Yeah! Final part of the first duel of the story! I can't wait to start the next chapter, so I'm going to reply to some of the comments you guys posted just because I'm glad I'm getting some feedback. Whether you read them or not is up to you. If you want to skip to the story, then be my guest. Reading the following comments is totally optional, but I do recommend that you guys reacquaint yourself with the first chapter of this story with the biography as there have been some important changes made.

Brightcloud0915- Thank you. I appreciate the encouragement.

AnimeGirl4891- I'm glad this story's caught your interest. Don't worry. More chapters are to come!

PharaohsLuver- Yeah. I meant to post relationships before that chapter but then forgot. Sorry about the confusion, but all of the updated information is posted as of now. Anyway, glad you like the story so far.

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or its characters. I only own my characters, Millennium Item, and Egyptian Goddess. Enjoy!

I've got to figure out a way to take control of this duel and win back my Millennium Puzzle, Yugi thought to himself. I especially didn't like the way he talked to Anya about the Millennium Charm. What if he comes after her next?!

From the corner of his eye, he saw Anya still keeping in a very close proximity of the Millennium Puzzle. She still remained as defiant and courageous as she did since the beginning of the duel. She still had faith in him...so that meant he can't afford to lose it now!

"Make your move, Yugi. It's all over, anyway."

Yugi gasped before returning his attention to his cards. He heard 'Bandit Keith' taunt again, "You're just prolonging your defeat. It's quite pathetic, actually. Stare at your deck all you want, there's not a card in there that can take on my powerful Zera the Mant! This duel is over!"

The Koumori Dragon. Ahh, he's right! It's not strong enough to attack Zera, Yugi thought to himself. "I play my monster in defense mode! It's your move!"

'Bandit Keith' drew a card before setting it down, "First I play Seiyaryu (2500/2300) in attack mode!"

Anya flinched as the pink pterodactyl-like dragon entered the duel with a loud roar. She had one in her own deck, and it was indeed no dragon to take lightly in a duel. However, she also remembered that Yugi was one of the few people who had managed to beat him, so at least there was a chance.

"I place this card facedown," he continued, "And now, last but not least, Stop Defense! It forces the card you played in defense mode, to switch to attack mode!"

The shimmering square on Yugi's side of the field rose up, revealing the Koumori Dragon (1500/1200).

"My Koumori Dragon!" Yugi gasped.

"Is revealed, and since it's now in attack mode, I can destroy it! Zera the Mant, Jagged Claw Attack!"

Needless to say that the Koumori Dragon was off of the field just as quickly as it was there in the first place. Yugi gritted his teeth as his Life Points dropped down to 400. If 'Bandit Keith' managed to pull another stunt like that, then the duel would end on a very sour note.

"The end is near, little Yugi."

There's no way I'm letting this mind-controlling freak get his hands on my Puzzle! Yugi glowered to himself, "This duel's not over, whoever you are. I'll never give up!"

After drawing a card, Yugi set it down on the field, "I'm placing a monster in defense mode!"

'Bandit Keith', however, did not seem so impressed, "Your feeble defenses bore me. Seiyaryu, attack with Razor Flare Blast!"

Seiyaryu attacked with a blast of red fire, obliterating the Mystical Elf (800/2000) that was placed in defense mode. Both children had to shield their faces away from the blast of the fire.

"I'll also place two more cards on the field and switch Zera the Mant, to defense mode. Confused? This move will become clear to you soon enough!"

I don't know what kind of stunt this creep's trying to pull, but it can't be good. Anya thought to herself, turning her silver eyes onto the Millennium Puzzle. Don't worry, Spirit. Yugi's got this duel finished. I know he does.

Almost as if responding, the eye of the Millennium Puzzle gave off a dim glow as did the Millennium Charm.

Huh! Now this is more like it! Yugi nodded confidently. "This card facedown, then Dark Magician (2500/2100) in defense mode."

Anya nodded, approving the move full-heartedly. The Dark Magician was Yugi's strongest card. It didn't match up to Zera's attack strength, but she had a feeling that Yugi had that part covered.

"Finally, I play Magical Hats to hide him!"

The giant top hat of Magical Hats covered the Dark Magician before splitting into three more, "Now you'll have to find my Dark Magician in order to attack him!"

