First of all, this is my first Yu-Gi-Oh! Fanfic, so I hope that it doesn't
stink. Second, I've only seen the American TV version of this, which has
only aired though the very beginning of the Battle City arc. That explains
my use of the American names and such. I'm not sure what got into me to
write this. I got a scene in my head that wouldn't leave me alone, so I
built the rest of the story around it. It's rather angsty and sad, so if
you were looking for a happy fic, this isn't it. Then again, you could
probably tell that by the summary.
This is purely a friendship fic. Also, the only warning I need to give is that I write pretty graphic descriptions, so be prepared.
Enjoy!
Part I: The Death of Innocence
"Hey Joey, wait up!"
Joey heard Tea's voice calling to him and stopped walking as he neared the intersection. He waited for her to catch up to him, before resuming his walk.
"What's up, Tea? Where are you off to?'
She shrugged. "I don't know. I thought I'd go by Yugi's and see how he's doing. He's been so down lately. Ever since that incident with Bandit Keith in the warehouse, he's been preoccupied and aloof. It's almost as if he's trying to pull away from us and deal with whatever this is all by himself. It's really starting to worry me, Joey."
"Yeah, I noticed that too, Tea. It's gotten me a bit worried as well. I asked him about the fact that he seemed so out of it lately and he told me that he had been spending a lot of time talking to the spirit of the puzzle. He said that they were both worried about the guy who was controlling Bandit Keith, because not even the spirit had an idea about who the guy might be, or what kind of magic he was using to control Keith," Joey added, clearly remembering how close they'd come to losing their young friend. "It's all pretty creepy if you ask me."
"Tell me about it. I've had a bad feeling about all of this ever since Yugi landed in the hospital after that. I don't get it. Yugi is the sweetest guy. why would anyone want to hurt him?"
Joey chuckled slightly with a tinge of bitterness. "That's part of it, Tea. He is so sweet and very peaceful. It used to drive me nuts, before I was friends with him."
Tea glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "That's right, you and Tristan used to bully him. Sometimes, with everything we've been through together since then, I forget about that."
"It seems like an eternity has passed since then."
The two friends walked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts until Tea spoke up.
"I want to help him with whatever is going on, but I can't do that if he won't tell me what's wrong. I thought I'd go over there and see if I can force some information out of him."
"That sounds like a great idea. Why don't I go with you? I'd suggest getting Tristan too, but he's busy with his family tonight."
"Good. I think the more the merrier."
They walked quickly along the street, the late afternoon traffic rather light for a weekday. They didn't see many other kids out and about, since most everyone would be at home having dinner by this time. Joey hoped that Yugi's grandfather wouldn't mind having them over at this time of the day.
Joey and Tea turned down the residential street that led to the game shop and quickened their pace, eager to have a talk with Yugi. The sun was already setting, bathing the numerous alleys they passed in shadows. Joey shuddered as they passed a couple of them, memories of his shady past unwillingly resurfacing.
Suddenly, he felt his foot hit something. Instinctively, Joey looked down to see what he'd kicked and saw a flash of gold. It startled him, because it was such a bright gold. Curious, he walked to where he'd seen the golden piece disappear into the grass.
"What is it, Joey?" Tea asked.
"That thing I kicked, did you see it?" he asked, kneeling by the grassy patch. He reached down into the medium length grass and felt around for the piece.
"No, I didn't. What was it?"
"I don't know, but it seemed odd. I want to see what it was," Joey replied absently. "Aha!" he exclaimed a few minutes later. Triumphantly, he stood up and held out the piece for Tea to see. "This is it. I." he trailed off as he finally got a close look at the piece. He brought it close to his face, feeling his breath catch in his throat.
"Joey, what is it? What's wrong?" Tea asked. She walked up to Joey and peered into his hand at the piece.
"This is one of the pieces of Yugi's puzzle," Joey whispered, still staring at the piece in his hand.
"What?"
"Look at it, Tea." He held the piece out to her. "It's one of the corner pieces. Look, it's got a miniature version of that eye in the middle."
