Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Of Dragonballs and Duel Monsters ❯ Where there's a will . . ( Chapter 4 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Murasaki Rose 
Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Comedy / Action | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 07.22.2009 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.5K | Visits: 365 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Comedy / Action | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 07.22.2009 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.5K | Visits: 365 | Status: Work In Progress
Title: Of Dragonballs and Duel Monsters
Chapter: 4/?
Author: Murasaki Rose
Beta: none
Genre: Action/Adventure/Alternate Universe/Comedy/Crossover/Drama/Fantasy/Supernatural
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Duelist Kingdom
Warnings: Some shonen-ai, swearing, and violence.
Pairings: Minor YxYYxA, YBxR, Jou x Mai, other pairings later.
Disclaimer: Here we go. Yu-Gi-Oh and all it's characters are the property of Kazuki Takahashi, Shueisha, Konami, Toei, and unfortunately, 4 Kids Entertainment. Dragonball, Dragonball Z, and Dragonball GT are all the property of Akira Toriyama, Bird Studio, Toei Animation, and Funimation Inc. In other words, I don't own any of them and I'm not making any money off of this, I'm just a fangirl having some fun. However, Jianu, her family, and all other OCs in this story are mine. If you'd like to borrow them, please ask me first and give proper credit.
AN: "text" = speech, 'text' = thought, ((text)) = telepathy, /text/ = hikari to yami mindlink, (/text/) = yami to hikari mindlink, #text# = English
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Chapter 4 - Where there's a will . .
Opening theme: Higher and Higher
x-x-x-x
Study hall.
The class period allotted for students to work on assignments or speak with teachers regarding help or special projects. At least that's what it was supposed to be used for. Normally Yugi and his friends would spend this time working together on their homework or just playing games. Of course, normally they didn't have the substitute from Hell. The woman had arrived late and stalked into the room, beating on the podium with a ruler loudly enough that the whole class, Kaiba included, nearly hit the ceiling in fright. Announcing herself as their substitute study hall teacher for the day, she followed that statement the dire threat that every student was to remain quietly in their seat for the entire period. There was to be absolutely NO TALKING and anyone who dared to transgress would be expelled.
Needless to say, no one argued.
About halfway into the period, Jianu found herself bored senseless, she'd finished her homework ages ago and had nothing else to do. Yugi, Anzu, Ryou and Hanasaki were still working silently while Jou and Honda had opted to sleep. Then there was Kaiba who, like Jianu, had long since finished his homework and was taking advantage of the time to get ahead on some of his work from the office.
S-s-s-c-h-h-w-i-i-i-i-i-p-p.
Jianu continued staring out the window as though she hadn't been the source of the soft sound of tearing paper. Chancing a quick glance at the sub proved the older woman was still unaware and tearing another strip, much quieter this time, the teen continued in this manner until she'd torn an entire sheet into ribbons. A quick twist of the wrist and a little crumpling later and she had a nifty little paper wad that the bored girl nonchalantly tossed into the hair of one Seto Kaiba.
The first couple of paper balls went unnoticed by her target. Either that or he was ignoring her. After about the sixth ignored missile, the tri-color haired female altered her trajectory, landing a couple of her little tools of annoyance on the other teen's laptop. Kaiba didn't miss a beat. Without stopping his typing, the brunet teen casually swept the paper wads off his desk and into his bookbag with one hand. Jianu scowled inwardly and stubbornly continued to throw the tiny missiles throughout the remainder of class.
Now one might wonder the reason as to WHY she was wasting all this time and energy on a target that ignored her. Of course you'd then have to ask why she'd filled the same teenage CEO's locker with ping-pong balls, or hidden a box rigged to blow styrofoam "peanuts" at him from under his lab station, or spent an entire day poking him in the back with her pencil eraser, or any of the other many pranks and stunts she'd pulled on the stoic teen over the last two months. (1)
It's like this: You see, not long after she met him, Jianu had come to the disturbing conclusion that Kaiba NEVER acted like the teenager he was. Sure he had more responsibilities than most teens, but really! It just wasn't right for a sixteen year-old to be so damn mature! So Jianu had made it her personal mission in life to make Kaiba react (Just once, that's all she asked!) like a normal teenager. So far Kaiba wasn't cooperating, but that had yet to deter her.
