Disclaimer: I don’t own Yu-Gi-Oh!
Part One
Kaiba scanned the contract in front of him, frowning slightly. Everything seems to be in order. He put it aside and scanned the blueprints of Kaibaland, his eyebrows furrowed in contemplation. He had an idea of building another dueling robot and was seeking the perfect place to build it. He didn’t want it too close to the first one and other ideal spots were already occupied by rides or attractions he wanted to keep.
He felt the Millennium Rod grow warm against his back and his eyes flicked to his right to see Seto in spirit form and wearing his priest robes, also regarding the blueprint. When Kaiba had returned home Thursday night after finding the Rod in his office, Seto studied it and learned to use the Rod to appear outside Kaiba’s body in a spirit form. As far as they knew, only Kaiba could see him.
“What are you putting here?” Seto pointed to one section.
“I was thinking another Blue-Eyes statue.” Seto smiled at that. He was well-aware of Kaiba’s fondness for the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. He too shared that feeling, though for him it was far more personal. “I can hardly argue with that. But suppose you place the building for the robot there and have some Duel Monsters carved into the outside of the building…”
Kaiba blinked as the image of a building abruptly appeared in his mind. He knew it came from Seto and he had to admit that he liked what he saw. “That’s good and I like the design. All right, the new Duel Robot goes there.” He picked up a white pen and sketched in a rough building before seizing a sheet of printer paper and using a black pen to draw a more detailed design of the building. Seto smiled as he returned to Kaiba’s mind; he felt good about helping the CEO and that Kaiba was adopting his building design. I’m pleased that we’re working together in running the company and that we’re getting along. And tomorrow morning, I will take over for two whole days. Hmm, I think I better try to figure out what I’m going to do with the time.
Kaiba sensed Seto retreating to his room and reflected on the situation: He had been dismayed and resentful a month ago when he learned from Yugi that he was housing an Egyptian spirit in his body. He had flatly refused to believe it until he closed his eyes that night and found himself in a hall with two doors on opposite sides of the corridor. One door was open and reflected everything important to him. Where am I? How do I get out? He had turned around to head back what he assumed was the way he had come when he had heard a knocking and a voice identical to his own calling, “Hello?”
He faced the doors again to find the knocking had been coming from the metallic door with an Egyptian eye on it. He had approached it and called back, “Who’s there?”
“My name’s Seto. I was a priest in Ancient Egypt. I had been in the afterlife until it pulled me out and placed me in your mind.”
“Why?”
“Well, we are two halves of a whole and need to be together. So, we’re stuck with each other until you die then we’ll both be allowed to rest in peace.”
“This is ridiculous. I’m going to sleep.” Kaiba had left the hall and was soon asleep. When he awoke in the morning, he had convinced himself that it had all been a dream.
“Very dismissive of magic and spirits, aren’t you?”
Kaiba had frozen at the telepathic voice. “Seto? What? How?”
“Well, as we’re in the same body, we can talk telepathically.”
Kaiba had frowned. “I would prefer talking face-to-face.”
“That works. You can come into your Soul Corridor and talk to me.”
“Soul Corridor? You mean that hall with the two doors?”
“Exactly. That’s where we can talk and switch control of your body once you open my door.”
“You’re staying right where you are. We are not switching. It’s my body and my life.”
“I see. We can still talk telepathically.”
“I’ll be putting in an intercom to communicate. Goodbye.” Kaiba had sensed the connection being shut off and he had begun to get ready for the day.
And I did just that later in the day. The thing is that it’s no longer needed. The telepathy is quicker and more efficient in talking and exchanging ideas.
Kaiba was heading home when he thought about tomorrow. With Seto taking over, it would be best to tell Mokuba at dinner what’s going to happen.
&&&&
“Mokuba, I have something to tell you.”
“Yeah, big brother?”
“It turns out that Yugi’s Egyptian stories are true. There was a priest who looked just like me back then. A month ago, his spirit was removed from the afterlife and placed inside me.”
“There’s a spirit inside you? And he looks like you?”
“That’s right. We’ve learned to get along and he will be taking control of my body for the weekend. I thought I’d give you advance notice as I have no idea what Seto- that’s his name- has in mind.”
“But if he takes control, what happens to you?” There was clear worry in Mokuba’s voice.
“I’ll be fine. There is a room in my mind where I can rest and work in peace. You know that night we spent time together earlier in the week?”
