Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Seto's First Christmas ❯ Christmas Carols ( Chapter 2 )

Title: Seto's First Chrsitmas 2/6
Author: Kris Ice
Beta: Katbcoll
Rating: PG-13
Pairing(s): SetoxJou
Spoilers: none
Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh or anything associated with it.
Summary: Seto has never liked Christmas, but this year is going to be a bit different.

Mokuba filled the car with chatter as Seto drove him home after they had supper at the Center. He had been so happy that instead of just dropping him off, Seto had stayed the whole time. He was just describing the three plays the kids were going to put on when a Christmas song came on the radio. The dark-haired boy fell silent, watching as his older brother swallowed, his hands clenching the steering wheel. "Seto?"

Seto blinked at the soft question and turned to look at his brother. Soft, sad blue-gray eyes looked up at him, a question he couldn't answer in their depths. He reached out and changed the station before replying. "I'm sorry, Mokuba." For a long moment, an uncomfortable silence hung between them. "What were you saying about Christmas plays?"

The raven-haired boy allowed his older brother to change the subject and smiled. "The younger kids are going to put on three plays. One is the traditional Christmas Pageant about the birth of Christ," Mokuba frowned at his brother as he snorted. "We may not believe in it, but the Children's Center is being funded by donations from the St. Maria's Convent and several of the sisters volunteer there."

Seto looked over in surprise. "I thought it was decided that the government would run the center so the children wouldn't feel pressured by an unfamiliar religion."

Mokuba shrugged. "Technically, it is government run. The sisters don't preach anything to the kids, but when asked questions, they answer them according to their faith. The kids like them so they wanted to do this to honor the sisters. Besides, the birth of Jesus is considered the main theme of Christmas."

Seto shook his head and his brother fell silent. After he pulled into the driveway and shut off the engine, Mokuba spoke up as he started to unfasten his belt. "Are you mad at me?"

His older brother frowned in confusion as Mokuba stared at his lap. "For what?"

The younger Kaiba chewed on his bottom lip before answering. "For making you get involved in all this Christmas stuff."

Seto reached out and lifted Mokuba's chin before giving him a sad smile. "I'm not mad, Mokuba. You know I'd do just about anything for you." He brushed his fingers through raven's wing hair. "I just want you to be happy."

"What about you?" Mokuba wrapped his hand around Seto's, his eyes fastened on his brother's. "I want you to be happy to, nii-sama."

Seto's heart clenched and the cold frozen core seemed to be spreading. "I …" His voice trailed off, he didn't know what to say. He leaned over and hugged Mokuba, pressing his face into herbal-scented black hair. "I have you. That's all I need to be happy."

Mokuba leaned into his brother's embrace, wrapping his arms around him the best he could in their awkward positions. They held on for a long moment before releasing each other and Mokuba smiled when he saw the darkness had lifted a bit from his brother's eyes.

"Come on, you need to get ready for bed if you plan on getting to the Center early to work on the sets for the plays."

Mokuba laughed. "Are you going to take me again?"

Seto gave him a playful smile as they climbed out of the car. "I'm sure I can arrange time."

"Oh, you!"

The taller boy's smile faded some as his brother ran up to the door laughing. He wished that life would be that easy for him. That it would just take a bit of reassurance and the presence of someone he cared about to make everything better. His steps slowed as he remembered something Wheeler had said to him the last day of school before their break. ~"You just gotta make everything so complicated, don'tcha? Why don't ya just take time to enjoy the simple pleasures in life? Then, you might not be such an ass."~

"Nii-sama!"

Seto blinked and looked up in surprise as he realized that he had stopped a few feet from the door and had been staring up at the sky. Mokuba was pouting at him from the doorway.

"Come on! You'll get sick if you stay out there too long and I want you to read me some more of that story."

"Coming." Seto called back in answer before hurrying up to the doorway. He paused and looked up at the cloudy sky and almost smiled as he saw the first tiny white flakes falling earthward.

It hadn't taken long to get Mokuba ready and tucked into bed, but Seto was sure that was more because of his plans for the next day rather than because the little minx was actually tired. Blue-gray eyes looked up at him in absolute trust as he sat down in the chair near his brother's bed. Once again, he silently vowed to never break that trust. "Let's see, where did I leave off?"

Mokuba mock pouted, knowing that his big brother knew exactly where he left off. "The villains had just been attacked by the pink dragon." He giggled. "Are you sure the book says it's a pink dragon?"

Seto smiled. "Yes. See, right there?" He pointed at the passage in question, smiling a bit wider as Mokuba fell into giggles again at the thought of a rose-colored dragon with flecks of gold and gray. Seto took a deep breath as his brother settled down and began to read. In his mind's eye, the book came to life. He could almost see the desperate battle the ragtag bunch of villains were fighting with the Dragon of Light, one that they were sure they were going to lose. But the sound of hoof beats rang through the canyon and a dark knight came to their rescue. Seto lowered the book and his lips curled into a tender smile as he watched his brother's sleeping face. He set the book down on the nightstand and kissed Mokuba on the forehead. "Goodnight, little brother. Sweet dreams." He stood and watched Mokuba for a few moments longer before slipping out of the bedroom. He paused in the hallway, torn between watching over Mokuba all night and going to his own bed. He sighed and pulled away from the door before heading toward his own room and a nice warm shower. As much as he'd rather stay up watching Mokuba, he knew his little brother would be upset to wake up and find him in there in the morning. He'd probably insist that Seto was working too hard again and demand that he take some time off.

