Carmenshipping (Kaiba Seto/Yami Bakura/Yami Marik)

. . .

Well, nothing was going the way it was supposed to—sometimes, it was more fun that way, but today, it was just annoying.

Yami no Bakura tried not too look tooirritated by the man who was pinning him against the wall with one arm blocking him in, but it was very hard. He didn't need to provoke him, not yet, but god he wanted to.

Marik—or rather, Yami no Marik—leered at him with flat violet eyes, twisting his Millennium Rod in one hand. Bakura's hands itched to just stretch out and snatch the item away, but that wouldn't do. That kind of power could only be freely given, or otherwise, had to be won. Neither of which Yami no Marik was likely to do.

"My other half is being very...reticent about what kind of deals he was making with you," Yami Marik said.

"What, you don't have the power to read your host's mind?" Bakura scoffed. "Pathetic."

Yami no Marik wasn't easily fazed, so he just grinned wildly at Bakura.

"I want to know if maybe you'd consider keeping your loyalties with me," Marik said, twisting the Millennium Rod between his fingers. His arm was fencing Bakura in on one side, and he didn't like the odds of the man stabbing him with that item if he tried to get out through the other direction. He'd simply have to talk his way out of this.

"It depends," he said, tilting his head. "Are you still offering me the Rod in exchange for my assistance?"

Marik blinked briefly, eyes flickering to his item. Clearly, he hadn't expected that that was the price Marik had offered. Something in his expression tightened—ah. He was more attached to the item than Marik was. Like a child, Bakura thought, who didn't like the idea of someone taking his toys away.

He wondered if perhaps that had been the wrong thing to say, because Marik gripped the item more firmly now, as though ready to strike out with it.

Bakura really wasn't sure what would have happened next, or if he would have had the upper hand or not. He didn't have to find out, because a door flung open with a slam and Kaiba Seto appeared with those irritable, flashing eyes of his.

He paused as his gaze took in the pair of them, lip curling slowly.

"Could you two maybe save the flirting for after my tournament?" he snapped.

Bakura almost laughed out loud, but he managed to restrain it. After a beat, Marik let his arms fall back to his sides, still grinning as he stepped back from Bakura.

"Of course," Marik said with a leer.

Kaiba didn't even flinch, and something in Marik's eyes sparked. Something like...interest.

Bakura took the cue to excuse himself. Marik was distracted, after all, which gave Bakura some time to retreat and regroup in the face of this new development.

I never thought I'd be thanking you, Kaiba,Bakura thought back down the hall at the stare-off. But thank you for distracting him.

. . .

A/N: :SDFJalkakfjdsaf;ha I don't fucking KNOW. I'm tryingggg :') Next is Cardshipping (Sugoroku x Yugi).