The puzzle felt cold in his grip.

Yugi waited until the very last person made to exit his apartment, his sigh of relief echoing the closing of the front door for the last time.

Alone.

He tightened his grip on the puzzle.

Well, sort of.

"Will you come out?"

Darkness oozed from beneath Yugi, stretching out from his shadow. It formed into a shape of a seated man with spiked hair just like his own. Yami knelt on the floor before Yugi, legs folded beneath him and sitting on his feet. His eyes stared at the floor between them. Not making contact.

"You appear to have all your parts."

Yami didn't move. But a feeling of confusion washed between them.

"I thought you might be hurt, after that fight with Ryou's spirit, because there were pieces torn from you." He paused for a brief moment before adding in a lower tone, "I saw them."

An understanding quickly replaced the previous confusion.

Yami dragged the Speak & Spell before him and tapped out a quick message.

"WE CANNOT BRING PHYSICAL HARM TO EACH OTHER."

More tapping.

"OUR PRESENCE ON THIS PLANE IS NOTHING MORE THAN A MANIPULATION OF SHADOWS. YOU CANNOT LOSE WHAT NEVER WAS."

Yugi nodded in empty acknowledgment then took a shuddering breath. "First thing's first, I'm glad you're alright. I'm also glad Seto's alright. Thank you for not… letting him put you on."

"ONLY YOU MAY PUT ME ON."

Had Yugi been in a better mood, and had this conversation happened under different circumstances he might have laughed at how inappropriate that statement sounded and the subsequent dirty mental images it conjured.

As it were, Yugi sucked in another breath that hurt his ribs because his heart ached so much. "What you did to me today….I thought I was ok with you this morning. But I don't know anymore."

"YOU CALLED FOR ME."

"I know."

A mix of frustration, hurt, and remorse arced through their link from the spirit before Yami suddenly shut him out.

"I AM SORRY."

"It's not…that simple. You tried to take control without my consent. Repeatedly. I…I need to think about…us." Yugi's voice cracked at the last word, a fresh well of tears beginning in the corners of his eyes.

Yami curled in on himself at that, edges of his silhouette dancing erratically. Even though he had shut the mind link between them, Yugi still caught the faintest hint of emotions. A subtle feeling of devastation crept inside him like the scent of rain in the face of an oncoming storm.

Before Yami could lose his shape entirely he shot for the puzzle in Yugi's grip, the sudden action causing Yugi to flinch. When he opened his eyes again Yami was gone and the bedroom was empty.

His hands gripped the puzzle so hard he thought it might break apart in his hand.

He wanted to hurl it against the wall.

He wanted to put it back on.

He wanted to yell at Yami, and make him understand how miserable he felt.

He also wanted Yami to scoop him up in an embrace and never let him go.

"You promised me."

But then, that was the thing, Yugi recalled. Yami hadn't actually promised him anything at all.

When they'd agreed to avoid hurting people, he hadn't actually agreed. The spirit had simply said, "I understand."

And Yugi had taken it at face value. Believed it was as good as a promise.

How many times had Seto used that very same evasive tactic?

The whole thing left Yugi feeling like the biggest fool. He curled in on himself, hugging his legs to his chest, the corners of the puzzle digging new sore spots into his ribcage. Blonde bangs smooshed against his face, mopping his tears as he buried his face against his knees.

Yami knelt, both knees on the floor of his soul room, his arms limp at his sides, and hands dragging the floor. He stared sightlessly at the shadows that bled down the walls of his prison.

From the corners of his unfocused eyes ran tears like shining gold. They carved a path down the dark skin of his cheeks before dripping off his jaw. When they hit the sandy stone floor that golden shimmer faded, leaving only a wet drop mark.

Darkness moved restlessly over the walls and across the floor, it obscured the hieroglyphs and consumed the surfaces of the soul room. The void swallowed up doors and corridors, eating away the floor and ceiling. Slowly it plunged the entire space into darkness, blocking out the strange ambient light that usually lit Yami's soul room.

He bared his heart to every emotion Yugi was feeling, and let it engulf him. It was suffocating, a tight compression in his chest, all sharp talons and crushing weight… an agony he deserved.

Yami wanted the encroaching darkness to consume him too, but it was only a reflection of his inner self.

Yugi took the following day off. He half expected Seto to bitch at him, but the call never came.

Instead he got a text from Mokuba, a brief message telling him to get rest and feel better soon.

Mostly, Yugi just wasn't ready to face the mess Yami undoubtedly made at Kaiba corp the other day. Seto was doubtlessly busy doing damage control, but he wasn't certain the extent the CEO could and would go to sweep everything under the rug. Or really how he intended to explain away everything that had happened.

Yugi wasn't in the right frame of mind to try explaining anything to anyone at the moment. But he trusted Seto was managing the situation in his absence… somehow.

The Kaibas were meticulously efficient like that.

Yugi had just finished painting and drying his nails when his phone beeped with a text from Ryou.

{11:30am} to Game King:

How are you?

He stared a bit despondently at the message. Everything in his chest still hurt. After a minute he typed up a reply.

{11:32am} to Dungeon Master:

I'm ok.

{11:33am} to Game King:

The Ring Spirit says he's sorry.

