Disclamer: i do not own yugioh...damn.
Authors note: this storyis dedicated for my dearfriend Elle who diedrecently. this is my way of dealing with it. writing a story about death, and the rebirth of life.i love you elle.
Chapter One: Dealing With Departure.
The walls and ceiling of an ancient tomb started to crumble. Those inside needed to escape, but even though there was falling stones all around them, not one touched the retreating members. Something or someone was protecting them as they escaped from the tomb that anyone thought would become their's.
"what happens now?"
A blond boy asked a smaller spiky haired boy that stood next to him. The small boy was staring at the tomb of the pharaoh he once knew as his best friend and companion. He was now gone, and the boy was all alone. He felt empty inside, and though he was glad to see the pharaoh's fate finally coming to an end after so long, he wanted the other to continue living in his world, his time.
"Yugi, are you alright?"
the blond boy asked as he saw a small tear escape the boy's eyes. Just a moment before he was saying goodbye to his best friend, and now he saw his tomb. Was this what it was like when someone died? Was that what happened to Atem? Was he finally able to die, rest in peace? It felt like it was. Yugi was staring at his tomb, and he would never see Atem ever again. The only way he could see him was within his memories, but that wasn't enough. Within time he knew he would forget little things, things he wasn't able to remember perfectly. He would soon forget his voice and laugh and soon some of his features. However, what he wouldn't forget was the devotion he received from the pharaoh. He wouldn't forget the friend the pharaoh brought him and the adventures. He wouldn't forget the lessons he was taught and the bravery he grew thanks to the Pharaoh. No, the pharaoh will always be in his memories, but that wasn't enough for Yugi. He wanted someone to comfort him when he was sad or to talk to him when he was lonely. He wanted his pharaoh back, his partner.
"We live, Joey. We simply live and remember what the Pharaoh taught us, what Atem taught us. That's all we can do. Just live. Live and remember."
Five Years Later...
And with that, the large group parted. Joey moved away soon after to live with his mother and sister. Tea moved to America to become a dancer. Duke along with Pegasus remained in America as well, producing more and more Duel Monsters related things. Marik, Ishizu, and Odion all remained in Egypt finding a new fate for themselves now that their family's mission was finally over after 5,000 years. Tristan moved some where without a word, and Seto stayed with Kaiba corp. Everyone seemed to part their separate ways. Now that Atem was gone, the reality of their own lives sunk in. There was nothing here in Domino anymore. Just memories of what happened when they were kids. All starting over a simple card game.
However, one person remained in Domino. Yugi Motou had inherited his grandfather's game shop when he passed away. Yugi was on his own now, in his twenties, and the old days still haunted him. Every now and then, he found himself still reaching out for his Millennium Puzzle. He still searched his minds for some remnance of Atem. Some hint that said that he wasn't gone, but nothing was found. He was normal once more, only having one mind in his body. He didn't have anyone to talk to that could understand how he felt. Atem was always there, and could always tell when there was something wrong even if yugi denied it.
"I know I promised to keep living for Atem, but it seems so hard. I feel so empty. My soul, my heart, ripped out of me when he left. Its five years later and the pain still has not left me. Five years later and I wish I could still speak with him."
He whispered to himself as he closed up shop for the evening. Everything felt so empty now. Even Duel Monsters lost its spark. He received an email a year after Atem left, from Pegasus. No one had heard of yugi at any tournaments lately. Yugi had to explain that he retired from the game. It was to much for him to handle. Not to mention the fact that the game seemed like a silly game now. The magic, the shadow magic, was gone. The life that he once found within the paper cards was gone. He still kept his cards though. He still held onto his memories. He would never let go. He never wanted to forget. He couldn't. His memories were the only thing that kept him sane. They were the only thing that made him feel like he was not abandoned. Perhaps that was why he stayed in Domino. In hopes that by some luck, Atem would return to this world. He would return to him, and he would be whole once more.
It was time for dinner. Nothing fancy. The same thing he normally had for the past month. Ramen. It wasn't great, but it was the only thing he seemed to have the energy to make anymore. He sat in front of the TV, watching the news in hopes to hear something of his friends success, but tonight there was nothing.
A knock, that was all it took to distract yugi from the television set and his thoughts. His thoughts of loneliness. His friends had not called or contacted him in anyway since they all moved on. Why had yugi not moved on? He would tell himself it was because of the shop. It was his now and he had to take care of it. He couldn't get rid of something that his grandfather worked so hard for.
Yugi walked to the door. When he opened it, there was no one there. Yugi sighed and was about to close the doors once more when an envelope fell to his feet. It simply had his name written on the outside of it. It didn't seem special, but to yugi it was. Only because he knew there was something about this note. He had recieved plenty of notes, bills, and other things like that, things that seemed so unimportant and insignifacent, but this time, there was something.
"...he has returned..."
The note inside said. Yugi looked at the note confused and then looked at the address written on the tope of the stationary paper that the phrase was on. The Ishtars. It had to be Atem, but how? How could he be back from the afterlife?