Hey guys here is my very first one shot! I hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh nor do I own the characters Marik, Malik, Akefia or Ryou. *cries in the corner asking why over and over*
"You are not getting a tattoo and that is final young man!" An enraged voice echoed from the kitchen. A man at the age of forty five stood there, his arms neatly crossed over his chest. His skin, naturally tanned, is callused from years of working in the hot climate of Africa, Egypt to be exact. His job as an Archaeologist required him to travel quite a lot. The man's long blue hair is pulled back into a low pony tail at the base of his neck with a black ribbon; his eyes are a deep murky green, hidden behind tin black frames. Those murky eyes began to narrow as the rest of his face pulls into an authoritative scowl. His chest and arms are covered up with a white button down shirt while his legs were wrapped in freshly pressed black dress pants.
"And why can't I? It is not like it is your skin is going on!" A deeper yet equally enraged voice shouted back. The owner of this voice is a young man at the age of twenty two. He stood in front of the blue haired man, his tan hands balled into fists at his sides. His silvery hair lands ruggedly at the base of his neck. Cold lavender eyes, one having a white scar run down his face that finishes just above the cheek bone with two horizontal crosses through the first, bore into those murky green authoritative eyes of his father. His chest is clad in a red form fitting V-neck athletic shirt while his legs were wrapped in loose black jeans.
"Can you please stop fighting?" A quite voice came from the kitchen table. There sat a young girl at the age of thirteen. She has short, snow white hair that lay in soft curls against her shoulders. Her skin was a healthy pale color that seemed to have a tint of pink mixed in. Her eyes appeared to be a light pink color that bordered lavender. Adorned her body was a red, pink, and white plaid dress, with white thigh high stockings. Underneath her dress was a white shirt, for she is modest and timid by nature in personality and with her body. On both her wrists were two bracelets consisting of either large white or pink balls. "You two always fight when Otou-san comes to visit. Can't we just try to get along for one day?"
"Amane is right Akefia. Just forget about getting that stupid tattoo and just relax at home with us." The man who appeared to be their father spoke with a smirk on his face, believing his son would bend to Amane's wishes in his favor. Said girl just sighed and slumped further into her seat, not enjoying being used by her father as leverage towards her older brother.
His assumption, however, was miscalculated when his son matched his smirk with one of his won, though it appeared to be more defiant. "Forget about my tattoo my ass. I will come back and relax with you and Amane after I am done." Akefia crossed his arms over his muscled chest as smirk quickly changed into a sinister scowl. "Oh and never use Amane-chan as leverage against me ever again. She is not a tool like the ones you use back in Egypt."
The father paid no mind to his son's threat. His face contorted in frustration as he let out a deep sigh. He brought two fingers to his right temple and began softly rubbing small circles into his calloused skin. "Look I am fine with all the other life choices you made, such as letting your hair grow out and getting your left ear pierced. But why do you all of a sudden have a wanting to get a tattoo anyway? You won't be able to remove it unless you go through surgery."
"I promised a good friend of mine on his eighteenth birthday that whenever he was to get a tattoo, I would be there with him and get my own as well." Akefia spoke to his father as if he was a small child who asked why ice floats in the river.
"So this is all over a promise you made to a friend? That is a completely irrational reason to get a tattoo. I forbid you to do this!" The blue hairs man raised his voice to the younger adult. His hand left his right temple and is once again placed on his hips along with the other. "Think of what everyone would say about this, about me?"
"What is this? Are you afraid I will become an even bigger stain on your appearance with your colleagues than before, Akio? Oops, I am so sorry. My manners seemed to have stepped out the door at that moment. What I meant to say was Otou-san." Akefia sneered and he scowled at his father once again.
"That is besides the point Akefia! You are not leaving this house and that is final!" Akio ordered as the tone in his voice turned loud and deep. Akefia scoffed at the man whose presence believed he deserves the most respect from anyone and everyone.
"Oh then tell me this, what are you going to do Otou-san? Tell me to go to my room and think about what I did? Ground me from leaving the house and take away my computer?" Akefia mockingly said to his father. "Please like you can." Akefia began to make his way to the kitchen door to search for his wallet and keys. However he was stopped by his father voice.
"Oh I know I can't. That is why I took precautions before we even had this conversation." Akio gave his son a sweet smile that made Akefia feel sick to his stomach. "I mean, since you are not small anymore, I can't put you in your room anymore or effectively ground you. So the only way I can punish you is to take away your phone, car keys, and of course I could not forget the wallet, and lock them away where you won't find them. Does that not sound like a fantastic solution?"
