Author's Note: Well, I feel a bit of explanation is in order. First, yes, this is now officially AU. Too much of it differs from the canon for it to be otherwise. Secondly, the premise behind this chapter was originally supposed to be its own story, but an insidiously devious and seductively good plot bunny worked its way into here, thus creating the monster that will follow. Most chapters will follow this format, focusing mainly on a subplot of the story with bits and pieces of the actual plot floating around, and the focus will shift more towards the actual plot as time goes by. There are 8 chapters planned, not including prologue and epilogue. The only way that will change is if I decide to break one up into two, making 9.
Again, warnings for shounen-ai ( between who I'm not telling ), language, some violence… and Yugi's OOCness is blamed on his lack of sleep.
The '-7-' mean a scene change. hates the way I normally do it, so I picked that... cause I'm special. -0, which will probably be used only in this chapter, represents a flashback.
Scarab Dynasty – Yes, you are the first and only one who reviewed, so consider this chapter dedicated to you. I'm not going to tell you who the Requiem's for – that would ruin the plot – but I'm pretty sure it's going to be a surprise. Glad you liked the beginning. I can only hope this chapter meets your expectations as well.
Chapter One – The Love Triangle and The Missing Pharaoh
Now but I can't and I don't know
How we're just two men as god had made us
Well I can't; well I can
Too much too late or just not enough of this
Pain in my heart for your dying wish
I'll kiss your lips again
- Chorus, You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison ( My Chemical Romance )
The forecast for weather that day had said: "Mostly sunny with a 25 chance of precipitation." Yugi would have cheerfully throttled the horribly misinformed weather man at this moment; it was pouring outside and the saying 'raining cats and dogs' came to mind. Though why Americans said that was beyond him, since the rain drops didn't really resemble the furry creatures.
Pulling the door open to enter the museum, he shivered and shook his head, spraying water from his hair and body in a manner reminiscent of a wet dog. The attendant on duty glared at him but couldn't actually give him any verbal reprimand since he hadn't broken any of the rules. Water wasn't welcomed but since he wasn't around any of the exhibits it didn't matter. Still, he smiled somewhat sheepishly, feeling ashamed and embarrassed.
His shoes squeaked horribly as he started to walk. Mentally cursing himself, Yugi wondered why he had left his boots at Jou's house. True, he had wanted to get out of there as soon as physically possible, but did that really mean he couldn't take the five or ten extra seconds to slip on and buckle his footwear instead of running barefoot outside? Luckily he had kept an old pair of chucks in his closet and had been able to change into them when he got home but they weren't nearly as comfortable. And they squeaked.
"Sir, it's nearly closing time and you're making a mess." The attendant, a middle-aged woman who wanted nothing to do with the sopping wet Thor's Angel boy – oh, he had to be in a gang or why else would he be wearing a leather jacket, collar, and have long dyed hair? – nervously stepped out from behind the ticket booth and started towards him. "And this isn't a free entry museum; you need to pay if you want to see any of the exhibits."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Turning around, Yugi smiled disarming at the older woman, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. "The museum had given me a free yearly pass. Guess it's kind of hard to recognize me with my hair down. I'm Yugi Motou."
The woman stared for a moment, eyes bugged out slightly and jaw slightly dropped. The boy was short, maybe only a few inches over five feet, and his hair coloration did match that of the Yugi… "Oh, I'm so sorry sir! Of course you can go in." Bowing deeply, she retreated back to her booth and waved him on, wondering what she would do if closing time came and he still hadn't left. One couldn't just demand a world-known champion to leave, could they?
