This was supposed to be the second one-shot I've written, but I'll switch it up for today. This time, I'm switching the pairing to one that I haven't done in years...well maybe not have written it at all.

Absolution

Summary: She was broken the moment her brother broken off their relationship years ago due to an incident that completely ended in disaster. Her innocent demeanor was replaced with a barricade of stone, and broken in one night when a familiar face comes to her rescue.

"Alright, Serenity. Give me your payments for the week and clean up. Being my best girl, the men can't get enough of you."

"You know the rules: other than my hands, they're not allowed to touch me in anyway possible." Serenity said, coldly.

"Whatever."

Six.

The numbers of years since she last spoken to her brother, or anyone for that matter.

The very length that her bond with him was broken, never having a chance of repair.

What could she do? Disappearing off the face of their lives, being employed in one of Domino's top underground strip clubs and changing her entire outlook on life as it is. She could never look into their eyes, not after what she did to one of them. Like everyone in the world, she had a breaking point, but one that was never to be set off at all. Living in the shadows of the city, she barely have any time to herself since the club was opened all day and all night, partying with customers that she had to familiarized herself with.

Serenity couldn't call anyone, since it was forbidden to have any kind of contact with anyone from your personal life, but who would have contact with her? No one knew where she was, and she wanted it to stay that way.

~Flashback to six years ago...~

She couldn't believe the blood on her hands and the body that laid there, twitching in pain and trying to understand what he said to her that sparked this beast inside of her. Tears were falling without warning from his eyes; his left hand reaching out to her...

"Why*cough*...Serenity? I thought *cough*you*cough* loved me! What did I say to *cough* upset you?"

When her brother and friends arrived, they couldn't believe the sight that they were seeing. He was devastated; how could his baby sister do such a thing to one of his best friends like that? While one of them was calling an ambulance, the other three were backing away from her, as she stood up to try to explain the events that took place.

"'Ren, what the hell? Why did you do this to Tristan? You know that he'll never hurt you!"

"Joey, please...let me explain..."

"Explain what? The fact that he's gonna be paralyzed for how long God knows, and his blood covering your body with the weapon in your hands...how do you think people are gonna take it?"

"Listen to me, big brother..."

"Go away."

"What?"

"I said; go away! I can't trust my baby sister with any of my friends if this is gonna be the results that I have to look forward to!"

"You don't understand! He..."

"Don't understand what? That deep inside, my little sister is actually a homicidal maniac? Tell me!"

"I...I..."

"Joey, don't push it! Maybe this was entirely an accident!"

By the time that the ambulance arrived, all five of them turned around to find that Serenity had disappeared from their sights and possibly their lives. In the rain outside, she ran as much as she could, tears blending in the raindrops; innocence destroyed and replaced with a barrier made of stone. The trail of blood that washed off her clothes also vanished into the clear waters as her essence was cleansed through the droplets clashing onto the sidewalk. Dropping the object she used in her blind rage, she retreated into the dark alleys of Domino, never to be found again.

~End Flashback~

She didn't know anything that happened since that fateful day, not that she cared anyway. Her own brother shut off connections with her years ago, and all of her friends didn't know anything about her location. When someone did find her, they changed her appearance completely to avoid any type of discovery by anyone and made her work herself to the bone at the strip club, barely having enough hours to sleep and eat away. In fact, her whole figure diminished quite a bit had it not been for the girls that actually sneak out to buy anyone food should their shifts ended early.

As her routine continued, she spotted someone at the far end of the crowd and her heart froze in its' tracks as her body stopped and held the pole for dear life. There was no way someone from the former life that she used to have was lurking around these parts late at night. It just wasn't possible! She kept denying it in her head so much that the crowd started getting rowdy about their favorite wasn't living up to her expectations. She felt a strong grip on her shoulder as she saw her boss glaring down at her, not liking the fact that he was losing money real fast.

"Hey, what's the big idea? You know that you don't stop until I say so."

"Well, excuse me, asshole." Serenity hissed. "But, I've been working for two days straight now! You think my body can handle another night of pleasing your customers?"

"...Fine, bitch. But, apparently you're requested for a V.I.P treatment for the whole night. Get back to your room, and you'll find your client for the night. Don't make him furious at me...or you'll regret it."

"Whatever." Serenity spat. "Now get off my shoulder!"

"Hmph. Sorry, gentlemen. But my beloved star has been requested for a private night with a high paying customer. You'll see her tomorrow night."

There were shouting complaints coming across from all over the room, as Serenity left to meet with her V.I.P client for the night. She didn't know who it was, but the person she thought was one of her friends disappeared from the crowd. She was relieved, though. The last thing that she wanted was a ghost of her unwanted past came back to find her and bring her back into the place that ended normal life for her. If only they listened to her in the first place...no, she thought. They've been friends for so long; she doesn't know much about them and yet Joey knew her longer than any of them!

