Warning: This chapter contains a sexual encounter between two grown men. I have done my best to keep it tasteful and within the guidelines of this website's M-rating. Usually I do not forewarn my readers of impending adult material but considering this story began as a T-rated fic, I want to make sure anyone who should not or does not want to read such material knows of the rating and content change in advance.

"Immemorial"

When Atem stepped out of the shower (his very short shower), the last thing he expected to see was Yuugi sitting on one of the hotel beds. Granted, he knew he had been alive - something Malik had been very quick to inform him of the second he returned to the world of the awake and aware. But seeing him here… so soon… and Yuugi having come to him first… sent a very real jolt through the former pharaoh. His mind raced. Had Malik or Isis told him? No. He dismissed this notion immediately. The expression on his partner's face, and the thoughts running through his head, were too genuine – and he had never known his partner to put on a false face outside of a duel. Yuugi had only suspected it was Atem, thanks to the lovingly crinkled snapshot Malik had shown him. Not until they had embraced. Only then did the younger man become convinced of Atem's existence… as surely as he had become of Yuugi's.

Oh it was so wonderful to see him again! Atem drew back just enough and held the other at arm's length to take in the details of his features. Gone was the apple-cheeked youth with the nervous stutter, the shifting nervous gaze, and the painfully shy countenance. In his place was an incredibly handsome adult man with lean, adult lines, a steady stare, and an air of confidence. He was almost as tall as Jounouchi and his build was slender and trim. When he realized he wasn't just looking anymore but downright ogling Yuugi, Atem blushed and let him go. In response, Yuugi flushed a little across his nose and cheeks. He gave him a small smile. It's okay, I don't mind, I'm looking at you too.

Somehow that only made Atem blush even redder. "You have… grown up," he stated admiringly. "You are a man now."

Yuugi bit down on the corner of his lower lip, and glanced away, seeming embarrassed. "Well, yeah, uh, time will do that. You…" He looked back at Atem quickly, trying very subtly to give him the once-over, and failing. "You look younger than I remember," he finished weakly. "From when I saw you last."

Pleased, Atem grinned at this. "How old did you think I was?" he teased.

Yuugi gave an indifferent shrug. "I don't know. To me, you've always been the older and wiser one."

"Ah! So how old do you think I look now?" I'd beg to differ on the wiser part, aibou.

"Closer to my age… which, I guess you were at the time you, well, died." Nobody likes a smartass, other me. Yuugi mugged unrepentantly at the astonishment Atem threw him. "Anyway, I guess that's irrelevant. Okay, for real." He poked the god-king in the chest. "Start from the beginning. Everything, and leave nothing out."

Atem smirked. "Once upon a time…" he began jokingly.

Rolling his eyes, Yuugi threw him a mildly exasperated look. Now you're doing that on purpose.

Yes. I am.

Yuugi plucked up a pillow and dutifully whacked him in the head with it once, before he settled down and listened raptly as Atem indeed started from the beginning. As he wove his narrative, Atem was reminded of another time he had spoken from his heart in another hotel half a world away. Except this time it was to Yuugi to whom he was speaking to from his heart. He was the one person who he should have been talking to from the moment he had retrieved his memories from the Puzzle and realized who the young man haunting the corridors of his mind was. A young man in the grand insane scheme of things whom he owed more than he felt could be repaid not only in one lifetime – but two.

"I am so sorry," he ended, leaning his elbows on his knees, staring down at the carpet between his bare feet. He could scarcely look Yuugi in the eye. "I should have contacted you sooner. If I had known Bakura was still around, I could have stopped him before he made a move on you."

His partner sat up from where he'd been lounging on the mattress. "How do you figure that? You couldn't have known." Yuugi pointed out, frowning. "Everyone thought Bakura was dead and gone. You can't blame yourself for things out of your control or ability to anticipate."

Atem nodded unwillingly. He was right. "I know that, just, I can't help it," he confessed. "All this time gone by, I just think of all the things I could have done, and I feel so guilty."

"I'm not mad at you, so don't. Please." Yuugi's much softer hand covered his rougher, more calloused one, and stroked his fingers in a reassuring caress. "I'm okay now, thanks to you."

"Yuugi, you got yourself out of there." Atem's mouth was a bitter line. "I… I was not very much help to you."

His partner stared at him disbelievingly. "How can you say that? You got rid of Bakura and brought back Ryou. How is that not helping me?" When Atem made no reply, he exhaled loudly, faintly exasperated. "All right." He shifted around on the bed, putting his hands on the other man's shoulders. "Look at me. Please?" Atem did, glumly. "You were the one who lured Bakura out which gave Otogi and me the chance we needed to get away. You were the one who dueled him into submission and banished him into the Shadow Realm. Without you, Bakura would have tortured us until he got bored of it, and then god only knows what else he would have done to us afterward." He cupped Atem's face in both hands. "Thank you," he said sincerely, captivating Atem with the vibrancy of his eyes. He kissed him on his forehead. In bliss, Atem closed his eyes and without thinking leaned into the pressure of Yuugi's lips.

