A/N: This chapter takes place right after Highway 410 and Yuri on Skates, but before the Halloween and recap chapters.

Fun Fact: The closer the Yu boys get, the more they can access each other's memories and feelings.

Description: Yugo tells his brothers about Zarc.

Yuya sank into his bed. He let the soft pillow hold his head, and he curled the sheets over his body. For him, it was heavenly.

He'd just gotten home from the Synchro Dimension. And after spending a story arc in an unfamiliar place, it was nice to finally come home and relax in his own sanctuary.

Now comfortable, Yuya closed his eyes and let his body lose any tension it carried. His mind was free to wander, and his head was filled with thoughts he wanted to mull over.

It wasn't time to rest, though; he was slowly letting himself fall into the mindscape, where he would meet with his brothers. Yugo said that they had something they needed to talk about...

Yuya found himself sitting on his bed, in his room. It was now day, and rays of the sun poured through his window. It was all just a projection of his mind, but he could still feel the warmth as the light fell over him.

He looked to his desk. Yuto materialized into the chair next to it. He swiveled around to face Yuya.

The room's door opened. Yugo stepped inside, then pushed the door. Carelessly, he let it slam shut, sending small vibrations through the room.

"Where's Yuri?" Yugo questioned.

"Check the closet," Yuto responded.

"Hey, screw you, eggplant boy."

That voice came from the closet, by Yuto's desk. The wooden doors were pushed open, and Yuri strolled out. He looked disdainfully at Yuto and said, "Not another word, I just got lost coming here."

Yuto egao'd. Yuya egao'd. The two looked to each other and chuckled.

"So, I guess this meeting-" Yuya began.

"No," Yuri interjected.

"Is actually-"

"No."

"... A coming-out party."

Yuya laughed heartily at his own joke. Yuri simply rolled his eyes, while Yuto just kind of... chuckled quietly politely for a second or two. He wasn't too big on puns, not like Yuya.

Yugo cut through the laughter. "Yuya, please."

Yuya stopped. He, Yuto and Yuri all turned their focus to Yugo, who wasn't egao-ing with the rest of them.

"I have to talk to you about something."

Yugo paused for a moment. His hesitation was a clue to his brothers: Yugo wasn't in the mood to joke around with them. Whatever he was about to say, it was going to be something important.

"You guys haven't felt Zarc, have you?"

The others brothers all shook their heads.

"Not lately, no," Yuri said.

"Yugo, why are you asking?" Yuya asked sternly.

"During our duel with Jack..." Yugo said.

Yuya stood up from his seat. "You sensed him?"

"I think I talked to him," Yugo said.

"What'd he say?" Yuto asked.

"He didn't really say anything, but he showed me images, and said 'together.'"

Yuri asked, "Why didn't you tell us earlier? This is really important."

Yugo's gaze fell to his feet.

"Well?" Yuri questioned.

"I wanted to focus on Garome," he explained. "And at first, I thought that we could just ignore it."

"Why would you think that?!" Yuto snapped.

"It happened because we were synched up!" Yugo barked back. "I thought that, like, we could just keep him away if we don't do it again."

Yuto pinched the bridge of his nose. "Damn it, Yugo. Damn it!"

"You do remember how he wanted to destroy the world, right?" Yuri chimed in. "Or were planning on telling us this after he came back and killed everyone?"

"Why are you telling us now?" Yuya asked.

"Hmm?"

Yuya nodded. "Yugo, you said you just wanted to ignore it. What made you change your mind?"

Yugo looked up to Yuya. To the calm but concerned face of his brother. Unlike Yuto, who sounded furious, Yuya's voice had been more inquizitive and inoffensive. it helped to put Yugo at ease.

"That guy from the Link Dimension," Yugo told them. "He thought we were Zarc. He knew about Zarc."

"You think he might know something?" Yuto asked him. "Did he know about Zarc reaching out to you?"

"No, I don't think so... Er, maybe. I don't know. He vanished before we could talk, but he knew Zarc was a threat, so..."

Yuto put a hand to his chin. "Oh yeah... Didn't he say something about seeing Zarc, and wanting to strike before Zarc moves against them?"

"He did," Yugo confirmed.

"But we purified Zarc's spirit," Yuya said. "Zarc shouldn't be a threat."

"Tell that to his creepy visions."

The boys fell silent. They were all unsure of what to say, or where to go from that. None of them wanted to speak too quickly, not without knowing exactly how to proceed.

Yuri broke the silence with a sigh. "Ah... So you were worried about unleashing Zarc."

"Not just that," Yugo told him. "He came out when we were synchronized. What if we get too close, and he-"

"And he takes over," Yuya finished.

"No," Yugo said, shaking his head. "What if we get too close, and we become him?"

