Bet you didn't count on my return...

Okay, so. I'm 29 now. I have a Tangled multi-chapter I should be working on (Broken Dreams). But, like I said, I'm 29, and Dark Side of Dimensions brought Yu-Gi-Oh! back from the dead. I've been away from Yu-Gi-Oh! fanfiction since 2008. I've read a couple fics and a bunch of RP's from people via Tumblr (kaiba-fangirl, come find me!), but basically I've been out of this fanfiction loop for nearly a decade. I'm an oldie, but I don't know how things are done around here anymore. Tropes? Cliches? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I learned my Yu-Gi-Oh! fanfiction from its golden age of 2003-2006, but at least my writing has to have improved. Just call it old-school.

Still, so much has happened since then. I'm here with this story for a very specific purpose. I've kept different-canon discrepancies vague, as well as timeline placement. Like most people, I follow my own unique blend of canons. So, please don't be afraid to ask questions, and don't worry about things not lining up with the manga/anime/movies/spinoffs. We're Post-Ceremonial Duel, but that's about it. Anyway, enjoy your crappy anime fanfic...

Cuz now I'm back.

ONE

Joey woke up amid messy covers, still as frustrated as he had fallen asleep. Despite that though, he felt too lazy to get out of his warm, quiet, comfy bed just yet. He rolled over, and tapped a key to wake his laptop up. His feed took forever to refresh, but he waited, rubbing his eyes. He wanted only to compulsively fill his mind with some kind of distraction for the morning. The page finally finished loading, but it took another moment for the very first posts' words to register meaning in his mind. -no... it can't be...

He propped himself up on his elbows on a tuft of the comforter. His dog tags fell from where they had stuck to his shoulder, the cold side of the metal chain gently brushing against his bare chest. He rubbed his eyes again and read the lines again.

_
Mai Valentine changed her name to Mai Kaiba.
_

Mai Valentine got married!
_

Joey felt his heart thud and thump to a stop. Then, just as suddenly, it began racing, only his blood felt thick. He picked his head up, cheeks flushed, throat tight, and his limp hands slowly retreated from the laptop.

Just... just like dat? Dat's it? His mind buzzed with a flurry of questions, and conflicting cries of emotion twisted his gut. Dat's not how it was supposed to happen- I'm spose'dta make it big & she'll be impressed, and den we'll finally really be together! How dare Kaiba take HER away from me, too! - She was never mine and she could never be... - But I didn't think Kaiba even liked girls? D'ohhh, how could Mai go for dat jerk?! - I guess Rich Boy'll take care ah her, though. "Urrrgh..." He screwed his eyes shut and pulled at his hair as he rolled back over in agony. I hate dem BOTH! So much! But his arms quickly went limp from the useless adrenaline rush, and lay sprawled above his head.

Mai was hardly ever online; or at least, not that he knew of. He had never interacted with her online, but did try to futilely keep up with her life. She always posted a lot of pictures, but they only offered more questions than answers to him. This was out of nowhere. What was more, was the "couple" in Domino? He had no clue. Maybe dey'll at least have the decency to go live on a tropical island far away somewhere, so I never have to see either of 'em ever again...

It was another rough and lonely morning, like the rough and lonely night.

"There's nothing to pull more girls in," Mai complained.

She shifted to a power stance in a pale blue skirt suit, accentuating her hourglass figure. Her sharp lapels flared wide, revealing a tight, smooth, black satin sweetheart-shaped corset, which revealed even more of her with how low-cut it was. Her long blonde hair still flowed around her in a meticulously styled mane. Her makeup highlighted her violet eyes and every feminine feature of her face, framed with large silver dangling metal feathers. Her open-short-boot style heels were strappy, with a thin stiletto and covered toes. They showcased her tender muscular curves all the way up her legs.

"There's nothing inherently 'boyish' about it, either," Seto defended, trying not to sneer.

