Queer as Tachi – Chapter 96
Alastair didn’t know whether to be pleasantly surprised or disappointed that there was only one Christian church in Domino City, when he did some digging a few days before Christmas. He settled on surprise, since he didn’t figure it likely that he would find anything at all. It wasn’t that he held a particular belief, but there were some traditions very deeply ingrained in him from childhood that caused him to feel a certain yearning with the approach of the holiday. Though he, like many, had the day off, he got up early and solemnly chose to attend morning mass at the small church, alone. He spoke to no one, remaining wrapped in his own thoughts and reasons for being there, and lingered just long enough afterward to light candles and send up a silent prayer for his parents’ and younger brother’s souls before drifting out like a silent, dark shadow and mounting his motorcycle for a brisk ride home. Upon entering his flat, he felt the buzz of his cell phone going off even before he could take off his coat and fish it out of the pocket. To his great relief, it was the caller he was hoping for. His heart warmed within him as he heard the intended plans and agreed to head over to the Kaiba estate around noon for food and companionship.
Before the day had even dawned, Joey and Mai knew it was going to be long and more than a little awkward. Mai was meeting Joey’s mother for the first time, and likewise, her parents were coming in from Tokyo to meet Joey and his family. True to their nature as aloof, moneyed people, they were staying in an upscale hotel downtown and Mai’s father planned to spring for the entire family dinner at an expensive restaurant later that afternoon. Meanwhile, Joey’s mother and sister would be staying with them, meaning not only did Joey have to exert an effort to clean the second bedroom of the flat and make it presentable for guests, but he couldn’t sleep in on Christmas morning. Mrs. Kawai and Serenity would be arriving before noon, to give them time to meet Mai on their own time and settle in before everyone had to go down to meet the other parents. Mai stayed out of his way while he flitted in and out of each room on a panicked mission to make sure everything was just right, which could only be derailed by the door buzzer announcing that his family had arrived. Joey popped out of the bedroom and nearly ran his fiancé over in his haste to answer the door, pausing to take a deep breath before opening it to his sister’s brilliant smile. She crowed, “Joey!” upon seeing his face and pounced on him, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.
All of Joey’s anxiety seemed to evaporate in that instant, awakening his biggest grin as he hugged her back. “Serenity,” he said, almost relieved.
“Merry Christmas,” she added before letting him go and straightening her sweater. “It’s so good to see you!”
“Yeah, you too.” Joey stepped back to invite her in, and then glanced to his estranged mother’s silent presence waiting just beyond Serenity in the hallway. He sobered, but managed to not look worried. Rather, a calm, gentle look came into his brown eyes. “Hey…Mom,” he greeted her in a quiet tone.
Serenity, meanwhile had gone past him and leaped on Mai next, launching into a wave of mutual girl-babble about how good it was to see each other and how nice they looked. Mai was just as glad as Joey to see his younger sister, they had a great relationship already, but she warily glanced past Serenity to watch the exchange between her fiancé and his mother. Since Serenity’s medical issues, he had spoken with his mom more than in the previous eight or so years since their parents divorced and divided the siblings, but their relationship still suffered the strain of the initial trauma and made moments like this a little awkward. Mrs. Kawai stepped into the doorway and favored her blond son with a warm smile. “Merry Christmas, Joey,” she said, choosing to use his more familiar name like his friends did.
Joey’s shoulders relaxed, and he held out a hand to usher her in. “C’mon in. I…oh, here, lemme get that…”
His mother was wheeling a carryon behind her, which held both her and Serenity’s effects for the overnight visit to Domino. Joey did his most gentlemanly act and took it for her, bringing it into his flat and stowing it safely in a corner while his mom entered and looked around. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever been to your place, before,” she noted curiously. “Is this the same one your father got when you first moved here…?”
“Yup. Managed not to get kicked out, and here I am.” Logistics taken care of, Joey brushed his hands on his pants in a nervous gesture and stepped up strategically between her and Mai, who stood waiting with Serenity for the inevitable. The two women met each other’s eyes even as Joey mumbled, “Um…Ma…this is Mai. Mai Valentine. Mai…”
Mai extended her hand amiably, as if being introduced professionally to a journalist or model. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Kawai. Between Joey and Serenity, I feel like I already know you.”
Mrs. Kawai needed only a second to size up her son’s fiancé before smiling in return and clasping the offered hand. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mai. Serenity has been going on and on about you for months – and spent all morning on the train assuring me that I would see the minute we met how right you are for Joey. Don’t worry. I’m not going to spend all day studying you to see if you measure up or anything.” Her smile took on a twinkling quality that reminded Mai of Serenity – or even Joey, in a way. “I look forward to spending some time with you, and getting to know you.”
Mai tried to hide her sigh of relief behind a smile. She had chosen to dress somewhat conservatively for the occasion, in a fuzzy sweater and denim skirt, but it didn’t appear that Mrs. Kawai was out to reject her for any reason, least of all her choice of fashion. “I look forward to it, too,” she acknowledged in her warm alto voice.
With the formalities out of the way, Serenity swept in and clutched Mai’s arm excitedly. “Do you want to open your presents now, or save them for later?”
“Presents?” Joey exclaimed as if he’d never heard the word before. “What did you go and do that for, Serenity? I thought we weren’t going to this year, because of the whole wedding thing…”
Serenity’s eyes widened worriedly, as if she feared she had offended her brother, but Mai instantly broke in and shoved him backward. “Dork, stop messing with your sister’s head. We got you something, too,” she added more kindly to Serenity. “What do you think? Should we do it now instead of waiting? We have some time before we have to drive down to meet my parents at the hotel, I’ll put on some coffee and we can talk for a bit. All nice and leisurely-like, instead of rushing it tonight or something.”
