Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Not a Kid ❯ Chapter 8 ( Chapter 8 )

The songs used in this chapter are not mine. They go as followed:

Linkin' Park: `Somewhere I Belong'

Evanescence: `All That'

HIM: `Killing Loneliness'

The Rasmus: `Keep Your Heart Broken'

 

I myself am a BIG fan of all those bands and know most of their songs by heart. Many of them have a special meaning to me and so I hope you approve of my choice. Thank you, and enjoy!

 

 

Chapter 8

 

Kouga stood in front of the full length mirror in the spacious changing room, and took a moment to run a critical eye over his reflection. The people from the fashion department had really done their job well. His reflection stared back at him, mirroring his smug smirk. He was wearing a pair of very low riding baggy black pants, held up only by a black leather belt, decorated with silver studs and spikes. The pants were tucked carelessly in a pair of heavy looking, loosely laced combat boots, coming to about mid-shin. His torso was covered by a tight fitting black sleeveless mesh shirt, through which one could easily make out a belly button piercing, glinting in the bright light. His right bicep was circled by a silver snake with emeralds for eyes, and both his wrists were covered by thick black armbands. His fingers were littered with silver rings in different shapes and sizes, and around his neck was a thin leather chord with an ankh shaped pendant that came to just about the hollow of his throat. His silver cross earring dangled from his ear, glittering darkly. He'd never liked wearing a lot of make-up, despite `Darkness' Light's mostly gothic style. The only trace of it now was the heavy khol that outlined his eyes, bringing the silver-specked amethyst pools out nicely.

 

All in all, he looked ready to bring down the pope with a lust-induced fever. He smirked again. It was just the effect he was looking for. Only, not for the pope.

 

His door banged open to reveal a hyper-as-usual Jojo, all dressed up and ready. Her outfit was strikingly similar to that of a school girl in one of those catholic schools, except it was all done in shades of charcoal grey, white and red. Her long legs were covered by a pair of horizontally striped stockings in the ebove-mentioned colors, that came to about mid-thigh, and a pair of black, low healed shoes, perfect for helping her determine the rhythm of her drums. The shockingly short dark-grey skirt flared out to an-inch-or-three above the line where her stockings ended, and her white blouse revealed an almost scandalous amount of cleavage, ending just above her belly button, and showing off a flat, well toned stomach. Her long, golden hair was done up in a pair of pig-tails, but it still flowed to about mid-back. She too wasn't overly fond of excessive amounts of foreign goo on her face, and had instead opted for some smoky grey eye shadow and a light touch of lip gloss. The overall impression was an irresistible mix of innoscence and sin, all wrapped up in one package.

 

Now she smiled brightly at him, her green eyes dancing with excitement for the upcoming show. Closing the door behind her with a resounding bang, she closed the distance between them in two seconds flat and flung her arms around his neck with an excited squeal. With a startled laugh, he grabbed her waist gently and tried to regain his balance.

 

“Are ya ready? The show starts in fifteen! Ya gotta be ready!”

 

“Hey, Jojo baby!” He tried to soothe the bundle of energy “Take it easy! Yeah, I'm ready! And I see so are you!”

 

He pushed her at arms length to get a better look at her and gave an appreciative wolf whistle.

 

“Damn, you look good!”

 

She just grinned evilly at him and poked him in the chest.

 

“You don't look too bad yourself, honey! Haven't seen you fuss over your looks like that since the first date I set you up on! This wouldn't have to do with a certain red-eyed Egyptian hunk of erotic meat, now would it?”

 

She wriggled her eyebrows suggestively and chortled insanely at his sour expression.

 

“It's a concert! `Course I'd be dressed up!” He grumbled moodily, crossing his arms in front of his chest like a petulant five-year-old.

 

“But you've never had wet dreams quite that noisy for a whole week before any of your other concerts, now have you puppet?” She leered at him.

 

He just flushed scarlet. No matter how long he'd known her, she could always get a rise out of him. She was probably the last person alive that could do it nowadays. Maube because she knew him so well?