'Bandit Keith' seemed to smirk, "Hm. I should've seen that coming. Oh wait! I did. So I'll play Magic Jammer! Sorry, Yugi, but once I sacrifice a card from my hand, Magic Jammer allows me to disable your magic card. Say goodbye to your Magical Hats, and hello to your Dark Magician!"

In an instant, Magical Hats disappeared and revealed the still defensive Dark Magician. At least even if he did land an attack, Yugi wouldn't lose Life Points.

"Oh no! My Dark Magician's exposed!" Yugi seemed to start losing his cool, thought Anya, from the sound of his voice.

"And now I'll play this! It's a magic card called Curse of Fiend, Yugi. It forces both of our monsters on the field to switch from whatever mode they're in to the opposite. So therefore, all monsters in attack mode go into defense mode, and vice versa. Since I put Zera in defense mode before, it switches to attack mode now."

"Oh crud…" Anya cursed to herself. So, he did have a plan all along.

All monsters on the field then switched their modes: Seiyaryu to defense mode, and Zera and Dark Magician to attack mode.

"And so does your Dark Magician! Zera! Attack now!" the girl closed her eyes, awaiting the impending doom that awaited Yugi's Dark Magician.

"Nice try, but now I activate Mirror Force! It reflects Zera's attack right back at you!" Yugi countered, activating the Trap Card and making Zera's slashing rays bounce right off of Dark Magician and go right for his own monster.

Anya sighed in obvious relief before tensing as 'Bandit Keith' flipped his own trap, "Ha! I'll block your reflection with a little Solemn Judgment!"

An old man flanked by angels deflected the redirected attack, making it go right for the Dark Magician once again.

"No way! How did you block my Mirror Force reflection?"

"Solemn Judgment's another of my rare and powerful cards! I have to give up half of my Life Points to use it, but in exchange I'm allowed to remove the last card my opponent played! Your Mirror Force is shattered!"

As he said, the translucent wall in front of Dark Magician vanished. The attack struck him down and shattered his form, bringing Yugi's Life Points down to 100.

'Bandit Keith's' was at 250 though, so Yugi still had a chance to turn things around in his favor. At least, Anya thought, if luck is on Yugi's side.

"It may've cost me 250 Life Points, but that's a small price to pay because now, little Yugi, I'm one attack away from winning your Puzzle."

From above the arena, upon a railed platform, Yami Bakura entered the scene.

I'm getting closer. I can feel it!

He stopped and looked down, What's this?

Below his feet, Yugi was dueling against someone who looked awfully familiar to him. He also saw that Anya was standing in very close proximity to both of the items he was seeking.

A dueling arena? They're battling for the Millennium Puzzle!

Okay. Come on, deck, I believe in you! I know you'll come through for me! Yugi thought desperately as he drew his next card. Upon examining it, his spark of hope was ignited once again.

"I'm placing a magic card facedown, and a monster in defense mode. Now let's see what you've got!"

'Bandit Keith', still as expressionless as ever, merely said, "You'll regret those words, little Yugi. You may've gotten this far, but my patience is growing thin. It's time to end this duel, and claim the power that is mine!"

However, Yugi was being just as defiant, "You'll never get my Millennium Puzzle!"

"Guess again! Tribute To the Doomed!"

Both Anya and Yugi gasped as the latter said, "Whoa! That's one of the rarest magic cards in the game!"

"Very perceptive, Yugi. Tribute To the Doomed is one of my personal favorites. It allows me to annihilate any monster you have on the field!"

A mummy emerged out of the card, making Anya shudder unpleasantly. Something about mummies just crept the life out of her. The bandages of the mummy shot out like tentacles, shooting right for Yugi's facedown monster.

"Better think again!" Yugi exclaimed, flipping his Magic Card, Living Arrow, up.

"It can't be!"

"It is! The Living Arrow, which takes any magic attack aimed at me, and fires it right back at you!"

The golden arrow fired at the bandages, making them change direction and wrapping them around Zera the Mant. A giant hand clawed at the mummified monster, dragging it off to the Graveyard.

"No! Zera!"

