This is the last chapter. I recently found out that proper name for Yami Yugi's name, thanks to Yuki-san loves KKM. I will be calling him Atemu from here on out. I will get around to fixing the other chapters eventually. This segment focuses on both Yugi and Anzu. They discuss everything from Rebecca to Atemu and what it all means.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monster of the Yu-Gi-Oh! the manga.

Yugi turned around to see Anzu walking over. 'Not good,' he thought. It was no secret that Anzu disliked his female fans for fawning over him. Dislike wasn't a strong enough word. She loathed his usually overly flirtatious female fans. The incident with Vivian came to his mind. When he and Jounouchi competed in the K.C. Grand Prix he had met the Duel Monsters champion of Asia, Vivian Wong. She was fairly attractive, but her personality was way too overbearing for his tastes. Vivian was a devoted fan of his, a little too devoted. She was infatuated with him. She constantly flirted with him every chance she got. Jounouchi and Honda envied Yugi and told him so. Anzu on the other hand was infuriated. When the gang watched Rebecca's duel against Vivian, the Asia Champion continued to flirt with him. This promoted Jounouchi and Honda to praise him which finally made Anzu snap. She screamed at all three of them. Yes that included him. How he suffered her wrath was beyond him. It wasn't like he was returning Vivian's affection. If Anzu was that angry at him for Vivian's flirting and the guys praises how angry would she be if she saw him and Jun flirting with each other? If she got so worked up on one sided flirting from women then her fury would be hundred times worse if she witnessed the Duel King actively flirting back. He gulped silently. She would kill him or at the very least beat him within an inch of his life. Anzu was bothered by all of the fan girls never ending adoration, taking his time away from their friends, from her. Suddenly he felt a wave of guilt wash over him. He had been flirting with Jun. Despite knowing it would bother Anzu. Why would he do such a thing? 'Because you are single and are free to flirt with anyone you want to,' answered his subconscious. That's right they were not together. He didn't do anything wrong by flirting with Jun. If that was true then why did he still feel guilty?

"Yugi, is something wrong?" Anzu asked. He jumped at the sound of her voice. Anzu walked up to him without his noticing. He was really distracted for him not notice her arrival. It must have shown on his face, judging by the odd look Anzu was giving him.

Yugi shook his head. "No I am fine, Anzu," he said. His lips curled into a U shape. He tried to brighten his purple spheres in an attempt to ease the brunette. Hopefully his voice did not convey any of the guilt swirling around in him.

Apparently it didn't because the odd expression faded away from Anzu's face. She turned her attention to Jun.

"So Yugi who is your friend?" she asked. There was a slight edge to her voice. Anzu widened her lips into large smile. However Yugi could tell it was false. There was no joy in that smile at all. It was hollow and forced. Her blue eyes gave her away.

'This is already going badly,' he thought. Yugi continued to keep his smile plastered anyway. If there was a chance he could keep this meeting civil he would find it. "Anzu, this Jun she is a duelist I just met a little while ago." He noticed Anzu's blue eyes narrowed slightly. The anger was only there briefly, but he still saw it in her eyes. No doubt she thought the reason for his tardiness was all of Jun's doing. Upon a second inspection he saw no trace of any anger on Anzu's face. Deciding it was safe for now the tri-color shaded hair man turned to the red haired woman. "Jun, this is one of my best friends Anzu." As he introduced the two women he couldn't help, but pray this would not end horribly. There were only so many times he could escape the brunt of the brunette's fury.

Anzu stuck out her hand for Jun to shake. She continued to force her smile, while fighting the jealousy and envy that was rising to the surface. "Hi."

Jun curved her lips into a modest smile. Unlike Anzu or Yugi's it was not strained or forced. She took Anzu's hand and shook it. "Hello."

Anzu's eyes traveled up and down Jun's figure. She thought that this woman was attractive from far away, but getting to see her up close made her realize how wrong her assessment was. Jun was not attractive. She was breath taking! How slim could you get! Seriously she was a pole. She possessed these dazzling emerald green eyes that brought out the shine in her brilliant red hair. Jun could probably give Mai a run for her money in looks. She took after Mai in not being afraid to show cleavage. That was obvious judging by how she displayed them for the world to see. Anzu was feeling incredibly self-conscious. She never prided herself on her appearance, but she never felt unappealing. However compared to Jun she felt so….inadequate. She had never felt so inadequate in her life. Jun was flawless, a model. She was just the right size, the right height, long yet shapely legs, flawless skin, gorgeous eyes, luscious lips, amazing nose (she didn't even know you could have an amazing nose), and confidence to spare.

