Yami shifted uncomfortably on Kaiba's lap when he felt something buzz under his stomach.

It was Kaiba's phone.

The CEO gave the cat a nudge and it hopped onto the limo floor with a quiet meow before he slid a pale hand into his pocket and pulled it out. It was seeing a text from his secretary.

"Jet is fueled and ready for you. Enjoy your island vacation with Mokuba!"

Frowning, Kaiba slipped the phone back into his pocket and folded his arms tightly. All the vacations he'd been forced to take had been unpleasant, so he had no reason to believe that this island visit would be any different.

The limousine pulled around the fountain in front of the Kaiba mansion and Isono came running out of the house, looking harassed.

"Master Kaiba!" the manservant cried, yanking the car door open and seeing Kaiba sitting inside nonchalantly, petting the cat absently with one hand. "You need bedrest! And we need to talk about that foreigner who walks in and out of the house like he lives here—"

"Give it a rest," Kaiba growled, ducking out of the car with the cat under his arm. He hurried up the white marble steps into his home and slipped off his shoes, nearly knocked off balance as Mokuba came rushing at him. His little brother tugged the cat out of his arms and raced up the stairs.

Yami shut his eyes, growing dizzier by the second as Mokuba's sweaty hands locked around his stomach and carried him up the stairs at a rapid pace.

Slow down, kid! Yami growled internally, fighting a wave of nausea as Mokuba ran into his room and slammed the door behind himself.

He was tossed gently onto the bed, and Yami tumbled down across it, his paws landing on the soft bedding.

"Yami…! Did you kill the cursed cat?" Mokuba asked, and Yami blinked, taken aback by this question.

"The gardeners found a dead black cat behind our fence," Mokuba said conversationally, unfazed by Yami's silence. "They said it looked like it'd been killed by another cat. It had to be you. Isono seems to think so."

Yami narrowed his eyes and wondered if he could chance a slight nod.
The black cat wasn't cursed. He had just been hungry.

"Well? Yes or no?" Mokuba cried impatiently, throwing himself on the bed stomach first and burying his face in his hands. "Also…its unfair how you're spending so much time with Seto. Make him come back earlier from work. Can you do that?"

Yami stretched languidly and curled himself up comfortably beside Mokuba, nodding as he licked his paw aimlessly.

Mokuba propped his head up on his hands and stared at the spotted cat, seeing it look right back at him and nod once without blinking.

"Are you Yami?" Mokuba asked instantly, sitting up so fast, his head rushed. "Change back now! I command you!"

No way, Yami thought grumpily, and he shook his head, biting back another yawn. He wanted to take a nap, and then hopefully eat another large portion of grilled fish afterwards.

"What do you want?" Mokuba asked in a rush, his cheeks heating up with determination. "I'll give you something you want if you change into a human for me!"

Yami closed his eyes and briefly contemplated this offer. It sounded mildly enticing, but what could this kid give him that he didn't already have? He already had a comfortable home and an endless supply of grilled fish.

A rough knock sounded at the door and Mokuba jerked his head around to see Seto, easing the door open, looking slightly disheveled and stressed.

"Who are you talking to?" Kaiba wrinkled his nose as Miyu's sickly sweet scent was heavy in the air. "Have you opened a window in here lately? It smells like the dog."

"What'd you want, Seto?" Mokuba asked, hopping off the bed and walking over to give his older brother a tight hug around the waist. "Wanna play with me?"

Yami watched this scene with interest. The older Kaiba gently pried his brother's arms off him and knelt down, cupping his large hands against Mokuba's cheeks, his expression softening with love.

"Pack a bag," Kaiba said hollowly, feeling his throat itch strangely with thirst. "We're going on a short vacation to Pegasus's island for a ribbon cutting."

"No! I don't wanna!" Mokuba whined, crossing his arms and pouting. "I wanna stay home and play Castlvania with you. Can't you go by yourself and come back really fast?"

Kaiba shook his head slowly and pressed a soft kiss to Mokuba's forehead, feeling exhaustion weight heavily on his shoulders.

"No…it has to be the both of us. We'll be back before you know it."

Mokuba's frown deepened as he watched his brother stand robotically and move down the hallway with a strange stiffness.

