"Wakey, Wakey, little brother." She said as the sunlight streamed through the window. Yugi was still groggy from jet lag, but he was not out of it enough to miss her jab.

"You're only five minutes older than me…" he said, his voice creaky. The excitement of his sister was infectious though as it spread to him through the bond they shared. She bounced excitedly on the bed they had both slept in that night, but he could feel that she was not as excited for the actual surprise as she was for him to receive it.

"Come on, sleepy head." She ruffled his hair before hopping from the bed and bounding to her own room.

Yugi stretched and looked out the window at the street below. Everything felt so different here that it disoriented him at first. It took him a moment as he watched the people outside walking their dogs or jogging in the morning sun to remember that he was indeed in America. He had not expected to sleep his first day away, but he had. His mother had warned him about the jet lag, and she had been absolutely correct. Now, though, it was time to get out and see her world. He had to admit that he was a little excited. As she had always told him during the many times she had tried to convince him to come with her and there mother, it would be an adventure. He dressed quickly and met Umi downstairs in the kitchen. Their mother was preparing breakfast and packing a lunch for herself.

"Umi, I put some money on your bus card and got one for Yugi to use while he's here. And I put some cash in your wallet for lunch and a little on your debit card for emergencies." Their mother looked haggard as she cooked some eggs. "I do not know how long I will be at the office. The symposium preparations aren't going as smoothly as we had hoped. So feel free to order dinner if you get home before I do."

"Thanks, Mom." Umi said as she ate quickly. Yugi watched the older woman as she worked. He was still unsure how their relationship would turn out after all these years, but he felt more optimistic about it since he had spoken up about how he felt. It had been like a weight was lifted from his chest, but he did not quite know where they would go from there. She had placed a plate in front of him with a fairly large sized omelet on it. He poked at it for a moment. It was much more food than he usually ate for breakfast—which was usually nothing since he rarely had time in the morning, but it smelled delicious. And once he had a bite, it seemed to vanish. His mother smiled as she put some toast on his plate as well.

"At least you have the appetite of a teen-aged boy." She said as she proceeded to clean the kitchen. Umi hurriedly finished her juice.

"Come on, Yugi. We don't want to miss the bus!" She called as she grabbed her bag and coat from the hallway. Yugi stuck the piece of toast in his mouth as he slipped on his own jacket and trotted after her.

"Have fun, you two!" he thought he heard their mother call after them as the door shut.

"So, what is this surprise?" Yugi asked as he settled next to her on the bus.

"Can't tell you yet." Umi pulled out a tattered old leather journal that her mother had given her years ago. "Hopefully they won't have left the shop before we get there." She flipped through the pages towards the back where her most recent sketches were located.

"What's that?" Yugi asked looking over her arm at the technical drawings. "It looks like some kind of vehicle."

"Sort of. It's the design improvements for the battle bot we've been building. It's been our off-season project while we are waiting for the new game to be released."

"New game?"

"For the robot." She said as if it were obvious. Yugi looked at her confused. "Not this robot. For the one we have to build starting in January. Every year we get a new game—a set of tasks really, that the robot has to accomplish. Every year it's different and we won't find out until kick-off, which is in a couple of weeks."

"I see. So it's like a sports season, with finite time to prepare before you are tested in competition."

"Yes, exactly."

"That's really cool, Umi."

"It's really fun too."

"So you work on the robot designs?" He flipped through a few of the pages, seeing all of the concept sketches of different robot designs.

"We all work on design. My specialty is CAD and building the pneumatics systems."

"You lost me." He flipped a few pages back to see some detailed schematics that he could not understand.

"CAD is computer assisted design or drafting. I make the designs on the computer that we can then use to cut pieces out properly. And pneumatics is air power, which is one of the ways we can get the robot to move and do what we want it to do."

"Oh." He took a deep breath. "I feel like I'll be… lost when it comes to talking with your friends." He admitted.

"It will be fine. Most of them like other things, like video games and Duel Monsters. Damn, do they like Duel Monsters… Anyway, I'm sure they would love to play some games with you."

"Maybe." He looked out the window at the people walking. Maybe I should have been here all along, he thought to himself.

"Come on," she tugged at his jacket at the bus pulled up to the stop. It was a short walk to the school and the workshop where Umi and her friends built robots. The place was surprisingly packed with students and mentors despite being a holiday. Yugi wondered if his own school's clubs prompted such devotion, but he had never bothered to join any. He simply had not wanted to subject himself to any more potential humiliation.

"Hey Umi!" A tall dark skinned boy who looked to be about seventeen called. "We're still waiting on Alex to get here before we can leave. Oh is this your brother?"

"Great, I thought we might be late. Tyrell, this is Yugi. Yugi, this is Tyrell. He's kind of like my mentor with all of the CAD work."

"Nice to meet you." Yugi said, painfully aware that his accent was thick and stilted.

