Author's Note: This was taken from episode 56. I just moved their conversation after compiling the deck from the day of the tournament to the night before.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. If I did, there would probably be more Puzzleshipping.

Warnings: Lemon


Equals

"Dang it!" Yugi watched as the card fluttered out of his grasp, lunging for it as it drifted to the floor. He shook his head, scooting to the edge of the bed to dangle over the side, reaching out for the card that rested on the floor. He reached out to get it, yelping as he almost slid to the floor. Yugi relaxed as he felt a pair of hands on his hips.

"There are easier ways to get the card, aibou."

Yugi looked up at the spirit from his position, amused at the almost upside down view that he got. He smiled before picking up the card and carefully pulling himself back onto the bed, Yami moving out of his way. The teenager settled back down, staring at the cards that they had spread out on the bed, the two of them comparing strategies and changing their deck slightly. Yugi set the card that he had gone rushing after on the top of the pile of 'accepted' cards before sitting back. "Of course there are. But that way is more fun."

"Aibou…" Yami shook his head and leaned back, rolling his eyes. Yugi took the moment to study the spirit, watching him as Yami leaned forward again to look over the remaining cards, trying to put together a strategy that they could use.

He had been told as soon as Yami had returned what had happened at the museum, and what they must do. Yugi had been overjoyed that Yami had figured out a small clue about his past, the happiness for his partner smothered at the look on Yami's face. He knew that Tèa and Yami had talked, but only because Tèa had told him that they had. But Yami still wasn't talking. In fact, his report on the tournament and his heritage had been short as well.

Yugi frowned before crawling forward, cupping Yami's cheek and encouraging the spirit to look up. Yami blinked, shocked out of his contemplation, but the shock soon disappeared as he looked up at Yugi. He turned his head to nuzzle Yugi's palm, the two of them remaining like that for a while before Yugi spoke. "Are you alright?"

"Of course, aibou."

"You don't talk to me anymore."

Yami stared at him for a long while before sighing. "I have had a lot on my mind."

"You could always talk to me about it."

"Not for that. That was…something that I had to decide on my own."

Yugi nodded, carefully moving over the cards to curl up by Yami. "So Tèa helped?"

"Yes she did, aibou. But she also told me that she was worried about you."

"Worried?" Yugi raised an eyebrow before laughing. "But I'm fine."

"She knows but…I…your friends all care for you, aibou. They worry about the smallest things." Yugi saw through what he was trying to do, reaching up to pull Yami down against him so he could cuddle with the spirit.

"As do you." He felt Yami shift to look at him, expecting the spirit to say something, but Yami just remained quiet. Yugi frowned and looked up at Yami, wrapping his arms around the spirit. "Yami, talk to me?"

"I am, aibou."

"You know what I mean." Yugi waited for a response, Yami just tensing before pulling Yugi close, burying his face in Yugi's hair. The teenager froze in place, staring at the semi-transparent shirt in front of him, feeling Yami tremble slightly. He relaxed a moment later, sighing and shaking his head as he finally understood what was bothering the spirit. "You're not going to lose me, Yami."

The reply was muffled, but Yami didn't bother to move or repeat it, Yugi shaking his head and slowly peeling Yami from him. There was a moment where Yugi thought that the spirit wouldn't let go, but he did, staring miserably back at Yugi. The teenager smiled and pushed Yami's bangs away from his eyes. "I'll be here as long as you want me."

Yami had closed his eyes, slowly opening them as Yugi's fingers moved away from his eyes. "You say that like there's a limit."

"Isn't there?"

"Not for me."

"Yami-"

"Don't you dare say it, aibou, not to me." He sighed and looked over at the pile of cards that they had put together, resting one hand on it. "You've assembled a powerful deck."

The sudden switch of topic caught Yugi partially off guard, staring up at Yami before glancing down at the deck. "What if it's not good enough to win?"

