Hi all! Welcome to chapter two of my new story, Shadow's Smile. Not my usual author's notes, but oh well. /smiles/ I'm sure Yami and Yugi will forgive me. /chuckles/ Anyway, some things to say... Thanks to Cheyenne for once again being my super special awesome beta. She does so much for me, and I luff her very much for it. She's so super awesome, and a very good friend. /huggles Cheyenne/ Thank you, very very much. /smiles/

My second thing to address. Warnings. I posted warnings in chapter one, but I thought I'd do it again. Yay. Your warnings are for blood, violence, language, mentions of rape, mentions of alcohol and drug use, character deaths, and yeah, any other thing not suitable for little eyes, except for sex scenes. There will be no lemons in this story. Actually, there won't be anything past kissing and possibly groping in this story. It's a sad story, one that will make you cry (Luff you Cheyenne! /hands her another tissue box and giggles nervously/), so break out your tissue boxes. If you've seen the movie, you know what happens. Don't hate on me for anything that happens during the story; know that what happens is for a reason, mostly to keep the plot going, so please, don't hate on me for killing off your fav character, in the event that might occur. If you don't like any of the things stated above, please don't read this fic. You have been warned. Any mental trama that may follow if you ignore my warnings will be your fault and not mine. This is a tragedy/drama/angst fic people. Expect blood and deaths. Rest assured though, I will try to give you a somewhat happy ending. And if you've seen the movie, then you know what I'm talking about.

Alrighty then, I suppose that's enough of that. I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, nor the movie The Crow, starring Brandon Lee. I also don't own the original idea for the mental speech of the bird; the idea for that came from a Crow book. So I don't own that either. So no suing!!!


A building gets torched; all that is left is ashes. I used to think that was true about everything. Families, friends, feelings... But now I know, that sometimes, if love proves real, two people who are meant to be together... Nothing can keep them apart.


One year later


A crow cawed, the sound echoing through the graveyard. Rebecca walked solemnly down a worn path, a bundle of red and white roses in her hands. She looked back when she heard the s-ound, her green eyes surveying the area around her. Shaking her head, Rebecca turned back and continued on her way. She stepped off the path a moment later, continuing on past other graves. She saw what she was after then, the two tall tombstones poking out of the wet ground. It was raining this night, the precipitation trickling off the little yellow raincoat Rebecca was wearing.

"Hey, Atemu. Hey, Yugi." Rebecca said softly, kneeling on the ground. The moist water that had soaked into the darkened soil began to soak through the jeans she was wearing, but Rebecca didn't care. She laid the white roses in front of Yugi's grave, and she put the red ones in front of Atemu's. Her eyes began to water as she thought back to the lonely year she spent alone. With her mother never around and her only two friends taking up residence in the Domino Cemetery, Rebecca had spent the first few months walking around aimlessly day after day. Her mother never cared whether she was there or not, her time taken up with her new boyfriend, Valon Something-or-Other.

Rebecca was found on her wanderings one day by Joey Wheeler, one of the cops who had been there on the scene and had spent the later of the night trying to comfort her before he headed to the hospital to check on Yugi. He was also the one who broke the tragic news of Yugi's death to her. The two sort of became friends after Joey had found her wandering with nowhere to really go, and Joey took care of her, buying her food when she was hungry and had no money, and giving her a place to stay when her mother forgot about her and locked her out of the house.

Rebecca had also changed a lot, starting from the time she became friends with Joey. She had gotten glasses after Joey figured out she could barely see without them. She had told him she couldn't afford a pair, but he had gifted her with some for her birthday and she had never been happier. It was also the first time anyone other than Yugi or Atemu had cared about her birthday. She also stopped carrying around her teddy bear and started dressing a little older. She had a few new pairs of jeans and couple of cute tops thanks to Joey, but she didn't let him give her everything all the time. She did odd jobs around town, sometimes; to try and earn money so she could buy her own clothes. Just thinking of the honey-eyed cop made Rebecca smile.

