Author's Note: This takes place in episode 101 and the title is from the song Forgiven by Within Temptation.

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

Love You So it Hurts My Soul

The wall of smoke dissipated, the brown furry ball that had been the cause of some of the smoke looking extremely proud of itself. Yami carefully looked over the arm he had thrown up to protect his face, realizing that he was no longer in control of their body. He glanced around, staring at Yugi as his partner stood at the ready, speaking to Gansley. "My deck master saved me. Thanks to Kuriboh's special ability he formed a protective wall."

'Yugi, why have you taken over for me?' He smiled as Yugi reached back to brush against his mind in return, the loving caress making him sigh and relax. Only Yugi could do that with simply a touch. He leaned against the touch, hearing Yugi laugh mentally before repeating the action. 'You're like a dog, Yami.'

'I resent that.'

'I could stop.'

'Oh don't you dare, aibou.' Yami moaned, slowly opening his eyes to look at Yugi. He smirked as he saw his partner waver. For a moment, Yugi's eyes began to darken with lust before the teenager shook his head, pulling himself back to the moment, Yami a bit disappointed by that. They hadn't really gotten a chance to be together since their first night on the blimp, the insanity that came with Marik's duels and his own injury preventing much of anything; although he loved those quiet moments that he spent with Yugi. And Yami wanted to spend as much time as he could with Yugi, he could feel the time they had left ticking down at a speed that scared him.

The semi-finals and finals of Battle City loomed before them, this strange place just a distraction. And he wished that the distraction would last longer. The longer he stayed away from the finals, he longer he could stay with Yugi. As soon as the three god cards were in his hands, he was as good as gone. He had to shield his thoughts from Yugi, not wanting the teenager to feel the surge of distress from his end of the link. Yugi had other things to worry about, the worries of a five thousand year old dead pharaoh shouldn't have to be one of them. But, by the gods, it was going to hurt when he had to leave.

He winced at that. He didn't want to go, everything in him was telling him to stay here. He had existed so long as a spirit in the Millennium Puzzle that the fact that he was basically imprisoned didn't bother him any longer. Whatever the afterlife offered, he doubted it could compare to living with Yugi. What was he going to do if he couldn't hold Yugi anymore? Yami dropped his gaze to the ground, trying to remind himself that it wasn't how it was supposed to be. Yugi had freed him so he could return to where he belonged and take the Shadow Realm with him. What his heart said was wrong, so completely and utterly wrong and…

'Oh, Yugi. What have you done to me?'

The thought was shielded, so it was a fluke that Yugi looked over his shoulder at him with a bright smile, Yami walking closer to Yugi. He could never resist the teenager, never resist the brilliance that was Yugi. He wrapped his arms around Yugi, holding him close as Yugi spoke into his mind, resisting the urge to push at the barriers between them until they were one mind. With everything that was rushing through his mind, it was better to stay apart. Besides, he had to get used to the fact that he wouldn't be able to do that anymore. He had to get used to the fact that he was going to have to leave Yugi behind.

'I just figured you could use a rest. You know, to recover from all those direct attacks. One more blast could have destroyed you… so I jumped in.' There was a slight hesitation, Yami squeezing Yugi tightly at that. The teenager was still struggling with his fear of Marik and what he would do to them. The nightmares leaked over into his mind at times, Yami running to save Yugi from them. The nightmares scared him to; they were too close to the mark. It would be just like Marik to make him watch as Yugi died, the very idea making his stomach twist.

'Thank you. You're very brave.' He felt Yugi suddenly go still, a sure sign that the teenager was blushing. Yami chuckled against Yugi's neck.

'D-don't thank me. You should thank Kuriboh. Without his special ability we both would have been finished by now.'

'That's true. Some things are more powerful than they first appear.'

'You can say that again! Kuriboh turned out to be the most valuable monster on our side of the field.' Yami shook his head, almost laughing as Yugi missed his meaning. Of course Yugi would miss it, he was too modest for that. Yami sighed, feeling Yugi shiver at the puff of air along his neck. 'So getting him as our deck master wasn't just some trick that Gansley played on us in order to win.'

He nodded, looking up at their opponent across the field, the man who wanted to steal their body. His grip tightened on Yugi for a moment before he forced himself to loosen it. While he wasn't sure that Yugi's body would accept another owner, he was a special case himself, he still wouldn't give Gansley the chance. He would fight until he was cast away into nothing to keep Yugi safe.

There was a brush against his mind, Yugi's way of asking he was alright, Yami turning to nuzzle Yugi's neck, watching Gansley out of the corner of his eye as he spoke. 'No, you're right. It was the heart of the cards that guided Kuriboh to us.'

Yugi smiled at him, Yami letting go of him carefully. The teenager turned to go back to the duel, swaying in place before his eyes rolled back into his head. Yami lunged forward. "Aibou!"

He took control of the body, catching Yugi before he fell to the ground. He held him close, feeling the strain on Yugi's mind now that the teenager's shields had lowered with unconsciousness. Yami sighed with relief, wrapping an arm around Yugi's waist to keep him steady. Yugi moaned softly, Yami glancing down at his partner. 'This duel has affected you too! Let me finish this.'

There was no response from Yugi, his partner too exhausted to speak. He shook his head, releasing his hold on Yugi and watching the spirit form of the teenager fade away. Yugi needed the rest more than he did. He could catch a nap between duels and at odd times, Yugi still had to appear that he was functioning normally. Anything to make Yugi not seem like he was weak or prey, then Marik would be sure to get him.

Images from the nightmares that were Yugi had ran through his mind, Yami shaking his head to try and rid the image of Yugi bleeding slowly to death from his mind. It didn't help that his own nightmares ran along the same vein, the villains more varied and more frightening. The most frightening the one where he ended up killing Yugi while trying to protect him. He trembled at the memory, wanting to banish the memory of that like he had banished the others. Then he would have an excuse not to look for his memories, the terrors that would haunt him enough to keep him away.

And he was doing it again, convincing himself to stay. He had already made up his mind about this and he would stick to it. They already had faced Pegasus and Bakura, now it was Marik trying to kill them. How long would he try to convince himself that Yugi was better off with him when he knew that all of these people were only after Yugi because of the Puzzle? He could protect Yugi from all of those villains, but he could end it if he just went away. He shivered at that, wanting to pretend that he hadn't come to that conclusion, but he forced himself to face it. Yugi would be safe if he went away; the person who meant more to him than himself would be safe.

He hung his head, admitting defeat. He would still try to convince himself that it would be best for him to stay, sure that Tèa would keep trying to convince him to stay. But she didn't want to see Yugi heartbroken. Maybe after this he could get her completely on his side. Until then, he was on his own. He would cherish every moment that he got with his partner, carefully preserving them so that, no matter what, he would remember them when he was gone.

Yami slowly looked up from the ground, glaring at Gansley as he channeled his energy into the duel. "Alright Gansley, this duel's not done!"

Please read and review. Constructive criticism is always welcome.