"Are you…okay, Seto?" Mokuba called after him, sticking his head out the door and seeing his brother give him a casual wave of his shoulder before disappearing into his room.

"Weirdo," Mokuba muttered, shutting his door with a soft click and hearing a meow at his ankles.

"Did he hit his head on the ground?" Mokuba asked the cat, seeing Yami freeze and blink anxiously at him.

No? Yami thought uncertainly. He had sustained a couple broken ribs from Kaiba's fall. He'd been pretty sure Kaiba's head landed on him instead of the ground.

"Okay cuz he's acting weird," Mokuba grumbled, stomping over to his closet to yank out a black duffle bag. He began stuffing clothes into it carelessly, feeling the backs of his hands burn as the cat's amethyst eyes followed his every move quietly.

"What?" Mokuba whirled around, seeing the cat sitting formally atop his bed, poised regally with its tail curled in the air. "Just talk! Can you talk?"

I can't talk in animal form when I'm not at full strength! Yami thought angrily, shaking his head furiously and seeing Mokuba sigh in disappointment.

"But you are Yami, right?" Mokuba asked threateningly, tossing the lumpy bag full of clothes dangerously close to the cat on the bed. "Nod your head, dammit!"

Feeling a smile curling on his lips, Yami dipped his head down once, nodding.

Yes, this very clever child had figured him out from the day he arrived in the house. There was no point hiding it anymore.

"Good, finally," Mokuba grumbled, zipping the bag up forcefully and pausing mid-step before he thunked it back down and opened it again. "Do you wanna come on this vacation with us?"

Yami glanced disdainfully at the crumpled clothes in the bag and shook his head quickly. No.
He wanted the house to himself to nap and eat.
Why would he want to go on an obviously stressful trip that required air travel?
He'd always been stuffed in a carrier or put in the holding bay of an airplane, and he didn't want to experience either of those uncomfortable situations.

"Please?" Mokuba begged, kneeling down to toss out several shirts and pants, leaving a huge mess on the floor beside him. "C'mon…you have to come with me to protect us. We're flying into enemy territory."

Frowning, Yami wondered what Mokuba meant by that, but the child didn't elaborate.

"It's a luxury jet!" He added excitedly, patting his clothes down and making a soft nest for Yami inside the bag. "Bet you've never been in one of those, huh?"

Now this caught Yami's interest and his ear flicked in response.

Mokuba saw this and smiled triumphantly, reaching forward to scoop Yami off the bed and depositing him inside the duffle bag amidst the clothes.

"Okay, now, no mewing and don't move," Mokuba pressed a finger to his lips and slowly began to zip the bag up around Yami's body. "I don't think Seto will let me bring you along if he still thinks you're 'Yami's cat'."

The sides of the bag were closing up fast around Yami's body and he rested a paw nervously against the zipper's edge. If he was going on this trip with Mokuba as his so-called protector, shouldn't he receive his own clothes back in return?

Mokuba's chubby finger poked his paw back inside the bag, and Yami stuck his paw out insistently, meowing softly.

My clothes! Yami thought loudly, hoping he had enough strength left to communicate with the child, and to his relief, the sides of the bag dropped down as Mokuba leapt to his feet and looked excited.

"Oh, right! Sorry about that," he apologized before dashing out of the room and leaving Yami sitting awkwardly inside the bag.

Listening to the sounds of footsteps thumping down the stairs, he heard Mokuba speak.

"Oops! Sorry Seto, didn't see you there."

Kaiba edged to the side to let Mokuba dash down the stairs, looking oddly excited to be packing for the trip.

Sighing, he tightened his grip over the glass of water and slowly made his way back into his room. Taking a deep draft, he expected the scratchiness in his throat to vanish, but to his annoyance, the water only made him thirstier. Frowning, he set the empty glass down on the nightstand and gazed at his bed, suddenly feeling very sleepy.

I'm all messed up, Kaiba thought restlessly, throwing himself down on the bed and closing his eyes for a moment. He drifted off lightly, trying to stave off the headache that was pounding at his temples and the tight curl of hunger low in his stomach.

Turning over onto his side, Kaiba could feel his heart racing rapidly in his ears as he stared blankly at the window. He was tired, but he couldn't sleep. He was hungry, but food tasted horribly bland.

All of these strange symptoms were irritating, but they weren't as concerning as the footage of himself transforming into a wolf while unconscious.
He had to figure that out first.

