#ohhhh my god I'm SORRY this took me so so so much longer than I wanted it to

[millenniumdueled]

Thunder rumbles overhead once more as both Yugi and his Other draw their opening hands.

The two stand on opposite sides of the circles carved into the canyon floor, a mirror of one another.

It should never have come to this.

Yugi goes first and sets a monster face down.

"Partner, I don't want to fight you," the Other protests, even as he summons forth Gazelle, King of Mythical Beasts. As much as it pains him to, he orders the monster to attack Yugi's set monster. On the field, his Gazelle digs its teeth and claws into another King of Mythical Beasts. "The same monster--?!" Other Yugi gasps. He looks down at the cards in his hand and wonders.

Yugi draws for his turn, and again ends with only a single monster set facedown on his field.

Other Yugi draws. His heart pounds in his chest. He activates Polymerization, fusing his Gazelle with Berformet in his hand to form Chimera, the Flying Mythical Beast. He then summons Alpha, the Magnet Warrior. Chimera attacks, sending Yugi's Sangan to the graveyard. Sure enough, that card is in his own hand, too. The Other Yugi hesitates, staring at his Partner's empty field as Yugi adds a monster to his hand for Sangan's effect. Then he takes a deep breath, before ordering the Magnet Warrior to attack directly.

This doesn't make sense.

If they have the same hand, then why didn't Yugi use Monster Reborn? He should have ended his last turn with his own Chimera on the field. That's not a mistake that his Partner would make.

Yugi draws for his turn. "this isn't going to work if we have the same hand," he sighs. He sets a card face down, then plays Card Destruction, demanding both players to discard their hand a draw anew. "there. different hands, different paths, different hearts."

"Partner, why are you acting like this?!" Other Yugi cries. "This isn't you!!"

"of course it is. i'm the reflection of your heart. if your heart is filled with darkness, then so am i."

"No..."

"this is your weakness, other me. you're arrogant. you care too much about your pride, you only want to do things your way. you don't want to face me, so you think i should quit to protect your feelings. you can't save anyone if you're a coward who's afraid to get hurt!"

The cards in the Other's hand shake.

"and you were a king that ruled over people?? what a joke."

"Stop it, Partner!!! I don't want to fight you!!!!"

Yugi looks down at his fresh hand. A sad smile comes to his face, his eyes softening. He takes one card, gazing at it between his fingers. "why is this card in my deck....?"

Other Yugi gasps.

No.

No no no no no.

It can't be.

"oh yeah. i'm a mirror that reflects your heart... your choices..." The field card slot on his DuelDisk slides open, and Yugi places the card inside.

"Don't--!!"

Bright, teal light engulfs him. The Seal of Orichalcos spreads out across the field, trapping both Duelists.

Yugi's eyes turn red as he narrows them at his opponent.

"let's finish this, nameless pharaoh."

Yugi activates his set card, Monster Reborn. Dark Magician girl, discarded by Card Destruction, appears on the field. Like Yugi's, her eyes glow red as she stares down the Other. Yugi summons Obnoxious Celtic Guardian beside her. With the Orichalcos boosting their attack, they're more than enough to destroy the Other's monsters, bringing his lifepoints down to 3100.

Berformet returns to the field from Chimera's effect, and the Other draws for his turn.

He wants to scream. But he summons Big Shield Gardna in defense mode instead.

Yugi summons Queen's knight, then plays Magic Formula to raise Dark Magician Girl's attack. The Other's defenses are useless again, easily destroyed for Celtic Guardian to attack directly.

Now, Other Yugi screams.

"what's wrong, other me?" the way the words drip off Yugi's tongue turn the Other's stomach.

"Partner, stop--"

"no way. i'm just getting started. you wouldn't stop now, would you?"

The Other grits his teeth. It's his turn again.

He doesn't want to do this.

He sets one card face down and summons Giant Soldier of Stone in defense, then plays Swords of Revealing Light. He can stop Yugi's attacks for three turns. He can buy himself time to find another way out of this Duel.

But Yugi chuckles, and the sound chills the Other to his core.

"that's really cute, but i think you know this next one."

Yugi sacrifices Celtic Guardian to summon Catapult Turtle, and the Other watches in horror. He knows this tactic. It's the exact same move that he used against Raphael. The move that he had pridefully destroyed himself with.

"Don't do this. You don't have to do this!! Dont throw you monsters away, Partner, you're better than this! You're better than me!!"

Yugi smirks. "so you admit it then? you admit that you're evil? that you threw away everything you said you loved?" He sacrifies Queen's Knight to Catapult Turtle's effect, launching her past the Swords and into the Other's lifepoints, bringing them down to only 200.

The Other Yugi trembles. Is this what he looked like when he fought Raphael? That wicked, cruel look on Yugi's face now? Is this how all of his enemies have felt, staring down their final moments in his attacks?

"Partner, please!! I can't lose this, or-- Or everyone! Everyone will lose! Doma will kill everyone!"

"oh, now you care about other people?"

Yugi orders Dark Magician girl into the Catapult for his final direct attack.

The Other's heart breaks.

He doesn't want to do this.

He doesn't want to win if it means killing his beloved Partner.

He doesn't have a choice, though.

With a scream of frustration, the Pharaoh flips over his set card: Divine Wind. At the very last second, Yugi's attack is reflected, sent back at him twice as strong.

Yugi's eyes widen. Then soften.

A smile finds its way across his lips as the attack hits, and his own lifepoints drop to 0.

"you won after all, other me," he says as he falls to his knees. "i'm glad...."

The Other Yugi races across the field to scoop the fallen Yugi in his arms. Tears stream freely from his eyes now as he holds his other half close against his chest. Wasn't he just a hollow ghost before? He holds him closer.

"I'm sorry," he sobs. "Partner, I'm sorry."

"why? you passed the test, other me," Yugi says weakly as the Seal fades from his forehead, and the one that surrounds them closes in. "you beat me, even though it hurt you. you put saving the world before your own feelings. you won."

"What now though, Partner? What am I supposed to do now?!"

"keep going." The Seal grows tighter. As the light leaves his violet eyes Yugi utters three last words. "i love you."

The Other chokes. "Yugi--" He hugs his lifeless Partner close as he cries. "Yugi--"

"Yugi--"

Wait.

That's not him calling his Partner's name--

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"Yugi!! Yugi, wake up!!"

The Other Yugi groans. His eyes open slowly, only for him to wince against the blinding light above.

"Oh thank god, you're alive!!!" Téa cries.

He sits up to find her kneeling beside him. Surrounding them both are pieces of jagged and twisted metal, not far away lie the larger remnants of the mangled train where he'd dueled Weevil.

"Was that... A dream...?" he wonders aloud as he rubs his head. Every muscle in his body aches and screams. Then he gasps. "Téa! You're bleeding!"

"Huh?! Oh!" Téa looks down at herself, her torn shorts, and shakes her head. "It's just some scrapes and bruises, I'm fine! It could've been a lot worse...." She trails off as she looks toward the wreckage. "Are you okay though?!"

The Other Yugi draws his legs to sit cross-legged in the sand as he blinks a few times, takes stock of his situation, and remembers Yugi.

Was that really just a dream?

It felt so real.

He can still feel Yugi, limp in his arms, and his stomach twists.

Far above the chasm where the two recover, Raphael frowns. So, the Pharaoh did survive.

He'll have to change that.

#ooc #plot #part 3 of 3 #arc: what the doma?! #ohhhh my god I'm SORRY this took me so so so much longer than I wanted it to #it's kind of rushed and not as good as the other parts bc I had to go to work #I will never make you guys read an entire duel turn for turn again I promise #but this one is important #and also short