Thanks for the reviews, guys! So here's number 9, containing a little more kissing, a good deal of sadness, and challenges! Enjoy!

Chapter 9 : Goodnight Moon

She couldn't believe what she had done the day before. For the rest of Tuesday and the whole Wednesday so far she had half regretted and half savored the kiss she had initiated. It had not left her mind once and it had put her into a constant state of despair and rapture. Even her little game with Kaiba hadn't distracted her so far – there hadn't been many occasions of playing it though. She had tried hard to avoid von Schroeder, Kaiba, and most of all Yami altogether.

But now the evening, the time when the real convention would take place, was drawing near. They would all have dinner together – so far they had simply been invited to ask whatever they wanted to eat of the cooks. The poor fellows hadn't expected to deal with Joey. He had nearly driven them crazy.

She stepped out of the room, being fully dressed and ready to join the convention. Well, ready in terms of looks. When it came to her mind she was a mess, confounded at best.

"Miss Wheeler," a cheerful voice called. She turned to find Pegasus walking towards her. She frowned. "Am I late?" she asked. He shook his head. "Oh no, certainly not. You have all the time you want." She tilted her head to the side. Pegasus stepped beside her, looking out the window which was right beside the door to her room. From there he could overlook the planes.

For a moment she looked at the man curiously and for the first time since they had set foot onto American ground it struck her: This was supposed to be the man who had tried to steal her friend's souls and these ominous millennia items she didn't know much about in fact. As far as she knew he had wanted to be able to be with his love again. She shuddered. This whole magic stuff was still very incomprehensible to her, even though Yami was living proof that it existed – or had existed. Geez, the fact that he had shared a body with Yugi was eerie.

However, now that she stood there with this man, this time all alone, she didn't feel apprehensive. In fact, she felt quite comfortable. Right, he had done some things he better shouldn't have, but something told her that he was nothing like that anymore. And, even though he hadn't done it voluntarily, it had been his money that had paid for her eyesight. Earlier, when she had ridden on his horse, he had seemed nothing like the evil man she had been told about so often.

Now was this some evil scheme of his to lure them into another trap?

"Mr. Pegasus?" she asked. He frowned and turned to her curiously.

"How can I help?" he asked politely.

She smiled. "I was wondering," she began, looking out of the window as well, "What this convention is all about." The man looked out of the window again, his youthful face smoothened over. "You see…I figure this is not about holding another tournament. And I cannot bring myself to believe that you are out to do something to us." Pegasus turned to her in surprise and a broad smiled formed on his lips.

"If only you knew how much that means to me, Ms. Wheeler," he said. "That is exactly what it is about," he began to explain, looking very thoughtful, "I have done so many things wrong, starting with Duelist Kingdom. I reckon you are familiar with my story?" She nodded yes. He dropped his shoulders, looking very tired and worn. "And I realized I was wrong to do these things. So I changed my life. I tried to become someone else. Less obsessed with power, if you understand."

She nodded. "That is why you didn't get us here by some fancy means of transportation. And let me guess, you found consolation in buying a nice herd of mustangs," she said, quietly snickering to herself. He watched her attentively.

"I can understand why you are of such importance to your friends," he remarked. She flushed. "You are right. But even though I did change, I felt it was incomplete without letting those who experienced my viciousness first hand know. I fidgeted a lot about this, but finally found this to be the only way."

Serenity gave him a reassuring smile. "I am sure you will succeed. If anything, my brother's friends are not heartless," she said. He frowned, scrutinizing her for a moment.

"You do not consider them your friends?" Quite taken aback by that question she remained silent, just staring into the distance where the herd was gathering slowly.

"I…don't know," she said finally, grinning sheepishly. "When I was with them in Battle City I was…Joey's little sister." She dropped her shoulders. "With some of them I'm not so sure whether that has changed. But you see, like you I havechanged. At some points for the better, at some for the worse." She sighed. "Some realize for sure." A mental image of Yami crossed her mind. Oh yes, he knew for sure she wasn't the baby sister. Kaiba knew as well. He could not be considered Joey's friend though. When it came to the rest, she wasn't so sure.

