Author's note:

This is my English translation of the story I had written in Hungarian, my mother tongue. Special thanks to Hero Beater and Fluffy Pillow for helping me every step of the way.

SPLIT PERSONALITIES

Mokuba woke up the next morning to find himself all alone. Nii-sama's bed was empty; his coat, too, was gone from the rack. All that remained were yesterday's purchases and a letter on the nightstand that he had written at dawn, just before he left:

I'll set everything right, Mokuba. I promise. Come to the dorm as soon as you can. If all goes well, you'll find me in the café.

Seto

The sky was still dark when Kaiba passed through the entrance hall. The receptionist was reading the papers and didn't even notice the black-clad young man carrying his coat on his left arm so he wouldn't catch anyone's eye. The stairwell was empty and silent as Kaiba headed upstairs, until he ran into a group of boys on the second half-space landing, trotting down in track suits for their morning jog. One of them stopped him: a burly, bored-looking senior.

"Hey, Seto," grunted the boy.

"Good morning," replied Kaiba, reserved but polite.

"Your party turn out okay?"

"Yes. …Thank you."

"Welcome. Listen, when can you pay me back? I don't want to rush you, but we're going to the square tonight and I could use the extra."

Kaiba stared at him confused for a moment, but soon made the connection, and the thought that Seto borrowed money to treat Yugi and his friends made his chest feel tight.

"…How much do I owe you again?" he asked carefully.

"Five fifty. Not much, but worth a drink or two."

Kaiba suppressed a sigh and slipped a casual hand in his pocket; thanks to yesterday's expenditures, he had a handful of coins, some of which now exchanged hands.

"Here," he said, and since he wasn't fond of loose change anyway, he added a couple more.

"I think you miscounted," said the other, his forehead creasing as he counted the coins with a finger.

"Consider it a token of my gratitude."

"You're mental…"

"Just take it. Have a good weekend," said Kaiba, shaking hands with the boy before he continued his journey upstairs, glad that there were at least some decent people in this world. He could hardly wait to see Seto face to face now, and so he hurried upstairs and didn't stop until he reached the room. He held his breath as he pressed his ear to the door, but all was silent on the other side, and so he took out the duplicate key, carefully unlocked the door, and slipped in without a sound.

If he had thought there was too little space before, he now felt all the more how miserable that tiny room was. There were sleeping bodies everywhere, and Téa seemed to be the only one who had spent the night in relative comfort. Joey and Tristan were a snoring tangle of limbs, one of Yugi's arms was hanging off the desk, and Seto lay on the ground with his little brother in his arms as though he had fallen in battle. Kaiba felt a warm, dull pang in his heart as he kneeled beside them and carefully lifted the overcoat, staring at Seto's skeletal hands, the dark circles under his eyes, and how he could hardly breathe under Mokuba's weight. He was almost sorry to wake him, and so he folded his trench coat in half as slowly as possibly, laying it on the floor, and then gently lifted the bony, feather-light younger sibling and gingerly tucked him into it. Mokuba stirred a little in his sleep, but the lining was comfortable and warm; his small hands sank into the silky fabric, and soon he was breathing peacefully again. Only then did Kaiba turn back to Seto. He could almost hear his bones rattle as he gave his shoulder a gentle shake.

Seto slept but three hours last night, and so he came around very slowly, and when he first opened his eyes, one could tell he had no idea where he was. He managed to prop himself on his elbows with some difficulty and rubbed at his eyes, finally looking up, and then flinched hard as though he had been doused with ice water. He almost cried out in surprise, but Kaiba was faster, and the next moment, he clamped a hand on his mouth and pressed his head back onto the pillow, while his other hand spread out over his chest, just above his heart.

"Don't shout!" he whispered to the spooked, breathless Seto, who tried to peel off Kaiba's hands in vain; his lax fingers could curl around the steel arm guards, but could neither clench nor push them away. Grasping at the cold metal felt as though he were fighting off an android, and for a long moment, he stared wide eyed into that smooth, carefully guarded face – his own perfected reflection. Kaiba's prying glance felt uncomfortable, and Seto glanced around searching for Mokuba. His little brother was still sound asleep – that was Seto's only consolation.

"Do you promise not to wake the others?" whispered Kaiba. Seto nodded in defeat, and as Kaiba released him, he quickly sat up to glare at him. His chest was still rising and falling sharply, his cheeks flushed in shame for having been spooked so badly.

"How did you get in?" he asked in a hushed voice.

"Spare key," replied Kaiba. Seto furrowed his brow.

"Why did you come here? I don't need your help, and I don't want to talk to you."

Kaiba closed his eyes for a moment. He swallowed. "I came to apologize."

"Please go away," came the self-conscious reply.

