"Is there a particular reason you had to find out this information in the middle of the night?" Seto asked as he led Yami and Dark Magician to his office, where his private computer was.
'I needed an excuse for being on your roof, and this required answering eventually.' Yami thought. He couldn't say that out loud, so instead, he remained quiet.
Seto huffed and fell silent as he set up his computer.
This had been the first time Yami had been in Kaiba's official office. His CEO office was made to make anyone feel small compared to its high ceilings, elegant decorations, and floor-to-ceiling windows to the city far below. Kaiba turned on no extra lights when he led Yami inside. Only the yellow flash of the city and the blue glow of his laptop illuminated the room. As Kaiba leaned over his computer, two separate lights shadowed his face, reminding Yami of Kaiba's mad and hollow expression during the Death-T games.
Seto Kaiba was someone Yami could never figure out. From an outside perspective, the CEO didn't seem close to Yami; he was even cold. Yet, there was so much more between them, more than even the rivalry their close friends saw. Seto was a dear friend, and yet he was also the Pharaoh's enemy. He was constant support on all their adventures, and he was also an obstacle to them and himself. While Yami found it hard to define his relationship with Seto, Kaiba must have had an even harder time.
Seto, back when he dyed his hair green (Yami still had as of yet to get a reason for that choice), had been one of the first to realize the difference between Yugi and Yami. Back when Seto had also been a broken shadow of a teen, he guessed and exploited Yami's and Yugi's strange connection. He used his four Game Masters to push the two to their limits. Then, using that collected information, he ultimately tried to destroy them and their friends in a bid to show that he was the best. Of course, Yami had beaten him, and as he did with everyone back then, he had given the new CEO a penalty game.
No matter how guilty Yami felt for his past actions during those first months, he would never take back what he did to Seto. Kaiba had been so warped by his step-father's abuse and his own need to prove he was the best that there was no other way to help him. If Yami thought about it, shattering Kaiba's mind like that was a big risk. If Kaiba wasn't strong enough, he would have become brain dead. Yet, like Dark Magician, Yami had an unwavering faith in Seto that he still couldn't explain. Just like the Pharaoh thought, Kaiba slowly grew into a better, healthier man. There seemed to be only one side effect. Once Seto healed, he either forgot or chose to ignore shadow magic completely.
Seto became the greatest skeptic Yami had ever seen, pushed to the point of purposefully remaining ignorant. Most surprising of all, Seto no longer saw Yugi and Yami as two separate entities. As far as Seto was concerned, there was one King of Games, and it was the shy Yugi Muto. Yami didn't know if the CEO's brain did this to help protect itself in the healing process or if Seto chose to be willfully ignorant. Either way, this made the situation extremely hard to explain as Yami stood awkwardly beside Seto's desk.
"Legally, KaibaCorp never had a private army," Seto said, pulling Yami out of his thoughts.
"Téa seemed to know of it," Yami replied.
"As I said, legally. KaibaCorp only manufactured and distributed weapons. But, KaibaCorp did work closely with a private army known as Checkmate. KaibaCorp used them so often that we pretty much paid for all its expenses and controlled all its orders."
"But KaibaCorp didn't own it," Yami said, guessing the loophole. Seto nodded, keeping his eyes on the screen as he continued to go through more and more file security.
"While Gozaburo didn't own it, he happily let his enemies know how closely he worked with Checkmate. I remember him bragging about how they would do anything for him. No government would dare fight him on this tiny loophole, so yes, he did have a private army." Seto went silent again as he continued typing. Every few moments, he would pause and rest his chin on his hand. Then after pondering something for a few seconds, he would quickly return to typing.
"Are you breaking into something?" Yami asked, clasping his hands behind his back.
"No, I own everything here. The problem is Gozaburo, before he put himself in a computer, destroyed all of this. After the whole Noah adventure, I managed to find all the pieces of these lost documents. However, that is all they are, pieces. After I got the data I wanted out of this, I left this information shattered. That way, if someone tried to take over my company again, they wouldn't know what to do with it." Seto explained.