What if I unknowingly hurt Mokuba? Kaiba thought nervously as a pang of fear shot through his chest, but he laid still, listening to Isono scold Mokuba in the other room about making a mess while packing.

His hearing had improved greatly, and so had his sense of smell. Everything was peachy if he could just figure out what the fuck was wrong with himself, because clearly, a doctor wasn't going to give him any real answers.

The door swung open and Isono bowed stiffly, freezing in shock when he saw the master lying lifelessly on the bed, looking deathly pale.

"Master Kaiba—!" Isono almost tripped on the rug when he rushed forward to rouse Kaiba, but to his relief, the master was awake.

Sitting up with effort, Kaiba gave Isono an apprehensive look, wondering why his manservant looked so panicked.

"What's wrong with you?" Kaiba asked heavily, biting back a yawn and palming his face tiredly. "Mokuba is being messy. Nothing new."

"N-No…are you…I mean, how are you feeling?" Isono stammered, clasping his hands in front of him and inspecting Kaiba's complexion fearfully. "Have you eaten? I'll prepare the multi-vitamins and meal for you to take along—"

"Don't," Kaiba cut across Isono and got up off the bed, dragging himself to the door and staring blankly at a spot on the floor that was glowing oddly at him. "I'm not hungry for food. I'll eat on the plane. Take care of Miyu while we're away."

Ison blinked rapidly and bobbed forward respectfully, noticing Kaiba zoning out again.

"Master Kaiba?"

He watched as the tall CEO knelt and brushed his hand over a spot on the floor, looking oddly entranced by it.

"Did you spill something here?" Kaiba asked absently, feeling the strange urge to lay down on the glowing patch of floor. It was also emanating a strange heat.

"No, the floor is clean," Isono answered formally, and he watched Kaiba compose himself, stand, and give him a stiff nod before exiting the room.

Kaiba shrugged off Isono's strange behavior and saw Mokuba waiting at the bottom of the stairs, carrying a lumpy duffle bag awkwardly at his side.

"Ready!" Mokuba chirped, his large grey eyes following Seto's slow movements out the door. "Are you tired, Seto?"

"Yes, I am very tired," Kaiba responded quietly, easing himself into the waiting limousine and letting Mokuba climb in beside him with a bright smile.

They drove off in silence, and Yami crouched down inside the bag, listening intently to Mokuba's thumping heartbeat as the child clutched the bag close to his chest. Craning his neck forward, he wondered why he couldn't hear Kaiba's heartbeat too.

Chalking it up to road noise, Yami closed his eyes and decided to take a nap to conserve energy. These humans were always traveling, and he was safely concealed inside a bag. All was well.

They hit a small bump in the road and Yami got jostled inside, feeling Mokuba's sweaty hand steady him on the side of the bag and laugh awkwardly.

"What, kid?" Kaiba frowned, draping his arm over Mokuba's shoulder and pulling his brother close. "I thought you didn't want to go. Now you're all excited."

"I'm happy I get to spend time with you," Mokuba answered cheerfully, and Yami felt his heart clench strangely.
These brothers really had a close bond….

"Yeah, me too kid," Kaiba smiled warmly at Mokuba and ruffled his hair lightly, catching a deliciously savory scent wafting upwards that made his mouth water.

Blinking in surprise, he leaned down to give the top of Mokuba's head another tentative sniff, and was thrown by the overpowering scent of buttery potatoes and…grilled chicken?

Mokuba smelled…like a whole meal.

Was it his shampoo?

Intent on discovering what it was, Kaiba leaned his head down further, burying his nose into Mokuba's hair and taking a deep whiff.

Inside the bag, Yami bit back an annoyed hiss as he was jostled roughly on Mokuba's lap again. Sleep was going to be impossible.

"S-Stop…you're being weird!" Mokuba shoved him away playfully, and Kaiba's head swam with grogginess, his stomach gnawing painfully, almost asking him to take a bite.

His mouth was watering.
His ears were ringing.
His vision was blurring rapidly.
Mokuba's scent beside him was so…delicious….

What is wrong with me? Kaiba jerked back, berating himself, gripping his knees so tightly, he felt his nails scrape painfully into his skin through the fabric. I'm thinking about eating my little brother!

