A/N: Two updates in two days?! Oh yes! I'm back~ I totally should have been studying for my Climatology test tomorrow. I'll regret it later.

Chapter summary: In which the Inner Court gets to talk, drinking happens, awkward questions are asked, and information is exchanged. Basically, no one shuts up.

Verbal Exchanges

Yugi woke slowly, groggy from the medication. When he was finally awake enough to be aware, he realized he was not alone. His mother, grandpa, Jounouchi and Honda were there by his side. Jounouchi looked horrible. His skin was pale and there were dark circles under his eyes. Worse, Yugi could feel a hole in Jounouchi's Shadows. They twitched and tried to seal it up, but could not. His Light was uncertain, overshadowed by despair.

Honda was morose and obviously feeling horrible. His face was buried in his large hands. His hair was not perfectly coiffed, but hung in loose strands as if he had been in an awful hurry and did not have the time to spare to make sure he looked good. His leather jacket was draped over Yugi's Grandpa's shoulders.

Yugi's mother and Grandpa were seated on the other side of Yugi's bed. Mrs. Mutou was resting her head against her father-in-law's shoulder crying softly. Grandpa held her gently, running his hand up and down her back soothingly.

:They've been there for a while now,: Yami whispered in Yugi's mind. :The doctors just let them in about fifteen minutes ago.:

Grandpa first noticed Yugi was awake and offered a teary smile. "Yugi?" he asked, as if unsure whether he was imagining things.

Yugi smiled back and offered a small wave with his right hand. "Hi."

"Yugi!"

"Yug'!"

"My baby!" Mrs. Mutou all but fell on the hospital bed, hugging Yugi as firmly as she dared. "My precious baby!"

Yugi smiled and tried to lift his uninjured right arm to rest on his mother's back but he was too tired. He settled for nuzzling with his cheek. "I'm okay," he said, slurring the words from the medications still in his system. "It's not that bad. I'm had worse."

His mother hugged him tighter and his left should twinged. "You'd better not have," she said, leaning back to meet her only son's eyes. "If I find out you've been shot before-"

"He has," Honda said quickly. "Promise. He was trying to make you feel better." Brown eyes met Yugi's but the young King was too medicated to catch the full meaning of the look. Thankfully, Jounouchi and Yugi's Grandpa did understand.

"Yeah," Jounouchi said, perhaps a bit too loudly. "He'll be okay. He was referring to his duels. He's a trooper, he'll pull through."

"Yes, he always has before," Grandpa said calmly. "There's no reason to believe he won't now." He gently eased Mrs. Mutou away from her son. "Come on now, give him some air."

Yugi smiled. "I'm fine, really," he said. "I'm too drugged to feel anything," he added, giggling groggily.

He must have fallen asleep again because when he blinked, his mother and Grandpa were gone leaving only Jounouchi and Honda with him. Something tugged at his mind which, after a moment, Yugi recognized as Kaiba's Shadows. He tugged on them weakly feeling a rush of relief in return along with a single word, garbled by distance and effort.

:Idiot.:

Yugi giggled and felt Yami appear in a spiritual form beside him, cuddling up with him and caressing him with a ghostly hand. Yugi sighed and drew on Yami's power to establish a firm line of communication with Kaiba. It took effort, more than he felt comfortable with, but it was doable. He needed to hold Court.

Yami solidified and reached for their Decks, bringing it close so it rested between them. He drew on Osiris's power, feeling Yugi draw on Ra's, and summoned Kaiba. After a minute or so, they felt Obelisk's power flare then they were in the Shadow Realm.

"I can't hold this for long, Yugi," Kaiba said. "We'll have to make this quick."

Yugi nodded, leaning against Yami standing behind him. Seth materialized next to the Regent and strode forward. His crystalline blue eyes darted across the King's body, searching for the bullet wound.

"Don't worry," Yugi said. "It's not bad." Kaiba glared at him, reinforced by Seth's equally cold glare. Yugi winced. "It really isn't," he insisted.

"Yes, I suppose that's why I felt it from another reality," Kaiba growled.

Yami and Yugi blinked in surprise. "You felt it?" Yugi gasped.

"Yes," Seth said. "It's how we knew to reach out and reinforce your Shadows." He shift closer to his Ka. "You need to recover soon. Seto cannot stay this Light for long."

