Being the spawn of Marik can have it's perks, but it mostly comes with a bunch of downsides.
(a drabble? ficlet? thing that takes place in the conspireboyz universe. In this universe, everyone has their own bodies, and Ryou, Marik, Bakura, and Melvin all live in an apartment together. And did I mention this was an abridged fic?)
"Okay, so, you want me, Melvin, to hang out with these people that hate me, so they hate me less?" asked Melvin as he walked down the street with Ryou.
Ryou nodded, "That's the idea. And I wouldn't say they hate you, per say, hate is a pretty strong word."
Melvin couldn't help but roll his eyes, before saying, "Fine, they don't like me. But, can you really blame them?"
"No," Ryou hesitated, "But all of that is in the past; I'm sure they'll be willing to forgive and forget."
"If you say so," Melvin sighed. They walked in silence for a few minutes before he asked, "What are we doing again?"
"We're going to be playing a Monster World campaign!" Ryou said excitedly.
"Isn't that the game you make those little figurines for?" Melvin asked.
"That's the one!" Ryou beamed, "I think you're going to really like it. It's got monsters, and magic, and loot. Plus, it's really fun to watch your party grow more experienced as they traverse the land."
Melvin couldn't help but smile. It was adorable the way Ryou got s excited over something so nerdy. He was such a big dork. "That does sound fun," he nodded, "But how long will it take? I thought these campaigns took a long time?"
"Usually, yes. But I wrote this one to be a little bit shorter than normal, since this is your first time, and the last time I played with Yugi and them..." Ryou trailed off, slowing down a moment to reflect. "Well, let's just say it... wasn't the best of times."
Melvin wanted to point out that he knew what happened, but he thought better of it. Ryou was not one to dwell on the past, and bringing up that painful memory would not be a good start to the day. "I'm sure this one will be much better though!" Melvin said, trying his best to reassure his friend.
"I'm sure it will be too," Ryou nodded, "And, if it is a total disaster, we'll just have to keep a stiff upper lip!"
"Yeah, that," Melvin agreed hesitantly. He then tried to figure out exactly one went about making their lip stiff, which resulted in a face that made Ryou giggle. "What?"
"Oh, nothing," Ryou chuckled. About this time, they made it to the game shop where Yugi and his grandfather lived.
"Well, here we are," Ryou announced to no one in particular, "Let's get this show on the road."
Well, so far, it had been a disaster, at least in Melvin's mind. They had been there an hour, and they hadn't began the game yet. It all started when Joey and Tristan showed up, ten minutes later than the agreed upon starting time. Melvin has no real strong opinion of Tristan, aside from the fact that he rivaled Marik in terms of stupidity. Joey, on the other hand, was a completely different story. This was the guy he had put in a coma all those months back in the Battle City Tournament. In fact, the more Melvin thought about it, the more he realized that he had tried to kill all of Ryou's friends. But, like Ryou had said, that was in the past. He was a reformed villain now. He never stabbed people anymore, even if they really, really deserved it. Still, it made small talk awkward. As if Melvin didn't have enough problems with interacting with people.
Then, once Ryou was ready to begin, things somehow got even worse. And it wasn't because of Melvin, for once. No, it was because Joey, Tristan, and Yugi couldn't stop whispering to each other and giggling like schoolgirls. About what, only Ra knows, but Melvin suspected it had something to do with Ryou and him, because they kept glancing at them both. This went on for about thirty minutes, before Ryou calmly excused himself to go to the bathroom. But the dull thudding on the wall told Melvin he didn't exactly have to relieve himself.
"Hey, hey Melvin," Joey said once Ryou had left, obviously trying to suppress his laughter.
Melvin looked up from the table. This was the first time Joey had spoken to him since he got here.
"Can we see your Rod," Joey asked, waggling his eyebrows.
Melvin cocked his own brow, before answering, "I, uh, don't have the Rod anymore. I gave it to Marik."
"Oh, so you gave Marik your Rod?" Yugi asked, also trying to contain his laughter.
"That's what I said," Melvin replied, suddenly feeling very warm. Why were they all looking at him like that? Why did they keep emphasizing random words? And why was Joey making that face?
"Oh, I have a question!" Tristan exclaimed, "Did Marik ever show Bakura his Rod?"
That was an easy question, "Oh, loads of times! It was mostly in Battle City, but just yesterday Marik commanded Florence to 'submit to the power of my Rod!'"
The room burst out into a collective fit of laughter, save for Melvin. He chuckled awkwardly, feeling the sweat gathering around his temples, "Yeah, it was pretty silly."
Joey took a deep breath, trying hard not to fall into another laughing fit, "How about Bakura? Has he ever shown anyone his Rod?"
Once again, confusion was evident in Melvin's face, "No? Florence doesn't have a Rod. He has the Ring, remember?"
"That's right!" Yugi said enthusiastically, "How could we forget?"
"Wait wait wait," Tristan said, "We have to ask now: has Marik ever stuck his Rod in Bakura's Ring?"
"That doesn't even make sense," Melvin said, shaking his head, "What good would that do? It's not like they'll fuse together to make a Super Millennium Item."
The room fell silent. Yugi, Joey, and Tristan all exchanged glances, before Joey asked, "Wait, you thought we were talking about the Items?"
"Well, yeah," Melvin said nervously, shuffling in his seat, "What other Rods or Rings would you be talking about?"
The room burst out laughing again. Joey and Tristan held onto each other for support, and Yugi was on the floor, clutching his stomach. "Ah man," Joey said, "Yug, you were right! He really is like Marik!"
As he said that, Ryou came back into the room, a bright red mark on his forehead. "What in the name of buggery are you three on about?" he asked.
"Oh, oh Ryou," Yugi said, trying to catch his breath, "You never told us Melvin was, that Melvin was, was so SLOW!"
Ryou's eye twitched, and Melvin suddenly felt nauseous. He was slow? What did that even mean?
"Melvin, I believe it's time we went home," Ryou said in a level voice, picking up his bag he hadn't even emptied. But Melvin wasn't fooled. He knew this calm was masking a storm brewing inside of Ryou. He just hoped he wasn't on the receiving end of that furry.
"Yes Ryou," Melvin said meekly, falling behind Ryou's suddenly incredibly fast stride. Melvin didn't forget his manners, however. As he was leaving the door, he turned around, bowed, and said, "I hope you have a wonderful day."
Not a word was spoken on the way home. Melvin didn't want to ask what had upset Ryou, or why the red spot on his head was turning a sickly black-blue. He didn't even want to ask what they had meant by Marik's Rod. Frankly, he just wanted to go home and forget this ever happened.
As they rounded the corner onto the street that lead to their apartment, he saw Ryou's fist relax. That was a good sign; it meant Ryou wasn't so angry anymore. They entered the building, took the stairs to the third floor, and walked down the narrow hallway to their apartment. Ryou fished his key out of his pocket, and very mechanically unlocked the door. As they entered the room, they were greeted by Marik calling from the couch, "Welcome home!"
"Thank you," Melvin said for the both of them. He took of his hoodie, and began walking to his room to put it away. Halfway down the hall, however, he stopped dead in his tracks. He smacked his forehead, before loudly groaning, "Gosh darn it! They meant his junk, didn't they?"