Note: MANGA eye colours, not ANIME.
Tenshi
"It's wonderful, big brother! Look, it moves and everything! This is going to be the best Christmas ever!!" Mokuba giggled, staring up at the Christmas tree Seto had spent all day putting up and decorating while Mokuba was at school for his last day before the holidays. The tree had taken a lot of effort, even though Seto cared little for Christmas himself. Mokuba, however, loved that time of year and so Seto made every effort to make it special for his little brother. When Gozaburo had been alive Christmas had meant being dragged around and shown off like prizes to their adopted father's colleagues then packed off to bed while the businessman drank himself into a coma. Having been through that, Seto would have hated Christmas if Mokuba didn't love it so much. The younger Kaiba was always so excited and it was infectious. Just being around him when he was chattering away about all the fun they were going to have with their friends on Christmas Eve almost made Seto look forward to it. Not that they were *his* friends, exactly... More precisely Mokuba had pleaded with him to be allowed to invite Yugi and his little gang, because they were Mokuba's closest friends and even Seto found that having them around was mildly amusing. They'd almost gotten past the whole rivals thing and after having known them for so long Seto could almost call them friends himself. Almost. He would never admit that to anyone, though, and he and Jou still wouldn't willingly set foot anywhere near each other. Which was fine by him, as conveniently the mutt was spending Christmas with Mai, his sister, and Anzu. Seto almost felt sorry for him.
"This is going to be so great!" Mokuba said, his voice bursting with excitement. He was looking at all the decorations Seto had spent all day choosing and carefully putting up, chattering on happily. The tree was really the centrepiece of the room, though. It was huge, the top almost reaching the ceiling, and was hung with carefully chosen clear, silver, gold and blue decorations. Seto had to admit red would have been more festive, but he had a fondness for blue that had won over in the end.
Wound around the tree in a spiral were streams of fluffy-looking gold tinsel and dotted about in-between were little silver fairy lights that twinkled on and off to give the effect that the tree itself was sparkling. Hanging from the branches were deep blue baubles and tiny clear glass angels that had been beautifully hand-made and had cost some extortionate amount of money only someone as rich as the Kaiba family could afford. The little glass angels were works of art in themselves, with the tips of their wings dipped in gold paint and holding tiny golden hearts or lyres.
The most amazing thing about the lavishly-decorated tree, though, had to be what sat on top of it, gazing serenely down on whoever stood below. Seto hadn't been able to find an angel for the top that in his opinion would do justice to all the hard work he'd put into the tree, so in the end he'd just shrugged nonchalantly and decided he'd use his genius to make one himself. But no cardboard and paste would suffice for Seto Kaiba, oh no. He'd sat down at his computer and designed a tiny holographic angel that could be projected from a small chip discreetly hidden near the top of the tree. It had been completed in under four hours, and so wasn't anything special like his duel monster holographs, which were so life-like it amazed people, but somehow he liked it. It had to be in scheme with the colours of the tree, so he'd created it to look like a pretty young girl with a white robe and silver hair which, due to the holographic technology he'd used, appeared to shift very slightly as though in a breeze. Her wings also moved every now and then to give the effect that she was making herself more comfortable to watch over them, and her eyes, which were bright green to match the tree, shone with gentleness and love.
Altogether the tree, complete with its little angel at the top, made a beautiful sight and Seto was quite pleased with the job he'd done. Of course, knowing Yugi and his little gang, the moment they entered the room there would be complete havoc and the place would be wrecked. But for now, and for the next few days until Christmas Eve when they would be arriving to spend the night, the angel could sit in her place above and watch over Mokuba and himself.
* * *
Christmas eve arrived sooner than Seto would have liked, and he found himself busy ordering all the food they were going to need and letting Mokuba pick out what movies they were going to watch. He wasn't quite sure that was such a good idea, but he never could say no to his little brother.
The past week, though, Seto had been distracted. Not enough for Mokuba to notice, but still something was nagging at the back of his mind. It was that angel, the one he'd created. He couldn't stop staring at it whenever he was in the room, and when he turned around he could feel the almost comforting weight of it watching over him. He'd never been a very superstitious person, but somehow he could feel that the little angel that watched over his home was more than just another holograph he'd created.
