Hi everyone! I'm sure you're getting tired of hearing this, but I'm sorry that this is so late in coming. And it was a cliffy and everything! Not to mention the last chapter of Anytime. Still, the reason this is even later than usual is because instead of my usual chapters being about 6-8 pages long, this final chapter is about 18 pages long! Whoo! I totally didn't expect I would get so much out it. For some reason this chapter just wanted to be better developed than the ones I usually write at about 12:00 am. Well, this being the last chapter and all, I've decided to reply to all reviewers as a way of saying thanks. And thank you soo much! Without your reviews, Anytime would have remained a one shot.

XLight ForeverX – Yep, dark energy, and lots of it!

Spidey meets Wizard-Theif – You never know about Marik and Bakura, one of them just might try and get involved. As to who I'm rabid for…well, it's not exactly just one character. If you didn't guess I'm a full time puzzleshipper as well as a part time wishshipper. If I had to say I was rabid over anyone, I'd say Yuugi, because of his extreme kawai-ness. Yeah, I do drool over Yuugi. And Yami.

Nyago – I hope you enjoy the final chapter! Yami definitely will be in this chapter, and he's not going to be too happy. XD

Bored2Death – Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I felt we needed some suspense. I hope this makes up for the wait.

dragonlady222 – I'm glad you like it. I hope the last chapter lives up to the rest.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or anything even slightly resembling it.

Words in italics are just to empathize; they don't have any connection to the mind link.

Enjoy!

"Hey Yuugi, you wanna go with us to Burger World or something?" asked Jonouchi, as the three teens walked out of the school. "Maybe that will distract you from...y'know, things and people. And murderous peoplewith knives."

"I think he gets it, Jonouchi." said Honda, loudly.

"Eh? Oh, ah…actually I have to watch the shop today. I'm really sorry I can't go, but thanks for the offer anyway!" Yuugi replied quickly.

He always felt so bad when he had to turn his friends down. They always did so much for him, like taking him out to Burger World, and arcades. They didn't even like burgers that much, but they still went because they were Yuugi's favorite. And Yuugi didn't have a part-time job or any source of income...well, besides the small amount that Grandpa gave him every month, but his friends always paid for him and no matter how he tried to refuse, they still did it anyways. He was truly grateful.

"Aww, that's too bad." said Jonouchi, sighing dramatically. "I was looking foreword to hanging out with someone who's actually fun, but it looks like I'm stuck with Honda here."

"Oi!" Yuugi quickly ducked out of the way as Honda smacked the blond with his briefcase. "I'm plenty of fun! You take that back!" After a quick mock-fight they continued walking, the two taller teens both proudly sporting a few new bruises and grinning like idiots. Yuugi shook his head, smiling at them.

"I think both of you are fun, just in different ways."

"Ha HA!" Honda whirled around to face Jonouchi "What do you say to that?!"

Jonouchi grinned "He just doesn't want to hurt your feelings. Leave it to Yuugi to be diplomatic." The smile slowly slid off his face and he turned to look at his small friend. "We are walking you home. Y'know, in case old Stabby decides to show up."

"Jonouchi."

"Sorry!" The blond sheepishly ducked his head, "I keep doing this."

Yuugi tried to suppress a laugh "Thanks guys. Really makes me feel better." He wrapped his arms around himself and couldn't help but glance around nervously. At least his friends would be with him, and he felt much safer with the two experienced fighters.

Honda abruptly stopped and cursed. "Shit! It's Thursday! We have to go to the station about your dad Jo!"

Jonouchi swore violently, then turned to Yuugi, "I gotta fill out this form at the police station about my da." He said darkly, "Apparently he might be getting out of jail sometime, and they want to know how we think he'll do back in society. It requires a second signature, so Honda here volunteered" Jonouchi's dad was an unemployed drunk, and had spent the last few months in jail. The chances of him rehabilitating were next to nothing.

"Oh." Yuugi forced himself to remain calm, despite the very thought of walking home by himself made his heart pound and his hands sweat. "You better go fill out that form."

"Yeah, but-"

"N-no really! It's fine!" Yuugi said, cutting off Jonouchi. "It's only a twenty minute walk, I do it everyday! And anyway you two really have to go, that's waay more important than walking me home, and besides," he added, cutting off Jonouchi's protest and forcing himself to smile,"we still don't even know if it's the same guy. And even if it was, it was just a one time hit-and-run thing."

