Yuki
By: Rogue Fox
Part Eleven. Goodbye Isn't Forever
A/N: So, here we are. The last part of Yuki. ;_; Waaah! I'm gonna miss it! Sure, I intend to write a sequel, but it's just not the same. Again, thank you all for being supportive and even some of the flames. I hope you enjoy the last official part of Yuki.
I could hear the soft swish of a gentle breeze teasing long grass, and, my eyes still closed from peaceful sleep, I was suddenly back home. I had fallen asleep in the back field, near the pond. I was totally alone, save the twittering birds in the trees that edged the pond. I had been fishing, but then I decided that had gotten boring and laid down to watch the clouds dance across the sky, eventually falling into a peaceful slumber. When I woke up, my cat was licking my face. I opened my eyes, in reality, I saw that I was lying amid tall grass, not unlike the field I had napped in so long ago. How long had it been? Ages, surely. I closed my eyes again and rolled over. It was so peaceful and sleepy here. I could lay there forever.
" Yuki.." someone was calling me. Reluctantly I sat up and pulled myself to my feet. " Yuki.." the voice called again. I looked around. Where was I? I had never seen this place before. It was picturesque. Purple mountains in the distance reminded me of friendly guards, watching over me. The tall grass came up to my waist and swayed in the gentle breeze. " Yuki.." the voice called. I started toward where I thought the voice was coming from, but I tripped over something. Everything seemed hazy, and surreal. Even though I had fallen on my hands and knees relatively hard, I felt no pain. I looked at the thing I had tripped over. It was a guy. He was short, and somehow, I thought he looked like me. He gazed at me curiously. Somehow, he seemed familiar.
" Hello." He said. I greeted him similarly.
" Are you the person calling me?" I asked him.
" No." he said. " I haven't been calling anyone."
" Where are we?" I asked.
" I don't know." He responded. I felt like there was something I was forgetting, something important. I helped the short guy to his feet and together we went searching for the voice I was hearing.
" Yuki.." I heard it again! It came to me on the breeze. Where was it? I started to run, and the short guy cried his protests and chased after me. I saw two people in the distance.
" Hey, look!" I cried, pointing.
" Maybe one of them is calling you." My companion suggested. I ran all out, and amazingly, the little guy was able to keep up with me. I didn't get tired, either. I felt like I could run forever. Soon, we reached the two people in question.
" Hello." I said as I approached them. They, like the little one, seemed familiar. One was a guy, taller than me with blonde hair and brown eyes. He smiled at me in greeting. I liked his smile. He seemed friendly. The other was a girl, also taller than me, but her eyes were a deep violet and her hair was long, wavy, and blonde. She also seemed friendly, if not a bit more suspicious than the guy. She was wearing a rather skimpy bathing suit and silk wrap. I realized I was also wearing a bating suit. The both greeted us politely.
" She's hearing a voice calling to her. Are either one of you calling her?" my short companion asked them, pointing to me to indicate that I was the "she" he was speaking of.
" No, I don't think so." The guy said, both shaking their heads no. I sighed and let my shoulders slump. Why did I have this nagging feeling I was forgetting something?
" Hey, excuse me!" someone called. My hopes soared again, hoping maybe the owner of this voice was the one who was calling to me. I turned to see two people coming toward us. One was a girl, with short brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a bathing suit and a silk wrap. She waved to us as she and her companion drew near. Her companion was a guy about my height with brown eyes, white, wild hair, and a big grin on his face. Greetings were once again exchanged.
" Do any of you know where we are?" the girl with the brown hair asked. We all said no.
" Wherever we are, it's sure is a pretty place." My first companion, the short guy, said. He was agreed with by all on that one. Soon, we were joined by two more people. Both were guys. The first had brown hair cut into an odd style that reminded me of a large prism and brown eyes. The other had brown hair as well, but his was cut long and hung loose from his head, almost covering his piercing blue eyes. They asked similar questions.
" Yuki.." the voice again! I jumped up and followed it, the group of people following me. Maybe the person calling me knows where we are and why we're here, I thought excitedly.
Eventually, we came to a set of stairs. I ran up them two at a time, the others following me. When I reached the top, I saw a young man and woman waiting for me. They were dressed like ancient Egyptians. The girl looked like me.
" Yuki." She said, sounding satisfied. And suddenly, I remembered. I remembered everything. Pegasus, Nepano, Yami Bakura, the Millennium Items, Himeko and Yami dying.... Everything. I looked up at Himeko. She looked fine, cool and calm as always.
" Himeko!" I cried, flinging myself into her arms. I felt safe. Finally, I was safe. I felt Yami's hand on my shoulder, Yugi's arms around my waist. Finally safe. I can't describe the feeling that came over us all. It was joy, complete and perfect joy. We were all laughing, yelling, crying, hugging, and, in Jou and Mai's case, kissing. It was short, but the love behind it was not lost on me. It was a while before we all settled down.
" Yuki, I wanted to thank you." Himeko said, after we had all seated ourselves on comfortable cushions.
" For what?" I asked.
" Well, first, for trying so hard to save us. Your friendship is something I'll never forget." Himeko said.
