The Lotus of Friendship

by Brindlekit

A freewrite of Ryou visiting the grave of Thief King Akefia, after befriending him during a long trip in Egypt, where he accidently stumbles on Akefia's past. It was originally a freewrite for a roleplaying friend on Tumblr who plays Akefia, who posted a prompt where Akefia had died and Ryou had to visit his grave.

The Lotus of Friendship

Ryou kneeled awkwardly at his friend's grave, placing a bundle of Lotus flowers at Akefia's grave. Ryou had chosen this flower because in Egypt, the lotus
flower represents innocent childhood. The boy was mourning the loss of his friend, and honoring the man's traumatized childhood, trying to preserve his once-innocence in his mind.

"Kefia…" Ryou choked on his words, remembering when the Thief, for all his bitterness, still new how to give a comforting warm smile, even if rarely. "It's been ten years today, and still I feel the pain of when they laid you in the ground… to this day I still can't believe you're gone…" He unwrapped the flowers gently and began digging into the soft earth with a trowel he had brought with him. When a deep enough hole had been dug, Ryou tenderly planted the lotus bundle into the ground and began covering the hole.

The boy looked up into the clouds; it had been raining when he left this morning, but when Ryou reached the cemetery, the rain had cleared and the sun now shone down brightly on him. After learning of Akefia's past while the two were in Egypt, Ryou had opened up to him in a way he hadn't to anyone, and the two connected in an odd way. Even though Akefia was Bakura in the past, his mind was only tainted of his trauma, as Ryou's had, and not of Zorc. "I felt more like you than I have to anyone, and that's still true. I hope if you can hear me, you know you died having someone care deeply for you, and I want you to know that will never change."

After several minutes of pondering, he added, "I don't know where we go after this life, but I know I'll see you again, old friend. Thank you for putting up with me." He finished covering the hole and used a stick he had brought with him from home that was sturdy enough to support the freshly planted flowers.

Ryou stood up, taking one last look at the grave and the flowers he had planted, smiled to himself half-heartedly, and began to walk away. When the boy got into his car, drops of rain began to fall on his windshield.

"Thanks again, old friend."