"Hmm, I suppose it was for the best that people like Dartz didn't get this runaway information," Yami said. Seto then glanced at Yami from the side of his eye. His expression, unchanged.
"Speaking of runaway. Why were your friends calling and declaring you missing? They just about blew up my private phone with messages." Seto asked, his voice as cold and accusing as ever.
Yami kept up his unreadable expression, but his clasped hands held just a little tighter to each other. If only Seto would believe that Yugi and Yami were different souls, then he could explain everything. If Seto wouldn't even believe when there were literally two different Yugi's standing in front of him during the duel with Dartz, he certainly wouldn't believe now.
"Same old, same old," Yami said. Seto derisively chuckled at this.
"Oh really? Is the world ending again? Should I prepare for another company-wide take over?"
"No, but this information is still just as important," Yami said with a sideways shrug. Kaiba kept one eye on the Pharaoh as he continued.
"Are you running away from something? If you are, I won't have you bringing it to KaibaCorp's door or, in this case, roof."
Yami felt his lips thin. "Kaiba, have you figured out yet how those holograms went wild all those months ago? Dartz said it was because he was summoning duel spirits, but we both know that can't be true." Yami innocently asked. Kaiba immediately bristled at this.
"What does that have to do with this?"
"Nothing, just wondering," Yami said as he looked away, knowing Kaiba had all his attention on his body language. For a few heartbeats, there was no sound in the darkened office. Then, Yami heard the tapping of the keyboard again and felt safe to turn back around. Even when Kaiba refused to accept magic, there had to be some part of him that knew. Yami just had to be careful to talk to that small part, which also trusted him just as much as Yami trusted Kaiba.
"So, how important was this guy to Checkmate?" Seto asked.
"He was definitely a part of it?"
Seto turned around and gave Yami an annoyed glare. Yami could only keep up his blank look. If Seto knew how little information Yami had to go on, he'd probably close the laptop here and now.
"You don't know?" Seto just about sneered. Yami nodded. Seto sighed and started scrolling through data Yami couldn't read or understand.
"Do we at least have a name?" Seto said. This was an obvious question that Yami should have had an answer to, but he didn't. He couldn't think of one in time. If he said Junior's name, he might dig up more trouble and questions than he wanted right now. How would he explain looking up his "father's" shady past if he even had difficulties covering for being on Seto's roof?
Yami remembered earlier in the cab when he had talked about this with Grandpa. What was Junior's connection to Gozaburo, and how did it connect to this random duel monster? Now Yami knew it was because Grandpa didn't feel like it was his place to tell that information, but that made Yami more frustrated. Why did he have to talk to that coward just to find out a maybe important connection to the Dragon of Destruction?! This might be a clue to Yugi!
That name has a lot of history for our family. Grandpa's words echoed in his memory.
Yami's eyes widened as he thought of an idea. It was a long shot, but it was better than nothing.
"I need a name, Muto." Kaiba impatiently repeated.
"Try, Gandora or Dragon of Destruction."
Seto's eyes widen for a second. He then quickly shook his head and turned back to the screen. Almost immediately, files came flying up after typing that name. Seto's eyes narrowed, his annoyed expression turning back into a full-blown scowl.
"What is it?" Yami asked as he leaned in to see better. Seto briskly stood up, blocking the screen from Yami's view.
"Walk to the other side of the desk. Now." Seto said steadily, leaving no room for argument. Yami recognized that voice and did as asked, keeping his hands behind his back as he walked.
"What's wrong?" Yami asked.
"You are not seeing this kind of KaibaCorp information. I'll tell you what you need to know, but that's all." Seto replied as he sat back down and began deciphering.
"You don't trust me?" Yami asked. Seto paused for a moment and shook his head.
"If you were forced to choose between your friends and this company's secrets, I know you'd tell all this information. Probably draw a lovely diagram too," Seto said with a rueful chuckle at the end.
