Truth or Dare – a Pegasus x Keith story
Chapter One – Keith
Pegasus's mansion. Isolated, hidden, lonely. Just like something out of a fucking fairytale. It was as if someone had wandered into Never-Never-Land, or some other stupid perfect place like that and picked up one of the houses, found the most middle-of-nowhere place they could and plonked it down, then acted as if it had always been there. It was ironic in a way that his mansion looked that way, because recently I had been hearing some very interesting things about the creator of Duel Monsters. Some said that he was trying to revive his wife who had died tragically several years earlier. Poor Pegasus, I smirked. But it did remind me slightly of the princess who was locked in an eternal sleep and could only be awakened by her handsome prince. Turns out, I knew a hell of a lot more about fairytales than I cared to let on.
As I glanced up the huge stone staircase that led to the enormous front door of the building, I got to thinking about why I was standing in front of such a place. I had received the mysterious letter from Pegasus only a week before. At least, he had done his best to be mysterious. He had used newspaper clippings to put together my name and address on the envelope, but had failed to realize that the envelope he was using had the words "Industrial Illusions" stamped on one corner. Even now I couldn't figure out whether he had been deliberately trying to confuse me. Knowing Pegasus, he probably had. The letter had been written very formally, or at least, I could have believed that was how he was trying to be if he hadn't begun the letter with 'Dear Keithy-boy'. I cringed at the thought of him calling me by that stupid name in person. He had invited me to a private dinner at his mansion, told me the date and time and that it was not compulsory so I could refuse if I pleased. Now I was beginning to wonder why I hadn't.
That thought only lasted for moment though as I gripped the cold metal of the handle of my gun which was hanging from my belt and hidden by the loose shirt I was wearing. Pegasus was in for a big surprise. I double checked that it was hidden well enough. Pegasus had bodyguards all over the place and I didn't want to risk one of them searching me and discovering my secret. If they did, my plan would be over before it had even begun. Taking a deep breath and sliding my sunglasses from my head over my eyes, I ran my fingers through my hair to neaten it up, begun to mount the steep staircase up to what the fairytales would probably call 'Pegasus's Castle', and wondered why being here was turning me back into a kid.
The door of the mansion was about three times as tall as I was, and I was almost awe inspired as I glanced up and followed the wall right up to where it met the roof. It almost looked as though it was disappearing into the clouds. I shook my head in shame and tore my eyes away from the building, turning my attention to the heavy oak door ahead of me. On the left of the door was a huge button that I assumed was a doorbell. It was funny, I had expected something more old-fashioned like a knocker. I pressed the bell once and almost jumped out of my skin when I heard a loud laughter coming from within.
"Wimp," I murmured to myself as I realized I was shaking. A moment later the laughter subsided as quickly as it had begun and when no one appeared at the door I pressed the bell again. To my surprise the moment I let go the laughter begun once again. I soon realized that the laughter was not real and it was Pegasus's sick alternative to a ringing. Typical of him to do something as childish and stupid as that. I was laughing quietly to myself when the door flew open and a guy who was about two feet taller than me and was wearing a black suit appeared in front of me, his face like stone and his eyes glaring at me as if they were looking right into my soul. Next to him, I looked like a tramp.
"Mr. Pegasus is expecting you," he said bluntly, beckoning for me to follow him into the mansion. To my shock, I felt my heart beating faster as I stepped through the door and into the reception area of the room. In the centre of the room was a towering staircase which led to the top floor. It was the kind of place you could imagine a prince and his princess walking down to the sound of romantic music. Thoughts of romance made me feel sick, and yet as soon as I'd entered Pegasus's mansion those thoughts had come into my mind. It was if the whole of island was some kind of warped version of Neverland where the further you walk in the younger you get. It would certainly explain the way Pegasus himself behaved.
