Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

With Yami

Yami leisurely made his way down the road heading towards the coffee shop near the clock tower in the center of town. The coffee shop was a very short walk down from Kaiba Corporation and apparently served in addition to amazing coffee, it also served the absolute best scones in the entire world according to Seto, which Yami figured was very high praise indeed.

Yami's eyes narrowed as he spotted the brat a short distance ahead of him, kicking a rock and muttering to himself. Yami's mind immediately flashed to the look on his brother's face as he told Yami to leave him alone. Atemu looked nearly broken. The pain he was clearly doing his best to conceal was very real. And Yami knew exactly who was to blame for that. The brat just in front of him. Apparently his conversation with him earlier today wasn't nearly as successful as he had believed it to be.

"Hey!" Yami called out, jogging to catch up with Yugi.

Yugi paused briefly before he turned and saw Yami jogging towards him. "Can I help you with something?" Yugi asked cautiously.

Yami came to a stop a few feet away from Yugi. "I want to know what you said to my brother." Yami said. It had to have been something and it had to have been something big. The question was what. Yami couldn't help Atemu if he didn't know what was wrong in the first place.

Yugi sighed as he turned to continue on his way home. His plans for the rest of the day included laying on his bed, snuggling up to Kuriboh and sobbing. And once he'd cried out all his tears then he was going to plan his big bank robbery or something equally major to break through to Atemu. He wasn't so much sad as he was beyond frustrated. He had worked so hard to get to know Atemu, to get Atemu to talk to him and in less than 24 hours all his progress had gone up in smoke.

"Hey you were the one who kept pushing to talk to my brother. You seemed pretty determined to say your piece. I'm curious to know what you said." Yami said, his voice calm. He may have strongly suspected that Yugi was the reason Atemu was so upset but he didn't have any proof yet. He wasn't going to cast Yugi as the bad guy without getting undeniable proof of exactly that.

Yugi sighed as he turned to face Yami. Yami looked so much like Atemu yet he didn't have the same presence that Atemu has. Atemu seemed larger than life. Has an aura of strength and power like you would expect an old world general to exude. Or a mighty lion. Yami, Yami seemed almost as meek as a mouse but he was standing firm. The mouse and the lion.

And it was then that Yugi figured out Yami. Yami was afraid to talk to almost anyone and in most cases he would not. However, the key to Yami's courage was his brother. Yami would face down Godzilla if that was what it took to help his brother. That unwavering support was something that Yugi really had to respect. "I came over to tell Atemu I was sorry about something that he had heard out of context. However, as I'm sure you can guess the apology did not go well and now things are even worse than before I apologized." Yugi said.

Yami was quiet for a moment as his mind digested what he had been told. Yugi had come to apologize to his brother about what had happened yesterday. He had come to apologize for whatever Atemu had heard that had him sobbing in their room last night. Now, the puzzling thing to Yami was how did a simple apology go so very wrong? "You came to apologize to my brother? There had to have been more to the conversation that just an apology. What else happened?" Yami asked. Yami had a bad feeling it was something really big and that he needed to know what had been said. He also knew Atemu would not tell him, he'd just gloss over it as if it was no big deal. The only way he had any chance of finding out the truth was if he managed to get it out of Yugi.

Yugi kicked the stone harshly and watched as he skidded down the road. "I said something I shouldn't have. Something that I really wish I could have taken back." Yugi said.

"I need to know what you told my brother." Yami said, his voice taking on a slightly pleading tone. The look of utter and complete desolation in his brother's eyes fueling Yami's need to know what exactly had been said. And this was all his fault, it probably wouldn't have happened if he had refused to go back into the house.

Yugi sighed before he repeated those horrible words, "And you wonder why no one ever does anything nice for you? You wonder why you're all alone. You pull crap like this. I'm a nice person. I'm patient and for some inexplicable reason I like you. Clearly that is just a waste of my time. Clearly you don't care so you know what, fine neither do I. You want to spend your whole life alone who am I to stop you." Yugi said, his voice flat. It nearly cracked twice as he repeated the words. Gods he was a horrible person. What kind of a person says stuff like that to someone? No matter how angry you get being outright cruel was absolutely unforgiveable.

Yami felt like a lead weight had dropped into his stomach. Atemu heard something that horrible and he was going to close himself up. Yugi could not have chosen a worse thing to say if he tried.

"You have no idea what you've just done." Yami said glancing back over his shoulder towards the Sennen Manor. Poor Atemu.

"Then help me to fix it. The last thing I wanted to do to Atemu was to hurt him." Yugi said, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. "I just wanted to get his attention. I was frustrated. I was angry. And I said something that I really shouldn't have. And I'm sorry. I really am. I just want to fix it." Yugi said.

