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Chapter Thirteen

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There isn't exactly a perfect venue when you're about to battle your closest friend. No matter where it would take place, Joey was going to hate it. He would despise that place for the rest of his life.

Yugi and Joey had set out together in silence. Neither said a word to each other. Joey was afraid to speak. He wasn't sure what he would say to Yugi even if he wanted to. Yugi, on the other hand, was merely trying to come up with the perfect intimidation tactic.

They were near Domino High School. Joey blinked back tears as memories floated into his head. The most painful were those that had taken place two years ago, shortly after Atem had left them.

*Flashback*

Joey walked into the classroom with a fake grin plastered on his face. He had to be strong for his friends. He knew they were hurting after all that they had been through, and he would do his best to get them through it.

He took his spot next to Tristan and relaxed. Téa hid her face from him, but he could tell that she was crying again. They had all had a difficult time coping with the loss of their close friend, Atem.

"Where's Yuge?" Joey asked Tristan quietly. Téa flinched at the sound of Yugi's name.

"No idea, man. I haven't heard a thing from him since we came back from the airport," Tristan whispered behind his hand.

"Hey! No talking!" The teacher scolded impatiently.

"Sorry sir," Joey apologized half-heartedly.

Class seemed to drag on for hours. They were forced to work silently on their assignment. It was difficult for Joey because he wanted nothing more than to talk about his missing friend.

"Ah, Mr. Mutou, how nice of you to join us," the teacher said sarcastically.

Joey's head snapped up. His eyes locked onto the short teen as he made his way to his normal seat. Yugi's expression was indescribable.

"Hey…Yuge, where you been?"

Yugi didn't respond. He sat down and stared blankly ahead.

Téa sniffed and reached out to Yugi. She touched him lightly on the shoulder, causing the small boy to jump slightly. He glanced at her over his shoulder.

"Yugi…are you alright?"

Joey frowned. Yugi's eyes weren't youthful and innocent looking anymore. They looked hard, cold. He didn't look like the Yugi he knew.

"I'm fine."

His voice was hoarse. It was apparent in his tone that he had done quite a bit of crying and screaming.

"You don't seem fine, man," Tristan whispered concernedly.

"No talking Mr. Taylor!"

Tristan rolled his eyes and continued to watch Yugi. Yugi stared back at him, his eyes blank.

The bell rang. It was free period. The teacher sighed in relief and stood up. He quickly exited the room and left the students to do as they pleased.

"Yuge, talk to me, pal!"

Yugi looked at Joey. A smile flickered across his face briefly and then vanished. "About what?"

"…Anything, just tell me that you're okay."

Yugi looked down. The youthfulness returned to his face, but it wasn't happy. He looked genuinely heartbroken. "I can't do that."

Joey frowned again. He reached out to Yugi, but the small teen flinched away from his hand. Joey stared at Yugi in surprise.

"Don't touch me."

Joey retracted his hand and sighed. "Just, let me help you through this…we can all help you."

Yugi stood up. "I don't need your help!"

Joey gaped at him. "Please, Yuge…"

Yugi shook his head and glared at the blonde. "No, leave me alone. I don't need you."

With that, Yugi bolted from the classroom. He didn't seem to care that school was still going on. He didn't seem to care that he would probably earn detention for leaving. He didn't seem to care that each of his friends were shedding brand new tears.

*End Flashback*

"You're a fool."

Joey snapped out of his memories and looked at Yugi out of the corner of his eye. "Oh really? Why's that?"

"Think about it. How could you possibly defeat me? You're practically handing your soul over to me on a silver platter."

Joey smirked. "Don't overestimate yourself, Yuge."

"Think about your sister."

Joey stopped dead in his tracks. Yugi turned to face his friend with an elated expression on his face. If Joey didn't know why his former friend was so happy, he would have been relieved to see him that way again.

"Leave Serenity out of this," Joey hissed.

Yugi shook his head. "You'll be leaving her all alone in this world. How selfish of you…"

"Shut up!" Joey screamed angrily.

Yugi laughed. "Did I touch a nerve?" He shook his head. "Maybe I'll pay her a little visit once we're through here."

Joey was absolutely livid. He activated his Duel Disk and threw his deck into its slot. "That's it! We're doing this, right here, right now!"

Yugi mimicked his movements in activating his own Duel Disk. "Have you forgotten that I have the Egyptian Gods?"

Joey sneered. "It doesn't matter, I'll defeat you anyway! You proved that you can beat the gods, and I plan to do the same!"

Yugi scoffed. "You can try."

"Stop this while you still can."

Yugi gritted his teeth. "No, leave me be," he whispered icily to the voice in his head.

"You can trap your friends, but you cannot get rid of me. I am a part of you."

Yugi dug his foot into the gravel on the street. "I want no part of you!" He growled.

"You don't have a choice. I'll always be with you, aibou."

