Archive of Our Own

Ryou rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he moved about the caravan, folding discarded blankets and collecting any used cups and plates that had been left out last night. Dumping the dirty dishes in the warm soapy sink, he stared out the window, spying Anzu and Rebecca sitting outside on the picnic table, diligently waiting for Yugi and the rest of their friends to come back.

Under normal circumstances, it would have been fun to say Ryou and his friends had taken a trip all the way to California but, as it stood, he wished they were already going home. Ever since the sighting of holographic monsters broadcasted all over Japan, Kaiba Corp. had been under heavy scrutiny for what the world thought was faulty technology going haywire. No one at the time thought the holograms weren’t in fact holograms until they spotted the collateral damage with their own eyes, and human casualties were being transported to nearby hospitals.

Then just as quickly as the monsters arrived they vanished with the mysterious appearance of a giant reptilian eyeball in the sky. Yugi’s Egyptian god cards were stolen by a mysterious biker gang called Doma, and Pegasus himself had personally invited Yugi to fly to his American company headquarters where he supposedly had answers. Ryou and the rest of the group immediately volunteered to accompany Yugi on this new adventure, and it should have been a simple flight to Industrial Illusions, but by the time they got to their destination, Pegasus’s soul had already been taken by Mai Valentine, their friend now turned enemy.

Jonouchi barely escaped his duel with Mai without either one losing their souls, and with no further leads they went looking for Professor Hopkins for answers, only for Rebecca’s grandfather to be held captive by Doma and used as ransom to force Yugi into accepting a duel. At least, that’s what they thought, until they spotted Professor Hopkin’s limping figure stumbling back home in the middle of night long after Yugi had already left to go save him.

Stuffing the last of the silverware in the drawer and finding nothing else to do to distract himself with in the now tidy caravan, Ryou wiped his hands on the tea towel and stepped outside into the cool desert morning air. He wished he put up more of a fight when Jonouchi, Honda and Otogi told him to stay behind with the girls, but there was nothing to be done about it now. Otogi was the only one with a car, and they certainly couldn’t drive after them in the caravan with Professor Hopkins recovering in the main bedroom. So, Ryou stood in the doorway watching the blue horizon shift to orange over the canyons, Anzu staring off into the distance with a vacant look on her worried face, and Rebecca furiously typing away on her laptop in the vain attempt to distract herself from worrying about her injured grandfather and Yugi’s duel.

“Anzu, Ryou, look!” Said Rebecca suddenly, pointing towards the horizon. A cloud of dust revealed the unmistakable mint green vintage cadillac belonging to Otogi, and a white horse belonging to Rebecca trodding along beside it

“They’re back!” Anzu cried with relief and rose to her feet. She was still wearing last night's wrinkled clothes but the relief of knowing their friends made it back safely seemed to refresh her.

Ryou did a quick headcount of the car as it pulled up to them and noted the curious absence of Haga and Ryuzaki, but no one else seemed to notice, or more accurately to say they didn’t seem to care when it was Yugi everyone had been worried about. He did, however, note the somber faces on all his friends and their reluctance to exit the vehicle.

“Darling!” Rebecca hugged Yugi around the middle the moment he dismounted. “Thank goodness you won!”

Ryou’s suspicion only grew when he took in the subtle details of the boy Rebecca thought she was hugging, and he unconsciously stepped closer, trying to see the Pharaoh’s downturned face.

“Yugi! We believed in you,” said Anzu, still not sensing the tension in the air.

“Hold up, you have it wrong,” Jonouchi interrupted, not looking up either and slumping further into his seat long after Otogi killed the engine.

“What do you mean?” There was a heavy silence as none of the boys looked in their direction or seemed to show any urgency in explaining where they had been or what transpired. Ryou’s eyes were darting to each grief stricken face, trying to piece the puzzle together himself. Why did everyone look like they just came back from a funeral?

Honda was the one to finally drop the bomb, “Yugi didn’t win. Yugi lost.”

A lump caught in Ryou’s throat and he spun around to face the Pharaoh again, wisps of white locks slapping his cheek as he took in the spirit’s deflated form, the averted gaze and clenched jaw as he tried to mentally separate himself from the group. If the pharaoh wanted to escape so badly, why hadn’t he relinquished control back to Yugi and retreated into the safety of the Millennium Puzzle? Unless…

“No way!” Anzu countered, needing a moment to compose herself. “No way, because when you duel Doma, the loser loses their soul.”

“And he did lose his soul,” said Honda, clarifying what Ryou already expected.

Ryou unconsciously reached for his chest, instinctively trying to feel the familiar weight of the Millennium ring, forgetting the item was no longer in his possession as his fingertips brushed against nothing but the fabric of his top.

“But Yugi’s right there-” Anzu deflected, not understanding Honda‘s meaning (or just not wanting to admit it) until the words had already left her lips. “No way…”

“That can’t be true,” said Rebecca, displaying her keen intellect by already putting the pieces together, but not having the emotional maturity to prevent what came out her mouth next. “Yugi! Change into my darling!”

“Rebecca, I’m sorry,” said the spirit, finally addressing her. “My partner is…he was taken instead of me.”

Ryou’s breath hitched as he fisted the front of his shirt and looked to the others for an explanation, frustrated that no one was elaborating beyond one word answers. He needed to know every detail of what transpired with Doma after Yugi left to go rescue Professor Hopkins and what skilled duellists they were dealing with that actually managed to overpower the king of games.

“You’re the one who entered my darling’s body! Why are you here while my darling’s soul is gone?” Shouted Rebecca, tears in her eyes as the grief poured out of her. “It’s your fault! Give the original Yugi- Give my darling back! Give him back!”

“Rebecca,” Anzu approached cautiously and was unprepared for when the girl threw herself into Anzu’s arms and cried into her chest. The sight was utterly heartbreaking, especially when the two girls had been fighting over Yugi’s attention since they first met.

“Rebecca is right.” said the pharaoh solemnly over the little girl’s sobs, still not meeting their eyes.

“Yugi…” Jonouchi shook his head and climbed out of the car.

“My partner was against using the seal of the orichalcos to the very end. But I…He’s gone because of me.” There was a tone of hopelessness in his voice that Ryou had never heard before. It felt wrong. He knew this was a fragile moment and anything he said might cause him to shatter, but serious context was missing. Why would Yugi even need to worry about using the seal of orichalcos? It’s not even in his deck.

“Stop it Yugi!” Shouted Jonouchi, shoving past Ryou.

“It’s all my fault” the spirit continued, hysteria bubbling up. That once confident and prideful cadence cracking under the pressure.

“I said stop!” Jonouch’s fist made contact with the spirit’s face, sending him tumbling across the sand. Ryou gasped and ran to his side, skidding to a halt beside the fallen pharaoh, who didn’t even attempt to get back up.

“Jounochi!” Shouted an enraged Anzu, hiding Rebecca’s face in her jacket.

“You still have a chance to get the other Yugi back!” Said Jonouchi by way of explanation. “So get yourself together! What happened to Yugi Muto’s ‘The King of Duelists’ Pride?”

Ryou gingerly wrapped an arm around the pharaoh’s shoulders and helped him into a sitting position, vaguely reminded of the time back in Battle City when the pharaoh cradled him in a similar manner after their duel on the blimp. He couldn’t quite recall how he ended up in Kaiba’s tournament or why he wasn’t in the hospital when he shouldn’t have been physically capable of walking around in his current state. But through that haze he remembered seeing Yugi standing across from him on the arena stage, staring down at him with a look of intense fear and anger as Ryou cried for help. In that moment he wished for nothing more than to have a spirit as caring and protective over him as Yugi’s other half.

(The image of something standing between him and Osiris’ attack flickered in his mind but he couldn’t focus on what it had been before he passed out)

There was a static shock from his fingers making contact and the pharaoh jerked with sudden life, head snapping in his direction and looking up at Ryou with a look of desperation and hope that made his own heart flutter. The pharaoh’s hands clasped Ryou by the elbows and for a moment Ryou thought the man was about to hug him, when he just as suddenly came to himself, blinking in confusion at Ryou’s presence and slapping his hand away, as if burnt. It hurt, seeing the pharaoh push him away like that, but he understood that he may not want comforting right now.

“But no one’s been able to defeat Doma’s Three Musketeers yet.” Otogi said, finding his voice again and seemingly unaware of the silent exchange that just transpired between the two.

