[Open] [The thing with the daughter AU]

[note_atem]

Things on Atem's end had been quiet for a couple of days. He seemed to be struggling with something, though as per the usual, he wasn't letting on as to what it was. Yet somehow he tried to make things seem normal. As normal as they could be. But whatever it was, it had to do with his daughter Yuiko. You know. That cute adorable girl that appeared

Comments

I EXPECTED DRAGON EYES, EMMY

[shutupandduelme]

Poor Yuiko. Not only was she upset over her father, she was also inadvertently responsible for a man fainting in Kaiba Corporation. After all, it was never a good sign when the CEO took one look at his buzzing cell phone then swept out of the room in the middle of your presentation. The young man stood there a moment, paled terribly, then dropped where he stood. He was doomed, he was sure, doomed. But Kaiba was already halfway down to the lobby by then.

"Yuiko," he said, voice cool and serious even while his mind was racing. "Where are you? Where is Fubeta?" His handpicked security team would be near her unless this really was a serious emergency. The report would be better coming from him.

I'M NOT AT HOME SO THIS FIRST

[note_atem]

The girl hiccuped on her end of the phone, clutching it tightly and rubbing a hand across her eyes. "We're at the h-hospital." She cried out, scared and feeling very lost at the moment.

"Fubeta's right here T-tou-san. But I don't want daddy to die!" The sobbing increased as the mere thought of something like that crushed her tiny little heart. The man in question was standing by her, almost a little awkwardly, not wanting to yank the phone out of her hands.

UH HUH SURE

[shutupandduelme]

Kaiba didn't even look up as he walked through the lobby and out the door. People cleared out of the way for him. Isono was already at the front with a car, expecting this outcome as soon as he noticed what number it was. It was why he had sent it on to Seto without even answering it first. There were only three numbers on that list.

"Yuiko, listen to me," he said, keeping that cool tone as he slipped into the waiting car. The door was shut behind him. They had no time to waste on pleasantries or delays. "I need you to be the strongest person there right now. Even stronger than your dad. Can you do that? Give the phone to Fubeta, then listen carefully to what all the doctors and nurses are saying around you. I want you to update me when I get there."

Giving her a job to do would be the easiest way to distract her. Hopefully it would reassure her. Kaiba doubted even the idiots at Domino General would let something truly bad slip around a kid when her guardian hadn't even gotten there yet.

IT'S TRUE

[note_atem]

Disconnecting from her only other parent sounded like the worst, most dumbest idea she'd ever heard of. But ... her tou-san was giving her something important to do. Even if she was scared and sad she needed to come through for him, too. She nodded even though he wouldn't be able to see it.

"Okay, Tou-san." Her voice was small and shaky, accompanied with a small sniffle before she looked up at the man. A small tug on his jacket and she was handing the phone up to him. Once he took it she was very tempted to continue to pull on his jacket and stay close to listen to what was being said but instead she gave a very forlorn look before stepping aside to seat herself close to the nurse's station.

"Kaiba-sachou." The man said, turning away the slightest bit and keeping his voice at a minimum.

>>

[shutupandduelme]

Kaiba waited a moment, intending to give Yuiko as much time as possible to move away. She didn't need to hear this. When he spoke again, his tone was ice cold.

"You know I will find out if any of this was a result of a failure of yours," he warned immediately, "no matter what you tell me. You know what will happen. So let's stick to the truth, shall we?" This man had been allowed near his family. This man was supposed to protect his family when Kaiba himself could not. There would be hell to pay for failure.

HONEESSSTTT

[note_atem]

The man took the words as best as he could, tensing even as he listened. He already knew this was coming miles away, and even in the situation, he couldn't find it in himself to feel much better about the circumstances.