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" He screamed.

Joey stared at Yugi incredulously. "What is wrong with you?"

Yugi glared at the blonde. "Shut up! There's nothing wrong with me!"

"I beg to differ. Everything is wrong about you."

"Give me some peace!"

"Can't you see that you'll never be at peace? Let go! Give yourself over to me!" Atem commanded him. The forcefulness and confidence in his tone was startling, considering how helpless it had seemed in the previous days.

Yugi's heart thumped in his chest. He tried to focus his full attention on Joey, but it was too difficult. His head was swimming with a multitude of emotions: fear, anger, exhaustion, frustration. His hands shook as he struggled to hold himself together. He could feel a massive conflict going on within him, and he realized that it could all end at any time.

That voice, that spark, was tiny. It was miniscule. It was the part of him that had been ecstatic at the return of the Pharaoh. It was the part of him that cried out when Kate had been shot. It was the part of him that was light.

The spark was waging a war within him, and it was beginning to win.

Yugi dug his fingernails into his palm. No matter how small that spark was, it was powerful. He could remember when that spark had been all of him. His whole soul had been a bright light. He didn't want that again. He enjoyed the comfort of the darkness he had fallen into. He enjoyed being alone.

Until that spark was dealt with, he would never be alone.

He had to get rid of it. He had to destroy what he used to be once and for all.

"Yugi."

Yugi blinked. He looked up into Joey's grave face. He didn't say a word, he merely stared at his friend. Joey seemed to be concerned and vengeful at the same time. The combination was slightly amusing to the crazed teen.

"I have no idea what has gotten into your head, but we have some business to take care of."

Yugi nodded slowly. "Let's duel."

--

"Yugi…please don't make me choose. It's time for me to go back to where I belong."

Atem came to an abrupt halt. He set Kaiba's briefcase on the ground for a moment as he attempted to catch his breath. His last words to Yugi before he had left for the Spirit World were suddenly returning to him. It was a painful memory.

"I am confident that we will meet again, partner. Don't mourn me Yugi. Be happy, live your life."

"It's my fault…all of it…"

"I love you Yugi, don't forget that."

Atem ground his teeth together angrily. "I didn't know how much you needed me! I didn't know that I would be your downfall…"

People passing by stared at him curiously as he continued to talk to himself. They tried to keep their distance out of fear for his sanity. Teenagers pointed and snickered behind their hands while children couldn't take their eyes off of him.

Atem didn't care. Yugi was gone…and he would move mountains to get his partner back.

He picked the briefcase up once more and started running. He had no idea where Joey and Yugi would be. He felt as if he had been searching for hours. Atem had no hints or clues, just a large city laid out before him. He sighed as he once again paused for breath. He would search every nook and cranny if he had to.

He heard a muffled ring coming from inside the briefcase. Puzzled, Atem opened it and peeked inside. Kaiba's phone was in one of the pockets. He withdrew it and answered it timidly.

"Hello?"

"I tracked Wheeler's Duel Disk."

Atem's entire face brightened at the sound of Kaiba's voice. "Alright, where are they?"

"They began dueling about an hour ago by the looks of it. They are near the high school."

Atem nodded. "Of course, on the complete other side of town…" When Kaiba didn't respond, he took a deep breath. "How bad is it? How close is Joey to losing?"

Kaiba hesitated. Atem felt a cold chill come over him. "Is it really that bad?"

Kaiba sighed. "No, on the contrary…this may be hard for you to believe, but…Joey is winning."

Atem scrunched his nose skeptically. "How could that be?"

"I don't know, but it's a substantial lead…Joey has 1500 life points while Yugi has 800."

Atem smiled. "He might be able to get himself out of this then…"

Kaiba laughed. "I hope so, Joey Wheeler is one lucky mutt." There was a brief silence before Kaiba cleared his throat. "Atem, I made a big mistake…"

Atem frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"A police officer showed us a picture of Yugi and asked us if he was the person that shot Kate. I…I acted on impulse…I was angry and upset…I wasn't thinking clearly!"

Atem closed his eyes. "You said yes."

"You have to be careful…if you get arrested, I don't know how to get you out."

Atem chuckled. "Yes, I imagine that the police won't believe that I'm an ancient pharaoh back from the dead."

--

Yugi stared at the Red-Eyes Black Dragon in disbelief. It had just vaporized his Giant Soldier of Stone. All that was left was his King's Knight. He is winning, he thought in bewilderedness. This can't be happening!

"What is it, Yuge? You don't know what to do now? You thought you could just bulldoze through me, didn't you? You thought this would be an easy fight!"

Yugi's breathing was heavy as he stared blankly at Joey. The inner conflict had been so strong that he had been having difficulty concentrating on the duel. The spark really didn't want Joey to lose.