“Don’t say that!” Said Honda, getting Otogi into a headlock.

“S-sorry” he choked back.

In any other situation, seeing the two of their friends roughhousing with each other might have cut right through the tension and gotten a laugh out of everyone, but no one seemed to be in the mood to laugh right now.

“It’s fine,” said the pharaoh, climbing to his feet and inching away from Ryou. “It’s the truth. We may never have had the power to defeat Doma to begin with.”

A heavy silence fell over them as everyone migrated back into the caravan, with the Pharaoh, Anzu, Honda and Otogi all sitting around the dining table, Ryou and Jonouchi leaning against the kitchenette counter, and Rebecca sitting alone on the sofa, loudly typing away on her laptop again. The pharaoh seemed lost, not paying attention to anything going on around him as he gave everyone the play-by-play of what happened. Ryou listened intently, occasionally asking questions and demanding clarification when needed. He hated seeing the pharaoh flinch every time he probed for more details, but it needed to be done. It didn’t help that over time the pharaoh grew more confident making eye contact with their friends, but every time he addressed Ryou directly, he always looked over his shoulder, refusing to meet his eye.

“Doma’s goal is to end human history?” Anzu summarised once the pharaoh was done catching everyone up.

“Yeah. That’s what he said,” the spirit shrugged, having exhausted his voice and shrinking in on himself.

“But that’s easier said than done.” Honda reassured him.

“But they can,” countered Jou, arms now crossed. “We’ve already seen how they’ll do it.”

Anzu gasped. “You don’t mean.”

“By using that monster. Doma’s Three Musketeers, and Mai, said they need their souls.” Jonouchi’s breath faltered at the mention of Mai. “They want to sacrifice our souls to resurrect that monster.”

Resurrect the leviathan. The same monster that appeared over Domino City and absorbed all the rogue monsters into itself. Up until this point the group had dealt with Ancient Egyptian sorcery, shadow magic and literal gods attacking them, but this was something even older than that.

“They’re more than we can handle.” Anzu worried her lip. “Let’s call the police.”

“It won’t help.” scoffed Rebecca from the sofa. “They burned my grandpa’s research, so we have no proof. Who would believe such an absurd story?“

She had a point.

“That’s true, but maybe there’s a clue in the undersea ruins!”

“They’ve beaten us to the punch,” said Rebecca, placing her laptop on table and showing them images of what looked like the news footage of the wrecked remains of the submarine Professor Hopkins and his team had used to access the underwater ruins.

“Don’t give up,” announced Professor Hopkins, surprising everyone by stepping out of the bedroom door, still looking haggard but more refreshed after a few hours of sleep.

“Grandpa.” Rebecca’s voice lifted for the first time that morning and she ran to embrace him.

“Are you ok?” Anzu asked.

“Sorry to worry you. I couldn’t sleep after hearing Rebecca cry. I heard what you said.”

“Professor, have you learned anything new?” Asked the pharaoh.

“I haven’t deciphered all the inscriptions, but Doma’s true identity is likely descendants of those who lived in Atlantis - known as the Earth’s paradise - long ago.” That brought up images of the Ishtars and their family legacy to preserve the pharaoh’s memories until his eventual return. Was it possible a family of even older believers were out there preserving the history of a lost continent that no one was even sure really existed?

“Is Atlantis a legendary continent that sank into the ocean long ago?” Otogi asked dubiously.

“Atlantis isn’t a legend. The inscription in the undersea ruins were the chronicles of Atlantis. Their history.

“The history of Atlantis…” Yami mumbled so softly under his breath Ryou almost didn’t hear it.

“Atlantis was highly civilised and ruled over a large domain. Known as Earth’s paradise, they believed peace would last forever. But a king summoned a monster that suddenly destroyed it.”

“ A king…”The pharaoh repeated, brows furrowed.

“Yugi, what’s wrong?” Anzu asked.

“It’s nothing.” he trailed off, but something in his face tensed up as he mewled it over.

“They say the Atlantis’s Royal family received god’s power from a strange stone.”

“Its the rock they have!“ Jonouchi said, standing up straight beside Ryou. “And then?”

“Unfortunately, that’s all I could decipher.”

“Dammit!”

“Why are you mad?” Honda asked quizzically.

“Think about it! They came to erase the professor’s work. That means-”

“Ah! The inscriptions said something that would hurt Doma!” Otogi finished his train of thought.

“I see. Unexpectedly good thinking, Jonouchi!” Honda teased.

“But the ruins are…”

“No.” Arthur interrupted before they could go down that path. “The Florida museum I used as my base of operations still has my research materials.”

“So there’s still a chance to decipher the inscriptions!”

“Yes.”

“Let’s go Yugi!” Jonouchi said, suddenly pumped and reminding Ryou of a bloodhound catching the scent of an elusive fox. “Let’s uncover Doma’s secrets and save the other Yugi and Mai!”

“Well said, Jonouchi!” Honda cheered. “Lets get there before doma.”

“But Florida is really far from here,” Otogi had to point out to the Japanese foreigners who had not quite understood just how big a country North America really was, and getting from West to East Coast wasn’t as simple as catching the bullet train.

That did little to stomp Jonouchi’s enthusiasm though, now that they finally had a lead. He immediately took over as defacto leader of the group, moving furniture around and setting up Rebecca’s laptop on the coffee table as he looked up Kaiba Corp’s company website and contact info. Everyone gathered around Jonouchi as he went through various departments to get through to the only person they knew who could help get them.

Hovering at the back, Ryou glanced nervously over at the Pharaoh, who seemed to have tired himself out from talking earlier and was more than happy to let others make decisions on the group’s behalf. It was disturbing seeing the spirit so beside himself, unsure of his place in their dynamic and not being the one to lift the group’s spirits and giving them the strength to persevere in the face of defeat.

“Spirit?” he asked, gently placing a light hand on the pharaoh’s sleeve.

He was unprepared for the Pharaoh grabbing his hand like a lifeline and looking at him with a wild manic expression. It startled Ryou so bad he jerked his hand back but the pharaoh refused to let go. Then, a blink and suddenly the pharaoh was looking at Ryou like he hadn’t been there a moment ago. Something like a cross between embarrassment and disappointment flickered across his magenta eyes and Ryou felt his stomach twist. He wasn’t sure why he suddenly felt guilty, but there was something desperate in that stare that made him want to say sorry.

“Spirit, you don’t have to worry. I’m sure Jonouchi will get through to Kaiba and then we’ll be one step closer to getting Yugi back,” he said, squeezing his hand.

“Right,” said the Pharaoh, staring at Ryou with a curious expression, as if only now seeing him for the first time and not sure of what to make of him.

Ryou didn’t want to admit it at the time, but he too was looking at the Pharaoh with that exact same expression, feeling this strange magnetic pull that hadn’t been there before and trying to pinpoint where it was coming from. It was eerily familiar, like recognising a face on the street but not having a name to connect it to, or trying to remember the lyrics to a song when you only had the melody.

“Kaiba! I have a favor to ask!” Said Jonouchi, breaking their eye contact.

Snatching their hands back, both stepped away from each other like guilty lovebirds who had just been caught alone in their bedroom by their parents. Ryou hid behind his hair, not sure why he was feeling so flustered when they literally did nothing to feel embarrassed about, but he couldn’t stand the idea of the others catching them holding hands. Not that anyone was paying them any mind, the rest of the gang had been far too distracted watching Jonouchi talk to several support hotlines until he finally got high enough to convince someone that he really needed to speak with Kaiba directly, and by the sound of Jonouchi’s voice, Kaiba actually accepted the call.

“Jonouchi, step away from the camera.” They heard Mokuba say over the vidcam.

“Huh? Sorry.” Jonouchi sat back in his seat, and everyone else leaned in closer.

“What do you want?” He heard Kaiba say, but Ryou couldn’t see around Honda to get a good view of the screen.

“We have a lead on Doma.”

“Doma?”

“It’s at a Florida Museum. Help us get there.” Jonouchi explained with growing urgency, but again Ryou was getting annoyed by how vague everyone seemed to get when context was clearly required. “We have to hurry or else, the other Yugi’s soul will be-”

Honda thankfully cut Jonouchi off with a headlock before he had a chance to blurt out the truth to Kaiba. “Jonouchi, you dummy!”

“The other Yugi’s soul?” they heard Mokuba repeat in the background.

