Nandita To Nandini
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Sow And ReapChapter 43: Ties And Bindings free porn video
The day was flawless. The skies were a clear azure blue, the trees a bright spring green, and the cherry, plum and peach blossoms peaked in shades of pink and white on schedule as if they too were all following Mai's instructions to the letter.
As I knew nothing about wedding planning, I let Mai and Ryou make all the arrangements - from the date and time of the event, to the favors and gifts given to the guests. Komo River Okiyo more than justified my investment in the school; they provided all the labor for the event. They collected Shugibukuro envelopes and kept the money in them secure. They also distributed the Hikidemono - a red-and-white parasol with a matching fan, both with the KaibaCorp logo - to every guest. In addition, every guest would received a dried fish in an ornate wooden box, which Ryou had informed me was traditionally associated with great joy, and would be talked about with envy by high society for months after the day.
For the couple themselves, I provided formal kimonos complete with the Kaiba kamon - I could hardly justify not granting them the use of it. One kimono for the groom and three for the bride. The wedding was costing me a staggering ¥10,000,000.00, but Pegasus had paid for a lavish, if impromptu, ceremony in New York, and I did not intend to allow him to have the last word, so to speak.
I did ask Auzu if she wanted an equally lavish affair to make up for the quiet service she and Honda had. She laughed. "And make myself as crazy as Mai is right now? Never! Too much complication. If you're feeling generous, you could give me a bigger staff." I laughed.
My kitchen staff was preparing enough food to feed several armies and for the first time - ever, to my knowledge - virtually every room in the house was occupied with guests.
Yugi and Honda were sharing my suite - a veritable two-day sleepover of pizza, video games and male bonding - while Mai and her family were using the East cottage. Honda-sama, Kawai-chan and Serenity had arrived the day before and were using the West cottage. We had all been pleasantly surprised that Honda's father and Joey's mother were holding hands any time they thought no one was watching.
We had expected Mutou-sama to arrive with them, but he called the day before, laughing, saying that there was no reason to close the shop a day early just to watch Yugi and Mai coo. I sent a stylist and a limo for him early on the morning of the wedding.
Stuffed into every corner of the main manor was every friend for whom Yugi or Mai could dig up an address. The only vacant rooms, in fact, were Mokuba's and that was only because he insisted that he was bringing friends home with him. Even non-bedrooms were pressed into service: the den had been given to Yugi's parents - whom I'd never even meet before they arrived - and the game room had been given over to all guests under the age of twelve. Those guests that could not fit into the Manor, had been packed in with Noah and Vivian - on the condition that we reverse the process for their wedding in September.
With Mai's permission, I had sent a few invitations of my own. This was the first formal event that I had hosted and, while I did not want their wedding to become a circus, I did want to show off just a bit.
The invitations to the Emperor and the Prime Minister were a matter of form; I did not expect either of them to attend, but the formal letters of congratulations were one of the highlights for Mai. The Imperial Jade Chrysanthemum bowl with the Empress' handwritten good wishes was a lovely gift, and was prominently displayed in the center of the other gifts they'd received in advance of the happy day. Prince Katsura and Toshimura did attend, and brought with them an Imperial iwaibukuro for their monetary gift, and the four youngest Imperial Princesses as their guests. The eldest of the four, her Imperial Highness Princess Ayako, had been a classmate of Noah's at The Gakushuin School. She mentioned to my cousin, casually, that Kaiba Manor would be a perfect venue for her own future wedding.
Fujita Tenchi came with his wife, two sons and his sister. Miko-chan greeted me with her usual affection and I took it with my usual good grace; Gorou was cordial but kept his arm firmly around his wife's waist. Shortly after, KimKim brought her new husband, and Chou-Chou arrived with her openly acknowledged girlfriend.
I made something of a production of introducing Fujita to the rest of my friends. "This gentleman taught me a very important lesson." I told them. "And I wish to repay him."
"Really?" Yugi looked surprised. "What did you teach Seto-kun?"
Fujita laughed and shook his head. "I haven't the faintest idea. Nothing he could not have learned elsewhere."
