Categories > Anime/Manga > Yu-Gi-Oh! > Interludes in the New World
Notes: Set four years after the end of the series and so alludes to the events of the end of the series, though in no great detail. Hence 'mild' spoilers rather than 'severe'. Still, you might want to be careful.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yuugiou or its characters, and use these things without permission. I respect the rights of Kazuki Takahashi as creator and do not intend to harm the rights of copyright holders.
----
There she was, right on time - or as near to it as public airways could make it - keeping her head down and hauling her luggage along in the way of someone who expected no greeting. But Seto easily recognised the form, the hair and the strong, graceful movements that he'd seen out of the corner of his eye for so long.
"She's arrived, Mokuba," Seto said, and had no need to add a request to get the girl. His brother vaulted over the railing of the airport café and raced in the direction Seto had indicated, leaping up intermittently to locate Anzu in the crowds of the airport. Their driver followed at a more sedate pace.
Anzu's eyes widened to an almost implausible degree when Mokuba reached her. Seto was glad that he couldn't hear the squeal she clearly issued.
Seto signalled for the bill and packed up his papers, pen and laptop from the table. He paid and walked out of the café area, catching Mokuba's eye and indicating that he was heading to the exit. The driver caught up to him and passed him with a nod, walking faster to get to the limousine first. Behind him, even through the crowd's diverse voices, he heard Mokuba; slowly he managed to pick out the voice that came in response to his brother's.
The voice was more familiar than he would have expected (though it wasn't really strange - he had an excellent memory and had frequently been forced into awareness of Anzu and her friends). To hear it was somehow comfortable.
He liked the feeling.
He liked the fact that Mokuba had only needed to ask him once to join a little welcoming party and had looked so pleased to hear him agree; he liked the fact that Yuugi had e-mailed both him and Mokuba about Anzu's time of arrival. Though Seto didn't reply to Yuugi's regular e-mails, he always took note of them, and had long ago decided not to question why he did so.
In the limousine Seto took out his laptop again. A few minutes of work, and then the door opposite him burst open, letting in sudden sunlight and laughter.
"Sorry we took a while, Seto. We were catching up!" Mokuba beamed at him.
"Of course." Seto nodded at the girl climbing in behind his brother. "Mazaki."
"Hi, Kaiba!" Ebullient though she was, he detected a sense of surprise from Anzu. "Thanks so much for the welcome! It was really nice of you guys."
Seto made a noise of acknowledgement and Mokuba took over. "Nothing major was happening today, so it was no trouble to come and get you - we'll have to go back to Kaiba Corp soon, though."
"It was good enough of you to come in the first place! I didn't even know you guys were in New York..."
Seto ignored the frivolity and concentrated on his work. It was complicated enough to let him shut out the noise, but not quite enough to take up all of his attention.
He mused on his feeling of pride. It was a foolish feeling to have because of these circumstances, but it trickled undeniably through him. Instead there should have felt crowded and perhaps irritated that the dregs of his experiences with Yuugi Mutou were surging back towards him like an oil-slicked tide. But the decision he'd made to go to the airport pleased him, and - he gave a sideways glance - it seemed to please Mokuba very much to reacquaint himself with an old friend.
Seto would have felt crowded before, and he would never have gone near such a physical reminder of his past failures as one of Yuugi's cheerleaders. But feelings like those had departed him long before this day, around the time he'd moved to America. He'd found himself searching the periphery of his vision for the dangers accompanied by a flash of white hair - the paired, laughing idiocy of two lanky boys - the rival that tore victories from him by the skin of his teeth and always judged Seto as a worthy rematch. For the easily smiling mouth, the tossing brown hair, the flashing eyes and restless hands now to be seen beside his brother.
Away from the things of Domino, but still thinking of them, Seto had realised something: 'To lose is to die' might have been the most important words in his life, but who was he playing against? Only himself and a past far worse than the one his rival babbled about.
The realisation had burned down one last tower. He'd thought that perhaps the past wasn't always bad (and had remembered his parents) and that the will to continue could overcome the aftermath of any loss.
After that he'd allowed himself to travel all the way to Egypt to say goodbye to one member of Yuugi's troupe; today he felt justified in taking an hour or so to greet another. In its own little way, the decision was satisfying.
"We're here," Mokuba said.
Seto looked up from his computer screen and out his window. "This is where you're staying."
"Yeah, this is it!" Anzu said, ducking so she could also see through the window on his side. "All the pamphlets said it was a pretty good neighbourhood."
"It's fine. The driver will take your things up."
"I can't thank you guys enough - it's good to know people are here for me."
She sat back up, leaned across Mokuba and pecked Seto on the cheek, then backed up and did the same to Mokuba.
"See you around!" She climbed out of the limousine and skipped around to the back, and began chatting with the driver.
Seto was dimly aware of the window going down beside him, Mokuba's finger on the button - but was shocked by the fact that Anzu was suddenly there again. And she could see him.
"Bye, Anzu!" Mokuba called, leaning over Seto and waving. He wore an enormous grin.
"Bye, Mokuba!" She paused, and there was a significant amount of laughter in her voice when she said, "Goodbye, Kaiba."
For the better part of the day, Seto managed to be busy enough not to think about it. It was as he lay in bed, falling asleep, that an image came to him: Anzu calling her friends, grinning victoriously. Saying, "I kissed Kaiba on the cheek - it scared him half to death!" Snickering from the other end of the line.
