Chapter Text
Border control took Roland's identification, nodded once, and waved him on without looking in the backseat where Seto stared out the tinted window. The drive hadn't taken as long as Seto expected it to, no traffic stops, no avoiding the main roads, no incidents.
And also no Bakura.
" We can't leave until he gets here."
" Your hi—Seto. It has been three days."
" He knows that building better than anyone. He's going to make it."
" He has likely already been caught."
There was no word of it on any news station, which all were covering Japan's return fire. The hit on Sacramento had stopped the US from firing off more than one of their missiles on the day planned, leaving both countries at a relative standstill.
But it had only been two days since. As much as Seto hoped Pegasus would come to his senses and stop taking out his grief on Japan, it wasn't likely. The war, Japan, the grief, and the responsibility were no longer Seto's to worry about. He had made it to Canada, where no one was going to be looking for him.
"They've adjusted the schedule," Roland said, pushing down the visor above him. "We are to meet them at their airstrip."
"That's fine."
Seto wasn't sure what his final destination would be, but expected to be flown to some remote part of Canada until things quieted, and then an obscure part of China. But the past few days had shown Seto couldn't really count on any of his expectations to be upheld. Maybe they could send him to Portugal or Helsinki. It didn't seem to matter.
Checking for updates provided enough distraction to keep Seto from demanding answers Roland couldn't give. They both were working with the same knowledge base, unless there was more to the plan Roland hadn't told Seto. And if that were the case, he wouldn't tell just because Seto demanded it.
Absentmindedly, Seto rubbed his thumb over his ring finger, still getting used to not wearing the ring. That adjustment would take longer than relearning life outside the royal household, and remembering that people hadn't always called him "your highness." At least that part Seto could be grateful for. It had been a part of his life that never fit in with the rest.
He wasn't a prince; he was a Kaiba.
"How long of a drive?"
"About three hours."
The missing "your highness" made Seto smirk, and in the rear view mirror, he caught a similar expression of amusement from Roland. They would get used to it at some point, but likely no time soon. But hopefully—and this was one hopefully Seto didn't mind—they would have the time to come around to informal addresses.
"I shouldn't be surprised this worked," Seto said, just as he started to look through the news feeds again for any updates he might have missed in the last five minutes. "Even for a plan that involved jumping down from a balcony."
"It helps that his highness didn't try stopping you."
"Why would he? My disappearance entitles him to be with anyone he wants."
After a while, at least. And maybe still not publicly. But Joey would be able to be with Tristan in any room or bed he chose, and not have to feel guilty about cheating on someone who had never been interested. It was a win-win for everyone involved who deserved a win, save Bakura.
None of the articles reported his arrest, and Seto tried to tell himself that meant he had gotten away. It didn't explain why he hadn't called, but until Seto was settled with Mokuba, he had to believe it, even if the odds of a prison holding Bakura were low.
"A new article is claiming I was kidnapped," Seto said. "Do you think that came from the PR team?"
"It's likely."
"It's hardly a better excuse than admitting they lost track of me."
"Who are they claiming is the culprit?"
Seto scrolled down. "Japan, of course."
"He'll give up once he sees it's a fruitless cause," Roland said.
"Will he?" Seto asked, almost distantly. He was caught up on reading the article, and then searched to read the same report from every different news site he could find. Each source had a slightly different take, liberal and conservative, local and foreign, but no matter the difference in opinion on the news, the facts remained the same. Japan kidnapped Seto and the world was searching for any sign of him. And overshadowed by that, the war stopped in a ceasefire.
Three hours felt like ten, and eventually, Seto ran out of news sources to exhaust. Reports had gotten to the point they only dug into the existing information, playing it to every angle in search of viewership. None of that was trustworthy, and Seto wasn't going to weigh himself down with it.
"This is it," Roland said, just as he turned onto a narrow street ending at a chain link fence.
