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Chapter Text

Childhood crushes very rarely last, but with the onset of puberty, Yugi's crush on Anzu has only intensified.

It leaves him with a dilemma: Anzu has been his friend since they were six, and right now she is his only friend. If he does ask her to be his girlfriend and she rejects him, it could not only ruin their friendship, but leave him with no friends at all!

He does not know what he should do...

He has already made one botched attempt at asking her out, and thinks it would be foolish to try again.

His botched attempt was while they were walking home from school the other day. It was a nice, warm, sunny day and they stopped to get ice cream. Anzu was laughing and smiling at a stupid joke he made and her laughter made him feel very happy indeed. The way the late afternoon sun was highlighting her hair, the softness of her skin and the cute way her full, pink lips curved into a pretty smile made his chest swell with love and his heart beat a little faster. He just had to let her know how he felt about her.

But the words that actually came out of his mouth were lame. "I like you, Anzu."

Her reply, "I like you, too, Yugi," was said in a fond but big sisterly sort of way, and Yugi was a little crestfallen; he should have known she only saw him as a friend, and did not consider him as boyfriend material. She likes the athletic older guys – all the girls do.

He feels like an idiot. He's just a nerdy little guy who likes playing games; there's absolutely no way a girl like Anzu would date a boy like him, who's slow (very slow) transition into manhood is barely noticeable. And what makes his situation even more frustrating, is that until recently she was the same height as him!

Yugi tries not to let it get to him, but it's difficult not to when he's only shoulder height to the girl he lusts after.

So he does what he thinks is the best way to preserve their friendship, and tries to bury his feelings for her.

But it is not easy. Not when she gets close enough that their bodies to touch. A simple touch is all it takes to send his pulse rate soaring and make his face turn red. He knows she probably thinks he's being a pervert, but although he often receives a perplexed glare, she never hits him like she does the other boys who perv on her, nor does she say anything unkind.

He hopes that this is because she is secretly turned on by him but is just too embarrassed to mention it – he can but dream.

And so, as they move up to their first year in High School, he continues to worship her from afar, and looks forward to the day when his growth spurt finally arrives and she falls hopelessly in love with him.

Unfortunately for Yugi, their move up to high school does not get off to the best of starts. As one of the smaller boys, he's soon being subjected to something he's never really had cause to worry about previously –bullying.

Before the bullying, he was not a particularly timid boy. A little bit shy, yes, but not timid. He also had plenty of friends, and enjoyed having fun playing games with them. He would say he got on well with his peers.

Now, however, those same children who played games with him in elementary and early grade school are ignoring him, or laughing at him for still playing games they now refer to as 'childish'.

Isolated and alone, Yugi begins to shrink inside himself and play his games alone, attracting further teasing.

When the bullying becomes too bad, it's Anzu who jumps in to defend him. Being defended by a girl is not only embarrassing, it is also emasculating, especially when the girl protecting him is someone he has fantasies about. It will be a miracle if she ever falls in love with him after this!

"You don't need to keep protecting me," he grumbles testily, after Anzu shows up in the nick of time to stop a couple of girls and a boy from pulling his trousers down to expose him for everyone to laugh at.

Following Anzu's well aimed kick, the boy trying to degrade him is left rolling on the ground, groaning and crying, clutching his groin and questioning his own manhood. The girls who were egging him on are now laughing at him for howling like a baby.

However, Anzu's patience with Yugi is wearing thin. "You could at least be grateful, Yugi!" Hadn't she just saved him from having his (probably tiny) man bits exposed for half the year group to see?!

Scowling, Yugi spends the rest of the break sulking. He wants to fight back against the bullies, he really does, but it is not worth it, not when the kids picking on him are all several inches taller and pack more strength than him. If they wanted to hurt him badly they could. So the best thing he can do is try and make himself as invisible as possible, in the hope they will pick on someone else and leave him alone. It works some of the time, but not all of the time, and increasingly he finds himself spending his days trying to avoid those he knows are likely to pick on him.

Chapter Text

A week or so after the failed attempt to debag him in the playground, Anzu finds Yugi sitting alone in the classroom during break. "What are you doing in here?" she asks, worried –she's been needing to look out for him more often lately, and has even considered telling his mother what her son has been going through, but is cautious not to betray him because she knows he is hiding the bullying from his family.

Shrugging, he offers her a sheepish half smile. "I brought a game in, but no one wants to play with me."

Not wanting to humiliate him by saying it's because the game he brought in is babyish, she winks at him, which sends his pulse rate soaring. "Everyone's into basket ball at the moment. I think you'll find they're not interested in other games," she tells him.

"But it's raining!" he says by way of an excuse, blushing and cringing when it occurs to him that it's her polite way of saying he should be outgrowing these type of games by now. Sadly, he isn't.

"Since it's wet, they're in the sports hall," she explains. "Why don't we go and support our class?"

He shakes his head and says, "Nah… I don't really like basketball." It's a game made for tall people, not squirts like him. Last time he joined in they kept throwing the ball over his head and laughing at his attempts to try and reach it.

"Okay! Well, I guess since no one else will play your game with you, I will." Yugi's eyes light up at that.

"You will?! Awesome!" he blurts excitedly, making her smile fondly at him. She feels a lot of fondness towards her Yugi, but can't see that fondness ever being more than just friendship. Her dreams involve dating a sporting superhero, not a boy who acts like a little kid.

"You know, you really do need to stand up for yourself more, Yugi," she says casually, spotting a graze on his hand from where he has probably been pushed over. She's fed up with keep telling him.

Instinctively, he pulls his cuff over his hand. He knows he should fight back, of course he does, but has lost all confidence in himself. "What's the point when I've nothing to fight back with?" He sags as he speaks, and somehow manages to look even smaller than he already is.

"That's a ridiculous thing to say, Yugi." He can tell she is irritable with him. How much longer will she want to be friends with such an unpopular boy?

His fears are soon confirmed when she stops walking to and from school with him every day. She tells him it is because she is taking extra dance classes, and Yugi believes her. However it does leave more openings for his bullies, the worst of whom are Katsuya Jonouchi and Hiroto Honda.

Today it is just Honda, and as Yugi rounds the corner and crosses over, he sees Honda waiting for him outside the general store. Yugi needs to pass that way to get home, and knows exactly what Honda wants. It happens whenever the latest edition of Sexy Girl magazine is out. Honda could easily go in and buy it himself, but for some reason takes great delight in making Yugi buy it for him. Maybe it's because he gets a thrill from seeing Yugi squirming with shame, as he bashfully asks the retail assistant (sometimes a young woman) to reach up and get it from the top shelf for him because he cannot reach. As if that is not bad enough, his humiliation is usually further compounded when he's asked to produce identification to prove he's old enough to buy it!

The most embarrassing experience was two weeks ago, when a middle aged female assistant tutted and gave him a lecture; she apparently knew his mother, and was horrified to discover that Hana Muto's son is growing up a pervert.

Mortified, Yugi was absolutely terrified she will tell his mother.

Honda nearly split his sides laughing.

The rest of that week was spent worrying his mother will tell him off and ground him for the next month. Thankfully, that did not happen. He concluded that it was probably because she is relieved to find out her son has some normal teenage boy interests after all.

Realising Honda has spotted him walking towards him, Yugi sighs, and resigns himself to his fate.

Chapter Text

Loneliness is a horrible thing. By nature, Yugi is a sociable sort of chap, who is generally happy and optimistic. The thing he loves doing the most is having friends round to play games with. But lately he has no friends, and he is fed up with it.

Every day, he goes to school hoping for something nice and fun to happen, but it never does. It's always the same: Jonouchi steals his lunch and calls him names, and at break times he feels left out.

Sometimes the other kids do try and ask him if he wants to come outside to play basketball, or kick a ball about, but he always declines – he is rubbish at those sort of games anyway, and he knows they only ask him so that they can laugh at his efforts.

The other day, thanks to Anzu's insistence, he did make the effort, and went outside to watch the game and get some fresh air. What he witnessed, was a wimpy kid called Hanasaki being ridiculed. They stole Hanasaki's glasses, so that he could not see what he was doing, and they laughed at him mercilessly for blindly staggering about trying to catch the ball. They bounced it in front of him and laughed when he tried to grope for it. They then threw it at his face, knocking him to the ground and making him cry. No one tried to help him, and onlookers mocked him and called him weak.

Watching the torment made Yugi wince.

In the end it was Anzu who finally marched onto the court and rescued Hanasaki from the bullies. As she handed the small, pale boy his glasses, which were bent and had cracks in the lenses, the bullies jeered at her. The apparent ringleader asked her if she had a thing for drippy little guys, and then made sexist remarks and lewd comments about her liking small penises. However, the not so brave bully put his hands up and flinched backwards in fear, when Anzu rounded on him and threatened him. Meanwhile, Hanasaki fled to safety.

Anzu is so feisty and plucky, and Yugi is very impressed with the way she made a stand against the bully. However, Yugi knows he should have helped, and is ashamed of himself for standing back and watching while Anzu dealt with it.

But what could he have done, when secretly he's relieved it was Hanasaki who was being bullied and not him?

It is actually quite reassuring to know that Hanasaki is an even wimpier kid than he is!

:

During this difficult time, Yugi makes a concerted effort to solve the Millennium Puzzle. It is super hard and he has been trying to complete it since he was eight.

Although he is getting better at it, and the way it fits together is starting to make more sense, he still cannot not understand why it's so difficult; he has always been good at puzzles, but this one does not want to be solved. He is convinced that something is preventing him from doing so.

Grandpa laughs when he complains about it. "That's because it's magic, Yugi. Lesser men have died or gone mad trying!" To which Yugi rolls his eyes and whines in frustration.

"There's no such thing as magic, Grandpa!" He would love to believe there is, but it's kind of difficult to imagine there is such a thing. If there was he would use it to punish his bullies, and make himself more appealing to Anzu.

"Ah! But if you're sceptical you will never solve the Millennium Puzzle!" his grandfather says, chastising him slightly.

"So, you're saying, if I believe, then I will solve the Puzzle?"

Grandpa Muto claps his hands together. "Exactly!" He has never told Yugi that the spirit said to reside inside the Millennium Puzzle saved his life the day he entered the tomb, in search of a golden box said to contain what was rumoured to be pieces of a golden treasure.

From the night Sugoroku Muto first heard rumours of its existence while drinking in a backstreet bar in Cairo, he had been obsessed with being the first to successfully solve the riddles posed by the Shadow Games and find it.

The treasure itself was calling out to him!

He was the one! The chosen one.

He had to be!

Of course, later on he came to realise that he was not the chosen one, but was instead its custodian, until the true chosen one appeared.

The day his son and daughter-in-law presented him with his baby grandson and he held the small bundle in his arms, he knew Yugi was the chosen one.

However, he was afraid of what this might mean for his precious grandson, so he hid it on a high shelf, out of reach of small hands, in the hope that he was wrong and the prophecies foretold on the box in which the pieces were contained might never be able to come to pass.

But, inevitably, like a moth to a flame, the inquisitive eight year old found it, covered in dust behind some old games.

At first, Sugoroku was nervous about allowing his beloved grandson to handle the pieces of such a dangerous object; proven to be imbued with ferocious dark forces, that had sent grown men insane, even causing some to internally combust.

But after watching Yugi lovingly holding the golden pieces in his hands and trying to fit them in place, he began to realise that the Puzzle had accepted Yugi and was not going to harm in in any way.

Sugoroku believed then, and still believes today, that his grandson is the chosen one. And even after eight years, he still thinks Yugi will succeed in assembling it one day.

And that day will be soon.

Chapter Text

Proudly wearing his Millennium Puzzle, Yugi goes to school.

After having such a really awful day yesterday, which ended with Ushio beating the crap out of Honda and Jonouchi, and then beating the crap out of him, last night, Yugi somehow managed to fully assemble the Puzzle.

After that, the rest of the night had been a bit weird –he doesn't even remember going to bed!

This morning, he is exhausted; not only is he stiff and sore from the beating he received yesterday, but sleep deprived too.

He also has a backpack full of money, which Grandpa gave him to pay off Ushio. The strangest thing though, is that the money looks like it has been stabbed with a knife! It certainly was not like that when Grandpa put it in his bag, so how did it happen?!

Entering through the school gates, even stranger is the sight of Ushio sitting deliriously under a tree, playing in leaves and trash; he's oblivious to the jeers and laughter of all the onlookers, as he merrily coos and lusts over what he thinks is money.

Oh, well, who is Yugi to question it? Especially if it means he gets to keep all the money Grandpa gave him!

Thinking that the weirdness is over for today, Yugi bumps into Jonouchi on the way to class. He's expecting some abuse, but Jonouchi is acting strangely and mutters something about 'what you can show but can't see,' before blurting, 'Friendship!' and then running away looking embarrassed, and leaving one of his indoor shoes behind.

Shaking his head in bemusement, Yugi takes Jonouchi's shoe with him and enters the classroom, where he greets Anzu with a friendly, "Hey, Anzu!"

He places Jonouchi's indoor shoe on Jonouchi's chair.

Anzu doesn't mention the shoe, because she's extremely excitable about something else. "Did you see Ushio?! They're saying he's gone insane!" She is unable to stifle her mirth. "He thinks rubbish is money!" She giggles again, and Yugi smiles at her fondly – she's cute when she giggles.

Just as Yugi begins to tell her that he did see Ushio, Anzu gasps and her hands fly to her face. "Oh My God! Is that…? Oh, wow! It is!" She's pointing at him.

At first, Yugi is wondering what the heck she's going on about, and then it strikes him. "Oh! This?!" He grins, lovingly cupping the golden pendant in his hands. "I completed it last night."

Hesitantly moving closer, Anzu slowly reaches her hand towards his pendant, but pauses short of touching it. "Can I?"

"Sure!" Yugi proudly holds it out for her, and blushes as she gently caresses the engraved eye with her fingertips. She's blushing too, and is in awe.

"It's beautiful!" she purrs. And then she has a worrying thought. "Are you okay? I mean, you're still you, aren't you?" He had told her all sorts of tales about whoever solves the Puzzle gaining dark, magical powers, or something like that.

Shrugging, Yugi looks at her and laughs. "I'm still me."

"Nothing strange? No horns growing on your head, or cloven hooves?" Anzu eyes him carefully. She doubts she would be able to spot horns among that hair if he did have them!

Chuckling, Yugi pats his head. "No horns! See!" Just to be sure, Anzu pats his head herself.

"Well, you will tell me if you do start to feel strange, won't you?" she says out of concern for her friend.

"Will do," he replies.

Anzu remembers something else he told her, and asks him if he has made his wish? And if so, what is it?

He's definitely not going to tell her what his wish is, but has a sneaking suspicion that his wish for friends is already coming true, if Jonouchi's behaviour in the corridor is anything to go on.

A few minutes later, moments before the bell, said boy comes hurrying into class. He throws a himself into his chair and sits on the shoe he lost earlier. "Ah! I wondered where this went!"

Yugi glances over and catches Jonouchi's eye. Embarrassed, Jonouchi rubs his index finger under his nose and chuckles. "Thanks Yugi!" He waves the shoe and holds up his foot up to reveal a hole in his sock, and then shoves the shoe onto his foot.

Yugi smiles and gives him a slight nod.

Anzu leans over. "Is everything okay, Yugi?"

"Don't tell her, Yugi," Jonouchi says, his face turning red.

Yugi nods and smiles at Anzu. "Yeah… I found Jonouchi's shoe in the corridor."

"Yeah, must ave fallen outta my bag!" the blonde boy says, "Been looking everywhere for it! But my man Yugi found it!"

Yugi feels validated. Jonouchi, the boy who usually calls him pathetic, like a girl, a sissy, a wuss, and roughs him up because he refuses to fight him with his fists, just called him a man.

"Hey! Yugi! You wanna get a burger after school? My treat," offers Jonouchi.

Anzu raises an eyebrow. "Did the school yob just ask you out on a date, Yugi?" She cannot help but giggle.

Jonouchi scowls at her. "Shut it, Mazaki! I ain't talking to you. I'm talking to my new buddy, Yugi."

Given the usual bullying, Yugi is still a little unsure of Jonouchi's motives, so he asks, "Is it okay if Anzu comes too?"

"Er…" Jonouchi gets it. It has always pissed him off no end to see one of the sexiest girls in the school hanging out with one of the drippiest boys. "Yeah, but she buys her own burger." If he observes them together, he might learn what it is Yugi does that attracts her, and put it into practice so that he can attract a pretty girl of his own.

Later that day, Anzu collars Yugi alone. "Seriously, Yugi, please don't get too friendly with Jonouchi. He's bad news."

Yugi shrugs. "He deserves a chance."

"I know, but…" Anzu sighs and shakes her head. "Never mind. But don't say I didn't warn you." She tells herself that, be they good or bad, she needs to let Yugi make his own choices. He's sixteen years old! She can't mother him forever.

"It's okay, Anzu," Yugi says casually, as if putting himself in potential danger doesn't matter. "I know he has a reputation for fighting and violence, but I have a good feeling about this. I think I can trust him." He knows she fears Jonouchi is planning to get him alone outside school and beat him up, but Yugi doesn't think that is his plan and is willing to take the risk for the sake of his potential new friend.

After school, at Yugi's suggestion, they decide to go to the burger bar next to the arcade. That way they can go and play some of the slot machines afterwards. Anzu goes with them, to act as Yugi's bodyguard. She knows she's being overprotective, but Yugi is too trusting, which makes him vulnerable where bullies like Jonouchi are concerned.

As it turns out, she need not have worried, because the two boys, despite being like chalk and cheese, are getting on like a house on fire!

A self proclaimed genius at playing Air Hockey, Jonouchi is mega impressed when Yugi beats him. "Geez, Yug! Are there any games you ain't good at?!"

"Nope!" Yugi grins, and then smirks. "Well, there is one: Basketball!" The trio laugh.

Anzu feels so happy for Yugi, who is in his element and seems to have made a new friend. He seems more confident as well, and has even stopped the nervous stammering. It's a huge relief for her.

Conceding defeat at every game they play, Jonouchi stretches, belches, claims he only keeps losing because his burger and coke are repeating on him, and then announces, "I'm going for a piss!"

Taking advantage of their moment alone, Anzu says to Yugi, "I was wrong about Jonouchi. I mean, he's a bit rough and his language is bad, and… ugh, his eating habits really do leave a lot to be desired! But underneath all that, he's actually a nice guy!"

Yugi smiles at her. "I think he's going to be a good friend," he says cheerfully.

Anzu nudges him playfully. "I just hope his bad language and gross habits don't rub off on you."

"I'll try not to let them," he replies, grinning. If his mother ever heard him belching and swearing, she would thwack him over the head with her wok ladle!

Chapter Text

As the week goes by, Honda is also assimilated into their little friend group.

For obvious reasons, Yugi is hesitant about him at first, but it turns out that Honda is actually a really nice guy – he even apologises to Yugi for all those months he spent making him buy Sexy Girl magazine, and offers to give the ones he has finished with to Yugi to read.

Under Anzu's watchful glare, Yugi decides he will be better off if he politely declines Honda's offer.

"Wise decision, Yugi," Jonouch says with a lewd chuckle, and makes a comment about the pages all being stuck together after Honda's finished with them, which earns ears him a smack on the head, and a, "Don't be so gross," from Anzu.

Smiling, Yugi shakes his head and concludes that between Jonouchi's comment and upsetting Anzu, turning down the magazines was definitely a wise move.

Dirty magazines aside, Anzu tells Yugi that she thinks Honda was only being a moron towards him in the past because he was trying to impress Jonouchi.

Regardless of Honda's reasons for picking on him, Yugi has forgiven both boys for making his life hell previously, because all four of them are now becoming a tight knit group of friends.

Yugi observes with amusement, that Anzu is the one who makes sure they all behave themselves. Woe betide any swearing or sexist behaviour: she's already put Jonouchi in his place this morning after he used a converted broom (Panty Tank) to lift up her skirt – he won't do that again!

As the gang heads to the arcade after school, Yugi watches his three friends having their latest bickering battle, and it makes him smile. Anzu is berating Jonouchi for saying something loud and crude in public, and Jonouchi is protesting his innocence. Honda is laughing at Jonouchi, and now Jonouchi is trying to hit Honda.

For the first time since starting high school, Yugi really feels like he's starting to fit in and make friends, and he thinks it has something to do with the Millennium Puzzle.

He cups the Puzzle in his hands, looks down at it and mutters, "Thank you, Millennium Puzzle." The Puzzle doesn't respond, but he knows there is something going on with it. Nothing bad, he's sure, but….

The one worry he does have is his occasional lapses in memory. It only seems to happen when he or his friends are being threatened by someone, or are in danger, but it is a concern. He has noticed that when he becomes angry and begins to despair, or is filled with hatred and a thirst for revenge, a surge of something powerful rushes through him and he lets himself submit to its power; it's like he is in a dream-like state, and when he wakes up he doesn't remember anything, but somehow the threat has been dealt with.

Occasionally, he's not in even in the same location he was when he blacked out!

The only thing he can conclude, is that he either has a selective memory in order to block out that what he is doing is dangerous, or something is deliberately blocking his memories to protect him.

It's not painful, but can be disorientating. And until he understands what is going on with him, he decides to keep what is happening a secret.

Yugi does not like deceiving his friends like this, but fears they will reject him if they find out he has what he thinks might be a split personality, and there's no way he wants to go back to being lonely.

But he knows he cannot hide whatever is happening to him from them forever, and at some point he will slip up and it will happen in front of them.

And then what will they think of him?

The best he can hope for, is that he figures out what is happening with him before then, so that when he is finally forced into telling them, he can explain it and they will be understanding enough to not reject him as some sort of psycho.

Chapter Text

Yugi has made an enemy. An enemy who is also a formidable opponent.

Until the other day, when Seto Kaiba came into Kame Game and tried to get Grandpa to part with his treasured Blue Eyes White dragon card, Yugi had never even spoken to the tall boy from his class, who is known for sneering down on his fellow classmates.

Yugi is also aware that Seto Kaiba recently took over as the CEO of Kaiba Corp. after the previous CEO fell out of an eleventh floor window. The rumours about how the previous CEO, who was also Kaiba's stepfather, fell from the window sends chills down people's spines, and the students are now even more wary of getting on the wrong side of Seto Kaiba. Yugi is not one to take too much notice of the rumours, but still keeps his distance from him.

Unfortunately, an altercation over Grandpa's Blue Eyes White Dragon card, is about to bring out the absolute worst in Yugi's classmate.

Having taken Grandpa's treasured card to school, Kaiba has spotted Yugi showing it off.

Pretending to be nice, for once, Kaiba engages him in a short conversation and steals the card. He obviously thinks that Yugi is stupid, and has not noticed he has switched it for a badly drawn fake, but Yugi has noticed and, after school, confronts him. Kaiba lashes out at him and denies taking the card.

As a trusting boy, who likes to think that everyone has at least some good in them, Yugi is angry and upset that Kaiba is being be so….violent and nasty towards him, and immediately feels the now familiar push, as his other Self begins to rise to the surface with an intense desire to teach this arrogant thief and bully a lesson.

The next thing Yugi knows, he is walking home with his grandfather's precious card in his pocket.

Little does he know, that having just beaten the reigning World Duel Monsters Champion, he has not only triggered an intense rivalry, but also put himself in peril.

When he goes to school the next day, Yugi is hopeful that he and Seto Kaiba can bury the hatchet and, if they cannot be friends, at least learn to tolerate each other in class. But Seto Kaiba is not at school.

A couple of weeks later, Kaiba has still not been in, and no one seems to know why, but since Kaiba is a filthy rich CEO and has a company to run, the teachers are willing to accept that he can do whatever he likes.

"Don't worry about it, Yugi," Anzu says to him. "I heard that Kaiba Corp. is restructuring, so he's probably just busy."

"Yeah, and the guy's a total douche anyway," adds Jonouchi.

"I suppose," says Yugi. "I just… I don't know…." He has a bad feeling, or maybe it is the Puzzle that has the feeling and he is sensing it from that, but he is sure Kaiba is planning something. "It's just…I don't think he liked me be beating him. I was hoping I could clear the air and make sure there's no hard feelings between us."

Honda nudges him. "Hey! It's only a card game. If he's a bad loser, that's his problem, not yours."

Yugi cheers up. "Thanks Honda, you're right. I should stop stressing."

What none of them yet know is that Seto Kaiba is planning the ultimate revenge against Yugi, and the reason he has not been coming to school is because he is building his theme park of death: Death-T.

His intended participant and… victim: Yugi.

:

Despite his efforts to hide it, a secret like the one Yugi is hiding is hard to keep, and now it is out.

It has finally happened during Death-T, after Honda became locked in a room with falling blocks. Honda has just sacrificed himself to save everyone from being crushed to death, and as the falling blocks cut off Honda's only means of escape, Yugi feels the now familiar swell of anger, hatred and frustration building inside him, and he can feel himself changing.

Seto Kaiba's sadistic games of death have already pushed them to their limits, and the guilt he feels over his friends having to fight for life and limb is starting to take its toll, and Yugi has never hated anyone as much as he hates Kaiba right now. "Curse you, Kaiba," he seethes to himself. It is not fair! Death-T was built to punish him, not his friends, and he blames himself for dragging them into it.

Hunched over on his knees, Yugi tries to fight it, but it is no good, he can feel his other Self rising to the surface.

Anzu notices first and is concerned. "Yugi…"

Although he feels her comforting hand on his back, Yugi is still struggling to fight the rising tide, and there is nowhere for him to hide; he is going to have to tell them that he has been keeping something from them.

"I think there's another Me inside of Me that I don't know about." Not only does he fear they will hate him for keeping secrets, but reject him as a friend as well.

But instead of rejecting him as he fears they will, he is greeted with comforting smiles and words of reassurance.

It is a huge weight off Yugi's mind, and as he starts to relax, he feels his other Self receding, for now. He's going to be okay. He is not going to lose his friends.

With peace of mind, Yugi is not only able to fully embrace the presence of his other Self, but face the final rounds of Death-T with a renewed sense of self confidence. And for the first time since realising there is another Him inside him, Yugi is able to control the change. Watching him, his friends are a little bit worried at first, but when a second later he opens his eyes and speaks, they are amazed.

Is this Yugi really their shy little friend?!

Whoever he is, they are proud and in awe of him, as he takes on both Kaiba brothers in turn and wins.

Yugi is not usually the type to brag, but it is kind of nice to be a hero.

:

Two days later:

"Right! Where shall we start?" says Anzu, as she flops down on Yugi's bed. From where he's standing he can see right up her skirt.

"I.. I don't mind," he says, distracted by a flash of white and pink underwear.

Noticing the stupid grin on his face, Anzu pouts and flattens her skirt. "Don't even think about it, Mister!" She's here to do homework, not make out with Yugi because she has started to develop romantic feelings for him after finding out during Death-T that her mysterious superhero with the smooth, sexy voice is actually Yugi. Well, not Yugi exactly, but the smart, confident Yugi he turns into whenever he's doing something heroic.

Knowing that the person Yugi became the other day is the same boy she is with now, and trying to unpick her feelings for him is too confusing, so until she can find a way to get to see the other Yugi again, she will tolerate spending time with regular Yugi.

Trouble is, she does not know how to get him to bring the other Yugi out without hurting regular Yugi's feelings: it's not like she can tell him to change, just because she wants the other one… or can she?

Yugi blushes and gulps. "I.. I wasn't looking! Honest!" he lies.

Anzu pats the space on the bed beside her and forces a forgiving smile, to let him know she's not going to karate kick him in the groin for perving on her. Despite having a super sexy alter-ego, he's still harmless little Yugi for heavens sake, and she could never do him an injury like that, especially since she might want to have his children one day! WTF made her think that?!

His sexy alter-ego really has got her all of a fluster.

Wondering why Anzu's face is so red, Yugi joins her on the bed and they sit next to each other with their backs against the wall. They open their book bags and spread their textbooks over their laps.

"I want to practice my English," Anzu tells him.

"Really?" Yugi has not made that much effort to learn English, but knows he should. It will be useful if he ever decides to play tournaments overseas.

"Yes. I want to be fluent by the time I go to New York," she says eagerly.

Yugi smiles encouragingly. "For when you achieve your dream?" She told him and Jonouchi about her dream to study dance when they caught her working in Burger World a few months ago, coincidentally on the same day as the escaped convict incident, which he now knows was dealt with by his other Self.

Yugi sincerely hopes she achieves her dream to go to New York, but does not know what he will do if she leaves him. Luckily, it's still a long way off so he is not going to stress about it just yet.

"If I achieve my dream," Anzu corrects him.

"You will," Yugi says with certainty, and Anzu smiles warmly at his confidence in her ability to achieve the high level of grades required. She finds normal Yugi so sweet and kind.

But sweet and kind is not enough to make her fall in love with him. She wants the confident, verging on arrogant, dangerous Yugi he becomes when he battles the bad guys.

Hmm, she wonders if perhaps an imposing threat the way to bring him out?

Unaware of her thoughts, Yugi makes a decision, "Let's practice English first. But then can we do the history assignment? Only it's gotta be in by Friday." As part of their coursework, the assignment will eventually be added to their final exam results.

"Oh!" Anzu's eyes widen. "I forgot about the history assignment!" It's not her favourite subject, but for some reason History it is one of the subjects she needs a decent pass in to get into her chosen course at Julliard. "Good job you're on it, Yugi." She winks at him, which sends his pulse rate soaring.

After a short discussion, they agree to spend half an hour on English, and then do the history homework.

"So…" Anzu begins hesitantly. "How is the other Yugi? Have you managed to speak to him yet?"

Yugi groans. "No…." and he cups the pendant in his hands and looks down at it, as if it might suddenly answer him. "I've been trying to communicate with him, but I don't know how." He wonders if maybe the Puzzle is listening and is testing him, and all he has to do is figure out what he needs to do to pass that test.

"You've always been determined, Yugi. I know you will work it out." Anzu cannot wait until he does.

A few minutes later, Yugi's mother brings them green tea and some snacks. They both thank her, and she gives them a knowing look as she leaves the room.

Yugi guesses it's because she thinks they're dating. They're not, but he wishes they were.

However, since Death-T, Anzu does seem very keen to spend a lot more time with him.

But Yugi is not stupid, and knows she is only interested in him because of his other Self.

For now, that's fine, he will accept it if it means he gets to go on dates with her, but he does not want it to stay this way indefinitely. For a start, it's not healthy to be using his other Self just to get closer to Anzu.

Secondly, he is determined to become strong enough that no longer needs to rely on his other Self to fight his battles for him. If he doesn't become a stronger, more confident person, he will continue to lose out to his other Self, and fail to ever achieve anything on his own.

Chapter Text

Having a superhero inside him is pretty cool, but Yugi does wonder if he is maybe becoming a little too dependant on his other Self. Still, if having a confident alter ego with incredible gaming skills means that Anzu finds him attractive and wants to date him, then he is not going to complain.

Today is a warm, sunny day, and Yugi and Anzu are sitting under a sunshade at a cafe by the lake eating ice cream sundaes.

Yugi smiles dreamily as he gazes across the table at Anzu. She looks so pretty in her yellow and white summer dress, with her sunglasses perched on the top of her head, as she takes spoonfuls of vanilla and strawberry ice cream and lifts them to her lips.

Watching her lick her lips as she savours the sweet, cool taste of the desert causes Yugi to lick his own lips. Even though it is a warm day, his body involuntarily shivers causing him to drop his own spoon, which he has greedily loaded with a mound of chocolate ice cream. As the spoon falls, it dollops its contents onto his chest and bounces off the top of the Millennium Puzzle, and then lands in his lap, before falling onto the floor.

