Chapter 3: A Gain, A Loss

The rest of the week was pointless and forgettable. I went through the motions of operating the company, paying just enough attention to not burn the place down. Mazaki selected staff to travel with us from current staff members I tolerated well. She selected office intermediaries from a list provided by my father. Except for the new Office Senior. For that position, I chose my cousin Noah.

Noah and I had grown up together and while I held no illusions that he was loyal to me, I knew his personal inheritance and standing depended on maintaining good relations with 'Dear' Uncle Gozaburo's heir.

Over the weekend, I assisted Mazaki in packing her old apartment. Actually, that consisted of me calling a service to do the physical labor while she and I sat in the living room and analyzed the latest MGCo data.

Monday, at 9am, Mazaki knocked on my door and presented me with something that stepped out of a wet dream.

"Kaiba-san, this is Bakura Ryou."

He bowed deeply. "It is an honor to meet you."

He was young — 18, 19 maybe — tall and slender with an almost feminine grace. His hair was white, set off by soft brown eyes. He was immaculately dressed in a navy double-breasted suit and white shirt. His tie and cuff links were the same color as his eyes.

Suddenly I knew why he'd been hired to be my personal secretary. "Mazaki, find Bakura's CV."

"Here, sir." She handed me the document from the papers she was holding.

It was brief. He had graduated only a few months ago from a good school with a business degree. He had a second certification from a school with which I wasn't familiar. He was young because he'd been an advanced placement student. Still, his credentials were a bit thin for someone personnel insisted was at the Senior-level.

It did make me think. "Mazaki, find me your CV."

"Oh. Yes, sir." She left the office and returned a bit more slowly with her own document. I noticed that she too had been an advanced placement student. She had a little more experience than Bakura but not much. I dismissed her and she closed the door as she left.

I looked at him again. He was stunning. My Father was a bastard but he was a perceptive bastard. And he knew me unfortunately well. "Bakura, whatever my Father told you, I have no intention of sleeping with you and telling you my personal confidences." His face turned nearly purple, telling me that I had guessed right about his primary skill set. "If you want to retain this job, I will expect your unquestioning loyalty at all times. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Kaiba-san." He bowed deeply, apparently relieved that I hadn't fired him on the spot.

"Fine. Contact the school and find out what books or equipment or whatever I will need for the first day and purchase everything that is required. Mazaki can approve the costs. If you have other questions, see her as well."

"Yes, sir. Thank you. Excuse me sir, what exactly are my duties?"

"Whatever I tell you to do." I said frankly. "I should think that would have been clear."

The rest of the week consisted of arguing with my Father about my management choices, arguing with him about my personal staff choices, arguing about how best to precede with MGCo and arguing about anything else that arose.

Not all of our arguments were pointless. In many, I simply had to present a strong enough justification and he let my decision stand. In some, he presented a point that I had not considered. Several of our discussions, however, were simply attempts to exert his will over mine. And I confess that on more than one occasion, I was unnecessarily disrespectful.

When we discussed my personal staff for the fifth time, I snidely thanked him for Bakura. "Since he has no discernable skills, I presume you have provided him as a gift for my personal entertainment. I guess you have come to accept my 'lifestyle' choice."

He slapped me hard enough to split my lip and push me back a step. But then instead of striking me again as was typical, he stepped back and faced the window. After a minute he spoke. "Make no mistake; I do not accept your perversion. I do acknowledge however that so long as you indulge in the disgusting practice, your public behavior reflects on the Kaiba name. Consider him your in-house Geisha. Use him as needed."

I was speechless. Bakura was a gift; a concession to my preferences over Father's. The harsh words I had intended died away. I wiped my lip and bowed. "Thank you, Father." The man was barbaric in so many ways it defied comprehension, but this action came from genuine good intentions. For once.

"Mazaki." He said.

I stood up. "Yes?"

"I want her. Transfer her to my staff."

We'd discussed this before. "Out of the question. She is irreplaceable."

"No one is irreplaceable, Seto." Neither of us pursued that thought.

"We are leaving this weekend;" I pointed out at last. "It would take too long to train her replacement."

"You'll manage. You hardly need a beard and a lover at the same time."

"Then take Bakura. I can find another lover. A competent secretary is considerably harder to find." Thankfully for me, Father and I were interrupted and the discussion was not revisited before my team left.

