Disclaimer: I do not own this story, anime, manga, etc. Created for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter 12

The celebration raged quite late, but eventually Yugi, Joey, and Mai made their way back upstairs, having finally had their fill of the excitement and said their goodbyes to their friends, in the chance that they didn't cross paths one last time upon checkout in the morning. Though exhausted, Yugi was still a bit giddy, and after saying goodnight to Mai and Joey, puttered around his room for a bit longer, packing up his things so he wouldn't have to do it in the morning. The longer he could sleep in, the better. He had just gotten everything more or less folded and put away when he heard a quiet, hesitant knock at his door. Groaning tiredly, Yugi went to answer it, hoping to be able to shoo away his visitor quickly so he could go to bed. He opened the door just enough to be able to see who it was, and gave a little start as Eiri's solemn face was revealed to him. "Yugi," he said quietly in greeting. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"No, I haven't gone to bed yet." For some reason, seeing Eiri made Yugi uncomfortable, so he only opened the door enough to talk, hiding behind it. "Is there something I can do for you? It's kind of late…"

"I know, and I don't mean to keep you up," Eiri said contritely, "but I owe you an apology. I've been thinking about what you said and…you're right. It wasn't fair to you to try to win you in a bet."

Yugi's hand slid partway down the door as he began to relax a little. "I'm flattered that you like me, I really am," he said amiably, "but if you wanted to get to know me, you should have just talked to me. A duel is no way to win someone over. I've seen people try, and it always backfires."

"I can see that now." Eiri fixed him with a completely apologetic pout. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

"It's okay." Yugi moved to close the door. "I know it probably hurts, having had this goal and coming here to find out that I'm not available…"

Eiri tried to smile. "Are you sure you're not interested? Maybe we could talk some more on the flight home. Give me a chance to show you that I'm not the kind of jerk who would seriously gamble for your body."

Yugi shook his head firmly. "No, I told you, I'm seeing someone. I'm sorry, it's really late – we have to get up to catch the plane in the morning. Good night…"

He started to close the door, but Eiri lunged forward and thrust out his hand, stopping it from closing. Yugi stepped back, startled, and in that second's pause Eiri was able to push the door open and force his way inside. "Why won't you give me a chance?" he pleaded. "I'm not a bad guy! I just didn't know how to break the ice with you – talking to you wasn't helping." Yugi backed away from him, into his room. Eiri clenched a fist. "You kept having to be somewhere else, I didn't even get to say good luck to you before the tournament started. I just wanted you to listen!" He gripped the edge of the door and slammed it shut behind him. In the room next door, the loud noise woke Kaiba from his sleep.

"Eiri, stop!" Yugi shouted. "What are you doing? Get out of my room!"

"Not until you hear me out. Don't you see?" Eiri held out his hands pleadingly. "I love you! It's not just a crush, I know everything there is to know about you and I know you're a wonderful person."

Yugi kept backing up until he bumped against the desk, and then tried to maneuver around it. "How did you find out about me? I've never even met you before!"

"There's all kinds of profiles on the internet," Eiri reasoned. "Sites dedicated to tracking the status of elite duelists. I even have pictures of you from the tournaments."

"But that doesn't mean you know me!" Yugi braced himself, his hands curling into fists. "That isn't love, it's an obsession! Just…go away, leave me alone, before I have to call somebody."

He twitched, as though intending to make a move toward the phone, and Eiri suddenly pounced on him, grabbing him by the shoulders and restraining him. "No, don't!" he cried. "Yugi, please, you have to see how much I love you! I know you can be happy with me, I would make you so happy, I'd treat you right." He lowered his voice, and pulled Yugi closer to him to murmur seductively. "I'm told I'm very good in bed. Let me show you. I'll be so good, you won't be able to push me away."

Yugi braced his hands against Eiri's chest, trying to do exactly that. For the first time his heart went cold in his chest, as he realized the danger he was in. "No!" he growled fiercely. "Let me go! You're hurting me!"

"I wouldn't, if you'd just give me a chance," Eiri cajoled. "I don't want to force you but you just aren't listening to me!"

"That's because you're insane!" Yugi fired back, shoving him hard enough to break himself free. "Get out! You already know that I'm seeing someone and you still come in here, saying you'll force me? What kind of twisted idea of love do you have?"

"Oh yes, your mystery boyfriend." Eiri stood back and glowered at Yugi. "You said he was here but then he left you, just when your bid for the tournament was getting started. What, he didn't want to stick around to cheer on his lover? Doesn't he care enough about you to be there for you on your big day? I wouldn't be like that, Yugi, I'd always be there for you."

Yugi positively quivered with anger at that. "He cares about me more than you'll ever know!" he declared forcefully. "You have no idea how wrong you are. He's very close to my heart, closer than any person can ever be, but you wouldn't be able to see it."

"Then where is he?" Eiri taunted, regaining some of his confidence and starting towards Yugi again. "Why isn't he here with you, celebrating? Maybe you're just lying to me – maybe you're even lying to yourself."

Yugi took great, seething breaths to try to calm himself, but fortunately, he didn't need to fear being alone with the crazed young man. The Eye of the Puzzle glowed brilliantly in the dim half-light of the room, and Yami awoke with his deadliest glare directed at Eiri, his posture straight and assured with his fists at his sides. Eiri noticed the flash of light and stopped, unsure what it meant. Yami spoke in his deepest, angriest purr. "You wanted to meet Yugi's mysterious lover?" he challenged. "You'll get your chance, but I'm sure you're not going to like it."

Eiri growled, unsure what he meant by that but a little disturbed by the sudden change to his stance, going from weak to aggressive. "Stop messing with me, Yugi. This is serious."

"Yes, I rather agree." Yami took a step forward, glaring down the intruder. "Get out of my room. You have no right to be here, or to be threatening me like this. I tried letting you down easy, now I'll be blunt. I don't want you, I don't need you. I have someone, and you will never, ever come between us. Not by begging, and certainly not by force."

