By Definition It Would Count (Part 1)

DIMENSION: MANGA (The One That Saves the Day)

"Jounouchi, it's okay," Yuugi encouraged him. "Kaiba has been taking good care of her. They will be fine."

"They went to a separate hotel to pop the bubble without anyone else." Bakura didn't help at all. "I am sure it was all innocent."

"Stop playing, Bakura." Yuugi wasn't in the mood as he tried to catch another person in uniform come out. "Sir, please, we only want to purchase-"

Gone. Nobody wanted to talk to any of them. They were too eager after the bubble finally popped. Probably a lot like Domino City, nobody wanted to stay behind to do their job. Even the owner couldn't be found.

"Face the truth. We are only getting the cards that we bought. Nobody won." Bakura smirked. "Except Kaiba."

"Knock it off, Bakura," Atem warned him. "No one is in the mood for your shenanigans."

"Oh, you are simply upset that the third day is practically over. Only two left." Bakura looked toward Jounouchi. "If only it hadn't taken four hours to gather energy to pop that bubble. I am sure Kaiba gave it his all."

Jounouchi didn't say anything. That was smart. Bakura was only doing that to distract himself too. Yuugi knew that 'Ryder' had made an impression over him over the years.

She was probably the only thing he cared about, and she was . . . ///Yuugi: thinking about that only makes me miss Anzu even more. Concentrate! I promised her I would concentrate.///

Yuugi watched as Kaiba showed up with Shizuka in their vehicle. "Everyone was too excited to leave. No one will sell us cards."

"Oh quit. Stop crying over the outcome," Kaiba said. "I doubt anybody is going to want to stay anymore. I'd say if the owner was money hungry, we might get a blip." Kaiba held a phone, dialed a number, and waited. "This is Seto Kaiba. I need to buy a decent amount of cards from your store. No, I don't want to wait. I have money burning for cards. What do you mean you can't?"

Yep. ///Yuugi: Even Kaiba is getting turned down, Other Me. He had a direct phone to the owner too it sounds like.///

///Atem: It makes sense, Yuugi. Kaiba immersed himself in cards. He would have connections. Even for him though, I don't think it will matter./// "We should fight with the cards we have and practice. We know day three will be about getting the members of our teams to certain places. There is no telling how much more time we will have to practice."

"Four hours. Sun is already going down," Jounouchi said to Shizuka. "It took four hours to summon the dragon? Are you sure you should be playing that game then?"

"I'll be ready before the game starts," Shizuka told him. "That's the difference. I have to recharge, Katsuya." She smiled at him. "I promise, it will be okay. I will do my best to protect Honda."

"Okay." Jounouchi's fire had really died down. "You'd tell me if something was wrong though, right? Just keep in mind. No matter how old you are, I'm still your big brother. Forever and always."

"Right."

"So?" Jounouchi came up closer to her, shifting Mana. "Mana sure is sweet, huh?" He was trying to lead her into a better frame of mind. "I care about her. It don't matter who she is or what she'll do in the future. I love her no matter what. I care about all my friends like that. My family too."

Yuugi watched Jounouchi. He was trying to ease the truth out of her. Since he wasn't bothering Kaiba, no one could get real upset about it.

"Yuugi." Atem held Hikaru out toward him. "Your son keeps crying. I know you miss Anzu." He paused a moment. "I don't care that he feels sadness, you need to pick him up and comfort him. If you don't, he will believe he lost his father and mother. That will only lead to more sadness."

Yuugi took Hikaru from Atem's outreached hands. He had a good point. ///Yuugi: I am miserable inside, but he's right. We do need each other. I can't keep ignoring you to spare your feelings. You're upset either way, so we'll be upset together.///

"Well then, fine! We'll see if Kaiba corp ever works with you again! As far as I'm concerned, you'll have to buy cards from third rate dealers because all future deals with the company- damn!" Kaiba put the phone away. "He hung up. No one wants to come near the place. He's thinking of even moving away to another location. If he survives, it will be without any of Kaiba Corps aid! I am going to make sure this place goes down and stays down for disobeying me!"

Shizuka went over by him. "Sorry, Seto."

"It was a waste of energy for you, Shizuka," Kaiba said instead. "This was just a waste of hours. Rustling around in mediocre card shops won't be worth it to play 'maybe we'll find a good card'. We need to practice non-stop until the time comes now."

"No, we need rest you idiot," Bandit King corrected him. "It's night. First thing in the morning we can practice our skills all day. Then we rest again, before the final fight."

"He is right," Atem agreed. "We will need food and rest to have the energy to play this game. It will be the most intense we have ever faced."

"We should go back to the hotel," Shizuka agreed with both of them. "I should rest too."

"Good point," Kaiba said to her. "Fine. We'll head back to our room. I guess we can get them rooms too. We'll be fighting each other tomorrow, so we might as well stay near."

"Hey, do hotels have baby food?" Jounouchi asked as they all packed in again. "Kaiba? These little guys, they need some food."

"Yes, you should learn that, Kaiba," Bakura said as he got in too. "Baby stuff, it might be something you want to start learning about."

"I am far from a baby," Kaiba told him. "Your joke is even worse than usual."

"Joke?" Bandit King smiled. "What joke?"

"Please, not now." Yuugi was too tired to say much more. He held Hikaru in his arms, quieting him down as he could. ///Yuugi: Soon, if we win, I'll have another little one to worry about, and that's the best outcome?///

///Atem: I still don't think so, Yuugi. I believe a fusion of gods really won't be like Hikaru.///

///Yuugi: What do you expect then? Fully grown and ready to make the world nice again? I give up on predictions these days.///

///Atem: Honestly. From the way Zorc put it, it sounds like manipulative energy of a god that will grant the receiver what they want. Not actual beings at all.///

///Yuugi: I want Anzu and the world to be safe. That's all.///

///Atem: I want Zorc to become human and lose his immortality, so that I may make him suffer an immeasurable wrath for all he's done.///

Yuugi looked at Atem's hair. It was just as wild as when he first changed with him, but his eyes were changing now too. ///Yuugi: Atem? I want to ask you something. It's about Masika. The part that Anzu called Satiah?///

Atem sighed. ///Atem: What about her?///

///Yuugi: When you lose her, you become . . . different. Like, you're all messed up again from spending thousands of years in the puzzle. Do you think it's connected to her past with you, or do you think it's connected to her?///

///Atem: I can't answer that. I'm not creating this change on my own. It might be that I found a connection with someone like me and I know they are suffering. Maybe there is something from a far away subconscience that still remembers her. It matters not though. My actions will be the same for anyone in trouble. Its pointless to even speculate, Yuugi. You must take your mind off of them, rest and gain energy for our battle.///

It was easier said than done. Yuugi dwelled on Hikaru to get through the night. He roomed with Atem but didn't have much else to say. Everyone was trying to get rest. They may not have made it into Ultimate Cards, but they still did get some decent cards from their first stop.

Tomorrow they would quit trying to find cards, and practice.

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"Jounouchi," Shizuka warned him. "I will be fine. Mana should spend time with just you."

"She should get to know her Aunt Shizuka," he countered. "This is almost over. Can't you leave his side yet? I am not staying in the same room as Atem even though he's got control like Kaiba. So, I don't think you should. It's sort of an intense time and people are more likely to make bad decisions because of that."

Shizuka looked at the ground. "I don't want to leave his side. I . . . just . . ."

"Fine, then just be careful," Jounouchi warned her. "Don't forget what he did in the past to us. He isn't any kind of prince charming." He nodded. "Night, Sis."

"Night, Katsuya," she answered softly.

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