Notes: The really old YGO stories I wrote between 2002-2005 are largely adventures from an alternate dimension, since I wrote them while canon was still unfolding and hence, they don't really align with all known canon. The YGO cast in my current timeline have never experienced most of those adventures, even though I brought over some of my OCs from the old timeline to use here too. Thanks to Azalea542 for plot help!

Chapter Four

David looked up in surprise when Duke and Serenity entered the store. "Well, that didn't take very long," he commented as he pushed a game between two others on a shelf. "What happened?"

Duke slowly shook his head. "Where do I even start? The ghost knows about me messing with time and tried to strangle me. Then Tristan let me know I'm still the scum of the earth to him." He went over and leaned against the shelf David had almost finished stocking.

David stared at him. "Duke. . . ." He shoved the last game on the shelf and walked over closer to his friend. "This sounds like something we need to talk about. Do you feel like talking?"

Duke sighed and nodded. "I think so." Ordinarily he might have snorted and made a comment about the way David had phrased his remarks, but he wasn't in the mood.

"I'll let you two talk," Serenity said. "Are Lumis and Umbra still here?"

"They're just finishing up," David said.

"Then I'll go say Hi to them before they leave," Serenity said. She smiled and laid a hand on Duke's shoulder before heading off towards the storeroom.

Duke managed a faint smile as he watched her go. Serenity was always understanding of the bond between him and David and the need for them to talk alone sometimes. Some girls couldn't accept their beaus wanting to be with other people much, if at all. It would have been a nightmare if Duke had ended up trying to go steady with anyone like that.

David folded his arms and leaned against the shelf as Serenity slipped through the storeroom doors. "Okay, now what happened, Duke? In more detail."

Duke didn't know how long it took him to explain all that had transpired. He thought he was being level-headed and calm, but the longer he spoke, the more the facade gave way to his anguished feelings underneath. Tristan had definitely torn open a wound that had only ever scabbed, not fully healed.

"Why am I like this?!" he finally exclaimed to David. "Why am I still so badly affected by what happened?!"

"I guess for the same reason Tristan is," David said. "What happened to each of you was extremely upsetting and triggering and the pain doesn't just go away. Although I have to admit I think you've gone through far worse than he has. I saw you pushing yourself to a nervous breakdown. If he saw any of that, and I know he did, he must have just ignored it because he was angry with you."

Duke shook his head. "Well, regardless, I don't know what to do now. I try, and sometimes I think it might work, but then it always fails again."

"I've noticed that," David said. "I think you were always the most mature of the two of you and you made more of an effort to get along than he did. And if you didn't actually want to be friends at first, you changed later, maybe because of wanting to be friends with the others?"

Duke nodded. "That, and it's just too awkward the way things are, especially when Serenity cares about both of us. Maybe we could have got along had Serenity not chosen me, but it's pretty obvious by now that it really is hopeless. It was probably what we saw in that alternate world that finished things off. Tristan's been treating me coldly since then."

"You're probably right," David frowned. "I can't imagine Tristan would handle that well at all."

"I guess I can't blame him," Duke said. "If things were reversed and I was the one Serenity didn't choose, I don't know that I'd handle rejection much better than he is."

"I think you would," David said somberly. "You've had to deal with rejection before, in the form of how your father treated you. You always had dignity and poise."

Duke managed a sad smile. "Well, maybe so then.

"But really, what do I do, David?! I feel like I've tried everything through the years to make amends with Tristan." He looked away. "I don't think there's anything more I can do."

"I don't think so either," David said. "You don't owe him anything, Duke. It's admirable that you keep trying, but by this point you don't need to. It's his turn now."

Duke looked away. "That makes sense. That's really how I feel by now, pretty much, and yet part of me keeps wondering if there's something more I should be doing." He frowned. "I feel different than before. I feel . . . vulnerable. Although I always did, I guess, and I just tried to hide it."

"And now it's harder for you to do that," David surmised.

Duke nodded. "Maybe because I'm worn-down . . . or because I opened my heart after years of closing it off. I'm tired, David. I don't feel like dealing with it anymore."

"Then maybe you shouldn't," David said. "I've seen how it's worn you down." He hesitated only briefly before continuing with something that had been on his mind for a while. "Maybe it's time to cut your ties and move on."

