I always come up with different names to give doubles of existing characters, and this is part of the reason why. Things are usually complex when dealing with any kind of multiverse, and having multiple characters with the same name in the same scene is bad enough to keep track of for me, the jackass who knows what he's trying to do here.
I can only imagine how confusing it would be for y'all.
Just remember: Mokuba is the one we've been following since the beginning of this story.
Masahiko is the new kid.
.
The look that crossed Masahiko's face when he laid eyes on Daimon was murderous. It was just a glimpse, as Roland strode down the hall and turned a corner; the old man was unconscious and slung over his shoulder like a sack of rice, but it was enough. The hesitant, bewildered obedience Masahiko had shown so far had nearly fooled Mokuba into thinking that this boy wasn't much like him at all. Looking at his double now, however, Mokuba could feel his anger.
He knew that anger. Intimately.
"I was a fake-out," Masahiko growled. "You were s'posed to be so focused on me that you never noticed him doing the real job."
"It almost worked," Mokuba said.
Masahiko grimaced. "He always underestimates Niisama." A fierce pride came out in his tone now, even more familiar than his rage. "He thinks he'll always be better than Niisama. That there's no way for Niisama to ever outclass him. He's wrong. This isn't a game where you have stat points and magic jewelry that keeps you on a higher tier than the new players. It's survival."
Mokuba nodded. "So? What are you going to do?"
Masahiko turned eyes to Mokuba and his grimace deepened. "How should I know? None of this makes sense. I don't know what Otousama wants, I don't know what he's thinking, I don't know how to help my brother, I don't know how to get home, and I don't know what's going to be waiting for me even if I figure out how. Why don't you ask me for investment advice next?"
Mokuba snickered involuntarily. He cleared his throat. "Sorry. I'm sorry. I'm not trying to pile on. Listen, my brother doesn't like magic very much at all. Truth told, he hates it. I think that's probably something he shares with yours." Masahiko nodded fervently. "But like it or not, he probably knows more about it than that man."
"I tried to kill him."
"No, you didn't." Mokuba raised an eyebrow. "Daimon did. You stood in the middle of the room and stared at him for a while."
Masahiko grunted. "You interrupted me," he said sourly.
"I really didn't." Mokuba shook his head. "I waited to see what you were going to do. What you might try." He gestured to his ankle, where they both knew he was still carrying. "I could afford to wait, so I did. You didn't want to kill him, and you didn't try."
Masahiko's eyes narrowed. "You think you're real smart, don't you?"
Mokuba shrugged. "Maybe."
Masahiko sighed and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his shorts. "Fine," he said, averting his gaze. "I'll talk to your brother."
"Good boy."
"Don't push it."
Mokuba's face turned serious. Almost grim. "You're in a bad place," he said. "You don't want to be here. You don't want to do what that man says. You want things to go back to normal. Maybe you want to go back to before normal. Maybe your normal sucks just as much as this does, but at least it's familiar so you'll take it. But maybe you want things to be better than they were."
Masahiko flinched, but didn't respond. Not with words.
Mokuba was fairly certain he'd hit the mark.
He went on: "I can't be of much help. I don't really know what to do, either. But I know my brother will help. He'll do something. It's what he does. The children of Domino City can always count on him. Especially the orphans. More than Kaiba-Corp, more than card games, more than flashy holograms. That is my brother's legacy. Whatever he can do to help you, he'll do it."
Masahiko pouted, suddenly looking so much younger than before. "That's pretty much what Yugi said, too."
Mokuba drew in a breath, then put a hand on his double's shoulder. Masahiko flinched again, but it was slight. "Listen," Mokuba said. "Niisama's better at keeping his promises than Yugi. You'll see. I won't ask you to trust me. I get it. I do. But . . . you'll see."
"If you say so."
