This Is My Security Team
Of all the things that he hated the most about going to the hospital, there was really only one that stood out right now.
It was white. That was something he always hated about hospitals really... They were just so damn...
White. Blank. Blinding. Seriously, it was like walking outside on a sunny day right after it snowed, terrible. Except at least then, he could blink it off and get inside the house/school/where ever the hell the nearest building was.
Though in the end, Katsuya supposed that at least this time... He wasn't alone. Which made it much more bearable, despite what had gotten them there.
It was probably day three of the hospital to say the least. Though 'day' one was technically only a few hours thanks to the fact that they'd come in at four pm, day two had passed about as quickly as the latter half of the first 'day' had. Yugi had been rushed into critical care himself as soon as he was hauled out of the fire, and for a variety of things. The most important ones were smoke inhalation, severe burns to his hands and front from the fire he'd almost literally sat in and... Now hang on, the chart said...
What was this about a bruised and crushed throat? How the hell did that one happen? (Yugi sure as hell wasn't saying...)
Katsuya himself had just spent a few hours getting his own burns bandaged up before being hauled off into a bed that night- so really, he'd had it much simpler. Though not as serious as his friend's, given how quick he'd be discharged, he himself was not spared the burns on his hands and body. While he hadn't held onto the puzzle's chain for long, trying to get the stone through the also metal loop had had it's effects... And dear god his hands hurt like hell. Nonetheless. He'd be out that friday, four-three days from that point. Yugi...
More or less the day before Golden Week. On the 29th... Which was currently about three weeks away. On the bright side, the second bed in the room he was in was currently the one that was being switched out... Despite all the odds, the only thing 'permanent' on Yugi's condition were the burns against his hands. Which meant that not only was he out of ICU...
He was here. And he was more or less in perfect condition to talk to his friend on the bed beside him. "Alrigh'," the blond said with a small laugh as the pair recounted their own tales of the night and day prior, "Le's try this again... They tried t' put you in pediatrics?"
Yugi crossed his arms, going fairly red in the face at the mention of the 'childrens ward'. "Gh- I was completely unconscious at that time too," he muttered, shaking his head. "If Grandpa hadn't caught them on it while they were wheeling me away... It was hard enough to convince him to leave me with the puzzle as it was..."
But hey, given that the 'other' Yugi was hovering at the side, they knew how that went down. The 'other' beside the boy appeared to laugh somewhat quietly, gaining a glare from his lighter half as he shook his head. "Gh- Other me..!" The spirit merely 'said' something, Yugi flushing and slamming his head back on his pillow. "...Gnnnn... I can't wait until my growth spurt finally hits..." Yea, late blooming was one thing, but how long was that going to last?
Katsuya stared as the spirit began talking about something once again, propping his head on his arm as he waited for the conversation to finish. This was another thing that came through the day really... Evidentally, while unconscious and going through a battery of machines and tests to make sure he wasn't dying, the two Yugis had been talking amongst each other...
And the conversation in the fire had come up. Revealing a few facts that the blond had been attempting to keep quiet. Yugi looked over at his friend from where he was about to answer his 'partner', blinking at the silence he'd gotten before following his gaze back to his 'other self'. "...So," the boy began, blinking a few times before turning back to his friend, "You can really see him Jonouchi-kun," he asked, staring.
The blond nodded, looking over at where the spirit was hovering at that moment. Currently, the 'other' Yugi was staring back... Though after a blink he'd simply turned his attention to the wall. "Yep... Clear as day... It's kinda creepy act'lly..." The two 'Yugi's turned to each other, the darker again saying something before Yugi turned back to Katsuya.
"But you can't hear anything he says..?" Hahaha... Nope.
He shrugged, shaking his head as Yugi frowned. "Hey, don' ask me how it works! All I know is that I c'n see 'm!" Not to mention everything that could appear on a holographic duel table, but hey, lets take things a step at a time right? Because really, seeing 'ghosts' was one thing, seeing 'ghosts' that didn't exist... The blond groaned, leaning back against his pillow at the thought. "Man... This is insane..."
'Well,' the 'other' Yugi muttered, back turned as he shrugged, 'It could be worse...'
"G-HAAAAA!" Katsuya jumped, looking back at the two Yugi's with wide eyes. "What th' hell!"
The pair stared, before turning to each other as the other Yugi said something again. Lips moving, no sound...
"AAAAAGHHH!" The two turned to the blond, eyebrows raised as their friend 'face-palmed' into a pillow. "Th's crazy!"
"Er..." Yugi coughed, blinking a few times. "...What is..?"
He crossed his arms gritting his teeth. "Gh... What else," he asked, frowning. "One minute 'm hearin' 'm, th' other I ain't, what th' hell..."
The other Yugi gave him a somewhat unimpressed stare, frowning. 'I'm right here you know...'
"Gh-" And again! "Stop switchin'!"
The other Yugi snorted, shaking his head before crossing his legs in mid-air. 'Well it's not like I'm controlling this!' Learning to do that would certainly be nice though...
"Maybe it's because you're talking to him and not me," Yugi said with a shrug. Katsuya blinked, watching as the boy looked over at his 'other' before continuing. "Let's try something," he decided with a grin, the 'other' raising his eyebrows in curiosity. "You say something to me... And then something to Jonouchi-kun! And that way, we'll find out if I'm right!"
The others blinked, staring a few times before trading looks and shrugging. It was as good an idea as anything else he supposed... And hey, not like they had anything else to do... "Eh... Alrigh'," Katsuya said with another shrug, leaning against his pillows. "Shoot!"
"Alright!" Yugi nodded, turning to his other as the spirit appeared to sigh. The 'ghost' crossed his arms, turning to his partner. Now... Three... Two... One...
And nothing but moving a mouth! The pair turned to their friend, the blond shaking his head as they waited. "Got nothin'."
'Well,' the spirit said plainly, blinking a few times as he floated down to 'sit' on the edge of Yugi's bed. 'That's interesting...'
"Heh, yea," his friend muttered, rubbing his head as he ignored the bizarreness of the situation, "Y' got that right..."
Yugi shrugged, before turning as footsteps began coming down the hall. "Hn... Someone getting visitors..?" Supposed so... They weren't even allowed visitors the day before...
His other blinked, looking at the clock before smirking. 'Four o'clock visiting hour on monday... I think I can guess who it is, aibou.' The others blinked, before watching as the spirit faded into the puzzle as the steps came louder.
Four o'clock... After school... So that meant... "Oiiii Katsuya-niiiii~!" The two turned from their beds, smiles coming over them as Mokuba ran through. "Yugi!" Haha!
Katsuya grinned, sitting up from the bed with a laugh. "M-Mokuba! You're here!"
The boy was quickly joined by others, Anzu, Honda and Bakura following him in. Hey... Everyone was here... Um... "Ah... Bakura-kun," Yugi said with a blink, looking them over. "Everyone..."
The three smiled, Anzu herself coming over and dropping a small vase of flowers on the side table. "Of course! Did you think we wouldn't visit," she asked, turning to them with a smile. "We would have come yesterday, but your Grandpa said you were in ICU..."
There was a nod in response to that, Yugi skipping over the topic as he looked at the group. "Ah... Where's Otogi-kun," Yugi asked, blinking a few times.
Huh... That was a good question actually... Honda stared, Mokuba and Anzu as well giving him an odd look in response to the question. "Er... Otogi," he asked, blinking a few times. There was a bit of an awkward silence, the teen coughing. "Well... Apparently the old man we hauled out was his dad," he continued just as awkwardly, averting his eyes from everyone in the room, "And not his grandpa like we thought..."
"W-Wait," Katsuya said with a jump, shaking his head. "That old guy was his dad..! But how's that ev'n possible!"
Yugi coughed, the others turning from the side. Ahh... Something on his mind..? "Ah... Otogi-kun's dad... Apparently played a cursed game, a few years ago..." A cursed game..? The others tilted their heads, and the boy continued. "I wasn't going to say anything," he said nervously, turning away somewhat, "But since you know who he is... Well... The game should be destroyed by now in any case so..."