That brought a scoff. "It's not like I could cut ties with Tristan and not with everyone else too," Duke said. "They're always all together. I have no reason to want to get away from the others. I don't want to leave Domino again either, and even if I did, I couldn't take Serenity away from her brother. She's too young anyway, especially after the time reset."

David quirked an eyebrow. "And just what does that mean?"

"I don't really understand it, but I know we were older before the time reset," Duke said. "I just remember bits and pieces, but I think Serenity was around 15. She was planning to get her driver's license."

". . . Wow." David shook his head. "That's . . . out there."

"Boy, do I know it," Duke grunted. "But I don't regret what we did."

David gave a wan smile. "I'm glad."

"In any case, though, it doesn't help me figure out what to do about Tristan," Duke said.

David sighed. "It really does seem like a hopeless situation, doesn't it?"

"And then some," Duke said. "Honestly, the most ideal solution would be if Tristan and I could just fix things and have it stick. But since that's not possible, the only other thing seems like trying to go on the way we are, being with our mutual friends but trying not to associate too much with each other."

"And Tristan demonstrated just how well that works tonight," David said.

". . . He may have also had a point, too," Duke said. "He was yelling about how I keep leaving Serenity behind. I still feel guilty for doing that when I couldn't deal with . . . what happened to you. . . ."

"You had to get away, Duke," David said. "Remember, I was watching over you all that time. I saw the struggle you were going through. You needed to heal, and being in Domino City wasn't enabling you to do that."

"I tell myself that," Duke said, "but sometimes I just feel weak for not staying." He placed his hands behind him on a shelf.

"Honestly, Tristan getting on your case for that shows that if he meant what he said, he doesn't have much understanding of mental illnesses," David said. "Which is the case for a lot of people, unfortunately."

"Maybe he didn't mean it," Duke conceded. "I don't know."

"I hope he didn't," David said. "That was low."

"And what about the ghost in Melody's basement?" Duke continued. "Apparently it's got something against me for some reason."

"I definitely don't think you should go back there," David frowned. "It really might succeed in killing you another time."

"I'd be more than happy to stay away, thanks," Duke said. "It's just that I wonder how they're going to get rid of it, and why it's so bent on hating me. Did we meet when it was alive?" He frowned and looked away. "If I'm responsible in any way for creating its vengeance-driven nature, I guess I feel like I need to somehow help with getting it out of her house."

"Maybe," David said, "or maybe if you're the reason it's so crazy, it's all the more reason to stay away. The others might find it easier to get rid of it without you being there."

"Yeah, that's possible too." Duke sighed. "Well, I think I've had more than enough excitement for tonight. I just want to go home."

"Do you feel like being alone after all this?" David asked in concern. "After the way the ghost and Tristan treated you, you're thinking a lot about the past."

"There was a time when I would have insisted I was fine and brushed off any concerns," Duke said. "I don't feel like doing that tonight. Yeah, David, I'd appreciate you being there."

David gave a sad but genuine smile. "Then I'll come," he promised. "We'll take Serenity home and then go back to your place." He was also sure Duke wouldn't want to be at David's house that night. David still lived in his family's old house, next-door to where Duke had grown up. The last thing Duke needed tonight was to be reminded of his old house and what had happened there.

Duke smiled. "Thanks."

xxxx

Mokuba leaned back and beamed as he looked at the lighted garlands he and Seto had draped on the banister. Seto was usually not much of a celebratory person, but he knew it meant a great deal to Mokuba, and to Mokuba's joy, Seto seemed to be getting more into the spirit of things this year. Mokuba hadn't seen much of that side of his brother at all since Gozaburo had taken them in.

"Well, little brother? What do you think?" Seto asked.

"Perfect," Mokuba grinned. He reached and adjusted a pinecone and then a velvet ribbon. "This is gonna be an amazing Christmas!"

Seto allowed a smile. That was certainly what he hoped for with Mokuba every year, and this year it was even more important to him. Their misadventure in the other dimension had painfully brought home again how he could lose Mokuba in any number of ways. He wanted to cherish every moment and to make more of an effort to do Christmas. This year, as Mokuba had picked up on, Seto actually saw some of the magic again. They were together and it was an incredible thing that could never be taken for granted.