He sunk back further into his black leather executive desk chair, gripping the armrests and crossing his legs. He wore a deep dark purple 3-piece suit. The silk fabric shimmered in the light, against black wide-peaked lapels and accents. A stark white dress shirt underneath it all stood out at his neck, chest, and where the cuffs showed beneath the jacket. His silk tie sparkled with flecks of white amidst the busy purple swirl pattern on a black background; it almost looked like a galaxy image.

"Well I know that," she smirked at him. "But the audience we're missing doesn't realize that." She waved her hand at the holographic slides to bring up the next one, a set of pie graphs and bar graphs with various labels and percentages. However, the whole board room was still brightly lit both from the above fluorescents and the wall of windows looking out to the city of Domino. The same set of holographic slides was illuminated on the conference table for each of the dozen or so board members sitting around it.

Seto sat with his back to the windows, to the left of the head, so Mai could have the front for her presentation. "So what do you suggest?" he sighed. Any board member would say he looked completely disinterested; forced to sit through this.

"You just have to make it more popular amongst girls," Mai shrugged with her hands out. "Socially acceptable. Make it cool, for them."

Seto cringed, unsure how to do such a thing, and ready to bite the first person to just say 'Make it pink.' Well, hot neon pink is fine. Just not... like... powdery pink with flowers? He nearly shuddered at the thought of stickers on his own Duel Disk.

A small voice came to life from elsewhere at the table. "Well, the Duel Disk does only come in one color combination..."

Both Seto's and Mai's eyes rolled to the back of their heads.

Mai spoke up first. "You can go right ahead and make them in different colors, but that is not what I am talking about."

"I agree," Seto chimed in. "But Mai, if you're talking about the cards-"

"I know what I'm talking about," she retorted. "It's not the cards. It's the image. Kaiba Corp is the only reason the game is as popular as it is today. Kaiba Corp controls the image of Duel Monsters. The cultural perception. That's the key to changing the world's mind about something. It's not just little girls who are not interested in stimulating games of wits, it's that no one in their lives is actively encouraging them."

Seto's eyes flicked from Mai to the rest of the muttering table of boring faces. He allowed the deliberation, then turned back to Mai, as he reclined in his seat. "And just how do you plan to do that?" He smiled, but harshly.

She shot a cheerful but confident look right back at him. "Accessories."

The table gasped and whispered again.

"And ad campaigns," she went on. "Accessories and merchandise for girls, as well as boys, and gender neutral, and older duelists."

Seto shifted in his seat, and his smile turned to intrigue.

"Seto," she challenged him directly and their eyes flashed, "You have custom-designed clothes, personal electronics, heck even your plane is inspired by your Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

His eyes narrowed farther, smug but bemused. "A jet is hardly an accessory."

"Hm, no, but this is." She lifted her purse from under the table and placed it on top, then spun it around. It was a large, boxy, white leather thing, outlined with silver studs and an elegantly smooth silver KC emblem fixed to one side. The handle buckles were the same smooth silver, and just inside the red satin lining peaked into sight. Seto's eyes widened and poured over the design and craftsmanship.

Mai continued, "This is just a sample of the designs you'll find in these mock catalogs." A new collection of slides popped up in front of everyone's displays, and automatically flipped through themselves. Mai also pulled out a pile of thin booklet reports, and tossed them out at the table. Everyone either scrambled for one of the booklets, or was mesmerized by their projected screens. Seto snatched his up before it stopped sliding across the table, but instead chose to manually flip through the slides, enlarging certain images before quickly skipping to others.

"Kaiba Corp is a brand," Mai narrated. "If people like the brand for other reasons it will get and keep people interested in our main center of business – Gaming tech."

Seto's eyes glinted as he smirked at her. "Well, Miss Valentine," he emphasized, "It looks like you've got your work cut out for you."

The other suits all gasped and looked to him.

"Because I'd be thrilled to further expand the KC household name," he said in a threatening monotone.