This took Yugi by surprise and he blinked at his cell phone, rereading the message several times.

{11:35am} to Dungeon Master:

Really?

It took a little longer before he received a response.

{11:39am} to Game King:

No… but I told him no more Monster World until he apologized to you. I'm prepared to cancel the next game if it comes to it.

{11:40am} to Dungeon Master:

Is that threat as effective against your spirit as it is mine?

Yugi imagined himself withholding any sort of game from Yami. The spirit who was so enthusiastic every time they played anything together. The spirit whose entire being seemed to come alight, eyes aglow and form quivering, just playing a game of Duel Monsters with Yugi.

{11:41am} to Game King:

I believe so. It's his favorite game.

{11:42am} to Dungeon Master:

Mine owes you an apology as well.

{11:43am} to Game King:

If he decides to apologize that would be smashing. But don't be too hard on him. You don't know the things my spirit is capable of.

That ominous statement left a shudder running through Yugi's frame. Goosebumps prickled his skin and a feeling of apprehension made him cast a glance at his surroundings.

His living room was normal. Comfortable and quiet.

The shadows as they should be. Where they should be.

Does Yami know what Ryou's spirit is capable of?

Thoughts wandered back to the many occasions in which Ryou came to hang out. Yami had never been welcoming, had always been guarded and agitated by his friend's presence.

Perhaps that iciness had been an attempt to protect me even then.

It would certainly explain why Yami's behavior had escalated so much yesterday.

Yugi traced his fingers over the edges of his phone for several long minutes. He wasn't ready to have a talk, and his heart still felt heavy with the betrayal of trust, but at the same time sitting inside all day moping wasn't helping.

He tapped out a new text, this time to Anzu.

{11:52am} to Dancing Queen:

You haven't gone back to the States yet have you?

She must have already been on her phone because the response was immediate.

{11:52am} to Game King:

Nope. Still in Japan. What's up?

{11:53am} to Dancing Queen:

Going to the library, want to come? Need your help picking some things out. I'll treat you to lunch, and it won't be burgers. Promise.

{11:54am} to Game King:

What time?

Yugi placed his hand on the puzzle sitting on the couch beside him. The inverted pyramid was cold to the touch, very cold. He hadn't put it back on since the incident, had simply carried the puzzle around with him from room to room.

But he was going out now, and had a decision to make.

{11:54am} to Dancing Queen:

Now?

Grabbing the leather cord attached to the pendant, he slipped the puzzle over his head.

The heavy gold settled against his chest with a comfort and familiarity that eased some of the anxiety that'd been festering. Despite everything, he breathed a sigh of relief.

{11:55am} to Game King:

It's a date! ;p

Yami stared at the fresh coating of nail polish on his fingertips; a dark grey color with a coat of fine metallic glitter. His nails were lovely. His host had done a fantastic job, but he couldn't seem to muster the same delight as he normally would.

He brought the polish up to his nose and inhaled, but no scent reached him.

On the plane of the living, while in control of Yugi's body, the nail polish would have a unique scent. Not as nice as the smell of a permanent marker, but still pleasant in his opinion.

In the soul rooms all he could smell was the dust and decay of his tomb.

Yami pulled his knees up to his chest, hugging them as he sat on his throne. He rested his chin on them as he stared at the wall. He still felt Yugi's hurt. It still ate away at his heart with teeth like knives, leaving his chest aching and empty.

He missed the fullness from before. That sensation of affection so overwhelming and all-consuming that he thought his heart might burst.

He wanted it back.

Pain bled from his eyes, gold. Always gold.

But mostly, he wanted Yugi's trust again.

Hours passed, time moving at a ceaseless crawl. Yami continued to sit within the isolation of his soul room. Even when night fell, and he felt Yugi's consciousness drift off to sleep, he stayed.

Yugi tried to ignore the weird stares he got at work. People watched him. Whispered.

He kept his gaze to the floor, hurrying through the lobby and making a beeline for the office elevators. He could feel them all staring, and he hated it. Didn't like being the subject of attention like this.

He should have been used to this, being the "King of Games" and all. The title came with its own curse of attention.

But somehow, this was worse.

He was almost to the elevator when Mokuba fell into step beside him.

"Bro made everyone sign a non-disclosure agreement. They aren't supposed to be talking about the incident. He also told everyone that you were helping him test out some new prototype technology involving the holographic simulators. It's top secret stuff."

Yugi ducked into the first vacant elevator, and noted that Mokuba followed in after him. "How much do you think people are buying it?"

The assistant CEO shrugged, "They'll have to. Or face legal consequences."

The doors closed, and Yugi punched the number for his floor.

Mokuba also tapped a number, for a floor higher up. He'd gotten so tall, towering over Yugi with his lanky frame. Not quite the imposing giant his older brother was, but he'd definitely grown into himself over the years. His shaggy black hair was shorter than he'd kept it growing up, and today the back was pulled into a high ponytail, leaving some stylishly uneven bangs to frame his face.

"Big bro says the black thing we caught on camera was your 'Other Face.'"

His "Other Face." It was the term Seto used to refer to Yami. Yugi didn't know how to reply; apparently Mokuba was familiar with his spirit too.

