The walk back to the game shop was quiet. Dark Magician still led the way, but Yami found himself moving much slower. He looked around every corner and kept an eye on his back the entire time. He could tell Dark Magician also kept an extra eye out. Even the emotionless duel spirit couldn't stop what he heard about the Dragon of Destruction from making him jumpy.
"What have I done?" Yami eventually asked. Dark Magician continued to lead, not acknowledging Yami's comment. This made the Pharaoh slightly annoyed. If Yugi were here, he would have been chatting with Yami to keep his spirits up. Couldn't Dark Magician tell he was on edge? Couldn't the duel spirit even try? Yami then let out his pent-up breath. Dark Magician wasn't Yugi. It's also not eithers' job to help Yami wallow in self-pity. What was done is done. If Kaiba was as intelligent as Yami knew he was, the CEO would be able to connect the pieces. Junior could be in a lot of trouble if Seto was still set on cutting loose ends.
"If Junior's even the Dragon," Yami whispered. "It doesn't make sense. You didn't see Junior today. He ran away from any sign of confrontation. Even to the point, he took one of my cards to give to some entitled mother." Yami whispered a little louder. This made Dark Magician turn entirely around in vague surprise.
"Yes, he actually did that," Yami said while crossing his arms. Dark Magician nodded and went back to leading. As they continued to walk, Yami found his thoughts continually on Junior's faults. How could that man, dragon or not, be the man Yugi loved so much? Enough that he ignored his fearful nature and his constant absence. If Yami counted up all the time in these last four years that Junior was actually home, he's only come back for a total of a week. Sure, Yami knew he called very often, but that didn't seem enough. While he may have to be away with his job and Yui had to stay in Domino for her doctors, there should have been more time in Junior's schedule to be home in four years. That just led to another big question, if Junior was the dragon, why was he now working with the country's military?!
Yami's thoughts kept going in an unsolvable circle. This was quickly becoming as frustrating as traversing his soul room. Yami was so deep in his thoughts he didn't see someone turning a corner in front of him. The biker rammed right into him. Yami fell back as the bike skidded to a stop beside him. The rider then jumped off his bike.
"Watch it! I'm already late enough for my shift!" The rider yelled. He had a deep voice, a voice that Yami recognized a little too well. On instinct, Yami leaped to his feet and crossed his arms, his signature intimidation stance. Dark Magician followed by having his staff at the ready. In front of them was a large male with humongous eyebrows. It was Ushio.
The two teens stood ready for the other to attack, then Ushio's eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he realized who he just hit.
"Yugi! I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it!" He gasped, his voice rising a few octaves. He immediately began backing up, his whole body trembling as he tried to mount his bike. This was what brought Yami and Dark Magician out of their fight mode. They both flinched as Ushio, in his fear, dropped his flashlight. The light flashed in both their eyes and gave Ushio time to get on his bike.
"Wait!" Yami started to say with his hand outstretched. Then the man two times his size screamed.
"Stay back!" Ushio yelped. He finally managed to get his feet on the pedals and started racing away. Leaving his flashlight behind.
"Wait! I only want to talk to you..." Yami tried again, but Ushio was already pedaling away at high speeds. Yami could only watch, the humid night wind blowing silently by him. Dark Magician nudged Yami's side. The Pharaoh guessed that it was the spirit's way of asking if he wanted to pursue. Yami shook his head. They had enough on their plates tonight. The teen then picked up the flashlight and put it in his pocket. While there, he felt to make sure he still had his deck, just in case someone else decided to jump out. Once sure that he still had everything, he continued to walk to the game shop.
…
The last leg of the journey seemed so much shorter than the rest of it. To Yami, he only took one step, and suddenly he was in front of the shop. The building had always been a happy place for him. Coming back to the yellow and green store meant an adventure was finally done, the world was saved, and that he and Yugi could finally relax. Now the silhouette of the shop seemed to twist and grow, becoming another monster Yami had to fight. Once again, it was Dark Magician that took the lead. The mage led him to the front door, but Yami paused.
