Chapter 12: Draw

Perhaps it was the familiarity of the location or the fact that he was actually having a decent conversation with Yami, but somehow Kaiba found himself gradually relaxing and becoming more at ease as the evening progressed. When Yami wasn't being preachy or perverted, he actually made for decent company—not that Kaiba would ever tell him that. Rolling the stem of his water glass between his fingers, he passively watched Yami who seemed a bit calmer now that he had some food in him. They had once again returned to the subject of what had occurred at Yuugi's, but none of Kaiba's previous irritation was present at the moment. It helped that they didn't have to worry about eavesdroppers in this private backroom; otherwise he never would have allowed such a conversation to occur in public. "He actually said something like that?" he asked, snorting in disbelief.

"You do enjoy holding tournaments," Yami pointed out, having competed in several of them.

"I'd rather participate in them," Kaiba told him truthfully. Planning a tournament took a massive effort and consumed a lot of time and resources; it was worth it for the publicity and driving up sales, but the personal satisfaction of dueling was usually sacrificed.

"Still," Yami said thoughtfully, tilting his head slightly, "it's not a bad idea, I think."

Even though the suggestion had come from that third rate amateur Jounouchi, Kaiba had to admit it was a tantalizing idea and his brain was already formulating ideas about it, even though he still had plenty of reservations. "Holding an entire tournament just so you and Yuugi can duel on a public stage isn't very practical whenever you can just battle it out at his grandfather's place. Why should I involve my company in such a selfish display?"

Despite Kaiba's disparaging words, Yami could tell by the look in his eyes that he was already giving the matter some serious consideration. "It would settle who is the true King of Games," Yami stated, knowing that Kaiba wanted an answer to that matter.

"Everyone thinks it's Yuugi's title," Kaiba countered, "so why would anyone think that you had any claim to it? Besides, it would seem a little suspicious to have you appear out of nowhere and suddenly take on the reigning champion, especially since you haven't technically competed in a single official competition."

"But if I told them that I was Yuugi's—"

Stopping him, Kaiba asked, "Don't you think the press would look into that? And what would they find? No records, no proof that you were who you said you were."

"Yes, but if aibou—"

"It wouldn't matter what Yuugi said at that point, either. The whole thing would turn into a chaotic scandal that I'd rather avoid dragging my company through, thanks."

Yami couldn't help but be a little discouraged at that; he had seen enough of the programs that provided coverage of the duels to know just how much detail they offered about duelists. He also had to consider how it would affect his aibou to duel him in an event as grand as a Kaiba Corporation sponsored one, since it would certainly be an emotional fight for them both. "I still think it was a good idea," Yami said with a shrug.

"Not a very practical one."

"You were tempted by it for a moment, though."

With a smug expression, Kaiba's voice took on its usual arrogant inflection as he replied, "Tempted by the prospect of defeating you and take the title for myself with everyone watching? Of course."

"Oh? So you think that I would win over aibou?"

A quiet knock on the door interrupted them before Kaiba could respond to the question. Instead, he called out, "Enter," although Yami couldn't help but notice it lacked a commanding tone. If he thought that was strange, seeing Kaiba rise with a small smile on his face as he warmly greeted, "Ah, Sakaguchi-san," was downright bizarre. He hadn't thought Kaiba was capable of using a suffix that wasn't derogatory and he had years of evidence as proof of his convictions. It made Yami instantly curious about the middle-aged man who had entered the room.

Clasping hands with Kaiba, Sakaguchi had a broad grin on his face as he said, "Seto-ch—" stopping once he noticed Yami in the room. "Seto-kun! It's been awhile, hasn't it? Busy as usual, I take it?"

Did he just start to call him Seto-chan? Yami thought in utter disbelief. He couldn't wait to hear Kaiba try and explain this display. Who was this man?

"The new prototype we're developing isn't coming along as well as we had hoped, so things have been a little hectic," Kaiba replied, ignoring Yami's wide-eyed expression.

"You really do need to take better care of yourself," Sakaguchi lightly reprimanded, "and get some sleep. You look exhausted."

Covering his mouth to hold back a snicker at the comment, Yami was completely captivated by what he was seeing. Especially since Kaiba's response was simply, "Yes, well…"

Waving it away, Sakaguchi brightly continued, "Enough of that, eh? You didn't come here to be lectured by this old man and I know that if you're here, you're at least eating. Where's Mokuba-chan tonight?"