Yami sighed. He could not possibly get any further out of his depth than he was right now. He forced himself to ignore the tears sliding down Yugi's cheeks. He understood Yugi was upset. But right at this moment Yugi being upset was not the important thing. "Look, why don't you head home. I'll talk to Atemu about what happened. I can't guarantee that he'll want anything to do with you. But all I can do is try to talk to him." Yami said. Personally I would prefer Atemu stay far away from Yugi. But that isn't my decision to make, its Atemu's. No matter what he chooses to do I will support him in that choice.

"You're going to tell Atemu that I'm sorry, right? That I didn't mean what I said." Yugi pleaded.

Yami sighed once again, "No I am not going to tell my brother you are sorry nor will I tell him you did not mean it. That has to come from you. Will I talk to him about what happened? Yes. Will I try to persuade him one way or another? No. That will be Atemu's choice and Atemu's choice alone." Yami said.

Yugi looked like he wanted to say something else but decided against it. Yugi nodded once more before he turned and continued his trek home, kicking the stone as he walked.

Yami watched him walk for a few minutes before he continued on his own way towards the coffee shop. He glanced in the different shops that he walked past. The first store on his left was a mom and pop style grocery store. Yami could see an elderly woman at the counter holding a pleasant conversation with a young girl counting out pennies for a candy bar. Small stores like that were ones where the shopkeepers knew most of their customers by name.

The next shop over was a pet shop. There were puppies wrestling in the window hoping to catch a passerby's eye so they could finally find a home. Atemu and him used to be just like those puppies. Yami really hoped that they would all find a good home. Find someone that would adore them and that none of those puppies would ever learn the horror that was the real world. He hoped those puppies would win the lottery he and Atemu had finally won when Aknamkanon and Amara had adopted him and Atemu. He forced himself to walk past the pet shop and his eyes drifted down to the sidewalk.

Atemu and him had almost spent more of their lives living in the window than they had living in a real home. The good thing about it was they had had each other, no matter who or what came their way. Yami really didn't know if he would have survived everything that they had faced without his brother by his side. If anyone deserves to have someone care about it him would be Atemu. He had sacrificed more than anyone for just that. For Yugi to tell him that he wasn't worthy of care or kindness was horribly cruel. Especially after everything Atemu had been through. At the same time, Yugi isn't a mind reader and he has a loving family who have treasured him. He can't fathom what it could possibly be like for that very thing not be a given.

"Yami, over here!" Yami was drawn from his musings by Seto Kaiba calling out to him from his seat in front of the coffee shop. Yami saw that Kaiba was wearing a crisp white suit with a sapphire blue tie which brought out the bright blue of his eyes. He had a cup of coffee sitting in front of him and a plate of scones sitting on the table.

Yami nodded before he made his way over to the table. He gave Seto a small smile as he took a seat. "Thank you for meeting me on such short notice. I know how busy you are." Yami said.

Seto gave Yami a bright smile, "You ever need anything Yami any time of day or night don't hesitate to give me a call. I'll be right there." Seto said firmly. That sounded like a boyfriendish thing to say. He paused and pushed the plate of scones closer to Yami, "You really should try the scones. They are almost as amazing as you are." Seto finished delighting in the blush that dusted Yami's cheeks.

"You're such a flirt." Yami mumbled as he picked up the scone.

Seto grinned, "It's not considered flirting if I'm merely telling you the truth. The scones are delicious. But they are not nearly as amazing as you are."

Yami starred down at the scone before taking a small bite. The scone was sweet and buttery and literally melted in his mouth.

"So, what have you and Atemu been up to today?" Seto asked.

Yami swallowed his bite of scone, "Well Atemu and I were at the amusement park for a few hours. We left after we spent more than 30 minutes stuck at the top of the Ferris wheel because it had broken down." Yami said.

"You should have called me. I would have showed up with my helicopter and gotten you both off the ride." Seto declared firmly.

Yami couldn't help it, he laughed, "What are you some kind of super hero?" Yami asked.

Seto nodded, "You better believe I am Yami. You can call me Kaibaman." Seto said puffing his chest out, "Kicking bad guy asses and rescuing young men in distress before flying off on the back of my Blue Eyes White dragon." Seto said.

Yami dropped the scone as he literally doubled over in laughter. Kaiba smirked. He knew the notion was ridiculous but as long as it made Yami laugh that beautiful laugh it was worth it. Perhaps for their second date 'Kaibaman' could take Yami for a romantic flight aboard his Blue Eyes White Dragon jet. If nothing else it would probably make Yami laugh.