"Says it's all some fake supernatural bullshit magic nonsense. His words. Not mine."

"I guess that's one way to put it."

"So, it really was your Other Face?"

"Y-yeah." Yugi clutched his briefcase and tried to find something interesting about the pattern on the tiled floor. "How do you know about him?"

"It saved my life during Death-T," Mokuba replied, his tone sincere and almost…reverent?

That caused Yugi to blink up at him in astonishment.

Mokuba beamed back. "It saved my brother too. So I guess your Other Face is kinda my hero."

A warm sensation bloomed in Yugi's chest. A fondness welling up where the hurt was, not quite replacing it, but a soothing balm on the raw wound all the same.

"Can you tell me about it?"

"You don't remember what happened?"

Yugi shook his head.

Mokuba's mouth scrunched up a bit and he glanced at his watch. The elevator dinged as it reached Yugi's floor and he glanced between the panel with the buttons for floors and his watch, then back at Yugi.

"Oh… I don't want to keep you. Maybe another time."

"Brother can wait," Mokuba finally said. He stepped off the elevator with Yugi and made to follow him to his office. "So it all started back when big bro stole your grandpa's card from you at school and you kicked his ass at Duel Monsters. You remember the time right? Maybe not the ass whooping, that woulda been your Other Face. But bro said he busted you in the face with his briefcase, which he's super duper sorry about now and sometimes he stays up late wallowing in self loathing about it. Anyway, your Other Face didn't take it well and…"

For the next hour Mokuba Kaiba regaled Yugi about the missing pieces of Yugi's history with them and the part Yami had played.

Seto Kaiba showed up at Yugi's office with a scowl etched so deeply into his features it emphasized his permanent frown lines. Hard eyes swept his expense manager and settled on his younger brother, perched on the corner of Yugi's desk sipping coffee and drawing lines in the zen garden that was also on the desk.

"You missed two meetings and our corporate lawyer has been trying to page you all morning."

Mokuba jerked his head up, nearly inhaling his coffee. He sheepishly waved a miniature rake at Seto. "I was helping Yugi with…" his eyes darted about before he finished with a lame, "stuff."

"I'm sure he urgently needed you to rearrange his sand box."

Yugi sank down in his desk chair and pretended to be working. If he was lucky he could avoid the storm that was the Kaiba brothers when they riled each other up.

"I mean, now that you're here, you can rearrange his sand box." Mokuba placed the tiny rake back amongst the other garden tools.

Steel blue eyes narrowed under the shadow of dark brown bangs. "Corporate lawyer. Now. You need to finalize some things concerning our recent company acquisition."

"Finnnne." Mokuba threw back his head and rolled his eyes. Then he cocked his head to the side and glanced at Yugi, who was still attempting to keep his head down. "Big Bro wants you to himself, so I'll talk to you later, Yugi." He hopped off of the corner of the desk and stuck his tongue out as he stalked past his older brother and out of the office.

Seto shut the door behind him before leveling a glare at his expense manager.

"I'm sure whatever you detained Mokuba for for the better part of the morning was important."

"He was filling me in on some of our history… that I wasn't present for."

Seto's eyes flickered down to the golden pendant hanging from Yugi's neck, then snapped back up. "I always wondered how aware you were. Though over the years I deduced, not at all."

"Will you tell me about it? From your perspective?"

The frown on Seto's face grew harder, his eyes a little steelier.

"Have you asked him?"

The way Yugi's gaze darted to the side was answer enough.

Seto snorted, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smirk momentarily before returning to a frown. "Mokuba no doubt told you everything. He has a knack for running his mouth. I think you are avoiding the real issue. A testimony on my behalf is ultimately meaningless and I already told you the importance of what he's done for me. If you really want to know, then talk to him. Ask him yourself."

"You're calling my Other Face a him now. Not an it."

"Hn," Seto turned on his heel and pulled open the door to the office that Mokuba had cheekily shut on his way out. He made to leave.

"Seto?"

The CEO paused, but didn't look over his shoulder.

"I'm glad you didn't put on my puzzle."

Seto sucked in a long breath through his nose, then let it out before he said in a low tone, "I'm…glad you're back. At work."

Yugi tried to suppress the stupid smile on his face as he dipped his head and pretended to focus on work. Not that Seto could see anyway, since his back was turned.

"Mokuba missed you." His boss added before hastily escaping from the office.

The sun was starting to set when Yugi stepped off the bus near his old High School. He started towards the complex, carrying only his briefcase from work and dressed in the leather jacket, pants, and boots he'd worn that day. The only part of him that screamed office worker was the pale yellow button down he wore and the shiny black tie, now loosened.

The sky was painted a golden hue, and the thin, wispy clouds were starting to tinge with pinks. He kicked a rock with the toe of his black leather boot and watched it bounce in and out of the shadows cast by the chain-link fence. The buildings made long shadows, their sides darkened as the sun sank lower behind them. On the other side of the fence was a concrete drainage ditch, the water just a few shallow inches due to the lack of rain the past couple weeks.

Yugi stopped when the back of his old school came into view; a deserted area because all the students had already gone home for the evening.

He set his briefcase down and curled his fingers into the fence. The location was familiar.