"Is that not the same thing, Fusion?" Yuri questioned.

"No, I get it," Yuto said. "If we become Zarc, we're becoming one."

Yuri's eyes widened. "Ah..."

Yuya put his hand to his chin. "Yugo doesn't want us to be one person."

"Exactly!" Yugo said. He then let out let out a sigh of relief. "I don't want to be one person! I want to have my brothers!"

He looked to his brothers. Yuya took a step back, but a warm egao took over his face. Yuto stayed in his chair, but looked relieved with Yugo's words. Yuri just looked bemused.

"Look, I know it sucks sharing a body," Yugo went on. "But it'd suck harder to be alone, right?"

"I'd rather share a body and fight with you guys, than be left alone without my family," Yuya said.

"I suppose there are advantages to sharing your body with other men," Yuri mused.

"Why do you have to talk like that?" Yuto asked him. "This is why people keep thinking we're gay."

"Enough, guys," Yuya interrupted. "Yugo, we beat Zarc once. We can do it again."

Yuri turned to Yugo. "I hate Yuto, but I'll do everything I can to keep my brother safe from Zarc, or whatever."

"We all will," Yuya assured them. "We're a team now. We don't have to fear Zarc as long as we work together."

"But what if we become one person?" Yugo asked.

"We'll fight it!"

"But can we?" Yuto asked.

"I don't see why not," Yuri said. "If we ever notice that we're fusing, we just stop. Even a total fucking idiot named Fusion could figure that out."

"Good thing there's no one named 'Fusion' here!" Yugo said proudly. "Only Yugo!"

"Only the guy weakest link of the group, yeah."

Yugo took a step forward, raising up his fists. "You wanna say that again, sissy boy?!"

Yuri sneered. As he lifted up his left arm, an Academia-style Duel Disk materialized onto it.

"You want to try me, baby brother?" Yuri asked him. "Because I'm ready for Round Two~"

Yugo stepped back, then held up his left arm. His own Duel Disk materialized, and its green blade jutted out from the side.

Yugo egao'd. "I'm ready, little bro. And I'm a lot stronger than before."

"Wait. We can't both be the baby."

"We can settle it in the duel," Yuto told them. "Whoever wins is the older brother."

"Nice idea, Yoots!" Yugo agreed. "Wait, we?"

Yuto rose from his seat and said, "I bet I would make a great oldest brother. I'm the most responsible, after all."

"You've been getting bolder lately!" Yuri giggled. "But as your big brother, it must be my duty to show you your place."

And while his brothers argued, Yuya watched on with an egao on his face. To him, it was a pretty comforting scene. It was nice.

Yuri was right about Yuto being more bold. Yuto was biting back whenever Yuri bothered him. It was less about being annoyed by Yuri, and more about volleying words between them. It was almost like Yuto forgot the hatred he had for Yuri.

Yuya noted that Yuri himself was also quite different. He was still the playful, mischievous kid that he always was. But lately, he had been less malicious when he prodded Yuto. He was a lot nicer to Yugo, and even helped him out against Garome. Really, he was embracing their brotherhood and becoming less hostile... comparatively. Was his kinder side being brought out because of Serena's love? Or did he have Serena's love because he brought out his kinder side?

Yuya looked to Yugo, who was excitedly telling his brothers something. After seeing Yugo's insecurities and worries, it really made Yuya appreciate the moments of genuine happiness the boy had. And after fighting for everything he's ever had, Yugo definitely deserved that happiness.

"Hey!" Yuya shouted out.

The three brothers looked to him.

"What? Aren't you going to invite me to the duel?" Yuya said.

Yuya lifted up his right arm, and an active Duel Disk materialized on it. "Bet I could beat you all on my own."

"Oh, you're on!" Yugo declared.

"I'll be the one to prove you wrong, Yuya!" Yuto said warmly.

"I'm ready for our Round Two, tomato boy!" Yuri announced.

The room had given way to an enormous stadium - the stadium used for the Junior Youth tournament. Every seat in the house was filled by a cheering audience member, who were all screaming the names of various Yu boys. The artificially-created excitement was palpable.

The brothers stood several feet apart, creating in a diamond formation. Yuya stood across from Yuto, while Yugo and Yuri were to his left and right, respectively. There was enough space between them to allow the brothers to go all-out and summon whatever they could.

"Alright, I'll go first!" Yuya announced. "Then Yuri, then Yuto, and then Yugo."

"Why do you get to go first?" Yuto asked.

"Well, that's obvious!"

"How so?" Yugo asked.

"Because my turn already started!" Yuya declared. "With my Scale 2 Timebreaker Magician, and my Scale 8 Performapal Odd-Eyes Unicorn, I set the Pendulum Scales!"