The taller teens briefly made eye contact. "…Alright Yuugi." Said Honda slowly," But be careful."

"Go strait home," added Jonouchi, "And if you see a creepy guy with anything resembling a knife, run like hell."

"Don't worry, I'll be fine!" Yuugi laughed forcibly. "Now get going! You'll be late."

Honda looked at his watch and swore. "We gotta go."

Jonouchi quickly put his hands on Yuugi's shoulders and bent down slightly to his level "You stay safe, alright?"

Yuugi nodded. "Alright."

"And call me when you get home."

"I will, I will! Now go on!"

He watched them until they turned a corner and were lost to sight. Yuugi turned and made off in the opposite direction, a shiver running through his small frame.

0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x0x

There was that feeling again. He swore he could sense someone watching him. Yuugi shivered slightly and quickened his pace, trying to fight back his rapidly rising panic. Every step he took seemed incredibly loud, echoing off the pavement and reverberating around the nearly deserted streets. He felt eyes boring into him, watching and waiting, like a vice slowly closing in on the small teen.

His other could feel it too. Yuugi felt him tense up, ready to strike at a moments notice. Yuugi tightened his grip on his bag and tried to slow his uneven breathing. Oh come on! He thought frustrated at his behavior. Just drop it already! There's no reason anyone would go through so much trouble to go after someone like you. You're not nearly significant enough for anyone to waste that much time over. Get over your self already, Yuugi!

A sudden wave of concern mingled with anger passed through him, and he could almost feel a deep growl within him. Yuugi stopped in surprise. What had that been about? Was his other…objecting, to his train of thought? Before he could figure out what it meant a shadow fell across his path. Yuugi's head shot up meeting the smoldering eyes of the dark cloaked man. He barely had time to scream before he was roughly grasped and thrown, hitting against the brick of a nearby alley wall and sliding painfully down to the cold cement. He forced his head up and tried to clear his vision, the man slowly advancing towards him, blocking the only exit to the narrow ally.

He felt a sudden wave of outrage, and fear course through him, as something struggling to break free. Yuugi's vision began to blur and he gasped, something pulling him inwards. His vision cleared, a wave of nausea washing over him-and he suddenly was jolted outwards again. He panted heavily, breaking out in cold sweat. What was going on!? He could feel his body trying to change, wanting to mold into something, someone else, but it couldn't. He was being blocked from his other! His heart was clenched with pure, white hot, hatred, like nothing he had ever felt before. And then it was suddenly wrenched free. Yuugi's whole body shook, and he collapsed onto the cold, hard cement, heart pounding in his ears, the world spinning, breaths coming out in short, pained gasps.

He heard laughter from above him, and he desperately fought back against the grey spots forming on the edge of his vision.

"Well, well, little Yuugi, I presume?" The voice was hard and cold, like a blade. Yuugi struggled to open his eyes, and saw a pair of blurry, black boots inches from his face.

"Such a same the Pharaoh couldn't join us. But no matter, we'll be seeing him soon enough." The man nearly spat the word Pharaoh, snarling. "Right now, you're the one I want."

…The pharaoh…? Yuugi shakily raised himself to his knees, pressing his back against the hard brick wall, trying to distance himself from the man. Who was…? Wait. Yuugi lifted his head and tried his best to hide his fear with a defiant glare.

"W-what do you want!?" He asked his voice not nearly as confident as he had hoped. "Who are you?!"

The man laughed, a cold, heartless sound, sending shivers down Yuugi's spine. "Who I am is my business alone. What I will tell you," he said taking a step closer, as Yuugi struggled to his feet, "Is that I am part of an organization, a Rare Hunter as some call us."

Yuugi leaned heavily on the wall, sharp brick corners digging into his side.

"As for what I want…," he said, lowering his gaze to rest on Yuugi's millennium Puzzle. "The Millennium Puzzle that hangs around your neck would be a good place to start." Yuugi gasped, both hands clutching the puzzle protectively.

