Chapter 17: - No Choice
Yugi couldn't sleep.
Before she had been locked away in the room that they had, in Mokuba's words, so graciously allowed her to have the younger Kaiba brother had warned her that if she dared try any funny business it was the still recovering Jou who would suffer the consequences.
Not that she understood what Mokuba expected her to do. Oneesan had somehow been forced out of her body and Jou had nearly died. She wasn't willing to risk the safety of either of them by fighting back. Instead she had allowed herself to be shoved into the bedroom and the thick wooden door, which she could never have knocked down by herself, had been locked behind her.
The bedroom itself was a showcase of opulence. Even the night dress that had been left on the bed for her showed just how rich the Kaibas were. She hadn't changed, not when she had suspected that there were security cameras lacing the room and its on-suite bathroom. Instead she had moved over to the barred windows and tried to work out if she could see anything that might give her some indication of where the Kaiba Mansion actually was.
She hadn't had any luck on that front, but she did have a lovely view of the grounds, causing her to realise, once again, just how much trouble she was in. It didn't help when her overactive imagination informed her that with this much land, Kaiba could kill her and they would never find the body.
With that pleasant thought in mind, she had spent most of the remaining evening trying to work out where the cameras were, becoming pleased that she hadn't changed when she had found three in the bedroom and one in the bathroom.
Slumping back onto the bed and staring at the ceiling hadn't helped her mood any, nor had it allowed her to sleep. It had allowed her, however, to notice how comfortable it was.
She let out an irritated sigh as she sank into the mattress. Part of her wondered if it was her last night on Earth, while another part pondered over why she wasn't more worried about it if it was.
It was the lack of being able to do anything about her situation, she realised, that had put her in this frame of mind. There was no use panicking and spending the night in tears, though the option had seemed appealing to start with. She couldn't escape, not with Jou still sick from the poison and not with her room so securely locked down. Working herself into a state would only leave her feeling like crud in the morning when she would have to deal with whatever the Kaibas had planned.
She didn't really care if Kaiba murdered her. It wasn't that she had a death wish. Even with everything that had happened, her life since completing the Millennium Puzzle was the happiest it had ever been and she wanted that to continue for a long, long time. She just would rather that if it came to it, it was her rather than her friends or grandfather who paid the price. She would die a hundred times if it meant protecting them, especially if Oneesan would be okay too.
She was worried for her Other Self. Normally she couldn't tell if something had gone wrong, but when she had been put back in control of her body after Oneesan had gotten the antidote it hadn't been the usual, gentle exchange she was used to. Instead she had ricocheted back into control hard enough that it had felt like she had smacked her head against the front of her skull. And if that wasn't a confusing mental image she didn't know what was.
Holding the golden item in both hands, she rolled onto her side and curled around the ancient artefact as best she could. "I hope you're all right, Oneesan." Yugi spoke aloud. It seemed safe enough, given that the Kaibas knew about her big sister anyway. "I'm sorry about all of this. If I hadn't lead Kaiba to Ojiisan and his Blue Eyes none of this would have happened."
She didn't know if it was wishful thinking or just her imagination or whether Oneesan had really responded, but she felt like she had been hugged and reassurance washed over her. She didn't have time to think about it too much, because drowsiness overtook her and she had just enough time to hit the light switch by the bed before she dozed off.
When she awoke again sunlight was filtering into the room through the half open curtains and there was someone knocking on her door. The morning had arrived.
"Mutou-san?" There was a female voice at the door, "I'm coming in."
Yugi sat up as the door unlocked and watched warily as a maid entered the room followed by an armed guard.
"Good morning, Mutou-san." The maid looked a little nervous, causing Yugi to wonder if it was because Kaiba had been spreading rumours about her and what 'she' could do, or the maid was new and unused to kidnappings. "I brought tea."
"Thank you." Yugi politely took it, there was no need to be rude to the help after all, it wasn't their fault.
"Breakfast will be in half an hour." The maid informed her as Yugi hesitated for a moment, sniffed the liquid, wasn't able to smell anything but tea and risked taking a sip. She couldn't taste anything either. "Kaiba-sama asked me to inform you that he has had the cameras turned off so you can have a wash if you like." The maid looked her over, confusion obvious, "He also asked me to drop this off." With that she put a set of clothes on the chair next to the bed. "Is there anything I can get you?"
