Hey guys! Here we are with the next chapter of Don't Forget. Thanks for all of those who have been reviewing. This chapter is when the action starts to pick up again. So read and enjoy!
xxx
The following Monday, Alissa finally returned to school. For the past few days she had spent the majority of her time with Yugi and the gang and the Kaiba brothers in hopes of recovering her lost memories. So far, her attempts had not been successful. Alissa listened carefully to the gang as they walked her around the school. She glanced around the hallways, trying to see if anything she saw would spark her memory. Some faces and classrooms were familiar to her but the large majority was forgotten. After the long day, she was happy to finally be back at the mansion. She sat on the couch with her legs crisscrossed underneath her. Her math book was propped up on one leg and her notebook rested on the other. Her eyebrows were furrowed in confusion. Her hand moved rapidly across the paper as she tried to work out the problem for the third time. When she came out with an incorrect answer again, she released a frustrated sigh and threw her pencil down onto the couch. She massaged her temples and fell back so she was spread across the couch. She yawned and shut her eyes. Maybe a nap will help me concentrate. She began to drift into unconsciousness until she heard the sound of a cupboard closing from the kitchen. She stretched and pulled herself from off the couch. She found Seto in the kitchen making himself a cup of coffee.
"Hey." He turned his attention away from the coffee pot when she spoke.
"How are you feeling?"
"Alright. I thought you'd be at work."
"My home office provides a much better environment for getting work done." He turned back to the coffee pot and poured some of the contents into a mug on the counter. "Do you want some? There's enough for another cup."
"No thank you. So, when do you leave for America?"
"We're leaving Thursday."
"Oh. Mokuba is going with you?"
"We're all going."
"I'm not going."
"Yes you are." He started to leave the kitchen before her voice stopped him.
"I just got back. I can't go with you." He turned to her, biting back a smart retort. Does she honestly think that I would allow her to stay here?
"Yes you can and you are." She sighed. She could tell by the tone in his voice that he wasn't going to change his mind. A week or two won't hurt, she thought.
"How long will we be gone?"
"Probably a couple months at least."
"Then I'm staying here."
"No you aren't. I won't allow you to stay here without my supervision."
"What am I a child now? I can take care of myself! Why are you going to be gone that long anyway?"
"Kaiba Corp. is beginning the construction of amusement parks. I need to be there to make sure there aren't any morons there to mess up construction."
"Why did you let me go to school today?"
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"You knew we'd be leaving on Thursday. Why did you let me go to school today if you knew I'd only be going for a few days?"
"If it's your schooling you're worried about I can provide tutors for you."
"That isn't the point! My future is the point! I need to finish high school if I want to get into college! I'm behind enough as it is and leaving now would only-."
"College is something you shouldn't worry about. I can have it paid for."
"Ugh you don't get it!" His patience was wearing thin. There was no way in hell he was letting her stay here.
"Then explain it to me."
"I'm not helpless! I don't need your help and I don't want it! If I get into college I want to get in because of my skill and intelligence not because some rich ass hole paid for me!"
"Accepting help doesn't make you helpless."
"I never said it did! Forget it. You're right. I'm stupid and helpless. I'll pack my stuff tonight."
"Alissa."
"I have homework to finish." Before he could speak, she stormed past him. She gathered her things from the living room and went back up into her room. Once she was in the privacy of her room, she grabbed a pillow and let out a frustrated scream into it. I'm not helpless! Just because I don't have my memories doesn't mean I can't take care of myself. After a few minutes of fuming, she began to feel a little guilty. After all, he had offered her a place to stay. Without him, who knows where she'd be staying right now. She sighed and fell backwards onto her bed. She hated being wrong. As much as she hated to admit it, she did need him at least a little bit. I should apologize. She pulled herself from her bed and headed towards the bedroom door. She opened the door to find Seto standing there, about to knock.
"Oh. Hey Seto."
"Dinner is ready."
"Oh. Okay. Thanks." He started to walk towards the stairs until her voice stopped him. "Hey Seto."
"What is it Alissa?"
"I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't mean-…I was just upset. I-."
"We'll talk about this later." She nodded and followed him down the stairs. After dinner, Seto went up to his office without a word. I'll talk to him tomorrow, Alissa thought. She returned to her room, finished up her homework, then climbed into bed. It didn't tale long for her to drift into unconsciousness.
xx
"Our families have been feuding for years. They'll never let us be together," the girl with light hair spoke through the crack in the wall.
"Then we'll run away," the brunet male spoke from the other side of the wall.
"How will we get away?"
"Meet me at the white tree on the hill tomorrow at sundown. We'll be gone before anyone can stop us."
"I'll see you then my love. I'll be the one in the white veil."
"I can't wait to hold you."