Suddenly all those imperfections, like her picking up a little more weight or how hair refused to straighten out this morning became a hundred times worse. Ever since Yugi had become a world known duelist she had started to pay a little more attention to her appearance. She didn't go overboard with trying to "glamor" herself up. No, she wasn't going to wear a god awful amount of make-up. She spent a little more time on her hair in the morning or just added a touch of blush to her cheeks. She took a little more care in choosing her wardrobe. Anzu may have been unsure about her conflicting affections for Yugi and Atemu, but she still held affections for Yugi. When the world started to see what she saw it was only a matter of time before girls took notice of his qualities. The title of Duel King probably drew girls in, however it would be Yugi's kind heart, welcoming personality, and good looks that kept them captivated. With each new tournament won more fame was added to Yugi. Dueling continued to grow with Industrial Illusions releasing new cards and hosting more charity events, such as giving free cards to orphans and hosting tournaments with new cards as rewards for the winners (along with some prize money). There was the Kaiba Corp's latest holographic technology making monster more and more life-like. Yugi even mentioned something about Kaiba thinking about opening schools dedicated to teaching people to duel. She had to hold back a laugh when she heard it. Dueling was big, but whole schools revolved around teaching it. Come on there was no way that would catch on. As dueling kept growing so did Yugi's fame.

There was hardly anyone who did not recognize him anymore. That's when the fan girls came. It was as Jounouchi and Honda said some of Yugi's fan girls looked hot. It was enough that she had to worry about the girls at their school. Now she had to compete with nearly every single (by single I mean not in a relationship) woman on the planet between the ages thirteen to thirty. No she wasn't exaggerating. One time she actually saw a thirty year old flirting with Yugi! While Yugi signed her son's autograph she flirted with said son's idol. Anzu was a little crazy when it came to fan girls' annoying and shameless flirting, but was it any wonder. With a beauty like Jun her ability to compete was becoming more than just harder; it was a near hopeless task. Every fiber of her being was screaming at her to get Yugi away from this woman as soon as possible.

"Yugi, the others are waiting for you outside. You know how Jounouchi and Honda get when they are hungry." Anzu tried to disguise the jealousy her tone.

Her attempt failed. Jun not only caught the jealousy in her tone, but also noticed that the smile on the brunette was false. Her eyes looked over Anzu. A small vein was throbbing on Anzu's forehead. She saw her tremble slightly as if trying to reframe herself from lashing out. These were unmistakable signs of jealousy. Jun pulled her eyes away Anzu and put them on Yugi. He too had a forced smile. For the first time since she had met him she saw something she thought he lacked, fear. He was actually fidgety. This man who had facedown countless duelists, stared down God monsters, and more importantly her without any worry. How was it possible that Anzu could produce this fear in him? No, it was not just any fear. This fear was recognizable. It was the fear she saw in men when their girlfriends caught them flirting with her. This was odd though. Yugi said Anzu was his friend, not girlfriend. But judging by the way both of them acted they were more than friends. But Yugi identified himself as single, thus he was fair game. She refused to feel guilty about flirting with a single man. A wicked idea formed. She decided to give Anzu a real reason to be jealous.

Jun and Anzu's hand shake ended. She flashed another smile at Anzu then turned to Yugi. "I did not mean to keep you from your friends, Yugi-kun," Jun said. Yugi widened his eyes in surprise. Jun used Kun to refer to him, something she did not do before. Another thing that he found odd was her tone. It was much too sweet. Whereas before it was smooth and bold. Jun bent down slightly. Her left hand caressed his cheek. He could not stop the pink tint in his cheeks that came. His ears picked up a small growl from Anzu. He could feel her glare on back of his head. The former puzzle wearer could only chuckle nervously. He was certainly in a predicament. An infuriated Anzu who was no doubt glaring daggers at him and a playful and seductive Jun, were both bringing out anxiety within him.

"Jun, um what are you doing?" he nearly choked out. The crimson strands captured his attention. Jun's smile grew. He was bashful which she found cute. Her emerald eyes stole a glance at Anzu. She saw the brunette was fuming. Those blue eyes held such contempt for her actions. Jun had work hard to conceal the smirk threatening to emerge on her lips.

"Yugi-kun, you are quite handsome," she replied. Apprehension was flowing freely from him now. She would like to think that she was the cause, but knew better. Anzu was clearly the reason he felt so uneasy. "I could just get lost in your eyes."

Anzu wanted to strangle her. Who was Jun to caress her Yugi's cheek? That smile was so sinister. It conveyed this gentleness, but it was deceitful. She knew what it really was. It was to disarm her victims in order to seduce them and Yugi was buying it! Couldn't he see what Jun was doing? Or did he see it and welcome it? No, he would never do that to her. He wouldn't welcome this attention if he had a choice. Just like with Rebecca and Vivian she could see the discomfort in his purple eyes. She could taste his uneasiness. He did not want this anymore than she did. She had to stop this and rescue him. "Yugi, we really need to go." She did not attempt to hide her annoyance. She could have sworn she saw Jun smirk. When she looked again she saw the same deceitful smile from before.

"It looks like I am still keeping you from your friends, how rude of me." Her other hand found its way to his other cheek. Now both of her fingers brushed his cheeks lightly. Her emerald orbs met his royal purple ones. She mustered her most alluring gaze. Apparently the King of Duelists was not immune to a woman's charm. His gaze was unwavering. She doubted he could take his eyes off of her even he desired to. Although judging by the captivated stare he did not want to take his eyes off of her. This brought her some satisfaction. She honestly thought him handsome. A part of her wished him to think she was beautiful. Momentarily her quest to make Anzu jealous was forgotten.

