12Yay, chapter five! Thanks to everyone who reviewed and stuff, I suppose. Sorry I took so long. Holiday shopping and enlistment stuff almost drove me up the wall I'm glad that DaAmazingMeepers thinks my story is cute. :3 Anyway, onward and upward…or something to that effect.
Moki, Moki, Moki…
So begins another school year for me. Ugh, fifth grade is going to be majorly suckish. All the bigger kids in my neighbourhood tell me that Mrs. Meyers is mean, and I also have that boy who's always picking on me in my class next year! Ugh. But enough of my problems. How's school life in Japan? I'm glad you finally got Seto to let you ditch that tutor, he always sounded like a total drag. Oh, my dad came back from Italy the other day! He visited the Vatican City and got me a really nice rosary and stuff. Sure, we're not Catholic, but it's pretty all the same. Oh, and he got you and your brother gifts but I can't tell you what they are. You have to be surprised! Write soon!
You say 'goodbye', and I say 'hello'!
Maggie and Milly and MOLLY! And May
Molly pulled on her roller blades, getting ready to skate to one of the game shops see had seen advertised in the phone book. Her parents were off to look at the house she had see last week with Mokuba when they were going to his house from the park. Mokuba was spending some quality time with his brother, so Molly decided that she would find a new, interesting game for both of them to play. She picked up her bag, which held a pair of sneakers for her to change into when she reached her destination, and skated down the street. She referenced the map she had printed off the internet. "Down the street and take a left…" She stopped skating as she found her turn. A steep hill waited for her. "Boy oh boy, I hope this Kame Game Shop is worth the effort of getting there…" She sighed before starting down the hill.
Yugi Motou cleaned the counter of his grandfather's game shop. Jounouchi, Anzu, and Honda were all very busy today, which left Yuugi with nothing to do but watch after the shop. He sighed.
'Is something the matter, aibou (1)?' Yami, his darker half, asked the boy.
'No, no,' Yugi said mentally, 'I'm just bored. No one's come in all morning, you know.'
'Ah, I understand. I'm sure business will pick up in the afternoon,' Yami responded as the door bell jingled, announced a customer. 'See? Here's someone right now!'
'Yeah, I guess you're right,' Yugi thought before smiling at the newcomer. It was a girl, with fair, reddish-blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. She looked about ten or eleven, and had a pair of roller blades slung over her shoulder. "Irashaimasen (2)!" Yugi greeted cheerfully her in Japanese. She stared at him blankly a moment before murmuring a shy and stumbled over 'Good morning'. He blinked. She didn't have trouble with Japanese, did he? Luckily, his title as 'Game King' had earned him many challengers from around the world, and he had been forced to at least learn the most common business language in the world, English. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "Would you prefer that I speak in English?"
The girl grinned at him, looking relieved. "Yes, please!" She added as an afterthought, "It's not your fault I don't understand Japanese all that great, so you shouldn't apologize."
"No, no," Yugi said kindly, "I should have realized that you may not understand Japanese. Not to be rude, but it is clear that you are a foreigner."
"Eh," the girl said with a shrug. She glanced around the shop. "So…um…can you suggest a good game for like, two or three players? Mr…um…"
"Motou," Yugi supplied. "Please, call me Yugi."
"Okay Yugi! Er…Yugi-san…" She seemed rather unsure of herself. "Um…you can call me Molly, I guess."
"Alright then, Molly-san," Yugi said, keeping a cheerful air up. Is there any specific type of game? Like role plays? Board games? Card games? There's always Duel Monsters if you're interested in card games…" He reached under the counter to take out a package of cards when the girl, Molly, laughed.
"Oh no! Anything but Duel Monsters!" she said, sounding horrified yet amused at the same time.
"Is something wrong…?" Yugi started to ask before Molly cut him off.
"No, no. It's just that my friend and his brother tried to teach me Duel Monsters once and it ended up being a disaster! My friend got mad at me for winning because I made his brother win the game for me and," she laughed, "oh, it was just awful."
Yugi grinned at her. "I see. Well, that's okay!" He walked around the counter and started to pull different assortments of games from the shelves to help Molly make a decision. "We've got all sorts of games here, so I'm sure we'll find a fun one that you and your friend and his brother can play." Yugi sorted through the games he had pulled off the shelves. "How about this one? It's called 'Settlers of Catan'. It's for three to four players and the objective is…"
In the end, Molly ended up buying two games. 'Settlers of Catan' was for her, Mokuba, and Seto to play together when Seto had the time. Molly could also play this game with her parents, when their schedules allowed. She also ended up buying 'Crossbows and Catapults' for herself and Mokuba to play. Yugi taught her about the rules of every game and how they were supposed to be won, so she that she could make the best decision, and it was now noon.