'What's the point?' Serenity thought, bitterly. 'It's like they didn't care about my input on the situation. Whoever paid for the V.I.P better be ready for a wild night.'

Little did she know that fate has a funny way of showing itself...

"Sir, you know that's there no cell phone use in this building." a woman addressed the man.

"I'm a customer; I can't call my friend telling him to get something for tomorrow?" the man questioned her. "Besides, I thought that the customer always have free reign to whatever he does, as long as he's paying."

"I-I'm sorry! Your escort will arrive here in a few minutes." the woman stuttered.

As she left, the young man dialed a number on his cell phone, hoping to connect to the person on the other end.

"Yeah, it's me...Don't become so hasty; you know that barging right in will compromised the entire situation at hand...Look, I'll send a message with the codeword when I obtained the target...Alright, Yami Mutou out."

Yes, the former pharaoh of Egypt, now entering into the living world as Yugi's long-lost brother, was standing in the room where he was about to meet Serenity and hopefully convince her to get out the world she entered after her disappearance six years ago. He was overseas studying when he heard about Tristan's unfortunate accident, heading back to check up his friend, only realizing that another disappeared into the shadows of the streets. Yami had been recruited by the federal government and spent the next four years in training, and reentering the field by taking down these secretive clubs that have been rumored to sell illegal weaponry. When he saw Serenity on the stage, he couldn't believe that she was living in these clubs, not knowing what's behind these walls.

Serenity was already cleaned up for her client, but when she opened the door...she was in shock. The very person she saw in the crowd was one of her former friends!

"Yu-Yugi?" Serenity stuttered.

"Serenity, if I was him, wouldn't I looked more innocent?" Yami assumed.

Her eyes widen; if this wasn't Yugi, then...of course, it was all so clear to her now. Yami never knew anything about what happened six years ago since he was studying abroad.

"What are you doing here?" Serenity asked, bitterly.

"To save you from yourself." Yami stated.

"Save me?" Serenity chuckled. "That's the understatement of the century."

"I mean it; you don't know what you're getting yourself into." Yami said. "Besides, do you really think that this place is your safe haven from all your problems?"

"It certainly saved me from damnation from assholes like my brother and friends!" Serenity spat. "My words meant nothing to them; they didn't know the full truth about what happened six years ago!"

"I'm giving you one last chance, Serenity..." Yami warned her. "Let me save you or else I'll have to resort to unnecessary force."

"Screw you!" Serenity said. "I'm outta here!"

But a strong grip on her wrist kept from leaving, turning around to see that Yami was holding her and confining her from leaving. Infuriated, she attempted to punch him, but his training made him much more agile and punched her in the abdomen, knocking the wind out of her and made her collapsed onto the floor.

"I'm sorry, but I did give you fair warning." Yami muttered. He picked up his phone and redialed the number he had on a few minutes ago. "Yeah, it's me...Yes, I obtained the target; enter Operation: Dogma."

Hustling cars during the night downtown rang upon the streets, as Serenity found herself on a futon somewhere in someone's apartment. The last thing she remembered was attempting to punch Yami for not letting her go...then it hit her. She wasn't in the safety of the club anymore, the girls that she bonded with were gone from her life. She jumped from the bed, rushing to the door and opening it to find Yami standing in front of her.

She never wanted him to find her at all; nothing in her past was worth returning to. Serenity just wanted to disappear forever, starting to think of fleeing to America and hiding there for the rest of her life.

"Whatever you're thinking, it's not gonna happen." Yami stated.

"Why did you save me?" Serenity asked, angrily. "I never wanted to be found at all! Do you think that me coming back to where all my dreams were shattered and the future I wanted was destroyed in one night? Bullshit! I want to get out of this city and out of everyone's lives!"

She started to leave once more, but the same that stopped her before held her wrist in a tight grip. This was starting to feel like déjà vu to Serenity all over again. She felt Yami turned her body and pinned it to the wall, with him looking straight into her eyes.

"You don't mean that." Yami said. "You do have regret in your heart; I can see it in your eyes."

"Hmph; you can't tell me through my eyes, Yami." Serenity growled. "The moment my brother indirectly disowned me, I died in the life that I once had. So, why can't you see that no one back there wants me to return to them? Huh?"

"They do want you back; all of them, including me." Yami said.

"Lies!" Serenity snapped. "Those bastards didn't want me back when they saw what I did to Tristan! Nobody knew the full truth of what happened, and I'm not gonna tell you shit or anyone else for that matter! I can just disappeared for all I care!"

She jerked her wrist off Yami, but he grabbed her again and led her back into the room she just came out of, tossing her onto the bed and holding her arms with only one hand, making her uneasy with the position she was in. Yami couldn't let her leave until he convinced her to return to the life that she left all those years ago. Serenity stared into his eyes; they were burning with determination and quite serious about her. She tried to break free of his grip, but the firmness of his hand and the fact that his body held her legs to keep her from attempting to kick him made her feel vulnerable for the first time in six years. Serenity always defended herself since that day, fighting for survival and picking up anything she can learn off the streets. Using the other hand to lift her head to meet her eyes, Yami started to speak once more.

