I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of its associated properties.

Dancing Shoes and Expressions of Joy

Anzu was turning sixteen today, so she'd invited her friends over to her house for a small celebration. It wouldn't be anything too big, not compared to New Years day of course, but Anzu Mazaki rather liked the idea of a day that would be about her, not as a member of the larger group, but her, the individual. After all, she'd heard that in America that there were no national birthdays of any sort, that each individual's birthday was celebrated in a grand and lavish fashion, and though she didn't think that something like that quite suited her, the core idea appealed to her. It had taken a considerable amount of patience and composure, but Anzu was able to convince her parents to go out into town for the day, allowing her to indulge herself in this bit of American-style silliness. Anzu had just finished fixing all the instant cook meals that she'd chosen when the door bell rang. She quickly answered the door, and in came Jonouchi, Honda, Bakura, and Otogi.

"Hey guys, glad you could make it. Why don't you all come into the living room and… where are Shizuka, Mai, and Yugi? Weren't you all going to come together?" Jonouchi and Honda had already taken their seats and begun eating, while Bakura had decided to take a look around Anzu's house. It was left to Otogi to answer Anzu's question. "Mai took Shizuka to a beauty parlor, though she had to promise Jonouchi that she wouldn't do anything too flamboyant to his little sister, but they should be here before too long. As for Yugi, he said something about needing to pick up his gift. Trust me though, there's no way he'll miss this occasion." And with that, Otogi joined Jonouchi and Honda and began eating. It would figure that Mai would try to doll up Shizuka, as this would not only indulge her own interests, but it would also fluster Jonouchi, and there was no way Mai would turn down an opportunity to do that. Still, Anzu was just a little confused by what Otogi had said about Yugi. Although she'd kept from prying, she'd definitely had the sense that Yugi had chosen his gift weeks ago, so what could he possibly be doing?

She only had a moment to ponder this before the doorbell rang again. Clearing her head, she opened the door once more, and this time it was Mai and Shizuka. Mai was actually dressed a little more conservatively then usual, though not by much, but the difference was made in the manner of Shizuka's dress. True to her word, Mai kept herself restrained with regards to Shizuka, only giving Jonouchi's sister a light layer of makeup and perfume, and providing her with a shirt that only hinted at her cleavage. It was still probably more then Jonouchi would have liked, but well within the limits of good taste as far as Anzu was concerned. "Hey Anzu!" Mai loudly called out, "It's so good to see you again. We really need to come up with more excuses to get together, especially if they give me a chance to take you out to get prettied up. I swear, getting Shizuka to wear lipstick was a greater struggle then facing down a god card. But still, it was worth it, wasn't it Shizuka?"

Shizuka, true to her name, didn't speak up, but her face didn't seem to show any fear. She took a few moments to breathe, and then entered Anzu's home. Once she entered the living room, Jonouchi, Honda, and Otogi all stopped eating. Jonouchi, exercising more restraint then he'd ever done before in his life, kept himself from assaulting Honda and Otogi, instead making sure that he would remain at Shizuka's side all throughout the remainder of the day. Mai chuckled at this development. "I swear, Jonouchi can be such a child at times. Still, it's not like he's the only duelist to show two sides of himself, but seriously Anzu, where's Yugi? I can't imagine that he would miss today for anything. I swear, every time I tried to speak with him for the past few weeks, he'd offer up some excuse about your gift and zoom right off. I don't know what he could possibly be so worried about, I mean, it's not like you wouldn't like anything that Yugi got for you, am I right?"

Anzu definitely didn't like where Mai was headed with this. Both in Duelist Kingdom and just before Battle City had started up, Mai had been convinced that she'd had a crush on Yugi. In a way she was right, and in a way she wasn't. Anzu knew that she had a crush on the other Yugi, that was certain, but as for the regular Yugi, it was still a little nebulous to her. It was when Yugi had offered to let his other self take over, convinced that Anzu had wanted to speak with the other Yugi, that she'd realized that things were even more complicated then she'd first realized. Every now and then, she'd wonder at what would have happened if the Player Killer of Darkness hadn't shown up that night, if the conversation had been allowed to reach its natural conclusion. Still, there was no way to communicate all that to Mai, so Anzu quickly changed the subject. "So, I heard that you won another tournament Mai. I bet that makes up for how Duelist Kingdom and Battle City went." Fortunately for Anzu, Mai was good at reading people, minus the time that Yugi bluffed her back in their match at Duelist Kingdom, so she decided to be nice and let Anzu have her day the way she wanted. As she came into the room, Bakura returned from his self guided tour of the house, and gave Anzu a very satisfied smile.