Jonouchi smacked Honda’s face and got back in front of the camera again. “Nevermind that. You don’t like occult-ish stuff anyway. Right?”

“Yugi...can it be?” Kaiba muttered, seeming to ignore everyone else on the call and zeroing in on the pharaoh who was deliberately not looking at the camera. “Did you lose?”

Everyone tensed at Kaiba’s tone and Ryou had a sneaking suspicion they weren’t getting a free lift to Florida if they didn’t quickly get this conversation back on track. He looked to the spirit for assistance, but the pharaoh had closed himself off again the moment Ryou snatched his hand back, and was now looking more like a wandering spirit with each passing second, trying to remember what unfinished business was preventing him from moving on.

“S-Say what, Kaiba?” Jonouch laughed nervously, trying to get the attention back on himself, but the sound of Kaiba’s hand smacking the office table silenced him.

“How dare you!” Everyone collectively flinched. “At the duel tower, you were given the Duel King Title! But some unknown chump took it from you?”

“Kaiba…” the spirit sighed, finally turning to look at the camera.

“I misjudged you Yugi! I don’t want anything to do with a loser!” The call was abruptly cut off with a slam from the receiver, and everyone stood in silence as they digested what just happened.

He took that better than expected, all things considered.

“What’s with that punk?” Groaned Jonouchi, flopping back in his seat and tugging at his hair.

“Dammit! Let's get there on our own!” Honda said and they desperately tried to come up with a Plan B, which was easier said than done considering they used up a good chunk of their (Anzu’s) money just getting here in the first place.

“Professor, you rest.” said Jonouchi, getting out of his seat and shrugging Kaiba from his mind. “We’ll get the research materials. Otogi, come after the professor’s healed up?”

“How do we get to Florida?”

“To get to the nearest airport we have to take the train,” said Rebecca and there was a collective look all around as they added up their remaining funds to acquire five train tickets and five plane tickets on such short notice. It was a good thing they were friends with a successful dice game designer, because they wasted no time taking hot showers, changing out of the filthy clothes they had been wearing since they landed, packing up their suitcases and piling them into Otogi’s car to drive to the train station.

Getting everyone’s suitcases into the trunk was another challenge altogether, as was figuring out how they were going to fit six people into a five seat vehicle. In the end, Anzu sat in the front with Otogi with a bag across her lap, while the boys had to play Tetris with the remaining carry-on luggage that wouldn’t fit in the back. It was a good thing they were in the middle of nowhere, as they would no doubt be pulled over by the police with the number of people sitting without seatbelts on.

”I don’t think I’ve been this cramped since Kaiba gave us a lift off of Pegasus’s Island,” Honda hissed beside Ryou as the four boys were sardined together, shoulder to shoulder, knee to knee, and occasionally jabbing each other in the side to make more room. There was a simple solution to their predicament, but Ryou was not going to be the first one to volunteer to sit in someone’s lap.

It was an awkward drive as every time Jonouchi shoved Honda, Ryou was thrown against the pharaoh, crushing him against the rear door with his added weight. Trying to turn sideways so he was taking up less room, Ryou braced his hand against the interior leather and gave the pharaoh an apologetic smile, but the spirit seemed unbothered by the close proximity of their bodies or how Ryou was practically falling into his lap.

”I’m sorry,” he said bashfully for the one hundredth time that day,

”It’s OK,” the pharaoh said stiffly, breath brushing his cheek.

When they finally arrived at the carpark, everyone was relieved to disentangle their limbs and climb out. The pharaoh offered Ryou his hand, and Ryou took it appreciatively as pins and needles flared up his legs. He was so excited to see an actual double decker train up close, he momentarily shifted into tourist mode and wanted to ask if they could take the sleeper train all the way across the country.

“We’ll go on ahead.” Jonouchi said to Otogi.

“Take care of Professor Hopkins and Rebecca.” said Anzu.

“Yeah, leave it to me.” Otogi nodded, clearly not enjoying being left behind but understanding he had an important role of his own to play. “We’ll catch up when the professor is healed.”

“We’re counting on you. We can’t do much without the professor,” said Honda just as the tannoy announced their train was about to depart. “It’s time.”

“Take care.”

Climbing onboard, the teenagers piled their suitcases onto the baggage hold and moved into the carriage itself where they found a relatively empty section half way down the aisle where they could all sit close together. Jonouchi and Honda naturally sat down together on one side, and anticipating Anzu and Yami would be sitting together on the other, Ryou settled into a seat behind them.

He was naturally taken aback when the pharaoh walked right past a waving Anzu and sat right down next to him, without seeming to realize he even did it. Ryou blinked and exchanged curious glances with an equally confused Anzu, but she shrugged it off and slid over into the aisle seat so she was across from Honda.

The trip was uneventful as they bought cans of soda and bags of chips from the vendor and watched the desert scenery pass by. Ryou would occasionally glance at Pharaoh, a conversation just on the tip of his tongue before his courage failed him and he averted his gaze out of the window again and nervously tugged on his t-shirt. The pharaoh in turn was lost in his own world, glaring down at his clasped hands and refusing the offered snacks and beverages. Ryou silently tried to get Anzu’s attention who, not one to leave a friend hanging, leaned over her headrest to talk with them directly and tried her best to get a response out of the pharaoh.

“Hey, Yugi. Look! Isn’t it beautiful!” she said pointing out the window with too much enthusiasm to be considered natural. The pharaoh did not so much as look up. “I wonder what Florida’s like! Aww! I should’ve brought my swimsuit!” Ryou slid further down in his seat, a wave of secondhand embarrassment overcoming him as Anzu grasped at straws. “Hey are you hungry? Should I see if the dining car is open?” Ryou was practically falling out of his seat now, wishing he had in fact just sat by himself. “Cheer up, Yugi! I know you’re hurting, but you can’t mourn forever.”

“Anzu!” he hissed. It hadn’t even been one day since Yugi was taken and she was telling him to stop mourning!

The pharaoh shot up and excused himself.

Sensing she fumbled that spectacularly, Anzu moved to get up and follow, but Ryou was already on his feet. Ignoring Honda telling him to give Yugi some space, Ryou opened the divider door and stepped out, expecting to follow the pharaoh down several carriages before he caught up to him, only to find said pharaoh crumpled on the floor of the cargo hold and clutching the puzzle.

“Spirit…”

Ryou quietly lowered himself onto his knees beside the grieving man, not speaking but just being there until the spirit was ready to compose himself. Staring at the opposite wall, Ryou noted a fist size indent that had not been there when they unloaded their suitcases. Looking down at the spirit again, Ryou saw the same hand that was clinging to the millennium puzzle was grazed and dews of red droplets were starting to bloom under the skin.

“Let me,” he said, carefully taking the pharaoh’s hand in his own and reaching for a packet of tissues in his pocket. Ryou had plenty of practice tending to wounds left by the spirit of the ring when he got too reckless with their body and left his host to deal with the aftermath.

“Yugi!” The pharaoh’s head shot up again and he lurched forward as if to tackle Ryou, but stopped the moment he realised who it was.

The pharaoh collapsed against the fair haired boy, his sobs muffled in Ryou’s jacket as the once proud duellist let himself mourn. Guilt rose in Ryou again for being the one to keep causing these sudden outbursts, but he couldn’t fathom why the pharaoh was confusing him for Yugi. They didn’t look anything alike.

“It’s OK,” was all Ryou could say as he petted his spiky black hair, surprised by how soft it was.

He knew it wasn’t ok. None of this was ok. The feeling of being torn from your other half, your very sense of self being split in two and knowing there was now an empty void inside of you that can never be filled again. It was a feeling Ryou would not wish on his worst enemy. “You don’t have to talk about it. I won’t ask you to relive that memory again. I can go back inside and tell everyone you went for a walk if you need a minute.”

”No,” the pharaoh shook his head and with great effort pushed himself up into a kneeling position opposite Ryou. Again Ryou was uncomfortable with such a powerful personality that could stand up to the gods themselves, now looking so small and fragile in his arms. Had the pharaoh always been this short? He always seemed to stand so tall. “It’s my fault. I was the one who…who...”

”Going around in circles is not going to help Yugi,” Ryou said softly. It was his practical nature coming through again but there really was no point repeating the obvious. “I understand why you felt like you had to do it. You were backed into a corner and it was the only way to win the duel. That was the choice you made and no one is faulting you for that. I know you would never have willingly let the Orichalcos take Yugi in your place, and no one doubts that for a second either, but that was the choice Yugi made to save you.”