"I'd hope you'd do the same if stuck between people's lives and a company," Yami said, his arms folded in front of him as he tried to play it off as a joke. "How would that situation even come up?"
Seto looked up at him with a gaze that froze Yami's spine. "Most likely if the government or hitmen wanted to find out where this guy went. This 'Dragon of Destruction' has killed too many for him not to have a list of enemies a mile long."
"K-killed?" Yami breathed. At that word, all the warmth left in his body flew out. Leaving nothing but an empty chasm of a chill. This cold seemed to take his heartbeat and his breath. "He killed?" Yami tried to recollect himself, but that frigid word stopped any expression from coming to his face other than horror. Yami had been lucky, for the last few years, "kill" had not been part of his vocabulary. It had always been "banished to the Shadow Realm" or "locked away in a card." Never killed.
Seto seemed surprised at Yami's reaction as he raised an eyebrow and sat back in his chair. "Yes... Is this 'dragon' some villain you have to stop? It would fit his profile to try and take over the world or something insane like that. Loves the pain of others, driven to dominate, a truth wizard. If Checkmate had been an official part of KaibaCorp, this Dragon of Destruction would have been at the level of the Big Five." Seto said as he crossed his arms and looked to Yami, his eyebrow still raised.
Yami was frantically picking up the pieces of his self-control as Seto waited for him to speak. It felt like Yami's heart, and his lungs were aggressively dueling on his intestines. That soft-spoken man that couldn't even face an angry woman? The man that Grandpa thought so highly of? The man that hurt Yugi so much every time he left for long periods? Killed? Killed?!
Yami's violet eyes then locked with Seto's icy blue, the same blue color as the three dragon spirits that surrounded him. Dark Magician, in turn, had been slowly floating closer to Yami's side the entire conversation. This reminded Yami that he had to be strong, for Seto and the spirits watching. He shut his mouth and exhaled a long, cold breath. Then he spoke in his controlled pharaoh voice.
"What happened to him?"
"Official records say he died, but I understand my step-father's subtext better than most," Seto answered as he went back to deciphering the broken files. "I'd guess he wanted to quit. I don't know if he wanted to take over a different army or if his war crimes were catching up to him. Either way, he knew too much for Gozaburo just to let him go. This is all speculation that you are never to repeat, but I think there was a great fallout between the two. I don't know what the dragon did, but he managed to walk away, leaving Checkmate to crumble in his absence. This Dragon of Destruction probably has a different identity now and has been lying low if my step-father hasn't somehow killed him. The last report on this guy was eleven years ago." Seto explained. The entire time his eyes flicked to Yami to see his reaction. At that point, Yami had gotten control of himself and showed nothing, or at least he hoped he showed nothing.
Seto watched him a few more silent moments, then he closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I worked very hard to make sure KaibaCorp's scarlet-stained past does not affect my new KaibaCorp. I clipped off every loose end I could. This dragon though... How do you know his name?"
"I needed his information because I met some people claiming to be Checkmate reborn," Yami found himself saying. Kaiba immediately straightened up when he heard Checkmate's name. Yami then quickly backtracked. "But they were nothing but a small duelist gang." Yami made up, impressed at his ability to make up such a story when earlier he couldn't even make up a reason for why he was on the roof. Amazing what true panic can do to someone's lying abilities. "I already took care of them. I just wanted to check everything about them."
Seto sat back, his arms crossed. Yami couldn't tell if it was because he didn't believe him, or he was surprised. "Really? Are you sure you took care of it? Perhaps I should send someone to look into them. If this dragon or his friends are still around, they could cause a lot of trouble for KaibaCorp. If he can be found, I need to know."
"No need. They were really nothing. They were just punks, too young to be in the original Checkmate. They probably just heard about the private army and wanted to copy them." Yami shrugged. "I heard them say the Dragon of Destruction's name when they were fighting over who's nickname should be what. I wanted to check it out because I thought I heard it before. Now I realize it's the name of the newest dragon in Duel Monsters." Yami sadly shrugged as he sighed, trying to sound disappointed. "You're right. The dragon's probably dead. Goazburo wouldn't let someone like that live long."
