When It's No Longer Cliche

(sighs) Yet one more mistake I made. 'Lord what fools these mortals be' is from A Midsummer Night's Dream. I, sadly, have never read this one, which is why the quote was rather estranged to me. Gomen, ne.

And now, on to the story.

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Nothingness.

Black and dark and nothing around him. He could close his eyes but it was just as dark as if his eyes were open. Could one imagine? Blink and not even notice?

He couldn't tell if he was standing or lying down. Didn't know if he was whole or half, didn't know if he was human or…something.

And it seemed that the solid blackness around him was nothing but ice.

Was this oblivion? Was this hell? A black void he was somehow sucked into?

He memories were lost to him. And, for some reason that he could not fathom, he knew that they would be. He wouldn't get them back until…

He didn't know what he was waiting for.

He used to try to move, every now and again. An arm he could not see, a leg he could not feel.

He could not feel his limbs moving, but he knew they did fractionally, because the one thing he could feel was the cold. And the icy chains that bound him in place cut into his flesh and dared him to try again.

And so he stayed where he was. Ignorant, cold, and direly alone.

So very, very cold. Perhaps that was why he was so numb? Centuries of shivering burning away all of his nerves?

He could never focus on a thought for long. He didn't think he had the capacity to, for as long as he could dwell on the idea. He would be depressed at his loneliness if he could think on it long enough. The darkness always seemed to distract him, to tease him, to hurt him. Cold and dark and unfeeling. It called his thoughts elsewhere, and seemed to force him to remain a mindless cube of ice in a sea of blackness.

And then, one moment later, everything changed.

Agony. Hot, white agony as he had never felt before seared into his skin and the fibers of his muscles and bones and soul. Tendrils of pain as delicate as gossamer and yet as sharp as razors ripped through him and became attached to his very being.

And for the first time in what must have been eons, he screamed. He screamed until he couldn't use his voice anymore.

And as he shivered and trembled and quaked with the earth-shattering pain that laced through his vision, showing him flashes of white and red in the abyss of nothingness around him, once his voice had recovered he could start screaming again.

Drop…drop…drop.

Pain…despondence…loss.

It wouldn't end. How long did he cry and cry? He couldn't reel into unconsciousness. He knew why, now.

He was dead. He'd been dead a long time. And yet, apparently the dead could still feel pain.

One memory flooded back to him. He knew what was causing the pain. Magic.

It was a part of his being. He ought to know what magic was.

Drop…drop…drop. Lightning landed on him like droplets in a rainstorm, and continued to rage unbearable agony and hurt through him.

It was getting worse. He could see…albeit a little. His skin.

It was squeezing around his limbs. It was becoming smaller.

No…it was melting. Right into the darkness he was chained against.

He couldn't think anymore. It hurt too much. Desperation clouded his thoughts. Bound. Locked. Burned into slavery.

Blood magic. Painful stuff that blood magic was. Gods above, why wouldn't it just let him die yet? His eyes were locked open, distraught. He was going to go mad.

And he had battled insanity for so long now… to lose the battle like this…

Hurt. Liquid fire pouring over him, sucking him into the endless abyss by way of turning him into liquid as well. Every nerve was on fire. Plasma hotter than a summer sun swarmed him and burned him and the stench of burnt flesh wafted around him and yet for some strange reason he was so very, very cold…it didn't make sense…let me die…

Yuugi's eyes flew open, sucking in a lung-shattering breath. What a nightmare. A horrible, horrible nightmare. He barely registered how much he was panting, his heart having nearly jumped into his throat. He tried to sit up, but something was holding him down. His heart raced faster. Chains? More icy chains?

"Yuugi! Yuugi! Look at me, aibou!"

Wide and frightened violet eyes turned to look into concerned and equally frightened blood crimson. Blood pooling out of skin to melt into dark, dark nothingness… Yuugi began shaking all over again.

Yami ran his fingers over Yuugi's face, brushing away the mass amounts of perspiration and soaked honeyed bangs from his features. "Calm down, Yuugi. It was just a dream. You're awake…and you're safe." Yami almost seemed…scared.

The teenager was still hazy, just beginning to feel the clutches of the nightmare loosen its grip on his mind. He suddenly noticed that his entire pajama shirt was soaked in sweat. "What…what happened," he croaked. His voice hurt.