"Thanks, Yugi!" She spoke his name cheerfully and without a honorific, as their time together had caused her o be very comfortable with the teen she now considered a good friend. She was going to stop by a fast food restaurant before heading home and was considering asking him if he wanted to come. She liked his company.
"It was no problem, Molly-chan," Yugi said, just as cheerful as Molly was. He was glad that this girl was able to find a game for herself and her friends to play. Yugi understood the importance of being able to share a game with friends. "I hope you have fun with those two games!"
"I'm sure I will!" Molly said with a nod before her stomach let out an oddly loud growl. She looked down at her stomach. "Lunch time!" she told Yugi, thankful that her stomach had allowed her to introduce the subject. "You gonna stay here? Don't you get a lunch break?"
"Huh? Oh, no. I can always get something to eat in the kitchen upstairs. I live right above the game shop, you know."
"Oh, really?" she asked. Yugi nodded. "That's so neat! So you get to play with all these neat games and stuff?"
"Well, my grandfather always saves one of the games if he can so that he and I can play it together," Yugi explained. "I was helping him out today since my friends are busy today."
"Oh. That must be sort of suckish. But hey! My friends are busy today too, so maybe you can see if your grand-papa will let you take off this afternoon! Then neither of us will be bored or anything."
"That's a good idea. I'll talk to my grandpa and make sure it's okay with him." Yugi said with a nod before walking around the counter and up the stairs in the back. "Ojii-chan (3)! I'm going out with a friend for a little while!" he called up the stairs in Japanese.
"That's fine!" Yugi's grandfather replied.
Yugi turned to Molly and grinned. "Alright, let's go!" he said before asking her what she wanted to do.
"Um…are there any good burger places around?"
"You bet! We can go to the Calorie Burger near the Domino Station, then hop on the train and head to the beach or the shopping district or something!"
"Calorie Burger? Sounds unhealthy…I like it!" She laughed, making Yugi laugh as well.
Yami observed Yugi and this young girl quietly while Yugi suggested games to her and helped her choose the best ones to play. He also watched quietly as the young girl convinced his partner to go out for the afternoon, only telling him, 'Careful, aibou. Don't become too serious with this girl. She is very young.' Yugi had shrugged him off casually, saying, 'Nah, she can't like me that way, Yami. Weren't you watching the way she talks about this friend of hers? I bet he's the only guy for her, even if they are young.'
This insight of his usually naïve partner had caught Yami off-guard, as Yugi was generally interested only in games and helping out friends in a tight spot. He was proud of his aibou's obvious inner growth.
Seto and Mokuba looked up at the house. It was fairly large, and clearly in a European style. Molly told them that it was called a 'colonial' type of house. The colonial was white, with black trim and shutters. There was a large bay window on the right side of the first floor, which already had plants to soak up the sunlight that was offered. This was Molly's new home. And it was only a block away from their own.
Seto sighed at the thought of the little terror coming over every day. Especially once school started in a week. "Let's get this over with…" he muttered.
"Nii-san!" Mokuba chastised his older brother with a frown.
"I meant it in the best way possible, Mokuba," Seto said with a smirk as they approached the doorstep. Seto shifted the champagne bottle he had been holding into the cradle created by his left arm before ringing the doorbell. Immediately, there was barking, and Molly's familiar voice was shouting.
"Maitre! Down, boy! Down. Stupid dog, get away from the door!"
The door opened a crack, and Molly's frazzled-looking head stuck itself out. "Aloha," she squeaked before withdrawing her head from the door to yell a bit more. "Ow! Maitre D'armes! Get down! Sorry," she said, pushing her head back through the door. "Come in, you guys." Molly withdrew her head a second time and the door opened to let the brothers in. "Don't worry, Maitre won't bite or anything, he's just really excitable and likes to jump up on people," Molly said as she held the collar of a white and brown dog whose shoulders went up to her lower thigh. The two boys eyed the panting dog warily, but said nothing about the dog.
"Where's your cat?" Mokuba asked as Molly got the dog to sit and calm down.
"Oh, somewhere. Good boy, Maitre," Molly said, patting her dog's head lightly. Mokuba did the same after Molly promised that the dog wouldn't bite. Indeed, the dog seemed to like Mokuba's patting it. "Now, come on, I want you guys to meet my mum." Molly led the boys into the kitchen. "Ma! Seto and Mokuba are here!"
