(Asked byGuest: AU Where 96 Is In The Place Of Astral and Astral Is In The Place Of Yuma )
Cards laid on top of one another, organized on top of a desk of sturdy cypress (supposedly). Numbers were off to the side, glowing brightly in a way that was rather captivating for the duelist. His honeyed eyes sparkled just as brightly as he watched them with an almost childlike fascination. Carefully, the schoolboy moved two fingers to flip over the nearest card and his heart caught in his throat for a solid second.
Number 39: Aspiring Emperor - Hope
It was his favorite Numbers card, unlike his current companion. A hand went up to touch the Emperor's Key that hung around his neck, warm fingers feeling the different temperature contrast of the cold texture. His companion, he knew, was someone entirely different from him. His double, so-to-speak. They had the same form aside from their different colors, but their intentions weren't quite one. Not at all.
Thinking about it made the male reach over to another card and tenderly flip it over, taking care not to bend it. Even though it bent his heart and stomach in more ways than he could count. This Number made him sick to his stomach, because this was the card that washis double.
Number 96: Black Mist
'Black Mist...' Astral thought, caressing the dark card with his thumb before he shuddered, shoulders becoming tense. Each time he dueled, the male was already coming forth right from the Key he had obtained from his missing parents. For some reason, the male was always inside of there, but he figured it because he was re-obtaining his memories. After all, they were supposedly within the heart of the Numbers. But something felt wrong...
Astral tried his hardest to not collect the Numbers as he always felt tormented by the grin that spread across his double's face. It was such a cheshire, sly smile that it sent warning signals right through the male's brain, so fast that he could practically see red. And not only that, but the astral entity was always near him, whispering in his ear and suggesting the best ways to get to those cards. He always found a place to put his hands too. It was always on the shoulders or along the biceps of the duelist whenever he wasn't busy. Or even on the hips if he was ever trying to reallybother him.
That was the thing that made Astral so nervous of Number 96. He could touch Astral, despite being an invisible being to everyone else around him. In school, he was nothing more than just air, and on the roads, he wasn't even existing. And he could do whatever he wanted to the schoolboy, and not a single person could lift a finger except at the one who acted so weirdly. Astral.
Shuffling the cards and then piling them up into a stack of 30, he slipped them over to the side and filed up the rest of them. Such a neat order they were in! But, that was Astral. A bit of a neat freak and always keeping his room free of cards, seeing as his family really didn't want him dueling. At least, not with strangers on the road.
With that being cleaned up and stuffed neatly into his desk drawer, he reached over to turn out the light on the tabletop, hearing the satisfying clickas it went out. But it wasn't dark, not quite yet. Astral looked over his shoulder, golden orbs eyeing the moonlight that filtered through the wide window. Flecks of dust were easily visible in the illuminating light, and for a long moment, the male just stared, crossing his legs and holding his chin in his hands.
And just as he was getting comfortable, he felt the semi need to really deck the newcomer in the face. Really hard.
"Oh Astral~," someone called, the voice causing the key to glow and vibrate with energy. Like a 3D movie, the owner of the malicious voice appeared right beside the schoolboy, hands on his hips and his entire form floating a good foot off the ground. As usual. "Going to bed so soon~? And on a weekend?"
There was another thing about the male that bothered him. Not only was he a form of a Number and filled to the brim with venom, he was also completely bare from head to toe, not a single article of clothing cloaking him. Every time Black Mist appeared, he had to look away to make sure his eyes didn't travel down to the provocative 'V' near his hips. Already thinking about it just made the male run a hand over his face to hide the distinctive flush.
"It's none of your business, you know. Besides, my body is in need of energy at the same time. An inner clock, you could say, is what my body runs on." Astral glanced to the floating entity for a moment and then blinked in shock. For the first time since he came here, Black Mist blinked in confusion.
"An inner clock? So there's a clock inside you?" An animated sweatdrop appeared by the side of Astral's head at the statement. It seemed that he still misunderstood what he said still. Not like he could blame him though. He turned around in his seat to face the other.
"Erm…no. Not- not a literal clock-!" The duelist stopped all words. Not only had his words went right over the Number's head, the other had also came a lot closer to him. And it wasn't just to pester him more about the incident, but to try and satisfy his curiosity as he laid a hand on Astral's chest.
Astral stopped breathing altogether, feeling his own heartbeat pick up beneath the cold fingers of his double. Black Mist actually seemed to concentrate on the increasing heartrate in the other's chest, feeling it beneath his fingertips.
