AUTHOR'S NOTE: -Quietly sneaks in- Uh... hi? Hey! I'm back! :D

So, after completing my J2BB challenge entry (which you can find on my AO3), I had intended to take a break, but only for a week or two. After the tight schedule of meeting deadlines and posting for a large challenge, I just needed some time to wind down. I had not intended for that break to be an entire year! But after I had let myself relax after a challenge, I wound up with writer's block! DX No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't come up with anything good for any new stories or for my existing ones.

But here I am! With a brand new story! And for a fandom I haven't posted in before, haha. ^^; I'd been into Yu-Gi-Oh as a kid (seriously, one of our dogs who we lost in this past year was named Kaiba after Seto) but had forgotten about it as I grew. Around the time I was polishing my challenge entry for publication, a (now ex-)friend mentioned her card collection and I remembered liking this anime as a kid. So I started rewatching it, and oh boy, it's way different as a twenty-seven year old compared to a ten-year old! I quickly remembered I'd had a crush on Atem as a kid, haha! (Still do... hehe.)

So, expect more in this fandom 'cause I definitely have at least one other idea. ;)

For this story, it's going to remain as a one-shot for the time being. I purposely left it open-ended so I could add to it if there was interest and if I could come up with more but also gave it a feeling of finality to end it as a one-shot. I'm not completely sure how I feel about it but it's the first thing I've managed to write in over a year, so with that standard, I'm mostly pleased with this, heh.

Yugi couldn't believe he was here.

Actually, he could; he just didn't want to be there. But Téa and Joey could be very persistent when they wanted something. Especially Joey. Though Téa had her moments when it meant getting the four of them together.

It wasn't that he didn't want to spend time with his friends. Nor was it that they'd almost literally dragged him from his apartment. It was that they had all – minus himself – agreed to spend the afternoon together in Domino Square. Yugi didn't have anything against the Square in particular; he just wasn't fond of shopping unless it had anything to do with gaming, and shopping was the only thing one could do in the Square. And despite the presence of restaurants, clothing stores, salons, and specialty stores, there were no game stores present. He did like the theater, but that wasn't something the four of them did together because it forced them to be quiet, so they couldn't actually catch up with one another.

But his friends all agreed they wanted to hang out in the Square, and he wasn't going to deny them if this is what they wanted. Besides, it had been a few weeks since they'd had time together, and they had fun no matter what they were doing.

"Earth to Yugi!"

Yugi shook his thoughts away to find Joey in his face, frowning in worry. "Sorry, did you say something?" he asked, flashing an apologetic smile.

"I asked you what you wanted to do first," Joey said, almost sounding annoyed he'd been ignored now that the worry over Yugi zoning out had been mollified.

"Oh, um…" Yugi looked around, but nothing in the Square seemed particularly interesting. "One of you can pick," he said instead.

"Lunch!" Joey declared with a grin.

"It's only eleven," Téa countered dryly.

"My stomach knows no time of day!" the blond countered in the same manner a Spartan may have declared battle.

Téa only sighed.

"Why don't we find one thing to do first," Yugi suggested, trying to find a middle ground. "Then we can go get food."

Joey grumbled his agreement.

"So what are we going to do?" Tristan asked. "We can't find one activity we all agree on."

"Well, the Square has plenty of choices. We can all pick something for the four of us to do together. That way, we all get to do something we enjoy," Yugi suggested.

"You always find the right solutions, Yug'," Joey complimented, seemingly pleased with that plan.

Yugi smiled with quiet pride.

"But it isn't fair if lunch is Joey's activity," Téa added. "We all have to eat sometime. So he still gets to pick something."

The others agreed, and they made their way through the light late morning crowd to stand near the center of the Square. After a few rounds of Heads or Tails played with a coin Tristan found in his pocket, they determined Téa got to choose first.

She led them to one of the few clothing stores dotting the perimeter of the Square. They managed to kill about twenty minutes in the clothing store. As much as he hadn't wanted to go, Yugi had been pleasantly surprised to find a new dress shirt, pants, and vest he liked and could wear to work.