Silence
Dead silence.
Then Seto put his hands, palms down, on the table and stood up.
"Well, that makes this entire fact hunt completely useless. Thank you, Muto, for keeping me after hours for no reason." Seto grumbled. Yami hid his relieved smile.
"Sorry to take your time," Yami said as he started to turn away. "Better safe than sorry, though."
"You can't even make up for wasting my time with a duel?" Seto asked. "The whole reason I even let you in my building was because I had expected one." Yami didn't turn back to him, and instead, dismissively waved his hand. Seto tutted and slumped back in his chair. Yami was almost to the door when he heard Seto again.
"Huh... By this report, the Dragon of Destruction was the person to lead the attack on Alister's village. Sure, he was under orders from the real Gozaburo. Still, I always wondered who actually led that attack if Dartz was only there to pretend to be Gozaburo. Maybe I should let Alister know? He would do all the work of taking care of him if the Dragon's still alive." Seto said with all the pretense of talking to only himself.
"No!" Yami yelled. Seto looked up, a slight smile peeking through. Yami realized that this is what Seto had wanted; the Pharaoh had shown his hand. "It's just… Alister has worked so hard to move on from his need for revenge. You would be opening up a wound he has spent the last few months trying to heal." Seto once again raised an eyebrow. This time it was clearly in non-belief.
Before Yami could kick himself, his cellphone began to ring. He didn't jump this time; he only slightly nodded to Seto and left his office. He was going to make the situation worse by staying around and opening his mouth again. Why was he suddenly so bad at this? Was not having Yugi around really affecting him this poorly?
Once down the hallway, Yami pulled out the phone to see the number was Grandpa's game shop.
"Hello?" Yami tentatively greeted.
"Yugi! What are you doing?!" It was the frantic but still soft-spoken voice of Solomon Jr. Hearing this prickled all of Yami's nerves. He looked around the dark hallway just to make sure no one was around. Had his voice always been so creepy?
"I walk by your room to find you out of bed! No note, no message! Where are you?!" While Junior was clearly angry, he was still trying to whisper. Yami guessed this meant the others weren't awake yet. Yami slapped his forehead and sighed.
"Sorry, I'm coming home now."
"You better be!" Junior's voice then lowered to a true whisper. "Are you ok? Are you safe?"
"Yes, I'm safe. As I said, I'll be home soon." Yami replied, trying to end the call sooner.
"…Yugi… Are you in trouble?"
"Trouble?"
"With the law or gangs or... something!"
"No… nothing like that." Yami sighed. While Junior didn't make any noise, Yami could almost hear his questions. "I'll explain everything when I get back. I'll be home in fifteen minutes. Please, can you hang up now?" Yami begged.
"…Of course. See you at home. And I'm keeping you to that time! A second longer, and I'm waking up the hounds."
"Very well." Before Yami could hang up, he heard,
"Love you, Yugi. Please, be safe." It was said with such sincerity that Yami paused.
Yami stared at the phone as he hung up. 'No, this can't be the Dragon of Destruction Seto talked about. This has to be a coincidence.' His grip on the device tightened. 'If that's not the connection to the Dragon of Destruction, then there has to be another reason that card is so important to the family. I just have to talk to Junior.' Yami thought as he turned towards the elevator, only to see Seto leaned up against the corner. Kaiba's face was in his resting scowl as he looked over Yami. The same expression he used when he was figuring out a misbehaving piece of technology. Beside him were the three heads of the Blue-Eyes White Dragons as they looked around the corner, the same scowls on their faces.
"Who was that? He didn't sound like your Grandfather." Seto said, his voice leering in superiority. "What was that about you not running away?"
