Title: Mistletoe Kisses
Ship: Yubel x Juudai
Chapters: 1-1||Words: 825
Genre: Romance||Rated: G
Challenges: Diversity Writing: YGO GX: Yubel x Juudai: B11, 750-850; Soulshipping Week 2020, day #4, plants
Notes: Post-canon by a few years.
Summary: Kings are most often crowned in gold. But Yubel prefers her beloved Juudai crowned in happiness – and kisses.


Yubel liked resting inside of Juudai's soul. His inner darkness wrapped all around them, along with his boundless love for them. Yubel could have lived forever inside of that glorious sensation.

But they also enjoyed wandering around. Given they could return to Juudai with little more than a thought, they often did wander, exploring all the myriad of places that their little group traveled to. Doing this enabled them to make certain no one dared to challenge Juudai without his knowledge. More than once they'd disposed of a threat before it came anywhere close to their beloved.

Here it was winter – the seasons didn't always mesh up throughout the worlds and Yubel thought it was spring in the world Juudai most often thought of as "home". Here, however, snow lay in soft white piles under the bare trees and sleek clear icicles hung from the branches.

There wasn't any sign of any other live around here. Not a dead world by any means, but a world at rest, waiting for life to return with the coming of spring. Yubel passed over the snow without leaving a footprint of their own behind, casually exploring, wondering if they might find a rare winter-blooming fruit for them to return to Juudai with.

Of course, winter-blooming fruit most often would be claimed by any creatures that still lived in this chilly realm. They had more need of it than anyone else, so Yubel wasn't very displeased by not finding it.

But something else did catch their attention and they wandered over to one particular tree to take a better look at it. It really did look familiar, but more as the ghost of images in the far flung past than anything else. Yubel frowned, winnowing through old memories, before a more modern one presented itself.

Oh. I see. Yubel chuckled softly before casually removing a sprig of the plant they'd found, ensuring they brought some of the red berries along with it.

A far older memory flickered, and Yubel rested one hand on the winding branch they'd broken their little treasure off from.

"Thank you," they murmured. "I'll treat it well." Always in the old days, whenever one took a part of something alive, be it plant or animal, thanks were given.

Juudai wasn't that far away. Yubel didn't bother to relax and return, choosing instead to wander back there, still with the broken off sprig in one hand.

They found Juudai in a clearing, carefully putting together a small pile of wood for the evening fire. Pharaoh lay curled next to what would be the fire, an empty can of cat food proving that he'd already had his dinner. There wasn't any sign of Daitokuji, but Yubel didn't miss him.

Juudai smiled the moment that he caught sight of Yubel and Yubel's heart warmed at the sight. Then he saw what they carried and tilted his head.

"What've you got there?"

"This?" Yubel glanced at it as if suddenly unaware. "I found it over there, on a maple tree. It's mistletoe."

Juudai blinked another couple of times. "Mistletoe?" He peered at it. "Guess so. I don't remember seeing it growing on trees. Just – hung up in places. It is pretty, though."

"There was a time, in Kuragari, when wearing mistletoe in one's hair brought happiness." Yubel ran their fingers over the berries thoughtfully. "Or so it was believed." A tiny smile curved up their lips before they leaned over and coiled the branch carefully on Juudai's head, the berries right above his eyes. "It isn't a golden crown but I think it suits you."

Juudai's cheeks flamed red. That only lasted a few moments before he grinned.

"Did you know that there's something else that get done with mistletoe these days?" His hand came up to catch Yubel's and he tugged them down closer.

A warm smile spread over Yubel's face as he pulled them closer. "As a matter of fact, I did." Yubel didn't see fit to mention how they knew – they'd been to many places with Cobra as he'd figured out what he needed to do to recover their energy. He'd been very useful when it came to Information about what they'd missed while away from their beloved Juudai.

Slowly the two of them brought their lips together. Juudai's lips were warm and soft and to Yubel's heightened senses carried the breath of life itself. Yubel closed their eyes as they kissed, not needing physical sight to see Juudai with their heart and soul. Their breaths intertwined about one another, Yubel's fingers sliding around Juudai's chin, Juudai's wrapping around Yubel's waist.

Yubel knew that they didn't need to breathe. But they took in Juudai's breath and returned their own. Juudai breathed theirs in and gave his back with all of his heart.

Neither could have said how long they stood like this. Nor did it seem to matter. For this, too much could never be enough.


The End

Notes: It has been believed in Japan that placing mistletoe in one's hair brings happiness. I'm thinking of a companion fic to this one eventually. Featuring wine. And possibly Johan.

Oh, I also wrote this to fill a prompt on tumblr: Juudai and Yubel having a kiss that lasts so long they're sharing one another's breaths.