“All right!” Serenity consented.
“That sounds wonderful,” her mother added.
Joey shyly stepped in to take their coats and show them to seats in the living room, which had been straightened up for their visit, while Mai ducked into the kitchen to make coffee (and cocoa for Serenity). “So,” he tried to small-talk, “how was the train? Crowded?”
“Not that much,” his mother replied. Judging by her demure poise on the edge of the couch, she was perhaps just as nervous as he was to finally be welcomed into her son’s home and life. “I’m sure we were early enough to miss most of the holiday travelers.”
“That’s good.” Rather than take a seat he wouldn’t be able to stay in for long, Joey chose to stand near her, sliding his hands into his back pockets to keep himself from fidgeting. “Uh…so how ya been?”
His mom folded her hands in her lap. “Oh, I can’t complain. Life is very quiet on our end.”
Serenity stepped up to her brother, then, holding out a couple of small, wrapped packages. “Here! We got both of you a little something. I would have just gotten you Duel Monsters cards, but I don’t know which ones you’re looking for.”
“That’s okay,” Joey assured her. “Here, gimme a second…” He turned to set the packages on a table, and then darted down the hallway to collect the reciprocal gifts as quickly as possible. When he returned, Mai was already bringing in Serenity’s cocoa and promised coffee in short order. For a while, then, the fervent unwrapping of presents covered any need for small talk, followed by more of Serenity’s energetic hugging and squealing over the cute sweater Mai had picked out for her. She decided she wanted to wear it to dinner, so for a few moments the girls disappeared into the back bedroom to try it on, leaving Joey alone with his mother again. “Great,” he groaned at the giggling filtering back down the hallway. “Serenity’s gonna get spoiled by her sister-in-law. Just what she needs.”
His mother chuckled into her coffee cup. “Actually, I think it is just what she needs.” She smiled warmly at Joey. “Another female presence, someone she can relate to.” A questioning look quirked her eyebrow. “Just how many years older than you is she?”
“Uh…‘bout seven,” Joey replied, shrugging. “Not too much. It seemed like a lot more when I was still in high school, but…it’s not so bad now. Helps to have had that one big thing in common.”
“It looks to me like you have more than just dueling in common.” Joey glanced at his mother to find her still focused on her coffee, but smiling in a very knowing way. “Mai is a very lovely woman. Very spirited, but kind.”
“Ma…” Joey sighed. “You only just met her.”
“Well, so far, I like what I see,” his mom laughed. “I look forward to the rest of the day. It should be interesting.”
Joey rolled his eyes warily. He knew better than her what they were getting into once they went to meet Mai’s parents. “Yeah. Interesting.”
Yugi was still puttering around putting the last touches on everything when the doorbell rang, sending him bouncing down the stairs to the back door. When he swung it wide, four faces crowded into the opening all at once, and four voices simultaneously cried, “Merry Christmas!”
Yugi laughed brightly at their welcome. “Hi guys! What’s this? You all came at the same time?”
“Funny how that worked out,” Duke said airily as he shouldered his way in, followed by Tristan, Marik, and Bakura in quick order. Yugi retreated a few steps back up the stairs to let them all into the foyer to doff their coats, gloves, and shoes. “Tristan and I pulled up just as Marik and Bakura were pulling up, so we decided to pounce on you all at once.”
Yugi craned his neck to see through the door before Marik closed it behind them; two motorcycles were parked back to back against the curb. “Well, that’s what I call good timing,” Yugi complimented them. “It’s not too cold to ride?”
“Nah, it’s a little brisk but there’s no snow,” Tristan shrugged, tucking his driving gloves into the pocket of his coat before hanging it up. “That’s about the only thing that would keep me off my bike right about now.”
“Same here,” Marik piped up. “Besides, nothing keeps you warm better than having a passenger snuggled up behind you.” He gave his boyfriend a smile, which was shyly returned.
“Well, come in, come in!” Yugi led the way up the stairs, and the thunder of so many feet on the steps got Grandpa Muto’s attention. He poked his head out of the kitchen just in time to see the parade of young men come up and around the corner, and all of them greeted him warmly upon seeing him there. “Do you need me to help, Grandpa?” Yugi added after pleasantries had been exchanged. “Because I can…”
Solomon shooed him away with a quick wave of his hands. “No, no, you have guests. You need to go entertain them. I’ve got everything under control!” He then turned to the others. “You boys want anything to drink?”
“Sure, what you got?” Tristan responded.
Yugi’s desire to help made him the perfect one to bring out drinks for everybody, but then he was permanently chased out of the kitchen to be with his friends while his grandpa took care of the rest. They all sat comfortably around the living room cradling warm mugs of either tea or cocoa in their chilled hands. “What’s your grandpa so flustered about?” Duke idly wondered. “If I were him, I wouldn’t want to be stuck in the kitchen alone while everybody else was out here having fun.”
“Oh, he’s just excited,” Yugi explained as he flopped down in a chair with his cocoa. “He’s trying some kind of new recipe or something, it’s all his idea. I wanted to help, but he won’t let me, now that you’re all here.” He beamed cutely. “I guess I can leave it to him. He doesn’t get to entertain much, if you think about it. We’re always busy with the shop, we don’t even have relatives over or anything.”
“Not even for holidays?” Bakura wondered, gingerly holding his tea close to his lips but waiting until it cooled down to drink.
Yugi shook his head, making the blond tendrils beside his face sway. “It’s really only just us,” he said gently, “and my Aunt Keiko and her family – but they live in Kyoto. We hardly ever see them, she comes to visit maybe once a year for Grandpa’s birthday and that’s it.” He glanced at Tristan, nearest to him, while he told the tale. “She and my uncle have pretty traditional views on a lot of things. They don’t even really have anything to do with Christmas. Not that they’re against it – they just don’t know what to make of it. It’s like they think it’s a holiday for young people or something.”