"Yugi!" Anzu exclaims, watching the chocolate ice cream blob as it slides down his eggshell blue tee-shirt and lands on the flat surface of the top of the Puzzle. Anzu quickly grabs her serviette and leans across to help.

"My Puzzle!" Yugi shouts, more concerned about the melting chocolate seeping into the joins of the Puzzle than he is about the mess on his tee-shirt.

Anzu rolls her eyes and smiles sympathetically. "We can't take you anywhere, can we?" She is is trying to be understanding, but still shakes her head in bemusement. Dating Yugi is like dating a little kid at times, and it's frustrating because the other Yugi is so cool in comparison.

If only she could ask Yugi to bring him out.

But after the other day at the theme park, she caused all sorts of trouble trying to bring him out, and then put herself in danger by getting on the Ferris Wheel with the terrorist who has been planting bombs around the Tokyo Bay area. Both Yugi's were a little pissed off with her after she pulled that stunt, and she feels it would be unwise to risk doing anything else that might cause trouble and annoy him. And while she knows she can easily handle a pissed off Yugi, she is not sure she would know how to react if she pissed off the other Yugi to the extent that she makes him really angry – he seems like the kind of guy you do not want to cross.

"Do you think it will come out?" asks Yugi, having turned his attention to his tee-shirt.

Anzu mishears 'it' as 'he' and thinks he's referring to bringing out the other Yugi, and her heart skips a beat. "Yes!" she exclaims without thinking. And then realises her mistake when she sees Yugi spitting on his own serviette and trying to wipe the ice cream stain off his tee-shirt. All he's succeeding in doing is making it look worse. "Oh! Leave it Yugi. I'm sure your mum will be able to get it clean." She gives him a pitying smile.

"I feel like an idiot," he grumbles, realising she is fed up with him.

"It doesn't matter," Anzu says with a sigh. "Let's finish this and get you home so you can change." They had planned to walk around the lake afterwards, but she would rather not be seen with a boy sporting a brown stain on his tee-shirt – it looks like poo.

Disappointed that their afternoon is coming to a premature end because of his inattention. Well, not inattention as such, more that his attention was on Anzu instead of getting his spoon from desert to mouth without incident.

Perhaps he would have been better off calling on his other Self to take over for this afternoon's date. That is what Anzu really wants, isn't it?

However, he has a feeling his other Self will not answer a call to take over unless there is an actual threat to deal with, and dropped ice cream is not really a threat.

He also gets the feeling that his other Self is not here to socialise and could offend (or worse) anyone who says or does something he does not like.

And if his other self does end up upsetting Anzu in the process, that could then be his own chances with her ruined.

Chapter Text

Since solving the Millennium Puzzle, one recurring theme seems to be the number of bad guys who keep coming after Yugi and his Puzzle.

The latest is a transfer student called Ryou Bakura. On the surface, Ryou Bakura is a polite, pleasantly spoken, socially awkward boy, who loves role playing games.

But he hides a deadly secret – the Millennium Ring.

Yugi and his friends find out just how deadly, when an evil force from inside the Millennium Ring tries to kill them while playing Ryou Bakura's favourite game, Monster World, by trapping their souls inside their game pieces using the Ring's ability to extract souls. He then pits them against his boss monster, The Dark Lord Zorc.

Thankfully, after a tough battle, their team, with Yugi's other Self rolling the dice while Yugi fights with his friends on the game board, they are able to defeat Zorc and free their friend Ryou from the hold that evil Bakura has over him.

Having finally met his other Self, Yugi hopes that this now means he can communicate with him, but his other Self seems to have retreated back into the depths of his soul, and all Yugi can hear is silence.

It is frustrating, because Yugi was so sure he had finally broken through whatever it is that separates them.

But Yugi is determined, and is not giving up that easily. Certain that the Millennium Puzzle is the key, he holds the Puzzle in his hands and speaks. "Other Me," he says with conviction, "if you can hear me, please reply." There is no response, but he does jump when the door handle of his bedroom turns and his mother pokes her head in.

"Oh! I thought I heard you talking to someone?" His mother looks perplexed and Yugi grins sheepishly.

"Er.. I was… playing an online game," he says, realising how unconvincing that sounds when his computer is not switched on and he is not holding his game console.

Hana Muto rolls her eyes. "Why aren't you ready for school yet?! Anzu's downstairs, waiting for you."

Yugi perks up at the mention of Anzu. "I am ready!" he says, grabbing his backpack and blazer and hurrying past his mother. He virtually flies down the stairs, leaving his mother standing on the landing shaking her head.

"That boy!" she says to herself. She is exasperated with him, but is glad that he has found some new friends and is getting out more.

Finding Anzu waiting for him in the shop, Yugi beams at her. "Hey, Anzu!"

"Hey, Yugi," she says, beaming back.

Yugi holds the door open for her as they leave.

"Enjoy your walk to school you two!" says Sugoroku Muto with a naughty chuckle. It is nice to see his grandson has found himself a good woman, and he thinks Yugi is a chip off the old block.

The connotations in Grandpa Muto's statement are not missed by Anzu. "What's his problem?" she grumbles.

"Don't take any notice," says Yugi. "He gets like that sometimes."

"Right." Anzu composes herself and chivvies Yugi along. "Come on. We don't want to be late," she says curtly.

Feeling chuffed that Anzu is walking to school with him, Yugi falls into step beside her. "I wonder how Bakura is? That wound was nasty," he says.

Feeling worried, Anzu frowns. "I wish he had let us take him to the hospital."

Yugi shrugs. "He said he has some medical knowledge and can deal with it."

"Yes, but that spire went right through his hand! He could have damaged nerves, tendons, get an infection, anything!"

"If he's in school, we should make him go to the infirmary," Yugi decides.

When they arrive at school, Bakura is not there and has called in sick again.

"Man, I hope he's okay," says Jonouchi.

"Let's visit him after school!" says Yugi. His friends give him incredulous looks.

"Are you crazy?!" exclaims Honda. "After what happened yesterday?!"

"Yeah, what if he's put that Ring thing on again?" says Jonouchi. They were lucky to not end up as permanent fixtures in Bakura's game last night, but might not be as lucky again.

"He said he wouldn't, and I believe him," says Yugi. After the game was over, the hold over their friend had been broken, and the souls of the victims Bakura sealed inside his game pieces were freed, including their PT instructor, Mister Karita.

When Yugi picked the Millennium Ring up from where it had fallen, he could feel something resonating from it, but his Millennium Puzzle seemed to shield him from whatever it was.

He and his friends made Ryou promise to lock the Ring in a drawer and never put it on again.

"Why don't I phone him?" Anzu says, pulling out her phone. When he answers, she puts him on speaker.

They are relieved to find out that after spending a sleepless night of discomfort, Bakura is at the hospital getting his hand treated. He will be off school for the rest of the week, but says he will be back next Monday.

"Make sure he's not put that thing back on," says Jonouchi.

Anzu nods. "What have you done with the Millennium Ring?" she asks.

On the other end of the phone, Ryou Bakura smiles sweetly and touches his chest, where hidden underneath his shirt is the Millennium Ring. "Oh! That." Slightly embarrassed he laughs awkwardly. "Don't worry. I did as Yugi ordered and locked it in a drawer. I'm not going to let it possess me again, ever."

Nodding, Anzu smiles and relays this to her friends.

"Phew! Dat's good news," says Jonouchi.

Beside him, Yugi does not voice it but is starting to have doubts -the tone of Bakura's voice just doesn't sit right for some reason. He also knows what it means to wield a Millennium item; even with the knowledge that his other Self was instrumental in the death of that escaped prisoner, made people go temporarily insane, played a game of Griddle Ice Hockey that resulted in upper classman Goro Inogashira receiving severe burns, and more recently inflicting a mind crushing penalty on Seto Kaiba, which has put him into a stupor that he still has not recovered from, Yugi would never part with his Millennium Puzzle and risk losing his other Self.

The Puzzle is precious, and without the help of his other Self he would probably still be the bullied kid with no friends.

Chapter Text

The dynamic between Yugi and his other Self is changing.

Until recently, Anzu believed, or maybe wanted to believe, that he was another side of Yugi, but now it seems more likely he is an entirely different person altogether.

Whoever he is, Yugi still calls him Other Me, and his friends still call him Yugi. The Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle is happy with that.

As Jonouchi says, "Yugi is Yugi."

But while Jonouchi might think it doesn't matter who Yugi is, Anzu's feelings for the newly crowned King of Games are now more conflicted than ever; the man she thought she was in love with is not Yugi at all, but rather an ancient spirit, who somehow became imprisoned inside a three thousand year old artefact that was found, broken into pieces, inside a Pharaoh's tomb.

Who could he be?

He is definitely old, ancient old and from Egypt (probably), since he was found there.

And how and why did he end up inside the Millennium Puzzle?

The fear that he might have died a horrible, gruesome death makes her insides churn and her flesh crawl, but she needs to know, even if she is afraid of what they might learn.

Does Yugi know what happened to him and is protecting her from the truth?

He assures her that his other Self has no memories of who he is, or what happened to him, and until Yugi pulled him from the darkness and he took up residence in Yugi's soul, he had no sense of who, or what, he was either. His only goal at that time was to protect his host and seek vengeance against those who dare trespass on his soul!

"If I'm honest," says Yugi sheepishly, "he was probably a little unhinged back then."

To Anzu, trespassing on someone's soul sounds very unhinged, like something Bakura might say.

"Yes, but thanks to you, Yugi, he's nothing like that now!" she says, confident that he is more… human now.

"No. He isn't. He's my friend," Yugi says fondly. Despite having to deal with the odd bad guy, his life is so much better since he solved the Puzzle and met his other Self, and he hopes it stays that way.

:

A few weeks later, Anzu is sitting at Yugi's bedside in the hospital, after he almost died in a fire at the Black Crown Game Store while saving his other Self.

Watching Yugi playing card games with Jonouchi, celebrating each time he wins as if he has not a care in the world, worries her. Honda and Jonouchi are also acting like they have not just had to run into a burning building and pull their best friend from an almost certain death.

Are they are all becoming so desensitised to being in dangerous situations that it no longer bothers them?

But then, danger is becoming an almost every day occurrence, so perhaps it is not surprising!

What will they face next, the apocalypse?!

The mere thought of an apocalypse makes Anzu shudder.

"I'm going on another drinks run. Does anyone want anything?" she says, feeling the sudden need to get out of the room for a while.

"Yes, please!" The boys give her their orders, and once outside, she leans against the wall and sheds a few tears.

Her heart is divided between both Yugi's, and she cannot bear the thought of losing either of them.

:

That night, Anzu dreams of Yugi.

She has had dreams about him before, but not one like this one:

It is a warm night, and a soft breeze is blowing in through the open doors, fluttering the drapes.

Anzu sees, more than feels, herself entering the room, tiptoeing across the floor so as not to wake the figure on the bed.

The figure is a man, and he is laying atop the white cotton sheets.

She pauses a moment to take in his form. His body is lean, toned and lightly muscled, and his skin is a sun-kissed bronze. All he has on are a pair of white Kelvin Kline boxer briefs, which makes his tanned skin look even more appetising – is appetising the right word? "I'm not a vampire!" she mumbles to herself. In her dream mind she is rolling her eyes.

Wandering off on another tangent, her dream mind wonders what sort of underwear the boys wear: Jonouchi, she thinks wears boxer shorts with bright patterns on them. Honda, sensible Y-fronts. Bakura, baby blue boxer briefs. Otogi, a thong (ladies thong). She's probably snickering in her sleep at that!

And then there's Yugi: she has always pictured him in boxer shorts with Kuribohs on them, but the man on the bed has his wild hair, but is wearing Kelvin…. "Oh!"

A shiver ripples through her, when she realises that the man on the bed is the other Yugi. She swallows, and it suddenly occurs to her that this is not even her bedroom (hers has a window, not doors leading to a veranda!). This looks more like… She has seen scenes from the movie Cleopatra, and this looks like that.

Okay, so she is inside an Ancient Egyptian Palace, and she is in the bedroom of someone important.

Imagining herself as a graceful princess, she glides over to the bed, lets her silk gown fall to the floor to reveal her nakedness, and sits so lightly that her body does not even make a dent on the mattress.

The man is on his side, facing away from her and she smiles, taking in the fine dark hairs on the inside and back of his thighs (her fantasy). She licks her lips and wants to tickle them with her fingers, but instead traces her fingertips from his hipbone, up his side and then uses her palm to gently feel the contours of his shoulders and back.

He makes a soft, contented humming noise and shifts slightly. "Anzu." His voice is deep and sexy, and as she leans down to kiss his shoulder, he turns over and her hand instinctively moves to his toned chest.

Recoiling, she lets out a little gasp. His face is completely blanc, without any features.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she shakes her head to clear her vision. There must be something wrong with her eyes.

"Anzu. What's wrong?" At the sound of his voice, which now sounds like Yugi, she opens her eyes to see Yugi's face looking up at her from the bed.

"Nothing," she replies, sounding like she is not that sure.

For a second, he looks downcast. "It's not me you want, is it?" he says sadly. He then forces a smile. "It's okay, I'll call him with my heart. He usually comes if I do that."

"No!" She grabs his shoulders where they meet the tops of his arms and implores him to stay. Although compact, his muscles feel surprisingly firm. "Please! Don't go… It doesn't matter which side of you you are. It's all of you I want."

Smiling with relief, he reaches up to touch her cheek and draw her in for a kiss.

The kiss never happens because she wakes up, feeling sexually aroused.

"Yugi," she breathes, clinging to her sheets as a tingle of pleasure runs through her core.

Feeling a little light-headed, she slides out of bed and goes to the bathroom. The conversation at the end of the dream reminds her a little of the conversation she had on the cliff-top with Yugi at Duelist Kingdom, and she wonders if it is still playing on in the back of her mind.

Whatever the dream means, it is embarrassing to admit that it was nice.

But the reality of it soon hits her, and she realises that there is no escaping her growing feelings for Yugi. Which Yugi? It no longer matters. She just wants him, both of him, and she wants both of him to stay just as they are.

Unfortunately, she fears that in the grand scheme of things her feelings are unimportant, because it may not be possible for them to stay as they are for very much longer.

Chapter Text

The revelation that Yugi's other Self was once a Pharaoh comes as a bit of a surprise, but in hindsight they perhaps should have already guessed, since the Millennium Puzzle was found inside a Pharaoh's tomb.

What the future holds for them is uncertain at the moment, but the spirit of the Pharaoh is grateful that his partner is vowing to help him, no matter where it might lead them. But while the eagerness of his friends wanting to help him warms his heart, it makes him feel a great sense of responsibility as well.

"I fear Battle City will be dangerous, Partner. Are you sure we should do this?" If his partner, or any of his friends are hurt because of him, he will never forgive himself.

"We're in this together, Other Me. We have to win Battle City so that you can find your memories." Yugi speaks with courage and conviction, even though he fears his other Self might leave him one day.

The spirit of the Pharaoh starts to feel emotions stir inside him that are alien to him. But he cannot allow himself to let his emotions show. Emotions lead to self doubt, which in turn leads to weakness, and he cannot allow himself to show weakness.

Yugi picks up on it immediately. "It's okay to be be afraid of the unknown, Other Me." His other Self thinks he can hide his fears, but he can't, not from Yugi. "I'm scared too, but it's how you use that fear that counts."

"Thank you, Aibou." His partner's courage is heart warming. "I am grateful. But if you wish us not to go ahead, then I will honour your wish."

"No!" says Yugi adamantly. "We have to do it. I can't stay the way I am, and I cannot expect you to throw away your chance to find out who you are. I will not let you down, I promise."

"Nor I you," the spirit says. With his partner helping him, he knows he will not fail.

They are both quiet and reflective for a moment, before they both simultaneously smirk and nod in agreement.

Tomorrow, they will prepare themselves.

:

By the following afternoon, they are prepared as they will ever be, and Yugi decides they need to take some time out to have fun. Anzu thinks it is a good idea, and goes to the mall with him.

They are sitting drinking milkshakes.

"You seem to be taking the news about the other You pretty well, Yugi. When did you realise?" asks Anzu. The other Yugi told her that Yugi was not listening to the conversation when they visited the museum. Perhaps Yugi had picked up on more than he believed, or maybe they discussed it last night – as Yugi has told her, it's not easy hiding things from one another.

Yugi is thoughtful for a moment. "I've thought about it a lot, ever since I solved the Puzzle," he says. "I always knew he was someone important." He smiles at her. "It's guess it's hard to believe that a Pharaoh would choose someone like me to wield the power of the Millennium Puzzle," he says flippantly.

Anzu feels a stab of sadness at that, and cannot help but feel a little cross with him. "Stop putting yourself down, Yugi. You're brave and determined, and you have a good, kind heart. You're a lot more amazing than you think you are. The other You is lucky to have you as his partner," she says with heartfelt admiration for how far he has come since first starting High School.

"You really mean that?!" he asks incredulously. He has wanted her to see the hero in him for so long, and wants to believe her words are true, but deep down there is still a lingering doubt that it is still the other Yugi she is talking about.

"Yes, I do," she says sincerely, and giggles. "You have the soul of a Pharaoh inside you, Yugi." She nudges him playfully. "That must make you a Pharaoh, too!"

Yugi blushes. "Me?!" He chuckles and then shakes his head. "I don't think so, but the other Me says… He looks over his shoulder to where the Pharaoh is hovering beside him… I could be his modern day equivalent." Anzu cannot see the Spirit, but her eyes follow to where Yugi is looking.

She nods in his direction. "Is he there?"

Yugi stifles a giggle. "He winked at you, and is giving a thumbs up."

Anzu blushes and becomes a bit flustered. "H..Hi, Yugi!" Feeling a bit self conscious talking to someone she cannot see, she gives a bashful little wave.

"Do you want to speak to him properly?" asks Yugi.

Anzu holds both hands up. "N..No! Speaking to you is just fine!"

She grabs his hands, imploring him to stay in control. While relaxed and at ease with normal Yugi, being set up on that date with Yugi's other Self made her nervous and a little flustered. If he takes over now, she doesn't have a clue what she will say to him! It doesn't help that he was not exactly chatty on that date, and at times was a little bit aloof.

The irony is not lost on Yugi; she always wanted a confident, commanding superhero, and now that she has one she's avoiding him. "It's okay," he says. "I know his social skills are not great." He grins at the offended grunt and comment he receives from the Sprit. He turns to Anzu and roughly relays what has just been said, "Apparently, he has more important things on his mind and does not have time for social niceties. He also says he leaves the niceties to me."

Anzu smiles at Yugi fondly. He's having a conversation with the other Yugi that she is not privy to. She should feel left out, jealous even, but she doesn't. They share a bond forged by Millennia, and that is unique. Well, it was unique until they found out about Bakura.

But at least Yugi's other Self is not a complete and utter bastard like Bakura's other Self, thankfully.

It leads her to wonder what it was that happened between the other Yugi and the other Bakura that lead to them both being trapped inside 3000 year old artefacts. Whatever it was, it must have been really terrible for them to still be enemies. A three thousand year old grudge? Or... something far, far worse than that?

The evil Bakura seems to know what it is, and she fears that it might give him an advantage over Yugi.

But Yugi is not stupid; Bakura has already tried to kill them all once, and she has a feeling he will try again. But Yugi did say that the other Bakura turned up to help him when he was Kidnapped by the Otogi's, so who knows what his motives are?

However, with Battle City starting at the weekend, it frightens Anzu to think about what Yugi is going to be be up against; that Ishizu woman seemed nice enough, but she was a bit vague when she said her brother was the leader of a ruthless bunch called Ghouls, who will do anything they can to get their hands on Yugi's Millennium Puzzle.

If what Ishizu said is true, they will be coming after Yugi at Kaiba's tournament.

At the moment, Bakura is being relatively quiet, but he is also interested in the Millennium Items, so Anzu wonders if he is biding his time, waiting for the right moment to attack.

Will Bakura use the distraction of Battle City to make his next move?

If he does, Anzu is confident that Yugi will win again. Or, at least she is trying to be confident that he will win.

But if he's too busy dealing with these Ghouls….

"Are you okay, Anzu?" Yugi asks, his face full of concern.

"What? Yes!" She did not realise she was spacing out.

"I asked you if you want to go to the arcade? Only, on the subject of social skills, the other Me is keen for us to smash Kaiba's latest high scores." He grins, and Anzu rolls her eyes.

"Sure, why not?!"

Yugi stands and holds out his hand. She takes it and he pulls her up to to join him, and when their eyes meet it's the other Yugi who is looking at her.

Anzu gulps, blushing. "Y..Yugi?" He winks at her, and her knees nearly buckle.

"I need to work on my social skills, apparently," he says, giving a sideways smirk towards where she guesses normal Yugi is hovering at his shoulder.

She tells herself, Pharaoh or Yugi, at the end of the day he's still her Yugi, and underneath the regal facade and handsome face, he's just a regular teenage boy.

"Okay," she says, clasping her hands nervously – where to start. "Right, well, how about you… er… lead the way!"

"Follow me." he says, as if he is giving an order. Anzu grimaces as she watches him march purposefully towards the door. The self assured confidence is there as always, and she wonders if he is naturally like it, or if he like it because he is a Pharaoh? Even without any memories, it must be ingrained into his DNA. Yugi has the same qualities within him too, somewhere, she is sure. He just needs to find them.

When Yami Yugi reaches the door, he glares at it as if it will either open itself or someone will open it for him.

Anzu clears her throat. "It won't open itself," she says. Just because he was once a Pharaoh, it does not mean she is going to open the door for him – Pharaoh holds no power over her!

She feels her tummy tingle and her legs wobble. Okay, so maybe he does hold some power over her.

Although his posture stiffens a little, he nods and smiles at her. "Yes, of course. Thank you for reminding me." He gives a sideways glance at Yugi, who is telling him that gentlemen are meant to open doors for ladies. Reaching for the door handle, he pulls the door open. "After you," he says to her awkwardly, and Anzu smiles and thanks him.

"See," she teases. "Your social skills are already improving."

To her surprise, he blushes. "I confess, I am a little out of my comfort zone." He glares at Yugi, who is laughing. "My partner is not helping."

Anzu smiles and grabs his hand. "Come on," she says, pulling him along. "I'll help you."

Much to her relief, he relaxes and gives her a broad smile; the type of smile she is more used to seeing on ordinary Yugi. But it suits him, and she senses he is starting to understand what it is like to live a daily life outside of only appearing when it is time for him to duel.

Anzu thinks she could get used to dating two Yugi's, and would love to keep them like this forever – she would have a man for all occasions and would never get bored.

But the other Yugi is not here for her, and while Yugi is avoiding the subject, she has a feeling that Battle City will determine his future, and Yugi's future.

Will she be able to accept what is to come?

She shakes her head and reminds herself that this is not about her.

It is about Yugi, and whatever destiny has in store for him.

Chapter Text

As the bright light fades and the doors to the afterlife close, Yugi and his friends stand in the now darkened chamber, bewildered and stunned.

What just happened?

There's a rumbling sound, and a large crack appears in the stone slab containing the Millennium Items.

The slab starts to collapse inwards, and for a split second of a moment, Yugi thinks he can dodge the falling rocks and collapsing ground in an attempt to rescue the Millennium Puzzle.

Thankfully, Jonouchi reminds him they should leave, and that makes him see sense.

Upon reflection, Yugi doesn't think he would have actually risked it, but still….after everything he and Atem have been through together while wearing the Millennium Puzzle he is reluctant to let it go!

He also knows that Atem would be royally pissed at him if he threw away the precious life he's been given, just to rescue a now empty relic. So with a sad farewell he turns and leaves the underground temple, before it collapses.

Outside, in the bright sunlight, they all take a moment to reflect upon the future.

Yugi wants his future to include Anzu, but it's up to her. He is pretty sure she is still in love with Atem, so he is not going to pressure her. Besides, she has successfully applied to go to New York on the student exchange program after they graduate next spring, to study dance, and he does not want to get in the way her dream.

As Ishizu warns them all to not stay out in the hot sun for too long, Anzu touches his hand. "Are you ready to go, Yugi?"

He turns to her with a wistful smile and takes her hand before she can snatch it away. "Yeah, I think I am." He's trying to be positive, but doesn't really know how he is feeling about Atem having left him. Right now, he's just numb.

Allowing her fingers to entwine with his, Anzu tries to smile back at him, but her bottom lip is quivering.

He squeezes her hand gently, before releasing it. "Lets get back to the cars," he says quietly.

Together, they follow the others to the waiting Land Rovers.

As Anzu climbs into one of the cars, Yugi pauses behind her and takes one last look around. He does not know if he will ever come back here, and bids one final, silent farewell, before clambering into the car. Grandpa is already sitting in the back and Ishizu is in the front passenger seat.

Rishid is driving, and he turns to speak to them. "Buckle up! The road back is a bit rough," he says in his deep, heavily accented, gravelly voice. They nod, and put their seatbelts on.

With their seatbelts secure, Anzu reaches for Yugi's hand once more for comfort.

Rishid puts the car in gear and off they go. The rest of their friends are in the second Land Rover following on behind, which is being driven by Marik.

Everyone is quietly reflective during the drive back to the Ishtars luxury villa, where they will be spending the night before flying home the following day.

In Yugi's Land Rover, the only people doing any talking are Ishizu and Grandpa, who occasionally point out historic burial sites and landmarks.

Yugi is in a world of his own, as he gazes through the dusty glass at the endless sand outside. It feels strange without the Puzzle resting against his sternum, but an even stranger feeling is no longer sensing the gentle nudge of another soul against his.

He imagines Atem appearing beside him and making an dry, but amusing observation about the desert landscape outside, but of course, his soul is silent. He will get used to it, he knows he will. They will all move on and life will go back to the way it was before he met his other Self, two and a half years ago.

The only difference now is how much Yugi has grown as a person; God forbid he should ever go back to being the weak little Yugi he was when he was fifteen. The thought causes him to let out an inadvertent snort of derision at what he had been like back then.

All eyes are suddenly on him – except for Rishid, who's busy dodging bumps and potholes in the sandy track.

Yugi's face flushes. "Nothing! I was just having a funny thought, about the other Me.. I mean, Atem…." His voice trails off as he says his old friend's name.

"Everything will be fine Yugi, trust me," Grandpa says. He doesn't know what else to say, and hopes that his grandson will continue to thrive. He vows to keep a close eye on him.

Ishizu turns slightly in her seat. "You and Atem both excelled in the eyes of the Gods, Yugi, and your courage has earned Atem the right to join his ancestors. His soul is finally being allowed to rest." She is trying to be reassuring, but it provides no comfort to Anzu, who lets out a sob.

"Why?!" She blurts. Her breath hitches, and Yugi gives her hand a comforting squeeze.

"Anzu?" he questions gently, but he knows why she is upset.

Anzu regathers her composure. "Why?" she asks again, more controlled this time. "He didn't do anything wrong! He didn't deserve to..to..die like that! These so called Gods that everyone seems to idolise, let other people do horrible, evil things, and then made Atem pay for what they did!"

"I cannot disagree," Ishizu says calmly. "However, a chosen one was needed to restore balance."

"But he was only a boy!" Anzu protests, "Younger than we are now!"

Yugi attempts to comfort her. "He was never bitter about it. And if he hadn't been chosen, we would never have met him," he says, trying to be positive.

It is small comfort, but Anzu manages a bitter smile. "Yes, you're right Yugi, I suppose." She still thinks his fate was unfair.

"And he did get to sample modern life and make friends with you all!" Grandpa chips in.

"Yeah, he did," Yugi says, smiling at the memories of Atem questioning the point of driving gas guzzling, polluting vehicles, when a horse and chariot will do the same job, and how the waste a horse produces is perfect for providing nutrients for the garden. "Atem has plenty of fond new memories to take to the afterlife with him." He squeezes Anzu's hand again. "Memories of us, his friends."

Before Anzu has chance to respond, the Land Rover goes over a particularly large hump and they all bounce in their seats.

"Sorry!" says Rishid. "Couldn't avoid that one!"

No one knows why, but for some reason they all find it funny and laugh. A divine message, to jolt them out of their sadness, perhaps?

A few minutes later, they reach tarmac roads and the journey becomes much smoother.

If it was a divine message from beyond, it works wonders and the mood lightens.

:

Back at the Ishtar's spacious, pristine new villa, Rishid and Ishizu make tea. It's not like Japanese tea; this tea is minty and sweet. It is an acquired taste and Jonouchi gags and spits it out.

"Jonouchi!" Anzu scolds. "Where are your manners?"

"What?! Could have warned me! It's like drinking sugary toothpaste!" he exclaims with animated gestures. "Except dis toothpaste ain't good for my teeth!"

"It's okay, Jonouchi," Ishizu says sincerely, finding his ranting funny when she knows she probably should not.

Looking less than amused, Rishid goes and gets a cloth to mop up the mess Jonouchi has just made.

"Man…we can't take you anywhere," Honda says, slapping his friend on the back of the head and earning himself a kick on the ankle underneath the table. Thankfully the pair know better than to start fighting in such polite company.

"Will you be able to eat lamb tagine without vomiting?" Rishid asks sarcastically as he wipes up the spat out tea. "In case you don't know what a tagine is, it's like a stew." He makes a point of looking directly at Jonouchi as he speaks.

Although Jonouchi knows that Rishid is really a gentle giant, the man's looks are naturally intimidating and it takes a lot of courage for the tough, ex-gang member not to cower. He smiles sheepishly and rubs his nose. "Yeah! I'll eat anything…" but he just has to have the last word, "...as long as you don't put toothpaste in it." Even Rishid manages to smile at that.

"I can assure you there will be no toothpaste," Ishizu says dryly.

Both Honda and Ryou politely tell Jonouchi to shut up and stop offending their generous hosts.

"Meh…" Jonouchi's face turns pink with embarrassment when he realises he has been making a scene and his friends are all embarrassed on his behalf.

Ishizu changes the subject, and starts to explain the sleeping arrangements. She tells them there are two guest rooms,. Anzu is offered one, in which there is a double bed. At the mention of Anzu being offered the double bed, Yugi and Anzu inadvertently glance at each other. Both turn red, and it is not from too much sun, before looking away again. The other guest room has two single beds, and it's up to the men to decide who gets a bed, and who gets to sleep on camping mats on the floor.

"There is also a guest bathroom," says Ishizu. "Hot water is plentiful." They are all sweaty and grimy from a day in the desert, and showers are most welcome.

While Jonouchi and Honda argue with Ryuji over who gets the beds and who is taking the first shower, Anzu thanks Ishizu for the kind hospitality. Yugi and Bakura second it, while Sugoroku tells Jonouch, Honda and Ryuji to stop being idiots and behave themselves.

Trying to be the better man, Jonouchi bristles, shoots the other two boys a smug grin and says, "Gramp's, you can have my bed."

"Your bed?!" exclaims Honda in disbelief.

"Oh, no, no, no… I wouldn't dream of depriving you youngsters of a bed," Grandpa says indignantly.

Yugi rolls his eyes. "Grandpa! You're old and your back's bad. You're taking a bed," he says firmly and with finality.

Grandpa gives Yugi a pointed look. "Less of the old my boy! But point taken." Something in his grandson's tone tells him it is best not to argue.

"And we will draw straws for the remaining bed," Yugi says wearily.

