They were holding hands and it was the best feeling he had ever had in the world.

There was no guilt or worry involved. For the first time, he was himself, completely, and he was with her.

"So what do you want to do?" Yami no Yugi asked.

"Let's just walk," she said, her face still warm and bright after that probably too long kiss (if people had been around, they probably would have given them dirty looks, but the square was oddly empty—he wasn't complaining). "Or just sit here and talk. I'm just…I don't know."

She giggled, and he had to laugh too. He felt like he was walking on air.

"Sitting and talking is good," he said. "Walking is good. Anything's good."

"You're silly," she said.

"Only when I'm around you. Your silliness rubs off on me."

She giggled and slid her arm around his waist, nestling her face into his shoulder. He in turn moved his arm across her shoulders so that they were pressed together, a spot of warmth in the cold.

"I like you," she whispered. "A lot."

"I like you a lot too," he whispered back.

"I'm really glad that we met."

"Me too."

She hesitated for a moment, glancing at the fallen sodas that she had dropped during their first kiss.

"I bet if we opened those, they'd shoot up really high," she said.

He grinned mischievously at her.

"Wanna try?"

Her eyes sparkled.

"Bet mine goes higher," she said, snagging the one closer to her.

"I'll bet two more sodas that you're wrong," he said, darting down to pick up the other one.

Mana grinned widely at him as she shook up the can for good measure. He met her eyes straight on; this was a game and he was gonna win.

"On three, two, one, go!" she said.

They both popped open the soda tabs. Mana squealed as the carbonation exploded over their heads in a thin mist over their heads, shooting up like mini geysers and sprinkling them with cold soda.

"Mine went higher!" she said. "I win!"

"I dunno I think you were holding your hand a little higher, were you cheating?" Yami no Yugi teased.

She smacked him playfully on the arm.

"Shush, you said two sodas so pay up, mister."

He laughed as he took both empty soda cans and tossed them into a bin, and then slid his hand into hers.

"Well, you know where the vending machine is, so lead on, winner."

"Oooh, I like that, you should call me that more often."

"Is this about me always beating you at Duel Monsters?"

"Hush, I don't get to win much except that game and you!"

She blushed as she said this but didn't stop smiling. The words sent a flush across Yami no Yugi's cheeks, and he smiled, embarrassed, as they walked around the Christmas tree and across the street to the vending machine. Yami no Yugi fished out a couple of notes and fed them into the machine.

"So what do you want, winner?"

"Get me one of those pineapple Lilts."

He smiled and pushed the button that would drop one down, and then after a moment of consideration chose a bottle that looked a bit like one of the C.C. Lemons he liked in Japan. It dropped out of the machine, and he reached down to retrieve both of them, handing Mana's to her.

"You bet two sodas, doesn't that mean I get two?" she teased.

"Don't push it," he said, laughing. "I'm not made of money."

"Give me a sip of yours, then. I've never tried that one before."

"Sure."

He popped off the lid and held it out. She took it for a moment to taste it.

"Eh, guess I don't like lemons too much," she said. "Pineapple is better!"

"I'll take your word for it," he said as he took his drink back, taking a sip.

They stood there silently for a moment, their free hands still tightly together as they nursed their drinks, backs to the glowing vending machine.

"The tree looks nice," he said softly.

"Uh-huh."

He took a little sip of his drink. As he shifted his weight, he felt something move in his big pockets and frowned. He let go of Mana's hand to reach in and check what it was…

Oh. It was…it was Mana's Christmas present. Yugi had wrapped up the golden choker for him, insisting that he give it to her tonight. With all of the confusion and magic, he had forgotten.

"Something wrong?" Mana asked.

"Oh, no, not at all," he said. "I…uh…here. Merry Christmas."

He pulled the small wrapped package from his pocket and held it out to her. Her eyes sparkled and her cheeks darkened.

"Awww, you," she said. "You didn't have to get me anything!"

"Yes, I did, you goof. Just open it."

She giggled as she took the package, handing her drink over to him so that she could have both hands. She had to pull off her gloves with her teeth so that she could get at the tape. After a few moments, she managed to pull the wrapping free from the necklace, and it lay sparkling in her palm.

"Oh," she breathed. "Yami…it's so pretty…"

She turned it over in her hands, admiring the round red jewel that gleamed in the center of the gold metal.

"You like it?" he asked, feeling nervous all of a sudden.