Suddenly the suits were eager to voice their support. "These designs are spot on!" "These don't even look like they're for a man or a woman!"

Mai's eyes shone with confidence and pride. "Thank you, Mr. Kaiba," she hummed with a seductively coy voice.

Seto turned his head toward the rest of the table, but shot Mai a fiendish look. With his elbows on the table, he wove his fingers together in front of his mouth; an unnecessary attempt to hide their dalliance. Unfortunately, perhaps next time I should not sit in on her presentations. She's right on the money, but maybe then she could get some honestly positive feedback. What, do I have to award 'genuine participation' points or something? He shifted in his seat and smacked one hand down on the table. "Alright, well then, shall we begin."

Joey found himself moping around the mall, surrounded by his friends' happy faces.

"Joey, is everything okay?" Yugi whispered, while the others were gripped by laughter over whatever they had been joking about.

Joey looked down at him in surprise, but then figured it was just like him to be the one to notice, and to ask him discreetly. He smiled darkly but hung his head, his bangs falling over his eyes. "Just found out dat my worst enemy just married da love ah my life, is all."

The laughter petered out just in time for everyone to hear him. Yugi's brow pinched farther, but Tea and Tristan smirked.

"Wow, didn't realize you actually thought of Kaiba as the love of your life," Tea teased.

"Though, it does make sense that Mai is your worst enemy," Tristan chimed in, mockingly stroking his chin.

Joey jumped into an attack stance and grabbed Tristan in a headlock. "Ngh! You guys take dat back! You know what I meant!" And am I really dat out of the loop? DO they know more dan me? About what's been goin' on with 'em?

"Hey, Joey! Stop it!" Yugi whined and tugged at Joey's arm, to no avail, but he tried to explain. "Joey, it was a couple months ago! We didn't bring it up to you because, well," he gave up trying to pull him off of Tristan. "We all know how you feel..."

Joey felt his face burn red, but he only grimaced further.

"Comon, guuuys!" Yugi stood at the ready, hands up in anticipation. However, his face contorted in worry, knowing he was physically no match for these two.

Tea giggled, Yugi sighed, but Tristan fought back. "She's no good for ya, man!"

"I'll show ya what's not good for me!" They twisted around, but Joey trapped him in another hold.

"And clearly, she's still into rich guys!"

"Hot rich guys," Tea pointed out with her fountain drink. She leaned back in her seat and took another sip, watching the spectacle.

"Hey!" Joey whipped his attention to her, as Tristan struggled in his grasp. "I'm every bit as hot as Kaiba!"

Tea nearly spit her drink out, but covered her mouth and set the cup down in time. She turned away to hid her shocked, ongoing, giggle.

Only Yugi noticed. "Ah, Tea!" He looked back and forth between Tea and Joey, respectively feeling awkward and pensive between them now.

"C'mon, dude!" Tristan whined. "How many times has Mai beaten you?!"

"Uh, NOT AH ONE!?"

Tristan yanked Joey's arm away from him. "Then explain to me how we found your limp body in that parking lot, right next to Valon!"

Joey shoved him away to the ground. "She didn't beat me!" he sneered. "I lost cuz I collapsed."

"That happens to you a lot, huh?" Tea piped up.

"Still sounds like she beatcha then," Tristan continued antagonizing even as he sat up on the floor and rubbed his neck.

"I've told you, I had da upper hand, but I was exhausted from fightin' Valon. I don't even think Yuge's gone two rounds in a row with Shadow Games!"

"Er, not... really..." Yugi squeaked, nervously sinking back down to his seat, embarrassed to remind anyone of the whole truth.

Joey stood up tall and clenched his fist, looking far off somewhere. "I saved her, didn't I? And dat's all I needed from dat duel." He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked away.

"Ah-!" Yugi reached out and lurched to go chase after him, but ultimately thought it better to let him go try to cool himself off.

