Adina cracked her eyes open and saw a glorious sight above her through the glass domed ceiling.
Elegant streams of sunlight filtered down through the crystal-clear water, and a school of fish drifted by, followed quickly by a pod of dolphins. The bright blue sky was visible in the distance, and the scent of the water here was fresh and sweet.
It was…so peaceful, and beautiful.
Blinking excitedly, she remembered the events from yesterday in a rush.
This was Daddy's colony, which he shared with Uncle Seth, and this meant they were close enough to Daddy's shore to see him again!
Shoving the covers off her body, she darted out of bed and passed a giant mirror built into the wall. She froze, barely recognizing herself in the reflection.
Her hair was no longer a clumpy, tangled mess that fell annoyingly in front of her face every time she swam anywhere. It was braided nicely with three plaits; two framing the sides of her face, and one down the back.
The present from Daddy was still sitting perfectly fixed around her head with sparkling tear-drop diamonds dripping prettily down across her forehead, sending sparkling rainbows dancing off the walls every time she moved.
I'm never taking it off, she thought indignantly, patting her hair again and floating to the large door, which was made of a strange, foggy type of glass. It looked like…ice, or what the textbooks said ice should look like.
Pressing her palm against the surface curiously, the princess stared at the small handprint she'd made before it faded away.
It was glass, but it looked like ice.
Daddy's colony was…so different from home.
It was better than home.
Everything at home was dark, cold, hard, made of gold or mixed glass, but here, Daddy's colony was made of art.
Curling her chubby hands around the white handle, the princess pushed the door open slowly and froze in shock when she saw Warrior Mahad standing at attention at the end of the hall.
Uh oh. Bad.
Mahad blinked and kept very still, hearing the princess's thoughts loud and clear.
It seemed she was awake. Time to call Seth to deal with her.
Letting the door ease shut, the princess swam in an anxious circle inside Daddy's room, zooming up to gaze through the glass ceiling at the surface before diving back down to sift her fingers through the white sand on the ground.
How did Daddy make all the sand become white in this one room?
Sand was usually mixed, or black, or yellow.
Daddy was a magician, and that's why he was better than everybody…even Atem.
Sitting down with a huff, Adina splayed her fins out in front of her, admiring the bright blue color that gleamed back at her under the sun.
Her fins didn't look like this at home.
Everything was prettier up here in Daddy's home.
Outside in the hallway, Seth rubbed his eyes blearily and floated to the doorway of his room, feeling Mahad pushing him annoyingly from behind.
She doesn't want to go home, so you better convince her to come nicely before she scratches me to death…again, Mahad growled, and Seth cracked a sleepy eye open at the warrior, smirking.
How many moons did you need to spend in a healing pod for those scratches? Seth asked, slowly waking up and enjoying Mahad's furious, red face.
One moon, with ointment! Mahad growled, already floating away. I don't know what your family is made of, but the poison was itchy!
Seth watched Mahad go, and he turned to gaze through the frosted glass, seeing her sitting on the floor, presumably fuming and throwing a mini tantrum inside her head, because he could hear most of it.
Daddy's home is the best. I'm never leaving.
Ugh, Seth thought, bracing himself, and he changed his tone quickly, calling out to her, "Princess! It's Uncle Seth! Do you want to go up to see Daddy's Shore after breakfast?"
Adina perked her head up and darted to the door, bobbing up and down excitedly in the water.
"Yes, yes!" She let Seth open the door and she zoomed forward to throw her arms around his neck, clinging onto him tightly before pulling back to gaze into his face. "Take me up to see Daddy."
She blinked her large angular eyes at him, taking in Seth's sharp cheekbones, high-bridged nose, and the streams of silky hair that floated around them while they bobbed up and down.
Uncle Seth definitely was not Daddy, no matter how hard she tried to fool herself.
The shadow of Warrior Mahad approached the hallway entrance, and Adina clung so tightly onto Seth, he felt his windpipe being crushed by her tiny arms.