"Now what?" asked Téa as they stepped back into the late morning sunshine.

"Mine next!" Joey declared with an excited grin.

"Lunch doesn't count, you nimrod," Tristan teased, ruffling the blond's hair.

"Not lunch," Joey growled, shoving his friend's hand away. "I came in second in the coin toss, so that means we do my activity next."

"But I thought you wanted to eat, Joey," Yugi said, confused.

"Yeah, but my activity will only take a few minutes," Joey explained.

The other three shared confused looks between them, then aimed them at Joey.

"What is your activity?" Téa asked.

Joey grinned broadly at them, clearly pleased with his choice.

"The statue!"

His announcement was met with more confusion.

The statue had appeared so long ago that no one knew precisely when it became part of the Square; it had just always been there. Made of sandstone, it depicted the form of a young man in his early twenties. He seemed to be reacting to something in fear. His eyes were wide, mouth hung open in what could either be a gasp or scream, one hand thrown up as if to ward off incoming danger or reach for someone or something. And he was in a running pose, only one foot on the pedestal that held him, the other bent behind him.

The young man was dressed in Ancient Egyptian clothing: a shendyt, shoes, and cape. Jewelry wrapped his calves, waist, wrists, and biceps, and a crown rest on his head. The plaque near the statue labeled it as "The Nameless Pharaoh," explaining the crown and bands of what was likely gold. But what couldn't be explained was how the statue never seemed to show its age. It baffled sculptors and scientists that no matter how long The Nameless Pharaoh endured rain, wind, or snow, it never weathered, chipped, or cracked. Not even the palm of its outstretched hand, which was touched dozens of times a day due to the legend surrounding the statue.

Under its name, the plaque also listed the legend of The Nameless Pharaoh. It stated that when the Pharaoh's true love touched his hand, he would be freed from his stone state and become human once more. Naturally, it became one of Domino's tourist locations, anyone staying in town or passing through taking the chance to take a picture touching the Pharaoh's hand. Naturally, anyone that's lived in Domino for their entire lives has seen The Nameless Pharaoh countless times and has likely already tried touching his hand.

Which was why Téa, Tristan, and Yugi all wore similar expressions of confusion. While none of them had attempted to touch the statue, it was because they'd grown up hearing the legend and just didn't believe. They just didn't get excited over it like a tourist would.

"The Pharaoh?" Tristan confirmed; Joey only grinned wider. "Dude, that's been here our entire lives. Why do you want to see it now?"

"None of us have ever touched it, have we?" Joey asked indignantly, grinning smugly when none of them could refute his words. "Well, we should! Come on, it'll only take a few minutes, and then we never have to see it again."

"Why is this so important to you, Joey?" Yugi asked gently.

Joey shrugged. "I dunno. I just feel like it's something interesting to do that we've never done before, y'know? I mean, we do the same few things whenever we get together."

"He's actually got a point," Tristan said, clapping his friend on the shoulder. "Leave it to Joey to think outside the box!"

Téa and Yugi shared thoughtful expressions, then Yugi shrugged, turning back to the other two.

"Alright, Joey," he said with a grin. "Let's go see the statue, then we'll go to lunch."

"Yeah!" Joey cheered, throwing a fist in the air in excitement. "Come on then!"

It didn't take them long to reach the center of the Square and the statue. They stayed back for a moment as a couple of women took their picture with the statue, one after the other and each touching his hand. They each pouted when nothing happened, then giggled to themselves as they walked away.

"Why do people get disappointed when it stays a statue?" Yugi sighed. "It's not like it's really going to come to life at a touch."

"Not just any touch," Joey corrected. "Has to be his soulmate."

"You don't believe in soulmates, Yugi?" Téa asked.

Yugi shook his head with an apologetic smile. "It's not that. I just don't believe there's any truth to the legend. There's no such thing as magic or curses or whatever could have turned the Pharaoh to stone if he actually were a real person. But he's not; it's just a statue that some unknown sculptor created and left here."