"Yami, I love it!" she said, eyes brightening. She threw her arms around his neck in a tight hug, almost making him drop the sodas. "Look, look, it's the same color as your eyes!"

She held the jewel in front of his face for a moment so that he could see. He found another blush dancing across his cheeks.

"It's so pretty, oh my gosh! Thank you!"

She hugged him tightly again before bouncing back down and starting to clasp the thick choker around her neck. She hummed a Christmas carol under her breath as she did so, and once it was on, she poked at the red jewel.

"How do I look?"

"Fantastic, as always," he said. "It suits you...I'm glad."

"Awwww, you're the best!"

She squeezed his hands once. Then she bounced on her heels.

"Oh my gosh, I almost forgot in all the excitement! I have something for you too!"

She dug in her pocket for a moment and then drew out what appeared to be an envelope wrapped messily in strips of different colored wrapping paper.

"I'm not very good at wrapping," she said, giggling. "And Dawn didn't have time to help me this year, so...sorry about that."

"I like the way you wrapped it," Yami no Yugi said. He accepted the envelope from her and turned it over once or twice. "It's very artistic."

"Don't make fun," she said, slapping him on the shoulder as he laughed again. "Just open it!"

"I'm not, I'm not!" he said. "I'm opening it already."

He smiled as she pouted exaggeratedly at him, then turned the envelope over in his hands and started to work carefully at the copious amounts of tape. He managed to get down to the actual envelope and slit it open. He slid the slip of paper from inside free.

It was a Duel Monsters card, he realized. An effect monster; the artwork showed a young dark skinned girl in the same art style as the Dark Magician girl, dressed all in white and gold with flowing robes. Lotus Magician, it was called.

"Wow," he said, turning the card so that the holographic sheen caught the light. "Mana...it's beautiful."

"Right? I bought a pack or two while you were gone and I found that one! It looks like your Dark Magician Girl, right? Kinda? Anyway, I thought it might work with your deck! Read the effect!"

"This card counts as two tributes for the summon of a spellcaster monster. Once per turn, if this card is in the Graveyard, you can send one card from your deck to the Graveyard, then add one monster from your Graveyard to your hand," he read. "Wow—this is a really good card, Mana! I've never even heard of it before!"

"Do you like it?" Mana asked, sounding suddenly anxious.

He turned to her and smiled.

"It's perfect," he said. "Thank you, so much."

He hesitated just a brief second before he put his arms around her.

"I love it," he said again. "Thank you."

"I'm so glad," she said, hugging him back. "Really glad. Tonight is the best, Yami. The best night ever."

"Yeah," he said as she buried her face in his chest and he could feel her warmth against him. "It really...is..."

He closed his eyes for a moment, just so that he could remind himself that everything was real. The cold air nipping at his skin, the warmth of her in his arms, the smell of baking things from faraway shops, the faint hint of lavender from her hair. Real, all of this, it was real and he was here with her, and it was all he wanted in this moment.

"Mana," he murmured. "I...I love you."

He heard her draw in a sharp breath. For a moment, they were both silent, and Yami started to think perhaps he had said the wrong thing.

"I love you too," she whispered, then, and when she pulled back a little so that she could look up at him, her eyes were filled with tears. "I do. I love you, Yami, I love you so much."

She sniffled, a tear running down her cheek. He reached out to wipe it away, cradling her face in one hand.

"You silly goose," he said.

"I'm your silly goose," she giggled, another tear trickling from the corner of her eyes. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm crying..."

"It's okay," he said, feeling tears pricking at his own eyes, he just couldn't help them. "You don't ever have to apologize."

She shook her head as she nestled herself closer in his arms.

"I feel like I've been waiting so long for that," she said. "I haven't really known you that long but I feel like...like that's what I've been waiting to hear forever."

"I feel like that's what I've been waiting to say forever," he said, holding her tightly. "I'm sorry I made you wait."

"Just tell it to me again," she whispered.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Snowflakes started to swirl from the sky. Tiny, cold things that glowed in the streetlamps as they sprinkled across their hair and jackets like magic sparkles.

If we stand her like this too long, we'll get snowed over, he thought with a soft chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Mana asked.

"I was just thinking that—"

Something moved out of the corner of his eye. What...?

For the first time, the fact that the square was completely empty of other people struck him as more than just odd—it was unsettling. For the first time that night, he remembered that he wasn't just here because he loved Mana, although that was the main reason, but because he knew that something was wrong here and he had wanted to try and figure out what it was.