"It's alright," Yugi replied softly. His subconscious told him to walk away from Jun. It tried to remind him that Anzu was there, that she was angry at his actions. He tried to pull himself away from Jun, but he could not look away from those sparkling emerald orbs. They held some sort of spell on him.

Anzu was driven insane by the green eyed monster that possessed her body. It snickered at her plight. Another woman was caressing his cheeks, staring at him with this longing affectionate gaze, edging herself closer to him. Wait when did this happen? Dread made itself known. Was Jun planning on doing what she thought she would do?

Was it his imagination or was Jun's face getting closer? Before Yugi could question her he found Jun's lips on his own. His eyes bulged out of their sockets. Caught totally unaware the tri-color haired man stood there frozen.

Her heart stopped. This sinking feeling grabbed hold of it. This was a nightmare. Yugi her Yugi was actually kissing another woman. That sinking feeling only got worse. It reached all the way to the pit of her stomach. The breath escaped her lungs. She was gasping for oxygen as her breathing became shallow. It hit her. This was real. As much as she wished it was not, the truth was what she was witnessing was reality. Yugi was kissing Jun. This was different from Rebecca's constant kisses on the cheek or fan girls fawning. With them she could always tell that Yugi was uncomfortable or didn't share their interest. That obviously was not the case with Jun. If he didn't like the kiss then he would stop it right? If he really did not want to kiss Jun he would have stopped it. He actually wanted to kiss her, he was enjoying it. Her vision was blurring. She rubbed her eyes, discovering that water had formed. She was shedding tears. She was drowning into a sea of hopelessness and loss. Had she lost Yugi? Losing Atemu was hard on her. The pain that came from that had been unbearable. It was like she had lost a piece of her heart. But this feeling right now, the thought of losing Yugi was soul shattering. It was as if a knife had pierced her heart then ripped it out. Everything was falling down around her. Her world was collapsing.

She experienced losing Yugi once before, when his soul was abducted by Raphael. This time felt so different. During that incident when she found Yugi was gone there was still a ray of hope that shimmered on her. Hope that Yugi would return to her. It was ironic. Yugi was standing a few feet away, yet he never felt so out of reach. Even when his soul was taken she still felt connected to him. Their hearts were still in sync. Would his heart still be in sync with her heart? Was it even in sync with her heart right now? It couldn't be or he would know how much it was tearing her apart to see him kissing Jun.

Jun ended the kiss, leaving Yugi stunned by what had just happened. She winked at him, going as far as to flash him a flirtatious, small smile. His face flared up so bad that she would never have guess his skin was any other color, but red. Not that she could blame him. She did prolong the kiss for a good deal of time. What could she say; Jun got caught up in it. She wondered how furious Anzu was. No doubt she was shooting her a death glare that could end the lives of whole armies. Jun turned to her left to see the brunette. What she saw was unexpected. Anzu was still, as if petrified by some invisible force. The blue eyes which held so much fury and contempt for her were now dead. They were so hollow, barren, and devoid of any hope. It was unlike the strong eyes that challenged her and told her to back off. These eyes had to belong to another woman. Anzu's eyes would not be stained with tears. The woman who glared at her moments ago was too strong for that. Even her color seemed to have left her.

'I went too far,' Jun thought. This was supposed to be harmless fun. She just wanted to provoke Anzu, give her a little reason for those subtle glares she gave her. The chance to flirt with Yugi was a bonus. At worst she thought Anzu would strike her. God, Jun wished she would strike her now. Instead all she did was break Anzu's heart into several pieces. She had done enough damage. Her U shape curved lips fell into a frown. For the first time in a while shame had slapped itself to her face. She looked Anzu in the eye, silently willing an apology to her. The blue eyed woman still held some of her pride; she quickly averted her gaze from Jun's. She deserved that. It was understandable that Anzu would shun her apology. She returned her sights to Yugi. He had reined in his emotions, because his original color had returned. "Goodbye, Yugi-kun. The next time we meet will hopefully be when I am worthy enough to duel you. I am sorry…..for taking your time," she hastily added the last part.

He sensed the change in Jun, but did not comment on it. He gave his encouraging smile, in hopes of easing her worries. "Goodbye, Jun." She waved at him then turned to leave. Yugi stood there and watched her go. He couldn't help, but wonder when he would see her again. This future rival would prove to be….intriguing. "Ready to go, Anzu…" He stopped in mid-sentence. Instead of being greeted by a fuming and monstrous Anzu as he was expecting, he was met with broken eyes with water threatening to flow from them. This expression was even worst then the one she wore when Atemu left them. A sharp sting jabbed his heart, infecting him with an enormous amount of guilt that made the guilt he felt earlier seem shallow. Anzu his Anzu was hurting. What made it worse was the fact that he was the cause of her pain. "Anzu, are you alright?" he asked. It was a stupid question. Cleary he knew she was not alright. She was as far from being alright as possible. Damn it. He knew she was bothered by Jun. Why didn't he just leave when she asked him to? He stayed and allowed himself to be kissed by Jun. Yugi had never felt like such an idiot before.