Fascinating, Yami Bakura thought to himself. It appears the shadow magic energies I detect are within Yugi's opponent. Bandit Keith is just a puppet, under the control of an evil master. Well, this puppet show is over for I alone shall possess the Millennium Puzzle and the Millennium Charm!

With a slight scowl, Bakura commanded, "Ring, sever the strings that bind this man! Free his mind from the Shadow Realm!"

The Millennium Ring took on a powerful yet eerie glow. Though it appeared to be doing nothing at first, 'Bandit Keith's' face suddenly seemed to pop out, his eyes wide and fearful and his expression desperate to be free.

What the…? Anya narrowed her eyes, as if what she were seeing wasn't actually real.

"Huh...! Where am I?! And what on Earth am I wearing?!"

Her eyes widened then. Now that was the voice of the Bandit Keith that she and her friends had the unfortunate privilege of meeting at Duelist Kingdom.

"It looks like your so-called unbeatable Zera the Mant card is ancient history! Now it's time for me to win this duel once and for all and take back my Millennium Puzzle!" Yugi called out, his confidence fueled back up, though he did fail to take notice of Bandit Keith's release from his control.

"Yugi Muto?! What're you doin' here!" Bandit Keith exclaimed. Suddenly, his face twisted violently, as if some inner and more powerful force were attacking his mind.

Yugi gasped, "Bandit Keith! You're back!

Bandit Keith grasped his head with both hands, concentrating with great difficulty to regain control of his mind, "There's someone inside my head-Shut up and duel!"

It was very clear to see that the last words were not truly Bandit Keith talking, but the one who was controlling him. Or at least he was trying to.

"Keith?" Yugi asked out of concern.

Still, Bandit Keith continued to fight whatever was trying to take him over, "GO AWAY!"

"Keith, you moron! Stop screaming and answer our questions!" Anya shouted. "Who the heck is trying to control you?!"

"No! Stop! Leave me alone! Aaaaaaaaaaahh!" Bandit Keith screamed. Suddenly, he stopped, his eyes blank once again. Obviously whoever lost his grip over Keith regained it once again, "I'm back! Before I lose complete control, I've got to destroy it!"

He leapt down from his podium, dashing across the dueling arena.

"Hey! You're not supposed to be off of your podium while a duel's still going on!" Anya protested.

"Out of my way, foolish girl!" 'Bandit Keith' roughly grabbed her by the wrist and shoved her off to the side. She grunted as her back hit the hologram device before sliding to the ground.

"Anya! You okay?!" Yugi asked.

Gritting her teeth, she merely nodded until she heard 'Bandit Keith' exclaim, "If I can't have this Puzzle, no one can!"

Her eyes widened as he had a grip on the Millennium Puzzle. From the way he was holding it, both Anya and Yugi had a pretty good idea of what he was planning on doing with it.

Yugi reached down desperately to stop him, but was too far away, "No! Keith, wait! Don't!"

But it was too late. 'Bandit Keith' smashed the Millennium Puzzle off of the blue podium, making it explode in a frenzy of golden pieces falling to the ground.

"NOOOO!"

"You freak! Do you know what you've just done?!" Anya bellowed angrily.

She didn't know what came over her, mainly because she thought that the shock from the scene would leave her speechless. But something in her just ignited at the sight of the Millennium Puzzle being destroyed. Even the feathers on her Millennium Charm began to glow and shudder violently, making a loud sound not unlike the warning of a rattlesnake.

"AAAAH! Stop! Go away!"

He suddenly jerked, a maniacal grin flashing on his face as he said, "Aahh-!I'm back again!"

"That's quite enough of that!"

Anya and Yugi gasped at the familiar voice, but that thought got cut off quite quickly as a blur of blue and white swung down from a chain. Bakura threw himself at 'Bandit Keith, knocking him off of the side of the dueling arena.

"Where'd you come from?" Yugi gaped as he jumped down from the podium. Bakura helped Anya up to her feet before he replied,

"Hi, Yugi. Tea told me what happened."

Anya smiled, but then gave a disheartened glance at the scattered pieces of the Millennium Puzzle. She bent down and picked one up, Bakura doing the same thing as he commented, "Oh, my. Keith certainly did a number on your Millennium Puzzle, didn't he? Well, better shattered than stolen, I suppose."

