Disclaimer: Okay, I don't own YGO. If I did, then I would own Yugi… and I would own Yami. If I owned Yugi and Yami, then I would force/hire them to do a fan service where we could watch them make out ALL DAY LONG! Wouldn't that rock?

… And it's a wonder why I don't own YGO, right?

Okay, I'm updating a day earlier than normal because I'm not gonna be here tomorrow. I have to wake up at four A.M. (It's going to suck, I know it) and then I'm going up to New York to some cancer hospital. Remember when I said I had surgery, and that they removed a mass from me?

Yeah—apparently that was cancerous. Now I have to go through some bunch of tests and crap to make sure there's nothing else growing in me, or stuff like that. Don't worry—I'll probably be fine (though I have to stay there into Saturday. They're putting me and my family up at this Ronald McDonald place or whatever for the night. I swear, if I see any sort of clown with an ad for cheeseburgers strapped to his uniform, I will shoot myself before they have a chance to check me out… it's that lame.)

Now, I KNOW I might have promised some passion and suspense in these updates. Yes—there will be some….

But it will be NEXT chapter.

Sorry about that. I really thought it might be this chapter too. But alas (sigh) it is not. Still, I hope you enjoy this chappie!

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"Wow, Jou!" Hanasaki said as the group trotted off through the meadow, away from the duel box where Jou defeated Dinosaur Ryuzaki. "That was amazing back there! What a comeback!"

"Yeah, man! You totally mauled that dino guy!" Honda said.

Jou crossed his arms up over his head. "Ah, it's not that special."

"Dude, yeah it is!" Honda insisted. "You were losing so badly through the whole thing until the very end! Then you creamed him!"

"You have to admit Jou, that duel was pretty unbelievable," Anzu said as she walked along beside him. "For a second I really didn't think you would pull through, but then you proved us all wrong."

"So you're saying that you doubted me until the end." It was a statement, not a question.

Anzu quickly amended. "No, no never! Of course we believed in you!"

Jou nodded. "That's good. I'm glad I got friends like you cheering me on—I'm kinda getting used to it."

Hanasaki reached up and patted Jou on the back. "No sweat. I'm proud I get to cheer for an awesome duelist like you."

"Ah, thanks man!"

"Like I said, it's no problem."

Yugi smiled as he watched his friends carry on as they did. He looked at the horizon—the sun was a deep orange, and was almost touching the tops of the mountains.

It'll be night soon, Yugi thought. I wonder what we're gonna do when it gets too dark…?

We will have to sleep here, I suppose, Yami mused. Out in the woods. It does not appear as if Pegasus left us any accommodations for the evening.

Nope—just like he didn't have any food for us. If it wasn't for Kajiki then we would still be wandering around with empty stomachs.


It seems like Pegasus wants us to do more than just play card games. He wants us to survive.

Yugi nodded. Yeah—and if we don't find food before it gets dark, we just might not.

Yugi, you know that I can suppress your desires of hunger. You won't feel as terrible as you would normally, Yami tried to reassure him.

Yeah, but having some real food in my stomach wouldn't be half-bad either. Yugi stated. Yami didn't come back with an answer—Yugi sensed that he now felt a little dismal by the response.

Hey Yami, it's not your fault that you can't conjure food.

Yami shook his head. Slight guilt. Worthlessness. Can't even make Master's belly full.

Yugi sighed. He draped his arms over Yami's shoulders, as he nuzzled his face into the spirit's neck. Yami, its fine. I bet we'll find SOMETHING to eat.

Perhaps they would. Yugi didn't know anything about camping or Boy Scouts or anything else that might give him information about living in the wilderness. Yami was right—he could curb Yugi's hunger pangs, but it wouldn't be of much use if he starved.

"Okay!" Jou announced aloud. "Let's keep going this way—I bet I can find another duelist before the sun sets."

"Do you really wanna bet on that?" Honda asked, one eyebrow raised.

Jou pumped a fist in the air. "Sure! I mean, there are a lot of duelists on this island! I bet we'll run into at least ONE of them before dark!"

A few hours later….

"Hey, what time is it?" Honda asked as he and Jou sat against a tree.

Ryou checked his watch—the clock face glowed as he looked at the time. "It's just past eight."

