AN: Now skipping all the way to after the trip to Egypt. I'm trying to keep them in character as much as I can, but if I slip up, forgive me OTL. Anyway, if there's anything anyone would like to see in future chapters, ideas are always accepted ^_^ Enjoy~
Ryou Bakura awoke that morning in his own body, in his own room, with a sense of relief. It had been so long since he was there, that now it seemed almost as if he was being overwhelmed with nostalgia. Often times he'd find himself waking up in his gloomy little soul room, the hospital, an alley; if he was lucky, he'd end up on the couch. All thanks to that damn thief, he thought with a sigh. Ryou rolled on his side and pulled the blankets tighter around himself. Even though sunlight was streaming through the nearby window, he didn't plan on getting up anytime soon. Besides, now that he had his life back, he could do whatever he wanted.
However, he wasn't able to be content just yet; such a task was difficult with the spirit of the Millenium Ring lingering in the back of his mind. Truth be told, Ryou still felt betrayed. He manipulated the boy at first with tales of the past and the promise of friendship at the beginning, but as time went on it became more apparent Ryou was nothing less of a tool to him. He only saw me as his vessel...that's why he protected me, stood up for me..got tired of me, Ryou thought sadly.
He shook his head; there was no reason to worry about it anymore. Two days ago while on a mission in Egypt, he ridded himself of his demon at last. The spirit would get what he deserved, and Ryou was satisfied with that. That was then - two days ago. If Ryou felt the weight of the world lift from their shoulders then...why should his heart feel so heavy?
He jolted from his spot at that moment when a sudden knock downstairs startled him out of his trance. "Just a minute!" he shouted as he struggled to get out of bed, which inevitably, ended him up on the floor, cacooned in his blanket. When he was finally able to free himself, he rushed to his closet, dressed himself in jeans and a light blue turtleneck, and made a beeline for the stairs. He reached the door, opened it and greeted the person...
...then wished he hadn't.
Standing before him, now nearly a mirror image, was the spirit of the Millenium Ring.
In his own body.
Ryou trembled as he staggered away from the door. He would've fell backwards, tripping over his own feet, if the criminal had not caught him by the waist. "No! You're not welcome back here!" he yelled, a faint blush forming on his cheeks. He tried pushing him away, but could not. However, Bakura got the idea, and without another word, let his hikari go allowing him to fall. Ryou quickly got back up and was about to slam the door in his face, but the yami already stuck his foot in the entrance to prevent that from happening.
"I didn't follow you all the way here just to be shoved back out on the street," Bakura protested, entering the house. Ryou took another step back where he planted himself in attempt to stand his ground as the taller advanced. At last, he was close enough that the teen could feel his warm breath washing over him.
"Please...just..leave," begged the younger, "Haven't you already done enough damage?" Bakura smirked and lightly stroked the boy's cheek, causing him to shiver.
"The amount of damage I can cause would never be enough," he purred into Ryou's ear, "but wouldn't you much rather know why I came back?" Ryou gulped before responding with a hesitant nod. He didn't want to be used anymore, but he needed to know why he would go to the trouble of reconstructing his own body if he were to return to Ryou.
Gently, Bakura held the boy's chin and stared directly into his sweet chocolate eyes. The smaller whitette gasped then noticed the antagonizer had dropped his infamous smirk. "I came back for you. Gaining all Millenium Items is a lost cause now..but I'm not letting you go," he stated firmly. Ryou winced. Just who did he think he was? Stubbornly, the little hikari slapped Bakura's hand away from his face. The yami, for one, was stunned; he had no clue that the boy would ever dare to make such a move.
"You don't own me, so don't think you're going to come to my home and try to control me!" Ryou told him fearlessly; though truth be told, he was terrified on the inside. The ex-spirit of the ring narrowed his eyes and growled.
"That's not what I meant, dammit!" he snapped. Ryou pouted and folded his arms (more like held himself), barely glancing at the other. A sigh escaped Bakura's lips, and rubbing his temples, attempted to explain, "I'm not here to control you...I'm here to.." He paused for what seemed like a while, "...to get you back." With Ryou staring at him bewildered, he cleared his throat and finished, "I want you to be mine again."
Almost anyone else might've melted at these words, but coming from him, Ryou remained solid. He really did have some nerve; betraying him then showing up at his house with a confession like that. He had to have another plan up his sleeve that involved skewering his hikari's trust - At least that's what Ryou thought. "I'm not buying your act. Besides...I was never 'yours' to begin with. When you were in control, you kept me locked away in my soul room, alone and forgotten. After a while, you barely made contact with me at all, and when you did, all you did was taunt me. Well, now that I've got my life back, I no longer want you in it. In fact I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd leave." He turned his back on Bakura, silently praying he'd leave.
I did what I had to do to keep you safe. Granted, I'm not the best person there is and didn't always treat you right, but allowing you to get in the way would've been worse, the thief reminded himself. Ryou's prayers ended in vain; instead of walking away, Bakura got closer and wrapped his arms securely around his fragile frame. "Reincarnation's a bitch," was the first thing he murmured. Ryou rolled his eyes, but the intruder went on, "Whatever, I'm gonna come out and say it: thousands of years ago, we weren't just friends, yanushi, we were more than that. Much more." He released his hikari whom in turn, faced him again appearing surprised.
"You mean we were-but I would never!.." Ryou protested, but was soon interrupted by Bakura's snicker. "What's so funny?" he insisted. Bakura simply shook his head and eyed him with a crooked smile.
"You know you really haven't change much at all. Oddly enough, you still have the same name, you're still kind hearted, still cute, still an overall beautiful person, but still with that 'prince' attitude." He stopped momentarily to watch Ryou's face turn a shade of pink. He ended his statement by saying with a shrug, "I also thought taking your virginity in your past life would've helped you remember me in this one."
"You WHAT?" The boy shrieked, his face now a bright red. Bakura couldn't help but laugh, which made him caught off guard that very second as Ryou tackled him to the floor. Ryou tried to seem as threatening as possible -which was a rather amusing sight-, earning a smirk from his darker counterpart.
"I'll tell you right now, if you think this isn't turning me on, you're making a mistake," Bakura warned him. Flustered, the whitette scurried off of him, but sat a foot away.
"I don't want to be with you just for your sexual pleasure, either," Ryou said, still blushing. The yami propped himself up and smiled half-heartedly at him.
"I didn't expect you to. However, would you want to be with me if I did this?" He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny box. Presenting the object to Ryou, he opened it to reveal a quartz ring with a topaz stone; the inside graving read 'Eternity'. The lighter was speechless, but Bakura continued, "I may have done you wrong in the past, however, I've always needed you. You are the light to my darkness, and without you, I am incomplete. All I ask is that you give me the chance to make you see...that I can be your everything."