Chapter Three: Mall Madness

Joey went to the front door and opened it. Hailey and Luna's heavily clothed aunt and uncle came in, dumping their burdens into Joey's arms.

"Thanks." Their aunt told him.

"You're…welcome." Joey groaned under the weight of the bags.

To add insult to injury, their aunt and uncle took off the coats and laid them on top of the pile. "Hang these up for us, please."

"Auntie!" Luna cried. "That's Joey, not our butler!"

"Oh, sorry," her aunt told him. She took his burden and hung their coats up.

"That's…all right," Joey told them, rubbing his arms.

"How are you doing, honey?" their aunt asked Luna.

"Better udtil you showed up," Luna told her.

"Hey!" the two cried.

"I bean, I was soundig better before you cabe."

Her aunt came over to her and felt her forehead. "Your fever's gone down."

"She got Joey's miracle cure." Joey told her proudly.

o.O. "Ad what is that?"

Joey looked awkward. "Uh. Good question."

Hailey and Yugi came in. They stopped dead at the sight of her aunt and uncle.

"I better go now." Yugi murmured, heading towards his winter things that were on one of the couches.

"I'll help you." Hailey muttered, following Yugi.

"Hold on, son. We're not saying you have to leave. We were just going to pick the girls up to go have lunch. Do you want to come with us?"

The only thing Joey heard was the word "lunch."

"Lunch! I'd love to!" he exclaimed.

"Yami! Joshia! We're going to have lunch!" Hailey called.

Yami and Joshia stuck their heads out of their rooms. "Lunch! I'm there!" they exclaimed.

Four figures ran down the stairs. Joshia was in the lead, closely followed by Lena, Yami, and Hali. It was obviously what homework Hali and Yami had been doing: Anatomy and Sex Ed. Their clothes were slightly strewn and their hair slightly mussed, twin grins on their faces. When Yami turned to face their aunt and uncle, there was a noticeable tear in the back of his shirt.

"Hailey, what's going on? Who are these two?" her aunt asked, referring to Hali and Lena.

Hailey, Luna, and their spirits stood there in awkward silence. Finally, Luna broke the silence, by beginning to explain.

"Well, you know the golden crosses Hailey and I wear around our necks that mom and dad gave us? Well, five thousand years ago, before these were made, these two, Hali and Lena," she pointed at the two spirit girls, "lived in Ancient Egypt. Their boyfriends, er husbands, Yami and Joshia," she gestured to the boys standing beside Hali and Lena, "I guess locked Hali and Lena's spirits in these crosses. When we put the crosses on, they were, er, awakened and we bonded with them. They are able to be visible and in their own bodies. They can still return to their crosses, but obviously they were too busy to go back to their residence." she said, glaring at her darker spirit.

"Er, nice to meet you two," their aunt told them, shaking their hands in turn.

Their uncle looked from the guilty face of Yami to Hali. He clearly noticed the way they looked.

"Look, young lady, if you've been in this house that long, then you should know that we don't allow either of the girls to do that kind of homework. So why should you be exempted?" he said in an angry tone.

Yami stepped forward, and bowed his head. "I'm sorry, sir. It was my idea. I didn't know."

Hali goggled at her boyfriend, the corners of her mouth turning up. She pretended this was not new to her as she faced the couple.

"Okay, but I don't want to see or hear of you doing that again."

"Yes, sir. We won't." Yami told her.

"Get changed and we'll meet you down here." The uncle told her.

Yami and Hali started to go upstairs, when Yami was jerked back by the collar of his jacket. "You'll wait until she gets back." The uncle told him firmly.

Yami slumped, depressed. Hali returned a few minutes later in a cute red hoodie that said "Polo" on it and a pair of thick jeans. She wore a pair of cute little reindeer socks on her feet.

"I'll be right back." Yami told her. He went upstairs and soon came back wearing a turtleneck like Yugi's, except it was black, and a pair of jeans.

"Do you want me to help you into your jacket?" Yami asked Hali.

"Sure." Hali told him. The two went over to the closet. Hali opened the closet door and pulled out a blue winter jacket with fake fur around the hood.

"Hey, I wanted to wear that!" Hailey exclaimed.

