Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!.

Geez, this one is long, too! Kudos if you get through it all. My fingers sure like to fly sometimes.

Also, it seems lately I have a thing for rewriting existing scenes that are actually part of the canon series. Kind of like telling the writers, "HEY! Maybe you should've done it like this!"

Okay I'll shut up now. Please enjoy the accents above the 'e' in Téa's name. Heh.

P.S. Yes, early reviewers, I did change the title. And a few simple edits. Thanks for pretending to not notice. :3

Forbidden Fruit
by Atemusluckygal

What was the pharaoh to do?

This was not part of the agenda. Not in the least bit. There was no way Atem had any reason to prepare himself for this, except that he had an overwhelming hunch that this would happen.

His face was trapped in her hands. And his lips were trapped in hers.

Hers. With her lovely brown locks swaying beside her jaw lines, and placid eyes of crystalline blue. With her perfect fair skin glowing in the dim golden lamplight. With her soft hands, designed by the Gods themselves, for kindhearted and comforting touch, covering the flush on his cheeks with her palms.

Was this even right? It couldn't have been. This – whatever this was – was completely, inarguably, forbidden.

Atem's shock registered in his mind, finally, as Téa continued to kiss him, slowly and lovingly. He was genuinely dumbfounded as to how he was allowing her to continue as long as she was, whether it was because she was being indomitably forceful or that he simply was powerless to stop her. His body – his desires – were betraying him, ripping away the stoic façade he fought so hard to maintain around her. His stoic façade that was supposed to imply to her that he could not, and would not, love her. No matter how close, or far, from the truth it really was.

In fact, the only piece of that façade that was still there was keeping him from kissing back, and that was all he could ever hope to manage.

But despite his efforts, Téa still loved him. She truly poured her heart and soul into that kiss, even when he didn't return it. She finally had to force herself to stop, gasping for air. Atem took this opportunity to make his plea.

"Téa, please… please stop this…" As he spoke, he noticed that his bottom lip was tingling and slightly swollen, no doubt from Téa's intense passion mingled into her kiss. And he secretly reveled at such a wonderfully strange sensation, even though he chastised himself disapprovingly. Any enjoyment he took from this made it all the more difficult for him to make his point.

"Please, this isn't right. Téa… by all that is holy, I care a lot for you, but…"

"But what?" inquired the girl, locking eyes with his in an inquisitive stare. Her voice gave it away, though. She knew exactly what she was about to hear, and readied her heart to be torn apart.

"…but this simply can't… be. You and I… this isn't… we can't…"

For some reason, words completely failed the young pharaoh. He simply could not complete his thought, knowing that it would break her heart – especially after feeling every shade, every particle, of her passion and adoration in her touch, and on her lips, when she had pulled him into a lip-locking frenzy.

Despite Atem's faltering demeanor and lack of coherent speaking skills, Téa seemed to understand. In fact, cold rejection had already settled on the delicate feminine features of her face; her eyes were sodden in guilty sadness, her lower lip hanging slightly as tears began to crawl down her blossom pink cheeks. Her head bowed shamefully as she allowed her hands to remove themselves from his face and sink into her lap, defeated.

"I know." Her voice was shaky, low, and weighted with remorse. "With your life almost lost in Ancient Egypt, and your memories recovered, and…" her lip trembled with the next words she said, "…and you about to leave us… this was more than what you bargained for…"

A few strands of hair made their way to block Téa's eyes from the man she just kissed, hoping to create a thin barrier between them and hide her shame. Tears were still falling from her eyes, but she did not bother to brush them away.

"I'm sorry, Pharaoh. I was being selfish…" Téa rose to her feet, leaving a speechless Atem sitting on Yugi's bed, with his kiss-bruised lips and wide violet eyes, watching her every move with a poignant stare. He could no longer appear stoic and untroubled, for his heart had felt more troubled than he could remember feeling in a long, long while. And he simply had no strength to hide it anymore.

Téa made her way to the door, whispering in-between sniffles, "I just don't want to see you go", barely audible to the pharaoh's ears. Her body slouched a bit and her shoulders hung low as her finger reached for the button to open the automatic sliding door…

It was exhilarating at best, disheartening at worst. It was possible that they would never see Pharaoh Atem again.

The moment Marik and Ishizu made the terms of the Battle Ritual clear, everyone became simultaneously happy for the pharaoh, grieving over the chance of never seeing him again, and uneasy from the undertones of tension and delicate emotions amongst their circle of friends.

Especially Atem. Because now, the importance of this duel with his light counterpart – who was in fact, no longer his "counterpart", but his true friend and confidante – was beyond importance of anything else in his life as a spirit here. The pressure was almost too much for them both. His fate was placed in Yugi's hands – how he would come to exist beyond that point. Would he continue as a spirit, dwelling in Yugi's puzzle for who knows how long? Or would his spirit finally be able to see peace, harmony, and rest in the Afterlife?

