Tales of Atlantis
In celebration of Halloween (and a very lengthy, hilarious inside joke) I have decided that I would publish the very first one for the one-shot collection, "Tales of Atlantis", which is pretty much what is says on the tin(haha): a one-shot collection firmly rooted in the "Atlantis Rising" universe. It will have one-shots based pre-canon, (such as Absintheshipping and Midas stuffs), canon—during the original series, and post canon, which is well, post series and post "AR". Since the story had taken on a life of its own, this was the best solution, rather than shoving just about every single idea I had about the original draft, including tidbits of AU and what not.
Also, there are oodles of pairings in this. They shouldn't dominate the various stories, but occasionally, they might be the focus of one every now and then.
. . .Well, it would seem that I'm babbling, so I'll just let the story take over :D
Enjoy!
"For the record," Aaron drawled lazily, sprawled across the couch, fiddling with a sheet of paper. "I'm not much of a dress-up guy."
"Well, Kaiba is throwing a masquerade charity-slash-charity tourney and he invited you, you pretty much have to go," Marik countered, trying to shove Aaron back to his side of the couch. "And scoot over man, if you take up any more space, I'll be on Sivya's lap." They were currently in the living room of the Ishtars' admittedly spacious apartment, more spacious than most. Lately though, it seemed a little more crowded, since the admittance of Sivya into their family abode. They had converted their shared office into a bedroom for the young woman; there was no way that Marik would even think about having Sivya return to the desert.
"You know, the last time I decided to go in a costume, I somehow ended up getting blackmailed by an ex, doing something incredibly stupid while in costume. Of course, I was sort of drunk that night, so it's still kind of fuzzy. But I'm definitely not going," Aaron emphasized.
"Why am I not surprised?" Odion remarked, sitting across from them. "The drunk part I mean."
In response, Aaron stuck out his tongue.
"You know," Marik asked the Israeli. "Why do you keep coming over here? Don't you have your own apartment?"
"As a matter of fact I do, but you see my neighbor, a particularly curvy but not so bright blonde, does not know the meaning of "courtesy" and "please stop having a block party in the apartment next door to mine as I have to work in the morning". Sad really."
""So you come over here to pester us."
"I wouldn't say "pester" so much as "not being tempted to call the police on my neighbor"."
Sivya looked up from her book. "What will you be going as Marik?"
Marik shrugged absently, one hand fiddling with a strand of her black hair. "I'm not sure yet. I got a couple of days to decide thankfully. Unlike Mr. Grouchy-Mossad, I don't have qualms about Halloween." He glanced over at her book. "What are reading, by the way?"
"Oh, Ishizu was generous to take me to the local library and I got a library card there. I'm reading Treasure Island. I love all the classic books."
"Because Heaven forbid that you pick up Twilight," Aaron said.
The proverbial light bulb went off in Marik's head. "Hey Odion, I got the best idea for a costume ever."
Odion, who had been reading a newspaper, raised an eyebrow. "Dare I ask?"
"Let's go as pirates! We could do a group theme and everything!"
Odion sighed. "Not this again. Remember your last pirate idea?"
"What about pirates?" Aaron asked.
"Marik had decided that after watching "Pirates of the Caribbean", he would get himself a pirate ship. And so he did, even putting the Eye of Horus on it and everything. Then it sprung a leak, no less than three weeks later."
"It was probably Tshilaba's fault somehow," Marik waved a hand. "It's not like I'm going to go and commandeer a pirate ship somehow and sail into Kaiba's party, as awesome as it would be. Come on, it'll be fun. It's not like anybody else will do a group theme. It can be me, Sivya, you, Aaron and Ishizu."
"Ishizu as a pirate?" Aaron snorted. "Okay, if you can convince Ishizu to go as a pirate, then I will too, cross me heart."
"What exactly am I doing?" Ishizu asked, entering into the room.
"I was wondering Ishizu. . ." Marik began.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- .-
"I still can't believe that you managed to convince Ishizu to go as a pirate," Aaron said, looking through the racks of costume accessories, looking for something decent to wear.
"I think it was the idea of breaking Kaiba's brain that did it," Marik said, reaching for a pirate hat, black with gold trim and a feather plume sticking out. "Argh," he joked.
"I bet seeing Kaiba's brain break is like watching the Blue Screen of Death appear in his brain," Aaron laughed. "Hey, what about this?" he found a white shirt with blooming sleeves and a leather cord at the collar. "This isn't so bad."
"Not at all," Odion said.
"I don't know about poking fun at your boss," Sivya said at last, giggling when Marik had placed the flamboyant hat on her head, "and what is this "Blue Screen of Death"?"
"Ah, he isn't here supervising me," Aaron pshaw-ed. "It's all in good fun, besides. He pays really well. And the Blue Screen of Death is pretty much what it says. A blue screen pops up on your computer and then it pretty much dies, so to speak."
"Oh, I see."
"Heh," Aaron found an eye patch. He put it on. "Yargh, I feel more like a pirate now! Of course, my depth perception's completely shot now, but who cares, it's for the costume."