"No, we agreed that the blue one was mine, and the red one was yours." Hali reminded her.

Hailey pouted.

"Hey, girl, do you want me to help you?" Yugi asked, totally sounding like Joey.

"Am I rubbing off on you?" Joey asked, staring at him in awe.

Yugi grinned awkwardly. "So shall I?"

Hailey nodded and Yugi helped her into her jacket, which, looked like Hali's, except it was red. Yami helped Hali into hers, and Yugi shrugged into his own.

"Can I help you into your jacket?" Joey asked Luna. She nodded. He helped her into a light purple jacket with a fleece inner lining.

Joshia shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets. He shuffled his feet and said to Lena, "So you need help with your jacket?"

"No, I can put it on myself. I'm not a baby, unlike my lighter half," she said, shooting a glare in Luna's direction.

"Hey!" Luna cried, overhearing their conversation.

"Is everybody ready to go?" the uncle called from the front door. They had already shrugged back into their coats.

Everyone nodded and they all left the house. Hali and Lena noticed that their boyfriends were shivering in the cold air. Hali wrapped her coat around Yami and pulled him closer to her. Lena on the other hand, took pity and opened her jacket to Joshia.

"Do you want to share my jacket me?" she asked.

"N-no. I-I'm f-fine." Joshia told her, his teeth chattering.

"Come on, you'll catch your death in that."

Unlike Joey, Joshia had no coat on and was wearing Joey's usual outfit that he wore during most of the year. Joshia realized that he wouldn't win, so he allowed her to wrap her jacket around him. Her jacket was similar to Luna's, except it was dark purple.

The group headed down the walkway toward the two vans parked in the driveway. One was shiny silver while the other was black.

"We call the black!" Yami exclaimed, tugging Hali along with him over to the black van.

"Hey!" Hali cried, tugging her hand back. She jerked so hard that Yami was pulled back to her. They bumped into each other, stared awkwardly for a moment, and began laughing.

"If you wanted me close to you, you could've just told me." Yami told her, a grin spreading across his face.

Hali laughed softly. "Well, you got to me faster."

Yami shrugged his shoulders. "Yes, that's true."

"Okay, choose your van." The uncle called..

Everyone seemed to want to get a van that didn't have Hali and Yami in it. The only ones left were the aunt, Hali and Yami.

"Okay, we'll take the other van." The aunt told them.

She unlocked the van and opened the sliding door. Hali and Yami climbed in and took the back row. Hali easily squeezed between the rows of seats, but Yami, who was stockier in build, got stuck.

Hali laughed, grabbed his arms, and pulled him free.

They sat side-by-side in the back row, Yami with his head between his knees, trying to catch his breath.

"Okay, kiddos. Let's get going." The aunt told them, getting into the driver's seat.

She started the van and backed out of the drive. She allowed the silver van to back out and go ahead, then she followed.

"Oh, dropped something." Yami told Hali. He reached his hand back behind the seat. "Can't…reach…it."

He turned over and stuck his head behind the seat. Hali blushed furiously. The only part of her boyfriend she could see was his back end sticking up.

"I know it's here somewhere. Ah ha! Here it is!" he pulled out a rectangular-shaped velvet box with a gold bow on it. He flipped back over and mumbled breathlessly, "Merry Christmas."

He then noticed that Hali's tanned cheeks were slightly pink. "What?"

"You've already given me a Christmas present." She told him in a low voice.

o.O. She whispered in his ear. A sheepish grin spread across his face, which was turning a deep red that almost matched his eyes. "Well, do you mind two?"

"No, not at all. I'm wondering if it beats the first?"

Yami looked horrified. "You're not going to beat me with it, are you?"

Hali laughed. "No, I mean, I wonder whether it'll be a better present than the first?"

"Well, I hope you like it." Yami blushed even more, at the thought of it being a good enough present to make her blush even more than the first "present".

Hali set the box on her lap, untied the bow, and lifted the lid.

"Oh my! Yami, you shouldn't have! How did you pay for these?" she asked. Inside the box was a pair of dangly earrings with a heart inside a heart. The inside heart was an emerald color and had a diamond in its center. The outside heart was gold and in the shape of a heart cut out. Next to it was a gold necklace with a tiny inscription on it. She took a closer look. It read: "Baby of mine."

