Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Karoke Nights ❯ The Calm Before the Storm part 1 ( Chapter 20 )

Disclaimer-Kazuki Takahashi owns Yugioh

Author's note: Finals week was last week which is why I didn't update, however to prevent certain reviewers from having heart failure I'll update this week instead of next X D

Key

Italics is song lyrics that no one is singing

/ someone singing/

"quotes are speech"

'is dreaming'

/is flashback/

- is thoughts -

 

Everyone was silent for awhile, the only sounds in the room being Tea and Mokuba's sobs. -This is awful, I wish there was something more I could do than just sit here.- Yugi mind linked to Yami. -I know what you mean, unfortunately these are problems that they must deal with on their own, all we can do is keep on being there friends.- Yami mind linked to Yugi. Mai hugged herself and looked down on the ground. -There's gotta be someway to cheer those two up, but how...- She thought to herself. -Hmm, I know maybe if I take their minds off it for a while, they'll feel better but how?- She thought to herself. She tapped Serenity and Yugi on the shoulders. "Psstt, come over here." She whispered. "What is it Mai?" Serenity asked inching her way over, followed by Yugi. "We need to think of something to take their minds off their problems, if only for a little while." She whispered. "Yeah but how?" Yugi asked. "I was hoping you guys would know the answer to that." Mai said. "Hmmm, I know how about we give them make overs, Tea loves make overs." Serenity said. "Yeah, but I don't think that Kaiba and Mokuba would appreciate that much..." Yugi said.

 

"What are you three morons whispering about?" Kaiba hissed. "Uhh...sorry Kaiba, we just wanted to give you guys a little privacy, umm, we'll be downstairs if you need us." Serenity said bowing respectively. "If you really want to do something useful, why don't you jump off a cliff or something." Kaiba said knowing full well that he was misplacing his aggression, but at the moment not really caring. "Thanks guys, for staying here with us, I know you'd rather be home sleeping..." Tea began. "No its okay Tea, we're happy to help." Yugi said. With that Mai, Serenity, and Yugi went downstairs. "First off let's make them something to eat, they have got to be starving." Yugi said. "That sounds like something Joey would say." Mai and Serenity laughed. "Hmm, we gots to do more than that...I know how bout you challenge Kaiba to a duel Yugi, he's always up for a duel." Serenity said thoughtfully. "Then we can take them out for some fun." Mai added. "Now that sounds like a plan." Yugi and Serenity exclaimed. "Okay now let's see what they got in the kitchen." Mai said walking towards the kitchen. Yugi and Serenity tailing right behind her.

 

Meanwhile Tea and Mokuba's sobs had died down. Mokuba squeezed his brother tighter, hiccuping uncontrollably. Tea had gotten next to Mokuba and was currently hugging them both. Kaiba squeezed them tight, "Done crying?" He asked. Mokuba nodded his head and snuggled closer. Tea pulled away and hugged her knees. "This all seems like just a bad dream..." Tea said resting her head on her knees. "Tch, not to me, this kind of stuff always happens to me..." Kaiba said trailing off and looking out the window. Mokuba had fallen asleep now, his black bangs falling into his eyes, the stress had simply been too much for the small boy. Tea looked up, and started to say something but stopped. -It's true, where he goes trouble and heartache always seems to follow- Tea thought, she scooted closer to him. "Seto, no matter what happens I want you to know that I still love you, and that you will always hold a special place in my heart." Tea said placing a hand on his shoulder. "Hmm, that's what ever one I ever cared about always said, and then they died. That's the whole reason I have a social worker, that's the whole reason that at school, on family day, Mokuba and I always sit in the back, and try to block everyone's happiness, that's the whole reason why I'm...." Kaiba began. Tea placed a hand on his mouth. "Seto, as long as you keep your parents in your heart and remember them, they can never truly leave you." Tea said.