Yugi glanced at his hand. There wasn't much he could do. If he didn't draw something soon, he would be done for. His eyes slowly moved to the rest of his deck. He felt his cockiness fading away as the fear gripped him. Could I actually lose?

He shook his head and smirked. Not a chance!

He looked up at Joey. "Don't let it go to your head, Joey. You're not out of the woods yet. I still have a few tricks up my sleeve."

Joey nodded. "Then draw."

Yugi reached for his deck, but his hand hovered above it. He tried to grab the top card, but his hand wouldn't budge. Instead it began to shake.

His eyes widened and he yelped in shock as he stared at his hand. "Let…me…go!" He cried out in fear.

Joey stared at him. Part of him despised Yugi for what he had done, but the other part of him feared for his friend's sanity. He was obviously losing his mind, and there was nothing Joey could do to help him.

Yugi swallowed hard as he started to panic. He quickly withdrew his hand, sighing in relief when the hand obeyed him. He flipped it over in front of his eyes to examine it. The shaking had stopped, but he was afraid to try again. He took a few deep breaths before reaching toward his deck.

If I don't draw something powerful right now, I'm done for…he thought. The spark will ensure my loss unless I draw a-

He grinned in satisfaction. He admired the card in his hand, for he knew that it spelled out certain victory.

"I'll end you in a single turn."

Joey raised an eyebrow. "I don't see how you can, Yuge."

Yugi chuckled darkly. "Then watch me." He placed his new card in his card hand and plucked a new one from his fingers. "First I play Pot of Greed to get two new cards."

He played the card and drew two more. "Now I summon Queen's Knight!"

The heavily armored woman appeared on the field opposite Red-Eyes and next to the other knight. Yugi looked up at Joey. "Since my King's Knight is already on the field, I can special summon my Jack's Knight!"

The third knight appeared on the field on the other side of Queen's Knight. Yugi grinned. "I think you know what comes next."

Joey looked down at the ground. "Why…? No one could be that lucky…" he dropped the cards in his hand and continued to stare at the ground. "It's as if it was meant to be this way…"

"I couldn't agree more!" Yugi smirked. He drew his final card and slapped it down on the Duel Disk. "I sacrifice my three knights to summon Slifer the Sky Dragon!"

The three knights disappeared. In a burst of light, the massive red dragon appeared, its hot breath released from its mouth in a puff of white. Joey didn't even bother to look up at it. He didn't have to. He knew that it was over.

"No, don't!"

Yugi blinked. "You can't stop me!"

"He is your friend, your brother! How could you possibly do this to him? You love him!"

Yugi growled. "You're wrong!"

"Am I?"

Yugi hesitated. He stared at the dragon before him in wonder. Why aren't I attacking?

He looked down at his hand. It was moving as if it had a life of its own. It was moving slowly and shakily toward the Duel Disk as if it wished to surrender. Yugi grabbed the hand with his Duel Disk hand and restrained it. How did the spark become so powerful?

"Your love for your friends is still here! You haven't forgotten yourself entirely, that's why I'm growing stronger!"

"I love no one! Not anymore!"

"You're lying to yourself."

Joey looked up at Yugi. He could see in his friend's eyes that he was about to attack, and he was ready for it. He didn't care anymore. Yugi had lost himself, and there wasn't any way to bring him back.

Yugi released his hand and glared at Joey confidently. "Slifer! Attack his pathetic Red-Eyes!"

The dragon unleashed a blinding attack on Joey's Red-Eyes. Both duelists shielded their eyes from the light. As the light began to fade, Yugi erupted into laughter. Joey continued to stare at the ground despondently.

Yugi squinted at the blonde. Joey's life points dropped to zero, but no one seemed to notice. Yugi placed a hand on the Millennium Puzzle and grinned.

"Joey, you must pay the price for your ignorance."

"NO YUGI!"

Yugi chuckled. "Oh shut it, you can't control me, not anymore."

"Don't, please!"

Yugi shook his head. "Just try and stop me!"

The Puzzle began to glow. Joey slowly looked up and stared over Yugi's shoulder with wide eyes. "I'm…seeing double…" he mumbled with a frown.

Yugi raised an eyebrow as the violet vanished from his eyes. A cold, dark crimson replaced the beautiful amethyst as the golden eye appeared on his forehead. "You're delusional."

Yugi smirked in satisfaction as he watched the light leave Joey's eyes. The joy was short lived, however. A surprising force pushed him to the ground and pinned him. He grunted in shock as he attempted to look over his shoulder at the assailant. What he saw caused his blood to boil.

"So it wasn't just the little voice in my head."

Atem pressed his knee into Yugi's back. "What have you done? Joey is your friend! He loves you!"

Yugi shifted uncomfortably under Atem's knee. "I did him a favor. Joey lives in the past when he should be living in the present. He doesn't realize that sometimes it's best to leave well enough alone."