Akefia growled at his father in anger. "Why do you even fucking care about what they think you prick! You are a selfish man." Akefia shouted as he walked briskly towards the kitchen door. As Akefia crossed the threshold of the kitchen he heard his father call after him angrily, "And where do you think you are going young man?" Akefia just scoffed and ran up the stairs towards his room.
Amane just sat at the kitchen table looking tired and annoyed. Every time their father came to visit them, the two of them would always fight. She tries to speak up every once and a while, though none of which ended well. She would either be used as leverage with her father or Akefia would kindly tell her not to interrupt. She knew Akefia did not want her to get dragged into the disputes between the two of them, but she still tried. She flinched when she heard the door loudly slam shut to her brother's room.
Amane then turned to her father and gave him a look of disbelief. "Otou-san, why did you do that?"
"Oh, don't tell me you are siding with this behavior Amane-chan." Akio gave his daughter a tired look.
Amane gave her father a sweetly innocent look. "I never said that Otou-san. I was just asking you a question, is that so bad?"
Akio sighed as he began to rub his right temple again with two fingers. "No, no it is not. I did this because he needs to learn that his actions affect others, such as myself, and even you."
"But Otou-san-" Amane tried to speak again but her father cut her off.
"Amane-chan, don't push the subject any farther. I am tired and my head is starting to hurt. Could you put the kettle on for me?" Akio asked his daughter as he left the kitchen towards the living room, to lie down on the couch most likely. Amane sighed and did as her father was told, grumbling to herself.
"Does anyone ask what Amane wants? Oh no, no, no, of course not, they believe they know what I want before asking. Children the lot of them." Amane muttered to herself as she picks up the kettle and fills it with water from their tap. "Go make me tea Amane; your Otou-san has a headache right now." She placed the metal kettle on the stove and set the correct burner to high. Amane sighed to herself, frustrated with both males behavior. She once again takes her seat at the table and drums her fingers on the counter top. She did not dislike her brother getting a tattoo, she encourages it in fact. Letting her brother be his own person rather than what their father wanted him to be.
Her mind set, she waited for the water to come to a boil before pouring the water into the pot for the tea to steep. After a couple more minutes, she finally has the tea fully prepared in a blue ceramic mug. She then turns towards and approached the living room threshold, careful not to spill the hot substance. She gave it to her father who was in fact on the couch resting with a book in his hands. "Here you are Otou-san, just how you like it. A dash of milk and a little bit sugar to take the edge off." Amane then swiftly left the room before her father can ask her to stay and sit with him. She slips up the stairs quietly, and looks into her brother's room. She sees him laying there on his bed, blaring music into his head through his headphones. Amane shakes her head softly, her white curls brushing against her pale cheeks.
Slipping past, she enters her father's room and immediately went to that bath room. "Hides it away in a safe under lock and key my little butt." She muttered and went to the toilet seat and lifted the lid from the top as quietly as possible. Inside, in a gallon zip lock bag was a wallet, car keys, and a cell phone. She had seen her father hide her brother's things in here before when Akefia was in high school and harder to manage because of how much bigger he became compared to their Otou-san. She never told either one of them, unless it was important and she felt in her heart that her brother should do this though she is unsure of why.
After placing the white lid back on the toilet, she raced out of the bath room and straight into her brother's. Without giving Akefia any warning, she pounced onto his stomach, giggling at the high yelp he let out. As she did this, she let go of the plastic bag just as her arm reached the side of the bed next to the wall, so her brother would not see it. Akefia ripped off his headphones and mock glared at his little sister. "Amane! Why did you do that you little dork." Akefia said as a playful grin broke out on his face. He grabbed her into a playful head lock and began digging his tan knuckled into her snow white hair, this only caused the girl to giggle and squirm in his grip.
"Hehehe, Akefia-kun! Stop it!" She squealed in delight. She hears her brother chuckle as he releases her from his strong hold. She giggles and playfully rubbed her neck and gasped for hair, "Finally away from the stink cloud!" She giggled again when Akefia balked and insisted he was not a 'stink cloud' as she so graciously put it, though he did check just to be sure. He grabbed her and set her in his lap with both of their legs stretched out in front of them, side by side.
"You little dork, what is your real reason for coming in here?" Akefia inquired as he turned off his music, yet let his headphones hang around his neck.
"OH! Right!" She crawled out of her brother's lap and towards the side of the bed. Akefia gave Amane a confused look before they widened when he saw the bag with his stuff in it. He was even more surprised when she held it out for him to grab.
"Amane-chan, where on earth did you get these?" He demanded as he took the plastic bag from her outstretched hand. He opened the bag to check if the contents were ok and relieved to find they were dry and in the same condition he left them in. "Does Akio know you have this?"
