So...Kaiba encounter, YAY!
But before that...you have to suffer through emotional issues. Sorry, not sorry.
The roar of the car coming to life outside roused Atem from his sleep. He looked around in confusion for a moment before remembering where he was, vaguely recalling that he and Kat had been talking the night before while she continued to work on Marik's schoolwork. Their topics of discussion had been random, but the atmosphere between them had become much more relaxed.
Atem stood and stretched, then headed upstairs to get ready for the day.
He was still struggling with his tie when he heard the car pull back into the driveway, followed shortly after by the front door opening and closing. He walked out of his room, looking down from where he stopped beside the balcony railing.
"I brought breakfast," Kat said casually, exiting the main room as she passed into the kitchen.
Atem noticed that she appeared distant. He gave up on the tie he was still fussing with and made his way downstairs.
"There's coffee and doughnuts. Wasn't sure what you would prefer, so I just grabbed a bit of everything," Kat said, sounding exhausted.
"Is everything alright?" Atem asked, somewhat concerned by his former wife's lack of emotion.
"I'm fine," Kat replied, appearing very downcast. She wouldn't even lift her eyes from the empty space in front of her.
Atem reached out and made her face him.
"You're not 'fine'," he said firmly. "Now please, tell me what is wrong."
Kat quickly became bitter and defensive. "I said I was fine! There's nothing wrong!"
Atem remained firm, holding tight to the woman that tried to remove herself from his grasp.
"Katrina, look me in the eyes and tell me that."
Kat stopped her struggling, her bitter features becoming sad once again. Her lip quivered for a moment before she fell forward into the crook of Atem's shoulder, wrapping her arms around him tightly as she began to sob.
Atem wasn't sure what to do other than to hold her in a comforting embrace. He didn't have a clue as to what had put her in this state.
Kat brought her head up after a long moment, attempting to wipe away a few tears with the heel of her palm.
"I messed up everything…and now he hates me…" she stated, a fresh wave of tears making their way forth. She dropped her head back into Atem's shoulder, her shoulders shaking as she sobbed even more.
"Who hates you?" Atem questioned, rubbing his hand lightly between her shoulders in an effort to calm her and get some answers.
"Imhotep…" Kat said in a muffled reply, her face still buried in Atem's shoulder as she continued to sob. "He hates me…because of…of…" She tried to say more, but struggled between intensified sobs.
Atem gently pried her from his shoulder, holding her far enough away that he could look at her as he spoke.
"I'm certain he doesn't 'hate' you. He's probably just a bit upset," he said in a gentle voice.
Kat shook her head furiously. "No! He does! I locked him away! I wasn't there for him! I-...I messed up everything! I wasn't his 'mom'...and I should have been! I didn't…I didn't know what to do…" Her sobbing returned as she fell to her knees, burying her face into her fists. "I was alone…no one except Mkhai to help…I didn't know what to do…everyone was just suddenly gone…"
Atem knelt down beside her. "Katrina, look at me."
Kat removed her hands, her tear strained eyes still looking down at the floor. "Atem, you don't understand. I…I failed in that aspect. I'm nothing like my Ama-shae. Bast knew I wasn't capable…that's why she refused me the ability to become a mother in the first place…"
Atem reached out and curled a finger beneath Kat's chin, forcing it up so that she had to look at him.
"I don't believe that, and it's not your fault. If anyone is to blame, it's me. I forced you into making a rash decision." He removed the finger below her chin, then cupped her cheek in his hand. "You did what you felt was necessary to keep everyone safe, just as you always have. You couldn't afford even the slightest risk this time around. You had to take extreme measures."
Kat closed her eyes and leaned into the hand on her face, placing her own on top of it. "Where has this Atem been all these years? Why couldn't this Atem have been the one that I saw last?" she asked, more tears silently falling down her cheeks.
Atem's heart felt heavy. "This Atem wouldn't be kneeling before you now if the other hadn't spoken as he did."
