Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Seto's Wish Alternate World Conclusion ❯ C24 Morality Esque ( Chapter 24 )

 

C24 Morality Esque

 

Kaiba had awoken, of all places...in his room, in bed. He looked around, wondering how he ended up here. `Must be morning in this world.' He thought, not knowing any other excuse for it.

 

Before he could get out of bed, he felt something shift under the covers next to him. At first, he thought nothing of it, assuming it was probably just his brother. After all, in his world it wasn't surprising to find Mokuba curling up in his bed from a possible nightmare.

 

But as he began to remove the covers from him, he froze finding himself in nothing but his birthday suit! Well.....save the pendant still around his neck, and the deck of cards and gold box conveniently on his night stand. But what did it mean? This was definitely `not' how he normally went to bed at night. And if he had no clothes, that meant the person in bed couldn't be Mokuba next to him. But then, who was it???

 

Scenarios of potential horrors quickly went swirling through his mind. Could it be Joey again? Maybe it was worst.....maybe it was Yugi! Maybe even.....(shudders) Tea!

 

Kaiba quickly shook such a horrible thought from his mind, trying anything to purge even a glimmer of a naked Tea beside him. That was just too much......nothing could be worst than that! But, then who was it? Could he have accidentally adjusted the box to go back to the first world he visited?

 

When he originally made this trip, he never even fathomed the idea of relationships with others. He always assumed he'd be alone, just the way he liked it. He probably shouldn't have made such an assumption, especially since Seto actually `was' dating Tea. Depending who it was would also depend on how easily he would be able to get rid of them. If it was Tea, he'd toss her out so fast, she wouldn't know what happened......tears or not. But, Joey......

 

After so stupidly letting himself get drunk and sleeping with the mutt, it would be too awkward to so easily treat him as badly.....especially if it was the same universe again. Especially if Joey all ready had all the knowledge of who he was. Kaiba thought he could handle anything......he was wrong. But he wasn't going to back down and run away, either. He would face it as yet another opponent, another obstacle. Yes, even Joey as a past opponent......he'd defeat the situation and move on.

 

Kaiba turned over, keeping the covers tight on himself to keep himself hidden, as he cautiously reached over to pull the covers down and reveal who was in bed with him. `It can't be worst than Tea.' he repeated over and over in his head, keeping his hand from trembling as he grasped the covers and began to slide them down.

 

Just before he could find out who it was, his `opponent' suddenly shifted, sat up and stretched into a yawn. Kaiba's face turned white as a ghost, his eyes as wide as saucers......yes, it was worst. Much worst. It was his brother, Mokuba.

 

As Kaiba expected and feared, his little brother was also entirely naked. He finished his yawn, and casually scratched the back of his head, looking around. Finally, lazily turning towards what appeared to be a petrified brother, Mokuba blinked a few times, and muttered, “Morning, Seto. You have a bad dream or something?”

 

“........something.” he nearly squeaked, still too frightened to move.

 

Mokuba smiled happily, and said, “Well, don't worry about that, big brother. I'll help get rid of all your bad dreams!” Instantly, he pounced on his brother, kissing him passionately on the lips.

 

Kaiba's mind was in a panic......having trouble comprehending what was happening, and what he had to do to stop it. He was ready to battle against anything, but Mokuba couldn't be his opponent! He made the dire mistake to turn on his brother once, and swore that would never happen again. Of course, when that self-promise was made, he never imagined being in such a shocking situation. How was he supposed to handle this?? This was too much. It was just.....wrong!

 

For a moment, Mokuba pulled back sensing something different about his brother. What was it? Was something wrong? For a second, Mokuba worried if maybe his brother was starting to act guilty once again for his feelings towards him. But immediately, he decided if that were the case, he would just have to push harder to ensure and break him from his hesitation, once again.

 

So, Mokuba kissed again, this time pushing his tongue passed Kaiba's lips and into his mouth. Instantly after, Mokuba's hands were all ready beginning to explore Kaiba's very exposed self under the sheets.

 

Finally, Kaiba recovered from the shock and horror that had been overwhelming him. He managed to push Mokuba away, spitting out, “What the hell do you think you doing??!!”

 

“What do you mean, `what am I doing?'” Mokuba asked, irritated.

 

Then giving a suggestive grin, he pounced again.....giving his brother a hungry look like he was a piece of meat. His hands started to slip down towards his member, as Mokuba pleaded, “Come on, Seto....don't be like that. You said you wouldn't act all weird about this, anymore. If it helps, I promise I'm not sore from last night, okay? So, don't stop, now.....I wanna get to play, too. This time, it's your turn.”