Well, it wasn't like the guy really got that old on his own he guessed... Though thinking back, the game that he'd seen back in the fire looked old enough to suit that... ...Hihhhhh... The others blinked a few times, nodding at the answer they'd gotten. Change of subject, change of subject... "Well... Anyways," Honda said with a cough, shaking himself. "Thanks to the fire, he's going to be in the hospital for a while... And since the building had their apartment in it, Otogi's staying at my place for the next bit... What with him not having any relatives at the moment, plus all the paper issues he's dealing with trying to put things back together..." That tended to happen when things literally went in flames.
Wait, did he say- "Ah... Your house," Bakura repeated, blinking. "Really?"
Honda nodded, shrugging as he looked back at the albino. Evidentally, whatever issues had been around thanks to the presence of the ring were... Solved... (He was still keeping an eye out) "Yep- Spoke to him in the waiting room yesterday, when I was trying to see you two," the teen continued, scratching his neck. "Speaking of which... How are you guys holding up," he asked, hands stowed in his pockets. "I mean... We didn't get much from Jii-chan other than the 'ICU' so..."
Yugi blinked, before smiling. "Haha... Of course... Well... I'm alright... I can't feel my arms," he added with a laugh, the limbs in question currently heavily wrapped in addition to the IV drip at the side, "But I'm alright..." Though if that drip of painkillers went away, he'd be howling damn it...
Thankfully, that was not going to happen. "As f'r me," Katsuya said with a smirk, the others turning to him as he held up a bandaged 'thumbs up', "You'll be seein' me next week!" The others stared at that, the blond frowning at the lack of reaction. "...O-OI! Shouldn' that be good!"
Mokuba grinned, laughing as he came over and took a seat on the bed while the others shook their heads and smiled. Aggggh, a joke, they'd pulled a joke on him damn it... "Hey, I'm happy about it! In any case," the boy asked, attempting to find a comfortable seat on the blond's legs, "What do you guys think you'll be doing while you're in here?"
While they were here..? Huh... ...That was a good question. Katsuya blinked, before frowning as he crossed his arms. "Hnn... I was thinkin' 'f going through my deck act'ally," he muttered, Mokuba raising his eyebrows. "Nothin' else to do b'sides talk really... I'd play a few rounds with Yugi but..."
They turned, watching as the boy sheepishly raised his two bandaged arms. Honestly, if there were anymore, he'd say the kid was wearing two casts rather than a series of bandages. "Haha..." He shook his head, moving to scratch it only to stop when he remembered the bandages he had. "Eh... Sorry Jonouchi-kun!"
Katsuya shrugged, shaking his head. "Eh, it's fine," he muttered, smirking. "We'll figure somethin' out right?" Better than the TV anyways... The blond turned back to the others as his friend nodded, leaning against the bed. "Anyways... What about you guys," he asked somewhat plainly, "Anything else new? ...Other than an extra chew toy f'r y'r dog Honda?"
"Actually," the teen said with a cough, "Blankey seems to really have taken a shine to Otogi... We were even able to let him back in the house..."
Okay... "...Yea..." That wasn't what he was talking about...
Mokuba shook his head, before leaning back slightly on the bed and throwing his own two cents in. "Well... Nii-sama's almost done testing the new duel disk..." Ooooh! The two on the beds immediately honed on on that, Mokuba continuing with a grin. Someone knew what to talk about..! "Hehehe..." The grin widened with the added attention, and he went on. "If all goes well with the final phases of the test, they'll be ready to sell by the summer! Keep an eye out..."
Ooooo! Definitely! "Sweet," Katsuya said, a grin on his face. "I know what I'm savin' for now..."
"Hahhh... I wonder what the disk looks like," Yugi mumbled with an odd look staring up at the ceiling and smiling as the others groaned.
"Augh... What's wrong with you boys," Anzu muttered, shaking her head and glaring weakly at the group. "Honestly..."
Honda frowned, turning with the words. "Hey," he said with a scowl, narrowing his eyes, "Some of us don't even duel!"
The woman merely rolled her eyes, looking at Honda with raised eyebrows. "Maybe so," she said, "But there's still something wrong with all of you..."
"Hnnnn..."
Anzu crossed her arms, shaking her head. "Anyways," she said, ignoring the grumbling from behind her, "Anything other than cards that we can talk about?"
"Well..." The others turned, watching as Bakura held out a newspaper he'd been holding with a slightly pink tone to his face. "There is this..."
...This? The others watched as he held out the newspaper, unfolding it so that the two bed-ridden ones could see it clearly. Not that he couldn't move but...
Mokuba was sitting on his legs so yea, he couldn't. "'Egyptian Exhibit Extended'," the boy read off the page, a large image of the Museum visible at the top. A somewhat tall, dark-haired man resembling Bakura could be seen in it, standing next to a tanned woman. Back to the article though... "Ah- so they really are adding to that section then?"
The albino nodded, still somewhat pink. "Yes, that's right! I even got to help organize it," he added with a smile, bowing his head as he flushed. "It was actually very fun..." That explained the blush...
Yugi blinked, looking at the picture beneath the article in question. Bakura's dad, Egyptian woman... Wait..."Ah... That woman," the boy asked, frowning somewhat. "Who is that..?"
"The woman?" Bakura looked down, the others following his gaze to the picture. "Oh! That's 'Ishizu Ishtar'... Er... Ishtar Ishizu," he corrected with a cough, "Sorry... She's a fairly important figure in dealing with Egyptian artifacts apparently... In fact, I believe she's also the one who provided and approved a majority of the display, enabling us to extend the exhibit in the first place!" He coughed, turning the paper around and frowning as he looked closer at the image. "Now hang on..."
Eh? "What," Katsuya asked, blinking a few times, "What is it..?"
The teen continued to frown, turning the paper around again and pointing at the woman in the picture. "The necklace," he began I can't figure out how I missed it before but... Doesn't this eye look familiar..?"
The others leaned in, before growing somewhat pale. Around the woman's neck, neatly molded in gold... "Th-The Millennium Eye," Yugi muttered, leaning back with a swallow.
Katsuya groaned, slamming back against the pillows on his bed. "Awww hell," he moaned, grabbing his face, "If it ain't soul-stealin' an' fires, it'll be zombie night all over again!" Damn it aaaaaall!
"Zombie night," Mokuba asked, raising his eyebrows as the others shook their heads.
"Long story," Honda said with a sigh, Bakura turning to him as well with raised eyebrows.
"That's right," Bakura said with a blank stare, "You said you would tell me about that, didn't you say something about someone with two items being involved with that..?"
They'd said that? Honda sighed, scratching his head. "...Very long," he added, a wry smile on his face.
"Long enough that we don't have time either," Anzu added, looking up at the clock as the others turned to her. "I have work in half an hour," she said with a shrug, shaking her head, "If I don't catch the next bus..."
Yugi nodded immediately, smiling at the woman. "It's fine Anzu- thanks for coming," he added, the smile growing into a grin.
The woman smiled, turning to the boy and shaking her head. "How could I not come? Though before I go... I have to ask," she said somewhat worriedly, biting her lip. "Is the 'other Yugi' alright..?"
The room fell somewhat silent, Yugi looking down at his puzzle. His smile however, didn't vanish, which resulted in everyone else having about the same reaction. "He's fine," he said with a smile, looking back up as he gave the answer that Katsuya and himself had had since the morning. "We're a little shaken," he added with a shrug, "But we're both fine!"
"Hah... That's good," the woman said, sighing with relief. "Well... Time to catch the bus... Good bye everyone," Anzu said, waving as she left. "I'll see you tomorrow alright?
"Bye," Mokuba shouted, Yugi doing the same.
"See you Anzu!"
"Er... Honda-kun..." The teen turned from where he was about to talk to Mokuba, looking at Bakura somewhat blankly as the albino coughed. "...If you're allowing Otogi-kun to stay at your house," he asked, putting the newspaper in his hands down, "Then... How exactly is he going to get in when you have the key..?"
The teen quickly paled, swallowing. Now that they thought about it... That was a good question. "Ooooh shit!" He fished around his pockets, pulling out the lanyard and swallowing. "Ahhhh... See you later guys," he shouted, running out of the hall. "I'll visit you tomorrow!"
