Shadow: Heey…42 hits in one day and a bit. People are reading this! (pokes) Some of you could do with reviewing though; I offer cookies to those that figure out my plot. I'm writing this day-by-day – 'tis a first for me. Now, if only I could motivate myself to do this for my other fics… Thankies to Iridescent Hope and shining-tears for reviewing.

Warnings: Shonen-ai pairings (boy x boy) - mostly Prideshipping (YY x SK) but with hints of Darkshipping (YY x YB).Angst, and character death.

Disclaimer: If I owned YuGiOh everyone would have their own pet bishie from the show. As it is, everyone does not have their own pet bishie and the world is sorely disappointed. Ah, well…

Flashbacks and other thoughts are in italics.

Thoughts that take place in italic sections are in bold italics.


Both sides of the border

Witchcraft

Falling in love isn't a hard thing to do.

It could happen in a look, a single glance; a casual smile tossed your way in gratitude for a favour well-received. In a brush of fingertips, when passing over a pen, tingles of electricity sparking nerve ends and raising eyes to look shyly at a face that matched your own. When you saw yourself, mirrored in someone's heart, even though till that day you'd loathed that person. Love and hate were the same obsession really, and it took little to cross the border from one emotion to the other.

No, falling in love isn't hard. It's the falling out of love that causes the problem…


Why was it so cold? The night was cloudless, and the darkness of the night sky only enhanced the pinpricks of light far, far above him. Hadn't Yugi once taught him something about clouds and temperature? He couldn't remember. Certain thoughts grew hazy after a while; few things remained crystal clear in his memory. How many little details had he forgotten over the years? Seemingly insignificant scraps of data at the time, but after a while it all built up, tiny holes growing quickly to vast gulfs in terms of his recollection. It was hard to tell sometimes: whether he truly remembered something or his mind had just made it up. It did that sometimes, bent reality and conception and created visions of times that never were. Or did it? He never really could be sure…

Yami shivered, stuffing his hands inside his jacket's pockets in an effort to keep warm. Something poked at his intrusive fingers, slim digits pulling out a strange item crammed there for crimson eyes to stare at, bemused.

Oh, he'd forgotten. But…how? True, his thoughts had been wandering more as of late, his emotions a mess, but how, in the love of all the great deities, could he have forgotten this?


"He what?"

Yami smiled happily at the stunned form of his light, gently taking the other's hands in his own. "He wants me to move in with him, aibou. At the mansion. May I?"

Yugi managed to close his jaw from where it had been suspended – somewhere about floor height. He waved off his yami's question. "Of course you may! What are you asking me for? It's just…you've only been dating the guy for about a month!"

His other half smiled dreamily. "It feels like I've known him for forever."

"Well technically-" The hikari halted, seeing Yami wasn't really paying that much attention. The former pharaoh's eyes had a glazed, absent-minded look, and Yugi had to grin. "Oh, mon hitoru no boku…you've got it baaaad."


A frown crossed fair features as Yami surveyed the damage he'd done, and he vainly tried to smooth out the creases made after he'd been so thoughtless earlier.

'I hope it still floats…'

A few quick steps and he stood directly beside the lake he'd watched most of that evening, a few seconds more and he was crouched at its side, carefully laying his precious item on the rippling waters. The lake was fed by freshwater streams from the hills – Seto had explained it to him once -, and had a slight current. Not enough of one here, in the shallows, but enough further out for his purposes. Another digging around in Yami's pockets produced more results, a triumphant smile flickering onto the spirit's face as he set about his task.

Silver metal winked in the moonlight, gleaming off a polished knife Yami used to inscribe a white candle he'd found. The soft wax parted easily at the touch of the wicked blade, delicately etched runes coming to life beneath an artist's fingers. Years of writing intricate hieroglyphs had prepared Yami well for his job.

Aslaich

Aimsir aimhreidh

Aslaich

Ath-bheothaich annsachd eadarainn

Aonaichainn bith-bhuan

Bacadh bàs

Anail, anam, eihwaz, annsachd

And then? A name, more precious to him than the world itself.

Seto.


"Yami." Someone shook his shoulder. "Yami, love, wake up."

"Unh…" A sleepy grumble, slim frame digging further under cosy blankets.

"Yami."

Crimson eyes opened balefully, fixing a drowsy glare on blue. "Kaiba Seto, if there isn't a damn good reason for waking me up at this ungodly hour I'm going to kill you."

The brunette only smiled, leaning over to place a soft kiss on his lover's forehead. "Good morning sweetheart, and a merry Christmas to you too."

Yami yelped. "Christmas?" He was sitting up in bed immediately, all thoughts of sleep gone. 'Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it!' How could he have forgotten? Okay, he'd left Seto's gift…agh! Where had he left Seto's gift?

