Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or its characters!

Your move, Pharaoh

A sudden thought occurred to Atem.

He had hardly physically moved using this body.

Time spent controlling Yugi was mostly stationary, muscles tense, locked in a duel with their latest adversary.

Oh right. This isn't Yugi's body anymore.

Fate had decided the last adversary would be none other than Atem's host. Through the years, the 'host' earned new titles. Acquaintance. Partner.

Their bond had grown and twisted over time until the pharaoh realised who exactly his last opponent was.

His very best friend.

Yugi…

The pharaoh had just taken his final act of fate by stepping through the doors to the Spirit realm.

Behind those very doors, he had always been immersed in sound, thanks to the mind link. If he weren't communicating with Yugi's bubbly voice, he could always envelop himself in the gentle hum of his partner's mind.

Now, Atem soared through silent swirls of opal light, as though falling through a kaleidoscope. Adorned in his ancient regal attire; his indigo cape flowed behind him like a soundless river. He was undoubtedly alone.

Or so he thought.

Ahead, a stark white billowed out of the heaving colours, slowly curling into royal Egyptian robes. Within, a tall, tanned figure materialised, adorned with deep oceans for eyes, and a sincere smile.

A brief flash of the Dark Magician card appeared in Atem's mind.

'M-Mahad! Is that you?' he cried, shattering the silence.

The now familiar figure drifted towards him, nodding. 'My Pharaoh,' he greeted kindly.

Atem let out a joyful chirp, mouth agape in a childish grin. He frantically paddled through the air to tightly embrace his taller friend, burying his tri-coloured mane into his chest.

The older guardian placed a hand atop Atem's head, closing his eyes. Finally, after leading Egypt and new mortal world companions through countless dangers, Mahad was relieved the 'Pharaoh' could be who he truly was. A human being, who, just like anyone else, needed a moment to be vulnerable.

After finally letting go, Atem blinked up at him. He was used to seeing duel monsters floating, no thanks to Kaiba's meticulous technology, but a human floating was another experience entirely.

'Mahad, it's so good to finally know you… to fully remember who you are,' he mumbled.

'Likewise my friend. Seeing your return as king was undoubtedly one of my proudest moments.' Mahad declared, before cheekily ruffling the hair of his childhood companion. Atem shakily laughed, eyes alight with joy.

The young ruler stood more confidently, head darting from side to side as he scanned their strange realm. 'Where are the others? Are they waiting for me?'

Before Mahad could answer, Atem cried 'I'm so glad I don't have to part from you again!'

Those words seemed to snap something in Mahad. His posture stiffened, and his eyes dulled for a moment. Ever the sharp observer, this did not go unmissed by the pharaoh.

'What is the matter?' Atem asked softly, placing a hand on the magician's. At his touch, Mahad returned to his usual self, breathing out slowly.

'My Pharaoh…there's a reason why I have come before you reach the Spirit realm…we've decided to give you a new chance,' He paused, glancing for any distress. Atem's crimson orbs only twinkled at him, latched onto every word. 'Or well…the creator of light did. After everything you've sacrificed…you haven't lived a full life of your own. There's a chance for you to go back to the modern realm. Experience your own life, in your own body…'

A heartbeat passed.

'… to be reunited with Yugi and his friends.'

Atem's hand slowly released its grip, eyes widening, lips parted soundlessly. Mahad let the weight of his words sink in before continuing.

'However, this has to be decided now. With the millennium items gone forever, once you reach the Spirit realm, no power exists that can take you all the way back to the living world. That is why I have met you here,'

Atem couldn't decide what was more confusing. The psychedelic rainbow lights still surrounding them like fractured diamonds, or the jostling emotions swirling within his heart: excitement, anxiety, relief, happiness.

And then doubts. Lots of doubts.

They snaked down his spine, with a chill akin to the presence of the notorious Bakura. The pharaoh could almost hear the thief king's devious laughter.

Mahad caught his friend's slumped shoulders; saw the thoughts flickering across his face. After a few moments, Atem spoke, his voice low and sombre.

