trifrost17

[trifrost17]

More word vomit. Just a silly little thing, fluffy as hell, you know the drill. I haven't felt like writing much recently due to a death in my family, but this was fun. I'm hoping to get back into writing bad pick up lines and my current fic soon.

Truth or Dare?

“We should play a game!” Joey said excitedly.

“What kind?” Yugi asked from his spot on the sofa.

“I dunno.” Joey shrugged. “Any suggestions?”

“How about Truth or Dare?” Duke suggested.

Yugi felt his stomach drop. He hated this game. It was inevitable when his friends got together for a drink that they would end up playing this. They always asked the most awkward questions... but it could be fun.

“But make it interesting.” Ryou added, entering the room with two glasses. He handed one to Téa and took a seat. “I have an app which will randomise questions and we roll dice to chose truth or dare.”

The others murmured excitedly about the idea and Yugi stayed silent, watching his friends and trying to think of any way out of this.

Atem nudged his arm and handed him a full glass. “Okay?”

Yugi nodded. Here was the problem. Atem was living with them now, rewarded with a new life after the ceremonial duel. It was good... it was great. It was also causing Yugi problems.

He was attracted to Atem. No... that wasn’t quite right. He was head over heels completely and utterly in love with Atem. Yeah.

His friends were moving, pulling the small coffee table into the middle of the room and sitting down in a circle. Atem had joined them.

“Come on Yugi.” Ryou said.

He was the only one who hadn’t moved. He dragged himself off the sofa and took a seat next to Atem on the floor, trying to look excited.

“Well, I’ll start.” Ryou shrugged.

“Wait.” Tristan grinned at them all. “Another rule. If anyone refuses a truth or dare they take a shot.” He placed a bottle of Tequilla on the table and Yugi groaned.

“Fair enough.” Ryou smiled. “Odds are a truth, evens are dares.” He rolled the dice. “3”

He pressed the truth button on his phone screen. A small box popped up.

“Have you ever sworn in front of your parents?” He read the text out and laughed. “All the time.”

The rest of them laughed too and Téa picked up the dice.

“5!” She said, relief clear in her voice. “What makes you happy? Hmm.” She smiled at everyone around the table. “Being with you guys. Easy.”

Duke snatched up the dice and rolled. “4.” He reached over to press the right button and laughed. “Let someone on your social media for two minutes unsupervised.” He shook his head. “Sorry guys, no can do.”

“Aw, come on Duke!” Joey said.

“I don’t think so. I have an image to maintain.” Duke grabbed a shot glass and Tristan poured him a drink. “That’s strong.” He coughed after he finished the shot. “Your turn Tem.” He passed the dice and winked at him.

Yugi tried not to think about that.

“1.” Atem said after he rolled.

“What’s your biggest regret?” Ryou read out the question.

“Wow.” Atem laughed quietly, looking down at his lap and sighing. “I try not to have regrets but... Probably not spending more time with my father.”

They all smiled at him and Yugi patted his arm before taking the dice himself. He prayed for an odd number as he watched the dice bounce along the table.

“3.” He almost sighed with relief.

“What are you most self-conscious about?” Ryou asked.

Yugi laughed and looked down at his drink. “So many things.” He shrugged. “Um, probably my height. I wish I looked a little less weak.”

Atem placed his hand on Yugis arm and smiled at him when he looked up. Yugi shook his head, he really didn’t need Atem to try make him feel better about himself, but he could tell he wanted to say something.

“4” Joey said after he rolled, he reached across the table for Ryous phone and laughed. “Spin around ten times then try walk in a straight line?”

He stood up, moving away from the group. As he span he counted his turns then stopped, swaying on the spot when he reached ten. Two steps was all he could manage before he became unbalanced and fell sideways onto the sofa.

“Drink up!” Tristan shouted as he laughed.

Joey grumbled and sat back down, throwing back the drink.

The game progressed steadily, Yugi was enjoying the randomly generated truths and dares, he didn’t feel as targeted and was actually liking the game.

“Truth!” Duke smiled as Ryou slid his phone across the table. “Oh, this is a good one. If you had to sleep with one person in this room, who would it be and why? Hmm.” He looked around them all slowly and Joey laughed.

“Come on man, we know it’s gonna be Téa, she’s the only girl here.” He said.

“Atem.” Duke said, smirking as Joey made a shocked sound in his throat. “As for why.” He turned to wink at Atem and Yugi resisted the urge to sigh. “Look at him. I’ve seen some attractive guys before, but wow.”

Atem laughed and shook his head. “You flatter me.” He said.

“I’m just saying.” Duke shrugged. “The offers there.”

“Thanks, but no.” Atem said kindly, leaning back on his hands and smiling.

Duke sighed loudly, then laughed, taking a drink. “Your loss.” He said.

Atem rolled the dice and took Ryous phone.

“No, I’m not answering that one.” He said, sliding Ryous phone to Yugi and pushing the shot glass toward Tristan.

“What was it?” Joey asked, looking over the table to see the screen. “Aw! How many people have you slept with? That’s not even that bad Tem.”

“It’s personal.” Atem shrugged, taking the shot and scrunching his nose up after he swallowed.

Yugi sat quietly by his side, unsure of what to say. A part of him was curious, obviously, Atem was a King, and a prince before that. Surely he’d had some kind of relationship with someone...

“Yugi?” Ryou asked.

“Oh, sorry.” He rolled he dice... 6. Great. He pressed the button and almost choked on his drink when the dare popped onto the screen. “Keep your hand on the inner thigh of the person to your right for the next round.”

He looked to the side and Atem laughed, shrugging. Yugi smiled shyly and looked back to the table, shaking his head.

“I don’t think that would be-“

“Come on Yug!” Joey said. “It’s only a bit of fun.”

“Well, Atem might not want to.” Yugi said sharply.

“I don’t mind.” Atem said quietly.

Yugi almost died. He was hoping Atem would say no, that he agreed with Yugi and give him an easy out but he didn’t.

They were close, it wouldn’t be weird right? He slapped his hand on Atems thigh a little harder than he meant to before he could change his mind. Atem only smiled at him.

Yugi had no idea what the rest of his friends were asked for the next round, he sat completely still, one hand firm on Atems thigh and the other clenched into a fist on his own lap.

It wasn’t weird. It wasn’t.

Atems thigh was warm and solid under his hand. His other self didn’t seem too bothered by the gesture either which Yugi couldn’t decide was making everything worse or better.

It wouldn’t be half as awkward if he didn’t feel the way he did about Atem. Duke was right... he was attractive, and Yugi felt a little irritated that he wasn’t the only one who had noticed that.

He looked up as Atem moved to pick up the dice. He rolled a 2.

“Get within an inch of someone, look in their eyes and tell them how you feel about them for one minute.” Ryou said, grinning.

Atem laughed softly then smiled. “I don’t think a minute will be long enough.” He said before he turned to Yugi.

His hand fell from Atems thigh and his heart stopped beating. He had stopped breathing, all he could focus on was the fact that Atem was getting closer to him, he was looking into his eyes and smiling at him so warmly.

“Yugi.” He whispered. “You are the strongest person I know. You’re loyal, kind, and brave. You gave me a home when I had no one else. Took me into your heart when I didn’t even know my own name, and you continue to help me even now. What I feel for you isn’t something I’ve ever felt before and I can try fooling myself into thinking it’s just friendship, but it is so much more than that. I think I may be slightly, hopelessly, in love with you.”

Everyone was silent, no one moved. It was almost like him and Atem were the only two people in the room.

Atem smiled at him. “A minute isn’t long enough to tell you just how much I adore you.”

He swallowed heavily. He couldn’t take his eyes off Atems, couldn’t tear his gaze away from their beautiful depths.

He couldn’t speak. Couldn’t put into words just how happy he was, how he felt about Atem... but he could show him.

Yugi leaned forward, pressing his lips softly against Atems.

He felt the other sigh softly against him before the slight pressure was returned.

They parted after a while and smiled at each other. Atem winked at him then sat back.

“Technically, you weren’t meant to touch him.” Ryou said.

“Take a shot man!” Tristan exclaimed, pushing a full shot glass toward him.

“Worth it.” Atem shrugged and took the shot, putting the glass back down and smiling at Yugi.

[trifrost17]

We call it Yu-Gay-Oh for a reason.

(Inspired by That One Thomas Sanders Vine)

[trifrost17]

puzzle june day 3 - eternal

afterlife 

[trifrost17]

puzzle june day 4 - ceremony

refusal

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merch

[trifrost17]

puzzle june day 1 - reunion

redo of [x]

edit: edited

[trifrost17]

Okay so like I been thinking really hard about what I want to see by the lovely Tara and I have decided that I want to see Yugi and Atemu happy. But not just happy like what we all love. I want Atemu and Yugi dressed in suits getting MARRIED!! YOU HEARD ME!! MAKE THEM STARE INTO EACH OTHERS EYES AND SAY I DO!!

Okay, I didn’t do the “I do” stare, because I mixed up things asdfghjkl, so let’s have giddy dorks being all “I can’t believe we’re actually married I’m so happy” instead. 

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Bonus: Gift

Summary:  Yugi and Atem celebrate Christmas with their children.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/41171489#workskin

25: Gift

It was a strange thing, being that they were a Japanese-Egyptian mixed family (well, adding in the technical ethnicities of their children, they were a Japanese-Egyptian-Turkish-Chinese mixed family), but they celebrated Christmas. Not for any religious reason but mostly because it gave their children such joy to decorate a tree and get presents on December 25th, as well as eat fried chicken and Christmas cake. Yugi and Atem had started the tradition around the time they got Ziya, mostly as a way to make him feel more connected with them. It was something new they could all experience together and a way to give them all a day that brought them closer as a family.

Téa had been the one to suggest it since Christmas was such a big deal in America. She said children looked forward to it year round. She thought it would be a big help for Ziya to make him feel more comfortable as a family unit and it turned out, she was right.

Atem smiled, wrapping his arms around Yugi as they watched their children unwrap their gifts. The four had woken up at the crack of dawn, gleefully bursting into Yugi and Atem’s room to wake them up. The two fathers had gotten dressed while their children brushed their teeth and washed their faces, barely beating the eager ones downstairs to the tree. Atem and Yugi had learned from experience that if they weren’t down their first, gifts and stockings were opened whether everyone was ready or not.  

The entire morning, though, had been nothing but gleeful screams and shouts from the children. All four were so happy, tearing into their presents and ripping off wrapping paper with vigor. Atem was almost sad to see all his and Yugi’s hard work at making each package look so pretty with ribbons torn so quickly to shreds. Well, at least it had made a beautiful picture in front of the tree before the kids had dug into them.

Atem was sure they could probably post the photos in the KaibaCorp magazine. It had become something of a tradition for their fans and readers to get a few pages blurb about the Mutou household annual Christmas. Joey said it was constantly talked about on his channel after the magazines came out, while Mokuba and Kaiba both confirmed that the Mutou Christmas issue tended to be one of the bestselling in the entire year. Mokuba said it was like a classy form of celebrity gossip that people could indulge in. Getting a peek into world-class game designer and his gamer husband’s life with their children just made them more relatable to the people.

And, Kaiba had mentioned more than once, Yugi and Atem tended to buy the children the newest KaibaCorp products which were then advertised in the magazine and without fail, those items that had been gifted to the Mutou children would have increased sales for the following month. Needless to say, Kaiba was more than willing to give them discounted prices on Christmas gifts for some of the new toys. Hell, he had even given them unreleased merchandise to give to the kids before in order to feature it in his magazine (the payoff of doing so had quite possibly doubled to tripled the sales of the item compared to the initial projections).  

Atem was snapped out of his musings by his youngest daughter. Mana squealed when she pulled out two Watapon plush dolls.

“Daddy! Papa! Look! Look!” Yugi grinned and nodded. “They twins like me and Bubby!”

“Yes, they are.” Their attention shifted as Ziya gasped, jumping up and down for joy at the new game he received—Ultimate Duel Z. It was the newest KaibaCorp board game on the market, not even released to the general public yet.  

“I love you, Daddy, Papa!! Thank you!!!” He bounced over to hug them both, making Yugi and Atem laugh at his exuberance. “I can’t wait to play it! We’ll all play today after cake, right?” Yugi nodded, gesturing for their son to continue opening gifts. If they didn’t, Ziya would forget all about the rest of his presents just to focus on playing with this one.  

After their son skipped away, Atem returned to his favorite activity: touching Yugi. He nuzzled his husband’s jaw, pressing a soft kiss onto his skin. “They’re really happy. Look; Meimei is still staring at her new Duel Monsters set.”

“And I think Mahad may squeeze those Kuriboh dolls to death.” Yugi reached around, placing a hand on Atem’s butt. “On another note… This sweater? I thought we made it illegal. You do know I’m dying here, right?”

Atem laughed, nipping Yugi’s earlobe. “No, we made wearing pants underneath this sweater illegal. And I should have you know, I am not wearing any pants whatsoever underneath this top. These are stockings that end at my thighs.” He grinned, lowering his voice even further, making sure none of their kids could hear him. “And I may have possibly forgotten to put anything else on underneath, too.”

Yugi’s face flushed red hot. He squeezed Atem’s ass before bringing his hand back to his own body—likely to keep himself from touching Atem any more and giving into temptation. “You’re going to be the death of me. I’m dying. You’re killing me.”

“And you have to live with this knowledge until Mama comes to get the kids today.”

“Thank Ra they want to give us our own gifts. Thank Ra she takes them for at least an hour to wrap them and leaves us here alone. Thank you, Ra.” They celebrated the other half of Christmas Day at the game shop with Yugi’s mother and grandfather. There, the kids received more gifts from their grandmother and great-grandfather, while also giving Yugi and Atem their own gifts. Afterwards, they would all work together to bake the Christmas cake and decorate it, and then get fried chicken to eat for dinner as well as eating the cake for dessert.

Atem laughed, nuzzling Yugi’s neck again. “Just think. I’ll be your gift then. Something for you to unwrap for Christmas, too.”  

Yugi tilted his head back, kissing the underside of Atem’s jaw. “The best gift I could ask for.”

“Well, besides our kids.” Yugi nodded, looking back up at their four children. He relaxed into Atem’s embrace, their previous arousal ignored for the time being as they watched the four finish unwrapping their presents.

It had been a journey to get here, Atem realized. Dying and then coming back to life. Dating Yugi, going through college together, sticking with him as he released Spherium II, then getting engaged. Their marriage, Yugi winning Game of the Year, meeting Yugi’s siblings, Yugi releasing Monster World VR, then Yugi’s little sister showing up at their doorstep pregnant. All of it snowballing to getting Miya, Yugi releasing Millennium World, then them adopting Ziya, the Kaleidoscope project, and finally getting their twins. So much in twenty years.

He was so lucky for all of it. Atem had never imagined when Osiris offered him the gift of life that he would ever have all of this in his world. He never imagined he’d get Yugi in his arms for all eternity, able to wake up and fall asleep beside him night after night. He never imagined he’d be so fortunate to have four wonderful children, two of which were miraculously his blood.

Atem had been given more than he could ever fathom and he hoped to live the rest of his life showing his family and husband how grateful he was for that opportunity.

His partner seemed to read his thoughts and leaned up, kissing him deeply.

“I’m so thankful for you. Thank you for coming back to me.”

“Oh, Yugi. You’re the greatest gift to me. Thank you for being my partner.” Atem opened his mouth to say more but was cut off by a gag from one of his children. Both he and Yugi turned around to see Miya and Ziya making gross faces at them.

“Daddy! Papa! You’re being all gross and mushy again!” Miya complained. Atem and Yugi laughed, pulling apart from each other. After all, soon enough, they’d get their own time to be as gross and mushy with each other without an audience. And besides, they both wanted to focus on watching their children open their gifts. It was always a joy to see their children happy.

That was all he ever wanted, after all. To simply have Yugi and his children happy and with him—that truly was the greatest gift of all.

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 24: Present

Summary:  Their first child was strangely enough a surprise. Their second one, not so much. Their third was planned but the fourth was a shocking addition. And Yugi wouldn't change his family for the world.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/41170319#workskin

This chapter was too long to put it nicely on Tumblr. Check it out on AO3 :) 

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent: Kaleidoscope

Summary:  KaibaCorp takes a stand against bullying and in true KaibaCorp fashion, they go over the top to promote their new campaign.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40724954

23: Kaleidoscope

When Ryou came to him with the idea, Mokuba was honestly extremely surprised. He hadn’t thought these sort of issues mattered to the man, but Mokuba was quickly proven wrong when Ryou laid out the entire situation.

“And I’m tired of no one making a statement! This is unacceptable and I want to throw our support behind him. I want KaibaCorp to make a statement. To do something… big.” Mokuba tilted his head, thinking it over. It was rare when Ryou actually asked them of something, especially something like this. Seto would have likely rejected the idea outright but Mokuba kind of liked it. He definitely appreciated Ryou’s enthusiasm and intention.

But this was still a corporation and Mokuba had to weigh the pros and cons of doing something that was so controversial. “I want to do this, Ryou. But let me think about how before I go to Seto with this. Give me a little bit of time to figure this out.” Ryou had smiled and thanked him.

It really hadn’t taken him much time at all, though. As soon as Mokuba told Yugi and Atem about Ryou’s idea, they were on board. And with Yugi at his side, Mokuba was reasonably sure they could convince Seto to do anything.

With his usual ferocity to do the right thing, Yugi tackled the project with Mokuba like the champ he was. He pulled Ryou back into the mix, dragged in Joey, Atem, and Duke—all of whom were also fired up for the entire idea—to decide on a plan of action before marching into Seto Kaiba’s office with their proposal.

“I hate bullies, Kaiba. You know that. And we have a chance to make a difference here. I’ve talked to the boy and his mother directly and they are so honored we would do this. And I’m tired of these stories, Kaiba. I want to change people's attitudes. We’re KaibaCorp, damn it! Let’s use our influence for good,” Yugi finished, leaning forward on Seto's desk to see the taller man eye-to-eye. Yugi was probably the only employee who could get away with touching his desk like that; but then again, Yugi's pose wasn't really coming across as challenging Seto's authority as much as it was showing that he was eager for Seto to do the right thing.  

His big brother had hesitated, but only briefly. Mokuba had realized that in their older age, Seto was far more willing to take a stand and even potentially risk his company if it meant doing what Seto considered to be the right thing. Granted, Seto's morals were still often skewed and rather gray of most things, but this situation wasn't one of them. He nodded.

“But we’re going to make this big. KaibaCorp doesn’t just donate to charity. And we don’t just make statements. If we’re doing this, we’re doing this KaibaCorp style. Yugi, you will program new DLC packs for every game offering alternate clothes for every character model. Those will be free additions. Then create special DLC—promo ones—where we can use the funds to donate. I want them for every major game: Capsule Monsters VR, Dungeon Dice Monsters VR, Spherium II, Monster World VR, and Millennium World.” Yugi grinned and nodded. But Seto wasn’t done.

“Wheeler, I want this livestreamed on your channel. Make announcements about it. As soon as Mokuba has a time hammered down, we’re getting this to the Kaiba Dome and you’re going to start promoting this thing asap on your channel.”

“Righto, boss man!”

“Devlin, I’m putting you in charge of hard copy versions. While Yugi works on the DLC packages, I want you to get arranged special editions for the game board versions. As well as for Duel Monsters. Get new character figurines out for Capsule Monsters, Spherium, Dungeon Dice Monsters, and Monster World. I’ll work with Industrial Illusions about creating special cards for the promotion but I want you overseeing special edition card sleeves, booster packs, game mats, and anything else you can think of. I’ll get special edition Duel Disks started and released asap, too.”

Seto’s head swiveled to Ryou. “You came up with this idea. You’re in charge of character designs. I want those done asap so you can get those to Devlin and Yugi. Meanwhile, you’ll be working with our fashion division to create costumes for all of us to wear at the showcase to show our support. Then I want an entirely new fashion line to come out of this, too. This will be the only thing we’ll take part profit from—but some of the proceeds will go to charity. Pharaoh, you’re the fashionable one, if all your magazine shoots are to go by. Work with Ryou and help him design the clothes.”

“And me, Big Bro?” Mokuba asked, raising an eyebrow. “Am I arranging all the promotions?”

“Yes. Once you have dates from Yugi, Ryou, and Devlin about how long production will take, get this settled. I am also making you the spokesperson here, Mokuba. And I want the family that sparked this there, too. If you find anymore relevant stories, get those, too. If KaibaCorp is getting involved with a political issue like this, then we’re going to make it huge. So big, no one can ignore it.”

Mokuba grinned, nodding. There was a lot of daunting work ahead, but all of them there were enthused about the idea. “And the title? What should we call this project?”

Seto thought for a few seconds before finally saying, “Kaleidoscope.”

“Ah,” Yugi nodded, impressed. “To represent all the colors in a spectrum that reflect a person’s identity?” Seto smirked.

“Exactly.”

“Okay team!” Joey began, clapping his hands together. “Project Kaleidoscope is a go! Let’s go make a difference!”

To get everything done and arranged in only two months was a record. It was a massive undertaking—new DLC, new figurines, new clothing line, and even special edition Duel Disks and Duel Disk skins. But it was done and ready to go for launch.

