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wheel of fortune
It's a lovely spring afternoon, and four friends, in their last year of school already, are talking on the way to a Game Shop.
"I don't know, man," Joey complains, "…and if I knew, I'm broke like Kaiba's pride," (Tristan snorts), "Can't do much."
"You'll think of something," Tea reassures. She's always the one telling them things like that, even if she knows she'll have to waitress until she can pay for the plane ticket to South America (you say salsa, you say samba, you say tango and her eyes shimmer like a constellation)…
"And don't worry," Tristan taunts Joey, "I'll employ you when you end up living in the sewers under Gotham City…"
"Why you punk…" the blond teen seethes, "I'll see to it that you choke on your damned microchips in your sleep…"
They spar.
Yugi chuckles and blows a chewing gum bubble. Tristan is going abroad to study IT, and they all know that Yugi will follow in his father and grandfather's steps. Unearthening empires and entering the names of many forgotten kings of old into history…
…while helping run the Game Shop.
Atem waves at them as they come in. He doesn't care about the future- if Yugi travels around, he thinks he may accompany him, but he is too old not to know that some things just can't be planned in advance.
That is why he got a job as soon as he became used to Domino again, and now he spends all his mornings helping train horses for races. Just like back in Egypt, he thinks proudly, but he isn't the King of Games just because, and he has been already asked if he is interesting in playing polo.
He doesn't know yet. He may accept.
(It sounds like a challenge.)
Joey is always teasing him, now that the once-a-Pharaoh keeps his colorful hair up in a ponytail and wears military-green trousers of tough, resistant fabric, and smells like the outdoors. Even when, like now, he is way up high a flimsy ladder trying to decide if those old editions of Monopoly should still be on sale.
"You should totally let us come with you some day, man. Maybe we can even play Duel Monsters on horseback…?" the blond suggests, and they all look at him.
"Joey… are you feeling well?" Yugi asks, puzzled, and Joey snorts when they all begin to laugh.
.
.
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A/N: Atem and horses. Yes. Totally see that happening.
I'm sorry for the long wait. My muses were on strike. They wanted a payrise. Negotiating with their trade union took forever. (Seriously speaking now, my writer's block was/is phenomenal. I need you guys to stick with me.)
(thus sorry for the short sweet filler chapter.)
(if you like Hetalia, I wrote a China-centered humor oneshot called 'Year of the Dragon'. That seemed to begin to chase the writer's block away.)
Thanks to everyone awesome that reviewed. Specially to dear Cadens Stella, who always writes sweet little things that make me fuzzy inside; and ilovemanicures for her deep comments :)
