Joy: Hey, everyone! I'm back with another chapter! It's time for the group to enjoy themselves. But first, review responses!

Dark Angel: Sure thing! D

BabyGatomon: D Yeah. Thanks!

Fallen Mercy: D Glad you liked it!

pinkdreamer122: :o) Cliffies are my best friends!

Jaded Katrina: aww…don't worry, there will be a sequel.

Midnights: Yep, gotta have that snag in the happy moment…kind of like a run in a girls pantyhose, lol

Silver Moon Phoenix: Yeah, I'll develop those more in the next story.

DMoS13: Yeah, Smith is bad news. Might have her show up again in the next story.

Dark Kuriboh Empire: I do intend to post it on both and my site. So it will be viewable both places, but I won't put the lemon I am planning between Bakura and Katilli on That will be the only difference.

On to Chapter 37!

Party Time!

Seto, Yugi, and Merina watched as Joy's eyes slowly opened. She blinked several times to clear her vision. Then she slowly smiled. "Hey guys! What's up?"

Merina cried out happily and gave Joy a hug. "We were so worried about you! You've been out for a week!"

Joy's eyes grew wide. "Really? Wow. What did I miss? Anything major? Did the spell work? Is Vargon gone?" She sat up carefully, making sure she wasn't dizzy or anything.

"You did it, Joy. Vargon is gone for good," Merina assured her. Joy grinned.

"This is great! Vargon is gone and you're okay, Joy. Hey, Kaiba, don't you think this is a call for a celebration! Our last one kind of got interrupted by Jessie. Oh, speaking of with, she is still alive, but we've decided to just wait to see what she does before we make a move," Yugi explained.

"A party sounds great! Can we, Kaiba? Right here in Kaiba Manor? Just like before? Only this time, no one crashes our part!" Merina barely waited for Seto to reluctantly nod in agreement before rushing from the room to tell the others about Joy's awakening and the party.

Joy smiled after her. "She must have had too much sugar today."

…The party starts…

Seto had started to actually warm up to the party after he saw his brother's enthusiasm. He had even decided to change his attire for the event. He wore a white long sleeve shirt and black pants and tie. His brother was dressed like him, except his shirt was navy and his pants were a bit baggier.

The others had also dressed up a bit, hoping to make this a memorable event. Yugi also wore a white shirt, but he had no tie and he also wore white jeans. Moon Shadow commented to Sakura that he looked like an angel on earth. Yugi had heard her however, and thanked her and complimented her on her attire, making her blush a bit and look away. She was wearing a sparkling short sleeve silver dress that showed off her black cresent moon tattoo perfectly. She had her long brown hair in a ponytail.

Ryou for his part had donned a completely black outfit – black long sleeved dress shirt and a black pair of jeans. It offset his white hair and made him look even paler than usual. Sakura and Ryou also exchanged complements. Sakura had a purple v-neck top, a black skirt that came down to her knees, a red scarf tied loosely around her neck and she had done her hair up in curls. Merina had dressed up in a short sleeve aqua blouse and matching skirt. She had her blonde hair in a French braid and wore a black choker necklace.

Everyone had gathered in Seto's extravagant ballroom to dance and talk. Everyone that is, except for Joy, who had yet to show up. "I can go see what's keeping her if you all want me to," Merina offered. Everyone agreed and she wondered off to Joy's room.

Come on out and have some fun, Yami. This is a party for everyone, Yugi coaxed his dark to come out.

Very well, I think I will. Besides, it has been a while since we have had a reason to celebrate. The puzzle glowed and Yami appeared, dressed in the same clothes as Yugi. A second later, Bakura appeared as well, joining in the celebration. Yami and Bakura exchanged hardy insults, and then separated at the request of their lights.

Meanwhile, Merina entered Joy's room. "Joy, what…oh…" She paused as she took in Joy's outfit. "You look super!"

Joy smiled slightly. "Thanks. But I have a bit of a problem…" Merina tilted her head. "My hair. I can't get it the way I want it. Can you help me out?"

Merina laughed a bit. "Sure thing, my friend!"

…Fifteen minutes later…

Merina came into the room. "Hey, everyone. She's here!" Everyone turned as Joy came into the room. She wore a shimmering white dress with flared sleeves and matching slip-on dress shoes. Her ever-present sapphire pendant glistened in the light of the room. Her black hair was put up in a braided bun, with the now white strand hanging limply on the side of her face. She wore gold earrings.

Seto almost fell over when he saw her. Luckily he was near a table. Though that didn't stop his face from showing his shock. Sorcerer appeared at that moment. "You look great, Joy," he said. Joy gave him a smile and came over to Seto. She gave him a coy smile.

"Kaiba, you can close your mouth now. We don't want to have to call the maids to clean up the drool." With that she walked off to talk to Yugi and Ryou, who were barely holding back a snicker. Yami and the other darks, however, laughed freely, causing Seto to hand out several death glares.

"Hey, Bakura, I think Katilli wants to talk to you out in the balcony," Joy said to the thief. Katilli appeared, wearing what Joy was wearing, and Bakura, looking obviously pleased, followed her out to the balcony. She turned to Moon Shadow, Sakura, and Merina. "Do you guys really have to leave tomorrow?" she said, looking sad.

"Unfortunately, I must return to New York," Moon Shadow answered.

"Yeah, I gotta get back to Florida before my folks wonder what in the world happened to me," Merina said with a laugh.

"It looks like all three of us have to go to America. I have to spend a whole year there with my aunt and uncle…and my annoying cousin." Sakura sighed. "He is such a pain. I think he's just jealous because I can out-duel him with my eyes closed."

That got a laugh out of the others.

"Well, we are definitely going to exchange numbers and email addresses. I want us to keep in touch. And who knows, maybe we can visit each other."

"When do you have to go back, Joy?" Merina asked.

"Four days. I promised my father." Joy looked down. "It's sure going to be different going back after all this time."

"Yeah, America seems different after you've been to another country," Sakura agreed. "But let's worry about leaving Domino later. Right now – LET'S PARTY!"

The rest of the night was spent in deep party mode. Joy made it a point to try and spend as much time as possible with her friends, though she did notice Katilli and Bakura did not rejoin the party.

Probably having a party of their own.

HEY! I HEARD THAT YOUNG LADY!

Joy gave her a mental laugh.

Joy: There you have it. The group hangs out. In the next chapter, Moon Shadow, Merina, and Sakura go to America. Three more chapters till the end of TE. I am not going to lie and say it was the easiest story to write, but it has been so exciting as well. I will be writing chapter 38 with this one and posting them together.

Next chapter is called: "Goodbye to Friends". See you then!