She giggled at her brother's surprised look on his face. "One at a time you dummy. Dad always hides your stuff he takes away in the toilet head in his bath room since you entered high school and had your 'growth spurt' as he calls it. And no, Otou-san does not know... Actually I think he should be asleep right about now." Seeing her brother's confused look she giggled once again and continued, "He said his head was hurting and asked for tea. Instead of the PG tips like he gets, I gave him sleepy time tea that he drinks on nights when he can't sleep."
Akefia looked at her, his mouth gaping in surprise on how much of a shadow hand his little sister can be. Regaining his train of thoughts, he asked his little sister one last question. "Amane, why did you do this for me?"
"Well you were so set on getting this tattoo with your friend. You seemed so excited and happy to do this, I just could not see you mad and upset just because Otou-san told you no. Plus I have a feeling like you should do this. I don't know if it is because you will be like a symbol of you being yourself or something else. You aren't upset with me that I did this are you?" She began to feel the guilt of not only disobeying her father but tried to put him to sleep even. She looked at Akefia with remorse in her lavender pink eyes only to be brought tightly into a hug.
"I could never be mad at you Amane, not now not ever. Do you understand me? I would not trade you for any other sister in the world." He pulled back but never let go of Amane and gave his sister a chaste kiss to the forehead. "Now can you give me smile you little dork or will I have to tickle it out of you?" Akefia, not waiting for an answer, assaulted his little sister with torturous tickling. He chuckled when he saw her giggling, telling him to stop. After thinking on the command for a few lingering moments, he finally let up on her and gave her a sweet smile. "There is that smile I was looking for."
"Oh get your tattoo already, you going to be late as it is already." Amane chastised her brother who chuckled and ruffled her hair before leaving the house.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SQUIGGLES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Wait, you are not the tattoo artist?" A voice rang from inside a small shop in that lay snugly between a small cafe and a fragrance shop. Within this small shop, surrounded by different, artistic designs is an Egyptian man at the appeared to be the age of twenty one. He stood at the counter with his light lavender eyes, lined in black kohl that trailed down just above his cheeks, casting the man before him a disappointed look. His blonde bangs are tucked behind both of his un-pierced ears, while the rest just rests below his shoulders. His chest was adorned in an army camo V-neck shirt whose hues were different shades of gray rather than the iconic green, black, and brown. Wrapped around his legs were tight leather pants with a wallet chain hanging off the side as his feet were tucked into two simple black boots.
"No, I am not. Why does that surprise you so much?" A confused baritone came from the man behind the glass counter which contains different types of tattoo designs and earrings. The owner of this deep voice was a tall, bronze skinned man. His blonde hair appeared to have the roots run towards the back of his head while the rest flared in every way possible within small clusters. The man's inquisitive eyes were a captivating shade of violet which are too lined in black Kohl. His chest was covered in a black muscle shirt while his legs were wrapped in loose, black Jeans. Down his long legs lay his large feet, snugly tucked into black gym-shoes. "I am sorry but what is your name?"
"It is Malik. As for your previous question...well, you are the only one here as far as I know..." Malik left a pregnant pause for the man before him to hopefully fill in his own name. After a few moments the realization came to the man's face before he apologetically uttered out, "Oh sorry, it is Marik."
"No, no you are fine. But continuing my previous train of thought before it is gone never to return again, why do you do here?" Malik blurted out at a quick pace.
"What I do here is piercings, but as store police we do nothing below the navel, with the acceptation of leg tattoos from the knee-cap down." Marik stated in a matter of fact tone. "Though if it makes you feel better, I am taking classes so I can get certified, as I had done with body piercing. Not only that but I am learning to become a tattoo artist from the guy who will be working on your today. He is really skilled with his shading of colors and creating designs. The guy collaborated with me with the tattoos I have not and would often give them a touch up when they fade." Marik held out his arms to show the tanned boy the ink on his shoulders. Circling his right bicep was a battered, silver snake with a small, golden apple in it's mouth. Across the snakes stomach was a bloody scar that spelled out the words sinful betrayal. On his left bicep was a statue of a woman with a toga on, her hair taken into a ponytail. The woman's eyes are covered in a blind fold as he holds a scale up in her left hand with a sword in her right, Lady Justice. Though on each plate of the scales has an outline of a man, his back facing the other. Etched into the base of her statue are the words Trusting Blindly. "They are pretty self explaining if you ask me."
"Could you explain them to me? So I can see them from your perspective?" Malik inquired in a curious tone. Malik had a good idea of what the arms represented, but he wanted to hear how the owner sees them rather than assume.
