{-Merodi no Takai-}
Chapter Three: It's Like This

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Notes: Yeah, currently in Florida. Actually feels nice writing somewhere else. ^^

(The following information is about *this* chapter only!)

Pairings: One-sided Malik/Yami (Yami's side), Otogi/Jounouchi
Song: Michelle Branch [Leap of Faith]
Point of View: Yami
Genre: General/Humor/Angst

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I watch as Ryou and Yuugi go to their rooms while Anzu, Shizuka, Jou, and Otogi head off chatting about going to the swimming pool. I stand back with Malik, who still looks kind of confused. Oh...I suppose Mind Breaking that waitress was a little drastic, but damn her! She was flirting with _my_ Malik! There's no way I will let _anyone_ touch what's mine.

Yes. _My_ Malik.

Well, he's looking at me expectantly now. Oh, right. I'm supposed to be in charge here. Umm...I guess we could go back to our rooms and do...whatever. Okay, that's what we'll do.

"You want to go with them or come back with me to the room?" I ask casually, trying not to sound too nice. He shrugs.

"I'll go with you. All this walking has me kind of tired." he replies. I hide a triumphant grin. Yes!! He'd prefer to go with me, the one that he hates, back to _our_ room rather than go with Yuugi's friends! Score one for Yami...And yes, I am actually keeping track of this. So far, I have...one point. Oh well. That's good enough for me.

I lead the way to the elevator and press the 'up' button. We wait for a while before it opens, completely empty. Good. I really don't feel like being squished in some modern transportation device at the moment. We step in, this time Malik standing more closer to me than I would've thought he would be willing to. I like. Anyway, the annoying lift thing (the elevator) makes that dinging noise and the doors slide open.

I keep my face neutral and walk out with that 'I'm-a-pharaoh-and-so-much-better-than-you' look on my face. That's the expression I used to wear all the time in Egypt. It made the servants quiver. I have no idea why. I mean, do I really look that scary? Hot, but not scary. We arrive at the door, where he opens it. Both Malik and I rush in and close the door. He collaspes onto the bed, eaglespread. Oh, Ra. Did he _have_ to lie down in that position? It gives me very dirty thoughts...

I blush and dig through my duffel bag, pretending to look for something. No, I should really get something to distract me and get my thoughts off that hot Egyptian...Okay, okay. Oh, look. My notebook. Yay! I take the poor ripped, tattered notebook out, along with a red pen. On the cover it says 'Yami's Book of All the People I've Defeated'. Yeah, I was kind of high when I wrote this.

It's a book that records every person that I've ever defeated in _this_ life. That's actually a lot. Of course, I'm the King of Games and have only lost once, so there are supposed to be a lot of people I've defeated. I sit calmly onto my bed, being cautious not to look at You-Know-Who. I turn on the reading light and open my book. First page. Ushio. Damn bastard. Heh. I wonder if he's still seeing money...Heh. I'm such a mean yami. I flip through it, reading my notes with amusement.

The-Guy-I'm-Crushing-On comes over and looks over my shoulder without me knowing. When I do notice, I hastily flip past the page with him on it. I _really_ don't need him to see that. I drew hearts and random thoughts about him all over that page. Erm, I hope he didn't see. If he did...oh, Ra, I don't even want to think about it.

I snap out of my thoughts when I hear a snicker behind me. I blink and look at the page the notebook is open to: Oh, look. It's...Mariku. Oh, I see what's so funny now. I wrote: Mariku, Malik Ishtar's yami. The guy who cannot get enought gel.

Hey, it's true. I mean...look at him! Well, actually, I should talk. My hair is a little wild too...But still! At least I have Malik laughing. Actually, he's rolling around on the hotel carpet at the moment. I blink. It wasn't _that_ funny. Sheesh, he's laughing silently and clutching his side right now. I blink again. Is he okay?

...Probably not.

I look away from him and continue flipping through the book.

***

Yes, rest assured. Malik has stopped laughing. He is now lying on his bed, reading a book. It's in Egyptian, but I can' t read it. It's _modern_ Egyptian. Stupid modernized world. What was wrong with "Ancient" Egypt? I mean, back when I was a kid, life was so simple! There weren't any stupid microwaves or ovens or cars--all this technology junk. And it's so difficult to figure out too.

All right, I'll stop complaining about the modern world. But I won't stop being a stuck-up egotistical pharaoh. O_O Where the hell did that come from? I'm not egotistical...Am I?

Okay, I don't even want to hear the answer to that.

I shoot a glance at Malik, who's staring at a photo that I think fell out of the book he was reading. He closes his eyes, then opens them again, a smile playing on his lips. "Lost innocence..." he whispers softly to himself. "So pure back then..." I blink, not exactly understanding what he's talking about.

