Originally posted: 3/24/04
Reposted: 6/11/05

Note:
This story was originally titled turmoil, by Seaoknarnar (my old penname). However, I felt that that particular title was not an accurate indicator of the story, and what I intended the story to be. After revising the story, I felt it needed a new, unique title. The text of the story is still the same, with one or two small changes, rewording, etc.

For now, I only have the first few chapters edited, so please bear with me. Hopefully, before long, I will have completely converted the utter "turmoil" (haha, lame joke…) of the old chapters into new, happier (well, not HAPPY) ones.

Disclaimer (for the entire story):
Sir Mocha does not own Yu-Gi-Oh, the canon characters, events, or places detailed in the show or manga. However, any original characters, places, and the plot are property of Sir Mocha and may not be used without permission.

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island of red flowers

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by sir mocha

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PART 1: TO CRY THESE TEARS

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chapter 01: p a i n

"Seto! Seto! Watch me climb this tree!" yelled Mokuba exuberantly to his older brother. The young boy's long black hair streamed behind him as he ran to a nearby old oak tree. It was a beautiful sunny Saturday, and a rare day off for Seto Kaiba, president and CEO of Kaiba Corporations, who was usually too absorbed in work to take a personal day. But Mokuba had insisted, and Seto had a soft spot that caused him to make certain (occasional) allowances for his younger brother. Today, over breakfast, Mokuba had expressed his wish to play in the park. Seto had fallen victim to Mokuba's devious use of puppy-eyes, and before long found himself being dragged by his brother to the nearby Domino City Park.

Seto now turned towards Mokuba, arms crossed, white trench coat flaring out behind him. To the casual observer, he appeared to be a surly young man, staring moodily, but in reality his eyes held a glimmer of joy too often absent in his stern demeanor. He even allowed a small smile to grace his face; a real smile, not an arrogant smirk. The kind of smile he reserved only for Mokuba.

His prudent side took over shortly. "Mokuba!" he ordered. "Get down from there right now." Mokuba was at the top of the tree, perched precariously on the uppermost branch. He suddenly pitched forward with a little squeak, and Seto sprinted, ready to catch his younger brother. But Mokuba caught himself adeptly, and laughed. "I tricked you!" he said gleefully. "You know I have better balance than that!" He then proceeded to scramble down the tree trunk, and was safely on the ground before Seto's panicked brain could register it.

Once his brain caught up with Mokuba's antics, he stalked over and said very quietly, yet angrily, "Do NOT do that! What if you really fell, and I thought you were just playing? You would be DEAD before I could do anything about it! You can not act irresponsibly like this anymore, Mokuba. You're getting too old."

Mokuba's lower lip jutted forward. "I'm sorry Seto. I was just playing a joke… you used to laugh all the time when I did stupid stuff. You used to be so happy… but now you're just worried about me all the time." He sighed. "I won't do it again, I promise." He hung his head in shame.

Seto felt like a jerk for making his brother look so forlorn. He knelt down, and put a finger under Mokuba's chin, and raised Mokuba's face enough to be able to look him in the eyes. Such a gesture of compassion was foreign to most who knew the callous nature of the CEO, but actions like these were common between the brothers. Seto's sapphire eyes locked on Mokuba's large dark grey ones, and he said in a caring tone, "I'm just worried about you; you're all I have left in this world, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

Seto stood, but kept his eyes locked with Mokuba's. Mokuba looked up at his tall brother, and spoke with honesty. "I wish you would spend more time with me. You're always so busy, locked away in your office, typing at your computer. I know you have Kaiba Corp to run and all, but aren't there other people who could run it for you for a while?"

Seto sighed. "I wish there were other people, Mokuba, but I'm the only one I trust to run the company. And after all the trouble I had with Industrial Illusions, and the Big Five, I'm not about to tell someone else how to do my job. I can't trust anyone else."

"Except me!" chirped Mokuba, impervious to his brother's pessimism. "You'll tell me, right Seto?"

"When you're older. But you're already running some of the aspects of the company. Isn't that enough?" He smiled at Mokuba's indignant shake of his head. "We can stand here all day, discussing this, but wouldn't you rather get some ice cream instead?"

