An early v-day one-shot. My idea is to make as many for several couples on the days leading up, post them, and create a little treasury collection on the actual day and all. Have fun.
Anzu sighed. It was one of those days.
Staring out her apartment window, she could see the city, spread out before her. Domino. She'd seen New York in all it's hustle-bustle, all it's danger and beauty. She'd danced on it's stages, and a few others besides. All in a few short years.
But those few short years wore her out. She couldn't keep up with it, all the panic and turmoil. She'd had enough of that with all her strange adventures in high school, and these were almost worse, because afterwards was the satisfaction that they'd saved the world once more, that it was still ticking onward. Stage life had only brief joy, then the fact that now you had to get off your butt and practice for the next performance.
So here she was back in Domino, the famous Anzu Mazaki, where she saw parents point out on the street, turn to their seven-year-old daughter, and say "You could be like her." That was her greatest joy from this. Inspiration for others.
But now she had turned to something else.
She still danced, still sang, but now she taught it. And found herself writing and writing, letting paragraphs of feeling and action unfold.
They were unconnected chunks. She had no muse or plot to keep herself focused, but it was good therapy.
No. Actually, there was a muse. Atem. The Other Yugi. But he was dead, and it still hurt to think about him.
Lying back down on her bed, she rolled over and stared at the floor.
Yep. One of those days. When there was nothing to do, and she got nostalgia.
He kept trying to get through. Atem trying to be forefront in her thoughts.
Sitting up, she grabbed her high school yearbook, gazing at the photos on one page.
Lonely eyes, grasping you. The eyes of her and the gang. They'd all moved on though. Honda went who knew where. Jounochi found Mai. Even Yugi moved on. Some girl who had stumbled into the game shop with a sprained ankle and bright hazel eyes.
Anzu had been happy when she found out, but inside it still hurt her. She had harbored a secret hope, a secret crush on Yugi for years. And now that. She hadn't wanted him to, but this made him happy. It had torn at her. But in the end, she decided his happiness was worth more than him being miserable. After about six or seven hours of tears and realizing she didn't quite know her friends anymore.
Apparently, even Kaiba found love. Someone with white hair, blue eyes, and a personality so forceful, it made one feel like bowing.
Anzu needed ramen. And chocolate.
And so, scrabbling together her purse and other such items, she went off to the store.
There was something about the air. It tingled and played on the skin, filling it with a strange scent. She couldn't place it, but it was familiar.
She was already back out of the store when it came to her. Magic. Pure and simple magic. She'd felt it only once.
Her phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Anzu? Can you feel it? In the air?"
"Y-Yes."
"It means something..."
"It doesn't feel dangerous Yugi. Calm, hobbit-friend."
She'd seen Lord of the Rings, wondered how she couldn't have not already, and now had both theatrical and uncut versions.
A breath. "Ok... I'm... Ok..."
"Keep repeating that. I'll think over it, you do the same."
And she hung up.
Half an hour and two bars of chocolate later, Anzu had written a ton, trying to clear space for thinking.
"Maybe...No." She sighed, and popped another square in her mouth.
"It's magic, but why's it here? Somebody's doing something, but what? It doesn't feel dark or evil, but what does that mean? Oy vey."
A New York carry-over. Her college roommate had been Jewish and well, Yiddish.
"So many possibilities..." Then an idea.
She began to type. What could someone be doing? Who? Was it gods?
Gods? Really? But then again, all that weird stuff that had happened to her in high school, the gods must've had a hand then, why not now?
"Annoying little bastards." She muttered.
"Who?" A new voice said.
It was like Yugi's, with it's sincerity, but more baritone, with richer, more musical tones, like royalty or a singer.
"The gods." She mumbled.
"They are. Always messing with something cause they're bored or drunk!" Anzu jumped at the anger in the speaker's voice, but kept typing. Then realized. Things fit together...
She looked up, finding herself nose to nose with Atem. His hair had a wilder look, rough with a few reddish stripes joining the gold, his eyes a ruby-crimson instead of purple, skin a deep golden tan, but it was him. Anzu found herself breathless.
"Miss me?" She knew he was smirking. At her. After all this, the sleepless nights, the worrying, the world helping, the what-ifs, he was sitting in front of her, smirking.
He must've noticed the anger flare in her eyes, because he backed off, fast.
It didn't put him out of reach of her hand, as his cheek caught a hard slap. But he took it like a man. Kinda calm. She wanted him to look indignant.
"I deserved that." He said, gently fingering the red print in his skin.
"Yes, you did." She took a breath, but it seemed to fuel her anger, and suddenly everything she'd only written down spilled forth. "Leaving us like that after everything I did. We did. All those times, and places and people, I'm pretty sure we were closer to you than the people in the place you grew up, yet you chose them! I'm pretty sure you're supposed to stay in the afterlife once you go there! And now you're here, smirking like that!" She was shaking with restraining the urge to hurt him where he sat.
