Um, okay, I lied. There is no lemon. Decided to actually keep this ONE story at a T rating. If you want Puzzlesmut, go read Asomatous. (And I'm working on that, I promise!)

Decided to give Yami/Atem the POV in this one. I'm strange that way.

- x - x - x - x -

Needless to say, everyone is confused at first upon our return. Joey and Tristan both stare at me with eyes as big as dinner plates, and Téa gives me a look that clearly says she doesn't understand, but is extremely fascinated by my now physical form. I almost feel sorry for her.

Solomon, however, acts as though this is completely normal. "Ah, so this is the infamous Pharaoh!" he says jovially, reaching out to shake my hand. "Welcome back, my boy!"

I can't help but chuckle at this. "Jii-chan, I'm more than forty times your age; I find it ironic that you would call me that." He positively beams at my addressing him as family, and I can feel Yugi's happiness at the same thing - thank the Gods, our mental link has remained.

"Man... You really do look just like Yugi," Joey comments, scratching the back of his head. "Is that just 'cause you were in his body for so long, or...?"

"No, this is exactly how I was three thousand years ago... Give or take a few years on my age."

"That's kind of creepy," Tristan says. "You have the same hair and everything..."

"Well, I am the Chosen One," Yugi says, grinning and taking my hand. It still amazes me, the sparks that resonate through my body at such a simple touch from him.

Téa stares at our interwoven fingers for a moment, and manages to regain her composure. "It's good to have you back, Pharaoh." Both Yugi and I can tell she's disappointed, but well... I only have eyes for him. My aibou. And there isn't a thing that can change that.

- x -

Above the shop, we enter his bedroom. Our bedroom, I suppose, now. It's the same as it's always been, but it feels different actually having him beside me. He smiles vaguely, gazing at the desk, and goes over to it, sitting in the chair and leaning his head back to look at me upside-down.

"You remember?" he whispers, nostalgia swimming in his violet eyes.

The same vague smile appears on my lips. "How could I forget?" My voice comes out as barely more than a breath. I cross the room in a few swift strides and take his face in my hands, and deposit a kiss on his lips, just as I did years ago, as a spirit. His hand comes up to comb into my hair, and mine slide from his shoulders down his chest. He sighs into my mouth and breaks the kiss, and we simply gaze into each other's eyes.

Simultaneously, I move to his side, and he turns to face me. I kneel and press my ear against his chest, listening to the wonderful beat of his heart. After so many years of resting against him inside the Puzzle, it's amazing to truly feel that pulse.

"I... have had time to think," I murmur, and I sense worry flooding into him. "No, don't. It isn't something bad." I lift my head to look him in the eyes - oh, I will never get tired of gazing into those gorgeous amethyst eyes! - and I can't help it. I smile. He's simply so perfect. How in the world did I ever get so lucky? "I never knew when I agreed to this, that I would be able to experience paradise without setting foot in the Afterlife..." My hand is drawn to his cheek, cradling it perfectly in my palm. "I never imagined..." I trail off, unable to find words to describe it.

"Me," he finishes, understanding my thoughts. "... Us."

"Us," I echo, hoping he can see my utter bliss, though my mouth refuses to smile.

"Atem," he says, his voice soft, yet even. "I love you."

Oh, Gods, the weakness this boy instills in me... Never have I felt so powerless, yet at the same time, strengthened beyond words. The emotion pouring from him is enough to bring a grown man to his knees and cry at the sheer beauty of it.

"I love you, Yugi," I murmur in response, bowing my head. Though I was once a proud and mighty Pharaoh, he reduces me to the most humble and loyal of servants. And oh, do I love it. "My aibou... I shall stay by your side, forever."

May the Gods strike me down if I ever break that promise. I can feel them smiling down upon us, tangled in bedsheets, as he allows more than just my soul inside of him... My pleasure becomes his, and his mine, and we share the deepest, most intimate connection ever formed.

For a few, fleeting, glorious moments... We are as one again. The way it has been for years; the way it was meant to be.

- x - x - x - x -

That totally wasn't a lazy ending, but hey, I compromised. You got some watered-down sex, now be quiet. I'm tired, okay?

Anyway... Now that this is done, I'll work more on Asomatous and Inner Demons, so you can get your fix of more explicit man-lovin'.

As always, thanks for reading, and remember: I own jack shit.