"No, thank you." Yugi shook her head. The maid looked relieved and shot out the room as fast as possible, the armed guard following. Yugi wasn't sure what to make of it. Instead of trying she put the cup of tea on the side and moved over to examine the clothes.
Yugi paled as she realised the clothes that she'd been left were the same ones she had left out on her chair in her bedroom. Kaiba had obviously sent people around to her house to collect them. On the one hand that was a good thing because that meant her grandfather knew where she was. On the other she had to hope that she wasn't going to head downstairs to find that Ojiisan was joining them for breakfast.
Taking the clothes into the bathroom, she noted that the little red lights on the security cameras had were off, suggesting that Kaiba was keeping his word. She quickly got ready, noting with shock that the bruise on her cheek, the one that had been given to her by the thief from yesterday and which had been turning a lovely shade of black and purple when she had looked in the mirror last night, was gone.
"Did you...?" She trailed off, wondering when Oneesan had healed her as she rested her hand against the Puzzle, staring at the golden item in the mirror, "Thanks." She imagined balling up her feelings of gratitude and putting them in the Puzzle but she didn't know if it worked as she had no response.
"Mutou-san?" The maid poked her head in the door as she did up her leather vest and slipped her top on over the top, causing her to squeak and cover herself with her arms. "Sorry, sorry!" The maid yelped, panicked, and backed out of the room. "Breakfast is almost ready and your friend's already downstairs."
"Thanks, I'll be out in a sec." Yugi replied, seriously wondering what was being said about her now, pulling on her remaining clothes and darting out the door just in time to hear the maid saying, "But Mr Kaiba said she killed someone and drove others insane..."
"Hi?" Yugi asked nervously, unable to deny that accusation since Oneesan had been in control of her body at the time. "I can make my own way down if you're uncomfortable."
The maid looked relieved but the gun toting lackey shook his head, "No, I'll walk you down." He informed her, herding the girl down the stairs and back the way Mokuba had led her the day before.
The moment she spotted Jou she cheered up slightly, darting into the room and hugging her friend for a moment before letting go. "You feeling better?" She asked, looking him up and down and noting that he didn't seem to be in pain anywhere.
"Much." Jou posed, noting that Yugi seemed to be relaxing a bit despite their surroundings, at the reassurance. "Just needed a good night's sleep, that's all." Sleeping in enemy territory was nothing new to him and he suspected that he had probably had slept much better than she had. She looked surprisingly rested though, so maybe he was underestimating her.
"That's good." Yugi grinned, sitting at the table and gesturing to the seat next to her as the food was brought in.
"How can you think about eating?" Jou complained as he eyeballed the food which smelled delicious but could be just as dangerous as the food from the previous night.
"I don't remember eating since lunch yesterday and whatever Oneesan actually did get to eat wasn't very filling." Yugi replied, eyeing up the plate, "So I'm starving."
"But it might be...Yuge!" Jou protested as Yugi started eating.
"Yum." She replied with a grin. When she didn't seem to keel over in pain Jou took the risk and downed his food almost as quickly. The pair were almost done when the main door opened again and their host entered the room.
"Kaiba!" Jou scrambled to his feet, glaring at the other teen but Yugi was fast enough to grab his arm before he could start something.
"Good morning." The elder Kaiba brother smirked at both of them, causing Jou to bristle, "I hope you slept well."
"Fine." Yugi replied, "Can we go now?"
"But Yugi-chan, I have so much to show you." Kaiba complained.
"We don't want anything of yours." Jou snapped at him, "Not after you had us grabbed off the street and your brother tried to kill us!"
"Jou." Yugi warned, getting between the two and trying to prevent Jou from getting himself shot by the pair that had followed Kaiba through the door.
"It's okay, Yugi-chan, he's allowed to be mad." Kaiba waved it off, completely unconcerned by Jou's rage, "My little brother was in high spirits last night. I have had a word with him about it."
"High spirits!" Jou spluttered. "High spirits? You..."