"I ask for half an hour," said Kaiba, almost tentatively. "Half an hour. We go for a walk, and if I can't make things up to you, I promise I'll go away. …Please."

Seto glared at him, his cheeks still flushed, but Kaiba stood his ground easily. Seto somehow seemed younger and more defenseless than he first thought, and when he finally lowered his eyes, Kaiba almost felt guilty for forcing his will upon him. It felt as though he had broken the resistance of a child. Were his eyes really that large and sad? Had he ever been this fragile…?

"Fine," said Seto, his voice thick, and lowered his head so he wouldn't have to look his counterpart in the eye. "I'll get dressed in a minute."

"Dress warmly, it's cold outside," Kaiba let slip, and awkward silence settled between them. Seto crept silently to the wardrobe and took out some clean clothes, getting dressed in one of the corners, while Kaiba quickly scribbled a note for the others and laid it on Seto's bed, right next to Mokuba's head. When Seto was ready, he let him out and locked the door behind him as though the room were his. It made Seto uncomfortable, almost resentful as he watched.

"You have half an hour," he reminded him, his tone sulky.

"Let's make it half an hour after we get outside."

"…Alright."

The receptionist was still reading when the two Setos left. He caught Kaiba from the corner of his eye as he marched across the entrance hall, his back straight and his head arched forward, and greeted him kindly, only to nearly fall off his chair when Seto passed him a moment later, replying instead of Kaiba in a forlorn, resigned tone. The receptionist stared after him dumbfounded as he shuffled out with his shoulders hunched, following… whoever it was he saw first, and then decided fatigue must be playing tricks on his eyes, and made himself another coffee just in case.

Seto could have used a cup himself. He followed Kaiba outside like a sleepwalker, only coming around once they entered the park and the sharp morning wind laid into them. He was cold under his coat, but Kaiba didn't even flinch, and that only seemed to irritate Seto even more.

"Well?" he asked sharply, folding his thin arms over his chest. There was a look of sullen anger on his face: strange, childish, and somehow heart-breaking.

"…I'm sorry about last night," Kaiba said slowly, as though every word required conscious effort on his part. Seto listened with his eyes narrowed. "If I had known you would take it to heart, I would have held back."

"It was not about me taking it to heart!" snapped Seto. "You should have held back because they are your friends, and decent people don't talk to their friends that way!"

"They are not my friends," said Kaiba sharply.

"Yugi politely asked for your help, and you insulted him and turned him away! Do you have any idea how much you embarrassed me?" cried Seto, letting lose the anger that had been brewing in his heart since last evening. "Do you have an idea how awful it was to find out that this is what I'm like?"

Kaiba bared his teeth as though he had been struck in the face.

"We are not the same person!" he said, full of wounded pride. "You are nothing like me!"

"Well, good, because I would never want to be like you!" retorted Seto with growing anger. He didn't even think about what he was saying: he merely wanted to cause pain, and he was surprised at how easy it was when he really wanted to.

"You don't even know me!" Kaiba spoke in shock.

"And I don't want to get to know you!" retorted Seto. "I've heard enough last night to know that you are a heartless, unfeeling jerk, and you disgust me! I wish I never had anything to do with you!"

Kaiba felt his face flush. His hands slowly clenched into fists, boiling with anger.

"That's enough!" he snapped at Seto, so fiercely that his counterpart grew pale and sank into scared silence. "I've had enough of this! Do you even comprehend what you're saying? You get angry at me for the way I treated Yugi and the others, and then you go and talk to me the same way? Just how does that make you better than me, Seto? Answer me! What have you ever done in your life that made you even one bit superior to me? You don't even know who I am: you've never been in my place and never walked down the road I have, because if you had, you wouldn't be scraping by in a miserable, rat hole dorm room with your starving little brother who deserves better!"

Seto's eyes turned glassy. He felt as though each word had seized him by the soul and wrenched his heart from his chest. He didn't have a single drop of pride that could have deflected the blow and dispelled the accusation that came from his mouth, in his voice, and cut him to the core, for he had lived with that knowledge every single day, never daring to speak it for fear that his guilt would win one day, leaving him crushed underneath. It was as if his conscience had come to life, glaring him haughtily in the eye, piercing into his soul, and Seto was nothing short of terrified of him. How could he possibly defend himself to somebody who had started out just like him, but got further and achieved more than most people did in their entire lives? What excuse could he possibly have when he could hardly even feed his little brother, though Mokuba would have deserved everything in the world? Nothing. Nothing…

Seto stared at Kaiba thunderstruck, and then took a step backwards. Kaiba's body tensed, and the next moment, Seto turned around and broke into a sprint to try and escape him. However, Kaiba anticipated him and was faster on his feet: he ran after him and caught him by the arm in a matter of seconds.