"I borrowed the money from Hailey's aunt and uncle. I said it was for someone special, so I wasn't lying. You are my special someone."

"Aw, thank you." Hali smiled sweetly.

"You want help putting it on?" Yami asked.

Hali nodded, now too choked for words. Yami took an earring from the box and leaned toward her, taking the back off as he went. Just as he was about to put it in the earring hole, he was suddenly thrown back, and he hit his head on the edge of the middle seat. His leg had pressed the "recline" button, and since he was putting his weight on the seat, it had reclined, taking him with it.

"Are you all right?" Hali asked in a worried tone.

Yami sat up, rubbing the place where his head had hit the seat. "Yeah, just got a major migraine," he groaned.

"Aww!" she held two fingers up in front of his face. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

Yami focused on the moving hand she was holding. He shook his head, but still saw four fingers. He looked at Hali and noticed that he was seeing two of her as well. "Two," he lied.

Hali lowered her hand. "Never lie, do you? You're seeing double."

"No." Yami insisted, his head swimming.

"Then why did it take you so long to answer me?"

"I…uh…" Yami couldn't think of a reason.

"Yeah," Hali proclaimed with satisfaction. "You can't hide anything from me."

"I know," he muttered. "Made a good try, though."

"I give you that. Here, lay down and see if that helps your headache."

Yami laid back and immediately sat up trying hard not to scream in pain.

"Okay. When we get to a store that sells it, I'm getting you some Ibuprofen."

"That…would…be…great." Yami murmured through gritted teeth.

The van slowed to a stop and the engine was cut. Hali looked out the window.

"We're at the mall!" Hali told him excitedly. She stood up and opened the sliding door. She then came back to where Yami sat and helped him to his feet. When Hali let go of him, he swayed on the spot. She grabbed a hold of his arm to steady him. She helped him to the doorway, and then helped him down. She got out and looked around. They were parked near the front of the parking lot near the entrance to Macy's. The other van that held the others was parked next to them. The van doors opened and the uncle, Hailey, Luna, Joey, Lena, Yugi, and Joshia stepped out. The couples from the silver van were talking amongst themselves and didn't notice that the black van had arrived until the uncle cried, "There you are! How about we go inside out of the cold weather?"

They all nodded, and trudged toward the Macy's entrance, Yami and Joshia sharing jackets with their girlfriends. The uncle opened the door to Macy's and held it until everyone had passed through. Hali, being the first in line, started to open the door, when Yami, still seeing double, pushed her hand away.

"Let me get it," he told her. He groped around for the handle and his hand finally found it. He grasped it and pulled it toward him. He hadn't moved out of the way, and for the second time that day, was hit in the head. He was knocked off his feet and his back slammed against the floor.

Yami muttered a few well-chosen words at the door.

Hali was trying hard not to laugh, and finally gave in to a fit of giggles.

"It's not funny…Hali…All of you," he grumbled, for now he was beyond seeing double. His vision was so messed up that he began to feel sick.

"Here, bud." Joey told him. He and Joshia reached down and each grabbed an arm. They lifted him up onto his feet. "Do you think you can walk?"

Yami started to shake his head, but immediately stopped.

"Hey, Hailey can you get a wheelchair?" Joey asked. He felt Yami start to fall. Joey shifted to get a better grip on him. "And hurry."

Hailey hurried away. A few minutes later, she returned to the door with a wheelchair, and motioned for them to come through. Hali opened the door and Joey and Joshia half-dragged, half-carried Yami through the doorway. They eased him into the chair. Yami slumped, his eyes closed, and his breathing coming in quick gasps.

"I'll push him." Hali offered. She grasped the handles of the wheelchair firmly to stop her hands from shaking. She leaned to further stop her hands from shaking. She leaned close to his ear. "You can open your eyes now," she whispered.

Yami's eyes flickered open. He clapped a hand to his forehead. "Ra, my head," he muttered.

"What should we do first?" the aunt asked.

"Food court!" Joey and Joshia exclaimed at once.

"Well I think we should get you two coats." The uncle told them, nodding to Yami and Joshia.