"Please, Kaiba-san," Yugi tried, interrupting Jou's rant, "I just want to go home."
"Yugi-chan, just hear me out." Kaiba insisted, "Ever since I took over Kaiba Corp, I've been working towards my dream of building Kaiba Land and it's finally ready. I think it's fitting that a Game Master of my own calibre gets to try it out its attractions first. I designed part of it specifically for you after all."
"Not for me." Yugi shook her head, "None of this was for me and you know it."
"What is Oneesan but an extension of you?" Kaiba responded with a shrug. "You and her co-exist. I can't challenge her without challenging you."
"If I'm part of her, I get a say on whether we take your challenges." Yugi stood up to Kaiba and noted the scowl that was slowly working its way onto his face, "And I want to go home."
"Maybe you should think about something first, Yugi-chan." The CEO of Kaiba Corp. snorted, "I know where you live and I've had people sent round to your home. Your Grandfather seemed fine on his own, but..."
"You wouldn't..." Yugi blanched, understanding the threat.
"Just come and look. Without causing a fuss." He had her and he knew it as all the fight seemed to drain out of her. At least for now.
"Alright." Yugi agreed as Jou growled at the rich, blackmailing, prick, "I'll come to your theme park."
"Good." Kaiba seemed to flip moods almost instantly, a bright smile on his face. Jou couldn't help but wonder if Kaiba had snapped. "You're going to have so much fun, Yugi-chan."
Yugi severely doubted it, but she wasn't going to fight him. Not with that threat hanging over her head. Instead she finished breakfast and followed them meekly to the limo, her mood slightly lifted by the names Jou was calling Kaiba under his breath. To his credit, the elder Kaiba brother seemed to be ignoring it, instead focusing on dispatching orders to his mooks before entering the vehicle himself.
It didn't take long for them to reach the Kaiba Corp. Tower and Yugi was surprised to see such a huge crowd gathered outside.
"They're here for the grand opening." Kaiba explained, a look of greed-tainted joy on his face, "Everyone's going to enjoy my park. Finally my dream's coming to fruition. It's only fitting that you get to see it, Yugi-chan."
Yugi didn't rise to the bait. Though she was curious as to what could cause Seto's mood to flip so drastically, she hadn't forgotten how he had gotten her here in the first place. No matter how nice he wanted to seem, he had had her kidnapped and threatened her grandfather. However she didn't hold any real anger towards Kaiba. Something within her heart told her that he could be an ally, maybe even a friend. But not until he got past whatever darkness was clouding his heart.
"Ready, Yugi-chan?" Kaiba asked, grinning at her as he reached for the door handle.
Yugi wasn't honestly sure if she was. She had every faith in Oneesan and she was no slouch at games herself, between the pair of them she was certain they could probably get through this. Especially since Kaiba had specifically stated he was Challenging her and her elder sister. She hoped, though she didn't want to plan on it, that he had at least learned enough from his previous Penalty, to know that a Challenge always had to be fair.
If he had taken that lesson to heart like she hoped, there was more of a chance that they would walk away from this.
"I'm ready."
On those words Kaiba opened the door. Yugi flinched at the wave of noise that entered the formerly silent vehicle. Even after making friends, she was still the shy girl who had trouble approaching strangers and the idea of going out there frightened her a little.
Jou, having seen her cringe, put a reassuring hand on her shoulder before shoving her forward a touch. Yugi took the hint and exited behind Kaiba, becoming relieved when she found that most of their attention was on the CEO. In fact they pretty much got ignored right up until the doors, where a rather frazzled looking man in a dirty, rumpled suit leapt in front of Kaiba yelling "I know what you did!"
"Ignore him." The grin had vanished again, replaced with the cold, hard look Kaiba had been wearing when he had casually threatened Yugi's grandfather. "He's a disgruntled ex-employee, nothing more. Guards!"
"You killed him!" The man continued as Kaiba's thugs dragged him out the door, "Your own father! You bast..." The doors slammed shut, cutting the man off but Kaiba didn't seem overly concerned.