"Umi tells me that you play Duel Monsters. We'll have to play while you're here." He grinned a big toothy grin.

"I'd like that." Yugi smiled despite his nerves. Even though everyone was working, they all greeted Umi and took time to meet him. It once again made him wonder if he had made the right decision to stay with his grandfather. But he also realized that he would have nothing to offer this group, except for a mascot or something.

"Yugi, this is Christa. She's on the art team and one of my best friends." Umi said, slinging her arm around a girl about their age with light blonde hair pulled back in a loose pony tail.

"Watch it, Umi! You'll mess up the decals!" Christa said, blowing a loose strand of hair from her eyes as she carefully placed a cutout vinyl shape onto a piece of metal. Once she had meticulously scraped the decal onto the metal and peeled away the backing, she looked up from her work satisfied.

"Hi Yugi. I've heard so much about you. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." She hugged him.

"Sorry, Yugi, I forgot to tell you that she's a hugger."

"Oh I'm so sorry. I just love meeting new people, but I do sometimes forget my place." Christa said, a blush creeping over her cheeks and into her hair. She let him go and bowed slightly instead. "What is it? Gomennasai?" Christa said in Japanese, while looking to Umi for assurance.

"Thank you." He said, returning her bow and smiling awkwardly. A loud voice boomed through the shop then.

"Where is Alex?" The voice asked. "He's holding us up!"

"Who's that?" Yugi asked Umi, his voice quiet as he switched back to Japanese.

"That's Coach Ed. He mentors the team. He's taking us on a little field trip today." Umi responded in kind.

"Field trip?" Yugi asked.

"My surprise." She smiled at him.

Another team member—Josh, Yugi recalled—leaned on Umi's shoulder in a way that seemed a bit too intimate to Yugi. Umi seemed to stiffen at the touch.

"It's so weird hearing you speak Japanese, Umi. Especially when you throw English words in there. It's like, weird, then normal for a couple of words and then weird again." He said.

Umi rolled her eyes. But he continued.

"And wow, your brother is short. Is he really your twin? He looks like twelve."

Umi slipped away from him and stood next to Yugi, placing a hand protectively on his shoulder.

"Um, yes, Josh. He's really my twin. And he's really fifteen." She replied, annoyance creeping into her voice.

"Yeah, well, Umi got all of the… what is it? Good DNA?" Yugi said. Josh laughed loudly at the joke, even though part of Yugi believed it completely.

"Sorry I'm late!" Someone called from across the room. The rest of the team groaned or otherwise made comments that seemed fairly mean and disrespectful to Yugi, but they were laughing, which confused him.

"Alex is always late. It's been a sort of running joke on the team." Umi explained.

"Finally." The man with the booming voice said. He called the team together and told them to get ready to leave. Umi put her arm through Yugi's as they gathered with the rest of the group going on the field trip.

"I'm sure I can count of you all being on your best behavior, right? Josh? Right?" he said looking at the gathered group of a bout twelve students before pointedly looking at Josh the too familiar trouble maker, as Yugi had labeled him. Yugi looked at the group. It was not the entire team, he noticed, as Umi's friend Christa and a few other people were still clustered around a table in the back of the room. He also noticed that Umi was the only girl in the gathered group. After a quick head count, the students walked out to a waiting school bus that would take them to their destination. The adult, Coach Ed, sat across from Umi and Yugi once he boarded the bus.

"You must be Umi's brother, Yugi." He said in stilted Japanese. "I apologize that my Japanese is bad."

Yugi's face lit up as he answered.

"No, it's fine." He answered in Japanese.

"I studied in college. I haven't had much chance to use it since."

"That's how I feel with English. I can read it alright because that is mostly what we learn in school, but speaking is difficult."

"Yes, it is. With Japanese it is the opposite."

Yugi nodded his head. He could imagine it would be difficult to learn the necessary kanji as an adult. He switched back to English.

"Anyway, I am glad you could join us. Umi tells me that you play Duel Monsters."

"I do." Yugi responded, taking the opportunity to practice the unfamiliar language.

"Then you should be in for a treat." He smile at Yugi before addressing the bus as a whole going over rules for behavior in the building. Yugi leaned over Umi to look out the window at the tall skyscraper the bus was now parked at.

"Industrial Illusions?" He asked, with a wide grin on his face.

"Surprise!" Umi said, nearly overwhelmed by his giddiness.

They had toured the design department, the art studios and the play testing stations and were back in the lobby of the building. And Yugi was in awe. Coach Ed had gathered them there to review further rules before continuing on the tour.

"Now, guys, and Umi. We were graciously granted permission to enter the production facility. My boss has even allowed the team access to their state of the art computer system for the season. We will be doing our art and CAD design here after hours." Umi giggled with excitement at the news. "So we are going to spend some time getting acquainted with the system, and getting you access from IT." He continued as a murmur went through the group of gathered students.