"Lately I've been going over the principles of Feng Shui, and I have to say that your house is very well set up. The energy flow to your room is especially auspicious. Don't worry, I didn't set foot inside, I didn't think that you'd like that very much at all. I really think that something very good is going to happen for you today. Don't you think so, Anzu?" Anzu nodded at Bakura, and together they joined the others at the dinner table. Although everyone was enjoying their food, Anzu couldn't help but glance at the seat where Yugi should have been; noting that if he took much longer to get here his burger was going to have to be re-heated. It was as they were almost done eating, that the doorbell rang for the third time that day. Without any hesitation Anzu leapt from her seat and threw the door open, and there stood Yugi, holding onto the frame as he caught his breath.

"I'm…sorry I'm so late Anzu. There was just something I had to take care of at the last minute. I'm… still in time, right? You haven't started opening presents or anything, have you?" She nodded at Yugi, a gentle smile on her face. It wouldn't have done for him to have been gone today. She waited for him to recover, and the two joined the rest of the gang, who'd all stood up to properly welcome Yugi.

"Hey buddy, about time you got here! Anzu may be the star for the day, but you're the opening act, you know what I mean?" Jonouchi gave Yugi a light jab in the shoulder, and Honda joined in the same. Soon everyone was crowding around Yugi, wanting to know where he'd been, how he could have left them hanging like that, and so on and so forth, but Anzu didn't join in any of that. She just took Yugi's plate to the microwave and reheated it. Just as Yugi was steadfast in his refusal to answer, Anzu wasn't interested in hearing. He was here, with his gift and good cheer, and that was the important part. When the microwave beeped, she took out the burger and set it before Yugi.

"Sorry it's not freshly grilled, but I hope that this will work just fine Yugi." Yugi would have answered, except that he immediately took a huge bite and began chewing, clearly enjoying every moment of it. Soon everyone was finished eating, including Yugi, who Anzu swore must have distended his jaw to have gotten that much food in that quickly. Still, good times were had by all, what with Jonouchi keeping Honda and Otogi in check, Mai telling jokes to Shizuka that caused the young girl to blush and giggle at alternating takes, and Bakura and Yugi telling Anzu all about their latest idea for a Monster World game. Then Otogi spoke up.

"So guys, how are we going to decide which of our presents Anzu is going to open first?" Everyone pondered this for a moment, and then Yugi responded.

"How about a game? We take some sheets of paper, write our names on them, shuffle them up, and then let Anzu pick at random to see what present she opens up." Jonouchi snickered when Yugi finished.

"It figures that's what you'd come up with. Still, it sounds like a good idea. What do the rest of you guys think?" Everyone gave their assent to the plan, and so everyone was given a sheet of paper to write their name on, except for Anzu, who of course had to keep her eyes shut while everything was being prepared. The papers were shuffled three times by Shizuka, Bakura, and Otogi, to make sure that they were truly randomized, and were then placed on the table face down. Anzu was given the signal, and then jabbed finger down to one of the sheets, opened her eyes, and flipped it over. Yugi Mutoh. Well, at least the mystery of just what Yugi had gotten for her would be resolved now. Anzu picked up the box, tore away the wrapping paper and opened it up.

"Yugi… this is…" Anzu removed the contents of the box, a pair of dance shoes with a light peach motif to their decoration. Yugi looked away from Anzu as he mumbled, just loud enough for her to hear.

"Go ahead, try them on." Anzu slipped the shoes over her socks, and was struck by just how smoothly her feet slid into them. They fit her like, well, like a glove. She took a few experimental steps, and Anzu found that it felt like she was walking on something very soft and smooth, like her feet were dipping into fluff. Everyone stood back, giving Anzu room to give the shoes a proper trial run. She performed a slow and simple dance, one which would allow her to assess the way the shoes held up for their intended purpose. There were no flaws to be found, her weight was perfectly supported and her feet didn't even show the slightest sign of objecting to the shoes. Anzu sped up the dance, just a little, and found that the shoes still held up. They didn't even need to be broken in, like every pair of shoes that she'd tried on before. It was like they were truly made just for her, and the realization that somehow, Yugi had managed to do this without once giving away what he was doing, touched her in a way that little else had ever done before. She stopped dancing and turned to Yugi. She walked up to him and hugged him, letting her appreciation show itself in a way that words were inadequate to express.