Kat slowly opened her eyes. "I suppose that's true." She brought her gaze up to his. "I didn't mean for things to end up as they did."
"I know," Atem said softly. "And neither did I…but here we are."
Kat cast her gaze to the floor. "I-…I really like Marik."
Atem nodded slightly. "I know."
After a moment Kat spoke again, raising her head a bit as she looked Atem in the eye. "I find myself wondering if I'm making yet another mistake."
Atem gave her a puzzled look. "How so?"
Kat clasped her fingers around Atem's hand as she cast her gaze down and away again. "I like how he makes me feel…but what happens when he no longer makes me feel this way? I'll have thrown everything between us away, and for what?"
Atem found himself fighting hard to repress the feelings of hope that had quickly arisen. "No. We needed this. If things do happen to change between the two of you, then we can try again if you like. But don't throw away what currently makes you happy based on a 'what-if' scenario."
Kat took a deep, shaky breath, her lip still slightly pouted as she quickly nodded. "You're right. Thank you."
Atem removed his hand from Kat's face and stood, holding the hand out instead to help her up off the floor. She wiped the remaining tears from her face and took the offered hand, keeping hold for a moment after she had stood. She looked down at the hand she still held, appearing distant again.
"Now what?" Atem asked in concern.
"You didn't take advantage of my doubts. You could have easily convinced me that I am indeed making a mistake…but you didn't."
Atem repressed more emotions that found themselves coming forth. He removed his hand from hers as she began to stroke her thumb gently across the back of it. Kat gave him a slightly puzzled look, then averted her gaze.
"Katrina, cast those thoughts aside. You are still upset and not in the right frame of mind," he admonished.
"No one would have to know…"
Atem looked at her momentarily in shock, his brow furling in disapproval. "You would hide something like that from Marik?"
Kat closed her eyes tightly, her lip quivering again as she ran from the kitchen to her room upstairs.
Atem clenched his jaw tightly as he took a deep breath while running his fingers through his hair in frustration. The perfect opportunity had presented itself, yet he had decided to do the 'right thing' instead.
He glanced over to where the paper cup of coffee was growing cold, taking it in his hand while selecting a doughnut from the box that Kat had opened just as he'd entered the kitchen. He carried both up to his room to finish getting ready, noticing along the way that the shoulder of his shirt was soaked with snot and tears. Not that it bothered him. It gave him the perfect opportunity to choose something other than the blood-red shirt that the suit had originally been paired with.
Atem didn't see or hear from Kat until she came down from her room several hours later. By that time he had finished getting ready, sorted through and recreated his deck several times, somewhat figured out the phone Mkhai had set him up with, managed to order lunch with it, waited for his meal delivery, ate his lunch, sorted through his deck some more, and stared at the ceiling more times than he cared to admit.
"What happened to the shirt you were wearing earlier?" Kat asked casually as she walked down the stairs.
"Someone covered it in snot."
"Oh. Sorry…" she said distantly.
Kat stopped at the bottom of the stairs, adjusting the dark belt that she had placed over top of a short-sleeve blazer to cinch it around her waist. The blazer itself was pale-gold, with brighter gold filigree accents trailing along the button edge. She paired it with a tight pair of dress slacks and the strappy stilettos from the day before. Under the blazer appeared to be an earthy brown tank top. The gold around her wrist and neck, and on her ears, matched the filigree on the blazer. Her hair was done up in its usual bun-ponytail, ankh and all.
"You almost look like a business-woman," Atem commented.
"That's kinda the point," Kat said nonchalantly. She took a closer look at Atem's apparel, focusing intently on the button-up beneath his vest. "Why does that look like the shirt you were wearing yesterday?"
"It's not," Atem stated defensively. "It's just one that looks a lot like it."
"Remi gave you a blue silk shirt?" Kat asked suspiciously.
Atem began to panic internally. "Is that a problem?"
"Silk shirts like that went 'out of style' over a decade ago. Remi wouldn't be caught on his worst day with one in his shop."
