This chapter ends the 'filling in of canon gaps' section. From here on out everything is post-canon.

Disclaimer: Things I own: a) A corvette b) A mansion c) Yu-Gi-Oh! d) None of the above Answer: d

"Living in the limelight, always in a rush.
When the lights are out and the cameras are gone,
Down comes the shades, she wants to be alone.
You know that girl loves her private life.

No one ever knows life behind the scene,
Getting past the glamour, the sparkle and the sheen.
Back into the shadows, is where she wants to be,
Discretion is her answer, she needs her privacy."

~Private Life, Blackfoot

Chapter 3

On the cruise ship Seto was attempting to heal his wounded ego after having been turned down. How dare Yugi deny him the chance to defeat him in a duel in front of the dweeb team? And then top it off by insulting him further by not accepting his offer to build a deck out of cards from his private collection?

"Seto," Mokuba started hesitantly. "Why are we staying here? Do you want to see if Yugi can beat the pharaoh in a duel?"

"Please," Seto snorted. "As if I believe in that. I just want to enjoy bearing witness to his decent into madness as he attempts to duel himself." That wasn't the truth though. The events of the last several days had been too real and too intricate to have been a mere illusion; even Seto couldn't refute that. He therefore was forced to accept that he'd been wrong all along. The revelation wasn't as shocking as he would have expected given that a part of him had believed it already. He'd never openly admit it though, not after having denied it all for so long. Which reminded him…

"I'll be right back; I have to make a phone call." He stood up from where he'd been sitting on the bolted-in chair in his and Mokuba's cabin.

"I wouldn't bother; he didn't even care that you were gone." Seto was surprised that Mokuba knew who he'd intended to call and even more so by the unexpected malice in his younger brother's voice.

"Mokuba…"

"He acted like it was no big deal even though for all we knew Bakura could have captured you!"

"Stop. If you want to be mad at someone about this, be mad at me. Alistair was just doing what I told him to do."

"What you told him to do…?" It suddenly clicked into place. "You told him where you were going? He lied to me! He said he had no idea!"

"Because I told him to say he had no idea. I didn't want you chasing after me."

"So you decided it would be better to let me worry about you? You should have known I was going to come looking for you!"

"I did. That's why I jammed the jet's locator signal." Mokuba stared openmouthed at his brother, the one person he idolized and looked up to, his dark blue eyes conveying the betrayal he felt.

"How could you?" he asked, his voice shaking.

"I wanted you to be safe. I hoped that by the time you un-jammed the signal this would all be over. I was just trying to protect you. This was something I had to do alone; Alistair understood that."

"I'm fifteen; that's old enough to be allowed to have my own reaction to things, don't you think?" Seto regarded the person standing in front of him. It was true that his brother was no longer a child, though not quite a man. Perhaps he was underestimating Mokuba's maturity. But what was he supposed to have said? Hey, Mokuba: I think I'm losing my mind, but on the off chance that the hallucinations I've been having are actually real I've decided to fly to Egypt.

"Maybe you're right," he said slowly. "I'm sorry." Apologies were not something Seto dished out lightly and Mokuba knew it. "Don't blame Alistair; he was just respecting what I wanted. He didn't betray you; I did. But I promise that it won't happen again."

"It better not," Mokuba snapped, though he had already forgiven the offense. "I wasn't kidding about taking over Kaiba Corp." Seto rolled his eyes.

"Don't get too cocky. Anyway, I'll be right back." He stepped out of the cabin and climbed the small flight of stairs leading to the deck. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and made sure there was no one else around before making the call.

It was almost six in the morning when Alistair's phone started buzzing. At first he merely incorporated the buzzing into the dream he was having but suddenly woke up and realized someone was calling him. He blearily accepted the call without even bothering to check the caller ID; there was only one person it could be.

"Have you proven everyone wrong yet?" he asked, his voice raspy from having just woken up.

"Of course," Seto replied dismissively. "It's not like it was hard. The whole thing was just an elaborate hoax; but I already knew that."

"So you really are just crazy then, huh?" Alistair said, amused. He could tell by the tone of Seto's voice that he did in fact now believe that his visions had been real but was far too proud to admit it.

"Guess so. Thank god for pills. Anyway, Mokuba and I are flying back either tomorrow or the day after. Yugi's decided to duel his imaginary friend and I want to watch; it should be entertaining." Alistair would have expressed his surprise at hearing that Yugi would be dueling the pharaoh and asked questions about it, but given who he was speaking to, he knew it would be a waste of breath.

"Well have fun being entertained," he yawned.

"Did I wake you up?" Seto asked, the time difference occurring to him for the first time.

"Kind of. It's no big deal though. I might as well go for a morning ride before work." He shifted the phone to his other ear and got out of bed, eliciting an unappreciative meow from Sewell.

"Do you have that cat in my room?"

"Calm down; I'm sleeping in mine so that we could both have some company." Seto relaxed. He knew his dislike of Alistair's cat was irrational, but it wasn't something he chose to work on.