The man laughed, and gave the most sadistic sneer Yuugi had ever seen. "This can be easy, or it can be difficult." He loomed over the small boy, crowding him against the hard bricks of the ally wall, his presence seeming to cut off the light from the main street. "Let me put it this way. If you give it to me, I won't have to make you suffer. Which I might do anyway if you don't cooperate" Yuugi bit back a whimper. No matter how scared he was, he was not going to give up his puzzle. "So, why don't you hand that over like a good boy, Yuugi?"

"N-No." Yuugi glared at the man, clutching his puzzle to his chest with all his worth, willing his hands to stop shaking. "Never! You can't have this puzzle!" No matter what this creep did to him, there was no way Yuugi would hand over the puzzle. Anger coursed through his usually clear mind at the mere thought.

The Hunter's eyes widened in surprise, clearly not expecting such a response from his seemingly weak prey, before glinting dangerously. He took another step foreword, black robes blocking out nearly all light from the narrow ally.

"Give me the puzzle."

"Over my dead body!" Yuugi braced himself against the wall; ready for the assault he knew was soon to come. The ally was a dead end. The only way out was way he had come in. Currently being blocked by his assailant. His odds were not looking too good right about now.

"That can be arranged." He snarled, face twisting into a hideous grin as a long, sharp knife suddenly glinted in his hand. He lunged foreword, swinging his blade at Yuugi's head.

Yuugi ducked, and desperately lunged forewords, using the other's much stronger weight to his advantage. The hunter tripped over the small teen, his momentum carrying him right over Yuugi's head to land in a heap on the other side of his smaller opponent. He silently thanked Jonouchi and Honda for insisting he learn some basic self defense. He only hoped it would be enough to get him out of way out now clear, Yuugi made a dash for it, knowing there was no way he could win against someone of that size.

He was almost out into the street when he felt a sharp, blinding pain in his right ankle, and he collapsed to the ground with a cry as the world was pulled out from under him. He landed on his face, palms and knees scrapping against the pavement, as he suddenly felt himself pulled backwards into the dark. He struggled against the force, tiring to find something to grab onto to stop his involuntary movement. His back suddenly exploded with searing pain, as Yuugi felt something slice across it, cutting through his jacket and skin. He screamed as a sudden weight slammed down upon his newly opened wound.

"I tried to make things easy," Came the man's voice as he pinned the struggling teen down, "But you had to do thing the hard way. So now, I have no choice-"

Something pulled Yuugi inwards, and suddenly his head felt like it was going to explode with pain. The world was going out of focus, and he struggled wildly, everything beginning to fade. He was forcibly yanked downwards, and landed against a soft, comforting surface. He blinked, trying to clear his vision, and he vaguely registered he had landed on a bed of some sort. Wait! Hadn't he been here before!? The Hunter's weight slammed down on the small teen, causing him to cry out as pain flashed across his back.

The man chuckled, a hard, cheerless sound, as he bound Yuugi's hands behind his back. "Nice room." He said, voice dripping with sarcasm, as he glanced around at the sky blue walls and various toys scattered throughout. "But yours isn't the room I'm interested in."

Something sharp and cold was pressed up against Yuugi's neck, and he gasped involuntarily as the man's voice came from right besides his ear. "Now listen to me. We're going to visit the almighty Pharaoh in his little room." Yuugi's head was roughly yanked toward the door he had seen the last time in this room. "And he's going to give me what I need so I can rightfully claim the puzzle, along with the power that comes with it. Eliminating the Ancient Ruler in the process."

Yuugi blinked rappidly, trying to make sense of everything.If this…Pharaoh, lived through that other door, could it be that the Pharaoh was his other? That kind voice that bailed him out in class, saved him from bullies and guarded against the evils of math homework? That was the pharaoh?

"And you, little Yuugi," sneered the hunter, pressing the knife against Yuugi's neck, using just enough pressure to draw a small amount of blood. "Are going to help me do it."

"NO!" Yuugi shouted, struggling uselessly as the man held him down. He didn't know if the pharaoh was his other-his friend, but he knew he could not take the chance that it wasn't. If there was one thing Yuugi would defend at all costs it was his friends. The precious few he had he would defend until his last breath.

The dark cloaked man laughed manically, and dragged Yuugi to his feet. Yuugi tried to break free, but the instant he put pressure on his ankle, he was left reeling in pain. The hunter crushed him against his side, effectively halting Yuugi's attempted escape. With his hands tied and ankle useless and his back throbbing, Yuugi had no choice but to lean his weight on the man.