Sighing slightly at the attendant's reaction, Yugi hurried on back to the Egyptian Exhibit, smiling at the sight of the familiar ancient artifacts. No matter how many times he came here to see it all, he knew he would never stop being amazed by all the wonderful things. Being here allowed him a glimpse of what it must have been like when Yami was pharaoh and-
And no. Instinctively reaching up to grasp the chain that wasn't there, Yugi shook his head. That was right. The pharaoh could create his own body now using the Puzzle, which meant that Yugi had no need for it anymore. And now that Yami was no longer a part of Yugi's body, he had decided it would be a good time to tell his hikari…
Dwelling on the past isn't going to change anything and is only going to make it worse. Besides, I came here to think and the subject of Yami isn't what I came here to think about. Nodding affirmatively to his own thoughts, Yugi pushed what had happened between him and Yami to the back of his mind, back to where Jou and Kaiba were currently residing. It made an odd mental image to him: The three of them sitting in a waiting room, flipping idly through magazines until a nurse came out and called their name, telling them that Yugi was ready to think about them now. He giggled and covered his mouth with his hand. The thought of Kaiba waiting anywhere patiently with Jou…
Maybe when I finally go back home I'll find out that this was all some horribly messed up dream and none of it had really happened… and then Black Magician Girl will tell me that she's been dying to go on a date with me but that Harpie Lady needs to be the chaperone. Groaning, Yugi leaned against one of the displays of hieroglyphics and tilted his head forward, his forehead resting against the glass. Even his own imagination wasn't letting today rest. So maybe he just needed to give in and really think about everything that had happened, instead of running off like a scared puppy.
-7-
"The forecast was wrong…" Resting his forehead against the cold glass of the window, Seto closed his eyes. He was sitting in the kitchen area of his 'house' in a chair that he had pulled up against the window. The gardens that had been planted outside were his favorite place to be whenever upset, but the weather made it impossible to go outside. Staring at them from the inside was as close as he could get.
The rain beat a mourning tattoo against the window, lulling the brown-haired boy into a dreamlike state. Everything felt like it was going wrong lately. Stock prices were falling, rates of defection were rising amongst Kaiba Corp products, and consumer satisfaction was at an all time low. All problems could have easily been avoided if Seto had been paying more attention, but lately his attention had been stuck on a more personal issue…
-0- "What do you want, Kaiba?" Inwardly Seto seethed; as much as it chaffed him to be called by his first name as if he were their equal, the multi-millionaire despised it whenever the tri-colored haired boy spit his surname out as if it were a curse. It reminded him of how people acted towards his stepfather and also of how distant Yugi was from him, something that he planned to change today.
"What do you think I want?" Raising his right arm up, Seto smirked. "I'm glad to see you brought your Duel Disk or else this wouldn't be any fun." The sides of the disk disconnected and flew fifteen feet on either side of him, planting themselves then firmly in the ground. They would act as holographic projectors, making the monsters 'real' for this duel.
"I don't want to fight you Kaiba…" Yugi looked down, a strand of blond hair falling forward across his eyes. Raising an eyebrow, Seto noticed that the silver chain and puzzle that he always wore was gone, and instead of the school uniform that he wore even outside of school he had on a pair of snug-fitted black jeans and a black leather jacket. From here Seto couldn't see what he wore under the jacket but could see that he at least still had his black collar.
"Afraid you're going to lose? I've heard rumors about you no longer being the duelist that you used to be. Maybe what people have been saying is true and your edge is gone." Crossing his arms, Seto waited impatiently for the smaller boy to snap out of whatever funk he was in. "Look, I don't know what's wrong with you but I called you here for more than just a duel. If you win you can leave. If you don't… You're going to have to hear my proposition out."
Yugi raised his head and looked at Seto, confused. "Proposition? You don't want my rarest cards?"
"They were the Battle City rules and Battle City ended well over a year ago, if I'm not mistaken. Now, if you're about done…" Drawing six cards from his deck, Seto studied them quickly before picking one out. "I'll start this duel off by playing Hitotsu-Me Giant in attack mode."
Drawing five cards as well and then one more since in was now his turn, Yugi frowned. Why would Kaiba play that card? It only has 1200 attack points and he didn't even place any cards face down. There can't be a virus or deck destruction card, so then… what is he up to? "I'll play Gazelle, King of Mythical Beasts in attack mode! Attack his Hitotsu-Me Giant!"
Since Gazelle had 1500 attack points, Hitotsu-Me was destroyed and Seto lost 300 life points, bringing his total down to 3700. Shaking his head, he drew another card. "Not a bad move… for a beginner." Something about that phrase made Yugi feel even more off put. "Fine then. I'll summon Saggi the Dark Clown, but before I attack with him I'll use Darkness Generator to triple his attack power." Saggi was a weak monster on his own, but the Darkness Generator raised his 600 attack points to 1800. "Say goodbye to Gazelle. Saggi, attack!"