"You left me and Bakura alone. We went to a few other places."
"I didn't leave you alone…"
Atem tried to hide his panic as he realized his slip.
Kat glared at him, obviously waiting to see if he would admit to the slip-up.
Atem began to fidget with his neck. "Malik was complaining about having to stick around so we told him it was okay to leave," he said while glancing away.
"And he left? After I told him to stay?"
Atem was glad to hear the front door open, but that quickly changed when he saw Malik walk through.
Kat spun around, placing her hands on her hips. "You left?!"
Malik stopped in his tracks, his eyes wide with confusion. "Uhhhh…."
"You left Kura and Atem alone! After I told you to stay with them!?"
"Uhhh...right…that…." Malik glanced nervously towards Atem. "The Runt promised to behave and said I could go because he didn't want to listen to me complain," he rambled quickly.
Kat calmed. "Oh. So Atem was actually telling the truth…"
Both Atem and Malik let out a sigh of relief.
"If you don't mind me asking, why is he here?" Atem questioned.
Malik's face fell. "I have to chauffeur and play 'security'," he replied unenthusiastically.
Atem nodded casually as if understanding. "That explains the suit…"
"I hate wearing these things," Malik commented, tugging at the tie around his neck. "Feels too much like a noose."
"Mal, just play the part," Kat said irritably.
"I hate this 'pretend' crap. We never had to go through this much before…"
"Cameras weren't fixed into the hands of every single person before."
Malik groaned. "Whatever. SUV's in the drive. I'm ready when you are."
The ride to Kaiba Corp. was even less pleasant than the awkward exchange back at the house. Kat had insisted on sitting in the passenger seat of the black SUV, leaving Atem by himself in the back. The first several moments had been long and silent before Kat decided to play with a few settings and connect her phone to the vehicle's Bluetooth. She settled on a playlist full of hard metal music and turned up the volume, which Atem quickly discovered he disliked as he covered his ears from the screaming voice coming from the speakers. After he shouted a few times to turn it down, Kat shut off the music entirely.
"Ka-ib, are you angry with me?" Malik questioned.
"No. Why would I be?" Kat asked casually as she stared out the passenger window.
"That's why I'm asking. You appear to be in a foul mood. Are you certain you aren't upset that I left the two of them alone?"
"I should have figured Kura would have given you an easy out," Kat sighed boredly. "I shouldn't have forced you into that situation."
There was another long, awkward moment of silence.
"Is it the meeting? After what happened in Ro-"
"It's not that." Kat interrupted sharply. "Can we just finish the ride in silence? I'm not feeling well."
Malik turned his head slightly to give her a curious glance, then returned his focus to the road ahead.
Malik dropped Atem and Kat off at the front entrance, then drove off to find a spot to park. Both stared up at the imposing building before them for a long moment before entering. Once they passed through the front door, however, it was like someone had flipped a switch on Kat's mood.
Mokuba was standing by the front desk, waiting to greet them.
"Moki!" Kat squealed excitedly as she rushed up and squeezed the youth in a crushing embrace. She then held him out at arms length, smiling brightly. "Ohmygosh! You grew! You're nearly as tall as me now! And did you cut your hair?"
Mokuba looked less than enthused. "Yes. I cut my hair…" he said boredly. "A certain someone thought I looked like a girl…"
Kat let out an over-dramatic gasp. "That was a mean thing for him to say."
Mokuba looked past the tiny woman, his bored expression quickly replaced by puzzlement. "Is this some sort of joke? I know my brother is a bit obsessed with Yugi, but finding someone that looks like him to become your Co-Prez?" He slowly shook his head. "I know you like doing things to test my brother's patience, but don't you think that's a bit extreme?"
Kat stared blankly for a moment. "Yeah…believe it or not, I didn't plan on that part. Atem and Yugi being alike…it's…complex."
"Riiight…" Mokuba said doubtfully. He rolled his eyes then turned. "Follow me," he said as he led the way to the elevators.