Although none of them mind too much where they sleep, because they are all so tired they would probably be able to sleep anywhere, in the interests of fairness they agree. Bakura wins the bed, but feels guilty and is about to suggest they draw again, when Otogi plucks the straw from his hand and says, "Well, if you don't want it, I'll take it." Bakura snatches it back with a frown.

"I said, I feel guilty. I didn't say I won't take it," he says pointedly.

Since they are all overtired, irritable and stunned after the days events, Marik decides to offer them a distraction. He has an amazing games room, and is keen for them to see it, so he suggests they should all go and do something Atem would have approved of. "I even have pool table," he tells them, and suggests a mini tournament. It is a change from Duel Monsters and Honda is keen.

"Now that's a game I can win!" he proudly announces.

"You wish! I'm a genius with a pool cue," boasts Otogi.

Jonouchi notices that Yugi doesn't seem too enthusiastic. "Coming Yugi?" he asks. They all feel a sense of loss, but Yugi was closer to Atem than the rest of them so losing him must be one hundred times worse. He wishes he could ask Yugi if he wants to talk about what happened today, but boys don't find it easy to discuss feelings and he is struggling to find the right words – maybe once they've all had a good night sleep it will all make sense.

Yugi shakes his head. "No. You guys play. I'm exhausted from my duel with Atem. I'm going to sit and relax in the garden." At his casual mention of Atem, the atmosphere inside the room shifts awkwardly. Anzu looks like she's about to cry, but shakes her head when Ishizu touches her arm in an attempt to offer support – she doesn't need coddling.

Despite it being on everyone's mind, Ryou is the on to ask, "How are you feeling, Yugi?" His own experiences were very different from Yugi's, but he still knows what it feels like to be host to a spirit. He also knows how strange it feels once they are gone.

"I'm fine." Yugi looks around at his friends, as if challenging them to suggest otherwise. They are all looking at him, unsure what to say, which is not like them and it irritates him. "It's okay to talk about Atem. I'm not going to breakdown in tears or anything," he says harshly. He wishes they would talk about Atem: Atem is the reason they are all here as friends in the first place! They should be celebrating him, not moping about because they are afraid to mention him.

With that said, Yugi gets up and goes outside the garden. One of the first things he noticed about this villa when they arrived, is how light and airy it is, and how beautiful and tranquil the gardens are, especially now, in the late afternoon sun. The Ishtar's have put a lot of thought into making this a beautiful place to live, and Yugi thinks they deserve it after being forced to live in darkness for so long.

He finds a seat on a bench on the veranda, underneath a pergola covered with grapevines. He plucks a handful of juicy, purple grapes and sits down to eat them. It's peaceful, painfully so.

Usually, right about now, he would expect a nudge to his soul from his other Self, checking if it is convenient to talk. Depending on Yugi's response, Atem would either stay in the Puzzle and give him total privacy, sit quietly in the background of his soul and observe, or appear in ghost form beside him for a chat or to be involved. If required, he would take over.

Now there is just silence, which is why Yugi jumps when someone appears and sits down next to him.

"Sorry!" Anzu says sheepishly.

He gives her a lovely smile. "It's okay. I was deep in thought."

"About Atem?"

"Yes," he says with a slight nod.

"The guys are worried about you."

Yugi reaches out to take her hand, gently squeezing it. "They shouldn't be. I knew what would happen if I won and was prepared. It would have been more difficult if I had lost."

Anzu arches an eyebrow. "In what way?"

"It's... I dunno. Atem and I both grew as people and…had he stayed, sharing one body might not have been enough for two such strong souls. Besides, it wouldn't be fair on him for me to keep him trapped inside the Puzzle and my heart like that; if he did stay and something happens to me, he would be trapped inside the Puzzle forever." It was a morbid thing for Yugi to say, and Anzu shudders at the thought of Atem, with his memories and identity intact, stuck in solitary isolation, inside a small, golden pyramid for all eternity. It's a fate too terrible to want even imagine.

"I.. I think I understand." She leans closer and hugs his arm. She tries and fails to stifle a yawn. "It's been a long day." They were up very early this morning, after lots of travelling and very little sleep.

"Yeah…" Yugi pulls his arm free and slips it around her shoulders, holding her snugly against his body. Anzu reaches across and takes his other hand in hers, entwining their fingers.

She closes her eyes and lets her head rest on his shoulder. "I could fall asleep like this," she says dreamily. She can smell the faint odour of sweat on him, combined with the earthy smell of the underground temple they were in, but it is comforting – she has always found Yugi's scent comforting, and finds herself snuggling contentedly into his embrace.

Yugi closes his eyes and breathes in the scent of her hair. It's dusty and a bit greasy from the day's activities, but comforts him none the less, and a feeling of warmth and love and calm starts to spread through him. He wants to tell her how much he loves her, but before he can open his mouth he is interrupted. Both he and Anzu jump at the loud voice.

"Hey! There you are!" Jonouchi blurts, and then stalls upon seeing the cuddling couple. He chuckles knowingly, a lewd noise that puts Anzu's hackles up.

"You moron!" Honda grabs Jonouchi in a headlock. "I thought I told you to give them some privacy?" He winks at Yugi and Anzu. "Sorry, but we just came to see if you wanted to join us. Marik's kicking our butts at pool! We thought the King of Games might wanna save us."

Yugi starts laughing. "Honda! I'm rubbish at pool! I think I've only ever played it once, and it was you who beat me!"

Honda is left scratching his head. "Yeah… I did, didn't I?"

"But we'll come and give it a go anyway," Yugi decides, grinning. One attempt is usually enough for him to master a game.

As they make their way towards the games room, Jonouchi leans in and says to Yugi, "So, are you two an item now?"

Yugi and Anzu look at each other. "Are we?" asks Yugi hopefully. But Anzu's response bursts his bubble.

"We're just friends sharing a moment," she says, irritated by Jonouchi's insinuation.

Crestfallen, but not allowing it to show, Yugi puts on a brave face and turns to his friends. "Come on Jonouchi, let's go and beat Marik at pool."

Honda hangs back with Anzu. He's seen enough and decides to confront her. "You do know you just broke his heart, don't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"I would have thought it's obvious. He's in love with you. But you just said he's no more than a friend."

Anzu's hand flies to her mouth. "But! I didn't mean it like that! It was… Jonouchi annoyed me! I should…" She is about to run after Yugi, but Honda puts a hand on her shoulder and stops her.

"We've all had a rough day. We lost a good friend today and nothing feels like it did. But Yugi lost more than a friend; he lost part of himself. Give him a bit of space to let off some steam with the guys, and then…be honest with him, yeah? Just don't string him along. It isn't fair on him, or you."

"I know," Anzu admits, biting her lip. "Thanks, Honda. I… er. If Yugi asks where I am, tell him I've gone to take a shower."

Honda winks. "Want me to tell him to join you?" Anzu slaps his arm.

"Honda! And I thought you were the serious one!" she says, blushing as she runs away.

Mind you, if Yugi did want to join her in the shower, she might not turn him away.

Chapter Text

A month has now passed since Atem left for the afterlife, and Yugi has finally decided to ask Anzu to officially be his girlfriend.

Ironically, asking her is not a decision he is taking lightly; so much has happened in the last couple of years and there are feelings to take into account, the main one being Anzu's feelings for Atem and his own sense that Anzu may see him as a substitute for the man she really wants but will never be able to have.

Can Yugi fill the role of the man she wants? He is unsure.

But they have been spending a lot of time together lately, and she does seem very attentive towards him, so he takes the plunge.

To his surprise, she seems almost relieved. "I thought you would never ask!" she exclaims. "I was actually on the verge of asking you!"

"Oh!" He blushes awkwardly. "I've kind of been waiting for the right time," he says. "But then I realised that if I keep waiting it might never be the right time, what with you going to New York after we graduate."

"I understand," she says. "But…. Can we keep our relationship discreet? –you know what it's like at school, with Miss Chono always on the war path?"

"Yeah, I do. And I agree, we should be discreet." It is well known that the school does not encourage romantic involvement between students, and if Miss Chono (AKA: The Wicked Witch of Expel) finds out about them dating seriously they could be in trouble, despite them being seniors. It may not officially be an expellable offence (if Miss Chono had her way it would be) but they could still have marks deducted and their exam results downgraded if caught.

But since love and lust know no bounds, it's a risk worth taking.

"Can well tell our friends?" asks Yugi.

Anzu hums thoughtfully. "They already think we are dating anyway, so I don't see why not."

They agree to tell their friends that afternoon when they go to the mall, and their friends are delighted.

"Finally!" says Jonouchi.

"About time!" adds Honda.

"I'm pleased for you," says Bakura.

From Otogi they receive a nudge nudge, wink wink, which incurs the wrath of Anzu.

"Breathe a word to anyone, and all of you will be singing soprano for the rest of your lives. Got it?!" She sounds deadly serious, and all four boys grimace as their testicles retreat in fear.

Yugi touches Anzu's arm to placate her. "Okay, so Anzu's threat is a bit extreme, but you all know what the school rules are, and we especially don't want Miss Chono finding out we're together," he explains. "So, seriously, don't breathe a word to anyone outside of us."

"Yeah," says Jonouchi, clamping his smaller friend on the back. "You can trust us Yuge." The other three nod in agreement and Yugi smiles – he knows he can trust his friends.

:

Sunday arrives, and Yugi is meeting Anzu on their first proper date as a couple.

And as he sets off from home to meet his girlfriend (that sounds nice when he thinks it) he inadvertently touches his chest. Even a month on, he still has to remind himself that the Millennium Puzzle is gone. Atem is gone.

He knows he will always miss his friend, and there will always be some regrets, but he is not miserable, mainly because he knows Atem's soul is finally whole again and he has taken his rightful place among the Pharaohs and Gods. Ishizu has even been able to fill in the small gap in the Pharaonic timeline to add Atem's name, his father's name, and the name of his successor, Seto, all of whom were missing from that short, turbulent, and deliberately erased time in Egyptian history.

Despite all this, it would be nice if he could see him again, just one more time, to know he is definitely okay. And, of course, tell him that he and Anzu are now a couple.

As Yugi strolls to their meeting spot, he sees Anzu is already waiting for him, so he breaks into a jog. Anzu spots him coming towards her and waves.

"Hey! Been waiting long?" he asks as soon as he reaches her. He knows he is not late, in fact he is two minutes early.

"Ten minutes. I was early," she says, tutting at herself.

He reaches out and takes her hands. "You're cold!"

"I'm fine," she says, suppressing a shiver. "I think I should have worn gloves."

"Let's go somewhere warm," he suggests.

"Hot chocolate?" she says hopefully. He nods, and they head to the Duel Monsters themed cafe nearby.

They are greeted by a young woman dressed as the Dark Magician Girl. When she sees who her next customer is, she starts to fawn over Yugi and he feels a bit embarrassed. It's not helped by a dream he once had, where Anzu was dressed as the Dark Magician Girl and spanked him, so it is doubly embarrassing, especially when he finds himself wondering if he can get hold of one of those outfits and persuade Anzu to wear it!

Anzu grabs his arm possessively and shoots the waitress her best 'hands off, he's mine,' glare.

Remembering she's here to do a job, not flirt with customers, the waitress bows and tells them she is happy to serve them. Yugi feels Anzu's stance soften, and they are shown to a table and handed menus.

"That waitress fancies you," Anzu whispers, and in a sudden change of priorities says, "If you play it right, we might be able to wangle free marshmallows and cream with our hot chocolate."

Yugi blushes. He can't win! If he flirts, he's in trouble, if he doesn't flirt and Anzu doesn't get cream and marshmallows, he's in trouble – he'll never understand women!

"What if she gets the wrong idea?" he asks.

"You're famous, use your charm." To emphasise her point, Anzu points at a picture of him, or rather the other Yugi, on the wall. "Offer to sign it, for perks. And don't feel guilty – Kaiba sponsors this place, remember?" Oh, that's right, Yugi had forgotten about Kaiba's sponsorship.

Thankfully, he does not have to ask for any favours, because the manager comes over, all smiles and bows and gushing, and tells him it is an honour to serve the King of Games and that he and his lady friend do not have to pay for their drinks.

Anzu orders the works: large, double hot chocolate with whipped cream and marshmallows. Yugi just has coffee, and he also signs the picture on the wall.

"What would you like to do today?" he asks, sipping the froth off the top of his latte.

Anzu shrugs. "We could hang out at my place, if you like?"

Yugi raises an eyebrow. "What about your dad?" Mister Mazaki is not his biggest fan.

"Oh, he's gone to Tokyo for the weekend. A business seminar, I think. Mum is out with her sister."

Yugi fidgets at the thought of being alone with Anzu, in her house. They've kissed, but not much more, and he's purposefully refrained from trying to further their relationship, because Anzu does not want things to get too serious due to her moving to New York after graduation. Yugi is inclined to agree, mainly because he does not want to be the reason she changes her mind about going.

However, for Yugi kissing is not enough. He would like more, and he wonders if she does too.

Maybe that is why she is asking him back to her house?

His libido sure hopes so!

:

They arrive at Anzu's house, and find a note on the kitchen table from Anzu's mum saying she will be home around two. It's just gone midday now, so they have plenty of time alone.

Yugi starts to fidget, but Anzu doesn't seem to notice.

"Oh!" she exclaims excitedly, still buzzing from all the sickly sweet chocolate she's consumed. "I'll show you the new dance I'm learning." She starts to shove furniture aside to make more room.

Smiling, Yugi sits on a dining chair that's been pushed against the wall, and watches as she flings off her jumper, revealing a tight crop-top that shows off her midriff. Her tummy is smooth and toned, and he can see the shape of her nipples through the thin, stretchy material of her top. It is impossible for him to not feel a turned on, especially when she starts to dance and her boobs jiggle because she is not wearing an appropriate sports bra.

"So! It goes like this!" Anzu says, giving a running commentary. Spinning, she hops sideways and collides with the table.

Yugi is concerned she might have hurt herself. "Anzu! Be careful!"

Minor bruising aside, there is no harm done. "Didn't think I would need so much room!" She giggles, and pirouettes towards him, deliberately landing in his lap. He lets out an, 'Oof!' but giggles when she drapes her arms over his shoulders and kisses his nose playfully. He puts his hands on her waist to keep her in place, and gently kneads the soft, warm skin that is exposed there. With Anzu on his lap, it is quite easy to peer down at her cleavage and it's working wonders for his libido.

He hopes she cannot feel it, but she wiggles a bit, shifts position, and then throws a very agile leg up and over his thighs to straddle him, and her pubic bone is now very much pressed against his erection.

He would dearly love her to give him a lap dance, but is too shy to ask.

Smiling, she leans down and kisses him, making him breathless and horny as hell. Is she teasing him on purpose? He can but hope.

"A..Anzu?" he squeaks, as she shifts her weight in his lap and rubs against him. He wanted a lap-dance, and now he's getting one! Whether she's aware of what she's doing to him, he has no idea, but he's going to embarrass himself if she keeps this up! Perhaps that's her plan.

His hands start to explore of their own accord, over her lower back, her shapely bottom and back up to push underneath the hem of her top.

He's expecting her to stop him, but much to his delight she doesn't, and the circuits in his teenage boy brain start to fry when he finds the elasticated band of her bra. Before he can stop himself, his hands begin working underneath her top to try and undo her bra strap. The bra is a puzzle, and he's good at solving Puzzles.

Success, her breasts are free! He wastes no time and cups her left breast in his right hand and lovingly fondles it. He glances up at her face for reassurance that what he is doing is acceptable, and sees that her eyelids are fluttering closed. He is no expert, but from this angle she looks like she's enjoying herself.

Needing more, he pushes her top up as far as he can and gazes at her beautiful, shapely breasts for a moment, before plunging his face in, a little too clumsily and over enthused. He has no clue if he's doing it right, but instinct quickly kicks in –that and the knowledge from the porn he's watched.

His mouth is full of breast, and his tongue is licking and swirling as he eagerly sucks. Anzu arches her body and is fisting his hair so tightly that he can feel her pulling on the roots. It should hurt, but it feels kind of erotic instead.

Oh, how he wants to see her naked!

Suddenly, her nipple is pulled from his mouth, leaving it pink and swollen and wet with his saliva.

"We should go to the couch," she says, and Yugi feels the weight of her lift from his lap, giving his ready to erupt erection a momentary reprieve. He licks his lips and follows her.

On the sofa, they start to kiss again.

Anzu has pulled her top back down to cover herself but her bra is still undone. He would like to get her top off completely, but is not brave enough to ask. Instead, he turns his attention to her lower half, sliding a hand between her legs. She's wearing jeans that are quite tight, but the material is soft and her crotch feels very warm.

Using his body to push her down onto the cushions, he pops the button on her jeans and works the zip down as far as it will go.

He tentatively slides his hand inside the elastic of her panties, but finds her clothing is too restrictive, and all he seems to be doing is tickling her bush. He doesn't know if he should try and tug her jeans and panties down, and ponders his next move. Maybe he should just stop, before they get too carried away?

Retracting his hand, Yugi rests it on her hip and concentrates on kissing her. She really is good at kissing, and it's helping him to be a better kisser as well.

Already feeling ridiculously turned on, Anzu is disappointed when Yugi removes his hand from inside her jeans, and is desperate for him to touch her and make her feel nice.

No other hand but her own has ever touched her intimately before; she's always guarded her virginity with a sense of moral pride. But to hell with morals! Yugi is her long time friend, now boyfriend, and it feels right to give him the honour of being the first man to pleasure her, so she lifts her hips and wriggles her stretch fit jeans and panties down and kicks them off, and then opens her legs.

At first, Yugi is surprised! And then hesitant. Anzu is offering herself to him, and as much as he wants to touch her, he doesn't know if he should.

However, this is something he's been dreaming about for ages, and Anzu is too beautiful to resist.

Having seen enough porn to know what he's supposed to do, he gently slides his hand up the inside of her thigh and searches for the little spot that apparently makes girls tremble. She is warm and wet and his finger slides in and out with ease.

He cannot get enough of her.

Never in his wildest dreams did he think Anzu would ever let him touch her most intimate area in such a way, but this is real, it is actually happening! And she is making some delightful noises, so he rubs with a little more vigour.

Their kisses are now wet and sloppy and he inadvertently growls when he feels her moaning against his mouth. He's breathless and his heart is beating fast with desire. Moments later, she arches against his hand and orgasms.

Yugi kisses her passionately, and then lifts his head to look into her pleasure glazed eyes. She looks divine, and he cannot stop himself from telling her how he feels. "I love you so much, Anzu, I've been dreaming of being with you like this for so long." He frantically undoes his belt, his trousers and starts to hastily remove them.

Starting to come down from the high of her orgasm, Anzu is suddenly a little panicked by his bold declaration of love, and his actions. The Yugi she knows is supposed to be shy, so to see him so full of lust like this is a surprise! Not an unpleasant one, but one that does make her nervous, because apart from what she's seen in sex education, she has zero experience of the male anatomy.

When she does decide to lose her virginity, she certainly would like it to be with Yugi, but not today. She's not on any birth control and an unplanned pregnancy is the last thing she wants, especially having been accepted and enrolled to start at Julliard after she graduates school!

She is also starting to feeling a little ashamed of herself for encouraging him to go this far. "Yugi. I.. What if my mum comes home early?" It's already after one.

"Shall we go up to your room, just in case?" Right now she is the centre of his world, and he does not want to stop. He desperately needs to show her how pure, and honest, and never ending his love for her is.

Still hovering between wanting and not wanting, Anzu bites her lip. "Do you have a condom?" He shakes his head. He has an unopened box of them at home, but did not think they would be having sex today!

"No. Not on me."

Anzu sighs and cups his face in her hand. He still looks hopeful. "I'm sorry, Yugi. I know you want to, but we can't risk me getting pregnant." He concedes and sits up to give her space. "It's okay, Anzu. I understand." Disappointed and frustrated, he flops back against the cushions.

Despite Anzu having called time on their passion, his erection has yet to receive the message and is still desperate to inseminate her womb, and in a bid to get what it wants is poking expectantly through the flap in his boxers.

Anzu sees how proudly erect his penis is standing and she cannot help but give it an admiring look. It looks huge against his slight frame, and is engorged with arousal and glistening with need. She's now starting to have second thoughts about not having sex with him, and is tempted to risk it.

Catching her eyeing him, Yugi suddenly feels embarrassed and covers himself with his hands as best he can, but an erection this big and hard is not easy to hide. "Sorry. He has a mind of his own," he says apologetically. With his hands firmly holding them, his manhood pulses and his balls throb. It's taking a lot of willpower to stop himself from pumping himself in front of Anzu, but there's only one way this erection is going to go down, and that is by giving it some action. "I er.. need the bathroom." Standing up, he kicks his trousers off to avoid tripping on them, then picks them up and makes haste to leave the room, but Anzu calls out to him.

"Yugi?" Hearing his name causes his hopes to rise, but she lets him down again. "Next time, bring a condom, eh?" she says teasingly. Sighing, he nods, gives her a sheepishly apologetic smile, and then quickly makes his way to the bathroom.

From now on, he's going to make sure he has a condom on him at all times!

Chapter Text

The following morning, it is raining and blowing a gale. It will not be a pleasant walk to school.

Yugi is just thinking about messaging Anzu to suggest they meet at the bus stop and take the bus instead of walking, when he receives a message from her to say her mother is giving her a lift to school and she will see him there. The message is blunt and brief; there are no sweet greetings and there is no offer to pick him up on the way, not even an apology for not offering.

He's a little perplexed and starts to think that she is getting an early lift in order to avoid him.

Maybe he's over thinking it, but he wonders if she has cooled towards him following what happened yesterday afternoon and has changed her mind about being in a romantic relationship with him.

Things were certainly a bit awkward between them when he returned from the bathroom after seeing to his urgent need, which in his extreme state of arousal only took about a minute. They were struggling to look each other in the eye and conversation had been a bit stilted. He also got the impression she was not impressed with him for masturbating in her bathroom. He does not blame her! He would never have imagined himself doing something like that in Anzu's parents house, and is acutely embarrassed about it. He was expecting her to tell him to leave, but instead she made a pot of tea and asked him to stay. In hindsight, perhaps he should have declined and left, because they sat drinking it like two people who barely knew each other but had got a bit carried away by lust and now did not know quite what to say to each other.

It was almost a relief when Anzu's mother came home shortly after.

She looked surprised to see them there, and innocently said "I thought you said you might go to the cinema! Did you change your mind?"

Let's hope Jonouchi doesn't go and interfere anyway, and make the situation worse!

Please review.

Mrs Mazaki was addressing Anzu, and barely gave a cursory glance in Yugi's direction, which made him feel like a spare wheel with a puncture, and when he looked across the table at Anzu and tried to offer a reassuring smile, he received a threatening look in response, and he knew in that moment it was a 'don't you dare say anything to anyone ever' look.

Does she regret being intimate with him?

After everything he's done to prove himself, does she still think of him as a poor substitute for the man who is her true King?

It makes him want to stay in bed all day and cry.

However, he does not have time to wallow in self pity, because his mother is nagging him to hurry up or he will miss the bus.

"I know, Mum!" he says testily. The school bus is due in ten minutes, and if he does miss it he will be forced to run all the way to school in the torrential rain.

"You must wear your rain coat, Yugi!" Hana Muto orders, handing it to him when she sees he's about to leave in just his blazer.

He takes it and puts it on while he makes the 800 metre dash to the bus stop.

Because of the bad weather, everyone is getting the bus and it is packed. There are no seats, so he is forced to stand, squashed between soaking wet people, one of whom has a large umbrella which they have folded down but are holding in a way that Yugi can feel the water dripping off it onto his trouser leg and soaking into his shoes and socks.

He decides that today is truly awful and he might have been better off staying in bed after all.

:

The rain still has not let up when he gets off the bus and enters the school. All around him, students and teachers are ringing out wet clothing and moaning about the weather.

Yugi hangs up his coat, takes off his soggy shoes and socks, puts on his spare pair of dry socks and his indoor shoes, and heads to class.

He knows Anzu will already be there, and hesitates before entering. "Act normal. Play it cool, Yugi," he quietly tells himself. And then marches straight to his desk without looking at anyone.

To his left, he senses Anzu is trying to get his attention and he does not know how to respond. But he does not want to be rude either, so he glances over at her with a tight smile. "Morning, Anzu." It's stilted and formal.

"Morning, Yugi," she responds tersely. She gets the impression he is sulking. "Look! I'm sorry I didn't offer you a lift. My mum leaves for work early and I didn't think you'd be ready."

He shrugs. "It's okay. I wasn't expecting you to offer anyway." He cringes at the unintended spite in his voice.

Anzu is irritated by his attitude and fixes him with a stern look as she stands up and edges around her desk to face him. Yugi grimaces, and knows she's about to confront him, but before she has chance to open her mouth and berate him, Jonouchi arrives and distracts her. He's dripping wet, and a bit dishevelled.

"This weather is absolutely shit!" he loudly complains.

"You didn't cycle, did you?!" asks Anzu, her hands on her hips like she's about to lecture him for not wearing adequate wet weather gear, or a cycle helmet.

"Yeah.. How the hell else am I gonna get here?!" Jonouhci snaps, hissing when he touches the bump on his head. Cursing loudly, he then shows them his hand.

"Jonouchi! You're bleeding!" exclaims Anzu upon seeing the bloody scrape on his palm.

"Yeah. Some jerk spilt oil on the road. Oil and water don't mix and it caused me to fall off." He has a hole in the knee of his trousers as well and through the hole they can see his knee is bleeding.

"Let me look at it?!" Anzu orders. He complies and pulls up his trouser leg. Anzu frowns. "I can see grit in it. You should go to the nurse, get it cleaned up." Mumbling something about Anzu being a mother hen, Jonouchi slouches off to the medical room to get his wounds dealt with.

"I'll let the teacher know where you are, Jonouchi," Yugi calls out, and Jonouchi turns and gives him a thumbs up, with his uninjured hand.

Now, where were they? Hoping to resolve their disagreement, if you can call it that, Yugi looks at Anzu but Bakura is now talking to her.

Honda comes in next. "Have you guys seen Jonouchi?" He must have only missed his wounded friend by moments.

"Yes!" says Anzu. "He fell off his bike. He's gone to the nurse to get patched up."

Honda shakes his head in dismay. "Idiot, cycling in this weather," he mumbles.

Since Anzu is talking to the others and ignoring him, Yugi sits down at his desk and starts to get his books and writing equipment out of his book bag.

Glancing over his shoulder, he sees that Anzu is still chatting to Honda and Bakura, and Ryuji and his latest conquest have also joined them.

Concluding that Anzu has decided to avoid him, he startles when two girls pause at his desk and one of them says, "Good morning, Yugi." She is giggling and trying to encourage her friend to ask him something, but the other girl is blushing and chastising her friend for putting her on the spot with her crush.

Yugi is not quite sure what to make of their behaviour. "Good morning, Umeko, Matsumi," he replies to be polite.

"Now's you chance," Matsumi whispers to Umeko, but the bell goes and Umeko runs to her desk. Matsumi apologises to Yugi and slopes off to her desk.

Amused, Yugi smiles as he watches them. It might be shallow of him, but he is flattered. Part of him hopes that Anzu did not see, but part of him also thinks that it might be good for her to see that other girls do actually find him attractive.

He glances over at Anzu, who is now taking her own desk, but she pointedly looks away when their eyes meet.

The teacher expects all students to be alert and facing forward, so Yugi swallows his confusion and swivels around in his seat to face the teacher. He does not see the hurt look Anzu gives him.

Lessons begin, and several times during the morning, Yugi sneaks glances at Anzu. Eventually she looks up, but when their eyes meet she huffs and looks away again.

He gets the impression she really does hate him! It confirms his worst fears, that she regrets being intimate with him and has no intention of ever letting anything like that happen again.

Meanwhile, Anzu is feeling upset and confused. Yugi is acting weird this morning, and flirting with those girls is the final straw.

If he's behaving like it because she refused to have sex him, then he can go to Hell. Men! She had thought better of Yugi, but it seems he's the worst of the worst.

:

Lunch break arrives, and it's still wet and windy outside, so Yugi decides to eat his lunch at his desk. Some of the other students are doing the same.

But Jonouchi is a fidget and struggles to stay sitting in the same place all day, so he suggests they go to the sports hall for a change of scenery and eat their lunch there. Honda agrees.

Anzu and Ryou get up to go with them, so Yugi does the same in the hope he can speak to Anzu, to plead his case and ask her to give him another chance. His worst fear is that she tell him there is no chance for them romantically and that they should go back to being platonic friends. It will hurt, but he will try and accept it.

On the way to the sports hall, Anzu says she needs to use the ladies. Taking this as his chance to talk to her alone, Yugi excuses himself and says he needs the gents. The boys toilets are on one side of the cloak room and the girls on the opposite side. Instead of going towards the gents, Yugi follows her. "Anzu! Wait?!"

She grimaces."You're not following me into the girls toilets, are you, Yugi?" she says pointedly.

Yugi's face turns beet red. "No! Of course not! I.." He fidgets awkwardly. "Are you okay?"

She raises her eyebrows. "Me?! Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?!" she says irritably.

"Mm.." He pokes at something imaginary on the floor with his toe. "I dunno." He nervously rubs the back of his head. He knows he should say something that will make things better again, but cannot think of what to say.

"Right!" she says impatiently. "If you don't mind?!" She gestures in the direction of the girls toilets. A couple of other girls push past, give him a dirty look and giggle at him.

Ashamed of himself for hounding Anzu outside the ladies loos, he backs away. "I'll, er, go then." He beats a hasty retreat to the gents.

After using the urinal, he washes his hands and cautiously goes back outside. There's no sign of Anzu. He considers waiting for her but shakes his head and heads straight to the sports hall instead. There's no sign of Anzu in the sports hall yet either, so he sits down with the lads.

"Where's Anzu?" asks Honda. Yugi shrugs.

"Dunno."

"Is everything alright between you?" Ryou asks, having sensed some tension between them.

Yugi shrugs again. "I wouldn't know. Ask Anzu," he says shirtily, which is not like him. His friends are not sure what to make of it.

"Maybe she's pissed at you flirting with Umeko and Mitsumi," says Honda.

"Yeah, what's going on, Yugi?" comments Jonouchi.

"Nothing's going on," he says dismissively. "And I wasn't flirting; they said good morning to me, that's all." Not wanting to talk about it further, he pulls out his Bento box.

Honda and Jonouchi look at each other with raised eyebrows when Anzu arrives and sits down next to Ryou, and not Yugi as she usually does; now they are even more suspicious that something might be wrong.

But since they do not want to draw unwanted attention from the hall monitors, they say nothing about Yugi and Anzu not sitting together, and instead start chatting about the usual rubbish. But Yugi is quiet, and they observe that Anzu is not very talkative either.

The afternoon is uneventful, and once school lets out, Jonouchi suggests they all go to the mall.

Anzu declines. "I have dance classes until seven thirty."

"Count me out!" says Honda. He then sags. "I'm babysitting my bratty nephew."

"Sorry everyone! I have somewhere else to be as well," says Ryou. He does not elaborate and no one asks: Ryou does not like talking about his therapy sessions to help him deal with the traumas he suffered while he was possessed by the Millennium Ring.

"Looks like it's just Me and you then Yugi," says Jonouchi. Yugi nods. He would like to make an excuse and go home, but doesn't want to let his friend down.

The pair walk towards the bus stop, and Jonouchi cannot wait any longer. "Okay, Yuge, spill! What's going on between you and Anzu?" he asks so bluntly that Yugi flinches.

