Yu-Gi-Oh!
Balance

CHAPTER NINETEEN – THE DAWN IS RISING

Marik plopped down tiredly next to his girlfriend as she and the others stared at Draco's lifeless body in utter shock. While Hermione and Harry were still unconscious, Dumbledore had asked him to use the Millennium Ring to help find the blonde boy. He never thought he would find him like this, though… never in a thousand years.

Dumbledore turned to Madam Pomfrey and requested that she fetch Professor Shadi for him. Marik did not understand how he was supposed to help, but he did not get a chance to ask.

"Doushite?" Yugi sobbed. "Why did that happen to Draco-kun? What happened?"

The little hikari pharaoh looked like he was going to cry any minute, and he was not the only one. Hermione had her head resting on Marik's shoulder, and he could feel that his cloak was already wet with her grief. Bakura had a lost look on his face, before he surprised everyone by standing up suddenly and going over to Draco. He felt around the lifeless body's pockets, before finally locating and pulling out his deck.

"Is that really necessary?" Marik asked, trying to figure out what he was doing. Bakura ignored him, however, shuffling through the cards, as if looking for something. Once he reached the last card, he stopped, a frown on his face.

"One's missing," he announced. "Diamond Dragon is missing."

The others were giving him strange looks, trying to figure out what that was supposed to do with anything. No one got a chance to ask, as the door opened and Madam Pomfrey returned with Shadi in tow. The Egyptian immediately went to the bed Draco was lying on, white robes whispering about him as he made his way through the ward. He stopped at the foot of the bed, a frown creasing his face.

"I feared this would happen," he said softly. "I tried to give him the Scales before it did, but he just didn't understand."

"Well, maybe if you weren't so damn cryptic…" Marik muttered under his breath.

Whether Shadi heard him or not, he could not tell. Either way, the white robed Egyptian did not respond as he reached into his robes and pulled out the golden Millennium Scale. He placed the Item on Draco's chest and wrapped one of the boy's lifeless hands around the shaft, before sweeping about and leaving the ward. Just as the door shut behind him, the Item came to life; issuing such a blinding light that everyone had to shield their eyes. The light soon died, returning the ward to normal except for one thing…

Draco's eyes were open.

The pale blonde boy sat up in bed, still holding onto the Scale, looking around at the others blearily. He held onto his head, as if to stop his world from spinning around as he took in their shocked expressions.

"Guys…" he began. "What the bloody hell just happened?"

Silence reigned in the ward for a good long moment. Then, with a cry of happiness, Yugi practically launched himself from his bed, once broken leg forgotten about, and wrapped Draco in a grateful hug. The others that were awake (Ron was still passed out cold) followed soon after, crowding around the confused boy while Dumbledore watched with a small smile on his face.

-.oOOo.-

Harry yawned lazily as he made his way about the grounds of Hogwarts. Nearly a week had passed since their escapade in the Shrieking Shack. The dementors had finally been forced to leave the school, and Ecillia was walking around more sour than ever because Buckbeak had escaped as well as Black. Anyone who even got near her in the halls was taking a gamble, as she was likely to lash out at a person if they even sneezed the wrong way. The plus side of it all was that Hagrid was in better spirits (no pun intended), and that was all that mattered to Harry and the others.

Ecillia did get some satisfaction out of what happened at the Shack. Snape, sour about having to have allowed Harry and the others set Black free, "accidentally" let slip to his class that Lupin was a werewolf. Everyone was mad at him for that; even Hermione wanted to let Aishisu send him to the Shadow Realm. Now the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher they had ever had was leaving of his own free will, afraid of what the parents would say if they knew their child was being taught by a werewolf. Harry had just got back from saying goodbye to him, during which Lupin had returned the Marauder's Map.

"Now, Harry," he had said with a wink, "I don't want to hear that you got in trouble with this."

Harry rounded the greenhouses, where he saw Draco hunched over on his heels, face to face with a fairly large garden snake. Grinning, he approached the other boy, making sure he heard him.

"Having an interesting conversation?" he asked, grinning.

Draco only frowned, however. "Actually… no," he replied, standing up. "I can't speak Parseltongue any more."

Harry blinked, surprised. "Hunh? Why?"