"You guys would like Joey. He's sweet. He takes care of me." Rebecca removed her glasses and wiped at her eyes, getting rid of both her tears and the rain water that had leaked into her eyes. She put her glasses back on then, reaching out a hand to gently touch Yugi's tombstone.

"I miss you guys so much. I wish you were still here." Rebecca said softly. "I was looking forward to your wedding. Too bad I never got to wear that dress you picked out for me, Yugi. It made me so mad that you had picked pink, but I dealt with it because it was for you." Rebecca choked up, her tears falling harder down her cheeks as she rubbed her hand lovingly over Yugi's stone.

"I remember Atemu laughed at me when I modeled the dress for you; it was because I wouldn't stop frowning or complaining. But you just laughed too and told me how cute I looked. God, I loved you guys so much. You were my family." Rebecca intoned, her voice holding a desolate sadness over the passing of the two men that had played such a big part in her life. She rose to her feet then and wiped her jeans off, but it did little good. The mud had already stained the blue material.

"I have to go, now. I'll come back and visit again real soon." Rebecca said softly, reached down and lightly touching Atemu's tombstone. She jumped when a crow landed on top of the headstone, startling her with its presence as well as with the loud cawing noise it let out. Rebecca raised a blonde eyebrow at it. "What are you, the night watchman? I'm going already, geez." Rebecca turned and started to walk away, but then she turned back. The bird was still there, watching her.

"Bye," Rebecca whispered, talking to the bird. The bird cawed again and flapped its wings, taking off. Rebecca watched it go before she began down the path.


"Yee-haw!!!" A brown-haired man with goggles on his head jumped off of the counter to the floor, his boots making a thudding noise when he hit. Another man, a blond-haired man with huge muscles, lit a cigarette and took a puff, looking back at his other two comrades. He made an annoyed noise and flicked some ashes onto the ground. Another man with light maroon-colored hair was busy trying to attach a small device to one of the arcade machines in the room. There was yet another person in the room with them, a younger boy sitting on the counter, glasses high on his nose and a head full of green hair cut into a bowl shape.

"Quit goofing off, Valon. If you want to see Mai tonight, you'll get this shit done." The blond-haired man said. The man in the goggles turned, frowning at him.

"Man, Raphael; you sure know how to ruin a man's good time!" Valon groaned.

"Shut up, Valon! Help me with this, would you?" The maroon-haired male called. Valon turned and headed for the arcade machine, kicking at the ground. The boy sitting on the counter snickered, causing Valon to shoot him a nasty glare.

"Better do what the Boss says, Valon." He said in an annoyingly high-pitched voice. Valon grimaced. That voice hurt his ears. Why exactly was it that they had to put up with the little twerp? Weevil was useless to them.

"I'm coming, Alister." Valon grumbled. Raphael smirked and took another puff of his cigarette. Tonight was going smoothly so far, something Raphael was very proud of. Dartz would be very pleased with them. All the fires reported tonight were fires that Raphael and his group had started. So far they had started a total of fifteen infernos, all in different locations around the city. Raphael looked to where Alister and Valon were now strapping more devices to some more of the machines. Weevil was being his usual useless self, his tiny legs swinging back and forth as he used a knife to carve something into the counter top.

"Why doesn't Weevil ever help set these things up?" He heard Alister mumble. Raphael rolled his eyes.

"Hurry up, boys. Ten minutes till explosion." Raphael said.

"Man, I love blowing things to smithereens!" Valon whooped, smacking Alister on the back. Alister grunted and shot Valon a glare.

"Can you not do that!?" Alister snapped.

"Don't be a pansy." Raphael said, flicking his cigarette onto the ground.

