Mishorumi Fusako loved these lazy, late afternoon walks with her husband. They weren't the youngest around anymore and at this time of day there weren't that many people outside, so they could shuffle over the pavement in their own pace, instead of being hurried or pushed forward. Yes, Domino City was generally good for its senior citizens, and well, hadn't they been young too, once? Still, it was nice taking these walks without as much as feeling rushed, enjoying the soft weather and the budding green leaves on the trees.
She gave her husband Otoya an adoring look, squeezing his hand she was holding affectionately. After almost fifty years of marriage, she still loved him more than anything and she knew the feeling was mutual- the warm smile he showed her told her enough.
"It's really good weather outside, isn't it?"
"Spring certainly has arrived," the elderly man agreed. "The temperatures are much softer, the cold of the winter has finally gone..."
"Be careful dear," Fusako suddenly said, holding still before the red traffic light. They waited until it turned green, crossing to the other side in their own pace. Looking up at the rather large building in front of them, she recognized the street- which wasn't very difficult, as they always took the same route, day after day.
The couple went past the building, taking the corner to the right. This street was quieter, leading them into a suburb with a variety of colorful stores, mansions and houses, a veritable example of a nice and cozy living area. Cars were neatly parked at the curb, no litter to be seen, every lawn mowed and clipped. As they walked along, Fusako pointed at a two-story, red, yellow and green building, its structure rather conspicuous.
"Oh look, the Mutou place," she said, noticing how the building still looked impeccable, exactly the way its previous owner had kept it. The colors were vibrant as if it just had been painted, the windows were spotless clean and the only thing out of place, or rather not in place, was the sign of "Game Shop", having adorned the front of the building for decades. Her husband just muttered a reply, as she pointed it out every time they walked past.
"It's good to see that Mutou-san's grandson at least keeps up with the place," he said, louder. "It's too bad that the kid didn't want to continue his business; he still laments about it every time I speak to him."
"Mutou-san isn't disappointed in his grandson," she objected, almost indignant. "He isn't the kind of person to enforce anything onto someone. He wanted him to do with his life whatever he wanted."
Otoya snorted. "Yes, but, an acting career? I don't think even Mutou-san saw that one coming, considering the kid was so good at designing games."
"Yuugi, his name is Yuugi," Fusako reminded him gently, offering him a smile. "And hasn't he combined acting with his love for gaming? That last TV series he did was about some card game, right? He had to duel to prevent the world from being plunged into darkness?"
"Oh yes, that one," the man snorted again, thinking back on how Mutou Suguroku had hogged the community TV to show off his grandson's acting abilities. "It was hard to follow anyway."
"Now don't be such a biddy about it," Fusako said, "the rules were a bit complicated, but they explained it every time when they were playing those cards. I really liked the special effects, and he's quite handsome to look at!"
"So that's why you never objected to watching it," he teased her. "It wasn't about the game at all, was it? I wonder if they're doing a new series, though..."
She was about to answer when suddenly a large shadow fell over them, and she grabbed her husband at the arm, momentarily lost for words. "What..?"
Otoya could hardly speak himself when someone... landed in front of them, wearing huge wings on his back and dressed in some kind of weird and purplish... armor. They both couldn't find another word for it.
"Ma'am, sir, I am very sorry to have startled you," the one in the armor said, moving his arm a little to place a rather dangerously pointy staff next to his side. "I was just making a test flight."
"A test flight," Otoya repeated, baffled, while not wanting to admit he was clinging to his wife as much as she was clinging to him. He blinked a few times, taking in the appearance of the one in front of them- this had to be the Mutou kid, but he looked different somehow, and not just because of that armor.
"Oh, it's just a costume," Fusako said, voice a little weak. She eyed the other wearily, not having seen anything like it before- it was rather menacing, with the large shoulder pads, the chest plate, the pointy boots... dear heavens, what kind of TV series would feature that kind of outfit?
"N-nice to see you again," she offered, slightly trembling.