It hadn't escaped Kaiba's attention that Yami was actively restraining his amusement, but at least it hadn't attracted Sakaguchi-san's quite yet. "He's staying at a friend's house tonight," Kaiba informed him.

"He's growing up so fast, isn't he?" Sakaguchi said wistfully before cheering up once more. "Still, it's good that he's making friends, ne?"

Even if he didn't necessarily like certain members of the Yuugi-tachi, they at least genuinely cared about his younger brother and looked after him. At least if Mokuba had friends, it meant Kaiba had done something right while trying to raise his brother. "Ah."

"And it allows big brother to have a night out, hm?" Sakaguchi teased playfully with a nod in Yami's direction. Laughing at Kaiba's wordless protest, he began making his way over to Yami. "Forgive my rudeness and late introduction! I'm Sakaguchi Yuusuke, owner of this restaurant."

Kaiba had been expecting something like this to happen, but he still found himself becoming tense about the situation. He shot a deadly glare at Yami, but it went unnoticed as Yami rose to shake Sakaguchi's hand. "Mutou Yami. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sakaguchi-san."

Looking him over, Sakaguchi seemed puzzled for a moment. "Yami, you say?"

"I'm related to Yuugi," Yami said, forgoing the exact relation since him and his aibou had yet to agree on what he should be.

"Ah! That explains it, then, but really—what a striking resemblance you two have! I take it you met Seto-ch—kun through him?" Sakaguchi asked, almost slipping again.

"Yes, I met him at one of Yuugi's duels," Yami explained, hoping that it didn't ruin Kaiba's early decent mood. They hadn't exactly been on the best of terms at that duel, after all. But at least it's not a lie, Yami thought to himself, getting the impression that doing so to this man would not be a wise decision.

Approaching the pair slowly, Kaiba was still feeling apprehensive, but so far it seemed to be going well enough. At least he thought so until Sakaguchi asked, "So tell me: how exactly did you manage to pull Seto-chan away from his work? If Mokuba-chan isn't around, it's neigh impossible to get him to stop." If Yami so much as says one weird thing, he's dead, Kaiba thought, only to hear Sakaguchi tell him, "Come now, there's no need to make that face, Seto-chan!"

Between Sakaguchi's words and the sudden confused expression on Kaiba's face, Yami couldn't back his laughter. He figured Kaiba would be mad as hell later, but it was so worth it for such a priceless experience, Yami decided. Recovering, Yami quickly said, "To answer your question, Seto-chan and I," Yami said, unable to resist, "were just talking and I got hungry, so he brought me here."

Oh, we were "just" talking? Conveniently skipping over the sexual harassment part, are we? Kaiba thought, feeling a violent urge to get rid of the grin on Yami's face. "Yes, well Yami-chan," Kaiba shot back with a glare that only ended up making Yami laugh harder, "was being quite annoying about being fed, so I was eager to stop his whining."

"I'd hardly call that whining," Yami retorted, having recovered from his fit of laughter. "I'm glad he brought me here, though. The meal really was wonderful, Sakaguchi-san."

"Ah, that makes me happy to hear! Although I must admit, I was shocked to see someone other than Mokuba-chan here. He's never brought anyone over before," Sakaguchi told Yami. "You must be quite special, ne?"

If it had been anyone else, Kaiba would have laid waste to them, but he could only ask in a mildly exasperated tone, "Please don't fill his head with such stupid ideas, Sakaguchi-san, he has enough of them as it is."

Leaning over to Yami and stage-whispering conspiratorially behind his hand, Sakaguchi said, "Don't mind him, he's just embarrassed."

"Sakaguchi-san!" Kaiba exclaimed, surprised by this behavior. It didn't help his case any that a mild blush had appeared on his cheeks, so instead of protesting, Kaiba switched into defensive mode. "Anyone would be embarrassed at that," he finally mumbled. To Yami's credit, he said nothing and held back his laughter; only his shinning eyes gave away his amusement.

"Fine, fine, I can take the hint," Sakaguchi said with a chuckle, "but it's so rare for this old man to see Seto-chan like this."

Keeping his voice level, Kaiba tersely replied, "There's a reason for that."

