Author's Notes: Sadly, yes, this is the final chapter. I really had a hard time getting motivated to end this story. I even considered trying to continue it further. But then I thought anymore might just end up being overkill. However, a special thanks to an anonymous reviewer whom I know only as Darkyami1214 for the idea^_^ I may well write a companion story in the future based on your idea! (Mind you that won't be for quite some time... I have too many other stories going on right now! Two that I'm writing and one that was previously written that I'm just now starting to post...)

Also, a few people early on wondered how Akiza could guess what was going on or wondered if Kalin knew everything that had happened. This chapter ties up a few loose ends, including these two^_^

Anyway, you didn't come to read my rambling... So without further ado, here is the final chapter of Shattered soul. Enjoy^_^

Chapter Twelve - No Giving Up

11:57pm. the night of Jack's story.

Crow lie awake, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling through the darkness. He couldn't sleep, and, in all honesty, he was worried about Yusei. After what had happened earlier... Well, he had cause to be. The more he thought about how Yusei had used to cut himself over the very things he'd let loose to them, the more Crow worried about his friend relapsing again from the sudden force of the memories. And this time Kalin wouldn't be here to stop him either.

His cell phone buzzed then, interrupting his thoughts with an incoming message. 'Who in the world is sending me a text message at midnight?' he thought as he reached for his phone. 'Oh... Akiza?' The bird duelist flipped open his cell to find her message: "I can't sleep thinking about what you said. Please tell me my assumption of Yusei being a cutter is wrong..."

Crow sighed, replying, "Wish I could, but I can't." As an after thought, he added, "How'd you guess, anyway?" before hitting the send button.

A moment later, a reply arrived in his inbox. "I wasn't certain, but I did notice pale white scares on his left arm once. Since all of you grew up in the Satellite, I just brushed it off at the time, thinking that he'd probably just been hurt at some point. ...He is okay now, right?"

Crow had to smile at Akiza's concern. But it troubled him; were Yusei's scares really still that noticeable? He didn't think so, but maybe he'd just grown accustomed to them being there too. "Yeah, he's fine," Crow texted back. "But are those scars really that noticeable?"

"Not so much," came the reply. "I've just always noticed things that most wouldn't... They're pretty faded, really. And I'm glad he's okay; I think I'll be able to sleep now knowing that. 'Night, Crow."

"'Night, Akiza." Crow hated lying to her; he wasn't sure at all if Yusei was okay right now; Kalin had told him once that, once a person starts cutting, most will struggle with it for the rest of their lives. And Crow knew that Yusei had struggled. It had taken his raven-haired friend over a year to stop hurting himself after he'd first gone to Kalin for help.

"Alright, that's it!" Crow mumbled to himself as he swung his bare feet to the cold, wooden floor of his room. "No more sitting here wondering!" He crept into the hallway, heading in the direction of his best friend's room. When he reached the door, he was surprised to see it standing slightly ajar. Gazing in through the gap, Crow could see Yusei standing by his window, watching the stars as they blinked in the heavens.

"You can come in, ya know."

Crow stiffened at the soft baritone voice directed at him, then slowly pushed open the door and stepped inside. "How'd ya know I was here?"

"I could see you out of the corner of my eye." Yusei turned his head away from the window, meeting Crow's gaze. "What are you still doing up?"

"I could ask you the same question."

"Fine then. What were you doing spying on me?"

Crow hesitated as he came further into the room and sat down in Yusei's desk chair. "I was worried. About you. Ya know... That you might..." He shrugged, his voice trailing off.

Yusei sighed. "That I might relapse again," he finished for his friend, turning his gaze back the stars outside his window. "That's understandable. But there's no need. I got everything sorted out with Kalin before he went off the deep end. I'm never going back to that, Crow; and that's a promise."

"I believe you; I really do. If I didn't, I never would have let you come up here by yourself. But..." Crow trailed off again.