"Then how do you explain the fact that the statue never wears down?" Tristan countered.

Yugi shrugged. "I don't know. I'm not an artist. But I'm sure there's some kind of logical reason for that, too. Besides, given that he's called The Nameless Pharaoh, he would have to have been cursed – if that were a real thing – millennia ago. This statue is definitely not that old."

"Well, I don't care if you don't believe or not," Joey declared, marching up to the statue. "I'm giving the dude a high five, so someone take my picture!"

"Why?" Téa asked, even as Tristan pulled his phone from his coat pocket and accessed the camera.

Joey shrugged, pressing his palm to the Pharaoh's and grinning at Tristan. "Because," he said when the other man showed him the picture. "I think it'd be a cool way to remember the afternoon."

Tristan shrugged as he tossed his phone at Joey. "Works for me!" he agreed as he switched places with Joey and grinned broadly at the camera as he touched his palm to the statue.

Téa gave Yugi a shrug. "What could it hurt?" she said, taking her place by the statue as Tristan readied the shot. When he was ready, she put her palm to the Pharaoh's and smiled softly at the camera.

"Alright!" Joey cheered, proud that his friends were participating. Well, except one. He hooked his arm across Yugi's shoulders. "Come on, Yug', just take a picture, too, and then we can go, promise. Come on, you and the Pharaoh have almost exactly the same hairstyle; you gotta have a picture of that!"

Yugi sighed and shook his head in defeat. What harm could it really do? And being here, doing this with his friends, was making Joey happy. Yugi had no reason or desire to spoil that. So, gently shrugging Joey's arm away, he crossed to stand beside the statue and aimed a small – if slightly strained – smile at Tristan and his camera.

"Ready?" he asked, lifting his hand.

"Go for it, Yugi!" Tristan confirmed with a broad, encouraging grin.

Yugi touched his palm to the statue's, and Tristan snapped the picture.

Just as Yugi pulled his hand away, the ground seemed to shudder, making the statue wobble on its pedestal. Yugi took a startled step back but couldn't take his wide, confused eyes of the stone in front of him. As he watched, the stone cracked, something it hadn't done in the years the statue had been there. It didn't just break across the hand Yugi had just been touching; cracks were forming everywhere across the surface. Some even intersected enough that pieces were falling off onto the cement below.

"What's going on?!" Joey shrieked in alarm, jumping to hide behind Tristan though he was unable to take his eyes off what was happening.

At this point, anyone nearby had taken notice of what was happening to the statue. A decent-sized group formed around the four friends and the statue, several people whispering to each other. Yugi heard the word "soulmate" several times and a pit formed in his stomach. He hadn't believed the legend, but how could he explain what was happening if it weren't real?

As they watched, more pieces of the stone fell away. The gaps formed by the missing chunks of rock seemed to be revealing a body, the exact body the stone had been sculpted into. First revealed was the sandal-clad feet, then calves wrapped in gold bands, the white shendyt that hung around the thighs, the gold belt at the waist. As the stone broke away from the chest, it also began falling from the arms, revealing bronzed skin and more gold jewelry. Then it fell from the face and the rest of the head, revealing the gold, winged crown and spiked black hair with purple-red tipped ends and angled golden bangs.

Just as he was fully revealed, the Pharaoh, still standing on only one foot, lost his balance and toppled forward off his pedestal.

Right into Yugi.

The solid warmth of the new body collided with Yugi, still frozen in shock. As they fell backward, Yugi managed to think long enough to secure his arms around the man falling into him, and the two landed in a tangle of limbs on the ground. Yugi managed to keep his head from cracking against the cement under him. They both groaned at the impact and laid there, Yugi catching his breath as it had been forced from his lungs when he landed hard on the ground, and the Pharaoh seemingly dazed.

"Are you okay, Yug'?!" Joey cried, rushing over to his friend. The other two followed as well, but none of them attempted to pull the Pharaoh off of him, too unsure about touching him. Under their concern for their friend, they were all a bit still in shock at the statue suddenly being alive.

