You know, I'm not really sure if I should post the final chapter. I mean it's just too sappy for words and you all deserve better. So I figure I might as well end it now...

All right, you guys twisted my arm, I'll post the final chapter. ;-) Yeah right, like I was really going to leave you guys hanging. Despite evidence to the contrary, I'm not that evil. Oh yeah, and be sure to stick around for a special announcement made by yours truly.

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Tea and Yugi's Grandfather had been keeping constant vigil over Yugi for the past five days since Tea . Yugi's other friends stopped by to see how he was. Joey's sister, Serenity, asked how Yugi was doing when she dropped by with some clothes for Tea. Tea had asked Joey to go over to her house to pick them up and Joey said that he decided that Serenity would make a better candidate (Tea had a feeling that it was Mai who made a change seeing as how a girl would be a better choice to bring over girl clothes). Duke Devlin and Mako Tsunami dropped by on the third day. When Tea told them everything that happened, they regretted not being there for Yugi. It was a surprise when Rex Raptor actually asked Tristan and Bakura what happened to Yugi and actually seemed empathetic for Yugi. Tea had a feeling that as much as Rex disliked Yugi, even he was glad Yugi wasn't killed. Even Kaiba stopped by, claiming that it was Mokuba who wanted to see how Yugi was and he was just being dragged along for the ride. Nobody questioned him on whether or not it was a bluff.

A slight moan was the first sign they had that he was waking up on the fifth day. Tea and his Grandfather watched as Yugi's eyes fluttered open and he sat up.

"He's awake!" Tea said happily.

"Yugi," his Grandfather addressed.

"What happened to me?" He asked. He looked around and finally saw Tea. The memories came flooding back to him. "Tea!" The two joined in a fierce embrace. "Are you all right?"

"I should be the one asking you that."

Since the two of them were too emotional to say anything more, Solomon decided to say something. "Well, it's been a long week, I think I'll go down and make us some tea. Would you like some?"

"Yes, thank you, Mister Moto."

As Solomon turned to leave, he whispered in Yugi's ear, "She's been here ever since she brought you home." Yugi's cheeks reddened slightly at that. Solomon left.

"Yugi... do you remember anything?" Tea asked.

Yugi nodded. "I remember the timer counting down and Edric escaping through a trap door. And then... somehow, I ended up in the Shadow Realm." Tea gasped. "I know, but I guess it was the only way to save my life. There, I saw the Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl and..."

"And what?"

"I... I honestly don't know who she was," Yugi said semi-lying. "She was probably just another humanoid Duel Monster, but... she looked like you."

"Like me?"

Yugi nodded, "Only not as pretty."

"You... you think I'm pretty?"

Yugi realized what he said a fraction too late but he nodded. "Well... yes, yes I do. I... I thought so ever since I first saw you."

"Yugi..." Tea sat down on the bed. "When Edric's mansion exploded, I... I was afraid, afraid that you were gone forever. It felt like someone just shot a cannon at my heart. But... when I saw you emerge from that beam of light, I came to realize how much I enjoyed having you in my life, how important you mean to me."

"I'm... important to you?"

"What I'm trying to say is... is..." Tea closed her eyes tight. "I love you, Yugi. I didn't want to admit it, but I do. I love you, Yugi Moto, with all my heart and soul."

Yugi looked at his Millennium Puzzle which was hanging by his bedpost. "Tea..." Tea opened her eyes and stared at him. "When I first got the Millennium Puzzle, I made a wish on it. I never told you what it was because I was afraid it wouldn't come true, but I think it's safe to tell you now. I wished for someone to be my friend. And the puzzle came through for me big time. Before, I thought I was going to be a loner for the rest of my life. Now, I have lots of friends: Joey, Tristan, Bakura, Mai, and Duke, even the Kaibas, and... you... especially you, Tea. You saved my life plus you were kind and thoughtful, something that I had rarely experienced up until you pushed me out of the way of that moving car. I... I guess what I'm trying to say is..." Yugi wrapped his arms around Tea again. This time, he landed a quick kiss on the corner of her lips. "I love you too, Tea Gardner, with all my heart and soul."

Tea returned the embrace. The eyes of both people in the room were overflowing with tears. "I'm so glad."

"Me too, Tea, me too."

From outside, Solomon decided that the tea could wait and decided to go down and tend the store.

Yami watched the two in spirit form. He looked up at the skylight and at the sun shining down, as if all the gods were giving their blessing on this. At least for now, all is right with the world, he thought as he returned to his soul room inside the Millennium Puzzle.

Yugi and Tea stayed locked in that embrace for a while; finally revealing their feelings, finally glad that the truth was known and finally, and glad that they knew that their hearts and souls would always be together.

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The next day, Yugi and his friends (including Kaiba and Mai) were walking down the street towards the Duel Dome.

"So bud, are you all right?" Joey asked.