"You started screaming, Yuugi. I thought someone might have broken in and hurt you, but…" Yami's eyes looked pained. "You were still asleep, and all you did was scream. I couldn't wake you. No matter how much I pried into you mind…I couldn't reach you."

Yuugi still quaked severely underneath of Yami, his breath short gasps for precious air. He'd never received nightmares before…what could cause such a horrid one now? "It was so dark…" he whispered. "So much pain…my skin was melting all around me."

The dark spirit frowned hard. "Have you ever had a dream like this before?"

Yuugi shook his head vigorously no.

Yami nuzzled the hollow of Yuugi's neck, cupping his face carefully. The young teen just now realized that Yami's right leg was wedged between his two. "Did I really struggle to get up that much?"

Yami trembled a little, too. "You almost threw me off the bed."

Yuugi looked over at his bedroom door. "Didn't Ojii-chan hear me?"

Yami shook his head. "No, I blocked the noise from leaving this room. I was…starting to panic. I couldn't reach you, and any interference makes it that much harder to try. I… felt the pain too, Yuugi. It filtered through our link."

Yuugi turned his face back into Yami's shoulder. "It's getting stronger."

The spirit nodded. Indeed, the bond that the two of them shared was growing in strength every passing moment. Stray thoughts that might just so happen to leak into the other's mind was becoming more chronic, emotions from one would flood the other's mind at barely a moment's notice. Fears were beginning to be shared.

Yes. Yami had started to panic. For not only could he feel the pain Yuugi's dream was causing him, but if something happened and Yuugi became lost to him permanently, so too would Yami become lost. Yuugi just wondered how much of Yami's concern was for him, and how much of it was for his own safety at Yuugi's well being.

It was probably a mixture of both.

Yuugi turned to look at the new clock on his bedside table. His alarm would ring in a few minutes. "I need to get up," he sighed.

Yami kissed his temple, brushing his fingers through Yuugi's damp tresses. "Are you sure you feel all right?"

Yuugi pressed his forehead into Yami's shoulder, hugging the warm figure on top of him. "Surely you can tell by now, too."

The strange sensation of little tendrils of energy poking his consciousness alerted Yuugi to the fact that Yami was finding out for himself. The spirit sighed. "Good. I just wanted to be sure, aibou. I do worry about you, after all."

Yuugi kissed Yami's temple. "Thank you." Yami rolled over, thus allowing Yuugi to sit up. He stood, still a little shaky, and headed towards the closet to get dressed. The nightmare began to leave him almost completely as he started sifting through his new wardrobe, clean blue pants and shimmering black shirts now at his finger tips.

And the buckles. Lovely, shiny, hot looking buckles.

Yuugi felt a twinge in his stomach as he reached further into the closet for the new boots bought for him, yet more buckles adorning the sides.

Putting them on, pulling his pant legs over the tops, and putting on his backpack as he stood, Yuugi looked at Yami quizzically on the bed for a moment. The spirit stood and walked up to him, noticing the strange look in his eyes. "What is it, aibou?" An arm snaked around Yuugi's waist. The gnawing in his stomach receded.

"It…" Yuugi's brow knitted together as he tried to put the sensation into words. "It hurts sometimes…and others it feels like something is tugging at all of my muscles. Whenever you're out, I can feel it, and the further away you are, the more it hurts."

Yami nodded. "A side affect as our bond grows stronger. I've become a part of your very being. Here, feel." Yami took hold of Yuugi's hands, placing one on the artery in his neck, and the other on the artery in Yuugi's neck.

The teenager became more and more amazed as he felt the blood pumping through the veins. Thump…thump…thump…thump. "They're in sync," he stated in disbelief. "They're exactly on the beat. There is no differentiating between the two." Yuugi shook his head. "But I thought you were a spirit? How does this body have a heart beat?"

"Magic can make some unbelievable replicas of living creatures. This body is real, for the time being. It is alive, because my soul is making it alive. The magic in the puzzle destroys it every time I go back in, and then recreates it every time I come back out. If I were to stay out long enough, I would begin to need nourishment, just like you."

Well…that explains why he can sleep with me so much. And why there is always the touch between us.

Yuugi digested this information slowly. "That's nothing short of a miracle."

Yami chuckled slightly. "Aren't we just full of miracles lately?"

Yuugi laughed. "Indeed, we are." He pulled away and began to head towards the door. "Another day of school, here we come." The tug on his body vanished as Yami slipped back inside of the puzzle.

