(Gift fic for DragonLady222.

Main characters are Yuugi, Yami, and Seto.
Main 'ship': Prideshipping (Yami x Seto)
Hints of: Puzzleshipping (Yami x Yuugi). Rivalshipping (Seto x Yuugi).
Fic Goal: Flareshipping (Seto x Yami x Yuugi).

Enjoy. :D Please read and review.

A simple reminder- Yuugi is Mr. Howell and his aliases first name is never mentioned.

Thank you everyone for reviewing and supporting this fic! *hugs*)

Yuugi really hated public affairs, most of all soirees. As much as he hated them, he could not avoid them. Reason being, he was one of the lead programmers of Kaiba Cooperation. So here he was, in a suit and tie with wig and contacts.

Everyone who was someone was here. Currently occupying the space near the punch bowl was president of Industrial Illusions, Pegasus. He was conversing with his two adoptive sons Yako and Gekko. Just a little to the right was Seto himself. He was trying not to look overly bored as the president of Schroeder Corp, Zigfried carried on a conversation about some new store he opened. Towards the middle of the room was the president of Paradius, Alister chatting it up with Otogi who had recently taken over the Black Clown game shop. Other than talking about the shop, they were talking about Otogi's Dungeon Dice Monsters game. Yami and Mokuba were close to the entrance doors, chatting about video games. There were others here, some of who were his friends- not that they would know who he was. He preferred it that way.

Yuugi sighed and swirled the liquid in his glass around. He glanced at his watch, an hour left and this party would be over. He stared aimlessly into the crowd, for how long he was not sure. What roused him from his musing was a tap on his shoulder. He looked to his right to see who had come to stand beside him. "You managed to get away from Zigfried finally?"

"Finally? How long have you been watching me?" Seto was mildly curious. Was Yuugi really that bored? Or, just that observant? He had not noticed him not talking to anyone for any extended amount of time any of the times he had glanced his direction.

Yuugi glanced down at his empty glass, unsure of when he had finished it. He sat it down on the table behind him. "Not long." He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his slacks, his thumbs hanging out over the edge. He rocked softly on his heels.

"Trust me when I say I hate these soirees as much as you." When one of the waiters came around with a tray of bubbly, Seto grabbed a glass. His had long since been empty. "Wouldn't be so damn bad if they weren't stuffy," he sighed.

"You should give Yami a couple more drinks, get him tipsy," Yuugi did not say anything further. When the waiter offered him a glass, he accepted. "I'm sure that would make your evening." He had no intentions on finishing it. If anything, this glass was just for show. There was nothing worse than an unoccupied hand when it came to these types of affairs.

Seto was thankful he had yet to take that sip he was just about to. He cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. He opened his mouth to say something but found himself speechless. This was not something that happened often.

"I wasn't going there," Yuugi chuckled. "Not my fault your imagination goes directly there." He was sure that Seto enjoyed his musings unlike him where he hated his. His musings were often the same as his dreams. Dreams that were more like nightmares. He refused to lose the smile or the good mood that they were currently sharing in this otherwise boring party.

Seto breathed in deeply, he hoped that his cheeks held no color other than natural hues. "Whose wouldn't?" He could not think of one adult male whose mind would not go straight to the gutter at the mention of getting their lover drunk and dragging them home. Although, putting it that way sounded somewhat barbaric half of him found it erotic.

"Me," Yuugi chuckled. "Then again I don't have anyone anymore that I want to take home. No offense." He added that last bit after a moment of thought. "You have been more of friend to me than my friends. Then again, I haven't let anyone in, in a long time. I am kind of glad that you pressed and forced this situation into play."

"Why don't you let your friends in?" Seto's curiosity was once again sparked. He knew that Yuugi and his friends use to be big into friendship. He still remembered those damn speeches Anzu use to give. He was not sure which sucked more, those speeches or these soirees.

"The last thing I wanted to happen was for Anzu to butt in and try to make everything alright. I wanted Yami to be happy, and I gave him everything I could. I wanted it to stay that way. Letting on friend know means that they all know. They say they won't tell but their mouths are really big." He gave a little chuckle, as he looked Seto in the eyes.

"There's more to it than that. I can see it in your eyes," Seto said after making direct eye contact with Yuugi.