 

The words coming from Mokuba's mouth was even more frightening to Kaiba then Mokuba's behavior a moment ago. They made his stomach turn, just thinking about the insinuation behind it. “I said, stop it!” he said harshly, never speaking so coldly towards his brother before, as he tightly grabbed his wrists, forcibly stopping all action from his little brother.

 

“Ow, you're hurting me!” Mokuba said, looking over at Seto with a look of confusion and hurt.

 

Instantly, Kaiba realized his own panic was making him hurt his brother, and he let go just as quickly. The sadness in Mokuba's eyes then immediately changed to anger, as he asked, “What's wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?”

 

“ME??!” Kaiba sputtered out, looking at Mokuba, like he'd just grown another head. “Are you trying to tell me that you don't find what you did at all...wrong??”

 

Mokuba blinked, then let out an exasperated groan, sputtering out, “Not again. Seto, you said we wouldn't go through this again!!” Mokuba was now getting upset over how his brother was behaving.

 

“Go...through...what?” Kaiba asked, almost afraid to know what he was talking about.

 

“You know what!” Mokuba pouted. “We're by ourselves in your bedroom! No one's going to know what we're doing. We're safe!” He said and planted another surprise kiss on him, fully intending on his kiss to be the end of the matter.

 

But it wasn't. Kaiba quickly pried him back off, this time leaping out of the bed to avoid that ever happening again. “Stop doing that!” He spat out, getting angry.

 

Mokuba was about to get angry again, but with Kaiba standing there all expose.....he just couldn't. He gave him an almost evil smirk, muttering, “That's a nice view.”

 

Kaiba had forgotten for a moment he was completely naked, too busy escaping his brother. Blushing furiously, he immediately snatched the top cover, wrapping it around himself. Then, keeping himself from looking at his brother, Kaiba ordered, “Go put something on.”

 

“Why.....don't you like looking at me, now?” Mokuba almost purred, showing himself off more, instead. “Are you trying to pretend you didn't have any of this last night?”

 

Kaiba then turned and marched straight to his closet, going out of his way to show just how little he wanted to see him do that.

 

Mokuba watched him walk away, feeling even more hurt and confused, now. “Seto....don't be like that. Pleeaase?”

 

He hated hearing the pleading voice of his brother, especially after what he was insinuating. How can any version of him do such horrible things to Mokuba, knowing how young and innocent he was, well.....supposed to be. At least he was, until this version of him took that away.

 

He shuddered at the thought, as he ripped the door open entering the walk-in closet.

 

Now taking a minute to get dressed, he tried to figure this whole thing out. `In Seto's universe, Mokuba wasn't my brother. Maybe that's the reason this happened in this world. Perhaps he thinks Mokuba thinks he's not his brother here, either.' But he realized that idea didn't work at all. Mokuba even called him his big brother once.

 

Trying to figure this out was giving him a headache. After getting some clothes on, he left the closet cautiously, hoping not to see Mokuba trying not to attack him, anymore.

 

Mokuba no longer seemed to be in that kind of mood. Instead, he was just sitting on the bed with the rest of his covers wrapped around him. He was all balled up and seemed to be on the verge of tears. That only hurt him more, knowing he somehow caused Mokuba to be upset.

 

Kaiba walked over to him, as Mokuba looked up at him miserably. “Seto.....why do you hate me?”

 

“Hate you?” Kaiba asked. “I don't hate you. What are you talking about?”

 

He looked down. “You told me we wouldn't fight about this, anymore. You said we'd be together and not let who we are get in the way......”

 

“We are together.” Kaiba stated. “Why are you looking for more? Did you forget we are brothers, now?”

 

Mokuba now glared angrily at him, saying, “So what?? That's all you ever say! What does it matter if it's legally right, or not?? We both love each other and you know it!! As long as we don't do it in public, we don't have to worry about it hurting us or the company...and you know I'd never do something like that if we weren't in private!”

 

“Mokuba...” Kaiba said softly. “Anything I feel for you is merely a `brotherly' connection. It's strictly platonic....nothing more.”

 

“If that's all it was, we wouldn't have done all that last night, or any other night! You promised.....” Mokuba said, sadly.

 

Kaiba was about to ask exactly what he did last night, but decided he really didn't want to know. Instead, he asked, “And what exactly did I promise?”

 

“That you wouldn't fight with me about this again. You told me you felt the same way about me and you wanted it, too! So why are you fighting against something you want just as much!” Mokuba snapped back in frustration.

 

`I'm a monster.' Kaiba thought, feeling cold inside. `I really am. There's no other way to explain it. In this world I must be some sort of sick pedophile, and.....to my own brother?'