And all the while, Joey had been drumming up support, while also gathering new stories to discuss at the launch event. Even Seto was impressed with Joey’s initiative to bring in their customer’s stories into his livestream. For a few weeks, he had been asking his fans for their stories about bullying and then discussing them with the crowd, making statements about how wrong it is. He would play games online with the victims, telling them how life would get better and how the bullies were so wrong. Mokuba had arranged for several of those fans to come to the launch event.

It was definitely shaping up to be huge. They had been promoting for all two months and all the seats for the Dome had sold out. Not only that, they had sold out of all tickets for Kaiba Land general passes for the park, too. On the day of the event, everything around Kaiba Land was packed; even news media crews were there to see what this Project Kaleidoscope was all about. Many outlets had gotten the rumor that it was an anti-bullying project of somesort but no one knew the full details.

The seven of them going on stage arrived at the Dome early in the morning to prepare, going through sound checks and testing all the technical aspects of the presentation. They explained what they were going to talk about with their guests and prepped them for their parts in the show. And then they spent hours getting dressed and made up in their costumes. At 3:00 prompt, Mokuba signaled for his other coworkers to head on out. It was time for Project Kaleidoscope to be revealed to the world.

The crowd response was deafening; as soon as they caught sight of Yugi, Seto, Atem, and Joey, they went absolutely wild. But then, as the crowd took in their appearances and what they were wearing, their screams turned somehow louder? Mokuba wasn’t sure how to describe it. It was a different feeling, though. Almost like they were being laughed at.

Perfect. That attitude was exactly what they were trying to combat.

Mokuba came to the center of the stage, Yugi and Ryou both standing beside him. The rest of their group stood behind them in a semi circle. Mokuba tapped the KaibaCorp mic on his earpiece on, greeting everyone with a loud, “Hello, Domino City! Welcome to the Kaleidoscope Project!”

He was greeted with more excited shouts before the audience calmed down. “We’re here today to announce a special project that is very close to all of our hearts here at KaibaCorp.” Mokuba paused, looking down at his outfit. “As you can see, we all dressed up for the occasion. But,” he began his tone turning soft and stern, “we aren’t doing this for humor. We aren’t doing this so that everyone can go, ‘Oh look! The King of Games and CEO of KaibaCorp are in skirts!’ No. We’re wearing these Magician Girl costumes proudly and to show support.”

The crowd fell silent as Mokuba gestured behind him. None of the men behind him showed any awkwardness, not even his older brother, in their costumes. Yugi wore the long dress of the Silent Magician replicating the design exactly, including the cut outs on his hips that exposed large parts of his thighs. Atem happily wore the costume of his favorite female magician: the Dark Magician Girl. He didn’t look the slightest bit uncomfortable with the short skirt, which was amazing, because truly, the skirt was so short, it was borderline indecent. If Atem bent over, his entire ass would be exposed.  

Briefly, Mokuba thanked every god available that Yugi had made sure everyone wore the tight booty shorts underneath their skirts so that nothing would be exposed to the public.

Seto and Joey wore the Lemon and Apple Magician Girl costumes, while Duke had on the Kiwi Magician Girl outfit, and Ryou wore the Chocolate Magician Girl outfit. The only costume really modified was Mokuba’s, as he wasn’t too keen on wearing some semblance of a diaper for the Berry Magician Girl. Instead, he wore high-waisted shorts with legs that that barely covered his hips. The rest of his outfit was made up of thigh-high boots and shoulder-length gloves.

“You see, the point of this project is to show our solidarity with kids and youth who are being bullied and mistreated for simply being who they are. One of our designers was made aware of the story of a nine-year-old boy who was harassed and bullied from classmates, even being sent home from school, after he decided to wear a Silent Magician’s outfit during their school’s costume party for Halloween. Silent Magician was this boy’s favorite card and he wanted to show how much he loved the card by dressing up like her; but because he was a boy, he was treated cruelly by his classmates.” Mokuba scoffed, shaking his head in disgust.

“We’re tired of it. We’re tired of these stories—we’re so tired of hearing of boys being bullied because they wear skirts or dresses or nail polish or makeup or anything that seems vaguely feminine. We’re tired of girls being told that it’s ‘just a phase’ or ‘they just haven’t met the right man yet’ when they come out as anything but straight. We’re tired of parents mistreating their children because they are trans or gay or some other sexuality that isn’t straight. We’re tired of asexuality being ignored. We’re tired of boys and girls being picked on and bullied for being different—for simply being themselves. So KaibaCorp is taking a stand. We’re telling these kids, hey, it’s okay to be yourself; there is nothing wrong with you. And when your environment makes it not okay to be yourself, we want to help. We want to do whatever we can to help.”

Mokuba shook his head, glancing back at Yugi and Atem, then looking over at his brother and Joey. “On this stage behind me, we have so many men of different sexualities and with a vast array of life experiences. And as we took on this project and learned about our fans and their life experiences, we realized that people could benefit from hearing that there are more people out there like them. So KaibaCorp is coming out. We’re here in front of you showing who we are. We're showing you that there are more colors out there besides blue and pink; that there is a rainbow—a kaleidoscope, if you will—of gender identities and sexual orientations and those are normal, too. This is Project Kaleidoscope—we want to give you a lens to look into and see those colors and know that there are others out there like you.”

He took a deep breath. Mokuba had made sure beforehand that everyone on stage was comfortable with him talking about them. All the men had agreed. But still, revealing things so personal about themselves was not easy.

“I understand it first-hand how necessary it was to find someone like me. When I was a teenager, I struggled with my sexuality because I wasn’t… normal. I wasn’t like other boys; I didn't date, I didn't want to have sex, I didn't find girls or guys or anyone sexually attractive. It wasn’t until I talked to Yugi that I found a word to identify myself and realized that I wasn’t alone. That there were others like me. That, out of everyone, Atem was like me.”      

Mokuba had been seventeen when he had confided into Yugi about how he thought he was different from other boys his age. He hadn’t felt comfortable going to Seto about it, since Seto never seemed to express interest in relationships at all, and Mokuba did want a relationship at some point. He was scared to bring it up with Seto; but with Yugi, it was so much easier to confide into him. He wasn’t judgmental and he was so approachable.

He had expressed how he had noticed he had never found anyone really attractive. Other boys his age were always talking about how this girl was so hot or that girl was gorgeous, but Mokuba couldn’t wrap his head around it. Mokuba didn’t want to have sex with anyone; the idea of just seeing someone and going, “Yeah, I want to bang them,” well, it was beyond him. It was almost repulsive to him. Still, at the same time, he wasn’t against sex as a whole. With the right person, he could see himself being sexually active, but it had to be someone special and someone he was close to.

Yugi had smiled after Mokuba was finished and said the words that he needed to hear the most: “There is nothing wrong with you, Mokuba.” Mokuba had felt like a ball of anxiety had broken when Yugi said those words. “If anything, you sound like Atem. I think you may be demisexual, like he is. It just means you need an emotional connection before you experience any sexual attraction to someone. And that’s totally fine. You should talk to him if you have questions—he can definitely answer better than I can. But I can tell you as someone dating a demisexual, there is nothing wrong with it. We have a wonderful relationship.”

Now, it was time for Mokuba to say those same words to some other youth that may need to hear it. “Atem and I are known as demisexuals. We only experience sexual attraction to someone we form an emotional bond with. But you know what? Our orientation—there is nothing wrong with it. There is nothing wrong with us. We both have wonderful partners and are in fantastic relationships. Atem and Yugi have been married for almost ten years now. And I’ve been dating my amazing girlfriend, Serenity, for almost three years now.”

He gestured towards Yugi. “Yugi is bisexual and my girlfriend is straight, but they're still in relationships with demisexuals.” Mokuba pointed to Ryou next. “Ryou is gay.” He spun towards Duke. “Duke identifies as pansexual, but just like Yugi, he likes all genders. Joey is bisexual, too. And my big brother? He’s asexual. But even with this array of sexualities, we all have different relationships and some of us have no partners. And that’s totally normal, too.” Mokuba smiled, extending his arms out as if to encompass everyone behind him. “We’re all on various points of the sexuality spectrum. And we’re here to show you that you can be happy no matter who you are.”

Mokuba nodded back towards his brother. “My big brother doesn’t experience any sexual attraction. But you know what? He’s still in a relationship with Joey; they’ve been dating for years and it works. Ryou prefers not to be in a relationship; same with Duke. They are both perfectly happy being single. And you know what? That’s totally normal and fine, too. No one needs to have a significant other to be normal.” Mokuba rolled his eyes. “You see, what is normal for one person isn’t normal for another. It’s fine to be different. But we know that sometimes, your environment makes it dangerous for you to come out or be yourself. Sometimes it’s your parents. Sometimes it’s your school. Sometimes it’s your friends or peers. And while oftentimes, those hostile environments are out of your control, KaibaCorp has decided that it can try to lend a helping hand to lessen that type of hostility. We can’t fix everyone. But we can sure as hell try to make life just a little better for others.”

He took another deep breath, gesturing back at their outfits. “You don’t have to be gay or straight or even trans to want to wear different clothes. You guys want to know something? Atem wears skirts and dresses all the time. He’s a cisgendered man, totally secure in his masculinity, and he enjoys wearing makeup and things noted as feminine.” Atem nodded in confirmation. “But have you ever seen Atem? He’s fucking amazing. He’s an amazing duelist. He’s a fantastic person. He’s a totally devout father and such a loving husband, it’s almost sickeningly sweet to watch. His choice of clothing preferences doesn’t make him any different—doesn't make him somehow less than someone else.”

Yugi stepped forward at Mokuba’s nod, tapping his own microphone to speak. “This is what we’re trying to push for. We want to break these boundaries that limit people; we want to redefine what normal is and show that there are people like us, people like you, all around. And we want to lead by example. We want to show not just children and teens and young adults that their sexuality or gender identity or even what type of clothes they prefer to wear doesn’t invalidate who they are, but we also want to show that same message to parents. Because, you know what? It’s fucking hard to come out to your parents.” He took a deep breath and Mokuba watched his eyes flicker to his children sitting in the front row.

Téa had flown in from America to see this; she was holding Yugi’s daughter, while his mother was bouncing his son on her leg. Both of them were nodding encouragingly at Yugi. Atem seemed to sense his husband’s pain and came forward, placing a hand on his shoulder. Téa noticed Yugi staring at them and whispered something in their children's ears; both kids lifted their hands and waved happily, yelling for their dads. Yugi smiled, waving back, while Atem blew both kids kisses. The tension in Yugi's body loosened.

“I get it,” Yugi finally said. “I get not having a parent accept you. My father works overseas. I haven’t seen him since I was fourteen, but as a child, I was always so desperate to please him. I wanted so badly to make him proud. Even when I became an adult, that desire to hear him say, ‘You’ve done good, Son,’ was always there. I couldn’t shake it, even with my amazing mom and Grandpa and friends and boyfriend all accepting me for who I was. I just always craved that affirmation from him.” He gave a broken smile.

“I never got it. I spoke to my father about a month after I announced my engagement to Atem. It was the first time he had spoken to me almost a year—which was a miracle itself, because he hadn’t spoken to me for four years before that. On that phone call, he told me he was… he was ashamed to call me his son. He said that I had dishonored his name by trying to marry another male and that he would disown me if I went through with my marriage. It was… one of the worst moments of my life. Every nightmare I ever had about coming out was coming true.” Yugi blinked away his tears, while Atem wrapped him in a backhug, resting his chin on Yugi’s shoulder.

“I was lucky, though, because my mother and grandfather still love me and accept me, and my husband, and our children. I was able to stand strong and tell my father I didn’t care about his opinion and that he was no longer welcome into my life. But I’m fortunate to have that ability—I was an adult and still had a support system. There are so many youth out there trapped in bad situations, hiding who they are. We can’t save everyone. We all know that. But KaibaCorp can at least put our money where our mouth is and work to help support the agencies and the people that do help those kids in trapped situations.”

He nodded back towards Mokuba, who stepped forward again. Behind them, the screens lit up with their new products. “That’s why, starting today, we’re releasing special edition DLC packs, special figurines, limited edition Duel Disks, and a brand new KaibaCorp clothing line! We want to make it normal in games for boys to wear skirts or dresses, or girls to wear pants and armor, or for there to be a gender neutral option so no one has to conform to the gender binary! We want to give everyone the chance to express themselves freely in our games and this was how we decided to do it.”

The screen flashed first with the DLC packs, showing a variety of new costumes for the Magicians of the various games. “As you can see, we’ve created the option of swapping female and male clothing, as well as creating a more neutral option. This extends to every class in the games, not just the Magician line. These are all free options, too. The purchasable DLC, though, will be color swaps, more elaborate costumes that Ryou and Yugi personally designed, and a few costume swaps from various games. So, if for example, you’ve always want to dress the Pharaoh from Millennium World as the Dark Magician Girl costume from Spherium II, you can now do that with these new DLC packs.”

Mokuba clicked his arm piece, switching the screen to the next images of figurines. It had recognizable characters, like the Dark Magician, as well as models that looked strikingly familiar to Atem’s Pharaoh character or Yugi’s Heba character. “New figurines available for the board game versions of Monster World, Spherium, Dungeon Dice Monsters, and Capsule Monsters! The Dark Magician is dressed like his pupil and the Dark Magician Girl is dressed as her teacher. We also have a special Millennium World figurine set that does come with alternate outfits. The monster creatures have alternate colors and rainbow versions of themselves, too, to match our Kaleidoscope project theme.”

He paused, letting Joey step forward to brandish one of Kaiba’s new Duel Disks. It was silver but the lights were all multicolored, while the large powersource light nearest to the elbow was designed to glow like a kaleidoscope. Seto also stepped forward, showing off his Deluxe Duel Disk. The lights on his elbow and shoulder piece were colored purple, while wires that connected the lights glowed silver. The Duel Disk was black with white highlights. It was the colors of the asexuality flag.

“We have several new Duel Disks styles available. You can find them in our Kaleidoscope style, or in various colors representing the different LGBTQIA+ flags. My big bro is wearing the asexuality colored Deluxe Duel Disk, while Joey has our Kaleidoscope version in the basic model.”

Mokuba grinned enthusiastically as Kaiba and Joey showed off the Duel Disks. “The best part of all of this? All proceeds will go straight to charitable organizations that aid LGBTQIA+ youth. We’re serious when we said we want to help. We’re not here to make a profit on these items. 100% goes to charity. We’ll use the profit we make on our normal items to fund the production of these special edition goods.”

It was hard to read the crowd. They all seemed in shock, though there were definitely some diehard fans of the new products; Mokuba was still getting some pretty vocal response from the stadium after each announcement. Good. There had been a fear of alienating some of their fanbase but all of them had decided to take that risk and push forward with the project anyways.

“Finally, our last line of items—introducing our Kaleidoscope fashion line! You’ve seen our KaibaCorp exclusive clothing before; the sleek coats, elaborate shirts with too many buckles, tight leather pants, collars and chains, and a multitude of Blue Eyes White Dragon inspired clothes. This is something completely different. Atem, I’ll turn it over to you.”

Atem tapped on his mic, grinning at the crowd who cheered for him. Even though he wasn’t nearly as active in the dueling circuits anymore, he was still a crowd favorite. “The Kaleidoscope line is for all people. We have clothes for whatever you’re feeling: gender neutral, feminine, or masculine. Mix and match the clothes to your delight! We have seventeen various colors and patterns, all of which are available in every style of clothes we could offer: dresses, skirts, pants, tank tops, shorts, one-piece bodices, sweaters, suits, jackets, hoodies, sweatpants—we have as many varieties as possible to fit whatever your needs might be. After all, I know first hand that sometimes you want to wear short, flowy skirts and lacy tops, an other days, you want to wear comfortable sweats and a relaxing T-shirt. With this line, you can do both.”

“This is the only line that won’t have all 100% going to charity,” Mokuba admitted. “We want to be totally transparent about this, though. Because it is an entire line of brand new clothing, we have to be able to cover costs of production. Still, 40% of all proceeds from every Kaleidoscope branded article sold will go to charity.”

“We hope,” Yugi cut in, smiling gently, “that you will support us in the endeavor. We want to help others and we’re hoping you will, too, as well as show other companies it’s okay to stand for what is right. And representing every different identity and showing kids that they are normal—that normal is really just a kaleidoscope of different things—is what is right.”

The applause was immediate. Mokuba felt his chest loosen with relief.

“Now, it wouldn’t be a KaibaCorp promotion without a duel of somesort!” Joey screeched, grinning wildly. “We don’t aim to disappoint! It’s been a few years since they competed officially, but for the first time in three years, all four of us will duel again! Kaiba, Atem, Yugi; are you ready?!”

This time, the roar from the crowd nearly bowled them over. Ever since releasing Millennium World when Yugi was 30, right before he got his daughter, he had stepped back from the dueling circuit. When he was 31, after 15 years of reigning undefeated as the King of Games, Yugi had officially stepped down as the world Duelist champion, allowing someone else to take his place.

Everyone still called him the King of Games, though. The title had never been given out since, even though it had been almost three years since he had retired. Since then, Yugi had focused only on designing games and his role at KaibaCorp. He hadn’t participated in a public duel since his official resignation.

With him, though, Seto and Atem had also pulled out of the dueling circuit. Seto was a shoo-in for world champion, but he refused the title, as he had never been able to beat Yugi (he had beaten Atem on a few very rare occasions) and Yugi, being his greatest rival and goal, was the only reason he had really continued to push as long as he did. Seto still dueled in public battles occasionally but normally only to defeat the current world champion in special battles. Unsurprisingly, he kicked their asses.

Atem, the Pharaoh, had retired as soon as they had their first child. He had explained that he may return to the dueling circuit once their children were old enough to travel with him, but for the time being, it was more important to him to be a father. Much like Seto, his only recorded losses were against Yugi, Seto, and Joey. He, too, had only made a rare battle appearance over the past four years since retiring at 30. Normally, it was only for special promotions for new items or for Joey’s show.

Joey was the only one who semi-actively participated in the dueling circuit anymore, but even then, it was clear he just didn’t have as much fun doing it without his friends and rivals. He was also such a legendary figure that most of his competitors psyched themselves out fighting him. Still, Joey enjoyed joining small tournaments and appearing in random events just for fun, normally allowing whoever he beat to move forward in tournaments. He had done that twice with the world championship, technically winning it but refusing the title and giving it to his opponent.

“We also all argued about who to team up with who, so since none of of us can agree, you’re going to get three two-on-two duels and one final free-for-all duel with all four of us! Can you handle that, Domino City?!” Mokuba was reasonably sure at least two people passed out from screaming so loudly. He also thought his eardrums had busted.

The first match was Joey and Yugi versus Atem and Seto. It was hilarious to watch, as his big brother and Atem snarked back and forth with each other, while Joey and Yugi pulled the most bizarre combos out of their ass that made it seem like they were playing it by the seats of their pants.

They weren’t, of course. Joey’s gambling style of playing worked to Yugi’s advantage, as he knew how to plan around Joey’s off-the-wall strategies. He crafted genius plans to work with Joey, and though it seemed that Atem and Seto were clearly going to be the winners since most of Joey and Yugi’s dangerous strategies ended with them losing copious amounts of life points, right at the end, Yugi pulled out a carefully planned trap (clearly turns in the making) that decimated Seto and Atem with Joey’s cards.

The first win went to Yugi and Joey.

The next battle had Yugi and Seto teaming up against Joey and Atem. Seto’s pure power deck was reinforced by Yugi’s clever strategies, while Atem and Joey did their damndest to pull the rug out from Seto and Yugi. Atem tended to rely on tricks and illusions, pretending to be backed into a corner, only to have lulled his opponent into a trap; however, he was still an ardent gambler, just like Joey. Yugi and Seto were both strategists through and through, and Yugi could easily predict Atem’s tricks. Joey was a little harder for Yugi to predict (since Joey really didn’t plan ahead, exactly) but Seto’s overwhelming power was a perfect foil to Joey. With Yugi reinforcing Seto and out-trapping Atem’s traps, Seto was able to destroy Joey’s tactics.

Once more, the battle ended in Yugi’s favor, as he and Seto defeated Atem and Joey.

Then it was couple versus couple. Unfortunately, unlike the other two battles that didn’t have clear winners, it was extremely obvious who would win this fight. Yugi and Atem didn’t even need to communicate verbally; their moves were so seamless in strengthening each other and playing off of each others traps, that it almost looked like they were one person with two decks. Joey and Seto didn’t stand a fucking chance. Atem and Yugi simply slaughtered them.

They paused the duels to give the four men a break, using the time to bring out the children and teens to tell their stories. Ryou, Duke, and Mokuba sat down with them, talking through the bullying stories. After talking through everything and asking what else could be done to help others like them, they gave the kids some of their new products, before wrapping up.

Finally, the most anticipated duel of the day to close out the event. It was a free for all and honestly, for most of the duel, Mokuba was sure Yugi was going to lose. All three of his opponents clearly targeted him, trying to get him out first.

But Yugi was as slippery as water. He deflected attacks onto the other players, playing extremely defensive for the majority of the battle. Joey was the first to go out, as one of his gambles he tried against Yugi backfired horribly and cut his lifepoints over halfway. Seto saw the opportunity and took it, knocking him out.

After that, Mokuba had expected it to come down to Yugi and Atem, but surprisingly enough, his brother managed to pull off a trap that shattered Atem’s defenses. Yugi had the option of knocking Atem from the game or targeting Seto and he actually picked his husband. He had smiled and apologized, cheekily asking his husband not to be mad at him, before sending his Silent Magician to finish off Atem’s lifepoints.