"Nice to see you too, ma'am, sir," he said, nodding at them before turning towards the front door of the building. The large wings on his back created quite the wind effect, and Fusako clung tightly to her husband.
"Well, for an actor he sure doesn't have any manners," Otoya grumbled, watching the other's retreating back. "I expected more from Mutou's grandson."
"Last time he was far more friendly and smiling," she muttered in return, still wondering how anyone could wear such armor, imagination running wild. "He must be extremely occupied with some kind of new part, then... oh wait, wasn't it something Mutou-san mentioned lately, something called Capsule Monsters?"
"I'm not sure, and it only makes me wonder how he thinks he's going to enter the house like that," the elderly man commented dryly.
He was yawning so loudly his jaw almost popped; when he stretched himself the manuscript he was reading slid off his lap, dropping to the floor. He'd been learning his text for the new episodes of the Capsule Monsters series- or CapMon, as everyone referred to it- all morning, and frankly, Mutou Yuugi was bored out of his mind. He was waiting for his boyfriend to arrive home again, and an anticipating smile tugged at his lips.
Not many people knew he was living together, with a boyfriend no less, as his agent had told him in certain terms to stay single 'for the good of the series'. Yuugi was smart enough to realize that the man wanted his star to remain single and available to the public and the audience of CapMon in particular... swooning teenage girls (and some occasional, also swooning adult women, but they were the minority).
His smile got wider. It was extremely convenient to have a boyfriend whose physical appearance and features were practically the same as his. Many people would freak out by seeing their exact look-alike, let alone fall in love with them- but Yuugi had found everything he wanted and could hope for in Atemu, and he wouldn't consider for one second the thought of abandoning him. CapMon, his acting career- he couldn't care less about it if Atemu wasn't by his side.
Atemu had worked in the tourist sector, guiding Japanese tourists around in Egypt- fluent in both languages, and sometimes mixing up hieroglyphs with katakana, much to Yuugi's amusement- until he was harassed to death by overzealous fans that confused him with the rising star at the action TV series firmament, no one other than Yuugi himself.
Yuugi stood up from the couch, watching the clock and frowning. Atemu shouldn't have to take this long to get back from the wardrobe department. Yes, soon after they met each other- Yuugi had thought that Atemu had been an overzealous fan himself until he saw a picture of him-, they not only fell in love with each other at first sight, they also decided to work together.
First of all because it had become impossible for Atemu to do any other work- fans kept bugging him, not wanting to believe he wasn't Yuugi, and he could barely venture out in the open without attracting squealing hordes of girls, so not his field of interest. While Yuugi was used to this kind of behavior, Atemu wasn't, and so they decided to kill two birds with one stone: thanks to their similar looks, they could be together and keep up their relationship, and work on the success of the CapMon series.
Secondly, Atemu was the perfect stunt double for Yuugi, whenever a scene was too exerting or too dangerous for him. After all, the studio didn't want their main star to break a leg or an arm so filming had to shut down, now did they?
Almost time for tea, Yuugi thought and moved towards the kitchen. He adored living in this house, earning enough with his acting to keep comfortably living in it. He was glad his grandfather wasn't too much disappointed when he told him he didn't want to continue the Game Shop; Yuugi had been very reluctant in telling him.
Now, life was at its best- a nice house, a loving boyfriend, nice friends... it was such an advantage of working together: not only could they spend the day together on the set, Yuugi also felt protected by how Atemu would step in and take over in dangerous situations.
Well, that and Atemu couldn't memorize more than five lines at the same time anyway, so the only lines he had was just simply pointing out the obvious. The real star of the show was Yuugi, though he didn't like to receive all the credit- everyone was working hard on the show, from the assistant to the caterer to the lady holding up that board with strange numbers to indicate the scene and who always yelled "Action!".
Heaving a love-sick sigh, Yuugi started the preparations for the tea, dropping the kettle with a yelp when he suddenly heard a catatonia of sounds- at the door! Hurriedly, he made his way over to the stairs, taking two steps at the same time. Someone was at the door, trying to get in... and cursing in a wonderful Middle-Eastern language Yuugi preferred to hear under much more... heated circumstances.