 

“You've been eavesdropping on me at night?!” He was alarmed to notice his voice had gone a pitch or two higher than he'd have liked to admit.

 

“Well, you aren't exactly the silent type.” She stated with a perfectly straight face, which promptly dissolved into more maniacal laughter at the expression on his face.

 

Kouga just gaped like a goldfish and, not knowing what else to say or do to that, flapped his arms a bit in an excellent imitation of a windmill. After all, they both knew she was right. He'd never claimed to make for a silent fuck.

 

This just made the blonde drummer's cackling increase in volume, until Kouga felt he was about ready to throttle her. The soon-to-be-mangled-corpse was saved by the dressing room door opening again (this time much more calmly). Mathew stepped in and gave Jojo a momentary glance, choosing to turn to the only other person in the room except him, capable of speech without gasping and choking on their laughter.

 

“Do I want to know?” He asked the still somewhat sulking Kouga, his voice as cool and collected as ever, an eyebrow raised above his ever-present dark glasses.

 

“No.” Came the strained response through gritted teeth.

 

Mathew just nodded once, as if dismissing the matter entirely, and went straight to the point.

 

“Ready? We're on in about ten.”

 

Kouga just sighed and ran a hand through his lightly spiked black locks.

 

“Yeah, chortle-choke over there already told me.” He said, waving a hand in Jojo's general direction “You and Danny ready, I presume?”

 

Mathew nodded again and moved a little from the entrance to show a smiling Daniel, standing patiently behind him. Both were dressed similarly, in dark blue jeans and black short sleeved T-shirts. The only differences were in Mathew's glasses and slightly snugger shirt, and the writing on their backs. Danny's said `Beware, he bites' in big, white letters, and Mathew's read `Beware, I bite' in similar, red lettering. It was a far cry from Jojo and Kouga's own, much more flashy styles, but it worked more than well for them.

 

“Okay then, show-time everybody!” Kouga clapped his hands and rubbed them together, his earlier smirk returning.

 

He strolled through the door and at the last minute, threw over his shoulders.

 

“Oh, and by the way, Mathew darling, grab Mrs. Hyper on you way out! I don't know whose bright idea it was to give her a sugar-high right before a concert, but it's your turn to drag her to the stage. I did it last time!”

 

And he raced off, snickering to softly at the sounds of Mathew's irritated cursing (so out of character for the aloof and collected guitar player), Dan's light laughter and Jojo's indignant squawks.

 

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It was a really impatient Atemu that arrived at the new BAM recording studio, glancing around the loud crowd in search of his friends. His own internal mantra of `Where are they?' almost drowned out the excited chatter of the exuberant mass of people that had showed up for `Darkness' Light's concert. The concert itself was scheduled to start in less than half an hour. The stage was set up in the open space in front of the new BAM building, whose shining, mirrored windows reflected the rays of the late afternoon sun. It seemed Ra was to retire for the day soon.

 

Atemu looked around once more, taking in the kind of people that had come to see his light with one part of his mind, while the other continued to keep watch for Joey's loud, accented voice, or Ryou's shock of white hair. It seemed he'd chosen his wardrobe well. Everywhere around him fans were milling about, decked out in formfitting leather and denim, all in dark colors and decorated with chains and spikes. He himself had opted for his trademark leather pants and sleeveless shirt with silver buckles. He was thankful Marik had warned him beforehand, now he at least didn't stand out.

 

Suddenly, he heard a voice somewhere to his right.

 

“Yo, Atemu! Over here!”

 

Turning, he caught site of Tristan. Beside him stood Joey, looking the opposite way, but he turned at his friend's yell. He too spotted the ex-pharaoh and waved excitedly, with a big dopy grin on his face. Atemu couldn't remember seeing that grin since Yugi's disappearance all those years ago. It seemed Joey was just as desperate and happy tosee his old buddy as he himself was.