"Yeah, for once, you slept longer than Joey," Tristan agreed.

Yugi and Tea shared a knowing smile. "I've never felt better." Yugi turned to Kaiba. "Hey Kaiba, any time you want that rematch, let me know. And I promise that this time, I won't hold back."

Kaiba nodded in that high-and-mighty manner that everyone was used to (and mostly ignored). "I would be insulted if you dueled any other way, Yugi."

"Hey guys, take a look at that," Mai said pointing to a television in an electronic store which was showing a news report. On it, they were treated to the image of Edric Masters being ushered into a police car.

"They're real, I tell you! They're all real!" He was arguing. "Please, believe me! They're real, Duel Monsters are real!" Edric's yelling was frantic, like a man possessed.

The desk anchor came on. "Edric Masters, head of Gamma Technology, was taken into custody today after authorities received evidence that Masters was involved in the thefts of Kaiba-Corp. technology as well as kidnapping and attempted murder. While the details of the evidence are being kept secretive from the media for now, prosecutors believe that Masters might receive a lenient sentence on the insanity plea after claiming to have seen real-life versions of Duel Monsters, a popular card game from Industrial Illusions. Despite his innocence or guilt, Gamma Tech's Board of Directors agreed to transfer control of their company to a neutral party until a new head can be appointed. In addition, Gamma Tech has ceased the take over of Kaiba Corporation, stating that it was interfering with their company business."

Everybody except Kaiba was bewildered. "Okay, how did that happen?" Yugi asked.

Kaiba chuckled. "Edric may have known I was watching your duel with him, but I don't think he knew that I was recording it. Anyone who messes with me must be ready to risk it all."

"I couldn't have thought of a better punishment for him: using technology to bring him to justice," Yugi said.

"Yugi Moto!" Everyone turned to see Weevil Underwood standing there looking mad as hell. From his wrinkled clothes and messed up hair, Yugi and the others concluded that he was still in the recovering stage from his duel against Mai. "I challenge you to a duel! And this time, I'll continue to dog you until you accept my challenge! And neither you nor your hive of friends can stop me"

Yugi turned to his friends. "What do you guys think, should I duel him?"

"Squash this maggot, Yugi," Tristan encouraged.

"If I can beat him, you can beat him," Joey threw in.

"Ditto," Mai agreed.

"After dueling Kaiba and Masters, Weevil should be a piece of cake," Bakura commented.

"I've never seen you back down from a challenge before, Yugi," Kaiba said. "Don't start proving me wrong now."

Yugi looked at Tea. "What do you think?"

Tea kissed him on the cheek and said, "Wipe him out, Yugi!" Kaiba handed Yugi a new Duel Disk (a "get well quickly so we can duel" present). Yugi inserted his deck into the slot. His Millennium Puzzle shined brightly as Yugi and Yami joined souls. Yugi realized how lucky he was to have them all as friends, even Kaiba. And he realized that what he told Edric was true, that he would gladly give up his titles and victories for his friends.

"All right, Weevil, you want a rematch, you got one," Yami-Yugi said. They activated their Duel Disks. "But this time, I won't be showing any mercy! So prepare to lose again because play time is over. It's time to DUEL!" Yami-Yugi drew his first card and the duel began.

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And there you go, I hope you guys enjoyed it. As always, I welcome any comments you guys might have. I put a lot of heart into this (just like I do with most of my other stories) so, I'm glad to see that all my hard work is paying off.

Oh, that's right, I promised you guys a special surprise. Well, I have a couple of surprises for you, one which you probably already know. My next step for this: is to convert it into script format. Now, I'm perfectly aware that frowns on script stories. Well, I guess it's a good thing I have my own web site. I'll post two versions up there. The one you just read and a script version that might make some of the things said and done in the story version make more sense. I'll post the link in my bio.

Now, for the second surprise: the version you have just read... is only the first draft. That's right, people, while you guys were reading the latest chapter, I was making revisions to my earlier chapters. I'll eventually post the revisions, right after a short break (hey, creativity is hard work).

I also have another little surprise for you (I know Christmas isn't for a few months, but hey, I'm a giving type of guy). You know the "story" told to Yami and Yugi about the defeat of the great evil by the bearers of the Millennium Items? Well... I'm in the planning stages of turning that into a story. Maybe I'll even throw in my own version of the discovery of the Millennium Puzzle. At any rate, you'll find out who the mysterious Tea look-a-like is (if you don't have an idea already). If you guys have any suggestions on what I should include, feel free to speak out, either e-mail or post it in a review or anything.

I'm probably torching the whole Yu-Gi-Oh! canon continuity by writing all this. But I'm doing all of this for you, the reading public. So for now, this is Ry... I mean Phantom, signing off.

Oh yeah, one more thing, if you guys pick up the November issue of Writer's Digest, you'll find a small article on fanfiction on page 8. is mentioned. Just thought you guys might want to know.