Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Something To Believe In ❯ To Be Strong ( Chapter 8 )

Yuri: Gah!

Yugi: What?!

Yuri: I just found out that the best video game of all time (Kingdom Hearts) is not releasing the third series until 2011! I've already waited 2.5 years for it and now I have to wait 2 more years? I'm going to die!

Yami: Get control of yourself woman!

Yuri: Oh yeah, sorry! Anyways please enjoy! And thank you to the extravagant Death By Storm for being my beta!

...To Be Strong...

The next morning, Yugi woke to find himself tucked in bed and wearing pajamas. He almost went into a hysteria when he couldn't find Yami but luckily, the crimson-eyed spirit appeared and calmed him down before he could get that far. In response to Yugi's annoyance with the spirit because he refused to explain to him what had happened yesterday and why his memory was completely gone, Yami promised him that they would work on their mind link. Yugi was overjoyed when he got to spend time with Yami and was grateful when he taught him how to block his thoughts but also how to communicate with the handsome spirit.

It was nearing noon when the phone rang and Yugi ran down the stairs, hoping that it would be grandpa.

"Motou residence, Yugi speaking," the smaller said politely.

"Yugi? It's Dr. Laura.”

Yugi felt his heart sink into the pit of his stomach. Why was she calling? She was only supposed to harass him on Mondays.

"What can I do for you, Laura?" Yugi said, feeling defensive.

For some reason, Yugi always felt angry towards the woman. Maybe it was because she tried to get him to reveal deep secrets, or because she seemed to not really care about what he did have to say. She usually just got annoyed with him.

"Are you able to come and see me today? I won't be able to see you this Monday and your grandfather insists that you need a weekly appointment so can you come over by three o'clock?" Dr. Laura asked and Yugi inwardly groaned in response.

"Aibou? What's wrong?" Yami inquired through their mind link.

"It's my therapist! She wants me to see her today but I can't stand her! I wish I never had to see her again!" Yugi yelled in frustration.

"Then why do you?" Yami asked slightly confused.

"Because she says that I'm depressed and that without her help I could go insane but I feel like her help is what's making me lose my mind!" Yugi said rolling his eyes.

There was a long period of silence before Yami's voice entered his mind again. "Do you usually let people sway your opinion so easily? If you don't want to go and you don't think she's helping, then don't go."

Yugi narrowed his eyes at the spirit's condescending tone. Yami said it as if his logic was obvious and that Yugi was mentally disabled for not figuring out.

"But she said that I need her-" Yugi tried to explain but Yami quickly cut him off.

"You don't need her. I'm here now."

Yugi felt his the butterflies in his stomach dance at the thought of Yami always being there for him. The way that Yami told him that he would never leave and that with him, Yugi would no longer need anyone else.

"Yugi? Yugi?!"

The amethyst-eyed teen jumped at the impatient yell and quickly apologized. He had completely forgotton that he was still on the phone. "Oh, I'm sorry Dr. Laura. I got distracted," Yugi explained hastily. He listened intently into the phone as the woman sighed in frustration.

"Spacing out again I see. So, I'll see you at three.”

It wasn't really a question and all Yugi could do was sigh. "Sure."

Yugi soon heard the dial tone, signaling that the other had hung up and the small boy placed the phone back down on the receiver.

"Yami, I need to go," Yugi said. He was surprised the other didn't reply. "Yami?" Yugi said again.

He felt his heart rate begin to increase as he waited anxiously to hear the other's response. When he was once again answered with silence, Yugi began to pace back and forth as he tried to find the reason for Yami's sudden lack of reply. Yugi sat down on the couch and let his eyes close as he turned over several suggestions in his head. When he re-opened his eyes, he was shocked to see a bright, blue sky. He slowly propped himself up on his elbows and glanced around his new surroundings.

'My soulroom?' Yugi said.

Something in the corner of the wide, spacious land caught his eye, and Yugi stood to his feet and wandered over next to a few cluttered trees. Yugi slowly weaved his way through the cracks between the trees and gasped in surprise when he saw a small door. Opening it cautiously, Yugi slowly peered his head through the door to see a small room with toys scattered everywhere. There was a small bed in the corner along with a few bureaus and a television.