"I honestly don't know what you mean!" Yugi says defensively.

"Meh, something's up! We all noticed, but none of us said anything in school because we didn't wanna cause ya any trouble."

"It's nothing." He does not want to talk about it and Jonouchi gets the message, for now.

They go to the bar next to the arcade and get a burger each and a drink. They sit down on the red plastic chairs and start to eat, but there is a tension surrounding Yugi and Jonouchi is getting impatient with him.

"You ready to tell me what's up, Yuge, or am I gonna shake it outta you?"

Yugi knows he can't avoid fobbing Jonouchi off any longer. Besides, it might be good to get it off his chest. "It's got nothing to do with those two girls this morning, but I don't think Anzu wants to go out with me any more," he says morosely, and Jonouchi stops mid chew and stares at him like he's grown an extra head.

"That's not possible!" he says with his mouth full. "Why?!"

"We almost…." the admission hangs on his lips for a moment before he decides to spill. "I wanted her to," he clears his throat and whispers, "...have sex with me. She refused."

Jonouchi raises his eyebrows. "Did you say it wrong? Like, lecherous or something?"

Yugi shakes his head. "No! We were… making out and it felt right. But now she's behaving like she can't stand my guts." He lets out a huff. "I think it's because she doesn't love me enough."

"Of course she loves ya, Yugi!"

"As a friend, yes. But I've got to accept it, I'm just not who she really wants. I'm not Atem." He tries not to sound bitter as he says the name of his friend and former partner, but he is willing to bet that she would not have said 'no' to Atem.

Jonouchi looks at him with narrowed eyes, like he's trying to find the right words and not say something insensitive. Yugi does not give him the chance and continues, "She denies it, but I know it's always been about the other Me. But he's gone, and I'm what's left. I'm just a substitute for a better man."

Jonouchi is shaking his head. "Nah, I don't believe it. You're a great guy! I'd have sex with ya if I was a girl!" His attempted humour falls flat when Yugi grimaces.

"That's not funny, Jonouchi."

Jonouchi sighs. "Want me to have a word with her?"

Alarmed by the idea of his friend putting his oar in and making things even worse, Yugi vigorously shakes his head. "No!"

So Jonouchi retracts his offer. "Okay. I won't. But if you do change your mind, I'm happy to knock some sense into that thick skull of hers." He then mumbles, "Messing with my little buddy's feelings, phtt!"

Yugi forces a smile. "Less of the 'little' please. But thanks for the sentiment."

"Meh, no problem, Yuge." He eyes Yugi's untouched fries, that are now going cold. "You gonna eat them?"

Shaking his head, Yugi shoves the plate towards him and sighs. "I'm sure I'll get over her eventually."

Jonouchi finishes eating Yugi's cold fries and then suggests they go and play the gaming machines for a while, but Yugi is not in the mood, so he makes his excuses and goes home.

If Anzu doesn't want to be with him in the way that he would like her to be, then there is nothing more he can do. He is just going to have to accept it and move on.

Chapter Text

Seeing Yugi unhappy makes Jonouchi feel like he needs to do something to help.

It isn't that long ago his little pal said goodbye to Atem, so the last thing he needs right now is to feel like Anzu is rejecting him.

That's it! He's made up his mind. Even though Yugi asked him not to, Jonouchi decides he is going to speak to Anzu anyway. He does not know quite what he is going to say yet, but has every intention of giving her a piece of his mind, for clinging to her silly crush on Atem when there was never any chance of it amounting to anything anyway.

He knows where the dance school is, and has a rough idea of when she will be finishing her class, so he waits outside.

It's not long before Anzu appears. She's with two other girls and they are laughing and talking.

And then Anzu looks over in his direction. Good, she's spotted him.

Looking a bit perplexed, Anzu says goodbye to her friends and comes over. Jonouchi notices the two friends are giggling and pointing at him, obviously thinking he's Anzu's date, or something.

"Jonouchi! What are you doing here?!" Anzu asks curiously.

"I've come to make sure you get home safely," he responds.

Anzu peers around him and scans the area for Yugi, but there is no sign of him. "Isn't Yugi with you?"

Jonouchi shakes his head. "Nah. Just me." Anzu looks a bit disappointed that Yugi is not here, or is it relief, Jonouchi cannot tell.

Anzu eyes him suspiciously. "Well, I know you didn't really come here to see me home safely, so why are you here? Did Yugi put you up to it?" She starts walking towards the bus stop and Jonouchi falls into step beside her.

"Nope!" he says, "Yugi told me not to do anything, but I gotta sort this out."

"Sort what out?" she asks, feigning ignorance, but has a pretty good idea of what it might be about. If Yugi has said something to Jonouchi about them nearly having sex, she will kill them both!

"Yugi thinks you don't wanna be his girl cuz you're still hung up on Atem."

It is not the announcement she was expecting. "What on earth gives him that idea?!"

Jonouchi fixes her with a stern look. "Are you?"

Her face flushes. "No!" She is offended. "Of course not! I was over Atem a long time ago!"

Jonouchi does not believe her. "You certain about that?"

"Yes! And I thought Yugi knew that too! We've talked about it enough times!" She then grumbles, more to herself than Jonouchi, "Why he won't believe me?"

Jonouchi shrugs, and tactlessly says, "Maybe it's got something to do with you not wanting to do the business with him?" He realises he has screwed up when Anzu stops dead in her tracks and glares at him.

"What the fuck has Yugi been telling you, Jonouchi?!"

"Shit!" he curses. Grimacing, he has no choice but to go on the defensive. "Nothing! I swear!" She continues to glare at him and he caves. "Okay. But don't blame Yugi, I forced him to talk."

Shaking her head in resignation, Anzu sighs. There is no point denying anything. "I thought he was sulking because of it. He's been acting weird towards me all day," she says irritably.

"And you think you ain't been acting weird?!" Jonouchi tells her.

Anzu looks at him. "Have I?" When he nods, the realisation hits her. "God! I have, haven't I?" She knows she was a bit mean when Yugi approached her during lunch break. In hindsight, she could have been nicer, but he was being a moron so how was she supposed to react? "It's just a stupid misunderstanding," she tries to explain, "I will admit, I am a bit annoyed with him, but it doesn't mean I don't love him!"

"So, you gonna make it up to him?" Jonouchi is not letting up until this little tiff between his two friends is sorted out.

Anzu sees her bus coming and needs to hurry if she's to get on this one. "None of your business, Jonouchi," she says, poking him lightly in the ribs, "but yes, I will. Bye!" Leaving him standing there, she runs to the bus-stop and makes it onto the bus.

Jonouchi scratches his head in bemusement.

Those two lovebirds are hopeless!

But at least it looks like his intervention has done the trick. All he can do now is leave them to it.

Smiling smugly, he turns and walks away. Seems he's a natural at this relationship counselling nonsense, and maybe there is a career out of it if the pro-dueling thing doesn't work out.

As soon as she is seated on the bus, Anzu pulls out her I-phone.

She types out her message to Yugi a couple of times before settling on what to put, and then hits send before she can change her mind again.

Expecting a fairly immediate response, she waits, and waits. The bus ride home takes twenty minutes, and by the time she gets off she is getting anxious because Yugi has still not replied. She does not know whether to feel hurt, annoyed, or stupid – maybe all three. Perhaps the message she sent was too casual; like a friend messaging a friend, rather than a girlfriend messaging her boyfriend. She shakes her head. No, it's fine, she is sure.

Pocketing her phone, she hurries up the to her front door and uses her key to get in.

She's over thinking it and it is probably just a simple case of him not seeing the message yet.

:

Having put his phone on to charge, Yugi goes into the bathroom to run himself a bath.

Stripping off, he climbs in and sinks down into the warm water and sudsy bubbles.

These feelings of insecurity about their relationship started after what happened yesterday afternoon. However, it was only when Anzu sent him the message at seven thirty this morning, telling him she would see him at school as she was getting a lift, did he really start to think she did not love him in the way he would like her to.

But why? They have discussed their feelings many times, and there are absolutely no reasons why he should suddenly start thinking that she does not love him because she is still in love with Atem.

Yugi lathers his hair, takes a breath and submerges himself under the water to rinse out the shampoo.

By the time he surfaces, he has come to the conclusion that thinking Anzu loves Atem, but does not love him in the same way, are just his old insecurities resurfacing.

Of course she loves Atem – they all do!

After using the shower head to rinse away the rest of the stubborn shampoo from his thick mane of hair, Yugi gets out of the bath and dries himself off.

Pulling on some pyjama bottoms, he continues rubbing his hair with the towel as he walks to his bedroom, where he scrapes a brush through his hair and then tips his head forward, carding his fingers through it and allowing gravity to settle it into his trademark spikes.

He then puts on his pyjama top, sits down at his desk and starts looking through his deck. Not the deck he's currently using, but the deck that he and Atem used. These particular cards hold precious memories and he wants to keep them just as they are, which is why each card is now wearing a protective sleeve.

Some of the cards are no longer tournament legal, and many are not even that competitive in an ever evolving game. Regardless of this, the King of Games Duelist Kingdom deck, and his Battle City deck, are considered very valuable by collectors, because they are iconic and also hold many first editions and limited editions. He could sell these cards for millions of Yen if he wants, but they will never be for sale.

Meanwhile, his phone sits on charge, forgotten.

After a while, Yugi yawns and looks at the clock. Nine fifty! Where did the time go?! He only intended to spend five minutes looking at his cards, while trying to think about what he is is going to say to Anzu, yet an hour and a half has passed by in no time.

Carefully placing the cards back in the golden Puzzle box –a memento he's been able to keep – Yugi puts the lid back on the box and tucks it inside his desk drawer. Only then does he reach over to unplug his phone.

And that is when he sees Anzu's message, sent two hours ago.

It's a simple message: Hey! Finished my dance class and was wondering how you are? Sorry we didn't get to talk much today. Hope you're having a good evening. x

A lump forms inside his chest. The message is not romantic, but it is still a message and he knows he should reply.

Is it too late to ring her, he wonders?

No, it's never too late.

:

Freshly showered, Anzu is laying on her bed in her pyjamas. She is reading a book before she settles down at her usual weekday time of ten o'clock.

The book she is reading is a slushy romance manga, about a princess who is being forced to marry a tyrant of a King in order to secure peace between two countries. But the princess is in love with the blacksmiths son; a mere lowly peasant. Anzu has just got to the part where they run away together hoping to live happily ever after, but soldiers are in hot pursuit and their future looks bleak. She usually loves stories like this, but tonight she cannot help thinking how corny and stupid it is.

Anzu throws the book to one side. Yugi has still not replied to her message and she is pissed off and feels like screaming into her pillow at how foolish she's been for thinking that love is all cute little love hearts, sweet romantic kisses and knights in white shining armour.

She's about to go downstairs and raid the freezer for ice-cream –since that's what one does after a bitter break-up – when her phone rings.

It's Yugi.

She is perplexed. He knows that ten is when she turns off the light and snuggles down to sleep, so why is he calling her this late?

But they do need to talk, so she answers. "Hey, Yugi!" she says, keeping her voice light and friendly.

"Hey, Anzu," he says, sounding slightly cautious. "It's me."

"Hello Me!" she says in a way that she hopes eases any tension that exists between them, and then messes it up with prickly sarcasm. "Finally replying to my message then?"

Yugi ignores the barb and responds evenly. "I only just got it. My phone's been on charge." He clears his throat. "Sorry, it's getting late. I didn't think. You probably want to go to sleep."

She wants to scream at herself for making him feel like he should not be calling her. "No! It's fine. It's good to talk." If they end the call without talking, she will not be able to sleep anyway.

"Yeah, it is…" he says, not quite knowing how to start the conversation about their relationship. "How was dance class?" he asks instead.

"Good." Anzu pretends she has not spoken to Jonouchi. "How was the arcade with Jonouchi?"

"I came home early." He frowns. "I was feeling...tired."

"I should probably let you get to bed then," she teases lightly.

Yugi chuckles awkwardly. "Actually, I wasn't tired. I was worrying about us." His statement hangs in the air and Anzu finds herself nibbling her bottom lip with her teeth. Is he about to tell her it might be better if they just remained friends?

"Oh," she says shakily, not knowing how else to react.

Given her muted response, Yugi continues. "Is everything okay, Anzu? You seemed annoyed with me at school today. If it's because of what happened yesterday, I'm sorry. I thought..." He doesn't want to say that he thought she wanted to have sex with him, and decides that it is now up to her to decide where they go from here. "I dunno what I thought. I'm sorry. I went too far."

Anzu feels stupid. All day, she has been blaming Yugi for something she knows she is just as guilty of. "You didn't go too far Yugi. If I remember correctly, It was me who encouraged you."

Yugi can't help feeling a warmth spreading up his neck and across his face at the memory of her straddling his lap, or the way she allowed him to pleasure her. He swallows thickly. "But now you regret it, don't you?" He should have had more self control, but he took advantage of her and may have ruined any chance of a romantic relationship.

"Regret it?! No! Of course I don't!" She says vehemently. She turns the question back on him."Do you?"

She cannot see him shaking his head. "Definitely not," he says passionately. "You're a beautiful, amazing woman, Anzu. I could never regret loving you. But I still can't stop thinking I did something wrong, or that you regret being intimate with me."

Anzu feels her heart breaking for him. Does he think she finds intimacy with him repulsive?

"You definitely didn't do anything wrong, Yugi. You, erm, were very good; I enjoyed it." She's blushing with so much embarrassment, that she is unable to tell him she can't wait to make out with him again.

Yugi is also embarrassed, and is trying very hard not to giggle like a silly schoolboy looking at a naked woman in a porno magazine for the first time.

"So, does that mean you still want to be my girlfriend?" he asks.

"If you still want me?" she replies, and Yugi's heart skips beat.

He responds keenly. "You bet I do! Do you want to walk to school with me tomorrow?"

Anzu finds his enthusiasm cute. "Definitely! Eight o'clock, usual place?" She is relieved they are sorting out this weirdness between them.

"Yep!" he says happily.

"Anyway, beauty sleep beckons." Anzu feigns a yawn. "See you in the morning, Yugi."

"Night… Anzu." Yawns are infectious and he yawns as he speaks.

Anzu's finger hovers over the red disconnect icon, but before ending the call she remembers what Jonouchi said. "Yugi?!"

Yugi is about to end the call himself, but hesitates. "Yes?!" he says expectantly.

"I'm not in love with Atem. It's you I love, and only you." There's more she wants to say, but her tongue is getting tied.

At first, Yugi is not sure how to respond. Yes, she has told him she loves him before, but he never quite believed it was just him she was referring to. Her new declaration brings tears to his eyes.

"Thank you," he says in a voice that makes Anzu shiver. "You don't know how much that means to me."

Oh, but she does know.

When at last they say goodnight and finish their call, all is forgiven and their misunderstanding is behind them.

They both go to sleep with smiles on their faces.

Chapter Text

While Yugi is happy that the little misunderstanding between himself and Anzu has been resolved, there is still the matter of how much intimacy is allowed.

"Can we… maybe talk about it?" he asks tentatively. He is not putting pressure on her, he just wants to know where he stands.

"Not right now, Yugi," she says evasively. "I'd rather we concentrate on getting our exams out of the way first, and then talk about it."

Although he accepts this, he is frustrated that she doesn't want to talk about their relationship. He wonders if she still ashamed of herself for letting him touch and pleasure her last week. "Enjoying being intimate with someone you love is nothing to be ashamed of, Anzu..." At which point he receives a withering look. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that." Is he not allowed to even mention intimacy any more?

"It's okay, Yugi," she says, winking at him. "You're a boy. You think differently about sex than I do."

"Maybe I do think differently, but I still love and respect you, and I love showing you my love," he says honestly.

"I know, Yugi. But I don't know if I'm ready to go that far yet." She nudges him playfully and makes a joke out of it. "You're not in that much of a hurry to lose your virginity, are you?"

His face turns red. Of course he wants to lose his virginity! And he wants to lose it with Anzu!

"Well?" she urges, waiting for his answer. So he nods sheepishly.

"Yes..." and adds, "But only with you." He hopes it's the right thing to say. It must be, because she takes his hand and places a tender kiss on his cheek.

"You're the sweetest boy I know, Yugi. And when I'm ready to lose my virginity, I want it to be you. But let's not rush, eh?"

Showing her just how sweet he is, he kisses her lips tenderly. "I'll be waiting," he says softly, and Anzu almost wants him to take her there and then.

But not on a park bench.

:

A week later, Yugi is meeting Anzu for their daily walk to school.

Since the conversation they had last week they have been polite around one another –some might say too polite.

Despite having agreed to slow things down, Yugi is frustrated; he would never force her to do anything she does not want to do, but he would like a little more than the odd kiss on the cheek and a bit of hand holding when no one is looking.

Rounding the corner, he sees that Anzu is already waiting for him at the bottom of the steps, so he smiles and breaks into a jog. She sees him and waves.

They greet each other with the usual restrained affection and fall into a brisk walk beside one another.

Yugi opens his mouth to tell her there is something he would like to talk about, but realises just in time that a busy street during the morning commute is probably not the best place to discuss intimacy.

Wondering what he is thinking about, Anzu looks at him with a raised eyebrow. "What were you about to say, Yugi?" She knows him well enough to know that whenever he clams up like that it's to do with something he finds difficult to talk about.

"Um, I was going to suggest we could revise together at my house after school today. But then I realised you're probably busy," he says, thinking quickly.

Anzu laughs. "I'm not busy. And yes, I think revising together is a good idea." Hopefully they will be alone for long enough that they will be able to talk, because this 'no intimacy' rule is getting a bit ridiculous.

She is beginning to wish she never made him agree to it!

Chapter Text

The doorbell chimes as Yugi and Anzu enter the game store, and Sugoroku Muto greets them from behind the counter with a welcoming smile. "You're looking radiant today, Anzu! I hope my Yugi is treating you well?"

Anzu wants to barf, but is ready for it, and at least it isn't the worst remark she has ever endured – the bust size comment still makes her cringe.

These days she has an arsenal of well rehearsed replies, and even manages a pleasant smile. "Thank you, Mister Muto. You've obviously trained Yugi very well; he's a perfect gentleman." Beside her she feels Yugi squirming and she wants to burst into fits of giggles, but remains impassive.

"Ah, well," replies Sugoroku. "There's an art in knowing how to treat a woman, and it looks like my grandson is a chip off the old block." He speaks proudly, and Yugi finally finds his tongue.

"Ack! Grandpa!" Face red, he clamps a hand over his forehead. "Anzu and I are going up to my room to revise for our exams. Can you ask Mum to bring us up some green tea and snacks," He quickly ushers Anzu towards the stairs leading up to the living area above the store.

"You can ask her yourself!" Sugoroku calls out. "She's in the kitchen."

Stopping by the kitchen, Yugi lets his mother know they are home, and tells her that they are here to do some revision. Anzu is invited to stay for dinner, and accepts.

Armed with drinks and snacks, Yugi then takes Anzu up to his room. "Sorry about Grandpa. I know he means well, but it can be a bit annoying." He puts the tray down and then drops his backpack on the chair.

Anzu laughs. "Oh, it's okay. I think I'm used to him by now." She steps towards Yugi as he starts to shrug off his blazer, and without thinking, slides her hands over his shoulders and helps him remove it.

The affectionate gesture takes him by surprise. "Anzu?"

Questioning the potential implications of her actions, Anzu blushes and steps away. "Sorry. Revision," she reminds herself, clasping her hands together expecting Yugi to make the next move, but he just stands there, fidgeting awkwardly.

After what seems like a long moment, Yugi finally speaks. "Um, we should get on with it… revision that is." Chastising himself for being such an awkward idiot, he makes a show of taking his books out of his backpack and placing them on his desk. He then pauses and turns to face Anzu. "We're making a complete mess of this, aren't we?" They are both so uptight that it would be hilarious if it wasn't so frustrating.

Anzu pretends not to know what he is talking about. "Mess of what?" She is making him work for it.

He clears his thoughts and tries again. "This thing about no intimacy. I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you, but it isn't working." He sucks in a breath. "What I'm trying to say is I love you, and I want to show you how much I love you, but I don't know where the line between showing you my affection and going too far is drawn. But, like you've said, we're in the middle of exams and you're going to America in a few months, so we probably should just carry on as we are..."

Sensing he is floundering, Anzu smiles and interjects. "Yugi! America is still a long way off. I might not even get the grades I need to go!"

"You will," he says with certainty. They have discussed this before, and out of all their friends, Anzu is definitely the most academic.

Taking a breath, Anzu tries to put his mind at ease. "You can kiss me, and touch me, you know? I won't stop you."

Yugi thinks she is giving him the green light and takes a hesitant step towards her. But she hugs her book-bag to her chest, and says, "I'm not sure we should today, though. Not with your mum and grandfather downstairs."

Determination is his middle name, and Yugi still is not giving up hope of at least a kiss and cuddle. "Grandpa won't leave the shop, and my mum won't bother us until dinner is ready," he assures her. He knows that if Grandpa needs his help, he will ring him from the shop rather than come up to his room. But he wants Anzu to feel safe and relaxed, and not put her in a situation that might be embarrassing.

He leans in and places a chaste kiss on her lips, and then stands back and offers her a gentle smile. "We should probably get on with our revision," he decides.

Anzu smiles, cups his face with her hand and plants a smacker of a kiss on his lips. "Thanks. You're the best," she tells him.

With a chuckle, he winks at her. "I know," he teases, and she prods him playfully in the shoulder for being big headed.

That settled, they sit down on his bed with their books and try to concentrate.

Neither of them can. In particular Yugi, who is convinced that Anzu is purposefully giving off pheromones to allure him. His palms start sweating, so he gets up to open the skylight a crack. "It's stuffy in here," he tells her.

Anzu looks up and smiles. "Why don't you put some music on?"

He nods. "What sort of music?"

"I don't know." She shrugs. "Something relaxing."

"Not heavy metal then?" he jokes.

"No!" she says firmly. "Something that's easy on the ears."

He selects a playlist on an app on his phone that says soft rock and puts it on in to play quietly in the background. Wondering if he should kiss her, he looks at her hesitantly. She looks up at him, smiling softly as she puts her books to one side and then pats the bed next to her. He quickly takes the hint.

"I'll er… lock the door," he says, grabbing the key from the dresser.

After locking the door, he joins her on the bed.

They kiss, and Yugi seductively slides his hand inside the neckline of her blouse and traces his fingers along her collarbone. He places his other hand on the bed in between them to steady himself.

Anzu rests one of her hands on Yugi's waist, just above his hip bone, while the other hand nearest her lightly touches the outside of his chest. "Just a quick kiss and cuddle, and then we really should concentrate on our work," she reminds him, but without much conviction.

"Sure," he says, gently guiding her down onto the bed with his bodyweight and then kissing her again.

Anzu shows no resistance and tugs the back of his shirt up so that she can dance her hands over his bare back.

As much as he wants to continue, after a few minutes, and conscious of not escalating this unless Anzu initiates it, Yugi stops kissing her and rolls over onto his back, pulling her with him.

She rests her head on his chest, and Yugi deftly runs his fingers through her hair and closes his eyes. He feels so content. "Mmm, I could fall asleep like this," he says.

Feeling mischievous, Anzu idly starts toying with the buttons on his shirt, until, one by one, they pop undone.

A serene smile appears on Yugi's face, and he hums contentedly when she starts teasing her fingers around his nipples.

"Are they sensitive?" she asks lazily. "I've heard that men have sensitive nipples." She starts rubbing one.

Slightly embarrassed, Yugi giggles. "I don't know! It tickles. Ouch!" He jumps slightly when she gives the hardening nipple a squeeze. Anzu giggles, and this time uses her tongue and mouth, nipping him gently.

Turning the tables, Yugi flips her onto her back and kisses her hungrily. He starts to tug at her blouse and feels for the clasp to undo her bra.

Turned on by his little show of dominance, Anzu arches against his body with a soft moan. She wants him shirtless, and starts to push his shirt off his shoulders, but the sleeves snag on his chunky sports watch and writs band.

"Hold on," he says, kneeling up to quickly get rid of his shirt and accessories. With his bare torso now on display, Yugi suddenly feels self conscious of what he thinks of as his puny physique.

Anzu sees his physique a little differently to how he does; he might be fairly compact, but he is nicely proportioned, with just enough lean muscle to make him desirable. Slowly and appreciatively, she runs her fingers across his tummy.

It tickles, and Yugi lets out a little "eep!" Anzu giggles and tucks her fingers inside the hem of his trousers and teases the hairs on his lower abdomen. She knows she is turning him on, and just loves the look on his face. "Sorry," she says, even though she is not sorry at all.

"Sh..shall I take my belt off?" he says, already undoing it and pulling it through the loops.

There is a visible bulge in his trousers, and Anzu cannot resist the urge to reach out and touch him there. His mouth opens in both pleasure and surprise! "A..Anzu?!"

She withdraws her hand, and sits up and takes off her top leaving them both bare chested. "I know I said I didn't want to with your family downstairs, but…I think I want you to make love to me, Yugi." She is nervous and not at all certain that this is a good idea, but feels the time is right.

Yugi can feel his heart thumping in his chest. "Yes! I'll just get a.. you know," he says, and quickly hops off the bed to retrieve a small foil pack from he bedside drawer. He holds it up to show her and they both blush as he places the packet containing a condom on his pillow for when they are ready.

"Are you sure the door is locked?" she asks, trying not to have second thoughts.

"Yes," he says. "Are you sure you want to keep going?" It's not too late while they still have most of their clothing on.

"I don't want to stop," she says, pulling him down for a kiss.

Things are just starting to get passionate when Yugi's phone rings.

Anzu cannot believe their bad luck! "Tell whoever it is to go away," she snaps, as he stops kissing her and sits up.

Disappointed, but half expecting it, Yugi shoots her an apologetic look. "I can't. It's Grandpa," he says, swinging his legs around to sit on the edge of the bed. "Hey, Grandpa!" He lets out an involuntary yelp as Anzu wraps her arms around his waist from behind and nips his shoulder playfully.

She decides against sliding her hands lower, since that would most likely illicit a full on moan.

On the other end of the line, Sugoroku Muto chuckles. "Yugi. I hate to interrupt you two lovebirds, but…." There is a hint of knowing in the old man's voice, and Anzu pouts and quickly backs off, leaving Yugi space to breath normally and calm himself a little. But he does manage to give her an 'it's your fault,' look.

"No problem Grandpa! I'll be down in a minute." He ends the call with a groan.

"There's a delivery due in the next fifteen minutes and Grandpa's busy serving customers," he tells her with a disappointed sigh.

Anzu moves around and sits beside him on the edge of the bed. "Does that mean we have to stop?" she asks.

Yugi nods, although he is torn between carrying on for a few wonderful minutes more.

"I'm afraid so." He knows that if they don't stop, they might get to the point of no return. But he cannot resist kissing her again.

With Anzu encouraging him, Yugi quickly forgets about the delivery, and they both jump when they hear the beeping sound of the delivery truck reversing onto the forecourt.

"Shit! I thought we had fifteen minutes!" Yugi shrieks, as he jumps off the bed and grabs his shirt. Anzu's bra is with his shirt, and he throws it to her as he hastily pulls his shirt on and buttons it up.

Anzu giggles. "At least your shirt is on the long side," she says with amusement.

"It's not funny!" he complains, checking himself to see if it's still noticeable. It is.

His phone rings again. Grandpa is getting impatient; he is dealing with a difficult customer and the delivery driver is waiting to offload. "I'm on my way Grandpa!" Yugi snaps. He does not mean to sound irritable, but cannot help himself.

With his libido wilting fast, Yugi hurries down to the store.

Dressed and composed, Anzu spots the unopened condom on the pillow. She pockets it, and then follows Yugi.

Chapter Text

Exams are finished, and now it is time to choose a representative who will do the graduation speech on behalf of the graduating year group.

A few days ago, the students were asked to vote for who they felt should be considered for the role, and today the result will be announced.

The valedictorian should not only be someone who has achieved outstanding exam results, but also someone who is articulate, popular and well respected, and who has gone above and beyond all expectations.

While the popular student vote is taken into consideration, pupils can sometimes be subjected to coercion and bribery, so, with that in mind, the teachers and governors reserve the right to make the final decision on who gets the honour.

Having never considered himself studious, outstanding or popular, Yugi is pretty sure it will not be him, but regardless of this he is still looking forward to finding out who it will be – his hopes are on Anzu.

As Yugi bounds down the stairs and into the store, Sugoroku Muto looks up from the shelf he is dusting. "You look like you're in a good mood this morning, Yugi!" he observes as Yugi hurries past him. "Have you got a date with Anzu?"

Pausing only briefly, Yugi blushes and rolls his eyes. "Grandpa! I've got school!" Every day Grandpa makes at least one quip about Anzu. It has got to the stage where Anzu has stopped coming round. "They're announcing who our valedictorian will be," Yugi informs him as pushes open the door and hurries outside. Still clutching his duster, Sugoroku follows him outside –it looks like a good weather day, which means more potential customers.

"Well, good luck!" Sugoroku calls after Yugi.

"Thanks Grandpa!" Yugi yells without looking back. Sugoroku shakes his head in amusement as he watches Yugi jog across the road and disappear around the corner. Young people, always on the go. He wishes he still had that much energy.

Arriving at school, Yugi and Anzu meet their friends in the classroom.

"Man, I wonder who our valedictorian will be," says Honda.

"It's gonna be me!" states Jonouchi, grinning smugly. He looks a bit hurt when anyone within earshot laughs at him.

"In your dreams," retorts Honda. Before the pair can start arguing about it, Sensei walks in and everyone takes their seats, bar Jonouchi who is looming over Honda's desk, ready for a confrontation.

"Is there a problem, Mister Jonouchi?" enquires Sensei.

"No, Sensei!" Mumbling 'you just wait,' to Honda, Jonouchi slopes off to his desk.

With everyone now settled, Sensei greets them, and the students all chorus their greeting in return. Sensei continues. "As you all know, today is the day we find out who our valedictorian will be." He holds up a manilla envelope. "Before I announce who the winner is, I want to say that this young man is a shining example of what students who attend our school can achieve if they put their mind to it." Hushed whispers can be heard around the class upon hearing that the winner this year is male. Sensei clears his throat to hush them, before continuing. "When this student first started at Domino High School, not a great deal was expected of him, but with guidance, determination and hard work, this student has grown to become a fine young man, with a very good future ahead of him. Indeed, he has already made quite a name for himself while proudly wearing the Domino High uniform."

"See, told you it was me," Jonouchi says, sneering at Honda.

"Would you like to share with us why you think it's you, Mister Jonouchi?" asks Sensei, annoyed by the interruption.

Jonouchi rubs his nose and bristles. "Meh, no thanks, Sensei."

The class snickers, and one or two people make cruel comments about a loud mouthed dunce having no chance of ever being Valedictorian. Jonouchi shoots them a menacing glare.

"Good. Then I'll continue. I'm sure you're all anxious to know who it is, so without further ado-" Everyone waits with baited breath as Sensei opens the envelope and pulls out a slip of paper "-this year's valedictorian is…." You can now hear a pin drop "...Yugi Muto!" Cheers and clapping erupts, and Yugi sits there stunned, his chin almost hitting the desk.

"M..Me?!" he says, pointing at himself in disbelief. He looks over at Anzu, and sees she is crying tears of happiness and is barely able to contain the urge to jump up and down and squeal with delight.

"Yes, you, Mister Muto," confirms Sensei. "Or... should I say, Game King? Congratulations!"