"Anzu," he tried again. Anzu did not acknowledge him. She turned her back on him and started to walk off.

Mesmerized by her reaction Yugi stared after her leaving form. "Anzu, wait."

Anzu did not stop, but she did increase her speed. This caused Yugi to panic. He chased after her. "Anzu, please stop and talk to me. Anzu!" he continued to cry. Anzu continued to ignore him though. She had no intentions of stopping, at least anytime soon. This left Yugi with very few options. He would have to cut her off at a nearby corner. If he wanted any hope of stopping her before she left the dome. Fortunately for him there was a shortcut coming up that he could take that would allow him to beat Anzu to the hallway. He made a sharp turn to his left while Anzu continued to speed walk forward. He urged his feet to increase their speed, as he broke into a run. Yugi was hoping that Anzu did not decide to run herself. Fortune seemed to still be smiling on him somewhat. By the time he had made it into the hall Anzu had just gotten there herself. He quickly jumped in front of her; cutting off her only escape route.

His lung cried in protest. He tried to appease their whines by taking deep breaths. The Kaiba Dome was huge. He had been running for at least ten minutes trying to catch Anzu before he took the shortcut. "No…. more running….Anzu," Yugi breathed out. "Now please…talk to me." The tears he had seen threatening to rush out before were now flowing freely. They stained her face as her upper lips trembled. However even though Anzu appeared to be broken her eyes mustered a glare of full spite. He was taken aback. That glare, that spite was directed at him. It was meant for him. Yugi had never been on the end of this glare before. He was unsure what to do or how to fix this.

"What's there to talk about, Yugi? You kissed Jun. That seems pretty clear to me," Anzu spat out with contempt. Yugi winced at her tone. She didn't care though. No, he hurt her and that was all she could think of. Right now she did not want to look at him let alone be around him. Her hand wiped the tears from her eyes. She desperately tried to regain at least some of her composure.

Yugi shook his head. "I did not kiss Jun. She kissed me," he argued. It was true. He did not initiate the kiss nor did he return it.

This didn't lessen Anzu's wrath. If Yugi's words had any effect they made the glare she was casting on him even darker. "You weren't trying too hard to stop her, Yugi," she said coldly. Her tone made the former puzzle wearer shiver. "You must have enjoyed it," she continued.

That was true. He didn't try to stop Jun. But why was she so upset at him? It wasn't like he had started that kiss. He made sure not flirt with Jun the moment Anzu appeared. He never wanted to hurt her. How could she not know that after all this time? They were friends. Or were they just friends? This was too confusing for him. Wasn't she in love with Atemu? Yes, she was in love with Atemu. How could she be upset with him over Jun? Not once did he ever get upset at Anzu for flirting with Atemu. He ignored all those loving glances she gave the ancient spirit. He endured that because he knew she was in love with him. He made it his peace with it long ago, even though it tore his heart to see them together when Atemu was in control of his body. He even went out of his way to give her personal time with Atemu. Now she was throwing this kiss in his face.

"That's not fair, Anzu. I have never blown up on you when you spent time with Atemu. You shouldn't be upset by Jun kissing me," he argued.

How could he even try to compare Atemu to Jun? Atemu never tried to seduce her. She had taken Yugi into consideration. She knew she wasn't always discrete about her attraction to his former alter ego, but she tried to be for his sake. Even on those dates she went on with Atemu in order to help him relax (both of which Yugi had set up) she never thought of trying to kiss him. In her dreams she had planted her lips on to the "other Yugi," but that was as far as it went. Anzu never tried to act out her dream. For her to even think about actually kissing Atemu was a betrayal to Yugi she would not do. Atemu may have been his own person separate from Yugi, but they still shared the same body, Yugi's body. She would never taunt Yugi by crushing her lips to his when it was meant for Atemu. "I never kissed Atemu though!" she shot shouted.

Yugi matched her glare. He frowned. "No you just put yourself in danger just so he would come out of the puzzle to save you!"

He was actually using their date to the amusement park against her. She understood her actions that day were cruel. She had apologized to Yugi and had hoped that the amusement park issue would never be brought up again. Apparently she had hoped for too much. "You are the one who kept insisting I go out on dates with him! You can't throw Atemu back at my face when you pushed him on me! After that day at the amusement park I realized how badly I hurt you. I never wanted to do that again, so I stopped trying to get his attention!

"But you still wanted it! I could see it in your eyes. Anzu, did you have any idea how much it hurt me to know that all those looks of concern or love were for him and not me? Do you know how much it hurts to know that you loved Atemu and not me?" he asked her.