Eiri glared back and reached for him again, but Yami was in complete control now and easily eluded the grasping hands with just a dodge. He stuck a foot out to trip Eiri, and backed away towards the door when the man stumbled and went to his knees. "Don't do this!" the pharaoh implored. "Leave, now, and I won't make a further scene. I don't want to have to hurt you."

Eiri picked himself up and braced for another charge. "You won't hurt me," he promised, panting. "I'm bigger than you. You can fight me all you want, but I came here to have you and I'm going to, one way or the other."

Yami recoiled, realizing the depths to which the young man would go in his despair and obsession. I don't want to have to crush his soul, he worried internally, but I won't let him hurt Yugi! He glanced quickly over his shoulder at the door, and then broke for it, intending to run and get help, even if it meant waking up the entire floor. He got a hand on the latch and opened the door, but Eiri caught up with him and tackled him from behind, slamming the door shut and both of them into it. Next door, the commotion made Kaiba growl under his breath and get out of bed, listening for a moment to try and decide whether to go and give the noisy Yugi a piece of his mind for partying too hard when folks were trying to sleep. Yami was fighting with all his strength, groping with desperate fingers for the door while Eiri clutched him around the chest, trying to wrest him backwards. At last, Yami raised an elbow and drove it backwards into the intruder's gut, getting him to let go long enough to wrench the door open again. He was about to burst through the doorway, already yelling, "Joey!" to try to wake up his best friend next door, but Eiri seized the Blue Eyes trophy sitting on the desk and struck him over the head with it. Yami's eyes rolled back hazily and fluttered shut as he lost consciousness, his spirit receding back inside the Puzzle even as he fell to the floor. Being as the pharaoh had been in control by himself at the time of the injury, Yugi was perfectly able to wake and regain his senses within moments of hitting the floor. Even as he was blinking his eyes open, he felt the chain being removed from his neck, cutting off any chance of re-forming a bond with his inner spirit, leaving him with no hope of rescue from within once Yami's spirit regained his wits.

"There," Eiri could be heard muttering, "we don't want that in the way." He felt movement in his arms, and glanced down in surprise to see that Yugi had already recovered. "Oh! That didn't take long. Oh, good, Yugi – I wanted you to be awake for this."

Yugi found himself trapped in crushing arms, the Puzzle set aside out of his reach, and began to panic. "No! What have you done?" he cried. "Yami! If you hurt him, I swear…"

Eiri just held him tighter, leaning over him from behind. "I'm not letting you get away from me that easily. You can't just dismiss me so casually, Yugi. I have feelings, it's time you accepted them."

Yugi struggled with all his might, thrashing and kicking and trying to reach for the Puzzle. "Let go of me! This is wrong! Let go!" He looked, then, and noticed that the door had been flung open so wide that it did not close back on itself. "Help!" he screamed, louder than ever, hoping someone in the hotel would hear him. "Help me! Somebody, help!"

Eiri picked him up and tried to kiss him, but Yugi blocked him with both hands pressed against his chest and face. "Yugi!" he complained.

"Stop it! Somebody help me!" Yugi shouted into the hallway. "I'm being attacked! Help!"

With a growl, Eiri threw him across the room, allowing him his freedom for a moment but still standing between him and the door. "Stop that!" he demanded. "Someone's going to hear us!"

Fortunately, someone did. At that moment, the entrance darkened with a tall figure, making them both glance up. It was Seto Kaiba, looking very irate in his pajamas and tousled hair, one hand braced on the door. He looked about to say something mean about Yugi, but then he saw the situation and hesitated. Yugi sat on the floor further inside his room, holding onto one arm that had been twisted by all the struggling, breathing hard and close to tears. Between them stood Eiri, wild-eyed and looking every bit the attacker as he shot Kaiba a bewildered look over his shoulder. Kaiba scowled uncertainly. "What the hell is going on in here?"

"Kaiba!" Yugi yelped in relief. "Help me, he's trying to hurt me!"

Eiri turned back to him with a gasp. "Yugi! Don't do this, we can make it work!"

"You're trying to rape me!" Yugi cried forcefully.

Kaiba's glare turned a shade darker in fury. "Is this true?" Eiri tried to ignore him and lunged for Yugi once more, but Kaiba was inside the room in an instant and grabbed him by the shirt. "Don't you touch him!"

Eiri twisted around to look at him. "Stay out of this! This is between me and Yugi."

"He hurt me!" Yugi whimpered from where he was crouched at their feet. "I told him to leave me alone but he attacked me!"

Kaiba got a better grip on the lapels of Eiri's shirt and hauled him up. "Don't you have any consideration?" he snarled. "People are trying to sleep!"

Eiri tried to shove him back, but Kaiba was too strong and just flung him aside, onto the bed where he bounced violently and nearly hit the wall. With his path cleared, Yugi threw himself forward and snatched up the Millennium Puzzle, cradling it to him and quickly looping the chain over his head. There wasn't time to check on Yami, though, as he still had a crazed intruder to deal with. Eiri had picked himself up and crouched on the bed, regarding Kaiba as nothing more than a wall between him and his target, pleading to Yugi directly. "You can't do this to me, Yugi. I love you! I want to be with you, can't you see that?"

"I think I heard him say he wanted you to leave him alone," Kaiba muttered angrily.

Yugi sat behind him on the floor, rubbing his sore arm. "Eiri, just go. I don't want to see you, ever again."

A pained look crossed Eiri's face, and with a cry he leaped toward Yugi again, but Kaiba stepped in to block him. They struggled for just a second before Kaiba slugged him in the jaw, knocking him sideways. The blond man hit the wall, but barely had time to look up before Kaiba had grabbed him again, a wicked glare on his face. "You're the reason I'm awake," he growled, "so you get the punishment."

The peaceful silence of the hotel hallway was broken by a loud crash, as the door flew open and Eiri was thrown across the hall to smash into the far wall. As he sat there rubbing his jaw, Kaiba stepped into the doorway with his arms folded, glaring down at the intruder. "Get out of here," he spat. "I don't want to see your face anywhere near our rooms again, you got it?"