"DON'T RUN IN A HOSPITAL," someone in the halls shouted, those in the room merely sighing and shaking their heads. "AND KEEP YOUR VOICE DOWN!"
"Hah... I suppose I should leave too," Bakura said with a small shrug, turning to the others and biting his lip. "I don't want to overstay my welcome," he continued with a cough, "And there's probably something I have to do... You two should be getting rest after all..." The albino's eyes nervously drifted downward, before he finally turned away. "In any case," he said with another cough, "I'll come and visit sometime soon alright, Yugi-kun, Jonouchi-kun?"
The two nodded, Mokuba pulling his legs into his seat as the albino made for the door. "Alright Bakura-kun," Yugi said with a nod, smiling. "We'll see you then!"
"Yea," Katsuya called out, "See yah!"
"Nn!" The teen left, the remaining three staring out the door for a few moments. There he went... So... Mokuba and Katsuya shared an awkward glance, looking back at Yugi. About Bakura...
He had the ring back... And... Personally, he'd forgotten to mention that, so he should probably... They both coughed, the smaller speaking first after a curious look from the boy. "Ahhh... Hey... Yugi," Mokuba asked, scratching his head as their friend blinked in response. "Um... There's something we should tell you..."
"'Bout Bakura," Katsuya added with a cough, turning away.
"Yea," Mokuba continued, "Um... He..."
"He has the ring back?" The two blinked, staring as Yugi finished the sentence. ...Interesting, he'd have thought those words would come with- Ah, hang on, the boy was wincing, obviously his 'other' had head that... Yugi shook his head, before smiling despite the invisible verbal beating. Alright, that was the weirdest expression to ever associate with this- "I know," he said calmly, leaning back on his pillows, "The 'other' Bakura came in while I was playing D-D-D with Otogi-kun."
W-W-Wait... "WHAT!" How did he-!
"K-Katsuya-nii," Mokuba said with a wince, rubbing his ears, "We're in a hospital..."
"I know! I know but..." The blond gaped, shaking his head and staring incredulously at Yugi. "Y... Y'know? An' yer not... Worried... About anythin'..?" At all? At all?
The boy shook his head, adjusting his position on the bed as he shrugged. "Not really... I know that he tried to kill us before but... Well, when I thought about it," he continued, looking up at the ceiling with an odd expression in place, "The other me really has killed people hasn't he?" Well... Yes but, that was a little- "And Bakura-kun did say that he had troubles with friends right?" Yea but he never actually mentioned how that went- "So I thought, maybe the other Bakura was just doing the same thing the other me was... Protecting Bakura-kun..."
Mokuba swallowed, frowning as the argument was raised. "Well yea but... He put us in figurines!"
"Yea," Katsuya added with a nod, frowning, "An then tried t' kill us in th' figurines!"
"And impaling your own hand on a tower isn't really 'protection' Yugi..."
"Er...: The blond coughed, shaking his head. "There's that too..."
Yugi bit his lip, still smiling somewhat despite the comments. "I know but... He really helped back there! He helped gather the pieces of the puzzle back together, helped me win..." ...Seriously? That... Didn't sound like... "If Bakura-kun, the other one I mean... If he hadn't appeared, well..." He sighed, the smile vanishing as he looked down at the puzzle sitting around his neck. "Well... I don't think that the other me would be here..."
The others went silent at that, Mokuba and Katsuya both staring before trading looks. Really... Really, in the end, maybe they should just avoid this topic and not even poke it with a fifty meter pole. Just an idea... "Sooo... Should I go get drinks," Mokuba said with a slight laugh, scratching his head in an attempt to change the subject.
Katsuya slowly nodded, the speed picking up at the idea. "Errrr yea! Yea," he repeated, shaking himself. "Iced tea f'r me alrigh'," he said, turning to Mokuba as the boy moved from the bed.
The boy nodded, turning to Yugi somewhat expectantly. "And you," he asked, hands stowed in his pockets. "Anything for you?"
"Ahh... A coke would be good," he said with a short nod, smiling as he pulled himself up in the bed. "Thanks for doing this Mokuba-kun!"
He shrugged, moving for the door. "Eh, it's nothing," he said, leaving the room.
Not really; while he could get out of the bed, the last time he'd tried to go get a drink himself, the nurses dragged him back into the room. So in the end, getting a drink was pretty nice... Still, he thought to himself as he leaned back against the pillows.
He hated hospitals.
"You..." Errr... The two boys blinked, turning as a rather aggravated (and very much familiarly disguised) voice came through the air. Oh shit.
Katsuya coughed as the voice was followed by a face, Yugi merely blinking as the woman walked in. "Errr..."
"...Me," Katsuya asked somewhat nervously.
Seto narrowed her eyes, shutting the door behind her and stalking over to stand between the two beds. For a moment, she was silent... In the end however, she turned to the shorter of the burn victims, dropping her briefcase to the side. "Yugi..." She held her hand up, pointing to the boy rather threateningly and gritting her teeth as she looked the boy over. "If you weren't in a hospital bed..."
"Er..." The boy coughed, going rather red with nervousness as he stared. "...What? What does that even mean..!"
The woman ignored him, turning around to face Katsuya with the same hand moving to point at the blond as she growled. "And you..."
"...H-Hah..." He edged away somewhat, coughing. "Er... Y-Yea, S-Seto-cha-"
-SMACK!-
Katsuya blinked, momentarily rendered silent as the woman's hand smacked him across the back of the head. "OW! What th'..." He shook himself, rubbing his head and looking at the woman with a glare. "What th' hell was that-"
"You're a MORON!" ...Kay. Um... Seto glared, crossing her arms as she turned to look at both of the two boys. "Complete morons, both of you!" Well sheesh, rub it in then! "You, I understand," she growled, looking at Yugi as the boy blinked. "Despite what your 'other' is capable of, your naivete knows no bounds..."
"H-Hey," he sputtered, going beet red, "That's not-"
"But YOU?" Katsuya stared, watching as Seto turned back to him with narrowed eyes. Er... What was bringing this on..! "You're on my security team... I'd expect better than a suicidal stay in a flaming building,"
"H-Hey," the blond said with a nervous laugh, watching as the door opened at the side for Mokuba to walk in, "How did y' even know we stay-"
"You took half an hour to get out Katsuya-nii," the boy said fairly plainly, shutting the door tightly behind him as he balanced three cans in his hands, "I'd be surprised if Seto-neesama didn't know," he added with a shrug, before walking over to put the cans on the side table. "Hey, Nee-sama," he asked, looking up at the woman as she turned, "You want anything?"
The woman shook her head, moving to take a seat at the side. "I'm fine," she muttered, evidentally feeling calmer than usual. "I'm just wondering if I should even bother with my 'plans' for this weekend now..." Err...
Plans? The boys blinked, sharing a few glances. Errr... What? "What plans," Mokuba repeated, blinking a few times. Well damn, there went asking him what was going on...
"I have a meeting," Seto stated vaguely, idly glancing at the paper that had been left at the side before continuing.
Kay... That told him... Nothing. "A meeting," Katsuya repeated, blinking a few times as he frowned. "...What th' hell does that have to do with me?"
"Hey," Mokuba asked from the side, "Does this have to do with that call..?" Call..?
The woman ignored her brother, grabbing the newspaper from the side and idly flipping through it. "Everything actually... Despite how long I've had to filter through my staff," she continued with slight, albeit evident annoyance, "The 're-hire' is still underway for most of the security... And due to the training program required, none of the recruits are even close to being considered 'decent'..." Okay... Still wasn't seeing what this was about... Seto looked up from the paper, putting it to the side and moving toward the edge of Katsuya's bed to grab her briefcase. "I'll explain the rest later," she said dismissively, "But to say the least, you are unfortunately the best option I have for a 'bodyguard' at the moment..."
"Unfortunately!"
"B-Bodyguard," Yugi repeated, gaping as his friend frowned. Wait. Waaaaait...
H-Holy shit... The blond stared, before grinning widely and pointing at himself as he realized what the second half of Seto's sentence was. "H-Hah! I'm th' best option? Seriously!" He continued to grin, looking over to the other two as they raised their eyebrows. "Haha..! SWEE-"
"That wasn't a compliment mutt."