Yugi still cannot quite grasp it. Apparently he received forty eight percent of the popular vote, as well as endorsement from the principal and most of the staff!

Realising that he is supposed to acknowledge the honour he has been given, he stands up and looks around at his smiling peers. "Don't worry, I'm not about to do one of those tediously long acceptance speeches," he jokes with a grin. "I just want to thank everyone who voted for me. I promise to represent our year to the best of my ability. Thank you again." He bows modestly and sits back down.

The rest of the day is spent in a daze. Yugi finds it hard to comprehend his status: when he first started at Domino he had no friends and an invisibility rating of about 95% -the only people who did notice him were the bullies. As a result of being small, shy and timid, he was picked on, teased, and was rubbish at most sports, except running, which at least helped him get away from his bullies. He was also very easily distracted by the latest game trends, and was average academically because he was lazy when it came to his studies.

But while he acknowledges his academic and sporting achievements have improved enormously due to his growing confidence, it never occurred to him that becoming the King of Games and then winning Battle City would be key factors in him being awarded the honour of valedictorian.

Throughout the day, Yugi thanks everyone who congratulates him, but the one person he really would like to say 'thank you' to is not here.

Finding a quiet moment to himself, Yugi stands on the roof and contemplates his dear, departed friend as he looks out over the playground. Placing one hand over his heart, he quietly says Atem's name. He blinks back a tear. "Thank you my friend, for everything." Without Atem, Yugi knows he would never have achieved even half of what he has in the last three years.

He jumps when Anzu gently touches his shoulder from behind. "There you are, Yugi!" She had a pretty good idea he would be on the roof. "Is everything okay?"

He turns to her with a smile and they hug. "Yes. I'm fine. I just needed a moment to myself, that's all."

She kisses him. "You're in demand," she says proudly. "I've hardly managed to speak to you all morning."

"Sorry," he says, and they kiss again. He pulls away to look into her face. She's beaming and radiant. "I'm suddenly I'm everyone's favourite guy!" he says with a soft chuckle. She lovingly strokes his cheek.

"It's not sudden, Yugi. Everyone who has watched you grow is impressed with what you've achieved. I'm super proud of you." When she thinks back to that shy little boy who would not stand up for himself and compares him to the young man now standing before her, it makes her want to sob with joy and cover him in kisses.

They step apart when they hear Jonouchi's voice. "Ha! Ya found him, Anzu!"

"He's escaping from his adoring fans," Anzu teases, and she and Yugi both laugh.

"Don't let it go to your head!" Honda teases.

Also with Honda and Jonouchi, is Ryou Bakura, and he is full of admiration for his friend. "We're all very proud of you, Yugi. It's a great honour to be appointed valedictorian," he says.

Yugi scratches his head and tries to be modest. "Thanks guys. But I still don't get why it's me. I always thought the best academic student gets the honour. I know that by some fluke I've done pretty well in my exams, but Anzu did even better!" He likes reminding his friends how well Anzu has done in her exams, and as a result, confirmed her place at a prodigious New York dance school.

"But I'm not the King of Games, Yugi," says Anzu. "And it wasn't a fluke; you worked hard for your exams, and you deserve to be recognised as the hero you are."

"Yeah, Yugi. No one else in school is on the covers of glossy magazines and on advertising boards. You're a celebrity, and a local hero!" Honda reminds him.

"What about me?!" says Jonouchi. "I'm a celebrity and a hero too! I've got my face in magazines, and there's a poster of me in the Duel themed cafe."

"I think you'll find Kaiba removed it, Jonouchi," Bakura tells him.

Jonouchi is incensed. "What?! Why, that jerk... Wait till I get my hands on the rich bastard, I'm gonna fucking…"

"Stop swearing!" snaps Anzu. "Your vulgar language is one of the reasons why no one voted for you."

Jonouchi pouts. "Honda voted for me," he says petulantly –they both agreed to vote for each other.

"Sorry, dude. I voted for Yugi," admits Honda. Jonouchi snarls.

"What?! But I voted for ya, asshole." He actually voted for Yugi, but Honda doesn't need to know that.

It takes both Yugi and Bakura to get between them to avert a fight.

Chapter Text

;;;;;;;;

Graduation is fast approaching, and Yugi has finally finished putting his graduation speech together.

He is pretty happy with what he wants to say, but before rehearsals can commence he needs to run it past Sensei first.

With his speech tucked safely inside his backpack, he sets off for school. He is in good mood: the sun is shining and the birds are singing – who wouldn't be in a good mood?

Meeting Anzu at their usual place, Yugi greets her with the same restraint as always – oh, to be able to scoop her into his arms and kiss her. Just not in public.

"What are you looking so pleased about?" Anzu asks with a hint of teasing.

"Oh, nothing," he shrugs and grins cheekily. "I've finished my graduation speech."

"You have?! Can I see?" she asks eagerly.

"Absolutely not!" He says. "Top secret! -at least until Sensei approves it. You'll hear it at rehearsals soon." Anzu tries buttering him up with a seductive pout and by fluttering her eyelashes. He nearly gives in, but manages a defiant smirk. "You'll have to try harder than that."

She huffs. "Very well." She then leans in and says huskily, "I'll make it worth your while."

Yugi's face erupts in various shades of crimson and he nearly spits out his tonsils. "Anzu!" Saying things like that in public!

"Yugi!" she mimics his response. "What did you think I meant?!" she asks, trying maintain a deadpan expression.

"Um…" Should he be ashamed of imagining her naked, riding him?

Anzu has no idea of the lewd thoughts going inside his mind and her face starts to crumple into a smirk. "I was actually going to suggest I treat you to a burger after school." She finally bursts into fits of giggles. What a mean tease she is being.

"Hmph…" He pouts at her, his little fantasy drifting away on the breeze. This has to be her revenge over him for suggesting they should go to a love hotel.

Of course, he now realises that suggesting a love hotel was a big mistake –she hates love hotels. "Yum, a burger sounds great," he says with mock sarcasm. Anzu raises an eyebrow at him.

"You could at least try and sound enthusiastic," she says, pretending to be offended.

"I am. It's just…" He sighs. "You're still annoyed with me for suggesting a love hotel, aren't you?"

Anzu was not expecting him to mention that again. "What made you bring that up?! I'd totally forgotten about it."

"They're not that bad," he mutters.

"And how you would you know?" she says smugly.

He back pedals fast. "I don't! I've never been to one! I've…heard about them, but that's all." It's true.

Anzu giggles. "It's okay Yugi, I wasn't suggesting you had been to one. I was just teasing you."

They both blush.

"Going to a love hotel was a stupid idea, I should never have suggested it," he says. "You deserve something far better."

"We both deserve something better," she tells him, and then comes up with an idea. "Maybe we could go on a romantic break together after we graduate." She winks at him and picks up the pace, partly because she is embarrassed by what she is suggesting, but also because she does not want to be late to school.

Spluttering, Yugi runs after her.

Is she hinting that he should take her to a love hotel after all?!

:

Yugi spends most of the morning thinking about his conversation with Anzu. He is already getting excited about her suggestion that they go on a romantic break together. But where? Love Hotels are out, and the only other thing that springs to mind is an onsen hotel. There is one in the mountains that he has heard is really nice. It's a retreat for the rich and famous. The Kaiba's go there sometimes, so it is probably way out of his price range.

However, he has kept most of the prize money from Battle City. It is supposed to be going towards his ambitious plan to develop his own game, but luxury break with Anzu is suddenly far more appealing; just thinking about making love to Anzu under silk sheets on a King sized bed is already making him feel very horny.

He will have to check his finances, and work out how much he can afford to spend.

From the corner of her eye, Anzu is watching Yugi. She can see he is deep in thought about something and she wonders what it is.

He turns his head slightly in order to sneak a glance at her and their eyes meet. Anzu smiles at him and he blushes.

Remembering they are in class at the moment, they break eye contact and look away.

What the heck was that all about?

Anzu sees him fidget in his seat and decides to blame it on hormones!

Chapter Text

::::::::::::

Even though Yugi is keeping the contents of his graduation speech under wraps until rehearsals, Anzu still wants to treat him to a burger.

Jonouchi hears them discussing their plans and butts in. "What are you two plotting?" he asks, hoping it's something juicy.

"Nothing. Stop listening in on other peoples conversations," Anzu admonishes. She knows what's coming, and sure enough Yugi lets the cat out of the bag by telling Jonouchi they are going for a burger after school.

"Cool! Mind if I tag along?"

Anzu wants to tell Jonouchi that she does mind, but Yugi speaks first, and then hesitates for too long with his response, "Er, well, I..." He glances at Anzu, who gives him her don't you dare tell him he can come look.

"Great!" chirps Jonouchi. "Where we goin'?" Social etiquette and discretion have never been his forte.

They end up with Honda, Ryou and the new kid Aigami –well, not new kid, they just cannot quite place him, yet somehow he seems to be ingrained in their memories– also tagging along.

Resigned to not having Yugi all to herself, Anzu tells the gang that she has decided they are going to the restaurant by the station that makes traditional Japanese style burgers, since she still holds a grudge against Burger World for firing her two years ago and refuses to set foot in there ever again.

"That's a long time to hold a grudge!" Jonouchi observes, finding it amusing how determined Anzu is to keep her grudge going. But the food where they are going is better, and more expensive, but he does not mind all that much.

After they have finished eating, they ask for the bill and Honda works out who owes what. As expected, Jonouchi ordered the most food, but they all agree to split it six ways.

"I'm paying for myself and Yugi," Anzu explains as she puts down her and Yugi's share.

"You gonna pay for me, too, since you took us somewhere expensive?" Jonouchi asks cheekily.

Anzu gives him a withering look. "Absolutely not! You can pay for your own." He's always broke and the rest of the gang usually end up covering his share and letting him off. Not this time; she's trying to save for New York and simply cannot afford it.

After leaving the restaurant, Yugi and Anzu wave goodbye to their friends and Yugi sees Anzu home.

"What do you make of Aigami?" Anzu asks. Yugi thinks about it for a moment.

"I admit I had my doubts about him, but he seems like a decent guy," Yugi replies, "Why?"

Anzu shrugs. "No reason. It's just..." she agonises over trying to explain what she has been feeling about Aigami, but cannot quite think of what she wants to say. "Never mind." She's being silly – how can someone not exist until the other day?

"It's okay. I know exactly what you mean," Yugi says, even though he does not. "Aigami is… Aigami."

By the time they reach Anzu's house, they have forgotten about Aigami, and are now more interested in each other.

The lights in the house are off, but the porch light comes on when it picks up their movement.

They instinctively step into the shade of the large shrub in the front garden. Yugi leans in to kiss her but she pulls away. "Have you forgotten our deal?" she reminds him.

Yugi looks at her blankly. "What deal?"

Anzu tuts. "I treated you to a burger in return for you showing me your speech, remember?"

"No!" Yugi does not remember that being the deal and tries to kiss her again, but she presses her fingers against his bottom lip.

"Ah! No kiss unless you let me see it?"

Yugi sighs. "I suppose it won't do any harm." He knows he can trust her not to broadcast the contents of his speech before rehearsal in two days time.

"My parents aren't home from work yet. Let's go inside." Now, there's an offer.

Nodding, Yugi follows her into the house and takes off his shoes.

As soon as they are in the kitchen/dining room, Yugi shrugs off his backpack and takes out an envelope and opens it. He hands her the folded sheet of A4. "Don't laugh." He knows she won't, but still...

Anzu gently unfolds it and begins reading. "Yugi! This is…" She is not quite sure how to describe what he's written. "I never knew you could be so eloquent with words. It's lovely. So, moving."

Yugi blushes. "You think so? It's not too corny, is it?"

"Not at all! What did Sensei say?"

"He thought it was brilliant. Said I really capture the essence of what it means to be a student at Domino High." He pulls a sick face.

"Yugi! It's not sickly," she scolds. "It's wonderful, just like you." She places the speech on the table, then lovingly wraps her arms around her adorable boyfriend and kisses him. She knows that her parents will be home in approximately one hour, her mother possibly slightly before, so this could be their chance if they don't dither around.

She deepens their kiss and forces a battle of tongues. This is the first battle of tongues they have been involved in and Yugi is taken by surprise by her boldness. It's a new way of kissing for him and he's enjoying it.

But just when he is winning the battle and taking control of her, she pulls back from their heated kiss and wipes her mouth.

"Are you okay?" he asks breathlessly. He's hyper aware of the alluring pheromones she is giving off and tries to steady himself by keeping his hands on her waist. He's been feeling extremely horny since this morning when they made eye contact in class and does not want to mess this up by being too keen.

She spins away from him. "I'm not sure I like tongues," she decides. She could taste second hand burger. "I need a cold drink. What would you like? I've got cola, I think." She pulls open the fridge door to check.

Yugi imagines himself burping up burger flavoured cola when they kiss. "I'll just have water," he decides.

Anzu gets two glasses and fills both with water. She hands one to Yugi. "Cheers!" she says, taking a long sip. Yugi does the same.

After a moment of silence, in which they keep looking at each other, smiling, blushing and looking away again, Anzu finally gives herself the kick she knows they both need and suggests they go up to her bedroom.

Yugi feels his pulse start to race. "A...Are you sure?" he asks.

"Why? You're not nervous, are you?" she teases, even though she is the one who is near trembling. She tells herself to breathe – she wants him so badly, and knows that he wants her.

Yugi laughs defensively. "I'm definitely not nervous!" He's too much of a pervert to be nervous. "I'll message Grandpa, tell him I'll be late." He hastily fumbles for his phone and sends a message to say he is out with his friends and will be home around eight.

It's quite a normal thing for him to do, so Grandpa does not question it and sends back a thumbs up.

Feeling his face grow warm, Yugi pockets his phone and gazes up at Anzu. She looks so beautiful, but a little apprehensive.

Stepping towards her, he takes her hands in his and pulls her close to him. "I love you, Anzu."

"I love you too, Yugi." As they share a sweet kiss, Anzu wonders how long it will take them to have sex. Not that she wants it over quickly, quite the opposite, it's just that they only have around forty five minutes left until her mother gets home. Will that be long enough?

Car headlights alert them to a car pulling into the driveway and the pair spring apart.

The car belongs to Anzu's father.

"Shit! They're early," Anzu says, sighing.

"I should probably go," Yugi says, gathering up his stuff so quickly that he accidentally crumples his speech when he shoves it back into his bag.

But there's really no point in hurring, the front door is already opening.

Anzu's mother is the first to enter. "Anzu! We're home!" She sees two pairs of shoes, one pair of which obviously belong to a man. "Do you have a friend with you?"

"Yugi's here. We just got back."

Her mother enters the kitchen carrying a bag of takeaway. "Have you eaten yet? The last patient cancelled so we finished early." Anzu's father is a partner in a dental practice. Anzu's mother works there as a receptionist.

"I had something to eat after school, with my friends," Anzu tells her.

Mister Mazaki walks in, his face turning stony when he sees Yugi. Despite telling his daughter not to hang around with those wastrels she calls friends, she continues to do so.

"Good evening, Mister Mazaki," Yusi says politely. "I was… just leaving."

"Oh! Don't you want to stay for some ramen, Yugi?" asks Mrs Mazaki, knowing that growing teenage boys are always hungry. "There's plenty here!" They brought enough for three, but if Anzu's already eaten.

Yugi looks at Anzu and she smiles at him apologetically and leaves it up to him to decide. "Thank you, Mrs Mazaki, but I'm still full," he says.

Anzu opens her mouth to say she will see Yugi out, but Mister Mazaki speaks first. "I'll see you out." He gives Yugi the evil eye. There was a time when Yugi would have gulped and shrunk away timidly, but not any more. He dreads what he thinks is coming, but stands tall.

Fearing Yugi is going to be warned off seeing her, Anzu is about to follow them but her mother stops her. "Anzu, can you help me dish up?"

"Mum!" she whines, but her mother shakes her head. "Man talk," she mouths.

Anzu scowls. She knows it's a little more than that, but Yugi is a man so she has to trust he can hold his own.

In the hallway, Mister Mazaki opens the front door a crack but bars Yugi from any thoughts of a hasty retreat. Yugi does not attempt to flee, and casually slips on his shoes and then shoulders his backpack, waiting to be let out. He hopes he has managed to inject a hint of the arrogant stance he learned from his time spent with Atem into his posture.

"What are you doing here with my daughter?" asks Mister Mazaki.

"Anzu's my friend, I walked her home," Yugi replies evenly. Mister Mazaki tuts.

"I was a teenage boy once. I know what are your intentions are."

Yugi already has an answer to that. "My intentions are honourable, Sir. I would never do anything to hurt her."

Mister Mazaki snorts, and looks down at him with disdain. "Sneaking around, dating behind our backs is not honourable. If you want to take her on an informal date, you should ask my permission first."

Yugi feels himself bristle with annoyance. "Your answer would be 'no', so I don't see any point in asking." It is more like a response Atem might give and Yugi hopes he has not overstepped the mark. Mister Mazaki bristles.

"She is going to New York soon. Don't ruin it for her," is all he can say.

"I won't, I promise. Whatever Anzu wants to do, she has my full support." Does her father even realise that Anzu may never have found the courage to go without her friends and the confidence boosting adventures they've all been on?

Mister Mazaki holds the door wide open and gestures for him to leave. "Get out."

Yugi takes a breath to prevent himself forming a harsh retort, and bows to be polite. "Good evening, Sir." He wants Mister Mazak to respect him, and losing his temper would damage any chances of that.

Much to his surprise, Mister Mazaki does not exactly bow, but he does nod his head in return.

Yugi smirks to himself as he walks away with a slight swagger.

It appears he has just acquitted himself quite well.

Chapter Text

The mysterious classmate, Aigami, is not who Yugi thought he was. He is Diva, a member of a strange cult called the Plana.

Yugi has never heard of the Plana before, but he has heard of its founder, Shadi, the etherial tomb keeper who used his friends as collateral in order to test him.

Yugi did not care for Shadi's methods then, and neither does he care for Diva's now. Diva has allowed his grief over the death of Shadi to become twisted with hatred, and he is leading the Plana down a dark and sinister path, which will inevitably destroy everything they claim to stand for and cause humanity to suffer as a result.

It would be easy to blame the current situation on Seto Kaiba for digging up the Millennium Puzzle, but Yugi is not one for apportioning blame –it's counter productive– but he does wish that Kaiba had approached him first; Yugi would have set aside his own selfish reasons for wanting to see Atem, and attempted to stop him.

But it's too late for that now, and all Yugi can do is try and put things right.

It is the first time Yugi has faced danger on this level without Atem, and although he is more than capable of handling Kaiba and Diva, when the situation spirals out of control with the emergence of a twisted, evil creature formed when Diva is fused with the Millennium Ring, it is more than a mere mortal man can even hope to contend with.

Bravely, Yugi and Seto team up to try, but they are already drained from previous battles, and Kaiba knows they have no chance, unless...

"Call him, Yugi," are Kaiba's final words as the light in his bright blue eyes fades and his soul slips away.

Staring death in the face, Yugi tries his best, but with humanity being sucked into an alternate realm of darkness, Yugi knows he is going to lose, and despair starts to seep into his soul. The words, "I'm sorry everyone," hang on his lips as the light in his eyes begins to fade. But he's always been stubborn, and determined, and even though he knows the odds are against him his spirit refuses to lose, not here, not now, not with everyone's future at stake.

There is always hope, without hope what else is there?

He did not win the Ceremonial Duel, only for his life to end here!

His dying soul cries out silently to Atem to save him, to save them all.

Atem is the only chance he has.

But will he even hear Yugi's silent plea?

Of course he does!

Yugi is Atem's light, his legacy and his future. Across dimensions, across the universe, Atem will always hear his other soul calling for him.

He cannot, will not, let his light die.

The Millennium Puzzle may no longer be his soul prison, but it is still a conduit, and in Yugi's hands, and Yugi's hands only, it holds the power to summon the Gods.

And Atem is a God.

:

Relieved that they all survived yet another attack by a mad man, Jonouchi and Honda are animated as they leave the Kaiba Stadium.

"Man, that was some weird shit!" says Honda. "One minute I'm watching Yugi about to kick Kaiba's butt, the next, I'm alone in an empty stadium feeling numb all over, and my memories are slowly being eroded. Did I dream the whole thing?" Honda looks at his friend, hoping that together they can make some sense out of the ordeal.

It's not often that Honda looks this distressed, so Jonouchi clamps his friend on the shoulder. "Nah, ya didn't dream it," he says. "Same thing happened to me, twice. It's some weird dimension, where your mind, body and soul is slowly being eaten away until there's nothing left, like ya never even existed."

"Fuck, man. There were fifty thousand plus people in the stadium. If Yugi hadn't won, every single one of us would all have disappeared into nothing," says Honda with a shudder.

"It's terrifying that Diva was prepared to kill all those innocent people, just to stop Atem from returning to this world," says Ryou Bakura, who is having a hard time processing what happened today. Seeing the Millennium Ring again brought back the terrible memories he's being trying to forget from when he was possessed by spirits intent on death and destruction.

"Diva was one twisted bastard," concludes Jonouchi. "Do ya think it was the same demon that possessed you, Kura?" Jonouhci does not seem to grasp how that sort of comment affects Ryou, but Ryou is good at putting up a front and shakes his head. The thought that the Ring is still a magnet for evil is terrifying.

But Ryou knows for certain that The Thief King and Zorc were banished. "No. This was something else. Another entity."

"Shit….I wonder how many more evil spirits are out there?!" Honda says with a shudder.

"Hopefully none if Yugi managed to get rid of the Ring for good this time," Jonouchi says.

"Do you think Yugi is alright?" asks Ryou. Time and again, he has seen Yugi fight demons in order to protect his friends, his family, and the world, as if it is an everyday occurrence – maybe it is! Yugi is lucky. Unlike himself, Yugi seems to have come away from all the battles unscathed, both mentally and physically. What is his secret, Ryou wonders?

Jonouchi and Honda glance back towards Yugi and Anzu, who are walking some twenty metres behind. "I dunno. He says he is," says Jonouchi. Apart from telling them he saw Atem, Yugi has been downplaying what happened and is uncannily quiet about it, which is why Jonouchi knows it was a very, very close call. "For a little guy he's made of tough stuff," he concludes, although he doubts it is just that.

Bakura comes up with something he hopes will cheer everyone up. "I'm starving! Who else is hungry?" he says with forced cheerfulness. Being hungry after a brush with death and destruction is something that started when he was possessed by the Millennium Ring and is now a habit he cannot seem to shake.

Walking behind them, with Anzu at his side, Yugi knows Bakura's cheerfulness is forced – poor Bakura, he was doing so well until Diva attacked him. He hopes this has not set him back. He reminds himself to reassure his friend that the evil from inside the ring was not Zorc or the Thief King, but the corrupted soul of the priest who wore the Ring before Mahad.

Yugi smiles when he sees that Jonouchi is gesturing wildly with his arms.

"You're asking me if I'm hungry?! I'm always hungry!" Jonouchi says incredulously.

Honda pats his tummy and licks his lips. "Me, too! Who fancies a burger?" Some normality will do them all good.

Jonouchi cannot resist having a jibe at Honda. "Yeah, fill that fat gut of yours." He then jumps on his friend and they start wrestling one another.

"What is wrong with those two idiots?" Anzu says, a little annoyed at them for mucking around when everyone is still a little shell shocked. She's about to run up to them and give them a stern lecture, but Yugi stops her.

"It's okay, Anzu. Let them blow off some steam." He knows it is their way of dealing with the stress of the last couple of days. Yugi does not know what he is going to do to de-compress yet – he's still trying to process his near death experience and Atem's timely intervention, and it might be a while before he comes to terms with the full extent of it all.

But he will deal with it, just as he has dealt with all of the other dangers they have faced and overcome. He has to, his friends think he's strong like Atem and he does not want to disappoint his friends.

Beside him, Anzu's hand brushes his hand, and he glances at her and smiles. "You okay?" he asks, taking her hand in his.

Anzu nods hesitantly. "I think so. How about you?"

Yugi smiles at her. "I'm fine. A bit tired, but fine," he assures her unconvincingly.

"It was close, wasn't it?" she asks tentatively. "We almost didn't make it."

He gives her hand a squeeze and laughs awkwardly. "Hey! It was never that bad! There was no way we could lose with Atem and Mahad on our side!"

Anzu looks at him and hums. She knows Yugi is playing down the danger they were all in. If she were to hazard a guess, she would say it was just about as bad as it can get –it always is when Yugi fights evil. From a selfish perspective, she is fairly relieved she was unconscious this time, and not losing yet another year off her life watching him tread the fine line between victory and death.

They all carry emotional scars, and Anzu sometimes wonders how they are not all in need of therapy! Maybe Atem protected them with his aura. Maybe it was the magic from the Millennium items. Or maybe it is because of the solidarity they all show each other as friends. They don't need to discuss how their experiences have affected them, they all just know.

Jonouchi yelling interrupts them. "Hey! Hurry up you two! You'll miss the burgers!"

"Do you want a burger, Yugi?" Anzu checks to make sure, since he looks like he been through the meat grinder himself this evening. She can see he is moving a little stiffly.

Feeling his stomach growl with anticipation, Yugi nods. "Yeah. I'm starving!" he says, pulling Anzu along with him as he rushes to catch up with their friends.

A burger will do him good.

Chapter Text

By the time Yugi gets home he's exhausted. Anzu accompanies him, clinging to him like she does not want to let him out of her sight should he fall asleep on his feet.

Under normal circumstances Yugi would welcome such attention, but not tonight – all he wants is to stand underneath a hot shower, brush his teeth and fall into bed and sleep.

But Anzu is welcome to stay if she wants, just as long as she doesn't expect any action, because on this one rare occasion his teenage boy hormones are not in the mood.

Upstairs, in the living quarters above the shop, they are greeted by Yugi's Grandpa and mother. They had been watching Yugi duel on television and are confused.

"What on earth happened, Yugi?" Grandpa Muto asks. There is an urgency in his voice. "You were just about to win when there was a bright flash and the TV screen was suddenly filled with static. Apologies, technical fault, appeared on screen and that was it!"

Yugi had no idea that the show was being broadcast live and is a bemused. "You watched me and Kaiba duel… on TV?!"

Grandpa Muto chortles. "I knew Kaiba was a bad loser, but cutting transmission like that is an extreme overreaction."

Yugi is not to sure what to say so he laughs awkwardly. "It wasn't quite like that, but..." He glances at Anzu, who offers him a small smile that says, sorry, I didn't know what was happening either.

"Are you okay, Yugi?" his mother asks, eyeing a feint reddish mark on his cheek with concern. "He didn't hurt you for winning, did he?"

Yugi touches his face where he banged it when he was thrown across the floor by an attack, and grimaces. "No, Mum. There was a… bit of a problem with the holographic technology and things went a bit...haywire, that's all. But I'm fine, no damage done," he says, playing down what really happened.

Hana Muto gasps. "Yugi!" He has told her about the technology and how realistic the latest duel systems are. "You might have been maimed, or worse!"

"But I wasn't, and Kaiba's okay about me winning, at least I think he is." There's no way he can tell his mother what really happened this evening, his grandfather would get it, but his mother would never understand. She thought her son had a personality disorder when she heard him talking to Atem and thought he was talking to himself. After that, Yugi learned to internally converse with his other self.

Mrs Muto turns to Anzu. "Oh, Anzu, it must have been terrifying for you to watch."

Anzu forces a smile. "It really wasn't as bad as it might seem," she lies. "Seto Kaiba's holograms overreacted a bit and the system was overloaded. It was confusing more than anything. The visuals were so crazy, no one could see what was happening on stage!" You don't know the half of it, she thinks.

"Anyway," Yugi interrupts. "If you'll excuse me, I need to shower and get some rest. I'll be in my room. Coming with me, Anzu?" He is eager to get away from the questions. He blushes when Grandpa grins and winks at him, and makes a mildly suggestive comment about Anzu helping him shower. "Ack! Grandpa! It's not like that!" The pair start bickering.

Anzu wants to scream at them for their childishness. Yugi's grandfather is being a pervert and it's embarrassing for her to have to endure.

Hana Muto rolls her eyes at her grandson and father-in-law. "It's getting late. Would you like to stay, Anzu," she says loudly and assertively enough to make Yugi and Sugoroku shut up. "I can make up the futon if you are."

"Thank you Mrs Muto, but my parents expect me home," she says, thinking it wise to turn down the offer.

Disappointed she is not staying, Yugi stops bickering with his grandfather and returns to Anzu's side. "Are you sure you have to go?"

"Not straight away," she says, bopping him lightly on the nose. "Just long enough to make sure you're tucked up safely in bed."

:

Upon reaching his bedroom, Yugi takes off his blazer and flops down on his bed with a sigh. "I could sleep for a week!" Right now he does not have the energy to move.

Anzu sits on the bed beside him, and leans over him with a loving smile. "You should at least brush your teeth and get into your pyjamas," she suggests, brushing his fringe back with her fingertips. He cracks open one eye and smirks at her.

"Are you offering to help me undress?"

Anzu blushes, but plays along. "Why, do you want me to?" She fingers the buttons on his shirt and tickles his clavicle.

He chuckles and shakes his head lightly. "You can, but don't expect any miracles. I'm too exhausted."

"That's okay," she says, leaving his buttons as they are, patting his chest and laying down beside him. He shuffles over a bit to make room for her to snuggle up to him. She rests her head on the hollow just beneath his collar bone. "I won't stay long," she tells him. "It's gone ten. My parents will be expecting me home by ten thirty." He slides an arm around her to try and make them both a bit more comfortable, and nods.

"Just a quick cuddle," he says.

After a couple of minutes, Anzu asks. "So, what did you and Atem talk about, truthfully?"

"We didn't actually talk, we didn't need to." He pauses to think about their brief exchange, and hums thoughtfully. "It was like we were sharing thoughts."

"And he's definitely happy where he is?" Anzu finds the whole concept of the afterlife difficult to comprehend, but maybe living people are not supposed to be able to understand it.

"Yeah, he's happy."

"What did he look like? Did he still look the same?" She has no idea if spirits look forever as they did at the time they died, or if they can choose to be in their prime of adulthood, no matter how old or young they were when they died. It's a thought that intrigues her – when she dies, if she's able to, she would choose to be a ballerina in the peak of her career fitness, and not an arthritic old woman. She definitely does not want to look old for the rest of eternity.

Yugi hums as he tries to put Atem's appearance into words. "Kind of…like Atem, but...ethereal. Glowing." He really wasn't being that observant.

Ethereal, she gets, but.. "Glowing?"

"Mm, he had a sort of golden glow surrounding him, that made him look like a God. Apart from that, he looked like himself."

Anzu wishes she could have seen for herself. "He must have been beautiful."

Yugi chuckles. "Yeah, I guess he was. But don't tell him I said that."

"I won't." She doubts she will ever get the chance.

As if reading her mind, he says, "I'm sorry you didn't get to see him too," even though a small part of him is glad she didn't. If she had, Atem might have rekindled her old crush on him, and caused her to question her feelings about who it is she really wants. Sadly, Yugi is not sure he could compete with such a strikingly handsome God.

