Disclaimer: I hate saying these things. Therefore, I'm going to write a poem that expresses my feelings on stupid disclaimers.

-I say it so often,

And time after time,

You still don't get it.

THEY AIN'T MINE!-

Author's Notes: Can it be? Is Macavity writing a fan-fiction? By the way, no, I'm not ending "Duel with Destiny". I just have to see some more episodes first. This story was inspired by an episode of Static Shock I saw a couple weeks ago. Gun control is a real problem in today's society, and I just want everyone to know how serious it is. So, without further ado, Macavity and Dragon Enterprises present…

Yu-Gi-Oh!

"Shattered"

By Macavity

"Speech"

// Yami talking to Yugi //

/ Yugi talking to Yami /

'Thoughts, for the most part.'

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was a day like any other. Domino High was milling with students more than ready for the spring term to be over and summer to begin. One student in particular was Tea Gardiner. Yugi Moto, Joey Wheeler, Tristan Taylor, Ryou Bakura, and she walked down the hall, chatting happily.

"Hey, look, it's Ms. Prima Ballerina!"

"Maybe after she loses thirty pounds!"

"Or gains thirty points of I.Q.!"

It was the jerks again. Randall Weber, Morty Andrews, and Todd Rogers had spent nearly the entire year taunting Tea about her dreams of becoming a star dancer. Now that it was the end of the school year, they were tormenting her even more. Tea bravely stood up to them, but inside, their cruel words battered her confidence.

"Save your advice for yourself," Joey shouted back. "Those of us whose I.Q.s are bigger than their shoe sizes are leaving!"

This shut them up. Tea's face was flaming, however. The five friends left the school building and headed for the arcade.

"You didn't have to do that, you know," Tea told Joey. "I can handle them myself."

"Yeah, but jerks like that get on my nerves, you know? They're just jealous, Tea."

"I'm aware of that! But now everyone's going to think I need you guys to protect me!" she replied angrily.

"Tea, it's not like that!" Yugi exclaimed. "We're your friends, and we'll stick up for you!"

Tea softened the slightest bit. "Thanks, Yugi, but I can take care of myself."

"Hey, look! Death Cops Three!" Tristan cried as they neared the arcade. Immediately he took off running for the game, closely followed by Joey and Ryou. Yugi cast one last look at Tea before chasing after the others as well.

Tea sighed. "If only you understood, guys."

Over the next few days, the teasing got worse. Now, along with the normal banter between she and Randall, Morty, and Todd, mysterious things were happening. Like when she opened her locker and found it full of Slim-Fast. The thick brown drink spilled all over her books and possessions, soaking and ruining them. Tea wanted to cry, but instead just found the nearest teacher and explained what happened. Or when her math paper was returned, covered in red marker scribbles so that nothing was legible. Once again, Tea simply informed the teacher, who understood and gave her two days to make up the work. A few seconds later, the bell for lunch rang.

She met up with Yugi and the others in the hall. They could quickly see, however, that something was wrong. After much coaxing, Tea finally told them the whole story.

Joey and Tristan were infuriated. "Don't worry, Tea," they reassured her. "After school we'll find 'em and make 'em pay."

Yugi and Ryou were more sympathetic. "Ignore them. We're here for you," they said. "Just think of where you'll be in ten years. They'll be flipping burgers at the McDonalds while you're on Broadway, making thousands of dollars."

Tea merely smiled and nodded, but inside she was crying. 'It's not fair,' she thought. 'Everyone hates me.'

The lunchroom fared no better for Tea. Someone tripped her as she exited the lunch line, toppling her forward into her tray. Peas and roast beef spattered all over her white shirt. Immediately, laughter erupted from a table across the room. Morty, Todd, and Randall again. Except this time, the laughter began spreading. It swept over all the tables until everyone was snickering at the fallen girl.

"Very graceful, Ms. Ballerina!" someone jeered.

"Nice ensemble, too! The colors do so much for you!" another called.

A group of the most popular girls burst into giggles. Tears in her eyes threatening to fall, Tea picked herself up and bolted out of the lunchroom, directly into the girl's bathroom.

