Alive. He was breathing. His heart was beating. This...truly felt like joy. Like home.

Despite being adorned as his ancient Egyptian self, Atem ran to the door... banging loudly and yelling for Yugi... he saw a short shadow come to and open it... It was Solomon, a little more elderly than the last time they saw each other, hunched over a little more, but with eyes still very much alert and shocked at the tall figure before him.

"Oh dear...my. Pharaoh, our ancient pharaoh?"

Solomon embraced his other grandson and pulled him into the house by his wrist. Solomon called for Yugi eagerly, his smile widening more every moment.

Yugi Mutou bounded down the stairs typically, stopping just short of the last stair to take in the bright sunlight coming from the door way and the familiar person standing with his grandpa. His heart seemed to stop for a moment, a punch to the gut feeling almost...

"Aibou, you've grown so much...Yugi..."

The 'smaller' Yugi had grown a few inches and broadened out a little. He now wore the face of a young man instead of a teenager, a face that resembled his yami even more so than when they first met.

"No...No...there's no way...Atem!"
Yugi was trying to balance himself on the stair railing, his knees shaking and his eyes welling with tears in disbelief.

"Yugi I am so sorry..."

Atem held out his arms for a moment, as Yugi let go of the rail and ran towards him, the two embracing each other and falling back into the door frame in a flood of tears.

"Yami...Atem...you passed on. You left. You're gone...Yami...Aibou...this can't be real!"

The slightly taller Pharaoh squeezed a little tighter.

"Yugi...I don't know if this is a dream or not... I was just weeping in the afterlife... My spirit wasn't at peace there. The gods took my tears as penance and gave me another life. If the dead didn't belong amongst the living, I could return with life. Yugi...I came back to you."

Yugi fell to his knees with Yami following him. The loud sobs and tears were free flowing, the two young men carried a death grip on the others arms.

"I don't understand how...won't you just leave again? I could barely deal with it the first time, Atem...you were a dead Egyptian pharaoh and you were my best friend! I didn't know how to deal with that...I couldn't stand the thought of just trying to forget you and...

The Pharaoh kept a grip on Yugi's hand and started to wipe away his tears while smiling.

"I'm here to stay, Yugi. I realize my mistake in leaving my real family here. I'm sorry Yugi, I'm sorry to you and grandpa, and Anzu and Joey...Tristan...even Seto and Mokuba Kaiba. I didn't realize how much you all meant to me, and I to you...until it was too late. I cried and wept and suffered and felt exactly the same way you do Yugi. Our bond could not be broken, by time or death."

Grandpa stood by, sniffling into a handkerchief and handed it off to Yugi. "Pharaoh, friend, things have always been a little more empty without you. None of us have forgotten about our time in Egypt, the adventure we took with you to the past..."

Atem smiled and continued to embrace Yugi, who was desperately wiping tears and saliva and music from his face with grandpa's handkerchief. The three began to laugh together, Atem's earrings and jewelry tinkering as the joy of laughter rolled through his body. The two young men sat still in the doorway, arms wrapped around each other in a desperate attempt to close all the holes, hurt and pain they had experienced in each others absence.

Grandpa smiled and hobbled off to the kitchen to make dinner while the two brothers reminisced about their years apart.