”He shouldn’t have been put in that situation to begin with. I would have taken his place if I had realised at the time what he- If I could go back and change things I would have-“

”We both know Yugi is smarter than that,” said Ryou and the spirit looked up at him, tears collecting in the corner of his eyes. “There’s only one duellist good enough to take down Doma. It wasn’t just about saving you, but saving Jonouchi, Anzu, and Honda, and every other soul that was taken by them. That’s just the kind of compassionate person Yugi is. I don’t think there was a moment where Yugi doubted you weren’t coming for him. And you are. We’re going to get him back and you’ll be together again before you know it. The moment you start doubting yourself is the moment you believe he’s truly lost.”

Perhaps it was not fair to put the pressure of saving both the world and Yugi on the Pharaoh’s shoulders, but he had been lost in the dark for so long, fumbling uselessly without Yugi’s light and moral compass to guide him. For the first time in 3000 years the pharaoh had to do that for himself, and having someone give him direction sparked life in those once haunted eyes. He squeezed Ryou’s hands gratefully as a new sense of purpose ignited within him.

”Come on, let's go for a walk, I want to see if the dining cart is open yet,” Ryou smiled, helping the pharaoh to his feet, and walking hand in hand into the next passenger cart.

”Ryou…” the pharaoh said after they passed through the door and walked through an empty carriage. ”Are you alright?”

”What do you mean?” He asked over his shoulder. He wasn’t the one crying on the floor five seconds ago.

”You…” He cleared his throat and tried again. “You’re very good at that. Pretending nothing is bothering you so the others won’t worry.”

“Of course I’m not alright, Yugi is missing,” Ryou said tightly, looking ahead. He felt the pharaoh’s stare burning in the back of his head, both of them knowing what the Pharaoh actually meant but that was a conversation he just could not have, especially with the one who took the ring from him in the first place.

“I think this is the first conversation we’ve ever had together,” said the pharaoh suddenly, changing the subject.

”That’s not true,” but even as the words left his lips he knew it was true. Yugi had always been a buffer for the Pharaoh when conversing with the outside world (Yugi even told Ryou the time he purposely set the spirit up on a date with Anzu just to get him out of his comfort zone). “I guess I never really thought about it that way. I could always feel you hovering in the background, even when Yugi was the one in control.”

”You could?” the pharaoh blink, genuinely surprised.

Was that weird?

“Yeah, I’ve always been able to sense whether you’re in the puzzle or not,” Ryou shrugged as they entered the next carriage and was disappointed to find the closed sign on the door for the restaurant. “I wish we had breakfast before leaving in such a rush. I’m starving. I could really go for a burger right now.”

The pharaoh laughed, an honest to god laugh, and smiled at Ryou with a soft expression that made the boy’s heart skip beat.

“Come on, the sign on the stairs says the observation deck is upstairs.” The pharaoh guided him up the steps and they emerged on a glass roof platform with swivel chairs designed to give the observers plenty of legroom to watch the scenery pass by.

Taking advantage of the lack of other passengers, Ryou flopped down in one of the comfy chairs and the pharaoh joined him. They sat in silence for a long time, just taking in the tranquil scenery and leaving the question of what was to come next a future problem when for they arrived at their destination.

”This is the first time I’ve ever been alone with you,” Ryou mused out loud as he took photos of the landscape with his phone.

”This is the first time I’ve been alone in general,” the spirit laughed bitterly. “I don’t recall a time when I couldn’t hear my partner’s thoughts in the back of my mind. Sensing him just a stone throws away in his soul room.”

“That must be scary,” said Ryou, genuinely shocked. “You really don’t remember a time before the puzzle?”

”No,” The pharaoh sighed forlornly. “I woke up one day and remember being bombarded with light and thoughts and emotions that felt so foreign. I had been alone in the dark for so long I had to re-learn how to act like a human. Sometimes I doubted if I had ever been human to begin with and was just a rogue shadow that got lost and was mimicking whatever my partner was doing until it felt natural.”

“You’re human,” Ryou said firmly. “Parasites don’t grieve the loss of their hosts.”

The pharaoh stared sidelong at Ryou for the longest time, chin resting in his hand as he leaned forward in his seat. Ryou kept his gaze firmly out of the window and restlessly shifted his foot back and forth, swinging in his chair as he pretended nothing was wrong.

“How do you cope with being alone in your own head, Ryou?” The spirit probed.

Ryou flinched at the pharaoh using his name and planted his foot firmly on the ground.

”I lost someone dear to me when I was a kid. I never told any of you this but I had a little sister, she and my mother died in a car crash when I was really young. It was devastating when they left, like having a limb cut off.” This was not a conversation Ryou wanted to have with anyone, but once he started the words wouldn’t stop pouring out. “I was alone for a long time, then my father…got me a gift on his last trip to Egypt, just like I told you, and for a while I stopped feeling alone in my own head. It took several years for him to be able to speak to me directly, but I think I always knew he was there, just sitting in the back of my mind, observing, learning, waiting…I thought…I wanted to believe it was Amane, checking in on her older brother from the afterlife…but it was him taking up space, filling the empty corners of the apartment and my life.”

“He hurt you,” said the pharaoh, his fingers brushing the boy’s clothed bicep where the scar would have been visible.

”I know,” he said, drawing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around his shins. “I’m not delusional or anything. He used my body for his own gain, but there were moments after Duellist Kingdom when we just…talked…”

Ryou wasn’t naive enough to believe the spirit of the millennium ring had turned over a new leaf, but the spirit was almost domestic before Battle City, even going as far as to save Yugi when the puzzle was taken. Now that they could talk to each other the two spent a surprising amount of time together, designing Monster World campaigns, wandering around Domino Museum to see if it would jog the spirit’s memories, and just talking about Ryou’s day as he went about doing chores or homework. Despite everything, it had been nice sharing his life with someone who wasn’t his absentee father.

The Pharaoh took his hand again and linked their fingers.

”I’ve enjoyed being with you,” he said sheepishly. “You are a good friend to Yugi.”

Heat stained Ryou’s cheeks and he didn’t have the courage to pull his hand away as a thumb rubbed the back of his hand.

“You’re good company too,” he whispered into his knee. “And you are my friend too. Not just because you and Yugi share a body. You’re both dear friends to me and I’m so grateful I met you. That was my one wish, to play games with my friends forever. I think it finally came true.”

The pharaoh stared at him with a softness that made Ryou’s stomach flutter and he was suddenly very self conscious that his hand was starting to feel very damp and clammy in the others strong grip. The spirit seemed unbothered though and raised their clasped hands together, where he pressed a gentle kiss to Ryou’s knuckles.

Blushing from the tip of his nose to the roots of his hair, Ryou was feeling too flustered and the pharaoh was looking too damn smug for his own good. Spurred on by Ryou’s lack of rejection, the pharaoh was half out of his seat and leaning into Ryou’s personal space, forcing the body to plant his feet back on the carpet floor to make space for him.

”S-Spirit,” he stuttered as the shorter man towered over him, their noses practically touching. “What are you doing?”

”Don’t talk,” the spirit whispered against his lips, sharing the same breath. “I don’t know what it is, but you…your soul puts me at ease.”

They stared into each other's eyes, both feeling this undeniable attraction, pulling them in one anothers orbit. Ryou’s free hand pressed against the pharaoh’s chest, feeling the other’s warmth under his finger tips. Flesh and blood. How many times had he dreamed of feeling the spirit with his own hands? Not just a voice whispering sweet nothings into his ear, but something physical he could touch and worship. If he closed his eyes he could imagine those black spikes turning into long white locks and the fingers squeezing his own were longer and more delicate. The spirit pressed his broad chest to Ryou’s and the millenium puzzle landed in Ryou's lap.

“Aibou…” he whispered as their lips were just millimetres apart

Ryou jerked his head back.

“It’s past opening hours and no one has come through to the dining cart yet,” he blurted out.

The pharaoh blinked in a stupor at the strange declaration. Brows furrowed, he stared at Ryou for a long moment and then turned his face away to scan their surroundings, scrutinising the empty deck. One carriage being empty might not raise any alarms, but they had walked through several empty passenger carts without bumping into another person, and the observation deck, which was meant to be the busiest carriage for tourists, was unusually quiet, not even a staff member had walked through yet.