“Hey, if it gets them off a day of work, I don’t see why they’d complain,” Tristan said. “I actually had to ask off – TV stations have to keep running even on holidays, you know.”
“I’m not complaining at all,” Marik said happily. “Tomorrow’s my regular day off, too, so I have some time to breathe and recover from everything leading up to today.”
“And I don’t have to be back to the university for any reason until after the first of the year,” Bakura put in cheerfully. “Unless I wanted to take any extra hours, cleaning and reorganizing after the last term and getting ready for the next.” He caught a glance from his partner beside him and made sure to grin to put him at ease. “But I don’t really need to do that.”
Yugi sipped at his cocoa, breathing deeply of the chocolate-scented heat coming off it, and then turned to Tristan. “So how did it go, this morning?”
Tristan sat up, his eyes brightening. “Actually…not that bad.” He glanced at his partner sharing the chair with him – they weren’t completely in each other’s laps, but still rather snuggly. Here, they could get away with it. “Duke gave me a surprise this morning by asking to come along. To meet my family. I mean, he already met my little brother a while ago, but…” He shrugged. “I think it helped, to be honest.”
“What was this?” Ryo wondered kindly. “What happened, Tristan?”
“I went over to my parents’ this morning, to say Merry Christmas and give them a couple small gifts,” Tristan explained, his voice growing a little more serious. “Things haven’t been all that great between us ever since I told them about Duke and moving in with him. I expected a lot worse than I got.”
“Your mom’s nice,” Duke offered, then. “Doesn’t surprise me that you’re closer to her.”
His boyfriend nodded. “Yeah, Mom’s cool. I think, any kind of tension or estrangement between me and the family hurts her worse than me being with another man. Not that bygones are bygones,” he added to explain to Yugi. “My father didn’t really have anything to say, he just stood there for a while, listened, and eventually just kind of left the room. My brother still won’t talk to me, but he sure didn’t say no to a present.”
“Little snot,” Duke grumbled. “He can’t be bothered for anything except getting stuff.”
“I’m sure it’ll take a little more time,” Yugi said understandingly. “We all remember what it’s like to be that age, what high school is like and how the other kids pressure you. He probably still loves you, but he doesn’t want any of his friends to find out in case they pick on him for it.”
“I know,” Tristan sighed. “I’m not going to lay awake at night worrying about it. Either he grows up and gets his head out of his ass, or he doesn’t, and if he doesn’t, it’s not going to change the fact that he’s my brother. But if he makes things tough on my mom…” He shook a fist. “Then he’s gonna have to answer to me.”
“So it wasn’t terrible?” Yugi asked for confirmation.
Duke smirked a little. “It went fine. We weren’t there long, just enough to say hi and trade presents. Tristan’s mom had a little something for him – for us, actually. Something for the flat.”
“I didn’t want to stay long,” Tristan explained. “I didn’t want to put any pressure on them, just in case. We didn’t even stay for coffee. But…” He glanced at his partner again, and they shared a similar smile. “…I’m glad I did it.”
“Well, I’m glad for you,” Yugi said. “Life is hard enough without the people we love making it even harder for us.”
Some clattering noise from the kitchen made them all glance aside for a second. “What is he doing in there?” Tristan wondered again.
“Grandpa?” Yugi called out. “Are you all right in there?”
“Fine!” his grandfather called back instantly, sounding as bright and bold as ever. “You just take care of your guests. I know what I’m doing.”
Marik raised an eyebrow at Yugi. “New recipe, huh?”
“That’s one of his many odd hobbies,” Yugi sighed. “He collects exotic recipes. At least with both of us working in the shop, now, he has more chances to cook – and I will admit, he’s really good at it. Sometimes, I come upstairs to something new and weird and good.”
“Sometimes,” Duke repeated, noticing his choice of words.
“Well, if he traveled as much as he says, he probably picked up a taste for all kinds of exotic cuisine around the world,” Marik offered.
“Speaking of which…” Yugi pointed across to him. “You still promised me the kind of big full-course dinner you have in Egypt.”
“Oh, that’s right, I did,” Marik laughed. His one-time experiment for Ryo’s sake had gone very well, though since then all he had been able to do was introduce small hints of it into their daily meals. “Well, maybe one of these upcoming ritual days. I know he doesn’t remember his past, but I’m sure Yami wouldn’t mind having a taste of it anyway.”
“Believe it or not,” Yugi said with an exasperated twitch of his brow, “you can impress him with food very easily. Probably because he doesn’t have to eat to stay alive – it’s all for pleasure.”
“A man after my own heart,” Tristan sighed happily.
It wasn’t long before the clattering in the kitchen gave way to the most wonderful aromas, and Grandpa Muto finally came out to welcome everyone properly just before the meal was ready to be served. He took their good-natured teasing about his new hobby in stride, though he paid them back by asking all of them to help Yugi set the table. Tristan and Marik moved the furniture aside to make plenty of room around the low table, while Bakura and Duke eagerly assisted Yugi in arranging the table in a rather eye-catching setting, with plenty of room in the middle for the food that was shortly to come. Of the three of them, Ryo seemed to know the most about how a table should be properly set, but they had a good laugh over none of them knowing how to fold napkins into fetching little shapes. Then, at last, it was time for food, and Yugi helped his grandpa bring out dish after dish that smelled spicy and wonderful. It wasn’t exactly an Egyptian-style feast, but there was a lot of Middle Eastern spice to it to give it that sort of flare. Grandpa Muto offered their guests their choice of jasmine tea or a certain wine perfect for the meal, and in short order they were all kneeling around the table eager to dig in. Yugi and his grandfather sat at either end of the table, with Duke and Tristan together on one side, Marik and Ryo on the other, as it should be. The dinner company was smaller than the year before, with a few new faces, but it was still cozy and friendly and just right, Yugi thought, as he smiled around at all of them. Solomon took his wine glass to him and raised it. “Well, now. It’s customary around here to start a big dinner like this, with friends, with a toast. Yugi?” He nodded toward his grandson at the other end. “Would you like to do the honors this time?”
