Ranko: Wow, I a lot of people are mad at me for killing off Ryou.

Yuugi: (crying) You deserve it!

Ranko: Woah, calm down! Blame L.J. Smith, not me! I was just following the story. But one review did make me laugh, they said I should have killed Honda…probably should have.

Yami: Well, you still have reviews to answer.

Ranko: (looks at list) Lets see…

hikari no senshi17: I'M SORRY! I was sad too! Ryou's nightmare would definitely be my nightmare. I can't imagine dying a death like that. Screaming for help as you're slowly being dragged under, losing sight of the light and the only thing you can feel is the crushing of your windpipe and the cold bugs climbing all over you…(depressed) What was I talking about again? Anyway, thanks for the suggestion!

Inspiration's Wonderer: Thank you…WAH! I'm sorry! I can't bring Ryou back! (hands you a tissue). Don't worry about Bakura though, I won't go too hard on him.

AnimexXxGoddess: I now I'm evil, I'm still working on my maniacal laugh though. I know, Ryou is just so tiny and innocent and scared, it was hard for me to write Ryou dying. I can't stand bugs! Ah! Hate them, and big roaches like that? No way! You don't have to worry about not knowing what the Forbidden Game books are, they are not related to Yu-Gi-Oh in any way, it's just my favorite trilogy and I wanted to do a crossover of YGO and the Forbidden Games. Thanks for the review!

Just A Chess Piece: HA-HA! Yes! Now my ego is roughly ¼ the size of Seto Kaiba's, and that's saying something. Thanks for the review and the kind words. The Forbidden Game books aren't scary at all. Yami thinks the books are good, and if Yami likes it then that's a good sign! Right? I know, I hate Ryou's nightmare too. Ah! Hate bugs! Ha! Take that Yami! (Yami: Now look what you've done, you've given her a big head…thanks a lot.)

Dinogirl: Thanks for the suggestion, I think you'll like this chapter!

Yami: Yuugi's still upset so I'll do the disclaimer. Ranko twin basically owns nothing except her laptop and some of the ideas in this story.

Ranko: (receiving death glare from Yuugi) Enjoy?

-/-

"What's taking them so long?" Malik said.

Anzu, Mai, Seto, and Honda had gone off to see if they could find Bakura, or a blanket or water—or anything really—for Yuugi.

Yuugi was in pretty bad shape. He was slumped against the wall opposite of the door to Ryou's nightmare—or, where the door used to be. He just stared at his reflection with an empty look in his eyes. He half expected to see Ryou suddenly appear, his hair tousled and brown eyes wide. He would laugh and say, "Sorry I took so long", because he always put others before himself.

Ryou would come walking out of that mirror any second now. Any second…

Nothing.

Yuugi hid face in his knees and pulled his legs closer to his chest.

Yuugi met Ryou in kindergarten; they were both the shy type and didn't have any friends. Ryou would always get picked on a little more than Yuugi because of his feminine features and Yuugi would always take care of the boy. An instant friendship was born and ever since then they had always been there for each other.

But Yuugi blew it. He let Ryou down. He didn't protect him. Yuugi should have been the one to die in that room, not Ryou. It was all his fault.

Malik looked at Yuugi who was curled up against the wall. He had barely spoken two words since they came back from Ryou's nightmare and he was starting to worry for the boy. But…Malik looked down the hall where their friends disappeared. They have been gone a long time, maybe he should look for them. He looked uncertainly at Yuugi and sighed.

"I'm going to go look for them, they've been gone too long and they might be in trouble." Malik looked down at Yuugi again; he didn't move an inch, like he hadn't even heard him. Malik crouched down in front of Yuugi. "I want you to stay here. Promise me you will not move," Malik said slowly and clearly, as if talking to a child.

Yuugi barely moved his head up and down.

'Good enough,' Malik thought. He stood up and said, "Okay, I'll be back in a minute." He then took off down the hall that their friends had walking down.

Yuugi had barely heard Malik; pictures and images flashed in his mind, like he was looking through a photo album.

