***Sorry I got off schedule. Holidays. 2016. You know. Not sure if Johji is in the anime? (Maybe season 0?) but he's in the manga. Honda's dog gets an honorable mention in this, too in a later chapter.***

Ryou opened the door and saw a worried-looking Yugi and Anzu. "Hey, sorry to bother you," Yugi said. "We would have texted instead, but we were right across the street, so we figured we'd just come over."

"That's fine. What's wrong?" Ryou asked, although he knew it'd involve a missing child.

"Honda's nephew, Johji, ran away again. Honda usually finds him right away, but he didn't go to any of his usually hiding places this time." Anzu frowned. "That kid's a brat, and he'll probably end up in juvenile detention in a few years, but I hate the thought of him having spent the night on the streets all alone."

Yugi nodded. "Yeah, so we all promised to help look for him. We thought maybe you'd want to help, too?"

Ryou nodded. "Of course. I already know where he is. He's in the cemetery."

Anzu's and Yugi's mouths dropped open. They glanced at each other and then back to Ryou. "Um," Anzu began. "How would you know that?"

"Because we're still playing the game," Ryou said. "This is the next quest. A child goes missing. We find him in the cemetery."

"Ryou, that's just a coincidence," Yugi said.

Marik's voice drew their attention towards the kitchen doorway. "Come on, little Yugi, we have to search for the kid anyway. What would it hurt to check the cemetery?"

"Marik?" Yugi and Anzu asked both at once.

Marik walked through the living room and stood beside Ryou. He'd chosen to wear black leather pants, a white button up shirt, and more gold accesories than before. He rested a hand on the jut of his hip, smirking and looking so much like the adversary that once fought them- only more relaxed, more comfortable in his own skin, someone who could lose graciously but choose his battles so that he rarely had to do so.

Ryou almost swooned at the sight.

"Don't you remember?" Marik asked, a taunt in his voice. "This is the part of the game where I joined the party."

"So you believe what Ryou's saying?" Anzu asked.

Marik's kohl-lined eyes flicked towards Ryou and then back towards Anzu and Yugi. "Yes. I do, but we don't need to speculate. If Ryou's right, the kid you're looking for will be in the graveyard just as Ryou suspects. If he's not there, then . . ." Marik shrugged.

Yugi glanced at Anzu. "We need to look for him anyway. I'll text Honda and Jonouchi to meet us there."

Anzu nodded, and then they all left Ryou's place, heading for the cemetery. They stopped at Burger World- it was one of Johji's favorite restaurants, so it didn't hurt to check for him there. No one had seen a kid matching Johji's description, so they continued on to the graveyard at the edge of town.

The overcast sky stretched smooth, sleek, and gray above them, giving the tiers of pillars an ominous look to them. They saw Jonouchi and Honda walking towards them. Honda looked irritated; Jonouchi's face was marble pale.

"Did we really have to look here?" Jonouchi crossed his arms over his chest. "This place gives me the creeps, especially with the forest looming in the background. I keep waiting for zombies to sneak past the trees, or vampires, or werewolves, or, uh, something else."

"Mummies." Ryou laughed.

Yugi frowned at him. "That's not funny, Ryou."

"We'll find that kid faster if we split up into teams. Jonouchi and Honda, check near the entrance, Yugi and Anzu, you should look around the graves" Marik wrapped his left arm around Ryou's shoulders. "Come on, Ryou. We'll check near the woods just in case he wandered into them."

Their feet crunched into the grass. Ryou watched lightning flick across the gray. "So? You going to protect me from the mummies if they attack?"

"As a former tomb-keeper, I'm obligated to bring you to them as a sacrifice." Marik bumped Ryou with his hip. "Lucky for you, I've been known to go against my duties as a tomb-keeper from time to time."

Ryou glanced behind his shoulder. "Didn't we find the kid sleeping next to one of the graves?"

"Yes, that's why I told Yugi to check them." Marik lowered his arm, taking Ryou by the hand and leading him into the wooded shade.

Ryou grinned. "Then what are we doing here?"

Marik shoved Ryou against the bark of a pine. "Looking for ghosts," he said before kissing Ryou.