'Mahad…won't the others be devastated if I choose to leave them again, after everything they've done for me? After everything I've put you through?'

Mahad blinked. He knew there'd be questions, but the pharaoh's first concerns were his loved ones. Deep pride surged through him upon witnessing the pharaoh's newfound compassion. His younger friend had grown.

Well…emotionally, at least. The magician allowed himself a quiet chuckle.

'Please understand…as simple as it sounds, we want you to be happy. After everything you've been through, you deserve to be,'

'I have my memories back! Now I remember – know - you all brought me happiness too!'

Ah. There's his confident, dramatic flair.

The magician leant back in the air, arms crossed.

'Atem. I'm not denying our value to you – or your value to us, for that matter,' His azure eyes narrowed. 'In fact, it's exactly why you have the choice –

The sharp crimson flared within Atem's eyes, lips scowling.

'I can't place either of you over each other!' he snapped, voice edged with pain.

He sighed, dropping his head. After a moment, he lifted his now defeated gaze to meet Mahad's: a silent apology.

'After everything...you both mean a lot to me.'

Mahad seemed unfazed by his friend's outburst. Atem felt a firm hand grip his shoulder, keeping him steady, keeping him strong. Even now, his Dark Magician never failed him.

'I understand.' He smiled softly. 'We just wouldn't want you to be making the same mistake.'

'Mistake?'

'Spending so much time away from people who mean so much to you - just as you separated from us, so you will be severed from Yugi and his friends.'

Somehow, hearing it out loud broke him. Atem's lips tightened into a thin line, his arms slowly wrapping around himself in a futile attempt of self-comfort.

'5000 years I've been alone, and now…it's been barely a few hours? Or is it minutes that have passed?' he gulped, voice shaking. Mahad patiently waited for the pharaoh to compose himself. 'I-I can't stop thinking about them. About Yugi,' he whispered.

'My pharaoh…let this prove you don't need the Millennium scales to determine the weight of Yugi's influence on your life,' Atem nodded, accepting Mahad's words.

'Even if I did…uh, go back,' The very thought felt alien. 'We've gained each other's strengths…I have Yugi's unconditional kindness, and he has my tenacious courage…surely returning to him defeats the point of our growth?'

The magician's mouth opened wordlessly, eyes widening.

A few moments passed in which the pair floated ever aimlessly, staring at each other.

Deep, rich laughter from Mahad broke the stillness, sending a startled Atem spiralling backwards.

The shorter Egyptian irritably huffed as his cape comically blew over his face. Once he regained his regal dignity, he spun round to reface Mahad.

After a final chuckle, the magician grinned.

'Atem, you are one of the most logical reasoners I know. Do you really think after all this time the growth occurred only to allow you to separate? What about Yugi's courage to retrieve your true name? Your newfound kindness in protecting Kaiba?' Each sentence was punctuated by a dramatic hand movement, as though waving away the Pharaoh's fears.

'Those very strengths were needed to save the world! No matter what you choose, you will keep them, both in memory and for whatever the future brings'

The pharaoh stared, utterly star struck…but stubbornly silent.

Mahad sighed, gradually letting his bright demeanour melt away to become something colder, something harder. He squared his shoulders, wisdom glinting in his azure eyes as they locked with Atem's. The magician's suddenly elegant and commanding presence wrapped his Pharaoh in a powerful spell.

One of complete and utter trust.

'You have a choice. One could argue you always have. Sure, fate paved a destined path. But not all who have a set destiny are able to carry it out. You chose to do so, and it was no easy feat.' Mahad's voice rang clear, never breaking his serious gaze. 'Now…you can make this choice for yourself. For your own life, unbound by fate,'

The words sunk onto the pharaoh's shoulders with reassuring weight and warmth akin to the Millennium Puzzle. Subconsciously, his fingers clumsily grasped the air where said artefact used to hang.