 

Kaiba turned his head away. "What if I don't want to remember them." He hissed. Tea's eyes widened. "What if I just want to forget everything that's ever happened to me." Kaiba said turning towards her. "Seto, it's the past that makes us who we are...." Tea began. "!@#$ it what if I don't like who I am." Kaiba yelled, unconsciously covering Mokuba's ears to protect him from the noise. Tea looked at Kaiba in utter shock. "Seto..." Tea began. "No Tea, spare me the little speech, I'm sick and tired of it. Everyone keeps telling me that I have such a great life, but Tea, do you know that before you came here I didn't even get sleep? Not because I'm some work-a-holic, but because every time I'd fall asleep the nightmares would come, and frankly I am sick of it. I'm tired of constantly watching my back, afraid that today might be the day that someone succeeds killing me or Mokuba, I'm sick of constantly having to worry about whether or not my actions could get me and Mokuba sent back to the orphanage. Mokuba just got finished crying because he's worried about our future, and worries that we might die, cold, hungry and alone, these are not the things that a ten year old should be worrying about, and frankly I'm sick of it. I wish I could just bury my past once and for all, because I'm sick of looking into the mirror and hating the person staring back at me." Kaiba said glaring at her. "It's not fair every time I find happiness, something or someone comes and takes it away. Then people wonder why I have no heart, It's because it's been shattered so many times that I've given up putting back together." Kaiba finished turning his face away from her and looking out the window.

 

Tea slapped Kaiba hard across the face. Kaiba looked at her bewildered, placing a hand on his cheek. "Don't you ever let me hear you talk like that again, you got that?" Tea said narrowing her eyes. "You may not realize it but you do have a heart, I see it every time you look at Mokuba, Seto When you forget you past you forget who you are, I know remembering it can sometimes be hard but that is no excuse for giving up, ever. Seto I'm going to tell you something someone once told me. No matter who you are, and no matter what you've done there's is always at least one person thinking about you, which is why your never truly alone." Tea said placing her hands over her shoulder. "You, your somebody who may be different from mostly everyone else, but that's what makes you special, like a diamond in the rough." Tea said removing her hands from his shoulders. "And don't let anybody, ever convince you differently." She said. Kaiba laughed bitterly. "You actually expect me to believe that?" He questioned. "Diamonds don't have as many flaws as I do." He said quietly. "Your right Seto you do have flaws, but so does everybody else, nobody's perfect. Sure sometimes you can be an egotistical, emotionally detached, stubborn, narcissistic jerk with a one track mind, who at times is in serious need of reality check. But your also one of the best older brother's I've ever seen, and despite all your money your not just some brat, though you do act a tad spoiled at times, it's only because you deserved it, you didn't get this far by giving up, and you won't get much further if you give up now, what I've always admired about you was your ability to bounce back from any situation with your head held high, your determined, at times you can be sweet, you overcome almost unsurmountable odds, your smart, your an awesome duelist even if you aren't currently the best in the world, you never give up, and as I've said before your one of the best big brother's out there, and one of the strongest people I know, and that's a fact."

 

Kaiba scoffed. Tea thought for a moment then walked out of the room. She went into Mokuba's room and then dug around til she found what she was looking for and then went back into the room with Kaiba. "Seto, I know you feel like your different from everyone else and that that's a bad thing but I'm going to prove you wrong." Tea said setting a piece of paper next to him. "Your going to prove me wrong by stealing my brother's art kit." Kaiba deadpanned. "Yes, and I'm not stealing merely borrowing, I'll put it back, because heaven forbid Mokuba should lose a toy." Tea mocked. Kaiba glared at her. "Any who, Seto what color do you figure your heart to be." Tea asked. "Black." He said seriously. "And what about Mokuba's." Tea asked. "Gold." Kaiba said. "Good okay then your the back crayon, and Mokuba's the gold 'kay." Tea said pulling them out of the box. "Oh goody, I'm stick of wax." Kaiba deadpanned. Tea rolled her eyes. "Now I'm going to take all these different shades of blue and say that their the rest of society." Tea said pulling them out. "And this green crayon is going to be your dad, and this brown crayon is going to be your mom, got it, and this yellow crayon is going to be Gozaboro, anyone else from your past I should know about?" Tea asked. Kaiba thought for a second. "There's my Aunt Senja, I didn't like her, oh and my Mom's friend Kiri, I did like her." Kaiba said. "Okay this white crayon is going to be Senja, and this pink crayon is going to be Kiri got it." Tea said.

 

"Good, now watch." Tea said. She said, she started out by drawing what she wanted to draw in pencil, then outlining the whole thing in black. "This is you all by yourself, no past, no family, not even Mokuba." Tea said. "Not very impressive is it?" She asked. Kaiba scoffed. "Okay now, I'm going to add Mokuba, Tea said coloring in the bottom of the portrait with gold, now look." She said showing him the picture. "Still not all that great, this is you and Mokuba, alone, with no past, no family, no memories, just the two of you." Kaiba narrowed his eyes. "What's the point?" He scoffed. "Okay now let's society." Tea said grabbing the blue crayons and coloring in the ocean she had drawn with the different shades of blue, then blending them together. The picture still wasn't much to look at. She showed it up to him. "This is what the portrait of your heart would look like if you erased your past." Tea said holding it up to him. Kaiba folded his arms across his chest. "Can you get to the point today." He scowled. Tea playfully swatted him on the back of the head. "Don't rush me." She giggled. Kaiba rubbed the back of his head.

