Queer As Tachi – Chapter 41
The week between Christmas and New Year’s always felt like a week that didn’t exist, even though Yugi now had the busy task of maintaining the shop during that time. There were always more games to sell, and after Christmas, folks who had been introduced to a game via a gift came in to buy more support or ask advice on how best to play it. Though they had all seen quite a bit of each other at Yugi’s on Christmas, the gang would not let an opportunity to party go by, only this time Joey and Mai volunteered to host. It turned out to be a rather small gathering, just Yugi, Duke, and Tristan coming over, but they made the most of it and had a great time regardless. Téa had been invited, but she sincerely regretted having to decline on account of her parents wanting to have an ultra-traditional New Year’s celebration with their extended family. “They think I’m not being Japanese enough or something,” Téa griped on the phone to Yugi. “Like all that time in New York is making me forget my national heritage. I think they’re overreacting, but I can’t really back out of a family gathering. Not with my grandparents and cousins and stuff.”
“Yeah, I understand,” Yugi assured her. “So it’s going to be the traditional thing, huh? With mochi and everything?”
“And kimono, and the big feast,” Téa sighed. “Yeah, everything. I’m really sorry, I wanted to see you guys too. Think of me, all fancied up in my nicest kimono…”
“We’ll raise a toast to you,” Yugi promised. “Listen, Téa…about what happened on Christmas…”
“Don’t, Yugi.” Téa sighed softly into the phone. “Let’s just put it behind us, okay?”
“Okay,” Yugi said regretfully. “But I wanted to talk to you, make sure you know that I’m okay, and you don’t have to worry. Don’t go back to school with this still hanging between us.”
“I’ll try to see you before I go back,” Téa said, though her voice had grown more stiff and distant. “There’s really no need to talk about anything, Yugi. Just let it go.”
Yugi wasn’t sure he could, but there wasn’t anything else he could do. If Téa didn’t want to bring it up again, it was useless to push lest he make things worse. He passed on her regrets and well-wishes for her friends when he got to the party, and after that, it was time to look forward to the new year and new beginnings. The party wasn’t much, just food and drinks and hanging out, a little dueling if they felt like it, an excuse to stay up late and snack on the traditional New Year’s mochi, toast each other, and go to bed way too late. Joey and Mai rang in midnight with a kiss, leaving the others in the room rather jealous, as Yugi’s partner wasn’t physically present and the other two had been carefully hiding their connection all night long. It was tough to balance their friendship, not wanting to be too cold toward each other nor too close, but somehow they made it through the party without giving the slightest hint that they had seen each other outside the gang. At last it was time to call it a night and a new year, Yugi had to go try to get some sleep before work and Joey and Mai wanted their flat to themselves. Duke and Tristan said their own private good night in the stairwell on their way down to the street, where no one could see them and find out, after the door had closed and Yugi had gone on ahead of them. After a long, heated kiss, Duke lowered his gaze and helped Tristan snap up his motorcycle jacket the rest of the way. “Better late than never,” he remarked.
“I know,” Tristan breathed. “I wanted to do that at midnight, but…well, you know.”
Duke gave him a hearty smack on the chest to confirm that his jacket was nice and closed. “So, are we still on for Saturday?”
“Yeah, totally,” Tristan replied as they finished descending the stairs to the street, looking like any two casual friends as they stepped out of the building. “But who’s picking who up? I’ve got my bike, but if you don’t want to freeze your ass off…”
“My car’s back in action, I’ll pick you up,” Duke offered. He turned to go one way, to where he was parked, knowing Tristan had to go the other way. He glanced over his shoulder with a tempting little smile that made his green eyes gleam, and gave a little wave. “See you then.”
Tristan paused, his breath catching in his throat at the look thrown over Duke’s shoulder at him. He used to hate that smug look, whenever he saw Duke give it to some girl who totally fell for his charms, but now that it was being tossed at him, he couldn’t stop himself from thinking it anything but…cute. Those eyes, that smile, it made him blush to consider what it did to him. Taking a deep breath to quiet his raging thoughts and the twitch deep in his gut, Tristan turned and strode away to his bike so he could head home, alone.
Even though he didn’t have to compete in the national finals to determine the duelists who would advance to the world tournament, Yugi had marked the date on his calendar and kept an eye on it, seriously considering taking a trip there of his own volition to watch the spectacle. At the national level, he would merely be an audience member and probably couldn’t get close enough to Bakura to let him know he was there to cheer him on, but he could still do so. At least, that was what he told himself. Deep down inside, he shared the same darker thoughts on the matter as Yami: they feared another appearance by the spirit of the Ring which might turn this tournament into another fight for their souls. It put Yugi in the position of being torn between rooting for his friend’s advancement to the world level and hoping he would lose somewhere along the way. But this was all inside his heart and mind – outwardly, he only spoke of his own plans for the tournament with his grandfather and with Joey. “What do you mean, practice?” he chuckled over the phone as he wove in and out of displays in the store at the end of the phone cord’s tether. “Who am I going to practice with? You and I already know each other’s decks so well, Joey, it’s never a contest.”
“Okay, maybe not so much practice, as keeping yourself fresh and on your toes,” Joey put forth. He was taking a study break to call Yugi and hound him about the tournament, since the nationals were right around the corner and time was growing short until the day they would be sent to Hong Kong with the winners. “Mai and I duel sometimes, just for that reason, but it’s tough dueling the same person over and over again.”
“Yeah, exactly,” Yugi laughed as he got himself wrapped up in the phone cord and had to backtrack to get free. “I know your deck, Joey. Unless you plan to majorly restructure it before the tournament, I don’t know how much practice you and I can get against each other.”
“You’re not even worried about it, are you?” Joey said in exasperation. “We’re going up against the world’s best players, Yug!”
“Joey – we are the world’s best players.”
That gave Joey a moment’s pause. “All right, fine,” he conceded. “Too bad you can’t duel against Yami between now and the tournament – he’d give us both a run for our money.”
“Well, that’s true.” Yugi returned to the counter so as not to stretch the phone cord any more. “But you’re right, even if we do have a second deck for him, he and I are still bonded and he’d see my moves before I could make them.”