One doubt remained

'Mahad…I wouldn't go back if it meant complicating Yugi's life further. In that respect, I would be happy to be parted from him, once and for all,' Atem stated, unfaltering despite the pain echoing behind his words.

It seemed the magician had grown bored. Seconds passed in which Mahad toyed with the hem of his clothes; eyes focussed on the repetitive fidgets of his fingers. Then, words lazily tumbled out like autumn leaves.

'Now, I could give an enamouring proclamation of how Yugi loves you just as much, if not more, than you love him,' Atem gasped and began to retaliate, only to be instantly hushed by a lifted hand. 'The Ceremonial Duel was all I needed to see that. Or…I could suggest maybe, just maybe, it's not a coincidence what Yugi's last words to you were,' Mahad continued smoothly, still not making eye contact.

A heatwave of irritation washed over Atem, pricking his skin like a swarm of ants. He grunted. How could he forget his partner's final farewell?

'Like we always say…' Mahad began to quote slowly.

Then it hit him.

A pair of amethyst eyes, as though freshly cut from earth, awash with the sheen of unshed tears. A determined smile, as pure as the heart of the person it belonged to.

'…it's your move!'

Upon replaying the memory, Atem let out a shaky breath he didn't know he was holding. He chuckled softly in his deep baritone, relishing how everything finally seemed so, so clear.

Crimson flames rose to meet azure waves.

'It's my move, Mahad.'

...

For Yugi, It had always been heavy.

But not just for the reason most people thought.

Sure, wearing a large golden pyramid from dawn till dusk made his neck sprain at first, but it was source of pride, a gift from his beloved grandfather.

After he discovered the dweller within the artefact, it became much heavier. Even now, his gut twisted remembering Duelist Kingdom. How he only just managed to save Kaiba from plummeting off Pegasus's castle.

The spirit could, and did, take over his body, take over his actions.

.A hard knot of fear began to twist in Yugi's heart, adding to the weight around his neck.

Soon however, the teenager realised people could change, whether they were dead or alive.

A glimmer of hope sparked in Yugi when they ingeniously defeated Pegasus at his own game. As the spirit, who introduced himself as 'Yami' and Yugi learned to work together, learned more about each other, Yugi thought the weight would lessen.

But still it grew.

The puzzle and its inhabitant became a warm, solid presence, a rock Yugi could lean against in his weakest moments, and encourage him to live his strongest.

However much more confident or stronger his other me was, Yugi related to Yami's inner turmoil of… not belonging. Before Battle City, Ishizu presented the first clue to uncovering Yami's past: the ancient tablet. Yami had raked his eyes over the surface carved with unreadable secrets. Yugi saw Yami's small frown and the weakly outstretched hand, as though trying to coax his mysterious identity out of the stone.

Yugi became determined, perhaps more than the nameless pharaoh himself, to unlock the tablet and bring his friend happiness. Even if it meant sacrificing himself to the Oricalchos, battling against Bakura, and ultimately, duelling the very person he was trying to save.

The puzzle had taken its final form: his greatest responsibility.

It had never been heavier, but Yugi had never felt braver.

Now it was gone.

A couple of days had passed since the Ceremonial Duel. Rain endlessly poured from the sky, twinkling like falling stars in the crisp moonlight. Yugi's window was left extremely wide open – perhaps deliberately so. It let the rain's melancholy hush flood his room, acting as white noise where the Pharaoh's presence used to be.

The wooden bed post had deep grooves carved by hanging the millennium puzzle against it night after night. Merely minutes ago, Yugi had been tracing his fingers along them, bittersweet memories swirling around his head. After what seemed like hours, tiredness took mercy on the teenager, letting him fall into a fitful sleep.

Upon the desk, a golden box began to glow, casting a warm halo around the room. From the light's border, a silhouette stepped out, colours and details slowly fitting together like a jigsaw puzzle.

The hum from the box gradually faded away, immersing the room in the dull, grey atmosphere once more. The fully formed figure ran his hand slowly across the desk to rest upon the box. Cat-like eyes flicked towards the wet view outside.

