State of Mind

PAIRING(S): Seto + Mokuba

ORIGINAL CHARACTERS: Grey-san, Corvin-san, Field-san and the Kravans.

SPOILERS: None really, since the plot is most likely more AU than anything else.

SUMMARY: Mokuba is now 15 years old and has grown into a confident young man. In the years since Secrets that Remain Mokuba has become aware of Seto's game and the brothers have become inseparably close. Yet many secrets still remain. As the eve of Mokuba's 16th birthday nears, a new and unusual tension is in the air.
What lies beneath the surface of happy days and silent nights? When the demons of the past will not die, how does one continue to live? "This ephemeral peace will one day shatter and all shall fall away...”

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Yuugiou nor am I making any money from this story. Please give appropriate support toward Yuugiou's mangaka Takahashi Kazuki.

*****WARNINGS: PLEASE NOTE that this story contains direct mention and some description of sexual/mental child abuse between two males. This content is portrayed as a damaging, terrible act of violation toward a child as any type of child abuse is; however, if this subject offends you in ANY way, please do not read.

Contains Yaoi/MalexMale/Homosexual and incestuous situations, mature language, mention of attempted suicide, and various other not nice things.

-Blood.

---Chapter 09---

The sun had set long before Seto opened his eyes. He had little trouble waking up, his senses determining that he had been asleep for a considerable amount of time. Three; maybe four hours? He would have glanced at his watch if on the way he had not caught sight of Mokuba. The younger man sat a yard from him, starting at Seto intently. Silver eyes were dark, the moon at his back causing him to shimmer oddly. Seto was sure that from Mokuba's point of view Seto must inversely be lit ethereally. It made him feel undeniably exposed.

Seto sat up effortlessly and-in an effort to end the strange moment-let his eyes stray toward the heavens. The night sky was clear and beautiful, the air cool and salty. Seto inhaled a refreshing breath.

"Did you sleep well?" A quiet voice questioned.

Seto looked back to his brother, grateful for the smile that had appeared. Answered, "Yes. Were you bored?" He felt suddenly guilty for taking up so much of the day.

"How could I be bored on this island?" Mokuba noticed the skeptical look on Seto's face and realized his answer could be taken as sarcasm. He answered again, "I wasn't bored. It's beautiful here."

Seto nodded, moonlit eyes again rising from Mokuba's as if reassuring himself.

"And you can breath," he emphasized with a calming sigh.

Seto smiled softly in agreement. He wanted to watch the stars; one could rarely see them in the city. "You're into astrology, right?" The cushioned lounge chair creaked as Seto removed his weight from it. He noted Mokuba's surprise as he sat down beside him, lying back onto the sand.

"Yeah; somewhat," Mokuba admitted, looking down at Seto beside him. Seto's eyes were staring up and Mokuba caught on. He laid back, hands folded across his stomach. Mokuba knew a bit about astrology; he had recently been studying it as a hobby. He had thought this information was unknown to Seto. To anyone else, having their older brother be so knowledgeable about Mokuba's private activities would seem invasive. Mokuba, however, tended to enjoy knowing Seto paid him so much attention.

Mokuba happily complied with the suggestion. He knew that Seto probably knew as much or more about the star placement, the astronomy side, as he did, but as for the realm of the Zodiac; that was Mokuba's new specialty. Mokuba smiled as Seto pointed to a group of stars overhead, explaining which constellation it was.

"You're familiar with Orion, right? Well, the Southern Hemisphere has a different view of the stars. See Orion there; notice anything?"

"Yeah, the Hunter. I don't see him," Mokuba said slowly, eyes searching. "Wait, there. It's upside down!"

"Correct. From this side of the equator the constellations are inverted," Seto informed. "And the sky we are looking at now contains the constellations we usually see in the winter above the equator."

"That's pretty cool. Is that Gemini? It's odd to see them like this. I barely recognize them," he exclaimed, tilting his head.

"Yes, that's the Twins. It is odd at first. Now, look back at Orion's Belt. From there look up and to the right; that is Sirius, the brightest star in the sky next to the sun and one of the closest. Sirius connects to the Canis Major-the Great Dog-constellation."

Not one to fall behind, Mokuba pulled his own knowledge to the foreground, "Are you familiar with the story behind Orion?" When Seto made a negative sound, Mokuba told the story, "In ancient Greece, Artemis was the goddess of hunting and the moon. According to mythology, she fell in love with a man named Orion. She loved him to the point of neglecting her job of illuminating the night sky. One day Apollo, her twin brother, spied Orion swimming alone and dared his sister to strike at the water, at the little spot on the surface. Unaware that her target was her love Orion, she shot her arrow perfectly into the waves; killing him. Upon finding out what she had done, she took his body and placed it among the stars. They say the grief she felt explains why the moon looks so sad at night."

"What a brother this goddess had," Seto commented, his expression thoughtful.

"Yeah, there are several version of the tale actually. Sill, according to this version, part of his motive was that Apollo was very protective of his sisters...maidenhood."

Seto huffed, "The Greeks have always been a bit extreme." He glanced at Mokuba, "What of the other constellations? Know any other origins?"

Mokuba only smiled, confident, "Plenty."

The two enjoyed the exchange of knowledge; Mokuba telling Seto several tales of mythology, while the brunette recited just as much astronomic intrigue. Both were enjoying their time together on an island fit for the tales of gods and goddesses upon their tongues.

---

The soft, white granules had cooled further in the absence of the sun; they felt wonderful to
Mokuba's bare, bronzed shoulders and back. What felt even better was Seto's bare arm against his own.
Their stargazing had started a long escape into random conversation. They spoke on everything from
technical advances to food and back to recent technological underachievement.

"Tomorrow we'll go hiking. I have to show you where the electricity is produced for this island. It isn't too far from the house."

"So what runs this place anyway?" Seto had promised an explanation the first day, but Mokuba was only now showing interest.

Seto smiled knowingly, turning his head, “Solar power.”

“The whole island?” Mokuba’s eyebrows rose.

“Everything; the air conditioning, lights, hot water, appliances; every watt used.”

“So where is the equipment? I’ve never seen it. We explored all over last time.”

“We barely saw a fraction of this island and we didn’t get around to the most southern side. There’s a cliff there and that’s really all. Last time we explored more toward the north-west.” He paused and pointed. Aphrodite’s Residence faced eastward, the island stretching out toward the north and west, filled with thick, old trees and wildlife.

“Yes… We saw that waterfall! I remember now,” Mokuba exclaimed. He seemed excited by the memory. Mokuba loved beautiful things and was easily pleased with such things in nature. It amused Seto at just how easily.

Seto smiled, “We can go back there after we visit the south side tomorrow afternoon,” he suggested. Mokuba agreed right away.

“Let’s get to bed then, “ Seto sat up. “Come on, “ he urged when Mokuba groaned. “We’ll get an early start tomorrow so we can hike with plenty of sunlight.”

“Yeah,” Mokuba finally relented, standing and hurrying to follow his brother up the stone path to the summer home.