"Thank you, sir. But we don't need coats."

"Yeah, we're fine." Yami murmured, letting his eyelids slide close. He was shivering all over, so his words were hitting the wall for all the good they were doing.

"You're shivering," the uncle told him. "I don't want another person in the house sick. Anyways, who turns down a free jacket?"

Yami didn't respond. He was focusing all his energy on staying conscious. He strained to open his eyes and look up at Hailey's uncle. He tried to say okay, but his throat closed up on him and no sound came out.

"Okay, then. Let's go and pick out some jackets."

Hali and Yami led the group toward the men's winter apparel. Hali and Lena immediately began picking out jackets for their boyfriends. Lena picked out various sports jackets of Joshia's favorite football team, the New York Jets. Hali was picking out several South Pole jackets of different colors and styles. She helped him into a puffy light blue one that had "South Pole" written on it in white letters.

"How do you like it?" she asked. There was no answer. Obviously Yami had lost the fight to stay awake. Hali examined him in it. "It looks good on him and its warm," she mused to herself. "We've got our selection!"

"Aren't you going to ask his opinion?" Hailey asked, as Hali took the jacket off him.

"He should rest." Hali told her, as if that settled the matter.

Joshia, on the other hand, was having a hard time choosing which one he liked.

"I want that one…no, I want that one…" he told Lena, pointing at each jacket in turn.

Lena sighed. "How about you try on one at a time and I'll decide which looks better on you?" she suggested.

"Okay." Joshia shrugged into a white and green jacket that said New York Jets on the front in big bold black letters.

"You definitely look good in that." Lena commented.

Then he tried on a dark green jacket that said New York Jets in small white writing on the left breast pocket. He turned and on the back it said: "Super Bowl Champs 1969" also in white letters, although they were larger.

"I like the other one better." Lena told him.

"Me too." Joshia said, shuddering. "This one's too thin."

He shrugged off the jacket and went to hang it up. When he got back to the others, Lena was putting the jacket over the uncle's arm along with Yami's coat

"Everyone ready to eat?" the uncle asked.

Joey and Joshia said immediately, "Let's go!"

Yami murmured something that sounded like a "yay." He seemed to be regaining consciousness, but he refused to open his eyes.

The uncle paid for the jackets and handed them back to the girls.

"I can put mine on myself. Unlike my brother." Joshia snapped, snatching the coat away.

If Yami had heard that comment, he had ignored it, for it was hard to tell whether Yami was conscious or not. Hali, feeling like she was dressing a doll, got Yami into his new jacket. He stopped shivering, but made no noise as to whether he even knew where he was or what he was wearing.

Now that Yami and Joshia were properly clothed, they left the store. "Anyone know where the food court is?" the uncle asked.

Joey and Joshia sniffed the air. "That way." They told them, Joshia pointing to the right, and Joey pointing to the left.

"Uh, which way is the right way?" the uncle asked.

"Joey's nose is more of an expert at smelling food, so we should take his advice." Luna told them, smirking at Joshia.

"Hey!" Joshia cried. Joey gave him a smug look of satisfaction.

Joey and Joshia led the way, sniffing at every fork in the path. They kept on pointing in opposite directions, but they went by Luna's suggestion and took the way that Joey told them. The smell of cooking food teased everyone's noses (except Luna, who couldn't smell crap if it was right under her nose), and Yami began to stir, but still kept his eyes closed.

"Where should we eat?" the uncle asked.

"Buffet!" Joey and Joshia exclaimed at once.

"Anyone have any objections?" the uncle asked.

The others shook their heads. Yami didn't even move.

"Okay, then. Chinese it is," the uncle told them.

Both Joshia and Joey cheered and Yugi, though half-heartedly, cheered as well.

"I must warn you, those two'll run them out of business." Lena warned. Joey and Joshia just gave her twin grins.

They went over to the cashier and the uncle said, "10 buffets. Wait, Hali, are you sure we should get one for Yami?"

Hali nodded. "Yeah, we don't want him to wake up hungry and find out we've already eaten. That'll make him in a very bad mood."

"And he's not in one now?" Hailey asked, in a smart-mouthy way.