"I can't believe this." Umi whispered to Yugi. "They are supposed to have some of the most advanced design systems in the area."

"So this is good, right?"

"This is amazing."

Motion off to the side caught Umi's attention as a two tall men walked into the lobby. One had long white hair that obscured half his face and the other had short brown hair and was the younger of the two. Umi guessed he was not much older than Tyrell.

The murmuring of the group drew the attention of the younger man—a teenager, really, Umi thought. He then looked at her and their eyes locked. She followed him as the pair walked past to the elevator bank. And he kept his gaze on her until the door closed between them. He had the bluest eyes she had ever seen—except she could have sworn she had seen them before. They looked like the eyes from her dream. Her heart beat fast and she felt a jolt run through her, like she had accidentally touched an ungrounded wire.

"Umi?" Yugi asked at her elbow. "Are you alright?"

"Hmm?" she asked, feeling a hand slipping into hers. Looking over, she saw that Josh stood next to her protectively. Yugi held his hand on her shoulder and concern filtered through his violet eyes. She was thankful for them, even Josh, at that moment, as his eyes had sent her reeling and they helped to ground her.

"Yeah. I'm fine." She forced a smile. She might have convinced Josh, who let go of her hand then, embarrassed, but she could tell that she had not convinced her bother.

"Who are those kids in the lobby, Pegasus?" Seto Kaiba asked as he looked at the older man. He would not have called him a friend, per se, but he and the president of Industrial Illusions definitely had an understanding. They were united in their love of the game Pegasus had created, and Seto had also found him to be a reliable investor. It had taken longer and was much more troublesome to turn Kaiba Corporation's focus from military weapons design than he had anticipated. But Industrial Illusions and Pegasus had helped to provide the capital needed to do so when the price of Kaiba Corporation stock tanked during the restructuring. The rest of the board had called him a fool, and perhaps he was too idealistic for his own good, but he would not have the wholesale slaughter of the poor or the innocent on his conscience. Plus, making the change really felt like jabbing the knife into his adoptive father's back one last time.

"Oh, they are just a charity project. One of my employees mentor a robotics team at a local high school. We give them a modest donation each year, give employees time to work with the students and give them a space to work if needed, and we get a sizable tax write-off. And we get to build the pipeline for future employees who already have the skills necessary to work here."

"Saving you training time."

"Exactly, Kaiba-boy." Pegasus flipped his hair from his shoulder with a flourish.

"Interesting." High school kids building robots, he thought. It was not something he had ever considered others capable of. He did not doubt that he could do it, after all, what he was here to show Pegasus was bound to change Duel Monsters forever, but he was a genius and his adoptive father had drilled into him a success at all costs mentality.

"Indeed." Pegasus continued as the elevator rose. "And speaking of interesting, you seemed rather interested in one particular individual."

Dammit, he thought. He had hoped no one would notice, that he had not been too obvious. But once her eyes met his, he couldn't stop staring. There was something about her, something familiar, but he could not put his finger on it.

"She just seemed familiar, is all." He forced himself to be as neutral as possible as he stared at the silvered door ahead. Pegasus laughed.

"Oh, Kaiba. I've seen that look before. I've had that look before. There's nothing wrong with a little attraction." Pegasus leaned on his shoulder and whispered. "It just proves you're human, and not the robot you pretend to be."

Seto scowled as he knocked the older man's hand from his shoulder.

"I don't need your advice." He said coldly. Pegasus chuckled once more.

"Fine." He said, throwing his hands in the air in a sign of defeat. "But why don't we invite these budding young engineers and artists to your little demonstration?" he suggested as the doors slid open and he stepped out of the elevator. Seto picked up the silver case that he had placed next to him and followed him out. His stomach did a little flip at the suggestion, and he realized that he was nervous, but also excited by the prospect. He did not let either feeling show, of course. Gozaburo's years of training had taught him to never show emotion… unless it will help you get what you want.

"If you want." He placed the case on the table and began setting up the device he had brought with him to demonstrate. Pegasus just smiled as he picked up the phone.

Umi was waiting to have her ID card made when Yugi tapped her on the shoulder. His eyes were still concerned about the encounter earlier.

"I'm fine, Yugi." She said, trying to convince herself as much as him. Truth be told, she was still unsettled. "He just seemed familiar, is all."

"You keep saying that." Yugi replied.

"I do?"

"Yes, every time you see him."

She looked at him skeptically. She was sure she would have remembered meeting him before from the intensity of his eyes alone.

"A few years ago, he was on the television, and you said it then."

"Huh. I guess I forgot." The technician called her over then to take her picture for the card that would give her access to the design lab the team was using. "If I had known I was going to get my picture taken, I would have made myself look cute." She said to no one in particular.

"You always look cute, Umi." Josh said smiling at her. The young woman behind the counter chuckled as Umi pulled her hair out of the messy bun and finger brushed it into some sort of style.