"So you are not angry?"

Hearing the wary tone, Yuugi withdrew and stared at Atem in disbelief. "Angry? I just told you, I'm not…" Then he understood from the doubt Atem sent him. "Oh. No. I understand that part completely. You wanted to live your own life and you didn't want to interrupt mine."

Unconvinced, Atem reached over to the nightstand, and picked up the photo from underneath his wallet. "Are you certain?" he whispered and handed the photo to Yuugi. "Even when you suspected this was me?"

Yuugi blushed at the sight of the photo and stole from Atem's hand gently, hiding it away at once back in his own pocket. "Yes," he admitted quietly, smiling a little. "You were given the chance to live your life again, a chance so few, if any, of us get. If it couldn't include me, so be it. Considering you'd been forced to share headspace with me for a few years, it's natural to assume you wanted the chance to discover what it felt like to be yourself again. As long as you were happy, I figured, I was happy. But!" He grinned then, bright and wide, and true, kicking one of his legs back and forth jauntily. "This is good too! Better actually."

Atem felt as though his insides had been turned to lead and yet he felt lighter than the air they were breathing. "You do not know how happy I am to hear you say this," he said, fighting back a bevy of tears. "I would have rather forsaken that choice, yet I did not want to think of only myself. I had to think of you, what it would do to your life. Though I do think," he exhaled a short laugh through his nose, "you should be a little more indignant about it."

Laughing aloud, Yuugi curled his fingers around Atem's hand, the same hand he had touched earlier, and gave it an affectionate squeeze. "Well," he conceded sing-song, "okay, maybe I'm a little annoyed. I mean, I did want to see you again." So much I wanted to see you, for so many years, for so many times I'd warred with regret and relief and grief though I got over it eventually and moved on. His eyes did the up and down thing again. "Of course," he added mischievously, "this is more than what I expected."

Perceiving the innuendo, Atem felt his face burn, and knew there was no way he could play that one off jokingly. Suddenly he felt truly naked, although he still wore the towel. "Aibou…" he muttered under his breath.

Yuugi snickered heartily. His cheeks were growing a bit pink too. "Sorry, sorry! I couldn't resist."

The ex-king of Egypt smiled and said what was in his heart. "You have become everything I hoped you would be. I am so proud of you."

Yuugi shook his head in vigorous denial. "I wouldn't have been able to do any of the things I did without you to guide me."

"I doubt this is true. Can you still not see what I see even now?"

Yuugi picked up Atem's hand and twined their fingers together. "I've been trying to, just… it isn't always easy, you know? I still fall into that place, sometimes, where I'm scared and want to run away." Like I feel like I'm about to do right now… Yuugi's voice trembled, his next words coming out in a rush. "And, and I know it isn't right, or fair, or ethical, and n-now with you sitting here in front of me, I... I know I shouldn't…" He clenched his eyes shut tightly, full of anguish and despair. "Oh man," he cried out suddenly, "this is wrong!" Startling Atem, he yanked his hand free, stood up, crossed the room quickly, and grabbed the top of a desk chair.

Beyond dumbfounded by his partner's odd behavior, Atem watched him with wide eyes, his heart pounding a staccato beat against his chest. Clammy, itchy sweat formed in the creases of the hand Yuugi had gripped so tightly before releasing it. He rubbed his palms together for a second in silent contemplation, before he rose to go stand behind Yuugi, who remained where he was, rigid, with shoulders hunched, shaking.

"Yuugi?" he ventured gently. "What is it, what is wrong?"

He was completely surprised when Yuugi turned around, pulled him close, and swiftly covered his mouth with his own. Atem gasped, encouraging Yuugi to give him a fully open-mouthed kiss. By the time he was able to bring his wits together to form a reaction, Yuugi pulled away abruptly, and stared at him challengingly, hopelessly, like a dying animal forced into a corner. When Atem still had not spoken, or made any other motion, his expression filled with grief and he looked away, ashamed at what he had done.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled desperately. "I shouldn't have done that; that was stupid, I'm sorry. I didn't even think to ask you if you even… I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" He moved to leave.

Atem seized his arm. "Aibou."

Yuugi glanced up miserably before Atem pulled the young man against him, held him close with one arm around his shoulders and one arm at his waist. Then he proceeded to fully communicate through his lips and his tongue his feelings, letting them flow along through the link between their minds. Yuugi faltered on the uptake before slowly, eagerly, he responded in kind. He pressed their bodies together, offering earnest caresses of his own. Gradually he began a familiar rolling rhythm with his hips. Atem smiled into the kiss – ah, so his Yuugi was no unlearned virgin. Consequently, neither was he.

"You have been with a man before, Yuugi?" he spoke between kisses, the frantic pace of them slowing, his voice husky in his own ears.

