Happy holidays all! I'm trying to stick to a weekly schedule but I'm afraid to say that my motherboard is going out in my comp. So if I disappear for a while that's what happened. Enjoy!

~ o ~ O ~ o ~

167 Days:

"Now I want you to smile for the camera!" Solomon quipped as he snapped the picture of the crazily grinning group.

The old man waited patiently for Anzu and Honda to fix their graduation gowns before snapping yet another picture. For him, this day had been bittersweet. He got to watch the kids he'd known and loved forever graduate. But his grandson should have been a part of this. It shouldn't have been this way. Not at all. A tear escaped down his weathered face before he brought a hand up to wipe it away.

He would put on a smile and welcome these wonderful kids into adulthood all the same. They were his family as they had proven time and time again. Solomon mentally smacked himself for his depressing thoughts. He was going to be there for his adopted family today. It was their day.

Everyone had gone wild at the end of the ceremony, throwing their caps into the air with a loud cheer. The whole group had gathered together after retrieving their caps, deciding to spend the rest of the day with the ones that they cared most about rather than go on their senior trip after the ceremony.

So they stayed behind in the darkening auditorium for pictures after the ceremony. Someone had been kind enough to leave the stage lights on so they could at least get some last photos before heading out.

Serenity giggled happily, from the sidelines, at her brother's exasperated expression when Seto fixed his messed up tie. Anzu and Duke gave each other a fleeting kiss on the lips before greeting Mai and Mokuba who were waiting excitedly for Solomon to finish with the pictures before wishing the group congratulations.

The whole group was together for one final time before the real world took over their lives and they were going to make the most of it. Or, well, most of the group – as the nagging thoughts in the back of their mind reminded them throughout the evening.

Atemu sat in the darkened corner of the auditorium where the graduation ceremony had been held, silent tears slipping down his face as he reflected on how his Aibou would have loved to have been part of the gathering. He really wasn't in the mood for celebrating.

In fact, Solomon had to all but threaten the royal teen to get him to come out to the party. And even then he had yet to let anyone know he was here, staying just out of sight for the entire ceremony.

"Sooo, aren't you going to wish them well?" A not so welcome voice came from behind the former spirit.

"I do…and I can't." Atemu replied in a hoarse whisper, quickly scrubbing away his tears with the palm of his hand. "Not to their faces."

"Yeah, that would mean leaving your nice little corner, wouldn't it? And then they would see the expression on your face…"

"…and they would lose all the joy that should be a part of this occasion." Atemu finished bitterly. "Hello Bakura."

The white haired teen took a seat next to his once enemy, considering him a friend of sorts now that the truth had been sorted out. He noticed that the other teen looked a little better than the last time he saw him. At least he wasn't as thin as he had been, or as pale. But the haunted, pinched look still hadn't left those regal features. And it worried Bakura to no end.

"I can't imagine. And I don't want to. But this isn't helping. You can't watch life from the sidelines."

"But I can't exactly live either." The former Pharaoh refused to look at the person who had all but bullied him into not giving up on life. He couldn't decide if he hated him for it…or not.

The ruby eyed teen's recovery had taken well over two months. And it was still very easy for him to get winded. Even when he was only doing the smallest of tasks, like helping Solomon in the game shop. He still went out to look for Yugi, but with each slowly passing day the hope of finding his little one became less and less. He was so close to resigning himself to this foggy half-life that he had been living for the past five and a half months.

"Hey guys…Atemu, how ya doin?" Marik snuck up behind the duo.

"Fan-fuckin'-tastic!" came the sarcastic reply.

"Come on man, the least you could do is go and say hi. Anzu and Duke are leaving later in the week. You won't ruin their day, contrary to your opinion." Marik urged the smaller teen. "Even seeing me didn't send them into a fit."

Atemu folded his arms across his chest and snorted. "They deserve all the happiness that life has to offer them. They don't need me to remind them of what they have lost."

"So that's why you're sitting over here in the corner. They don't even realize you're here, do they?" Bakura asked.

"No. And I don't want them to." Atemu turned his attention back to the joyous group up on the stage…

"And that is how you tie a tie. You'd do well to remember it in the future." Seto commented as he finished carefully weaving the fabric at Jou's throat. "How do you expect to make it in the business world without knowing that one little detail?"

"I don't." Jou said quietly, glancing away from the intense look in the other's blue eyes.

A fist tightened around the tie as Seto gasped at the comment. "What do you mean you don't?" He used his grip on the material to bring Jou's awareness back around to him.