Seto sighed as the warm water cascaded over him, relaxing overtaxed muscles. He leaned his forehead against the cool wall of the shower and wished he could just wash away all his problems as easily. He pushed off the wall and arched his back as he ran his hands through wet hair, making sure it was completely soaked before reaching for the shampoo. As he massaged his scalp, he started humming to himself. Softly, he started to sing.

Mokuba slipped through silent halls, trying to kill the vaguely guilty feeling that was making his stomach queasy. He knew he should really be in bed, and had fallen asleep for a few moments, but Seto's touch had woken him up. Normally, he wouldn't have worried about being quiet, but he really didn't want to get caught. He had vowed years ago to figure out just where Seto hid all his presents until Christmas since there was no way they could have been delivered Christmas Eve night. He was sure that the sound of a truck or helicopter would have woken him up. Especially since every Christmas Eve he slept near the open window so he could hear if any vehicle came. The raven-haired boy had thought long and hard about where Seto would think he would never find them. Finally, he decided that Seto's room would be the best place to look. His big brother knew he didn't go in there without an invitation, so it would be the one place a curious little boy wouldn't look. He held his breath as he cracked the door open just enough to peek into the room. The sound of running water told him that Seto was still in the shower. As he slipped into the room, he heard his brother's voice. He froze for a moment, but it didn't sound like he had been discovered. He crept closer to the half closed bathroom door and his eyes widened as he realized that Seto was singing.

"And so this is Christmas
For the weak and for strong
For rich and the poor ones
The world is so wrong
And so Happy Christmas
For black and for white
For yellow and red ones
Let's stop all the fight..."

Mokuba felt tears well up in his eyes at the almost hopeless tone to his brother's voice. He wrapped his arms around himself, wanting desperately to go in and hold on to Seto, to make him feel better, to take away his pain.

"And so this is Christmas
And what have we done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
And so Happy Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear one
The old and the young

A very Merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear..."

Mokuba pulled away from the door and started to slip away, but he remembered what he'd gone in there for. He almost left, it didn't seem all that important, but he knew he'd regret it if he walked away. He tiptoed over to the closet and eased the door open. Other than the hanging clothes, the closet was mostly empty. There were a few plain boxes on the shelf far above his reach. As he stepped closer, his foot bumped into something and he looked down in surprise to see a dark-colored box in the bottom of the closet. Curious, he knelt in front of it. It was actually a wooden box, the kind that a padlock could be put on. There wasn't a lock on it at the moment. Mokuba glanced toward the bathroom where the sound of running water could still be heard, and slowly opened the lid. He gasped in surprise. The box was almost full of pictures of Mokuba, Yugi and his friends. As Mokuba shifted through them, he was surprised to find that most of the pictures were of Joey. He blinked at the wide variety of candid poses, wondering how his brother had come by all the pictures. He seriously doubted that Seto would hire someone to stalk Yugi and his friends just to get pictures of them, but he was starting to think that it might just be possible considering Seto appeared in the background of a couple of the pictures.

Mokuba quickly closed the lid and the closet door, the first hints of a plan starting to brew in the back of his mind. As he started to sneak out, he noticed that Seto was humming again. A wicked idea came to mind and he grinned as he quickly scampered down the hall. In moments, he was back with his camcorder. He slipped up to the bathroom door and pointed it at the shower stall, grateful that the frosted glass would keep Seto from noticing he was there. His older brother had finished with his hair and was starting to soap his body when Mokuba started recording.

"...I didn't know
That I was missing out
Had to grow up and see the world
Through different shades of doubt
Give me one more chance to feel again
Through your young heart
If only for one day let me try..."

Mokuba barely held back a snicker as Seto started swaying as he sang, almost dancing in the water that was cascading down on him.

"I wanna see Christmas through your eyes
I want everything to be the way it used to be
Back to being a child again thinking the world was mine
I wanna see Christmas, Christmas through your eyes..."

Seto relished the feel of the warm water caressing him as he stood under the waterfall from the shower head. He smiled, remembering the delighted look on Mokuba's face earlier when the older kids had finished decorating the tree.

"I see the rain, you see the rainbow hiding in the clouds
Never afraid to let your love show
Won't you show me how
Wanna learn how to believe again
Find the innocence in me again
Through your young heart
Help me find a way, help me try.."

In his mind's eye, he could see the awe on the children's faces when they saw that giant Christmas tree. The delight in Yugi's eyes as he had played with the kids in front of the tree, keeping them occupied so the others could work. For many of them, this would be their first Christmas

"I wanna see Christmas through your eyes
I want everything to be the way it used to be
Back to being a child again thinking the world was kind
I wanna see Christmas, Christmas through your eyes ..."

Ms. Aisu had read the children a story after dinner. It had amazed him that the older kids, even Joey and Tristan, had been so drawn into her story. The look of wonder and hope on their faces seemed so foreign. He let his voice trail off, sighing as the water started to turn cold. For some reason, Joey had drawn his attention the most. Normally, he looked like what everyone thought he was, a punk. But sitting there, listening to a story about a family trying to get back together for Christmas, the blond had seemed so much younger, almost innocent. Seto shook his head, turning off the water. He knew Jou better than that. The blond was about as innocent as he was. And yet... and yet Joey still seemed so pure, as if something had taken away the darkness from his heart.

As the shower door started opening, Mokuba quickly stopped the camera and slipped out, making sure to close the door most of the way behind him. He grinned as he climbed back into his bed, the camcorder safely on his desk. He knew exactly who he was going to give the tape to. It would make the perfect Christmas gift.

Seto curled up in his empty bed, for the first time in a long time, he felt tired enough and good enough to sleep without nightmares. He sighed, snuggling into his pillow. He hoped the good mood lasted through out the night. The tall brunette slipped into sleep, the strains of a Christmas song still echoing in his mind.