Symposium: Chapter One

As defined by Wikipedia, The Symposium (Ancient Greek: Συμπόσιον) is a philosophical text by Plato dated c. 385–380 BCE. It concerns itself at one level with the genesis, purpose and nature of love.

Genesis is defined as the coming into being of something; the origin. Purpose is defined as the object toward which one strives or for which something exists; an aim or a goal. Love is defined as a deep, tender, ineffable feeling of affection and solicitude toward a person, such as that arising from kinship, recognition of attractive qualities, or a sense of underlying oneness.

All three are subject to change.

Ryou Bakura sat outside a modern coffee shop a block away from where his interview was to take place, sipping a fancy latte (that would've gotten him made fun of at his high school) and reading the paper. Jittery enough without the caffeine, the white-haired boy attempted to calm himself down by distracting himself, therefore, the paper was obviously the prime choice.

"Egyptian Four Take the World by Storm!" screams the headlines, only succeeding to remind him of his tension.

Yes, these "Egyptian Four", or, as everyone but the papers called them, the Millennium Brothers, owned huge corporations that, when put together, could buy out any other business in the world. Anyone who worked for these mysterious people said they were great minds, but seemed rather…off their rockers, so to speak. It didn't help that their pasts were a complete mystery –even the best paparazzi couldn't dig up information-, but their very selves set people on edge. None of them really had much to do with anyone that wasn't one of their fellow Brothers, so it shook the world to the core when all four announced (at the end of Ryou's junior year) that they each needed an intern.

People flooded in from parts all over the world, all for different reasons, but with the same goal –to be chosen by one of the four. Oddly though, all four had their main company (I.E. head) in Domino City, and only had one day, the same day, for interviewing possible interns. If Ryou actually knew any of them, he might have assumed they all chose the same day on purpose just to fuck up traffic in the city for a day, but, instead, all he knew came from the rumors.

Seto Kaiba, the one Ryou really wanted to intern for, wore rather silly, cape-like jackets, black combat boots, and a long-sleeved black turtleneck with black pants. Kaiba had short brown hair and extremely cold blue eyes. The rumors stated that Kaiba loved money and games (that's why he owned the world's largest game technology company), but hated people, and was known for being stuck-up and cruel. Kaiba also remained the only one of the four that had been seen by the public –no one had ever seen, much less found out the names, of the other three brothers. Being an intern meant surpassing everyone else and finally getting to meet these hidden geniuses.

Ryou didn't have much hope that he would meet the business man's qualifications, but it didn't hurt to try, and god knows he could use the money…. Interrupted by beeping from his green wristwatch, he shot up, nearly knocking over his half-full cup, and banged his knee off the iron table as he raced out of the courtyard.

"No," he murmured unhappily to himself as he ran the block to the large building, "I'm going to be late…."

He pushed through early-morning joggers and interns on coffee runs, both types of people giving him dirty looks. Soon, Ryou could only hope he'd be one of those people.

Tardiness could be a huge issue if Kaiba liked punctuality, but, when he saw the line of people flooding in even now, he sighed in relief, knowing that he could still make it. Line moving quickly, the large mass of people somehow fit into the lobby, even though there were probably four times as many people inside.

The lobby, though extremely crowded with people, looked enormous. White, white everywhere –except for the large fountain in the center of the building that had a large blue dragon breathing water.

An extremely harried looking boy ran the secretary's desk –even though there was no way he could be older than ten. The boy pulled out a bull horn, and yelled into it, "Hey! I assume you're all here for the internship? If you are, please put your resume on this desk then fall back into the banquet hall!"

As to be expected, all hell broke loose, everyone wanting to be first into the hall. Push came to shove, and shove came to trample –some people even cut through the expensive-looking fountain –not caring about being wet, just wanting to avoid the crowd. Unluckily, Ryou was one of the trampled –knocked over and having his hands and portfolio stepped on repeatedly. Grimacing, and standing up, the chocolate-eyed boy saw the now-trashed lobby; random papers and forgotten pieces of clothes aimlessly lying everywhere. He sighed; even the trampled were now in the hall –he was the last person.

Great. Wonderful impression he'd give.

"Hey!" called the boy, worried, "Are you okay?"