The blond tensed, gripping the side of his bed and growling as his 'boss' smirked. "Gh- You..!"
Seto chuckled, turning to the door and opening it. "I expect to see you 'on duty' friday night this week," she said calmly, moving into the hall as she covered her voice up once again. "Come on Mokuba- the dog and his friend need to sleep..."
Aaaaaghhh..! "Damn it S-"
"Good bye Kaiba-san," Yugi called out, voice cutting Katsuya's off as Mokuba left the room as well. "...Mokuba-kun!"
"See you," the boy shouted, waving as he headed out of the room. "Get better soon!" The door shut behind the two, leaving the boys to watch as their last visitors vanished down the hall. Alright. Friday.
'Bodyguard' duty.
A bit of silence filled the room, Katsuya slowly turning to Yugi as the boy did the same. What to say, what to- '...So,' the 'other' Yugi stated, misting into appearance beside his partner with a grin to somewhat mirror the 'lighter' one's at a more menacing level. 'A date then?'
He couldn't have hit the pillow faster if he was out cold. "AAAAAUUUGH..."
To say that it was an 'interesting' phone call she'd received early that day would likely be putting it lightly to say the least. As it was, working while her brother was in the office watching the news of all things on a sunday was not her idea of a 'good work day'. But he was watching with 'closed captions', keeping the volume down, and overall doing his best to keep out of his hair now that he had nothing else to do but worry about Jonouchi.
However the last thing she'd expected on a Sunday was a phone call. From her secretary. Who was sitting in the front, like she always was. Which meant that this business call was not from in the building (Given that they knew damn well she didn't normally work sundays in the building anymore, and that the calls would otherwise be written down and noted by the secretary.), which more often than not meant more headaches. Damn it. Seto frowned, picking up the phone with narrowed eyes. "Yes," she asked, leaning back in her seat and tapping her fingers against the chair. "What is it?"
The secretary didn't waste a single moment, merely answering with her usual calm tone. "There's a woman named 'Ishizu Ishtar' trying to call," she said plainly, pausing only a moment to let the info sink in. "She claims it's important, but besides that she sounds out of country..." Which meant that it could very well be important despite her having never heard of the woman... Damn it. "Shall I patch her through?"
Hnnnn... The name... "Ishizu," Seto muttered, Mokuba turning from the couch at the words.
"H-Heh..? 'Ishizu'... Ishtar Ishizu," the boy asked, frowning as his sister raised her eyebrows. The woman nodded somewhat curtly, her brother's frown deepening. "But she's on the news live right now, how can she be calling..""
Live? The woman frowned, looking back at the phone before glancing at the screen Mokuba was watching. Alright... Now that was... Interesting to say the least. ...Hell, after the chaos from the night before she mind as well see how that worked... "Send her through," Seto stated, listening as the phone line switched over. "...Hello?"
"Ahh... Kaiba Seto-san... Please to speak to you," an accented voice stated, Seto in question frowning somewhat as her eyes trailed over to the screen of the TV. Nothing so far... Though she had to admit, despite the accent, this woman was speaking the language quite well. Possibly better than some people she'd seen during her stint at high school, which certainly said something... "I presume you have the television on the news channel at the moment?"
An oddly accurate assumption... Nonetheless the woman nodded, crossing her legs as she kept an eye trained on the screen. "That's correct... Though I don't normally talk about such things with foreign people with whom I've never met," she added, narrowing her eyes.
The woman on the other end chuckled, likely nodding to herself. "Of course, of course... Perhaps an actual meeting would be preferable?" Not without introductions, which she happened to be skipping... Again. "Pay attention to the news Kaiba-san," Ishizu continued, Seto narrowing her eyes in response. "Perhaps we can come to an agreement."
...Through the news? She continued to narrow her eyes, before looking over at the television. ...Hell, it'd be worth humoring the woman just to see how much this failed. "...Mokuba," she muttered, gesturing to the screen, "Turn the volume up..."
"Ah..." The boy stared, before nodding. "Alright," he said with a shrug, clicking the remote as the volume went from 'mute' to 'somewhat above a whisper'.
Alright, lets see... Currently there was just the reporter and... Aha. ...That other woman was probably Ishizu, given that the woman was holding a cellphone in her hand... "Now then, Ishtar-san," the reporter asked, holding the microphone forward as the tanned foreigner turned to face her, "Is there anything in particular you would like to add in regards to the collection of Egyptian artifacts that are now on display here at the Domino museum?"
"Only one thing," the woman said politely, turning to look directly at the camera in such an eerie manner it felt as though 'Ishizu' was looking directly at them. She smiled, bowing her head somewhat before speaking. "I wish for everyone to enjoy this exhibit while it's here... It's of great importance to my country after all..."
Her country... Hn. "Yes," Ishizu stated calmly on the other end of the phone, Seto turning back from the tv as her brother turned the volume down again for commercials. "My country; you see," she began calmly, "I, like the objects on display, and from Egypt... To be precise, I am the current secretary general of the SCA." The secretary- Why the hell was she getting a call from someone the ministry of culture in Egypt! What did any of that have to do with- "You'll notice I've extended an invitation to the exhibit that I helped provide materials for..." Yes... Yes, but- "The exhibit won't open until Monday." She knew that, what the hell did it have to do with- "However, I must request that you drop by for a... Private viewing this Friday." ...What. "Directly after closing would be nice, though you'll be about ten minutes late due to traffic..."
...What... "...Excuse me," she asked incredulously, glaring at the phone as she scowled.
"This Friday. Six thirty. I'll see you there, ten minutes after the fact," she said plainly, the phone clicking on the other end to leave Seto with a dial tone.
What... The hell... The woman stared at the phone incredulously, before slamming it on the cradle and standing from her seat. Of all the nerve! "E-Er... Nii-sama," Mokuba asked, watching as the woman stormed past to leave the office. "Where-"
"I'm testing my jet," she growled, grabbing her jacket from the side, "I got a notice yesterday that it was ready."
Maybe flying at mach 2 in a giant plane that looked like a dragon would prevent her from slamming the phone through the wall.
Friday had come with mostly expected incidents. For one, he was finally freed of the white room hell that was the hospital. (Though Yugi was sadly stuck with that for at least two more weeks really.) The bracelet was cut off, he got his clothes back, his dogtags were still safely hidden away from... 'Prying' eyes (Though he had a nasty feeling that whoever was inhabiting the puzzle spotted them while he was digging for his shirt)... Of course, in the end, leaving the hospital ended up with him being carried off in the car Mokuba was in so he wouldn't be late for the job that Seto expected him to do...
Apparently however, that job was not watching security cameras, as he'd expected and had been doing for the past number of weeks and months already.
It was... This. "H-Hahh... I thought she was jokin'..."
There was a chuckling sound from the side, the owner likely shaking his head. "Nope."
Bodyguard indeed. Auughh... Katsuya pulled awkwardly at the suit he was wearing, biting his lip as he looked in the mirror. Right down to the shoes and socks... Eck. "Y'know," he said somewhat loudly, looking over himself again, "When she said 'bodyguard', I didn' think she was serious! I mean," he continued, shrugging as he turned to the hall. "She's... Well..."
"Able to handle herself," the second guard answered, poking his head around the corner with a smirk. Yea. That one. The slightly taller man walked forward, shaking his head. "Hahhhh... You did the tie wrong, here..." He reached forward, Katsuya turning away somewhat awkwardly as the man re-did the tie. Oh come on, like he was doing this all the time... "There we go," the man muttered, crossing his arms. "And as for Seto-sama... Well, technically," he said with a shrug, "We're just there for 'show'."
For show huh... 'All in the presentation' right? Sheesh... "That why I look like some kinda penguin," the blond muttered, looking over himself as 'Odoru' laughed from beside him.
"Hah! Partially," he said with a smirk, looking at the mirror a moment before turning back. "You didn't think we'd be going informally did you?" Katsuya merely glared, before his hand snapped up to catch the pair of shades tossed at him. Ah- ...Huh. Sunglasses. "Hahaha... Hey, it's only tonight right? The fact is, we're the only two who finished the training... Think of it this way," Odoru continued, Katsuya merely looking over the small radio that was attached to the shades, "The fact that she even asked for you to 'guard' her, however much it's based on appearance... Is not something you should take lightly."