"I dunno," Draco replied with a shrug. "I spoke it just fine when I was in the forest, before Pettigrew grabbed me." He paused a moment, thinking. "It felt like… like he had taken something away from me. Maybe that's why."

Harry scrunched his face up in thought, trying to think of what Pettigrew would want from Draco. Nothing came to mind, however.

"Anyway," Draco continued, brightening up a bit, "are you guys going to come to Battle City this year? Seto said last year that he would provide you transportation if you wanted to."

Harry grinned. "Nah, not this year. I promised Ron I'd go with him to the Quidditch World Cup."

Draco crossed his arms. "Oh, darn, that is this year, isn't it? Shoot! And I'm practically going to be on the other side of the world! Awwww…"

He thudded his head against the side of one of the greenhouses in frustration as Harry laughed. Grinning, he grabbed Draco by the arm and pulled him away from the wall.

"C'mon, Draco," he urged. "We still have to pack to leave tomorrow."

-.oOOo.-

BEWD1025: Mokuba's been doing a lot
better since we last talked. He should be
okay for going to England to pick all of you
up.

Yugi grinned as he read Seto's instant message. He was spread out on his stomach on his four-poster bed, the laptop the young businessman let him borrow in front of him and his legs dangling up in the air behind him. Yami Yugi was flitting about, packing up his suitcases so they would be ready for the train ride back to King's Cross tomorrow. The pharaoh looked up as he sensed his little one's happiness, and could not help but smile himself.

"Good news, aibou?" he asked, pausing his packing to sit on the bed next to Yugi, wrapping an arm around his waist.

"Hai!" Yugi replied as he started typing his response. "Mokuba-kun's going to be at King's Cross tomorrow with Seto-kun."

Yami Yugi blinked. "That is good news."

Yugi giggled at him as he sent his response.

CardMage0604: That's wonderful, Seto-
kun. I can't wait to see the both of you
again. It's almost been boring here without
you.

"Boring?" Yami Yugi asked, raising an eyebrow. Yugi giggled again at his expression, and at Seto's almost immediate response, which exemplified the point.

BEWD1025: Somehow I sincerely doubt
that…
CardMage0604: XD
BEWD1025: LOL! Anyway, I've got to
go. Mokuba's got an appointment in a few
minutes. The doctor has the last word on
whether or not he's going to be there
tomorrow.
CardMage0604: OK! Ja ne, Seto-kun.
BEWD1025: Ja ne, Yugi-kun.
BEWD1025 signed off at 2:40:18 PM.

Yugi signed off and shut down the laptop as soon as he saw that Seto logged off. He was about to get up and finish packing, when he realized he could not move. Yami Yugi was still holding him about the waist, lying across him slightly so that his face was buried in his hair. Yugi giggled, nudging his chest with his elbow.

"C'mon, mou hitori no boku," he urged. "We've gotta finished packing."

Yami Yugi hummed slightly, snuggling a little closer to his aibou. "Just a little longer," he murmured. "Your hair smells nice."

Yugi could not help but laugh. "How would you know what my hair smells like?" he teased. Yami Yugi lifted his head so he could look him in the eye.

"Don't know you know what your own hair smells like?" he asked, frowning slightly.

"Well, I don't exactly make a practice of sniffing my own hair," he replied.

Yugi took that opportunity to slip out from underneath his darker half and pick up packing where he had left off. Yami Yugi, however, was a bit concerned; he stood up, looking about the room for something, anything, to use as an experiment. Spotting Neville's Remembrall on the nightstand where he left it, the pharaoh went over to it and pointed it out to his hikari.

"Aibou, do you know what that feels like?"

Yugi looked up from his trunk, frowning slightly. "I dunno. I'd imagine it would feel like glass…"

His eyes went wider than normal as he understood what he other half was getting at. Yami Yugi nodded, before picking the Remembrall up. His aibou was right, it did feel like glass, cold and smooth to his touch. He ran his fingers over the gold detailing that encircled the tiny magical device, marveling at how going from the smoothness of the glass to the roughness of the gold felt under his observing digits.

The pharaoh felt something welling up deep in his chest. It was that same feeling he had, back when Yugi had completed the Puzzle what seemed like ages ago. It was the feeling of being born again, of being free after aeons of imprisonment. Only this time, it was not because he was conscious of the world about him again.

This time, it was because he could feel.