Ryou when he was still in kindergarten, in his cute, little uniform. Ryou going into middle school with Yuugi, his hair down his shoulders now. Ryou on his first day of high school. Ryou meeting Bakura for the first time. Ryou complaining about Bakura for the first time. Ryou with the happy twinkle in his eyes when he started dating Bakura. Ryou blushing like mad after he had his first kiss with Bakura. Ryou happy. Ryou sad. Ryou sleepy. Ryou thinking. Ryou in the early morning sunlight. Ryou laughing and smiling.

Ryou crying for help with tears in his eyes.

Yuugi clenched his fists. "Ryou," he whimpered.

Ryou was a good person; he didn't have a mean bone in his body. He didn't deserve to die in his nightmare. He deserved happiness. He deserved the entire world. Yuugi's head snapped up and fresh tears filled his eyes. Oh God, what about Bakura? How would he feel when he found out Ryou have died?

They had plans! They were going to get married, they were going to travel the world together and be happy! What about their fairytale plan? Bakura would stay in Domino for a year and wait for Ryou to finish high school. They were going to live together, Bakura was going to get a job.

Ryou got a letter in the mail just last week; the college he had always dreamed of going to was giving him a full four year ride. Bakura and Ryou were supposed to be happy, damn it!

Yuugi had to fix this, and he knew exactly how to do it.

He stood up and started to wonder the hall of mirrors, his anxious eyes staring back at him every time he looked around a corner. He didn't listen to Malik, but right now, he didn't care.

"Yami!" Yuugi called at the top of his lungs. He stopped in his tracks in the middle of a random hall, he didn't even know where he was anymore. "Yami, come out! I have to talk to you!"

"So," a soft voice spoke up behind him. "Did you miss me?"

Yuugi turned around and looked at Yami. He nearly lost it right there. Yami was standing there, with his arms crossed over his chest, looking as beautiful as ever…and without a speck of dirt on him.

Yuugi couldn't get the image of Ryou's frightened face out of his mind. His eyes pleading for Yuugi to help him. His terrified screams filling his ears, slowly fading. Ryou sinking into the garbage.

Yuugi clenched his jaw and glared at Yami. "Give him back," he growled out.

Yami raised a surprised eyebrow and placed his hands on his hips. "Why would I do that? I warned you didn't I? That someone would make it? I told you, didn't I?"

Yuugi took in a shuddering breath and released it slowly. He tried to keep his anger in check but with that indifferent look on Yami's face, it was hard. "Please, give. Him. Back."

A tenderness touched Yami's eyes. "I can't do that Yuugi, I wish I could but I—" Yami was quickly cut off when Yuugi leaped forward and pressed their lips firmly together.

Yuugi had to stand on the tip of his toes to be at the same height as Yami. He cupped the taller boy's face in his hands and pressed his lips more harshly together. Yami just stood there, motionless. His eyes were wide and unbelieving, his hand hovering awkwardly above Yuugi waist.

Yuugi noticed this and took Yami's arms and wrapped them around his waist. Yami sighed into the kiss and closed his eyes in pure bliss, turning his head to deepen the kiss. He pulled their bodies closer together.

They stayed like this for a while, until Yuugi's lungs began to burn. He needed air. Yuugi pulled away, still in Yami's arms. They rested their foreheads together, their breaths intermingling as they both sucked in air. Both of their faces were flushed and Yami's ruby eyes were twinkling with happiness. Yuugi had never seen that look in Yami's eyes.

Yuugi bit his swollen lip and closed his eyes, not able to face Yami's loving gaze. Yuugi took in a deep breath, preparing himself for what he was about to do. He pushed away from Yami, he immediately felt cold. Yami's eyes widened in surprise, his still open arms empty.

"I've given you your kiss," Yuugi said quietly. "Now bring Ryou back and send him home."