Ryou turned his head to look at the boy with black hair and dark blue eyes, "Yes, nothing's broken." He affirmed, strolling up to the desk, eyeing the dirty footprints on his poor portfolio.

The boy blinked in confusion, "Bakura? What are you doing here?"

Now it was Ryou's turn to be confused. How did this boy know his name?

"Um," Ryou asked politely, "do I know you from somewhere?"

He put his hands on his hips, now looking irritated, "Yes, you do! You know, Kaiba's little brother?" He waited for a response that never came, and then added, in exasperation, "My name is Mokuba?"

"Oh," Ryou continued, wondering what he did to irritate him, "it's nice to meet you –I'm Ryou Bakura." He emphasized Ryou, just in case Mokuba knew another Bakura, somehow.

The brunette's expression changed completely –it went from anger and irritation to sheepish.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I had you confused with someone else," he laughed, personally taking the file off the white-haired boy, "go on in." The next part he whispered, "Seto isn't coming down for another twenty minutes, so you have some time."

Ryou smiled at the kind boy, delighted. He had already made a friend here, and it was Kaiba's little brother! He just had to get a job here! Now, with that little confidence boost, he walked through the monstrous lobby, opening the doors to the ball room with some backbone.

The ball room was quite grand –when it wasn't cluttered up with long tables full of gadgets. It had two crystal chandeliers hanging at either side of the room, both incredibly bright. Murky light from the overcast day trickled in from the large skyscraper windows at the north end, giving the whole room a long-shadowed effect, and hiding most of the people's faces from view.

The tables were all filled, but Ryou figured he'd find some place to wedge himself in. That wasn't the case –he ended up behind a pillar, right by the window. If he felt like it, he could reach out and touch the spotless panes.

Instead, he reached the opposite way, running his pale fingers over the tools and equipment gently, almost reverently. His father being an archaeologist, Ryou had heard many stories on how good tools, when treated right, could save your life. A feeling of comfort stealing over him, the front doors to the hall banged open, a tall figure standing in front of a bright light source –or, the lobby's lights.

"Welcome," came a voice, obviously amplified by an ear-piece microphone, "if you expected a warm welcome and individual interviews, I'm sorry to disappoint. But, if you want a slight chance to get on my good side, I don't want to hear any whining. Now, to begin, you will construct something out of the parts in front of you –anything that I may find interesting or useful. You are also to come up with a pitch for it, decide what age groups it will be for, total cost productions, cost deductions, and plot lines, if necessary. If you cannot do any of these tasks, save us both some hassle and get out now –if you don't know what any of these words mean, you're an idiot and had also better leave. I don't tolerate idiots."

Many of the people began murmuring amoust themselves, and about a fourth of the people left –even though some that stayed didn't appear to be skilled at all in this field. Ryou, luckily, wasn't just here for the money; making/designing/playing games truly was his passion. And, even though it isolated him at school, in this environment, he clearly had the advantage.

Brainstorming for a few minutes, he had the perfect idea. Laughingly enough, though, about half of the people there were trying to create the actual game first –without sketching it and it's dimensions first. Even after that they should only make a model –never the real deal until everything else was figured out.

Ryou drew his game board and its features on charting paper, giving it removable parts that could be interchanged, and listing the main parts that every basic board of the game had to have.

Next, he drew follow up schematics of a character set (that could be purchased separately to personalize the piece beyond the basic four heroes, four townspeople, and dark master). Finally, on college-sheet paper, he began doing approximate math calculations for the material costs for one basic game set (then doing the characters sets and interchangeable parts). He was pleased to discover that, with the buying and shipping costs, if they sold one game board for thirty-five dollars each, they'd make a decent product. The add-ons and character sets also coming out according to plan, the white-haired boy started on a to-scale model, even after working for three hours straight.

He didn't dare stop –not that he wanted to, but, anyone caught taking a break was immediately escorted from the room by large, suited men –a man of business like Kaiba had no room for slackers, apparently.

Ryou worked hard at making his model, and, when he finished, checked his watch. Five hours had passed total, and many people were gone –some unable to do any of the requirements, and others needing a break.

Kaiba reappeared soon after, similar to the way he did before, and called out, "Time is up. Drop your tools and let me see –you make take a bathroom break, and complementary food will be distributed."