Across the ditch was the back of the main complex, and beside a tall drain pipe was the place he'd completed the puzzle for the very first time.

It was the first memory lapse he had ever experienced, and the first bully who'd inexplicably dropped out of school due to a "mental breakdown."

He hadn't questioned it at the time. But he had questions now.

"Will you tell me what happened here? What happened to Ushio? I want to know."

The already long shadow at his feet inexplicably rotated until it stretched out beside him at an unnatural angle given the direction of the setting sun.

There was a silence between them. Yugi knew he couldn't speak like this, and they didn't have the white board or the Speak & Spell. Both were at home.

Which meant if a conversation were to happen they needed to get a little more creative.

And Yugi needed to extend his trust.

He curled his fingers tighter into the chain link and said, "You can possess me. We'll take turns speaking."

There was a sense of hesitation, a reluctance that washed over Yugi. He took a breath and focused his thoughts to send reassurance back across the link. The link had been closed for the past couple of days and Yugi supposed that Yami had been giving him space, granting him the privacy to sort out his own thoughts and feelings.

"It's alright. I'm ready to talk and I trust things won't get out of hand." He removed a hand from the fence and placed it against the front of the puzzle. The cold metal warmed a bit under his touch.

Another long minute passed before Yugi felt a gentle brush of another presence in his head.

He closed his eyes, giving his consent as he relinquished control of his body. He felt his consciousness drift away to the background, still aware, but no longer in control.

When he spoke, it was his voice, but also not. It was lower, harder, almost disquieting.

"Ushio got what he deserved. That time I could feel you calling out for help. It screamed from your emotions, your thoughts. Every part of you begged for a way to stop the pain he inflicted upon you, Jou, and Honda."

Their gaze stared at the ground across the way, shadowed from the back of the building.

Yugi remembered that desperate situation. When he tried to resume command of their voice Yami relinquished control immediately, almost eagerly.

"What did you do to him?" Yugi asked. He mentally retreated again, and the spirit resumed reluctant control.

"I challenged him to a game involving knives… or was it playing cards on the side of a roof spire? My apologies, it has been so long. I recall that he cheated, resorting to attempted murder as a means of winning. I cursed him. For years he would hallucinate that he saw riches, when actually it was trash. I thought it a fitting punishment for someone so driven by greed."

Yugi spoke this time, "Is he still cursed?"

Once more Yami took control of their voice, "I do not believe so. That curse was intended to be temporary. It should have faded over the years and waned even faster if Ushio overcame his greed."

"But you weren't that merciful to everyone, were you?"

"No."

Not exactly new information. He admitted as such before, but I failed to give it the gravity it deserved.

"Okay."

Things fell silent for awhile and Yugi felt the gentle breeze against his face, the quiet rustle of trees. The sun sank even lower now, the skyline awash with more purples and pinks. Nearly all the golds were gone now and the rest of the sky was becoming a dark blue.

He felt the gentle brush of Yami's consciousness, as if asking permission to speak again, and allowed it.

"You are conflicted," the spirit said with his voice.

You're listening in on my emotions.

He could feel Yami's emotions as well. They were a twisted mess and not all of them recognizable. There was definitely worry, anxiety, and remorse. So much remorse. But also a fierce desire to protect.

Yugi took back their voice and said, "Anzu told me about the things you did for her."

He felt the spirit's surprise and affirmed that Yami had probably not been eavesdropping on his lunch date with her the other day. He took a step back from the fence and pulled out his cellphone. Instead of calling anyone he held it up to his ear so that a conversation with himself wouldn't appear so bizarre. Then he picked up his briefcase and started back towards the bus stop. "It seems you've made quite the impression on all my friends. They're taken with you, even though they don't exactly know what you are. Anzu seems convinced I have Dissociative Identity Disorder. And I guess, for awhile there, I suspected that I had it too," he finished in a quieter tone.

Yami replied equally as softly, "I am sorry about that."

"Will you tell me about other…possessed times, on our way home?"

There was another wave of anxiety from Yami before he quelled the emotion. "You wish to know, even if it might terrify you?"

To that Yugi snorted and rolled his eyes. "My boss and friend is Seto Kaiba, and he built an amusement attraction with the sole purpose of murdering me and my friends. I'm not so easily terrified. I think you are making yourself out to be worse than you actually are. Everyone I've asked has spoken so highly of you."

A beat of silence; the only sound heard was the slap of Yugi's leather boots against the concrete path.

A stray cat darted across their path, pausing briefly in the middle to look at them with shining eyes before carrying on.

"I will tell you more." Yami took a breath for them, as if preparing himself, and began the story of one of his other shadow games.

When they reached the apartment Yugi felt like he might keel over. His muscles throbbed, bones ached, breathing almost labored as his body felt drained. Even his head was throbbing with the beginnings of a migraine.

"I am so sorry," Yami said, using Yugi's voice one last time. "I have never possessed and unpossessed you so many times in such frequent succession. I was not aware of the physical toll it would take on your body. If you lay down I will get you some aspirin."

With that the spirit left Yugi's body, a shadow entity darting across the floor and towards the bathroom.

Yugi kicked off his shoes, and managed to drag himself to the couch, where he flopped inelegantly across the cushions, much like a dramatically fainting woman. He was definitely his mother's son.