Yugi accepted pieces from both of his friends with a solemn nod, "Yeah, I guess you're right. It took me forever to put it together the first time, but at least I have a chance to try. Who knows, since I did it once already, maybe this time it'll be easier."

"I'll be happy to stick around and help out, Yugi," Anya said with a smile, holding out the pieces in her hands. He nodded with a grateful smile and started looking over the Millennium Puzzle, figuring out how to get it back together.

Meanwhile, Bakura was watching them both innocently. However, he didn't stick around long as Yami Bakura took over, his hand behind his back while holding onto a single piece of the Millennium Puzzle.

Hmph, and once you've completed it, I'll be there to take it away! But in order to make sure that no one stands in my way again, I'll need to…manipulate a piece of the Puzzle, he thought to himself.

Giving the two children a single glance, his thoughts continued, Yugi and Anya, such naive fools. They have no idea of the ancient powers the Puzzle contains within! Magical powers that, when combined with the other eight Millennium Items, are so incredible, whoever possesses them shall rule the world! Powers that will soon belong to me, once I collect all of the Items, one by one! My Millennium Ring will track them down so I can unlock the mystical energies that were imprisoned in these objects, long ago in the age of the shadow games!

The Pharaoh and his loyal minions thought they could banish the power forever by dividing it up among the Millennium Items, and hiding them away. But the time has come for me to claim them all for myself! And the Millennium Puzzle is no exception. Ring, transfer a portion of my spirit into this piece of the Puzzle so that I may be forever near its ultimate power!

The Millennium Ring began to take on an eerie glow before the light shot into the Puzzle piece. With a cruel, inwardly chuckle, Bakura smirked, Unbeknownst to Yugi, a part of me will be infused within the Puzzle. From this one piece, I'll be able to explore the inner chambers of its mystic Millennium components. And one day soon, claim them for myself!

"Yugi, you missed this one piece," Bakura said, holding out a single Puzzle piece to Yugi.

He and Anya both smiled as he was handed the piece, "Ohh! Thanks a lot, Bakura! The last thing I need is to lose a piece of the Millennium Puzzle."

"Heh, yes, I know! You can't complete it without them all," Bakura laughed lightly before beginning to climb down the arena.

"Thanks again. You totally saved the day!" Yugi commented.

"Sure," the white-haired boy replied…right before losing his grip and falling down on the ground.

"Oh!" Anya and Yugi gasped. "Are you okay, Bakura?"

Bakura rubbed his backside with a grimace before getting up and turning away to leave, "Yes, fine. I've got to get back to school."

"We'll be right behind you, Bakura, as soon as I unhook my chain!"

Bakura's face took on a dark yet amused look, an obvious sign that Yami Bakura was more than pleased with his work. Of course, with his back turned to them, it wasn't like they could tell the difference.

"Anya, you really don't have to stick around," Yugi commented. "You can go ahead and join Bakura if you want."

She shook her head, "No way. We're sticking through this to the end. I've already come this far with you so we might as well finish it together."

Yugi smiled and nodded, "Right."

"Uh! Ah, stop! Stop talking to me!"

"Huh?" Anya and Yugi gasped, turning and seeing Bandit Keith back up on his feet. He grabbed onto a metal pipe, swinging it wildly, "Where are ya?! Show yourself!"

Anya blinked her eyes and shook her head, "Keith's either completely lost it, or that puppeteer guy isn't done with him yet. Either way, I think we should speed things up and get going."

Before Yugi could respond, Bandit Keith struck at some crates, followed by a control panel that shocks him and throws him back. An electrical cable then suddenly snapped and fell onto two gasoline containers, making them burst into a deadly flame.

"Okay…now we really need to get going."

"Yugi! Anya!"

"Yugi!"

"Where are ya, guys?!"

"This is ridiculous already!"

"Yeah, someone's playin' us for suckers!"

Tea suddenly dropped to her knees, panting heavily in exhaustion. Joey and Tristan, barely standing a few feet away, hand their hands on their knees as they panted as well. The entire time they had followed the arrows which seemed to only lead into a multitude of twists and turns

"These arrows," Tea panted, "are like a giant maze…!...Whoa!"