"My father committed suicide." Kaiba spoke, his tone full of pride, "He Challenged me and he lost the company because of it. Death was his reward." Jou let out a sharp breath at that, but neither he or Yugi replied. There wasn't much they could say after all. "Now," He continued as they stopped on floor three, "I'm afraid your surprise isn't quite ready, Yugi-chan, so I'm going to leave you to enjoy some of the rides for the time being. I'll send someone to come and get you when it's time."
Yugi and Jou stepped out, followed by a pair of goons, and then Kaiba continued further up the tower. The pair of them managed to lose the thugs in the crowds and slipped out of sight behind one of the booths.
"So we're leaving, right?" Jou asked the moment he was certain they couldn't be heard.
"You can." Yugi shook her head. "But if I run now, he'll just come to the shop and Ojiisan could get hurt. It's better I stay."
Jou paused and considered her carefully for a few moments before letting out a soft snort, "Are you sure you're Yugi? Because a couple of months ago you wouldn't have stood up for yourself."
Yugi wanted to complain but Jou was right. She hadn't found the confidence to start sticking up for herself until she had had other people to defend first. However...
"I'm still not." Yugi admitted hesitantly, "I'm not doing this for me, I'm staying to protect Ojiisan."
"Ah." Jou grimaced, suddenly understanding Yugi's determination to see this through. Not that she hadn't changed a lot since he had first met her, but she still didn't tend to stand up for herself. For her friends and classmates, yes, but for herself, not so much.
"You don't have to stay." Yugi promised Jou, kind of hoping he wouldn't so he didn't get dragged into this mess any further than he was already, "But I'm not leaving. Not yet."
"Not going anywhere, Yuge." Jou shrugged, "I'm not gonna leave you alone with that creepazoid." He looked around at the rides, "So shall we make the most of it? I mean it's not often you get a free pass to a theme park."
"I guess?" Yugi wasn't completely sure it was safe but the games and rides were luring her in and she wanted, just for an hour or so, to have fun instead of worrying about her fate.
Jou dragged her off to test out some of the rides, his mood improving slightly when he realised that, as Kaiba's special guests, they were getting jumped to the front of the queues. Yugi was pretty sure that it was because they needed to be available the moment Kaiba requested their presence but she wasn't going to complain.
It was about an hour and a half later that they were collected from the park for Kaiba's 'special surprise.' They followed the goons to the lift, continued to almost the top floor and then stepped out into a packed arena of children screaming Kaiba's name in uproarious applause, surrounding a glass box.
That wasn't what caught Yugi's attention though. What did that was what was inside the glass box.
"Ojiisan!" Yugi darted forward, only for her arm to be caught by one of Kaiba's thugs who held her back. "Kaiba!" She wheeled around to glare at him, shocking Jou, "You promised you'd leave him alone!"
"He came to me." Kaiba shrugged, with a small, pleased smirk, "Seemed concerned about your safety."
"Leave him alone." Yugi almost pleaded but held herself in check, or at least tried. It was what he wanted after all and she didn't want to give him the pleasure.
"He challenged me." Kaiba shrugged, moving towards the glass box, "And I never turn down a challenge." With that he took a microphone from his chief mook and the crowd quieted down to listen. "Here we have Mutou Sugoroku, a Games Master who's never lost a challenge. He challenged me, the World Champion at Duel Monsters."
"Duel Monsters?" Jou asked.
"The real name for Wizards and Monsters." Yugi replied, watching what was going on with real concern as Kaiba entered the booth and the game began. If Yugi hadn't been so worried about her Grandfather she would have appreciated the game more, it was a close game right up until the end. Sugoroku thought he had it won when he summoned his Blue Eyes White Dragon, only for Kaiba to turn around and summon three of them.
After that it was just a moment of time before Yugi's grandfather was defeated and Yugi watched in horror as Kaiba claimed her grandfather's card as his prize and held it both hands.
Somehow she could tell what he was going to do before he did it and her heart ached. "No. No!" She darted forward, Shadows swirling around her briefly before shifting to the card in Kaiba's hand. With a flash that was thankfully mostly hidden by the stage lights shining on the box, Sugoroku's Blue Eyes was in Yugi's hand.
