A/N: Whew! Between three fics, it's taken me longer than I expected to update. The original chapter was long, so I split it up so I could at least have an update.
An Off Morning
With the dawn came new promise. The warm rays of the rising sun caressed Yugi's eyelids. The youth moaned softly and changed position, either unable or unwilling to give up on sleep just yet. The irritating blare of a car alarm woke him; the boy groaned and tried covering his head with a pillow. The raucous noise burrowed into the polyfill cocoon. With a frustrated moan, Yugi tossed the pillow aside.
"Why does this have to happen every Saturday?" the teen boy slurred.
Yugi arose on shaky feet and stretched; his mouth a jaw-popping yawn. He stretched until his entire body quivered, limbering his muscles. The teen boy rubbed the sleep from his bright amethyst eyes. His mind was still wrapped in a wooly fog, however, as he shuffled his way to the bathroom.
The tendrils of steam that seeped under the closed door didn't give the boy reason to pause. The door swung open easily; there wasn't a lock on it, there never was a need for one. And why knock when it's just you and your Grandpa? The youth walked over to the toilet, clouds of hot moisture clung to and swirled around him. He didn't notice the lithe, petite silhouette behind the opaque shower curtain. But the pile of clothes near the toilet did jar his mind harshly. Yugi's eyes bulged from their orbits and his face turned an inferno red, as did his ears. The undergarments he saw were too delicate… too dainty… and most definitely feminine. Good sense told the boy that he had better get the heck out of there, but he was rooted in place by shock.
Rustling shower curtains caught the flustered boy's attention. Zeri poked her head out, being careful that her face—and a stray soapy lock of hair—was all that showed. "Yugi! Get your butt out of here and wait your turn!"
If not for the look of daggers and the clash of war in her violet eyes, Yugi may have found the command from his soapy-haired sibling amusing. Instead, he grinned shamefacedly and dashed out as fast as his small bare feet would take him. Once outside, he shut the door and leaned his back against it, expelling a nervous sigh.
Life just got a whole lot more complicated, the bi-color-haired boy thought; his blush now a fire engine red.
Not wishing to be in the way, Yugi returned to his room, now fully awake from the experience. He busied himself by getting his clothes ready for his own shower. As he worked, the teen boy's face slowly resumed its normal coloring. Yugi stuck his head out of his room when he thought he'd heard the bathroom door open.
Zeri, still busily drying her wet hair with a thick towel, was dressed in one of her baggy white t-shirts and jeans. She looked up and down the hall. When her eyes fell upon him, she smiled faintly.
"It's your turn, brother."
Yugi nodded and went to take his shower. As he passed his sister, his cheeks began tinting once more. When Zeri noticed, her eyes became hard again.
"Be thankful that you're my brother," his twin muttered darkly, noting her twin's startled reaction. "I've put guys in traction for stunts like what you pulled." She balled a fist under his nose for emphasis.
The blush on Yugi's face spread; his puppyish violet eyes were caught in her steely gaze. If any expression said 'I'm dead serious,' hers sure did at the moment. "Sorry, Zeri. I'll knock next time," her embarrassed brother mumbled.
His female counterpart nodded solemnly and turned away, allowing Yugi's escape. He didn't see the delight on his sister's face; she hid it by buffing her hair some more.
It's just too darned hard to stay mad at you, brother, she thought, her violet eyes shined merrily. With eyes like that, I'll bet you've got a dozen girls after you, if not more. And boy, can you ever wear a blush well.
~~~
A familiar person greeted Yugi as he left the bathroom. The smaller boy greeted his taller blonde friend with a warm smile.
"Hey bud," Joey hailed, "How come you aren't already ready? You're normally sitting in the dining room on Saturdays." Joey paused a moment and snapped his fingers, a thought having percolated in his brain. "Oh! I get it! Your sister commandeered the bathroom! Right? Right?"
Yugi bit his lip and blushed fiercely. "Umm… You could… say that…" the embarrassed teen mumbled softly as the two boys went into Yugi's room. While his smaller friend dressed, Joey's eyes roamed his friend's well-known cluttered domain. Duel monster posters, books, CDs, and other collectibles were scattered throughout, not to mention his clothes and homework.
"Guess you'll have to get used to it, Yuug. I know some guys at school that are in your position. Their sisters take over the bathroom for hours!"
Joey's attention returned to his younger friend. Yugi was just putting on his jacket. "Hey bro, what do you think we'll be doing today? Are we still on for that duel session at the boardwalk arcade?"
The younger boy cupped his Millennium Puzzle in his hands thoughtfully. "Gee, I don't know Joey." Yugi placed the chain around his neck and looked his taller blonde friend in the eye. "Don't you think we ought to show Zeri around?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right, man," the chocolate-eyed blonde agreed as the pair headed for the dining room. As the two boys entered, they both noticed Zeri with her nose diligently buried in a book. She was so busy flipping pages that she didn't react to their entry, though it seemed her ears had perked up.