The same suited men that escorted people out now pushed carts around that were stocked full of everything from rice bowls to ice cream, using expensive and rather delicate looking plates and bowls.

Ryou took a full meal; some rice, fish, tea, and ice cream for dessert while he waited for Kaiba to reach his table. He ate carefully, leaning away from the table to keep his precious work safe from the food. After about fifteen minutes –the brown-eyed boy had moved on to his ice cream-, a loud crash resounded. Ryou peeked from behind the Ionic pillar, just as curious as everyone else.

Kaiba had swept a project off the table, much to the creator's horror.

His cold, angry blue eyes swept through the room, men and women alike cringing from the gaze. "Does anyone," he began calmly, "have anything here that isn't wasting my time?"

Not sure what came over him, Ryou stepped forward, raising a hand. Then, blushing immediately when realizing he indirectly said his idea was better than all the others.

Eyes widening slightly, Kaiba stared Ryou down, making the poor boy feel about two inches tall. Kaiba then nodded and walked over, handling the blueprints and models just as gently as their creator. His eyes scanned them quickly, then he moved on to the stats and building materials.

"…Come with me," he spoke, conveying no emotions in his voice.

Trying not to get his hopes up, he followed, staying close, as they walked out into the lobby and called an elevator, Mokuba watching them with interest, sending Ryou a thumbs-up when their eyes met. A soft ping announcing the machine's arrival, Ryou snapped his attention back to his possible-future-boss, and they stepped inside.

As soon as the doors slid shut, Kaiba pressed the top floor button, and turned to glare at Ryou.

"What the hell is your problem, Bakura?" he snapped, "Why are you here?"

Ryou's face slid down in horror –this reaction was so much worse than he thought, and started babbling.

"Well, Kaiba-sama, I really love games, and need the money, so I-"

"Wait," Kaiba cut him off, "what did you just call me?"

As unbecoming as it was to be scared of someone that couldn't be more than a couple years older than him, Ryou was terrified, and barely able to whisper, "K-Kaiba-s-sama…."

To this, Kaiba asked, still looking suspicious, "What's your full name?"

The question was asked like the boy wouldn't answer it, but Ryou replied, "Ryou. Ryou Bakura."

Kaiba just nodded, and quit questioning him –the duo spending the rest of the elevator ride in silence.

The white-haired boy just wondered why people kept mistaking him for someone else: it's not like white hair was common or anything.

The elevator coming to a gentle stop, Kaiba stepped ahead and out, the wannabe intern waiting his turn. The office they emerged into resembled a living room/study: Half of it was carpeted and had couches in front of a TV, while the other had tiles and a large desk. Ryou would have been shocked if they had stayed in the living room area, and, following Kaiba over to the desk, wasn't disappointed.

Kaiba took a seat in the leather revolving chair, clasping his hands in front of him, evaluating the possible intern in front of him.

After a staring contest that lasted way too long for Ryou's comfort, Kaiba finally spoke, "You could be useful with a little fine tuning… I expect you see you here at eight every morning –except Friday, Saturday, and Sunday; I'll page you if I need you on those days."

Ryou, unable to speak, took the small gray pager off his new boss, stunned. "Y-Yes sir!" he stammered, incapable of accepting that he, a worthless, anti-social albino had won out over so many others.

"You're dismissed for today –but wear comfortable shoes to walk in tomorrow; you're going to help me and my brothers out," Kaiba informed, spinning his chair so that he now faced the large windows.

"Hai Kaiba-sama," Ryou murmured, bowing, and then heading for the elevator.

The ride down he stayed calm, stared dazedly at the chrome walls that warped his reflection. Entering the lobby, he heard the pissed voices for about forty seconds as the guards informed them of their boss's decision, before he was back outside, sun already sunk behind Domino City's skyscrapers. It was then that he realized just exactly whom he'd be meeting tomorrow –the famous Sennin brothers.

*looks nervous as hell* I'm very much a Narutard, but, I love Yugioh as well and thought I'd give my own story a try...I know the Yugioh community isn't as big as the Naruto one, but I still hope people enjoy (or at least don't hate) this! It's truly my pride right now, and, I'm working on updating Stress of Marriage, if you found this through my other stories.

Please review!

~Lyssa-chan