“Well, there you go,” Joey suggested. “Use your second deck for a while, just for a change. Or hey, you’ve got that wireless duel disk thingy. You could go online and duel anyone you wanted.”
Yugi shook his head even though his friend couldn’t see it. “No, Joey, I can’t,” he said seriously. “My contract with Pegasus says right out that I can’t lose any duels that can be tracked using Kaiba’s system. That means no duel disk, no arenas, nothing. Just table-top duels.”
“Yug,” Joey groaned, “honestly. Quit being so modest. What are the chances you’d lose?”
“You never know,” Yugi tried to insist. “I’m not perfect, Joey. I’m not undefeated.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Joey paced around his apartment with the phone to his ear, pausing to look out across the balcony to the city spread out before him. “Well, just keep it in your back pocket, okay? Anytime you feel like flexing your dueling muscles, give us a call. I want to practice as much as I can, even if it’s not against you or Mai.” He hummed thoughtfully. “You don’t suppose Duke would be hot for a random duel out of nowhere?”
“I don’t know,” Yugi replied. “He’s
been really busy lately. I don’t know if
I’ve even talked to him since the new year.”
“And Tristan’s not good enough to give me any kind of challenge.” That made Joey think of something else, derailing
his conversation completely in favor of another topic.
“Dude, did you hear? He’s
got a date this weekend.”
“Really?” Though there was no one in the shop at the moment, Yugi ducked into the doorway to the storeroom to speak a little more privately. “With who? Did he say?”
“Nah, just that he was going out. All he said was, he was tryin’ something out to see if it would work.” Joey grinned to himself. “Guess he doesn’t want to get us all excited if she stands him up like the last one did.”
“That was almost a year ago, already,” Yugi noted. “Poor guy. I hope it works out for him.” He gave a little dry chuckle. “What makes you think it’s a girl?”
“Yug,” Joey retorted seriously. “What the hell? Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I’m just saying,” Yugi shrugged. “These days you can’t jump to conclusions.”
“Tristan would never date a guy,” Joey snorted into the phone. “Not in a million years. Not everybody’s like you, Yug.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Yugi frowned to himself. “Are you still freaked out about that game of truth or dare we played that one time, and what he said?”
“Well, you told him to pick me,” Joey said in exasperation. “After you kissed me.”
Yugi pouted, even though his friend wouldn’t see it through the phone. “What are you so afraid of? I thought you said you accepted me and my choice of partner.”
There was a moment’s pause on the other end of the line. “Yugi…it’s not…I didn’t mean…” Joey clapped a hand over his face, which could be heard. “Oh man.”
“I know you’re straight, you don’t have to keep trying to assert that,” Yugi said, more gently, though with a hurt tone in his voice. “I’ve never thought of you as anything but my best friend, but even if I did, that doesn’t change who you are. Just like it doesn’t matter who you love, it doesn’t matter who you don’t love – turning someone down is turning someone down, it’s no different if it’s a guy or a girl.” He sighed into the phone. “Maybe you don’t realize what it sounds like when you protest so much. But it kind of bothers me, Joey.”
“I’m sorry, Yug.” Joey’s voice grew heavy. “I didn’t mean to imply that I was scared of you. I’m not, it’s just…I’ve never had a gay friend before, I’m still learning how to deal with that. Cut me a break for being an idiot?” he asked hopefully.
Yugi began to smile. “As long as you promise to relax a little bit.”
“Yeah, I’m workin’ on it. I guess the more I freak out, the worse I look. Sorry about that.”
“It’s okay.” Yugi gentled his voice considerably. “I was only teasing, about Tristan – since he didn’t tell you who he was going out with. I’ve just learned not to make assumptions. Not even about myself.”
“I guess the world’s just become a lot more complicated than we thought it would be when we were kids,” Joey said with uncommon wisdom. “You grow up thinking that everything’s so cut and dried, black and white, when it’s really all kinds of gray. It’s not that I have a problem with you liking guys…well, a guy…or anyone else. You know I’m behind you all the way, Yug. But actually thinking about you being…er, intimate…it takes some getting used to.”
Yugi suddenly laughed. “Now you know why I asked Mai to take me to an adult store instead of you.”
“Yeah, you got me there,” Joey laughed back. “I guess I’m quick to say it’s okay to love anyone you want, but when it comes to having sex with them…I got some work to do to get my head on straight.”
“Well, I promise not to talk about it if you don’t want me to,” Yugi started to say.
“Nah…I guess if you really want to…” Joey turned and folded his arms over his chest, propping the phone against his shoulder as he leaned on the wall. “I’m your best friend, aren’t I? You should be able to tell me anything you want. I know how happy Yami makes you,” he added, his voice growing soft and wistful. “I can see it in you. I’m glad you’re happy, and if you want to share what makes you happy, I’ll listen. Just…” He chuckled lightly. “…go easy on the details until I’m used to it.”
“I can do that, Joey.” Yugi leaned on the door frame and rested his head against it, smiling to himself. “I’m sorry if I snapped at you.”
“Eh, it’s okay. I kind of deserved it. Better now than later.” Joey straightened up and resumed pacing through his flat. “So you’re not interested in practice-dueling at all?”
“Well, I don’t know. Not right now, I’m kind of busy, but after the national finals are over and all the tournament guests are set, I might feel differently about it.” Yugi came out from the storeroom and leaned on the counter to finish the call, now that the personal part of the conversation had passed. “It doesn’t feel so urgent yet. We don’t even know when or how we’ll be getting to Hong Kong.”
“And Pegasus ain’t told you nothin’?”
“Not yet. I’m pretty sure it won’t be until after nationals.” Yugi smirked to himself, glancing across the shop to the big, splashy poster on the wall by the Duel Monsters cards. “Endorsement deal or not, he’s not giving me any special treatment compared to the other finalists. We’ll find out at the same time, I’m sure.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Around then, Joey heard the telltale clip of heels on the stairs outside his apartment door, and smiled. “Hey, Mai’s home from work. That means it’s dinnertime. I’ll talk to ya later, okay?”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll let you know what happens at the national finals.”