“You’re right,” he said, letting go of Ryou’s hand, standing to full height and walking away like nothing had happened. “Something is very wrong here.”

“Maybe it's a slow weekday?” Ryou guessed, not believing his own words as he stumbled out of his chair and followed the pharaoh through to the first class carriage, spotting yet more empty seats and no staff. “You don’t think Doma…”

”We need to find the others,” said the pharaoh, grabbing Ryou by the wrist and running back in the direction they just came.

They made a mad dash for the next door, tearing it open and sprinting through the next empty car. The opposite door burst open and they bumped into Jonouchi, Anzu and Honda running in the other direction.

“Something’s weird with this train!” Said Jonouchi.

“All the passengers are gone,” said Honda. “Even though we haven’t made any stops. This is impossible.“

“Do you think they’re behind this?” Asked Anzu..

The pharaoh stood shaking, fist clenched and jaw tight at the implication of what became of the poor innocent souls who were unlucky enough to board the same train as them. He then spun around and ran back to the front of the train, unceremoniously dragging an unsuspecting Ryou behind him. Anzu, Honda and Jonouchi quickly gave chase and they made it back to the first class carriage where the pharaoh shoved the front door open, letting in a stream of air as they were now facing the engineer’s car. He was already safely across the walkway by the time the rest of the group caught up to him and held out his hand for Ryou to take. Hesitating for only a moment, Ryou stepped forward and took the offered hand as the walkway swayed under his uncertain feet. Ryou was half way across when he felt the sudden lurch of the train and heard the screeching sound of metal on metal as the locking mechanism securing the two cars disconnected.

“Damn!” The pharaoh caught a stumbling Ryou who fell into his arms as the front half they were standing on picked up speed, while the other half fell behind.

The gap was too far apart for the others to safely cross, but Anzu, who had already stepped out to follow when the two lines separated, was hurled forward by the sudden momentum. She let out a terrified scream but Jonouchi thankfully caught her by the arm and pulled her back into the carriage.

Ryou let out a sigh of relief.

“Yugi, Ryou, you have to stop the train! We’ll catch up to you!” Anzu cried over the roaring wind as the distance grew further and further.

“She’s right, we’re going to lose them if we can’t get the driver to stop,” said Ryou.

The Pharaoh dragged him by the hand through the last carriage to the very front of the train where a locked door prevented them from entering the engineer‘s car. They spotted an intercom and Ryou pressed the button.

“Hello, is anybody there? Please stop the train! It’s an emergency!” Ryou said into the intercom but received no reply. “Engineer! Anyone! Stop the train!”

“This is the only path,” said the Pharaoh, already climbing the maintenance ladder.

With no other options, Ryou reluctantly climbed up after him, and of all the things that could have been waiting for them on top, the last thing Ryou anticipated was a familiar boy with a green bowl cut and thick spectacles.

“Haga?” Ryou whispered into the wind, as he gripped the top of the ladder.

What happened next as hard to follow as the words got swallowed up by the roaring wind whipping at his face, but Ryou caught enough context to know Haga was working for Doma, knew the person in front of him was not in fact Yugi Mutou, and wanted to duel the pharaoh on the top of a friggin train! The ludicrousness of the situation was so proposterous, Ryou was debating just climbing up and shoving past the shorter boy to get to the driver’s seat already.

The pharaoh however had other plans the moment Yugi’s name was mentioned and accepted the duel without hesitation, much to Ryou’s disappointment. Their precarious position on top of the carriage made it impossible for Ryou to get around them, and he was almost tempted to climb back down and use the maintenance guardrail to try and shimmy his way alongside the train to get to the other side.

Before Ryou even had a chance to climb back down and attempt it, Haga played a familiar looking card and Ryou could only stand there slack jaw as a green circle enveloped the insect duelist with its powerful light. The pharaoh, who was safely inside the confines of the seal, cried out and spun around to reach Ryou, but the seal was rushing towards him too fast for either of them to react and Ryou was flung off the carriage.

His back hit the top of the second car and the momentum sent Ryou rolling across the roof. He blindly reached out, fingers finding a foothold and grabbing on for dear life as he tried to get his feet underneath him.

“Ryou, are you alright?!” The pharaoh shouted and Ryou gave a shaky nod as he finally got his foot wedged under something sturdy and pulled himself up. The spirit sagged with relief, not willing to lose another Hikari in one day.

Now out of harms way, Ryou frantically tried to think of another way of stopping the train. He couldn’t help the pharaoh win the duel, not without a piece of the stone to break the seal with, but the longer this duel went on for the farther away they were from Anzu and the others. No doubt their half of the train had rolled to a stop by now and they were stranded in the middle of the desert with no way of calling for help or getting to the nearest town.

The duel went back and forth for a while, with Haga infecting the pharaoh’s deck with insect cards and using Insect Barrier to prevent him from getting any attacks through. The pharaoh played the Eye of Timaeus with no success and Haga pulled a card out of his pocket. Again, the wind was swallowing most of the conversation but Ryou followed his lips and caught the words, 'Yugi' and 'Soul'.

“This is the card.”

“What? Give it to me!”

“Should I…Fine. I feel bad, so you can have it.” Haga teased and waited for the moment the pharaoh stepped forward before ripping it in half. “I changed my mind! Naturally! We’re in the middle of a duel. Hurry up and make a move!”

Ryou’s screams went unheard over the pharaoh’s own wounded cry as he lurched forward, tears in his eyes as the two parts of the trading card were blown into the desert.

“Just kidding! I lied. This was a regular card. It was a joke.” He laughed.

Ryou’s head snapped up in shock and then his hands balled into fists. How dare he. How dare that little creep. Yugi’s soul was not a game! Again, Ryou’s hand gripped the front of his shirt, and in that moment he wished he still had the ring, wished he still had the spirit‘s overbearing presence hovering over his shoulder, demanding him to pay his rent by doing to Haga what he did to his friends back at his last school.

“Prepare yourself, you bug!“ The overpowering rage in the Pharaoh’s voice cut through both Ryou and Haga as he drew his next card. “I activate Breaker the Magical Warrior’s effect! Mana break! By removing a spell counter, breaker the magical warrior destroys a spell or trap card! Destroy insect barrier, breaker the magical warrior!”

The hologram of the magic card shattered into fragments and Haga was suddenly on the back foot, facing down an enraged spirit who was overflowing with shadow magic and did not have his other half to pull in the reins for what happened next.

”This effect can only be used once per spell counter. After activating this effect, breaker loses its spell counter and 300 attack points. But I can use the poison butterfly you gave me to attack you! Here I go, you bug! Poison butterfly attacks armored centipede!” Haga’s last line of defense was squashed and he staggered back, feeling the blow that could not be physically possible from a mere hologram. ”I’m not done! Breaker the magical warrior attacks you directly!“

The attack hit Haga head on, and despite his agonising screams the short boy still had lifepoints to spare. It was a good counter strategy, but the moment Haga started his next draw phase the pharaoh would automatically lose 500 life points from having poison butterfly on his side of the field, ending the duel. Ryou knew this and Haga knew it too, the latter of which not wasting any time gloating over his sudden victory.

“You’re mistaken. My battle phase isn’t over yet!“ hissed the pharaoh with a silent venom that sent shivers running down Ryou’s spine.

“Nonsense! All your monsters have finished attacking!”

“I activate the quick-pay spell, berseker soul!” Ryou gasped, understanding what the spirit was attempting to do , and if his luck was right he could still win the duel this turn. “I discard my entire hand to activate its effect. I can keep drawing and discarding from my deck until I draw a non-monster card. Everytime I discard, my monster with 1500 or lower attack points can attack again!”

Haga froze at the effect and he, like Ryou, must have figured out the pharaoh had been setting this up from the beginning. Using Breaker the Magical Warrior’s ability to destroy a magic card on Haga’s side of the field, and purposely lowering its attack points so it could be used in combination with Berserker Soul to allow the pharaoh to attack multiple times in one turn.

“I draw my first card!” Ryou held his breath. “It‘s a monster card! I discard queen’s knight! Breaker the magical warrior can attack again!”

Haga let out a piercing scream as the blast hit him again.

“I draw my second card! It's a monster card!”

Ryou smiled, two monster cards! Haga’s life points are now at zero!

