AN: Uses Glass Ceiling by Metric lyrics. Don't sue. I'm not Emily Haines or Kazuki, just borrowing their works for round 2, season 5 of YGO Fanfiction Contest.
Balance Beam
Anzu Mazaki was absolutely terrified of heights. But she had to do this.
It had been a long time since the Pharoah had departed back to his time period. She still couldn't forget his multi-coloured locks and beautiful magenta eyes, no matter how hard she tried. She'd once thought to confide in Yuugi. She had always suspected that he knew about her feelings for his other half.
Her mouth opened, to confide the truth in Yuugi, that it had been months since his departure and she still couldn't forget the man who had touched her heart. His abilities were limitless, but his soul so pure. He did Yuugi proud; they had been a perfect team.
But no words came out. Anzu found herself unable to confide in Yuugi. Later, when she thought things through, she realized it was for the best. She still suspected Yuugi cared deeply for her, but didn't have the courage to "change" their friendship.
As she climbed the pole, heading for the goal, thirty feet in the air, Anzu tried to think of all these things to keep her mind off what she was doing. Egypt. Pharoah. Last goodbye. Forever, forever, forever.
'My feelings will not be forever,' She promised herself. Although she suspected she would never forget him, her first love, she needed something to get over him.
And then suddenly, Anzu found she was out of pegs to climb. Reluctantly, she stepped out onto the rope, making sure to unclip the hook while no one was looking.
She wanted the risk. She was scared out of her mind, had now spiced up the game by making sure she'd be severely injured and possibly DIE if she fell off the rope.
But Anzu was ready as she'd ever be. It would give her closure, closure she so desperately needed, that no one could give to her. If she could get past her fears, if she could do this, what would she do?
Her and Yugi would be friends forever, but just who... Anzu's mind locked onto a memory. Seto Kaiba had recently asked her if she'd help him out with design aspects for her company. He needed a woman's touch, and he respected Anzu, because she was the closest female to Yami Yuugi, the only male Seto Kaiba had ever respected.
Anzu had declined, too busy moping around her room, and just to generally shocked at Kaiba. He hadn't been able to resist getting in some snide comments about her friends, which had made her angry at the time. Balancing on the rope, 30 feet up in the air, Anzu decided it was time to make some changes. After all, what was the worst Kaiba could do?
She suspected he liked her. The offer was rather cliche, and he was handsome.
Things were already better, and she hadn't taken a step at all! Perhaps this had been a good idea after all.
Anzu decided she might as well get this over with, and took a tentative step further out onto the rope. She tried to keep her focus on the plank of wood on the other side of the rope to give her more incentive to finish.
As Anzu shuffled her way across as slowly as possible, she heard encouragement coming from the bottom. No one had noticed the unclipped wires, she smirked inwardly. And now she was coniving? Unrequited love could do strange things to a person.
Start to push, break your own glass ceiling...
The more Anzu walked, the more she thought of doing things that were un Anzu-like. It was as if the rope had suddenly become a passage from the Heaven Anzu had been a part of into Hell. From a kind and gentle personality, to a firey, wicked, evil person.
Can't count, catch the pieces falling...
As Anzu got closer to her goal, she began to wonder if this was the right thing for her. She felt as if she'd suddenly become trapped in a Shadow Game; she could sense that she was changing and for the worse.
Sure enough, a brief peek at the ground revealed a wicked spirit with white hair.
There's no knight in silver armor, shining...
She'd never told Yuugi where she was. There was no one to save her. She couldn't clip her equipment back without the risk of falling.
She was almost there. Just two more steps, then one.
Anzu urged herself to place her foot slightly to the left this time and tilt. If she positioned herself right... She could feel the last of it slipping away, whatever was left of her.
She was a fool to let her guard down for even a second, and now she was to be consumed whole, whole before a crowd of people, wicked and evil. Perhaps Bakura's servant girl. Maybe he'd been planning this for awhile. Maybe he'd jinxed it earlier.
Her foot hovered, the evil working to push it down, and the sliver of good struggling to move it over, to make the choice not to become what Bakura wanted her to.
She looked down again, only to find her suspicions confirmed. It was far enough that he could read minds, and he thought he was going to win.
He thought wrong.
Anzu looked away, missing the flicker of anger on Bakura's face. She tilted her body just enough, so that her foot would barely touch the rope.
Nothing was enough.
One last step... one last step.
You're gonna lose your arms, amputate, plasticine...
Her foot was coming down.
Everything was gone, everything was gone.
Would she be intact after she blacked out? Either way, she was a goner.
And suddenly she was falling.
She couldn't open her eyes, so she didn't know where. Then pain, immense pain, but as she slipped away, she felt she was alive.
How am I going to know you're letting me down?