Odion smirked and reached for the eye patch, an idea springing to mind. He grasped it in his hand and pulled it away from his face. He suddenly let go and since the patch was tied with stretchable string, the patch instantly shot back into place, smacking Aaron in the eye socket with the eye patch.
"Ah jeez Odion!" he shouted in surprise, jumping up and down, one hand clutching his left eye. "That really, really hurts! Ah! holy cow! Son of a -"
"Careful, there's children in the costume store," Odion teased, clamping off Aaron's predicted stream of curses. "That was too easy."
"I'll show you!" Aaron plucked off the pirate hat from Sivya's head, swatting at the man with it.
Marik placed his hands on Sivya's shoulders, steering her away. "Here, let's get away from the crazy people before we get kicked out from the store."
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- .-.-.
"Marik, I think these boots are too big," Sivya began, fiddling with the black boots they picked up from a consignment store. They were perfect for the part, but it would appear that they would be a size or two too big. "It feels like I'm going to walk right out of them." She had on a long sleeved cream colored shirt with flowing sleeves that went a little past her wrists. A forest green vest went over that for modesty's sake to match the brown and deep green pair of skirts she has on as well. The green skirt went over the brown one, tied together with her treasured gypsy belt. They picked up a fake cutlass and pistol to match it.
"Hmm, maybe we could stuff some socks in it," Marik offered.
"Oh yes, brilliant solution there," Aaron ribbed, fiddling with the sleeves of his pirate coat, a brown leather affair that went just to his knees. Like Sivya's boots, it was also found, by sheer luck, at the consignment store. It took another store to find Marik's as well. He adjusted his eye patch, which was now on the right eye in the wake of Odion's little prank. He had been whining earlier about how much his eye had hurt from the incident and thus moved the patch. "I could make a totally awkward joke here, but I won't. I like having my eye not in agony," he emphasized, looking pointedly at Odion. Odion who was clad in a sea blue shirt and black pants, along with a blue bandana on his head and gold earrings, merely shrugged, chuckling to himself.
Marik scowled and turned his attention to his own costume, having issues with the rags he was trying to wrap about his hands. His outfit was seen as much more elaborate than the others, for Marik secretly enjoyed the holiday when he came to Domino. He had never celebrated anything of the like as a child and teenager and he relished the opportunity to dress up, to be anything you want, even if it was for just one night only. He wore a white shirt, ragged and purposefully stained to give the appearance of age and wear and tear. He wore costume jewelry on his hands and about his neck, with rags wrapped about his palms and fingers. He wore a elaborate hat, black with gold trim and a white feather in the band. A long violet coat went down to his ankles and his pants, a dirty brown, was torn like his shirt was. Shiny black boots, a fake sword and a blood red sash completed the outfit. "Stupid wraps," he cursed, struggling to tie them. He was left handed, the only one his family and to use his right hand was awkward and leading to frustration.
"Here, let me," Sivya offered reaching out. She skillfully wrapped the cloth about his hands, tight enough to remain on but still allowing free range with his movements.
"Thank you," he said, smiling. "What would I do without you?"
"Still have problems riding camels,I would think," she teased and he flushed.
"That camel never did like me, for the record," he shot back, eyes full of mirth.
There was a knock on the wall and Ishizu stepped into the room, arms outstretched, displaying her costume. "Is this too immodest?" she asked
"Nope, looks great to me," Marik said and Odion nodded.
"You're definitely going to short circuit Kaiba's brain for sure," Aaron added, offering a thumb's up. "I think I'll bring a camera, should this happen." Ishizu narrowed her eyes and Aaron quailed, protectively placing one hand over the eye patch, lest she get a hold of it as well. "Then again, maybe not."
Ishizu adjusted her hat and top. "Let's get going, before Kaiba says we're all late even if we end up three hours early," she chuckled.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
The ballroom Kaiba had rented out glittered with lights as they neared it, the taxi pulling up to the entrance . Sivya kept fiddling with the coins on her gypsy belt, nervous about riding in the vehicle—although the drive was much calmer than any of Aaron's crazy drives across the desert—and being around so many people she didn't know. Thankfully Yugi and his friends would be there as well, so she had some people to interact with. She had never been comfortable around crowds, having lived either alone or with her family for her entire life. Marik, seeing her anxiety, reached out, intertwining his fingers with her own.
"It won't be that bad, I promise," he reassured her. "Besides, we get to see a whole bunch of awesome costumes and duels and there won't involve freaky things."
"I hope so."
"Well, considering who Kaiba's new head of security is, I would say that that would be highly unlikely, if at all possible."
She nodded, catching his smile and rested her head on his shoulder.
The taxi pulled up and paying the driver a very generous tip, they stepped out, Marik nearly tripping on the extravagant coat on the way out. The ballroom was perhaps the most elegant and fanciful one in the city; anybody who wanted to rent it had better be prepared to pay a pretty penny for using it.
Thankfully, Kaiba had many.
