[Yuugioh/TWEWY] SERIOUSLY, WHAT.
Augh, WHY DID THIS NOT OCCUR TO ME BEFORE.
Where the Beginning Meets the End
by vikki - a Yuugioh/TWEWY crossover
Summary: This ... isn't the afterlife, is it? Atem just has to play a game to live again. The ultimate crack explanation for How Atem Gets His Own Body fics. Rated PG, no TWEWY spoilers, would be theoretically divided into eight parts if I actually were to finish it.
A/N: You don't need to know The World Ends With You to read this, I promise. All is explained in the story.
He didn't look back. It would be better to say, he didn't dare. Behind him, Yuugi was still wiping tears out of his eyes and Anzu was valiantly doing her best to not join him, Jounouchi's eyes watered, Honda's lips are pressed thin. Everyone who had touched his second life stood behind him, and now, the future was ... what? Something beyond that bright light.
Atem's eyes watered from the brightness of it. He dared not turn back, or he would lose his nerve and dignity and whatever else was left to him. In lieu of facing his friends, he thrust out a thumbs-up and took that first step forward.
It was easier then, as with each step the light suffused him, seeming to draw him in and become part of him. He was blinded, and then--
* * *
"So we've got this guy ... Atem. Atem? That's it? Like, 'Prince'?"
Atem opened his eyes. Of all the things he had expected of the afterlife, this ... wasn't it.
He was standing in semi-darkness in the shadows of an overpass. He could hear cars shaking the concrete beams above him. The pavement was cracked and covered with grafitti under his booted feet; he was still in Yuugi's school uniform. He lifted his gaze.
Before Atem stood a man in a snakeskin suit that fit him perfectly. He wore long black hair in a loose ponytail, a goatee, and oversized sunglasses. Atem had to arch his neck just to look at his face. "Well? You got a last name, kid?"
Instinctively Atem took a step back so the man's height didn't overwhelm him. "I ... don't think I'm supposed to be here?" It came out as a question. How was he to know? But surely if there was an afterlife for a Pharaoh, it wouldn't involve people in snakeskin suits and loud overpasses. Where was Anubis and the Ma'at feather? Surely he'd missed something.
One eyebrow arched over the rim of the sunglasses. "No? You're Atem, right? Died with regrets, blah blah blah, the whole bit. I mean, you can just go ahead and die if you want, but that wouldn't be any fun, would it?"
Atem stared over his shoulder and said nothing. Something had moved in the darkness behind the man; it unnerved him.
The man made a questioning face then shrugged. The something moved again, and this time Atem caught structure and membrane. Wings? "What are you?" he asked sharply.
The man smirked, and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Hah, I guess you really don't know anything. I'm a Reaper - nah, maybe even a God of Death. And you, my lucky friend, have a choice."
"What choice is that?" Atem had unconsciously moved as if to face a threat. He felt naked. The Items were gone, and with them all Shadow Magic, and so if this God of Death proved a threat he would be defenseless. The absurdity occurred to him almost immediately; he was dead, what could a Death God possibly do to him?
"Isn't it obvious?" the man's smirk grew wider. "Either go into the afterlife peacefully, or play the Reaper's Game."
A game, hm? Atem unconsciously relaxed a little. Naturally, games were his territory. "What game is that?"
"A little of this, a little of that. You play the game and win, and you get a second shot at life. Kind of sweet, huh?" The man's smirk widened so much it showed teeth.
There was much the Reaper wasn't saying; that much was immediately obvious. Atem allowed himself a small smirk as well. "And if I lose?"
"Naturally, you're erased." The man shrugged slightly as if to indicate this wasn't something to be overly concerned about. "All you've got to do is survive seven days. Oh, and pay the entrance fee. You get it back when you win, though."
He was also being purposely oblique. Atem maintained his smile. "Which is?"
"Your most precious thing."
