Chapter 04: Sfumato
Stepping out of the elevator and walking past the theft detectors, Yami entered the basement of the Mandarake located in Shibuya with a bit of a swagger in his step. What is it with them and basement locations? Yami wondered to himself as his eyes took a moment to adjust to the dim interior, the creak of the wooden floors adding a soundtrack to the shuffling of feet and baskets as people browsed the shelves while J-Pop played faintly throughout the store. After Kaiba's earlier reaction, Yami was definitely curious to see more from the doujinshi artist and he figured he had a better shot at the bigger location in Shibuya. Failing that, he would head to the Nakano Broadway location, even though it was a pain to browse because of the way every section was split by floors and stores by interest.
Instead of heading to the right like he normally did, Yami turned left and wandered over to the large shelves that looked like endless rows of doujinshi, all nicely aligned in their plastic wrap with the dividers giving him a sense of where to look. It took a bit of hunting to find the Duel Monsters section against the left wall in the middle section and it was surprisingly larger than he had expected it to be. Scowling a bit at the fact it started on the third shelf up, Yami nudged one of the step stools over and used it to help him reach without strain. His annoyance quickly passed when he realized that no one would give him a second look at his higher location, since they would probably just assume that he was a girl with really bad luck when it came to her figure.
Starting the somewhat tedious process, Yami started pulling out the doujinshi one by one and sliding them back into place when he realized that they weren't the ones he was looking for specifically. It was amazing to him to see the variety of pairings, although some of them were disturbing like the Celtic Knight and Jinzo together. Trying to put the thought out of his mind and away from his overly vivid imagination, Yami continued picking through the selection, pausing only when he saw another representation of the Blue Eyes White Dragon with the Black Magician. It was surprising to him to realize that there was actually more than one artist who did that pairing, but the art was always subpar and he was somewhat insulted on Kaiba's behalf by the poor attempts at capturing the spirit of the Blue Eyes White Dragon.
He had started on the second shelf when he finally found volume two of the Millennium Masters series, the art instantly recognizable. The Black Magician was out of his traditional costume and was completely naked save for being decorated with strategically placed treasures and jewels in the Blue Eyes White Dragon lair. They were surrounded by all the riches of the world and yet the mage was looking at nothing except the rather smug looking human embodiment of the dragon whose lap he was lounging on in sensual repose. Yami found it an apt comparison to his own situation with Kaiba and he was once again impressed by the artist's ability to interpret things they should know nothing about at all.
After all, it didn't matter to Yami that Kaiba was the richest man out there and had endless amount of financial resources at his disposal. All he saw was Kaiba Seto and that was all he dueled, not the man or the myth, just his sometimes friend and always rival. It was a rather striking image and Yami wondered if that meant the Black Magician was part of the Blue Eyes' treasure stash, just prominently on display and awaiting the affections that would be lavish on him next.
Shaking the thought from his mind, Yami pulled the doujinshi all the way out and rested it on top of the row while he continued rifling through to see if he couldn't find another volume of the series. He inwardly rejoiced when he found another one three down from the first, this time it was volume four, featuring the two embracing each other. Blue Eyes was wearing his traditional coat, but it was completely open to reveal his chest, letting the Black Magician place a hand on his bare skin. The Black Magician was only wearing low slung black leather pants and had a small abstract representation of an arching white dragon with a single blue eye, the real Blue Eyes' thumb hovering near the mark possessively. Yami's eyes traveled upward, the resemblances a little too close for comfort as he saw the Black Magician, with his shared face and eyes, entwining his finger in that luscious white hair with dual smirks on their face as they leaned in for an almost kiss. It was a delicious image and Yami discretely pulled it free and set it on top of the other volume as he continued browsing.
It wasn't until he was on the bottom shelf that Yami found the third volume, almost as if someone had stashed it there in the hopes of coming back for it while they debated another purchase. Feeling no remorse, Yami took it and stood up to look at it, intrigued by the sword Blue Eyes was holding that was reminiscent of a dragon's claw with its dramatic curve that was caressing the Black Magician's neck. The Black Magician was returning the favor, holding his wand under Blue Eyes' chin, tilting his head back ever so slightly, the sexual tension practically jumping off the page.
