Disclaimer: (this is just too depressing) I don't own Yugioh, Rurouni Kenshin, Yu-Yu Hakusho, Hikaru no Go, Stargate SG-1, Robotech, Dragonlance, D&D, etc, etc…it just goes on and on and on and on… I do however own some Victoria's Secret but then again what woman in her right mind can resist the lure of its semi-annual sale!

Author note: A series of slashes (i.e./) signifies flashbacks

Chapter 3: Envisioned beginnings…

"So you got a lecture from Mrs. Mutou about pranking," Seto began, trying to get back to the story.

"Yes and my advice is: never find yourself on the receiving end of a Kiki Mutou lecture!" Aoshi smirked in amusement at the memory.

"Too late!" Seto responded mirroring Aoshi's smirk.

"Oh…It wouldn't have anything to do with a recent incident at your new Duel Dome would it?" Aoshi asked, slightly amused as he placed another stone on the board.

"How'd you guess," Seto replied sarcastically. The incident with the god cards and the pyramid of light had been all over the news. The official story that ran was that Yugi and his friends were helping him test his new holographic dueling system and a malfunction on the system had caused an overload in all the electrical systems and the resulting explosion destroyed part of the dome. The story ran with the implication that maybe ex-Kaiba Corp employees might have sabotaged the system. Though he was starting to trust Aoshi, he wasn't sure he wanted to share the details about that duel or about the millennium items. At least not yet…

"So what happened next?" Seto asked trying to steer the conversation back to the topic of Aoshi's past as he captured one of Aoshi's stones. Aoshi watched Seto as the teenager concentrated on the Go board and made his move.

'No, I didn't think he would share what really happened' Aoshi thought 'I still have a long way to go…'

"Well, Tak felt pity for us and bailed us out, after that we returned to our game…" Aoshi explained.

/

"Well, now this is a surprise!" Tak exclaimed as he tallied up the points on the board. This was the first time Aoshi had beaten him, and without a handicap no less! Tak was impressed. Kiki had gone to the back room to input last night's shipment in the computer. Tak called back to her to come and look as he pulled out a notepad that looked like graph paper and a few different colored pencils and began making a chart of the game they just played. He decided right then and there he would get Aoshi to take the Insei exam figuring that by next year Aoshi would be ready to take the Professional test. Kiki stepped out of the back room for a minute to offer Aoshi congratulations as well a knowing wink as she saw how close Misao stood! Then stepped back into the office…

"You must be his lucky charm," Tak whispered conspiratorially to Misao who blushed fiercely. Tak smiled and went back to making his chart. He knew Aoshi would need three charts of three different games he has played; a sponsor and pass an entrance exam. The sponsor would be no problem Tak knew his father Sugurouko would be more than happy to sponsor him.

The entrance fee might be a little problem but perhaps it was time to give Mr. Shinomori another progress report on his son. Besides one of the parents of the Insei applicant was required to be present and if he played his cards right (which he always did) he would easily be able to get Mr. Shinomori to participate. He smiled the added bonus of little Misao's triumphant return was going to make this Aoshi's best year ever!

"Oh no! Lord Aoshi has always been very smart! I'm sure it was just a matter of time…" she laughed nervously and tried to change the subject by asking about the cards Tak had behind a glass case. It was lucky Tak totally missed the blush on Aoshi's cheeks from her compliment or else the teasing would've been endless.

While Tak excitedly explained his favorite game: Duel Monsters, the door chimed again. Shuura had returned with five of her classmates. Kurama rushed towards the counter and encircled Misao in a tight hug lifting her clear off the ground. Aoshi frowned he wasn't sure why it bothered him that Kurama was being so affectionate. The Himura brothers (Kenshin and Kurama) had always been affectionate towards her.

"Misao! I want you to meet some of our new friends!" Kurama enthused as he introduced Yusuke Urameshi, Keiko Yukimura, Hiei Mozuko and Kazuma Kuwabara. Keiko was first to step forward and cheerfully greet her and it was no surprise when the two girls hit it off right away. Hiei merely nodded respectfully but like the good loner that he tried to be he kept his distance. Kazuma waved and cheerfully greeted her from the spot on the floor where he had joined Sano in entertaining the little ones. Yusuke looked at her tilting his head slightly to one side thoughtfully examining Misao's face.