It really all boils down to one cold, hard, fact: Both Jianu Kreiger and Seto Kaiba are incredibly obstinate individuals.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
No one saw it coming. Had it been anyone else in the world, maybe. But then again . . . maybe they should have.
About halfway through lunch, the gang was chatting happily away when suddenly Kaiba appeared, looming behind Jianu with an unreadable expression on his face.
Blinking in surprise, the tri-color haired teen tilted her head back to stare curiously up at the brunet. His expression never changing, Seto calmly reached forward and plucked her soda from the table.
Before Jianu could even start to form a question, the teenage CEO up-ended the entire can on her head. Jianu's eyes went wide in shock as the cold, sticky, liquid soaked through her hair and down onto her clothing. For a brief moment, her expression shifted and it looked like she was going to kill someone, but it was gone as quickly as it had come.
Yugi murmured a soft "Uh-oh" while the rest of his friends gaped in shock.
With an otherwise bland look on her face, Jianu turned to face the now smirking teen behind her and raised a curious eyebrow at the him. "Care to explain?"
"Hmph. Why should I? You've never explained yourself."
That was the final straw. Jianu burst into loud peals of laughter, her delighted voice echoing throughout the oddly silent cafeteria. "Yatta!!" she cried, glomping him in her glee.
Kaiba stared at her as though she'd gone insane, "Kreiger, what the hell has gotten into you?!"
"Y-you finally d-did it!!" she gasped out in-between giggles.
"Did what?"
"Reacted normally!"
Any impending responses by the stoic teen were thwarted when the "dungeonmaster" made her presence known, "KREIGER!!! KAIBA!!! GET TO THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE, NOW!!!!!"
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
"Now, I'll ask you both again. Who is responsible for this?" the principal questioned them, waving his hand at the teens' uniforms, both of which now sported large, purple stains. (Jianu had been drinking grape soda.) The poor man was at his limits. Since his lunchroom monitor (2) had hauled them in some twenty minutes ago, he'd tried every method he had available, short of expelling the two, in order to discover WHY this had happened. Two of the top students in school had somehow managed to ruin their uniforms during lunch and no one was talking. It was obvious HOW the two had done it, but what had possessed them to behave in such an irrational manner was beyond him.
"I don't understand-"
'Obviously,' both teens thought, ignoring the frustrated man and unaware that the other was thinking the same thing.
Looking at them again, the principal struggled not to scream. Neither teen looked the least bit sorry about the whole situation. Kaiba had adopted the same "stone-face" expression he used in board meetings and Kreiger was weaing a similar expression, but her eyes weren't in it. There was a sparkle in them that couldn't be mistaken for anything but amusement.
The worst part about it was that he couldn't expel them. Not if he didn't want to bring down the dual wrath of both Kaiba Corporation, which owned most of the Domino, and Capsule Corporation, which could very nearly buy half the PLANET. Plus, both students had excellent grades. Straight A's across the board.
Coming to a decision, he gazed levelly at the two teens, "All right. Because this is your first offense, I'll go easy on you."
'You mean because you value your job,' Kaiba thought, struggling to keep the smirk off his face.
"First, you are both suspended from class for the day."
Jianu grinned internally, 'Sweet, free time! And I can get changed! Bonus!'
"Second, after-school detention for the rest of the week. This includes clean-up duty."
'Aw man!'
"Now the both of you go home. Unless, you have something you'd like to add . . ." he trailed off, glancing meaningfully from one teen to the other as they stood.
"No sir," they chorused, bowing respectfully before taking their leave.
When they'd made it back to the hallway, Jianu burst into laughter once more. "Oh man! I couldn't tell if he wanted to explode or run and hide!"
Kaiba smirked, "Both most likely. Any other students would have found themselves expelled."
