Okay, this is the third installment in my OneShot Series, following Cracks and Breaking. Enjoy!
"When everyone abandons you, and the one person you hate the very most is the only one who stays by your side... That's when your world is shattered into a million defeated pieces. I was foolish to think my friends would stay with me when it came down to it. In the end, He was right about them. And about me."
Ryou cried out in pain as control over his body was hastily thrown back to him. He reeled backwards, the shock from coming back to reality like a physical blow. Weakly, he collapsed to his knees, breathing shallowly. He felt so tired. Everything seemed to move in slow motion, keeping pace with his confused mind. His lungs struggled to take in the frigid air that surrounded him. How long had it been since he'd breathed? How much time had passed since control of his body had truly been his?
Instinctively, Ryou clutched his arm. It burned, sending sharp waves of pain up and down the length of his arm. "Where am I?" He finally managed, looking around a large platform that he was on.
Thirteen human pairs of eyes were locked on him, wide with surprise, and all around were large ghostly eyes that were staring sightlessly down on the platform. A dark fog surrounded them, and Ryou shivered involuntarily as a blast of cold air flowed around them. Across from him was Yugi. Despite the pain in his arm, he felt a small sense of relief. Yugi was here, he was with friends, so things couldn't be too bad… But then he realized the shocked confusion, the determination on Yugi's face. He looked around seeing Jounouchi, Honda, Anzu, Otogi, and three other teens down below them, and on the opposite side were Seto Kaiba and his brother, Mokuba. All their faces had the same expression, looking at him, shocked, even fearful. Except one. One, a tanned teen with sandy hair, was smiling at him like he had some secret.
His attention was drawn back to the platform that he was on with Yugi. He felt the hurt slide over his features as pained fatigue threatened to overwhelm him. "Where am I?" He mumbled again, wanting answers. Where was he, and why was he here? What had the spirit done now?
His wound burned. He looked down at himself, realizing the large heavy Duel Disk attached to his forearm. He looked at the monsters on the platform, and he managed, "What happened to my arm? Why am I wearing a Duel Disk?"
A deep voice echoed over the playing field, coming from a tall dark man. His face was tattooed and he wore a heavy cloak. "With Bakura in control you may want to rethink your attack, Pharaoh." He said darkly. "The Spirit of the Millennium Ring was strong, but this boy is injured and weak. The blow from Slifer the Sky Dragon might considerably worsen his condition."
Ryou groaned, feeling ashamed to be displayed so weakly before everyone. Yugi's strong voice answered the man, "Only a coward would do something like this in order to win a duel." He said angrily.
Below them, Jou agreed, "Yeah, that's a real cheap trick, Marik!"
A wave of nausea swept over Ryou, and his stomach heaved slightly. He curled over. "I don't feel well." He moaned. Desperate for answers to clear away his confusion, he asked, "Yugi, why are we dueling?"
He looked up and saw Yugi begin to come over to him. Relieved, he sighed. He knew that Yugi wouldn't abandon him. Suddenly a voice cried out, "Stop! If you take one more step you forfeit the Duel. You are not allowed to touch your opponent." Ryou looked up again. Surely Yugi wouldn't value the victory of a duel over his health. It was silly. But Yugi had stopped, indecision warring on his face. After a moment, he stepped back to his side.
"You need to stop the Duel!" A worried voice, Anzu's, said.
"Yeah, Bakura needs medical help!" Tristan's voice agreed.
"Continue the Duel or forfeit." The dark-haired guard said again. Yugi clenched his teeth.
Ryou knew it was foolish, but he felt surprised, and slightly betrayed. How could any of them call themselves his friends if they weren't even willing to help him if it meant losing a silly game? Did they value victory of this duel more than him? Ryou cringed, his head hanging, as another wave of nauseated fatigue crashed against him.
"Mr. Moto, if you do not make your move you will be disqualified." The guard said again.
Suddenly Jounouchi jumped up on the platform. "What kind of tournament are you running, Kaiba! Can't you see—"
The guard ordered him off, "Sir, if you don't stay off the platform you will be disqualified from the tournament as well."
"What!" Jou said, but he scrambled back to the ground regardless, not willing to risk disqualification. Yugi stood stock still on his end of the platform, eyes on him.
"Let me make this easy for you, Yugi." Kaiba said from the side. "Attack. Use your Egyptian God Card and finish him off."
Yugi stood straight, one hand on his Duel Disk. He was going to choose winning the duel. Ryou closed his eyes, the pain of seeing the true value his friends put on him more painful than his aching body or bleeding arm. He felt grateful when control was gently taken away again. He didn't want to feel the pain anymore.
He felt it the moment his body was beyond him because his injuries were only ghosts of what they were in reality. He lifted his head. Before him stood a demon in his body. The look-alike was standing strong, arms outstretched as though shielding Ryou from Yugi. Ryou knew that he was only a spirit at the moment, but he was surprised that the other had allowed him to remain conscious.
The voice of Bakura carried over the platform. "I'll admit that I lost this Duel, Pharaoh." He said, his voice cold but amused. "Now why don't you attack and finish it."
Yugi looked surprised, but fierce determination was apparent in his gaze. "Bakura…" He growled.
The spirit sneered, "Don't be concerned for Ryou's health, I won't let him die." He laughed harshly. "Go ahead and attack me, Pharaoh! This body is far too important to me to risk your disloyalty… It's quite obvious that I value my Host far more than any of you. I won't let him die." He repeated.
The words were like a whip, lashing across him. He hated the way they rang as truth.
"I will attack." Yugi declared. "Slifer, attack Bakura's Life Points directly!"