"Of course," a third voice stated, the two turning as Kyouko walked in with a few wired devices on hand, "The fact that she even considered it is an incredible feat in itself..."
"O-Oii," Katsuya muttered, slipping the sunglasses on and looking over them with narrowed eyes. "What th' hell is that s'pposed t' mean," he asked, watching as Kyouko quickly clipped the devices to the suits before stepping back.
The woman shrugged, shaking her head. "Ohhh... Nothing... Have fun with your 'date'," she said with a wink, leaving the room as Katsuya bristled.
"Gh-! Why th' hell is everyone callin this a-"
"Hng-Hn!" Katsuya turned, blinking as Odoru coughed and jerked his head toward the door.
"Nh..." He moved out into the hall, frowning. "We're leavin' already?"
The man nodded, brushing a bit of hair from his face and grabbing the doorknob before pulling it open. "That's right; museum closes at six pm," he said with a short nod, "And it should take about half an hour to get there." Odoru turned to the blond for a moment, smirking as he proped the door with his foot. "Heh... First time out of the security room, this should be interesting..." Yea yea yea... The blond frowned, crossing his arms as the taller coughed. "Remember to keep your mouth shut though, alright," the man added seriously, frowning. "We're here to make an impression; namely a professional, yet powerful one... You might not be the most 'imposing' of people given your age," the man continued, ignoring the grumble that he received in response, "But given your track record," he added as the blond's expression vanished, "I have a feeling you have another way to pull that off..."
T-Track re- ...Oh... That one. Er... Katsuya blinked, slowly nodding as they entered the garage. "Er... Yea... Sure," he said with a cough, shaking his head as they stood near the entrance. "So... How's this workin' again..?"
"Well," Odoru began, watching as the car pulled up to the garage entrance. "You'll be sitting on the left side, 'road' side... And when we're out of the car," he continued, looking down at the blond, "You'll be walking just behind and to the left of Seto-sama."
Katsuya nodded, leaning back on his toes somewhat as he listened. Sounded easy enough... "Kay..."
"I'll be sitting on the right," he continued, opening the door to the car as it stopped before hopping in as his 'partner' did the same, "Meaning I'll be handling the doors, giving you a little less to worry about."
Worry..? What the hell would he be worried about? "Like what..?"
"Like getting distracted by something when you should be opening a door," the man said somewhat 'matter-of-factly'.
...Ah. "...Oh."
Odoru smirked, shaking his head as the car pulled out into the driveway. "In any case... The important thing is to remember that technically, we're here for 'show'... So don't say anything!" Eh! A-Alright? "The bodyguard is simply 'the bodyguard' to the 'outside' world," Odoru explained, crossing his arms. "No name, no identity to go by. A human shield that has no reasons to be targeted, and no reason to stand out. That way," he continued, nodding somewhat as the car drove over to the door of the mansion, "We can keep the actual target from getting shot."
Wait shot! "O-Oii," the blond protested, clenching his jaw, "I thought you said she could handle herself!"
Another smirk, the man moving to open the door as the car came to a stop. "Well yea, in a fist fight," he said with a laugh, shaking his head. "But no one stands a chance against a bullet!" Make him feel better why didn't he... He stepped out of the car, holding the door open in wait for Seto as the chauffeur turned around the seat.
"You shouldn't get too worried about things Jonouchi," Matsuda said with a small laugh, keeping his voice down as their 'boss' came over from the front door. "I highly doubt this is anything so high-scale..." Uh-huh... What told him that..? "Personally," the man continued, turning back as footsteps came over the air, "I think he just wants you to take this seriously."
Eh! "But I'm takin' this seriously," he said with a shout, "Honest!"
"Why would you do anything else?"
"Nhy?" The blond turned, watching as Seto came in to take a seat in the middle as Odoru followed after. "E-Ehhh..." He swallowed, grinning nervously as he pulled on his seatbelt. "...I wouldn't..?"
The woman smirked, crossing her legs and putting her briefcase at the side as she gave the blond a smug look. "Exactly. Now..." She leaned back somewhat as the car drove off, crossing her arms. "Let's get this over with..." Haha, yea...
Oh hey, speaking of 'getting things over with'... Katsuya looked out the window for a moment, before turning back to Seto. About this 'meeting'... "...So," he said after a lengthy period of silence, the woman beside him raising an oddly calm eyebrow. "...Where'r we goin'?"
"The Art Museum of Domino," she answered, not looking away from where she was looking through the front window. "It's where the meeting was 'scheduled'." Katsuya nodded, looking back at the window for a moment before frowning.
...Why'd she seem tense about 'scheduled'...
...
...Oh well! "...We meeting with someone important," he asked, a grin quickly coming back on his face. It'd be really cool if he was guarding at something important... ...Or something. Maybe another company bigshot, or even an actor or-
"That's one way to put it," Seto muttered, crossing her arms. Well that wasn't helpful! "The woman we are meeting with is the Secretary General of Egypt's SCA, second only to the Minister of Culture," the woman explained, a slight 'tinge' of annoyance becoming visible. "She's an incredibly important figure in the Egyptian Government... Which is probably the only reason why I didn't ignore this," she added under her breath, the two beside her blinking a few times.
Hehehe... Still. Egypt. Cool... ...Waaaaiiit... "...Wait... Egypt?" Egypt... And the museum... Those were not good things, but besides all that... "Why're we-"
"Ah... Seto-sama?" The three in the back turned as the chauffeur rubbed his head, turning from the front and swallowing. "We've hit a bit of a roadblock..."
A road block..? The others blinked, looking around the front seats and through the windows as Seto merely narrowed her eyes. "...What do you mean, a 'roadblock'," the woman 'asked' rather testily, narrowing her eyes. "We're only five minutes from the museum..."
Matsuda coughed, a nervous smile in place. "Yes well... Unfortunately," he continued, tapping the GPS at the side, "There's been an accident on the highway ahead..." The man moved to switch lanes, shaking his head. "We're going to have to take a detour... Should add ten minutes to the time at most though, so not to worry..."
Please let that not be a tri- Katsuya frowned as the woman beside him stiffened, eyes widening briefly before narrowing to slits. "...How the hell..."
"Er..." He blinked, staring. No explosion... Huh! "...What'd y' say..?"
Seto narrowed her eyes, her mood visibly darkening as the blond beside her stared. "Nothing," she growled, crossing her arms. "I said nothing..."
Katsuya blinked, looking behind the woman's head at Odoru only to get a slight shrug. Kay... Um... "So..." He coughed, attempting to grin again as he changed the subject. "Egypt eh?"
"That's right Mutt," the woman muttered under her breath, "Now shut your mouth and do your job. Namely keeping quiet!"
Hihhhh! Alright, alright... The blond nodded, turning to look out the window as he waited for them to arrive. Damn it... Way too quiet now... "..."
"..."
"...Hey, do we have radio-"
There was a growl beside him, Katsuya turning as Seto glared. "I swear it mutt, if you don't shut. Up..."
"Alrigh'! Alrigh'..." Again the blond turned away, looking out the window before glancing at the woman beside him. Huh... Interesting choice in clothing... She was wearing her jacket, but besides that, most of her clothes were pretty well skin tight... ...Damn it stop thinking of that... "...I like yer gauntlet things..."
"They're braces," she muttered, still looking through the front window. "And what did I say about talking?"
Hahaha, alright! ...Don't hurt him please... "...Got it..." Huh. Bracers eh..?
...Why the hell was she wearing- "Seto-sama," the chauffeur stated, pulling up beside a building. Ah! Katsuya leaned forward, looking through Odoru's window as the 'Domino Museum' came into view, lights still on and doors likely still unlocked from the front. The car was set into 'park', Matsuda turning to look at the group. "We're here."
The woman nodded, both Odoru and Katsuya glancing at the clock before opening the doors to leave. "Six forty," the blond muttered, moving around the car as Seto stepped out as well. "We're ten minu-"
"I KNOW, Mutt!" Okay, okay! Holy shit...