"Aw, do you miss me?" Seto cooed sarcastically, though he was genuinely curious. He hadn't personally had the time to miss either Mokuba or Alistair, but he had the excuse of being magically transported back to ancient Egypt and having to live through a war and the reign of terror by a madman trying to take over the world.

"I don't know how I've even managed to work up the strength to get out of bed without you here," Alistair replied with just as much insincerity, though he had in fact missed waking up next to Seto the last few days. He wondered if Seto had missed him too but doubted it.

"I guess I'll just have to hurry home to ensure you go back to being a productive member of society, huh?"

Duke had intended to go up on deck to smoke a cigarette, but when he'd heard Kaiba talking on the phone he'd shamelessly paused to eavesdrop since it didn't sound like Kaiba was taking a business call. His eyebrows rose higher on his forehead as the conversation proceeded. It sounded to him like the CEO was dating someone. He didn't know what was more shocking: the concept of Kaiba being in love with someone or someone being in love with Kaiba.

As soon as Kaiba was off the phone Duke coughed loudly to announce his presence.

"What do you want?" Seto asked suspiciously, hoping against hope that Devlin hadn't caught anything he'd said on the phone.

"Relax man, I'm just up here to smoke a cigarette." He held up the pack. "Do you want one?"

"I don't smoke." Seto's tone made it clear what he thought of people who did. Duke shrugged and removed a cigarette from the pack before proceeding to light it with his custom-made Dungeon Dice Monsters lighter.

Seto was torn between wanting to leave and not wanting Duke to think he was leaving because of him.

"Who were you talking to?" Duke asked casually, exhaling a puff of smoke and tapping the side of his cigarette on the liner's railing.

"Roland, not that it's any of your business," Seto replied coldly, hoping against hope that Devlin hadn't heard what he'd been saying. "And can you blow your smoke in the other direction?" he added, coughing.

"Oh, sorry." There was a pause. "I'm thinking about asking Joey's sister Serenity out," Duke said, blowing another puff of smoke out to sea.

"Do you want me to congratulate you on expanding the geek squad?" Seto snapped. By now he realized that the sleazy playboy was leading up to something and he wanted to speed up the process so he could leave without feeling like he was slinking off.

"No, I'm just making small talk. So, are you seeing anybody?" He glanced sideways to see the reaction his statement elicited.

Seto couldn't gauge whether it was an offhand question or if Devlin really had heard his conversation with Alistair. He chose to act on the assumption that he hadn't been overheard but hesitated another moment to think of the answer that would put himself in the best light and finally opting to go on the offensive.

"This isn't a sleepover Devlin and I'm not one of your pathetic friends. Why don't you go get one of them to braid your hair and leave me alone?"

"Hey, chill out; I was just asking. I didn't know it was such a touchy subject. I didn't come up here to bother you; I just wanted to smoke. As soon as I finish this cigarette I'll leave you to your solitude I promise."

Though Duke stayed true to his word, Seto continued to watch him warily. He should have been paying more attention to what he'd been saying. Even if Devlin really hadn't heard, he never should have said something as incriminating as 'did you miss me?' or 'I guess I'll just have to hurry home' in such a public place.

Once he returned to the others all of whom, except for Yugi who was readying his deck, and Bakura who'd fallen into a deep sleep after gorging himself on practically all the food there was onboard, were hanging out in the ship's lounge recounting tales from their adventures in ancient Egypt, most of which Duke had been caught up on already, and discussing the following day's duel.

"You'll never guess what I just heard guys," he said, causing Joey, Tristan, and Téa to look up from the bolted down, slightly uncomfortable black couch they'd been lounging on.

"What is it Duke?" Tristan asked.

"Kaiba was talking to someone on the phone up on deck just now."

"He isn't planning anything sneaky, is he?" Joey asked, his hackles raised. "That guy just doesn't know when to quit!"

"No, nothing like that. It sounded like he was talking to his girlfriend." Of all the things that Duke could have said, that was the most unexpected. Tristan and Joey's eyes widened.

"No, no way," Joey said in slack-jawed disbelief, jumping up from the couch. "There's no way Rich Boy has a girlfriend."

"Yeah, he doesn't care about anyone but himself," Tristan agreed. Téa, unlike the other two, didn't have as much trouble believing the news. Though she could never imagine wanting to be with someone as self-absorbed and mean-spirited as Kaiba, she knew plenty of girls who harbored crushes on the champion duelist.

"He said he was talking to Roland, that guy who works for him, but unless they're having some steamy affair he was asking someone else if they missed him and telling them he'd hurry home."

"Don't you geeks have anything better to do than talk about me?" Seto, who had followed Duke back downstairs and listened in while staying hidden from view around the corner asked, walking into the lounge, his arms crossed. "For your information I was talking to Roland and I was being sarcastic. I don't have a girlfriend. Again: not that it's any of your business." Joey, never one to censor himself couldn't help but say snidely:

"So what, you got a boyfriend?" He had expected some sarcastic retort, and therefore wasn't prepared for Kaiba to march angrily up to him, grab him by his collar and throw him against the wall.