Instinctively raising his arms up to protect himself from the backlash of energy released when a hologram was destroyed, Yugi growled. "I remember this. This is the exact strategy you used on me when we first dueled, card for card. What's with the trip down memory lane?"
Seto laughed, pointing at Yugi. "I just wanted to show that even with cards and a strategy as outdated as this one is I can still beat you. Face it Yugi. You're no match for me. The only reason you won Battle City was because of the three God Cards. If it weren't for them, you would never have claimed the title 'King of Games."
"Then I forfeit the duel now." Closing his eyes, Yugi placed his hand in the graveyard. "If what you say is true then there's no way I could beat you now since I no longer have the God Cards; Yami has them. Even if it isn't, I don't feel like dragging out a worthless battle with you. You win. I'll listen to whatever proposition you have."
Feeling slightly put-off by the way the supposed 'King of Games' was acting, Seto discarded his cards as well, ending the duel. "Very well then. I expected better from you, but I guess the rumors are true. You're a has been." Walking over to the defeated boy, he stopped barely a foot away. "Do you know why I called you here?"
"… Kaiba, didn't you call me here so I could find out why you called me here?" Looking up and raising his eyebrows, Yugi noted the sudden flush that covered Seto's cheeks. I've never seen Kaiba act this way… being so awkward.
Why did I say that? Is it possible to be any lamer now? Fighting the urge to smack himself in the face or melt to the ground, Seto crossed his arms and smirked. "Pretty perceptive. I guess you're not completely losing it, then. We've known each other for over three years now and, as you can see, I haven't forgotten anything that's occurred between us."
More than just a little puzzled and disturbed by this, Yugi reached back to scratch his head. "Um, okay? Is there a poi-mmph!"
The brown-haired boy, knowing that his nerve wasn't going to last much longer, had slipped his hand under Yugi's chin and tilted his head up further. Leaning down, Seto tried to kiss him…
Except the difference in height made him end up getting the bottom side of his nose and cheek instead. Blushing again a brilliant shade of red, Seto bent down a little farther, connecting their lips, and banged their noses together. After twisting his neck a little he finally got it right. Wow, this isn't nearly as comfortable or rewarding as I thought it would be.
Yugi felt frozen to the spot, reality taking a while to sink in for him. Kaiba… Kaiba's kissing me! Shoving the taller boy back rather roughly, he stared at him with a mixture of disgust and confusion. "What…?"
Realizing that he was going to have to explain quickly what just happened, Seto reached out and placed a hand on Yugi's shoulder. "I-"
Slapping his hand away, the tri-colored haired boy turned. "I don't want to hear it Kaiba." -0-
"Niichan? Are you all right?" Mokuba placed a hand on Seto's knee, startled the older boy out of his trance. Looking down and smiling, the older ruffled the younger's hair before getting up, stretching.
"I'm fine. I guess I just dozed off for a moment…"
Not at all put to ease by this flippant response to his question, the black-haired teen grabbed at Seto's sleeve. "Liar. You're still upset over what happened last week, aren't you?"
For the first time ever the elder Kaiba cursed the day his younger brother was born. Why was he so damn perceptive about things that Seto didn't even notice and why did he always know whenever Seto was trying to lie to him? "Niichan-"
"I'm fine Mokuba." Pulling his arm away, he stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind. Mokuba stared after him sadly, wondering what exactly had gone on between him and Yugi to cause his brother to act this way.
-7-
He should have taken his coat off sooner; that much Yugi did know. Shrugging out of the sopping wet raiment, he dropped it carelessly on the floor. The museum attendant would have his head if she came back here. After a brief moment of thought he slipped out of his shoes as well, lining them up neatly next to the forming puddle.
Walking away from the mess he had created, Yugi hugged himself, rubbing his arms to try and increase his warmth. Underneath the coat he had only worn a black t-shirt and that too was soaked from the rain outside. He pants hadn't faired much better, but he wasn't about to strip out of them and walk around nearly nude. Then the attendant would take more than just his head if she saw him. After all he had been through, the tri-colored haired boy preferred not to have his cause of death be an enraged museum employee.