Completely unperturbed by Kaiba's tone, he looked down at Yami kindly with a smile, as he asked, "I take it this is your doing?"

"More like his fault," Kaiba muttered, crossing his arms over his chest.

Ignoring Kaiba's reply, Yami simply said, "Ah," as he studied the look in Sakaguchi's eyes. He still couldn't figure out how this person was related to Kaiba, but it was evident that he cared for him greatly and had known him for quite some time. Sakaguchi obviously had to be someone important to Kaiba, otherwise he never would have been allowed to live after a tenth of the things he had done this evening. But it begged the question: why had Kaiba brought him here and let him meet Sakaguchi?

"Then I should thank you, Yami-chan."

"Thank him!" Kaiba repeated in disbelief. "Why? He's an annoying, arrogant, irritating, preachy idiot who never lets me have a moment's rest! And don't grin like that, you bastard!"

The final comment only made Yami's grin grow broader as an idea came into his mind. He figured Kaiba wouldn't tell him much about Sakaguchi, so he may as well take this opportunity to figure out as much about the man as possible. "What kind of rival would I be if I weren't those things?" Yami asked smugly, setting his plan into motion.

"Worthless," came Kaiba's immediate response, "I have no time to waste on—"

"Exactly," Yami said with a triumphant smirk. The fact that Yami had just inadvertently made Kaiba state that he had some value did not go unnoticed by Sakaguchi who was watching the exchange with raised eyebrows and a sense of bemusement. "So what's your complaint?"

"My complaint? My complaint?"

"Care to settle it with a duel?" Yami suggested, although he hadn't brought his deck with him, but that was a minor detail. Besides, this was more about seeing Sakaguchi's reaction to Kaiba's response; the dueling could occur once they returned back to Kaiba's mansion. Although in truth, he had been eager to have one since that day in the arena when his aibou had gone up against Kaiba.

Drawing himself up to his full height with a smirk, all previous embarrassment forgotten, Kaiba's attitude returned full force as he became completely caught up with the current moment. "Hn. That eager to lose to me?"

Going toe to toe with Kaiba's arrogance, Yami challenged, "Are you that confident that you'll defeat me?"

"Ha! As if there were any doubt about that!" Kaiba boasted, already feeling the excitement of the impending battle. He probably had some Duel Disks in the trunk of his car and if that was true, then they could settle the matter right now. "I'm the only one capable of defeating you! Only me!"

"So you keep saying. I'll look forward to it later, then."

"Later?" Kaiba asked with a short laugh. "Running away, are you?"

"No, but I sincerely doubt that Sakaguchi-san's customers are interested in hearing us yell at each other for hours while we duel," Yami pointed out, watching as Kaiba came back into the awareness that there were others in their world besides just the two of them.

Blinking, he returned his attention to their surroundings and scowled in disappointment and frustration. "Fine," he said dejectedly, "but once we're back at the house, I'll have you regretting that you ever challenged me!"

"Heh, I wonder about that," Yami replied smugly, waiting to see the older man's response.

Sakaguchi couldn't help but stare at Yami in wonder, amazed at the way he had knowingly distracted Kaiba's attention and given him an outlet for his awkward emotions without the other suspecting a thing. And not only that, but the way in which everything else disappeared for them fascinated the older man. He had seen Kaiba absorbed into many things, mostly his work, but he had never seen him so thoroughly engaged with another person that everything else just became scenery. Sakaguchi had no idea how Yami had become so skilled at handling such a rough boy, but he found himself deeply grateful, regardless. It was evident that Kaiba was oblivious to the importance of someone like Yami in his life, but the fact that Kaiba lowered his guard in front of another spoke volumes, even more so since he seemed to be unaware of it.

The only word that he could think of to describe Kaiba at that moment was, "alive," and it brought him great joy. That boy had spent far too much of his life cut off from everything and it was reassuring to see him starting to open up, even if he still had a long road ahead of him. Laughing heartily, he finally said, "Ah, this old man can finally rest easy now."

"Sakaguchi-san?" Kaiba asked, completely confused as to where a statement such as that had originated.

Placing his hand on Yami's shoulder, Sakaguchi smiled warmly at him, searching those scarlet eyes for some answer. Whatever it was, he found it and he gave a reassuring squeeze before taking his hand off and saying soft enough so that only Yami could hear, "Please keeping taking care of him, ne? Yami-chan."

