Lego: This is for the 100 Themes challenge. Only canon oneshots will be posted. I'm doing this because Tears of a Lotus doesn't want to be written. Could be considered AU, I guess.
Disclaimer: The YuGiOh franchise belongs to Kazuki Takahashi. I own only the story.
Light
Yugi wasn't afraid of the dark.
No, not the dark, but the darkness inside himself, the darkness of his memories.
He simply loved the light. The skylight in his bedroom let the sun in from dawn to dusk. If no sunlight could enter, the lightbulbs would burn with electricity until he finally drifted into sleep—and even then, nightlights gave his bedroom a soft glow.
But they can't help him escape the darkness deep within.
Yugi tried to embody the spirit of the sun—stay positive, be optimistic, he'd tell himself. Many of the people around him suffered with darkness, and he thought his light could burn it away from them.
What about yourself, Yugi? What about your darkness?
Joey was always thanking him for the positive influence Yugi was in the blonde's life. Anzu was another bright support, and between the two of them, Joey and Tristan's lives were bright. Grandpa was always complimenting his cheerful smile and upbeat attitude. The old man claimed he loved to see his grandson happy. Yugi enjoyed the compliments and support. He liked it that way.
He never let them see his weakness. He hid it behind a smile.
Even Kaiba noticed—though he always said the optimism was annoying. Yugi didn't mind because at least the brunette knew Yugi's happiness was there.
Sometimes, when his friends weren't around, he'd remember. The phone call. Grandpa's frown. The announcement—the plane was gone. Black. All in black. The funeral. His parents' faces solemn in death.
Yugi hated sunsets. He preferred sunrises. He liked to watch the sun brighten the land around him, light up the world.
Finishing the puzzle was a sunset in Yugi's life. Now there was only darkness—the darkness of the night. It pulled on him, that darkness in his soul. He tried to bury it behind a smile, but it surfaced. It tried to hurt others. It tried to kill Kaiba. He was scared, so very scared.
But Yugi wasn't afraid of the dark.