"Yeah!" said Mokuba excitedly, running ahead towards the nearby ice cream stand. Seto smiled at the eagerness Mokuba employed in every facet of his life. But of course, that's why I work so hard. I want Mokuba to enjoy a childhood I never had. Seto sighed, remembering the cruel and inhumane way his fanatical stepfather Gozaburo had treated him, chaining him to his desk and forcing him to study until he collapsed from exhaustion. And even then, Mokuba had been there for him, with a smile and a laugh, making his otherwise-harsh existence something he could occasionally enjoy, and giving him something to live for. Where would I be without him? Seto thought, watching his brother fondly.

His reminiscing was cut short, however, as a shot rang out, pervading the tranquillity of the afternoon. Seto yelled in pain and grabbed his upper right arm as the bullet from the shot penetrated to what felt like the bone. He fell to his knees, too pained to stay on his feet. An excruciating pain followed as he pulled his hand away, and, dazed, observed that it was dripping blood. A puddle was forming on the ground beneath his arm.

Mokuba turned as soon as he heard the shot. He watched, horrified, as Seto fell to his knees, his hand on his arm, blood cascading down his side, stark in contrast to the white trench coat.

An agonized yell tore from the younger's throat. "SETO!" He ran quickly to his brother's side, his eyes flooding with tears. "Seto! Please don't die! Please! I need you!" he sobbed.

Seto, in much pain, managed to gasp out, "It's- just- my arm. The bullet- splintered- the bone." He winced, clenching his jaw to prevent from yelling.

The second shot rang out unexpectedly, catching the two brothers by surprise. It seemed to Seto that everything happened in slow motion; he looked up to see Mokuba falling to the ground with a shocked look on his young tearstained face. He hit the ground and lay there, unmoving, as blood pooled under him.

Seto just stared for a minute, and then he said, "Mokuba?" in a terrified whisper. "MOKUBA!" he yelled, bending over his brother, searching frantically for any sign of life. He was relieved at first to see Mokuba's chest moving slowly up and down, but then he started to panic at the sight of the bullet hole that gushed blood. "Oh god…," he yelled, "Oh GOD Mokuba, don't die. GOD DAMMIT, YOU CAN'T DIE ON ME!"

"SOMEONE CALL AN AMBULANCE!" he yelled out frantically to anyone who might be listening. "My brother might be…" he couldn't finish the sentence; his brain would not allow him to think along those lines.

A third, different-sounding shot rang out, but Seto was oblivious to it; his entire world was crashing down on him at this moment, and no little gunshot would make a difference now. A muffled yell sounded, followed by what was evidently a body hitting the concrete path.

The ice cream vendor, a kind-hearted elderly man, hurried over, carrying with him a smoking pistol. "Now you just calm down," he told a hysterical Seto. "I've already called for an ambulance, and it's on its way. And I got him who was shooting at you. He won't be shooting no more," he said, indicating the body lying not far from where Seto knelt. "Just be calm, and the ambulance will be here soon." He got from his cart a roll of paper towels, and proceeded to try to give Seto a clumsy bandage; there was nothing he could do for Mokuba, and he did not want to risk moving the boy for fear of injuring him further. So Mokuba lay, sprawled on the ground, while the ice cream man watched for the ambulance.

Seto had been shot in the arm, but he could have sworn it was his heart that had been pierced by the bullet. The thing that meant most to him in the world, his little brother, lay bleeding to death on the dirt path, and there was not a damn thing that he could do about it. The pain of this helplessness was agonizing to the CEO.

He would not allow the tears to fall from his eyes; a lifetime of developing emotional calluses now meant that he could not shed tears even though he so desperately wanted to; to cry would be to release all the pent-up misery building inside him. Gozaburo had told him long ago that tears were a sign of emotion, and emotion was a sign of weakness that could be too easily exploited. Seto had lived by this code, and had never let anyone see him cry. Now, no tears were present to betray how emotionally vulnerable he felt, and that, to him, felt like his biggest weakness of all.

Several minutes later, the flashing red and white lights and the mournful wail of the ambulance's siren announced its arrival. Accompanying it were several Domino police cars, called out to investigate the crime scene, as the yellow tape being put up so harshly described it. Seto and Mokuba were quickly taken into the ambulance, while the ice cream man explained to the police what had occured. Then the ambulance careened away, making haste to the closest hospital.

It was a short distance to that hospital, but to Seto it felt like miles and miles. Upon arriving at the large white building, Seto, though very dizzy from blood loss, was able to dredge up a vestige of his Kaiba arrogance as he said, "I demand to be kept with my brother. It is my responsibility to take care of him."

One of the medical technicians replied in a reassuring tone, "We'll see what we can do," and injected Seto with a tranquilizer, rendering him unconscious.

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