"We've arrived," the driver announced, and Kaiba hastily climbed out of the limousine, eager to put distance between himself and the enticing scent of Mokuba's shampoo.

Taking long strides, he climbed the jet's pop-out stairs in two steps, hearing Mokuba call out behind him in dismay.

"Wait for me, Seto!"

Yami grit his teeth and dug his claws into the clothes underneath him as the bag swung dangerously left and right. Mokuba was so rough. If he wasn't an immortal cat, he'd have been jostled to death already.

Mokuba's footsteps clattered up the hollow metal steps leading onto the plane, and to his relief, the bag was set down onto something soft.

"Seto?" Mokuba slipped the bag strap off his shoulder and rushed to sit beside his older brother who was already seated in one of the large plush seats with his head in his hands, looking exhausted. "Do you need medicine for a headache?"

Kaiba frowned heavily and rubbed his brow, hating how his stomach churned with hunger in sync with the beat of his heart. If he had a headache, it was trumped by the painful curling in his empty stomach. His chest tightened when he caught another whiff of Mokuba's potato-scented shampoo and he grit his teeth, his mouth watering rapidly again.
Shit….
It had to be the animal blood that was making him act like this.
He had to stay away from Mokuba until the urge subsided.

"Leave me alone for bit," Kaiba said stiffly, closing his eyes and crossing his arms. "Wake me up when we get there."

"Okay…" Mokuba frowned and hurried away, back to the front of the plane where he had first left Yami.

Patting the sides of the bag gently, he bent down and whispered through the folds, "Yami? I think it's safe to come out now."

Yami bit back a yawn and curled up against Mokuba's pants inside the bag, content with the warmth and darkness. He didn't care either way.

Sitting stiffly down beside the bag, Mokuba heard the engines rumbling outside his window and he peered out through the glass, seeing the ground rushing underneath them rapidly as the jet raced off the runway.

"Wanna see us take off?" Mokuba asked hopefully, tugging at the bag's zipper, feeling slightly lonely. "Seto's asleep. Play with me."

To Yami's annoyance, light flooded the bag as Mokuba opened the top and gently lifted him out, holding him up against the plane's rounded windows for him to see the scenery whizzing by in a blur.

"Look!" Mokuba insisted, feeling the cat's weight slip in his arms. "C'mon…you're no fun."

Yes, yes, very interesting, Yami yawned visibly, baring all his sharp teeth for a second before closing his mouth slowly. Now put me down.

"We're going to a place called Pegasus's Island," Mokuba continued, setting Yami down into his lap and stroking his head lovingly. "The only cool thing there is the castle. There's also a beach, but the trails leading to it aren't maintained. You basically have to climb over prickly bushes to get there."

Yami waved his tail lazily to acknowledge that he was listening. He did think it was strange that there were no other adults on the plane aside from the older Kaiba, but he pushed his questions aside as tiny fingers began scratching him enthusiastically behind his ears, so Yami closed his eyes happily, purring.

"Look! Sky!" Mokuba said warmly, poking his finger at the window again. "Yami, look…!"

Biting back a sigh, Yami cracked an eye open and nodded. He couldn't help but feel a twinge of pity for Mokuba. He was a good kid, but he seemed…. lonely.

They sat in comfortable silence for a bit, with nothing but the roaring of the plane's engines filling the air around them.

"Are you bored?" Mokuba prompted, looking at Yami with wide eyes. "Do you wanna play a game with me? I brought my tablet."

Yami hopped off Mokuba's lap and into the seat beside him, watching him pull out an electronic pad from a fold inside the bag and hold it up excitedly.

"Ta da! I downloaded Castlevania on here," the child said proudly, placing the pad onto the seat and tapping it rapidly, causing it to light up. "Let's brawl! Just swipe with your paw or something."

Yami stared doubtfully at the game loading on the pad, his interest waning. He had wanted to nap inside the warm, dark bag.

Faking another yawn, Yami settled down into the plush leather seat and closed his eyes, flicking his tail slowly at Mokuba, hearing the kid whine.

"Awww man, come onnn," Mokuba grumbled, tapping at the pad and making his character do an artful flip on the dungeon platform. "Please, Yami…pleeeease…or maybe you can change back now so you can play with regular hands?"

