kittensinboxes | To Be Endlessly Cold Within [Rivalshipping, Vampire AU]

To Be Endlessly Cold Within [Rivalshipping, Vampire AU]

It had taken some time to get used to living a new life as a vampire. For someone who actively decried the supernatural, it wasn't easy to admit that he'd been overcome by some creature of the night in anything outside of a nightmare.

But he had ended up like this nearly half a year ago, waking up hospitalized with what looked like some kind of lesions at the joint of his neck and shoulder. From that point, it was only a matter of time before he shifted to his new reality. Trying to suppress it out of sheer force of will had only worked out so long, and deflecting his thirst onto a natural human cause had nearly ended in him attacking his brother. That was the last straw.

That was when Seto Kaiba gave in and took the first drink.

He had to, of course, curate his inner circle slightly--tell the ones most important to him what exactly his new life would entail. Mokuba...well, while he hadn't fully intuited it, had been concerned about his brother ever since the hospital stay. How could he not be? Seto had gradually lost color, energy, and most concerningly, weight since he'd been discharged. He barely ate and looked discomforted when he did, and drank liquids constantly. Honestly, figuring out Seto's needs had been jarring, but ultimately relieving.

Isono was the only other person who knew. He was the one responsible for acquiring blood for his boss, and he did so admirably. Kaiba never fed from the vein, no matter what. Even when his jaw ached around others, and his fangs itched in his skull, he'd instead bite down on something else. He kept a solid rubber ball in his desk for such occasions, and it didn't feel right, but at least with his bagged alternatives, he was doing alright.

Isono and Mokuba had floated the idea to him of perhaps feeding on small animals, and while the thought of it had made his fangs stretch past his lower lip and made his stomach twist as if he'd been starving for all his life...he declined. He didn't need it. There were other things to attend to.

And so he never really regained his weight despite a regular diet of blood.

But at least the company was running smoothly. Seto fought the urge to take a fully nocturnal sleep schedule, and instead positioned himself between worlds. He'd come into work around midnight, well before the sun rose, and leave once it had set. Work meetings were scheduled past dusk. Probably the most expensive alteration needed was to slowly have his office windows altered with UV blocking, the tinting of which could be controlled automatically with a single remote. He mostly kept the tinting at a lower level, so he could still enjoy the sun's brightness without harming himself.

His acclimations weren't perfect. Sometimes he ended up burning himself. Sometimes, the hunger was triggered by proximity to his employees...but for the most part, Kaiba had fallen into a holding pattern. Not yet fully healthy by vampire standards, but also not withering away.

Today, Kaiba was to be participating briefly in orientation for a very small handful of new hires. Isono would bring them up, to show them who they would be working for and have Kaiba offer a few words as he often did while he judged the merit of the hires individually. He always thought it unnecessary, but what he thought, and what was actually done? Those were two different things.

The first two hires went through their orientation interview without incident. Kaiba wasn't terribly impressed, but they'd do as entry to mid-level workers. Nothing really extraordinary to be brought to the the table.

He taps the logo on his lapel.

"Isono. Bring in the last candidate, and then prepare lunch," he ordered.

"Yes, Master Seto!"

The third candidate...they better be worth something.

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"Yeah, probably."

He wasn't too bothered by it; sometimes incredulous plays early in the game and minor setbacks can improve a player's position later. Yuugi was used to being on the back foot...

And he showed his hand:

6 2 1 1 2 4

No threes to speak of. Unless you counted the two ones as sixes, with each three counted twice.

"Well, well. So it wasn't entirely terrible," he admits, before revealing his own set.

Two sixes, two fours, one five....and a singular three.

"You're too trusting. Your play was predicated on the idea that my bid was honest, wasn't it? If it had been, then I would have lost. That's not the kind of game you want to play with me, Mutou. Not if you want to win."

Even explaining it, he looks more lively than he usually does. There's an honesty that, while it hadn't been conveyed in his dice, was certainly conveyed in his enjoyment of the game.

"Perhaps you'd like to try again?"