'Funny, hundreds of monsters and world-ending events. And it's my partner's father that makes me hesitate the most.' Yami thought in a bid to make himself smile. He then felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Dark Magician had put it there, a gentle smile on his face. A smile that was so familiar that it hurt, yet Yami had never seen Dark Magician smile like that before. Yami could only nod back to the spirit and walk into the dark house.
"Yugi?" A soft whisper came from the shadows.
"I'm back." Yami sighed. Everything was silent a moment, then Yami felt as someone took his hand and yanked him from the doorway. The door slammed shut right in Dark Magician's face.
Yami was pulled into the living room. The door to the rest of the house closed behind him. A light then flicked on. Junior was the one that pulled Yami in. The father was frantically looking over Yami with worried eyes. He then reached forward and took Yami's face in his hand. He began to look for any sign of a wound or cut, repeatedly asking if Yami was ok. Yami eventually pushed him away and took a few steps back. Answering each repeated question with "I'm fine." The relief was evident on Junior's face, but it was quickly replaced with a stern frown, his left facial scars framing his red eyes.
"You have a lot of explaining to do, young man." His voice was still soft, but the edge it now had made the hair on the back of Yami's neck stand on end.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been out without telling you." Yami began to whisper.
"Without telling us?!" Junior whispered also, but that edge never went away. "You shouldn't have been out at this time, to begin with! What happened to that caution you promised me you would have? Don't tell me you're suddenly blacking out and waking up in weird warehouses again."
'So Yugi told his dad about that. What else did Yugi say?' Yami thought. Yami had always tried to stay out of Yugi's conversations with his family out of respect. Still, now he wished he did eavesdrop a little. 'How can I ask about the Dragon of Destruction? What if Yugi knew all this already? What could Junior figure out if Yugi did already know and I started asking weird questions? What would this all lead to?'
As all these questions came flying through Yami's head, Junior was raddling off about a dozen more questions. Where had Yami been? What was he doing? Why even go out? Yami didn't answer and instead kept his eyes to the floor, arms still crossed in front of him. Eventually, Junior gave a big sigh and rested his head in his hand as he rubbed his temples.
"Yugi, Yugi, Yugi... First, you lie to your mom about being sick, then this." He said as he sat on a nearby couch.
"You know?" Yami asked.
"Of course I do. I was with you all day, and the only sign of something odd was you using your TV voice. You shouldn't have even tried to lie; I was specifically trained to read people."
Yami could only shift his weight to the other foot as his eyes refused to face Junior. "TV voice?" He asked.
"The voice you're doing now. That tough voice you put on for your confident dueling persona." Junior sighed as he slumped back on the couch. "Why are you even still doing that? You practicing to impress someone?" Then Junior's eyes narrowed as he looked up to Yami. "Were you at Téa's house?"
Yami's own eyes widened as he immediately shook his head with as much force as he could. "Nononononono. Nothing like that." Yami practically begged.
"Look, champ, I understand you two have always been really close. I know there are certain…."
"Oh Gods, please stop." Yami really did beg this time. He then collapsed in a side chair with his head in his hand, also rubbing his temples. Thankfully Junior did stop, and Yami had a few seconds before the next round of questions.
"…Dad," Yami whispered. It was harder than he liked to admit saying that word.
"Yes?" Junior moved closer to Yami's chair and looked over him with those same worried eyes.
"Why was Kaiba asking about a Dragon of Destruction?" Yami asked in a low, quiet voice. If he cared at the moment, it would have been his best attempt at sounding like Yugi.
Junior nearly jumped in shock. His face immediately going pale. Yami looked up to see the man start shaking his head, whispering his own string of no. Yami felt a pit in his stomach grow as he saw Junior's face go from shock to anger, then back to fear. He then started pacing the room, his hands behind his back. The string of no replaced with a series of swears, most in foreign languages. Then his head snapped to the door.
"I have to leave," Junior said, all emotion in his voice gone. This made Yami stand and just about leap to block his exit.