Tea leaned closer to him, and he could see her eyes widen in recognition.
"If this is a piece of Yugi's puzzle, what's it doing away from the rest? Better yet, what's it doing on the street?"
Joey turned back to face the direction where they'd come from, tightly clutching the puzzle piece in his hand. He knew that Yugi only took off the puzzle when he slept at night, and after the incident in the warehouse, Joey knew that Yugi would not leave the puzzle anywhere, even if it happened to be in pieces. He knew in the pit of his stomach that the reason behind the appearance of this piece in the street was not a good one.
He walked back to the place where he'd kicked the piece. To his left was a street, eerily empty at that moment. To his right was a darkened alley. He looked down at the floor, and noticed another piece of the puzzle lying just inside the alley. He bent down and picked it up. He looked into the alley but couldn't see anything because of the shadows from the surrounding buildings. He didn't know how he knew, but he was sure that Yugi was in there, and that he was in trouble.
He quickly walked into the alley, looking at the floor. Several more pieces of the puzzle were scattered along the ground like a morbid trail.
"Yugi? Yugi, are you in here? Answer me!"
Fully panicked now, Joey ran further into the alley, not stopping to think that he could be walking into danger. He had only taken a few steps when he saw a glint of gold to his right, against the wall. Immediately, he made his way over and saw the puzzle lying on the ground. Its entire bottom half was missing, leaving only the top half and the chain that Yugi hung around his neck.
"Yugi?"
"Joey, is Yugi in here? What's." Tea trailed off as she saw the puzzle on the ground.
"Tea, pick up the puzzle and all of the pieces. I'm going to find Yugi."
Joey took off without giving Tea a chance to reply. He ran to the back of the alley and found nothing. As he was getting ready to turn around and walk away, he saw a little patch of sunlight at the far end of the alley. In the middle of the patch was one white sneaker. His panic mounting, Joey walked in slow motion towards the patch of light. The closer he got to it, the more of the surroundings he could make out. To the right of the patch was a small bundle. Joey didn't have to take a second guess as to what that bundle would be.
"Yugi," he whispered and immediately ran over to his friend.
Yugi was lying on his side, facing away from Joey. Something dark was pooled under Yugi's head, and Joey gasped as he realized it was blood. He reached out and gently turned his friend over so that he was lying on his back. Yugi's school uniform was dirty, torn and spotted with blood. His face, however, was unmarked, except for the fact that the entire right side of his face was covered in blood.
"Yugi? Buddy, can you hear me?"
There was no response. Fearfully, Joey reached out to feel for a pulse, and was relieved to find a faint one. He heard a gasp from behind him, and finally remembered that Tea had been with him. He turned and saw her standing there, the pieces of the puzzle in her hand, her eyes wide and filled with tears.
"Oh, Yugi. what happened to him?"
"I don't know, Tea, but he doesn't look so good."
"We should call an ambulance."
Joey shook his head and carefully scooped up his friend. "There's no time. We don't know how long he's been lying here. I think we need to take him to the hospital ourselves."
"But Joey."
He didn't wait for her to finish. As soon as Yugi was secure in his arms, Joey got up. He made his way out of the alley as quickly as he could without overtly jarring Yugi. He was almost at a dead run, Tea running behind him, when he exited the alley and promptly ran into the unlucky person who just happened to be crossing in front of the alley at the same time. He heard a curse and a loud thump as the other person hit the ground, but Joey kept on walking. He didn't know how he was going to get Yugi to the hospital on his own, but he knew that waiting around was a mistake.
"Hey, watch where you're going!"
Joey froze at the sound of the voice, and whirled around to face a very angry Seto Kaiba. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him. He walked back towards Kaiba, noting how Kaiba's eyes widened as he noticed Yugi.
"Where is your car?" Joey asked, looking at Kaiba in the face.
"What? My car?"
"Your car, where is it? Look, I know that you don't like me, but you owe Yugi. He saved you and your brother from an eternity as Pegasus' mindless slaves. The very least you can do for him now is take him to the hospital."