Yami went through the remaining shelves, but he was disappointed to find nothing else by Enpei. Deciding on a whim to grab two of the other doujinshi featuring the same pairing by different artists for comparison purposes, Yami made sure he chose one with a seme Black Magician just to see how it was handled. He also couldn't resist picking up what looked like a gag doujinshi featuring the Blue Eyes White Dragon with Kuriboh and a side pairing of Kuriboh with the Scapegoats. It sounded utterly random and ridiculously hilarious, plus the chibi versions of the characters were all adorable; even though Yami was certain it would probably break his brain with the sheer physics of it all, he had to know.
Collecting all six doujinshi he had picked out, Yami walked to the other side of the store to see if he couldn't find a few other things to blend in with his purchases to make check out slightly less awkward.
Heading straight to his room when he got home, Yami pulled out the brown paper bag with the Mandarake logo on it and took out the doujinshi. Setting aside the non-Enpei ones for later, Yami went over to his book bag to get the first installment of the Millennium Masters series that Anzu had given him earlier. Flopping onto his bed and making himself comfortable, Yami started to read from the beginning.
Although it was impossible to forget about the physical resemblances between himself and Kaiba to the characters, Yami found himself engrossed in the story all the same. He could easily visualize the corresponding expressions on Kaiba's face and it made Yami wonder if Kaiba could ever let himself go far enough to make such faces of ecstasy. It was more tempting than it should have been to imagine himself making Kaiba moan and writhe like Blue Eyes, but his mind couldn't help but wander. Yami wondered if Kaiba would play with his cock as skillfully as he did with Duel Monsters cards, an image of the absentminded way his rival caressed his cards in between plays coming to mind.
Pushing the thought aside, Yami concentrated on the doujinshi, appreciating that the Black Magician didn't suddenly turn into a weak, weepy uke as was so common. He was still defiantly taunting his dragon in a way Yami knew that he would totally do if he was with Kaiba. It was surprisingly sexy to Yami and he knew he should have been more disconcerted than he was. Then again, it wasn't that unusual for him to become aroused while thinking about Kaiba or dueling him. The intensity of their encounters always managed to go straight to his cock. It made him really grateful for those high walls of the dueling platforms, otherwise he would embarrass himself publically every time they dueled each other. Kaiba was just so passionate about everything he did, so it was only natural for Yami to wonder if that trait carried over into the sexual realms as well.
The thoughts were distracting to Yami and he made himself focus on the doujinshi once more. It ended shortly after the duo reached their climaxes, followed by a brief atogaki thanking readers for their support and featuring an illustration of Blue Eyes resting on his side, with a small dragon curled up asleep in the human's long hair as if it were a nest and another one flying around, all while the Black Magician unsuccessfully tried to lure one of them closer to play. The drawing was kind of adorable, especially the sleeping Blue Eyes White Dragon, although the way the sheet slid low on the human's hips made it look like it took place shortly in the aftermath of their coupling. It also drew his attention to a small mole near Blue Eye's hip and it was such an odd choice of detail that it made Yami wonder if Kaiba had a birthmark in the same area.
Pushing the thought aside in his anxiousness to move on, Yami set volume one aside and reached for the sequel. He was still entranced with the cover, finding something very sensuous about the pair's positions and the fact that the Black Magician was adorned in diamonds and sapphires that clearly spoke of the Blue Eyes White Dragon. It amused Yami to see the way the artist had translated Kaiba's need to brand everything with his KC logo into such an image.
Opening the doujinshi, Yami began reading about Blue Eye's demand for a rematch from their previous battle. Yami actually laughed out loud when the Black Magician misinterpreted the request as an invitation for another round of sex. He was surprised by the appearance of magical shackles that bound Blue Eyes in place on the floor of the dragon's lair and it was enough to make Yami double check the cover to see that it was in fact another seme Blue Eyes story. Arching an eyebrow when he saw that it was still in listed as such, Yami flipped back to where he had left off and felt himself start to stir at the black magic spells the magician was using to pleasure his rival and how they were represented by lines that almost looked like tattoos. There was a sensuous beauty to it, the way the Black Magician would lick along the visible paths of his magic, heightening the pleasure for Blue Eyes even more.