Inside, Yugi breathed a heavy sigh of relief that he had been rescued, and took advantage of the few fleeting moments of distraction to close his eyes and sense inward for his companion spirit. "Yami?" he questioned. "Are you all right?"

Relief flooded his heart as he felt the presence steal through him like warmth. "Yes, Yugi," the deep, placid voice replied. "I seem to have suffered no ill effect. I'm fine."

"Oh, good…"

"Are you all right?"

"I'll be fine," Yugi assured him. "Kaiba found us, he got rid of Eiri."

"That's good," Yami sighed softly. "Go, let him know you're all right. Take care of what you need to, I will be here for you when you're ready to sleep."

Yugi relented and opened his eyes, finding Kaiba crouched before him waving a hand before his face in confusion. He dropped his hand and frowned at Yugi instead. "What was that all about?"

Yugi looked fearfully up. "Is he gone?"

Kaiba nodded. "I stayed in the doorway until I saw the elevator doors close." He frowned even more deeply. "What the hell were you thinking, letting him in here?"

"I didn't let him in, he forced his way in," Yugi protested. "And he wasn't violent when I answered the door. He wanted to apologize…and then he just went nuts."

"If he shows up again, bolt the door and call security." Kaiba rose to his feet, looking around the room. Nothing else had been disturbed by the fight, and he had done his one compassionate deed for the day. He noticed Yugi holding his arm but didn't care enough to ask if he was hurt. "Now if you'll excuse me, that asshole woke me up from a pretty good sleep and I'd like to go back to it."

"Thank you, Kaiba," Yugi said softly, remaining there on the floor for a moment. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't heard me yell for help."

Seto glanced briefly down at him, a sense of concern flashing momentarily through his mind. "I was going to come over here and tell you off for making too much noise," he admitted, "when I heard you scream."

Yugi pushed himself to his feet and faced his rival with a sad smile. "Thank you for not looking the other way."

Sighing shortly, Kaiba turned to go. "Like I said. If he comes back, lock your door and call security. But I doubt he'll be back. Putting my fist in his face felt good, maybe I'll do it again." He crossed the room to the door, still grumbling under his breath. "It's too late for this, I have to catch an early flight. Go to bed and forget about it."

The word "flight" caught Yugi's mind and made him gasp suddenly. "Oh no," he fretted. "I have to fly home with that guy." Kaiba glanced back to find him standing there with his arms wrapped around himself, a scared look on his face. "I can't get on a plane with him! There's nowhere to run, and I don't know what he'll do to me now…" He winced. "I don't want to cause a scene, I don't want anything to happen."

That sense of concern jolted through Kaiba again, and he cursed it for being too strong to ignore. With one hand on the latch to let himself out, he looked away for a long, silent moment. "Can you get your ass out of bed early in the morning?"

Yugi lifted his gaze, frowning uncertainly. "I…guess so, maybe. Why?"

Kaiba wouldn't look at him. "I'm calling for my private jet at seven. I want to get out of this city and get back to work. If you can have yourself ready to go by seven-thirty, you can fly back with me."

Startled, Yugi couldn't stop the tears from rising into his eyes as he clutched protectively at the Puzzle chain around his neck. "Really? Thank you, Kaiba."

"Don't think this means anything," Seto quickly snapped. "We just happen to be going the same way. I'm serious about the time. I intend to leave very early, you coming along is by my good graces alone and you will conform to my timetable. Got it?"

Yugi nodded. "Okay. I can do that."

"Meet me in the lobby, then. And don't keep me waiting, or I'll leave you here and you can just take the regular flight back home, rapist or no rapist." Kaiba shot him a quick look over his shoulder and then opened the door, passing quickly through after glancing to make sure Eiri had not come back. The door closed solidly behind him, and he heard the scrabbling of the bolt being thrown to secure the door. Satisfied, Kaiba went back into his room and straight to the phone, calling down to the hotel's security extension. "Yes, this is Seto Kaiba, in 2208," he said curtly when the desk answered. "I demand that you send a security detail up to the elite floor where the invitational duelists are staying. Fans are trying to sneak their way into our rooms and they're bothering both me and the tournament winner."

"Well, sir," the girl at the desk said as politely as she could, "Industrial Illusions is handling all the security for the duelists and the tournament…"

"Then tell them to send someone up to our floor, now," Kaiba demanded, "or I'm calling in my own security force and billing the hotel for the man-hours!"

"Yes, sir. Right away, Mr. Kaiba," the girl stammered.

That done, Kaiba sighed to himself in exasperation and clicked off the light, grateful to finally be getting back to bed.

Yugi sniffled back his tears as he went about the room putting things back in order, double-checking to make sure he had everything packed but his clothes for tomorrow, and then crawled into bed with the Puzzle still around his neck. He needed to see for himself that Yami was not damaged by the smack on the head, and then seek his lover's comfort for the rest of the night. It took him a few minutes of laying in the dark, listening to the silence, to confirm that there were no phantoms waiting to leap on him out of the shadows, before he could quiet his mind enough to enter the trance-like state that would allow his spirit to enter the world of the Puzzle. Yami was waiting for him, and caught him up as soon as he entered, holding him tightly without a word for the longest time. Though he was no longer terrified, Yugi still buried his face in Yami's neck and tried to calm his breathing, his arms wrapped around the pharaoh's shoulders as he clung to him in desperation. Soon enough he was able to relax, and felt Yami's hand combing tenderly through his hair to soothe him. "How are you feeling?" he asked his young love. "Does your head hurt?"

"A little," Yugi admitted. "And he wrenched my arm. But it'll be fine in the morning." He lifted his head and gazed worriedly at his partner, searching his eyes for any hint of pain. "How about you? Are you sure you're all right?"

Yami nodded slowly. "My spirit is fine, there's no way to damage it with a physical blow like that. I was just worried about you, I'm glad you're all right now."

"Thanks to Kaiba." Yugi sighed softly and let Yami put an arm around him to guide him through the labyrinth to their private room. "I can't believe he's going to let us fly home on his jet. But it means I won't have to face Eiri again."

