Loner

She walked over to the buffet table. She hadn't eaten since yesterday, but still didn't have much of an appetite. Despite this, she tried to remain optimistic, for Yugi's sake, so she grabbed a plate and went in search of something to eat.

Anzu considered herself a rational person. She had realistic goals, hung around good people, and tried to be as kind as possible. But the girl could hardly say she was living a normal life. So many things happened around her that she couldn't quite explain, but Anzu just took it day by day. Apparently there were simply some things that existed beyond her rational mindset.

So all things considered, what had just happened really shouldn't surprise her too much, and… it didn't. At most, she was a bit hurt that their friend Namu… or Marik, rather… had lied to them. That someone she was just getting to know and like had turned out to be the enemy all along. He… had tried to kill her. And her friends.

And it hurt.

But now there was more to the story. Marik had a split persona – which compared to ancient Egyptian spirits was pretty mundane – who seemed to be even more vicious than the main character. The whole thing still left her… confused. What was he after, both Marik and his persona? Was this persona even real, or was it another act, like with Rishid?

Rishid.

Poor guy. Anzu felt so sorry for him. He was put into a coma just for trying to protect his master. And in a strange way, she felt sorry for Marik. How much hatred was he feeling, that he couldn't even recognize this act of selflessness had been done out of love?

She didn't want anyone to get hurt. Not her friends, not herself, but also not Marik. He was human, after all. He had started to become their friend… even if it had been under false pretenses. Maybe if he let go of his hatred, this strange plan of revenge against Yugi… they could…

"Excuse me."

Anzu jumped a bit when she heard a voice behind her. She knew who it was without looking, and turned cautiously.

Marik's dark persona stood there, plate in hands, looking down at his feet. She stiffened a little. Trying to keep her attention on the boy in front of her, Anzu briefly eyed around the room to see if anyone else was present. It was empty save for Kaiba's crones in the corner. They didn't seem to give much attention, but she supposed they might come in handy should things get ugly.

"You've been standing there for a few minutes, now." He continued, still not really looking up at her. "If you aren't going to get anything, then just move so I can."

Anzu blinked. He wasn't threatening her, he wasn't even really being rude – he had more of a "state it like it is" attitude than a menacing one. And she found this odd. Granted, she had only just learned about Marik's persona, but based on those few minutes, Anzu wouldn't have expected this kind of behavior.

"W-what's the rush?"

Finally he glanced up at her, his expression a mix between annoyed and nervous.

"I just want to get back to my room before the Pharaoh shows up."

"You're going to eat all alone?"

This time the nervousness faded from his face and he was simply scowling. He didn't want to have to explain it – he was a threat. He wanted to be seen as such. Being in a situation like this made him look weak. But he was still human, and still had basic needs. He couldn't just stay in his room the entire time between duels.

True he had mind-powers, Anzu knowing this from experience, but would he really want to use such extremes for something so trivial?

She stepped to the side and continued to study him. He walked up to the table, his gaze going back to his feet. He was holding his plate awfully tight, though, and barely scanned the table before grabbing food. Then again, he probably had time to glance over the options while Anzu had been standing there.

When Marik introduced himself as Namu, he had been pretty polite, and for lack of better words, smooth. He didn't seem like a person with any social issues, aside from maybe his fashion sense. Anzu had seen weirder, though. So why was his persona acting so strange?

He had said that due to Rishid, he had been trapped in Marik's mind for… what was it, five years? Six years? But would that make a difference? He was still Marik, shouldn't he know the same things as his main character?

He was meant to be Marik's hatred, at least that's what was said. Anzu could feel a headache coming on. So this boy in front of her now was the summation, the incarnation, of a person's revenge. What did that mean, did he simply… not know how to act in a normal situation like this?

Anzu couldn't decide if she found this sad or hilarious. So when he's not killing, Marik's persona didn't know how to behave around people?

He finished collecting his food and turned to walk passed her.

"So you're really going to hurt him, then?" She couldn't stop the words from coming out.

He paused, his shoulders arched a bit. "Are you really so stupid?"

Anzu felt her anger flare up. "Well excuse me, we only just met a little while ago, and you weren't exactly talking to me, so sorry if I didn't get the details clear!"

She suddenly felt something cold underneath her chin. He body was slammed into the table and she felt a sting in her back. His millennium rod pushed against her, forcing Anzu to look up. Purple eyes met hers as her plate slipped and hit the floor. Kaiba's men heard this and started running over, but Marik's persona stepped back.

"Don't think I'll go easy on you just because you're not my main target," he said, smiling. "I'll kill all of you, in due time…"

He shifted his eyes over to Kaiba's men and they flinched a bit. Anzu frowned. So much for relying on them.

Marik's persona placed his millennium rod back into his belt, and walked over to her. Anzu found herself backed up into the table again. She bit her lower lip. He smirked at this, then leaned forward, and grabbed another plate.

Anzu merely stood there as he held it up for her. Didn't he just say he planned on killing her? Was he going to strike as soon as she took it? But no – he had gone this far without actually doing anything. If she had kept her mouth shut, he'd have been gone by now.

Maybe he really just didn't know how to act around people. They weren't people to him, after all…

She put her hands up, not really planning on taking the plate, but giving the option for him to hand it to her. Which he did. He dropped it into her palms, and it nearly fell, making him chuckle.

"You're an interesting one, I'll give you that." He said. "It doesn't really make a difference."

How does someone end up like this? How can a person only see another person as an object of entertainment? How can someone think so lowly of life?

"So you really just… never get lonely? You never want to be with friends?"

"No."

She looked into his eyes. They had no pupils, no life to them. This boy was not her friend, he wasn't anybody's friend, and he never would be. It was simply beyond his understanding.

"I feel sorry for you…"

His smile faded. He looked as if he was about to say something, but changed his mind, and walked away.