Yugi, Joey, Tristan, and Ryou wanted to help, of course, but none of them was brave enough to enter the girls' bathroom. Finally, Joey returned to the lunchroom, fetched his sister Serenity, and asked her to go talk to Tea.

She complied, of course; Serenity couldn't refuse her brother anything now, not after he'd saved her eyesight. Though she and Tea weren't very close, Serenity was determined to help the weeping girl.

Meanwhile, in the hall, the four boys stood around watching the doorway intently.

// Aibou? //

Yugi jumped before he realized who it was. / Yami? What do you want? /

// What's the matter with Tea? //

/ People have been mean to her. /

// Why doesn't she stand up to them? //

/ I guess it's not that easy for her, Yami. They're insulting her in the way it hurts most. Criticizing her on her dreams and looks. /

// No offense, but only a girl would get upset over something like that. //

/ Dreams are very important to Tea, Yami. /

// Yeah, but still! Just walk up to the idiots and slap them around a little. //

/ We can't do that! We're in school! /

// So? //

/ You'll get in trouble, which would just make Tea even sadder. /

// Oh. //

That was all Yugi would get out of Yami. Now he just sat against the wall, staring at the door. What's the matter, Tea? Why won't you let us help you?

Inside his soul room, Yami paced, feeling Yugi's sadness. He was quite aware of Yugi's feelings for Tea, and also quite aware of Tea's feelings for himself. He never even considered dating her, however. It would hurt his aibou too much. And that was something Yami would never do. "Pull it together, Tea," he said to himself. "You don't know how much we need you."

Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Serenity was trying to console the crying Tea. "Trust me!" she exclaimed. "I know those idiots. They think they're all that, and really they're lower than pond scum. Everyone knows it. Don't let them get to you."

"They hate me," Tea whispered, her voice breaking.

"Look, in another two weeks school will be over with. You won't have to see them again all summer. By then, everyone will have forgotten," Serenity tried.

"No they won't."

Serenity sighed. "Well, I'll tell you what. I'll go get a pass for us, and you just stay here, okay? Be right back."

She exited the bathroom and faced the foursome standing there. "She's pretty broken up," she told them. "I'm going to go get a pass for us so we can get out of class." She smiled mischievously. "If you want to go in, I'm sure no one would mind."

Joey pretended to shrink back in horror. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Enter the forbidden bathroom? I'm not that brave!"

This got a laugh out of the others. Serenity left and quickly returned with an all-day pass for them. Fortunately, there were only two more hours in the school day, and they were just a study hall and gym, so none of them missed much.

Everyone tried to cheer up Tea. Serenity went to her gym locker and brought a clean shirt for her to wear. Tristan got another tray of food from the lunchroom. Ryou and Joey even found an empty classroom where they could hang out for the remainder of the day. But nothing seemed to brighten up Tea's mood. Yugi tried to cheer her up, but nothing he did helped.

/ Yami? /

// Yes, aibou? //

/ Will you come talk to Tea? She won't cheer up. /

// I'll try, but I don't think it will do any good, aibou. //

The puzzle glowed, and Yami appeared beside Yugi. He silently went to Tea's side. "What's the matter, Tea?" he asked.

Yami's voice was low and soothing. Tea quickly relaxed. "E-Everyone hates me," she whispered.

"No, they don't. Look around you. You're surrounded by friends, Tea. We're trying to help, but you won't let us in. Now tell me what's wrong."

Tea glanced into the deep violet eyes and all thoughts left her mind. "Some kids were cruel, Yami," she explained, her voice below a whisper. "Everyone was laughing at me."

"Don't listen. You're special, Tea. Just remember that."

Inwardly, Yami grimaced. 'Brilliant, Yami. Brilliant. Now she's just going to think you're interested in her. Peachy. How the heck am I going to get out of this one?'

Tea managed a tiny smile. "Thanks."

Yami was unprepared for what happened next. Tea leaned in and gently kissed his cheek. He felt a jolt of pain through his soul link with Yugi. Yami scowled angrily, disappearing once again into the puzzle. At this, Tea's eyes widened at what she deemed as betrayal. After all, hadn't he just hinted at feelings for her?