Only the holograph of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon had made him feel like that, like it meant something more than just a decoration. He'd known that the Blue-Eyes was special because it gave him strength, but he wasn't sure what nagged at him about that angel. He hated feeling unsure, he liked to be strong and know exactly what was going on all the time, but that angel... What was it that intrigued him so much about it? Then it hit him. It reminded him of someone. Those soft, gentle eyes, they were so familiar it was almost scary. He'd felt that gaze on him before, but he couldn't think where.
As he watched it the angel shifted her wings as it was timed to do every few minutes, and stared lovingly down at him with its emerald green eyes.
'It's nothing. I'm imagining things.' Seto told himself. He couldn't even remember, now that he thought of it, when he'd decided to make the angel's eyes green. Blue would have matched the decorations better, and he was sure that had been the colour he'd chosen. So how did they end up green? No, it must have been something he'd done whilst not paying attention. Building the thing *had* been a rush job, or perhaps the thing was already wearing out and the colours were distorting. It didn't matter.
At that moment the doorbell rang and Seto tore his gaze away from the angel, watching as Mokuba bounded down the huge, wide staircase to open the door, calling out that their friends had arrived.
"Hey Mokuba!" Yugi greeted happily, looking adorable all wrapped up in an oversized coat and scarf, and cute little mittens. Behind him, in the thick snow, stood Malik, Bakura and Yami, who were huddled together, their teeth chattering. Apparently the three Egyptians weren't keen on snow.
"H-h-h-hi." Malik managed, raising a hand in greeting and clinging to Bakura, who was managing to hold him and glare at Yami, whilst apparently freezing to death. The Game King himself was wrapped up in about ten layers of clothing and a huge coat, three pairs of gloves and about ten feet of scarf, but was still shaking like a leaf and glaring at the snow as though it was the root of all evil.
"Come in, you look cold." Mokuba offered, stepping aside as Malik and Bakura almost ran poor little Yugi over to get to the warmth inside the Kaiba mansion. Yami helped steady his wobbling hikari and took his hand, leading him inside too as Mokuba closed the door and grinned at them.
"We're gonna have so much fun! Seto spent ages putting up this awesome tree, and it has a real angel on top and everything, and we have loads of food, and movies to watch, and presents-" Mokuba chattered to Yugi, who put down the bundle of packages he'd been carrying on the stairs and took off his huge coat, giggling excitedly. Clearly Mokuba wasn't the only one who loved Christmas time.
"Hey, Kaiba!" Yugi smiled as Seto walked in the room, watching as Yami peeled off a few of his layers of coats and gloves, and Malik and Bakura snickered and called him a wuss under their breath.
"Hn." Seto replied eloquently, looking down at the tiny boy who was smiling happily up at him, unfazed by his complete lack of Christmas cheer.
"Thanks for inviting us!" Yugi giggled, almost bouncing up and down he was that excited. Mokuba joined him and the two of them bounced off to look at the decorations, with Yami tagging along so as not to be left alone in a room with three people who supposedly hated him.
"My hikari's late. He said he'd catch up later; he's gone to... somewhere. I wasn't really listening." Bakura said helpfully, standing behind Malik and nipping at his neck.
"He's gone to a Christmas party for his father's colleagues. He had to go to make his dad happy." Malik filled in, tilting his head to the side so that Bakura could have more room to play.
"Fine." Seto said. It wasn't as though he cared what any of them did.
Deciding that staying in the hall any longer would mean having to watch Malik and Bakura making out, Seto sent them a warning glare about what would happen if they dared even think about having sex in his hallway, and headed back to the big, warm living room where the others were settling on the couch for a movie.
"We're going to watch 'So I Married an Axe Murderer'!" Mokuba giggled, popping the DVD into the player. Seto shrugged and sat down, figuring that was what he got for letting Mokuba pick the movies, and decided against informing Mokuba that his choice was about the least Christmas-orientated movie in the history of anything, ever. As long as he was happy, it didn't matter. The whole party was really for him anyway. Seto would just as well have curled up in front of the fire with a good book, and only known it had passed into Christmas day when Mokuba came running down the stairs because of his 'midnight rule'. Yes, Mokuba had decided years ago that the moment the last stroke of midnight played out, it was officially Christmas day, and that meant he was allowed to open all his presents. Seto had disagreed at first, saying that it was a little early to be opening everything up, and they should wait until it really *was* the next day instead of the middle of the night, but Mokuba had insisted, and as always he'd gotten his own way. As per usual.