“You better.”
A conference center in Kyoto was playing host to the Duel Monsters national finals, bringing youths from all corners of Japan to the ancient capital to meet up and try to win their way into one of the three slots for champions in the world tournament. Like the regional round, everything would be decided in one day, so things kicked off rather early in the morning. Yugi had taken an early train to get there on time, rather than try to find someplace to stay in the city overnight, leaving him blinking blearily in the cold, overcast light of day as he walked up to the convention center and smiled to himself at the sign out front. Yes, this was certainly the place – if not for the marquee and the giant vinyl banners draped above the main doors, he recognized the clusters of young geeks, mostly male, some of them sporting duel disks. Though this trip was his own choice, to be a spectator, Yugi had a sense that if he wanted to go to the trouble of finding an Industrial Illusions employee, he might be treated to something extra special. None of his friends had come along, and though he kept an eye out for Bakura, he didn’t expect to meet up with him before the tournament rounds began. It felt strange being completely by himself at a Duel Monsters event for once, but also kind of nice. He could walk around freely, decide where to go, where to sit, and only discussed his observations of the crowd with his spiritual partner. Both of them had the same vested interest in the tournament, both for the sake of dueling and for Bakura. The running internal commentary kept Yugi from being bored as he walked around, investigated the board listing the times and locations for qualifying rounds, and hunted for a good seat. Several large ballrooms had been set up for the preliminary duels, so for now, anyone could wander between them and check out any ongoing duel at whim. Later, when the field had been narrowed considerably, the real show would begin on the main arena floor with the audience in the stands around it. Yugi spent an hour going back and forth between duels, idly checking out who was playing in the chance he might recognize some other familiar faces from past tournaments, and then settled himself down in a small crowd of anonymous spectators to watch Bakura’s first duel unnoticed. It went fast; Bakura was bright-eyed and alert, looking stylish in a silk shirt and vest, and playing at the top of his game. He looked serious, but not in that dark-spirit-of-the-Ring sort of way Yugi was keeping an eye out for. “I hate being so suspicious,” Yugi confessed inwardly to his partner, “but duels are a big temptation to that spirit. Nothing else gets his attention like a game of Duel Monsters, especially with us as bait.”
“I’m sure Ryo will be fine,” Yami said along their mental bond. “All the same, I had a suggestion. Perhaps, if he makes it as far as the final rounds, you should let me take the lead just in case we have to confront him.”
“I’m with you on that,” Yugi said in return. “For now, I’ll just say hi to him like normal. Hopefully, if he knows I’m here to encourage him, he’ll be able to stand up to the spirit.”
Upon completion of the duel and Bakura’s almost effortless advancement, Yugi wormed his way through the crowds to try and get close enough for a greeting, not knowing whether the Industrial Illusions wranglers would be protective of competitors. To his relief, the suits were just interested in the arenas and the duels in progress – between bouts, the finalists were free to roam and mingle under the stipulation that if they showed up late to their next duel, they would be disqualified. Bakura started to walk away, but Yugi caught up to him and took his arm to get his attention. Bakura turned with wide brown eyes. “Yugi! What are you doing here?”
“I came to watch,” Yugi said brightly. “I want to see who’s going to the world tournament, of course, but I also wanted to see how you did. And cheer you on,” he added kindly. “Unfortunately, nobody else could make it down here, so it’s just me.”
“That’s nice of you,” Bakura said, his eyes softening with a warm smile. “Thank you, Yugi. It is a pleasure to see you, although so far I haven’t needed much cheering.”
“Yeah, that duel went pretty fast,” Yugi admitted. “Don’t think they’re all going to be like that. This is national level, everybody here’s a champion.”
“I know,” Ryo laughed. “I’ve got no delusions of grandeur, don’t worry. I think I’ll be lucky to make it to the final rounds this afternoon.” He glanced around the ballroom; two arenas were set up for competition inside it, and a fair number of spectators crowded around both of them. “I’ve seen many of the actual finalists and they’re not the young kids I breezed past at the regional level. Mostly high school students and older.” He glanced at Yugi with a smile. “Young adults like us.”
Yugi stuck his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “So, how long do you have until your next duel?”
“I think…” Ryo checked his watch. “About a half an hour. There’s a concessions stand set up just for competitors on the upper level,” he mentioned, thumbing over his shoulder in the general direction. “Want to go get a snack before the next round?”
Yugi smiled sheepishly. “I’m not a competitor though.”
“You are a finalist.” Bakura grinned back. “And your face is on all the posters. I’m sure they’ll let you in.”
They did indeed; thanks to a fortunate stroke of timing, Yugi went up just as the publicist from the I² branch office in Domino was walking out. She greeted him warmly, made some idle small talk that he found awkward, and gave him permission to indulge himself in the same treatment as the actual competitors by clipping a pass to his shirt. Yugi and Bakura only got something to nibble on, and Bakura a cup of water, before going back down and lounging on a random bench on the convention center’s main floor outside the room where Bakura’s next duel would take place. Over the course of time they talked about what they had been up to, and Yugi mentioned not being able to get a hold of him before Christmas. “I know you were probably really stressed about final exams,” he offered understandingly, “Joey sure was. But we missed you. We had the whole gang over, Téa was home from school and everything.”
“I’m sorry, Yugi,” Ryo said shyly. “I’ve never really thought much of Christmas. I don’t really celebrate it.”
Yugi gave him a plaintive look. “I couldn’t help but think of you being all alone on Christmas, I was kind of worried.”
“It’s all right.” Ryo placed a hand over Yugi’s for the briefest moment. “It’s just another day to me, I wasn’t particularly feeling alone. But it’s nice that you thought of me. Thank you.” He withdrew his hand and sipped at his water. “And how is Téa, anyway? How long is she home for?”
“She went back to New York earlier this week,” Yugi replied, sobering a little. “We missed a chance to hang out again, all I got was an email saying that her flight had been uneventful and she was back at school. She seems to be enjoying it.” He forced a smile for Bakura. “We don’t talk nearly as much as we used to.”