Yugi bit his lip. "I-I-"

He never had to finish the sentence, because at that very moment the bell rang.

Yugi left the room quietly, promising to visit her locker as well and try to salvage her backpack. Still in the room, Tea retreated into her shell.

'It's not fair! He has to know how I feel about him! And I know he feels the same way! Unless…no! He wouldn't do that to me! But… Finally her own self-pity and anger took over her thoughts. Of course. He never cared about me. This is all one big joke to him, isn't it? Let's laugh at stupid Tea, just like everyone else! They don't care about what happens to me. Well, we'll just see who has the last laugh.'

Yugi returned a few moments later. "Here's your b-backpack, Tea," he mumbled. "C'mon, we'll walk you home."

They made their way down the streets, Joey and Tristan joking around like always. Ryou was staying after school for a chess tournament. Yugi was uncharacteristically silent, while Tea walked sedately, thoughts brewing in her mind.

But perhaps the strangest of all was Yami, who was in his soul room pounding at the walls. "Stupid, stupid, stupid!" he growled, punching the walls harder and harder. "My. Fault. My. Fault. All. My. Fault." Each of his words he punctuated by slamming his fist into the wall. His knuckles began to bleed, but he didn't care. Infuriated and not getting any pleasure out of pounding the walls, he snatched up something, a chair, a vase, anything that was within reach, and heaved it across the room. Whatever it was, it shattered against the wall of the soul room.

Outside, Yugi could easily feel his Yami's anger. In fact, it scared him. He'd never seen Yami like this. Was it his fault? Had he done something to make his Yami mad? Yugi felt like crying. And that was how it was the whole way home.

That night, Yugi lay crying in his room. Immediately, Yami manifested beside him. "Aibou!" he cried, racing to Yugi's side. Yugi only shuddered and cried harder. "Aibou, please! Tell me what's wrong!" Yami pleaded. After everything that had happened that day, Yami was worried to death about Yugi.

"I-I-I'm worried about T-Tea," Yugi choked out.

"Yugi…what you saw today…" Yami tried to find the right words. "Tea…she acted without thinking. I don't love her…no more than a friend, anyway. Please…I never meant to hurt you…"

"I-It's not that, Yami," Yugi whispered. He paused shakily, as if deciding to continue. Finally, he blurted, "Everyone's been so mean!"

"Shhh, I know, aibou. I know, shhh. Calm down," Yami soothed.

"I'm afraid, Yami!"

Yami gently pulled Yugi into his arms and held the crying boy close. "It'll be okay, I promise. I won't let anything happen to you."

He held Yugi for hours until his breathing grew calm. He'd cried himself to sleep. Yami tenderly brushed bangs out of his eyes and tucked him into bed. "'Night, aibou."

The next day at school, Tea was calm and collected. Jeers and taunts seemed to slide off her. Nothing fazed her. Joey, Tristan, Ryou, and Yugi were relieved; perhaps some of their words had finally sunk in.

The morning passed quickly, and soon it was time for recess. The five friends walked outside and headed for the swings. Joey, Tristan, and Ryou raced for the swings, as always. Yugi and Tea trailed behind.

"Um, Tea…" Yugi said slowly. "You look, um, nice, today."

"Thanks, Yugi," she replied smoothly.

"I'm sorry about yesterday, I mean, everything that happened to you," Yugi tried. "I know you're going to make it as a dancer, Tea. You love what you do, and I can see that."

Nothing broke Tea's seemingly icy demeanor, though. No matter what Yugi said, her reply was always, "Uh-huh" "Right" "Thanks" or "No". Nothing fazed her, either. A kickball hit her leg; she kicked it right back. Someone hurled an insult; she walked on by. It was as if nothing could touch her. Yugi was happy for her, but at the same time, a little taken aback. Tea had never acted so cold to him before!

"Hey, dunce! Maybe if you weren't so tubby, you'd actually have good balance!"

It was Randall. He was running towards them, a mean grin on his face. Tea calmly reached into the pocket of her jacket.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Randall ran closer. Tea removed her hand from the pocket. Yugi's eyes widened. "No!" he cried.