Then it was Seto and Yugi battling it out, at least until Yugi summoned Gandora-X and wiped out Seto's monsters. They swapped card effects and trap and spell cards back and forth on the turn, reminding Mokuba of their duel way back before Yugi had graduated high school, during that whole Diva fiasco thing. Much like that duel, Yugi ended the duel with summoning his Dark Magician back from the Graveyard and attacking Seto. This time, though, the duel didn't get interrupted right before Seto's lifepoints hit 0; his health dropped to nothing and Yugi was declared the winner.

Even though he was longer reigning as the King of Games, Yugi was still undefeated, defending a title he didn’t even technically have.

After the duel, Mokuba gave a few more announcements to wrap up the event, finally reminding everyone to buy their new products, before dismissing them.

He sighed sighed in relief as he turned off his mic, watching the stands begin to clear. Mokuba was honestly really ready to go home. The event had been an emotional one and he felt so drained.

Before he could go much further, though, he was nearly run over by two very excited children running onto the stage, yelling, “Papa! Daddy! You were on the big screens! You won!!” The smiles Yugi and Atem gave as they saw their children made something warm blossom through Mokuba’s body.

Atem swung his son up into his arms, while Yugi hefted their daughter up, raining hugs and kisses on the excited children. The two children laughed in sheer delight before hugging their fathers tightly.

It was for people like Yugi and Atem and their children that they were throwing events like this. That they were coming out in support of LGBTQIA+ rights. Atem and Yugi were wonderful fathers, loving and so caring to their children. Mokuba and Seto had a shitty father—he knew what a terrible parent looked like and Yugi and Atem weren’t that.

Because children deserved to grow up happy and loved, and people like Yugi and Atem deserved the chance to give children that type of love. That was why they were doing things like this.

Mokuba could only hope it made the change they wanted. Even if it was only a small one, only one step at a time, even if it only helped one kid, well, then they had succeeded.

But looking at the dynamite force that was behind Project Kaleidoscope, Mokuba had a feeling it was going to be a much bigger success than just helping one kid. No, KaibaCorp was going to change the world. And this was just the beginning.

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 22: Unique

Summary:  Yugi gets a bit excited by Atem's new magazine photos and it leads to an important conversation about their relationship.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40608557

Chapter warning! It’s another smut one. 

22: Unique

He knew Kaiba did this on purpose. Yugi couldn’t prove it, of course, but Atem being on a throne in this new photoshoot? It had to be a throwback to him being a pharaoh.

Of course, considering his new stage name had become the Pharaoh, it made sense that the shoot would involve thrones and kingly crowns.

Yugi flushed hot all over, looking at the glossy pictures in the magazine. He hadn’t seen any of these images when Atem shot them and now, looking at his boyfriend in print… well, it was doing funny things to his stomach. He bit his lip hard, tracing the image of Atem.

The pictures made his body feel like it was on fire. Atem was incredibly beautiful in the images; so powerful and sensual, even though he didn’t even try to be. It just seemed so effortless how perfectly confident and stunning he was. His beauty was so unique and one-of-a-kind; Yugi couldn’t even describe it.

Gods, what he wouldn’t do to be on his knees in front of him, between those glorious thighs!

Yugi jolted at the thought, feeling shame mix in with his arousal. He shouldn’t think like that about Atem. They had only been dating for three months and had never been sexually intimate like that before. Which was totally fine. Yugi had absolutely no intention of pressuring Atem for anything more right now because he completely understood that his partner didn’t really get off on attractiveness or anything like that. Atem was turned on more by emotional connections, which was why Yugi would never, ever, ever pressure Atem into sex if their bond wasn’t ready for it. He respected Atem too much to rush them.

He groaned as the thoughts didn’t lessen the hard pressure in his crotch any. He wished his dick would really get the memo!

Yugi palmed himself through his pants, willing his hard-on to go away. It didn’t feel right for him to jack-off to pictures of Atem. Yes, Atem was his boyfriend. Yes, he loved the man with every fiber of his being. Yes, he was hopelessly attracted to him. But it seemed… wrong in some way for him to get-off on Atem. This wasn’t some nameless person, like with porn. This was Atem.

Yugi felt his mouth go dry, though, as he continued to look at the images. He just… just to imagine the feel of Atem’s dark ochre thighs wrapped around his hips… Or his beautiful pink lips opening and swallowing him… Or the way he might gasp Yugi’s name in the height of pleasure…

His hand slipped down his pants, gripping his erection. His stomach curled in some mixture of embarrassment, shame, desire, and relief. Atem wasn’t even home. It would be okay. Yugi could just… could just fantasize a little. He’d get off super quick, take a shower, and then pretend it hadn’t happened. Atem would never know.

He was leaking precum steadily, already so turned on. Just by some fucking pictures. Atem wasn’t even scantily clothed! But that come-hither look he had in his eye… Yugi moaned, rubbing himself slowly as he thought about it.

His dick was straining so hard against his jeans, it was hurting. He popped the button and tugged his pants down just a little, hissing with relief when his dick was let free. He smeared the precum down his shaft, falling backwards on the bed with a moan. He didn’t even need lotion, he was so turned on. This was crazy.

Yugi reached one hand up, tweaking a nipple, as he continued to rub himself off. He pretended it was Atem’s hand wrapped around him, his eyes smoldering as he planted kisses along Yugi’s throat. He would trail downwards before getting to one of his nipples and taking it into his mouth, sucking hard.

“Oh, gods, Atem…” Yugi breathed, losing himself to the fantasy. His boyfriend would keep going after teasing his nipples long enough for Yugi to be a writhing, sweaty mess. He’d kiss downwards until he reached Yugi’s cock. And then… and then his beautiful pink mouth would circle around the head, enclosing him in the most velvety, moist heat Yugi had ever felt. All the while, Atem would be working himself open with his fingers, moaning around Yugi’s dick as he fingered his own hole.

And then, right before Yugi came down his throat, he’d pull back. He’d crawl over Yugi and whisper, “Fuck me, partner,” and impale himself on Yugi.

Yugi tossed his head back at the image, releasing another moan. He was panting hard now, trembling as he imagined Atem riding him. Yugi’s hand shook, his motions becoming jerky as he approached his end quickly. Atem would chant his name, arching with pleasure, screaming out—

“Yugi?”

—well, yes, screaming out his name, but not quite in that questioning tone. Yugi would have preferred more of a “Yugi!!” or “Yuugiii!” or even “Partner!!”. Any combination like that would have been better than a questioning—  

And then it all came to a screeching, horrifying halt as Yugi’s eyes snapped open and he realized that the voice was not in his mind any longer. He had been so close to the edge but it died quickly, his hand slipping from his cock. He wasn’t even sure what to do. Scramble to put his jeans back on? Throw a sheet over his lower half? Pretend he hadn’t just been vigorously jacking himself off to the image of his boyfriend and moaning his name the entire time?

He wasn’t sure what to do. So he simply froze, staring up to the ceiling and feeling his body flush so red, he thought he might pass out. Honestly, he really, really, really wanted to pass out to escape this entire situation. That seemed like the best solution.

“I um—I…” Yugi finally decided putting his junk away might be the best course of action. He tucked himself back into his jeans, dismayed to find himself still pretty hard even after being so humiliated. “Y-you’re home,” he finally mumbled, sitting up and staring intently at the bed. He couldn’t meet Atem’s eyes. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t think—” he couldn’t even get the words out, his voice dying in his throat. Gods, Yugi was so fucking mortified.

He could hear Atem shifting from foot to foot in the doorway. “Y-you… you didn’t have to… to stop,” Atem finally mumbled. “I don’t mind and it’s just porn anywa—” Atem cut off abruptly and Yugi whipped his head up for the first time, seeing his boyfriend staring at the open magazine.

Yugi inhaled sharply and did the first thing he could think of. He knocked the magazine behind him, pushing it to the other side of the bed and on the floor, where Atem couldn’t see it. As if that would make it any better.

“Was that my…? Were you…?” Yugi bowed his head in further shame, biting his lip so hard he was pretty sure he tasted blood. His lack of response seemed to be the confirmation Atem needed because he heard his boyfriend (though probably not for long) sigh out a breathless, “Oh, Yugi…”

“Atem, I’m so, so sorry,” Yugi finally said, his voice raspy and choked with humiliated tears. He wished the bed would just swallow him up.

He heard Atem walk closer but refused to look up, even as his boyfriend sat next to him. “You don't... You don't have to be embarrassed." Yugi clenched his eyes shut, praying that this conversation wasn't about to happen. He didn't even know what the conversation was. He just didn't want it.

Atem seemed to sense that and paused. Finally, he spoke again, though it appeared from his tone, he had switched directions slightly. "You know… I find it extremely flattering that you were getting off to pictures of me.” Yugi tensed, peeking out of his bangs at Atem. “And… Well…” he began to mumble, his face flushing as red as Yugi’s. “Well… you don’t have to stop. Or, you know, if you’re interested... we could, maybe—if you wanted, that is—you and I could…?” Atem cleared his throat, squaring his shoulders as he tried to fight through his own embarrassment. “I wouldn’t mind doing something together with you, if you wished it.”

Yugi finally looked at him fully, his eyes wide. “You’re not mad?”

“Of course not. You turn me on, too, Yugi.” Atem raised an eyebrow at Yugi’s shock. “You think you didn’t?”

“Well, I just… I mean, I thought you needed an emotional connection?” Atem gave a wry twist of his lips, tilting his head.

“You think we don’t have an emotional connection? Yugi, I’m madly in love with you. I have been for years . Partner, the emotional connection is definitely there. You’ve been able to turn me on before we even started dating.”

Yugi felt so much relief settle into his bones, he thought he might just pass out. Laughing, he covered his eyes and he fell backwards on the bed. “This entire time… I’ve been… I thought you didn’t like me like that just yet.” He shook his head, realizing he should have talked to Atem months ago about going further in their relationship. “You’re so important to me and I know our relationship is a bit unique so I never, ever, ever wanted to pressure you into more.”

Atem leaned over, gently stroking Yugi’s face. “You could never, Yugi. If I’m not ready, I know I can tell you and you would never do anything to make me feel bad about slowing down. But I trust you, partner. I trust you so much that I’m absolutely willing to progress further.”

“You didn’t say anything,” Yugi whispered, though it wasn’t really accusingly. More curious. Atem nodded.

“You’re right, I didn’t. I just assumed you would take the lead; I’m not sure about these relationships. Things worked… differently in Ancient Egypt, especially for a pharaoh. We didn’t really… date. It was just marriage and sexual relations were just assumed to be done. So I didn’t know when the appropriate time would be to be intimate or if you wanted to go further, either, and I didn’t want to pressure you any into moving forward when you didn’t want to. But now...” A grin played on Atem’s face and his hand trailed down Yugi’s chest, toying with his jeans’ button. It was still open from Yugi’s mad rush to tuck his dick back into his pants. Yugi leaned up slightly as Atem slowly crawled between his legs.

Yugi’s breath hitched as Atem’s fingers danced around the hem of his boxers. “Would you like to do more?” He asked, his thumb tracing Yugi's lips. Atem's smoldering gaze made Yugi feel a burst of excitement and confidence. He reached out and cupped Atem's butt cheek, squeezing ever so slightly. Atem's mouth opened and Yugi heard him inhale sharply at the touch and he slid closer to Yugi so they were chest-to-chest.

“Yes, please," Yugi answered, breathless. "I’d love to.” Atem's hand slipped into Yugi’s boxers as he straddled his boyfriend, kissing him. Yugi gave an open-mouthed groan at the sensation of Atem’s fingers gently touching his dick, feather-light. He was still so sensitive and now with all his embarrassment gone, he was turned on quickly again. There was no way Yugi would last long at all.

Atem broke apart long enough to lift Yugi’s shirt and toss it off the bed. He returned to kissing him, while Yugi gleefully slipped his own hands up Atem’s tank top to rove his body. His muscles flexed instinctively underneath Yugi’s fingers and Yugi could feel him shiver underneath his touch. It made his dick twitch again in Atem's hand. This was so much better than the pictures.  

Everything seemed to move really fast from there, sensations and heat blurring in Yugi’s brain. He managed to get Atem’s shirt off, while Atem removed his own pants and boxers and then Yugi’s. Yugi was too turned on to even feel self-conscious, especially when Atem gave just the tiniest, teasing lick to his tip. It took everything in him not to come right then.

“A-Atem, wait, wait, wait,” Yugi began, gasping for air as Atem gave him another long lick. Atem paused, raising up to look at Yugi. “H-how far did you want to go? All the way?” Atem’s eyes were tender as he leaned up to kiss Yugi.

“Absolutely. I’d love to be one with you.” Yugi gave a shudder and a moan, collapsing back against the bed.

“And, um, do you want me to, uhh, you know… do you want me to be…?” Yugi made a vague gesture that Atem clearly didn’t understand. He grimaced but pushed on. They had to talk about this. “Do you want me to be on top or you?”

Atem blinked. “On top… as in I ride you or as in I enter you?”

“Uhm, either? Or I can be on top if you wanna lay down? Or I guess we could do it doggy-style and one of us is on our knees. I’ve read that isn’t a bad position for a first time. Neither is when the receiver rides the other. Both of those, you can go pretty slow and take it easy.” Yugi sat up a little, brushing his bangs away. He felt a ball of nervous energy blossoming in his chest and it was not the good, anticipation kind. It was the overwhelming kind. There was a lot of prep involved in butt sex and the idea of rushing into it so soon made his stomach a little queasy.

He bit his lip before swallowing hard. “A-actually, do you mind if maybe we… work up to anal? Not that I don’t trust you or that I don’t want to do it or anything like that, but I just—I want to make sure we do it right. I don’t want it to be painful for either of us.” Atem’s eyes turned so much softer and he nodded.

“That’s fine. We have all the time in the world, darling.” And with that, Atem pressed forward, kissing him. Yugi released a sigh, feeling his nervous energy dissipate. Of course he wanted to have sex with Atem but he wanted to build up to it slowly. He didn’t want to rush.

Atem reach down, touching his cock and Yugi moaned into their kiss, arching up into his hand and body. Their cocks brushed together and both of them groaned. There was electricity that shot between them, lighting up their bodies. Yugi thrusted again, rubbing his dick against Atem’s.

It felt so good. He couldn’t even comprehend how amazing it felt. Atem slid back against him and the two spent the next several minutes rutting against each other desperately. Yugi wished it could have gone on forever but he had already been so close to the edge before Atem even came into the room, and now that his fantasy had come to life—no, it was even better than fantasy—Yugi was a goner. He came with a hard gasp, shooting all over Atem and his own chest.

Atem gave a few more thrusts before groaning Yugi’s name, pressing his mouth into the junction of Yugi’s neck and shoulder. Yugi felt something sticky and wet land on his stomach. He grinned, breathing heavily.  

His boyfriend didn’t seem to mind the mess as he collapsed on top of Yugi, snuggling into his neck.

“Better than the pictures?” Atem mumbled, nipping at the skin on Yugi’s neck. Yugi laughed, stroking Atem’s hair.

“So much better. You are so much better in real life.” He hesitated for a few seconds before finally saying, “I’m sorry. I know you wanted to go further but I… I was nervous about going all the way before we had even messed around, uhm, back there, you know? I felt like we should sorta… work our way up? Find out what we both like.” Atem stroked his cheek, nodding.

“Yugi, you never have to apologize to me for not wanting to do something you’re uncomfortable with. Besides, I agree. We should take it slow.” A smile curled on Atem’s lips. “And, you said it yourself. We have a unique bond. We don’t have to move at any other speed or timeline than what we ourselves set. We have time to figure out what we like and don’t like, after all.”

He leaned up a little to see Yugi’s face. “But, if you’re game, I’m down for beginning our little experiment now. We’re already a mess, after all. Let’s get a little messier?”

Yugi laughed and nodded. “I like the sound of that!”  

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 21: Jest

Summary:  KaibaCorp begins a streaming channel. Joey is the host and Mokuba and Yugi are there, too. Kaiba loses his mind and Atem prays Osiris will take him back to the Field of Reeds. Needless to say, it's a hit with the fans.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40536590

21: Jest

For the first time in a long time, Atem was truly and fully embarrassed. He had no idea what his husband was doing up on that stage but he wanted to sink into his chair and hide underneath the table.

Kaiba wasn’t doing much better. He was stuck between horror, shame, and furious anger. If Atem wasn’t currently praying to Osiris to take him back to the Field of Reeds, he would probably laugh at the constipated look on Kaiba’s face.

“What… are they doing?” Duke asked lightly, his mouth quirked in some-half smirk, half-incredulous grimace. “Yugi and Mokuba and Joey? What is going on?” He had just walked in and had missed the first hour of this shit show.

“I don’t know,” Ryou responded, grinning wildly. “This is definitely a different way to drum up viewership.”

“We are KaibaCorp, a prestigious tech company, leaders in the gaming industry. What the fuck are they doing?” Kaiba was finally able to speak. He looked almost like he wanted to vomit.

Atem covered his face with one hand, peering through the cracks in his fingers. Yugi and Mokuba were both wearing sunglasses, smirking into the camera they were streaming with. A laptop was sitting on the table in front of them so they could communicate with their viewers.

And behind them, Joey ran wildly, dunking his head into a bucket of ice water. He had just been dared to eat a ghost pepper and had done it; he was now sorely regretting everything if his screams were anything to go by.

“Woot! Joey, you just earned us another 160 followers for that! We’re up to 14,367 now!”

This had been going on for an hour. At first, it was just a normal stream. Mokuba and Yugi introduced Joey, talked about how KaibaCorp was going to do their own streaming channel now and Joey was going to host it by playing and reviewing games. He was going to become a Let’s Player and would likely have a rotating guest list of KaibaCorp employees or friends. Like Yugi or Mokuba or maybe even the CEO himself, Seto Kaiba.

It was a clever way for KaibaCorp to make a name in the streaming network, get a friendly and personable face out there—Joey’s—that would play their games and drum up more support and sales for the games. Not that KaibaCorp was doing badly in any way, but they had been watching the rise of popular streamers and Let’s Players online and Mokuba was determined to get a natural foothold in the industry.

This was their first stream, but Atem should have expected with the likes of Mokuba, Joey, and Yugi teaming up together, they would have done something outrageous. The three of them were creative marketing geniuses.

Sure enough, within fifteen minutes of streaming, Joey had whipped out three pairs of sunglasses, nicknamed them the Trio of Fun, and the three had been taking fan requests ever since. It had gotten more and more extreme; Mokuba and Yugi had completely shed their professional, suave KaibaCorp image, becoming like hyperactive versions of their real personalities. Clearly, they were putting on a show, but given how the viewiership had jumped into the hundreds of thousands and were nearing the millions, it was clearly a success.

Well, besides Kaiba’s pride. He looked like he was seriously regretting putting his top designer, his little brother, and one of his best game testers in charge of this project.

“All right, all right! Thank you all for joining in!” Mokuba began, laughing as Joey rejoined them, pouring a gallon of milk into his mouth. He was still screaming even as the milk went down his throat.

“We’re gonna end the stream here before Joey shits himself from the pain,” Yugi added, smirking into the camera. “He’s gonna have a baaad night tonight.”

“One final request before we go, though!” Mokuba looked down at the laptop, scrolling through the text. Seeing something that caught his eye, he began to answer a question, “Ha, my big bro? Oh, he’s here watching. He’s about to have an aneurysm from everything we’ve done.”

“Heh, yeah, I think when we busted out the blindfold about thirty minutes ago, he about lost his shit.”

“At least we never got to the whole Eat it or Wear it Challenge. Seto would’ve died.” Yugi’s grin turned downright evil, Atem thought.

“Next time. We’ll do that with him next time.” Yugi glanced back at the text chat and nodded. “Yeah, Atem is here, too. He’s currently crying from embarrassment back there with Kaiba. I think I’ve ruined my husband’s perfect image of me. Which is crazy; I mean, we’ve been married for like… almost four years now. You’d think he had seen it all.”

Atem groaned, slipping down further in his seat. “Yugi, darling, please…” he ground out. Yugi smirked at him, waggling his eyebrows.

“I’m killing him, guys. We just might not make it to our fourth year anniversary at this rate.” Yugi lowered his sunglasses slightly, shooting Atem a teary-eyed, puppy-dog look. “You wouldn’t leave me, would you, babe?”

He buried his face further in his hands but still shook his head. If this was how all of Joey’s streams would become, Atem didn’t think he’d be able to survive. And normally, Atem was the one who thrived on dramatics but this… this was just not what he had been expecting. He hadn’t had time to prepare himself for it.  

“Oh good, he said he wouldn’t leave me, guys! Whoop!” Yugi pumped his fist while Mokuba looked up from the chat, beckoning the four of them that sat beyond the camera.  

“Okay, guys, the fans wanna see you all before we log off. C’mon!” Kaiba shook his head and Mokuba simply laughed. “C’mon, Big Bro! It’s for the fans! Ryou, drag him over!” Ryou tugged on Kaiba’s arm with surprising strength, making the taller man stumble forward. His face was still frozen in distressed horror at what the stream had become. Atem dutifully followed behind, figuring if Kaiba had to suffer through it, the least he could do was be there with him.