"Especially not without Mokuba," Kaiba grumbled. He lowered his eyes in a brief show of worry before lifting them, the cold steel returned to their depths. "Did you see the shooter?"

"Yes," Yami said. "He was tall and blonde and drove a motorcycle unlike any I have ever seen. It was long and unusually shaped."

"Did you see his face?" Seth demanded.

Yami shook his head regretfully. "Unfortunately, no. I did not. I was distracted by what happened."

"Yes," Kaiba said. "And what did happen exactly? Something was taken." His eyes darkened. "What was it?"

Yugi placed a comforting hand over Yami's resting on his uninjured shoulder. "He took Red Eyes Black Dragon."

Kaiba narrowed his eyes. "He stole the mutt's card? That's-"

"No," the Pharaoh correctly tersely. "He stole Red Eyes from the card. Jounouchi summoned it and the bastard literally ripped Red Eyes from the card. The card is blank now."

"What?!" both souls of Set exclaimed.

"It's not possible!" Kaiba gasped.

"As the Monsters are now, it should not be possible to take them from their cards," Seth breathed.

"No," Kaiba said firmly. "If something, or someone can be sealed in a card, why can't something be taken out

"No," Yugi answered, shaking his head. "Red Eyes is gone."

"That doesn't make sense!" Kaiba snapped. "Why shoot us and then try to steal our Monsters? What does the bastard want?"

"Perhaps he wanted our Monsters from the beginning," Yami offered. "The dead are hardly in a place to complain about thieves."

"That reminds me," Kaiba said. "How are your Triads handling this?"

"Anzu called," Yugi said. "She's worried but I was able to talk her out of coming here. Although, I think Honda may go to her. Jounouchi's at the hospital with me."

Yami blushed. "I...have not been in contact with them."

"You haven't told them," Kaiba repeated flatly, glaring at the Pharaoh. "And I'm sure they'll just stay where they are minding their own business while their Pharaoh suffers from who knows what-"

"Seto," Seth said, placing a hand on his Ka's arm, calming him. "The Pharaoh probably has not had the chance to do so. They are still at the hospital. Is that not so?" he asked.

"It is," Yami said, nodding. "I meant to tell them, but it was more urgent for you to know. My Triad is still in Egypt last I heard. Marik can handle himself as can Ryou and Bakura."

"Ishizu?"

Yugi and Yami shook their heads in unison. "No word. I'm sorry. How are you doing? Have you found Mokuba?"

Kaiba huffed and looked away in a sulk. "Not yet but I will. He's most likely in New York. Speaking of." He turned back to the Pharaoh. "There are superheroes in this reality as well. I haven't met them yet that I know of, but I have met...a friend of Thor."

"Thor?" Yugi said.

"The Norse demigod?" Yami asked.

Kaiba snorted. "Hardly. Apparently, there are no 'gods' here like you and I or like any we have met back home. Here, the so-called gods are aliens who came here and people started worshipping them. They're most likely a long-lived species with powers or abilities humans typically don't have. Early humans would have worshipped such beings as gods."

"Like they did us," Yami said, nodding in understanding.

"You said you met one?" Yugi prodded.

"Yes," Seth said. "She called herself Sif of Asgard, and there is something you should know about her." He and Kaiba shared a look befor ehe continued. "She could tell us apart."

"She could? Does she know about you?" Yugi demanded.

"I do not believe so, no," Seth said calmly. "But she could tell when Seto and I would switch control. She also witness a Judgment Game."

"A Judgment Game?" Yami said, eyes darkening. "For what reason was this done?"

"The bitch Sif and the humans with her were seeking took over Arrow's mind. He's mine. No one takes what's mine, especially that way, and gets away with it."

Yami grinned and squeezed Yugi's shoulders. "A sentiment I agree with wholeheartedly. What was the Penalty Game, if I may ask?"

"I let kohai cast it," Kaiba said. "He is surprisingly shrewd. He stole from her her voice and her looks, everything she valued." He grinned in such a way, Yami actually cringed, reminded of when he and the KaibaCorp CEO first met. "It was very satisfying."

"I'm sure it was," Yami mumbled.

"But how is Arrow handling it?" Yugi asked.

Kaiba shrugged but was obviously worried. Seth was the one who replied. "It bothers him a great deal and refuses to speak her name."