The way the Reaper said it, this was but a small price to pay. Atem felt himself balk, however. His most precious thing? What was most precious to him? There were many things he held in high regard - his friends, Yuugi, his memories ... his name. Perhaps it was his name. For two years he had borrowed Yuugi's name and body both, and everyone had struggled and sacrificed with him to obtain his true name. It was the key to great power and the seal against terrible powers; without it, he could never rest peacefully, denied his own afterlife. Such a thing could be considered priceless, and it was a terrible thing to ask of him. What would Yuugi think of him if he gave it up and lost?
It was, in many ways, his time to go. His aibou had fought him to assure safe passage through the door, much as it pained them both, and loathe though Atem was to admit it, he could not have continued to coexist with Yuugi inside Yuugi's mind and body. In fact, discovering his name had been the final severance. The last month of their partnership had been ... extraordinarily awkward in many ways. Finally, they were truly two seperate people in one body, and that could not be. But if he could come back to life, properly, in his own body? He couldn't think of anything he would want more. Atem wanted to stay with his friends, his aibou, and enjoy many more years with them.
Yes, surely he could win this. His name was worth it.
"Well? Time's ticking." The Reaper tapped his watch as if Atem were holding him back from some important meeting.
"I accept!" Atem lifted his head and braced himself for the loss of his name. Could he just go as Mutou Yuugi again? It would only be for seven days.
"Very good!" The Reaper threw out his hand. "Your price is taken. See you tomorrow for Day One, yeah?" He turned to go.
Atem hesitated. "Wait! My price ... you've really taken it? But I can still remember my name."
The man turned back. "What!? You thought your name was your most precious thing?" He laughed. "You humans, seriously. It's almost never a thing. Your price is--" he looked down at his hand as if reading something. "--your aibou, Mutou Yuugi." He shook his head. "Almost took the rest of them, too, but just the one is enough."
Atem's heart seized in his chest. He fell to his knees, struggling for words. Of course. Of course, he'd been blind. His name was powerful, perhaps the most important thing to keep the world safe, but for himself? How foolish!
The Reaper waved his hand, obviously not bothered by the human suffering. "Tah, then--! When you wake up tomorrow you'll know the details."
Atem clenched his fists and drew a shaking breath. No; all was not lost yet. He would not let Yuugi die. He only had to beat this Reaper's Game.
If anyone could do it, it would be him.
DAY 0: PRICE PAID: THE END
Where the Beginning Meets the End
by vikki - a Yuugioh/TWEWY crossover
Summary: This ... isn't the afterlife, is it? Atem just has to play a game to live again. The ultimate crack explanation for How Atem Gets His Own Body fics. Rated PG, no TWEWY spoilers, would be theoretically divided into eight parts if I actually were to finish it.
A/N: You don't need to know The World Ends With You to read this, I promise. All is explained in the story.
He didn't look back. It would be better to say, he didn't dare. Behind him, Yuugi was still wiping tears out of his eyes and Anzu was valiantly doing her best to not join him, Jounouchi's eyes watered, Honda's lips are pressed thin. Everyone who had touched his second life stood behind him, and now, the future was ... what? Something beyond that bright light.
Atem's eyes watered from the brightness of it. He dared not turn back, or he would lose his nerve and dignity and whatever else was left to him. In lieu of facing his friends, he thrust out a thumbs-up and took that first step forward.
It was easier then, as with each step the light suffused him, seeming to draw him in and become part of him. He was blinded, and then--
* * *
"So we've got this guy ... Atem. Atem? That's it? Like, 'Prince'?"
Atem opened his eyes. Of all the things he had expected of the afterlife, this ... wasn't it.
He was standing in semi-darkness in the shadows of an overpass. He could hear cars shaking the concrete beams above him. The pavement was cracked and covered with grafitti under his booted feet; he was still in Yuugi's school uniform. He lifted his gaze.
Before Atem stood a man in a snakeskin suit that fit him perfectly. He wore long black hair in a loose ponytail, a goatee, and oversized sunglasses. Atem had to arch his neck just to look at his face. "Well? You got a last name, kid?"
Instinctively Atem took a step back so the man's height didn't overwhelm him. "I ... don't think I'm supposed to be here?" It came out as a question. How was he to know? But surely if there was an afterlife for a Pharaoh, it wouldn't involve people in snakeskin suits and loud overpasses. Where was Anubis and the Ma'at feather? Surely he'd missed something.