Yami stared in complete shock for a moment. Then he dropped his arms and shook his head sadly. Yuugi felt his eyes burn with tears at Yami's dejected expression. He looked so defenseless and so human. Yuugi put a hand over his mouth to keep from crying.

"I'm sorry, Yuugi, I can't bring him back to life and I can't send him home," Yami replied sadly.

Yuugi's head snapped up. "But you said—!"

Yami shook his head. "I can't rescind any offer that's been rejected, I'm sorry." And by the tone of Yami's voice, Yuugi could tell that he truly meant it. Yuugi felt his heart break in his chest. "I want to give him back to you, Yuugi, but…I just can't."

"It's not like you can just keep him here forever!" Yuugi cried in outrage.

Yami smiled. "You're right, I can't."

An image appeared in the mirror wall beside Yuugi. Yuugi gasped—it was Ryou! He was curled up in a ball, dressed in all white, trapped in a glass bubble that was suspended in air. It was like looking at something through a display case. Yuugi rushed to the wall and started banging on it.

"Ryou! Ryou!" he called, but the boy would not wake up.

Yami came up behind Yuugi. "He can't hear you, he's not even in the house anymore. He's in another world, sleeping and dreaming good dreams. After that ordeal, he's probably very tired."

"How—?" Yuugi asked, never looking away from his friend.

"This universe is strange. You feel things here, you get hurt here, but you do not die. You can die in this world but you do not die, you simply move on to another realm. It's quite strange really. Usually you move world to world at random, but I made sure that Ryou would be taken care of," Yami said sweetly.

"So, he's still alive somewhere?" Yuugi asked hopefully.

Yami nodded. "Yes, if you can win the Game that is."

"I plan to," Yuugi said with a new determination.

Yami chuckled. "Good luck with that. Oh, and Yuugi, thanks for the kiss." Yami winked and then disappeared before Yuugi could yell at him.

But Yuugi noticed that Yami left a door on the opposite wall. It was oak and stood out in the clear, mirror hall. Yuugi looked up and down the hall, expecting someone to pop out and yell, "Surprise!" He couldn't tell if this was a trap, or a door to a nightmare. He knew that he couldn't stand out in the hall forever, so, throwing caution to the wind, he grasped the doorknob and opened the door.

On the other side, it was completely black. Yuugi immediately knew something was wrong, but he couldn't just leave. So he set his tiny shoulders back squarely and stepped blindly into the dark. When the door slammed shut behind him, he couldn't see anything. He could even see his hand if he held it right in front of his face.

Yuugi couldn't tell if this was a room with many other things in it or it if was truly of a room made up of darkness. Yuugi wondered around with his hands out in front of him to feel for anything and every time he took a step he made sure that there was solid ground to step on.

He didn't know how long he was walking around aimlessly but he suddenly saw a light. A tiny little flicker of a light. Like a lone firefly in a night with no moon or stars. Yuugi knew it could possibly be a trap, but what did he have to lose?

Instead of a trap or a psychotic killer with a knife, Yuugi found a security panel. It was something that one would see in the security room in a mall, broadcasting different areas and sections of the mall so security guards would know when trouble arose. This security panel was the same, except it was broadcasting different areas of the house.

One of the screens showed the hall of mirrors and another showed the foyer. One of the cameras was recording Yuugi's group of friends. Malik had caught up with the rest of them and now they were looking for Yuugi or Bakura. One of the screens was playing and rewinding a certain event, as if the system had gotten stuck and was now repeating it over and over again.

It was Ryou's nightmare…when he died.

Yuugi saw himself in the picture, he was reaching out for Ryou, stretching out his arm so far to the point of pain. A giant cockroach climbed up his back and that was when Mai came on and knocked it off. Why did Yuugi not remember that? Mai grabbed Yuugi around the waist and he started thrashing. The video was silent but Yuugi could still hear himself screaming Ryou's name.

Then he saw it.

The exact moment Ryou died.

Yuugi was so caught up in the moment that he didn't even really see how Ryou died.