"No! You can't leave again! You owe answers to Yugi- to me! You owe answers to me…." Yami's voice grew quieter with every word.
It was just the two. Violet and crimson eyes locked in a silent house. Each was genuinely fearful of what the other would do if they said more. It was Junior that was the first to move. He took a step back from the door and exhaled a long breath. He rubbed the back of his short-cut hair and looked towards a framed picture of Yugi. This picture was of him on the news when it became official that he was the King of Games. There were many such pictures around the shop. Yui was good at framing Yugi's big successes.
"I really do leave often, don't I? Then I'm never around when it matters," Junior said. He then shook his head and looked at Yami with a sad smile. "I do owe answers to you… Here, we never got to enjoy those shakes earlier, did we? There's a good twenty-four-hour mart near here. They have excellent slushies. You want to get one?" Junior asked.
Yami paused. Both his hands found themselves on the Millennium Puzzle's newly rough edges. The memory of Téa's words regarding Junior flashed through Yami's head. After a few seconds, he tentatively nodded.
"Good. Come on, I'll drive. Then we can talk."
The two quietly crept out, making sure not to turn on the headlights of the family car until they wouldn't flash inside the shop's windows. Dark Magician was still outside. He seemed to be waiting for the two and did a slight bow to them as they walked to the car. Yami was used to the gesture, but he was surprised when Dark Magician bowed to Junior too. Junior walked right through the spirit, but Yami was shocked nonetheless. Dark Magician only ever bowed to Yami, Yugi, and Kaiba; he had never seen him do it to anyone else.
In the car, the two drove in silence, Dark Magician floating along with the two. They were alone on the late-night road. Once again, Junior went way under the speed limit. What annoyed Yami earlier that day helped him relax this time. It was a calm before the incoming storm.
"I forget, can we now drive through Antla street?" Junior asked.
"Yes, though I have never seen it blocked up before," Yami answered.
"No, I mean, is it still Hendrick's gang territory? Is it safe to drive through at this time?"
This made Yami sit up a little more. "I don't remember any gangs being there. In fact, I don't know of any gangs still being around other than school gangs."
"Hmm, that might have only been back in my day then," Junior said, then he fell quiet again. Yami would have left the silence, but he saw a potential answer in this next question.
"Were there a lot of gangs when you were growing up?"
"Not just a lot. This city had just about every sin you could think of. It even once held the record for most murders. I'm glad it was cleaned up by the time you were born. My mother always treasured this city so, even with its massive flaws. She would have loved to see her home city in the pristine condition it is now." Junior said, a bit of mist coming to his eyes.
"Is growing up here where you learned to fight?" Yami said, Dark Magician floating even closer to the car in interest.
Junior slammed on the breaks, nearly strangling Yami. Yami looked to him with gritted teeth, but that was lost when he saw Junior's wide eyes. He looked like a deer in his own headlights.
"Yugi…I'm not quite…ready to..." Junior started to say but petered out.
"I'll save it for the slushies then," Yami said in a quiet voice. He turned away, and Junior started driving again. It was more silence between the two as they found the neon lights of the gas station, parked, and got out of the car.
It was very humid that night, feeling and smelling like being hit in the face by a wet gym sock. The two quickly rushed into the store to get some air conditioning. Inside was brightly lit, every square inch filled with rows of colorful candies and snacks. There was no one there, being what hour of the night it was. Even the cashier seemed to be away from his post.
"I always loved this place when I was a kid. Of course, they've updated it, but it still has the same feeling. Seems old Mr. Nosaka is still too cheap to hire competent workers." Junior said as he gestured to the empty front register.
On it was a note that said, "If you must bother us knock on the side door. Signed the over-worked night employees. "
Junior then pointed at a closed door down the hall. "If they didn't come out when they heard the sliding doors, they won't bother us while we talk."
Yami didn't even see the side door when they walked in. It was almost hidden behind the rows of candies.
"Wait, I thought we were taking these slushies home. We are talking here?" He asked, surprised that Junior would want such an open place to divulge his secrets.