" I'd never let her." Yami added with a laugh. I smiled. It felt so good to be safe. I cuddled against Seto, who looked completely content.
" And also, for bringing this to the afterlife." Himeko continued, holding out the key that I had been holding before... I took it from her, not wanting to think about the end.
" What is it, anyway?" I asked.
" I remember that Nepano and Yami Bakura wanted it bad." Honda offered.
" Don't say his name!" Ryou protested.
" That doesn't surprise me. The one who the Key of Ra comes to wields infinite power. Yuki summoned the Key, so it belongs solely to her." Yami said. " Up until now, I'd always thought it was only a legend, a story for treasure hunters and glory seekers. I knew there was some truth to the legend, of course, or else I would have found my way to this place a long time ago. But the whole thing about the Millennium Items joining together, that seemed a little farfetched. Now I know it was true." He continued. Suddenly he laughed. I had never seen him laugh before. I think only Yugi was used to the idea at all. His happy eyes landed on me. " I think I underestimated you, Yuki. I thought you were an unknown element in the whole story. I never suspected you were the one who would summon the Key of Ra. I never even thought that you would have enough power to hold a mortal at bay. I was wrong, and I apologize." He said.
" As do I. There is much I should have told you." Himeko said. It was good to see them together.
" All that matters is that now it's all over." I said. Seto hugged me.
" So... Are we where I think we are?" Mai asked.
" The afterlife. We're all dead." Yami said. A silence so thick you could cut it with a knife fell over us.
" Dead." Anzu breathed. The word seemed to blanket us even deeper in the silence.
" There is a bright side." Yami added hastily. We all looked at him. " You all face a choice. You can still live. The power of the Key of Ra can give you back life. That is, if you want to." He said. I started.
" Don't answer immediately. Think about it for a little while. No matter how long you stay here, no time passes in the world of the living until Yuki sets it in motion." Himeko said. I started.
" What? Am I all-powerful just because I have this?" I asked, holding up the Key.
" In a word, practically." Yami said, sighing.
" There are limits, but very few. The only things you can't do are take the life of a good person, make someone fall in love with someone they don't truly love, and destroy a realm. Like the Shadow Realm, or the Realm of Life, or this place." Himeko said. " You could bend the flow of time, if you wanted to." She added. I stared at the key in my hands. So much power... No one person should ever have to wield it, I decided.
*+*+*
Dead. I couldn't believe I was dead. I stared out from a balcony over the fields of swaying grass. Such peaceful beauty. Is this heaven, I wondered. I waited for Yami to make some bright remark in my head, but it never came. I kept forgetting he wasn't there any more. He had a body of his own now. It was a little hard for me to get used to.
I faced a decision like none I had ever faced before. I had to decide if I wanted to remain dead or go back to life. I sighed as I sensed someone approaching me.
" Hello, Yami." I said, before he came into my visual range. He chuckled.
" I'm sorry, little friend. I think I missed it when you gained so much power." He said.
" I had to gain it very fast. Didn't have a choice." I said, blinking back tears as I remembered. Watching Yami die before my eyes...
" I know what you're thinking about." Yami said suddenly. I smiled up at him.
" Don't you always?" I asked. Yami looked at me sadly, even though I had meant it as a joke. Yami didn't always get my jokes.
" Not any more." He said. " But I still know you well enough to know what you're thinking about right now. You're thinking about the decision. You still haven't made up your mind, even though you've been here a week. The others are pretty much decided, I think." He told me.
" It's hard to resist this place. You just want to fall into it, let it take you away forever. But at the same time, I want to live. I want it so much I can taste it. I've still got a life, Yami." I told him, looking at him pleadingly. He smiled.
" I know we all agreed not to influence each other's decision, but I want you to know this. Right now, I'm in limbo. I want to go on to the real afterlife, to see Mariah again. Then, I want to come back to your world." He told me.
" What? Why?" I asked. I had thought for sure he would stay in the afterlife forever.
" My father was a big influence on my life, even though he died when I was young. I always wanted to have a son of my own, so I could try to be as good a father as my own father was." Yami told me, turning his head away from me. A habit he picked up from me. " Mariah would have been the mother of that son, but fate intervened. I think... I think you are the son I would have had. I think you are, in a sense, my son and my brother both." He said, turning to face me. I stared at him.
" Wow. I think that's the single most emotional thing I've ever heard you say." I told him, only to receive a bop on the head.
" I'm serious!" he yelled.
" I know, I know. And thanks. I really appreciate that." I told him. He smiled at me.
" Himeko is probably telling Yuki the same thing. She'll do better than I did, though." He said.
" You know how girls are." I said, shrugging.
" What are you going to do?" Yami asked.
" I think you know. I've got my whole life ahead of me, Yami." I said, by way of excuse. " I can't just turn my back and forget all about that."
" I know. And I'm not asking you to." Yami said. " But you know... If the puzzle shatters, it's over. I'm gone forever. But if it doesn't..." Yami said, trailing his voice off deliberately. I grinned.
" If it doesn't, we've got to find you a college major." I told him. He smiled.
" What would I do without you, my friend?" he asked. I started.
" You didn't call me little." I said in disbelief.