Yugi nodded. "I understand." He winced. "Someone's trying to wake me up. Real fast! Are you having any more attacks?"

"Hm?" Kaiba blinked in confused. "Attacks?"

"Because of your tomb...you know."

Kaiba stilled. "Did Ishizu tell you?" Yugi flushed in embarrassment.

Seth crossed his arms self-consciously and spoke. "We have been fighting them as best we can."

"Yes," Kaiba said bluntly, eying Seth. "Quite frankly, it's more annoying than anything else."

"Marik told me he and his clan are doing their best to reinforce the spells guarding your tomb last we spoke," Yami said. "Bakura and Ryou are, shall we say, misplacing things."

"I'm sure they are," Kaiba sniffed disdainfully. He sobered after a moment. "Yugi," he said softly. "If they succeed in breaking into my tomb, what will happen?"

The Pharaoh and the King sighed. "We don't know," Yugi said. "But we think it's affecting you so severely because your ancient physical body is still there."

Kaiba blinked. "What does that have to do with anything?" he demanded, noticing the way Seth stiffened.

"The Ba is what normally inhabits the physical body while the Ka gives it life," Yami explained. "Because your soul and ours have been split, our Ba and Ka have become separate entities capable of existing as such. However, you Kaiba are a Ka, the spiritual part of the soul. You don't necessarily need a physical body to exist."

"That's why it was imperative you did not reject Seth as your Ba," Yugi said. "Seth needs a physical body to dwell in and a Ka to give him life so he can exist. With one or the other, he would wither away and die. The same would happen to me."

"But this is my body," Kaiba said firmly.

"It is," Yugi agreed. "But so is the mummy in your tomb. Wait, let me finish. The mummy may be Set's body, but it is still yours in a way. Set's Ka once gave it life while while his Ba inhabited it. Now, Set's soul is split and you, Kaiba, have your own body. But it is your body, not Seth's."

"Essentially, you were reborn in reverse," Yami said. "Instead of the Ba being reborn and the Ka joining it, the Ka was reborn forcing the Ba to fight for its existence."

"What are you getting at?" Kaiba hissed.

"Seth, as Set's Ba, would recognize the mummy in the tomb as one he formerly inhabited and may be drawn to it," Yugi said quickly, twitching as he fought back the urge to wake up. "It could confuse him having two bodies which are his."

"Get to the point!" Kaiba cried, seeing Yugi begin to fade.

"He may be forced to return to the mummy and die when there is no Ka to sustain his life," Yugi called. "Think of the Akh! That's what Helios felt when he said we were gods. When you were Set reborn, you were an Akh. That's what makes us gods! We're Akhs!"

"Akhs?!" Kaiba gasped.

"Hawks?" a voice repeated.

Startled by the unexpected voice, Kaiba whipped his head around and blinked owlishly in the light. It was dim in the corner booth of the small hole-in-the-wall restaurant. It was more of a bar than a restaurant at this hour, and the lights had been dimmed. John Stewart sat next to Mai at the edge of the semi-circular booth. Shaadi sat between Mai and Kaiba with Oliver on Kaiba's left near the other end of the booth.

The Regent blinked several times to both adapt to the lighting and come to terms with his location. New York City. They were in New York City and it was about -he checked his watch- correction, it was 12:30 at night. Morning. He groaned and dropped his head so his hands ran through in his hair and began rubbing his aching neck.

"How'd it go?" Mai asked softly.

Kaiba groaned. "I need a drink."

"Want me to get you one?" the Sorceress offered gently.

Kaiba seriously considered it before shaking his head. "I got it."

He waited for Oliver to slide out of the booth before following. He nodded his thanks and began to make his way over to the bar when a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned and saw Oliver watching him with concerned eyes and a cheeky grin.

"Where do you think you're going, minor?" he asked.

Kaiba almost lashed out with his infamously wicked tongue when he realized Oliver was right. He was still a minor in this country. A particularly colorful curse in Japanese anyone would understand no matter what language they spoke startled a laugh from the vigilante.

"Don't worry," Oliver said. "I got you. Didn't you hear? I'm DD tonight."

"DD?" Kaiba asked curiously.

"Designated Driver," Oliver clarified. "I'm driving, so to speak, so I'm not drinking."