"No! NO! STAY AWAY! NOBODY IS TAKING ME HOME!" She screamed so loudly, Seth's eardrums vibrated with pain.
Gritting his teeth, Mahad ducked back around a pillar, hoping to stay out of sight, but it was too late. Adina was already in full-tantrum mode.
"I'M STAYING! I CAME'S HERE ALL BY MYSELF SO I'M STAYING!" She cried, her tears plinking down onto the paved ground beneath them. "I SAW DADDY YESTERDAY AND I WILL SEE HIM AGAIN TODAY!"
"You know…you have to eat a biiig breakfast in order to swim all the way up there," Seth said as gently as he could muster, but deep down he was wishing he could somehow materialize Seto here to deal with her.
If he learned anything from watching the few precious moments Seto had with Adina, he usually won her over with logic and truth, so perhaps he had to try that too.
Adina blinked her tears away and her arms loosened slightly around Seth's neck.
"Buh-I'm not hungry," she blubbered, pressing her hands to her cheeks in an attempt to stop herself from crying. "How longiss the swim?"
Mahad breathed a tight sigh of relief and slowly floated to the dining hall to meet them there.
Atem had never been this difficult in all his memory.
This had to be Kaiba's temperament.
"Very long, remember?" Seth said, carrying her through the hallway and seeing a flash of Mahad's fins disappearing around the corner, so he slowed down to avoid another tantrum from Adina.
"It was…?" Adina scrunched up her face, trying to recall how long the swim was. She remembered her tail aching, and Uncle Seth carrying her halfway, so, yes, it was very far.
They entered the now-familiar hallway leading to the giant, sunlit dining area, and Adina hung off of Seth's shoulder, gazing up with open-mouthed wonder at the diamond chandeliers above their heads. Pretty rainbow flecks were scattered all over the walls, tables and floors.
Some rainbow bits were even dancing across her skin as they floated to a seat, and she let Uncle Seth tuck her into the chair.
She stretched her arm out in front of her, seeing a matching rainbow-gem bracelet on her arm, and smiled happily to herself. Best presents from Daddy, ever.
Mahad sat stiffly across from her at the table, listening to these thoughts. It seemed Kaiba had a chance to meet his own child, at last.
Would she be more difficult to deal with than ever now?!
Everyone in the palace was at a breaking point when coaxing her down from the tantrums, and last night had felt like his first good night's sleep in what felt like a decade.
In fact, he wouldn't complain if Seth could take her for a week or two.
She was…exhausting to deal with. Always screaming, always scratching, and never behaving unless she was bribed…but by some miracle, it seemed someone here had managed to comb her hair?!
Better praise good behavior to reward it.
"Your hair looks exceptionally beautiful today, Princess," Mahad said awkwardly, and a plate of food was pushed in front of him by a stray tentacle before the octopus slid under the table and darted away.
"Thank you, Warrior Mahad," she replied regally, sitting up straighter in her chair. "Daddy gave me a hairpiece and Uncle Seth braided it pretty, just for me."
"I…see," Mahad breathed, biting the inside of his cheek as he stared at the diamond jewelry draped artfully around her head that would make even Mana jealous.
Well…how nice.
She looked like a true princess in that moment, unlike the horrid, screaming little girl he'd been dealing with for the past few moons.
Had Seth or Seto added something into her food?
She had also magically stopped screaming earlier….
A plate of black fish eggs appeared under her nose and she stared curiously down at them, wrinkling her nose, and Mahad, recognizing displeasure on her face, braced himself for another tantrum.
"What's this..." She began, and Mahad rushed to hastily tell Seth.
"She'll willingly eat canned fruit, squid, squid eggs, and occasionally pink snappers, but only because they're pink, not because she likes the taste."
