I think Alone Again Duke will also get an eventual happy ending; I'm just unsure of how or when or why. I don't quite like the thought of reuniting with Yugi and company, as it would be all too easy to write it wrong and make it look like Duke is just unfairly bitter and has to go crawling back to them and beg forgiveness when he hits rock bottom. The fault is on both sides, so if he ends up feeling like he has to crawl back, the only way I could feel good about it would be if Yugi and company are worried about him and have been actively looking for him and end up meeting him half-way.

Duke/Mai seems to be a popular pairing in fandom, although I have no idea why unless it's based around the idea that they're both loners and outsiders (and the fact that manga Duke has a little crush on her). Usually when I see Duke/Mai fics, though, it's based around the anime introduction Duke and he's basically a cad to her. Bleh. Duke gets such a bad rep in fics. But maybe I could write a decent Duke and Mai fic (not necessarily a pairing fic) and that could be the next Alone Again installment and offer a sliver of hope.

I love writing Duke and Snakes friendship in Commiseration verse.

I like David being able to be alive, too. And now that I've developed this Duke and Snakes friendship, I wonder how to coordinate both friendships. It feels like that if David is restored, Duke won't "need" Snakes anymore and they'll drift apart, which is sad. I want the friendship to be true and not just based on need. But if both David and Snakes are around, I wonder if it would just get crowded and Snakes himself would feel that he should bow out, whether or not Duke would really want that.