Yami had to stifle a groan when the Black Magician mounted himself and started to enthusiastically ride his dragon, wondering if it would actually feel as good as the mage made it look. They were dangerous thoughts, but Yami's mind just couldn't leave the idea of it alone. The thought of Kaiba writhing underneath him was just such a tempting visual and Yami wasn't all that surprised to feel himself starting to harden with the thought of it. He wanted to know what happened when Kaiba let go of that tight rein he held on his emotions, wanted to experience the full force of his passions that Yami just knew were lurking somewhere under the surface.
Reminding himself to pay attention to his reading, Yami was pleased to see the magical restraints fade away from Blue Eyes with the mage's release. Even though it was kind of sexy, Yami just thought there was something fundamentally wrong about restraining the dragon. It really shouldn't have come as a surprise to see Blue Eyes flip their positions almost immediately, pinning the Black Magician to the floor and making a few choice arrogant comments that Yami had no doubt Kaiba would say in the same situation.
What did end up surprising Yami was the appearance of handcuffs in the shape of dragon claws that were used to tie up the Black Magician. As Blue Eyes swore to pay back the mage tenfold for what was done with a sexy promise of, "My turn," Yami knew he'd never be able to hear Kaiba say that again without becoming severely aroused. Like you don't already, Yami chided himself, having inserted his own innuendo in previous matches before.
As Yami watched Blue Eyes torturing the magician in the sexiest ways possible, he was becoming hopelessly lost in it all as his mind substituted himself and Kaiba in the respective roles. He loved the way that the magician used his abilities to get out of the handcuffs only after they were both done in order to hug his grumbling dragon closer in embrace. It was an unexpectedly tender moment and Yami found himself wanting something he wasn't sure he could ever have.
It felt like the atogaki came too soon and once again, Yami was amused by the illustration. The Black Magician's staff was lying amongst their discarded clothes, with a tiny dragon adorably preening on top of the wand. The other dragon was firing a Horobi no Burst Stream at the Black Magician's hat to incinerate it, even as the mage complained to Blue Eyes over his unruly partners in crime. Yami had to laugh at Blue Eyes' response about how the hat made the Black Magician look stupid and it would never make him taller than the dragon turned human anyway.
The back cover was the reverse situation of the front, showing the duo in the Black Magician's room, surrounded by countless potions and spells swirling in bottles along the dark stone walls as they lazed on a chaise, entwined in magic bonds that drew them closer together. The Black Magician was behind the former dragon, spooned close to him and caging him with an arm braced in front of them, conveniently hiding the nudity promised by the R-18 rating on the bottom corner. Blue Eyes was turning back to look at the mage with a smirk and just a hairsbreadth away from kissing his powerful lover.
It was all affecting Yami far more than he expected and as much as he wanted to continue reading, he recognized his need for a break as his cock strained against his jeans. After all, he wanted to be able to concentrate on the next story. So hiding away the doujinshi, Yami snuck into the bathroom and was grateful when he didn't run into any of his relatives that would ask questions more embarrassing than his current arousal.
A/N: Because apparently all of my versions of Kaiba and Yami seem to scamper off into the shower at some point in my fics. Oops.
By the way, like I said in a previous chapter, this is the exact layout of the Shibuya Mandarake; I described the area where the Yu-Gi-Oh doujinshi was. So if you're ever lucky enough to go there, have fun!
As much as I would love to write oneshots featuring Blue Eyes and the Black Magician detailing what was going on in the doujinshi, I'll just have to leave it as descriptions for now due to my schedule.
Just to clarify for those of you who were worried, I'm not saying that I'm definitely missing chapters. I've still got the four remaining chapters of this fic, plus I'm making good headway on L&F. But I just wanted to give more of a head's up that things might change this semester as I get ready for my dissertation. I do appreciate all of the enthusiastic support, though!
NEXT CHAPTER:
"And here I thought all of this fighting was foreplay," Yami whispered for Kaiba's ears only, sending a shudder through them both at what was really being implied.
Yeah, Yami's getting pretty bold now. Kaiba totally doesn't stand a chance…
It'll be a nice long chapter for you next week on Sunday, September 19th so be sure to check back then!