The great red dragon's mouth opened wide, and a stream of hot white energy burst from its maw. Bakura laughed, arms still outstretched, as the light hit him full force. The energy flooded around Ryou's still huddled spirit form, never once touching him as he knelt in the protected shadow of the spirit.
As the spirit lost consciousness, Ryou found his mind darkening as well. In moments, Yugi, standing triumphant, the dark playing field, all his so-called friends, faded away.
Ryou woke to find himself in spirit form in a small room. On one wall was a window, looking out on a tall tower. A cabinet, chair, small nightstand, and bed were the only forms of furniture in the room.
His eyes fell on the still form lying, unconscious, in the bed. Himself. He stepped over to look down on his body. It looked so relaxed, so calm and trouble-free. Ryou wondered if he'd ever looked like that in reality.
A second spirit appeared beside him. "We have some unfinished business to attend to, Hikari." The spirit said, examining the uninhabited body.
Ryou sighed. "What are you talking about, Bakura?" He mumbled, remembering the way the spirit had protected him during the duel. He remembered the way Yugi had been willing to risk his health for victory's sake.
"Don't try and lie to me, Ryou." Bakura began. "I know you feel betrayed."
Ryou didn't answer at first. He just stood there, looking down on his own empty body. The fresh waves of pain and hurt that he'd felt, watching the debate between friend and victory, echoed over him. His eyes closed, and he nodded just barely.
Bakura turned Ryou so that they were facing each other. "Your friends decided that your safety wasn't convenient for them." He said.
His resolution and faith in his friends cracked. He nodded again.
"Say it, Ryou." Bakura said coldly.
"Yugi…he…he wasn't willing to protect me. He would've let me get hurt to stop himself from losing." Ryou's voice broke.
"And who protected you, Hikari. Who took the blow?"
He shook his head. He didn't want to say it. He didn't want to recognize that his protection had come from this demon. He didn't understand why Bakura was bringing this up in the first place unless…. Suddenly Ryou remembered. He remembered a dark night, sitting alone, helpless, in his home. He remembered how the spirit had made so many accusations against his friends, Yugi and the rest, and he hadn't been able to stand hearing him degrade them. He'd believed so firmly that they were true friends, and they wouldn't abandon him like the others.
He'd bet his life on it. He'd just lost the bet.
A smirk crept onto Bakura's face, and Ryou felt his crumbling belief, his dying faith, his wavering resolution shatter into a million pieces because the demon had been right, and Ryou had been wrong, and he had staked his free will on his friends' loyalty. The loyalty they had just proven was weaker than the desire to win a game.
His knees collapsed, and he once again crumbled to the floor at Bakura's feet. "I told you that they wouldn't stay forever. I told you that your world would be shattered. And it seems I was right." He knelt down in front of Ryou. "Time to stop fighting, Hikari."
Chocolate eyes locked with dark red-brown. "But I can't." Ryou choked, tearing away his gaze and turning his eyes on his recovering body. His vision blurred as ethereal tears threatened to fall. How could he have actually thought that his friends would be there forever? Why had he put his trust in them?
Bakura's grin widened. He clearly enjoyed winning Ryou's free will more than he was disappointed in his defeat on the platform. It was worth it to him. "Do you need me to remind you of the terms you agreed to?" Bakura said softly, not waiting for an answer. "You agreed that if your friends ever, even once, turned on you…that if they even once decided that you weren't in their best interests, then you would throw away all this pointless denial that you've been sheltering yourself in and you would stop fighting me. Remember?"
A tear slid down his cheek and Ryou hastily wiped all of them away. "I remember." He said quietly. "I know, I know, I know." He whispered over and over. He wished he could reverse time; tell his friends something, anything that would make them see that he needed them. He needed their loyalty. Couldn't they see what they'd done? Could they ever understand the extent of the consequences of that decision on the duel platform? Too late now. It was done. He had to stop fighting.
"I'm sorry." Ryou whispered, to himself, to his father for driving him away, to Amane for letting her cross the road alone, to his mother for not listening, to Yugi and the rest for the danger they had inadvertently put themselves in through him.
He felt so broken; like that blow from Slifer had shattered his entire world. He looked back up at his body, peaceful, calm, empty.
Bakura's spirit form disappeared, but still Ryou's body remained uninhabited. Ryou sat silently beside his empty vessel, wondering vaguely why Bakura was waiting. Then it registered that the Millennium Ring was missing. Of course, that's why they were barred out of his body. There wasn't a pathway into it.
After some time, Ryou didn't know how much, the door slid open. He barely looked up as Anzu walked in, holding the Millennium Ring. What was the point? He couldn't fight for control, he'd seceded that to the demon. In any case, he'd known the Ring would come back sooner or later. Bakura appeared once again beside him, waiting.
Anzu placed the Ring beside Ryou's body. It glowed slightly, and with a smug grin Bakura disappeared. Ryou saw his body shift; saw the eyes that weren't his anymore open.
He closed his eyes, turned away so he didn't have to see that distorted version of himself, and, not knowing if he'd ever resurface, not knowing if he ever wanted to, Ryou let his mind fade away.
Just by way of information, the dialogue from the duel was taken from both the Japanese and English Dub versions of the show. And, though you probably figured this out, Ryou doesn't really know about the whole Marik-trying-to-take-over-the-world stuff. All he knows is he's dueling Yugi and Yugi isn't willing to lose the duel to help him, hence his feelings of betrayal.
The last one, called Mending, should be out soon. Look for it!
REVIEW PLEASE! (It's my only payment)