Pegasus turned to her and placidly put his hands onto her shoulders. "Shall we go now and prove to them how we have changed?" he proposed. She smiled and nodded.

"Yes please, Mr. Pegasus."


This convention was eating his time and getting nowhere in particular. He had expected Pegasus to be hosting another tournament. He had also prepared for Mokuba being kidnapped again. Or maybe both. Neither had happened. With no brother to be rescued, no tournament to be won and that annoying woman around him this was certainly the worst way of wasting time.

When he had asked Pegasus why on earth he was stuck on a remote ranch without so much as wireless internet he had responded, "It is about time you learned what matters in life," with that despicable wink. Who did he think he was to waste his time? He obviously had lost his mind entirely now.

As he was sitting there, hearing the chattering but not listening, he wondered why he had come at all. He traced the steps back to when he had received the invitation. He had thought that it would be nice to spend the time with Serenity. Said woman had had different plans though. Accompanying that German excuse for a businessman von Schroeder that is. His antics were more than unnerving.

He had been angry to see her with that bootlicker at first. But then he had decided that it was only work. It didn't mean anything. She would not come to visit van Schroeder on his birthday and von Schroeder would not send her flowers when she was sick – let alone bring them personally. And even if, why would he care? She had reconciled with her brother, why still bother about her?

Well, he had been at that point before. He had realized that he liked her, only to discard it by convincing himself that he was merely doing this to annoy the mutt. But now that this purpose was gone, he still felt drawn to her. This again could have its roots in what he had seen the day before: Mutou II getting out of her room with that invidious, confident smirk on his face. Usually this could be seen when he was about to win a duel. Much to Kaiba's displeasure he knew it all too well.

Whatever had happened behind that door, it had made Mutou put on his winning smile. Who was he winning over? Kaiba was sure Mutou was winning over him. He could not let that happen. He wouldn't give up so easily.

He stifled a yawn. Instead of sleeping he had worked. He had lined out his plan for Africa. But the jet lag was closing on him slowly but gradually. He let his eyes wander through the rows. Everyone was chattering away as carefree as if this was a convention held by someone who had not tried to steal something from them. Gardner was involved with Valentine and the mutt, dice-boy and Taylor were hitting on Jamelia (much to Kaiba's relief), Mokuba was busy talking to the Mutous, and von Schroeder was discussing something with Pegasus while Serenity was listening – or wasn't she? If she was she certainly wasn't very entertained.

He listened to the conversation to catch up on what it was about. Much to his surprise it was not about business at all. They were discussing which cars are better: American or German ones. No wonder Serenity wasn't interested at all.

"Which would you pick, Ms. Wheeler?" Serenity snapped out of whatever she had been thinking about and looked at Pegasus.

"Excuse me?"

"Which car would you choose? A Shelby GT 500 or a Porsche Turbo?" About to start explaining what type of cars Pegasus was talking about, he found himself quite taken aback when she asked, "At the moment?" It didn't look or sound like she didn't know what they were talking about.

"Yes, presently," Pegasus responded.

"Well," she began, enthusiastically engaging the topic, "I would not hesitate to pick the Shelby." Von Schroeder smirked spitefully.

"Why the Ford?" A just question. The Porsche was faster, had better handling…She shrugged.

"Simply because here in America there are practically no bends. I love the genuine V8 sound a muscle car produces so I would choose the Shelby."

At once Pegasus got up and without a word left the room. Silence fell for a moment, a murmur of surprise going throw the rows. Soon enough they resumed their pointless chattering.

"Maybe I should invite you to Germany to show you how exciting German cars can be," von Schroeder told Serenity lecherously, tracing the line of her neck along the necklace. Kaiba glared at him, which he didn't realize since he was busy staring into her eyes. Serenity flashed a smile and gently stopped him from touching her.

"I don't mean to dismay you, Mr. von Schroeder, but if I ever get the chance to visit Germany I am sure I will have more important things to do than drive around in fancy cars." Something in her tone told him that she was pretty irritated.