It was at that moment that he remembered the nightmares.

He reacted before his brain fully recognized what was going on. He saw the thing swelling in the corner of an alley, saw the shadow growing upwards like a slimy pillar, grabbed Mana by the shoulder and flung her behind him as the thing lunged—

Mana screamed. Yami no Yugi cried out as the thing latched onto his arm like some ooze monster and he could feel it burning through his skin, hot, very hot, too hot—

"Yami! YAMI!"

"Mana, get back—"

He cried out again as the stuff seemed to sink in and meld into his skin. His eyes were going black, he couldn't see or hear, and all he could feel was the scalding shadow on his arm and Mana grabbing his shoulders and trying to pull him free. He thought he heard her scream again, thought he might have seen the shadow of her moving to try and smack at the thing that had grabbed him, and a burst of terror exploded in his chest because he didn't want her to touch it—

He gasped as the thing was ripped from him and he stumbled backwards. Mana held his shoulders to keep him from sagging to the ground. He felt dizzy and weak, like he was going to throw up.

"Yami, Yami, Yami, Yami, Yami," she mumbled over and over, sounding frantic. "Are you okay? Oh my god—"

"I-I'm okay, but what about that thing—"

Cadence was standing in front of them.

She held a card between two fingers, its purple coloring shimmering in the light of the streetlamps. In front of her, a shadow identical to the shadow that had attacked him writhed and swayed, matching the movements of the other shadow.

"Cadence, what—what's going on?" Mana said. "What happened? What is that thing?"

"It's just a nightmare," said Cadence. "It's all right, Mana. It won't hurt you. I promise."

She flicked her free hand towards the shadow in front of her.

"Cyber Shadow Gardna, destroy it."

Her shadow lunged forward, striking at the other one. For a moment, they seemed to struggle together, although it was hard to see where one began and the other ended. A few moments later, both collapsed in on themselves like smoke, dissipating into the cold winter air.

Silence returned to the square.

Yami no Yugi was still leaning back against Mana, her arms tight around his chest from behind as though she could hold him up all on her own. He could feel her trembling, and raised a hand to her hands to try and quell the shiver.

"You protected us?" Yami no Yugi said.

Cadence turned her cold gaze to Yami no Yugi.

"I protected Mana," she said. "You're the reason these things exist."

"Cadence, what are you talking about?" Mana said.

For a moment, Cadence hesitated, her eyes casting downwards.

"Mana, I—I'm sorry. But this is—if you stay with him, you'll—you'll disappear. I can't let that happen. I've been trying to warn you."

"Cadence?"

Mana came out from around Yami no Yugi, moving forward with one hand outstretched.

"Cadence, you're not making any sense," she said. "You're my best friend...I don't understand why you're doing this."

"I'm trying to protect you—from him! He's going to make you disappear!"

"I'm not going to stop being your friend just because I love Yami," Mana said. "Is that what this is about? I'm not going to disappear or anything."

"You—you don't understand!"

Tears were rolling down Cadence's cheeks. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying not to look Mana in the eye.

"I just—I don't want you to go. If you find what you're looking for, you'll go back. And I don't—I don't want to lose you, god, Mana, I...I love you, Mana, I've loved you for so long and I don't want to see you disappear!"

She was crying so hard now that she had to put a hand over her mouth to still the sobs. Mana's mouth half opened, eyes widening. And then she looked down, sadly. For a moment, they just stood there, quietly—and then Mana stepped forward, hugging Cadence to her for a moment. Cadence cried into Mana's shoulder, her arms tightening around her waist.

"I'm sorry," Mana whispered. "I had no idea..."

"I can't watch you go back," Cadence whispered. "I can't watch that..."

Mana tightened her grip.

"Cadence, I...I'm sorry. I love Yami. I'm sorry that I can't return your feelings. But you're my friend, and that's never going to change..."

"Mana..." Cadence sobbed. "Mana, if you—this is—this is a dream. All of this, it's a dream...I didn't know how to tell you, I didn't want to hurt you—but if you get what you came for then...then you'll wake up, and I'll never see you again."

Mana stepped back, holding Cadence's shoulders in her hands. She looked so uncertain, so confused.

"I don't...I don't understand..."

"It's because of him that the nightmares are coming," Cadence said. "Yami is the reason those shadows exist. But if he leaves, everything can go back to normal."

