Hey guys, hope Ch. 1 was decent enough for you to be reading this far! -.- Things will get more interesting, I promise ;]


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----------Chapter 2------------

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Before he had been awoken from his seemingly eternal hibernation, he had not dreamt...for at that time, he'd had nothing to dream of.

But now, ever since that day the Puzzle was completed, his mind had begun to fill with fresh memories in light of his hosts' experiences. And when he lay his head down in his soulroom in the dark, he found brilliant images and sounds playing naturally through his makeshift "sleep."

Some of the events he dreamed were usually pertaining to enemies they were battling at the time, or the duels he would soon have to complete in Yugi's place. He saw his opposition, or he saw his new friends. He sewed together abstract stories with no real sense about his supposed past, about ancient Egypt, as if he could conjure up the truth of it by some manner of magical Shadow visions. He dreamed about the Puzzle and its mazes. He dreamed about cards and relics and monsters and the basic truths of his very identity. Some of what he saw frightened him. Some of it calmed his soul with the happiness of his new life. Some of what he dreamed made him smile, and some of what he saw made him cry.

Because no matter what he envisioned subconsciously, it always revolved around things and people important to him. And more and more frequently, behind his closed eyes lay dangerous short fictions so closely knit to his new identity that they were beginning to drive him mad with how they affected who he was...and who he was becoming. These dreams were the only possible manifestation of his bottled feelings, all collected and sealed as tightly as possible by his own mental hand. More and more often, he would suddenly wake with a racing heart and a little more shame.

For more and more often, he would dream of Yugi.

Yami was not sure how long his soul had been asleep, as time always seemed to blur within the confines of his host Item, and probably for the better considering his long stay inside. But as he opened his eyes, he felt simply his "sleeping time" didn't fit right, had been either too long or too short, in relation to what had happened. Truly, he realized now it was nothing, and no big deal. But then if that were true, he felt strange for overreacting, ashamed in either case.

He sat up from the makeshift bed. Though dark, he had become accustomed to the stone room enough to know his surroundings.

And enough to know he wasn't alone.

His eyes narrowed.

"Who's there?"

There was nothing for a moment; and then, a small shadow stepped forward from the doorway. The backlight made it hard to see its features as it faced him.

The pharaoh's eyes widened, and he put his own foot to the floor.

"Yugi?"

Yami stopped, the grogginess, the blurriness of the whole situation getting to him. His first image was that he'd fallen asleep to, the most embedded, gorgeous one fresh in his mind…of his partner. The room literally fogged in response to his feelings, rendering Yugi a little scared as he backed up a few steps. And the further he got, the more Yami sucked in the coldness around him…The less he could hear Yugi call him in confusion from the door. The less real it felt…

That meant…

Was this just another dream?

He licked his lips. A matching electric spark snapped from the walls. His big eyes shone bright with a mysterious glaze when he looked up again.

He liked that idea.

He continued to push through his self-made mist, over until he took Yugi's hand. It had become so thick that the boy could barely make Yami out, even right in front of him.

"Pharaoh! I found you..." There was a sigh of relief, and the hint of a smile, as the density around them lifted.

But seeing his light's fatigue, there was quick change of the scenery; suddenly, the stone walls had shifted to a ceiling of sad, endlessly rolling clouds. Something in Yugi's face looked too tired to be genuinely happy. Yami remembered how locating one another in the Puzzle was not an easy task.

He wondered how long Yugi had been going at it.

Yugi almost jumped at the rumbling far above him. "…And what's been strange is the Puzzle keeps changing ever since I got to your side of it…"

"Yugi…" Yami said again. He started a hand towards him, rubbing his own sleepiness from his eyes. "Why are you looking for me?"

Yugi looked up, disheartened. "What do you mean? You're telling me you don't know?"

"Don't know what?"

The anxiety in the boy's eyes deepened.

"Pharaoh, I haven't heard or felt anything from you for two days now. It almost seemed like there was no life in my Puzzle at all! I was beginning to worry…" He peered away now, at the floor, then at Yami's figure, as though to assure himself it was really there. "I was afraid something bad had happened, that you'd disappeared somehow…I couldn't even contact you when I tried to switch places. That's never happened before…"

"Really?" Yami's eyes opened wide. "I was asleep for two days?"