Jianu nodded, "True. Hey, you need to stop at your locker?"
"Iie (3)," the tall brunet glanced sideways at the strangely chipper girl. "Why do you ask?"
The tri-color haired girl shrugged, "`Cause I didn't need to use mine and I was being polite." She raised an eyebrow at him, "It's not exactly a foreign concept Kaiba-kun."
Blinking in surprise, Kaiba stared at her for a moment before answering softly, "Iie, it's not."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Once outside, Kaiba took no time pulling out his cell to call for his limo, but was stopped when a slender hand snatched it out of his grasp.
"How about we go hang out somewhere?" Jianu asked, ignoring the brunet's dark glare while handing the purloined phone back to it's owner.
"Iie."
"Why not?"
"We're wet, sticky, and our uniforms are stained PURPLE," he reminded her, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.
Jianu appeared to consider this before nodding in agreement. "Good point."
Kaiba barely avoided a face-vault. "Kreiger," he growled in frustration.
"Tell ya what," she continued, appearing oblivious to his ire, "Let's both head home and change. Then I'll pick you up in about half an hour."
Eyeing the girl warily, Kaiba ventured a simple question. "Why?"
Looking at him and speaking as though he were a small child, Jianu explained, "Because, we just got handed a free day and I KNOW that if I leave you alone, you're gonna waste it by going to your office."
". . . . . . . . ."
"Mokuba's in school and you're not behind schedule. When life presents you with a free day you TAKE IT!!" she exclaimed, shaking her fist above her head for emphasis.
". . . . . . . . ."
"Stop glaring at me and call your ride," she said before walking away.
Growling to himself, Kaiba dialed his driver, wincing as Jianu shouted one last comment. "Dress CASUAL!!"
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
When Jianu pulled up to Kaiba manor, she was suitably impressed. The Greek Revival-style mansion was large and well designed, although it did seem a bit out of place for a Japanese home. The grounds surrounding it were modest by American standards, but for a home in Japan the whole estate was outrageously huge. It was nothing like the sprawling grounds of the Victorian manse (4) where she had grown up. The front gate was locked but that didn't surprise her, leaving them open was just asking for trouble. 'Nice to know he's got a call button, now the question is: Will he answer?' she thought, pushing aforementioned button.
"May I help you?"
Jianu was all smiles, he did have it on! "Could you please tell Kaiba Seto that Kreiger Jianu is here?"
"Is Kaiba-sama expecting you?" the servant asked, his surprise obvious even through the intercom.
"Yup," she replied, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, then grinning and flashing a peace sign at the tiny camera aimed at the gate. When she got no response at first, she wasn't really worried. IF Kaiba tried to sneak out to work, she'd just have to take more drastic measures. It was amidst her plotting that the gates slowly swung open, much to her delight. He wasn't trying to cop out! Letting out a small whoop of joy, the teen sped down the drive.
Kaiba couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the cheerful girl who'd just pulled up on an airbike (5). The fact that she had one was odd in itself, due to all the rigorous dexterity and response tests one had to pass in order to get a license. On top of that they were very expensive and hers appeared to be a high-end custom model.
Then there was her outfit. Though not as outrageous as some of the fashions he'd spotted on her cousin, it certainly was different. Purple Converse hi-tops with white trim and shoelaces, black cargo pants, and a purple baby-t that read "BRAT" in black, slash-type letters across the front. Her accessories consisted of a standard watch with a black band on one arm, a black leather band buckled around her wrist, and a black, braided choker with a silver heart charm, her gaudy pendant surprisingly absent.
"Yo," she greeted cheerfully, swinging off her bike to come up to meet him. Kaiba himself was dressed in black boots, navy boot-cut jeans, and a plain turquoise button-up shirt, his card-locket tucked securely underneath. "Wow, if I didn't know any better, I'd swear you were normal."
Kaiba refused to rise to the bait, "Unlike you. I refuse to believe anyone could mistake you for anything close to normal."
"Oh! That was cruel. I can't believe the pain you've caused me," Jianu responded, sarcasm dripping from her voice.