For Tea had just pulled a small two-shot derringer out and aimed it at Randall.

"Go ahead. Take a step closer, Randall. I'd love a chance to blow your brains out right here, right now," she hissed.

"No! You can't!" Yugi shrieked.

His screams brought Joey and the others running. But they all stopped short when the saw what Tea held in her outstretched hand.

"Tea! What are you doing?" Joey demanded, his voice shaking.

"Putting an end to this once and for all," she replied coldly.

"Don't do it, Tea!" Ryou cried.

Yugi had never seen this look in Tea's eyes before. She was staring at Randall, coldly efficient and cruel. Suddenly, he noticed the puzzle glowing. Yami appeared beside him. "Stay here, aibou," Yami told him.

"Yami, no! What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to try and stop her, Yugi. There's nothing else I can do."

"No, Yami!" Joey protested. "One of us can go! You just stay here!"

"She'll listen to me, Joey. We both know it. Take care of Yugi for me. If she starts shooting, get him out of here fast."

"But Yami-"

"Promise me, Joey." Yami was getting impatient and nervous. "DARN IT, PROMISE ME!" he yelled.

Joey bit his lip and meekly nodded. Taking a deep, shaky breath, Yami strode forward, directly into Tea's line of fire.

"Put the gun down, Tea," he said calmly.

Tea's eyes hardened. "Get out of the way, Yami."

"If you want to shoot him, you're going to have to shoot me, too. I'm not moving until I get some answers."

"How could you understand? You don't know!" she shrieked, her voice breaking.

"It's not worth it, Tea. Put the gun down."

"Oh, yes, it is. They're going to pay for what they did to me!"

"You're not thinking clearly. Put the gun down and we'll talk about it."

"The time for talking is over!" she yelled, tensing and aiming the gun directly at him. "Now move."

Yami just stared at her, unflinching. A gasp went through the accumulating crowd. Teachers and students alike were gathered, watching them, but no one dared to move; most didn't even dare to breathe. It was plain to see that the slightest thing would cause Tea to shoot.

Yugi was crying softly, held tightly by Joey. His promise to Yami echoed in the blonde's head. 'If she starts shooting, get him out of here fast. If she starts shooting…'

Tea quivered. "Yami, I'm giving you five seconds. Move, or I swear I'll shoot."

"You've heard my answer. I'm not moving."

She turned to the crowd, gun still trained on Yami. "You hear that?" she shrieked. "He's not moving! The consequences are on his shoulders!"

And then she began to count.

"Five."

Teachers stared at one another, trying to figure out who this brave boy was. They were powerless to stop Tea, but on each adult's face shone respect and concern for this boy who single-handedly put his life on the line for the good of another.

"Four."

Serenity watched on in awe. She couldn't believe that the sobbing girl from the day before had turned into this uncaring monster.

"Three."

Ryou and Tristan tensed, fearing for both their friends. Their minds raced, trying to devise a plan to save them.

"Two."

Somewhere in the crowd, Seto Kaiba watched with a look of horror on his face. It brought back memories…memories of Terry…

"One."

Quickly, Joey pulled Yugi into his arms and covered his eyes. The little one couldn't see this.

"Time's up," Tea growled. And then she pulled the trigger.

The shot rang out over the silent playground. A look of shock frozen on his face, Yami slumped to the ground. A small hole edged in blood had appeared in the middle of his stomach.

"YAMI!!!!"

Yugi's shriek echoed as the second bullet was fired, this one aimed at Randall. Fortunately for him, the bullet only pierced his leg, shattering his knee. He screamed in agony, while Tea stood, unmoving in horror and realization. She stared at the gun in her hand as if it was a foreign object. "I…I shot them…" she whispered.

"YAMI!" Yugi broke free of Joey's grasp and raced to his protector's side, while Joey wrestled the gun away from Tea and twisted her arm behind her back.

"Yami, wake up! Please, Yami!" Yugi cried hysterically. "Please!" Sobbing uncontrollably, he clutched his Yami's hand. "Yami, don't leave me! You promised!"

"Someone call an ambulance!" Tristan yelled.

