YGO PSL | ❝ shadows in the city, like a demon in the dark, come to tear us apart. ❞

[inheritedpuzzle]

STARGAZING

( continued from here). it's time for sad duels and talking with dragon wife! )


[ It's so frustrating. Yugi feels as if his words can't pierce whatever dark cloud hangs over his other self. It sticks to him like wet clothes and he's unable to just rip them off. It's a side of Atem that Yugi has never seen before, and, part of him wonders if he really can help remove that shadow. He's unable to forgive himself for being human and having a moment of weakness. A moment with dire fallout and consequences, but, they overcame it. Dartz's soul is freed, the darkness beaten back for at least a little while, and they all lived to see it through.

Yugi can't think of more to ask for. He knows that his other self is looking for something or someone to tell him that it's alright in the end. Except, even if Atem hears it, will he believe it? Despite his constant reassurances and remarks, he can see how that shadow haunts the eyes of the usually confident spirit.

Well... Yugi isn't going to give up. He's going to keep trying to convince Atem and show him what he can.

It just might be something he can't do alone.

A determined look comes to his eyes and he is already walking past Atem. He isn't dismissing the older spirit or the look he gives him. Instead, he's pulling on his school jacket. He looks back at Atem, knowing it looks a little ridiculous that he has his jacket on over his pajamas and socks to top it off. It's as close as he's going to get to wearing slippers though.

Cultural habits never really die. ]

Come on, we're going. [ No room for debate in his tone. ] I can feel you want to ask me something. So, ask along the way.

[ They're going and that's final.

He just knows that if he tell Atem where they're going that he'll insist they don't. There will be a million reasons as to why they shouldn't, while ignoring the main reason they should. In Yugi's mind, there's one other person that can help him shake the shadow that hangs over his partner. She helped Atem when Yugi couldn't. Who else can he ask? ]

And don't think about backing out of whatever it is you want to ask me. I'll pester you the whole way there until you do.

Comments

[onepointoflight]

[ As if she's guessed at what he's thinking, a warm smile crosses her face once more and she reaches out for him as though she wants to lightly place her hand against his face. She hesitates at the last minute, however, because she can't help but think that an affectionate, almost intimate touch won't be well received by him. ]

That's good. I'm glad to hear you say that.

[ "Relieved" is more accurate, but she leaves that unsaid. And part of her is still prepared to try and come up with some sort of terms and conditions that might satisfy him, as if he might still insist on her making herself clear on that score. ]

So, what happens now? [ Part of her knows a little about what he does during his day to day, but there's still so much that she doesn't know. ]

Do you have anything you need to do? Are you able to sleep at all?

[ Because it's late, of course, and she imagines that even he needs to sleep, at least a little. ]

[dimefordestiny]

[ His gaze snaps to her hand, but he doesn't move to stop her. Kaiba is certain that she acts as she wills and would only stop if she thought his reasoning was sound. Despite the fact she comes off as timid? He can tell there's a strength behind her eyes that pushes her forward. Why else would she remain bound to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon for thousands of years?

He gives a small laugh, something more along to a confident huff of air. His arms cross in front of him in the chair and he leans back. ]

I work. [ A nod to the screens around him. KaibaCorp is an international company that runs twenty-four seven. There's a reason he stopped going to high school. ] Technology doesn't stop to sleep and neither do I. Not when there are things out there that can take mine and Mokuba's dream away at any moment.

[ Dartz and his ridiculous god might be gone. Pegasus is no longer a threat, and neither are those that tried to steal his company. It's always something that tries to stop him. Even Yugi and the soul that resides in that Puzzle. ]

Or try to find new strategies to defeat Yugi.

[ ... a pathetic existence it must look like. Work, barely any sleep, and an obsession on beating a singular being. ]

[onepointoflight]

[ She might not have all the business acumen that he does, but part of her surmises that even if she was able to, and she put aside that timid demeanor, he might view anything else as a challenge. Not that she thinks of that as a bad thing, because there's also a part of her that wants to be on the same page as him: not necessarily an equal, but someone who does more than timidly nod and smile and go along with every request when the time is right for such a thing. ]

Then I suppose it's a good thing that I don't need to sleep. [ She gives him a smile then, one that's noticeably wider than others she's given him previously. ] Or are you more interested in doing your work alone when all is quiet? [ She can understand having a need for that as well, and she'll respect that, of course. ]

So that is the main force that drives you? [ Her tone is neutral, as is her expression, but she doesn't hesitate to ask that question either. ] What happens when you've achieved your goal?

[ She doesn't doubt that he'll find something else to pursue, but until he does, she wonders if he'll flounder a bit. ]

[dimefordestiny]

[ He already sees her as someone on his level. She understands him, when some few do, and she has decided to stay with him for thousands of years. She is not afraid to state her mind or ask what may make him uncomfortable. Was this how it was in Ancient Egypt? Part of him balks at the idea he is even accepting the fact he existed three thousand years ago. However, too many things line up for him to deny it to himself or even to Kisara.