 

Both friends jogged over his way and the spirit of the puzzle made to meet them halfway. Joey wore his usual outfit, only the jeans were black and the T-shirt a dark-gray. Tristan had chosen a similar dark pair of jeans, but with a white muscle shirt, over which he'd slung on a black leather jacket with a few silver spikes along the shoulders. Except for their unusually dark-colored choice of clothing, they hadn't changed all that much in the last couple of years. Tristan still wore his hair in that spike he loved so much; he'd even enrolled in the army, fulfilling his childhood dream. He presently dated Serenity, to Joey's great consternation. Joey himself was the same cheerful loudmouth, with his shabby gold main of hair and puppy-dog brown eyes. Though his face had been somewhat shadowed since Yugi's disappearance, it had cleared up considerably since the news of his return.

 

“Finally!” Atemu grumbled when he finally reached the two “Have you seen the others?”

 

“Hey, buddy! Take it easy!” Laughed Joey “We're just as eager to see him, but the show won't start for another fifteen minutes!”

 

Atemu huffed a bit, but chose to ignore the grinning pair in favor of once more looking around the crowd. Just as he was about to scan the mass of people to his right a second time, he spotted a clump of white hair. Actually, it was two clumps. Ryou, with Marik at his side and the two yamis following, was making his way towards them. The group of four seemed most at ease among the throng of excited fans out of all of them. The two sociopaths of yamis were actually bouncing on their heels, as disturbing a site as that might be. Both looked to be really comfortable in their leather outfits. Marik's was actually matching his yami's, with the exception of his deep violet top, which contrasted starkly with his darkness' rusty-red one. Yami Bakura's all black ansamble vividly brought out his pale skin and snow-white hair. The thief's light was the only one wearing jeans, though their dark-blue color and his tight black T-shirt with `Darkness' Light's slogan on the front clearly marked him as a fan of the band.

 

Presently, the more innocent of the two hikaris was pulling along his fellow light, while Marik himself dragged the two yamis. They made for an interesting chain, Atemu mused distantly. Finally, the panting (and in the two mentally unstable psychopaths' case gushing and squealing) party reached Atemu and his group.

 

“About time.” Scowled the irritated ex-pharaoh, glaring disapprovingly at his two former enemies, who only blew him a gasket in retaliation “What took you so long?”

 

“Sorry, Atemu.” Murmured Ryou “We got a bit…sidetracked.” He added quietly, glancing at his yami with a blush.

 

Said yami just leered at him lustily.

 

“Yeah.” Snorted Marik “Who knew the prospect of seeing their favorite band with backstage tickets and everything could have that kind of effect on those two.” He finished with a pointed look at his own yami's crotch.

 

Yami Marik had the decency to look sheepish, never mind that his light didn't seem at all unhappy with the whole situation.

 

Tristan scrunched his face in distaste, Ryou blushed even brighter, Atemu added exasperation to his irritation, the albino thief looked smug, and Joey just looked on uncomprehendingly.

 

“Never mind that!” Atemu snapped “We don't need to listen to the thief and tomb keeper's whacked out hormonal exploits! Now, are we all here, so we can finally go in?”

 

“Actually,” Tristan started “I don't see Tea. Do you thin she…”

 

Whatever he was going to say, he never got the chance to get it out, for in that moment, a keening squeal, that reminded Atemu uncomfortably of a dieing horse's final war cry, drowned out everything else. Tea had arrived.

 

As much as she had claimed to be Kouga's fan, she certainly didn't look it now, what with her painfully bright, neon-pink shirt and short, dark-blue denim skirt. Her high-heeled white shoes clicked obnoxiously against the concrete as she raced towards them like a charging bull. She finally glomped the wide eyed, startled Atemu, nearly knocking him over in the process, and started babbling his ear off. At least she was out of her catatonic state. Fortunately or unfortunately, nobody could say for certain.

 

“Atemu, honey! I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find you!” She chattered on “Won't this be romantic?! Just you and me on a concert, all dark and scary, and you'll hold me, and…”

 

She seemed to have forgotten that they weren't alone.

 

Finally, Atemu pried her arms away from his person and pushed her gently aside. As much as he thought she was delusional, he still thought of her as his friend.

 

“Right.” He mumbled, a bit shaken by the unexpected show of…affection. Still, he cleared his throat and carried on “Now that we're all here, let's go.”