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Jou and Honda walked into homeroom that morning a little worried. Yuugi had been gone from school for two days, and none of the teachers had heard much of anything.

As for those who had, they refused to divulge any information to the troublesome duo that questioned them.

And so when they walked in and noticed a small teenage boy sitting quietly in his desk reading a book, all decked out in new clothes and a good amount of leather accessories, it was quite understandable that their mouths suddenly dropped slack. "Is dat the runt," Jou asked, bewildered.

"I think it is," Honda replied.

Yuugi actually looked…content. His skin looked healthier, his hair shinier, his posture stronger. His clothes were new, and he was actually…grinning as he read.

"Is that the same kid," Honda asked.

Jou shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe he was abducted by aliens." The blonde walked up to Yuugi's desk quickly. "Yug'," he tried. "Where ya been?"

Yuugi looked up at Jou immediately. "Jonouchi," he asked, raising an eyebrow in question. "Is everything all right?"

"We were worried about you," Honda exclaimed. "You've been gone for two days!"

Yuugi looked at the two through slightly narrowed eyes, trying to puzzle together their concern. "You were worried about me? Why?"

"Well…we…" Jou rubbed his head sheepishly. "We were wonder 'in about you a few days ago, and kinda followed you home. We saw the place you lived…and…well…we didn't know if anything had happened to you while you was gone."

Comprehension dawned on the young teen. No wonder they had been worried about him lately. Pity, concern, the sense of duty to help.

But at least they had begun to take the initiative to try and help make things better for him, such as beating up Ushiro the other day when he had stolen the puzzle piece. "Yeah, I'm fine guys. Don't worry. And…don't worry about following me home anymore, either. I live at the Kame Game Shop now."

Jou and Honda looked at each other, their silent exchange stating the same thing. That's why he was gone. Moving to the new home for…unspecified reasons.

"Hey, we're glad to see you're okay," Jou stated at last.

Yuugi gave a heartfelt smile. "Thanks."

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Yuugi sat down in his chair at band, slowly opening up his new clarinet case. He was going to relish every moment he could play this. No more squeaking! No more horrible intonation! No more bad keys!

Taking out a new read, he tasted the new wood flavor. However strange, he loved the taste of a new reed. He started to put it together. As he finished, he noticed something that made him grin further. The bell isn't even cracked!

"New instrument, Motou?" Mr. Moon asked him.

Yuugi looked up at the band teacher. "Un, sensei," he mumbled around his reed. "Just bought yesterday."

The sage green eyes of his teacher looked at the instrument appreciatively. "Good! My best player needed something a bit better than our cheap free rentals." He gave a thumbs' up. "Practice hard today, Motou."

"How else would I practice," Yuugi asked facetiously.

The teacher nodded, getting up on his podium. "No other way, of course!" He picked up his baton and waited, signaling the beginning of class.

Yuugi opened his folder, pulling out the first piece of music for the day. A slight pressure behind his eyes began, and Yuugi was glad to note that Yami was taking an interest in what he was doing. The spirit read what the sheet of music said at the top. Finale, from the New World Symphony. Composer: Antonon Dvorak.

: These little spots on the bars make sense to you, aibou?: Yami asked.

: Beautiful sense. Sit back and enjoy.:

The class quieted down, and the teacher nodded. "Good, B flat scale, everyone." He started to direct in a 4/4 beat; the same warm up they did every day. Yuugi suppressed a grin as he played, each note coming out flawlessly as his fingers danced up and down the instrument. The scale ended.

"Good. A three part round, and then we will begin. Low's, mid's, high's." The band obeyed, and played a beautiful chord at the end.

Yami listened intently as the piece of music began. It started out sounding rather dark and ominous with the low brass instruments, suspense weaving its way throughout every note as the clarinets and saxophones joined in. Yuugi's fingers began to move faster and faster the more he played, the intensity increasing as the flutes joined in the fray.

Just as Yami thought it couldn't get any worse, everyone suddenly stopped, and the low brass started the main melody, oozing with dark undertones. Soon followed, the rest of the band joined in.

It took a while, but eventually the mood lightened considerably, and the lighter it became the more Yuugi's fingers moved. He flipped the page quickly, moving on to the next style that would come in to play. No rests.