Junior gave a low sigh and shrugged. "You know how lightly Grandpa can sleep. I didn't want him coming down. This is a kind of talk that shouldn't be interrupted."
Yami nodded, but he still didn't feel quite right about this.
In the back of the store were a few running slushie machines. They were older than any of the new ones Yami had seen on his travels, but they were filled with every color and flavor Yami could imagine.
"Pick whatever size and flavor you want," Junior said as he grabbed the biggest cup and started filling it with a red flavor. Yami found himself looking around the shop instead. He looked up at the one camera watching the store. Junior then noticed where Yami was staring and slightly smiled.
"Don't worry about that. If I know Mr. Nosaka, he wouldn't have spent the money to keep that camera running. It's only there for show. See how it doesn't have a red light on?" Junior once again pointed. As Yami looked closer at the wall-mounted camera, he saw that Junior was indeed right. They weren't being recorded. "Your late-night outing put us at the perfect time. No one will overhear us."
While Yami followed Junior's logic, he thought of another reason Yugi's father might have taken him here. This might have been one of his childhood safe places. Yugi used to have many to hide from bullies on the path home from school. Yami decided not to ask about his theory and instead picked his size. He then pulled the first lever he found, not wanting to let on that he didn't know how this machine worked. Thankfully a purple slush came out, and Yami was able to collect it just fine. As the two were getting their lids, Yami felt he had to be the first to talk this time.
"So… Kaiba."
"Yes… Kaiba." Junior said, his deep frown returning. This let Yami see more than the scars on his face, but the many smaller ones that cut across his body. It was then Yami also saw bits of tattoos poking out from under Junior's long sleeve shirt. Yami glanced to Dark Magician and then spoke.
"I was gone tonight because I went to visit Seto Kaiba. Do you know about him?"
"Of course, I know your biggest rival." Junior nearly snapped. "For your information, I am still not over how he forced you into those Death-T games and ripped dad's precious card. You know I always try to trust your judgment regarding friends, but he's someone I have a hard time believing changed." Yami was surprised to hear that much venom from Junior's voice. He pressed on nonetheless.
"He is having about the same issue regarding your…change," Yami said, doing his best to dance around the real words he wanted to say.
Junior immediately stiffened, that deer in the headlights look coming back. Then he sighed.
"Yugi, you know I would never do anything to hurt you or our family purposely. If that c… CEO has told you otherwise; you can't believe him." Junior began, panic clear in his voice. Yami stopped his incoming rant by putting up a hand.
"It doesn't matter what Kaiba told me. I want to hear from you and only you. Are you the Dragon of Destruction? Someone that... worked closely with Gozaburo."
"…Yes," Junior admitted in a dead voice.
It was like a frozen bullet had shot through Yami. He knew it was coming, but for it to be confirmed was still frightening. His whirlwind of emotions he had been trying to control was quickly becoming its own hurricane.
"Why?" Yami more stated than asked. Junior sighed and put down his slushie. He rested his elbows on the counter and put his head in his hand.
"That's a long story Yugi."
"We have all night. I want to know exactly why, how, and all of it. Even the parts I might already know. I want to hear them from your mouth." Yami said.
"Why and how, huh? You really are Yui's kid." Junior sighed, a sad smile peeking out. "That's exactly how she worded the question when we had this conversation."
Junior slowly stood up, turned around, and leaned back first on the counter. He then crossed his arms. Yami chose to ignore how much Junior looked just like himself at that moment.
"Ok, Why, how, and all of it..." He was quiet for a minute. Then he spoke.
"Then let's start with your earlier question. Yes, this city taught me to fight, but more importantly, it taught me how to survive. Unless you were respected, it was very much predator or prey. While my parents did their best to help keep me out of those situations, as a child, I had a hard time avoiding them." Junior then glanced over to Yami.
"You already know of my lifelong fight with my 'illness,' so I do not need to go into details there." Yami nodded, though he really didn't know what this "illness" was. Yugi never so much as hinted at it. There was no way to ask now, so Yami kept his mouth shut and hoped he could figure it out.