“Ah.” Bakura gave him a cute smile. “Well, on the bright side, if I do make it to the world tournament, I’ll be able to see lots of you and Joey and Mai.”
“Definitely,” Yugi encouraged. “And who knows who else? I usually seem to get my own cheering section at every tournament.”
“You’re very popular,” Bakura teased.
Yugi rolled his eyes. “Yeah, about as popular as I was in high school. Everybody’s famous in their own little circle, they say.”
Before too long they had to break up their conversation so Bakura could duel, now that the companionship and small talk had eased any nervousness he might have been feeling about competing. Yugi hovered near him most of the day after that, glad for the familiarity of at least one face, though he did scope out a few other duels when he had the chance. It looked to him like Pegasus’ intention of garnering a whole new field of unknown duelists for the world tournament was working, for despite the tournament’s high profile among the gaming community, Yugi noticed that none of the people he used to duel against, the former elite and champions, had made it to the nationals. He had expected to see at least one or two, knowing that many who made it to ranking positions in Battle City and prior tournaments came from all over Japan. But no, Bakura was the only one there he knew. It made him wonder whether he would know anyone else at all when they got to Hong Kong, besides Joey, Mai, and Kaiba. Secretly, the thought excited the gamer geek within. A whole new field of competitors, unproven, untested, increasing the possibility that there was someone out there in the world who might have the skills to knock off either him or Kaiba in the final rounds and become a new world champion. Without the desperate need to win in order to protect himself or the ones he loved, Yugi welcomed the challenge and the potential to be beaten fair and square. And as long as he spent the day hanging around Bakura, being his friend and giving the Ring spirit no need to make an appearance, the less Yugi feared that innocent goal of the tournament changing.
After half a day of nonstop dueling and three-fourths of the qualifying competitors eliminated, Ryo Bakura was surprised to find himself among the handful advancing to the final rounds in the big arena next door to the conference center. At that point, Yugi had to leave him, as not even his special little pass from Industrial Illusions would permit him to be backstage or on the main floor. He wished Bakura well and headed up to find a good high vantage point from which to watch the last sequence of duels progress. A lot of people wanted to be in the front rows, where they could get the most impact from the clash of holographic monsters, but Yugi heeded his inner spirit’s thoughts about seeing the big picture and went up to the second level of grandstand seating, emerging from the narrow tunnel onto a landing high above the arena floor. He wasn’t in the nosebleed section, but high up enough to have a complete view of the arena and all the people watching, a place where he could stand and observe the competition without being noticed. He had been trying to keep a low profile most of the day, but it seemed more important now to actively prevent the generic fans from finding out that Yugi Muto himself was there to find out in person who would be going to Hong Kong. Yami had already guessed that their anonymity would be out the window as soon as the final three were determined, so they needed to enjoy their privacy while they could hang onto it. And, as per their earlier agreement, when he stepped out onto the landing, it was Yami Yugi giving the floor below a sweeping look with keen eyes. Should the spirit of the Millennium Ring burst out of hiding and initiate a shadow game, he wouldn’t be able to jump in and stop it from here, but he might have more warning. At least, he wouldn’t be the temptation to draw out Bakura’s dark side, if Bakura couldn’t see him from here. He folded his arms and stood silent as far below him, an announcer began to regale the audience with explanations of the qualifying brackets and rules they might have missed.
Thanks to the voice prattling over the loudspeaker, Yami Yugi did not hear the approach of another person until a snide voice intruded on his meditation. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Yugi glanced over his shoulder to stare coolly at Seto Kaiba, not surprised at all. “I would venture to guess, the same as you,” he said patiently. Kaiba stalked out from the same tunnel as he, his purple coat drifting like a cloak behind him. A dark glare marred his mature features. Yami Yugi didn’t even raise an eyebrow at his entrance. “Come to see the competition?”
“Figures Pegasus would drag your ass down here,” Kaiba grumbled, stopping a few feet behind him so as not to stand too close. “How does it feel to be his bitch, jumping to his call and parading yourself around like this?”
Now the eyebrow twitched, hearing the vicious anger in his voice. “I’m not here because Pegasus wanted me to be,” Yami Yugi replied calmly. “I came of my own volition. I’m curious to see who represents Japan in the world tournament.”
Kaiba glared at him only briefly before shifting his eyes to the floor below, where the first duel was starting between completely unknown finalists. “A bunch of losers,” he said flatly. “It only confirms what I thought – you and I are the only ones in the entire country worthy of making it on a world stage. And you can be sure,” he added seethingly, “that I intend to knock you off it.”
“I expect nothing less.” Yugi remained still with his arms folded, not sure why his mere presence there had provoked such hatred from Kaiba. He could almost tangibly feel the waves of his anger radiating off him. Keeping his eyes on the arena below them, he wondered, “Did Mokuba tell you all about the regional round? We saw him there.”
“He reported that three complete amateurs made it to the next round,” Kaiba snapped. “And that there was nothing else interesting to say for it.”
“Amateurs?” Yugi said in disbelief. “Bakura is no amateur. He’s a former finalist…”
“He cheated to enter my tournament,” Kaiba sniffed. “It doesn’t count.”
“Fine.” Yugi returned his gaze to the arena. “But you may have to take that back if he makes it to the final round here.”
“I don’t have to take anything back,” Kaiba growled. “Just because you’re making yourself out to be some kind of big shot doesn’t mean you’re suddenly the authority on anyone’s dueling chances. You’re pathetic,” he spat, vehemently enough to make Yugi turn around with a startled look. “Signing autographs like you’re a celebrity? It just makes you look stupid. I can’t believe you of all people would stoop to that level.”
Yugi frowned at him. “What are you talking about?”
“I saw you at the Tokyo Game Expo,” Kaiba said viciously. “Set up right in Pegasus’ lap like that. And now you’re endorsing his tournament with your face on all the publicity. You look like an idiot.”
The frown deepened. “What I choose to do with my business partnerships is not your concern,” Yugi said solemnly. “It has no bearing on you, so I don’t care what you think of it.”
“Is this your way of making up for passing on all the better deals I offered you?” Kaiba gave him a grim sort of smirk. “I knew you were in trouble. You couldn’t make it on your own after all.”