Ryou sighed through his nose, holding Marik's hips as they pulled at each other's lips. They only had a few minutes before they could hear yells of I found him. Marik growled before pulling away, and Ryou tried to smooth down his hair. He also had to adjust himself in his pants, grateful for the baggy t-shirt to help hide his forming bulge.

"I've never been so annoyed at having completed a quest before," Marik muttered.

Ryou smiled, but something caught his eye, making Ryou gasp.

"Ryou? What's wrong?"

"I saw a shadow . . . it moved . . . it must have been a dog or something, I guess, but I could have sworn it was a person."

"Is it the next stupid quest that's going to keep me out of your pants?"

"It might be," Ryou answered Marik's facetious question with a serious tone. "You said we went to a temple, right? Didn't we chase something through the woods in order to find the temple?"

Marik exhaled. "Honda had to pee, if I remember correctly, so he left the party and you told us to go into the woods where we fought shadows."

"Dammit." Ryou shut both his eyes, taking a few deep breaths before opening them once again. "It wouldn't be so bad, if I could remember . . . didn't we fight something else? Like a boss at the end?"

Marik shook his head. "You were flushed and laughing; it was really distracting, Ryou."

Ryou gave Marik half a grin, nudging him towards the cemetery so they could meet up with the others. They found the others surrounding one of the small, stone obelisks rising from the ground. Honda yelled at a pre-adolescent wearing a Pikachu hoodie. The kid yawned, stretched, rubbed grit out of his eyes, and ignored Honda completely while he ogled Anzu's short skirt.

Yugi turned when he noticed Ryou and Marik. "Okay, Ryou, I think I believe you now."

"Great, do you happen to remember how the game ended? Because all I remember is how much we had to drink."

"Yeah we . . ." Yugi stopped, his face thoughtful. "Anzu?"

"You guys kept making me do all the calculations, I don't really remember the storyline."

"But we won, right?" Jonouchi asked. "I mean, I remember cheering a lot."

"We cheered every time someone took a drink," Honda said. "Or every time someone rolled the dice, even if it was a fumble."

"What are you guys talking about?" Johji asked.

Honda scowled at him. "None of your business. You're coming home with me right now."

"No I'm not."

Anzu grabbed Johji by the ear and tugged him a step closer to her. "You listen here. Your mother is worried sick. You go home right now with Honda because you do not want me to escort you there."

"Ow. Ow. Ow. Stop-it. Fine. I'll go home, goddamn."

"Watch your mouth or I'll send you home with a fat lip."

"Honda!"

Honda shook his head. "Don't look at me, you should know better by now." He gave the group an apologetic look. "Thanks guys, I'd like to stay and help sort this all out, but I need to get him home."

"Hey." Jonouchi clapped Honda on the back. "Take care of your nephew."

Ryou pointed to the woods. "There's a dirt path leading into the woods. You can ride back on your motorbike and catch up with us."

"How will I find you?"

"Don't you remember? We went into an abandoned temple. I think it's our first boss battle."

"Oh goody." Honda rolled his eyes. "Wouldn't want to miss that."

Jonouchi grinned. "If you do, more XP for the rest of us." Honda left and the rest of them lingered in the cemetery. Jonouchi kicked at the grass, breaking the silence. "Wasn't this the part where we had to fight all those creepy shadows?"

"Yeah, but I don't remember re-rolling anyone's character, so I don't think anyone died," Ryou said.

"Still, how much HP damage equals what kind of injury?" Yugi asked. "We could get hurt fighting. Maybe we shouldn't risk it and just go home."

Anzu nodded. "Even if we seem to be following the game that's no reason to wander into a forest looking for trouble."

Ryou gave them a little hum of agreement. "Yeah. I agree. See you guys later." He turned and waved.

"Where are you going, Ryou?" Jonouchi asked.

Ryou gestured with his chin. "Across the street to the pharmacy. I'll be right back, but the rest of you should go home if you don't want to get sucked up in the game's plot."

Only Marik stood near the tombstones when Ryou returned. He gestured to the forest. "Yugi took off running without a word of explanation. The others followed."

"Well, they're going to wish they had these." Ryou handed Marik a bottle of water and three flashlights.

"Clever." Marik grinned.

"Remind me to equip a bag of holding before our next mission."

Marik frowned.