"Just past eight?" Hanasaki exclaimed quietly. He looked up at the sky, which was now a dark navy blue. "But it's so dark and quiet already!"

It only took a few hours of searching for the gang to wander aimlessly into the woods and get themselves ensnared in the darkness of night. A three-quarter moon shown brightly above their heads, and an owl hooted somewhere in the distance. Otherwise, it was completely silent.

Honda groaned, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well, I haven't seen any other duelists for a while." He glanced over at Jonouchi. "Wanna take back that bet?"

Jou waved him off. "Nobody would want to duel in the dark!" he complained. He stared into the dark forest around them. "It'll just make you hungrier."

Everyone nodded in chorus.

No one said anything for a while. Jou suddenly stood up.

"Aggggh!" he yelled at the sky. "I want food, not star chips!" His stomach growled in response. Too tired and hungry to yell anything else, Jou slumped back against the tree. "I wish star chips were potato chips… that would be nice right now."

"Yeah, but you only have four," Anzu pointed out dismally. "You didn't even win enough to feed us."

"It would be something…."

"It's too dark…!" Hanasaki whined. "I wish I could see you guys clearer. It's so dim that all I can see are shadows…."

Yugi looked between his friends curiously. He spoke with Yami, who agreed with his idea.

"I think I can help that," Yugi said. Everyone turned their attention to them.

"What?" Jou asked. "You got food…?"

"No, but I can help with the darkness." Yugi put his hand out and focused his magic. In an instant his palm was filled with a soft glowing ball of light, the brilliance of it extending about two or three meters around them.

He could see everyone's face. They were looking at him with slight awe.

"Thanks, Yug," Jou said. "That does help a little."

"Sure. No problem."

Yami suddenly materialized beside Yugi, sitting in the grass with his hand on Yugi's shoulder. "It appears your idea was successful."

Yugi shrugged. "I figured a little light could do us all some good."

"And so it has." Yami snuggled into Yugi a bit—not enough for their companions to see, but just enough so that Yugi could feel him. Yugi smiled; Yami seemed awful happy. He wondered what the spirit was really thinking about with that delighted smirk on his face.

"Hey, what's that?"

Yugi looked to see what Jou had noticed. The blond was looking at the base of the tree Honda and he were sitting at. The two guys were fussing over something….

"Is that a mushroom…?" Honda asked.

"Not sure," Jou answered. He beckoned to Yugi. "Hey, Yug—could you bring that light a little more over here?"

Yugi nodded. "Sure, Jou. Hold on a sec." He smiled to Yami, who reflected the look right back. The boy got up and walked over to the tree, extending his palm out so that the light could pour over the tree's base.

"Hey, those are mushrooms!" Honda said. "Wild mushrooms, but 'shrooms nonetheless."

Jou started to salivate a little. "A mushroom!" He launched forward for it. "I'm gonna eat it!"

"What?" Honda grabbed Jou's arms and held the blond back. "No! Don't do that, Jou! What if it's poisonous?"

"What if it's not?" Jou insisted. He stared at the mushroom with longing. "What if it's edible…?"

Yugi looked back over his shoulder. "Hey Yami—could you check the mushroom?"

"Certainly." The spirit walked over to where everyone seemed to congeal, and looked at the fungi intently. Though Yugi could barely see it, he could definitely feel Yami's magic extend out and sense the object in question.

"There are some toxins in the mushroom," Yami stated. "It would not be safe to eat. Jonouchi, if you did you would suffer severe stomach pains."

"I'm suffering severe stomach pains right now," Jou said. He smiled a little. "Thanks, Yami. I shouldn't eat wild mushrooms anyway."

"We could always use my Wilderness Survival Guide," Honda said, pulling out the thick travel book.

Jou snorted. "Yeah—I can rip out the pages and eat it."

Yami gave a small bow in response to Jou's gratitude. "You are welcome, Jonouchi." He smiled, but the smirk fell off his face as his crimson eyes darted to look into the darkness surrounding them.

Yugi looked up, feeling Yami's alertness. "Yami, something up?"

"Someone approaches." Yami disappeared, and as quickly as he vanished Yugi snuffed out his light magic. Everything around them returned to darkness.

Yugi questioned Yami in their mind. Are they dangerous? Did you sense a threat?

Yami shook his head. No. I sensed some magic, but nothing threatening. It was a very familiar presence too….