"Kaiba is not the easiest man to figure out," Yami agreed. "One minute he's insulting us, the next, he's doing us a favor for what seems like no reason. But I'm not about to question him. Come on, let's get you to sleep so you can make that early flight without annoying him."

Their intention was to allow Yugi to let his mind fall asleep inside the Puzzle, the only way for him to achieve a completely dreamless sleep. After the trauma of this night, he needed to be able to let go and not be afraid of nightmares, and Yami was too willing to accommodate him. They climbed into their bed in the mystical room and curled up together, Yugi laying his head on the pharaoh's chest and snuggling down to sleep. Before he could drift off, though, Yugi had one parting comment for his lover. "It's been a while since you've taken control like that," he murmured. "It felt strange, like I was watching from the outside." He smiled to himself. "And watching you was amazing…all angry and powerful like that, jumping forward to protect me…"

Yami smiled as well, tightening his arms around his young partner. "I've always felt a sense of need to protect you, since the day you first awakened me. But now, it's not just a need. It's a desire. I told you…" He leaned his head down and kissed Yugi gently on the forehead. "I will not allow anything to come between us."

Yugi purred under his breath and snuggled deeper into Yami's arms, and within minutes he was fast asleep. Yami laid back, content to sense that Yugi's mind within and without had entered a dreamless state where no fears or memories of the attack would haunt him, and closed his eyes to wait out the night.

Joey answered the door yawning, wondering if he had slept through the alarm or otherwise missed out on important plans when he heard the insistent knocking. It was too early to have to get up. He opened the door and made an extremely bewildered face when he found Yugi standing there, looking solemn and tired, with his suitcase standing behind him and his duel disk on his arm. "Yug? What…" He yawned again. "What's up? I thought our plane didn't leave till nine…"

"I've…had to make a little change of plans," Yugi hesitantly explained. "I'm flying back on Kaiba's jet. I wanted to let you know, so you're not looking for me when it's time to leave."

Joey's expression contorted even more with his confusion. "Wha? Why are you flying back with Kaiba?"

Yugi sighed sadly and told him everything, not even stopping to caution him to keep his voice down when he erupted with an outraged shout at the news of what Eiri tried to do to his best friend. He seized Yugi by the shoulders, hoping to hear that he was going to be all right, as Yugi finished by telling him what Kaiba had done and was going to do. "I don't want to go near him, let alone spend hours on a plane with him staring at me," he fretted. "That's why Kaiba's letting me fly back with him."

Joey clenched a fist and shook it. "That Eiri! Why, I oughta…you bet I'm gonna have a few things to say to him about what he did."

"No! Joey, please." Yugi fixed him with an anxious look. "Don't make a scene. I just want to forget about it, and make him forget about me. Promise me you won't do anything, Joey. Not unless he starts something with you first," he added with a weak smile.

Joey growled, but after a moment let it go. "All right, fine," he grumbled, relaxing his fist. "For your sake, Yug. I won't start anything. But he says one word out of place, and I swear I'm gonna pay him back for every little hurt he did to you."

Yugi nodded his acceptance of the terms. "You can let the Industrial Illusions people know that I'm okay and won't be on the plane, right?"

"Yeah, sure." Joey softened and took his friend gently by the shoulder. "You sure you're okay?"

"I think so," Yugi sighed. "I slept well enough, but I'm still a little tired and a lot weirded out by the whole thing. I just want to go home and put it behind me, and think about better things." A smile began to return to his lips. "Like winning the tournament."

A fleeting smile crossed Joey's face also. "Yeah. Keep thinking about that, you'll be okay. I'll call you when we get back, all right?"

"Okay. Say 'bye to anyone I missed, okay?" Yugi waved as he departed, heading for the elevator. As of yet he hadn't seen Kaiba, but they were set to meet in the lobby shortly, so he wasn't worried. He had one more visit to pay before leaving, and hoped he could make the time for it. Marik greeted him at the door with as much confusion as Joey, looking rather sultry and exotic without a shirt on, but Yugi felt that after Marik had witnessed Eiri's earlier confrontation, he deserved to know what had happened. He listened with sympathy and growing anger, his blue eyes darkening. Yugi immediately assured him that he was okay, he only wanted to say a proper goodbye since he was leaving right now. "I didn't want to run out of here without seeing you off, Marik. It was good to see you again, and I'm glad you were there for me and Yami when we needed you."

"Of course," Marik nodded, "anytime. Take care of yourself." He reached out and embraced Yugi to him. "And congratulations, once again. It was an honor to duel you."

Yugi hugged him with a smile and let him go. "I hope you can visit us again, and this time, not on official business. Just for fun. You know?"

Marik nodded brightly, and then thought of something. "Oh, hey. You have the wireless outlet for the duel disk, right?"

"Yeah…I haven't really used it much, though."

"What's your user name?"

Yugi smiled bashfully. "It's 'KingofGames.'"

Marik grinned slyly. "Find me as 'WingedDragonMarik.' We'll duel online, or even just chat. It'll be a much easier way to keep in touch."

Yugi brightened up considerably. "Okay! That'll give me reason to use it, I got it but I haven't dueled anyone with it yet." He glanced aside at the clock in Marik's room. "Sorry, I have to get going. I have to meet Kaiba on time or he'll leave me here. Have a safe trip, Marik."

"And you. Tell Yami I want him to take good care of you, now."

"I will." Yugi grinned cheerily and let himself out.

There were more people milling about the lobby than he expected when he came down, but Yugi was surprised to see that Kaiba was not among them yet. He guessed that a few of the flights were leaving just as early, particularly the one back to the American mainland. Rebecca was sitting in a comfy chair kicking her feet idly, and sat up sharply upon seeing him. "Yugi! Over here…"

Yugi smiled politely as he made his way over. "Morning, Rebecca."

"I didn't think you'd be up this early. What's up? Hey, why do you have your suitcase already?"

He glanced back at the luggage being towed behind him. "Uh, long story. I need to catch an earlier flight back, so I'm going on the KaibaCorp jet."

"Oh. Well, then I get to say goodbye to you, for real." Rebecca hopped up and hugged him gingerly, letting go of him very quickly. "I'll see you at the next tournament, right? We have a score to settle."