When Yami nodded in silent agreement, watching as something akin to relief passed through Sakaguchi's countenance, Kaiba could no longer keep silent. "You know how much I dislike cryptic nonsense, Sakaguchi-san," Kaiba said firmly. When Yami started chuckling, it set Kaiba off again, "And what the hell are you laughing at?"

"Consider it an old man's right," Sakaguchi told him.

"You're not that old."

"Old enough," he replied with a grin, "but I should probably let you two get back to your evening, hm?"

Figuring that Kaiba would have words for Sakaguchi that Yami had no place in hearing, he decided to temporarily remove himself with the only reason he could think of at the moment. "Actually, I was wondering if you could tell me where the restrooms are?"

Giving the shorter man an appreciative look, Sakaguchi told him, "Left out the door, all the way at the end of the hall, the second door on the right."

"Thanks," he said and graciously slipped out the door. Closing it behind him, he could only shake his head in amazement as he began walking down the hall. Somehow he got the feeling that Kaiba hadn't expected an evening quite like this one, but then again, neither had Yami.

At the sound of the door shutting, Kaiba finally couldn't hold his tongue any longer. "Sakaguchi-san, what in the world has—"

Smiling, he held up his hand to stop Kaiba mid rant. "I'm sorry for teasing you that much in front of another, Seto-chan," he apologized, "but I assumed since you had brought a friend here—"

This time it was Kaiba who interrupted as he vehemently denied, "He is not my friend."

"No?" Sakaguchi asked, sounding highly unconvinced. "What is he then?"

"An obnoxious, pain in the—"

"Besides that," Sakaguchi said, knowing that if anyone was able to evenly match Kaiba, those traits had to be present somewhere within them, even if it wasn't always apparent.

Scowling, Kaiba finally settled on, "A rival, that's all," still mentally adding a few more colorful adjectives.

"Better a rival than an enemy, ne?"

Kaiba started to respond, but paused as the meaning of the words sunk into his mind. Shrugging it off, he simply said, "It's the same thing with him."

Sakaguchi could tell better, though and told him, "That boy is not your enemy, Seto."

"Even if he's not, that still doesn't change the fact that he's an infuriating—"

Interrupting a potential tirade once more, Sakaguchi asked Kaiba, "If that's true, then why did you bring him here?"

"He's easily mistaken for Yuugi and I didn't want the press to think that I went out to dinner with him instead," Kaiba explained, knowing that the tabloids would no doubt have a field day with such a scoop. "I knew that we would be safe here."

Sakaguchi still felt a surge of pride in knowing that even after all of this time, Kaiba continued to trust him enough in situations like this. "Is that the only reason?"

"What other is there?"

"You've had other dinners that required a high level of secrecy for whatever reason, yes?"

"Plenty," Kaiba replied, thinking of all the deals that had been delicately negotiated over dinners for his company, "but what does that have to do with this?"

Patiently spelling it out, Sakaguchi continued, "Not once have you ever had any of them here, correct?"

"Yes, but—"

"So why him?"

Kaiba didn't see why it was such a big deal and he nonchalantly replied, "This was just the first place that I could think of, that's all."

"You had to have known that I would say something, Seto-chan. Doesn't it show that you trust him enough to show him this side of yourself?" Sakaguchi asked softly.

"How does bringing someone to a restaurant prove that?"

Sighing, he merely said, "Seto."

Relenting a little, Kaiba finally started, "He's just so damn…."

"Perceptive?" Sakaguchi suggested.

Kaiba finally settled on, "Persistent."

"He pushes all of your buttons, right?"

His laugh was somewhat bitter as Kaiba said, "Every chance he gets."

"Doesn't that mean he understands how you work, then?"

"The bastar—wait, what? What do you mean by that?"

Before Sakaguchi could reply, a knock interrupted the conversation and he called out, "Come in," noticing the way Kaiba continued to bristle. It was fine as it was; after all, it wasn't like Kaiba was going to suddenly understand everything just because of one conversation.

"Sorry to interrupt," Yami said as he reentered, hoping that it had been enough time. Although judging by the troubled look on Kaiba's face, maybe it had been a little too much time.

Curious, Sakaguchi couldn't help but question, "Yami, may I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"What's the difference between an enemy and a rival?"