“The third card! It’s a monster card! I draw a monster card! I draw a monster card! I draw a monster card!-“

Ryou stumbled to his feet and ran to the front carriage as Haga continued to scream with each automatic attack triggered by the pharaoh’s spell card. What was the pharaoh doing? He already won, the duel was over! This was just cruelty for the sake of cruelty. How was he even drawing this many monster cards? It was mathematically improbable.

Only when he was up the ladder again could Ryou taste the overwhelming power of shadow magic emitting of the millennium puzzle, and in that moment he figured out how the spirit was drawing so many monster cards without even looking. The special power of the millennium puzzle allowed the user to control the probability of fate if their will was strong enough.

“Spirit! Stop it!” He cried uselessly, grabbing the pharaoh by the arm even as Haga was attacked again and again, unable to escape within the confines of the seal that was now growing closer around him.

“Let me go!” The pharaoh tried to throw Ryou off him so he could draw another card, but the boy refused to let go, clinging to his elbow for dear life. The pharaoh glared at Ryou with a look of utter detest, and for a moment Ryou was no longer looking at the spirit of the puzzle.

“Please don’t,” he begged.

Something flickered in those manic eyes and the pharaoh was staring at Ryou in horror as he looked frantically from his scared face down to how Ryou was gripping his arm and back up again. ”Yugi…”

The pharaoh slowly turned and spotted the prone form of the unconscious Haga that had long since stopped moving. Feeling Ryou’s grip slacken, he slipped free and stumbled over to the unconscious insect duelist, grabbing him by the collar and shaking him violently.

“Haga I won! You promised! Where's my partner! Tell me! You promised! Where is he? Answer me! Haga!”

“Spirit,” Ryou said calmly even as tears spilled from his eyes. “Haga never intended to tell us where Yugi’s soul was if you won. The moment you did win he lost his soul.”

This did nothing to calm the spirit down, who threw the boy’s empty vessel aside and repeated his partner's name over and over like a mantra. The sight was unsettling and Ryou was too scared to approach. He had never known the pharaoh to be anything less than composed and coof under pressure. Sure, he could be prideful and even a bit cocky when the situation was right, but never this, angry and vengeful and lashing out at anyone who so much as provoked him.

The train lurched as they headed towards a curve on the tracks that they were going too fast for the angle needed. The entire train fell under Ryou’s feet and he felt himself flying through the air. Even as the ground came rushing towards him, Ryou had plenty of time to see his mother and sister in the car moments before they drove away, his father going away on another trip as he left the empty apartment, the spirit of the millennium ring standing in front of him, arms stretched out to the heavens as he was consumed by an all consuming light.

“You said you would never leave me…”

.

…

...ou…

…re…yo…al…ht

…an…ou…he…me

Ryou…wake…up

He slowly regained consciousness with a heavy groan, his head pounding and a blood vessel behind his eye throbbing with every pulse. His neck was also stiff and it hurt to get his elbows underneath him to push himself up. A gentle arm wrapped around his shoulders and pulled him up into a sitting position. Ryou gratefully collapsed against the chest cradling him. His vision was blurry but he didn’t need to see who it was. He could recognize the other half of his soul anywhere, gravity pulling them into each other's orbit, wanting to be made whole again. He should be angry at the spirit for taking his body on another joyride and utterly wrecking him, but he was just so happy to know the spirit of the millennium ring found his way back to him. He always did.

”Spirit…you’re here.” he sighed and leaned into the hand cradling the back of his head.

“Try not to move, we’re lucky to be alive” the pharaoh whispered.

Ryou’s eyes shot open. He shoved the pharaoh away and in his haste to escape, the ceiling tilted and he collapsed back onto a bed of fine furs and linen. Hands were on him again but Ryou was too disorientated to try and slap them away as he was rolled back onto the bedspread proper and a pillow placed beneath his head.

”Careful you might have a concussion,” the spirit’s face came into view above him. Ryou never noticed the pharaoh’s eyes had a reddish hue to them. It reminded him of the eyes that stared back at him in the mirror, but where those were the subtle shade of a clotted scab wound, these were the shade of a fresh purple bruise. It was strangely comforting.

“I’m ok,” he lied as the pharaoh inspected his eyes for something. Maybe he too was desperately looking for something in the mirror.

A warm hand cupped his face and Ryou sighed when a thumb gently stroked his cheek. As the hands moved, gently checking face, neck and head for any injuries, Ryou stared up at a tarp-covered ceiling that looked nothing like the interior of his soul room. He silently took in the rest of the space, which was circular in design and decorated with beautifully carved handmade chairs and colourful woven rugs that had a distinct native American pattern to them.

”Where are we?” He asked when the Pharaoh finally stopped poking him. “How long have we been out?”

”I don’t know, I only just woke up myself,” the pharaoh explained, sitting in a tangle of quilts and throws that made up their beds. Considering they both somehow managed to survive a several hundred foot drop off a speeding train, he was surprisingly in good health.

Ryou made another attempt to sit up and let the pharaoh support him this time. Amazingly, he was in much better shape than the time he had been brutally stabbed, although maybe that was just the head injury suppressing the full extent of the damage. The pharaoh moved to get up when the front flap of the tipi was pulled back, filling the space with a warm midday glow. Then, a wolf forced its way into the tent and Ryou screamed as it pounced, landing on top of him with its giant paws on his chest, pinning him to the bedspread and shoving its snarling snout in his face. The pharaoh let out a cry and looked like he was actually going to tackle the wolf, when its tongue dragged across Ryou’s face and the boy laughed.

The pharaoh sat dumbstruck as a fully grown grey wolf lapped at his friend’s face, causing the boy to laugh uncontrollably as he was being tickled. Sensing movement, the pharaoh tore his gaze away from the bewildering sight and spotted a young girl who had entered into their space and was smiling at him.

“Hi, I’m Chris and this is Sunny,” she greeted them in a friendly manner. ”It’s a miracle you weren’t killed by that fall.”

The small child somehow managed to convince the wolf (Sunny) to get off of Ryou and then explained to them, she and her grandfather found them lying unconscious at the bottom of a ravine while out foraging and brought them back to their camp for rest. Both boys found it very unlikely that they survived such an impossible feat without so much as a broken bone, but they were hardly going to question their good fortune when they still had to find their friends. They got out of bed and pulled on their shoes and jackets, which also had no wear or tear despite the amount of foliage and sharp rocks they surely must have rolled through on the way down. Once outside, Chris guided them along the river bank where they spotted an elderly gentleman with a hiking stick picking up stray duel cards littered across the ground.

“You’re awake,” he said upon seeing them out and about.

”Who are you?“ the pharaoh asked cautiously.

“My name is Ironheart. I'm the guardian of this valley. I believe this belongs to you.“ he said, passing Yugi his deck of cards which also miraculously looked undamaged. “You have a very unique card.“

“I can’t use this anymore,” the pharaoh said, frowning at the Eye of Tamiaeus before handing it back to the old man. Ryou wanted to object to him casually discarding such a powerful card, but understood that the legendary dragon had refused to come to the pharaoh’s aid twice now since playing the orichalcos, and might never work for him again.

“Then I'll hold it for you.“ Ironheart said and pocketed the card.

“Where’s Haga?” Ryou finally asked. “Did you see a boy with glasses and a bobbed haircut near where you found us?”

Why he was so worried about Haga was anybody’s guess, but despite what the boy did to them, Ryou didn’t feel right leaving his soulless body out in the wilderness if he could help it.

”I took him to a town below the hill,” Ironheart gestured down the river to a town far off in the distance. “Unlike you he was as cold as the dead. As if his soul was taken.”

Then why didn’t you take all of us to the hospital in town? Ryou wanted to say, his suspicions only growing by Ironheart’s deliberate tone, making it clear he was hinting something to them about Haga’s current state, and it put Ryou on edge.

“His soul was taken,” The pharaoh admitted freely. “It’s my fault. Due to the darkness in my heart.”

“It was his own fault,” Ryou told him firmly. “He was trying to take your soul using the darkness in his own heart.”

Ironheart frowned and Ryou was not sure if he trusted this strange man. He clearly knew more than he was letting on but the pharaoh was too distracted with self-pity to pay attention to the obvious red flags (or maybe he just didn’t care anymore).