Yugi smiled and nodded. "Take care of yourself, and your grandfather – tell him I said hi."

"I will." The girlish smile faded from Rebecca's face, and she looked straight at Yugi with a shy expression. "Tell the pharaoh I was glad to meet him, and I really hope you two can have a happily ever after. I could see that you guys really care about each other. I wish you the best, honest."

"Thanks, Rebecca." Yugi smiled even more brightly and shook her hand. "Now, I'm supposed to meet Kaiba. Have you seen him?"

"Um…I don't think so." Both of them looked around for a bit, sure that they would spot the tall figure amongst this crowd. "I think those are his lackeys, though."

Yugi glanced to where she was pointing and recognized one of the men in gray suits standing near the door. "Oh, yeah. I'll go see if they know what's going on. Bye, Rebecca!" he waved. "It was good to see you again!"

"Bye Yugi!" she crowed after him.

At the moment, Kaiba was making his way toward his assistants also, having had to check out himself and call to be sure that his plane was ready before making the trip to the airport. He had just about escaped when he heard a girl's voice call out, "Oi, Kaiba!" as he passed. He whirled around in confusion to find Shandy, smirk on her face and arms crossed, waiting by her luggage. "Figures you'd be sneaking out early," she teased him. "Don't want to face your public, eh?"

He narrowed his eyes in her direction. "Some of us have a company to run. I've taken enough time out of my busy schedule for this little play-date."

She tilted her head with a bright grin. "Still a little sore about getting beat, are you?" His even narrower glare was answer enough for her. "Eh, no worries. I got my arse kicked too, saved you the humiliation of having to face Katsuya or Yugi Muto. No hard feelings?"

Kaiba looked down at the hand being offered to him as if it were a large, fresh trout. "What?"

"I'm trying to be nice to you," Shandy smirked.

"I don't need nice. Excuse me." Kaiba turned sharply to resume his stalking trek across the lobby.

"Don't suppose you'd be up for a rematch, eh?"

The question made Kaiba freeze in his tracks. He turned around very slowly, giving her an eye over his shoulder. "What? A rematch?"

"Sure. I'll duel you anytime. Maybe you should make use of your own damn wireless system and look up ShandyCandy sometime." She winked flirtatiously. "Only way to know if I was just lucky that one time."

Kaiba eyed her suspiciously, but she seemed honest enough. "ShandyCandy? Sounds like your kind of name."

"Bet your arse." Her smirk intensified. "Unless you turn into a pumpkin at nine, and are in happy dreamland while some of us overseas are just getting started. Love your online thing, it's a lot of fun." Shandy winked again and gave him a little wave. "See ya 'round, Mr. Company President. Have a good trip."

A nonplussed look flickered across Kaiba's face as he turned and went to meet up with Roland, not quite sure what to make of the conversation. Unfortunately, since Yugi had already made it to the lobby ahead of him, he had witnessed the entire exchange with the punk English girl and stood there with an amused light in his eyes. Kaiba scowled at him before confronting his assistants. "We'll be taking another passenger with us back to Domino. Load Yugi's suitcase into the car."

Roland and his comrade looked at each other, but knew better than to question the president. "Yes sir, Mr. Kaiba," they both said as they took all the baggage and wheeled it outside. Kaiba kept only his briefcase, and Yugi his duel disk, as they climbed into the back seat and waited to be whisked away to the airport. Only then, when they were alone and the doors closed, did Yugi grin up at Kaiba. "I think that girl was flirting with you."

"What?" Kaiba gave him a stern look. "You're insane."

"No, really. She was totally flirting with you." Yugi glanced out the window as the car pulled away from the hotel and left it behind for good. "I guess she's kind of cute, in an aggressive sort of way."

Kaiba snorted. "I thought you liked guys."

"Not exclusively." Yugi just beamed up at him and let it drop, settling back into his seat to watch Hong Kong go by one last time. Kaiba was fine with the silence, folding his arms and looking out the opposite window the whole way.

The small KaibaCorp private jet stood waiting for them when they arrived at the airport and passed through customs, enabling them to board and prepare to leave as soon as the pilot got clearance. Roland came to let Kaiba know that their luggage was on board before going to the front of the plane for a seat. Yugi and Kaiba were seated in the back, in a private compartment. They continued to say nothing to each other as they settled in and the plane took off, as Yugi was content to watch the scenery and Kaiba appeared wrapped up in his own dark thoughts. At last, they were airborne and well underway, and there was nothing to watch outside the windows except sea and clouds. Yugi glanced briefly at Kaiba to see that he was still clearly not in any mood to be engaged, and simply curled up in his seat, taking off his duel disk in order to be more comfortable. He was still a bit tired, but wasn't sure that he could fall asleep on the plane with its rough flight and noisy engines. Roland returned to inform his boss what the pilot had said about how long it would take to fly back to Japan, and then added, more to Yugi, "May I get you anything to drink? Soda, coffee, latte?"

Yugi looked up in interest. "You have coffee drinks?"

"We have just about anything you could want. Mr. Kaiba?" he added.

"Regular coffee is fine," Seto muttered.

"Can I have…a mocha or something?" Yugi asked timidly.

"Right away." Roland nodded curtly and vanished into the forward cabin.

Yugi settled back down. "Cool. Hey…thanks, Kaiba."

Kaiba looked aloofly towards him. "You didn't have any more trouble, did you?"

"No…I haven't seen him. I should be okay…" Yugi rubbed the back of his head absently. "Though I think I have a bruise where he tried to knock me out."

Kaiba sighed shortly. "Dumbass. What did you open the door to him for, anyway? You should know better than to let strange men in your room late at night."

"It wasn't anything like that," Yugi protested, going silent for a moment as Roland returned with their drinks and then vanished as per his boss's wishes. "You see…earlier in the day, during our duel, he told me he had a crush on me and entered the tournament to meet me. I turned him down, I had to, but when he showed up later he said he just wanted to apologize to me. I couldn't say no to that, I had to let him have his say, but then he just went off." Yugi looked across at Kaiba while he was speaking and noted his rival's bored look directed away somewhere else. "And…you don't really care, do you?"