“Is there something the matter, Kaiba?” Yami Yugi turned to regard him, his arms still crossed over his chest. “I haven’t given you a reason to insult me, and yet that’s all you’ve done since you walked in here.”
“Your mere existence is reason enough,” Kaiba shot back. “To say nothing of how you’ve made yourself the star of this tournament before it’s even started. I have news for you, Yugi. It isn’t all about you. You’re going to get a rude awakening, and I really hope it’s at my hands.” The smirk turned into a truly evil smile. “Making yourself Pegasus’ bitch isn’t going to help you one bit. Your days of hogging the spotlight are over. Move over and make way for someone more deserving.” He whipped around sharply and stalked back into the tunnel to the hallway. “I need some fresh air. It stinks up here.”
Yami Yugi stared after him as he departed, wondering what in the world had brought on that tirade. From within, Yugi’s youthful voice wondered, “What the heck was that about?”
“I don’t know,” Yami replied mentally, blinking in curiosity at the darkened tunnel. Kaiba’s silhouette had vanished from it, leaving him alone again. “Something seems to be bothering him.”
“You think?” Yugi’s phantom presence made a disgruntled pout. “It sounded to me like he was jealous of us or something.”
“I wouldn’t expect him to be so irate over nothing, even if it was something only he imagined.” Yami sighed to himself. “Perhaps he was merely psyching himself up to face us for the title again.”
“Who knows?” Yugi sighed back. “It’s Kaiba. He’s always got something to be pissed about. So, he’s here too. That means he’s at least a little bit curious about who the national finalists are.”
Yami turned his attention back to the arena, to check the progress of the duel and whether anything interesting was happening. “He should be. He may appear confident, but Kaiba is concerned just as much as we are about whether he faces any serious threat that might blindside him. If he concentrates solely on beating us, someone else may come out of nowhere.”
“He’s got a point, though.” Yugi looked with his partner down to the arena floor. “No one we’ve seen today is overly impressive. Bakura has a pretty good chance at making it after all.”
As their thoughts began to meld back together into agreement, the two spirits fell back into their customary bond to watch the duels as one. The first quarterfinal round ended, and the next – featuring Bakura – was about to begin.
Stalking through the concrete halls of the arena, Kaiba desperately searched for another grandstand-level landing from which to watch the proceedings, now that his favored vantage point had been rudely stolen by Yugi. It was bad enough he had to attend this national tournament like any of the other geeks, relegated to the grandstand rather than watching coolly from the sidelines backstage like a duelist of his high rank ought to, but then to walk in and find Yugi there with an Industrial Illusions badge on his shirt…! He had always considered Yugi to have a target on his head when in the dueling ring, but that mark of collaboration from his main competitor roused Kaiba’s fury. Pegasus was treating him like any of the other finalists, not like a fellow CEO and license partner ought to be treated, and now Yugi was in his pocket, popping up randomly like this as if flaunting his status as the tournament’s main draw. Kaiba wanted information and he wasn’t getting it, finding himself reduced to attending the national finals just to find out any slight lead on his potential competition. The world tournament couldn’t come fast enough. He wanted desperately to be in the dueling ring right now, smacking down some hapless kid who thought he could hold his own against three Blue Eyes White Dragons. With his inner mental record tallied at two losses, one tie, Kaiba needed to flex his gaming muscles badly. For now, though, all he could do was pick some shadowed corner of the arena and slump into a chair to watch the national finals conclude.
On the upper landing, Yami Yugi watched with desperate interest as Bakura advanced to the semifinal round, where he faced a particularly tough opponent, a young man with blond hair who launched a blistering spellcaster assault. If ever there was a duel difficult enough to rouse the interest of the spirit of the Ring, it was this one, Bakura’s first real significant challenge of the day. One of his opponent’s moves backfired on him, since the Darkness Field card boosted both spellcasters and fiends, and while the newcomer’s deck was primarily composed of the former, Bakura’s was stacked with the latter. Yet, more and more Bakura found himself being backed into the corner, doing his best to throw up a defense while he looked for a way to come back and win. Yugi’s eyes were on him the whole time, willing him to win out of a sense of friendship, but beginning to think that he wouldn’t – not without help from a spirit who was more willing to play rough. He hoped Bakura could go at least one more round, but Yami more than Yugi expected that if Ryo wanted to stave off an ill-timed takeover by the spirit, he would have to sacrifice the tournament completely. Fighting against inner control was already distracting him, Yugi could see it even from high up. Bakura was forced to make a desperate move, one that could either end the duel in five turns or be his downfall, as he played the Destiny Board. His only hope lay in the fact that his opponent had already played Remove Trap earlier, so unless he had something else that destroyed trap cards, it would stay on the field. Unfortunately, just as he was about to play the second-to-last letter, his opponent summoned a magician with the power to destroy magic cards at will, so the rest of his chance to end the duel there disappeared like the letters of his board, and a couple of turns later, he was out. Bakura slumped with his arms at his sides, his head down in defeat. Yugi stared down at him, as if to assure himself the spirit wasn’t going to come out and retaliate his own way, but Bakura appeared to be fine as he shook his opponent’s hand and slunk off the field. Yami Yugi turned quickly on his heel and headed down to the main floor, seeking his friend for one last assurance.
He found Bakura at the fringe of the arena floor, leaning up against a wall as he shuffled through his deck and put it away in an inner pocket. Still bonded, Yami Yugi approached him cautiously. “Bakura?” he said gently.
Bakura glanced up, hearing his name, and smiled feebly at who it was. “Hi Yugi.”
“That was a tough game,” Yugi murmured. “I’m sorry your bid for the tournament ended here.”
Bakura looked down at the floor, but a smile began to awaken on his lips. “No, it’s okay,” he said after a moment. “I think it’s for the best. I don’t know if you could tell…” He darted an ashamed look sideways at Yugi. “…but I was worried the whole time that the spirit of the Ring might take over my mind again.”
“I had a feeling.” Yugi smiled kindly. “For what it’s worth, you did well. You didn’t give in to him. You fought your hardest.”
