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The Wrong Dragon	By : DarkTemptations Category: Yu-Gi-Oh > General Views: 1546 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh!, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Title: The Wrong Dragon 2/4

Author: Dark Temptations

Beta: Vash is my Angel

Rating: R *smiles sweetly*

Summary: Annoyed at his life, envious of another's, Joey Wheeler makes a wish. But when it is granted, will his new life have everything he needs or will there be something missing from it?

Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh. If I did own Yugioh... well let's just say that the only timeslot it would be suitable for would be after midnight *winks*.

Author's Notes: This was my original bunny for a writing challenge. I ended up going with 'Compensation' for the challenge, but this bunny kept nibbling on my ankles until I gave in and wrote it.

@-->-->----

Dark Temptations Presents

The Wrong Dragon

Chapter 2

@-->-->----

He woke slowly and was immediately hit with a wave of disorientation. The room he was in was as familiar to him as if he had woken up there for years, yet it was also as new to him as if this was his first time. Joey closed his eyes again, not sure whether to laugh or groan as his two sets of memories vied with each other for dominance. It had not been a dream. His wish really had been granted.

Joey had done a great deal of thinking the previous night and had come to a few conclusions. The main one was his certainty that the memories of his 'other life' were all real.

The last thing he recalled was making the wish that had resulted in his new life. Whether he had actually lived through the second life he remembered, or if they were merely false memories born as a result of the wish, Joey didn't know. Since it was very doubtful that he'd ever find out, he'd decided not to worry about it. The new memories told him all he needed to know about his new life, so he was thankful to have them as a guide. Without them, he was sure he would have embarrassed himself very quickly.

Having decided that, Joey had moved on to catching himself up with his 'past'. It had proven to be quite a rough ride. From what he could tell, the wish really had given him Seto Kaiba's life - including his past experiences. There had been a few differences though.

Seto Kaiba's tutors and his adopted father had done their best to mould him into what they believed to be the perfect businessman. They had tried to make him ruthless, aloof, calculating, cunning and predatory. In Joey's memory of his first life, he knew they had succeeded with Seto. But in his new life, he knew they had failed with him.

Because of his little brother's love and support, he had never given up his ideals or lost his childish joy in life.

He had become a very good actor though.

As far as Joey could tell, that was the biggest difference. Seto Kaiba had never pretended to be something he wasn't. He had hardened his heart to deal with what he had gone through. Joey had merely put up a shield, acting tough to deflect the worst of the criticism and letting the rest just wash over him by constantly reminding himself that he needed to be strong if he was ever going to look after his little brother all by himself.

So when Gozaburo Kaiba had died, Joey had been able to drop the act, return to his normal self and get on with doing things his way. As a result, not only was Kaiba Corp. making more of a profit than ever before, but it was also a good place to work and his employees were all very satisfied with their hard working, but easy-going, CEO.

Their CEO who was going to be late to school if he didn't get a wriggle on.

Joey groaned and left his warm and comfortable bed, shivering slightly in the morning chill as he headed for the bathroom to make himself as gorgeous as possible.

After all, he didn't want to disappoint the hoard of adoring fangirls who waited anxiously out in front of the school every morning, hoping to get a glimpse of him.

Ten minutes later, having showered, thrown on his school uniform, cleaned his teeth and run his fingers through his hair, Joey was ready to go down to breakfast.

He had decided the night before, the first thing he needed to do was work out just how different his new life was from his old life, and how much he had lost that he would need to find a way to recover. So, as he descended the stairs, his mind was already sorting itself out into two separate streams of consciousness. One telling him what he was supposed to do in his present life and the other pointing out the differences in his past life.

He had a feeling it was going to be an interesting day.

@-->-->----

It was very cool to be Joey Kaiba.

Not only did he never get told to pay attention, but he could also get away with playing computer games in class. He just had to say he was testing submissions for a graphics partner on a new virtual gaming system for his company. As long as he sounded bored when he said it, the teachers just looked confused and nodded before leaving him alone.

Of course, he only did that in the classes where he already knew what was being taught. Although in his other life he had been laid-back in his approach to schoolwork, in his new life Joey knew he had to keep up his high grades in order to keep the special privileges he had been granted. Also - and far more importantly - if his grades dropped too far, there was a chance that he could lose the right to be his younger brother's guardian.

Although Joey was a little reckless at times, he would never have dreamed of risking that.

The first three classes of the day had passed much as Joey had known they would. Slowly. In the time they had taken, as well as taking down the few notes he had needed to, he had composed four business letters, read over two reports and played twenty-seven rousing games of Solitaire. With the afternoon promising to be just as thrilling, Joey only hoped that lunch proved to be a little more informative.

As soon as he entered the cafeteria, the first difference was obvious. The crowd parted so he could get his food quickly and go. Joey forced himself not to grin. He could remember once thinking that Kaiba must have paid the other students to part before him. Now he knew it was just their nervousness at how powerful he was.

After getting his lunch, Joey looked around for a place to sit. Seeing the gang gathered at one of the tables, he started to head towards them, then quickly veered off to take a seat at a table on the far side of the cafeteria. He closed his eyes, silently thanking the new memories for reminding him that they were his rivals now, not his friends.