Marik looked at Malik in surprise, not expecting him to be so inquisitive about his tattoos. The tall man just nodded before clearing his throat. "Well, on my right arm, you see a battered snake with and apple in its mouth. He is supposed to represent the betrayal others have done onto me or I them. Always following like a shadow on mine and their past or what will be their future. On my right arm you see Lady Justice. She is supposed to be that on both sides of her scale, I and another person decided to trust the other. Now she has quite a story that is linked to the snake. Would you like to hear it?" When Malik gave him a quick nod, Marik chuckled before continuing. "Ok, Ok. In the beginning, the Lady and snake were close, trusting companions doing everything together. As the Lady grew older, she was given responsibilities that left her with little time to be with her companion. One day, when the snake was wondering through a garden, he found an apple tree with an old man sitting underneath; he offered to be his friend and his fruit, which the snake greedily accepted. He quickly ate the fruit without thinking and it changed him. It made him jealous of the Lady. He blinded Lady Justice out of spite, thinking that if she can't see, she will spend more time with him because she can no longer complete her tasks. But he did not know that she did not need her sight to see, but her hearing and touch would suffice. She used these senses to enact her punishment upon the snake by giving him the scars and wounds as he appears on my arm. This shows that we won't know if the scale will tip with betrayal until it happened, and justice will follow suit." Marik smiled and crossed his arms on the glass counter top, leaning his upper body weight onto them. "Does that give a sufficient answer?
Marik stared, his mouth gaping at the man before him. "Wow... I had no idea it went that deep. I am guessing you put a lot of time and thought into this as well as a past experience?" Lavender eyes looked curiously into the others surprised deep violet. All Malik receives as an answer is a soft nod.
The two stood there in silence before a while before Malik cleared his throat. "Well, why don't we get back onto why I am going to be getting today."
Marik snapped his eyes back into focus. "Yes of course. I suspect that you will be getting a tattoo today, correct?' Malik nodded with a grin, which we returned. "Do you have a design picked out already?"
"Yes, my good sir I do have one." Malik grabbed the binder he left open in the sitting room. Opening to the page he book marked, it showed a circle with two wings coming out the sides. "This is the one I want." Marik nodded before taking out a form and writing down the code: 'W2#8' in the box title box Labeled Tattoo.
"Ok, where are you going to be getting this?" Marik questioned to which Malik told him his upper back. Marik nods and checks a series of boxes before nodding to Malik. "Ok one more question, are you going to have shading of another color within the wings and circle or no?" When Marik noticed the confused look on Malik's face he just chuckled and left the box blank. "When you get in there, he will explain it to you. Other than that, is there anything else you are going to have done today?" Marik inquired, but not pushing any offers as any clothing stores clerk would do. Marik is surprised when Malik nodded his head and extracted two gold earrings with a 2 pound diamond shaped gold pieces hanging from the golden hoop.
"I would like to get my ears pierced as well. Could you take a look at these and help me find a proper earring before I can wear them?" Malik spoke formally as he watched Marik pick up an earring examining the diameter of the ring. Marik seemed to stop and think for a second before putting the earring down and turned his back to Marik, muttering that he will be back in a second. Malik just nodded and drummer his fingers on the counter top. As he was waiting he heard the door chime sound and he turned just in time to catch sight of his friend walking into the store. A grin spread onto Malik's face as he waved his tall friend over. "Akefia you made it!"
"You think I would break a Tozukou promise? I am shocked and appalled." Akefia pouted as he crossed his arms over his broad chest.
"Well, when I tried to contact you on your cell, it went straight to voice mail with your dad as the voice mail box, Basically calling everything associated with you a wanker and to bugger off. I don't even know what a wanker is! I could only assume the worst at that point. Do you blame me?" Malik nearly shouted, annoyed with the half-albino's father.
"You do not want to know Malik, trust me on this." Marik spoke as he came back with two earrings in his hand. "I see another wanderer has happened upon this little shop that we have unconsciously gathered you here today. Good to see mind control is finally working." Marik laid one of the two earrings on the counter while he picked up one of gold, examining the diameter of both. "So since I can't read minds, only control them, what brought you here today Half-Albino?"
Akefia gave him a blank look before smirking though his eyes gave off a small glare "It is Akefia, not Half-Albino. I am here to get a tattoo with my good friend Malik right here." He pats the Egyptian next to him on his shoulder.
Marik smirked at the two before him. "Nah, I think I like Half-Albino more, but since you are a paying customer, I guessI could call you by your real name." His smirk only widened when he heard Malik chuckled. "Anyway, I found an earring that matches this width, but you are going to have to slowly increase the weight you put on your ears rather than put these on right away." Marik pointed to the earrings Malik brought in before continuing. "They will tear your ear." Malik nodded quickly, listening to the man before him as he explains how to prevent this.
"So other than that the tattoo and you appointment with me like you wanted, is there anything else?" Marik questioned.