Not sensing any danger, Yugi walked into the room and noticed another door. He made sure not to step on any of the toys as he crossed the room and opened the other door. Yugi gasped when he saw a long hallway that seperated his soulroom from another. He didn't even realize it when he began to walk towards the metal door. Before he knew it, he was turning the black doorknob and quickly pushed open the heavy door. Yugi stared at the darkness that greeted him with fear. Yugi was terrified of the dark. He always had been. Some would call it a childish fear but he called it a phobia. Suddenly the darkness faded and Yugi was shocked to see what looked like a maze.

Stepping into the large room, Yugi's thoughts were confirmed. It was a maze. There were what looked like thousands of door and hundreds of staircases leading in all types of directions. 'Is this...is this Yami's soulroom?' Yugi said to himself and nearly jumped out of his skin when the metal door slammed shut behind him.

'Oh great,' Yugi thought . 'Guess there's no turning back now.'

Taking the first staircase to his right, Yugi began to mount the stairs. His heart was beating like crazy. He was both scared and worried. Where was Yami? Why were there so many doors? And why were the stairs so fucking high! Yugi almost had to jump to get to the next one.

When Yugi got to the first door, he opened it cautiously and peered in. Seeing nothing dangerous, Yugi opened it fully and screamed as a huge boulder came striaght for him. Quickly shutting the door before he got squished, Yugi ran directly into another room. He gasped when the floor beneath him crumbled and Yugi quickly grabbed on the the edge. He looked below him to see nothing but pure darkness and he inwardly moaned at his luck.

'Oh yes, this is perfect. I come to search for the spirit that I have fallen madly in love with only to fall in a giant hole of engulfing darkness that will no doubt eat me! I swear if I live through this, I am so going to force him to re-decorate!'

At this point, talking to himself was a way of distracting him from the immense fear that gripped at his heart. This couldn't be the end! It just couldn't! He had just met Yami. He had just found out what it feels like to be in love. There was no way that he was going to die now!

Yugi clutched on to the edge as hard as he could but nevertheless he could feel his grip weakening. It was only a matter of time. Yugi closed his eyes as he felt the last drop of strength exit his body and soon enough his grip released the surface. Suddenly a strong hand grasped his own and Yugi looked up to see a very confused and angry Yami. After the crimson-eyed spirit had pulled Yugi up and planted him on the ground, he glared at the shorter teen, obviously waiting for an explanation.

"Aibou, what are you doing in here?" Yami inquired with narrowed eyes and his arms crossed over his chest.

"You weren't responding so I came to find you," Yugi answered as he let his heart rate slow down. After a few deep breaths, Yugi asked slowly: "Is this your soulroom?"

"Yes it is," Yami said and Yugi could tell that the other was extremely pissed.

Yugi only glared at the older spirit. "Don't look at me like that Yami. It's not my fault that your soulroom is filled with all these traps! I almost died! Twice! You seriously need to re-decorate."

The look on Yami's face was absolutely priceless. Yugi actually almost laughed but, fearing that Yami would throw him back into the hole in the ground, thought better of it.

"I Will Not Re-Decorate," Yami said dangerously. "It is meant to keep intruders out. I would prefer if people didn't search my mind." Yami shot Yugi a small glare with his last comment.

"Why is it so...dark?" Yugi asked choosing to ignore the look that Yami was sending him.

"Because that's the way I like it," Yami answered bluntly and Yugi only sighed at the other's stubborness and unwillingness to communicate.

"Okay," Yugi answered deciding that he didn't want to start an arguement with the beautiful spirit.

"Are you scared?" Yami asked raising an eyebrow. "Of the dark, I mean."

Yugi nodded. "Terrified. But anyways I came here so that I could tell you that I need to go because I have an appointment with my therapist. Did you want to stay here?"

Yami quickly shook his head. "Wherever you go, I go. As long as you wear the puzzle, I will always be with you."

