Tales of Courage
The silence in the room as the story ended was shattered very suddenly as Roland laughed loudly. Seto turned to stare shocked at his super stoic head of security who never, ever laughed. He looked at Mokuba.
"I know right…it's totally weird," Mokuba said shocked watching Roland laugh. The man cleared his throat but failed to stop laughing.
"So you mean to tell me you didn't charge the Gatling gun head on Vicky? You show-off!" he teased.
"This from the guy, who shot a hat off a guy's head from 100 feet away, while hanging upside down… just to impress Miranda," she teased back.
"It was more like 80 feet," he laughed. Seto stared at his head of security surprised. He knew Roland was good but he didn't know he was that good! Now it made sense why Gozaburo's thugs and the Big Five were so scared of him. He shook his head for a moment and exchanged another incredulous stare with Mokuba. His little brother laughed and shrugged amazed.
"Charged a Gatling gun?" Seto asked amazed and a little excited. It sounded like a story he very much wanted to hear. Roland cleared his throat and explained that in the battle to reclaim the royal palace in the capitol of Baharavia, the front gate had been defended by a machine gun emplacement that they could not get through.
"Monsoon season hit way sooner than expected. We were cut off from supplies, tired, cold and wet, disease and hunger ran rampant through the ranks…" Roland paused; the smile suddenly ran away from his face replaced by a haunted look. It occurred to Seto that perhaps stories about battlefields weren't as easy for Roland to recount as Aoshi, none of the people Aoshi took to Helmagistan or Colombia had died after all. Even when he was kidnapped, he and his friends had survived. The Baharavian search for freedom had been brutal and bloody. But before Seto could retract his question and change the subject Roland cleared his throat and continued…
Roland looked up from the muddy trench he was trying to get some sleep at. An explosion sounded from a distance behind their lines. They had kept the palace just outside the city under siege now for more than a week. They had re-taken last week the capital city and the despot's army was in full retreat. They were so close to victory!
'Until Mother Nature decided to piss on us!' Roland thought glaring up at the darkened sky as the rain continued to pour. President Joffrey Baratheon – the despot who liked to say he "freed" Baharavia from the oppressive monarchs who ruled them – was comfortably ensconced inside his fortress. He had enough provisions to feed himself and his guards for at least two years.
Prince Johan's forces had managed to take over the trenches the dictator's forces had dug around the palace. But they were still exposed to the elements. They had to scramble to make shelters and secure clean water and rations. The palace had been reinforced more heavily than they had anticipated. Like all cowards, President Joffrey now hid deep in his fortress. They had cut off all his escape routes but he was untouchable inside his fortress.
All the military aircraft left in the country was under their control. But the storms kept them from using the aircraft they had liberated. Besides, there was a good chance that they might have some anti-aircraft weapons in the compound. The trenches dug around the palace prevented the heavy artillery from using the only road to the palace to help knock down the gate.
President Joffrey's personal helicopter had been blown to bits on the helipad inside the palace compound. Their spy in the palace had accomplished this feat but it had likely cost the old woman her life. Intelligence from within the palace had blacked out afterwards.
They had enough international military support to keep the despot's allies out of the country for a while. And his criminal underground allies had entrenched themselves in Valeria and the liberation forces had forced them to cut him off for the time being. But if they didn't find a way to get inside the place soon, they would have to retreat and wait until monsoon season ended.
Such a set back would allow Joffrey to rally his troops and undo everything they had done. If President-for-life Joffrey had a chance to receive re-enforcements from his allies in Helmagistan the result would be a bloodbath! The city was in ruins and the weapons in the palace had been slowly decimating Prince Johan's forces.
'We can't leave now!' he thought desperately. Too many had been lost in this battle and they simply could not give up now! He did his best to boost morale among his fellow soldiers as he hurried through the trenches but reality was sinking in hard. Despite Victoria and Night's heroic efforts to shore up their supplies and keep the morale up, they were losing. The explosion that had woken him was a power station in the city under attack. Power in most of the capital was gone which meant water would soon follow and panic would likely ensue if the Prince couldn't rally his troops and pull off a decisive victory here.
He hurried to Prince Johan. They had to find a way in! They couldn't leave now! Too much was at stake. But as he passed one ill-equipped soldier after the other he realized there was no other choice but retreat. They shivered as they huddled together in the hastily dug out little holes in the muddy trenches, trying to stay out of the rain, sharing a few cold protein bars. There was no way to light fires. The ground was far too wet and there was no fuel to be found for fires anyway in this weather.
He relieved a tired looking young woman at a makeshift periscope and looked out at the palace gate. There was a three story tall plain smooth wall that surrounded the palace complex with no openings. Guards at the top of those three foot thick solid stone walls guaranteed that attempting to scale the sides or back walls would be suicide.
It seemed they had exhausted their heavy munitions on the initial charge up to the palace because they didn't rain explosives on the liberation force. But of course they could be saving any heavy munitions to use against Prince Johan's liberated aircraft. It was impossible to know with their inside contact gone.
The main gate was the only way in or out and it was just wide enough to allow one regular size vehicle in or out at a time. There was one small door off the side of the gate. The soldiers had built a four foot tall sand bag wall in a half circle around the door. Propped up on the wall were two machine guns. Every time someone ventured out of the trench they sprayed fire in a 180 degree arc protecting every approach to the gate.