Malik was about to speak, but another voice from the back room beat him to it. "Ok Marik, I finished cleaning the equipment. You can send the next one in." The voice was light as id drifted to the occupant's ears. When Malik received a questioning look from Marik, he quickly shook his head, silently telling him that he has everything he wanted. Marik gave a quick nod, writing a few more things on the form and handed it to Malik.
"Go through the hall way and it should be the second door on the left. When you are done there, go into the room across the hall that is where I work." Marik pointed the way before turning to the other tanned man. "Ha-Akefia." Marik corrected himself while sniggering, "Sorry, I will work on that. You can go with and watch Malik get his tattoo, or if you want you can wait out here and look for a tattoo. Though it may take an hour or two till it is finished."
Malik looked at his friend with a curious look. "If it is alright with you Malik, I will just stay here, listen to music and look for my tattoo." Malik nodded before making his way down the hall. Though when he looked down at the form, he noticed a small note a paperclip held to the top. Curious, he removed the folded paper and opened it, and immediately blushed. Upon the note in neat writing was the message; I would like to know the story behind your tattoo, Call me sometime. Below this scrawl was a series of numbers that what Malik assumed to make up the man's number. Grinning, he put the slip of paper in his front pocked before entering the room only to be surprised by the one whom occupies it. "YOU WORK HERE?!"
Akefia chuckled when he heard his friend screech, before making his way to the sitting lounge. He was about to get comfortable on the plush leather seats when a grunt caught his attention. He turned to see Marik standing in front of the entrance to the back rooms. "Ok, I am going to go and prepare my equipment for the piercing. The bathroom is the first door on the right in this hall way, you know where Marik is, if you are chose your design early you can come find me. But if you are bored, come find me and I can 'keep you company'." Marik put air quoted around the last three words of his sentence.
"By, keep me company, you mean getting work out of me that you are too lazy to do?" Akefia inquired with a smirk on his face.
"You are a perceptive Half-Albino aren't you? I applaud you." Marik snickered and clapped his hands mockingly for Akefia.
Akefia just rolled his eyes at the mockery being displayed before him before dishing out a retort of his own. "I am just surprised you are leaving the room where I can easily access you register."
"The register isn't even in this room dip shit. We are not that stupid with where we keep our money like other's stores." Marik rolled his eyes before leaving the lounge are of the little shop.
Akefia just snickered as put his red and black head set over his ears as he relaxed onto the blush leather couch. Akefia grabbed one of the white binders from the coffee table and began paging through the vast images it contains. Though after an hour, Akefia could not settle on a design and slowly began to day dream as music blared into his ears.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SQUIGGLES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Marik predicted, two hours and thirty minutes passed before Marik was finished. Upon his back was the design he asked for, but instead of being an outlining of the wings, the feathers near the base are pure white as the tips are crimson red. the orb in under the base of his neck which the two wings sprout from is a shimmering gold. As Malik stood in front of the door way he just exited, he listened to the man talk for a few more minutes before nodding with a smile and entering Marik's work area. Just as Malik left, the man within the room crossed the threshold and approached the lounge, in search of any other customers.
As his emerald eyes landed upon a lounging tanned man, he smiled and approached him, effectively gaining his attention. Akefia stared wide eyed at the albino man before him. Long, white hair was brought up into a pony tail. The man's ears were covered in earrings while his emerald eyes stuck out with black eye liner. The man before him was wearing a gray and black long sleeved shirt with a black Twenty One Pilots shirt over top. His legs were clad in Dark blue skinny jeans with black, ankle high combat booth. around the boys neck was a black leather choker with small, evenly spaces silver studs in the center. "Sir, have you made your decision yet?" The light accented voice he heard earlier sounded through his head yet again.
Akefia snapped out of his dazed with a small blush of embarrassment staining his cheeks. "Sorry, no I could not. I was having trouble finding a good one to use as a symbol." Akefia just scratched the back of his head looking across at his feet that were placed on the other side of the couch. Akefia quickly sat up, realizing how rude he was being. "I am so sorry about that, I am Akefia." He raised his hand out to shake the young man before him.
"Ryou, nice to meet you. and your perfectly fine" The man smiled before taking Akefia's hand in his own, giving it a firm shake before dropping it as he took a seat next to Akefia. "So I am guessing you are getting your first?" Akefia gave him a now and Ryou nearly squealed. "Awesome! A blank canvas for me to work on! Today is a good day!" Akefia just chuckled at the man's blatant enthusiasm.
Ryou spun back around to Akefia with a wide grin on his face. "Now you are having a problem finding a tattoo you say?" Akefia gave the Ryou a small nod. "I may be able to help you, come on." He commanded before rising from the couch and walking towards the back room, Akefia following behind into the. The work room Ryou occupies is neat and organized with papers organized neatly in wall holders and the necessary equipment and ink placed on either on a rolling cart or the table under the wall holders. A large dental like chair that could easily be converted into a flat bed for those who choose to have their lower backs worked on. Next to the convertible chair is the rolling cart and a stool for the artist to sit in while working. "If you could have a seat we can talk about what you want done. OH! Wait before you sit down, are you twenty one or up because you need a parents' permission otherwise."