Joey leaned across the table and said, "Hey! Zeri! Didn't you hear? It's Saturday!" Just as she met the taller boy's gaze, Joey snatched the book from her grasp. "Whatcha reading there anyway?" the blonde asked, and then turned the book so he could read its cover.
The girl's once stoic face twisted into a fearsome scowl; her amethyst-colored eyes flashed dangerously. She stood; her posture screaming death. The crimson-haired girl growled and tore the book from the taller boy's grasp, which startled him. "It's a Japanese-to-English dictionary! Not that it's any of your business anyway!" Harrumphing, Zeri threw herself back into her chair and resumed her search.
"Sheesh!" Joey exclaimed. "Did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed or what?" Zeri's only answer was another glare directed at the tall boy. Sitting down next to his female counterpart, Yugi rested a steadying hand on his sister's denim-covered shoulder. She looked at her brother out of the corner of her eyes; her expression was quizzical.
"Maybe I could help, Zeri?" Yugi suggested. Though placid-faced, Zeri nodded and handed the dictionary to her twin. "Now, which words were you looking up?"
"Hey, while you two feed your brains, I'm gonna fix breakfast for all of us."
Yugi smiled and nodded at his friend. "Okay Joey."
"And I'll make your sister here an extra large plate of squid, seeing as how it's her favorite and all," the lanky blonde said. Zeri shot the taller boy one more annoyed look, to which he simply winked in reply. With her lips pressed together in a thin line, Zeri was about to shake her fist at Joey, but he had already turned away from the pair.
"Calm down, sister," Yugi soothed; her features softened as she looked at her male double. "Joey was only joking about the squid. Now, would you like to tell me what words you wanted?"
"Oh, right," she said distractedly. "I was trying to find 'hikari'."
Yugi opened the dictionary and quickly located the word for his sister. Both eyebrows shot upward when she read the definition. "Okay, so 'hikari' means 'light.' So how about 'aibou'?"
Again, her brother found the appropriate word and pointed out its definition. She began sweating when she read the definition, a look of defiance in her eyes. Both hands were curled into tight fists. Yugi noticed her reaction and asked, "Zeri is something wrong?"
Emotions played across his sister's face; jaw set in determination, she looked directly into her brother's eyes. "You remember that nightmare I had last night?" Yugi nodded; confusion and innocence both residing on his countenance. "Well, this… monster… called me 'aibou'."
"So what did this monster look like?" Joey chimed in, a bowl of whipped eggs in his hands. Zeri's eyes flicked around until she came to a decision; she dangled her pendant from its chain.
"Are you familiar with the Egyptian Goddess, Sekhmet?"
"Yeah, sure! Ehh… Not really," Joey mumbled sheepishly.
Much to Yugi's surprise, a smile tugged at the corners of his sister's mouth and her eyes twinkled merrily. The bi-color-haired girl then cupped the pendant in her palm and gazed at it passively, though her eyes shone with fear.
"You see, Joey," she began. "The Goddess Sekhmet was a human deity with the head of a lioness. She was considered both a healer and a destroyer, a goddess of war. She could cure or cause disease. Legend has it that she almost destroyed mankind, until Ra put a stop to it. He had to get her drunk for that." Zeri's nimble fingers curled around the lioness figure so tight that her knuckles turned white. Continuing, the young girl muttered softly, violet eyes still haunted, "She is a bloodthirsty savage."
The younger bi-color-haired boy chewed on his lower lip thoughtfully. "So… Based on the creature you described and the two words you were looking up… It sounds like you're talking about your yami... your dark half."
"Yeesh!" his sister exclaimed. "If that thing is my 'dark half,' I long for an extra strong shot of light!"
"Well hey!" Joey interjected, and then leaned in close to the girl's face. "It suits you though, Zeri. You are sort of catty, you know."
The rebellious teen girl snarled as she stood and raised the dictionary, poised to throw it at a certain mouthy blonde. But before she could make good on her unspoken threat, Joey laughed and dodged back into the kitchen. Frustrated, Zeri thumped the book down on the table. She then threw herself back into her chair, crossed her arms and legs.
"Well at least I don't resemble a refugee from a janitor's closet!" the teen girl shot back, scowling fiercely.
Joey laughed sharply and countered, "Nah, your hair just looks like a cross between bird wings and a bug! And that dog collar of yours makes you look butch!"
Much to both boys' surprise, Zeri began laughing heartily. The blonde boy stuck his head out again and asked, "Uhh… What's so funny? I thought you'd be biting my head off here."
The girl's amethyst eyes sparkled with unshed tears. "If you knew half of the girls I went to school with in LA, you wouldn't call this collar 'butch'. Compared to some of them, this is tame."