" I know. I don't think you are anymore, and I don't think you will be much longer. If that makes any sense to you." He said. I nodded.
" It does." I agreed.
" Watch over Anzu for me." He said. " I still don't think about her that way, but she needs someone to watch over her. Just like Mariah." He added. I laughed, tears in my eyes. This was Yami's way of saying goodbye.
" Okay, Yami. Okay." I said.
*+*+*
I hugged Himeko closely. I would miss her. She stayed near me throughout the entire meeting.
" Mai and I have decided to go back. We'll keep our reasons to ourselves." Jou said, smiling at Mai. I cocked an eyebrow at Mai, who blushed and looked away. It had obviously been a joint decision between them, as it had between me and Seto.
" I'm going back, too. I don't want to die before I get to marry the girl of my dreams." Honda announced. I knew he looked at me, but I didn't return his gaze. I wasn't sure what to think about Honda at the moment. He had come to me two days ago, asking me what I planned to do. I had smiled and told him that I didn't want to influence his opinion, so I couldn't tell him. I didn't tell Seto about it, because I knew he would get angry about it.
" I'm going back. I swear I'm going to get into dance school, and I'm not dying until I do!" Anzu cried. Everyone laughed.
" I'm also going back. My parents would kill me if I left like this." Ryou confessed.
" You'd already be dead!" Jou cried.
" I know. That's what makes it so dire that I return." Ryou said. More laughter.
" I'm going." Yugi said. " There's just too much left to do."
" Yuki and I are going back." Seto announced.
" We came to Egypt to rescue our brothers. We're not going to just die and abandon them." I said. No, I wouldn't be like our mom and Mokuba's mom, just leave them behind. Yami and Himeko glanced at each other. Yugi and I knew what they planned, but they still had to tell everyone else.
" We're staying. We'll go on to the real afterlife, meet up with the people we lost, and if we can, we'll come back to your world after that." Yami said. Everyone smiled, even though the sadness was clear.
" Hey, don't worry about it, guys." Himeko said after a moment, her face bright. I knew the smile was forced, but I know her better than most people. " Goodbye isn't forever. I know it hurts now, and it will for a while. But it isn't the end of the world. Even if Brother and I don't come back, we'll be watching over you. And we'll be waiting for you guys on the other side." She said. I ran up to her and hugged her.
" Then I guess this is-" I started, but she interrupted me.
" See you later. This is see you later. For us, it'll never be goodbye." She said. I smiled and nodded, but my eyes were full of both emotion and tears.
" Then I'll see you later." I said. " I'll miss you." I added. Himeko rushed to wipe away a few tears.
" I'll be fine. It's you I'm worried about. Take care of yourself, and all of them. Your brothers, your friends... Seto." She said, smiling slyly. I blushed. Only Himeko knew my confusion about that.
" Yeah, I will." I said, tightening my grip on the Key of Ra.
" It's time. Do it, Yuki." Yami said. I drew in a deep breath, and tried to throw my voice as low and commanding as it could go.
" Gates to the Realm of Life, I bid you to open to the Key of Ra!" I commanded. I had an instantaneous flash of a pair of white gates swinging open. We walked through the portal I had opened. Only Yugi and I looked back, for a single instant, then walked on.
I opened my eyes and sat up. I was in the huge room I had died in. At my feet lay all of the Millennium Items. I rummaged through them, found my orb, and clutched it to me. It was good to have something of Himeko's.
" Was it all a dream?" Mai asked, sitting up. Jou grasped her shoulder. Honda groaned and sat up.
" My aching head..." he moaned.
" No." I said, answering Mai. I stared at the orb. It was dull, instead of shiny and unusually bright. " It wasn't a dream." Seto sat up and looked at me. Bakura picked up the Millennium Ring, which I had discovered belonged to him.
" I can't believe he's really gone." He said. " Somehow, I don't know whether to be sad or utterly joyous."
" Be joyous." I advised. " We're alive."
" Excuse me, miss." Someone said suddenly. I turned to see a goon in a black suit. We were instantly on our feet.
" What do you want?" Seto asked threateningly.
" Master Pegasus told us that in the event that you lived and he didn't, we should return the children to you." The goon said. My expression melted into joy.
" Yuki! Seto!" a trio of young voices cried. I sank to my knees as my little brothers came swarming into my arms. I almost toppled over with the force of their hugs, but Seto supported me as he grabbed all four of us up in a hug.
" I have a suggestion." Yugi said, holding up the still whole Millennium Puzzle. " Let's go home." He said. Everyone cheered, and I pressed my tear stained cheek against the top of Yukio's head.
" Home." I said. " That sounds nice."
" Can we go home now?" Mokuba asked. I laughed and cried at the same time as I drew them all into another hug.
" Yes. We can go home now." I told him.
Epilogue...
Six months later...
I turned the page of my book, glancing around the courtyard. Life was normal again, and I was in school, on lunch break, waiting for the others to get there. I sighed, stretching my legs out on the bench at the table I was sitting at. I had barely been back to my book for a moment when my legs were shoved out of the way. I looked up from the book to see Mai sitting down where my legs had been, Anzu on her other side.
" Hey, what's going on?" I asked casually. Mai had transferred to our school after the whole thing in Egypt.
