Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh.

This is a gift-fic for Lady Banshee 999, who was my 500th reviewer for my fic Do You Dream of Me? There's nothing a writer likes better than seeing at ton of reviews in her inbox, hint hint. She requested a funny Halloween fic, and I am happy to oblige.

This is set between Duelist Kingdom and Battle City, and I'm using manga elements and anime elements and dub elements, as I often do.

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"Yugi?" Yami asked, wonderingly. "What is Jounouchi talking about? A hollow what?"

Yugi looked up from leafing through the collection of papers and markers and other random things in the art supplies bin and smiled excitedly. "It's an American holiday. You know, the country where Jounouchi and Shizuka lived when they were little, and that Rebecca's from? Jounouchi still has the accent of a region of it."

"Why he sometimes leaves off the ends of words?" Yami asked, interested. That would explain Yugi's friend's odd manner of speech.

Yugi nodded, frowned considering at an orange piece of construction paper, and then looked to see if there were any more. "Our English teacher asked Jounouchi to tell us about it, remember? I think that was when you went back in the puzzle, though."

"I did not want to disturb you in class."

Yugi nodded. He understood. Yami… really didn't want to impose on him, live his life for him, and that was why he came out so rarely, and never when Yugi was supposed to be doing something else. Yugi could usually tempt him out, if he made it clear Yami wasn't distracting him by continuing to prepare for school or doing something like this, but… sometimes he wished Yami would show up in class. It wasn't like he paid attention to the teachers anyway. "I know. Well, Halloween is on October 31st, and it's the Western equivalent of O-bon in August, when spirits come back to earth to visit their families." Yami had been so sad when Yugi had tried to explain O-bon to him, thinking he was supposed to find his family, but how could he when he was bound to the puzzle and didn't know if he had any living family, let alone where they were.

The mix-up had been kind of funny at first, with Yami rejoicing that at least Bakura would be out of Ryou's hair for one night… poor Ryou… but then Yugi had felt so sad for him. Yugi hated when something reminded Yami that he had no memories and didn't even know who he was.

"In America," Yugi continued, hoping to prevent Yami from remembering that conversation, "people decorate their houses to be scary and kids dress up as various things, some of them scary, some of them not. You remember the graveyard set at Duelist Kingdom where Jounouchi dueled Bones?"

Yami nodded. "I couldn't figure out what that was supposed to be. A… graveyard? A serious plot of land?"

Yugi snickered, finding a black marker and getting to work. "A graveyard is where the dead are buried, silly. It's supposed to be scary, like Halloween is scary."

A place for the dead? It didn't seem… he thought it should look different than the dueling arena there had. "Yes, where the dead are buried is dangerous." The dead should be well guarded. "But why are people returning to see their families something to be afraid of."

Yugi laughed, and started to say, "Well, of course ghosts and dead people are scary! They can haunt or possess you, or eat your brains!" but that wasn't something he should say to Yami.

Yami felt guilty enough for possessing him as it was. So, instead, he said, "It's a tradition. Kids dress up and try to scare each other and be scared. It's for fun. And they have this custom called 'trick or treating,' where they go up to people's houses in costumes, say 'Trick or Treat!" and the people give them candy. Jounouchi got to do it twice before his family moved here, he said. And the houses are decorated to scare people too."

"Is sounds like something he would enjoy," Yami said, smiling.

Yugi nodded. "He told us about one time he scared a trick-or-treater by jumping out at her. Before he was old enough to go trick-or-treating himself, his mom used to have him help scare people who came to their house."

So they pretended to be the dead to teach people not to be afraid of the dead? A strange way of showing respect. Yami knew that Yugi was trying to spare him thinking of… his condition. It was very sweet of his Aibou, his partner. Yugi was always thinking of him… even though Yami was the one who placed him in such danger, and therefore was the one who should work to make it up to him.

But Yugi was such a kind child and instead of bearing grudges wanted to be his friend. A friend of one long-dead, with who knew what sins upon his soul, to be imprisoned thus.

Not only did he owe him, Yami wanted to help him. So, he asked, "What are you doing with the papers?"

Yugi grinned, excited. "Our class is going to learn about American culture by having a Halloween party next Thursday! We're all going to wear costumes and decorate our desks and bring candy. We're going to have to speak English the whole time, so it's educational. Anzu's the Class Representative, so she's in charge of decorating the whole classroom, and Jounouchi and Honda and Ryou I are going to help her out. We get extra credit." Yugi needed that extra credit. Why had he ever told Yami what grades meant! Now Yami was worried he was making Yugi's grades slip! Yugi had tried to tell him they'd always been that low, but Yami hadn't believed someone as smart as Yugi did so poorly.

No one had ever told him solving the Millennium Puzzle would make him have to study! Of course, he hadn't believed what he had been told, by Grandpa, about the puzzle containing powers and so on.

Maybe it was a good thing he hadn't believed it. He might not have solved it then.

Studying and even Pegasus and Bakura were worth it, to have Yami with him.

Yugi should have paid attention to Yami, who had nodded and was clearly looking thoughtful.

The police never did find out who brought the fog machine to the high school and released wild animals and fire crackers in the halls.

Although, to be fair, most of the actual panic was Bakura's fault.