"Check it out!" Joey exclaimed, noticing what Tea was talking about. A huge column of black smoke was rising up high not too far from their location.

"There's smoke! Fire!"

So, of course, the group of three charged towards the source of the smoke. Finally, they came upon the warehouse that was burning away with the smoke flowing from the corner of the roof.

"Someone may need our help!" Tristan said.

"Oh no! I've gotta get my Puzzle down and get outta here!" Yugi cried out, tugging insistently at the chain, then at the spike. Finally, he had to stop to catch his breath, "It's no use, the chain's just too strong! And this fire is spreading really fast! Anya, maybe you could look for a way out while I put the Puzzle back together."

Anya gasped, "But Yugi-!"

"Anya, if you don't go now then we might not get out at all! Then it's over for all of us! Please, just go!" Yugi then removed the pieces that Anya held from

With a great deal of hesitance, Any kept glancing at the possible exits, and then at Yugi. As much as she didn't want to possibly leave him behind, she knew that he was too much of a good person to allow her to stay. So, with a large gulp, she backed away and turned to look for an exit.

She stopped and gasped as the Millennium Charm began to glow and she felt a strange penetration in her mind. Her eyes shut and she grasped her head from the sudden and unfamiliar force. Not once had the Millennium Charm ever done something like this before!

Yugi gasped as Anya's hands slammed on the side of the podium, on both sides of the Millennium Puzzle. Her body was also slightly pressed against his back, almost as if she were shielding both he and the Puzzle from the fire.

"Anya! What are you doing?! Get yourself to safety!"

"I'm not going anywhere without you or the spirit! And don't you try to tell me otherwise!" Anya said, though the strange thing was that she felt like it wasn't even her that was talking even if it was her voice. Something made her say those words and something was forcing her to stay.

Yugi grunted, yet he continued to put the Millennium Puzzle back together as fast as he possible could. If she was really going to be this stubborn, then he had no choice but to solve the Puzzle again and get them out of there.

"Help me!"

The voice was muffled, but they could clearly hear the muffled cries for help from inside the warehouse.

"Someone's in there!" Tristan shouted.

"Don't worry, we're here to help you!" Tea called out. "We've gotta get them out of danger!"

We'll try to get in," Tristan said. "You call 911!"

"I'm on it!" Tea nodded before taking off down the street.

Joey and Tristan charged the door. First, Tristan grasped the door knob to get in, but then jumped back as he held his burnt hand. Then Joey tried to kick the door down, but that did no good either.

"No good. We gotta break the door down!" Tristan said.

"Okay! On three!" Joey braced himself as did Tristan.

"Three!"

The two rushed at the door, aiming their shoulders to tackle the door down. They collided with the door and bounced back, but they weren't anywhere close to being done.

"Three!"

They tried again, but to no avail. They did it again and again, but still the door didn't budge.

"Tristan, you were knockin' that door like a girl scout!" Joey growled out as they tried once again. "This time hard!"

Finally, the two crashed through door, though it may have been because it was already on fire. The two looked around, but it was already very damaged and hard to see through.

"Anyone here?!" Tristan called out into the smoke and fire.

They heard screaming before Bandit Keith, still in his robes, runs towards them.

"Heads up!" Joey exclaimed before the two dodged to the side.

Bandit Keith pushed past them and ran right out the door, "This place is haunted!"

"Tristan, did we just rescue Bandit Keith?"

"Huh, no way!"

Joey shook his head, "Forget 'im! Let's make sure no one else is in trouble!"

So, the two carefully made their way through the burning building. They were sure to keep their arms over their faces to keep the smoke out while looking for any trapped people.

"Anyone in there?!"

Joey? Anya managed to squeeze her eyes open, though the same force from before was trying to make her do otherwise. She raised her head and looked around desperately before spotting a familiar mop of blonde hair, accompanied by brown hair.

"Joey! Tristan!"

The two looked over and gaped, "Yugi! Anya!"

It seemed that Yugi was too preoccupied to take notice of their presence. That was until Tristan yelled, "Yugi, what're you doin'?!"

"Let's go!"

"I can't leave yet, guys! I've got to finish putting together the Millennium Puzzle!" Yugi replied.

"And I'm not leaving without Yugi!"

