#longer tail can cry out of the eye under the eye patch (forgot to draw it though) horns get to poke out from under the hat

[aroace-poly-show]

sadness siffrin doodling

[ayma-nidiot]

In the White Light - Prideshipping fic Chapter 5

Also on AO3.

Chapter 5 – This Mask That I Have Become

He didn’t know and didn’t care about such trivial matters as “time” and “human interaction” anymore. As the most powerful monster out of the many roaming Domino City, Seto Kaiba didn’t care anymore. If one of Dartz’ many minions dared to challenge him, he would strike. If a human – even one he had met before – was foolish enough to get close to him, he would strike. As desperately as he wanted to hide – if not to avoid unnecessary fighting, then to hide his curse – creatures of this world would not leave him alone. Kaiba had always been annoyed by those he deemed as less than and wanted to get away from them most of all. All, that was, except for Dartz and his minion Rafael. But in the course of his own madness, he had forgotten why it was he only wanted to fight these two individuals in particular.

Unfortunately for Kaiba, this was not to be, for as he intended to land in a forest in the distance, he heard familiar voices below. “Kaiba! You better be out here somewhere, jackass!”

“Joey, please…” Téa warned. “After we just left Rex’s and Weevil’s soulless bodies at the hospital, don’t you think you could have a little more compassion for others?”

“He’s not at KaibaCorp.” Tristan came running. “We’ve been looking for a week now… Where could he be?”

“Uh… Guys?” Joey pointed towards the sky. “Don’t look now, but there’s a big scary monster coming this way!”

“And? Is that really new?” Tristan asked. “Shouldn’t we be used to that by now, o mighty keeper of the dragon Hermos?”

“Speaking of dragons, get out of the way!” Yami Yugi barely ducked himself and his friends in time to avoid a beam of light.

“Yo, yo, yo, check it out!” Joey’s voice mixed excitement and fear. “It’s the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon!”

“But what is it doing here?” Téa jumped back. “Just great…”

Yami Yugi took a bit longer than the others to get up from duck position. But he did not take long to recognize the monster before him, and completely froze at the sight of him. “Ah!”

“Yug, what’s up?”

“Yugi, we have to move!” Téa insisted. “Or… Or fight back, or something! Don’t you have your dragon Timaeus?”

“Well, if Yug’s not going to do anything, then I guess it’s up to me!” Joey slammed the Claw of Hermos onto his Duel Disk. “Protect us, Hermos!”

“Joey, wait!”

“Come on, what do you got, hot stuff?” Joey smirked, ordering Hermos to attack – and to his fortune, Kaiba fled immediately after just one shot. “Hah! ‘Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon,’ my ass. More like ‘Blue-Eyes Big Chicken!’”

“Now that that’s taken care of, can we please continue looking for Kaiba?” Téa suggested.

“I second that notion,” spoke Tristan. “Yugi, aren’t you going to come with us?”

“…Everyone, I think that Kaiba’s gone for good this time.”

“Eh? What do you mean, Yug?”

“He won’t be coming back…” Yami Yugi punched the concrete and began to cry. “And I’ve failed him. I’ve failed both him and Yugi!”

“Come on, Yugi, not again!” Téa knelt down in consolation. “Okay, so maybe you did fail our Yugi, but… You’re going to make up for it, right? Why else do you think we’re searching for Kaiba?”

“And what do you mean, ‘you’ve failed Kaiba?’” Joey snorted. “If anything, he failed us! Probably just sittin’ in some comfy office while us plebeians have to do the hard work.”

“Up you get, Yugi. Stop beating yourself up. We all make mistakes, don’t we?”

“Thank you, Téa…” Yami Yugi looked in the direction in which Kaiba flew off. Kaiba… Flee from me if you want, but I will see you again.

Meanwhile, Kaiba returned to the roof of KaibaCorp, having run out of other hiding places. He figured that if he couldn’t really hide anyway, he might as well stay on his home turf, complete with his private jets.

And right then and there, Mokuba had the same notion.

“Gee… Hah…” It was apparent that Mokuba had been running; he leaned against the ledge of the balcony to rest. “I don’t know who’s scarier, those bodyguards, or the monsters all over the- Seto?”

Too surprised by his little brother’s appearance, Kaiba didn’t bother to fly or even look away.

“Seto!” Mokuba started running to his elder brother, giving him a hug while crying tears of joy. “I knew you’d come back! Oh, man, running from the bodyguards keeping me from this place was worth it! I’ve… I’ve missed you, you know. Even though you can be a little mean sometimes. Can you please not run away like that again, Big Brother?”

Kaiba nuzzled his head into Mokuba’s face while the younger brother petted him.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot… You can’t talk when you’re a dragon, can you?”

Curling his tail around, Kaiba lightly massaged Mokuba’s back.

“Aww, you don’t have to worry about me! Roland and the others patched me up. And then I ran away from them again right after. Some grateful little brother I am, huh? Haha!”

“Yes, please don’t run away from me, so I can properly take your soul this time!” sounded a voice from the balcony entrance.

“Alister!” Mokuba rushed in front of Kaiba and blocked Alister’s path. “You’re not going to touch him! I won’t let you!”

“Kaiba, I know that you’re in there. Duel me so that I can finally have proper vengeance on Gozaburo!”