Akefia gave him an insulted look. "I am twenty two thank you very much. You look like you are barely pushing twenty if you ask me."
Ryou, after seeing the look he was being sent, quickly raised his hands into the air in front of him as he tried to make amends. "I am so sorry. It is just that people about your stature tried to get tattoos here once without parents' permission who were around seventeen." Ryou's expression suddenly changed from apologetic to one that could mirror Akefia's irritation. "And I am twenty three thank you very much young scrub."
TO say Akefia was surprised was an understatement when he heard that the young man before him was actually a year older than him. "How about we call a truce on this before this turns into death con five.
Akefia sat himself in the dental like chair as Ryou took the rolling stool, his arms crossed across the back rest and lent forward. "Now that we are all comfy and cozy in this little slice of the shop, do you want to tell me about what you want to have your tattoo symbolize or would you like a personal example?" Ryou questioned with a lazy grin.
Akefia gave him a curious look. "Wait, are you telling me you have tattoos of your own?"
Ryou gave him an amused smirk. "Of course I do." When he saw Akefia go to apologize, Ryou just waved him off as his smirk turned to a sly grin. "Oh don't worry about it. I get that comment all the time from those who wonder into my shop. They all think Marik out there goes the tattoos while I do piercings, not even that sometimes." Ryou chuckled.
Akefia composed himself and gave the albino a cheeky grin. "Could I see them? They could help me make a decision." His grin grew when he saw Ryou give him a cheery nod and rolled up his sleeve. All the way up to the shoulder on the left arm was a scroll wrapping around to the man's wrist. The scroll's condition is pristine at the top of the shoulder, but deteriorates to the point of it being burnt in some areas as it travels to the wrist. Across the scroll are sentences upon sentences ranging from complements near the top and insults near the bottom. On the right arm, as is a full sleeve like the other arm, are many different flowers weaving in and out of skulls, but that was only the top half. On the under belly of the arm were daggers that looked to have drawn blood on the arm. The pools of blood the various weapons lay upon is where the roots of the beautiful flowers sprout from.
"Well why don't I start with the left arm, if that is alright with you?" Ryou questioned, and continued when he receives a nod from the half albino next to him. "Well this arm represents my life. Up at the top of my arm were the scroll is in pristine condition are all the compliments I have received but as you look down my arm you see that the scroll becomes worn and damages and the compliments turn sour and into insults. The reason it is on my left arm is that the compliments I was given that mean the most to me are close to my heart. The insults that are closer to my hand are those that I can easily throw away and keep going. Though they can easily be reversed because they are still on the same arm. So the insults given to me are held to my heart as motivation and the compliments, if empty or if I lose any pleasant relationship between that person can be thrown away if needed.
"Now on my right arm is the temptation of death. Each of the flowers weaving through the skulls are poisonous and even deadly to people. They represent how beautiful death can be to those who are depressed or just want to be gone from their life. Though on the underbelly of my arm is how ugly death truly is. That if you were to truly escape on your own will, the pain that would be experiences and what you would do to yourself. The blood that is shown is the source and food for the roots of the gorgeous flowers that grow more vibrant the more they feed. Easily lying about the in pain and suffering those go through just to see their beautiful misleading guise."
Akefia just stared at Ryou as the albino rolled his sleeves back down with a small sad smile on his lips. When Ryou finished covering his arms, he turned back to the tanned man before him. "Now I want you to tell me what you want your tattoo to symbolize and I think I can help you find what you are looking for."
Akefia nodded and began to think aloud. "Well I wanted something to symbolize me and my thirteen old sister. She is this sweet girl that reminds me so much of my late mother every day. I don't deserve to have someone like her and neither does my father, the selfish bastard." Akefia cleared his throat when he noticed Ryou's confused look. "Story for another time. Anyway, she has patched me up whenever I get into fights, which should answer your question about my scar on my face." Ryou blushed in embarrassment when he was being so obvious. Akefia ruffled the boys hair most of them the other's fault while others is because of my damn mouth. She would listen to me when I am frustrated or practicing a speech for school. We help each other with homework, cooking, and chores. I hold her when she is afraid or in tears. Hell I even braid her hair when she needs another hand." Akefia rambled on about him and his sister and Ryou just sat there and listening intently, a smile plastered on his face as him mind draws up past memories.