Yuugi was ecstatic. Not only was the sound coming out of his new instrument absolutely gorgeous, but also his diaphragm didn't hurt, and his lungs were able to suck in large amounts of air. The tone quality he was producing was the best he could ever remember. He tried not to laugh as he turned the page again, feeling mental eyebrows rise further and further as Yami noted just how long the music was.

But the sound was incredible. The dynamics were perfectly played, each note dictated and accentuated just as it was supposed to be.

The teacher dropped his arms and the band stopped, Mr. Moon beginning to flip back a few pages. "Trumpets, go back to section C. I want to go through some of your runs again. Remember, crescendo, decrescendo." The players flipped back a couple of pages, and started again.

Yuugi loved band practice, and had a feeling that Yami was developing a new appreciation for it, too.

: And how many times do you play and replay this song, aibou?:

: As many times as it takes.: The teenager sat back as he waited for the trumpets to finish, putting Adagio underneath of his Finale score, the piece they would be practicing next.

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Yuugi repositioned his backpack, the strap digging into his shoulder a little. : I need to drop off some of these books at the library. They're going to give me continuous back problems.:

: Yes, but how many more are you going to check out?:

Yuugi gave a mental sheepish grin. : Umm…just four or five?: He heard Yami give a highly audible sigh.

Come on, punk…you've had this coming…

Yuugi stopped when he heard yelling coming from around the corner, leading down into an alley. He winced when he heard the familiar sound of someone getting the wind knocked out of them.

Fucking little…

Yuugi walked to the opening to the alley, gazing at who was getting beaten up. Oh, this is bad…

The bully Takashi was pummeling Jonouchi, and Honda was pinned on the ground by one of his cronies. He looks bad. "Hey," Yuugi yelled. Takashi's big stupid eyes turned around and looked at him stupidly. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

The bully got a huge grin. "Someone like you?" He started walking his way, his huge mass spilling out of his clothes as he pounded his way over.

Yami took control of Yuugi's body, holding a fist dangerously at his side. " Come on, wxA, fellah, nDs. Ad." (Come on, fool, fellah, commoner. Be angry.) A happy grin spread on his face.

Takashi looked at Yami like he was crazy, instead choosing to ram into him.

Yami only needed to use a limited amount of energy to knock him unconscious.

Yuugi was given back control, and he walked swiftly up to Jou who was kneeling on the ground, holding his ribs. It appeared that the other bully who had held Honda down vanished the moment his buddy was rendered useless. "Are you all right, Jou?" Yuugi chuckled a little bit. "So you, poor man, work out a cruel task such as I once endured when in the sunlight." (The Odyssey, by Homer. Athena speaking to Laertes and Odysseus.)

The blonde groaned a little, giving Yuugi a funny look. "Yeah…m 'fine, Yug. N-never better."

Yuugi nodded. "Yeah, right…here. Let me help you up." With another growl of pain, Jou stood on wobbly feet. Yuugi helped Honda up too, who was a bit more silent. "Are you two all right? What happened?"

Jou shook his head, shaking the fog from his vision. "Hn…Takashi thought w…we might have done sump 'thin to Ush-Ushiro."

Honda snorted. "Don't know what happened to the…the…thug."

Yuugi nodded, a knot of…guilt? Growing in his stomach. No, that didn't seem right. He couldn't put his finger on it. No…doing something bad and liking it, even if it's just a little bad thing. You know you're not supposed to…and yet you don't really care. Yuugi hook his head. "I'm glad you guys aren't really hurt."

Honda chuckled slightly. "Yeah…thanks Yug. This means a lot to us."

Yuugi smiled. "I may not be a Christian, but you should do unto other as you would have them do unto you. What goes around comes around." He smiled. "I'm off to the library. See you guys Monday."

Jou gave his friend Honda a quizzical look as Yuugi walked away. "Strange kid," he muttered.

Honda nodded in concurrence. "At least he's on our side. How the hell did Takashi not beat the living daylights out of him?"

Jou shrugged, a little worried about that. "I'm…not sure. In fact, I'm not even sure I want to be sure."

Honda's eyes became a little crossed as he got confused. "Dude, you're making less and less sense today, but whatever. I'm gonna go home and puke my guts out until my stomach doesn't hurt anymore."

Jou gave a goofy grin. "Hey, my favorite passing time aside from eating and sleeping."

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Up next… a little lime…a little fluff…a little angst. Yum. Feed the authoress. (Passes out review platter.)