It felt like a good and happy moment, until she noticed that everyone was staring at her in wide-eyed shock, and then Anzu realized what they were looking at. She'd managed to forget how short Yugi was, and had ended up shoving his head right in between her breasts. Anzu quickly pulled her hands away and stood back, revealing that Yugi's face was now a deeper shade of red then she'd ever seen before. There was a moment of silence, of non-action, before Yugi spoke. "I'm glad that you liked your shoes, Anzu." Than he stumbled straight back into his chair, seemingly lost to the world. Anzu was now overcome with dread, imagining just who would speak first in the wake of what she'd just done. It was, as she'd feared, Jonouchi who was the first to speak.

"Wow Anzu, I can't believe you just tried to kill Yugi." Honda was next.

"Yeah, but she was considerate enough to try for a death that he would have wanted." Oddly enough, Bakura was next in line to speak.

"Umm, I really think you guys should stop before you go any further. This is not a situation that we ought to-" Bakura never got to finish what he was about to say, as Mai had apparently managed to recover her breath.

"My god Anzu, I never thought that you had it in you! I'm glad that you decided to come to turns with your crush, though I have to say that a little more discretion wouldn't have been a bad idea. Still, now that things are out in the open, you should be able to have a lot more fun then you used to-"

"That is ENOUGH!" Anzu yelled, not wanting to put up with another moment of this nonsense, "I want everyone, and I mean everyone, to leave me be for a little while. I'm going into my room, and I don't want to be disturbed, you got it!" Good to her word, Anzu ran to her room and locked the door behind her. A renewed silence fell over the group, lasting until Otogi decided to speak up.

"Well, I'm glad that you guys were able to take an embarrassing moment like that, and make it exponentially worse then it had to be. I mean, could the three of you have possibly chosen worse things to say then what you actually did?" Jonouchi and Honda raised their fingers as though they were about to speak, but chose not to, realizing that their defense would ring hollow. Mai, to her credit, didn't even bother with that much, instead assuming a contemplative posture. Shizuka then walked up to Yugi and kneeled down, bringing her face level with his.

"Are you okay Yugi? Do you want to talk, or do you need some time alone?" It was at that moment that everyone remembered that Yugi was still there, and that he hadn't said anything for some time, or shown any response at all. They all looked to him, patiently waiting for his response.

"I'm sorry everyone, but I'm afraid that my partner isn't feeling very talkative at the moment. I think it would be best if the two of us stepped outside for a little while. Don't worry; I think I can manage things from this end. You guys just be ready for when Anzu decides to come out." It was always like that, the way Yugi would change between his two sides without any warning. Although both Yugi's looked the same, they carried themselves very differently, and their voices were the giveaway for the change. Everyone gave way as the other Yugi stepped outside, and so they began pondering what to think and say.

---

"Partner, we need to talk. Please, open the door and let me in." The nameless Pharaoh stood in the passage that separated the room of his soul from that of his partner's. Once, during the Battle City tournament, Yugi had come into his room, and discovered the vast labyrinth that he dwelled in, a fitting locale for a millennia old spirit that had forgotten even his own name. As for Yugi's room, he only had a vague idea of what was inside. The door was usually left open, and though he never stepped foot in it, he could see toys and games scattered everywhere. But now the door was closed, and Yugi wouldn't answer. As much he wanted to give his partner his space, now was not the time. He opened the door, and saw a bright and sunny room, with toys scattered on the floor, and on the walls were pictures of Yugi and his friends, but there was something strange about them. The Pharaoh picked up one of the pictures, and realized that each picture had two Yugi's, one notably taller and more confident then the other, and Anzu always stood closest to the taller Yugi. In one picture she was practically draped over the other Yugi, while the smaller Yugi was with the rest of his friends, a half-hearted smile on his face. The Pharaoh feared that this was the case, but couldn't honestly be all that surprised at his partner's feelings. He walked over to Yugi, who was in the corner working on a puzzle. There were too many pieces out of place to say what the final picture would be, but he had his suspicions. The Pharaoh placed a supportive hand on Yugi's shoulder, and joined him in working on the puzzle.

