Chao- Yeah, perhaps in a sense this whole story could be a darker idea of "The Future, Fears, and Secrets", but it's not.

"Talking."

"Thinking."

Chapter 7: Reuniting

Yami bravely entered the dark dome. A prickly, eerie chill entered his body. After coming through, he quickly saw a gray sky and emerald grass. Up ahead an icy looking lake stood. He glanced around but did not see anyone. He expected some sort of dangerous game between Yugi and dark magic. However, the entire area appeared peaceful, minus the bitter atmosphere.

"What type of Shadow Game is this?" he wondered as he strolled through. Whenever he participated in a deadly game, someone was always on the line, and the challenge turned unimaginable. Within his view, he spotted a dull, silver door ahead of him. He briskly ran over to see if Yugi was anywhere near. He looked up at the vast gateway and observed three stars on top.

"What does that mean?" he questioned the decoration.

The door opened. Before he could step in, a young boy with tri-color hair fell through the opening and collapsed on the ground while the door sealed itself shut.

"Yugi!" Yami called out with concern and joy as he finally reached his partner. He lifted the boy up with a sturdy hold.

"Yugi," Yami said gently as he tried to wake his partner.

The teen opened his eyes and saw a blurry version of the pharaoh.

"Ya… mi…" he whispered tiredly.

"It's ok," the older boy tried to comfort. "I'm here."

Time stood still as all he wanted to do was to only show his support towards the small child. After seeing those horrific memories from Yugi's past, he grew restless. He longed to go back in time and defend his friend before any harm could take place. Despite the heroic intention, he knew nothing more could be done.

Before the conversation could continue, Yugi felt a sharp burn from his left arm. He reached for his arm in pain.

"Yugi!" Yami cried.

The teen pulled down his sleeve and saw the third gash on his arm began to bleed.

"Yugi! What happened!?" the spirit asked, alarmed his light was injured.

"I… don't know," the teen answered honestly.

For a moment, Yami's eyes were drawn to the clothes Yugi wore.

"Why is he in his pajamas?" Yami then noticed he was wearing his charcoal muscle shirt with his usual sapphire pants, an outfit he commonly wore when he was not in control. He then observed neither him nor his partner were wearing the Puzzle.

Just as the spirit was about to say something, Yugi hissed once more in pain. Yami carefully examined the four cuts in a perfect line on Yugi's left arm. The second gash from the top had crimson liquid dripping down the boy's arm.

"Four marks and one is bleeding?" Yami pondered out loud.

"Five," the smaller boy mumbled as he stood up on his own.

"What?" Yami asked as he looked over towards his partner.

"There were… originally five…" Yugi repeated, looking away with shame.

"Then why are there four now?"

"I'm… not sure… Earlier I was playing a game of Concentration. Time almost ran out, but I guess I won. Then, the first mark on my arm disappeared."

"And so now there are four left?"

"…yeah…"

"What happened before I found you?"

"I was playing another game…"

"And?"

The small boy turned quiet.

Yami waited patiently to receive an answer, still unsure what type of Shadow Game Yugi was playing. The hardest part of all when it came to Shadow Games was the loser ends up forfeiting himself, even his soul.

"Yugi, what happened?" he repeated worried.

Yugi continued to stare at the ground. He felt embarrassed, ashamed, and stupid. He clinched his hands into tight fists. Negative emotions from long ago stirred his heart.

"Yugi?" the spirit said as he grabbed his lighter half by his shoulders, feeling discomfort emitting from the boy.

"Don't touch me!" Yugi spat as he slapped away Yami's hands.

The pharaoh's eyes widened as he gasped. He became shocked his light treated him in such a manner.

"Yugi—"

"I lost!" Yugi cried out in anger.

"What? What do you mean?"

"I lost! I was in the middle of a game when time ran out!"

"Why? What happened?"

"I got distracted!"

Tears plummeted down the boy's face. He at once dashed towards the bitter lake. He fell to his knees and cried in angst, remembering what led to his defeat.

He only wanted to forget about those terrible memories and move forward. He believed he was doing well until recently. Despite the brave attempt to always be cheerful and enjoy what he has now, there were times when his memories would pour back in. Fear entered his mind as well.

He prayed deep within his heart he never had to experience the harsh physical beatings nor hear the sharp, cruel words rebuked to him among his peers ever again.