Kaiba started to protest, "This is not a philosophy cla—" but was cut off by Yami's answer.

"I think an enemy is someone you defeat and a rival is someone that you compete with," Yami replied, looking straight at Kaiba as he finished with, "isn't that right, Kaiba?"

"Hn. No matter what the person is called, I will defeat anyone who stands in my way," Kaiba told him, narrowing his eyes as he did so.

At least he could be comforted that one of them understood, Sakaguchi decided with a wry grin. "As much as I'm enjoying this, I really should be getting back to work."

Nodding in understanding, Kaiba said, "Thank you for accommodating us on such short notice."

"Oh, it was no problem!" Sakaguchi reassured him. "You're always welcome here, you know that. Besides, I got to meet Yami-chan, so it was my pleasure. Next time be sure to bring Mokuba-chan, though. I had Nakamura-san come up with a new desert that I think he'll like."

"I'll do that," Kaiba said, knowing that at least Mokuba would be thrilled to hear that. Although that meant explaining why he had gone to Sakaguchi's restaurant without him…

"And hopefully we'll meet again, Yami-chan," Sakaguchi told him, sincerely hoping that he'd see the boy once more. "Even if Seto-chan refuses to bring you back after my behavior tonight."

Yami couldn't help but laugh at that as he said, "Thank you," knowing that there was a high probability that Kaiba would try and prevent him from ever meeting up with Sakaguchi again.

Looking Yami straight in the eyes, Sakaguchi said, "No, thank you," hoping that the younger man would understand the underlying meaning. The smile he received made him think that it had. "Until next time, ne?"

Shaking his hand once more, Kaiba said, "Take care, Sakaguchi-san."

Exchanging a few more words before heading outside, Kaiba and Yami finally made their way to the car, although Yami was the only one smiling. Kaiba's mind was too filled with questions to think of much else and so they began the drive back in silence, Yami looking out the window at the passing lights to entertain himself. Finally Kaiba asked irritably, "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"Should I?"

"I know you want to."

"Doesn't mean that I should, though," Yami countered.

Kaiba didn't have anything to say back to that, so he continued driving, never taking his eyes from the road. As wordless miles went by, Kaiba once again broke the silence as he asked in disbelief, "You're not going to ask anything?"

"No."

That answer was enough to cause Kaiba to look over, but Yami was still studying the view outside of his window. "I find that hard to believe," he said with a snort, returning his attention to the road.

Turning to look at Kaiba's profile, Yami simply told him, "If you want to tell me, you'll tell me. If not, then it's none of my business, is it?"

"Damn straight," Kaiba replied, although he was still put off by the reaction. He knew that Yami had to be curious about what had occurred, but nothing in the other's appearance gave that away.

"I'm glad that I got to meet him, though," Yami finally volunteered.

"Hn, I'll bet," Kaiba said tersely.

"And not for the reason you're assuming, either."

Once again looking in Yami's direction, he noticed that the other's eyes were intently focused on him, but he was unable to read the expression in them. Returning his gaze to the road ahead, he could only say, "Is that so?"

"He's nice," Yami began after some more time in silence, "and it's obvious that he likes you and Mokuba a lot, that he's known you for a long time."

"Hn."

The reaction was enough to make Yami decide to add, "He seems to understand you. Besides, it's good to know that someone else cares so deeply for you."

At Yami's final sentence, Kaiba quickly looked over at him, but Yami had once again resumed looking at the lights. That someone else cares so deeply? That someone else cares? Kaiba repeated in his mind, his thoughts racing to try and understand the meaning behind them. Surely he wasn't implying that he…? No, surely he must have meant Mokuba.

"You don't need to worry, though."

"About?" Kaiba asked, finding his throat somewhat dry.

"It doesn't change anything," Yami said with a shrug. "It was…good to see that side of you, but it wasn't anything that I wasn't already aware of, Kaiba."

Stopping the car at a light, Kaiba once again looked over and found Yami staring at him unwaveringly, his face illuminated by the red light overhead. It lent Yami an almost feral appearance as he smirked up at Kaiba and he found himself unable to move. There was just something so…? Kaiba didn't know the word for it; all he knew was that he couldn't take his eyes off of him in that moment and for some reason it was harder to breathe. When Yami's tongue darted out to wet his lips, Kaiba almost found his word, but the light turned green and he had to tear his gaze away to focus straight ahead as the car resumed its journey. What the hell was that? he wondered as he tried to figure out why his heart seemed to be beating a little bit faster.