The dining hall was quiet that night. Everyone ate silently, and went to bed without as much as a simple "goodnight" to each other. Yugi was far from being able to eat, despite Atem's encouragement for him to nourish himself, for strength. He managed to ingest a few spoonfuls of rice before giving up and retreating to his room.

A few hours later, a restless Yugi sat at the coffee table a few feet from the bed, his cards sprawled out on the surface, with about a dozen lined up in particular patterns, looking similar to a game of Solitaire. He laid his head heavily in his hands, trying to focus, fraught with a mental battle of his thrills and his woes of his best friend leaving this world, and the mental strain it caused. He simply had to win, because there was no other opportunity when he would be able to set Atem's spirit free.

Even if he were victorious in their final duel, did he really believe that he would be perfectly fine without his spirit confidante right there at his side? Would he be able to hold his own, without him? This duel was not only a test for Atem, to be able to accept defeat, but it was also for Yugi – he had to prove that he could utilize what Atem had taught him about courageousness, confidence, and self-respect. And in that, Yugi would pull a hefty victory. At least, in theory.

A soft knock at the door startled Yugi out of his musings. He took his gaze away from the three cards in his hands to the door, hoping that whoever was behind it did not bear more sad news. There was only so much sad news he could take at a time. "Come in!"

It was Téa, with her usual positive and cheery disposition, waving a friendly hello at Yugi.

"Hey Yugi… have a sec?" inquired his charming brunette friend, the one friend he'd known since Kindergarten, the young woman who had the gift to lighten the hearts of nearly whomever she met.

"Sure!"

Téa was already closing the door behind her as he answered, and chirped, "As the self-appointed cruise director, I thought I'd tell you that we arrive tomorrow." She eyed the scattered cards on the table, and her expression turned gloomy and solemn. "Guess you're getting ready for your big duel against the pharaoh, huh?" she asked, always positivity and encouragement in her voice, despite that her eyes gave away her evident displeasure.

"Yeah," answered Yugi. "I guess it's sort of like my final gift to him… before he leaves us forever."

"I get it!" Tea snapped, with displaced anger. She immediately felt guilty; it was merely a drop from the ocean of emotion she worked so hard to keep at bay. She wasn't sure if it were the specific choice of words or the way it seemed to tumble out of Yugi's mouth so easily, but it painfully jolted her heart with thousands of volts of electricity.

Her eyes and nose were already starting to feel warm, but she would not allow herself to cry… not here. She had to remain strong, no matter the storm of emotions whirling inside her that threatened to thunder its way out of her.

"I'm sorry, Yugi. I guess I just don't want to see him go, that's all." Téa hung her head. Might as well be honest.

Yugi sighed and shook his head sadly. "Neither do I." He found her eyes of blue and connected with them with his innocent, shimmering violet. "But it's time for him to move on, Téa. And besides, if I win, then that means I am ready to separate from him, too."

Yugi had a point. In fact, he was absolutely right, it all made sense. This was how the story was going to end. Atem was going to bestow upon Yugi the ultimate blessing – the acknowledgement of Yugi as his own person. As an independent duelist, and as a perfectly capable adult. And Atem really did have to move on. It was what his spirit yearned for, for over five millennia. In truth it would be selfish to wish a fate upon him of which would trap him here in this world that his spirit doesn't belong. And not only that, but it would also be selfish to deny Yugi what he deserved, as well – internal freedom and privacy.

Téa knew all of this, and it drove a dagger through her heart.

"You okay?"

Yugi's interruption of her thoughts flustered her, so much in fact that she nearly physically jumped. "Oh yeah, everything's great! I should really let you get back to doing your thing, now."

This was when Téa suddenly almost lost her perfect demeanor and pushed out each of her words with forced merriment. "Alright… so… great! I'll… see you tomorrow, then…"

As she turned and headed towards the door, quickly losing confidence in her control of her emotions, a warm hand appeared at her shoulder. Its long, lean fingers grasped her firmly and kept her from taking another step. It was not Yugi's hand.

"Wait… Téa…"

She knew that voice. In fact, it was impossible for her to forget it. It was the voice that soothed her worries, assured her in her times of doubt, and caressed her senses in a bath of warm honey. And he had no awareness of this effect he had on her, just by gracing her with his undivided attention and that low, velvety voice of his.

"I know you're upset…"

The hand at her shoulder disappeared, and reappeared in her own hand, squeezing it gently. Téa turned around to face him, barely managing to lock eye contact with him, but forcing herself to do so out of respect. He was a king, after all; despite his humble nature, his regal countenance still demanded a certain amount of esteem. The least she could do was look him in the eye.

The spirit gazed back at her, no longer as serious as he once was when the pressure of saving mankind was burdening him, but rather tenderly sympathetic, compassionate, with concern laced therein. His softened eyes searched hers for a hint of a mutual understanding.

"And I know this is hard. Believe me, Téa, I wish there were an alternative option for this… thing… that's about to happen," He seemed to be having his own trouble finding his words, "but you must put your faith in Yugi. We want him to win, even if that means my departure from this world."