"So… I think your clock is here," he muttered. "So if this clock stops, does that you mean that you stop too?" Such an innocent gaze met Astral's for a long moment, gold meeting with flustered honey. Slowly, the schoolboy nodded.
Just what was this guy planning to do? He was practically sitting in his lap, and at such a close proximity that it was making him nervous. But yet, he couldn't look away from the male before him. His gaze was thoughtful, more than ever. "It's slowing down."
Astral licked his lips slowly before he spoke, that simple movement catching the eyes of the double. "That's…because I'm relaxing. When I'm relaxed and calm, my hea—er, clock is slow but steady."
Black Mist tipped his head to the side. "When does it speed up?" he muttered, watching Astral purse his lips in thought. No, hesitation. After all, why did Astral want to give away as to why it was slowing down in the first place?
A pair of arms slowly began to slip around his neck, causing the schoolboy to jerk in surprise and immediately push on the other. "H-Hey, what are you doing!?" The other only clung tighter, his fingers lacing together behind Astral's neck while he straddled his waist.
Black Mist pressed his chest to the other's with a growing smirk, letting their noses brush at how close they were. "I'm trying to see what made your clock tick faster."
Astral opened his mouth to speak, to protest but the more he struggled to get the male off of him, the more he could feel Black Mist's chest on his own. And with that, he understood that the dark male was feeling for his heart with his own body. Black Mist seemed triumphant, having clearly understood that just his own presence made Astral's body do this.
The duelist began to grow worried at the silence that echoed in the room, and he tried to focus on something other than the one in front of him, but right now, that was impossible. They both knew that they were locked onto one another, eyes observing their reflection to see any sign of defiance, motivation or anything that was easy to see.
Astral saw movement with the other's arms and he cringed faintly, but was rewarded with a surprise that made his heartbeat skyrocket. His cheeks flushed a fresh scarlet hue as the Number's lips fell upon his own; soft and absolutely desirable.
He attempted to pry away, not wanting to give into temptation but he was quickly silenced by the playful tongue that intruded past his lips. A groan slipped from his lips, increasing in volume a bit more as slender fingers embedded into his hair, pushing their lips even closer as their eyes shut.
Wrapping his arms around Black Mist, he dragged him ever closer into his body, causing the other to happily oblige and wrap his legs around Astral's waist. Neither had experienced anything intimate before. Perhaps that was why Astral found it like a soft comfort. But it wasn't lasting long as the other began pushing him back into his seat, completely dominating his mouth as he easily let his tongue curl and push Astral's down. He could win duels with cards, but not this. Black Mist wasn't going to let him.
Hands gradually slipped away from the white-haired duelist's scalp, causing him to whine faintly in the back of his throat. However, those hands soon slipped up past his shirt and he jumped, cold fingers laying over his rapidly beating heart just as the other pulled away.
Astral, having lost his breath, seemed rather starstruck before he was watching the other. The male was damn near sitting on his hipbones, but seemed comfortable as he traced cold patterns into the duelist's sternum, feeling his heartbeat.
"You know, Astral," he murmured, looking at his double with a cat-like smile. "I don't want to see you stop moving. I don't want your clock to stop. Because, for one thing, that would be rather…boring." However, he frowned, as if he didn't find the right word. Astral seemed to take notice of such and he gradually raised a perfect eyebrow.
Black Mist looked up at Astral from under his lashes and then frowned a bit deeper before burying his face into his chest. "I don't want you to leave me, idiot! Because I like you!"
If the schoolboy's jaw could've dropped any lower, it would have. And yet, wasn't Black Mist always the cause of his rapid heartbeat? Wasn't he always able to feel like he could always talk to the Number? About anything?
Slowly, pale hands came up to the smooth face of the darker entity, causing him to look up into those honeyed orbs. And slowly, Astral smiled, vaguely amused with the other's surprise. "I won't leave you. Because I like you too. Despite your atrocious touching."
Black Mist blinked only for a split second, registering his double's words, before he gave a wide grin and wrapped his arms around his neck again. Astral gasped as he heard the chair tip over entirely, causing him to fall out of his seat and right onto the soft carpet. And, as if he had no problem with balance at all, Black Mist sat perfectly still on his hips.
"Then I'm sure you won't mind this then." And for the second time that night, they let their lips tenderly search for one another's, knowing that they shared feelings that no one would understand. Not from any world other than their own.
(Swear to God, this should've been made for Halloween because I got cavities. ;o )
