~ . . . ~ = Yami's thoughts
+ . . . + = Gary's thoughts
Ryou quickly grabbed the Millennium Eye and the God of Osiris card and shoved them to Gary, who almost dropped them because he wasn't expecting ANYTHING like that to happen.
"Ryou," said Gary. "Thank you . . . so much."
* * *
Inside Ryou's mind, a battle was still underway.
"I did it!" shouted Ryou from a distance. "Idash, I got rid of the Eye!"
Idash nodded. He was occupied by the spirit of the Millennium Ring, for he had broken free from the Spellbinding Circle.
"I'll ask you one last time, you fool," he said, "to leave my mind at once!"
"No, thief," said Idash. "Not only do you pose a threat to the world but the innocent boy you 'share' a vessel with."
"So what about the boy?" the spirit scoffed. "I only use him as a means of getting around. When I get the necessary power, I will dispose of him, anyway."
Idash fumed. "My job is to punish thieves of the Millennium items, and I intend to DO that job." He clapped his hands. "Ryou!" he called. "Dispose of this tyrant!"
Ryou, somewhere else in the mind, was confused. But then . . .
* * *
"What's this?" Gary asked, befuddled. The Millennium Ring was now resting in his left hand.
~How was he able to . . . could he have overpowered the spirit again?~
Idash reappeared, and the key was removed from Ryou's forehead.
"Does this mean . . ." Gary began.
"I'm free!" Ryou shouted, clutching his wounded arm.
"But how . . ."
Idash stepped in front of Gary. "With a little help, he was able to overcome his darkness."
"Help?" Gary asked.
"Yes," Idash continued. "But I sense that this is not the case with you."
"What is he talking about, Gary?" Ryou asked. "Do you - "
Gary nodded before he had a chance to finish.
"You are somehow able to combine the powers of light and darkness into a force so powerful that it can overcome anything," Idash explained.
+Combining light and darkness? That IS us, isn't it, Yami?+
But Yami didn't answer him.
+Yo, Yami??+
"I must retreat now," Idash said," but I shall return shortly." And with that, he disappeared through a swirl in the ground, just like the way he came.
Ryou looked at the tombstone next to Yugi's - the one of the boy that was cursed with that same evil spirit he had just overcome. He felt sorry for him.
"I wonder why these two - especially Yugi, the master duelist, were buried in this area, where no one would think of looking," Ryou wondered.
"Maybe," Gary said, "maybe his friends wanted it that way - to put his young mind" . . . his voice suddenly changed . . . "to rest."
Yami had come out. Holding the three god cards in his hand, he closed his eyes.
+Yami . . .+
~They have returned.~
+Your --+
~Yes, Gary.~
The trap-like chambers of Yami's mind began to clear, and the doors began to open. Doors were opening so quickly that all Gary saw was a large swirl that made him dizzy.
Idash returned with something in his hands, the Millennium Scale.
"Young one," Idash said.
But Yami's eyes were still closed. He appeared to be in some sort of trance.
~I remember now . . .~
Idash, unable to get to Gary, put the Scale at Yami's feet. Ryou just stared in wonder. Then, Idash took off his necklace, which had the Millennium Key on it. He put it around Yami's neck. He then disappeared.
The seven Millennium items, at last reunited around a single being, glowed like nothing Ryou had ever seen before. Then, as the light died down, all seven of them faded away.
Yami, left with only a few strings around his neck, finally opened his eyes. With a jerk of the arm, he split into two. He was now staring at Gary, in the flesh, face to face.
"Huh?" Gary said, rubbing his eyes. "Why, I can't believe it . . ."
"What happened?!" Ryou exclaimed.
Gary took a long look at Yami. "I think it has to do with the Millennium items. We are two separate entities now." He smiled and extended his arm to shake Yami's hand.
"Thank you, Gary," said Yami. "Because of you, my true past has returned to me, and the god cards that contained it I now give to you. You were never a failure, and neither was your father. You are an exceptional person, and I will miss working with you."