(Hali has the Glare and Hailey gets it first hand now)

"Not the Glare!" Hailey cried, in a mock-frightened voice.

"Stop fighting! My head hurts!" Yami muttered, annoyed. He had finally opened his eyes, but they were glassy from the pain.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Yami." Hali told Yami, kneeling before him.

He lifted his pale, sweaty face to Hali's and looked at her, though not really seeing her. "Make the pain stop," he whispered.

"Maybe you should be looked at by a doctor."

"No. You look at it." Talking seemed to have taken the rest of his energy. His eyelids drooped closed yet again and his head dropped to his chest.

Hali stood up and began looking through the bunches of hair, parting it to look at his scalp. She parted more of it and let out a soft scream.

"What's wrong?" the uncle asked.

Hali shook her head, her eyes wide with fright.

"Here let me look." The uncle told her. He parted the hair in the area, which had fallen back into place. There was a large bump and a nasty looking bruise where he had hit his head.

"Ah. Hali, it's just a bump and a bruise. It's not going to kill him."

Yami was muttering something incoherently. An old man with gray hair walked over to them. "Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. I'm a doctor. I'll look at him free of charge."

He knelt down in front of Yami and took out a small light from the breast pocket of his shirt. "Always keep it with me, just in case."

He lifted Yami's eyelids each in turn, shining the light into each eye. He sighed, stood up, and put his light away. "Just what I thought. He has a mild concussion. Let him get lots of rest and keep an ice pack on that bump. Don't move him around much, and make sure he gets lots of water."

"Thanks," Hali told him, relieved. The doctor left to go back to his table.

"I'm hungry." Joey whined.

"Actually, I'm famished," a deep voice told them.

Hali knelt down beside him. Yami had regained consciousness again, though his eyes were still unfocused.

"Well, let's get the patient something to eat." Hali said, smiling for the first time in a while. She pushed the wheelchair over to a table big enough to hold them all. The others followed while the uncle paid for the buffets.

It seemed that talking had drained what little energy he had gained while resting. His eyelids drooped closed and he didn't move.

"Here, I'll get you some food." Hali told him. Yami didn't respond. She went over to the buffet and grabbed two plates. She filled them up with food they might like. She returned to the table and put the plates down in front of Yami, and her own chair. She sat down and nudged Yami awake.

"Hm?" he murmured, not opening his eyes.

"I got you some food."

Yami's eyes opened and looked at the plate of food. "I'm not hungry," he moaned.

"Come on, you've got to be. All you've had is hot cocoa today. Here try some."

Yami reached a trembling hand to the fork that was beside the plate. His fingers grasped around the fork handle and he speared a piece of chicken. He started to bring it to his mouth, but suddenly dropped it to grab his head. The fork clattered to the ground.

"Here let me do it. You just sit there and let me feed you."

"Can I have my eyes closed?"

"Yea-" before she could finish the sentence, Yami's eyes drooped closed.

Hali sighed. "Okay. I'll let you sleep. You can eat when you're stronger."

She took her own silverware and began eating. She spotted Luna across the table from her looking around and tapping her fingernails on the table.

"What are you waiting for?" Hali asked her.

"Joey. He went to go get us some food. Knowing him, he has his hands full with a dozen plates, not including mine," she griped.

Hali rolled her eyes to show that she understood. "Yeah, that sounds like him."

"Hey!" a voice thick with a Brooklyn accent cried. "I heard Joey, food, and something sounding like me."

"Oh, we were just talking about your eating habits." Hali told him, giving Luna a wink. Luna stifled a giggle.

"I hope you were saying something good." Joey said, more to himself than the girls at the table. He set down a plate full of food in front of Luna. "Here. Try this. If this doesn't open you up, nothing will."

"Uh, okay." She speared a piece of meat that was on the plate and put it in her mouth. After a moment, she screamed, "Joey you idiot! You know I don't like-"

She took a breath of air. "Hey, I'm clear! Thanks Joey! You're a genius!"

"Uh, no problem." Joey grinned sheepishly. "Thought it would work. And thanks for calling me a genius," he added with a slight blush.

"Yeah, a genius with a negative IQ. What a miracle." Joshia muttered.