“Yo, Duke, take a picture of this on my cell phone! We’ll post this to the official KaibaCorp accounts. Hehehe.” Mokuba chucked his phone to Duke, who caught it smoothly. “All right, everyone! Strike a pose!”

Atem wasn’t even sure what travesty they had created with the photo. Everything had happened too quickly and the camera had snapped and…

He grimaced, looking at the image on one of the official KaibaCorp social media accounts. Mokuba had put it out, advertising Joey’s channel. Now, a month later, it had clearly worked. Joey had become one of the biggest streamers on the platform, rotating between gaming which subsequently advertised KaibaCorp games, and hosting random shenanigans with certain other employees.

And this picture was the thing that represented it all.

Yugi had slid into the splits, holding up a hand dramatically at the front of the picture. A grinning Ryou squatted behind him, holding up a peace sign. Kaiba was still frozen in his disgusted horror face. Atem was praying behind Yugi, clearly wishing for Osiris to whisk him back up to the Field of Reeds. Behind all of them, Joey was still screeching and running somewhere—likely for more milk or ice water—making a sound that Atem imagined a pterodactyl would have made. Mokuba was above all of them, having lept into the air at the perfect time to strike a pose complementary to Yugi’s. And then there was Duke… He had managed to stick his face in the frame right before snapping the picture, having a bemused look at the entire ordeal.

Mokuba had titled the picture, “Shitshow,” and Atem had to admit, it was entirely accurate.

“Oh, babe, don’t worry. Joey only asked us here to do a relationship question-thing. I guess the fans want to know more about us. Apparently, we’re pretty popular.” Yugi bumped his hip against Atem’s, shooting him a smile. “Today will be normal, I promise. And it’s only for like twenty minutes, anyways. I’ve got a meeting later today with Kaiba, so we can’t get dirty or gross or anything there.”

“Only twenty minutes?”

“Yup! And it’s called like the boyfriend tag challenge, or something like that. We just answer questions about each other. Easy-peasy.” Atem nodded, knowing Yugi wouldn’t lie to him. He gripped his husband’s hand, smiling when Yugi squeezed it.

They settled into the set with Joey, doing a few introductions and talking a little before Joey whipped out his list of questions.

“I picked the best ones!” he told them with a grin. “Only ten, though, since I know ya’ll can’t stay long. All you gotta do is answer the questions about each other. Whoever gets the most points, wins!”

“Points?” Atem raised an eyebrow, feeling the rush of a challenge flood his veins. “I didn’t know this was going to be a game.” Joey smirked.

“Of course. I know how you two work. I’ll ask the question, then you two write your own answers on these white boards. Yugi will guess what Atem’s board says, while Atem guesses Yugi’s. If your answer matches the board, you get a point. At the end of ten questions, whoever has the most points wins!” He passed the two whiteboards and markers.

Atem smiled, cracking his knuckles. “All right. Let’s do this. I absolutely refuse to lose.” He smirked at his husband. "Not at a game showing how well I know you." Yugi raised an eyebrow, returning Atem's challenging smirk with one of his own.  

“Awesome, first question! What is your coffee order?” Atem and Yugi uncapped their markers, scribbling something quickly. They both nodded when Joey looked at them. “Okay, Yug, you start. What is Atem’s coffee order?”

“It’s a mocha coffee with two extra pumps of chocolate and whip cream added on top. He likes it sweet and chocolatey.” Atem flipped his board, grinning. It read: Mocha coffee w/ extra mocha.

“One point for Yugi! And Atem? How’s Yug like his coffee?”

“Caramel with four sugars, four creamers, and three shots of espresso on a bad day.” Atem didn’t hesitate. He knew Yugi’s coffee order like the back of his hand.

Yugi smiled, turning his board. “Ding ding ding! I’d expect nothing less from your husband,” Joey admitted. “Okay, question two. Dog or cat person?” After a few seconds he gestured to Atem.

“This one is easy,” Atem remarked. “We’re both cat people.” Yugi nodded, flipping his board with Atem to see “cat” written on both.

Joey rolled his eyes. “I should know better than to give you easy stuff like this. Fine. What’s your favorite accessory? Something you can’t go without wearing.”

“Easy~” Yugi responded in a sing-song voice, finishing writing his. “I’ll start. Atem’s is his cartouche necklace.”

“And Yugi’s is his collar.”

“Damn. Another point for both of you. This is a joke trying to trip you two up. Okay, who is your childhood friend?”

Yugi paused, tilting his head. “How childhood are we talking here? High school? Or before?”

“Before. Like when you were five or six or whatever.” Atem wrote his answer down, frowning and adding another name. Joey gestured for him to answer first.

Yugi’s answer was easy. He only had one childhood friend ever. The only friend he really had until high school, though by that point, they hadn’t really been that close anymore. “Téa was your childhood friend.” Yugi nodded.

“Yours were… Mana and Mahad. I didn’t think you would only pick one.” Atem laughed and turned his board.

“You are correct, my love.”

Joey sighed, adding another point to both of their scores. “Still tied. Okay, this one is pretty detailed. What is your favorite cake flavor?” That made Atem pause. He had to think on this one; he and Yugi didn’t eat too much cake, really, besides Atem’s favorite flavor. So what was Yugi’s…?

No, wait, there was definitely one flavor that stuck out. Ah. He knew what Yugi wrote.

“Geez, no question here,” Yugi spoke up, rolling his eyes. “Atem is a chocolate fiend. His favorite cake is chocolate. With chocolate icing. Fudge center. Layers of chocolate. All of it.” Atem laughed at that, nodding. He had written  triple chocolate cake.

“I almost didn’t remember your favorite cake,” Atem admitted. “But then I remembered New York and how you finally got to experience the namesake cake that you loved so much. Your favorite cake is cheesecake, New York style cheesecake to be specific.” Yugi nodded eagerly, flipping his whiteboard so the camera could see Atem was right.

Joey let out a groan. “You two aren’t fun at all! You just know way too much about each other. Gods, it’s almost like you were one person or shared a mind or something!” Atem and Yugi both snorted at the joke. “All right. These are the intense questions. And since we’re running out of time, let’s rapid fire round this. I’ll spit out the questions, you write down your answers, and let’s see if they match. Cool?”

“Cool,” Yugi and Atem agreed.

“What do ya’ll argue about and who wins? What are you afraid of? Do you want kids?  Could you tell the other liked you before you started dating? And the last one, what nickname do you call the other person?” Atem could see Yugi scribbling away on his board as Joey spoke. He finished his own answers, wondering slightly if he knew what answers Yugi put. He was pretty sure he did.

“Yug, go first. List Atem’s answers.”

“Easy-peasy,” Yugi said with a grin. “We don’t argue so neither of us wins in an argument; Atem’s afraid of the dark; yes, we both want kids, and no. We were both completely oblivious to each others feelings. It was… the butt of many jokes from our friends, actually. Oh, and his original nickname for me was partner, but we have a thousand pet names for each other.”

“Atem? Yugi’s answers?”

“We don’t argue,” Atem repeated with a grin, “and if we do, neither of us wins an argument. We compromise always. Yugi’s afraid of fire. We both definitely want kids. And while Yugi didn’t know I liked him, I absolutely knew he liked me,” he said smugly. Both Joey and Yugi gave him flat stares.

He finally laughed, waving his hands. “I jest, I jest! No. We both had no clue about each others feelings. And Yugi used to call me his other self, but now it tends to be ‘babe’ or ‘love’.”

“I was about to say…” Joey trailed off, shaking his head. “I was gonna call you a liar; you two were so into each other and how you couldn’t see it was beyond all of us. Anyways, flip your boards.” He sighed as he looked over the answers, before pausing at Atem’s. “‘Little one’? You call Yugi ‘little one’? When?” Yugi’s face turned red, though not from embarrassment as much as anger. Atem smirked.

“From time to time.”

“No, no! You are both younger and shorter than me, that nickname makes no sense, I—!” Atem laughed loudly, placing a finger on Yugi’s lip to calm him. He shifted his other hand still holding the board, showing another answer. Partner was written underneath.

“I know how fond you are of that nickname,” he said as Yugi glared. “Yugi’s correct. I call him partner.”

Joey shook his head with a grin. “Full of jokes today, huh, Atem? Anyways, ya’ll got them right.” As he wrote the final five points on his scorecard, Joey frowned. “Well, fuck. It’s a tie. That isn’t surprising, though. You two are like the definition of soulmates. I’ll have to think of something harder next time.” He paused for a second, pouting, before continuing on to wrap up his show.

They all said farewell and made a few more jokes, before Joey closed off the stream. The friends shared a few more words before Atem and Yugi headed back towards their offices in KaibaCorp.

As soon as they were out of sight, though, Yugi leaned up and kissed Atem’s cheek. “Thank you for doing this with me and with Joey. I think it was fun.”

“It was, my love. We definitely do know each other very well.” He wrapped an arm around Yugi’s waist, pulling his to his side. “This wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it might have been.”

“I promised you it wouldn’t be,” Yugi said, leaning up to press another kiss to his face, though this one was on his jaw. Atem turned his face and kissed Yugi properly, relishing in the touch of his husband.

Breaking apart, Yugi grinned impishly. “Kaiba, on the other hand, I may have lied to about tomorrow’s stream. You should tag along, too. Mokuba and I are going to play the Eat it or Wear it Challenge and we’re dragging Kaiba into our shenanigans. It’ll be fun.”

Atem hesitated for a few seconds. He might get pulled into the event if he showed up. But at the same time… seeing Kaiba getting food poured on him was a beautiful thing he wouldn’t dare miss.

“I’ll be there.” He smirked a little as he walked, brushing his fingers along Yugi’s back. “So… You enjoy the name little one, huh?”

“Atem, I swear to god…!” But Atem recognized the flush across his cheeks as desire, even though it was tinged with annoyance.

“I love you, too, little one.” He kissed Yugi’s red cheek.

“Called me that one time during a VR session and now…”

“You seemed to like it when I was the Pharaoh saying it.” Yugi groaned, burying his face in his hands, muttering for Atem to shut up. Atem simply laughed, pressing a kiss to the side of his husband's head.

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 20: Zealous

Summary:  It's the annual Game Awards and Spherium II is nominated for several. Yugi doesn't seem to care one way or another if he wins, but that's okay; Atem is zealous enough about him winning for the both of them.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40496705

20: Zealous

He was nominated for eight— eight—categories. It was amazing. Atem was so incredibly proud of his husband for everything he had accomplished with Spherium II.

And he was also incredibly nervous. He wanted Yugi to win in every category he was nominated in. He was pretty sure, at this point, he wanted Yugi to win more than Yugi himself did, as well as being more anxious about the nominations than Yugi. If anything, Yugi seemed extremely calm about the whole thing. He was relaxed in the seat next to him, simply taking in the venue and looking around in awe at being at the Game Awards.

Not worried at all about the nominations or winning or anything. He was just basking in the atmosphere, thrilled to even be invited to the Game Awards.

Well, that was why Atem was there. He would stress enough about Yugi winning for both of them.

“Geez, Yug, you look so at ease about this whole thing,” Joey leaned over Kaiba to say, voicing Atem’s thoughts exactly. “Ain’t you nervous at all about the awards? You’re nominated for Game of the Year, right?” Yugi nodded, a small pleased smile playing on his lips.

“I’m just happy to be invited here and be nominated for anything. I mean, don’t get me wrong, of course I want to win. But it’s not really a big deal if I lose. This is my first game ever, so to be nominated for eight awards already and to be here and even be nominated for Game of the Year is just… amazing all on its own.”

Kaiba let out a scoff, glaring down at his designer. “You better win. I won’t have the best selling KaibaCorp game of all time have eight nominations and not win something. That would be outrageous. Tch.” He crossed his arms, leaning back against the chair.

“KaibaCorp is nominated for Developer of the Year, too, aren’t they? For the upgraded Duel Disk-VR headset and for Spherium II?” Serenity asked, looking up at her brother. Joey nodded.

“That’s probably why he’s so cranky. He’s going against some pretty big names so…” Mokuba waved Joey’s words away, leaning forward to see the rest of the group.

“While we may not have published as many games as the other companies, our equipment was top of the line and revolutionary. Spherium II’s holographic model from both the VR headset and from the KaibaCorp mobile devices was something never before seen in the gaming world. Then, with our contributions to the Duel Monster’s industry with the upgraded holographic machines, the Duel Academy’s opening, the VR Capsule Monster’s DLC, and integration with Dungeon Dice Monsters to the Duel Disk? We’re killing it this year.”

Kaiba nodded proudly, smirking down at Joey. “I’m not worried at all, mutt, about my nomination.” Joey glared at the nickname, reaching up and flicking Kaiba’s nose. Kaiba glowered. “Don’t make me call security on you,” he threatened. Joey rolled his eyes, ignoring Kaiba’s empty words, and turned towards his sister to talk to her.

Technically speaking, only Kaiba, Mokuba, and Yugi had been officially invited to the awards show. Atem was naturally Yugi’s plus-one, while Joey had begged to be Kaiba’s plus-one in order to come, and Mokuba had offered the invite of his plus-one to Serenity just to be nice.

Yugi had wondered more than once if Mokuba liked Serenity as more than just a friend; Atem had no idea, though. Mokuba seemed to be really good friends with Serenity, and they were similar ages, being only about a year apart. Given how much time they both spent with their older sibling and how much time Seto and Joey spent together anymore, it made sense for them to become close friends, too. Did that mean he liked her or that Serenity liked Mokuba? Possibly.

As far as Atem knew, Mokuba had never had a significant other before. Mokuba was a lot like Atem; he didn’t really find people attractive and never really wanted anything sexual with anybody unless he was close to them. As it was, the younger Kaiba brother wasn’t normally particularly close to anyone, though, besides their group of friends. He saw Yugi, Atem, and Joey as older siblings, and didn’t see Duke, Ryou, Tristan, or Téa enough to really form much of an emotional bond with them. But given the time he had begun spending with Serenity… Atem thought it was entirely possible that Yugi was on to something.

“Do you think our friends are okay up there?” Yugi whispered, leaning into Atem. “I hate that we can’t sit with them.” Atem patted his husband’s hand, giving a smile to ease his worry.

“I’m sure they are just fine. Rebecca and Téa are there, so those two will keep everyone in line. Ryou, too. Even with as rowdy as Mai, Tristan, and Duke can be, I’m sure everything will be fine.” Their friends had gotten tickets to the awards show to support Yugi on his big day, but they were the normal general admission tickets. Neither Yugi or Kaiba could pull any strings to get any better seats for them or to have them sit with them at the front. “Besides, with Mama and Grandpa sitting with them, they’ll be on their best behavior.”

Yugi looked like he wanted to say something else—probably about his mother actually willingly coming to America to watch the awards show—but the lights dimmed, signaling the start of the show. Yugi took a deep breath, turning to face the stage. He laced his fingers with Atem’s sweaty ones.

Despite Atem’s nerves, he was able to enjoy himself while watching the show. At least until the first category came up that Spherium II was nominated for. Best Art Direction.

Atem held his breath, terrified as the other games were listed. Yugi had some stiff competition. Most were normal console games—many of which he and Yugi had played eagerly—and Atem knew firsthand what beautiful graphics and stunning animation they had. But Spherium II wasn’t known necessarily for it’s excellent graphics as much as its technical achievements. The holographic models of their characters that appeared from the screen was what set Spherium II apart from its competitors.

But was that technical innovation enough? Atem swallowed hard, unsure.

“And the winner is… Spherium II!” He took a gasping breath of air, clapping wildly as his husband stood and smiled, walking towards the stage. He accepted the trophy, making a brief speech thanking KaibaCorp and both Kaiba brothers for helping oversee the development of Spherium II and leading the way with holographic designs.

One trophy out of eight. Atem breathed out a sigh of relief. He believed so much in his husband. He just hoped that the rest of the jury that had voted for the winners could see that same beauty and hard work in Spherium II that he did.

Joey slapped Yugi’s shoulder as he passed them, sitting back down in his seat. “Awesome job, Yug! I knew you could do it!”

“Even if this is the only award I win tonight, I’ll be happy,” Yugi admitted, staring down in awe at his trophy. “This is so amazing. I have no idea what I even said up there, I was in so much shock that I won.”

They couldn’t talk for long, though, as the next category was announced. The group fell silent, watching the next round of nominees and winners. Atem relaxed some, still gripping Yugi’s hand as they waited for the next category he was nominated in.

It seemed to come all too quickly. The nominees for Best Ongoing Game were announced and once more, Atem held his breath. The winner was announced and it took him several seconds to release his breath in a long sigh as he realized that it wasn’t Spherium II that won. Joey huffed, clearly insulted on Yugi’s behalf, while Kaiba even muttered. “Clearly, they have no concept of what makes a good ongoing game.”

Atem chanced a glance at Yugi to see him not shaken in the least by the loss. He was still clapping excitedly for his competitor, genuinely happy for the other winner. Belatedly, he responded to Kaiba’s quip, stating, “We’ve only released two DLC packages since my launch last December. It’s no wonder I didn’t win this category. I’d need to release a lot more DLC to really qualify for this.” Kaiba’s only response was a pouty, “Tch.”

Their disappointment didn’t last long. The next two categories Spherium II was nominated in—Best Mobile Game and Best VR Game—won easily. Yugi almost looked embarrassed when he went back up to accept the Best VR Game trophy so soon after accepting the Best Mobile Game one.

Three wins already on his game. Atem felt like his chest was bursting with pride for his husband. It was so wonderful to realize that all those late nights last year, the stressful meetings, the tears, the pain… It was all worth it. Yugi had made his vision come true and people were recognizing what an amazing designer he was.

Luckily, Yugi got to sit for a little while as they began the awards for games of different genres. Yugi’s game was classified as a strategy game, even though there were several fighting elements in it, so he had a bit of time to wait before his category.

When it came, though, he heard Joey mutter, “He better win. Spherium II was the only strategy game worth talking about this year.” Both Mokuba and Kaiba let out sounds of agreement.

And, thankfully, he did. This time in his acceptance speech, instead of thanking his fans or KaibaCorp, he thanked his grandfather for getting him into strategy games and developing his love of games in general. “None of this would have ever happened without you, Grandpa, so thank you. And thank you for being here tonight. This one is for you.”

There was another roar of applause, while the cameras searched out the Grandpa that Yugi had spoke of. They found the older man wiping his eyes, teary with pride, after his grandson’s award.

It was a precious sight. Atem was proud of his husband for remembering Grandpa during this time—after all, Yugi was right. Without him, none of them would have ever got into gaming like they had.

Four wins and only one loss. Those were good odds so far. But he still had the two biggest categories coming up: Best Game Direction and Game of the Year. Just thinking about it made Atem’s stomach twist wildly with nerves. If his husband didn’t win, he might just contemplate doing a Shadow Game on the ones who decided on the winners because, well… they deserved it.

(They didn’t; Atem knew everything was as fair as it could be in the voting process, but it didn’t make it any easier to swallow the possibility that his husband might lose. What could he say? He was passionate about his husband’s work, maybe even a bit fanatical.)

The next category Spherium II was nominated in, Best Multiplayer Game, lost. Even Kaiba seemed to have expected that loss, though, shrugging it off along with Yugi. Spherium II was a good multiplayer game but it hadn’t done anything particularly innovative in the field compared to some of the other games.

All too soon they were at the end of the show. The last semi-big award, Best Game Direction, was announced. This was the one award that Atem thought Yugi should definitely win. Spherium II was innovative, different, and the pinnacle of creative vision and technological direction. If it didn’t win… if it didn’t win… Atem wasn’t sure what he would do. He would be extremely disappointed, that was for sure. Just thinking about that possibility made something bitter burn at the back of his throat. He wanted Yugi to win so badly, he felt almost like he could will it into existence.

And then the announcer opened the card and grinned. “Taking home its fifth award of the night: Spherium II!” This time when Yugi stood, he tugged on Kaiba’s hand, dragging his boss along with him, much to Kaiba’s bewilderment and annoyance.

“I know I’ve thanked KaibaCorp and the Kaiba brothers several times already, but for this particular award, it didn't seem right to accept it alone; it should really go to Seto Kaiba. Seto has been such a driving force behind the game, being my mentor, partner, boss, and friend as I developed Spherium II, and none of this would have been possible without him. Even with all the times I wanted to throttle him and thought he was a giant asshole," Yugi said this with a teasing, joking grin, "his decisions were always right and for the best. It was his direction that really led Spherium in the right way, so he’s really the one that should get this.” Yugi handed Kaiba the trophy with a smile.

Kaiba gave one of his amused half-laughs, but Atem could see the tiniest genuine smile play on his lips. He looked pleased at Yugi’s words.

He surprisingly stepped up to the mic to say something, stating, “KaibaCorp is known for releasing the best of the best. The King of Games is known for beating the best of the best. So when we both team up as partners, it shouldn’t be surprising that we’ve created the best of the best.” Kaiba didn’t say anything else, but did place a hand on Yugi’s shoulder, his own way of saying a wordless thanks.

Yugi recognized the gesture for what it was and beamed as they walked back to their seats.

Of course, it wasn’t long before Kaiba was standing up again to head back to the stage, this time, Mokuba following with him. Like they had predicted, KaibaCorp won Developer of the Year. Mokuba handled the speech, being perfectly courteous and thanking their fans and loyal supporters, promising that they would continue to work hard to never let them down.