Yami knelt down on the soft, shamrock-colored grass as well. He was about to place his hand on the boy for comfort when he paused. He was unsure if his partner would lash back. Despite the attack, he only wanted to be there for his partner.

"You were always so welcoming to everyone in your life, and you received nothing but pain." Yami grabbed Yugi and pulled him closer to himself. "But isn't this what you wanted? Someone to comfort you when you cry? Someone to call a friend?"

He allowed Yugi to express his emotions and tears. He did not care his shirt turned wet.

As for Yugi, he was engulfed by depression of memories from long ago that felt fresh. But in the back of his mind, he was glad to have someone care for him in his time of need. He tighten his grip on his darker half; afraid to let go.

"It's all right," Yami said soothingly, understanding his light's angst. "I'm here. Go ahead and cry."

Yugi did just that.

Xxx

Tea paused from running. She looked up at the clear sky with anxiety. She did not understand but felt something was wrong with her childhood friend.

"Yugi," she whispered sadly to herself.

Joey and Tristan were not too far ahead of their female companion. When the last bell for school had rang, the three left the place as soon as possible. To each one of them, they sensed their small pal in pain. The sensation they underwent was similar to that of the Shadow Realm over from Duelist Kingdom.

"Hey, Tea," Joey called out to the girl.

Tea stopped for a moment and looked towards her two friends.

"You go on ahead," the blonde permitted. "Tristan and I will go get ice!"

Tea nodded and continued on in a steady pace. Arriving at the building, she spotted a sign hanging on the door that read closed. She stepped through the front of the Turtle Game shop with ease.

"Mr. Muto?" Tea called, seeing an elderly man dusting a few shelves. She stood up with her hands in front of her chest, trying to catch her breath. She figured the old man was unable to open the shop with his grandson ill.

"Oh, good afternoon, Tea," Solomon greeted with a sad smile.

"How is… Yugi?" Tea asked right away.

"Not so well," the old man answered truthfully. "But now that you're here, maybe you can help cheer him up. He's upstairs in his room. You can go on in."

"Thanks," Tea replied as she walked over towards the stairs. Before climbing them, she informed, "Joey and Tristan will be here later. They said they went to go get ice."

She moved up the steps towards her childhood friend's room. She remembered she found the boy easily when the two were young. Usually she spotted him in his room with game pieces scattered around. Sometimes she would join in, and the two would have an exciting afternoon.

For a moment, everything went dark around the female adolescent. She saw Yugi's room, but the door appeared very far away. With each step, she felt she was not reaching the floating entranceway. She feared something was keeping her from seeing her friend. She only wanted to be by his side and comfort him and say her usual cheerful phrases that made his heart beat wild with joy for having school companions.

"Yugi!" Tea screamed as she moved faster in order to get to the top.

Reaching the door handle, she returned to reality. She turned the faded gold knob and stepped through.

On the mattress slept a small teen with tri-color hair. He had a white, mini towel over his eyes and was breathing heavily.

Tea walked in and took a seat on the boy's chair. She watched over him with a crestfallen look on her face. As much as she wanted to take action, she could only sit and wait to see when the boy would wake up. She could not tell right away, but a part of her did not agree Yugi was suffering from a normal illness. She deeply believed something else was wrong.

"Yugi…."

Xxx

Yugi remained quiet as his emotions simmered down.

Yami knew he had to tell his partner of the Shadow Game he was playing. Even though the two were enjoying their comforting time with each other, he understood he had to take action.

"Yugi," he said gently.

Although the small boy did not reply, he was listening. He felt his voice was too shaky to even say a simple response.

"Yugi," the spirit repeated. "This is all a—"

However, he was cut off. Just as he was about to announce the Shadow Game, he had lost his voice.

"Why can't I speak!?" he pondered alarmed.

The smaller boy pulled away from the older boy and dried his own eyes.

"What was it you were saying?" Yugi asked, feeling slightly better.

"Um… err…" was all Yami could stutter. "Wait, can I use my voice?"

Yugi looked up towards his darker half with his shiny, puppy dog eyes.

"Err… feeling well?" Yami managed to think of something to say.

Yugi smiled and answered, "Yes."

The two of them stood up and looked over the silver sky and area around them. There appeared nothing else left. Yami wondered if the next challenge would just show up or if they were to find it themselves.

"Yami…" the smaller boy called after a brief moment of silence.

The pharaoh looked down towards his lighter half, who stared at the ground with shame.