"I'm going to die."

A dark figure leaned over the back of the couch and stared down at him with golden eyes.

Yugi took the cup of water from his outstretched hand as well as the two aspirin pills. He popped them in his mouth and washed them down.

"Thank you." Yami didn't move. Yugi set the cup aside on his coffee table and stared at the spirit for almost a minute. Finally he spoke again and said, "I forgive you. Will you come sit with me?"

Yami's eyes grew wide. His edges began to quiver, the wisps of hair dancing as he looked from one side of the couch to the other, most probably realizing Yugi was taking up the whole couch.

Before Yugi could move and make room, the spirit pounced over the back of the couch in a blur of black that Yugi shut his eyes and braced for, ready to feel it slam into his chest.

Something much smaller than a full-sized man landed on his chest.

He blinked and locked stares with a golden-eyed black cat.

The grin that broke across his face mirrored the pleased shape of Yami's eyes.

Without hesitation, Yugi reached out to pet him, unconcerned with the weirdness of petting a shadow entity. Yami didn't appear to mind at all as he leaned into Yugi's touch.

"Ya know, if you'd done this the other day I wouldn't have been able to stay mad at you."

Yami redoubled his efforts to rub more enthusiastically against him, not quite retaining the proper shape of a cat. In fact, his whole form began to twist and curl affectionately around Yugi's entire arm.

The shadows engulfed his hand, crawling and twining all the way up to his elbow, golden eyes becoming lost somewhere amongst the eager mass.

A burning blush heated Yugi's cheeks and he curled his fingers into the shadow. "Oddly enough this does not ruin it for me."

A wash of confusion and eyes blinked open somewhere along Yugi's elbow where half a misshapen cat face was pressed.

"Uh… it's nothing. I'm being stupid." Yugi fumbled about, face burning even hotter, and suddenly he shot upright and announced, "I have something to give you."

Yami made no attempt to pull himself together and only twined more enthusiastically around Yugi until he no longer resembled a cat but more so an eldritch horror.

Yugi got up from the couch with the shadow still attached to him and made for the closet. He pulled a bag from inside and returned to the couch, setting it beside him. With the same hand, since his other was somewhat occupied, he dug out an assortment of DVDs and books.

The covers were enough to make his face heat again.

Yami eased his hold on Yugi to peer at the media. They didn't speak as he stared curiously and Yugi watched him for any reaction.

Finally, a long shadow tentacle reached out and scooped up the white board and a marker from the coffee table and began writing a message.

'More porn?'

It was like someone had splashed him with a bucket of ice water. Yugi's face caught fire. He clapped both hands—even though one was still enveloped in shadows—over his face.

"Oh god. You were there for that." He wanted to die. He wanted the couch to swallow him up right then and there. He couldn't even escape because Yami was still so intimately entwined around his arm. "No. This isn't porn. Can we just not talk about that? Ever?"

Another realization was also beginning to dawn on him. Yami had been with him throughout most of his teen and young adult years. He was there. Every time I…I touched my…

Shadow arms encircled all of Yugi; it felt like more than two arms, but he didn't pull his hands away to confirm that. A wave of comfort and reassurance crept into him, pleasant feelings trying to soothe away his painful mortification.

There was furious marker squeaking, followed by incessant prodding, but he refused to lift his head to look.

"These are… they're rom-coms. I was going to ask to watch one with you, but I just want to disappear now."

A sudden toneless synthetic voice said, "PLEASE DO NOT DISAPPEAR."

When did you get the Speak & Spell? Yugi's mind conjured images of long shadow tendrils slithering through the apartment to go collect the toy from wherever it had been, all while the rest of Yami remained in the living room, wrapped around him. It was extremely possible.

"I WOULD LIKE TO WATCH THE ROMS WITH YOU."

"Do you know what they are?"

"NO, BUT I AM HONORED THAT YOU WOULD SHARE THEM WITH ME."

He couldn't face Yami. Absolutely no way in hell was he unfurling from the tight ball he'd rolled himself into. Both of his hands stayed pressed against his burning face as if he could somehow hide it all from the shadow entity that felt his every emotion.

There were ways to close off that connection, but at the moment he couldn't even concentrate enough to try.

A series of clicks, snaps, rustles, and taps alerted him that Yami was most certainly doing something about the room. Given how thoroughly attached he was to Yugi, it meant that whatever he was doing about the living room most probably looked like a cosmic horror nightmare.

Yugi was almost tempted to look. The curiosity burned.

When the tv came on and the sound of pre-movie ads reached him, Yugi had his answer.

"YUGI."

He refused to budge. His skin still felt like it might combust unless he kept his hands firmly over his face.

"AIBOU."

The entity around him began stroking his hair.

"BRINGER OF LIGHT."

When Yami gently tugged on him he curled into a tighter ball of embarrassment.

"MOST PRECIOUS ONE."

"What are you doing?"

"I HAVE STARTED A MOVIE THAT I INTEND TO WATCH WITH YOU."

Yugi sighed and tried again. "No. Why are you calling me… those things?"

"YOU ASKED ME ONCE TO CALL YOU BY MY NAMES FOR YOU. SO I HAVE."