"Does this mean - " Gary began. Tears began to well up in his eyes.
Yami nodded sharply, handing over the cards. "I must go, but a part of my soul will remain with you." He closed his eyes and slowly faded away.
"Goodbye, Yami," Gary said quietly.
Ryou put his arm around his best friend's shoulder. "Are you going to be okay?"
Gary was silent for a while, but he finally smiled and said, "Let's get some green tea ice cream and then go home!"
"Yeah!" said Ryou, smiling, although he knew he'd get in trouble for using up so much of his father's money on this unplanned trip.
"But first . . ." Gary turned to take one last look at Yugi's tombstone. But it was no longer there. Astonished, he looked to where Bakura's tombstone was. It was gone, too.
Gary closed his eyes. He ventured through the corridors of his mind, which now only had one room. He went inside his own Soul Room, and on the floor lay three Duel Monsters cards, lying face down.
He flipped the first one over. It was the Dark Magician - a card that represented not only Yugi but Gary as well.
The second was a Magician of Black Chaos ritual card, symbolizing Yami's soul card.
The last card, which Gary took a little long to flip, was Shining Friendship.
+Thank you, Yami.+ He knew that nobody was there to hear him. +Thank you for your friendship and Yugi's friendship. And . . . thank you for making me feel better about my father.+
~You're welcome, Gary.~ But nobody was there to hear this thought, either.
A swirl of hieroglyphs surrounded Yami, whose eyes were still closed. He saw the Great Pyramids of Egypt. He saw Seto Kaiba thrash his Duel Disk passionately. He saw his favorite Duel Monsters whisk by - alive, on tablets, and on cards. He saw Gary. He saw Gary's father, and the father of his father. He kept seeing the faces of Gary's ancestors fly by in a brilliant show. And finally, it was Yugi's face that appeared, smiling in his youth and innocence . . .
. . . and Yami knew that he would be meeting with him very soon.
The End
Ryou quickly grabbed the Millennium Eye and the God of Osiris card and shoved them to Gary, who almost dropped them because he wasn't expecting ANYTHING like that to happen.
"Ryou," said Gary. "Thank you . . . so much."
* * *
Inside Ryou's mind, a battle was still underway.
"I did it!" shouted Ryou from a distance. "Idash, I got rid of the Eye!"
Idash nodded. He was occupied by the spirit of the Millennium Ring, for he had broken free from the Spellbinding Circle.
"I'll ask you one last time, you fool," he said, "to leave my mind at once!"
"No, thief," said Idash. "Not only do you pose a threat to the world but the innocent boy you 'share' a vessel with."
"So what about the boy?" the spirit scoffed. "I only use him as a means of getting around. When I get the necessary power, I will dispose of him, anyway."
Idash fumed. "My job is to punish thieves of the Millennium items, and I intend to DO that job." He clapped his hands. "Ryou!" he called. "Dispose of this tyrant!"
Ryou, somewhere else in the mind, was confused. But then . . .
* * *
"What's this?" Gary asked, befuddled. The Millennium Ring was now resting in his left hand.
~How was he able to . . . could he have overpowered the spirit again?~
Idash reappeared, and the key was removed from Ryou's forehead.
"Does this mean . . ." Gary began.
"I'm free!" Ryou shouted, clutching his wounded arm.
"But how . . ."
Idash stepped in front of Gary. "With a little help, he was able to overcome his darkness."
"Help?" Gary asked.
"Yes," Idash continued. "But I sense that this is not the case with you."
"What is he talking about, Gary?" Ryou asked. "Do you - "
Gary nodded before he had a chance to finish.
"You are somehow able to combine the powers of light and darkness into a force so powerful that it can overcome anything," Idash explained.
+Combining light and darkness? That IS us, isn't it, Yami?+
But Yami didn't answer him.