"Quite the contrary." I disagreed. "For instance, I knew nothing about how to throw a bachelor party prior to yours. You should thank the gentleman, Yugi."
"Oh, yeah?" Yugi grinned slyly, and then he and Honda both glanced around for their significant others. "Thanks."
"So for that and other lessons, here." I handed him an envelope.
"Kaiba-san, please..." He tried to hand it back. "That's really not necessary."
"I also owe you a wedding gift, so I believe this will make up for that lapse." I smiled. "Please. At least open it before you refuse it."
He relented and opened the envelope. Inside was a check for ¥300,000 and the arrangements for a romantic 5-day cruise. "Kaiba-san! This is too -"
"I'm afraid I did not realize you had children. I will, of course, arrange a service to care for the boys when you go."
"Kaiba, you are deliberately missing my point."
"I have also already emailed this entire package to your lovely wife."
"Ouch!" Yugi winced.
"Yeah, dude." Honda shook his head. "You are so going."
Fujita laughed again. "Thank you, Kaiba-san. My wife will be very pleased."
"I'm sure. I also expect you to cash that check." I pulled out another envelope. "Just as I expect you to honor this one, Yugi."
"Seto-kun!" Yugi turned bright red. "You don't have to do that!"
"It is traditional."
"But you're practically family! And besides, you're hosting this!" I continued to proffer the envelope. "Honda -"
"Don't look at me! He made me take one and I didn't even get to see mine. Anzu took it and put it somewhere. You'd better either hide that or give it Mai out right."
"Give it to her." I suggested. "As I understand it, you are not allowed to play with money."
"Thanks." Yugi moaned as the rest of us laughed. "I'm going to put this away before Bridezilla 3.0 finds me." He headed back to the house.
When Yugi returned, he brought 'Momoka' and Otogi in tow and the six of us stayed in the courtyard, greeting guests as they arrived, and avoiding the over-emotional women and the over-exuberant children.
The wedding was scheduled for 2pm. Around noon, I was beginning to worry a bit until I saw a white limo with the "Sons of Kaiba" logo pulling in.
"Finally!" I said with a happy sigh.
"Mokuba?" Honda asked.
"Yes. I send Nakamura for him just to ensure he would not get side-tracked."
"Good plan."
Honda waved Yugi forward and we three moved to meet the car.
Mokuba leapt out as Nakamura rolled to a stop. "Nii-sama!" my shaggy, black-haired, six-foot-plus-tall brother shouted as launched himself at me.
"Good Lord!" I huffed as his unexpected weight hit me. "What have you been eating?"
He laughed. "I guess I'm 'big bro' now, huh!"
"I guess!" He was tanned and muscular. "I think you may have been spending more time on the beach than in -"
"YAMI!" Yugi shrieked with apparent surprise and joy, and then pushed past my brother and I.
Mokuba turned slightly, and past his now broad shoulder, I saw Pharaoh and Joey, dressed in formal attire, leaning against the car. Pharaoh and Yugi embraced in much the way Mokuba and I had, but Joey was looking at the ground.
"You ok, dude?" Honda asked me quietly.
"Of course." I answered. "Please. Greet him." I looked back at Mokuba. "There are still a great number of details to attend to 'little' brother. I'd better check things at the house."
"Seto, I just..." Mokuba began.
"No, you were right to bring them. They should be here. I'm fine." I reached up, ruffled his hair and smiled. "Get a haircut." I teased before turning toward the house.
There were people everywhere. I went straight to my rooms to avoid Them.
I didn't want to see Them here, now. I didn't want to see Them ever again. No, I corrected myself. I wanted to see Them every second of every minute of every hour of every day.
But I can't have Them. I can't run KaibaCorp and worry about Them at the same time. If one of Them was sick or injured or - God help me - dying again, I wouldn't care if the company faded to nothing.
And I can't do that. KaibaCorp was the size of a small country. Two hundred thousand people depend on it - on me - for their livelihoods. I did not have the right to allow two people to steal my time and attention from so many others.
I had learned to believe in love, in magic. And I would have been happier if I had only seen the smoke and mirrors.
"Seto?" Anzu's voice accompanied a tap on my door. "Are you there?"