 

His mouth became dry just thinking of the horrors his poor brother may have endured from himself in this world. He was trying to keep himself from trembling from the sickening feeling going through him, at just picturing how terribly poor Mokuba had been emotionally abused by him. `Look at him…he doesn't even know what that version of me has been doing to him.'

 

Kaiba also had a pretty good picture of just how far the Kaiba of this world went with Mokuba, after the things that Mokuba had said and done. Kaiba immediately wanted to run from this room, and from the nightmare quickly beginning to unfold in his head everything that had been done to Mokuba...but he couldn't. He came through so many various worlds, trying his best to help Mokuba whenever he could. Just as any other Mokuba he had run into, he couldn't simply turn his back on this one, either. He was responsible for messing up Mokuba's head in this world. It was his job to try and help undo the damage he was responsible for. `No…..it's my fault. I can't just leave him like this.'

 

“Seto?” Mokuba asked. He was hoping by reminding his big brother of what they went through, that he'd snap out of it again. Yet, he had the strangest look on his face...it was fear, of all things.

 

Kaiba closed his eyes, then moved forward and hugged his brother. “Mokuba...I'm so sorry.” He whispered, trying to swallow down the knot in his throat. For Kaiba, it wasn't pity he was showing. It was an apology for the crimes he committed. Maybe not him personally, but any version of him was still him. He was to blame for this.

 

Mokuba finally exhaled, saying, “It's okay, Seto...I know you get nervous about this. But don't worry, I promise no one will find out about this.” Then he began to wrap his arms around Kaiba, trying to tuck his hands underneath Kaiba's shirt.

 

Again, Kaiba pulled Mokuba's hands off, but much gentler, this time. “Mokuba...I want you to listen to me. I'm sure you're really confused about this. The truth is, I'm not the Seto you know...I'm not from this world. I used an item that had been bringing me to various worlds. I'm trying to get to one world where I'm supposed to help save you from Noah. Unfortunately, this damn thing doesn't work very well.”

 

“Language.” Mokuba reminded him.

 

“Sorry.” Kaiba instinctively said, then paused, looking up at him. It was so scary how this Mokuba was like his own, and doing what he was trying to do.

 

Mokuba then looked down, saying, “Am I that terrible to you that you have to pretend you're not even my brother, now?”

 

Kaiba gritted his teeth, saying, “You don't believe me? Look! Here it is! Do you believe me, now??”

 

He grabbed the item from the small table next to the bed, and showed it to Mokuba. For the moment, he stopped feeling sorry for himself and looked it over in wonder. As his hand approached it, Kaiba immediately pulled it back from him, saying, “Don't touch it. I wouldn't want it to accidentally bring you somewhere else. That would get too complicated.” `Then again it might be better for him if I did.'

 

“Is it magic?” he asked.

 

“Uh...well, it was given to me from someone called Aiko. I didn't bother to ask...I really didn't want to know.” Kaiba answered awkwardly, not really wanting to admit it was probably magical.

 

Mokuba looked at Kaiba and sighed, “You're really `not' my brother, are you? Then...where `is' Seto?”

 

“From what I've heard so far, I hope he's very far away.” Kaiba told him.

 

Finally, it hit Mokuba like a dead weight. Kaiba not being his brother made perfect sense why he resisted. He acted just like his brother used to, before he ever admitted anything....as if nothing had ever happened. And in this Kaiba's eyes, he probably did see this as the most terrible thing in the world.

 

With this newfound realization hitting him, Mokuba became alarmed and possibly even slightly fearful at the brother in front of him. “Seto...uh, you don't understand. You...I mean he...he really loves me.”

 

“Loves you, by using you like that? How old are you, Mokuba?” Kaiba asked, sternly. `He can't be much older than my Mokuba.'

 

“I'm 12.” Mokuba said, but quickly added, “I know where you're going with this, and it doesn't matter! Just because I'm 12, doesn't mean I don't know what I want. And just because what we're doing is illegal doesn't mean it's wrong for us! Who cares what we're doing, as long as we both want it and we're happy. Isn't being happy all that really matters?”

 

“Happy? How can you possibly feel happy for having your own brother use you like that! And you shouldn't simply dismiss the legalities of this. Laws are put down for a reason, Mokuba!” Kaiba argued.

 

“You once said that we're Kaiba's! And Kaiba's can do what we want...no one can tell us otherwise. Do you remember that??” Mokuba asked.