"No." Yuugi murmured, nuzzling his neck, alternately kissing and gently nipping the skin between his teeth, tasting him. "Just girls, actually," he added as an afterthought. "Oh!" He grunted when Atem gave him a firm, yet gentle shove forward, pinning his lower back against the desk. He relaxed his motions when he felt Atem respond in kind, letting his breath out harshly through his nose. "Could you… just… harder… Yeah." He closed his eyes, enjoying Atem's ministrations. "Mmm… Didn't know."

Atem picked up the rest from his mind – his passion addled mind, he noted with smug satisfaction. "I enjoy both. The person," he began to travel a path down Yuugi's elegant throat, "attracts me more than the body, though I have found both," he squeezed gently, meaningfully relishing Yuugi's soft exclamation, "equally pleasurable."

Yuugi chuckled, and it was not an innocent sound. "How long?"

"Since I met you." Atem unbuttoned Yuugi's shirt, delighting in the hitch in the other's breathing as he did so. "But I did not want you like this then. I have loved you for far longer. I wanted to be with no one else."

The shirt was gone, left in a heap upon the floor, forgotten. The towel shortly followed. Atem rested his hands on Yuugi's pants, running his fingers along the belt in question. "How?" he spoke close to Yuugi's ear, taking the lobe in his teeth, tugging gently.

Yuugi released the fastener and undid the zipper. "Nothing crazy," he told him, kissing between his words as he relieved himself of the final impediment separating them. "I'm not a girl," he elaborated breathlessly.

Atem chuckled. "I am aware of that, and neither am I. Really, Yuugi?" He bit back laughter. "Ground rules?"

"Hey, we are guys," Yuugi pointed out huffily, flushing a bit. "I mean, if you do, I just want you to know, I… I wouldn't want to. I mean I wouldn't like it."

Atem turned them around, marveling at the contrast of their skin tones, and began guiding Yuugi slowly toward the bed. Though the sun was setting, he could still see his other's face in the dim light filtering from the window. "I will not make you do anything you do not want to do. You know me, aibou."

"Yes," Yuugi murmured, smiling affectionately. "I do."

For a moment, Atem experienced a small twinge of uncertainty. Were they rushing this? They had only just reunited and now they were… except it didn't feel like that. He understood, in his mind, that the Ceremonial Duel four years ago still felt very much like yesterday. For Yuugi, though, so much more time had passed, and so was more privy to its affects. He did not wholly comprehend how he could simply dive so quickly into this moment with such utter abandon.

Yuugi sensed his thoughts, his confusion, and answered.

The time that passed was immemorial to me. I have lived every day since the day you left this world cherishing every moment you and I shared, every battle we fought. When I saw your picture, when I saw you, I found myself begin to hope. I began to think about you as someone no longer confined to my past but a possible part of my future; a future where I might have you back in my life again. And in knowing this, I made my decision about what I wanted to be to you, what I wanted you to be to me. My only fear was whether you felt the same way.

I do, Yuugi, I do, always, Atem answered fervently. You must know that.

Then there is no more we need to say.

Yuugi touched Atem's cheeks with his fingers, his lips, bringing them to his own, before lying down upon the bed, crawling backward, and spreading his legs in such a wanton fashion, it set the former monarch to staring. Re above, aibou, he marveled, if you continue to act like this, I may not be able to restrain myself. A sultry grin spread across Yuugi's lips.

Atem let his own smirk say as much as he covered Yuugi's body with his own. Seizing his mouth with his own lips, he hungrily plundered his lover's warmth and his wetness while eliciting the ardent moans and whimpers he sought. Considering where his hands were and what he was doing with them, he wasn't surprised. Yuugi's hips rose rhythmically with each languid stroke.

Soon they were sliding under the sheets, entangled, letting hands wander freely over their beloved canvases, seeking what had been taken, finding what had been secretly sought, each touch and kiss a precursor to a cry of intense need. Laced throughout, softly unspoken in thought, in the depths of each other's eyes, was a love transcendent beyond death. Passion born from longing, a yearning so palpable, they wept. Their tears mingled with the perspiration on their bodies as they moved together, entwined.

"Could you… please…?" Yuugi panted, flushed.

Atem winked at him, and proceeded to draw cries of delight from his other. He considered the few small patches of hair he lost from his scalp for his efforts a compliment.

For a moment, after they were both finished, Atem gazed upon his other's moon pale face, tracing and memorizing every curve and dip, the damp bangs clinging to his beaded skin, and the brightness of his eyes. Yuugi smiled up at him, his lips slightly parted as he sought to catch his own breath.

"Wow," he managed, amazed and impressed. "Where'd you learn how to do that?" Atem answered by only giving him his most overconfident smirk. Yuugi rolled his eyes heavenward at the other's antics. "Serves me right for even asking you." He leaned up and brushed his lips over Atem's briefly, enticing him into another passionate lip lock. Then he smiled and wrapped his arms around his other half, cradling him against his warmth until sleep came.

Author's Note: I would like to thank Spirithorse for sharing her thoughts and suggestions with me on an early draft of this chapter. :)