“Umm…sure.” Yugi was not at all prepared, so as he slowly took his hot mug of tea in hand, he mulled it over and tried to quickly compose something meaningful. It would have been better with Yami at his side, but he could feel the pharaoh’s spirit within him, closer than ever and tinged with an aura of warmth and love. A smile began to fill Yugi’s face as he lifted his head, and his cup, and regarded his friends. They were the ones left behind, the ones who society wouldn’t accept, who had fled from home and even country to seek love and acceptance. Here, at this table, they belonged together. “To…us,” he began. “And all our friends. I wish a lot of things for us, but most of all, I wish us all happiness, friendships forever, love that never dies, and an end to sorrow and fear.”
The others all raised their glasses to the eloquent toast. “And lots of money,” Duke added.
“Duke…” Tristan scolded him.
“What? I don’t know about you, but I think lots of money would end my sorrow and fear.”
Yugi giggled. “I’ll drink to that!”
Every one of them took a sip of whatever drink they had chosen, and then they were free to pounce on the food. Even as they were spooning fragrant Indian rice and pungently-spiced stew onto their plates, Grandpa Muto was proudly extolling the nouveau recipe book from which he had gotten the ideas to make something completely extraordinary that none of them had experienced before. Marik was already halfway through his first piece of buttery flatbread, in heaven because it was exactly the kind he used to have back home in Egypt. For a good while the table was filled with laughter and reminiscing, in between happy munching, all led and encouraged by Yugi’s indefatigable good spirit. Something he said at one point about “back in the day” made Marik sit up in curious interest. “You know, that reminds me,” he said. “It was something Alastair said when we were all out at lunch a couple weeks ago. About how nobody who gets to know you stays your enemy for very long.”
“Oh?” Yugi glanced idly in his direction. “What about it?”
“Well, just that…it’s true, you know.” Marik nodded across the table to his friends. “How many of the people we know, even just around the table here, used to be your rival in some way?”
“Oh, man…pretty much everybody,” Tristan said wryly. “You and Duke, definitely, and I guess Bakura kind of counts…”
“Kind of,” Ryo agreed. “Though not for my part, I’ve always liked Yugi.”
“Even me and Joey weren’t at all nice to him the first time we met him,” Tristan went on. “He was just that geek kid that nobody was friends with, so we did as any decent street punks ought to do, and picked on him.” His head turned to regard Yugi with a sweet smile. “But then he showed us a different side of him, and everything changed. And that was even before he put the Puzzle together,” he noted. “That was all Yugi.”
“It seems the same can be said of all of us,” Marik marveled. “These days, even Kaiba is treating you with something akin to respect – which is significant coming from him. So many of us can trace the changes in our life back to you, Yugi. Everyone who ever wanted to destroy you is your friend now.”
“Well, not everyone,” Yugi demurred shyly.
“Pretty close to it,” Duke put in.
“That’s because there’s just something about Yugi that draws people to him,” Tristan said, “that makes everyone want to be his friend regardless of how they started out. I don’t know what it is…” He looked at Yugi again, his smile even stronger. “…but don’t you ever lose it. You hear me? You stay the same sweet, friendly soul you are, and keep turning your rivals around. I think every one of us here at this table owes you for that. If not for you, who knows where we’d be?”
“You,” Duke added, “and that Puzzle of yours.”
Yugi bowed his head and closed his eyes, smiling to himself. Inside his mind, he could hear another voice adding to the conversation. “As much as I would like to take credit for helping you turn your life around,” Yami said to him alone, “the special thing your friends speak of is something deep down inside you that was there long before you met me. It’s the thing that strengthens our bond and makes you who you are, Yugi. It may be something somewhat intangible, but whatever it is…it is fueled by your love. You have a heart of light and love, and share that with all your friends.”
Yugi was pretty sure his cheeks were red, though his friends at the table may have chalked it up to their own glowing praise of him, if they noticed. “But Duke does have a point,” he said to his internal partner. “If not for you, a lot of my friends would have stayed my enemies. You’ve been with me at all those critical points. It isn’t just me, but us together, who’s saved some of them from some very dark paths they were once on. You’ve been their friend all this time, too.”
“Perhaps.” Yami’s presence in his soul was like liquid fire filling him to the tips of his fingers and toes, the sort of fire that warmed a hearth or welcomed a weary traveler at the end of a long day. “Then, please, tell all of them something for me…”
Yugi listened quietly, and then raised his head to look around the table at all of his friends. “Yami wants all of you to know that…he loves you guys, too. That…just as you’ve been such good friends to me, these past few years, you’ve been the same to him. And he says to thank you for taking such good care of me,” he added bashfully.
“I thought he was doing a pretty good job of that himself,” Duke chuckled slyly.
Yugi laughed too, breaking the growing tension he was feeling over such heavy-handed sentiment. “Thanks, guys. And I love you, too. You all mean a lot to me, and I’m glad you’re here.”
“Wait,” Tristan said. “Who’s Alastair?”
Marik closed his mouth instantly, looking away as if pretending he hadn’t said that name. Yugi winced and sighed. “It’s a long story. I’ll tell you later.”