Junior then continued. "This… illness seemed always to get me in trouble with the wrong crowd. I got beat and belittled often by other children and even adults I happened to annoy or frighten. What the others didn't know was behind the crazy kid screaming about dragons following him was the mind of a fast learner with quite the vengeful streak." Junior then lightly felt the scars over his left eye. "I hope you understand that I'm not trying to make up excuses through any of this story. Hindsight is twenty-twenty, you know? I'm not trying to blame my parents, or my environment, or even my own brain. I am just trying to answer your questions the best way I know how. No matter how warped it might turn out." Junior then looked down at his hand. He made a fist with it, then relaxed it. He did this in a continual cycle as he thought about his next words.
"I found I loved having power over others. To the point of enjoying hurting them, physically when I could and mentally when I couldn't. The rush of defeating a foe, of proving you were better than them. The high of winning and continually winning. I was addicted to it."
Yami unconsciously grasped the Millennium Puzzle's chain. He knew those feelings. He knew them too well, back when Ushio and others went too far, before Yugi and his friends pulled him into the light.
"I think it's a Muto family curse. We love to win, to the point of obsession if we aren't careful. Your Grandpa did this through his gambling and archeology, but he controlled it, and when he was at a point in his life where he couldn't chase that high anymore, he found ways to replace it. He tried to put me on the right path through games." Junior then looked to Yami, though he didn't make eye contact. He only looked at Yami's deck pouch. "And I am forever grateful he didn't give up when his teachings fell on my deaf ears." Junior smiled. Yami's face remained as blank as Dark Magician's.
Junior then took a sip of his slushie and continued.
"Back then, winning in games wasn't enough for me. I wanted so much more. So, I started playing with people like they were my game pieces. I made best friends break up, ruined both child and adult reputations, set teachers and even gangs on each other. I wanted them to hurt as they hurt me. The perfect motivation for a villain, wasn't it? This, of course, worried your grandparents. They shipped me off to a school for troubled kids, hoping that a change of scenery and strictness would be good for me. They even paid a lot for it, and for a while, it worked. I soon learned to turn my need to dominate into leadership skills and my intelligence to academic studies. Even my illness seemed to go away, leaving my mind free to interact with others that were actually real. I might have become a fine agent." Junior shrugged.
"What happened?" Yami had to ask. The pit in his stomach was ever-growing.
"I met Gozaburo Kaiba."
Junior went silent for many minutes after that. Yami didn't have the heart to make him speak during that time. The pain on his face was clearly evident; just these memories alone were causing pure agony. The man wouldn't even look at him. It was then Dark Magician floated closer, probably feeling Yami's growing tropical storm of emotions. Then Yami saw something odd. As Junior turned away from Yami, he immediately turned again and looked to the ground, like he had been trying to avoid Dark Magician's gaze.
"I… won't go into details there. I know I promised everything, but…." Junior then looked up to the ceiling. "The first time I killed was in that school, all for that damned man." He then started up another swearing storm in other languages. His slushie cup being bent and finally crushed. When it exploded on them, Junior immediately stopped and started apologizing. He quickly grabbed a pile of napkins and began wiping at Yami's shirt, still apologizing under his breath. Yami didn't think all those sorrys were for his stained shirt, though.
"I was a fool, Yugi." Junior finally said in English. He stood back and looked at his cherry-dyed hands. "He coaxed out the worst parts of me. At the time, he was the only person I saw as an equal. He had everything I wanted. Gozaburo was just as intelligent and strong, yet he had money, connections, and most of all, his brain didn't hate him. We became what I thought was friends, but to him, we were partners. Maybe even owner and attack dog…." Junior shook his head and started cleaning his hands.
"Gozaburo helped me get where I thought I wanted to go. He helped pay for training, hand-to-hand combat classes, even trips to exotic locations. When my father realized what kind of person I was becoming, Gozaburo helped me move away. Now I look back and see how stupid I was. He was only ever grooming me to be his future empire's general, rewarding the monstrous traits he wanted and isolating me from people that would bring out my better parts."