"Look, what happened was embarrassing, but I don't see why you're reacting like this. Do you really think that Anzu would want to see you acting like this?" Yugi kept at the puzzle, avoiding looking at the Pharaoh as he responded.

"She didn't want to see me at all. You saw the way she reacted; she thought that it was you that she was holding. If it had been you, she wouldn't have been anywhere near so humiliated. No one would have cracked jokes about her trying to kill me, or tried to rub it in when she clearly wanted to forget the whole thing." The Pharaoh started laughing, not like the derisive chuckle he would give his enemies as he was about to reveal the method of his victory, but a good natured laugh.

"Yugi, you know that that isn't true, not by a long shot. In the first place, you handled yourself much better then I ever would. You were shocked, yes, but you didn't do anything to draw attention to what had just happened. If it had been me, I can guarantee that I would have made a complete ass of myself. Don't you recall that 'date' you had set me up on with Anzu? While she did convince me to pursue my memories, the rest of that day could be generously described as a farce. Believe me, if it were me that she'd hugged, my dignity would not have survived today. Besides, it was you who went through all that trouble to get those shoes for Anzu, and don't you doubt for a second that she knew it was you. Yugi, you've shown us all that you're a good and strong person, more then worthy of respect and admiration. You were willing to sacrifice yourself to save Jonouchi, and you were willing to stand up to me to keep me from killing Kaiba. You just need to make this one last step, and see yourself for who you are. Now come on, let's head back in. You can work on the puzzle later. If you like, I can start things up, but you'll have to finish this day on your own. Is that okay, Partner?" Yugi put down a few more pieces of the puzzle and then got up. He grasped the Pharaoh's arm and shook it.

"Thanks, other me. Everything was just so sudden and, well, unexpected. I guess I fell back into my bad habits for a little while back there, didn't I?" The Pharaoh smiled back.

"Don't worry about it partner. Just remember that you're important too, okay?" The two Yugi's left the soul room together, leaving behind the incomplete puzzle, which showed the outlines of a boy and a girl.

---

Anzu had just locked the door behind her before throwing herself into her bed. She reached down and grabbed her shoes, wanting to wrench the damn things off, but then she remembered Yugi's face when she first saw the shoes, and so she gently removed them and put them under her bed. "Stupid, stupid, stupid, STUPID!" She thought, "All I had to do was to say thank you, or give a slight bow, or even remember to kneel down. But no, I just had to pull him into my chest, and now what? Everyone's going to think that some sort of love confession just took place, but I'm still just as confused about the whole Yugi situation as ever. When did things get so complicated? Wasn't it just last year that I was just Yugi's friend, his only friend?"

Anzu had an idea. She got up, moved over to her desk, pulled out the miniatures that Bakura had made for the group for their last Monster World game, and laid them out. First she put herself and Yugi together, and then she added in Jonouchi and Honda. She fiddled around with them for a bit, and then brought in the other Yugi's figure. Finally she added in Bakura's figure, and that was the last of the miniatures, as Otogi, Shizuka, and Mai were never all that interested in playing Monster World, and Bakura never did feel like running for that large of a group. Still, even with this many, it was easy to see how everyone else fit into the group with regards to Yugi, but what about her? She moved the two Yugis close together, then Jonouchi along side the regular Yugi, on the side opposite to the other Yugi. She put Honda a little further off, closer to Jonouchi then anyone else, but still near Yugi. Bakura, who would better understand what it meant to be the bearer of a millennium item then she could, was placed equidistant to both Yugis. Now it came time to place herself; Back when the other Yugi was just a mysterious and powerful voice, she was captivated by him, so much so that on one occasion she threw herself in danger just to draw him out. A light bitter laugh escaped Anzu's lips.