Yugi finally lifted his head to peek at the spirit.

He had to bite his tongue to swallow the scream caught in his throat.

There were no less than four arms entwined around him, and a fifth was still stroking his spiked hair. The spirit itself had given up trying to retain the size and shape of a cat, and was a strange mass of limbs and tentacles spilling forth from the vague shape of a man's head and torso, all of which was still engulfing Yugi's right arm from his fringes to his shoulder.

One of Yami's tentacles had the remote to the television, another was coiled around the Speak & Spell, while a third was poised above the buttons of the toy, ready to type another message.

Yet another tendril moved towards Yugi and caressed his no doubt flushed cheek.

Yugi managed to swallow the initial bubble of fright and looked past it all the way to the tv where the title screen of a cheesy rom-com showed. He turned his gaze back at the eldritch horror that stared at him with the softest most adoring expression he'd ever seen.

"WILL YOU WATCH THE ROMS WITH ME NOW?"

Yugi almost hid his face in his hands again, but two void hands caught them and held them tight.

"NO MORE HIDING. STARTING THE MOVIE. DO NOT MAKE ME WATCH IT WITHOUT YOU."

Finally, Yugi attempted a tentative half smile, although it probably looked more like a grimace. "Okay..."

All at once the spirit disentangled himself from Yugi. Shadows ran down and over his lap, slithering over his shoulders, arms and thighs. They melted off until all of it coalesced on the couch beside him and Yami returned to a human shape. He set the Speak & Spell upon his lap, then placed the tv remote into Yugi's hands, closing his fingers around it, his golden eyes pleased.

"Y-yeah. We can watch a movie. Definitely let's watch a movie now." Yugi clicked the play button on the remote three times before sitting back into the couch, knees still drawn up to his chest. He clutched the remote in front of his legs, nervously picking at the little rubber buttons as the movie began.

Yami reclined into the couch beside him, albeit posture awkwardly stiff.

From the corner of his eyes, Yugi stole glimpses, suspecting that Yami was watching him more than he was the movie. It was difficult to tell given his pupil-less eyes, and given that the third eye in his forehead—which had a pupil—was closed.

As the movie moved through the first act he felt this foreign overwhelming surge of happiness, relief, and… hope warm his entire being, from toes to ears. Yami was almost deliriously happy. Was it because of the movie—to which Yugi hardly paid attention and wasn't sure what was happening—or because he was happy just sitting beside him?

Whatever it was, the emotions coursing through the link proved distracting.

The first movie played start to finish without either of them moving much. When the credits began Yugi turned his head to gauge Yami's reaction. The spirit looked at him with an unreadable expression, his eyes frustratingly blank.

"What did you think?"

Yami picked up the Speak & Spell and began typing.

"IT WAS GOOD. A NICE STORY."

Yugi's mouth formed a lopsided smile. It wasn't quite what he was hoping for when he'd rented the movies, but they still had a few more to watch, and Yami could read the books at night while he slept. Perhaps the books—with their greater detail and insight—would be more enlightening for him.

"I'm going to make some tea, would you mind starting the next movie?"

Yami took up the bag and began rummaging through, picking over different titles as Yugi left the room.

When he returned a little later, tea mug in hand, a new movie was on its title screen and Yami was already back in position on the couch waiting for him. Yugi eyed the spot where he'd been before, then the vacant cushion right beside Yami.

Suck it up. No more being awkward and embarrassed. He likes you. You know he likes you. I felt it.

Yugi took a sip from his mug, cringing when it scalded his tongue, and sank down on the couch. Right beside the spirit. Their thighs were touching.

As expected Yami went rigid. Never mind that he had practically been all over Yugi before; now he seemed flustered by the proximity. Yugi blew on his tea and pretended that nothing was amiss. With all the stiffness of a robot Yami started the movie.

After a minute or two, Yugi folded his legs on the couch beside himself. He rested his head against Yami's shoulder and took a sip from his tea so he could hide his stupid smile.

It only took Yami about five minutes of awkward rigid posture before he finally relaxed, tipping his head to rest against the top of Yugi's.

Another ten minutes, and an arm slipped around Yugi's back to rest casually on his shoulder.

Smooth.

Yugi hid another smile in his mug.

That happiness still poured off Yami like an aura. It felt infectious, warm, intoxicating even.

He'd missed this. Yugi snuggled closer, embracing the nearness and the open link, finally letting his embarrassment from before fall away.

The spirit didn't give off any temperature, but his emotions made Yugi feel warm regardless.

He hardly paid this movie any mind, so focused on Yami and the comfortable position they were in that his eyelids grew heavy. Blinks became longer and more frequent. The mug of tea in his grip had long since been emptied. His body still ached from the multitude of possessions that evening, but the aspirin had kicked in because the dull pain was almost easy to ignore.

Yami snuck a second right arm around Yugi; this one hugged him around the waist.

Only you can do something incredibly creepy and it be sweet as hell.

This was perfect. Sitting with his ghostly roomma—er soulmate, snuggled on the couch, the hurt and anger from before faded. Replaced instead with blissful contentment.

This feels…right.

He was drifting off.

They must have been a little over halfway through the second movie when the mind link snapped shut like a bear trap.

