Chapter Text
The halls of KaibaCorp were quiet. No one was typing on computers or discussing the latest development. There were no phone calls, no cell phones, no voices. No doors opening and closing, no pens on paper. The air was still.
The building was empty.
And somewhere far from it, where one could hear the birds sing and the breeze brush the trees; Seto stood in front of a shrine with one name etched into it. His clothes were black, the stones were clean and new, and it was quiet here.
There was a depth beneath his eyes. They were tight and heavy. His mouth laid flat upon his face and his brows forever in a small crest. A flower twisted between his fingertips, but he did not put it with the rest. There were more offerings than one person could possibly need, even someone who has been spoiled in life.
No. Not spoiled. Seto would never call it spoiled. To go from nothing to everything is not spoiling; it is providing. And Seto had provided.
The edges of the flower between his fingers had begun to wilt.
At the end of the aisle, four people waited for him. They talked among themselves, but only in brief moments. They lost their voices, and sometimes felt better falling silent. What was there to say? It hardly felt worth speaking anymore.
Joey stared at Seto from this distance away. “Guys,” he said quietly to the others. “I don't think he's gonna move.”
“I want to wait for him,” Yugi insisted softly. “I don't think he should be alone right now.”
“But maybe that's what he wants.” Joey stared at Seto and spoke absently. “We all have to take our time.”
Tea spoke up. “Maybe Joey’s right,” she said. “We should let him be alone.”
Yugi’s expression fell, but he nodded.
No one moved right away. Their feet shuffled, but they didn’t go anywhere. No one wanted to be first, so they all moved at once.
It felt like trying to wade through water. The air was heavy around them, and they were all chained together. One by one, they'd glance over their shoulders until eventually they couldn't see Seto anymore.
It was cold at night. His legs were sore and his feet ached, but Seto did not move. The moon was full overhead. The blue light painted the white flowers. They could have been beautiful.
A shuffle of feet came up beside him, but Seto didn't turn his head away.
“Gonna stay out here all night?” Joey asked.
Seto didn't respond.
“Your legs gotta hurt.”
Seto didn't respond.
His fingers froze. The flower stopped moving.
“Ya gotta go home, Kaiba,” Joey said calmly. “Ya can't stay here. I know--”
“You don't know anything.” Seto’s voice was soft and rough. He tossed the flower in amidst the rest. He tucked his hands in his pockets and brushed past Joey. “Go home, Wheeler. I don't need you to be my keeper.”
Joey didn't go anywhere. He let Seto walk away.
The moon made that hilltop bright. Joey read the name etched clearly into the stone pillar, and his mind still couldn't make sense of it. After the kotsuage. After the wake. After the bones and the flowers and the funeral. It still didn't feel real. It would probably never feel real.
But the name was carved clearly into the stone.
Kaiba Mokuba