From where he sat, Seto Kaiba heard both the motorcycle’s engine and Mokuba’s feet storming down the stairs at the same time, certain that the latter was precipitated by the former. He quietly tucked a bookmark into the book he had been silently reading and set it aside, rising and going to the door even as he heard the knock, standing aside to wait since Mokuba had beaten him to it and opened it for their guest. Alastair and his big gray coat glided in through the wide doorway, already smiling at the younger brother’s enthusiastic welcome. There were a couple of wrapped packages under his arm. “Hey, kiddo,” he greeted Mokuba. “What’s up? Merry Christmas.”
“Thanks! Same to you. Come in!” Mokuba stood aside to let him in and close the door behind him, shutting out the cold, gray day. “Is that for us?”
“No, I thought I’d wrap a couple of empty boxes and carry them around with me for fun.” Alastair smirked at the response he got – Mokuba stuck out his tongue insolently. “Fine, here…” He held out the packages for Mokuba to hold so he could take off his coat and gloves. As he was doing so (and Mokuba absconded with the presents), he glanced to see Seto approaching from the side, reaching to take his coat. He had spotted his lover immediately upon entering, surprised and a little saddened by the twinge of emotion that stabbed in his chest at the sight of someone waiting to welcome him – it was a feeling of acceptance that he had not felt in a very long time. He simply tucked his gloves into his coat pocket and allowed Kaiba to take his coat from him, though he only had to turn and take one step to hang it up on the coat rack along with his own, something Alastair was perfectly capable of doing himself. But as long as Kaiba was going to do the polite thing for his guest, Alastair decided to accept it. At last, he had the moment he wanted – he was face to face with his lover. “Hi,” he murmured.
Kaiba stepped back to meet him and kissed him gently, first, before murmuring in return, “Make yourself at home.”
“Mm…can I?” Alastair gave him a little smirk and stepped aside. “All right, where did Mokuba go? One of those is for you, you know.”
“Probably to the sitting room,” Kaiba said blandly. “We still have a short time to wait for dinner. I was reading in there, but he’s been pacing upstairs and downstairs all morning.”
“Not waiting for me, I hope,” Alastair said as Kaiba passed him to lead the way to the sitting room, in the far wing opposite the one that held the study and dining room. “I had something I had to take care of, this morning.”
“Is that why your phone was off?” Kaiba didn’t glance over his shoulder as he commented, passing through a wide entryway to the sitting room at the very end of the house. It was an old-fashioned sort of feature to the estate, with a fireplace, but the fire in it was only a fake. “I tried calling earlier. I thought you might have been lazing around in bed, still.”
“Not quite.” Sure enough, as they came into the room, they found Mokuba curled up in a chair next to the fireplace with the packages sitting innocently on a table – with several others. Alastair blinked, wondering if that was Mokuba’s way of indicating that the others were for him, and they would be exchanged later. He shrugged it off and concentrated on the company instead. “Nice,” he complimented with a nod. “I don’t think I’ve been in this room, yet.”
“I should have given you a real tour, the first time you were here,” Mokuba pouted. “Then you would have seen every inch of our house.”
“Eh, I’ve seen all the parts that were important.” Alastair cast his partner a sly look, which was not acknowledged. He walked around the room, giving it an inspection, particularly the view out the windows to the thick grove of trees which surrounded the walled estate. Behind him, Kaiba went to pick up his book from where it sat and replace it on a shelf, as if to signal that he was done with it for today and his attention was going to be given elsewhere. Though the course of his tour, Alastair came up behind Mokuba’s chair and roughly tousled his hair. “So what’s up, kid? Behaving yourself?”
“Hey, knock it off!” Mokuba complained, fending off the hands messing up his shaggy hair. “I’m just bored, is all. Seto made me wait until you got here before I could even think about opening presents and stuff.”
“Aw…that’s nice of you guys.” The flippant comment was meant to cover another flash of sweet pain; he was being treated as though he mattered, it was new to him. At least, considering who it was who was being so nice. Alastair finished up in front of the fireplace, where a few artful trinkets and a lone framed portrait of Mokuba sat on the mantel. He sensed Kaiba coming up behind him even before feeling the hand alight on his back, and could see Mokuba just to the side eagerly eyeing them both in anticipation. He turned his head just enough to give his lover a faint smile. “Well. I’m here, now. So maybe Seto will lighten up.”
“You just got here,” Kaiba noted. “Sit down and take it easy. We’ll get to that later. After dinner.”
“Aww!” Mokuba whined.
“Mokuba.” The elder brother turned an aloof look on the younger. “If you want to do something useful, go into the kitchen and see how much longer it’s going to be.”
“I was just in there five minutes ago,” Mokuba grumbled, though he made a great show of pulling himself to his feet and trudging off to the corridor that would take him to the kitchen. “I don’t know why I have to go away every time you guys want to kiss.”
Alastair heard Kaiba make a small grunt of annoyance and chuckled. “He’s got you there,” he noted.
“I wasn’t sending him away,” Kaiba retorted.
“Even so…” Alastair turned to him, trying to swallow his unsettled emotions and comfort himself with the idea of wanting his lover’s lips so badly. “As long as we have a moment…”
Kaiba merely leaned forward and gave him a small peck, taking him by the wrist instead and leading him toward the couch which sat facing the fireplace. “Why be in such a hurry?” he murmured. “We have all day.”
Alastair really couldn’t argue with that, so he followed his partner’s advice and took a seat on the couch, finding it every bit as comfy and squishy as it looked. Seto sat beside him, heaving a soft sigh. Naturally, before either of them could say anything, Mokuba was back, announcing even before he passed through the doorway, “She said about half an hour. But they’re gonna bring out the coffee now like you wanted them to.”
“See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Kaiba gruffly chided his younger brother. Mokuba smirked and flopped back into the chair, making himself into an audience for the other two. Kaiba turned his attention back to his partner. “So, answer my question. Where were you this morning, that you needed to keep your phone off?”