"You people feed her preserved rations?" Seth echoed, thinking that if Seto were here, Mahad would be bleeding and headless for saying that. "Canned anything is not nutritional. Seto would kill you if he knew."
"That is…all she…eats," Mahad answered through gritted teeth, his stomach churning at the thought of sitting through another breakfast with his eardrums split due to her screams.
"Why would Daddy kill Warrior Mahad for me eating sweet fruits from the tin?" she asked curiously, eyeing Mahad with her clear blue eyes. "It taste good."
"Daddy…has better sweets on land, which he will bring you," Seth said cleverly, now getting the hang of dealing with her. "No more eating tins of fruit, or Mahad might die when he takes you up there to see Daddy, right, Warrior Mahad?"
Mahad opened and closed his mouth, unsure if he should nod or shake his head.
The plan was to go right home—
Shut up and play along! Seth shouted angrily in his head, and Mahad nodded quickly, giving her a smile.
"I don't want to die…Princess, so please…eat your breakfast," Mahad said, and he realized this was a mistake when he triggered another question.
"Why's this black?" She asked loudly, pointing a chubby finger down at the plate. "Is it Daddy's favorite?"
"It's everyone's favorite," Seth said patiently, handing her a tiny shell and sticking it into the eggs. "You know, we charge lots of money for this because of the special color. This is The King's food, understand? Now, watch Uncle Seth show you how to eat our special food."
"Okay," the princess said simply, and saw Seth pick up the shell to scoop some eggs into it and tilt it into his mouth.
"You see? The game is…can you eat all of it without getting black ink on yourself?" Seth pointed at her shell in her plate. "Bet you can't do it. Daddy sure can."
"I can do it," Adina said firmly, grabbing the shell carefully just the way she'd seen Uncle Seth do it.
Mahad held his breath and watched with amazement as the little girl scooped a bit of eggs over the edge of her shell….balancing it…precariously…towards her mouth, slowly opening her mouth…tilting her head back, and after an eternity, the food tumbled onto her tongue successfully.
Amazing… Mahad let out a shaky sigh of relief. Seth was somehow managing to get her to eat with utensils…no, he was teaching her how to use utensils!
"It taysh good!" She grinned happily with black ink coating her fangs, and Seth managed a kind smile.
"Now eat the whole plate, and if you're still hungry, you have to tell me," Seth said firmly, folding a napkin in her lap. "Then I'll bring something new out for you to try. Big breakfast, remember?"
"I remember!" She chirped, bending down to try using the shell again, and Mahad itched all over with envy.
Why was it that Seth could get her to eat, but no one in the kingdom at home could get her eat anything other than junk food and sweets?
How are you doing that? Mahad asked gruffly, but Seth only shook his head and didn't answer.
They ate peacefully for a few moments before they were interrupted by Joey and Tristan, barging into the dining hall, yawning noisily. They threw themselves into the plush chairs and wiggled their asses comically on the cushions.
"Is this why breakfast is an opal each?" Tristan asked brashly, eyeing Seth. "The chairs are like thrones."
"Men…" Mahad growled warningly, throwing Princess Adina a nervous look, but she appeared unfazed by the new arrivals and continued to concentrate on eating.
"You'll find out," Seth began, and he was cut off by Joey asking if he could custom order food.
"Do ya guys have any cherubfish on skewers? Oh, and I've been craving Blennies since we left."
"This isn't a buffet," Seth growled. "Breakfast is the same for everyone, based on what the chef chooses."
"Whaaaat," Tristan rolled his eyes and thunked his head down on the shiny surface of the table. "Man, maybe 'resort' is short for 'no options'."
Seth ground his teeth furiously, watching the tiny octopi zoom out of the kitchen to serve the two warriors' plates of their specialty eggs, and he couldn't help but silently fume.
Of course these men were used to the variety that accompanied wealth. Atem and his kingdom fed everyone well, because they had infrastructure. This resort was barely off the ground and these men were coming here asking for all sorts of fish from around the globe.