Every couple of hours the soldiers on the guns switched out so they were always fresh and well rested. The last couple of days they had taken to leaving the little door open so the scent of their fresh, warm food and hot coffee would waft out of the little guard room towards the trenches, sapping away at the morale of the troops.
At night the guards high on the wall would throw trash and sewage down at them, further demoralizing the troops below. As if that weren't enough every now and then the guards on the walls would fire down at the trenches hoping to hit someone in transit through the trenches…occasionally they did…
Roland turned away from the palace watch as General Nightraven's voice reached him. He had just returned from the city bringing updates on the skirmishes there and supplies. He was letting the Prince know that the city was under control and that the power station's loss would not affect their control of the city. His highness was about to signal a retreat. The Commander refused to give up and she was arguing with the Prince and the General that they could not leave.
"No! I won't give up now! We have sacrificed too much and come too far!" she insisted.
"Patience! We gain nothing by wasting away here," Prince Johan countered.
"A strategic retreat…we'll pull back, gather our strength and try again with fresh minds and a new plan," the general added in a very final tone leveling the commander with a very ominous glare. The Commander was completely unaffected by it! She ripped the elastic holding her hair in a tight bun. Her long wavy brunette hair fluttered in the wind. Her green uniform was just as tattered and thin as the rest of the fighters. She had eaten and slept less than the young soldiers in her command. But that she could look beautiful in such dismal surroundings was in a way a reflection of her defiant nature.
"You're right, maybe you can't find a way in there and win today…" she paused smirking up at the general.
"But it is what I came here to do!" she declared defiantly up at the general. He groaned but before he could say anything to stop her, the commander was climbing out of the trench. Alarmed, the Prince tried to call her back but it was too late. Roland looked out through the periscope and the guards actually laughed as they saw her. Roland found himself scrambling up on the ledge thinking he might lay some cover fire for her just long enough for her to come to her senses. Dread settled in his stomach because he knew she wasn't likely to live long.
With her shiny silver shield in front of her she charged at the guns. The guards reacted too slowly. She had managed to get half way to the guard door before they began to spray bullets at her. Roland stared in disbelief as every bullet deflected from her shield as she stood her ground. Her boots dug into the muddy earth but step by step she continued to move forward. The sun suddenly broke through the clouds as if Mother Nature was cowed by the Commander's courage and now ran from her ferocious attack.
He caught her eye as she turned to smirk defiantly to the troops behind her. He thought of his little daughters Amber and Sofia and his little son James. He thought of Miranda and their children huddled in a safe house in the city treating wounded soldiers…. waiting for him to return to them victorious.
He felt a surge of strength and defiance inside him as he scrambled out of the trench. Gone was all the sorrow, pain and hunger. A roar went up among the troops as they surged as one out of the trench after the Commander and the General who had leapt out after her and shot the second gun man at the door before he could aim his gun.
'We will win the day!' thought Roland feeling invincible. He fired his rifle and side by side with the Prince and his fellow troops as they stormed the gate…
-0-
Roland laughed and Victoria just shrugged. The teenagers stared at the two older warriors in disbelief. Aoshi and his friends absolutely believed it but were amazed none the less. They'd never heard this story; the survivors of that battle were rarely willing to talk about it.
"I was younger then," she added with a smirk. Roland laughed.
"Those assholes in Washington like to think that their making fun of her by calling her Wonder Woman… we know better!" Roland added with a smirk. Seto stared at his chief of security for a moment reassessing how he had seen his number one guy. He looked back at the Go board but the game continued to be ignored. He smiled as silence continued to reign in Seto's ballroom; promising himself he would find out more he finally placed another stone on the board.
"Hey! I just figured something out!" began Sano as he looked at his teacher breaking the reflective silence in the room.
"You're gonna teach Seto that crazy shield fighting stuff aren't you!?" Sano exclaimed. Seto blinked surprised wondering why she would teach him that.
"Really, Sensei I thought you would teach him staff fighting?" Aoshi asked surprised.
"Look at his arm…he hasn't taken it off! He'll be a natural!" she gave Seto a wink and a smirk. He looked down at his left arm and realized he was still wearing his duel disk. The duel disk was on his arm so often he felt sometimes naked without it. It did have a semi-circle shape when it was deactivated and he figured if anything might mimic the weight and feel of an old fashioned round shield…that would be it.
"Besides, Sano's been learning staff fighting from Teal'c," Victoria added with a shrug.
"Oh come on! That was a surprise!" Sano protested, miffed that his mother's day present for his teacher was ruined. He was planning on demonstrating his new staff fighting skills to his teacher, who always enjoys seeing what new things her students learn on their own.
"Oh I am surprised sweetie! And super happy too! It'll be a lovely gift! I can't wait!" she smiled at him soothingly.
"Why do you have to be so all-knowing?" Sano grumbled annoyed as he played with his tiny Optimus Prime. The kids chuckled and Anzu teased her brother. She related to her friends that Sano spent most of the year planning her mother's and his teacher's mother's day presents!
"Aw! You're so a-dorkable!" Mai teased. Seto laughed but his mind was still on the Helmagistan mission. What a ride! He was jealous of Aoshi to have been able to see all of that! And the little glimpse into Roland's past was a huge bonus! He made a mental note to speak to Mrs. Miranda soon and he promised himself to be a little friendlier to Ms. Sofia. She was always trying to be friends with him and he always avoided her but he wondered now what he might learn about her father if he was a little more patient with her cheerfulness.