Her being here is enough of a testament to that.

The second question is what silences him. He frowns and looks out the window as his expression becomes reflective. There will always be something after the dream he and Mokuba desire becomes true. Changing the world is something to be done one step at a time. That is something that Yugi -- both of them -- has made him see, regardless of if he wants to admit it or not. As for the other goal... ]

I can finally let it all go once I've beaten him.

[ If only he really knew what it was. He once thought that beating the Pharaoh would mean he could rise above his past and all the troubles it bore. He had put all of that on that man alone, as if the Pharaoh represented it all. Kaiba was quickly torn down and proven wrong in Battle City. Once again what he viewed as his understanding of life was shattered by his greatest rival.

So... why does he feel he must beat the Pharaoh? What does it achieve, really? Why is that drive so embedded in him? What happens when he finally wins and surpasses that spirit? ]

Kisara. [ His gaze remains forward even if his tone has softened. ] There is a tablet in the Domino Museum. One that dates back thousands of years that shows Yugi and I dueling... with the Blue-Eyes White Dragon and the Dark Magician. Ishizu believed it was telling of how we would battle again.

I saw us duel in the past. Both of us saw it. You and me against him and his Magician. [ He turns to face her properly. ] Why were we dueling?

[onepointoflight]

[ No, she certainly isn't afraid to speak her mind, but at the same time, she'll always view him as someone with greater status than her. In another life, he was a priest, and then Pharaoh, while all she's ever been is a simple village girl who just happens to have an affinity with a dragon. That hardly gives her status or the right to anything.

But he hasn't sent her away yet, so that's what she's decided to hold onto for the time being. ]

But will that be enough for you? [ That's something he'll have to address when he crosses that bridge. ] And will you finally be able to rest?

[ A man like him needs goals and objectives to focus on. What will he focus on after he's reached his goal of beating the Pharaoh? ]

I see. [ A part of her wondered if they would ever have this conversation. ] I believe that you and the Pharaoh were dueling because-

[ Here, she hesitates, because part of her feels like she shouldn't presume to speculate about what he was feeling or thinking. ]

You were angry, that much I know. [ It doesn't wholly answer the question, but she's still piecing together how best to respond. ] You didn't want to be used anymore. [ And as far as she can tell, he had been used quite a bit by the people around him, but not always from a place of maliciousness. The Pharaoh was good; Seto's father was not. That's the main difference for her. ]

[dimefordestiny]

I'll never rest. [ He holds his gaze with hers, unwavering, unbreaking. ] There is something Mokuba and I need to achieve and I won't stop until that's done.

Will it be enough? Hm. [ At that he folds his arms and thinks. Maybe once he's finally beaten Yugi -- the Pharaoh -- the need that claws down from his very soul will be put at ease. The need to prove himself worthy of the world and his place in it. ] Maybe.

[ The few pieces she shares puts a context to light. Feeling used by Yugi - either of them - isn't necessarily a new feeling. Even more so when it comes to his departed adopted father. It seems like some things were bound to repeat regardless of the time span between them. ]

I'm guessing I wasn't successful in winning against him then.

[onepointoflight]

Never? [ She eyes him then, not sharply, but with a mixture of concern and an unspoken interest in helping him with whatever goals may drive him. ] But that something could be achieved with time, couldn't it? And then won't you be able to finally find your rest?

[ That's all she really wants for him, if she's being honest. He pushes himself so hard and with such determination, and while she understands that and even respects it, surely he must be tired, whether he'll admit to that or not. ]

I suppose that depends on how you define winning. [ One can lose a fight and still achieve a sort of victory, especially if "winning" isn't the ultimate or only goal. And in Seto's case, Kisara believes all of his goals are multi-layered and not only about winning. ]

You certainly unsettled him, I think. [ The confrontation was rather unexpected, or so it seemed from Kisara's perspective. And the differences between "inevitable" and "unexpected" might be minute, but they're still significant enough in her eyes. Seto and the Pharaoh might have been heading for that confrontation all along, but the twists and turns of it might not have been entirely foreseen by anyone. ]

[dimefordestiny]

Politics change and so does the ability to do business with it. You make plans and then you have to remake plans. [ He pauses and glances back at her. Kaiba has never really stopped since his plan to get himself and Mokuba adopted. He doesn't really know how. ] What does resting achieve?

[ An eyebrow raises at her statement. "Winning" and how you define it? Isn't that simply towering over them in simple defeat? That's how he feels every time Yugi and the Other Yugi win. They lord over him with their speeches about friendship and connectivity. As if somehow their friends really made it so they could win. ]

What did unsettling him do?

[onepointoflight]

I can hardly say I know the politics you speak of. [ At least, she couldn't ever hope to be as knowledgeable as he seems to be. ] Resting does just that: you have the chance to rest, to regain your energy and sometimes even clearer thoughts.

[ But then she can't help but smile. She thought that he, of all people, would know the benefits of unsettling one's opponent. ]

You moved in a way that surprised him, that left an opening for you to move, if you chose to.