How odd. Yugi hates leaving the window open..?

'Wha….wh-who…'

He turned towards the source of the mumbled words.

Yugi was sat bolt upright in bed, his amethyst eyes wider than dinner plates.

The figure quietly treaded towards him.

'N-No, this is impossible, uh - I must be dreaming - why on earth would –'

Yugi looked up at the figure, now inches away from him. Even in the gloom, there was no mistaking the tri-coloured spikes, or those crimson eyes glinting with wisdom, honour and courage…the very eyes he had learnt to trust.

'A...Atem?' he stammered faintly. 'Why – why on earth would you come back to me?'

Atem had promised himself he would be composed. But it was not to be.

The pharaoh choked out a sob before promptly collapsing. He tightly cradled Yugi, whispering incoherent words of comfort and broken explanations. Yugi felt Atem's chest fitfully heaving, the strong hands clutching his back, the wetness of tears spilling onto his forehead. The single word 'Yugi' sweetly mumbled again and again in that deep voice, a soft kiss pressed against his hair.

He is here. He is real.

Yugi's gently took the pharaoh's hands in his; looking into his partner's eyes with the gentle, reassuring smile Atem had sorely missed. Slowly, he guided the sniffling pharaoh to take a seat on his bed.

'So…how?' Yugi prompted, chuckling softly. How absurdly wonderful this all was.

'I met Mahad on the way back. He gave me a choice…granted by the creator of light.' Atem's voice was hoarse, rendering his words even gruffer than usual. Yugi smoothly handed him a glass of water. Atem nodded gratefully, taking a sip. He realised that after all their, well, unusual adventures, Yugi was not going to be fazed by whatever he was going to say.

'It was a difficult decision…not made lightly. I was quite frightened. It was the chance to come back here, and live my own life,'

'You've just finished your journey and still problems come out of the blue?' Yugi sighed. Atem smiled, shaking his head softly.

'I thought it was a problem at first…but after Mahad reasoned with me, it turns out to be the best blessing I've had in about, I don't know…5000 years?' Atem joked, winking. Yugi let out chime bells of laughter, sounding like music to the pharaoh.

'What made you come back?'

Atem pulled Yugi's ear towards his heart. Yugi blinked, hearing the deep drumbeat within Atem's chest. He couldn't help but relax against the soothing sound, wrapping his arms around him.

'It was you, Yugi,' The sincerity in his words was unmistakeable. Yugi waited, breath hitched.

'Your final words to me made me realise your last lesson to teach me…as well as being kind to people, I should be kind to myself too.'

Yugi pondered for a minute, pouting.

'My last words… uh…it's your move?' he questioned.

'Exactly. I have the right to make my own life, and shouldn't be afraid of a chance to do so,'

Yugi tightened his embrace.

'Atem…this is so exciting. I'm so happy for us,' Yugi hiccupped, feeling tears of his own sprouting.

Atem stiffened. Hope flitted across his mind. 'For…us?' he probed.

'When you walked through those doors… I realised there was so much more I wanted to do with you. Having fun, exploring new things, overcoming challenges and continuing to grow together…even beat Kaiba at another duel or two,' Yugi chuckled softly.

'Now…I can finally do that. We can finally do that.'

You were right Mahad. He does value me, if not more than I value him.

Atem gently pulled Yugi away, resting his hands on his partner's shoulders, beaming at him.

'Thank you Yugi…I mean that from the bottom of my heart. For everything that was, is and will be,'

Atem's voice shook with those last words, too overcome with gratitude and love. Hope for the future. Yugi merely smiled and rested his forehead against Atem's, his amethyst eyes gazing softly into his partner's, both weeping fresh tears.

'Which heart are you thanking me from? The heart of the cards?' Yugi poked out his tongue. Atem laughed deeply, cupping Yugi's face in his hands.

'Most especially,'

On the desk basked in moonlight, one could see a satisfied smile on the Dark Magician card.