Lost innocence? He's still innocent...he's still pure. At least to me. Those are only two reasons of why I love him so much. He's never seemed 'stained' or 'tainted' to me. I've never told anyone, but I have a firm belief that Malik is the purest of all the three hikaris. Yes, even more innocent than my own Aibou...Both Yuugi and Ryou may seem innocent and pure on the outside, but I think that they have some mark of us yamis on them. Malik...he doesn't seem to be like Mariku at all.

At least to me. He's been through the most out of all of the lights, yet he's stayed innocent. I know a ton of people who would disagree immediately. But I believe that there are some of us, me, Isis, Mariku, and Rishid, that know that Malik has never been stained. Not after his father's death, not after being taken over by Mariku completely, not after being forced to hold all the secrets to my past...

He's always stayed innocent. And that's the thing that's unique about him...the thing I love. No matter how much he goes through, he always has and will remain what a hikari truly is--the purest of the pure, the most innocent of the innocent.

He sets down the photo on the bedstand between our beds. I look at it and instantly take a mental picture of it in my head. That _has_ to go in my soul room. It's an adorable photograph of him embracing Isis, the older girl's arms around her brother as well. Malik looks about eight or nine. He must have not known about the Ritual back when he was so young...Maybe that's what he means about being 'so pure back then'.

So he thinks that he's been stained...

Well, Malik...you're wrong. You have always been pure and innocent. Even if you don't know it.

***

I watch him sleep, looking even more adorable. You probably think that I'm crazy for keeping on calling him cute. But it's so true. I mean, those beatiful lavender eyes, his nice tan complexion, the locks of platinum blonde hair that just cascade down his shoulders...Oh, I want to feel those strands of golden hair so badly. Call me crazy, but I'm in love.

His chest heaves up and down and his lips are parted slightly for breathing. Shimatta...why does he have to look so vulnerable when he's asleep? It feels like he's trying to lure me in, trying to get me to...*blush*

I take a breath, turn off the light, and hesitate. Should I sleep in his bed...or should I not? Ah, what the hell. I'll do it. I just have to make sure that he doesn't wake up before I do and find out that his enemy is next to him and had been for the entire night.

***

I stir slightly, registering that I have my arms around *him*. My crimson eyes snap open in shock and I stare in horror at well, him. I start to pull away before realizing that he has his arms around me as well. My eyes widen even more, if that's possible. I start to slip away slowly and carefully, but he moans and pulls me back against his chest.

O_O -- That's how I look right now. I'm also nervously sweating. What if he wakes up now? What would he do? Oh, Ra, anything but that!

Oh. My. Ra.

Why the hell did I just do that?

Me, Yami, former pharaoh of Egypt, Mou hitori no Yuugi...I just kissed him. *Him*, Malik Ishtar, the Sennen Rod owner! I have no idea what just go into me, but I enjoyed it. And I want to do it again. I'm leaning in and...

Oh, shit! He's stirring. I dart away, having no idea how I was able to escape. Oh, well. The world may never know. Or care.

***

After I finish my 'morning duties', I quickly put on my shoes and escape the room. Once out in the hall (after having locked the door), I let out a sigh of relief. The door across from ours opens, revealing a dressed and fully ready Otogi yelling at a rushing and panicked Jounouchi. "Jou-chan! Hurry up! You don't want to miss it, do you?"

Miss what? Breakfast, probably, considering that Jounouchi is very...Jounouchi-ish.

"Of course not! I'm trying to hurry! Stop yelling at me, koi! I have to get my pants on!" Jounouchi yells back, sounding angry. I know he's not really mad. It's kind of game that he and Otogi play. A contest for who can make the other the angriest. I find it all dull. If you finally got to even _have_ a koi, why would you want to spend all your time arguing?

Of course, I don't have Malik (YET!), so I can't really say anything. But still.

Otogi turns toward me and waves, a playful look in his eyes. I nod to acknowledge his presence but do nothing else. I walk calmly to the elevators, pausing only slightly to wait for the elevator doors to open. Then comes the trip down to the first floor this time, where I spotted some café the previous day. I enter, fully aware that I am the only customer in this entire restaurant. Kinda creepy if you actually think about it.

I sit down at a small table and wait calmly for a waitress to come. Well, it's a waiter, 'cause it's a guy. I'm glad about that. I'd like to spare as many minds as I can. If anyone tries to hit on me like THE waitress from yesterday...

Let's talk about happier things, all right?

"What would you like today, sir?" he asks. I blink stupidly.