"Yeah, I think so," Yugi answered.

The Pharaoh sat up, eyes cast down at the body underneath him, palms splaying across the chest he'd landed on. Then he slowly lifts his gaze to the face attached to the body, his own expression just as shocked as the others.

"You… you freed me," he said, voice a rich baritone that made Yugi's stomach flip.

"Uh, yeah, I… I guess I did," Yugi replied, sitting up as much as he could while the other man still sat on him and feeling his cheeks getting warm. As unknown as the Pharaoh was, Yugi couldn't deny that he was attractive.

The action seemed to remind the Pharaoh he was still sitting on him, and he scrambled to his feet. "Pardon me!" he apologized quickly, offering a hand to help Yugi to his feet. "I seem to have lost my balance," he joked weakly.

"Yeah," Yugi said, smiling gratefully then dusting off the back of his jeans. "Uh, I'm Yugi, by the way."

"Atem," the Pharaoh replied, then looked around at the still gawking crowd and the setting around him. "I… I am not in Ancient Egypt anymore, am I?"

"Ah… no," Yugi said, rubbing at the back of his neck nervously. "You're in Japan."

"Japan," Atem said quietly. "I have never heard of that place."

"Yeah, you're about five thousand years past where you came from," Tristan said, earning an elbow to the ribs from Téa.

"Five… thousand… years?" Atem said breathlessly, going pale and dropping to his knees. "Five millennia… But… why?!" he demanded, surging forward to slam his fists against the cement. "Why would she-? Why couldn't-?"

"Atem," Yugi said quietly, dropping to kneel in front of the Pharaoh. "What happened to you?"

Atem trembled with anger, teeth clenched as he glared at the ground below him. He remained quiet for several minutes, Yugi sure he wasn't going to answer or didn't hear the question. Then, in a voice much calmer than Yugi expected after that outburst, Atem spoke.

"I was twenty-two and had been Pharaoh of Egypt since I was sixteen. I should have been married and produced heirs by then, but none of the women presented to me… fit. I refused to marry for the sake of having a wife and children; I would only marry if I loved her. But… I couldn't love any of them," he said.

"Why not?" Joey asked.

Atem huffed a humorless laugh and shook his head. "Because I'm not attracted to women."

"You're gay? Were there gay people back then?" the blond asked.

"Joey," Téa hissed.

"Yes, I'm… gay as you call it," Atem confirmed, stumbling slightly over the new word. "This would never produce an heir, but my cousin was next in line after me and in love with a beautiful woman. If I failed to produce an heir, he or his child would succeed me."

"So, what happened?" Yugi asked.

"Then I met her," Atem spat, glaring at the ground. "Another woman I didn't love. Though I was kind to all of them and politely rejected them, rejection to this woman was apparently the greatest insult I could have given. And apparently, she knew some powerful magic. She cast a curse, stating that I was to remain in stone until my true love could free me. I imagine she thought she could prove it was her by touching me and breaking the curse, but I'll never know what happened after the curse was complete. I was stone, but… it was as if I were… sleeping?" he said, unsure how to explain. "One moment, I was attempting to run away from her, the next, I'm falling into Yugi. There is nothing in between."

"Man," Tristan breathed. "At least you didn't have to be conscious that entire time. I can't imagine being awake in there for five thousand years, unable to move or speak but seeing and hearing and feeling everything."

Atem shuddered, breath hitching. "Y-Yes, I… I am grateful for that at least." Then he shook himself out and forced a small smile in Yugi's direction. "I suppose you are my soulmate then if your touch broke the curse."

"Yeah, I…" Yugi shook his head and smiled apologetically. "Listen, Atem, I don't know if I believe in soulmates, but I think you're attractive and would be interested in getting to know you first. Then we can see where things go, okay?"

To Yugi's surprise and relief, Atem didn't react negatively. He smiled genuinely and nodded. "That is a very fair and diplomatic answer, Yugi. I would very much like to get to know you as well."

"Great," Yugi said with a grin.