Ryou touched his arm. "Is something wrong?"

Marik shook his head. "No, just deja vu of a sort. I felt like I was on the verge of remembering something important."

"I hope I didn't make you forget it."

"No, it slipped my thoughts on its own. Come on. We can't let these fools wander off on their own."

They marched together into the woods, picking their way through shrubs and roots. Marik rolled his eyes a little when he heard Anzu scream. "Guess it's time to save them."

Ryou grinned. "Experience points."

"Ryou, this isn't fun."

"But it is a little," Ryou said as they jogged.

They saw Jonouchi, Yugi, and Anzu standing shoulder to shoulder in a triangle shape so that their backs were to each other. Yugi noticed Ryou and Marik running towards them.

"Uh, guys, those shadow things - they're actually pretty scary."

"Here!" Marik tossed one of his spare flashlights.

Yugi caught it, his eyes lit up. "Thanks!"

Ryou gave Anzu a flashlight while Marik gave Jonouchi his last spare. Their eyes scanned the gray-green shadows. The leaves scratched against each other as the wind blew through them, making the patches of light and dark shift as if alive.

And then the shadows were alive, and rushing towards them in a great swoop. Ryou flicked his flashlight on, pointing even as he repressed a chuckle when he thought light come forth! The light did cut through the shades like a sword, however, so the reference was apt.

"Are they gone?" Jonouchi asked, his breath struggling in his lungs.

"For now," Marik said. "We should move."

"What made you come into the forest?" Ryou asked.

"I saw a silhouette . . . Atem's silhouette."

"Are you sure?"

"It was him." Anzu winced as she tore her jacket sleeve to wrap around a gash in her upper arm. "We all saw it."

Jonouchi nodded, eyes closing for a second. "Yeah . . . definitely him."

Marik and Ryou glanced at each other for a moment. Ryou felt heavy in his stomach, but he couldn't say exactly why. "Are you sure it wasn't bait?"

"It was him!" Yugi shouted, shocking them all, even him. "Sorry," he whispered.

"It's okay," Ryou said. "Let's go."

"Ryou," Jonouchi said. "Thanks for the flashlights. They really saved our asses. I'm sorry we didn't believe you."

"Keep an eye out. They'll still try to attack." Ryou pointed his flashlight to a trail grown-over with clover and saplings.

He thought back to his blurry memories of the game as they traveled. They went slow, every time Ryou turned behind him a shadow would disappear. He was mad that he couldn't see his XP on a statsheet, and imagined that it must have be how video game characters felt, immersed in their world, unable to call up the stat screen like the player could.

Being in the game world made him think of the Spirit that possessed the Ring. The one that had stolen Ryou's name and called himself Bakura. His presence was a constant ache in the back of Ryou's chest, and Ryou knew Marik felt the same, so he didn't blame Yugi for running into the woods unarmed when he saw Atem's silhouette- but something about it bothered him.

"My birthday wish . . ." Ryou whispered.

"What are you saying?" Jonouchi asked.

"I had a special summon - to call someone forth that would normally be impossible."

"Like a great hero!" Yugi beamed. "It was him."

"It could still be a trap," Marik said, frowning.

"Let's hurry!" Yugi ignored Marik and walked as fast as his short legs could move him while still being wary of shadows.

The temple was nothing more than a skeleton of rotted wood rising from maples and black pines. Stone Buddhas guarded the stairs. The first raindrops pricked at the backs of their necks, and stained the stones with dark speckles.

"Well." Jonouchi held up his flashlight as if making a toast. "Here's to our first boss battle."

Anzu clicked the plastic case of her flashlight against Jonouchi's, and then started walking forward.

"If this is the way to find him, to find Atem, then let's do this."

Yugi followed close behind her, their faces determined. Jonouchi grinned as well, although he walked a little slower. Marik and Ryou tagged behind, looking at each other.

"You don't think I'd waste such a powerful spell on Atem, do you?"

Marik shook his head, his hair a more bronze shade from the cloud-darkened sky. "I don't know. I can't imagine me letting you do that. No matter how drunk, you think I'd find a way to manipulate it to be anyone but . . . him."

"Marik, I'm sorry. Even just playing a game and not knowing it was going to happen, I shouldn't have let them talk me into bringing back the Pharaoh."

