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Notes: It's finally updated! Hallelujah! Writer's block averted. I apologize for the long wait for this chapter. All the legal stuff is hard to do and research is taking forever, so I'll just wing it from what I know.
Warnings: Hinted male pregnancy, language, mild angst
Song inspirations: Changes by 3 Doors Down, Sweet Sacrifice by Evanescence.
Slipped Away
© Buka2000
Seto crossed his arms, standing on his side of the room. He was dressed in his best business suit and dark tie, complete with black dress shoes. He had his briefcase full of documents that his lawyer could potentially use to help him in his suit against Dr. Shinimori and her staff. The young CEO knew full well that he was the plaintiff in this situation since he was the one that filed the complaint and started the lawsuit.
"Mr. Kaiba, you do realize that we're against one of the tougher lawyers in Domino. He hasn't lost a case yet, but I am going to win this for you. Rest assured, because I know that you want this settled in a timely manner." Seto's lawyer spoke, sitting next to the CEO. He didn't want to sound anxious in any way, but he was a little nervous.
"I am aware of that, Yoshiro-san. But I hired you because you're the best Kaiba Corp has to offer, and that is better than being tough. You know everything you need to know. So that tells me experience outweighs tough lawyers any day." Seto replied before directing his attention to the stand. Part of him wondered who exactly was on the jury for this trial.
Seto knew Yuugi and his friends wouldn't be on it. Sugoroku was a no because of his age. So that narrowed it down to a few other people he knew. But then again, Mai was because he remembered seeing her in the back next to a few people he didn't recognize. The foreman was Isis, which surprised him. But he figured at least two people that knew Yami would be on it. Even though a jury had to be biased and not favor one side over the other. Part of him figured they might be replaced before the trial went into full gear.
"I know that, Mr. Kaiba. But I am still going to do my best. We have enough evidence against Asya Shinimori, plus we have the tape you got of the surgery. We can prove without a doubt that either Asya or one of her assistants killed your boyfriend." Hoshi spoke, looking over at the other table.
"It only shows the surgery, I couldn't bear to look past when Amethyst was born. It's been three months but it still hurts. I love my daughter, but I can't bear to see when Yami died." Seto started, trying to maintain his dignity. He had to remain stoic through the whole trial. Afterwards though, maybe he would allow himself to cry maybe once. He never truly did since Yami died.
"I know it still hurts, Mr. Kaiba. We are going to put an end to this soon. Now you're going to have to watch the whole tape when we bring it up as evidence. Can you do that? We'll have the sound turned off if you like." Yoshiro spoke softly.
"No. I want everyone to hear what they say after I left the room. That is what shocked me most of all with the whole thing. So have the volume on, it will help my side of the case." Seto started, sighing softly as he put his hands on the table. His head turned when he heard the back door open.
"Please be seated. Yoshiro, you may call your first witness to the stand." Judge Hayashi spoke, looking at both lawyers. He sat back against his chair, making sure his gavel was on the side. He knew this was going to be a tough case, but he had to be fair and do the best he could to reach a fair sentence for the guilty party.
"I call Mokuba Kaiba to the stand." Yoshiro spoke, standing up to let Mokuba out of the doors separating the observers from the stand itself. He stood up, watching as Mokuba took his place in the stand while the bailiff stood by with a bible in his hand.
"Do you Kaiba Mokuba swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth in the court of law?" The bailiff asked, holding the bible while Mokuba put his hand on it. He could see that the younger brother of the plaintiff was confused, and perhaps a little scared of the whole ordeal but he seemed tough.
"I do." Mokuba replied before removing his hand from the bible. He sat back in the chair, looking up at Judge Hayashi before he redirected his attention to Yoshiro. He saw his brother looking over some papers before looking up in his direction. He knew he shouldn't smile though since this was a very serious situation.
Seto looked up toward Mokuba as he closed his briefcase. A faint and brief smile crossed his lips before his expression went stoic again. All he could hope for was that his little brother would tell everything that he remembered. Although he was aware Mokuba was not present at the surgery itself.
"Alright. Mokuba, where were you on the evening of December 5th, 2003? And how did you find out about your brother becoming a father?" Yoshiro asked, looking at Mokuba. He saw him look down at his hands for a moment, either in thought or to hold back tears.
"I was at home with Jeeves. I was not really expecting anything to occur since Yami wasn't due for another week. Then before bed time I got a call from my brother, but he was crying. I thought that the baby died, so I asked him what happened. He told me that he lost Yami, but Amethyst was fine." Mokuba replied truthfully.
"So you claim you had no idea of Yami even going into labor that day? Were you aware of his pregnancy?" Yoshiro asked, crossing his arms as he walked in front of Mokuba before he paced slightly. He didn't care if he was objected; he had every right to ask questions that he felt were relevant to the trial and case at hand.
"Objection, relevance." Aisho spoke, crossing his arms at his table. He really couldn't see where Yoshiro was going with all of this as it was. So why bother asking Mokuba questions he didn't know the answers to?
"Over ruled. Please, continue." Judge Hayashi spoke as he turned his attention back to Mokuba. He knew this did hurt the younger Kaiba, but every question had to be answered to the best of everyone's abilities. And truthfully.
"Yes, I was aware that Yami was pregnant. He lived with us, so it was hard not to know that he was getting bigger. I don't see your point of this though." Mokuba replied, sitting as still as he could. But he could have sworn he saw a light smile crossing the lips of his older brother.