He set the Remembrall back on the nightstand, his hand shaking, his breath even shakier. He could not even remember the last time he had felt anything, smelled anything, used any of the senses on his own without the mental assistance from his aibou. Even when he would take over Yugi's body, he still had to get his senses from his hikari's memories. Now… no more.

"Mou hitori no boku…?" Yugi began hesitantly, before dropping what he was doing to run over and hug him. Yami Yugi welcomed the contact, the sense of feeling, with open arms; he held onto his little one with all his might, as if he would never let him go again. The feeling of having his warm body pressed up against him, the wonderful smell that was his aibou tingling his nostrils… it was everything that a hug really was. It was everything he had missed out on for the past five thousand years.

"Mou hitori no boku, you're crying."

Indeed he was crying; though the tears were still not his to shed, he could feel their warmth trickling down his cheeks before falling away, disappearing once they left contact with his "body". Yugi reached up to wipe them away, and Yami Yugi took that opportunity to take his hand and keep it there against his cheek.

"Aibou," he murmured, his voice choked with emotion, "I don't understand why this is happening to me… but by Ra, if this is a second chance for me to live a full life, I swear that life will always be for you."

Yugi smiled warmly, feeling like he was going to cry himself. He slid the hand that Yami Yugi was holding around to the back of his other half's neck, pulling him down slightly to give him a tender kiss, returning that promise to him. Yami Yugi felt like his head was going to explode at the contact, his newly returned senses going into maximum overdrive. Yet at the same time, it was such a wonderful feeling of euphoria coursing though his veins; he never wanted it to end…

"Urk…!"

"Gah!"

Yugi and Yami Yugi broke apart and turned around just in time to see Harry and Draco's backs as they retreated down the stairs. Yugi's whole face went red in embarrassment as he wondered how he was supposed to expect those two to look at him with a straight face. Yami Yugi just sighed, slinking an arm about his little one's shoulders.

"Oops," he said, a bit of a goofy grin on his face.

-.oOOo.-

The trip home on the Hogwarts Express came the next day as promised, and soon they were all in their favorite compartment at the back of the train, playing games and talking while eating their favorite snacks. Harry was staring vacantly out the window, watching as the last view of the castle disappeared behind the mountain. It would be another two months until he saw it again, and already he was missing the place.

"Buck up, Harry," Ron said, offering him a chocolate frog. "Remember, you're going to be coming to the World Cup with me. You won't have to deal with those Dursleys all summer."

"That's true," Harry agreed, opening up the treat. Ron grinned.

"And, hey, before then, I could always give you a call," he offered. "I know how to use a fellytone now –"

"Tellyphone," Draco corrected.

"Telephone," Hermione stressed, exasperated. "Honestly, Draco, I would think you'd know how to pronounce it by now."

Bakura chuckled. "Hermione-chan, you're talking to someone who calls a TV a veletision."

Draco pouted, looking at the two of them sourly. "I'm working on it! Cut me a break!"

That helped brighten Harry's mood more than he had expected. He joined everyone in playing Duel Monsters, though after Yugi and Yami Yugi both won five rounds each, they were banned from playing. That did not stop them from playing against each other, which they attempted to do, though they were still tied sometime around lunch, at which time they decided a friendly "good job" would suffice before they all pounced on the witch with the tea cart and grabbed themselves a big lunch.

The best surprise arrived some time around mid afternoon, when they were closing in on London. Marik looked up to see something fluttering outside the window. He pointed it out to Harry, who opened it up, allowing a small owl into the compartment. The bird dropped an envelope that was far too big for it onto his lap, before zipping about the compartment happily, pleased with its accomplishment. Hedwig and Panseru clicked their beaks disapprovingly (Bakura's owl, Talia, was still sleeping), while Rishid and Crookshanks watched it from where they were lounging on the floor. Ron reached up and grabbed the tiny animal before it became cat food.

"Hey, it's from Sirius!" Harry exclaimed, having already opened up the letter.

A chorus of the words, "What? Read it!" in three different languages went through the compartment.

Dear Harry,

I hope this letter finds you before you reach your
aunt and uncle. I don't know whether they're used
to owl post.

Buckbeak and I are in hiding. I won't tell you
where, in case this owl falls into the wrong hands.
I have some doubt about his reliability, but he is
the best I could find, and he did seem eager for the
job.