 

Kaiba looked away, saying, “Actually, yes. But I never believed that particular statement would be used in defense of what is happening here. There is obviously an extreme to every case; this is a prime example of that. Besides...we're not just looking at legalities. What your brother is doing to you is not only legally wrong, but also morally wrong in so many ways. Does he realize he can lose you if anyone ever found out? Did he ever consider that...does he care? Then again, maybe that would be a good thing...”

 

“Don't you dare ever say that! You know what it's like at the orphanage! It's terrible there!” Mokuba cried out, tears beginning to swell up, once again.

 

“I know perfectly well the hell hole we had to endure, but anything is better than the abuse that monster is doing to you!” Kaiba spat.

 

“He's not a monster, he's my brother and I love him and he loves me, too!” Mokuba screamed back.

 

“Mokuba, you are 12 years old! How can you even understand what that kind of love involves! How badly has he been using you? After the things you did and said to me, I can imagine it was pretty bad. What exactly did he do to you last night?” Kaiba asked.

 

“N-nothing.........” Mokuba stuttered out, trying to hide the truth. Kaiba glared at him, then went for the nightstand, pulling on the drawer, remembering what was there in that other dimension when he and Joey were supposedly lovers. Mokuba tried to stop him, but it was too late. In the drawer was sure enough an open rather recently used jar of lubricant, to his horror. “It's not what you think!” Mokuba quickly spat out.

 

Kaiba glared at him, asking, “Then what would he be using this for.........shoe polish??”

 

Mokuba looked down at his feet, saying, “Okay, so maybe it is what you think.” unable to think of a good excuse. “But he's really gentle and makes sure to go really slow so he wouldn't hurt me. Besides it's not like I don't do it to him too.”

 

Kaiba looked at Mokuba, mortified by what he just said. He then quickly tossed the item back into the drawer, like it was containing hidden anthrax or something, totally appalled by the thoughts this conversation was thrusting into his mind. “Never mind! I don't want to know anything more about it...I'm sorry I asked.”

 

Mokuba tried to plead, “But, Seto...”

 

“I don't want to hear it!” Kaiba said, now beginning to pace nervously back and forth. “None of this makes any sense at all.” He finally stopped and turned to Mokuba, saying, “How did any of this happen in the first place? How did it even start?”

 

“Are you sure you want me to tell you? Every time I say something, you only get angrier.” Mokuba said.

 

Kaiba paused, looking down at Mokuba, knowing he was right and probably was going to regret hearing this. “You're right. But I still need to know...I have to know how this happened between you two.” Kaiba had to know what the key could have been that caused this whole thing to start happening. Something that he had done in this world, that he obviously didn't do in his world to cause this.

 

Mokuba nodded, saying, “Okay. Well, it started 2 years ago...”

 

“That means you were ten.” Kaiba said darkly. `He started taking advantage of his own brother at 10 years old!' He thought, gaining more and more hate towards this version of himself the more he heard about him.

 

“Yeah, well...our school had the boys and girls separated in the gym to talk about the differences of girls and boys and what they went through when they got older.” Mokuba said. “Well I got curious and wanted to know more, because some of the boys in my school were talking about catching their brothers doing things with their girlfriends and I got curious...”

 

Kaiba swallowed, “So, what happened?”

 

“I went to Seto and asked him about things. Like why do guys and girls stick their tongues in each other's mouths and....” Mokuba now blushed at the next question. “Well, what it feels like to have sex with another person.”

 

Kaiba turned away, not facing Mokuba, as he asked, “How did he answer?”

 

“Well......he couldn't answer the second question. He'd never had sex with anyone yet.” Mokuba giggled. “He told me that the tongue thing was just another way of kissing. So, I asked him if he could show me.”

 

“So, he just did it??” Kaiba asked, whirling back around, staring at Mokuba.

 

“No! He explained that only people that love each other are supposed to do that. So, I said that we both love each other, why don't we normally do that? And he told me that it's against the rules, that it's not something that brothers are supposed to do and we could get in trouble. But while he was telling me this, I noticed he was getting redder and redder and kept moving around funny.” Mokuba said and smiled remembering. “I think it made him feel weird thinking about it.”

 

“I can understand that.” Kaiba said, feeling very uncomfortable himself, though he had a feeling his discomfort was a lot different than how his other self felt at the time.

 

Mokuba replied, “That's when I reminded him that we're Kaiba's and that he said we can do whatever we want, and asked him to show me so I know what it is. That made him start thinking about it, so I added that we wouldn't be doing anything bad, cuz he'd only be teaching me something and he always told me...”

 

“......that there's no such thing as useless knowledge.” Kaiba finished. It was a painful reminder of what he had said to Mokuba over and over, when his own little brother tried to get out of doing his homework. Mokuba would say he saw no reason in learning something, because he'd never use it when he got older.