"No further questions your honor." Yoshiro spoke before he went back to his table. Although he was not expecting a glare from Seto, he was only doing his job after all. He didn't understand why the older Kaiba was acting this way at all.
"You aren't supposed to question my brother. You full well that he was aware of Yami's pregnancy. What was that about anyway?" Seto hissed, keeping his voice low so the prosecution didn't hear them. He knew that everyone had to be questioned, but why his brother? He sighed, leaning back in his chair.
"I have to question everyone, Mr. Kaiba. I even have to question you when you get called to the stand. Just be prepared for anything, even questions pertaining to yours and Yami's relationship. Even Amethyst's birth." Yoshiro replied, crossing his arms as the proceedings went on.
"The defense calls Seto Kaiba to the stand. Mr. Kaiba, do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth in the court of law?" The bailiff spoke, doing the same procedure for Seto that he did with Mokuba and the others. He held the bible out as Seto placed his hand on it.
"I do." Seto spoke before he took his seat, watching the bailiff take his place next to the stand. He knew that this was going to get heated rather quickly, but he would use his business and speaking skills to keep himself calm. Or at least he'd attempt to remain calm as random and possibly hurtful questions were tossed his way.
"Mr. Kaiba, where were you on the evening of December 5th, 2003?" Yoshiro asked, looking Seto in the eye. He could see a small fire already burning in the CEO's eyes, but he had to ask the questions. Even if it cost him his job later on.
"I was at the hospital with Yami, including the operating room. I did not leave his side if that is what you are implying." Seto replied coolly, his eyes remaining narrowed. He had been prepared for personal questions since this was a trial about the death of his lover. But he was also prepared to hear Dr. Shinimori's statements as well.
"And can you tell us the reason why Mr. Moutou was in the hospital that night? Is it true that he was pregnant and subsequently gave birth on that day? But he passed away shortly afterwards?" Yoshiro started, pacing back and forth before he looked at the jury, only to redirect his attention back to Seto.
"Objection, badgering the witness." Aisho started, he was highly confused on why Seto's own lawyer would be acting this way toward him. But he had a few tricks up his sleeve to prove his client was innocent and this was just a waste of everyone's time and money.
"Over ruled. Mr. Yoshiro, would you care to rephrase that question?" Judge Hayashi asked, crossing his arms over his chest. He could tell this was going nowhere fast, but he could hope that they would come to a verdict before the end of the day at least.
"Very well. Mr. Kaiba, can you tell the jury why you were at the hospital that night? Did you not have a company meeting to attend that evening?" Yoshiro asked, although he knew he'd probably get objected again. But he'd just wait and see, hoping for something good to come of this.
"We know why I was there. I was at the hospital because of Yami. He took top priority over my meeting. I specifically told Isono to hold my meetings that evening because I had a family emergency. I would do the same thing if Mokuba was injured." Seto replied, his voice getting darker. But he knew that he had to remain calm.
"No further questions your honor." Yoshiro spoke, stepping down from his position only to have Aisho approach the bench. He sat back; he too had his own strategy. He wanted to see what Seto had to say about the surgery and what had occurred that evening.
"Mr. Kaiba, is it true that my client Asya Shinimori performed a caesarean section on Mr. Moutou? And yet you failed to state so when you were questioned earlier." Aisho spoke, crossing his arms for a moment. He knew he was probably one step closer to getting his client the justice she deserved.
"Yes, it is true. But she also murdered him! Is that what you want me to say? Your client allowed Yami to die without doing a thing to prevent it. Unless you can prove otherwise." Seto spoke, narrowing his eyes tightly. He was not happy, that much was evident.
"That is not the case. My client is innocent; she did not kill Mr. Moutou. It was just a flaw, proving that men cannot carry an unborn child to full term and survive the surgery. It was his own fault that he died." Aisho started, smirking for a moment.
"No, an accident is my foot having to be surgically removed from your mouth!" Seto growled deeply, he had enough of this. He did not want to stand by and have people saying that Yami was at fault for his own death. No one even knew Yami could get pregnant let alone carry a baby for 39 weeks.
Judge Hayashi pounded his gavel on the bench, and stood up from his seat. He looked at both lawyers and their clients, his eyes narrowed. Right now he was highly irritated by the actions of both sides. Although he had been presiding for a good many years now.
"Order! Order in the court room. Mr. Aisho and Mr. Yoshiro, approach the bench." Judge Hayashi spoke, sitting back in his chair as the two lawyers approached the bench. He knew this was going to be a tense trial, but he just didn't know it was going to be this intense at the moment.
"Your honor, everyone knows my client is innocent. Why prolong the matter any longer than it should be? Can you reach a decision just from what you heard?" Aisho spoke, crossing his arms as he narrowed his eyes toward Yoshiro.
"And you are causing undo emotional trauma to my client. Your honor, I request a 10 minute recess so we can talk to our respective clients and calm them down. It would be for the best I believe." Yoshiro spoke, trying to maintain his posture and demeanor.
"I'll do better. Alright, court is adjourned until tomorrow morning at 11am. This will give you time to get your clients calmed down, and come up with evidence to support the facts. For both sides, not just your client Mr. Yoshiro. Dr. Shinimori needs some to help her in this case." Judge Hayashi started, hoping that the two lawyers would accept this.
The two lawyers nodded, and then sighed as Judge Hayashi left the court room. They had a lot of work to do, especially Aisho. But right now that was the least of their worries. Both were worried about the outcome of their clients and the final ruling of the jury. Only time would tell, and right now that was one thing they didn't have a lot of.
