It was morning time again before Yuugi woke. He noticed the warmth of another next to him immediately.
"Did you sleep well, Aibou?"
"Other me, were you here the whole time?"
"Of course. Well, except that one time I had to leave, but Jou was here in case you woke up. Are you hungry?"
The teen nodded.
Yuugi had no idea someone wanted to see him until Jou asked him if he had already.
Around lunchtime.
"Atem! It's not nice to keep someone waiting that long!" he scolded his other half in the throne room.
"Does the word 'prisoner' mean anything to you, Aibou?" the king asked, nonchalant.
"Atem!"
"How about 'assassin'?"
"Will you stop?!?"
"You're cute when you're angry."
"Oi. I give." Yuugi turned his attention to the guard.
"He's approaching now. Talk all you wish."
"Hello."
The man seemed to be surveying him. "Yes, definitely a child of Light," he said. "Why in the world would you wish to be here?"
"'Cause this is where Atem is," the other answered logically.
"You... wish to be with your other half?"
""Yes. Very much so."
"How strange. And I do not sense any magic at work... It truly seems as if you are here by your own will."
"That's cause I am."
"Then... I wonder if you-"
"Are you quite finished?" Atem asked sharply, cutting him off.
"Yes, King Atem. I thank you for your indulgence."
"And your conclusion?"
"I will pursue the boy no more."
"Excellent."
"However, that means..."
"Of course. We will find a place for you here."
"I thank you. Your kindness is outstanding."
"Thank the one standing before you for that," the royal remarked dryly.
"I see. Then I thank you both."
"You're very welcome!" Yuugi replied happily.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Wherever the royal went, he found he had a shadow. Or... light? Not that he minded. He'd missed his other half just as much. Jou was officially his guardian, but Yuugi wasn't ever leaving the king's side. He couldn't say he blamed him.
A few days of one following the other, a few nights of both curled against the other (and soothing a restless hikari as needed), blissfully came and went. Around then, Yuugi seemed to realize he couldn't just stay glued to his dark for all eternity. He began wandering about with Jou, leaving Atem alone. And while the king admitted to himself that he missed the warmth of his partner's hand in his own, he had to also admit that this was best for his other half. Coddling him would get him nowhere awfully fast. Even his nightmares were waning occurrences. There was just one thing missing that would make things as they were in their prior life.
But after what he'd been through, Atem wasn't about to bring it up with Yuugi. He'd wait for his light. When he was ready, he would make it known.
And after a couple weeks, Yuugi did indeed have a question. Just not the one the king was hoping for.
"Other Me, when do you think Bakura will come back?" he asked as they curled up for bed that night.
"When I least want him to, most likely," was the reply. "Why do you ask, Aibou?"
"I don't shake thinking about him anymore. I want to see if it holds up in front of him." the other said determinedly.
Atem smiled, running hand along his partner's cheek. Suddenly it felt quite warm. "That's the hikari I know and love," he said simply.
"A- Atem?"
"Yes, Aibou?" the royal asked, taken by surprise at the use of his name.
"I... I don't know if I'm ready for-"
"Aibou," he replied soothingly. "There is no rush. I'm perfectly content just having you next to me."
Yuugi smiled. "Thanks. But... I was wondering if...um..."
"You only have to ask, Aibou, and it's yours."
"Can I... kiss you? Just kiss," he added hastily, his violet eyes darting around nervously, despite the fact they were nearly blind.
The king ran his hand through the other's hair, a melancholy expression upon his face. 'Still so brave and still so innocent,' he mused. "Of course, Hikari."
Hesitantly, Yuugi raised his own hand a bit to the other's face. He ran his fingers down the royal's cheek until he found his other half's lips. Almost cautiously, he leaned in to meet them.
Atem was careful to give only what he received, anxious not to scare his precious light. His return kisses were as soft as Yuugi's, but held his light tightly, protectively. When their lips eventually broke, Yuugi said, "I... was so afraid that if we started, I would get confused cus I couldn't see you." He smiled. "There's no way I could get those touches mixed up."
