Please read the following author's note before continuing with the rest of the story!!
Hey everyone, I had been debating for awhile about whether or not I should post this up here at This was originally a drabble that I had written for my wonderful Beta, Skippyscatt on my LJ. The prompt asked for an angsty Mokuba-centric drabble that took place during the Tempest's Timeline, and I delivered. I was pleased how it came out and was intending to place it some where in the actual story, but I wasn't sure where it should go. So I decided that any extra scenes I write for this story will be labeled as "side stories". These chapters will have taken place in the actual time line, but can be read as stand alone stories. Depending on the chapter's content, the other characters may refer back to these stories in passing, but they will not go too in depth. So yeah they're meant to be stand-alones, so if you skip over them you won't be lost from the actual story.
Hope you enjoy. Hopefully the next one will be more puppyshipping centric…but don't get your hopes up for a lemon…Seto and Joey haven't done anything…yet.
Flip onto side. Not comfortable.
Roll back onto his back. Still not comfortable.
Fluff the unfamiliar pillow. Nope.
Lay on back and try to trick himself into thinking that the bed he was currently laying on was really his comfy air mattress in disguise?...that worked for about five minutes, until the memories that he wasn't really at home returned.
He wasn't at home.
Nor did it seem likely that he would return to that place.
He had found himself in this position years ago, but he was younger then, and he also had his brother to protect him. Had he felt this way on his first night in the orphanage?
Couldn't really remember. All he could remember was that at sometime during the night, Seto had tiptoed into the room where the younger children slept and had slipped into his bed. The older boy had pulled him close, and although Seto would never admit it, Mokuba had heard the distinct sad hitch in his brother's voice, despite the fact that Seto was reassuring him that they'd be okay. They'd always be together, he had said, and that they didn't need family. Family didn't throw each other out. They stayed together. It was okay that they were on their own. The two of them were all that they needed.
From this moment onward, Mokuba Kaiba is officially disinherited. He will no longer be recognized as a member of the Kaiba family name.
That chilling voice. Mokuba squeezed his eyes shut in remembrance. It sounded like Seto. It really had. Seto wouldn't do this to him.
"That's not my brother." He had said trying to hold back his tears as he turned to face the others that were watching the television in stunned silence.
"My brother would never do this to me."
Yugi had looked at him with sympathy. Joey face had paled at the broadcast. Honda, Anzu and Duke…they had told him that of course Seto would never do anything like this…but he knew how theyreally felt deep down about his brother.
"Are you surprised?" He had heard Duke hiss quietly to Honda, when they thought Mokuba wasn't paying attention to them.
He had denied it. Locked himself in the small guest room that was supposed to have been a temporary residence while his brother was away on business. He sat on the bed looking at the sky waiting for his brother's Blue Eyes jet to appear on the horizon and take him away with him…like Seto had done years before in Mokuba's dream.
Seto didn't come.
Days passed. The media had crowded the Mutoh residence asked to hear what Mokuba had to say.
He didn't come out of his room. Once or twice Yugi had come by to ask what Mokuba wanted to do. He didn't want to do anything. He couldn't leave, after all Seto would appear at any moment and he didn't want his brother to be kept waiting. Seto was impatient, after all.
Seto didn't come. In fact he was now missing. His brother was lost, and now he was alone.
"Mokuba? Mokuba please come out." Yugi's plea.
"Kiddo?" Joey this time, "Hey come on Mokuba, please come out. We brought some of your stuff over…Yugi wants to know what color you want your room to be?"
Mokuba sneezed. He never thought the smell of fresh paint would bother him so. He looked at the now-painted blue walls of Yugi's old room.
"Grandpa's going out of town for awhile for research and stuff… and so I am the man of the house. So I am moving into his room…I want you to take mine, I mean you're a growing boy you need more space than that guest room"
He didn't have the words in him then to thank Yugi, but he knew the boy understood him. Afterall, Yugi seemed to have a knack at understanding people…the fact that he had always believed in Seto was a testament to this.
"Where are you Seto?" He whispered, "Please…"
He never got the words out…his voice trembled and hitched.
The hallway light clicked on and he threw the blankets over his head and curled up in a ball.
The door opened, and he could feel someone watching him. He had tried to stay still. He really did. But his shoulders were shaking, and his throat wouldn't stop making that damn sobbing noise.
Footsteps.
He stilled as he felt a body climb into the bed with him. Could it be? He thought even though he knew it wasn't Seto.
Arms wrapped around him and pulled him close to the warm body behind him.
"It's okay." Joey whispered, "He'll come back."
Hands pried the covers from his head, and began to pat his raven hair, "He's gonna come back….but in the mean time we'll take care of you."
He didn't know when he had started crying, but through out it all Joey kept up his soothing mantra, "He'll come back."
His eyes began to grow heavy; body finally exhausted.
As Joey laid there whispering to him, Mokuba felt a familiar wave of comfort wash over him. The same feeling he had whenever Seto hugged him.
He began to drift away, and before his mind shut down into a dreamless sleep he could hear Joey's distant call,
"He'll come back…don't worry…he'll come back to us."
Thanks again for reading, and if you haven't read the above author's note, please do so if you are confused as to why and when this chapter is occurring! Hope you liked it! Also please let me know if I should continue posting these little side stories