Nodding, Kaiba reluctantly allowed himself to sit back down in the booth. Almost immediately, he regretted it. He folded his arms on the table and rested his head face down in the middle of them. He heaved a sigh and focused on relaxing each stiff muscle in his back and neck. It took some concentration but it work slowly.

Naturally, all his hard work scrambled back to the way it was the moment a couple shots of tequila plunked down in front of him. He lifted his head enough so his eyes could see the glasses, sighed, then reached out and took the first one. He muttered something in what was probably hieratic because Shaadi blinked before draining the whole thing in one go.

"You know," John said slowly, "I'm not entirely sure tequila supposed to be drunk like that."

"I agree," Mai said. "I'm not sure wether to be impressed or horrified. Ishizu will wring your neck when she hears about this."

"Then don't tell her," Kaiba grumbled.

"Since when do I ever let you tell me what not to tell Ishizu?" Mai said in a sing-song voice. "Besides, she probably already knows what you're up to, or will knowing her. Even without her foresight, she's fantastic at reading body language."

"Indeed," Shaadi said.

"See? Shaadi agreed with me," Mai said with a smirk. "Your argument is invalid."

Kaiba rolled his eyes and nursed the second cup, sipping it slowly. It definitely was not the best tequila he had ever had, but it was something and an alcoholic something so he supposed he could not complain.

"Yugi's fine," he said to everyone in general. "But the shooter, whoever he is, stole the mutt's Red Eyes."

"What?!" Shaadi gasped.

"Jounouchi?" Mai exclaimed.

"What's a Red Eyes?" John asked feeling distinctly out of the loop. Thankfully, it seemed Oliver was just as lost as he was.

"Remember the black dragon Jounouchi summoned last time when we fought Akhenadin?" Mai said, ignoring the way Kaiba still twitched at the name. John nodded carefully. "That's Red Eyes. It's full name is Red Eyes Black Dragon, but we call it Red Eyes for short."

"So it's like Blue Eyes?" John asked.

"Nowhere near as powerful as my Blue Eyes, but similar yes," Kaiba said. "After shooting Yugi in the chest, the mutt summoned Red Eyes and the bastard literally ripped the Monster from its card. It can't be summoned anymore. The fucker actually took a Shadow Monster."

"How do you get it back?" Oliver asked, leaning forward so he rested his forearms on the table.

"Presumable same way you get a soul out of a card," Kaiba said. "Win it back."

"A soul out of a card?" John repeated in disbelief.

"Pegasus created the modern rendition of the Shadow Games renaming it Duel Monsters and essentially sealing the Shadow Monsters in cards instead of the stone tablets the Ancient Egyptians used to us," Kaiba said. "He stole my little brother's soul forcing me to duel him to get it back. When he defeated me, he stole my soul as well." Kaiba copied Oliver's pose, leaning forward with dark eyes. "Where do you think someone who created cards capable of binding and manipulating Shadow Monster would store a soul?"

"A card," Oliver answered immediately.

"That's what Pegasus did?" John breathed. "He stole your soul. How did he-?"

"The Eye," Shaadi said. "He may not have been able to utilize its full potential, but he could pervert it to his purpose."

"The Eye was always perverted," Kaiba hissed under his breath.

"You said Yugi got your souls back," Oliver said. "I'm guessing he Dueled Pegasus and won."

Kaiba nodded. "He found a way to counter Pegasus's ability to read minds, thus preventing him from cheating, and was able to defeat him. By doing so, he forced Pegasus to free my, Mokuba's and his Grandpa's soul from the cards we were bound to."

"But we can't duel someone whose identity we don't know," John said.

"Of that I am aware," Kaiba grumbled, taking another sip of his drink. "We also know the shooter is capable of traveling through dimensions. Who knows what else he's capable of."

"We really need to call him something other than 'the shooter,'" Mai said, holding up air quotes.

"The Bastard," Kaiba said quickly.

"All in favor, say 'aye,'" Oliver said. A chorus of 'ayes' followed and the vigilante nodded. "Alright, The Bastard it is then."

"At least we're close to finding Mokuba," Mai said, leaning back and sipping her tea. She grimaced when she remembered it was unsweet tea and stuck out her tongue. "Ugh. Pass me the sugars," she demanded.