"Now that was really stupid. I mean, I could have been killed, and he disappeared as quickly as he could afterwards. Still, it's not like I ever did that again, but I never really did apologize to Yugi…" She moved her figure in front of Yugi, the Yugi that she'd known since they were in grade school. What was it that had motivated that little boy back then to offer her his game? And even after she'd smashed it into the ground in frustration, he just came back the next day with a new one, an easier one he said. Anzu smiled at the memory. "That's right; he never once got angry with me, or anyone else. It never mattered what anyone said about him or did to him, he'd just let them walk all over him. I guess I just wanted to protect him. It made me feel a little special, to have someone who needed me like that. I'd tell him that he needed to get tougher, but, did I really mean it? I don't know. And it's not like I really tried to help him make any new friends. I was our class representative after all, I could have found someone to hang out with him, another student who was also into games or something, but I never did. And then he got new friends, all on his own. The other Yugi showed up, and he began protecting him, more constantly and meaningfully then I ever could. I did what I could for him, and while I know in my head that he still appreciates me as much as he did back then, in my heart I can't help but feel a little superfluous. I mean, he was off on his own for so much of Battle City, and then he risked everything to save Jonouchi, while I just stood there, compelled to keep the suicide pill on my lips, and then he faced off against Malik's darkness, with both his soul and the other yugi's soul on the line. He'd managed to grow up so much, even if he was still the gentle boy that he always was."

Anzu sighed. "I just don't know. I mean, am I feeling what I am for Yugi because that's how I really feel, or is it just something that I want to feel so that I can be special to him again, able to be there for him in a way that Jonouchi, the other Yugi, and all the others can't?" She swept away all the other miniatures, leaving only herself and Yugi. She had them walk side by side, hand in hand in the world they lived in. On a whim she switched the Yugi figures and let the scene play out like before. Again and again she switched them, hoping for something to happen, some new feeling to emerge that would clarify things to her troubled heart, but nothing did. Although the feelings brought out by the two Yugis were different, she couldn't say which she preferred.

"Damn it, this is so infuriating! Why can't things be like they used to be, back when it was just Yugi and me? No Jonouchi, no games of darkness, and no other Yugi? Why can't it be simple again, why can't it be like it was back then, when I was the only one who saw Yugi as a friend worth having?" She put the miniatures back where she kept them. "No, that wasn't me. That was wrong of me to want, to think, for even a moment. If I'm really his friend, then I can't have selfish thoughts like that. He doesn't, no matter how much pain he takes on in the name of our friendships, so I'm going to do the same." Anzu focused her mind; let all the frustration flow out. Then a smiley face came to her mind. "Yes, even as far back as Death-T, we made it clear that we'd never let ourselves be separated, not for long. And when Yugi dueled with Pegasus, we were there in his heart, and while the others stood against Pegasus, I was supporting Yugi, helping him recover from the magic that had been wielded against him. No, I don't need to worry about trying to cling to Yugi. I don't need to worry about my motives anymore." Anzu stood up and thought of Yugi, and the feelings were still there, still as strong, only a little clearer now then before. "I told the other Yugi once to not to be afraid of the future. I suppose I should take my own advice now." Anzu patted herself on the face, and opened the door, walking back to where the others, and Yugi, were.

---

Yugi and Anzu had just left, and the silence was now broken by Jonouchi. "Damn it, this whole thing is my fault. Yugi made me promise not to say anything stupid when he gave her those shoes, and there I went, cracking that lame-ass joke of mine. You were right Bakura, Otogi." The three of them shook hands, and then Honda did the same.

"You said that you'd promised Yugi you wouldn't say anything stupid when he gave Anzu the shoes." It was Mai, who finally felt at ease enough to speak again. "How long have you known about what Yugi was getting for her? And how did he get shoes like those? I wouldn't have expected him to know where to look for them." Everyone gathered around Jonouchi, all wanting to hear this story.

"All right, I guess I may as well tell you guys. About three weeks ago, I noticed Yugi staying behind after class to talk to Kaiba. Although I stuck around to listen in, Yugi was too quiet for me to hear, and all Kaiba would say was 'I see'. This went on for a few minutes, and then they left for Kaiba's Limo. Remembering all too well what happened the last time he got into Kaiba's Limo, I trailed them on my bicycle. Traffic was pretty rotten, so I was able to keep up with them, until they reached Kaiba Manor. I waited outside for a while, don't know how long on account of my not having a watch, and then I got fed up and used the buzzer to demand that Kaiba let me in. As it turned out, it was Mokuba who answered and let me in. He took me to where Yugi was, and when we got there, there was a hologram of a pair of feet." Honda and Bakura blinked.