 

He ignored the snickers concealed as polite coughs around him, and led the whole group towards the stage, where their tickets were to be checked and returned. The man that handed the precious scraps of paper back, gave Atemu a long, piercing look, then nodded and addressed the group.

 

“After the concert, stay put. Since your tickets include backstage passes, I'll collect you and show you the way.”

 

Atemu raised a surprised eyebrow, and behind him he felt his friends exchange surprised glances (all except Yami Bakura and Yami Marik, who seemed to be doing a strange imitation of a jig and singing happily “We're going backstage!” over and over again).

 

“We can find our own way.” He said to the man, who'd turned to walk away “There won't be a need of an escort.”

 

The man turned to look at him again and shrugged.

 

“Orders, buddy. I'm to show you and anyone you bring along to Mr. Uchiha himself. I value my job too much to disobey my orders just because you think you can find your own way.”

 

With that, the man was gone. Atemu stood still for a moment, than turned and led the bewildered group to their places at the very front of the stage. All they could do now was wait for the show to start.

 

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Kouga stood just behind the stage, peering out into the audience without being seen himself. Jojo, Dan and Mathew had all joined him and they were waiting for Jonathan to introduce them.

 

“You gave him the tickets.”

 

It wasn't a question, but he answered it anyway.

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Good. It would show him who you are better than any words ever could.”

 

Kouga turned and smiled crookedly at Mathew. It had been his idea to offer Atemu answers this way in the first place. Mathew understood that words would have hurt too much and still accomplish nothing, so had given the suggestion about the tickets, and had been supported by the whole band.

 

“Thanks, Mat.” He said softly, using the nickname his ex-lover vehemently hated.

 

“Mathew.” Came the automatic correction, but the stoic man's lips were quirked in the slightest of smiles. Behind him, Jojo and Dan looked on with soft eyes, understanding smiles on both their faces.

 

Suddenly, a man from the staff wearing the band's T-shirt, approached and Kouga turned to him, encouraging him to speak.

 

“He's here, sir.” The man said simply.

 

“Good.” Kouga stated with a slight sigh of relief “Is he alone?”

 

The man shook his head in the negative.

 

“No sir. He's with company.”

 

Kouga nodded absentmindedly. He'd expected as much. He wondered though how many of his former friends had come along.

 

“How many?” He asked.

 

“Seven, him included, sir.” The man answered.

 

Any further conversation was halted though, as Jonathan made his way to the stage and the crowd cheered. Kouga sent the man on his way with a reminder if his duties after the show, and turned back to the stage just in time to hear their cue.

 

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As Atemu and the others took their places, a middle-aged man wearing an expensive black suit that somewhat contradicted his unruly black mop of hair, appeared on the stage, as the crowd around them cheered.

 

“Who is that?” He asked Ryou, who was closest to him. Tea was on his other side, clingin to his arm and squealing his ear off.

 

“That's the band's manager, Jonathan Stevens. He's the one who sort of discovered them. He's been with `Darkness' Light' since the beginning and is one of the most high up people in BAM.”

 

Atemu nodded, satisfied, and turned back to the stage as the man began his speech.

 

“Hello and welcome to all!” His voice was light and inviting, but demanded attention at the same time “I'm pleased to announce the opening of BAM's newest recording studio, right here in Domino! We at BAM are thrilled to finally have a branch here in Japan, and are eager to see what the Land of the Rising Sun has to offer in the form of raw talent! Now, as many of you know, our label has discovered and launched many of the greatest names in the music industry today. But to this day, our most successful band has never had the pleasure of entertaining the people of Japan live.” At this the crowd started to get progressively louder “But here, this evening, present to bless BAM's newest studio, we are happy to introduce to you the band that conquered the world with just two albums! So, without further ado, I give you…'Darkness' Light'!”

 

The audience exploded into a mass of screaming and shouting as the first notes of a song started. Next to him, Atemu noticed that his friends were no better. Was it because of the fact that they were finally getting to see Yugi again after five long years, or because they just loved the song, he wasn't sure. But the next moment, he stopped thinking altogether, as the curtain fell and he laid eyes on his hikari.