It looked like he was crying out for Yuugi, but then one of those mutant bugs crawled up his front and covered his face with its huge belly, silencing Ryou's screams. The mold was howling and giant moths were flying around Ryou. Like an army of ants collectively picking up a crumb, a swarm of mutant bugs picked Ryou up and dragged him into a collection of mold and garbage.

The video repeated itself.

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Yuugi didn't know how long he stood there and just watched that terrible moment in horrified fascination over and over again.

Then Yuugi felt a hand rest on his shoulder. Yuugi nearly jumped ten feet in the air and he swiveled around and came face to face with the owner of the hand.

Bakura.

Yuugi gasped and felt fresh tears pool in his eyes. He looked over his shoulder at the video that was still playing and then back towards the white haired boy. "Bakura…"

Bakura wasn't looking at Yuugi, he was looking over Yuugi, at the screen that was replaying Ryou's death. "It's funny…no matter how many times you watch something, it never loses its meaning. If you repeat a word over and over with pause, it just becomes a word with no meaning. But if you watch the Titanic, you still cry, no matter how many times you watch it."

"I'm so sorr—" Yuugi began.

"I found the exit to my nightmare a while ago, but…I waited for you, Yuugi. I knew you would come. I watched you after Ryou died." Yuugi's mouth dropped open and then it quickly snapped shut again when Bakura firmly took both of Yuugi's shoulders and started to shake him violently. "Why didn't you save him, Yuugi?" Bakura cried. "You were right there! You could have saved him! You let him DIE!"

Tears rolled down Yuugi's round cheeks and he dropped his head in shame. "I know, I know. I'm so sorry. It's all my fault. It should have been me." Bakura's grip loosened and Yuugi fell to his knees, hiding his face and his friends and started to weep, repeating those words.

Bakura sniffled; Yuugi looked up in surprise and saw tears coming from Bakura's eyes as well. Bakura never cried and when he did…Ryou was the only one who saw his tears. Bakura's whole body was shaking and it took great difficulty to lower to his knees beside Yuugi.

He awkwardly patted the smaller boy's shoulder. "H-hey, don't say that. I-it's not y-your fault. I-I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Bakura bowed his head and his shoulders started shaking from restrained sobs. "I'm sorry, Ryou, I couldn't protect you. I promised…" Bakura started crying again.

Yuugi bit his bottom lip to keep from whimpering and threw his arms around Bakura in a tight embrace. Bakura hugged Yuugi back and cried into his tiny shoulder, muttering broken "I'm sorry"s and "I promised".

Once Bakura had calmed down, Yuugi helped him up and they both walked towards the door leading out of Bakura's nightmare. It was a small rectangle of light and Yuugi was nearly blinded after being in the dark so long. They were back in the hall of mirrors, their group of friends were no where in sight.

Yuugi realized what a mess he and Bakura were. Their eyes were red and puffy, and their clothes were wrinkled. Yuugi had dry tear trails over dry tear trails; his face was greasy and grimy, and Bakura wasn't any better.

Bakura tried to comb back his wild hair with his fingers but it just fell back into place. He dug into his front pocket and produced two different colored crayons. Yuugi stared wide eyed at him. "Where…?"

Bakura shrugged. "I was just going to borrow them. We should probably separate to make the search easier. Now take your pick, red or blue? We'll mark a trail so we can tell if we've passed an area before."

Yuugi was a bit hesitant about separating but knew it was for the best at this point of the game. He chose blue and made a pale, waxy streak on the nearest wall. "Great, I'll go this way and you can go that way. Whoever finds our friends first will just follow the trail back to one of us.

Bakura simply nodded and started to walk in the opposite direction, making a line of his own. No goodbye or anything.

Yuugi sighed and began to continue his line down the hall of mirrors. He followed every corner and curve, always keeping his right arm extended outward to make a line as he walked. The hall seemed infinite and deserted. It gave Yuugi an eerie feeling. It showed no variations or any sign of stopping.

That is, until he came to the end.

It was a simple, gray concrete wall. Smooth as marble with no bulbs nor buttons.