Kaiba pulled out a cell phone and dialed 911. The rest of the crowd remained frozen, staring at the sobbing boy and his fallen look-alike. Then, all at once, whispered conversations broke out.

"That boy gave his life for Randall!"

"He's a hero!"

"I hope he'll be all right!"

"What if he dies?"

"He looks like Yugi!"

"Brothers?"

"Twins?"

"I can't believe it! Tea, of all people!"

"Where'd she get a gun, anyway?"

"She'll get at least five years for this!"

"Where's that ambulance?"

Sirens punctuated the arrival of the ambulance. The paramedics hustled out with a gurney, quickly loading Yami onto it. "The other boy's wound isn't fatal," they explained. "Another ambulance will be here in a few minutes."

"Yugi's going with him," Joey said.

"So am I," said Serenity.

"And me," put in another voice.

Ryou and Tristan whirled. "Seto Kaiba?!"

Kaiba didn't reply, but merely jumped into the back of the ambulance. "There's no time to argue. Move!" he ordered.

They got Yami into the back of the ambulance, putting in Yugi and Serenity as well. The doors slammed shut and they raced towards the hospital.

Kaiba was directly behind the driver. "Faster," he growled.

"Sir, if we go any faster we'll endanger the lives of other motorists. We-"

"I said, faster. And I promise you, if he dies…" Kaiba let the threat hang in the silence of the car. The driver gulped and stepped on the gas a little more.

Meanwhile, Yugi was still holding Yami's hand and weeping bitterly. Serenity tried to comfort Yugi and keep Yami as warm as possible. "It'll be okay, Yugi, it'll be okay," she kept repeating. 'Sure, it'll be okay. But nothing's going to be the same ever again.'

Finally, she turned to Kaiba. "What's your interest in this, Kaiba? Why are you helping us?"

Kaiba stared at his hands. "At my old school, I had a friend named Terry. He…he was a victim of a shooting, too. I…" At this, the brown-haired boy bit his lip. "I couldn't save him. I won't let that happen again."

At that moment, they pulled up to the hospital. Yugi, Serenity, and Kaiba were told to wait in the lobby while Yami was rushed into ER.

"He'll be okay…right? Yami's going to be okay?" Yugi asked, his tear-filled eyes hopeful.

Kaiba shook his head sadly. "I don't know, Yugi. I just don't know."

Yugi fell to his knees. "No!" he cried. "It's not fair! Yami never hurt anyone! Why Yami? WHY?"

Serenity bit her lip. Yugi was going into hysterics. She knelt and tried to pull him into her lap, but he whimpered and resisted, curling up on the floor and shaking with sobs.

"He's going into shock," Kaiba said urgently. He removed his coat and covered Yugi with it, trying to keep the small boy warm. "Go get a pillow and a decent blanket from the nurses' station," he ordered Serenity. She quickly complied.

"Why…Yami…why…no…don't…no…Yami…Yami…" Yugi was weeping, his voice shaking so much the words were almost intelligible. Kaiba held him tightly, cursing under his breath.

"Where is that blanket?" he muttered, trying his best to hold Yugi down. Now the little boy was fighting, his limbs convulsing spastically.

"Back," Serenity said breathlessly, clutching a soft fleece blanket and a small pillow. "Here."

Kaiba grabbed the items and wrapped Yugi tightly, slipping the pillow between his head and the floor.

"Just hang on, Yugi," he said. "Yami will be all right. I promise."

Finally warm, and surrounded by soothing voices, Yugi slipped into a welcomed, relaxed slumber.

"Are you sure that was a good idea?" Serenity asked.

Kaiba whirled. "What?"

"Was that a good idea? Promising him that Yami will be all right?"

"I…" Kaiba bit his lip. "I didn't really think of that…"

A nurse walked into the room. "Seto Kaiba?! Yugi Moto?!"

"Yeah. Anything on Yami?" Kaiba demanded.

"Oh!" The nurse blushed. "I'm sorry, I was just…I mean, you're the two famous duelists, right?"

"That's not important! Tell me about Yami!" Kaiba almost screamed.