 

Low, low riding pants, a mesh shirt and a shining black electric guitar with silver designs on the smooth surface. At that moment Atemu could understand perfectly well why the people around him were screeching their lungs out, only to be noticed by this personification of sweet sin. He didn't notice the other members of the band, he didn't notice his friends' momentary shocked silence, all he could see were those intense violet eyes and that tanned face, framed with strands of the purest silver.

 

And then his mouth opened, and the hands moved over the strings of the guitar as if caressing a lover, and he opened his mouth. And Atemu was lost as Kouga Uchiha wove his enticing web over all those present.

 

 

 

 

All that I'm living for

All that I'm dying for

All that I can't ignore

Alone at night

 

I can feel the night beginning

Separate me from the living

Understanding me

After all I've seen

 

Piecing every thought together

Find the words to make me better

If I only knew

How to pull myself above

 

All that I'm living for

All that I'm dying for

All that I can't ignore

Alone at night

 

All that I'm wanted for

All that I want and more

Locked the last open door

My ghosts are gaining on me

 

I believe that dreams are sacred

Take my darkest fears and play them

Like a lullaby

Like a reason why

 

I can play the mind obsessions

Make me understand the lesson

So I find myself

So I won't be lost again

 

All that I'm living for

All that I'm dying for

All that I can't ignore

Alone at night

 

All that I'm wanted for

All that I want and more

Locked the last open door

My ghosts are gaining on me

 

Guess I thought I'd have to change the world

To make you see me

To be the one

I could have run forever

 

With how far I would have come

Without mourning your love

 

All that I'm living for

All that I'm dying for

All that I can't ignore

Alone at night

 

All that I'm wanted for

All that I want and more

Locked the last open door

My ghosts are gaining on me

 

Should have found a locker

Shouldn't feel like I do

Should have locked the last open door

My ghosts are gaining on me

 

The last note faded and the crowd roared their approval and their desire for more. Atemu came to with a start, as if waking from a dream. Kouga's voice had been so full of feeling. His whole performance had been soaked with emotion. He dimly noted that his friends were cheering along with the rest of the crowd, but he still couldn't take his eyes away from the proud figure in the center of the stage.

 

Suddenly, Kouga raised his hand and the whole audience went silent, hungrily anticipating their idol's next words.

 

“Hello, Domino!” He roared into the microphone, his voice crisp and clear “How are you this fine evening?”

 

His answer was the incomprehensible screech of at least six thousand throats. He smirked and Atemu felt the heat in his lower stomach increase with that simple action.

 

Kouga continued.

 

“This concert is quite special to me in many ways. Not many of you know this, but I was borne here, in Domino.” The crowd was hanging on his every word. No one had been completely sure where the elusive lead singer came from, so this came as a bit of a shock “I personally chose all songs for this evening and hope you'll enjoy listening to them as much as I enjoyed writing them.”

 

With that, he motioned to the rest of the band behind him, and the notes to the next song started. It was a somewhat calmer tune, but no less captivating.

 

 

I'm folding the love in my heart

By the dawn of be gone

The road keeps us apart

For some time of be gone

 

You promised to swallow your tears when I leave you

You promised to follow the leads I will give you

You said you would crawl in the dark from the laughter

You said you would long after me ever after

 

My love will go black

If your heart gets stolen

Just promise to keep your heart

One day I'll come back

If your door's still open

Just promise to keep your heart broken

 

Days go by like the wind

And this life is too short

It makes no sense to give in

To release you from my thoughts

 

I promise to write you, I'll always remember

I promise to try to be back `till December

I said I must go, I must face this disaster

I said I would come after you ever after

 

My love will go black

If your heart gets stolen

Just promise to keep your heart

One day I'll come back

If your door's still open

Just promise to keep your heart broken

If you just promise to keep your heart

Promise to keep your heart broken

If you just promise to keep your heart

Broken

Broken

Broken

Broken

 

My love will go black

If your heart gets stolen

Just promise to keep your heart

One day I'll come back

If your door's still open

Just promise to keep your heart broken

 

Forever after, my love

Just promise to keep your heart broken

 

From then on, the evening progressed to night, and Atemu found himself often exchanging worried glances with the rest of his friends. He couldn't help but find a deeper meaning to Kouga's lyrics as he was sure he was supposed to. His hikari had said he'd chosen the songs himself, after all. He felt worse and worse with every passing moment. How well had he known his own light? He hadn't even been aware Yugi could write music, for Ra's sake!