Molly's mother walked in from the dining room, a soft smile spreading across her face as she saw her daughter's guests. "Hello, boys. Molly's talked about you a lot," Mrs. Benette said in almost perfect Japanese.
"Really?" Mokuba said skeptically, looking over at his friend.
"Only good things…but that thing about you-"
"Not another word!" Mokuba told her. Seto, on the other had, was working his charm on Molly's mother.
"Your Japanese is very well-spoken, Benette-san."
"Oh, why thank you, Seto-kun (4). You're too kind." Mrs. Benette was slightly flushed, as though she were very pleased to receive compliments from the gaming prodigy.
"A housewarming gift," Seto offered Mrs. Benette the champagne grandly, and the older woman's eyes lit up.
"Oh my, Seto-kun. Such an expensive import! There was no need-"
"Benette-san. If Molly-chan had told you all about us, then you should know that money is not a problem. I'm happy to present you with a small gift such as this."
"You're brother is very formal," Molly whispered to Mokuba as they observed the scene between Seto and Molly's mother.
"Just staying on her good side," Mokuba informed her, also whispering.
After many exchanges of 'thank you's!' and 'not at all's!', Seto finally joined Molly and Mokuba.
"Finally!" Molly said, sounding rather exasperated. "Now I can drag you around the house and make you see how pretty it is!"
The two brothers exchanged looks of 'Why did we come here again?' before following Molly upstairs.
"Okay, so here's my parents' room, and this is daddy's office, and this is the bathroom, and this is my mum's office!"
"And this room is…?" Seto prompted, gesturing to the door to the left that was closest to the stairs.
"Oh, that. The pool table's in there," Molly explained as she started for the first floor.
"And let me guess. You sleep on top of the pool table then? Or underneath, perhaps?" A smirk crossed the teen's face.
"Very funny," Molly said sourly. "I sleep in the basement, thank you very much. Now are you coming down the stairs or am I pushing you over the railing? Either way, you're going to end up downstairs."
Seto chuckled and followed Molly and Mokuba down the stairs. The chances of her being able to toss him over the rail were very slim to none, but it was amusing to get a rise out of the usually cheerful little girl. 'And it serves her right, for all the trouble she's caused me…' he thought as Molly showed them the living and dining rooms.
"So…why do you live in the basement?" Mokuba asked Molly as her mother practically forced the three to sit down to some milk and fresh orange-cranberry bread before they were able to troop downstairs.
"Because the people that used to live here lived with two teens, a Saint Bernard, and their grandmother. So they bought this big plot and built a colonial because they were from America and came here to take care of their granny since she was afraid of flying. But she didn't want to have to deal with the dog and stuff so they finished the basement and stuff so she could live there. But now she's really sick and they can't take care of her so she's in a home now and they're moving to a smaller house and I can practically live down there because they left the mini fridge, the microwave, and the sink there. So I am."
"Well, aren't we lucky?" Mokuba asked her before stuffing a slice of bread into his mouth.
"Ah-tractive," Molly said after she had quirked an eyebrow at Mokuba. "Are you finished?"
"Yesh," Mokuba managed, despite his dry mouth. He finished his milk as Molly asked his brother if he was ready. Seto nodded, and Molly proceeded to drag them to the basement. "Here it is! Home." She announced to them before running from the base of the stairs to the red couch. She jumped on it. "I got the couch from one of the seamen at the Naval base," she explained, picking up a book that had fallen off the couch as she jumped on it. "And my dad's superior is going back to America so he said I can have his coffee table!" She moved to the inconspicuous bookshelves that stood beside the stairs.
"Wow, you read a lot," Mokuba said, staring at the massive shelves.
"My dad always used to send me books from all the different places he lived in, and Grand-maman always used to give me books in French so that I could learn to read," Molly explained.
"So I assume your father got you that book on Ancient Egypt?" Seto asked, having observed the title of the put she was putting away when it had fallen onto the floor.
"Huh? Oh yeah. This was about these ancient 'Millennial Items; that were found in the 'Valley of the Kings' that were supposed to have dark powers or something. It's a neat subject." Molly grinned at Seto in a way that would end the conversation. The truth of the matter was that when Molly had met Yugi two weeks ago, she had realized that he was the Yugi Seto hated. Heck, it didn't take a genius to put two and two together. But Yugi was a nice friend, and so she didn't want to snub him just because her best friend's older brother hated the kid. Which is why she invited him to lunch. They had had a great time, and Molly had noticed that he was wearing a funny-looking pendant.