**~~**~~**
Well, there you have it. Shall I continue, or should I shoot my muse so he'll leave me alone? Since this is my first effort, I'd really appreciate knowing if there is any interest for me to continue.
Thanks!
This is purely a friendship fic. Also, the only warning I need to give is that I write pretty graphic descriptions, so be prepared.
Enjoy!
Part I: The Death of Innocence
"Hey Joey, wait up!"
Joey heard Tea's voice calling to him and stopped walking as he neared the intersection. He waited for her to catch up to him, before resuming his walk.
"What's up, Tea? Where are you off to?'
She shrugged. "I don't know. I thought I'd go by Yugi's and see how he's doing. He's been so down lately. Ever since that incident with Bandit Keith in the warehouse, he's been preoccupied and aloof. It's almost as if he's trying to pull away from us and deal with whatever this is all by himself. It's really starting to worry me, Joey."
"Yeah, I noticed that too, Tea. It's gotten me a bit worried as well. I asked him about the fact that he seemed so out of it lately and he told me that he had been spending a lot of time talking to the spirit of the puzzle. He said that they were both worried about the guy who was controlling Bandit Keith, because not even the spirit had an idea about who the guy might be, or what kind of magic he was using to control Keith," Joey added, clearly remembering how close they'd come to losing their young friend. "It's all pretty creepy if you ask me."
"Tell me about it. I've had a bad feeling about all of this ever since Yugi landed in the hospital after that. I don't get it. Yugi is the sweetest guy. why would anyone want to hurt him?"
Joey chuckled slightly with a tinge of bitterness. "That's part of it, Tea. He is so sweet and very peaceful. It used to drive me nuts, before I was friends with him."
Tea glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "That's right, you and Tristan used to bully him. Sometimes, with everything we've been through together since then, I forget about that."
"It seems like an eternity has passed since then."
The two friends walked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts until Tea spoke up.
"I want to help him with whatever is going on, but I can't do that if he won't tell me what's wrong. I thought I'd go over there and see if I can force some information out of him."
"That sounds like a great idea. Why don't I go with you? I'd suggest getting Tristan too, but he's busy with his family tonight."
"Good. I think the more the merrier."
They walked quickly along the street, the late afternoon traffic rather light for a weekday. They didn't see many other kids out and about, since most everyone would be at home having dinner by this time. Joey hoped that Yugi's grandfather wouldn't mind having them over at this time of the day.
Joey and Tea turned down the residential street that led to the game shop and quickened their pace, eager to have a talk with Yugi. The sun was already setting, bathing the numerous alleys they passed in shadows. Joey shuddered as they passed a couple of them, memories of his shady past unwillingly resurfacing.
Suddenly, he felt his foot hit something. Instinctively, Joey looked down to see what he'd kicked and saw a flash of gold. It startled him, because it was such a bright gold. Curious, he walked to where he'd seen the golden piece disappear into the grass.
"What is it, Joey?" Tea asked.
"That thing I kicked, did you see it?" he asked, kneeling by the grassy patch. He reached down into the medium length grass and felt around for the piece.
"No, I didn't. What was it?"
"I don't know, but it seemed odd. I want to see what it was," Joey replied absently. "Aha!" he exclaimed a few minutes later. Triumphantly, he stood up and held out the piece for Tea to see. "This is it. I." he trailed off as he finally got a close look at the piece. He brought it close to his face, feeling his breath catch in his throat.
"Joey, what is it? What's wrong?" Tea asked. She walked up to Joey and peered into his hand at the piece.
"This is one of the pieces of Yugi's puzzle," Joey whispered, still staring at the piece in his hand.
"What?"
"Look at it, Tea." He held the piece out to her. "It's one of the corner pieces. Look, it's got a miniature version of that eye in the middle."
Tea leaned closer to him, and he could see her eyes widen in recognition.
"If this is a piece of Yugi's puzzle, what's it doing away from the rest? Better yet, what's it doing on the street?"