They sounded so sheltered and privileged.
The difference in status was annoyingly high. It also didn't help that Seto spoiled them with riches on shore too.
Adina listened to Seth's thought quietly and filed this information away, munching thoughtfully on the food. This didn't taste bad. It tasted better than anything at home.
Was this low-status food? Surely not, right?
Uncle Seth said this was King's Food, so it must be the truth.
Mahad listened to the princess's curious thoughts, feeling himself break out into a sweat.
Her inner feelings were extremely complex for a child her age, it was quite terrifying.
Pushing the empty plate aside, Adina wiped her hands politely on the napkin the way she'd always seen Mana and Atem do it, and patted Uncle Seth's arm with a clean hand.
"Uncle Seth? I'm full," she announced, and she saw Mahad slowly rise out of the chair and pick up his spear. "What're you doing Warrior Mahad?"
"I'm—" Mahad began but was cut off by Seth.
"He's going to escort you to Daddy's Shore, because that's what I promised," Seth said, talking more to Mahad.
Adina zipped out of her seat to rush forward and throw her arms around Mahad's waist, hugging him tightly.
"YAY! YAY! Thank you! Let's go now!" She grabbed Mahad by the arm, tugging to the door, and Mahad slowly floated in the direction she was pulling, feeling deeply conflicted.
He wanted to avoid Kaiba as much as possible, because if he could be honest with himself, Seto Kaiba was just as terrifying as Princess Adina. His last face-to-face with Kaiba had resulted in loss of his free will, which had been the most haunting experience of his life.
He didn't want another incident of that when bringing him his offspring.
Seth escorted them out of the hall, past the front gates of the resort, and up through the Hemisphere, clearly intent on following them.
The child was still cheering happily between them, swinging heavily on his arm, causing her braids to whip painfully across his stomach every time she passed.
What's the plan? Mahad growled, trying to make eye-contact with Seth, and the merman merely answered with, This is how you deal with her. You let her see her father.
Hanging on tightly to Mahad's muscular arm, Adina opened her eyes wide to take in the brightness around them, slowly stamping another map into her head. From Uncle Seth's colony, the closest landmark was a lush coral reef, and beyond that, large metal poles…then, clumps of blue and green seaweed with eel dwellings….and then, the color change in the water meant they were close!
Mahad set his jaw, his blood running cold as he listened to her thoughts.
Frightening. She was already making maps in her head. Hatchlings at 3 years should still be curled up, sucking their thumbs and napping, but not her.
He needed to tell this to Atem.
The pressure grew lighter around their shoulders as they slowly swam upwards, and Adina's hand tightened around his. The constant pressure change for such a little girl was probably not good….
Popping her head above the water, Adina took a huge gasp of air, scanning the shore excitedly and seeing the large rock, empty beach, the familiar cliffside, and the home perched on top of it.
"DADDY!" She cried, and Mahad swung her around to clap his hand over her mouth.
"You do not want humans to hear us!" He hissed, and Seth came barging to her defense, prying her out of his grasp and patting her gently on the shoulder while she hiccupped in fear.
"And you wonder why she doesn't like you," Seth said darkly, pulling her girl into a tight hug at his side. "Don't cry now, you don't want to show Seto a puffy face…or he'll murder us all."
"B-But he's not there!" Adina whimpered, letting Seth pull her onto his shoulder as they swam closer to the beach. "Where is he?!"
Mahad grit his teeth, hating this more and more.
Why he was indulging Seth, he had no idea. All he knew was that he didn't want to hear any more ear-splitting cries from the tiny Princess, and apparently this was the way to do it. Show her that her father was absent on this shore. Very horrible character building.
"He'll come only sometimes, you see?" Seth explained patiently, praying with all his might that she wouldn't start crying. "You know, he has work to do, remember?"
"Then…. tell him we're here!" Adina whispered tearfully, clinging tighter onto Seth's neck as they approached the giant rock. "Call for him!"