 

Mokuba smiled up at Kaiba, nodding. “Yep. So, he gave in.....deciding it couldn't hurt just to show me something quick. So, he pulled me forward and he gave me what he called a `French kiss'. But when we started kissing, neither of us wanted to stop and began getting closer and closer to each other. When we finally broke away, Seto looked really guilty about it, but I told him it was okay, cuz I liked it. It didn't take much more talking, for him to listen to me after that. But...... the next morning, when he woke up next to me, it caused a real problem. He told me how wrong it was and told me we couldn't ever do that again. This fight lasted almost a week, until I got him to finally talk about it. He realized after being away from me a week that it only caused him to hurt and want me more, and it made me hurt as well by him avoiding me.”

 

“So, ever since then you two have been...” Kaiba stopped saying anything more, not wanting to word it or even think about it.

 

Mokuba nodded, “Well, on and off. We'd be with each other for a little while, but then he'd feel guilty and try to push me away again. It was only a 1/2 year ago when we had our final fight on it. That's when I made him promise he wouldn't ever do that again to us. He agreed.....so ever since, he's been really good about staying with me, without pushing me away, anymore. That's why I was so upset when you did it, cuz I thought you were my brother, pushing me away again and breaking his promise to me.” Mokuba said, then glared at Kaiba, saying, “I'm not ashamed of how I feel for him!”

 

“You shouldn't be...it's not your fault.” Kaiba said coldly. Everything that Mokuba said to him was simply too much for Kaiba to handle listening to. Thoughts were now stirring in his head what to do to ensure this would not happen to Mokuba again, no matter whose Mokuba it was. It was bad enough all the things Mokuba had to endure in life, but to have to go through this by his own older brother, using him now for two years?? `That bastard should feel guilty for what he's been doing. What kind of monster am I, over here?' He thought.

 

Finally, Kaiba turned away, saying, “Go to your room, Mokuba. There're some things I need to do.”

 

Mokuba suddenly looked fearful and clung to him, saying, “Seto, promise me you won't do anything to separate us!”

 

“I said go to your room.” Kaiba hissed.

 

“No! You're not my brother; I don't have to listen to you! If you do something, you'll only hurt us more. I need my brother, Seto! I can't go on without him! Please! What makes you think because I'm 12 that I can't make a decision on what I want?? You were 6 years old when you started taking care of me! You were 8 years old when you started to protect me from our stepfather, and you were 13 when you took over Kaiba Corp. So how can you discriminate against age, when you've always hated people doing the same thing to you??” Mokuba ranted at him.

 

That seemed to finally catch Kaiba's attention, as he looked down at Mokuba. As much as he wanted to argue on it.........Mokuba was right. Forever he had fought against courts and all sorts of older people trying to judge him, due to his official age. He had to battle tooth and nail to gain custody and prove to be competent to raise Mokuba, despite his age. He always believed age didn't matter. But, now that this was thrown into his face, for the first time he found himself questioning it. Was he `really' old enough to take care of Mokuba?? The Seto of this world seemed to believe so, and look what happened. Could one of these realities also be his fate? What if just the right push causes `him' to snap and end up in bed with Joey, or his own brother, or who the hell knows what? Maybe he'll wake up one morning sucking off Yugi.

 

Kaiba looked down, looking very tired suddenly. He turned away from Mokuba, saying, “Well, maybe I was wrong. Maybe you needed something more than I was.”

 

“No, that's not true, Seto. We've always had each other and we never needed anyone else...you've said so yourself so many times.” Mokuba said.

 

“I know, but...maybe I was wrong.” Kaiba said, sadly.

 

“Don't say that! Seto, why are you trying to make love seem like a bad thing? Love is supposed to be a good thing, so how can it be bad?” Mokuba asked.

 

Kaiba turned to him, saying, “When love is twisted and played to be something it's not...that's when it's bad. You're led to believe it's love, but it's really not.”

 

“I know that it's love. You still think I'm too young to make that decision?” Mokuba asked.

 

Kaiba slightly chuckled, but his laughter was directed at himself. “Mokuba, right now I'm 16 and I don't even understand about that kind of love. What makes you think you understand it?”

 

“Because I've had it and you haven't.” Mokuba said proudly. Kaiba sighed...Mokuba got him on that one. He was a smart kid, after all. “Fine...I'm not going to argue on your maturity, but I will argue on your sanity.”

 

“What do you mean?” Mokuba asked.

 

“What do you mean?” Mokuba asked.

 

“Come with me...I want to show you something.”