Geeze, what had her so pissed? All he said was that they were ten minutes late... (Damn traffic...) The blond swallowed as the woman walked ahead of him, nervously looking over at Odoru only to receive a shrug. Well gee, that was helpful... Seriously, he knew she was testy but... God! They made their way into the foyer of the museum, Katsuya attempting to appear at least somewhat 'blank' going in despite his eyes going every-which-way from behind the sunglasses. "Ah, you're here," a thickly accented voice stated, a woman walking over from the side of the foyer as they stood there. Tanned skin, black-brown hair... The woman was dressed somewhat simply, with what could almost pass as a nightgown in his opinion, but it was the fact that she was the same woman from the paper that caught Katsuya's attention. And there around her neck was that damn 'millennium necklace'...
Please dear god do not make him go through zombie hell again. Or anything even somewhat related. Like the soul snatching. And the soul displacement. And... Stuff...
The woman came forward, bowing somewhat as she looked over the group. "Welcome, welcome," she said politely, smiling as the guard behind and beside her looked over Odoru and Katsuya both. The two guards also returned the 'stare', the younger looking more out of curiosity than 'appraisal' if anything. Huh... Egypt eh? ...He didn't really look... "It's an honor to finally see you in person Kaiba-san," the woman continued, gaining no real response from the CEO before her. "The game industry your company set the level for is developing at an incredible speed, you should be proud of your achievements..." Kay... Again, there was little reaction, the woman continuing on as she looked over the three before her. "Now... I am 'Ishtar Ishizu'... I'm here curating the exhibit for as long as it's on display," she 'explained', still smiling. "Please, follow me," she continued, gesturing down the hall as the others again reacted with silence. "We have much to talk about... I trust your drive was mostly uneventful..?"
Seto, for her part, managed to keep a fairly straight if not barely annoyed expression in place at that, though what the two were talking about, Katsuya had no clue. "It was," the woman answered plainly, eyes narrowed. Maybe because they were ten minutes late..? Was that a big deal with these kind of things? "Now, would you care to tell me what business the SCA has with me?"
Yea, what was the SCA exactly..? Someone forgot to tell him that. Katsuya's eyes drifted off to the side with those thoughts, the blond staring at a few animal-headed jars on display, before tapping on his shoulder caught his attention. "Hn..?"
Odoru frowned, making a quick 'shh' motion before turning back to the front and pointing. 'Pay attention!' Right, right... Pay attention to pretending to be a guard, and not to the weird looking stuff decorating the walls, he got it...
(But seriously, that one hippo-lion statue thing looked... ...Scary. And eerily familiar to say the least... Hihhhh...)
"Yes... Well, as I'm sure you know, given your reaction to my position, the SCA, the 'Supreme Council of Antiquities'," Ishizu began, Katsuya raising an eyebrow for a moment, "Was established in 1859 to protect and preserve ancient treasures and findings within the country from the threat of tomb robbers and treasure hunters... Today however," the woman continued, gesturing somewhat to the statues they were passing, "The services have been extended to monitoring various exhibits worldwide..."
Kay... If that explained what she was doing there then... That made sense he guessed... Katsuya stared somewhat unimpressively, attention again snagged by the somewhat more interesting stone carvings they were passing on the side. Had no clue what they were going on about but... Whatever... Evidentally, Seto wasn't in the mood either. "If you're looking for someone interested in this, keep searching 'Ishtar-san'... Because if you know so much about my own company, you'll know full well that I'm only interested in top-line, technologically advanced products. I have no interest in thousand years old broken tablets... If you're going to waste my time," the woman continued, tone darkening considerably, "Then let me know now, so that I can save myself the continued aggravation."
There was a small bit of silence, Ishizu merely continuing forward. "Ahhh, do not worry," she began, Katsuya idly raising his eyebrows at a fairly unexpected (if not impossible) reaction. "I have no intentions of wasting your time Kaiba-san. In fact, within one night's time," the woman continued with a smile, "I believe that you'll be seeing these 'old broken tablets' in a completely different light..." At this Katsuya blinked, briefly looking at Seto and snorting mentally. Haha! YEA. Not with the mood she was in... ...Damn it, he was going to be stuck with that on the way back now... "Did you know," the woman stated, the blond far behind her listening in with mild curiosity, "Those duel monsters that your company so treasures were inspired by Egyptian carvings?"
Okay. That had Seto's attention. Katsuya blinked, mentally shaking off the fact that within two weeks he'd managed to hear the same obscure fact twice. Huh... Figured it'd come from an Egyptian the second time around... Though now that he thought about it, it was probably for the best that this was the second time he got this news; he likely wouldn't have been taking it as well as the woman directly in front and beside him, given the fact that Seto's face had instantly jumped from 'guarded neutrality' to 'WHAT THE FUCK'.
Nawwwww, if it was him, he'd be screaming damn it. Ishizu appeared to ignore the silent 'what the hell' behind her however, merely nodding her head and continuing on. "Pegasus J. Crawford; the man who personally created and designed the game... And for each of the monsters and spell cards he has designed and painted, an identical stone carving was found... Something that he uncovered while touring the deserts of Egypt. Most of these carvings," the woman stated somewhat absently, "Are back in my home country, where they belong... However, after much negotiation," she continued, coming toward a completely dark room and turning to face the group with a neutral smile, "The SCA agreed to part with a number of relics from the time of an 18th dynasty pharaoh... I wonder what sort of reaction you'll have," she continued mysteriously, smiling oddly as she looked them over, "When you look upon these carved portions of a pharaoh's mural..."
A mural..? ...A... Pharaoh's mural? ...That actually sounded pretty cool. Katsuya blinked, before tensing somewhat as Ishizu turned on the guards. Eh, what what- "Now; from this point on, I would like to request that our guards remain behind..." Damn it. "Standing by the door will give them plenty of time to react should something happen," the woman continued calmly, "But don't worry... Nothing will." ...Okay... How the hell did she know that...?
Not that he was complaining or anything but... The blond blinked a few times, looking up at Odoru from the corner of his eye and then back to Seto as the woman nodded. Alright... To the door... He sighed quietly, watching as those ahead walked through the door.
"Now then," Ishizu stated, walking into the room and vanishing into the darkness. "Please..." The woman's voice soon faded out, a light flicking on after a few moments as Katsuya turned to look up at Odoru.
"Er... What now," he asked, Odoru in question bowing his head with a sigh as the Egyptian guard at the side raised an eyebrow. ...What, something he said?
Odoru shook himself, looking to the other guard with a shrug. "He's new," he muttered, before pulling the now scowling blond to the side of the door. Come on, what was he five? Just tell him... "Look," the man muttered, "We're guarding the entrance alright? You stand on this side, I stand on that side, no talking, no listening to what they're talking about," he added, a somewhat narrowed look from the Egyptian guard coming from the side as he said this, "And try to stop looking around at the exhibit, alright?"
"I wasn'-" The man gave him a look, Katsuya shrugging and nodding his head. "Alrigh', alrigh'..." God, worse than trying to talk to his mom on the phone...
"Good... Now then..." Odoru took his 'post' at the other side, the Egyptian guard appearing 'content' with standing off to Katsuya's side and looking over the displays. Alright... To 'work'. Hnnn...
When he got over the creepiness, this stuff was actually kinda cool looking... Few tablets with animal-headed guys on them (Those were gods right?), the occasional animal. Cool stuff...
So long as he avoided the mummies at le- "-!" Katsuya turned as a muffled and largely incomprehensible shout came from inside the room, the blond moving to turn his head toward the sound only for Odoru to reach across the door and push him back.
"O-Oi," he whispered, glaring at the man from across the door. "What th' hell-"
Odoru merely rolled his eyes, looking at his watch. "Nothing's happening Jonouchi, and if you were paying attention you'd know that..."
Hang on what? "Hey," he muttered, narrowing his eyes, "What th' hell's that supposed t' mean..."
"My," the Egyptian at the side muttered under his breath, accent pulling the blond's attention back from the shouts and mutterings in the room behind him. "You weren't kidding, he is new..."
"Oi oi oi..." Seriously... Seriously, it couldn't possibly be that damn obvious!