"How?" Seth asked gently, leaning against the rock and letting her place her small hand against it. "Do you know how? Because I don't."
"You…sing…" Adina struggled to remember what Auntie Mai had told her in a Night-Night story about summoning humans. "You sing a Soul Song."
"Who taught you that?" Mahad snapped, his face turning slightly red with embarrassment and rage. "That is indecent, wily, siren-esque behavior that is not fit for a princess! What books are you reading?! What am I saying? They aren't in any books! That's banned information—"
"Very good, you do sing a song," Seth praised, talking over Mahad and throwing the warrior a glare. "But singing a song to someone you don't absolutely need to see is…? Wrong? Right?"
"No. I want to see Daddy, so I will sing," she said stubbornly, and Mahad felt faint.
Maybe this was the work of Atem's Confinement friends! Those two mermaids were known criminals!
"Try your best," Seth encouraged, holding Adina steady in his arms as they bobbed against another wave. "You're very young and small. He might not even hear you, but no harm in trying."
"No harm in trying…?!" Mahad sputtered, but he was ignored.
The young princess nodded and opened her tiny mouth to take a deep breath. There was a brief moment of silence where both Mahad and Seth thought she wouldn't be able to do it, before the softest, sweetest note drifted through the air, filling their ears with a wonderful purity that made the hair on their arms stand on end.
Kaiba was at brunch, sitting at the table with Noah, Mokuba, and Ayame in a popular restaurant downtown when a solid shiver ran down his spine.
Holding his breath, he blinked and waited, feeling it again, but this time, it made his entire lower body feel like a puddle of jelly, and his stomach wrenched painfully when Adina's delicate face flashed before his eyes.
He dropped his fork with clatter, causing heads to turn, but he didn't care.
Throwing the napkin down on his unfinished plate, he barely heard Mokuba and Noah calling after him as he stumbled out the doors of the restaurant, his body burning with a strange fire.
She was calling for him! Smart girl!
"I'm…tired…" Adina said breathlessly after several minutes of singing. "Do you think he heard me?"
"Looks like no one is coming. Let's head home," Mahad said gruffly, and Seth gave him another glare.
"Now, we wait," Seth said warmly, smiling at the princess. "How long should we wait? It is sunny today too. We might get burned."
"Daddy said 1200 heartbeats and to start counting if it hurts," Adina recited, and Mahad couldn't believe his ears.
For an infant, she acted way beyond her years.
"Then we can stay in the shadow," Seth let her off his shoulder and watched her cling to the rock, periodically peering hopefully around the side, expecting to see someone coming.
They waited tensely, and Mahad kept shooting Seth anxious looks, trying to communicate, but the merman ignored him firmly, keeping the girl entertained by telling her random facts about shore and humans, and she was lapping up every word.
Kaiba parked haphazardly in the sloping driveway and threw himself out of the car, barely managing to turn off the engine before he took off running towards the beach house. Was it too much to hope that somehow, Atem had managed to send her up here again without facing a punishment?
Only one way to find out.
He skidded down the sandy slope, keeping one clawed hand against the jagged cliff for support, seeing three heads bobbing in the distance along the beach, hanging around near the rock in the shade. His heart pounded with excitement in his ears as he printed across the beach at full speed, hearing her joyous voice crying out for him.
"DADDY!" Adina stuck her small arms out of the water and waved so hard, her shoulders ached. "YOU CAME FOR ME, DADDY!"
"Hey, kid!" Kaiba leapt over a wave with his long legs and waded waist deep into the ocean.
Adina shot through the water and clung to him, pressing her cheek firmly against his stomach to gaze up at him with shining eyes. His heart swelled with happiness and he bent down to press a kiss against her soft, marshmallow cheeks, feeling his lips burn pleasantly as she laughed and hugged him tightly.
Mahad watched this reunion with his mouth slightly open.