Before von Schroeder could say something Pegasus re-entered the room with a bright smile. That guy had some nerve running around smiling all the time. Had the 70's finally caught up with him or what?

He came directly towards Kaiba, holding something in his hand. He threw it at him and Kaiba caught it with his right hand. Examining it he found that it was a key. A car key. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Pegasus taking his seat.

"What is it, Kaiba-boy, don't you want to take Ms. Wheeler for a ride in my Shelby GT?" he asked as if this was the most ordinary thing in the world. Serenity gasped.

"Really?" she asked in excitement. Kaiba frowned.

"Oh yes! I have noticed you two are not enjoying yourselves. You are spoiling my party, so I have to send you away." Serenity grinned and got up.

It seemed like he was not going to be asked in this matter. But it was just as well. He could feel the glare of Mutou II on his back as he got up and made his way towards Serenity, who was already making for the door.

"'Ren!" The exclamation was accompanied by a chair scratching across the wooden floor and footsteps. She stopped and turned, facing her brother. "Are ya sure this is a good idea?" the mutt asked in concern. Who would have thought, he was not forbidding it. She smiled.

"No worries, big brother." The mutt turned to him and tried to glare him down – without much success.

"Don't make a fuss, Wheeler. She'll be fine." Slowly the mutt nodded and retreated to the table.

It was very strange. Everybody was watching them getting out of the room, and no one was protesting. No anecdotes from Gardner about how he was ought not to be an ass, no warning words from Valentine. Von Schroeder didn't say anything against the fact that he was taking away his hostess. Were they all too shocked to speak?

Serenity seemed to think so at least. She grabbed his hand and pulled him with her out of the house. "Let's get out of here before their brains connect with their tongues again," she said and he smirked. That could have come out of his mouth just as well. Had he influenced her? She glanced back and grinned.

"I'm driving!" His mouth dropped open as he found the keys snatched from his hand.

"Hey! That wasn't the way it-"

"You're too tired, Kaiba-boy!" she mocked and then snickered. "You should see your face."


"Now where to?" she asked as they finally reached a real street after driving over Pegasus's estate for quite some time. He shrugged.

"San Francisco I'd say," he mumbled. He was tired and maybe grumpier than he should have been. She smiled and set the car into movement again. He had to admit that she had managed quite well to avoid the bumpiest parts of the road and keep the car steady even with her high heels.

"If you're going to San Francisco…" she began to sing cheerfully. He rolled his eyes. She turned to him. "Come on Kaiba, don't be all grumpy. Don't you like being with me?" She acted hurt. He sighed and sat up, straightening his back.

"I'm just tired." She smiled.

"Fine then, why don't you sleep a little while we drive? The road goes straight ahead all the time and I'll wake you once we arrive wherever destiny intends to let us arrive at." He frowned, processing the sentence for a moment. How could she produce such complex structures at this time of the day?

However, he leaned back again and stared ahead. Serenity stepped on the gas and the V8 came to live like a growling beast, quickly accelerating them. Ahead of them the sky was dark. There was just the straight road, two headlights and the landscape passing by monotonously. The thing was that it was passing by at increasing speed. He glanced at Serenity. She was concentrating on the street. He rubbed his eyes. He didn't feel exactly uncomfortable. All the more he wondered why he had said those words in the first place. Maybe his mind had been too dull to think of the consequences at that moment.

"I'm not surprised your mother had a car crash."

Next thing he felt was the seatbelt preventing him from being thrust into the windshield and the bumpiness of the off road track. All of this accompanied by screeching tires. Then silence. Only the cozy chugging of the warmed up engine. And there was breathing right beside him. He turned his head and looked at the frozen figure of Serenity Wheeler. She was staring blankly ahead, her hands firmly grasping the steering wheel, her breathing heavy.