"What it is?" Yami asked quietly as he placed his hands on Yugi's shoulder.

"I'm sorry… for slapping you away like that," the boy said with guilt. "And for yelling at you. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry."

"It's all right," Yami whispered with a warm smile. "Sometimes our emotions drive us to commit acts that appear out of character."

The older boy looked towards the timber wolf colored lake. He recalled his light was acting different from before he had become ill.

"Should I speak with Yugi about what was causing him so much stress?" Yami debated. "Or should I wait since he is now participating in a Shadow Game? How can I assist him if I can't tell him about the Shadow Game?"

At that moment, a door with two stars appeared.

Yami walked closer and examined it.

"When I first came in, there was a door with three stars," he reminded himself. "Now this one has two? What could this mean?"

He needed to ask his partner if the boy had any idea about the meaning behind the doors. He turned around and saw Yugi looking away with a look of shame.

"Yugi?" Yami called as he walked back over towards the smaller boy.

Yugi stayed silent; he already knew what lied behind the gateway. A part of him feared entering only to fail once more.

"Yugi, do you know what's happening?" Yami asked in calmed tone.

The teen shut his eyes and nodded.

"What is it," the darker half inquired.

"There's… a game… waiting," the young adult mumbled.

"A… game?"

"Yes, just like before."

"Like before?"

Yugi pulled down his sleeve to reveal his marks.

Yami felt his heart skip a beat. He carefully examined the mysterious scars on his partner's arm.

"There used to be five cuts," the teen explained. "There was a door with one star. I entered in and played a game of Concentration. I won, and the first cut disappeared. I later saw two doors, one with two stars and the other with three. I entered the one with three stars and played another game."

He turned quiet.

"And you lost… and the next cut was bleeding?" Yami filled in.

The teen remained silent.

The spirit recognized the emotional distress on his partner's face. They were the same types of expressions the boy felt after his encounter with his bullies.

"Yugi, what happened before I arrived?" Yami finally asked in a sincere tone.

Yugi tried to remember what took place before he was reunited with his darker half. He sighed as he said, "I'm not sure how I arrived, but I noticed I was still in my pajamas and without the Puzzle. I looked around, and I couldn't find anyone. I also couldn't contact you. I felt a burn on my arm and noticed there were five cuts on my arm. There was a door with one star.

"I… wanted to take chance of finding you, so I entered in, and there was a game set up for a game of Concentration. I first thought nothing of the pictures on the cards, but then I started to see my friends' faces on the cards."

He turned quiet again.

"What happened next? Were there two pictures of them?" Yami asked, interested the Shadow Game involved images of his light's companions.

Yugi shook his head. "The first match I had was Tristan and the victory hand signed. I thought maybe Tea would match up with the smiley face since she is so cheerful, but she was paired up with a pair of ballet shoes. There was also a picture of you."

"Me?"

"Yeah… You were matched with the Millennium Puzzle."

"Well, I suppose that does make sense."

"Joey was there, too, and so was his Red Eyes Black Dragon."

"Was that all?"

Yugi shook his head once more. "The… smiley face I mentioned before… was matched with a picture of me."

Yami was unsure of what to say; he grew intrigued about the game Yugi mentioned. He wondered why he was paired with the Puzzle and not Yugi. Although he dwelled within the artifact, it was Yugi who solved it, received his wish, and called the upside down gold pyramid his second heart.

"Why would the Shadows play a game with Yugi's friends?" he questioned. "How much do the Shadows know? The Shadows can reveal characteristics about the player… Yugi always has a smile on his face and is willing to give his trust to anyone…"

Yami smiled. He pulled Yugi's chin up and declared proudly, "Sometimes games reveal ourselves to us."

The adolescent blinked his eyes in confusion.

"Sometimes, we can find out about ourselves in the strategies we use," Yami explained his view point. "Maybe you were paired with the smiley face as your smile does bring warmness to everyone, like me."

Yugi couldn't help but grin.

The happy emotion that emitted from the boy warmed the heart of the spirit. He glanced over towards the door, and his facial expression changed to something somber. He walked back over to the door.

"Yugi entered through the door with one star and won. He then entered through a door with three stars and lost." he observed. "Could the stars mean the level of the game?"

He looked over towards Yugi, who appeared afraid.

"Come on, Yugi," Yami tried to encourage. "Let's try and move forward. I'll be here by your side."

Yami opened the door.