 

Kouga's husky, sensuous voice caught his attention again. The sun god Ra had set long ago. It was dark and the stage was illuminated by bright projectors, throwing light on Kouga's lean form, which was by this time glistening with a light sheen of sweat.

 

Memories, sharp as daggers

Pierce into the flesh of today

Suicide of love took away all that matters

And buried the remains in an unmarked grave in your heart

 

With the venomous kiss you gave me

I'm killing loneliness (Killing loneliness)

With the warmth of your arms you saved me,

Oh, I'm killing loneliness with you

I'm killing loneliness that turned my heart into a tomb

I'm killing loneliness

 

Nailed to the cross, together

As solitude begs us to stay

Disappear in the lie forever

And denounce the power of death over our souls

and secret words are said to start a war

 

With the venomous kiss you gave me

I'm killing loneliness (Killing loneliness)

With the warmth of your arms you saved me,

Oh, I'm killing loneliness with you

I'm killing loneliness that turned my heart into a tomb

I'm killing loneliness

Killing loneliness

With the venomous kiss you gave me

I'm killing loneliness (Killing loneliness)

With the warmth of your arms you saved me

 

People all around him had taken out their lighters by this time and were waving them over their heads, singing along, with the small flames swishing right and left. Atemu turned his attention back to the stage and found himself locked in a pair of silver-specked pools of amethyst outlined by a layer of khol. A cocky smirk appeared on that exotic face and the ex-pharaoh felt a shiver race down his spine. The next thing he knew, he was letting out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding as Kouga broke the eye contact and turned to shout something behind him.

 

The girl on the drums grinned a grin eerily similar to Yami Bakura's and raced back stage. A moment later she was back with a glass of what appeared to be some kind of amber colored alcohol and a lit cigarette. She handed them both to Kouga and took her place behind the drums again. The crowd was going wild.

 

Perplexed, Atemu turned towards Ryou again, but Yami Bakura beat his light to it answered his unasked question with a truly evil smirk.

 

“It's time for the last song, pharaoh! He always finishes a show with this one, and what you're seeing now is a tradition. They bring out the fag and liquor, and you know it's time for Kouga's greatest hit so far!”

 

Atemu was just about to open his mouth with a scathing remark (something along the lines of `I did not intend to ask you, thief!'), when he noticed that all around him was quit. He turned back to the stage just in time to see Kouga put out the cigarette he'd finished while pacing said stage with his foot, and smash the half-empty glass to pieces. Juts as the glass crashed, the crowd erupted again and a melody began.

 

But it wasn't Kouga who started the song. It was the second guitar player, one of the apparent set of twins, the one with the dark glasses. Just as Atemu was wondering why Kouga wasn't joining, that unmistakable voice sounded.

 

When this began
I had nothing to say
And I'd get lost in the nothingness inside of me
I was confused
And I let it all out to find/That I'm
Not the only person with these things in mind
Inside of me
But all the vacancy the words revealed
Is the only real thing that I've got left to feel
Nothing to lose
Just stuck/Hollow and alone
And the fault is my own
And the fault is my own

I want to heal
I want to feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I've held so long
Erase all the pain 'til it's gone
It's gone
I want to heal
I want to feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere I Belong

And I've got nothing to say
I can't believe I didn't fall right down on my face
I was confused
Looking everywhere/Only to fin that it's
Not the way I had imagined it all in my mind
So what am I
What do I have but negativity
'Cause I can't justify the
Way everyone is looking at me
Nothing to lose
Nothing to gain/Hollow and alone
And the fault is my own
The fault is my own

I will never know
Myself until I do this on my own
And I will never feel
Anything else until my wounds are healed
I will never be
Anything 'til I break away from me
And I will break away
I'll find myself today

I want to heal
I want to feel like I'm
Somewhere I belong

And before the final cheers had died down, Kouga bellowed into the microphone.

