A/N:

Elfie - Thank you for the review! While I'm flattered to think you may have thought I owned that Tumblr, I'm not associated to it at all. I'm just very much inspired by it - in fact this chapter here was written in tribute to it. c:

It was a stupid idea. Doing this, opening the program. Which wasn't going to work, obviously. Computers didn't work that way, opening up entrances into other worlds.

It was stupid.

All the same, Malik found himself sitting down at his laptop and typing in the code.

initiating

download complete - launching GHOSTBOX

The screen went black, white letters filing across it. Malik's computer gave a low hum, as the program started up.

"This is stupid," said Malik, leaning back in his chair. Light from the computer flickered across his face, turning the tanned skin sickly.

welcome to GHOSTBOX . By launching this program user MALIK ISHTAR has opened communications to all devices within L ectoplasial meridians. Continue?
Y or N

Okay. That was a little weird. Malik leaned forward, narrowing his eyes at the screen. This was the first time that he'd used the program, had just downloaded it seconds ago. There hadn't been any chance for him to enter his name.

"That stupid kid must have put it in here." muttered Malik, angrily pressing down on the Y key. "Ra forbid Ryou give me something he hasn't already fucking hacked to bit."

search for entity
by name by type

Malik paused for a moment, thought things over. Then he clicked on the option that gave him a chance to type in a name - he wasn't about to make this easy on Ryou, the lying little rat bastard.

enter name
MALIK ISHTAR
Y or Y

"Oh, that little fuck!" That wasn't even an actual choice! What if someone else had sat down, and was just using his comptuter?

2 entities located by name MALIK ISHTAR. Specify type.
human other

This time, Malik hesitated. Not because he thought that GHOSTBOX was going to work, not really. Just because he always did, when he thought about his other half.

Then, he clicked on 'other'.

engage communications with MALIK_ISHTAR(L)?
Y or N

No, Malik had no intention of speaking with Mariku. This wasn't going to work, so there wasn't any point in even going through with it.

He clicked no.

The screen went black.

Then white.

Then, Malik heard it. That laughter, unmistakable and manic.

"Hello, hello, hello!" called the voice, distant and scratchy. Like it was being filtered through a tunnel, surrounded by electricity.

Malik's chest went tight, fingers curling against the edge of his desk. "What the fuck."

"I can hear you..." came that voice again, but there was less static around it now. "Breathing...talking...thinking...I can hear it."

"What the fuck! What the fuck are you doing here? Y-you can't be here!" said Malik, using his feet to push himself away from the desk. The wheel of his chair caught on a rug, wouldn't move, and the unmistakable feeling of being pinned in place was there.

Like hands, all over his body.

"Did you miss me, Cactus?" asked the voice again, and now it was clear, like Mariku was whispering in his ear.

A shudder ran down Malik's spine, and he shook his head, bangs falling into his face and covering his eyes. "No, I didn't fucking miss you! Where the fuck are you?"

Mariku laughed again, that demeaning, insane sound echoing through the empty room. Every word that was spoken appeared on the screen of the laptop, in black writing. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. You only get one question, Mr Main Personality. Are you suuuure that's the one you want? I could tell you so much. About us. About you. Isn't it time you -"

Malik drew back, flattening himself against the back of the chair. One hand flew up, pressing against his mouth, staring at the screen with those wide lavender eyes. "Shut up! Just...go away! I don't need you anymore!"

"How mean!" trilled the voice, then it laughed. "And how predictable! Leeching off of everyone you can until they've outlived their usefullness, and then...you just toss them aside! Like trash! Like a piece of shit! You haven't changed at all!"

"No! I have-" Malik was cut off by the voice, louder now.

"Yes! Yes! Evil, evil Malik! And who knows who you'll drag down with you next? Perhaps..." here Mariku paused, thinking, planning, already knowing what he was going to say. "Your new friends?"

"My...friends?" echoed Malik. It took a moment to sink in. Then he was flinging himself forward, hands gripping the screen of the computer, because Mariku couldn't do that! Not now, not again! "Stay away from them! Don't you dare-"

A sharp bark of laughter, and Malik swore that fingers were brushing against the side of his neck. "Calm down, Cactus. What will they think if they hear you? Yelling in a room all by yourself. Tell you what. I'll answer your question, and then you can go back to playing house. What was it now?"

The screen went black. Then Malik's original question flickered across it, in block letters.

user MALIK ISHTAR asked MALIK ISHTAR (L):
where are you?

Then it shut down. The computer just turned itself off, with it taking the only light in the room. And in that darkness, Malik knew.

Could feel the hands, running over his body. Across his shoulders, along the side of his neck, fingers trailing across tanned skin and leaving goosebumps in their trail.

"As if you didn't know." muttered Mariku, breath ghosting over his other half's skin. "I'm right where I've been all along."

"No," mumbled Malik, closing his eyes. "You aren't here!"

Those fingers rested against his cheek for a moment, soft and reassuring. And then they dug in, nails ripping at flesh and pulling it away, blood spilling down tanned skin.

"I'm right underneath of the surface!" screeched Mariku, and then he yanked and the flesh pulled away, all but melting under his touch, until bone was showing, white in the otherwise dark room.

All Malik could do was scream.