"Well, I need to get going everyone. You boys have fun tomorrow with the surfing lesson!" Victoria finally announced.
Seto got up and told Roland he would show his new teacher to the door by himself. Surprised, Roland nodded and Victoria promised to catch up with him and Miranda before she returned to the States.
"So I know I haven't given you an assignment in a while but it looks like you need one Aoshi," said Victoria frowning at the board. Aoshi guessed immediately what her assignment was.
"You and Seto have full schedules in the coming weeks but see if you can squeeze in a game or two in between training," she began. Seto agreed with the condition that Aoshi would tell him more stories during the games. Aoshi easily agreed. She said goodbye to each of her older students. Seto took note of the motherly tone she used with Aoshi, Sano, Kaoru, Misao and Kenshin.
As they walked to the door she advised him to have fun tomorrow surfing with Aoshi, Kenshin and Sano. She talked about what she planned for his training. Sano was right! She did want to teach him shield fighting, she had never had a student with the potential for it.
"But you are more agile than the other boys and the shield will feel more natural to you than it would on the other kids. I'd hoped Shuura would take up the shield but she favored the whip," she added and Seto couldn't help but feel proud of himself and his invention – the duel disk – which had put in her mind the idea of teaching him how to use a shield as a weapon. It was something she had never taught to any of her other students and Seto couldn't wait to learn! He helped her with her coat but as she buttoned up her very stylish light beige trench coat she turned to him with a thoughtful look.
"You know Seto, Roland has never been able to talk about that day," she began. It was difficult for most survivors of the attack on the palace to relive that particular week.
"Roland doesn't like to brag," he replied. It was the first thing that came to mind to say but it sounded wrong as soon as he said it.
"No, it's not that…" she paused, and frowned
"Our forces were decimated, by the time I charged the gate our forces had been reduced to less than a third," she began. She added that most of the liberation army was concentrated in the city still fighting skirmishes with the retreating presidential forces. The spy network was busy sabotaging the crime families holding Valeria so they were not much help then either.
"Less than one hundred of us were left when we rushed the gate that day. We started out more than three hundred strong. The tanks were on their way but the road to the palace had been mined so as soon as the trucks and the tanks tried to make their way up to the palace the road was demolished and so was most of our heavy artillery," she explained very solemnly.
"Roland's little brother Brandon, just two weeks shy of his twentieth birthday, bled to death in his arms only two days before we rushed that gate," she stopped, giving a shocked Seto a moment to process this information. Now that he thought about it, there was very little that he knew about Roland's personal life. He didn't know about his little brother and until last year he didn't know he had an older brother either. He promised himself that he would find out more the next time his daughter Sofia was in town.
"But you know," she began banishing the melancholy on her face "I can see why he likes working for you! We're gonna have a fun year Seto!" she added with a smirk on her face. Seto nodded not knowing what to make of the twinkle of mischief in the smirk but just like Aoshi, he would soon come to learn this was her "scheming old lady look" that meant big but really cool life changes for him.
'Aoshi…I have to know now,' he thought as he made his way back to his remaining guests…
-0-
Everyone had finally found their voices. They excitedly talked over each other eager to know more. Seto quietly studied the board listening to everyone's questions and the replies that came from his super-stoic head of security.
Mai typed into her phone but she just watched everyone and occasionally looked up at him as though waiting for him to ask her something. Aoshi was a powerful adversary. He had very powerful allies…allies who loved him and would do anything for him. He needed to know what had held Aoshi back. He leaned towards Mai.
"Mai, tell me what happened? What happened between Tokio and Aoshi? Why didn't he come after me really? Misao says you know," Seto asked and a sudden hush came on his guests. Mai smirked knowingly and Aoshi looked sad and guilt-stricken for a second. He gave Mai a go ahead nod and turned to Mokuba.
"I hope you won't think too badly of me Mokuba," he said to Seto's little brother.
"I won't! It'll be fine! Right big brother!?" Mokuba reassured eagerly. Seto shrugged unconcerned.
"It'll be fine. Come on Mai. Let's hear it," Seto replied with a reassuring smirk.
"Well alright then! Our story starts about a week before Duelist Kingdom. I was in DC doing a chess thing when my mom called and told me to stop in Colorado Springs on my way back home," she began with an amused smirk but decided right away that she would keep a few things to herself…
-0-
Mai was feeling like she might cut it a little too close getting to her big Duel Monsters tournament as she parked her car in front of Tokio and Hajime's house. Duelist Kingdom was just a few days away but she couldn't pass up the chance to kick Aoshi's ass! Tokio's plan promised to be loads of fun! She dumped her bag in the room Hajime had designated as hers in his house then went looking for Tokio and her new little nephew who was just over a month old.
She found Tokio in her garage wearing goggles, heavy gloves and a mask. She greeted Mai tiredly and explained that her best friend Janet was taking care of the baby for a while. She had a little makeshift lab set up. Several Bunsen burners bubbled a number of noxious smelling concoctions. She moved in a precise focused manner as she inspected, swished, mixed and measured liquids in various beakers.
"He is gonna smell this stuff a mile away!" Mai pointed out, watching from the garage door, not daring to come in any further. She did ask her plenty of questions about what she was mixing and how. Her aroma strategy could do with an update from an expert.