When Akefia finished is little drabble, Ryou stood up and started looking through his wall files. A small sound of enjoyment sounded from his mouth as he pulled out a tan piece of paper. He sat back down in the rolling stool and handed Akefia the design. It had a white pristine lily on the right side of a pointed sharp dagger, the bald and the stem intersecting. behind the two is a baby blue diamond shield in the shape of a heart. "From what I heard you say, it sounds like you sister is a lily, soft and beautiful while you are a dagger, harsh and blunt. You love each other very much that nothing harder than diamond can break, which is the shield. Though through this love, you two can swap personalities in a sense to protect of comport the other, thus the connected stem and blade." Ryou looked hopefully at Akefia, wishing that he made a good choice.
Akefia was at a loss for words as he stared at the picture. How, how could this man before him pick out the one thing he had been looking for. "It is perfect, it is utterly perfect." Akefia smiled sweetly and looked at Ryou, who had a childish grin on his face, proud of himself.
"That phrase is going at the top of my scroll!" Ryou stated with pride as he turned to get the inks ready. Akefia just chuckled at this response, staring at the boy before him. Without any notice, his heart surged when he saw Ryou look at him out of the corner of his eye, smile growing.
Akefia could not take his eyes away from the boy as he watched him work. The reason behind this Akefia did not know but he wanted to have the man's attention back on him, he wanted to hear his soft voice chuckle and speak again rather than mute and stare at equipment. Suddenly Ryou noticed that Ryou was sitting right in from of him, his lips moving but no noise came out. Shaking his head when Ryou waves a hand in front of his face. Ryou chuckles softly when he sees Akefia snap back into attention. "Hehehe, you space out a lot don't you Akefia." Said man just looked away scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "What I said was, were do you want your tattoo." Ryou began putting on latex gloves.
"Oh, I wanted to get it on my left shoulder blade." Akefia then proceeded to remove his red shirt, doing his best to ignore the blush spreading across Ryou's face. The blushing male just occupied himself with dropping the head rest to allow Akefia to rest comfortably against the seat.
Once Akefia situated himself against himself, Ryou began to wipe down the patch of skin where he will be working. "Hey." Ryou spoke up, effectively gaining Akefia's attention as he wet the stencil for the tattoo and placed it on his skin. "Do you want me to put on some music? Because this may take some time."
Akefia gave the man a nod coupled with a smile. "Sure, here is my Ipod, choose any music you like on there." Akefia pulled out a small hand held device and removed his head phones. Ryou accepted the object with a small smile and went back over to his work table. Sitting near the back of the equipment was a jack for the IPod in which Ryou immediately plugged in.
"You have some awesome tunes." Ryou commented as he scrolled through the play lists. "No way, you have The Killers greatest hits Album? My choice is made, you are stuck with it." Ryou grinned as he pressed play an music sounded through the room. Akefia noticed that the jack must have been hooked up to a stereo system because there are speakers he did not notice before all around the room as the first song of the album Mr. Brightside rung through the room.
Akefia heard a faint buzzing sound through the room, realizing Ryou was preparing to make the first mark. "Are you ready?" He questioned Akefia, who gave him a thumbs up. Ryou just nodded and began working on the image. To say that it did not hurt would be a lie, though he would not tell anyone else that. He blushed when Ryou jokingly questioned if he saw tears building in the corner of his eyes. He did not cry damn it...or at least that is what everyone else but the two of them will know.
As three hour passes, the buzzing stopped and the sound of metal clanking on a plastic surface sounded through the room over the music which was later cut. "Well my big baby trooper, it is done! How does it feel to have your first tattoo?" Ryou questioned with a teasing grin as he grabbed the man's shirt and lead the man into the hall so he can see the new addition to his skin.
Akefia grinned when he looked upon the image. "I am glad that I got it done, but I did not know it would hurt that much." Ryou just smiled at him while handing the man his shirt and music device.
"Well it was close to you shoulder blade. So there was less skin and fat to take away the pain. Do you like the job I did?" Akefia turned his head back towards the artist and gave him a wide smile. "I love it." Akefia then surprised Ryou and gave him a big hug, who immediately tensed, shocked about what was happening. Just as Akefia was going to end the poor boys embarrassment, he felt two small, yet muscled arms, wrap around the man's waist, returning the kind gesture.
"Hey Akefia, I just heard the music turn off, are you d-" Malik's voice rang out as his image appeared at the end of the hall way. Though he was quick to cut off when he saw the scene before him. Akefia noticed that through the younger man's ears were two gold earrings. He looked at him silently with a smirk on his face when he saw Malik's shocked expression. Said man gave his friend a thumbs up before heading back to the lounge.
Ryou, not too long after Malik left, removed himself from the warm, comforting embrace. "Now let's get your rung up." Ryou then turned and headed back into his office and filled out the form for Akefia. Little did Ryou, Akefia noticed the blatant blush covering the boys cheeks as he disappeared.