"Hey, what was that? You know I'm smarter than you!"

"Yeah, the only reason you got her was because she thought you were an adorable little puppy. Seto's right. You do look like a puppy." Joshia told him with a smirk on his face.

"Is that what you think, Luna?" Joey asked, turning to Luna with a hurt expression on his face.

"No, no, no! Not at all. Joshia's just being a jerk to you." Luna told him quickly.

"Hey, uh, I think you need to do something in the bathroom," Joey told Luna pointing to her face.

"What do you mean?" Luna asked, tilting her head to one side.

"Uh, there's something leaking." Joey told her, pointing more at her upper lip now.

Luna ran into the bathroom and they heard a high-pitched scream that practically broke the windows of the mall.

Joey ran over to the bathroom and cracked the door open. "Luna, are you all right?"

"Yeah, just fine, please don't look at me!" he could hear Luna squeak.

"Why not? I can see you through the crack in the door. It's showing the mirror and it's reflecting you."

Luna retreated farther into the corner away from Joey's view. "I'm serious! I forgot my makeup!"

"Well, then you don't need makeup if you look like that." He had obviously said the wrong thing.

"Joseph Wheeler, leave me alone!" she shouted at him and kicked the door shut. Fortunately, he had pulled his head back before the door slammed shut.

"Okay," Joey told her. He went back to the table and sighed. "She'll be there a while."

"Yeah, you don't know Luna like I do. It was totally the wrong thing to say." Hailey pointed out.

"But I just wanted to help!" Joey whined.

"Yeah, but she is sensitive about her looks. She's especially sensitive about her face. She probably won't like being near you for a while."

"Why?" Joey asked. "She looks beautiful anyway. It just adds a little flavor to her looks."

"A little flavor? A little flavor! Joey you are so insensitive sometimes!" Luna had returned; the "something" hanging out of her nose had disappeared. "Come with me Joseph Wheeler! We're walking home and having a talk!"

She grabbed him by the ear and dragged him out of the mall, his cries of "ow, ow, ow!" apparent from 10 miles away.

The others followed him, pretending they didn't know why there were yelps of pain ahead.

"Hm." Yami murmured as he slowly awoke. He was lying down and didn't know where he was. Something warm had been put on him. He looked down and realized he was wearing a jacket. Below him he could feel and hear a motor running.

"Hali?" he cried, though his voice was just a whisper.

"Hm?" a familiar voice asked beside him.

"Where did this come from, and where am I?"

"Oh. We bought it for you at the mall."

"When did we go to the mall?"

"We were just there a bit ago. You don't remember my offering you food?"

"No."

"Well, we're in the van going to Jackson's."

"Who's Jackson?"

"It's a store. We're going to buy stuff for Luna."

"Maybe we should take you home, Yami," the aunt called from the front seat.

"No, I'll be fine. I can handle going to the store." Yami called, in just above a whisper.

"No you can't, Yami Ezra Mutou! You're going straight home, and straight to bed!" Hali shouted, her anger rising.

Yami cringed as his headache reared its ugly head again.

"I'm sorry, honey," Hali told him, the words coming out in a softer tone.

"No…it's…fine…" Yami told her as the pain eased away. "It comes and goes now."

"Maybe we should take you home," the aunt repeated. She handed her cell phone to Hali. "His cell phone number is under hubby. I have a different name for his numbers. Tell him we're stopping by the house to drop the two of you off."

Yami started to argue, but found that his head hurt when he did. Hali nodded and turned on the phone. She flipped through the contacts and found the one labeled, "hubby". She pressed the send button and listened to it ring. The ring was cut short and she heard a familiar woman's voice say, "Hello?"

"Hailey? What are you doing answering your uncle's cell phone?"

"Uh, he's driving."

"Oh." -.-

"What do you want, little miss ditsy?" Hailey snapped.

"Well, if you're going to be that way, maybe I shouldn't tell you." Hali snapped back.

"Just give me the message." Hailey growled. "You're wasting their minutes."

"Fine. We're going home first to drop Yami and me off. Yami's too tired and we don't want to stay in the car while you get the stuff."

"Fine. We'll meet you there." Click. Hailey had hung up.