"Smile." The young woman behind the camera said. Umi flashed her biggest smile, and Yugi thought Josh was right… Umi did always look cute. "These will be ready before you all leave." The technician said to the group of students as Coach Ed returned.

"Guys, we were just invited to Mr. Crawford's office to watch a demonstration that he thinks you all might be interested in. Some sort of new gaming technology."

The gamers in the group made various noises of excitement as they were herded toward the elevators the two tall men had entered earlier.

"I bet it was whatever was in the case that kid was carrying." Alex said.

"By 'that kid', if you mean Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corporation, ace computer whiz and one of the best duelists around, then you're probably right." Josh responded. "The dude's a freaking genius."

"Sounds like he's your idol there, Josh." Tyrell laughed. "I bet you have pictures of him decorating your locker and everything."

"Hey, I can appreciate another man's mind without it being gay." Josh said defensively. Umi rolled her eyes, laughing. Yugi looked at her in confusion until she explained the conversation to him in Japanese. They were still talking about it when they followed the group into the office. Yugi chuckled once he got the joke.

"I still don't understand why they act that way if they are friends." He said.

"You don't have to. It's just the way they are." Umi replied as her attention was drawn by the young man she had seen earlier. He was intently focused on making final adjustments to a device that was spread across the table before them. After Yugi had reminded her of where she had seen him before, she easily recognized him as the multi-billionaire phenom that Josh was always talking about. She felt her heartbeat quicken as she watched him work, totally focused on the task at hand. Once he was satisfied with his handiwork, he straightened and his eyes quickly found hers. A slow, almost predatory smile spread across his face.

"Children," The white-haired older man had called, drawing their attention. "I am Pegasus J. Crawford, and I just wanted to personally wish you the best of luck this year. You are visiting on a special day that I hope will inspire you to pursue great things this season and beyond." Umi felt his eyes on her. She tried to focus on the speaker, but she could not keep from glancing back at the intense blue eyes boring into her. She chewed on her lip in an effort to remain focused.

"My friend here has a new device that he says will change the Duel Monsters experience forever. Shall we let him show us what it can do?" Pegasus asked the gathered students.

"Right." The younger man said addressing the crowd, reluctantly pulling his eyes from Umi to do so. "What we have here is a prototype holographic dueling arena. This is a small scale version of the system, which is designed to scan the cards as they are played and bring them to life on the field here. There the holograms can participate in a realistic simulation of battle. It also simulates spell and trap effects on the field. It can be programmed to follow various rule sets as well. I had planned to demonstrate the system by playing Pegasus here, but if anyone else would like to help…" He looked pointedly at Umi. "How about you?" He asked closing the distance between them. "We could wager a kiss perhaps?" he said, dropping his voice to a rough whisper. She sucked in a breath and felt her face grow warm.

"Sorry, I don't play." She replied, breathlessly.

"A pity." His eyes were drawn to her lips and down her neck. He licked his own lips unconsciously. "Perhaps I could teach you."

Yugi watched the exchange uncomfortably. He could feel his sister's attraction to him, but the predatory way he approached her made him ill at ease. At the mention of teaching her to play Duel Monsters, however, Yugi had to stifle a laugh.

"No, you can't. She's terrible." He muttered under his breath. For a moment Umi was freed from his intense gaze as his eyes darted quickly to the short boy next to her.

"Hmm. I like a challenge. Besides, it sounds like good odds for me then." His blue eyes returned to her green ones, paralyzing her once more. He smiled at her, looking very much like a cat stalking its prey. She tucked her hair behind her ear. She wanted to play his game, but the intensity of him made her uneasy. She would have to show him that she is not such an easy conquest. But part of her wanted to give in to him right then.

A hand on her back released her from her paralysis and she let go of a breath she had not realized she had been holding.

"I'll play you." Josh said by her side. When she looked at her friend who she knew wanted to be more, she was shocked to see how hard and cold his brown eyes had grown. He looked dangerous and it scared her. The two young men each stared the other down.

"Only if the wager stands." His blue eyes had grown deadly.

"Josh, he's the Japan national champion." Yugi warned.

"Sounds good. Winner gets a kiss from the lovely lady." Josh replied, his eyes eyes narrowing.

"Wait, what? I am no one's prize." Umi said frantically looking between the two, her eyes lingering on the taller young man, as his blue eyes captured her again. He leaned toward her, whispering to her in Japanese.

"But you want me to win. I know you do." She shivered at his rough voice in her ear and the closeness of him. She tried to fool herself, but deep down she knew he was right.

"What did he say?" Josh's voice was tight.

"Do you have a deck?" Kaiba said turning to his opponent.

"Always." Josh replied.

"Then, let's duel." He turned on his heel and walked back to the table, instructing Josh on how to use it.