"You know I think you really do look a little bit like a weasel…" he finally said in a deeply pensive tone. Aoshi was a blur of angry motion! In an instant he was in front of Yusuke, his face mere inches away from Yusuke's!

"Take it back!" Aoshi growled between clenched teeth his eyes burned with rage. Misao gasped in horror she hated it when Aoshi fought because of her.

"Oh, ho, ho! What's this? The Iceman's all riled up! Well, what ya gonna do about it Shinomori?" Yusuke challenged a mischievous grin on his face. Ever since Aoshi had started working for Tak he had stopped fighting and Yusuke missed those days when he could square off against his buddy and just have it out. For Yusuke fighting was a hobby, a passion he indulged in whenever possible. That he had lost his best opponent was something he mourned on an almost daily basis. He allowed himself only an instant of guilt for picking on an innocent just to get his old sparring buddy back as the two boys squared off.

"YUSUKE! AOSHI!" Tak's voice boomed across the shop freezing both teenagers to their spots the transformation that came over the man caught Misao by surprise! Everyone turned to look at Tak with his back straight and his arms across his chest he leveled both boys with an ominous glare. It was almost as though he had transformed into a different person. His voice became deeper and his posture was stiff and dominant. The cheerful easy going man of just a moment ago seemed to have disappeared and in his place was an imposing figure that instantly commanded the respect of every teenager in the room.

It was very surprising to Misao and a little frightening. Her father had a similar switch but his transformations usually meant big trouble for her. She firmly shook that thought away! She could tell that Lord Aoshi trusted him and he wouldn't do that if he were evil like her father. Tak was very strict when it came to violence especially in his shop. His shop was a haven for teenagers wanting to stay out of trouble but in return Tak expected them to follow his few but important rules: No Drugs; No Alcohol; No Swearing and last but not least; No fighting!

"You know the rules!" he intoned gravely. Both Yusuke and Aoshi backed off and mumbled apologies to Tak. Aoshi mentally kicked himself. He should've known Yusuke would try to bait him! He was always trying to get him to fight again! Now not only was Tak mad but as he cast Misao a quick sideways glance he could tell she was upset too! Both Misao and Keiko suddenly rounded on Yusuke.

"Yusuke! This is a new low for you!" Keiko almost shrieked at him. Yusuke merely grinned embarrassedly.

"I didn't mean…" he squeaked but Misao cut him off…

"You could've gotten Lord Aoshi in trouble!" Misao growled. Aoshi placed a hand on her shoulder to keep her from flying at him. Misao's temper was sometimes as big as her mouth!

"I'm sorry! Really I didn't mean it! I was just trying to see if Aoshi still had fighting spirit that's all! He's such a goody-goody these days it's boring!" Yusuke whined. This merely incensed Keiko and Misao further!

"SO WHAT'S WRONG WITH THAT!" both girls yelled at him. Yusuke just grinned ruefully and scratched the back of his head. Aoshi shook his head as he heard everyone snickering slightly trying hard not to laugh out loud at Yusuke's predicament.

"What possessed you to say something that idiotic anyway?" Keiko huffed angrily.

"Shuura told us some stories about their old days in elementary school and I just wanted to see if it was true!" Yusuke cheerfully explained as though it was the most natural and logical thing to do. Keiko looked like she wanted to tell Yusuke all sorts of nasty things and her face started turning red from the effort of keeping it in. Misao looked at Aoshi in confusion she couldn't understand what was making this girl hold off her rampage. He pointed to a sign on the wall by the register the title on the sign read: Tak's Store Rules and Misao nodded in comprehension when she saw the "No Swearing" rule.

"You're such a nimrod!" Keiko finally spat out. Yusuke just snickered softly and put an arm around her shoulders which she quickly slapped off!

"Oh! I'm sure that all sorts of not so lady-like names for me will occur to you as soon as we leave!" Yusuke teased.

"Yusuke! You are such a…a…" Keiko began angrily but once again Tak's rule put a screeching halt on her charge.