"Come on man…we all know I'm not smart enough to go to college. The test scores said it all!" The loud comment drew the others' attention to the pair.

After glancing around at the rest of the group until they averted their eyes, Seto hissed. "Only because you fell asleep halfway through the test. All that proves is that you don't get enough sleep! Not that you're stupid!"

"You really are somethin' else man." Jou glanced back at the blue eyed teen, incredulously. "I just said I was stupid. You don't need to argue with me just to start a fight! You won, I admitted it!"

"I'm not arguing for the sake of argument! You are NOTstupid, and I know it." Seto lowered his voice. "Wasn't it you who answered Ryou's question on the differences between schizophrenia and paranoid schizophrenia with delusions in Psychology class? You're a hell of a lot smarter than you think."

Jou just looked at the other teen, stunned. He didn't know what to say. Finally, shaking his head to clear his troubled thoughts, he said quietly. "You remember that? Hell, I barely remember that day…how is it you remember?"

The taller teen leaned in closer, his very breath skating across Jou's ear, to whisper. "I remember most of what you say. You can do anything you put your mind to…just keep that in mind, would you?"

Embarrassed, the blue eyed teen started to walk away, until Jou caught a hold of his arm. The blonde would be damned if he would let this opportunity slip away. It was the closest that he had ever been to his secret crush. And the other teen had all but admitted that he felt the same. Letting go of the breath that he hadn't known he had been holding, he drew the other teen back to him gently.

"Look…I, uh…that is…if you're not busy later. I was wondering if you wanted to do somethin'…with me." He stuttered, glancing in the direction of the rest of their group – who were all pretending to be interested in everything but the whispered discussion.

Looking resolutely at the ground, Seto replied. "I would like that very much."

The confident brunette had been caught off guard by the suggestion. It put him in a situation that he neither understood nor had ever been in previously. All he knew was that this gave him a chance to spend some time with the person that he was beginning to suspect he had strong feelings for, and he wasn't willing to pass that up. Not even for pride's sake.

The group posed for one final picture before heading for the exit, so they could get some food. Atemu gave one final glance around the darkened auditorium before walking out after them, leaving his two newest allies to either sit in the dark, or follow his lead. He didn't want anyone else to notice him.

It was bad enough that the gruesome twosome – as he had come to call them – had noticed his presence in the back row of seats. He'd never forgive himself if his presence ruined any of the new graduates day.

~ o ~ O ~ o ~

245 Days:

"Bakura…could you and Ryou meet me at the hospital, in the ER. Please…" Atemu's shaky voice sounded over the phone.

"What the hell? What happened?" Bakura all but shouted into the receiver, causing Ryou to pause in the act of combing his damp hair.

Their friend sounded like he was in the middle of a nervous breakdown. While he was awaiting the answer the larger teen rummaged through the dresser drawers for a pair of clean pants. He had a feeling that there would be no quiet night at home for him and Ryou.

"…its Mr. Motou…he's had a heart attack. I…don't…I don't know…if he'll make it." Tears clogged the tricolor haired teen's voice.

For a moment the white haired thief was struck speechless. His jaw hanging on the ground, he glanced aimlessly around their bedroom for some memory of what it was he was searching for before that shocking announcement. Ryou, who had heard the comment clearly through the phone, smacked him in the arm, sending him into a flurry of movement. Clothes flew everywhere as he attempted to find something that would fit.

"…We're there. I'll call the others. Just hang on." Bakura swore furiously as he hung up the phone, stuffing his legs into the nearest pair of pants he could find – fortunately they were his. "Ryou…"

"I heard. You go try to find the keys; I'll make sure everyone knows."

The smaller white haired teen dialed Jou's number while his partner fairly flew out of the room, looking for the car keys that seemed to always mysteriously disappear whenever they were needed. Several phone calls later, and Bakura reappeared in the bedroom, keys clutched firmly in his grip, an insanely triumphant look in his chocolate eyes.

"Where…were they this time?" Ryou questioned hesitantly.

"On top of the refrigerator…don't quite know how they got there." Bakura grumbled, shaking his head.

The smaller white haired teen eyes watered. He shook his head once to rid the impending tears before ushering his boyfriend out the door. It was an endless source of amusement to their friends how the two of them always managed to lose their keys, making them late to every event that was held that summer. And Mr. Motou had been the last one to comment on it.

But now was no time for idle remembrances.