Too trusting...yeah, he got that a lot. It was partially why he was a bully magnet in high school, and was often the guy who did others' homework or the majority of the work on projects in college.

He managed to find his spine in his junior year at Uni, and even then...

He still trusted. Saw the best in others.

Still...

"Heh. Guilty as charged. I'll have to step it up next time."

But seeing Kaiba like this was exhilarating; it was like playing with his grandfather again. A kindred spirit that loved games just as much as he did...

Why did Yuugi's stomach flutter?

His eyes almost glowed in the dim light of the room, and his excitement came off him in waves.

"Let's go again."

Let's go again.

Those might have been the sweetest, most tempting words that Seto Kaiba has heard in his entire life, and Yuugi probably doesn't even realize why. This man, who had thrown his turn like an amateur without a poker face, was telling him he wanted to play again.

And Kaiba, who had been starved for such competition...can only think of obliging it. Sure, he'd offered, but to have the man meet him halfway, to engage him in combat with so little fear, was thrilling.

He scoops up the dice, and that smirk, the one he wore when he was enjoying something, overconfident in himself, or both...it spurs him on. He shakes the cup, a little longer this time, then inverts it on the tea table again.

"You can take the first turn this time."

"Okay."

Giddy.

Gods, how long had it been since he'd felt giddy while playing a game? He'd always had fun when playing with others, but even that joke of a bluff would have bowled over Jonouchi. Nobody called him out like this, dug their fingernails under his skin and yanked in such an exhilarating way.

That, with Kaiba's enthusiasm...

Gods.

Yuugi rolled his dice with hasty fingers, nearly dropping the cup in his own excitement before taking a breath and trying again.

He rolled.

Set the cup down.

Peeked under it.

"Three threes."

No hesitation.

"Mmheh heh heh. You like threes, don't you?" Kaiba says, and the scoff is not so scathing this time. It's about the game they're playing, about trading blows.

He has a look at his own dice, but conveys nothing. Sharp blue flicks up to stare into violet.

"Four threes."

A raise, bait at the end of a lure to tempt Yuugi into making a choice. Kaiba had lied the first round, would he lie again? After all, if Yuugi was being honest, then there was a fair enough chance that he himself had rolled at least one three. Twelve dice altogether...

The corner of his mouth tracks up ever higher. What'll it be, Yuugi?

Yuugi raised an eyebrow.

He had a choice: He could call Kaiba on his bluff, or he could aim higher. On one hand, aiming higher, especially with the same face, would probably be expected. Of course he'd think he was lying.

Playing it safe and assuming he was lying...

Which to choose?

"Really."

He didn't make a move, though. Was he trying to bait Kaiba into reacting?

"Of course. If you don't believe me, then you're welcome to tell me so."

There's danger there as well, because of course the first player is the one that sets the stakes here. Yuugi might not realize, but he's in control of the board, whereas Kaiba was the one who had to prove his fidelity by making a reasonable bid--which he had--and coming across as believable.

Or...coming across like he is now, and trying to make Yuugi react in turn.

Baiting the line...something about it reawakens his vampire instincts, and his fangs, which already have length to them any given day

(he's just very good at hiding it)

seem to dip down lower, adding to that toothy grin of his.

"If you're worried about the threes, then change the face instead. See, I'm even helping you. Giving you options, isn't that more than fair?"

Yuugi doesn't react so much as he just smiles.

He rests his elbows on his knees, tilting his head just so in an almost coquettish way, even as his eyes sparkle and his cheeks light up with mirth.

This is fun.

No, this isn't just fun: this is the most fun he's had in a long time, and the game had only just begun.

(And those teeth. Those teeth bit him, but here they are, and his grin is infectious. Attractive. Gorgeous. Gods, he could look at him like that forever and he'd thank him--)

"Okay." His smile doesn't change, but there's something in his eyes. Something almost calculating that flickers for just a moment.

"Four sixes."

Edited 2024-12-14 08:26 (UTC)

For a moment, so quick it could be missed, Kaiba's smile seems to fade, and his eyes shift from Yuugi's to glance at the cups.