"A pair of feet? Why would Yugi go through all that trouble to look at feet?" Mai chuckled at their seeming obliviousness.

"I see. I suppose that Yugi really can count the Kaiba brothers among his friends as well. With that kind of help, it wouldn't be any trouble to make a custom pair of shoes without the recipient being aware of it." Shizuka clasped her hands together.

"Wow, it must have been really hard for Yugi to ask Seto Kaiba for that kind of help. Yugi really is so sweet, isn't he?" Otogi smirked.

"I always knew that Yugi was smart and clever, solving the millennium puzzle, and beating me at the game I created, but damn, coming up with a good use for Kaiba's holograms, now that was some really good thinking on his part." Bakura seemed to understand now, but Honda looked back at Jonouchi, who resumed his story.

"Well, most of you guys have already figured out the rest of it, but I'll fill in the blanks for Honda over here. To be fair though, I didn't understand what Yugi was doing until I asked him myself. He wanted to make Anzu a custom pair of dance shoes, but he wanted it to be a surprise, which would be kind of hard to do, seeing as he needed a good measurement of her feet. He remembered that there were hidden security cameras aboard Kaiba's blimp back during Battle City, and he was hoping that Kaiba would have the data that he'd need. Well, as it turned out Kaiba wasn't willing to lift a finger for Yugi, but he figured that Mokuba could take care of it, and not only did Mokuba provide the holograms, he brought in the best cobblers in the business to work on the shoes. Anyhow, Yugi made me promise that not only would I not spoil the surprise, but I wouldn't make fun of him afterwards either. As we all know, I was good on the first part, but not so much on the second part." Jonouchi sat back down, satisfied that this part of the story was now done with, but there was still the aftermath of it all to deal with. Another bout of silence fell over the group, and then Shizuka spoke up.

"Big brother, I was wondering. How long has Yugi had his crush on Anzu for?" Jonouchi jerked up out of his seat.

"How would I know something like that? Yugi and I are men; we don't go around prying into each other's emotional history like that. All I do know is that he's been attracted to her for a long time. Not that I blame him or anything, I mean she is good looking and never did let anyone give Yugi trouble over anything. Still, I never thought anything would come of it. I always figured that Anzu would go for the other Yugi, you know what I mean?"

It was right then that the two doors opened. Anzu came down the stairs, looking much better then she did when she left, and as for Yugi, it still seemed like it was the other Yugi who was on the surface. They came into the room, their faces showing new resolve that hadn't been there before. It was the other Yugi who spoke first.

"Anzu, we're going to play a game now. The rules are very simple, and we don't have to set anything up. All you have to do is to close your eyes, and you can't open them until I switch places with my partner. No one will say anything, and no clues will be given. Are you willing to play?" A slight blush on her face, Anzu agreed. She closed her eyes and covered them with her hands. Anzu recalled that this was like the first time she'd heard the voice of the other Yugi, though she didn't realize it at the time. But now she wouldn't have a voice to guide her, she had to make her way through the darkness on her own. He was so confident, so confident in her ability to find Yugi, just from the change in his heart. That confidence drew her to him, but she had to remember her purpose, she had to find Yugi.

For a long time everything was quiet and still, and Anzu worried that she might open her eyes too quickly, or wait too long, when she heard a sound. It wasn't like a regular sound, she didn't hear it out-loud, but rather she heard it in her heart. It was the digital beeping sound made by the lovely-two keychain game, which was supposed to sound off when the two hearts were as one. Anzu decided to risk it, and opened her eyes. There he was, Yugi, her Yugi, the one who she'd known since before the other Yugi arrived. She smiled

"It looks like I won, didn't I, Yugi?" He nodded.

"The other me knew that you would. He said that you were too good of a friend to lose at this game, and he was right." The two just stood there, looking at each other with fresh sight. This time, the moment would not be interrupted. Now it would be allowed to reach its natural conclusion, one which was not rushed or forced by outside circumstances, but driven by them and them alone.