“Graaaaar!” Kaiba’s eyes and sapphires glowed, showing his intent to attack.

“What, you can’t duel me in that form, can you? Then, pray tell, how do you plan to retrieve the soul of Yugi?”

Kaiba… Seto Kaiba, you must duel him.

For the first time in a week, Kaiba felt his consciousness return. Who… Who is… Someone is speaking to me? But whom?

It is I, your guardian dragon Critias. You have to duel this man – not only to help stop Dartz, but also to give yourself a sense of peace.

Uh… Kind of hard to put a Duel Disk on a dragon’s arm. For that matter, I don’t have arms in this form. And how am I supposed to declare any attacks if I can’t speak?

Then you’ll have to change back into a human.

Excuse me? I need to destroy that Rafael for what he’s done!

You can’t win the trust of the pharaoh, not as you are now. If you can get your emotions under control, I’m sure it can be done.

But without the pharaoh, how can I…

Kaiba, you have a strong soul, and that’s why I’ve chosen you. I know you can do it. You want to see the pharaoh again, don’t you? I saw that look in your eyes when you fled from him just now… You didn’t really want to flee.

You’re right… Kaiba became surrounded in a white light. If I can’t become human again, then I can’t tell the pharaoh that… that I…

“Hmm…” Alister watched with curiosity. “That’s more like it.”

“Seto! Oh, thank goodness!”

When Kaiba had completely reverted forms, the first thing he said was, “Mokuba, get my Duel Disk.”

“Y-You got it, Big Bro!” Though he wasn’t comfortable with his brother dueling in these conditions, Mokuba went back inside the plane to fetch this item.

“So why the change of heart?”

“I just want you out of my life once and for all.”

“Here you go!” Mokuba handed the Duel Disk over.

“Little boy, you might as well get back in that plane so you can see your brother lose his duel.”

“So you intend to duel in my plane?”

“Precisely.”

“If I’m not going to lend my plane to the Dweeb Patrol, what makes you think I’m going to risk it for you?”

“Because how else are you going to look for them while dueling me?”

“!!”

“I’m sure you know that you need the pharaoh and the others to save the world. It’s killing two birds with one stone if you ask-”

“Okay, just shut up already!” As Kaiba lifted both himself and Alister up to the top deck, he spoke to Mokuba from a window, “Go and find a safe place to hide. Or better yet, stay here.”

“No! You’re not going to run away again! If you have to do this awful thing, then I’m coming with you!” Without a need for permission, Mokuba ran up the stairs and up to where the duel was about to take place.

“You little imp…” Despite how worried he was, Kaiba couldn’t help but smile at his brother’s devotion. “What am I going to do with you?”

Alister felt disgusted by what he was seeing. Starting up his Duel Disk, he declared, “If you’re done with the brotherly love, then it’s time to duel.”

“If you want a duel…” Kaiba began as he readied his own Duel Disk, “Then you’ve got one.”

“As the challenger, I’ll start,” Alister declared. “I summon Science Soldier in defense mode. That’s all for now.”

“Heh. Then, I’ll take you out… with my X-Head Cannon!” Kaiba declared on his next turn.

“Then I counter with my Cyber Soldier of Dark World in defense mode. I place one card face down, and end my turn.”

“You must be saving all of your luck for the end. Unfortunately for you, I don’t play that way… Here’s Y-Dragon Head! Attack the Cyber Soldier of Dark World! And now, X-Head Cannon attacks your life points directly! I place a card face down. Now that I’m done punishing you, I believe it’s your move.”

Upon drawing his next card, unfazed by his rough start, Alister spoke, “So, Kaiba, what was that you said about my luck? That I save it for the end?”

“What are you playing at?”

“No, my luck begins here and now.” Alister laughed as he held the card he just drew in his hand.

“Don’t tell me… Did you just draw what I think you did?”

“Yes, and in case you forgot about it, let me jog your memory… Hahahaha!”

“Mokuba!” Kaiba turned sharply around. “You need to get out of here!”

“Huh?”

“I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!” No sooner had Alister smashed this card on to his Duel Disk, when light and wind began to kick up. Mokuba, unable to hold his footing, flew into the nearby stairwell and passed out instantly.

“Mokuba!” Kaiba looked up. Without his control, the top deck of the plane began to open up. Wind whipped his face as the Seal rose him and Alister into the air.

“Ah… Isn’t this fresh air nice!”

“Alister, cut the crap and the magic act this instant!”

“Aww, but my magic act is just getting started!” In addition to the high-speed winds, shadows began to kick up. “For my first trick, I’m gonna need some help from the Orichalcos…”

“Hmph. How boring.”

“Oh, I’m sure that you’re not going to be bored in a few seconds, when you get to experience the same kind of pain I felt.”

When the shadows had engulfed them both, Mokuba had finally come to. “Where… Where are they? Heeeey! Seto! Are you- Aieee!”

The plane tilted sharply to the left, and Mokuba held onto the rail. “Alister… He must have deactivated the autopilot! I have to go do something…”

By the time Mokuba got to the cockpit, the plane straightened slightly, giving him a chance to turn on the radio. “Mayday! Mayday! This is KC-1! Anyone! We’ve lost control! I repeat, we’ve lost control!”

So spoke Mokuba as he frantically pushed every button he could in the hopes of contacting the outside world.