She looked at him with disbelief. He honestly believed that she had no affection for him. He thought that every affectionate gaze, every touch, every smile, every jealous glare she shot at other women, where all meant for Atemu. Obviously he had thought about this for some time now. She could see that much, by merely gazing into his hurt eyes. Their undefined relationship had sparked another problem. Atemu was not with anymore, yet somehow their conversations about their relationship still went to him. Their bizarre love triangle would have to be resolved if there was any hope for either of them to move on with their lives.

Anzu inhaled a deep breath then exhaled it. She did this in hopes of throwing away the sorrow and anger she felt, and too take in the courage she needed now. "Yugi, what are we?" she finally asked.

"What?" He was utterly confused by what she was asking him.

"I mean what is our relationship exactly? We are more than just friends that much is for sure. Friends do not do what we do."

Yugi seemed to be contemplating her words. She wondered if he had thought about this question on restless nights as she had. He must have at least thought about it. If he hadn't she was sure he would have continued to question her further for more clarification.

'What is our relationship?' he questioned himself. Anzu was right. Their bond was so complicated. It could not be entirely platonic. Those times her gaze would linger on him when she knew it was him in control of his body and not Atemu stood out in his mind. Although it could be possible that he was making more of those lingering gazes then what they were. Yugi knew what he felt for Anzu was much more than platonic. He wasn't sure if he loved her, but he could see himself saying the words in the future. The thought of Anzu smiling at him and telling him she loved him brought a smile to his face. No, he was getting ahead of himself. Just because he had romantic feelings for Anzu did not mean she had the same feelings. How did Atemu fit into the equation? Did she still love him? Was she transferring her feelings for Atemu to him? He refused to be her replacement for Atemu. He wanted Anzu to be with him because she liked him, not because he looked like Atemu. He deserved that much and he would not take any less.

"Anzu, only you can decide what we are," Yugi finally said. Seeing the confusion in her lovely blue eyes he decided to elaborate more. "My feelings for you are stronger than friendship. Whenever I see you smile I can't help but to smile myself. When I see you are sad I can't help, but feel sad myself. When I see you for the first time of the day I get really happy. I relish that moment I first lay eyes on you." He saw her cheeks turn into a pink shade. Slowly a small smile crept its way through on her face. "Anzu, I want to be more than friends. I always have since we were in middle school. I've never thought you felt that way about me, so I kept quiet. I didn't want to ruin our friendship."

"Yugi," she uttered.

"Now it's your turn. What do you want to be, Anzu? Do you truly want to be more than just friends? Do you have any real feelings for me or do just see Atemu in me? I have to know. In the past I have always been afraid to hear your answer, so I kept silent. But that is a coward's way. I refuse to be a coward anymore. I cannot keep holding false hope for something that is unreal. I need to know what your feelings are for both me and Atemu. Anzu, tell me what he is to you."

They never talked about Atemu's part in their relationship at least not out loud. It was a taboo that would only lead to trouble. The taboo had to be lifted. In order to discover if he had a future with Anzu he had to know what she felt for his former alter ego. He had to hear her verbalize her emotions.

Anzu took another breath. She knew this was coming. If they were going to discuss their relationship of course Atemu would have to be discussed. That was the whole point of trying to resolve this bizarre love triangle. The trouble was she was still unsure which feelings were stronger, the ones she had for Atemu or the ones she had for Yugi. The only thing she could do was be truthful to him. It was the only way they would get anywhere. "It is true that I have romantic feelings for Atemu. When he left I felt like a part of me left with him. I still miss him."

He heard enough. Yugi tightened his right hand into a fist. He looked down to the ground. He was unable to look her in the eye. He finally had his answer. It was the answer he already knew. She wanted Atemu not him. He thought he had prepared himself for her answer. Yugi rehearsed Anzu saying those words a hundred times in order to brace himself for the harsh reality. Yet here he was hearing Anzu say these words and he still felt his heart ripped out of his chest. "I see. Thank you for telling me." He was about to leave until she stopped him by grabbing his hand.

"Please, Yugi. Let me finish." Yugi brought his eyes back to her. Those blue eyes that had enchanted him to her when they were kids had worked their power again. They were red now, but still looked beautiful to him. They pleaded for him to stay. What could he do? He was completely helpless against that look. The trio-colored haired man gave her a nod, agreeing to stay put.

When she saw him agree to stay she had to let out a smile. He needed to hear everything. Now that they were talking Anzu needed to tell him everything, she wanted to tell him everything. "I do have strong feelings for you though."

Yugi scuffed at her comment. He did not need her pity. If she was in love with Atemu so be it. He was not so weak that he needed her to make up a story about feeling something more than friendship for him. He turned his cheek to her. This upset Anzu. Her smile fell into a frown. What would it take for her to get him to believe her? "It's true!" she exclaimed. "I do have romantic feelings for you."

"Lying doesn't become you, Anzu," he muttered.

She fought the urge to slap him. Who was he to tell her how she felt? How could he think she would lie to him about this? "Yugi, why do you think I get upset every time Rebecca paws at you?" she asked.