He let out a deep sigh. "Serenity," he whispered. She didn't stir. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I just said. I don't know what made me say it." Slowly she turned her head to him, swallowing. She was as pale as a ghost, making him shiver involuntarily. With one hitch she pulled her hands off the steering wheel, looking at it in fear. Her hands were shaking.

"You drive on," she brought forth and then got out of the car. He watched her get to his side. She was staggering a little. He opened the door and got out.

"Serenity…" She shook her head.

"Please," her eyes were set and determined, "just drive." Slowly he nodded.

"Back to the ranch?" he asked, half wishing she'd say no. She shook her head.

"Somewhere. Anywhere. Just not back."

"Wow, they do have free refill for Coke here!" Silent. The whole drive she had been silent and looking out of the window like the unhappiest person in the whole wide world. He had really been worried. And now she had nothing better to do than notice that they were refilling her Coke for free. He looked at her as if to say "Stop pretending that everything is all right."

It didn't work. "I've heard about this, but I never believed it was true." He rolled his eyes. People around them were having a close look at them. Well, it didn't happen often that he showed up in such a public place – especially not in America. "Maybe this is why Americans tend to be a little bulkier than the rest of the world." Slightly aghast glances were thrown at him and the petite girl who in fact had every right to call others bulky.

"Serenity," he hissed admonishingly. She looked at him in an aggravated manner for a moment, but then her mien softened and her gaze dropped to her hands.

"Besides, they're like that due to the entire fast food restaurants," he said, feeling quite amused.

She looked up at him and a small smirk developed on her face. "Seto Kaiba, that is a cliché!" she giggled. He grinned. Now everybody knew it was really him. But at least she was laughing.

"Ah, thank you, Kaiba," she said, relaxing.

He shrugged. "Whatever. Can we get out of here now?" She smiled.

"Will you take me for a walk in the park?" He frowned.

"Why would I?" She sighed.

"Geez, you're hopeless. Fine then, I'll go for a walk in the park alone. Suit yourself!"

Obediently he followed her out of the place – this restaurant thing she had dragged him into. As they were strolling along the streets he wondered how she managed to walk in these shoes for such a long time in such an elegant way. The dress was swinging around her calves playfully. She glanced at him.

"Hey, are you staring at my legs?" she asked, slowing down. He raised his eyes to her face and didn't do anything but stare goggle-eyed at her. She smiled.

"You look very tired. Poor Kaiba, and it's all my fault."

She bit her lips and took a look around, searching for something. Finding it she grabbed his hand and pulled him with her, and he followed.

"There, sit down and rest a little," she said. He rolled his eyes and rubbed them.

"I don't need to rest," he muttered. She giggled.

"Don't be ridiculous." He looked up at her and mustered her. One question was lingering on his mind, and now was the time to ask it.

"What did you and Mutou do yesterday?" Taken aback she gazed at him wonderingly.

"What?" He sighed.

"In your room, yesterday. I saw him coming out of it and he seemed all too pleased with himself." She took in a deep breath.

"Are you sure you want to know?" she asked. He raised an eyebrow.

"Would I have asked if I wasn't?" She tilted her head to the side, grinning.

"Good. Get up then." Before he could object he followed the order. It was definitely time for some sleep. His mind was dumb and slow. That's what the mutt must have felt like all the time. He could almost pity him.

She looked up at him. "What?" he asked sharply.

"Oh, nothing," she chirped.

"Will you answer my question now or do you just like making a fool of me?" She giggled.

"Both." She gently put her arms around his neck. All right. What was this going to-

So that was what her lips felt like. Soft, warm, tasting of Coke. He couldn't remember ever having tasted such tasty Coke. Maybe her enthusiasm for free refill was justified after all. As he felt her stroking her fingers through his hair he pulled her close by the small of her back and responded to the kiss. She pulled herself closer.

As realization hit him right in the face he broke the kiss and stepped back, sitting down on the bank again since it had been in his way. She looked at him questioningly, half annoyed.

"That is what you did?" She sighed.

"Yes." He grumbled. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…I just wanted to know." He frowned.

"Wanted to know what?" She rolled her eyes.

"What it feels like to kiss you," she stated.