Umi turned her back on the entire proceeding. She was livid at how the two boys thought she could be so easily swayed. But she was also angry with herself for her sudden feelings for this stranger. Sure he had seemed familiar, but familiarity does not automatically breed the kind of attraction she had for him. And she could not deny that she was attracted to him. Yugi came to stand next to her, half keeping an eye on the proceedings at the table.

"Everything alright?" he asked.

"No." She said, feeling hot angry tears on her face. "This is stupid!" she said louder, so that the competitors could both hear her. "It is not the Middle Ages, you are not knights and I am no princess seeking to bestow her favor."

The lights in the room dimmed as the table came to life. As card after card was played, lights flickered and creatures sounded in miniature. But Umi did not care. She was too angry to even be curious.

"Whoa." Yugi said by her side. His attention was fully drawn to the table. Tyrell backed his way toward Umi, never taking his eyes off of the duel in progress.

"You really need to see this." He said. Umi reluctantly looked over her shoulder and then turned around in amazement. It was as if she could not control her body as she moved forward entranced by the technology on display. The monsters were real, or at least real enough. It reminded her of the holochess game in Star Wars, only the images seemed to have more substance. She reached the edge of the table and leaned over, much to the frustration of some of her teammates who no longer had a clear view of the board. She reached over the edge of the table and stuck her finger through one of the monsters on Josh's side of the field. It passed through, but not without some drag. It was not quite like passing her finger through water, but it was definitely thicker than air. She looked at the field, the card stations and the projectors. Yugi could feel her mind working, her curious nature trying to figure it out, but she came up empty. Finally, as he shattered one of Josh's monsters, she looked again at Kaiba, her anger dissipated.

"How did you do this? How does it work?" She ducked her head underneath the table, looking to see if there were any additional parts hidden away that she could examine closer. "What kind of holo-emitter is this? It's not strictly light, is it?"

He took his eyes off of his opponent then to look at her. He had thought that she was simply a cheerleader or one of the artists that Pegasus had mentioned, but as he watched her mind work, he realized that he had misjudged her. She disappeared under the table as she continued asking a barrage of questions.

"Don't touch anything, please." He said as he drew his next card and made his attack before crouching down to see her laying on her back staring up at the wiring. "I'll tell you all about it over dinner." He suggested, hopefully.

"I…" she lifted her head and looked at her brother standing across the room. "I can't." She was surprised by the disappointment in her voice.

Seto shook his head, trying to clear it. She had suddenly gotten the upper hand with her curiosity and he could not have that.

"Well, I'll give you a hint if you agree to the conditions of this duel." He suggested. She was so engrossed in trying to puzzle out the system that she did not pay much attention.

"Fine, whatever." She crawled out the other side of the table and dusted herself off before pulling her hair back in a loose bun. Straightening, Seto quickly assessed the situation on the board and the cards in his hand. He finished the match that turn. Josh stood there dumbfounded.

"But… how?" he asked after a moment of contemplation.

"You're just not that good, man." Alex said from the peanut gallery.

The lights came back up as the monsters on the field faded. Seto stepped around the table to Umi, who looked on the now darkened field with disappointment.

"My hint?" she asked, looking over at him. He caught her chin in his hand and captured her eyes once again before ever so lightly brushing his lips against hers. She felt as if the world had stopped with his touch. There was something warm, yet electrifying in it. She found herself pressing her lips against his much more forcefully than she had intended. His lips answered hers as his hand slid from her chin, around her neck and into the thick black hair at the base of her neck. She slipped her hands under the lapels of the suit coat he word, pulling him closer, not wanting him to stop. Slowly, so very slowly, she heard her earlier anger at the wager made without her consent. It took great effort to overcome her desire, but she eventually pushed him away. When their eyes met once more, she saw a vulnerability in them that she had not noticed earlier but it was quickly hidden behind the intense mask of ego.

"You're sure you're too busy for dinner?" he asked in Japanese, his deep voice rough with desire.

"My hint, Mr. Kaiba." She slipped further away from him in an act of self-preservation. His electric touch was threatening to burn her up, but part of her welcomed it, longed for it, even. The further away she got, the more the rest of the world seemed to form around her, as if it was part of a hologram produced by his invention. Yugi reached out to her through their bond. Her senses had been so overwhelmed that she had not felt him at all, but now she could sense his worry. She backed toward him, and away from the abyss threatening to swallow her that was Seto Kaiba.

"Fine." He sighed. "Base frequency is 650 terrahertz with a cool plasma medium. The entire table is covered with it. Varying the frequencies help to form the different shapes."

She thought about it for a long moment, chewing on her lip as she thought.

"I think you broke physics, Mr. Kaiba." She said at last. He chuckled deep in his throat.

"Most impressive demonstration, Kaiba-boy." Pegasus said. "Now I think our lovely guests have work they need to get to, right Edward?"