I believe the dementors are still searching for
me, but they haven't a hope of finding me here. I
am planning to allow some muggles to glimpse me
soon, a long way from Hogwarts, so that the
security on the castle will be lifted.

There is something I never got around to telling
you during our brief meeting. It was I who sent you
the Firebolt. Crookshanks took the order to the
Owl Office for me. I used your name but told them
to take the gold from my own Gringotts vault.
Please consider it as thirteen birthday's worth of
presents from your godfather.

I would also like to apologize for the fright I
think I gave you that night last year when you left
your uncle's house. I had only hoped to get a
glimpse of you before starting my journey north,
but I think the sight of me alarmed you.

I am enclosing something else for you, which I
think will make your next year at Hogwarts more
enjoyable.

If you ever need me, send word. Your owl will
find me.

I'll write again soon.
Sirius

Harry turned the envelope upside down and shook out a small piece of paper with a simple note on it, granting him permission to go to Hogsmeade next year.

"That'll be good enough for Dumbledore, that's for sure!" Bakura exclaimed.

"And see?" Hermione asked. "I told you Black sent that broom!"

"Yeah, Hermi-chan, but it wasn't jinxed, now was it?" Marik asked teasingly, just as Ron let out a yelp. The hyper owl he was holding had nipped his fingers.

"Hey, hang on, there's a PS…" Harry said.

I thought your friend Ron might like to keep
this owl, as it's my fault he no longer has a rat.

Ron blinked. "Keep him? For real?" He paused a moment, before holding out the small owl for Crookshanks to sniff. "What do you think? Definitely an owl?"

The cat purred.

"Then that's good enough for me," Ron said happily, cuddling the small animal. "He's mine!"

The ride continued on much in the same way as it always did, and before anyone knew it, they were pulling on their muggle cloths and leaving the train with their luggage, with Yami Yugi retreating back into the Puzzle before they left. It took a while as always to get out from platform nine and three quarters, but once they did, they were in for a treat.

"Oy! Yugi-kun! Everyone!" Seto called from where he was standing next to the board showing the arrival and departure times. Standing next to him, holding his hand tightly, was his little brother, Mokuba. He had grown a bit over the year, and his once long black hair was cropped short, obviously because of surgery.

That was not what was important though. What mattered was that he was still alive.

Marik went up to the little Kaiba, giving him a hug before lifting him up onto his shoulder. Tried to put him on his shoulder, anyway; everyone laughed at the stressed look that appeared on the Egyptian's face when he realized that with height comes extra weight.

"You get any taller and you'll be able to crush me," he said, setting Mokuba back down on the ground again.

"So, how did it go after I left?" Seto asked Bakura as Yugi took his turn to hug his brother. "You guys get into trouble as usual?"

"It wouldn't have been a normal school year if we hadn't," Draco answered for Bakura, grinning.

Ron was suddenly tugged away by his brothers and sister, over to where their mother and father were waiting for them.

"Bye, you guys!" he called. "Harry, I'll give you a call this summer!"

"Bye Ron!" Harry shouted after him, just as he spotted his Uncle Vernon coming toward him.

"What's that in your hand?" his uncle demanded once he was close enough. "It better not be another bloody form for me to sign, or –"

"It's not," Harry cut him off, knowing that this was going to be good. "It's a letter from my godfather."

"But… but… you haven't got a godfather!" Vernon sputtered.

"Yes, I have," Harry said brightly, grinning as he heard Marik sniggering behind him. "He was my mum and dad's best friend. He's a convicted murderer, but he's broken out of wizard prison and he's on the run. He likes to keep in touch with me, though… keep up with my news… check if I'm happy…"

The look of abject horror on his Uncle Vernon's face was beyond priceless. Even Hermione was trying not to laugh out loud, and Harry could have sworn he heard Yami Bakura and Yami Yugi howling with laughter from their respective Soul Rooms. As it was, their hikaris were red in the face from the chuckles they were trying to hold back. He turned to them a moment, a broad smile on his face.

"I'll see you all next year," he said happily.

"See you, Harry," Seto replied, the only one that did not look like he was about ready to bust out laughing any minute. "Hope you have a very good summer," he continued with a small grin.

Harry could not help but return the grin. He already knew this summer was going to be much better than the last…