+Yo, Yami??+
"I must retreat now," Idash said," but I shall return shortly." And with that, he disappeared through a swirl in the ground, just like the way he came.
Ryou looked at the tombstone next to Yugi's - the one of the boy that was cursed with that same evil spirit he had just overcome. He felt sorry for him.
"I wonder why these two - especially Yugi, the master duelist, were buried in this area, where no one would think of looking," Ryou wondered.
"Maybe," Gary said, "maybe his friends wanted it that way - to put his young mind" . . . his voice suddenly changed . . . "to rest."
Yami had come out. Holding the three god cards in his hand, he closed his eyes.
+Yami . . .+
~They have returned.~
+Your --+
~Yes, Gary.~
The trap-like chambers of Yami's mind began to clear, and the doors began to open. Doors were opening so quickly that all Gary saw was a large swirl that made him dizzy.
Idash returned with something in his hands, the Millennium Scale.
"Young one," Idash said.
But Yami's eyes were still closed. He appeared to be in some sort of trance.
~I remember now . . .~
Idash, unable to get to Gary, put the Scale at Yami's feet. Ryou just stared in wonder. Then, Idash took off his necklace, which had the Millennium Key on it. He put it around Yami's neck. He then disappeared.
The seven Millennium items, at last reunited around a single being, glowed like nothing Ryou had ever seen before. Then, as the light died down, all seven of them faded away.
Yami, left with only a few strings around his neck, finally opened his eyes. With a jerk of the arm, he split into two. He was now staring at Gary, in the flesh, face to face.
"Huh?" Gary said, rubbing his eyes. "Why, I can't believe it . . ."
"What happened?!" Ryou exclaimed.
Gary took a long look at Yami. "I think it has to do with the Millennium items. We are two separate entities now." He smiled and extended his arm to shake Yami's hand.
"Thank you, Gary," said Yami. "Because of you, my true past has returned to me, and the god cards that contained it I now give to you. You were never a failure, and neither was your father. You are an exceptional person, and I will miss working with you."
"Does this mean - " Gary began. Tears began to well up in his eyes.
Yami nodded sharply, handing over the cards. "I must go, but a part of my soul will remain with you." He closed his eyes and slowly faded away.
"Goodbye, Yami," Gary said quietly.
Ryou put his arm around his best friend's shoulder. "Are you going to be okay?"
Gary was silent for a while, but he finally smiled and said, "Let's get some green tea ice cream and then go home!"
"Yeah!" said Ryou, smiling, although he knew he'd get in trouble for using up so much of his father's money on this unplanned trip.
"But first . . ." Gary turned to take one last look at Yugi's tombstone. But it was no longer there. Astonished, he looked to where Bakura's tombstone was. It was gone, too.
Gary closed his eyes. He ventured through the corridors of his mind, which now only had one room. He went inside his own Soul Room, and on the floor lay three Duel Monsters cards, lying face down.
He flipped the first one over. It was the Dark Magician - a card that represented not only Yugi but Gary as well.
The second was a Magician of Black Chaos ritual card, symbolizing Yami's soul card.
The last card, which Gary took a little long to flip, was Shining Friendship.
+Thank you, Yami.+ He knew that nobody was there to hear him. +Thank you for your friendship and Yugi's friendship. And . . . thank you for making me feel better about my father.+
~You're welcome, Gary.~ But nobody was there to hear this thought, either.
A swirl of hieroglyphs surrounded Yami, whose eyes were still closed. He saw the Great Pyramids of Egypt. He saw Seto Kaiba thrash his Duel Disk passionately. He saw his favorite Duel Monsters whisk by - alive, on tablets, and on cards. He saw Gary. He saw Gary's father, and the father of his father. He kept seeing the faces of Gary's ancestors fly by in a brilliant show. And finally, it was Yugi's face that appeared, smiling in his youth and innocence . . .
. . . and Yami knew that he would be meeting with him very soon.
The End