That was the first time he'd ever seen Kaiba behave entirely like a merman on land. He had slid down the cliffside with frightening precision and was extremely fluent in Merspeak.
It seemed he'd finally let his guard down…but only around the child.
"What did you eat for breakfast?" Adina asked instantly, and Kaiba was slightly surprised by the random question, but he answered anyway.
"Eggs with some roasted seaweed and rice."
"Me too!" Adina grinned cheekily, flashing him her fangs. "Uncle Seth didn't lie. Eggs is your favorite."
"It…is…" Kaiba glanced over the top of her head to meet Seth's wide-eyed gaze, and his twin grimaced, sending him a private thought, saying, she doesn't eat anything unless it's 'daddy's favorite'.
"Why is she not eating?" Kaiba asked, making eye contact with Mahad for the first time, and he saw the warrior redden with fury and look away instantly. "What? Someone tell me the truth or else."
"Yeah, or else," Adina chimed in happily, unaware that the conversation was about her.
There was a tense silence, and Mahad sighed, giving Kaiba an appraising look, "We need to talk."
"Talk here," Kaiba said, sitting stiffly in the cold water and feeling Adina continue to cling to him tightly, seemingly unwilling to let go.
It's about your child, Mahad said furiously, trying to keep his tone pleasant, but it was hard. She is the most difficult baby I've ever encountered. Tell her to behave!
"Maybe she will when everyone starts telling her the truth," Kaiba said, lovingly draping one of her braids over her shoulder. "What's so bad about the truth?"
"Nothing," Adina said, leaning her head warmly on Kaiba's arm and pressing her forehead against it. "I love you."
"I love you too," Kaiba gushed, picking her up from his side and pulling her onto his lap, pressing a tight kiss to her cheek again. "Are you being bad sometimes? Everyone says you've been bad, and that, I believe."
"I've been good!" Adina insisted, shaking her beautiful head. "I ate the black eggs like Uncle Seth said! And I went to sleep with no Night-Night story."
"Really?!" Mahad cried, unable to hide his shock. "Sometimes she won't sleep for days until she hears a story she likes!"
"Yikes," Seth muttered, sinking lower into the water to avoid the sun that was searing his shoulders. "Well, she was exhausted from the long swim yesterday..."
"Does Daddy have sweet for me?" She asked snobbily, curling her arms around Kaiba's neck to bump her nose against his. "Uncle Seth said you have better fruits than the ones I eat from tins."
"Tins," Kaiba repeated coldly, his stomach curling with rage, and he could see Mahad and Seth sinking further away from him in the water, clearly eager to be out of hitting or spitting range.
"Oh. Daddy is mad. You mad?" She tilted her head curiously, waving her fins in an oncoming wave that swirled around them. "I won't eat the tins anymore if it makes you mad."
"Tinned food, and anything that isn't fresh…is bad for you," Kaiba said, his voice shaking with anger. "If you want sweets or anything special, I'll bring it for you, okay? It has to be fresh. Canned food that you find in shipwrecked rations…have preservatives in it."
"What's per-serv-tivs?" She asked, her eyes wide with fear. "Stop being mad, Daddy. I won't eat it anymore…"
"Preservatives are a type of poison…that isn't good for infants…to ingest, you assholes!" Kaiba hissed, directing his insult at Mahad, who had disappeared beneath the surface of the water. "How dare you feed her that shit?! Come back up here show your cowardly face—"
"Daddy! I'm sorry! I won't eat tinned fruits for ever…en never and never!" Adina cried, pressing her hands against the sides of Kaiba's face, her heart thumping with fear at the terrifying rage etched in her father's face. "I'll eat good food only. I'll eat what you tell me!"
Underneath the water, Mahad was raging at Seth.
She has no filter! She hears everything! Do you want to see me meet an untimely death at the hands of your twin brother?!