At the top of the stairs, taking pride of place in the centre of the wall was a huge portrait of a woman with blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. Pegasus's princess, I realized, the one he was trying to revive. I didn't blame him. She was gorgeous. To my surprise though, beside the picture stood another one, of a man with tanned skin, wearing white robes and a turban on his head. The oddest thing was, he seemed to be carrying a pair of scales. Pegasus's boyfriend? I sniggered, but unfortunately, did it rather too loudly.
"If you would care to follow me," one of the bodyguards said slightly angrily. "I'll take you straight to the dining room. Like I said, Mr. Pegasus is waiting." I couldn't help laughing at their complete professionalism. It seemed strange that someone as weird and eccentric as Pegasus would have guards so emotionless and cold. I probably shouldn't have laughed, but it was worth it to see their faces.
I followed the guards across the marble floor and glanced further around the room as I struggled to keep up with their long strides. The high ceiling of the reception was covered in a painting that must have taken weeks to produce. What a damn waste of time. The painting was of a typical cartoon strip, showing a dog chasing a rabbit. It was like something you'd find on the ceiling of a nursery, and completely typical of Pegasus. I sped up to catch up with the bodyguards and joined them just as they stopped outside one of the doors leading from the main reception. It had a sign painted on the door which read "dining room". Was that in case Pegasus forgot where it was? Once again, I had to hold in a laugh. I hadn't laughed so much in ages.
As the door begun to slide open, slowly, which I was sure was in an attempt to make me feel even more uncomfortable, I begun to get nervous once again. I had spent the whole journey to the island telling myself I knew everything about Pegasus, and had even used his choice of decoration to learn even more about him, and now I was waiting for something completely unexpected. Pegasus was unpredictable, and there was no way I could know what was in store for me. The door slid open fully after what seemed like hours, and I was literally pushed into the room and it was slammed behind me.
The room was dimly lit, and it seemed like the candles in the chandeliers on the ceiling were providing the only light in the room, as the deep red curtains on the windows were also closed. The long table in the centre of the room was covered in a cloth that was presumably there to match the curtains, and was set for two people, one at one end and one at the other. There was music playing somewhere, it sounded like violins, but it was so quiet I couldn't be sure. I was relieved to see that I would be sitting a table length away from Pegasus throughout the meal. Sitting right next to Pegasus for hours on end was enough to make anyone go insane. Pegasus himself was sitting down already and was sipping red wine from a crystal glass. One of the bottles on the table was almost empty. He was dressed immaculately in a black suit that fitted and suited him perfectly, and his shirt was so white it was obviously brand new. His silver hair flowed down his back and reflected the light from the candles, making it look as though it were made of pure gold. He had this presence in the room like no other person could have, in that the room seemed like it wouldn't be complete unless he was there. But that was stupid, I realized, it was just a room and he was just a person. It was just the atmosphere making me imagine things again.
"Come in, Keithy-boy," he spoke, grinning at me. "I'm not going to bite." I had predicted that right at least. Keithy-boy. It was like some kind of nightmare. It was odd though, because I could have sworn I'd already walked fully into the room, and yet here I was standing in front of the door looking in. Yet another illusion created by the strangeness of the building. I walked fully into the room, cursing myself for being so nervous, and stood beside the table, unsure of what to do next. I watched as Pegasus stared right through me with his one revealed eye, and shivered slightly as I wondered what was going on in his head. Eventually, he beckoned silently for me to sit down opposite him, and I was relieved when I was safely seated at the table and as far away from him as it was possible to be. The chandelier above my head, however, did worry me slightly, it seemed so well planned that I happened to be sitting right underneath it. I subtly lifted my hand to my shirt to check the position of my gun, and was relieved to find that it was still well hidden.
"Why did you bring your gun, Keithy-boy?" Pegasus asked when I sat up. I froze. Was he psychic?