Yami had been expecting an entirely different reaction than the one he had received, that was for certain. Had he seen a trace of desire in Kaiba's eyes or was it just a trick of the light? He wasn't able to confirm one way or the other as the silence once again extended and Yami quickly grew disinterested and returned his gaze to the darkened city that was passing by them.

Kaiba almost wished that Yami had asked him all sorts of questions; it would have given him a reason to blow up, to angrily explain why the other had no place to ask such things of him. And yet, when he was confronted by an understanding and almost respectful silence, it bothered him even more. It just leant more evidence to Sakaguchi's words and it made Kaiba feel deeply unsettled. Gripping the steering wheel tightly, Kaiba found himself haltingly saying under his breath, "He…he was one of my instructors." After all, it wasn't like that was such a big deal, right? Besides, Yami had some idea about Kaiba's past because of everything that happened during the Battle City tournament, so what would another minor detail matter?

He had honestly not been expecting any answers, but Yami was pleased that he was finally going to find out about Sakaguchi. Tilting his head to indicate that he was listening, Yami made no other gestures and carefully kept his eyes adverted from Kaiba for fear of ending the explanation early. He could catch a faint reflection of him in the glass and he focused on that as he listened intently.

Without those bright crimson eyes pinning him under their gaze, Kaiba found it a little easier to speak, a little easier to pretend that he was just talking out loud to himself. Simple, to the point, and without revealing too much, Kaiba finally continued, "He was, as you said, the only one who cared. In his own way, he protected us as best he could and I will always remember that."

So Sakaguchi had been one of his tutors during his life under Gozaburo? Despite what little Yami knew about their life with their stepfather, he could easily understand how someone like him had become a refuge for Kaiba and Mokuba. Resting his chin in his hand and his elbow on the windowsill, Yami guessed, "You helped him establish that restaurant, didn't you?"

"What?" Kaiba asked, puzzled by that being Yami's first comment after such a revelation. "What makes you think that?"

"That's just the kind of person you are, Seto," Yami stated, noticing that they were drawing closer to the mansion. It made perfect sense to him that Kaiba had rewarded probably the only person who had ever shown him and his younger brother any kindness during those times. "It probably had always been his dream to open one and you made it happen, right?"

How could he possibly have figured something like that out? Kaiba wondered, shocked that Yami had managed to draw such a conclusion so quickly. Sakaguchi had said that Yami was perceptive, and Kaiba knew that there was some amount of truth to that observation, but he still was mildly impressed. Revealing none of that, he simply said, "Ah," as they pulled into entryway of the mansion's gates and waited for them to be opened.

Debating about whether or not to ask, Yami finally decided as they pulled into the garage that it wouldn't hurt. "Hey, Kaiba?"

"Hm?" he answered, shutting off the engine and getting out of the car.

Exiting as well, Yami leaned against the car, resting his forearms on the roof of it. "What did he teach?"

"Philosophy."

"He didn't by any chance teach you how to cook, did he?" Yami asked hopefully, grinning broadly.

Turning his back to the other, he began making his way to the door, aware of the fact that Yami was following close behind him. "I am not making you anything."

"I wonder about that…"

A/N: I haven't been this nervous about posting a chapter since my first one! I generally avoid original characters like the plague, but this was again, a product of the airplane. Gotta love long fights, long lasting batteries, and too much time to think. But, it always struck me as strange that Kaiba chose Alcatraz as the place for the final rounds of Battle City, even more so in the anime. The place had a deeply personal meaning and revealed a great deal about his past, but he still allowed people he supposedly distained there to witness everything. Of course, it was also deeply intertwined with Yami (Oh, Roman Coliseum, how you make me laugh). Therefore, I didn't think it would be beyond the realm of possibility for Kaiba to choose a restaurant that he had a personal connection with. Especially since he would want to show it off to a degree, having helped establish it, I would think. Not that he would ever admit it, of course.