Then, for the first time in the conversation, Junior turned to Yami and looked him straight in the eye. "And I let him, Yugi. I knew what he was doing, and at the time, I didn't care. I wanted to be a monster. I thought I was freeing myself from the chains my parents and society put on me. I was more than just the poor crazy kid that couldn't tell reality from fantasy. I was smart, and I was fit. I was better than all of them. Why not use my gifted intellect to take advantage of others? Why not get rid of those that get in my and my friend's way? Why not? It was a horrible cycle that kept feeding into itself. At the time, I was working for other people as Gozaburo hadn't gotten his company yet. However, he still made sure I stayed in that horrible mind space.
"This situation was all made worse by my mother dying suddenly. I hadn't been home for years at that point, and I never got to say goodbye. Somehow, I construed in my mind that it was my father's fault for it all. We had already been fighting a lot, but that was the nail in the coffin. I disconnected entirely from my family."
Yami found himself taking a step back from the intensity of Junior's words. His heart had already dropped into his stomach, and it was falling ever lower. His hands were clasped around the Millennium Puzzle's chain, and he didn't feel like he could let go.
"But you're not like that now." Yami found himself saying.
Junior slowly nodded. "I take full responsibility for becoming the monster I was back then. I may have been led into that state of mind, but I was the one willingly following. What helped me begin to see the depths I had fallen actually led to that title you asked about. The title of 'Gandora, Dragon of Destruction.' What changed was I met your mother."
Yami immediately perked up when he heard Yui mentioned. From how he saw dates go down with his friends, he didn't see how someone in Junior's situation would keep a relationship going. "How did that happen?" Yami asked in disbelief. This actually got Junior to chuckle.
"I know. I still can't believe it to this day either. What your mom doesn't explain when she is telling this story is that she was quite the party girl back in the day. She thought she was going to die at any point thanks to her, at the time, unknown illness. She lived every day with that mentality." His gaze fell far off as he thought of happier times. Then he shook his head. "Gozaburo originally encouraged my relationship with her. Thinking that when she did die or broke up with me, I would have more rage he could manipulate and control. But she had the audacity to keep living."
This was the first time Yami smiled during this story. Junior noticed and smiled back. "I still don't know what she saw in me, but I soon found everything I convinced myself that people didn't have in her. She was kind, funny, and wouldn't take lip from anyone. I soon felt I wanted to be better for her. I wanted to actually be the gentle, quiet persona I put on for her. What the actual lie was, was that quiet persona was the true me. All this rage and bravado was the mask I put on for Gozaburo and my 'goals.' When I realized this self told lie, it scared me half to death. I at first tried to break it off with her by showing my true colors. Her going away would make me stop second-guessing every one of my life choices, right? But being the stubborn survivor she was, she wouldn't let me run away. She somehow had seen the real me under all my… flaws, to put it mildly. Soon, I had a light in my self-dug hole. A beam to show how far down I really was."
Yami felt another similarity, another emotion he related a little too much to. What would he have done if he didn't have Yugi to balance him out? What if his friends had never been there to show him friendship was more powerful than the shadows from his prison?
"You know of Grandpa's cave-in incident? With Arthur Hawkins?" Junior asked Yami.
"Yes, when they first found proof of Duel Monsters in ancient times?"
"Exactly. Well, after that was the first time in a decade, my father and I put our stubbornness aside and talked. I even flew Yui over to see him. That was when I first heard the name Gandora. It's funny because I hadn't played or seen Duel Monsters in years. But that name seemed right to me at the time. I didn't want Solomon Jr., the boyfriend of the wonderful and beautiful Yui, to be the same person about to be the new leader of Checkmate. So, when Gozaburo finally hired me and collected his army, I made sure no one knew of Solomon Jr. There was only Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction. I made sure Gozaburo only referred to me by that name, even in his records or outside the army. I made new passports and IDs for Dragon. He was a real person, as far as the world could tell. That was my compromise, and I swore I was happy."