Yami waved his tail lazily, giving Mokuba a solid glare that said, 'I want to take a nap' and he froze when he thought he heard a man's voice float through the cabin.

"…Just the two of them…. Yes, both brothers are on board…. Yes sir."

Sniffing the air tentatively, Yami thought he smelled the sour stench of sweat…and fear.
He couldn't be sure.
He had to be sure…because there was a bad feeling that had been niggling him at the back of his mind, and it wouldn't go away until he figured out what was causing it.

Mokuba noticed Yami's behavior shift instantly, and he reached out to pet him on the head, letting out a yelp when the cat bit him in the soft curve of his hand, drawing two small pinpricks of blood.

"OW!" Mokuba growled, giving Yami an angry glare. "Use your words! You don't have to bite me!"

Yami let his breath out slowly, his world brightening steadily as he received a spurt of energy from Mokuba's blood. His hearing sharpened so much that even the high-pitched electronic whine from the pad made his head spin.

Slapping his paw down onto it, he hissed, and Mokuba snatched the pad away, understanding instantly.

"Okay, you don't wanna play this game with me, I get it," Mokuba snarled, switching the pad off and stuffing it back into the bag. "I hate you." He crossed his arms and huffed, looking quite hurt.

Yami meowed apologetically, but Mokuba turned away to look out the window, the tips of his ears red with frustration.

"The kid is talking to a cat he smuggled onboard. The older one is asleep in the back."

Who is talking? Yami thought frantically, jumping onto Mokuba's lap and staring up into his face, grateful for the energy he received from the blood. I'm sorry I bit you, but now I can talk, see?

Mokuba unfolded his arms slowly and looked a little less angry.

"Fine, but I don't forgive you yet," Mokuba said brattily, rubbing his hand gently. "That hurt, you know. So, does drinking blood give you power?"

I can tell you later, Yami thought rapidly, giving Mokuba's legs an urgent knead with his claws. You're in danger. There's someone on the phone…talking about you. Let's look around.

Mokuba leaned away from the window, looking surprised. "Okay. Let's wake Seto."

No, we don't need to! Yami thought nervously, but he was already picked up by the waist and carried down the aisle.

Suddenly, the ground tilted violently, throwing Mokuba off balance and Yami found himself suspended in the air for a moment before he landed painfully, stomach-first on the armrest of the nearest seat.

The wind was knocked out of him in a sudden whoosh and he heard something crack.
It sounded like a rib.
Damn…his ribs were always breaking whenever he spent time with these humans.

Wincing, Yami struggled to catch his breath as he saw Mokuba slowly get up on his knees, pressing a hand to his head, groaning. The plane rocked dangerously to the other side, and Mokuba cried out in fear, clinging onto the armrest Yami was draped over.

"Wh-What's happening?" Mokuba cried, his fingers slipping with sweat as he tried to hang on.

Yami didn't answer, closing his eyes as he focused on healing himself.
He was no use to Mokuba if he couldn't move.

"Yami…open your eyes—SETO!" Mokuba shouted as the plane began plummeting downwards, his voice barely audible over the whine of the failing engines. "SETO?!"

Twisting his head around, Mokuba saw his older brother lying lifelessly on the ground with a small trickle of blood running from his temple which was seeping steadily onto the floor. It seemed Seto thrown from his seat because he was unsecured while napping.

Terrified, Mokuba struggled to stand as Yami slid weakly off the armrest and onto the floor. The plane was still nosediving, and the entire cabin was rumbling and shaking. A loud clatter sounded from above as oxygen masks swung down from the ceiling, and Yami finally managed to heal the cracked rib enough for him to move without pain.

The warm, savory scent of blood was now heavy in the air, and Yami scanned Mokuba's body up and down, noting that the child wasn't bleeding…so, that had to mean someone else onboard was hurt.

He dashed down the aisle, aiming for the pilot's cabin, his eyes burning with fury as he threw himself against the door.

"Y-Yami...?!" Mokuba yelled, following unsteadily as his stomach swooped horribly as they continued to fall out of the sky. Finally reaching the small door leading to the cockpit, Mokuba shouldered it open, horrified to see the pilot slumped forward in his seat.

A dark mass of blood matted the man's black hair at the back of his head, and Mokuba froze in fear, his heart thudding rapidly in his throat when he realized the man had shot himself in the head.

