AN: I don't own Yu Gi Oh!, lots of other ppl do though

Warnings: some heavy making out in the next chap

R/R, enjoy!


"You know, most people enjoy eternal paradise instead of just sulking all the time." The half-serious, teasing feminine voice came from over Atemu's shoulder, shaking him from his rather melancholy reverie.

"Oh, Mana, I did not see you there," Atemu's tone remained distracted and flat as acknowledged her presence; without another word he turned back to where he had been staring down at, willing the mist to clear and show him the world he wished to see. He sighed as the fog refused to clear, despite his use of what Shadow Magic remained in his soul the space before him stayed stubbornly opaque. An intense longing had burrowed itself deep into his heart and mind. He had anticipated that he would miss his aibou, but he had certainly not expected it to hurt as vehemently as it did. He couldn't stop wondering about him, worrying about him; finding out had become an obsession, and the fruitless attempts to learn anything were driving him mad.

And why, oh why, did it continue to feel as though his heart was endlessly fracturing into tiny pieces so long after it had stopped beating?

The Pharaoh sighed again, his gaze fixed on the empty space.

Mana frowned at Atemu's back, hands on hips. She would have enjoyed his lack of regal behavior had it not resulted in his incessant sighing and slumped shoulders. Though he never would admit his sorrow Mana had watched Atemu's features fade into sadness, he spent half the time as of late looking like he was about ready to burst into tears. And the idea of the normally proud Pharaoh shedding tears was a disturbing one indeed. With a nod and a sigh of her own Mana came to a firm resolution; she knew just how to cheer up the her dear friend.

"Okay," Mana felt Atemu stiffen slightly in surprise as she wrapped him in a tight hug. "This has gone on long enough, come on." The energetic brunette detached herself only to grab Atemu's wrist and pull him behind her, stumbling after her bouncy step-march.

"Where are we going?" Atemu questioned with bemused weariness as he was physically dragged behind the former mage.

"We're going to send you back down to Earth silly," she said it as though it were the most obvious answer.

"I-what?" Atemu's steps came to a halt, forcing the girl leading him to stop as well.

"That's what you want, isn't it?" Though she didn't turn to look at him Atemu could hear the sadness in Mana's voice. "You miss him and you want to go back to him, right?"

Guilt twisted in Atemu's gut; was that what he wanted? He missed his aibou dearly, but did he really want to leave the family and friends who had been waiting so long for him behind just to see him again? Guilt and embarrassed shame made him want to say no, but something else made him hesitate from vocalizing that resolution.

"Mana-"

All traces of sadness were gone as the slight girl whirled around. "Oh, Atemu, you don't even understand, do you?" Mana put her hands on her hips and sighed exasperatedly. "Atemu, you're one of the most clever people I know, but you sure can be slow sometimes." The aforementioned teen couldn't help but notice how uncannily similar Mana's and Anzu's personalities could be at times. "You love him, don't you? Love, love him?"

"I-" for one so confident and noble Atemu certainly was doing his share of floundering today. His brow furrowed. Did he love his aibou? Was that why it hurt so much to be away from him? Why he couldn't stop thinking about him as time dragged on?

"Of course you do! Now, come on." Atemu wasn't sure if he was grateful or irritated that his childhood friend had apparently made up his mind for him.

Mana stopped as she dragged the compliant ruler to a desolate seeming area of the plains of paradise. She looked around and cupped a hand to her mouth as she called into the empty space. "Oh, Ra? Raaaa? Are you there? I brought Pharaoh Atemu, can we send him back now?"

The girl's perceived familiarity with the great god was a little terrifying if unsurprising; it wasn't as though Atemu's being a living-god had ever stopped her during their lifetime from such behavior.

"What? You already asked him?" The 'before asking me' was implicit in his irritated tone.

"I had to make sure he would Atemu,otherwise I was going to have to find some way to send you back with Mahado's help," came the reasoning tone.

"And Mahado agreed to do such a thing?" Atemu's regal brow was raised in regal disbelief.

"Yes," the girl cried indignantly, "...well, he was going to after I told him about it anyway."

Atemu's mouth opened to scold his friend, but his words were halted before they could even begin.

"Is that what you wish Pharaoh Atemu?" The god appeared before them suddenly, looming over their comparatively tiny forms in all his glory. "Once you leave you may not return until the end of your human life. There is the chance you might not make it back at all."

Atemu was lucky for the god's forbearance, because his reply was not instantaneous. Instead Atemu looked into Mana's face, searching for her feelings, her approval; though the girl's face was tight when she did so, she managed to turn her bright smile to the pharaoh and give him an encouraging nod. "Go on," she prompted.

"But Mana," Atemu's voice was once more calm and confident as spoke. "You have all waited so long, I myself have waited so long. And what if I cannot make it back?"

Mana shook her head forcefully at her friend, dismissing his concerns with a flap of the hand. "We waited three thousand years Atemu, a couple of decades will be nothing. If you stay here you'll regret it and I can't watch you be miserable forever Atemu! Besides, you are coming back here; you don't have a choice in the matter, I'll bring you here myself if I have to." Mana finished with crossed arms and a sharp nod, then her face broke into a soft, sincere smile. "You need him Atemu."

"Thank you Mana," he said softly. Atemu then turned to the deity who had waited, oddly patient, for his answer. "Yes, Almighty Ra, that is what I wish for. I wish to go back to Earth."

"Then you shall, as your reward for saving the world from a disastrous fate. Continue to walk down that pathway Pharaoh Atemu, there you will find your entrance to the Earth in its present state. When you awaken you will find yourself in the city you lived in inside the boy you called 'aibou'."

A dim glow came through the heavy mist in front of the pharaoh and his friend, beckoning his presence.

"Go now Pharaoh Atemu, before the gateway closes."

Atemu started toward the muted light, but stopped as he reached the threshold of sight between himself and Mana. As he turned to say goodbye he saw his friend wiping a few tears from her eyes.

"Mana-" he murmured softly.

The girl shook her head, effectively cutting off his sorrowful words. "Go on ahead, we'll be fine. We'll be waiting here for you."

Atemu smiled gratefully at his friend and continued toward the light. It was, however, only a few steps until he felt a noticeable change in the ground underneath him.

There was none.

As the pharaoh felt himself plummeting toward the now blinding light he could hear Mana's departing words above the whoosh of wind in his ears.

"And make sure you bring him back with you! I still have to give my approval!"

Then Atemu heard no more as he was sucked into the vibrant barrier between the living and dead.

I'm coming Yuugi.


Mana merely sighed at the empty space where her friend and the almighty god had once been. "Good luck, Atemu. I hope you find what you're looking for."

"So, did you convince Pharaoh to go, Mana?" The words came not accusingly, but rather wryly indeed.

"I didn't convince him to go." Mana protested to the other as she whipped around. "All I did was tell Atemu that he should go, and that he loved that boy, and that he'd regret it forever if he didn't go."

"Ah, yes, how could I confuse the two," Mahado's reply came out dryly once more.

Though the priest couldn't help but chuckle when Mana's only response was a haughty "Humph!".


Thanks for reading this chap! R/R enjoy!