Yami's mouth turned down as he strode past Seto, Dark Magician taking on the same prideful stride. Yami walked into the elevator, the woman no longer being there, and pushed the button for the ground floor. He kept constant eye contact with Seto as the doors closed, not saying a word. There was nothing he could say.
…
Seto waited a minute, leaning on the wall the entire time. Once he was sure Yugi was out of the building, he too got in the elevator. He didn't go to the ground floor, though. He instead went down a few levels. Once again, only the bare minimum of lights were on. Seto didn't mind as he had his building memorized. As he walked through the almost empty offices and desks (a few occupied by people racing to finish their assignments), he thought back to the strange situation Yugi Muto once again laid in his lap.
'The Dragon of Destruction, one of the few to beat Gozaburo at his own game.' Seto thought, trying to look back through his memories. He had to give kudos to the mercenary general. That is an achievement Seto thought only he had ever earned. He then pulled out a drive from his pocket. Something he had gotten from the shattered files.
"The Dragon of Destruction…" Seto said to no one. He put the old drive into the company printer. It took a while for the machine even to read it since it was so ancient. As Seto waited, he continued to think back.
As a child, Gozaburo never had him interact with Checkmate. By the time he was old enough to work with them, they had fallen so far from grace that they were more of a security team. Of course, by then, the Dragon had "died." What Seto would have given to meet the man back then. Too bad he was a liability now.
As the printer started its work, Seto found his memories touching times he rarely thought about anymore. He did meet the Dragon of Destruction once, many years ago…
…
Seto hated the clothes the butler had forced him in. The collar itched, and if he dared get a single crumb or drop on it, he was dead. To avoid that death sentence, he had avoided eating or drinking the entire party, not that there was much of either for a child like him. This was a 'business gala' or something lame like that. It was a place for big important people to show off and mingle. At least the last party like this had been exciting thanks to the interruptions caused by a particular pink-haired foreigner. That family had not been invited back, and Seto knew they never would. If Seto still let himself morn the past, he might have been sad to lose the one interesting aspect of the last party. He might have even tried reaching out to the boy between events. However, Seto gave up on the past a long time ago. Now any disappointment was learned from and swiftly forgotten.
Seto's only job at these parties was to look smart, act polite, and be a trophy for Gozaburo to show off. Once his step-father had made the rounds to everyone, Seto was left alone in a corner. His throat was itchy both inside and outside, his stomach refused to shut up, and his mind was filled with the buzzing static of boredom. To entertain himself, he tried to listen in on people and learn their secrets, as Gozaburo suggested. But these people were just as dull as the party. Seto could read their deepest secrets and desires from a mile away. It just wasn't fun anymore.
Seto groaned and rested his head against a wall, though he quickly straightened when someone came by. They had a plate in their hand and a glass of wine. Seto smiled, that innocent smile he practiced with Mokuba, but they didn't even give him a second glance. Seto's smile quickly disappeared, and he sighed. The party still had many more hours. Seto knew he was in for a rough ride.
'It's all, so Mokuba doesn't have to do this.' Seto repeated to himself. Remembering his brother's smiling face cheered him on. With that thought in his mind, Seto decided to at least try to do something useful with his time. His eyes scanned the large ballroom packed with people dressed to the nines. That lady worked with that company hoping to outpace her competition. That man is hiding the fact his company is failing. That man is cheating on his wife with that one's girlfriend, and they're both trying to hide it. Blah, blah, blah, it was all the same.
Seto's gaze then landed on a strange man; he didn't recognize him or what company he represented. Whoever he was, he was really twitchy. Seto watched as he slowly walked across the large ballroom, his eyes darting every which way. Seto's eye then widened as he watched the man reach into purses and pockets, their owners not noticing a thing. However, the man wasn't stealing wallets; he often came up empty. However, the occasional time he pulled out folded papers or disks of some kind. Seto watched as he did this with nearly everyone. Kaiba then saw as he headed for Gozaburo's turned back. Seto knew he had to go into action. He abandoned his corner and ran to the nearest man, pulling on his suit. While Seto couldn't remember the man's face, he did remember how short he was.