When his phone rang, he scowled and looked down at it. So did Mokuba.

"That's not business, is it?!" he sadly exclaimed.

"I doubt it," Seto said. "It's Téa." Although that could mean trouble as well. He pressed the green button and brought the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

A brief silence. "You actually said Hello?!" Téa said in amazement. It was not Seto's usual greeting.

"For you, yes," Seto said. "What's going on?"

Téa sighed. "Well, I wish I could say it was good news, but . . ."

Seto put the phone on Speaker and he and Mokuba listened as Téa expounded on what had been happening that evening, with interjections from Crump, Joey, and others.

". . . So we're all going out to look for Tristan," Téa finished. "And we're wondering what to do about poor Melody's ghost problems. . . ."

Seto grunted. "Just let Tristan cool off without bombarding him," he said. "As for the ghost, I'm the wrong person to ask about that. It's obviously dangerous. Maybe you'd better just try an exorcism."

"That hasn't worked very well in the past," Lector sighed in the background.

"There's always a first time," Seto said.

"You're probably right," Téa said. "We should try it."

"Melody agrees!" Melody declared.

"But I do think we should consult her parents before going to those lengths," Lector said.

"You do that," Seto said.

"As for Tristan . . . maybe you're right, but it's still snowing," Téa said slowly.

Mokuba looked out the window. "It's not bad," he said. "I don't think that's a problem. But I guess if Tristan doesn't get to his house soon, we should look for him. . . ."

". . . I think we're going to start looking now anyway," Téa decided. "We've never seen him that upset. It worries me, and I know Yugi and Joey are worried too."

Seto grunted. "Do what you want." He sighed and glanced over at his brother. "Mokuba and I will probably join you soon." He didn't like to end their evening, but Téa's feelings were important to him too, and he knew Mokuba would also be concerned.

"Thanks," Téa said, and he could hear her smile over the phone.

Well, that made him feel a little better about it.

xxxx

Tristan wasn't sure how far he'd walked—or perhaps stomped—through the snow. He was hoping to cool down, but so far that hadn't happened yet. He hated what he had blurted to mortify Yugi and Téa, but he didn't regret what he had said to Duke. It had needed to be said, as far as he was concerned, and he had said it. He was sick of pretending to be on good terms with Duke when he wasn't. The revelations from the other dimension truly had been the last straw for him. Even though it was another dimension and not this one, it was still too upsetting.

"That jerk," he muttered under his breath. "What a creep. Always with an excuse for every garbage thing he does . . . ! And everyone else siding with him . . . !" He didn't really mean at least the last part, but it felt good to vent about it anyway.

Serenity would definitely be disappointed about the backsliding. She kept hoping so much for an end to the problems, but Tristan could never seem to deliver for long. He hated thinking of her face when she was told of the escalating problems after she had left.

"I don't want to make Serenity sad," Tristan said in frustration to the night air—or maybe to the falling snow. "Why is it that it always happens? Why can't I just accept what is and what can never be?! We'd all be happier. Me too."

He frowned. Maybe he didn't want to accept it because it would feel like the final straw and giving Serenity up for good, and even now, there was a desperate part of him that hoped things might change in the future for his benefit. But that kind of hope was just making a bad situation even worse. That was obvious from how he had crumbled after discovering the other dimension's future. And yet, even recognizing that, he couldn't just cast his hopes and his feelings aside. They still burned strong.

The sound of a harmonica finally interrupted his furious monologue. As he fully focused on where he was, he discovered he had walked all the way to the bikers' house. Alister was sitting on the porch, playing his harmonica to a rapt audience—a familiar blue-haired young man.

Tristan stopped walking and just listened and stared. If it hadn't been for this person, they never would have found out about the other dimension or about the alternate Serenity and Duke being married. He couldn't help but blame him for that. But on the other hand, had they not learned of the other dimension, they couldn't have helped the other Yugi and Mokuba and Bakuras get home. Was that worth the price of Tristan's heart?

He clenched a fist and looked away. Of course it was; he couldn't really be that selfish, could he? The very thought was repulsive.