The words, even in his godly voice, stung like hornets on fire. It was infinitely more painful to hear them in Atem's voice than in Yugi's, there was no question. Téa dismally noticed that her impending emotional breakdown was drawing near, even nearer so as Atem offered more words to her.

"You'll be fine without me, Téa. You're a tremendously strong individual, admirably so."

Téa began to tremble, at this point completely unable to physically hold back her tumultuous blizzard of torment welling up inside of her. He was just so… wrong. He had it all wrong. The fact that she was about to royally fail at keeping her emotions intact was a sure testament of her lack of strength, which was nothing to be admired! She shook her head wildly in protest to his sentiment.

"No I won't! A-and I'm not! I just… I just…!"

Téa's face was just about to erupt in tears, causing worry to flash across Atem's eyes briefly, when she forced her hand out of his, grabbed both sides of his face, and pulled it into hers until tender-fleshed lips entrapped his own. She felt Atem's instinctual reaction – a rather turbulent flinch and shocked wide eyes – and held him tighter to her.

There was no fighting her, Atem soon realized. Téa was absolutely determined to pour all her love onto him, whether he was ready to receive it or not. She raised her hand to his hard chest, feeling his heart thumping eagerly against her palm, gently pushing him back towards the bed until they were both sitting upon it, the girl's affectionate assault never ceasing.

"Wait."

It was a simple one-worded command, and yet Téa's body involuntarily froze in place. The inherent fierceness in his voice made it impossible to disobey. She could only stand there, finger still outstretched reaching for the button on the wall, shaking, crying freely. She could not hear his approaching footsteps.

His hand grasped hers with the outward finger, pulling it towards his chest and resting it against his heart, as it was when she first kissed him.

"I'm sorry," was all Atem could say. Her continuing racking sobs made his heart ache so ferociously, knowing that he was the cause of it. And the lingering taste of her lips, plus soreness of his own, clouded his mind and his better judgment.

"I do not wish to hurt you. In fact, I'm trying to help you avoid getting hurt… which is why you can't love me this way. Téa, I'm not going to be here long, and you know that. You deserve so much more than this… to be broken this way. You deserve a long and happy life with someone who can love you and be with you in this world… and that is something that I cannot offer you. No matter how much I wish I could."

His free hand brushed her lips with a fleeting caress, completely betraying everything he had just said. It was already well-acknowledged in his mind and his heart that his fondness for the young woman before him breached the fortresses of impracticality, beyond his own expectations, and at this point there was little he could do about it.

A small, quivering voice snuck past Téa's lips, "Please Atem… just kiss me, one more time. Please…"

His heart demanded him to fulfill her request, right then and there, but his mind pulled back his leash, his logical sense barely remaining in command. His brow arched upward and he shook his head slightly. "It will only hurt more –"

"Please…"

The next few moments seemed to slow down, almost to a stop in time. Atem's fingers appeared at her face, wrapping around the brown strands of hair that strayed before her eyes and tucking them behind her ear. He curled them beneath her chin, holding her firmly in place, before hesitantly placing his warm lips against hers.

Now, his initial plan was to disengage contact after only a few seconds, not expecting that his own lips had superseded any control he had over them. He simply could not help relishing in the bath of holiness that was in her kiss – that despite the "wrongness" of this act, it felt so right to him at the same time, and he could not muster the strength to pull away.

He felt Téa's body slacken into his, no doubt that her body felt as weak and languid as his did. He could not help it, though. Their lips fit so perfectly together, like the pieces of a puzzle; never in his wildest dreams did he imagine such blissful delight was only as far away as one of his closest friends. He continued to kiss her, hungrily and desperately, as if the world were crumbling around them.

Yes, this act was forbidden. It was a darkly bittersweet, forbidden fruit, poisoned by prohibition and impossibility. And the poison mysteriously made it all the more deliciously satisfying.

Their lips finally parted, Téa's hot breath ghosting over Atem's lips, making them tingle even more than they were before.

"Yugi needs to prepare for our duel," whispered the pharaoh, painfully bringing them both back to reality and away from the surrealistic world they created in their moments of closure. "And so do I."

Téa nodded. She understood.

"Good luck to you. Both of you."

Atem squeezed both her hands affectionately, the only thing on his mind being his desperate wish to stop time so he could kiss her until their lips chaffed right off their mouths.

"Thank you, Téa. And no matter what happens, nothing can take away what we just shared, and what we shall continue to share if destiny decides that we be apart." He kissed her fingers, cradled in his.

"And please, keep your faith in Yugi. A lot of his strength relies on your support."

He gradually allowed her hands to slide from his, allowing Téa to press the button to the automatic door and see herself out, with a small smile flashed his way as the door closed.

Atem stood there dumbly for a moment, bringing his fingers to his lips, noting the swelling and tiny teeth marks along his bottom lip. He stared at the door, of which Tea had just walked through, tasting her mouth again as his mind flashed him the image of her cheeky smile she wore as she departed.

-END-