"Asshole," Alister grumbled as he marched past Raphael to get outside. Raphael managed to punch him on the arm as he passed just for good measure. Alister yelped and glared at him, rubbing his sore arm. Valon let out a hoot and jumped on Alister, tumbling both of them out the door. Weevil then hopped off the counter and followed them outside, closing his switchblade and pocketing it. Raphael rolled his eyes and followed them, heading for the black car parked just out front. He got in the driver's seat and looked out the window, seeing Alister and Valon still rolling around on the ground. Weevil was climbing into the back seat while the other two continued to fight. Raphael honked the horn impatiently, making both men jump and scramble to their feet. Valon hopped in through the open window as Alister got in the back seat next to Weevil. Raphael tore down the street, ignoring Alister's yelp as he flopped over onto Weevil.

"Hey! Get off, Alister!" Weevil sneered, pushing at the maroon haired man. Alister shot him a glare and punched him, making the green haired boy yelp loudly. Valon laughed and began to cheer.

"Go faster mate! Show me what this darling can do!" Valon shouted. Raphael grinned and gunned it, the tires screeching and leaving skid marks on the road. Raphael passed by a small shop still covered with yellow police tape and visions of what happened there flashed through his mind. A smile made its way onto his face as he imagined the frightened face of the tri-color haired boy he and the others had been instructed to take out by their boss. It was such a shame the poor kid had to fight back when the boss wanted to take control of his shop and evict him and his lover. Fighting back is what got him and his boyfriend killed. The boy vanished from his mind an instant later. The dead were the dead and there was no point dwelling on it, even if the kill had been fun.

From somewhere behind them, Raphael heard a loud boom, and it brought a smirk to his lips.


Rebecca turned and began walking down another road, one that she knew would take her to a warm dry place where a hot meal waited for her. She found the apartment building with no problem, climbing the stairs to get to the next level. Her rain coat was sopping wet and she was so cold, but she knew she would be warm soon. She found the door to the apartment she wanted and rapped loudly on the door. She waited, shivering, for Joey to answer his door. She heard some noise coming from inside and then the door opened.

"Hey, Squirt. Come on in. It's soup tonight." Joey greeted her. Rebecca smiled.

"Soup, huh?" She replied, stepping inside and taking off her rain coat. "Perfect meal for such a cold rainy night."

"Yeah, I figured you'd appreciate it. Thought you'd be walking around in this weather. What were you up to?" Joey asked as he took her rain coat and hung it up on the hall tree by the door. Rebecca wrapped her arms around her body and shivered some more, following Joey into the kitchen.

"I went and visited Yugi and Atemu." Rebecca replied. "I put some fresh flowers on their graves. I thought they'd like that. They always liked roses." Joey's honey eyes flickered to her, a brief flash of sadness going through his eyes as he dipped some soup into a bowl for her. Rebecca sat at the table and Joey placed the bowl of hot soup in front of her, handing her a spoon a moment later.

"I'm sure they liked that. I bet they look forward to your visits." Joey told her. Rebecca smiled sadly.

"I'd hope so. I'd like to think that they hear me, wherever they are, even if they can't reply." Rebecca said. Joey sat down in front of her and began to eat again.

"You could think of them as your guardian angels. Always watching you. Making sure you keep out of trouble." Joey said, winking at her. Rebecca smiled and let out a laugh. Joey grinned. It made him so happy to be able to make her laugh. It was a nice sound, one he didn't have the pleasure of hearing on a daily basis.

"I'll bet." Rebecca agreed. They ate in silence after that, not that it was an uncomfortable silence. It was just their way. Near the end of the meal, Joey looked at her.

"Got a place to stay tonight, Squirt?" Joey asked. Rebecca stiffened.

"Do you mind if I stay here tonight? Mai's probably going to be with Valon again and I don't want to be alone once more..." Rebecca sighed. Joey nodded.

"Of course it's okay. You know you always have a place here. Hey, how about I take you out to get some warm pie?" Joey said. Rebecca smiled, her eyes shining brightly at Joey's words. She nodded eagerly.

"Pie sounds awesome, Joey. Thanks." Rebecca said. Joey waved it off with a chuckle.

"Anytime, kiddo. Grab your rain coat and let's go." Rebecca was off in a flash after that, hurrying into the living room. Joey got up and followed her, but as he reached for his coat, his police scanner went off. Joey cursed, listening to the transmission. Shit. There was a fire happening and they needed some backup units. Joey turned to Rebecca and flinched when he saw the sadness reflected in her green eyes.