Yugi nodded and tried to hide the bright smile that came to his face. If that was the case then he would never take the puzzle off. Yugi didn't protest when Yami softly pushed him towards the door, signaling for the smaller to leave.

"Okay I'll go but the next time I come, the walls better be painted a brighter color and you seriously need to get some better lights in here. It's too creepy," Yugi said and quickly let his mind come back to reality before he could see the scowl that Yami was giving him.

...

He was awoken by a soft ringing sound coming from the right. He tried to open his eyes, but immediately winced at the bright light above him. His body felt strange but, nevertheless, he forced himself to shake the drowsiness from his system. When the brown eyes had completely opened, they scanned the unfamiliar room. It was a large room, painted an off-white color. There was a nightstand beside him and a table in the middle of the room. The bed he was in was littered with white blankets that hugged his body lovingly. Suddenly, his gaze landed opon a slim figure hunched over the center table and Jou yelped in surprise.

"Who are you?! Where am I?" Jou demanded

The woman looked up and flashed the blonde a bright smile. Her flowing brunette hair reached the middle of her back and her blue eyes looked tired but friendly. Jou's heart slowed its pace when he realized he was in no danger, but he was still extremely confused. He could have sworn that his heart stopped for a few seconds when the small woman said politely: "I'm sorry to have startled you Katsuya. My name is Dr. Anasta. I am Mr. Kaiba's personal doctor. He wanted me to check you over and make sure you were okay."

Jou's eyes widened tremendously. "Kaiba? You mean Seto Kaiba?"

"Yes.”

She slowly made her way to the nightstand and picked up a tray of food before placing it on Jou's lap. "This is for you to eat," she said softly, "And I hope you know that when Kaiba brought you to me, you were in extremely poor condition. You were sleep-deprived, dehydrated, and your body and mind were suffering from a lack of nutrients. It appears as if you haven't been eating lately."

Jou didn't respond but instead just hung his head. He hated when people knew his business. He didn't want anyone to know about his problems. It made him feel pathetic when people pitied him or took care of him. It made him feel...weak. The doctor noticed the sudden change in Jou's mood and quickly said: "I gave you an injection of medication that should have you feeling better and your body back to normal. You are still very weak and you may feel nauseous. However, you've been sleeping for over 18 hours so your mind and body are well-rested."

Jou nodded at the words and thanked her. After a few more warnings, Dr. Anasta made her exit. Placing the tray of food to the side, Jou got to his feet and walked unsteadily to the door. When he opened it, he was surprised to see a long hallway that led to several doors. Jou wasn't really sure if he was looking for an exit or looking for Kaiba but in the end he found the latter.

Opening the door directly across from him, Jou walked in and saw Kaiba looking at something on his laptop. The sound of the door caused the brunet to look up and in that moment honey brown eyes intertwined with icy blue ones. Both of them refused to look away or even blink for that matter. After about a minute, Jou couldn't take the silence any longer and opened his mouth to say something but nothing came out. He tried again.

"I..." but that's all Jou managed to say before he trailed off and tore his gaze for his blue-eyed CEO. Kaiba didn't so much as move as Jou struggled to start a conversation. He tried for a third time.

"Why?"

Well, at least it was a legitimate question.

Kaiba tilted his head to the side slightly and his eyes narrowed. "Would you have preferred if I had left you on the streets to die?"

Part of Jou wanted to say yes but the other half of him thought that something like that was better left unsaid.

"Oh...thanks," Jou said. He didn't like feeling like he was in debt to the elder teen. He didn't like the fact that Kaiba was aware of all of his problems either. It made him feel inferior to the elder teen.

"Did you eat?" the brunet inquired snapping the blonde out of his thoughts.

"Yeah," Jou lied and didn't like the glare that he received.

"Don't lie to me Katsuya," Kaiba responded with a deadly tone.

"I'm not really that hungry.," Jou lied again. Before the brunette could respond he continued."But thanks... I guess I'll be leaving now."

Jou turned to go and almost tripped over his feet in surprise when he heard Kaiba's response.

"I'm afraid I can't allow you to do that."

The blonde turned sharply on his heel and glared at the other. "And why not?"