The next afternoon, the girl with light hair walked through her marketplace. She wore a veil to hide her face. The sun was beginning to dip beyond the horizon, giving the city a beautiful orange glow. The girl smiled with the knowledge that she would soon be meeting her love. It had been several moths since the two first met. However, this would be the first time they met face to face. Up until this point. They had been exchanging secrets and kind words through the crack in the wall that separated their homes. If it weren't for their feuding families, they would have met a long time ago. She made it to the top of the hill then stopped. A lion sat not far from the tree, finishing its latest kill. The girl released a small gasp of fright and ran back down the hill. Her veil slipped from her head and fell to the ground, forgotten in her panic. She reached the bottom of the hill and saw a small cave ahead. She ran into it and stopped to catch her breath. She decided she'd wait in the cave for a few minutes. By then the lion would surely be gone.
The brunet walked quickly through his marketplace. He was late. The sun was almost completely gone beyond the horizon. He hurried up the hill but froze when he saw blood. What he saw next made his heart stop. A lion had a bloody veil in his mouth. A veil that he knew belonged to his love. The lion growled at him then ran in the opposite direction. When the lion left, he caught sight of the mangled mess not far from the tree. The body was completely undistinguishable. It was so torn and eaten that it was impossible to tell whether or not it was ever human.
"No," he said aloud. He was too late. The lion had killed his love. Why else would it have had her bloody veil in its mouth? He shut his eyes tightly to stop the tears from falling from his azure eyes. He removed his sword from the sheath on his hip. He looked at the glistening blade.
"I love you," he whispered, before impaling himself on his own sword and falling to the ground. He smiled as he bled out onto the grassy hill. Soon, he would be with his love.
The girl peeked out of the cave. The sun had finally set and the moon had risen. It cast a bright light on the world around her. By know the lion was surely gone. She climbed up the hill at a quick pace. She hoped that her love hadn't been waiting to long. When she saw a bloody body on the ground she froze. A tall brunet was lying on the ground. A small smile was on his lips and his azure eyes stared up at the sky. She let out a small shriek and rushed to the dead man's side.
"My love? My love can you hear me? Wake up!" She shook his body in hopes that he would wake. She pulled her hands away and they were covered in the blood that was coming from the wound in his chest. His sword lay next to him, soaked in blood. She held his hand in one of hers then lifted his sword in the other.
"I'll join you soon my love." She shut her eyes and impaled herself on the sword. As her life slowly slipped away, she fell to the ground next to him. She clasped his hand weakly and breathed her last.
xx
Alissa woke with a start. Sweat dripped down her forehead. What a weird dream, she thought. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand and frowned. The flashing red lights alerted her that it was three o' clock in the morning. She pulled herself out of bed and headed towards the kitchen. Maybe a cup of tea will help me get back to sleep. She entered the kitchen and quickly boiled some water. She filled a small mug with the hot water then let the tea bag soak in the hot water. Once her tea had been made, she made her way back up the stairs. She stopped when she heard a soft clicking. She turned her head towards where the noise was coming from and noticed that a light was on in the room down the hall from hers. Who the hell would be up now? She peeked through the door and found Seto sitting up at his computer. He was so caught up with his work that he hadn't noticed her entering the room.
"Hey Seto. What are you doing up?" He looked up from his computer when she spoke.
"I should be asking you the same thing."
"I couldn't sleep. I thought maybe some tea would help."
"I had work to finish." He dropped his gaze to the screen of his laptop again and continued to type. "You should go back to sleep."
"I will but while I'm here can we talk?" He stopped typing and shut his laptop.
"Very well. Make it quick. I have things to finish."
"I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't mean it. I was just upset. My feelings got the better of me. I really do appreciate all you've done to help I just-."
"You were right."
"What do you mean?"
"You were right to get upset. I should know by now that you're anything but helpless. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."
"It's okay. I understand where your concern is coming from. I almost died not too long ago."
"When I go to America, I want you to stay in touch and give me weekly updates."
"What? What do you mean?"
"I mean that I expect you to pick up all my calls and refrain from doing anything stupid."
"You're letting me stay here?"
"I was thinking about it and you're right. Your education is important. And although social interactions may not be my thing, I understand that you're different. You'd probably shot yourself after two days on independent study."
"Thank you."
"There's one more thing. When the school year is over, I expect you to come to America. I'll have a plane sent for you. If we'll be there longer than the summer than you can start off college there."
"Alright." She released a small yawn. "Well I'm going to go back to bed."
"See you tomorrow."
"Thank you Seto."
"Pft for what?"
"For trusting me."
xx
On Wednesday night , Alissa said goodbye to the Kaiba brothers before they left the house.
"Have a good flight! Call me when you land so I know you guys aren't dead!" She waved to them as they got into the limousine.