As he began to eat his lunch, his eyes watched them covertly from beneath his bangs and he made a mental note to find a way to change that as soon as possible. He missed them. He needed them in his life.

It was nearing the end of lunch when Joey thought he spotted a familiar figure sitting on the other side of the room. He pretended to stretch and took the opportunity afforded by his change in position to get a better look. He almost cheered in relief.

Seto Kaiba was alive and well.

Ever since he had seen the Blue Eyes White Dragons in his deck, Joey had been thinking of the brunette and wondering where he was. He'd been stricken with guilt over the thought that perhaps the wish had taken him literally - erasing Seto Kaiba so he could take his place. But that wasn't the case and Joey felt such a wave of relief that he was rather stunned by it. Since when had he cared so much about Kaiba's existence?

Joey frowned at the thought. No... not Kaiba. He was Kaiba now. But where did that leave Seto?

Apparently all alone on the other side of the cafeteria.

Sneaking another look at the brunette, Joey was struck by the differences in his appearance compared to the image of him in his other life's memories. His hair was a little longer and rather tousled, as if he'd tried to tame it without using a comb. His school uniform seemed to hang rather loosely on him also. But the biggest difference was the way he was sitting. He was sort of hunched over, one arm across his stomach as if he had a stomach-ache - a position that was very familiar to Joey and one that filled him with dread when he recognised it.

Acting as casually as he could, Joey gathered his empty dishes together and stacked them on his tray, then carried it to the receptacle nearest Seto. He didn't care that he had to pass three others along the way. He knew no one would question him over his apparent fussiness.

Ah, the joy of being Joey Kaiba.

His smugness faded as soon as he got a good look at the brunette toying listlessly with his food. When a nearby tray clattering to the table made Seto jump and look around in shock, Joey almost betrayed himself with a groan. There could be no mistake. The haunted look in the dull blue eyes was one that he recognised all too easily.

He'd seen it many times over the years - staring back at him from his own reflection.

The bell rang for the next class, cutting off Joey's musing. As he headed for the classroom, the crowds of students parting before him failed to give him any satisfaction. He was too lost in thought to even notice them, beyond making sure that he didn't run into anyone. He remained thoughtful as he went into the classroom and routinely took out his laptop and moved it so it looked as if he was reading the screen. In reality, he was still considering the one possibility he had somehow failed to overlook regarding Seto's position in the world. The more he thought about it, the more surprised he was that it hadn't occurred to him before.

Since he was living Seto Kaiba's life, why couldn't Seto be living his old life?

@-->-->----

Seto wasn't in his class at school, but that didn't stop Joey from learning about him. He set one of his people on it and had a neatly typed ten-page report on his desk within two days.

Although the bulk of it focused on Seto's family situation with his father - it included the fact that Seto's mother had left and taken his younger sister, Serenity, with her. Although there had been no details about them or their current situation - Joey still felt a measure of relief at knowing she was somewhere out there.

The report also included a photograph that confirmed that Seto's father was the man Joey had once known by that title. The information on him confirmed that the man was exactly the same in his personality and habits as he had been when Joey had lived with him.

The blonde teen had also realised that he could learn a lot just from watching the brunette during lunch at school. What he had seen had left Joey feeling horrified, saddened and very guilty.

The more he watched, the more he realised that, although this Seto was the same in many ways as the one he remembered, this Seto's spirit had been broken by years of abuse by an alcoholic father.

Joey had dealt with his father's verbal abuse and drunken rages the best way he knew how - he'd avoided him as much as possible by spending as much time as he could on the streets. The skills he'd learned there had made him stronger, in both body and mind, but it had been his friends who had really given him the strength he had needed to not only endure - but to thrive. His friendships with Tristan, Yugi, Téa and even Ryou had meant everything to him. Even now, watching them made his chest ache with longing to be able to laugh with them again.

Just the fact that Seto wasn't sitting with the others had told Joey that the brunette hadn't had their friendship to draw strength from. Instead, it looked like Seto had simply withdrawn and taken his father's abuse in silence. When Joey thought about it, he realised that had probably been what Seto had done when dealing with Gozaburo Kaiba. But there was one crucial difference.

When Seto had been dealing with Gozaburo Kaiba, he'd had the unwavering love and support of Mokuba.

Joey knew what a difference that made, because he knew how strong Seto and Mokuba's bond had been. It was as strong as the bond he had with Mokuba now, as his big brother.

As strong as the bond he had once had with his sister, Serenity - before she had been taken away.

He had often wondered if his life would have been different if Serenity had been with him. He'd quickly reached the conclusion that it was better for her to be safe in her happy life than sharing his tough times. Now he wondered if he'd been wrong. Maybe his life wouldn't have been all that different if she'd been there with him.

But Seto's might have been.

The guilt Joey felt over taking Seto's life and leaving him stuck in his was strong - but not as strong as what he felt over having taken away the only person the brunette had ever needed and loved. He had taken it all. It was that guilt that left him determined to set things right - somehow.

Joey didn't know why his wish had been granted, but he was pretty sure that it had been a one-time-only deal. He had no way of reversing the wish, so he decided to do the next best thing.

He came up with The Plan.

Maybe he couldn't make things the way they had been before the wish, but there might be a way he could narrow the gap between his old life and his new one.

It was definitely worth a try.

tbc
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The Wrong Dragon