" Nothing. Just fussing over those papers we got in world history." Anzu said. " I got Native Americans, how about you?" Mai sighed.
" I got ancient Phoenicians. Who knows anything about ancient Phoenicians?" she asked. I looked up at her from over the rim of my book.
" I know they were a race of merchants. But that's it." I said. " And before you ask, I got ancient Egyptians. Talk about ironic." I said.
" Definitely. You'll be able to write a killer report on that topic." Mai said. " Hey, guys! Over here!" she shouted, waving to someone across the courtyard. I marked my place in my book and put it down, sick of being interrupted. Yugi, Jou, Honda, and Ryou all made their way over to us. Mai pushed Anzu over to allow room for Jou, who smiled at Anzu and apologized.
" It's okay. I've gotten used to it." She said with a laugh. Mai grinned at her around Jou. Yugi sat next to Anzu, Ryou on his other side. I scooted over, making sure there was enough room on both sides of me for one person to sit. Honda sat in between Mai and I. There was still room left next to me for Seto, whenever he got here. If I didn't save him a spot next to me, and Honda got one, Seto always got mad. On Ryou's other side, there was room for at least three more people.
" So, what did you guys get on the history report?" Mai asked.
" I got ancient Africa. Tell me someone here knows something about Africa." Jou said, looking at everyone around the table pleadingly.
" The oldest known human bones were found in Kenya." I offered.
" Many of early African people were nomads." Yugi followed up.
" Maybe I should go to the library for this one, huh?" Jou said.
" I got Romans. All I know about Romans has to do with Julius Caesar, and the play about him that Shakespeare wrote." Ryou said. He shrugged. " Oh well. A little research never hurt anyone."
" Does anyone know anything about ancient Phoenicians?" Honda asked.
" I've got that one, too. Yuki said that they were a race of merchants." Mai offered.
" Well, that's a start." Honda said approvingly, smiling at me. I smiled back uncertainly. I still wasn't sure how to react to Honda's flirtations.
" I got Egyptians. Doesn't that just beat all?" Yugi asked, laying his hands face up on the table to reinforce his exasperation.
" I got 'em too." I said, grinning.
" We'll, this report's in the bag." Yugi said, shrugging and leaning against Anzu's shoulder. I noticed once again that he seemed to have grown a little. Anzu shifted a little to get more comfortable.
" Hey, Kaiba! Over here!" Jou shouted, waving to Seto as he walked into the courtyard. He jogged over and took the seat by me.
" Hey. Who else here has decided they hate the world history teacher?" he asked. Everyone at the table raised their hands unanimously. " Okay, I'm not alone. I got early Japan, the Edo period." He said. I chuckled as everyone began to talk. Then, from across the courtyard, someone started yelling.
" HEY, WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, BUDDY!" that someone yelled. I sighed.
" Oh boy. Here they come." I muttered as Himeko stormed over to us, took her seat by Ryou, and snagged the apple Yami tossed her without even looking. Anyone could tell she was infuriated.
" Dumb teacher... Too old to be teaching anyway..." Himeko muttered, chomping into her apple.
" Greeks. Of all the ancient people in the world, it had to be Greeks. I hate Greeks. I was ready to wage war on Greeks. Now, I have to write a report on them?" Yami threw up his hands. " The whole purpose of school is torture us, right?" he asked.
" That would be it, Yami." Jou said nonchalantly. Yami and Himeko, upon their return two months ago, had almost immediately become the head bad girl and bad boy of the school. Even though they both wore the uniforms, they managed to look like trouble in the process. Himeko pulled her skirt up higher than Mai, and Yami, forced to not wear any chains or buckles, had pulled every trick in the book to defy the "oppressive authority of your century," as he liked to call it. To explain their sudden appearance, which would seem to the rest of the world out of nowhere, Seto pulled a few strings and got a legal document that said Yugi, Yami, Himeko, and I were a set of quadruplets. Yami was oldest, followed by Himeko, then Yugi, and I was youngest.
" Hey, that new movie is opening in the theater tonight. I saw it in the paper." Honda said to me. I knew he was about to ask me out. Someone save me, I thought desperately. I wouldn't mind going to the movies with Honda at all. As a matter of fact, I sort of liked him. But I didn't want Seto to be getting any ideas. He was too jealous and protective as it was. Fortunately, Himeko had heard Honda and read the distress in my eyes.
" Hey, that's great! We should all go!" she cried. Everyone agreed. I grinned. This was life. I knew I would never be normal. I had given up trying. But, I had a great life, great friends, great brothers, a great sister, and Seto. I still wasn't sure where Seto fell in all that. But I would figure it out. Life isn't always peachy. But that's fine by me. I've got a guardian angel who wears black leather and wants a tattoo of an Egyptian eye on her upper arm, and I know she'll watch out for me and I'll watch out for her. I've got two protective big brothers who always look out for me while I look out for them, and two little brothers who I love to death. I've got the best friends a girl could ever ask for. Mai knows everything about fashion and guys, and Anzu is always there when you need her. Ryou and Honda are really supportive, and with all of their help, I'm letting go of my anger. But the Key of Ra is still mine. And the adventures are far from over.