He was quiet. Then: "Remember what I just said a few minutes ago? Well, see, you're... Right. You guys were more my friends than anybody there. Except maybe Mana, but she was always strange. But you see, I just talked to this one god while he was drunk, and convinced him that... Well, it would be entertaining to watch me return."
Why was he so nervous? And did he have to focus on her face like that? It made it so hard to stay angry!
She noticed he seemed intent on keeping the chocolate and ramen as a shield in between them. Maybe he thought if she attacked she might go for them instead. The thought shuffled around, and suddenly she started laughing.
Atem looked shocked. "Are you ok?"
"Y...Yes!" Her body quivered with restrained laughter.
"What's so funny?" Now he was confused.
"Y-You! You have my lunch like a shield! I'm not going..." She was bent over double, laughing her heart out. "Going...T...To...B-Bite!"
She glanced at him. He was smiling a touch sheepishly. Not what she expected, but it made her laugh harder. Then she fell off the bench.
"Woah! You ok?" He helped her up.
"Y... Yeah." She was still snickering and giggling.
Her laptop had landed thankfully on a patch of grass. Atem picked it up, folded it, dusted it off, handing it over.
"Thanks." Their hands met, clasping the silver item. A spark, electricity, and Anzu looked up at him.
She hadn't noticed, but while he was wearing his old leather outfit, the blue jacket had been exchanged for some windbreaker. It was a light blue, with a hood, and didn't really flare around him like the uniform had. It made him seem more normal, human.
He was also taller, looking her in the eye, maybe even a little taller.
Speaking of eyes, maybe he'd felt the spark too. He had yet to let go, seeming intent on holding her gaze.
A flame danced there. A flame for who?
There are certain conventions for a moment like this. So of course, the phone rang. They jumped apart, embarrassed.
"Umm... Hello? Oh. Hi Yugi. Have I come up with...?" Suddenly, she wanted to keep Atem to herself, talk to him a few hours by herself. Discover that flame that made her feel like a giddy teen again. "No... Ok... She is? Oh! Great! Well, see you."
"Yugi?"
"Yes. His wife is pregnant apparently."
He blinked. "He's... Married... And..." He shook his head.
Anzu decided to steer the conversation elsewhere. "Umm... Chocolate?" She held out a square.
He took it, ate, and was quiet.
A scrabble for a conversation starter. "Want to come back to my place? I have some movies..." She noticed disguised shivers. "And heating. And coffee." He perked up.
"Lead the way."
"It's not much, but you know. It's home."
She realized that she really needed to clean this place up. But at least there wasn't clothes everywhere.
He was already huddled by her heater, conveniently placed near the TV.
She shed her coat and closed the door. Starting up coffee in the "kitchen", (part of the wall) she asked a question.
"Ever seen Lord of the Rings?"
"What's that?"
She froze in shock slightly, before shaking herself. Better double the amount of coffee. There was a lot of movie watching to do...
Nearly five or so hours later, they had watched the entirety of the theatrical versions.
"Wow. That... Was... Great..."
"I know."
"It was so much like... What we did..."
Anzu nodded. "There's also the uncut versions. It extends each movie by at least an hour. If you feel up to-"
He was holding the case for Fellowship of the Ring with a reverence.
"Mine. My own. My... Preciousssssss..." It was a bit of a creepy imitation.
"Atem. Put it down."
"Hm? Oh. Yes. Here." He set down in between them.
How did they get so close together?
"Anzu. Are you ok?" The concern in his eyes set the stomach butterflies, long dormant, into flight.
"I-Um-A-Y-I'm-I'm-" He was closer. The flame was back. Burning into her...
His eyes slid closed, and it wasn't until she blinked till it hit. He was...
She closed her own eyes, feeling his lips burn against hers, melting into her, as the world just dropped away. She never thought something could feel this way, and suddenly, the way Jounochi and Yugi were about their wives made sense. Love did things to you.
He pulled away. Peeling her eyes open, she was faced with his, so soft it melted her innards.
"Don't take this wrong, but... I've been watching you. Since I left. Somehow, you captivated me. I would sometimes sit for days, watching your antics."
Anzu felt her skin heat.
"I think... No. I know..." He looked at the floor to her right. "I'm in love with you. I don't know how long I have been, maybe even before I left, but..."
Five years. It had been five years since she'd been eighteen. He'd loved her that long? Longer?
She found herself kissing him for all she was worth, his arms around her waist.
*.*.*.*
Anzu stared out the window. On the sill, a small box waited, that he had no idea she knew about. Had it really been a year? A whole year? Keeping him secret for two days, having their friends ask and question what they were up to, (Movie watching, coffee, tea, talking and the occasional french kiss [seriously! How the hell could he be such a romantic?]) and then dating.
Atem entered, hair still damp from the shower. Did his hair ever flatten? Probably not.
His eyes lit on the box.
"Been meaning to ask you..."
She smiled. "What's the saying my students use? Duh yes!"
She glanced back at the city. Just one of those days.