Mai sprayed her Duel Monsters cards with different perfumes and in order to freak out her opponents she played her cards without looking at them, identifying each card by its smell. Her little shtick was so good most opponents got so flustered they lost to her within a couple of turns. She didn't really need the trick to win but she loved messing with her opponent's head. A trait she inherited from her mother!
"Not if I get these measurements right," replied Tokio in a tense voice. Hajime was out of town again, it was a common situation with the Air Force and Marines personnel stationed in Colorado Springs. They disappeared for a few days for training and came back with weird injuries sometimes or didn't come back at all. Hajime came back with a serious sun burn one winter and frost bite last summer.
Mai knew there was no way he got any of those injuries on a routine training exercise at the base. She wondered what it would be like to join her big brother in one of his odd adventures. It was one of many of the weird things that happened in Colorado Springs! You would think it was some boring tree hugger paradise but it wasn't. Colorado Springs was an interesting place!
'Mulder and Scully would have their hands full around here!' she thought amused as she thought back to the scary adventure she, Shuura and Tokio had shared the day little Ricky was born.
'The X-Files could write a whole season on the weirdness that goes on around here,' she mused as Tokio explained how her poison worked. The poison was made in two parts. The first part was colorless and odorless. She would add it to the food she would cook for dinner. This part contained the chemicals that would induce severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, dizziness and diarrhea. She had acquired some Epi-Pens too, Aoshi's reaction to the poison was likely to be stronger than on Sano and Kenshin. But the poison would remain inert in their bodies without its activating ingredient – Lavender!
'She is one scary chick! The guys pissed off the wrong woman!' Mai thought as Tokio continued her discourse. If Aoshi listened to reason she would not spray her homemade lavender air freshener. In order to activate the poison, all they needed was to inhale the lavender oil that she mixed into a stronger, more concentrated spray. She would give them mint tea instead, mint neutralized the poison. She would come clean with what she had done then. Either way Mai knew that Aoshi would learn Tokio is not someone you mess with!
"Mom says he's not backing down. He's already assembled everything he needs. His stupid uncles and my stupid uncle are all set to help him too. Mom managed to make his window small though. He has until Wednesday. If he doesn't appear by then he misses his chance," Mai explained. Tokio nodded.
"And you're sure he's coming here?" she asked her voice tight with anger. Mai assured her he; Kenshin and Sano were on their way from New York and should arrive this evening. Tokio was an important part of his plan. Aoshi was extremely confident Tokio would agree. He would soon find out how wrong he was.
"Hiei is in Japan but he already told Aoshi to go to hell," Mai added. She added that through Yusuke her mom knew that Hiei and Kazuma would side with her. Yusuke had been working for her mom since she got stabbed a couple of years ago. He liked working with her because he respected her strength and her mom liked him because he respected her but wasn't afraid of her. Yusuke was absolutely on their side too!
"Momma is on her way to deal with Hannya but just in case that fails I have a back up plan. I only need to keep them here for three days," Tokio replied but her voice cracked with emotion. Aoshi and the other two were important to her; the last thing she wanted was to hurt them.
"Maybe they'll listen to you! I mean he always listens to you!" offered Mai hoping to raise Tokio's spirits. Victoria would have been the most likely to convince him but she and Nightraven were nowhere to be found.
"I hope so Mai," she replied sadly. Obviously she wasn't going to risk the success of the operation on the vague hope that he would listen to reason. Mai watched her for a while as she discussed with Tokio Aoshi's plans for Seto and Mokuba Kaiba. She was fascinated by Tokio's work. By the time she finished mixing, and boiling liquids the garage smelled faintly like mint which quickly evaporated. There was no trace of the nauseating stench from when she first arrived!
Tokio handed her a little box full of home made mint candies. The mint oil was more concentrated in her candies and would act faster than a store bought candy. She and Mai would have to eat the food too so that they would not raise Aoshi's suspicions. Mai helped her clean up the garage and put away all of Tokio's lab supplies then Tokio headed upstairs to get her self cleaned up. Mai washed herself up quickly and changed then went across the street while Tokio showered then started dinner and knocked on Janet Frasier's door.
Cassandra opened the door. Janet was standing behind her with tiny baby Ricky in her arms. She greeted both of her friends cheerfully and with a squeal of delight she encircled the tiny baby in her arms. She cheerfully chatted with Janet and Cass for a few minutes as Janet picked up little Ricky's things. Cass walked across the street with Mai chatting about Mai's latest adventures playing Chess in DC and Duel Monsters in Europe.
The girls were sitting in the kitchen, chatting and playing with the baby while Tokio cooked. As luck would have it, Aoshi, Sano and Kenshin pulled up to the house at the same time as Hajime. Cass saw the sudden tension in Tokio and decided she would catch up with Mai later. Once Cass was gone, Mai was amazed as Tokio wiped all tension from her whole appearance and managed to greet her husband as if nothing in the world was wrong.
'She's not gonna tell him!' Mai realized as Tokio didn't make any excuse to pull him aside to explain in private what was going on. It was the right move. If Tokio had to put in effect plan b, her too-honest brother would give it away. Hajime had never been able to fool anyone who knew him. Tokio on the other hand was a master at concealing her emotions.
'You are one sneaky chick!' Mai thought amused as she happily greeted her brother and handed him his baby.
"Are you ok?" Hajime asked concerned. Mai was impressed by how well Hajime knew Tokio. Despite her pleasant act he could sense something was wrong.
"I'm tired," she replied.