The king laughed softly, but didn't miss the meaning in the other's words. "Aibou, if you would like, my magic can grant you sight for a short period of time."
Yuugi appeared to think about it, then nodded. "I want to see you."
The king smiled, then held his hand over his light's faces. After a few mutterings, wide violet orbs gazed around the room in wonder, then settled on his other half. "Atem," he said. "I missed you."
"I missed you too, Aibou."
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
"Aw, why do ya wanna see that pain in the ass, Yug?" Jou asked the next afternoon.
"Cus he said to come back when I got over my fear of Bakura," the shorter replied. "And I think that I have."
"Huh? Why's that so important?"
"Cus then Seth said I could see the god of this world, and if he'll let me, use Dark magic."
"And WHAT?!?" the blonde yelled in surprise, causing many around them to jump.
Including Yuugi. "He... wasn't lying, was he?"
"Well, no Yug, but going to see the god, that's not an everyday thing. Seth must think pretty highly of ya to even let you be considering it. I don't think I've ever heard of anyone but the High Priest seeing him."
"Wow. Really?" the other asked in awe.
"Yeah. We're close by. I'll bring ya."
"Thanks!"
Sure enough, within a few paces, they stopped and Yuugi heard Jou knocking on the door. "Set? It's me with Yug, so don't kill us, all right?" He heard a faint grumble, then a door opening. "Yug wanted to see ya," his best friend's voice came again.
"Is that so?" Seth asked. "There is a visible difference in you, Yuugi, I'll give you that. You haven't had the opportunity to test your resolve though, have you?"
"No," the shorter admitted.
"Still, I think I will take you. Now. Are you ready?"
"Yes."
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Seth said nothing to Yuugi as he lead the other towards the back of the palace, toward a room only accessible through his office. He made Jou stay behind, to the blonde's displeasure, arguing that we was supposed to be with Yuugi at all times. Seth called him an idiot and took the diminutive teen with him. Jou growled and stated he wasn't leaving the office until they returned.
Yuugi himself was just glad there weren't any stairs.
"Wait here," he finally heard Seth say, and the high priest let go of his hand. The air in the room was cool, and he could see the flickering of torches, but that was all. Soon the sound of Seth's voice filled the room as well, muttering words Yuugi didn't understand. Suddenly, the light in the room spiked for a moment, then dimmed. Then another voice was heard, low and deep, feeling more as if it were speaking directly to his soul.
"Why have you come here?"
Yuugi took a deep breath, doing his best to mask the nervousness he felt. "I want to learn Dark magic."
"And why is that?"
"So I can stay with Atem and not be a burden."
"You should know your other half would never think of you in such a way."
"I do know that, but I don't want him to have to worry about me."
"He will worry whether I allow you to learn or not."
The violet-eyed teen was stern. "I want to be able to defend myself."
"Against whom?"
"Bakura."
"So you admit you still harbor a bit of fear towards him."
Yuugi swallowed. "I do, but I don't want to be cowering from him. I want to overcome him."
The god's hearty laughter echoed through the space. "As you should, as you should. But you do not realize the full meaning of your actions today."
"I... don't?"
"No. There is a prophesy in this world. The two lands cannot remain separate forever. There will be one who able to wield magic of both realms that will join them together. That is why Bakura wants you back so badly."
He could hardly believe what he was hearing. "This person... is me?"
"Could be, could be. The choice is yours. Atem did not wish you to know before you made your choice to come see me."
"He doesn't know I'm here."
"And so I tell you now. I will grant you this gift, young one, and you may do with it as you see fit." As the words reached his ears, Yuugi felt the magical presence born inside him, and knowledge every being of Darkness was born with came to make itself know in his mind.
"I thank you," he said.
"And I thank you for your time, Great One," Seth said humbly.