"So, what does it feel like?" He was sounding monotonous, but inside he was far from feeling that way.

She shrugged. "It felt good," she acknowledged.

"Good? Just good?" He got up furiously. "Was it better than Mutou's kiss?" She shuddered visibly.

"Different," she prompted. He growled. Different! What kind of answer was that? Different was nothing. She could have spat right in his face just as well.

"Kaiba, I can't compare you to him. You two are like fire and ice."

"And I am ice," he said defiantly.

"So? What does it matter? I like ice." He glared at her.

"Why would I care what you like?" he asked coldly. Her mouth dropped open. She was speechless. He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Why do you kiss two men at the same time anyways?" Her eyes widened.

"Because-" He waved his hand, dismissing her.

"Never mind. It won't happen again."

She inhaled sharply. "Good, at least I don't have to choose then. It would have been too difficult anyways." He glowered at her.

"What makes you think you're so important? How come you think I would want you? Don't you think I have better things to do than fool around with you?!" She shrugged, obviously having no adequate answer at hand. Instead she just turned and walked away.


"As far as I know…" she began out of the blue, catching his attention. His mind was wide awake again. No way was he going to sleep anytime soon. "There was a woman driving in her S.U.V. on the other side of the street. She was throwing something out of her window and in the process unknowingly got onto my mother's side of the street. I suppose…" She swallowed, blinking away some tears, "I suppose my mother tried to evade the inevitable and was pushed into the crash barrier. Hers was a small car, not much crumple zone, no airbags. That's how it happened. She was literally crushed."

Slowly he nodded. It was a piece of what she had kept to herself, he could tell by the pained look on her face. He knew what this meant. She was confiding in him. He really seemed to be important to her in some way. He knew he needn't say anything. She understood that he understood. They were fine with the relative silence surrounding them.


"I'm so glad we're getting home," Yugi said as they entered the airport.

"Haven't you enjoyed yourself, Yugi-boy?" Yugi turned to Pegasus.

"Oh I have! It was good to see how you are changing your life." Téa joined Pegasus at the other side.

"Yugi is right! Keep going!" Pegasus laughed.

"I'm glad you say that!"

Yami sighed. He felt somewhat indifferent when it came to his whereabouts. He had enjoyed being in America to the point when Pegasus had sent Kaiba and Serenity away – together. He wished he could have jumped up like Joey and remonstrate. Truth was he had no right to do such things. She didn't belong to him. She had been with Kaiba last night and who knew what had happened.

Ever since he felt restless and wary. He had kept an eye on them, but there had been no signs that they felt very drawn to each other. They had kept their distance. Serenity was altogether very withdrawn; Kaiba was busy telephoning about some business stuff most of the time.

Still it was nagging at him. Even if she stayed away from Kaiba…she was staying away from him as well. She remained by herself most of the time.

Now they were walking through the airport to get to their plane back home. Arriving there he knew he would be warmly welcomed by Merissa and maybe her friends. The thought caused him to be sick. It reminded him of what he was going to do to Merissa. The poor girl. Serenity was right at that point: She didn't deserve to get hurt like that. But how could he help it? There was no on/off button for love.

"Serenity?" It was Tristan. She looked at him questioningly.

"I was wondering whether…" Yami really tried to be a good guy and not eavesdrop on them, but it was so hard.

"No, Tristan," Serenity began to reply to his question, "I'm not really smoking. I was just hoping you'd understand that I'm not the girl I used to be. I apologize though. That wasn't the right way I figure." He still couldn't quite understand what had made her change so much since BattleCity. She had been homely, shy, and barely noticeable. She hadn't been much of a topic for any of them apart from the fact that she was Joey's cherished baby sister.

The more startling it was that she was haunting him now in such a very baby sister unlike manner. He knew if Joey knew in what way he was thinking about Serenity he would certainly try to kill him. He shuddered. It was not only physical attraction though. He wanted to know her better. He just wanted to be around her.