I swore silently and grabbed my hairbrush. "Come in, Anzu." I said as I began trying to tame my hair - and considered, for a moment, cutting it short again.
"Seto, I'm sorry, but I have to leave. Have you seen Honda?"
"With Joey and Yugi, I expect." I said casually. My hand was shaking. My hair was definitely too long.
"Joey! Here? Oh, Seto! Are you -" she stopped speaking, shook her head and turned me to face her. She had Hianko in one arm, but put the other around me. "Oh, Seto! Why don't you come with me?"
My eyes started burning - no doubt something in Anzu's cologne. "I have guests." My voice cracked. "Where are you going for which Mai would possibly forgive you?"
"The day care called. One of my students needs to be picked up. She's an orphan and the teachers can't reach the home."
"How is an orphan attending our school?"
"Her aunt works in processing. She used to have custody of the girl, but apparently couldn't take care of her and gave her to the home. But she's a good student and I didn't want to see her slip through the cracks. So, we amended the enrollment eligibility to include any family member between the ages of 3 and 6."
"I see. Send Ishtaaru."
Anzu shook her head. "Isis is watching all the kids except this one as is."
"I see." I could go to the office, get some work done. Now that Mokuba was there, he could play host for the event. "Yes. I think I will go with you. I'll meet you at my car."
She kissed my cheek, encouraged Hianko to kiss 'Uncle Seto' as well, and left me to gather my wits.
I envied her. I envied Honda. They found joy and comfort where others would have found loss and betrayal. Honda, like Fujita, was able to sow faith and reap hope. I sowed emptiness and reaped only loneliness.
I took a breath and a moment to stretch. Then I smiled and remained smiling as I passed through a house celebrating a love I would never know.
I made the decision. I would marry the last girl the matchmaker presented, and be done with it. If I couldn't have love, at least I could fulfill my obligation for an heir. As I thought about it, I suspected the girl was on the day's guest list. I had met her once for tea at the White Dragon and once for dinner with the 'family' at Kaiba Manor. Nosaka Miho was pretty and educated - which, frankly, was all I noticed. I made a note to ask the officiant if he would do a second wedding before he left; that would resolve the issue.
I managed to smile, nod and bow my way to the car without anyone stopping me only to find Nakamura wasn't there. I started to call him when I remembered that I'd given him the day off - swearing to Mai that once Mokuba arrived, I wouldn't need a driver.
"Damn it." I growled under my breath.
"Sir?" I turned to see another of our drivers nearby. "Did you need someone?"
"Yes. Mazaki and I need to go to the office."
"I'll get Nakamura-san right -"
"No, you take us."
He stopped, a bit wide-eyed. "Yes, sir." All our cars are combination locks, so he didn't need the keys. I got in and he drove up to the front to pick up Anzu. I tried not to seethe as I watched her hand over Hianko to Honda and exchange one last kiss before she hurried to join me.
"Sorry about that. I had to change her first."
"Perfectly understandable."
"I told Honda that we'd pick up, drop off and be back before anyone noticed."
"An excellent plan."
"I'm going to make you talk about it whether you want to or not."
"There is nothing to discuss."
"I still don't understand..."
"This is not complicated. I do not want the distractions that relationship and family cause. Surely, you can appreciate that now that you have a family of your own."
"Of course not! Family is simple. My child, my husband, my friends, my job."
"My job, my brother, my friends." I replied.
"And what about this wife you've been looking for? What's that all about?"
"I have an obligation to produce an heir. I'd like to do it while I'm young enough to enjoy it."
"And what about your obligation to your wife?"
"I don't see that I have one. She'll understand that her role is to produce and raise my children not to provide companionship. And on that subject, what do you think of Nosaka?"
"The woman you got from that service?" I nodded. "I think she's a gold-digging shrew and if you marry her, I'll quit. Don't try to change the subject, Seto. I don't understand! Even the blind can see how you feel about Joey and Yami! Even you admitted it."
"I'm I somehow less perceptive than the blind?" I quipped.
She hit me. "You are not charming your way out of this discussion. KaibaCorp is not more important than the people you love."
