Kaiba shut the laptop, looking over it's top at the still sleeping Bakura.  The records he had hacked into had shown him everything but the one thing he wanted to know the most.  He had discovered that the boy had no family, that he had moved many times due to strange circumstances and that he had few friends.  He had found out that his grades had been dropping precipitously in the recent months.

But he hadn't found anything pertaining to "Kisei."

He decided that there was one way to find what he wanted to know.  He dialed a phone number.

"I want Yuugi," he told the old man who answered.  Moments later, the boy got onto the phone.  "Tell me about 'Kisei,'" he demanded.

"Kisei?" Yuugi repeated, voice confused.

"The one who did this to Bakura."

There was a long pause. "He's gone, Kaiba-kun," Yuugi said softly. "He can't hurt Bakura-kun again, we made sure of it."

"So you say.  I want to see his body.  Bloody and broken."  Kaiba's voice lowered and grew colder.  "And I want to spit on it."

There was another pause. "You'd kill Bakura-kun..."

"If he ever comes back it's on your head, Yuugi," Kaiba said.  "And you will pay for it."

There was yet another uncomfortable pause. "I don't think he can come back, Kaiba-kun.  And he would have to get through me to get anywhere near Bakura-kun."

"Good," Kaiba said.  He noticed Bakura stirring and hung up.  Moving the laptop to a desk, he sat on the bed, carressing Bakura's face as the boy woke.

Slowly, the brown eyes opened and the paler boy gave a soft smile. "Kaiba-kun," he murmered happily, leaning into the touch.

"Let me see how you're healing, and then we'll get breakfast.  Mokuba won't wake up for a bit so there will still be time to make breakfast after I tend to you."

Bakura nodded, shifting to sit up. "I can cook if you'd like," he offered hopefuly. "I can cook almost anything!"

"It's Saturday.  I make Mokuba pancakes on Saturday," Kaiba said, supporting Bakura with one arm while he unwound the bandages and looked over what he'd done the previous night, recleaning and rebinding the boy's wounds.  "I'll get you clothes, unless you want to wear what you had on last night."

Bakura hesitated. "Anything's fine," he said softly, voice slightly unsure.

"Of course.  It's all clothes," Kaiba acknowledged.  "But what would you prefer?"

The paler boy hesitated again. "Which-- which would you want me to wear...?" he asked meakly.

"That wasn't what I asked," Kaiba corrected gently.  "I want to know what you want."

"I-- I want what you want me to want," Bakura answered nervously, looking down.

"Bakura," Kaiba said, raising the boy's face, "I will not punish you for thinking.  Your needs are important."

"I don't want to give the wrong answer," the paler boy said softly, not meeting Kaiba's eyes. "I really don't mind either way, you-- you can pick..."

Kaiba lowered his head so he could force Bakura to meet his eyes.  "There is no wrong answer to your feelings," he said strongly.  "The decision is yours."

Bakura's breath came swiftly in a small panic. "Kaiba-kun," he whimpered, trying to break the eye contact.

Kaiba kissed him.  "There is no wrong answer," he repeated softly.  "You can ask anything of me."

"Choose for me...?" Bakura pleaded softly, buring his face agaist Kaiba's shoulder.

Kaiba hugged Bakura gently.  "Very well," he said, stroking the boy's hair.  "This time I will decide for you."

The boy gave a relieved sigh. "Arigatou..." he whispered, clinging to the taller boy's shirt.

Once Kaiba found clothing to fit Bakura he took the boy's hand and led him to the kitchen.  "What kind of pancakes would you like?"

"Any type is fine," Bakura smiled happily.

"I usually make plain, chocolate chip, or blueberry," Kaiba said.  "Which would you prefer?"

The paler boy hesitated a moment. "Plain...?" he requested timidly.

Kaiba nodded.  "Then I will make plain."  He held a seat out for Bakura, then got out what he needed to make the pancakes.

"Did-- did you need help with anything...?" Bakura asked after a moment.

"Not now," Kaiba said.  "But later I will need help moving your things here."

The paler boy blinked in confusion.

"You shouldn't be alone.  I will take care of you."

Bakura's eyes went wide. "Kaiba-kun...." He smiled happily.

Mokuba walked into the kitchen in his pajamas, yawning.  "Ohayou."

"Ohayou, Mokuba-kun," Bakura smiled.

Mokuba blinked a few times.  "Bakura?  You're over for breakfast?"

The paler boy looked embarased. "Un," he smiled, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked over at Kaiba, unsure if he should explaine.

"Yuugi introduced me to him last night," Kaiba said.  "He'll be staying here."

"Introduced?" Mokuba asked.  He blinked a few times, then seemed to realise what Kaiba meant.  "Oh."  He blinked again.  "So I have a new niichan?"

Bakura blinked. "Nii..chan...?" he repeated in suprise.

"Well, if you and Niisama are like that, then you're my niichan, right?"