"If you even so much as think of warning him," Yuugi felt the knife slide back in place against his neck. "I'll cut your face off."

The man dragged Yuugi over to the door and pulled it open, revealing a long, dark hallway that spread out in both directions, each fading away into darkness. Directly across from Yuugi's door was another, but instead of being a bright friendly yellow, this door was threatening in itself. From the vines and dark tendrils that covered its exterior, to the large piercing eye on its center, Yuugi could tell it was anything but friendly. That eye! The same one that one on the Millennium Puzzle…!

The man reached for the handle, but it wasn't necessary as the door swung open on its own. He paused, and for a moment fear seemed to overtake him. But then it was gone.

"Only make me second in command, eh?" The hunter muttered to himself, as he shook his head and stepped over the threshold into the room beyond. "Oh, I'll show you Marik. I'll get your precious Pharaoh for you, and then we'll see who's in charge!"

It was so dank and musty. Like a tomb, Yuugi realized, dazed. The man spun around as the door closed with a snap, blocking the light from Yuugi's room across the hall. An alarm, Yuugi realized. It must have been triggered when they went through the door. He felt an anger greater than anything he had ever felt before pulsing through the walls of this dark palace. A torch suddenly sprung to life, casting great shadows, and revealing the true size of the room. It was immense. Stairways and doorways were going off in all different directions, some even traveling along the floor and walls, a twisting turning labyrinth. It was all meant to trick, to deceive, Yuugi realized with a shock, to guard its secrets against all intruders. But beyond all the alarms and hidden traps, Yuugi felt something different. It called out to him faintly, like an echo. Something so vast, so dark, so…lonely.

"Phar-aoh!" The man called out in a sing-song voice, glancing fearfully around at all the doors and passageways, trying to hide his fear. He clutched Yuugi to him closer, knife biting into the tender skin around his neck, making him whimper in pain "Come out Pharaoh! I brought a little friend of yours."

The Hunter was trying to draw the Pharaoh out. And he was using Yuugi to do it. No! Oh Please don't come out! If he came out, the man would…he would….Tears sprang into Yuugi's eyes at the mere thought of loosing his other. No! No matter what the risk, Yuugi would never allow that to happen. Yuugi used all of his strength and lunged to the right, away from knife, the Hunter's grip slightly slipped.

"Don't! It's a trap!" he shouted as loud as he could, his voice echoing madly through the thick silence of the chamber.

Hands clenched on him like a vice, as his warning echoed eerily around in the half light of the labyrinth. He couldn't breathe, he couldn't think, all he knew was pain, and his heart beating hard enough to sound in his ears. Please…Don't…come out…. White, hot pain, sliced across his cheek, his whole face going numb. He dimly registered a scream, and realized it must of been his own.

"You're dead!" The hunter hissed into his ear.

Suddenly something shot out of the dark, embedding itself just inches away from the man's foot. They both looked up in shock. Yuugi's breath caught in his throat as the sound of a knife leaving its sheath echoed throughout the empty halls, the deadly weapon glinting in the dark. Thousands of others mirrored its actions, coming from all sides, the room alive with the sound of impending death. All around knives glinted, out of the deep shadows of the many hundreds of hallways, reflecting the light back at them, the room glowing with the red refection from the singular torch. There was a moment of pause, before all tenths thousands of these deadly weapons let fly, aimed directly at the intruders.

Time seamed to slow as each of the glinting blades flew towards them, light reflecting off the wall casting twisted and distorted images. The Hunter gave a strangled cry and released the knife in his hand, hoping that it might save him.

Suddenly something dark blocked Yuugi's vision and wrapped around him, pulling him free of the Hunter's grasp. The bonds around his wrists fell away and arms encircled him, dark energy-charged material swirling around, protecting them both. Yuugi realized his head was buried in someone's chest, into which he was sobbing uncontrollably. He squeezed his eyes shut. The arms around him tightened protectively, and Yuugi could hear the blades bouncing off whatever shielded him, mingled with the agonized screams of the Rare Hunter. He heard a heartbeat right beside his ear, comforting and steady. But such rage. It was all around. But it wasn't aimed at him. It had manifested itself, flying through the air, imbedding itself in the man who had so readily used others to appease his own desires. A sob caught in Yuugi's throat, and the rain of knives intensified, earning an even more horrendous sound from the tormented hunter.