"Don't worry, I can't read your mind." He was trying to confuse me, I could see it in his face. Maybe I hadn't hidden the gun as well as I had thought. "You're right," he continued. "I could spot it a mile off." I glanced up at his face. He had a knowing smile on his face, and I found myself glad that I had chosen to keep my sunglasses on, as my eyes revealed far too much about my feelings for my liking. But I still wasn't entirely sure whether it mattered, because it seemed obvious to me that sunglasses or not, Pegasus could somehow tell what I was thinking. I shook my head violently to shake the thoughts out of my mind. After all, it wasn't possible, psychic powers didn't exist as far as I was concerned.
"You have nice eyes Keithy-boy," Pegasus remarked, his grin widening. "You shouldn't wear your sunglasses so often."
"Aren't you going to tell me to get rid of my gun?" I asked angrily, ignoring his obvious attempts to confuse me.
"No," he replied plainly. "You won't be using it, so you may as well leave it where it is." I shivered as I saw the slightest hint of amusement crease the corners of his eyes, and wondered exactly why it was that he had brought me here. I eventually figured out that was something I couldn't possibly know the answer to. Like I said, Pegasus was unpredictable. After all, the comment about my eyes had been unexpected to say the least, but surprisingly enough I had taken the compliment to be exactly that, a compliment. After all, what reason would he have for saying it otherwise? As I emerged from my thoughts, I looked up at the man sitting opposite me. He was staring at me in the most unusual fashion, although I couldn't quite work out what he was thinking. He had his elbow resting on the placemat on the table in front of him, and was casually running his fingers through his immaculate silver hair, from top to bottom over and over again as systematically as though he was some kind of robot.
I drew my hand to my face and quickly pulled my sunglasses from my head, folding them up and placing them down on the table beside the empty glass in front of me. I had suddenly become very aware that while he looked well presented and handsome, I looked as though I'd been hanging around on the streets for days, and the sunglasses were part of that look that I felt the urge to get rid of. I felt completely out of place, and although that wasn't something that usually bothered me, Pegasus was making me feel uncomfortable enough for it to matter.
"That's better," Pegasus grinned, removing his elbow from the table and standing from his seat elegantly. He took a full bottle of red wine from beside the almost empty one and picked up a corkscrew, and then wandered slowly down one side of the table towards the end where I was sitting. Once he reached me, he knelt down so close to me that I could smell aftershave mixed with the distinct odor of alcohol, and placed the corkscrew in the top of the wine, twisted it for a moment and pulled it out in one swift move. He was almost as experienced at it as I was, I noticed. He glanced at me for a moment, then brushed his hair from his fake eye so I could get a glance of it reflecting the candle light right across the room, and stood up again. Moving the bottle towards my glass, he was just about to pour some wine into it for me when I stopped him with my hand.
"No," I spoke rather too loudly. "I don't want any." Pegasus tilted his head to one side and the amused expression crossed his face once again.
"I didn't think so. I hear you've had quite a problem in the past." I jerked slightly, wondering how he knew, but sensing he was about to continue I let it pass. "Me too. The difference is, I don't make a big deal over it. There's nothing better than a glass of wine in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening at a meal with an acquaintance, and I'm not going to give that up for anything." Before I had time to argue, he had poured wine into my glass until it was almost overflowing. I could have picked up the glass and drunk it's entire contents before he even had time to sit down again, but I didn't want to show my desperation so I resisted the urge and left it where it was. Pegasus took a sip right from the bottle and returned to his side of the table, slid back into his seat and poured himself a glass of wine, never taking his eyes off me for a second. I allowed my eyes to meet his for a moment, almost transfixed by the perfect coffee colour of his one real eye, and the fascinating artifact that inhabited his other socket. If I'd believed in magical powers I could have sworn that Pegasus had a way of drawing people to him, but as I didn't believe in anything of the sort I put it down to my imagination once again.
I finally managed to tear my eyes away, and trying to stop my body from shaking, I reached for the sunglasses on the table and put them back over my eyes. If that was going to happen again, I certainly didn't want him to know about it. Pegasus chuckled. Then he leaned back on his chair, closed his one real eye tightly and laughed, and laughed, and laughed, until it echoed through my mind and I couldn't figure out whether it was real any more.