"It's okay, I'm not upset that I didn't see him," she assures him. "But I am happy that you saw him again." She takes a breath and settles into his embrace. It is comforting to feel the slight rise and fall of his ribcage through the material of his shirt, and the soft beating of his heart behind his ribcage. It reminds her that in this world, her Yugi is very much alive and well. "You know," she mutters lazily, "when we were growing up, I always dreamed of falling in love with my very own superhero, or a brave knight on a white horse, who would sweep me off my feet like I was a damsel in distress. I had this silly idea about being a princess." She giggles lightly at her stupid, early teenage self. "My selfish obsession with finding a superhero always made me overlook the sweet boy who was there for me, and was always so kind to me. That day at Burger World, when my mystery man saved me from that escaped prisoner, I thought I had found my hero." She feels terrible for thinking of Yugi as weak and wussy. "I was so overjoyed. He had a sexy voice, like yours, but not, if you know what I mean, and I was determined to meet him. I though that he was my hero I always dreamed of. But when I found out that my hero was you, or another version of you, it made me feel very confused. At first, I wanted the other Yugi to always be in control. But he wasn't perfect, far from it, and I started to understand that my true hero has always been you, Yugi. You've proved yourself so many times; the way you dealt with Aigami, or whatever he calls himself, was so brave. It doesn't matter if you did need Atem's help at the end, you are still a hero. You're my hero, and I love you."

There is no response, so she lifts her head to look at him. His eyes are closed and his lips are parted slightly. His breathing is even and his face is relaxed in a way that tells her he is asleep, and probably has not heard a single word she said.

Just as well, because she probably sounded like a foolish young woman with a hero fixation.

Smiling at him lovingly, she carefully lifts herself off the bed and looks around for a throw, or something to place over him. All she can see is his dressing gown hanging on a hook on the back of the door, so she lays that over him and then quietly leaves the room, turning off the light as she goes.

Chapter Text

At some point during the night Yugi wakes to find himself alone on his bed, still fully clothed. It is dark, and at first he is a bit disorientated. His last memory is of falling asleep with Anzu laying beside him. She is gone, but he can smell her perfume on his pillow.

After wrestling with his dressing gown, which Anzu must have placed over him when she left, he sits on the edge of the bed, stretches his arms up and rolls his shoulders. His body aches from having been thrown across the duel platform several times, and his head is pounding.

Needing a pee, he reaches across to turn on the small reading lamp. His Time Wizard alarm clock is showing him that it is just gone one in the morning.

Flopping out of bed and shuffling to the bathroom, he has a pee, splashes his face with water and brushes his teeth, before going back to his room and swapping his crumpled, slightly sweaty clothing for his sleepwear. He slides under the covers and is soon sound asleep again.

The next thing he knows, his mother is gently shaking him awake. "Yugi. It's eleven in the morning."

He makes a muffled sound in protest. "I'm not going to school." As final year graduates they no longer need to attend every day. However, his sleepy brain hasn't quite caught up to what he is actually supposed to be doing today.

"I know, but you promised your grandfather you would help in the store today."

Yugi's brain is suddenly fully awake. "Crap!" He sits up quickly, regretting it when he sees stars.

"Yugi!" His mother is startled by her son's sudden outburst.

He rubs his eyes, and yawns. The stars are gradually dissipating. "Sorry, Mum. Tell Grandpa I'll be down in ten. I need a shower first." He rolls his shoulders, easing the tension in his neck.

"It's okay, given your duels yesterday your grandfather doesn't mind you being late. But Mokuba Kaiba is downstairs, insisting on seeing you."

"Mokuba! Did he say what he wants?" Yugi hopes nothing bad has happened, since Mokuba never comes to see him unless he needs help!

"No. He wouldn't say."

Slightly perplexed, Yugi shoos his mother out of the room so he can get dressed. "Tell Mokuba I'll be down in ten." He is going to have his shower first, no matter who is downstairs demanding to see him.

After swilling his mouth with mouthwash and taking a very quick shower, he towel dries his hair, throws on some jeans and a tee-shirt, some socks and slippers, and makes his way down to the rear of the store, where he finds Grandpa entertaining Mokuba with tales from his younger days.

When Yugi walks into the room, Mokuba looks relieved to see him. "You took your time, Yugi!" the younger Kaiba grumbles impatiently.

"I was sleeping in," Yugi responds casually. Mokuba rolls his eyes at him, which he ignores. "Has something happened to your brother?" he asks.

Mokuba shakes his head. "Unless you count being holed up in his lab all night, obsessively running analysis of yesterday's duels." He turns to Sugoroku and makes a shooing motion. "Mister Muto, if you don't mind. I'd like to discuss business with Yugi."

Sugoroku is about to take offence at being shooed away by this young whipper snapper, who has the infuriating air of self-importance that marks him as a Kaiba, but Yugi speaks out. "It's okay Grandpa."

Mumbling that he will be busy dusting shelves in the store-front if they need anything, Sugoroku reluctantly leaves them.

Mokuba heaves a sigh. "He likes telling stories, doesn't he? All I asked was where the hat came from?" He points to the Fedora, which takes pride of place upon a shelf."

Yugi laughs. "That's my Grandpa!" he says fondly. "He was pretty tough when he was younger, or so I'm told. I was too young to remember him when he was known as The Legendary Gambler, although I do vaguely remember him wearing the hat, and a tuxedo."

Mokuba raises an eyebrow. "Wow! So it's true what he says about gamblers around the world fearing his reputation?"

Yugi nods. "Yep! It's all true."

Mokuba huffs. "No wonder Seto can't win against you, it's in the genes," he says with a hint of scorn.

Yugi just shrugs and makes a hand gesture. "What can I say?" He is being far from modest and they both laugh.

"Anyway," says Mokuba, realising they are digressing. "You probably want to know why I'm here?" When Yugi nods, Mokuba produces an envelope from the inside pocket his blazer and hands it to him. "My big brother sends his regards."

Yugi's eyes widen. "What is it?" A summons, for a re-match of their aborted duel, perhaps?

"Open it," suggests Mokuba.

Yugi does just that and nearly spits out his tongue, teeth and tonsils when he sees the receipt made out in his name for…. "But! This!" He looks at Mokuba in astonishment. "Ten million Yen?!"

"What's wrong Yugi? Is it not enough?" taunts Mokuba.

"N..No.. I mean, yes! It's way more than enough! But what is it for?" He cannot quite fathom. Mokuba makes a huge point of rolling his eyes at him.

"The tournament. Yesterday! Tickets sales, TV rights and sponsors. We made a lot of money. And since you were one of the main attractions I think you have a right to a share of it, don't you?"

Yugi can only nod dumbly. This is more money than he can imagine making in a whole year, let alone one tournament!

"Oh! And I gave you a bonus, for saving everyone's life, which in turn prevented us from being hit with numerous law suits," Mokuba adds for good measure. He doesn't mention that after helping to secure Yugi's victory, Atem overlooked taking the Cube with him when he returned to the afterlife, which means that Seto now has ownership of an extremely valuable piece of advanced technology.

"Yeah, um… thanks," Yugi says, puffing out his cheeks, before laughing lightly and scratching the back of his head. "This is…" -he's yet to even think about how useful this money will be... "-awesome."

"Is that all you can say?" Mokuba teases. To a Kaiba it is loose change, so he tends to forget that most people don't get to earn such a vast sum of money in one go. "All I need is your bank details and the money will be transferred."

"Oh! Yeah, um…" Should he refuse to accept the money? No. Not when he's been through such a lot in the last few days –the duels yesterday were extremely gruelling. He's earned this money. "I'll have to go upstairs to get my bank details. I won't be a minute." He runs upstairs to his room, grabs his bank card and then races back down. His flurry of action gets him an inquisitive look from Grandpa, but he is moving too fast to stop and explain.

By the time he gives Mokuba his bank details, he is starting to think about the luxury onsen hotel he will now be able to take Anzu to, without worrying about his finances.

:

"Kaiba paid you how much?!" Jonouchi shrieks so loudly that it makes Yugi cringe, especially when he sees all the looks they are getting from other people in the mall.

"Jonouchi….!" Anzu slaps him on the arm. "Stop being so loud! You're attracting too much attention."

"Geez woman! Stop hitting me!" Jonouchi complains, scowling at her – for a girl, she hits hard. He adds, "I'm expressing my surprise! That's all. The Kaiba's ain't exactly known for being generous."

"Actually," Ryou corrects him, "I think you will find they gave over one hundred million Yen to local children's charities last tax year."

"What about MY charity?!" exclaims Jonouchi. "Bastard rich boy gave Yugi a new duel disk, but refuses to replace mine after Honda broke it."

Honda groans. He's fed up with being blamed for something he did not do. "You're not bringing that up again, are you? As I recall, you're the one who broke it! I tried to fix it. It's not my fault that Kaiba won't replace it for free."

"Yours is old and obsolete anyway, Jonouchi," says Anzu.

"The old disks do still work," Yugi reminds them, adding "Just not in top tier competition!"

Jonouchi throws his hands up. "Yeah! As long as they ain't broken! He then has a rather cheeky idea. "I know, Yug!" He does a Scooby Doo laugh. "Since you got all this money, maybe you can loan me some for a new duel disk? I'll pay ya back when I win my first top tier tournament."

Yugi is about to open his mouth and say he is happy to give his friend the money for a new duel disk, and that Jonouchi does not have to pay him back, when the others glare at him.

"Don't you dare give him the money Yugi!" says Anzu. Her boyfriend is too generous where Jonouchi is concerned, and that is not always a good thing.

Jonouchi is not giving up yet. "We graduate in two days. And then I'm gonna be working full time. I'll be able to pay you back no time, Yugi, you have my word." He's not amused when he hears Honda groan, and fixes him with an annoyed stare. "Contrary to what some people around here think, I ain't the type of guy who takes money off his friends and don't give it back." Yes, he's taken money off people by force in the past, but that was mostly calling in debts for the criminal gangs, and Honda knows he only did it out of desperation when those same gangs came after him and his father. His sister's operation was also a desperate situation, and they all agreed at the time that it was right for Yugi to give Jonouchi the Duelist Kingdom prize money, enabling Shizuka to have the surgery that has saved her eyesight. And that money wasn't just a gimme; Yugi made him promise to prove himself as a duelist by winning through to the finals as an incentive. Although, had he not made it, he knows Yugi would have given him the money for Shizuka's surgery anyway.

Yugi sighs. His friends are squabbling over his prize money. Now he understands why Grandpa told him not to tell them about it. Money, he concludes, seems to bring out the worst in people.

"Jonouch!" he says assertively. "I'll pay for your new duel disk. You don't have to pay me back."

Jonouchi fixes him with a defiant look and shakes his head. "No, Yugi. I've relied too heavily on you in the past. If I'm ever gonna step outta your shadow and become a champion duelist, I gotta stop using you and do it on my own." He then offers all of his friends a cheeky smile. "I wasn't gonna say nothing, but Mai got in touch the other day. Me and her are gonna duel as a tag team. That's why I'm desperate for a new duel disk."

Anzu is the first to congratulate him. "That's fantastic, Jonouchi! When?"

"There's a qualifier in Tokyo next month. She's already entered us. You never know, it might be the start of something good!" He sure hopes it is, in more ways than one.

Honda's laugh is dirty. "She's interested in you, dude."

Jonouchi's grin is salacious. "Of course she is!"

Sitting beside Anzu, Yugi chuckles and the boys all lean across the table to hi-five each other. Even Ryou is smiling and joining in the lads banter. Anzu shakes her head in dismay. "Honestly! Is sex all you lot think about?!"

They all look at her with silly smiles and chorus, "Yes!"

"Well, that and card games," Jonouchi jests, nudging Yugi, who takes a moment to understand, and then nods in agreement.

Although Anzu likes to make a show of being disgusted with her male friends, she will secretly miss this when she goes to New York.

Chapter Text

After the stress and turmoil of this past week, graduation goes smoothly.

Teary eyed students watch in awe as Yugi gives his speech, amazed at how their once shy, timid peer, who, let's be honest, they tended to ignore or laugh about, is commanding his audience with a wonderfully delivered speech about their time spent at Domino High School. Yugi's speech is not only well delivered, it is also engaging and, in places, witty. And when he steps off stage, to a huge round of applause and cheers, he is unable to hide a smirk as he makes his way to where his proud friends and family are sitting. He knows how far he has come in the last couple of years, and he knows how proud of him Atem would be.

Eager to congratulate Yugi, everyone rushes towards him at once. Soon he is being mobbed, and he quickly finds himself in the centre of a scrum.

"H..Hey! One at a time!" he pleads without success, laughing politely as he tries to acknowledge everyone even though he is unnerved by the amount of affection the are showing.

Feeling a little claustrophobic, he tries to come up for some much needed air. Luckily, this is one occasion where being small helps, and he is able to slither his way out from between the bodies, where he sees Anzu waiting impatiently for her turn to congratulate him. Smiling with relief, he reaches for her outstretched hand, and she pulls him from the scrum a little more possessively than is needed. Caught off balance, he topples forward into her and they almost end up on the floor.

"Whoa!" he says, as they manage to steady one another.

"Sorry! But I was worried they were going to suffocate you in there," she tells him, forgetting where they are and kissing him on the corner of the mouth.

Yugi's fan club all turn to see the couple embracing, and kissing – it appears that the worst kept secret in the school is finally out.

Order is restored to the hall when the headmaster bangs his gabble on the lectern and his authoritative voice booms loudly over the PA system, asking people to return to their seats so that he can finish wrapping up proceedings.

As soon as the headmaster's address is over, the students are sent on their merry little ways.

Outside, Yugi and his friends jump for joy and throw their scrolls in the air. The moment is captured on camera by a professional photographer, who has been busy all afternoon, capturing permanent memories for the students and their families to look back on.

Today is a day of celebration. Tomorrow they will all be expected to go out and make their way in the big wide world.

:

The day after graduation feels like an anti-climax. The sense of freedom they all felt yesterday afternoon, is now replaced with the realisation that they are now required to start making a contribution to society, which means getting a job, or moving on to study at university.

Yugi is still trying to decide which course will most suit his ambitions to be a game designer, but he knows he needs to confirm his place soon. In the meantime, he will work more shifts in the store, so that Grandpa can take some time off.

Having slept in, Yugi rolls out of bed at nine. He is working in the store later on, but there is no pressure on him to get up early today. He is not meeting Jonouchi until eleven, to go and buy the new duel disk his friend is so desperate for.

Bakura is coming too.

Anzu and Honda are not coming. Anzu is attending the first of her one to one dance lessons, in order to hone her dance skills, as well as trying out fitness classes, to get her ready for the gruelling regime that will be expected of her once she moves to New York.

Honda started his first shift at his father's factory at five this morning, working on the assembly line – apparently he has to start at the bottom and work his way up in order to learn the business. Honda is not an early bird, and does not like getting up at such an ungodly hour. Poor Honda – his dream has always been to join the military.

With time to kill until Jonouchi arrives after finishing his delivery round, Yugi fires up his laptop, to look at the Onsen he would like to take Anzu to.

He is expecting it to be eye wateringly expensive, but is surprised to see that their mid-week deals are not as pricey as he anticipated.

There is also plenty of availability. He is tempted to go ahead and book something as a surprise, but realises he should probably run it by Anzu first.

He sends her a message, asking if she is free to chat.

There is no reply straight away, so he looks for something else to do, and stumbles across the online Duel Monsters league. He's never bothered with it before, but decides to create an account and give it a go. It's great, because no one on here knows who he is – he's just another anonymous gamer, not the King of Games. He creates his player profile under the name of Silent Duelist.

He's about to win his first duel, when his mobile phone rings. "Hey, Anzu!" he says, answering it while simultaneously playing the combo that finishes the duel, putting himself on the first rung of his climb to league champion.

"I'm due into a Yoga class in five, so can we make it quick?!" she says.

"Sure! What are you doing a week Tues, Wednesday and Thursday?"

"No idea yet. Why?" She is curious. What is he planning?

"I thought we could go away together. My treat." He bites his lip as he awaits her reply.

"Where?"

He smirks to himself. "It's a surprise! Please, say yes!"

"Hmm… Well, I will have to think of something to tell my parents." She's told them so many lies about where she has been going in the past that she doubts they will believe her. So the truth might be the best option. "Okay. Yes."

Yugi does a fist pump and almost shouts 'yes!' but contains himself. "Great! I'll go ahead and arrange it then."

"What are you doing later?" she asks.

"Working in the store from three until close at seven. You're welcome to pop by when you finish your classes, if you like," he says hopefully. Anzu does not want to make any promises, since she is likely to be tired when she leaves the dance school.

"I'll see how I feel. If not, wanna meet up tomorrow morning? Just us. Not the guys." She's adamant about it just being the two of them.

He is supposed to be opening up the store and working until two in the afternoon tomorrow, but does not want to disappoint her. "Sure. What time?"

"Ten thirty? We can go and get coffee and decide what we want to do."

"Okay." He will have to talk nicely to Grandpa.

They say goodbye, and as soon as the call is ended, Yugi fills out the online booking form. Never in a million years did he think that he would be able to afford to take Anzu somewhere so exclusive. He is not even sure he believed he would ever win her as his girlfriend!

It makes him feel awesome.

:

Jonouchi and Bakura arrive together. Yugi is keen to tell them about the Onsen hotel he is taking Anzu to, but is not sure he is ready for Jonouchi's teasing, or Anzu's wrath next time they all meet up and Jonouchi says something lewd.

"Ready, Yug?! Let's go!" Jonouchi says, itching to get his hands on that new duel disk.

Yugi concludes that Jonouchi is too excited about getting his new duel disk to listen to anything he tells him anyway.

Grabbing his wallet and keys, Yugi shoves his feet into his trainers and off they go.

"I'm surprised you don't sell duel disks in your store, Yugi," observes Ryou. He does not know that he has hit a nerve, but Yugi doesn't show his irritation about the fact that they don't, and shrugs. Grandpa has his reasons, and Yugi understands those reasons.

"Grandpa refused to sell Kaiba Corp. products after what Kaiba did to him at Death-T," he replies. Grandpa taught Yugi to be forgiving, yet there are some things that he says are unforgivable, and humiliating an elderly man in front of a huge crowd and causing him to have a heart attack is, in Grandpa's view, unforgivable. The cruel and sadistic games Kaiba put Yugi and his friends through are also unforgivable, but Yugi has forgiven. However, he won't forget.

"Sorry," Ryou says upon realising that he might have said something insensitive. "I thought your grandpa forgave him?"

Yugi shakes his head. "He's forgiven Mokuba. He tolerates Kaiba, barely. But I'm working on him about selling Kaiba Corp. products," he says with a smile. Kaiba Corp. products are profitable.

The game store they go to for Jonouchi's new duel disk is a twenty minute bus ride away. Yugi has already checked to make sure they have one in stock, and asked them to reserve a white and emerald green one, if they have it.

As they enter the store, Jonouchi is pumped. He strolls up to the counter. "I've come to collect my new duel disk. Katsuya Jonouchi's the name." He smirks, feeling a sense of importance.

"Who?" asks the stoned looking guy behind the counter, not bothering to lookup from his gaming magazine.

Justifiably, Jonouchi is irked and bangs the palm of his hand on the counter to get some attention. He also raises his voice. "Whaddaya mean, Who?!" The stoner behind the counter jumps and looks up. Jonouchi now has his attention. "I'm the second best ranked duelist, behind my man Yugi here," he gestures to Yugi, who shifts on his feet awkwardly. Beside him, Ryou Bakura covers his face to hide his embarrassment. Kaiba does the rankings, and puts himself and Yugi at joint number one. To be spiteful, Jonouchi is not even listed.

Yugi speaks up. "I reserved an emerald green duel disk," he says.

"Oh, yeah. Yugi Muto." The guy turns away from them and bends down to retrieve a silver/grey box, with a picture of a duel disk on the side, as well as the KC logo. "Mister Muto," he reads from the invoice that is attached to it. He places it on the counter, and Jonouchi immediately snatches it up.

"Come to Papa!" he says jokingly, causing three pairs of eyes to roll.

"Can you sign the poster on the wall?" the stoned looking assistant asks Yugi, pointing at the large poster of Yugi advertising card packs for sale. Yugi is surprised to see that the poster is a new one, of himself, and not his other Self. Both Pegasus and Kaiba must have sent out updated advertising blurb.

"Sure!" Yugi replies obligingly, and then asks cheekily, "For a discount?"

Nodding, the assistant takes off ten percent.

"For another ten percent, how about I sign a poster, too?" Jonouchi knows he is trying it on for more discount, but feels he at least deserves some recognition. The guy shakes his head.

"Sorry. No can do, dude." Because they are a Kaiba Corp. outlet, they do not have any posters of Jonouchi on the wall.

Jonouchi points at a Red Eyes Black Dragon poster. "That's my monster. How about I sign it for ya?"

The guy shrugs. "Sure." He pushes a tablet across the counter. "But first I'll need to fill out your details and sign this, for the disk to be registered." Jonouch nods, and enters his details. "You'll get an e-mail, with a code. You then need to input the code directly into the duel disk to activate it, and then you will be able to use it. If you put the code in wrong, the disk will be useless."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," Jonouchi says impatiently. Such a lot of faffing around – he just wants to get it out of the box and start dueling.

"It's important Jonouchi; to combat fraud and theft. You can also personalise it. I activate mine using my fingerprint," Yugi explains.

Only half listening, Jonouchi gets the duel disk out of the box to examine it. The white body is trimmed with silver and, although not turned on, Jonouchi can see that it will light up emerald green when it is. "Awesome!" He wants to wear it now, but doesn't want to damage it getting on and off the bus, so he puts it back inside its box. He then signs the Red Eyes poster, while Yugi pays for the duel disk, and they leave the store.

Jonouchi clutches the box like it's a baby, and Yugi and Ryou look at each other and smile at their friend's behaviour. Rough and tough he may be, but they both know that Jonouchi is a soft centered goof ball at heart.

"It's a shame that shop assistant didn't show him more respect as a duelist," says Ryou.

Yugi agrees. Jonouchi's worth and ranking as a duelist is far higher than people give him credit for. However, "Until he wins a tournament, his ranking won't improve," laments Yugi. "It also doesn't help that Seto Kaiba has it in for him and deliberately ranks him in the bottom tier of duelists."

"That's just mean," says Ryou.

It is mean, but Jonouchi has a thick skin. Besides, being called The Underdog Duelist gives him an incentive. It also means that when he enters tournaments, many duelists dismiss him, and do not find out about their mistake until it is too late.

Chapter Text

After agreeing with Grandpa to open the store for rest of the week in return for having today off, Yugi meets Anzu for coffee. They decide to get their coffee to go and find a bench seat by the Carp pond, underneath a sign reminding people (mostly tourists) not to feed the fish.

"What would you like to do today?" he asks, sitting with his body angled towards her so that his attention is fully on her. He had already casually suggested the fun fair, but she had not seemed overly enthusiastic.

Anzu smiles, and turns her body so that her knees touch his. She is wearing shorts, with nude tights underneath, and he blushes when his line of sight is drawn to her thighs. He inadvertently tightens his grip on his coffee cup causing the steaming hot contents to ooze through the hole in the lid and onto his hand.

Wincing, he places the cup on the ground and raises his scalded hand to his lips and licks the coffee from between his fingers, easing the heat a little.

He blushes again, when Anzu gives him a flirtatious look and reacts by running her tongue over her lips. "What?" he says sheepishly, realising that she is teasing him for licking his fingers. "I spilled my coffee. It's hot."

Anzu resists the urge to say 'and so are you' in public. "Let me see?" she says instead, placing her own very hot coffee on the ground and taking his hand. It is a little bit red in between his fingers where the coffee landed. "Do you want me to go and ask for some ice to cool it?" she asks, gently soothing his hand in both her hands.

He is tempted to dip his hand in the carp pond, but thinks better of it and shakes his head. "No. It's already feeling better," he says, enjoying the attention she is lavishing on his hand. There is something mischievous about her this morning, and he likes it.

"I'm thinking," she suggests coyly, "that after we finish our coffee, we could go and hang out at my house."

He has a pretty good notion of what she has in mind to do once they are there. His body stiffens as he suppresses a shudder of excitement, and his heel accidentally touches his coffee cup, knocking it over. "No!" he hastily snatches up the cup, before he loses all of his beverage.

"Doh, Yugi!" Anzu teases. He's always clumsy when she teases him.

He scowls when he sees he's lost most of the contents. This cup of coffee has it in for him he's decided.

"I don't want all mine," says Anzu, peeling the lid off her own cup and topping up his cup. "It's nice to share with someone you love, don't you think?"

Such sweet, loving words make it hard for him not shiver and drop his cup again, or choke on his drink.

Having survived dropping his cup, and choking, Yugi puts their empty cups in the recycle bin and they head back to Anzu's house.

"Both my parents are at work until six tonight, so we won't be disturbed," she tells him. It is impossible for her not to feel nervous, but they have been ready to take this step for a while now, and today is a perfect opportunity; an opportunity she does not want to miss.

They take off their shoes and stand in the hallway, looking at one another. There is a small amount of uncertainty in the back of Anzu's mind, and she smiles, clasping her hands in front of her body as if it will provide protection.

Yugi bites on his bottom lip and laughs awkwardly. Is she waiting for him to make the first move?

In the end, they both make a move at the same time, and it is not long before things start to hot up.

It feels kind of strange to be snogging passionately in the entrance hall of Anzu's parents house at eleven in the morning, but Yugi is not complaining.

Not wishing to be ravished over the shoe rack, Anzu suggests they go up to her room.

It's at this point Yugi remembers that he has brought a different backpack with him today and does not have a condom.

"I, er…" Crap! Why did he not think about it before now? They could have stopped by the chemist on the way here if he had. Stupid of him, especially after he vowed to himself to always be prepared.

"It's okay, Yugi. My parents definitely won't come home at this time of day," says Anzu, thinking that is what he is worrying about. She grabs his hand and pulls him towards the stairs.

He shakes his head. "No! It's not that. I don't have a condom on me." He feels very disappointed that he is letting her down. But he assumed they would be going to the funfair today, not making love at Anzu's house.

He is slightly taken aback when she grins and says, "No problem!" For a split second he is elated by the thought that she is suggesting he does not have to wear a condom, but then she says, "I have one!" She ascends the stairs quickly to avoid him seeing her blushing.

His jaw flaps. "You do?!" Thinking she is playing a game of catch me if you can with him, he runs up the stairs after her.

They reach her room together, and he grabs her around the waist from behind. She teases him, rubbing her body against him, before breaking free to go to her bedside drawer, where she pulls out a little foil packet and holds it up for him to see. "You left it on your bed. After your grandfather interrupted us."

His mouth makes an 'O'. "I wondered where it went! I looked everywhere. I thought my mum found it." He grimaces at the memory of feeling a bit panicked. But his mother never mentioned it, and he quickly forgot about it.

Anzu giggles. "She might have, if I hadn't swiped it up and pocketed it. Good job I did, eh?"

Grinning, he takes it from her. "You're a life saver!" he says, picking her up and spinning her round playfully. She is amazed at his strength –he is not the weak little boy she once knew.

Just as she has that thought, Yugi loses his balance. Luckily the bed is close enough that he is able to cover his stumble by falling with her onto the bed, where things start to hot up.

Having become quite adept at mastering the clasp of a bra, Yugi makes light work of it and it is not long before they are both bare chested.

Remaining clothing is discarded shortly after, revealing them both in all their glory. It is the first time they have been completely naked together, and they are both a little bashful. Anzu is laying with her knees pressed together, and Yugi is blushing like he has no idea where to look or what he is meant to do!

Luckily, Anzu is the first to get over the discomfort of being naked, and tentatively opens her legs.

This is the second time he has looked at her most intimate area and he cannot wait to touch her again. He would like to taste her, too, but maybe he shouldn't, not at this stage of their relationship, se might think he is being a pervert, and she would be right because he is.

But he does allow his hands to wander up her silky smooth thighs.

Before he has chance to touch her, she reaches for him and pulls him down for a kiss.

Conscious of not rushing the foreplay, Yugi tries to take his time. But she has her hand around his erection, and it is so fucking good he is not sure he will last if she keeps giving him such an amazing hand-job.

He decides to reach for the condom and put it on before it is too late.

With trembling hands, he tears the foil open. Anzu is watching him, which is making him nervous. He wants her to think he is an expert at this, and is trying to look super cool, but he is pretty sure he looks more like a fumbling idiot.

Anzu is trying not to giggle and make him more self conscious than he obviously already is, but it is a funny sight, watching him concentrating on the task in hand. It doesn't help that his erection looks fucking huge against his slight frame, and she cannot take her eyes off it! She wonders if she is supposed to help him with the condom, but doesn't have a clue, so she keeps her hands firmly clenched over her stomach – nervous, but excited.

Sheathed and ready, Yugi looks up at and catches the look on her face. There's a hint of amusement but at the same time fear. Her body, in particular her legs, look tense; her legs are positioned on either side of his thighs, but her knees are angled inwards, as if trying to protect herself.

"Are you sure you're ready?" he asks.

In a show of bravery, she says "I'm ready for you. All of you," pulling him towards her so that she can kiss him on the lips.

Poised between her legs, Yugi is trying to work out the right way to do this. What if he's doing it wrong? He does not want to hurt her.

"I trust you," Anzu whispers in his ear. She is prepared for any discomfort, but knows he will be gentle.

They kiss again, lovingly and reassuring. He's not quite at the right angle and Anzu guides him. He can feel her. His body is primed. Hers tenses up.

He feels her flinch slightly, her hands clutching his back. "I don't want to hurt you?" he says, afraid to move.

"I'm fine." And she is. "You're a big boy!" she compliments. "Just give me a minute to get used to you."

Yugi likes that Anzu thinks he is big. It makes him feel like he really is her King. "I love you so much," he whispers sincerely. He cannot quite believe he is actually having sex with Anzu, It has been his dream since… since first noticing at the water park that her adolescent body had become shapely and sexy, and that it did amazing things to his awkward, struggling with puberty body.

"I love you, too," she says.

She feels so good, and Yugi wants to last for as long as he possibly can, but his peak is already too close and he is struggling to hold back the rising tide. And then she squeezes around him in the most amazing way, and he loses it.

With a gasp and an uncharacteristic expletive, he climaxes far harder than he ever does by his own hand.

He could kick himself. He wanted to give her the most amazing orgasm, but instead he has shot his load before getting her anywhere near!

What a disappointment he must be.

Chapter Text

Relaxing on Anzu's bed, Yugi holds her in his arms as she rests her head against his chest and traces lazy circles on his side with her fingers.

He is not going to ruin the mood by stressing about his performance. Sure, he finished a little more quickly than he would have liked, but it's his first time, so of course it's not going to be perfect!

Besides, Anzu seems to be happy and contented, and if Anzu is happy and contented, then so is he.

"This is nice," she says softly.

"Mm," he mumbles. "It is."

Anzu's neck is getting uncomfortable in this position so she props herself up on his chest and studies his face. His once soft, round features are sharper, more adult. More... Atem. She shakes that thought; she does not want to be thinking of her old crush in moments like these. It is Yugi she loves now, and only Yugi. "We just shared something very special," she says.

"We did," Yugi agrees, running his hands lovingly over her bare back and shoulders. "And…you feel okay? I didn't hurt you, did I?" He did thrust into her a lot harder than he wanted to. He couldn't help it, she felt so good.

"I'm fine," she reassures him. "I should have tried to relax more. I was trying to, but I was scared it might hurt. You were really gentle though, and made me feel safe." She lovingly peppers his face with little kisses. "I'm very lucky to have such an amazing, considerate man. I love you so much."

Yugi is not sure he is that considerate, but will take the praise anyway. Next time, he will know what to expect and vows to himself that he will be the expert lover she deserves.

Smiling softly, he strokes her hair away from her face. "Thank you. For letting me love you, and for loving me."

