Disclaimer/Note: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, or either of the characters here, unless otherwise mentioned. I do not own Kazuki Takahashi, and no money is being made off of this piece of fiction. These love-drabbles were done as part of a challenge to myself, were written solely for entertainment purposes, and no copyright infringement is intended. Please, do not sue. All original ideas are original (duh) and belong to me, unless otherwise mentioned. I would like to share credit for many of these ideas with my friend and beta, The Mad Poet, who helps me to flesh out and make sense of most of my stories. However, all of these drabbles are unbeta'd. In any case, please enjoy.

Unconquerable
50 Love Quotes
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Characters: Mai and Valon

23. We're so weird. That's what I like about us, actually. –

It had been his first time, and while not magical or perfect, Valon thought that it had been wonderful. Amazing, even. In fact, he thought that they should do it again immediately, and continue as often as possible. He would get better with practice, right? Oh, that was a good idea; as soon as he got his breath back, he would tell Mai that he really thought he just needed some additional practice. She should have no problem teaching him, right? That is, assuming that it had been as mind-blowing for her as it had been for him.

But what if. . .? Valon felt a familiar tug of worry and slight edge of panic on that thought. What if she had not thought it was good? What if she thought that he was an inexperienced kid—which he was—who got off too soon—which he had—and was completely unworthy of her time and affection? The butterflies in his stomach changed then from the comfortable fluttering of a post-adrenaline rush to the uneasy quiver of doubt.

Of course, Valon did not think that he deserved much, because he was—once upon a time—very Catholic, and he had done a lot of very bad things growing up. There were a lot of things that he had not even told Mai about, like how he had joined up with Dartz and the D.O.O.M. organization or how he had gotten sentenced to prison in the first place. She knew that he was orphan, that he had grown up in a Catholic orphanage in Jersey City, and that he had spent some time in jail. He had not told her about beating two men to death in an alleyway with a broken piece of pipe, or about any of the men he had killed while under Dartz's orders.

Mai laid an arm over his naked stomach, resting her cheek on his right pectoral. Instinctively, he wrapped his own arm around her shoulder and held her close. A drowsy smile appeared on her face, and she opened her eyes ever so slightly to look up at him. He decided then that he had to tell her the truth about his past and the things that he had done.

"Y'know, Mai, when I was fourteen—"

"That was a long time ago, Valon," she interrupted with a sleepy mumble. Valon opened his mouth to say something, closing it abruptly on second thought. What was he supposed to say to that? There was a lengthy pause as he chose his words carefully before finally speaking:

"Three years isn't a long time."

The fatigue seemed to melt away from Mai as she jerked up into a sitting position on the bed. Her were open and narrowed into a dark glare as she stared at him, a frown tugging at the corners of her pretty mouth. She had grabbed the edge of the sheet as she moved, fumbling with a tangle for a moment before clutching it over her chest. Her voice was dead-pan serious when she asked her question, acting like it was somehow a life or death situation.

"You're how old?"

She was in bed with a murderer who did not read the Bible anymore and had not been to a confessional in a year and a half, and all she could worry about was whether or not she was a cougar. Valon just laughed.