Chapter Text
Seto Kaiba had a migraine.
When you're the CEO of a hugely successful company and have a hectic lifestyle and ridiculous amounts of work to do everyday, you're no stranger to headaches and a lack of sleep. But this was no ordinary headache that Seto had. This was a no-holds-barred hell, the kind that feels like there is a huge wooden mallet slamming into the brain and millions of tiny needles being stabbed into the back of the eyes. When the alarm to wake him up had gone off ten minutes previously, Kaiba had done something he'd never done before - he'd hit the Sleep button and turned over in bed. But it was a Friday, a school day, and Seto eventually trudged downstairs to the Breakfast Room in the hope that a coffee might magic away his headache.
Mokuba Kaiba was already sitting at the kitchen island and greeted Kaiba with a cheery 'Good morning Seto!', as Kaiba sat down and was brought a coffee by one of the maids. He stared into the coffee mug and massaged his temples, trying to ignore the insistent banging in his head.
'….Seto?'
'Sorry Mokuba. I feel awful and I don't think I'll be going into school today.'
'Why? Can I- '
'No, you are not staying at home with me.'
'But- ' 'Have the Butler drive you to school today.'
Seto glanced at the clock on the wall. 'You're going to be late if you don't leave now.'
Mokuba looked at the clock with an expression of shock and sped away with a 'Bye Seto!' echoing off the corridor walls. Kaiba gave it a few more minutes of trying not to pass out, then went back to his room, where he collapsed onto his bed and promptly fell asleep.
***
Seto woke up to the sound of gunshot.
He sat up, startled. He held his breath for a few seconds, listening, then realisation broke. He left his bedroom, then walked three paces to the left and opened the door that was now in front of him. Sticking his head into the room, he rolled his eyes. He walked inside, picked a remote up off the carpet and pressed a button. The sound of gunshot ceased.
'Oh, hey Seto.'
Kaiba folded his arms. 'What did I tell you about playing video games before doing your homework?'
And Mokuba Kaiba, who after living with Seto for all of his life was well trained in the art of concealing emotions and being a smart-ass, replied; 'And what did I tell you about sleeping all day and not doing anything?'
Seto frowned and said, 'I have never slept all...'
Turning his gaze to the rainy evening dusk that could be viewed from the room's windows, he narrowed his eyes and walked back through the door, stalking down the corridor to his office, where he would no doubt stay all night working, scowling at his computer screen and getting another headache, but definitely not coming to check if a certain someone's homework had been completed.
Mokuba smirked and un-muted the TV.
***
Approximately half an hour later, a knocking sound emanated from the direction of the front doors of the Kaiba mansion, closely followed by the 'Din-dong!' of the doorbell. The elderly Butler walked briskly to the front of the house, closely followed by Mokuba, who had been chattering to him about how great Call of Duty was. The fact that Frank the Butler thought that an X-Box was some kind of new storage unit was quite irrelevant to Mokuba.
Frank opened the doors of the mansion to find a teenage boy standing on the porch with some papers in a plastic wallet clutched in his hand. He stared, as he was expecting business men, or the Postman at least. Ah well. Maybe they were just employing them younger or something.
'Jou! Come in, come in!'
So much for that theory. Mokuba knows better than to invite in the Postman.
'Hey, kiddo! How's it goin'?'
'Who are you, and what is your business here?' said Frank, holding his hand up in a 'stop' gesture. Mokuba knew the stranger, obviously, but he had to go by the book. Mister Kaiba tended to go on firing sprees when he was overtired, and the Butler would like to keep his job, thank you very much.
Jou looked up at the Butler. He was around 50, with an air of authority that could rival Seto Kaiba's. He had an upper class manner about him, which his voice reflected perfectly, but he seemed kind and wiling to help.
'Uh...I'm Katsuya Jounouchi. I'm Kaiba's...classmate. I've got his homework from school.' said Jou, holding up the papers in his hand as evidence.
Frank took the proffered papers and flicked through them, before looking over Jou. The boy didn't seem to be a threat. He gave him back his paperwork and extended an arm behind him into the foyer of the mansion, inviting Jou in. 'I trust you don't want to stay out in the rain?'
Jou stepped over the threshold, greeting Mokuba with a high five and a grin before lifting his head up to stare at the high, decorated ceiling and the spacey room with a white marble staircase leading to the second floor. He rolled his eyes at the thought of how much money Kaiba had obviously wasted, but never-the-less wiped his feet carefully on the doormat and tried to de-crease his school shirt.
'….I'll go inform Mister Kaiba of your presence then?
'The Butler's crisp voice cut through to Jou's brain. 'Yes. Please. Uh...I don't wanna intrude.'
'It's no problem at all Sir. I'll be right back.' said Frank, before turning and walking up the polished staircase, his dress shoes making tapping sounds against the marble.
Jou turned his attention back to Mokuba, who was looking like a mini version of Seto with his arms folded, staring up at him expectantly. Jou leaned against the front door, glad to be out of the rain. Mokuba was just happy to talk to someone other than Seto who knew what a virtual reality video game was. It was a quiet, peaceful environment, and Jou found himself wondering why he had been so intimidated by the big house as he had been walking up the gravel driveway. That is, until a loud bellow resonated around the mansion, making the staff quickly disappear and Mokuba to sigh.
'WHO IS IN MY HOUSE?'
Jou swallowed.