She responds by kissing him lovingly.

Yugi slides his hands over her bare back as they kiss. The intimacy they just shared in the joining of their bodies has taken his love and admiration for this beautiful young woman to new heights. He cannot get enough of her.

If only he could put in to words just how he feels.

He's about to try, when..

"So," she says sneakily. "Are you going to tell me where you're taking me?"

"Taking you?" His mind is still on ways in which he wants to show her his love. "What? This afternoon?!" He was hoping to they might spend the afternoon in bed.

"Not this afternoon!" she says indignantly. "The mini-break you're taking me on."

"Oh, that!" He shakes his head. "Nope! Top secret," he says with a tight lipped smirk.

Anzu tickles his side making him flinch. "That's not fair," he complains.

She tickles him again. He pushes her hand away. "..Still not gonna tell you!"

"Okay, so what will make you tell me?" She changes tactics and moves her hand to his lower abdomen, tickling the hairs on his lower belly with a naughty smile.

Is she going to seduce him into telling her? His heart is already beating in anticipation and he's libido is responding. But is resolve is not slipping yet. "It'll take more than that to make me tell," he says.

Anzu blushes when she sees the effect she is having on him. It's kind of turning her on too, but they can't get carried away. "We don't have another condom," she says sadly.

The idea of suggesting a blow-job crosses Yugi's dirty little mind, but their sexual relationship has not reached that level of comfortable or confident yet.

What Yugi does not know, is that Anzu is thinking the same thing, but she finds it too embarrassing to suggest they might experiment with different ways to pleasure each other.

Before things do get out of hand, she pats him on the sternum gently and sits up. "The reason I want to know where we're going is so that I know what to pack. I mean, if it's a campsite, I'll need hiking stuff and warm clothes. If it's a resort hotel, I will take swim stuff, make-up and pretty dresses."

Blinking, Yugi links his hands behind his head and looks up at her with an appreciative smile. She's still completely naked, but there's not a hint of any shyness about her boobs being in his immediate line of sight. She's using them as a weapon to distract him.

It's working, but only slightly.

Anzu tries not to giggle at the expression on his face.

He takes a breath. "Right," he says thoughtfully. She's going to wheedle it out of him by any means necessary anyway, so he gives her a clue. "It's definitely not a campsite."

Anzu gasps. "Oh My God! It's the really expensive Onsen, isn't it?" He knows how much she's dreamed of going there.

Yugi keeps his game face on and tries not to give it away. "I wouldn't jump to conclusions," he states blandly, sitting up to face her. "But I have booked somewhere within my budget."

She sighs. He's sounding like the other Yugi, with his evasive, cryptic responses. But at least she has narrowed it down a bit – they are not going to be sleeping in a tent, thank God.

He smirks at her, and leans forward to capture her lips.

Anzu knows what is on his mind and pulls away. Without a condom, she dare not take the risk of getting carried away by lust.

"How about we get dressed and I make some lunch?" she says. Yugi is bound to be hungry –she certainly is after their morning's activities!

Yugi feels his stomach growl in response. Sex makes a man hungry.

They gather up their haphazardly discarded clothing and get dressed.

Lunch ends up being instant ramen, and they sit at the counter to eat it. They keep glancing at each other, blushing and trying not to giggle when one of them slurps their noodles too noisily. Of course, that then leads to a childish competition trying to out slurp each other.

The game ends when Yugi pulls a face as he slurps and makes Anzu laugh so hard she spits her mouthful across the counter.

"Yugi!" she scolds him playfully. It is not often she sees him deliberately messing around so stupidly – that is more Jonouchi's department. But she is not angry at him. On the contrary, she loves everything about him.

She's looking forward to going away with him for a few days.

:

Walking home later that afternoon, Yugi receives a message from Jonouchi, asking him what he is doing. His friend has just finished work and wants to meet up and hang out at the arcade.

Yugi is not sure how to respond. He would prefer to go home, but does not want to let his friend down.

He texts back to say he has been out with Anzu all day and is now on his way home. He doesn't feel like going to the arcade, but feels obliged to tell Jonouchi he welcome to come round.

Jonouchi messages him back. [Dinner?]

Yugi sends a thumbs up. [I'll let Mum know] Yugi knows how much Jonouchi hates going home to the horrible atmosphere of his father's flat. His dad is often drunk, and the place reeks of cigarette smoke, booze and stale sweat. There is seldom any decent food in the flat, either, so Jonouchi and his father tend to exist on cheap junk food. At least if he comes to the Muto house he will get a proper cooked, nutritious meal. And Yugi's mother does like feeding 'growing boys' as she calls them.

Yugi pockets his phone and waits to cross the road. It suddenly occurs to him that he is going to have tell his friends that he and Anzu are going to an Onsen hotel together.

His friends will almost certainly make cheap jokes about sex, and Yugi will do his best to stay calm but still get flustered and embarrassed.

And then Anzu will find out that Yugi has been talking to the guys about their love life, and will kill all three of them.

He is going to have to think very carefully about what he says to them.

He has not long been home when Jonouchi arrives. He's on his bicycle, which is why he is here so quickly.

Sugoroku Muto is at the front counter and greets him as he enters. He directs him to Yugi, who is at the back of the store, looking through the list of mail orders that came in today and need to be dealt with.

"Hey, Yugi!"

Yugi looks up from the address list he has just printed off. "Hey, Jonouchi!"

"Watcha doin'?" Jonouchi knows what he's doing, but asks anyway. He steps up beside his shorter friend to see if he can help. It is a well known fact that, mostly where food is concerned, that Jonouchi has the nose of a blood hound, and he instantly notices the distinctive scent of a familiar person, and a huge grin appears on his face.

Yugi reeks of Anzu.

Chapter Text

As soon as Yugi leaves, Anzu rushes upstairs to tidy up her bed before her parents get home. There is a used condom in the bin to dispose of and the bedspread is crumpled from their...activities, which probably could do with a wash but there isn't time to get it both washed and dried in time.

Besides, when she lifts the bedspread to her face she can smell the distinctive scent of Yugi on it and she doesn't want to wash him away.

She sniffs herself. As well as her own deodorant and perfume, she can also smell Yugi. As comforting as it is to smell Yugi's scent on her skin, her parents might notice and jump to conclusions. And they would be right, which will make it harder to lie.

Probably better have a shower, just in case, and then make a start on dinner.

:

"We went for coffee and sat in the park, and just sort of chilled for the day," Yugi says with a nonchalant shrug. He is responding to Jonouchi's question about what he and Anzu did today.

"That's it? Ya just chilled?! And you're too tired to go to the arcade!" Jonouchi exclaims in amusement.

Yugi's face reddens, but he responds calmly. "Yeah. Doing nothing all day has that effect, I suppose." He feigns a yawn.

Smirking, Jonouchi knows Yugi is hiding something. Time to get him to fess up. "She's all over ya, dude. Must have been some good chilling to make ya that tired!"

The look on Yugi's face is one of utter consternation. He opens his mouth, closes it again, and then shakes his head and tugs his shirt up to sniff inside the collar. His friend is right. He does smell of Anzu, and it's nice. Or it would be if he wasn't just about to face some monumental teasing.

"Don't say anything to Anzu, please, Jonouchi," he pleads.

Jonouchi clamps him on the shoulder. "Hey! Relax. I ain't gonna tease ya, ya dog." He gives Yugi a huge grin. "Good on ya though, both of ya!"

Yugi is left scratching his head. His friend just called him a dog, but his friend is the one with the nose of one! "Thanks. I guess." Since Jonouchi is not teasing him for finally having sex with Anzu (A standing joke between the boys because Honda keeps asking if he's done it with Anzu yet and he keeps saying he hasn't), Yugi wonders if now might be a good time to tell Jonouchi he is taking Anzu away for a few days, but Jonouchi is still talking.

"Meh…. Wish I could get me a good woman." Jonouchi is secretly a bit jealous that Yugi is the first of the boys to lose his virginity. Sure, Jonouchi likes boasting to the guys that he's done it with a woman before, but he hasn't. And he thinks they all see through his bluffing anyway.

"What about Mai?" asks Yugi. "I thought you two were getting closer?"

"Nah… I asked her, but she told me I gotta make more effort if I want her to date me. She insists she wants to keep our relationship a professional one, confined to the duel platform." Jonouchi sounds disappointed at the lack of progress he is making with Mai and Yugi feels sympathy for him.

"That sucks," he says. "Maybe you could try a different approach with her. She already gets a lot of attention from guys who don't take her seriously, so maybe she's testing you." Mai has made it known how much she hates men who think that just because she's a good looking woman she can't duel. She also hates all the losers who harass her thinking she's an easy lay. Jonoiuchi already knows all this. He should understand.

"Don't get me wrong, Yugi, I do respect her, but I just wish she would loosen up a bit around me. I ain't the enemy. My intentions are honourable."

"Yeah, but does she know that?"

"Course she does!" Jonouchi rants, "I've even told her that if she dates me officially, all them other creeps will stay away from her!"

Picturing Jonouchi guarding Mai makes Yugi smile. "All I can say is, be patient." He doesn't know what else he can say.

"S'pose," Jonouchi says sulkily. "But a guy has needs, ya know?"

"Oh, you don't need to tell me about having needs!" Yugi says with a bitter laugh. "Look how long I've had to wait for Anzu to fall in love with me?!"

Jonouchi flinches. "Sorry. I forgot." Does Yugi still think that Anzu would drop him for Atem if she had the chance?

Nah...she wouldn't do that to Yugi, would she?

Chapter Text

Getting to the onsen hotel requires some logistics. It is in a rural mountain location, which involves getting the bus to the station (unless Yugi can scrounge a lift from Grandpa), a train, another bus, followed by a taxi. Extra costs that Yugi had not thought of, but in hindsight should have. It's a bit of a pain, but cannot be helped.

Luckily Grandpa does offer them a lift to the train station, which they accept. And Grandpa even refrains from making dubious suggestions for their mini break that might give Anzu the creeps and embarrass Yugi.

They board the train, stow their bags and sit down. As is usual in Japan, the train leaves bang on time –something which they take for granted.

Yugi is so excited he is having trouble sitting still in his seat. Turning to Anzu, he's about to ask her yet again if she is okay, but Anzu speaks first.

"Are you finally going to tell me where we're going, or do I have to torture it out of you?" She's joking of course, but Yugi still gives her a fearful look.

He winks at her. "Nope!" But he'll take a bit of torture, if it's enjoyable torture.

The torture turns out to be a sharp poke in the side. "You're mean."

He lets out a squeak, and grabs her hand to stop her from inflicting further pain. "You'll see," he says cheekily.

Anzu feels a flutter of excitement and expectation, but reminds herself that it might turn out to be a cabin in a forest campsite – there are a couple of campsites in this area - not a luxury onsen.

The train arrives at the station on time, and they make it to the bus with ten minutes to spare. Anzu gasps when she sees the name of the small town on the front of the bus, and is now almost certain about where they are going. "Oh My God! Yugi!" It can't be, can it? The onsen hotel of her dreams?! But surely that is way too expensive for their budget!

"Huh?! What did I do?!" he asks, internally panicking.

"I mean, where you're taking me." He looks at her funny, and her hands fly to her face. "It is, isn't it?!" she shrieks. She wants to throw her arms around him and kiss him until they both pass out from lack of air, but her outburst is already making people look at them disapprovingly, so she politely pats his arm and restrains herself. "Thank you."

He smiles to himself; it's nice to see Anzu so overjoyed about going somewhere nice, and not irritable because she has to rough it in a tent with a bunch of boys –Jonouchi suggested they all go on a camping holiday before Anzu leaves for New York, and Anzu was not keen on the idea.

Reaching the small town about three miles from the hotel, the couple swap the bus for a taxi.

"I wonder if we'll see anyone famous," Anzu whispers to Yugi in the back of the cab.

Next to millionaires and actors, with their surgically enhanced features and designer wear, Yugi's only concern is they will look out of place in their modestly priced clothing.

Inside the hotel, they are greeted as if they are A list celebrities and directed to the check in desk. The young woman gushes when she sees Yugi.

"Good afternoon, Mister Muto! What an honour it is to meet you, Sir." Yugi is surprised, because he has not even told her his name and she knows who he is.

"Good afternoon," he replies, "We have a reservation."

The young woman nods and is already tapping away at her computer. "Mister Muto, and... Miss Mazaki." They both nod in confirmation.

The receptionist runs through the details of how to get to their rooms, the facilities on offer. Blushing, she then produces a Dark Magician card from her bag, which she brought in having seen his name on the guest list. "I'm not supposed to trouble the guests, but I'm a huge fan," she says quietly. "I wonder if you would be willing to sign this for me. Please….?" She gives him fan-girl eyes.

Yugi grins. "Of course." As he signs the Dark Magician card, the receptionist tells him that she and her boyfriend follow all of his duels, and were at the stadium when Yugi dueled against Seto Kaiba and Diva.

"You were?!" he exclaims, shocked because she seems oblivious to the fact that everyone's life was in mortal danger, and thinks that it was all part of an incredible virtual reality show, that gave everyone a crazy experience!

Yugi decides not to tell her otherwise.

"Look at you, Mister Celebrity," Anzu teases proudly as they make their way to the elevators.

Yugi pulls a face. Even with all the attention he receives from fans, he still doesn't see himself as famous.

They enter their room and are amazed. The room is only a standard room, but is still very nice, decorated in soft tones of creamy white, and varying shades of brown with hints of gold and black. Yugi makes a beeline for the king size bed. "Wow! And this is one of the cheaper rooms?!" He can only imagine how luxurious the more expensive rooms and suites are! He lays on the bed to test it for comfort, and stretches his arms and legs out, hoping that Anzu might jump on him.

But she doesn't, and goes to inspect the bathroom instead. "Yugi! Come and look at this!" she calls out.

"What is it?" he asks, half expecting to see a huge spider in the bath. He knows that she likes spiders and is not afraid of them, but she will no doubt still want him to do the manly thing and remove it without flinching.

Sighing, he clambers off the bed and enters the bathroom.

Thankfully, there are no spiders.

"The shower! It's incredible!" she says, marveling at the walk-in-cubicle.

His eyes widen at the sight of a huge, square shower-head. It's one of those showers that drop tropical rain on you when you stand under it. Anzu nudges him. "Plenty of room for two," she says playfully, making him blush.

"We can try it now, if you like?" he asks hopefully. But Anzu is already leaving the bathroom.

"Maybe later," she says, making him feel like he is being flipped off. "I want to explore the hotel first." She goes for the doors leading out onto a small balcony.

"Look at the view!" she exclaims in wonder. Shaking his head in amusement at her excitement, Yugi follows her out onto the balcony. An undulating terrain of treetops and towns stretches out before them, and in the distance is Mt. Fuji, rising high above the landscape. It's a clear day, with just a few wispy clouds drifting across the mountain, and its summit is poking out above the clouds into a blue sky.

When Yugi booked, he did ask for a room with a view of Mt. Fuji, and is pleased to see how much Anzu appreciates it.

However, as stunning as the view is, right now the only view he is interested in is Anzu. "I'm glad you like it," he says, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind and standing slightly on tiptoes to rest his chin on her shoulder – if only he could grow another inch or two.

She leans into him and places her hands on his forearms.

"I more than like it, Yugi. It's wonderful. Thank you so much." Contented, they rest the side of their heads together and breathe in the mountain air.

The couple remain like this for a moment, until Yugi removes one of his hands from her waist, to brush her hair aside and press delicate kisses to her neck.

Tilting her head to give him better access, Anzu closes her eyes and enjoys his sweet caresses.

With seduction now the only thing on his mind, Yugi slides his hand over her tummy, and then a bit lower. Anzu purrs, letting her body sink back into his, mischievously spurring him on.

Growing more and more aroused from the way Anzu is responding, Yugi is becoming very amorous. He wants to dominate her with his love. Protect her, and show her he is the only man she will ever need.

As first, Anzu is enjoying it so much that she gives him little sounds of encouragement, but when he sucks and nips a little too aggressively on her neck, she pulls away and turns to face him. "Whoa! Yugi! Don't bite me!" She does not want to be left with marks on her neck.

"S..sorry..I..." No excuses. He was getting carried away. He looks at her neck. "I don't think I've marked you."

"You better not!" She will have to wear a scarf if he has, which will be awkward when they use the swimming pool. She brushes past him to go and check in the mirror for herself.

Following her inside, Yugi feels like an idiot. The setting is so romantic that he was trying out new seduction techniques, which have clearly backfired because it appears he might have ruined things by irritating her. "I'm sorry," he says, sitting down on the bed with a forlorn sigh.

Anzu eyes his reflection in the mirror. He looks like a scolded pup, and her heart melts.

Suddenly not caring about potential love bites on her neck, she advances on him with a gleam in her eyes.

"A..Anzu?!" he exclaims, as she plants one knee beside him, pushing him backwards onto the bed, and then crawling over him with her knees either side of his hips.

He gulps, and shivers in delightful anticipation of what she might be about to do to him.

"You wanted to try out the bed, didn't you?" she purrs, using her feminine powers of seduction, even though playing the dominatrix still makes her feel self conscious and silly.

Yugi nods. "Yes." His hands grip the back of her thighs as she leans down to kiss him. He wants her so badly, and he can tell that she wants him. Foreplay is passionate, and clothing is quickly pulled away and discarded.

There's a brief interruption when Yugi has to get up to rummage in his bag for a box of condoms, and Anzu enjoys looking at the view as he crouches over his holdall - he obviously doesn't realize how much of his anatomy is on display.

He pulls out two boxes, each containing six condoms, and Anzu raises an eyebrow.

"Twelve condoms!" she exclaims with a smile. "That's…" She sighs when Yugi shrugs and says cheekily,

"I live in hope."

"Yugi!" she scolds, throwing her knickers at him. His innocent looks might have fooled her once, but not any more. With a naughty grin, he catches them, briefly wondering why she has thrown her underwear at him. He is very tempted to hold them against his face. But maybe she threw them at him to test him. Not wanting to risk being called a pervert, he keeps eye contact with her as he lets them fall to the floor.

He can see she is playing games with him by the smirk she is trying to hide, and it is sending his pulse rate soaring.

This is one game he is determined to let her win.

Chapter Text

This time, Yugi does not fumble about trying to put the condom on with shaky hands, and Anzu does not tense her thighs in anticipation of what they are about to do.

They are both more relaxed; touching, Kissing, pleasuring, and enjoying every moment of their bodies being joined together as one in a loving embrace.

When Yugi feels his climax building, he is able to hold back the tide just long enough for Anzu to reach the peak of her wave first, and as his own wave crashes over him it is the best release he has ever experienced.

Having such mind blowing sex with the young woman he has loved, adored and cherished for so many years overwhelms him, and he cries.

It never occurred to him that making love would cause him to cry, but the emotions he is experiencing right now are so incredible that he cannot help himself.

Anzu clings to him, still coming down from the beautiful moment they have just shared. She does not feel anything like she did the first time they made love. Last time, she was so nervous that she kind of froze, and was, in all honesty, a little relieved when it was over so quickly. Not that she didn't enjoy their first time -she did. It was just that it was nothing to write home about. This time, however, there were no nerves, and she was able to let go of her inhibitions and allow herself to experience a wonderful orgasm with the man she loves.

She slowly slides her hands down his back, her fingers tracing over the lightly muscled contours on either side of his spine, down to the firm mounds of his neat little buttocks. There was a time when she fantasized about running onto the duel platform and giving his cute little buttocks a squeeze when he was dueling. What sort of reaction would the other Yugi have had if she had ever plucked up the mischievous courage to do so? She cannot even begin to imagine the uproar it would have caused, so it's probably a good job she didn't.

But right here, right now, she is touching Yugi's buttocks, and only Yugi's… and they are hers to do with what she likes, and boy does she like touching them.

She gives them a nice massage and then slides her hands back up to his shoulders. His frame is slight, but he feels sturdy enough – stronger, broader than he used to be.

"That was amazing," she says dreamily.

He lifts his head to look at her face, and that is when she sees the tears glistening in his beautiful eyes.

Deeply moved by the emotions he is showing, she smiles lovingly and reaches up to touch his face. Caught in the moment, tears of love fill her own eyes.

Smiling serenely, Yugi leans his face into her palm and kisses her hand. "You're beautiful. I love you so much," he says sincerely.

"I love you, too, Yugi," she replies softly.

His demeanour changes and his face puckers up into a slight smirk. "Did I do better this time?" he asks with a slight hint of teasing in his voice.

Her smile widens. "I would say you were good last time, but today you were really good. I wish we could stay like this forever."

Yugi would like to stay like this as well, but as nice as it is to rest inside her, the condom is full and he knows he needs to withdraw to avoid a mishap. "I should…" he says, starting to move. Understanding what he means, Anzu reluctantly lets go of him.

She waits while he sorts himself out, and then he returns to her and they lay together in post coital bliss.

It is quite some time before they decide to get up, and Yugi is just starting to doze off when Anzu sits up and says, "We should go and explore the hotel!"

Yugi opens a lazy eye and smiles at her. "I thought you wanted to try out the shower?"

"I do. But we can shower later. Right now, I want to see what the hotel has to offer. We also have to book an onsen – we don't want to be left with all the unpopular times. And… I fancy a swim, don't you?"

Yugi throws one arm behind his head and chuckles. "I already booked an onsen. Three o'clock tomorrow afternoon. They suggested it on the booking app, to avoid disappointment."

Anzu is impressed with his thoughtful planning ahead. "Three pm is perfect," she replies.

Feeling pleased with himself, Yugi stretches out on the bed and then props himself up on his elbows, to watch her as she rummages in her suitcase for her swimming costume. She is still naked, and he cannot get enough of looking at her.

Finding her costume, Anzu stands up and looks over at him watching her. She is still completely naked, but feels comfortable being naked around him now. He appears comfortable showing off his body too, and she is mildly amused to see his manhood is now nestling harmlessly against an untrimmed thatch of pubic hair. When she saw him fully naked she was fairly relieved that his pubic hair was all one colour (almost black), and not tri-coloured like the hair on his head. Had his pubic region been covered with black, gold and magenta pubes, she might not have been able to control her laughter!

Banishing those thoughts, she puts her hands on her hips. "Are you going to lay there all day?" she asks impatiently.

Naked Anzu in bossy mode gives him nice goosebumps. He nods his head and smiles lazily. "Mmm." He will happily stay like this for the rest of the afternoon if she lets him.

Huffing, Anzu pulls on her swimming costume. "Where are your swimming trunks?" she asks, "You did bring some, didn't you?" He nods again.

"Black, with blue and white on the sides. In my bag." He points at his holdall, the contents of which are half pulled out from when he went to retrieve the box of condoms.

Tutting, Anzu rolls her eyes. "Yes, your majesty. Would you like me to help you into them as well?"

"Yes, please!" he exclaims, with a naughty grin.

Huffing, Anzu finds his trunks and throws them at him.

"Spoilsport," he complains, catching them before they hit him in the face.

Holding them so they cover his lap, he flops back down onto his back and closes his eyes. He's not usually one to laze around doing nothing. When he does sit down to relax, he usually looks through his cards and thinks of new combos and strategies, or he reads the news on his i-pad, but right now he is contented doing nothing.

But Anzu has other ideas. "Come on Yugi!" Having pulled on a casual dress over her swimming costume, she comes over to the bed and taps his arm. "Get up, or I'll go and explore the hotel without you." He groans, but does make an effort to sit up, and then does something she never would have expected of him, and tackles her onto the bed, giggling and pinning her underneath him. "Yugi!" she scolds, slapping his shoulder, but wrapping her arms and legs around him anyway in order to trap him.

He kisses her, and she responds with an open mouthed kiss that soon becomes quite passionate.

The close proximity is making him hard again. Anzu can feel it and it is turning her on again as well.

It looks like they might not be exploring the hotel before dinner after all.

Chapter Text

Exercising some self control, Anzu pushes him off. "I really do want to look around the hotel before dinner," she says assertively. Whenever she goes somewhere new Anzu always likes to get her bearings, work out where everything is and check what the facilities on offer are like.

Accepting that round two is definitely not on the cards right now, Yugi reluctantly obliges and gets up. Knowing Anzu as long as he has, he understands her quirks. And if he is honest, he is also keen to explore the hotel.

"Come on, then," he says, offering her his hand and laughing when she hesitates, eyeing his hand suspiciously like he might tackle her back down onto the bed. "Don't worry. I won't try anything." Yugi is always true to his word, so she takes his hand and lets him pull her to her feet. "You should probably put some clothes on," she says, smiling, while unsuccessfully trying not to ogle his erection.

Blushing, he steps into his swimming trunks and pulls them up, arranging himself as best he can.

"That looks obscene, Yugi," Anzu observes with amusement. "You can't go in the pool with that!"

"It will go down by the time we swim," he says, hoping that it isn't a boner that intends to stick around until it receives the attention it is after – Anzu's beautiful body tends to do that to him!

"Perhaps we should go to the bar and get something to drink first," he suggests. After the 'exercise' they have just had, Anzu is thirsty and could do with a drink, so they decide to make the bar their first port of call.

Thankfully, Yugi's boner quickly gets the message and is gone by the time they leave their room to walk down to the bar,

The bar is quiet when they get there, with just a handful of people enjoying a late afternoon drink. Anzu is a little disappointed that she does not spot anyone famous, but she does observe that most of the guests appear to be foreign tourists.

They order soft drinks and find a seat on the veranda, which is a similar view as the one from their room, just from different perspective.

It's just after five in the afternoon by the time they finish their drinks, and Yugi is feeling pretty lazy. "I don't think we have time for a swim," he says, preferring to go back to their room, shower (together) and maybe relax before dinner.

"Dinner's not until seven, that's plenty of time for us to swim!" Anzu is determined to make the most of their stay, and since Yugi wants her to enjoy herself and do anything she want to please her, he agrees.

:

It's a little after six when they get back to their hotel room, and Anzu is suddenly, inexplicably, in a playful mood. "Do you do want to try out the shower before dinner?" she says, teasing him with a mischievous smile.

As lethargic and famished as he is feeling right now, Yugi is not going to pass up an opportunity of an intimate shower before their evening meal. "Of course I do!" he says cheerfully.

Quickly shedding the clothes they are wearing, they go into the bathroom.

With his libido already rising in anticipation, Yugi walks into the massive shower first and looks at the controls. A chrome plate set in the wall with dials. There's a dial for turning the shower on and off and a smaller one for temperature.

Standing clear of the large shower head suspended from the ceiling -in case the water comes out too cold- he turns the dial slightly. A few droplets of water drop down and splash onto the shower tray. He turns it up until he he satisfied with the flow of water.

Anzu sticks her arms under, testing the temperature. "I think it's just right," she says.

Yugi agrees, and steps underneath the shower head. It's like being in a tropical downpour, completely naked.

"This is romantic," Anzu says rubbing shower gel over his chest and torso.

Sliding his arms around her waist, Yugi pulls their soapy bodies together, and Anzu giggles when she feels the tip of his erect penis tickling her abdomen.

Their wet bodies entwine, and their hands explore as they wash one another. Anzu has never experienced this much intimacy with anyone before, and she is thankful it is with Yugi. His gentle touches are making her feel oh so good.

"Take me, Yugi," she says, moaning shamelessly as she fondles between his legs with her soapy hands.

Yugi would be lying if he said he wasn't immensely turned on by the way she is touching him. His body is trembling and he can barely speak, but manages to say, "Yes!"

Wanting to please her and hear her moaning his name, he moves in for a passionate kiss. His hands slide down the backs of her thighs and he tries to lift her up. She's not too heavy for him to lift, but with soap making her skin slippery and the water hitting them, it is ungainly and difficult. And when Yugi finally does lift her, he accidentally slams her against the wall and almost knocks the breath out of her. Momentarily she panics, her fingers dig into the back of his shoulders and she struggles, afraid of being dropped.

Yugi tries his best to keep hold of her, but his hands are slipping and he loses his balance when she slides down his body and accidentally places one of her feet on his toes.

The end result is that they both end up spluttering under the spray from the shower and are forced to pull apart.

Anzu snaps to her senses. "Shit! Shit! Fuck!" Her outburst is not unjustified. They almost had unprotected sex in the shower! And more shockingly, she wanted him so badly that she had not even cared to think about the possible consequences.

Desperately contrite, Yugi thinks she is annoyed at him for not being able to hold her up while he thrusts into her. "I'm so sorry," he says miserably, pinching the bridge of his nose and wincing at the stinging feeling of water having gone up his nose. It's painfully unpleasant, making the back of his nasal canal burn and his eyes sting and water. The carnal desire to assert his masculinity by pinning her against the shiny wet tiles and thrust up into her while she screams his name as they both orgasm, is now wilting along with his libido. He's an idiot. He should know his limitations. He's not a big strong man, and he doesn't have gills, either, otherwise he would not be coughing and spluttering after inhaling water!

Cracking his eyes open, he looks down at his sad, rapidly wilting manhood, and feels his tummy rumble with hunger.

No wonder he felt a bit wobbly on his legs when he tried to lift her!

All he has had since breakfast is a bento on the train, a cola and a shared pack of salty snacks in the hotel bar. It is also way past his usual time to eat his evening meal.

The fatigue from the excitement of the day is suddenly taking its toll on him.

What he really needs right now, is food and then bed.

Anzu speaking brings him back to their current predicament. "Yugi! Are you alright?" He's hunched forward, pinching his nose, so Anzu pats his back.

"I..I inhaled water," he says. He stands up properly and gives her an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. I hope I didn't hurt you?"

Anzu shakes her head, and feels something rattle in her ear. "I'm fine. But I've got water in my ear." She tips her head to one side and shakes it to try and dislodge the water. It is sloshing about, and is irritating.

"I don't know what I was thinking," Yugi laments, eyes still watering from his stinging sinuses as he turns the water off. "Well, I do. It just didn't work the way I pictured it."

"Well, given that we nearly had unprotected sex, it's a good job it didn't," she says with a huff. The moment of pure, unashamed lust she was feeling a few minutes ago has passed, and instead of feeling sinful and sexy she feels stupid and irresponsible.

Yugi's eyes widen. "Crap! I…" He is going to say he forgot about using protection, but it does not seem like the right word. "It didn't even occur to me," he says instead. "I'm sorry."

She places a hand on his arm and smiles lovingly at him. "It's not your fault," she assures him. "Neither of us were thinking properly."

He smiles at her apologetically and opens his arms for her. "Are we okay?"

Nodding, she leans into him and they silently embrace. They are both thinking about what nearly happened, and how it might have lead to an unplanned pregnancy.

After a few moments, they step apart and Yugi lightly brushes her face with the pads of his fingers. "If anything did happen, and you got pregnant, you do know I would look after you, don't you?"

"I know you would, Yugi." She smiles sadly, and then frowns. "But it's not you I'm worried about. My dad would blame you, and most likely kill you, and my dream of being a dancer would be over."

Yugi envelopes her in another hug. "I would never let that happen," he says sternly. "I would make sure of it."

"Thank you," Anzu does not know what else to say. Her dad is bossy – it's where she gets her bossy streak from – and he can be very domineering and forceful when he gets angry or feels the need to take a firm stand. But she trusts Yugi, and if he has an ounce of Atem in him – which she knows he has – Yugi would be more than a match for her father should the need ever arise – God forbid it ever does.

Anzu's tummy decides to interrupt their sombre moment of serious reflection with a loud gurgling rumble. It lightens the mood again and they both laugh.

Embarrassed, Anzu pulls away and puts her hands over her abdomen. "I think I need some food."