“Yeah. That was great.”
Was it really? he thought. He smiled. “That wasn’t me; it was the priest.”
Mokuba’s mouth dropped in a way that Kaiba found amusing. “The priest? But, I didn’t notice any difference.”
“That was his intention. He forcibly took over because he saw we rarely spent time together. Also, at the time, I wasn’t interested in letting him take over as it’s my life. I eventually realized that if he was in control, it would give me time to think without distraction.”
“Okay,” Mokuba said slowly. “So, what do I call him?”
“The same thing you call me.”
&&&&
Seto awoke to a knocking on his door followed by Kaiba saying, “Seto, are you awake?”
“I am now. It’s Saturday morning already?” Seto sat up, stretching.
“Yes and I already told Mokuba about you and you taking over for the weekend. He’s also aware that it was you spending time with him earlier in the week. The look on his face was funny.”
The image of Mokuba’s expression flitted into his mind and he smirked as he got up and headed for the door. He opened it to see Kaiba in the doorway to his own room. The CEO nodded before stepping backwards into his room and closing the door while Seto moved up the hall to take over.
He opened his eyes to see sunlight pouring into the room which looked exactly the same the time he took over. He got out of bed, made it, and turned to see a casual outfit already laid out. It seems Kaiba was just as excited about this weekend as I was. He quickly dressed and left the room to get something to eat and plan his day in detail.
He was mildly surprised to find Mokuba at the table, eating cereal. He looked up and grinned at him. “Morning, Seto.”
“Uh, good morning.”
Mokuba blinked and tilted his head. “Are you okay? You seem a little unsure, not like you were before.”
“Well, that’s because I was pretending to be your brother.”
“I know. That was good acting. Hey, can we do that again this weekend? Seto said you would have control for two days.”
“I do and I would be happy to spend time with you. I honestly was having trouble figuring out what to do for two days.”
Part Two
This is nice, Seto thought as he walked through the shopping district with Mokuba beside him. The younger Kaiba wanted to show Seto around even though the priest had pointed out that he had learned about the world from Kaiba.
“Yeah, but learning and experiencing are two different things,” Mokuba had pointed out.
“You’re right, of course. Okay, let’s go out around town,” Seto had conceded.
There were people casting curious or surprised looks at the pair, but neither one paid them any mind. Mokuba led the way to various shops where they would browse. Seto occasionally asked questions about items he wasn’t familiar with and Mokuba was happy to explain them. Seto found that he enjoyed hanging out with the kid; he had an enthusiasm for life that was infectious and he couldn’t help grinning the entire time. He was aware that people would wonder why Kaiba was grinning, but he wasn’t concerned since he wasn’t pretending to be Kaiba.
“Seto,” Mokuba said as they sat down for lunch. “Could you tell me about yourself?”
“Sure. What would you like to know?”
“Well, did Duel Monsters really originate in Egypt?”
“Yes; more specifically it began some time before I became a priest to the pharaoh and received the Millennium Rod.”
“Did you use the Rod to brainwash people?”
Seto chuckled. “No. The use I put the Rod to was to seal shadow beasts extracted from people into stone tablets. The Millennium Items were used to detect evil in people and remove it. Each item has various powers and usually one power is given to each owner, though I suppose one person could receive more than one.”
“Cool. So, what was your family like? I mean, did you have parents, maybe siblings?”
“Yes, I had parents, but I never really knew my father while growing up. It wasn’t until years later that I learned that my father was the pharaoh’s brother which meant the pharaoh’s son was my cousin.”
“You were royalty?”
“Yes, but I didn’t know until my cousin’s reign appeared to be short-lived. He passed the throne to me when he sealed his soul in the Millennium Puzzle along with the evil soul that threatened to destroy the world. I was tasked with shattering the puzzle to keep the world safe from that evil.”
“That sort of worked.”
“For a time, yes. I’ve learned of what happened when I was placed inside your brother.”
“Why are you in Seto’s body? He didn’t say why.”
“It has to do with that we are two halves of a whole that must stay together. The two of us will be together until the day Kaiba dies. Not that he’s going to die anytime soon,” he added hastily at Mokuba’s worried face. “I imagine he’s going to live a long life.”
“Did your cousin look like Yugi?”
“He does and yes, he live in Yugi’s body like I do with Kaiba.”