"Go on, Joey. I'll wait here." Rebecca said.

"We'll get the pie after I come back, I promise. I won't let this interfere with our plans." Joey said. Rebecca smiled, but her smile lacked something.

"It's okay. Go. They need you out there." Rebecca assured him. Joey nodded to her and grabbed his coat, hurrying out the door.


In the cemetery, a crow cawed.

There was the brief sound of flapping wings before the little black bird landed gracefully on top of the tombstone that read Atemu Sennen. It's dark eyes flickered down to the ground, it's wings fluttering as it registered movement in the ground. The dirt began to push up and the bird flapped it's wings, almost as if the bird was excited. A bronzed hand popped out of the ground a moment later, pushing the dirt aside and creating more room. Another hand soon joined the first and soon there was a man crawling out of the hole in the ground, dragging himself a little ways across the ground until he was fully out of the hole. The crow cawed again as the man collapsed onto his back, breathing heavily as the rain poured down on him.

The man on the ground looked around, his crimson eyes wild and confused. He let out a pained cry, rolling onto his side and closing his eyes, trying to curl up into a ball and disappear. Where was he? How did he get here? What had happened to him? So many questions raced through his mind and he had no answers at all for any of them. The crow landed beside him and cawed, causing crimson eyes to snap open and look at the tiny bird.

"Wha...?" The word came out as a hoarse whisper. "What... are you...?" The crow cawed again and flapped its wings.

Get up, Atemu... Get up... You have things you need to do.It was almost as if the bird was speaking to him, although that notion was absurd. Birds couldn't talk. Atemu... Was his name Atemu? He didn't remember.

Come on... Get up... There are those out there who need punishment for what they've done.Atemu closed his eyes, clasping his hands over his ears. He didn't want to believe a bird was talking to him. He just wanted to lay there. It was too painful to move, to think. And who needed punishment anyways? He didn't remember anything, not even who he was.

It will come back to you. Just look over there.The crow cawed again and took flight, landing a few feet away on another tombstone. Atemu slowly got to his feet, turning to look at where the bird had landed. Atemu's eyes widened when saw the name inscribed on the stone. Yugi Motou... No... That name rang bells, familiar bells. A flash of amethyst colored eyes swam before his vision and Atemu shook his head rapidly, clearing his head. Atemu looked beside the stone, at the one with the giant hole in front of it, the one he had come out of. Atemu Sennen... No. No, no, no... No!!! Atemu let out a scream, clasping his hands over his ears again as he violently hit his knees. It was too much! He couldn't be dead! He couldn't! It was suddenly clear to him who he was, as much as he wanted to deny it. The crow cawed, bringing Atemu's attention back to it.

"Why!? Why did you bring me back!?" Atemu cried to it.

It was the only way. The only way to get justice. The bird gave an almost annoyed flap of jet black wings.

"Justice?" Atemu echoed.

There are things you need to do, people who need to be punished for what they've done. Come on, Atemu. I'll help you. That strange voice sounded again in his head and Atemu whimpered.

"You'll really help me?" Atemu murmured. "How? You're just a bird."

I can find them. Get up, Atemu. It's time to go. Atemu rose to his feet, his eyes trained on the bird. The bird let out another caw and took flight. Atemu cast one more despondent look to the headstones before turning and following the bird as it flew out of the cemetery.


Natoya: And that marks the end of chapter two!

Yami: /glares/ How dare you leave us out of the author notes!

Yugi: /sniffles/ And not only that, but she killed me too!

Yami: Aibou, she killed me off last chapter.

Yugi: Yeah, but at least she brought you back!

Yami: /sweatdrop/

Natoya: I'm sorry! /huggles both/ See, I put you in the end notes!

Yami: /huffs/ Oh well, review people! Please?

Yugi: Yes, please review! We want to know what you thought!

Natoya: See you next chapter! /waves/