"Not particularly, no."

Yugi slumped in his seat and sipped at his mocha drink, hoping to comfort himself with the rich taste. Kaiba set his cup in the holder on the arm rest and folded his hands in his lap, but eventually he broke the sullen silence between them. "Your other half," he said heavily, barely above a murmur. "He's really some kind of spirit, is he?"

Yugi glanced up curiously, and found Kaiba gazing across at him with an inscrutable expression, his eyes serious but not cold. Yugi had to nod in response. "His name is Yami. Well, that's what I call him…he doesn't remember his real name. The Puzzle…" His hand curled around it, almost by instinct. "…well, his spirit is contained inside it. We've both told you all about this before, you just never believed us." He frowned questioningly. "Why now? Does this mean you're ready to believe me?"

"Mind tricks and illusions are one thing," Kaiba muttered. "But I can't discount something I've seen with my own eyes. I can either accept that he was real when I saw him, or I have to consider myself mentally ill and deal with the consequences of that conclusion. I'd much rather say fine, you have your little pharaoh spirit, than admit to being crazy and commit myself. That would be very bad for business." He toyed with his cup, not quite ready to drink his coffee yet but considering it. At least it kept him from looking straight at Yugi. "Mokuba always believed you. I'm not about to go around calling my little brother insane, no matter what I think of you and your stupid friends."

"Seeing Yami for who he is doesn't make you insane, Kaiba," Yugi tried to reason. "I know it's easy for you to dismiss us, because you don't like us, but you're right…Mokuba isn't stupid, and neither are you. If you can accept Yami's existence, that's more than enough. It might help certain things that have happened to us make sense."

Kaiba's expression flickered for just a moment, as memories dashed across his mind and were banished almost as quickly. He didn't want to think about the bizarre things that had happened to him in the past, that was far too much acceptance. He could stop with the existence of the spirit in the Puzzle. He finally took a gulp of his coffee and settled for changing the subject. "And now he can just appear out of thin air when you want him to fuck you?" he sniffed.

Yugi frowned even more deeply. Being insulted by his host was the price he had to pay for the hospitality, but that didn't mean he had to enjoy it. "It's not like that. He can only regain a body one day a month, on the full moon. Yes," he admitted, even though it made him blush bright red, "we like to have sex on those days, because we can. I don't see why I should make excuses to you about it."

"I don't see why you should, either," Kaiba shrugged. "I certainly don't care."

Yugi peered at him. "Then why do you want to know about him?"

Kaiba had no answer to that, and didn't even try to fake one. Yugi sipped at his sweet drink and went on after a moment, more seriously. "I would still feel the same about him even if he couldn't come out of the Puzzle. I don't pretend that it's a normal kind of relationship, but I stopped caring about being 'normal' a long time ago. In some ways, what we have is deeper, better. He's with me all the time, he never really goes away, and we both know what the other is thinking without having to say it."

Though he was listening, Kaiba kept his eyes lowered, seeming more interested in his coffee than the conversation. "It's a fantasy, Yugi," he said bitterly. "You have a fantasy relationship, that's all."

Yugi looked away, towards the windows bright with sunshine. "For anyone else, it would be," he said softly. "But for me it's real. You've seen us together, you can't scoff at it anymore."

Kaiba turned sullen eyes on him. "Fine. If that's the kind of life you want, you're welcome to it. Have fun with your imaginary lover."

Yugi tilted his head back against the headrest of his seat with a sigh. "Same old Kaiba. Just when you start showing signs of being nice to me, they disappear and it's back to being mean. I suppose I should just be thankful you're not still trying to buy out my grandpa's game shop or anything."

"About that…" Kaiba looked away again, clasping both hands around his coffee cup. "I don't intend to apologize to you or anything, because as far as I'm concerned, I did nothing wrong. But that phase of development is over for KaibaCorp, I found different ways of going about getting what I want. You and your grandfather don't have to cower in fear of me anymore…" A smirk began to awaken on his lips. "…at least on that account. You have other things to fear from me, I'm sure."

"I'm not afraid of you," Yugi said with a shake of his head. "I never have been. I just didn't understand what you were getting on about, or where you were going with your pursuit of our shop and Duke's. Nothing you could do or say to us was going to make us bend, I would never give in to you." He frowned thoughtfully. "What was it all about? Was it just to clear the competition away to make room for your KC game shops?"

"For the most part." Kaiba straightened up, taking on his businessman's air. "When the first franchises opened, I wanted them to be the one place people thought to go to for their gaming needs. Tokyo and Osaka were the only cities large enough to allow competitors to slide, I figured on closing out competition here and in other small cities just in time to open a KC shop in each, so people would be immediately drawn to them. But you and Devlin held out far too long, I couldn't waste any more time and had to simply go ahead with the construction plans regardless." His eyes narrowed slightly. "It had nothing to do with you personally, Yugi. Perhaps I took a little more delight in watching you squirm, but I didn't treat you any differently than any other competitor I needed to muscle out of my way."

Yugi sighed again. "That's good to know…I guess. The way Pegasus talked, he made it sound like you were up to something sinister. I knew you didn't like me but I didn't think you hated me that much, that you would do something criminal or violent to me over a game shop."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed even further, and his lip curled in a little growl. "You should be careful around Pegasus," he warned venomously. "You can't trust him, no matter what he says to you. Don't get too friendly with him, or you'll find yourself regretting it."

Yugi blinked in surprise at the fury in his voice. "I usually don't," he said hesitantly, "but you have to admit…you weren't giving me a reason not to take Pegasus at his word. You were doing exactly what he said you would."

Kaiba glared, but it wasn't meant for Yugi himself. "Is that why you took his money and let him plaster your face all over his posters?"

Yugi's shoulders slumped a little in resignation. "I needed the money," he admitted. "Between Grandpa's hospital bills and the damage from the typhoon, we were stretched pretty thin. It was the least I could do, to provide for the shop without having to go so far as to sell out to you. It's not because I want to trust Pegasus – I don't. In fact…" He looked up and met Kaiba's gaze with grim determination. "…now that I've won the championship, I don't need his money. The prize will be more than enough to keep us going. So, I'm not afraid of you and your KC game shop. A little competition is good."