The song ended and Alister looked up, quirking an eyebrow. Finally realizing someone else was there, the other person turned. "Oh . . . hello," he greeted.

". . . I thought you'd taken off for parts unknown," Tristan said gruffly.

"I did," he admitted. "But . . . I decided to come back, just for a short time. It's . . . nice, to see Domino City this way."

"Kalin likes the harmonica," Alister said. "We saw him at the Christmas party."

"Oh yeah, that's right, you would have met there," Tristan realized.

Raphael stood from where he had been sitting in shadow on the porch. "What are you doing out walking alone?" he asked. "That's not something you normally do."

Tristan scowled but then sighed. "Yeah, I know," he said. "It's . . . kind of a long story."

"Probably one involving Duke Devlin," Alister grunted.

"You know about that?" Tristan found himself feeling a little embarrassed. The bikers didn't usually hang out with the group, but still they knew?

"It's kinda hard not to, Mate," Valon said as he came out of the shadows of the covered porch as well. "It's not like you've really tried to make a secret out of it!"

Tristan looked away and scowled. "I just . . . I don't know how to feel good about what happened," he said. "I know Serenity made her choice, and I've tried to respect it, but it just gets harder and harder as time goes on."

"You had your heart set on something and it was taken away," Valon said. "Who wouldn't get upset about it?"

Tristan opened his mouth to reply when he really stopped to let the words sink in. Valon had also struggled with lost love, yet Tristan never remembered seeing him act out about it. When Tristan was such an emotional person, that seemed strange and hard to comprehend.

". . . How do you handle it so well?" Tristan finally asked.

Valon gave a wistful but sincere smile. "I never really had Mai, you know? Her heart was always with Wheeler. And when I dueled him, I understood why."

Tristan let out his breath. "So you had to come to respect Joey to let go?"

"That helped a lot," Valon said.

Tristan looked away with a frown, his hands shoved in his pockets. "Does that mean I don't really respect Duke?" he said, half-under his breath.

"Only you can answer that," Alister told him.

Tristan sighed. "But if I don't . . . how do I get myself to do it?"

"That's your problem too," Alister flatly replied. "We can't answer it for you."

"But you could start by trying to figure out what it is about him that you don't respect," Raphael suggested, leaning forward on the railing with his hands clasped in front of him. "Once you know that, you might be able to start figuring out if there's anything you can do to improve your feelings."

Tristan scowled. "That's not going to help. If I don't respect Duke, it's that I don't respect how he got in the way when he knew I was interested in Serenity. And I don't respect how he flirted with all the girls. But he's stopped that."

"And he's apologized for anything he did that got in your way or hurt you," Alister said.

"But it doesn't help," Tristan countered. "Apologizing won't bring Serenity back to me. He doesn't want to give her up, and she doesn't want to leave him."

Kalin gave a weak smirk. He had mostly stayed quiet to let the people of this dimension handle the problem, but now he spoke with, "How strange that Yusei is willing to forgive me for accepting an evil force and trying to destroy him and our home, but you can't seem to get past losing a girl to another suitor. Although in your position, I would probably be more like you. I never handled loss well. That was my whole problem, actually."

Tristan whipped around to face him. "Are you saying I'm in danger of flipping out like you did?!"

"I hope not," Kalin said. "I'm just making an observation."

"You already flipped out by gettin' mind-controlled and beatin' Duke up," Valon remarked. "So I don't think you'd let anything of the kind happen again."

Tristan stiffened at the horrible memories. "I'd better not," he said darkly.

"You're self-aware enough to know it's a possible danger," Kalin said. "That's good. That's far better than I was."

"Where's everyone else?" Raphael asked. "Do they know you're wandering around?"

"Yeah, but they don't know where." Suddenly a rush of guilt washed over Tristan at a new realization. "They're probably all looking for me."

"Then maybe if you've cooled off, you should let them know," Raphael said.

"I don't know." Tristan scowled. "I don't feel as bad as I did, but . . . I kind of hope Duke isn't out looking for me. I don't feel like running into him right now. He's probably still shaken up from what I said to him, though." He sighed and shook his head. "I don't know. . . . I'm all messed-up inside."