Next time would have to be better, so that she would be left shocked and speechless.
Seto realised what he was thinking and reached for his sleeping pills.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yuugiou or its characters, and use these things without permission. I respect the rights of Kazuki Takahashi as creator and do not intend to harm the rights of copyright holders.
----
There she was, right on time - or as near to it as public airways could make it - keeping her head down and hauling her luggage along in the way of someone who expected no greeting. But Seto easily recognised the form, the hair and the strong, graceful movements that he'd seen out of the corner of his eye for so long.
"She's arrived, Mokuba," Seto said, and had no need to add a request to get the girl. His brother vaulted over the railing of the airport café and raced in the direction Seto had indicated, leaping up intermittently to locate Anzu in the crowds of the airport. Their driver followed at a more sedate pace.
Anzu's eyes widened to an almost implausible degree when Mokuba reached her. Seto was glad that he couldn't hear the squeal she clearly issued.
Seto signalled for the bill and packed up his papers, pen and laptop from the table. He paid and walked out of the café area, catching Mokuba's eye and indicating that he was heading to the exit. The driver caught up to him and passed him with a nod, walking faster to get to the limousine first. Behind him, even through the crowd's diverse voices, he heard Mokuba; slowly he managed to pick out the voice that came in response to his brother's.
The voice was more familiar than he would have expected (though it wasn't really strange - he had an excellent memory and had frequently been forced into awareness of Anzu and her friends). To hear it was somehow comfortable.
He liked the feeling.
He liked the fact that Mokuba had only needed to ask him once to join a little welcoming party and had looked so pleased to hear him agree; he liked the fact that Yuugi had e-mailed both him and Mokuba about Anzu's time of arrival. Though Seto didn't reply to Yuugi's regular e-mails, he always took note of them, and had long ago decided not to question why he did so.
In the limousine Seto took out his laptop again. A few minutes of work, and then the door opposite him burst open, letting in sudden sunlight and laughter.
"Sorry we took a while, Seto. We were catching up!" Mokuba beamed at him.
"Of course." Seto nodded at the girl climbing in behind his brother. "Mazaki."
"Hi, Kaiba!" Ebullient though she was, he detected a sense of surprise from Anzu. "Thanks so much for the welcome! It was really nice of you guys."
Seto made a noise of acknowledgement and Mokuba took over. "Nothing major was happening today, so it was no trouble to come and get you - we'll have to go back to Kaiba Corp soon, though."
"It was good enough of you to come in the first place! I didn't even know you guys were in New York..."
Seto ignored the frivolity and concentrated on his work. It was complicated enough to let him shut out the noise, but not quite enough to take up all of his attention.
He mused on his feeling of pride. It was a foolish feeling to have because of these circumstances, but it trickled undeniably through him. Instead there should have felt crowded and perhaps irritated that the dregs of his experiences with Yuugi Mutou were surging back towards him like an oil-slicked tide. But the decision he'd made to go to the airport pleased him, and - he gave a sideways glance - it seemed to please Mokuba very much to reacquaint himself with an old friend.
Seto would have felt crowded before, and he would never have gone near such a physical reminder of his past failures as one of Yuugi's cheerleaders. But feelings like those had departed him long before this day, around the time he'd moved to America. He'd found himself searching the periphery of his vision for the dangers accompanied by a flash of white hair - the paired, laughing idiocy of two lanky boys - the rival that tore victories from him by the skin of his teeth and always judged Seto as a worthy rematch. For the easily smiling mouth, the tossing brown hair, the flashing eyes and restless hands now to be seen beside his brother.
Away from the things of Domino, but still thinking of them, Seto had realised something: 'To lose is to die' might have been the most important words in his life, but who was he playing against? Only himself and a past far worse than the one his rival babbled about.
The realisation had burned down one last tower. He'd thought that perhaps the past wasn't always bad (and had remembered his parents) and that the will to continue could overcome the aftermath of any loss.
After that he'd allowed himself to travel all the way to Egypt to say goodbye to one member of Yuugi's troupe; today he felt justified in taking an hour or so to greet another. In its own little way, the decision was satisfying.
"We're here," Mokuba said.
Seto looked up from his computer screen and out his window. "This is where you're staying."
"Yeah, this is it!" Anzu said, ducking so she could also see through the window on his side. "All the pamphlets said it was a pretty good neighbourhood."
"It's fine. The driver will take your things up."
"I can't thank you guys enough - it's good to know people are here for me."
She sat back up, leaned across Mokuba and pecked Seto on the cheek, then backed up and did the same to Mokuba.
"See you around!" She climbed out of the limousine and skipped around to the back, and began chatting with the driver.
Seto was dimly aware of the window going down beside him, Mokuba's finger on the button - but was shocked by the fact that Anzu was suddenly there again. And she could see him.
"Bye, Anzu!" Mokuba called, leaning over Seto and waving. He wore an enormous grin.
"Bye, Mokuba!" She paused, and there was a significant amount of laughter in her voice when she said, "Goodbye, Kaiba."
For the better part of the day, Seto managed to be busy enough not to think about it. It was as he lay in bed, falling asleep, that an image came to him: Anzu calling her friends, grinning victoriously. Saying, "I kissed Kaiba on the cheek - it scared him half to death!" Snickering from the other end of the line.
Next time would have to be better, so that she would be left shocked and speechless.
Seto realised what he was thinking and reached for his sleeping pills.
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