After what seamed an eternity, the knives finally stopped, and Yuugi felt the dark material that surrounded them melt away. He kept his eyes shut, the arms remaining around his small frame even though the rain of knives had ceased. He heard a strangled choking noise from the floor, and buried his head deeper into the man's chest, trying not to picture what the Hunter must look like after an attack like that.

"How dare you use my aibou in your schemes." That voice! Yuugi could recognize that deep, charismatic tone anywhere. Did he call him …aibou? They were partners? So did this mean that the person who had saved him was his other?! And if that was true- Yuugi blushed furiously- He currently had his head buried in his chest.

"If you have something to say, say it to me, leave him out if it!" Yuugi would hate to be that Hunter right now, that tone meant business, and left no room for anything else.

There was an odd, gurgling noise coming from the floor.

"Curse-you…pharaoh-" the hunter was cut off by a few hacking coughs, "I may have failed," he drew in a shuddering breath before continuing, "but- you haven't-seen the last...of us…" The man tried to laugh, but only succeeded on choking on what Yuugi sickenly guessed was the man's own blood.

"Marik…will-destroy you…pharaoh. And your little aibou too-" he suddenly screamed, and Yuugi could feel him writhing on the floor, dark energy radiating off his other in sudden hate.

"You-leave-my-aibou-out of this." That sent shivers down Yuugi's spine. "Get out of my sight!"

There was the sound of a latch being unhinged, and it sounded like the man had fallen through a trap hole in the floor, screams echoing back up from whatever depth he had fallen. Yuugi let out a shuddering breath.

"Are you hurt?" asked the voice, full of concern.

Yuugi slowly raised his head, black leather coming into focus. "I-I'm ok… I-"Yuugi gasped, drawing back as he caught sight of his other. It was almost like seeing a refection of himself, except for a few startling differences. Those eyes! Deep, blood red orbs stared back at him, a fire smouldering in their depths. He could loose himself in such eyes, consumed body and soul. The face was more angular than Yuugi's, pleasantly so, and devoid of the baby fat Yuugi seemed to be stuck with. His hair was spiked with shocks of gold that swept up to crown his regal form, unlike Yuugi, who just had spiky, golden bangs, with nothing regal at all.

His other suddenly looked horrified, and quickly took a step back." I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you." he hastily apologized.

Frighten? Oh no! He probably thinks he looks like a monster to me! Way to go Yuugi! Just gasp and back away! Now he thinks you're afraid of him!

"N-no! Y-you didn't scare me!" Yuugi said quickly, taking a step towards his other "I-"

Yuugi cried out as his injured ankle gave out on him. His other quickly lunged forwards, and for the second time that day, Yuugi found his face buried in his chest. he blearily noticied his cheek stinging at the contact and realized he had been sobbing and bleeding on said chest. Not exactly how Yuugi had imagined meeting his other for the first time, no. The taller look-alike held him somewhat awkwardly, but securely, as if trying not to frighten him, but unwilling to move away. Yuugi slowly looked up, face burning with embarrassment.

"Startled me… That's all." He said, straitening himself with his other supporting him. Relief quickly passed over his other's features, only to be replaced by anger.

"You are injured." A hand came up to gently touch his face, and Yuugi was startled to see the fingertips come back red with blood. "That filth harmed you."

Not wanting to appear completely weak and defenceless infront of his other (who had saved his life enough times already), and especially not after his embarrassing sobbing fit, Yuugi tried to brush it off."...I-It's just a small-"

"Yuugi." His hand lowered to the small teen's shoulder in a comforting gesture. "You are bleeding from both your face and back, and I fear he has done harm to your ankle as well."

"What? Oh, it's fine!"

Yuugi tried to show his other just how fine his ankle was, but as soon as he put his weight on it everything exploded in pain and his vision whited out. The next thing he knew, he was being carried out of the room into the hallway. Yuugi blinked sluggishly, trying to clear away the little black spots that clouded his vision.

"Uhnn…how…?"