"I'm not letting you run away from this!" cried Kaiba, his tone furious as he yanked him backwards and held him tight. Seto squirmed helplessly in his grasp; his fear and determination were no match for Kaiba's strength and anger.

"You wanted to fight, so come on, Seto! Face me!" Kaiba snapped at him and held him even tighter until he could almost feel his ribs under the overcoat. Seto's resistance was fading; on the verge of his breakdown, he wouldn't have cared if Kaiba hurt him, so long as he did not have to look him in the eye…

"Fight back!" demanded Kaiba, grabbing his counterpart's arm to turn the limp, trembling Seto around. He found himself staring into a pair of defeated, lifeless eyes, and for one moment, Kaiba was almost afraid of him. It felt as if he held a small piece of his soul in his grasp: a piece he had buried alive when he was just a child so nobody could hurt it anymore. Seto hung his head, his eyes brimming with tears. Kaiba watched him terrified.

"Stand up for yourself…" he begged his tortured, crying self. "Where's your pride…?"

Seto whipped his hands up, but Kaiba pushed his arms back too far for him to try to bury his face in his palms. Kaiba shook him. Seto gave a small, strangled cry.

"Seto… say something."

"I meant well, I swear…" came the stammering, contrite confession. "I thought everything would be alright, but I failed… it's all my fault… I'm so ashamed…"

He stared up at Kaiba, his eyes begging for mercy, and he sobbed.

"I tried so hard… I worked… I gave up everything just so we could… eat… but it was never enough… nothing was good enough… because I wasn't good enough…"

"Stop it…" breathed Kaiba, his blood curdling.

"It was all in vain… everything's ruined… I wanted it so badly… but it's no use… I mustn't even think of it… because it's killing me…"

"Stop it!" Kaiba snapped at him, no longer in anger but in shame, and the next moment, just as Seto went limp and was about to collapse, he instinctively reached out and clutched him to his chest, fearing he might fall too deep and he would lose him forever. He pinned him down with one arm to keep him standing, pressing Seto's head to his shoulder with his other hand and brushing his fingers clumsily, almost roughly through his hair, over and over again, and Seto buried his face in his shoulder, convulsing as he sobbed. He hadn't had anybody to lift him up since he was little, and now he did, and he held onto Kaiba as if the ground had been torn from under his feet and everything else had ceased to exist… and suddenly, he hardly knew how, his pain was ripped from his body, rolling away with his tears. Nothing remained in its place but emptiness that slowly began to swell with something he hadn't known since his father had died – the feeling of safety. Maybe this is what it's like to be a little brother, he thought, cracking a pained little smile. Nii-sama finally came for him, and Seto wanted to hold on to him forever. It nearly killed him when Kaiba had enough of the embrace and carefully pried him off. He was afraid he would not be able to stand, but Kaiba still held him by the arms, giving them a gentle squeeze.

"You are more than good, Seto," he said quietly. Seto, sniffling, averted his eyes. "You have no idea how much you've accomplished and how close you are to having a better life. You just have to hold on a little longer."

Seto lifted his head carefully to look at him, his eyes filled with fear and disbelief.

"Let me help you," pleaded Kaiba. "You know I can help you: I'm the only one who can, and I promise that as long as I am here, I will take care of you and Mokuba. You are very close to having everything turn out just fine, you just have to trust me."

Seto tried to speak, but his throat felt too tight. Kaiba gave his arm another squeeze, and Seto let out a shaky sigh.

"I'll protect you and set things right, Seto. I promise. All I ask is that you trust me," said Kaiba, his voice low, his features softer but steadfast as he looked him in the eye. Seto's neck and chest were still convulsing; he tried to speak but what came out instead were hiccups, and in the end, all he could do was nod. He took deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down, and Kaiba gave his arms one more reassuring squeeze before he let him go.

"Are you alright?" he asked softly, as though he were talking to Mokuba. Seto was still struggling with his hiccups and wiped at his eyes like an overgrown child, and Kaiba would have given anything in the world by now never to see him cry again. He decided that he had talked enough, and hoped that time and breakfast would help fix what his words couldn't smooth away, as Mokuba himself had told him many times that pep talks had never been his forte.

"Come on… I'm buying you breakfast," he said quietly, putting a careful arm behind Seto's shoulder. "If you like, you can have a cookie, too," he added as he gently ushered him towards the café he and Mokuba discovered yesterday. Seto humbly let himself be guided.

"What about… the others?" he asked between hiccups.

"Oh, alright, they can have a cookie, too. Except Wheeler, he gets a dog biscuit."

Seto didn't see that one coming and snorted in laughter, cupping a hand over his mouth. He flushed in embarrassment that he could laugh at such a thing, but much like hiccups, he couldn't contain his laughter, either. Kaiba squinted at him, smirking.

"That's the spirit," he said, patting his shoulder. "Now come on, before we starve to death."