Kaiba immediately matched Jou's glare with one of his own. "Because you are incapable of taking care of yourself and I'll be damned If I let you walk out that door."

"Why do you care about what happens to me? The last I checked you hated my guts," Jou spat angrily. Kaiba didn't respond and Jou took this opportunity to make his leave. His hand was already on the doorknob when Kaiba's voice reached his ears in a tone that Jou would have thought impossible for the brunet to produce.

"Katsuya...don't leave."

Jou turned in absolute shock. Was Kaiba...asking him to stay? Jou searched Kaiba's face for any emotion, but none could be found.

Jou sighed. “Fine, I'll stay. But just for the night. It looks like it's getting late anyways and my dad isn't in any rush to see me.”

Kaiba nodded and, opening the office door, Jou once again turned to leave.

"Eat something," Kaiba said sternly.

Jou looked back at the other before he closed the door. "Alright."

...

As soon as Yugi entered Laura's office, he sat down on a comfortable chair and didn't even wait for the woman to start talking. He wanted to get this done with as soon as possible...while he still had the courage to do it.

"Laura," Yugi said softly but with determination written into the crevices of his face. The woman in question looked up from the pad in her hand and arched an eyebrow. "I'm sorry to say but I am no longer in need of your services."

Yugi barely finished the statement before Laura slammed her pad on her desk. “What do you mean you don't need me anymore!”

Yugi faltered a bit at the sight of the enraged woman, but pressed on. "Y-you heard me. I don't need you. I have someone else-"

"To what Yugi? Listen to you? No one but me will ever listen to you whine about your problems! And the only reason I do it is because it's my job! Do you really think that anyone would have give a damn about you or your feelings!?"

All of Yugi's confidence dissipated and all he could do was stare at his therapist with wide, anguished-filled eyes. He could barely believe everything she was saying but in the end...he did believe it. Tears began to form at the corners of his eyes and threatened to fall as Yugi held on to the last bit of self-esteem he had left.

"No one will ever be there for you," she finished.

And just like that, Yugi broke down and covered his face in shame and hurt as reality struck down on him...hard. She was right.

"That's it Yugi. Now talk to me. Let it all out," Laura said picking up her pen and pad once again. She gazed at the shaking figure sitting on the armchair as the teen cried. However, there was a sudden change in the sound, and the noise coming from Yugi no longer sounded like weeping, but...laughter?

After a few more moments of observation, Laura realized that the form on the chair was indeed shaking violently with laughter and just like that, Yugi lifted his head up revealing deadly red orbs.

"...Yugi?" Laura said in confusion and was surprised when the boy raised up a slim finger and smirked.

"Wrong," came the deep-voiced reply. "My name is Yami and you are indeed something else, Doctor. You feed on the pain of others. Open their wounds and abuse their emotions. People come to you for help but all you can think of is keeping them miserable because if everyone was happy, then you would be out of the job."

"Who are you?" Dr. Laura said, confusion written all over her face.

"I think you have asked your last question," Yami said and then added with a smirk: "Doctor Laura...It's game time.”

"A game?" the woman questioned.

"Yes. However, this is no ordinary game. It's a Yami no Game. A game where your life is at stake," Yami said, a glint of humor in his eyes. The crimson-eyed youth lowered his finger and with a small tilt of his head said: "Do you accept?”

The doctor looked at him as if he was insane. "Why would I ever agree to that?"

Yami leaned forward in his chair. "Because if you don't then I will have no problem reporting you to the board. No clinic in the entire country will hire you. You'll be ruined."

Dr. Laura gasped at the remark and glared intensly at the short teen. "If I win, you will resign from your current occupation and dedicate your life to helping those in need. If you win, I will never speak a word of this, and I will let you continue what you do without interfering," Yami said crossing one leg over the other.

Dr. Laura took a moment to weigh her options. "Fine, I accept."