'Smart, not a lie…just sneaky!' Mai realized amused. She greeted all the guys normally. Shuura came behind them; there was no smile on her face. She handed Aoshi the car keys without her usual casual cheerfulness.
"I'll be across the street saying hi to Janet and Cass," she said to Tokio. Tokio gave her a sad look.
"Won't you at least stay for dinner?" Tokio asked a pleading look on her face.
"I'll be back in a little while. I've been stuck on a plane with these assholes for three hours. I need a break!" she growled glaring daggers at Aoshi. Without another word she turned and headed out the door. Sano watched her go, it wasn't hard to tell that a conflict raged inside him. A flicker of doubt crossed Kenshin's face but was gone very quickly.
"What's going on?" Hajime asked very sternly. He pulled away as Aoshi approached him shielding his little boy. Mai didn't know if she felt disgusted or amused as Aoshi gave him a sigh of annoyance.
"I found a peaceful and definitive way to end the Shinomori/Kaiba feud. For reasons that I cannot comprehend some of my friends do not see the benefits," Aoshi explained as Tokio took baby Ricky and brought everybody to the dining table.
"Dinner is ready," she said as she put her baby in his bassinette and they all gathered at the table. Hajime helped Tokio bring out dishes with food as everyone took their customary seats around the table. Mai sat next to baby Rick and played with him while the table was set. She had a smirk on her face that Aoshi interpreted as agreement with his plans.
"I heard some of what you plan to do but I must've heard wrong. You would never do what Oume says you're doing!" she began with a pleading look as she served. The guys ate with gusto as they always did at Tokio's table. Mai smirked, she couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces when they realized what Tokio had done to their innocent meal.
'Oh she's good! With just a look!' Mai thought as she saw right away that Sano had cracked. She could tell he was going to turn against Aoshi. Mai's hopes of her turning Aoshi however were dashed as his calm demeanor never wavered. But there was still hope with Kenshin as doubt creased his brow.
'Big brother's got his game face on!' she thought amused as she watched everyone. The amused smirk never wavered from her face. Hajime now glared at Aoshi as they all ate.
"Alright, let's hear it!" he demanded realizing now that whatever was wrong with his wife Aoshi had caused it. Very calmly Aoshi recounted the ordeal in the Death Tower two months ago along with a number of other smaller confrontations between Yugi and the Kaiba brothers in the last year since elder Kaiba's death. With the exception of the dangerous Death Tower, the other confrontations were nothing but silly school yard scuffles. He cited all of it as proof the Kaiba Brothers are emotionally unstable and as potentially dangerous as Gozaburo had been.
"However, they are minors with no legal adult guardians and the Big Five who control now 49 percent of Kaiba Corp are weak and can be bought out easily," Aoshi continued. He explained that he had found a loophole that allowed him to take up guardianship of the Kaiba boys by taking over the Big Five's portion of the company.
"Once I have guardianship of the boys their portion of the company will come under my control. My father and I plan to adopt both boys and their name will change to Shinomori. There will be no more Kaibas and their Kaiba Corp. holdings will be kept in trust for them until they are of age. In the meantime they would receive the benefit of the same tutelage and training we have received from Sensei," he added looking rather proud of himself.
"You fantastical moron!" Hajime growled at him. Mai was not surprised by the rage that was suddenly infused in her honor bound big brother. He clenched his teeth trying to bring his rage under control.
"Did you ask the Kaiba boys if they wanted to be Shinomori?" Tokio asked with a desperate look in her eyes.
"No, but that is why I am here. I believe that perhaps being with my father and me would not be what would benefit them most, so I wish to ask you and Hajime to take them in and foster them. Being in a different country with a different culture around them would benefit them as it did us. You and Hajime would be a good influence on them as you were on us," he concluded confidently…
-0-
The story paused abruptly as Seto threw his head back and laughed! To Aoshi's further surprise Mokuba laughed just as heartily. Mai was the only one who didn't seem surprised by this reaction.
"I'm confused. What Aoshi was planning wasn't all that different from what Pegasus actually tried to do? Why is it funny?" Jou asked; his confusion mirrored in the faces of his friends who were horrified by what Aoshi was planning to do. Seto couldn't stop laughing but Mokuba managed to slow his rolling laughter enough to shed light on their amusement. He got up and attempted to imitate Aoshi's solemn expression and very straight posture.
"Now see here Seto and Mokuba…I believe you are out of control and I am suspending your privileges and putting you on a time-out!" Mokuba intoned in a decent imitation of Aoshi's tone. It was good enough to get Aoshi's friends to laugh. Seto threw his head back and laughed some more. Yugi and his friends didn't look ready to find the situation funny though. Seto took a deep breath and stopped laughing enough to explain.
"He was gonna put me and my brother in the same house as one of the smartest and nicest people in the world. Give us access to the best training and schooling available in the safest and most comfortable place possible. I'd have safe and easy access to resources I never had when I was plotting against Gozaburo! We thought he'd do way worse stuff than that! My brain came up with the Death Tower remember? Aoshi thought he was helping us. Pegasus was only helping himself!" Seto explained chuckling but they noticed now the tone of relief in his laughter.
"What happened next Mai?" Seto asked not quite able to stop laughing….
"Apparently not enough of a good influence you complete and utter moron! What makes you think that I would agree to let you do to those kids what was done to my wife? You worthless idiot!" Hajime began angrily. Tokio looked from one man to the other. Aoshi's face was unreadable but Mai could tell that Kenshin was cracking and Sano was firmly in Tokio's camp now.