"But it didn't stay like that." Yami guessed. Junior nodded, his eyes once again falling to the ground.
"Solomon Jr. married Yui. Dragon went on to become a company-backed monster, all in the name of the great KaibaCorp." Junior then glanced at Yami once again, the pain still clear on his face. "What did Kaiba tell you about Dragon?"
"That he was a... killer. Then he died." Yami said, not meeting Junior's eyes.
"To my eternal shame, that is true." Yami heard the crack in Junior's voice; he was crying. Yami found he didn't have the nerve to look. His own emotions were flying in every direction, and even he didn't know what to feel about all this information. It was all too much, so Yami ended up feeling nothing. He was hollow. He was simply collecting the information for Yugi. Yami turned his back to Junior.
"I have spent every day since I got out of that army trying to fix what I have done. It's why I even jumped right back into work. I'm going around the world using my skills to dismantle evil done by others and fixing situations the earth itself has caused. I'm not a soldier and don't go into battle. I'm a... well, you know that already." Junior then shook his head. "The government knows everything I've done for KaibaCorp, and instead of having me executed, they decided to hide my crimes because of my rare skills. They decided I could do more restoration with them than the damage I had done under Gozaburo. To this day, I still pray that they are right."
Yami then looked to Dark Magician to see his thoughts. The spirit could only shrug. "You skipped a lot. How did you get from Dragon to now?" Yami asked. His voice was just as hollow as he felt.
"Hm? You should know this part, Yugi. I've only told it to you a million times, though I suppose not in this context." Junior said. Yami still didn't look at him, but he could feel Junior's eyes on him. "I suppose I owe it to you to tell it again, without my usual embellishments.
"After years balancing two lives, a miracle happened to the small Muto family. Yui suddenly had the healthiest year of her life. She even was beating out my dad in health and energy, and most important to her; she was pregnant."
Yami's eyes lit up when he realized where this was going.
"Yugi," Yami whispered.
"Yep, champ, somehow you and Yui beat the odds and made me one of the happiest people on the planet," Junior said as he started to reach out to ruffle Yami's hair. It was an action he had done to Yugi many times, but Yami stepped back. After all, he heard, even with the happy memory of Yugi being born, he didn't want Junior to touch him. Junior's smile disappeared, but he let Yami stay back.
"After you, everything changed. I mean, that's how babies work. I don't know a single parent that was able to keep their old life after a child. But for me, suddenly having two lives wasn't cutting it. I started seeing life again for what it was really worth. I could no longer ignore what I was doing to the world around me. I was making it a much worst place, all for what? A man that now cared so little for me. He didn't even know I was married.
"What's more… that illness of mine came back with a vengeance. I was becoming a danger to myself and my family. I stopped being able to keep my Dragon persona out of the home. I hope you had forgotten all the times I yelled at you and your mother for the smallest things when you were young." Junior said as his voice cracked again. Yami still refused to look at him, which only caused another shiver to roll up his spine.
"The linchpin was when I led an attack on a remote village on newly bought KaibaCorp land. Our job was to get the villagers off the property as quickly and efficiently as possible. At this point, I was trying to tone down KaibaCorp's evil, doing things like kidnapping instead of killing, for what little it's worth. But I was still making things so much worse. I soon found I couldn't do little half measures like that. I needed to be either all in Gozaburo's plans or not in them at all.
"The final push came when I saw an older village boy crying about how he had lost his brother, clutching a robot toy like it could somehow bring his brother back. Then I went home, and you were playing with the same toy. You were using it to destroy the 'monsters in your way' as your little toddler self put it. The thing was, you were quoting me. That's how I described my job to you. That was it. That was the thing that finally got it through my thick skull that I needed out. "
Junior took one last big inhale and said, almost like he was trying to get it out all in one breath. "So, I went up to Gozaburo and told him what I wanted. Of course, he wanted to stop me, even kill me, but I had access to many things he couldn't let get destroyed, like a key to his son Noah's brain." Yami immediately turned in shock, even facing Junior at that comment. Junior only slightly smiled.