"Cute, Kreiger. Real cute. Were you just planning on slinging bad jokes at me all day, or did you have some purpose to all this?"
"Actually I do," she replied, winking mischievously at the brunet.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Forty minutes later found the two teens seated at one of the few restaurants in Japan that Jianu swore could make decent pizza. It had been an unexpected and delightful surprise to the tri-colored teen, so naturally she wanted to share the joy. After a lengthy debate on what was and was not decent to put on a pizza, the two had finally settled on a half and half. Their waitress had found the whole thing absolutely hilarious and had a difficult time not laughing as she took their order.
Deciding that silence was over-rated, Jianu struck up a conversation they could both get into without arguing. Hopefully. "So what were you reading the other day? I couldn't see the title."
"Also Sprach Zarathustra. (6)"
"Whoa, Nietzsche. That's kinda deep."
"I'm surprised you've heard of it, I imagine you're more of a manga-reader."
"Shows what you know. I may enjoy manga, but that's far from all I read."
Kaiba didn't reply, but the look on his face said everything.
"I DO read more than manga!"
"I didn't say anything."
"You didn't have to," she growled, glaring at the brunet across from her.
"Really Kreiger, red isn't a good color on you."
Jerking back in surprise, Jianu blinked, then began chuckling, "Saa, I suppose not."
"What else do you read?" Kaiba asked, again surprising her.
And again she blinked before recovering her composure, "First answer me this: How's your English?"
The young CEO smirked, #Better than average. How is this relevant?#
Jianu grinned, #Ooo, your accent is even good. And it's relevant because most of the books I read are in English and translated versions are hard to get a hold of.#
Kaiba inclined his head and gestured for her to continue, this promised to be interesting.
"Lessee, off the top of my head there's: Anne McCaffrey, Issac Asimov, Larry Niven, Douglas Adams, Anne Rice, Stephen King, Michael Crichton, Terry Brooks, and Piers Anthony (7)."
Kaiba couldn't help but be surprised, he knew most of these authors, "Thought you'd be a fantasy reader, but horror and science fiction?"
"Told ya I read more than manga. You ever read any of their stuff?"
The brunet nodded, "Among others. I've always enjoyed Tolkien's works. C.S. Lewis and Tom Clancy aren't too bad either."
"You read Tom Clancy? Okay, now you've shocked me."
Kaiba smiled softly, pleased by her response, he enjoyed surprising the seemingly reckless girl. Not that she hadn't been without her own surprises.
Currently, aforementioned teen had a thoughtful look on her face, " Ya know, if you're into the more complicated reading, you should try Greg Bear's stuff. He goes way in-depth with the science part of science fiction."
"I just might look into that."
Smiling brightly, Jianu leaned back in her seat picked up her Coke, "We should do this again some time."
"Get suspended?" Seto responded flatly, his eyes revealing his mischevious intent.
Rolling her eyes, Jianu snorted. "Baka! I mean hanging out and talking."
"I know."
"And I know you know."
"Jianu, that joke is older than Yugi's pendant."
Grinning shamelessly the girl shrugged, "So? It's still fun."
Kaiba stared at her oddly, "You're weird."
She arched an eyebrow in mock-surprise, "It took you this long to figure that out? I thought you were a genius!"
" . . . . . . ."
-
x-x-x-x
Closing Theme: Yume Wa Oshite
11/11/04
re-edited 08/20/06
re-re-edited July 22, 2009
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
1 - See Omake Specials #2, 3, & 4 for details
2 - I'm making an assumption here. Since we have them in the states, I'm guessing they'd have them there too.
3 - No
4 - It's another word for mansion. It used to be a more specific type of home, but over the years the meaning broadened
5 - Pure Dragonball Z stuff here. Ever notice that some of the vehicles have tires and some just float?
6 - This is a real book and Kaiba really has read it. If you've seen the Japanese version of the first episode, he's reading it in class.
7 - Honest to God real authors and books here. I've read most of these authors' books, except for the stuff by Tom Clancy and Nietzsche.
