirely enjoying her sister's distraction, knowing it was related to the day's events. Her day was getting better and better now that she had found herself something to use as ammunition.

"Yeah," Tsuki agreed, only realizing what her sister had implied after. She blushed an even deeper shade of red. "That was a cruel trick, Yumi!"

"This coming from the person who insinuated I would date Kaiba," she replied, smirking more. "I'm merely pointing out your reaction toward our mutual friend. What you want to admit about him, or your feelings for him, is your concern. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a lot to finish before school tomorrow." Yumi waved goodnight as she went to her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Tsuki sighed, knowing her sister would seclude herself the rest of the night. She supposed she would have to wait until tomorrow to get any information from her.

Responses to my commentators:

TsuKaza: Well, this one had a little of bit of everything it seemed. I hope you enjoyed it! Hopefully you'll like what comes next!

Jade the Grey: Thanks for the support! Hopefully this was worth all the wait!

Emily: Hopefully there was enough Mokuba in there for you!

Toxic-Tears-123: Thanks! Let me know if the characters ever go out of character!

Celesius: I admit this part is a bit Yumi/Kaiba centric, but that's really because I'm trying to introduce a few characters who really are quite close to the Makoto family. It's best done through Yumi because she is the only one who could bring about a duel Kaiba will actually pay attention to. After the duel, I have plans for Tsuki/Yugi. Stay tuned!

yamiyugi4eva: Haha, don't worry! There will be more Kaiba/Yumi action coming up!

Foscarrelli: I hope this took into account your advice at least some. I admit this part was already written by then, but I will keep this in mind when writing the next duel. I also hope I wasn't too... verbose this time.

DaAmazingMeepers: I'm really hoping the next few chapters, especially the duel, will make her seem less Mary-Sue. As for Tsuki, I think you'll see a different side of her soon enough as well. I hope you can bear it until then, but if not, please let me know.

xXchibitsukiXx: I'm glad you like the story! I hope this chapter was up to snuff.