 

"Okay now let's add your past in." Tea said picking up the crayons, first she colored in the palm tree she had drawn with the green and brown that represented his parents. Then she colored in the sea shell she had drawn near the tree pink like his Aunt Kiri. She colored in the sun she had drawn in with the yellow that represented Gozaboro then gave it a softer look with the white crayon she had used to represent his aunt. All that was left blank was the sunset she had drawn in. She showed him the picture. "See now, I've added in your past, doesn't the picture look better now?" She said. It did. Kaiba nodded his head. "It's still missing a part though." Kaiba said pointing to the sunset. "I know." Tea said pulling out an assortment of reds and oranges and different shade of yellow then the one she had used for the sun. "It's missing friends, people to confide in." Tea said. "I have you." Kaiba said. "Yes, yes you do." Tea said grabbing an orange and coloring in part of the sunset. "But you still need more, everyone needs people to confide in, people to talk too, when you can't turn to your ten year old little brother, or me, your girlfriend then you'd still have someone to talk too. Someone to make the picture complete." Tea said handing it to him. "Your going to have to finish this picture on your own." Tea said handing him the reds, oranges, and yellows and placing them in his hands. "But I promise to help you." Tea said closing his hands on them and resting her hand on his. He looked at their hands for a second then looked up at her. There eyes meeting. For a moment neither of them moved.

 

"Tea, Mokuba, Kaiba breakfast!" Yugi shouted. Tea heard Yugi shouting and slowly released her grip from his hands. Then she slowly shook awake Mokuba, who needed some real food before he went completely asleep. Mokuba stirred a little then wrapped his arms around Tea's neck. She scooped him up then opened up the door to the room and walked out the doorway. She paused for a second. "Seto, I know you'd rather not have friends, and if you were to have friends, I know you'd rather not have Yugi, or Serenity, or Mai as one of them, and I know eating breakfast with us isn't exactly high up your list but everyone has to start somewhere, ya know?" Tea said readjusting Mokuba so he didn't fall down. "Hun if you don't come down here and eat your breakfast then I will because I'm starving!" Mai shouted. "Coming Mai." Tea shouted down the stairs. Tea started to walk off then paused. "Seto I'm not going to force you to go down there if you don't want too, it's your call." Tea said. She pushed the door completely open with her foot letting the light wash through the room. "Besides I can only open the door to a better life for you, your the one that has to step through it." Tea said, and with that she headed downstairs. Kaiba turned his gaze from the door and at the picture in his hands.

 

Tea and Mokuba were eating their food, and everybody was talking about what had happened. Particularly about the phone calls. Tea smiled as she sipped her Ocha. (a/n: green tea.) While she was not in anyway over Yumi's death, she never would completely be, it felt good to be able to talk about her feelings. Slowly the conversation had turned to lighter things, like what everyone's favorite game was. Slowly their food was almost gone, and still no sign of Kaiba. Tea sighed and shoved her chopsticks in her mouth, enjoying her scrambled eggs. When suddenly everyone got quiet. Kaiba slowly walked into the room. Yugi got up and went over to the microwave. "I was hoping you'd show up I kept your food warm for you." Yugi said setting Kaiba's food down on the table. "Thanks Yugi." Kaiba said sitting down in between Tea and Mokuba. Kaiba was silent for a while just picking at his food, making no attempts to socialize with anyone. Kaiba stood up after eating, then preceded to head out the room, pausing only once to put a piece of folded up paper on the table then going in the living room to watch TV. Tea unfolded the paper and smiled. The picture of the beach at sunset was completely finished now. Tea followed him into the living room and sat down next to him and smiled. Mokuba hopped next to him then snuggled closer to Kaiba and fell back asleep. "Hey I think it worked guys." Serenity said. "Me too hun, and there's lots more fun where that came from." Mai said. "But right now let's just watch some TV." Yugi said. They all went to the living room and sat next to them. Kaiba looked up at the sudden shift of weight on the couch and all saw all three of the other teens sitting down with him. He simply nodded his okay and turned back to the TV without insulting them. Tea smiled and clutched the picture of the beach at sunset.