A gun was hanging limply from his hand at his side, and Yami didn't hesitate to bite down on the man's hand, feeling a thick rush of blood fill his mouth.

He wasn't sure what to do, but he knew he had to resume human form to help Mokuba.

Weak at the knees, Mokuba slid down into a sitting position on the floor, hugging his legs and rocking back and forth, trying to ride out the horrible waves of nausea consuming him as the plane continued its horrifying decent through the empty sky.

"We're going to die…." Mokuba whispered into his knees, feeling tears welling up painfully in his eyes as it was getting harder to breathe. "We're going to die…!"

A cold hand rested on his shoulder and Mokuba jerked his head up tearfully to see who it was, hoping it was Seto, but to his mild annoyance, it was Yami, fully naked and looking unusually calm.

"What do we do?!" Mokuba cried, hugging Yami's bare leg tightly as he tried to keep himself from crying. "Help us! Help Seto!"

There's no time! Yami thought frantically as he gazed incredulously down at the child, wondering why Mokuba was asking him to help his older brother when he himself was clearly in the same situation. He had seen the older Kaiba slumped over on to the ground earlier and had decided it would be better to stay with the child who was still conscious.

The ground was approaching fast, and Mokuba's eyes widened, seeing the tops of trees graze the nose of the jet, and he squeezed his eyes shut, suppressing the tight sob that was wrenching its way upwards out of his body.

This was it. This was the end.

Cold arms circled his body and picked him up, carrying him unsteadily through the plane and Mokuba opened his eyes slowly, seeing Yami bent over him, intently strapping him into the seat.

The buckle clicked into place and Mokuba gripped Yami's hand tightly, tears flowing out of his eyes so much, his vision was blurred, but he saw Yami nod gravely and hurry away to help Seto.

Yami dashed to the back of the plane and knelt down, gritting his teeth as he lifted the older Kaiba off the floor, hastily pushing him into an upright position in the seat, buckling him in. He briefly rested two fingers against the CEO's neck, listening and waiting.

His skin was cold, and a heartbeat was absent.

Dropping his hand down at his side, Yami swallowed the painful lump that was steadily rising in his throat.
S-Shit…
Was Seto Kaiba…dead?
Well, if this was the outcome, he should protect Mokuba with all his might.

He briefly recalled Seto saying he and Mokuba had no parents, and only each other.

The memory made his heart ache as he moved unsteadily down the aisle as the plane jolted powerfully, and a horrible, crunching noise filled the air.

"We're crashing! Yami, we're crashing!" Mokuba screamed, and Yami sprinted towards Mokuba's chair at the front of the plane but lost his footing as the ground disappeared out from underneath him, and he landed on his stomach with a solid oof! while his chin scraped against the carpeted floors painfully.

The terrible sound of metal smashing against the trees was ear-splitting as the plane barreled through several tree trunks before it came to a screeching halt, creaking loudly as the side panels split and fell away.

A ringing silence followed.

Shaken, Yami slowly got up on his knees, dusting the stray pine needles off his bare thighs while he carefully registered what had happened.

The plane had landed on its side, and somewhere behind him, the engines were burning, filling the air with a horrible, metallic scent

He heard a hiccupping sob coming from his left, and he glanced around the wreckage, barely able to see anything through the smoky haze. The thick odor of oil, metal, and plastic were heavy, stuffing up his other senses terribly.

Climbing over the leather seats with effort, he saw Mokuba lying limply on his side. He'd fallen on the ground, sliding halfway out of his seat headfirst with his body twisted strangely. He was conscious, and not bleeding.

"I-I…c-c-an't feel m-my…l-legs…" Mokuba whispered, blinking rapidly at Yami who was still naked, looking disheveled but mostly unharmed.

"Okay, don't move," Yami knelt on the metal panel beside Mokuba's dislodged seat, and he reached a shaky hand out to touch the child's wet cheek, trembling all over with distress.

This was…murder. It had to be.

"I can't feel…. I can't feel any-anything!" Mokuba cried, beginning to heave and hiccup. "Is it broken? Are my legs b-broken? Am I—…i-is Seto…?"

"Seto is fine," Yami lied wildly, but Mokuba couldn't be fooled.