"You are wrong Nii-sama. This is very different. Seto and Mokuba would receive care and attention Tokio never received and everything that is theirs will remain theirs," Aoshi intoned calmly. With visible effort Hajime managed to contain the verbal assault that Mai knew was on the tip of his tongue. The baby had fallen asleep.
"Except their names, their home and the company they are building will be gone. It's not like you to fool yourself like this Aoshi. If Seto is not allowed to create games and gaming technology as he is now he will lose his momentum and his company will fail. This would be a prison that will destroy their lives and their future. I won't be a jailer," Tokio declared.
"You moron! Even a nice jailer is still a jailer! What makes you think that kid wouldn't do to us what he did to Gozaburo Kaiba!? You idiot!" Hajime growled at him.
"I'm disappointed by your resistance Tokio. This is your chance to help a child in a way you were never helped. I don't understand why you are turning away from it," Aoshi calmly returned. Mai didn't miss the patronizing tone in Aoshi's voice. If nothing Tokio had said had worked on Sano, the hurt look she gave Aoshi then would certainly have done the trick. Mai wondered how much help Sano would be. There was no doubt in her mind he would be on their side now.
"Aoshi I'm not stupid! You're not doing any if this to help those boys! You're doing it because you're pissed off that Seto stole your thunder and took out Gozaburo Kaiba before you could! You're just doing this because you need to prove that you're the STRONGEST!" she yelled at him. For the first time since they sat down Aoshi's calm mask cracked betraying a flicker of surprise and anger. Tokio had hit the nail right on the head!
The baby suddenly woke with a loud cry. He was usually a good sleeper, even sleeping through Tokio's rock music. This was the first time since he was born that Mai heard him scream like that! It alarmed Tokio too. She ran to her baby, picked him and hurried away from the table uttering soft reassurances and apologies to her upset baby.
Hajime glared at Aoshi. It was rare when Mai actually saw her brother angry. Usually he was only mildly annoyed but he was an intense guy and people often would mistake his intensity for real anger. Her brother was scary when he was angry and on this table right now, only Mai had a clue of the things her brother had seen, the monsters he fought and the power he could wield.
"Ripping a couple of little boys from their home, sabotaging their futures...do you really think that makes you the Strongest?" Hajime asked in a low dangerous tone. There was no doubt...Hajime was angry! Mai swallowed nervous suddenly. It was all she could do to keep her expression neutral.
"Let me make it very clear. You take one step towards those boys and I will see you and everything you have built...burn! Do you understand?" he added in a dangerous tone. He didn't let Aoshi answer as he got up from the table to follow his wife and child.
"Get the hell out of my house! And don't come back until you've found your brain!" Hajime growled as he walked away.
"Same goes for the other two idiots with you!" he called as he went up the stairs.
"Nii-sama…"
"Shut the hell up Aoshi and finish your food! This is the last time we're eating here thanks to the foot in your mouth," Sano snapped at him. Aoshi and Kenshin exchanged a look of surprise. Mai could see that Hajime's words had cut deep into Sanosuke. Of the three, Sano was the most attached to Tokio. The thought of being cut off from her forever was probably more than Sano could tolerate. She pretended not to see the tear that rolled down his face as he hurried to clean off his plate. Aoshi and Kenshin finished their meals too in silence.
"You've been quiet Mai. What is your stance in this matter?" Aoshi began as he picked up his empty plate, cleaned it then placed it in the dishwasher. Kenshin, Sano and Mai followed suit.
"I told you before… I don't care about your revenge crap Aoshi. Even if I cared – and I really, really don't – I couldn't do anything anyways," Mai replied with a shrug as she cleaned her plate.
"You guys better get going. You guys are fast and strong, but you're not faster or stronger than a bullet," Mai pointed out non-chalantly reminding them that Hajime had no problems using guns and kept rubber bullets and paintballs in the house. Aoshi opened his mouth to say something but once more Sano quieted him. Mai assured him she would finish cleaning up. She let Aoshi know as she walked him out that she wanted to fly back with him. She had a tournament to get to and needed a plane ride home.
"Mai-dono, with everything that is happening, is Duelist Kingdom really a priority right now?" Kenshin asked solemnly. Mai laughed.
"What Aoshi does has nothing to do with me. I can't wait to go stomp some chumps at Duelist Kingdom. It'll be fun!" Mai laughed some more. Aoshi frowned and began to say something but Mai cut him off.
"You guys better get out of here before Hajime comes back down. I'll try to smooth things over. See you later! Don't leave without me!" Mai called shooing them away with a cheerful smirk. Sano stomped ahead of his friends calling back that they would wait for her. She closed the door behind her and hurried up the stairs to find Tokio and give her an update. She could hardly contain her joy on how well Tokio's plan was going…
-0-
"Wow Mai…you really are ruthless!" Anzu interrupted with a look of awe on her face mirrored in her friends.
"Some times our guys need a little tough love," Mai replied with a smirk. She continued explaining she had gone to see Tokio and Hajime to let them know the guys were gone and phase one was off without a hitch.