"I haven't gotten a menu yet."

The watier is a short green-haired kid. Wearing pink. And yellow. Kami, that looks horrible. Anyway, the kid slaps his forehead and runs back to the counter, only to come back with a menu. Then he runs back into the kitchen. I blink confusedly for a couple of seconds, then shake it off. Some people are just so weird. Like me. Heh.

Jounouchi, Otogi, Shizuka, and Anzu walk into the store, chatting in that annoying noisy way that they do. At that moment, the waiter-kid runs to them. "Hi, may I help you choose a seat from our wonderful collection of...chairs?"

Hey! How come the punk didn't help _me_? I'm better than those four! Better at dueling, better looking, better at being a pharaoh...Why not me? No fair.

Jounouchi grins and cuffs him on the neck. The kid winces in pain. Neh, poor kid. I know how that feels. "Heya, Roba old buddy!"

The kid blinks. "Niisan!!!" he yells.

"What?" comes an answer from behind the cashier. Someone who looks awfully familiar steps away from the barrier, walking calmly and with a smile over to Jounouchi. "Jounouchi! Long time no see!" he exclaims. At least the older kid who just came out is dressed better than his brother. Or I _assume_ that's his brother. And usually, when I make assumptions, I'm right.

I think.

"So what are you doing here at Kaiba's resort?" Jounouchi asks. Roba (that's what Jounouchi called him, right?) shrugs.

"You know, job and all."

"What job?" Anzu asks.

Roba blinks in confusion. "I own the restaurant." he says, sounding like it was completely obvious. And actually--it was. I looked at the menu. In fancy script on the cover were the words, "Esper Café". Well, that was easy.

"YOU DO?" Jounouchi exclaimed.

"Kakkoi!" Anzu chirps. Roba shrugs as if it's nothing.

"It's nothing. But I'll treat you guys to breakfast." he says, smiling.

"All right!" Jounouchi and Otogi exclaim in unison.

Shizuka looks down at Roba graciously. "Arigatou gozaimasu!" she says. He grins.

"No problem."

Jounouchi looks around the room and I quickly cover myself with the menu. Heh. Strange that he didn't notice the menu that was standing up by itself with some colorful hair behind it. Oh, well. Not that I'm complaining. I don't _want_ to eat with them. Or rather, associate with them at all. I want to eat with Malik.

Fat chance of that happening, ne? *sigh* I know. But there's not hurt in wishing, right?

SQUEEE!! Here he comes now! Maybe the hopeless wishing really _did_ help! Note to self: Make hopeless wishes more often. Jounouchi yells for him to go over to their table for free food. Roba has turned pink by now and I'm not quite sure why. Malik simply ignores the other blonde, however, and smiles at me.

I melt on the spot, my cheeks turning pink and my heart beating quickly in my chest. Oh, Ra, I want to go jumping around the room squealing like a crazed fangirl. Ugh. No, I do not want to do that. It'd hurt my pride and dignity. No, Yami, you do _not_ want to do that! Hn...but I suddenly have a strange urge to glomp him.

He stops at my table, grinning down at me. Why is he smiling like that?

KUSO!

Does he know that I kissed him this morning? Is he mocking me, in his strange and twisted way?

I certainly hope not...*shudder*

"Can I sit?" he asks. I snap out of my thoughts to glance up at my crush. And, great, I stutter.

"Uhh, yeah, s-sure!"

He sits down and asks Roba for a menu, which he gets fast enough. "So, uh, Pharaoh, any plans with the others today?" he asks casually, as if we were close friends. I shrug.

"Nobody invited me to anything." He nods slowly and hesitates.

"You want to come to the pool with me?" he says. I stare at him, non-believing for a few seconds. Me? With Malik? In the pool? With him topless? How could I refuse such a kind and generous offer? Plus the fact that I'll get to see him without his shirt. Yum...

Do you think Yuugi's habits are rubbing off of me?

"All right!" I practically yell. Then I calm down. "I mean, sure. Thanks...uh, for the offer. Yeah." Damn it, I sound so...girly. But I don't care, because I'm going to the pool with *Malik*!

__________

Right there--
And I'll be waiting by the window for your smile to come through,
and I'll be waiting in the darkness when I call out to you,
and I'll remember when you told me,
I could trust in you-

And it's a leap of faith,
when you believe there's someone out there,
it's a leap of faith when you believe that someone cares, oh,
and when I call out to you,
will you be right there-

It's a leap of faith,
and I believe that you are out there,
it's a leap of faith and I believe you truly care, oh,
and when I call out to you,
I know you'll be right there,
right there,
and it's a leap of faith.

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