He had completely forgotten about Anzu and Rebecca's unspoken rivalry which revolved around him. The pair would trade false smiles and pretend to be nice to one another. All the while they would challenge the other one to try something. Those dark glares Anzu would throw Rebecca were enough to make not only Yugi quiver, but even frightened Atemu. He could never interpret why Anzu was so defensive around the younger girl. It was not necessarily a sign that Anzu's feelings for him were romantic. It was entirely possible that Rebecca thought Yugi and Atemu were one in the same just as Anzu used to. If that was the case Anzu's jealousy would be over his former partner and not him.

"Rebecca could have been interested in Atemu as well. If she thought we were the same then her declarations of love could have been for both me and him. That would explain why you are so bothered by her actions." he countered.

Anzu looked at him as though he lost his mind. Surely he didn't believe that weak excuse that he came up with. He knew damn well that Rebecca was interested in him. She barely gave Atemu a second glance even though the pharaoh had shared Yugi's body. Was he blind? Of course he was blind. Yugi had never seen Rebecca's indifferent nature towards the ancient spirit. His soul was gone when Rebecca unleashed her anger on Atemu for losing him. The little times Atemu had emerged at the K.C. Grand Prix Yugi kept his attention on Atemu to support him during their duels. He wouldn't notice how different Rebecca looked at Atemu in comparison to himself. "When you and Atemu went to duel Raphael, Rebecca and I were alone together," she blurted out. He spared her a glance, asking her what this had to do with anything. "We talked about you. She told me that we were not rivals." More confusion radiated from his eyes. "Do you know why she said that?" Yugi remained silent. "She told me we were not rivals because she was only interested in you and not Atemu. She assumed like you did that I only had feelings for Atemu." She saw his eyes broaden in shock. "Even though she said that. I didn't feel any relief. I know she wants you, Yugi, just you. Her declaration made me feel uneasy." Her grip on his hand tightened.

Yugi stood there and stared. His eyes were on Anzu, but he was not focused on her. Once again he had become lost in his own thoughts. After listening to Anzu's revelation new thoughts formed, racing all over the terrain in his mind. He never knew that Anzu and Rebecca had that conversation. Considering his soul was sealed into a stone tablet after he and Atemu lost the duel to Raphael it made sense he knew nothing about the conversation. When he finally returned to his body they had to battle the Leviathan to save the world. Anzu had other things on her mind other than telling him about Rebecca's preference to him over his "other self."

"Yugi," Anzu called. Her tone was low and her voice was weak, but his ears picked up her words anyway. His focus went back to her. Those enchanting blue eyes were locked on to his purple ones. Her eyelids were half closed; the upside down U shape frown was present. Anzu gave him this sorrowful expression he found himself thinking she was so beautiful. She continued, "I don't like when Rebecca smothers you with hugs and kisses. It's not only Rebecca. Your fan girls always swoon over you. They make such a fuss. No matter how shameful it is they will do anything to get your attention. God one of them gave you her bra to sign. It makes me sick to my stomach. I…I get jealous when I see these women flirt with you, Yugi. Whenever they see me they give me this catty or smug little smirk that I just want punch their smug little faces in. Do you have any idea what it's like when nearly the whole world is your competition? Some of these women are drop dead gorgeous. Jun alone would make models envious and she was all over you, Yugi. It's hard not to be jealous of a woman who looks like that. I can't compare to her. Even on my best day I don't look half as good as her. I try not to let it get to me, but I can't help but think that someone like Jun is going to take you away from me."

"Anzu, that won't happen."

"How can you say that? Do you honestly prefer me to Jun? She is stunning and I am average."

"That's a lie."

"What?"

"You are anything, but average. Anzu, you are beautiful." Her blue orbs widened in astonishment. "Have you forgotten all the boys in our class used to ogle you? You are the Gunner, the girl who turned down any guy who asked her out. You received that name because so many guys asked you out and you refused. It's not just your physical appearance. You are so strong. You never give up at anything without giving it your all. If someone does something that upsets you, you let them know. You stand up for the people you care for. There are so many times you helped me out, Jounouchi-kun, and Honda-kun. I admire those qualities in you. They make up your beauty along with your hair or eyes or face. Don't say you can't compare to anyone or that you are average. To me, Anzu you are the most beautiful woman I know."

She shed new tears. These were not ones of sorrow. They were joyous. She wiped the tears away as well. She failed to realize that her lips had curved upward into a bashful grin. "That's sweet, but I am not more beautiful than Jun."

"In my eyes you are. There is nothing you can say that will change my mind." He gave her hand a tight squeeze.

"You are too much," Anzu muttered. Her bashful smile remained. She followed Yugi's lead and squeezed her hand in his. She did not want to release his hand. It felt right; holding his hand. She hoped their future would include more hand holding and perhaps something more. "I was really upset with Atemu when your soul was taken by the Seal of Orichalcos." She paused to wipe away more tears that had fallen from her eyes. The memory of Yugi losing his soul still brought back that void sensation she felt when she first heard he had lost his soul. "I couldn't believe he risked both of your lives by playing that card just to win. I was afraid that I would never see you again and that thought…" she stopped in mid-sentence. She searched her mind for the right words to describe that hollow feeling she felt back then. "I couldn't imagine not seeing you ever again, Yugi." Fresh tears began to flow down her face. "When I saw you again after your soul returned I was overcome with joy. I never wanted to let go again. I hoped so badly when you turned around that I would see you and not him, not Atemu. I am not sure what I would have done if it were him looking back at me instead of you…. I was so happy to see you, Yugi," she reiterated. Anzu wiped her face yet again.