"It was a stupid game." Marik brushed his knuckles against Ryou's cheek. "Who would have ever guessed . . . what we could have done with that power."

And that was the worst of it. Not only did Ryou potentially bring back Atem, whose presence would be a constant reminder to Marik that he was bred to be a servant to another, but it also meant that he could have brought back Bakura but had missed his only opportunity.

Before Ryou could apologize again, Marik grabbed his sleeve. "What's done is done. Right now, we have to go in there and see what sort of monster we're fighting."

Thunder rumbled in the distance, the growl of a great beast. They found the others in a dusty room filled with statues.

"We could pray," Anzu said.

"It wouldn't help." Marik stared at the statues as if they personally let him down years ago.

"It worked for Alex Kidd in High Tech World." Ryou laughed, although he could tell by the blank stares that no one got the old video game reference.

Jonouchi shook his head. "One thing's for sure, Atem ain't here so maybe we should-"

The creek of rafters interrupted him. Their beams all darted to the ceiling at the same time as they searched the rafters.

"What the fuck is that?" Marik asked when his flashlight caught a glimpse of black scales coiled around one of the support beams holding up the roof.

"Whatever it is - it's huge." Jonouchi took a few steps towards the others.

"And our flashlight beams aren't going to hurt that." Ryou glanced around for any other kind of weapon, but unless they could hit the thing in the head with a statue, it was going to be a hopeless battle. "Fuck."

Dust showered onto their hair as the creature moved above them. Its scales flashed from their flashlights. The all watched in frozen horror as a long, black tail began to sink down from the rafters and towards the floor.

"It's not possible." Marik furrowed his brow. "That thing is bigger than an anaconda. It's big enough to wrap around the entire temple. Nothing like that exists."

Ryou closed his eyes. "It exists because we made it exist."

"Okay, everyone stay still, keep your flashlights still, and slowly back away. Maybe if we don't move-"

"Yugi, it can see our body heat." Ryou interrupted.

"How do you know?"

"Because it's what I would have done as a DM."

"Then what's it's weakness?"

"Fire? Blades? Things we don't have. I didn't have enough time or inventory space to properly prepare for this battle."

"Should we run?" Marik asked.

"No!" Anzu glared at him. "We just have to dodge it until Honda gets here."

"What do you remember?" Ryou asked.

"Honda has a gun. He's the archer, remember? He came back from the bathroom and . . . helped? I don't think he killed it - dammit I can't remember - I just know that we were cheering a lot."

"Yeah, dodge, great for your job class," Jonouchi muttered under his breath.

"It's not my fault that you're a knight without a sword."

"Wait, don't we have spells? I could try to charm it. I'm a druid." Yugi reached into his pocket and took out his house key. He aimed his flashlight at the metal to making it glimmer.

Ryou opened his mouth to explain that it saw in infrared (again, explain again), but he decided it'd be quicker to let Yugi cast the spell and fail his "roll". The creature was coiled like rope on the ground, tasting the air with a forked tongue and considering them with bright, yellow eyes. Yugi's noise and movement did draw the creature's attention. It blinked and then sprung towards Yugi. Anzu pushed him out of the way. They rolled together in the dust, her skirt spinning like a pinwheel, and then they crashed into a statue.

The snake hissed, turning to strike again, but Jonouchi ran forward, grabbing the snake's tail and yanking it as hard as he could.

"Are you stupid?" Marik screamed, lavender eyes wide with shock.

"I got this!" Jonouchi tried to drag the snake's body backwards, but it was too heavy and he fell to the ground.

Ryou acted on instinct more than thought. He dashed forward, even as the snake turned around, and as the creature snapped towards Jonouchi, Ryou shoved his flashlight into the snake's mouth. It shook its head, writhing to rid itself of the flashlight so it could close its mouth. Ryou watched it dance around like a slapstick cartoon as everyone regrouped near the door.

"What'd you do, Ryou? Role a Supercritical?"

"Probably," Ryou said. In truth, it was more likely he'd faked a Supercritical roll to save everyone and they had been too drunk to notice.