Sighing, Seto settled down to watch the movie, half-listening to the sounds of Bakura and Malik entering the room and commandeering one of the large beanbags to cuddle up on, and Yugi and Yami whispering to Mokuba about how great the tree was. And then, of course, Yugi and Yami cuddled up as well and they all quietened down to watch the film, while Seto curled up on his big, comfy chair and closed his eyes, letting himself fall into a light sleep and dreaming of green-eyed angels.
* * *
Seto started awake as the doorbell rang and stood up, noticing that the movie had almost ended and the clock was reading ten to midnight. Nobody seemed to be paying much attention to the film, which was just background noise, and Mokuba was watching the clock while talking animatedly to Yugi, while Yami was nuzzling Yugi's neck and Bakura was kissing Malik like there was no tomorrow.
Stretching to get all the kinks out of his back, Seto headed for the door as the little party carried on without him.
* * *
Seto opened the door and froze, staring out at the sight before him. There, stood in the falling snow with a parcel under one arm, was his angel.
"So sorry I'm late," Ryou apologized softly, looking up at Seto nervously as the snowflakes settled on his silver hair, the same silver hair Seto's Christmas tree angel had.
"It's you..." Seto murmured, looking down at Ryou with slightly wide eyes, his expression surprised. Ryou shivered from the cold and bit his lip, wondering why Seto was staring at him with such an intense look in his eyes.
"I-I told Bakura to explain for me that I'd be late, I-I hope you don't mind. He did tell you, didn't he?" The silver-haired boy asked, knowing that his tomb-robbing yami was never one to rely on.
Seto shook himself, snapping out of his daze at realizing after so long who the angel he'd made reminded him of.
"Yes, he told me. Come in." The taller boy said, closing the door behind Ryou as the English boy stepped gratefully inside out of the cold and brushed the snow from his hair and clothes.
"Thank you." Ryou smiled, grateful that Seto didn't seem to mind him being late. "To be honest I almost stayed at home. I didn't want to annoy you, I know you probably don't like parties, and since Mokuba was the one to invite us all I'm sure you don't really want us here," the English boy smiled softly, his eyes just like the eyes of Seto's angel holograph.
"I'll admit I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, but the night is looking up." Seto replied quietly, running his sapphire eyes over Ryou as he took off his coat and reached up to hang it on the coat rack. He was wearing a plain white turtle-neck sweater and blue jeans and he made a beautiful sight with his pale cheeks flushed with cold and his green eyes sparkling with happiness.
"I'm glad, I hope my yami hasn't stolen anything yet, I suggest you search him in the morning before he leaves. And Malik, he usually helps." Ryou laughed softly, looking towards the living room where the sounds of the movie ending and his friends talking could be heard.
"I'll keep that in mind." Seto said back, giving one of his rare smiles that he usually saved only for Mokuba. Then Ryou sneezed cutely and shivered, giving Seto the opportunity he'd been waiting for. "Would you like some tea or something? You look cold." He felt slightly embarrassed saying that, but it would be worth it if Ryou accepted the offer.
"Oh, yes please, I've been craving a cup of tea all night at my father's party, I think I may be addicted. But I don't want to keep you from your brother, it's almost midnight." Ryou said, looking at his watch. Five minutes to go.
"It's fine, Mokuba is too busy watching the clock and chattering to Yugi, he won't even notice I'm not there. He tends to get a little overexcited at Christmas." Seto told the shorter boy as he led him off deeper into the mansion towards the shining silver kitchen.
"Yugi does the same," Ryou smiled. "I think he always will."
Seto nodded in agreement and Ryou stood beside the door to watch as the tall duellist made them a cup of tea each, setting out the mugs and waiting for the kettle to boil.
"May I ask you something?" Ryou suddenly piped up, sounding a little nervous.
"If you want," Seto replied, wondering if Ryou was going to ask why he was acting less cold than he usually did. Not that he'd spent much time with Ryou, only when he was duelling Yami. At those times he'd always been able to feel the green-eyed boy's gentle eyes watching him from the sidelines, but he'd never thought much of it until he'd made that angel, and seen the same look in her eyes.