With Honda

Honda carefully set down a large wooden crate night next to a glass display case that was wide open. He quickly wiped his brown on a rag he had been handed earlier before shoving it back into his pocket and picked up a crowbar. He carefully stuck the edge of the crowbar under the lip of the wooden crate and levered the bar to slowly pry open the crate. Once the nails had been pried out Honda gently set the crowbar down. He reached inside and dug through the packing peanuts looking for the bust that the tag said was supposed to go in this display case. He then slowly pulled out the world famous bust of Nefertiti which was on loan to the Domino Museum from the Neues Museum in Berlin.

"This is probably worth more than my father will ever make in his entire life." Honda muttered as he carefully carried the bust the 4 foot to the opening of the display case and gently lifting it through the open glass and setting it on the velvet perch. The bust was, well Honda guessed it was alright given the fact it was kinda missing an eye. Then again it had been made 2300 years ago so Honda figured he could give the sculptor a break.

"That eye without the pupil always kinda freaked me out." A soft voice said make Honda jerk. The bust wobbled and Honda quickly reached forward to steady the piece. Once he was satisfied that it was not going to fall and break into a million pieces he, slowly this time, removed his hand from the case.

A girl with waste length long white hair and porcelain white skin was standing just off to his left. The girl gave Honda a kind smile which Honda readily returned. Honda quickly wiped his hands off on his jeans before holding one of his hands out to the girl, "Miss, where are my manners? I'm Honda. Honda Hiroto." Honda said.

The girl gave a small laugh which Honda thought was truly musical. His wasn't a big guffaw like Anzu but a soft, airy laugh from a girl whose whole demeanor screamed shy.

The girl reached out and took Honda's hand, "Pleasure to meet you Honda Hiroto, my name is Kisara Azul." Honda turned Kisara's hand over and placed a light kiss on the back of the girl's outstretched hand.

Kisara laughed that musical laugh once again. "Oh a gentleman. That was not what I was expecting when I came over. Full of surprises are you Honda?" Kisara replied.

Honda smirked, "I'm not normally a gentleman, however it's not every day that I meet an angel. And you sweet Kisara, are without a doubt an angel." Honda replied.

"Bleh, any more cheese and I'll literally vomit. Come on you two. Join the rest of us laborers for lunch." A loud voice suddenly said breaking up the moment between Honda and Kisara.

Kisara turned around and gave a bright smile to the boy who interrupted them. He was as tall as Honda was with platinum blonde hair sticking up in almost every direction. He certainly fit the description of 'brawny'. Based on those biceps Honda did not fancy his odds if the two would arm wrestle. "We're on our way over Marik." Kisara replied before she turned and started heading over to where the entire set up crew were gathering around pizza boxes set up on a makeshift table made out of wooden crates.

"You go on ahead Kisara. Mr. Honda Hiroto and I are going to take care of these crates before we join you." Marik said before he turned his attention onto Honda, "Come on Romeo lets toss these crate out back." Marik said briskly.

Honda gave Kisara another bright smile before he picked up the wooden crate he had just carried and followed Marik out the back of the museum and over to the large dumpster out back. Marik and Honda both tossed the crates into the dumpster. Honda then went to head inside however he ended up slammed against the side of the dumpster. He metal was quite hot which made leaning against it quite uncomfortable.

"Listen up Romeo. Stay well away from Kisara if you know what's good for you." Marik hissed his cold lilac eyes blazing.

"What is she your girlfriend or something?" Honda asked.

"No. But she is way too good for the likes of you. Like I said stay well away from her otherwise I'll toss you in this dumpster. You catch my drift Romeo?" Marik growled.

"Last I checked we aren't still in the Stone Age and Kisara can decide for herself who's good enough for her and who is not. So, either she is your girlfriend in which case I'll respect your relationship and keep my distance otherwise. Fuck. You." Honda growled.

Marik glared at Honda before shoving him harshly against the metal dumpster making Honda's head snap back and unpleasantly collide with the metal. That would certainly leave a lovely knot. Marik then quickly released Honda before he turned and marched back inside. Honda followed a very short distance behind him.

The two made their way over to the group having lunch. Kisara waved at the two boys and Honda quickly picked up his pace so he could claim the spot beside Kisara much to Marik's apparent annoyance. Marik took a seat next to a woman with long black hair who Honda vaguely thought was Miss Ishtar, one of the curators of the exhibit.

"So, are you new around here? I've never seen you before." Honda inquired. He would have remembered a babe like her if she attended Domino. Even the beautiful Miho would have seemed like yesterday's news when compared to Kisara Azul.

"I'm not from around here, no. It's just me and my father. My father travels the world helping to coordinate artifact loans. We're actually from Berlin, so please forgive me if my English is a little rusty. I practiced really hard when I found out we would be coming here. The last thing I want is to sound like an uneducated fool." Kisara said.