Kaiba put a plate of pancakes in front of each of them.  He smiled at Mokuba and went back to cooking.  Mokuba grinned, grabbing a fork with one hand and the syrup with the other.

Bakura ate slowly, looking slightly dazed.

After a few moments a plate with extra pancakes was put in the middle of the table, and not long after that Kaiba joined them at the table, eating with a smile as he watched his brother's appreciation.

"These are really good, Kaiba-kun," Bakura smiled, putting his fork down as he finished his plate. "You're a great cook."

Kaiba smiled at him.  "I only make pancakes, and only on Saturdays," he said.

"But you make them very well," Bakura insisted happily.

Kaiba smiled at him.

Bakura nearly melted at the smile. "Is-- is it alright if I wash the dishes?" he asked timidly.

"We usually leave them for the kitchen staff."

"Oh," Bakura said softly, looking down again. "Gomen."

"And we have things to take care of today," Kaiba said.  "Are you ready to get your things?"

"Un!" Bakura nodded. "I don't have much..."

"Whatever you want from your home we'll bring here.  And then we will go and get you new things."

Bakura nodded again.

"Whenever you're ready, we'll go."

"I'm ready whenever you're ready, Kaiba-kun," the paler boy smiled shyly.

Kaiba held a hand out to him and led the way to the car.
 

"The apartment's probally messy," Bakura appologized as he unlocked the door. "I-- I didn't get a chance to clean it up before..." He trailed off, putting a hand on his chest over where the scars were and looking down.

Kaiba's lips tightened.  "It doesn't matter."

"May-- maybe you would want to wait out here....?" Bakura asked nervously.

"No, I'll come in with you."

Bakura hesitated a moment, then pushed open the door.

An odd smell, sour and acidic assulted their noses and Bakura near tiptoed inside, fumbling for the light switch.  He paused, looking at a small dark red stain on the rug in the entry, breath catching. "Kisei-sama..." he near whimpered softly, fist clentching in the cloth over the wounds on his chest.

Kaiba glowered at the stain and steered Bakura passed it.  "What do you want to take with you?"

"I-- I can pack a small bag..." Bakura said softly, looking down.

"Take as much as you want with you," Kaiba said, touching Bakura's shoulder gently.

"I don;t need much, I-- I can just pack a few shirts..." the paler boy paused breifly as they reached his room. He took a few steps and carefuly knelt down, picking up the bloodstained knife that was on the floor. Taking a torn peice of cloth he gently polished it clean before closing it and almost hugging it to his chest, eyes closing.

Kaiba gently pried it from the boy's hands.  "Go get whatever you need from the rest of the apartment.  I'll get clothes for you."

Bakura looked at the knife a moment longer before nodding and leaving the room, shoulders slumped.

Kaiba pulled some things out of drawers and folded them into a bag.  He took in the blood stained sheets and the knife and glared.  "I won't let this happen to him again, even if you come back," he swore softly.  Then he left the room, closing the door behind himself so that Bakura couldn't see in there again.

The paler boy looked up from where he was carefuly dismanteling a large board game. "It-- it's alright if I bring my game, isn't it?" he asked softly, holding one of the towers that made up the game's castle closely.

"You can bring whatever you want," Kaiba said.  He bent down to help with the disassembling.

"I-- I just don't want to impose," Bakura said softly. "It's just one of the few things I have... my games I mean...."

"Nothing you want is an imposition."

Bakura gave a small smile. "Tousan gave me this game..." he said softly. "It was one of the last things he brought back before..." he trailed off.  "One of the last memories I have of him was when he brought it home and we played together."

"It's good that you have good memories," Kaiba said.  "I can barely remember my parents anymore."

"You lost your parents as well...?" Bakura asked, looking up at the taller boy.

"They died in a car accident when I was eight.  Mokuba and I lived in an orphanage until Gozaburo adopted us."

"Kaiba-kun..." Bakura looked at him with compassion. "Kaasan and Amane died in an car accident too," he said, looking down at the game again. "When Tousan died, they said I was old enough I didn't have to get foster care so I went to a boarding school instead." He put the other tower carefuly into the box. "Gomen, you probally don't want to listen to my self pity...."

"It's not self pity, Bakura," Kaiba said, touching a hand to the pale boy's cheek.  "It took me a long time to understand that."

Bakura gave a small smile, leaning into the touch.

"What else do you want?"

Bakura looked around the room. "Aa!" He walked over to the game cabinet and pulled out a daiorama of figures from the game they had been packing. "Could-- Could I bring this too...?" he asked timidly.

Kaiba smiled at the representations of Yuugi and his friends.  "You can bring whatever you want," he said.

"Arigatou," Bakura smiled.

A short while later the boy's belongings, mostly games with a pair of boxes of books and things from his desk, were piled in the entry.

Kaiba called a few flunkies in to take the boxes out to the car and told Bakura to go with them.  He looked around the apartment one more time, then made a call, telling another flunky that he wanted the apartment remodelled and everything in it burned.