"Yes sir, we do." He started herding the team out of the room. Umi lingered a moment, feeling the weight of his intense stare on her.

Yugi sat in the workshop discussing the duel that happened earlier with Tyrell and Alex once they had returned to the school. Josh sat pouting and occasionally staring at Umi, who was completely engrossed in the creation of her designs in the computer workstation. She was pointedly ignoring all of them. Yugi glanced at his sister periodically, sensing her inner turmoil.

"How he completely smashed Josh in one move. It was incredible." Alex said. "Like poetry." Tyrell raised his eyebrow at the analogy. Yugi laughed.

"He is very skilled." He said diplomatically.

"And from what I hear, Kaiba didn't even use his most powerful monsters. Apparently he has a Blue Eyes White Dragon, and when he plays it, he's unstoppable."

"Can you all just stop?" Josh said angrily from the other side of the shop. Yugi looked over at him. It was obvious now that Josh was interested in his sister. Yugi felt kind of sorry for the guy given how throughly entranced she had been with Kaiba. Granted she wasn't one of the fawning fan girls that seemed to populate his school, but it still must have been hard for the guy, especially since he had been such a fan himself of the young genius. Yugi looked over at Umi, feeling the storm swirling within her. She had headphones in so she could not hear the conversation, but Yugi had no doubt that she was replaying the events that occurred at Industrial Illusions. To everyone else she just seemed lost in her work.

"So, Yugi, how do you feel about what happened? I mean, Umi is your sister." Tyrell asked. "Truthfully, she's been like a little sister to all of us."

"Umi is Umi. She can make her own decisions." He said after a moment of consideration. As much as he loved his sister, and as much as they shared, he had such a peripheral role in her life that he did not feel right intruding on her decision making. "You all probably have more right to question them than I do."

"But she's your twin. And all the twins I know have that weird twin sense thing going on." Alex said.

"Yeah, but she's her own person. I wouldn't think of telling her what she can and can't do. But… it was… uncomfortable." Yugi admitted.

"Which part? The tension between her and Kaiba or him and Josh fighting over her?" Alex pried.

"Can't it be both?" Yugi asked. Tyrell laughed.

"Spoken like a true brother." He said, wiping a tear from his eye. "Man, my sister is still in middle school. I'm glad I'll be off at college by the time she's dating."

Yugi smiled, feeling a sense of camaraderie for the first real time in his life.

"So, Umi says you're in ninth grade? How does that work?" Alex asked. "If you're her twin and all.

"Oh, Um. We start school in April, and since we were born in June, I wasn't old enough to start school the year she did. She and mom moved here before we both started. So she was old enough to start in in August, a year ahead of me."

"And you're still in junior high?" Alex probed. Tyrell went over to comfort Josh, who was still nursing his pride.

"Yeah, high school starts in tenth grade. But it's not required and we have to take placement tests to see if we get into different schools. It's nothing like this."

"So where do you want to go to high school?" Yugi laughed at the question.

"I'll be lucky to get into the city general high school. I'm not especially talented and my scores are not that good." He admitted. "And if not, I will just work with my grandfather… our grandfather, at the game shop."

It was then that one of the mentors called Alex over to help with one of the many projects, leaving Yugi alone. He went over to watch his sister work. She had not really spoken since the duel ended at Industrial Illusions. He could tell she was deep in thought, but he could also sense that she was avoiding the elephant in the room. She jumped in her seat when he put his hand on her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" he asked once she removed her headphones.

"Oh, you scared me."

"Sorry to break your focus."

"No, it's fine. I've been moving the same piece around for the last half hour or so. I just can't figure it out right now." She looked at the clock and her eyes bugged out. "We should probably get going anyway. Anything you want for dinner?" she asked before calling across the shop to let a mentor know that she was leaving.

"Not really. Something you like will be fine."

Umi smiled, knowing exactly what she wanted. She and Yugi said their good byes and left to get dinner on the way home.

"Your friends are nice." He said on the bus ride back to her house. She had been staring out the window for some time, and her silence was beginning to make Yugi uncomfortable.

"Yeah." She turned to him, smiling. "They are pretty great."

"And Josh… he seems to really like you." There was a question hidden in the statement, but Yugi felt it unwise to ask aloud. Umi sighed.

"He's always trying to protect me, to fight battles I need to fight myself. He treats me like a fragile doll. I know it's because he likes me, but I…"

"You don't like him the same way." He finished the sentiment.

"Not at all. I mean, he is cute enough, but how he treats me as this delicate thing that can do nothing for herself… it just grates on my nerves."

"Have you ever told him that?"

She laughed mirthlessly.

"I give him all sorts of hints that I'm not interested and why. He's too stubborn to figure it out."

"Or maybe too dense." The observation made Umi chuckle.