And then there was the final award left. Atem felt his heart clench as his palms became ten times sweatier in Yugi’s hand. This was the most important award and he was terrified for his husband. He wanted Yugi to win so badly.

The nominees were listed. Atem felt the slightest tremble go through Yugi’s hand and realized that, despite all his calm, Yugi was actually nervous for the award. Atem clenched his hand tighter, looking over and smiling at Yugi. “You’ve done incredible, partner. No matter what happens, you have created something one-of-a-kind that's truly spectacular.” Yugi returned his smile and squeezed his hand back, the subtle tension leaving his body in one exhale.

“And the winner for Game of the Year… Spherium II!” Yugi sat there in the chair, seemingly too stunned to move. Kaiba nudged his shoulder, hissing, “Go!” But Yugi was paralyzed, as if all of his repressed nerves struck him all at once. Behind the announcer, the monitor flashed with Spherium II’s name, listing the developer and creator in big letters. Seeing Yugi’s name up there filled Atem’s entire body with ardent excitement.

Yugi was still frozen to his seat, dazed. Atem dragged him up, pulling him along. “C’mon, love. You did it. You won.” It wasn’t until they made it to the stairs for the stage that Yugi snapped back into himself, shaking off his shock. He beamed, striding forward and taking the lead, now pulling Atem along. Atem tried to slip his hand from Yugi’s—after all, this was Yugi’s moment to be on the stage and Atem didn’t want to encroach—but his husband simply tightened the grip, refusing to let him go.

Yugi was breathless as he accepted the trophy, still unwilling to let go of Atem’s hand, even as he stepped up to the mic. “This has been a crazy, amazing year,” he began. “I released Spherium II last December and the reception was beyond my wildest imagination. Then, that same month, I proposed to the man of my dreams and he accepted. And then just this past August, we got married in a fairytale wedding. It’s been a whirlwind of all my dreams coming true.” Yugi paused, looking back and smiling at Atem, before turning back to talk in the mic.

“And I am so incredibly thankful to every person that’s bought or played or streamed Spherium, and all of those that have been following me since my tournament days with Duel Monsters, and all my fans who have just supported me over the years and now Spherium. You all mean the world to me. But, I also have to give a special thanks to my biggest fan and supporter. He has kept me going through all these years of development, being my partner, my other self, my best friend, and husband.” He tugged Atem forward, turning to face him.

“Atem, thank you for putting up with me through all the late nights, the stress, the sleepless days, the long hours of working, the tears of frustration and fear, all the pain I put you through to accomplish my dream… It was so hard and I just… Thank you so much for standing with me through it all. Look, babe.” Yugi held up the trophy, giving a watery smile. “We did it.”

Atem didn’t care about anything right then besides Yugi. He felt so overwhelmed with love and adoration and wanted to do whatever he could to express that to his partner. He didn’t care about the crowd. He didn’t care about the cameras. He didn't care about the millions of people watching the livestream. He didn’t care about the show at all. All he cared about was Yugi.

He swept Yugi off his feet zealously, scooping him up into his arms and kissing him hard on the mouth. The crowd had already been applauding but now there was a roar of cheers. He broke apart from Yugi, seeing his husband flushed with delirious elation. “I’m so honored to be at your side, my love.” Atem nuzzled his cheek. “And you did this, Yugi. Spherium II was all you.”

“No,” Yugi replied adamantly, staring at Atem with the same zealous affection he felt pounding in his chest, “I couldn’t have done this without you; you’ve kept me so strong and supported me through all this and look… Look at what we’ve done. We won Game of the Year!” He let out an excited squeal, seemingly finally realizing what he had won and accomplished. Atem’s heart burst with adoration and he hugged Yugi closer to his chest, laughing with glee.

Not for the first time, and definitely not for the last, Atem realized his husband was absolutely incredible. His first game had won six gaming awards, one of which was the prestigious Game of the Year award. Yugi was absolutely unstoppable. There was nothing he couldn’t accomplish.

Beaming with pride as he carried his husband down the stairs from the stage, Atem leaned down and murmured, “You can do anything you put your mind to.”

Instantly, Yugi looked up, that same passion shining in his eyes. “Only if you’re with me.”

“Of course. And I vow to be for the rest of time.”

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 19: Night

Summary:  :Yugi is nervous about the fancy KaibaCorp dinner he has to attend. Atem decides to make a game out of it to help ease his nerves. Yugi can't refuse a challenge, especially when there is such a tantalizing prize for winning: Atem.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40465469

Chapter warning! Smut ahead.

19: Night

He adjusted his tie for the umpteenth time, making his husband frown at him. Yugi knew he had a horrible habit of fidgeting when he was nervous. Atem reached over and seized his hand, entwining their fingers together so that he couldn't mess with his tie anymore.

“It's just a party. We've gone to these several times since we've been working at KaibaCorp. Why are you so nervous about this one?” Atem asked him softly, leading them into the fancy KaibaCorp convention center. Mokuba was at the door, schmoozing up to guests (which were all potential investors or current shareholders or other persons of interest that the Kaiba brothers were eyeing for one reason or another). He gave Atem and Yugi a more genuine smile, calling out a friendly, “You guys look good! You should dress up more often!”

Yugi grinned and, wrapping a possessive arm around Atem's waist, called over his shoulder, “No way! I already fight off enough people for my husband; I'd have to carry a stick around if he got any more beautiful!” Yugi loved the way Atem blushed but smiled so radiantly at the praise.

It wasn’t that Atem was particularly modest about his looks; he was a model, after all, and knew he looked good in just about anything. Most of the time, he would strut around like a peacock, flaunting his body or fashion style or good looks. It was why he wore such eye-catching and somewhat outrageous clothing: leather pants, mesh shirts, lace blouses, crop tops that showed off his pierced navel—he wanted people to notice him. When Atem had to be the center of attention or wanted to impress others, then he made sure to dress the part.

But it didn’t mean that Yugi still couldn’t charm the pants off of him (literally, as in, Atem would willingly drop his pants for Yugi at any time, any place) by a few well-placed, genuine compliments. Other people could tell Atem he looked good, or hot, or sexy and depending on the situation, he might thank them politely or respond with a cheeky, “I know,” but when it came to Yugi doing it—well, that was a different story entirely. Yugi could, and had, turned Atem into fumbling, aroused, blushing dork more than once with his flirtations.

And tonight, Atem did look particularly ravishing. He was wearing a lace top that if Yugi looked too carefully at, he could definitely catch glimpses of Atem’s luscious skin underneath the fine lace, and at the perfect angle, even a perky brown nipple. It turned into a gorgeous high-low crimson skirt that flowed around Atem as he walked, with high slits in the skirt that would normally show off his glorious thighs. However, since it was winter and for Yugi’s sanity, he wore black tights and thigh-high boots, as well as a fitted, slender cut suit jacket, making him look the perfect mix between professional and sultry.

His beautiful androgynous look—something that was both feminine in style and nature, but yet still radiated masculinity—was topped off by perfect red lipstick and smokey cat eyes that made Yugi want to bend him over the nearest table and show his husband exactly how much he appreciated his time and effort to look so stunning. Yugi was a lucky man, indeed.

That thought made the nerves come back and Yugi reached back up out of habit to adjust his tie. Atem was faster, though, grabbing his hand and giving it a little smack. He frowned harshly at Yugi. “You’re going to make your tie crooked at this rate. And your vest. You look amazing, partner. Don’t mess it up.” Yugi sighed and nodded, wishing he had something he could take his nervous energy out on.

It wasn’t just because Atem looked stunning in his formal wear and Yugi didn't feel nearly as nice as he did. It wasn’t just because they were at a corporate party and Yugi was a big name now in KaibaCorp so everyone tended to watch his every movement. It wasn’t just because he was going to be sitting at a table of old, cranky, likely homophobic, shareholders and rich investors with his husband for the entire stifling dinner, warding off their questions and snarkiness politely. It wasn’t even because he had to give one of the speeches after dinner to discuss upcoming KaibaCorp games and promotions.

Actually, no, that was a lie. Those were exactly the reasons he was so nervous. One of those things at a time, he could normally handle with grace and ease but all of them together? Nope, no thank you, no siree. He was twenty-eight years old and he still hated these formal events no matter how much experience he got.

No, this entire party had him on edge and he felt like he was a gawky sixteen year-old again, unsure of what to do or how to stand or what to say or how he looked or anything. It was one of the few times that he truly just wanted to blow the whole thing off and go home.  

It was something about the whole formal atmosphere and nighttime cocktail party and fancy evening wear that got to him. Yugi could handle a meeting with the shareholders when it was on his turf. Yugi could handle giving presentations to them or speaking about upcoming promotions when it was at a conference for that.  

Yugi could handle formal wear and cocktail parties when it was for other game designers or gaming companies. He had been to a plethora of fancy parties as the King of Games or as a Duel Monsters champion. Those were easy because everyone there were his rivals, were people he had beaten in battle. They were familiar.

This wasn’t familiar and this was the first time he had been asked to speak at the event. He had gone to this annual winter party four years now, ever since Spherium II had been released and had become such a critically acclaimed game. He became a worthy addition to the upper echelon of KaibaCorp and was invited.

After all, very few actual KaibaCorp employees were invited to this dinner. Honestly, Mokuba and Kaiba were the only two familiar faces he knew, besides his husband (who was his plus one). There were two engineers he was vaguely familiar with that led the innovation of Kaiba’s Duel Disk-VR system, but everyone else that came were department managers and executives of the other KaibaCorp branches: Finance, Legal, Licensing, R&D, Audit… a lot of the internal affairs that Yugi rarely had to deal with. It was stuff Mokuba or Kaiba still handled.

“Yugi, it’s okay. Please, my love, you’re going to do amazing.” Atem guided him to their table, sitting him down before draping his arms around his shoulders. “How about I make this into a game?”

“A game?” That got Yugi’s attention, pulling him out of his anxious thoughts.

“Mmm-hmm. I’ll let you do whatever you wish to me once we’re done here. Even if it’s ripping this beautiful lace shirt that I love so much off my body. But only if you don’t let your anxiety take over. You can do this.” He placed a finger on his glossy red lips. “Actually, after each thing you do that’s difficult tonight, you can get a little more of me. Do everything and you can do me,” Atem said with a playful smirk.

Yugi grinned, feeling his regular determination to meet a challenge rise in his veins. He could never turn down a game. “Okay. Make it a bit more clear. What goals?”

“Hmmm… Well, for starters, you have to socialize a little bit before the dinner starts. Just to make Mokuba happy. Then just making it through the actual dinner without losing our cool.” He began to tick each item off on his fingers. “Your speech after dinner. And then, we end the night with you dancing with me.”

Yugi took a deep breath, squaring his shoulders. The idea of ravishing his husband seemed like a very appetizing goal, indeed. “I think I can handle those four things. Even the dancing.” Yugi was not a good dancer. He liked it well enough but he didn’t have any rhythm.

Now, Atem? Atem was a fantastic dancer. It was a carryover from his past; apparently Ancient Egyptians loved to dance, even though the royalty and rich didn’t often partake in the activity, thinking it was something fit for the lower class. But with his mother as a dancer, he had been taught from a young age and kept up with it in private.

Yugi could watch Atem dance all day long without ever getting bored. And while he was scared he’d make a fool of himself, the opportunity to hold his husband in his arms and dance with him was too good to pass up.

“Well then, my love, let the game begin.” Atem trailed a lace covered hand up Yugi’s lapel before dragging it up his neck and running his thumb across his lips. Yugi nipped at the digit teasingly, making Atem smile. “Come, partner. Your crowd awaits.” Yugi rose from the table but hesitated upon looking back out at the people mingling around the convention center.

Atem, as usual, sensed his emotions. He rubbed Yugi’s arm soothingly. “Hey. I’ll be right next to you. The whole time. It may be a game but we’re still partners in this.”

“You know, I thought you were the introvert out of the two of us,” Yugi muttered, almost pouting. Atem chuckled, placing a hand on the small of Yugi’s back to help guide him away from the safety of the table. “How are you so at ease with this?”

“Because you’re with me,” Atem said earnestly. It made Yugi reach over to hold his hand, giving it a squeeze in response. “Also, even though I am an introvert, it doesn’t mean I’m particularly bad at talking to people. I was trained to do this from a very young age, after all. It’s not unfamiliar territory. I just don’t like to be a politician.” He shrugged. “And it drains me to socialize for too long.”

“Yugi Mutou!” They paused in their conversation, turning to face a potential investor. Yugi took a deep breath and plastered on a charming smile, greeting the man kindly.

He’d win this game if it was the last thing he did. After all, his husband was the prize; he couldn’t afford to lose.

When Mokuba gave the announcement that dinner would be served, Atem leaned over and whispered in Yugi’s ear, “One goal down. You can touch me wherever you want but you can’t remove any of my clothes.”

Yugi had a hard time focusing on the conversation through dinner after that, so hyper aware of his husband sitting right there. Oh. He could think of several ways of making Atem scream his name and he didn’t need to remove a single article of clothing to do it. He’d run his hands up and down his body, barely grazing his skin through that delightful lace top. No, he’d start from Atem’s face and work his way down, giving him the lightest touches that promised so much more. From his head to his toes, Yugi would explore every inch of Atem, even with his clothes still on. He’d have his husband come undone from the touches alone.

It was so hard to keep the conversation flowing with those thoughts running through his head, but somehow, Yugi managed. They were lucky this year and got placed at a table with some particularly pleasant potential investors and a few shareholders. One of the investors, a wealthy tech company owner, was even gay and had a husband, too. His husband was sick and couldn’t make it but the man mentioned he would definitely bring him next year to meet Atem and Yugi.

Yugi suspicioned Mokuba had purposely put them at the same table. It worked, though; Yugi had no doubt the man would invest in KaibaCorp.

As dessert was being served, Seto introduced Yugi and invited him up to the stage to speak. For a few seconds as he stood at the podium, nerves flashed through his body. But then he caught sight of Atem’s proud smile and Yugi relaxed. With no further hesitation, he began his presentation.

The words flowed out of him easily, like he had done it a million times. He didn’t feel anxious or nervous at all, smoothly delivering his points. It didn't seem to take any time at all for him to finish the presentation. “With the upcoming line of games and new upgrade to the VR headset that is set to be released in March, we’re projecting considerable growth as we enter Q4 and finish out our fiscal year. We hope that you’ll join us in that journey. Thank you,” Yugi concluded, bowing and turning the stage back over to Kaiba.

He sat back down beside Atem, thanking the men who praised his speech at the table. They didn’t have time to really talk, though, as Mokuba dismissed the entire party to dance or mingle. People were free to leave if they wished but as the live band began to play music, most people got up to dance.

Atem was one of those people, tugging Yugi up. “Come, love. You promised me a dance.” Yugi nodded, feeling that warm heat flow through his body and pool in his lower stomach. It didn’t matter how many times they were joined together, what Atem wore, or how many years they’d been dating, Atem could still reduce Yugi into a quivering, knee-shaking mess with how much he wanted to touch and love him.

The first dance was slow and both of them stayed close together, but nothing too overly intimate. It was just a warm up, really. Yugi let Atem lead because hell if he knew what steps to make, and the two simply enjoyed the moment. At the next song, the tempo sped up, so Atem pressed much closer to Yugi, in order to dance a little less stiffly.

As Yugi shifted his hands to Atem’s waist, letting his husband sway in his arms and move his body sensually, he felt that fire begin to increase at a rapid rate. Atem’s gaze grew heated as he slipped a leg around Yugi’s hip and his other in-between Yugi’s legs. It let their crotches line up perfectly, which was clearly Atem’s intention. Yugi slid an arm up to his lower back, his other arm hoisting Atem’s leg around his hip, as he dipped him backwards.

The smoldering look his husband gave him the entire time was nearly enough to make him come undone on the dance floor. Yugi couldn’t catch his breath. As he lifted Atem back up, the man rubbed against him, slotting himself so perfectly with Yugi’s body. Yugi had to bite his lip hard to keep from moaning.

He was rigidly hard.

“You know,” Atem began teasingly, not breaking contact with Yugi’s lower half, “you did win the game. You made it through dinner with ease and you gave your speech and did an excellent job at that. And you’ve danced with me.”

“So what are my rewards?” Yugi began huskily, subtly moving Atem backwards, away from the center of the dance floor and towards the back of the room.

Atem nipped his earlobe, his fingers dancing along Yugi’s red jacket. “Well, you were already allowed to touch me. Your next reward was being allowed to kiss me. Your third prize was being allowed to undress me. And now the grand prize…” He leaned forward, pressing his lips impossibly close to Yugi’s ear in order to breathe the words, “Now you can fuck me.”

Yugi had to close his eyes, biting down on his lip again to the point it nearly drew blood. His heart was pounding out of his chest and he was too hot, way too hot, right then. The suit jacket and vest were too many layers and his embroidered tie that matched his jacket—which was a gorgeous set but it was now far too tight—was choking him. And not in the fun way.

“My reward is to do whatever I want to you, right?” he asked heatedly. Atem nodded, his fingers trailing across Yugi’s jaw. Each touch was like a brand, scalding his skin as he wanted, no needed, more. So much more. “Oh, when we get home…” But home wasn’t fast enough and Yugi thought he might just combust if he didn’t get Atem right then.

The song had shifted again and while they still danced closely and intimately, it wasn’t the frenzied tempo from before. It gave Yugi a little bit of clarity to think.

“Let’s get some fresh air?” he finally asked, nodding towards the balcony doors that were behind them. If he didn’t cool off, he might just burn up from the inside out. Atem grinned but didn’t protest any when Yugi led them outside into the night air.

There were a few other people lingering on the balcony, which was probably a good thing so that Yugi wasn’t tempted to just have his way with Atem right then and there. He took gulps of the winter air, feeling his body cool. Atem simply stood beside him, clearly eating up Yugi’s hot and bothered state.

“How are you so unaffected right now? You’re usually the one worse off than me!” Yugi hissed, gripping the balcony railing so tightly his knuckles turned white. Atem chuckled, leaning against Yugi’s shoulder.

“I’m not nearly as unaffected as you think. But it’s just pretty rare to see you so riled up, so I’ve been able to push my own feelings away in order to bask in the moment.”

His sweat was cooling against his skin, making him shiver. Despite the chill, Yugi was still dismayed to feel how incredibly hot he felt all over. All he could imagine was peeling off that lace outfit from Atem’s body, running his fingers over his skin reverently, and then tugging down those tights and spreading his legs—-

Yugi let out an audible groan, bowing over to rest his forehead against the railing. Atem laughed, patting Yugi’s back pityingly. “We can always go home, partner. Kaiba doesn’t need you to stay any longer, correct?”

“Mmm,” he agreed. Mentally, he was counting how long it would take them to get home. They’d have to get the car from valet, so that was at least a five to ten minute thing, and then driving home would take another fifteen minutes—with traffic, it might even take twenty minutes. That was thirty minutes. Could he wait thirty more minutes?

Shit, could he even drive home in this state?

“You know,” Atem began, murmuring so low that no one could hear him, “there are stairs leading downstairs. We could just slip away to a shadowy corner for some quick fun…”

“And then I’ll get the car and fuck you senseless in the first private place I can find,” Yugi muttered. Atem heard him, though, if the sudden tensing was anything to go by. He stood up, taking another deep breath and letting the air fill his lungs. “C’mon. Down the stairs we go.”

They were almost like two horny teenagers, having to sneak away at every moment to touch each other.

The stairs led to a maintained garden, but it was not nearly private enough to do anything intimate in. They walked the length of the building, scanning for anything secluded. Finally, just when Yugi was ready to give up and just go to their car, they found another stairwell that led to a basement entrance meant for employees of the convention center. It was perfectly dark and hidden enough from sight that there was no way anyone could see them unless they were coming out of the door from the building, or walking down the stairs. Even better, because the stairs were split, someone would have to turn a corner in the stairwell before they could see the bottom, so even if a person walked by, they wouldn’t be able to see Yugi or Atem.

It was the perfect spot.

Atem was vibrating with excitement when Yugi pushed him up against the wall next to the basement door. He kissed the underside of his jaw desperately, while his hands roamed his body. Atem tried to stifle a moan, not wanting anyone to hear them.

Yugi kissed his lips, pouring his want and desire into the kiss. Their tongues tangled together and everything felt so incredibly right with the world. Yugi felt the ball of anxious nerves from earlier completely dissolve, as well as the butterflies of heated anticipation that had settled in his stomach. It was like he was floating in air, tingling with excitement and pleasure.

Still, as much as he wanted to go slow and lavish Atem with the proper attention he deserved, they were still decently exposed and speed was key to not get caught. Yugi reached a hand down Atem’s tights and boxers, gripping his erection. His husband groaned into his mouth as Yugi stroked him.

He jolted when a hand slipped down his pants, gripping his shaft, too. Atem began to jerk him off, making Yugi’s knees shake while he moaned into Atem’s mouth. The friction felt delicious. It was hard to breathe or even think straight. His heart was pounding out of his chest as he approached his end quickly. Atem was getting close, too, as his hand lost the steady rhythm, becoming more disjointed and his body trembled in Yugi’s hold.

“T-together. Let’s come together,” Yugi breathed out. Atem nodded, unable to say anything as he panted too hard to speak. His bangs were matted against his sweaty forehead and the sight was gorgeous. “Atem… Atem… Gods, Atem. I love you.” He kept his voice low, murmuring the words into Atem’s ear.