It's not like it mattered anyways. She was sure that Yugi was just acting out and that all of this was just his way of expressing his hatred towards her. After she played this 'game', she would be sure to send Yugi to a mental asylum. Dr. Laura was completely oblivious to the sudden change in surroundings and was completely shocked when she found herself standing on a thin, circular platform that was hanging over a black abyss. The darkness below her looked endless and horrifying. She looked across from her to see Yami standing on one as well. Both platforms were hung by ropes that led to what looked like statues attached to the ceiling.

"Doctor Laura, you have always used your job to belittle those who have been hurt. How will you feel having your secrets and fears exposed and abused for once?"

"The rule are simple," Yami began with a sadistic tone. "These statues right above us represent our emotions. We will both be shown things that will hurt us. Memories even. The more we react to these images, the more statues will break and as you can see, these statues are the only thing keeping us from falling into the darkness below. There are in total ten statues. So the objective of the game you might ask...don't show any weakness. I have no control over what is shown to us. That is the magic of the Shadow Realm's job. You have as much of a chance of winning as I do." Yami paused but then added wearily. "Closing your eyes or facing away from the images is forbidden."

Dr. Laura couldn't believe anything that was happening but didn't have any time to think about it.

"Game start." Yami's voice dripped with malice.

Suddenly, an image of a small girl running into her house was seen. She looked like a very young version of Laura. The girl came to a standstill when she opened her front door and saw her father's hand slap across her mother's cheek. Immediately, a feeling of dread filled Laura's heart and two statues instantly broke. Laura gasped as the support of the platform she was standing on decreased.

"My turn," Yami said darkly and watched as an image of Yugi flashed before him. He saw the smaller boy run out of a school building and around the corner. Then he saw the teen he had known as Ushio grab him roughly and punch him in the face harshly. Yami watched as Yugi cried into the ground and felt his stomach boil as Ushio pressed his face into the dirt.

“Look at you Yugi. You're pathetic. An absolute nothing," he heard Ushio say and Yami's heart clenched and his eyes filled with murderous intent. One of Yami's statues instantly snapped. He didn't looked unnerved at all by the sudden deficit.

He only smirked. "Your turn."

The next image that appeared was one of Laura as a child and her mom placing various suitcases into a car.

"Mommy please don't leave!" they heard the girl say and her mother only glared at her before jumping into the car and speeding off as the girl followed her with tears pouring down her face. Two more of Laura's statues broke, leaving her with only six.

Yami didn't have time to say anything as an image of Yugi, a few years prior, with a taller teen. They were holding hands and Yugi was giggling at something that the other said. Instantly, jealousy filled Yami's heart and it enraged him to think that someone else even touched his Yugi. Three of Yami's statues crumbled into pieces and now they were both tied with six statues.

Yami and Dr. Laura watched as an image of Laura's younger self and her father appeared. At this moment, her father had pushed her to the ground and had begun to kick her harshly.

"You're just like your mother! A worthless piece of shit!" the father screamed as he continued to kick the small girl. At that point, Dr. Laura could no longer watch and she let herself collaspe onto the platform and hide her face into her hands. "No! No more! I can't take it! I won't watch!" she screamed.

She didn't notice when the platform had disappeared and left her she kneeling on a cold floor. She quickly glanced up when she felt a shadow looming over her and gasped when she saw Yami with a psychotic look on his face.

"You are so weak," Yami spat in disdain and Laura only glared at him before she realized that an golden eye had appeared on his forehead. "I knew you wouldn't be able to obey the rules. The Yami no Game reveals the true nature of humans. For rule breakers, it's destined to be a punishment game."

Yami continued to stare at the woman in front of him with a mix of disgust and disappointment. "The door to darkness...has opened," Yami whispered in a deadly tone. He ignored the pain-filled screams as Laura's entire body burst into flames.

The secretary, along with several other workers, quickly ran into Dr. Laura's office only to find her screaming in the corner of the small room. "Put it out! Someone put it out! Please! Put it out!"

The secretary watched in shock as the doctor continued to run around the office and plead for someone to help her to put out the fire that was consuming her body...except for the fact that there was no fire. But Dr. Laura felt it. She felt the excruciating pain of flames burning away at her insides but, of course, no one else could see it.

...