Yuya slammed his cards onto either end of his blade. Two pillars of light rose beside him, and the monsters inside floated to the sky. Once they reached the top, their Scale numbers appeared below them, and a swinging pendulum circled through the clouds above.

"Swing, Pendulum of the soul! Carve a light across the ether!" Yuya cried out. "Pendulum Summon! Come on, my monster friends!"

Three beams of light shot down before him. They faded to reveal Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (ATK 2500), Performapal Silver Claw (ATK 1800), and Black Fang Magician (ATK 1700), who all stood before their master on the field of battle.

"For our first act..." Yuya began. "I think we'll overlay Level 4 Performapal Silver Claw and Black Fang Magician!"

Yuri put his hands on his hips. "Typical. He's using other peoples' cards because he can't make his own Extra Deck."

A familiar vortex opened before Yuya. His wolf and his wizard jumped forward and let themselves fall into the vortex. Their bodies became light, and their forms merged together to create a new glow.

Yuya began his chant. "Formed from pitch-black darkness, to fight those foolish enough to oppose it with its treacherous fangs!"

"Hey!" Yuto snapped. "If you use Dark Rebellion against me, you're gonna get it!"

Yuya egao'd. "We'll see about that! Xyz Summon! "

A card was ejected from the Disk's Extra Deck slot. Yuya took the card and slammed it into his blade.

"Rank 4! Dark Rebe..."

He looked down at the card. To his horror, the card now facing him was Supreme King Z-ARC.

Yuya found himself staring at the ceiling of his room. His real room. It didn't take him that much time to realize that he woke up from his thoughts in the mindscape

Was I dreaming? Did I fall asleep?

He lay in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. His thoughts were a mess. He was thinking about Zarc. About the duel. About everything Yugo said. About the world. About so many things he didn't want to deal with.

Or was it real?

But he couldn't just lay around all night. Determined, he rose up from his bed and made his way over to the other side of his room.

Yuya stood over his desk, staring down at his deck. His deck sat between his Duel Disk and his Extra Deck. All of his cards were piled neatly; not a single card was astray.

What if...?

Yuya extended a hand to his deck. But he didn't get close enough to touch his cards. He couldn't.

He could feel his brothers around him. None of them were reaching out for the cards, either. Like they still had the same apprehension about finding something they didn't want to see. None of them said anything then.

Zarc, Yuya thought.

None of them answered. But all of them knew.

Yuya sighed. I didn't think I'd still be so scared of him.

I was, too, Yuto admitted.

We talked a good game about standing up to him, Yuri said. Yet here we are, eh?

We didn't even synch up, and Zarc still showed up, both Yuya and Yugo said in unison. That little moment of synchronicity made Yuya gasp.

Sorry... Yugo said.

No, don't worry, Yuya told him. But now what? How are we going to right him?

Can we fight him, though? Yuto asked.

Of course we can. We beat him once, and we can do it again.

Yeah! Yugo said, his voice carrying a tone of cautious optimism. We're not the same guys we used to be. We're strong now. We're family now.

Still, Yuri said slowly. Maybe we shouldn't get too close.

Huh? Why?

What are you saying, Yuri? both Yuya and Yuto asked him.

If being too friendly with each other is bringing back Zarc, it's too much of a risk, Yuri said. We weren't fusing our thoughts together, but we still called Zarc.

What's your solution here? Yuto asked. That we just avoid each other?

That's not really possible with us, Yuya said.

Obviously, it's not what I want, Yuri said bitterly. But it looks like just working together is bringing him back.

Yuri...

Until we know what's going on, maybe we shouldn't work together, or share our cards.

Yuri, no! Yugo snapped.

We should try to avoid talking to each other.

We can't do that! We're family!

Hey, I don't like it either! Yuri shouted. You think I want to lose the only family I have?

"But we're not losing each other!" Yuya offered.

Yugo pouted. Hmmph...

"Look, maybe Yuri's right," Yuya said. "We cool off for a while. But only until we figure out what to do!"

And how do we figure things out? asked Yuto. No one else has experience with this. Leo and the girls just have the En cards to fight Zarc.

And what if they use the cards on us now? Yugo wondered. Would that separate us? Or destroy us? Will it even work?

"I don't know," Yuya confessed. "I don't know all the answers. I just now that, deep in my heart, Zarc can't defeat us."

It was a nice sentiment, the other brothers agreed. But if they were truly being honest, none of them were sure that it was correct.

A/N: I just thought I'd also work on regular chapters and bonus chapters at the same time, and post whatever is finished first. So bonus chapters are still coming, including a skunk ape chapter that a lot of people wanted.

Next time: The Lancers prepare for their journey to the Link Dimension.