A shiver began working its way through his body, much to the small teen's dislike. I thought mother's said stupid things about catching a cold from being in the rain because they were moms, not because there was any truth behind it. A few moments later, however, his state of health was confirmed: He sneezed.
Great, so not only am I dealing with two love-struck boys that I don't love and horrible nightmares that have kept me from sleeping the past week, I now have to be sick. Thank you God. When I finally meet you… His thoughts trailed off as he stared up at the hieroglyphical representation of the battle between Yami and the Priest 3000 years ago. Yugi didn't know how he had gotten here – he didn't remember walking all the way down to this room. But he did come here often, so he mind must have set his body on autopilot.
The image of the Pharaoh faded. Blinking and rubbing his eyes to see if he was imagining this, Yugi looked again. The Pharaoh was still gone.
A sudden wave of nausea washed over him and he leaned against the glass of the display, hand pressed firmly over mouth. He could feel the vomit pushing its way up into his throat and he ran to the bathroom, desperate to get there before he finally threw up and gave the attendant yet another reason to kill him. The Pharaoh was forgotten.
-7-
An empty bottle slipped from Jou's hand, landing with a muffled 'thump' on the carpeted floor. My dad's gonna kill me… There was no emotion attached to the thought, just a cold, empty, blankness that seemed to grow with every passing moment. Who really cared what his dad did anymore? He had just fucked up his friendship with his best bud and the guy that he, well, loved.
"Stupid Yugi running to me to make everything better," Jou sneered, lurching up from the padded chair to walk of to the bottle, picking it up. "No, stupid Kaiba for fucking everything up to begin with… aww, goddamn you Kaiba! I'm gonna slit your throat with that damn Blue-Eyes card you're so fond of!" Alcohol always made him irrational. Grinning with a slight insane edge he slammed the bottle against the wall, watching with satisfaction as it exploded, sprinkling the floor with glass shards.
Yug would be pissed if he had been here to see that. That thought alone wiped any remnants of any good feeling away, leaving the blond-haired boy tired and drained. Only with great effort did he begin to pick up the larger pieces of glass, carrying them carefully into the kitchen to drop into the garbage. He didn't have anyone to blame other than himself. It wasn't Yugi's or Kaibi's fault that he had decided to be such an idiot…
-0- "No Ichigo! You can't fall for that jerk Ryou! You and Masaya were meant for each other!1" Clutching his newest Tokyo Mew Mew manga tightly, Jou practically pressed his nose against the pages as he read, his face being that close. The story of the love-struck middle school girl receiving powers to turn into an animal-based superhero was his secret sinful love and the blond-haired boy would die of mortification if anyone ever found out he read them. And quite avidly, too.
The doorbell rang, pulling him out of his reverence of the sacred shoujo manga. Scowling slightly – whoever dared to interrupt Mew Mew time would pay dearly! – Jou walked out of his room, padding down the hall to the front door of the apartment. Removing the chain, he swung the door open, fully prepared to give whoever was on the other side the tongue lashing of their life-
And saw no one. Blinking, he looked down. Yugi was looking up at him, looking as pitiful as, well, Yugi. The smaller boy smiled tentatively at him and Jou noticed the dark purple streaks under his eyes. "Yug! What are you doing here?" Stepping back and to the side, Jou allowed the other to enter.
"Sorry for coming unannounced but…" Bending down to unbuckle his boots, Yugi slipped them off and lined them up neatly by the front door. "I had to get out of my house. I've been going crazy there and Yami hasn't been helping much." Straightening, he rubbed the back of his head, adding: "S'not his fault, really. He's just not used to actually being alive; he's kind of… distracting." Jou noticed the slight flush but wrote it off quickly. Yugi couldn't… with Yami… Naw!