Mana hesitated. Then she dropped her hands from Cadence's shoulders and stepped back, back towards Yami no Yugi.

"I don't...want things to go back to normal," she said. "I like the friends that I've made this Christmas...and I love Yami. I don't understand what you mean, about a dream or anything, but I...I can't change that. I'm sorry, Cadence."

Her shoulders were trembling—she looked so scared, so uncertain. Yami no Yugi couldn't stop himself from putting his hands on her shoulders, and she leaned back against him for support.

Cadence drew back for a moment. She looked stricken, tears rolling down her face, eyes wide, mouth half open.

"I'm trying to protect you," she whispered. "I'm trying to protect you."

"You don't have to protect me from anything," Mana said.

Yami no Yugi had no idea what to say, what to do. Cadence was looking more and more upset by the second and he didn't know what to do. Was there anything he could do? Only one thought continued to circle through his head.

Mana is going to disappear? Because of me?

Like Kisara?

Cadence's eyes whipped to Yami no Yugi's.

"What about you?" she said. "Do you really want her to disappear? If you love her, do you really want her to disappear because of you?"

"Cadence, stop!" said Mana.

"I..." Yami no Yugi started

"Yami, no, stop, don't," she said, whipping around and pressing herself into him. "Even—even if I did disappear, I don't care, because I wanted to meet you. I wouldn't trade anything that's happened for anything."

"Mana, I..."

He didn't want her to disappear. Could he really stop that from happening if he just...walked away?

Could he walk away?

"Please," Cadence said, her voice cracking with desperation. "Please."

Yami no Yugi slowly shook his head.

"I...I can't," he said. "I can't just...walk away from her...Cadence, I love her...you say that you love her too. Could you walk away if she didn't want you to?"

Mana's hands tightened around his waist.

"If it was to protect her, I could," Cadence said, although for a moment she looked uncertain.

"But I don't want you to do that!" Mana said, whipping around again to face Cadence. "I don't want anyone to do that! I don't want people to leave me to protect me from—whatever! I'd rather face danger with the people I love. I don't want to be left alone—Cadence, please. Please, stop."

Cadence flinched. Her mouth opened but no sound came out. Finally, she stumbled back a step, looking down at the ground. Tears dripped from her eyes onto the ground, scattering the pavement alongside snowflakes.

"I just don't want to lose you," she said. "I don't want to..."

Mana smiled, a quiet, teary smile. She slipped one hand into Yami no Yugi's, and then reached out for Cadence's hand with the other, waiting for Cadence to take her hand.

"You don't have to," she said. "Whatever you're talking about, dream, or nightmares, or anything...I don't care. I don't care what's going on. But we're friends, right? You don't have to lose me. I'm not going anywhere."

Cadence looked up, eyes shiny with tears. She shook her head for a moment.

"I've been trying so hard to break you two apart," she said. "Because...because I was so selfish. And I still am. I don't want him to have you. Why would you want to be friends with me?"

"Because we're already friends," Mana insisted. "I'm not going anywhere, Cadence. I promise. I promise."

Cadence hesitated. She shook her head again and sobbed, as though she knew—that no matter what Mana promised, she was going to disappear.

And Yami no Yugi was starting to suspect that she was right.

Cadence closed her eyes for a moment. Then she half smiled.

"You're just too kind," she muttered. "You're too kind. God."

Then she opened her eyes, and slowly, slowly, started to reach for Mana's hand.

A shout rang out over the square.

"Cadence! ABOVE YOU!" Dawn screamed.

Cadence's eyes flashed upwards, Yami no Yugi stiffened, started to pull Mana towards him—

Mana was faster.

She looked up, saw the writhing shadow lunging at them from the building, whipped around, shoved Yami no Yugi out of the way, and the shadow landed right on top of her head and sank through her as though one or both of them were insubstantial.

Yami no Yugi hit the ground with a yelp. Cadence was screaming, Mana was falling backwards as Cadence tried to catch her, Dawn was running towards them with her eyes wide and face pale, Yami no Yugi was scrambling to his feet, reaching for Mana's hands as her eyes widened and her face drew up as though she were seeing something horrifying—

Her eyes cleared for a moment. They locked onto Yami no Yugi's.

"I'm not real," she whispered, horror in her voice.

And then she was simply not there anymore.

. . .

A/N: A sweet pea means "goodbye" or "thank you for a lovely time."

~Next Time: The Poppy of Hide-and-Go-Seek~