"How did I?" Yugi asked, staring at the card for a moment, before her attention was drawn away by Kaiba's voice booming from the 'Battle Box.'
"Penalty Game!"
As Kaiba stepped back out of the box it sprang to life with holographic monsters which launched themselves at her Grandfather. Where it had been difficult to hear what was going on before, Ojiisan's sudden screams of terror were easily audible over the sounds of the crowds' application of the new technology.
"Ojiisan!" Yugi pressed one hand on the glass of the Battle Box and clutched the Blue Eyes to her chest carefully with the other, feeling concern radiating from the card, its light pulsing.
"Losers suffer a Penalty, Yugi-chan, you know that." Kaiba's voice drew her away from her grandfather, his eyes focused on the hand holding the card he wanted to tear up. "We've done human trials. People can go insane in about five minutes."
"Let him out." Yugi demanded, refusing to let him damage the card of her Grandfather's heart but not wanting her Grandfather to go crazy either.
"Only if you agree to face my greatest creation." Kaiba retorted, "Swear to take on Death-T and your grandfather goes free." He glanced at the Battle Box, "I'm not sure his heart will last five minutes, so you should probably make your deci..."
"I'll do it." Yugi spoke before he could finish his sentence, "I'll take on Death-T. Now turn it off!" At a gesture from Kaiba the holograms cut out and Kaiba stepped aside as Yugi dashed past him, entering the Battle Box and rushing to her Grandfather's side. "Ojiisan!"
"Yugi..." Sugoroku's skin was pale grey and his lips were tinged with blue, his arm trembled with the effort as he raised it to brush her cheek, brushing away the tears that were beginning to fall, "I'm so glad...you're okay..."
"Ojiisan. Please! Hold on!" Yugi begged, forcing the card into her Grandfather's hand, hoping it would give him some comfort to know it was safe. Instead he gazed at it for a moment, before handing her it and his deck.
"Be careful..." Sugoroku gasped as Jou managed to steal someone's phone to call for an ambulance, "He's horrible... twisted... take my deck... and teach him a lesson..."
"Ojiisan..." Yugi hesitated.
"You can... beat him." He reassured his Granddaughter, "Just...be careful... he cheats..."
"I know." Yugi reassured him, "Oneesan and I, we'll bring your deck back. I promise."
"Come home safe..." Sugoroku shook his head, "That's all that matters..." With that he passed out.
"Yuge!" Jou stuck his head in the door, "The ambulance is on its way."
"Oh thank god." Yugi breathed, relief coursing through her. "Jou, please..."
"I've already called in a favour," Jou replied, "Hanasaki's heading to the hospital to keep us updated while we clear Kaiba's Death-T."
"You're..." Yugi stared at him.
"Still coming with, Yuge." Jou swore, helping her get her grandfather out of the Battle Box and headed for the lifts only to get surrounded by goons.
"They'll take you grandfather to the ground level." Kaiba told the pair, "You two should get started."
"Three." The sound of Honda's voice made both Yugi and Jou jump, surprised he was here. They watched him leap over the railing and stroll over to the group, "The three of us should get started."
"Honda!" Jou grinned, patting the other teen on the shoulder. "Good to see you."
"When I heard there was a special guest taking on Kaiba's Greatest Challenge, I knew it would probably involve you two somehow." Honda replied, nodding to Yugi, who was clutching her grandfather's deck like a life preserver as she watched Kaiba's thugs carry her only living relative into the lift. "And like hell I was going to let the pair of you go it alone."
"Thank you." Yugi smiled up at him, nerves showing but anger clear on her features for the first time since Honda had met her.
"Well then, Yugi-chan." Kaiba gestured to a pair of huge double doors which had 'D-T 1' on them and were opening slowly, "Feel free to enter the first stage."
"You two don't have to..." Yugi tried but a look from the pair of them shut her up.
"We're coming with you and that's final." Jou told her in a no nonsense tone of voice, "Now, shall we?" He gestured to the doors, which had finished opening and led on to a dark tunnel.
"Sure." Yugi nodded, the energy of the deck in her hands pulsing like a heartbeat as she did so, "For Ojiisan."
With a nod from the others, Yugi took a step into the darkness.