One eyebrow arched over the rim of the sunglasses. "No? You're Atem, right? Died with regrets, blah blah blah, the whole bit. I mean, you can just go ahead and die if you want, but that wouldn't be any fun, would it?"
Atem stared over his shoulder and said nothing. Something had moved in the darkness behind the man; it unnerved him.
The man made a questioning face then shrugged. The something moved again, and this time Atem caught structure and membrane. Wings? "What are you?" he asked sharply.
The man smirked, and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Hah, I guess you really don't know anything. I'm a Reaper - nah, maybe even a God of Death. And you, my lucky friend, have a choice."
"What choice is that?" Atem had unconsciously moved as if to face a threat. He felt naked. The Items were gone, and with them all Shadow Magic, and so if this God of Death proved a threat he would be defenseless. The absurdity occurred to him almost immediately; he was dead, what could a Death God possibly do to him?
"Isn't it obvious?" the man's smirk grew wider. "Either go into the afterlife peacefully, or play the Reaper's Game."
A game, hm? Atem unconsciously relaxed a little. Naturally, games were his territory. "What game is that?"
"A little of this, a little of that. You play the game and win, and you get a second shot at life. Kind of sweet, huh?" The man's smirk widened so much it showed teeth.
There was much the Reaper wasn't saying; that much was immediately obvious. Atem allowed himself a small smirk as well. "And if I lose?"
"Naturally, you're erased." The man shrugged slightly as if to indicate this wasn't something to be overly concerned about. "All you've got to do is survive seven days. Oh, and pay the entrance fee. You get it back when you win, though."
He was also being purposely oblique. Atem maintained his smile. "Which is?"
"Your most precious thing."
The way the Reaper said it, this was but a small price to pay. Atem felt himself balk, however. His most precious thing? What was most precious to him? There were many things he held in high regard - his friends, Yuugi, his memories ... his name. Perhaps it was his name. For two years he had borrowed Yuugi's name and body both, and everyone had struggled and sacrificed with him to obtain his true name. It was the key to great power and the seal against terrible powers; without it, he could never rest peacefully, denied his own afterlife. Such a thing could be considered priceless, and it was a terrible thing to ask of him. What would Yuugi think of him if he gave it up and lost?
It was, in many ways, his time to go. His aibou had fought him to assure safe passage through the door, much as it pained them both, and loathe though Atem was to admit it, he could not have continued to coexist with Yuugi inside Yuugi's mind and body. In fact, discovering his name had been the final severance. The last month of their partnership had been ... extraordinarily awkward in many ways. Finally, they were truly two seperate people in one body, and that could not be. But if he could come back to life, properly, in his own body? He couldn't think of anything he would want more. Atem wanted to stay with his friends, his aibou, and enjoy many more years with them.
Yes, surely he could win this. His name was worth it.
"Well? Time's ticking." The Reaper tapped his watch as if Atem were holding him back from some important meeting.
"I accept!" Atem lifted his head and braced himself for the loss of his name. Could he just go as Mutou Yuugi again? It would only be for seven days.
"Very good!" The Reaper threw out his hand. "Your price is taken. See you tomorrow for Day One, yeah?" He turned to go.
Atem hesitated. "Wait! My price ... you've really taken it? But I can still remember my name."
The man turned back. "What!? You thought your name was your most precious thing?" He laughed. "You humans, seriously. It's almost never a thing. Your price is--" he looked down at his hand as if reading something. "--your aibou, Mutou Yuugi." He shook his head. "Almost took the rest of them, too, but just the one is enough."
Atem's heart seized in his chest. He fell to his knees, struggling for words. Of course. Of course, he'd been blind. His name was powerful, perhaps the most important thing to keep the world safe, but for himself? How foolish!
The Reaper waved his hand, obviously not bothered by the human suffering. "Tah, then--! When you wake up tomorrow you'll know the details."
Atem clenched his fists and drew a shaking breath. No; all was not lost yet. He would not let Yuugi die. He only had to beat this Reaper's Game.
If anyone could do it, it would be him.
DAY 0: PRICE PAID: THE END