Going through the glass doors, they were greeted by Yugi, who waved at them, a tall brown staff in hand. He wore a wide brimmed hat, with silver and turquoise accents and a long trench coat with the cape in the back. A pair of boots and black jeans topped off the ensemble, as well as a silver pentagram necklace and some sort of bracelet on his wrist. "Well stars and stones!" he greeted. "I must have missed the memo about the group themes."
Aaron pointed at Marik, who was at the head of their troop. "It was Marik's idea. I'm only here for the food and children's card games." He eyed Yugi's costume. "What are you supposed to be exactly anyways?"
"A wizard," he smiled.
"Not like any wizard I've seen."
"Not all wizards wear pointy hats and bushy beards."
"Right. Next question: How on earth did you get that hat on anyway?"
Yugi turned around, revealing his hair, which he had tied back in a ponytail. "Rubber bands and lots of hair gel."
"Nice to know." Aaron offered a thumbs up. "Now, when is the shindig supposed to begin?"
"Soon," Kaiba stepped up behind them. He wore a set of armor that went from head to toe the whole ensemble a luminescent white color that reminded Marik of pearls. A white and blue cape went to his ankles and he wore a silver belt, complete with sword and dragon shaped buckle. Aaron whistled, clearly impressed with the entire piece. "And you're late, by the way."
Marik and Odion exchanged glances as Ishizu smirked, recalling an incident.
"Is that so?" she challenged. She stepped out from behind her brothers and Sivya, revealing her costume in its entirety.
Kaiba's face went completely blank, eyes about ready to pop out of their sockets. Ishizu had worn a white top that continuously slipped off of one shoulder, while a burgundy corset emphasized her curves. The black pants and boots didn't help with Kaiba's state of mind either. Add a long, blush red coat not unlike Marik's and it was safe to say the Kaiba's mind had clearly short circuited.
Aaron leaned over to Sivya. "Remember what I had said about the "Blue Screen of Death?"
Sivya nodded. "Yes. . ."
"This is it right here."
"Oh," and then she giggled, watching as Seto clearly wrestled with himself.
"It wouldn't kill to give her a compliment," Aaron remarked to Kaiba, then hastily added, "Boss."
"Yes." Kaiba tugged at the collar of his costume. "Well, you aren't that late." he said at last.
Marik rolled his eyes. "Worst compliment ever."
Kaiba glared daggers at him.
The CEO stepped aside to let them through the entrance. Ishizu smirked as she caught Seto's gaze following her movements. "Something the matter Seto?"
He shook his head. "No, nothing's the matter."
"For a CEO, you're a horrible liar."
". . .Admittedly, I wasn't expecting you to wear such a costume."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
The floor was quite crowded, costumed partygoers and duelists filling the place. Sivya stayed close to Marik, her hand in his. "There is a lot of people here," she told him.
"That's to be expected, it is a masquerade party," he smiled. "We should see how many people we recognize under the costumes and maybe guess the costumes too."
"That sounds like fun. But I won't be very good at it," Siya said.
"I didn't say it was a competition." He kissed her hand and she blushed. "We'll do it together. I'll explain some of the more. . .unusual costumes to you."
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- .-.
The actual dueling had taken a seat back of sorts to the many and varied costumes that dotted the ballroom floor. Yugi had once again won the tourney, but that was to be expected considering that it was Yugi after all, although pretty much nobody had understood his costume. Joey's as well, for he was sulking the entire night wondering why only a few people, besides Yugi, had gotten his Captain Malcolm Reynolds costume, although to be fair, the only reason why only Yugi had understood it was because he had gotten Joey hooked on the show in the first place. Meanwhile, rumors were floating around that the reason that Kaiba had lost to Yugi again was not because of his dueling skills but by the fact that he had been distracted by Ishizu's costume the entire night.
Of course, Kaiba would vehemently deny this accusation, even more so since rumor also had it that Aaron had started said rumor.
Which he did.
The now exhausted Ishtar clan and one possibly tipsy retired Mossad agent climbed into the nearest taxi that would hold all five of them. Sivya yawned mightily, resting her head on Marik's shoulder. "I've never had that much fun before," she told him. "Thank you for taking me."
"Well, it wouldn't have been very polite to leave you at home, now would it?"
"Oh get a room," Aaron teased.
This time, it was Ishizu that snapped back his eye patch.
"Why does everybody like to abuse me?" he bemoaned.
"I do have one question though Marik?"
"What's that?"
". . .why was that one duelist wearing a meat dress?"
Methinks that Halloween is the time of year to unleash your geek, like Dresden Yugi and Captain Mal/Joey. And yes, I like to think that Joey is a closet Firefly fan (and possibly day dreams about he and Mai being like Mal and Inara NO SHAME WHATSOEVER). And yes, Aaron is the new KaibaCorp head of security. Kaiba's his boss, which makes everything hilarious and awkward at the same time. And I've decided to make Marik left-handed, BECAUSE I CAN.
This one-shot is dedicated to Kohaku no Hime and The Duelist's Heiress because PIRATES.