Author's Note: Chapter 3 has undergone the 2018 edit!

'...' yami to hikari

"..." hikari to yami

Finally, the day of the long-awaited Kaiba Corp interview.

Dressed in a simple pale blue button-up shirt, dark jeans, and recently shined leather shoes, Ryou made his way to the famous-or infamous-Kaiba Corporation headquarters the only way he could afford - by walking.

Heck, after Bakura had ever so ignorantly sold off his bike for scrap metal, and used the profits buying those silly cat figurines that wouldn't stop bobbing their heads, there was no other means of transport for Ryou other than his own two feet.

Contrary to popular belief, the snowy haired yami did have weaknesses as well, and in this case, it was a soft spot for adorable cats and kittens. [1]

Their backyard was littered with stray cats of all shapes and sizes that meowed like no tomorrow. More cats equated to more luck, Yami Bakura seemed to believe. And while layman logic would suggest more cats meant more prosperity for Ryou by extension, the felines have brought nothing but constant migraines and an uncharacteristic short fuse for the white haired boy.

Bakura was on the verge of adopting a litter of kittens from the pound, but that was where Ryou put his foot down.

Even though the soft-spoken teen was known for his humanitarian and nature-loving ways, there was no way he would be able to stand the felines' never-ending symphonic orchestra right outside his house. Not to mention the smell. It that were to happen, his hair might turn whiter than it already was, if that were even possible.

Also, there was no telling to what havoc the creatures were to cause inside a house filled with relics from Ryou's father's numerous archaeological digs. Those dusty, oddly shaped slabs of rock were said to be each worth at least 3 figures in US dollars, when auctioned. Despite Ryou's current penniless situation, there was no way he was to sell off those seemingly useless pieces of stone. He'd rather face a thousand years in the Shadow Realm than face his father's unrestrained rage.

Apparently, those slabs of rock were of sentimental value to his father. Ryou wished his father would treasure his son's well-being more than the ancient rocks he dug up halfway across the world.

Coming back to the present, Ryou had no choice to walk more than a few kilometers through the busy metropolis, too broke to hire a cab. He also believed too much in self-preservation to ask Honda to ferry him to Kaiba Corporation in his motorcycle. Everyone knew how wild the usually quiet pointy-haired brunet could be, after his accident a few months ago involving blindfolding and speeding at twice the speed limit. Needless to say, the pointy-haired teen went on considerably less dates after that.

Gazing at the long sidewalk ahead while squinting at the sun's scorching rays, Ryou muttered, "Oh well, might as well get on with it."

"Mr. Kaiba, a boy named Ryou Bakura is here to see you for an interview," the grim-faced secretary on the counter said on the intercom.

Ryou cringed inwardly, a 'boy'!

'Young man' would be more appropriate. 'Someone' would be acceptable. But 'boy'!

Sure, he knew he looked innocent and all that, but still...Being regarded as a boy definitely injured his ego.

'Oh, you have an ego? Alert the newspapers! The media! The chalk-haired wanna-be Briton actually has an ego!'

"You, not now. First, my hair is not like chalk in any aspect. Second, you can annoy me later about this. Not now."

'Heh, why not? I can annoy you all I want, any time I want. We share a mind, remember? You aren't getting rid of me anytime soon. Deal with it.'

"I should have asked Yugi's Yami for that separation spell he used to get himself his own body. Anything to get your nagging voice out of my head..."

'YOU were the one who didn't want it in the first place.'

"Well, I had rather to suffer on my own than get the whole world suffer with me. I regret my philanthropic intentions now though. I didn't do anything to deserve you."

'Aww...C'mon Ryou-chan, don't be so stressed out. At least I was there for you when you were harassed by mormons the other day at the station, right?' [2]

"You sent them to the Shadow Realm, big deal. You do that to mostly everything that stands in your way, even to dust bunnies."

'But I was worried that you had allergies to the Ra-damed blobs of grey!'

"Right..."

'Hey, you know, that woman with that ugly black thing framing her eyes had been yelling at you for the past thirty seconds or so.'

"For the last time, they're called spectacles, okay? Wait...Oh crap."

At that moment, Ryou realized that he had physically appeared to have spaced out for the past few minutes, while mentally conversing with his yami.

The secretary had tried to catch his attention by first calling him, then waving, and finally yelling at him.

'Great job at getting a good first impression,' Ryou thought. 'Just great. Kaiba would be begging to get you to work for him now...Not.'

"Sorry miss, I was just thinking of...uh...my poor starving brother at home who doesn't have a scrap to eat, while melting in the heat. Thinking of him just gets me so sad. I'm so sorry I zoned out like that." Ryou lied, pathetically.

'What the hell...!'

The woman adjusted her think black-rimmed glasses, glaring at Ryou. "I was trying to tell you that wants to see you now, boy."

Ryou swore she added the last part as an insult.

"His office is on the 8th level, turn left when you exit the elevator, and it should be the first room you would see." She finished, her tone dull, monotone, and pissed off.

"Right, thanks."

Ryou slowly made his way towards the elevator, while his dark's voice continued to ring in his mind.

'Oooh looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.'

"I told you, not now, Bakura."

They continued bickering until Ryou reached the 8th storey. Forcefully shutting the talkative spirit in his soul room, he slowly walked towards Kaiba's office, smoothed the creases in his shirt and briskly tied his messy hair into a low ponytail. Cold sweat started forming on Ryou's forehead, and for the first time in the day, he genuinely felt nervous. All the previous mental arguments he had with Bakura put his mind off the matter at hand - and now, Ryou wasn't quite sure if the distraction was a good or a bad thing.

Suddenly feeling extremely timid, Ryou carefully opened the mahogany door to Kaiba's office, as though it would self-destruct with even just an added ounce of force.

Kaiba's office was everything he could have imagined, and more. The floor was carpeted in a rich navy blue, and the wall was kept empty, except for a few framed photos of Mokuba - Kaiba's only living relative. Located in the far end of the room was a large obsidian table covered with various files and papers. Behind the table, there sat the one and only Seto Kaiba.

Calm blue eyes met quivering chocolate-brown ones.

"Well, well, Ryou Bakura, I've been waiting for you."

TBC

Chapter End Notes:

Sorry for the cliffhanger, hehe. I couldn't resist... More to follow soon!

[1] The Ancient Egyptians were cat worshippers, and it seems Yami Bakura isn't exempt from the cat love. Hehe.

[2] This was a true incident that happened to my friend. I was a bit late to our meeting, and Mormons had approached him, apparently... Needless to say, I was blamed for the harassment.