Alastair lowered his gaze to where his hands rested on his knee. “To be honest…I…went to church.”
“What?” Mokuba exclaimed. “I didn’t know you were religious.”
“I’m not,” Alastair admitted frankly. “After being in Dartz’s service so long I don’t know what I believe. But…where I come from…that’s just what you do on Christmas morning. It’s kind of tradition. It’s a lot different than what you guys over here think of Christmas,” he added pointedly. “You don’t have the same traditions as we did.”
He glanced at Mokuba, finding him open and interested with wide eyes. “Really? What are your traditions like?”
One of the maids came in, then, with a tray bearing hot coffee for the adults and cocoa for Mokuba, so Alastair waited until she had served them and disappeared before answering. “Well,” he sighed, “I grew up in a part of Europe that had a lot of deeply ingrained religious traditions – so much so that it caused all those wars. I came from the Christian part; my people fought against the Muslims and to some extent the Orthodox types over the border. Whether or not you actually believe anything, it’s such a part of the life and history of villages like mine that…it’s just something you do, it gets in your blood. Christmas was, and is, a really big holiday in the West. A holy day, if you were religious, and even if you weren’t, you still had to go to church and then have a gathering with your family. Which is the best part. I mean, you can’t go wrong with a huge feast and lots of cookies and cakes, and all your cousins and second-cousins and friends from the village running around.”
“Wow…you had a big family?” Mokuba wondered.
Alastair glanced at Kaiba, who was listening quietly, cradling the coffee mug in his hands. “Well, it was just my parents, me, and Michael, but…yeah, extended family lived all around us. And people in the village got to be like family. We’d all get together on Christmas, after mass, and have a big dinner.”
Mokuba perked up. “Kind of like we are, today!”
Alastair blinked at him. That one, casual statement brought all of his jumbled feelings into focus. He hadn’t been able to pinpoint why showing up at Kaiba’s had brought a wave of melancholy to his heart, but now he knew. He always missed his family, but on Christmas Day most of all, so being welcomed into the Kaibas’ home like part of their family hit him hard. He took a deep breath before continuing. “Yeah,” he said, trying to smile, “but you’d have to multiply it by about five times to get the number of people that used to crowd into our house.”
The younger Kaiba sat forward eagerly. “Did it snow in your country?”
“Oh yeah,” Alastair replied, glad to have something less painful to focus on. “Lots. By Christmastime, we’d have probably a foot of snow on the ground.”
“Wow!”
“My friends and I would always go sledding after the Christmas dinner,” Alastair went on, glad to have such a ready audience. “I’m surprised I didn’t break any bones doing that. We lived in the mountains, you know.”
Mokuba eyed him enviously. “That’s so cool. I bet it was really pretty, too.”
“Yeah, you could say that.” Alastair looked away, then, as memories of the landscape around his home covered in snow welled up from the darkest recesses of his mind. He held his coffee cup in his lap, but as of yet, hadn’t taken a drink from it. A long silence lapsed while he retreated into memory, but he shook his head to snap himself out of it. “Sorry,” he muttered. “It’s…hard to think about, right now.”
“Mokuba, leave him alone,” Seto said in a low murmur.
“No…it’s all right.” Alastair raised a hand to caution his lover not to scold Mokuba for bringing it up. “I don’t mind talking about it…as much as I can. No one’s ever really cared to hear it, before.”
“I didn’t realize things from that long ago were so painful,” Mokuba said sheepishly.
“It’s just…” Alastair heaved a long sigh. “Christmas is a really hard day for me, kind of…bittersweet, I guess. I lost a good portion of my life to Dartz, so trying to regain what I remember of special days like this, and spending them with my family, is kind of rough. Especially with traditions being so different, or practically nonexistent, here. Christmas here has none of the connotations I’m used to. I’m sort of…lost.”
He felt a hand come to rest on his shoulder and caress lightly. “You never thought about it, until now?” Kaiba asked heavily.
“I tried not to. While I was under Dartz’s control, it was easy, but…past couple of years…I tried to ignore it. But now…” He shook his head again. “Never mind. It’s okay, really. If you want to know what Christmas is like in Eastern Europe, I can tell you. About decorating the tree, and caroling by candlelight, stuff like that…”
“Caroling?” Mokuba repeated in perplexity. “What do you mean?”
Alastair smiled slightly and explained it, as best he could. For as long as he didn’t speak directly of his family, and kept it abstract, he could be convinced to talk away the afternoon about how Christmas was so vastly different in Western countries. After a minute or two Kaiba’s hand eased away from his companion’s shoulder, though his proximity was enough for Alastair’s comfort right now. Having him there, listening, guarding him against any further too-personal intrusion from Mokuba, was actually quite nice. At one point, Alastair even glanced to see a rare look of warmth bordering on a smile on Seto’s face as he sat and kept him company. He didn’t say much, letting Mokuba do most of the talking, but now and then he would ask just the right question to deftly steer the conversation away from any subject that might bring the crushing look of sadness back to Alastair’s face. It was a good way to spend an afternoon while waiting for dinner to be served, warming up over coffee and a friendly chat with the stoic, stable presence of Kaiba beside Alastair on the couch.