"There comes a time when there's nothing else to do but believe in the deck you've created." The teenager hated it when Yami did this, switching from some serious topic to the card game, or even replacing what he was going to say with a reference to Duel Monsters. Yugi was still trying to figure out what Yami meant whenever he said heart of the cards, because the teenager was sure that the spirit was using it to say something else when talking to him as opposed to Kaiba or Joey. He sighed and looked up at Yami, watching as the spirit continued to stare at the cards. "Yugi, this tournament is unlike any challenge we've faced before."

"Right." Yugi held back the urge to laugh, but Yami must have heard it in his voice, the spirit looking back up at him.

"The fate of the world depends on us," he held Yugi's gaze, the teenager shifting nervously under the spirit's red eyes, "so you've got to be strong and…"

It was another one of those moments that Yugi was coming to recognize, the moment where Yami would hover on the edge of saying something. Yugi saw the flicker of emotion in Yami's eyes, silently urging him on to say the one thing that was on his mind, glancing down when Yami spoke again. "And trust in your cards."

Whatever was on his mind, the spirit just couldn't bring himself to say it. Yugi swallowed, quickly deciding that it didn't matter to him, reaching out to rest his hand over Yami's. The spirit would find a way to tell him someday, and Yugi was content to wait. After all, Yugi could easily see that Yami cared through his actions.

He looked up at Yami with a smile before glancing back down at the deck of cards, unable to look back up at the spirit as he spoke. He knew what reaction his words were going to get out of Yami, but he had to say them anyway. "But there's just so much we don't know."

Yugi felt the spirit suck in a breath, holding it for a while before letting it out with a sigh. "Our destiny will reveal itself when the time is right. According to Ishizu an ancient evil force will return to threaten the world and you and I must defeat it, by winning Kaiba's Battle City Tournament with this deck." Yami flipped his hand over, intertwining their fingers together. "If you believe in the heart of the cards we can unlock the secrets of the past and save the world."

"Yeah! We can do this!"

"Yes we can." Yami gave a slow nod, seeming to consider something for a while before shaking his head. "But it won't be easy."

"I'm ready to face whoever and whatever we have to." He reached out for the deck, picking it up and putting it on his nightstand, gathering up the extra cards before placing them in a neat pile beside his deck.

"Aibou-"

"Don't you dare, Yami." Yugi turned, pinning Yami to the bed and bracing himself over the spirit. Yami blinked up at him, surprised by the move. The teenager sighed, staring down at the spirit before just laying himself over Yami, trying not to show how odd the sensation felt. It was like balancing carefully on something, Yami not solid enough to feel like he was supporting him. But it did introduce the wonderful feeling of dulled shocks all over his body.

Yugi sighed, letting his head drop to rest on Yami, making sure to keep eye contact as he spoke. "You stood by me and helped me rescue my grandfather from Pegasus and now it's my turn to stand by you. I promise you and I will work together to figure out your past. You already saved the world once five thousand years ago, but there was one difference then."

He felt Yami hum, the sound asking a question. Yugi smiled, carefully watching Yami as he spoke. "You had to do it alone and this time you have me by your side to help you."

Yami stared at him for a while before he smiled; the first genuine smile that the spirit had given in a while crossing his face. "Thank you."

"Anything for you." Yugi pulled himself up Yami's body, feeling the spirit tremble as he came to a stop, his arms braced on either side of Yami's head. He carefully lowered himself to capture Yami's lips, the spirit remaining still under him. He hummed before pulling back, watching the spirit's eyes open slowly and shivering at the lustful look on Yami's face.

They remained looking at each other for a while before Yami sat up as much as he could, resting one hand against the back of Yugi's neck as he kissed the teenager. They moved to press the other close, eventually tumbling back to the bed as they lost their balance, Yami almost falling off one end of the bed as Yugi eagerly continued the kiss, moaning and beginning to rock his hips against his partner's.