Hali sighed as she hung up and handed the aunt the cell phone. "Lighter halves are such pricks. They never appreciate what you do for them."

"Not Yugi," Yami murmured.

Yami had just finished an exhausting duel against Darts. He had risked his soul in order to get all the souls that had been taken, released, especially Yugi's. Figures began appearing out of nowhere. He recognized the figure of Yugi a few feet away. He hurried toward him, stepping around the others. He knelt down beside Yugi and lifted his head. "Yugi, are you all right?"

Yugi scrunched his eyes and then opened them. "Yami, thank you. But why?"

Yami's heart felt as though his heart would break into a thousand pieces. He wished he knew the answer. "I don't know, Yug. I don't know."

End Flashback

"Yami?" Hali's worried voice broke his thoughts.

Yami's eyes snapped open. He had at some point closed them during the memory without realizing it. Hali was leaning over him, a worried look on her face. "What happened? You had a pained look on your face."

"I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing. It's not important."

An annoyed look flashed across her face but disappeared so fast that he thought he imagined it. "Yami, you know I don't think your thoughts aren't important."

Yami sighed, realizing too late it would make him cough. When the cough subsided, he said, "Fine. I see that I'm not going to win this. I was remembering the duel with Darts."

"I understand how you feel, Yami." She murmured.

"You do, do you? Have you lost your best friend and risked your life more than once to save him? Huh?" Although he was trying to shout it, he was doing a horrible job at it. His voice came out in just above a whisper.

"No," Hali said quietly. "But I have almost lost someone. Someone dearer to me than life itself. I thought I had lost him for good. That was the darkest hour of my life. When I saw him struggling to stay alive after I had done my best to save him, I was afraid that my efforts to save him were going to be wasted." She broke off as tears choked her, making her unable to speak.

"Who is he?" Yami inquired, although he had an idea as to who it was, due to the fact he still had the scar.

"It's you honey, don't you remember last summer?"

How could he forget it? He had found out that he was allergic to spiders in a very painful way. He had almost drowned, but fortunately, Hali had rescued him in time. He could never repay her for it. Realizing what she had said, he blushed a deeper red than his eyes. He looked like an overripe tomato that had odd spiky leaves.

"Do you really mean that?" Yami asked.

"We're home!" the aunt announced from the front. Hali helped Yami to his feet and let him lean on her. Yami's body sagged, putting all his weight on her shoulder. Although he weighed less than most boys his age, Hali struggled to carry him inside. The aunt locked the van doors and hurried to unlock the front door. Hali was holding him so as she helped him to the futon, his feet were dragging along the carpet, unable to find footing. She finally reached the futon and eased him onto it. She sat down on the futon next to him.

"Do you really feel that way?" Yami asked, his eyes closing against his will.

"Yes, Yami. I do feel that way."

Yami nodded to show that he understood as darkness enveloped him.

The silver van had reached Jackson's and now the people occupying the van stepped out.

"Let's go inside. It's freezing!" Yugi exclaimed, shivering.

"You need more layers?" Hailey asked Yugi, who was dressed the same way as he had been when he showed up at her doorstep.

"No, but I'm still cold." Yugi told her, trying to stifle a shiver.

"Let's get in so we can 'warm up'." Hailey told him, a grin spreading across her face.

"I call the Electronics!" Joshia shouted. Lena rolled her eyes to the others.

"Hey, can you hang out somewhere for a while? I need to get something." Joey asked Luna quietly.

"Okay." Luna told him.

They entered the store and each grabbed a cart. Then they split up, Joshia and Luna going to the Electronics, Yugi and Hailey going to the Toys, the uncle going to the Photos, and Joey going to the Medical Supplies/Pharmacy.

Joey found the aisle where the tissues were. He looked at the different sizes of boxes and finally decided on a combo pack with various sizes in it, because it looked like it had the softest. He headed for the Electronics, where Luna was looking at video games.

"Ooh, he might like that, no he'd like that better," she murmured, pointing at various games behind the glass.

"Who would like that?" Joey asked, coming to a standstill next to Luna. He pointed at a football game that he'd been asking for Christmas.

"Joey!" she exclaimed, seeing him. "Uh, no one. Just talking to myself."