In its frenzy, the snake smacked its head against a support beam and dislodged the flashlight. The plastic rolled across the floor and the snake ignored it, searching for their heat signatures. Ryou held his breath, out of ideas, and hoping that if anyone were to get bit, that it'd be him instead of Marik or his friends. Everything in the room felt still and quiet except the scraping of scales against an old, wood floor.

Gunfire tore away the tense tranquility of the scene. The serpent jerked and recoiled towards the back of the room.

"See? I told you guys!" Anzu cheered, holding Yugi's arm.

She was right, Honda stepped into the room holding a small handgun. "What the hell is that thing?"

"Our boss battle." Ryou shrugged.

"I only have three more bullets."

"Why the hell didn't we equip better for this battle?" Jonouchi clenched his jaw.

"Because we were too drunk to play right." Yugi sighed. "But at least it's not attacking anymore. Should we retreat?"

"That sounds prudent," Marik spoke, holding his flashlight in a tighter grip than before. Ryou looked around, and realized the problem was that the room was growing darker as the storm built-up outside.

"I'll cover everyone. Leave the room one at a time."

Anzu and Yugi went first, followed by Marik, and Ryou, and Jonouchi, Honda shot his gun three more times before leaving. "I'm out of ammo. We better hurry."

They ran. Ryou had an extra flashlight that he'd purchased for Honda, but he used it himself since Honda still held his gun. They continued to sprint until they were back outside, panting and gasping for air. The drizzle had changed to heavy, large drops that almost hurt when it hit their arms and faces, but everyone was too tired to care.

Ryou passed around what little water he had, and everyone took a drink.

"That was pathetic." Jonouchi clenched his hands into fists. "Next battle we're going to be prepared."

"Well, we're not hurt." Yugi grinned, his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. "That's something, right?"

"But where's Atem?" Anzu frowned, her bottom lip near-trembling. "I know we saw him."

"It could have been an illusion, or one of the shadows we fought," Ryou rested a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.

"Yeah . . . I was just so sure."

"Come on." Yugi took off his jacket and wrapped it around Anzu's shoulders. "Let's get out of the rain."

"You're right." She nodded.

Marik spun behind them. "Do you hear that?"

Ryou looked back into the shadows of the temple; yellow eyes broke through the dark as the serpent chased after them.

"No fucking way!" Honda shouted. "I shot it six times! It should at least be wounded!"

"Wounded and pissed," Marik said.

Jonouchi grabbed the closest stick and held it. "To hell with this thing! When it comes down the stairs, let's rush it!"

But as it slithered down to the two Buddha statues, a bottle of Stolichnaya flung from the doorway of the temple and shattered near the serpent's black, diamond-shaped head. The creature paused, flicking at the air with its tongue.

There was a metallic click, and then a zippo lighter cartwheeled through the air as well, landing in a puddle of broken glass and Russian vodka. The liquor ignited, and the serpent curled in on itself to escape the flames, but heat surrounded it, charring its body. The smell of burnt snake-flesh and smoke overpowered the scent of rain and pine needles. Ryou covered his nose with his shirt, coughing.

From the dark entryway of the temple came another shadow, opaque and human-shaped.

"Atem!" Anzu dashed past the dead snake, up the stairs, and to the man walking out of the temple. She flung her arms around him and hugged him. They walked down the stairs together.

Honda and Jonouchi also gave the former Pharaoh an embrace, but when he reached Yugi, he paused a moment. ". . . Aibou."

"Atem," Yugi whispered, locking his arms around Atem's shoulders. They were the same height; their hair looked the same; other than some minor features in their faces, they looked almost identical. "I've missed you."

"Me too, aibou."

"You look like me." Yugi giggled, pulling away enough to give the Pharaoh a thorough inspection. "I thought you would have looked like you did in Egypt."

Atem shook his head. "I don't know why I look like this, or even why I'm here."

"Well . . ." Yugi wiped rainwater away from his face. "It's a long story. Let's go someplace dry first."

They lingered, talking and doling out more hugs. Only Ryou and Marik edged closer to the trees to block some of the rain. Ryou leaned next to Marik, savoring the heat of Marik's body as they shivered and waited for the others to start walking. "You know what?"

"What?" Marik asked.

"I fucking hate the drunk version of ourselves."

"Yeah." Marik nodded, raindrops rolling down his hair. "Me too."