You people can't even get her to sleep! Seth retaliated, not to be shouted down. I untangled her hair for an hour. Her claws were untrimmed! Do you cater to her every whim? She's completely spoiled!
Because she's a nightmare! Mahad cried, losing his composure. Did you know she was making a map in her head when we were swimming up?! She should be in school singing nursery rhymes and sleeping. What kind of infant acts the way she does?!
A genius one, Seth said, feeling a surge of pride. Don't be startled when she starts calculating water depth and building heights. Seto did that at five human years old, and he could barely swim, but he was making maps at Adina's age too.
Mahad lost his voice and merely stared at Seth.
Oh Gods. He wished he'd known this sooner.
They had been dealing with her the wrong way.
She was a tiny covert warrior in the making!
She needed to be fed a constant stream of correct information because she had picture-perfect memory. She needed to be accompanied by someone with a heart of gold and someone who could set an aspirational example for her to follow.
Atem fit that description, but she didn't spend enough time with him for it to imprint….
"Where'd they go?" Adina asked curiously, and Kaiba had a sneaking suspicion they were gossiping about him.
"They're letting us have alone-time," Kaiba replied gently, feeling her rocking back and forth atop his lap as another wave washed in around them. "Now, I'm going to tell you something, and you have to listen very closely, okay?"
"Yes, I'm listening," she whispered, gazing into his face with admiration. "I always listen."
"Good," Kaiba said, giving her tiny arms a warm squeeze and feeling her jewelry press back into his palms. "Listen to whatever Atem tells you to do, alright? Because I love you both very much, but I can't see you as often, and I don't know anything about Atem's food because he's from a different colony."
"You don't know about our food?" Adina cried, feeling a strange bubble of dread swirling in her chest. "But you know everything!"
"No, I don't know everything," Kaiba replied patiently, smiling. "So you have to eat what Atem says is good and healthy for you, otherwise, you might accidentally get…poisoned. Got it? Like those tinned fruits? That's why I got mad. Did you know those were poison?"
"N-No…?" She breathed, feeling tears building behind her eyes. "Okay. I will listen to Father and I will eat everything he tells me to eat."
"And the stories…you should be reading them, not hearing them," Kaiba said, trying to right every wrong thing he'd heard Mahad say. "How about I send you some pretty books. I sent Atem some, did you see those?"
"Those are the ones I read now," she said, puffing out her cheeks cutely. "I like fairy stories."
"I will get more fairy stories, and you should be reading it in three languages," Kaiba said instantly, wondering if he was being too ambitious. "I can speak three languages, so, you should be able to as well. Not just Merspeak. Three shore languages. You can pick, but Japanese has to be one of them."
"Okay," she said seriously, drinking in every word he was saying. "But they don't teach that in school."
"Lots of learning happens outside of school," Kaiba said stiffly, now wishing the other two men were above water to hear this. "Atem will find someone to teach you. You should stuff your brain with knowledge so that when you go to bed, you're sleepy. Is that why you're not tired around bedtime? You're bored, right?"
"Also because I miss you!" She said stubbornly, hugging his neck tightly again. "I want you to tell me a Night-Night story instead of Mana."
"Atem has tons of interesting Night-Night stories," Kaiba said, trying to divert her affection and interest more towards Atem. "He's told me some cool ones, so I'm sure he'll tell you too."
"He…did?" Adina blinked prettily, her eyes wide with curiosity. "He never told me! No fair!"
"Yeah, he has cool stories about being King and stuff," Kaiba said encouragingly, seeing two heads rise out of the water and stare at him apprehensively. "My stories are all about shore, so you can come to me for Shore Stories, and Atem has King Stories. Cool, right? Which one is cooler?"
"Umm…." Adina wrinkled her nose in deep thought, wrestling with herself. Shore stories were cool, but King Stories were also cool! Cool was a cool word!
"Both," she said happily, and she earned a handsome smile from Daddy. The sun sparkled off his cheekbones and made his eyes glow a very pretty, sky blue.