Joey grinned at her playfully. "You're looking at a Christmas present for me and you know it's what I'm asking for," he said, not even attempting to hide the fact that he knew what she planned on getting him.

"It is? I didn't know that!" Luna cried, trying to look surprised. Then she noticed the boxes of tissues in his cart. "And who are those for?"

"Myself. I think I'm coming down with something," he answered, trying not to sound sarcastic.

"You don't sound like it. These are for me! You arrogant little bastard! You can just forget about getting a present from me, Joseph Wheeler!" She stormed off without giving Joey time to react.

"Luna!" He called after her. She stopped. "You don't understand! This isn't your Christmas present! You're all out of them at home!"

Luna turned. She went back to where Joey was. "Sorry about reacting so harshly. You really are sweet in thinking of my needs. Just for that, Santa might bring you something extra special. Do you forgive me?" she asked, giving him a pair of bright blue puppy-dog eyes.

"Of course, baby girl, I mean honey," he quickly corrected himself, not wanting to get Luna mad at him again.

"No, it's all right." Luna told him, smiling. "I was just annoyed about this stupid cold."

"Ready to go meet the others?"

"First I've got to get your present. Now close your eyes. And no peeking!"

Joey covered his eyes with his hands, and when she was sure that he wasn't peeking, she looked around. She spotted a Jackson's worker and whispered to him what game she wanted. The worker unlocked the case and took out the game. Joey spread his fingers apart and spotted what game it was. Then he covered his eyes again. She went over to the cash register and paid for it. It was put in a bag and she walked back over to Joey.

"You can open your eyes now," she told him.

Joey opened his eyes. She had an I'm-keeping-a-secret-and-I'm-not telling look on her face.

"Ready?" Joey asked her.

She nodded and went over to the checkout lines. The others were waiting for them at the food area.

"Where's Joshia?" Joey asked.

Lena pointed, an embarrassed look on her face, to a table. Joshia was chowing down. "Where else?"

"Joshia, you can finish that in the car," The uncle told him. "Now let's go."

"Aw, come on. Can we stay just a few more minutes? I'm almost done." Joshia whined.

"I don't know him." Lena muttered.

"Fine." Joshia crossed his arms over his chest, pouting. He followed the others to the van. The uncle unlocked the van and everyone got in; Hailey in the front seat with her uncle, Joey and Luna in the middle row, and Lena, Yugi, and Joshia in the back, with Yugi squished between the two.

"Anyone want to trade seats?" Yugi asked.

"No!" came the response from the front two seats.

"I will!" Joshia told him, excitedly.

"I knew you would." Yugi muttered.

The uncle started the van and drove off. There were a few minutes of silence except the occasional sniffle from Luna. Suddenly she felt a tickle in her nose and tapped Joey on the shoulder. "Um, Joey? Could you get…me…a-a-a-"

Joey immediately reached behind the seat and grabbed a box of tissues. He quickly opened it and handed a tissue to Luna. She managed to sneeze into it in time. The rest of the van ride went uneventful except the occasional dozen sneezing fits from Luna. After Joey thought that the fits were over, he wiped her nose with another tissue.

"Achoo!" Luna sneezed on Joey's hand.

"Blech! I thought you were done!" Joey exclaimed disgustedly.

"I-achoo-thought-achoo-I-achoo-was-achoo-done-achoo-too." The sneeze had started another fit.

Joey groaned. He had to start over again. He grabbed another tissue and helped her clean up the seat in front of her, which had been sprayed when she'd started sneezing again.

Soon they were at the house. They noticed there was a white limo parked on the street with its hood up, and the back of a tall someone leaning over the engine. Another man was standing beside him, just smirking that he wasn't there.

The group got out of the car and the cold December air was filled with curses.

"Stupid car." the man muttered.

The other man stopped smirking. "Well, we had the car checked just a while ago. You had them check everything but the battery!" he shouted, loud enough for everyone within close range to hear.

"Should we help them?" Lena asked.

"Nah. They got it taken care of." Joey said, smirking.

The man that wasn't working on the car heard this and turned. It was definitely Seto's darker half, Seth. That meant the only person that could be looking under the hood was none other than Seto Kaiba.