Yami found his way to the house and immediately lowered himself onto the living room couch. In a blink of the eye, Yami transported himself into the hallway that conjoined his and Yugi's soulroom and found the amethyst-eyed youth on his knees with his face buried in his hands, a stream of tears pouring out from the cracks between his fingers as the small boy continued to sob. Narrowing his eyes, Yami stomped up to his smaller counterpart and roughly yanked him by the back of his collar as he began to drag Yugi into the spirit's soulroom.

Slamming open the thick, metal door that was his soulroom, Yami completely ignored the desperate pleas from the one behind him to stop. Instead, Yami let his eyes fall onto a door in the distance, The Door Of Imminent Darkness. There was no place darker and scarier than the room that that door led to. Taking this as an opportunity to escape, Yugi pulled himself away from Yami's grip around the back of his shirt and made a run for it. However, his escape was foiled when he felt a strong hand wrap around his petite wrist, pulling it harshly, and leaving a bruise in the process.

“I'll be damned if I continue to allow you to let people take advantage of your emotions Yugi!” Yami yelled as he pulled Yugi to the other side of the room.

Yugi didn't have time to protest as Yami ripped opened a door and threw him in and then proceeded to lock it. Yami tried to block out Yugi's sobs and the sound of the small fists banging on the other side of the door.

“I'm sorry Yugi but if this is the only way to help you then I must oblige,” Yami said softly.

"Please Yami! Let me out! I'm scared of the dark!" Yugi begged through the metal door. The darkness around him was terrifying and Yugi closed his eyes as tight as he could as he continued to bang on the door.

"No Yugi!" Yami yelled. "I need to teach you how to face your fears and stand up for yourself!”

“No! Yami please!" Yugi pleaded as tears streamed out of his eyes.

"I'm right here Yugi! I know you can do it!" Yami encouraged but he could feel Yugi's heart weakening through their link.

“Please s-stop! P-please! I can't! Just p-please s-stop Yami!” Yugi asked, the fear eating at his mind. Yugi cried as he felt protecting arms grab him around the waist and he immediately dug his head into Yami's shirt and clenched some of the fabric in his fists.

“Shhh,” Yami whispered as he rocked the boy in arms in a soothing nature. It took a while for Yugi to relax but once all of his muffled cries subsided, Yami looked down and realized that Yugi had fallen asleep. Yami slowly carried the other out of the room and into his on soulroom. Kicking all of the toys to the side so that he would not trip, Yami laid Yugi down on his bed and tucked him in. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Yami let a large sigh escape his lips. He knew that he had been cruel to Yugi, but he needed to teach him how to defend himself; how to fight back.

Yami slowly began to caress Yugi's cheek lovingly as he whispered: “How can I show you how strong you really are? How can I teach you how to love yourself as much as I love you?"

…TBC…

Yuri: Aww I know! Some of you are probably like: “How can Yami be so mean!?” But in all truth, Yami is unconditionally in love with Yugi but he believes that this is the only way to teach Yugi to stand up for himself. He honestly believes that the only way to show Yugi his true strength is to force it out of him, thus why he'd being so harsh. This is his way of expressing his irrevocable love for his hikari. We all need some tough love every once in a while. Sometimes it's the only way that we can see that people really care about us.

Now, it might not seem like it right now but each yami has a lesson to teach to their hikari's. Now the manner in which they teach it may be completely different to how we would in the same spot (i.e. I wouldn't lock my best friend in a room but hey we can't all express ourselves the same way.) But I'm almost 100 positive that one of these life lessons will be reflected somewhere in your life and that you can possibly connect to this story or it's moral in some way or form. These lessons will become evident in later chapters.

Besides from the fluff that is to come in later chapters! (Yes, I will not prolong your misery to long! There will be YugixYami in a few chapters!) Oh and I apologize for the absence of Bakura, Ryou, Malik, and Marik but don't worry, they'll be back next chapter. Now please Go and REVIEW because to be honest, I work really hard on this story so a little appreciation would be welcomed! Thank you to everyone who continues to review!

P.S. This is my longest chapter in any story to date! :)