"He is pretty dense." She said smilingly. Her grin made Yugi smile. But his smile faded quickly as she turned her introspective gaze back out the window. He took a deep breath. His sense of her felt like she was standing within a windstorm or at the center of a hurricane. Her emotions were whipping around out of control. He needed to ask, but he did not want to face the wailing storm within her.

"And Kaiba…" he started, tentatively. It felt as if winds had suddenly stopped within the place that her heart lived inside of him. She kept looking out of the window.

"I don't want to talk about it." Her voice was flat. Yugi was hesitant to continue, but he wanted to help in anyway he could, and right now she seemed like she needed to talk about it, even if she said she didn't want to.

"That's fine." He said. "But it was just… really intense. Scary intense." She looked at him then. Her eyes were fearful and she was shaking slightly.

"That's an understatement." She admitted. "It felt like I wasn't myself. I… wanted him so badly, but I don't know why." She hugged herself. "As soon as he walked into the room, it was like I was a different person."

Yugi wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned his head against hers.

"I could barely feel you." She said. "All I could think about was him. And when he kissed me…" She closed her eyes at the memory. "It was both the most wonderful and the scariest thing I have ever experienced."

"He asked you to dinner, didn't he?"

"Yeah." She sighed. "I wanted to say yes. Anything to be lost in him for a little longer."

"But you didn't." He noted, with a bit of pride eking into his voice.

"Well, I couldn't leave you alone, now could I?" She smiled at him.

"I don't know. If you had gone, I would imagine that you would have needed a chaperon. He definitely seemed to have less than innocent intentions." He shot back, playfully.

"And what do you know about that?" she teased.

"Hey, I am fifteen." He retorted. "Even if I look twelve."

Umi laughed before pushing him to get out of the seat.

"It's our stop."

They hurried off of the bus and stood on the street corner near Umi's home.

"So, dinner? I'm starved." Yugi said, looking around.

"And I have the perfect solution." She grinned at him as she grabbed his hand and practically dragged him to the pizza place down the street.

Seto Kaiba sat alone at the table of his penthouse suite overlooking the city below. It was always a bittersweet feeling for him, watching the world pass by from such a height above. Often times it was a thrill for him, a physical representation of the power he held over others. The feeling was ingrained in him by the teachings of his adoptive father. Gozaburo had always told him to seek power above all things, and looking out over the city, he could feel that power.

But other times, the isolation that came with being at the top was overwhelming. It was one of those nights. His encounter with that girl earlier had set him ill at ease. He had thought she was pretty, to be sure, but he had expected a little game, something for fun. He did not expect to still be thinking about her. No one ever stayed in his thoughts for that long. Kissing her had been like standing in the middle of a hurricane—that was on fire; it was fierce and wild and it scared him. But at the same time it was like being wrapped in the warmest of blankets on a cold day; it had been warm and comfortable and he wanted nothing more than to be there again. It had left him longing, wanting. And it had been a lifetime since he had felt either.

And he didn't even know her name. All he know was that she had the brilliant green eyes he had ever seen, that her black hair was thick and silky and that he wanted to clench his fists in it as he pulled her body against his.

But she had rejected him.

He wasn't sure why. In fact, he was fairly certain that she had wanted him in that moment as much as he wanted her. He pushed the plate of food he had been toying with away. He sat there, staring into empty space, but could only see her defiant eyes. He hated not getting what he wanted.

He picked up the phone.

"Hobson." He said when the call was answered. "How's Mokuba?" The younger Kaiba had protested being left behind on the trip, but he had come down with the flu a few days before he left and Seto had not wanted to prolong his illness.

"Master Mokuba is doing well. His fever is down, but he's still coughing pretty badly."

"Is he awake? I'd like to talk to him if I can." In the background over the phone, Seto heard his little brother asking who what on the phone. He smiled, realizing how much he missed not having him on the trip.

"Big Brother!" Seto heard through the phone.

"Hey, Mokuba. Feeling better?"

"Yeah. Hobson has let me sit around watching anime and eating ice cream."

"Ice cream, huh? Don't you think you should eat something a little better for you?"

"But it feels good on my throat, Seto."

"Fine, just make sure you eat something else too. Please?"

"Alright. So, how did the meeting go?" Mokuba asked.

"It went…" Seto paused, not knowing how much he wanted to tell his little brother. "It went well."

"Huh." Mokuba replied. "Then why do you have your 'I have a problem that I need to fix voice' and not your 'everything is going according to plan' voice?"

"I wasn't aware there was a difference."

"Oh yeah. You sound totally different when you're trying to figure something out."

Seto frowned as he thought about it. He hated being that transparent, even to Mokuba.

"Pegasus is very interested in the technology. So it went well. It's just that… something else happened, but don't worry, I'm taking care of it." Though he wondered just how much of what he said had been true. "Listen, Mokuba. I'm meeting with Pegasus tomorrow to finalize some details, but I'll be home hopefully tomorrow night. You'll be alright?"