Yuugi would be lying if he said it didn't scare him.

And in front of the wall, sitting on the floor, was a tiny slip of paper. That scared Yuugi too. He walked over to it and bent to up the blank, rectangular paper. Everyone else had had their nightmare, and Jounouchi was at the top, so that only left Yuugi.

"Need any help?" Yami asked from behind him.

Yuugi looked over his shoulder and saw Yami leaning against the opposite wall in a form fitting leather outfit that was sexy as hell. Yuugi felt his heart skip a beat and his face heat up with a blush. He quickly turned his head back around and looked at the blank wall. "Will you leave me alone? I'm trying to figure something out."

"I'm glad to help. I know a lot about you. I've watched you for years now; hour after hour, day after day."

Yuugi stiffened at this.

Yami had watched him for hours on end. When he thought he was alone, Yami was there? Watching him? During his most private moments, had he been there? It was a strange thing to think about. It was a strange sort of intimacy that Yuugi…didn't want.

Yami seemed to send Yuugi's emotions; he smiled tenderly and said, "I love you, Yuugi. I think everything you do is marvelous. Even after you just roll out of bed and your hair is a mess and your skin has indentions from where you slept, you are still the most beautiful human being I have ever seen walk this earth."

Yuugi felt his breath catch in his throat and his lungs burned. Yuugi tried to form words but nothing came out.

Yami continued, "Didn't you always know I was there?"

"O-of course not!" Yuugi answered almost immediately.

But they both knew that was a lie. Yuugi had felt a strange presence before when he was alone in the game shop at night and grandpa was out of town. He could feel that sensation of being watched at times. Those times when he woke up in the middle of the night and swore he felt someone watching him. There was sometimes a silhouette standing over him, blacker than darkness, but when he blinked or turned on a light, it was gone.

Yuugi narrowed his wide, amethyst eyes. "I hate you."

Yami smirked. "As that any way to treat someone who is trying to help you? That's your nightmare, Yuugi," Yami said, nodding towards the blank wall. "But how are you going to get into it? How are you going to face it? How are you going to win the Game?"

'He wants you to panic. He wants to scare you,' Yuugi chanted in his mind like a mantra.

He had said from the beginning that he would win this Game without Yami's help, and that's what he was going to do.

Yuugi smiled suddenly and held up the blue crayon. "I'll use this." He flattened the small piece of paper against the wall and tried to draw carefully, trying to keep his hand from shaking too bad.

Yami's eyelids drooped with amusement. "You don't even remember…"

"I know enough," Yuugi replied smartly. "I know that it all started with a door."

Yami's eyes widened as he stared at Yuugi drawing a rectangular door with a small circle to the right for the handle. Yuugi felt triumph completely fill his being when he saw the look on Yami's face. He thought he won, he thought he held the trump card. Yami was sadly mistaken. He forgot that he was messing with the King of Games.

When Yuugi was done, a door replaced the blank concrete wall, and when he turned back around, Yami was gone. 'Good,' Yuugi thought.

He grasped the doorknob and took in calming breaths. This was it, he was going to face his nightmare.

Before Yuugi could chicken out, he twisted the handled and threw open the door to his nightmare, walking in.

The door slammed shut behind him and disappeared.

Yuugi's eyes widened as he took in the room around him. He remembered this room, he had only been in it once but it was hard to forget.

He was in his parents' basement.

-/-

Ranko: Now things are going to get interesting!

Yami: What took you so long?

Ranko: School is starting and I've been busy! I think I'm gonna have to update this story at least once a week now, so I don't stress myself. I already have enough homework as it is.

Yuugi:…I kissed Yami.

Ranko: Yes, you did.

Yami: I think that was the only good thing in this chapter.

Ranko: Yeah, I don't like this chapter too much. It goes kinda slow and I'm sure that Bakura's nightmare was unexpected. Hope I didn't disappoint!

Yuugi: I kissed Yami…I kissed…

Yami: Just review.