"Ding-dong?" Misao supplied helpfully a silly grin on her face and the shop exploded once again in laughter perpetrated again by the little cheerful girl. Tak watched fascinated as even Hiei laughed. Misao was truly the much needed last piece of the puzzle. She turned to look at him and he returned her cheerful smile with one of his own. She cheerfully bounced back to the counter Aoshi followed and Tak threw him a mischievous wink. Aoshi frowned…

"Hey Tak; it's really amazing how you can make them stop fighting with just a couple of words!" Misao pointed out in her usual chipper tone.

"I detest violence above all things Misao and I don't want the boys to be swept up in the senselessness of it," he replied seriously. Misao gave him a big smile and she knew that never again would she ever compare Tak to her father! Her father was an abomination but Tak was a good and kind man who cared about all the kids that came to his shop! She was extremely happy that Lord Aoshi was friends with someone like him.

"Of course that's not to say that Tak can't fight!" Aoshi interjected smirking proudly. Tak was about to protest but his wife, who had come back out from the office when she heard Tak's voice change, cut him off.

"No hon…I think you better let them tell!" she said with a strange blazing look in her eyes that made the girls giggle. It was Tak's turn to blush!

"Ah yes! Now there was a fight to remember!" Yusuke began in an overly dramatic tone. Kazuma who was just as much of a fight enthusiast as Yusuke joined in then.

"You'd never think to look at him but Tak can really get goin' when the goin' gets tough!" he added. Kurama joined in then too.

"Was that seven or eight guys?" he asked casually,

"Eight," replied Aoshi non-chalantly and Misao's eyes went wide with amazement!

"Aw, I just chased away a bunch kids that's all!" Tak countered modestly.

"Chased away! Are you kidding those guys could barely move!" Yusuke exclaimed his face alight with sheer joy!

"Yeah, kids that were twice as big as you were!" Sano put in sarcastically at the same time.

"Yes sir they were quite big, that they were!" Kenshin commented then laughed in amusement.

"Man, I would've paid good money to see Tak fight! It's not fair!" Shuura whined. Again Tak shrugged,

"They were just kids!" Tak repeated somewhat embarrassed by the attention but mostly the look his wife was giving him.

They explained that a couple of years ago Yusuke, Hiei, Kazuma and Kurama had gotten into a fight with a powerful gang comprised of twelve rather large thugs. Aoshi, Kenshin and Sano had asked Tak for help. Tak had instructed them to call Sano's dad (who is a police officer) while he went over there and helped the boys. Sano had called but they had all rushed out to help Tak. They reached the scene in time to watch Tak single-handedly take down eight guys! He was a blur of motion that would've made Jet Li proud!

"Wait a minute…Yugi's Father could fight!" Seto interrupted incredulous. Aoshi smirked proudly.

"Oh yes…Tak could fight!" he assured Seto as he put another stone on the board. They hadn't even reached the middle of their game but already Aoshi could tell he was starting to gain some ground. It was a good sign! It meant that his opponent was more interested in what Aoshi had to say than the game and it was exactly what he was hoping. His hope was to give Seto the gift his Sensei had given him. Seto was just about to turn seventeen. It was the same age Aoshi had been then too…

"See, the thing about Mutous is that they hate fighting. They abhor violence and so they were forbidden to learn any form of martial arts. Except Tak who was so fascinated by Bruce Lee movies that he defied his father and went to learn Karate and Kamiya-Kasshin swordsmanship." Aoshi explained as he recounted the day Tak had laid waste to the "Jolly Devil" Gang. Hiei showed up then and pulled a seat near the two Go players.

"I wondered how long it would be before you finally joined us!" Aoshi commented amused as Hiei joined them. The man shrugged, just like Aoshi, Hiei hated social gatherings but for love of his surrogate family he tolerated it. But only to certain extent! He asked Aoshi how the game was going. Seto quietly watched the interaction between the two men soaking in every bit of information that came his way. He was fascinated by the fact that Hiei also had that aura of power that Aoshi had and now he was incredible curious as to how they got it and how he could get it too!

"Not so good…I'm still behind and gained little ground but I haven't played in such a long time I'm not surprised by my weak game skills," he replied as he studied the board carefully. Hiei snorted derisively

"Sensei would probably tell you that's no excuse for losing!" he pointed out and chuckled in amusement. Aoshi chuckled along with him to Seto's complete surprise!