Inwardly, Seto realized that he, too, was thinking about family. It was strange to him, because for so long it had been just him and Mokuba and he hadn’t cared about anything more than that. But now, there was someone else he wanted to spend time with, someone else he liked having around and didn’t think twice about calling up to invite over on the holiday. Seeing the melancholy in Alastair’s eyes brought him genuine concern, and Mokuba’s pestering had actually made Seto angry with him. Perhaps on some level he understood where Alastair was coming from, even though he and Mokuba had been too young to have developed a lot of traditions with their parents which they might miss at certain times. Kaiba only knew, as he sat beside Alastair and listened to him, gauging his tone of voice and the things he chose not to say more than the actual tales of childhood themselves, that he was glad to have this friend, this boyfriend, here with him, and wanted to protect him from any harm. There wasn’t any particular reason for him to feel so generous of spirit, he didn’t give a whit about Christmas in the first place, but…that was the way of it. If they were alone, perhaps he would find the courage to discover the true depths of his care and whether Alastair felt the same in return, but at the moment, there was nothing else for Mokuba to do, so he hung around and chatted to help pass the time until dinner. By the time the maid reappeared to summon them to the table, moods were light again, and Alastair was laughing lightly at things Mokuba said, engaging him in actual conversation. The younger brother skipped ahead to the dining room, while behind him, the two young men strode together with Seto a half-step behind, wondering how in the world he got to be where he was at that moment. A year ago, he would never have been able to predict that he would find himself with someone he would want to invite over for dinner on Christmas Day, much less a lover, or that said someone would be the man who once tried to destroy him out of vengeance for something his brute of a stepfather did long ago. The bizarre twists and turns of life filled Kaiba with an idle sort of curiosity, the kind that his intelligent mind desperately wanted to mull over no matter how much his heart resisted it. For now, he silenced them both so he and his companion, and little brother, could enjoy a lovely dinner together.
Around the same time, Joey, Mai, and his family were on their way downtown to meet Mai’s parents at their upscale hotel. Mai drove, with Serenity beside her, so Joey and his mother could sit in the back and catch up on things like his schooling and plans for the upcoming university term. The girls up front had no problem finding things to chat about, since Serenity wanted to know all about what kinds of things she would get to do as a bridesmaid, the flowers, the decorations, everything. In back, things were a bit different. The conversation was quiet and mildly awkward, for Joey still didn’t know quite how to open up to his mother after all this time and just pour out his heart – or his casual interests, as the case may be. At least the drive was fairly short, he didn’t need to fill all that much time after all. Most of the offices downtown were closed that day, so it wasn’t hard to find a parking space, and immediately upon doing so, Mai had her cell phone out and called up to inform her parents that they were on their way. The message was short and businesslike, but as soon as she hung up, she wilted with a sigh. “I am so not looking forward to this,” she muttered so only Joey could hear her.
“Come on, it can’t be that bad,” Joey tried to encourage. “This is the most time I’ve spent with my mom since I was like, ten. How bad can your parents be?”
“Just you wait,” Mai said warily as they began walking. “Why do you think I haven’t spoken to them since well before you even met me?”
“I dunno. ‘Cause you’re a big girl and don’t need to go running to Mommy when you have a problem?” her fiancé shrugged. “I always just thought it made you look more independent.”
“Yeah, thanks,” Mai snorted. “What’s that they say? Hope for the best but expect the worst?”
“Eh, come on,” Joey scoffed. “I ain’t worried. The most they can do is what, disapprove of me? Big deal. Lots of people don’t like me. Doesn’t mean they’re right.” He grinned slyly at her as they walked, slipping his hand into hers. “Kaiba doesn’t like me, but you don’t see me losing sleep over it, do you?”
The thought brought a smile to Mai’s lips. “Well, when you put it that way…”
They stepped into the lavishly-decorated lobby of the ritzy hotel where Mai’s affluent parents had chosen to stay, and it wasn’t hard to find the people they were supposed to meet. The tall man in a somber suit and the thin, petite woman with very sparkly diamond earrings and rings were practically alone in the lobby, standing at attention, but it was clear they were the ones related to Mai. She had her mother’s violet eyes and blond hair. Within seconds of stepping through the door, Mai seemed to shrink from the bold, confident woman she was to a timid little girl, taking Joey’s arm and practically using him as a shield as they approached the waiting couple. When they were but a few steps away, Mai’s mother obviously lit up and stepped toward her, opening her arms as if to hug her. “Mai, darling. It’s so wonderful to see you.”
Mai let go of Joey just enough to meet her mother, who merely placed her hands on her daughter’s shoulders and leaned in to give her a weak peck on the cheek. “Mom, Dad,” she greeted them both with a nod. “I’m glad you’re here. How was your flight?”
“Average,” her father replied curtly. He was already eyeballing her entourage. “Well, Mai? Are we going to be properly introduced?”
Mai tried not to flush under his scrutiny and turned to present the others. “Everyone, please meet my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Kujaku,” she said crisply. “Um…this is Joey Katsuya. My fiancé,” she said as if it could have been anyone else, “his mother, Mrs. Kawai, and his sister Serenity.”
Mrs. Kawai bowed respectfully. “It is an honor to meet you.”
Joey threw back his shoulders and extended a hand to Mai’s father. “Mr. Kujaku,” he said warily.
Mr. Kujaku eyed him for a moment before barely taking his hand, his brow twitching in mild surprise at the strength of the handshake being offered. “So you’re the young man in question,” he muttered. “I ought to congratulate you on doing what Mai’s mother and I have never been able to do – get her to settle down and retire from Duel Monsters.”
“I’m not retired, Dad,” Mai pouted angrily. “Joey is ranked second in the world in the game, you know.”
Her father eyed her instead. “You never mentioned anything about him playing the game too.”
“Oh, leave it be,” her mother interrupted, clasping her daughter’s hand. “Mai, we really are glad to see you. And it’s a pleasure to meet you, as well,” she said to Joey’s mother, likewise bowing. “It seems we have a lot to talk about.”
“I look forward to it,” Mrs. Kawai said kindly. Serenity wisely said nothing, staying behind her mother and only nodding when introduced.