"Well you are in luck!" Clapping a hand on Yugi's shoulder – and eliciting an 'eep' from the startled boy – Jou shoved him gently towards the hall. "My dad's gone for the day so we don't have to worry about him. I dare say you might actually be able to enjoy yourself while at – gasp! – my house. Make yourself at home." Nodding, the smaller teen headed back towards his room while Jou shut and locked the front door. Yugi came to see me when he was upset and now I'll get him alone in my ro-
THE MANGAS! Eyes widening with the realization that if he didn't act now his horrible secret would be revealed, Jou sprinted down the hall, grabbing Yugi's arm just before he entered the room. "Wha? Jou, what are you doing?" Without giving an explanation for his actions, the blond shoved Yugi aside and darted into the room, grabbing the pink books and shoving them quickly under his bed. There. Now no one would ever find out.
"Eh-heh, sorry Yug. Just wanted to make sure it was clean before you came in." Laughing somewhat nervously Jou rubbed the back of his head, walking back out into the hall. Yugi nodded and walked into the room, raising an eyebrow. Dirty clothes, crumpled papers, and random books – mostly mangas – covered the floor and bed of the room, making it obvious that it hadn't really been cleaning the blond had been doing in here. "Like I said before, make yourself at home."
Cautiously taking a seat on Jou's bed, Yugi picked up the nearest manga – the third YuYu Hakusho – and flipped it open, idly skimming the pages. Jou sat down next to him, plucking the book from his hands to leave the smaller boy staring somewhat confusedly at his now-empty hands. "So, what's been happening that's been making the almighty, unruffleable Yugi ruffled?" Yugi's response was to practically throw himself on Jou, burying his face in the other boy's chest. "Eh, Yug? What-"
Yugi mumbled something into his shirt, tickling Jou. Laughing despite himself, Jou pushed him back into a sitting position. "Don't do that. It tickles. Now, c'mon, tell Uncle Joe what's wrong."
"Uncle Joe?" Smiling slightly at the odd statement, Yugi rolled his eyes. "Now that would be the family secret no one would ever talk about." They both laughed at that, though there was a twinge of hysterics in Yugi's laughter. After they calmed down, he took a deep breath and sighed, releasing it slowly. "Okay, well… I've just been having nightmares the past week which makes it hard to sleep with and… a few days ago… Kaiba…"
Jou grabbed his shoulders, fingers bunching up the fabric of his jacket, and gave Yugi a slight shake. "What did Kaiba do to you? Oh, I will so kick his ass the next time I see him, I swear!" Yugi leaned away, his expression one of utter bewilderment.
"Erm, Jou, you're… scaring me." Blinking, the blond released him. Since he had been leaning backwards to get as far away from the enraged boy as possible Yugi fell over backwards, staring up at the ceiling. "Well, this works. Kaiba didn't do anything wrong. He just… kissed me."
It took a few seconds for that to completely register. Gripping the bed sheets tightly, Jou looked down at the floor at a complete loss of words. If Yugi returned Kaiba's feelings or felt disgusted before another man cared for him… "… well, that was… a bit unexpected." He smiled, stomach feeling as if it were twisting itself into knots.
Propping himself up on his elbows, Yugi nodded. "Yeah. I feel bad for how I reacted but come on! He just… he had called me for a duel and then he kissed me. Which doesn't sound nearly so bad anymo- I mean, no, not the kiss part, just what he-… I'm going to stop talking now before I shove my foot up to my knee in my mouth." He let himself fall back onto the bed, arms sprawled haphazardly over his stomach. "I really should apologize. He didn't do anything wrong."
"So…" Leaning back against the wall, Jou drew one knee to his chest, carefully thinking how to word his next question. "So you don't care that another guy obviously has a crush on you?" Well, there, he can't use that against me, can he?
Yugi emphatically shook his head no, grinning stupidly. "Nope, I don't care about that. In fact, I think… I have a crush on another guy." Sitting up quickly, Yugi grabbed Jou by the shoulders, his face twisted in panic. "Oh, I didn't mean to say that! Don't tell anyone, please?"
Laughing evilly, Jou threw his head back. "You have a crush on someone? That's really difficult to envision. Sorry Yug," he added somewhat sheepishly at the sight of his friend's pissed look. "I won't tell anyone if you tell me who it is. Deal?" Yugi shook his head, letting him go and moving to sit on the edge of the bed. "Huh? Why not? Is it someone that I know?"