"I didn't know you felt so deeply about my soul being abducted."

"It affected all of us, Atemu, Jounouchi, Honda, Rebecca, and me."

"I am sorry to have caused you so much grief," he apologized.

Anzu shook her head. "There is no need to apologize. It wasn't your fault. You only did what you thought was right. That's the reason I cannot be mad at you for that."

Yugi couldn't help, but smile. All of the things he was afraid to ask that stopped him from ever pursuing her were also what had stopped Anzu from saying anything. His jealousy of Atemu mirrored her jealousy of women such as Jun. If he didn't smile it would be sad. How hopeless could two people be? He knew now that her affections for him were genuine. Not everything was for his "other-self." But there was still one question that needed to be answered.

"Anzu, who did you want more me or Atemu?" He knew it was silly to ask. Even if she had wanted Atemu more he was gone now. Without the ancient spirit around her feelings for him could grow stronger. Could he be satisfied with that though? He just had to know if he was still in second place with Anzu like he originally thought. She averted her eyes from him. That was not a good sign.

"When Atemu was here I never came up with an answer," she replied truthfully. Yugi's face dropped. A wave of guilt washed over her. Why did she always hurt him? She just wanted to be truthful and she still hurt him.

He felt numb. He was unsure why though. Anzu did not choose Atemu over him that was good, but she didn't exactly choose him over Atemu either. Where did they go from there? Could they be together or would Atemu continue to be an issue they would not overcome?

"But during the Ceremonial Battle I did not want to see you lose."

"What?" He looked at brunette curiously.

Anzu's blue spheres met with Yugi's purple ones yet again. "I didn't want Atemu to leave. I won't deny that, but I never wanted you to lose the duel, Yugi. I thought at first that because I wanted Atemu to stay that I would be on his side. But I never once took solace when he was winning the duel. It was the opposite. I felt this dread in the pit of my stomach. When he summoned all three God cards, when he nearly defeated you using their might my heart stopped. I was afraid that you would lose and when you avoided defeat I was so relieved. That's when I realized that I was on your side. I was hoping that you would win. I wanted to see you win. I wanted to see you surpass your greatest rival. I wanted to see you realize that your strength was never Atemu. No all he did was draw out that strength you had all along. You were not just a body for him to use. All those duels Atemu faced, you were not just someone to observe his feats. You contributed to all of his victories; you shared those victories with him. All of those duels against, Kaiba-kun, Jounouchi, Mai-san, Pegasus, Marik, Noah, Dartz, and Zorc could not have been won by Atemu alone. You played a role in all of them. You gave Atemu his strength. Don't misunderstand me. I know Atemu was a great duelist, but if you think that was the only thing that allowed both of you to prevail then you are a fool. It took his confidence and your heart to create that strength that allowed you to win against all of those opponents and more. I knew you would never see that unless you defeated Atemu. Even though I was overwhelmed by sadness when he left there was still a part of me that was happy to see you succeed. That small part of me cheered as you were victorious. I don't know what that means exactly though, but I wanted to be honest with you. I am sorry if that was not the answer you were looking for." She looked at Yugi's face, but could not read what he was feeling. What if he was angry at her? She didn't actually say she wanted him more than Atemu. On the contrary she admitted that she wanted Atemu to stay. Of course he was angry at her for being so indecisive. Why didn't he say anything already?

"I didn't want Atemu to leave. I won't deny that, but I never wanted you to lose, Yugi."

Those words played in his mind over and over again. He could not believe it. Anzu may not have wanted Atemu to leave, but she did not want him to win their duel. In the end she wanted to see Yugi and not Atemu prevail the duel. This made him unbelievably happy. Words could not do this sun glowing warmth in his chest justice. He was not her second choice after all! He was not a replacement. She wanted to be with him because of who he was not because he looked like Atemu.

"Yugi, please say something."

Anzu's voice brought Yugi out his head. He saw that Anzu looked worried. She must have thought he was upset by her answer.

"Are you mad at me?" she blurted out.

He smiled at her before he answered, "No I am not mad. In fact I am actually happy."

"You are?" she uttered in total surprise. "But I didn't even answer your question." She looked away from Yugi, but he gently pulled her face back to face his. "All I said was that I wanted you to win. In the end I still wanted Atemu to stay. You should be furious at me." They were nearly eye level with each other. That was unusual considering she was taller. It was then that she noticed that he reached her shoulders now. 'He's gotten taller,' she thought. How had she missed Yugi's startling new height? She was so stuck on Atemu these last few months that she had not noticed his growth. But that summed up their entire dynamic. Anzu was infatuated with silent, brooding, and prideful pharaoh that she had missed Yugi's development. Instead moments such as this one or when he dueled the evil Bakura without Atemu's help when she took notice to his growth. She began to blush when she realized just how close he actually was.