Seto put his sunglasses back on and adjusted them for something to do. He didn't know if he would be arriving to an armed escort, a trap, or just a pilot and a plane. To make the not knowing easier, Seto promised himself that there would be a time in the near future in which he could tell himself that he had all the answers, and once he reached that point, he was never going back.
Two men opened the gate in the fence so neither Seto nor Roland had to exit the car, and they waved them ahead to a distant airplane, where a few people were just visible milling about. It was enough people to raise alarms, but not enough Seto was overly concerned with them.
"Did you bring your gun?" Seto asked.
"I did."
It wasn't much to bank on.
"What's your count?"
Roland took a moment to answer. "Ten in sight. There might be more on the plane."
Seto had counted ten as well, but they weren't in a formation or even facing the oncoming car, except for one, it seemed, and Seto watched that figure the closer they got. It was smaller than the rest, maybe a—
"Drive faster."
That was Mokuba.
"Are you—"
"I'm sure. Go."
He had expected to meet them wherever he ended up, not this soon, but he couldn't bring himself to be angry about the plan. Mokuba was fifty meters ahead and growing closer with every passing moment. They had actually done it. Seto was out and going to a new home.
His door was open before the car was in park, and Seto rushed over to Mokuba, who was running to him. The untamed hair blocked Seto's vision, but he held on tightly to his brother for the first time in two years. Mokuba was so much bigger, taller, and Seto had missed too much.
"Your hair's a mess," Seto said, and Mokuba laughed.
"Cutting it only made it worse, I think."
"Seto."
The reunion was cut short when Gozaburo came forward, and Seto bowed his head lightly. "I am glad to see you made it out in time."
"There is still a chance I will need to return," Gozaburo said. "Working remotely is not a permanent solution."
"For now," Seto said in understanding, and Gozaburo nodded once. As long as Mokuba was kept out of the crossfire, Seto thought he could handle Gozaburo's return to Japan. "Do you know where we are heading?"
"You're heading to Iceland."
Seto startled at the voice coming from the door to the airplane, and turned to glare at Bakura, leaning smugly against the side.
"How the hell did you get here?" Seto demanded, and then squared off on Roland. "Did you know?"
"No."
Bakura waved them up. "Come on. We've got to get going."
With Mokuba's hand securely on his arm, Seto headed for the stairs to get his answers from Bakura. He shouldn't have been able to get out of New York before them, much less without any word getting out. Didn't he have someone's number to call? Seto, Roland, Yugi, Yami, anyone? The time it took to get inside the plane was longer than Seto wanted to wait for his answer.
"Tell me what happened."
"Were you worried?" Bakura asked, much too playfully for Seto's mood.
"I thought they caught you."
"You were worried."
A short, heavy glare got Bakura talking. "Relax. Nothing's wrong. They just have a few trails to follow while we make our escape."
"Trails?" Mokuba asked. His English was rough, but he seemed to be following the conversation well enough Seto didn't think he needed to translate. Instead, he walked back to an empty row of seats, indicating Bakura should sit as well.
"False leads. Set it up so it looks like you ran off to Haiti, Singapore, and Denmark."
"All at the time same?" Seto asked, flatly.
"Each with varying levels of clues. They will likely think Singapore is a trick, but it really looks like you have a solid escape plan for Haiti."
"So what you're saying," Seto started, making sure he understood before asking for an unneeded clarification, "is that our actual escape is all clear?"
"It's spotless."
Hearing it from Bakura was the first time Seto truly felt the words, and he found he believed them fully. He was in the clear and could start over without fear of being followed and dragged back.
"You have my gratitude."
"I'll think of plenty of ways you can pay me back."
Seto chuckled and put his hand on Mokuba's, then looked over the plane at all the faces who had risked everything to be there. At Bakura and Roland who committed treason alongside with him, at Gozaburo and Mokuba who escaped Japan, at the guards who were sent from Yugi and Yami, and then at his own reflection in the window.
The stress from the war and escape lingered, even though there were no battles to fight anymore. Maybe one day they would resurface, but for now, Seto could stare at the toppled king and assure himself to be calm.
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