"The smoke's gone to their brains!" Tristan grumbled as he and Joey rushed to the arena.

Yugi finally inserted the bottom piece of the Millennium Puzzle, "This should do it!"

As if to show the success, the Millennium Puzzle glimmered brightly, the life of the Spirit within returning, "Yes! Finished!"

Anya grinned triumphantly, but then frowned deeply with worry when Yugi began to sway dangerously. The smoke and the heat must've made him grow even weaker!

"Yugi, ya okay?!" Joey asked as he and Tristan surrounded them both.

"Come on, you two! We gotta get outta here fast!" Tristan said as he grabbed onto Yugi's shoulders while Joey grabbed onto Anya's arms. However, Yugi refused to let go of the Millennium Puzzle.

"My…Puzzle! Can't leave without…my Puzzle!"

"All right!" Tristan grunted as he pulled on the bolt that held onto the Puzzle, however, it was not willing to budge. Joey tried to pull onto the chain, but it was far too thick to break through.

"Ugh, it's no use, bud!"

"We gotta go!"

"We…can't leave yet…!"

Tristan insisted, "Yugi, it's time to take off!"

"He won't budge, not without the Puzzle. We're just gonna have to find a way to break this chain, but how?"

Looking around, Anya spotted a few metal poles, "Guys, those poles!"

"Right!" They nodded, obviously getting what she was implying. The two grabbed onto the poles and relentlessly whacked at the spike to either break it or weaken it. However, it was proving to be very difficult.

After many attempts, the two stopped with Tristan hopelessly stating, "That thing's not comin' out!"

"There's gotta be a-huh! Tristan," the said brunette turned to Joey. "I got it! Put the rod in the hole and we'll both pull!"

"Yeah!"

The pole was threaded through the eye of the spike and then the two gripped on one end before bracing themselves, "Okay, on three!"

"Three!"

With all of their might, they pulled onto the pipe. The spike loosened, then gave away and allowed the Millennium Puzzle to be freed.

Yes…now we can…we can… Anya blinked, her vision growing blurry. Finally, she was unable to keep on her feet. She fell down to her knees and would have fallen completely, but before her face could so much as kiss the floor, an arm wrapped around her. Another went under her knees and hoisted her up.

"Got'cha, Anya! Let's blow this taco stand!"

Yugi sighed heavily in relief, leaning back on the hospital bed comfortably. The doctor had completed his checkup on he and Anya and the two were going to make a swift and complete recovery.

"That was some adventure, wasn't it Anya?"

He frowned and turned to the bed next to his when he got no response. Anya was sitting up in her bed, looking down at her hands in almost a sad manner. Something was definitely bothering her.

"Anya? You okay?"

With a shake of her head, Anya began, "I'm sorry, Yugi. To you and the Spirit of the Puzzle. I was right there and I couldn't stop Bandit Keith from destroying the Puzzle. Maybe if I had, then we wouldn't have been in so much danger…"

"Don't say that, Anya. I don't blame you at all and I know that the Spirit doesn't either, right?" Yugi looked down at the Millennium Puzzle in his hands. The item gave off a soft glow, making him smile even wider, "See? I don't think there was anything any of us could've done to prevent all of this."

A ghost of a smile appeared on Anya's lips, "Still. I feel just plain awful about all of this."

"Awful about what?"

The two turned to the door as Joey, Tristan, and Tea entered. The boys were covered in bandages from the small burns they had received from the fire.

Yugi replied to Tea, who asked the question in the first place, "Anya feels bad that she couldn't help me more in that fire."

"Aw, c'mon Anya," Joey said. "Don't worry about it. Don' forget that you were the one shieldin' Yugi from all of that smoke and fire. What could be more helpful than that?"

"You're already beat up bad enough," Tristan added, "so do us all a favor and stop feeling sorry for yourself."

Finally, Anya couldn't help smiling and laughing lightly, allowing herself to fall back on her bed, "Deal, but only if you two don't fight for the rest of the day."

"I think it's just good that the Millennium Puzzle is safe and sound."

"And so are you two. Don't forget about you two," Joey commented.

"Yeah. How can I ever thank you guys for saving my life back there? You put yourselves in danger to make sure I would be okay. You're the greatest friends a guy ever had."

