Small, gentle hands reach out, taking hold of one slender, pale hand that is decorated with a fresh red color. The smaller hands lightly brush over the red liquid, trying to find the source, somewhere within the palm of this hand. When he manages to find it, the other winces to the slight pain.
"Ryou..." Yugi starts, a sigh escaping him. His purple eyes remain on their hands, knowing if he looks up, he'd see a face filled with remorse.
"I know," Ryou replies, eyes casting downward. He knows what's coming, the usual scolding he received whenever he messed up a ritual. It wasn't for messing up the ritual, no, Yugi couldn't get angry over that. It was when the silver haired male decided to do one that involved the sacrifice of his own blood and then accidentally make a cut too deep, resulting in a mess like this.
"If you knew then you shouldn't have tried this." He begins to apply some pressure down on the wound, not minding his hand being covered in blood. He just hates knowing this hurts Ryou. The unintentional body flinching make him want to stop. "What if you had done worse to yourself?"
Ryou doesn't answer. He can argue that he's normally careful, and he is, they both know. It was just one slip, a shaky (left) hand that had missed and dug too far into his flesh, that made him yelp out in pain and put a cease to this spirit summoning.
Normally, he would have attempted a ritual like this when the mutli-colored haired boy wasn't home. He wouldn't worry over him if this were to happen. Although, him returning to a bandaged Ryou wasn't always pleasant either. The worry on his face always stung at his chest, making him wish he'd learn his lesson.
But, he wanted to try something for Yugi. If he had spoken about his wish to him, he was certain the other would have shut him down instantly. They shouldn't try speaking with their other halves, they were gone. But it would be nice to speak with them, just once, wouldn't it? They were both missed, deeply, and both would admit things were different without them around.
"I'm sorry, Yugi..." Ryou mutters out as the other finally uses the damp cloth to wipe off the blood on both their hands. It's a rare sight to see those tiny hands all bloody. He's not sure if he should like the sight or not. "I can clean it up," he offers.
Yugi shakes his head, accidentally squeezing his hand and mumbling a quick apology. "No, I'll do it." His gaze lifts from his hand, looking Ryou in the eyes, purple and brown colors meet. "I want to help you when stuff like this happens. I get...worried." He sighs softly. Ryou could definitely clean this up better, patch up his own wounds without a problem. He was the one who was used to caring for injuries, always had been.
"I know you can handle yourself, but I don't want you to forget that I'm here with you." His gaze softens and a smile forms. "And that I want to help you. You can lean on me anytime, you know that."
Ryou stares and if this was anyone but Yugi, he wouldn't believe them. There was always something in the way he spoke that made it all sound so genuine and real, that he could truly believe his words of concern without a doubt. He had learned that from day one; he could always put his trust in Yugi.
The injured one hums softly before leaning forward and lightly having his forehead press against his, eyes closing. "Thank you." It's all he can say, even though there's so much more, there's hardly any words to describe his thanks. One day, he tells himself, he'll be able to tell Yugi more than just a simple 'thank you'.
Yugi's smile seems to widen for a moment and begins to nuzzle his forehead. It doesn't last long and he hates to pull away, but he can't ignore the injury. "You have the bandages, right?"
"Mhmm." Ryou nods his head in the direction, just sitting on the ground not to far from them. They were always kept nearby in case this happened. Yugi keeps the cloth pressed to his hand, only removing his own once Ryou is pressing down on it so more blood won't spill.
The shorter manages to reach over and take the bandages in hand, already beginning to unwind it. When Ryou removes the cloth, he begins to wrap up his hand, mainly focusing on covering the injury. Ryou has to help him tighten the bandage at certain parts and stop him from using too much. The wound wasn't that deep, didn't hurt too much.
When his wound had finally been covered, Ryou let out a sigh, holding his bandaged hand up. It's not a permanent one, shouldn't leave a scar. It could have been worse.
"So, you won't be trying that again, will you?" Not for a while, Yugi almost adds in his question. It was inevitable, he'd try it again. And he'd be here to help.
"I won't." He can't make it a promise. Those are terribly hard to keep. But, he can avoid these blood offerings for a while.
Yugi smiles, takes his bandaged hand in his small ones once more and pull it close. Ryou ends up leaning forward out of instinct and curiosity. The smaller boy pulls his hand up, close to his mouth before placing a light kiss over his bandage.
"To make it feel better."
Ryou chuckles. "I'm already feeling better now. But, perhaps another would help double the effect?"
Now it's Yugi's turn to chuckle, but he complies. Another kiss to the bandaged hand, another tug to pull Ryou even closer before having his lips press against his cheek. "I think that will help triple the effect."