"What is it?" The man asked in a soft voice.
"That guy's stealing things," Seto said as he pointed to the twitchy man. The short man turned just in time to witness the stealing of Gozaburo's newly signed contracts.
"Good eye, champ. Go tell your dad, I'll deal with the thief." The short man then slipped into the hallway. The twitchy man also left the main ballroom, but he exited a different door. Seto was worried that the short man wouldn't be able to catch up to the robber, but he had been asked to do something by an adult. Seto immediately ran over to Gozaburo.
Gozaburo Kaiba saw Seto coming his way and ignored him. Seto had expected this and knew if he pulled on his suit as he had done to the other man, he'd be in a lot of trouble. So, he quietly waited to be acknowledged. Gozaburo kept trying to wave him away discreetly, but Seto would not budge.
"What is it, Seto? I told you to wait in the corner." Gozaburo eventually grumbled.
"A man stole your stuff, and a short man went to stop him," Seto said, making sure he controlled his voice so he didn't sound like a little kid making up stories.
"What?!" Gozaburo's eyes narrowed as his mustache bristled. Just then, a woman screamed right outside the ballroom. Thankfully most of the other party-goers didn't hear, but to both Kaibas, it was ear piercing. Gozaburo immediately ran to a set of double doors and threw them open, Seto not far behind.
Out in the hallway were a few groups of chatters, or they were chatting. Now they were all deathly silent as they stared. The short man had grabbed the thief by his collar. The thief tried to twist away, but the short man used his other hand to punch the thief straight in the gut. Before the thief could even gasp, the short man quickly lifted him over his head. He then threw the thief violently into a wall, breaking a vase using the thief's body. As the thief tried to get up, the short man pulled out a razor-edged knife from his pocket and held it to the thief's throat. While Seto may have forgotten most of the man's appearance, he would never forget the utterly twisted smile cracked along his face. It was like this whole evening had been building up to this point for the short man. This was the funniest game he had ever played, and he was about to win.
"Dragon!" Gozaburo yelled as he ran to the short man's side. Seto stepped out of the ballroom and let the doors close behind him, but he didn't get any closer to the scene. His little body seemed frozen at the time.
"Oh, hey Boss! This little pickpocket has been getting grabby with everyone's things. Want me to take care of it?" Dragon asked, his grin never leaving. He then pushed the knife's point a little harder on the thief's throat. A trickle of blood dripped down his neck. The thief immediately began begging for his life. Seto, even through his fear, found his nose turning up at the thief. He would never beg like that.
"I told you! I did not want a scene here, Dragon!" Gozaburo exploded. Seto unconsciously stepped back, putting a table between him and his angry step-father. "I am also not your boss here; we are just companies that work with each other!"
Dragon didn't move, but his smile disappeared. Even with the creepy grin gone, Seto found himself more on edge. "Sorry, but I am doing my job. I hope I'm not getting in your way." His voice was back to being soft, with a sarcastic edge. It was different from the ballroom. While his voice was gentle, there was no emotion behind it. Nothing to show he was actually apologetic. His tone sent a shiver down Seto's spine. There was only one other time Seto remembered hearing a voice like that, and that would be many years after this.
Dragon's reply got a reaction Seto had never seen from his step-father before. His father's anger immediately disappeared. He started fidgeting with his tie and shifting his weight from foot to foot. Was he…scared? Seto's mouth drop open. Never in all his life had he ever seen Gozaburo scared. Nervous maybe, but never frightened.
"Well, it's just the adrenaline of the night that's putting us on edge. Nothing to get worked up about." Gozaburo quickly said. He then looked around at the still silent crowd. He whispered something in Dragon's ear and walked briskly towards the ballroom.
"Come, Seto," Gozaburo ordered. Seto solemnly nodded and started to follow his step-father when that cursed voice spoke again.
"Wait, I need the boy. He's a witness, and I need to make a report for the police." Dragon smiled. "It'll only be for a moment."