"So, uhm, now that we're friends again…" Tristan said shyly. Friends, Tristan, nothing more, he would make sure of that. "Can I ask you something?" He caught a glimpse of Serenity smiling.

"As long as it isn't about us going out together." He smirked. Good answer.

"What have you done yesterday?" Yami frowned. That was an interesting question. Serenity huffed audibly.

"We were in the outskirts of San Francisco drinking something," she stated.

"That all?" Tristan retorted.

"Is this a trial?" She sounded agitated.

"Well, no, but…I was just worried."

"About what?"

Tristan sighed. "I…"

A sudden firm grip on his arm disrupted Yami's attention. He was pulled away from the others. "Kaiba?" he asked in wonder as he looked at the CEO. He glared down at him icily.

"So we're rivals again." Yami frowned as a feeling of incredulity took a hold of him.

"What?" Kaiba narrowed his eyes.

"You know what I am talking about. Serenity. You've been watching her all along. I want her. You want her. We're rivals again." Slowly, guiltily his eyes diverted to Serenity still talking to Tristan, then back to Kaiba.

"Fine by me," he stated drily. Kaiba smirked.

"And if you think you have any benefits from your kiss I must disappoint you." With that he left.

Yami growled. So they had kissed! He glanced at Serenity, who was glancing back at him nervously. Was that an apologize she was mouthing? He grinned. Why would she apologize to him? After all she didn't want to be with him because he was oh so evil. Satisfied he went on, catching up with Yugi. So Kaiba was his rival again. He wouldn't make it so easy for him.

Nine hours of flight. Finally he had solid ground beneath his feet again. And now he needed sleep. Unfortunately he felt that he wasn't going to get any as he found his girlfriend rushing towards him, her friends following.

"I missed you missed you missed you!" she exclaimed happily, hugging him and kissing him on the cheek. A little reluctantly he hugged her back. She looked at him. "Is something wrong?" she asked on the instant. Why did women have this sense for things going wrong? "Oh, Serenity!" He winced, but luckily Merissa didn't see. She was flinging herself at the girl he was craving for so much.

"Ugh, hey Merissa," Serenity said as she was embraced. She hugged Merissa back and thereby gave him a blaming look. He just smirked. She couldn't possibly blame him. She was the one who had initiated the second kiss. They were even. Evenly attracted to each other.

"Are you coming with us? We have room for one more in the car!" Merissa said. Yami swallowed and was about to intervene but Serenity shook her head.

"I have to go with Mokuba and Kaiba to get my dog. She stayed with the personnel for the time I was away." He narrowed his eyes.

"That's right, she's coming with us!" Mokuba grabbed her and dragged her along as he passed by, not caring about Joey's protests. Kaiba smirked at Yami as he followed the two of them.

He didn't have much time to come up with a plan to compensate for the time Serenity was going to spend with Kaiba. "I thought we could go eat something together!" Merissa chirped, flinging herself at him again. He smiled gently.

"I'm pretty tired to be honest," he stated, for one because it was true, and because he didn't want to spend much time with Candy and Sally. In fact, he wanted to get this over with. Why wait any longer? Merissa smiled.

"Fine then we'll bring Candy and Sally home and then we'll get to your place, all right?" Her girlish friends giggled and Merissa rolled her eyes at them. He sighed inaudibly.

"Fine," he said curtly.

"I'll be seeing you, Yami," Yugi said as he as well passed them by with Téa, Joey, and Mai. He nodded at his friend, who was giving him that look. That 'don't do anything I wouldn't do' look. He pursed his lips in an agitated manner, making them only thin lines.

"Are you sure you're fine?" his girlfriend asked worriedly. He stifled another sigh and mustered a sorry excuse for a smile.

"Sure. As I said, just tired. Let's get going."

What could he do? How could he do it? He mentally roamed through all the movies Yugi had shown him but couldn't find one which provided him with the information for breaking up with a girl. He had no idea how to do this without hurting her too much. Truth be said, he wasn't the most sentimental type of man. That had always been Yugi's part. Sure he had learned a lot from Yugi considering friendship, but when it came to love he had so far relied on the movies. It had worked as well. It had worked for as long as he hadn't gotten involved with Serenity.