“Long time ago, earth and men were one under love and wisdom. Kindness and goodwill filled the earth, and no man was lonely. Times have changed. There’s a terrible loneliness within you.“

”I lost my irreplaceable partner. I'm on a journey to find his soul.”

Ryou flinched, feeling a jab in his heart at the statement.

“What will you do when you find him?

“I don’t know. I just want to apologize."

“Then follow me.“ Ionheart turned around and started walking.

Chris and Sunny trotted along beside him and Ryou gave the pharaoh an uncertain look, but he seemed unconcerned about these strange people and willingly followed them. With no other choice, Ryou begrudgingly put one foot in front of the other, fearing where they would end up. They hiked up a hill within the valley and walked single file across a narrow pathway. At one point Ryou’s foot slipped and he would have tumbled all the way to his death if the pharaoh’s lightning duelling reflexes had not caught him by the arm at the last second and hauled him back up.

”Thanks,” Ryou said, hugging the rock wall, but the pharaoh did not respond after that. Satisfied that Ryou was no longer in physical danger, the pharaoh retreated back into himself again and shuffled after Ironheart, like a dead man walking the last mile.

Ryou was tempted to throw himself off the side again, if only to get a reaction out of the spirit. It was starting to infuriate him how lifeless his friend was behaving, especially since they didn’t know if these two were secretly working for Doma and leading them into yet another trap.

“Fragments of a soul dwell in many things. In trees and flowers he touched, in the ground he tread upon.“ Ironheart said, as if quoting something that should have been familiar to them. “They say the world’s souls gather at the rock wasteland.”

”The rock wasteland?” Ryou parroted.

“Including my partner’s soul?” the pharaoh asked at the same time, but Ironheart ignored them both.

“But there’s also evil spirits. Once you enter, there’s no guarantee you’ll return alive. Will you still go?”

Ryou’s heart caught in his throat. Evil spirits?

"I want to see my partner,“ said the pharaoh under his breath with a sense of finality, and Ryou silently shared that sentiment.

They climbed the last leg of the journey and after pulling himself up over the ledge, Ryou saw a sharp drop below them where the surrounding rockface curved inward to a flat circle at the bottom that had grooves carved into the ground in deliberate patterns. This is the rock wasteland? What were they even looking at exactly? It appeared to be some kind of summoning circle, and if Ryou closed his eyes he could almost sense something dark and foreboding reaching out to him, calling to the light inside of him.

“The centre of the rock wasteland is where your heart will be shown,” Ironheart explained, gesturing to the innermost circle with his staff.

“I can meet my partner there?” The pharaoh said with no fear as he took a step forward.

“Yes“

Not needing any further persuasion, the pharaoh leapt off the edge, skidding down the steep hill towards the rock wasteland below. Ryou was not too far behind him when Chris cried out for him to stop.

“I need to go down there,” Ryou said, a lump forming in his throat.

”Beyond this point is a den of evil spirits,” Ironheart told him firmly. ”You can’t return unless you have an iron will,”

“That’s why I need to go!” Ryou said and took off, sliding down the slope and nearly twisting his ankle as he landed on unsteady feet at the bottom of the cliff.

Coldness circled his legs and Ryou could practically feel the unrest of the dead as they brushed against the warmth of the living. He pushed forward, spotting the pharaoh entering the outer perimeter and being ambushed by angry spirits that took on physical form. Ryou’s hand unconsciously reached for his chest again, his flickering gaze darting between each translucent body, seeing familiar faces from the past and new faces he never met, but not the one face he desperately wished to see.

Where was he?

Then, in the centre of the circle, a familiar form manifested itself in front of the pharaoh. The air was punched from his sails and Ryou nearly collapsed to his knees. It was Yugi. Yugi was actually here, alive and unharmed. He would have run to hug the shorter boy, but there was something wrong, something in those eyes he had never known could even exist. Yugi was speaking so rudely to the pharaoh, with such hatred in his heart that didn’t belong there. Ryou moved closer, foot almost stepping inside the confines of the first circle, when those purple eyes shot a venomous look his way and Ryou froze under the piercing glare. A tightness gripped his heart. He suddenly felt ashamed and dirty in a way he couldn’t explain. Hand still fisting the front of his top, his free hand clasped over his mouth as he tried not to think about what nearly transpired on the train in the viewing car. But his movements seemed to confirm what Yugi somehow already knew, and he felt like a homewrecker facing the wrath of an angry spouse.

How he wished to feel the familiar pain of the ring stabbing into his abdomen.

Yugi dismissed him with a flick of his head like a lowly bug not worth his effort and gave the pharaoh his full attention, summoning a duel disc and challenging his other half. The duel began and Ryou could not enter the circle, understanding this was not his fight and interfering would be disrespecting both of them. He could only watch, a helpless bystander as the pharaoh reluctantly put up a pitiful defense against Yugi’s unrelenting assault of combos and summons. It shouldn’t have been too surprising to see Yugi gaining an early lead, Ryou had seen him play enough times in homeroom to know Yugi was more than worthy of the title of king of games, but he was never so assertive or aggressive in his move sets.

Yugi then revealed his next card and the pharaoh begged him to reconsider even though it was already too late to stop the summoning. The orichalcos was activated and surrounded Yugi in its familiar green light. A shiver ran down Ryou’s spine as the emblem appeared on Yugi’s forehead and his eyes cast an eerie red glow. The pharaoh was now confronted with an ultimatum; win the duel and send Yugi’s soul back to whence it came, or throw the match and take his partner’s place as a sacrifice. It was too cruel, but Yugi was not relenting as he degraded and criticised the actions of his other half. Even going as far to accuse him of being an evil pharaoh in his previous life. Still, the pharaoh was reluctant to fight back even as Yugi was overpowering him with the same strategy he used against Rafael. It was only when Yugi was about to win the duel by sacrificing Dark Magician Girl to deduct her attack points from the pharaoh’s lifepoints, when the pharaoh let out a mournful cry and revealed his facedown card, deflecting the attack and sending it right back.

Yugi smiled.

Ryou covered his eyes, not wishing to see Yugi’s soul taken in the same manner as Haga, but there was no screaming or cursing. Inside the seal, the pharaoh was cradling Yugi in his arms and they were talking so quietly to each other, with Yugi consoling his partner and smiling up at him with a fondness that was so genuine it brought him to tears. Even with his own soul fading Yugi confirmed there was no resentment over what happened and the pharaoh needed to reunite with the others if they were ever going to stop Doma.

Before Yugi vanished, he cast an apologetic glance Ryou's way, and perhaps it was wishful thinking on his part, but Ryou could have sworn there was an understanding between them, a promise Ryou felt duty bound to fulfill and he could only nod back in response.

Both Yugi and the seal vanished and the pharaoh was left alone in the middle of the circle, desperately reaching for the body that was no longer in his arms. It was ironic how the only time Hikari and Yami could physically touch was the moment they were torn from each other.

“He did it for me,” the pharaoh choked out, collapsing on all fours and crying. “He was the courageous one, not me! You’re the true duelist partner!”

Ryou stood silently on the edge of the outer circle, tears in his eyes as felt his own soul cry out for the only person that could make him whole again. He felt uncertain of his place in all this, knowing Yugi gave him permission to be whatever the pharaoh needed him to be, but feeling guilty all the same as there was still one person who did not give him permission to seek comfort with another Yami.

Unable to watch any longer, Ryou was about to enter the outer circle when one of Doma’s monsters manifested itself inside the inner circle and attacked the pharaoh. What happened next was too confusing for him to keep track of, but Ironheart and Chris sacrificed their own lives to return the Eye of Timaeus to the pharaoh, who upon summoning it regained its trust and banished the creature. It was only after the fact did they learn Ironheart and Chris were actually dead spirits from Atlantis who fought alongside the legendary dragons against the evil king ten thousand years ago. Their meeting had not been an accident, and it was by their intervention they survived the fall off the train and were brought to this ancient place so the spirit could learn what needed to be learned.

“Ryou, it's time we left.”

Ryou however did not move, staring defiantly at the edge of the circle that the pharaoh had narrowly escaped from after two gruelling duels.

”He wasn’t there…”

”Who wasn’t there?”

”If I go…” Ryou said, licking his dried lips. “If I go inside he might show up for me,”

”No Ryou, it's too dangerous.” The pharaoh positioned himself between Ryou and the rock wasteland. “We need to look for our friends.”

“Please move aside. I have to see if he’s waiting for me.”