"Yeah, that's another long story that if I live to see two more months, I'll happily tell you," Junior said. Yami turned back away.
'So Junior didn't know I had already met Noah.' Yami thought.
"Gozaburo also had things in his control that would hurt me just as much if they were destroyed. When it was clear he couldn't control me anymore, he knew there was nothing he could do but let me quietly walk away. If he stopped me, it would have become a personal war between us two. It would have been M.A.D. So as long as I kept quiet, the government helping me do that, and if Gozaburo never came after me, we were fine to pretend the other never existed."
Junior fell silent. He seemed not even to breathe as he waited for Yami to say something. Yami kept his back to him, occasionally sucking on his grape slushie.
"Well?" Junior asked in a low voice. Yami still didn't say anything. Junior at first tried to reach out to Yami but stopped himself. He then let out a large breath and looked away too.
"Well, here is where all those horrible choices got me. I needed to move often to try and fix what I've done, something Yui begged to follow along in. However, I could never do that to her. She needs stability and the specialty doctors that come with that. So, my dad gets my family while I'm away-"
"There's more to it than that," Yami said flatly.
"What?" Junior asked, his voice weak.
"You could have been home more often," Yami said, with his back still turned to Junior.
"Yugi… You actually want me home, knowing all that?"
"It doesn't matter what I want now. I'm just looking back and seeing you could have been home more these last few years. You know what I think?" Yami said. Junior held his breath. "I think you are a coward, Dragon. Yes, you did horrible things, and yes, you're trying to fix them, but you are scared of hurting your family like you hurt everyone else. So, you stayed away from them as much as you could. In doing so, you have hurt them more by your cowardice! You know how many birthdays and holidays I had to sit by and watch as he tried to feign happiness on what should be a joyous occasion. All because some deserter backed out last minute from coming home, or only sent a gift and a note?!" Yami snapped.
Both Junior and Dark Magician stepped back in shock. Junior, his hands coming up to his chest like he wanted to roll into a ball and Dark Magician merely standing in awe.
"Yugi? Who's the 'he' you spoke of... is that Grandpa? Are you ok?" Junior nearly whispered.
"He's not, Dragon of Destruction! He's not, and you wouldn't know because you weren't there!" Yami turned on his heels and faced Junior with an expression like he was about to duel a villain. Téa's words on his anger towards Junior were once again running through Yami's mind. It was then he knew he had never let his anger regarding Yugi being missing affect his thoughts on Junior. He had always been furious at Junior's absence. And now he was releasing it all on what should have been Yugi's guardian and best friend.
Junior once again took a step back, about to run away even. But then, for the first time Yami had seen, he stood his ground.
"Yugi. Do you know how many times I wanted to be home?! To see you grow up? But if I haven't made this clear enough. I'm. Not. Mentally. Well! I've killed people and was ok with it. I've plotted hundreds of people's demises with what could be one of the evilest businessmen around and thought it was fine. Ever since I was a child and now every time I come home, I see duel monsters everywhere! I am not safe to be around! I understand any other anger towards me, but don't hold that one against me! I stayed away because I was going to hurt you or your mom. Yugi-!"
"I'm not Yugi! Why haven't you noticed that fact yet?!"
Both Mutos then paused. The realization of what the other said slowly working past their sleep-deprived anger and reaching their brains. Yami's face drained of color as he immediately shut his mouth. Junior lost all his rage and was replaced with worry.
"You see duel monsters, was that your 'illness?'"
"What do you mean you're are not Yugi?!"
There was a small clink that seemingly echoed through the store, a coin falling on the ground. Both Yami and Junior immediately jumped to the ready and faced the direction of the sound. Across the store stood two men. The door to the employee room was open, and there stood Seto's second game master Ryuichi Fuwa, the unluckiest man alive, and Tetsu Ushio, Yami's first victim. Both wearing store uniforms and both with ghostly pale faces.