"I dare you to repeat that." Seto was so furious that the hands still holding Wheeler's collar were shaking.

"Hey, get off me! I was just kidding!"

"Do you know that I could sue you for slander for saying something like that?" Tristan, Téa, and Duke could only watch on, too startled to move.

"What are ya talking about? It was just a joke!" Joey struggled to shove Kaiba off of him, but to his surprise discovered that the brunette was stronger than he was.

"Don't you ever say that again." Seto's voice was low and threatening. He relinquished his grip on the other man's tan jacket and turned his back on him. Predictably Wheeler tried to tackle him from behind. Seto sidestepped him and Joey crashed to the floor. Suddenly Téa, Tristan, and Duke unfroze.

"Hey, what'd ya do that for?" Tristan demanded as he, Téa, and Duke bent down to make sure Joey was alright.

"I was just putting a dog back in its place," Seto replied, staring down his nose at the four kneeling on the floor.

"Can't you take a joke?" Joey asked hotly, rubbing his head.

"I don't have time for jokes Wheeler. Now I suggest you keep my name out of your mouths if you want to avoid a scene like this in the future, not that I intend to see any of you losers again once we get back."

"What the hell was that about?" Duke asked once Seto had swept from the lounge.

"I don't know, but let me tell ya; for someone who spends all his time working with computers, he's got a hell of a grip."

Unlike the other three who seemed utterly bewildered by Kaiba's behavior, Téa thought she might have an inkling as to why he'd react like that to the comment Joey had made. She wouldn't have thought so, but based on the fact that a joke about having a boyfriend had touched a nerve, it seemed to Téa that there must be some truth to it. She wondered what kind of person this boyfriend would have to be to cause Kaiba to want to hurry home to them when she had never thought of the proud CEO as the type to care about anyone but himself and occasionally his younger brother.

As angry as he was that they had been talking about him and jumping to all sorts of conclusions, Seto was mostly angry with himself for having slipped up so badly. Maybe being with Alistair was affecting him more than he'd thought. He couldn't believe that he hadn't been more careful about what he'd said, or that he hadn't listened for someone coming up the stairs. Still, having talked to Alistair and now thinking about him did make Seto miss him. He was grateful to have Mokuba there but as he changed out of his clothes and lay down on the cot beside the cabin's bed, which he'd offered his brother who was already fast asleep by the time Seto returned, he wished that Alistair was there too.

Mokuba awoke the next morning with the sunlight shining in through the cabin's window. He stretched and yawned, expecting Seto to make some comment about him having slept too long, but to his surprise, when he looked over he saw that his brother was still asleep and that at some point in the night he'd kicked his blanket off and hugged his pillow.

Mokuba didn't usually catch his brother sleeping since Seto considered that far too much of a vulnerable position to be in to sleep anywhere but his own bedroom alone. Although, the younger Kaiba brother realized suddenly, Alistair probably saw Seto sleeping all the time since they shared a bed. And speaking of Alistair, could it be that Seto had become so accustomed to having the redhead by his side as he slept that he'd hugged the pillow out of habit, expecting there to be someone else there next to him?

This was a rare window into the mysterious life that Seto and Alistair shared about which Mokuba knew very little. The pair gave no indication other than the occasional spat that their relationship was anything more than platonic. They never kissed or held hands or even really did anything together at all outside of whatever they got up to in their bedroom as far as Mokuba could tell, so the fact that they obviously meant so much to each other puzzled him.

He assumed that the decision to keep things low-key was Seto's; the brunette had never been one for public displays of affection, and he felt bad for Alistair for that. If Hilary would ever decide not to show him any kind of affection in front of other people he would feel as though their relationship was something she was ashamed of and wondered if that's how Alistair felt or if the decision not to even touch each other in public had been mutual, though he doubted it.

Seto stirred and opened his eyes only to catch his brother openly staring at him. In the same moment he realized that he was hugging his pillow and quickly sat up and put it back at the head of the cot.

"Why are you staring at me?" he asked moodily; sleeping with his head on just the hard cot had given him a stiff neck.

"I'm not. I mean, I am, but I'm not really looking at you; I was thinking about something completely different."

"Oh." Seto began changing back into his clothes. "How long have you been awake?"

"Not long. I was thinking about calling Hilary since she gets out of school soon if I've got the time difference right. Apropos: what did Alistair say last night?" The previous night's events came rushing back.

"Nothing. He just asked when we'd be back and I told him." He decided not to tell Mokuba about what had happened afterwards. Mokuba, no idiot, could sense that there was more to it than that, but abstained from asking; Seto hated being pressed for information. "Anyway, get dressed so we can go watch Yugi duel himself and then fly home; I'm sick of this place."

Author's Note: Seto always struck me as the kind of person who, despite loving being in the spotlight, only likes doing it on his own terms. Therefore, one of my headcanons is that he goes to great lengths to keep his personal life private (as was shown in the Cyber World arc). It's not so much that Alistair is a man (though that's a part of it) and more to do with wanting privacy, lest someone use the information to hurt him.