That's...well, that's a bid that puts him in a potentially disadvantageous position, based on what he's hiding. But then again, if Yuugi was bidding four sixes, it's likely he has at least some of those on the table, right? Perhaps two...?

Perhaps less. If less, then...

"Six sixes."

He sets a hand on the tea table, drumming his clawed fingertips on the surface with a delicate set of click sounds. They're not terribly long, but the sound is almost musical as the lightly pointed tips rap against the table.

"Well?"

The amount of blood in his system still allows Kaiba to flush with excitement, even if he had no true heartbeat. He was showing some excitement to the game, awkward that it was.

Six.

Yeah, okay. The mathematical probability of every die under that cup being six was astronomical. Even if he had several ones, there was no way he had six of them: that would mean that he only rolled sixes, and he brought up earlier that he had multiple threes. On one hand, that could have been wilds, but what were the odds?

Seriously, what were the fucking odds?

For a moment, Yuugi's eyebrows furrowed, and he bit his lip as he started to think through his options.

It disappeared as quickly as it came, and he smiled again.

Easy.

Relaxed.

"This I gotta see," he chuckled, but not unkindly. If anything, it was a laugh of pure, open joy. "Come on."

Kaiba merely shrugs, and raises his cup.

Two ones, one two, one three, and two sixes. But...of course he expects Yuugi to know that those ones are as good as sixes if they're playing aces wild.

"Four here. So what's hiding under yours?"

Yuugi only needs to have two sixes, and Kaiba's bluff wins him the game again. He's sure that the honest, straight-laced Yuugi Mutou would have at least that much, if he had the courage to bid four.

Yuugi smiled and lifted his cup.

4 6 2 1 3 3.

So two sixes, essentially. Was he really as honest as he seemed if he only had two, though? Looks like someone's willing to bullshit him for the sake of a game.

His smile is a bit sheepish this time.

"Two."

Seto Kaiba actually, legitimately laughs.

He laughs, and it's mostly derisive, but there's actual mirth there. Worse, he can't stop himself for a while, as he thinks about this man, the one who had called his bluff and seen himself unrewarded...but still managed to smile about it.

"I win again! And you paved the path for me! You could have done better than that, Yuugi!"

Yuugi.

He didn't just call him "Mutou" this time, but used his given name. Kaiba doesn't realize it's slipped off his tongue so easily, he's still riding the high of victory!

That laugh...

It's the same laugh he heard in all those tournaments. It's the same laugh that made him want to become better, that lit the fire under his ass and made him want to do something with himself.

He always thought being on the opposite side of it would be intimidating...

But it wasn't.

It was thrilling.

Exhilarating.

And...

Seto Kaiba used his given name.

"Then let me prove myself to you!" Yuugi slapped his hand against his knee, moved forward, eyes flashing and smile bright.

"Again, let's go!"

Another game. Yes!

Kaiba snatches the dice up, and that grin on his face is downright manic as he shakes the dice. The clatter is like music to his ears, and the challenge is sweeter than the taste of Yuugi's blood on his tongue. He's sure that if he had a heartbeat, it would be racing right now!

"I'll never turn down a challenge, even if it means you earn a reputation! Just don't blame it on me!" he says, his voice as bombastic as during any of his press conferences, carrying like a drill sergeant's voice.

The cup is on the table again, with a sound clack. Kaiba takes the first turn this time, allowing Yuugi to finish rolling his own set.

"Two sixes," he says breathily. Come on. Come on! Hurry! Hurry, hurry, hurry!

Yes! Yes!

Gods, this was so much fun! The rush, the giddy feeling in his stomach! Playing games with someone was usually sip of cocoa on a freezing day, or a comfortable hug.

With Kaiba...

There was something both energizing and indulgent about it. Greasy burgers at midnight in a bustling dive, or maybe a favorite song played while he danced in his kitchen.

Familiar, but exciting and real and he just wanted more of it. He didn't want to stop.

It was easy to get swept up in Kaiba's energy, to roll his dice quickly.