“Yugi… Yes. I love you. I love you.” It was all Atem could get out before he shuddered and tensed, coming into Yugi’s hand. As soon as Yugi felt him tense, he let himself reach his peak, coming at the same time.

They were still panting as they carefully removed their hands from each others’ pants. Yugi grimaced at the cum in his hand, unsure of what to do. He finally opted to kneel down and wipe it on the ground. Atem did the same, scrunching his nose up as the white fluid dirtied the lace on his hands. “I hope that washes out. I love this top.”

“Ready to get the car?” Yugi asked lightly, wrapping an arm around Atem’s waist as they walked out of the stairwell. He felt a little lightheaded, still recovering from the orgasm.

“Mmm-hmm. Do you have lube in there?”

“Of course. There’s a small bottle in the glovebox.” Atem grinned, eyes shining with eager anticipation. Yugi felt another spark of desire curl in his stomach. They couldn’t get to the car fast enough.

Every minute they had to wait was excruciating. It seemed like it took the valet forever to get their car pulled around and even after they were in the car, it was another ten minutes just trying to get out of the convention center and back on the road.

Atem riled him up the entire time. He brushed feather-light touches against Yugi’s skin, dipping his fingers underneath his tuxedo jacket and dress shirt. As soon as they were in the car, Atem helped loosen his tie, tossing it into the backseat. Something about the motion sent more heat coiling through Yugi’s body.

Yugi stripped out of his jacket and vest, tossing those into the backseat, too. Atem let out a small whine. “Ack, partner! You’ll wrinkle that jacket. It was expensive.”

He really didn’t care at that moment. The idea of Atem’s body was far more important. He could barely concentrate on the road as they drove and Yugi knew there was no way he would be patient enough to make it home.

In fact, at the first parking lot he found, he pulled in. He found the darkest spot in the lot, away from other cars, and shut the car off.

And then he pounced on his husband, climbing over the center column to straddle Atem’s lap. “You’re my prize, right?” Yugi asked, wrapping his arms around Atem’s neck.

“I am. Do with me what you will.” Yugi groaned, closing his eyes. That fiery spiral in his stomach was curling tighter. He didn’t think he’d last long at all. It didn’t help that the excitement of doing this in a car had also added to his arousal.

“I’m going to fuck you senseless,” Yugi finally said. Atem grinned, leaning forward and nibbling Yugi's lips before kissing him.

“I think I’d like that a lot.” They continued to kiss as they fumbled with their clothing. Atem unbuttoned Yugi’s dress shirt and pushed it off his shoulders, while Yugi yanked Atem’s tights down as far as they would go while he was still wearing his thigh high boots. He didn’t bother with trying to remove his top and skirt.

They broke apart, breathing heavily. Yugi reached down and leaned the seat back, lowering it all the way back. Atem scooted to the headrest, pulling off his boots as he went, as well as his tights and boxers. He tossed them into the backseat, joining Yugi’s vest, tie, jacket, and dress shirt.

“On my knees?” Atem asked, crawling forward and lifting his ass and giving an eager wiggle.

“Yes, please,” Yugi responded with a moan. He unbuttoned his pants and slid them and his boxers down to his knees. Before he went any further, though, Yugi twisted around and dug through the glovebox, retrieving the tiny bottle of lube. He slicked his fingers and his cock, inserting a finger into Atem.

“Mmm, more, Yugi. Faster, please.” Yugi didn’t really want to spend that long on prep tonight, either, but he still needed to make sure he wouldn’t hurt his husband by pushing inside him too quickly. He inserted another finger, stretching Atem’s hole as fast as he could. Luckily, Atem opened up easily for him, his body and muscles so used to the penetration. To be safe, he added one more finger, letting Atem ride them for a minute or two before finally pulling out.

Then he pushed into Atem, thankful for once that he was so short. He bowed over Atem a little bit to keep from hitting his head on the roof, but in general, he was able to fuck him reasonably comfortably doggy style. He gripped Atem’s hips, slamming into him and drawing loud cries from his husband’s throat.

It was not that gentle; Yugi’s thrusts were feverish, rocking against Atem’s body desperately. “Oh, Yugi—yes, right there! Ah!” Atem pressed his forehead into his arms, moaning into the seat. Having found the spot that was making his husband scream, Yugi plowed into him relentlessly, striking that sweet bundle of nerves again and again. Atem was nearly sobbing, his voice going hoarse as he tried to lock his screams inside his throat.

The pace was intense, enough that Atem simply lost himself to the pleasure. Yugi could feel the way his body tensed right before he was going to come; reaching down, he gripped Atem’s cock and stoked it a few times. The added sensation was too much for Atem. He cried out and his body tensed, clenching around Yugi’s dick inside him as he rode out the orgasm.  

That tight coil that had been burning steadily inside Yugi erupted into a white-hot burst, spreading through his entire body. He let out a few broken gasps, the heat of Atem’s body so delicious as it clamped down on his dick, he couldn’t think. He groaned into Atem’s back, giving a few final thrusts as he emptied himself into Atem.

Atem’s knees gave out and he fell flat against the seat, Yugi falling with him. They laid there, pressed together, breathing.  They both were basking in the afterglow.

“That was one way to end the night,” Atem finally said once he could breathe normally again. “That was so good, I drooled. And we need a rag to clean the leather.”

“Mmph, just lay here for now. I have a few napkins in the center console. We’ll clean up in a little bit.” Atem let out a sleepy acknowledgement. They were quiet for a few more minutes before Yugi nuzzled his shoulder. “Thank you for tonight. For going with me and keeping me sane and dancing with me and all of your encouragement. I couldn’t have done this without you.”

“Of course, Yugi. You’re my partner and my husband. I want to support you in any way I can.” He glanced over his shoulder and smirked. “Also, this isn’t such a bad reward for me, either,” he said with a wink.

“You’re wrong about something, though,” Yugi told him. At Atem’s questioning glance, he elaborated. “You said that was one way to end the night. But the night isn’t over yet. I still have to get you home and unwrap you like the proper prize you are.”

Atem grinned. “Well then, my love, take me home. So we can end this night properly.”

Yugi pressed a tender kiss to the skin on Atem’s shoulder. “Any night I’m with you is a night that’s ended properly. You being alive and with me is the greatest prize of all.” He could feel the way Atem melted at his words. Stroking his sides, Yugi sighed happily. “But I’m definitely not opposed to getting home now. We’re going to have a delightfully long night ahead of us, after all.”

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 18: Adventure

Summary:  The gang plays the new Monster World VR game that Yugi created and things are going great until Atem and Yugi fall down a hole. Yugi doesn't take Atem being unconscious very well at all.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40398353

18: Adventure

“Ryou just messaged me. He’s on his way over now to our meeting spot here.”

“And Kaiba? Is he coming?” Yugi shrugged, sighing.

“I’m not sure. I texted him our party’s code so he could join the quests with us, and Mokuba, too, but I’m not sure if they’re going to join or not. He never responded back.”

Joey sighed, sitting on the ground and dragging the tip of his sword back and forth on the dirt. “I was hoping the whole gang could be here. Since Téa is supposed to come and all.”

Atem looked like he was going to say something but thought better of it, shifting back to stand in Yugi’s arms. Yugi instantly wrapped an arm around his husband, enjoying the feel of the costume that clung so nicely to all of Atem’s assets. He was very glad that Atem’s avatar looked identical to him. It would be so much harder to fawn over his avatar in the VR world if it didn't look like Atem.

“Hey guys, I made it! And look who I found on the way over!” Ryou grinned and pushed Téa in front of him. She laughed and waved, accepting all the cheers and hugs with relish from the group.

When they finally stopped, she turned to Ryou and Yugi. “This is amazing, guys. I almost feel like I’m here with you even though I’m halfway around the world right now. You guys did incredible on this game.”

“That’s all Yugi!” Ryou responded cheerfully. “I may have been the lead designer and story writer, but Yugi was the one who really put this to life with Kaiba. He’s a mad wizard at this VR stuff.” Yugi blushed, trying to wave off their compliments, but he did feel secretly pleased that they liked his game.

Monster World had been his grandest project yet, even when comparing it to Spherium II. It had taken him two years to program the game fully, even though the code had been something he had been working on since he began his programming classes in college. But it had always been one of his dreams to translate the tabletop Monster World RPG into a VR RPG. Kaiba had been fully on board with the idea and had helped him immensely with creating the game, making it compatible with the KaibaCorp VR Duel Disk-Headset.

He had asked Ryou to help him design the game and the story mode, too. In that way, it did make it less taxing than Spherium II since Yugi wasn’t responsible for everything. But after all their hard work, the game had finally been released.

And if the reviews, pre-orders, and first weekend sales were anything to go by, Monster World VR was turning out to be a big hit.

“All right, so I figured since we’re all different levels, we could start on a mid-level quest to encompass all of us. Téa, Tristan, and Duke are all low leveled, so you guys can get the boss kills and level up like crazy. Joey, Atem, Ryou, and I have all been playing in our downtime so we’re a little higher leveled." That was an understatement. They were actually rather high leveled, he and Atem especially. "We won’t take any kills, though. We’re just there for back-up.”

“No way!” Tristan exclaimed, pouting. “Let’s go on a hard quest! If we have you guys, we got this in the bag!” Yugi hesitated, looking around his group. Ryou and Téa shared his apprehension while Atem, Joey, and even Duke looked amped for a more dangerous mission.

Finally Téa sighed and shrugged. “Whatever. Let’s do this and make it epic. The hardest one that you have—that you know we’ll actually win!” Yugi nodded, pulling up his quest menu. He scrolled through it until he found the mission he was looking for. With a smirk, he nudged Ryou, who hissed when he saw it.

“Yugi, no!”

“Yugi, yes,” he responded with a grin. “They wanted hard. Let’s give them hard.” Ryou groaned while Joey and Tristan cheered. Even Atem looked excited.

Of course, considering it was rare for their entire group to get together and play games like this, no wonder everyone was excited. A more intense quest would make them play together longer and bring an extra level of thrill to the game. Yugi was okay with that, even if it would be more challenging and definitely way too much for the lower-leveled characters to fight on their own.

He clicked on the quest and the world melted around them, reforming into the new lands that applied to their new adventure.  

“So, this is called the Signer quest. We have to defeat six dragons to make the seventh and most powerful dragon appear. But after we defeat them, they’ll join our sides. Actually, whoever KOs the dragon gets the Signer mark permanently after that and can summon the dragon from here on out in the game.” Yugi grinned, shifting to the balls of his feet excitedly. “Then, if we beat this quest, it’ll unlock the Dark Signer quest. That’s when we use the seven dragons to defeat the seven Earthbound Immortals and the evil Crimson Devil. It’ll be fun!”

Duke was the one that opted to respond. “Sounds like it. After what you've made, if you're saying it's fun, it will be. Let’s go, then. Lead the way, Yugi.”

“Wait, wait, what is everyone?” Tristan asked, pointing at Atem for an example. “I'm a Magic Gunman. White Wizard for Ryou; Warrior for Joey; Téa is a... ?”

“Magician,” Téa supplied.

“Thief,” Duke said, pointing to himself.

“I’m a Beast Tamer!” Yugi told him. At Tristan’s blank look, Yugi elaborated, “It means I can convert enemies to our side. I already have a few from previous quests; I can only have six on me at one time.”

“And I’m an Illusionist,” Atem finished. “I can create images and mental traps to attack enemies with. I also got an ability to summon different magician friends, so I have four magicians I can summon to help me, too.”

Tristan nodded, seemingly pleased with the explanation. He gestured for them to continue moving, so Joey took the lead, loudly proclaiming he knew where to take them.

He didn’t. They wandered in circles, fighting enemy spawn after enemy spawn. After the third circle around a forest, Yugi waved his Marshmallon and Winged Kuriboh back to his side and reached out, halting Joey from going further.

“This way, Joey.” He pointed towards the left. “Kuriboh saw the pathway from over the treetops.”

“I knew that! I was just lettin Tristan and Téa level up and stuff.” Yugi gave him a patronizing grin and nodded. “Ah, hush up!” He gave Yugi a noogie before walking off in the direction Kuriboh was leading them.

They found their first dragon almost immediately once they were on the right path. It was sleeping on the ground, surrounded by plants. As soon as the party stepped into the pathway, the black dragon poked its head up, glaring at them. It flared its beautiful wings, covered in large rose petals, and stood, roaring. It’s spiked, thorned tail thrashed against the ground in warning.

“Yeah, this is what I’m talking about! Hiyaaa!” Joey let out a war cry and rushed forward, his sword held over his head. Tristan was hot on his heels, shooting magical laser shots from behind Joey.

Everyone grimaced as the dragon’s tail lashed out, catching Joey and Tristan in one fell swoop and sent them flying. “Yikes. Maybe we should be a bit more coordinated,” Ryou suggested. Yugi and Téa nodded.

“Téa and Ryou, you two should provide back-up since you’re both long-range. Atem can summon his spirits and provide extra coverage. Duke, you can dart in and out when the dragon is distracted and cut down its health points. We’ll let Joey and Tristan continue to be the distraction. And I’ll bring one of my own friends out to help defeat this.” With the plan set, the group spread out.

“Timaeus, come forth!” A miniature version of the green dragon rose from the ground. It nuzzled Yugi’s hand, wanting to be pet, before it turned to Atem and waddled over to him, nudging the magic user. He smiled and ran his hand up and down Timaeus’s neck.

Téa raised an eyebrow. Yugi laughed at the picture Atem and Timaeus made. “Atem and I sometimes just come in here to play with the pets instead of questing. Timaeus really likes him.” After the dragon had gotten his fair share of petting, he turned towards the Black Rose Dragon and zoomed off, shooting blasts of water.

Atem was next, summoning the Dark Magician Girl and the Dark Magician to his side. They were tiny, toon versions of the characters, both spirits that were missing legs and having ghostly tails instead. The two began to circle around the dragon, attacking, while Atem stood back and began shooting spells to disorient the dragon.

Joey and Tristan continued to get smacked around (keeping Ryou rather busy with constantly healing them) while Duke weaved in and out between people to slice at the dragon with his dagger. However, it was Téa that shot the killing blast. The Black Rose Dragon gave a cry and then exploded into a red light that shot down onto Téa’s hand, leaving a mark behind.

The group as a whole felt themselves level up, some gaining more levels than others. They collected the monster drops and loot, finishing up their first battle.

“Whoop! One down, six more to go! Let’s do this guys!”

Dragon number three was when Mokuba and Kaiba dropped into their team. Mokuba was a Bard while Kaiba was an Enchanter. While Mokuba played songs on a flute to up their stats, Kaiba used surrounding objects to throw at the current dragon—the Ancient Fairy Dragon—to weaken it.

Duke had defeated their second dragon, the Life Stream Dragon, and gained its power. As for this third dragon, Mokuba stole the kill right at the end from Joey, taking the Ancient Fairy Dragon as his new summon, too.

Their next dragon, the Black-Winged Dragon, was a tougher opponent that had Yugi summoning a second dragon. It was the Red Eyes Black Dragon and Joey nearly had a fit when he saw his favorite dragon at Yugi’s side.

“It was a new summon I found a few nights ago,” Yugi explained sheepishly. Joey continued to glare at him throughout the entire fight. At least until the dragon was defeated and Joey had a new target he could direct his pouting to. In this case, Tristan took the kill and Joey's whining.

Dragons five and six appeared together much to the group’s horror (besides Yugi, Ryou, and Kaiba who all knew what the quest entailed). They were the strongest dragons and Joey and Kaiba both fought over trying to get the final kill. It was a difficult battle, though; enough so that Ryou had to revive Joey twice and Tristan three times.

Atem had to summon his final two magician spirits: the Magician of Black Chaos and the Silent Magician. Yugi was also forced to summon his final two dragon companions, the Blue Eyes White Dragon (which had Kaiba apoplectic when he saw it) and Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction.

Atem nearly had the final kill but was nice enough to freeze the Stardust Dragon for Kaiba to take the kill. Ryou also had the final killshot on the Red Dragon Archfiend but Joey swooped in right at the last second and stole the kill.

“You’re lucky there is no friendly fire. If there was, I would roast you alive,” Ryou grumped out, pouting as the dragon’s mark appeared on Joey’s hand. “I wanted a dragon.”

Yugi nudged him and smiled. “Don’t worry. You can get the next one. Think of how cool that’ll look, too! Summoning that flaming beast will make you legendary.” Ryou gave a laugh, nodding.

“You’re right. I’ll be the most badass White Wizard in all of Monster World. Come on, let’s go get that Crimson Dragon!”

When they made it to the sacred summoning ground, the six members of their party who had the Signer marks had to lift up their arms to draw forth the dragon.

If Yugi was being honest, the Crimson Dragon was one of his and Ryou’s most beautiful creations. It was slender, like a snake, but it had flaming stick-like wings, almost skeletal in appearance. It was nothing but pure flame, though. No body, no actual wings, no teeth or claws; nothing but pure molten energy. They could feel the heat radiating from its body.

“Amazing…” Téa breathed, staring up at the creature in awe. Tristan and Duke both made similar sounds.

“Let’s take it down!!” Joey was the one to charge in first, again, like always. But this time, the creature was too strong.

“Joey, no!” Yugi reached out to stop him but was too slow. His best friend was slashed across the chest by the dragon’s claws, sending him to his knees.

“Joey!!” Their entire team rushed to his aid but everything happened in a blur after that. Yugi wasn’t sure what happened, exactly. He was reaching towards Joey, there was screaming, Téa went flying backwards beside him, Atem was yelling, Kaiba grabbed him and threw him backwards, and then there was a lot of earth shaking and rocks.

And then… and then the ground was cracking open and a huge fissure split the earth. Yugi was sitting up enough to see what happened and it was like a movie playing in slow motion. Atem was shoving Ryou out of the way from the hole but he didn’t move fast enough, and then he was the one falling down the crevice. Yugi watched Atem’s body disappear into the blackness and it felt like his heart stopped.

He knew, deep down, it was only a game and that no true harm would come to his husband. But in that moment, it was like his world stopped. He couldn’t hear anything around him, couldn’t see anything except Atem’s falling body, couldn’t think about anything except saving his husband. His heart thudded in his chest and Yugi simply moved on pure instinct. He dived after Atem, ignoring Ryou and Kaiba’s shouts for him to stop.

He managed to grab Atem around the waist, holding him to his chest, as they plunged into icy waters below them. Before he lost consciousness, he was horrified to feel his hands slip from Atem’s body.

Yugi blinked his eyes open slowly, feeling like his mind was in a fog. How he hadn’t died from the fall was beyond him. He should really be waking up back home, in the real world, after being booted from the game. But he wasn’t.

The rush of memories came back and Yugi sat up, panicked. “Atem? Atem! Atem! Where are you?” He stumbled over himself to stand, wincing as his leg nearly gave way instantly. Yugi groaned as he fell back on his ass. He pulled up his status menu, taking inventory of his wounds. It looked like his ankle was sprained, so until he found a healer, his walking ability would be limited. Luckily, that was the only real damage. Everything else was just bruises and cuts.

As well as the fact he was freezing. That was delightful.

He groaned, chanting a few spells to summon his dragons back to his side. All four appeared in front of him, as well as Marshmallon and Winged Kuriboh. “Timaeus, Blue Eyes, go search the surrounding area for Atem. I need to find him. Red Eyes, I need your flames to warm me up, but then I want you to go find our team and let them know where I am.” Timaeus and the Blue Eyes White Dragon took off at Yugi’s command, while the Red Eyes Black Dragon lit a small fire to let Yugi warm up.

Once he was dry and his body temperature back up to normal, the Red Eyes took off up the cliff to find the rest of their friends.

“Gandora, help me walk. I have to find Atem.” Gandora let out a whine, clearly wishing Yugi to remain sitting, but Yugi was stubborn. He stood, wobbling on his good leg, but began to hobble off, following the river he had washed up from. Gandora trotted along beside him, steadying him slightly. Kuriboh flitted around his head nervously, clearly worried about Yugi’s health.

Thankfully, Timaeus let out a cry that had Yugi stumbling towards him in a rush. The Blue Eyes found Yugi and steadied his other side, helping him get to Atem’s side faster.

And there was his husband, lying prone on the ground. He wasn’t moving.

It’s just a game. It’s just a game. It’s just a game. This isn’t real. Atem is fine. Atem is fine. This isn’t real.

Yet no matter how many times he repeated it, Yugi couldn’t stop the tears from rolling down his cheeks or the panicked breathing. This was his husband and he was hurt and just lying there and Yugi didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t lose Atem again.

He made it to Atem’s side and scooped him up into his arms, shaking and doing his best to hold back sobs. “A-Atem, darling, please wake up. C’mon, babe, wake up. Please get up.” He gently tapped his cheek but Atem didn't stir in the slightest.

It was just a game but at the same time, it was way too real. Yugi felt this strike something deep inside him and felt as his innermost fears began to bubble up to the surface. He couldn’t breathe.

“Please, Atem, please. Please wake up. Please.”

It was like a nightmare. Yugi felt himself slipping into his darkest memories; he was back there, kneeling on the ground in a dark temple, watching the love of his life walk away. Feeling like he had killed him, forced him to leave. Watching the doors slide close behind his king, forcing a smile on his face as his heart shattered.