Fidgeting nervously and twining his fingers together, Yugi nodded. "Well, yeah. Someone that you've known for a while, too. The whole gang knows him… it would just become awkward for you if you knew."
This is almost too good to be true… he has to be talkin' about me! Tapping his chin with his forefinger, Jou pretended to contemplate Yugi's words. "Hmm, true. So… how about I tell you who I've been crushing on and then you tell me who this mystery man is. Deal?" Extending his hand for the smaller teen to shake it, the blond grinned reassuringly. "It'll make you feel better to know that someone else knows, I promise."
The tri-colored haired boy hesitantly took his hand, shaking it. "All right… but remember what you said. You first."
"All right, well… Yug… I-I think I might, well… I have a crush on you."-0-
"And Yug ran away after that." The glass shards slipped from Jou's hand, pulling him out of his mini-reverie. It slit the palm of his hand open, blood immediately welling up and dripping into the trashcan. Staring at the wound with morbid fascination, a horrible solution to his problem suddenly came to mind: Suicide. A few more cuts like that and some hot water and…
That's the coward's way out. I chose to tell Yug and I'm going to deal with the consequences. Grabbing a wad of paper towels, Jou pressed them against the wound to stem the flow of blood. I need to talk to him… and I need to return his boots.
-7-
Yugi made it to the bathroom, barely. Leaning over a toilet he heaved, the contents of his stomach making the unpleasant journey back out his mouth. Why human bodies were made so that was possible he didn't know; while having this come out the other side wasn't exactly a desirable choice at least that was where everything normally exited from.
Still feeling rather queasy he righted himself, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. A bit of vomit from his lips left a streak, which was just wonderful. Grumbling to himself, Yugi walked over to the sink, twisting the warm-water faucet on with a bit more force than necessary and scrubbed the back of the contaminated hand. The whole ordeal was disgusting. Cupping his hands under the stream, Yugi took a sip of the water, swishing it between his teeth before spitting it back out. There, no more vomit flavor… or at least no more overly power vomit flavor.
Looking up at the mirror to see what else needed to be cleaned – he had felt the vomit ooze from his nose and he didn't want to walk around with that getting crusty up there – the star-haired teen was shocked at how awful he looked. The bags and streaks under his eyes were beginning to look like he had taken eye shadow – dark purple eye shadow – and rubbed it in, and his skin was starting to become the same shade that Bakura's was. White. I'm turning into an albino. Great…
Yugi looked away, placing a hand on his forehead. The hand, though warm from just being under the water, felt cool to the touch, confirming the sinking suspicion that had been floating around in his mind. He had a fever, and a pretty bad one for it to hit this strongly this quickly.
-7-
Yami sat at the kitchen table, sipping a cup of luke-warm coffee. The taste was bitter but he needed something to help him stay awake; whatever was haunting his aibou's dreams was keeping him awake as well. After all he had gone through to obtain his own human body2 he was beginning to wonder if it was worth it. At least he could get all the sleep he wanted in his Soul Room.
True, but if I had stayed a part of Yugi forever I would have never been able to talk to him about how I felt for him. A blush slowly crept over the ex-Pharaoh's cheeks as he thought about the events that had taken place only a few hours prior.
-0-A door slammed shut, alerting Yami of the presence of another. Expecting to see Grandpa or Jou or even Anzu from the sound, he was shocked to see his hikari come stomping into the room, throwing his backpack onto the floor. "Hi Yami," he spat out, eyes daring the taller boy to confront him.
Raising an eyebrow, Yami stood up from the bed, stretching his arms up and arching back. "You sound cheerful," he remarked casually, walking over to him. Yugi scowled and glared up at him. "Why, I might even go as far as to say you're downright ecstatic."
"Ugh. You know how to rub me the wrong way, don't you?" Collapsing onto the bed, Yugi buried his face in one of the pillows. Leaning against the door frame, Yami waited for him to relent and tell him what was wrong. As he expected, no more than five minutes passed before the smaller boy sat up, hugging the pillow to his chest. "Okay, so Jou's been completely ignoring me since he decided to blurt out that he had a crush on me and Kaiba hasn't even gone back to school. Mokuba's been picking up all of his assignments. And I haven't gotten any sleep from those stupid nightmares and I guess I'm just a little edgy because I don't want to deal with any of this. It's not fair!"