He felt Yami's hands slide between them, the spirit reaching for the Millennium Puzzle and taking hold of the golden pyramid, willing them both into Yugi's soul room. Yugi barely paused in his kiss, pressing more of his weight against his partner as Yami tried to get up, not wanting to move away from the spirit. He had allowed Yugi through whatever barrier he had set up with those two words, and Yugi was relieved.

Those thoughts were shoved aside quickly as Yami pushed Yugi off of him, the spirit sitting up before quickly pulling of their jackets and Puzzles. Yugi reached down to fumble with Yami's shirt, working it off as the spirit went for Yugi's collar, immediately leaning forward to place a kiss on Yami's collarbone. He trembled as Yami slipped his hands under his shirt, tugging it upward, but stopped as Yugi refused to unwrap his arms from the spirit. He felt Yami growl in frustration, yelping as the spirit suddenly flipped them over, reaching back to pry Yugi's arms from him before yanking the shirt off.

Yugi squirmed as Yami began to kiss down his chest, shifting so he could push Yami back, rolling them so he was on top again. The spirit blinked up at him, his eyes widening at the implied challenge. Yugi just smirked, throwing his head back with a moan as Yami leaned up to take one of Yugi's nipples into his mouth, sucking on the nub before giving it a nip. Yugi trembled against his partner, locking his elbows as Yami tried to roll them again, looking back down at Yami before shaking his head. "Nope."

"Yugi…" The teenager shuddered at the groan, letting himself fall on top of Yami, dragging himself up the short distance to the spirit's neck to begin to kiss and nip at the skin there.

"My turn to be on top." Yami groaned, Yugi trying to not be distracted by the feel of one of Yami's hands running down his back. He gave a soft growl himself, biting down a bit harder on the skin, smirking at the shiver that Yami gave at the move. "No, Yami. My turn."

"And-" Yami moaned, his hand moving to press against Yugi's lower back, encouraging the teenager to rest more fully against him. "W-what makes you think you can-oh gods, aibou!"

Yugi smiled, removing his hand from Yami's arousal before reaching to undo the spirit's pants, his fingers fumbling over the buckles. With the belts undone, Yugi went for the zipper, Yami taking the moment to roll them both onto their sides, Yugi doing his best to get Yami's pants open without being rolled onto his back. They pushed against each other, fighting for dominance for a moment before Yami pulled Yugi close, finally succeeding in flipping the two over. Yugi groaned as the spirit began to grind against him, panting as he looked down on his partner. "You have to earn that right, aibou."

"I plan to." Yugi went to distract Yami, falling back as the spirit deftly undid the last barrier between them. The spirit pulled Yugi's pants off, taking the boxers under them as well when Yugi lifted his hips. The teenager smiled, using the move to sit up, settling for a messy kiss as Yami fumbled with his own pants, waiting until the leather was on the floor before pushing Yami backwards. The spirit seemed about to catch himself, overbalancing at the last minute and falling. Yugi shifted enough so Yami could straighten out his legs before kissing him again.

They pulled back from the kiss, panting for air as they rested against each other, Yami reinstating their slow movement against each other. Yugi moaned, rocking against Yami, smiling as the spirit let his hands fall to Yugi's hips, helping the motion along. He looked down at his partner, loving the way that Yami tipped his head back with a moan, his grip tightening on Yugi's hips. "Aibou…"

"Yami…please…" Their rocking stopped as they stared at each other, Yugi turning to get the lube that they kept in his soul room, yelping when Yami rolled them over.

"Don't challenge the King of Games, aibou, you will lose." He gave Yugi a kiss on the cheek before pushing away and walking towards the nightstand; Yugi watching from his place on the ground. He lay there for a moment before pushing off from the ground and walking over to Yami.

