Chapter 1

Dueling wasn't a priority. Sure, new software came out with every third card pack, but it just wasn't that important. The CEO of the company that created the software just wanted to get through his last year of high school.

Seto Kaiba sat at the desk in his office, pouring over his math homework. He was still in his uniform pants and white undershirt. His jacket was hanging on a coat rack by the door. His pencil scratched the paper in the quiet.

The door opened, and the raven haired roommate of Seto's sat on the end of the couch, facing the television. Mokuba picked up the remote and switched on cartoons.

"Keep it down," Seto said firmly.

Mokuba stayed glued to the screen until there was a commercial. "So, I saw Yugi and Yami today," he said.

"I see Yugi everyday," Seto replied.

"You don't see Yami, though." Mokuba glanced at the TV before speaking again. "There's something different about him."

Seto didn't say anything.

"I know you don't care, but I want to tell someone. Yami seems kinda lonely. Since Yugi and Anzu started dating-"

"How did you know about that?" Seto asked, looking up.

Mokuba smiled. "Yugi and Yami may not be your friends, but I call them my friends." He looked back at the TV. "I told Yami he could come over and hang out if he wanted."

"That's absolutely what I need." The older Kaiba rolled his eyes.

The speaker on Seto's desk buzzed. "Mr. Kaiba, there is a Yami Mutou here to see Master Mokuba."

Mokuba jumped off the couch in excitement. Even as a teenager, he had the heart of a kid. "We'll stay out of your way, okay bro?" He left the office.

Seto tried to concentrate on his work. The thought of the other Mutou in his office was bothering him. Not that he cared, of course. He had more important things to think about, like his homework. The numbers and letters on his paper no longer seemed interesting. He looked down at his clothes. Perhaps if he got out of his school clothes he could think better. The excuse would also get him out of the office.

In the hallway close to the bedrooms, the slim figured pharaoh looked up at a large portrait of the brothers. Seto had the same look on his face, with a very slight smile. Mokuba, however, was trying to look serious without much luck. His serious face turned out to be a goofy seriousness. Yami smiled, but not at Mokuba's face. That strong face and body of the elder Kaiba seemed perfect. Not only did he see the past in Seto's blue eyes, he also saw the future.

"Are you lost?" Kaiba asked.

Yami turned his head slowly. There he was, wearing a tight black shirt and just as tight black pants. His white trench coat was hanging over his shoulder. "Just admiring."

Seto looked up at the portrait. "It would look better if Mokuba would have kept that smile off his face."

"It looks perfect." Yami turned back towards the picture.

The pharaoh was dressed in all black, as well. His sleeveless top revealed just how pale is skin was against the black of his top and pants. Yami was without his thick belt chocker and the Millennium Puzzle. Seto was surprised. He had rarely seen Yami without those items.

Mokuba came out of the bedroom. "Yami? What are you doing?"

"I was just taking a look around."

"And you, Seto?" Mokuba asked.

"Changing clothes," Seto replied, holding out his white trench. He turned away from the two. "Enjoy your stay, Mutou. Hopefully you can keep Mokuba company as well as I can."

Yami nodded and mumbled something.

"What was that?" Seto asked, turning around.

"I think it was Egyptian," Yami said with a slight chuckle.

Seto turned again. Yami's mumbled words echoed very clearly in his mind. "I want you to keep me company." Yami had spoken it in plain English. Why had he said it? The spirit - No, his greatest rival had just said that to him. He did not return to his homework. His mind was wandering elsewhere. He sat at his office, tapping a pencil on the desk as if to break the silence. The image of Yami staring at his picture kept appearing in his head. Slowly, he began to notice the slim features of Yami's face; his long nose and pointed chin, and the thin framework of his body. Seto and Yami had not encountered each other but a few times a month when Seto saw Yami outside of the game shop. Yami would nod or make a small wave, and Seto would always nod back. Now Yami was speaking as if he was somehow attracted to Seto. He had to know. His feet took him out of his office and down to the bedrooms.

Fortunately, Yami was standing outside of Mokuba's room. "Hello, Seto."

"Where's Mokuba?" Seto asked quickly.

"He fell asleep. I suppose he was up too late playing video games last night."

Seto acted too quickly. He grabbed Yami's arm and nearly threw him into his bedroom. Yami growled. "What the hell is the matter with you, Kaiba?"

"I have to know," Seto said, ignoring the deliberate use of his last name. "What do you think of me?"

"I believe you are a strong duelist-"

"'I want you to keep me company.'"

Yami looked down at the blue carpet. "I had hoped you had not heard that." He quickly glanced at Seto's waiting blue eyes. "Those eyes..." He glanced up and down again and again.

Seto lifted Yami's chin to look into his magenta eyes. "How does my greatest rival get feelings for me?"

"I never said anything."

"Your eyes did."

Yami pulled away and moved towards the bed to sit. "You have this aura. You have had it for quite some time." He tried his hardest not to look up. "Perhaps I have just become too lonely over the years."

"What can you do to make the loneliness disappear?" Seto asked softly, unaware that his feet were taking him closer to the bed.

"I have been trying to find something," Yami said. "I have been unsuccessful." He looked up. Seto's stomach was at his eye level. He looked up into the pair of now dark blue eyes. "Seto?"

Seto bent down, causing Yami to lean on his elbows for support. His lips were almost touching the ear below the three colors of hair. "Yes, pharaoh?" Seto whispered softly.

Yami shivered. The weight of the other man was almost completely on top of him. Their legs were entangled and their torsos touching. "Have you any idea what you're doing?" he asked shakily.

"You're not stopping me," Seto whispered, slowly moving his head to look into Yami's eyes. "You think you have been lonely, but you couldn't even begin to imagine the loneliness I have endured."

The pharaoh's heart felt ready to beat out of his chest. "Y-You could sh-show me. I do n-not think there w-will b-be any g-going b-back after th-this."

No going back. Seto stood up quickly, turning away from Yami in the process. "This isn't right."

"Is it b-because of who I am?"

Seto looked at Yami out of the corner of his eye. His top had been pulled up, revealing just how low he wore those leather pants. Red patched filled his cheeks, and his eyes were large with mixed emotions. "It could be that or-"

"Just swallow your pride, Seto!" Yami growled. "You cannot let something like Duel Monsters affect who your friends are or how your life will be. You have forgotten that game ended up not working to my advantage."

"Your last duel." Yami had not dueled since the day he faced Yugi to determine the pharaoh's fate. Since Yami won, he was forever stuck in this time. He could not go back to his true home. Seto walked to the door, and pulled it open. Before closing it, he turned around. "Make yourself comfortable. I want you here tonight."

"Right here?" Yami asked, laying his head on Seto's pillows.

Seto nodded and pulled the door closed.

Yami sighed. "Do not take too much time," he whispered with tears running silently down his face.