Fun fact: Since they're in Japan, Jianu's last name is pronounced Koo-ray-gah. While here in the states it's: Kray-grr
Chapter: 4/?
Author: Murasaki Rose
Beta: none
Genre: Action/Adventure/Alternate Universe/Comedy/Crossover/Drama/Fantasy/Supernatural
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Duelist Kingdom
Warnings: Some shonen-ai, swearing, and violence.
Pairings: Minor YxYYxA, YBxR, Jou x Mai, other pairings later.
Disclaimer: Here we go. Yu-Gi-Oh and all it's characters are the property of Kazuki Takahashi, Shueisha, Konami, Toei, and unfortunately, 4 Kids Entertainment. Dragonball, Dragonball Z, and Dragonball GT are all the property of Akira Toriyama, Bird Studio, Toei Animation, and Funimation Inc. In other words, I don't own any of them and I'm not making any money off of this, I'm just a fangirl having some fun. However, Jianu, her family, and all other OCs in this story are mine. If you'd like to borrow them, please ask me first and give proper credit.
AN: "text" = speech, 'text' = thought, ((text)) = telepathy, /text/ = hikari to yami mindlink, (/text/) = yami to hikari mindlink, #text# = English
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Chapter 4 - Where there's a will . .
Opening theme: Higher and Higher
x-x-x-x
Study hall.
The class period allotted for students to work on assignments or speak with teachers regarding help or special projects. At least that's what it was supposed to be used for. Normally Yugi and his friends would spend this time working together on their homework or just playing games. Of course, normally they didn't have the substitute from Hell. The woman had arrived late and stalked into the room, beating on the podium with a ruler loudly enough that the whole class, Kaiba included, nearly hit the ceiling in fright. Announcing herself as their substitute study hall teacher for the day, she followed that statement the dire threat that every student was to remain quietly in their seat for the entire period. There was to be absolutely NO TALKING and anyone who dared to transgress would be expelled.
Needless to say, no one argued.
About halfway into the period, Jianu found herself bored senseless, she'd finished her homework ages ago and had nothing else to do. Yugi, Anzu, Ryou and Hanasaki were still working silently while Jou and Honda had opted to sleep. Then there was Kaiba who, like Jianu, had long since finished his homework and was taking advantage of the time to get ahead on some of his work from the office.
S-s-s-c-h-h-w-i-i-i-i-i-p-p.
Jianu continued staring out the window as though she hadn't been the source of the soft sound of tearing paper. Chancing a quick glance at the sub proved the older woman was still unaware and tearing another strip, much quieter this time, the teen continued in this manner until she'd torn an entire sheet into ribbons. A quick twist of the wrist and a little crumpling later and she had a nifty little paper wad that the bored girl nonchalantly tossed into the hair of one Seto Kaiba.
The first couple of paper balls went unnoticed by her target. Either that or he was ignoring her. After about the sixth ignored missile, the tri-color haired female altered her trajectory, landing a couple of her little tools of annoyance on the other teen's laptop. Kaiba didn't miss a beat. Without stopping his typing, the brunet teen casually swept the paper wads off his desk and into his bookbag with one hand. Jianu scowled inwardly and stubbornly continued to throw the tiny missiles throughout the remainder of class.
Now one might wonder the reason as to WHY she was wasting all this time and energy on a target that ignored her. Of course you'd then have to ask why she'd filled the same teenage CEO's locker with ping-pong balls, or hidden a box rigged to blow styrofoam "peanuts" at him from under his lab station, or spent an entire day poking him in the back with her pencil eraser, or any of the other many pranks and stunts she'd pulled on the stoic teen over the last two months. (1)
It's like this: You see, not long after she met him, Jianu had come to the disturbing conclusion that Kaiba NEVER acted like the teenager he was. Sure he had more responsibilities than most teens, but really! It just wasn't right for a sixteen year-old to be so damn mature! So Jianu had made it her personal mission in life to make Kaiba react (Just once, that's all she asked!) like a normal teenager. So far Kaiba wasn't cooperating, but that had yet to deter her.