The End.
By: Rogue Fox
Part Eleven. Goodbye Isn't Forever
A/N: So, here we are. The last part of Yuki. ;_; Waaah! I'm gonna miss it! Sure, I intend to write a sequel, but it's just not the same. Again, thank you all for being supportive and even some of the flames. I hope you enjoy the last official part of Yuki.
I could hear the soft swish of a gentle breeze teasing long grass, and, my eyes still closed from peaceful sleep, I was suddenly back home. I had fallen asleep in the back field, near the pond. I was totally alone, save the twittering birds in the trees that edged the pond. I had been fishing, but then I decided that had gotten boring and laid down to watch the clouds dance across the sky, eventually falling into a peaceful slumber. When I woke up, my cat was licking my face. I opened my eyes, in reality, I saw that I was lying amid tall grass, not unlike the field I had napped in so long ago. How long had it been? Ages, surely. I closed my eyes again and rolled over. It was so peaceful and sleepy here. I could lay there forever.
" Yuki.." someone was calling me. Reluctantly I sat up and pulled myself to my feet. " Yuki.." the voice called again. I looked around. Where was I? I had never seen this place before. It was picturesque. Purple mountains in the distance reminded me of friendly guards, watching over me. The tall grass came up to my waist and swayed in the gentle breeze. " Yuki.." the voice called. I started toward where I thought the voice was coming from, but I tripped over something. Everything seemed hazy, and surreal. Even though I had fallen on my hands and knees relatively hard, I felt no pain. I looked at the thing I had tripped over. It was a guy. He was short, and somehow, I thought he looked like me. He gazed at me curiously. Somehow, he seemed familiar.
" Hello." He said. I greeted him similarly.
" Are you the person calling me?" I asked him.
" No." he said. " I haven't been calling anyone."
" Where are we?" I asked.
" I don't know." He responded. I felt like there was something I was forgetting, something important. I helped the short guy to his feet and together we went searching for the voice I was hearing.
" Yuki.." I heard it again! It came to me on the breeze. Where was it? I started to run, and the short guy cried his protests and chased after me. I saw two people in the distance.
" Hey, look!" I cried, pointing.
" Maybe one of them is calling you." My companion suggested. I ran all out, and amazingly, the little guy was able to keep up with me. I didn't get tired, either. I felt like I could run forever. Soon, we reached the two people in question.
" Hello." I said as I approached them. They, like the little one, seemed familiar. One was a guy, taller than me with blonde hair and brown eyes. He smiled at me in greeting. I liked his smile. He seemed friendly. The other was a girl, also taller than me, but her eyes were a deep violet and her hair was long, wavy, and blonde. She also seemed friendly, if not a bit more suspicious than the guy. She was wearing a rather skimpy bathing suit and silk wrap. I realized I was also wearing a bating suit. The both greeted us politely.
" She's hearing a voice calling to her. Are either one of you calling her?" my short companion asked them, pointing to me to indicate that I was the "she" he was speaking of.
" No, I don't think so." The guy said, both shaking their heads no. I sighed and let my shoulders slump. Why did I have this nagging feeling I was forgetting something?
" Hey, excuse me!" someone called. My hopes soared again, hoping maybe the owner of this voice was the one who was calling to me. I turned to see two people coming toward us. One was a girl, with short brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a bathing suit and a silk wrap. She waved to us as she and her companion drew near. Her companion was a guy about my height with brown eyes, white, wild hair, and a big grin on his face. Greetings were once again exchanged.
" Do any of you know where we are?" the girl with the brown hair asked. We all said no.
" Wherever we are, it's sure is a pretty place." My first companion, the short guy, said. He was agreed with by all on that one. Soon, we were joined by two more people. Both were guys. The first had brown hair cut into an odd style that reminded me of a large prism and brown eyes. The other had brown hair as well, but his was cut long and hung loose from his head, almost covering his piercing blue eyes. They asked similar questions.
" Yuki.." the voice again! I jumped up and followed it, the group of people following me. Maybe the person calling me knows where we are and why we're here, I thought excitedly.
Eventually, we came to a set of stairs. I ran up them two at a time, the others following me. When I reached the top, I saw a young man and woman waiting for me. They were dressed like ancient Egyptians. The girl looked like me.
" Yuki." She said, sounding satisfied. And suddenly, I remembered. I remembered everything. Pegasus, Nepano, Yami Bakura, the Millennium Items, Himeko and Yami dying.... Everything. I looked up at Himeko. She looked fine, cool and calm as always.
" Himeko!" I cried, flinging myself into her arms. I felt safe. Finally, I was safe. I felt Yami's hand on my shoulder, Yugi's arms around my waist. Finally safe. I can't describe the feeling that came over us all. It was joy, complete and perfect joy. We were all laughing, yelling, crying, hugging, and, in Jou and Mai's case, kissing. It was short, but the love behind it was not lost on me. It was a while before we all settled down.
" Yuki, I wanted to thank you." Himeko said, after we had all seated ourselves on comfortable cushions.
" For what?" I asked.
" Well, first, for trying so hard to save us. Your friendship is something I'll never forget." Himeko said.
