Disclaimer: Don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!, don't claim to. Don't really see the point to these since it's pretty obvious, but meh.

Precarious Dreams

The first thing he felt was the pain.

He slumped to his knees, eyes half-closed instinctually. His arm was bleeding even through the bandage… huh? The last thing he remembered was being with Jounochi and Anzu… his arm was fine then. What had happened? He couldn't remember a thing after that…

Someone was calling his name… Ryou raised his head slightly to see Yuugi… no, the other Yuugi. The other Yuugi was standing across from him, with some type of giant monster behind him. Ryou begged him to say what was going on, why he was here and why his arm hurt so much, but the other Yuugi didn't seem to be paying attention. He was talking to someone else… Ryou didn't try to listen in, instead focusing on his arm.

He finally raised his eyes to meet the other Yuugi's conflicted gaze. It hurt so much… why was he just standing there? Would the other Yuugi help him? The other Yuugi always helped his friends… But the other Yuugi just stood there, staring at Ryou with dismay, but not making a move to help him.

He could feel his Yami's hard gaze on him, as well as another foreign presence… not that it mattered to Ryou. No help would come from there, and his arm hurt so much. But why wouldn't the other Yuugi help him?

In a gasp of breath, Ryou felt his Yami take over. But why would he do that? Ryou managed to drag his head up to see his Yami standing… in front of him? He was goading the other Yuugi into attacking, saying that Ryou would be safe… that couldn't be, he'd just have Yuugi attack and let Ryou take the brunt of the force… he couldn't be trying to protect him, he was just using him again…

But despite his mental disbelief, Bakura spread his arms wide in a gesture of protection, and was laughing even as the wave of energy hit him…

Ryou's eyes opened in alarm, taking in a gasping breath. That dream again?

The boy closed his eyes, steadying his breathing but making no attempt to fall back asleep. Why did he keep having that dream? He knew his Yami would never do something like that for him…

He hadn't believed it when it happened, and he didn't believe it now.

Ryou wasn't even sure if he hadn't just dreamt that also. All other memories from Battle City were hazy or simply didn't exist, so how come he regained consciousness for that short time? It didn't make any sense…

Little in his life made sense.

Ryou groaned, then swung his legs over the side of the bed and pulled himself into a sitting position. He attempted to rise, but he immediately felt light-headed and plopped down again, closing his eyes and resting his head on a hand.

'What are you doing up, yadonushi?'

Ryou raised his head to see Bakura standing there, with a confused expression for once.

"I… I had a nightmare. It doesn't matter." Ryou said simply, hoping Bakura would leave him alone. To Ryou's apprehension, the yami actually sat down next to Ryou on the bed.

'What about?' The spirit asked, obviously trying to sound like he cared.

"You." Ryou admitted, fully expecting Bakura to glare or hit him, as long as he stopped acting.

Bakura's eyes narrowed, and he quickly stood up.

'Of course.' He spat, then turned to leave. He should have known…

"Bakura." A soft voice called when the spirit was mere inches from the door. Bakura stopped walking, but gave no other hint that he had heard Ryou.

"You… you wouldn't protect me, would you." Ryou stated, no questioning in his tone. Bakura glanced over his shoulder at Ryou; his host was staring blankly at him, emotions not easily readable.

Bakura sighed, then turned around fully and stalked forwards, only stopping once he was a few feet from the bed. His arms folded across his chest, he regarded his hikari flatly.

"What are you talking about?"

"You… I've been…" Ryou stuttered, backing up a few inches in discomfort. "In my dream, you… you were fighting against the other Yuugi. And you protected me, you kept me from being hurt… but it's just a dream, right?"

"It doesn't matter if I did or not." Bakura snarled, and turned away.

"Please! It… it does to me. It… is it just a dream I keep having, or was it real? I… I'm not sure."

Bakura sighed, sitting into a chair, glaring in annoyance at Ryou.

"Yes, it really happened. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Ryou opened his mouth to respond, but Bakura cut him off.

"Of course I protected you. Why wouldn't I? I couldn't just let you die Ryou. That would mean the end of me as well."

"But… the other Yuugi wouldn't have attacked. He wouldn't hurt me just to win a game—"

"He would have attacked, Ryou. I'm sure of it. He's willing to sacrifice innocent lives, they all are. You don't know how…" The spirit's voice trailed off. Ryou motioned with his head to continue, hoping to finally shed some light on what Bakura's grudge against Yuugi's yami was. But Bakura simply stood up and turned away, his expression harsh.

"I need you safe, Ryou."

"What?" Ryou's eyes widened considerably before he checked himself. Bakura was probably just talking about needing a host to move about, not that he was concerned about Ryou's personal well being. He certainly never seemed to before.

Bakura's next words shook Ryou.

"The Pharaoh protects his light. Why should I not do the same? Your safety might not be my primary goal, but I have not done anything against your well-being."

Ryou bit his lip. It was true he couldn't think of a time Bakura had put him in danger while he was out, but the yami himself…

"B-but what about Monster World?"

Bakura sighed and narrowed his eyes. "Beating the Pharaoh takes priority, light. It was obvious I could not show you why you needed to stop your actions, and could not force you back. It was the only thing I could think to do."

"But why do you need to defeat the other Yuugi?"

Bakura hesitated slightly. This conversation was starting to go father than he had anticipated…

"That is none of your concern, light. Go back to sleep."

"I… okay. Good night, Bakura."

Ryou gave his yami a smile that was half-heartedly returned, before curling into his sheets and willing himself back to sleep.

Bakura watched emotionlessly as his hikari slipped out of consciousness once more. Once he was assured the boy was asleep, he allowed the smirk he was holding back to emerge. Ryou was just too easy to influence. He had actually believed Bakura's little charade. If he was careful, Ryou might not try to fight him for control, which would make things easier. Not to mention he could do whatever he wanted when in control and Ryou would be just as clueless.

The yami's eyes eased shut in satisfaction as he dissolved back into the Ring. Once he was back in his soul room he flopped back onto his bed, smiling softly.

However, a slight frown graced his harsh features as realized something. A second later he shrugged, before allowing himself to begin to sleep as well. It wasn't like it really mattered.

He hadn't been telling Ryou the truth, but he surprised himself by his words not being a complete lie. He wouldn't let it affect his actions, though.

So what if he did care about Ryou a little.

Author's Notes: I'll update Impermance soon, I just wrote this and decided to post it. Hope you liked!