Yugi jolted upright with a start.

He fumbled the tea mug and it bounced along the floor and under the coffee table.

"I'm awake."

Yami's arms were still around him, but he noted that his grip had tightened.

Yugi blearily tilted his head back, trying to gauge the spirit's expression. "What's wrong?"

A void left hand reached out and tapped out a message into the Speak & Spell.

"YOU WANTED ME TO WATCH THESE MOVIES."

"Yeah."

"WHY?"

Yugi immediately dropped his gaze, his embarrassment coming back with a vengeance. "I dunno… I just thought they'd be interesting." Shame curled in his gut. Coward.

Yami released Yugi's shoulder, took hold of Yugi's chin with his first right hand, and tilted his head back until their eyes met again. This time Yami's third eye blinked open, and that singular pupil bored into Yugi with intense scrutiny.

"YUGI."

"It's dumb, ok. It's nothing. I'm dumb. Can I go to bed now?" Yugi made to stand up, but failed spectacularly.

Yami didn't release him. Even as Yugi tried to avoid eye contact he kept his grip, not giving his host the chance to flee. There was a strange anxiousness that trickled through the link despite how harshly it had been shut.

Yami's third eye flickered towards the television where the movie was still playing, then it shifted back to Yugi.

"Please," Yugi tried again, wriggling in an attempt to free himself from what had been an endearing embrace before, but now felt more akin to the coils of a large snake. "Let me g-"

"CAN I SHOW YOU MY FAVORITE PLACE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD?"

Yami released him immediately, but Yugi had already stopped struggling to stare up at the spirit quizzically.

"Like tomorrow?"

Yami shook his head.

"Now?"

A nod.

"It's the middle of the night."

"WE NEED NOT LEAVE THE APARTMENT FOR ME TO TAKE YOU THERE."

Yugi's heart skipped a beat. He raised a tentative hand to his chest, finger prodding the spot over his heart. "Like in your soul room? Somewhere inside the maze?"

"ADJACENT TO THE LABYRINTH. BUT STILL IN HERE."

Yami placed his hand to Yugi's chest. The eye in his forehead had closed into a half moon shape as if it had scrunched with a smile.

"So…" Yugi tried to fight the smile suddenly tugging at the corners of his mouth. He wiggled around until he was facing the spirit. "I'll get to see you looking human again?"

Yami nodded.

"Absolutely." His heart was suddenly pounding a quick staccato rhythm inside his chest. He'd wanted to go back, but given recent circumstances kept himself from asking.

"CLOSE YOUR EYES. DO NOT PEEK."

Yugi raised one curious brow before his eyelids fluttered shut and he felt Yami take his hands. Thumbs gave a soft caress to the inside of his palms. It sent his pulse racing just in time to feel a gentle tug and then his spirit was sinking.

In Yami's peripheral the world of the living drifted away. Up, up it went, taking its tv sounds and ambient noise, as both he and Yugi fell away into darkness.

Physically Yugi's body had collapsed unconscious on the couch. But here, their souls sank into an alternate reality, a place within their own hearts.

It was a gentle thing, when their feet alighted on solid stone in Yami's tomb-like soul room. Behind Yugi was the massive throne. Opposite it, and behind Yami, was a darkened iron door, its surface marred with a smattering of rust stains, scratches, and a strange veiny pattern.

"Keep your eyes closed," Yami commanded in his own low timbre. It was ironic, since the last time they'd been in this room the first thing he'd told Yugi was to open his eyes. He noted the peculiar shiver Yugi exhibited when he spoke, his gaze drawn momentarily to the goosebumps along his host's wrists, just visible beneath the edges of the shirt's sleeves.

Yami's grip on his hand tightened in gentle reassurance before he tugged Yugi forward. Eyes still closed, Yugi blindly followed.

"There are no steps or uneven ground, but should you trip then I will catch you."

"I trust you," Yugi breathed out in amusement.

That caught Yami off guard and he choked out "Why?" before he could even stop himself.

A flinch. "I… just do? It isn't as if you lost my trust entirely because of one bad mistake. But…we are still going to have a serious conversation about consent."

Yami made a hum in the back of his throat, "Your capacity for forgiveness is truly remarkable."

Yugi's cheeks flushed with color, not for the first time that evening.

It made Yami's chest bloom with adoration. He loved the way Yugi was so expressive. From his laugh, to his smile, to his blush and habit of fidgeting or avoiding eye contact when he got nervous. There was the way his nose wrinkled when he got mad, and even the tears that escaped whenever he felt too fiercely. Yami wanted to take a snap shot of it all and keep it close to his chest.

Love.

It vexed him that it took sitting through two cheesy rom-coms stewing in suspicion over Yugi's ulterior motives before he finally identified the emotions.

How many relationships had he witnessed Yugi be a part of? Well, admittedly, not a lot. Yugi didn't date that often, and few of the relationships lasted for more than a few months. But he should have known what love was, should have recognized it… right? Surely he'd felt Yugi be in love before?

Why then, had it been so difficult for Yami to identify his own emotions?

He pushed open the iron door with his foot, so he wouldn't have to release Yugi's hands. Then he backed them through the exit and out into an ominous hallway. Both ends faded out into darkness before any end could be discerned. But directly across the hall opposite of Yami's soul room was another door.