We flew into the new town on Saturday. I spent the plane ride and the limo ride doing paperwork.

"Kaiba," Mazaki snapped. She, Bakura and I were spending so much time together that common courtesy was rare. "MGCo."

"Where?"

She grinned. "Two miles from the condo. Tomorrow. A local gaming shop is celebrating its twenty-year anniversary. Mutou's Cards."

I laughed. "I know the place! I got my last Blue Eyes White Dragon there."

"It would be a shame if we didn't stop by for the celebration." Bakura grinned.

"Agreed. Mazaki, I want one of everything KaibaGames sells, with Mutou's logo stamped on it by dawn tomorrow."

"Nice. I hope you remember my anniversary." She grabbed her phone and called the appropriate department.

Saturday night and part of Sunday morning were spent preparing for our impromptu visit. We arrived just as MGCo was finishing their presentation. I inadvertently overshadowed the scheduled KaibaGames representative, but it was worth it to see the executive from MGCo turn green. The shop was achingly familiar and reminded me painfully of Honda and Joey. For a moment, I thought I even saw them.

I had been planning to spend the day there, but Mazaki received a call about an upcoming Australian launch and we left to resolve that issue.

Sunday night I actually got a look at my new home. Mazaki and Bakura had condos on either side of mine. It was larger than the suite I'd had at my Father's containing four bedrooms, five baths, a den, a game room, and a formal dining room that seated ten. We made it the conference room.

At 6:35am, someone shook me. "Kaiba." The voice was warm and soft. It was followed by a warm soft kiss. "Kaiba."

Joey used to wake me early, before he had to leave for school, kissing, sucking, caressing. It was my favorite way to wake up. My hand was sliding down to more interesting points when I realized that Joey's chest had a series of scars from a knife fight he was in years ago. This man's chest was smooth.

I shoved back, distancing myself and pushing him out of my bed. "Who the fuck -?" I tried to calm down but my adrenaline was running for several reasons.

"Kaiba-san, forgive me." Bakura's broken voice came from out of my eyeshot and when I peered over the edge of the bed, I saw him sitting there, teary-eyed, wearing nothing but a pair of silk shorts. "Anzu said —"

"Fuck!" I swore. "MAZAKI!"

Wide eyed and stricken, she stepped into my bedroom. She was clutching my standard morning coffee as if it could protect her from my wraith.

Suddenly, the absurdity of the moment occurred to me. Honda would have called us hopeless. Joey would have told me jump his bones since they were being offered. Mazaki was trying to play matchmaker and poor Bakura was simply smitten. I laughed. I couldn't stop. It was the first time in weeks, something was honestly funny — me.

Mazaki wasn't sure if I'd completely lost my mind when I gestured for my coffee, but she handed it to me anyway.

I took a sip and felt myself begin to actually wake up. Dreams of Joey slipped back into my memory. "Ok. I'm ready. Status?"

"You have thirty minutes to dress for your first day of school."

"I hate rushing. Bakura, tomorrow wake me at 6. Just wake me; unless, of course, you like the floor."

"Yes, Kaiba-san." He still sounded miserable.

"Mazaki, no match making. I will pick my own lovers in the future and they will not be from among the staff. Clear?"

"Yes, Kaiba-san." She said with a bow.

We got moving.

There were two carloads of us by the time we left for school. Mazaki, Bakura and I were in one car. My security detail was in the other. Mazaki was dressed for corporate war — suit, tie and Bluetooth. Bakura and I were both wearing the school uniform — Bakura as a concession to school administration.

"You could hardly imagine her in fuzzy slippers when she's dressed like this." I observed.

"I'll fuzzy slipper you, you — oh. Damn. Mazaki. Hold on. Quiet, you two. Yes?"

We got to school while on a conference call to Russia. Dueling was becoming a massively popular hobby there and we were considering opening our own chain of stores in that market. My security detail pushed through the surprising crowd of students and made a path for us. It was silly. As soon as I hung up, I heard someone shout and a student — a blond boy — was forcibly pushed back by the team.

"STOP!" I yanked the guard away from my eventual classmate. "This is ridiculous. I couldn't possibly need this much security at school."

"Please step back sir and allow us to do our jobs." The uniformed idiot replied.

"Your job is defeating the purpose of me being here. How can I possibly mingle with the masses if you obstruct them at every opportunity?" He looked at me blankly. "You are dismissed."