“Oh, let me see your ring!” Mai’s mother suddenly remembered.
Mai hesitated for a moment, blinking at the floor, before deciding to remove her glove and display the engagement ring she and Joey had gotten together on Valentine’s Day. It was nice for its cost, Joey couldn’t have afforded anything better, and she happened to love it, but she knew as soon as the words left her mother’s mouth that she wouldn’t be impressed by the size or carat of the diamond. “It’s beautiful,” Mrs. Kawai added supportively – she had noticed it earlier but chose not to demand to see it up close. “You picked it out together, right?”
“Mhm,” Mai nodded, beginning to smile warmly. “This was the one I wanted.”
“Ah, yes. It’s very cute,” Mrs. Kujaku said quickly, nodding and stepping back.
“Well,” Mr. Kujaku said, straightening up. “We have reservations, we ought to make them.”
“It’s just up the block,” his wife added. “It’s a wonderful place, it comes highly recommended.”
“Well, then, let’s go,” Mai agreed, taking Joey’s arm again.
They passed right back out onto the street and into the cold, the entire party falling silent for the duration of the short walk. Mai’s father, being the moneyed man that he was, had chosen a rather expensive restaurant specializing in foreign cuisine, as if to somehow flaunt his status by his decision to treat everyone to European fine dining. In fact, that was exactly what he was doing, and Mai knew it. She remained at Joey’s side even as they were seated at the reserved table, putting herself between him and her father just in case. Joey noticed that her father made her nervous, but said nothing as he took his seat. Mr. Kujaku presided over the head of the table, while Joey’s mother took the other end. They ordered first, giving Mr. Kujaku the opportunity to sagaciously mull over the wine list and choose something extravagant, and then came the awkward silence and staring which proceeded any conversation about the engagement, the wedding, or the families. Mai’s mother eagerly broke it. “I can’t tell you how wonderful it is that you’re finally getting married,” she gushed in her daughter’s general direction. “I thought the day would never come.”
Mai forced a smile at the backhanded compliment. “Yeah, well…it takes the right kind of guy. I’ve always said that.” She glanced at Joey, and the smile became genuine. “Anybody who decides to propose to me on live television after losing the Duel Monsters championship must be the right kind of guy.”
Her mother blinked, but chose not to encourage further discussion of the nature of the proposal. “So…well…Joey. Mai tells me you’re studying to become a teacher?”
“That’s right, ma’am,” Joey said, politely but smartly. “I’m in my third year already.”
“You’re going to make an awesome teacher, Joey,” Serenity said adoringly. “Maybe you can even student-teach at my high school…”
“Nah, I’m gonna get an internship around here, I think,” he gently demurred. “As long as I got a place to stay and a soon-to-be wife, I’m not gonna go too far.”
“We have some connections at some of the private schools around Tokyo,” Mrs. Kujaku broke in. “I’m sure it wouldn’t be any trouble to set up an interview with one of the prestigious headmasters, and get you a position in the city.”
Joey gave her an appreciative but helpless sort of smile. “Thanks, but…I’m not really lookin’ to move to Tokyo. I guess I’ll just let things unfold by themselves, and if there’s a place for me here, I’ll take it. I’ve got roots. And Mai’s job is awesome – I’m not gonna make her leave it just to follow me around the country lookin’ for a higher-up position.”
“We’ve talked about it,” Mai quickly added before either of her parents could protest, “and we’re in complete agreement. I want Joey to have the best as much as anyone, but he wants me to be happy, too. The best arrangement is for us to wait and see if he can find a position here in Domino before we start talking about moving away or anything. But that’s still at least a year and a half away – there are other more pressing matters on our minds right now.”
“Yes, there’s so much to do for the wedding,” her mother agreed. “Your father and are will help you out with anything you need, I want you to have the most beautiful, perfect wedding. Anything your heart desires.” Her eyes watered with sentiment. “After all, you’re my only daughter. It must be perfect. You deserve the best.”
Mai lowered her gaze shyly, unnerved by her mother’s display. Her father harrumphed right then. “At least you’re having it in the country, and not jetting off to America again,” he grumbled. “I’ll pay for the wedding, but not to fly your guests across the Pacific.”
Mai only shrank further into herself, unable to come up with an appropriate response. Joey saw it and his heart felt even more for her. Whether Mai’s mother sensed the tension and wisely derailed it, or was simply oblivious and had her own agenda in mind, she chose that moment to completely change not only the subject but the target of interrogation. “So, Mrs. Kawai,” she said brightly, turning to focus on Joey’s mother at the far end of the table. “Tell me about yourself. You came into town this morning as well? Where from?”
Though somewhat shy herself, Mrs. Kawai willingly answered, engaging the other woman in a lengthy conversation to get to know each other. After all, that was the point of their dinner together. Mrs. Kujaku even thought to ask Serenity a couple of questions – how old she was, her year in school, that sort of thing – but the polite chat between mothers filled a lengthy, otherwise awkward phase of their family day. Mai’s father simply sat at the head of the table eyeballing everyone, sipping at his preferred wine and occasionally giving Joey a suspicious look whenever something one of the women said regarded his future son-in-law. Joey chose not to interrupt, listening as much to his mother as anyone, for Mrs. Kujaku was able to ask and receive answers to the questions he himself might have wanted to pose to his own mother in order to make up for their lost years. He slipped a hand across to Mai’s knee beneath the table, giving her a supportive caress. He knew it had been understood and appreciated when her hand rested warmly on top of his and squeezed gently. They couldn’t talk seriously to each other in front of their families, so for now, that was all they could do to assure each other that they weren’t going to let anything stand in the way of their life and happiness together. Certainly not this table full of diverse parents. As long as they could survive the day, they figured they could take anything life might throw at them in the next six months.