 

Kaiba gave Mokuba a minute to get his pants on. He then took him by the hand and led him to the library. At the library, Kaiba began pulling out books, flipping to certain pages and then putting them down, saying, “I want you to read these sections.”

 

Mokuba looked at them and scowled. “You think I'm crazy, now?”

 

Kaiba pointed at one book, saying, “This book explains displaced love, when they are deprived of certain parents....and that's merely in a divorce or the death of one parent. You can imagine the damage of losing both, growing up being raised by your own brother.” He pointed at another book, saying, “This one also explains displaced love, a person will desperately cling to just about anything when dealing with an abusive childhood. This book points out how hostages or even rape cases can misplace fear for a dependent need towards their captors. This one explains the type of manipulations that a pedophile can use in order to gain the trust of their victims.....”

 

“Stop it! I don't want to hear anymore!!” Mokuba screamed out, covering his ears.

 

Kaiba went down to his knees to Mokuba's level, gently pulling his hands away and wiping his eyes. “Mokuba, I understand you genuinely believe you feel this way for him and truly think he feels the same. Tell me this, did he ever bring these books up to you, or mention anything about this?”

 

“No!” Mokuba said, defiantly.

 

“Well, if he had any belief in decency, he should have at the very least gone through all this with you, in considering these possibilities. It makes me really question how much he supposedly cares, as you say.”

 

Before Mokuba started spouting off again, Kaiba put his hands up, saying, “All right, all right, I'm not going to say anything else about him. Obviously, it's getting us nowhere. But at least for the moment, just try and have an open mind on what I'm showing you. You're a smart kid, you're not stupid and you could be a grown-up and still have all of the problems I was showing you. Not only that, but there was a very high possibility that a person suffering from any of these things would not even be aware of it. Now, you know our past history. Are you trying to tell me that there's not the slightest chance that what I'm saying to you may not be possible? What if it is, Mokuba? Let's say you think you're in love and my self from this world blindly thinks the same....but in reality it's actually a disorder or a displacement of feelings. Then years go by, and you find all these feelings you thought you had for your brother are suddenly gone. Then what? I'll tell you what...you're stuck in an illegal affair with your blood brother, feeling too guilty to admit the truth, as he slowly corrupts you even more, causing you to feel greater shame and self-loathing. I am telling you, no....I'm begging you to both find someone to talk to about this matter, just to make sure it's not one of these conditions I've listed off to you. If it's truly genuine like you think it is, then talking to someone isn't going to hurt either of you.”

 

“Yes it is! Who could we possibly trust to talk about this, without the risk of us losing everything!” Mokuba said.

 

“If you wanted help enough, my other self should have no problem finding it. Ask our doctor Thompson for a recommendation to talk to someone...someone you can trust. He has been with us ever since we were adopted...he knows what we've been through. At the very least, he'd sympathize enough not to do anything rash. Please, Mokuba.....I'm worried about you...” Kaiba said.

 

Mokuba looked up, saying, “If I promise to talk to Seto about this, will you promise not to talk to anyone here about this?”

 

With a sigh, Kaiba reluctantly nodded, “I promise.” He had considered doing something as desperate as talking to Yugi about the matter when he first found out, in order to make sure the Kaiba of this world did something to stop himself. But Mokuba was right....bringing personal issues between them to anyone else was normally not a good idea. But that didn't mean he couldn't still leave a nasty note to the Kaiba of this world, which he planned on doing, as well as make sure they get an appointment with someone, by setting it up himself.

 

Mokuba hugged him, saying, “Thank you, Seto.” Kaiba hugged him back, yet Mokuba could feel a bit of reluctance this time. After the last couple of times of Mokuba touching him, he was beginning to be a bit leery, now. As Mokuba felt Kaiba's hesitation, he decided to say, “Seto...can I ask you a question?”

 

“Go ahead.” Kaiba answered, still awkwardly hugging him.

 

“You keep questioning me if I really think I love Seto that way. But, how do you know that you don't feel this way for me...or `your' Mokuba?” Mokuba asked.

 

Kaiba looked horrified at the question, immediately pulling away from him, making sure to remove all contact from Mokuba, in order to ensure he wasn't misunderstanding something. “Don't even ask me such a thing! I would never do that to Mokuba...'any' of them!”

 

But Mokuba approached as Kaiba pulled away, saying, “Maybe that's why you're really upset about this, cuz you're afraid after what we did that you might end up doing it, too. Are you sure you didn't like it when I kissed you? I noticed you paused a long time before you pushed me away...”

 

Kaiba's eyes twitched, as he snapped, “Of course, I hesitated! It wasn't something I ever expected my own brother to do to me!!”