Kaiba gave a little sniff and then allowed himself the barest of smiles. "Then you're going to stay in the game, and allow me to run you out of business the old fashioned way? I can't argue with that." The smile vanished just as quickly, making Yugi wonder if it had been merely an illusion. "As long as you've learned not to listen to Pegasus. The man is a self-serving snake, he would say anything to get you on his side so he can control you, and do anything he wants to you."

"Don't worry," Yugi assured, curious all over again at the seething anger Kaiba displayed when talking about Pegasus. "My association with Pegasus is over. I hope I don't have to rub shoulders with him again for a long time."

"Your endorsement deal ended with the tournament?"

"Yeah, it was over the minute the first duel started."

"You're sure of that? You looked over the contract and made sure there were no loopholes for him to keep using you against your will?"

"Yeah, I did…" Yugi frowned at him. "What's gotten you so worked up? It's not like I haven't dealt with Pegasus in the past, I know not to trust him. What did he do to piss you off this time?"

"Yugi…" An unpleasant wince twitched across Kaiba's features, having the effect of making him look like he was in pain. He sat in silence for a moment, as if contemplating whether or not to answer the question, and then sighed. "It's none of your business. Just be content knowing that you've narrowly escaped his clutches and you'd better keep a wary eye out for him. I don't care what kind of help his money is to you, you would have been better off selling your shop to me."

Yugi's frown deepened. "I don't think so," he retorted. "I still have my shop and my pride, this way. Fine, don't tell me," he huffed, folding his arms. "I don't know why I even try being friendly to you. I just thought if you had something to say, you'd feel like saying it to my face. We're safe here, aren't we?"

Another painful wince from Kaiba. "I can't," he said darkly. "You're better off not knowing."

"Oh, come on, now." Yugi quieted his tone somewhat, eyeing Kaiba curiously. "There's something the matter. I wish you could just trust me for once. I'm not here to hurt you."

Kaiba got up from his seat and went to the curtained doorway that separated their private compartment from the next section of the plane, peeking briefly through it to assure himself that his staff was nowhere close enough to overhear anything spoken. Satisfied, he moved slowly back towards his seat, keeping his head down and eyes averted away from Yugi as he spoke in a hush. "He had sex with me," he bluntly stated. "The night I arrived in Hong Kong."

Shocked into silence, Yugi could only stare at him for a long moment, waiting for a smirk to curve Kaiba's lips and then a retraction on the grounds of it being a joke. It never came. All Yugi could do was whisper, "Kaiba," in awe.

"He took advantage of me," Kaiba clarified, his voice still low and raw as he stood next to his seat, resting one hand on the wall. "He found a weakness and exploited it. I have no one to blame but myself, I gave in. I let him do it. And now…" He grimaced for a brief second. "…it's haunting me. I don't know why I did it, I didn't enjoy it. The whole tournament, I kept thinking that if I succeeded, if I got to the final round, what if he decided to use it against me, to invalidate my victory? In my desperation, I may have given him the one thing he needs to destroy me, destroy my company…everything I value."

Yugi continued to stare at him, pity awakening in his heart the more he heard, the more he took in the sight of Seto Kaiba leaning against the wall, eyes lowered, brow furrowed, hand trembling. It had been a very long time since he had seen such vulnerability in his rival. "Kaiba," he said at last, keeping his voice quiet. "I'm so sorry. I…I don't know what to say."

Kaiba closed his eyes briefly. "I may not have had my head in the game," he murmured, "but I'm not going to use this as an excuse. I failed, plain and simple. It was my own fault, no one made me lose. No matter what I was thinking about, or dreading, I won't excuse my failure like it somehow entitles me to a do-over or something. I just have to pick up and move forward, and leave the past behind." His eyes opened enough to glare at the floor, while his hand at his side formed into a fist. "I just don't know how to do that when I can't get it out of my head. I hate myself for what I did."

Yugi knew it wasn't his right to judge Kaiba for his choice, but somewhere inside him he couldn't help but be a little repulsed by the concept of Kaiba and Pegasus. He gazed concernedly up at his rival. "That wasn't…Kaiba, you didn't lose your virginity to him, did you?" he asked in a whisper.

Seto's answer was only to close his eyes and nod once. Pity crowded out the disgust, making Yugi clap a hand over his mouth and continue in his most sympathetic tone. "Oh no…I'm…I'm sorry, Kaiba. That's…unfortunate to hear. I don't know your reasons, but…to have your first time be so…" He looked up to Kaiba worriedly. "Was it awful? No, no, you don't have to answer that," he said immediately. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to pry. It's your business, not mine."

Kaiba pushed himself away from the wall and straightened up, facing Yugi, though his eyes were still dark and his face still cold. "I consented," he murmured. "And now I regret it. That's all you need to know."

Yugi watched him sit back down in his seat and slump with his hands in his lap, staring at the floor at his feet. "I'm sorry," he said again. "But…it does explain a lot. It's no surprise that it bothered you so much that you didn't have your head in the tournament at all. You're good at playing through distractions, but…that just goes beyond anything."

"I didn't tell you so you could feel sorry for me," Kaiba grumbled.

"Then why did you tell me? You could have kept this as your secret, like all of your life."

Kaiba frowned to himself. "I…don't know," he mumbled. "I couldn't bear it any longer. I had to get it off my chest. At least you…" He flicked Yugi a brief direct look. "…you're the loyal kind. You won't go spreading it around to anyone."

"No, no, I won't," Yugi assured. "You have my promise, Kaiba." He clasped his hands and leaned forward a little. "Are you going to be all right?"

Kaiba propped one elbow on his knee and rested his head in his hand, but he murmured, "I'm fine. I just have to get over it. Somehow."

Yugi gave him the smallest of encouraging smiles. "Well, it's not like you're the only person in the world to have made a mistake, or had a bad first time. It happens. And lots of people get over it just fine."