It really all boils down to one cold, hard, fact: Both Jianu Kreiger and Seto Kaiba are incredibly obstinate individuals.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
No one saw it coming. Had it been anyone else in the world, maybe. But then again . . . maybe they should have.
About halfway through lunch, the gang was chatting happily away when suddenly Kaiba appeared, looming behind Jianu with an unreadable expression on his face.
Blinking in surprise, the tri-color haired teen tilted her head back to stare curiously up at the brunet. His expression never changing, Seto calmly reached forward and plucked her soda from the table.
Before Jianu could even start to form a question, the teenage CEO up-ended the entire can on her head. Jianu's eyes went wide in shock as the cold, sticky, liquid soaked through her hair and down onto her clothing. For a brief moment, her expression shifted and it looked like she was going to kill someone, but it was gone as quickly as it had come.
Yugi murmured a soft "Uh-oh" while the rest of his friends gaped in shock.
With an otherwise bland look on her face, Jianu turned to face the now smirking teen behind her and raised a curious eyebrow at the him. "Care to explain?"
"Hmph. Why should I? You've never explained yourself."
That was the final straw. Jianu burst into loud peals of laughter, her delighted voice echoing throughout the oddly silent cafeteria. "Yatta!!" she cried, glomping him in her glee.
Kaiba stared at her as though she'd gone insane, "Kreiger, what the hell has gotten into you?!"
"Y-you finally d-did it!!" she gasped out in-between giggles.
"Did what?"
"Reacted normally!"
Any impending responses by the stoic teen were thwarted when the "dungeonmaster" made her presence known, "KREIGER!!! KAIBA!!! GET TO THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE, NOW!!!!!"
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
"Now, I'll ask you both again. Who is responsible for this?" the principal questioned them, waving his hand at the teens' uniforms, both of which now sported large, purple stains. (Jianu had been drinking grape soda.) The poor man was at his limits. Since his lunchroom monitor (2) had hauled them in some twenty minutes ago, he'd tried every method he had available, short of expelling the two, in order to discover WHY this had happened. Two of the top students in school had somehow managed to ruin their uniforms during lunch and no one was talking. It was obvious HOW the two had done it, but what had possessed them to behave in such an irrational manner was beyond him.
"I don't understand-"
'Obviously,' both teens thought, ignoring the frustrated man and unaware that the other was thinking the same thing.
Looking at them again, the principal struggled not to scream. Neither teen looked the least bit sorry about the whole situation. Kaiba had adopted the same "stone-face" expression he used in board meetings and Kreiger was weaing a similar expression, but her eyes weren't in it. There was a sparkle in them that couldn't be mistaken for anything but amusement.
The worst part about it was that he couldn't expel them. Not if he didn't want to bring down the dual wrath of both Kaiba Corporation, which owned most of the Domino, and Capsule Corporation, which could very nearly buy half the PLANET. Plus, both students had excellent grades. Straight A's across the board.
Coming to a decision, he gazed levelly at the two teens, "All right. Because this is your first offense, I'll go easy on you."
'You mean because you value your job,' Kaiba thought, struggling to keep the smirk off his face.
"First, you are both suspended from class for the day."
Jianu grinned internally, 'Sweet, free time! And I can get changed! Bonus!'
"Second, after-school detention for the rest of the week. This includes clean-up duty."
'Aw man!'
"Now the both of you go home. Unless, you have something you'd like to add . . ." he trailed off, glancing meaningfully from one teen to the other as they stood.
"No sir," they chorused, bowing respectfully before taking their leave.
When they'd made it back to the hallway, Jianu burst into laughter once more. "Oh man! I couldn't tell if he wanted to explode or run and hide!"
Kaiba smirked, "Both most likely. Any other students would have found themselves expelled."
Jianu nodded, "True. Hey, you need to stop at your locker?"
"Iie (3)," the tall brunet glanced sideways at the strangely chipper girl. "Why do you ask?"