"You passed out." Said his other as the door snapped shut behind him. "From the pain." He added at Yuugi's look of confusion. He shook his head, eyes full of concern. "You really had me worried for a while."

He halted in front of the open door of the bright, sky blue room across from his own. "Ah, may I…?" He inclined his head towards the room, asking for permission.

"G-go ahead, the door's open." What was this place, Yuugi wondered? It was apparently his, as everyone seamed to keep saying.

The taller entered, taking great care not to step on any of the toys spewed across the floor. He gently lowered Yuugi onto the bed, careful not to brush his wounded ankle or lay him on his back. He carefully removed the sneaker from his foot, along with his sock, and gently rolled back his pant leg.

"Y-you don't have to…" Yuugi trailed off, as the darker continued to examine his ankle.

He probed the abused limb with his eyes, and after a tense few moments he looked up. "Don't worry. This won't hurt at all"

Blood red eyes shut in concentration, and a soft glow began to radiate off of the regal figure. Yuugi watched transfixed as he gently placed both hands on the wounded limb. Instead of the blinding pain Yuugi was sure to come, he felt a warmth spread throughout his body, centered on his ankle. Yuugi was instantly reminded of the warmth he felt from the millennium puzzle, the one time it had comforted him when he had not wanted to face another day of school or get out of bed. After a while the glow slowly died down, and his other carefully removed his hands, letting out a breath. Yuugi tentatively wiggle his toes, eyes widening in surprise at the lack of pain.

"It worked!" Said the small teen, staring in wonder at his newly repaired ankle. "You fixed it!" He looked up and smiled at his other, who was watching him with amusement. "Thank you."

His other's face fell, and he looked away guiltily. "Please…don't thank me."

Yuugi's brow furrowed in confusion. What did that mean? "Why shouldn't I…?"

His other sighed, "I am the reason you were hurt." He hung his head in shame, staring at the soft floor of Yuugi's room. "That man was after me, not you. If it wasn't for me-"

"If it wasn't for you," Yuugi said, cutting his other off, "I would probably be dead by now." Yuugi found that he couldn't stand having his other blame himself. It wasn't true at all! And even if it was, all the other had done was protect and care for the small teen. And there was no way Yuugi would make him apologize for that.

"I am the reason you get so much negative attention! The puzzle attracts those whose souls are full of evil, for it is my fate to pass judgment on them." His shoulders slumped as the other stared at the ground with pained eyes. "The reason they target you is because of me. It's my fault you're hurt. And I could not even protect you from it."

Yuugi shook his head. "Look, maybe I have been getting attacked on a more frequent basis, but it has always been like that for me. Even before I solved the puzzle I was always a magnet for creepy people., this is nothing really new..." His other was unfazed and continued to stare disparagingly at the plush carpet. Yuugi worried his lower lip in concern for a moment before tentatively reaching out and lightly toughing his sleeve.

"...Hey. Please...don't do that. Don't blame yourself. You have been so kind to me and looked out for me since I first realized you were there. If...if you really care about me, you should know that what I care about most are my friends." His other finally turned to look at the younger boy. "No matter what happens I won't ever regret completing the puzzle, because what hurts me the most is loosing a friend." Yuugi took a deep breath and pushed his nervousness down. His other deserved to know. "A-And I'll deal with whatever evil I have to... if only it means I don't have to loose you. I-I don't think I could handle it..."

His other stared at him, eyes wide in shock. A small smile curled about his lips "There is so much more to you then meets the eye, aibou." His hand closed over the smaller one still resting on his sleeve. "Thank you."

Yuugi smiled up at the darker teen. "What's your name?"

His other frowned. "Some have called me Pharaoh…" His brows drew together in concentration "However…you can call me Yami."

Yami? How strangely fitting. "Yami." He said, trying it out. Yuugi decided he liked it. He looked up and their eyes met.

Yuugi smiled. "Anytime."

Wow, I'm done! That took a while. It's sort of sad; my first multi-chaptered story is over. However, looking on the positive side, I now know that I am actually capable of sticking with a story to the end! Yay! - You probably won't be hearing a lot from me for a while, exams are coming and I really can't afford to flunk any of them. However, once the summer starts, I'll have endless hours to space out in front of my computer. Yay! Looking forewords to that. Once again Thank you everyone!

hoom