Shaadi scooted the little container of sugar packets to the Sorceress who quickly ripped open four and poured their contents into her drink, stirring furiously muttering all the while about uncivilized idiots who had no idea how to brew tea correctly. John and Oliver chuckled as Mai took another careful sip of the freshly sweetened tea. She sulked when she tasted the sugar. Sweet tea would never be real sweet tea unless the sugar was mixed in when the tea was brewed.

"This is the north, Mai," John said, patting the woman on the back.

"Yes," Mai moaned. "I pity their deprived lives."

Oliver and John laughed while Kaiba watched the word play with confusion and mild interest. Shaadi seemed content to just sit back and watch. He did glance up curiously when the little bell over the wooden door of the restaurant jingled but lost interest when the man sat down at the bar and ordered a drink. He sighed despondently, fervently wishing he had a cup of hot, steaming tea at the moment. Ishizu always made the best tea. He missed the Priestess dearly. She had become important to him without the influence of his past life.

"Shaadi," Kaiba said softly in Arabic. "Are you alright?"

The Advisor did not answer verbally but Kaiba silently set his cup of tequila down and stood. "I'll see if I can find some tea," he said before walking off.

"Where's he going?" John asked.

"To get tea," Shaadi said.

John nodded and fell back into his conversation with Mai. Oliver leaned around the corner of the booth to watch his Regent walk towards the bar.

"You should go after him," Shaadi said, drawing Oliver's attention. The Egyptian stared at the vigilante evenly, his eerie eyes seeming to pierce Oliver's soul. He hesitated.

"What's your sexual orientation, Shaadi?"

He blinked and stared at Mai, shocked at the question. Apparently, John was also stunned by the blunt question but the Sorceress either ignored their surprise or did not notice.

Shaadi sighed and answered softly, "Asexual."

"Yes! Knew it! Jounouchi owes me five bucks!" she crowed.

Shaadi blinked and leveled the Sorceress with a disappointed gaze which only served to encourage her laughter. Deciding to escape the awkward situation while he could, Oliver stood and walked back to the bar. He could still hear Mai's cackles but they were muffled by the noise from the televisions over the bar playing sports one one, local news on another, and a soap opera of some kind on the third. Another man was sitting nearby holding a shot glass of what looked like whiskey but it was none of Oliver's business and he did not want to get involved.

He sat down on the stool next to Kaiba and said nothing. The Regent glanced fleetingly at him but otherwise waited silently for the barman to return from the kitchen. It took almost a minute for Oliver to build up the courage to speak.

"Does it ever go away?" he asked softly.

Kaib gazed at him fully for a moment before turning away, dropping his gaze to the dark wood bar. "No," he answered. "It doesn't. It stays. You'll never forget who did it, how it happened, and how it felt. It will haunt your dreams, give you nightmares, make you distrust anyone who even vaguely reminds you of them, and forever influence who you are and how you do things."

Oliver felt his heart drop to his feet, turning away. He started to say something, then sighed, shaking his head and allowing it to hang in defeat.

"But you'll be stronger for it," Kaiba continued after a minute of silence. Oliver listened carefully. "You'll be more aware of the people around you, the things they do and say. Be slow to trust; but for those you do trust, demand expect the same from them.

"It will not be easy," he continued. "An invasion like that..." Kaiba sighed, wishing he had not left his drink at the table. "It damages the mind and soul. The path to your mind will forever have a path leading directly to it making you more vulnerable to mind control in the future. However, you can use this. Because you know what it feels like, you can think of ways around it, ways to fight it."

He paused and gazed thoughtfully at the morose vigilante. "Did anyone ever tell you of Ryou and Bakura's relationship before the Court?" Oliver shook his head. "Ryou was the host to Bakura's parasite. Bakura would completely subvert Ryou's consciousness, wearing his body like a costume and parade around as if he was Ryou. It's how he first met the King and the others. He challenged them to a tabletop role playing game where, unknown to the players, loosing meant binding their soul to their playing piece."

Kaiba rested his elbows on the bar and folded his hands so he could rest his chin on his fingers. "Ryou was able to fight Bakura hard enough to regain awareness of the situation and, when the opportunity struck, take control of his left hand. Bakura was literally unaware of what one hand was doing. Through this method, Ryou was able to help save his friends.