"Yami." Gentle hands were laid atop his own, calming him. "There's no need to panic. Really."

The former pharaoh blushed, looking up into Kaiba's face. "…I've put your gift somewhere and I can't remember where."

"It's under the tree, love. You put it there last night." The brunette was laughing at him, he was sure of it.

"Well-"

A slim finger to his lips cut off his words, arms winding about his waist and pulling him into a deliciously warm body. "Hush a little while. I want to give you your present first."

"But you said-"

"No presents till after eight, I know." Kaiba's voice was dry. "I haven't forgotten, I assure you."

"Then won't Mokuba…?"

A catlike smile. "Mokuba already knows about this one."

'Oh…'

A brightly coloured box was dangled in front of his face. Slightly apprehensive Yami took it, though not before shooting a curious look at his lover from under his lashes. Kaiba merely smiled his smile and leant his head on the other's shoulder, warm breath tickling the former pharaoh's skin and sending his golden bangs dancing.

Ribbons were quickly undone, and paper carefully removed – exposing a small, velvet box. Inside lay a necklace – a platinum cartouche hung on a delicate chain. In some respects it looked a lot like the one Tea had first given Yami when he had first been searching for his true name – but on closer inspection it was so, so different. True, 'Atemu' was inscribed upon the metal in fine hieroglyphics, but on turning the platinum around the name 'Seth' too was revealed, carved with the same care in the same tongue. Both were intertwined by the etching of a rope tied in a loop – the symbol of forevermore. Tea's gift to Yami had been a symbol of their friendship; Seto's was a symbol of his love.

Yami swallowed. "Mery-i-"

"Shh…" Gentle kisses were placed on the nape of his neck.

"Seto-" The ruby-eyed spirit tilted his head slightly, locking gazes with his boyfriend. "Seto Kaiba…I love you."

Eyes the colour of sapphires warmed.


The candle was finished. Carefully, Yami set it afloat upon the boat he'd made before, striking a match to set the wick aflame. The match was a splash of brilliance in the darkness, the candle a warm glow to chase away the shadows of his world.

'One last thing to do…'

The knife he'd used before was scraped clean of wax, sharp eyes studying the even sharper blade for dirt or imperfection. Then, finding none, a quick jab and a wince of pain-

Three droplets of blood hit the white of the paper boat.

It was done. His finger stinging now, Yami hastily cleaned his blade, sheathing and dropping it by the lakeside. The candle flickered slightly as the royal spirit pushed the boat out and Yami held his breath, afraid the flame would die, but the glow soon steadied again, and the former pharaoh resumed his task.

The current soon took his little boat, ripples causing the delicate craft to bob on nigh-invisible waves. The light of his candle grew dimmer the longer he watched it, receding into the growing night as the waters bore it away, a speck of light in an ever-darkening world.


Halloween had some curious customs, Yami had to admit. Trick or treating? Parties? Pumpkins? His aibou's delight at the whole fiasco was rather infectious. Not that he personally wasn't having any fun this year either…

This time it was apples. Yugi insisted on apples, even though there wasn't going to be an actual party that night. Though Yugi had been rather ambiguous as of late…

But yes – apples. Well, ducking for apples, to be precise. Yugi had a thing for tradition, and Yami had a thing for peace and quiet to enjoy his books. Simply put – if Yami didn't help Yugi, Yami wasn't going to get any of said peace and quiet.

But there was one tradition that fascinated him…

Yami was supposed to be washing apples, drying them and placing them in a bowl. But he'd gotten distracted as something he'd read surfaced in his mind. And so there he was, peeling an apple, and attempting not to break the peel as he did so. After about five attempts (and five hastily munched apple cores had been hidden in the rubbish bin – Yugi would have a fit if he thought his darker half had eaten his precious fruit) Yami succeeded, smiling happily – and not more than a little smugly – at an unbroken peel in his hand.

He threw it over his shoulder.

To Yami's disappointment the peel only fell in a squiggle shape – a weirdly curving snake crawling horizontally across the floor. Which, when he moved around to pick it up, looked like an 'S'.

Colour flooded Yami's cheeks. Amazing what a change of angle could do, really.


The light had practically gone. The moon had still not yet completely risen, and the night was as cold and bleak as it had ever been. Really, why was he expecting change?

Yami stood with a sigh, hands finding their way into his pockets once more.

A crunch of leaves caught his attention, the crackle of frost-laced grass loud in the otherwise perfectly silent dark. A silhouette in the shadows, a moving darkness, and the silver glow as moonlight illuminated fallen snow. A lithe body, cloaked in midnight, crunching footsteps bringing him to Yami's side.

Brown eyes fixed upon the last light the candle shed upon the lake's waters before finally disappearing for good. Then, they turned back to Yami.

A sigh.

"You still miss him then?"