The tri-color haired girl shrugged, "`Cause I didn't need to use mine and I was being polite." She raised an eyebrow at him, "It's not exactly a foreign concept Kaiba-kun."
Blinking in surprise, Kaiba stared at her for a moment before answering softly, "Iie, it's not."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Once outside, Kaiba took no time pulling out his cell to call for his limo, but was stopped when a slender hand snatched it out of his grasp.
"How about we go hang out somewhere?" Jianu asked, ignoring the brunet's dark glare while handing the purloined phone back to it's owner.
"Iie."
"Why not?"
"We're wet, sticky, and our uniforms are stained PURPLE," he reminded her, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.
Jianu appeared to consider this before nodding in agreement. "Good point."
Kaiba barely avoided a face-vault. "Kreiger," he growled in frustration.
"Tell ya what," she continued, appearing oblivious to his ire, "Let's both head home and change. Then I'll pick you up in about half an hour."
Eyeing the girl warily, Kaiba ventured a simple question. "Why?"
Looking at him and speaking as though he were a small child, Jianu explained, "Because, we just got handed a free day and I KNOW that if I leave you alone, you're gonna waste it by going to your office."
". . . . . . . . ."
"Mokuba's in school and you're not behind schedule. When life presents you with a free day you TAKE IT!!" she exclaimed, shaking her fist above her head for emphasis.
". . . . . . . . ."
"Stop glaring at me and call your ride," she said before walking away.
Growling to himself, Kaiba dialed his driver, wincing as Jianu shouted one last comment. "Dress CASUAL!!"
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
When Jianu pulled up to Kaiba manor, she was suitably impressed. The Greek Revival-style mansion was large and well designed, although it did seem a bit out of place for a Japanese home. The grounds surrounding it were modest by American standards, but for a home in Japan the whole estate was outrageously huge. It was nothing like the sprawling grounds of the Victorian manse (4) where she had grown up. The front gate was locked but that didn't surprise her, leaving them open was just asking for trouble. 'Nice to know he's got a call button, now the question is: Will he answer?' she thought, pushing aforementioned button.
"May I help you?"
Jianu was all smiles, he did have it on! "Could you please tell Kaiba Seto that Kreiger Jianu is here?"
"Is Kaiba-sama expecting you?" the servant asked, his surprise obvious even through the intercom.
"Yup," she replied, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, then grinning and flashing a peace sign at the tiny camera aimed at the gate. When she got no response at first, she wasn't really worried. IF Kaiba tried to sneak out to work, she'd just have to take more drastic measures. It was amidst her plotting that the gates slowly swung open, much to her delight. He wasn't trying to cop out! Letting out a small whoop of joy, the teen sped down the drive.
Kaiba couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the cheerful girl who'd just pulled up on an airbike (5). The fact that she had one was odd in itself, due to all the rigorous dexterity and response tests one had to pass in order to get a license. On top of that they were very expensive and hers appeared to be a high-end custom model.
Then there was her outfit. Though not as outrageous as some of the fashions he'd spotted on her cousin, it certainly was different. Purple Converse hi-tops with white trim and shoelaces, black cargo pants, and a purple baby-t that read "BRAT" in black, slash-type letters across the front. Her accessories consisted of a standard watch with a black band on one arm, a black leather band buckled around her wrist, and a black, braided choker with a silver heart charm, her gaudy pendant surprisingly absent.
"Yo," she greeted cheerfully, swinging off her bike to come up to meet him. Kaiba himself was dressed in black boots, navy boot-cut jeans, and a plain turquoise button-up shirt, his card-locket tucked securely underneath. "Wow, if I didn't know any better, I'd swear you were normal."
Kaiba refused to rise to the bait, "Unlike you. I refuse to believe anyone could mistake you for anything close to normal."
"Oh! That was cruel. I can't believe the pain you've caused me," Jianu responded, sarcasm dripping from her voice.
"Cute, Kreiger. Real cute. Were you just planning on slinging bad jokes at me all day, or did you have some purpose to all this?"