Bakura backed the car out of the garage and sped off down the road. It wouldn't take them long to get to the hospital, as they only lived ten miles away. Hopefully they could get there before Atemu lost it. The scarlet eyed teen had sounded really bad on the phone.

"Why didn't we know something was wrong…we just saw him at the last get together! He looked fine!" Ryou slammed a fist into the dashboard furiously. The Motous' had been through enough, why did things keep getting worse for them?

"Damn it Ryou, I don't know. He looked better…they both did." Bakura answered gruffly.

He threw the car into one of the open parking spaces near the front row just as a large black limo pulled to a screeching halt in front of the emergency entrance. The limo's driver wasn't even fast enough to make it around to the side of the car before the door swung open and Jou bounded out, followed by Seto and Mokuba. Seeing the white haired duo's approach, the blonde turned to greet them.

"Who else knows?"

"Everyone…I got a hold of everyone." Ryou explained as he caught up to the group entering the hospital. "Mr. Motou's room please." He said politely to the nurse lounging behind the desk.

A couple of clicks on the keyboard and they were told the elderly man had just gone into surgery, to wait in the fifth floor waiting room. It would be at least a couple of hours before they had any news. The group hadn't even stepped on the elevator and Malik and Marik caught up to them.

"What's going on?" Malik questioned, out of breath.

"Mr. Motou's in surgery. I don't know anything else. Atemu should have the answers." Seto answered him as the doors slid shut.

They waited impatiently for the elevator to make its way up to the fifth floor. It seemed to them like it took an eternity. By the time they got there, both Bakura and Marik were wishing that they still had shadow powers. So much for spending a ton of tax dollars on hospital renovations when the elevator could barely move above a slow crawl.

"Jesus! It would have been faster to climb the stairs!" Marik complained loudly as he backed out of the elevator, drawing the eyes of the nurses at the station down the hall. One of them shushed him, to which he hissed back "whatever"

Atemu poked his head out of a room around the corner, relief visible in his pinched, pale features as he fidgeted with his hands. "Thank the gods! Were you able to get a hold of everyone?"

The group bustled out of the hall and into the bleak, dim waiting room where three other people were sitting or pacing as they waited for news of their loved ones' fates. Bakura could tell that Atemu had reached the limit of what he could handle. His face was a ghostly white, his hands unsteady as he held them out to shepherd the group into the room. The tricolor haired teen looked like he was going to pass out at any given moment.

The white haired thief rested his hands on the smaller teen's stiff, trembling shoulders as he drew him away from the entryway. "Just breathe Atemu…we got a hold of everyone. They're on the way. Come on; let's get you into a chair before you faint."

Atemu glared regally at the other teen with as much affront as he could muster, before resigning himself to listening to Bakura's advice. He did feel quite like he was going to black out. How much more of this shit were they going to have to go through before things started looking better? Oh gods how he wanted his Aibou back. He hated depending on the others to get him through these hard times. It made him feel weak, useless.

The group made their way over to a corner of the quiet, depressing room, Bakura guiding Atemu's shaky form down into one of the plastic chairs. Jou and Malik slid a table over, scooting more chairs around it so they could all get comfortable – well as best as they could anyways. Seto flipped out his cell phone, attempting to have some food catered in.

Since Solomon had just gone in for surgery twenty minutes ago, and none of them had eaten since lunch, it was a good idea to get some food coming – even if it was just for decoration. Maybe the smell alone would encourage some of them to eat. Especially Atemu, who looked at this moment as if he were on the verge of collapsing.

"Come on Atemu…he'll get through it. Things will start looking up. You'll see." Ryou reached out to take hold of the other teen's cold, shaking hand.

With moisture gathering in his eyes, Atemu managed a choked whisper as he slid bonelessly back against the chair, unsure of what to do with himself. "I hope so…I can't…I can't do this anymore…"

A lone tear slipped down the side of his face before he furiously dashed it away. First Yugi, now this. Maybe he shouldn't have stayed. Maybe it was the gods' way of letting him know that it wasn't right for him to remain among the living. Had he cursed his Aibou, his Aibou's family by sticking around, when by all rights, he should have been long dead? What if this was his fault. What if he…

"Stop right there!" Bakura commanded, sticking his face right in Atemu's. "I can see it in your eyes. This is not your fault. Don't you understand that?"