"You're right! She will say that!" Aoshi agreed with a frown as Seto played his move. Seto's new move negated the ground he had thought he had just gained in his previous move. Seto smirked proudly but his smirk vanished at the calculating looks Aoshi and Hiei were studying him with.

"What weapon do you suppose Sensei would teach him?" Hiei asked studying Seto with a shrewd calculating stare.

"Staffs…" Aoshi replied automatically. "She's been dying to teach someone who will specialize in staff weapons," he explained. Seto frowned 'When did I agree to be taught anything by this mysterious Sensei?' he thought but at the same time he realized that if he wanted their kind of power he would have to walk a similar path to theirs.

"Staffs like this one?" Seto asked pulling his Millennium Rod out of his belt loop and extending it to its full four feet in length with a mental command.

"Not bad…Sensei will be overjoyed," Hiei commented amused. Aoshi frowned and studied the item pensively as Seto held it out for their inspection.

"How long have you had the Millennium Rod?" Aoshi asked suddenly surprising the hell out of Seto! Hiei just shrugged he was used to Aoshi's weird insights. That the man knew something about Seto's weapon that he didn't was no surprise to him.

"Not long…" he answered cautiously he opened his mouth to ask the logical next question but Aoshi seemed to read his mind.

"I saw it for the first time on my first trip to Egypt with Sensei. A friend of hers showed it to us but I was under the impression that it was some sort of sacred family heirloom and no one was allowed to touch it. How is it that you have it?" Aoshi wondered aloud intrigued by the millennium items presence here. Sensei had warned him that the resurfacing of the millennium items as well as other powerful alien technology meant the world would undergo another great change. She was unsure of how that change would come about but she had advised him to remain vigilante!

"I won in it in a duel," Seto replied simply putting the rod back in the belt loop he kept it strapped to. That made little sense to Hiei but resolved to wait until later and get clear answers from Aoshi. To Aoshi it made perfect sense only those with great willpower could control the millennium items. Not only that but according to Sensei you need to be genetically compatible with the item's original creator in order to activate its powers.

Seto studied the board intensely again and this was a bad sign. It meant Seto was ready to clamp up again and the ground Aoshi had just gained on the road to winning Seto's trust would be lost. Obviously the millennium items were a touchy subject with Seto and Aoshi knew he had a long way to go before the boy would trust him enough to open up about it. But the mere fact that Seto had shown him the item meant he was making good progress. He decided to change tracks…

"Hiei, I was just telling Seto about that time Tak took down the Jolly Devil Gang," Aoshi informed him changing the subject back to his past. Hiei always quick to catch on played along.

"A yes, Yusuke still talks about that fight sometimes! By the time the police arrived only four had been able to run away! It was an awesome fight," Hiei added wistfully. Seto looked up from the board with interest again.

"I still can't believe Yugi's father was like that! I mean the Jolly Devils were infamously strong! Yugi's rather wimpy and he does most of his fighting with his duel deck…" Seto countered "any actual fighting is done by the mutt and the monkey and as I recall even the cheerleader can swing better than Yugi can," Seto commented in an offhanded manner as he contemplated his next move.

"The what…?"

"…and the what?"

Hiei and Aoshi exchanged an amused/confused glance as they wondered out loud who Seto was referring to.

"Oh sorry! Katsuya is the mutt and Honda is the monkey. Anzu is the cheerleader but I suppose that if Sanosuke Sagara is her brother then it's no surprise that she can fight," he remarked thoughtful. Aoshi figured he was probably reassessing the girl whom he had most likely deemed a useless ditz. Hiei laughed and soon enough so did Aoshi.

"I think Keiko calls Yusuke and Kazuma that sometimes!" Hiei remarked amused.

"Keiko has special names for all of us Hiei especially when we come back from missions!" Aoshi added and chuckled. Hiei agreed and laughed with him. Seto found himself chuckling with them. He found it relaxing to sit and talk to people who understood him and didn't feel the need to lecture him endlessly about friendship. It was nice to find other people who didn't think it was bad to be as ambitious and seriously ruthless as he was.

"So what happened next?" Seto asked interested in getting back to the story. Aoshi nodded; he was glad he had not lost ground with Seto even if he was losing the game…

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