"Yeah, sure Seto. And you'll be alright too, yeah?"

He smiled into the phone, wondering how his little brother had always seemed to read his mood, even over the phone.

"I'll be fine."

"Whoever she is, she must be pretty special, Big Brother."

"Good night, Mokuba." He said, closing his eyes and imagining the hug he would otherwise be receiving as he hung up the phone. A knock on the door pulled him away from his thoughts of his brother.

"Sir?" his valet, Roland asked through the heavy wood door. "I brought a girl like you asked."

Seto made quick work of the long walk to the door. Mokuba's statement at the end of the phone call had unnerved him and had brought her crashing back into his thoughts like a meteor. He knew needed a diversion and had sent Roland out to find one. He pulled the door open to find a woman who looked to be ten years his senior, but otherwise had the characteristics he had requested—green eyes, black hair. But he felt nothing of the pull he had to the girl with no name.

"My, my, you are young." She said in a way that he assumed was supposed to be seductive. He had found the girl's technical questions far more enticing. She looked him over and smiled, but he knew what she saw—dollar signs. He found more beauty in the girl's fascination than in the entirety of this woman leering at him.

"I may be young, but I'm also the one paying you. So just do your job." He ordered as he let her into the suite.

"Not much for small talk, I see. Well then, let's get down to business." She said as she moved to him.

It was over as quickly as it had begun, but only because he found himself disgusted with the woman. He had found it impossible to not compare her to the girl who had set his soul on fire, the girl who had so intruded on his mind. This woman, on the other hand, had been measured and weighed, and found lacking. When he had spent himself upon her, he strode naked to the window and looked out over the city once more. She was down there, somewhere. He just knew it. But he wondered if he would have the courage to find her.

"So…" the woman in his bed started toward him.

"Get out." He replied coldly, continuing to gaze at the city below as she gathered her things and left. He did not bother to look back as the door slid shut. He knew that Roland would take care of it. Physically, he was sated. But he still found himself longing for her. Maybe it was the intelligence behind her eyes, someone who could understand his interests and even approach his level of genius? He could not say.

And still, he did not even know her name. Sighing, he sat on the couch and pulled his laptop onto his knees. He had to find her. He was able to utilize his temporary access codes to the Industrial Illusion servers and from there gain access to their human resources files. Pegasus had told him that the students were given access to a couple of computer labs for their work, so they would have all gone through human resources and IT. He laughed at how easy it was for him to get into both. He passingly wondered if he should tell Pegasus how weak his defenses were, but decided against it. After all, one should never give up any advantage over another, and he might need an easy back door should he ever find himself on the opposite side of Pegasus. Once he was in, he thought it was surprisingly easy to find what he was looking for—a name, Umi Muto. But, he got more than just that. The file also had a copy of her identification card picture. He found himself staring at it before he saved the image to his own device. He also found that he was able to access the files she had already placed on the server. It was mostly made up of several CAD designs for a small competition robot. Just from the designs, Seto concluded that it was designed to compete in one of those battle bots demolition sort of things. He thought such contests were a waste, but despite that, he was impressed with the simplicity and effectiveness of the design. Eventually he passed out while trying to uncover anything he could about her.

Umi and Yugi sat on the bed in her room after dinner. They had met up with Umi's friends, Christa and Theresa. Umi was happy to see her brother having so much fun with her friends. She could sense that he felt lighter than he had in a long time. He was smiling far more than any other time she had visited with him. She could still feel some tension between him and their mom, but she guessed that it would take time to repair that relationship.

"So this is what it feels like." He said softly.

"What what feels like?"

"Having friends." He answered. She could feel the sadness in his voice weighing heavily upon her. She took his hand in hers.

"Now that you've been here, what do you think about moving here?" It had been a sticking point with them before. She had hoped that he would consider the possibility now that he knew what he might miss by going back.

"I… I don't know. Maybe."

She smiled, realizing that it had been a hard fought battle to just get to this point. He continued.

"You know, if I don't pass my entrance exam, I think I will. What have I to lose then, right?" He said smiling up at her.

"I'll take that!" she giggled. "By the way, I think Theresa likes you."

"What?"

"Well, she called you adorable, and said something about eating you up." She admitted. Yugi blushed heavily. Umi laughed at his embarrassment. Yugi rolled off the bed.

"Alright, then. I'm going to sleep." He said as he headed for the door.

"Good night, Yugi." She said, still giggling.

"Good night."

She was still chuckling to herself as he closed the door separating their rooms. She crawled under the blankets to let sleep take her, but every time she closed her eyes she saw the fragility in his blue eyes being eclipsed by the hard mask that he wore for the world. She did not know him, other than by reputation, but she realized then that she may have known him more deeply than nearly anyone else in the world.

A/N: Shout out to the FIRST-ers out there! Way to pre-kickoff build season!