Seto looked up at his step-father to see his fear return. Gozaburo looked down at Seto and seemed almost apologetic for a moment. However, that shred of humanity soon disappeared under his stepfather's famous scowl.
"Well, get going, boy." Gozaburo gestured for him to follow Dragon. Seto obeyed, but it wasn't without some hesitation.
"Don't worry! He's completely safe with me." Dragon yelled to Gozaburo as the CEO closed the doors to the ballroom behind him. Dragon then got the thief to stand as the other bystanders filed away. They clearly did not want to stay by Dragon either. Seto simultaneously wished he was lucky enough to walk away and glad that he had to stay. This was way better than being stuck in a corner.
"Come on, you're going to walk with us." Dragon said to the thief, lazily swiping the knife across his neck again. It didn't break the skin this time, but it might as well for how much the man flinched. "Don't do anything funny now. We have a child walking with us. If I feel he's in any danger, I won't hesitate to… 'defend him.'" Those words seeped a chill into Seto. Dragon talked about "defending him" like it was the peak of pleasure.
The three walked in silence away from the party, the bright lights disappearing as they moved to a dimmer part of the building. They then took a sudden turn into a dark room. Seto, for a moment, looked back at the party, wondering if he should run for it. Then the room's lights flicked on. It was a small servers lounge. It had two chairs, a kitchen, lockers, a soda dispenser, and a candy machine. Now that the lights were on, Seto felt braver and strode right in, passing in front of the two.
"Do you mind waiting over there, champ?" Dragon asked as he gestured to one of the chairs. Seto obediently sat down, his hands gripping his knees. Dragon then went to a locker and pulled out a black duffle bag. In this bag, he had zip ties (Seto chose not to think too hard on why he had ties or a knife at the ready), and he used them to tie the thief's wrists to an exposed pipe. He then went through his pockets and pulled out all the stolen items.
"Trying to steal company secrets, huh? Well, we'll just let the police deal with you tonight since the Boss is busy. I'd consider that as a lucky break." Dragon smiled. The thief grimaced back and nodded emphatically. After making the call to the police, Dragon came over to Seto and sat across from him.
"Been a fun night, hasn't it?" He asked. Seto slowly nodded, trying to study the man without letting him know he was doing so. They sat quietly for a bit before Dragon leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head. "You're bored out of your mind, aren't you?"
Seto looked up in surprise. Was he really that bad of an actor? He thought he had gotten his fake interest down pat, or maybe this man was just good at seeing through façades?
"I… didn't grow up in this environment. It's taking me some time to adjust." This had always been Seto's excuse for when he wasn't the perfect son in front of others. It usually worked, but Seto couldn't tell if it fooled Dragon or not.
"I've been in this kind of environment longer than you've been alive, and I still haven't gotten used to it. Being paraded around isn't easy, and worst of all, it's boring." Dragon said. He kept his smile up, but it had lost its creepy edge. The smile became warmer as the two relaxed. It was almost what Seto imagined a fatherly smile would be.
"Exactly!" Seto said before he could stop himself. He then flinched at his childish outburst.
"Hey, don't worry about it." Dragon said. Seto noted how he didn't even miss his small flinch. "You have no reason to fear me. Your dad may have been looking at me back there like I was going to eat you, but I promise I'm not. My name may be Dragon, but I don't eat little children." Seto said nothing and continued to study Dragon. Dragon's smile faltered a bit as the silence continued. "That's your cue to laugh." Seto kept silent. "Wow, tough crowd."
"Is your name really Dragon?" Seto cut in. Now that Seto knew this man wasn't going to scrutinize him as his step-father's friends would, he chose to jump right to what he wanted.
"Huh? Oh yes, I should say my full name is Gandora, Dragon of Destruction. I would go by Gandora, but my… co-worker's name is Pandora. So to keep it easy to yell across a field, everyone calls me Dragon."
"That's not a real name," Seto said, crossing his arms. He didn't like it when adults lied to him.