Do you know who? Yugi asked, but before Yami could answer a figure emerged from the shadows. Everyone's gazes turned to see who moved toward them, and in the light of the moon the person became easily visible.

"Are you gonna eat that mushroom?" Mai Kujaku asked cheerfully. "You guys must be starving!"

Jou gave a start. "Mai Kujaku!"

"Where did you come from?" Anzu asked, cautious. "You disappeared after Jou's duel with Ryuzaki. Have you been following us or something?"

Has she…? Yugi asked.

Yami shook his head. No—if Kujaku-san were I would have sensed it.

Mai waved off Anzu's question. "Nope. I was just looking for a place to set up camp when I came across you guys." She paused, taking a bite of something she had in her hand. She munched on it. "Mmm… this chocolate bar is delicious…."

All the guys leaned in, looking closely at the food in question.

"Hey…" Hanasaki mumbled. "Is that really…?"

"It looks so good…!" Honda breathed.

Yugi wasn't very interested. Yami had managed to sooth his hunger cramps for the most part. He only stared at the candy bar because it was there.

Jou was the first one to come back to his senses. He glowered at the blonde woman. "You didn't just come here to torment us, did you?"

"No silly," Mai teased. She took another bite of the candy bar. "Oh, yes, this is so good! Nothing else like it!"

Jou growled in annoyance, but his stomach growled louder.

Mai looked at him playfully. "Hey, since you look so hungry Jonouchi, why don't I make a deal with you? Want to trade one of your star chips for a piece of my chocolate bar?"

Jou bared his teeth. "Never! Are you kidding me?"

Mai chortled. "Yep, just kidding. Why, I'd never have played you in the first place if I thought you to be that lowly a duelist."

Jou looked at her, eyes narrowed Why you… making a fool out of me… haven't you had enough fun for one day?

Mai winked at Jou. "Okay, enough with the chitchat. What d'you say about a ceasefire for the night? We're both duelists—we need a break, don't we?"

Jou only growled at her.

Yugi looked at Mai. She wanted to camp out with them? Yugi thought that was a little strange—Mai was probably a lot older than them, maybe in her mid-twenties. Why would she want to hang out with high-schoolers?

Yugi smiled. It was nice to see such a friendlier side to Miss Kujaku. He was glad that she warmed up to them all of a sudden—he would have welcomed her anyways, but she asked before he could.

Yugi grinned at Mai. "You're right, Miss Kujaku. Let's have a truce—I'm tired from all the duels today."

Inside their mind Yami smiled at Master. Kind, trusting Master—he always cared for others, even if they had done him wrong. His trust extended even to the most dangerous of opponents.

That included Kujaku-san.

Jou gave Mai an uncertain look. His face finally relaxed as he took in Yugi's words.

Well, if Yugi trusts her, then I guess I can trust her too, he admitted to himself. I still don't know about her but… yeah, if Yugi and Yami decided she's okay, then I guess she's okay.

Mai smiled warmly at them. "That's good. You guys didn't bring any food with ya, eh?"

They all shook their heads.

"Well then, you can have some of mine," Mai said. "If we can make a fire, we can cook too."

"What? Really?" Hanasaki asked, surprised.

Mai winked at him. "Sure thing, hon!"

She opened up her duffel bag and dumped the contents onto the ground. Piles of packaged food and other items came tumbling out.

Jou's eyes widened. "Wow! Cool!"

"You have everything!" Honda said. "Provisions, a tent, even a lantern! Everything you need!"

Anzu blinked. "You brought all this yourself?"

"Of course," Mai answered. "You have to be prepared for things like these. You can't always rely on the kindness of strangers."

"I'll remember that…" Anzu mumbled, looking at Mai with suspicion. The kindness of strangers… did that mean she would turn on them later? She was a stranger too, after all.

The blonde didn't notice, as she looked instead to Yugi and the other guys.

"Now, men!" she announced haughtily. "I brought the food. The cooking is now your job!" She placed her hands on her hips. "Get to it."

The guys glanced at one another, obviously uncertain of the task.

"I'll do it," Ryou finally said. He started picking up the various bags and things of food. "I'll cook us up something. I'm pretty good at it."

"I guess you'd have to be, living by yourself," Hanasaki commented, before he got up and assisted Ryou with the food. "I'll help you out. I'm kinda good at cooking too."