"You disgust me." Atem snarled.

Yugi chuckled. "That's the pharaoh I know. We have much more in common than we used to. Dark, angry, rude…just let it all out."

Atem leaned forward so that his mouth was next to Yugi's ear, his knee pressing even harder into Yugi's back. "I'm nothing like you," he whispered venomously.

Yugi felt a shiver of fear run down his spine. "You're fooling yourself."

Atem gritted his teeth. As much as he wanted to continue to deny it, he couldn't. He wanted nothing more than to slam his partner's head into the ground for what he had done to Kate, Tristan, Joey…and himself.

"It's funny, you've told me the exact same thing for so long…it feels like justice has been served to throw your own words back in your face."

Atem blinked. "I don't recall saying such a thing."

Yugi groaned in pain as he tried to adjust himself under Atem's knee. "Of course not."

Atem didn't know how to respond. Little voice in his head…words I've never said…

"You're losing your mind."

Yugi tensed beneath him. "I'm sane," he growled fiercely. "I just can't get your damn voice out of my head!"

Atem frowned. "I believe hearing voices qualifies as insane."

Yugi threw himself back, catching Atem off guard. The pharaoh fell onto his back. Yugi pulled himself up and stared down at his other half. "That voice is a part of me, the insufferable little spark that won't let you pathetic people go!"

Atem felt his jaw drop slightly. It suddenly made sense. Another memory of the night in Kaiba's office returned to him:

Suddenly, Yugi erupted in shaky laughter. "First the voices…now this…I really am losing my mind."

Atem blinked again. "There is good in you…and that part of your soul has…my voice…?"

Yugi shook his head. "Who says I'm not good? Right or wrong is simply a point of view."

Atem glared at him. "Then your point of view has been marred by insanity."

That certainly flipped the switch. Yugi glowered at the pharaoh. "I'm not insane!" He screamed. He drew his leg back to kick his other half, but Atem was too fast. He quickly rolled away from Yugi and stood. He smirked at him and shook his head.

"You're insecure about your own sanity. You're unsure of whether or not you have lost your mind. That's why you're so defensive about the subject. Have you forgotten that I can read you like an open book? I know your mind inside and out."

Yugi sneered. "I know your mind pretty well too. I knew you were going to come up with some logical explanation and lecture me on why I'm the one that's wrong," he spat. "I know that you can't hurt me. You care too much."

Atem ground his teeth together and nodded. "You're right. I love you, aibou."

"STOP! Don't call me that! We're not partners, I've turned my back on that part of my life for good! I don't need you anymore Atem, I'm free."

Atem's heart hurt when he heard those words, but he hid it well. "I guess there's only one thing to do."

Yugi snorted. "What's that?"

Atem backed away from Yugi until he was standing next to a silver briefcase. Yugi eyed the briefcase curiously.

"We duel."

Yugi raised an eyebrow. "The one time we dueled, I won."

Atem gave him a half smile. "Perhaps, but one game hardly ensures your victory."

Yugi looked down at his traitorous hand. He remembered his inability to completely control its movements and sighed. He would never admit it, but he was afraid to participate in a duel with Atem. With the distraction of the infuriating spark, Joey had almost defeated him. Joey. What if he were to go up against Atem? Would the distraction be enough to bring about the former pharaoh's win?

Yugi swallowed his fear and glanced back at Atem. "What are the stakes?"

Atem picked up the briefcase. "If I win, I want the Millennium Puzzle."

Yugi's upper lip rose to reveal his teeth in an intimidating, furious glare. "What could possibly compel me to put something so important on the line?"

Atem's eyes didn't waver from Yugi's. "You can have whatever you want. I offer myself to you, Yugi. If that means taking my life, then so be it. Living in a world without my partner is unbearable." He stepped closer to Yugi. "I would gladly die if it meant saving you from yourself."

Yugi furrowed his brow as he stared at Atem. He felt the overwhelming power of the spark within him once more, causing him to fear for the outcome of the duel. A fire burned in his heart for the pharaoh, and he despised it. No matter how much he hated Atem, the spark would always love him.

He blinked. The only way to destroy the spark is to destroy him, I know it…

He nodded slowly and grimaced. "This is it, then."

"I'm afraid so."

--

A/N: So, yes, sorry about the very late update. It seems like forever! I didn't really know how to write this chapter without too much dueling because the duel between Yugi and Atem is the most important one. And also, I'm not exactly an expert on the card game…I only know the stuff I've seen in the show.

I like how the fire is back in Atem's attitude. He was a little too mopey for a while. There will be like one more chapter where he's depressed, which will bring the return of his mental version of Bakura, but after that it's all determination. Good stuff.

I'm not sure how happy I am about this chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it. New twist to the story is coming up, so stay tuned! Reviews are appreciated. I'll update sooner next time! At least, I hope so :).