“Thank you! You were a wonderful audience! Goodnight!”

And just like that, he was gone. The rest of the band was quick to follow, and the screeching audience started to slowly file out.

“Oh my God!” Murmured a shocked Joey “Was that our Yugi? I mean, I just can't believe he's so…”

“Changed?” Atemu softly said.

“Yah.” Joey nodded solemnly.

He couldn't seem to find the right words to express his surprise. All the others were quit, not knowing what to say, except a squealing Tea, and chortling Yami Bakura ad Yami Marik. The latter two were soon silenced by a whack to the back of their heads, courtesy of their hikaris.

Fortunately, the tense silence didn't last long, as they were approached by the same man who'd told them would escort them earlier.

“This way, gentlemen” He paused and glanced at Tea with a raised eyebrow “and lady. Mr. Uchiha is waiting, and he is not a very patient man.”

After a nod from Atemu, the wary group followed. They were lead behind the stage and into the new BAM building. After a short elevator ride and walk through a series of corridors, they were told to wait in front of a heavy mahogany door, while their escort knocked lightly.

A man with soft brown hair and sunglasses (Atemu recognized him as the one who'd sung the last song with Kouga) opened the door and raised an eyebrow in a stoic way, chillingly similar to Seto Kaiba's.

“Yes?”

Even his voice was as cold as the CEO's.

Their guide seemed quite intimidated, but answered nonetheless.

“They're here, sir.”

The man turned towards them now, and after a moment, nodded and stepped aside to let them pass. Without another word, the man that had led them here turned and left as quickly as possible.

The company of seven entered what was apparently a dressing room. It was decorated in calm, beige and white colors. The furniture was simple and elegant, made of primarily light brown wood. A full-length mirror stood in one corner with a vanity next to it. A wrack with darkly colored clothing, the materials mostly leather, denim and silk, was pushed to the side of the vanity. A loveseat and several squishy-looking beanbags were scattered around a low table, covered with magazines, a few cups of coffee and bottles of water, some empty. All in all, the room had a cosy, serene feeling to it.

Nothing of the room's interior caught Atemu's attention, though. What he was more interested in was the person sprawled out on the loveseat.

Kouga lay with his feet in the other twin's lap, a small white towel covering his face, still dressed in the clothes from the concert. His right hand was thrown over the back of the loveseat, and his left lay on his flat stomach. The blonde girl that had played the drums was bouncing in her seat in one of the beanbags, staring at them unblinkingly. The manager, Jonathan, sat opposite her, also regarding them carefully.

“Mathew” Came Kouga's irritated voice, slightly muffled by the towel “Stop scaring the living dayshit out of the staff!”

The man, Mathew, simply crossed his hands over his chest and cleared his throat with a still raised eyebrow (Atemu had the feeling that the man didn't know any other facial expressions). Kouga lifted the small towel and finally saw he had company. He froze and stared at them for a moment, taking all of them in.

Atemu could feel his friends tense behind him. None of them was sure how their long lost friend would take their presence. After all, although the tickets were a hint, the invitation had been directed specifically only to Atemu.

Then Kouga opened his mouth.

“Uh…Hi guys.”

That seemed to be all it took. The next thing anyone knew, Joey was across the room and hugging the life out of the poor singer, bawling all over the place.

“Yug'! Where the hell were you? I missed you! Ya tiny little bugger, you! Don't you ever do this ta me again, ya hear?!”

The rest was swallowed up by sobs and sniffles, the likes of which poor Kouga had never seen or heard (and hoped to never see or hear again, actually).

“Geez, Joey, calm down, will ya?” He wheezed, his ribs starting to ache from Joey's bear-hug “You're slobbering all over me, and my shirt ain't exactly snot proof, ya know!”

The hysterical blonde finally let up on his friend and slowly started to calm down.