The pharaoh caught Ryou by the shoulders and refused to let him pass. ”There’s nothing for you in there. He’s gone, Ryou. The ring is lost. It’s gone.”

”You stole it!” Ryou screamed, taking the pharaoh back. “Don’t deny it. I know you have it. Marik gave it to you with the rest of the items after Battle City. I didn’t say anything at the time because I knew it was the right thing to do but…you never told me you had it.”

The pharaoh blinked. ”Ryou the ring has caused you nothing but pain since it came into your possession. Why would you want it back? You’re finally free of him.”

”You think I don’t know that?” He cried out with resentment. “What he did to my friends, what he tried to do to you…what he did to me,” The pharaoh’s eyes flickered to Ryou’s hand where the faint line of a silver scar still remained. ”He was cruel, he used my body and the bastard never had courtesy to make sure we ate something before running off.”

The amount of times Ryou woke up only to feel famished and gorge himself on food was so frequent, it was no wonder his friends thought he was secretly a glutton.

”But he was mine…” Tears he did not know he had room for spilled from the corners of his eyes. “He was mine…Just like Yugi is yours…I don’t know what it means to be chosen as the ring bearer and that scares me sometimes. I’m scared one of these days he’s going to hurt you and it’ll be my fault. But even when I fight him and get away from him…I just want him back.”

Ryou cried. He cried for the emptiness in his soul he had been carrying this past week, he cried for the shame of wanting the spirit back, and he cried because being with the pharaoh soothed his soul. He knew how selfish that made him, moving in on his friend’s Yami when he hadn’t even been gone for 24 hours, taking advantage of the pharaoh’s fragile state just so he could feel that connection again. What type of horrible person does that? Maybe he really was made for the ring, the spirit wouldn’t think twice about taking something he wanted.

Strong arms pulled him into a hug and Ryou cried into the pharaoh’s shoulder. The shorter man shushed him gently and ran his fingers through his knotted hair as Ryou clung to the back of the spirit’s t-shirt.

”I’m so sorry Ryou,” the pharaoh whispered into hair. “I’ve been thinking about only myself when you’ve been carrying this same burden since we got home.”

The unspoken “but I can’t give the ring back to you” was left hanging over them.

“I just want to feel whole again,” he sobbed and the pharaoh stroked his back. “I can’t explain it. You’re not him, but when I’m with you it's like…”

”It’s like he’s still here,” the pharaoh finished.

Two torn souls, two empty halves, two puzzle pieces that did not quite line up, but they were close enough in shape you could force them together and pretend for just a moment they fit perfectly.

“I wish there was enough room in me for the both of you,” the pharaoh said, cupping Ryou’s cheek and wiping the tears away. “I do care about you Ryou, and not just because of this force pulling use together. You’ve been patient with me ever since I got back, non judgemental of all my flaws, and I will always cherish you as my friend.”

Ryou smiled. Not “Yugi’s friend” but “my friend”.

”How could I ever judge you,” he sniffled. “You never once judged me for all the times I took back the ring.”

The pharaoh chuckled and tucked a stray hair behind Ryou’s ear. Ryou let out a nervous giggle and tried to turn his face away, but the spirit was having none of it, tilting Ryou’s chin up and gazing into his eyes like he finally found what he was looking for.

”We shouldn’t,” he said even as their faces were only inches apart.

Ryou ran his hands down the spirit’s shoulder blades to his lithe waist and pulled their bodies closer together. The pharaoh dipped him ever so slightly and a hand snaked its way to the back of his head. The tiny hairs on his neck stood on end as a chill ran down his spine and at some point their eyes closed and their lips parted.

The pharaoh angled his head ever so slightly and leaned in for a kiss, when a stab of pain burst through his temple and he staggered back. Eyes flying open, the pharaoh was no longer standing in the desert but in the familiar twisted corridors of his own mind, and where Ryou had just been standing was now occupied by a familiar shadow that should not be here. Made up of sharp edges and righteous fury, blood red eyes burned into his very core and the pharaoh unconsciously clasped the millennium puzzle in his shaking hands.

'Mine!' The spirit of the millennium ring cursed in his mind. 'That boy was made for me. You can’t have him!'

”Spirit?” Ryou said and the endless staircases vanished. “Is something wrong?”

Doubled over, the pharaoh could only pant as sweat dripped from his brow and the ringing in his ear piercing his skull. His hands fumbled with the puzzle, thumb unconscious stroking along the interlocking groves. Had that been real?

“I’m fine,” the pharaoh gasped, wiping the sweat from his face. “Did you…see anything just now?”

”Like what?” the boy asked with a tilt of his head.

The pharaoh looked Ryou up and down, anticipating the moment when those wide brown eyes would harden with evil intention, the once soft curves would turn into sharp angles and the golden ring would materialise around his neck, but it never happened.

”It's nothing,” The pharaoh said, rising to full height. “Come on, it's time we got moving.”

Without another word the two walked back the way they came, making the long trek back down the valley and finding the train tracks that would lead them to the others. They never talked about what nearly happened back there, instead choosing to pretend everything had been one long jetlag sunstroke induced fever dream. It was a silent relief for both of them when they reunited with the others and got back to taking down Doma and rescuing their friend. They made a silent vow to never be left alone in the same room together and their friends had been none the wiser. Not wanting to let Yugi down though, Ryou stayed loyally by his side until the very end when all their souls had been captured by Dartz and everything went black.

===

"It’s Yugi!” Everyone crawled over each other to get out of Kaiba’s tandem rotor helicopter first.

Ryou hung back, tears in his eyes as he watched their friends hug and cry over seeing Yugi returned to them safe and sound. Jonouchi was suffocating the poor boy, Anzu was an emotional wreck, and Honda was trying to come across as stoic and cool, and failing miserably. It was the perfect ending to a hard won journey and Ryou wanted to capture the moment for as long as possible, maybe he could immortalise it in the form of another diorama?

Finally, those wide magenta eyes turned to him and shame filled Ryou’s cheeks as he lowered his gaze to the floor and rubbed his arm. He had been so overcome with emotion he completely forgot the pharaoh probably already told Yugi everything that happened after he was kidnapped. The two weren’t exactly known for keeping secrets from each other. What if he was angry?

A body collided with his own and Ryou nearly fell over when two short arms wrapped around his middle.

“I’m so glad you're all ok,” Yugi said, smiling up at Ryou with unconditional love and trust that he did not deserve.

“I’m just glad you’re back,” Ryou said, returning the hug and burying his face in Yugi’s soft spikes.

”The pharaoh told me what happened,” Yugi said and Ryou tensed. “Thank you for being there for him. I know it wasn’t easy for you either.”

”I didn’t do anything,” he said, pulling away. And it was true the pharaoh saved himself. “You should know he never stopped worrying about you for a moment.”

Yugi stared up at Ryou with a tender look in his eyes, containing a silent wisdom that Ryou found hard to look into.

”Why don’t you come over to the Kame Shop when we get home? We haven’t hung out proper in ages.”

Not since Battle City when everything went topsy turvy and Ryou feared going anywhere near the shop, knowing the millennium ring was stored away somewhere in Yugi’s room along with the rod and necklace. It was too much temptation for him to bare.

”Why don’t we have a session over to my place instead?” Ryou offered as a compromise. “I’ve actually been writing a new campaign I think everyone might enjoy.”

Yugi beamed at the suggestion. “That’s a brilliant idea. We haven’t been over to your apartment in ages. Maybe I can make two character sheets so the other me can play too.”

”I’d like that…”

This time Kaiba actually did give them a lift (with one small caveat that was thankfully slightly less eventful than saving the world) and the five teens finally returned to their normal lives back in Domino, where they had a lot of homework to catch up on and applying for part time jobs to payback every yen they owed Anzu. Yugi was true to his word of wanting to come over and play Monster World together again as a group. Yugi and the pharaoh really did coordinate their turns so each one got to play a character and Ryou was secretly proud of the figurine he made for the spirit at such short notice and he blushed when the pharaoh complimented his work. it was easily one of the best sessions of his life.

Getting into a regular routine, Ryou found it easier to ignore the gaping hole in his heart as long as he filled it with small things that brought him joy. Maybe he would never feel whole again, but he still had to keep moving.

'And where do you think you're going?' A voice whispered in his ear.

Ryou stopped dead in the streets and slowly turned around.

-End-