When Akefia followed the boy back into the room, his shirt back on his body, Ryou turned and smiled at him. "That my good sir will cost you eighty dollars."
Akefia pulled out his wallet and handed him a small plastic card, it was his father's that he swiped before he left the house. Ryou accepted it with a nod before opening a locked cabinet that contained a metal register. After running the card and coming out good, Ryou handed Akefia his card, a small slip of paper proving his purchase, as well as a card with a number on it. "Here you go Akefia. Now here is my card if you ink starts to fade and you shoulder should be tender for a few days so try not to get into too many fight will you?" Akefia just chuckled and saluted Ryou with two fingers.
"Yes sir, Ryou sir." Ryou just chuckled and lead him to the front of the shop.
Ryou noticed as he entered the lounge that Marik and Malik were both shooting him and Akefia face splitting grins. "I don't know if I should be unnerved by their facial expressions or curious to see how more identical they can be."
"I think unnerved is the best thing to feel. I don't want to know your other question." Akefia stared at the two from behind Ryou, giving them both a glare telling to knock off their teasing, but that only encouraged the two even more.
"Hey Marik, did you know that Ryou goes to my and Akefia's college?" Akefia's eyes widened at this, not knowing this new piece of information.
"Wait you do?" Akefia questioned the pale boy in front of him, ignoring the twin devils before them.
"Hmm?" Ryou looked up at Akefia before nodding his head. "Yeah, Malik is in half of the classes I take. I think he is minoring in art, but that is my major. my minor is robotics. Though he did not really recognize me at first because I have to dress like a pampered prat for college just so some of my teachers don't see me as a trouble maker and start name grading me." Before Akefia could question him further on the subject, an annoying voice once again blocked Akefia's chance at a normal conversation.
"Ok enough of the chit chat." Malik raised his voice, effectively gaining the attention of everyone in the lounge area. "Ryou, Marik, and I were going to go hang out after he finished Akefia's tattoo. And since he is closing up shop early, I was wondering if we could drag you along as well?"
"Are you going to bleed my wallet dry Malik like the last time we hung out?" Akefia questioned irritably, remembering the last time the two 'hung out'.
"Fine, I will pay this time, happy?" Malik pouted while Marik just patted his shoulder in reassurance. Akefia just sighed and gave an nod to his tall friend. Marik, Malik and Akefia exited the shop, soon followed by Ryou a few minutes later as he turned off the power and locked the doors.
As the four wandered throughout the city together, Malik and Marik side by side with Akefia and Ryou trailing behind, they went in and out of stores, sometimes buying a few things before leaving. Half way though, Malik and Marik decided to see a movie while Ryou and Akefia just hung back, not wanting to be in a loud room filled with other people at the time. Akefia and Ryou then wandered the streets before coming to a rest at a cafe nearby. As the two talked more and more over their hot drinks, the more the feelings between the two grew.
Then when it started to get dark out, Ryou and Akefia went their separate ways, though not before exchanging their cell numbers. When Ryou turned to leave Akefia grabbed Ryou's arm and whispered softly into his ear. The shorter man blushed intensely before he gave a small nod and a surprising kiss to Akefia's cheek before he ran off down the street, leaving behind a stunned and giddy man. As Akefia quietly slinked into his house, he smiled to himself, and entered his sister's bed room. As he approached her, he noticed that she was practicing her drawing at her desk. As he wrapped his arms around her, she jumped a little before relaxing into his grip.
"Hi Akefia, did you have fun today? Meet anyone special?" Amane questioned and she looked over her shoulder at her brother.
"Yeah, I did meet someone Amane-chan. Someone I think you would like to meet very much." Akefia sighed with a smile on his face.
"Is this a someone you buddy like Akefia, or like like as my friends Tea and Mai do?"
Akefia snickered at his sisters descriptions of friends and lovers. "Like Like Amane-chan. And you know what, I asked him out before I came home. You want to know his reaction?" Amane nods quickly at her brother, prompting him to continue. "He blushed, said yes, kissed me on the cheek before running away with a smile on his face."
The white haired girl smiled at her brother and gave him a big hug. "Awww that is so cute! I am so happy for you Akefia. I want to meet him as soon as possible."
Akefia smiled at his sister, returning the hug with a tight one of his own. "Thank you so much Amane-chan. You have no idea how much I love you right not. Because you helped me find a tattooed angel."
So what do you think? Do you want to read more one shots?
I did my best to write in gemshipping (SO CUTE)
Please favorite if you enjoyed and if you had seen any typos or want to makes comments, please send me a PM or leave a comment.
THANKS FOR READING!