He only needed to glance under the cup for a second before he shot back with a playful grin:

"Three fours!"

"Heh...!! Three sixes!" Kaiba responds back, with the same energy, and this time he leans in, because he wants more, more of this man who met him in a challenge, not the mouse that had entered his office with the nerves rolling off of him.

He swallows, hard, because even though he'd fed on Yuugi already, there's a part of him that craves to do it again, to pin him to the bed and bite, to feel the rush of sweet nectar on his tongue--

--no. No, he wouldn't cross his wires here, not even when he craved something more than what he's being given. The game is what he wants! Yuugi's thrumming heart is a distraction meant to keep him out of sorts, but he's here to raise his streak count! Third time's the charm, right?

Yuugi's fingers traced the edge of his cup, even when he wasn't looking under it.

His heart was pounding.

His hands trembled.

And yet--he enjoyed this. This wasn't from fear, but pure adrenalin, of joy and excitement ~~and desire~~ that coursed through him like the sweetest poison.

More.

"Four sixes!" Yuugi leaned forward just a bit more, and his eyes--if he'd seen himself, he wouldn't have recognized the wild joy, the excitement from just having a good fun challenge with another person.

No, not just another person.

With someone who challenged him.

As before, Kaiba laughs--a taunt--before slamming his hand on the bed, closing the distance.

"Five!"

It's no longer about winning the game, but pushing against an opponent in a way he'd missed. This one...he might even convince Kaiba to dust off his deck and play a proper game, the game he loves, a game of cards with heart and soul.

But...additionally, Kaiba's riding the high of his last two victories, and believes the dice to be on his side. Maybe they were, maybe they weren't. Who was to say? But his heart was in it!

Yuugi slams his own hand on the bed in turn, and leans in.

Close.

Closer.

Close enough for his breath to fan gently over Kaiba's face, perhaps only two inches apart. There is no insecurity in those eyes, though; gone is the terrified mouse that stepped into his office that first day, but someone almost drunk on the competition, the thrill, the contact, the cocktail of a connection not understood, blood drank from his body and the closeness with a person he'd admired for so, so long.

"Prove it," he murmured, quiet but intense. "C'mon, Kaiba. Show me what you've got."

His eyes did not leave his.

Edited 2024-12-15 05:07 (UTC)

Oh.

This is dangerous. This is so, so dangerous. Kaiba can feel the warmth of Yuugi's proximity, and it steals the breath he doesn't even need away. He can hear the pulse of blood, feel it, and he wants to pierce and taste and--

--and--

His hand knocks over his cup, revealing that he'd only ever had three viable sixes.

"I showed you mine. Show me yours," he growls, his fangs aching in his jaw while his eyes half-lid. He's being led by the nose, and he doesn't even realize it. Not in the least.

Yuugi smiled, but there was something in his eyes that only Kaiba could bring out: a predatory glint, a dangerous glow.

A small hand touched his cup, lifted it...

And revealed his hand.

4 4 2 5 1 4

He said nothing and didn't move away.

Even as Kaiba's eyes were half-lidded, and his fangs ached.

Something stirred in his blood. His wrist ached around where he was bitten, his body felt heavy, it was like there was so much blood, too much too much too much--

"How's this?" He asked, airy and light.

"You win."

Kaiba doesn't sound happy, but he's not disappointed either.

"That's how you bluff, Yuugi Mutou. It's good...that you learned something..."

He tilts his head, eyes rolling the rest of the way shut as he follows the beat of Yuugi's heart to his neck. As before, his fangs tease at the skin, but don't break through yet.

Being led to the water doesn't necessarily mean Kaiba wants to drink. He's shaking though, with the effort of stopping himself.

"How can you do this...to me? To me?"

Yuugi shivered and tilted his neck without thinking.

"I...sh...should say the same thing...to you." He whispered. "I've never been drawn to anyone in the way I have with you."

It was a visceral feeling. A want, a need.

His wrist ached.

His blood roared in his ears and his cheeks grew warm and flushed.

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