"So this is what you've been working on in secret all this time," Seto smirked at her and jostled her elbow with his, as they walked out of the elevator and into the parking garage. His suit jacket was draped over his arm, the tight slim cut of the white dress shirt as it and the vest stretched across his chest and around his arms, showing off outlines of muscle form. He removed his other hand from his pocket to lightly wrap his arm around her waist.

"Mm-hm!" Mai soaked up the praise, securing her white pea-coat belt tight. "I knew you'd go for it, but I didn't want it to be too easy of a sell."

"Hm," Seto smiled. "This sounds like it'll be a whole new department, and it'll require an expansion of the marketing division..."

Mai nodded.

"But you'll have all the funding you need," he went on. "How much space?" He pulled out his phone and started texting.

"Oh, uh..." she looked around, trying to come up with an immediate answer, or at least something to stall while she thought.

"I'm checking with Mokuba about how many floors are still open in the annex."

"What?" Mai's eyes went wide.

"Your new department will need at least what, 2 floors? Or more? Maybe just to start."

"Seto..." she gasped, and stopped walking.

He turned back with a cheeky, knowing smirk, but could not meet her eyes. 'Do you have any idea how long it took me to design that software?!' He blinked slowly and jerked his head to finally face her in the moment again. "What did you think I'd be doing with your ideas?"

"My own-?!" She covered her mouth for a moment. "Oh my..." She flung her arms around his neck to hug him, startling him. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" He reciprocated the hug, albeit with stiff surprise, but she kept it short. Her grin spread ear to ear. "This has been one of my dreams-"

"Fashion designer. I remember," he interrupted, nodding at the small memory of when she had revealed that during a quiet game one night.

"Yes!" She bubbled over as she jumped in the air. "Oh my goodness and my own department?! In Kaiba Corp?! Hee-hee! Fashion world, here I come!"

Seto smiled, small and uneasily, chuckling a little at her enthusiasm but stepping away.

"Oh, I love you!" Her arms fell over him again, shocking him again with the burst of elation. Suddenly she kissed him, burning his lips and popping his eyes wider, but he quickly eased into it and hugged her back dearly.

The kiss was quick, but they still stood with their arms around each other. "You did all the work," he affirmed. The heat from her sent a ray of warmth through him, and he felt it wear down his edges yet again. He took a step forward so that she had to lean back, into his arms supporting her back, fingers digging into her coat. "I'm just the ruthless businessman who's got you in my clutches," he teased with a malevolent glare. She laughed playfully as she locked her hands behind his neck. He purposely let a cool breath tickle her ear.

"But the opportunity!" she exclaimed in a squeal, too jubilant to even play along. "Oh! Only people like you can actually make these things come true! Everyone has dreams, but not the dollars!"

He quietly took in her perspective, and nodded. He stood up straight and helped her regain her balance.

"Thank you, Hun." She calmed down once again. "For everything," she added softly.

He smiled flippantly, one shoulder twitching with a shrug. "It's nothing." Then he turned on a mock seriousness. "However, I will require my own customized briefcase."

"Of course," she giggled.

The car pulled up and she turned toward it, clutching her bag. Seto resumed his stoic melancholy, but still pointedly opened the door for her and she climbed in. He leaned on the car roof and top of the door, bending down. "I'll see you at home, then?"

"Yeah," she answered, "Though I'll probably stop to go shopping somewhere. Gotta get cute new office supplies after all! And maybe more material... But yeah, see ya tonight."

He nodded, as bored with the list as she had suspected. "I've got more stuff to work on here."

Realty negotiations sounded just as boring to her. "Okay," she beamed as they pecked good-bye again. "Love you."

"Love you, too." He closed the door and watched the car drive away. He re-donned his jacket, before turning to head back in, sifting through her words in his thoughts. ...opportunity...

So how was my first crapshot swan dive back into this? Come find me on Tumblr kaiba-fangirl!