“I just came up against a better duelist, that’s all,” Bakura said modestly. “I don’t feel sad about losing. Now, the spirit of the Ring can’t use the tournament as an excuse to play shadow games, hurt people, and go after your Puzzle. I won’t be anywhere near you, you can go on and play for fun and not worry about me.”
Yugi nodded smartly. “That’s brave of you to think so. Losing is no fun, but it’s bearable if you can find a silver lining.”
“I’d rather we were all safe and didn’t have these things to think about, rather than sacrifice it in order to keep trying to win a tournament.” Bakura mustered a cheery little smile for him. “I’d lose to either you or Kaiba along the way, anyway. Oh well.” He tugged up his sleeve and looked at his watch. “At least I’m done early enough that I can get some dinner before I catch the train back to Domino.” He turned a shy look to Yugi. “I suppose you’re going to stay and watch the rest, to find out who makes it to the world tournament?”
Yugi looked past him to the ring in the middle of the arena floor, where two more duelists were going at it in their own attempts to advance. “That was my intention,” he admitted. “But…it’s a little boring. Since I don’t know anyone dueling, now. Some of these duelists are pretty good, but not enough to hold my attention.”
“Do you want to get something to eat with me, and we’ll take the same train home?” Bakura wondered. “If you’re not going to stay, that is.”
Yami Yugi smiled. “I think that sounds like more fun than staying here.” He turned to leave, trusting that Bakura would follow, and in that moment the bond dissolved so Yugi could go on as himself. He agreed with his partner that the tournament was not worth staying for, now that they knew Bakura would not be in the final round. Both young men went to fetch their coats, and Bakura removed his duel disk to carry it under his arm as they walked through Kyoto searching for food.
A quiet little noodle shop with a counter that overlooked the street served as the perfect place to catch a quick meal before heading to catch a train. Sitting side-by-side, Yugi and Bakura talked over their observations of the other tournament duelists, and with a hint of a blush Ryo admitted under his breath that the young man who had knocked him out of the tournament had also hit on him. “Oh, it wasn’t much,” he said demurely, “just a harmless flirtation I think. He said I had very pretty eyes and hoped I didn’t hold it against him that he had to beat me.”
“Interesting,” Yugi remarked between shoveling more noodles into his mouth. “It didn’t bother you?”
“Well, no…” Bakura glanced aside at him, his face growing soft and serious. “You mean, you haven’t guessed?”
“Guessed what?”
“Yugi…” The blush became more pronounced, even though Bakura’s gaze remained steady. “I’m…well…I like boys.”
“Oh…” Yugi leaned an elbow on the counter in order to turn towards Ryo. “No, I didn’t guess it. I don’t like to make those kinds of assumptions about people, just in case I’m wrong.” He gave his friend a little encouraging smile. “How long have you known? I mean…is this a new decision, or…?”
Ryo shook his head gently. “No, I’ve always felt that way,” he admitted in a quiet tone, turning his eyes back to his dinner as he poked at it. “I never told anyone at school because I was afraid if anyone found out, I would be beaten up. They already thought I was a freak because I was so quiet and bookish, I didn’t want to make it worse.”
“Yeah, I don’t blame you,” Yugi sighed. “I can think of a lot of people at our school who would have beaten someone up if they found out they were gay. Sadly, it was probably the smart thing to do.”
Bakura glanced at him. “You’re taking this awfully well.”
Yugi shrugged. “Why wouldn’t I? It’s nobody’s business but your own who you like. Besides…” He paused, considering what he wanted to say, but wasn’t sure it would endanger him on a different level. Yami remained silent on the issue, though, so Yugi went ahead. “I know what it feels like. I…I am, too.”
Ryo sat up sharply. “But, Yugi!”
“I know, I know,” Yugi sighed, shrugging and looking away. “High school, Téa, blah blah blah. That’s past. Forget about it. Just know that…I understand. And I’m behind you.”
He glanced aside to find Bakura staring at him as if afraid to believe him, his brown eyes shining with wonder. “You don’t know how much of a relief it is to hear that,” he whispered for the sake of privacy. “Yugi…I thought no one would ever understand…”
“It feels like that, doesn’t it?” Yugi set a hand comfortingly on his friend’s shoulder. “But people can surprise you. All of our friends know about me, and they’re all fine with it. You trusted me, and if you don’t want me just running around telling everyone, I won’t. It’s a private thing, it’s your business. But don’t be afraid – you have my support, and the others’ too.”
Bakura nodded solemnly. “I do trust you, Yugi,” he said softly, “I felt like I could tell you and you wouldn’t judge me. You’re just that kind of person. But I didn’t except this much support.” Yugi began to withdraw his hand, but Bakura caught it and clasped it. “I was afraid you would hold it against me that the spirit of the Ring wants to do you harm, but you don’t. You’ve always been so forgiving.”
Yugi squeezed his hand and let go. “Well, I know it’s not you – the real you,” he explained. “You’re my friend, Ryo, and no matter what I won’t let you down. You’re right – that’s just who I am.” He brushed Ryo’s shoulder once more and returned to his dinner. “I suppose we shouldn’t waste our time, we have a train to catch.”
“Oh, yes, of course,” Bakura realized, picking up his chopsticks again. “We have all the time to talk on the way home, I suppose.”
“Yeah, we do.”
As they finished up dinner and walked to the train station, Yugi thought to himself that he had never seen Bakura so light-hearted before. Somehow, despite losing the tournament, confessing his personal secret to Yugi had brightened him up considerably. They talked all the way home to Domino in a quiet corner of the train, far from any other passengers, about things both silly and serious. Yugi still wasn’t sure he should come right out and tell Bakura about Yami, even though the spirit of the Ring already knew. For some reason, he didn’t think it right to have to explain the monthly ritual to Bakura and tempt his inner spirit with more details about it than he really needed to have. Yami didn’t seem to care one way or the other, he was merely watching and listening silently from within. Now that Bakura was comfortable speaking to someone about his personal life, he was more open to share things with Yugi that he never had before, about his family, his yearning for friends, the things that happened to him when the dark spirit controlled his mind. But neither of them wanted to dwell on that, so they kept steering the conversation toward lighter things. They sat with Bakura’s duel disk between them, and at one point, Ryo started idly rubbing a finger along a scuff on its edge. “I’ve had this since Battle City,” he noted, “it’s getting sort of beaten up.”