"What's this?" Molly asked, pointing to the eye on Yugi's chest. "It looks like the same design I saw in a book once! It was about these ancient items of the millennia from ancient Egypt or something."
"Huh?" Yugi looked down at himself before lifting up the pendant. "This?"
"Yeah! But I don't remember there being a pendant…" Molly mused. "There were seven artifacts found and they were…um…" Molly took out a pen and scribbled on her napkin. She showed Yugi her crude drawings, she was definitely no artist, and pointed to each one before explaining what they were supposed to be. "See, this is the Tauk. It was supposed to let the wearer see into the future or something like that. And this is the Rod. It was supposed to let you control people. And this is the Key, or Ankh or something, I can't remember. But it was supposed to let you see into the souls of people. And the Scales let you weigh the person's heart like Anubis did. This is the Ring…oh, what did it do? I don't remember. But this is the Eye, and it let you read people's minds and stuff. And this is the puzzle," Molly finally said, pointing to a box with the funny symbol scrawled in it. The book showed pictures of the puzzle pieces and said that no one had ever been able to solve it…" It slowly dawned on Molly. "Yugi! You solved it didn't you?!" Yugi nodded slowly. "Aw far out! Well then, if you like, I can come over when school starts and let you borrow all my books on ancient Egypt!"
"Yeah!" Yugi had said enthusiastically, nodding…
Molly had just been looking through her books when Seto and Mokuba came over. She didn't dare let either boy know that she had befriended the famous duelist, lest they both get mad at her for being a traitor or something.
"So…" Molly said, drawing out the word as she thought of something for them to do. "Who wants to play 'Settlers of Catan'?"
"Oh! I do!" Mokuba said. "I've heard that game is really fun!"
"That's what the guy who sold it to me said!" Molly said. "Seto, you play too!"
Seto grudgingly sat down on the floor to play the game as Molly and Mokuba dumped the contents of the box onto the floor.
Molly rushed into the limo and sat down next to Mokuba, her bag sitting on her legs. Seto and Mokuba both glanced at her for a moment before informing the driver that he could leave.
"What's the deal, Molls?" Mokuba asked her, though he knew perfectly well what was bothering her.
"It's cold outside," Molly muttered, clearly avoiding the subject.
"Nonsense," Seto said, "It's twenty-six degrees outside!"
"Fine! I don't like skirts. You always have to worry about the wind and stuff because your underwear might show. Happy?" Molly asked the brothers sourly.
Mokuba shrugged off Moll's discomfort. "Don't worry about it. If that happens, then I'll catch my pants on something and rip them. You've got to admit, ripping your pants is way worse than the wind catching your skirt." Molly laughed with Mokuba as the limousine stopped in front of the junior high. The two said goodbye to Seto and thanked the elderly chauffer for the ride.
"Wow!" Molly said, staring up at the school. "It's so big!" Mokuba laughed at his friend's amazement before seeing one of his friends. "Come on, Molly. I think that Satsuki found a spider!"
Molly gasped. "Really? Cool! I want to see it!" The two kids ran to the short boy with ear-length black hair that was waving them over.
Molls, you are one wild and crazy kid!
And you complain too much. But I don't mind. School is really neat! I've made all these friends but I think they only want to be friends because of Seto. Except this one kid, Satsuki. He's cool, and his parents let him have a lizard! It eats bugs and stuff and it's wicked cool. Oh, did I tell you about how I got in trouble for the length of my hair? Satsuki did too, because it's not supposed to touch your clothes or something. But…I might have paid off a teacher or too. I'm 'finally putting my brother's money to good use,' as you always pester me to do. And thanks for the neat stuff from Italy! Tell your dad that we really appreciate that he thought about us. And tell your mom that we said 'hi!' I wonder if I could get Seto to let me get a lizard…but then again, after the hamster thing, I won't get my hopes up.
Penney Lane is in my ears!
Mokuba, the coolest guy you'll ever know.
(1): Aibou-I haven't really got a solid definition for this, but from what I gather, 'aibou' is something like a term of endearment or closeness. The fact that Yugi and Yami share a body may be cause for Yami's use of the word.
(2): Irashaimasen-'Irashaimasen' translates into 'welcome.'
(3): Ojii-chan- means 'grandpa'. It's more of a slangy sort of use, the proper being 'Ojii-san'
That's it. Look forward to another chapter…when I get the chance to write again. . Let me know what you think!