"I am happy because you supported me even though it was not easy for you. That means more to me than you realize, Anzu." Seeing Anzu's beautiful face smiling back at him gave him the courage to do what he dreamed of doing for a long time. Standing up on his tip toes Yugi closed the gap between their heights and captured Anzu's lips in a kiss. Their first kiss wasn't a long breath taking kiss that movies and television shows portrayed, but rather quick and sweet one. When he ended the kiss he saw that Anzu's smile had not faded away. If anything it may have gotten a little wider. Her face was red as a tomato.

"That was different," she said rather bashfully. She didn't think she would ever stop smiling. She didn't care if she ever stopped as long as this tingling feeling never stopped.

"Was it a good different or bad different?" Yugi asked nervously.

"A good different," she replied with a smirk.

He wore a smirk of his own. 'She didn't hate it, what a relief.'

"You said it was up to me to decide what we are right?" Anzu asked. Yugi nodded his head yes. "Then we are officially together. No more confusion or guessing." She wrapped arm around his. "No more slutty girls giving you their panties to sign."

"For the record I never sign panties or bras. Wait how do you know about the um….panties? I know you were around when that one girl gave me her bra to sign. I had to stop you from nearly murdering her. I've never told you about the panties fan. I had enough sense to know you would either kill the fans who gave me their panties or me after what you did to the bra fan."

"I made Jounouchi tell me."

"You just randomly asked Jounouchi-kun if a fan girl ever gave me her panties to sign." He said unable to hold back a laugh.

Anzu rolled her eyes. "As if. He was telling Honda, Otogi, and Bakura and I caught the tell end of it. I forced him to tell me the whole thing. He didn't want to at first because he thought he would get you in trouble, but I persuaded him to tell me."

Sweat formed on the back of his head. He felt sorry for Jounouchi. Anzu's persuasion methods involved her fists and quite possibly her feet. 'I told him not to tell anyone about that fan because of Anzu's wrath.'

"So why didn't you tell me?" she asked. She narrowed her eyes darkly

He gulped. "I value my life. You can be pretty scary when you are angry," he answered truthfully. "Again, I didn't sign them."

"Is it that a regular occurrence?"

"We better not keep the others waiting much longer. Jounouchi-kun and Honda-kun are probably starving as we speak." He was not going to get into this discussion with her right after they got together. There was no need to anger her this moment with his some of his fan girls' inappropriate behavior.

'He's changing the subject,' she thought. "Yugi…" She silenced by his lips, he gave her another kiss. This time he lingered to make it longer. She returned it and smiled.

After twenty seconds he ended the kiss. "If you promise not to kill any of those girls I will tell you from now on. But you have nothing to worry about. None of these girls are going to steal me from you."

For about the tenth time that day her cheeks turned to a bright shade of red. "You are lucky I am such a pushover." She felt like her stomach had butterflies fluttering in it.

"Anzu," Yugi called. She gave him her attention. He noticed the blush remained plastered on her cheeks. "Do you want go out tomorrow? You know as our first official date?"

"I would love to, Yugi." She pulled his arm and they started to walk. "Jounouchi and Honda are going to be walking corpses at this point," she joked.

"You are right. Now that we know what we are I don't have to worry about you, killing any of my fan girls right?" He didn't want to see his face or hers on a magazine cover under some title that read "Duel King's Girlfriend Goes on Killing Spree." He was fairly sure she would be arrested depending on how badly she killed these fans. She remained silent. "Anzu," he said warningly.

"Only the slutty ones," she replied.

So maybe he would have to keep her away from some of his events in the future. Just until she reined in some her more destructive urges. This would take some getting used to, but he was happy.

"Well done, Partner."

Yugi immediately turned around. He saw nothing, but he could have sworn he heard a voice, a familiar voice. No, it couldn't be him. He was gone now. 'I must be imagining things.'

"Yugi, what's wrong?" Anzu asked worriedly.

A smirk materialized. "Nothing is wrong. I am just really happy."

"Me too," she replied. "I am glad to have you in my life." That was the truth. He wasn't a pharaoh or a brooding lone figure, but she was glad he wasn't. All those things did not attract him to her. He was not Atemu and she didn't care, because he was the man who had been there for her since they were children. He was the person to always encourage her. He was the person willing to sacrifice his own happiness for hers. That was who Yugi was and it was why she falling in love with him.

That's the end of it. Forgive the use of romantic feelings or affection. I thought it would be a little much to say they loved each other. I put the building blocks there though. Yes it was Atemu's voice Yugi heard. There was no real reason to put in there other than I wanted to. I thought it was sort of fitting for him to be there in some way considering Atemu declared he would help Yugi win Anzu's heart. I may make another segment set during the series from Atemu's perspective on the love triangle. I haven't decided yet. I make no promises though. Please review.