"I'll be honest Yugi, I'm still not entirely sure about this, but I want to try. I want to see if we can be more then just friends." Yugi laughed at that, just a little bit.

"I never did like that phrase, 'more then just friends'. Anzu, I want you to know that your friendship is precious to me, and I wouldn't give it up for anything, but yes, I'd like to be your boyfriend, even if it's just for a little while."

Tears streamed down from their eyes as they smiled, and when Anzu moved in to hug him, she remembered to kneel down first. This didn't just feel good, it was good. There was still a little fear and doubt left, but they were prepared to face it, together. Then Anzu stood up and wiped away her tears.

"Sorry about all the theatrics guys. How about we start this party back up, okay?" Everyone cheered at this, and good times were had by all. And though everyone had brought nice gifts, the best was not the shoes, but the peace of mind that came with accepting the future, whatever it may bring.

---

It was time now, time for everyone to leave, and they all departed one by one, until Yugi was the only one left. "Yugi! Before you go, I want to ask you something." Yugi closed the door, and then turned around, listening intently. "I just want to know, how long have you felt this way, about me?" Yugi smiled as he thought about the answer.

"I kind of want to say that I've always felt this way, ever since we were kids, from the very moment we met, but the truth is, I don't really know. Anzu, you weren't just my only friend back then, you were the first friend I ever had. You were always there to play games with me, listen to me, and, well, protect me. As time passed I think I put more and more of what I felt, what I could feel, into our friendship, but as far as I knew, that's just how friendship worked. It wasn't until I became friends with Jonouchi and started spending time with him, that I realized the truth." Anzu raised an eyebrow

"Yugi, Jonouchi is a great friend and all, but I don't see how he could have helped you figure this out. No offense, but he's not exactly the sort to talk about a girl so much as talk about her… well, you'd know better then me." Yugi nodded at that.

"No, I never talked with Jonouchi about this, but that's not what I meant. It's just, after getting the friends I'd wanted for so long, I was able to see firsthand how different, different friendships could be. Now that I had something to compare to, I realized that somewhere down the line, my feelings for you had changed. I, I hope that made sense." Anzu flicked the hair from her face and lowered herself, seeing him eye to eye.

"Don't worry Yugi, that made perfect sense. I was just curious, that's all. Actually, I have one more question to ask. Why did you give me that game when we first met? I was never really sure why."

"Ah, that. You were by yourself right then, you looked bored and lonely, and so I thought you were like me. Shows what I knew, doesn't it?" Anzu giggled.

"Don't worry. If I were just like you, I don't think I'd have the courage to do this."

"Anzu, what are-!" She kissed him. True, it was on the forehead, but it was more then she'd ever given before, and more then he'd ever received. This would have been a perfect capstone for the day if her parents hadn't opened the door just then. Anzu quickly rose up and bowed to Yugi, thanking him for a wonderful day, and cordially saw him out, closing the door behind him.

"So." Her father said, "All this time you've been telling us that Yugi was just a friend. Is there anything else you feel like telling us?" Anzu smiled at her father.

"Well, there were some ups and downs, but today was a really good day. Thanks for letting me have my birthday party, Father." She pecked her father on the cheek and went up to her room, calmly closing the door behind her. Her mother turned to her father, and spoke.

"Well Akira, it could be worse. I mean, we know that there's no way he'd ever hurt her" Akira just growled.

"Hana, did you see the boy? How is someone like that supposed to look after our little girl? If I didn't know better, I'd think he was ten, eleven years old. How is this going to look for her in front of all her friends?" Hana grabbed her husbands chin and pulled him down for a kiss.

"Funny, you never had a problem with me being so much shorter then you. Why should Anzu have that problem with her boyfriend?" Akira felt his anger deflating.

"Well, that's…" He knew that look on his wife's face, and he knew that claiming that it was different when the guy looked taller and older wasn't going to cut it. "Never mind, we'll talk about this later, with Anzu. I just want to be sure that she isn't making a mistake, that's all."

"Well," Hana said as she smiled, "I think we can trust our daughter, but if it will put your mind at ease, we'll talk with her in the morning. Now come on dear, Anzu's day may be over, but ours isn't." Akira looked at his beautiful wife.

"Well, you've always known the way to my heart. All right, let's see the rest of this day through to the end."