"I dunno. Were you?"

Yami considered, baffled. "I don't know about the time frame, but thought I was..."

"But…why couldn't you wake up?"

"I…don't know."

The pharaoh considered. He wondered what this meant. Was this a vision of things to come? Surely, he hoped that wasn't the case. But no…this wasn't a dream at all. This was real. And Yugi was really here…And something was wrong.

Perhaps the odd inklings from the Puzzle were associated with this. He knew his Item was active with his own emotions, and that the more he thought of this boy in front of him, the more volatile it became. And he knew he was responsible. All the affection, all the attraction, all the raw desire…

Because, he knew...

He wanted to own him. No, he wanted to possess him. He wanted to hold the boy so close he integrated right into his hikari, forever becoming one with the being destined to host his own soul as he already did. Every fiber of him quivered--ached--with a longing that had constantly been buried away out of true necessity. But if the Puzzle was somehow endangering the one he loved because of all these bottled emotions…he had no choice but to express the truth.

Stone walls slammed down around them, stretching infinitely into a black heaven above. Only Yugi took notice of this, and fire flickered all around them. The room looked similar to how it had when Yugi had first entered, only much larger, an amber glow on their faces.

"I'm glad you came to see me, Yugi…" He turned his head, eyes shadowed by the darkness, the glow of the fire on his angled cheeks. "There's something you need to know. There's something…I haven't told you, about me."

Yugi looked up, more interested than ever.

"What is it?"

Yami stopped for what seemed like a long time. He sighed, leaning an arm against the wall and turning his face away. "Promise me…you will not be distressed with me."

"Of course not, Pharaoh!" Yugi seemed almost hurt. "You know I could never be. You're my best friend!"

"…Yes. My friend…"

The boy's face contorted in sympathy and confusion. "Yami…?"

Yami opened his mouth, tried to get all of it out, or even a fragment of his deep sentiments. But they were so far buried because of their illegality…He had suppressed it all so long, kept it confined to dreams similar to this reality…Suddenly, this situation was becoming quite real, the blurriness fading away.

He knew why this was happening. He knew, even in sleep, that this odd power was the subconscious outlet of perhaps the consequences of saying nothing, keeping the feelings as locked away as his soul itself. And now, with all his practice making perfect…He found nothing remained on the surface of his lips to tell. He swore there were almost tears rising dangerously close to the surface of his eyes instead.

I…I cannot tell him…

The cracks in the wall deepened down wide with loud groans, catching Yugi by surprise. The boy's eyes saddened at the sight, and he reached a hand towards his partner, resting it on his shoulder.

As though reading Yami's mind, he spoke quietly.

"If you can't tell me," he shrugged. "Can you show me?"

Yami spun his head around again, eyes wide. Was Yugi onto him? From the look in his light's eyes, however, he saw only purity, and innocence, and a true compassion to help his friend. No, Yugi didn't know; he was only saying what he could.

"I…" Yami's voice was lower now, musky as the air, but a chuckle lived inside it. "I'm not sure you'd…want that, Yugi."

Yugi's eyebrows slanted worriedly, a slight squeeze on the pharaoh's shoulder. "Try?"

Yami's eyes half-closed. Such a little touch, but…no, he'd barely ever felt Yugi's real touch before. He was always a physical body away, one of them always the hologram. But as in his dreams, Yugi was as real as ever, and in the Puzzle, they could always both exist. Such a perfect, dark little world…with such perfectly dark little fantasies to match…

The Pharaoh turned slowly, and his hand travelled the furthest, heaviest distance it ever had up…closer…closer still…to Yugi's arm. Amazed it had made the journey, his fingers nestled into it, then up, grazing his light's shoulder, across his collarbone, fingers lacing up his neck, his jawline, his cheek…He remembered the sight he'd seen two nights ago, the little body he was now touching…

His thumb caressed into its place on Yugi's cheek, and now he noticed the telltale shock on the boy's face. He was blushing wildly, eyes frozen on his counterpart.

"Ph-Pharaoh…? Wh-what are you-"

"Showing you…" A very nervous breath, face inching closer.

"…Aibou."

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**Ehh? XD I can't wait to write Chap 3...let me tell you! XP Rating will proooobably go up though, just sayin'. .**