Sorry this one's late; I got sucked into another project last night and lost track of myself. I wrote this early in the morning, but didn't get home until recently. But, here she is. Hope you like.

I'm working on the last leg of the "Shot in the Dark" series for the original Good Intentions, and hope most sincerely that now summer's on us again—and this year, I'm not in such a horrendous mood that I can't write to save my life—I'll be able to finally work out the last couple of scenes and get it out there for you. It's an important chapter, and sets the stage for a lot of what's to come.

In the meantime, I hope this snapshot scene will suffice:


At first, when Mokuba mentioned to Connor that he would be going to a gaming convention in Santa Monica over the next few days, he'd been jealous of his friend, thinking that he would get to play videogames all day with his legions of fans.

Well, the games were there, as were the legions: but Mokuba didn't actually get to play any of the games, and the fans were for Kaiba-Corp, not Mokuba himself. While it was true that he had a following online in the tournament gaming scene, the younger Kaiba was not nearly as popular as his inventor-scientist-gamer-billionaire brother, and people weren't exactly clamoring for Mokuba's autograph, except a select population of teens and young children in Domino City.

"He hasn't played a game at a convention since his first, three years ago," Yugi Mutou told Connor one day, when he'd stopped at the Turtle Game Shop on his way home to see if they carried model rockets; they did, but they were out right now. "He goes to help Kaiba. Give demos, a speech or two, answer questions. That kinda stuff. From what I hear, it's not all that fun. Just exhausted"

"Only a Kaiba would attend E3 to work," said Rebecca Hawkins at school the next day; Connor understood that she had known the Kaibas for a couple of years, and she and Mokuba had struck up a friendship when he'd first transferred to East Rivers Middle. "I don't know why I'm surprised. You should've seen him at the KC Grand Prix event. I've seen seasoned veteran showmen three times his age with half his charisma."

Being friends with Mokuba Kaiba was exhilarating, but Connor couldn't deny that it was a bit daunting as well. He'd done more in his eleven years to build a career than most people did in thirty. It wasn't too surprising, really, considering who his role model was, and it wouldn't have been so bad if he hadn't also been getting such good grades in school.

Saturday at noon, when Mokuba and his brother got back into the city, and gotten things in order, the first place they went was Connor's house. Mokuba was dressed in a tailored suit—black, pinstriped, with a burgundy shirt and a peacock-feather tie—and his hair was pulled back into a braid. It would have been a ridiculous understatement to call the expression on his face relieved as he crossed the threshold into the front room. When Seto gave him a hug goodbye, the boy collapsed against him.

"You did well, kiddo," the elder Kaiba whispered gently, so gently, ruffling his brother's hair. "I'm proud of you. Now, you have fun, all right? That's an order."

Mokuba smiled against his brother's side. "Yes, Niisama."

"Good. I'll pick you up tomorrow. I love you."

"I love you, too."

Any negative thoughts Enid Brinkley—who had come to greet the Kaibas with her son—may have had about Seto for putting his brother through such a strenuous vacation were quelled by two things: one, Seto looked far more exhausted than Mokuba ever would; and two, the light in the black-haired boy's grey-violet eyes when he knew he'd gained his Niisama's approval was brighter than a solar flare. The fatigue washed out of him in half a blink.

Seto left, smiling the faintest bit.

Connor rubbed his hands on his pants, nervous. "Um…you wanna watch TV or something…?" he asked tentatively.

Mokuba's eyes were worshipping. "God, yes."


The Electronic Entertainment Expo was, in fact, held in Santa Monica, California in 2007. The actual dates don't match up to the timeline of this scene, but I figure it's close enough for government work. If KaibaCorp were indeed a real corporate entity, I think it's nigh-impossible that they wouldn't have a presence there.

Rebecca Hawkins—yes, the bane of many a Yugi fangirl's existence—is mentioned here for the first time. She'll have a role later on in the main story of Good Intentions, but this is the first time she's actually said a word in any of my published stories. Odd to think about that. Those of you worried about her being as annoying as she is in the anime, don't worry. I know what I'm doin'.

See y'all this weekend.

Take care.