All eyes turned to the two former spirits at the former white haired thief's words, holding their breath as they waited for Atemu's reaction. Even though the three newly reincarnated spirits had declared a truce and somewhat of a friendship had developed, the former Pharaoh still valued his personal space. And it wasn't uncommon for him and one of the other two to get into it when they violated that space.

Ruby eyes hardened as Atemu hissed. "How do you know that? You weren't there when Yugi and I were told that coming back would alter the future! The two of you didn't even stick around for the final warning that the gods gave."

"If I remember correctly, we were told - by you no less – that the two of you would take care of all of the intricacies of our return." The white haired teen drawled with a glare. "The Millennium items are powerless, we're completely mortal now. What else could they possibly have needed to warn us about? "

"I don't know…the last thing they said was that it has been locked in place. I thought they were talking about our future…I don't know. And that's beside the point! The point is that our being here has altered their future, starting from the time we walked through that door!" Atemu shot back, helpless tears filling his eyes.

Bakura sat back in the chair behind him rubbing his face harshly with his hands, confused. "What the hell does that mean? It's locked…?"

Atemu dropped his head into his hands. He had no want to try and figure out what the gods were trying to impart with that little, cryptic bit of information. He had tried to figure it out before, and never came up with a suitable answer.

"I don't know…they said we would know when the time was right." He mumbled, tears sliding down his face to fall to the carpet below.

"Has anyone heard anything? How's Mr. Motou?" Anzu said quietly from the doorway. Taking a quick glance around the room, she noticed Bakura and Atemu's aggravated condition. "What'd we miss?"

"No, we haven't heard anything yet…he just went into surgery about an hour ago…" Jou replied.

"…As for these two hot heads, well you know them." Malik finished with a shrug.

Anzu, followed by Duke, along with Serenity and Honda, whom they had picked up on their way in to town, made their way cautiously into the room, unsure if they were walking into a war zone or just another part of the hospital. After pulling up a couple more cheap plastic chairs, the group sat down to endure their long, agonizing wait…

Several hours later, and the magnificent display of food lay on the table untouched except for the very edges. Ryou had curled up next to his dark half and long since fell asleep, unable to keep his eyes open this late into the night. Jou and Seto were talking quietly amongst themselves, while Marik, Malik, Duke, and Honda played a silent hand of cards with Anzu and Serenity looking on. Atemu sat in his chair, his knees pulled up to his chest, arms wrapped around his legs, watching the others as they waited.

"Will he live…?" Mokuba quietly asked the distressed teen.

"Mokuba…" Atemu sighed softly. "I do not know…they have been in there for a while."

"I don't want him to die." Tears shimmered in the boy's luminous grey eyes.

Closing his eyes briefly, the tricolor haired teen got out of his chair and sat down next to Mokuba on the small couch, gaining Seto's complete and undivided attention with the action. Wrapping a comforting arm around the youth, Atemu held him close as he cried. It was a shame that the boy would know such pain this early in his life.

If it were up to him, he would shield the child as much as he could from this type of mental agony. But it wasn't his place, and he was sure that the overture wouldn't be accepted. Maybe it was better that the boy learned life was harsh, and disappointing, and that it was hard to hold your head up day after day with all the problems that rained down on your shoulders.

"Family of Mr. Motou?" An imposing, white coated man stepped into the room.

Atemu lifted his head, praying for a miracle. "That would be us."

The tall man walked sedately over to the group and sat down in one of the chairs. "We were able to repair the damage done to his heart…but I'm afraid he's had a massive stroke. He's in critical condition at the moment. We've done all we can do…the rest is in God's hands right now."

The group was stunned. They turned to each other with silent tears sliding down their cheeks, as if to affirm that they were not the only ones to hear the devastating news. Mokuba's choked sobs were heard around the silent room, and Seto got up to see to his little brother.

"Oh god!" Anzu sobbed loudly into her boyfriend's chest, unable to keep her tears from falling.

"Screw your god! He'll live! I'll guarantee it!" Atemu slid out of his chair and faced the doctor furiously.

"He may live, but recovery is going to be long and hard, young man. I hope he has a lot of help and support." The doctor said in parting. "A nurse will be in soon to inform you of everything that you need to know."

The moment the doctor left the room, Atemu's lithe frame began to tremble violently. He clenched his fists as he raised his gaze to the ceiling. Cursing every god that had ever thought to fuck with his life. He stood there for a few minutes before he collapsed to the ground in a heap, causing the others to jump up and come to his aid.

~ o ~ O ~ o ~

Review please?