"Okay, that's settled," Mai said. She turned her attention to Jou and Honda. "You guys go fetch some water! Chop chop! Get to it!"

The two youths hustled off. Jou muttered under his breath. "Grr… I hate her bossing us around! Who does she think she is?"

"She's the woman with the grub," Honda said sharply. "Just be glad we get to eat."

"I'd rather starve." Jou's stomach protested loudly.

Honda smirked. "I highly doubt that."

"Yugi," Mai said, looking at the shorter boy. "Would you mind going out and getting us some wood for the fire?"

Yugi shook his head. "I wouldn't mind. I'll be back in a minute." He headed out into the woods, picking up stray sticks and twigs as he went. Normally he would be afraid of the darkness and the quiet, but with Yami around he knew he would be safe. Nothing could harm him as long as he had his protector—and lover—at his side.

When he came back, everyone was at hard work. Jou and Honda had returned with water, and they were going to use it in the pot that Ryou and Hanasaki were chopping potatoes into. Mai was supervising a tent with a shower in it—she told Yugi that Anzu was cleaning off.

With the firewood and a set of matches Mai had, they started up a fire for the cooking. Ryou and Hanasaki got their meal started, the scent wafting through the air. When Anzu got out of the shower and dried up, the meal was done—everyone gathered around the camp fire and used the plastic dinnerware Mai also brought to devour the goods.

"Dig in, guys!" Mai said. "Bon appetite!"

"Hey, this smells delicious!" Jou commented. He took a bite, and then nodded at Ryou. "You did a great job, Ryou! This is really tasty."

In the flickering firelight Ryou's face flushed a bit. "Thanks, Jonouchi. Hanasaki was a great assistant."

"Ah, it was nothing," the small blond said, adjusting his glasses up on the bridge of his nose.

"You guys better eat up and get some nourishment," Mai stated. "There's gonna be more duels come morning tomorrow!"

Honda chuckled, blushing. "Yes ma'am!"

Jou glared at him. "Honda, shut up! You're not a duelist."

"So what? Watching you guys duel and cheering for you is hard work! I need my energy!"

Everyone shared a good laugh at the comment.

Yugi looked at Mai curiously. "You already have eight star chips, Miss Kujaku. Maybe you'll be the first one to enter Pegasus's castle!"

Mai smiled, looking down. "Maybe you're right, Yugi. Another duel or two, and I'll secure a place in the finals. But even if I do…." Her face hardened in the glowing light of the fire, as her amethyst eyes turned to Yugi. "I'll settle the score with you sooner or later, Yugi. Bet on it."

The smile on Yugi's face fell away. Miss Kujaku….

"Hey, let's forget about the game for now," Anzu insisted, sensing how tense the air got as the conversation turned back to the tournament.

Mai shook her head. "Wrong, hon…. We may be friends now, but we'll be enemies tomorrow! That's what it means to be a duelist on this island."

Yugi watched her, his gaze now a bit sad. He had wanted to stay away from talk of dueling, hoping that maybe they could be more than just duelists, just for a night. It seems that even that was impossible right now.

Mai stood up, her back to them as she walked towards the make-shift tent she set up nearby. "Thanks for the dinner. I'm going back to my tent." She looked over her shoulder. "You should stay in my tent too, Anzu. I hear there's a creepy guy lurking around here… it might be dangerous." Then she walked away, to the tent.

As soon as she was gone, Jou snorted. "Well, so much for that. What's her problem, anyway?"

Yugi watched Mai's silhouetted form disappear into the tent. His violet eyes stayed there for a long time.

A strange guy lurking around… what had Miss Kujaku meant by that? Was there someone dangerous wandering around on the island—someone they should be worried about?

Well, if anything happens, Yami will keep things from getting bad, Yugi thought to himself. He could feel the spirit's warmth and happiness slip through his senses, making his own feelings feel miniscule. Yami was completely content, curled up around his Master.

Yugi smiled. He could sleep deeply tonight, so long as Yami was there to keep him out of harm.

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Okay, so no real drama in this chapter… but its coming. See what happens next time in Do You Dream of Me?: Duelist—Chapter 27: Alone

Loves to my readers and reviewers! Thanks, guys! Till next Friday, then!