“What are you, related to Jojo or something?” Grumbled a very relieved Kouga.

It was only then that he turned to the rest of the people he'd left behind five years ago. Tristan looked to be fighting back tears, and Ryou was openly sniffling. Marik, Yami Bakura and Yami Marik were all grinning in a rather demented way. Tea looked constipated (he had to raise an eyebrow at her choice of clothing, what had the chit been thinking?), and Atemu…Atemu was watching him with an unreadable expression.

He left a still slightly sobbing Joey in Danny's competent care, and rose to approach his yami.

“So” He began in a soft voice “You made it.”

His darkness regarded him from beneath long, thick lashes, and after a moment responded in an equally soft tone of voice.

“Yes.”

“Did you find some of the answers you were looking for?” He asked, tilting his head slightly to one side.

Although the others observed this exchange with a certain dose of confusion, Atemu knew exactly what his light meant. He'd wondered what Yugi had been up to in the years of his absence, and now he had his answer. He was also beginning to understand how little he'd really known his hikari. After all, he never would have suspected his light of even being interested in music, let alone creating it.

So he understood the question he was answering perfectly well.

“Yes.”

This seemed to satisfy the young singer, because he nodded slightly and, suddenly, drew his yami into his embrace. Atemu returned the sign of affection eagerly, squeezing his eyes tight and inhaling the scent he'd missed so much. They still had a long way to go, but at least the mistakes were acknowledged. Now the process of correcting them could finally begin.

After a minute or two, they reluctantly drew back, and Kouga turned to the others with a cheeky grin.

“Well, I see the old gang is all here. How've guys been?”

And just like that, the barrier was broken. Introductions were made, stories shared, experiences exchanged and a slightly disturbed Kouga found out he had two rather unexpected fans. Yami Bakura and Yami Marik seemed to be teetering between brainless, star-eyed adoration for their musical idol, and merciless teasing for the apparently not-so-innocent hikari. It would have confused and even terrified Yugi, but Kouga found their not-quite-sane antics rather amusing (`Don't encourage them!' had come Marik's horrified shriek when he'd shared his thoughts). Tristan was enjoying an earful of Jojo-gibberish (though his eyes were straying a little too low to be locked onto hers), Joey was chatting with a warmly smiling Dan, and Mathew was glowering at an annoyingly shrill Tea.

Soon though the room quited as Jonathan cleared his throat.

“Yes, well” He started “I hate to break this up, but you guys have a party to host.” He said, addressing the band.

Kouga groaned.

“Oh, right! The after-show party! I totally forgot!”

“What do you mean?” Asked a worried Atemu. He didn't want to part from his light just yet “What party?”

“The one that's organized traditionally after every concert.” Jonathan answered “It's to be held at a local club. `Petting Zone', I believe it was called.”

“'Petting Zone'? What kind of name is that?” Mumbled a bewildered Joey.

Smirking, Kouga leaned into the oblivious youth, and whispered in his ear, his voice husky.

“You know, Joey, that kind of `petting'.”

And he groped his ass.

Joey jumped and gave a rather unmanly squawk, as the rest of Kouga's old friends stared at him in astonishment. The next thing anyone new, an albino thief and serial murderer were groveling at the singer's feet, begging him to teach them `his wicked ways'. Kouga was just about ready to throw his hands in the air in amused exasperation, when Jonathan spoke again.

“Kouga, why don't you invite your friends along?”

Kouga stared, Jonathan stared right back. A wicked glint appeared in the former's eyes and a slow smirk made its way onto his face.

“Yeah” He mumbled. Then, louder “Yeah, why don't you come along? We could always use the limo.”

The unholy light in those silver-specked amethysts went unnoticed by all.

A.N:

Wow, I wrote this chapter practically in one go! And let me tell you something, it was exhausting! I don't feel my butt…

Anyways, thanks a million for the reviews! You people warm my shriveled little black heart! Kisses to you all! Thanks for the suggestions, and although I couldn't fulfill them all, I still hope you like what I did choose.

Next chapter: clubbing and a light doze of jealousy!

Disclaimer:

I do not own Yu Gi Oh!