He waited only a small handful of seconds after the CEO was done speaking to begin himself. "Yuiko has been insisting that things didn't seem right before all of this culminated. Atem-san was admitted to the hospital in severe pain and was taken to the E.R. almost immediately. Half the hospital is attending to this case at the moment." There was an obvious reason for that, but it would do them well rather than harm them. More eyes on the case was better than little. "I have yet to receive word from anyone about his illness, but we've only arrived just minutes ago." He kept his tone calm and completely business, all the while watching the younger girl from the corner of his eye.

[shutupandduelme]

"Severe pain?" Kaiba repeated, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "It is your job to be attentive. Did anyone get near him before he began this episode?"

He would have to speak to Yuiko too. Unfortunate. It would have been better not to bother her with painful details.

[note_atem]

"We were at the manor." He shifted just the slightest bit, trying not to let his nervousness get the better of him. Strangely, it wasn't because of Kaiba. It was because he knew he should have done a better job, and he really wasn't about to accept Atem falling because he hadn't watched them.

"He had been keeping to himself as much as the usual. Then he had gone up to the bedroom for a couple of hours to rest and left Yuiko in my care." It had seemed a touch out of place, but not at the time. Atem's sleeping habits weren't as bad as Kaiba's, but they weren't normal, either. "When we went upstairs to check on him he was running a fever and doubled over in pain. I brought them both here immediately." And ran past quite a few speed cameras on the way to do so.

[shutupandduelme]

"At least there was one thing you managed to do right," Kaiba growled, not particularly impressed with the guard's story. "We'll be there shortly. Do not make any further decisions on Atem's care until I get there. If I find that you have been neglecting Yuiko as well, you better hope that you have a job ready out of the country."

He hung up abruptly, unwilling to listen to excuses or pointless speech any longer. His mind was still racing with possibilities. Could it be an injury he wasn't told about? Had an angry opponent poisoned the King of Games? Certainly he had determined how easy that would be during his...obsessive period after his first loss. Someone else might have gotten close enough to actally do it. Kaiba sight, feeling his heaart sink as the car took the turn that would lead to the hospital.

[note_atem]

The man himself sighed, slipping the phone back into his pocket. He knew he was liable to be fired over this. In fact, he almost felt he should have been. Who really knew how many thousands of people had been looked at for this job and he'd been picked. And he'd failed.

He moved to stand next to Yuiko's chair but after much insistence he sat down next to her. It wasn't long before she'd grabbed his arm so that she could continue crying into his shoulder. The nurses hadn't been saying much anyway.

[shutupandduelme]

The limo didn't stop once until it was in front of the hospital, in the fire lane of all places. Kaiba didn't much care. There was no one to stop him, really. Nobody could stop him from sweeping in and seizing the nearest nurse, either.

"The King of Games," he growled. "Mutou. Where is he?" Isono hustled in behind, looking almost harmless compared to his boss and the angry aura that surrounded him.

[note_atem]

Yuiko was not immediately aware of her father's arrival. It was only when his booming voice swept through the hall that she came running from the other end and latched herself immediately to his leg. Tears had seemed to make almost permanent marks down her cheeks and were still flowing.

"Tou-san!"

The hospital staff became unsure of to approach or not approach, whereas the bodyguard had strode carefully after the young girl and was standing a little ways away.

[shutupandduelme]

That little girl's voice made Kaiba immediately forget about the poor nurse he was harassing. His hands dropped, only to open again as he dropped to scoop her up. Usually Kaiba tried to avoid such public displays of attention. Emergencies, though, were always the exception.

"Yuiko," he murmured, his head dipping to brush against her forehead. "Are you alright?"

Always the first question.

[note_atem]

Her arms wrapped around his neck and she held tight, shaking like a scared little leaf. Her crying still hadn't stopped, though she felt extremely better just from the simple act of being held by her father. There was a watery sounding 'yes' as she attempted to hide her face in the crook of his shoulder.

Yes aside from being scared and sad, but she wasn't physically hurt and that's what she thought he was asking. Obviously anyone could see that she was upset.