This story begins after the events of Duelist Kingdom, so Yugi and Yami are already on speaking terms with each other.
Anything in italics are thoughts.
Anything in bold is the voice in my character's head, which will be explained later.
I do not claim Yu-Gi-Oh as my own, only my characters are mine.
"I'll be right back!"
The bells on the door of the game shop jingled as he swung it open, half carrying and half dragging a garbage bag as he walked outside. He headed around towards the back where an alley opened up. The garbage bins were tucked against the backside of the building, and he opened one of the lids to heave the garbage bag into it. Letting the lid slam shut, he let out a breath of relief as he brushed his hands together.
Then he heard a groan. It was faint, but he heard it in the silence of the alley. He looked around but didn't immediately see anyone else in the vicinity. He peeked around the garbage bins and gasped, seeing someone lying face-down on the pavement and not moving. He ran to their side and tried shaking their shoulder.
"Hey, are you okay?!"
The person groaned again in a much deeper voice, almost like a growl, and they turned their head to look at him. A feminine face stared back at him with an intense flash of red eyes and thin pupils, studying him as he held his breath. But when he blinked, her eyes were a normal green color. A strange marking was tattooed on the right side of her face around her eye, mostly covered by her black hair and the black hood that was crumpled around her head. She had dirt marks and faint fresh scratches on her face, like she had gotten into a scuffle or had fallen, but she didn't seem to mind them.
"L… Leave me alone…" She groaned and closed her eyes, relaxing against the pavement.
He shook his head to clear his shock and tried shaking her again, but more gently. "I can't just leave you. You don't look so good! You're hurt…" He glanced over the rest of her body, but didn't see any other areas of exposed skin. Her black hoodie, dark jeans, and black shoes looked like they had seen better days but otherwise looked fine. "Let me call an ambulance-"
Her eyes suddenly shot open as she grabbed his wrist, keeping him from standing up as he was about to do. Her green eyes stared sharply at him as she grit her teeth. "No hospital… I'm fine…" She hissed through her teeth as a pained expression flashed across her face and she dropped her head to the pavement, panting a bit.
"But-" He cut himself off as he felt the puzzle hanging from his neck pulse with energy, at the same time as the girl cursed under her breath as she tried to ride out a spasm of pain that wracked her body. He clutched the golden item with his free hand as he watched the girl, debating with himself about what he should do. If she didn't want a hospital, then she at least needed to get off the cold hard ground that hadn't seen a fresh rain in days.
She released her grip on his wrist and instead tried to push herself to her knees, only to lean heavily against the wall of the game shop. She let out a ragged breath and groaned, clutching the side of her head while her other hand held up her weight. "J-Just leave me be…"
He shook his head again and stood up. If she was going to be stubborn, then so was he. "I have a first aid kit inside. Let me bring you there." He moved to her side and grabbed her shoulders, already feeling her tense up as he pulled her to her feet.
She groaned again and shook her head, but otherwise didn't seem to fight his grip as she leaned on him. One arm slung around his shoulders while her free hand still clutched the side of her head. "Stubborn," she muttered as she glared at him through one eye, the other one closed from where she clutched her head.
"You're one to talk," he shot back with a gentle tone, offering a half amused smile.
She simply shook her head and said nothing. Silence fell upon the both of them as he led her around to the front of the game shop. Using one arm to support her around her concerningly thin waist, he used his other hand to open the jingling door and walk inside with her.
"Grandpa, can you set up the couch?" He called to the older man that stood shocked behind the counter.
"Y-yes. Of course, my boy!" The man disappeared up the stairs.
The two slowly made their way up the stairs, taking their time so the girl didn't trip. Even though it wouldn't have mattered if she did since he was mostly holding all her weight. She was quite light, and he didn't think that it was healthy.
By the time they made it to the top of the steps, the elder man had set up the couch with some pillows and blankets and had placed the first aid kit on the table. "If you need anything, let me know."
"Thanks, Grandpa." He nodded as his grandfather went back downstairs to the shop and then moved towards the couch. He sat her down gently and watched as she leaned back against the cushions with a sigh, her breathing still ragged. She seemed almost feverish. A hand to her forehead confirmed his suspicion.
Without a word, he went to the kitchen and grabbed a cloth and a bowl of cold water. He brought it back and sat beside her. He dipped the cloth into the water and wrung the excess water out before moving to wipe her face clean. She had her eyes closed and flinched at the first contact of the cold cloth, but she relaxed as she felt him wipe gently at her dirty face. The cool cloth felt amazing against her burning skin and she knew her skin needed a good wash after taking that tumble in the alley.
She peeled one eye open to glance at her savior. His face was scrunched slightly in concentration, his violet orbs full of worry for the stranger he knew nothing about and willingly (and stubbornly) brought into his home. She wet her dry lips before speaking, her voice a bit hoarse from dehydration. "What is your name..?"
He met her gaze briefly before focusing back on what he was doing. He dipped the cloth in the bowl again and wrung out the water before going back to wiping her skin, tracing her left jawline towards her right. "Yugi," he said after a moment. "Yugi Muto."
She gave a slight nod. "Thank you, Yugi." She felt the cloth move towards the right side of her face and she visibly tensed as he brushed her bangs away from her face so that he could see. She saw how he hesitated, surprise written across his face as he gazed at the tattoo mark. He opened his mouth but she cut him off before he could even utter a sound, "Don't. It's not something you need to know about."
He visibly flinched at her harsh tone but said nothing. He instead started wiping that side of her face as silence fell over them. When he was done, he set the cloth in the bowl and reached for the first aid kit. He opened it and dug out a bottle and a small cloth. He sprayed the contents of the bottle onto the cloth and then lightly dabbed the cuts on her face with it. She tensed at the sharp sting but otherwise didn't move as he worked. He put everything away once he was done and got up to put the items away.
She found herself staring at the puzzle hanging from his neck as he moved about the room, the light glinting off its golden surfaces. A curious feeling grew within her the more she stared at it. It looked heavy to carry around his neck, but he didn't seem to be bothered by it at all.
Power… A deep growl echoed within her mind.
Hissing through her teeth at the sudden pain that shot through her head that came with the voice, she leaned over until she fell onto the pillows beside her and curled up. She clutched at her head, internally willing the voice to go away, to leave her alone. She barely registered Yugi rushing to her side and asking if she was okay, but she silently shook her head and buried her face into the pillow, curling her legs closer to her body to protect herself. She felt a blanket lay over her body and only then did she start to relax, the presence in her mind seeming to have gone quiet for the time being. She let out a sigh of relief and a darkness overcame her that she accepted willingly, slipping into unconsciousness…
Yugi watched as the girl fell asleep almost immediately the moment he put the blanket on her. She must have been exhausted, and at least now she didn't look like she was in any pain. He only hoped a fever and headache was the only thing wrong with her. He wasn't a doctor so he couldn't help her if it was something more severe. He got up and turned off the light in the living room before heading downstairs to the shop.
His grandfather was back at his usual spot behind the counter. When he heard footsteps come down the stairs, he turned to the boy expectantly. "How is she?"
"Well, she had some minor scrapes on her face and seems to have a fever. She's asleep now," Yugi explained as he rubbed the back of his head. "I found her out back collapsed by the garbage, but I don't know what happened to her before that. She really didn't want to go to a hospital…"
Solomon hummed thoughtfully as he crossed his arms. "She can stay until her fever goes away but if she gets worse then we'll have to send her to the hospital whether she likes it or not." Yugi nodded in agreement and they both greeted a customer that walked through the jingling doorway.