" I'd never let her." Yami added with a laugh. I smiled. It felt so good to be safe. I cuddled against Seto, who looked completely content.
" And also, for bringing this to the afterlife." Himeko continued, holding out the key that I had been holding before... I took it from her, not wanting to think about the end.
" What is it, anyway?" I asked.
" I remember that Nepano and Yami Bakura wanted it bad." Honda offered.
" Don't say his name!" Ryou protested.
" That doesn't surprise me. The one who the Key of Ra comes to wields infinite power. Yuki summoned the Key, so it belongs solely to her." Yami said. " Up until now, I'd always thought it was only a legend, a story for treasure hunters and glory seekers. I knew there was some truth to the legend, of course, or else I would have found my way to this place a long time ago. But the whole thing about the Millennium Items joining together, that seemed a little farfetched. Now I know it was true." He continued. Suddenly he laughed. I had never seen him laugh before. I think only Yugi was used to the idea at all. His happy eyes landed on me. " I think I underestimated you, Yuki. I thought you were an unknown element in the whole story. I never suspected you were the one who would summon the Key of Ra. I never even thought that you would have enough power to hold a mortal at bay. I was wrong, and I apologize." He said.
" As do I. There is much I should have told you." Himeko said. It was good to see them together.
" All that matters is that now it's all over." I said. Seto hugged me.
" So... Are we where I think we are?" Mai asked.
" The afterlife. We're all dead." Yami said. A silence so thick you could cut it with a knife fell over us.
" Dead." Anzu breathed. The word seemed to blanket us even deeper in the silence.
" There is a bright side." Yami added hastily. We all looked at him. " You all face a choice. You can still live. The power of the Key of Ra can give you back life. That is, if you want to." He said. I started.
" Don't answer immediately. Think about it for a little while. No matter how long you stay here, no time passes in the world of the living until Yuki sets it in motion." Himeko said. I started.
" What? Am I all-powerful just because I have this?" I asked, holding up the Key.
" In a word, practically." Yami said, sighing.
" There are limits, but very few. The only things you can't do are take the life of a good person, make someone fall in love with someone they don't truly love, and destroy a realm. Like the Shadow Realm, or the Realm of Life, or this place." Himeko said. " You could bend the flow of time, if you wanted to." She added. I stared at the key in my hands. So much power... No one person should ever have to wield it, I decided.
*+*+*
Dead. I couldn't believe I was dead. I stared out from a balcony over the fields of swaying grass. Such peaceful beauty. Is this heaven, I wondered. I waited for Yami to make some bright remark in my head, but it never came. I kept forgetting he wasn't there any more. He had a body of his own now. It was a little hard for me to get used to.
I faced a decision like none I had ever faced before. I had to decide if I wanted to remain dead or go back to life. I sighed as I sensed someone approaching me.
" Hello, Yami." I said, before he came into my visual range. He chuckled.
" I'm sorry, little friend. I think I missed it when you gained so much power." He said.
" I had to gain it very fast. Didn't have a choice." I said, blinking back tears as I remembered. Watching Yami die before my eyes...
" I know what you're thinking about." Yami said suddenly. I smiled up at him.
" Don't you always?" I asked. Yami looked at me sadly, even though I had meant it as a joke. Yami didn't always get my jokes.
" Not any more." He said. " But I still know you well enough to know what you're thinking about right now. You're thinking about the decision. You still haven't made up your mind, even though you've been here a week. The others are pretty much decided, I think." He told me.
" It's hard to resist this place. You just want to fall into it, let it take you away forever. But at the same time, I want to live. I want it so much I can taste it. I've still got a life, Yami." I told him, looking at him pleadingly. He smiled.
" I know we all agreed not to influence each other's decision, but I want you to know this. Right now, I'm in limbo. I want to go on to the real afterlife, to see Mariah again. Then, I want to come back to your world." He told me.
" What? Why?" I asked. I had thought for sure he would stay in the afterlife forever.
" My father was a big influence on my life, even though he died when I was young. I always wanted to have a son of my own, so I could try to be as good a father as my own father was." Yami told me, turning his head away from me. A habit he picked up from me. " Mariah would have been the mother of that son, but fate intervened. I think... I think you are the son I would have had. I think you are, in a sense, my son and my brother both." He said, turning to face me. I stared at him.
" Wow. I think that's the single most emotional thing I've ever heard you say." I told him, only to receive a bop on the head.
" I'm serious!" he yelled.
" I know, I know. And thanks. I really appreciate that." I told him. He smiled at me.
" Himeko is probably telling Yuki the same thing. She'll do better than I did, though." He said.
" You know how girls are." I said, shrugging.
" What are you going to do?" Yami asked.
" I think you know. I've got my whole life ahead of me, Yami." I said, by way of excuse. " I can't just turn my back and forget all about that."
" I know. And I'm not asking you to." Yami said. " But you know... If the puzzle shatters, it's over. I'm gone forever. But if it doesn't..." Yami said, trailing his voice off deliberately. I grinned.
" If it doesn't, we've got to find you a college major." I told him. He smiled.
" What would I do without you, my friend?" he asked. I started.
" You didn't call me little." I said in disbelief.