Kalin looked weary. "This was probably kicked off because of what you learned from my dimension, isn't it?"

". . . Probably," Tristan said gruffly. "But if it wasn't for learning about that other dimension, we couldn't have saved the other Yugi and the rest. . . ."

"I'm sorry anyway," Kalin sighed. "I knew I shouldn't keep exploring when I realized this wasn't my Domino City. But yes, when those people were rescued, I can't fully feel that my coming here was wrong, for once."

Tristan hesitated. "Do you know how the me in your world deals with Duke and Serenity being married?"

"I'm not really sure because you're never that much in the public eye," Kalin admitted. "But Duke is, and I've never seen a news story where you're around him. Make of that what you will."

"It doesn't sound encouraging," Tristan frowned.

"Well, so if you don't want to keep resenting Duke for decades into the future, you'd better try to find a way to be at peace with this," Alister said.

"That's the whole problem, though!" Tristan countered. "How?! I thought I was managing to deal with it, but I'm not." He kicked some snow in front of him. "And every time I break, it gets worse and worse!"

Raphael sighed. "Sometimes the only thing that can heal is time," he said. "Or finding something else to put your mind to."

"Maybe you need to get away for a while, Mate," Valon suggested.

Tristan stared at him. "You mean, move?!"

"Travel!" Valon said. "Go somewhere else, like Duke did when he split for L.A. It might help you clear your thoughts a bit. Maybe you'd even meet somebody new."

Tristan frowned. "Duke had been on his own for a long time anyway. It's not like I can just pack up and go somewhere alone. My parents only let me go places because I'm with my friends."

"Maybe there's a relative somewhere else you could stay with?" Raphael suggested.

Tristan sighed. "An aunt, I guess. . . . But then I'd have to tell my family all about the Serenity mess. . . . They don't really know."

"They know you're upset, don't they?" Alister countered. "If they don't know why, they're probably even more worried about you."

"I don't really like talking about it," Tristan scowled. "It's nice having somewhere to go where no one really knows."

"That only proves my point that getting away could be exactly what you need," Valon said. "It'd be a fresh start!"

Tristan sighed and turned to look out at the falling snow. "Maybe," he said noncommittally. "But . . . this is still home to me. I don't really want to go somewhere else to live, especially at Christmastime."

"I don't blame you," Raphael said. "You've got a good family. Your place is with them, at least for now."

From the way Kalin's eyes flickered, he wished he still felt the same about staying in his Domino City, with his friends. But he still felt he needed to travel as part of his redemption.

"You have a gift," he agreed. "Quite a few, actually. But do you really recognize all of them, or are you too caught up in thinking about the one thing you don't have?"

". . . I could turn that question back on you," Tristan said. "It seems like you don't really recognize your gifts either."

Kalin stepped back. "I recognize them," he insisted. "I just don't feel worthy of them."

"Well, either way, neither of us is really making use of what we've got, are we?" Tristan said.

Kalin considered that. "No," he admitted. "I suppose we aren't."

Tristan started to turn away. "I think I'm going to go now. Thanks for listening to me rant."

"Where will you go?" Alister asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Just around some more," Tristan said with a shrug. "But I will let the others know I'm okay."

"Good," Raphael grunted.

"Actually, I should make sure they're okay too," Tristan realized. "They were dealing with some new ghost. I have no idea how that went!" He pulled out his phone and started to type.

"Well, at least something got him to check in with them," Alister grunted to the others.

In a moment Tristan stiffened. "What the . . . ?! The ghost says he's the creep who fell off Duke's building during that whole drug-smuggling mess?!" He gripped his phone, his knuckles going white. "So Duke's at the heart of that problem too?!"

Valon facepalmed. "Seriously?!" He looked to the others. "Does this mean Tristan's gonna get set back even more?!"

"I don't know," Raphael said wearily. "I'd like to say No, but right now it's anybody's guess."

"I don't know either," Tristan scowled. "I'll see you guys later." He started off through the snow.

The bikers and Kalin all watched him leave.

"What a mess," Alister grunted.

Kalin sighed. "He needs to be alone for now," he said. "But I wonder if he'll really let the others know he's alright."

Raphael took out his phone. "Maybe we'd better do that for him, just in case."