Joey merely shrugged, "That's what buds're for. Right, pal?"

"Yeah, it's a good thing I spotted 'im," Tristan commented.

Anya blinked, I thought I called for them and that's why they found us.

The blonde boy looked off in solemn thought, "And what about me? Thanks to my brilliant idea we were able to pry your Puzzle off the wall."

Tristan merely said with his voice completely sarcastic, "Yeah, brilliant! Let's stick the pole into the hole and then we'll pull on it really hard!"

Joey growled, grabbing Tristan by the collar, "Say what?!"

"Say nothin'!" Tristan retorted back.

A loud clearing of the throat made the two stop in their tracks. Anya had her eyes narrowed at them dangerously, a deep frown forming on her face.

"You guys better knock it off. I think Anya's getting mad."

In an instant, the two had backed off and were rubbing the backs of their necks sheepishly, Joey saying, "We'll be good! See? We stopped fighting!"

Letting a smirk cross her face, Anya turned away, "That's what I thought."

There was a click and the group of friends turned to the door. It opened up and revealed a young man in a student uniform. He had dark red hair that went to about his shoulders, his bangs just barely covering his powder blue eyes. His face reminded the group much of Seto Kaiba. It was mostly scornful, his eyes cold, and his mouth often set in a straight thin line. Very rarely did the sides of his mouth ever twitch to form an expression, often the corners turning downwards.

"Dimitri," Anya spoke, clear surprise in her voice. "What are you doing here?"

His eyes went to her hospital bed, his expression remaining the way it was. He merely closed his eyes and said, "I'm here and you're in a hospital bed. I got off of the phone ten minutes ago about how you were in a burning building. Why do you think I'm here?"

Yugi, Tea, and Tristan shot him a glare, but Joey was the only one peeved off enough to let his mouth get the better of him,

"Hey, lay off, pal! Your little sister was just caught in a fire and that's all ya have ta say ta her!?"

"Joey!" Anya pleaded. "Please don't!"

Joey grumbled, crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall, "Fine, but I'm only holdin' back 'cause I want ya ta recover."

Ignoring the comment, Dimitri continued, "The nurse said you were all good to go anytime. I'll let you say your goodbyes and then we need to get going. Uncle Nikolai is expecting you home soon."

He turned around, his hand on the handle as he pulled the door closed, but then paused. Without giving her a glance, Dimitri asked,

"You're not hurt, are you?"

This greatly took everyone in the room aback. They've known Anya's brother about as long as they knew her, and that was a long time, and this was perhaps the first time that they'd seen him show any sort of concern for Anya's well-being.

"Uh-no. I'm okay," Anya replied quietly.

"...Good. I'll be waiting out front."

With that, Dimitri left and shut the door behind him. It was, for the most part, an awkward silence throughout the room. Anya sighed and stepped out of her bed, beginning to gather her things.

"I don' know why ya keep defendin' 'im, Anya. He keeps treatin' ya like dirt and I don' like that one bit!" Joey ground his teeth.

"I know..." Anya sighed, excusing herself to the bathroom, "but he's family, guys. You just...never turn your back on them."

Once the door was shut, the conversation took an interesting turn.

Tristan shoved his fists into his pocket, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but you're right Joey. Dimitri's almost as bad as Kaiba to us and Anya, but if she's not going to do anything about it, then what are we supposed to do?"

"I hear you guys, but don't forget that Dimitri has his good points as well as his bad," Yugi interjected. "He's just not too keen on showing his nice side."

Joey growled loudly, "That still doesn' excuse 'im, Yug! That's not how a brother's supposed to treat his sister!"

Tea shushed him harshly as Anya came out, fully dressed and ready to leave. She gave a small smile, "Thanks again for all the help today, guys. Yugi, I hope you and the Spirit are feeling better, too. I'll see you guys tomorrow at school."

"Okay, Anya. If you're sure," Tea said carefully.

"M'kay, babe. You take it easy and I'll come by and visit later," Joey said, giving her a hug and a kiss on her forehead.

Anya smiled and kissed his cheek, "You better take it easy too, tough guy. And I'm serious. No fighting for the rest of the day and if you do, I'll find out about it."