" I know. I don't think you are anymore, and I don't think you will be much longer. If that makes any sense to you." He said. I nodded.
" It does." I agreed.
" Watch over Anzu for me." He said. " I still don't think about her that way, but she needs someone to watch over her. Just like Mariah." He added. I laughed, tears in my eyes. This was Yami's way of saying goodbye.
" Okay, Yami. Okay." I said.
*+*+*
I hugged Himeko closely. I would miss her. She stayed near me throughout the entire meeting.
" Mai and I have decided to go back. We'll keep our reasons to ourselves." Jou said, smiling at Mai. I cocked an eyebrow at Mai, who blushed and looked away. It had obviously been a joint decision between them, as it had between me and Seto.
" I'm going back, too. I don't want to die before I get to marry the girl of my dreams." Honda announced. I knew he looked at me, but I didn't return his gaze. I wasn't sure what to think about Honda at the moment. He had come to me two days ago, asking me what I planned to do. I had smiled and told him that I didn't want to influence his opinion, so I couldn't tell him. I didn't tell Seto about it, because I knew he would get angry about it.
" I'm going back. I swear I'm going to get into dance school, and I'm not dying until I do!" Anzu cried. Everyone laughed.
" I'm also going back. My parents would kill me if I left like this." Ryou confessed.
" You'd already be dead!" Jou cried.
" I know. That's what makes it so dire that I return." Ryou said. More laughter.
" I'm going." Yugi said. " There's just too much left to do."
" Yuki and I are going back." Seto announced.
" We came to Egypt to rescue our brothers. We're not going to just die and abandon them." I said. No, I wouldn't be like our mom and Mokuba's mom, just leave them behind. Yami and Himeko glanced at each other. Yugi and I knew what they planned, but they still had to tell everyone else.
" We're staying. We'll go on to the real afterlife, meet up with the people we lost, and if we can, we'll come back to your world after that." Yami said. Everyone smiled, even though the sadness was clear.
" Hey, don't worry about it, guys." Himeko said after a moment, her face bright. I knew the smile was forced, but I know her better than most people. " Goodbye isn't forever. I know it hurts now, and it will for a while. But it isn't the end of the world. Even if Brother and I don't come back, we'll be watching over you. And we'll be waiting for you guys on the other side." She said. I ran up to her and hugged her.
" Then I guess this is-" I started, but she interrupted me.
" See you later. This is see you later. For us, it'll never be goodbye." She said. I smiled and nodded, but my eyes were full of both emotion and tears.
" Then I'll see you later." I said. " I'll miss you." I added. Himeko rushed to wipe away a few tears.
" I'll be fine. It's you I'm worried about. Take care of yourself, and all of them. Your brothers, your friends... Seto." She said, smiling slyly. I blushed. Only Himeko knew my confusion about that.
" Yeah, I will." I said, tightening my grip on the Key of Ra.
" It's time. Do it, Yuki." Yami said. I drew in a deep breath, and tried to throw my voice as low and commanding as it could go.
" Gates to the Realm of Life, I bid you to open to the Key of Ra!" I commanded. I had an instantaneous flash of a pair of white gates swinging open. We walked through the portal I had opened. Only Yugi and I looked back, for a single instant, then walked on.
I opened my eyes and sat up. I was in the huge room I had died in. At my feet lay all of the Millennium Items. I rummaged through them, found my orb, and clutched it to me. It was good to have something of Himeko's.
" Was it all a dream?" Mai asked, sitting up. Jou grasped her shoulder. Honda groaned and sat up.
" My aching head..." he moaned.
" No." I said, answering Mai. I stared at the orb. It was dull, instead of shiny and unusually bright. " It wasn't a dream." Seto sat up and looked at me. Bakura picked up the Millennium Ring, which I had discovered belonged to him.
" I can't believe he's really gone." He said. " Somehow, I don't know whether to be sad or utterly joyous."
" Be joyous." I advised. " We're alive."
" Excuse me, miss." Someone said suddenly. I turned to see a goon in a black suit. We were instantly on our feet.
" What do you want?" Seto asked threateningly.
" Master Pegasus told us that in the event that you lived and he didn't, we should return the children to you." The goon said. My expression melted into joy.
" Yuki! Seto!" a trio of young voices cried. I sank to my knees as my little brothers came swarming into my arms. I almost toppled over with the force of their hugs, but Seto supported me as he grabbed all four of us up in a hug.
" I have a suggestion." Yugi said, holding up the still whole Millennium Puzzle. " Let's go home." He said. Everyone cheered, and I pressed my tear stained cheek against the top of Yukio's head.
" Home." I said. " That sounds nice."
" Can we go home now?" Mokuba asked. I laughed and cried at the same time as I drew them all into another hug.
" Yes. We can go home now." I told him.
Epilogue...
Six months later...
I turned the page of my book, glancing around the courtyard. Life was normal again, and I was in school, on lunch break, waiting for the others to get there. I sighed, stretching my legs out on the bench at the table I was sitting at. I had barely been back to my book for a moment when my legs were shoved out of the way. I looked up from the book to see Mai sitting down where my legs had been, Anzu on her other side.
" Hey, what's going on?" I asked casually. Mai had transferred to our school after the whole thing in Egypt.