She left out that when she went upstairs little Rick was still screaming his little heart out and Hajime was growling angrily at Tokio for not letting him in on her plan. Tokio had wept pitifully as she tried to comfort her baby and explain that it was necessary and there was no time to explain without raising their suspicions. Hajime was hearing none of it. His pride was over ruling his common sense. Mai knew she would leave out her confrontation with Hajime. Seto was starting to look up to Hajime and she wanted to keep it that way.
'Big brother learned his lesson too after all,' she thought as she continued.
-0-
Tokio's face was still puffy and her eyes were red from crying. But there was no denying the determination on her face. She would try once more to dissuade Aoshi. If he wouldn't listen to reason then she would spray him and the other two with the lavender. She had to act fast though. She and Shuura marched into Aoshi's mansion in Colorado Springs right behind Tokio. Mai could hardly contain her excitement!
Mai walked in to the study after Tokio and Shuura and she sat near the door to watch the show. Standing next to the door, Shuura announced to Aoshi that he needed to find himself another pilot as soon as they reached Japan. She was turning in her resignation. She let him know she was only agreeing to fly him home because Mai needed to get to Duelist Kingdom.
Aoshi's neutral expression never wavered. With a calm nod Aoshi accepted Shuura's resignation. Standing next to Kenshin, Sano clenched and unclenched his fists obviously angry. It occurred to Mai that Sano might have been arguing rather strongly against Aoshi's plan and the girls might have walked in just as the situation was about to escalate to violence. Kenshin was standing in front of Sano and he looked as if he was blocking his path to the desk Aoshi was calmly sitting behind. He didn't bother to give the women more than a bored glance before going back to his computer screen.
"Please Aoshi don't do this!" Tokio begged as she walked into the center of the room. Sano looked at Tokio, pain and desperation clear on his face.
"I am disappointed Tokio. I am trying to help them. They need guidance. Why do you oppose me?" he asked in a rather patronizing tone that rankled every female fiber inside Mai. But she had been paying attention to Tokio these last few years, her expression remained non-chalant.
Shuura cracked her knuckles and Sano growled angrily but Aoshi calmly ignored them concentrating on whatever was on his computer. Mai took out her phone and affected a bored expression as she pretended to type text messages and ignore the adults in the room. She was really calling her mother so she could listen in.
"Then knock on their door and approach them as a friend! Talk to them! Ripping them from the home they fought for is not the way to end this destructive conflict between your families! You'll only make it worse!" Tokio begged fresh tears falling down her face while sobs chocked her words. It was hard for Mai to keep up the unconcerned expression. They only thing that kept her focused was Plan B!
"Don't make me do this…" she begged between sobs in a tiny voice. Tokio stuck her hand in her purse. Mai hid a smirk and excitement made her heart pump faster!
"You and Hajime have already made your decisions. Your participation will not be required," Aoshi replied in a very snobbish tone with dismissive wave of his hand and did not bother to look up from his computer. Unfortunately Mai wasn't the only one that noticed what Tokio was about to do. Kenshin opened his mouth to warn Aoshi but all the air left him as Sano's fist connected painfully with his stomach silencing him immediately.
Sano gave Tokio a determined look with a firm nod as he held Kenshin. Tokio took a step forward quickly and sprayed her lavender air freshener straight at Aoshi. Surprised he finally looked up at her confused and annoyed at the blast of flowery perfume in his face. He got up to glare at her but whatever he planned to say fled him as a wave of nausea hit him like a ton of bricks. Mai hurried up to Sano and Kenshin and to spare her distraught sister-in-law further guilt she sprayed Sano and Kenshin with one her perfumes…the one that had lavender in it!
"What have you done?" Aoshi asked surprised. He swayed as he tried to come around the desk toward Tokio who now sobbed inconsolable and took a step back from him. Tokio finally turned and ran out of the room sobbing disconsolately as Aoshi stumbled towards her but collapsed on the ground after just a few steps. Mai laughed an evil cackling laugh as she warned them all that they ought to get to a bathroom as quickly as possible…
"Easter dinner…" said Sano to the kids as they listened intently to Mai's story. He alone of the three had known this particular story back then and guessed what Tokio had done to their dinner. Holidays were always a nightmare for Tokio under her foster family. After the pain inflicted on her the first Thanksgiving and Christmas; Tokio devised a plan to avoid a nightmare on Easter Sunday.
Fear of what fresh hell the Peters would concoct for her forced Tokio to come up with a plan to get them away from her at least for the holidays. Tokio had poisoned their Easter dinner and done it in such a way that no one ever suspected her. She told Sano the story right after she broke up with Marco. Having to poison them had weighed on Tokio's conscience and made her feelings of unworthiness worse after she rejected Marco's marriage proposal. Sano kept that part of the story to himself as the kids started asking Mai questions about what happened next…
-0-
"Here cousin! Let me help you!" Mai began with a very fake innocent, cheerful tone. She bent down as if to help him get up but all she did was rifle through his pockets and removed his wallet.
"There you go! This heavy wallet would definitely slow you down! Now you can hurry and find that bathroom before you crap your pants!" She cackled evilly again as she teased him. Sano had already hurried out of the room with Kenshin close behind him.
Aoshi managed to get to his feet and he tried to grab Mai but nausea and an angry rumble in his stomach forced him to rush out of the office and find the bathroom in his room instead. Mai's evil cackling followed him out of the office. She sat down at his computer and transferred the balances of all her credit cards on to his cards.