He pressed himself against his partner's back, feeling Yami tense before relaxing, Yugi trailing a single finger down Yami's side; the spirit shuddering and looking over his shoulder at Yugi with hazy crimson eyes. The teenager smirked before slowly sinking to his knees, taking Yami down with him. He reached forward to take the lube from Yami's limp grasp, reaching up with his other hand to grab both of Yami's wrists, shifting from behind Yami to gently pull Yami's arms forward, the spirit sliding out until he was nearly laying on the ground, still on his knees. Yugi nodded to himself, moving back to kneel behind Yami, slipping one hand underneath the spirit to encourage him to lift his torso slightly from the ground, Yami sending him a confused look before complying, still staring at Yugi as the teenager opened the bottle of lube.

Yugi smiled before squeezing the lube into his palm, rolling his middle and forefinger into the substance, dropping the bottle and slipping one finger into Yami. The spirit arched, a squeak escaping him. Yugi blinked and looked at Yami, moving the finger inside his partner and listening for any other sound that might hint at pain. "Yami?"

"Fine…aibou…" The spirit moaned, leaning back against Yugi's finger. Yugi smiled and took that as the signal to continue, slipping a second finger into Yami. A shiver ran down the spirit's spine, Yami moaning and pushing back against Yugi. "Oh please…"

He got a scream out of Yami as his fingers brushed across Yami's prostate, gently prodding the spot to have the sound repeated before pulling his fingers out, leaning forward to kiss Yami's trembling back. He rubbed the lube over his own erection before sitting up, slowly pushing into Yami. The moved drew a whine out of the spirit, Yugi almost stopping until he felt Yami shift, the spirit drawing his arms slightly more under him so he could brace against them, using the motion to push Yugi the rest of the way into him.

Yugi moaned at the feel of the tight heat surrounding him, Yami's muscles clenching and unclenching around him before the spirit relaxed, the two of them panting for breath. He blinked as he felt Yami's touch against his mind. 'Feels so good, aibou. Please…please…'

He drew back, pulling free from Yami before thrusting back in, drawing a moan out of the spirit, Yami leaning into the motion. They quickly settled into a rhythm, Yugi easily finding Yami's prostate and hitting it with every thrust. He watched as Yami screamed, the spirit more vocal than Yugi would have thought.

The link was flooded with Yami's barely coherent begging and muttering, Yugi enjoying the sound of his partner. He reached under Yami, gently stroking the spirit's erection and getting a long drawn moan that turned into a scream as Yugi hit his prostate again. 'Close aibou. ."

'My Yami.' Yugi leaned forward to kiss Yami's back, moaning against the skin there.

'Yes.'

'My partner.'

'Aibou...AH! Aibou!'

"Almost there." Yugi panted against Yami's skin for a moment before slowly pulling upright, thrusting hard and fast into his partner.

Yami gave a scream, arching up into the thrust, Yugi watching as the spirit shuddered, feeling Yami's walls clamp around him as Yami reached his end, Yugi following him soon after. "Aibou!"

"Yami!"

Yugi slumped against Yami, groaning and pushing back and out of the spirit before falling to the ground, watching Yami collapse as well, the only sound in the room being their panting. Yugi swallowed, smiling as he reaching out to touch the hand nearest to him, watching as one of Yami's eyes slowly opened, the spirit shifting to meet Yugi halfway. He felt Yami brush against his mind, the spirit still recovering, his thoughts still incoherent. The teenager smiled and rolled slightly so he was resting against Yami's side, the two of them unable to move more than that. 'I love you, Yami.'

Yami's eye opened again, staring at Yugi before it closed again, the spirit's breathing slowly evening out as he fell asleep. Yugi smiled, laying still for a few more moments to rest some more before sitting up slowly, gently pushing on Yami to roll the spirit onto his back and away from the mess on the floor. He paused, brushing his fingers over Yami's face before grabbing a pillow and blanket from the bed. He tucked the pillow under Yami's head before draping the blanket over the both of them, snuggling up to Yami as he ran out of energy. 'I love you so much, my partner. Forever.'


Please read and review. Constructive criticism is always welcome.