"It too is real." Dragon said as he too crossed his arms and made a pouting face. Seto realized that Dragon was copying his expression and scowled even more. The boy felt his anger boil up. No one made fun of him. His face must have turned red because Dragon chuckled and sat back.
"Well... it's real enough for me, and that's all that matters." He reiterated. Seto's stomach then cut into the conversation. Seto gripped his gut and gritted his teeth as the growl seemed to reveal his weakness.
"Geez, that is quite the demon trying to get out." Dragon said as he got up. Seto looked up with furrowed brows. "Don't worry; it's just a saying in my family for growling tummies." Dragon said as he went over to the machines and bought a few things from each one.
"Your dad should have known there would be nothing for you to eat or drink here. Just wine and weird hors d'oeuvres that a child would only touch with a stick." He said as he brought over some candy bars and a can of orange soda. He put them on the table in front of Seto and sat back. "Shame they don't have rock candy; that's always been my favorite. Anyway, choose whatever bar you want… except for that one." He quickly pulled away a strawberry bar. "I'll save that one for my son. He loves it when I bring back strawberry candies from other countries."
Seto stared down at the ice-cold drink and pile of candy. He felt his mouth watering. He started to reach out, but his itchy collar reminded him that he couldn't risk it tonight. He pulled back and fiddled with his uncomfortable collar.
"Oh right, that would be a problem if you got that messy." Dragon said as he started to unbutton his suit jacket. To Seto's surprise, he wrapped the large jacket around him like a bib. "There, it's a rental, so it's fine to mess up."
Seto looked up at Dragon to make sure this wasn't some kind of trick. Once he found the coast clear, he took the candy bars and immediately began munching away, downing the soda every other bite.
"Woah, you were hungry." Dragon said. As Seto crunched, Dragon pulled back his sleeve so he could see his watch. That is when a colored tip of a tattoo caught Seto's eye.
"Is that a duel monster?" Seto asked as he pointed at a tattoo barely poking out from under the sleeve. Dragon looked down at his wrist and smiled.
"You want to see?" he asked. Seto nodded, and Dragon pulled back his sleeve to show a whole arm covered in tattoos. Most pictures Seto couldn't make out, but some were duel monsters and other creatures Seto didn't recognize.
"You like duel monsters?" Seto asked, his eyes wide.
"You could say that..." Dragon petered off before returning with a smile. "My parents raised me on games like this. It's even where I got my name from, believe it or not."
...
The rest of the night was lost to the fog of time. Seto remembered after the party his younger self had put Dragon in many future schemes to get Mokuba out of the mansion. Gozaburo knew that Seto only took his abuse as well as he did because he was protecting his little brother. Gozaburo made sure Mokuba was always within his reach, even forbidding the boy from going to extra activities or having friends to keep the leash on tight. If only Seto could get Mokuba to make friends with Dragon's son, Mokuba would finally be away from Gozaburo. However, none of those ideas ever came about. Now Seto knew by the next party he was allowed in, Dragon would have disappeared. Back then, Seto had filed it under another disappointment and forgot about the strange man that made even his step-father scared.
Seto was pulled out of his thoughts as the picture finally printed out. This picture was from a subway station's security camera. It showed a family huddling behind a wild-haired man. In front of them was a dying homeless man laid out across the ground. That was not what interested Seto though, what did was the short, wild-haired man. He was about in his late thirties. His hair was wild and unkempt, but Seto could see the three colors it contained. Blonde bangs, black body of hair, and crimson red tips. Seto was surprised to see the tips were not magenta, but the CEO shrugged it off as genetics. What sealed the deal for Seto was this man's eyes and twisted smile. They were exactly as he remembered them from the party all those years ago. It also reminded Seto of another grin at another time. In the darkness and even occasionally nowadays, Yugi's face took on the same twisted smile that Dragon's did.
"Like father like son, Gandora, Dragon of Destruction," Seto said. He would have to make a house call to his rival's home very soon.