Mokuba nodded as their food arrived. He found Seto’s history fascinating and how he came to reside in Seto’s body. He always knew his brother was special, he just didn’t know how he was special. He thought it was kind of cool that there were two Setos; it was like having two big brothers. Maybe we can go to the arcade after lunch. I think Seto would like that.
&&&&
Seto looked around the place, feeling excited. Kaiba enjoyed going to the arcade shortly after taking control of Kaiba Corp; the guy was a game champ and the first three letters of his last name topped the high score list of every game. Everyone knew it was Kaiba on the list; they just didn’t know if it was Mokuba and Seto. It seems I have a reputation to uphold and I can’t wait to do so.
His eyes roved over the games before heading to a racing car game, Mokuba having already taken off to a game he loved. He sat down, inserted some money, and focused on the screen. In no time, Seto was concentrating on controlling his car, weaving between other cars and obstacles, and speeding through the course. He played flawlessly and even beat Kaiba’s high score! He put KAI on the list before leaving the game to seek out another one that interested him.
He eventually found himself at a Skee-Ball machine, rolling the balls up the ramp and into the scoring area. He didn’t always get the high points, but he didn’t get any gutter balls. Of course, his presence attracted attention like it did at the racing game. Some kids were gathering around and to Seto, it was a bit unnerving. He paused during one game to fix the kids with a flat cold stare reminiscent of Kaiba and the crowd dispersed. The only ones around were the other two playing Skee-Ball. One player left, leaving Seto with the second player who was short and played quite well. He glanced over and his eyes widened briefly: It was Yugi!
&&&&
Yugi glanced at the tall man as he played. He looked like Kaiba, but he had caught him looking at him and his blue eyes had briefly widened. “Atem, I don’t think that’s Kaiba,” he said to his friend.
“I agree. More likely, it’s Seto.” They watched Seto walk away to a fighting game. “Should we…challenge him?” Atem asked.
“I don’t think we’ll have to.” He pointed to where Joey was sitting at the console across from Seto, unaware of whom he was challenging. In his Soul Corridor, he exchanged grins with Atem. “Perfect,” they chorused.
&&&&
Seto grinned as he defeated his challenger yet again. He had no idea who was at the console across from him, but they were persistent, he would certainly give them that. Most people would have given up a long time ago. Mokuba stood behind him, watching the priest effortlessly win round after round.
At long last, no challenge was re-issued and his opponent said, “Hey, you’re amazing.” Seto exchanged surprised looks with Mokuba for, through Kaiba, he recognized the voice: It was Joey! He switched his gaze to the top of the game as he said, “Well, thank you Joey.”
A blond head appeared over the machine, brown eyes wide with shock. “Kaiba!?” he exclaimed.
“No, not really,” Seto answered, standing up. He was about to introduce himself when Joey spoke again.
“Oh, you’re Priest Seto, Atem’s cousin. Yugi said you were in Kaiba’s body.”
Seto blinked at how quickly Joey caught on; he clearly wasn’t as dumb as Kaiba thought. He smiled and nodded at Joey. “Are you here with just Yugi?”
“Oh, no. The others are here, too. Well, see ya.” Joey turned to leave.
“Perhaps Mokuba and I can join you?”
“WHAT!?” Kaiba exclaimed in his mind, speaking for the first time since this morning. “You want to hang out with the geek squad?”
“Why not? Besides, one of them is my cousin and I’ve been hoping to see him again.” He cut the link to see Joey looking at him with an expression that indicated that he knew the priest had been talking to Kaiba.
“Come on,” Joey said. “I’m sure Atem would love to talk with you.”
&&&&
“I can’t believe you talked with them and hung out with them,” Kaiba said that night as Seto got into bed.
“I don’t understand why you don’t,” Seto answered. “I thought they were nice. I was a little nervous around Ryou, though. I was concerned that the tomb robber would take over.”
“He can’t hurt you,” Kaiba chided.
“True, but he can give me creepy looks that would make me uneasy. Fortunately, he made himself scarce.”
“You plan to hang out with them tomorrow?”
“I was thinking about it, considering Atem challenged me to a friendly duel.”
“You’re going to duel tomorrow!?”
“Yes. I may duel Joey, too. He seemed quite interested.”
“You are going to use my deck, right?”
“Of course.”
“Good. Well, good night.”
Seto smiled as he closed his eyes. His first day out had been great and he looked forward to having a lot of fun tomorrow.