"Actually I do," she replied, winking mischievously at the brunet.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Forty minutes later found the two teens seated at one of the few restaurants in Japan that Jianu swore could make decent pizza. It had been an unexpected and delightful surprise to the tri-colored teen, so naturally she wanted to share the joy. After a lengthy debate on what was and was not decent to put on a pizza, the two had finally settled on a half and half. Their waitress had found the whole thing absolutely hilarious and had a difficult time not laughing as she took their order.
Deciding that silence was over-rated, Jianu struck up a conversation they could both get into without arguing. Hopefully. "So what were you reading the other day? I couldn't see the title."
"Also Sprach Zarathustra. (6)"
"Whoa, Nietzsche. That's kinda deep."
"I'm surprised you've heard of it, I imagine you're more of a manga-reader."
"Shows what you know. I may enjoy manga, but that's far from all I read."
Kaiba didn't reply, but the look on his face said everything.
"I DO read more than manga!"
"I didn't say anything."
"You didn't have to," she growled, glaring at the brunet across from her.
"Really Kreiger, red isn't a good color on you."
Jerking back in surprise, Jianu blinked, then began chuckling, "Saa, I suppose not."
"What else do you read?" Kaiba asked, again surprising her.
And again she blinked before recovering her composure, "First answer me this: How's your English?"
The young CEO smirked, #Better than average. How is this relevant?#
Jianu grinned, #Ooo, your accent is even good. And it's relevant because most of the books I read are in English and translated versions are hard to get a hold of.#
Kaiba inclined his head and gestured for her to continue, this promised to be interesting.
"Lessee, off the top of my head there's: Anne McCaffrey, Issac Asimov, Larry Niven, Douglas Adams, Anne Rice, Stephen King, Michael Crichton, Terry Brooks, and Piers Anthony (7)."
Kaiba couldn't help but be surprised, he knew most of these authors, "Thought you'd be a fantasy reader, but horror and science fiction?"
"Told ya I read more than manga. You ever read any of their stuff?"
The brunet nodded, "Among others. I've always enjoyed Tolkien's works. C.S. Lewis and Tom Clancy aren't too bad either."
"You read Tom Clancy? Okay, now you've shocked me."
Kaiba smiled softly, pleased by her response, he enjoyed surprising the seemingly reckless girl. Not that she hadn't been without her own surprises.
Currently, aforementioned teen had a thoughtful look on her face, " Ya know, if you're into the more complicated reading, you should try Greg Bear's stuff. He goes way in-depth with the science part of science fiction."
"I just might look into that."
Smiling brightly, Jianu leaned back in her seat picked up her Coke, "We should do this again some time."
"Get suspended?" Seto responded flatly, his eyes revealing his mischevious intent.
Rolling her eyes, Jianu snorted. "Baka! I mean hanging out and talking."
"I know."
"And I know you know."
"Jianu, that joke is older than Yugi's pendant."
Grinning shamelessly the girl shrugged, "So? It's still fun."
Kaiba stared at her oddly, "You're weird."
She arched an eyebrow in mock-surprise, "It took you this long to figure that out? I thought you were a genius!"
" . . . . . . ."
-
x-x-x-x
Closing Theme: Yume Wa Oshite
11/11/04
re-edited 08/20/06
re-re-edited July 22, 2009
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
1 - See Omake Specials #2, 3, & 4 for details
2 - I'm making an assumption here. Since we have them in the states, I'm guessing they'd have them there too.
3 - No
4 - It's another word for mansion. It used to be a more specific type of home, but over the years the meaning broadened
5 - Pure Dragonball Z stuff here. Ever notice that some of the vehicles have tires and some just float?
6 - This is a real book and Kaiba really has read it. If you've seen the Japanese version of the first episode, he's reading it in class.
7 - Honest to God real authors and books here. I've read most of these authors' books, except for the stuff by Tom Clancy and Nietzsche.
Fun fact: Since they're in Japan, Jianu's last name is pronounced Koo-ray-gah. While here in the states it's: Kray-grr