#nonafic

defensive mimicry, which is just 1,613 words! it was just a short dumb little thing to build up a tiny bit more of the tense dynamic between bleach and mutualistic symbiosis, but i wanted to write it out as a little treat, haha.

Yugi moved like he belonged on the dance floor. Kaiba was captivated, watching him through the lights and the crowd, moving like a fluid, writhing mass. Even with his smaller stature, Kaiba was sure he could have picked him out anywhere. Dressed much differently than he did at the office, this was more familiar; the wider choker was more pronounced, and the darker, more provocative clothes were a stark contrast to the cleaner daytime look with the shirts and slacks and vests. Tight pants clung to his thighs and legs like they might have been tailor made for him - their leather-like look seemed to have some stretch, but the texture looked to be rougher than latex. Despite himself, Kaiba wanted nothing more than to run his hands over it, to feel it for himself. He’d have been lying if he’d said he’d only come there on a whim. As had become the regular routine, he’d kept half an eye on Yugi’s movements, more so than usual now that they were in more direct proximity again - he’d assumed Yugi would simply return to his apartment for the night after their work day ended and stay there, but instead he’d dipped back outside only an hour later, and Kaiba had been too intrigued to let the matter rest. There was a pattern to this, he was pretty sure. Yugi didn’t go out to the club district on his good days, and as often as not, he didn’t go home alone. The nightclub was… really not Kaiba’s scene, but he was well aware it was Yugi’s. This was hardly the first time the surveillance had picked him up in this district of the city, not by a long shot, though this was the first time he’d actually taken the time to come have a look for himself, and it was fascinating. Yugi looked to be a couple of drinks into the night alright, but it didn’t hamper his dancing; if anything, he seemed to relax more between each glass, losing himself in the rhythm and the neon lights obscuring much of the goings-on around them. Kaiba couldn’t stand to just watch for much longer. He walked over to the bar, taking a seat at the counter by where Yugi had gone to get his previous drink, ordering one for himself and another of what Yugi had just had. Before long, Yugi was by the counter again to order another, pausing when a drink was slid in front of him before he could speak up. A moment of dead silence passed, with Yugi staring at the drink in mild confusion, before he connected the dots and looked around to see who had bought it for him, and— froze when his eyes landed on Kaiba, who was still sipping the last drops of his own beer.

atem and kaiba try to get into the soul rooms, buuut yugi has made it a little harder than before.

worm off the string