She then made several transfers from his accounts on to hers. She grabbed her cellphone and headed towards her cousin's room. She wrinkled her face in disgust; the stench of vomit offended her sensitive nose as she entered his room. She found her cousin breathing heavily in between heaves, his face almost literally in the toilet bowl. He struggled to his feet and stumbled towards her as she dialed the phone.
"Give me…" he began in a hoarse voice. She cackled evilly as she went in to the drawer of his bedside table and pulled out Aoshi's passport.
"Good Evening! I am the executive assistant of Mr. Aoshi Shinomori! I need to report that he has lost his wallet and we need to cancel all of his cards!" she explained in a very professional sounding tone. She "verified" all of his most recent transfers as valid but that he had accidentally dropped his wallet in the shredder.
"He will need new cards mailed to his address in Colorado Springs!" Mai continued as she dropped the cards one by one in the shredder in Aoshi's room. Aoshi was too overcome by another wave of nausea to stop her and he hurried back into the bathroom. This time he closed the door as the diarrhea finally kicked in. As he closed the door he caught Mai's evil smirk as she shoved his passport into the shredder too…
More laughter paused the story telling though Aoshi, Sano and Kenshin were not able to laugh among with the rest of the party-goers in Kaiba's ballroom.
"You are ruthless Mai! Remind me not to piss you off! I'm poor enough as it is!" Jou laughed. Anzu laughed so hard the most she could manage was give her brother a mocking look.
"I think its ok…except for Anzu none of us has passport anyway!" laughed Yugi. Anzu laughed and pointed to Seto who was completely overcome with laughter.
"Make sure Mai never cooks you any meals Kaiba!" Jou teased. Seto was so amused by the story that he didn't have any snarky comebacks for Jou. The jokes went back and forth as Aoshi watched feeling content and at peace. After the ordeal it had been shame really that kept him at a distance from the Kaiba boys. After all Tokio had been right, he had gone after Seto because he was angry that Seto got to Kaiba senior before he could.
Dealing with his Sensei's wrath a couple days later had been awful. As he looked at the kids sharing jokes at his expense he caught Mai smirking knowingly at him. Mai's words had been the most brutal and most effective. Judging by the smirk on her now she was never likely to let him forget. He nodded to her in gratitude but her words that day through the bathroom door constantly rattled around in his head every time Tokio had mentioned extending Seto and Mokuba Kaiba an olive branch.
"Congratulations you've embraced the real Shinomori legacy cousin… grandpa would be so proud,"
Aoshi suppressed a shudder at the memory of the evil delight in her tone as she reminded him of their grandfather's dark deeds. How he had sold children into slavery to keep their social and economic status. He had taken them from the lives they should have had for his own selfish and cowardly reasons. No one knew this but him, his Aunt Oume and Mai.
Of the children who were his victims only one knew of their past but she loved his Aunt like a sister and had sworn to keep the secret as well. Mai would never let him forget that moment of weakness. She seemed to be the only person who delighted in it. He didn't want to think why she enjoyed his defeat so much. He let his thoughts flow away from that moment as Sano now talked about Hajime serenading Tokio.
"I don't know big brother…Rick Astley doesn't sound like a very romantic choice for a serenade?" Anzu replied mystified.
"Come on Anzu! Together forever can be kinda romantic...I guess..." Jou defended weakly
"They're wolves! They're not normal people! They don't do stuff normal people do! They do it their weird wolfy way!" Sano replied annoyed and amused. Kenshin and Kaoru laughed.
"That's true! But I wouldn't have walked again if it weren't for Hajime's wolfy ways!" Misao added cheerfully and as the group now asked her to tell that story his thoughts turned to Hajime. Hajime had been angry; there was no doubt about that! But there was something in his rage that Aoshi had not understood then. Once they had recovered Night had taken them to their usual punishment: the paintball field.
Instead of Tokio and Night as their opponents, it had been Hajime and his team from work who had been their opponents. To make matters worse Night had not let them wear their usual padding, he had only allowed their helmets. Hajime and his team had been absolutely merciless! By the time they were done there was not an inch on his body that wasn't sore and bruised. Hajime had cornered him at the end of their punishment.
There was a wild look in his eyes that Aoshi did not understand. Hajime had emptied the clip in his gun into Aoshi's chest at nearly point blank. Even after his clip was empty he kept pulling the trigger with a wild rage making his temple veins throb visibly. Aoshi had not understood the look in Hajime's eyes then. He had even been annoyed thinking Hajime was over-reacting but now…looking around at the kids and his friends as they laughed and talked together…as he looked at the Go board and the neglected game that he didn't really care to win or lose…he understood what had been in Hajime's eye's.
'It was fear!' he realized. Hajime hadn't been just angry he had been afraid. Now as he looked back on his actions he was grateful he was defeated! This lovely afternoon would have never happened without Tokio's courage and sacrifice.
Hajime had fully understood what he stood to lose if Aoshi went through with his plans. Aoshi had endangered his home and his family in the most selfish and reckless way and until this moment as he looked around at the kids that now looked at him with love and admiration he had not really understood that. The thought of this moment never existing filled him suddenly with absolute dread!
'I will have to talk to Nii-sama soon…I owe him a more thorough apology. I understand now,' he thought determined to call Hajime tomorrow and speak with him candidly. His thoughts turned away from Hajime as Mai asked for an unusual payment for her story…
Work has been so crazy this past year and I haven't been able to write much. Hopefully i can get the next part up soon!
Thanks for reading and reviewing!