"Then during theMemory World MORPG, we found out Bakura himself none other than a host to the enemy Necrophades. The Dark God saw Bakura's hate, fury, and potential and wormed his way into his mind before finally gaining control of him completely."

He paused to shrug. "It's one of the many reasons why that crime is one of the worst and the punishment for it is so heavy," Kaiba said.

Oliver nodded quietly. "Will it both John?"

Kaiba glanced over his should briefly before shrugging again. "Doubtful. I'm saying it won't, but it likely won't be as severe simply because he was unaware of the manipulation. You, however, were not only aware of what you were doing, but were completely conscious and hating yourself for it." The Regent dropped his gaze to a particularly knot in the bar wood grain. "There's a difference."

"And the soul thing?" Oliver asked hesitantly.

"Which one?" Kaiba asked, not lifting his eyes from the wood.

Oliver gave Kaiba The Look which was, unsurprisingly, ignored. Giving in, the vigilante sighed. "You said she may have my mind," he began slowly, "but my soul belonged to you. That you would collect it when I died," his green eyes flickered to Kaiba, "and that you wanted me balanced and uninfluenced."

Kaiba nodded. "I do. You are of my orientation and therefore must remain balanced and uninfluenced. Lorelei's power over your mind was influencing your Shadows, binding them. Surely you noticed."

"I did, yes," Oliver said."

"They don't like being bound or forced into anything," the Regent said. "Had you remained like that for much longer, it would have start affecting you physically, then mentally, until eventually your soul would give out leading to your inevitable death."

"And...speaking of my death?" Oliver coaxed not so subtly.

Kaiba huffed and turned to face Oliver directly as the barman came out to refill the glass of whiskey for the other man sitting at the bar. "It's something I've noticed in the past couple years," Kaiba admitted. "I honestly did not understand it at first but after finding out what I am..." He shrugged. "When you get close to death, I feel it and will be drawn to you. When you die, your soul will come to me for guidance. I'll take it to the Afterlife where you can finally find rest."

"So that part of the mythos is true," Oliver stated in what was not quite a question. "Guiding the souls to the Afterlife."

"It is," Kaiba said. "The same happens for the others in the Court."

"Does it matter what I believe?"

Kaiba shook his head. "You can believe what you want, but once you join, there's no getting out of it."

Oliver barked a laugh. "This really is a cult."

Kaiba's lips quirked upwards in a smirk. "I did say it was."

"What will mother say?" Oliver asked in a mocking voice.

"Nothing if she knows what's good for her," Kaiba warned. "She isn't protected by us per your request. From what I've learned of her, I would not offer her my protection anyway."

Oliver nodded, still chuckling from the cult comment. "Thanks," he said softly. "I needed that." Kaiba looked vaguely uncomfortable but nodded. Oliver looked closely and smirked. "Is that a blush?"

"You're drunk."

"Ah-ah-ah, DD, remember?" Oliver said, pointing to himself.

Kaiba ignored him and put in an order for hot tea which was, thankfully, delivered quickly. Oliver snagged the teapot and accompanying cup and saucer from under Kaiba's nose and walked off with them. Kaiba drummed his fingers on the bar to control his annoyance before following. He needed to be more drunk for this. He needed to sleep.

The man at the bar would never admit how badly he needed to hear what the other two men said. It was strange, but after what he had seen, heard, and experienced, not that strange. The soul part was bologna, but the mind part was both uncomfortable to listen to and something he needed to hear.

There were no platitudes, excuses, or apologizes, just the cold hard truth. That was what he needed to survive in this world. Truth and fact, just like the bow he itched to hold in his hand at that moment. He still wanted revenge for what was done to him, but hearing that made him feel...better, strangely..Even if it came from people who were probably members of some sort of freaky weird cult or roleplayers or gamers or whatever.

He set aside his whiskey and paid his bill, leaving a tip for the bartender before heading out. He needed to sleep off the small hangover he knew he would have before tomorrow SHIELD meeting. He pulled out his phone to check his voicemail and noticed Stark had texted him. When and how did the drunk genius get his cell phone number?

Cautiously, he opened his text messages and read he most recent. He stopped moving and stared stupidly at the screen for a good minute before dialing the number for his most trusted friend and waited impatiently for her to pick up.

"Nat," he said the moment he heard her answer, the text message still filling his mind. "We need to talk, now."

/Coulson's alive./