Yugi’s breath hitched and he let out a sob. “Atem! Please, Atem, please… Please!” He wasn’t even sure what he was begging for. He wasn’t sure why this was destroying him inside so much, but it was. Yugi couldn’t handle it. He couldn’t handle Atem unconscious like this, slipping away from him just like before.

He couldn’t have him walk out of his life again. Yugi wouldn’t let it happen. He’d die before he let Atem leave him again. This time, if he wanted to walk through those doors to the Other Side, Yugi was going to follow him no matter what Atem said.

“Yu… Yugi?” The voice was hoarse but it snapped Yugi out of his spiraling sobs, making him open his eyes and give a relieved whimper. “What’s wrong?”

“You’re okay,” Yugi told him, trying to steady his breathing. He was still hiccuping from his tears. “Gods, y-you’re o-o-okay.”

Atem looked perplexed for a few seconds but he seemed to realize that Yugi’s tears were not normal. And that was why he loved his husband because instead of probing and asking why Yugi was overreacting from a video game, he simply reached up and hugged him. “I’m here, Yugi. I’m not going to leave you. Ever.”

Yugi let out a sob, unable to hold it back. “I-I-I’m sor-sorry. I don’t—I don’t mean to b-b-be like this but… but… you were—-”

“Shh, shh, it’s okay. Don’t apologize; I understand. But I’m here, my love. I’m right here, solid, in your arms. I’m not going to go anywhere. I’m not going to leave your side for all eternity. Remember? We promised that.” Yugi nodded, unable to say anything.

“Do you want to breathe together? Or do you just want me to talk?” Atem asked him, stroking Yugi’s hair.

“J-just talk. I want to hear your voice.”

“Okay. I thought your dragon was beautiful. You and Ryou have done so amazing on this game. Even the pain reception. It’s not too much but enough to feel sore; to make it real. That heat, though, from the dragon! It was incredible, partner. I’m so proud of what you’ve made. And all of our friends are enjoying it, too. Even Kaiba is playing, so you know it’s a great game.”

Yugi felt his heart begin to fall into its normal rhythm. Everything was okay. Atem was there. Atem was real. Atem was alive.

“I love you,” Yugi whispered. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Yugi.” Atem seemed to feel him calming. “Do you want to talk about it? What triggered that reaction?”

Yugi took a few more deep breaths before he trusted himself to speak. “I saw you… just lying there. And all I could think was that you were… you were dead again. And then I remembered the last time I saw you die and leave me and I… I don’t want you to go away again. If you want to go back to the Field of Reeds, I’m going with you this time. I won’t let you leave me.”

Atem cupped Yugi’s cheeks, tilting his face down so he could reach up and kiss him. He kissed him long, gently, and deeply. He kissed him until Yugi felt like he was seeing stars; all he could think about was Atem. He could taste Atem, smell Atem, feel Atem, see Atem, hear Atem—Atem had his every sense and it was perfect.

He broke away and wiped the tear residue remaining on Yugi’s cheeks. “I will never leave your side. Anything we do, we do together. Until the end of time.” He didn’t wait for Yugi to respond, leaning back up and kissing him again.

Yugi wasn’t sure how long they sat there kissing, but it was long enough that all the traces of panic and anxiety eased from his chest. It was long enough that he could breathe normally and think logically again. He knew Atem was there and it grounded him to the present.

“Wow, seriously?” The annoyed tone of Joey had Yugi and Atem pulling apart with embarrassed grins. “Here we are, worried sick about finding you two, and it just turns out that you’ve run off to go canoodle! What the hell, guys?”

“It’s… not what it looks like?” Atem tried with a cringe. No one in the group believed it.

However, ever the perceptive one, Téa seemed to notice Yugi’s red-rimmed eyes and his death grip on Atem’s back and seemed to process that there was something underlying going on. She waved Joey’s rants away, rolling her eyes at him. “They’re the married ones; let them do what they want. After all, this is Yugi’s game. If he programmed spots to go be alone with his husband, well, he deserves to use them!”

Yugi gave a sheepish laugh, not feeling like correcting Téa’s assumption that this was a spot that he could do, ahem, other things with his husband. He technically couldn’t. Those spots had been programmed into the game, of course, though they were very difficult to find for other users. But this particular place wasn’t one of those spots.

Which was probably a good thing. Yugi wouldn’t have liked getting caught by all his friends doing his husband.

“So did we defeat the dragon?” Atem opted to ask, working on redirecting the conversation away from them. “Or after Ryou heals us, are we going back up there to give it another go?”

“We killed him!” Joey declared proudly, puffing out his chest. “It was hard. And Ryou had to revive almost everyone. But we finally did it!”

Yugi scanned their arms, trying to see who won. Ryou held up his arm, the crimson mark glowing all the way down the front of his hand to his elbow. It was in the shape of a dragon. “I did,” Ryou said proudly.

“So, we up for doing the next quest?” Duke asked the group as Ryou healed Yugi and Atem. “Or are we calling it a night?”

Yugi caught Téa glancing over at them worriedly; she could definitely sense there had been something else going on when the group wasn’t there. Giving an exaggerated yawn, she said, “I think we should call it a night. I’m beat. Remember, it is like 14 hours difference over here. So I know it’s like 5:00 over there, but it’s like 3 in the morning here. So call it a night?”

“Oh shit, yeah. Sorry, Téa. We’ll have to time this out better next time.”

“Meh, it’s Friday. No biggie. Anyways, don’t do the next quest without me! I want to use my dragon, too. I’ll see you guys later?” There were choruses of agreement all around her, making Téa smile. “Awesome. Later, guys.” Before she logged out, though, she flashed Yugi a look that asked, Are you okay?

He gave her a grateful smile, nodding, and mouthing, “Thank you.” She nodded and smiled back before logging out. From there, everyone else said their farewells and logged out after her.

Back in the real world, Yugi pulled off his microphone piece and headset. He took a deep breath, leaning back against the couch.

Only to open his eyes, startled, when a weight settled on his lap. “I thought I would show you how real and alive I am. Just in case you needed more convincing,” Atem told him, smirking flirtatiously. The look sent fire flooding Yugi’s veins.

“I think I’d like that,” he admitted.

“Good. I’ll make us both come alive.” And his husband proceeded to do just that.

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 17: Valiant

Summary: Yugi and Atem have incredible mothers.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40286075

17: Valiant

The first time it had happened, it was shortly before he and Atem had begun dating. There had been a dream with a woman in it, asking how Atem was doing. Yugi had no idea who she was or what he said in response. He had been incredibly unsettled when he had woken up, but had brushed it off. Weird dreams happened.

When he and Atem started dating, it happened again. This time, the dream woman spoke about how proud she was and what a good man Atem had become. She had asked Yugi to pass along a message to him but when he woke up, for the life of him, he couldn’t remember what it was.

Once more, he opted not to say anything.

The third time, though, was the breaking point. They had been going through a relatively rough time in their relationship. It was hard, sometimes, trying to date while being a semi-public figure in the media. College was stressful as both of them headed into their final years. Yugi was nervous about presenting Spherium at the world gaming conference. Atem was struggling to decide what he really wanted to do with his life.

And for a few weeks, things were tense between them. They never seriously considered breaking up—Yugi didn’t think that was ever an option that crossed either of their minds—but they weren’t as happy together as usual.  

One night, after a particularly bad fight that had Yugi sleeping on the couch in tears, and Atem most likely not sleeping because he was crying, too, Yugi had the dream again.

It was vivid this time. He could see the woman much clearer now—she was clearly Ancient Egyptian, wearing a linen dress and gold collar. She had on a golden headdress with a rising cobra sticking out at the forehead. So, she was royalty, too.

Her eyes were red wine like Atem’s, and her hair that thick glorious black and red that reminded Yugi of the sunset melting into the night’s sky. It was clear then, who she really was.

What on earth did Atem’s mother want with him? (He didn’t bother with the how she was communicating with him. If his boyfriend could come back to life from the Field of Reeds, he really wasn’t that surprised at this point that he could be communicated with from there, either)

“Please be patient with him. He has trouble expressing himself properly, but he loves you more than anything.”

“I’d never leave Atem.”

“He doesn’t always know that, though.”

When Yugi woke up, tears still streaming down his face, he immediately went to their bedroom to curl up around Atem with apologies and promises that he would never leave Atem’s side for all eternity. Atem accepted him easily, the two of them kissing and crying together until morning. They blew off classes to spend all day together, talking and cuddling and making sure everything was right between them.

It wasn’t until the next day that he finally told Atem who saw in his dreams. Atem had teared up, falling into his arms as he reminisced on his mother. She had died when Atem was twelve and it was devastating. She had been one of the most courageous women he knew, opting to stand up against her husband even if it would displease him. She did what was right for the people and had a huge heart, filled with kindness. The only person Atem knew who was kinder than his mother was Yugi.

She had taught Atem nearly everything he knew and was his closest confidant growing up. His mother had always loved him and accepted him, even though he was such a troublesome prince most of the time. He missed her more than anything; she had been one of the reasons he had stayed for so long in the Field of Reeds. But she had also been one of the first ones to encourage him to leave when he got the option from Osiris.

He always wished he could thank her for that. It was the best decision he had made in his life.

Yugi had promised if he saw her again in his dreams, he would let her know.

If there was one thing Yugi was grateful for when it came to his family, it was that they accepted Atem with open arms. He had known his grandfather would care for Atem, since he had been a part of their adventures from the beginning and knew Atem was a separate person from Yugi. But the fact that his mother was also just as accepting of the whole situation was extremely relieving.

It also helped that as soon as his mother heard Atem had no family, she had become determined to fill-in as a mother for him as much as possible. Even before they began dating, Yugi’s mother was always calling to inquire about Atem’s health and always telling Yugi to, “Tell my son-in-law to come visit once and awhile, will you?” He knew Atem was immensely grateful for the acceptance.

He also appreciated the fact that his mother would check in on Atem and talk to him, helping him through things that sometimes Yugi couldn’t, no matter how hard he tried. Sometimes, Atem just needed a mother to tell him something rather than his boyfriend.  

Walking into his apartment one December afternoon, he realized he had stumbled into one of those conversations.

Atem and his mother was sitting at their kitchen table, talking quietly. His mother had both of Atem’s hands in hers. Yugi swallowed hard and hung back, unsure if he should turn around and come back later or walk in and interrupt them.

“It’s okay to be scared of what the future brings, Atem,” his mother was saying. “If you enjoy what you do at KaibaCorp and enjoy dueling, then just keep doing that. Those are real jobs, no matter what you might think. You don’t have to get something in the business world just because you have a degree in it.”

“But Yugi is working so hard with his game designing career and I feel like I’m not doing nearly enough to help support us, too. With his new position in KaibaCorp, he’s on a quick track to becoming a partner in the firm. We can all see how much Kaiba values his opinions and thoughts and I just… I don’t want to hold him back or make him support both of us.”

Yugi closed his eyes, ducking out of sight in the entryway and sitting on the ground. He and Atem had had this conversation so many times, it felt like. No matter how many times Yugi told him he just wanted Atem to be happy, it was like Atem didn’t believe him. Like he needed to prove that he needed to make as much money and do as much work as Yugi did. But Yugi didn’t want that. He just wanted Atem to be happy with whatever job he did.

“Sweetheart,” his mother began gently, “do you think Yugi really cares about that?”

“I know he doesn’t. But I just feel like I’m dragging him down.”

“Atem, you do realize that he has similar thoughts, right? He sees you, knowing you came back to life to be with him, that you were this grand pharaoh who saved the world, that you left your eternal heaven and your own family to come here, and he wonders if he’s doing enough to make you happy.” Yugi didn’t even have to see Atem’s face to picture the wide eyes and stricken expression.

“O-of course he’s making me happy! I could imagine nothing else that makes me happier than being at his side.”

“Then, dear, don’t you think that’s all Yugi cares about? You don’t need to worry about your job, so long as you’re happy with what you’re doing. Are you happy as a game tester?”

“I am. I enjoy it a lot.”

“And the modeling and being a spokesperson for KaibaCorp? And being a competitive duelist? Do you like doing all of that?”

“I love dueling,” he admitted. “And I don’t mind the modeling. It’s fun to dress up. I don’t know how much I enjoy being a spokesperson but it’s the thing that makes me feel the most connected to my old life, in some strange way. Giving press conferences or announcing new items… It reminds me of being a pharaoh in some strange way. So I don’t really want to give that up, either.”

“Is there anything you’d rather do in life? Would you like to design games with Yugi? Or maybe be an Egyptologist? A professor? Run the game shop? Anything like that?”

Atem didn’t answer immediately, thinking it over. Finally, he said, “No. I don’t want to design games. I just want to play them. I’ve seen what Yugi does and I just… don’t enjoy the inner mechanics like that. I love watching him create a new game but I could never do it. As for being a professor or an Egyptologist… no. Seeing things about my past like that makes me... sick. It’s not a pleasant feeling to feel like an artifact out of time. Even when I studied Egyptology in college, I think I hated more than I loved it. I needed to see it—to see how the world views my culture now. But it made me feel raw the entire time.” He hesitated and then said, “I wouldn’t mind running the game shop, but I don’t think I want to do that right now. However, when Grandpa wants to retire, I would be happy to take it over for him.”

“I'm sure he'd love that, too. But for now, Atem, just worry about being happy. If you want to change jobs because your current one isn’t making you happy, then do so. But if you want to change jobs because you think you should support Yugi more, don’t do it. Yugi is creating games because he loves it and he’s blessed to get a good paycheck. He is more than happy to use that money to make sure you’re both happy, too, because at the end of the day, the only thing he cares about? You. You came back to him and that matters more than anything.”

Atem took a deep breath and Yugi was sure he was nodding.

“Anything you want to add, my son?” his mother called and Yugi flinched. He heard Atem mumble a confused, “What? Yugi’s here?” and he walked around the corner, rubbing his head sheepishly.

“I didn’t want to interrupt.” His mother gave him an amused smile, raising an eyebrow, while Atem's surprised look melted into something much softer and he smiled at him. Yugi walked over and kissed his cheek before wrapping his arms around Atem’s neck.

“Mama is right. But even if I didn’t make enough money, I don’t care. I would stay with you even if we’re dirt poor, or if we become as rich as Kaiba. The only thing that ever matters to me is that you’re happy and you’re here. I’m the luckiest man in the world that you came back to me so all I want is to make you happy. No matter what.” He nuzzled Atem’s neck. He could feel Atem relax, finally nodding. It felt like he had finally accepted Yugi's words and understood.

His mother groaned. “Even if your words are right, I don’t want to see it in actions. Be super affectionate when I’m not around. But since I am here, how about you treat your mother to dinner?” She gave a catlike grin and Yugi rolled his eyes.

“Yes, Mother.”

The night after he proposed to Atem, he received a visit from his mother in his dreams. Yugi suspicioned that she couldn’t stay long; it was probably taxing to cross dimensions. She didn’t say much.

"Tell him I’m proud. Of both him and you. He couldn’t have chosen a better spouse. Tell him he has my blessings.”

If Atem’s mother said more, Yugi couldn’t remember come morning. Still, after waking Atem up with gentle kisses, he relayed her message. He was not expecting to watch his new fiancé fall apart, but Atem did, collapsing into Yugi’s arms, sobbing. Yugi waited patiently, simply stroking his hair and letting his lover cry.

After he had cried it out, Atem finally began to explain. “I was always scared my family would reject me for marrying you. For going against tradition and marrying someone outside my race and religion, but also someone I could never have a child with. I worried they would hate me for my choices.”

“But she doesn’t,” Yugi confirmed. Atem nodded, clenching Yugi’s shirt.

“No. She approves. She blessed our marriage.”

“Will you tell me about your mother? She keeps coming to me in these dreams and I feel awful because I don’t even know her name.”

Atem laughed wetly, nodding. “Her name is Neithhotep. She was my father’s second wife, the one he actually picked to marry. She had been a priestess and he had fallen in love with her dancing and looks.”

“Your father had five wives, right?”

“Yeah. His Great Royal Wife was his half-sister. Then my mother. His next two wives were foreign brides sent for treaties. And then his niece was his fifth wife. I was my mother’s only child and fourth oldest. My two older brothers died in the wars before the Millennium Items were made. My younger sister died when she was ten from an illness, while my youngest brother died when he was eight. He had a lot of genetic problems due to inbreeding and was always sickly.”

“And your older…?”

“Sister,” Atem clarified. “She was killed by her mother before I was born. Her mother feared the invaders coming so close to the palace and killed her and then killed herself, knowing that if the palace walls were breached, a fate worse than death awaited them, especially since they were foreign.”

“That's horrible..." Atem nodded. "So you actually grew up with siblings.” Atem nodded again. “How did your mother react to the children that weren't hers?”

“She was always loving towards them. The Great Royal Wife wasn’t that kind, and when both of her oldest sons died, it left me as Crown Prince. She always resented me but my mother was… a courageous woman.” Yugi tilted his head in a wordless question. “She killed the Great Royal Wife to protect me. My aunt despised me and went out of her way to mistreat me. It was why my mother was so kind to the other women’s children; after all, even though my mother wasn’t the Great Royal Wife, she was clearly my father’s favorite and since her son was Crown Prince, it gave her considerable influence.”

“How did she kill your aunt? What happened?”

“My aunt was trying to poison me. My mother found out about the plot and revealed it to my father. While he was going to punish his sister in some fashion, it wasn’t enough or fast enough. My mother was extremely protective to those she loved. One time, she and I went to the town to see the markets and someone tried to rob us. She pulled out a dagger and stabbed both men in the face, stopping them. Or another time, my father always told us a story about how my mother dressed in warriors clothes and kept a bow and arrow always at her side when the invaders were coming. She was going to protect every child in the palace if it was the last thing she did.”

Yugi smiled. He could see where Atem had gotten his fierceness from, then. And his bravery and courage. Neithhotep sounded incredible.

“Anyways, for my aunt. My mother ambushed her in her bedroom at night. She said that the gods looked down on those that killed children and then she forced her to drink her own poison. They couldn’t prove what happened so my father didn’t punish my mother, but my mother confessed it to me before she died.”

Good lord, Yugi winced internally. He was suddenly extremely glad Atem’s mother approved of him, too. Osiris help him if he ever hurt Atem. He might have a vengeful Egyptian queen spirit coming at him and murdering him in his sleep.

“It sounds bad,” Atem admitted, seemingly reading Yugi’s face. “But she truly was a lovely woman. She would fill the palace halls with songs and dancing. She learned how to heal and spent hours and hours with my younger siblings when they fell ill. She would go out to see the people and treat their wounds when she could, or bring them food and toys to the children. She treated the servants well and never hurt a fly unless they threatened harm against her family. She was… a lot like you, I would think,” Atem admitted. “So kind and loving but unwilling to back down when something is wrong.”

“How did she die?” Yugi whispered. Atem took a deep breath.

“Childbirth. She was only seventeen when she had me, so twenty-nine wasn’t really that old to have more children. But it had been a risky pregnancy in general and when she finally gave birth, it killed her. The baby was a stillborn, too.”

“Holy shit, Atem,” Yugi breathed, looking down at his fiancé. “I’m so sorry.”

“Every woman in Ancient Egypt had to make that courageous choice. It was a battle every woman faced and unfortunately, my mother did not make it through. But we lived happily when she was there.”

“She sounds like an incredible woman.”

Atem smiled, nodding. “She was.”

They were meeting at a cafe to give his mother the news of their engagement. Of course, though, Yugi was running late. He was ready to kill Kaiba for holding him up.

“Yeah, babe, I’ll be there in just a minute. I’m running around the corner now,” Yugi told Atem over the phone. “Is Mama there?”

“Yes. She’s impatiently waiting for you,” Atem responded, a teasing lilt in his voice. “She said she can’t believe you would be so rude as to make your poor mother wait in this cold. She thought she raised you better than this.”

“Oh, ha ha. Tell her she can go toe-to-toe with Seto Kaiba and tell him that!”

Atem chuckled and Yugi could hear him start to say something to his mother but he cut off suddenly and through the phone, Yugi could hear a muffled, “Aiko! Aiko Mutou, is that you?”

Yugi rounded the corner, seeing his mother and fiancé standing outside the cafe doors. In front of them was another woman, someone that apparently knew his mother. Catching Atem’s eye, he hung up his phone, heading towards them. He could hear the woman speak as he came forward.

“Hello Michiko,” his mother greeted, smiling politely. Her posture was uncharacteristically tense. “It’s been years. I haven’t seen you since Yugi’s freshmen orientation.”

“Yes, it has been years. Ushio remembers Yugi fondly.” Both he and Atem flinched. This was Ushio’s mother?! “Is this Yugi? He looks a lot darker than I remember.”

His mother forced a laugh. “No, no. This is Atem, Yugi’s boyfriend. Or if that ring on his finger is any indication, new fiancé.” His mother turned towards Atem with a smirk. Atem blushed and nodded. “Ha! I thought so! You two aren't slick at all. Going to New York City over Christmas. I knew Yugi was going to pop the question.”

“Haa… we both did.” His mother laughed naturally, shaking her head.

“I would expect nothing different from you two.”

“He’s gay? ” Ushio’s mother gasped out, looking horrified. “And you’re okay with this?” Yugi rushed the rest of the walk, unwilling to let Atem deal with this alone. He slid up next to his fiancé, slipping an arm around his waist.