“You should see mine,” Yugi chuckled. “I’ve dragged that thing everywhere, it’s all scratched and dented and…I think there’s sand in some of the cracks around the disk,” he added with some disbelief. “Who knows where I picked that up. It still works just fine, though. I don’t know, maybe sometime this year I’ll save up and get myself one of the new streamlined ones.”
“Oh yes, I saw those,” Bakura said with some interest. “They’re very sleek. And they come already adapted for the wireless network, right?”
“Yeah,” Yugi nodded. “Man, I haven’t even gotten a chance to use mine, yet. My contract with Pegasus says I can’t lose any duels that can be tracked with a duel disk, or it’s over. So, no online dueling for me yet. I hope it’s as cool as it was when I saw the demo at the Game Expo.”
“You’re so lucky, Yugi,” Bakura pouted, laying a hand on Yugi’s arm. “To get to see all of that. It must have been exciting.”
“Nah, it was mostly boring,” Yugi assured, glancing down at the hand on his arm. The unsettling feeling he had been having throughout most of the evening pounced on him with a vengeance, as he realized at last what it was. Is he flirting with me? “Just the parts I told you about were interesting, the rest was a lot of boring seminars and lots of walking.”
“You’re being modest again,” Ryo chided him. “It’s all right to take pleasure in your good fortune, Yugi. You’ve had a hard year otherwise, you may as well enjoy what you have.”
“I guess you’re right,” Yugi said with a shy smile, taking his arm out from under Bakura’s hand in order to scratch at his neck. “I’ve just tried to put so much of that behind me. Between the holidays and my deal with Pegasus, we finally have a little room to breathe at the shop, so I’m not so worried anymore.”
“That’s good.” Bakura smiled adorably. “I’m glad for you.”
Yugi smiled back, but the thought crossed his mind again. If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear Bakura is flirting with me. But for the sake of tact, he decided not to say anything directly about it. He became conscious of Yami’s spirit inside him paying attention, now, as he tried to find a new subject to talk about. It would have been nice to somehow bring up his soulmate indirectly, just sort of slip it into conversation and see if it got noticed, but there wasn’t a chance. All the way home, Yugi kept his partner to himself, and parted from Bakura on the train platform without ever having told him that he was seeing Yami in that special way. His mind circled impatiently around the thought that maybe he should have done so, but Yami never spoke up to scold him. “I think we should be cautious,” he said only when Yugi finally needled him about it, since he knew the pharaoh’s spirit was listening to his every thought. “You have a point, that trusting Ryo with too much information about me and the ritual would inadvertently be giving it all to the spirit of the Millennium Ring. That he has chosen not to share his knowledge of us with his vessel is not for us to interfere with.”
“As long as we’re in agreement,” Yugi sighed to himself. “If you ever think I’m not handling something right, speak up. I want to know what you think.”
“Right now, my thoughts are in agreement,” Yami reassured. “Come, now. Let’s hurry home and get you to bed. You have far more important things to worry about than whether Bakura was flirting with you – like work, tomorrow.”
Yugi nodded and quickened his step, his face hunched down into the collar of his coat against the brisk winter wind. “For the record,” he prodded his spiritual partner, “do you think he was flirting with me?”
“Remember, Yugi,” Yami chuckled. “I don’t know that much about it.”
Yugi sighed out loud. “Oh yeah, nice excuse.”
A day or two later, in the evening, Yugi pounded down the stairs and breezed through the game shop, only calling out over his shoulder as he passed, “Bye, Grandpa, I’ll be at Joey’s!” He had a big envelope tucked inside his coat, and knew that when he got to his best friend’s flat, Joey would have one too. Now that Joey was home from classes for the day, Yugi was free to visit and compare the exciting news they had received. Joey met him at the door with a big grin. “You got it!” Yugi noticed.
“Yeah!” Joey laughed. “You were right – not two days after the nationals. Dude! Did you read it?”
“Of course!” Yugi laughed back as he came in and threw aside his coat so they could open their letters side by side and compare. “Is your passport up to date?”
“I dunno,” Joey said more seriously. “I think I have to check. Is yours?”
“Yep,” Yugi said proudly. “All we have to do is show up at the airport, then. Only kids under 16 have to meet at Industrial Illusions so their parents can sign the waivers and stuff.”
“Ain’t it great being an adult?” Joey snickered. “You think Pegasus is flying us out special?”
“Well, yeah…” Yugi took the ticket out of his envelope and looked it over. “This isn’t a normal plane ticket. See, it doesn’t even list the seats. This is just like the time Pegasus flew us to San Francisco to help him out – only not so much an emergency this time.”
“Awesome!” Joey tucked everything back safely into the envelope and then ran into his room to try to find his passport. Fortunately, it was in a somewhat safe location that he could get to quickly. “Yeah, looks like everything’s okay,” he noted. “I’ll just stick this in with the rest of it so I don’t lose it.”
“And then give the whole packet to Mai, because she’ll make sure you don’t lose it,” Yugi giggled.
Joey sighed. “Sadly, I have to admit that’s true. Well, she’s got hers too, so…”
Very shortly after that, Mai came home from work to find Yugi and Joey sprawled on their stomachs on the living room floor, Duel Monsters cards everywhere. At first she thought they were dueling, but on second glance, it seemed they were only going through their decks and talking about which cards to use in the tournament. “Look at you,” she said with a snort as she closed the door and dropped her keys on the counter. “A couple of geeks going nuts over your cards.”
“Change into something more comfortable and you can join us,” Joey said flippantly.
“Uh uh,” Mai disagreed as she stalked through the room toward the hallway. “Dinner first. It’s my turn, I said I’d do it. Yugi?” She paused before disappearing. “Have you had dinner yet?”
“Uh…no, not really,” Yugi replied, looking up from a handful of magician monsters.
“Wanna stay?”
“Sure!” Yugi then looked at Joey. “Is it all right?”