"Ultimately, my pride was damaged severely after I lost that final game. I wanted to tuck my tail and hide from the world." Yuugi sighed and looked away from Seto. He stared aimlessly into the crowd again. "I wanted to die in peace."

"Basically, you gave up. You didn't have a will to fight so you didn't want anyone to fight for you." Seto rested his hand on Yuugi's shoulder. He was as tall as Yami now, but still shorter than himself. "You fought Yami's battles instead and insured his place."

"If you want to look at it like that. Then I suppose yes that could sum it up." The two shared a comfortable silence for a few brief minutes before Yuugi cleared his throat. "You should be heading over towards Yami. He is getting fidgety."

"I wonder if he has had anything to drink," Seto mused allowed.

"Probably not," Yuugi laughed. "Here take mine and give it to him." He handed Seto his glass and smiled. "I wasn't planning on drinking it. I usually just have one in hand for show so the girls don't come up and hit on me."

"Hit on you?"

"You think guys are bad with their 'let me buy you a drink' pick up lines, you should see girls." Yuugi winked. He gave Seto a gentle nudge via his back. "Go on."

Seto could not help but to laugh as he was pushed into the crowd.

Thankfully, for Yuugi the rest of the party went on without a hitch. Aside from Seto, he was able to secretly slip out at the end with the rest of the people. Having had a bit more to drink than originally intended, he called a taxi. He had the taxi driver drop him off at the gas station just down the street from the mansion so no questions could be asked or raised eyebrows given. It was cool and a perfect evening for a short walk.

Yuugi had lost the tie and shoes the moment he walked in the front door. Now, that he was in his room he was making quick work to take off the tuxedo. He carefully dropped the jacket on the chair that was next to the door. With one hand, he worked the buttons on his shirt. Dress shirt and slacks on a daily basis was one thing. However, this was another; he could not wait to be out of this penguin suit. It was worse than leather.

The moment Yuugi started undressing, Yami adverted his eyes. "What took you so long to get home?" Yami who had been sitting on the edge of the bed the entire time finally spoke up. "We were the last to leave and still made it home before you."

Yuugi would figure out later why Yami was in his room and not in his own room with Seto. Apparently, Seto was right and Yami had little to nothing to drink. "I took a cab. I wasn't too keen on them dropping me off at the front doors so I had them take me to the gas station that is just down the road." He tossed his shirt into the dirty clothes hamper.

"You could have ridden with us. The limo has more than enough room."

"And, just how many questions do you think that would raise?" Yuugi asked. He himself had thought all of this through on numerous occasions. "I earned my position in the company. As nice as riding with the three of you would have been I don't want people thinking that I was given my place in the company." He took off his wig and placed it on the fake head on the dresser. He sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. He was starting to feel a lot better now that he was not so hot.

"Oh." It was all Yami could say. He did not know much about the cooperate ladder and how it operated. "We worried about you." He finally looked over at Yuugi. "I worried about you." The last sentence came out as a barely audible whisper.

Yuugi had been in the process of unbuttoning his pants but stopped to listen when Yami mentioned they were worried about him. He had barely heard what he had said last. Thankfully, for once he had been paying attention to him and not just drowning him out. This was one of those moments that if you missed it was sure to start a war. Everything that had been worked towards gone in a second. He smiled.

"I'd tell you to finish getting ready for bed. But there really isn't much left considering you don't wear pajamas." Yami laughed. It was the first time in a long time that he felt comfortable around his light. He honestly missed the days when things just came naturally.

Yuugi laughed. It felt good to laugh even if it tore at his insides. He sat down next to Yami and took a moment to catch his breath.

"I'm with Seto. I think we can fix this." Yami looked Yuugi in the eyes as he ran his fingers through his hair. Their lips were just inches from each other. For the first time he could see what Seto saw in him. This was not just some lovesick little boy. This was a man who was so deeply in love with another that they would go to extensive lengths to prove it. Yuugi may have thought that by stepping back he was conceding his loss to Seto but actually it showed more.

Yuugi could feel Yami's breath on his face. He felt that his rapidly pounding heart would break the cage that confined it and jump right out of his chest. He felt conflict. He felt twisted up inside. Knowing that this is what Seto ultimately wanted, and it wanted it too now. He wanted to kiss him. Still part of him felt guilty because the other party was not present.

"I love you," Yami whispered as he leaned the rest of the way in and kissed Yuugi.