But he had and now he had to deal with it. He knew he was risking a lot. As usual Kaiba was a strong rival and he wasn't so sure about being the best in this game of love. If he didn't win he was going to lose Serenity. And he would not be able to return to Merissa. He was going to have broken the poor girl's heart in order to risk his own heart being broken by another. Not the best perspective, but thinking about the red-haired girl just once convinced him that it was a risk worth taking.

"You really need some sleep." He looked at Merissa in surprise. Since they had brought her friends home they hadn't spoken. She flashed a smile. "You look so tired. I guess it's best if I leave once I made sure you've reached your flat safely." He raised an eyebrow. She stopped the car on a free parking space and stopped the engine in a very deliberate manner. She was clearly hoping for him to ask her to stay with him. And she was right to hope. He had let her. His first mistake. He had to break it to her soon.

"Actually…we need to talk about something," he said and she visibly shuddered. He cracked a smile of comfort. "Let's get into the flat where it's warm, shall we?" he offered nicely and she smiled at ease.

She sat down on his sofa, not having spoken since they had left the car. He could feel her eyes on his back as he made for the bedroom to unpack his things. Silently he started doing so, listening to any noise from the living room. He knew Merissa had some kind of premonition. Women just felt such things he supposed. The sound of music filled the apartment. A slow, sad song he didn't know. Considerately he put the things where they belonged.

Letting out a sigh, his heart sinking into his chest painfully, he left the room and joined her on the sofa. He supported himself on his thighs and leaned forward, forming a pyramid with the fingertips of his hands touching each other. He heard her exhaling sharply. "So what did you want to talk about?" she requested with a slightly shaky voice.

He turned to her, searching her face for traces of emotion. She was trying hard not to show any. "I-" he began but the words simply slipped his mind. What could he tell her? That he thought they weren't made for each other? That wasn't quite the truth. She was clenching her fists and her lips were nothing but a thin line. She was fighting back the tears furiously.

Suddenly she turned to him irately. "Just say it already!" she blurted out and his mouth dropped open in perplexity. "I know what you want to say! I knew all along that you'd find out soon enough!" He frowned.

"Find out what?" he brought forth with some effort, having held his breath. The tears started to spill finally and he ached to embrace her and comfort her.

"That I wasn't good enough for you." He froze. What was she thinking?

"That is not true," he stated matter-of-factly.

She sobbed. "Why are you leaving me then?" He let out a deep sigh.

"I fell in love with another woman…" he admitted and it pained him not to say her name. As if she was just someone.

Merissa became pale. The tears ran down her cheeks silently as she tried to understand the situation she was in. "I'm so-" She raised her hand, stopping him.

"Don't say it," she squeaked. "Just don't say you're sorry. Don't-don't apologize," she blubbered out. Slowly he nodded, swallowing down the words.

"Is it final?" she asked after gaining her composure temporarily. He nodded with a sigh. He hated himself for doing this. She got up, shaking.

"Is there anything I can do?" he asked quietly. She shook her head.

"I will get home," she whispered. "Goodbye, Akila…" Again tears began streaming down her face as she stroked across the curious dog's pelt. Akila licked Merissa's tears away and she couldn't suppress a light giggle accompanied by sniffing. He remembered Serenity saying, 'There is no psychiatrist like a puppy licking your face.' It seemed to be true, after all.


Walking along the street with Chio she found someone fumbling at the door of a silver Chevrolet Aveo. It looked like the person was trying to break into the car. She frowned. Against better reason her mouth decided to speak. "Hello? What are you doing?" The person dropped something in shock. As she finally reached the car she realized who it was. "Merissa?!" she asked in surprise. The girl was shaking through and through despite the ultra warm jacket she was wearing. Serenity took a look around. No traces of Yami whatsoever. "What are you doing?" she asked in concern, reaching out for the girl. On the instant she found Merissa embracing her once more that day and she hugged her back. She was crying relentlessly, giving muffled sobs while burying her face in the warm black coat Kaiba had lend Serenity.