Seto raised his head and eyed him suspiciously. "Easy for you to say," he growled. "I bet yours wasn't anything like this."

"Well, no," Yugi shyly admitted. "Yami was my first, and my only, and every time it's…the best. I'm just saying…" He sighed shortly and tried a different tactic. "So you made a bad choice. You're not perfect. If you hadn't realized that by now, maybe it's time. You made a mistake, but it's up to you to decide if you're going to let it ruin your life, or learn from it." He frowned curiously. "Do you think Pegasus is really capable of blackmailing you over it?"

Kaiba shook his head. "No one knows what the old man is capable of. I don't think he will in the near future, but it will always be there, rearing its ugly head when I least expect it."

"That's terrible," Yugi lamented. "But as long as it was only once, it's easier to chalk it up to an indiscretion and move on. You have to. Otherwise, he wins."

Kaiba glared at him. "And how does one just 'move on' from the stupidest mistake of his life? You have no idea how disgusted I am with myself for submitting to the pressure. I'm better than that, I know I am."

"We all are," Yugi shrugged. "But that doesn't stop us from occasionally doing stupid things even though we know better. That, I can say from experience." He sat back and rested a hand on the Puzzle, weighing what he wanted to say before speaking again. As long as Kaiba was still sitting there, morose and stoic, he was listening to anything Yugi might say. "As long as I've known you, you've always been about putting your past behind you and making your own future. I guess this is no different. I'm sorry you feel so horrible, and this wrecked your whole week, but I'm glad you decided to trust me and talk to me, so you can get it off your chest. Maybe now it'll be easier for you to move on, instead of keeping it all locked up inside you."

Kaiba heaved a long sigh, lowering his head again. "You're good at spouting useless platitudes, Yugi. You should write fortune cookies or something."

Yugi decided to chuckle at that. "I don't always have it together, Kaiba, no matter what it looks like. But I have learned some things, about people. About relationships." He looked away, towards the little square of blue sky framed in the window. "Don't let this awful experience ruin every chance you might have at happiness later in life. It's not the end of the world. You should just…go on being you, doing whatever you want, because it's your life. Maybe you weren't ready for it yet, but you're an adult – you can make your own choices for yourself. You don't have to bend to pressure from anyone. Just live your life as it comes. And maybe, someday…the right one will come out of nowhere." He sighed wistfully, aware that Kaiba had picked up his head and was staring at him, but still listening. "That's all you can do, really. There's no sense trying to make it happen, or sitting around pining for it. It'll sneak up on you, and probably where you least expect it. Maybe it's somebody you already know, who you start seeing in a different light. Maybe it's someone new you run into on the street and suddenly your life changes. Who knows? It's best just to live your life with no expectations, and let it happen when it's right. I'm glad I did," he added, "or I never would have thought to give Yami a chance."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed. "I don't need anyone, Yugi," he grumbled. "I'm perfectly content with being a loner. That's just who I am."

"If you say so," Yugi said kindly. "It's your life, and you don't consider me your friend so you probably don't care what I say anyway. I just hope that you don't pass up the chance at happiness when it comes your way. No matter who it is – a girl or a guy. If someone comes into your life and likes you for you, I hope you don't push them away just because it's not what you thought you would want, or because you think you don't need it."

"You're right," Kaiba said heavily. "I don't consider you my friend. I didn't ask for your advice."

"I know. But I'm giving it anyway." Yugi chanced another smile. "I just don't like to see anyone hurting for any reason, when they can obviously choose something that makes them happy. You'll probably ignore everything I've said, I expect it. I just hope that someday, when the chance springs up in your face, you won't miss out."

"Yeah, well…" Kaiba looked away uncomfortably, and after a moment reached beside his seat to pull out his briefcase. "As long as you don't repeat anything said here to anyone else, that's all I need."

"No, I won't. I'll keep your secret, no problem. It's nobody's business except yours…and maybe any future partner you might get involved with." Yugi watched him open up his briefcase and pop up the laptop inside to turn it on. "Got work to do?"

"I don't know about you, but when I land in Domino, I have a company to run," Kaiba said curtly. "I've wasted enough time on this stupid tournament."

Yugi gazed at him a while, as he booted up the computer and his hands began clicking across the keyboard. "It's going to be okay," Yugi softly breathed. "You'll get through it. You're strong. If there's anyone I know who can stand up to Pegasus and not back down…it's you."

Kaiba flicked a sullen glance his way. "That's easy for you to say. You can't find a bad thing to say about anyone."

"Well, I don't have any good things to say about the psycho nutcase who tried to rape me last night," Yugi sighed. "I hope he doesn't turn into a full-fledged stalker now."

"Anyone who knows Duel Monsters knows you live in Domino," Kaiba said wryly. "As long as you haven't forgotten how to pick up a phone and call the police. Or maybe just sic Katsuya on him." He smirked darkly over his briefcase cover. "He may not be good for much except punching faces in, at least you have that."

Yugi rolled his eyes. "He better not punch any faces in. I told him about it this morning, before I left, so he would know why I wasn't on the plane. But I hope I don't find out that he caused some kind of altercation on the flight home." Seeing that Kaiba was definitely intent on getting to work, Yugi fumbled around his seat to find the latch that would let him recline it, and settled down for the long flight home. Kaiba seemed glad to have been left in peace and quiet at last, for his angry expression eased considerably as he lost himself in his work, silently typing away at some document on his laptop. Yugi glanced at him occasionally, only because there was nothing else in the cabin to look at. It was clear to Yugi that his rival was starting to feel the sting of his long loneliness, but there was nothing more he could say to lobby for the positive aspects of love and friendship. That was something Kaiba would have to discover on his own, when and if he was ready. Yugi closed his eyes, contemplating a nap, while his thoughts turned inward for his partner spirit to share. The poor guy. Before this week started, I was all set for a big confrontation in the dueling arena, and the two of us butting heads. But now…I can't help but feel for him. Everything's so clear to me now. He may not want a friend… He peeked across at Kaiba, who sat with his head down and attention focused solely on his work. But he's going to get one.