"Huh. Somehow I find that hard to believe," Joey replied, skeptical.
The taller blonde slipped back into the kitchen and left the twins alone. It didn't take long before Joey began filling the table with breakfast, however. There was so much food that it resembled less of a meal and more like a mini-banquet. Once he was done, he joined the pair, sitting across from his best friend.
The flash of a realization appeared in Joey's chocolate brown eyes as he chewed on a mouthful of eggs. He mumbled around his mouthful, "Hey Yuug? You don't think that pendant of Zeri's is a Millennium Item, do you?"
"I don't know. May I look at it closer, sis?" Yugi held out his hand to her.
Confused, Zeri removed the chain from around her neck and placed the pendant in her twin's hand. He turned the figure around with his fingers, a look of surprise on his face. "No, it doesn't have the Eye of Horus on it. But it feels unusually warm and… tingly."
"Okay, would either of you care to explain what Joey meant by 'Millennium Item' and how the 'Eye of Horus' is relevant? I hate being left out of the loop." Zeri looked both irritated and curious.
Yugi returned the pendant to Zeri's firm hand and he chewed on his lip thoughtfully before answering. "I didn't know about the Items either until Pegasus challenged me to a duel. He told me that there were seven of them. And when I won the championship title from him, I was shown that each Item bears the Eye of Horus symbol." The bi-color-haired boy dangled his Puzzle by its chain so that Zeri could see the Eye. "My Millennium Puzzle, and the other Items, all contain magical energies."
"And Yuug's Millennium Puzzle lets his soul merge with that of his yami," the blonde boy chimed in. "His Yami is pretty cool! With his grit and determination, Yugi can trounce anyone in a duel!" Taking another bite, Joey continued, "So, ah, does that trinket of yours do anything cool or what?"
Zeri shrugged as she placed the chain around her lithe neck once more. "Not to my knowledge."
The three teens continued eating in silence. The faint tinkle of a bell downstairs was heard, and moments later, the tread of feet on the stairs.
"Hey you guys," Tristan said, "aren't you done yet?"
"Almost," Yugi replied.
Téa looked at Zeri quizzically. "Zeri? Did you ever open that gift last night?"
The violet-eyed girl blinked, fork dangling forgotten from her lips. Lowering it, she grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head. "I totally forgot! Now is as good a time as any!" With that, the slight teen girl dashed from the dining room.
When Zeri returned, the other friends were seated at the table. The crimson-haired girl pushed her plate aside, and surprisingly to the others, gently placed the package on the table. All eyes watched as she opened the gift with swift efficiency. Inside, the smaller teen girl found a book, and on top, a sheet of paper folded in half. Yugi and his friends leaned in closer for a look.
"Oh no!" Joey groaned, "Not another book!"
The blonde boy didn't notice the warning flash in Zeri's amethyst eyes. The teen girl picked up the letter, only to have it snatched from her by Tristan. Zeri growled, shooting the spike-haired boy a death look, but the brunette was oblivious as he opened the letter and commenced reading it aloud.
"Dear Zeri," Tristan began. "We put this scrapbook together so that you wouldn't forget us. It also contains a surprise. We all pitched in with that too. I'm anxious to see if you figure it out. Take care, and write me when you can. Your oldest friend, Pete."
"A surprise?" Zeri asked, grinning wickedly as she lifted the thick scrapbook from the box. "Wonder what you have in mind, Pete?" Just as the lithe girl was about to open the book, a small, flat object fell from its pages.
Her male counterpart retrieved the object from the floor. "Hey! It's a Duel Monster card!"
"Yeah? Which one, bro?" the taller blonde asked; his chocolate brown eyes shone with curiosity.
Yugi held it so that everyone could look at the picture. It showed a man, armed with sword in one hand, and a glow of magic emanating from the index finger of his other hand. "It's 'Neo the Magic Swordsman'."
Yugi tried handing it to his sister, but her hands were pretty full, so he placed it on the table. She looked at the card, confusion apparent on her delicate features. Then a knowing smirk tugged the side of her mouth up as she breathed an amused snort. She had to close her eyes to hide the tears that were preparing to flow.
"Figures. That's Pete's 'surprise.' I'll bet this scrapbook is full of these cards."
The five teens spent the next couple of hours flipping through the scrapbook. Zeri reluctantly began telling the four about the people in each picture. Tucked under each photo, they found more Duel Monster cards. Before long, Zeri had a whole deck. Though the others were thrilled, the smaller girl didn't show that much enthusiasm. At their insistence, Zeri took the deck with her as they got ready to go show her Domino.
Before they left, Grandpa stopped them, handing Zeri some money. "Yugi, be sure Zeri picks up her school uniform."
The bi-color-haired youth nodded and replied, "Yes Grandpa. I will."