On the elevator ride up, Atem leaned over and spoke low to Kat. "What was that all about?"
Kat ignored him, staring straight ahead.
"Listen, Kat…can you try not to get under Seto's skin this time?" Mokuba asked nicely. "A lot of weird stuff happened at the last tournament, and ever since then he's been a bit…off…"
"No promises," Kat stated with a smirk.
Mokuba sighed. "I was afraid you'd say that…"
The elevator arrived at its destination and the three exited before walking a short distance to Seto's office. Kat didn't even wait for Mokuba to walk in to announce them as she rushed ahead and slammed the door to the office open while grinning like a Cheshire cat.
"Guess who's here?!" she announced loudly with her arms spread out.
Seto gave her an icy stare. "Can't we have one meeting without the over-dramatized theatrics?"
Kat skipped past the chairs that had been placed for them, opting to sit on the edge of Seto's desk instead. "That would be sooo borrriiing…" she dramatically replied.
Seto quickly turned his attention to Atem as he entered the office. "Is this some sort of sick joke? Is everything just a game to you?" he questioned bitterly.
"Moki, wait outside and shut the door," Kat said in an overly-sweet voice.
"Mokuba, stay, and leave the door open," Seto demanded.
Kat's mood shifted again as she turned and locked eyes with Seto, the two appearing to see who's icy stare was more intimidating.
"Is it always like this?" Atem quietly asked Mokuba.
"Every time…" Mokuba replied boredly.
Several moments passed.
"You know it wasn't Yugi. It never was." Kat stated, breaking the awkward silence.
Seto didn't blink or break eye contact. "Trying to sell me that Egyptian fairy-tale again?"
"Nope. It's not a fairy-tale. Fairy-tales have a 'Happily Ever After' at the end," Kat replied bitterly, not blinking or breaking eye contact either.
"Do you have any proof to back up your outlandish story?"
"Why don't you ask him yourself?"
Seto's icy glare shifted over to Atem. "Mokuba, you can leave now…and close the door behind you."
Mokuba nodded and hurried out of the office.
"Kat has tried to sell me the idea that you used to be an ancient Pharaoh. That you used to be nothing more than a spirit trapped within the Millennium Puzzle around Yugi's neck." Seto stated once the door had shut.
"I believe I tried to tell you the same thing once," Atem said, staring down Seto like he had many times before.
"I do recall that particular conversation, but I need a bit more convincing."
"What if I told you I had no qualms about delivering the final attack during Duelist Kingdom. That it was Yugi that stayed my hand."
"You would have risked me falling over the edge?"
"Absolutely."
Seto leaned back into his chair, then closed his eyes. "I thought as much." He reopened them, smirking at Atem. "Exodia?"
"That was me," Atem replied with a smirk of his own.
"You owe me a rematch."
"I don't have the Egyptian Gods in my deck."
"Perfect. I don't want to duel the Egyptian Gods anyway. I want to go up against you. You always seem to find a way to outmaneuver everything I throw at you."
Atem sighed. "I take it you want to do this right now?"
"Of course," Seto replied.
"Not so fast…" Kat interjected. "You two can go play your little card game in a minute. I have something important I would like to ask."
"Make it quick," Seto demanded.
"You haven't noticed anything…unusual? Maybe…say…a strange magical light that might have been somewhat bluish-gray in color?"
"No."
"You sure?" Kat asked suspiciously.
"I'm certain I would have noticed a 'strange magical light'."
Kat stared boredly at him. "You barely believed in my 'Egyptian fairy-tale'."
"No lights. If you don't believe me, have your brother check my security footage."
Kat didn't appear happy to hear this answer, and showed it by grabbing Seto by the collar of his jacket and pulling him in close. "Don't. Lie. To. Me." she said sharply. "Ra's exact words were 'I saw the Tormentor make its way to its master'. Now if it wasn't you, then where the fuck did it go? There is only one other person that Obelisk has served, and he's dead."