"Is he dead?! He can't be!" Mokuba ranted, his eyes fluttering madly as he struggled to keep them open. "Yami…you can't let him die… H-He's my big brother, Yami…."

"Are you in pain?" Yami asked anxiously, throwing a nervous glance over his shoulder when he thought he heard something. "Don't worry about Seto. Worry about yourself. I'll go and get help."

"Doesn't…matter," Mokuba breathed, blinking slowly as his chest heaved. "There's…no point. If Seto isn't alive…I won't live either."

Yami sat back on his heels, trying to stem the rapid wave of emotions welling up inside him as he digested the child's words. These two humans held a deep love for each other.

"H-How are you…alive?" Mokuba asked weakly, twitching his fingers at his sides as he stared at Yami's bare knees in front of his nose. "We fell…out of the sky…and everyone is dead except for you…"

"I am already dead," Yami said guiltily, reaching out to touch Mokuba's hand and pressing his fingers in through the child's much smaller hand. "I drink blood to stay alive. It's a horrible, lonely existence."

Mokuba managed a weak smile, slipping dangerously out of the seat sideways as he struggled to speak, "bet it's not horrible if…you have someone you love…"

Yami nodded stiffly, listening to the crackle of the fire roaring at the back of the plane, and he gazed at it fearfully, wondering if he ought to look on the older Kaiba's body….but that would mean he'd have to leave Mokuba's side.

"It's burning…!" Mokuba whispered tearfully, his body slipping further downwards on the broken seat. "Seto's back there, isn't he?"

Yami said nothing. Turmoil churned in his stomach as he struggled with himself.

He could offer to save Mokuba's life but doing so would condemn him to a horrible cycle of blood dependency.
But…if he revived both brothers…and they would have each other….
But the older one was already dead.
Would it be better if both brothers perished from this "accident"?

"N-Nothing… h-hurts…" Mokuba shuddered, curling his fingers around the seatbelt that still held him sideways to the chair. "I guess I am completely…broken…"

"Do you want die?" Yami asked in a rush, gripping his knees tightly as he gazed straight into Mokuba's tearful face. "I can make that happen. It'll be painless."

"No, stupid, I want to live," Mokuba growled, managing to flash Yami a glare. "I want Seto to live, and I want to kill whoever did this to us."

"Ah, revenge. What a good motivation to live," Yami said mildly, relieved to see Mokuba smile shakily back at him.

There was an awkward silence as they stared at each other.

In the back of the plane, Kaiba jerked awake when he felt himself sweating profusely.

He twisted to the side, horrified to see flames licking at his knees, slowly engulfing the empty seat beside him. Tips of pointed trees towered over his head in the distance and the side panels of the plane had fallen away, lost in sheets of flames.

Hastily unbuckling himself, he rolled out of the seat and landed cheek-first onto the damp forest floor, weak all over.

Everything hurt. It felt like he had broken something, but he couldn't tell what.

Closing his eyes again, he faded in and out of consciousness as he heard Mokuba's sobs echoing in the distance. Struggling to pry his eyes open, Kaiba realized he couldn't see anything other than an inky blackness that had blanketed his entire vision, and he gave up, going limp as the pain in his legs became too much to bear.

At the front of the wreckage, Yami sat stiffly before Mokuba and cleared his throat, steeling himself to ask, "do you want to be like me? I can also help you live, but everything you do will be different. Do you want that?"

Mokuba's eyes went glassy as he gazed out across the damp forest floor, shaking his head slightly, "What do you mean?"

"Blood will be your only food source," Yami said carefully, feeling the heat from the flames drawing near. "You can't be around normal people anymore, not even animals. The sun will be draining, and—"

"You can turn me into a Castlevania character?" Mokuba interrupted, his eyes glowing with excitement. "C'mon Yami. I love vampire hunters! Yes, I agree! Change me right now!"

"I'm asking you to think carefully first," Yami said gently, biting back an exasperated smile. "This isn't a video game. This is your life."

"Yeah, look at me," Mokuba growled, twitching his hand again. "I think I'm paralyzed from the neck down. My life is over. Give me a new one."

Yami stared deeply into Mokuba's round face, seeing the child struggle to breathe as tears began forming in the corners of his eyes again.

"…B-But if you change me, you have to change Seto too…" Mokuba insisted. "You have to help Seto first. Go and do it now!"