" Nothing. Just fussing over those papers we got in world history." Anzu said. " I got Native Americans, how about you?" Mai sighed.
" I got ancient Phoenicians. Who knows anything about ancient Phoenicians?" she asked. I looked up at her from over the rim of my book.
" I know they were a race of merchants. But that's it." I said. " And before you ask, I got ancient Egyptians. Talk about ironic." I said.
" Definitely. You'll be able to write a killer report on that topic." Mai said. " Hey, guys! Over here!" she shouted, waving to someone across the courtyard. I marked my place in my book and put it down, sick of being interrupted. Yugi, Jou, Honda, and Ryou all made their way over to us. Mai pushed Anzu over to allow room for Jou, who smiled at Anzu and apologized.
" It's okay. I've gotten used to it." She said with a laugh. Mai grinned at her around Jou. Yugi sat next to Anzu, Ryou on his other side. I scooted over, making sure there was enough room on both sides of me for one person to sit. Honda sat in between Mai and I. There was still room left next to me for Seto, whenever he got here. If I didn't save him a spot next to me, and Honda got one, Seto always got mad. On Ryou's other side, there was room for at least three more people.
" So, what did you guys get on the history report?" Mai asked.
" I got ancient Africa. Tell me someone here knows something about Africa." Jou said, looking at everyone around the table pleadingly.
" The oldest known human bones were found in Kenya." I offered.
" Many of early African people were nomads." Yugi followed up.
" Maybe I should go to the library for this one, huh?" Jou said.
" I got Romans. All I know about Romans has to do with Julius Caesar, and the play about him that Shakespeare wrote." Ryou said. He shrugged. " Oh well. A little research never hurt anyone."
" Does anyone know anything about ancient Phoenicians?" Honda asked.
" I've got that one, too. Yuki said that they were a race of merchants." Mai offered.
" Well, that's a start." Honda said approvingly, smiling at me. I smiled back uncertainly. I still wasn't sure how to react to Honda's flirtations.
" I got Egyptians. Doesn't that just beat all?" Yugi asked, laying his hands face up on the table to reinforce his exasperation.
" I got 'em too." I said, grinning.
" We'll, this report's in the bag." Yugi said, shrugging and leaning against Anzu's shoulder. I noticed once again that he seemed to have grown a little. Anzu shifted a little to get more comfortable.
" Hey, Kaiba! Over here!" Jou shouted, waving to Seto as he walked into the courtyard. He jogged over and took the seat by me.
" Hey. Who else here has decided they hate the world history teacher?" he asked. Everyone at the table raised their hands unanimously. " Okay, I'm not alone. I got early Japan, the Edo period." He said. I chuckled as everyone began to talk. Then, from across the courtyard, someone started yelling.
" HEY, WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, BUDDY!" that someone yelled. I sighed.
" Oh boy. Here they come." I muttered as Himeko stormed over to us, took her seat by Ryou, and snagged the apple Yami tossed her without even looking. Anyone could tell she was infuriated.
" Dumb teacher... Too old to be teaching anyway..." Himeko muttered, chomping into her apple.
" Greeks. Of all the ancient people in the world, it had to be Greeks. I hate Greeks. I was ready to wage war on Greeks. Now, I have to write a report on them?" Yami threw up his hands. " The whole purpose of school is torture us, right?" he asked.
" That would be it, Yami." Jou said nonchalantly. Yami and Himeko, upon their return two months ago, had almost immediately become the head bad girl and bad boy of the school. Even though they both wore the uniforms, they managed to look like trouble in the process. Himeko pulled her skirt up higher than Mai, and Yami, forced to not wear any chains or buckles, had pulled every trick in the book to defy the "oppressive authority of your century," as he liked to call it. To explain their sudden appearance, which would seem to the rest of the world out of nowhere, Seto pulled a few strings and got a legal document that said Yugi, Yami, Himeko, and I were a set of quadruplets. Yami was oldest, followed by Himeko, then Yugi, and I was youngest.
" Hey, that new movie is opening in the theater tonight. I saw it in the paper." Honda said to me. I knew he was about to ask me out. Someone save me, I thought desperately. I wouldn't mind going to the movies with Honda at all. As a matter of fact, I sort of liked him. But I didn't want Seto to be getting any ideas. He was too jealous and protective as it was. Fortunately, Himeko had heard Honda and read the distress in my eyes.
" Hey, that's great! We should all go!" she cried. Everyone agreed. I grinned. This was life. I knew I would never be normal. I had given up trying. But, I had a great life, great friends, great brothers, a great sister, and Seto. I still wasn't sure where Seto fell in all that. But I would figure it out. Life isn't always peachy. But that's fine by me. I've got a guardian angel who wears black leather and wants a tattoo of an Egyptian eye on her upper arm, and I know she'll watch out for me and I'll watch out for her. I've got two protective big brothers who always look out for me while I look out for them, and two little brothers who I love to death. I've got the best friends a girl could ever ask for. Mai knows everything about fashion and guys, and Anzu is always there when you need her. Ryou and Honda are really supportive, and with all of their help, I'm letting go of my anger. But the Key of Ra is still mine. And the adventures are far from over.
The End.