“Mrs. Tetsu; how wonderful to see you again. How is Ushio doing?” Yugi asked with fake sugar-sweetness. The woman looked at him and then Atem, before focusing on the hand perched on Atem’s waist, and then disregarded him completely, turning back towards his mother. Atem tensed in his arms.

“My son and my future son-in-law are both incredible men,” his mother began with steel in her voice, “and of course I accept them. I love both boys with all my heart and I’m so proud of what both of them have accomplished. Yugi is a top designer for KaibaCorp and Atem is a top game tester there, too. Yugi is the King of Games and Atem is the Japanese Duel Monsters champion, second only to Yugi. Both of them are spokespeople for the company and personal friends of Seto Kaiba himself. Why wouldn’t I be proud of them?”

“They are shaming your family!” she hissed.

Yugi was about to grab his mother’s arm and tell her not to worry about it; he and Atem dealt with enough homophobia to know it wasn’t worth fighting about constantly. Close-minded people would always exist and they didn’t need to ruin their day to come down to her level.

Except his mother squared her shoulders and got that look in her eyes that made Yugi hesitate and keep his hand firmly on Atem’s waist. She looked like she was out for blood and Yugi didn’t want to get in the middle of her and her victim.

“Oh? Disgrace my name? Like your son did yours ?” she asked with false lightness. “How he used to extort children because he was bigger than them in school? He once beat Yugi black and blue and let me tell you, Tetsu, I have never forgotten that. A mother never forgets or forgives those that hurt their children. So before you come at me for having a wonderful son who loves his incredible fiancé with all his heart—something you think is so awful—maybe you should remember how shittily you raised your own son. Once he can come and give my son an apology for his behavior all those years ago, then we’ll talk.”

Michiko Tetsu looked aghast at Yugi’s mother’s words. He felt incredibly proud of his mom, though. “Now, get out of my sight. I won’t have you ruin this incredible announcement with your close-minded negativity. I want to go have a nice lunch with my sons ,” she stressed the plurality, her arm wrapping around Atem’s shoulders, “and listen as to how they both proposed to each other.” There was nothing Ushio’s mother could say in response. She simply huffed and whirled around, storming off.

His mother snorted in derision. “Come at my boys like that with me around. I don’t think so. What a fool.”

“Mama,” Yugi began before enveloping her in a hug. “You’re incredible.” Atem joined the hug, thanking her so softly. She laughed, waving off both of their words.

“No matter what anyone says, you two are my sons. And if they can’t see how amazing you two are, they’re not worth being around. Now, c’mon. I want lunch and to hear this story. I’m sure it’s going to be a disaster.”

After eating and telling the story, Yugi had to slip away to call Kaiba for something. When he came back, he saw Atem showing off the ring to his mother. She had one hand on his other hand, patting it softly while she examined his ring hand in the air. Yugi smiled, wrapping his arms around Atem’s neck as she looked at the ring.

“I’m so proud of you two,” his mother said lightly. “No mother could be as pleased as I am to have you both in my life, or to welcome you into my family, Atem.”

It was sudden and Yugi couldn’t really describe the sensation, but it was like he felt hands on his shoulders. A chill went down his spine.

“As am I, Yugi. I could not be prouder of both of you and cannot wait to welcome you into my family, too, for when you finally arrive here with Atem at your side. I am so proud of you both.”

The feeling faded but Yugi still gasped, looking down in awe at Atem. He looked worried. “What’s wrong, Yugi?”

“Your mother,” he told him, breathless. “She… she agrees with Mama. She is proud of both of us, too.” Atem’s eyes went soft, tears welling up in them.

“Of course she would be!” His mother declared, squeezing Atem’s hand. Yugi looked down at his mother and was struck with how fierce she could be. “She would be a fool not to be! How could someone not be proud of you two?”

Both women were so strong and incredible in different ways, Yugi realized. They were valiant women; courageous, kind, protective, determined, and above all, always loving and looking out for their sons.

“Well,” Yugi said, smiling and meeting Atem’s gaze, “then we’re both incredibly lucky to have such amazing mothers like you two.”

“That’s right!” His mother retorted, huffing with faux annoyance. “We’d have to be amazing to have sons like you two!”

He swore he could hear a richly velvet voice agree in his ear, the sound like breath on the wind. Yugi smiled softly, glad his future mother-in-law approved, too. He’d hate to be on either mother’s bad side. They were both terrifying, but absolutely incredible, women.

He and Atem were two very lucky men indeed.

[trifrost17]

YGO Advent Day 16: Obsession

Summary:  Atem has been playing a new game and is unintentionally ignoring Yugi. Yugi finally decides enough is enough.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16811635/chapters/40212461

16: Obsession

It was 4:13 in the morning. The red numbers almost seemed mocking as Yugi stared at them, wishing them to change.

4:13.

It couldn’t be that late.

Correction, it couldn’t be that late and his bed still be empty.

Yugi felt intense annoyance as he watch the clock turn to 4:14. Atem wasn’t coming to bed. Atem was still in the living room on the couch; Yugi just knew it.

While, theoretically speaking, Atem could be suffering from insomnia, or he could have had a nightmare, or he may not have been able to sleep and had slipped away from bed to watch TV or play a game or something to not disturb Yugi, Yugi seriously doubted it. He’d be more inclined to believe something like that if this wasn’t the sixth night in a row that Atem hadn’t come to bed. He’d almost believe Atem was upset with him if he didn’t know what else was going on.

Atem was obsessed with a new game. He had barely put down the tablet since he had started playing it. From the time Yugi left in the morning for work (Atem was on the dueling circuit right now, so he was excused from KaibaCorp for about a month or so until the tournaments ended), to when he popped in for lunch, to the time he got home at night from work, until he went on to bed, Atem had hardly moved from his spot on the couch.

Oh sure, he would talk to Yugi. Wish him to have a good day at work, ask him how his day was going when he came in for lunch, ask him how his day went and what he wanted for dinner, and then tell him he’d be up to bed soon—but he was hardly engaging with him like normal. They weren’t playing games together. When they talked, Atem always seemed distracted—because he was—and Atem barely moved enough to eat or shower. And, of course, he wasn’t coming to bed. Yugi wasn’t even sure when he was sleeping.

Now, Yugi understood the gaming obsession. He was a gamer, after all. He was a freaking game designer. He understood. He really, truly did. He got obsessed playing new games. There were times that all he did was binge a game for a week straight. Hell, when he was creating Spherium, he was always working on the game and barely paying attention to Atem. He tried to include Atem as much as he could and tried to pay attention to him, but Yugi knew he had fallen short back then with his boyfriend.

However. Yugi could at least say he had never not slept with Atem for more than a day during those times. He always joined him in bed. He would always take a break at least once a day to spend time just with him. They always kept their date nights.

Yugi took a deep breath, staring up at the ceiling. He flushed away the anger. He knew Atem just had this type of personality. His boyfriend was someone who hyper-focused on one thing and did that one thing obsessively. It was part of the reason he was so incredible at Duel Monsters. Or games, in general. He had to play them until he was perfect at it, figure it all out, and do it again and again and again until he couldn’t consume it any more.

Still… Yugi missed Atem. He missed sleeping next to him. He missed his kisses. He missed their talks each night. He missed the way Atem would wrap him in his arms and tell him everything would be okay. He missed the way Atem would listen to his problems and give him a different idea and different way of thinking. He missed when he told Atem how someone said something to him that hurt his feelings, how Atem would get so protective and righteous on his behalf, telling him he didn’t deserve that type of negativity. He missed Atem stroking his hair, telling him how it was okay to be kind, even to people that weren’t kind to him. He missed Atem’s touch, both gentle and tender, or passionate and intense.

This week had been a rough week at work. Today had been the tipping point. Yugi had presented Kaiba his final draft of Spherium II and Kaiba had ripped it to shreds. Yugi had stood his ground and tried to explain his changes or his reason for doing what he did, but there were some things that Kaiba just didn’t like and didn’t want to release. And Yugi knew, deep down, that Kaiba was so critical because he wanted the game to succeed. And he knew that Kaiba’s ideas and critiques would make the game better.

But it still hurt. Kaiba was not gentle in his approach and his words were callous. Normally, Yugi could take a large dose of Kaiba without feeling too hurt but today… today had been too much. He had felt like shit all day since then and all he had wanted was to go home and just fall into Atem’s arms and have his lover make everything go away. He wanted to just feel better and not worry about it until he went back to work on Monday.

Atem had hardly noticed his mood tonight. He had been so involved in his new game. And Yugi understood; Atem was almost at the end of the game, he was trying so hard to beat it. He could cut him slack for that. It just… it just still sucked that Atem didn’t notice how much Yugi needed him right then. He had been hoping that once Atem came to bed, they could cuddle and talk, and then Atem could screw him into oblivion until the only thing he thought about was Atem’s body on his.

Considering it was now 4:22 in the morning, though, that didn’t look like it would happen any time soon.

Yugi sighed, his eyes flickering back to looking up at the ceiling. He had three different options. He could roll back over and go back to sleep. He could wander down the hall and ask Atem to come to bed. Or he could go join Atem.

Going back to sleep was the easiest but Yugi knew it would not have a positive outcome in the morning. His anger would fester and Yugi would spend tomorrow either ignoring Atem on purpose, or Atem wouldn’t notice, and it would just hurt him even more. Likely, it would evolve into a fight at some point and then come Monday, Yugi would be returning to work to a stressful situation with Kaiba with all his personal life stress on his shoulders from the weekend, too. It wouldn’t make a good week and at some point, Yugi would just crack from the emotional pressure. He didn’t like that idea.

Going down and asking Atem to come to bed was a 50/50 shot on what would happen. On the optimistic side, Atem might catch the tone of Yugi’s voice and his body language, realize something was wrong, and spend the next several hours and day comforting him. They’d work out their problems, Yugi wouldn’t feel so lonely anymore, and then Atem could go back to playing his game tomorrow or Sunday.

Or, it could go poorly. Atem might tell him he’d be up in just a bit and then never show up until early morning, if he came up at all, and Yugi would be back to the whole festering anger and sadness thing. He didn’t want that chance, either.

That left option number three. Yugi could go and join him. Best case scenario, Atem would pay attention to him. Worst case scenario, Atem would still focus on his game, but at least Yugi would be pressed against him and could lose himself watching Atem play games. It wouldn’t fix their problems but it would help ease Yugi’s raw nerves some.

He swung his legs out of bed, tugging down his tank top, and headed down the hallway to find Atem. Sure enough, his boyfriend was lying on the couch, tapping ferociously away at his tablet. Yugi simply stood in the doorway, watching Atem play. His tongue was sticking out, his eyes narrowed in concentration, as he moved his finger across the screen, directing his characters to fight and move. He was on his stomach, stretched out along the couch. One glorious brown leg was extended out to rest his foot on the top of the couch, his other leg bent and foot hooked underneath his opposite knee.

Yugi traced the gorgeous skin again and again with his eyes, feeling his mouth water. Atem’s body was utterly stunning and to see him lying so casually there—only in his boxers and a tanktop that was riding up to the middle of his ribs—created such a sensual picture. Yugi’s lower body tingled with the painful reminder that he hadn’t gotten off in over a week. That was a stark difference, considering he and Atem typically had some sort of sexual release with each other at least once a week. Average was normally once a day.

Yugi couldn’t deny they had an insatiable appetite for each other.

Shifting uncomfortably, he tried to force away any growing hardness in his own boxers—he honestly hadn’t come to bother Atem for sex; he wanted comfort and to just be with his boyfriend—before he walked across the living room and settled on top of Atem.

He pressed his chest against Atem’s back, slipping one leg between Atem’s thighs, while he rested his head against Atem’s. He wrapped his arms around his neck, watching Atem play.

“Yugi?” Atem turned slightly, his finger pausing on one of his characters, as he tried to look at him. “Did I wake you? Are you okay?”

Something about his words made tears prick at his eyes. He blinked them away and forced a smile. “I just missed you. Can I just… stay with you right now?”

Atem twisted around more, looking concerned. “Of course.” He stared into Yugi’s eyes, seemingly trying to look for something. Yugi swallowed, looking away and glancing back at the tablet screen.

“Finish your level. I don’t want you to lose.” Atem hesitated and Yugi nuzzled his cheek. “I promise. I’m just going to lay here right now. I just want you next to me. Please. I didn’t mean to interrupt you. Finish the level.” Atem looked torn but finally nodded, turning back to the game.

He worked quickly, but Yugi did feel at ease watching him play. There was something relaxing about watching the swipes of Atem’s fingers and his intense focus as he did his best to finish his level. It helped, too, just being on top of Atem. The stress just melted out of his body.

As soon as Atem defeated the boss and beat the stage, he clicked his tablet off, setting it aside. He rolled onto his back, facing Yugi and wrapping his arms around Yugi’s waist. The new position had their lower halves rubbing most pleasingly against each other, reminding him again that he hadn’t had sex in some time. “Darling, what’s wrong?” Atem’s words derailed any other horny thoughts, bringing back the real reason why Yugi was in there.

“I just… I miss you,” Yugi responded quietly. He nuzzled into Atem’s chest, resting his ear against Atem’s heart. He closed his eyes, listening to thump of his heartbeat. “We haven’t spent much time together this week. And today… today was…” Yugi’s voice cracked and he swallowed hard. Atem stroked his back, slipping his hands underneath Yugi’s tanktop to trail his fingers down his skin.

“What happened?” Atem asked softly.

Yugi shuddered, finally giving up and just letting his tears slip out. “Kaiba. He reviewed Spherium II today and it was just… rough. I feel like it’s just a disaster now. I don’t even want to go back on Monday.”

“Oh, love, no… Your game is amazing. You’re amazing.”

“I don’t feel amazing, Atem. I feel like a failure.” His lips trembled. “I feel like I’m drowning and I don’t know how to make it better.” Atem tightened his arms around Yugi, reaching one hand up to cup the back of his head and stroke his hair softly.

“You are so incredible, Yugi. I know you don’t feel it right now. But you truly are. Kaiba is being so hard because he wants you to succeed so badly, even if it seems like he’s just being overly critical. But more than that, you can do this. You’re so strong and you’ve come so far already.”

Yugi sniffed, nodding. “I don’t feel… I don’t feel strong right now, though.”

“That’s okay. I’ll help hold you up. I’ll show you how incredible you are.” Atem paused, tensing, and it was enough to make Yugi look up. Atem looked suddenly stricken. “Oh, Yugi… I’m so sorry.” He wiped the tears still falling from Yugi’s eyes. “I’m so, so sorry. I’ve been so involved with this game that I… I haven’t been paying attention to you when you needed me. But I’m here now.” He seemed to hesitate before finally saying, while gently rubbing his lower half against Yugi, “If you’ll have me, that is.”

Even with his tears and stress, he could feel himself harden at Atem’s words. His blood was heating in his body. His dick twitched, reminding him again that it had been much longer than usual since it had been touched.

It wanted to be touched. Yugi wanted to be touched. Yugi wanted Atem to touch him.

He thrusted back, almost desperately rubbing himself against Atem. “Yes, please. Please. Whatever you want to do to me.”

“I’ll make you forget everything except me,” Atem told him with a smile. Gingerly, he rolled them over so that Yugi was now underneath him. He kissed Yugi, lavishing his mouth with careful attention from his tongue and doing his best to light every nerve ending in Yugi’s lips on fire. Yugi simply succumbed, letting Atem have his way with him.

There were many days that Yugi enjoyed taking charge and absolutely wrecking Atem. He loved entering him, loved the glazed look Atem got in his eyes when he felt Yugi inside him, loved his moans when Yugi hit just the right spot. He loved riding Atem. He loved bending Atem over and putting him on his hands and knees as he pounded into him until Atem came so hard, he lost his voice from screaming so loudly. He loved fucking him and he loved taking gentle care of him afterwards. He loved kissing him, washing him up, loved making sure he was comfortable and content when they had finished.

Today, though, was a day that Yugi didn’t want to take charge. He didn’t want any control. He just wanted Atem to ravish him senseless. And thankfully, Atem seemed to understand that.

His boyfriend trailed his kisses along his neck. He nipped lightly at the pulse point in his throat before biting down harder at the junction between his neck and shoulder. Yugi let out a low moan, feeling Atem suck and then swipe his tongue over the mark. He pressed a few more kisses and then continued his journey downward. He stripped off Yugi’s shirt, tossing it carelessly aside, and then teased his nipples into hard peaks.

He licked and sucked the buds, pressing kiss after kiss along his chest. One hand was deftly rubbing one nipple, while his mouth worked relentlessly on the other. Yugi breathed out his moans, chanting Atem’s name so softly, it was like a whisper. Atem didn’t seem to mind as he trekked downwards.

Tongue, teeth, and lips skimmed over every exposed inch of skin on his stomach, before Atem finally made it to Yugi’s boxers. Atem pulled those off, but didn’t touch him where Yugi wanted him to. Instead, he continued his teasing foreplay, worshiping the rest of Yugi’s body. Atem kissed his thighs, trailing his lips from his inner thigh down to the underside of his knees, even down to his ankle. Then he kissed his way back up the other leg until he was back to Yugi’s cock. Atem massaged his hipbones as he finally kissed up and down Yugi’s shaft, making Yugi toss his head back with another groan.

“How would you like me to take you?” Atem asked softly as he reached underneath the couch to where they hid their lube. His free hand pulled his boxers off of him, and once he got the lube out, Atem slicked his fingers.

Yugi thought for a few minutes before turning to his side so that Atem slid behind him, spooning him. “Is this okay? I just… I want to feel your arms around me.” Instantly, there was an arm around his waist, fingers brushing along his stomach.

“Of course, my love.” A lubed finger slipped between his ass cheeks, pressing into his hole. Yugi sighed happily, letting his eyes fall shut. He just wanted to lose himself to the feeling of Atem.

Another finger entered him, and both began to search for something. Atem probed inside him before bending his fingers and pressing against the bundle of nerves inside of him. Yugi let out a low, “Ahhh, right there, Atem.” He obliged, massaging Yugi’s prostate until Yugi’s felt like he couldn’t breathe. He was panting hard, his mind filled with nothing but Atem’s name. His entire body was warm all over as he simply basked in the pleasure.

A third finger was inserted into him as Atem finished stretching him open. “You okay?” Atem murmured into his ear. Yugi nodded, wiggling his butt against Atem’s cock teasingly. Atem groaned, before slicking his dick, and then entering Yugi ever so slowly. But Yugi was thoroughly relaxed, accepting Atem into him eagerly.

His thrusts were languid, slow and deep. It wasn’t the furious fucking they sometimes partook in, but just luxuriously soft and tender. It was everything Yugi needed. Atem was curled around him in a hug, holding him tightly as he worked on adjusting his angle so he could strike that one spot that made Yugi see stars.

When he finally found it, Yugi let out a cry. “There we go,” Atem murmured, working on striking it again and again. At the same time, Atem stroked his dick, his hand sliding back and forth in gentle motions.

“Oh Atem,” Yugi sobbed out in a breathless whisper. Stars were dancing across his eyes as his body felt flushed and full. The pleasure was building in a steady flow, rising like water inside him. It was slow and relaxed; his body wasn’t even tensing like normal as he approached his end. It just… poured over him, riding through his entire body.

When it finished, he felt like he was buzzing. He felt content and at ease; tired, but in a lazy, sleepy way. Not the usual post-sex exhaustion that always stemmed from feeling like he had run a mile. He didn’t even mind as Atem continued to thrust in him, working to his own completion.

It took a minute or two more until Atem was moaning Yugi’s name, pressing his mouth against Yugi’s shoulder in a sloppy kiss. Heat flooded his body as Atem filled him full. It just added to the pleasant warmth that was encompassing his every limb.

Atem was panting against his shoulder but surprisingly enough, he didn’t pull out of Yugi. He just laid there, breathing and cuddling against Yugi, as they both basked in the afterglow.

“Thank you,” Yugi said softly after several long minutes had passed. “I just… I missed you.”

“I know. I’m sorry; I never meant to ignore you. I do plan on making it up to you. Tomorrow will be all about you, my love. Whatever you want to do.” Yugi smiled, snuggling into Atem’s body a little more. It had only been a few minutes but Yugi was surprised to feel Atem begin to harden inside him again. The idea made his own body tingle pleasantly and, curiously, he shifted backwards, making Atem enter him deeper.

Atem groaned, breathing heavily against Yugi’s shoulder. Yugi pushed back again until he was pressed against Atem’s skin and Atem was seated completely inside him. It felt deliciously good to be connected like that.

“To make up for your new game obsession,” Yugi began in a teasing, but breathless, voice, “do you think you might be up for going for another round?” He rubbed up against him, shifting his hips so that Atem moved inside him. Atem was definitely fully hard again.

He groaned and rolled his hips in response. “Gods, yes. I’ll show you I have something far more important to obsess over than some game.” He thrusted again and Yugi hummed with pleasure, tilting his head back to rest against Atem’s chest.

“And that is?” he asked, meeting Atem’s next thrust. They both let out breathy, shuddering moans.

“You, my love.” Atem pulled back slightly before slamming back into Yugi. “And I will fuck you all night and all day long to show you that you’re my one true obsession.”

Yugi smiled, closing his eyes in ecstasy as Atem thrusted again. He could hardly think straight but he knew enough that he definitely didn’t want Atem to stop.

“Yes, please.”