Mahad cleared his throat awkwardly, and Adina clutched Kaiba's chest tightly, curling her fingers into his buttoned shirt.
"NO. NO! I'm not going home!" She chanted, shutting her eyes and pressing herself tightly against Kaiba's body, feeling the sun burn her shoulders the longer she stayed above water, but she didn't care. She could heal, but daddy wouldn't always be here!
"Your skin is getting red, Princess. We need to get out of the sun," Seth said gently, moving to grab her arm, and she kicked her fins so hard, giant splashes of water cascaded down over Kaiba's head, soaking him from head to toe.
"We can draft up a meeting schedule," Mahad muttered, but he wasn't heard over the loud, fussy crying coming from the princess sitting in Kaiba's lap.
Seto…! Do something! Seth growled, and his twin merely gave him a sad smile, letting the child continue to throw a tantrum about leaving.
After a few deep hiccups, she calmed down and realized no one had done anything, and that she was still sitting on daddy's lap.
Weird.
Usually when she cried at home, everyone rushed to do everything and anything she asked.
It was always different when she cried in front of Daddy, and she couldn't figure out why.
"Want to hear a secret before you go?" Kaiba asked, knowing this would cheer her up instantly, and she turned to give him a tearful smile, nodding furiously.
"Well…maybe it's not a secret. You might already know," Kaiba said cleverly, scooping up some water and patting it gently onto her skin which was beginning to turn light pink.
"Tell me. I wanna know," she hiccupped, blinking the tears out of her eyes. "What is it?"
"Atem…is…" Kaiba waited a couple heartbeats for suspense, seeing her lean forward, gazing eagerly into his face, hanging on his every word. "…lonely."
Disappointed, she sat back and crossed her arms huffily, "That's not a secret."
"How do you think he feels when both of us are up here, and he's down there by himself?" Kaiba asked, knowing that this was the way to coax her back into the water. "What if you were down there, and I was up here with him? Which feels worse? They're both bad feelings, right?"
"Y-Yeah," she scrunched her face up to keep herself from crying. "I get it. Father is lonely without us…so come home with me!"
"I have…work," Kaiba said, his chest tightening horribly at his own words. "Just like how Atem has work. You have two, very busy parents. That's why you have other family like Uncle Seth, and Mana to help you with your hair and nails, you see?"
She blinked rapidly, processing his words for a long moment before she nodded slowly.
"So go home and keep him company," Kaiba continued, feeling as if his heart was being torn in two. "I'll send a big present for you to open. You can visit me any time, but look, your skin is turning pink. Remember what I said about sun burn? Go quickly. Go. Uncle Seth and Mahad are right there waiting."
She blinked away a stray tear and silently threw her arms around his neck, squeezing the air out of him for a long moment before backing away and slipping off his lap into the water with a soft splash.
Mahad watched incredulously as she swam towards them willingly, with her head held high even though tears were bubbling underneath her eyes, and his heart went out to her.
He had witnessed incredible parenting, and he wondered if things would be different if Kaiba lived in the palace with them to help properly raise her.
It seemed his first impressions about Kaiba were wrong.
Kaiba was actually a very competent role model…in this instance.
"I'm r-ready to go home," she announced shakily, reaching out to grab Uncle Seth by the arm, and she turned to throw a longing look over her shoulder at Kaiba, who waved back at her.
"Bye Daddy! I'll come back soon!" She cried, and Kaiba nodded stiffly, his throat closing with emotion so much, it hurt to swallow.
He stood slowly and watched as the three of them sank underneath the wavy water and left nothing but a splash and a ripple underneath the harsh sunlight.
When he was positive they had gone, he sank into the water on his knees, hanging his head in fury and heartbreak.
This was not sustainable.
He had to figure his shit out on land and underwater, otherwise, he might just miss out on his kid growing up.
Author's note:
Yuh. That's some heavy shit breh