Joey turned back to face the direction where they'd come from, tightly clutching the puzzle piece in his hand. He knew that Yugi only took off the puzzle when he slept at night, and after the incident in the warehouse, Joey knew that Yugi would not leave the puzzle anywhere, even if it happened to be in pieces. He knew in the pit of his stomach that the reason behind the appearance of this piece in the street was not a good one.
He walked back to the place where he'd kicked the piece. To his left was a street, eerily empty at that moment. To his right was a darkened alley. He looked down at the floor, and noticed another piece of the puzzle lying just inside the alley. He bent down and picked it up. He looked into the alley but couldn't see anything because of the shadows from the surrounding buildings. He didn't know how he knew, but he was sure that Yugi was in there, and that he was in trouble.
He quickly walked into the alley, looking at the floor. Several more pieces of the puzzle were scattered along the ground like a morbid trail.
"Yugi? Yugi, are you in here? Answer me!"
Fully panicked now, Joey ran further into the alley, not stopping to think that he could be walking into danger. He had only taken a few steps when he saw a glint of gold to his right, against the wall. Immediately, he made his way over and saw the puzzle lying on the ground. Its entire bottom half was missing, leaving only the top half and the chain that Yugi hung around his neck.
"Yugi?"
"Joey, is Yugi in here? What's." Tea trailed off as she saw the puzzle on the ground.
"Tea, pick up the puzzle and all of the pieces. I'm going to find Yugi."
Joey took off without giving Tea a chance to reply. He ran to the back of the alley and found nothing. As he was getting ready to turn around and walk away, he saw a little patch of sunlight at the far end of the alley. In the middle of the patch was one white sneaker. His panic mounting, Joey walked in slow motion towards the patch of light. The closer he got to it, the more of the surroundings he could make out. To the right of the patch was a small bundle. Joey didn't have to take a second guess as to what that bundle would be.
"Yugi," he whispered and immediately ran over to his friend.
Yugi was lying on his side, facing away from Joey. Something dark was pooled under Yugi's head, and Joey gasped as he realized it was blood. He reached out and gently turned his friend over so that he was lying on his back. Yugi's school uniform was dirty, torn and spotted with blood. His face, however, was unmarked, except for the fact that the entire right side of his face was covered in blood.
"Yugi? Buddy, can you hear me?"
There was no response. Fearfully, Joey reached out to feel for a pulse, and was relieved to find a faint one. He heard a gasp from behind him, and finally remembered that Tea had been with him. He turned and saw her standing there, the pieces of the puzzle in her hand, her eyes wide and filled with tears.
"Oh, Yugi. what happened to him?"
"I don't know, Tea, but he doesn't look so good."
"We should call an ambulance."
Joey shook his head and carefully scooped up his friend. "There's no time. We don't know how long he's been lying here. I think we need to take him to the hospital ourselves."
"But Joey."
He didn't wait for her to finish. As soon as Yugi was secure in his arms, Joey got up. He made his way out of the alley as quickly as he could without overtly jarring Yugi. He was almost at a dead run, Tea running behind him, when he exited the alley and promptly ran into the unlucky person who just happened to be crossing in front of the alley at the same time. He heard a curse and a loud thump as the other person hit the ground, but Joey kept on walking. He didn't know how he was going to get Yugi to the hospital on his own, but he knew that waiting around was a mistake.
"Hey, watch where you're going!"
Joey froze at the sound of the voice, and whirled around to face a very angry Seto Kaiba. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him. He walked back towards Kaiba, noting how Kaiba's eyes widened as he noticed Yugi.
"Where is your car?" Joey asked, looking at Kaiba in the face.
"What? My car?"
"Your car, where is it? Look, I know that you don't like me, but you owe Yugi. He saved you and your brother from an eternity as Pegasus' mindless slaves. The very least you can do for him now is take him to the hospital."
**~~**~~**
Well, there you have it. Shall I continue, or should I shoot my muse so he'll leave me alone? Since this is my first effort, I'd really appreciate knowing if there is any interest for me to continue.
Thanks!