I was so cold. After what felt like an eternity warm arms enveloped me into their owner. Yami. I clutched to the warmth pressing my body against them.
"Y-Yami," I gasped. Pressing my icy body as close as I could.
"It's all right you are safe now," he promised rubbing my arms and my legs creating heat.
"Ra, your warm." I muttered pressing my torso under his arm.
"It's all right, Mana." He soothed. "We can stay here as long as you need. You just need to get warm."
"M-maybe walking would help." I suggested, I looked up to see Yugi for the first time. "Y-Yugi. Nice to see you t-too!"
"Hey Mana," he said. "Just let us know when you feel a little warmer ok."
"I want to try and stand." I said keeping my arms around Yami. "Can we stand together?"
"Of course, but first take my jacket first it will keep you warm."
"B-but –"
"Mana, you need it more that we do," Yugi said. Yami shrugged it off and wrapped it around my icy shoulder. I automatically cocooned myself into the warm material.
"Oh also w-while I have you both here. Maybe we shouldn't t-tell K-Ka-Kaiba about me and Yami. It's a little c-com-m-complicated since he has only just started believing in it."
Yami chuckled, but Yugi looked serious.
"I dunno guys, he'll figure it out eventually and I was kind of hoping for some brother back up." He grinned.
"Please, if anyone know Y-Yami's intentions towards me are g-good it's you." I teased. Not that I had my arms through the sleeves, Yami wrapped me back into his arms rubbing the fabric of his blazer to help as well.
"True," he smirked, Yami looked a little nervous. Oh, what did Yugi know that I didn't…
"Ok let's try and stand." I said, I realised in him keeping me warm he had me sat on him to prevent me touching the ice below.
We both stood, Yami still keeping a strong grip on me, as we began to walk.
We walked in silence for a while. I enjoyed the warmth and selfishly the excuse that Yami had to hold me. I kept glancing at Yugi to make sure he was ok, but he seemed deep in thought.
"You're worried about the rest of them aren't you." I said making them both look at me. "I am too, especially Serenity, Téa and Tristan."
"Yeah, they are just beginners."
"Do they even really play? Sure, they know stuff from watching you and Joey and the odd bit here and there. But in the conditions, they are putting us in. It was so hard to concentrate in that ice. I was making rookie mistakes while my mind was on the cold."
I nestled further into Yami, the chill returning to my bones.
"Yeah, though we didn't have that, so maybe it was just that he really wanted your body."
"He did say he wanted the powers I had, so yeah hopefully he'll be the only one that is that ruthless with the surroundings. At least Tristan and Serenity are together."
"Yes," Yami said. "But for right now we should try and focus on getting out of the cold."
I look at him, his jaw was clenched he was trying not to let on that he was cold. Then I remembered I had another fire monster in my deck. I pulled away from him to look for her. He frowned at me. He went to speak, but I held up a hand. There Fire Princess. I played her.
"Hey could you help keep us warm till we get out of here. Thanks."
She smiled at me and did as I asked. I could feel the warmth begin to seep through to my cold bones, Yami looked a little more relaxed. I felt less bad about taking their jacket. As the fire stopped, I saw a doorway.
"Yami, Yugi look." I pointed to it.
"That is like the door that brought us to you." Yugi said.
"Then hopefully it will take us to someone else." I said, I began to run for it and Yami did the same.
We pushed the door open to reveal a courtroom, and Joey was duelling Judgeman. I guessed it would probably be the lawyer of the big 5.
"Who let in the draft," Joey said turning.
"Joey!" we both cried.
"Yugi, Mana! Where yah been?"
"Beating his associates, despite the unfair advantages." I said glaring at this guy.
"Order, settle down court is in session."
"It's not a real court you moron," I said glaring at him.
"This doesn't look good," Yugi said, as we checked the playing field. Joey had no monsters and he had Mystical Elf in defence mode. Although they both had a facedown card, that was encouraging at least. Johnson fused his elf with another monster to make a pretty weak fusion monster, but then we learnt why very quickly. Joey's life points were dwindling with every attack, then Noah appeared and we found out that Johnson was cheating. Joey stupidly continued the duel, even though Noah gave him a back out. However, Noah did reveal why Johnson was doing this he wanted control of Kaiba Corp and he felt like Kaiba had taken it from him. After a risky move that made me want to kill him Joey pulled through and Johnson's life points hit 0. I jumped over the wooden bar and hugged him.
"Jezz Mana, you're like ice!" he said, but hugged me back anyway. He gave me a tight squeeze before I felt him let go and high five Yami.
"We still have to go and find everyone else," Joey said, letting me go.
"Lets hope we can get to them before they start duelling so we can give them advice." I said, thinking about our less knowledgeable friends. Joey's eyes lit up in realisation.
"Serenity has never duelled before. Oh my god. Mana," he grabbed my arms and started shaking me. "You need to use yer magic to find um."
"Let her go Joey." Yami said, scowling at him.
"Joey, I can't my magic could mess with this world, I could accidently make them disappear into the programming or destroy a whole section of the game with one of us inside. I'm sorry."
Joey let me go, and Yami put a protective arm around me.
"Well then we best get moving!" Joey said. "Who knows how big this world is."
As soon as he spoke another door like the one that brought us here opened.
"This could be it," I said, Joey rushed to the door and ran through.
"Joey wait!" Yami said, and we both ran after him into a cave.
"Slow down Joey," I called trying to catch him up.
"Noo!" we heard Serenity's voice. I felt my stomach drop like lead. Oh no what had happened. We all picked up the pace, Joey rushing ahead.
"Serenity!" he yelled running towards the noise.
Joey disappeared from few and as he did so a new person appeared from nowhere.