Yami chuckled, earning him a death glare. "Sorry aibou, but this whole situation… why did you turn Jou and Seto down so quickly? Obviously you were unaware of their feelings so you couldn't have possibly come to a conclusion on your own towards them so quickly." Yugi fidgeted, plucking at the loose fibers on the pillow. "Well?"
"Uhm, cause, you know… Jou's my best friend and Kaiba's… Kaiba. I know how I feel about them." Glancing up at Yami, Yugi sighed. "All right, okay, so there's already someone else that I like and it's not one of them so they had a snowball's chance in hell getting together with me." Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he stretched and made a face. "Oops. Forgot to take my shoes off."
While he was busy unlacing the sneakers – bright green Converse All Stars – Yami walked over to him, crouching down and grabbing his wrist. "Why haven't you picked your boots up yet? They look better on you." Yugi froze, his face slowly turning vividly read from Yami's words. The taller boy chuckled again. "How many years did I spend living with you? Do you really think you could hide how you felt from me?"
"Well, I-" His words of protest were cut short as Yami pressed his lips against his, kissing him. It was clumsy and hesitant and lasted for barely a second before he pulled away, but still… "You…"
Afraid that he has misread his hikari's emotions, Yami stood and took a step back, nervously glancing at the door. He wasn't sure what Yugi was capable of doing in this state of mind and he really didn't want to be endlessly mocked by a certain Tomb Robber for being beaten by his aibou. "I, well…"
"You could have saved me so much angst if you had done that sooner!" Yami relaxed, a grin slowly working its way onto his lips.
"If I had told you sooner than I wouldn't have gotten to joy of watching you get so worked up during all your failed attempts to tell me," The ex-Pharaoh responded. Yugi shrieked and throw his shoe and Yami's head, hitting him dead-on. "… that wasn't very nice." He rubbed his forehead, staring at the offending object that he now held in his hand.
Yugi stood and walked over to him, taking the shoe. "Well it wasn't exactly intended to be nice. Yami… I need to think and I haven't been able to do much thinking lately with you around." Yami widened his eyes, the picture of innocence. "Oh don't you look at me like that. I'm gonna go to the museum. I need to work out some solution to this problem before I end up going crazy." As those words came out of his mouth a bright flash of lightning lit up the room, followed quickly by a rumble of thunder. The two boys stared at each before breaking into laughter.-0-
Yugi had then left. Quite unromantic, really, but not much of a surprise. Stories where the two lovers passionately kiss and consummate their feelings after discovering that the other felt the same definitely blew everything out of proportion. Taking another sip of the coffee, he made a face and walked over to the sink, dumping the liquid down the drain.
A sudden wave of nausea hit him, causing him to clap a hand over his mouth and drop the mug. It shattered on the floor, but he hardly cared at the moment. Gripping the edge of the sink tightly, Yami struggled against the urge to allow himself to vomit. After several long, painful moments the feeling passed. Panting, he leaned over the sink, staring down into the silver basin at the remains of the foul liquid. That wasn't what caused that, was it?
No… there's something wrong with Yugi. I have to find him.
-7-
Generally the feeling of nausea went away after vomiting, if only for a short while. That rule didn't seem to apply to this case. Groaning, Yugi slowly made his way out of the bathroom, one hand covering his mouth and one hand clutching his stomach. He felt dizzy and disoriented, redundancy ignored. Wishing now that he had stayed home instead of running off to 'think', he stumbled, catching himself at the last moment on the wall. "Yami…"
Everything around him felt like it was fading and fading fast. His foot slipped and he tumbled forward again, only this time there was no wall to stop him. The floor was rushing towards his face when strong arms wrapped around his body, stopping his descent. Someone – Yami? – was talking to him, asking him if he was all right, but while his body may have been caught his mind was still rushing out of control and the blackness was growing…
1 – This would be from the beginning of the fourth manga of Tokyo Mew Mew. Not much of a spoiler if you've read any of the series. Why that series? Because the thought of Jonouchi reading and owning something like that is priceless.
2 – There is a companion piece being written to explain this and has no relevance to any of the events that unfold.