Implied YxYY One-Shot. Yugi writes his deepest secret on the bottom of a rubber duck. What happens when the toy accidentally falls down the drain?

A/N: Takes place AFTER Yami/Atemu left for the afterlife.
A/N 2: This story is dedicated to one of my reviewers for Two Butterflies
To c00LRubberDuck (anon): Your pen name inspired me to make this story! Plus the fact that rubber ducks are awesome (wink)

Disclaimer: BBlimbo does not own YuGiOh.

Rubber Duck

Yugi sighed as he squeaked the small toy in his fingers. A small 'squeak' came out of the rubber duck's beak. Searching through his old childhood memories, Yugi happened to stumble upon a small rubber duck, which when he was 5, kept as his good luck charm. The rubber duck was pure yellow, with an orangey-red beak, and blue sunglasses on. It was very small, and fit perfectly into the palm of the junior's hand.

Yugi laughed at the toy and placed it on the edge of the kitchen sink. He carefully turned on the faucet, being sure not to dirty anything else. While rummaging through his attic, he managed to get dirt and grime all over his hands.

Squeezing and releasing his hands together, he washed every inch of his fingers and nails before grabbing the soap. In a matter of minutes, the sink bowl was filled with suds. Some even managed to fall off the sink. Yugi whistled an old bathtub tune as he washed his hands. He eventually turned off the water and rinsed his hands off. Using the towel on the rack he dried his hands, when an idea popped into his head. He glanced over at the rubber duck and picked it up in his hands. Flipping it over, he reached behind him and grabbed a Sharpie Marker on the kitchen table.

"Will you carry my secret for me?" Yugi whispered to the rubber duck. Of course, the duck didn't answer. Yugi snapped the cap of the marker and gently wrote on the bottom of the duck:

I love you, Yami

–Yugi

After he was finished, Yugi sighed and capped the marker again. He stared at the letters with sad eyes.

"One thing I never told you, Yami." Yugi said sadly as he placed the rubber duck back on the kitchen sink ledge. Then he noticed something. While examining the duck previously, he managed to get some grime along the duck's beak. Yugi picked the duck up again and turned on the faucet for the sink.

"Can't have my secret holder dirty, now can I?" Yugi said as he used some soap and squirted it on the duck's nose. Once again, the sink bowl was filled with suds. Sounds of squeaking could be heard under the bubbles that made Yugi laugh.

Then something terrible happened...

Yugi gasped when he felt the duck slip from his fingers. Yugi stopped moving and slowly slipped his hands out of the soapy water. Nothing could be seen under the water with all the pink bubbles. Panic rising inside him, he turned off the faucet and waited impatiently for the bubbles to clear away. Yugi's eyes dilated when he saw the bottom of the kitchen sink.

"NO!" Yugi said panicking as he gripped the edge of the sink ledge, looking down into the drain. The rubber duck was no where to be found. Water just poured down into the drain, leaving memories of the rubber duck that once was there...

Yugi's heart shattered as he sighed in dismay and leaned himself on the table behind him.

"Just great...who knows who's gonna find that!" Yugi cursed at himself for being so careless. He closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind, but all he saw was the rubber duck bouncing around in the drain...falling into unknown hands...

0000000000

Yami, otherwise known as Atemu back in Egypt, wandered mindlessly around the walls of the afterlife. It was heartbreaking watching his little aibou crying for him, as he left through those doors. Yami shook his head of the memories. 'Aibou wouldn't want me to feel sorry for him' Yami pressured onto his mind. Along with the pressure, something else bumped on his mind...literally.

"What the--" Yami rubbed his head from where something hit him. He looked up in the endless black sky and saw nothing but waves of black magic circling around. Normal for being in the afterlife. Yami looked down, and noticed a small yellow figure by his feet. He bent down and picked it up.

It was a rubber duckie. 'Yugi told me about these things...' Yami tried to remember, just examining the face. 'He said they were childhood toys in the bathtub.' Yami laughed at the first day Yugi explained to him what a rubber duck was.

Flash Back

"You mean, water actually comes out of that thing?" Yami said bewildered as he pointed to the faucet. Yugi laughed at his darker half.

"Yes, Yami. It's what we use to take a bath, drink water, wash our hands, brush our teeth, and mainly do anything that has to do with water." Yugi explained. He looked back into the mirror and opened the cabinet to take out a toothbrush. It was 7:00 AM and Yugi was getting ready for school.

Yami nodded his head in understanding as he looked around the bathroom. A small toy in the corner of the bathtub caught his attention. It was in the shape of an animal, a yellow animal with an orangey-red beak and blue sunglasses. Yami smiled and picked up the figure. He jumped when he heard the object squeak.

Yugi, who was rinsing his mouth out of tooth paste saw Yami jump from the squeaking rubber duck. He spit out the water in his mouth and laughed. Yami glared at him

"What's so funny? That thing can talk!" Yami said as he took a few steps back. Yugi wiped his mouth with a towel and walked over to the rubber duck, which Yami had dropped in the tub.

"It's a rubber duck, Yami." Yugi said as he squeezed the toy and heard it squeak. "It's what babies use to play with when they take a bath. A common toy." Yugi said, handing the duck over to Yami. Yami took the creature in his hands and squeezed it, once again flinching at hearing it squeak.

"Interesting..." Yami mused as he continued to squeak the toy. Yugi nodded and walked over to the bathtub. He turned on the large faucet and filled the tub with about an inch of water.

"Here, I'll show you." Yugi said. Yami handed him the rubber duck and placed it on the surface of the water. Yami's eyes widened as he saw the toy float. "And I guess babies use their imaginations on what to do with it from there." Yugi said. Yami nodded and stared at the little duck in fascination.

End Flashback.

Yami smiled and tossed the small rubber duck in the air, before catching it again in his hand. Only this time, he caught it upside down. Yami gasped at seeing something in black ink written on the inside.

I love you, Yami

-Yugi

Yami smiled as he held the small toy in his hands. He curled both his hands around it and held it to his heart, feeling the toy give off a pulse of warmth.

"I love you too, Aibou." Yami whispered as a golden light flowed through his hands and onto the bottom of the rubber duck. Releasing the toy from his grasp he threw his arm backwards and flung the toy up into the air, watching it disappear into the black skies.

000000000000

Yugi had his chin on the table, sulking over his lost toy. His hands were extended on the wooden table, face emotionless. Slowly drowsiness took him over as his eyes began to close.

A low rumbling noise could barely be heard from the inside of the drain. It got louder...and louder...until...POP! A yellow object flew out of the drain, and landed right on the table where Yugi lay.

Yugi's eyes flung open on the sound of something knocking against the table. He blinked, and stared at the figure in front of him. It was a rubber duck, but not just any rubber duck, his rubber duck. Yugi's eyes widened as he jumped up in delight and held the little toy in his hands. He smiled and prayed that his message was still at the bottom. Flipping the small toy over, he gasped.

It wasn't the message that he wrote...but something better. A smile spread across Yugi's face as he read the bottom of the rubber duck.

I love you too, Aibou.