"Mou hitori no boku, what are you doing?" He asked, seeing his boyfriend struggle to get through the door, using his pet name for him.
"Ah, aibou!" Atemu said, using his pet name for his boyfriend- calling each other like that started out as an inside joke, due to the previous series they filmed together. Now they were so familiar with using these names that it felt weird calling each other by their real name. "I just got back from the wardrobe department, and they asked me to take it out for a test..."
"Oh, so this is the armor the script was referring to," Yuugi said, puzzling the pieces together. "I couldn't make any heads or tails out of it. It's good to see how it really looks like..."
"It is, it is," Atemu muttered before finally turning a little more, trying to get through the door sideways, large wings screeching as the top one bend against the door frame. "Though it is quite... ah... awkward to move around in!"
Yuugi was glad he hadn't been the one stuck with the outfitting- sometimes it really only had its advantages, being the star of the show- but on the other hand, it probably meant the studio wouldn't let him wear the armor. And it looked so very nice...
"I do not know whose crazy idea this was," Atemu huffed when he was finally through the door, closing it behind him. "I swear, sometimes the writers are just smoking some kind of crack to be able to come up with these ideas..."
"Let me take a look at you," Yuugi said, eyes already wandering over the outfit. He really liked the purple color. "This is the Dark Magician Duel armor, right?"
"I am not sure, aibou... you are the one reading the script..."
"I think it is, yes, this is the Dark Magician Duel armor," Yuugi said enthusiastically. He had been reading ahead of the script, knowing that there were quite some more surprises in store.
Touching the armor, it didn't feel weird, or hot or cold, and Yuugi curiously darted with his fingers all over the chest plate.
"Is it heavy?"
"No, not really, aibou. I have been wearing it since I was outfitted- it is a little exerting though, but at this moment it is just fine..."
"Exerting?"
"Yes... it does not look heavy or straining from the outside, but I think it takes more of a toll on me than it looks like..."
"Ooooh..." Yuugi moved his hands lower, feeling where the armor was connected, fingers poking and prodding. "It does look good on you..."
"Well, fortunately, you do not have to wear it... it is quite hard..."
"Hard?"
"It is such a hassle getting into it, with all these parts and connecting them."
"How hard?" Yuugi asked, his hand moving lower, noticing the armor wasn't covering Atemu's complete body. In fact, the chest plate conveniently only reached to above his waistline...
"You saw how hard it is! I could not get through the door!"
"Very true," Yuugi murmured, pressing himself a little closer to his boyfriend, hand still moving lower. "Mou hitori no boku, they didn't give you a complete body armor..."
"Thank God no," Atemu snorted. "Now that would have been really ha-aaard!"
Yuugi grinned, his hand exactly at a very, very sensitive region- and he certainly knew how to get the best effect down there. "They forgot to cover the most important part..."
"Aibou... spare me the corny jokes..."
"Mou hitori no boku, it's shiny..."
"Of course it is. They kept waxing it!"
"Did they rub the wax in... like this?"
"Ahhh... aibou... you..."
"Mou hitori no boku, your armor is so big..."
"I did not design~nnn it, aibou... why are you doing this to me? I..."
"Mou hitori no boku..."
"Aibou, did you finish learning your script?"
"I did, and I read all about the armor. I really, really wanted to see it and now that I do... it's time for rehearsal."
"Very well. Let me get this off and change into..."
"OoooOOOOO, get off you will!"
"Aibou! You... HOLY SEKHMETOSIRISTHOTHMAATPTAHRA!!! AA~AAIBOU!"
Outside, the woman of the elderly couple shook her head. "He sure takes his work seriously, doesn't he?"
Fusako nudged her husband's arm a little. "It's good to see people work hard, even though it is for something as silly as a TV show."
"I can't wait for the next episode," Otoya mumbled before resuming their walk.