Odoru shrugged, shaking his head as he continued to ignore the blond. "Well, he's better than he looks at least..." OIIIII... ...Wait, was that a compliment or... "Your Japanese is pretty good," he continued with a smile, "I didn't expect the guard to know the language... Egypt isn't really close to Japan, I wouldn't think the language was something readily taught..."
The man shrugged, shaking his head and smiling. "Well, thanks to recent dealings with the SCA, it's pretty much required, or so 'Ishtar-san' says..." ...Hey, he really was pretty good with the language... "Though I'm still practicing," the Egyptian continued with a wry smile, "I'm really not that good..."
The two turned, Odoru shaking his head. "No really," he insisted with a grin, "It's great, you're doing incredibly well..!"
The guard coughed somewhat awkwardly, shaking his head. "Oh... I don't think..."
"URUSEI!" The three paused, Katsuya moving to turn his head toward Seto's shout only for the Egyptian to turn him back again.
"Oi!"
"What did I tell you," Odoru whispered, shaking his head. "Completely new..."
"I see," the Egyptian muttered, raising his eyebrows as Katsuya scowled.
Honestly, he wasn't that- "Nonsense," he heard Seto shout, the blond's eyes drifting off to the side as the yelling continued. "NONSENSE! This is NONSENSE, this is a JOKE!" What the hell was going on in there! He hadn't heard this kind of crap since... Well, since he'd seen the woman with nothing on! (...He should really stop thinking of that) Seriously, what was going on in-
"Jonouchi," Odoru warned darkly, "Stop trying to look in the room before I send in a request to have you fired..."
His head snapped back to the hall instantly, the blond growing white. "N-Nyyyh! Got it!" The shouts calmed, Katsuya crossing his arms as he looked over at the other guard. Tch... Honestly... "Would still be nice t' know what-"
"We're leaving," a curt and disguised voice said from beside him, Katsuya jumping from where he was leaning against the wall.
"E-Ehh..?" The blond turned as Seto stormed past, briefcase gripped in one hand and a card of sorts held in the other. "Wh-What?" Where'd she get the card...
"Don't question it Jonouchi," Odoru muttered, pressing the small radio on his side and contacting the chauffeur as the paid also took off down the hall. "Just roll with it and start walking..."
"But what th' hell is all this..." The blond tensed for a moment, watching as the Egyptian guard and Ishizu briskly walked past. Looked like they were heading off too- "Eh..." He blinked a few times, frowning as the woman glanced at the blond from the corner of her eye before walking out. A... Another flash... He'd seen another flash, something with eyes...
What was that..? He stopped for a moment, only for Odoru to shoulder him from behind and yank the blond rather roughly from his thoughts. "Keep walking," the guard warned, keeping his voice down low as they stormed toward the foyer and toward the main entrance.
"I got it, I got it," he hissed, picking up the pace along with his volume as he looked ahead. "I jus' don't get what all th' shoutin' was about!"
"Nothing Mutt," Seto muttered, pushing past the doors and heading down the stairs with the guards on her tail. Matsuda already had the car running and waiting for them, Odoru rushing ahead to open one of the doors for Seto. "Now quiet."
"But you were loud'r than Mokuba when he w's runnin' late f'r school that one day," the blond protested, frowning.
"I said quiet Mutt!"
"Hey, does this have t' do with those tablets," he asked as they climbed into the car, Seto still visibly tensing beside him as they took their seats and shut the doors, "'Cause Yugi's Jii-chan mentioned that a while ago, an'-"
The woman instantly turned on the blond, fixing him with a glare to rival that of the very day she'd held a gun to his temple. "I said SHUT UP, MUTT."
N-Nyhhiihhhhhh..! Katsuya swallowed, leaning back against the seat and holding his breath for a moment as they pulled out of the street to head back to the mansion. S-Scary... He'd forgotten what that look looked like damn it, that was scary... "...O-ok," he finally muttered, turning to look out the window fairly awkwardly. "Alrigh'..."
It was probably obvious, to say the least, that the rest of the drive was filled with uncharacteristic silence. One person holding it by fear, two by professionalism... The fourth and female one merely in an attempt to ease a raging headache. But when entering the foyer that night, yet another 'caffeine point' to keep the blond awake was added to the pile, Katsuya having the luck of getting figuratively smacked with it while he attempted to pull off the tie he was wearing. "...Jonouchi," Seto growled, heading into the coat room as her 'guard' stared at her back. "Tell your friend to get his deck ready; we'll be fighting soon enough."
As to what 'soon enough' was, Katsuya wasn't sure...
But he sure as hell hoped it didn't interfere with the plans that he and Mokuba had set up for the Golden Week, given that they'd already extended the... 'Extra'... Invite.
AN: Would you look at that! I got the chapter done before the holidays! ...I tend to do that a lot, over-estimating and underestimating at the wrong times... Oh well! Short notes again, but the chapter is of average length... Funny how that works. Anyways...
The Golden Week eh... Looks like Yugi will be spending more time with these guys than expected! (Though the 'event' will thankfully be far more relaxing than most of you will likely guess... See if you can figure out the 'event' they'll be dragging Kaiba to before the chapter after the next neh?)
You know what's coming up next!~ And in other news, would you look at that, I was right! Ishizu! When I say 'coming up next though', I'm not quite being honest here. See, we didn't get Kaiba's point of view on all this...
And you can bet that I am not missing out on that particular 'tantrum'. That was gold, why the hell would I skip the opportunity to write that one out? Hehehehe. In addition to that, you'll be getting a hefty dose of 'weird' next chapter, so keep your eyes peeled!
And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for...
POLL RESULTS ARE IN
The winner of the fight for a crossdressing or not crossdressing female Egyptian incarnation of Seto Kaiba is...
Female Crossdressing Set - 13 (Three Anonymous)
Obviously Female Priestess Set - 9 (Three Anonymous)
Making Crossdressing Priest Set the winner, by four votes!
Yayyyyyy~ Since its so close, expect a surprise~
Now then.
Anonymous Review Responses
Ok crazikido2, there's no way in hell I can respond to all of your reviews (You reviewed every chapter, my inbox was flooded!), but you have my word that I read all of them!
Personally, given that genderflip fanfics are very rarely worth the read, and controversial at best (Not to mention this is a 're-write the canon' fanfic), I'm not surprised at the few reviews. Besides; lots of people simply don't review, they either don't have anything to say or they just don't know!
Heck, that last sentence describes me, all the time.
In any case, did Kaiba find out? Of course she did. What did she do? *points up*
What an ending indeed Iona, but unfortunately (or fortunately, as is Jonouchi's opinion) the cat is only partially out of the bag. Yugi and Yami Yugi now know that Jou can see both of them at once…
But he isn't telling them anything more. D'OH.
Oh… The flashes he saw earlier were of the building on fire; he hadn't realized it though, since it was largely a foreign and unexpected sight. Sometimes, what's really there just can't be seen…
OH Mokuba… You can bet he was channelling his sister! And as for posts…
I give you two! (The second should be up within the next day.) Happy Holidays!
Haha, when you put it that way Cynical Gamer, I suppose it does make sense…
Don't worry, Past Jou has his monsters, just not in an expected way. *winkwink*
Yea now that I think about it, your word for angst fits better.
ANYWAYS. Maybe so, or maybe not; until I pump out a completely original idea with a set ending though…
And yep! When you think about it, wouldn't an entire village of thieves have either died out or been dealt with? It was probably a viking-like deal; sometimes thieves, sometimes traders, sometimes farmers. Annnnd… I don't know, all it takes for a spirit to hold a grudge is anger and an incomplete burial… And given the way that the residents of Kul Elna were killed… Eeeeeeeh, not holding my breath.
As to whether or not Tragoedia makes a cameo who knows; he'll likely be mentioned rather than seen though, as he was dealt with before Atem took the throne, and before Set became High Priest.
And.. …Tentacles?
Yeeeeeess… It's very difficult to find anything done in halves really… But yes, plotting is good. Very good… Hehehehe…
And hehehe, yes, yes you will won't you? Don't strain your eyes though!