As for Sakaguchi, it was another matter of psychology for me. Even as strong and self-aware as Kaiba was as a child, he was still a child with impossible demands placed upon him. Yes, he had his brother, but I would think that the comfort would be tempered by the fact that his brother was used as a threat against him. It didn't change the fact that he trusted Mokuba—it was Gozaburo and that creepy ass butler who would always threaten to send Mokuba back to the orphanage. If Gozaburo wanted to control Seto, denying him the ability to see Mokuba would have to be a frequently used tactic, I would think. And if Seto couldn't see him, there would have to be a fear of, "Maybe he really did send Mokuba back." It is hard to work for a future whenever everything is so bleak that there almost seems no point to it and how does a child keep moving on?

There would have to be something else to keep him going, something that he knew couldn't be revoked. Games, his brother, they were all things that were always thrown into question. But a tutor, having been chosen by Gozaburo, would almost be guaranteed to be around indefinitely, I would think. Gozaburo was a man of enough pride that he would seek out people worthy enough to help Seto reach the top, and once chosen, short of blatant insubordination, they would continue to be employed. And I'm pretty sure that, "Do you like to abuse others?" wasn't on the job application. XD

Enter Sakaguchi. Philosophy actually has a lot of practical uses in the business world, and it also has the added benefit of having coping mechanisms that could help Seto form a mindset of survival. Plus, in the first episode he's reading Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, and I'm pretty sure that wasn't standard Domino High reading. XD

But as a teacher, I imagine Sakaguchi would be strict enough to make sure that the lessons were learned, but he would probably be the only one to show kindness. Also the only one wise enough to show it behind closed doors so as not to tip anyone off – but think about how little Gozaburo would actually be around the house. I think a young Seto would still be highly distrusting of someone like Sakaguchi, but at the same time be drawn to him. As a child, he would inherently want the safety of a father figure that wasn't abusing the hell out of him with whips, and I could imagine that at the times whenever Mokuba was held hostage, Sakaguchi could pass on whatever knowledge he managed to let him know that his younger brother was fine. Why I had an image of a minor character having a tryst with one of the house maids who was in charge of making Mokuba's bed (we're just leaving that one alone, gah) that made that possible, I don't really know.

The point is, I think through the philosophy, he would gain the coping mechanisms necessary to survive in such an environment. It explains why it's at times highly brutal (Machiavelli's The Prince, anyone?), but almost always logical. And Kaiba is very big on the distancing himself from his past through actions, overcoming them that way. And of course, the motivation for Kaiba Land and the philanthropist aspect of it by letting all orphans in for free. So if Sakaguchi wanted to start a restaurant, it would accomplish both the distancing and using his finally secured power to do good. For those who are curious, yes he taught Seto how to cook. Kaiba likes knowing how things work, after all, and he would want to master it. Plus, being so self-reliant, I can't imagine him always employee a chef. XD If I had an iota of an idea how cars were repaired, there would so be a fic where Yami finds Kaiba under a car fixing/modifying it.

Ahem. As for the everything disappearing as they get wrapped up in whatever battle, it's so true, but it's also the same for Yami. I love that aspect for some reason. Yami himself is caught up with the dilemma of finding the middle ground between rival and friend, but Kaiba is too fixated on winning to be of any use there. XD I could see Sakaguchi, ever the instructor, trying to help Kaiba realize that, for all the good it did. Is it sad that I was laughing at the image of Kaiba going to the trunk to get Duel Disks to settle it right then and there? You know he totally would. Oh, and the red light scene so wanted to mutate into something more fun, but there's time for that later.

But that's enough out of me. Hopefully the OC can be forgiven since he's minor and hopefully somewhat amusing. And for those who disliked him, he won't be reappearing here again, so no need to worry. But I get the impression him and Yuugi's grandfather would get along famously for some odd reason.

NEXT CHAPTER: Duel!

It's all about the aftermath.

…and that's all I'm going to say. XD I dislike writing dueling scenes almost as much as I dislike writing food scenes (thus why this chapter took place post-dinner, because having a conversation in between balancing all of the food mentions is no fun), but it'll get where it needs to be, I promise.

But once this next chapter is posted, ohohoho, are you guys in for some lovely stuff. This story will everyone, but I just need to finish building this last little bridge and then the fun that'll be had! So please look forward to it. I'm going to say another week for the next chapter. I seem to want to post on Sundays as if prolonging classes works that way. Until next time!