Blinking hesitantly, Yami nodded once and rose to his feet, stepping back into the broken plane to find the pilot's body.

Part of him was screaming at him to stop, to reevaluate what he was doing, but another part of him was possessed by rage and a strange affection towards Mokuba and his older brother. These two humans had been kind to him, and even though they'd only just met, it was clear that they were good humans.

And this one is a bad human, Yami thought disdainfully, dragging the pilot's lifeless body out of the seat and through the shattered glass of the cockpit's windshield.

The sweet stench of his blood pooled in the back of his throat and Yami grit his teeth, holding back. He needed to save as much of this man's blood for Mokuba and Seto.

Leaving the man's body a few feet away from the nose of plane, he hurried around the length of the plane to check on Seto when he heard something that stopped him in his tracks.

It was the sound of multiple footsteps, and heavy breathing.

Nervous, Yami dashed towards the nearest tree and hid, listening intently to the footsteps and heartbeats. There were…four people total, and based on the heaviness of their gait, they sounded like grown men.

Mokuba craned his neck, calling out anxiously, "Yami?!"

"The boy is alive, calling for his mother…this way!" A man said gruffly, and Yami froze, daring to peek out from behind the thick trunk and swaying on the spot when he saw a group of men clad entirely in black, standing over Mokuba's body.

A gun pointed down at the child, held by a black, gloved hand, and Mokuba's eyes were so wide, Yami could see the whites all around his pupils.

"N-No…! W-What are you doing?" Mokuba cried, tearing up desperately, and one of the men answered him shortly.

"My job."

Looking away frantically, Yami stared intently at the ground, hearing a shot ring out through the trees, sending a cold shiver down his spine.

What…monstrosity was he witnessing? A group of fully armed men dressed in army gear had come to hunt for the crashed plane and killed the child out of cold blood!

Trying to keep his frantic breathing steadily, Yami decided he would revive Mokuba after all.
The child's soul would be angry forever because he'd died unfairly.

The boots thumped ominously on the ground as the men circled the plane, searching for the older Kaiba's body.

"Found him!" another man cried, and Yami grit his teeth so hard, he saw green spots.
Damn…damn, damn.
In hindsight, he should've checked the wreckage for the older Kaiba before comforting the younger one.

"Dead. Thrown from the plane it seems," the voice said, and Yami heard a shutter click. "One picture of baby Kaiba…and VIP treatment for Seto Kaiba. Heh, this will be his last photo op. Hey, turn his head this way."

A round of snickers echoed through the group and Yami saw red.

He dug his claws into the dirt underneath his bare feet, contemplating ripping them apart in the form of a bear or a wolf, but he held out. If these men were here to report on the Kaiba brother's deaths, they needed to leave this clearing alive.

"Do we need one of the pilot?" someone asked, and he was answered with a gruff, "no, leave him."

Breathing steadily in and out, Yami willed himself to stay hidden as the sound of boots disappeared in the distance.

The crackling of flames licking metal had died down, and somewhere above, a crow cawed loudly.

An animal rustled through the bushes and Yami crouched behind the tree, intent on staying hidden until the men passed by and left.

Standing slowly, Yami made his way back to the wreckage, standing tearfully over Mokuba's body. A thin trickle of blood was coming from a perfect circular bullet hole in the middle of his forehead. His mouth was still half-open in protest, and his once-soulful eyes were glassy and blank.

Feeling sick, Yami circled the plane, searching for Seto's body.
He only found a disturbed patch of dirt, a pair of pants, and belt with a silver buckle.
Kaiba's body was nowhere to be found.

They…took him! Yami realized, horror slowly trickling down his body and rooting him to the spot with shock. That was what they meant by 'VIP treatment'!

Racing back to Mokuba's lifeless body, Yami freed him from the seatbelt and laid him down on the ground, flat on his back. He heard an awful popping sound coming from Mokuba's body, and he winced. Something in his back was broken, but that wouldn't matter very soon.

Raising Mokuba's wrist to his mouth, Yami closed his eyes and whispered an apology before he bit down and began to drink, counting his sips steadily.

He had to be careful not to drain the body completely.


Author's note:

cliffhanger!
(edited by taedae)

tell me your thoughts in the comments!

hugs,
Ugli