 

Kaiba was perhaps more flustered from Mokuba's accusation then he wanted to be. It showed just how much the question upset him. He realized it was fear he felt; because that much was true...he `had' begun to question himself. After this whole event took place, how `would' it affect him? Would he be afraid to have his Mokuba in bed with him, fear of unconsciously doing something wrong in his sleep, or maybe even not in his sleep? This Seto was supposed to be another version of him...there were aspects of him he was sure were very similar, maybe even close to the same. Could he end up like this? He could never dream of doing anything to hurt his Mokuba...but what if he did? This whole confrontation had left him second-guessing himself since he arrived.

 

“You didn't answer my question, Seto. Did you like it?” Mokuba asked.

 

“Of course I didn't!!” Kaiba snapped.

 

Mokuba smiled, “Are you sure? I don't think you're sure. I don't think you allowed yourself to even dwell on that kiss long enough to know. Maybe you should let me try again and see for yourself.”

 

Kaiba glared down at Mokuba, snapping, “You're little childish excuse might have worked on your brother, since he so desperately wanted it enough. But, it's not going to work on me...so forget it.”

 

“You're the one who said you have no feelings for me that way, and any brother who does is a perverted sicko! Maybe you're just trying to avoid it, because you're afraid you'll realize you want this just as much as the Seto of this world!” Mokuba snapped at him.

 

Kaiba snapped back in rage, “That's not true!! You take that back!”

 

“Then prove it!!” Mokuba yelled.

 

“I am not going to willingly French kiss my own brother!!” Kaiba yelled back.

 

Mokuba smiled, “But, I'm not your brother...remember? `Your' Mokuba would never have to know the truth. Besides...if you don't do this, then I guarantee you you'll be wondering about this for the rest of your life if you have personal feelings for me.”

 

`Could he be right?' He thought and then mentally shoved the thoughts away. `No, I'm not going to second guess myself. It's not going to happen.' But he already was second-guessing himself. What if what Mokuba said was true and he had that stupid `what-if' thought stuck in his head for the rest of his life?

 

As much as he didn't want to think about it, he actually attempted to draw back on Mokuba's first kiss, to tell if there was some aspect that liked it or not. But he realized quickly enough that Mokuba was right. All he could remember was the desperate need to pry him off, never allowing himself even a moment to figure out how he actually felt about it. He didn't feel anything good, but he couldn't tell if he was repulsed by it, either.

 

What if kissing him truly was the only way to find out, for sure? It wasn't really his Mokuba...maybe he should take the chance. `No! What am I thinking?? That's how this all started with the me from this world! What if kissing him causes this to happen?' But then, why would kissing him cause it, unless there was indeed something personally twisted inside him that wanted it? But if that was the case, did he really want to take the chance of letting such a part of him come out? Maybe doing this could result in him hurting his own brother later. Kaiba's head was reeling from the whole thing, this endless loop of self-question almost thrusting him into a brain lock between moral right and wrong.

 

Mokuba saw it and knew his brother well. He could probably dwell on this for the next hour before giving him an answer, which he was sure was going to be no. His brother was just too stubborn, sometimes. And like his brother, some things just need a push for it to happen.

 

So, Mokuba walked away from him. And while Kaiba stood there, thinking about it...Mokuba managed to get a chair, drag it over the plush rug of the library right in front of Kaiba, and climb up so he could reach his level. But, he realized it wasn't going to be tall enough, so he climbed back down, grabbed a few big heavy books, put them on the expensive leather chair and once again climbed on.

 

`Perfect!' He thought. Finally, in one fluid movement, Mokuba wrapped himself around his brother's neck and once again gave him a deep kiss, slipping his tongue into Kaiba's mouth. He knew even if Kaiba was right and didn't like it, he would still be responsive this time. The question led Kaiba to question himself too much. And if they were kissing anyway, he was sure to respond to Mokuba and kiss back this time, just to make sure...since he was so uncertain at the time.

 

Kaiba was finally thrust out of his mental calculations on the situation, when reality pointed out to him that Mokuba had somehow reached his height level and was kissing him again. He had no clue how Mokuba reached him, remembering him clearly in front of him at his normal height just an instant ago. How much time had passed while he was thinking about this, anyway?

 

His instincts screamed to pull away and run as far from this Mokuba as possible, but what Mokuba assumed would happen....did. The question in his head quickly pushed through, reminding him that this was the perfect opportunity to find for sure once and for all, so he wouldn't second guess himself any longer. Mokuba was kissing him anyway, so he might as well just finish it and get it over with, so this question could finally be answered. Regrettably...he allowed himself to kiss back, very slowly and carefully, every other aspect of his mind screaming what he was doing was wrong. After a moment, Kaiba finally got his answer...he was purely disgusted by what either of them were doing. There was absolutely no enjoyment in this.