"Bye Alissa! We'll see you soon!" Mokuba called back.
"Stay safe." Then they left. The next morning she got up and headed to school.
"Hey Tea," she greeted the brunette when she reached their Algebra class. "Where's Yugi?"
"He just left a minute ago. He seemed really weird. I'm worried about him."
"Well can you blame him for leaving? It is Algebra."
"Yeah I guess you're right." After class ended, the two girls parted ways.
"I'll see you after school Tea."
"Bye Alissa!" The majority of the day passed silently. The only thing that Alissa noticed that was different was the absence of her friends after she had last seen Tea in Algebra. That's weird. They don't seem like the kinds of people to ditch class. She let her mind wander as her Physics teacher went on with his lecture. A sudden scream from outside pulled Alissa's attention to the window. The students quickly rushed to the window, pressing their noses to the pane of glass to see what was going on outside. Alissa shoved her way through the crowd of students and gasped. There were hundreds of monsters outside; monsters that she immediately recognized as Duel Monsters. A scream from the hallway had the students rush out into the hallway. Some of the monsters had somehow managed to get inside the school and were now attacking innocent students. The teenagers began to panic and run in all directions to escape the monsters. Alissa pushed her way through the crowd in an attempt to get outside. The biggest thing on her mind was Yugi and the gang. She hoped they were okay. I need to find my friends. Once she was outside the school, she began to run towards the center of town. She stopped when a large dragon landed in her path. Is that the Winged Guardian of the Fortress? The dragon roared and threw its head back, ready to attack. She was frozen in her spot. Move you idiot! At the last moment, she felt herself being pushed out of the way of the blast.
"Alissa what are ya doin' ya idiot! Let's get outta here!" She'd recognize that Brooklyn accent anywhere.
"Right behind you Joey!" The two ran as the dragon geared up for another attack. The two turned down an alley and stopped to catch their breath.
"Are we safe?" she heaved. Man, I need to get in shape.
"I think so." He peered outside the alley and smiled. "Yeah, we're safe."
"Thanks for saving me back there."
"It was nothin'."
"Do you know what's going on? Why are there Duel Monsters everywhere?"
"I don't know. Yug, Tea, Tristan, and I were headed over to Kaiba Corp. to see if Money Bags knows anythin'."
"He's in America remember? He left late last night."
"We better catch up with the rest of 'em then and let 'em know. Come on!" She didn't think that going back out to where the monsters were was a very good idea but she had no choice but to follow him as he ran out of the alley. Soon, the duo spotted Yugi and the rest of his friends ahead of them. They were standing in front of Kaiba Corp. A huge crowd had formed in front of the steps.
"Hey Yug! Look who I found!" The three of them turned to the sound of Joey's voice.
"There you are Joey! We thought we lost you. Are you guys okay?"
"We're fine Tea," Alissa heaved. "Look, coming here was a waste of time. The Kaibas are in America."
"Roland said that Kaiba will be giving a press conference later today. Until then I guess we have to wait." Alissa turned to Yugi as he spoke.
"Did you get taller?" she asked. "And did your voice get deeper? I'm not the only one who's noticing this right?"
"Come to the game shop with us and we'll explain everything."
xx
"So let me get this straight, you're an ancient Pharaoh who lives inside Yugi's Millennium Puzzle."
"I know it sounds crazy but it's the truth," the Pharaoh spoke.
"It sounds weird but I believe you. I mean, how else would you be taller and deep voiced one second and short and not so deep voiced the next? I trust you guys."
"Thank you Alissa."
"Hey, Seto's about to speak!" Alissa said, turning her attention to the television.
"About time." The reporter flashed to a video of Seto standing at a podium. He was dressed in a long indigo coat. He wore his usual serious expression.
"We've done extensive testing of our holographic simulation systems. I can now confirm that these sightings are unrelated to Kaiba Corp. Our state of the art technology is working perfectly."
"He's covering up," Tristan replied. "No one else has the equipment necessary to create those holographic projections."
"Unless those monsters out there aren't holographic projections."
"Actually, I was thinking the same thing."
"You guys can't be serious? Real monsters?" The sound of glass breaking and Yugi's grandfather's yell had the teenagers running down the stairs.
"Grandpa! Are you alright?"
"Yugi. They took them. They took your most powerful cards."
"Someone took the God cards? We have to go after 'em!" Joey ran out the door before anyone could stop him.
"Joey wait!' Alissa followed behind him. When she got outside, she froze.
"Uh guys, you should come see this!"
xx
And end! Hopefully you guys enjoyed this chapter. Sorry if it took a while to get posted but my family came down to visit me this weekend so I was with them the majority of the weekend. As I said, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. See you guys next chapter!