Realization overcame her and she almost let go of Merissa as the feeling of guilt shot through her. She was guilty of the situation the poor girl was in. Well, half-guilty, that is. But guilty nonetheless. Instead of letting go she embraced the girl tighter though. It seemed like Merissa didn't know exactly why he had put her into this miserable state and for now Serenity supposed it was best to play possum.

"What were you doing at the car?" she asked and Merissa looked up at her, wiping away some tears.

"I wanted to get home," she sobbed. Serenity shook her head.

"Not in the state you're in," she prohibited. Merissa shook. "You look awful. Do you want to come in and drink a hot chocolate?" The girl sniffed and shook her head.

"No. I wanna get home." Serenity sighed.

"Fine then…I'll take you there. Where are the keys?"

Filled with anger and reproach she harshly knocked at his apartment door. She was still wearing the things she had been wearing in the plane. She felt dirty and tired. All she wanted was to get some sleep, maybe take a shower before that. But no, here she was, standing in front of Yami's apartment, waiting for him to open the freaking door to give him the telling off of his life.

The door was opened slowly, almost timidly. She took in a deep breath, preparing to fling words of anger at him. But facing a run down, red-eyed Yami making the impression of having been left by the love of his life himself just now, made them get stuck in her throat. She closed her mouth and furrowed her brows wonderingly at this sorry sight.

"H-have you been crying?" she brought forth.

"Are you here to give me a lecture? Believe me, I don't need it," he muttered. She tilted her head to the side and crossed her arms.

"I can see that. So why did you break up with her if it hurts you so much?" How could anyone be so stupid?

"Can we discuss this tomorrow?" She narrowed her eyes.

"No, certainly not. I had to drive her home on a dangerously snow-covered road and listen to her crying and I had to lie to her when she asked me whether I knew anything about the other woman you fell in love with. Oh, and then I had to walk home. Don't think I liked it either. You owe me an explanation why I had to go through this."

He stepped aside wearily, offering her to come in. With a huff she stepped past him and went into the living room, not sitting down anywhere due to her wet clothing. He, however, did sit down on the sofa. She looked at him questioningly.

"Just because I broke up with her it doesn't mean that she wasn't…isn't dear to me. I hate hurting people. I wish there had been another way…"

She sighed. "There would have been," she stated and he looked at her in wonder. She rolled her eyes. "Not breaking up. I don't know why you had to do it anyways." He frowned. "Of course you do," he protested. She moaned. "I'm not that great. You'll wish for Merissa soon enough. After all I'm kissing other guys as well," she stated defiantly. He cringed, but then cracked a sorry smile.

"I don't care," he said huskily. She hit her hand against her forehead.

"I really don't know who planted these funny ideas into your heads. By the way, I know you two are making a challenge out of this and let me tell you neither of you will get a reward for doing this without even considering asking me of my opinion."

She had had to get rid of this. She had also told Kaiba in a not so nice manner – which had caused her to end up walking the rest of the way home once again because she couldn't have stood his retort. Luckily Kaiba had been gentleman enough to give her the now tear stained coat.

Seeing Yami in this miserable state made her feel sorry though. Once again she decided to act against better reason. She took off the coat and abandoned it on a nearby chair. Slowly she went to the sofa and sat down beside him – with some distance.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. You should get some sleep now, really, you look like crap," she told him with a meek smile. He chuckled a little. "By the way…" she stifled a yawn, "I think I could drop dead now as well."

He mustered her with his tired eyes for a moment. She knew that look. Quickly she got up, holding her hands up in front of her in defense. "Don't even think about it! It's way to go before I will even consider sleeping in the same apartment as you do," she stated and he grinned. Ah, that grin. Despite the miserable state he was in it still had its alluring effect on her. She swallowed. It was time to get cracking. "Have a good night," she whispered, grabbing the coat.

"Good night," she heard him say as she made for the door, and was there a hint of self-importance in his voice?