Yugi nods, and touches his own tummy, feeling it rumble again in agreement.

It is definitely time for dinner.

Chapter Text

It's not yet nine o'clock, but it has been a busy day, and after a nice evening meal their tummies are rather full, and they are both feeling a bit sleepy.

Making love all night to Anzu and falling asleep with her in his arms, is something Yugi has been dreaming about for the longest time, but now he finally has the opportunity to do so he is so tired that all he wants to do is crash. He hopes that Anzu is as tired as he is, and not expecting a stellar performance with an encore from him, because he can barely raise an eyelid, let alone anything else!

Anzu leans into him and puts her arms around his torso. "Fancy an early night?" And it is not sleeping that is on her mind.

"Sure," he says, trying not to yawn. "Which side of the bed do you prefer?"

Although she does not mind all that much, after a moment of thought Anzu points at what is the right hand side of the bed from where they are standing. "How about I take…. that side," she decides.

He nods. "Okay." Anzu will be to his left once they are in bed.

Anzu giggles, and gives him a playful nudge. "But I'm sure we will both end up in the middle together, eh?"

As tired as he is, he manages to grin.

Anzu turns to face him and they kiss. But just as he is starting to think he might be able to manage a little bit of loving before they go to sleep after all, she spins away from him. "Do you mind if I use the bathroom first?"

"No, that's fine," he says, watching intently as she takes something pink and silky from her bag, scrunching it in her hands so that he cannot see what it is, and then dashing into the bathroom and closing the door.

A small smile plays at Yugi's mouth. Was that a baby doll nightdress she had in her hands, or is his imagination making him wishful?

Feeling a spike of excitement, he goes to his bag to dig out his own nightwear. Rather than bring long legged, long sleeved shirt style pyjamas, he has brought burgundy coloured sleep shorts and matching tee-shirt. Stripping off his clothes, he puts on his sleepwear, but doubts he will be wearing them for long once Anzu returns from the bathroom.

Trying to remain awake, he reclines on the bed and waits. His eyelids feel heavy. Anzu is taking ages in the bathroom and he soon starts to doze off. He is snoring lightly by the time she finally emerges from the bathroom.

"Oh, Yugi…." she coos in her best seduction voice.

Having been more or less fast asleep, he only half hears her and makes a muffled 'hm..' sound.

She puts her hand to her mouth. "Oh!" She huffs. She did not think he would be asleep. Sighing loudly, she climbs into bed and deliberately slumps down heavily, irritated that her attempted sexy seduction seems to have gone unnoticed.

Scratching the back of his neck, Yugi yawns and sits up, wondering what it is he has done to upset her. He blinks at her, and as the cogs in his brain start to click back into gear, he finally notices the pretty pink silk vest top she is wearing. Oh, Wow! He wants to shuffle up to her and touch her, but she is pouting and is looking at her phone – an indication she is ignoring him.

He needs to brush his teeth and have a pee anyway, so he slips out of bed and pads sheepishly to the bathroom, hoping he will be forgiven by the time he returns.

:

The minty fresh toothpaste and a splash of cold water has woken Yugi up a little, and he returns to the bedroom keen make amends and keep Anzu happy.

She's still on her phone, and has an amused look on her face. He wonders what she is smiling at.

"What is it?" he asks as he slides into bed beside her and tries to peer over her arm. But she tilts her phone away.

"Nothing! It's… nothing." She's trying to work out how to reply to Mai's message, asking if the saucy French knickers and lacy top have done the trick. How can she say that he was snoring on the bed, so she did not get to do the raunchy dance routine that was intended to turn him on.

Yugi purses his lips – he's willing to bet it's not nothing. "Whoever it is, don't tell them about the shower incident," he tells her. She looks at him and rolls her eyes –she wants to forget about that, but he keeps mentioning it.

"It's only Mai," she says offhandedly.

Mortified, Yugi's jaw flaps. "What?! You're not discussing me, are you?!" He hopes his reputation with the ladies is not down the drain. Not that he has a reputation, but if he did, he does not want Mai laughing at him.

Anzu angles her phone towards him. "She wants to know if you like me wearing French knickers, that's all."

Yugi's face turns red. "F.. French…" He gulps. "Knickers?!" Oh, boy! His eyes light up.

Pleased with herself, Anzu hits send, then places her phone on the night stand. Yugi is looking at her expectantly. "I told her I'm about to find out," she says, leaning towards him and sliding one hand under the hem of his pyjama top, making his abs flinch at the light touch of her fingers teasing their way inside the elasticated waistband of his shorts.

Growing hard in her hand, Yugi sucks in a breath and leans in to meet her lips with his.

It's almost a shame that he did not get to see her parading in her French Knickers, because he will be removing them in a few moments.

Chapter Text

After some rather vigorous love making, Yugi is completely spent.

Anzu also succumbs, to what has been a very long and busy day, and she falls asleep easily, despite Yugi's soft snoring in her ear.

The bed is so comfortable, and they both sleep fitfully.

Any plans Anzu had, to wake up early and drag Yugi to the gym at seven in the morning, have flown completely out of the window –absolutely nothing is going to force her from such a wonderful slumber this early in the day.

When Anzu finally does start to stir, it is nearly eight o'clock. For a split second she is disoriented and wonders where she is, but as she wakes more fully she remembers she in an onsen hotel, in bed, completely naked, with Yugi.

She hums contentedly, and stretches out under the covers; she has never slept in the nude before and it is quite liberating. She could stay here all morning, but she needs the bathroom.

Wondering where her sexy pink nightwear ended up, she peers over the side of the bed, and spots her French knickers and silk top on the floor.

Blushing at the memories of how and why they ended up there, Anzu looks over at Yugi; she fell asleep cuddled up to him, but during the night they rolled apart and are each occupying their own side of the very big bed.

Watching him sleeping, snuggled contentedly under the covers, his breathing steady and his spiky hair sticking out in tufts, makes her feel all warm and gooey inside. It's just a shame he is facing away from her so she can't see his face.

She is very tempted to cuddle up to his naked back and slide her arms around him and cuddle him like he's her favourite cuddly toy, but… she still needs to go to the bathroom. Besides, it would be mean of her to wake him up when he appears to be sleeping so soundly.

Ignoring her bladder for just a minute longer, and her own advice not to wake him, she shuffles closer and lightly touches his waist – he feels so nice and warm.

Her lips hover dangerously close to the back of his neck, and, accidentally on purpose, her lips caress the soft hairs at the nape of his neck, causing him to stir.

Still not fully awake, his hand comes up to rub his tickly neck, and then he rolls over to face her.

Anzu tries to scoot backwards, but is too slow and he rolls into her. He hums contentedly and drapes a possessive arm around her.

Voice husky with sleep, he mutters something incoherent and presses his body into hers.

What a nice way to wake up! He is filled with a feeling of happiness, and wants to show her his love. A rush of blood goes straight to his groin, giving him the best morning wood he's ever experienced.

He is suddenly in the mood for sex.

But Anzu is not.

She wriggles from his arms and sits up. "Seriously, Yugi?! At this time of the day?!" She still feels a bit tender from last night.

Yugi blinks up at her and blushes. "I'm being selfish. Sorry." His voice is still husky, and she has to admit he looks sexy, with his hair a mess and a light dusting of soft fuzz starting to show on his chin and jawline.

"You're not being selfish, Yugi. You can't help it if you, um… have an erection – I guess they can happen anytime of the day, huh?" She has heard this, but is not sure exactly.

Yugi blushes harder and smiles awkwardly. "Yeah, especially when I wake up with my beautiful girlfriend's naked body next to me."

This time, it is Anzu's turn to blush. She instinctively covers her chest with her arms. "Sorry." She smiles apologetically for teasing him. "I er, urgently need the bathroom," she says, standing up so fast that she wobbles and sees stars.

Yugi is concerned, but knows better than to jump up too quickly from bed, especially when most of the blood from his brain has already migrated to his dick.

"I'm okay," she says quickly. "Shouldn't have jumped up so fast." Recovering quickly, she scoops up her silky pink attire and scurries to the bathroom.

Watching her, Yugi smiles appreciatively. In his eyes, she is a beauty to behold.

And she is his.

Chapter Text

After a tasty breakfast, Yugi suggests that rather than hit the gym they should go for a walk.

When Anzu agrees to his suggestion to forego the gym, he is relieved.

A walk turns out to be a good idea.

There are several signposted trails around the hillside, close to where the hotel is located, and they decide to take one that leads to a Shinto shrine. The walk to the shrine claims to take fifteen to twenty minutes.

It's a beautiful day, and en-route there is a board giving information about the fauna and wildlife in the area. After reading the board, they look up and scan the trees; they can hear the birds chirping in the treetops, but cannot see any of them, so they give up and continue on up the pathway.

The path to the shrine is well trodden, but there does not seem to be many people about at this time of day -they only pass two people coming the other way.

Arriving at the shrine, they honour the Kami that protect the hillside and forest, and Yugi places their offering of money for the shrine's upkeep in the collection box.

There is also a small cafe and gift shop. They have coffee, and afterwards Anzu buys them each a small omamori, before they head back down to the hotel.

On the way back down, Yugi does not know if it is the fresh mountain air, the visit to the shrine, or even the great sex he and Anzu had last night, but he comes over feeling all romantic.

They have just reached a place on the path where there is a gap in the trees allowing them to see the view down into the valley below. There are no other people around them at the moment, so he stops, and without warning pulls her into his arms and kisses her.

Anzu is taken aback, and so shocked by his sudden public show of affection that she pulls away. "Yugi!" She exclaims in embarrassment, looking around to make sure no one is watching them kissing. Luckily there is no one else nearby on the path. For a moment, she fears he's about to as her to marry him - she's not ready for that sort of commitment. Thankfully, he does not –the thought of marriage at their age terrifies him.

Yugi smiles innocently –he does not regret being impulsive. "I just wanted to express my love for you," he says.

Anzu blushes and she giggles. "You're not hinting that we have sex here, are you?" she whispers, secretly wondering what it would be like do do something so risky.

"What, here…?!" He is shocked that she might be willing to explore having outdoor sex. But while he is intrigued by the idea, he does not have any condoms on him, so he dismisses it. "No! That's not… I just had an overwhelming urge to kiss you, that's all," he admits defensively.

Anzu's face softens and she smiles lovingly. "Aw, Yugi. That's so sweet and romantic." She takes both his hands in hers and closes her eyes breathing in the fresh mountain air and savouring this moment of bonding.

He leans in and softly presses his lips to hers. He feels Anzu smile serenely against his lips. "I love you," he says softly, their lips still almost touching.

"Thank you for bringing me here," she says, opening her eyes. She studies the contours of his face. It has been a while since he lost that baby faced roundness and developed the same nicely defined cheekbones and angular jaw as Atem. But he seems to have changed and grown again without her noticing, and while he does still look young for his age, he is more man than boy. They are also both wearing sports shoes with similar thickness soles, but she could swear he is how at least as tall as her, if not taller. She suddenly feels like doing something silly. "I'm feeling so happy right now I could… jump up and down and shout our names across the valley below." She giggles at her admission.

He grins evilly. "Go on then. I dare you."

"You dare me?" Does she have the guts to do it? Of course she does. "Okay." She smirks at him and he winks back at her. "Right. Here goes." Rubbing her hands together, she takes a deep breath and then starts to laugh so hard that all she does is make a noise like she is about to spit out her teeth. She tries again, and is almost certain that this time she will be able to do it, when suddenly Yugi shouts….

"Anzu! I love you with all my heart!" at the top of his voice. It is loud and booming, and Anzu gasps in surprise.

"Yugi!" She is unable to believe he would have the guts, let alone be able to project his voice like that.

He smirks at her and shrugs. "What? It's true. I do love you."

"Well, obviously," she says, pouting, hands on hips. They would not be here if he didn't. This time, she prepares perfectly and shouts her response. "Yugi Muto, I love you!" But her voice is starting to crack with laughter at the end.

"That was fun," he says, laughing and putting his arm around her waist.

"It was certainly…. liberating," is the word she thinks best describes it.

They both cringe and then start laughing, when a group of bemused looking tourists appear around the bend of the twisting path. The tourists probably don't understand what they were shouting, but do nod politely and bid them good day.

"That was hilarious," Anzu says after the tourists have gone.

"Embarrassing more like," replies Yugi, pulling a face.

"Well, I don't care!" says Anzu. "Now the whole world knows we love each other."

Yugi chuckles. "I'm not sure about the world, but the people staying at the campsite down there probably heard us," he says, pointing to the cabins visible in amongst the trees.

Yugi suddenly feels his tummy rumble and looks at his watch. "Time's getting on. We should head back to the hotel." A late lunch is beckoning, and they also have the onsen to look forward to.

It might only be a two day break, but this is quite possibly the best holiday he has ever had.

Chapter Text

After an afternoon in the onsen, Yugi and Anzu return to their hotel room feeling completely relaxed. There are still a couple of hours to kill before their evening meal, and Yugi plans to spend it doing…. absolutely nothing. Well, almost absolutely nothing.

Wearing just the tee-shirt and loose fitting lounge pants he threw on after visiting the onsen, he flops down on the bed and closes his eyes. His body feels so airy, so light, and so de-stressed that he imagines himself floating on the bed. The pull of social media and the outside world is a million miles away, and he has no desire whatsoever to reach for his phone and check what is going on at home, or in the news.

Taking a deep breath, he exhales. "I've never felt this chilled," he says.

Wearing her own loose fitting attire, Anzu crawls onto the bed with him and snuggles against his chest. She slides her hand inside his tee-shirt and rests her palm on his tummy –he feels so warm. "I know what you mean," she says around a soft yawn.

He lets out a quiet chuckle and puts an arm around her, holding her close and gently combing his fingers through her silky hair. "You're beautiful," he says lovingly. Anzu blushes quietly to herself and shyly thanks him.

They lay there for a few minutes, enjoying a moment of peace and tranquility.

But Anzu soon feels the need for partaking in some sort of activity. "What do you want to do for the next two hours?" she mumbles, fidgeting a little. She is ambivalent about having sex, but could be persuaded.

Of course, sex is the first thing springs to Yugi's mind. "Mmm, Do you…." His voice is dreamy and a yawn interrupts his flow.

Anzu lifts her head to look at him. "Do I, what?" she says with a smirk.

"You didn't let me finish!" he complains defensively. "I was going to say, do you want to make love?"

"That would depend on how awake you are," she teases, sliding her hand underneath the elasticated waistband of his lounge pants.

He shivers at the intimacy of her her touch. "I'm awake," he confirms, feeling a sudden surge of arousal, adding a wonderful heat to his already relaxed body. "Horny awake," he adds in a sexy voice that makes Anzu shiver involuntarily. She slides her hand back up to his chest.

She is just about to speak, when Yugi surprises her and suddenly flips them over so that Anzu is now on her back. A few moments ago she was going to suggest she rides him, but he has stolen the initiative. Not that she is complaining. Not when he suddenly strips off his tee-shirt and throws it aside with a naughty glint in his eyes.

Straddling her, knees either side of her hips, he leans down and kisses her possessively. Finding his little show of dominance strangely alluring, Anzu slides her hands down his flank and then slips them inside his lounge pants. She palms his buttocks quite firmly. "Yugi! You're not wearing any underwear!" It is said more in amusement than horror.

"It's liberating," he tells her with a smile, moving so that he can discard his lounge pants completely, leaving him gloriously naked. He resumes his position, knees either side of her hips, proudly showing off his manhood. Anzu likes how he no longer displays any bashfulness or anxiety about his physical prowess not meeting her expectations, and when their eyes meet, she sees a quiet confidence in him.

Sliding her hands to the front of his thighs, she ups the ante by telling him, "Not wearing a bra is even more liberating." Not breaking eye contact with him, she sits up and pulls the pink and grey, soft, fleecy, long sleeved baggy top she is wearing over her head.

Yugi licks his lips and tries not to drool. He will never tire of seeing her beautiful breasts.

Anzu's fleecy sweat pants and knickers quickly join the other discarded items of clothing on the floor and then she pulls him down for another bodies entwine; the touch of skin on skin, soft and sensitive from soaking in the mineral rich onsen, heightens their desire for one another.

Anzu lets out a contented hum, when Yugi breaks their kiss and places soft butterfly kisses to her breasts, before moving down her body to her tummy, where he pauses for a moment to peer up at her. He is unaware that his wild hair is tickling her. "Is me doing this okay?" he asks.

Anzu lifts her head to look at him, and reaches down to ruffle his hair. "It tickles," she tells him. That does not quite answer his question.

"Oh!" He smiles sheepishly. There is not much he can do about his hair, bar cut it all off! Should he continue with his plan to try oral anyway?

Seeing a sudden hint of uncertainty on his face, she is quick to reassure him. "It's a nice tickle, though. So… don't stop." She thinks she knows what he would like to do, but can see he is hesitating, so she hitches her knees up and lets them fall open.

Without any further hesitation, Yugi clambers between her legs. He is eager, but he also wants to savour every moment of the pleasure he hopes to give her. Not too sure about how quickly to proceed, he starts by caressing her soft, silky inner thighs in turn, and then sits back on his haunches to admire her for a moment, before dipping his head down to taste her for the first time.

He is not disappointed, and neither is Anzu.

Chapter Text

All too soon, their mini holiday is over and it is time to head home.

But it has been an amazing couple of days: staying in a luxury hotel together, unhindered and uninterrupted, has given Yugi and Anzu a chance to explore their relationship, bringing them even closer together than they already were.

"I'm going to miss waking up with you tomorrow morning," Anzu confesses as they do a final sweep of the hotel room to ensure nothing valuable is left behind.

Yugi takes her hands in his and plants a soft kiss on her lips. "Same," he says. "I wish we could stay another night."

Catching by surprise, Anzu throws her arms around him. "Do you think we could?" she asks hopefully. She's pushing it, she knows, but she has brought enough clothing with her for another night. Yugi shakes his head.

Laughing, he braces to take her wight. "Sadly, no," he laments. He purchased a package, and paying for an expensive extra night would be stretching his budget just that little bit too far. Grandpa also needs him back in the store tomorrow, so that he can go to Osaka to see an old friend – Grandpa has a lot of old friends.

After a brief kiss, they step apart, and Yugi shoulders his holdall. Knowing how Anzu struggled with her bulky suitcase coming here, he offers to carry it for her as well, but she pouts at him, shakes her head and snatches up the handle of the suitcase that is far too large for just two days. "I can manage."

Yugi sighs and gives her a look that says, At least I offered. But he knows full well that Anzu likes to do things for herself and does not push it.

Luckily, Anzu's case has little wheels, enabling her to pull it along. At least until they get to the stairs.

Yugi laughs to hide his exasperation. "Why don't we take the lift?" It's an obvious solution, but Anzu is adamant that they should take the stairs.

"I've eaten too much these past two days. A dancer should be trim and fit, not fat and lazy," she explains, concerned the over indulgence in rich food will impact her dance fitness and set her training back – Juilliard has strict standards, and she already has a lot of work to do on her fitness levels if she is to keep up with the gruelling schedule.

Yugi rolls his eyes. "We've had loads of exercise!" he says with a naughty grin.

"Not the right kind of exercise, though. Anyway, it's not heavy," she insists, struggling to lower the bulging case down one stair at a time.

Dam it! Yugi's had enough. He may not look big and strong, but he's stronger than she is when it comes to carrying heavy stuff. "Let me." It is not an offer, or a plea, but an order, and Anzu knows better than to protest further, so she concedes, but makes a point of letting him know it is not willingly.

He grabs the handle and clumsily lifts her bag. It's too bloody heavy, but since they are both being stubborn he will not admit that he's struggling. "What have you got in here?!" he exclaims, trying to disguise his irritation with mock amusement. "It's even heavier than when we arrived!" Unfortunately, he sounds exasperated, and Anzu takes offence at his tone.

"I bought some some of the lovely skincare products, and a few gifts, okay!" she snaps back at him. Despite expressing displeasure about his daughter spending two nights away with Yugi, Anzu's father did appreciate her honesty, and gave her some extra money to spend. And she believes she has spent it wisely.

Yugi grunts, and shoots her an uncharacteristic look that would kill someone with a weaker heart. It is a look that Anzu often used to see Atem use, but never Yugi, and never levelled at her.

She nearly cries, but will not give him the satisfaction of knowing he has almost reduced her to tears.

However, by the time they reach the bottom of the stairs (they were on the third floor), she starts to feel more guilty than tearful watching Yugi struggling with her bag. "Maybe we should have taken the lift," she confesses with a grimace.

"Oh, so now you agree with my original suggestion!" Lugging the case all the way down three flights of stairs has made him sweaty and grumpy.

"You don't have to be like that, Yugi!"

Ignoring her, he drags her bag over to the desk to check out, hand in the key-card and order a taxi.

Waiting in reception for their taxi, the couple ignore each other. Anzu knows that Yugi has a tendency to go quiet when he is upset, so she makes the first move.

"Yugi?" she calls softly.

He looks up at her with a bland expression, that says nothing about how he is feeling. "Hm?"

She smiles hesitantly. "I'm sorry for making you carry my case down the stairs."

A relieved half smile flickers across his face, but his words are a little sharp. "You didn't make me, I offered. And I didn't slip a disk, so no harm done."

"Yeah, but.." She sighs and looks away.

Realising he is being a dick, Yugi touches her arm. "Hey! I'm sorry."

"What for?" she says petulantly.

He shrugs. "I dunno. Being a dick, I suppose."

His choice of phrasing makes Anzu smile and she has to stifle a snort of laughter. "I think we just had or first disagreement as a couple."

"Did we?!" He nods lightly. "Yeah. Guess we did. Um, are we okay again?"

Anzu smiles and takes his hand. "Yes. I don't think I could ever stay annoyed with you for long." She squeezes his hand. But she will still not admit her suitcase is too big for just two days.

"Me neither," he says, just as the taxi driver, dressed in a smart grey uniform and wearing white gloves walks into the building. Yugi catches the eye of the receptionist and nods. "Our taxi's here," he says to Anzu, who is unaware because she has her back to the reception desk and has her focus on her boyfriend.

The taxi driver insists on taking their bags, giving Yugi a reprieve from the strain for a few moments. But when he sees the poor man struggling to lift Anzu's case into the boot of the car, he does offer to lend a hand, much to Anzu's dismay –she doesn't think it is that heavy, and is starting to think the men are deliberately trying to make her feel guilty for having such a large bag.

Apart from hauling the suitcase onto the bus, the rest of the journey is easier, and they arrive back in Domino by mid afternoon.

There have been no more discussions about the suitcase, and their earlier disagreement has been forgotten. Until….

"What on earth have you got in this suitcase?!" Anzu's father complains when he meets them from the train station and goes to put her suitcase in the boot of his car. "You were only away for two nights!"

Anzu rolls her eyes. "Why is everyone complaining about my suitcase?!" she protests. "It's not that heavy! Wimps!"

Her father and Yugi both agree that it is.

Chapter Text

The following morning, Yugi is dragged out of bed early by Grandpa, who is eager to get on his way to Osaka and needs Yugi up and ready to open the shop.

Groaning and mumbling in protest, Yugi shuffles to the bathroom to wash and dress.

He is missing Anzu and did not sleep all that well; the soft scent of her hair, the cute little noises she makes when she wakes up and stretches. Her teasing touches. Her sweet kisses.

Is this what being in love does to a man?

His morning wood peers up at him hopefully, and then wilts forlornly when it realises that is not going to get the attention it craves.

For one moment, Yugi thinks about knocking out a morning wank, but quickly changes his mind when Grandpa starts banging on the bathroom door, telling him to hurry up!

Besides, after two days of awesome sex with Anzu, a morning wank seems kind of sad.

:

Washed, breakfasted and composed, Yugi settles behind the shop counter and opens his laptop. He logs in and starts going through the online orders and printing off delivery slips, before going out back to sort the items ready to be packaged and shipped.

Grandpa had been resistant to setting up an online presence, but Yugi insisted that if the shop was to survive it needed to keep with the times. Mokuba kindly helped Yugi to design the website as a favour, and now online orders are the most profitable part of the business. Grandpa is delighted, and now won't hear a bad word said against online shopping.

During the morning, Yugi only serves two customers, but that is not unusual for a weekday. The busiest time is late afternoon, when the kids call in on their way home from school.

Although Grandpa issued him all sorts of instructions to sweep the forecourt regularly and to keep the shop clean and tidy, Yugi cannot be bothered, not when to Yugi's eyes it looks spotless anyway. So he opens a game on his I-pad and sits at the counter to play.

Just after midday, an expected delivery truck turns up. Yawning, Yugi closes the game app he was playing and accepts the delivery. And once the boxes are unloaded, he starts unpacking them and logging the new stock into the inventory.

He has not been doing this for long when his phone pings. He smiles when he sees it is a message from Anzu: she has finished her fitness and dance classes and is just getting on the bus. She says she is missing him and will pop by on her way home.

Yugi did not think he would be seeing her today, and his spirits are lifted.

Twenty minutes later, the bell above the door chimes and Anzu walks in. She is dressed in a bright blue zip-up hoodie with the dance school name on the back, a pair of black jogging bottoms, white long socks that are bunched around her ankles, and is wearing a pair of Mizuno running shoes on her feet. Her hair has been let down from it's tight bun, and is now hanging loose. She is still pink in the face from her workout, which Yugi finds cute.

"Hey!" he says, smiling appreciatively.

Anzu catches him eyeing her. She pats down her clothing. "Sorry if I look a mess, I came straight from the gym," she explains. He does not know that underneath the hoodie she only a sports crop top with a breast support lining inside it.

"Well, I think you look nice."

"Flatterer."

Yugi shrugs and winks at her. "You know me!" He laughs, and Anzu tuts. She does know him; he's become quite the smooth talker in recent months.

Changing subject, Yugi asks, "Would you like tea, or something?"

"I would love a green tea, and a glass of water!" Anzu replies gratefully. She guzzled her protein shake after class and it's left a rather cloying taste in her mouth.

Yugi nods and leads her to the rear of the store, where there is a sofa, a table and a small area for preparing food and drink.

Exhausted, Anzu flops down on the sofa, while Yugi puts the kettle on to boil and grabs two cups and the box of green tea bags. Grandpa complains about using tea bags, but they are convenient.

"How was class?" he asks her, handing her a glass of water which she drinks as if it is a magical elixir.

She nods as she drinks. "Mmm. Good!" She hands him the empty glass. "I did some strength and balance work, then two back to back classes. I worked really hard, so I will probably ache tomorrow."

"I can give you a massage, if you like?" he offers hopefully.

"Would you! It's my calves, mostly." Her fitness trainer noticed that she has a slight imbalance between her left and right side. Her right leg is more dominant, so she has been doing specific work to try and rectify this and prevent potential injury in the future.

Yugi flexes his hands and wiggles his fingers. "I can definitely help you with that," he says with a cheeky smile, and Anzu rolls her eyes and tuts. He hastily squeezes the teabags and carries the two cups over, placing them on the table.

"Has the shop been very busy today?" Anzu asks, making casual conversation.

"Not really. I expect it will be after four when the kids start coming out of school, though," he says, sitting down next to her.

As soon as he is seated, Anzu kicks off her trainers and socks, removes her jogging bottoms to reveal she is wearing Lycra exercise shorts underneath, and then swings her lovely, toned legs across his thighs. "Sorry! My feet are a bit sweaty."

"I don't mind," he says, sliding his hands over her lovely thighs, but she points to her left calf.

"My weaker leg," she informs him, and lets out an, "Ow! Yes. There," when Yugi's thumbs find the exact right spot in her tight soleus muscle.

After a few minutes, Yugi's attention starts to wander again and his hands creep up her legs to her upper thighs. Anzu is laying with her head against the armrest and has her eyes closed, and she jumps, letting out a squeak when he rubs between her legs. "Yugi!" she scolds, but it feels nice so she does not stop him.

Since she seems to like the attention he is giving her, he pushes the waistband of her shorts down and slides one of his hands inside, simultaneously leaning down to kiss her. At first she responds, tilting her hips to allow him better access, but suddenly she decides to put the breaks on.

"What if a customer comes in?"

"They won't come back here."

"Your Mum?"

"She's out. She'll be back at four, and will help if we get busy." Anzu already knows that his grandfather is away for the next few days and that Yugi is in charge of the store.

Anzu takes a breath and lets it out. She's way too horny for this time of day and needs to calm down. "Okay. But I'm going to drink my tea first." She pulls her shorts up and swings her legs round to sit properly in the chair.

Yugi nods, and reminds her that he is a gentleman by passing her drink to her. He picks up his own and takes a sip.

As soon as they have finished their tea, Yugi takes the two cups and places them in the sink. He will wash them up later. Right now, he is eager to get back to Anzu. Taking a tea break has nothing to quell their lust, and they resume where they left off a few minutes ago.

"I've got a condom on me," he says, voice husky.

Anzu shakes her head. "Not here. Can we go upstairs?" She does not feel comfortable having sex in the back of the shop.

Yugi realises that she is right. "I er, guess I'm due a break," he says. It won't hurt to close the shop for a short while.

Yugi hangs the Closed For Lunch sigh on the door and locks it.

Upstairs, Yugi's room is warm, and it smells distinctly of him, which is not unpleasant to Anzu. Yugi opens the skylight anyway, and pulls the blind to dim the brightness of the afternoon sun shining in.

"We probably shouldn't take too long," he says regretfully, while hastily undoing the buttons on his shirt.

"How long is too long?" asks Anzu, taking off her hooded top. An afternoon of tender lovemaking and romantic cuddles is more appealing to her than a quick fuck.

Yugi is not keen to set a time limit. "Um… I had better not leave the shop closed for too long."

Anzu sighs. "Then we had better get on with it," she says briskly, throwing her hooded top onto the floor with Yugi's shirt. He smiles at her apologetically.

"I'll make it nice," he says, knowing her well enough now to know that, for Anzu, lovemaking is all about the romance, and not just the part that he enjoys most.

Nodding, Anzu decides to up the ante by making a show of dancing seductively as she undresses. A strip show just for Yugi.

Shivering in delight, he licks his lips and hastily unbuckles his belt. Unlike Anzu, he makes no attempt at a seductive dance, but Anzu doesn't mind. Watching him pulling his jeans over his feet and kick them away is an enjoyable spectacle in its self, and she feels a rush of pleasure when she sees his erection spring free.

The young couple embrace, enjoying the way their naked bodies touch in all the right places.

Kissing, they fall onto the bed.

Conscious of the need to make Anzu feel loved and pleasured before he puts on a condom and enters her, Yugi trails loving kisses over her breasts and torso. He is conscious not to suck and leave marks (even though he wants to) but does gently flick his tongue over her skin. She tastes slightly salty from sweating during her exercise classes, but he doesn't mind. Exercising has released her natural hormones and pheromones, and they are bringing out the beast in him. He wants to taste more of her.

When he moves between her legs, Anzu fists his hair and drapes her legs over his shoulders, holding him prisoner between her thighs. She is very aroused and would like Yugi to turn her to jelly and make her scream. It goes without saying, that Yugi would like to make her quiver like jelly and hear her screaming his name, but time is not a luxury right now, so he reluctantly frees himself from her honey trap and reaches over into his drawer for a condom.

Anzu is disappointed. He gives amazing head and she is so close to having the mother of all orgasms. "Do you have to stop now?" she complains.

Yugi silences her with a kiss, giving her a taste of herself. "Ugh! I taste awful." She wipes her mouth with her hand.

Yugi just smiles wickedly, and unwraps the condom.