"You a fool? Never. How long have you been in town? And how long are you staying?" Honda asked.

"My father and I arrived two days ago. I think my father said the exhibit will be here in Domino for a whole year. Then we will either return to Berlin or travel to our next exotic location." Kisara replied.

"Well, that just means I'll have to show you around Domino. I don't know about exotic but it does have some cool places to visit if you know where to go." Honda replied. He pictured it now, him giving Kisara a tour of Domino atop his beautiful bike. Her clinging to the back of his leather jacket as he zipped down the road.

"That would be amazing Honda. I cannot wait." Kisara replied.

Honda grinned. He couldn't wait either.

With Atemu

Atemu sighed as he starred up at the ceiling. And you wonder why no one ever does anything nice for you? You wonder why you're all alone. You pull crap like this. You want to spend your whole life alone who am I to stop you.

Atemu really wished he could stop having those words repeat over and over again in his head. If only Atemu could dispute the truth behind the words then he could dismiss the brat's comments. The reason they bothered him so much is because every single one of the words was 100 percent true. He was going to end up all alone.

You wonder why no one believes you Atemu. They do believe you, problem is they don't care. They know you are a waste of time. They know you deserve every single thing I do to you. That was what his father had told him after Atemu told the ER doctors about what his father had done to him and he had been laughed off as a child telling stories.

I don't know why anyone would ever want to adopt your sorry ass. Only the good, kind children deserve a good home. You Atemu, you deserve a wooden box. Who knows, maybe one day you'll do us all a favor and crawl in one. Atemu snorted as that comment drifted through his mind. He couldn't remember if that had been said by Vivian, Weevil or one of the other kids at the Orphanage. But he did remember the words.

You want to hold him so tightly that he doesn't have room to breathe because you know that when he goes to someone else, like me, then you'll end up alone because no one wants to put up with your shit. Those were Kaiba's words from a few days ago. Why oh why were those words reappearing now? He and Yami had talked about that. He wasn't going anywhere.

Atemu sat on the edge of his bed. Never in his entire life had he ever felt more alone. Everyone kept telling him that was exactly how he was going to end up. That it was what he deserved. He didn't deserve anyone's time, anyone's patience let alone anyone's kindness.

Today was supposed to be a day of celebration. A day to celebrate that he and Yami were finally free from those monsters who called themselves their parents. Apparently, as Atemu later found out, one of their teachers had called Child Protective Services because she had a bad feeling about what was happening in that house. Atemu did not delude himself that it had been him the teacher was worried about. She had to have been worried about Yami. Yami was the one who was worthy of care, kindness, compassion. Love. Loyalty.

Yami was everything that Atemu wasn't. Atemu's only job in life was to protect Yami from all comers. To keep Yami safe from those that would hurt him. Other than that Atemu didn't matter. He never had. Yami could lie to him as much as he wanted but in the end Atemu could see Yami's words of reassurance as the lies that they were.

All these people would not have made the same exact observation if it hadn't been correct. Atemu was destined to end up alone and forgotten. Who knows, once Yami starts building more of a relationship with Aknamkanon maybe the Sennens will take him back to the orphanage. Yami wouldn't really need him anymore. Not between Aknamkanon and Kaiba. Between the two of them Yami would be plenty safe.

Atemu's a jerk.

An asshole.

A coward.

Weak.

Pathetic.

He doesn't deserve happiness.

What you deserve is a wooden box.

You deserve everything that I do to you.

Why would I waste my time caring about you?

Atemu lunged his fist forward and it harshly collided with the wall next to the door. Atemu felt pain shoot from his hand and up his forearm. But he didn't care. He felt tears gather in his eyes but Atemu strongly believed it had nothing to do with the pain in his hand. Atemu was crying for the lonely little boy that everyone seemed to hate for no reason. The little boy that no one but Yami had ever even met.

The little boy that no one cared when he cried or why.

Maybe it was time that little boy crawled into the wooden box everyone thought he belonged in. Maybe that would make everyone happier? Then they wouldn't have to put up with his shit. He wouldn't continue to darken their days. And who knows, perhaps people would be nicer to Yami if he wasn't around?

If there was any chance Yami might benefit it was definitely something worth considering. I must have really had a messed up past life to deserve everything I've been through. Because the hell that I call life has to be worse than any hell that any religion has ever imagined. Is it so much to ask for someone to love me no matter how screwed up I am?

How long am I going to be expected for whatever mistakes I made in a past life? I'm sorry. For whatever I did. I'm sorry.

Atemu slid down to the ground, burying his head in his knees as he sobbed. "I'm sorry."