Atem rushed over, attempting to force Kat to let go of Seto. "Katrina! He said he hasn't seen it! Release him!"
Kat turned and glared at him, the blue of her eyes glowing like burning embers. "Where is my fucking brother!? Where is Set!? Don't you wish to know!? Obelisk would never betray him! He has to be somewhere! Kaiba is naturally drawn to the White Dragon, just like Set! It's him! He's just forgotten!" she shouted, becoming frantic.
Atem pulled her back as she tried to wriggle out of his grasp while kicking and screaming. "Put me down! I can help him remember!"
Atem forced her into a chair, then stood in front of her with his hands on the armrests to keep her there. "That's enough!" he shouted authoritatively.
Kat stopped her frantic attempts, staring up at Atem with eyes pleading. "Atem…he can't just be…gone. The similarities…it just has to be him…"
Atem took a deep breath then stepped back. "It's not Kaiba," he said with a heavy heart.
"You're certain?"
Atem nodded. He glanced back at Seto, who appeared unfazed by the incident. "I don't see Set when I look at him." He brought his gaze back to his former wife, who's eyes had returned to normal. "I'm sorry."
Kat sat for a moment, gaze cast downward in thought.
"You can go play your little game now," she said, once again becoming distant. "I'll have Mal wait around to take you back."
"There's no need. I'm going with you," Atem stated. He turned towards Seto. "I'm sorry, but our duel will have to wait."
Seto appeared annoyed, but nodded anyway. "You know where to find me. Just don't make me wait too long"
Atem nodded back, then escorted Kat out of Seto's office. Mokuba took them back down to the lobby where Malik was waiting impatiently.
"Malik, bring the vehicle around."
Malik gave Atem a questioning look, then left to retrieve the SUV.
Kat didn't object when Atem suggested that this time he should sit up front so she could lay down in the back.
"What happened?" Malik asked in concern once they were on their way.
Atem glanced into the backseat where Kat lay curled up, her eyes glazed over as she stared at the back of the driver's seat.
"She went after Kaiba thinking that somehow he was Set trying to hide from her."
"But Kaiba isn't Set. Even I know that," Malik commented.
"I know. But Ra mentioned that Obelisk had 'made its way to its master'. She's convinced that he meant Set."
"The Winged Dragon chose a new master because I was not capable of housing such a Ka at the time of its release. It's most likely the same with Obelisk."
"But who could possibly control such a Ka? I assume Marik is only capable because of the blood he shares with you and Ra. Being a Pharaoh, it is the blessings placed upon me by the gods themselves that allow me to control such powerful Ka. I can see how Katrina would have come to the conclusion that the new owner of Obelisk would be Kaiba, but that doesn't make him Set."
"So Kaiba isn't in control of Obelisk?"
"No." Atem stated while shaking his head.
Malik appeared to mull over this bit of information. "Ra said he saw where Obelisk went. As much as I don't want to, I can go speak with him and see if he will offer any clues as to where we might begin our search."
"That won't be necessary. I'm certain whoever it is will unintentionally reveal themselves."
"That is true, but have you forgotten what happened when the three of us summoned our God Ka for the first time?" Malik asked in reminder.
"That was all three at once."
"Yes, and we had received proper instruction on how to summon in the first place. What are the odds that whoever has been chosen even knows the old way?"
"I see your point…"
"We should try to find the new owner before something bad happens."
Atem sighed and relented. "Very well. Just try not to get mind-controlled again."
Malik curled his nose and groaned. "I didn't try the last time…"
Now before you go screaming 'Where are the card duels! This was a Kaiba encounter! You can't have Kaiba encounter without a card duel!'...yeah...I suck at the card game. I played waaay back when it was Duelist Kingdom rules, where the rules were pretty much an episode of 'Who's Line is it Anyway?'
Plus, this chapter is mostly to help set up some big stuff in the coming chapters. I'm slowly chipping away at them, but I am confident by the time I return in 2023 they will be worth the wait.