"'But?'" Yusei prompted, raising an eyebrow as he returned his gaze to the orange-haired teen.

Crow sighed. "Kalin told me once that people still struggle after the fact - some for the rest of their lives."

Yusei looked back out the window again. "I'm not saying I don't still struggle with the thought. But I am saying that I refuse to give in." Once again, he turned and met his friend's gaze. "I don't see myself the way I used to, Crow. Do I still think about cutting sometimes? Yeah; I'll be the first to admit that I do. But whatever it is that brought that thought to mind doesn't urge me to do it nearly as strong anymore. Those thoughts don't have a hold on me anymore; they are just thoughts and nothing that warrants action. That part of my past is dead and gone, and it's not coming back." Yusei gave a small reassuring smile as he finished.

Crow couldn't help but smile back. He knew that what his friend had said was true. If Yusei was going to relapse again, he would have done it by now. He'd had plenty of reasons in the past after all: When Kalin went off the deep end or when Jack stole his runner and Stardust Dragon, for starters.

"Can I ask you a question, Yusei?"

The raven-haired teen gave a short chuckle. "You just did, but you can ask another."

Crow smiled wider at the cliched phrase. "Did you ever tell Kalin everything you told us?"

He shook his head. "Nope. Not in detail anyway. I did tell him I'd been abused both physically and mentally, but he never heard to what extent."

"Can I ask you another question?"

"Sure."

"Do you ever wish that none of that had ever happened? that you wouldn't have ever had a reason to cut in the first place?"

Yusei gave a slight smile. "In some ways, yeah, I do wish none of that had ever happened. But when I look back on it all, everything that had ever happened to me had only made me that much stronger. Am I glad that I had to go through it? No. I would have much rather have never had to experience the things that I did. But if I hadn't, I wouldn't be the same person, either."

Crow nodded once in understanding, silence falling over the two boys. If Yusei hadn't been through all of everything he'd experienced, the two of them might not be where they were. It was that quiet strength he'd acquired from his earliest years that had pulled him through the last few years of betrayal and loss. It was that same strength that had made it possible for him to have the guts to go after Jack. That same strength had pulled him through battle after battle in the war against the Dark Signers, as well.

Then Crow realized something that almost scared him half to death: Yusei had always been the one to hold the Signers together, not to mention he was the one to bring them all together in the first place. If those earliest years had been different, Yusei may not have acquired that quiet strength that had held them all together. If those earliest years had been different, the Signers couldn't have won the war. Yusei may not have gone after Jack, so he never would have met Leo and Luna, either. He also never would have participated in the Fortune Cup; that meant Akiza would have been bound by Sayer and never would have been able to fight on the side of the Signers. But even if Yusei have still managed to pull everyone together, would he have been able to hold them together through the war?

'Oh, man,' he thought. 'I guess everything really does happen for a reason...'

"It's late," Yusei spoke breaking into the silence. "We should both try to get some sleep."

"Yeah," Crow sighed as he stood. "I guess so. See ya in the morning. 'Night, bro."

"'Night, Crow."

"So your scars fade away
"You soaked up the pain
"A better person 'cause you lived through those days
"And now you know what it's like to prove
"You can overcome anything that gets to you
"Well it's alright
"We're sayin' our goodbyes
"To the past and everything that ain't right
"We won't waste another day
"With all these silly things in our way
...

"I know we have given
"All that we can give
"When there's nothing to lean on
"Well, I remember this
"All we make of this lifetime
"Is always here within
"And remembering that's why
"We should never give in"
~Crossfade: No Giving Up

Author's Notes: *Sigh* ...It's over... So how'd I do for this final part?

Hm. Not much to say for once this time around.

Reviews still? It really does make my day when I see a new review^_^ (Oooo also let me know if you'd be interested in reading a companion story or two^_^)

Special thanks to those who have stuck with me to the very end^_^ I wish I could send you all cookies. Especially those of you who reviewed. You guys were - and still are, really - a great encouragement to me^_^