And yep! Mostly in concept stages for Noa, but expect 'stuff' to happen! …In terms of the rule of cool at least.
And hahaha! That's right! Though you can bet that all the crap happening half-way through Battle City will help to speed up the process… (Something about almost dying that does that…) Anyways.
No. No I wasn't. I don't think that either of them actually realized the game was cursed; it was likely a complete twist of cruel fate really, driven further by a vengeance drive… Either way, Otogi's dad is probably senile…
And I know! I kept going through that part on the edit tearing up… So hard…
But the fact is, when fire gets hot enough to burn through bone, it's already gotten hot enough to melt gold! Had they left the puzzle there, there was no way of knowing for sure if it would melt or not. Anyways… Bit of a disgusting fact, but given that the chain was red hot when Yugi was holding it… I think his palms were literally fused/glued to the chain by his skin.
Eeeeeewwwww...
And… Yep. That's what it is. … …Hindsight is always like that. Anyways, now that we're caught up… Well, he still has no clue what's going on, but given that this is a holiday double post, or at least it will be by tomorrow, perhaps a look into the next chapter can confuse you further! YAAAAAAY~
Usagi's Manga & Japan Guide/Corner
The section that should refrain from mentions of the equivalent of Spring Break right before the holidays. So weird, so strange...
So how many of you were waiting for the title of the picture I linked to you way back to show up as a chapter title?
I'll have to re-draw that scene, now that Isono's been replaced with a more logical choice in guarding... But for now, take Jou in a suit.
Technically, Pediatrics is the section of the hospital for both infants, children, and adolescents. But it still makes the joke, and in any case…
In the manga, the others are already there in the hospital, and Yugi and Jonouchi are both playing duel monsters. But… I don't think Yugi will be using his hands for at least a month and a half really; hell, I got my arms sunburnt and I couldn't move them for two weeks, let alone burning them completely by handling hot metal despite all instinct!
Needless to say, Yugi has severe second degree burns on his hands, and will have light scarring by the end of all this. But at least they're alive~
And as a matter of fact yes, Yugi's test is accurate; Jonouchi can't hear the Yugi that's in 'spirit form' unless he's directly addressed. Otherwise, it's not his business, and his own ability locks him out.
Kaiba's 'calmness' can be attributed to what she used to cool off after Ishizu's rather unexpected and unorthodox phonecall.
Namely testing out, for the first time, her nice shiny Blue-Eyes White Dragon Jet. I might not partake in cargoshipping (That would be pairings with... Inanimate objects. Think Companion Cube.), but an adrenalin rush would still probably do the trick.
And heck, even I can't deny that Kaiba's got a weird thing for that dragon...
In the dub, Ishizu is somehow able to get through to Kaiba immediately on the phone… The Japanese makes much more sense, with the secretary saying that Ishizu is on the other end. Because really, would the CEO of a company be answering the phone directly, think of the nutbars that they'd be stuck dealing with!
In the manga, Ishizu was written as a 'minister', at least she was on the page of the newspaper. Technically, there is no minister of 'archaeology'… Or… Whatever Takahashi was calling Ishizu… (All we find out is that Ishizu is apparently an important person in the government of Egypt, and at minister level. Yaaaaay~) …And then the anime switched this out for the 'Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities'. Which… Which makes a lot of sense really.
As that's also a branch of the ministry of culture. Hah! Needless to say, I obviously went with the anime's choice here; because hey hey, the Secretary General is pretty much the highest you get next to the Minister… And while it's interesting that the Secretary General is going out of her way to do all this, it still makes more sense, since the minister would even more so than the S-General have no time for things like card games. Thank you anime!
You can probably guess why Kaiba didn't test the plane on Saturday... Given that the original intention was to show it to her brother first...
Guess that didn't work~
Another point; originally, they met at ten pm. But in the end, that would mean it took like… six hours for Jonouchi to get ready. Hahaha~ As it is, Jonouchi didn't have work that evening thanks to bodyguard detail, so you can bet that he collapsed on his bed despite the timing.
So does anyone else wonder why Kaiba wears arm-bracers? Other than to look awesome?
Yea it's probably that... Though you have to admit, the wrist-strain someone must have working with the computer all day...
Now obviously we had two completely different people doing the bodyguard detail for Kaiba in the manga. (But seriously, I feel like the only reason they're there is for intimidation and a bullet shield…) In the manga, one of the guards asks about what they're doing though.
CUE JONOUCHI'S CURIOSITY. The best source of exposition that there is...
You want real irony? Odoru is a character I scrapped a long while ago for my original story (Well, the name was scrapped. Same with Kyouko; moved the story to Europe. xD)… And back when the story was first getting a planning stage, a majority of the characters 'base image' were unintentionally sapped from the characters of Yugioh.
Guess who Odoru used to mirror?
That 'hippo-lion thing'? There's a very good reason why it subconsciously gives Jonouchi the creeps, and that's because it's Ammit. Ammit is a female demon from Egyptian myth (keeping in mind that demons were not always evil in Egypt, and many of them were considered benevolent) that represented all that Egyptians feared. (Though she's linked to the goddess Tawret oddly enough, the one who married Apep (Embodiment of evil) and represents childbirth and fertility. Egyptians are weird.)
In any case, Ammit would (in some appearances) sit around by a lake of fire while the heart of the dead was being weighed on Anubis' scales... If if was heavier than Maat's feather then... Ammit would eat it. A second death basically, binding the victim into an eternal peril in Ammit's stomach. Yayyyyyy~
Ammit by the way is not only a mix of hippo and lion, but also crocodile... And was also given the titles 'Devourer of the Dead', Eater of Hearts', and (this one is weird) 'Great of Death'. I'm thinking we missed something in the translation of that last one. Evidentally, when making the list of 'giant man-eating animals', the Egyptians included the herbivorous hippo... Though hippos can be pretty vicious, and actually can get away with eating meat...
There are even reports of cannibalism, holy shit...
Ishizu is still playing her role as 'exposition lady' for the SCA here because really, how many of you knew that? She's just making sure, it helps build her story after all. Kinda. I... I don't know, I didn't want to cut her dialogue...
In the Japanese language, accepting a compliment with 'thank-you' (Or anything similar) is considered very rude, and also extremely boastful. If someone compliments you on your skills with Japanese, you're technically supposed to respond 'Iie, mata heta desu…' Which means (Not counting 'desu', the equivalent of a spoken period) 'No, I'm still bad' (At it). Japan likes shortening things... ('Heta' actually means 'unskillfull', whereas 'mata' is 'still', or 'again'). Anywho!
Unfortunately, responding with this only tells them that you're even better with the language than they thought, so expect to bounce back another compliment...
In all honesty, the guard didn't need to do that for languages, but Ishizu probably recommended it randomly using her tauk. Makes sense at least. Speaking of the guard, why the hell was he white in the manga?
FanArt and My Art Section
Removing spaces to provide you with links, every update that I feel like it!
...That came out wrong.
Jonouchi's Suit - http : / / i5. photobucket. com/ albums/ y153/ natasha_unos_1/ YGO% 20Fanfic% 20-% 20Skin/ JouSuit. jpg - Just a simple sketch from GIMP, have some fun laughing at his expression. (The suit was obviously provided...)
Lady Knight Critias (Colour) - http : / / i5. photobucket. com/ albums/ y153/ natasha_unos_1/ YGO% 20Fanfic% 20-% 20Skin/ TheKnight-1. jpg - Hey it's Critias again! ...In flat colour! Speaking of Critias...
Red Knight Hermos (Colour) - http : / / i5. photobucket. com/ albums/ y153/ natasha_unos_1/ YGO% 20Fanfic% 20-% 20Skin/ TheRedKnight. jpg - Managed to sketch out and draw the knight Hermos as well! Now here's an interesting fact... Both Timaeus and Critias got their names from ancient dialogues on Atlantis... And Critias wasn't even completed. Hermos however, comes from the Hermocrates, a dialogue known as 'the lost dialogue' due to it not existing, but the person himself appearing in Plato's dialogues. So the two rivals get the 'official' documents while the best friend gets the 'lost' one eh... Hn.
In any case, that's all for now... Next chapter should be up soon enough, so Happy Holidays everyone!