This door was a plain wooden one with a buttery yellow coating of paint. It was very ordinary, so much so that it stood in contrast with the eerie surroundings.

Yami led them right up to this door, used his shadows to twist the doorknob, and pushed it open.

A brilliant warm light spilled into the hallway from the interior of this new room.

Yami tugged his host just inside the threshold and gave Yugi another reassuring squeeze before stopping.

"You can open your eyes now."

The loveliest purple eyes blinked open against the light, squinting because Yugi had not expected the brightness. They first fixed on Yami, rather than their colorful surroundings.

The intensity with which Yugi stared at him, the open appraisal, was enough to make the spirit self-conscious. It was not in his nature to squirm under such attention. He waited, patient, as Yugi drank in his human appearance again.

Finally his host looked past him, taking in their surroundings.

Yugi's hands slipped from his grip as he took a step further into the room, staring wide-eyed at everything.

The room itself wasn't large. There was a twin bed in the corner with a couple of stuffed animals sitting upon it, the most noticeable, a Blue-Eyes white Dragon plushie. Next to the bed was a little nightstand and a lamp. On the nightstand was a golden box with an Egyptian pattern, the same reliquary that had once held the puzzle. Then there was a dresser covered in little fidget toys, figures, and a Rubix cube.

On one of the other walls, and below a skylight that looked upon a forever night sky, was a desk. The surface of the desk was a mess with a little model gundam kit, only half put together. On the floor were a few unfinished puzzles, a half-played game of Duel Monsters, and a game board for Capsule Monsters Chess. Along the last wall was a closet filled with goth clothes, their style in stark contrast to the colorful whimsy of the rest of the room, and on the floor of the closet was a chest so overfilled with toys and games that it couldn't even shut all the way.

The pale yellow walls were decorated in a few strings of purple fairy lights and various game and movie posters. Yami was actually taken back upon seeing a brand new poster. It wasn't very big and was pasted in the corner next to a Smash Bros tournament banner and below a smaller poster of Samus Aran in swimsuit cut out from a very old Nintendo magazine. This movie poster had the silhouette of a shadow person that artfully dissolved into a scene of trees. In chilling white font it read "Låt Den Rätte Komme In." He wasn't familiar with the language, but deduced it was a foreign film.

He tore his gaze away from it and fixed his stare back on Yugi and his dumbfounded expression.

"This is my bedroom…" Yugi stepped further inside and made a slow circle, taking in his surroundings. "Isn't it? But I've never owned a Blue-Eyes plush, and I don't have any of these posters anymore, and I've never had some of these at all. I haven't had a Rubix cube since I was six. The layout…is like my bedroom back at home, but also my new apartment." He turned to face Yami, confusion written on every feature. "What is this place?"

"This is your soul room." Yami announced with barely contained enthusiasm. He approached the dresser and lifted the Rubix cube off the surface. "Everything in this room is a part of you. An expression of your inner feelings, fears, turmoil, values, desires, and aspirations. This," he held up the toy cube, "It is nearly finished, and probably would be completed, but someone swapped a sticker. I am not an expert at deciphering the meanings of things within a soul room, but I believe this represents your drive to solve a puzzle, even if cheated the victory in the end."

He picked up a fidget toy next. "This, I believe is symbolic of your nervous habits, picking your nail polish, pulling on buttons, chewing on pens, and making clicky noises." Yami ran his fingers over the pile of bed pillows and continued, "the games on the floor should be obvious. The Capmon chess you play with Mokuba, and the Duel Monsters are one of your favorite passions. For awhile there were Match Box cars and a race track, it was most prevalent when you first moved into your apartment and were getting settled into your job at Kaiba Corp. I think they meant that your life was moving a lot faster, and you felt like you had less control."

"These lights," he gestured to the fairy lights haphazardly tacked upon the walls and above the bed, "They might imply a fear of the dark as they are a more recent addition. But I like to think they are the light you shine upon my world…and upon everyone else."

He turned to face Yugi again, hoping the explanation was enough, eyes searching Yugi's for some kind of understanding.

"This place is me…" Yugi breathed, seeming to look upon everything around him with new eyes.

The spirit watched his host approach the bed, stepping aside to grant him space as he reached out to touch the various stuffed toys. There was a Marshmallon plush among the pillows, all big eyes and blushing smile; Yugi stroked the top of it affectionately. "What's this guy stand for?"

"Ahh…" Yami cleared his throat, "I would like to believe your soft, inviting exterior, that hides a formidable opponent and a mouth that bites." A beat of silence passed, during which it appeared Yugi was scrutinizing the stuffed Blue-Eyes plush. He stroked his fingers over the nose of the dragon and Yami swallowed back the surge of jealousy that gnawed at his gut like a sick animal. He took in a steadying breath. "I hope you do not mind that I come here often to play with the games, but sometimes to lay on the bed taking comfort from the surroundings. I love this place, it is…my sanctuary."

Yugi whirled around to face him, an impish glint flashing in his eyes. "This place is me."

"Ye-"

Yami didn't even finish his response before Yugi took two fistfuls of his shirt and dragged him into a kiss.