 

Kaiba quickly pushed himself away from Mokuba and turned away, wiping his mouth. Mokuba watched him, as his brother tried to recover himself the best he could, before he finally gasped out, “You're wrong.”

 

Mokuba smiled sadly, saying, “I already know. I could tell from what I was feeling from you...it wasn't the same as my Seto. When he kissed me, it felt good and I felt so happy inside. But when we both kissed like that, it didn't feel good at all. It felt...dirty.”

 

Kaiba finally looked over at Mokuba, surprised by what he said. `He could.....feel a difference?' It made Kaiba wonder that maybe what Mokuba had been saying about him and Seto were in fact true, and they actually did love each other in that way. Either way, he was just glad he didn't feel anything good from that kiss...he was in fact relieved from his findings.

 

Mokuba then got down from his chair and books, that Kaiba had no idea how it even got there, and hugged him. Again, Seto hesitated from the hug, but Mokuba looked up, saying, “Don't worry, Seto. I won't do anything like that again. I understand, now. You really don't feel that way, except as a brother. I thought being who you are, you might feel the same. But, I was wrong. It won't happen again, I promise. Forgive me?”

 

Kaiba got down on his knees and offered a genuine smile, saying, “There's nothing to forgive. Maybe you did do me a favor by doing that. Thanks, kiddo...this whole world-jumping thing can really mess a person up.” Kaiba now hugged him more securely, any fear or hesitation he had in doing that before finally melting away.

 

They eventually pulled apart, as Kaiba said, “Well, listen.........why don't you clean this mess up you made in the library, then start on your usual routine. I'm going to go back to the office to look over this box and see if I can't figure out what patterns I've used already and maybe try and make it, this time.” Kaiba said.

 

“Okay.” Mokuba said, as Kaiba turned and slowly walked out the door. Mokuba then called back before he walked out, saying, “Good-bye, Seto.....it was nice meeting you.”

 

“See ya, kiddo.” Kaiba said, and finally walked out.

 

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

 

Kaiba headed down the hall, going into his office. He locked the door and then made a call to Thompson, asking him to recommend a good psychiatrist for them both, despite everything that was said and done...someone the doctor could guarantee would be off the record and was trust-worthy. In no time, the number was given and Kaiba made an appointment for them both. He then wrote a very nasty threatening letter to the Kaiba of this world, questioning his love and supposed dedication to Mokuba, reciting many of the illnesses and phobias and planted it in an area that only Kaiba would find, which he'd have to hack into in order to get rid of it.

 

Kaiba then got up, and unlocked the door. Leaning against the door, he pulled out the box, but looked at its detail. After that moment with Mokuba, he was now certain that his interest in his own brother would never get like that. It was simply something to do with the Mokuba and Seto of this world, and for that he was relieved. Since he had been traveling in all these worlds, he was beginning to question himself. Perhaps all this information was getting to him. But now he pushed it aside, realizing just because things were the way they were in one universe, it didn't exactly mean he would be like that in `his' world. He felt nothing but loathing from that kiss with Mokuba and that was a blessing in itself. But that thought drew his attention back to the horrifying time with Joey......

 

That was the first world he ended up at and nothing could prepare him to realize just how different these worlds were to his own. It was that confusion that led him to letting his guard down and ending up in bed with him, of all things. The most horrifying thing of all was in that world he didn't feel the same feeling of disgust he did here. He was trying to....... he was desperately trying to. But even when he told Joey his revolution over what happened, he unconsciously new he was fooling himself.

 

So, what exactly did that mean? Did it mean that in the world he's from, his fate may in fact share the same fate from that first dimension? Did he have some unknown interest in Joey that way that he never allowed himself to see before? It frightened him just to think of the possibility. And worst would be if he did have this strange obsession for the Mutt, and then it also wasn't shared by the one of his world. That would make it even more humiliating than the idea of mere interest........ some insane one-sided obsession for some low-life nobody; a weakness which that very stray dog could use against him.

 

Kaiba quickly shoved the thoughts away, finding it much more comfortable to return to his denial of any interest in Joey, despite what he felt, and continue with his mission. He refused to believe in any of it and ignore it all like a bad dream. He would simply keep going, find his destination and get his job over with. He had Mokuba to save and Noah to take care of. Then when he finally got back, he could forget all this madness and finally relax in his own reality, once again. He looked back down at the cube and then made the next adjustment on it, once again vanishing from another world.....hoping the next one would be his true destination.