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Chapter One: You're Going to Die
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Ryou set down the shopping bags so he could remove his coat. "Baku-Chan! Doko ka?"
Bakura came stomping down the stairs. "I'm right here. Stop yelling."?
"I'm sorry if I took too long. It was very crowded."
I'm not your father. I don't care where you've been."? He sauntered off to the kitchen, and Ryou followed.
Baku-Chan was standing in the doorway, staring around the kitchen. "I'm hungry."?
"I'll make us some dinner, then." Ryou set about preparing some modern foods. Bakura would just eat whatever Ryou made. If left alone, he would probably starve to death. He sat at the counter, elbows on the surface, face in hands. Ryou was wearing a frilly apron and humming Glaring Dream (the ending theme to Gravitation), smiling like a happy house wife as he made dinner. Baku-Chan watched him navigate the kitchen with practiced ease. Ra-Chan smiled or grinned almost all the time. Bakura never stopped wondering how he could do that. I've smiled, but it was different. I've smiled at the pain and misery I've caused so many deserving fools. It wasn't a sweet, innocent smile like the one my hikari wears. I don't think I've ever smiled like that.
Ryou met Bakura's gaze. "It shouldn't take much longer, Baku-Chan."?
Bakura grunted acknowledgement, and looked at the shopping bags next to him on the counter. They weren't plastic bags from the grocery store, they were paper bags with bright patterns on them.
"Those are X-mas gifts for Yugi-tachi. Would you like to see-"
"No."? Bakura spun on the stool, stood, and marched out. "Call me when the food is ready."
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After dinner, they played checkers for a while on Ryou's bed. They didn't speak much. Sometimes, Ryou would talk about his day, which bored Baku-Chan when it involved the pharaoh and his friendship cult. Other times, Bakura would discuss some plan he'd thought up to get all seven millennium items, which would upset Ryou. Nonetheless, they always listened to each other without interrupting or objecting.
"Baku-Chan, will you watch a movie with me tonight?"
"No. I've told you, those mindless plays are a waste of time and brain cells."
"This isn't a romantic comedy. It's supposed to be really scary. Anzu was telling me about it at school, and she looked like she might cry."
"You want to see something that'll scare you that badly?"
"Jouno and Honda were teasing me. They kept saying, 'Oh my gawd, you haven't seen The Ring? What rock have you been living under?' Yugi lent me his copy so I could watch it, but I'm nervous. Please watch it with me."
Bakura sighed, "Alright, I'll watch it with you. I'm curious as to what modern people consider frightening."
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Ryou was squeezing Bakura's hand tight enough to cut off the circulation. They were watching Naomi Watts watch the tape that kills you when you watch it. Ra-Chan kept burrowing deeper into Bakura's side. Bakura accommodated him and put his arm around Ryou's shoulder. Bakura stared unblinkingly at the eerie black and white images. They were fascinating. They gave him a strange nostalgic feeling he didn't understand. He could only guess the gory images reminded him of the shadow realm.
Later on, when Samara came throught the TV screen, Ryou sucked in a huge gasp and squeezed the hell out of Bakura. Bakura frowned. She can come through the TV screen? I didn't know people could do that.
The credits rolled and Bakura felt Ryou trembling in his arms. Anger flared up within Bakura... he wanted to strangle that little shit Yugi. Then he heard Ryou giggling.
Sitting up, Ra-Chan wiped his eyes and let out a playful shudder. "Oh, my. It's been ages since I saw a movie that could give me such a thrill."? He leaned over and kissed Bakura on the tip of his nose. "Thank you for staying with me." He picked up the remote and snuggled up against Bakura. "There's supposed to be a mini-feature. Let's see... You wait for the menu to come on, then you press up."?
The menu's cursor disappeared, and Bakura thought the disc must be malfunctioning. He opened his mouth to say something, but was suddenly looking at something that resembled a solar eclipse. He realized they were watching the cursed tape! It was the actual feature that kills you when you watch it!
Bakura snarled and bared his teeth. I should have known that pharaoh would try something like this! He cursed this DVD! "Turn it off!"?
"What?"
"Maybe if we turn it off before it finishes, we won't be cursed!"
"It's just a movie- Hey!"?
Bakura snatched the remote and his finger stabbed the stop button. Tiny letters at the top of the screen read, the function you have chosen cannot be performed.
"We can't stop it?"
He draped himself over his hikari, trying to shield Ryou's eyes. "What are you doing?" Ryou pushed him away. "Stop it. It's not real, Baku-Chan. Calm down."?
The feature came to its final scene, of the well. Bakura glared evilly at it, daring Samara to show even one tuft of hair. Instead, static. The screen went back to the menu. Bakura's skin crawled as he wondered what would happen next. He heard a phone ringing. He leapt to his feet, flew across the room, and sent the TV set crashing to the floor.
Accustomed to incidents like this, Ryou sighed, then went to turn off the circuit breaker so he could clean up this mess. Bakura stood panting over the TV's shattered remains, a sheen of sweat covering his skin. Damn you, pathetic excuse for a pharaoh. Go ahead and attack me, I don't care. But you'll PAY for dragging my hikari into this!
The phone rang. Bakura pounced and screamed into the receiver, "Start praying to Ra now, Pharaoh, because when I get my hands on you, I'll rip your head off and drink your spinal fluid! ... Pharaoh?"?
"... seven days."?
one
you're going to die
finish