“What the boss lady says, goes,” Joey shrugged, and then grinned. “’Course. Dinner’s on us.”
As soon as Mai was gone to change, Yugi beamed across at his best friend. “It’s like you guys have always been together. You make it look so easy.”
“Yeah,” Joey said modestly, keeping his eyes down on his cards, his chin propped on one hand. “Color me shocked and amazed. I was always afraid that if I got serious with Mai, we’d find out that we really can’t stand each other. But everything’s just gone so smoothly. I’m waitin’ for the other shoe to drop, so to speak.”
“Oh, don’t, Joey,” Yugi said. “Everything’s fine. I don’t think you have to worry about anything going wrong between you and Mai. She didn’t spend long as ‘just a roommate,’ when you guys got serious she was happy to take the next step with you and never looked back.”
“I know. No worries, Yug,” Joey assured him, perking up a little. “I just don’t want to jinx it, you know? I love this…” He glanced sneakily over his shoulder to be sure Mai didn’t come out and catch him gushing. “I love living with her. I love that we’re just…together. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Yugi gathered his cards and stacked them neatly in front of him. “I’ll admit, I’m envious of you,” he smiled. “To be able to have your partner sharing their life with you all the time. I know Yami’s with me, but it’s not the same.”
“It’s okay, Yug. What you two have is your own kind of special, don’t knock it.”
They hung around and talked cards while Mai made dinner as promised, and then gathered around to eat and talk even more about the tournament. The boys watched with grins as Mai opened her envelope from Industrial Illusions and got the rundown on the arrangements for their trip to Hong Kong. “Wow, they’re sending us out early,” she noted. “We’re flying down a whole day and a half before the tournament begins. That means we’ll have time for some sightseeing,” she added with a sparkle in her eyes.
Yugi looked more closely at the dates. “That means we’ll be in Hong Kong over the full moon, and not still here at home,” he realized. “Uh oh. That might be an issue.”
“What? So Yami gets a vacation along with you, what’s the big deal?” Joey shrugged. “Unless…” A thoughtful look crossed his features. “You still worried about…what you told me about? With the ritual being weird?”
“Well, there is that,” Yugi admitted.
Mai looked back and forth between them. “What are you talking about?” she wondered. “What about the ritual?”
Joey nodded toward Yugi across the table from him. “Yugi told me, back at your birthday party couple months ago, that he’s been having some problems with the ritual. It knocks him out.”
“Yugi…” Mai gave him a concerned look. “You be careful with that stuff. I know Yami knows his way around magic but you’re not as experienced as he is…”
“I know,” Yugi sighed. “It’s not like it knocks me out for very long. It’s just…it wasn’t doing it before and neither Yami nor I can figure out why it’s doing it now. And there are other concerns.” But he just looked away and didn’t explain his comment. “He and I are going to have to talk it over. I don’t want to skip it just because of the tournament, but…I hope it won’t be a distraction. We both need to have our head in the game.”
Joey glanced aside at his girlfriend and smiled. “Don’t worry, Yug,” he said blithely. “It’s not like you’re gonna be the only one with distractions there.”
Mai looked smugly at him. “Speak for yourself, dork, I plan to be focused on the game, and the game alone.”
“Yeah right.” Joey then focused a pointed look across at their friend. “Now, if only someone had done like he said he was gonna do and gotten us the lowdown on the national champions.”
“Sorry Joey!” Yugi chuckled, not at all chastened. “I just thought, after Bakura was eliminated, that there wasn’t really any reason for me to be sticking around. I only really cared to know whether he was going to make it to the world tournament. We’ll meet them on the plane,” he added with a casual wave of his hand.
“Or just check the website,” Mai said. “I’m sure it’s already posted. If you really cared, you could find out all the finalists there, I bet.”
“If it’s any consolation,” Yugi said, “I didn’t recognize any of the names of the people who were still in it. Complete newcomers. Aside from Bakura, I didn’t see a single former tournament player there.”
“Really? Nobody?” Joey thought about it, and then shrugged. “Eh, maybe you’re right. If they’re all newbies, it doesn’t matter. We have more to worry about from each other than from national finalists.”
Yugi glanced at Mai, who was sitting comfortably with her arm over the back of Joey’s chair. “Did Joey tell you I ran into Kaiba, too?”
“Yeah, he mentioned it.” Mai gave him a sly smile. “Wasn’t too happy to see you, was he?”
“He’s certainly gunning for me,” Yugi said with a sheepish laugh. “That’ll make it interesting. It wouldn’t surprise me if he feels like paying me back for causing his KC game shops so much trouble.”
“If anyone deserves to play a game of payback, it’s you, Yug,” Joey said seriously. “He’s not the one who should be complaining. He’s got more money than he can spend in a lifetime, he has no right to be upset with you for trying to make a living.”
Yugi shrugged bashfully. “You know I wouldn’t do that, Joey.”
“I know you wouldn’t.” Joey reached across and smacked him on the shoulder. “That makes you the better man. Just stand up to him like usual. Show him that if he had wanted to put his business plans on the line in a duel, you still would have come out on top.”
“Speaking of duels…” Mai slapped Joey’s knee as she pushed herself to her feet. “I’m going to get my deck. Yugi, you and me. I need the practice. I’ve already dueled circles around Joey, I need a new whipping boy.”
Yugi consented, so he and Joey cleared away a spot on the table while Mai went in the other room to fetch her deck. “She’s bluffing, Yug,” Joey whispered to him. “I keep beating her, and she keeps getting pissed off about it.”
“Then it’s a good thing if she gets pissed off at me instead of you,” Yugi giggled. “Dueling against each other in the tournament can’t be good for your relationship.”
“Yeah, here’s hoping we don’t have to face each other. Not when it really counts.” Joey backed off as he could hear Mai returning. “It’s okay, though. When it comes down to it, there’s a lot more important things to us than bragging rights. Right Mai?”
“Bite me, sunshine,” she retorted as she plunked back down her chair and slapped her deck on the table. At least she was smiling. “All right, Yugi. You ready?”
Yugi laughed cutely. “Bring it on!”