Yugi looked over towards his confident partner. Whenever he was around the older boy, he felt he had more courage in his actions. He took in a big breath and stepped through into another room filled with darkness.

Yami was about to enter when something had blocked him.

"Yami!?" Yugi yelled, becoming alarmed.

"I… I can't step in!" Yami gasped.

The door closed completely.

"Yugi!" Yami bellowed.

On the other side Yugi was all alone.

"Yami!" he screamed. "Where are you!?"

He pulled tightly on the handle with his heart beating rapidly against his chest, but the gateway refused to move.

"No use," he sighed, placing his hands on his knees tiredly. He was trapped in the dark like before. He looked over and saw a large stone wall divided equally into squares. There appeared sixteen spaces but only fifteen squares.

"There's one that's empty," Yugi observed.

Just then, he felt his arm burn once more. He hissed in pain as he wrapped his right hand around the marks.

"Oh…no!" he hissed. "It's… another game!"

Xxx

Tea remembered from her childhood she would visit the small boy whenever he was sick. Yugi had also done the same for her. However, when the two were younger, it appeared Yugi would become ill often. Tea felt her own heart ache a little.

"Yugi… you haven't been this sick in a while," she recalled, placing her hands over her chest. "Will you be all right?"

Tea had always fantasized about moving to New York and starting her dream of studying dance. She worked hard for her grades, and she obtained a job to earn money for tuition and support, but a part of her was scared to leave. Not only did she fear the unknown, she also was afraid of leaving behind her friends, especially Yugi.

Even though the boy was no longer the timid child she once knew, she was unsure of what was spinning around her mind with her friend. She wondered how much time she not only had with Yugi but with Yami as well. Her thoughts were interrupted hearing footsteps from behind Yugi's door.

"Tea, we brought some ice," a student with blonde hair announced as he and another teen entered the room. He stepped over and poured some cubes into a bowl of water.

"How is he doing?" Tristan asked.

"Not so well," Tea repeated what she had been told.

She could see the old man was correct: Yugi's face was pale, and his deep breathing was rough.

Tea sat up and removed the white cloth from the sleeping boy's face. She dipped the threads in cool water and placed it back onto Yugi's forehead.

At that moment, the adolescent groaned in complete pain.

"Yugi!" everyone yelled out in unison.

The small boy started to toss and turn.

"Hold on Yug!" Joey encouraged as he grabbed a strong hold on the boy.

"He might be having a nightmare," Tristan guessed as he grabbed the sheets from tangling the boy.

As the group attempted to wake the young adult up, Yugi's left sleeve pulled down. All group members gasped seeing four gashes on soft skin with one of them dripping fresh blood.

Tea's eyes widened as she placed her hands over her mouth. She never suspected her friend to cut himself.

"Yugi, you never resorted to self-harm!" she brought to mind with fear and anxiety creeping through. "Not even when you were bullied often!"

Her thoughts were quickly bombarded with reasons as to why her companion would do such a horrific act. Yugi always went to school in a cheerful mood even though he was tortured physically and emotionally. She couldn't find any connections.

"I'll go get the First Aid kit!" Tristan announced as he quickly left the room.

Joey became distracted, unsure of what to think. He heard about adolescents who cut themselves to relive pain when under stress, but he never figured his own buddy would do such thing.

"Yug! What's going on, man?!" Joey had also assumed those who self-harm were weak, but his views slightly changed upon seeing Yugi.

Tristan rushed back to the room, and Tea took hold of the white box. She quickly took out an alcohol wipe.

"Hold him still," she ordered.

Joey grabbed on to Yugi while Tristan took the teen's left hand and pulled down the sleeve completely.

"This might sting," she mentally told Yugi. She quickly washed away the crimson liquid and then quickly wrapped gauze around the boy's arm.

Soon, the ill boy stopped moving and started to relax.

Everyone sighed, confused about what was wrong with their friend. They had wondered about his attitude lately, unsure of what more they could do since Yugi refused to say anything or would quickly change the subject.

"Yugi… this isn't like you…" Tea thought sadly to herself.

Xxx

Yami pulled the handle to the door.

"Nothing," he grunted dissatisfied. He glared at the door with anger, muddled about why his partner had entered, but he could not.

"Is this part of Yugi's Shadow Game?" he asked himself out loud. "Is he to play these games alone?"

To be continued…

Chao- Thank you all were able to read chapter 6 and continue on with chapter 7.