"Do you truly desire that motion?" Yami questioned her. "Do you actually believe that everyone deserted you soon after your altercation with Tristan, without even knowing what happened after that? Don't assume anything without confirming your facts first. I didn't know anything at first, but when Tristan told me about what he said to you...he didn't know that a certain word triggered a reaction that was never to be unleashed."

"You...you know about what he said to me? About me being called a blind puppet?" Serenity asked.

"Yes; Once I told your brother about your therapy sessions and about your mental condition, he broke down into a huge meltdown. Joey kept cursing himself about doubting his own sister and not knowing about what you went through when the two of you went separate." Yami answered. "He forced Tristan to tell him everything of what truly happened that day; the rest scattered around the entire city trying to look for you. They wanted to tell you that they're sorry about not hearing your part of the story all those years ago."

"Then...why did you join the government?" Serenity asked once more.

"I never joined, rather I was recruited out of recommendation." Yami stated. "I realized if I did, I would have access to every corner of the country to locate you and bring you home. When I saw you on that stage, I never knew you turned to that road for comfort."

"I wanted to heal the scars of the past that was carved onto my soul." Serenity said. "Everything that I had was thrown away on that very night; no one ever listened to me for my side of the situations. When I was first diagnosed with the disorder, I tried to avoid confrontation with other people...but, it was unavoidable when they start belittling me behind my back. I told them to stop, yet they pushed themselves to the point of no return when my blindness took a turn for the worse.

"They laughed at me, bullied me to doing things that I never wanted, and something snapped within me so much that the violence I placed upon their bodies was devastating to me and them. To think that I could perform such an action that was so horrendous the parents of those kids started calling me a menace; it damaged me so much that I refused to have any contact with people at all in hopes of containing the beast within me. I never told Joey about what I did when I was living with my mother; seeing what I can do when pushed to my limits made him doubt me and my soul couldn't take anymore suffering."

"That's why you ran; you never wanted to hurt your brother if he found out the truth about the disorder." Yami said.

Serenity nodded. She felt absolutely relieved that Joey didn't doubt her anymore, her tears falling out as she felt Yami's grip on her hands loosened and caressing her face with a tender touch. How did fate respond to a distress call years after she lost trust to everyone around her? She wanted him to hold her his arms; to make her feel safe and loved. But now, what was she going to do about the life she left behind? Serenity was involved in something much more dangerous and the fact that she dropped out of school the moment the incident happened.

Yami held her chin once more to meet her at eye level, seeing the uncertainty in her eyes.

"I can't go back; I'm involved in something that I never knew about." Serenity whispered.

"I know." Yami stated. "You can't be fully charged since you have no knowledge about the smuggling behind the walls of that strip club; I'll clear your record so no one will know about it other than you and me."

"How...how can I repay you for this second chance in life?" Serenity asked.

"Let me kiss you to heal those scars; at least let me know that you're willing to trust us again." Yami said.

"Not a full one, though." Serenity suggested. "I want to save that for the one I love."

"Fair enough." Yami smirked.

He planted several kisses on her forehead and a quick peck on the lips before allowing her to sleep in his arms. Serenity was quite happy with the sudden comfort and protection that she wanted for so long, as well as the truth coming into the light to help her break free from the grip of the hustling streets. As the night strolled around, Yami was on the phone with Joey and the others. He needed to let them know that Serenity was found and was coming back home with him as soon as things cleared up within the system.

"Yeah, I found her working in a strip club that was being targeted for illegal weaponry sales."

"..."

"Joey, shut the hell up. You know that the streets were bound to catch up to her."

"..."

"Yes, Yugi. She's resting quite well, in my sights. She's been through a lot and I had to clear up everything about what happened then and now."

"..."

"No, I'm not having sex with her, dumbass! Quit with the interrogations! Don't make me send you to the Shadow Realm for annoyance, Joey!"

"..."

"Tèa, she's not ready to fully trust us right now. When the time comes, Serenity will be the same person that she was, but much more wiser than before."

"..."

"That disorder can't be completely cured, Duke. She'll have to live with it."

"..."

"Yeah, I'll see you guys in a few days. Later."

"Was that my brother and them?" Serenity asked groggily.

"I guess you heard the whole conversation, huh?" Yami chuckled.

"I can't forget that threatening voice, ever." Serenity whispered. "But, do you know what I found this very night?"

Yami looked at her with bewilderment. "And what is that, my dear?" he asked.

"You...you are my absolution, Yami." Serenity said.

And that's it! Okay, not as much romance in this one, but as my first Yami/Serenity fic, overall it was alright...I think.

R&R, people!