We all tumbled to the floor. There was a scream.
Ow that hurt.
"Téa?" Yami said.
"Yugi, Mana oh thank goodness. I was taken by cyclopes and –"
"Sorry Téa, Serenity is danger. Your tale will have to wait." Yami said, getting up and helping me stand. He offered his hand to Téa and she took it.
"Serenity?" she said, as he pulled her up.
"She screamed; we are investigating. Joey's ahead, start running." I said as I took off. The other two ran as well.
"Does he even know where he is going?" Téa panted as we tried to keep up with him.
"Hey look at that, that could be the way!" Joey yelled, we tried to go faster. We could see the white light. We ran through it to go through to a metal room, with molten metal below. We were on a kind of balcony, and there were Duke and Serenity.
"Serenity! Up here!" I turned to see Serenity look up.
"It's really you?" she said, her face relieved.
"Of course, who'd you expect." He said, grinning at her.
"Mana, Yugi, Téa." Duke greeted us.
"Hey guys it's good to see yah," Téa said, but then I felt mu stomach drop. Duke and Tristan had fallen together. I looked at the large gap between Serenity and Duke and I had a horrible feeling.
"Duke where is Tristan?" I said panicked, the look on their faces told me everything. Tristan!
I clutched onto Yami, my eyes burning. He held me, and Téa sank to the floor.
"Yami?" he turned his face to look at me. Yugi was listening too. "I could probably swap the souls back once we are back in the real world." I whisper. "But we need to find where they have put Tristan's mind so that we can bring it with us when we return back to the real world."
"You think you can do that?" Yugi said his eyes lit up.
"Yes,"
"Never miss with the Wheeler's tin man!" Joey yelled. Wait… what had we missed?
Serenity summoned St Joan and with Tristan's facedown card it was enough to wipe out the rest of this creep's life points. Did this mean that we could get Tristan back, I doubted it. These corporate creeps weren't big on being fair.
My brain was focused on how we could find Tristan's mind, I could feel a light hand on my back guiding me to the rest of the group. I know he was watching me, trying to figure out where my mind was.
"We need to find him," I said snapping out of my thoughts. "I can help him once we are out of here, but we need to find his mind first. Bring it with us when we go home."
"They said something about some virtual holding area." Téa said. "We've just got to find him."
"Right," Yami said.
"Then what we waiting around here for let's go find Tristan!" Joey began to run again. We made it outside where we saw Kaiba and Mokuba. Tristan? No, one of the big 5.
I ran to my brothers wrapping them both into a hug. I felt Kaiba cocoon Mokuba and I into his tall body.
"Mana," he grunted. "Thank God you're all right."
"Hey Tristan, I knew we'd track you down." Joey said, he mustn't have realised.
"Are you ok?" Serenity said.
"Why don't you kids run along." Tristan's mouth moved but it wasn't his words or his voice.
"Why don't you give Tristan his body back." I snarled. That drew his attention back to the three of us. He reached for Kaiba weapon in hand. Kaiba pushed me and Mokuba out of the way. Kaiba picked up a nearby rod, but he knocked it out of his hands.
"Nice try,"
"You're a monster!" I yelled. He started laughing, but as he did a small robot monkey attacked Tristan.
Joey ran forward.
"This is getting too weird!" he hit Tristan and he crashed through a wall. The rest of the gang rushed to catch up.
"Joey! It's still his body!" Téa snapped at him.
"You ok?" I said to Kaiba, he smiled and nodded.
"It'll take more than that to take me down." He said. I rolled my eyes.
"Come on guys lets tie him up until we find –"
The sound of a bike roared from the hole in the wall. Tristan's body riding a bike came through, we had to jump out of the way. He aimed for Kaiba and me, Kaiba dived keeping me in his arms.
But then I felt my stomach drop.
"Seto!"
We both turned he had Mokuba.
"Let him go!" I yelled as we both got up. I tried to run towards the bike. I turned, to see Kaiba pick up another bike.
"Stay with Yugi and the rest of them," he barked at me as he chased after Mokuba.
"Now what guys,"
I whirled around, when did they switch? Yugi was looking around the group for someone to speak up. I saw Yami watching me, I smiled softly at him, letting him know I was ok.
"Kaiba's after the fake Tristan. So we gotta find out where the real one is." Joey said.
"Joey's right," Serenity said.
I could hear monkey noises, I turned to see the robot that had attacked Tristan. Actually, its head looked a little like Tristan's hair… was this him? Or did I just want to find him so badly… But… he did seem really happy to see us.
"Tristan?" I said moving to pick him up.
He crowed excitedly, dancing on the spot.
"Mana!" They protested as he was in my arms.
"Oh shh, we found him. It's Tristan." I said hugging the monkey close, he hugged me back. The monkey noises continued. I noticed the switch on the back of his head, I flicked it.
"I knew Mana, would figure it out. Wish they could understand me –"
"Whoa," Joey said moving back a little as he heard it.
"See it's Tristan, Tristan we can understand you now." I told him.
"Really," he said excited.
"Now lets help Kaiba get Mokuba back." Téa said, we all nodded and began to head in that direction.
"Er, guys how are we going to catch up with them?"
"There must be a car or something amongst all this junk." Duke said, moving towards the building and peering inside.
"Let's split up and find something," Yugi said.
Hope you guys are still enjoying the story so far. I am glad to be back into a normal schedule again, even if it is only once a month. I am sorry to those who are wanting it to be more, but from working full-time, trying to write my own stuff (which often takes a back seat to FF), trying to start and online business, and learn the language of the country I live in. For a while at least I can only do once a month. As soon as I am able to, I will try and upload more again.