Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!

Here you go, chaps! The last chapter of "Always". Thank you for reading - there will be a sequal... I just don't know when.

Part 6: A Deal with…Well, Me.

Death's POV

My little stunt with the Shadow Magic had angered some of the members of the Council of Gods.
As if I cared!
I have a soft spot for siblings. Especially these two. Not just because I was a Duel Monsters fan and had a fangirl's interest in the Kings of Games – but because there was no hatred between them.
None.

I know evil when I see it. There was no real evil in Atem's soul. Just a darkness that guarded his heart from the hurt of the outside world. He was like any other dark soul in the sense that he was calm, collected and a bit detached.
This had broken his heart. He had always hated being away from his brother.

Attending funerals is not a part of my job description. I had a job to do. Guiding the souls of the departed to the afterlife. Nonetheless, I would sometimes find myself doing just that, for reasons undisclosed. This time I had been suspended temporarily after allowing for Atem and Yugi to say goodbye. They do that sometimes, the Gods. They suspend me for breaking their rules. Eventually I always get the gig back. Nobody else wants it.
Truth be told… none of the other candidates have what it takes.

They're all men, by the way.

I stood beside Atem at his gravestone, as his coffin was lowed into the ground. I saw the relief in him, when he saw his brother and grandfather surrounded by the comforting arms of their friends. Neither Atem's mother, nor his father, were present. It ran off him like rain on a windscreen.

All of the duellist elites had send representatives to the funeral. The press had been sent away by two very angry furies – Mai Valentine and Emma Schultz. Both women had been mercilessly frank with the journalists. Now they worked with Atem's and Yugi's other friends – Joey, Tristan, Tea, Duke, Ryou… and even Ryou's twin brother, Bakura – to form a protective shield of love and comfort around Yugi and Solomon Muto. Mokuba and Seto Kaiba were threatening the journalists with lawsuits. It was a sight to behold.

And Atem smiled at it.

"I know that you don't want to leave your brother, Atem." I challenged him to talk about it. I had to.

"I have no choice, do I?" he sighed as well as was possible for a spirit.

"Well. You can't go back. But you don't have to leave him entirely."

"What do you mean, Death?"

"I pulled a few strings… people owe me favours. If you don't mind library work and doing inventory, you can wait for Yugi in the library of Toth, the ancient God of the Scribes. He needs an extra pair of hands."

"So… I wouldn't have to leave Yugi behind?"

"No… You'll just have to wait for me to get back for you."

He thought about it. He looked at his little brother. His little light. And he agreed. I brought him to the library. Toth instantly took a liking to him. He was a hard worker and had a good heart.

"I wondered when you'd call in that favour," Toth said. I just smiled at him. I never called in favours.

Not normally.

A special thank you to Jehbel. This would not be possible without you.