"I…um…I guess maybe you could see him…maybe…but he's still in ER…and…"

Kaiba glared in disgust. "Know what? I don't give a crap about regulations. I'm going in to see him, and Serenity and Yugi are coming with me."

"Perhaps I'd better check with my superiors-"

"Did you not just hear me?" Kaiba growled. "I'm going in there. Try to stop me and see what happens, if you dare."

The nurse paled. Then she decided her job would be safest if she made herself scarce very, very quickly.

Kaiba stormed into ER, the sleeping Yugi cradled in his arms. Serenity followed a little behind him and to his left. A surgeon's mouth dropped open behind the mask.

"You can't be in-" he began indignantly.

Kaiba shot him a furious glare and it was then that the man recognized the sixteen-year-old CEO of KaibaCorp.

"I-I-uh-" he stammered.

But Kaiba had already moved on. He went quickly to the edge of the gurney and stared at the bleeding boy, so much resembling the one he held in his own arms.

It was not a pretty picture. Blood had spattered out of the wound, covering almost the entire abdominal region. It was slowly turning black at the edges, a sure sign of infection. Yami's eyes were open, but glazed, staring unfocused at some point on the ceiling.

"Well, don't just stand there!" Kaiba roared. "Help him!"

The poor surgeon was trembling in his shoes. "We can't, sir," he replied timidly. "The wounds are mortal…he's not expected to live the night…"

"NO!" Kaiba yelled. "I SAID, HELP HIM!"

"But-"

Another surgeon walked in. "We're going to move him into a private room. There's nothing more we can do; he might as well be comfortable until-well, you know."

Growling in anger, Kaiba followed the gurney, with Serenity close behind.

They laid Yami on a small bed with thin blankets. His eyes were still open, with that glazed look, and the sight of them haunted Kaiba. "You can't die," he kept muttering. "You can't die, Yami. You can't."

Serenity went into the hall to call her parents and Yugi's grandpa to inform them what happened. Carefully, Kaiba laid Yugi down next to his darker half.

"Wake up, Yami. You have to wake up." Tears leapt to Kaiba's eyes, and speaking suddenly became difficult. "Darn it, Yami! Wake up! You can't do this to us!"

No reply. "Yami!" Kaiba was almost yelling. "Listen to me! Come back! " He pounded his fist into the bedside table. "Your aibou is waiting for you! Don't you see what you're doing to him? Come back!"

His only response was the heart rate monitor, which had dulled to one long beep.

"NO!"

But it was true. The glazed violet eyes stared into nothingness; the chest heaved no more. Yami was dead.

The tears began falling from Kaiba's eyes. "NO! NO! NO!"

Yugi murmured and opened his eyes. "Wha…" but then, instantly, he felt it. The strange, empty feeling inside told him what had happened. He stared shakily at the body of his Yami. "Y-Yami?" he whispered.

Kaiba knelt, hugging Yugi close. "He's…he's gone, Yugi…"

"No! He's not gone! He's not dead!"

Kaiba shook his head. "I'm sorry."

Yugi yanked away from the embrace. "He's not dead!" he replied, almost stubbornly. "Yami promised! He promised he'd never leave me!"

But in his heart, Yugi knew the truth. He was surrounded by promises, shattered promises, worthless and blowing away with the wind.

He clutched Yami's limp arm, hugging it tightly. "Yami, Yami, please, look at me, look at me, Yami, please, just look at me," he cried, wet trails streaming down his face. But it was not to be. Sobbing, he wrapped his arms around Yami's neck and cried himself to sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yikes! Evil cliffhanger! Will Yami be okay? What role does Seto have in all of this? What the heck is going on with Tea? All these and more will be explained in Part Two.

Yami: Psst! Macavity! You have to mention the part about it being a trilogy!

Seto: Yeah! And write in some romance for me!

Me: Oh, thanks, guys. Yeah, it is a trilogy. And yes, there will be some Seto romance in the next chapter, BUT NOT WITH WHO YOU EXPECT! If anyone manages to guess it, I'll give you a hug from my Blue Eyes White Dragon, and a mention on the final update, which will most likely consist of nothing but Author's Notes, answered questions, and honorable mentions. Stay tuned!