"Why did you sound so surprised to see me when you answered the door?" Ryou asked, looking over at Seto as the taller boy's shoulders tensed. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"
"No, it's alright. I just didn't expect you to ask, that's all." Seto said reassuringly, pouring out the mugs of tea as he gave in and explained.
"I just realized something when I saw you standing there, that's all."
"Oh? Was it something good?" Ryou asked, hoping he hadn't annoyed Seto somehow.
"Yes, it was. But it's a long story, are you sure you don't want to go back to your friends?" Seto asked, stirring his tea and listening to the clink of the spoon against the side of the mug, the clear sounds seeming louder in that moment as he waited for Ryou's answer.
"To be honest I'd rather not go in there at all," Ryou said quietly, seeming a little ashamed to admit he didn't want to be with his friends. "You must think that's a terrible thing to say, but I don't want to have to watch them holding each other. I suppose it's because I'm a little jealous." The English boy murmured. "I'm just being selfish. But they really won't miss me anyway. Go back to the party if you like, I'll be fine on my own here. Just as long as I have a cup of tea," Ryou added, smiling gratefully as he took the mug Seto offered him.
"It's not selfish. And I'd much rather stay here with you than watch Mokuba litter my living room with wrapping paper." Seto said as he sipped his own mug of tea, leading Ryou to sit on one of the stools at the silver counter and watching the boy blush slightly at his last comment. "If you really want to know why I was so surprised when I saw you, it was because of the angel on the top of my Christmas tree."
Ryou looked puzzled and frowned, trying to figure out what Seto meant.
"I don't understand," he admitted, blushing again as Seto looked down at him with his intense blue eyes.
"I couldn't find an angel I liked, so I made one. It was a holograph and I knew it reminded me of someone but I couldn't think who it was. All week, ever since I put the tree up I've felt it watching me and I've been trying to remember. It has silver hair and green eyes, even though I'm sure I programmed it to have blue eyes to match the decorations. When I answered the door and saw you standing there in the snow, I finally realized who it reminded me of." Seto explained, watching Ryou's eyes widen a little as he understood what the brunette was saying.
"It-it reminded you of me?" The white-haired boy whispered, looking up into Seto's deep blue eyes and feeling his heart skip a beat.
"Mmm." Seto nodded, brushing his fingers gently down Ryou's cheek in a gentle caress. "It's beautiful. You should see it, it looks just like you."
Ryou blushed, a pink tinge spreading across his pale cheeks, and dropped his gaze shyly.
"I-I've never been called beautiful before." He whispered, "Thank you."
"You're welcome. Its eyes are just like yours. That was what made me remember, I knew I'd felt those eyes watching me before and when I saw you looking up at me I realized where I'd seen them." Seto smiled, tilting Ryou's chin up so that he could take another look into those beautiful emerald eyes.
"I never thought you'd notice me..." Ryou said quietly, "I spent the whole of duellist kingdom watching you, and when your soul was taken by Pegasus Bakura had to take me over to stop me from crying for you. I was so afraid when Yami almost knocked you from the roof, when I saw you standing up there on that ledge I wanted to run over and beg you to come down. I-I didn't think you'd be interested, I'm not really anything special without Bakura taking me over and getting me into trouble..."
"Nothing special?" Seto said, leaning down so that his breath brushed Ryou's lips and he could feel the smaller boy trembling, so close to him. "You're an angel."
Ryou's eyes widened then fluttered shut as Seto closed the tiny gap between them and kissed him, one hand burying itself in his snowy white hair and the other pulling him up onto the CEO's lap where he sat on the tall stool. Moaning softly, Ryou parted his lips and wrapped his arms around Seto's neck as the taller boy's tongue slipped into his mouth to caress his own, the clock striking midnight barely audible in the background.
"Happy Christmas, Seto." Ryou said breathlessly once they broke off to breathe, laying his head against Seto's chest and blushing as the older boy's arms wrapped around him.
"Yes, it is." Seto replied, leaning down to kiss the top of Ryou's head and smiling softly.
The End
There, that was slightly fluffy and weird, but I sorta liked it. I'm crap at romance, you may have noticed...