"KaibaCorp is the only important thing in my life." I looked out the window. "I have dedicated my life to KaibaCorp so that you and Mokuba and him," I gestured to our driver, "can all dedicate your lives to what you love."
"But Seto, we don't want you to sacrifice everything you love."
"Life doesn't work that way. The cost must be paid." I tried to smile at her. "Imagine it's a duel. The points on the cards must be exchanged - bought, given, sacrificed - somehow in order to have any value. I have the greatest number of points." I looked out the window again. "And the least amount of value."
"Oh stop!" She snapped. "Stop feeling sorry for yourself!"
"I don't."
"You do! You do it all the time!"
I looked at her. "I think perhaps this conversation is over."
"Oh Seto, be reasonable! You're just as stubborn as your father! Honestly!"
"I am nothing like Gozaburo." I hissed. "Say something like that again, and what friendship we have left will be at an end."
"Why, because it's true and you don't like hearing it?" She huffed. "Well here's another truth that you won't like. No one likes you when you're miserable."
"I hardly care who 'likes' me."
"And do you know who is the most likely person to make you the intolerable, miserable wretch you frequently are?"
"I'm sure you'll tell me it's me."
"Yes, Seto, it's you. Of all the horrible things I've seen done to you, you have by far done the worst of them to yourself."
"Did I? Did I really? Did I have an affair on myself? Did I kill myself just so I could be accused of murder?" I realized I was yelling and took a breath. "No, Mazaki. I have not done the worst to myself, and as carefree as your life has been, don't you dare presume to judge me."
"Carefree?" She laughed derisively. "You have no idea what my life was like before I met you! You never cared what anyone's life was like before you met Joey! Carefree! Ha! Honda wants a divorce."
"Don't stoop to dramatics, it doesn't..." I realized that she was cringing as if she hadn't meant to say the words. "You can't be serious." She nodded. "Why?"
"Hianko isn't his."
I looked at her in shock. "But ... who ... you said, at the reading of the will, that you were not pregnant."
"I didn't know at the time."
"You were not early." She shook her head. "You never told him."
"No. He found out a month ago. She had a blood test and the nurse mentioned that Hianko's type B. I'm O, Honda's A."
"And Honda would destroy everything you have together over such foolishness?"
"It's rather unreasonable to ask him to raise another man's child."
"How absurd! What difference could it possibly make? The child adores him and has since birth. Her paternity could not matter less." Except that, as a point of fact, Hianko's paternity made her my younger sister. I pulled out my phone and began dialing. "Mokuba, Noah and I will have to make some adjustments to concede the appropriations in Gozaburo's will, but -"
She closed my phone. "Please. Don't."
"But..."
"It will only make matters worse."
I put the phone away. "I'll speak with him tonight. Make him see reason." I smiled gently. "You realize, of course, that this simply adds to the reasons I must concentrate my full attention on KaibaCorp."
She burst, laughing and crying at the same time. "Oh Seto! What are we going to do with you?" She hugged me. I think she cried for a few minutes, but I held her while she released her frustrations and worries.
We arrived at the office with little further conversation. I was seriously considering sneaking around and unlocking the rear entrance, but Anzu ordered the driver to pull up to the front and be ready to leave immediately.
I started for the elevators, but she grabbed my arm. "The day care is this way."
"Anzu, you hardly need me for this."
"If you go to your office, you'll never leave it." She accused. "You'll go hide out in there."
"I just want to pick up some contracts and bring them home with me."
"So you can hide out in the study. Oh, that's much better."
"You have been spending entirely too much time with Mai."
She rolled her eyes and let me go; I was halfway up to my office when my phone rang.
It was Yugi. "Where Are You!? Mai's threatening to kill you, and I think she might mean it this time!"
"You two hardly need me for this."
"But you and Anzu are supposed to be here!" He lamented. "The ceremony won't be the same without you!"
I sighed and stopped the elevator. It took a moment for it to reverse, but it did. "We should be back within the hour. Anzu's probably on her way already."
She was not. Anzu was leaning against an open car door waiting for me, holding her phone. "And if that hadn't worked, I was going to call Honda-sama."
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